Botan slowly woke up in bed. The sun invaded the room and cast its light directly upon him. Before he even managed to open his eyes, he could tell this wasn't his bed at the inn. Myskel usually lay atop him while they slept, but the bed was soft enough that she chose to lay beside him instead.
"Mysk~" Myskel chirped, feeling him stir awake.
Botan sat up slowly and grabbed Myskel out of habit to drape her around his neck. He took one look at the room to figure out where he was. "...I'm in the castle." He stared out a window. He couldn't properly recall why he was in the castle.
After a long pause, he put on his boots and armor but made no motion to leave the room. He didn't want to leave. Instead, he went to a nearby table and continued his study of the local language using a book he borrowed from Hector. Time felt both longer and shorter than it should have oddly. Botan didn't feel rushed but also had a growing feeling of dread.
Each minute that passed only caused the knot in his throat to grow tighter.
Myskel did her best to relax him and be a positive force. But with the slow, yet quick passage of time, Botan tried to focus on the letters of his book. Not knowing if he could recall what he'd tried to learn from it later or not.
At last, when the sense of waiting was becoming unbearable, Botan wondered if it'd be better for him to leave the room and find something else to do to distract his mind, a knock sounded at the door.
As he hastily put his book away, the door opened. Cole was the one who slipped into the room.
"It's time." He said.
Botan clenched his teeth to keep his expression from betraying him. He quietly pushed up from the table and joined the knight as they walked out the door into the hallways of the castle together. Myskel hid her head in the length of her body around his neck as they did so.
It'd been two days since the King's death and time had been blurring from all the busy actions of everyone around Botan while his power and title afforded him no means to help them. He'd been feeling useless. And now he was about to experience another day in which he couldn't help anyone and could only do what he was entrusted to do.
It was the day of the king's funeral. Nobles and others throughout Mosden had come together for the bleak occasion. Among them would be a few who'd been visiting from beyond the borders when the King died. Some diplomats would be attending the service on behalf of their rulers.
Botan felt he was much like them. Just another person to stand around. Worse, he was to help with transporting the King to his final resting place.
If anything, Cole, the nobility, those diplomats, the common folk, everyone here must have known the King much longer than he had. Even those messages rulers had given via voice cannons showed how foreign leaders had known the ruler better than he ever had.
Botan felt like he shouldn't be there, that he was making some kind of social faux pas by doing this when even a child of this country had more right to be here.
But he'd been asked… no, Alder had pleaded with him to be part of the procession. To be there to help lay his father to rest.
Alder wasn't one to plead. That had been especially clear in the weeks he'd gotten to know him and his mother.
Shaking his head, Botan continued. Following the silent knight who hadn't said a word since they left his room together.
…
Eventually, Botan and Cole entered the throne room.
There weren't many people there. Baobab, Alder, Raucar, and two other individuals whom Botan couldn't name. Likely, they'd been close advisors to the late King.
All of them surrounded an open stone sarcophagus, in which lay the King's unmoving body.
He was dressed in royal attire, his crown resting on his chest. It almost looked like he could have been sleeping…
As Botan walked up, Cole bowed to the young Prince, and then as he turned to leave, he paused, then faced Alder, and gave him a small, but respectful bow as well.
Alder bowed in return, and Raucar looked away, not saying anything. Instead, he gestured behind him, where Botan was to be as Cole went to the front doors of the throne room, where his comrade, Selene, stood ready and waiting.
Once Botan had moved into place, Baobab gave a gesture with his hand.
At once, the individuals there lifted the sarcophagus using the handles on the sides. Baobab led from the front. The King's advisors were behind him. Alder and Raucar were behind them, holding the coffin near where their father's head was laid to rest. And Botan lifted the coffin from the back.
Despite being made of stone, he noted how light it felt. Whether because of levels, or it being made of something other than stone, Botan didn't know. And in the moment, it was a detail he could have cared less about.
Cole and Selene opened up the proceeding doors as they moved, then the next, and then the next. Botan not struggling under the weight, but it felt heavy all the same. The expression on his face reflected the expressions of everyone else, even though they stared straight ahead.
At the final door, Botan felt there was a small pause before everyone continued. The large gates swung open and the sun met the King one last time. The light was somehow brighter yet duller than normal.
As they walked out of the castle, they found the streets lined with people on both sides. The capital was a city, but Botan never saw enough people to think of it as a 'city' in that sense before. Yet, now, the number of people could rival the crowds he was used to being packed inside a Japanese subway.
The waterways were full of boats just so everyone could have ground to stand. The only thing more abundant than the people were the flowers. A deep purple flower of some kind. It was everywhere.
People were throwing the petals, hanging them in the sky on kites and lanterns, they were even growing all around on the branches of the Great Tree, yet despite this, none of the petals seemed to litter the floor at all.
Every face was glued to those who moved in a procession along the street. At the sight of their King, the mood was set. The cobblestone walkway clattered beneath their feet. Despite the number of people, it was still quiet enough to hear it.
A tune seemed to fill the air. Botan couldn't tell where it was coming from. If the hum was from the people, or from the city itself mourning the loss of their beloved ruler. It brought a tear to his eye all the same, and by the looks of it, in Baobab's eyes too, as the great man raised a hand to his face, wiping tears from his eyes before trudging on.
Botan didn't miss as both Alder and Raucar took the chance to wipe tears from their faces simultaneously as this happened, however…
The arch of each bridge led to new people and new tears. Botan felt like he was personally delivering their bad news.
Unexpectedly, there was no chatter at Alder's presence… at least, not at first.
Just when Botan thought they might get through this without anything bad happening, he saw something that made him want to spit as they went under over the next bridge.
The Ivory Company lined the sides of the road, pushing out the other members of the crowd. They numbered more than a hundred. Some were natives to Mosden, so it'd make sense for them, but Botan saw Valtor and other top brass eyeing the event.
They all stood outside their building, some bowing respectfully as they passed. Those not native to Mosden, however, talked and joked amongst each other. Valtor's eyes in particular were stuck on Alder, and he began whispering something to the man next to him as they passed.
Botan didn't catch the words. But judging by the way Alder glared in their direction, the young man must have heard something he didn't like.
Botan noted Raucar looking over as well and seeing the look of hatred Alder was giving Valtor. He briefly looked stunned, before his face fell, becoming melancholy all over again, and he went back to staring straight ahead.
And on and on they went, passing over nearly 20 bridges to reach the Whirlpool Temple, the end of their procession.
They moved past the temple to the bank of the large lake it resided next to. The purple flowers of the great tree sprung up even here, like a wave of indigo across the ceiling, going down the branches to the water of the lake, giving the azure liquid a darker tone than what it normally was.
A small dock and humble boat awaited them. The majority of the dancing unit that operated the Dragon Hourglass and the Whirlpool Temple were waiting.
The procession continued towards this small boat slowly. Both Raucar and Alder seemed to be the source of the delay. They dragged their feet, both looking down at their father with tears running down their cheeks, all the way until it was time to carefully and slowly ease the stone sarcophagus into the tiny vessel.
It could barely handle the weight, but that was by design.
Afterward, Botan slowly exited the dock and stood in front, waiting for the others to say their parting words. What he hadn't noticed until now was that as they traveled, everyone behind began to follow. Now just outside the city, the sheer mass of people was not obfuscated by water or buildings. Thousands, if not tens of thousands, all staring, all waiting.
Baobab spoke first. He rested a hand on the cold stone. His face seemed more tired than it had during the procession itself.
"I never paid back a tenth of what I owed you. Did you find humor in that? Did you find comfort in your family being by your side at the end? Do you find peace now? I hope so…, but you were lost in the expectations of others for so long. Lost and I could not guide you… Even though that was my only job."
Baobab traced his hand over the stone carving of Enrich's face, resting it on the shoulder. "You failed yourself so many times. As did I. As did we all. I'm so sorry that everyone failed you when you never failed us. So many close calls. So many times we whispered about the possibility of war… And yet, Mosden hadn't had a war or even a proper battle in your entire tenure." His hand fell from the shoulder, he tried to put on a happy face. A liar's face was always his specialty.
"Would you hate me for admitting that… I'd have rather you failed us, at least in part, if it meant we could have done more for you? Did you regret how things turned out? Were you as stern as this stone visage of you at the end? As you always were? …Forgive me. I never questioned you in life, and yet it's all I seem to do in death." He took one step away, then stopped.
"I promise I will not fail your sons as I have you. I will question them. I will make sure they succeed. I will make sure they do not fail themselves. I swear it." Baobab then continued walking away, assimilating into the small crowd somewhat near Botan. He didn't look like he wanted to talk anymore.
Next Alder and Raucar shared a look before Raucar went first. He moved forward and spoke low, wanting as few people to hear him as possible. Yet Botan did.
"I'm sorry that I caused you to keep distant from those you'd want close. I'd foolishly thought your… That your love for Tia over my mother meant you loved Alder over me. I find myself learning far more about you in death than I did in life."
"I was being a child, but now I have to grow up… I just wish you were here to see it. I will revoke and remove everything you did to distance Tia from the throne. My childishness ends here. Wish me luck… father."
The Prince turned and took a few steps, but seemed interested in what his brother would choose to say. It was quite selfish to hide his own words while prying into others and he knew that, yet he waited all the same.
Alder didn't have anything planned but spoke anyway. "Father… I learned a lot of lessons from you. Too many to count…, but the best lessons were the ones you did not intend. You showed me the ways I don't want to be like you. You were a servant to duty and it helped countless people."
"I will never do that…"
"I never said this," Alder continued after a pause. He had Raucer's full attention by this point, even if he couldn't see it. "But if you think I have a love for Mosden, you are mistaken. I loved you. I love my mother. The only duty I let bind me was love. Love of family. Love of those I know. I could not and will not do what you did."
"I do not blame you for what you did, but you gave me an excellent example of what I don't want to be. I will take every chance I have to live life and take all the joy from it that I can. I will not be afraid to love or to be loved. And I will not hesitate to be happy."
"Which makes this so much worse. I finally figured out who I want to be or try to be, and you left before I could hug you as your son more, and speak to you as your son more, love you as your son more." Alder didn't know what else to say. He slowly turned and accidentally met his brother's eyes.
They said nothing… and walked down the dock together.
On and on others said their piece. Botan himself went up for only a few seconds, though he couldn't remember what he said, or if he said anything at all. All he knew was, eventually, he was standing next to Raucar and Alder again, almost acting as a spectator to events transpiring around him.
When the last one was done and came down to stand with him and the others, there was a moment of confusion.
Normally they were to close and seal the sarcophagus but they didn't.
The Prince and everyone else turned to see someone exiting the Whirlpool Temple. The sounds of the doors closing grabbed the attention of everyone present.
It was Tia.
She wore a dress no one had ever seen her in. A deep purple dress with almost transparent, long ribbons added to every movement she made. She slowly approached as more and more people began to talk, and they weren't whispering at all.
Botan was able to take his eyes off her just long enough to find Valtor and the other higher-ups from the Ivory Company. They weren't just surprised. They looked pissed.
And they weren't alone. While most of the residents of the city knew Tia, those who didn't only heard the worst possible interpretation of who she was. But they were about to see just how wrong their assumptions of her had been.
Those in front of the dock made way for Tia. They knew she had more to say than anyone.
She knelt and went for his hand. She wanted his hands. His soft, warm hands.
They were stiff and cold. She looked down at the stone bitterly.
This wasn't Enrich. This wasn't her Enrich. It never was… and would never be…
The body before her did not stand as he did, speak as he did, laugh as he did… and it did not move as he did. She found no comfort in the corpse of the man she loved. It was just a face. It wasn't even the face she fell for.
She fell for him when they were children. She hadn't got a good look at it in years. It just now hit her.
"If I am sending you off, it'll be on my terms. It's finally my turn to decide…" Tia spoke curtly, then motioned for the others.
The dancers set and sealed the sarcophagus. Then the Prince and Alder brought a torch each and sat them in the boat before pushing it from the shore towards the center of the chasmous lake as the boat caught fire.
The crowd did not cheer, nor did they weep. The whole sequence was hauntingly quiet.
Botan thought it was similar in a way to a Viking funeral, but was told the details beforehand. The stone sarcophagus was sealed with strong, but untreated clay. The fire cured it and destroyed the boat allowing it to sink to the oceanic depth needed to reach the deepest parts of the lake, a place no one could disturb.
He was told only Mosden's royalty were given this type of funeral. It was the same for Raucer's mother and Enrich's brother before him.
Not only did the Prince allow her to participate, but he then relinquished the right to address everyone to her. He gave a simple gesture before she turned to address everyone.
"I'm sure you will all miss him as a fair king and kind ruler, but I wish you to regard Enrich simply as a man for a moment.
Her voice washed over the crowds, quieting everyone in surprise at the deepness and authority held within it. Something that almost seemed to clash with how kind and gentle it sounded in the background of her melody simultaneously.
"He was not some perfect person who never felt temptation or never faltered. He was a man of endless will—someone who'd always put others before himself.
"His story was not one of simple dedication, but of self-annihilation." Her words fell, sounding like a plea, with that last line grabbing the attention of everyone.
She walked slowly toward the lake.
"He did not allow himself to be the person he wanted to be… he did not get to love the way he wanted to love… and to me, that is the greatest tragedy here."
As Tia spoke the lines, she took her first steps onto the water. She drew a small circle on the azure indigo lake's surface with the tip of her shoe, then started lightly moving further from the crowd. Further from everyone else.
"He did what was expected of him. It was his greatest and worst quality. One he's had since the day I first got to know him.
"We were both the tender age of nine, yet he possessed that quality even then." Away from everyone, Tia began her dance on the water. Effortless, without caution or fear. Her ability to step on the water was flawless, making Botan's current skill seem pathetic by comparison. Each step she took caused a single unnatural ripple.
Each one left the water even calmer and clearer than before. The purple and the azure mixed together then blurred away entirely.
In only a few steps, it was as if she was dancing on a peerless mirror, reflecting the entire surface of the lake to what was happening up above.
The people were silent, even those who hated her a moment ago. They were witnessing something that was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The best performance of someone with no equal in her craft.
And something else was happening. The deep purple petals that seemed to be everywhere in town started gathering on the lake's surface. But as quickly as they landed, they faded. As they did, the water began to shimmer more.
"He was taking his time coming down the stairs, doing a royal entrance. I was behind him and impatient." Tia began to smile. Radiance and warmth entered her tone from the simple memory playing out beneath her feet.
And it was. As she narrated what was in her mind, those watching could see the silhouettes of two small figures. One looking eerily similar to a young Alder walking down a staircase of the castle together.
The petals gathered in greater numbers.
"I kicked him down the stairs so I could hurry past him." Her smile grew bigger as she spoke. The girlish silhouette beneath her feet kicked the other figure down, the figure then putting her hands to her face in surprise at what she'd just done.
No one made a sound and her words and images carried on the water to them all.
"I was in big trouble for doing that. I thought my life was over before I'd had the chance to do anything with it."
The scene beneath her changed. She was in a room that looked similar to the current throne room. A pair of figures sitting on two thrones berated the young girl.
"When Enrich was asked by his Father what he wanted as compensation… He said he wanted me to dance with him." Tia began to tear up. Simultaneously, her dance slowed down, about to change to something else.
In the memory, the girl looked at the young prince in surprise. But one could tell his voice did not falter as he asked the simple demand of his parents, who looked similarly surprised, as well as impressed with his demand.
"Always wanting to please, he said what he thought sounded the best, not how he felt. When we held hands to dance… he was absolutely terrified of me." Tears began to fall as she giggled.
The two kids danced together in that throne room, under the eyes of the then King and Queen. The boy looked so nervous, while the young Tia looked so happy.
"He was… so clumsy. I had to teach him like this." Tia held out her hands mimicking as if she was still holding his as she taught the young boy how to dance.
The two young silhouettes vanished entirely, being replaced by Tia and, astonishingly, a perfect replication of King Enrich in his prime, before his sickness. The Tia below was dressed in blue, a bright smile as wide as her man's on her full lips.
The Tia on the water let out a small gasp. For a moment, Botan almost thought a word fell from her lips, quiet, near impossible to discern. But afterward, her tears fell harder down the sides of her face, even as her body continued moving in a way only she could.
This was different from any dance Botan had seen before. To the outside, The visuals were the spectacle, but Botan could see how it was so much 'more'.
She followed the dance above with the dance she was having with Enrich perfectly. Every step and every movement was captured perfectly, even the mistakes.
She still remembered it.
She still remembered it even now. So many years later. Playing out with their adult selves beneath the water, as if it was the last time they ever could.
Ripples formed not only where she stepped but where he would have stepped. It was almost as if Enrich really was there dancing with her, just like he was down below.
"This is the way he moved me." Tia began to do moves that made no sense for one person to be able to do. She raised herself a bit above the water, yet no opposing arms lifted her. It was as if there was something there, playing her partner.
Tia's tears wouldn't stop as her smile grew larger and larger. Every step, every gesture, was painful to her, but she wanted nothing more than to take the next step. The act of reliving this dance was a total tragedy to her, and yet a complete delight.
She didn't want to hide from these feelings any longer. He was gone. She thought she had made her peace with it, but he was gone and she was still right here.
She'd never tease him as she did in her younger years. He'd never hold her again in his strong arms. In doing what was expected of them, she had the love of her life stolen from her. She coped knowing he was right there, but now what? She had loved him for most of her life but hadn't been allowed to love him in almost two decades. And what did that gain her?
She was without him forever now and had nothing for that effort. What had that loyalty and dedication bought her?
She should have told him to run away with her or marry her instead. She shouldn't have allowed him to leave her. His iron will was never so with her. Tia always got what she wanted with him. But she didn't fight for him. She did not fight to keep him hers.
She had failed the person she loved most and now he was gone forever. She wrongly respected him more as her king than loved him as her man. She had Alder, but her love for her son did not require Enrich. She loved him regardless. No. The only things she still had of that man were these feelings and this dance.
Memories of the way he moved her, playing out beneath her feet, beyond her vision.
Everyone watched the dance, even those who seemed to only show up to the funeral out of obligation were finding the performance to be something they'd cry over for years to come. A performance by a true master at the height of her craft doing what she was best at with all the passion she could muster.
It was the kind of performance that would stick with those who witnessed it for the rest of their lives.
As the dance reached its end, Tia slowed down more and more.
She was battling the frown that threatened to overtake her smile as she went. She didn't want it to be over. She wasn't even dancing with him, but it felt like the last moment she'd ever get with him all the same.
She slowed down even more, threatening to sink into the water with how slow she was going. She didn't care, she wanted it to last as long as possible.
"But would any amount of time be enough? If I danced here all night? Until my legs gave out? Until winter? Next winter? No. I could never get enough. If I ever got a chance to hold your hands again, I'd never let them go." Tia froze in the last motion, outright refusing to let this moment go.
Below the water, their silhouettes fading out, Enrich brought his lips to her forehead. Pressing them in a loving gesture… one… last… time.
And as soon as the images faded, the petals were gone. Not just from the water, but from everywhere. The flowers people held and the decorations they hung, were gone. Without any explanation.
Time, uncaring, and beyond reason, moved forward. Tia stayed in one place for too long and she sank a few feet into the water. Causing the rest of the silhouettes to vanish.
The dance was over. They were over. There, standing in the water, the mature woman broke.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The smile could not maintain itself any longer as she began to wail in inconsolable grief. Botan and Alder sprang into action at once, swimming the short distance out to get her. They then brought her to shore as one of the Temple workers ran up with a towel to dry Tia off. Yet even then, her wails did not cease.
The display made Tia's point all the more evident. They didn't just lose a leader, they lost a man who had so much more living left to do.
A father and lover. One who gave up far too much for other people. And while his story was over, his absence would leave a hole in many others. Some, to never be filled again.
Botan couldn't help but think, "Did my death have any impact? When I die again, will it? What does it mean to live a good life?"
…
In the end, the Prince said some final words, but Botan couldn't remember them. He doubted the Prince remembered them. Who could follow an act like hers?
Slowly, the funeral came to an end. Life was forced to resume its normal course…
With one less individual present within its ranks.
"Excuse me."
It was the following day of the funeral. Botan… couldn't remember what he'd been doing even moments before. He'd been looking down at his sketchbook, sitting in a chair, he looked at his attempt to capture what he'd witnessed yesterday. He took hours on it but in the end, he knew he failed to capture in a still image what Tia had shown in motion.
Still, this one was more precious than any other thus far in his time in this world.
"Yes?" Botan closed his sketchbook and looked up at the girl who'd spoken.
"Evergreen. Your presence has been requested. Please, follow me." She motioned.
"Who is requesting for me?" Botan asked.
"...Several people." The servant said cryptically.
Botan put his sketchbook away and followed behind her down a hallway of the castle. He felt so… useless still.
"Mysk~!"
As Botan's eyes fell again, the ever-adorable and loyal pet around his neck raised her head to his chin, giving it an affectionate bump. The dark clouds covering his mind faded somewhat, and Botan raised a hand to pet her under her chin.
"Thanks, Myskel. You're great, you know that?"
"Mysk~!" Heh, she looked happy at the compliment or the petting. It honestly could have been either or. Did Myskel understand human language yet? He should test that soon by speaking more to her, preferably when others weren't around.
After all, he wouldn't want them to think he was going crazy, talking to himself or anything like that. Like he didn't already do that all the time or anything.
Eventually, Botan arrived in the throne room. He saw Tia and Alder… they looked terrible. Who he didn't expect to find were Cole, Selene, and Freona.
He wondered why there were so many people. Seeing his look, Alder replied. "We all received a royal summons."
Botan stopped mid-stride. "Well, shit. 'Royal summons' means Prince Raucar. Or I guess now 'King' Raucar."
The Prince behaved better during the funeral, but that didn't mean everything was good now. As if answering Botan's thoughts, the Prince entered the room closely followed by Baobab.
Neither of them looked any better than Alder. Bags held firmly under their eyes. The Prince's face still sported a mark over one of his eyes, which was the subject of much confusion to some. Botan feared he may have given the King-to-be a permanent scar.
The prince took a moment before he spoke. Botan took this to mean he was still nervous.
"Alder." He addressed his brother.
"...Yes?"
"You are hereby reinstated to your previous position as royal advisor." The Prince spoke quickly.
Alder and Tia said nothing right away. No one did. It wasn't an apology. At least, it didn't sound like one at first glance.
Botan stared intensely at the Prince, but it did nothing. Baobab sighed.
It was Alder who broke the sudden silence first.
"Thank you. I'll do my best to help you and our people." He said in earnest.
"…" The Prince clenched his teeth. "Seriously?" He asked, after a long pause.
"Huh?" Alder was put off by the question.
"You're just going to accept it? Accept whatever I give you?" The Prince was shaking with straightened shoulders and clenched fists.
Botan uncrossed his arms and took a step forward.
"What are you asking?" Alder just wanted to accept his job back and return to work.
The Prince almost acted like he wanted Alder to hate him. "Are you telling me you will just carry on like I didn't do what I did? That I didn't treat you two like…?"
"...It's not like I wouldn't want one, it's just that I don't need one." He answered plainly.
"Why!?" The Prince wanted to explode.
"Because you'll be king and not me." Alder said with a sad smile.
"..." The Prince didn't respond to that.
"I don't hate you. I don't hate anyone. But I hate that damned crown." Alder continued. "That thing has caused us all so much grief. Every bad thing that has happened to me or anyone I love is because of it… And you're taking it. You're saving me from it."
He looked at his brother who still struggled to maintain eye contact with him. "It's not that I don't want to be king, I'd rather run away than be it. There's nothing I fear more. And you taking it… It is something you're willing to do for me. That… That outweighs any mistreatment." Alder said with a lot of conflict in his voice.
After a moment, The Prince responded. "I figured." He said.
Alder looked up in confusion. The others did too.
"I heard your last words to father. I really didn't know the first thing about you. But I'm starting to… The Evergreen informed me that the Ivory Company has been attempting to gain you as an ally for some time." He seemed to change subjects the moment it was too uncomfortable.
Alder immediately took to defending himself. "I've turned them down every time!" He somewhat shouted in defense. "…And how did you find out about that?" He asked Botan.
Botan stood up straight and looked at him. "What can I say? I just got the right clues and fit them together. Nothing special."
"I know you turned them down… and I thank you for that. I really do… What I want to know is what all they've told you throughout these deals." The Prince clarified.
"Details?" Alder asked, looking further confused.
"Yes, what they've offered you. Why they want to hire you. Anything you think to be important, I want to know." Having said his piece, Raucar sat down in his seat, his attention entirely focused on his brother.
Alder was surprised for a few seconds more. This wasn't like the brother he'd gotten to know, or not know really, growing up. Perhaps Botan's hit to his head had done more miracles than they could have imagined.
Alder almost chuckled. It probably wouldn't be good to laugh at a time like this, so instead, he shook his head and began speaking of his experiences with the members of the Ivory Company.
The next 30 minutes passed by in this manner. Alder did his best to recall anything he could from the many attempts the Ivory Company made to get him on their side. Offering to assist his mother financially, offering to help him 'see things righted' in Mosden, etc. They never actually said they'd help him take the throne. They always hid their goal in helping him out behind subtext and flowery language.
But something about what Alder said while explaining didn't go unnoticed by Botan. "They only began approaching Alder 7 months ago? Why not sooner? And it sounds like they bothered him more and more as time went on, why? Why only try this late? He's lived in the same city as them his whole life."
He listened and kept his questions to himself. Alder did his best to leave no stone unturned in his report. And, probably the most surprising thing, Raucar's eyes did not deviate from his brother even once.
After Alder offered everything, the Prince spoke at last. "I see… I think it's clear to everyone what they were doing. Driving you to make a move on the crown so they can have a large enough influence in Mosden to enforce the Arden Republic's laws of anti-slavery."
Baobab spoke next. "They'd not care that it'd put Mosden at war with Ventus and Eld. If anything, they'd welcome a large landmass buffer between them. For them to wipe out Mosden."
"Then with their forces lowered from war, Arden could then take out whichever of the two is more bloodied by the end of it." Raucar continued the thought out loud, a troubled look coming onto his features.
"They want to win with as little loss of their own forces as possible, I think," Cole spoke up then.
"Not only that, but they'd be able to gain so much more land than whichever enemy survives." Selena continued, a troubled look coming onto her face. "Meaning they'll be the sole winners in the long run…
"This is the kind of plan that guarantees victory but takes decades to see through… No. It'd take at least a century, if not longer." Botan finished the thought, looking as troubled as the others.
"Precisely. A plan like that is more beneficial to them than any other, and they won't abandon it so easily… So when they find out that Alder has no interest in their proposals, they'll just continue their plan… at least until the time Alder tells them he's not interested in any offer they'll make." Raucar said, frowning in Alder's direction again.
"You want me to actually listen to their offers?" Alder asked his brother.
"Yes. Their attempts to turn you to their side serve as the only means we have of knowing what they are doing." He reasoned.
"But you want me to do that?" Raucar was not addressing what Alder wanted him to do, but that he wanted him to do it.
The Prince sighed and began traveling down the stairs of the throne. Botan and Tia stood alert but didn't feel like anything was going to happen.
The prince reached the last stair and paused. He fought to look Alder and Tia in the eye. He hesitated and then spoke while averting his gaze. "I should have trusted you."
"..."
"I'm not fit to fill our father's shoes, but I am trying. Part of that is admitting that I was wrong. If I even knew the first thing about you, you'd have been my greatest ally. And I… I want to fix that. So here it is. I want you to string them along as long as you can. Get whatever information you can."
"You'd be giving me permission to stab you in the back."
"But you won't."
"...Why trust me so much? And so suddenly?"
"Because if I can't trust you, someone who would only suffer if I failed… If I can't trust my brother, who am I supposed to trust?" He again tried to look away, but his eyes went to Botan who pointed for him to look right back at his brother.
The Prince took a deep breath and met Alder's eyes. "If I can have you do this, it means I trust you. And at this point, I need to trust you first. Otherwise, I wouldn't deserve it. I don't want to be alone." He sounded like he meant it.
There was a small moment of something good. Some nice after what these last few days had done to them all.
"Not that this isn't wholesome as hell, but why exactly did you need the rest of us here?" The touching moment was completely ruined by Selene
Everyone gave her a disapproving look and Cole wrote her a note telling her she had to stay after for disciplinaries and stuck it to her face.
"Well, to answer your question, two reasons. As I said, I don't want to be alone. Alder is a much better judge of character than me. So I figured those close to him would be the people I should trust next. Alder, is there anyone in this room you wouldn't trust with your life?"
Alder knew this question was a serious one. As both a brother and advisor he needed to do his best. "...No. I'd count on any of them."
Botan flinched. "I know Alder and I got along, and I am the Evergreen. But he really trusted me that much?"
"Then now I just need to show you all that I can be trusted. Bring him in!" The last part was shouted loud enough for the guards outside to hear. The Prince reclimbed the stairs.
The large doors creaked open as two knights, each holding a chain walked into the room. The knight turned and yanked heavily on the chains, pulling Navarre into the room. He was stripped of his armor and covered in light bruises. A bit of shading below his sleepy eyes.
"First, I'll…" The Prince went to speak but stopped himself. He walked over to the throne he'd been avoiding and sank into the oversized seat. "First, I'll show that I can be fair. Who would like to speak first in regards to the crime this man committed?" The Prince asked the room.
Seeing a chance, Navarre tried to lead the conversation. "I'd like to-"
Cole spoke over him. "This man attacked Alder, and attempted to kill him. Not only that, but he did so during a national crisis. When our attention should have focused entirely on the wave." Cole, who hated standing out, refused to let the traitor get a word in.
"The Evergreen informed me of the same." The prince said in acknowledgment. He then turned to Navarre. "Your innocence is not up for debate. So many witnesses, and all very trusted." He told Navarre.
"Then sentence me already!" The man practically spat. He was practically squirming in his chains.
The Prince looked at Botan, then Alder. "Traditionally, when you wrong a member of royalty, that individual decides the punishment…" The Prince remarked before going silent.
Alder's eyes widened a bit as he stared at his brother. Tia even came to life.
Botan just smiled. "He gets it…"
"Al-Brother, what would you ask of your attacker's punishment." The Prince made the effort to say it again, as he had earlier. "I want to be able to call you that without guilt one day." The Prince thought.
"...I don't know… Mosden can't afford to lose men, and Navarre is stronger than most…" Alder wasn't prepared to give an answer.
"So you're the one that tried to take my son's life?" Tia stepped forward, her voice cold, her eyes somehow glowing. Thankfully, she made no further actions. If Tia wanted him dead at that moment, it was going to take a lot more people than those who were currently in the castle to stop her.
"..." Navarre looked to the prince to stop Tia's approach but saw him unbothered.
"What's up with you? You'd never let this bitch in the castle, much less-" Navarre's line of questioning was cut off by the Prince's boot to his head.
"You will speak only when permitted… and you will address those in a high station with appropriate respect." The Prince added.
Botan's smile grew. Navarre looked absolutely flabbergasted at the young Prince's complete change in behavior. "H-Higher station-"
Raucar kicked him in the face this time. "That's right, higher station. Even if she wasn't the lead dancer, even if she'd been a commoner, your position right now would still be beneath hers. But now she is once again the lead dancer of Mosden, you shall pay her the proper respects and homage. Is that clear?!"
"..." The Prince was trying to show them he was willing to change. Most of them saw that.
"..." Alder never added to his answer, and Raucar didn't desire to issue a punishment in his stead. Actually, he might have inflicted more punishment than he'd intended with just the two kicks.
"Alder. I'd like your answer. You may not have the crown, but if I'm your brother then you are royalty. Moreover, as an advisor, issuing suggestions for punishments is well within your ability."
Alder's eyes snapped open. He was hesitating at the worst possible time. He had advised his father quietly, but this was not his father, this was someone who really needed his words. "Then… Send him with the next pursuit unit going after the rangers."
"That's practically a death sentence!"
"But not quite. We also have to deal with the rangers and our men will die. So we might as well get some use out of your stats and I'd rather a traitor dies than a loyal soldier, if someone has to die."
"You bastard! I'll-" Tia appeared in front of Navarre, holding his throat. No one even saw her move. I was nearly as fast as teleportation.
Tia moved her fingers in a weird pattern and then removed her hand. She saw the questioning looks as she calmly walked down the stairs and retook her place next to her son. "He will not be making any noise for a few days." She informed them.
They saw Navarre struggle to scream, but no matter how hard he tried, nothing could be heard.
"And nothing of value was lost." Selene chimed in. Freona jabbed at her side to get her to stop inserting herself.
"Take him away." The Prince told the knights and they did so. He couldn't scream so the man took to kicking and thrashing about but it made the knights' job only mildly harder.
Once he was removed, Raucar stood up, not wanting to spend more time on the throne than needed. "That's everything from me. Evergreen, you depart soon?"
"I am leaving the day after tomorrow. But I think you forgot one thing." Botan said, still not completely satisfied.
"...What's that?" The Prince asked.
"You still owe them an apology." Botan replied.
"..." The two shared a look.
Tia decided now to speak up. "We can take things slow from here, Botan. I appreciate your meddling. More than you can ever know. But something like this will be too hard to-"
She was interrupted by The Prince taking off his crown and kneeling before the both of them, his head firmly on the ground. "I'm sorry. Sorry for everything I did, everything I said, everything I felt. I was being a child." He said in a small voice.
"..." And then the Prince, who had only cried in front of Botan in their altercation, cried again, in front of everyone.
"...I'm just so scared. I was so terrible for so long and now I don't want to be alone and I'm scared that it's too late. That I pushed everyone away until I got exactly that… Please… I'm sorry, so sorry." His voice trembled throughout.
Tia slowly moved toward the prince, as did Alder. Tia didn't see a king in front of her. She saw the same little boy who lost his mom and was just so angry his dad was busy. She reached his side and knelt down to him.
"My prince… Raucar. I never hated you. You were just as much a victim of circumstances as we were… probably even more." Tia forgot anyone else was in the room. "After your mother passed, I… I was really hoping the four of us could… could…" She caught herself in the last moment.
Many things were said, many things weren't. There was still far more ahead of them before they made it out of this mess, but there was hope. The meeting sort of fell apart after that. Botan decided he was no longer needed in the castle. He removed anything he had left in the guest room and stayed at the inn that night. As he left, he saw Tia smiling as she spoke to her son.
It didn't look like the ones she forced before.
He got everything he wanted, but he felt he had overstepped a lot. Now he needed to take a step back. He was growing attached, which was welcome. But he had to at least avoid becoming so attached he did want to leave until he was done registering with the Dragon Hourglasses.
Then he'd think about putting down roots of his own. Because he still didn't know if he could return home when it was all over. And he had witnessed firsthand that unless you take action yourself, your life isn't going to be the one you wanted.
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[Otherworld Index]
Today we'll be discussing the burial rites given to the Mosden Royal family. Originally, the Mosden royal family buried their dead without a casket or anything to protect them from the elements. They were more accepting of their place in nature and had no qualms about returning to the soil. The garden that Botan enjoys so much, the one he was summoned in, was actually the cemetery of the Mosden royal family from so long ago no human could know it.
However, the family was forced to change their ways when a man discovered that the dead body of a Mosden royal still received protection from the Ygg tree. The man used the remains of the King's daughter as a means to reach him and slay him, protected from all the knights' attempts to stop him. Ultimately, that man didn't escape alive, but the incident became so famous that measures needed to be taken.
They tried burning the bodies, and it could work, but the ward protected the body making the process take weeks. Eventually, they settled on sinking the bodies of the royal family into the subterranean ocean beneath them via the lake nearest the castle, Departing Lake. Ever since, every single member of Mosden royalty was put to rest in this manner. Beneath more than 3 miles of water where no light could reach. Far outside the means of anyone being able to repeat the abuse of the Royal family's pact with the Ygg tree again.
.
[Author's notes]
A heavy chapter and essentially the ending of the Mosden arc. I want each arc to be about what was mentioned last, regret, and doing what you can to avoid it. Botan kept worrying about his future without living in the moment. Now he saw what happens when those focused on the best outcome in the future reach their future.
Between his rash actions reaching a better outcome for those the King left behind, and seeing that everyone would have had better lives if they followed their heart at any point, Botan feels encouraged to pursue what he wants and to be a little more selfish.
I hope this chapter did something to you. This is only the first arc, but nothing would make me happier than knowing at least some of these characters left an emotional impact.
Please leave a review, and please do something today just because you want to.