Chapter 148: The Pronouncement

The Aelheim Coliseum was a grand structure located at the eastern edge of the Thalos District. It would have been one of the most impressive things I had ever seen in this world, if only I hadn't seen one just like it, bigger and grander besides, in Myrrheim. The tunnels here were lower, and as we walked out into the stands, I could actually make out the seats on the far end without any help from my Gift at all. In Myrrheim, they had been little more than blurs.

Still, it was impressive. For that stadium had been nowhere near full. This one had seats packed with people as far as the eye could see. From the little reading I'd done, this place held about twenty thousand on the rare occasions it filled. This was one of those occasions. And it wasn't just humans, either. I saw the occasional Beastkin, or Dwarf, or the even rarer Elf.

"Fuck me, I can't even hear myself!" Violet said, her eyes wide and bright as she looked around. She was right. She'd been loud, and I had barely heard her either.

A cordon of Karr guards surrounded us. Five of them, forming a loose circle around me, Violet, and my father. Everyone with the appropriate rank to warrant a security detail. Well, us and Sere, not that they knew that. Damian was not with us. As members of ducal houses, Violet and I had to be present for the pronouncement before we could join the other fighters. He was already somewhere far below, preparing alongside the rest of them. Lucky him. No matter how much time passed, I would never get used to so many gazes.

The Karr led us up the many rows of seats. People gaped as we passed, mouths hanging open and conversations dying mid-word. Everyone in this stadium knew that their newest Hero had signed up to take part in the King's Tournament. I wasn't sure why they were all still so surprised. Then came the prickling of a Scrylens. No, two of them. I never spotted the ones pointed at me, though there were plenty of the devices in this place.

They brought us to a raised booth in the upper section of the stadium. Thick walls and even more of the Karr surrounded it on every side, save for one that was lined with glass. Glass we could see through even from out here. The one at the Auction House had only allowed the people inside to see out. It was a rather odd change. I supposed the Lords of Aelheim wanted to be seen at an event like this. They simply didn't want to be too seen, hence the booth existing at all. These nobles, I was increasingly finding, were strange.

One of the Karr put his hands to the black door that led into the booth. It lit up blue and swung open. He stepped out of the way and bowed his head. "Good man," my father said, and leaned in to whisper something into the man or woman's ear. The Karr slowly nodded, and stood a little taller.

My father turned and gestured us inside. "What was that about?" I asked.

My father just smiled. "I wished to thank him and the others for their work."

I nodded. Apparently the Karr was a "him," though what the secret to telling was, I had not the faintest idea. We stepped inside the booth. There were many seats within, and most of them were already full.

Here sat all the Dukes of Aelheim, arranged in a single row of seats before the glass. Every one of them looked our way as we entered.

There was Duke Wardell, clad in a sharper black than I had last seen him in, seated nearest the door. He sat alone, without his wife or his sons. He regarded us and nodded. The dark circles under his eyes had faded. He didn't even need the makeup anymore. My father approached him and clasped the man by the arm.

Then there were Duke Thalos and Lady Irene, dressed in beautiful, matching purple, a suit and a gown I had not expected either of them to wear. They stood and walked over to us, and I got the very distinct impression that Duke Thalos felt...uncomfortable in his. It was in the way he had risen, so extremely careful, as if afraid of putting a single wrinkle in the fabric. Lady Irene, meanwhile, practically glided across the floor. This had probably been her idea, then.

Duke Thalos gave us the faintest of bows. "A pleasure to have you all join us. Lord Veyne. Lady Indri. Lady Esra." It seemed that I had been demoted to being referred to by name, now that my father was awake. Not that I much minded.

Lady Irene's eyes had lit up the second she'd seen us. She curtsied deeply and smiled at me, then at Violet. "You both look lovely," she said. That was remarkable, considering I was fairly sure she was deeply confused by what we were wearing.

For what we were wearing was simple. I wore a plain dress of Veyne black, silver-blue thread at the collar and nowhere else. Violet wore a plain dress of deep red, without a single piece of jewelry to go with it. There were no elaborate laces on either, and no buttons that needed a second pair of hands. Both had been chosen to come off quickly, because within the hour we would be trading them for the tournament uniforms waiting somewhere below.

Anias had made up for the plainness in other ways. My hair had been pinned back, and my face painted just so. Even the thin pink line across my right wrist had vanished beneath a careful layer of powder. The wrist itself barely hurt at all anymore. As long as I didn't do anything with it, anyway.

"Thank you, My Lady," I said, bowing. "You are too kind. And you look quite fetching yourself."

The woman smiled and turned her attention to Violet. "And Duchess Indri, you look as fierce as ever." From anyone else, it might have been an insult, or light teasing at the least. From this woman, and to Violet, it landed as a compliment.

"Err... thanks," Violet said, looking away from her. "I, uh... try to be." Her face was faintly red. Did this kind of thing embarrass her? I would keep that in mind.

Lady Irene nodded, and then looked between the two of us. As if she expected to find a secret third person there. And perhaps she did. When she found no one, her smile dimmed, just by a fraction. "Come now, sit. There is much to eat, and you will both need the energy. I read that you are taking part in the opening rounds? My word, when I heard that-"

I let her lead us toward the seats. At the very end of them sat three people. There was Julian Greenward, closest to us. He regarded us and smiled. As always, the man was shining with emeralds, though I noted there were fewer of them today than there had been at Violet's Investiture. Now that had been a crime against fashion. He rose, and then he tipped his head. "To the Hero," he said. "And to the new Duchess." This time, he looked at Violet.

His wife rose with him. Lady Seraine Greenward was beautiful. It was hard for her not to be, for she was an older Cordelia that had somehow stayed flawless despite the years. She looked at me, and it felt at once as if she had taken in everything I was and dismissed it in the same breath. It was hard to say how I knew this. Her smile was perfect, one that reached her eyes and was warm besides. Perhaps it was simply because she was so similar to her daughter. She wore a gown of deep green, a single strange gem tracing a line down the right half of the dress. I had never seen anything like it, which I supposed was the point. She gave the two of us a perfect curtsy, deeper than any I had ever managed. Her gaze drifted over what we were wearing, and something in her smile thinned. She said nothing, which was surprising. I had expected her to.

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And there, seated at the very end of the row, was Cordelia. She met our gazes and rose with her parents. Her dark hair was done in careful waves, her green eyes were steady. She wore a gown that was a twin of her mother's, and she sank into that exact same curtsy. If someone had told me they were sisters, I would have believed them. "Lady Veyne. Lady Indri," she said, staring at the ground. As if that was where she was supposed to look. My right hand twitched before I clenched it into a fist. I almost used my Gift to tamp the anger down. Almost.

There was no Alexander Bulwark. He would be taking part in the qualifiers at the Capital. That, at least, was some small mercy.

I curtsied, as was both proper and expected. "My Lord. My Lady," I said. "And Cordelia." My voice came out smooth, and that was to be expected too.

Violet stood beside me and bowed. Barely. That was neither proper nor expected, if one did not know Violet at all. I was just glad I had talked her into doing even this much, so I counted it as a win.

Julian regarded the two of us. "I am told you are partaking in the Qualifiers," he said. "A Hero, partaking in the qualifiers without her Godblade." He shook his head. "But of course, I know little of these matters." He smiled at Violet. "Ah, but on the other hand, it makes perfect sense for you. Just like your mother." He said it in perhaps the most snide way one could say anything.

"And what the hell does that mean?" Violet said, taking a step forward.

"Nothing at all," Julian said, raising a hand. "Only that your mother would be proud." Somehow, he managed to make even this sound like an insult. It was almost impressive. He sighed and clicked his tongue. "These tournaments are always such barbaric things. The commons fight- well, they fight as they are taught to." He glanced out the window, out at the crowd, and perhaps at the massive ring at the center of the coliseum. "I have seen quite a few nobles who thought their trained forms would carry the day. Years of the finest instructors, the noblest customs, the most refined techniques in the Kingdom…all of it undone in moments by some savage swinging whatever happened to be closest at hand. The commons do not fight beautifully, you see. They only fight to win. It is always such an ugly thing, watching a fine pedigree crack against that." He looked back at us. "Let us hope that does not happen today, shall we?"

"We're gonna beat everyone's asses," Violet said, arms folded. "In fact, why don't I-"

"Julian," my father interjected. He put one hand on Violet's shoulder before stepping forward and clasping the man by the arm. Julian reciprocated the gesture. Violet slowly closed her mouth and looked at me. I shook my head.

We sat after that. Our House took the middle-right of the row of seats, Violet on my left and my father on my right. Then we waited. The last of the stadium filled even as I watched, and only then did a man step out into the center of the ring. From where I sat, he was little more than a tiny blur. But when he spoke, his voice carried clearly and evenly to every corner. That either took a great deal of mana, or a Gift.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the start of the one hundred and fortieth King's Tournament! And this one is going to be one to remember, folks. I hope you've all bought all the food and drink you'll need, because you will not want to miss a thing, not even for a second! This year, we have-"

And he went on to explain the general format of the day. The same things I had explained to Violet just yesterday. Our four qualifying melees would open the event, and after us would come the adult qualifiers. The adult qualifiers were different. They were actually interesting.

Apparently, the stage itself would change. The ring would be replaced by four massive ships, and the hollow of the arena would be filled with water. At the very center would sit a single red flag. The first team to claim that flag would win, and all of them would qualify. I had only briefly scanned the newspaper for the details of our own division, so I learned all of this right along with the crowd.

"That sounds fucking cool," Violet whispered. "Why the hell aren't we doing that?" She looked at me with big red eyes. "Can we change our- can we make them put us in that one?"

My father laughed. "Ah, it's because something like that would be far too dangerous for the children. The adult division is always more... extreme." He said it fondly, as if he were remembering something. Given what I knew of him, he probably was. "Though, worry not. Past the Qualifiers, even the junior division is always quite something."

Then the announcer gestured at us. At the booth where we all sat. Duke Thalos rose. In his hands was a Magical Implement, one that looked like a small red sphere. When he spoke, his voice sounded normal to my ears, but I knew it carried well out into the stadium.

"Citizens of Aelheim," Duke Thalos said. "We meet again this year, for a King's Tournament that will be remembered through the ages. Please, join me in celebrating our brave fighters. Some of them will go on to make the great name of Aelheim shine throughout the Kingdom. But even those who do not -even those who fall short this day- are the bravest among us, and they should be celebrated all the same." He paused. "We live in dark times. Uncertainty waits around every corner, and each day seems to bring its own bad news. In times such as these, it is good to sit back, and to remember what makes Aelheim -what makes Arian- so great." He raised both of his hands. "So come now. Let us cheer, for the one hundred and fortieth King's Tournament!"

The crowd roared. Even through the glass the sound rolled over us like a wave. Twenty thousand people, rising and clapping as one. Inside the booth, the Dukes began to rise as well. I rose with them, and lightly pulled Violet up by her sleeve.

I wondered if all of these people would still clap so, if they knew a monster attack was only two days away. One with a good chance of breaching these impenetrable walls of theirs. I supposed it was easy to forget that Aelheim stood surrounded by death and despair on every side when one had massive walls to hide behind. It was not their fault, of course. I still found it at least a little annoying.

But none of that was why my heart was drumming now. This was the moment.

I clapped, and I stared at nothing but the distant ring below. I did not look toward the end of the row. Looking would have been the single stupidest thing I could do. So I watched from the very corner of my eye instead.

Cordelia stood between her parents, clapping with perfect poise. Lady Seraine stood barely a foot from her, applauding the arena below.

Then Cordelia's rhythm broke. It was only noticeable because it had been so utterly perfect. It skipped a beat for just a second, and then it was back again. Her own mother did not notice. Or at least, I could not tell that she had noticed.

If the Gods were kind, then in that one breath, an invisible girl had just pressed a small black box into her palm.

I trusted Sere. I trusted Sere more than I trusted myself. My heart hammered anyway.

Cordelia folded her hands neatly in front of her just like her mother. The ring on her finger did not turn.

I let out a slow breath and looked back at the arena. The clapping faded around us, and one by one, the Dukes began to sit.

I stayed standing, and so did Violet. My father looked at the both of us. He put a hand on my shoulder and held my gaze for a long moment. He was thinking of something to say, I think. Something inspiring. Something a father was supposed to say to a daughter about to step into a tournament. I was wrong. He smiled, and said, "Try to go easy on them, Esra. They are only children."

I smiled back. "Will do, Father." It wasn't like the point of any of this was to make someone proud. But I wouldn't mind it as a bonus.

Duke Wardell gave me a small nod. I received another from Duke Thalos, and a far warmer one from Lady Irene. Julian managed to make even the nodding of a head seem condescending. Cordelia had her hands folded. Folded very carefully. She met my gaze, just for a moment. Then she was looking back out the window again.

And then there was Violet. I had expected her to be more excited than me. More excited, perhaps, than everyone else in this stadium put together. She was not. She was staring at my shoulder, and she was frowning. My shoulder, where my father's hand had rested only moments ago. Now why would she- Ah.

There was no one left to send Violet Indri off.

I stepped forward and took her arm, gently. "Hey, come on," I grinned. "Don't tell me you're getting cold feet now."

Violet looked at me. Then she looked down at my hand on her arm. And then, slowly, she gave me a vicious grin. "Like hell I am."

The door opened, and a Karr peered through. The sounds of the arena poured in with him, and there were a great many of them. The shouting of thousands, the banging of drums, even the playing of... flutes?

"Contestants," the Karr said. "Here?"

The Karr were a people of few words. These two were enough.

"We're coming," I said, and dragged Violet toward the door.

I just had a qualifier to pass now. How hard could it be?