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“Right,” I said, giving him a quick hug. “Get home safe. Thanks for getting us in.”
“Go to the renewal center, Marcus is waiting for you there. We’re counting on you, Emily. But whatever happens, we’re on your side.”
April and I walked for nearly fifteen minutes across the citadel, which seemed more spread out than I remembered. It was easy to keep the renewal center in view; it rose like a thorn in front of the palace, on a raised plateau above the city, but we kept getting sidetracked by narrow alleys and thin bridges. I wished I could just jump onto the roofs and sprint across them like Damien could.
Finally we cut through a park of roses and statues, to a steep flight of crisscrossing stairs, which we took us up to the perimeter wall, and followed it around until we were at the wide marble plaza in front of the renewal center.
“Shit,” I said, hearing voices. I wanted to duck into the bushes, but April grabbed my arm and led me closer to the crowd.
“Blend in,” she whispered. “People are here for a reason, standing around will look suspicious.”
The renewal ceremony was packed, with lines wrapping around the building like a noose. Even at this early hour.
“What is it?” April asked.
“It must be Sunday. Or something. Or Nigel has changed the date of the renewal ceremony.”
The sun broke above the walls, cutting through the city and glinting off the bronze towers of the renewal center.
“What should we do?” April asked.
“They know my face, but they don’t know yours,” I said. “Can you find curate Marcus? Will you recognize him?”
“I think so. I mean, I’ve known him since I was twelve. But not if he’s all dressed up in whateverthatis,” she said, pointing at one of the curates standing between a pair of guards by the door.
I tried to think back to when I’d first met Marcus here. I’d run away from him when he approached me, but I don’t think his costume had been this extravagant.
The curates wore bright purple and white robes, carrying silver chalices like they were divine relics. A crowd of them came around the corner, carrying something between them, and the lines parted and began to file in behind them. They held sticks of incense, with bells on their fingers and beards pulled into geometric shapes.
A few of the curates were even more dramatic, with tightly braided piles of hair on the top of their heads, pinned with gold ornaments, and gold bangles around their wrists.
I glanced at my wrist, looking for the device April made me. I’d already had two drops of elixir, one this morning before leaving and one just before the gates.
“You’ve still got that thing?” April smiled.
“It’s useful,” I said. “And I kind of like it. Damien gave me one made of diamonds, you know? This one suits me better. Duct tape, colored plastic. Do you want some elixir? If we need to fight, or run.”
“If we smell like elixir before the renewal ceremony, that’ll be suspicious. The rest of them haven’t had elixir in a week.”
“Oh, right,” I said. My stomach fluttered nervously. But the sun was out, which meant the elite shouldn’t be. And nobody else should be able to smell that well.
“Are there always this many guards?” April asked. I scanned the crowd, picking them out. A few were in resplendent armor and red capes, standing at attention around the major entrance points. Not far away however, I could see small bunches of five guards evenly spaced around the cathedral—just close enough to intervene if there was trouble.
“Nigel’s probably just paranoid,” I said. “This is his first renewal. They canceled the last one, out of respect for the king. It’s got to go smoothly, no fights, no theft or attacks. He’s probably worried, especially with all the refugees.”
“That’s why it’s so crowded,” I realized, talking to myself. “All of Algrave is here, too. And he can’t do anything about it, unless he moves the ceremony to this evening.”
“Why doesn’t he?” April asked.
“Because that’s his crowning. Probably wants everyone feeling happy during his ceremony. It’s a promise that he can take care of them; that the traditions king Richard set up will continue.”
“So why didn’t we just bomb the renewal center? I mean before all these people were here.”
“He’d just turn that into another excuse to seize power, blame it all on us. Look at them, they only skipped a week and they’re desperate for more elixir.”
We walked past the entrance towards the other side of the building, but all the entrances were tightly guarded. Outside against one of the walls, a slideshow of images was being projected against the wall of the building, showing the ceremony inside and then a series of photos of King Richard.
The next image showed a large, clear picture of King Richard in his royal attire, with his crown. Building the compounds and the citadel, early construction projects, shaking hands and kissing babies. The last image faded and was replaced by one of Nigel, though it must have been taken earlier, because he still had both eyes. We allowed ourselves to be swept inside by the line of people, passing directly between the guards. I held my breath, keeping my head down, but nobody moved to stop me. Inside the curates hustled to give the sacrament to each person before escorting them towards the exits, balancing pomp and ceremony with crowd control.
