CHAPTER 55 PUSHING POWER
Kat stood before the council already lightheaded.
She wouldn’t be able to last long …
Especially given that the men before her were more fearful than angry.
“Good to see you all. How do you like the new fashion choices of the ladies here?” She opened with a great deal of forced taunting.
The noblewomen shared looks of confusion and apprehension over her graceless attempt but didn’t say anything.
Meanwhile, no anger could be sensed from the council …
“Godsdamnit,” Kat uttered without trying to be quiet.
At least that made one or two of the men stiffen.
“The lot of you are bloody stupid, you know that? You’re scared of me when I wasn’t able to control myself thanks to being dosed by one of your very own elite knights. I’ve seen men shit themselves when they drink! Well … not really,” Kat added when she noticed her mother shift behind her. “But I’ve certainly heard about it! I get drugged against my will and you think I’m some evil spawn of the world because I didn’t have perfect control of myself under one of the most potent drugs in existence?”
“You tried to kill us!” One nobleman stood from his seat, his hands reaching for the council table that was no longer there, which made him balk for a moment.
“Correction! I only tried to kill the people who tried to kill me first! It was self-defense!”
“What about your father?” another nobleman burst out.
Kat whirled on him, scowling, while also trying to ignore that the room spun for a moment before her.
The fact that she hadn’t slept the night before probably wasn’t helping either …
“I didn’t try to kill him.” The words didn’t sound entirely convincing even to Kat’s own ears.
The councilmen at least weren’t as fearful as they had been at the start of the discussion … but they were more exasperated than angry …
“Your Majesty, is there a reason for this meeting? Our city is being attacked, and there are significantly better uses of our time.” This time it was Duke Siata. The Troivackian nobleman was a hunched, lean fellow with a neatly cropped beard and short straight black hair with white touching his temples that he wore slicked back. While normally a quiet man, his new position of power seemed to feed his self-confidence. Though when he peered around Kat at Alina, her hollowed stare made him recoil instantly.
“Kat, any improvement?” Alina called out instead of responding to the nobleman.
Kat gave an impatient sigh and closed her eyes to evaluate whether she was sensing any change to her magic … Alas. She was not.
“No,” she responded to the queen irritably.
She had known it’d be a long shot, but … it was all she could think of. That being said, she sadly wasn’t able to give it as much of her all as she’d have liked. A free pass to torment her brother-in-law’s inner council? When would such a golden opportunity come again?! However, her weakening state was damning any kind of solid effort she wished she could muster.
A pounding on the council room doors distracted everyone. Surely the enemy hadn’t already crossed the castle’s threshold.
The door opened a crack, and Mr. Kraft’s head appeared. “Pardon me, everyone. Lady Katarina, I believe I have a solution to your … issue. Would you be able to meet me in the throne room?”
Kat shared a brief glance with Alina. “Sure. You’re dismissed,” she called out flippantly over her shoulder at the Troivackian noblemen, which actually did succeed in angering a number of them. While it didn’t seem to do much to restore any of her magic, at least it was mildly amusing.
However, the brief spell of humor was short-lived, as Alina then stepped forward and stared down her small nose at them all.
“Before you go, lords, I have a few matters I myself would like to discuss presently. Though I will do my best to keep it short.”
“Your Majesty, we really—”
“Silence.”
Everyone was shocked when it was none other than Rebecca Devark who had shouted at the men.
Everyone save for Alina, that is, who, quite honestly, looked as though she wouldn’t mind standing in the middle of a battlefield with her eerie, despondent stare.
“While we are preparing the castle in the unfortunate event His Majesty and Leader Faucher’s efforts do not keep the rebel units out, I want to be apprised of what means we are using to defend the castle.”
The men shared dark looks with one another.
“It wasn’t a request. What are the plans for defending this castle?”
“Your Majesty, that is not your role as queen. I understand His Majesty has— YOUR MAJESTY!” One of the lords had begun to argue against Alina, only she had slung the crossbow from her back into her hands and casually started to load the weapon while lining up her shot at the man who dared to defy her.
“I may have been a little too kind as of late, so let me refresh your memories. The day I was crowned, I told you all I would be accepted as your queen or I would sit atop the bones of those who opposed me. But you all have seemed to forgotten, so here is a brief reminder. If you accept me as your queen, as a leader of your kingdom, we will have no issue,” she explained lightly while raising her weapon.
The lord, an elderly man with a mole on his left cheek, stared furiously at Alina while also pressing himself back as far as possible in his chair.
“Your Majesty, I think grief has made you lose your mind—”
Faster than anyone could have expected, Alina fired the arrow toward the new speaker … and it lodged into the chair right beside his left ear, which immediately began to sting horribly.
“Anyone else have something to say that isn’t information regarding our defenses?” she queried while already reloading her weapon with intimidating swiftness.
One or two noblemen rose from their seats as though with the intention of running away from or stopping her.
“Come now, no need to be so squeamish. This is how power and respect is earned here in Troivack. That’s what you all like to preach. I’m merely doing my best to accommodate your lofty ideals.” Alina casually waved the weapon around, and the two noblemen that had stood seated themselves back down.
“Ma’am, surely you cannot condone—” One of the noblemen darted a look at Rebecca Devark, though he faltered when he noticed her shorn hair …
“I condone keeping this castle safe. His Majesty did not marry a fool, and nor did I raise him to be one himself. Now, I, too, would like to hear what is being planned, my lord.” While Rebecca may have lowered her eyes and given a somewhat respectable bow to the nobility before her, the imperial air about her was far from submissive. The council took stock of the group of women that remained behind the queen …
The duchess from Daxaria was carting a weapon of her own, and Lady Kezia was wearing her silver locket, her blue eyes just as disturbingly calm, yet vigilant, as Alina’s …
The fight left a great deal of them.
Sensing this reluctant surrender, Alina gave a triumphant nod. “Wonderful, now, let’s see what you have in mind. I have a few ideas of my own.”
When Kat entered the throne room already feeling her eyelids becoming unbearably heavy, she tried to fathom what kind of solution Mr. Kraft could have come up with, but she found her mind turning sluggish and foggy …
Her feet started to drag …
“Oh, Gods … Lady Katarina, do I have your permission to assist you?” Mr. Kraft moved forward hurriedly, his eyes glinting as he noticed the dying flicker around Kat.
“Ssssure … Myeah. Fine …” she slurred while already zagging from her original trajectory.
Mr. Kraft carefully grasped her arm and guided her along.
Thanks to her declining mental state, Kat was unable to comprehend that there were more people than just herself and Mr. Kraft in the room … until her blurring vision revealed several sets of boots …
“Whasss … Whas going on … ?” Kat tried to get a better look at her surroundings but found that it made her lose her ability to stand. Mr. Kraft let out a small oomph as he did his best to keep holding her up.
Whispers whirled around her … or was she imagining them … ?
“Help her!” Mr. Kraft called out, his voice uncharacteristically impassioned.
“Why should we help her when she is just going to go out and fight alongside the Troivackian army?”
Kat heard someone ask the question to her left … though her head was beginning to thrum with pain. She really just wanted to sleep …
“Because she would save you if you were in the same position! Didn’t she already start the process with her father to allow for you all to become refugees belonging to the Daxarian coven?!”
“We’ve been treated like prisoners this entire time! We don’t owe her anything yet!”
“Arnez, you do realize that if the rebellion and first witch reach this castle, you will be in just as much danger as everyone else, yes?!”
“I don’t buy it! The first witch is probably on her way to save us, and you … You’re just being threatened!”
Mr. Kraft grunted under Katarina’s growing deadweight. “Are you just going to let her fall into this state? She could be unconscious for weeks at this rate! Do you really think Daxaria and its coven will proceed with helping you after you turned your backs on their future queen and daughter of the coven’s diplomat?!”
That certainly made everyone pause.
Kat was more asleep than she was awake, but she was at least able to somewhat realize that the people around her must be witches given the way Mr. Kraft was talking to them …
“We have nowhere to go now! The tunnels have been discovered, Troivack is about to battle magical beasts, there is every excuse in the book to slaughter us along the way, but not if we save Katarina Reyes!” Mr. Kraft insisted as his knees buckled underneath her weight. “Celeste! Please, won’t you help her? You like Lady Katarina.”
The air witch was quiet.
But then … a slight movement behind one of the other witches distracted everyone.
Pina, Lady Katarina’s familiar, was trotting forward to her witch, her eyes wide, her nose twitching uncertainly.
The witches swallowed uncomfortably as they watched the sweet feline move to her witch, her head lowered in concern as she approached.
Mr. Kraft, unable to keep supporting Kat, did his best to set her down gently on the floor.
Kat’s eyes were already closed, and her every limb became limp …
Even when she felt Pina’s nose press into her ear and her tongue worriedly lick her hair, Kat couldn’t bring herself to stir.
Pina kept bumping her witch’s head and nuzzling her cheek, trying to get her to respond … Then she let out the most heartbreaking mew.
Mr. Kraft, still on his knees, stared at the circle of witches around them. There wasn’t a single person present who didn’t feel immensely guilty as they watched the distressed kitten try to rouse her witch.
A few even started to feel their throats tighten …
Several witches looked away, as the heartbreaking scene of the kitten becoming more and more distressed by the state of her witch was bringing tears to their eyes.
“When did we start turning our backs on one of our own?” Mr. Kraft’s voice rasped.
He no longer seemed like the refined man he had always presented himself to be … His eyes always bright with knowledge and sight no one could understand had dimmed … His grizzled cheeks, his unwashed long hair, and the deep exhaustion lines in his face humbled his appearance greatly. He looked up at the five members of his coven, broken.
“Lady Katarina … has fought harder than anyone I’ve ever met to protect others. To be stronger. To be better. To bring … light to this world. I was afraid of her power when we first met … but … I see now … she simply had too much goodness that she didn’t know what to do with it, and so it came out in ways that didn’t truly show how great she was. She has supported the Troivackian queen, yes. Not because she is power hungry, but because Her Majesty Alina Devark is her best friend that she loves dearly. She risked her life to face the devil to save her husband. She keeps diving headfirst into any situation if someone needs help. Even when she learned of your desires to go to Daxaria, she did what she could to start the process. You should all be ashamed that you refuse to offer her aid. There … are few people I’ve ever met who deserve to have an army fight with her. I believe Lady Katarina fights for the goodness in life. For fairness and the balance that the Goddess wishes for us. I have faith in the burning witch. She should be who we follow to brighter days, but should you decide to keep dwelling in the darkness of our history … then I can’t make you help her.”
The witches stared at the redheaded woman on the floor and her sweet familiar …
“We just … have to throw magic at her?” It was Celeste’s quiet voice that broke through.
Mr. Kraft gave a weary smile at the young witch. “Yes. A small amount at first, but I think if we keep casting at her, she can regain her power. She feeds off it. Like a raging fire.”
“What strange abilities …” one of the witches murmured while shaking her head. “Well … I’m willing to give a small amount.”
Mr. Kraft smiled at the witch and slowly pushed himself to his knees. “Thank you.”
“Fine. I’ll help too, but only because I’m getting to Daxaria no matter what.”
“I’ll throw as much fire as I want at her, and no one can get angry? Might be fun …”
Mr. Kraft felt his heart swell, and so … he crouched down and held out his hand. “Come here, Pina. I think it’s time we healed your witch.”
The familiar looked uncertainly at the coven leader and then at Kat. After taking a brief moment of consideration, she proceeded to make her way over to him.
Once Pina was safe in his arms, Mr. Kraft proudly looked around at the handful of the most powerful coven members under his command. It finally felt as though they were doing something worthwhile … not just hiding underground, trying to weather a storm that would never cease.
“Celeste, could you please start with a light wind?”
The air witch bobbed her head, sending the white strands of her bangs swinging.
She held out her hand and released a subtle gust at Kat, who lay perfectly still on her back.
Nothing happened other than the rustling of a few loose wisps of Kat’s hair.
Mr. Kraft felt dread claw at his throat.
“Again.”
Celeste obeyed, but … still … nothing happened.
Pina looked at Arnez. The man with straight brown hair that brushed the back of his neck had golden eyes that were amazingly like Katarina’s … The kitten mewed at him.
He smirked at her. “Guess the familiar thinks we should break out the strongest power!” Arnez pushed his sleeves up, his expression turning excited and hungry.
“W-Wait— Arnez, wait!” Terrified, Mr. Kraft stepped forward just in time for Arnez to cast a stream of fire right at the redhead, his eyes shimmering in the light of the flames as he relished in releasing his magic…
“ARNEZ!” Mr. Kraft roared as he flinched away from the heat, his arm coming up protectively to cover both Pina’s and his own face.
Gods … what if Lady Katarina was burned alive?!
The second the flames disappeared, Mr. Kraft uncovered his eyes.
“ARNEZ! I SAID TO EASE INTO—”
Kat coughed, snapping everyone’s attention to her …
Her eyes slowly opened, and she stared at the ceiling. She still looked tired and pale, but … she was awake, and better yet … her aura was emanating softly around her.
“Lady Katarina, are you alright?” Mr. Kraft called frantically from the sideline.
“Er … Yes? I think … ? Whoever did that, can you please do it again?”
Arnez stared dazedly at Kat on the floor for a moment before a manic grin broke out across his face.
“Lady Katarina, I have to confess … You’re starting to grow on me,” Arnez chortled affably.
Weakly, Kat lifted her thumb in the air. “Glad to hear it, whoever you are … Also … If anyone else wants to jump in, feel free … That might be the most efficient way to help me along.”
“Won’t that possibly kill you?” A woman asked from the opposite side of Arnez in the circle.
“Eh, who’s to say? Now, how about on the count of three. Ready?”
The members of the Coven of Aguas stared at each other with vague humor in their eyes and wry smiles.
Well … At least helping the future queen of Daxaria was going to be a little bit interesting …