Jayesh had been surprised to see Queen Dawn of the Lumna kingdom fly in on that griffin her husband had tamed for her. She looked far different than she had the first time he had ever seen her, when King Arrion had swung by with the haggard looking girl he would later take as his queen.There was still a coldness about her golden eyes, but there was more confidence as well. Her golden hair had become fuller and more vibrant, and she had gained a healthier weight. She was undoubtedly a beauty, though not really Jayesh"s type. He much preferred his own sweet hearted queen to Arrion"s cold beauty.
It was not often he saw Dawn, though he had seen her since she had married his old friend. Even when Arrion visited him though, he did not always bring his queen. Or that is his queen sometimes refused to come. According to Arrion, Carendlus was the only place she was willing to go, and that only because of Kaldrek. Kaldrek had told her that she was a Child of the Sun almost as soon as he had seen her and that had won her respect. She had bugged him ever since for more information on what a Sun"s Child was capable of.
She had requested him to send for Kaldrek and then as they waited, proceeded to offer her late congratulations to both him and Fayre on their marriage as she had not attended the wedding with her husband. He accepted it gracefully, wondering to himself what had brought her away from home without her husband dragging her.
Fayre seemed a bit curious on who the woman was, so he introduced them, "Fayre, this is King Arrion"s wife, Dawn."
He noticed a slightly odd look on Dawn"s face as he mentioned her husband. But because it swiftly disappeared, and his own queen was talking to him, he put it out of his mind, "King Arrion? Is he the tall, black haired man who seemed to joke a lot but somehow everyone still respected him? The one with the odd-"
"Kaleidoscope eyes…" Dawn finished, "That just about describes him, yes." Her voice sounded terse and a little upset as she turned and looked away. She was quiet for a few minutes before speaking again, this time in a softer tone, "I heard that you were attacked, little queen. I am pleased that you are alright."
"Thank you," While Fayre accepted it gracefully, Jayesh was a bit taken aback. This was not like the Dawn he had always seen. Something was off, she was normally more aloof. Though maybe it was just Fayre. His queen had an aura that just drew people in. Perhaps even the queen of Lumna was not immune to her charms.
A silence fell on the room again, until Kaldrek showed up, Zylvia in tow. The two of them looked slightly tired but they were both smiling, Zylvia broadly and Kaldrek softly. Kaldrek raised an eyebrow when he saw Dawn but said nothing.
"Right," Dawn looked at them, saying nothing about the fact that the two women were here, "I am sure you are wondering why I am here."
"Mildly so," Jayesh admitted. "Especially when Arrion is not with you. Where is he, by the way?"
Her eyes went totally blank, "Dead." Her voice carried a hint of grief that surprised Jayesh.
"Dead? Arrion?" Jayesh was astonished and disbelief went throughout him. "How? He was perfectly healthy last time I saw him, and he was one of the best combatants that I ever saw."
More than the idea of Arrion being dead being astonishing was the fact that his wife actually seemed to care. Dawn"s eyes, now that he looked closer, had a strangely haunted look to them.
"a.s.sa.s.sins. There were two of them. He was distracted by something I had said to him not long before; I suppose." She paused, taking a struggling breath, "And they blinded him, threw acid onto his eyes… I watched as they killed him – as they threw his body off the ramparts."
She shook herself, "It was the same people who attacked your queen. They"ve attacked every one of our allies as well. To varying degrees of success."
She paused, clearly agitated, "I tried to find out everything I could, but it was not much… that is why I came here. Arrion, the idiot, died without my permission and now I have to avenge him. But to do that I need to find those responsible."
Now that sounded more like the Dawn Jayesh was familiar with. She looked up at Kaldrek, "I was hoping your sorcerer would have a way to find out more."
"Well, we have already wrac-"
Kaldrek spoke up then, "Actually I did figure something out. Zylvia and I were just doing so." He gestured to his wife, a slight look of pride on his face as she pulled a crystal globe out of the bag hanging from her waist.
"Really?" Jayesh shook his head, "Of course you would turn around and find something after all, huh?"
"Wonderful, then we can start getting back at those villainous little insects." Dawn"s smile was chilling.
Zylvia was looking at Dawn a little curiously so Kaldrek introduced her, "My love, this is Queen Dawn of Lumna. Dawn, this is my wife Zylvia."
Jayesh did not mention it had been a little late on Kaldrek"s part to do so. At least he had remembered. A swelling of pride went through Jayesh at the thought that Kaldrek had grown a lot more capable at social norms.