Lukas jumped, almost falling out of his desk chair, his book clattering to the floor as Lord Sulli marched into his room. "Get ready, you five minutes before we leave."

Lukas recovered, picking up the book he had been reading before sleeping. They had just returned from the play, and Lukas was doing a bit of light reading before going to sleep. He had barely a few hours before he would need to rise to meet Reza. Placing the book carefully on his desk, he found the page he had been reading and put a small piece of metal to hold the page. "Where are we going?"

It was almost the tenth hour at night, and there was little to be done in the middle of the night. Lukas could not dream of what they could do at such a time that someone like Lord Sulli would be involved.

Lord Sulli gave a brief pause, his eyes held a measure of power forcing Lukas to hold the gaze before he answered bluntly. "You're about to participate in your first closed council meeting. The heads of the houses and their heirs, along with any Archons within the city, are meeting to discuss certain events that need our attention. As the new heir to this house, you will join the council."

He turned around and left the room before Lukas could say anything.

Well then, I guess I won't get any sleep tonight. He had enjoyed a lovely night at the play with the Rezas; Cassia effortlessly handled the conversation for the entire night, asking questions about Lukas’s interest when the play allowed. She had read many of the books recently purchased for him and had recommended the book on the table, A Whisper of Kings. She said everyone that had read it loved it. He was only a little way in, and the book's setup had been enjoyable so far. The story was set in Arkhen just before the deaths of the gods, following the story of a soldier of Arkhen helping to save what was left of the city. He looked forward to reading it, but that would happen another time.

It took little time before Lukas and Lord Sulli's carriage moved into an underground part of the Palace. Where in the abyss this had been hidden, Lukas was not sure. Unfortunately, he had not been able to see much outside, with the windows of the carriages darkened. The only thing he had noticed was the low glow of the towers as they moved onto the Island of the Echoes.

"Listen closely so you do not make a fool of yourself," Lord Sulli said, bringing Lukas’s attention back to his uncle. “You have one rule tonight: only talk if someone directly talks to you.”

Lukas nodded as Pullo opened the carriage door. "Ready to move when you are, Sir." He bowed, keeping his eyes lowered as he held the door open.

They walked into a side door where two guards held the door. They were dressed in full silver rune-covered plate armor, a relic from the past. The hallway was carved with reliefs of battles and large crowds of people cheering at individuals above them. The scenes quickly turned into massive monsters and people fighting each other for supremacy. And finally, thirteen grave markers, before ending in the rising of towers on an island city. Was it the death of the gods he saw? It made the most sense, but there was much that Lukas did not understand. The monsters were an obvious choice, but there was something else that Lukas couldn’t place his mind on as he continued to stare at the mural.

"Lukas, focus." Lord Sulli whispered. Lukas started, joining his uncle again, not having realized he had stopped. "There will be several items the council must talk about, and we may well vote on some actions. Follow my vote; you vote as I do."

"Of course, Uncle." Lukas could say nothing else. He hadn't even realized he would be allowed to vote. "What else should I expect to do? You sprung this on me quite late for me to be prepared."

Sulli rubbed his forehead, surprising Lukas. His uncle was not someone who showed his emotions to many. "I know. They called a meeting, and I was planning to leave you out of it. However, you need to start at some point, and while it would be better that the city settled down before thrusting you into the running of the city, we are at war, and I don't have that luxury right now."

They walked into a massive, open, circular room. It held no windows, but many elemental lanterns lined each column that circled the room. A large table sat in the center of the room; the silver table was lined with about thirty chairs. Around two-thirds of the seats were already filled, with Lukas only recognizing one.

Lord Rewan sat at the far end of the table, a young woman next to him who looked similar to Lady Rewan but far more martial. It was obviously Sabine. While he had seen her fighting in the arena a few days back, she had been so far away that he was unsure what she looked like.

Lukas was forced to increase his speed to catch up as Lord Sulli, Lukas, and his uncle made their way around the room to sit in two seats next to the Rewans. His uncle took the seat next to Lord Rewan while he motioned Lukas to sit next to Sabine.

Taking the seat, Sabine nodded, holding her hand out to him.

“Lukas, I assume. I am Sabine Rewan," She asked, holding a hand out. She was dressed in the stark grey uniform that hinted at the legions but had no symbols or markings like the normal ones.

He nodded. "Of course, Reza has mentioned you a few times; he seemed disappointed not to see the play with you."

“Did he now?” She smiled widely, her tone turning a bit amused at his words. Lukas was not sure what that meant. “I’m slightly surprised you are here tonight. Reza mentioned the training this morning. Are you ready? You won't be getting much sleep, it seems. "

Lukas smiled back, nodding. It was exciting to get his training started finally; however, he felt mixed emotions. He was afraid that he would not be good enough, not be able to learn and defend himself, and nervous about what would come from the training only mere hours away. But the anticipation of starting his new life overcame all of the negative emotions and fears. "I’m ready, and I can’t worry about losing sleep if it's my duty. I’ll have to push through the weariness."

Sabine nodded in approval. “Reza will be pleased with that mindset. Be sure you listen well and train hard; everything you learn could save your life one day.”

Lukas agreed wholeheartedly; he had never expected that day with his cousin to happen. And that day, he had been useless, and then again when Reza had to come to save him. There had been nothing he could do to protect himself or do anything. “I feel useless right now, I want that to end.”

"I know that feeling. It took me quite a while to see how the power Logain gave me could be controlled,” Sabine responded, her voice lowered so the others were less likely to hear. “Reza will help you; I've never seen someone as in tune with his wraith as he. They are quite a fearsome partnership."

Lukas thought back to the fight outside the city. He shuddered, going further back to Marcellus's death. "Yea, I witnessed first hand what they could do."

Their conversation was interrupted, by Sabine’s father.

"Young Lukas, you are finally joining us in the council. I was wondering if Sulli was going to bring you tonight. We could use the vote." His tone was the most serious Lukas had ever heard him.

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"Why do you say that?" Lukas asked. It seemed like Rewan knew more than he did.

"I suspect there will be at least one vote tonight. The Kejecks are riled up tonight. Likely has to do with Marius Reza taking out their daughter in such a fashion. Not to mention also that we still have no idea where this force that killed your cousin is. Decisions will be made tonight, and our five votes could push it one way or another. I would have liked that 6th vote, but alas, it's impossible without one of my children gaining the Sorana’s seat." He looked at his daughter with excitement.

Lord Sulli nodded, lowering his voice. "I see. I suspected it would be something around that. Let's just hope the Malaks and Vorcans don't also agree with the Kejeks, or we won't matter." Sulli said in a whisper so only we could hear.

People conversed, waiting for the last stragglers to join the table as his Uncle and Lord Rewan continued to talk. Lukas started to drift away from the conversation, eyeing the others at the table, until he noticed an older man, his hair pure white, glide into the room. He had a large amulet hanging from his neck with the city's black raven carved into it.

"Finally, the Praetor finally shows up," Rewan said before leaning back into his chair.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Thank you for showing up. It seems we have 21 in attendance with proxies for the four missing." Praetor Kallier said, reading from a scroll in front of him. While Lukas had never met the man before, everyone in the territory of Arkhen and abroad knew the man who held the city in his guardianship. For almost fifty years, Praetor had guided the city through several wars, emergencies, and peaceful times. "Lord Kejek, you called for the meeting, though I had planned to call a meeting in a few days when we had more intelligence. We will start with you."

Kallier leaned forward, placing his hands just under his chin.

Lord Kejek, Lukas presumed, stood about three chairs from the Praetor. "Thank you. I know we have not met since the death of your son, Lord Sulli. I give you my family's condolences. However, this is an issue we have in the contest to replace your son."

His uncle nodded, but Lukas knew there was nothing behind it. There seemed to be no love lost between the two men.

"And what problem would that be, Lucius," Rewan questioned, his voice raised, with none of the humor in the tone.

"It's an issue for all of us, though I guess with both your children still in the contest, you might be blind to it," Kejeck said coldly. "We have only had four of our own still left in the contest. We must decide how we would like to respond to make sure we keep our power."

Lukas was not sure he was hearing Kejeck correctly. He knew that politics would be cutthroat, but this was more open than he expected from the opening statement. Sabine made no indications of her thoughts when he glanced over to her. Her eyes were only focused on the man.

"There are four. That is more than enough, all are powerful warriors and considered some of our best," Lord Sulli motioned towards Sabine. "With one sitting just to my left."

Kejek sneered. "We need to keep control. We were all there during the contests. That young noble lord, Marius Reza, took out my daughter in seconds. Vorcan, your uncle lost to him in a duel, someone we thought might go all the way. The others fought well in their matches and could be considered threats. Each needs to be handled before they can take our power." He sat down, looking at the group.

Lukas wanted to say something. He was talking about Reza and clearly stating they wanted to eliminate him. But he held his words. Lord Sulli would have no part in this, he hoped.

"It's a thought, but Desmond seemed to enjoy himself. Do we have to kill them? Couldn't we pay them off or, better yet, bring them to our side? New blood isn't a problem." Vorcan said, musing as he talked.

"Better to take them out of the competition; Illian, Sabine, Adrian, or Jorin should be the Archon. Not some new blood." Kejek scoffed, his fist hammering into the table.

They went like this, more people cutting into the conversation for almost ten minutes as Lukas's anger grew. He could see the agitation growing in Sabine. Her hands were clenched into fists under the table, hidden from others, while her face remained the mask of calm.

"I will handle this." Lord Rewan placed a hand on his daughter, not allowing her to stand to make a statement. He and Lord Sulli stood. "Marius Reza is staying under my house. I will have no one in this chamber continue to talk of murder. If we must take a vote, take it."

"I also have placed him under my employee as a trainer. Your uncle Vorcan has also agreed to work with Reza. He is a powerful warrior, and I do not think the city in a time of war should kill our powerful soldiers that could help us in this fight. Ladies and gentlemen, we are far smarter than these last ten minutes have shown." Waving his hand towards the Praetor. "Let us vote. I call for no action against the contestants."

Praetor Kallier stood. "All in favor, raise your hand so your opinion may be known."

Lukas quickly counted the hands raised to see who carried the vote. Lukas, the Rewans, and his Uncle raised their hands, Vorcan and about ten people on his side of the table. Kejek and his allies, Lukas presumed, kept their hands lowered. Relived, Lukas let himself calm as the measure had gone their way.

"The votes stand; no action will be attempted against the contestants until the next council meeting."

"Close one, I think your mention of DesmondVorcan kept that boy alive," Rewan whispered.

Lord Sulli nodded. "I wasn't sure either way. We spent a lot on that boy; I hope he's worth it."

"Sabine seems to think it, and I like the boy myself," Lord Rewan glanced towards his daughter.

She nodded, her eyes hard, she had been ready for a fight had it come to it, Lukas was sure.

"He may well win it all. I would be worried to face him and Elana. They scare even me." Sabine said. Her hands had finally unclenched and lay flat of the arms of the chair.

"We shall see. It's better to have three possible allies with another vote than an enemy." Lord Sulli said.

Lukas himself felt a bit calmer.

The meeting continued, and the Praetor stood again. "Before we continue with any other subject, we must discuss the problems in the West. I have sent multiple riders to reach the thirteenth Legion to report their Archon's death and have them retreat towards the city. Only my last two riders have returned, and I had them only ride two days out to see what they could find. There is no sight of the enemy within two days, and I dare not send any farther than that until we have more information."

"We have two legions outside the city with two more within two days of the city in the south. Shouldn't there be plenty of forces to take on anything that could come up against us? Eight thousand pact holders should be plenty." Kejek said. Looking towards the Archons.

One stood and looked towards Kejek. "You forget they killed one of our Archons. From what has been reported from Sulli and the young boy." He looked right at Lukas. "Major magic was used. We do not know their abilities and cannot assume that we have enough to hold them back. I, for one, do not like not having any intelligence. We must send more out to find this enemy, people who can read auras and see who they may be and what power is behind their forces."

His counterparts both nodded.

Lukas shuddered, remember the red energy and sand swirling around in his head. The power had killed an injured Marcellus, but there was power out there, that matched an Archon. "It was terrible the power I saw that day. They should be worried. I know Marcellus felt it." He whispered so only Sabine could hear.

She looked at him and laid a hand on his shoulder. "It was an ambush; there wasn't much he could do, nor you."

He wasn't sure that was true, but the kind words made him feel better. "We shall see. I have no doubt they will come."

"The Archons have spoken of what they would like to do. Does anyone else have solutions? Otherwise, we will take it to a vote." The Praetor waited for a moment, but no one voiced another comment. "Raise your hand to scout the western reaches to see if we can find this force? Or find a way to reach the mountain fortress of the thirteenth Legion."

Twenty hands raised, Lukas joins the Rewans and his Uncle again.

The rest of the meeting went smoothly, with the last bits of issues being more about the city's running, such as cleaning the southern district sewers or increasing wine exports into the city. Each time, he followed his Uncle's moves as they were matched by the Rewans. The next hour had them vote another four times before the meeting concluded.

"A drink before we leave?" Rewan asked at the end of the meeting. Many people were already filing out of the room, with the Praetor the first to leave.

"No, Lukas must get some sleep. His first day of training starts tomorrow, and I suspect he will need every minute with the two I hired." He said in a blunt tone.

Rewan laughed. "Oh boy, you'll have fun. The first day always sucks; watch your hands; the blisters will come sooner or later."

Lukas could only give the man the barest of nodes. He was tired and had to fight for the last half hour to not fall asleep in front of everyone at the meeting, with his eyes burning from him, forcing them to stay open.

Lord Rewan laughed, slapping him on the shoulder and joining many gathering near Vorcan.

Sabine stayed for only another moment. "It will be hard, and Reza won't let give up, but you will learn from it all. Just remember that." She walked away to join her father.

"Come along, let's not tarry." Lord Sulli left, bringing them home.