“For what it's worth, you had me fooled. Well, for the most part,” he added with a wink.
She swatted his shoulder in the most familiar way, as if they were old friends reunited. It took him by surprise. It had been a long time since he had someone near his own age to banter with.
It was refreshing.
When they made it back to his quarters, Doraan’s heart felt lighter than it had in years. He had a friend. Technically, his entire crew could be called friends, but not like this—this was something else. Talking and interacting with Kamira was what he had been missing for so long, and he didn’t even know it. It was comfortable. It was nice.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you—how many of those Sumaarian warships have you come across? Are there a lot of them? I was surprised to see the Sumaarians had formed a navy so quickly. I thought it was a cargo ship like you had said, but that army was definitely Sumaarian.”
Doraan went very still and blinked at her in confusion. “A what?”
“You didn’t know that was a Sumaarian military ship?”
Since when did Sumaarians have ships and a military like that? They were secluded, wealthy people who only cared for trade and money—or so he thought. Was it true? Had the Sumaarians decided to revolt? Had they amassed a rebel army in secret? “I...”—his gaze drifted to the worn floorboards, unseeing—“did not.”
“I didn’t notice it when it was far away, but up close with its flags and the green uniforms with the golden sun. That’s the Emerald King’s sigil. He must have finally taken over Sumaaria like he’s attempted for so many years, using their wealth and resources to amass an army and build a naval fleet.”
Doraan’s head whipped up to meet Kamira’s eyes so fast he just about gave himself whiplash. “The Emerald what?” he gasped, rubbing the back of his neck from the quick movement.
“The King in the North,” she cocked her head to the side. “I suppose if you aren’t from the north you’ve most likely never heard the rumors of the King or seen the evidence of his rise. But seeing as he has a navy, I would think his existence would be more broadly known by now. Although, now that I think about it, I can’t say I heard those rumors at all during my time in Aksahri.” Kamira frowned. “How did he manage that I wonder? To remain a secret to all of Emmoria.”
“How do you know this? Where have you heard these things?” he asked in a rush, uncaring how anxious and angry he sounded.
Kamira leaned away at his tone, looking at him with surprise. “I—I know I told you I’m from Jaaria, but I’m actually from Torheim. I lived there my whole life at the base of the Emerald Peaks on the southwestern border. The King in the North had always just been a rumor when I was a child. There was no proof of his existence, but in recent years, the true evidence of him has been seen throughout every northern town, especially in Torheim. There have been multiple attacks on the Aksahrian military units there. They’ve burned down their barracks and slaughtered soldiers in the streets, leaving them with the mark of his golden sun painted on their faces. Just in the past few years, there have been very few and scattered sightings of ships bearing his colors seen sailing near our shores but nothing like that military vessel we encountered the other night. I think, originally, when I was young, the rumors of the King were just that, embellished tales, but sometime in the past ten years or so, someone decided to take on the name of the Emerald King and use it to grow an army of rebels to rise up against the Emperor.”
Doraan stared at Kamira unblinking. He had no idea how to process this information and all he could think to ask was, “Who is he?”
She laughed. “I don’t know. No one does. He stays hidden somewhere in Sumaaria, commanding his troops from afar. Honestly, we ignored the whispers of his attacks until we saw his rebels taking action in Torheim. Like I said, I think someone took advantage of the rumor, of the name and what it means, to make it real and take action. It’s smart if you ask me. So many were already on the side of the rumored King, and by taking on the title, they were guaranteed followers. The first attack on the Aksahrian troops in Torheim was about seven years ago.”
“How big is his army? How many military units and warships does he have?”
“I have no idea. We only saw a few ships with his banners over the years, definitely not a full navy of warships. I suspect that was because Aksarian patrol ships were always docked in Torheim’s harbor. Their attacks on the city would always be on land, coming down from the mountains in the cover of night,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. “If he had a large fleet of warships, I would assume he would have launched an attack on Aksahri by now. It’s been so long since I’ve been home; who knows what he has accomplished in that time.”
“Hmm.” Doraan frowned. “You might be right. If there were a large fleet of those ships, they would annihilate Aksahri, and if what you said is true, they would have already done it years ago. There would be no point for them to wait. Aksahri is in a vulnerable state right now with their Emperor ill. Now would be the perfect time.” He stopped and nibbled his bottom lip, eyes glazing in thought. “Maybe they were waiting for something like this to happen—a chink in the Emporer’s armor.”
“And they would have most likely heard by now that the Emperor’s council is missing one member.” She looked away from him as she said it, clasping her hands tightly behind her.
Doraan ignored her comment, noticing her change in body language. “Not to mention we haven’t come across another ship these past two days. Are you sure there aren’t any of those ships at Torheim? Could they just be slowly making their way south, hitting Torheim’s naval ships first?”
Kamira sighed. “It is possible. But as I said, I haven’t been to Torheim in nearly two years. If something like that had happened, my father would have mentioned it. I saw him a few weeks ago, just before…” she stopped, growing agitated and twisting her shirt anxiously.
“Kamira,” Doraan said, placing a hand gently under her chin and lifting her gaze to meet his. “You did a good thing in Aksahri. You saved yourself. Don’t ever feel ashamed of your actions, for saving the most important person, yourself.”
Her face softened, a small smile spreading across her lips as she looked at him with tears in her eyes and then wrapped her arms tightly around his waist to rest her head against his chest.
He froze, caught off guard and not entirely sure what to do. When she only squeezed him tighter, he breathed out and relaxed into her embrace with a smile of his own before wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close enough to rest his chin atop her head.
“Thank you, Doraan,” she whispered against his chest.
He knew what she was thanking him for and instinctively placed a kiss on the top of her head before they released their embrace. Heat rose to his cheeks at that sudden sign of affection, and he quickly brushed it aside to say, “Come on. Let's get you back resting. I need to go speak with Cormac about all of this.”
She nodded, and he watched as her face relaxed from his gentle smile. Her blue eyes shifted from storm clouds to calm pools of cerulean. She offered him a soft smile in return, and there was a happiness in her expression that he hadn’t seen in her since she boarded the ship. Doraan grinned, a boyish lightness filling him at being the cause of that happiness.
But it was quickly replaced by a heaviness as the reality sunk in that there was a rising threat to his people. A war was coming for them—one they couldn’t win—and Doraan wasn’t there to help. That thought made the heaviness sink further into his heart, and he knew it would stay there until the curse was broken and he could go home once again.
16
Kamira
