committed?'
Aiden stepped forward, a smug grin on his face. He'd hoped Tadraem would include him in this. He walked over to where the boy lay. He leaned down close enough to hear the fear in the boy's breath and see the delicate lashes of his eyes.
'You will be given over to the justice of the Moriors. Your blood shall be spilled upon the steps of Eidolon. Such a pity, to die before you've taken your first soul.'
Micah looked up at him, his eyes pleading for forgiveness. 'Please.' The boy's cheeks were void of color, having been without food for over two days.
Aiden crouched down beside him. 'I'm sorry. What was that?' He bent his head down closer to Micah, already knowing full well what he'd said.
'I don't want to die.'
Aiden sprang to his feet, and kicked Micah hard in the side. Even through the leather of his boot, he felt a rib give way to the force. The boy rolled over, grabbing his side, coughing.
'How amusing! You think your life worth that of nine fully trained men. Ten really, though Garren had his end marked out for him already!' Spittle hung from Aiden's lip, a fury growing in his voice. 'Surely you didn't imagine that he'd be allowed to live?' He started laughing, the idea having just crossed his mind. 'You did, didn't you?'
Micah sat with his chest heaving, clutching his small hands to his side, moaning. Aiden stood up, walking back to lean against the wall.
Tadraem walked over to where he stood, and handed him a scroll wrapped and bound with a red tie. 'Micah's execution has been set for Friday's eve. See to it that everything is set in place. You'll address those who will be present. Any — ' Tadraem was interrupted by the sound of the door being thrown open.
A short man with a receding hairline and beady eyes stumbled into the room. Bits of food and drink were splattered across his shirt, which hung loosely about his wide midsection. He was out of breath and struggled to get his words out. Aiden felt his own impatience and was about to say something when Tadraem stepped forward.
'Spit it out!' he yelled. Taking the little man by his shoulders, Tadraem placed him squarely against the wall adjacent to the door.
'Something's happened with the humans. Something is very wrong.'
Aiden furrowed his brow, and tilted his head. 'What's happened to the humans?' The man swallowed, sucking in air through his stout, uneven nose. 'There was singing heard.'
Aiden looked at Tadraem and laughed, relieved. 'You're an idiot. They do as they are told. I have commanded many times that my wife sing to me, and she does without question. Do you know anything a — '
The man interrupted him, and it took everything in Aiden's power to keep from reaching out and snatching him up by his neck.
'I heard of other things; glances, words spoken, things done that were not commanded.'
Aiden's anger was replaced by an icy shiver. It worked its way up his spine, and rested somewhere near the base of his skull.
Tadraem whispered, 'Nonsense. You see what you want to see.'
Aiden listened to Tadraem, but recalled the night in the sanctuary that the humans turned to face Garren. Had Tadraem forgotten, or had he not witnessed it?
'Speak with the others if you don't believe me.'
Tadraem stepped away from the man, cautiousness in his smile. 'The wardens, I assume?'
He nodded, pulling his worn sleeve back onto his shoulder from where Tadraem had taken hold of him. 'They've found something now. I couldn't get close enough to see what it was, but they're hovering around it in the outer courts.'
Aiden pushed past the man, out to the hall. He heard Tadraem speak with the guard concerning Micah before turning to catch up with Aiden, both of them rushing to the human courts.
When they got there, Tadraem held out his hands and yelled above the noise. 'Step aside!' The wardens shifted aside, making room for Aiden and Tadraem. Everyone eyed Aiden as they'd once eyed Garren, terrified of his power. The evening before had solidified that with Tadraem's dramatic return from the dead, seemingly through Aiden's powers.
As they came closer to the center, a hush fell over the crowd. Written almost illegibly, five letters were etched into the stone of the street.
Irial.
It couldn't have been a human. Aiden kept repeating it in his mind as he shook his head in disbelief and confusion. What was Irial?
'What does this mean, my Lord?' A tall, thin warden leaned toward Tadraem.
'It means nothing,' Tadraem scowled. He grabbed the first human he saw, a fully grown man just a hair taller than Tadraem. The human's muscles were well defined, likely from a much earlier raid.
Taking a dagger from his belt, Tadraem lifted the man's hand, and delicately balanced the tip of the blade on his palm. 'Let us see if he speaks of his own accord. If he says anything in his own defense, I swear upon Ciara herself, I will let him go.'
Aiden could detect nothing in the human's expression indicating that he could act on his own. No fear. No malice. Nothing. Tadraem pushed the weight of the dagger through to the hilt. Some blood fell to the ground and pooled, while the rest of it traced the line of the human's arm and dripped down his side.
Still, the human was silent.
Tadraem, pleased, jerked his dagger from its position and spun on his heels to face the wardens.
'Nothing. Can you not see that one small fragment of a memory means nothing? A human risks his own life to scribble nonsense in a place where no one will ever see it? Meaningless. Let them sing; let them suffer to give even the slightest grimace. They are still slaves. They are still powerless, sniveling, useless, pitiless creatures that cannot even bathe themselves without our approval.'
The wardens applauded at Tadraem's words, but Aiden barely grinned, his chest still struggling for breath. He felt his tongue tingle as he remembered the day he'd questioned Garren's decisions openly. He could still feel the burn, he could still taste the metallic salt of the blood in his mouth. They'd turned to him. The humans had felt his presence before he spoke, and turned to face him as he entered the sanctuary. Aiden had sensed something was amiss that night, but couldn't put a finger on it. He didn't know what had come over Garren since Palingard's fall, but Aiden wasn't even able to get a word in to warn him.
Garren is dead, what difference does it make?
Tadraem had continued talking to the crowd, but Aiden tuned him out. He looked up to see that everyone was scattering, and going back about their business.
'Stop looking so cowardly. The others may fear you now but they won't continue to fear you if you don't show them their rightful place — and their place is not to stand about reading into things that are of no consequence.'
Aiden almost asked him about the incident with Garren, but thought better of it. 'I haven't seen such things from the humans. Not when I've been in the outer courts to — '
Tadraem walked closer to Aiden. 'Do I look foolish to you? Please tell me that you are not under the impression that I am an idiot as well. You may have thought Garren ill advised, but don't accuse me of such things. I know very well that Sara hasn't stepped foot in the outer courts since she was brought to you. I have chosen to overlook that transgression for now, but do not try my patience by acting as though I cannot see what is plainly in front of my face.'
Aiden lowered his head. 'I'm sorry my Lord, I didn't mean to offend you.'
'Stop whining. One thing you will learn with me is that I will not tolerate juvenile behavior. I didn't allow it with Garren, and I'll certainly not bear it from you.' Tadraem walked over to the man who stood, still bleeding.
'Go take care of your wound. Hathride nortuk.'
Aiden couldn't imagine what the humans would be like to manage had there not been a command created to instruct them to do whatever was necessary to survive. For most humans, that consisted of everyday things like hygiene, eating and sleeping. He found amusement in not giving Sara the command until morning, when he knew that he would generally be out of his chambers for the day. He would laugh to himself when he awoke to find her crumpled into a heap on the floor, her legs having given out on her in the night. This particular morning had been the worst yet. She was shaking so, he threw a blanket over her to spare himself from the irritation of seeing her. He
