Chapter Three

“What?!”

“Where are they?” Vashri took the casket from me, tipping it to peer inside as though the contents might simply be hiding. My hand collided with Fon’s as we both reached into the stone box in case they’d fallen out into that. The stone was smooth and cold against my hand, but aside from Fon’s warm fingers, the box was utterly empty.

I withdrew my hand and looked at the kings. “What now?”

“The Gems of Giera were distributed to the four great families of Charnrosa, the deputies of the Emperor.” Essa’s voice made us whirl to the doorway. She leaned against the jamb, blanket clutched tight around her. “About a hundred years ago.”

“They were given away? As though they were trinkets?” Fon roared, fury shining in his eyes.

Essa held up a pacifying hand. “No, for safety.” She looked around and, realising she had the rapt attention of all of us, began her tale. “Charnrosa hasn’t been peaceful the whole time you’ve been asleep, you know. It was in the time of the Stalwart Emperor’s great-grandfather. A similar situation: the Emperor died and there were two heirs, a son and a daughter, who both claimed the throne. The daughter persuaded the guardian at the time to support her claim. In the tale I was told, he came to the Silent Castle to wake the four kings, with the expectation that they would side with the daughter and help make her Empress. I’m not sure whether the guardian couldn’t wake you, or he decided it would be a bad idea to do so – since there was no reason why you would choose the daughter over the son. Instead, he stole away the four Gems of Giera, deciding to take their power for himself.” Her gaze cut to me. “You must have heard the story, Kyann.”

I nodded, because I remembered – not from the guardian memories in my head, but from my own life, hearing the tale at bedtime. I remembered Ma’s lyrical tones while I sagged into sleep beneath the covers. “Galosh the Prideful,” I said.

Essa nodded. “That’s right. He tried to take on the power of all the gems at once in order to rule the elements and was torn apart by them for his pride.”

“Serve him right.” Fon folded his arms across his chest with a nod of satisfaction.

The corner of Essa’s mouth lifted. “It was a harsh lesson, certainly. After that, the Emperor commanded the gems be kept safe, so no one would be tempted to make Galosh’s mistake.”

“Why weren’t they returned to the Silent Castle?” Vashri demanded.

Essa lifted a shoulder. “I don’t know, the stories ended at that point. The guardian was dead, his heir a child. Perhaps they tried to return them but couldn’t find the castle.” She looked down at the casket still in Vashri’s hands. “Or perhaps the deputy families couldn’t bear to fully let go of something so powerful now they knew it existed – or no family trusted the others not to steal them away and attempt to seize power. The tales grew vague, but the suggestion was that each family took one of the gems to hide away until such time as they might be needed by the four kings.”

“Like now,” Rey said lightly.

“Then we need to get the gems back,” I said. “If you’re sure you need them – we did okay against the Emperor without them.”

“No,” Axxon stated. “We need all our strength before we face the Emperor again. We can’t leave anything to chance.”

The others nodded. I understood how they felt – I needed to regain my magic before I fought the Emperor. With the help of the kings I’d been able to rescue Essa, but we hadn’t escaped entirely unscathed – our father had been killed by him. I shivered.

“Can anyone find the castle now?” Essa asked. “Or is it still hidden by your shield spell?”

“It is hidden. Only the five of us and those we bring with us would be able to reach it.”

“Which mean there’s no way the families could bring the gems back,” I mused.

Fon snorted. “We don’t wait. We go and fetch the gems.”

“Where are these families?” Axxon demanded.

“Scattered to the four corners of the empire,” I said, because I might have forgotten the stories of Charnrosa’s past, but I knew the present. “The four families enforce the Emperor’s rule over areas that roughly match your kingdoms.”

“It will take some time to get the gems, then,” Vashri observed.

“Do we split up?” My gaze settled on Axxon’s face, then shifted to Rey, then Fon and Vashri. A lurch dragged my heart at the thought of being apart from any of the kings. I shook off my unease. I wasn’t a child, and the kings could certainly cope without me for a few days. “It would be quickest,” I said reasonably.

“No.” Axxon’s tone was implacable, and none of the kings attempted to argue.

“We stay together,” Rey added.

I nodded, glad I wasn’t going to have to be parted from any of them. “Which family do we visit first?”

“Who is closest?” Vashri asked practically.

Axxon frowned. “Distance hardly matters if we will have to visit them all. What is their affiliation at present? Do they all support the Stalwart Emperor?”

Politics. I hated it, but I’d kept track of what was happening in the Empire in order to keep Essa and myself safe. “It’s complicated,” I said. “We should sit down to talk it all through.”

“Let’s sit in comfort. Upstairs.” Fon led the way out of the room. The other kings and Essa followed.

I turned and caught my sister’s hand, tugging her forward so she was level with me. “How do you know all these stories?”

Her hand covered mine. “While you were learning magic with Pa, Ma was telling me the tales of our history.”

“And you remember them after all this time?”

Her smile turned wistful. “They’re all I have of her. Of course I remember them.”

Grief swelled in my throat. Essa had her stories. All I had of my mother was the memory of her screaming at me to take Essa and run before she’d been killed by the Stalwart Emperor’s guards. I closed my eyes. If I thought hard, I could remember her voice telling me the story of Galosh the Prideful. I’d try to hold on to that. It was a happier memory than the others I had.

~

Back in front of the fire, Fon spread a parchment map of the Empire of Charnrosa across the wide oak table and we sat looking at the areas that aligned with the four kingdoms the kings had known, while I tried to explain the current situation in Charnrosa to men who were five hundred years behind on the news.

“Do I understand this right? Everyone appears to support the Emperor, but some of them are lying?” Rey challenged, his brow furrowing.

“I wouldn’t describe it as lying. The Stalwart Emperor is our crowned ruler and the four families have accepted that. They offer fealty and support him in word and in deed when required. But the families of Pardal and Ullagar are more enthusiastic in their support than the families of Hullar and Baloa.”

“They are the ones who supported the Stalwart Emperor’s brothers?” Vashri clarified.

“That’s right. The Hullar family wanted Sigmon to rule, while the Baloa family supported Vellore. The Pardal and Ullagar families both supported Thall, who is now the Emperor. From the moment they declared their alliance it was a foregone conclusion that Thall would win – a simple matter of strength of numbers. He killed both his brothers in the ensuing battles and took the title Stalwart Emperor when he was crowned.”

Essa snorted. “The man has delusions of grandeur. Stale-Wort would be more appropriate.”

That prompted a smile. The four kings digested my summary of recent history, then Vashri asked, “And the Stalwart Emperor simply sent the families who had supported his brothers back to their lands?”

“Why didn’t he execute them?” Fon pressed.

“You’re asking the wrong person.” My gaze darted to Essa, in case she had something to add, but she remained silent. “They swore loyalty. Perhaps he was showing clemency.” That didn’t seem likely for the man I’d met, the ruler who’d killed my father with a single, magical blow. “More likely, he understood the support the families had in their lands. He’d just put down one rebellion. He didn’t want to risk another. Better to have his deputies cowed and shamed by their disloyalty than turn them into martyrs.”

Axxon nodded. “And they have supported the Emperor since then?”

“That’s right. They enact his rulings, collect the taxes he demands, enforce the justice he decrees.”

“Yet make no attempt to curb the man’s excesses?” Axxon’s expression twisted with distaste. “They appear craven.”

“I suppose they did what they felt they had to. The Emperor might have taken revenge on their lands and all the people there if they hadn’t surrendered when they did. And his brothers were dead – there was no one else for the families to support.”

Fon clasped Axxon’s arm in a show of support. “This is their chance to make amends. They can hand over the gems and offer us their help.”

Axxon’s expression remained grim. “They had better.”

I reached for his other hand, linking my fingers with his. “The Stalwart Emperor is our enemy. Let’s not add any more names to that list unless there is truly no alternative.”

The strain in Axxon’s eyes vanished. “You’re right.” His fingers squeezed mine. “One enemy at a time. I’m sure when we stand before them these deputy families will do the right thing.”

Abruptly, I hid a smile. I was quite sure that faced with a thunderous Axxon, the deputy families would fall over themselves to do his bidding rather than incur his wrath. I bit my lip. I didn’t want them to feel forced. For the first time, it occurred to me that if we defeated the Stalwart Emperor, we would need something to set in his place. The kings would go back to sleep until the next time they were needed, so someone would be required to take charge of the Empire. Best not to alienate the people who were best placed to take on the role of ruler when – I hoped – it became vacant.

“Do we visit the Baloa family first?” I queried. “They are closest, and their loyalty towards the Emperor is based on his victory rather than a true allegiance to the man.” An easy target first. We could work our way up to the others.

“Agreed,” Axxon said. The other kings murmured confirmation.

“We should leave immediately.” Fon was the impetuous one.

“Are you recovered?” Rey asked me.

“I’m perfectly fit.” I swallowed, then admitted, “But I don’t have any magic. Do you want to wait until I’ve regained it?” Getting it back felt impossible, but the four kings of legend had awakened. Nothing was impossible.

“No, we can help you rediscover your magic as we travel,” Axxon told me. I nodded, reassured by the certainty in his eyes.

“I can help with that,” Essa offered.

I turned to my sister, my heart flipping over because I’d had quite a different idea about her role. “We’ll pass close to Myledene,” I told her, my finger pointing to the spot on the map. The Baloa homelands were about a day’s ride farther past our old village. I took my sister’s hands. “I wanted you – please will you return to the village and stay there?”

“What?” Shock shone in her eyes, eclipsed by dismay. “No! No, I’m not going back, Kyann.”

“It’s your safety I’m thinking of,” I protested, wounded by the hurt in her eyes. “I couldn’t bear it if you fell into danger again.”

“I didn’t fall.” Essa gripped my sleeves. “I fought him, Kyann.”

“I know you did.” I put my arms around her. She was shaking at the memory. My fearless sister, still a child, after all. “That’s exactly why I want you to be safe. Your magic is magnificent and yet you weren’t able to stand against the Emperor.” I swallowed. “I don’t want you to be in danger. I promised Mother I’d protect you.”

She pulled away. “And how can you protect me if you don’t even know where I am?” Fire glinted in her eyes and I was glad to see it, at the same moment that I acknowledged it meant she wouldn’t be easily persuaded.

“But I will know where you are. Safe with Davos and the others.”

Essa clicked her tongue. “Safe? In Myledene? With an old man to protect me? Back where the Emperor knew where to find me?” She shook her head. “Myledene is the last place either of us should go, I promise you.”

“But—” How could I tell her that I feared I wouldn’t be able to look after her? That if my attention were split between the four kings and my sister I might fail either of them – or both?

Her fingers spanned my wrist, warm and strong. “We stick together, Kyann. Like Ma told us. I know you have a job to do. I’ll help you. I have magic, I can help you regain yours.”

The kings’ eyes were on me, watching, waiting for my decision. None of them spoke; they wouldn’t influence matters one way or the other. I looked past Essa to find Axxon watching me calmly. I had a brother, once. Axxon best understood how I felt. If he thought Essa would be in danger with me, he would tell me so, I was sure of it. The calm in his expression washed through me.

“You’re right, Essa. We’ve defeated the Emperor once, we should stick together. But – if you change your mind, you’ll tell me, won’t you?”

She clapped her hands with a grin, happy now she’d got her way. “Of course – if I get fed up of keeping you company on an exciting quest with a bunch of handsome kings.”

“Good, so long as we’ve got that straight.” My gaze slid past Essa to the kings. Strong Axxon, thoughtful Vashri, confident Nashrey and enthusiastic Zephon. A bunch of handsome kings. How could my sister be so dismissive? They were very much more than simply handsome. Which was good, since looks alone wouldn’t defeat the Stalwart Emperor.