Elemental Thief Part I : Child of Calamity

Truces

Akina fought the shudder of fear that was racing through her, knowing that with every step she took into the Wild, she was moving further away from Clairval, and deeper into the dangerous, shadowed forests of the Feysha, whom she felt surrounding her now.

Ahead of her the one Feysha she could see led Reynald and her deeper into the woods, along a barely cleared path, and behind her only the older herald and one other guard walked with her.

Reynald wasn't happy, even if he hadn't argued with her from the moment the plan was settled, and the entire journey to the edge of the Wild, she could tell it in the set of his shoulders, the hard grip on the hilt of his swords and the stiff, battle-ready way he moved.

He would have been frightening, if he wasn't following behind an armed and armoured Feysha that moved like violence herself. The woman was silent, black hair hanging in braids from under her helmet, blue eyes as clear as a sunny sky, but hard as metal when they glanced their way.

The Feysha took no sides in the civil matters of humans and Clairval, they only had an interest in protecting the island that they shared, even so, their neutrality wasn't as reassuring as she would have liked it to be. Akina was moving further away from her complement of guards, from the safety of her palace, into the unknown, towards a meeting with two women who could easily want her dead.

Even as she thought of the Lady of Morningside and Duchess of Watersbreak, the trees ended suddenly, spilling her into a clearing, where large fallen stones were arranged in what used to be a circle, a long, low stone looking eerily similar to a table stretched out in the centre. At the same time that Akina was stepping past the trees, off the rough forest floor and onto the lush grass of the clearing, another Feysha, one nearly identical to the one who had led her, appeared from another direction, leading yet more humans.

It was Lady Valencia, followed next by the Duchess Tisaso, then two Knights, wearing full armour, complete with closed helms, though she suspected it was Cali and Freiza again. And finally, Lady Darya brought up the rear, though she stood back as her sister moved forward.

It was odd, thinking that this meeting was something of a truce meeting, when none of the parties were at war, officially. In fact, Princess Akina was still the Princess heir, future Regent of the two women who came to a stop shoulder to shoulder, in front of her.

There was a brief, tense pause before the Duchess offered a bow, followed by Lady Valencia. In the background, the Knights and Darya followed suit. "Princess Akina."

"Lady Rakier, Duchess del Rei. Thank you for meeting with me." She murmured, inclining her head in acknowledgement of their respects, glancing between them before letting her eyes settle on the table. "There isn't much in the way of comfort here, I suppose, but that looks well enough for us to sit and speak."

"Majesty." Valencia nodded, allowing Akina to move to the table first, and she chose one end, sitting down on the low stone stool, watching as Rakier and del Rei sat across from her.

"We have all inherited a situation, a feud, not of our own making." Akina murmured, shaking her head. "And the world will not sit by and let Clairval flounder any longer."

Valencia quirked a brow at her, giving her a hard, distrustful look. "You speak on behalf of the Regent?"

"I speak on my own behalf." Akina said firmly, forcing herself to look between the two women. Then she forced herself to remain serene, fighting every doubt and worry that was running through her brain. "I have been given full authority from my mother, the Regent, and am the Reigning authority in Clairval. What I say, what I agree to, is the same as the words from the Queen."

"Look, we're not going to hash out old grievances today." Duchess Tisaso said bluntly. "And I hope you aren't looking to do that either. We know you're in need of allies, we know the stakes are higher than control of Clairval's shipping rights and titles most people don't believe in, and we're just as sick as anyone else at this unspoken division between our territories and the Crown."