Marcus smiles kindly at me. “I’m also Julius’s pater.”
“Pater?” I ask, my brows creasing.
“It means father,” Odessa replies.
So, I was correct.
But his smile throws me off kilter; there’s a genuine kindness radiating from his face. He’s not what I expected Julius’ dad to be like. His green eyes are full of wisdom and not the arrogance that seeps from his son.
“It’s nice to meet you, Marcus,” I say to him, and I can’t help the smile that grows in response.
There’s an empty seat next to him, and Odessa frowns at it but then quickly moves on, introducing the next woman.
“Artemisia of the West District.”
A statuesque woman with tanned olive skin and a strong brow turns towards me. Her smile is friendly, and there’s a hint of mischief twinkling in her lightly up-tilted chocolate-brown eyes. There’s something about her that makes me instantly like her. A sense of such vivaciousness shines from her.
“And last but not least, Cynane of the Pella district, which makes up the other half of Scota, the farthest island from us.” Odessa points to the astonishingly beautiful woman next to me.
She shifts to face me, throwing her long platinum blondehair over a muscular shoulder. Her icy gray eyes study me as if she’s mapping out each one of my weaknesses. There’s such an air of power radiating from her that I have to lock my muscles in place again to remain upright. The urge to bow at her feet courses through me. I struggle to keep my face neutral and not gape at her beauty. I settle on a dip of my chin.
A fleeting expression passes across her face at the respect, the severity of her gaze lightening as she dips her chin in return.
Satisfied with the introductions, Odessa tilts her head towards me. “Do you have any questions before we begin?”
I bite my lip at the onslaught of attention from the councilors, but forge through it. “Yes, you said Districts; how is that determined?”
Her smile is full of admiration. “That is another great question. When the Father established our realm, he did not only select the Norse warriors, but also any warriors that met his prerequisites. It didn’t matter if they worshiped him or had even heard of him. They only had to be worthy.”
My eyes widen with more questions, but she continues. “A worthy warrior has bravery, strength, and reasoning. They are not only brutes with strength, but smart, cunning warriors. Gender was also not a factor in selection. So we had warriors flocking in from all over the place, different races, cultures, religions, and languages.” Her hands wave wildly as she recounts the history. “As one usually does, birds of a feather flock together, so people of a similar background set up in certain areas. However, we were a realm united for a singular cause, to guard the realm from evil and fight in Odin’s army.” Julius scoffs from where he guards the door, annoyance creasing his brow.
She blazes on, “So to stay united and keep the peace between us, a counselor was elected from each of the areas that were inhabited by that group of people so that we could meet like this and discuss any arising issues without waging wars amongst ourselves.”
“That makes sense,” I mutter, my mind filing away all that information to study later. This is the history that she doesn’t want to be taught in schools? That many people from that many places and periods all in one place, united under a singular goal? I can’t even begin to fathom why that would be a bad idea. The stories and the customs they must have.
“If you have any other questions, let me know at the end, and I can answer them for you.” She grins at me. The kindness of it leaves me grateful for her guiding hand. She calls the meeting to order, and it begins with Boudicca, who is standing to list her current grievances for this week. She ticks off her fingers, her tone sharp.
“With the training grounds closed, boredom has afflicted many of my citizens. The amount of ale we’ve gone through this week is astonishing, and someone broke into our stores and decimated our supply. And there have been complaints that arrows are becoming nearly impossible to find.”
Odessa nods and reaches a hand behind her, pointing towards Julius. “Can you make a note to check our stores for more ale and arrows?”
He nods at her request. Boudicca sits, but she looks disgruntled still.
Leif stands next and glowers at the room before announcing, “A few of my citizens have decided to move from the Capital since their forges have been forced to close.” His voice is laced with anger. “They wish to move to Olundy and open forges there. Do I need your approval to grant their request?”
Odessa, surprisingly, stares down her nose at him. “Of course, your citizens are free to live in any district or island they wish in this realm. But we have no need for any more forges,” She bristles.
Leif’s expression had been edging towards relief with each of her words, but with her ending remark, his glower returns. The name of the island, though, was Olundy. No one had mentionedthat island yet. I eye the empty chair at the table; maybe that’s why?
Ashur stands next and lists a few grievances: petty squabbles on property lines, overcharging at the market, and a problem I wasn’t expecting to hear, teens sneaking out at night. Odessa addresses them easily, and Ashur sits, satisfied. I do my best to pay attention and learn, but my body is buzzing with energy, my mind fluttering from one thing to another, but consistently going back to one thing, or rather one person,Lachlan.
I begin daydreaming of his charismatic smile and how relieved he would be if he could see me now. I need to figure out how to travel back once I have power. But my chest begins to ache when I think of going back, knowing I’ll be leaving this entire realm to its fate. The selfishness of that act presses down on me.
Odessa clears her throat in an attempt to recapture my attention, and I glance her way. She nods towards Artemisia.
“I’m so sorry. I must’ve zoned out,” I reply sheepishly.
Odessa gives me a chastising stare. “Artemisia,” she says again, her cunning eyes scrutinizing me as I shift her way, “has suggested that we reopen a few of the training grounds, but I’ve said there’s no need. Whatever would we train for? Don’t you agree?”
