46. Chapter 42
Chapter 42
Caelan
I did not fuck Raven that night. I sent her to her room to sleep alone. The glare Raven gave me as we left the great hall left no question—she was not begging me to fuck her tonight. She was furious and ashamed. Perhaps she felt desire also, but it was tainted. I could wait.
When I entered my father’s office the next day, he put down his quill and looked up from the documents sprawled across his desk. “Come in, come in.”
There was an ease and cheerfulness about him that he’d never displayed to me before. He came around the desk and slapped my back, though he was so much shorter than me, his hand landed rather low.
“Emperor,” I said formally, careful not to fall into the trap of his friendliness.
He chuckled as if he knew his manner unsettled me. “Sit.” He walked back around behind his desk while I took the chair on the other side.
“Let us speak frankly. You prefer it, I think,” he said.
“Yes, I do.”
He snorted. “You and me both, though I’ve rare enough opportunities to do so. Being emperor is a curse, you know.”
I said nothing. I’d often thought the same of being a prince.
“You’ve surprised me, son. I won’t pretend otherwise. An altayr, and powerful enough to fly an Imperial eagle and bring down a lion. When did your magic manifest?”
The question felt dangerous and my limbs tingled. I flexed my fingers, remembering the baby eaglet he'd torn to pieces. “I was eight.”
He nodded. “That’s the standard age, then. You hid it well.”
I said nothing. We'd rapidly gone into dangerous territory.
My father chuckled. "I won't pretend I don't know why. I discouraged your interest in the birds."
That was a mild way of putting it.
“I only wished to show my pride in our family. It was never my wish to compromise the power we hold," I said carefully.
"Which is exactly what would have happened if you'd announced a power Amon lacks. Don't think I don't see that, though you could have told me, at least." My father sighed. "Truthfully, boy, I discouraged you because I thought you weak. I didn't want you in the mews petting fucking birds all day. You needed to toughen up. And look at you. It worked.
“Still, perhaps a mistake. One Havard's power is power for us all.” He snorted. “We need more power in this family. The ancient magic that won Calathan the Conqueror his throne eroded. That’s what they whisper, the damned people. But this proves them wrong. My son—an altayr.” His chest seemed to swell. “An Havard. No doubt about it now. Do you understand?”
I understood only that he was proud of me, perhaps for the first time.
“Talk to me about the traitor,” he said.
“She’s a good fuck,” I drawled.
I expected a laugh, but my father’s eyes narrowed. “Not too good, I hope. Don’t get caught up between her legs and forget what she is, Caelan. She’s a damned traitor. She has the Traitor’s mark on her back, for the Father’s sake. That man almost ripped this empire from my hands.”
“I remember,” I said quietly. His words awakened memories of my nightmares. A sea of a thousand torches and my mother clutching me to her chest. He’ll never let us go.
“You put on a good show last night. That’s what the empire needs to see. A powerful altayr of Havardian blood holding the leash of a slave girl with the name of Rosa.”
I inclined my head, accepting his praise with what I hoped looked like humility.
My father studied me closely. His fat fingers tapped the golden arm of his chair. The seat was red velvet to match the ruby that glinted on his finger. “You hate the temple.”
“That’s a change of topic.”
“No, it isn’t. The topic is your future. Keep up.”
The tingling spread to my chest, but now it was excitement. “It’s not the place for me.”
The emperor nodded curtly. “I agree. A waste of an altayr and a soldier of your ability. You can serve my crown better elsewhere.”
The excitement grew, my blood growing hot. I tried not to fidget in my chair. “The dragon—”
My father held up a hand to silence me. “The companies I sent have reached Archeon and will set out imminently into Los. Scouts already report that the dragon has been joined by a party of demons. They travel with it and protect it.”
“How large a party?”
“Unknown. The information we have was pried from some itinerants near the river. They knew that men had gathered but not much more. Here’s the funny part. They’re actually bringing the dragon to the river. You’d think they’d want to hide it from us until it was older, but apparently they’re leading it right to our fucking door.”
“It’s coming for Tanead,” I said immediately. “Raven—” It still felt strange to use her true name “—says the beast will Bond only with Tanead, for it was his mother who threw the egg into the Firecaps. It tracks his blood.”
“Then his capture was even more of a boon.”
I hesitated a beat, then followed my instincts. “I lied to you when I reported on his capture. I defeated him with Arbaaz. I brought the eagle down to take out his eyes, like Calathan did once to Archeon.”
My father’s eyes sharpened. “You can fight a man and wield the bird at once?”
“Yes.”
“My son,” he murmured, seemingly to himself. Then, to me, “Hopefully you won’t need such skills where you’re going. But bring the eagle anyway. Make a show of him, and of the girl.”
I frowned. “In Los?”
“You’re not going to Los. You’re going to the Blood Lakes.” My father glanced at the door. It was still closed. The walls on either side were hung with heavy tapestries to stifle sound. “The Father-damned demons and their dragon are not my only problem. Irfan Najjar has reported a string of incidents in the Blood Lakes province. He sent a messenger with this." My father reached behind his desk to retrieve a scrap of fabric. His lip curled and he tossed it as quickly as possible, as if it were poison to touch.
My heart dropped into my stomach at the sight of a black wing tip. Even so, I smoothed the fabric out to see the full shape of the raven that had been dyed into it.
“The Traitor’s flag.”
“Freshly dyed,” my father confirmed. “It was carried by a raiding party who attacked one of Najjar’s caravans. They left it flying over the carcasses of the guards they killed. The caravan was well-armed, protecting tax offerings from Najjar's nobles around the lakes.”
“They took the grain and the coin?”
“Of course. Rebellions are expensive. They need funding. This will be phase one.”
Phase one…my mind reeled. “The Blood Lakes are deep inside Vaharilar. Najjar has always been loyal, and from all reports I’ve heard, he’s a strict but fair master to his people." He was also my uncle by marriage, having wed my mother’s younger sister, Konstantina Hagos. The marriage was a gift from my father to the loyal lord after the Traitor’s Rebellion, along with the Blood Lakes, which he now ruled along with his original territory, the Borderlands. "If the flag flies there…” I continued.
“Don’t forget, the Blood Lakes were once ruled by the Traitor himself. Before I repossessed his lands, he sat in the seat I gave to Najjar. If there’s anywhere in Vaharilar where men are still loyal to his fucking memory, it’s there.”
My stomach dropped out. "When—"
My father's grimace answered before he did. "The flag flew after gossip about the Hunt reached the Blood Lakes."
That meant that Raven's emergence at court had set this into motion. I should've seen it coming. She was the spark that lit the kindling. If we didn't tightly control this, soon, a fire would rage.
“How many companies will you send?”
“None. Three squads.”
I shifted in my seat. “With respect, Emperor—”
“You think it’s not enough, but that’s because you don’t understand rebellion. Armies are good for fighting other armies. They fight monsters they can see. But a rebellion in its early stages has no monsters you can see. It’s just whispers. Rumors. Promises made in back rooms. You send an army in too soon, you only incentivize more common folk to join the damned cause against you. The men behind this flag won’t show their faces until they’ve gathered enough of a force, and I’m not keen to help them. Trust me, son. I’ve been here before.” He clenched his jaw grimly.
My father never spoke about the Traitor’s Rebellion. Emotions flashed in his eyes as he relived it now, and they were more complicated than simple rage.
As for my own emotions, they’d settled down into something akin to pleasure. Dealing with rebels in the Blood Lakes region was not some unimportant diversion. It was at least as important as hunting Asherah.
“How may I serve?”
His fist hit the flag on the desk. “Root them out! Publicly execute any rebels you find. Use your bird—he can pluck out their eyes. Scare the common folk who have yet to pick a side. Listen for whispers at Najjar’s court.”
“You think a lord in Najjar’s court is organizing the peasants?”
Calathan shrugged. “A lord of some court. Probably my own. It’s always a lord of my court. A bit of advice for you, son: You want to know who will stab you in the back, look at the person closest to you.”
My blood buzzed with nervous anticipation. This was more responsibility than I’d expected and I wasn’t sure I was ready for it. To lead fighting men against a dragon—sure. But to go into a powerful lord’s court as my father’s official representative and tease out the subtle under-workings of a rebellion…well. Let’s just say political machinations had never been my strong suit.
“Father, I must ask. Though I’m honored you would entrust me with this, I do wonder why me.”
“You mean because you’re piss at politics?”
It was a strange relief that he knew what I was really asking. “Yes.”
“Rebellions aren’t about politics. Not really. They’re about power. What men want and what they think they can take. Show them that they can take nothing that’s yours. Show them the Traitor’s daughter on a leash and remind them they have already lost. The blood of House Rosa has fallen and the blood of the Havards is still strong. We still rule. Our time has not passed.”
I knelt, inspired by his words. Pride flooded through me. For the first time in my life, I felt like my father saw me.
Raven won’t like it one bit, a voice whispered, but I ignored it.
“I will prove myself worthy of your trust,” I promised.
“Yes.” The emperor pressed his palm down on the flag, his knuckles white. “Do that.”