20. Chapter Twenty

The next day, I found myself meandering through the Market District with my lieutenants.

Given the nature of our work and respective responsibilities, it was rare for Jeremiah, Hans and I to get off early, and rarer still for all of us to get off-shift at the same time. And so naturally, we took advantage of it—making our way from the Guard Headquarters to the other side of Sophrosyne, searching for a bite to eat.

Admittedly, I was lost in thought. I kept letting my mind wander back to yesterday’s impromptu trip to the museum with a certain Little Conduit.

Well. Maybe impromptu was a bit of a stretch.

After well over a week’s worth of deliberating, reconsidering, and arguing with myself, I had honestly given up. I could no longer help myself, considering the universe seemed Hel-bent on ensuring that Arken and I would repeatedly run into one another. No matter how much I endeavored to leave that poor woman alone.

It wasn’t until after she and I had our conversation about keeping things platonic that I realized I had a perfectly acceptable excuse to remain in her orbit. Hadn’t Hanjae asked me to keep an eye on her? I could do that.

With pleasure, Commander.

The only issue was that now the dam had broken through. I’d given in to impulse, and now I would be hard pressed not to pester Arken Asher on a daily basis. I mean, I had resisted the urge thus far… today, at least. I had left her alone for a solid twenty-four hours. Still, my mind kept wandering back to those little moments at the museum yesterday, those oddly comforting signals that maybe, just maybe, this friendship thing was actually a good idea. For the both of us.

We just had so much in common. I was an excellent mirror, able to parrot the mannerisms and behaviors of others to make them feel at ease—a very useful skill in my line of work. Around Arken, though? I didn’t have to. Our similarities were genuine, and strange as that was, as hard as it was to fathom…. It was nice.

Even without those eerily common threads—and those wide, golden eyes that stared straight through my soul—Arken was clever. Charming. Entertaining as Hel. And I had a little too much fun messing with her head, teasing her for the childlike wonder she still managed to retain over seemingly ordinary things.

Like a room full of dusty old star-charts, for example.

“You really like astronomy, don’t you?” I had teased Arken yesterday after we had moved on from the Mural of Creation.

“Is it that obvious?”

“A bit,” I’d laughed—though I could hardly say I was surprised.

That was why I had brought her towards that exhibit, after all. It wasn’t particularly hard to deduce that a Light Conduit transfixed by Shadows might be drawn to something as alluring and enchanting as the night sky.

“I’ve always loved the stars. Though, the moon and I have more of an… antagonistic relationship,” Arken had replied.

“And why is that, Little Conduit?”

“Because I can never sleep under a full moon,” she huffed. “It’s infuriating. Every damn month. Amaretta always said it was because I was born under a full moon.”

“So was I, actually,” I’d informed her, surprising even myself over being that forthcoming.

“Really?!”

As I said… Those odd little similarities between us just kept stacking up.

“You’re in an awfully good mood today, captain,” Jeremiah said, eying me with suspicion.

“Why do you say that like you’re worried about me?” I asked, smirking.

“I mean…” my lieutenant trailed off, letting his expression say the rest—to which I just rolled my eyes.

“I had an unusually good day yesterday. Simple as that,” I replied.

“So you got laid?” Hans interpreted.

“That’s hardly an unusual occurrence,” I shot back with a wink. “Well, I mean—perhaps it is for you, Deering…”

Jeremiah snorted.

“Oh, fuck off! The both of you!” Hans sputtered.

“You’ll kick that dry spell any day now, buddy,” Jeremiah laughed. “You know, as soon as you learn how to manage your own expectations.”

“What are you trying to say?!”

“Nothing, nothing,” Jeremiah said in a reassuring, cheerful tone. “You’re a perfectly handsome bastard, Hans. Just maybe stop immediately going for the most sapphic woman in the room, and maybe then you can get some.”

“It’s a curse, it’s not my fault,” Hans moaned. “It’s not like there’s any way to tell at a glance! How am I supposed to know that I’m flirting with lesbians half the time?”

“A hint,” Jeremiah joked. “If they’re ogling other women at the bar the whole time, they might not be interested in the likes of you.”

“Excuse you,” Hans said. “Bisexuality exists. Look at him!”

When I glanced over, Hans was pointing a brown, calloused finger in my direction.

“I do indeed exist, bisexually,” I acknowledged. “Neither of you assholes are creative enough to conjure me up in your imaginations.”

“If Hans could conjure up anything, it would probably be a lesbian,” Jeremiah said.

“Alright, enough about my sex life, you sneaky bastard. The cradle robber’s over here trying to make jokes.”

Cradle robber?

I raised a brow, peering over at Jeremiah for context.

“Ignore him,” Jer muttered.

Before I could press him for details, I felt the hair on the back of my neck prickle as my body reacted faster than my mind—my neck snapping instinctively towards the Western Gates, towards the sound of commotion. Shouting.

What the fuck?

“Did you two hear that?”

My lieutenants paused, listening—and then quickly met my eyes. I gave them both a brief, terse nod, and the three of us were off, sprinting northwest towards the source of the disturbance. Within minutes, we arrived at a bit of a scene.

A small crowd had formed just outside the entrance to the Guest’s District of the city. A pair of novice guardsmen of ours appeared to be trying to reason with a small cluster of Pyrhhan noblesse flanked by several stiff-looking bodyguards—also Pyrhhan.

Oh, joy.

I jerked my head towards the throng of what appeared to be more common folk. Angry common folk.

“Sort that out, will you?” I murmured to my lieutenants before striding towards the party of Pyrhhan nobles with confidence. “I’ll handle these ones.”

As I approached, I quickly recognized two men in particular—Master Levi Mirkovic, High Advisor of Trade within the House of Embers, accompanied by his cousin Gidgeon, the Viscount of the Eastern Pyrhhan territories of Freyston.

“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” I offered with a slight bow of the head. A show of respect that was, admittedly, just for show.

“Oh, thank gods,” one of the younger guardsmen began. “Captain, there’s been—”

“Captain?” Levi interrupted, his lip curling with a sneer. “Good, I’m glad the Elder Guard had the sense to send someone with appropriate authority to handle this situation. Your men have left much to be desired, Captain.”

“I am so sorry to hear that, Advisor. How can I be of assistance?” I simpered smoothly, hoping that I bit back enough of the sarcasm in my tone that it wasn’t blatantly obvious.

I had never cared much for the Mirkovics. Especially not Levi—the man was a fucking twat.

“You can assist by arresting these miscreants immediately,” Levi demanded, shoving a finger towards the group of commoners.

As he did so, flickering embers encircled his wrist. Clearly, the Fire Conduit’s temper was getting away from him.

“I’m going to need a bit more information before I can proceed with any of that, Master Mirkovic,” I said smoothly, turning back to the freshling. “Brief me on the situation, Kraiggson.”

“Yes, sir. According to the Mirkovic party, this small group of Pyrhhan citizens began to follow their traveling caravan just as they passed through from Freyston into our territory. Once they had made it onto neutral ground, the Mirkovics claim that they started harassing their party, namely the Viscount and the High Advisor.”

Hardly a crime that warranted arrest in Sophrosyne.

“We claim? It’s the truth! They threatened to assault me!” Levi interjected, those flickering embers around his coiled fists beginning to grow, stoking themselves into flame as he shook with rage.

The High Advisor of the House of Embers looked as though he was ready to pounce against his own godsdamned constituents.

“With all due respect, sir, I’m going to need you to settle down,” I warned. “I can assure you that no harm will come to you or yours within the safety of our city.”

I stepped over to one of the Pyrhhan guards while Levi continued his tirade towards anyone who would listen… which was essentially just the Viscount and the poor younger guardsman who didn’t know any better.

“Did you witness any legitimate threats of assault or harm, corporal?”

I was fairly familiar with the rank and file of the Pyrhhan guard, recognizing their status immediately based on uniform.

“No, sir. They were causing a scene, but it was mostly just an airing of various grievances,” the Pyrhhan guard explained. “They maintained a reasonable distance. We didn’t even notice they were following us until we passed the border.”

“I see,” I said, glancing back towards that small group of townsfolk.

I could only presume they were from Freyston, if they had a bone to pick with the Mirkovic family. It was a clever move, really, to wait until the noblesse had passed through into the territories of Sophrosyne before beginning to cause a ruckus. Clever… and a little bit too calculated, for what appeared to be a gaggle of disgruntled farmhands.

“Deering,” I called out, motioning for my second-in-command to join me momentarily.

“Captain?”

“I want you to take down their names—all of the Pyrhhan folk who were following the Mirkovics. Once we have their information, they’re free to go.”

“Free to go?!” Levi snapped, craning his overly-long neck towards me, his gaunt features fixing themselves into a portrait of disbelief. “Surely, you must be joking.”

“I’m afraid the Elder Guard does not hold authority to arrest Pyrhhan citizens without due cause, Master Mirkovic,” I replied simply. “Without evidence or a direct order from the Lord of Embers himself.”

“Useless,” Mirkovic sniffed. “Trust that Lord de Laurent will be hearing of this soon enough.”

The High Advisor picked a stray bit of lint from his shoulder before glaring back at me. His eyes narrowed.

“You look… familiar. Have we met before, Captain?” he inquired.

“Nope,” I lied cheerfully, beckoning his group towards the Western Gates. If Levi Mirkovic didn’t remember me, I much preferred to keep it that way.

“Do enjoy your stay in Sophrosyne,” I offered with a dazzling, forced smile—not that any of them could tell the difference. “And be sure to let us know if we can be of any further assistance. I trust you know where to find the Guard.”

Before any of the Pyrhhan pricks could respond, I turned on my heel and made my way back to my own men.

“All sorted?” I asked.

“Yes, sir,” Hans replied, handing me a small sheath of parchment which I promptly pocketed for later.

I would have to have my sources in Pyrhhas keep a close eye on these ones. I had a feeling that there was more to this little protest than met the eye.

“In that case, you’re all free to go. But a word to the wise,” I offered. “If you’re going to start fights with your figures of authority… Consider sticking to Pyrhhan territory, where the worst thing waiting for you is just a wealthy, mortal man. Got it?”

It was a bit of unnecessary intimidation, if I was being honest—but I wanted this crowd dispersed quickly. No disrespect intended to the Pyrhhan Guard, but the colors of the Elder Guard did have a tendency to foster more… compliance, so to speak. Even in the other territories, the gold emblem on our coats always served as a reminder of who and what we stood for. The Seed of Creation represented more than just the ultimate balance between blood and aether, life and divinity. It reminded them who we reported to at the end of the day. Who we served.

The Aetherborne.

We were the sworn sword amp; shield of the City of Gods, after all.

“Well then,” Hans said, after Jeremiah had dismissed the younger guards and the three of us made our way back into the city. “That was interesting.”

“You can say that again,” Jeremiah muttered. “Sort of strange though, wasn’t it? You don’t often hear about protestors. Not in Pyrhhas, of all places.”

Exactly.

Despite my own personal opinions on leadership within the House of Embers, Jeremiah was right on point. The people of our neighboring territories were, generally speaking, very well taken care of. Pyrhhas had been peaceful, content and thriving for decades. Yet another reason to raise suspicion, I thought as I toyed with the parchment in my pocket.

“We’ll be looking into it,” I said. “And here’s hoping that the Mirkovics went straight to the Admin Quarter for business or some shit, I do not want to deal with that asshole again today.”

“What a prick,” Hans agreed.

Besides, the last thing I needed was for Levi or Gidgeon to take a closer second look at me any time soon, lest any old memories stir up.

I had been having a damn good week, and I was simply not in the mood.