Brandon

"Is everything ready gentlemen?" The king asks from his throne high above the dais.

Everyone from the noble Houses is gathered at the royal court in Elysium today. The court at Capital is more for royal audiences, balls or auspicious occasions. This one is more accommodating to politicking, forming factions or alliances among the Houses.

Each House has a table capable of seating 12 in the ornate arched long room designed with enough nooks and crannies that people can have a semi private meeting even in the mists of all the other nobles and their spies.

No one who isn't of a noble House is permitted into the court today be it servant, mage or guard. Regardless, influence or personal power the Houses still run the kingdom. The king's ceremonial protector an Grandmaster Mage from House Mtwazi.

"Yes your Majesty," High General Zuko of House Avata says bowing his head.

"Good."

The king nods and leans back, letting his subjects duke it out as it were. But here unlike at the House of Lords which is usually full of howling voices there is an etiquette that must be followed. But even amongst the seemingly united kingdom of Sandaria, there are factions.

"Is the information even reliable? Are we sure the Barbarians have so much of the precious metal?" Lord Valarè asks, bringing up a point in the conversation that was debated to exhaustion over two years ago.

"The metallurgists all confirmed that there is raw celestial ore up in the north. Tons of it, some even unmined," Lord Councillor Childs confirms for the court. Childs is a court noble not born into a noble House.

Meaning he has no lands to rule over but was bestowed a title by virtue of his position. The head of the royal advisers. A position that cannot be held by the same person for more than five years for fear of unduly influencing the king.

"We hear that some of the magical signatures depicting spiritual weapons have been steadily decreasing instead of increasing with time," Lord Stallone, a sly old man that acts feeble trying to be underestimated points with a trembling hand. "They must be exporting the material beyond our reach, we must act now."

His feble act works on no one who knows him. His House's table being one of the closest to the royal throne for a reason. Closest besides the royal family's table that is.

I sit among my siblings playing with a gold mark flipping it between my knuckles and making it disappear into my hand. My back to the support pillar my eyes watchful.

The streets of Elysium have honed my paranoia and perception. Learning thievery from the captivating underbelly of the beautiful city I have found my calling, or at least something I'm very good at.

As the son of the king I still undergo mandatory weapons training so I know how to fight and hold my own. But that only against an average warrior or a surprised one. None of the guards and other royals that train with Master Adonias are average nor are they ever surprised.

I've been amongst the worst fighters amongst the trainees for a while. But two years ago, after watching the mysterious beauty Aaliyah spare with Aphrodite and visiting a certain establishment I have become a changed man.

More enthusiastically taking on my training and getting another kind of training from 'the den of thieves' almost nightly. I've found out a lot about myself these past couple years, I like who I'm becoming.

I've learnt I can be very dedicated to something and my earlier lack of effort in life was due to me not being particularly good at anything I did before. Or at least not any better than anyone else that has been doing it. I was lazy, being a king's son so far on the line of succession allowed me to skate through my life easily.

But thievery... They call me a savant at pick pocketing, lock picking and wall climbing. Sneaking isn't even an issue. I learnt from a guy named Shadow to be practically invisible in a crowd and amongst night shadows.

The better I became at it all the more I enjoyed doing it the more I enjoyed doing it the more effort I put into perfecting my craft. It's a positive feedback loop that feeds off itself.

A mindset translated into my other pursuits. Even things I'm forced to do because of my position like politics, lectures and arms training. I haven't suddenly become the best but I am much better at duelling and knife throwing is easy now.

The Den is the name of the lounge, tavern, meeting hall, whatever. It has a tavern at the first floor where I met Kitty, my guardian angel. A lounge upstairs with couches and semi private rooms partitioned by silk clothes and has a perfect view into the first floor.

The meeting hall is at the back and is where auctions and black market deals or meetings between rival bosses takes place. As far as I know no one actually brings any contraband to The Den but it facilitates a lot of such deals in Elysium.

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The owners of The Den are who I've been working for. Two men and a woman who rumour claims run a similar establishment in two other cities in Central.

"Obviously the fae have been teaching the Barbarians to hide their weapon's signatures," Lady Alvalon says as she saunters through the hall catching many a man's eye with her long legs peaking through the blue silk dress.

The woman doesn't like to sit still and will be found standing by her table or wondering the court's twisted hall making conversation. She strikes a delightful sight with her long legs and her flowing see through dress that's split at the side to show her smooth flesh.

Not that the leg slit is necessary, but it is appreciated by all the men and some women present.

The woman is rumoured to be nearing 200 years of age but her body is that of a 35 year old beauty. She is the head of the Alvalon House but its true matriarch doesn't attend such events. The true matriach grandmaster of significant power, but well advancing in years.

"Our spies report that there are less than 80 fae in the new town," General Zuko says. A very serious man with an air air of strict command., I don't like him.

"With the force that we have raised we will be able to neutralize them. That is unless they are reinforced by the fae, we still don't their full depths."

"Our ambassador to the Highlanders ensues us that the fae in the North are a rogue group. A group that is not conforming to established fae traditions and so are not under the direct protection of the sidhe courts," Lord Izan's nephew stands to say. I don't know his name, he's just a mouthpiece to Izan who also acts as the deputy-head of the Ministry of Information. The spymaster of the kingdom with a position that is passed down from mentor to discipline among the nobles, higher or lower houses.

Lord Izan is said to be grooming a few youths from different Houses already but the problem comes when loyalties get divided between benefiting your House, or benefiting the Kings' agenda verses benefiting the kingdom.

The ambassadors and spies are said to operate largely independently, and only report mostly as scheduled. An enviable profession, but one that would make me too many enemies. A royal has never held the post anyways, not to my knowledge at least.

"What else could the fae have taught the Tribes while we gathered our forces? When we faced them last they were difficult enough how much more now behind the enchanted wall of their growing settlement?" General Barathian says.

A newly risen noble House that has a table at the far back of the room, practically near the doors clumped together with the other lesser Houses. I'm surprised the man even has the courage to voice his opinion in such a setting.

But then again, he is the other general of the two that faced the Barbarian Tribes. Barbarians said to be wealthy beyond imagining in celestial metals, poor fools will be ground to dust by the mages of the kingdom for that metal.

Last time the youngest sons or daughters and the inexperienced were sent on the excursion. Now that we know what they have though... I shake my head. I've seen death before. It doesn't shock me anymore, they will die.

My lovely half siblings Axolile, Masixole and Xolani kill condemned men all the time; taking them as sparing partners and fight them to the death. Those exotic beauties are scary sometimes.

Slaves are still found dead occasionally in the streets of Capital even with the laws father introduced 30 years ago. Laws that ensure that anyone who's slave dies of starvation will be whipped and will never be allowed to own a slave again. Or if they are a member of the Houses or a mage they will be fined and relieved of all other slaves.

Besides that and not being allowed to permanently maim your slave you can do pretty much anything you like to them. This results in dead slaves sometimes even here in Elysium. But apparently far less here than anywhere else in the kingdom.

"Our reports and interrogations indicate the Barbarians have no mages and have never had mages throughout their history," Lord Izan's mouthpiece speaks.

"But I must remind everyone that they have recently had their first several Awakenings in apparently centuries. Though not mages, we have no intelligence on what they are capable of just yet." He adds quickly as the king's clouded eyes star towards him.

"If they don't have magic then we shouldn't have much to worry about. Maybe a number of soldiers dead but that is the price to pay for conquest," Lord Stallone says with a grin. Then a coughing fit ensues.

He probably just plays feeble out of habit now more than anything else.

The discussion continues in this vein but the decisions already long made. The armies are mobilised, retrained with some units already on the move Most of the inexperienced royal children are to be included in the assault, for the experience.

Myself included to the rage of mother who still sits beside me in silent protest. The scowl on her face looks permanently etched, I sigh and watch the room. Thinking about the jewels I recently stole from the House Vantheos estates. A beautiful silver necklace adorned with rubies.

I remember the first fistful of money I made selling stolen loot. I've obviously had more money before, but there is something heady about earning your own marks. They just feel more valuable.

And so I learnt to use money wisely for the first time. Buying things sparingly but keeping all my equipment the best in the market. Even if I have to use some of my allowance to ensure that.

"And they still spurn all attempts at peaceful trade?" Princess Bonzer asks. The king's third wife, my stepmother. The first woman I've ever had a crush on with her stern disapproving beauty and long hair flowing hair.

The woman is a politician through and through. The daughter of a senator from the Mayan Province. Shrewd and said to be backstabbing but apparently one of the king’s greatest advisors.

Even now she is using the question to lead the conversation. Of course she knows there have been no successful talks. I hope I don't die out there.

The soldiers tell stories of blood-thirsty giant men who fight like ghouls even when they are cut down and should be dead. There were many such stories when the troops returned two years back.

But it was hailed a successful expedition as the generals returned with 16 spiritual weapons and talk of more where they came from. Two such weapons immediately went to the king's personal guards.

Another, an axe went to Theodor, the king’s favourite son. Said to be quiet good with an axe and has absolutely no interest in ruling though he is the favourite of many factions.

There was a tournament last year where three of the weapons were given as prizes. I have no idea what has happened to the rest.

"Alright it's settled. In ten days we march for the Tundra," The king suddenly says.

"Yes my king."

And that's the end of that farce of an open debate.