Identity (part 1) & Acceptance (part 2)

Acceptance Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Exiting Stee’s room, they briskly walked through the empty building. Outside, Stee saw a small jetty which she hadn’t noticed during her arrival. At it sat a small boat with a white, roughly triangular, sail flapping gently in the breeze. Pressern lead Stee the small craft and held Stee’s hand to balance her as she jumped gracefully down into the boat. Pressurn unhooked the rope holding them to the jetty. She then took hold of the tiller and pulled in the mainsheet.

The boat sailed under Pressurn’s guidance like a swan across Lake Memme. As they passed the fern forest and approached the party location, the sound of incomprehensible chatter dropped to a susurrus to near silence. Finally the soft slap of the waves against the hull and the ramshackle docks lining the lake edge caused by the zephyr were the only sound to be heard.

Pressurn expertly guided the boat alongside the central jetty and fastened the rope to hold the boat. With the sail flapping in the soft breeze once again, Pressurn stood and stepped up out of the boat. Stee stood, balancing awkwardly, finding the balance of the moving hull difficult. The queen reached down to her daughter and held her hand as she stepped from the boat. Their path bisected the crescent of green grass, barely above lake level. The wielders of Memme had formed an aisle through the center of the semicircle of grass raised above the crescent. Soft music played from somewhere in the background as they walked through it.

Reaching the straight edge of the semi circle, still holding her hand, Pressurn lead Stee up the central steps to the stage. This allowed Stee to see a group of wielders in each corner playing the wooden instruments that were making the music. In the middle of the stage sat an elaborate lectern which looked like it had grown out of the ground itself. To the left were the ten mages of Holm Memme, with Lydri the rightmost, and to the right, were the ten soldiers of Holm memme.

As Stee approached the lectern, she noticed the head of a wizened old man sitting just above the top of the lectern. As she neared his features became more pronounced, resulting in her barely stifling a gasp as she noticed that his eyes were colourless – white orbs with a small black pupil. Immediately after, a thought rose in her mind, one of the teachings from her mother. He was the Frou of Memme, the oldest wielder which resulted in a possession of great knowledge. Those who became the Frou generally lived much longer than other wielders and had always had high power, and were appreciated and respected prior to becoming the Frou, but were never of the royal family.

Following her mother’s lead, Stee stopped about five paces shy of the lectern. The Frou welcomed everyone in a gravelly voice. Despite growing up as a royal, being a royal in front of all of the wielders was the most nerve wrecking thing she had ever done. From an outsiders point of view, she saw herself as a stranger to their land, who was being crowned as the heir to their land almost as soon as she arrived. She was certain that everyone was judging her as she stood listening to the old man. The old phrase ‘don’t judge a sword by its sheath,’ would be too hard to be expected to resist in such a circumstance. She was being confirmed as the next ruler of a land which she knew nothing about, and was already confirmed to govern the land of Aharoma.

After the man finished, he asked Stee and the Sfire to turn to face their people and then asked the general populous if there were any objects or questions to be asked of the supposed heir. At the Sfire’s own crowing, this had been met by silence as she had grown up amongst the wielders and already commanded a respect by the age of eighteen.

The first person to ask a question was an elderly man, “there is a certain resemblance between you and our queen, but I must ask for proof of your linage.”

Stee looked at her mother for guidance. Turning, the queen walked right up to the lectern, so Stee followed. The old man grasped a hand of each of them in his cool, wrinkled fingers. Stee did not know what was happening, but seconds later the man released them, and reported to the crowd that Stee was indeed their queen’s daughter, and added that she was also her only daughter.

Next a woman asked of her father. In order to gain their support and trust, Stee would need to be open, but she also did not want to be considered alien due to Aharoman side. Receiving no guidance from her mother, Stee realised it was a test not only from those who she was to one day rule over, but also from her mother.

Deciding that it was now or never, Stee stepped forward towards the crowd. “I did not grow up among you, within the midst of magic, but I did grow up with the belief that I would one day govern a large populous. I may not be familiar with your customs and traditions, but I have knowledge of them and will endeavour to make them as enjoyable as possible. I may not be familiar with the land here, but I am familiar with the land of Aharoma which the Sfire must watch over. You may not have ever seen me before, but I feel a kinship and respect for you as a society for the way you have dealt with the disruption in Aharoma. You may not know if you can trust me, but those where I am from trust me, and I strive for peace and prosperity. You may have never been to Aharoma, but before my time is up, you will be able to walk freely along the roads of the capital, with two great societies working together, we will be able to deter anyone who dares cross our path.

“My father is a man respected as a king in the same way you respect my mother as your queen. This places me in a unique position, as the only heir for two thrones. This may make you question my loyalties, particularly as we have barely met, yet I must tell you of the news from across the mountain ranges; on the night of my eighteenth birthday, the castle was attacked. The castle survived, but this attack was only a warning of what was to come – there is no doubt that this attack contained magic, the magic of the red coats. Some say that the red coats are the most fearless beings to walk the Earth, yet I believe we can destroy that myth. Aharomans alone have no chance of facing this threat and surviving, and it is the duty of the wielders to protect them. This need not be done from a distance, the Aharoman’s are somewhat more accepting of magic now that they are faced with a real threat and understand that wielders are their best hope. In this, I ask that under the name of Princess Stee of Aharoma and Princess Stee of Holm Memme, that you will trust in me and follow me and the dual guidance of my parents to not only develop power to ward of the first great war in centuries to create peace, but also to restore pios, pleasantry, and ultimately perfection within the Stardom itself.”

There was an awed silence as Stee ended her sermon.  Slowly the crowd began to kneel down on one knee, and each directed a small amount of energy towards the white velvet box nestled on the lectern. Once the surrounding people all did this, the tenth soldier of Holm Memme both walked to Stee and offered his services then sent some energy to the box. The tenth mage, then ninth soldier and so on repeated this process. When it came to the first soldier, Kopsansul, he drew a sword out of thin air and presented it to Stee on behalf of the ten soldiers.

Then it was Lydri’s turn. He stood face to face with Stee with his hand on her shoulders. Looking into his eyes properly for the first time since beside the training field, Stee was once again mesmerised by the beauty of his eyes, but this time she remained in control.

“Stee,” she heard Lydri say though his lips didn’t more. “Stee, I am in your mind. It is my task to check that you have not done wrong. I know you have not, I have already checked, but everyone else does not know this. I have about a minute to talk to you so listen closely. Your speech was powerful, most will be on your side, but some will be wary. When I finish, you will be presented with your crown, and the party will begin. During the party try to talk to as many people as you can, take note of their behaviour, ideas, opinions, everything. Be careful as you do this that you do nothing to cause a poor example of yourself, because those who have not completely accepted you will exploit this. I must withdraw now, be strong Steenilana.