Klithyia

Chapter I

         Addiction. It is a strange word, but so many feelings and memories are wrapped up in it. When one knows another is addicted, they rarely understand. People cry out, "Why don't you stop? Separate yourself from it! Turn away and never look back!" 

But they do not know what they are saying. The person can't stop. That is, they can, but it is very hard and often pain-inducing. But eventually, the feeling, the need, goes away. Eventually, the addiction fades away.

Not so for magic. Not so for Evinan's addiction.

As Empress Evinan walked across the stone floor, guards on either side of her, Evinan knew she couldn't tremble or let down the mask that covered her vulnerability. She hated it, hated the fact that she could be forced to do something simply by being next to it. It. It has a name. Klithyia. Magic. Whatever they chose to call it, Evinan hated it. But she hated the biccas even more, for they were the ones who exposed it to her.

She tried to push it aside, the feeling. The need. She tried to think of the points she wanted to make during the meeting, and the responses she might need to use. When this failed, she resorted to the sound her feet made upon the floor, but soon felt her mind wandering to that which she escaped from, all those years ago. Don't freak out this time, not even on the inside. Remember: they are all idiots. You have to be the sane one.

When they reached the massive spherical building, two guards came forth and thrust the doors open for the empress, bowing as she walked in. It was a room she knew extremely well, from the sun-bleached walls to the scrubbed floors, and she strode to the raised platform she was to sit on while the eight governors sat cross-legged in a semi-circle around her. 

She loved that platform, for it reminded her of less stressful times. Times when she was very young, and her father would lift her up to the top, and she would laughingly make jokes about the governors. Even now Evinan smiled, remembering how she would make fun of the carved faces etched into the sides. It was only about three or four feet high, and was made of ores found deep within the ground. In it was carved the faces of the great Luriels, the first two that were believed to have existed. The governors were already beginning to devour the bowls of food around the base of the pedestal, but all stopped when they saw the Empress.

Evinan sighed internally, wishing things were the way they used to be. She began the ceremonial ritual by raising her thin arms and pressing her fingers together, and the eight governors responded by raising their left hand and smacking it against their chest, lips pursed. Evinan then bowed deeply before mounting her platform, sitting with her knees spread out on either side of her and the bottom of her feet pressed together; a very uncomfortable position, but a necessary one. Finally, the Empress took the heavy tümca off her shaven head, and the eight governors around her did the same.

"We begin the rendezvous now, governors. Let him or her who wish to speak do so, and do so freely. The room is sealed and safe, and no punishment can be dealt to one who signs against me," she signed, arms raised so that all the governors could clearly see her words. "We have much to discuss. If all agree, we will begin with the fact that our present situation may cause interest from other kingdoms. For example, knowing we are weak may cause the power-hungry Kryptzaline to attack us, as Mfuschwizaat may also do. I would also like to note that the biccas have relocated their bases, and they are now closer to the border. I think the best thing to do is... well, I do not rightly know. Any suggestions?"

"That sounds about right," a governor, a woman named Clauka, signed, "The governors are worried about the lives of their people, and the Empress is worried about her throne. It's a classic, isn't it?"

Oh no. Not this again. "I am sorry, governor, but I am not worried about my throne so much as I am fearful for my people dying at the hands of others. Internal problems weaken the empire, and then an outside source destroys it. Isn't that how it works?"