Apparently, slaves were rarely freed in Korwahk.
“And as a gift to Jacanda,” Lahn roared on while Diandra translated, sounding surprised herself (a secret well-kept, clearly, for Diandra was much beloved and trusted by Circe), “a loyal slave to your queen, a slave who has stood by your queen’s side in womanly ways that mirror the actions of a warrior of the Horde to his brother, it is the will of your king and his golden queen that every merchant, man and warrior give liberty to those who serve them with steadfast allegiance.”
I felt my frame stiffen.
Was he…?
I stared.
By the gods, Lahn was freeing the slaves!
The stirring increased as did the tightness of Noc’s hold, and a shocked murmuring broke out amongst the crowd.
“It is our will, the will of your king and your queen,” Lahn thundered over the low sound. “It is the seal of the Golden Dynasty. Fidelity is rewarded. Freedom is granted. We build the Korwahk the prophets have foreseen and that Korwahk will flourish and thrive under the reign of the Golden Dynasty,” he suddenly lifted a hand and beat it to his chest, “my Golden Dynasty. The dynasty pouring forth from my seed planted in the fertility between the legs of my,” another chest pound, “golden warrior queen.”
My eyes shot to Circe to see her rolling hers at Lahn’s bold assertions.
But she was doing this grinning.
Lahn just kept speaking.
“All of those within our borders that your Horde protects from this day walk free, and they do it vowing allegiance to the sand and rock of this proud country.”
There was more murmuring amongst the gathering, but as I glanced around, held close in Noc’s hold, I noticed it was only murmuring. To my shock, although this was a declaration that would change the fabric of their daily lives, most everyone (but the warriors) looked surprised, no one looked angry.
This was undoubtedly because every warrior amongst them had clearly been told this was happening today and they not only wore their paint, they wore their large swords at a slant across their backs.
I’d thought this was all ceremonial.
I realized then it was not.
So apparently, when told to free your slaves, you were quite all right with that because your alternative was to demur and have a Korwahk Horde warrior carve you asunder.
I felt this was an appropriate reaction for a variety of reasons and turned my attention back to Lahn when he again started speaking.
“It is the way of my wife’s people that you kiss to seal your oath,” Lahn said, now only speaking to the couple. Then he ordered, “Do that now.”
I heard Noc chuckle as I felt him relax, and it took a moment for Jacanda and Derahn to pull themselves together, but once that moment was over, they hesitated no further and fell into each other’s arms.
The kiss was not chaste.
Indeed, it was so not chaste it didn’t end at all but continued with Derahn twisting Jacanda to her back on a bed of petals on stone, covering her with his body, and a cheer rent from the crowd.
Suddenly, golden panels until then unseen (in other words, Circe conjured them), fell around the couple, hiding them from view.
“That, sugarlips, is precisely why weddings make people horny,” Noc murmured amusedly in my ear.
I twisted my neck and gave him a vexed look.
His gaze drifted upward and his lips muttered, “Fuckin’ hell.”
At his words and a new shout from the crowd, my gaze drifted upward too.
And there, arcing over the gathering, indeed the entirety of the Majestic Rim, glinting like it dripped pixie dust, was the brightest, clearest, largest rainbow I’d ever seen.
I again looked to Circe who now sat by her husband. Lahn had taken his own throne and was jerking his head tersely to a hovering servant, telling her without words to pour the libation she’d brought for his wife first.
She scuttled over to Circe.
I watched her accept the chalice of wine like she was taking a glass offered to her while she was seated at Noc’s island.
And I knew.
Lahn did not free the oppressed of his country.
His wife did.
By talking her husband into doing it.
Oh yes, the golden warrior queen of Korwahk was quite something.
“Seems we weren’t invited just for a visit with the excuse of the wedding of some chick we didn’t know,” Noc remarked, bringing my eyes to him. “Seems we were here to witness something really fucking cool.”
It would seem he was correct.
“I wish the others were here,” I replied, meaning Frey and Finnie, Tor and Cora, and even Maddie and Apollo (these last two for Noc, I didn’t think they liked me much, but my Noc liked them).
“If they were, I wouldn’t have an excuse to take you to Fleuridia, Bellebryn and Lunwyn,” Noc returned.
“True,” I murmured.
“Babe,” he called even though I was right in his arms, looking into his eyes.
“Yes, my darling?”
“Feel like sealing our own oath?” he asked, his stunning blue eyes now dancing.
“I always feel like sealing our own oath,” I answered with the gods’ honest truth.
Noc smiled down at me.
Then he kissed me.
Unfortunately, for the sake of politeness, he ceased doing this when Diandra’s husband, Seerim, and her daughter, Sheena, joined us, carrying resin cups filled to the brim with Korwahkian wine.
When I took mine from Sheena with a soft, “Shahsha,” (“thank you” in Korwahkian) the pretty girl grinned at me.
“I can see Lahn has it going on,” Noc said to Diandra, who looked confused for a moment but her lips still moved, uttering Korwahkian, translating for her husband and daughter. “Not many leaders, no matter they can tear a man’s head off with their bare hands, could pull that off by just saying it’s gonna be done.”