Chapter 33

When Mereruka had explained that the tethered boulders presented to her several days past would make her barge float effortlessly through the skies, Taisiya had worried for her new husband’s sanity. She needn’t have done so. The boulders had been valuable trade goods from a series of wandering, floating islands currently making their way south along Maat’s desert border. Taisiya had worn her best, expressionless countenance as she once again recalibrated her idea of what was possible with only the minimum amount of internal screaming. She even managed to nod along as Mereruka told her that, based on their speed, he suspected the islands would remain neighbours of Maat for at least a century. At least the trade good would be certain to dazzle the people of the empire, just as it had her. Every day, yet more inexplicable magic made itself known, making her feel as lost as the day she’d first glimpsed Maat. Then again, she’d not been truly lost.

As the thought crossed her mind, another curious magic sent her heart pounding.

“Wife, you grow more beautiful by the day,” Mereruka purred in her ear.

“And you more handsome,” she answered, daring to stroke the edge of his pointed teal ear.

By now, their act was flawless. Servants and commoners tittered and giggled when they spied the two of them in the palace, or sighed wistfully as they sailed along the bustling, natural canals of Rhacotis in each other’s arms. The story of the besotted prince and his mysterious bride had become so well known that none would doubt it. Vasilisa ensured they’d also heard tales of Taisiya’s heartless cruelty and her willingness to kill any who wronged her husband. She was a woman feared, respected and envied.

At times, even Taisiya had begun to believe the rumours of their romance. Sometimes she would catch Mereruka in a rare unguarded moment, and the look in his eyes would make her toes curl. Their stolen kisses, in the few times they could be truly alone, had her convinced she might combust. Those kisses had her daydreaming more often than she would ever admit, and wondering if, finally, this time, with this man, what came after would be worth it. It never had in the past, but he was beginning to give her hope that the future would be different.

She was brought back to the present as he shivered at her touch, his eyes gone dark with desire. It took him a short time to compose himself, to loosen his fervent grip.

“The oasis of Shedet is in full view now. And Nofret has informed me that Maat’s most renowned architect is currently vacationing in the area.”

“How fortuitous. Shall we hire him to build my palace?”

“I’ve heard he is a difficult man with a mercurial disposition. Even in the face of royalty,” Mereruka hedged.

“Then make the nomarch convince him in return for his life.” Taisiya grinned. “I’m certain he’ll be more motivated than the average man.”

Mereruka nodded as he led her to the railing of the floating barge. It was being pulled by a team of ethereal creatures with glittering butterfly wings. Below, the enormous lake around which Shedet thrived was visible. Black earth swathed in lush green and dotted with homes, fields and properties ringed the bright blue. Beyond the influence of the life-giving waters, she could see the curious rose-gold-hued sand of the unforgiving desert, a colour she’d grown accustomed to as they’d sailed high above it on their journey here. Beyond the delta, Maat was a land of sharply contrasting extremes. Life flourished, but only up to a starkly delineated point, after which death reigned in the hot, dry, rocky sands.

The shadow of their barge passed over the nomarch’s manse. In the distance, a great building project had only just broken ground. Soon, its builder would know the bitter taste of loss and regret. She had a reputation to uphold, after all. No one who harmed her family would be spared.

“What do you think of your nome, Taisiya?”

“It will do nicely,” she replied.

Mereruka revelled in the flurry of panicked activity their arrival at the building site caused. When he disembarked with Taisiya at his side, both in their royal finery and attended by a hoard of servants as well as a scowling Qar, work stopped and workmen knelt with their heads bowed. Ensconced in a palanquin big enough to comfortably fit a dozen people, they were brought around the perimeter of the survey. A few workers disappeared into the ether, no doubt informing the nomarch. The overseers blanched at the sight of them. Did they know the source of their master’s windfall? Or were they surprised that it was he, and not the nomarch’s son, who had stepped off the opulent barge?

“What do you think of the project, Princess Consort?” Mereruka asked, knowing the workers could overhear them.

“It’s… cosy.” The description dripped with derision.

Mereruka might have chuckled, but he was strung as tight as a bowstring. Already, Henenu, the nomarch of Shedet, was being hurriedly carried on his palanquin towards them. When he stepped down from his conveyance, both Mereruka and Taisiya barely needed to look down. The nomarch was a man of uncommon height and brawn, more comfortable with an enchanted blade in his fuchsia hand than he was with reed and ink. Though his practised smile and his graceful kneeling might have fooled others, the wariness in his dark eyes betrayed his unease.

It struck Mereruka then that an uneasy man with martial prowess was not someone he wanted anywhere near his wife.

“Prince Mereruka, I’m flattered and humbled by your unexpected visit. I had heard rumours of your return, but I didn’t believe them. Please, allow me to welcome you to Shedet and to entertain you in my home.”

Taisiya clicked her tongue. Henenu flinched.

“Allow me to introduce Maat’s newest princess consort and my wife, Princess Consort Taisiya, recently of Lethe, the Empire of Mages,” Mereruka said.

Taisiya glared down her nose at the kneeling fae before them. Before Henenu could greet her, Taisiya spoke, her words like acid.

“I’m afraid we’ll need to turn down your offer of hospitality. It would sour my disposition if I had to watch someone entertain us using our stolen wealth.”

Henenu’s eyes widened with terror and he prostrated himself before them.

“Please, Prince, Princess Consort, allow me to explain-”

Mereruka snarled, cutting off his excuses.

“The penalty for stealing from royalty is death, a fate your foolish son has already suffered.” At the nomarch’s flinch, it seemed he’d not heard of his son’s untimely demise. “That I have not already severed your head for your gross insolence is a testament to my forbearance and my wife’s generosity.”

“No one has ever returned from the Cursed Continent, Your Tranquility! Everyone thought you had perished!” Henenu said, his panicked breaths disturbing the sand beneath his lips.

Thank the gods he’d not attacked. He hoped to sway them with words. For now.

“Did you just refer to my homeland as the ‘Cursed Continent’?” Taisiya asked with venom in her tone.

“Forgive me, Your Harmoniousness!” Henenu gasped. “I meant no disrespect, I-”

“Enough! You have stolen from me, had the gall to make a monument dedicated to your crimes and now you dare to insult the princess consort! I shall have your head for this!” Mereruka roared.

None could fail to understand the situation now. Just as they’d planned, Taisiya played the part of appeasing wife. He trusted it would offer Henenu enough hope not to decide he had nothing left to lose. A warrior like the nomarch could kill several people in the blink of an eye. He was centuries older than Mereruka, and he’d spent very few of them idle. Qar’s hand slid to the pommel of his sword.

“Dearest husband, calm yourself. I shall render justice on our behalf.”

“He deserves no lenience!” Mereruka bellowed for effect.

“No, he does not,” Taisiya said soothingly as she petted his chest.

Mereruka did his best not to shiver at her soft touch. He turned his focus on the quivering mess of the prostrated nomarch before him and the potential threats around him. By now, several of Henenu’s sons and daughters had come to the building site and watched in horror. Several of Mereruka’s men, disguised as labourers, kept close watch, lest they strike while their father grovelled. Each was a threat in their own right, most of them being near enough to Mereruka in age and many gifted in martial arts.

Taisiya descended from the palanquin with grace and poise, aided by the magic of their attendants. If she needed to use lightning, she couldn’t be touching him. He had to remind himself that she wore as many protections as he, and that his overseer of the soldiers was nearly as fast as her lightning. But when her sandaled feet touched the ground, it took an effort of will to hold himself back. Any indication that Mereruka feared Henenu’s reaction would make both Taisiya and himself appear weak.

It had seemed so simple when they’d planned the scenario. Now, faced with the reality, his confidence shrivelled. As she stepped closer to the hulking nomarch, his instincts screamed at him. If Henenu struck, he might hurt her, kill her. Why had that fact never crossed his mind before? Why had he agreed that she should be the one to punish Henenu? What good was flaunting her power if she died?

He scowled and crossed his arms to hide his wildly beating heart.

“Nomarch Henenu, do you deny your crimes?” Taisiya asked with admirable calm as bile crept up Mereruka’s throat.

Gods, what if this foolish posturing got her killed? The very thought was like ice in his veins.

“I do not, Princess Consort. Please, show mercy.”

Please, gods, let him surrender.

“Hmm.” She tapped a finger to her lips. “I don’t believe you’ve properly congratulated us on our marriage. In the Empire of Mages it is customary to give the newly wedded couple many gifts. Luckily for you, Henenu, you have something I want.”

“Name it and it is yours, Your Harmoniousness,” Henenu said, a sliver of hope in his voice.

Taisiya clapped her hands.

“Splendid! Then I shall have your nome. Our treasury has already financed the construction of a palace. Now, it will be made into one fit for a princess consort.”

Henenu flinched, shocked into a moment of silence.

Mereruka held his breath as the nomarch tensed. He should trust in their plan, in her, in all the precautions they’d taken, but he could not beat back his dread.

“And what would you do with me, Your Harmoniousness?” Henenu asked haltingly.

“Perhaps, if you are very, very well-behaved, I shall allow you and your family to live in Shedet and work for my benefit.”

The—now former—nomarch contemplated his reduced fortunes, his hands balled into white-knuckled fists. Mereruka scanned the gathered crowd. Everywhere he saw threats, all of them aimed at Taisiya. He nearly came out of his skin in the few heartbeats it took for Henenu to reply.

“Princess Consort, you are merciful and fair. Shedet is lucky to have you as its nomarch,” Henenu murmured.

Luck had favoured them, for he did not make to lash out at Taisiya. Luck. He’d gambled her life. Just to settle a score with a man of little consequence. Shame scalded him, eased only by the knowledge that they had been victorious. Henenu had admitted his crimes and relinquished his rights to the nome in front of witnesses. Not even Henenu’s ally and Mereruka’s brother, Radjedef, would be able to save the former nomarch now.

Some of Henenu’s sons and daughters gasped, others hung their heads in shame, but not one moved to attack.

“Yes, and so long as its people are obedient, they need never watch their kin annihilated by lightning strike,” Taisiya whispered, just loud enough for Mereruka to hear.

She was assisted back into the confines of the palanquin, back within his protective embrace. Mereruka’s gut ceased clenching in sick anticipation. Once at his side, the corners of her lips turned up in triumph. Mereruka eased his scowl and kept his attention divided between her and Henenu’s frozen posture.

“I have dispensed justice, dearest husband. Is your anger appeased?” she asked.

He needed to calm his racing heart. They still had the last bit of their plan to enact.

“If you are happy, then I am pleased.” He smiled, though he doubted it reached his eyes.

Taisiya nodded.

Mereruka scowled at Henenu and his children. At least in this, it was not an act.

“Henenu, your first task is to locate Maat’s most renowned architect and convince him to build my wife’s palace. I believe he is vacationing in the area. One of your children will show her people to your former home so that they can acquaint themselves with the administration of her nome. I trust you and your family will find accommodations elsewhere,” Mereruka commanded.

“Yes, Your Tranquility. It will be done,” Henenu replied, lifting himself from the ground on shaky knees and backing away with his head bowed.

And with that, Mereruka and Taisiya had doubled their territory without shedding a single drop of blood. It should have pleased him utterly, and yet he dreaded what this newfound fear might mean for their future schemes.