Page 42 of Till Kingdom Come

Finally, they were done with me, and I went over to the wardrobe to dress. It was brimming with clothing, that I suspected belonged to the king himself, because the quality was so very fine. Hendris was of a similar size to me. I settled on a white shirt with flowing sleeves and a snowy cravat, with a silver, embroidered waistcoat and soft, black trousers. It occurred to me that Bracca might not like me wearing the clothes of another man, not that anything that Bracca owned would ever fit me. I was learning that he could be very volatile about the least little thing.

I had asked the women to brush my hair and tie it in a long braid, and they had done so. As a last thought, I took the silver locket from the pouch Rosheen had given me and slipped the chain around my neck. I put on my fur hat and coat and pronounced myself as ready as I ever would be. I went along the long corridor to the king’s office to knock on his door and tell him I was ready to go out and meet the Dokkalfar people.

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Bracca

The ceremony was set to begin around noon, and people were already flocking to the area outside the palace. It was hard for outsiders to imagine how vast this main area was and realize the city was still underground and the palace itself was its centerpiece.

In the circular courtyard in front of the four-story structure, there was a large, rectangular- shaped fountain that spread some sixteen yards across. It was fed, someone had told me, by an underground source. The pool it made was fairly deep and the water was surrounded on four sides by a wall about waist high. It was all very impressive.

Between the pool and the palace, someone had hastily built a small wooden dais that was probably ten or twelve feet off the ground. It was on this dais that the new king would stand, along with Hendris and the head councilor, both of them representing the current government.

I took a place nearby with my men. Our backs were against an outbuilding close by the palace. I wanted to be able to oversee the crowd, which was growing by the minute, and this gave me a good vantage point. We’d been there about thirty minutes, listening to the excited chatter of the Elves and watching the crowd, when some horns began to blow. The palace doors opened and first of all, the councilor appeared, looking self-conscious and dressed all in black. King Hendris came next, looking fairly regal and handsome—if you liked that type. I was growing partial to half-Elves myself.

But I noticed, Hendris wasn’t wearing his crown. His long, straight black hair flowed over his shoulders and the royal purple cape trimmed in ermine that he was wearing. He saw me right away and gave me an assessing look before nodding to me.

Finally, Killian appeared, looking down at his feet as he followed Hendris out. Hendris, who had gained the top of the stairs first, held out a hand to help Killian climb up the wide and perfectly safe steps, as if he were some damsel in need of assistance.

He looked effortlessly beautiful, of course, his long, white-streaked hair pulled severely back from his face and tied into a braid. The style accentuated his high cheekbones—which were their usual pale rose color—and his extraordinary eyes. How he managed to hide such beauty under a witch’s glamour for so long was truly a miracle. People actually gasped when he raised his face toward them and gave the crowd a tentative smile. I could see that Hendris was far from being immune to his charms too, as he seemed to have trouble tearing his eyes away from Killian’s face.

The councilor spoke first, explaining that Killian was the long-lost son of their “beloved” King Brendan, who had been so tragically killed years ago. He went on for a while about how the king had lost his son but searched for him everywhere after “the treacherous queen” had stolen the infant prince away. Despite the king’s best efforts, he’d never found the child. Though everyone had feared the worst, the prince was now miraculously restored to his home, just in time to save their magnificent true Blood Throne—and the city itself, which was magically linked to the crystal—from deteriorating without a “true-blood” on the throne to maintain its magic.

People listened as raptly as if they’d never heard the story before. Then it was Hendris’s turn to explain how Prince Bracca of the Fairies had shown up out of the blue, bringing Killian, the “heir apparent,” back home where he belonged. He described the scene when Killian dribbled his blood over the stone and then sat down on it and all hell broke loose. He phrased it much differently than that, of course. Then there was nothing much left to say—except for the fact that Killian was married to the Fairy Prince Bracca. They conveniently left that part out. The two Elves finally stepped aside and made way for their new king.

Killian stepped up looking shy and stood before the crowd, who soon quieted down to hear what he had to say. It wasn’t much. He told the crowd, speaking in a soft voice that they had to strain to hear, that he was happy to be able to restore the blood-stone and that he looked forward to learning more about this place where he was born and about his family here. He said that since he’d been away for so long, he had a great deal to learn about his new home.

“Hendris, your former king, has graciously offered to assist me, and the councilman has as well. Please be assured that everything in your government will continue to function as it always has, and after my coronation, I’ll have experts to help me govern until I feel a bit more confident. I’m thinking of appointing a Regent’s Council, until I can learn everything that I need to know to govern you successfully and to ensure the continued prosperity of the Dark Elf kingdom.”

A Regent’s Council? This was news to me and not happy news.

“As for who might be on this council, I’m thinking about a four-person group. it might be composed of your former King Hendris, and his head councilor, these two men on the dais with me, and in addition, my esteemed royal consort, who is also the Crown Prince and Heir Apparent of the Fairy Kingdom. Along with one other my husband shall name. I would then have the tie breaking vote, should it become necessary. I’ll let you know my decision soon.”

He stepped back then, and to my surprise the applause was thunderous. Killian turned his gaze directly to me. He stretched out his hand to me, asking me to come to him.

I admit I was stunned. We hadn’t discussed this at all, and it was the first I’d heard of any of it. In fact, the last discussion we had, I’d told him to name me as his Regent. I’d stormed out when he’d refused.

I didn’t particularly want to go take his hand, but how would it have looked if I didn’t? Besides, I could feel Hendris’s gaze on me too, and Killian had just made a huge concession. I knew exactly who I’d have join me on the council if I decided to do this and none of them were going to like it.

Perhaps I also needed to show Hendris, and this whole damn crowd of Elves, just who Killian belonged to. I didn’t like the way everyone was looking at him, as if any part of him belonged to them. Mind made up, I stepped over to the dais and took the stairs in a couple of bounds, going over to stand beside him. He slipped his hand in mine, and I could feel his gaze on the side of my face. It felt good to be close to him again, and there was no sense in denying it. I had let this whole thing go on for far too long and get way out of hand.

I kept my gaze on the crowd. I hadn’t seen any dissenters or heard any chatter about anyone not being happy that Killian was taking the crown, but Elves were unpredictable. I’d need to be vigilant. Hendris got back up in front of the crowd, looking a little surprised at Killian’s announcement, and not at all happy. I wondered if Killian had mentioned any of this plan of his to him as yet. I thought not. It seemed to be just as much a surprise to him as it had been to me. Whatever the case, Hendris named the Coronation date for Killian for four weeks from this day. I wasn’t surprised it would take that long.

That’s when I stepped up next to him. He looked at me in surprise, but he needed to get used to it. I looked out over the crowd and smiled.

“I am His Highness, Prince Bracca, son of King Larek. You may not have heard, but my father and I were the ones who first located Killian in the mortal realm and brought him here to you to restore Daeneid and his rightful place on the Blood Throne.”

I had to stop for the prolonged and excited cheering that went up. I turned and held my hand out to Killian, who came over at once to stand beside me. I held his hand up in mine and asked for quiet, and when the cheering died down a bit, I made my play.

“In the mortal realm, your future king, Killian, was a great and noble knight, who participated in the Tournaments.A Tournament, for those of you who don’t know, isa mock battle between knights and the nobles, showing off their skills and courage. They’re held to celebrate special occasions—like coronations—where the knights can practice their military skills in mock battle, indulge in a bit of pageantry, and display their chivalrous qualities and national pride. I propose we have one here to celebrate and commemorate his coronation.”

I barely got the last word out before the crowd erupted with excitement and cheers. Beside me, Killian was staring at me like I’d lost my mind, but I thought he really loved the idea. I think Hendris and his councilman may have been in shock, but they were beginning to come around too.

Deep down, I knew how appealing the idea was to them, just as it was to me. I knew how bloodthirsty and savage the Elves were. Like the Dark Fairies, they loved violence. Legends persisted among our people that the Fae were all descendants of those angels who had long ago fallen from heaven. A race of creatures who were basically savage, primitive beings who opposed the rule of any god, who loved war, and who generally created havoc and hassle.

“We can refine the details later, butthere will be two groups of knights, numbering up to 100 on each side. One month from today—to give both sides time to practice. We will use lances, swords and shields that are blunted for safety. It would be the Elves against the Dark Fairies. Marshals will ensure there was no foul play, and the field of conflict would be on the plain just outside the gates. So that all can participate, we will allow foot soldiers to boost a side's chance of winning and a greater range of weapons.”

The cheering was so loud by this time that I had to end my speech. We both waved to the crowd, and I took Killian’s arm as we left the dais. I knew he was dying to speak to me or for me to speak to him, but there was literally no chance. We were surrounded by people all wanting to touch Killian or talk to him. I managed to tuck him against my side and get him back inside the palace, with the help of the palace guards and a few of my own men, who were unhappy about so many Elves surrounding me and had pushed forward to surround us.

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