Heir to the throne

Chapter 18

Beads of water speckled his hair and face. The morning was a cold one and he regretted agreeing to join Adhi on this journey. The boots that Reiji had bought him stuck to the mud as he walked and he was growing increasingly exhausted each time he had to free himself. The bickering up ahead had not stopped since they left the temple grounds. Kalaya and Reiji were like two birds in a cage fighting over a single worm. They simply could not get along.

He looked down at his boots as they became lodged in more mud. He cursed at the wind and used his walking stick to pull himself out, panting as the exhaustion continued to grow. Adhi walked past him. He had been uncharacteristically quiet and had not, even once, offered to help Zyaan.

"The path gets easier from here," Reiji called back to them. "Come on." He gave Zyaan his hand to help him up to a gravelly footpath with less mud.

"Why do you have to help him? He's a servant, he can find his way by himself," Kalaya scolded him from her perch on a rock. She held an umbrella over her head to shield her from the drizzle.

He ignored her and they continued on their way once Zyaan was safely on the path. He listened to the soles of his boots crunching the fine stones in the soil. The raindrops drummed lightly on the leaves and the soil. A rabbit hopped out of his way and scurried to its burrow. A smile flashed on his face as he carried on behind Reiji. It was peaceful until Kalaya's nagging disturbed the atmosphere.

"What is wrong with Adhi?" Reiji asked as they admired a small waterfall.

"How would I know?" Zyaan replied.

He plucked a flower from a tree and tossed it into the water to be carried away. Guilt twisted his stomach until he could not bear it. He looked at Adhi as he continued on his way. Even when angry he looked like a beam of sunshine. There was a feeling rising in Zyaan's chest that he could not ignore.

The rain stopped close to midday. They stopped to rest under the shady branches of a banyan and have some food. Reiji spread a blanket on the ground for Kalaya to sit and she did so without a single shred of gratitude.

"Why do we have to do this? It is raining, I had to wake up so early. Couldn't you tell the priest that we don't want to do this?" Kalaya complained. She looked back to gauge her brother's distance and then continued, "Maybe Oman would be man enough to speak up."

"Well then marry Oman," Reiji said dismissively. He untied the bag with the food supplies that he had carried on his back. He mumbled. "It would be the best thing that ever happened to me."

Zyaan smirked loudly and looked away as Kalaya focused a fiery stare toward him. He stooped next to Reiji and started helping him with the food.

"Wow, those monks packed a lot. Let's eat the pastries first. There are dumplings and dry meat, pickled vegetables, and pickled eggs. I wonder if it was only me if they would empty their food storage this way."

"Hey, peasant, you should be grateful that you are getting to eat!" Kalaya said and then laughed.

Reiji gave her a cold stare and then handed Zyaan a pastry. "Give it to Lord Adhi."

Zyaan twisted his face in discomfort and Reiji responded with a knowing smile. He wasn't sure when it had suddenly become his job to comfort the Akai prince. He sighed and watched the Akai prince with growing affliction. He was sitting on one of the banyan's protruding roots, away from them, lost in his thoughts and looking like a man who was about to kill them all. His eyes were cold and his contagious smile was lost behind his anger.

Zyaan steadied his nerves with a deep breath and walked toward him, hoping that he wouldn't slice him to pieces after he rejected him so many times. His gaze menacingly zeroed in on Zyaan as he made his approach. His lips remained tightly pressed together.