The wares on 249 ships got spoiled. 80 ships sank. A shocking number of 67 ships were never found again; the highest in two decades.
Four weeks it had been since her last moonblood had flown. Twenty-eight days to be exact. Any moment now, the crimson horror could return, cramps and all. She was already wearing the underskirt with the cloth pad sewn into it and had renewed the moss inside the pad. Though she was as ready as a woman could be, every bit of sweat in her nether regions made her heart leap.
Not right here and right now. For the first time in a moon, the King had requested her presence in his office. She was now sitting on his couch; the exact same spot where womanhood had struck her for the first time.
It would be too ironic to let her relive that humility, even for the Gods. But she could already feel her belly bloating up and protesting.
Why, oh why, did women have to go through this torture?
She narrowed her eyes. Men such as General George and King Thomas were free from this curse. They chatted on without a care in the world, their body never betraying them. And that made them the stronger gender? Pathetic.
The General stood hovered over the King, who was seated behind his desk. General George repeatedly smacked a letter from Captain Jonathan, insisting that they should act now that the target was alone. But King Thomas shook his head. He wasn't in favour of any rash decisions.
The men mostly talked in codes and abbreviations that made little sense to her. Vulpus was spotted near the twins, without any gemstones. General George proposed NQG, to which the King said that he needed more INT.
She had to remember them, ask Nick what they meant. Then him joining the military would finally lead to something besides loneliness. She hardly saw him and saw even less of Seb; after the ball, they hadn't once talked to each other one-on-one.
He was the Crown Prince so he could hardly be blamed for the extensive training, private classes, and long nightly meetings with his uncle, yet she wished he would sometimes join her and Lana by the fireplace in the Queen's parlour. Even Nick occasionally found the time to eat cakes with them.
Too bad he and Lana spent all evening with their nose stuck in a book. They exchanged books the way other exchanged jokes. They always had something to chat and laugh about, and she hated it.
If only that Muttonhead could see just how much pain he was causing her...
She shifted position on the couch, her eyes drawn to the window. Darkness had fallen onto Sundale, and without the heat of the winter sun to keep the cold away, ice flowers were quickly expanding on the glass panes.
It would be another cold night, colder than any of the nights in Laneby. The proximity to the Scorching Plains had a strange effect on the city. Mild winter days, but freezing nights. The stove in her chamber would have to keep burning all the way until morning.
"Daydreaming about anything good?" King Thomas joined her on the couch. He crossed his legs, his body facing her.
The General was nowhere to be seen anymore.
"Not really, Your Majesty. I was just waiting."
"Sorry about that. George had a point. If we wanted to move quickly, we couldn't waste another day." He shrugged, smiling. "But I'm not here to confuse you with complex strategies. I know it's been a while since I promised to train you, but I needed to find the proper task."
She sat up straighter, her heart fluttering in her chest. After her falling out with the King, she hadn't expected him to go through with it. "I guess this means you found one?"
YOU ARE READING
A Blaze in the Dark (A New Dawn #1)
Fantasy[High Fantasy/Dark Fantasy] Sebastian is finally old enough to be a warrior. He has dreamt about joining his friends, Alex and Nick, for as long as he can remember. His best friend, Fox, doesn't like it one bit that he still has to wait nine more mo...
