Chapter 5: Tides That Shift

Finnian Northguard

After we take turns washing and getting dressed I begin escorting Luthera to the Library, though she seems distracted.

"Penny for your thoughts." I prod lightly.

She doesn't respond for a while; in fact, I almost think she is just going to stay quiet. "I just didn't expect my parents to leave so early in the morning, I would have liked to have said goodbye considering…"

I hum in understanding after she pauses. "You don't know when you will next get to see them."

"Yes." She replies barely above a whisper. "Are you going to go see your brother before he sets off with the Vanguard?"

It's a blatant change in topic but I decide to let her have it. "I will, to wish him luck and all that."

I didn't expect her to laugh, I raise a curious eyebrow at her.

"It's quite clear you wish to go with them." She points out as she shoots me an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry your confined here with me."

I wave off her concerns with a reassuring smile. "Think nothing of it, some things just can't be helped. I can't leave on a potentially dangerous voyage the day after my wedding to my beautiful wife."

She clicks her tongue as her lips quirk up into a small smirk. "You'll come to find that I am not so easily swayed by flattery and a charming smile."

"Then Alas, my two greatest weapons have been rendered useless." I let out an exaggerated sigh.

We share a small laugh before we come up on the library. There passes an awkward silence as neither of us really know how to end the interaction.

"As a princess of Kamrion there is no section that is restricted to you." I point out, rubbing the back of my neck. "The librarians can help you find anything specific that you may be looking for."

"Thank you, pri…" She stops herself, biting her lip before trying again, clearing her throat "Thank you, Finn."

Progress, it's progress. "Luthera."

I give one more polite nod before turning on my heel and making my way towards the courtyard. It doesn't take me long to find Kai and the rest of the Vanguard, seems they are almost ready to move out.

"Seems I won't be there to come to your rescue this time." I say, walking up to him with an easy smirk.

He smirks back, walking up to me. "As I recall, I am the one who needed to come to your rescue last time."

I wave off the comment easily. "Can't let myself have all the fun."

We share a short laugh before his face turns serious. He turns to look over the knights for a moment before pulling me to the side.

"I don't like the direction the winds are blowing, Finn." He mutters to me, his eyes unfocused and distracted.

I sigh, knowing exactly what he is talking about. "Neither do I."

"I don't know how long I will be away." He admits.

There is a beat of silence where he is just standing in contemplation. I sigh, planting a reassuring hand on his shoulder, breaking his lost looking gaze.

"There is something else, isn't there?" I ask lightly.

He only hesitates for half a second before nodding. "I don't like pulling so many of our forces away from Kamrion. If there is another attack…"

"Gertrude and I are here, Kai." I assure him. His features soften a little at my words before he chuckles a little.

"I know Kamrion will be in good hands." He nods. "I just have this feeling… there is something we are missing, and I am not sure if Thaegon is the right place to be looking for answers, it just seems too obvious."

"I agree…" I trail off, thinking about the meeting yesterday. "First the half-blood bandits to the north and then the attack by that creature yesterday, its… unsettling."

"It is." He nods, sighing before turning to face the Vanguard, all ready to set out. "Take care of our home while I'm gone, brother."

"Always." I answer without hesitation.

With a final nod he turns back to the Vanguard. "Move out!"

And in less than a minute they are off. I hear light footsteps coming from behind me, I turn and face the owner.

"Mother." I greet with a small bow of my head.

"My boy." She smiles back, coming up beside me, watching as the gates close. "I worry for both of you every time I see you leave those gates.

I glance at her from the corner of my eyes, seeing the sad smile on her face. "I know, mother."

"How are things proceeding with you and your new wife?" She asks, walking forwards. Without a word I begin walking with her, circling the castle grounds.

"A rough start, as you could probably have imagined." I admit. "We're at least civil with each other now but there is still this lingering…"

"Awkwardness." She supplies knowingly. "Where is she now?"

"I escorted her to the library." I feel the tiniest of smiles grow on my face. "She embodies the scholarly qualities of her people well. She wanted to learn everything she could about this place."

Mother hums in amusement. "I imagine she could be in there all day if left to her own devices. Good, that gives us plenty of time."

I come to a halt, causing her to do the same. I turn to face her, feeling my face scrunch in confusion.

"Plenty of time for what?" I ask, not liking the mischievous glint in her eyes. So that's where Gertrude gets it from…

"You, my dear boy, are going to remove this lingering awkwardness and make our newest resident feel more at home." She replies. She chuckles at what must be a bewildered look on my face. "We are going to have our cooks prepare a wonderful packed meal and then you are going to take her to that nice spot a quarter of a mile outside the castle to the west this evening for supper."

By the time she is done my mind is racing to process what my ears have just heard. I feel my mouth flapping up and down, words wanting to come out but failing.

"P-pardon?" I almost croak out.

"I fail to see which of those instructions was unclear." The mirth in her eyes increases by the second.

With a deliberate cough, I am able to once again compose myself. "Do you really think it wise?"

She actually scoffs. "If you want this lingering discomfort to continue for the foreseeable future…"

"No." I cut in as politely as I can. I ponder on the idea for a moment. All things considered there are worse ways to spend my time than trying to add any ounce of joy in this marriage, even if it's mostly to her benefit. Actually, there may be something I can do to go the extra mile. "I think it sounds like a good idea. And I think there is something we can do to make her feel even more at home."

"Oh, and what's that." She asks, voice full of intrigue.

"We could prepare her a traditional Illisian meal." I suggest. "I am certain a few of the older cooks know the recipes."

"That is very considerate of you, Finn." She nods, giving me an approving smile. "Though I'm not sure where we would find the ingredients they need."

"I can help with that." Another voice cuts into the conversation.

"Gertrude!"

"Gertrude!"

Mother and I both yell out in shock, the person in question easily slipping in to join the two of us.

"My deepest apologies for startling you." She says, though the smirk on her face and the mirth in her eyes indicates she's anything but apologetic. "But I couldn't help but overhear your conversation and I believe I have a solution to your predicament."

I eye her warily. She seems to notice this and scoffs in amusement.

"Don't look at me like that. Is it really so odd that I want to make my new sister-in-law feel welcome?" She questions rhetorically.

"What solution did you wish to propose, dear." Mom cuts in before I can retort.

"There are merchants in low-town that receive goods from Illis." She points out. "They likely have the ingredients the cooks will need to prepare this traditional Illisian meal."

"It's worth a try." I mummer. "I can go see if they have what we need… I presume you want to come along."

Gertrude shrugs, smirk still firmly planted on her face. "I'm not exactly drowning in engagements that require my attention. Besides, someone has to make sure you don't get lost."

"On my way to low town?" I question in a deadpan tone.

She just shrugs and turns on her heel, heading towards to the gate. "Come along then."

I turn to mother who merely offers an amused chuckle before I run to catch up with Gertrude.

Luthera Revena

So much information…

I expected the Kamrion library to be filled to the brim with knowledge probably even rivalling that of Illis but this is something else entirely. From detailed Arcane knowledge of all the types of magic indigenous to each of the five Kingdoms of the North to the history and lineages spanning back thousands of years, I could spend years combing through this place and never come across the same information twice.

Three books are currently laid out open in front of me. One book on the innate magics of five kingdoms, one book on creatures indigenous to Kamrion and the last on the history of Kamrion and the royal lineage. All thick tomes with more than a thousand pages each. On a piece of parchment, I write down all noteworthy pieces of information that I know will be relevant later. The librarians, true to Finn's word, assist me in whatever I need to find and give me free reign of the entire library.

I switch between the three books every so often, a few hundred pages into each of them. I am so absorbed that I almost jump out of my seat when I feel something tap my shoulder. I quickly turn to find a very sheepish looking Finn, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"My apologies for startling you, Luthera." He says, visibly fighting off an amused smile.

I recover quickly, giving him a polite nod and small smile.

"It's quite alright, I was doing some light reading and got quite absorbed." I respond easily.

To my surprise he bursts out in laughter. His composure completely crumbles as he leans on the table for support. I raise a critical eyebrow at him, waiting for his laughter to subside.

"I must apologise again, it's just that…" He trails off, shaking his head in amusement. "You have three of our largest books spread out in front of you and you refer to it as 'light reading.'"

Realizing that he has a point, I find myself letting out a laugh of my own.

"I see your point."

"Not to mention the fact you've been here all day." He also points out casually.

He points it out so casually in fact that it takes me a moment to register what he just said. My eyes widen before they shoot towards the nearest window. The sun is beginning to set if the pale orange hue outside is to be believed. I bring my hand up to lightly rub my forehead, how did the hours pass by so quickly?

"My word, how could I lose track of so much time." I mummer, drawing another chuckle from him.

"You must be hungry." He says gently.

Just the mention of food is enough to draw an obscenely loud rumble from my stomach. I feel heat rush up to my ears and cheeks as a small but oddly enough, genuine smile makes its way onto his face.

"We should rectify that." He says, offering me his arm.

I think about it for a moment, looking back to the tomes, I could always return to them tomorrow. Without a word I accept the arm and let him guide me out of the library. He lets one of the librarians know to leave my selected books as they are so I can easily return to them tomorrow.

Neither of us say a word as he leads us through the ever confusing maze of corridors. I don't question anything until I notice we are approaching the courtyard.

"Are we to have supper in the courtyard?" I ask, raising a curious eyebrow at him.

He lets out a laugh which is half amused and half nervous. "No, not the courtyard. But this is a different supper than the usual."

He guides us over to two horses, one of them I immediately recognise as Juno, his magic radiating a familiar hum against mine. The second horse I don't recognise; she is chestnut coloured with a long white patch on her face.

 "Her name is Astrid." He tells me out as we approach them. "I wasn't really sure what kind of mount you prefer so I went with the safest choice. She's dependable, quite fast on her feet but can cover long distances without issue as well. She's also got quite a gentle temperament. Well, given your magic I know you could also easily handle a mount with a bad temperament but I figured…"

"Your rambling, Finn." I cut him off mercifully, sensing the rising nervousness in his voice the longer he spoke. "She's a beautiful creature, truly she is."

I walk up to Astrid, gently running my hand through her mane as I let my magic stretch out to connect with hers. Somehow I feel the soothing effect through the mark and I can sense him relax.

"May I ask where we are going that we should need mounts in the first place?" I turn to him.

"I guess you'll have to come along and find out." He says, calm and slightly more relaxed now as he just as he hops onto Juno. "I promise it's not too far."

 "Your being awfully secretive, Finn." I point out, mounting Astrid despite my suspicions. "I'm not overly fond of secrets."

"It won't remain a secret for long." He assures me. "I'll keep the place steady so you can keep up."

"Do you believe my riding skills insufficient?" I ask, a playful and challenging smirk growing on my face.

He turns to me, a smirk of his own growing. "I would have to see for myself before I can judge."

"Then by all means, lead the way."

And just like that we are off. He leads us towards the west at full gallop, expertly weaving between trees and bushes, shrubs and boulders. I keep pace with him, much to his delighted surprise as I speed up Astrid a little bit to come up next to him. We ride for only a few more minutes before he motions for us to slow down. We slow down to a trot to a cliff overlooking the shoreline.

There are two Kamrion knights by a blanket with a basket on top. I turn to give Finn a curious look as we dismount, he offers no answer as he motions for me to follow.

"Knight Gordon, Knight Liam, thank you. We will be alright from here." He tells them politely.

"My prince, my princess."

"My prince, my princess."

They both salute before making their way to their horses and riding off. Only now do I notice the thick blanket spread across the grass and a large picnic basket. I turn to him with a raised eyebrow.

"What is this?" I ask.

"Well… I noticed there is still some underlying awkwardness between us." He begins to explain. "My mother suggested I take you here, it's my hope we can become a little more familiar with each other."

I eye him critically for a moment, his expression is nervous but genuine. With a gentle hum I offer him my arm which he takes with a small smile. He leads me over to the blanket and helps me down. The aroma from the basket seems… comfortingly familiar. His smile grows even wider as he brings out a few covered plates and sets them out between us.

"Go ahead, take a look." He motions to the covered plates.

Hesitantly, I begin unwrapping them one by one, my eyes growing wider and my mouth hanging lower. Illisian truffles with garlic glazed white beans, Saffron coated carrots with fresh and seasoned celery. All of these dishes perfectly spiced with Tiron, Cean and ground Morrowood, spices that can only be obtained from the flora of Illis.

"These dishes are Illisian." I don't even try to keep the astonishment out of my voice.

A nervous smile sprouts on his face as he unwraps the cutlery and serving spoons.

"We figured you'd like a little taste of home." He replies softly. "As I said, it was my mother's idea to take you here… and Gertrude may have had a hand in it as well."

"I must give them my thanks when we return…" I turn to him, seeing the red rising from his neck to his cheeks before nudging his shoulder. "But for now, all my thanks goes to you."

His smile loses some of its nervousness and grows wider. "What would you like to sample first?"

I end up eating some of everything, amazed at how familiar everything tastes, as if it was served directly from our palace kitchens. We fall into easy conversation, discussing the view, complementing the Kamrion chefs and other random bits of conversation. We eventually lull into a comfortable silence, both of us staring off to the sea. After a few moments I feel a gentle hum from the mark.

"I have a little more insight into how this works." I raise my wrist to show him the mark, grabbing his attention.

He offers a sly smile. "After ravaging through our library, you mean?"

"I was not ravaging." I retort with a small huff. "Anyway, the mark itself doesn't bind us, it's just a conduit that our bond uses to let one of us know what we need to know about the other. Such as whether one of us is in danger, distressed… or has something heavy weighing on their mind."

His smile slowly drops and he levels me with a curious gaze, his eyes searching mine seemingly for something important. Whatever he is searching for, he seems to find it, the mark responds with a comforting hum and he lies back on the blanket, staring up at the golden orange sky, a few stars starting to pop out.

"It's about my father sending our best troops to Thaegon." He finally relents. "I didn't think it was a good idea, I still don't think it is."

"I agree with you." I relent gently. "But questioning your father's orders in front of all the gathered council members was not the best way of voicing your grievances."

He actually lets out a small chuckle. "Gertrude said something similar."

"But you weren't wrong." I concede. "Sending Kamrion's strongest forces to occupy Thaegon, even if they are only going as an 'inquisition' force is surely going to attract the ire of Merridor and Vilos."

"And there is no guarantee that the person responsible for creating this creature is in Thaegon." He scoffs. "Any smart person wouldn't perform such a taboo act so close to the actual palace, it would make far more sense to do it somewhere far, off the beaten path, where someone isn't likely to search."

A thought pops into my head, it was said in passing during the council last night and there was so much being said I didn't have time to ask.

"Commander Arthur mentioned something about mutant bandits up north." I inquire.

His eyes widen slightly, a look of dawning realization coming over him. "Two days ago my brother and I encountered bandits at our Northern border. They were strange, I fought this girl with large dagger-like ears, pale skin and hair, scales and purple eyes."

Interesting… an odd combination of features, all of which I am individually familiar with.

"Ears like an elf, scales like a siren and purple eyes are most prominent in fae." I muse mostly to myself. "Another amalgamation of characteristics of different creatures, it would be too convenient for them not to be related to the creature that attacked the ballroom last night."

"Quite a shame, my father, in all his infinite wisdom is going to ignore it then." He says, obvious bitter undertones in his voice. "Thaegon is to the south, Kai and his Vanguard won't be passing by there and father would not remove any more forces from Kamrion to investigate, we would be compromising our own defence."

The thought that pops into my head is defiant and borderline treacherous. But from what I understand, the Northern border of Kamrion is not heavily populated, there are a few scant villages and trading posts with many areas that are 'off the beaten path' as Finn put it.

"Maybe a full deployment can't be sent, but what if a smaller group went, maybe even just one or two people?" I ask, pondering our options.

His shock at the suggestion is evident as he slowly turns to me.

"Like you said, Thaegon palace itself is too obvious of a location. Given how few people live at the Northern borders of Kamrion, it would definitely be a more ideal place to create mutations with the sole purpose of bringing down our kingdom."

"The clever bird hides in the mouth of the crocodile, where other predators dare not look." He mutters in almost flawless Eldian. The proverb is familiar but that is not what shocks me the most.

"I didn't know you spoke Eldian." I reply in kind.

He raises an amused eyebrow at my response. "Mother always insisted that we learn it, something about upholding culture I believe."

"Your diction could use a little bit of improvement but it is more than passable." I nod with a smile.

He smiles back, a contemplative look crossing his features as he looks back to the sky, now a black void with thousands of tiny blinking stars. The mark has a very subtle hum and I can sense he is deep in thought so I leave him be for a few minutes. Eventually the bite of the night air and the cold air from the ocean start nipping at my skin.

"Let's make a deal." He suddenly says, breaking the prolonged silence.

"I'm listening." I supress a shudder from the cold.

"Since we both believe the location of the source of these mutants is likely somewhere up north and my father doesn't seem like he is going to investigate it any time soon, let's look into it together." He suggests, eyes meeting mine. "I'm quite good in a fight and your magic will be invaluable, our chances of finding something will be significantly improved if we combine our abilities."

"All of those are r-really good points." I scold myself for allowing the shiver to break into my voice.

His eyes narrow for a moment before he lets out a small sigh. "You should have told me you were cold."

Before I can respond he sits up and clasps his hands together, a faint blue glow emanating from between them. He slowly removes the top hand, revealing a brilliant blue flame. It's not the biggest flame but its warmth is radiant and instantly heats up the air around us. I never really understood how Kamrion's magic works, the books in Illis were always very vague and the books in the Kamrion library weren't much better. As if reading my mind, he turns to me and releases a small chuckle.

"For most of the kingdoms, their magic is very specific." He begins to explain. "Illis' magic allows you to connect with animals and influence them, Vilos can charm the mind and create illusions, our magic is different, it's… raw."

"Raw?" I ask, prodding him to explain further.

"We control magic in its most unrefined form." He begins, voice distant and strangely hollow. "We have to mould it into what we want, fire, ice, crystal, once we draw it from our core there isn't really a strict limit as to what we can do with it. It's versatile… but it comes at a price. It's taxing, on both the body and the mind. You can manipulate animals for eternity nonstop and never feel your magic strain you or wear you down. For us, it's only a question of which breaks first, the mind or the body."

I can't help but notice the way his hand ghosts over his sword, Arno.

"And the sword?" I ask gently. 

My question seems to break him out of his haze. His eyes glance down at his sword momentarily before returning to me.

"My brother and I aren't the first wielders of Langris and Arno." He says. "They have a… complicated origin, one you won't find in any library but we can talk about that another time…"

The inner scholar in me wants to scream at him to tell me now but he's right… another time. The origins of Arno and Langris have so many speculations and rumours surrounding them that one could spend an age trying to sort out what could be facts and what could be pure speculation.

"Arno and Langris bear most of the strain of the raw magic we tap into." He explains, his eyes catching the blue flame between us. "They allow us to more easily mould the raw magic. They absorb most of the stress we would normally feel, allowing us to cast much more powerful magic without serious backlash."

I don't know how to respond to everything he has just said. In Illis magic is something to be celebrated, a gift everyone is encouraged to share and use. To think how magic could also be painful but necessary part of existence, knowing that every time you use it you are destroying yourself. My mind wonders back to what I saw when I first arrived in Kamrion, everyone seemed content and happy, but only now do I notice that I never witnessed any of them use their innate magic…

"But I digress." He suddenly declares, clearing is throat uncomfortably. I sense there was much that he has stopped himself from disclosing and as much as I want to prod, I let it go. Besides, he's right, we've diverted from the main point of our discussion.

"So, your suggestion is we combine our abilities to find the source of the mutants." I muse. "I can't imagine that's how most newlywed couples spend the early days of marriage."

"We aren't most newlywed couples." He points out, holding up his wrist, showing me the mark that we share.

I don't really need to be convinced, because of the union any threat to Kamrion is also a threat to Illis and I know we are correct in searching for clues away from Thaegon. Our eyes meet, searching each other for affirmation. His eyes are determined, sparkling with the blue hue of the fire between us.

"I am with you." I finally confirm, Eldian rolling off my tongue with ease, even though the promise is heavy.

"And I am with you" He nods, an infectious smile growing on his face that I can't help but return. "The two of us should prepare to ride out to the north."

"And what will we tell everyone?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

"That we are going on a trip, couple bonding or something of the sort." He waves off.

"Finn, your brother, Kamrion's first son and defender, is away from the kingdom." I point out. "Do you really think everyone will be alright with you, Kamrion's other defender, leave as well, leaving the crown and the kingdom vulnerable in the process?"

He pauses, meeting my argument with a frustrated but playful groan.

"I'll make it clear that we won't be gone long." He replies. "Besides, Gertrude will still be here. She may not have a weapon like Langris or Arno but she is one of the most capable people I know… I will deny it vehemently if you ever tell her I said that."

I still have my reservations, but I nod anyway. "Very well. Shouldn't we be heading back now?"

He chuckles and leans back down on the blanket.

"Kamrion can survive without us for a little while longer." He points out with a small smirk. "Lie down and enjoy the night sky, it's actually quite easy to get lost in."

Well… I suppose a few more minutes can't do much harm.

I lie down, the flame between us keeping us warm and allow myself to simply enjoy the view. It's truly a beautiful night. The dark blue, almost black sky clashes beautifully with the countless tiny night lights. A comforting and soothing hum radiates from the mark, lulling me into a deeper sense of comfort.

"It's beautiful." I comment quietly.

"Only the second most beautiful sight I've seen tonight." He replies easily, I can hear the amusement in his voice.

"I assume number one is me." I retort with a light scoff.

"I suppose that one was rather obvious." He sags in mock defeat.

We both share a laugh, a truly genuine laugh before we fall back into a comfortable silence…

A companionable silence.