Chapitre 37: Going to Small Color
Sublyme yawned and stretched. It had been a long ten days. She felt like she had been through a lifetime of pain and confusion just to be released and absolved from any wrong doing.
She had been on a rollercosrer ride of emotions for those ten days. She always felt she was on the verge of vomiting and thus had not eaten much.
All she did was practice and beg.
She was continuously begging because her biggest issue is her soulmate. He was no longer speaking to her and had begun talking about ending their union.
Azmin did not marry like other ethnic groups did. They entered into unions with other Azmins, these unions could be with more than one Azmin as long as all parties agreed. They could also form enough unions to become a clan.
The current Azmin Guard commanders were in such a union. It was the first time the commanders had done such a thing. These commanders had grown up with each other so becoming united was a natural thing.
Most of the commanders had forgiven her. All of them actually, except Althius. He and Sublyme had always been close. She had to convince him that Shain was right and then promise to tell the others when "the time was right".
The time was never right, she knew it would never have been right, and then they were caught.
She never planned for a scenario of them being caught.
Althius was so loyal that it was hard for him to support the idea, but once he made up his mind he would not change it again. To be proven wrong and gullible was one thing but to be put in such a situation by your best friend was a devastating idea for him.
The commanders had their own lands on the Azalstin estate on the continent of Azzit. He moved out of the house he shared with Sublyme and moved into one of the empty cottages on the outskirts of the property.
The others had never stopped speaking to either of them but Althius had her heart and not speaking to him was akin to torture. She did not even want to think about their children.
The Azmin culture dictated that if parents with children could no longer reside together the children would need a home of their own and the parents would visit appropriately with both parents caring for the home.
Soon her children would be in a different home as well and she would have to live alone only able to visit her children when their father was not there. And it was frowned upon for one of the parents to spend nights within the children's home.
Now she had to help escort Shain to Small Color with the guard commanders. She was not chosen to guard him for the past ten days but she could not avoid taking him to the penal colony.
She took a deep breath and then exhaled deeply quickly making her abdomen quiver a bit.
She needed to calm herself. "You can not kill him Blyme."
Rachel had not seen so many of her aunts, uncles, and cousins in one place in a long time. The Azalstin was a large clan. The Azmin were a group of clans with no one ruler. They had a tribunal of chiefs that made civil and cultural decisions for the Azmin and the separate tribunal to make decisions in criminal matters.
The chiefs and judges only met every ten years with each position held for life.
Many of the other ethnic groups felt the Azmin governmental system was antiquated and felt such an important group should change their ways.
The Azmin were a stubborn people and did not like others judging their ways.
"Milana you will escort Shain to Small Color."
Rachel looked impassively at her uncle. She did not truly understand his question. He already knew the answer and Rachel was now trying to understand her brothers plans and who was helping him, or at the very least who was complacent.
"Yes I am Uncle Tristan." She nodded to him in respect. "I want to make sure that he arrives there without incident." She paused her explanation there. She was not sure what her brother was trying to achieve but she knew that she could not let others know she had doubts about his motives.
Tristan was one of her younger uncles, and like her mother had married into the Azalstin clan. He looked at her cautiously for a moment before speaking again. "He is important to our clan… All of you are. You and your siblings are vital to the Azalstin. We need to…"
"Tristan! Here you are. I have been looking for you everywhere." Rachel's aunt Bella had not seen her and simply moved between her and Tristan to speak to her husband without a glance at who she was.
This is how the youngest sister of her father, Cecil, behaved. Rachel wanted to laugh as she turned to walk away. She paused in slight shock when she heard her uncle speak.
"Bella give me one moment. I need to speak with Rachel."
Rachel felt her aunt's shock. She suddenly understood something else on a minute level. Not on a truly conscious level. But she felt something slip into place.
Bella did not look around. Her eyes stayed firmly on Tristan's. "But we need to get ready for Shain's departure." There was that edge to her voice she got when she was not getting her way and was upset about it.
'Uncle Tristan. We will talk later.'
Tristan was not use to speaking through the soul and he visibly shuddered but remained calm.
"Come Bella."
Rachel had too much to think about.
Rachel and her Antrunie spoke about the trip to Small Color and precautions they may need inside a pocket dimension that both Rachel and Ambruce created.
It was a dimension within two other dimensions. The way that it was ultimately formed caused it to belong to Rachel in that it was tied to her soul well and was fed and defined by her.
Amburce had been watching her closely during the entire meeting. She understood that Ambruce was more perceptive than she understood but she had not realized she was this perceptive.
"Do we really need to stay on Small Color for two weeks."
She looked at Cramnal. "I want to stay there for at least two weeks. We may need longer. Do you need some time at home?" She looked at everyone. "Maybe only I should stay and I can call all of you if I need you."
The others looked at each other, different emotions marring their faces.
"Okay. Rebecca, Smral, and Ambruce with me. Cramnal and Struns take time with your families."
"You are our family Rachel."
She looked at Struns and smiled. "I know, I also know that you are now in a union with my sister and she wants a ceremony to celebrate it. She will need you to help her plan."
She felt his eye roll and wanted to laugh.
"It is a duty I hated as well. But Rachel is right. Anis will want you there."
"See? Take advantage of Cramnal's experience in this one. And if we need help I can bring you to us fairly quickly. My connection to Small Color boosts all of my abilities."
Rebecca stood and stretched. It was not lost on Rachel that both Ambruce and Smral looked at her almost instinctively and both with expressions of longing.
'Does Ambruce truly want Rebecca or is she feeding off of Smral's desires? I bet Rebecca is wondering the same thing."
"Let's go. The tribunal does not want Shain to teleport to Small Color. It will take us two days to get there."
The Azmin tribunal decided to send Shain to Small Color via airship. The ship belonged to the Azalstin clan and was one of the larger Azmin ships. It was a deep blue color with vibrant yellow vines growing through and between the boards, weaving around the entire ship. Beautiful large purple flowers bloomed throughout and streams of magic flowed across the vines feeding the ship.
The crew were members of the guard, under commander Zolon.
Shain was brought aboard and turned to face his family, his clan. He looked upon his siblings, aunts, uncles, and cousins with a pompous expression.
"Do you have nothing to say Azalstin Shain?" The Azalstin chief's voice was clear and domineering. She looked at her nephew with indifference and calmly waited his response.
Shain looked at her with a slight smirk on his face. "I want to save my realm, nothing more. My family has been led astray by values that should have been left in the distant past. We need to grow and evolve and become a better people and protect our realm."
Once he finished he went to turn but was held fast. He had to stay and listen to any rebuttal to his statement. None came and he was taken to a central cabin deep within the ship.
The rest of the passengers voyaging with him boarded. Rachel waited before boarding. She was having an interesting conversation with an uncle. She had been having many interesting conversations with family members these days.
'Do not worry Uncle. Nothing will happen to Shain.'
'Even while he is on Small Color?'
This actually gave her pause. 'Of course sir. Especially while he is on Small Color. Do not worry. I have already taken precautions.'
She saw him visibly relax. She almost narrowed her eyes. She did not usually school her expressions around family but now she saw that she needed to.
'May I ask, again, why you are so concerned?'
He paused we before answering. 'All of you are vital to out clan Rachel. We can not lose any of you.'
She nodded slightly to his repeated textbook answer. She knew his ability was in fate magics so she wondered if he had seen anything or if he was a part of Shain's manipulations.
She watched him walk to her impatient aunt.
Cadeaux
-- Cadeau
reçu État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone