Chapter 8: Fists of Fire
Two more years had passed since Ember's ascent to the throne as the Queen of Exchancia, and her reign had been absolutely horrifying to most people. Many dubbed her 'The Ember Queen' (poking fun at her name meaning the spark of a fire, which definitely described her personality) or even 'The Queen of Hate.' Not only did she exude hatred in her speeches and actions, but she also caused hate to spread throughout a once-peaceful community.
She'd also enacted new taxes on the kingdom, sending struggling merchants spiraling and causing many to lose their businesses. Some even perished from starvation when they couldn't make ends meet. Ember restricted imports and exports between established kingdoms, creating a rift between Exchancia and many other locations. She was ruthless in her orders and demands, and she even reinstated the death penalty for traitors of the kingdom and criminal activity of any kind (at her discretion, of course), ordering even the least troublesome or dangerous criminals to be hanged for their crimes.
For Moses, who had gotten much better over the course of the last year, enough was enough. He couldn't stand to watch his daughter destroy the legacy he and his mother (and previous kings and queens) had built. He marched into the throne room, where he saw his daughter sitting on his old throne, a content smile on her face, while Jaime stood aside, fanning her with a large, feathered fan. He despised the demeaning position his son had been put in (or knowing him, taken on willingly), but he could only handle one issue at a time. "Ember, we need to talk."
"Not now, Daddy. I'm being pampered." She leaned toward Jaime, her mouth opening delicately as he fed her a purple grape. "Mm." She turned back to her father, sighing with a roll of her eyes as she noticed his angry features. "What?"
Roseanna had entered behind her husband, and several court members were slowly shuffling in as well. Still, that didn't deter the former king at all. "You must stop this madness. You are upholding terrible laws that never should have been enacted in the first place. We abolished the death penalty in favor of a more peaceful solution."
"Did that stop traitors from betraying our kingdom?" the queen asked, her eyes narrowing. "No. Once a traitor, always a traitor, I say. And yes, I taxed the surrounding areas more. They had more than enough money with their merchants being so busy, so they could afford to send more money our way. After all, this kingdom provides them protection, does it not? They owe us."
"That's not how this works, Ember," Roseanna interjected, stepping next to Moses, taking his hand. "You're being unreasonable."
"Roseanna, you don't even have royal blood, so I'm not sure what gave you the impression that I would care what you have to say…" She smirked at her stepmother, who frowned heavily. "But keep testing me, and I'll put into play my newest law: no arguing with or contradicting the queen."
Moses growled. "You are out of control! I never should have passed my throne to you, you ungrateful, irresponsible, hateful little brat."
Jaime gasped softly as he turned, his eyes widening at his father. He'd never heard his dad call either of his children any sort of negative terms before, even if Ember pretty much deserved it… He was still caught in the middle, as always, but he knew if he angered her or disappointed her, she'd probably take it out on him somehow. And given how loyal he'd been to her over the years, she'd see it as the ultimate act of betrayal and probably have him beheaded or something…
"A brat, hmm?" Ember snapped her fingers, watching as her guards grabbed Moses and Roseanna by the arms, holding them in place as they struggled to move. "Moses and Roseanna, you are hereby banished forever from the Kingdom of Exchancia. You will live in exile no fewer than 20 miles from here. And if you return…" Her eyes flashed, the usual dark amber orbs flickering red ever so briefly. "You will be hanged." She looked at the guards, frowning. "Remove them from the premises."
"Yes, Your Majesty," they responded in unison, bowing before escorting the former king and queen away.
"E-Ember…" Jaime watched as his sister slowly turned to him, her eyes still hard and cold. "Um… I…"
Ember's gaze softened a bit, and she reached out to cup her twin's cheek. "Don't worry, sweet Jaime," she whispered, smiling softly at him. "I'm not angry at you. I know you're scared, but they were going to ruin everything I've worked to build the last few years. I'm trying to make a better Exchancia for us all." She brushed her fingers through his hair, tucking a few loose strands behind his ear. "You understand, don't you?"
He inhaled slowly, nodding as she removed her hand. He set the giant feather aside and instead handed her a plate that contained her snack from earlier. "Can I be excused for a few minutes?" Seeing the confused look she was giving him, he smiled sheepishly. "I kind of need to…"
"Oh, um… Yeah, sure." She held her plate as he stepped away from her, hurrying out the back exit. She looked forward, noticing that some of the courtiers were chatting amongst themselves after the debacle. Frowning, she snapped, "Get back to work—all of you."
They immediately responded with, 'Yes, Queen Ember!'
Soon, the throne room was empty again, and Ember smiled wickedly as she settled in her chair. "That's more like it."
That evening, Sariya hurried to Seamus's room, shutting the door and locking it behind her. She realized he was in bed, reclining against his pillows, so she rushed up to him, falling down by his side, sobbing into his pajama shirt. "Seamus…"
"Sariya, what's wrong?" He'd had the day off, so he hadn't bothered to leave his private room for most of the day. It was nice catching up on much-needed rest. However, seeing his love this distraught worried him. "What happened?"
"Ember exiled my mom and the king," she sniffled, looking up at him. "I overheard everything outside the throne room, but I didn't go in because I was scared she'd do the same thing to me. And then I hid for a few hours afterwards… I didn't know if she'd try to find me, or…" She breathed deeply, exhaling slowly, trying to calm her heart. "I feel so bad…"
Seamus wasn't about to ask why Ember had exiled the former king and queen. He knew why: They'd probably disagreed with her, which she hated. She'd banished people for far lesser things. Instead, he pulled Sariya onto the bed and cradled her in his arms, rocking them back and forth as he whispered encouraging words to her. "Don't worry, my love… It will be all right. Perhaps we can travel to find them soon."
Sariya sat up, fear evident in her eyes. "Seamus, we can't stay here… Under Ember's rule, our relationship is strongly forbidden. We could be her next targets."
The jester paused, taking in her words, and he then took both of her hands. "I'll leave," he answered gently, seeing the dismay on her face almost instantly. "Sariya, this is your home, not mine. To make your life easier, let me leave. It's the best thing I could do for you."
"And live in absolute hell with a power-hungry woman set out to destroy all the lives she can?" she asked, her tone sharp as she stared at him intensely. "This is not my home anymore, Seamus… And it never really has been… I'd rather die than stay here alone." She moved into his lap, hugging him as she sobbed.
He wasn't sure how to respond to that… Death over living in a castle… Granted, had the circumstances been better, then he would have thought her insane. However, he understood. He returned her hug, holding her tightly.
"Elope with me," Sariya told him softly, sniffling as she sat back and looked at him sadly. "Be with me. Marry me. I want to be with you forever, Seamus, and I don't want to be here where Ember can rule over us and tell us who we can and cannot love."
"It's foolishness," he returned, frowning softly. "Dangerous. If we're caught, we'll be imprisoned, if not worse."
"I don't care. I'm willing to risk it because I love you, Seamus…"
Seamus sighed, grasping her chin and kissing her gently, which she quickly deepened as she held onto him for dear life. When the kiss broke he smiled softly at her. "I know a man… An old friend of mine. His name is Silverstone, and he is ordained to marry couples. Give me some time to contact him, and we'll secure a private location to marry secretly."
She smiled in relief, clasping her hands together. "Oh, Seamus…"
"But until then, Sariya, please be careful… We do not want to alert anyone or anger your stepsister any further. All right?"
Sariya nodded. "All right…"
It took a week to contact and get Silverstone to agree to wed the couple, but thankfully, Silverstone and Seamus went way back. They were good friends from school, and loyalty ran deep between them. In a deep part of the woods about a mile away from the castle, Silverstone married the couple in private, blessing their relationship and issuing a prayer of protectiveness over them, especially since they currently had little choice but to return to Exchancia for at least a little while. Seamus almost had enough money for them to live on their own, and hopefully, within a month, they would be able to flee to a better place.
Brookes walked down the corridor, pulling his cravat loose from his dress shirt. He hated wearing these stuffy clothes and far preferred his mission outfits that he was used to, but a dress code had been strictly enforced, and he'd had no choice but to heed it. He stopped when he noticed Orchid standing outside what he knew to be the jester Seamus's door, her ear to the wood as she listened intently, a blush on her cheeks. He slowly walked up to her, waving a hand in front of her face, one eyebrow quirked in curiosity.
"Shh!" The woman placed a finger to her lips before yanking him forward, pressing his own ear to the door as well. "Listen!"
It only took a few seconds before he heard the unmistakable sound of… Well, an activity that he and his lady fair were well versed in by now. "Oh, my. I wasn't aware Seamus had a love interest."
Orchid smirked at him, catching his eye. "Not just any love interest, Brookes…" She whispered then, "Princess Sariya."
His mouth dropped, his eyes widening. "W-What?"
"Yes! I saw them sneak into this room when I rounded the corner, and before then, I overheard somethin' interestin'…" She grinned at him. "They got married in secret."
Brookes then grew concerned, even though his job was to carry out a successful assassination, and not to actually monitor the royals. He'd actually grown to like the youngest princess, though. She was very kind. "She could be imprisoned…"
"She's in love, Brookie." She reached out, taking his hand. "Just like us."
He slowly nodded, sighing. "I'm happy for her—for them. I just hope they're careful."
The undercover assassin/maid nodded in agreement. "So do I."
Unfortunately, the couple apparently hadn't been careful enough. It only took one guard to spot them holding hands and kissing passionately in a dark corridor before Ember had been made aware of their relationship. The princess and jester were brought before the queen, both tossed to the ground in handcuffs.
"Ember, what are you doing?!" Sariya demanded, trying to stand. However, one of the guards pushed her back to the ground, forcing her to stay there as he kept a hand on her head. She glared up at her stepsister, who simpered down at her.
"My sources tell me you two have gotten married… Tsk, tsk… You know the law, Sariya…" Her eyes drifted to Seamus, who turned away. "I never liked either of you anyway. And that's Queen Ember to you now, you little waif." She snapped her fingers, signaling the guards to pull the couple to their feet. "For defying our laws regarding the marriage of a royal to a commoner, which is strictly forbidden, you will both be sentenced to thirty years in the dungeon." A simpering smile appeared on her lips as she added, "And since you were so damn determined to be together, just for you, dear sister…" The way she'd hissed the word proved her utter distaste for the other girl and the situation. "You can live happily ever after in our 'couple cell.'" She nodded to the guards. "Get them out of my sight."
The guards obeyed, carrying away the couple, as Jaime stepped forward, as if to follow them. He paused though, looking back at his sister in despair. "Ember… Was that the right thing to do?"
"It's the law, Jaime."
"But she's our sister!"
"Stepsister, my sweet, stupid brother…" She stood, walking over to him, placing one hand to his forehead. "Or have you forgotten that so easily…?" She lowered her hand, folding her arms. "And since when does family mean much to us anyway, right? Look at our own father, who betrayed us…" She sighed, shaking her head. "The only person I can trust—I have ever trusted—is you, Jaime… You don't lie. You don't defy me… You help me when I ask and comfort me when I'm upset…" She managed to smile up at him, and she noticed his eyes growing softer. 'Got him.' "Stay with me, Jaime… Keep being my rock when everyone else has turned to ashes at our feet. Lift me up so I can reign as Queen of Exchancia."
What could he do? Or say? Jaime had no choice in the matter—not if he wanted to be safe and not end up like his parents or sister… Stepsister… Friend? Plus, he loved Ember. He wanted her to be happy, even if that meant sacrificing his own happiness… "I will," he promised her, taking one of her hands like he'd done since they were children, and placing a soft kiss to her knuckles as she smiled knowingly. "I won't disappoint you, Ember."
She chuckled, grasping his chin, and kissing his forehead gently. "I know you won't, Jaime…"
"We may need to carry out our mission sooner rather than later, Brookes," Orchid whispered as she and her partner watched the twins from afar. "It's only a matter of time before she completely manipulates him into doin' somethin' far worse than just followin' her like a puppy or feedin' her grapes… Jaime is weak where Ember is strong, but he's loyal. We can't let her get too powerful."
"I agree. We just have to make sure everything aligns properly before we make any rash decisions." He took her hand, leading her away from the throne room. "Right now, it's still too dangerous. Let's wait a few months, and we'll have a better chance of success."
If they only knew what was coming next, they would have wished they hadn't waited… Because as dangerous as Ember was now, nothing could have prepared them for what was about to occur…
To be continued…
Next Chapter: Dark Draw