THINGS FALL APART
Isolde's POV
The vines were moving. Towards something.
They were slithering up a dark alter.
The alter with a beheaded statue.
Sol. It was Sol's statue.
They kept slithering until they reached the man in the middle of the alter.
Tentatively, they moved closer to him.
He was asleep; with a peaceful face.
Dressed in white, he was a stark contrast to the black marble floor.
Like life and death. Ying and Yang.
His blood-red hair pooled around his head like a halo in the darkness.
Like the first drop of blood from Erebus and Aether that dripped on the chest of Chaos and gave birth to Sol and Selena.
I recognize him.
"Isolde? Midget?" a concerned voice shakes me awake.
I winch at the brightness of Sol's rays as soon as I try to open my eyes. I sometimes wonder if Sol holds a special grudge against me.
Well joke's on him, I hold a grudge against him too.
I could see Akira frowning at me from above. Water dripped from his shoulder-length hair.
Wait, where am I?
"Good morning, Shorty," Akira says, the frown on his face disappearing slowly.
"Good Morning, Akira," I reply, without some stupid nickname, mind you. I was more mature than that.
I slowly stand up from my position. Back sour from falling asleep in an odd position.
"Did you have a nightmare, midget? You were shaking," Akira asks from the front of the mirror where he was drying his hair with a towel. I could see the concerned frown on his face in the mirror.
"I....no," the lie slips off my tongue after a moment of hesitation.
"Just spill it, midget. I don't have all day," Akira refutes with a sigh.
Why does he sigh so much?
"It's nothing, Akira," I insist, not used to sharing my nightmares.
"You listened to my whining yesterday. So, today is my turn," Akira said while massaging some kind of aromatic oil on his hair.
So that's why he smells so nice.
The only smell one gets from the boys of my village is the fresh musk of horse crap.
Oh, how I wished they would one day take a shower so I could force myself to fall in love with one of them.
The things you compromise with when you have limited options.
"I said I don't have all day, midget," he says with an exasperated sigh.
"Where are you even going?" I ask, trying to steer the conversation away from me.
"To the court. I will be representing House of Ryuuzaki," he says, suddenly sounding very tired.
It worked.
"So everything is finalized for Lord Leonidas's ascending?" I ask in a quiet tone.
From what Akira has told me yesterday night, Lord Leonidas was not the strongest nor the most influential person in the court. The elder court only supports him for his pro-war agenda.
"Yeah, the elder court probably bought off most of the court. And the civilians want war. They are protesting outside the fort. So he has a justification too," Akira says while angrily putting on his outer robes.
"But why would the civilians want war in the first place?" I ask in confusion.
The last thing we, commoners, would ever want is war. I mean, war affects business which is one of the main sources of income for the commoners. Commoners rarely go into other professions. They rarely ever get the chance to.
"Heck if I know. They don't have to fight the war. Bunch of cowards. They probably think we are expendable to their whims," Akira brushes of the question with a wave of his hand.
"That's it? You're just assuming? You don't even know the exact reason behind their demand and yet you dare to give out a verdict" I hiss at him.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Akira asked, frowning again.
"Well, like you said the civilians don't fight. They have nothing to do with the ongoing conflict with Lilura. Then why would they care enough to demand a war in the first place?" I ask him with force.
"Well, how would I know that? I have never talked to them!" he waves his hands around in frustration.
"You have...... never talked to the commoners of Azura?" I ask in surprise.
"Well, I have never felt the.....necessity?" he tries to explain while scratching his head.
"Unbelievable! These are the people who adore you people," I say, remembering the children running behind Inayat's carriage.
"That's not stopping them from asking us to die on the battlefield" he screams suddenly.
I flinch at his voice and move back a few steps. Why does he have to shout? I don't like it.
"I am sorry," Akira says, coming closer to me. He looks down apologetically.
"You're doing it again," I say with a sigh. "You're jumping onto a conclusion without hearing both sides."
Thank Goodness, he wasn't a Grandmaster. Fair judgment wouldn't have stood a chance.
"The commoners almost worship the holy army. And I know the Holy Army strives to protect the commoners too. But do they know each other? Very few commoner children are selected to study in the academy and almost no commoner ever gets a position in the court or a place of power. The nobles, on the other hand, keep themselves hidden behind facades. So you tell me, how do they communicate?"
I pause for a bit and then continue when I see the confused look on his face.
"We know the commoners are protesting outside the walls but why are they shouting their demands there? Why are they not allowed inside? " I let the questions out in the open.
"I appreciate the fact that the court is willing to respect to their demands but they need to do more than that. They need to ask for reasons, give the civilians a chance to explain themselves and explain the situation to the commoners as well. Commoners don't have any clue about the political conflicts!!! They should be informed so that they don't make outrageous demands!" I try to explain my thoughts based on the books I had read about Azura's politics and it's founding.
I desperately wanted Akira to listen to their side, their grievance, their hardships. Because no one ever listened to mine.
Well, our count was a greedy moron who stayed far-away from us. He never cared for us, neither has any of his ancestors and nor will any of his descendants.
But here in Azura, nobles were separated from the commoners by only a river.
And as plausible it sounds to me when I say it loud but these noble children seemed to have a heart.
So you bet I will try to make them listen to the commoners because unlike the count back home, these people might actually help the people who serve them.
Isn't that what true nobles are supposed to do?
They are not doing a very good job at the moment, I agree. But these people seem to care. They just need a push in the right direction. As a commoner, I could at least do that.
As someone who suffered, shouldn't one take the chance given to them to stop others from suffering too?
I observe Akira's reaction. He looks taken back by my comment and frowns. Something passes through his eyes.
"Let's go," he says simply, taking my hand.
"Go where?" I ask in confusion, looking at our joint hands.
"To the city. I want to know why the commoners want war," he starts walking while explaining his motive. "We have six hours till the elections, just enough time to take a trip down the main city. Let's hear their side of the story"
"And where do you think you're going, Akira?" a neatly dressed middle-aged man with golden hair and green eyes stop us at the door.
I have never seen someone look at people with so much contempt. There was an air of superiority in his posture that made him look haughty instead of prideful.
"Ah, Lord Asahi, what a pleasant surprise," Akira says in a voice that didn't express any pleasure at all.
Okay, I am gonna take a wild guess over here and say that Akira doesn't like this man. Whoever he is.
"Oh, I don't think you have heard but I will be taking the mantle of the head from today onwards. So I guess you should refer to me as My lord or simply Lord Akira, shouldn't you?," Akira says with a confused face.
The man's glare intensifies but he quickly hides it behind a false sad look. "Oh, I have heard. I am so sorry about dear Reika. At the very least, he lived longer than Lord Daiki," he says, meeting Akira's eyes and with a sigh, he adds, "Unfortunately, such is the life of a Grandmaster, ready to lay down their lives for Azura at any moment, what can we do about it?"
Sol, this man was pathetic. How much of a low-life do you have to be to taunt a son with his newly deceased father?
Akira's jaw clenches and he looks ready to shout any minute. So before he could do that, I intervene, "Yes, truly unfortunate. But that's what makes them so beloved you see. The honor and prestige of the position, only a capable few people are able to understand."
I made sure to emphasize the word "Capable."
Sol, where did all that all gal came from, Isolde?
The man's face contorts in fury as he glares at me. "And who would this young lady be? I have never seen you around. Are you not noble?" he asks with eyes scrutinizing me as if I just stained his newly bought fancy cloak.
"You're right. I am not of noble birth," I say.
His face morphs into a mocking smile as if he found out my Achilles heel. I sigh at that.
And here we go, a noble who actually acts like a noble. I was beginning to miss the arrogance and cruel judgment.
"She is my friend. Now if you'll excuse me, I have matters to attend to that requires the family head's special attention. I know you have never been in such a position of responsibility but please understand why I can't entertain you today," Akira says reverting back to his obnoxiously polite attitude.
"Of course," the man leaves with one last look at Akira and completely ignoring me. Guess, the commoner born was not important enough to spare a glare.
"Ignore him, midget. He's just bitter because after losing to a half-ling bastard and an adopted child, he lost to a boy of sixteen," Akira says, unconsciously taking my hand in his again.
He keeps doing that for some reason. I am not sure how to feel about this but his hands were warm and it felt nice.
"I was planning to do it," I say with a sigh. It's not like I have enough power to oppose a noble anyway. Well, a noble that actually acts like the nobles back home.
"Let's go then," Akira says, walking up to the carriage parked in front of the gates. His hold on my hand tightens.
Yes, let's go then.
_______________________________________
GLOSSARY
*Erebus: In Greek Mythology, Erebus, was often conceived as a primordial deity, representing the personification of darkness.
*Aether: Aether is the personification of the "upper sky" or "Light". He embodies the pure upper air that the gods breathe, as opposed to the normal air.
*Chaos: The mythological void state preceding the creation of the universe (the cosmos) in Greek creation myths
_________________________________________
Isolde came to Akira's world. Now Akira is going to Isolde's world. How do you think he'll react?
Hope you liked this chapter. Please leave comments and vote for this chapter.