“There’s no other option,” she said. As if coming to a decision she stood and went to one of the many closets of her room and rummaged through it for a few minutes, before pulling out a box from the back.
“Come with me,” she ordered. I followed her out to her gardens. As we walked, I saw a flash of orange and black. A small, green-eyed fox peered at me from behind an ornamental bush. I stared for a moment. I had spent many hours in these gardens, but I had never seen a fox in here before. Maybe it was a wild animal that had wandered in? I was hoping desperately it would find its way out before the groundskeepers sicced the hounds on it.
“I am not caught entirely unprepared for this,” Mother said, oblivious to the small animal as I followed her to a seat along one of the walking paths. She set the box down and opened it. In the box were a number of tiny bottles, each with some kind of dark liquid within.
She pulled one out and handed it to me.
“Drink this,” she ordered.
I looked at the small glass bottle warily.
“What is it?”
I glanced back over to where the fox had been, relieved to see it was gone. Good. Maybe it would manage to escape.
“Safety,” she said simply. “It’s an experimental drug we have been working on in Greece for many years,” she said quietly, her fingers carding gently through my hair like she had when I was a child.
“It suppresses the development of Mageian powers for a time, and protects you from the worst effects of the Suppression, should you be exposed to it,” she continued. “You will need to take one every month without fail.”
“What good does that do us?” I asked. “If I’m Mageian, I’ll be disinherited when he finds out.”
Part of the elevation to Crown Prince was being subjected to Suppression by a group of Elusians. If the person were human or Elusian it was no problem, of course. If a person was to be found out to be Mageian in the ceremony the very best they could hope for was to be sent to the Legion.
“Ifhe finds out,” she interjected. “There is no reason for him to suspect you are Mageian yet. If we can keep him in the dark for a few more years I may be able to eliminate Maalik. With him out of the way, there is no reason you, ostensibly as a human, couldn’tinherit. Accidents…happen. Once you are King, you can change the laws.”
I looked at her in shock. My vapid, soft, frivolous mother who had always seemed more at home with feminine gossip and court activity was talking about assassinating the King and Crown Prince. Merely speaking the words were grounds for execution.
“But…” I stammered. “You can’t! He’ll know! Healwaysknows!”
The number of plots my father had uncovered against his life were infamous. Each time he had carried out the execution of the accused with his own hands.
“He just wants you to think that,” she said dismissively. “He cultivates that reputation so that all will quake in their boots in his presence. He’s nothing more than a bully with a sword.”
She sat back down and handed me the vial.
“I have no way to teach you how to use your powers here. We have to hide them until you can be trained. The risk of leaving them active and untrained is too great. This is the only hope we have until we are in a situation where I can eliminate both threats,” she said. “Drink.”
I looked at the bottle again, then back to her, unsure.
Her eyes bore into mine, and I saw that same glow again. I loved my mother. I trusted her. So I drank the liquid obediently and felt something in myself twist and burn. I was struck with a wave of dizziness and had to steady myself. I suddenly felt like the one time I had flown with my father in an aircraft. My ears felt like they needed to pop, and the awareness of the earth beneath me receded.
“The dizziness will pass,” she said. “But you need to work on managing your temper, Lucien. Strong emotions make Mageian powers more powerful. Even with the drug, we cannot take the chance that you will lose control when someone notices. Fortunately, this area is known to be seismically active. I don’t think anyone will have noticed this particular incident.”
I nodded dumbly.
“What is it doing to me?” I asked, a wave of nausea washing over me.
“The drug will keep you from feeling the effects of the Suppression ability if it’s used on you. It should help you pass as human for the time being.”
“How did you know I was Mageian? What did you do?” I asked. “Your eyes glowed.”
She smiled gently at me.
“There are other types of power in the world than Mageians and Elusians,” she said. “Our family has many secrets, Lucien. One day I hope I have the opportunity to take you home to Greece to meet your Grandparents.”
She refused to speak on it any further. We had repeated the ritual monthly for almost three years. She would summon me to her rooms, dismiss the servants, and make me drink the foul liquid that stifled my awareness. I watched for the tiny fox, but never saw him again. Until the day came when the last of the small vials were empty.
Though she had plotted against Maalik for years, none of her assassination attempts had been successful. He was far too wily and well-protected, and she didn’t dare remove the King first, because Maalik as king would be a thousand times worse.
