Page 6 of Kingdom of Flames & Flowers
“Move it, piggies!”
I knew without turning around that the insult came from the girl my age, who was toward the back. The rest of the girls were between her and me.
We all ignored her, even the fireguards, who were yelling at the stone quarter girls to pick up the pace. I rolled my eyes. If they could go any faster, they would. I certainly wouldn’t complain at having to follow behind at a slower pace. Begrudgingly, they continued the climb.
We kept at it for a bit more, getting only a quarter of the way up the stone steps. The stone quarter girls in the front openly sobbed, begging to rest. I glanced at their feet and saw silk slippers stained with blood. My own feet were bare but callused from years of running through the streets. My injured heel hurt, but I’d deal with it. I’d dealt with worse before.
These girls clearly hadn’t.
Mr. Handsome raced past me, taking the stairs two to three at a time. I gawked at his speed and fitness, and in no time he was at the front of the line, arguing with the fireguards. I couldn’t hear what they were saying over the wind. He must be someone important, despite his youth, if he was able to argue with older fireguards like that.
He must not be winning the argument, though. He growled and suddenly swept one stone quarter girl’s legs out from under her and climbed the steps with her in his arms.
The other guards grumbled, but each one up front took one of the stone girls, and in short order, we were moving again.
The girl my age toward the back with white hair had plenty to say about this. “We should leave them behind if they can’t make it up; only the strong should succeed!”
I rolled my eyes and shoved my irritation down. The side of a cliff was no place for a fight. I’d wait until we were safely above, then demand to know what her problem was.
“Fat pigs have no place in the noble’s quarters!”
Screw waiting. I whirled around. “But you do?” I shouted down to her, sick of her voice. “Shut up or I’ll come back there and make you.” I raised my fist for good measure.
Her mouth dropped open in stunned silence, then she closed it angrily and kept climbing. I knew I’d have to watch my back when we reached the top, but that was fine. At least she shut up, and for now, I was too far ahead of her for her to retaliate.
An hour or two later, the top of the hill crested, great white stone buildings bore down on us as we staggered to the very top. I immediately moved inward toward the fireguards, shooting the tall girl a wary look. The fireguards gingerly set down the stone girls. The girls whimpered and whispered words of thanks.
I rolled my eyes, then kept them pointing toward the heavens. Up this high, the giant dome that protected us from dragon fire was soclose.
THUMP.
We all flinched and crouched down as the massive shadow of the dragon landed on the dome and started crawling over it. The dome itself was only three building’s height from me.
“Come,” said the fireguard captain, pulling our attention away from the roosting dragon.
We followed them as they led us to a white stone building shorter than the others, but much longer. I tried to keep up, but I couldn’t stop staring at the gleaming city around us. It was so clean and tidy! And the people wore bright, white linen robes that weren’t dirty and frayed! And I wasn’t the only one gawking.
“It’s made of gold. Look at that!” A bread girl pointed at a gleaming building with a giant dome, the top gilded so it flashed in the sunlight. Beyond it lay the white stone castle itself, sprawling and large over the Seat itself, like a regal guardian. I blinked in disbelief as the dome thinned over the castle, leaving holes and spots open to the bare sky. The edges of the palace were gold from the roof to the windowsills. It hurt to look at, but I squinted my eyes and fought away my tears, determined to stare at it, anyway. I had to memorize every detail because one day I’d get back to my mother and describe everything, down to the worn patches of metal on the doorways from generations of hands wearing down the threshold into a smooth groove.
“Don’t be foolish. Gold melts. It only looks gold,” sneered the older girl, but she too couldn’t look away from this very intimate view of the dome.
Even the stone girls gawked. Precious gems were embedded in the road at my feet, making wondrous patterns and spirals that led away to various buildings. I noticed some of the patterns led to particular buildings. Was it a marking or a sign system?
“You’re bleeding.”
I jerked, not noticing the handsome fireguard sneaking up on me. I would have to be more alert. If a guard in loud armor could sneak up on me, the taller girl would have no problem strangling me or pushing me off the cliff when I wasn’t paying attention.
The fireguard bent down toward me, but I stumbled back.
“If you pick me up, I’ll scream and punch you,” I promised, refusing to look weak in a new place surrounded by strangers. Weakness killed you in the mud quarter.
His eyes sparked with interest. “Is that so?” His voice was smooth like cool water on a hot day, washing away the dirt from your eyes and soothing everything that burned hot. I’d never seen eyes like his before, all that green bursting from a silver outline. Then again, it could be the most common eye color in the Seat and I wouldn’t know.
I couldn’t stop looking at them, though.
“The others are leaving. We’re taking you to the bathhouses.”
Before I could protest, he scooped me in his arms and strode forward. I considered following through on my promise to beat him, but it didn’t seem fair, and my foot hurt. Wasn’t there a saying about finding trouble where there was none?
