The Flames of Deception - A Horizon of Storms: Book 1 (89 page)

Josephine nodded. “Thank you emperor for all the kindness you
are showing. I will not forget it.”

“
It
is a pleasure, princess.” Chalize leaned down and kissed her hand.
“May this be the beginning of a new era of relations between
us.”

Josephine nodded and reaffirmed his wishes. Then Chalize
beckoned for Sobril to attend them and they departed the room for
their chambers.

“
What did you think?” he asked Silar when the door closed
behind them.

“
An
interesting
woman. With an interesting story to
tell.”

“
You
do not believe her?” he asked.

“
There seems too much convenience for a princess alone to have
survived such a vicious attack by the creature,” Silar replied, his
face grim. “Would she not try to return home, rather than seek
shelter here?”

“
It is
much
farther to Aralia than our borders. If the
creature forced them east, then they may have had no
choice
,” the emperor rebutted.

“
True. But still, I would tread
carefully
with her, My
Lord.”

Chalize smiled. “As I intend to.” He paused
thoughtfully. “
Indeed
.”

“
My
Lord? You seem… distracted?”

He
smiled at the man. “It is nothing. Just the thoughts of a man over
the beauty of a woman.”

“
Princess
Josephine?
” Silar exclaimed, looking
shocked.

“
Oh
Silar
, do not tell me that you don’t have attractive women in
Mahalia? You have
eyes
, after all. Or are you a eunuch?” he
ridiculed.

Silar tried to smile, but mostly failed.
“
Hardly
, My Lord. It is just the girl looked quite
dishevelled
to me,” he
replied.

Chalize shrugged. “She is perhaps a little rugged,
but that is to be expected after such a journey. Underneath though,
the beauty is
obvious
. She holds true to the stories about
her.”

“
I have never been keen on the looks of the western
people,” Silar advised. “Their cultures are infamous for deception.
They have the look of
liars
to me.”

Chalize raised a brow. “I had no idea you were
so
averse
to them,” he commented. “In any case, you
needn’t
worry. I may have
the
eye
for a beautiful woman, but I am not foolish enough to be
drawn in by looks alone.” He smiled. “Though your concern is
flattering.” he walked to the balcony and peered out. “How are the
preparations going?” he asked.

“
Very well. I believe we may almost be in a position to start
marching into Olindia.”

“
Good
. I want my armies deployed as soon as possible.
If this is as historic an opportunity to expand my reach as you
claim, then I want to seize it before the tides
change.”

Sobril took Josephine and Thadius along vast corridors to
their two rooms, side-by side in a secluded spot high up in the
palace’s west quadrant. They were lavishly decorated like the rest
of the building and a platter of fruits and a glass canteen of
water had been placed on a table in each room. A change of clothes
was also lined up on their beds. Josephine was given a beautifully
exotic patola cloth gown, and Thadius a green, silken Aslemerian
robe. Thadius left her, still somewhat hesitantly and went to his
rooms, leaving her for the first time in what felt like a very long
time to herself.

She changed into her new clothing and breathed in
the scent of the freshly laundered gown. It was quite tight but
surprisingly comfortable if she could
ignore
the high neckline. She was used to wearing
clothes that
accentuated
the bust: the fashion in Rina. They were a good deal more
modest in Aslemer, it seemed.

Gratefully, she sat and nibbled at the grapes from
the platter, the juices spilling out onto her chin. After filling
her stomach, she fell back onto the large bed and let herself
bounce about a moment on the tightly - stuffed feather mattress. At
last things seemed to be going better. She had established a
healthy first meeting with the emperor. Although in truth, she was
less than trusting of him. His was a face that did not inspire
confidence. Still, he held the power in these parts, and he had the
mages she needed to tackle Sikaris. If she were to convince him to
give them over to fighting the dragon, she would have to remain
polite and work on him
carefully
.

Thadius pulled the thin wooden door of his chamber closed
behind him and wandered down the outer corridor in his bamboo
sandals. A week’s rest had made all the difference to his leg and
it no longer ached as much as before. He stuck his thumbs in
between his belt and his trousers and whistled as he slowly walked
down the corridor. He hadn’t been out for days and even then he had
restricted his movements as much as he could, to let his leg get
some rest. He passed Josephine’s room and paused a moment. Should
he knock? No, perhaps he would leave her alone today. She seemed to
be enjoying having some privacy and time to herself. Besides, he
had called in on her yesterday evening briefly and she seemed happy
enough in her own company.

As it happened, Ank’ Shara wasn’t turning out to
be as bad as he had thought it would be. True, it was much hotter
than he was used to and everything down to the
smallest
detail did seem
completely
foreign to him, but
after the last few weeks he was grateful for a change of pace, even
if he knew that it would be short - lived.

He walked down the corridor for several minutes,
taking in the foreign - looking decorations surrounding him. He
passed a beautiful, delicately designed window, which he had since
learned from a servant was of the style called
mashrabiya shanashil
- an ancient
Aslemerian word coined for the projecting oriel windows of the
palace - and peered out through its covering. A brilliantly radiant
sun gleamed over a small, idyllic, landscaped garden. He breathed
in the sweet smelling aroma from the flowers beneath him. He
wondered if he might be able to find his way down there. It looked
secluded and he could do with a little time basking in the sunlight
after being cooped up around his rooms for several
days.

He sauntered happily down the corridor, gliding
past a giant willow - patterned vase propped in the corner and made
his way left along another lengthy corridor, this one with no
windows but illuminated with flaming torches. After turning this
way and that a while, he stopped and tried to retrace his steps in
his head to try and get a bearing on where exactly he was now. The
place was a bit of a maze, which, considering he was used the
labyrinthine nature of Rina was
no
idle statement. He set off again slowly and after
another few minutes came across a curving walkway. He rounded a
corner at the end and nearly collided with an Aslemerian guard who
stood blocking the way.

“
Oh!
” he exclaimed, taken by surprise. “
Excuse
me,” he apologised. “I think I might
be lost. I noticed a garden from a window-” he waved his hand in
the general direction of where he had come from. “I think it must
be that way. Could you show me how I get there?”

“
That garden is in a part of the palace in which you are not
allowed,” the guard said.

Thadius nodded. “I see. Perhaps then you could show me to
another garden?”

“
My
apologies, but I have been ordered not to let anyone outside,” he
said.

“
Is
there a problem?” Thadius frowned. He suddenly had a sneaking
suspicion that his pleasant day was about to come crashing down
around him.

“
I
have been told it is for reasons of security.” The guard smiled. “I
am sure it is for your safety.”

“
Security? Has something happened outside?” Thadius asked. “Is
it the dragon?” He asked anxiously.

“
Not
that I am aware of,” the guard replied. “I am afraid I know little
else to do with it. But I have my orders.” He smiled awkwardly.
“Please sir, would you stand aside and go back to your room? You
will be safe there.”

Nodding disdainfully, but thanking the guard,
Thadius turned and made his way back where he had come from, which
took just as long if not longer as he grew lost in thought. Why
wouldn’t they let him past?
Security?
Was that to protect them or… to keep them
confined?

He
passed Josephine’s quarters, then stopped and doubled back, knocked
on her door and then hearing a muffled “yes?” from beyond,
entered.

“
Thadius!” Josephine greeted him warmly. She jumped up and
embraced him happily in a hug.

“
I
am sorry to disturb you, princess,” said Thadius, and closed the
door behind him.

“
Oh,
it is alright. To be honest, I was starting to grow a little bored
on my own in this room.”

Thadius nodded. “Me too. I was a little restless, so I
thought I would go for a walk.”

She
beckoned for him to sit. “How is your leg?”

“
Better, thank you. Not walking on it for a few days seems to
have given it some time to heal. And the poultice the maids have
provided me has helped to calm the swelling.”

“
Good,” she said, nodding. “I was growing worried for
you.”

Thadius chuckled. “It will take more than a bruised and
battered leg to finish me off princess.” Then his smile faded and
he grew silent.

“
What is it?” Josephine asked. “You seem…
anxious?
”

“
It is nothing.
Really
,” he advised.

“
You are a
terrible
liar,” Josephine replied. “After all we have been
through, I hope you know you can tell me
anything?”

He smiled. “Of
course
I do.”

“
Then
indulge
me,” she smiled.

He
shook his head. “I don’t want you to think I’m crazy, or over -
reacting.” he sniffed. “I know I am prone to that, especially on
this journey of ours. I worry you might think that I can’t tell
what’s right or wrong any more.”

“
I would
never
think you crazy Thadius,” she gestured.
“Taico
Grimm
was crazy! But you are a long way from
that
kind of madness, my good
knight.”

He
smiled and nodded. “Very well your highness.” He rubbed his
shoulder awkwardly. “I… I think something might be going on here in
Ank’ Shara. Something that the emperor does not want us to find out
about.”

“
Such as?” Josephine asked.

Thadius shook his head. “I don’t know. But
something
is
wrong here. I tried to go for a walk outside, but the guard
wouldn’t let me pass.”

“
Did
he tell you why?” she asked.

“
Security
,” he scoffed.

Josephine nodded. “I
see
.” She stood up and turned to the window.
The sun was beaming in through the opening and casting its warm
light on the flagstones.

“
It might just be me. It probably is me being over
- cautious. The emperor
has
been good to you - to
both
of us - since we have arrived. This is the
first time I
haven’t
felt welcome in the last few days.”

“
Frankly Thadius, I find it hard to trust
anyone
anymore for long.
My nerves are
frayed
. How
can
we truly be sure who is deceiving who?” she asked, and
smiled knowingly. “The emperor
has
been good to us, but that could change
very
quickly, should he
desire it. I am under
no
illusion that we are truly safe here for long.” She sighed.
“And I trust your judgement. If you feel something is wrong, then
it most probably is.”

He
nodded. “I was just starting to think that things were going
better. I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

“
We need to uncover what is going on here,”
Josephine said, turning back to him. “Before
we
are the ones on the receiving end of
whatever it is that they have planned.”