The Child of Ash

PART ONE: CHAPTER 5

Arith Longyhael was a patient man yet this was taking it too far. Lord Kannervi, one of the Emperor's men, was supposed to meet him eleven hours ago. It made no sense to him. Both of them had agreed on a set time and destination. Why would he miss it if their meeting was so important? The Emperor wants me to be his advisor so he gets one of his men to recruit me and they do not even show up. What excellent communication skills the Emperor must have. If Lord Kannervi had shown up, Arith would have followed him back to the Emperor's Palace to meet who he would be serving. Arith's father talked so much about the Dimont family to the point where it bored him as a child however he had never had the pleasure of meeting the Oppressor of Aevuhan. Khavat's population strongly disliked the royals. The royal that was supposed to lead them was replaced with the leader of the Chaosguard. Mr Denton had polluted Khavat and Lord Kannervi could have helped Arith escape from it. He checked the time, watching the hands move slowly. Seconds felt like years. I am fed up with this waiting. If the Emperor wants me to be his advisor then he will expect me at his palace nevertheless. Arith put on a thick black overcoat, shaved his long beard and put a comb through his hair. He was going to see the Emperor and if he was not careful with his words, the Emperor could make them his last. It was highly unlikely due to the fact that his father before him worked for the Dimont family though power could have blinded the Emperor like it did to everyone else. He stepped into a carriage, gave the driver some coins and then waited patiently until he arrived at the castle.

***

It was midday by the time Arith had arrived at the Etheria. The Emperor did not permit anyone turning up to his palace in a carriage. He had made sure that his guards always enforced this rule. So, Arith walked up the hill on foot. It was steeper than he had expected, it was probably just because he was getting older. Arith was to turn forty five in October- the same age his father had been when he had started serving the Emperor's father. After a few minutes of panting like a dog, Arith had made it to the golden gates of the palace. Two guards stood in front of them with spears in their hands.

"State your name and purpose here. If we find that you are trespassing, you will be thrown in the dungeons. The Emperor does not take kindly to trespassers." The Sargi held his spear firmly for most of the time people who visited the gates were trespassers. Arith reckoned he could still take both of them in a fight but that was only if they denied him access to the palace.

"My name is Arith Longyhael. The Emperor may have expected to see me with Lord Kannervi however he did not meet me at our designated spot. I came here alone because I was supposed to talk to the Emperor about the possibility of me being his new royal advisor. Now I would appreciate it if you opened these gates and stopped wasting even more of my time."

"Arith Longyhael. Forgive me, sir, I did not realise it was you. I will inform the Emperor that you are ready to see him. Give me a few moments, sir. Take Mr Longyhael to the throne room." The Sargi opened the golden gates and the other guard showed him the way to the Emperor's throne room. As he stepped into it, he realised it was the lavish palace his father had talked so much about. Paintings mounted the walls that were consumed by intricate golden patterns. The floor was made of marble worth twice as much as his humble abode in Khavat. The corridors themselves placed him in awe and he had not even seen the throne room yet.

"Just down here, sir." The Sargi pointed at the room which had its snow-white doors shut. Arith was afraid of what would happen if he opened it- even if it was a trap and the Sargis were going to kill him the people would find out. They know about the genocides though and they are doing nothing about that. He yanked open the colossal doors to reveal a room twice as pretty as the corridors had been. The Emperor sat on his throne which can only be described as the most beautiful thing Arith had ever seen. The throne towered above anything else in the room. Even the legs that had been carved by hand looked impressive. Alexander Dimont placed his hands on the golden armrests of the throne that matched where he put his back against. The rest of the room was not as immense- it was only a few banners draped along the towering stone pillars. It looked like a pantheon where the Dios themselves would rest. Arith walked down the red carpet to get closer to the throne. Then, he kneeled.