Page 27 of House of the Beast
There was a piercing whistle and the train rumbled to life beneath us.
The crowds that had gathered in front of the station now spilled in through the gates and stretched out along the platform, waving us goodbye.
Children were lifted onto shoulders, hats were thrown, prayers offered.
It was a proper send-off fit for the divine vessels of a god.
I barely spared it all a glance—not now with a viper sitting in the cabin before me.
It was going to be a long journey indeed.
THE SUN WAS JUST DIPPING UNDER THE EDGE OF THE HORIZON when the train chugged its way into Sorrowsend province.
I suspected our arrival was timed this way on purpose. With night seeping into the sky, the umbral gate above the city was nothing short of a spectacle.
I gawked. In my defense, it was my first time in the capital and thus my first time laying eyes upon the gate.
No amount of poring over the House Avera private library’s tomes could have prepared me for the sight of that eldritch array burning against the heavens, circles within glowing circles in constant motion like the bowels of a giant clock.
It was big enough to span from one side of Sorrowsend to the other, a halo for the holiest place in Kugara.
We were still some miles away from the city proper, but the distant, fulgent glow of the gate was our signal that we were getting close. On the horizon, the sea swallowed up the last of the sun, and atop its tenebrous waves, the city of the Weeping Lady glimmered like a dream.
“Oh, thank goodness,” said Sevelie, also peering through the window but with a lot less wide-eyed wonder. She must have seen this sight a dozen times before. “I’m sick of sitting still for so long. This trip is always such a chore.”
Suddenly self-conscious, I schooled away my awestruck expression.
No doubt I’d stick out like a sore thumb among the other noble Pilgrims if I acted like a country bumpkin.
Unfortunately, my utter inexperience with Sorrowsend’s upper class was not a problem I could solve with the sword.
I thought back to Sevelie’s cutting comment about my lack of wardrobe, and began to despair.
Sorrowsend was built on a peninsula, connected to the mainland only by a narrow and scenic natural highway.
Scholars liked to say that the Weeping Lady herself had chosen the most beautiful place in the world to nest. But as we trundled along the cliff’s edge, I saw birds wheeling frantically in the sky.
The ocean, which had looked so serene from a distance, raged against the rocky cliffs.
Prickles of sea spray rapped against the window and the wind whistled wildly, like the air itself was staging a protest. Like the land did not want us opening this door into another dimension.
And yet the city lights burned bright, the streets bedecked with banners and lanterns that swayed in the wind as the train pulled into the grand station of Kugara’s capital.
A small contingent of knights and holy men awaited us on the platform. The stationmaster yelled out our arrival as the carriage floors beneath us gave one final shudder and the engines fell silent.
I grabbed my suitcase and gestured for Sevelie to exit the compartment ahead of me. “After you,” I said with the same false politeness we had worn around each other all afternoon.
“How kind,” she replied, before sweeping out of the carriage to order her maids about with her luggage.
When we alighted from the train, Kaim and my father had already assembled their men before the court, lined up like soldiers for war.
As soon as I took my place, the welcoming party bowed to us deeply.
“The Court of Divine Hearers welcomes the Pilgrims of House Avera,” said the priest who had been sent to greet us, “and prays that your journey here has been agreeable. Lord Maximus Avera expresses regret at his absence today but sends a reminder to his fellow vessels that they must be present for the ceremony of initiation, to be held in the court’s grand banquet hall tomorrow evening.
And as a representative of the court, I would like to extend my own fervent gratitude to you all for coming; your services to Kugara are invaluable.
Please make yourselves at home in our city of gods, and rest and prepare for your trials ahead. ”
The priest bowed again; we returned it as one. And then he left along with the knights to give us space to get our things in order and get settled.
Unfortunately, this meant that the rest of the family was now free to turn their questioning stares upon me and Sevelie.
Kaim was the first to approach us.
As soon as she noticed him, Sevelie curtsied prettily, the perfect picture of a wife-to-be. They would have made a beautiful couple , I found myself thinking, if not for his disinterest and her lust for another, much-older man.
I wondered then why Sevelie would even feel that way at all, when she already had my cousin.
Kaim was a prat, but my father was even more so.
At least my cousin was closer to her in age, and he’d grown to be objectively very handsome.
He was tall and brooding, with a slew of accomplishments under his belt, and I knew many young women around Avera were desperate for his attention.
My father, on the other hand, was past his prime; worse, he had known Sevelie since she was a child.
I couldn’t linger too long trying to find the sense in it—there was none.
Kaim stopped before us, his dark brows furrowed over cold gray eyes.
He held himself proudly in his Avera regalia of pure black livery paired with a black-and-gold half cape, though his movements were measured—careful.
“Sevelie,” he greeted her, though he didn’t take his eyes off me, watching my every move like one might do with a rat in one’s kitchen.
“Good evening, Kaim,” said Sevelie. “How did you enjoy the journey?”
“It was fine,” my cousin replied blandly, as if even this banal thread of conversation was too strenuous for him. “I wondered where you’d gone—but I see now that you’d chosen to join my cousin. Is there a reason for this?”
“I had some questions regarding her unusual performance in the trial,” said Sevelie demurely, keeping her eyes respectfully downcast and her expression pleasant.
I was witnessing an entirely different person than the woman who’d bargained with me on the train.
“If we can only be friends, maybe I might convince her to return to her father’s retinue for the Pilgrimage. ”
Kaim narrowed his eyes. “I see. And has she been convinced?”
“Not yet,” I replied bluntly. “But she’s welcome to keep trying.”
He snorted. “Sevelie, you’re wasting your time.”
And you’re being a complete ass to your fiancée , I wanted to say—but this was none of my business. I held my tongue.
Sevelie only curtsied again. “Perhaps—but I have already offered Alma a place to stay in the capital, since she has none. No matter what, I think it prudent to get to know her better. After all, us House Avera ladies have to stick together.”
Kaim finally deigned to look at his future wife fully, though his expression was not very kind. All he said was “Just be careful around her.”
Then he turned back to his men, who were waiting dutifully for their lord to lead them out of the station.
Darantha stood by them, glaring daggers at me, no doubt imagining all the bad influence I was inflicting upon her son and future daughter-in-law.
Fion was there too, dressed in a simpler version of Kaim’s black uniform and looking bored with the holdup—but as I watched, he caught my eye and smiled, like we were sharing a secret.
What the secret was, I still had no clue.
As Kaim left, Sevelie let out a long breath beside me.
I was ready to follow Kaim’s example and leave as well, tired from the long hours of travel—only, of course, as soon as I picked up my luggage, it was my father’s turn to come over.
“Daughter,” he greeted me. I couldn’t say whether he was surprised to see me, only that he was definitely displeased. “I see you managed to make it onto the train.”
“No doubt you wish I hadn’t,” I said, patience already worn.
He clicked his tongue. “You know I always planned for you to enter that gate with me. It is not too late for you to admit your mistake and join my guard.”
“I will not,” I replied serenely. “I have my own duty to the Beast on this Pilgrimage, which I intend to carry out.”
My father narrowed his eyes. I could tell he wanted to say something truly scathing but was reining himself in—likely on account of Sevelie’s presence.
Sure enough, he said with a forced smile, “Though it pleases me to see your dedication, the umbral plane is a place of danger, for which I fear you are poorly prepared. You will have many more years ahead of you to prove your piety, but first, you must survive to do so. This recklessness will do you no favors.”
“It’s all right, Lord Zander,” interjected Sevelie. Her face was now upturned, and her eyes were bright. “Alma must be tired from her journey, and I’ve decided to make her my guest. She’ll be safe in Sorrowsend, and perhaps you can come visit, to talk to her again later.”
My father blinked. “I see. Well, that is very kind of you, Sevelie. I hate to impose, but it seems you have managed to rein in my daughter where I cannot. You’ll let me know if she causes any trouble?”
“Of course,” she said, fairly glowing at his praise.
Part of me wished Kaim hadn’t left, so he could see what his cold attitude had wrought. Or, better yet, he could put my father in his place. I almost wished to do it for him.
But I simply had no energy left to deal with whatever was transpiring here. I turned on my heel and marched out of the station.