Wings of Sky

Chapter Two

The heat of the day cooled into night. As the stars appeared across in thick swaths across the sky, the palace lighted up with innumerable candles and lanterns glowing yellow in the night. Nobles dressed and readied themselves for the ball; servants rushed and braced themselves for the ball.

The servants had worked a marvellous magic with the ballroom. All five walls were hung with ceiling-to-floor tapestries, gold threads catching the candlelight and adding lustre to the scenes depicted. Red carpets led from the two entrances at the two adjacent sides opposite the main wall. At the top of the pentagon, the queen's throne waited on a dais, flanked by two smaller chairs on the right and one on the left.

Buffet tables were groaning under the weight of roasted pigs with glistening crackling skin, stuffed roasted ducks, chickens, and goose, cauldrons of double-boiled herbal soup, platters of stewed cabbages with abalone, and spreads of juicy fresh fruits brought from all over the Skylands.

I picked up a piece of watermelon, and continued walking around the tables arranged around the rectangular dance floor.

The queen was clearly determined to impress Yap Lord Xidexin – or rather she had emphasised this to Karike, who had planned the ball, the importance of impressing the lord. The court might soon hear the announcement of Karike and Lord Marexi's engagement.

I took my place at a table relatively close to the main wall, where I had a clear view of the dais and the rest of the ballroom. The main doors of the ballroom were still closed; they would be open soon in a few minutes. By sneaking in, I avoided the crush and heat of the throng, despite Lilinke's insistence that I made my entrance with Nadalin and her for once.

I finished the watermelon and wiped my hand on the underside of the tablecloth, studying the closest tapestry. It told the foundational story of the Skylands: Andemoran in the form of a human man, glowing with the red light that signified celestial power, raising the Skylands with other unidentified gods in human form. The next tapestry would show Andemoran choosing our people to populate the Skylands, the people lifted up from the drudgery of the Downlands.

The doors opened, and the first group to walk in was the priests. I smirked, knowing that when the priests were deep enough into their drink, they would begin the age-old debate about Andemoran's true form - human or qarak - and some of them would take umbrage with the tapestry. I eagerly awaited to see which old scandal would see fresh rehashing tonight.

The ballroom began to fill up. Servants guided nobles to tables, waited for their food order, and bustled away to fulfil them. Chatter and laughter filled up the air as the room heated up with the press of bodies. The tables were crowded with nobles greeting their friends and allies, shaking hands and kissing hands.

Most of them pretended not to see my empty table in the corner despite its proximity to the royal dais, and the servants were sharp enough not to attempt leading them here. I kept my chin up, and my expression cool.

There was some commotion when Yap Lord Xidexin and Lord Marexi entered. I smothered a laugh to see the myriad of blue bruises on Lord Marexi's embarrassed face. He fended off the concerns of the surrounding ladies, and sat down with a sullen air next to his father, who pretended not to notice the noise. They were seated at a table close to the dais, covered in a gold tablecloth and marked by a grand five-armed candelabrum.

Lord Marexi was looking around, eyes narrowed as he scanned the ballroom. He didn't appear to see whom he wanted to because he kept his eyes locked on the entrances, ignoring the servants' requests to fetch him some food.

Like him, his father and the other nobles were watching the entrances even as they ate. Close to an hour into the ball, their patience was finally rewarded when both entrances were thrown open.