Ashtium: City of Sun

ENOCH

I’m not going to wait anymore to see Greta. It’s been two long weeks. It should be long enough to draw away the suspicion of the palace.

It’s so tempting to take Belle and just go check up on her earlier than planned. Urdmin has come up empty handed though and I am not sure how I will clear Greta’s name. It’s just another reason why I knew it would take longer to do. As a man my age, I was a frequent partaker in the nightlife here much like my mother. I usually meet up at the taverns or take Belle for a run with the stablemen and their own steads.

I’ve been spending my night doing something else much less entertaining though. Urdmin was quite unhappy the page involving Greta’s attacking him has gone missing. Father believes him of course.

So now, I must find someone to take the blame. There are plenty street whores and it will not be too hard to pick one out to go in Greta’s place. It is not something I want to do, but if I don’t, the fault will be mine.

The only problem is Urdmin knows what Greta looks like and not many of the street whores look like her. Their features are more youthful. Most of them have darker hair and tanner skin. Not many street women are elderly. Not to say Greta looks like an old hag, but her hair is distinctively grey and none of these women look remotely like her.

Three of them stand on the corner of a street adorned in the robes of dancers as two men my age toss coins at their feet. The tavern beside them is lit up inside and tempting me to take a break from my search.

I’m so close to the courtyard though. No one’s going to see me if I do a quick check up on Greta. It’s been long enough. No, I still need to find someone to bring forward to Urdmin.

However, as if reading my mind, Belle begins to trot over to the staircase without my encouragement. When I look at the top of the stairs though I see Adler watching me and realize the horse must have spotted her old rider.

He walks all the way down the steps leaving me a good few minutes to think about how to escape his presence. I need a good excuse. He never approaches me unless he wants me to do something. When he reaches the city street he looks up at me with his hands clasped behind his back.

None of his guards bothered to trail after him down here. Instead, they all stand lined up outside his temple watching us from far up above.

“How goes the search?”

“It is still going, emperor,” I say nonchalant.

He scoffs while watching Belle back away from him. The scars on her mane let me know enough about how he treated her before demoting her to my care.

Adler looks around Belle toward the noisy tavern on the other side of the street. I look down seeing something shiny glimmer off of the light radiating from the lantern in his other hand. A peculiar smile grows on his face.

“How are things with mother?” I ask.

He glances back up at me speaking as he returns to the staircase, “I am following your advice. Time is short. We must make the most of it.”

“Have you seen something in the sky?”

“Your question undermines your true concerns,” he mumbles while pausing on the next step up. “I am always seeing things in the sky. It is not the things in the sky I am searching for. In fact, I am not searching at all. I am waiting.”

“How long then?”

“A hundred years, a thousand...tomorrow. Who am I to know?” he laughs. “Do not act so afraid for what is bound to come.”

He sounds actually at ease for once, but it’s unsettling coming from someone like him. He’s spent his whole life studying the sky as our star is reaching its end.

The only thing is, we don’t know what that end will mean for us when it comes.

Long ago, our star already entered its first phase of fusion. Releasing energy and a wondrous glow - above the sludged atmosphere outside our domed city that is.

Right now, we are just on the main sequence. Father’s telescope can see beyond our dark atmosphere to where our star burns a blinding light keep us somewhat heated way down below on the crust of its compacted core. Thousands of miles below the atmosphere. It truly is unfortunate that such a light exists that we cannot see.

It is true our star has been dying for some time since its birth in the Clout nebula. Thanks to our ancestors, we have been sheltered in our city and the few other kingdoms across our star have similar fortune as well.

Outside the dark shell of our atmosphere though, the last of the hydrogen fueling our star will eventually run out. Our own planet will heat up significantly. Although we have genetically adapted to live in the heat we do now, no one will be able to survive the final stage our star is fated to reach. The rest I rather not think about right now.

Our people now all of this of course, but what they do not know is father has been watching the sky for some time now and has the capability to predict when we will meet our end.

Reluctantly, I dismount Belle and follow him up the stairs to his temple. “The people deserve to know soon,” I argue.

“What they don’t know won’t hurt them.”

“What is wrong with you?” I retort. “The city looks up to you and as a thank you...you’ll gladly let them burst into stardust without so much as a short notice! What happens then? You’re just going let Ashta die. You bastard.”

“Do not argue with me over the things you do not understand,” he mutters while passing his line of guards and going into his temple.

I push his shoulder roughly so he’ll actually look at me. “You really are a murderer. The least you could do is tell them when since you do not plan to do anything to save us.”

“The duty to save the mongrels was never mine. I am just a man, Enoch,” he chides.

My fist connects with his jaw. Adler’s face jerks to the side and something glints in his eye, but mother’s voice catches us both by surprise.

“Enoch! What is the meaning of this? Why have you hit your father?”

“He’s no father of mine, mother. Like he said himself, he’s just a man.”

She parts from the fire pit with her person guards lagging behind around the fire’s warmth. Urdmin stands on the other side of the fire pit. Adler strides over to his throne as if the conversation is already over.

Mother follows him. She reaches up to touch his bruised face, but he swats her hand away.

“Save your senseless touching for your true love.”

She touches the side of his face looking concerned. “But that is you, my darling.”

Adler recoils and stands up briskly. Mother hurries to move out of his way as his hand comes to his waist where his whip rests snug in its holster. Urdmin steps forward a little as if to comfort mother.

Adler scowls at his movement, his teeth gnash together. A vein protrudes from his neck as he slowly uncoils his whip watching no one in particular.

“I’m going down to oversee construction. Urdmin, please escort them back to the palace.”

“Yes ruler, Adler.”