Sunlight poured into the throne room, painting the walls in vivid shades of gold. Upon the Salt Throne sat Siriafil Elaya, Queen of Ayaton.
The songs praising her beauty were no exaggeration, Nastal thought. The stern lines of her face did nothing to diminish her allure. Time had been generous with her.
Her gaze settled on the priest, and something stirred within him.
"Do you have a letter for me, Nastal?"
The priest hesitated, then revealed the scroll. She read the reluctance in his expression.
"Well?"
"Yes, my queen. It contains news from Ilandro in Nalia."
"You already told me that, Nastal. Yet you still haven't shared the message."
There was no avoiding it any longer. Nastal handed her the scroll and waited, all the while trying to read the queen's face.
"I see," she said at last.
Nastal remained silent.
"Ilandro claims that Darmakaya and the others have already begun their mission, and that they will soon confront the power responsible for all this unrest."
"That is good news, isn't it?"
The queen smiled.
"You betray yourself too easily, Nastal. The years have made you sentimental."
"As they should, my queen," he dared to reply.
"You read the message before I did, I assume. The seal was broken."
"Yes, my queen."
"You've become careless. Perhaps insolent as well. No matter. I'll overlook it."
She lowered her eyes to the letter again.
"Then you already know the rest. Ilandro says Darmakaya is... marked. There is a corruption in his aura, as he describes it. A demonic presence that haunts him. Most likely the same entity Darmakaya himself is pursuing on this mission. Soon fate will bring them face to face, and the matter will come to an end."
"If only it were that simple, my lady. There are other pieces to this story. Threads reaching into older chapters of history, into hidden places beneath the sea, to heroes long dead and martyrs more recent. An ancient evil has nested in our lands for years, and we chose not to see it."
"You mean the Karadra, the ship? Do not forget that its captain was my kin, Nastal. I am not indifferent to what happened."
"All the more reason to proceed carefully and devote every resource we possess to helping them."
The queen's expression hardened. She saw the hope in Nastal's eyes and extinguished it with only a few words.
"Help them? Whom? The criminal and his companions? I think not, Nastal. We have done our part and already committed considerable resources. Once the threat has been eliminated, Darmakaya must die."
She spoke without hesitation.
"I was willing to grant him his freedom after the mission. I told him so myself. But if Ilandro believes the Gargoyle may remain a danger through this creature in the future, then we must do what is right for the kingdom, however difficult it may be."
"My queen, if I might—"
A gesture silenced him.
"You forget yourself, priest. Do not mistake our familiarity for equality. Remember your place."
Nastal lowered his head.
"Darmakaya has committed every crime known to man. He is a murderer, a rapist, and a thief. He is the Stone Kraken. This mission gives him the chance to perform one good deed in his life, nothing more. We will not hand him redemption when he is conspiring against us."
Nastal gave a faint smile.
For a moment, he remembered the strength of his youth—the faith in the gods he had once placed above all else. For a moment, the authority of a queen seemed small.
"Redemption is not yours to grant, Queen Siriafil. Only the gods know the limits of men and of the other peoples. If the years have taught my heart anything, it is that Darmakaya's path is no longer what it once was."
He raised his eyes to meet hers.
"Fate has prepared another road for him. It was no accident that he became entangled in Fisherman Marbi's nets, nor was it chance that through him we learned everything we know today."
"So allow me, Your Majesty, to advise you once more, as I have throughout all these years. Do not kill Darmakaya. Do not imprison him. If he completes the mission, grant him the freedom you originally promised. He will have earned it."
The throne room remained silent, the air charged with tension.
A vein stood out along Siriafil's temple.
Nastal knew he had crossed the line.
"This is the last time you will speak to me in that manner, Nastal. It seems my absence, and the passing years, have given you more courage than wisdom."
"My decision is final. It will not change. Darmakaya will be dealt with accordingly. The knight accompanying him will surrender him to the authorities once the mission is complete. His honor will demand it."
"You will make that perfectly clear in the letter you yourself will prepare."
"You will have no further involvement in this matter. Your place is in the temple, where you will remain and teach the word of the gods."
Nastal was no longer afraid.
He understood that he had nothing left to lose. His only regret was that he had not used his influence sooner.
"A priest's duty is to the hearts of the people, my queen. I will not remain idle in this struggle between good and evil."
"I cannot continue ignoring the darkness in our seas—the darkness destroying our ships and stealing the lives of our young."
"I cannot ignore what happened in the Vespian Sea: the death of a Blade Guardian and the forces still lurking there."
"I will write the letter as you command. Afterward, I will resign my position."
Siriafil's eyes flashed. She was unaccustomed to anyone refusing to submit to her will.
"You will resign only if I permit it, Nastal. You will continue your duties as before. You will write the letter, and I will never again need to remind you how those duties are to be performed."
"Do you understand me?"
Nastal bowed so deeply that pain shot through his back.
"Yes, my queen."
"Perfectly."
Then he left to prepare the letter.