Page 24 of Blood Sanctuary, Part Two

“I speak for the Akron of the Order of Anthros, for the Synthikos of the Aithourian Circle, and for Lucis Basileus, King of Tenebra. If you fail to meet our reasonable demands for hostage exchange, both Cordium and Tenebra will regard your refusal as a willful rejection of our attempts to reach a truce with you. Should you commit this act of war upon mankind, the king will have no choice but to bring the Cordian Order of Anthros into Tenebra to ensure his people’s safety from you. This is the only way Orthros’s ambassadors can secure peace—by sacrificing their own lives on the Akron’s Altar.”

Before Lio could reply, Konstantina’s voice filled the amphitheater, beautiful as a spell, forceful as a gavel. “Allow me to educate the Dexion on Hesperine law.”

Lio kept his eye on Chrysanthos as the mage raised his brows at the princess.

“Our law,” she declared, “also mandates a life for a life. The price for murder is rescue. The only atonement for destroying a life is to restore one. How many Hesperine lives will you give back to us as justice for those you have taken? How many human lives will you make better in order to atone for your abusive reign over the mortal world?”

“Heretics have no life price.”

“The decision lies with the Circle and my mothers. But I, Royal Firstblood Konstantina, hereby vote for my bloodline. I shall not hear of paying in the blood of our ambassadors, who labor for peace. Your destruction of Hesperine and human lives has sunk you deep in debt, and I will accept no payment from you but the compassion you owe to this world. I will accept no terms from you but repentance.”

The whole amphitheater hushed, silenced by the rustle of the Queens’ robes. The Annassa stood, their hands on their daughter’s shoulder more emphatic than a Tenebran monarch laying a sword upon a noble warrior to knight him for his bravery.

The Queens descended from their bench. Annassa Soteira paused to wipe a tear from Xandra’s eye. Annassa Alea’s bare feet were the only sound as the Queens reached the floor of the amphitheater.

They walked among the Tenebrans as they did among their own people each time they attended Circle. The lords came once more to their feet, while the Anthrian mages’ gazes followed the Queens. Cassia watched them approach Lio. He bowed with his hand on his heart.

Annassa Alea put a hand upon his head in benediction. “Well done, Ambassador Deukalion. Take your place with Anastasios.”

“I would remain at your sides.”

“Your life is in the bargain and has long been ours to protect,” said Annassa Soteira. “Recuse yourself and let Prisma Alea negotiate for her temple, this time with her Grace at her side.”

“Of course, Annassa.”

No sooner had he stepped to his seat than his mother took his hand, and his father reached back to grasp his shoulder. Lio squeezed their hands in reassurance and, like Anastasios’s statue, pinned his gaze on the Queens.

Annassa Alea stood at the podium with Annassa Soteira, looking down at the young mage who dared challenge them.

“Do you know who I am?” Annassa Alea asked.

“Indeed. I stand in awe.” The mage’s elaborate bow was a mockery. “You are the Sanctuary mage who thieved the greater part of your cult from Aithouros’s grasp. Your temple was the last bastion where Hespera’s worshipers fled with our fire at their heels. Those who managed to survive us found their last hope of safety behind the Sanctuary ward of Hagia Boreia, the temple farthest from Cordium.” Chrysanthos flung a hand at Anastasios’s monument. “He is the healer who spent every last drop of his power until he died, keeping you alive while you fortified the wards against the siege of our most powerful fire mages. But you could not run far enough from us. Orthros is not far enough, Prisma Alea.”

“Do you understand what you are truly doing here, trying to wound with your words?”

“I understand you all too well. Dalos made the critical mistake of thinking he could stir the mother beasts of the Hesperines to vengeance. I know your nature much better. You will never lift a finger for revenge, but you will stop at nothing to rescue your own when they are helpless and facing destruction. For it is you who bargained yourself, the last Ritual firstblood, to Aithouros as a prisoner so your spawn could escape and go into hiding. Hesperines are devious, but you most of all. You even managed to escape custody in Corona and flee all the way to the Empire, out of our reach. But the witch you brought back with you can no more save you than Anastasios. Your Imperial allies do not frighten Anthros.”

“I have been called many things,” Annassa Soteira replied, “many worse than ‘witch’ by men more powerful than you. With those words, they only betrayed their own weakness. All I see before us is a man trying to prove he is strong. If you must prove it, you are not. All I hear in your voice is fear of our power.”

“Do not think you can bring me to my knees with a gaze!” Chrysanthos cried. “I am not afraid to look into my own soul. If I answer to Anthros today, I will bare my soul to my god proudly.”

Chrysanthos boasted of this? This was what the mage believed made his god proud? Lio could not fathom the Will of Anthros, and he did not wish to. But he had to wonder which of the war god’s faithful had misheard him. Aithouros, who had rejoiced in destruction, or Laurentius and his king, who had made war to end suffering? Chrysanthos, who held Nephalea’s plight over the Hesperines now, or the Tenebran men who had felt moved by Alkaios’s suffering?

“Are you satisfied?” Annassa Alea asked. “Have you troubled our ears enough to feel like a master of your Order?”

“You would do well to heed me, Prisma. Go ahead. Deliberate and wring your hands and cast your votes. But do not take too long. If I depart Orthros without the Hesperine embassy in custody, I will return to mortal lands to give an order of execution. What is it to be? Shall my sacrifice to Anthros be seven diplomats or seven Hesperines errant?”

“There will be no vote.” Queen Alea held out her hand to her Grace.

Queen Soteira rested her hand in Queen Alea’s. “We invoke our power of veto.”

Annassa Alea stood in her temple vestments on the podium of the Firstblood Circle, as she had once stood on the walls of Hagia Boreia. “I will give you the same reply I gave to Aithouros himself: Hespera does not give up on a single life. In her name, we will sacrifice no one. We will surrender none of our own to you, and we shall not rest until all our people are safe behind the ward. Do not think we will let this ward come down, as we lowered the defenses of Hagia Boreia to break your Order’s siege upon us and make our escape. We have created our refuge on these shores, and this is where we shall remain. Orthros is Hespera’s Sanctuary that will never fall, and you stand within it on her benevolence. You have chased us as far as you can, and you shall go home empty handed.”

“You sentence your prisoners to death!” Chrysanthos warned.

“You cannot give an execution order from here, and your Order does not expect your return until the mountain passes thaw. You will remain here under house arrest until spring. Let us see if our prisoners are still in your custody by then.”

“Send a rescue party, if you will. They will only swell the ranks of our prisoners.”

---