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Amaninfinerobes stopped her as soon as she stepped into the hallway.
“Tempest, representative of the goddess of the broken. Please, follow me.”
“Am I not done?”
He shook his head. “That was only the beginning. We have prepared a meal with several esteemed guests.”
While Tempest didn’t mind the change, she was sure that several of the competitors would not be so indifferent, especially without their escorts.
She followed him to a courtyard near the ballroom. A large fountain sat at the center, a carved sphynx standing with wings outstretched. Its eyes were closed, though its lips were parted slightly as if singing, the water spewing from its mouth to a pool at its feet. The feet rested on the edge of the pool, each carved into a different creature: a horse, a lion, an eagle, and lastly, a bull.
Tables with chairs were spread throughout the courtyard with flickering candles in mosaic lanterns at their center. A mixture of jasmine and mint was in the air, an aroma that sank bone-deep and left a sense of relaxation in its wake.
Tempest followed the man through the surprisingly crowded courtyard to a long table. Emperor Aiden sat at the middle with several guests of honor on either side of him. The man gestured to Aiden, and Tempest approached. She bowed as the man announced her.
“I see you’ve finished the exam,” Aiden stated rigidly.
Tempest rose. “I did. Such a simple task you gave us, don’t you think? It’s almost as if there was more to it than the question itself.”
A young man sitting at Aiden’s right laughed. “You weren’t kidding, Aiden. She is a feisty one.”
She took a moment and focused her attention on the young man. Something about him was familiar, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. His face was bright, his hair light brown, and his eyes a piercing blue. He’d dressed in a knee-length tunic with gold trim around the collar. His smile was friendly enough, but his eyes were distant, as if there were thoughts in his head that made him sad.
“Don’t go spilling my secrets, Aeon. Not all of our contestants are as they seem,” Aiden said with a smirk.
Tempest could feel a blush growing and told herself to stop. He was mortal. Nothing could ever come of anything between them other than heartbreak. Her heart must have been tampered with by whatever Fate had done to her. She looked at her hands for a moment before looking up with a perfect smile.
“Now, don’t go spillingmysecrets, Emperor.”
Aiden acquiesced with a nod and motioned to the people sitting near him. “Tempest, meet my cousin Aeon. Beside him are his parents, Grand Duchess Firina and Duke Bok.”
The older couple smiled and nodded at her, to which Tempest responded in kind.
Aiden gestured towards his other side and continued, “These are my grandmothers, Dowager Empress Marigal and Princess Trudin.”
The dowager empress gave her a warm smile. The princess looked Tempest over with apparent disgust, her white hair a stark contrast to her golden skin. Neither looked old enough to be grandmothers, but Tempest assumed that’s what money and connections could get a woman.
Tempest bowed to the table once again. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Her eyes connected with Aiden’s as she rose, and a feeling of safety surged through their connection.
The man who’d escorted her cleared his throat to get her attention and motioned for her to move along. She sent Aiden a small smile and left to join the crowd. She wandered around after her escort abandoned her, trying to avoid the glares and distrustful looks many of the attendees wore. When someone courageously spat in her direction, a small hand grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the way before it could hit her.
“Will you all stop? This is no way to treat a god’s representative unless you are prepared to face their wrath!"
Tempest turned to see who her protector was and was relieved that Sylvia had found her. The two hurried away from the grumbling group and escaped to a table near the courtyard wall.
“Are you all right?” Sylvia asked once they were seated.
“I’m fine, thank you. When did you get so brave?”
Sylvia raised a brow and scoffed. “Brave? No! I’m just pissed off. I hate the gossip of things that people know nothing about."
A waiter approached and placed two glasses of wine on the table, for which the women thanked him. They both reached for the refreshment and took a sip. It was sweet, and yet there was something bitter about it. Tempest rarely drank alcohol anyway, and wrote the odd taste off as her lack of experience.
“I’m glad I have you in my corner, Sylvia. I definitely would never want to be on the other end of your wrath.”
“Oh, you have no idea,” Sylvia replied with a wiggle of her brows.
The two laughed, and Tempest turned her focus on the crowd around them.
