He entered on wings of authority, all dark robes and silent footfalls. Mai was tall, slender and broad-shouldered, his face pale beneath a black cowl framing the bluest eyes Rina had ever seen. Eyes that locked on hers and held her.

The magisters on the platform moved from the table and sunk to their knees. A moment later, the first chair screeched, followed by another and another until only Rina stood, frozen.

Mai smiled at her and quirked an eyebrow.

Flushing, she dropped to the ground, kneecaps screaming. The marble was cold and hard, despite the silk dress and underclothes she wore. She bent her spine and waited.

Eventually, Mai spoke with a soft, clear voice., "Rise, please."

Fabric rustled as the congregation stood and returned to their seats. Rina checked on Martha, noting her friend's wide eyes. So, Martha hadn't seen Mai, though she'd been called here years ago. Before Rina could process this, Mai continued.

"Welcome, cousins." The words rolled over her like the peel of a bell. "And thank you for waiting for me." His face was sincere, and again, those too-blue eyes fell on Rina. Her lips parted and she lost a breath. Mai paused. For a moment, she thought she saw doubt in his eyes, but it disappeared as quick.

"For too long, our people have been segregated, and "you have been told only part of the truth." His eyes sparkled. "Know I did this to protect Denean and Euran alike, and it has weighed on my soul. Tonight, I ask that you listen to the full story and forgive me."

Mumbles and murmurs filled the room again. Rina shifted in her chair. Even the Magister's on the dais stared at Mai.

Mai swallowed and began. "My parent's marriage was a political one. At the time Eurorar was rising in influence, while Denea, despite the Carnelian Way, was small and vulnerable. Denea was a fertile crescent, terraformed into the most beautiful place in the world, with the capital, Hypat, the jewel of the known world. For all that, Denea was dependent upon other nations for goods and protection. So, they allowed alliances between other nations—who in turn hoped to acquire Denea's secrets. They never did. The marriages were in name only. The blood must stay pure and the lore within the land.

"That changed with my parents'. My father married Princess Kiera of Eurora. They fell in love. I was the outcome. My grandfather, the king, let me live because he had four older sons, and the mages would not instruct me in the Carnelian Way—though my father did in secret.

"Fate, it seemed, went against my grandfather and his mages. My paternal uncles died under a series of tragic circumstances, until only my father and my young aunt, Elia, lived. Elia was a fanatic, and she lay with a powerful young Mage, Arkis, and bore him a son. They argued his pureblood would trump my mixed blood, though Elia was a woman and below my father in succession.

"My grandfather agreed to consider it. He never made a decision, though. He fell asleep one night and never woke up. So the law of primogeniture held.

"My father showed himself to be a wise ruler in the short time he reigned, and, though the people scorned my mother and me, many came to love him. When my father sickened, he sent my mother and me to Eurora to seek asylum from my maternal uncle, King Hellador. A good thing, too. Arkis and Elia claimed the throne, Arkis taking on the dual role of king and high-mage, and they had my father executed.

"My uncle wouldn't allow this. He led an armada to Denea's capital, Hypat, and ordered me to stay as regent. I tried, but something told me I needed to be there, so I took the remainder of the Eurora's military to Hypat.

"I came too late.

"Arkis and my aunt had rare gifts: the ability to drain, to leech, not only the energy from others with a trace of the Carnelian Way, but from those without it, and from the animals and plants and very rocks themselves. When it became apparent they were no match for my uncle's army, they used this power.

From our ships, we watched as the green shadow of Hypat was leeched to the colour of bone. We faced the wall of water Arkis and Elia summoned to destroy our fleet, and a few of us survived it." His voice trailed off before resuming with an unsteady cadence. "They lost control. The magic consumed Elia, and soon after, Arkis."

His mouth pinched, and his jaw clenched.

"You cannot imagine the fury that overcame me. My own blood did this. I knew Arkis and Elia wouldn't have risked Denea. Knew they would have hidden the most gifted children in the desert. My captains knew it, too, and urged me to kill them. Another Devastation could not happen—whatever cost. I found myself sorely tempted."

His hands lifted, and he pulled back his hood, revealing a face which made Rina's breath catch, framed by black hair in shoulder-length ringlets. Denese hair.

"However, my father was Denese."

He suddenly appeared uncertain. Rina noted the slight movement of his feet as though he fought to shuffle, the way his fingers inched closer together, then pulled apart, and the rolling of his Adam's apple.

"We found the survivors. They were children—innocents—and I, as the rightful king, their father. Yet, with the death of my uncle, I was also the leader of a country deeply wronged. An exposed one. One that would view the younglings as baby vipers unable to control their dangerous power, and so all the more deadly.

"I went to the Temple of Elia and took what I needed to study what the mages had kept from me. With this knowledge, I established a new system to safeguard both the Denese and the Eurans from the raw magic of the Carnelian Way. I searched out and found Euran's with the gift and taught them how to use it, creating the Magisterium and finding new ways to power Eurora.

"As for the Denese, it was too risky to teach their offspring to use the Carnelian Way, so I had it funnelled into practical trades, enabling the Denese to help make this nation prosperous again. Yet what if that wasn't enough? What about those who thought ill of Eurora? Those who might have had the potential to cause another Devastationn if they rebelled?

"This was why I created the devotions to release any unspent, Carnelian Way.

"Now the Carnelian Way is declining. In smaller cities and towns, there is an increase in the need to use wax and tallow candles, and disease spreads as our medics struggle to find methods to halt new mutations. I have studied hard, and come to the realisation that balance was met, and the debt paid, but the pendulum has swung too far the other way.

"Unfortunately, there is contention between the Euran's and the Denese. A legacy of fear and distrust. This is why you are here. It is time to start building ties between our peoples—just as my birth should have done.

"This is the dawn of a new age. Trusted members of the magisterium, Euran houses and Denese will get to know each other. The Denese will be seen. And, if they show the talent, will have the opportunity to learn how to harness the Carnelian Way and wield it for the good of Eurora."

★☾●☽★

A/N

Thank you again for reading. I am not sure how I feel about this part—it feels a little too much like exposition. Still, I hope you enjoyed it enough to hit that star!

What do you think of Mai?

Do you think he is telling the truth?

Any feedback—I'd love to hear it.

Jas oxox