Page 80 of A Monarch's Fall

“You are. You were never born to rule, I understand. Damia left, fearful of war and fearful of potential obligation. You are the daughter of my daughter in so many ways: in your eyes and the shape of your face, in your stubbornness, and when I first saw you for one painful moment, I thought she had finally come home. You are my daughter’s daughter in so many wonderful ways, but you are not controlled by fear. When Hades’ Delight threatened someone you thought you loved, you did the impossible at great risk to yourself and found a cure. When you were abducted by Ardens and Vouna in the summer, it’s my understanding that you escaped a dungeon and Vouna guardsmen, and when True North attacked, you sought shelter in the most unforgiving of places and found it. You are Persephone of Flores. You are a direct heir of this coven. There is no other capable of leading us when I am gone,” she told me.

“I’m no noble,” I said.

“No, you are not, you are Royal,” she replied.

“I think my reputation has grown arms and legs and walked away. I’m not who you think I am. I’m not a coven leader, andI’m certainly not Royal. I’m a fisherman’s daughter,” I said. That was the truth of it. What it really boiled down to. If it weren’t for Selene, that’s all I was.

“You are my granddaughter and the firstborn of Oceanus Maria, son of Nikolas Auster II, son of Prince Nikolas Auster. You are heir to the Auster kingdom,” she told me.

“There is no Auster Kingdom and hasn’t been for almost two centuries,” I reminded her.

“The land and people have not forgotten. Your reputation is not unwarranted; you have, without any effort to do so, entirely unintentionally met the requirements of your lineage. Your birth was not planned through careful marriage; your mother was never destined to inherit my place, your father was never given a title or crown, but the fates have a plan for you,” she told me confidently and released my hand.

“My father is having another child, a son,” I said, hoping it would release me from whatever destiny she was claiming fate had planned out for me.

Lady Flores smiled sympathetically at me and took a sip of her tea.

“Auster was unique in that it was not patriarchal. Succession is through the firstborn, regardless of gender,” she said. “You cannot escape who you are through a technicality. No one great ever wanted to be. The heroes did not choose themselves to be such. Fate set them on the road, and when challenge met them, they rose to the task. You believe yourself unworthy and unready for what I am asking of you, but you are not alone,” she reassured.

“I don’t know exactly what you are asking of me,” I said quietly, my mind swimming with the concept of leading Flores. I couldn’t lead Flores. I had to get back to Selene. My place was with her, not ruling an army bent on destroying her and her kingdom.

“Our food will be getting cold,” Lady Flores said as she reached over and removed the cloche from the two plates, revealing a breakfast of freshly sliced fruits and miniature pastries. “Let’s eat, and we'll talk about the future we envision.”

I took a gulp of my coffee. It felt like no matter my protests, Lady Flores had decided what my future would be. Was this the great secret Arvid sensed she was keeping? Was this what he wanted to know? How would he respond to such knowledge? Would he still help me leave? Would he kill me himself for fear of not getting his title as ruler of the Southern Houses?

“The New Foundation has the ultimate aim of dethroning the Borealis crown and disassembling the House system to replace it with a just and equal society. The first steps are easily agreed upon; there is no love for Borealis or her allies here. But it is what comes after that that is more complex. There will be those in every region of the land who will have fought against us. It is imperative that we do everything we can to ensure a smooth transfer of power. The fighting cannot continue forever,” she said.

I swallowed the raspberry I had picked from my plate.

“There will be a war?” I asked. Maybe it was stupid of me to ask such a question, given the fact that I was on a military base surrounded by hundreds, maybe even thousands of soldiers, and the Borealis kingdom would not simply give up without fighting, but I asked anyway.

“Yes. War is inevitable. How long we are at war for, that is the real concern. We could win, but what use is victory over Borealis if we spend the next century putting out revolts?” Lady Flores said.

“Is that why House Halvorsen is helping The New Foundation? They’re part of the plan to bring the kingdom together after?” I asked.

“You’re smart, Percy. Yes, currently we have alliances with all the major southern Houses. House Halvorsen is the strongest of the southern Houses, but politically, they are weak and have few allies amongst their neighbours. The Halvorsen clan are not naïve; they understand that, despite their strength, if their neighbouring Houses turned against them, they would have a war on three sides and be cut off from their northern allies. The solution, join the winning side,” Lady Flores smiled as she took a bite of a pastry filled with a sweet jam.

“So, they are allies of convenience?” I asked.

“Exactly,” she replied.

“But does that not worry you, that they don’t want what The New Foundation wants?” I asked.

“It does, yes, but as it stands, House Halvorsen has made real efforts to align itself with House Viridis as a show of their loyalty. The main issues we face in the south are the smaller Houses, whose alliances are uncertain,” she explained.

“And what of the northern Houses?” I asked.

“The smaller northern Houses have historically always quarrelled amongst themselves. Recently, thanks in large part to yourself, the stability of the whole of the north has been shaken. This is excellent from a tactical standpoint. Borealis’ greatest and most powerful allies are of the northern Houses, but if they are busy trying to quell their own peoples, they have fewer resources to offer the kingdom at large. The instability of the north will be to our advantage in our fight for the kingdom,” she said.

“But say you win and overthrow Borealis, and there is no longer a ruling House, what and who takes its place? How do you get everyone to agree?” I asked.

“Winning is only the beginning,” she answered and sipped her tea. “The people have been used to a monarchy for so long, we cannot replace it overnight, but we can set the groundwork forsomething new. There would be an interim council, composed of our command and a mix of remaining formal nobles. Eventually, free elections would be held for the people to choose their own representatives,” she explained.

“People aren’t just going to get along,” I said and took a bite of my own jam-filled pastry.

“No, but that is where those like you, Percy, would prove critical in keeping peace,” she said.

I swallowed dryly. I knew this was what she wanted from me. How could I have been so stupid? All that talk about my fate and being heir, it was nothing more than flattery, a manipulation so that when she finally reached her true intentions for me, I’d think myself something special, important.