Wildfire

Sixty Three

I can hardly breathe as we sweep our way down the long hall that leads to Xiang's rooms, our breakfast having been light and quick and held in our chambers for the sake of time and sparing the two of us from having to pretend as though we both aren't simultaneously nervous and elated... And it had just been a matter of waiting for my Father to come and let us know that King Xiang had withdrawn to his rooms for the day, his Royal sourness having been none too fond of the silence he had received during the morning meal... And just like that we were off, Emrys walking quickly with his head held high as the staff and courtiers loyal to us fall in line on our way to tell the King that he has fallen and that there is no room for him here in this kingdom any longer... 

I must admit that my nerves have me quaking, confrontation never having been my strong suit... Though I know I shall be safe with my husband by my side. Emrys would never willingly let harm befall me, and with the added protection of those who had made it clear which side they stand on, I know that there will be no room for it... There is too much bad blood forced between all of the courtiers and King Xiang... He had spent so many years pitting them all against each other that even if they had not approved of me at first, they all see the difference between Emrys and his Father and they are trusting me to never let the son end up like the father, not that I think my sweet Emmy would ever go down such a dark and twisted path... With how strongly he feels towards his father's descent into madness I know he shall never take the love of his people for granted, and he shall be careful in the way that he manages our subjects in order to make sure they receive the proper care and respect that they deserve. 

...

Emrys

...

The only thing steeling my nerves is the feel of Rayne's hands as he clings to my arm, standing up to my father not the hardest thing I've ever done, but possibly the most dangerous though there is no avoiding the confrontation. There are too many things that could possibly go wrong for me to feel completely at ease, no matter how many soldiers are assigned to protect Rayne at all costs should anything go awry...

But the stunning image we are greeted with when we wait not long enough for our knocking to be answered before letting our party flow into my Father's outer chambers is that of a resounding emptiness that gives every single one of us pause, all of the doors that should be kept closed for the sake of my father's own safety left wide open revealing the man nowhere in plain sight to be found...

And as Cho barks the orders for his men to fan out and find my father I know have the most dreadful feeling that they will not find him here in his chambers... Or anywhere else in the palace, the door that leads out to his personal outdoor bathing pool having been left wide open as the biggest clue that we have all been successfully had by the man whom we thought we could force into stepping down... A man that I know would never willingly give up his twisted hold on the power that he should have never been entrusted with... A man who has lost his grip on reality now set free amongst the people who have cowered in fear from him for so very long... 

As each shoulder reports back to Cho in the negative, my hold on Rayne tightens as I pull him closer to me, my stance protective just as it should be as someone finally steps forward having found a note in place of the man who had done so very little to actually raise me, the words written on it making me have to release steam from my nostrils in order not to let loose the heat of my flame all around the room as it as read aloud, the news of my Father actively seeking to cause harm to the kingdom something I cannot bear as Cho recites the vague letter word for word after breaking its waxen seal. 

"...To my son," There is a hard swallow as Cho begins, the room falling silent so that we all might hear the words my father has left us in place of his actual person, " I cannot stand for you to sully your mother's legacy by inviting a mongrel to sit on her throne and bear her title... You may have found your wife but you shall never have this kingdom for as long as I am left breathing this country shall live in fear... You shall live in fear. Enjoy your one and only wedding present- the days I allow you to rest before I return to take what is mine, though I should warn you, there is no guarantee that you'll have any true time at all. Signed... The last true King."

...

Rayne

...

I could break down and weep at the thought that this is not the last time Xiang will terrorize us... That my father in law would truly be so petty as to turn tail and run and in the same breath threaten me, our marriage, and his own son all with so few words and so much malice... It's almost as if he himself stayed just close enough to watch all of us go pale, the parlor washing over us caused by the sickening thought that he had known all along that we were coming to tell him he would never have the privilege of being a ruler ever again and that he had had time to prepare for it... He had seen this coming and had prepared for it... 

And now... Even though there is no one standing in the way of us announcing to the public that we have wed and will now be ruling hand in hand... We shall have our first days as King and Queen looking over our shoulders as we wait for attacks from two different men both outraged by my place at Emrys's side... The shadow cast by Xiang and Shen not what I had ever imagined would be looming over my first days as a wife... 

I had hoped for happiness... And instead it looks like there may very well be war.