Children of Fire and Sun: The Rebellion (Updates Resume From July 2024)

Chapter Two: Maysa (Domhnall)

"Even the most ruined hearts crave for love."
— Melisa Nadir, Chantress of the Maiden

~•~

There has not been one summer in the past decade, which kept the Crown Prince Remus away from the halls of Domhnall.

Their very unconventional friendship began when Maysa was a wee child of eight, and he was a young man of eighteen. Maysa's father had hosted a symposium, and an invitation  was extended to the greatest lover of philosophy ever born in Namiona — Remus Desher. The prince, however, had not expected Maysa, already a skilled debater, to be a part of the same symposium. The hands that entwined that day had not parted till date.

Thinking about it made Maysa smile, despite the news Airon had delivered earlier. She pushed open the door to Remus’s chamber. The smell of fresh lavender greeted her nostrils. Her smile grew wider.

Old habits die hard.

She walked over to the sturdy wooden table where the prince remained sprawled. His silver locks with a pinkish tinge, were in a disarray. The lines of his chiselled face softened in the clutches of repose. Again, he had fallen asleep while staying up late to attend to his duties. The man knew not what sleep was. It would have worn out a lesser being, taken them to an early grave.

Maysa ran her fingers over his face. It was a face she knew well; his wide forehead, the eyelashes that touched his cheeks, the indent at the bridge of his nose, the high cheekbones, and those cheeks which had retained an infantile softness. A warmth spread through her being. She caressed his cheeks with the tips of her long fingers.

"Remus."

Her voice was soft, a lullaby from the realm of dreams. She continued her ministrations upon his cheeks as he stirred a little, the corners of his eyes crinkling. In a languid motion, he grabbed hold of her wrist with his calloused palm.

"My sweet," he mumbled in his sleep, pressing his lips against her palm.

Maysa’s heart swelled at hearing the term of endearment that he reserved only for her. "Wake up, Remus."

"Is it too late?"

"We need to talk."

Remus groaned in sleep before sitting up. Still holding her close, he straightened the pleats in his tunic with his other hand. He looked at her and beamed. His eyes, those intense wide-set pools of indigo, met hers and for a moment Maysa could swear her heart stilled. Those eyes carried the ache of a thousand worlds.

"Good morning, my sweet. Why don't you sit?" He said, severing the silence that had grown between them. Maysa nodded and pulled a nearby stool to settle close to him. Their hands remained intertwined.

The chamber faced the roaring Black Sea, which covered Namiona on three sides, much like his chamber was in the capital, Nostras. It faced the eastern horizon, receiving the first sunrays. Tapestries of silver and carmine, the colours of his House, with a dragon in flight with its claws reared, adorned the walls.

What were you doing so late?" she asked. "I tell you, Remus, you would grow shadows underneath your eyes. Then the fair maidens of this realm would come after me, accusing me of tarnishing their charming prince's handsome appearance."

He chuckled, a deep, sonorous rumble. "Pray, why would they accuse you?"

"Because you are under my care, silly." Maysa rolled her eyes. "Jests aside, what were you really doing?"

"What my father should be doing."

Maysa exhaled, shaking her head. It had become a routine at this point — the King leaving all his duties to his son and spending his days in the darkness of his chamber, visualising elaborate assassination attempts on his Imperial Highness’s life. His mind has not been what it once was.

She put a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to bear it alone, my friend. I can always help you out."

"You always do, don't you? I believe I burden you enough with my worries."

Maysa sighed. "You don't do it enough. If we are friends, Remus, must we not share our tears just as we revel in each other's smiles?"

"Some burdens are meant to be borne alone." he gazed at her with those tearful eyes. "You know that well, do you not, my sweet?"

He always knows just what to say. Maysa looked down at their entwined hands. He was much fairer than the olive-skinned Maysa, so much so that his skin seemed to be aglow with a tranquil light. They were contrasts; he had an ethereal being with his fair locks and indigo eyes, standing over five and half cubits tall while she was the golden child of Domhnall’s sands, dark eyes, and dark hair.

"What is it you wanted to say?" He asked.

"Oh, yes." Maysa straightened in her seat, grateful for the distraction. "I had been meaning to tell this to you for a while. That is why I roused you so early."

"What is it, Maysa?"

"Lady Lysa Trellis is missing."

Remus frowned before his countenance became impassive. His lower lip jutted out. It was difficult for Maysa to comprehend what he was thinking. Maybe the same things she had wondered about only moments earlier? Maybe not.

"Lord Edmund Eni, her betrothed," Maysa continued. "believes that you have abducted her, Remus."

A dry chuckle escaped his lips. "And why would I do that?"

"You know what these lords are like," Maysa shrugged. "Give them a chance and they would place blame everywhere but on themselves."

"Yet these lords hold substantial power in our realm. Their whimsies can cost us a lot." A frown had formed in between his brows. "Given how House Eni has been rather hostile to the Crown for the past few years, this does not bode well for me."

"I agree with your sentiment. We cannot ignore accusations made by such a powerful House," Maysa replied. "Yet so far, these are mere rumours and gossips spread by merchants and traders. Edmund Eni is yet to make this a public claim."

"Pray that this is a rumour. We do not need any further spectacle to couple with father's growing madness."

The two fell into a comfortable silence yet again. Remus retreated into the realm of his thoughts, a dark, brooding presence. Maysa traced circles on his palm. It was the least she could do to let her mind wandered to places it should. Gods knew what she would do if she were to receive this news in Remus's absence.

"Do you think, Maysa, that I could have abducted Lady Lysa?"

"Huh?"

Remus smiled. "Do you think that I have abducted Lysa Trellis?"

"Never." Maysa scoffed. "The sun would cease to rise in the east, the day you look up from those philosophy treatises and set your eyes upon a maiden."

"Well, I do look at you."

Maysa’s cheeks flushed. "I am hardly a maiden, Remus. Besides, we are friends."

"Still, it accounts for something, doesn't it?" Remus laughed. "Nonetheless, I cannot thank you enough for your faith in me, my sweet. It gladdens me, my sweet."

"Do not act like a fool," Maysa shook her head. "There is no need to be thankful towards me. When shall you cease to be so formal?"

"Oh, I am not at all formal with you." He leaned closer, his breath fanning her face. He kissed the tip of her upturned nose. "I, for once, do not kiss the noses of those ladies in the court."

Maysa giggled. "You are incorrigible."

His eyes glinted. "If you say so, my lady."

They erupted into shared laughter; the jolly sounds mingling with the aureate sunlight. In that moment, nothing mattered save for the present. Nothing other than the moments they shared.

Even if a storm came, they would face it together. Always.

~•~