Enlightened Empire

While Corco sauntered along the harbor and tried to forget about his worries for a moment, Sumaci followed along. As always, she asked her tricky questions with an eager face.

"Of course not, Lady Sumaci. After all, Pacha has created the world for humanity to conquer. Since the Divines have ama.s.sed within the heavens, us mortals are left here on Earth. If the G.o.ds do not watch over us, how could we ever fall under their rule?"

Meanwhile, Mayu had stuck himself in between the two, and tried to answer Sumaci to the best of his ability, which meant: Not very well. Although his cousin"s answer missed the point and was problematic in several other ways, Corco really didn"t care to correct him.

After his meeting with the green king, Corco had decided to stay on Rasacopa for a while. Anything else would have seemed rude, as far as the young king was concerned. Thus, he had spent a few days on a diplomatic sightseeing tour. First he had visited the local Pacha oracle, though he had decided to not get distracted by a reading. The mercury was dangerous anyways. Still, the ancient temple, hidden in the deep jungle, had been no less imposing than cla.s.sic Medalan architecture. After, he had traveled all over the island, seen the great hidden bay of Auquimarca, the flame jugglers of Jurau, and the Jirishanca, King Hulpatec"s personal collection of exotic animals. Meanwhile, Prince Wacoca had gotten their vessel ready for another journey. Meanwhile, his two tails had always behind him. Sumaci had annoyed him with question after question, while Mayu had annoyed Sumaci with his incessant, unhelpful answers.

Thus, a strange tension had built among their group over the past few days. Eager to find something else to talk about, Corco looked around. In the end, he was alerted to a bustle from the front. This was strange, since they were still close to the green king"s mansion. For days, the only noise around him had been his two newest companions, so he had gotten used to it. While he followed the newest distraction to the harbor, Sumaci and Mayu were talking past each other all the way. At last Corco saw a crowd huddle around a pair, a man and a woman. With the sort of oblivious glow only lovers could exude, the two stood in between two large groups, who shouted congratulations at them.

"What"s that? A marriage procession?" Corco asked, half out of curiosity and half to get Sumaci"s mind off her incessant questions.

"Indeed," Mayu replied instead. "The Verdant Folk still follow old traditions. Thus, they have kept the old marriage rites of our ancestors alive and well. Can you see that ship over there?" he pointed to a small rowboat fastened to the pier. Over and over, the boat had been covered in vibrant green vines. "On top of this boat, the couple will go to visit a lonely island, and they will need to fend for themselves for an entire day. Only once they have proven that they can care for each other will they be rescued by their relatives. Medala might still retain this tradition in our marital walk, but the tradition has been... "civilized"."

Mayu"s face scrunched up in displeasure before he continued. "Since some couples came to death during their walks through the wilderness, the entire ritual has lost its edge. Modern Medalan couples only stroll around the countryside for half a day, with no danger to their lives. It has taken all meaning out of the rituals of our ancestry, and it no longer challenges the devotion between husband and wife like it should."

"I was unaware you knew this much about the Verdant traditions, Governor Saqartu," the princess said, and turned to Mayu. For the first time since they had gone on their own strolls, Sumaci looked seemed in Corco"s cousin.

"Of course I would. House Saqartu has controlled the land along the Verduic Sea for generations and we have always been a dear friend to our brothers and sisters across the waters." With a silly smirk, the governor puffed out his chest before he glanced over to Corco. "What sort of lord would I be if I did not know the rites of our closest allies, even worse, the rites of our own people?"

In response, the king only had an eye roll to offer. They had clashed over a similar issue before when Mayu had shown a lack of respect. However, ever since Corco got the upper hand during his first banquet, Mayu had remained respectful towards his cousin, anywhere except in front of the verdant princess. At least "Lord Saqartu"s" actions didn"t seem malicious any more, no longer motivated by his pride or his l.u.s.t for power. To Corco, the young lord seemed more like a kid eager to show off in front of his pretty teacher. Maybe it would have even been a bit cute, had Mayu not been a middle-aged man already.

No matter how laughable Corco found the entire interaction, it was time to retreat and let them sort stuff out together. Just as the king looked for an excuse to leave the pair behind, Sumaci ruined his plans. Conscious or not, she really had a knack for that sort of thing.

"Heavens! Isn"t this Aya!? Why is little Aya getting married!? Excuse me, I will be right back!" Sumaci shouted, before she rushed over to the crowd. Her arms flailed in the air as her goodbyes to her old friend mixed in with the rest of the crowd.

Against Corco"s expectations, Mayu stayed behind.

"What do you think?" he asked, his eyes still glued to the princess, who had broken through the cordon and embraced the bride-to-be.

"I think it"s a good idea." Corco wouldn"t pretend ignorance at Mayu"s intentions. Had he failed to notice Mayu"s attempts to court Sumaci, he would have been called an idiot, and rightly so. "You"re over thirty, so you"re the right age to think about marriage anyways. Plus, you"re the lord of Puscanacra now, and your position is secure."

"Unless-"

"Don"t start." His hand raised to his cousin"s face, a deep frown covered Corco"s face. Maybe it was the heavy contrast from his previous bored look, but Mayu calmed down before his rant could even begin. "I don"t mind if you put me down a bit to show off in front of your new girlfriend, but say another bad word about Atau and we"ll be enemies again before you can finish your sentence. You"re brothers, and both of you have your own paths. Atau"s not even interested in your f.u.c.king position, so it"s nothing but paranoia. If we want to unite against the north, properly, this petty s.h.i.t has to stop."

For a few moments more, Mayu matched his cousin"s gaze, before he looked down to fix his fancy red robe.

"...I apologize," he said in a deep and earnest voice. Maybe there was hope yet.

"You should apologize to your brother, not to me," Corco sighed.

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As they shared some silence of peace, their eyes followed the newly married pair. Now that the bride had pried herself away from the clingy Sumaci, the pair had stepped onto the little boat. Soon they would set course for one of the tiny islands which dotted the sea all around the great island.

"Maybe one day," Mayu said at last, more to himself than to his king.

Rather than force the issue, Corco decided to give the young lord some time to think. As Mayu settled into his position more and more, he shouldn"t feel any more threat from Atau and the problem would disappear on its own. Thus, the king addressed the only issue his subservient seemed to value more than his patriarch position.

"Anyways, you"ve got your t.i.tle, a calm estate and you"re the right age. There"s no reason for you to not marry. Meanwhile, Sumaci is what, twenty-two?"

"Twenty," Mayu said, and showed the sort of expression halfway between disdain and anger, unsure whether he wanted to be offended by Corco"s lack of Sumaci-related knowledge, or whether he felt pity for the unenlightened king.

"Right. For a princess she"s getting a bit old as well, so it"s time for her to look for a proper partner. I"m sure her father"s already looking anyways, so there should be no hurdle there. She"s a princess, so you"re well matched, and a marriage pact is a great way to pull the Green King into the alliance with our family. If you plan to pursue Sumaci, you have whatever support I can offer. I"m all for it."

At once Mayu"s face was all smiles. As he nodded, he looked back over to Sumaci, who stood at the pier and watched the lovers come in and out of view as they bobbed across the waves. Of course, Corco was also aware of the old rites. According to ancient legend, the first rulers of Medala, now Divine Protectors of the imperial family, had found one another in a life-and-death struggle against an ancient beast. It was the sort of romance Corco would expect from a martial society surrounded by enemies.

"Now if only Princess Sumaci could look upon me the same way she looks upon you, cousin." Mayu said in a sour tone and brought Corco out of his thoughts.

"You"re not really jealous of me, are you? It"s not like Sumaci is interested in me. She"s just not convinced that I am smarter than her," the king gloated. "In the end, the girl just wants to make me look dumb. Though of course, some little girl could never be a match to the great King Corcopaca!"

While Corco offered his fakest laugh, hand on hip, Mayu looked unconvinced. His face scrunched together, his eyes soon turned back to the pier again, where his mouth loosened and his eyebrows tightened further. What a love-struck fool his cousin was.

"Okay, I"ll tell you what: In a day, I will leave for the west, to Chutwa."

"You still have not told me what we plan to do in the Chutwa Empire. Are the lands to the west not allies to King Amautu?"

"It"s not that simple," Corco raised a finger, happy to do the teaching for a change. "Even in a small place like Medala, there"s an infinite supply of interests and backstabbers. Chutwa is at least ten times bigger than Medala, so why would everyone there be Amautu"s ally? For now, I will go visit my sister and her new husband. Maybe I can come back with a deal. And since this is a private matter of the imperial family, there is no need for a large entourage."

"Corco, you wish me to remain here?"

In response, Corco smiled his most genuine smile, well-practiced from years of business and politics.

"You"re free to come if you feel like it, but I"d say it"s a bit of a waste, right? After all, you"d only sit by the side, and you don"t even know my plans yet. Don"t forget, we still need to deal with Pacha, so I can"t waste a bunch of time to get you ready for negotiations. No, it"s much better if we split up. While Wacoca and I will travel west and establish a trade network to counter the northern blockade, you can stay here with Sumaci, and... win her over I guess. That way I"ll be out of your hair, and the weird girl can concentrate on you alone."

"But what happens if she is still not interested after you have left?"

With worry, Corco looked at his cousin, who seemed clueless when it came to girls. Had this guy never spent any time with courtesans, or played around in the commoner"s quarters? For any other young n.o.ble, that was the standard modus operandi, but somehow Mayu had missed out on important experiences. At least with his shrewd mother still around, he wouldn"t get taken advantage off.

"...if, even with all the help, you still can"t get the girl, it"s on you. Don"t worry though, you just have to be yourself. Show some confidence, man. Aren"t you always good at that?" With a hearty slap, Corco tried to encourage his cousin, but Mayu turned pale, his eyes unfocused, set on some horrific scenario in his future.

For a while the two stared at each other, speechless. Meanwhile, each of the two families at the harbor released a raven, to guide the happy couple on their course. With the release of the celestial messengers, their festivities were over. Now it was up to the couple alone to survive within the inhospitable dangers of the wild tropics. As they watched Sumaci return from among the crowd, Corco decided to leave the dating advice here for now.

"So that"s that," he said. "We"ll make quick work of that Chutwa lord and try to get back within two weeks. Make use of that time and show me some progress when I"m back. After all: If we want to deal with Pacha and his new allies, we will need some strong supporters of our own."