Severance (Chronicles of Discord, #2)

Severance: Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Kai felt a prickle of unease work its way down his spine. He was standing in one of the small chambers that led on to the bonding hall, awaiting the start of the ceremony that would bind him to Aya forever. He wasn’t sure how long he had stood before the gilded table, staring down at the velvet cushion upon its surface.

“I’m not very good at this, am I?”

Kai didn’t bother to turn at Shin’s words.

“What do you mean?”

“A groomsman is meant to ease the discomfort of this awkward period of waiting. I haven’t been able to divert your mind at all; you’ve been staring at those rings for almost an hour.”

Kai made no reply to his observation.

“Perhaps you should have chosen Yul or Arata as groomsmen, they’ve been through all this. They would have been able to ease your mind perhaps.”

Kai traced a finger over the velvet.

“No one has ever been in my situation, it is doubtful that either of my Brothers of Bond would have had any effect on my mood. Besides: I wanted no one but you, as you well know.”

Shin grinned.

“That’s what I wanted to hear. I’m surprised, Kai; it’s unlike you to forget the niceties.”

“This isn’t a normal day.”

Still his eyes were strangely drawn to the Bonding rings on the velvet pillow. It was strange how badly they had unsettled him. That morning he had awoke with the full realisation that it was the day he would marry Aya. He had suffered no qualm as he had dressed in his wedding finery. He had been at ease when he had been escorted into the chamber that led on to the hall. However, the second Shin had arrived and set the rings on the table his world had shifted, throwing him off balance.

Something about those rings weighed him down heavily, raising goose bumps on his skin. He had the strangest desire to run, as though a hand surrounded his throat, choking him.

The first ring, large and angular, featured a single perfect pearl, its soft lustre surrounded by brilliant sapphires. The symbolism of the ring filled the room until he could hardly breathe. It wasn’t just an outward sign of his bonded state, the gems told at a glance which house has sired him and which house he had aligned himself with. The single pearl represented Aya, the band of sapphires surrounding it, the care and protection that he was to be her.

The second ring, smaller, dainty, was nestled within the first. A golden band with a raised pattern of peony and orange blossoms set with sapphires and pearls. It amazed him how much burdensome representations of fertility could be crafted into so tiny an ornament.

After today there would be no going back, once he was joined to Aya they would be inextricably linked forever. Only death could separate them.

A shiver ran down his spine.

It was too final an idea, he felt that he was no longer in control.

“Are you alright?”

“I’ve been better.”

An inflection of worry darkened Shin’s eyes.

“Are you certain you want to do this? Are you sure it’s for the best?”

“I’m shocked, I think this is the first time I’ve heard you question a decision made by Elder Headman Amajit.”

“This is somehow different…” Shin struggled for a moment before continuing. “I have a bad feeling about this.”