Three

“If you know what is good for you, you better not let that hand drop.” I said calmly even though I was anything but calm. 

No! I cannot be tied to a man who will physically abuse me, I would rather die than be my mother. My mind screamed out but none of this showed on my face. What showed was the calm fury I was holding to with all my might. I cannot return to the scared little girl I was, who was afraid of my father return whenever he would travel. 

Arius breathed out as his hand hanged in the air for a while before he dropped it by his side and not towards my direction as he had earlier intended. 

“Why on earth will you try and insult the council? Do you have a death wish? They are the most feared group in this empire. Not even the warriors. They can make and unmake. They can break you with a thought and not lose sleep about it. You must have a death wish. There is no other explanation for your actions.”  Arius gripped his hair in his hands.

“Do you think about the fact that I was not aware of this?” I defended myself. 

“Then you keep your mouth shut and away from things you don’t understand.” Arius thundered at me and I flinched back from the venom he was spewing, I was not expecting this from him and I really didn’t understand why he was yelling at me like he thought I would be submissive and take the shit he was spewing. I would always come back swinging hard. 

“You have no right to tell me when to keep my mouth shut.” I tell him but he advanced towards me with his gait slow and predatory but I did not move an inch, that would have shown that I was terrified of him and I refused to admit that. I was not terrified. I just needed to regain my balance with this new world that I find myself in. 

When he was standing directly in front of me and I had to tilt my head back to look at him, he continued. “I might have chosen you as a wife but don’t you ever think you have a choice in matters that concerned my empire, especially when I will be seen in a bad light because of you. The only matter which you have a choice in is what route to take to make me look good. Now, why are you here because if I do remember clearly, you have no business being here since it is clear that you are not here to stay?” 

 I was tempted, seriously tempted to bash his head in about my duties as his queen but I decided that one of us had to be an adult so I decided to ignore. “I came here because Themis saw you being killed. If I had known that I would be almost slapped for my help and treated this harshly, believe me I would have steered clear and when the news of your death reach me, I would have said good riddance.” 

“Gwenn, we both know that your reply to my death would not have been that so you need to tell me everything about Themis vision.” Arius said and in response, I raised my eyebrow. 

“You are serious.” I frowned. “After insulting and raising your voice at me, you continue to order me around, you must think that you have huge balls.” 

“Tell me the reason why you are back here and tell me everything.”  Arius repeated. 

This was the point where I would hit him or keep quiet but I didn’t have time to play this game with him. He was not on my side and I need him on my side because I need an army to march with me and he can provide me with that so for my goal and Dar, I swallowed my pride and I told him everything Themis said. 

The vision about his brother killing him and mentioning about how he would fully kill their father. By the time I was done, Arius sat down. 

“I am sorry, I know that you never expected something like this?”

“Yes, I didn’t expect that you would cook up such a farfetched story. I would have believed you if you had not mentioned my father. My brother loves my father, he would rather hurt than let anything happen to my father and not just anything but also for him to be the cause is laughable. I don’t want to say anything to you other than you need to get your lies straight and it cannot be true.”

“Choose to believe me or not, it doesn’t change that you are in grave danger, take that seriously.” I said, ignoring that fact that he was calling me a liar, I was angry that I had condoned a lot of things from him, things that  if they came from another person would have had me reaching for my whip and whipping the person saying this senselessly if the person was from Dar. 

“I will think about it.” Arius replied and his words made me realized that, I might have to remain behind for a little longer so that I can see to it that he takes my words seriously. 

If Arius is going to die by someone hands, it has to be mine and it won’t be in a political bid but rather because he went too far in aggravating me. 

I sighed. “The war has started. We need the help that was promised.” I added and Arius glanced at me. 

“You mean them.” He corrected. 

“No…” 

“You are one of us now, don’t forget it outside. You are nothing but a kitten. Don’t give my people a reason to step on you, you will not survive.” Arius added. 

“And that is why, I cannot think of them as my own people too.” I said, with my voice soft and when he frowned in confusion, I added. 

“Because you already created this divide too, you referred to them as your people not our people. They will always be your people and Dar will always be mine.” I answered softly, taking some steps away from Arius not because I was scared of him but because I wanted a physical way of saying that we are from different worlds and those world will remain ours no matter the bonds that ties us together. 

“Gwenn.” He started to say but I shook my head. 

I came here just to keep him to be safe and he was not going to take my warning seriously, there was no reason for us to be talking right now. I don’t want to blurt out my insults to him.

“Can you show me where I am supposed to sleep and then who do I need to appeal to for the army and what am I supposed to do?” I asked. 

Arius looked at me. “We don’t have a lot of rulers, we have just one and that is me, you don’t need to appeal to anybody else for the army. That was our bargain and I will deliver after some new terms and you are going to have a meal with my family today, you need to see how Northerners behave.” 

I cringed, I forgot that other empires were not like Dar who had five rulers and five major sectors and my best friend and honorary older brother, Orel was the ruler of one of those sectors while his wife, Themis was the Prophesy seer, a strange girl with an equal strange power and temper towards me. Orel was smitten by her so by default, I have to like her. 

“So I will have dinner with your family this evening.” I nodded and then I froze as I realized what his earlier words were and when I looked at his face, he nodded to my unspoken question. 

“There is no way, you will introduce new terms now. Not when I have already gotten married to you. I will not accept that.” 

“You are saying it as if being married to you is all rosy too. Because of your actions, I need to reconsider the terms because I didn’t get what I hoped for. And you are going to accept the terms or you won’t get your army. Themis is not here and I can keep you imprisoned here and tell them that you died. You will reconsider because there is no other choice.” Arius smiled. 

I was spitting mad! And I knew he was right. I was trapped and have no way out. So in a burst of anger, I moved to him and punched him on the face, so much for being the adult.