Later that same day, after all oaths had been sworn, Edric met with Grand Sage Rami in his late father’s office in the palace. On every basalt wall stood glass panes with water behind them in which swam luminescent fish, each shining bright enough to light the room.

Edric wore the Crown of Eos, which was a leather headband with five jet-black feathers rising up from it.

Rami held in both arms something long and straight, wrapped in white cloth. “I’m glad that you decided to take up the crown your father left behind.”

“I won’t let you down,” said Edric.

“I am curious, though,” said Rami, the voice somewhat obscured behind the golden mask. “For a moment, before Quillon spoke, it looked like you were going to refuse. Why?”

Edric looked away, eyeing one of the yellow glowing fish behind the glass. “In all honestly, because I think Feng would be better fit for the job.”

“Why Feng?” Rami asked.

“He’s been here, in the place, for years,” said Edric. “He dedicated his life to protecting our father, which means he knows far more about being Prince than I do.”

“Would it surprise you to know that he already refused the crown?” Rami asked.

Edric snapped his attention back to the Grand Sage. “Yes, it would.”

Rami said, “On the day your father died, we offered to make him Prince, but he refused. He said he saw how many nights Prince Ehren spent unable to sleep and didn’t want that kind of weight on his shoulders. Protecting the Prince was pressure enough.”

“And now that weight falls to me,” said Edric with a sigh.

“Do not be afraid,” said Rami. “Feng says you are far stronger than he. And if you truly believe your brother has the wisdom and knowledge you need, you can make him a member of your council. You have the right to appoint anyone you want to your council.”

Edric smirked. “Is that a hint? Do you want a position on the council?”

Rami’s head swayed side to side. “I have far too many responsibilities as Grand Sage to be an effective member of your council. I’m not here to sway your opinion on anything, I chose you because I trust you.”

Edric lowered himself into his father’s old chair and folded his hands on the desk. “Like you almost trusted Quillon? Don’t think I missed that. You were almost ready to turn Eos over to The Regime through that churlish traitor.”

“We are in a difficult position,” said Rami. “The merchants coming back from other worlds report that The Regime grows closer to Eos every day, as does the Confederation’s army. Disaster waits to drop on our world like an avalanche on a mountain village. Most of your father’s heirs have nowhere near the wisdom and moral courage we need to lead us through these times. So, the other sages and I came to a decision. We’d offer the crown to you. If you refused, then we’d offer it to Damek. If he refused, then maybe we’d have a chance of convincing Feng to take it, especially if he knew our next choice was Quillon. If he refused it too, then we would treat it as a sign that Eos’ days of independence were over, and would accept The Regime’s rule through Quillon as their puppet.”

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“I see,” said Edric. “Fair enough. So, why have we met here?”

“There are two things I must give you,” said the Grand Sage, starting to unwrap the white cloth. “First, is your father’s Blood Brand. This Blood Brand has been wielded by the past four Princes of Eos.”

Once the white cloth was removed, Edric saw that the Blood Brand was a strange sort of sword. The hilt was just long enough for him to hold the weapon in one hand, with a round pommel on the end. At the top of the hilt was a hand-guard shaped like a dome and covered in what appeared to be lamp-lizard scales. Not one, but two blades rose from the hand-guard, running parallel to one another. Each blade was razor-sharp, but rather than ending in a point flattened out at the end.

When Edric reached for the handle, Rami pulled back a step and said, “I must warn you, wielding this weapon causes some pain. There is a small creature living inside the hilt. We call it a glint leech. It takes a little blood from whoever holds the hilt and converts that blood into something the ancient sages called ‘plasma.’ Apparently, stars and lightning are made from the same thing. So, be aware, no other hand-held weapon is as dangerous as this one.”

“I believe I’ve heard the legends of weapons like this,” said Edric, his hand still hovering over the hilt.

“No one’s had to use one in centuries,” said Rami. “But it is important that the Prince of Eos always have that option.”

Edric’s fingers slipped under the hand-guard and closed around the hilt. Something tiny and sharp punctured his palm, and he felt his forearm grow a little colder. He yanked the blade away from Rami, who, in turn, stepped back as blue arcs of lightning and flame filled the space between the two blades. At the top, they formed a fiery, flickering point that glowed yellow, orange, and blue. Warmth soon returned to Edric’s hand and he practiced moving the sword in slow swirls and flourishes.

“It will take some practice to get used to,” said Edric.

“I imagine so,” said Rami, producing from within the white cloth a scabbard made from scales and leather.

Edric took the scabbard and sheathed the sword within it. To his surprise, the sheath wasn’t even warm to the touch, even before his fingers released the hilt.

“The other thing I must give you,” said Rami, “Is a burden heavier even than your crown, but it will make the crown rest more easily on your head.”

Edric smirked. “Is it a book that will tell me foolproof ways to be a good Prince?”

Rami chuckled. “Such a book would be invaluable. No, I’m afraid not, but it may give you the inspiration to write such a thing. Every Grand Sage in our history has been a gifted telepath. One capable of absorbing, storing, and bestowing the memories of others, even long after they’ve been gone.”

Edric stood from the chair and scratched under his chin. “You’re going to give me someone else’s memories?”

“Yes,” said Rami. “The memories of every Prince of Eos to ever live, even the foolish and wicked ones. Your father held those memories in his mind, as did his father before him, and his before him, all the way back to the Eternal King’s first-born son. You will learn from their triumphs and follies, their accomplishments and failures.”

Edric shifted in place, his eyes darting about the room. “Will I still be… me?”

“For the first couple of decades, yes,” said Rami. “It will be hard to access the memories without some effort at first, and some may come through in visions, dreams, or flashes. The more you access them, though, the more you will become something… more than yourself. More than any of us.”

Edric struggled to steady his breathing and fight back the fear growing inside him. “So, this is like a terminal disease that will kill me… the real me… but when I’m gone a wise, experienced ruler will take my place?”

Rami shrugged. “I suppose that’s one way to look at it.”

Edric took in a deep breath, and then, slowly, released it. Then, he did it once more, and when he was done, said, “Very well. Do what you must.”

Rami slipped off a golden gauntlet and pressed that hand to Edric’s forehead.

Edric’s eyes rolled back in their sockets and his whole body flinched and flailed for several minutes before he finally collapsed forward, into the Grand Sage’s arms.