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Regardless of Aiden’s intention, I believed I could listen to that man lecture me for hours. He stole my attention. I wanted to hear more of what he had to say, no matter the subject. I just wanted to listen to him. Not to his story. Him. Especially if he looked at me with those passionate eyes and spoke in that deep, smooth voice. It was even and precise, yet authoritative. It was hard to explain. I would follow his every command if he spoke to me in that knowing tone.
No wonder Aiden was the recruiter. Sign me up. So diplomatic and all that.
“Overall, only a fifth of the citizens live in the capital. But they’re consuming forty-eight percent of the food. Financing and providing for our armies alone are a major burden on the land.”
“We need armies.”
“The capital needs armies to protect it from its own people. We’re the only threat to the capital. No other country would dare attack us without elements of its own. Yet rather than make the kingdom a better place with the taxes, the armies are built so large that no one can stand a chance against them. Their fear is not from foreign lands. It is their own people,” Aiden explained. “We have always had peace with the rest of the world. The Ephemaura Ocean provides a barrier from the southern countries. Water Region would never let them approach by sea. Groshania would have to cross the Schuyl River into Air Region. We control the very wind they’d use to sail the ship. Not to mention, they are no match for our air-powered vessels.”
It was all anyone could talk about when they were invented. The pride of the council.
“He’s right. No one would dare attack us,” River continued. “Even without an overly impressive military, the whole world depends on us for their modern conveniences.” She mock-laughed. “Our villagers are losing their livelihoods and living in severe poverty while other countries would go to war to defend us over everflame. How else would they have hot baths?” She laughed again, this time sadly. “There’s even talk of expanding exports to include magical weapons. But that poses a security risk when supplying a foreign nation with weapons that could be turned against us, so I doubt that will go anywhere.”
Adaria was the only supplier of magical inventions in the world. We also supplied healing herbs and tonics. They were infused with healing magic. Our exports and trade were very lucrative.
“If this is true…” I trailed off, not knowing what to think. “Why aren’t more people outraged?”
“We have plenty of outrage,” Aiden replied, adamant. “Plenty of support. More so than are willing to say for fear of their lives.”
“The ones who aren’t outraged either don’t want to believe or they’re benefiting,” River supplied. Aiden side-eyed her, but she kept charging forward. “Adarians are a loyal, prideful people with a lot of allegiance to the king. They want to believe their monarchs and council have our best interests at heart. It’s just not true.”
“They also have a bounty for any information leading to the arrest of a suspected rebel sympathizer or way to take down our organization. They also made speaking out a treasonous offense. That scares people into silence,” Aiden continued.
“They know the society at large isn’t okay with how things are,” River expanded. “They can’t justify their lack of action or cover up that they have done nothing for the people in several generations. So, they point their fingers at us. Look at them! Terrorists, murderers, rapists. They’re the bad guys. Look at them.”
She stooped, shaking her head.
“We are not heretics and fools as they claim,” River continued. “Just traumatized people who are unable to fight for ourselves because those who should be fighting for us— the people who should be protecting us— are the very people we’re fighting against.”
“It was smart,” Aiden reasoned. “Fear, misdirection, and propaganda are powerful tools. They gave the people someone to fight against. Some perceived enemy that isn’t the capital.”
“Even creating the Denailians was a red herring,” E.Z. said over his shoulder, adding to the conversation. “Their protests were receiving more and more attention. The council wanted to change the conversation.”
“They’ve made examples out of us. Simple peaceful protests are made out to be aggressive militia attacks the king was forced to put down,” Aiden lamented. “He pretended that he was forced to protect the land against domestic terrorists.”
“They’re the most powerful men in the country, and their justice has been swift and public,” E.Z. spoke again. “We tried to mediate that, but it was hard to do that and remain discrete. We did what we could. If the council heard of the event, we quickly broke it up before other squads were called in. They did not settle things peacefully.”
“The capital openly praised the military as though they were fighting an aggressive opponent,” River said. “These are people that are defending themselves, if anything.”
“The soldiers have to see what they’re being asked to do isn’t morally right. Why don’t they stand against the king? Wouldn’t morals ever kick in, making them choose to go against commands?”
“Some do, as you’ve seen with us. But people fear pushing back. They have their own lives and families to think about. It has been a slow fight and will continue to be,” Aiden explained.
E.Z. slowed his horse and turned to the side, giving me a better view of the magnificence ahead, and I sucked in a breath at the sight.
From our elevated position, the plains seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see. There was so much green. Rolling hills shimmered in the sunlight, tossed about by the wind. The only break in the sea of emeralds was the dirt path we followed leading to the villages in the far distance. The sky was so blue, hardly interrupted by puffy white clouds. It was a sight unlike anything I’d ever seen before.
The capital didn’t have open space like this, and the surrounding areas were wooded. Here, you could see for miles and miles. We had passed a couple travelers headed toward the capital, but we were the only souls on the road at the moment. There was nothing to break up the brilliance of the sight.
Aiden pulled his horse up next to us, speaking softly. “We have a responsibility to this kingdom, Kaia. We can’t give up. People are desperate. That just means we have to work harder.”
“Can the voices of the many, despite their lack of volume, drown out the loudest few with the furthest reach?” River challenged. “We have to hope.”
Chapter23
Kaia
E.Z. and I were forced to stable the horse upon entry into the Garberon. There was a fair, so the only path to the inn was blocked off. It meant Aiden and River didn’t accompany us to the Inn, as they said they would, taking us only to the cities border.
