Chapter 8
It had been days since her resurrection, and only now was Elissa allowed to leave the hospital. The Awoken doctors had been dumbfounded by her new lease of life, and spent the time poking and prodding until she had eventually lost her temper and snapped that she wasn't a science project. The Guardian's hopes that it would shock them into discharging her early were misjudged, as the unimpressed medical staff insisted she stay behind for more tests.
By Earth standards she would have been out and training by now, ready to get back into the fight as soon as she was on her feet. It was disconcerting to be confined to the same room for so long.
So it felt good to be striding through the station halls in full armour again. In recognition for her actions she had been gifted some of the Awoken's elite gear, new gauntlets and a chest piece, although she still wore her winged helmet. Elissa would never admit to anyone that her favour for the item were for purely aesthetic reasons. The Warlock had initially felt uncomfortable wearing items emblazoned with the Queen's heraldry, but it had quickly faded as she realized the quality of what she was wearing.
An unexpected side effect was every Awoken solider she passed straightened and nodded as she walked past. Whether that was down to the armour or the person wearing it, Elissa couldn't be sure, but she smiled behind her helmet at the new found respect.
I'll note to any future ambassadors they only need to be impaled to gain the Awoken's trust. Elissa snickered quietly. Innuendo, Crayta would be proud.
Reaching the entrance to the throne room, Elissa returned the nod of the Awoken guard as she waited for the doors to be swung open.
To her surprise however the door was not opened in its usual dramatic manner, but gently creaked open enough for one person to squeeze through. An Awoken guard poked her head out and gestured for Elissa to come in, as the sound of voices rose from inside. Frowning, the Warlock shuffled through the gap.
"-llowed ourselves to be corralled by the very people we sought to escape!"
The throne room was full of people. Many had faces that Elissa recognised from the ball; nobles she had seen at the dance while the rest were clearly nobility as well from the quality of their clothing. At the front of the group stood two familiar faces; Drice Zapal and his mother. The Queen appeared to be sat comfortably with a relaxed expression, but Elissa could see the tension in her hands gripping the throne. Prince Uldren stood beside her, glaring openly at the Zapals.
"You invited the Wolves into our home and look at the devastation it caused. If you have followed tradition and maintained our people's ways instead of making up your own, this tragedy could have been easily avoided." The senior Zapal reasoned, greeted by a smattering of mumbling from the crowd.
"I understand your grievance Lady Hespa" The Queen answered calmly, leaning forward "We must rebuild what was lost and quickly. In the meantime we cannot allow ourselves to be divided. The instigator behind the uprising is dead, and we are in the process of crushing the remaining Fallen Wolves planet side." Nodding to her brother, Uldren stepped forward.
"We've tracked the last holdouts to Ceres. My Crows tell me after the death of Skolas the remaining survivors have descended into infighting. Victory will be a simple matter of picking off the stragglers."
Shaking her head vigorously, Hespa Zapal turned to face the crowd behind her. "None of this would have been necessary had tradition been adhered to. We have allowed ourselves to be twisted from the path our ancestors wished for us. The ways of the Awoken is not one of diplomacy; we must abandon this notion of cooperation and return to what we once were to guarantee the safety of our people."
Taking the opportunity after the brief silence, Drice spoke up. "The evidence of which is here for all to see!" Drice pointed to Elissa who was still loitering at the back before continuing. "We've allowed this human whore to integrate herself into our society. Even now she dares to wear the armour of our people!"
Raising an eyebrow at the insult, Elissa folded her arms to stare down the Awoken man and was ready to retort before she was blessedly stopped by the Queen's raised voice. "Guardian Elissa has proven herself a friend of the Reef and earned the right to wear the armour. If you insult her right to wear it, you insult the one that gifted it too her" Pausing meaningfully, the Queen fixed Drice with a stare. "Me."
I really should thank her after for stopping me from blurting out in front of a group of people that I'm closer to a nun than whore these days.
"Furthermore" The Queen continued "it has been noted that none of the Zapal Guard contributed to the defence beyond their own holdings." The mutterings from the crowd increased as both members of the Zapal House stiffened as the Queen rose from her perch "Of which we can discuss at a later date. You are dismissed."
Drice and Hespa executed shallow bows and turned on their heels to leave, the grumbling crowd following them. Elissa frowned as she watched the group go. The political situation was clearly unstable and many seemed to be sitting on the fence between the argument of tradition or new thinking. If that was obvious to Elissa, then it must be a slap in the face to the Queen.
Eventually when all but the Guard and Elissa had filed out of the room, the Guardian approached the Sov siblings.
"Rough day?" It sounded glib even to her own ears, and Elissa could feel Ghost's criticism in the back of her mind.
Uldren scowled but the Queen lowered herself into her chair and closed her eyes briefly. "It has been a difficult week Guardian, as you can imagine." Reopening her eyes, the Queen fixed Elissa with a look "Let us speak privately."
Feeling herself nod, Elissa was surprised at her own nerves as the remaining people in the throne room including Uldren emptied, leaving the two alone.
Standing in silence, Elissa watched as the Queen stood from her throne and descended the stairs so the two were standing at eye level.
"I wanted to thank you. For your help with ending the Fallen rebellion." At Elissa's eyebrow raise the Queen uncharacteristically hurried to continue. "And for saving me and being stabbed in the process." The Awoken woman laughed quietly. "After this and your duel with Drice, you are incurring quite the list of injuries defending me."
"You are welcome." Elissa responded softly, smiling at the gratitude obvious in the Queen's voice. "I would do it again."
Wringing her hands like the Guardian had noticed before, the Queen paused and stared straight at the Warlock. "Answer me honestly; were your motivations for saving me because Humanity benefited from my continued rule?"
Thinking before she answered, Elissa came to the conclusion this conversation had no need to be diplomatic. It was just the two of them.
"It was." At the Queen's lowered eyes, Elissa brushed Sov's arm gently with her gloved hand as the Queen raised her eyes again to meet Elissa. "But I also wanted to save a remarkable woman."
The Queen smiled softly, before a much wider smile broke across her face. Elissa stood transfixed, mesmerized by the smaller woman's beauty. Feeling her own lips curve, the Guardian smiled broadly as the two stood watching each other. Without realising what was happening, the two pulled each other into a hug. Elissa had no idea who initiated the contact, but she was grateful for the unfamiliar intimacy as she stood with her chin resting on top of the Queen's white hair.
The Queen pulled away slightly and tiptoed to whisper into Elissa's ear. "My name is Mara by the way."
Instead of responding, Elissa tightened her grip and buried her nose into the woman's hair, subtly inhaling Mara's scent. To the Guardian's amusement (and delight), she was reminded of the smell of coconut. After all the smoke and destruction that Elissa had experienced since her rebirth, it was the most beautiful scent she could ever remember.
The two stood stock-still for what felt like hours as time seemed to slow. Elissa closed her eyes and rested her forehead against Mara's, enjoying the familiarity. Opening her eyes to see the Queen gazing at her, Elissa subconsciously darted her eyes down to the smaller woman's lips before snapping them back upwards again. The two slowly began to move in, inexplicably drawn until they were a breath away from each other.
Suddenly the throne door creaked open and the two sprang apart like they were caught in the act. Which isn't far from the truth. Elissa mused, even as her spirits plummeted at the interruption, and her face flushed as she rubbed the back of her neck. Daring to glance at the Queen, she was impressed as the Awoken's ruler was stood straight, an impassive expression as she watched to see who was entering.
Mara seemed to relax as the distinctive raven haired figure of Uldren came into view. For Elissa though the embarrassment intensified as the Queen's brother strode towards them, so much so she was positive her face was the same colour as her hair by this point.
Fortunately he came to a stop and completely ignored the Warlock, and Elissa allowed herself an internal sigh of relief. "Some of our allies have requested an audience. It would be wise to address them sooner rather than later." Uldren turned to eye the fidgeting Guardian. "Is there a problem?"
"W-what? Me? Problem? No. Nope everything is perfect. Great." The silence that met Elissa was positively deafening as she stumbled over her words. "How are you?"
Uldren's response was to look at her like she'd grown three heads. The Queen's musical laughter rang through the hall and Elissa managed a feeble grin that at least something good had come from her bumbling.
If anything Uldren looked even more confused until he glanced back and forth between them both, eyes narrowing. "Was I interrupting something?"
Rather than trusting herself to answer, Elissa was more than happy to allow Mara to take the lead. "Nothing that can't be continued at a later date." This time Elissa defiantly did blush, as a nervous laugh escaped her.
Mara turned to her and smiled softly. "I have business to attend to Guardian. We'll speak again soon."
Disappointed to be leaving the Queen but relieved to escape her brother, Elissa bowed low and exited the throne room, not daring to look back in case it made her look obvious. More obvious.
Walking herself back to her room, Elissa nodded at the two guards stood outside her door, feeling a sharp stab of pain as she remembered the fate of the old guards. They were not even close to being friends, but were clearly honourable. Two more lives and all the rest that died in the uprising lost to the darkness.
She was oddly happy to back here. Perhaps it was only because she had escaped the bland four walls of the hospital but it felt good to return. Her shredded bed had even been replaced. Any ideas of flinging herself to catch some sleep were ruined however, as Ghost materialized at her side.
"Tread carefully Guardian, what you're doing is extremely dangerous." Elissa sighed as she waited for the lecture to come. "If you are caught, the consequences for you both would be severe. The Queen's opponents will have more fodder if it's known that she a human lover and you could be sent back to the City, the mission a failure."
Snarling at his words, Elissa rounded on her companion. "Always about the fucking mission isn't it? Don't worry, I would never compromise that." She spat back, jabbing her finger at him.
Ghost was quiet as Elissa simmered, her joy at the possibility of a close connection with someone fading as reality set in. "You could both get hurt. I only want what's best for you."
"I've already said the mission won't be compromised, you don't need to concern yourself." Elissa retorted sarcastically.
"Stop it."Ghost returned, his artificial light thrumming in irritation. "I am YOUR Ghost, nobody else's. Yes I care about the mission but I also care about you." Getting nothing in return, Ghost's voice softened "Mara's reign is in danger Elissa, if you are discovered it will lead to her position becoming even more tenuous. Disposed Queen's don't live comfortably in retirement. We both know that."
The two fell quiet as Elissa slumped back onto her bed, the truth of his words sinking in. She was attracted to Mara that much was clear. And she doubted that Mara allowed her defenses to fall like that to just anyone, which surely meant that she was attracted to Elissa in some capacity as well. She must be aware more than any what the consequences of our dalliance would be. If she even acknowledges what almost happened next time we meet that is. Elissa's frustration grew as her personal desires and sense of duty waged against one another, while the quiet voice in the back of her mind reminded her of what would happen to Mara if she were overthrown. Nightmarish scenarios of Mara's lifeless body assaulted Elissa's mind as she lay awake.
After hours of inner turmoil, Elissa felt her mind becoming quieter and quieter as she waited for sleep to claim her. When she finally fell into a deep slumber, her dreams were dominated by the memory of sparkling eyes and parted lips.