The Queen of Elysium

Chapter 76 - Wither

Having taken off early and breakfasted on the wing, Elissa arrives at her destination just before lunch. Roth glides over gardens overflowing with a myriad of colours and lands on a neatly trimmed lawn in front of a handsome sandstone manor house.

As she, Zane, Bram and Talia disembark, Fintan and Fleur step out of the building onto the terrace to meet them. Fleur is wearing a floral dress, as is her custom, and that is not the only thing blooming. The gentle swell of her belly, bright eyes and glowing cheeks imply that pregnancy suits her.

Aidan runs towards them, squealing, "Auntie Tally!" Talia catches her nephew and swings him around.

Elissa embraces Fleur. "How are you feeling? You look wonderful."

"I feel wonderful and I owe it all to you." Fleur takes both of Elissa's hands in hers and squeezes them.

Aidan pouts. "It is taking too long to make me a sister. I will be all grown up before I can play with her."

Zane crouches down and ruffles the boy's unruly mop of red hair. "I tell you what. How would you like to play with some baby dragons instead?"

At those magic words, Aidan bounds off holding Zane's hand. Much as Elissa would love to watch them, the correspondence in her bag weighs on her mind. She sighs and pulls out a bundle of paper tied with a ribbon like love letters, however, the vitriolic and condescending material is far from it.

"I wish that this was just a social visit."

"Shall we sit?" Fintan gestures to the chairs on the terrace and once everyone is comfortable, begins. "As you know, this house and estates are the ancestral home of Fleur and her family. My family's lands are further west, the other side of the river from Bram's family's territory.

"Initially when Fleur and I married, we divided our time between the two estates. Then we were beset by tragedy. First, we lost her father in a hunting accident. Barely a moon later, we lost our unborn child and then her health waned. Of course, her place was here and mine was with her." He shares a sorrow-laden look with his wife.

Clearing his throat, he resumes, "I command a large body of men and the proximity to Avalon meant that the High King sometimes called upon my services. He alerted me to a minor lord who was mistreating peasant farmers and asked me to intervene. The land in question lies between here and the boundaries of Avalon. The man, your complainant, was allowed to keep his home and immediate grounds, but the rest fell under my jurisdiction.

My father and I agreed to send Talia to Avalon to learn the ways of the court, with a view that one day she might consider taking over from him. Of course, the rumours were that I was brutally ambitious and sold my own sister to further my own holdings."

"Lucifer cared about the fate of peasants?" Elissa queries. It is a bitter-sweet reminder of the enigma he represented and part of her wishes that he was still around.

"He cared more than most people gave him credit. He believed in the need for balance, admittedly his methods were sometimes unconventional."

......

Having left Talia to spend time with her family, they fly out to investigate both sides of events. Passing over fields of animals grazing and ant-like people working, Roth spirals down to land beside an orchard on the edge of a hamlet.

A gaggle of children that were playing amongst the fruit trees freeze and stare at them with saucer-wide eyes. Elissa nods towards a cluster of women washing clothes in a stream.

While Zane walks over to the women, she approaches the children, estimating about a dozen of them ranging in age from four to ten, maybe twelve solars. The three baby dragons slide down Roth's tail and follow in her wake.