Court of Snakes: This Desert Cage

Pure Power - Atsa | February of the Second Year

"I'm on him!"

Terran turned his head for a moment to look behind him in the direction of a shout to meet eyes with a street guard and felt his heart begin to flutter. The guard pointed in his direction and called for other members of his squad to begin pursuit. Terran sneered and shoved past two women bickering over peppers underneath the brick eaves of a crumbling roof. People were no barrier as he shoved past them in the crowded marketplace, and the guards followed with equal aggression, armor bashing against unarmored flesh.

Terran knew the pursuit would not be difficult for the guards, as he shone in his new and audacious wardrobe. He moved slowly enough that the guards could keep their eye on his colors. He wore a tribute to his district, fabrics of bright blue and shining silver draped on his body, and the garments were fashioned after The King's. Armor covered his skin; protection from rogue arrows and swords, and his blond hair had been tied up and out of his face so he could run. Terran had never had such long hair, and to keep it long enough to be pulled back, as short as it still was, would have been a disgrace to his royal upbringing. It was all part of a statement. He had changed a lot over the course of the year, and he felt proud to be the symbol that he now was.

Terran shoved past people in the crowd, trying to be as gentle as possible, and pardoned himself as his armor and momentum knocked civilians around. He heard the clank of the guard's boots behind him and caught a glimpse of The King's shadow as his master moved above him. Terran had not been caught that day. It was merely a lesson.

Sharply, the student turned into an alleyway and into the shadow of a falling building, preparing himself for his task. When he entered the hollow, out of sight of the average citizen, he turned and whipped the deck of cards from his pocket. His hands shook as he drew his first paper weapon. The card bore a picture of a five-pointed star on it, in which was a horned goat with blood-red eyes. Below that knelt a woman and a man who looked away from the terrifying figure.

Terran smiled and flipped the silver card over, placing it onto the back of his hand as he had seen The King do before. The silver of the card whipped out like snakes, wrapped Terran's hand as though they formed a gauntlet, and when it was finished, the pentacle and the goat were visible on the dorsum of the glove. In a burst of flame, the pentacle appeared underneath his feet in a crimson color and a pillar of light shot up from it. Terran held his breath in the flame and a crackling light brushed up his skin, changing his flesh into molten rock. When the light faded, in his hand he found a chain that was hotter than the whitest hot metal and lava dripped from his fingertips.

The guard peeled around the corner but stopped cold when he locked eyes with the beast he saw. "Oh, my gods... W-What... what are—"

"I am a message," Terran's voice grated like cold steel, "a message for the Sovereign of Segeno. Tell the Sovereign that the true heir lives and that he is coming for the throne. Change is inevitable, and the deceiver will fall."

The guard bolted out of the alleyway before Terran could say or do more, and the card wore off, the metal unwrapping itself from Terran's hand and the fire receding. The King hopped down from the roof and smiled, clasping Terran's hand. He joked, "You would draw The Devil on the first try, wouldn't you?"

Terran smiled and shrugged as they walked calmly back into the crowd and headed toward the tavern. He replied, "I'm a natural, eh?"

"The first one I ever got was the six of swords, so yeah... I'd say you're something special."

"Did I do well?"

"I'd say."

"What dictates how long they last? The cards?"

"The cards have eyes, my boy, and they just know."

"What if that gets me killed?"

"Then Justice made her decision. The cards giveth, the cards taketh away. You'll be fine, particularly in the dangerous situation I've devised."

Terran looked at him curiously. "And what dangerous situation is that?"

"We need to infiltrate the Embassy."

"So soon? I've hardly learned the cards. This is day two of card training, Your Majesty, I—"

"You'll be fine. The cards are pretty base in their mechanics, so I would not be afraid." The King reassured and nodded as they moved back into the tavern. "You'll need to practice on the go. Based on the sources I have, we're losing time... and fast. They're looking for you and the Sovereign is training new Elites to be more like us, running on rooftops and stealthy approaches..."

"Well, what do we need to do? Who's going to be the spy?"

"We need to plant you inside the Embassy, make you one of them. I've mulled it over, and unfortunately, I cannot take my men and women and create false identities for them. The Embassy is too exclusive for that, and newcomers are scrutinized... unless they fit perfectly. I may not be able to make a poor man rich, but I can make a rich man into another rich man. We're going to change everything about you, Terran. Your face, especially. You'll fit right in. Hell, you've lived it, so who better to place?"

"You don't think it's risky? If they find me out, I'll be killed."

"You have to survive. The cards said so."

"Well, assuming I live, and assuming I don't get killed in my sleep, changing my hair color will not be enough. Am I going to wear a mask? Won't that be obvious?"

"You're thinking too literally. Think abstractly."

Terran spluttered, "I-I don't—"

"The cards, Terran," The King affirmed and grabbed Terran by the shoulders, deviance in his eyes. "The cards will protect you, just as they've protected me all these years. Do not lose faith."