Songs of War: The Truth

Chapter Three: Queen of Hell

(Two Years Later)

    For the first time in years, Ingressus had finally had perfect rest. Unfortunately, the bonus points of waking up on his own were lost when he felt someone shaking him by the shoulders. "Ingressus!" Ingressus jolted up, nearly hitting his head on the top of the bunk. The voice that had woken him up was Achillean, who was uncharacteristically in the fanciest clothes Ingressus had seen him in. "Achillean? What the hell?" Ingressus retorted, his voice groggy. "My mother's home,"

"What?"

"C'mon get dressed. Father's got your clothes ready." in a matter of seconds, Ingressus was forced out of bed, dressed in diplomatic clothes, and pushed into the main hall. "Ingressus, look." even though he was told not to, Achillean took it upon himself to grab Ingressus' hand and pull him to the window. "There she is," Ingressus rubbed his eyes to wake up and furrowed his eyebrows when he saw Achillean's mother in person for the first time. When she emerged from the carriage and Aegus held her hand to help her down, they didn't embrace or even look at each other for more than a minute. "This seems like a downgrade from your parents, huh?" Ingressus slightly smiled before the two left to join their brothers.

Aegus stood them in a line by age and forced them to keep fake smiles on their faces. When Liani entered, Ingressus couldn't help but feel intimidated. She was similar to a lioness waiting for someone to piss her off. Ingressus was her first target. She approached the boy, laid her finger under his chin, and lifted his head up to look into his eyes. Ingressus hoped and prayed that she wouldn't see through the gem. Liani narrowed her eyes before losing interest and following Aegus out of the door. As soon as they left, the entire room groaned and sighed in relief and exhaustion, startling Ingressus. "Thank the gods," Caleb breathed. "Get this stupid thing off of me." when the rest of the boys left to change, Ingressus took a moment to stare at the portrait of Liani before realizing something. His sister's funeral. That must have been why everyone was on edge. Poor Sanaini still hadn't been buried. Thank the gods that room was preserving her body.

    "When's Sanaini's burial?" Ingressus asked as he walked into their room. "I don't know, why?" Achillean said, taking off his shirt. "Aren't we going to be there?" Achillean shook his head. "No." he replied. Ingressus huffed. He had almost forgotten how differently the Nestorians do things. "I'm going to go ask to go,"

    "Be my guest."

~~~

Ingressus knocked on Aegus' bedroom door and the voices he thought he heard went silent. After a moment, Aegus opened the door. "Can I come to Sanaini's burial?" Aegus pulled a confused face and looked to his side. "I- okay," he said, looking back at him. "Why?"

"Aren't funerals a family-wide event?" Aegus sighed. "This isn't a funeral, we're just gonna bury her this afternoon."

"Is she too young for one?" Ingressus' eyes landed on the inside of Aegus' room and saw Liani glaring at him. Aegus cleared his throat to catch Ingressus attention. "Ingressus, now isn't a good time." Ingressus nodded before backing away. "Sorry." Ingressus didn't know what it was, but Liani's stares made him incredibly uncomfortable. So much so that he barely wanted to attend the burial anymore. He walked away confused and uneasy.

    Later that night, Ingressus woke up again to another hand shaking his shoulders. Annoyed at his sleep being disturbed, Ingressus assumed it was Achillean and turned around. Just then, he heard a voice. "Young prince," Ingressus whipped around when he heard the voice of a woman and froze when he saw Queen Liani above him. "Walk with me." it took Ingressus a few moments to process what she was asking of him before he got out of bed and followed her down the hall. "The King told me about you," Ingressus heart sank into his stomach. That's why she had been so strange recently, she knew Ingressus' true heritage and his true status. Ingressus couldn't respond before Liani kept talking. "When I married Master Aegus, I took an oath to protect this land from the atrocities the gods warned us about," Ingressus nodded along to everything she said, hoping to contain whatever anger she was bottling up. "And he responded by bringing that very atrocity into my home." Ingressus quietly gulped. At that moment, he thought Liani would kill him where he stood. Luckily she had a bit of sanity. "I don't mean to intrude," he choked out. "I suggest you keep things that way. Try to conform, dear. The world doesn't need to see such a tainted boy." she said before waking off and leaving Ingressus in the dark, confused and afraid. This was going to be a long childhood.

Ingressus found his way back to his room and slumped into his bed with a sigh, making Achillean wake up. "Ingressus? What's wrong?" he asked. "Do you think Queen Liani told your brothers about me?" Achillean sat up. "They already knew. I told them."

"Achillean!"

"What?"

"Thanks to your mouth, your mother hates me!" Achillean scoffed. "She hates everybody, Ingressus. You'll be fine. Only the royal family knows." he said, going back to sleep. Ingressus sighed once more. He was not ready to listen to Liani's bitching for the rest of his life. But Achillean was there. Hopefully, she was willing to hold back while her sons were there.