39. Annani

Annani watched Arus face, noting the subtle shift in his expression as he connected with his sister and bridged the vast distance between Anumati and Earth through their extraordinary link.

Finally, Aru announced, The queen is ready.

Annani set her tea aside. I am ready as well.

Greetings from Queen Ani of Anumati, Aru said in the gods language, which resembled the tongue of her youth but not precisely.

Still, she understood enough to get the message the greeting conveyed, setting a tone for their conversation.

The greeting was not from Ani, the grandmother who was overjoyed to discover that her beloved son had fathered a daughter before he died. The greeting was from the queen of Anumati.

It made Annani acutely aware of the fine line she needed to walk. She needed to show the proper deference expected when addressing a monarch, yet this was also her grandmother, her fathers mother, and some warmth needed to be injected into the conversation to establish rapport.

Please convey my deepest respects and heartfelt greetings to Her Majesty, Annani replied in English.

Her knowledge of the gods language was not sufficient to conduct a high-level conversation.

Next to her, Syssi was writing with a pen on a yellow notepad, and Annani wondered whether she had understood Arus words or guessed the meaning.

For the sake of record keeping, it would be better to conduct the conversation in English.

I am overjoyed to finally meet you, my dear granddaughter, Aru translated, probably arriving at the same conclusion as Annani.

Nevertheless, the words sounded strange coming out in his masculine voice and yet sweet in Annanis ears. Her grandmother acknowledged their blood ties and addressed her as she wished to be addressed. I wish I could gaze upon your face and see for myself the resemblance Aru reported, but regrettably, I do not possess telepathic abilities and I cannot peer into Arias mind to see what Aru is sending to her through their connection. I can only hear what she repeats.

Annani glanced at Syssi, who had seen the queen and Aria in her prophetic vision. With Syssis permission, Annani could peek into her mind and see her grandmother, but perhaps it was not a good idea to mention her hybrid children and their hybrid mates just yet.

The queen had been informed of the immortals existence, but she might choose to ignore everyone other than Annani and perhaps Toven.

Even Ahn, who had been a progressive god, had ignored Areana, his own daughter, because she was a weak goddess born to a concubine. He hadnt fathered any hybrid children, but if he had, Annani had no doubt that he would have ignored their existence even more pointedly than Areanas.

She had no illusions that her father had been without fault, but he had been a rebel who fought for the rights of those who were considered second class on Anumati. Life was full of contradictions. She could imagine the queen as an elitist, even though she had believed in her sons cause enough to shoulder it after his exile.

On the other hand, Annani had nothing to be ashamed of, and if her grandmother sneered at her hybrid children, then Annani did not want to have anything to do with her.

I am grateful to Aru and Aria for providing us this opportunity to communicate on a private channel that the Eternal King cannot spy on. For the sake of transparency, though, I would like to mention that my son and his wife are here with me, and my daughter-in-law is transcribing our conversation. My sons name is Kian, and his mates name is Syssi. Syssi is a seer, and she had a vision of you, the Oracle, and Aria. If she permits it, I can peek into her mind and see what each of you looks like.

There was a long moment of silence as Aru transmitted what she had said to Aria, who in turn repeated it to the queen. Annani waited with bated breath for her grandmothers response.

Greetings to my great-grandson and his mate.

Annani let out a breath. The queen had acknowledged Kian as her great-grandson, knowing that he was a hybrid.

Please convey our greetings and deepest respects to Her Majesty, Kian told Aru.

A short moment passed before Aru spoke again. I know that you have many questions, my dearest granddaughter, and I will answer them in time, but today, I want to learn about you. Aru told Aria what he knew, but I want you to tell me more about your life.

Annani had expected that. Her grandmother needed to assess her and verify that she was worthy of the role the queen hoped she would one day assume. If she was not impressed, she would not invest the time and effort to groom her for the role of Anumatis future monarch.

Annani was not yet sure that she wanted the job, but she wanted to be deemed worthy.

I have lived for over five thousand Earth years, and I have had many adventures and trials, accomplishments and setbacks, but I have never given up no matter how hopeless things seemed at the time. Where would you like me to start, Your Majesty?

Tell me about your father and your relationship with him. He named you after me. Did he groom you to one day become queen?

Yes, he did. Annani smiled. My father, your son, taught me all I know about duty, responsibility, fairness, and respect for all, including the lowliest of humans. I have spent countless hours in the throne room, listening to proceedings that bored me to the point of despair. But he taught me what it meant to be a leader and that sometimes there are no good choices, and a leader cannot hide from her responsibility or let another shoulder it. She has to choose the least harmful one and continue forward.

Annani paused, allowing Aru time to repeat her words to Aria.

A few moments later, he said, Tell me about your mother.

Annani smiled. The queen wanted to ensure that her parents had been officially married when they had her. Otherwise, she could not be Ahns official heir.

My mother was not even seventeen when she set her sights on my father and decided that he would be hers. She was not of legal age, but since it was known that he was about to choose a wife, she knew that she could not wait until she reached the age of consent and set out to seduce him before it was too late. Long story short, he succumbed to her temptation, finding out too late her real age. To avoid the legal complications of his transgression, my father proposed, and they were married. It was not long before he realized that she was his fated one and only, and that the Fates had gifted him with the greatest joy a god could hope for.

There was a long moment of silence before Aru relayed the queens answer. I am glad that my son found happiness with your mother, but I am not glad that their relationship had started with deceit.

Annani chuckled. Then Your Majesty should brace herself because my tale is full of conspiracies and manipulations, although given what I have heard of Anumati, that should not come as a surprise.

Arus lips quirked up in a smile. That is true, my astute granddaughter. Please continue with your tale.