“Aapo, to me.”QueenItzayanacalled.Hescuttled away but gave me one last smile first.Shepulled him into her lap as she sat down near the altar, andQueenXarenisighed.
“Theboy is right.Ourkingdom has both suffered and benefited from its remote location.Ourjungle is impossible for outsiders to traverse, and the river is treacherous on her kindest days.KingAbraxasis one of the few visitors we ever have.”
Shelooked at me, andIrealized she was trying to open up the discussion.
“Butyour army has joined ours; how did they leave if the jungle is—”
“Isaid it is impossible to pass for outsiders,YourHighness.Ourpeople know this land, and they have no reason to fear it.”
Inodded.Idid not mean to offend.ThePearlKingdom'sjungle had not been as dense as this one or as ancient, but the humid air and rich scent of life made my heart ache for a land that held nothing for me anymore.Iwanted the queens to understandIsaw the beauty of this place, perhaps better than most.Nowwas not the time.
QueenItzayanaspoke next. “Ialways did wonder how you managed to visit us so easily,YourMajesty.”
Abraxasgave a casual shrug. “Isa man not allowed to have his secrets?”
“Itseems you have many of those, old god.”
Atthat,Abraxas’ face tightened. “Indeed.Butit is a secret no longer.YourMajesties, we have been allies for many centuries.Yourkingdom has always kept to the oldreligions, andI—”
“Sparedus from your armies and swords.”QueenXareni’svoice was not kind.
“Yes.”Abraxas’ face turned to that icy maskIhated. “Idid spare you; few others received the same kindness.”
“Andnow you have come to collect,”QueenItzayanasurmised.ShepushedAapofrom her lap and stood tall, not shrinking back at all. “Wehave sent our armies to your war front despite advice against it.Wedo not expect to see many of our people again as they will lay dead on a battlefield fighting against an unbeatable opponent.Wehave done this out of mutual respect and…” she paused for several moments.Shelocked eyes with her wife, who nodded. “Anda desire to see the balance of power in this world shift.Butwe have done more than any other, and still, you ask more of us?”
Istepped forward. “Yoursupport thus far has been invaluable, and we come here today because of our mutual respect for you and your kingdom.Butyour kingdom holds something we need.Wewish to come to an agreement.”
Thequeens exchanged glances again. “Speakyour mind,PrincessTori.Whathave you and the king come all this way to claim from us?”
Abraxasunrolled the mapPallashad drawn for us.Shehad added more details to theRiverKingdomand marked the assumed location of the node a few leagues outside the city ofManan.Thequeens' eyes trackedAbraxas' finger as he circled our target.
“Outsideyour city, there is a spring of wild magic, of mana.Weneed to destroy it.”
Thecolor fled from both the queens’ faces.Behindthem, their entourage rustled with panic and annoyance.Thequeens moved away from us, joining them, hushed whispers spreading like wildfire.
Thiswasn’t good.Ilocked eyes with the young prince, whoremained seated behind the altar, away from his mothers.Heheld his body tight, clearly upset by the arguing.Igave him a soft smile, and he looked away shyly, butIsaw a grin spread on his face.Iscrewed up my eyes and stuck out my tongue, and he gave a soft laugh.Itwarmed my heart and calmed me.Ineeded all the calmIcould get.
Thequeens turned back to us, their posture tall and proud.Thisdefinitely wasn’t good.
“Youspeak of the cenote, one of our most ancient and sacred places.Andyou wish to destroy it?Whywould you want to do such a thing?”
Abraxasleaned forward onto the table before us. “Asyou assumed, that place holds power.Yourpeople’s own legends speak of it.Thatpower now feeds directly intoKoron, intoHadeon’smagic.Bydestroying it, we weaken him.”
“Evenif this was true, surely it would weaken our kingdom as well?”
“Howmuch more could it possibly weaken?”Abraxasshot at them.
QueenXarenishook. “Iexpected more from you,kuhul ajaw.Youshould know better than any other that while our access to magic has died, the earth’s still remains.Ourkingdom flourishes as we have protected it for centuries.Weare not separate from our earth, as so many others so foolishly believe.Sheis our mother, the great womb of us all, and you wish to maim her.”
“Ourpower would grow weaker,”QueenItzayanasaid. “Whileyours would grow stronger.Donot think we don't see this,KingAbraxas.Youposition yourself well.”
Atthat,Abraxasgrowled. “Letit be said here and nowIhave no desire to rule this world.”
“Thenwhat is your goal?”
Hadeon’sdeath.Thathad always beenwhatAbraxasdesired, above all else.Revengefor his people.Hadeon’sfather had started the war against the dragons, and his heir finished it.
Iwanted it, too.Formy mother, forJun’ssuffering, and forPallas’.Foreveryone who had suffered underHadeon’scruelty.Ithad become more than that.Ineeded these queens to see it.
