//Author Note: I would strongly urge you to read Rotten Æther | Scribble Hub alongside this story. Shared world and setting, with crossovers coming!//

 

“You claim yourself the leader that the nobles fail to be?” I ask, so offended by her claim that I forget for a moment the nature of this house of debauchery. “What nature of ruler lets their people suffer like what we see outside? How can you so easily declare such a thing?”

“I’m a ruler struggling to see that the local dragons stay fed and happy so that they don’t burn down the village,” she says, leaning closer to me and glaring with genuine rage and hate, though I feel it’s directed less at me and more to the cruel nobles that I represent.

“I do what I can, what I must,” she says.

“So, you built this?” I ask, looking as a man thrusts his hips back and forth on the stage, the movement… less than desirable.

“You think this evil?” She asks, opening her arms wide to indicate this awful home of shallow pleasures. Exploiting the weakness and desperation of all who come here, and all employed.

“These men and women were living on the street before I found them. They were doing the same thing they are here, but without any protection, and with only a fraction of the coin to show for it,” she says. “This is the nature of the world, and none of us has the power to change it, only to navigate a path through it.

“I can provide some few, some little safety, but I am not a dragon.” Her eyes glow as she stares at me, “I’m not a noble.”

I shake my head, clearing away the thoughts that distract me. I mustn’t let myself become twisted by old ‘truths’ taught to me by liars and fools. I don’t know the world as this woman before me does. I haven’t the insight to know if she is right or wrong, and it would be reckless to anger her from my own mistakes.

“What could you do if you were a noble?” I ask, sitting up straight and meeting her eyes. “What difference would it make?”

“It would make a significant difference,” Semi says, leaning back once again. “A noble has power and influence that little old me can’t even hope to imitate.”

“It hardly seems like it to me,” I whisper, thinking on my past failures. I’ve hardly been able to keep my own estate under control, let alone extend my power out to the commoners under my rule.

“Yes, I’m sure,” Semi says, nodding slowly and letting her prior anger defuse. “One needs a certain amount of backing in order to gain the most from your position in the nobility, but it can earn you respect that cannot be found otherwise. The nobles who meet with me respect me, but they do not look upon me as an equal.”

I’ve settled since the conversation’s beginning and as I review what we’ve spoken of thus far, I can see that Semi has been leading this conversation from the very start. Even her emotional outburst is intentional, showing me her intentions and values in a way that seems most genuine.

Can I trust that it’s the truth and not another cruel deception?

No, I cannot simply trust her.

“I came here to discuss the red-eyed monster who slayed my family,” I say. “What can you share on the topic?”

“The red-eyed monster,” she smiles without any affection as she uses my term. “His name is Aldramodore, and he’s a terribly dangerous man.”

“He’s not a man,” I say.

“You think that a man can’t also be a monster?” Semi asks, tilting her head with a cruel smile. “I would think that you would know better than that by now.”

I remain still, unable to deny her words.

“He is deeply involved with the royal family,” Semi says, swirling the wine in her glass. “He frequently shows his face in noble events, especially those hosted by the royals, and royal factions.”

“Why are you telling me this?” I ask, realizing now that I’ve given her nothing for the information that she’s providing me.

“Aldramodore doesn’t fit into the story of the dragon that I’ve told you before. He’s a man with an interest in genuine leadership, yet he courts the dragons. He is as strong and terrible as any of them, but he cares enough to concern himself with the everyday lives of the people of this kingdom.

“He runs an… organisation.”

“Criminal?” I ask.

“Can anything be called criminal if it is by the will of the royalty?” Semi asks, sneering at the castle in the distance. “He takes what he wants, and no one has both the power and will to stop him.

“His people are dangerous, some are like you, afflicted by his curse, others are different. Young children trained to be the best killers they can be, I would consider their best to be peers to the royal guard themselves. Yet there are many more who are closer to ordinary mercenaries.”

She says, but the royal guard are peerless, even during the war ten years ago, they lost not a single man to the fighting, and each battle was victorious. By the end they were constantly warring to defend the royal castle, holding off an enemy army thousands of times larger. They fought hard enough to press the enemy into peace by simply holding their ground.

If the red-eyed monster leads men just as dangerous…

My frozen heart threatens to shatter from the disturbing revelation.

“They have not eliminated you, yet. You needn’t be afraid,” Semi assures me, placing a hand on mine.

“Afraid?” I ask, “You understand that I’m cursed, no? I’m not a human anymore, and I don’t feel human fear.”

“Oh?” She questions, meeting my eyes and trying to read me.

“What is the point in telling me this?” I ask, thinking through the problem that she poses to me. “The monster himself is powerful, but if he has guards as powerful as you claim, then…”

Perhaps, this was a terrible folly from the start. I should have known that this monster was too much for me.

As a noble, I’m a failure. I can’t gather the support of my peers, and I can’t serve my people as I should.

As a huntress, I was nearly killed by my own uncle. I cannot possibly manage to challenge the monster who killed me, it sounds as if I’m too pitifully weak to even stand against his minions.

“Is that enough for you?” Semi asks. “Is that enough to make you give in?”

The wooden steak rubs against my leg, where I’ve left it strapped. I recall what it felt like to be pushed to the ground and drunken dry, thrown aside as a corpse. Made into nothing.

“I want to know why,” I say, meeting her eyes. “Why did he kill my family? Why did he kill me?”

Why do the other nobles leave the kingdom to rot and die?

Why does no one do anything to change this world into something better?

“Then, perhaps there is still something for you to do,” Semi says. “I believe that we can help each other in time after we’ve become friends.”

I raise a brow at her.

“It is easier to run this organisation with the permission of the local nobles,” she says. “I keep out the more dangerous gangs and ensure that peace and prosperity come to your lands. That’s what I can offer you given time.”

I bite my tongue, so as to avoid saying anything inappropriate. I hate that her offer actually has weight, that I’m so powerless that I would do well with the assistance of a woman like her.

“Alternatively, I could teach you to rule over your community as I do mine,” she smiles. “Having friendly neighbours to rely upon is good for us all, isn’t it?”

“I can’t deny such a simple fact,” I say.

I admit that I haven’t even considered the idea of a more direct influence on my lands as she is suggesting. Taking my thugs out to keep the peace in the streets and manage the difficulties of the people.

The thoughts simmer in my mind until it is time for me to leave. I try not to take exception at the rather unpleasant offer she makes at the end.

“It doesn’t have to be anything ‘untoward’,” Semi says, laughing quietly at me. “I have some who are experts in massaging the aches from your bones, or they can prove a pleasant conversation partner.”

The sounds from the rooms above prove that those services are the rarer of those taken up by the clients here.

Refusing her more insistently, I make for the exit and quickly return to my carriage to be taken home.

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

As much as I understand that it was Semi’s goal to persuade me in such a direction I still find myself going through old invitations to various noble affairs. Most were hoarded by my uncle in the desk draw, treated as something unimportant.

If I am to stay on this path, then I need to have power in both the noble court and the streets that the common man walks. I must be more than just a hungry dragon, but a ruler of the town as well.

I need more thugs, and I must see them used well. Knights ensure the safety of our kingdom, and my thugs will stand in much the same position over these city streets and simple ruined homes.

Yet, I must also reign in the lesser nobles who deny my authority. They crush the commoners under unreasonable taxes, leaving my lands starved and ruined for their greed. I must have their respect if I want them to obey.

“Countess Greystone,” Sonia says, bowing slightly to me as she stands before the desk. She’s slowly coming to see me as worthy of my inherited title, though official formalities are yet to be performed. It has been a challenging time.

“Is there something you need?” I ask, giving her my full attention but keeping my voice and posture relaxed. I’ve focused on training and mediation throughout the day and it’s now nearing afternoon as she stands before me, dressed for an outing.

“I’m meeting with the Grand Reeve that you sent around the other day,” she says, nervous energy creeping into her voice. “He was quite charming, and he didn’t seem at all bothered by… well everything.”

“You’re considering a new engagement with him?” I ask, taken aback.

“We haven’t gone that far!” She practically shouts. “It’s been less than a week since…”

“Uncle’s death was really so recent?” I ask, my sense of time is terribly unclear without sleep to break up the days.

“I won’t stop you, but I will ask you to be careful, and hold your tongue on certain matters, especially with the matter of slavery. Until we can assure the safety of our guests, I do not want knowledge of them to escape this estate.”

“I know, he…” she trails off. “I’ll be careful, he’s a good man.”

“Then, enjoy yourself,” I say, though the phrase feels a little odd on my tongue. Is that the right thing to say in this situation?

Sonia takes no offence, smiling brightly as she takes her leave. You could hardly notice that she killed her husband just days ago.

It’s regrettable that she hadn’t done so sooner.

Belle has left our estate after offering a rather uncertain goodbye, it seems that she’s visiting that unusual priest to discuss her feelings on our hunt. I suppose I may have chased her away with my true nature, I should have been more careful. I shouldn’t have let her come with me on a hunt in the first place.

The memory of that hunt still haunts me, the terror hanging in the air, the taste of sweet blood, and the look in Belle’s eyes as she finally understands me. My heart pounds in bittersweet affections, and I’m not entirely sure what I want, but I doubt that I’ll be able to obtain it.

Lingering whispers haunt me, suggesting that I might just be able to get everything I want. I just have to give in to temptation. I need to forget the morals that used to guide me and allow myself to indulge the monster I’ve become.

My ears prick as I hear Piper in quiet conversation. Sharre is speaking with her, and I quickly figure that they intend for their conversation to be private. I’m finding it difficult to direct my attention away and instead I find myself covering my ears.

“Are you feeling alright, young miss?” The elderly slave, Riese, approaches me with a bright smile on her lips. I’m quite sure that she’s hiding more than a few emotions behind the joy that she expresses, but I can find no hint of that disguised truth.

“I am fine, Riese,” I say, shaking my head. “I have much to think about, is all.”

“Are you sure that you’re not feeling lonely?” She asks. “You seem lonely.”

“It’s…” I can’t find quite the right words to say anything. The elderly lady only nods quietly to herself, proud for having me figured out. She takes my hand and pulls me along before dropping me in a seat in a quiet reading room.

One of the servants sits at the front of the room, reading through a book, and teaching the younger children their letters and words. The kids try to focus but they are still young and Riese has to step in every so often, pinching the ears of the most troublesome kids.

Their new cat and dog ears twitch every which direction, while their tails swing back and forth with an energy that they’re barely able to contain.

After some time, the lesson comes to an end, the servant rather nervously takes her leave, and the children start to play again. The toys are much the same as they were, but a few new oddities have been added to the bunch. I try not to squirm when I recognise one of my talismans, already dead and dry, but the bone and sinew of a once living man, no less.

“Why did you bring me here?” I ask Riese as she takes a moment to watch the kids at play.

“You are powerful,” she says. “I want you to see them. I want you to know them. I want you to love our children as if they were your own.

“You protect us today because you feel responsible for us, tomorrow you will save us because you would be lonely without us.”

Her smile is wide and bright, no longer burdened with the sour bitterness that I remember from the first time I visited them in their little shack. She draws me in to play with the children, inventing games set around the letters that they’re trying to learn even though she’s struggling to learn them herself.

“Wrong, this one is said ‘uh’,” I correct one of the little ones, trying to get her to make the sound. She looks up at me with big tearful eyes, and I don’t know what to do. “No, no, don’t cry, it’s fine. There’s nothing wrong.”

No matter what I say I can’t calm her down.

“Don’t cry, look at me,” Riese says, blowing her cheeks out like a wood-wise squirrel with its mouthful. Her skin stretches out much larger than should be possible.

While I’m still taking in the sudden change, the crying child is laughing and giggling madly until Riese lets her stretched cheeks settle back into place, rubbing them smooth. For a moment, all her wrinkles are gone, and she wears a young face again, but with a wink, she returns to the old, wrinkled expression that she wore before. A great big wart on her nose to complete the image.

The clacking of a cane precedes Reeve Lewark’s arrival, led here by one of the servants.

“Reconnecting with your inner child?” he asks, upon entering the room and seeing me on the floor surrounded by toys.

“What are you here for?” I ask.

“Do I need a reason to visit my favourite young monster?” he asks, “It could be a social visit.”

“It’s not though, is it?” I ask.

“No, but you do need to make some more friends,” he grumbles. “It’s not healthy to stay inside all day only coming out for a meal, and as much as it’s nice to see you leaving your reading room, I believe it would be better to befriend your peers and not the younger generations.”

“I have friends,” I say, leering at him. “Just last night I made friends with a woman called Semi, an influential person in this city if I’m to understand it.”

Reeve Lewark pales, standing frozen in place for half a moment.

“Where did you meet her?”

“Some depraved establishment,” I say, shaking my hand at him. “It wasn’t terrible for what it was, as much as that means anything. She told me a little about the red-eyed monster. She told me his name, Aldramodore.”

“Then, you should be careful,” Lewark says. “You should be very careful. She is not a person to cross, and if she’s giving you something without asking something in return then she’s interested in you.”

“Is she so important?” I ask.

“I know knights that serve her, and nobles that would beg for a meeting with her,” Lewark says. “She is more dangerous than you give her credit for.”

“I’ll take that into consideration,” I say, nodding slowly. “Say, where does our investigation lead us now?”

“How do you mean?” Reeve Lewark asks.

“I know who was behind this, but we cannot bring him to justice…” I say. “What do we do now?”

“Justice comes to us all,” Lewark says, hesitantly placing a hand on my shoulder. “This one might just take more time and effort, leave this to me.”

“Reeve Lewark,” I say.

“Exactly, I’m a reeve, you are not. Live your life so that you don’t cross my path, come to terms with what you’ve lost, and live a better life than this old man,” he says. “Don’t waste your life pursuing revenge.”

“I do not want revenge,” I whisper.

“Even more reason not to pursue it.”

 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

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