With an Unexpected Visitor.

The throne room is nearly empty. Few more than ten people populate its expanse. You worked very hard to be one of them.

You watch as the ornate wooden doors swing open, and through them stride two figures.

You recognize the first as the court mage, Lady Aenestis. Her white-blonde hair and elegant dress are unmistakeable.

The second you recognize only from description. He is tall, with wide shoulders and a muscular frame. he has dark hair, and his eyes have an air of cold intelligence to them.

_The mysterious Marc Lenkovar. looks like I was right to come here today. _You think to yourself, relieved.

The young man takes a knee before the throne while lady Aenestis goes to stand at the queen's side.

The queen, for her part, looks as though she is carved from stone. She sits calmly on the throne, her pose portraying both power and restraint. Her grey eyes regard the kneeling man, and her gaze, while not cold, is far from kind.

When she speaks, her voice is soft, but confident.

“Welcome Marc Lenkovar, son of Eleana Lenkovar, Duchess of the lands of Mertone. Your mother was a good friend and a great servant of the Kingdom. Her absence for now almost twenty years has been sorely felt.”

She pauses slightly after that, her voice cracking slightly.

“You come to us at a troubled time. Kyra one of the most cherished daughters of Estara, who also happens to be a dear little cousin of mine, has been missing for a week. We fear for the worst. There are rumors of unrest and rebellion in the capital itself and, even though the idea that a man would dare to lay his hands on a woman of one of the noblest lineage of Estera is ridiculous, we can’t ignore it.”

You knew her. Kyra Draigo was a knight, and one of the few people you couldn't beat in a practice bout. She was the lover of one of your underlings once.

The queen's mention of unrest and sedition in that capital piques your interest, however, as you are the unrest in the capital. You doubt she has detected your operations, but you silently vow to be more cautious in the future, just in case.

She continues.

“You can imagine that your visit couldn’t come at a worse time. However, we have let your situation be ignored for too long. Partly because your mother had always been an ally of the Kingdom, that's true, but also because of my own weaknesses in wanting to spare her for her monumental error of judgment: deciding to keep you.”

The women in the room begin smiling, hate evident in their faces.You add your own spiteful smile to the mix, blending in with the others as well as you can.

“As you well know, you should have been put to adoption as soon as you were born. No man after all shall become a noble according to our laws-”

Marc speaks suddenly, cutting the queen off. “But according to the letter that I received, I was summoned here so that the passing of my mother’s title to me would be made official…”

“A ruse that we deplore, but your mother our hand. She has still a small army at her disposal and we wished to avoid a civil war that would have led to senseless casualties. That is why we made you come here.”

She signals a scribe, who promptly hands the young man a sheet of parchment.

“Here is an official document that we expect you to sign voluntarily. But make no mistakes; it won’t make much of a difference if you don't. Take a few days to get acquainted with it. It’s proof that you acknowledge the surrendering of your title and properties to the Kingdom. We will be charged to designate the most able woman to govern your mother’s lands as she didn’t produce a female heir."

you perk up at that, seeing an opportunity, but your hopes are swiftly dashed when the queen speaks again.

“You might be glad to learn that Marina, my eldest daughter is the most likely candidate. She is very able. The experience could be very formative to her before she succeeds me as the Head of the Kingdom.”

The queen nods to a red-haired woman wearing ornate armor, to her right.

Marina smiles smugly, but otherwise does not react.

“So you give my lands to a child for her to play with?" Marc asks, his voice livid.

You hear a shocked murmur go through the court, and you see Marina, her smile now gone, begin to reach for her sword.

The Queen raises her hand, and that small gesture is enough to quiet the crowd.

“I will consider that your words were said under the influence of fatigue. And that you didn’t mean to insult a member of the royal family or to question a decision made by Estara’s Queen.”

She leans forward and her tone softens.

“It isn’t entirely your fault. I understand your frustrations. Despite all of the love I have for her, I can recognize that your mother was foolish to raise you so liberally and delude you with the hope that you could ever succeed her.”

She returns to her previous position, and when she speaks again, her voice has steel in it.

“ Still, men who can’t control their basest urges have no place in Estara and we have long ago purged the country from their kind. A servant will now show you to your quarters. You shall wait here until we summon you again. Now go. I advise you to sleep on it. Night is the mother of counsel.”

A common piece of rhetoric. The idea that men cannot control their animal instincts, and are as such a danger to others. You have heard it before, but it doesn't change your mind. The fact is, the only person that ever showed you kindness was a man, and Estara killed him for it.

Marc stands, his fists clenched in restrained fury, and gives the queen a curt nod before turning and following the servant out of the throne room.

Interesting, you think to yourself. Estara's first nobleman. It seems unlikely that he will take this humiliation lying down. I shall have to keep an eye on him. I suppose I should also investigate the disappearance of lady Draigo, though I doubt anything of import will come of it.

You nod, your mind made up, and quietly slide out of the throne room.