The Ether Witch

Tam was seated on the bed beside Eli, who had been woken up from her nap by Tam’s magical reappearance…

With Lord Kim.

Who was still in their room.

Pacing.

And talking to himself.

“Remarkable. One with all things, and yet nothing… in between life and time itself. Death but not… A new god? No… No, probably not…”

“Er… Lord Kim. I greatly appreciate that you have agreed not to alert anyone about our true identities, but–”

“The implications of such a power… What distance? How often…?”

Tam stopped trying to draw the man back to the present as he felt a deep weariness settle in him that threatened his consciousness severely.

He lowered his forehead to his hand, and sluggishly wondered if traveling such a distance used up more of his magic. He’d heard Kat could strain her own power to the point of exhaustion in such a way after days of no sleep and rigorous activity. Admittedly Lord Kim’s questions were exceptionally insightful, but he simply did not have the energy to answer or investigate them, and furthermore…

Did he have to ask them in the bedroom right then?

“Lord Kim,” Eli’s voice was sharp and imperial.

It took even Tam aback who, with heavy eyes, forced himself to look at her as she stared imposingly at Lord Kim. “You are in our room, and my husb-, my lord, would like to sleep.”

That certainly succeeded in making Lord Kim halt.

He then suddenly remembered Eli’s history, blinked several times, and swept into a bow.

“Your Highness! Welcome back–”

“I am not a princess anymore. I am… an assistant. To the Ashowan duchy. Please call me Eli.”

“You are a princess! No matter what others say, you– Did you say this room was for the both of you?” Lord Kim’s reverent tone fell flat once he’d interrupted himself.

Tam inwardly groaned. He could tell where this was going, and he had the unpleasant prediction that he was going to have to act aggressively to get the man off the premises as a result.

“It is. We are playing husband and wife for safety and must have even the servants believe it.”

“That is not proper! Surely, Lord Tam, you sleep on the balcony, or behind a screen or–”

“I asked him to sleep in the bed with me.” The sharp edge Eli used in her voice to cut off the Zinferan carried a note of foreboding.

Yet another side of her Tam hadn’t ever seen before.

Even so, Lord Kim managed to recover. “Regardless, Your Highness, this is not dignified for any young woman, let alone someone who, in my opinion, should be one of the strongest candidates to take the throne!”

“I’m not taking anything. And I am not a princess. I will not tell you again.” The force behind her words that remained quiet once again succeeded in forcing back Lord Kim.

Tam slowly sat straight again.

“Lord Tam, might I speak with you outside–”

“His lordship is exhausted. No doubt from magic use. He will rest and then seek you out for a meeting. I will escort you out,” Eli commanded smoothly while gesturing toward the door.

It didn’t matter that she was in a robe and the back of her hair still fluttered in the wind, she was an impressive force to be reckoned with.

Tam had to rub his mouth to hide his smile.

Lord Kim openly struggled not to say anything, but after Eli continued to stare him down with no signs of budging, he let out a grunting breath through his nose.

“Until next time, Lord Tam.” Lord Kim bowed, and proceeded to exit with Eli following closely behind.

Once the door slid closed, leaving Tam alone once more, he lowered his eyes to the floor and chuckled. “Gods, she’s impressive.”

He then slowly slid back onto the bed, and continued to slide back until his head grazed the pillow.

He knew Eli would be back soon, and she’d most likely have questions, but Tam couldn’t help it.

Sleep smothered him in its embrace, and by the time Eli returned, he was far from the world of the conscious.

*

Eli let all the tensed air that had built in her lungs out as she stared at Tam’s still face.

She wanted to know what the hell had happened. Wanted to ask her employer just how the hell did Lord Kim get pulled into the void. But truthfully, she had been in a sound sleep herself when she had simply… Jolted awake.

Yawning, Eli eyed the spot in the bed she tended to occupy at night beside Tam, and decided she may as well nap with him.

She had explained Lord Kim’s presence off to Haewon by saying the lord had kindly brought Tam home when he was ill, and they had simply managed to come in without being noticed.

Scratching the back of her neck, Eli’s hand drifted up to the back of her hair.

Did it really look that weird? It was the first thing Tam had commented on… It was true he had seemed quite dazed upon appearing, but even so…

Shaking her head at herself for even bothering with such a pointless thought, Eli climbed back into bed and settled down… Until she realized she had started smiling at some point.

When?

Had it been when she’d re-entered the room?

Or when she’d stood for longer than she wanted to admit watching Tam rest. His mouth slightly open, his right hand at his side, palm up, his left hand resting across his abdomen… His abdomen that Eli knew happened to be quite muscular…

She felt heat streak across her cheeks and so she turned onto her side quickly, pressing her face into the cool pillow, grateful that he couldn’t see her right then.

Oh Goddess… Do I want to be with him? He’s made it abundantly clear I can if I want to. And if he decides he tires of me…? What then? He could ruin me… Then again, his last ex-lover he simply left alone and vanished from her life.

Eli’s thoughts started to spiral until she heard the discrete, yet recognizable sound of the sliding door opening a crack.

Sitting up, she found herself looking at Luca who stared nervously back at her.

She tilted her head in question, but when the child didn’t answer and instead his eyes darted to the bed, Eli knew exactly what he wanted. She remembered wanting the same thing as a child… Though she had only been allowed until she was four years old when her mother couldn’t stand putting up with it anymore.

Swallowing past the lump in her throat, Eli gave a short nod, and a single pat on the bed in the space between herself and Tam.

Luca’s face split into a grin, and he shuffled in hurriedly, forgetting to close the door behind himself.

Eli didn’t bother pointing it out as he scrambled up into the bed and nestled himself between them. She simply turned on her back and closed her eyes.

Why did I let him do this? Tam might not want-

And then she felt it.

Luca’s hand reaching into her own and grasping it.

And something in her, very abruptly, broke.

She pressed her eyes tight, hoping that Luca wouldn’t notice the tears slipping out.

When she didn’t hear him comment, she squeezed his hand back, and for whatever reason, that made the tears come all the more.

She dared to crack open an eye, and was grateful to see that Luca was already fast asleep, and, funnily enough, his small face, with the mouth slightly open, and the shape of the still growing cheek bones, he looked just like his father beside him.

Only Luca’s left hand wasn’t lying on his stomach, he had grabbed Tam’s hand as well.

And the enormity of the situation ravaged Eli’s well-guarded heart that she thought couldn’t feel anything fractionally as intense to what she felt right then.

She had a family.

This could be her family.

This could be her everything, and the fact that the mere daring thought of it made her feel more whole in a way she hadn’t in years…

Scared her soundly.

***

“There has been news, my liege.”

Aradia turned away from the mirror in front of her with an arched brow.

Ansar and Thomas knelt before her. “We received word from an innkeeper that he believes the man thought of as the devil was headed for Junya.”

A ruthless smile ventured halfway up the first witch’s face. “Excellent. What contacts do we have in Junya?”

“The concubine has her cousin Lord Yangban staying in the city presently. And she has recently received word that an heir to the throne may be there as well, so she will most likely be quite willing to lend us funds and manpower,” Ansar explained evenly.

Aradia nodded thoughtfully. “That concubine has a burdensome amount of pride.”

“Yes, my liege.”

“Ansar. We’ve talked about this. Call me Aradia.”

“Yes, Aradia.”

The first witch smiled warmly at her devoted servant momentarily before her expression melted back to seriousness. “

“How big of a threat does this princess or prince pose to the concubine. Truly?”

“That is difficult to say… It is a princess. Princess Elisara. And she may wish to find revenge, but have no design on the throne. According to some servants that remember her, she was quite resolute while she was being raised here in the palace not to assume any power, but that could have been something she was taught to say in order to survive.”

Aradia considered that suggestion momentarily. “Alright. I don’t know what state my brother is in. Or how powerful he is right now. This world is breaking free of the laws my parents set, and the longer it grows wild the more complicated things become. We will send five of the men the concubine gifted us. But don’t send the best. Send one experienced man, and the rest with varied levels of competence. We will start to assess my brother from afar, and make judgments accordingly. If he tries to flee Junya, only then will we make contact.” Aradia gave a lone cursory glance at the mirror then stood.

“Thomas, what news from Troivack and Daxaria about my dagger and Chronos?”

“Chronos remains with the Coven of Wittica, and the dagger has been moved to another location.”

Aradia’s eyes moved to the ceiling. “Another location… Have someone investigate the home of Troivack’s Captain. Leader Gregory Faucher’s keep was rebuilt around the time I was imprisoned. It’d make sense knowing what they know that they’d tried to build an extra room of protection of sorts. Particularly asGregory Faucher is one of the few men that the Troivackian king trusts.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Aradia placed her hands on her hips that were wrapped snugly in black lace. “If all else fails, at the very least I can summon the dragon, but I will not fail this time. One way or another, my brother is being sent to the Forest of the Afterlife. No matter what stands in my way.”

The two men that knelt before her remained silent.

“Anything else to report?” she asked more as an afterthought.

“Is there anyone in particular you’d like to sit on the throne?” Ansar asked much in the same way a butler would ask his master if she’d like tea or coffee.

The first witch smiled again, but unlike before, this one was more calculative. “Definitely not that brat that shares blood with Soo Hebin. Check the other princes and princesses and their reputations. I’ll make a decision afterward.”

“Ma’am?” Thomas’s nervous voice pulled Aradia’s eyes to his bowed head. “What if members of the Ashowan family are here? And they come when they hear about the chaos brewing?”

Aradia ran the tip of her tongue over the jagged edges of her teeth. “I’ll plan for them accordingly this time. Don’t you worry. Ansar? Make sure we hear about any and all passengers coming into Zinfera that could match any of the Ashowan’s descriptions.”

“As you wish.”

Aradia turned back to the quarters she had been granted in Soo Hebin’s palace.

They weren’t small… But they were far from dignified or extravagant. Though Aradia knew she wasn’t in a position to do anything about it yet, she would soon show the concubine that it was a grave error to treat her, the daughter of the Gods, lightly, or with any measure of disrespect.

Because that is what she saw in the concubine’s eyes, and she knew that Soo Hebin could have given better accommodations, but this was her passive aggressive, childish way of showing her dominance.

Aradia smiled coolly to herself as she rested her hand on the back of the chair she had just been sitting in.

“Oh… One more thing… Contact the Coven of Giong. It’s time they started serving their ancestor; particularly in light of the very generous benefactor I’ve given them.”