Short Stories From The World Of ARTK

The Rise of Sefare And Juliana Ashhand

The day is Jono 1st, 3265 A.G. The twins Sefare And Juliana Ashhand are twenty one years old.

"What are you writing?" Sefare kissed Juliana's bare shoulder, his voice softer in her bedchamber than it were anywhere else.

"The vision I just had." Her eyes were focused, barely noticing her brother and lover as she furiously scribbled. Her hair, a bright red that put her father's to shame- fell in her face and she screamed. Sefare quickly pulled it back and held it there for her. "I forget them. This one...... I do not want to. It feels important."

"Read it to me then-" he said. "It could help."

Juliana ignored him for a few moments as she finished the last few words, then finally flipped around to face him. "One will come from my line who sees herself as a goddess, Another who does not but is closer to a goddess  than the other, who will evade death when it seems impossible and will look nothing like most of her ancestors, all while the other woman stews in anger and everything comes crumbling down around her because of it. The second will serve the first, but not forever. For no longer than twenty years after she discovers who she is......." Sefare frowned as his sister's eyes glazed over. "I see a scar- oh.....many scars...... Epo yfale Teeie avuzeeieo ofo brib foan Eez meeo cuvn Eez majan hafa ean aoodeoq....."

"Juliana?" He shook her until that glaze disappeared. "Juliana? What the hells was that?"

"I...." She gulped. "I don't know. You pulled me out of it before it was done. The gods will not be happy about that."

  Sefare rubbed his sister's shoulders for a few moments, as mesmerized by her beauty and mind as he were five years ago. "The gods are just. They will get over it."

  "The gods are also merciless." She turned to face him, their eyes only a finger's length apart. "They know when to spill blood and when to let two lovers be- despite the prejudices their world may have. They will punish you for interrupting my vision.... But perhaps not severely."

  As he began to kiss her neck, she stiffened. This was unlike her; she'd never flinched or pulled back from him as his presence were ordinarily a comforting one- but her eyes were in the distance then.

  Sefare sighed. He would never truly understand the depth of his sister's gift; but his love outweighed the confusion. The people would never understand, she said. Some territories honored those with visions, but Kroba was not one of them. Not yet, she always said.

  They would call her a blood witch, claim she practiced the dark arts- and then they would lose their trade partnership with Uculia, the most conservative( and one of the richest) territories in the world.

  This was not about that.

  "Father...." Juliana's breathing grew rapid, her eyes quickly going from place to place like she were standing somewhere else. "Father.... The lord of Vraemore island offered his daughter's hand in marriage on his last trip here. He said you or father could have her, that it didn't matter. Father rejected this offer......"

  Juliana's eyes widened. He didn't know what else she'd seen, not yet- but she jumped out of bed so quickly it hurt his legs. In just a moment she were out the door, running down the halls in nothing but a sheer nightgown.

  "For fucks sake..." Sefare mumbled, grabbing the bow that sat by her bed. It's be a miracle if no one saw her. He ran after her, the stone freezing on his toes- until he realized she were running for father's room.

  He paused for a moment before the realization hit. No. No no no no no-

  Somehow, he found the willpower to run fast enough to catch up with her.

  He were only a pace behind when she swung the door open, him with her bow raised.

Just in time to see their father's neck being sliced in his sleep by a hired assassin.

  An arrow went flying, but for a long time after all they could do was stand and stare at the bodies.
—-

  They could not bring themselves to move as they watched servants carry the bodies out. Someone spoke to them, but it were only background noise. Later, someone would tell them they stood like that for hours- their red hair, unblinking eyes, and similar faces enough to creep people out.

  Juliana was the first to snap out of it, and the first words she said were out there even for her.

  "We should marry."

  Sefare blinked. "What?"

  "We should-"

  "I heard you but you... we... our father just died. Our. Father. This isn't Praris. We-"

  "We can do as we please. You are his heir and a Commanding Lord's consort has more power than the sister of one. I refuse to sit around and look beautiful while you perform most official duties." Her face were serious, though tears glistened in the eyes.

  "But we-"

  "There is precedent." She instead, grabbing onto his arms. "So many of our ancestors married eachother; and there was Queen Dimia and King Hugh- twins, just six generations ago. We.Should.Marry."

  "Father is-"

  "Oh forget about him." Juliana said suddenly, smiling. Everything had happened exactly as the gods intended. Nothing were out of place that she could tell- and she heard their voices then. Our priests and priestesses and witches mean well, but they do not get the final say. It is your life, and one day one will come from you and your brother's bloodline that will change everything. Do not interfere by defying me. "We will do it today."

  Sefare pulled back, pacing back and forth. He'd imagined the moment so many times, but it were only thoughts. Never- not once, did he treat those thoughts like they had any possibility of becoming truth.

  There were many, many cousins married across the noble families of the world. How was this any different? And on top of that they were Ashhand's, their more ancient ancestors known for marrying one another. It were almost expected for that tradition to return one day......

  So Sefare supposed he could live with being the one who brought it back.

  "Very well." He finally gulped. "Will we have a small ceremony?"