Page 115 of The Kingdom of Flames

There were tears and tender words.

“The sky is nothing without you,” Azure whispered as he laid her on the grass.

She said nothing for fear she would weep harder. In that sadness, he took her. Pinning her to the earth, her legs spread with the mass of him. Celestine knew it would be the last time. She dug her heels into the black soil, tethering herself there, pinned by him in beautiful friction.

They finished together one last time, hands joined with fingers interlocked. She moaned his name while staring at the stars.

Chapter 25

Departure from the Realm of the Blue Banner

They woke before the sun rose.

Azure was already tending to a fire as he always did. Celestine sat up and pulled the blanket around her. He had her riding boots by the fire to warm them.

“Good morning.” The hangover felt like a lightning strike between her eyes. Azure kissed her, handing her a cup of hot tea. He packed a bowl of his pipe, this one pure tabac, and puffed on it while staring at the horizon.

Celestine took it.

Historian’s Note:

It should be noted that only later versions of the Final Bride of Calendar often include her smoking a pipe. This was after introducing the practice from the new trade routes, where it became the fervor of the court and countryside. Many scholars attribute this as the writers of these tales to keep their spouses from scolding them too heavily for their bad habits. This did lead to the practice of gifting a bride entering Aspiration a pipe in some Banners.

Azure brought forth the gift. It was a set of riding leathers, etched and stamped with white stars, the same as the banner he held for her.

That morning was one of sadness, for Celestine knew that she would not see Azure again after the race. They did not speak of it. Still, she found herself among the terrible predicament of so many lovers who are separated by necessity, by need, by the impossibility of being together. To leave one you love while you love them was the same dread as those brave souls who tremble but walk forward to the gallows.

Dressed in her leathers, Celestine turned, and Azure remarked upon the craftsmanship of his people.

“Perfect,” he said with a smile.

They rode together after breaking camp as the sun rose. Out past the tourney grounds, to where forty other riders waited. It was a mixture of men and women, young and old. It was the race for those who had newly broken mares and colts.

The stands were full. Out along the coastline, many more waited among the twists and turns of miles.

Celestine settled into the ranks, and for the last time, Azure and she embraced. They hugged for a long time, and he whispered words to her of pride, admiration, and support. For Celestine had come to the Land of the Blue Banners a broken and jagged thing, cruelly unwrought by Lord Solis’s lusts.

What was said between them, very few scholars have attempted their pens at. Most prefer to keep it a private moment, as the blankness of the dictation is more powerful. What is often written is that when she sat upon the mount Garo, who would carry her to her adventures, there were tears in her eyes that fixed upon the horizon.

Azure himself held her banner high among the other squires.

After the race, Azure went back to the plains. Some say to hunt, some say to enjoy the flesh of other women, but most agree to heal part of himself that had been taken away. For the brightness and gleam within Celestine affected all Lords of Season differently. And though the Lord of the Wind and Sky valued freedom and travel above all else, it is often said the wind carries many things away, and it is right to grieve them for the moment.

Accounts say a young woman named Dora won the race. Whether this is the first couple Celestine came upon or a different girl, the records shifts. What is known is that Celestine never crossed the race's finish line.

Rather, the Final Bride of Calendar raced along the coastline. Among the beauty and majesty of a land that could have been her home. There were tears in her eyes, and her heart was full of gratitude for the time she spent there. The Blue Banners often say that the wind dries all tears. Her heart grew hungry for new lands. Her body was strong, but her spirit was stronger than it had ever been. She had survived. She had grown.

She raced into the sun. The courtship of Summer had ended.

A few farmers said they saw her in their lands, but she was not alone. There was another rider. Some said he was made of shadow, of darkness. Others say he held a mask of mirror. No carriage, just a rider of mirror lapels at his collar, signifying some strange rank.

All agreed they had heard Celestine's laughter as she left their lands.

Chapter 26

Travel to Calendar

“It is another day to Calendar, along the border of Azure’s lands and those of the Empires of Autumn,” Aidric said as their horses watered at the stream.

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