Chapter 8
CHAPTER EIGHT
The underbeast hummed with latent magic as it powered along beneath the ground through the enormous tunnel which had been carved so deep into the ground that no Fae other than one blessed with the magic of earth might ever hope to find it.
I tried to appear relaxed in the plush chair I rode in, this beast having been decked out for the upper echelon to use as transport and was far more lavishly embellished than those which had transported our armies to the battlefield.
I had felt like I’d been holding my breath for the entire duration of the battle that Earl Tarlord had entered into with Pyros, leaping from my seat every time a messenger brought news from the field to the horned table, sagging with relief every time the tidings were good.
My husband had seemed even more on edge than I had, professing tirelessly that he should have been out there, swinging his own sword on the field.
But his curse and the potential value of the information which remained locked inside his mind had meant that he’d been forbidden from entering the fight, much to his chagrin and mine.
The match between us had been for my name and his prowess in battle. What use was he to me all the time he could offer nothing more than empty promises of vital information and countless nights of whimpering over his endlessly flaccid cock?
All of the fantasies I had once dreamed up about the man who now claimed me as his wife were being dashed to pieces day after day and though there were many reasons I could find for the failure of my fantasies to have become reality, I chose to favour one.
The Sky Witch. After all it was far easier to make her a target for my ire than it was to start making a tally of Alestro’s failings.
And it appeared that despite the victory Earl Tarlord had won in Pyros, her death still eluded her.
The underbeast titled skyward and I suppressed a gasp as I was pressed back into my cushioned seat, my fingers curling around the handhold which was bolted to the wall.
“Nervous?” August hissed, leaning forward in his seat behind mine so that he could speak into my ear, a string of his greasy hair falling around the edge of my headrest.
“Not at all,” I replied calmly. “Just excited to see what our Earl has achieved.”
“Yes, yes, it will all be very impressive,” Alestro grunted from his place beside me, his words those of a petulant child. The boils and crusted scabs which covered his skin looked as angry as ever even though he had made no attempt to speak of his secrets in the last few days.
I glanced at the other Fae who rode the underbeast with us and clenched my jaw.
Didn’t he know we were on parade? Didn’t he understand how hard I had worked to earn us a place on this machine?
He hadn’t once praised me for the lofty position he found our standing in society to be.
I had the ear of the Earl himself and yet Alestro caterwauled like an infant denied the finest treats.
“We have been so anxious to see the new province, haven’t we my dear?” I crooned, giving Alestro a sharp look and placing my hand on his thigh so that I could give his skin a hard squeeze in warning.
Alestro huffed irritably and pushed himself upright.
“I would recommend you return to your seat,” August called after him. “The incline will increase sharply soon and–”
“I am well aware of how this mode of transportation functions, thank you,” Alestro clipped, striding to the front of the underbeast where its metal panels would open like jaws to allow us to exit at our destination.
“Come and sit, husband,” I urged but Alestro ignored me, clasping his hands at the base of his spine and staring at the exit as if expecting it to open for him at any given moment.
My cheeks pinked at the public dismissal before I forced myself to breathe a laugh and mutter a light comment about the stubbornness of men which thankfully received a few titters in agreement.
“Earl Tarlord’s victory at Cinder Vale will be the talk of The Waning Lands,” I said, turning towards Lady Sharma who sat rigidly in the seat across the aisle from me.
“Indeed,” she agreed primly, though she offered me a warm smile.
Thankfully the court seemed to have landed on pitying me and my husband for now instead of scorning us and though I’d have preferred respect and reverence I would take it.
Pity was an emotion I could build a friendship upon, scorn was far harder to overcome.
“I heard a whisper that our Earl demolished the entire palace already – he intends to rebuild it as a Stonebreaker haven, entirely void of the Flamebringer taint.”
I smiled proudly at that. Our Earl was a man to be feared and respected throughout all of The Waning Lands.
The underbeast veered sharply upward, Alestro crying out in panic as our ascent became almost vertical and he was hurled through the central aisle at speed, smacking into every chair on his way before finally slamming into the luggage which had been strapped into place at the rear of the machine and falling down within it.
He groaned in confirmation that he still lived and I stared in wide-eyed horror at the one booted foot I could still see of his form.
August chuckled behind me and I shot him a glare which he only shrugged at.
“We both warned him,” he said innocently and despite my grave dislike for the man, I had to agree with him for once. Alestro had gotten what he deserved but that didn’t detract from the blow it had given my reputation to see him spinning through the air like a fool.
The underbeast sped towards the surface and there was no way for Alestro to return to his seat with the steepness of the incline, so he remained cursing by the back wall amid the heaped luggage until finally we erupted from the ground and the pale light of day spilled through the toughened glass before us.
The underbeast levelled out on a plain of black lava stone, dawn cresting the horizon to our right and excitement burning through me along with more than a little trepidation.
I got to my feet, smoothing the skirt of deepest russet which hung to my ankles and tapping my fingers lightly across the boning in my corset. My hips had been aching from sitting still in one position for so long but I resisted the urge to stamp my feet and bring full feeling back to my limbs.
The front of the underbeast lifted with a deep groan, the warm, dry air rushing in to greet us, bringing the unfamiliar scent of a distant land with it. But I refused to balk at the foreign nation as I stepped out onto it, raising a hand to shield my eyes from the early rays of dawn.
“Lady Septa,” a low voice rumbled in greeting and I turned to the unfamiliar man with surprise. “The Earl has provided a litter for your arrival in the city – are you ready to embark?”
I looked beyond him to the litter which had been built with a wooden frame, carpeted with twisted vines which had been crafted using earth magic to create a seat at its heart beneath a canopy of stunning wild flowers.
More litters awaited the rest of Earl Tarlord’s closest attendants but the one the man urged me toward was somehow more vibrant, more full of life.
The red and orange flowers which bloomed across the top of it opened and closed their petals like the movements of a flickering flame, a jest at the expense of the Flamebringers whose land we had conquered.
Alestro strode from the underbeast as I was climbing onto the litter, muttering curses about the Flamebringers, and making claims of what he might have achieved in this battle had he been present for it.
I sat carefully in the cushioned seat at the heart of the litter, positioning myself in a way that allowed my muscles to relax at last. I silently thanked whoever had decided to provide this method of transport for us as I looked across the uneven lava field which separated us from the deep bowl which contained the city.
I settled into the shade beneath the repeatedly blooming flowers, running over my plans and strategies in my mind, thinking about all the ideas I’d had for this place and trying to take in everything I could about it to see if any of them might have true merit.
I was determined to prove my worth here, to offer up insights and ideas which our Earl would be able to take into consideration and perhaps even implement.
Just as I was letting myself drift into the daydream of the position I might be able to secure for myself, the litter jolted and I blinked in surprise as Alestro clambered onto it.
“My Lord? The litters are only meant to carry one. We were told the warriors would approach the city on foot. The litters are intended for the advisors,” a guard tried unsuccessfully but Alestro ignored him, planting his ass on the chair meant for me alone and shunting me sideways as he did so.
I hissed between my teeth as a bolt of pain ran down my leg from the impact with his hip but he didn’t seem to notice.
“I could get used to this,” he said with a grin that made one of the boils on his cheek stretch to the point of bursting.
I fought the urge to recoil, trying to look past the pustules which the curse had afflicted him with to the attractive man I had once dreamed of claiming as my husband beneath them.
But it was as if the boils had become a representation of the tainted soul which resided at the heart of him.
His crude jokes and vulgar attitude towards life rankled me, and the nights I spent listening to him curse and cry over his flaccid cock while he pathetically slapped it against my inner thighs in hopes of stirring it to action were only making my animosity towards him grow.
It wasn’t his fault. I told myself that again and again, trying to force my aggravation onto the woman who had caused this curse upon him. But as he shifted his ass to get comfortable in my seat, I found myself grinding my jaw against the words which wanted to pour free.