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˖*°࿐ chapter twenty-seven. xxvii. QUIRI
"HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO QUIRI?" LAELIA asks Melora, both of them watching the Unsullied pass by with their matching footfalls and their rhythmic march. "Several times, Your Grace, with Master Vyleros," the darker woman replies, her cloak shielding her from the air that blew against them. It was somewhat cold out, but not so cold as to where you have to wear a fur coat. "And?"
"They say a thousand slaves died building the Great Pyramid of Quiri."
"And now an army of former slaves is marching to her gates," Laelia smiles. "You think the Great Masters are worried?"
"If they're smart, Your Grace," Melora replies. Darys walks up to them, his appearance now a bit different. He had cut his hair short and dyed it along with the beard he grew out. He thought to himself that maybe since Laelia has no word of her husband, she would fall in love with him instead with his darker image.
"You were told to ride at the back of the train," Laelia states, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Yes, My Queen, but I need to speak to you about something important," he says. "Matter of strategy." Laelia raises her eyebrows and glances at Melora, letting her know that it was a matter between her and Darys. Melora bows, "Your Grace." She walks away to where Allister and Korben were, beginning to talk to them as she drew nearer. "Alright, what is this matter of strategy?" Laelia turns back to the ocean, remembering how Loki's eyes were as bright as the water; sometimes they turned green whenever he used his powers. She liked his green eyes better because emerald can be found anywhere you look: in emeralds, grass, trees, and Lokis was also green and bronze, the colors his father wore. Darys pulls out a sapphire blue rose, the blue fading as it came adjacent to the stem, but it was gorgeous, nevertheless.
"A dusk rose."
"Would you like to walks at the back of the train instead of riding?" She asks while walking away from him; she wished she had told him she was married and is loyal to her spouse.
"This one's called lady's lace," he pulls another flower out, this one a mix of cream and white, and it looked like one of the flowers that grew by the maester's house from two years ago.
"Would you like to walk without shoes?"
"You have to know a land to rule it," Darys responds, placing the flower behind his back again. "Its plants, its rivers, roads, its people. Dusk rose tea eases fever — everyone in Quiri knows that. Especially the slaves; they have to make the tea. If you want them to follow you, you must become a part of their world. Strategy." He pulls out another flower, this one a blood orange color and instead of solid petals, it looked as if someone had taken their knife and split each one into multiple strings. "Harpy's gold. No tea from this one, beautiful but poisonous." He gathered all of the flowers in one hand and passed it on to Laelia, "You are a gambler, aren't you?" She takes the flowers, though.
