Daniel, still holding the Servant name of Branch like a shield against the watchful eyes and roaming wild magic, left the field's boundary of aged stone walls. Like crossing seven leagues in a single step, before the seat of Seelie Court power had appeared far away, but by stepping outside the old stone wall, he found himself back in the heart of the Citadel.
The Citadel moved. It moved buildings, regions, zones. Few knew it could move as well as Daniel. The Citadel had a way of grouping different groups together, better positions nearer the Palace for the Courts on the rise, further away for the Courts on the decline. Even more than that, the Citadel had many different regions, created for its vastly different inhabitants. There was a region where snow always fell and the ice never thawed. There was a region where the sun never rose, while there was also a region where the sun never set. Some regions were underwater, while others were bone dry and any foreign travelers that remained too long would soon share that fate. Some regions lava flowed glowing and hot, and the air was hot enough to burn the unwary.
The Citadel was not a safe place to wander haplessly.
But despite the danger, it was the Capital for the Seelie Fae.
And despite the Citadel’s possibility of moving, the Sky Court’s estates had not moved to some strange and unreachable location. Daniel would have no choice but complete his duty.
He returned to the Sky Court. The building was like an overturned teacup, with little clinks and cracks for windows. The outside was smooth except for the doors and windows. Inside was a wide variety of sections for different purposes. There were no stairs inside the Sky Court, instead the floor sloped upward around the inside perimeter, leading to different floors gradually, until it spiraled to the top and led onto the roof, where thick grass grew, with twisty vines draping over low boughed tree, gentle blooms glowing slowly. The roof of the Sky Court was often crowded with artists and sculptors, lingering to craft. The green space was also used to hold events, so Daniel had been there before. But he had been there before as Elswith.
Coming to the Sky Court now as a Servant was a very different experience.
When he had arrived here, first thing from the Servant’s Keep this morning, he had been ordered by a Steward of the Sky Court to retrieve a Quill from a living goose. Now he was returning, only thirty minutes later. Once he returned and entered the servant’s corridor, the Steward sent him to the Green Space, the garden and lawn at the very top of the overturned teacup. Daniel also found that the Sky Court did have stairs, but those were only for the servants. The stairs for the servants were tight and small, but so crowded that they had to take turns, allowing the servants at the top floors to descend, before they allowed those waiting on the bottom floors to ascend.
Daniel had to wait. He was also challenged at every floor to identify himself. “This servant is Branch, newly made page. On errand.”
He was also held back, several times, while they verified this. He almost smirked. Childish, but effective in creating busy work.
At long last, Daniel reached the green space. The blue sky was warm, but the company was so much more unpleasant than the honking of geese, chaos birds incarnate though they be.
There was a group of enforcers training in the Green Space today. Bold. Everyone knew different branches of the enforcers were more or less bought out by certain powerful families. But while it was widely known, it was not widely spoken about. And almost never openly displayed.
This was an insult to the King.
Not that Daniel didn’t oppose insults to the King. But he just hoped that the King’s counterattack would exclude the innocent this time.
Daniel observed the group training. There were several officers present, but for the most part the squadron consisted of rank and file fae, the foot soldiers, the first to die in any attack. Daniel had assessed that he possessed a nearly equal strength to that earlier when he fought the goose, but he still didn’t really understand his own limitations now.
The enforcers continued their training, but one of the instructors removed himself and stood before Daniel.
Lord Fredar, knight captain of the enforcers and also a member of the Walsa alliance. One of the Heirs to the Sky Court. He had been contemporaries with Elswith once. Lord Fredar had only ascended to full Lord but recently. Lordling Elswith and Lordling Fredar, despite the age difference, had contended several times. Elswith had not won them all, but the last time they had contended had ended in Elswith’s favor. And that had been after Lord Fredar had ascended to Lord. The newly minted Lord had challenged too soon, his power too new and raw, and a practiced and disciplined Lordling Elswith had taken advantage of those failings.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
Lord Fredar had never forgiven that insult, but he could do little to Lordling Elswith, the difference in position had removed many counter attacks. A Lord securing victory over a Lordling was a natural occurrence, while an upstart lower rank Lordling coming triumphant was something even High Fae had remarked and praised Elswith.
Lord Fredar's only option had been waiting for Elswith to become a Lord also, then try to regain his lost reputation.
But then...Lordling Elswith had gambled everything on one single game, and when he lost, instead of backing down, he had instead went forward, at the cost of his power and position for a chance at freedom. If Daniel won, he would be legend. If he lost, his fall from grace would be permanent. And his new "Betters" would continually make use of it.
Daniel did not react as Lord Fredar approached him.
“Page, report.” His old adversary ordered.
Clear mind. Daniel had earned his True Name now. Even without the power Elswith used to have, it would be worth it if he could grow the Authority of his True Name. “This page reports that he has completed his duties faithfully and efficiently.”
“The humble page insists that all tasks were completed with diligence, despite this late hour of the day?”
Daniel fought not to gesture at the Time Court’s massive clock in the distance that displayed the time as half past eight in the morning.
“Page Branch.” And Fredar smiled “Where are the quills you were ordered to retrieve?”
The group around him snickered. This was a game where Daniel couldn’t win. Not really. Because it was technically possible to get quills from geese, provided one could treat the plucked long feathers from the rump, those feathers needed to be finished and treated before they became quills, dried carefully and cut. And without proper magic and understanding the finer points, was Daniel unable to snap his fingers and do it instantly.
This had been a fools errand all along. Daniel had known it too. But he still kept the four ganders feather hidden underneath his sock running along the inside of his calf. Not the sock that threatened to turn into spiders. The other one.
“This page has followed the instructions as ordered.” He said. The game swirled and muttered. It didn’t know whether Daniel was at fault or not. It was still deciding. While the game ruminated and thought, Daniel offered the exposed bundle of feathers. He was attempting to complete a fool's errand, but he was not foolish. There would be no fault found with him.
The Enforcers gathered closer, their lose training forgotten. Not that it seemed very serious either. Daniel had watched them 'spar' earlier, and he knew from how they held their blades that the attacks were weak, and they were unfocused.
Fredar chuckled. He reached to take the feathers. “And yet, these are not quills.” He held up a single feather to the light, as if to examine it.
“I have yet to find a goose that grows quills premade.” Daniel responded.
There was a certain ‘oooh’ sound from the enforcers, all of them having stopped their training to observe.
Fredar smiled. Then thunder struck, but it must have been Lord Fredar's hand striking at Daniel. Striking at, but not quite reaching.
That was why Daniel did not die.
The strike was fast, like lightning from the sky, traveling nearly instantaneously. The power of a Lord of Fae was a magnitude greater than Lordling, let alone a servant. Even if he had still been Lordling Elswith, he wouldn’t have been able to stop that strike. He wouldn't have died, should it hit him. But as a Servant, without the Authority and Influence he once held, if that strike were to fall, he would most assuredly die.
But the power behind that strike was canceled and dissolved.
What had saved Servant Branch from Lord Fredar's strike was the Game. Being a servant was dangerous, working around who could destroy a hapless worker with a sneeze. But there were also certain protections. The Law of Fae demanded balance, and the Game was enacted whenever balance was broken. While servants were unable to maneuver the same way through the twisty game, they also had certain hard protections, especially to a new Lord who too strongly and straightforwardly attacked a servant without provocation.
Well...without too much provocation.
The Game shifted and canceled Lord Fredar’s attack, and all that landed on Daniel’s sternum was a weak fist of an slopy punch. Daniel even liked to imagine that there was a cracking of the wrist due to improper technique.
“This Page Branch was too forward. Apologies.” Daniel said, and bowed his head politely. There, balanced. The Lord was angered, but moved too hastily. The Servant Page too mouthy, but seemingly apologized.
The class system had its purpose. Lord Fredar was much more powerful. But he couldn’t directly strike at Branch, because Branch was a servant.
Lord Fredar grinned, not annoyed at all. “It seems that the rumors are true. Lordling Elswith is dead.”
He gestured for the enforcers to come nearer. For the most part, this unit was the rank and file fae, mostly lowlings and midlings, fae from outside the Citadel and with almost no influence.
“Then, Page Branch, could you please assist with our drills this morning?”