The Bound (Ascension #2)(14)

She heard someone whisper, “Human,” and another said, “Six team,” so she tried not to listen anymore.

Queen Shira was easy to pick out at the front of the room with a crown of climbing vines in her hair. That made Cyrene wish for her Affiliate pin, but if Avoca had been offended that she was from Byern, she was sure wearing it would have been dangerous.

“Queen Shira,” Avoca whispered. She pressed her hand to her lips in deference.

The Queen returned the gesture.

Then, Avoca pointed at one of the empty chairs at the Queen’s table. “Here.”

“Where will you sit?” Cyrene asked without thinking.

She only knew three people in the entire place, and she didn’t want Avoca to be far, especially since Ceis’f was seated at this table.

“Where I must.”

And then, without ceremony, she strode around the table and took a seat at Queen Shira’s right side.

Cyrene promptly took her seat. The right side was a sign of preference at home. Consort Daufina, the King’s highest advisor, always sat to his right. It had to mean something that Avoca was seated in that position of favor.

“Let’s begin,” Queen Shira said.

Dinner tasted as good as it smelled. The feast was a merry gathering, and people spoke heartily at the tables as they ate. No one engaged Cyrene in conversation, so she remained silent.

Once the plates were cleared away, Queen Shira stood. Silence immediately followed, and all eyes turned toward her. Cyrene could feel the anticipation from everyone around her. It even made her lean forward as she waited to hear what the Queen had to say.

“Thank you for joining me for the Feast of the Harvest Moon. The Creator shines on us with her returning blessings. We have had much loss, but with each year, we are afforded a new beginning. Our harvest was plentiful, the sacrifices of a few have secured the whole, and we have among us a Doma and the sign of the Rise of the Children of the Dawn.”

Whispers broke out across the room, and Cyrene felt her cheeks warm. She hadn’t expected the Queen to mention her. The Queen might not feel so secure if she could see how many angry eyes turned toward Cyrene. A number of people appeared to agree with Ceis’f.

“Silence!” Queen Shira called. “Our honored guest tonight is Doma Cyrene, and she has been granted the rights of our people until she departs. I expect everyone to treat her with that same respect. Now, before we return outdoors to celebrate the Creator’s blessing, my daughter has requested to be the first to give forth her gift of the new beginning.”

Cyrene looked around the table and then out into the audience, wondering who the Queen’s daughter was and what a gift of the new beginning entailed.

The Queen took her seat, and with her chin tilted up, Avoca stood gracefully from her seat. Cyrene narrowed her eyes, curious as to why she was standing.

“Thank you, Mother,” Avoca said.

Cyrene’s mouth fell open. Avoca is the…princess? That made no sense. She was sent on errands, like a servant, and forced to work in a military role, like someone in the Second Class. A princess should be learning her duties to better serve the country and eventually marry and become queen. It was reckless to risk her life as a soldier.

“I am glad that our new beginning starts tonight,” Avoca began without preamble. “For this past evening, Ceis’f and I were out with two six teams and were attacked by a horde of Indres. As you have since heard, six of our warriors have fallen. Their lives lie heavily on my heart, and I will never forget their names or faces. However, I would not be standing here before you”—she stopped and gestured to Ceis’f and a table in the corner—“none of us would be standing here today, if not for a miracle.”

Cyrene blinked. Did Avoca just call me a miracle?

“Doma, will you rise?” Avoca asked Cyrene.

She stood on shaky legs before a rapt audience. Avoca strode around the table and stood before her. Cyrene’s heart hammered in her chest as she waited.

“I only have one thing to offer you as a gift of my new beginning, and that is my life.”

And then Avoca knelt in front of Cyrene before the entire audience.

The room broke out into pandemonium. Cries and shouts echoed throughout the room. Chairs were knocked back to the ground as others exclaimed their distaste. Ceis’f jumped to his feet, grasped Cyrene, and pulled her back a few feet away from the Princess.

“Don’t even think about it, Doma,” he growled into her ear.

Cyrene stood, frozen, in shock. She didn’t know what was happening, but it seemed like Avoca had just…forfeited her life.





Queen Shira stood regally, completely unperturbed by the fact that her daughter and heir to the throne had offered her life to a stranger. She walked around the table to where Avoca knelt, ready for a swift end to her existence.

“Stand,” the Queen said. Her voice was firm but comforting.

Avoca’s chest rose and fell heavily, and then she stood to face her mother. A signal passed between them as they stared at each other. Then, Queen Shira nodded softly. A smile played on Avoca’s features for a second and then was immediately wiped away. She doesn’t actually expect me to kill her, does she?

The Queen faced the frantic crowd and raised her hand, calling for silence. It took longer than before as people were reluctant to stop discussing Avoca’s offering.