Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A/N: Sorry for the lateness of this update. College has been kicking my butt. But rest-assured, this fic will get done. This is the third-last chapter, and the next two chapters will be focused on the ending! Thanks for supporting me all this way!
Sakura Li-chan – Don't worry, he will, and that's not even a spoiler. I'm a sucker for happy endings! Glad you enjoyed this, and sorry that this update's so late.
Knight-Dawn – I'll leave you to make your own guesses. ^_^ Hopefully the conclusion that will be revealed in the next two chapters will be satisfactory enough.
Anne Iriel Devay – I'll try to squeeze in some Stormshipping moments in the next two chapters, but don't worry, because even if I don't, you're definitely getting an epilogue! Thanks for all your support!
Kd7sov – They're used in many cultures, but the differences usually lie in who pays and what's paid. I should have mentioned it, but I was working from this particular culture. Yes, Sveta was using Spirit Sense in that scene, and everybody knows it. None of them knew exactly what she read, but the fact that she was smiling tipped Matthew off about Amiti's plan.
Akemina-neechan – Great! I'm glad you like it! Thanks so much for reviewing!
Wind-Adept Lex – Here it is! Sorry it's so late! My physics prof. is a nightmare!
Kairikiani – I'll probably write it a little after this. I'll need a break from writing after this is done. Glad you'd like to see it, though!
X-Strike-Fire-Dragon – Sorry if I didn't make that point very clear. Ivan did, and he also took the brunt of whatever impact he couldn't stop to save Karis. Karis would have attempted to, but the storm was making the wind difficult to control as it was, and Ivan's a better Adept than Karis is (simply because of experience). The Light Adepts are something that's mentioned in the epilogue of Dark Dawn, some beastmen say that the Apollo Lens gave them Light Psynergy.
As for your last point, I personally think it would be crueler for Amiti to force Karis to die with him. This way, she has a choice. She doesn't need to take the soarwing, and he's not going to bodily force her to do it, but he's left her with that option just in case Karis isn't feeling up to dying with him. He's a very honorable person, so he's making sure he's providing Karis with a way to survive. Also, he's not just doing it out of love. If you read that, he told Karis to take several documents out of the city if anything happened to him. He's securing the future of Ayuthay by giving both Karis and those documents a way out of the city.
I'm glad you like the rest of the story though!
goldensun1126 – Soooo sorry about how late this is, but rest assured, I'm not giving up on this story! Here's the update!
Mix – Thanks! I'm so glad you like it! Hope you enjoy this update!
XxXxX
A Different Kind of Storm
CHAPTER 15
Lord of Kaocho
XxXxX
Himi sighed and lowered her staff, balancing it between her hands as she looked from the stern of the ship. The fog had rolled in thick, obscuring the view of everything but the many lanterns that hovered just behind them. From the outside, it would look like an unseasonal mist.
"Is that good enough?" she asked, turning her head around to where Rief was standing, his hands extended off the side of the ship and the mist swirling around his fingers. He looked up at her and frowned.
"It should do," he said.
Himi nodded and leaned on her staff slightly, placing a hand on her head. She had no idea how Eoleo managed to keep a straight course in this fog, but he had managed underneath the shadow of the Grave Eclipse, and this was nothing compared to that. Her world spun for a moment and she closed her eyes, suddenly dizzy. Rief frowned at her.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm fine," said Himi, smiling slightly. "Venus Psynergy is just…a little difficult when the ground is so far away."
Rief nodded in sympathy. Himi walked over to him and propped her staff up against the railing of the ship, folding her arms on the railing and leaning forward slightly.
"This worries me a little," she admitted.
"Have you seen anything?" asked Rief, frowning at her. Himi shook her head. "Nothing specific," she said. "I'm just worried for Amiti."
"We all are," said Rief with a sigh. He looked behind them at the mass of lights hidden by the fog, the moving curtain of mist created from his Mercury Psynergy and Himi's miko abilities. "I hope he knows what he's doing."
"I do too…" said Himi.
XxXxX
Karis placed her hand on one of the wall's turrets, redirecting the flow of wind around herself and Amiti so that they could see without having to shield their eyes. Kaocho's army, looking more like a band of ruffians from this distance, although still large enough to cause Ayuthay some trouble, came into view, sunlight glinting off their metal armor. Amiti stood beside her, an unmovable figure of ice as he stared down at the approaching army, his hands at his side. Only the way his fists were clenched and the way they trembled slightly clued anyone in on his frame of mind.
A white flag flew over the city of Ayuthay.
"My lord, are you sure you don't want to reconsider this?" asked Amiti's advisor, looking out at the army. "If we recall our forces, we stand a fighting chance."
Karis winced in sympathy, keeping her eyes focused on the army. Amiti had been beating himself up about this for weeks. She knew better than to bring it up now.
"And have us picked off by the Tuaparang while we're weakened?" asked Amiti, his voice cold. "Almost certainly, they're waiting to see the outcome of this encounter."
"Your Majesty…" began the advisor.
"…Let's not speak of it anymore," said Amiti. "…I've made my decision. Remember what we spoke about earlier."
The advisor's eyes widened for a moment, but he recovered, bowing hastily towards Amiti. Kaocho's spies had been discovered in the palace about a week ago, and if there were Kaocho spies involved, chances are that the Tuaparang were also getting information from them by some means. Amiti had been right about their plans possibly leaking out if they weren't careful. Over the past week, nobody had made any mention of any plans.
They waited on the wall for a few more minutes before Amiti stepped back, the blue and gold cape he was wearing over one shoulder fluttering in the wind. Karis turned towards him, only now noticing. It was held in place over his chest by a clasp in the shape of a golden moon. Blue, gold, and Luna—the colors and symbols of Ayuthay, and today a symbol of quiet defiance. Wo would take the city, Karis realized, for as long as Amiti permitted it. Amiti's eyes were like two circles of ice as he watched Wo's army.
"Time to go?" she asked, noticing that the army was nearing the gates and a group of three were leading it—a dark-haired woman in a green dress, a somewhat round man in red, and in between the two of them, a figure in red armor, wearing the crown of Kaocho on his head.
Amiti nodded. "Time to meet our conquerors," he said. He paused, then turned to look at her as they walked. "Be nice, Karis."
She snorted quietly, violet sparks crackling in the air around her to show exactly what she thought of that idea.
XxXxX
Wo—Amiti refused to think of the man as king of anything—stepped into the throne room of his palace, flanked by his two advisers, Kan-Shuku and Meisa. The two years since the Grave Eclipse had not done the man much good. His black hair was beginning to gray, and even Kan-Shuku looked thinner, evidence of the hard times Kaocho had gone through. His eyes, however, still held the same fanatical gleam as ever. Amiti could only imagine what the common people were experiencing. Wo must have been starving his people half to death to raise an army like the one currently encamped outside his walls.
He felt Karis tense beside him, and glanced over at her to make sure that she was still standing there. He had seen Karis cross a room to stick her blade in someone or something fast enough that had he not known better, he would have sworn to the gods that she was teleporting. While he certainly wouldn't be sorry to see Wo dead, killing the man would likely make his upper class angry. And since Amiti's intelligence had informed him that Wo had given his generals instructions to pay the mercenaries and attack should he be assassinated, that was out of the question.
Of course, watching the man casually rip the Ayuthayan banner from the wall of his throne room and leave it on the floor like so much trash made Amiti want to introduce the man to the business end of Masamune and be done with it. He sucked in a breath through his teeth, his hands shaking at his side as he tried not to think about how close one of his hands was to the hilt of his sword.
"I thought I'd fix any unreasonable expectations you might have, Lord Amiti," said Wo. Amiti didn't miss the fact that Kaocho's king had decided to give him a generic title.
"I was under the impression that I would be allowed to rule Ayuthay in your absence, Your Majesty," said Amiti.
"Certainly, I'll leave you in an administrative position," said Wo. "Those were the terms, weren't they? But do you really think I'd let you lead unsupervised? Meisa will be staying to ensure your cooperation."
"I see…" said Amiti. "And how long will you be staying?" When Wo raised an eyebrow, Amiti reluctantly added, "Your Majesty?"
Wo looked at Amiti from top to bottom, as if deciding whether or not it was worth his time to answer that question. He turned his head. "Kan-Shuku!" he barked, before turning to examine a statue that stood beside his throne.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" said Kan-Shuku, bowing. He turned to Amiti. "His Majesty will be staying for two weeks to make sure the surrender goes smoothly and to examine the Alchemy Well for himself."
"One," said Amiti.
Wo looked up sharply. "Excuse me?" he asked.
"You'll stay for one week," said Amiti, turning his head towards Wo. "This is my country."
"Not anymore, boy!" said Wo, the gleam in his eyes seeming to brighten and turning even more frantic. "You signed this country over to me. It's mine, and you will learn your place. Meisa!"
"Yes, Your Majesty?" asked Meisa, practically falling all over herself to bow.
"Make preparations to stay for a month. Longer even!" barked Wo.
Meisa nodded, bowing again. "Yes, Your Majesty."
He motioned for Kan-Shuku and Meisa to leave. They turned around, heading towards the door, and Wo followed them, pausing for a moment and turning around. His eyes fell, not on Amiti this time, but on Karis. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Karis take a small step forward, her body rigid in defiance.
"You…" said Wo, his eyes widening in recognition. "You're the Adept Karis."
"Yes," said Karis.
Wo looked away from her, rounding onto Amiti so quickly that Amiti thought it might have given him whiplash. "What's she doing here?" he asked. "You better not be trying to trick me, boy!"
"There's no trickery involved," said Amiti. "Karis is here as my betrothed."
Wo looked ready to argue, but the sunlight glinting off of Karis's gold necklace cut him off mid-sentence. She had taken it from where it usually lay hidden under her clothes and let it rest over the top of the white dress she was wearing. He stared at it for a moment, then looked back at Amiti. His mouth opened as if he was about to say something but he changed his mind, turning around and leaving the room.
XxXxX
Karis watched Wo leave, letting out the breath she was holding slowly as she moved her hand away from the hilt of her sword. She turned her head, expecting to see the same angry expression on Amiti's face as she had seen earlier. What she did see stopped her in her tracks.
Amiti was smiling.
He was still angry. She could tell that much from the way his fists were clenched and his posture was rigid, but there was a smile slowly spreading on his face, even as his eyes blazed. Looking at it, it looked more like a smirk…or a predator baring its teeth.
She realized something at that moment, her eyes widening.
Amiti had never looked more like Alex before.
Karis raised her hand and manipulated the wind around them, creating a dome intended to muffle sound. Nobody outside the room would be able to hear what they were saying, and it was evident that there was nobody left inside the room—the throne room didn't have very many good hiding places and either of them would detect Psynergy.
"…I'm guessing that was a good thing?" asked Karis.
Amiti looked up at her sharply, as if just remembering she was there. The smirk faded from his face, and the ice in his eyes melted somewhat, although not by much. For a moment, he looked almost guilty, like a child caught enjoying something he shouldn't have. "…A very good thing," said Amiti. "I was hoping he would be arrogant."
"So that you could trick him?" asked Karis.
Amiti nodded. "…The more convinced a person is about their own superiority, the more likely they are to take chances and assume certain things. Wo expected defiance. I gave it to him. Now that he's set on crushing my spirit, he won't notice anything else."
Karis frowned, thinking it over. "Does that mean I'm allowed to be a little defiant too?" she asked.
"Of course," said Amiti. "It's what he expects. Wo's the type of person to not question things when they are exactly as he expects them to be. Just don't give him a reason to use military force."
"Mm," said Karis, nodding. She smiled slightly. "I'll try to avoid starting any wars in the near future."
"A little too late for that, isn't it?" asked Amiti.
Karis nodded. "True," she said.
"I have to go see how the court is doing," said Amiti. "I can imagine they aren't too pleased about this." He paused for a moment, turning towards her as if just remembering something. "Karis?"
"Yes?" asked Karis.
"Don't leave the palace without an escort until Wo's gone, and try to stay at the palace if at all possible," said Amiti.
Karis's eyes narrowed. "I can take care of myself!" she said.
Amiti placed his hands up in defense. "I know you can. It's Wo's soldiers I'm worried about," he said. He leaned in and kissed her gently. "If one of them attacks you and you fight back, Wo will spin it as an excuse to use military force. As much as possible, I want to avoid that, and the best way to do that is to keep you from coming into contact with Wo's mercenaries at all. I know it's asking a lot. Is it okay?"
Karis hesitated for just a moment. "…I…guess I could do that." she said.
"Thank you," said Amiti. "Give me a month. I promise I'll make it up to you." He kissed her again on the cheek, then turned to leave the room.
Karis watched him leave, remembering his earlier words.
"…The more convinced a person is about their own superiority, the more likely they are to take chances and assume certain things…"
Somehow, she had the feeling Amiti wasn't just referring to Wo.
XxXxX
Alex stared down at the map in front of him, sitting at his desk in his airship quarters. Ayuthay and Kaocho were marked out on the map in red circles, along with a second location just off Ayuthay's coast. He marked out several x's on the map, representing Kaocho's army surrounding Ayuthay. Once he was done, he looked at the complete picture and smirked.
It was a clever move on Amiti's part, he would give the boy that, and it would easily defeat Wo. But it was so incredibly obvious to anyone that had any sort of experience with this sort of thing.
The only question was, how best to react to it?
He paused for a moment, his quill hovering over the map before he decided, making a mental note to himself and putting the quill back on its stand.
Some plans were best left unwritten.
XxXxX
No notes this chapter~