Redemption

Redemption Part 3

Finally I got out of the media room, but not before Jade gave me the crowning punishment—fake wings. "They're your signature!" she said as she clipped them to my arms.

Jade bowed and wished me good luck, and Aura stepped into the elevator with me, along with an even larger contingent of Ms. The elevator ascended several levels to the embarkation room, where aircars flitted in and out of a large opening in the side of the Spire. Fresh air blew into the room, carrying with it the fragrance of flowers, along with a distant hint of the sea. I took a deep breath, closing my eyes, for a moment imagining myself in the sky.

A thought struck me. "Do you know if I can bring Sabra?"

Aura shrugged. "Your father gave the Savannahs a huge house, so there's probably room for her."

"The Savannahs! I should probably ask them."

"Why would you do that?"

"Well, they might find it inconvenient if I just dropped in."

She laughed. "They're prisoners—who cares what they think? You're the prince. You should be able to do whatever you want. Maybe if you didn't act like a random, we'd forget your unfortunate birth circumstances. But you're constantly reminding us of—"

"Constantly reminding you of...what?" Dad strode up. Even though Aura was only a few inches shorter, he seemed to tower over her and to overshadow the massive room.

"N-nothing, your Majesty." She bowed deeply, touching one knee to the floor, her eyes on the ground.

"My son may be a random, but he will always be higher in rank than you, and you owe him your allegiance. Or have I and your mother not made ourselves clear about this?"

"N-no, your Majesty. I mean—yes, your Majesty."

A small smile lifted his lips as he looked at her in affectionate scorn. Aura was his sister Cinder's daughter, after all—a fact I sometimes forgot, since she was so different from my aunt.

My father looked much better than when I'd last seen him. He'd still looked regal then, but the hollowness was gone from his eyes. He wasn't so pale; the deep golden undertone of his skin had returned. And his hair wasn't unkempt; it fell in soft waves over his shoulders, and his beard was carefully trimmed. Instead of a ragged robe, he wore royal purple uniform, shimmering and decorated with gold and gems. Unlike me, who always felt stiff and unnatural in uniform, he looked completely at ease, yet focused and determined and brimming with power. The epitome of Royalty. I felt the urge to bow to him, though as a direct descendant I didn't have to.

I almost feared Dad's gaze, though I longed for it. It was the first time I'd seen him in person since he'd imposed my punishment. Even though he was sympathetic with the fact I had modified an M for Mom's sake, and he was lenient with me because letting the sensor block fall into the hands of our enemies had been an accident, he'd had to punish me to let me know that what I'd done was still serious. I'd caused this whole crisis. He'd defended me, but he was obligated to do that because I was a Sovereign descendant. Like Aura kept reminding me, I was a random. My Royal DNA could only do so much. Dazzle couldn't help rebelling because of her heritage; maybe I couldn't help but make mistakes, because I was one.

Even so, Dad had allowed me to have another chance at redemption. I couldn't squander this chance.

I bowed my head. "Thank you for allowing me to make up for my..." Mistake was too mild a word. "My catastrophe."

A hand fell on my shoulder. It was gentle yet hinted at the massive muscle in the arm above it, the power that my father held back.

"Jet," said Dad. I looked up into his eyes, the gold infused with darker, almost copper flakes. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you this week. Perhaps I should have fought harder to find a place for you, even when Sky was insistent you have your freedom. You may be almost unprecedented, but I should have adapted more quickly than I did. As a Royal, your blood is precious, and it should never have been taken so lightly. Furthermore...you are precious to me. I cannot lose another." He spoke these words so quietly they were almost a whisper, and I could hardly hear them above the whir of the aircar engines.