A Dance Of Crowns & Thrones | Book I

Chapter 148 | March 15th | The Gilded Gala

Timeline - March 15th | ( 6 weeks later)

Matthew listened to the music emanating from the dance hall, where the annual gala persisted well into the early morning hours. The distinguished individuals had been acknowledged for their accomplishments in the Academies, celebrating with the exuberance of inebriated soldiers, and his role in the event had long concluded.

Various intense and blended voices echoed, and the band altered its tune, transitioning to a new song. Despite the festive atmosphere, something bothered him deeply tonight. That's why he found himself standing on the balcony, his exposed fingers trailing along the chilly steel railing. From this vantage point, he observed the Empyris Academy before him, keeping an eye on the soft golden glow that extended outward in the surroundings.

A small city had sprouted around the Academy, nestled along its northern coast. Beyond the beach lands, only an expansive, dark void stretched out, blending into an invisible horizon.

"Hey."

"Hmm?" Matthew turned to face the newcomer.

"You might have forgotten, but there's a party happening inside," Toni remarked.

His impeccably dressed best friend joined the contemplative man on the balcony, resting against the stone arch that framed the entrance to the ballroom. Observing as Matthew shook his head. "Yeah, I know."

"And the Headmaster's conspicuously absent, out here on the balcony all alone, mind you, as his fiancée and squealing squad of drunken friends are on the dance floor with some of the soldiers. Entertaining them, might I add."

"They all know who her fiancée is," Matthew smirked, glancing back at his best friend. "And all four girls can very well handle themselves. Tell Richie, watch him lose his shit with how he and Mya have been lately."

Toni laughed, "you and I both know what's going on there. Acting and sneaking around like we don't know something more is happening."

"It's good, even if they're both in denial," he remarked, then turned back to resume scrutinizing the view.

Instead of leaving him be, Toni joined him, propping against the railing and gazing into the expansive void of their world. "Your thinking always concerns me."

Matthew remained silent, but the subtle tension in his posture didn't escape his best friend's notice, signaling that something was indeed bothering him. "It's nothing, and I'm probably just being overly paranoid," he finally stated

Toni scoffed, shaking his head. "That is one thing we need to have in this world, your mild paranoia, considering."

Matthew breathed in deeply, "I have this nagging voice in the back of my head. There's something that just isn't...it's not adding up, this much quietness."

"I know," Toni's eyebrows furrowed in agreement, even though it was a notion he didn't want to tempt fate with. It had been months without any intelligence updates on Isis or Cid.

"Do you think it's because we have been kept in this war for so long, we don't know anything else? Anticipating this war at every turn?"

"You've spoken to Teddy as well," Matthew laughed, dragging his head to Toni, forcing a chuckle.

"He said that inevitably, he could see us being paranoid for the rest of our lives. What word did he use... we had been conditioned?"

"Conditioned," Matthew shook his head at the term. It was exactly what Teddy had said to him as well. "Call it whatever you like; the bottom line is, it's not over. She's lying low, amassing whatever army or resources she desires with those crystals, and it really fucking bothers me."

He sighed, and Toni's concern mirrored his own as they both wrestled with the same troubling thoughts. Neither of them wanted another fifteen years to pass only for her to thrust the war upon them when they least expected it.

"I assume, given Eko's tendency to be a loose cannon, you haven't shared these thoughts with her?"

"Do I look like I'm fucken crazy? I'm lucky that the wedding had kept her occupied. She's even refrained from scheduling additional doctor appointments for me. Looking at me like I'm a fragile creature or something."

"You are," Toni smirked, prompting Matthew to roll his eyes.

"The point is, she would be right there if she knew for a moment of the shit I was thinking, that I was tracking down every single lead. No, she's been the calmest I've seen her."

"So you haven't been at meetings with the board?"

Matthew scoffed, and Toni nodded, "thought so," and then he shook his head again, deeper in thought, "I take from that, there's been nothing?"

"Complete silence," Matthew said, narrowing his eyes at his best friend. "Even before Ezra's attack, which I can only assume is orchestrated by Isis. Toni, you've noticed it too. It's uncomfortably quiet. It's unsettling."

"Maybe we don't know peace, and we should be enjoying it while we can?" Toni tilted his head.

"Another of Teddy's references"

"It's a valid point," Toni shrugged, continuing to speak as he observed Matthew returning his gaze to the skyline. "What if we don't know peace, which means we miss out on moments like this? Always being in a constant state of unease due to the wars?"

Matthew's heart tightened. Toni had a point, and here he was, outside worrying when he should be inside, making the most of the peace they currently had. How often does he tell Eko to hold onto the moments they were making?

"When are you heading out next?" Toni questioned. 

"I've got another lead with Spear, heading out later tomorrow afternoon while Eko plays dress-up again with the girls and their bridesmaid dresses. Figured it was the easiest way to slip out."

"We'll both go," he nodded. "You're burning out as it is with this job, and maybe set up some scout squads or something. Let them handle these leads."

Matthew nodded, "I'm getting an influx of fifteen a week at this stage."

"That's fine. That's what we have soldiers trained for, so let them. If they find anything, they can escalate it to us. Simple."

Matthew nodded, realizing that maintaining this relentless pace wasn't sustainable.

"Good, I'll handle that when we get back from Spear's and coordinate with Jesse. We'll need some resources allocated from Admin and delivery to manage the spread," Toni affirmed, clapping Matthew on the back with a supportive grin.

"Happy?" Matthew scoffed, shaking his head.

"When you're not off playing hero, yeah. Your fiancée would probably agree too that aswell."

"My fiancée is knee-deep in this wedding that's going to cost me as much as rebuilding a new academy. Her taste in things leaves much to be desired."

"You did mention she's the princess's cousin. No surprise where her taste in the finer things comes from. But surely she has some funds somewhere? An inheritance or something from the crown?" Toni inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Matthew shook his head, "fuck off, I'm not letting her pay for shit. I said i would support her, and I am." '

"Even if she sends you broke?"

"Even...fuck... if she sends me fucking broke."

"Who would've thought you'd be so old school about this?" Toni laughed.

"Oh fuck off," Matthew laughed shaking his head. "Anyway, let's head in. As you said, there's a party going on inside, and I'm out here with you."

Toni smiled, wrapping his arm around Matthew's neck and pulling him inside, laughing now as he told what he had missed by being outside. Explaining that one of the teachers had been hitting on Jesse, and she decked him in the face, e—a moment that Eko, apparently, had captured on video.