HTG - Chapter 179

Kalon

Chapter One-Seventy-Nine: Dama - Part One

Galactic Quadrant: Darna Quadrant

Ruling Government: Republic of Hekate

Solar System: D-2,946

Planet: Ravena Minor

Location: Ara Continent, Ravena’s Temple

My mind wanders as water drips from my clothes, and the shallow pools of Ravena’s inner sanctum ripple as I leave them. Thoughts of the meaning of her words, thoughts of the future fill me. It is seldom that the future feels bright, ever since I met Luna though, I feel it in the air I breathe. Like hope and destiny spin their webs in her wake. If I follow my heart, I get the feeling that I will find great adversity… and lasting peace. Love… a word that I did not think I would use again after Nevari’s betrayal. Yet it is there, like a fire that will not go out. Through each hardship Luna and I faced together it remained. Even after a year apart I feel it burns in her too.

If my hands are meant to carve a path to a brighter future, she is the light that they follow. A light that is more kind than cruel. Her house may think her mindset weak and fragile, she may even doubt herself worthy of becoming its Primus someday. Yet in my heart of hearts, I know that she is the future I wish to see, a kinder leader, one that genuinely cares for those who struggle.

I will become the balance to her kindness. I will take all the dark things that must be done so that she does not change. This much these hands can do. Ravena’s words resonated with me deeply. She seeks power to protect what she holds dear. She does not lie and say her reasons are anything but that.

Truth is the foundation of trust. She has done well building the foundation.

My eyes trace into Luna’s for a moment as the stone doors open from the inner sanctum. Her father stands as a statue, his arms folded and his eyes narrowed at me. His gaze moves to the braziers that hold no fire then back to me. His face does not show disappointment at the lack of fire. It is placid, like the now still waters in the sanctum.

“She has acknowledged you,” Arkon begins, walking until he is parallel with me at the entrance, “Do not fail her expectations.”

The doors slide closed after him, leaving Luna and I alone once more. She does not immediately ask what was said when we turn to walk down the halls. Her shadow of knights are nowhere to be seen, a welcome change.

After thirty more paces she finally asks, “What happened? I felt her presence, did she…” her brow furrows, “Did she show herself?”

“She did.”

“And?”

“She wishes for me to change my path to align with hers.”

“How so?”

“I am to forsake the Netheric bounds.”

Luna stops and looks at me strangely, “Tell me everything.”

***

We walk in a muted silence for a time as our footsteps hum a gentle melody on the chiseled and polished stone floors.

“So, she means to separate us again,” Luna says with a frown, a flicker of anger rises on her brow, it falls as we pass a group of soldiers that bow and render a salute.

“It will not be for long.”

She shakes her head, “Based on what she said, she thinks at least a thousand years, Kalon.”

“For her perhaps, and for her methods.”

Luna turns to look at me with a confused expression, “You aren’t going to do it her way?”

“Gods are wise, Luna, but they can be wrong. Besides, she probably said that to try and see if I would falter and be discouraged.”

“Did you?”

My eyes lock into hers, “No.”

Her face flushes and she manages a smile before we continue our walk.

When we come upon my room, I hear chatter inside, I hang close to the door waiting to enter. The chatter stops and I feel the door open. Green hair and eyes that sing of forest greens look back at me, it is Korra. I didn’t even hear her move from behind the door either which catches me off guard.

“Well, come in,” Solara says from one of the couches, looking over at me.

The room is surprisingly full of faces that lift my heart. The red haired brothers, Haki and Daki rise slowly from the couch sitting next to the twins Ralia and Salia. There is deference in their gazes as they lower their heads in respect. It is the way that we greet our chiefs when they enter the room. Solara takes a seat opposite them, her red eyes dance in the firelight. Her gaze is a fickle thing with Luna so close, like she is afraid to stare for too long. She pulls her deep red hair behind her ear as she looks away. Fennec stands in front of the fireplace with a glass cup in his hand, amber liquid sways as he raises it to me.

Of those I care for, few are missing. But one strikes me the deepest, Arrum. He is not here with the others. Which means he still needs time, this does not surprise me. Given the freshness of his worst fears being confirmed. It will take him a long time to get past Isola’s death.

The brothers stride toward me quickly, I walk in and greet them both fully, embracing their arms, trying to gauge the atmosphere.

“I’m gladdened to see both of you look well.”

“As we are glad to see you awake, Kada,” Daki says.

“I told them you would wake when the weather became colder, Kada,” Haki grins, nodding at me with a smile.

Luna stands at the doorway, her holopad is blinking red after she crosses the threshold. She silences an alert on it and moves toward the fireplace and the seating around it.

“How fares Adona?” I ask Korra.

She looks down for a moment, “I cut her hair, cleaned her flesh, and I made her eat, but her mind…” she pauses ruminating on the words, “Her mind will need new purpose.”

I nod.

“The brothers and Fennec have filled me in on pretty much everything that happened after you left,” Korra says looking at me.

“Have they?” I ask, moving to sit down in one of the open seats, motioning for Luna to sit with me. I catch Korra’s eye as she sits down crossing her leg, looking over at me with her mischievous smile. Her attire is strange compared to what I have known her to wear. She looks like she could pass for an Arasha highborn. Green makeup dances with a golden line around her eyes. Her lips are painted with green and gold to match.

“So, you really lived among pirates for months?” Korra asks, taking a sip from a glass with green liquid.

“Pirates…” I say looking at the brothers then to Fennec, before I can finish they all begin laughing at my expense, which fills me with some relief seeing they are getting along.

“You have been quite busy,” Korra says, swirling the liquid before taking a drink.

“We all have,” I say, looking around at everyone, “Tell me what I have missed, I long for good stories told in good company.”

***

I pick up my glass and pour for myself another drink of the amber liquor that Fennec recommended. It is strange that my two worlds begin to collide. One where I was a fugitive traveling with Luna and Fennec. Another where I was an Ulima in a lower city clan. The lowest of the low… I never dreamed past rising to the stars, I never thought about what it would mean. But to go from Ulima, to this, whatever my status is now, it is mountains above where I came. Those I care for, they are rising with me.

I think… I’m happy. My thoughts pull as I hear a question.

“How did the meeting with Arkon go?” Fennec asks.

“Well, I think.”

“What did he say to the prospect of you and the heir?”

The room goes silent for a moment as they wait for me to reply.   

“He reminded me that…” I pause, taking a heavy drink, then finish with, “I have little to no prospects and I am extremely poor.”

“Oh, so he likes you then?” Salia the playful twin says with a giggle as she leans into Daki’s shoulder affectionately.

“How much money do you have?” Solara asks, crossing her arms, “I can’t imagine you’re that poor, given your abilities.”

“I don’t even have a bank account,” I reach into the trousers that Fennec loaned me, pulling a small bit of lint, “Unless you know where I can exchange this?”

There is laughter for a moment, something I’m not used to being the creator of… it feels nice. To cause the smile to rise, beautiful almost.

“Well, that’s pretty broke,” Ralia the serious twin says, fighting back another laugh. Haki holds her under his arm tightly.

There is love between the twins and the brothers, one that has only blossomed into something more since I last saw them. It is wonderful to see this… to see them thriving. I once worried that they would never know happiness, but now… they have found it in abundance.

I am… happy. Even with the sorrow of Arrum’s absence, my heart is not robbed of this. It feels so good after so much pain and suffering. The way they laugh and smile, like the scars they hold no longer define them. I am envious, and I am proud.

Luna’s hand grips mine firmly, her head resting against my shoulder. The moments here, spent with… friends. They are precious to me.

The night wears on until the moon fills the sky completely. I get a message on my holopad, from Kotina, a holo to holo request. I answer it, and a holo of her springs from my wrist. Luna quickly swipes the privacy holo option so she can’t see the rest of the room, just my face.  

“Runt, you seen the Lady of the house?” she asks me with a look that knows that I have.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Tell her that I’m under strict orders to keep you two apart, except under supervision by myself or her father.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Escort her to her room for me will you?”

“Yes ma’am,” I say ending the holo.

“Too bad you have to go to bed, this was getting fun,” Korra says to Luna.

“Well so do you. Your chambers are on the way,” Luna says smiling back to her, I don’t sense any hostility in her voice but I see Korra isn’t pleased by the interaction.

We all stand and raise our glasses together one more time.

“So, what are your orders while you’re gone, Kada?” Daki asks as we all move to the door.

“Train, get stronger. I want both of you and Arrum to come with me and eventually become Knight Commanders.”

They both nod and give me a bow before leaving with the twins in the opposite direction of Luna’s quarters.

We move through the corridors now in relative silence passing by guards, they pay respects to Lunara as we go. Giving me wary eyes as I pass by.

“Well, this is you,” Luna says pointing to a room in the hallway.

“Well, goodnight then, it was nice to finally speak with you with more depth,” Korra says extending a hand to her.

“I feel the same,” Luna says accepting it.

“Goodnight, Kalon,” Korra says with a smile as she closes the door.  

We walk for a time now, our pace much slower than before to draw out the time.

“She’s a lot more personable than I would have expected. I think I’m beginning to like her,” Luna says looking up at me.

“I’m glad to hear that, I really like Korra, she’s fun,” Solara says. I had almost forgotten that she was still with us. She has been quiet tonight. There must be much that weighs on her, given her situation. When we round the next bend, Solara stops and smiles, “It was good to see you again, Kalon. I hope your travels to… where did you say it was again?”

“Etheria.”

“Right… never heard of it before,” she mutters with a frown, then looks up and beams a smile, “I’m sure you’ll return swifter than a thousand years. When you do, I…” she pauses, looking at Luna, a flicker in the smile before she turns back, “When you do, I hope you let me know.”

“Will you not be here?” I ask.

She shrugs, “My future is… in flux at the moment.”

She worries that they will send her back and kill her. Or so I gathered since I woke up. Arkon, would he allow that, given their relation? I remember what Ravena said, she will not doom her house for the fate of one person. Worry gnaws at me now for my friend.

“Goodnight, Sola,” Luna says, embracing her tightly, “Do not worry, I will never abandon you,” Solara flinches at Luna’s next words, “You’re like a sister to me.”

My eyes lower, Solara still has not told her then. Nobles and their secrets. Is this the foundation of all houses in the galaxy? How many threads connect us all.

The door closes and Luna and I embark back toward the slow walk to her room.

 “Kind of unfair don’t you think?” she says after a few minutes.

“What?”

“They separate us for a year, let us see each other and then try to keep us apart still,” she says softly, looking up to me.

“I agree.”

“Well, someone should do something about that,” she says looking up at me again as though she’s hinting at that person being me. But I’m not exactly sure, the expression is vague and my eyes are distracted in the longing to kiss her.

“Yes, I agree,” I say looking down at her lips then back to her eyes.

“Someone should really do something about it,” she smiles.

As soon as we pass the next set of guards I feel a pull from her on my arm as she pulls me into an empty room and shuts the door behind us. She grabs my face pulling it close to hers, kissing me firmly as she presses up against me and pushes my back against the door. She moves her hand along my chest now grasping me firmer, I am filled with overwhelming urges that rise up inside of me as I grip her back pulling her towards me.

“I missed you so much,” she says between kisses as she starts pressing against me harder, “It felt like I couldn’t breathe until I saw you.”

I kiss her back, the fire building inside me threatening to become a raging inferno when I hear a loud knock on the door.

“Friendly neighborhood chastity patrol,” I hear Kotina say from behind the door.

“Fuck’s sake Kotina, please I haven’t seen him in a year,” Luna growls.

“Orders of the Lord, my lady. If it was up to me, I’d fuck off for the night.” In a muffled sigh through the door she says, “I’ll give you another minute to say goodnight, no funny business.”

Luna lunges at me pulling my face into hers kissing me until Kotina knocks on the door again.

“Goodnight, Kalon,” Luna says with heavy breath.

“Goodnight Luna,” I say giving her one last kiss.

Luna straightens herself up and walks out with a grace only a high born could have as they fight off the urges of the flesh. She walks down the hall disappearing around the bend.

“Sorry runt,” Kotina says patting my shoulder and walking back with me now.

Breaking the silence and distracting myself I ask, “What are the Knight trials like?”

“Eh not supposed to talk about them, the Lord wants you to be at a disadvantage,” she admits.

“He really doesn’t like me then I take it.”

She stops in her tracks and looks me in the eye saying, “If he didn’t like you, you’d be dead. Count on that, runt.”

I think on her words when we keep moving towards my room.

“What kind of man is he really? He seems distant from Luna.”

Kotina stops in the hall, looking around to make sure we’re alone.

“When he heard she might be in danger again, he didn’t just abandon a single Imperium mission to send a single dreadnaught to come for her.”

Kotina shakes her head, a grim smile on her mouth.

“The entire armada of Ravena was waiting to jump in. Hundreds of thousands of destroyers, enough to cleanse entire systems. He was ready for a fucking war. That’s the kind of man he is, the one that will burn everything in his path if he needs to. Don’t let the calm façade fool you, he gives a shit about her. More than he lets on to her. Because he knows that she’s too soft as she is now. She needs to toughen the fuck up, conquer a few worlds and systems before she’ll be ready.”

“She is strong already, in her own way.”

“Raven’s are built for war, runt, not for picking flowers and writing poetry.”

“There is more than war, more than conquest.”

She laughs, “Ugh, Luna’s infected you.”

“Are you sure she hasn’t gotten to you as well?”

Kotina puts her hands on her hips, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Fennec told me that you also looked for me, ma’am,” I say looking at her now, her ear tips are red like she’s embarrassed.

“Wasn’t because I was worried, that damned girl would have been devastated. So, I took a peek around, yeah.”

“Thank you,” I say in earnest.

“Look runt, you got the raw talent, but talent isn’t enough to rise. You need to study hard, I think the old man’s got plans for you,” she says looking around making sure she isn’t heard, “Etheria isn’t a normal place to send someone. It’s our house’s secret training ground. Hell, I’ve only been once, after I became a Knight Commander.”

I wait for her to finish, soaking in her wisdom.

“He’s already had a new identity forged for you, and sponsored you for the Knight Commander trials when you’re ready to take it. This path you’re embarking on, you need to do more than well,” she says looking at me fully, “You need to break every fucking record in every place you walk, if you just pass he will consider that a failure whether he says it or not. You need to literally make a mountain out of a pile of shit and turn it into a diamond if you want to impress him.”

“Sounds like a hard man to please.”

“Hah, he’s as fair as they come. But to impress him is as hard as impressing the gods,” she says looking around again, “That fucker didn’t take the cushy normal soldier path for nobles, he joined the Republic army like you will and set most of the records. When he did, he didn’t just set a new bar, he broke the fucking ceiling and made a gap that most can never hope to cross, that was in his youth. They wouldn’t believe the shit he can do now. He once conquered a world with a single detachment of soldiers. You want to impress him and earn his respect enough to get his daughter’s hand, you need to shit on every record he ever set. Only then will he consider you. Because runt, she is the most precious thing in existence to him.”

“Sounds impressive.” I say as a competitive fire begins to breathe its first breaths.

“In his first trial he…” she says then stops, “Sorry can’t give you any hints. Didn’t give Luna any either.”

We approach my room now and she waits for a second before speaking.

“Runt, make me proud, yeah?”

“I will, ma’am.”