Four monarchies rule the West: Daegon, Hituh, Kindling and Tijora; each with their own elemental people. Daegon and Kindling are home to fire artists. Hituh, built atop the mountains, harbours stone elementals who build cities that can withstand even the most ferocious earthquake. The water elementals live along the west coast, most of them still operating as separate tribes rather than as a unity.
For nearly five years, Hituh and Tijora have quarrelled over land. In a bid to find peace, Queen Jade of Hituh pushed to settle a dispute through marriage. Primrose Costa, a child of Jora (water) and Ares Saber, a child of ‘Ston (stone), were wed. The agreement was that Primrose would move to Cragg for a minimum of five years to help ease tensions before they both returned to Tijora in anticipation of Primrose becoming empress. Cragg, an ancient and spiritual city in Hituh, was considered to be where the first stone elementals were born. It was also the most dangerous place in all of Hituh.
The people of Hituh, and Cragg especially, were furious at the arrangement. The Saber family, however, resolved to keep an open mind about the arrangement despite the tensions they felt. After all, it wasn’t the first time a Saber had married an opposing elemental.
Chapter One.
WELCOME TO CRAGG.
Ares Saber and Primrose Costa are in a carriage headed for the City of Cragg. With platinum hair tinged green from the mineral-rich rivers of home, Primrose, heir to her tribe in Onda, smiles nervously as the carriage pulls closer to Cragg. Ares Saber, skin dark and eyes golden just like the fire warriors of Daegon, seems even more nervous, his usual carefree nature dipping with every corner turned.
Somewhere wandering the castle grounds, Set Saber is walking with his dogs. On hearing the carriage, he stops, and with a mischievous grin, leads the dogs in a long howl that leads all the way to Primrose and Ares, who give mixed responses to the sound. When they finally pull up to the front door, Set is already waiting with seven dogs. He leads them to sit with a single command. With a deep breath for bravery Primrose places her hand on the handle, but Ares pulls the door shut on her quickly.
ARES: Don’t do it, it’s a trap.
PRIMROSE: Excuse me?
ARES: The dogs. They’ll knock you over. I recognise that stance, and they’re ready to pounce.
PRIMROSE: What, are they going to maul us?
ARES: No, but they’ll slobber on anyone who – wait –
PRIMROSE: Danielle!
A knock comes from outside. Frozen, Primrose and Ares do nothing. After another knock, the door opens.
DANIELLE: Hello! Are you ready--?
Ares pulls the door closed before she can finish her sentence. Primrose looks at him, bewildered.
PRIMROSE: What exactly is the plan, here? Are we living in the carriage now?
ARES: No… just until someone else comes out. He won’t sic them on us if someone else is here.
PRIMROSE: So, Danielle is just supposed to stand awkwardly outside by herself?
ARES: …yes.
PRIMROSE: You know, a gentlemen would take the hit, so she’s not standing there like an idiot.
ARES: Not once have I claimed to be a gentleman.
…Okay, fine!
Ares gets out of the car, and with a quick gesture, Set sets the dogs on him. After Ares is pinned to the ground, Primrose hesitantly gets out of the carriage.
SET: Hi, Primrose! Nice to see you again.
PRIMROSE: Set, good to see you… these are your dogs?
SET: Only for now. They’re going off to the Queen’s Guard as soon as they pass the training.
PRIMROSE: I see…
SET: Weird, isn’t it? A few months ago, I thought I was training them to protect our people from yours.
Hey!
Set whistles the dogs back to attention. Primrose looks pissed.
SET: Don’t look like that. They don’t attack unless they’re told. Here, see this old girl? This is my Kahmen. Want to pat her? She likes it around the ears, like this…
While Primrose and Danielle take a moment to pat Kahmen, Set glances at the front of the house before pouncing on Ares.
SET: You’re finally home.
ARES: You saying you missed me?
SET: It’s just that we expected you five weeks ago, and Dad’s going insane. He keeps going on and on about what an honour this is for you and how we all need to hurry up and get married so he can meet his grandchildren… it’s weird.
ARES: That is weird. He hates kids.
SET: Yeah, well, anyway. I’m glad you’re home.
ARES: For a couple years, at least. Where is everyone?
SET: Not expecting you. Did you tell Osprey you were coming? I don’t think he mentioned…
ARES: We didn’t write. Primrose decided she was tired last minute.
PRIMROSE: I’d just like a short rest before we start travelling again.
ARES: Yeah, yeah. Well, let’s do it, then. Danielle, will you help with the bags? We’ll call for the servants once we’re inside.
SET: Why are you bothering to help? Just let her do it.
ARES: Well, Set… Danielle isn’t a servant. They don’t have those in Tijora.
SET: …So then, what is she?
PRIMROSE: She’s my assistant.
SET: …what’s the difference?
ARES: It’s kind of like being a squire without the combat training.
SET: …so, a servant?
PRIMROSE: It’s different. The word ‘servant’ suggests a lack of respect.
SET: I mean, yeah. Of course, it does. You, me, Ares… we’re descendants of literal Gods. Servants are just built differently.
*✧₊ ༉✧*‧₊˚✧
The kitchens of the castle are enormous, with a large dining area where the Night Staff are gathered around for lunch.
Though there are many people employed to upkeep the castle, there are also a small number of employees who live at the castle full time. Referred to as night staff, they have a range of important duties. They must tend to every need, be ready at a moment’s notice, and keep complete confidentiality on everything that happens in the castle. Working up to sixteen hours a day, they tend to have insider knowledge on a lot of the castle’s darkest secrets.
Tiger, the head chef, is working away.
TIGER: Alright everyone, how are we on that lunch preparation? Augustus, how’s the bread?
AUGUSTUS: I still don’t understand why we can’t buy a slicer. Do posh people really think it’s better if it’s sliced by hand?
TIGER: Not what I asked, little fucker. Osprey, how’re those potatoes?
OSPREY: Uh…naked, I guess?
TIGER: Someone want to explain why everyone is being so annoying today? Is this part of the Ares-is-absent fever?
OSPREY: That’s Lord Ares to you, and yes, it is. He’s a calming presence, at least for Lord Kur. And especially for me.
AUGUSTUS: That’s because you’re his squire, and he gets to take you away from this place. Meanwhile, I have to answer to Set.
ELIZABETH: But you have to admit, Kur is calmer when Lord Ares is here.
AUGUSTUS: Sure… why is that, again?
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It’s clear Augustus is poking some sort of bear, but Osprey doesn’t take the bait.
OSPREY: Did Set do something to you, Augustus? I thought you said he hadn’t whipped you in a while.
AUGUSTUS: He called me stupid. Me. He’s failing classes I aced. Little fucking idiot.
ELIZABETH: Ooh, careful with that. If you say it in front of us, you might say it in front of him by accident.
OSPREY: Can you imagine? Bet the whippings would start up again, then…
ELIZABETH: Might be worth it to see the young master’s face, though.
AUGUSTUS: You’re telling me…
Python, family nurse and squire to Minerva Saber, enters.
PYTHON: Oh, good, you’re both here.
OSPREY: What’d’ya want with us now?
PYTHON: …he’s back.
OSPREY: Who’s back? Lord Ares?!
PYTHON: Alongside Princess Primrose and her assistant. Come on, hurry up!
Augustus and Osprey Bird hurry to fix themselves then rush from the kitchens.
Osprey is Ares’s personal squire, which means he will be Ares’s right-hand man when they go to battle. It also means he helps handle more personal affairs, such as scheduling visits with other lords and ladies or hiding dead bodies. A squire is the highest rank a peasant can hope to be. Augustus, on the other hand, is Set’s page. Set isn’t a knight yet, and neither of them have been to the knight’s academy. A page has all the same expectations as a squire, save for the respected title.
Osprey and Augustus hurry to the entryway to find Primrose and Ares waiting.
ARES: Osprey, there you are! Primrose, these are two of our best workers, Osprey and Augustus. Augustus, get these things upstairs. Have you seen the boss?
OSPREY: He’s probably in the—
HORUS: I thought I heard voices.
Lord Horus Saber appears from the direction of the library. Ares breaks into a giant smile.
ARES: Horus.
HORUS: Finally decided to come back, did you?
ARES: Wanted to come tell you all about how terrible you are at your job.
…good to see you, Baron.
HORUS: Good to have you back, brother. How was your honeymoon?
ARES: It was amazing. *We fell in love.*
HORUS: No. Seriously?
ARES: Yep.
HORUS: Well… that is amazing…
Though clearly affectionate for one another, the two men share only a handshake. Very alike in appearance, Horus stands taller than Ares, with broad shoulders and sharp features. Horus, the true Baron of Cragg, is the eldest of the Saber siblings.
While Horus greets Primrose, Python appears quietly beside Ares. Python has worked for the Saber family for almost thirty years, and only in the last ten has become a squire. Ares gives her a big smile and rests his hand on her shoulder.
ARES: Python! Good to see you. Let me guess. Minerva is still asleep?
PYTHON: On her way down now.
HORUS: Good. Lunch shouldn’t be far off. We can eat before you rest. We’ll have someone give you a proper tour of the castle later.
PRIMROSE: Oh, yes please. I might need five. This place is huge!
HORUS: You should see the palace at Capital City.
Minerva Saber, the only living daughter, enters.
ARES: There you are! Thanks for getting up.
MINERVA: You’re not welcome.
ARES: Don’t be like that. C’mon, remember Primrose?
MINERVA: Vividly.
HORUS: I was just telling Primrose that if she thinks our home is big, she should visit the palace.
PRIMROSE: I’d love to see it, but something tells me I wouldn’t be welcome there.
MINERVA: You’ve got that right.
ARES: Calm down, Minerva. Why are you acting so angry?
MINERVA: Usual reasons.
HORUS: Her potions have been exploding on her.
MINERVA: That’s not why I’m angry. I’m angry because you didn’t write to tell us when you’d be here.
ARES: Spare of the moment. I thought you’d be happy to see me! C’mon…
Ares wrestles a hug out of her. She pushes him away but smiles. Minerva looks almost identical to Ares in the face, but she’s considerably shorter.
MINERVA: Stop it. Buffoon. Where’s father?
KUR: I’m here.
Kur Saber, acting Baron of Cragg and father to the Saber children, has been standing up the stairs, listening.
KUR: Welcome back, son.
ARES: Yeah, good to be back.
KUR: Would you step into my study? Immediately, please. Primrose, Osprey will take you to your room.
Kur turns around and leaves. Primrose despairs at the interaction.
PRIMROSE: A little ominous, isn’t it? He didn’t even say hello.
ARES: Nah, that’s just dad. I better go. I’ll meet you at my room, alright?
Ares gives Primrose a big, inappropriate kiss and takes to the stairs. Primrose smiles awkwardly between Osprey, Horus and Minerva. Danielle coughs politely behind them.
PRIMROSE: Well… I guess I better go unpack. Osprey?
OSPREY: Yes, my lady. Follow me.
Osprey leads her away. Horus and Minerva stand together.
MINERVA: She’s not going to have an easy time here, is she?
HORUS: Be nice, Minerva. Ares said he fell in love with her.
MINERVA: Oh, gross. He would do something like that, wouldn’t he?
HORUS: Yep, classic Ares…
Upstairs, Ares enters his father’s study. The smoke from Kur’s cigar dangles in the air.
KUR: So, how was the honeymoon?
ARES: Fine, thanks.
Ares hangs awkwardly back, not approaching his father. Kur takes a long drag of his cigar, not saying anything. Ares fidgets.
ARES: How were things here?
KUR: They were…
Kur turns to Ares without finishing his thought.
KUR: A letter came for you.
ARES: What about?
KUR: …magic. You’ve been summoned.
*✧₊ ༉✧*‧₊˚✧
Osprey is taking Primrose and Danielle up to the room. On the way, he stops to show her a portrait of a pale woman with red hair and blue eyes.
OSPREY: And this is Lady Eleanor, Ares’s mother, previous Baron of Cragg.
PRIMROSE: She was beautiful.
OSPREY: Yes, she was.
PRIMROSE: How long ago did she die?
OSPREY: Nearly nineteen years. I knew her, briefly.
PRIMROSE: Wow. You’ve worked here a long time.
OSPREY: Yes, my lady. If you’ll follow me…
PRIMROSE: Can I ask another question?
OSPREY: Of course.
PRIMROSE: Well, I can’t help but notice that the rest of the family doesn’t exactly look…
OSPREY: …like their mother?
PRIMROSE: Just wondering where—
OSPREY: Lord Kur was born in Nedaeya, Daegon.
PRIMROSE: Really?
OSPREY: You should ask Lord Ares about it. Here we are.
Ares’s room is a bit warmer and softer than the rest of the castle. Osprey sets down some things and begins unpacking.
PRIMROSE: Hm? Oh, Osprey. Don’t do that now. Ares and I can do it later.
OSPREY: It’s part of my job, my lady. He’s too important to waste time unpacking, and no-one else may handle his things. Even you.
PRIMROSE: …you are Osprey, right?
OSPREY: Yes, my lady.
PRIMROSE: It’s just… you’re so different from all the stories I’ve heard. The way Ares talked about you, I thought you were more of a best friend than a…
OSPREY: …than a servant?
PRIMROSE: …sorry.
OSPREY: No matter, my lady. But I do take this job seriously.
PRIMROSE: He told me you helped him rob a pub.
OSPREY: …he told you that story, huh? Look, robbed makes it sound violent. We just… helped ourselves to some liquor we’d been told not to buy. I’m sure we’ve made up for it since then.
PRIMROSE: If you go out drinking with him, there must be some flexibility to your work.
OSPREY: Sometimes the job requires helping him have fun. Listen, my lady, I don’t mean to speak out of turn, but may I make a suggestion?
PRIMROSE: Of course. You’re not out of turn at all.
OSPREY: Thank you. Thing is, there is a big divide between the servants and the family. If something goes wrong, we can be severely punished. Physically.
PRIMROSE: Are– are you serious?
OSPREY: Yes, my lady. Please, when you’re with us, don’t address us as friends, and keep tales like the one you just shared secret. Lord Kur is unforgiving when it comes to lower-class mingling with his children.
PRIMROSE: That’s… awful.
OSPREY: We’re very thankful for the work Lord Kur has given us. Alright, I need to get this laundry off. Danielle, want me to show you to your room? Or I can take you later if you’d prefer.
Primrose grabs Danielle for support. Osprey laughs kindly.
DANIELLE: I think I’ll wait here for a bit. See you soon.
Osprey leaves. Danielle and Primrose freeze for a moment before collapsing in heaps.
DANIELLE: Are you okay?
PRIMROSE: No. I feel surrounded. I can feel everyone’s hatred of me burning into my skull. At least my family made an effort when they met Ares.
DANIELLE: Ares took some time to warm up to you, didn’t he? And now he loves you. Give them time to get to know you.
PRIMROSE: Yeah… I can’t believe papa expects me to learn things out here. From Lord Kur. Who isn’t even a man of Hituh!
DANIELLE: Now he is terrifying. Chills.
PRIMROSE: I think you might be treated like a servant, Dani.
DANIELLE: So long as no-one tries to hurt me, we’re good.
PRIMROSE: If they do, I’ll murder them where they stand.
DANIELLE: See? Everything is fine. Besides, being a servant will be good. I’ll get insider gossip.
PRIMROSE: Good point.
DANIELLE: And you’ll be fine without me around. You have Ares. He’s great, right?
PRIMROSE: Yeah… wow, he’s amazing. Danielle, can you believe I’m so lucky?
DANIELLE: …Not really.
PRIMROSE: Oh, wait till you know him better.
Ares comes in a second later, looking sulky.
PRIMROSE: Speak of the devil! How’s your dad?
ARES: Uh… he was fine. Did Osprey leave already?
PRIMROSE: Not so long ago. Everything okay?
ARES: I need to talk to you. Danielle, could you give us a minute?
DANIELLE: Certainly, Ares. Just point me in the right direction, and…
ARES: No, you’ll get lost. Hang on… (leans out his bedroom door) Python! Get in here! Oh, and Danielle, call me ‘Lord’ Ares while you’re here.
Python appears. Primrose and Danielle exchange worried looks.
PYTHON: Yes, my lord?
ARES: Take Danielle to her room and get her settled, please. Ensure she’s not given any work until I’ve had time to discuss it with Marsden myself.
PYTHON: Certainly, my lord. She’s set up on the system, so you can call for her on your watches anytime.
ARES: Thanks, Python. See you soon, Danielle.
DANIELLE: Okay… see you soon, Prim— Lady Primrose.
Python leads Danielle out. Ares struggles to find the words, deep concern knit in his brow. Primrose places a gentle hand on his shoulder.
PRIMROSE: Ares?
He hugs her suddenly.
ARES: A letter came for me. From the queen.
PRIMROSE: What about? Is everything okay? She hasn’t changed her mind about us, has she?
ARES: No, no, thank goodness, no. She, uh… needs me to go to the capital. For a couple days.
PRIMROSE: You’re… leaving me here?
ARES: It won’t be for long. I can’t bring you with me — it isn’t safe. We need to give people time to let the news settle.
PRIMROSE: But… you want me to stay here, alone?
ARES: Hey, you’re the one who wanted to get to know my family. If we’d kept holidaying, we might have missed the invitation.
PRIMROSE: …what does she want?
ARES: …Magic.
PRIMROSE: Oh! You mean like, she wants you to cast a spell?
ARES: I have no idea, Primrose. She’s asked for people with human-magic to report to the capital for further instruction. That’s all I know. I have no idea what she could want. No-one’s ever asked me to do anything more than a party trick.
There are two schools of magic accessed by “humans”.
Godly magic – referred to in the West commonly as elemental magic, is magic passed onto humans from the gods who lived among them. Those who control fire, earth and water are considered nobility. Other godly magic is extremely rare to come across. Although they’re enormously powerful, elementals are far and few, and typically only found in nobility.
Human magic, however, takes on an entirely different form. Older than the gods themselves, human magic can be manipulated in many different ways. At its core, it relies on tapping away from a physical connection to the earth and leaning into a spiritual connection instead, allowing the soul to be manipulated into power. The soul can be turned into beams of energy that shoots at its victims, it can be used in alchemy, it can be used to generate shields or create illusions. It can be very, very powerful, and very, very unpredictable.
Ares lifts his hand, bringing with it a small sphere of blue light. He rolls it gently over his fingers before flicking it upwards where it explodes in little sparkles that flicker briefly before disappearing. Primrose grabs at his hand.
PRIMROSE: Surely it can’t be for anything too serious. I thought they had extensive training for warfare mages, right? You never did the training, so she’s hardly likely to ask you to do anything too serious.
ARES: …when I told you I never did the warfare training, what I didn’t tell you was that I was home-schooled for it. A little. I call on my magic to fight when I need it.
PRIMROSE: Ares. You were telling me not long ago that your mental health isn’t good. You shouldn’t be doing magic if you’re unwell.
ARES: Yeah. I know.
PRIMROSE: Did something happen?
ARES: Yes. Things got out of control, and it took a while for things to get back to normal… please, calm down. I’m okay now.
PRIMROSE: Doesn’t she have enough mages? I don’t want you to risk going insane. What if—
ARES: Don’t worry. I won’t go insane as long as I have you here waiting for me, I can promise you that. Look, you were probably right when you said it was nothing. I’m just upset because I don’t even like entertaining the idea. I’m going to go shower, then we’ll go down for lunch. Okay?
PRIMROSE: Okay…
Ares disappears into the ensuite, then reappears a second later.
ARES: Hey. Come with me.
PRIMROSE: Sure. Just give me a second.
Ares leaves, and Primrose waits to hear the shower before she lets out a huge sigh.
PRIMROSE: Well, papa, now I’m here. What secrets am I supposed to learn, exactly?