Mervidia (6 page)

Speaking out of turn will not win you any friends here, Penn,
Kiva thought. The three most powerful houses in Mervidia traditionally held positions on the Coral Assembly, but which three houses held seats often changed as their fortunes rose and fell. House Paua had held a seat as long as anyone could remember, rising to power in the early days of Mervidia and remaining there as the cycles went by just as strong as the day of the house’s birth. Traditionally, Vaschel should have been the first house representative to voice his vote.
Are you making a move to advance your house by sucking up to the new regent and the Divine Family, or are you just purposefully trying to goad a reaction from Paua and Chimaera?
Kiva wondered. Making enemies of the highest house and the closely following second house was not wise.
What are you up to, Penn?
Kiva made a mental note to assign a few more eyes and ears to House Yellowtail.

Uchenna, showing his usual devious politeness, turned his tentacled head to look at Vaschel and nodded graciously.
Kiva admired the gesture. It was courteous, showing deference to the higher ranking House Paua, yet at the same time impertinent, as though Uchenna was allowing Vaschel to voice his vote first, despite the fact that it was already his place to weigh in before House Chimaera and House Yellowtail.

If Vaschel noticed the slight, he showed no sign of it.
“House Paua agrees with our ethyrie brethren and votes to install Iago as regent.” He nodded his pink-skinned head in turn to Damaris and then to Iago, letting his gaze slide to Penn. Though Vaschel’s face showed no emotion, his eyes stayed on Penn for several moments longer than was truly polite.

Oh, well played,
Kiva thought.
Remind everyone around the room that you count allies amongst two seats on the Coral Assembly while also subtly reminding them you are the head of the most influential house as well. The fact that the soon to be installed regent is your son is not hurting your position either.

Vaschel turned his meaningful look away from Penn and nodded to Uchenna, acknowledging that it was now his turn to speak, with
the ethyrie’s permission of course. Kiva thrilled inwardly at the subtle and sublime politics being played out before her.

“House Chimaera bows to the will of the Coral Assembly and supports its decision to place Iago as temporary Regent of Mervidia,” Uchenna said.
His voice was deep and smooth, resonating nicely in the intervening water. Kiva couldn’t help but listen. It was one of those voices that could command a room, while never rising above the volume of a normal conversation between friends.

Kiva noticed that one of Uchenna’s tentacles was resting ever so slightly on Quag’s muscular, rough
ly scaled arm. Meanwhile, the grogstack was looking intently at Penn. Quag, unlike Vaschel, was making no effort to hide his anger at the Yellowtail.
What has got your tail in a knot?
Kiva pondered. A moment’s thought brought the solution to her swift and clever mind.
Oh, you do not like someone slighting your master, do you, shark?
The faera knew that Quag was grateful to Uchenna for campaigning to get a grogstack representative placed on the Coral Assembly, as were all grogstack to some extent. Kiva was surprised though that Quag had noticed that Penn had spoken out of turn. Uchenna had placed a calming tentacle on the hulking merwin’s arm, gently reminding him that this was neither the time nor the place to show his displeasure. Again, Kiva felt a grudging respect for the head of House Chimaera. A powerful kalku in his own right, Uchenna had a strong house behind him, a powerful ally sitting literally right next to him, as well as all the other grogstack who saw him as a friend to their people.
Odette,
Kiva thought,
you chose well when you selected Uchenna as your husband.
Both of the heads of House Chimaera would bear continued scrutiny in the future. Octolaides in general were devious creatures, but add in the fact that both Uchenna and Odette were powerful practitioners of the darker aspects of Merwin sorcery as well as had strong political aspirations, and it created a dangerous amalgamation.
Or powerful, albeit perilous, allies.
Kiva’s mind wandered as she attempted to figure out ways to use the octolaide to her advantage.

“So it is unanimous,” Iago said, his voice betraying a tremor of
anxiousness, but still remarkably steady given the recent assassination of his wife. The ethyrie rose, his soft iridescent pink hair undulating with the motion.

The newly installed regent’s proclamation brought Kiva out of her labyrinthine musings.
Well, of course it is, you dolt,
she thought.
Anyone who voted against it would have immediately looked like a traitor at best and the assassin at worst.
Kiva did not hold much confidence that Iago would sit on the throne for long. His grasp of politics was abysmal and, while the Coral Assembly had voted unanimously to install him as regent, the faera knew that it was simply a method to buy time and keep the plebian populous content while they figured out who was actually going to wear the Fangs.

“As tradition dictates,” Iago said, his words trembling at first but gaining strength, “there will be a mourning period of five days, after which the Coral Assembly will meet again to decide the future of Mervidia’s throne.”
Despite being a fully grown merwin, the male ethyrie looked exceptionally young in that moment, eagerness all too apparent in his greedy smile. Iago had been groomed from birth to be consort. Sadly though, he really was too soft to be the one to hold tight the reigns of the mighty beast that was Mervidia.

Poor Iago,
Kiva thought.
There really is a part of you that thinks you will be crowned, is there not?
It was all the faera could do to keep a look of pity off her face.

The regent continued
, “Arrangements have already been put in motion for Queen Beryl’s funeral proceedings.” Iago’s voice caught, predictably, at the mention of his dead wife’s name, but he flushed his gills and persisted. “The Queen’s body will be moved, with all honors rightly hers, from the Royal Palace to King’s Reef, where she will be interred with her predecessors, the Kings of Mervidia. A space is already being prepared for her next to her father, King Reth.”

A quiet sob escaped from behind Damaris’ delicate webbed hands.
The Queen Mother’s grief was apparently real, Kiva decided. The outburst was too sincere to be faked.

“Once all the details have been finalized, you will be notified as to how the procession will be arranged,” Iago said.

Probably the same way as last time, when we interred Reth,
Kiva suspected.
It has only been a year since we put the old king in the coral. We have not forgotten our places that quickly.
Each house would be represented in the funeral procession, its order and the size of its contingent dictated by the house’s ranking.

“In the meantime,” Regent Iago stated, his voice steadying further, “I have already instructed the
captain of the Palace Guard to begin an investigation into Beryl’s assassination.”

Kiva looked around the
Assembly table and imagined that her eyes were as wide as all the other council members. No one had expected Iago to take the initiative to launch an investigation into the queen’s death; it really wasn’t his place to do so. The young consort was showing signs of leadership that none thought he possessed.

Only Vaschel’s face did not hold an expression of surprise.
The Domo of House Paua simply nodded in approval, his milky eyes instead portraying a tiny glimmer of pride.
Daddy likes that you are taking charge, little regent,
Kiva thought. Vaschel had groomed his son from an egg to marry Beryl and unite House Paua and House Lumen on the throne.
A son spawned from the union would have been better though, would it not, Vaschel?

Despite the political ambitions that Vaschel held for House Paua, the
domo was still a traditionalist at heart. Royal blood coursing through the veins of a grandchild on the throne would have been ideal, but Vaschel wasn’t so mired in tradition that he would relinquish such a momentous opportunity as his son earning the Fangs through his own deeds.

When Kiva looked back to Iago, she caught the tail end of a strange look on the face of Dam
aris, as she raised her eyes from behind her hands to look at her daughter’s consort. Kiva could not see enough of the Queen Mother’s expression to discern its intent. It was quick and too much of Damaris’ face was hidden for anything definitive to be determined. It appeared as if the look might have been one of confusion or anger but was too brief a glimpse for Kiva to make a strong guess.

Iago looked around the room.
The members of the Coral Assembly had all assumed looks of nonchalance once more. Their initial shock at Iago’s announcement was a fleeing memory in Kiva’s sharp mind. “If there is no more business, then I will conclude the Coral Assembly for today,” Iago said. The smaller chunks of orihalcyon set into the sconces around the room flickered, their waxing auburn light resonating strangely with the regent’s words. Kiva felt a tremor of uneasiness pass through her. Only the machi and kalku claimed to fully know the properties of the arcane mineral orihalcyon that the grogstack pulled out of the Deep Mines, but Kiva was not entirely convinced of the totality of the sorcerous merwins’ knowledge. She had yet to be fully persuaded that the substance wasn’t somehow dangerous. After all, no one, machi, kalku, or otherwise, had been able to explain to her why the gems waxed and waned in color, defining their seasons, or why the Deep Mines somehow caused such grotesque mutations amongst the grogstack instead of just killing them after prolonged exposure, as they did to all the other races of Merwin.

Kiva forced the flutter of fear down deep inside of her.
Now was not the time to waiver in her course.

Chapter Six

With the Assembly formally concluded, each of the representatives filtered out of the room, pausing to briefly express their condolences publically to Damaris and Iago, before joining their personal guard in the waiting area outside the assembly hall.
Kiva held back, as she always did, to observe the interactions between the representatives as they departed. Most offered very formal, outwardly sympathetic, comfort to the Queen Mother. Only Nayan, the jellod representative, actually took Damaris’ hands though, expressing genuine sorrow and commiseration.
Always such a remora, Nayan,
Kiva inwardly scoffed. How such a soft-shelled creature had survived this long was beyond the faera.

In contrast, each of
the other merwin bowed their heads to Regent Iago, some by only the most miniscule amount but still making the gesture nonetheless. They strongly gripped his hand before passing through the chamber doors.

Motion out of the corner of her eye caught Kiva’s attention, and she turned to see Uchenna and Quag speaking quietly in the farthest corner
of the seating area from where Damaris and Iago informally held court. The octolaide was floating sedately, his tentacles undulating gently beneath him. Though he was looking up at the grogstack that towered over him, Uchenna somehow still maintained an impression of superiority over Quag. Kiva had to admit that she was jealous of Uchenna’s ability to do so, despite the grogstack’s obvious physical presence.
Perhaps it is that ostentatious purple kelp coat you insist on wearing, Uchenna?
she wondered. Clothing of any kind on the torso of a merwin was unusual. It could interfere with movement or foul their lower gills. The fact that the Domo of House Chimaera was wearing such a large garment covering most of him from the top of his tentacles up to his neck was an obvious sign of his confidence in dealing with any threat that might come up. Kiva again felt a mixture of jealously and admiration for the octolaide.

Kiva surreptitiously swam closer to the pair, hoping to discern what they were discussing in such hushed tones, but was quickly spotted by the perceptive Uchenna, who placed a hand on Quag’s shoulder before gesturing to the approaching
faera.

“Domo Kiva,” the
octolaide said, his tone courteous and his voice deep and resonant. “How may I assist you this sad day?” Kiva knew Uchenna to be a devious and dangerous adversary, but she couldn’t help but be lulled by his words. The octolaide played the game of politics in Mervidia exceedingly well. She often wondered if he was the same in the privacy of his own house as he was in the assembly hall. Her spies had been unable to infiltrate House Chimaera, yet.

“It is more how I can assist you, Domo Uchenna,” she responded.
“And our stalwart ally here.” Kiva floated at a polite height between Uchenna and Quag, but found herself drifting closer to the octolaide. She enjoyed having a superior position to the Domo of House Chimaera, but she did not want to inadvertently insult Quag by looking down on him. She shied away from the grogstack’s tooth-filled maw though. The image of a shark sitting down at a dinner table popped into her head again.

“How can you help me?” Quag said without preamble.
Subtlety was not in the grogstack’s repertoire, but Kiva was once again surprised by his ability to speak as articulately as he did.

Perhaps I have underestimated you, Quag,
she thought before answering. “My sources tell me that a grogstack was spotted fleeing the palace shortly before the queen’s body was discovered.”

Quag’s ta
il twitched the barest amount, but it brought him quickly and dangerously close to the faera. Kiva fought down the urge to dart away from the hulking creature. When he opened his mouth to speak, she drifted backwards a little.

“That is a bad rumor.
You should not spread it, tiny faera,” Quag said, his milky white eyes eerily calm as he spoke.

Uchenna raised a hand, placing it gingerly between the
grogstack and Kiva. “Our faera friend means no harm, Quag,” he said, his voice gentle and reassuring. “If Kiva meant to harm you or your people with this information, she would have brought it up openly before the Assembly. But, she is telling us, and only us, in confidence. Isn’t that right, Kiva?” Uchenna turned his tentacled head to look at Kiva, his eyes holding an imploring look and a miniscule amount of amusement. He enjoyed having a shark like Quag on his leash. Kiva couldn’t blame him.

“Of course,” she said, raising her hands in a placating gesture.
“I bring you this information to help you, so that you and Domo Uchenna can have a plan in place to deal with this vile rumor.” Kiva knew that it wasn’t rumor. A grogstack had been seen swimming from the palace, by one of her own agents no less, but she didn’t think that Quag would appreciate the subtle difference. It wasn't a point she wanted to belabor this close to the beast either.

“See, my friend,” Uchenna said, his rich, smooth voice gentle.
“Kiva wants to help us. She knows many things that could help us.” The octolaide spared a moment to give her a meaningful glance. Uchenna wanted Kiva to give him more information, and he was using the threat of the grogstack to coerce her into it.

A small bubble of anger rose from Kiva’s core, but she fought it down.
It would do her no good. Besides, if she could show Quag how helpful she could be, she might have a chance of loosening Uchenna’s grip on him. A genuine smile broke out on Kiva’s face at the thought of Quag and the grogstack swimming together in a school, following her lead. “Unfortunately, I have no further information that I can give you right now,” she said carefully. Kiva shot the Domo of House Chimaera a look of her own.
You are not going to force me to tell my secrets that easily, Uchenna.
It was a risk she was willing to take. She doubted the octolaide was going to sick his pet grogstack on her in the middle of the Assembly chamber. Kiva returned her gaze to Quag. “However, if I come across anything that can help you, I will bring it to your attention as quickly as I can, of course.” She flashed Quag a very genuine looking, if wholly insincere, smile.

The
grogstack seemed to buy it, and he backed away to a respectful distance. Kiva doubted that Quag was capable of subterfuge, but she would be a fool to take anything in this room at face value. Kiva was coming to realize that Quag was unusually intelligent for his race. No wonder Uchenna had fought so hard to keep him on the Coral Assembly, when the motion had been made to have him removed for his early outbursts.
You don’t kill a loyal well-trained shark just because he bites one of your neighbor’s kids,
Kiva thought. Uchenna had probably noticed Quag a long time ago and had been mentoring him ever since to become his ally on the Assembly. The House Chimaera domo was many things, but shortsighted was not one of them.

“Thank you, Domo Kiva,” Uchenna said, his tone gracious.
He knew that she wasn’t giving them all the information that she had, but he couldn’t have expected that of her. Uchenna knew how this game was played. Secrets and rare information were the main blades in Kiva’s arsenal. She wasn’t going to disarm herself at the first threat from his pet.

“Of course,” Kiva replied, looking pointedly at the
grogstack. “If there is anything I can do for you, Representative Quag, please do not hesitate to come visit me. I will immediately make time to aid you.” There was a subtle promise in Kiva’s words that she hoped the grogstack would understand, though she wasn’t closing her gills while she waited for his slow-witted brain to catch up.

Uchenna, on the other hand, saw the delicate invitation for exactly what it was.
“If you’ll please excuse us, Domo Kiva, my good friend and I have much to discuss, and we wouldn’t want to bore you with such trivialities.”

Kiva took the hint and nodded to both merwin, before swimming towards the exit of the A
ssembly chamber. She stopped to give her
sincerest
condolences to the Queen Mother before heading back to House Perna. Her guards fell in behind her, as she made her way through the passages of the central building that housed the meeting place of the Coral Assembly and the other official rooms needed to govern Mervidia. As she exited the building into open water, she noticed a couple of her agents moving furtively between the buildings around her. They were barely visible on the edge of the light from the orihalcyon lanterns on the houses and those that her guards carried. Kiva doubted that anyone else had seen the faera in the auburn light, but hers was the standard by which they must all be judged. When she arrived home, she would have the agents she spotted scourged with raw coral for being so careless. The other half dozen she knew to be lurking around, however, she did not see, luckily for them. These skilled merwin would, as always, be the ones wielding the instruments of torment for the few that she had spied.
After all,
she thought,
there ought to be some reward for doing one’s job well.