Chapter 77

For what seemed like the hundredth time in past few months, Joseph stood at the docks at watched as people he cared about headed off to an uncertain fate.

The situation in Narcine had not improved, according to Elena’s reports. There were still cutthroats at the docks looking for King Olaf’s ward.

Rucar had noted that the cabal appeared to have acquired some local talent with knowledge of Nadia’s appearance because they were no longer accosting random strangers from ships of any nationality. They were specifically looking for a stately young woman with dark red hair coming from Azkoval.

To that end, Garten had convinced a ship from Grunveld to host the voyage across the sea from Azkoval to Denaya. It was a small piece of subterfuge that close inspection would see through.

Nadia’s looks were unique – and the contingent of soldiers aboard were a giveaway even to the stupidest of onlookers. But Garten believed a late-evening landing on a ship hoisting a Grunveldian pennant would give Rucar an opportunity to intercede if it became necessary.

Joseph was willing to accept any help offered.

The capital was still without sufficient troops for him to attend. Choran had returned but those soldiers that had accompanied him needed time to rest from the long, muddy slog back to Tyrell.

The same would be true for any soldiers appearing from the Western Road. They would need a week to relax and recover from the trip that was made more arduous by sloppy roads and unrelenting rain.

Joseph had made many treks in those conditions. He would not ask his men and women to endure the hardships he knew came from weeks of painful travel.

He glanced up from his musings to see Nadia and Celestine waving to him from the deck. Clementine was beside them but she didn’t think her relationship with King Joseph was the sort where he would appreciate a fond farewell from her hand.

She was wrong, of course, but Joseph couldn’t very well let her know.

Instead, he gave the same gestured he’d seen numerous times during his years in a Denayian fishing village.

He pressed his hands together in front of him and lowered his head until his fingertips rested between his eyebrows.

He performed the gesture three times – once for each woman still standing on the deck – then clasped his hands to his heart and spread them wide to show his love to the soldiers that stood near to the woman.

It was left to Nadia to explain to Celestine and Clementine what the motions had meant.

“In Denaya, a sailor’s family will often come to the docks in the day’s voyage appears to be especially hazardous,” Nadia said. “He was telling us that his love goes with us and he will pray to see our faces again. If he does not – if we cannot return – then he will keep us in this thoughts always.”

Celestine nodded and blinked away a tear that threatened to escape.

Nadia noticed and looked away.

“But why did he offer that to me?” Clementine wondered. “I’m just ... a soldier, I guess.”

“Don’t be stupid,” Celestine hissed. She was embarrassed by her show of emotion and she took it out on somebody she knew had seen it before.

“It’s just a question,” Clementine said in an even voice. “He knows you and Nadia very well. He hardly knows me at all. I’ve spoken to him twice in my life.”

Celestine started to reply but Nadia spoke first.

“He knows of you,” she said. “To him, you and the band of people you put together were the first wave of what his army managed to complete. You and your sisters – along with groups like Rucar assembled – continued to fight long after everyone else laid down their arms. He will always respect you for that – and he will always love you.”

“We were just trying to survive,” Clementine pointed out.

“Yes,” Nadia agreed with a firm nod. “At the time, you were just trying to see the next sunrise. But where are you now? You could go anywhere and be anything you wanted to be. But you still stand right beside the king to fight for all that is good, taking on any task that needs to be done to better Azkoval and the world.”

Clementine shifted her gaze to distant shore where the king still stood with a small cadre of soldiers.

“He doesn’t speak to you because he is unsure if you wish to be spoken to,” Celestine added. “It is not that he ... dislikes you. I fear I painted a ... grim ... picture of our lives before his return.”

“I believe you painted an accurate portrait,” Nadia cut in.

“True,” Celestine agreed. “It was a struggle filled with fear and strife. But I spoke freely of our distrust of ... men. I told him how we were still fearful of even men we knew well because all the bad things we’d seen in our lifetime had come from the hands of men.

“So he tries to be respectful of whatever boundaries you might still have in place. He is that way with many people that lived through what we endured. But if you wished to discuss something with him, he would make all the time you required. If you needed something – or even if you only wanted something – he would do everything in his power to ensure you received it.”

Clementine frowned slightly and moved farther away from the railing. The shore was no longer in sight and she suddenly realized that she was surrounded by vast amounts of water.

“To Joseph, you – and those like you – are the embodiment of Azkoval’s spirit,” Nadia put forth. “There were many who put up no fight. There were many who joined the usurper in order to protect themselves. People like you and your sisters fought. Yes, it was for survival. Joseph understands that as well as anyone. But you also protected others. You didn’t sit back and wait to be discovered. You took the fight to the usurper and his men. You stood strong – even if it might not have seemed like it at the time. I can tell you, Clementine, the respect the king has for you is immense.”

Clementine nodded as she took in the words.

“And the guilt he feels for leaving you to fend for yourself is also immense,” Nadia added.

“He couldn’t have done anything back then,” Clementine said, confused by the statement. “He’s barely older than we are. We were shielded by those stronger until we aged and grew. If we had tried to fight when we were small, we would have massacred down the last of us.”

Nadia nodded grimly.

“In his head, he understands that, I think,” she said as she cast her gaze back to the land that she could no longer see. “But in his heart, he still believes that he should have done something to protect every single soul in the country. Because he couldn’t, he sometimes feels ashamed around the people who fought for Azkoval’s future when he did not.”

Clementine shook her head.

“He should feel no shame toward us,” she said after a long pause. “We fought in hopes that one day we might live as we do now. In truth, I didn’t expect to live long enough to see what he has brought. But I hoped that perhaps the next generation – or the generation after that – might see it. So when we return, you make sure you tell him that he has no reason to fret around us. We all revere him for bringing the peace and safety that we expected to take 100 years to see again.”

Celestine smiled slightly.

“Perhaps,” she said, “you should tell him that yourself when we return.”

Joseph waited until the ship was no longer in sight before making the trek back to the lonely castle.

Lydia met him with a cup of warm tea – something her mother had always said helped to ward off illnesses.

“How long until King Olaf’s wedding?” she asked as she joined him at the table in the small dining room.

“A little more than three weeks,” Joseph answered.

“Then in six weeks, you will see Nadia again,” Lydia predicted.

“Perhaps,” Joseph said.

“She will return,” Lydia assured him. “Just as the others will return.”

Joseph nodded and took a sip of the tea.

“Things change in life,” he said after swallowing. “I need not tell you how cruel the world can be.”

“No, you don’t need to tell me,” Lydia said.

“Life in Narcine might have changed greatly in the past few months,” Joseph pointed out. “Perhaps King Olaf has found a way to promote Nadia into his own government. Perhaps she will find a way to mend the rift in her family and choose to stay in Denaya. Perhaps her family will succeed in assassinating her and we will be at war with King Olaf in six weeks. The same is true with everyone else. I think it’s clear that Elizabeth, Katherine and Julia are starting to enjoy the next phase of their lives. Liala, Bianca and Lucretia are on a great adventure and they might wish to continue their travels. Octavia might face the same choice in Marindar that Nadia faces in Denaya. They are returning to the homelands – just as I returned to mine. Home has a strong siren call, Lydia. You know that just as well.”

Lydia nodded. She had been sent away from her parents’ home just as she started to blossom. She had been homesick the entire time she was away.

“This is their home now,” she said. “You don’t seem to understand that. Even to Nadia, this castle – you – are home. If her uncle wants to name her head of state, she will decline. If Octavia’s people wish her to rule as queen, she won’t. Julia and Elizabeth and Katherine wanted to give you time alone with Nadia – and then this abominable weather has pushed their return backward again. Liala and Bianca and Lucretia are seeing parts of the world they didn’t even know existed but I can tell you from experience that they all wish they were back here. And they will all return here as soon as they can.”

“If they can,” Joseph noted. “We’ve sent a great many people in many different directions. It is likely that some of them won’t make it home. It’s possible that none of them will make it back – even if they wish to. The world is fickle. It’s as likely as not that the tentative alliance we put together to oust Octavia’s brother will turn on our troops. The lands where Genrico and Victoria are traveling have fallen before. There is nothing to say that they haven’t fallen again. The same is true with Alexander and Morane. Morane’s homeland might have been overrun in the past year. They might grow sick like the people in Paxifica. They might have sailed into a storm as Morane did once before.”

Lydia shook her head forcefully.

“You cannot think like that,” she said. “I won’t permit it. The people here survived because we held out hope for the future. And believe me, our future was far less certain than those of our friends. Yes, the world is a dangerous place. Yes, it can be relentless and unforgiving. But you must always believe in the best until facts prove you otherwise. I always believed that someone like you would rescue my family – and you did. I always believed that I would meet a man like Yerrick – and I have. I always believed that I would one day raise a child in a land that I’m proud to call home.”

She patted the growing bulge at her waistline.

“And now I will,” she concluded. “You are the one person that sets the tone for the people around you. You must hold your head up high and believe that all will be well – because the citizens of Tyrell, the citizens of Azkoval – need to believe it.”

Joseph closed his eyes for a moment and nodded. Lydia’s words were similar to ones spoken by his mother many years in the past.

“It would be easier if the sun would shine once in a while,” he said, smiling slightly.

“It will,” Lydia assured him. “The clouds and rain will go away. The weather will warm. The castle will be filled with laughter and joy. It just takes time and patience. You’ll see.”

Joseph nodded again and reached out to clasp Lydia’s hand.

“Thank you,” he said.

Lydia turned her hand over and gave his a squeeze.

“Now since you are going to sit around and mope for the rest of the day, I should probably go do some work,” she told him with a wide smile.

“Yes, well, I think I am in the perfect mood for going over the ledgers with Choran,” the king said. “His dire prognostications of our fiscal future can break even my brightest mood. Perhaps I should see how it goes if I start out unhappy and out of sorts.”

“Let me hide all the weapons first,” Lydia said, rising to her feet.

“Probably a good idea,” Joseph replied, laughing.

As Joseph was sitting down with his finance minister, his defense minister was saying his goodbyes to the king of Deseret.

Genrico had expected Narna to bring several trunks worth of belongings. Like Azkoval (or perhaps because of Azkoval), Deseret had grown prosperous in the previous years.

The king had lavished his youngest sibling in the vain hope of making amends for all the times the family had done without after they were removed from the throne by force.

But Narna was accustomed to traveling. She brought a small pack about the same size as Victoria wore across her shoulders.