Chains of Fate

Chapter Four

It was two months since the gathering at the King's home. Two months, since Daisy had proudly worn her white chiffon dress before Aisha's officials. Yet, in spite of the many dazzling sights and animated guests, nothing about that that evening had stayed with her as much as her encounter with the Chancellor. Every night since returning home, Daisy had dreamed of what a life with the man might be like. Instead of Rei, she saw herself with ten or so servants waiting on her hand and foot. And in place of her long house with its round windows and wooden floors, she dreamt that she was moved into a palace with thick walls and more rooms than she knew what to do with.

Daisy had been able to picture it all, from the grand parties held in her honor to the closets full of exquisite clothes to be worn as little or as much as she liked. The Chancellor would be the type to shower her with expensive silks and priceless jewels befitting a queen. And though Daisy was not his equal, she would have carte blanche in his absence. In hindsight it seemed wonderful. What woman would turn down such a golden opportunity? Daisy could not speak for others and perhaps it was best that she was different from them because from her perspective, a marriage to the Chancellor would be anything but ideal. In all those dreams of hers she'd felt trapped inside a nightmare. Her whole family was somewhere far away, her friends moving on with their lives. All the while her happiness was withering away, like the petals of the mid-autumn rose.

Following the festivities at the King's home, Daisy had retreated to a chamber that had been prepared for her overnight stay. She changed into her night clothes and slept. Hours later, she'd been woken by noises coming from the room next door to hers. Startled, she crawled to the end of the bed to listen to a stream of harsh breaths and muffled cries. It didn't take long for her to realize that the voices she heard belonged to a couple, one engaged in intimate activities.

When her initial shock wore off, Daisy lay back down. She felt twice as anxious about being alone in an unfamiliar room, though it smelled freshly cleaned and the linen under her, like mint. Rei had left her to sleep in the quarters allotted to female attendants. Daisy disliked being without her but she had no choice. So she stayed put and held her hands up over her ears to block out the lewd noises filtering through the walls. Eventually, the couple ceased their lovemaking and Daisy was able to fall back to sleep.

The next morning, she woke up late, as did many of the other guests. After a hot meal was served for breakfast, the carriages were readied. Daisy, along with the others in her party, filed into them. Then they were on their way back to the Southern Isle. The horses galloped faster and faster but no matter how quickly they seemed to be going, for Daisy it had not been quick enough.

Thinking back on that evening, Daisy couldn't help but feel ill at ease. That world she'd finally been exposed to was nothing like her own. Sheltered for all of her seventeen years, she hated to have been tossed into a whirlwind of lavish parties and gossip mongers. Now that she was in her safe space again, she could clearly see the world of royals for what it was - a chaotic mess. In order to restore her passion for traveling, Daisy spent the succeeding days studying her father's old travel logs. She committed to memory the names of the many places he had visited, as well as those individuals whom he had taken the time to write about in detail.

One entry in the log was entirely devoted to the Great Sage of the Tower. Her father entered a pretty description of the Eastern territory and spoke with great enthusiasm about its exotic plants and wildlife. Below this, he wrote about the wisdom of the Great Sage and the power he possessed. As a protector of the Tower of Knowledge, he had grown in both a physical and spiritual sense. Daisy had always been curious about the Great Sage, the man who had named her a Daughter of Aisha. She was pleased to discover that her father had been much the same. According to his log, he had met with the sage on three separate occasions and been privileged enough to ask him a number of questions. Whatever he learned he had kept to himself, but he did attest to the Great Sage being a singular force more powerful than the Four Lords and Seven Knights combined. Unfortunately, the Great Sage's power existed only to protect the Tower. It could not be used for anything more than that, which was why he did not interfere in any conflicts that brewed within the kingdom.