With a huff that covered a small laugh, I turned around and approached the guards. They pulled the doors open, and I strode through them more confidently than I was feeling as they closed behind me. I felt my eyebrows shoot up at the sight of the Empress.I don’t think Myrin realizes how early it is either.
She stood in the center of the room, dressed in what appeared to be a training uniform, with her hair pulled back and away from her face in a tight bun. Music played from somewhere in the space and books were spread out across several surfaces—not in a manner that suggested she was looking for something, but more that she was browsing. Like she had been up all night reading.
“Morning,” I called out as she snapped her gaze up. Upon seeing me, she let the large, leather-bound book she had been reading from fall shut and offered a welcoming smile.
“Good morning, Kyella.”
I exhaled a breath, relief flooding me at the warm greeting, before looking around the room. I noticed that Barnabus was perched on an armchair nearby. I offered a small smile at the animal before looking back at her. “Elijah mentioned you wanted to see me.”
“I did.” She motioned me further into the room. “I tried to wait as long as I could since I knew you were sleeping. But I knew if we didn’t start early, we wouldn’t get nearly as much done as we needed to.”
“And what needs to be done?” I asked curiously, feeling far more alert the longer I was in here. Partially because of the energy radiating off of her, but also because the grogginess was slowly slipping away, allowing for a sense of excitement. Myrin had something planned, and I was eager to find out what.
“Training. Physical combat, specifically.”
I probably should have expected that considering I had asked Myrin to let me go into battle despite her concern about me not being prepared for combat. The fact that she wanted to take time from her busy schedule to train with me meant that she was serious—not only about her concern, but in her attempt to try to prepare me for my presumed future as much as possible.
“Okay,” I nodded in understanding. “I have only trained once with Dakath, Elijah, and Kolvar, but that went pretty well overall.”
“Yes, it did,” Myrin agreed, reminding my sleepy brain that she had been there, watching, “but this time, you will be training with me. It was one of the reasons we had to do this so early—I want to be able to train in peace and not worry about anyone interrupting us. I have a private training yard, so I don’t have to worry about wearing a mask; but once the empire starts to wake up, my schedule can change in a blink of an eye based on what is going on.”
I didn’t doubt the truth behind her words. And if I was to believe Myrin about what my future held, this was a reality I would need to get used to.
“Let’s do it,” I agreed, wanting to take advantage of any time that I had with her.
Her gaze flashed with pride and what I thought was an edge of excitement. “Follow me.”
As we walked through a doorway into a long hallway within her private suite, I realized how complex her space was. We passed room after room, some with closed doors, others with open archways. I spotted everything from a music room to a sunroom, and who knew what was in between.
Wow.My eyes widened in surprise as we took a circular staircase down that opened into the training yard. As I looked up at the ceiling, I realized the sizable space had a glass enclosure on the top and that the outer walls were made of stone, completely surrounding the space. It was clear the ceiling could open up from a rope and pulley system that attached to the center beam from the sides, though it was currently closed with moisture forming on the top of it in the early dawn light. My gaze moved down, wandering around the rest of the space, noticing that outside of the short manicured grass, there was everything from a wall of sparring weapons to a training course that included climbing and lifting.
A flutter of wings pulled my attention upward, eyes locking on Barnabus as the bat circled the space and landed on a high climbing ledge, seeming to settle himself to watch us.
“I like this,” I admitted, the serene space making me feel focused and ready to train.
“As a ruler, you will find that privacy can be hard to come by and having a personal sanctuary is important. You must keep yourself grounded to be a good ruler to your people. The two go hand in hand. You can’t put your people first if you aren’t taking care of yourself, and sometimes that requires a bit of distance to get a clear head,” Myrin explained as I absorbed all of her words. “I have to admit…There is one element that makes masking my identity a bit nice. People are more focused on what I do for the empire as a figurehead instead of who I am as an individual—as it should be. Too many rulers let their ego make decisions for them.”
Like Malakai.
I nodded, understanding what she was saying, as I considered the concept of having to wear a mask myself. Unfortunately, I didn’t think I would be able to live a life maintaining that type of secrecy, especially now that I had tasted my freedom. I also didn’t think Myrin expected me to, though. Not when she had commented on people likely being willing to follow me considering my background and what I’d overcome.
“So this is a personal sanctuary for you? Do you train often?”
“One of many sanctuaries,” she agreed with a low sigh. “And not as much as I used to. Alia, my preferred sparring partner, has taken to the country recently to care for her mother. I forbid her to come back despite the war, wanting her to focus on her family. I haven’t had a chance to train much as a result.”
“Will you only spar with her?” I asked in confusion. “What about your advisors?” I was surprised she hadn’t trained with Elijah or the other two. They were good at what they did, and they respected her completely. Surely, they would be great sparring partners for the Empress.
“I have trained with some before.” She offered a small smile before shrugging. “But it’s hard to find someone who knows my identity who is willing to give it their all.”
I nodded in understanding. It made sense that most people wouldn’t want to raise a sword, even in training, to the Empress. And, of course, her hidden identity made that group of individuals whocouldtrain with her even smaller.
“Plus,” she drew out, “while I think that the training your men have given you is important, there are a few things I can teach you from my own experience that they would not be able to. They are far larger than you, so they train and fight differently. I can give you a few tips on how to use your size to your advantage.”
“They do fight differently than I would,” I agreed, remembering our training session and the few techniques they had offered to fight with daggers. While some had worked, some had been more difficult because pure blunt force wasn’t something I possessed on the same level as someone like Kolvar. Myrin was right, while it was good to train with them, I was certain she had some tips and lessons that my men wouldn’t have. I was beyond thankful to her for taking time out of her busy schedule to do this with me.
“Exactly, now let’s grab some sparring weapons.” She nodded toward the wall as we walked over. Immediately, I reached out and grabbed two daggers—it wasn’t even a question. I’d stopped wondering how each of my men had preferences for different weapons. No, instead I’d started to understand. The weapons become an extension of your body.
I made a note to ensure I started strapping on my own daggers each morning when I woke up. It wasn’t second nature to me quite yet, but I found myself feeling slightly dense for not thinking of bringing them. I’d already been captured once while in the safety of the castle, so I needed to be prepared, no matter what. I wouldn’t make that mistake again—as soon as I got back to my room, I would grab them.
