The Horned King: Zalig: Book One

1. One

I”ve worked for this day my entire life.

I”ve earned this.

And now that it”s here, I find myself dreading it.

Countless sleepless nights have led me here, from when I first began my education to when I spent every waking moment campaigning.

Rhyma is the only nation in our world that elects its officials based on merit and not power, and I have earned my spot among them. Nothing can change that. But that all means nothing in the face of the dread growing in my stomach.

Mich has been carrying on for what feels like hours about his new station and what he promises to bring to our nation for the duration of his term. Starting today, we”ll both dedicate six years to this work, helping Rhyma move into the future with a clear vision of what its people need to thrive and grow.

I was given my seal during the transfer ceremony roughly an hour ago; I haven”t stopped twirling the ring on my finger since it was placed there, considering all that led to this moment and all that”s to come next.

Since they announced my name as the Ambassador for International Relations, an entirely new position in our government colloquially called the AIRhead, I knew exactly what that meant. And in the following weeks, my fears were confirmed.

They”re sending me to Oksangui.

When Oksangui”s King Rivchi passed— was brutally murdered— six years ago, the plotting had begun. Nothing could be confirmed, of course. But the hope was that the new king would be more open to negotiating a treaty than the last. Thus far, though, his only response to our missives is the senders in body bags.

The Horned King, they call him. And for good reason. He took the old king by surprise, storming the castle in a helmet made from past victims” skulls fused to an elk”s antlers. With a handful of his allies and an army of the dead, he tore through the building, adding to their ranks along the way until—

”Whether Zalig or not, I pledge to serve you all equally,” Mich utters, breaking me from my thought spiral, and I barely contain an eye-roll. That”s the job. You don”t get extra praise for doing the bare minimum. ”While this position was not my first choice, I”ve come to see that it”s the place where I belong. Here alongside all of you.” His eyes are on me, and try as he might to hide it, we both know he was furious when I was elected to this position and he was chosen to stay here.

The fire in his blue eyes chills me to the bone. Long gone is the boy I idolized growing up. Now, he”s replaced by the kind of man who can only care for you if you stay in your assigned place. And my assigned place is beneath him— both metaphorically and decidedly not. Declining to sleep with him a second time might have been a forgivable offense if I had not then taken the job he had his heart set on.

I”m tempted to cower underneath that stare, to look away from how his hair nearly glows golden in the bright sunlight. The skylights above us seem to amplify the sun”s rays, turning him into some unearthly thing, like an ancient god full of fury, and all of it is aimed at me as he says, ”And now, we”ll hear from your first Ambassador of International Relations, Elva Aistin.”

The crowd around us breaks into applause at the end of his rousing speech, giving us an excuse to look away. The cadence of it speaks to how much they adore the walking facade before me. But if I reveal what I know, then they”ll all know what I”m capable of, and I”ve worked too hard to have the legitimacy of my position questioned. While there”s no rule against my kinds of powers being a part of our leading body, those who have already been serving for years recommend we keep our abilities secret from the masses for their own sake.

”Your turn,” Mich tells me, patting my shoulder with just a touch too much force, jostling me in my seat. I clench my teeth to hold back the vitriol sitting on my tongue.

I smooth down my pants, a gesture I”ve perfected over the years to dispel some nervous energy. Then I stand, approach the podium, and face the people I love so much.

My dearest friend, Alya, stands before me and gives me a wink. When I begin speaking, she uses her gift of sound manipulation to ensure my voice is heard throughout the coliseum and by those standing just outside in the common area of our capital, Drechire.

”Hello, everyone. I can”t tell you how grateful I am to be standing here before you. Over the years spent training, I”ve met so many wonderful people. You”ve shared your concerns, your ideas, your guidance. I”ll never be able to thank you enough for gifting me with that kind of trust, and for electing me to be the one to represent you in meetings with our allies and our possible allies.”

Mich scoffs beside me, and a few in the audience chuckle. Possible allies. Everyone knows I”m speaking of Oksangui and its mad king. Every other nation on our continent has agreed to the peace and trade alliance proposed ten years ago. A slight smirk appears before I can tell it not to, the feeling of being part of an inside joke with an entire nation completely overwhelming.

”As some of you may know, I”m going to be making the journey to our neighbors to the east,” I try to swallow my fear, ”Oksangui, to meet with King Laichnek and negotiate terms-”

The room fills with disbelief and outrage. Shouts of how he”s going to kill me the second I cross the border, screams of what a monster he is.

I try to speak over them and assuage their fears, but their voices far overpower mine. A shrill whistle fills the room, echoing off the walls and causing many to cover their ears to escape the onslaught. Once the coliseum is silent, Alya winks at me again and gestures for me to continue.

”I understand how you”re all feeling. I know our short history with their new king has not been easy, but I”ve been assured that he”s willing to take a meeting with me. We”ve received word that he agrees to our terms of my guaranteed safety for the entirety of my time in Oksangui, or else he invites war with us and all of our allies.”

Silence fills the gaps between my words. Even with all five of our neighbors fighting alongside us, there”s no guarantee we could win against the king and his army of the undead.

”His response is better than any we”ve had from him thus far, and we hope that it means he”s willing to work with us, all of us, to better our entire world. The kind of power he wields does not determine what kind of man he is, nor does his abrupt ascension to the throne. We are in no position to pass judgment on how another nation passes the crown from one head to the next.”

A few heads nod before me, begrudgingly seeing the truth in my words. Others stand stoically, staring at me as if they”re simply ready for me to be off to the painful death they believe awaits me.

”Once again, I”m so grateful for the opportunity you have given me to correspond with those who live outside our borders in your stead. I vow to do so with empathy, with an eye on the future, and my heart here with you.”

Cheering sounds once more, the people before me giving me their blessing with whistles and shouts of praise. I can feel my cheeks pulling into a smile, unable to stop it. For just a moment, I let myself bask in the joy and hope surrounding me. With a final wave, I exit the podium and return to my seat beside Mich.

”Lovely speech,” he tells me, though his tone sounds more like I hate you.

”Thank you, Mich. Yours as well. The people love you.” I hate you more.

With that, the number of pleasantries we can feign for each other reaches its limit, and we sit in polite silence, listening to the other three officials entering their new roles give speeches.

When we”ve all said our piece, there”s a banquet. Finally. I”ve been starving for hours. I couldn”t eat before, or I would have thrown it up as soon as all those eyes were on me. Once we”ve been excused from the stage, I head straight for the bar.Public speaking nearly always pushes me to drink,and today,even more than usual.

I don”t thrive in front of large crowds. They”re overwhelming and suffocating.Small groups and individual conversationsare where I really shine, whichI supposeis perfect for the role they”ve given me.In aweek”s time, a representative from every nation on our continent will be meeting for the first time in centuries.

And we”ll be doing it on territory that is technically enemy land. The reminder pushes me to take the sweet and sour drink all the way down, immediately reaching for another.

”Slow down, El, damn.” Alya walks up behind me, ”You did great up there.”

I sigh, ”Thanks. I thought I was going to puke half the time.”

”I promise no one could tell.”She places a hand on my shoulder, ”Let”s go get something to eat.”

I nod and follow her silently. As we get to our table, waiters are ready to serve us, their handsalreadyfull of a beautiful medley of colorful vegetables and tender meat.The warm spice hits my nostrils, and Ibreathe out a sigh ofrelief at finally being able to eat.

As I take my seat and attempt to bite into the decadent meal before me, a voice halts me, ”So it”s really true that they”re sending you to meet The Horned King?”

I place my fork back on the plate, severely mourning the bite I wanted to have. ”Yes, it is true. We”ve been in communication with King Laichnek, and he seems very enthusiastic about the meeting. The hope is that we find a treaty that benefits everyone.”

”Why should we care what benefits a man who killed for his position?”another woman asks. While the question was directed into the air above her and not at me, Ifeel theneed to answer it anyway.

”King Rivchi also killed for the position. As did the king before him and the queen before him. It is simply the way things are done in Oksangui.”I fight to keep my tone level, lest I show the impatience I have for their judgment, ”For as long as anyone can remember, the transfer of power has been anything but peaceful.”

The old woman counters, ”Yes, well, that”s what happens when you let the Zalig run everything.”

”We have Zalig in our government, just as we have those without magical abilities,”Alya reminds them. ”Magic or not, good leaders are good leaders. Don”t you agree?”

While the words may have been a question, the tone she used to ask leaves no room for an incorrect answer, sothe old woman breathes out her frustration through her nose and primly answers, ”Yes,”just to end the uncomfortable conversation.

”Are you terrorizing my favorite ladies again, Alya?”Mich sidles up next to his twin, gifting the two older women in question a dazzling grin.

”I wouldn”t think of it, Mich. We were having a lovely discussion, in fact. Weren”t we?”

They trip over themselves to answer. ”Just lovely,”one of them says, and the other coos, ”Your little sister is just wonderful. How lucky you are to have someone so spirited in your family.”

Mich grins, his genuine affection for Alya blooming. ”I am quite lucky to have her, yes. Though I believe she”s even more lucky to have me as a big brother.”The women fall intofits ofgiggles, fawning over the man before them.

Alya and I laugh, too. Though for different reasons. She may love her brother, but even she knows what an insufferable ass he can be. And I... well, I”d be just as happy never seeing him again. But we do what we must while in the public sphere, so he and I pretend we”re old pals, and soon enough, we”ll be over 1,000 miles away from each other.

”Remind me when you leave, Elva?”he asks, having the same thought process as me.

”First light tomorrow.”

”So soon?”Alya”s face drops. ”You were just appointed.”

I take a deep breath before answering, ”Yes, but it”s been in the works for weeks. The last month and a half of my internship was working with Tati to correspond with King Laichnek.”

”King Kairon Laichnek.” Mich whistles, ”Already has quite the reputation. How many dead bodies has he sent back with his letters?”

”Four,”I grit out. ”But when we wrote that we would be happy to send a representative to discuss terms in person, he was more than willing to cooperate. From that point on, there have been no more... morbid messages.”

Mich chuckles, bringing a drink to his lips. ”Well, I”m just glad it”s you and not me.”

I don”t bother pointing out the lie. I”m about to change history, change lives.Or die trying, I suppose.But Mich will be stuck here, away from it all, andhehates it.

One of Mich”s nameless fans gushes, ”Oh, it is too bad. While I don”t doubt your negotiation skills, Miss Aistin, and you”re certainly lovely enough, there”s no denying that Mich”s charm is without match.”

”Oh, I agree wholeheartedly. There”s something about him, isn”t there? Fits into every group. He”s like a chameleon.”While they miss the jab for what it is, Mich does not. His jaw pulses, and Ihold back asmirk before excusing myself, ”While I hate to leave a party early, I have to prepare for tomorrow.”

”Come now, El,”Mich swallows another sip, the previous drinks already making him languid and foolish enough to make another pass at me. Whether we like each other or not, he likes to conquer, and I”m the one thing he hasn”t succeeded in dominating. ”Don”t you want to celebrate what might be your last night among the living?”

Not with you.

”Give her a break, Mich,”Alya slaps his shoulder before standing, ”Come on, I”ll walk you home, El.”

The walk home is silent and somber, both of us unwilling to face the possibility that we won”t see each other again. We practically grew up together. We were in the same class through primary and secondary school, in the same housing unit in tertiary school, and attended some of the same lectures. And she was by my side, helping with announcements during myentireinternship.

A week and a half without her may as well be a whole lifetime.

”It”s going to be fine,”she tells me. ”Why would he go through all this just to change his mind?”

I shrug, ”Don”t know. In his letters, he seems friendly enough.”

”You”ve read them?”she gasps. ”I thought maybe some of the cryptologists were just letting you know what they say.”

”No, I”ve been in charge of reading and replying, readying for this moment. With oversight, of course.”

She bounces on her heels, ”So what is he like?”

Running a hand through my hair, I answer, ”He”s straightforward. Polite. Nothing... frilly or unkind. Certainly not terrifying.”

She nods. ”It must be so strange to live in a kingdom where you never know who will be in charge or when. I bet they”re all stoic like that.”

”That would make sense,”I tell her, rounding the corner to my new representative housing. ”I”m going to miss you.”

”Psh, you”ll be back before you know it. Come here.”She wraps her arms around me, nearly squeezing the breath from my lungs. She can put on a brave face, but her trepidation, resignation, and grief are leaking from her pores. Even she is unconvinced I”ll be returning in one piece.

Once she leaves, I let the tension from the night bleed from me—the false cheeriness, the beaming smile. In the comfort of my home, I can finally just be me—not the version of me that my country needs.

So I strip down,take offthe immaculately fitted pants and blouse, and throw them across my lounge chair, leaving me in just my underthings until I can track down my favorite sleeping shirt. It”s on my bed, next to the clothing case I”ve barely put anything into. Once it”s on, I force myself to focus, knowing what I pack will bejustas important as anything I say.

Ihave tobe modest but not prudish, lest I come across as an unfriendly hag.

I have to look pretty but not sexy, or else I risk giving the wrong impression.

Ihave todress well, but not too well, or I might look like I”m bragging about Rhyma”s wealth.

While we do alright, I”d hardly say Rhyma is a wealthy nation. We”vesimplymade great strides forward with trade and combining our talents to create a support system for everyone.Only Oksangui can give us the things we”re missing, namely fish, seaweed, and salt water.

When the lines were drawn centuries ago,we shared the coast with Oksangui and Suva.There was a beautiful array of fish and flourishing trade routes, and according to the history books, everyone thrived, even without a treaty.

But over the years, our coast has simply stopped offering what it used to. The water line changed, turning our coast into deadly cliffs. The wildlife became inedible, and the seaweed and plant life became decrepit and decaying. Now, all that”s left in the water are the starving sharks and wicked Syrens, who will attempt to tear apart anything that goes in, be it a person or any attempt at gathering fish.

Over the years, many have questioned whether the fair folk enchanted our waters or if the witches to the north of us have cursed our people. But our leaders have tried to make peace with both, only to be met with cold detachment and assurances that our undoing is due to our own poison and no one else”s.

What that means, I can”t even begin to speculate.

And now our only choice is to work with the new Oksangui King or learn to live without anything from Mother Ocean.

I”m our only choice. And I”m willing to take the risk that King Laichnek will kill me if it means we and our allies might have a chance.

But that doesn”t mean that I”m not absolutely fucking terrified to meet that myth of a man in twodays”time.