Eclipse: the Beginning

“I pray you rested well, Lord Namas.”

“I did, Lord Bog,” Namas replied after hearing the viceroy enter the dining room.

It was a large hall, but it was clear that it sat few guests. Bog paused once he came into view. His eyes gaped at the seat the Great Mage had occupied. Namas had taken one end of the table. It was the seat he usually occupied as head of the household. The Light swallowed his pride. Namas was a powerful immortal and political figure. Bog barely managed spells out in the middle of, in his opinion, nowhere. The thin Light smiled quickly, hoping Namas had not noticed his discontent.

“I apologize for my assumption that you would be arriving today, Lord Namas. Usually, escorts take longer to arrive from Heaven.” He clasped his hands, smiling coyly.

“I did not take an escort,” the mage replied flatly. “I left the Royal Guard to protect King Zemnas in my absence. I am more than capable of protecting myself.” He sipped from his cup of nectar that Yishmael had just filled, not even looking at the viceroy.

“Of course,” Bog replied, sheepishly, “my lord is more than able. I will not forget again.”

“Please, sit beside me, Lord Bog.”

“I beg your pardon, sire?” Bog gaped in surprise at the request.

“Sit,” Namas looked up at last, motioning to his right side. “We have much to discuss.”

“Ah, yes, your letter ….” Bog took a seat at Namas’ right. Two soldiers emerged from the kitchen with Bog’s breakfast. They both paused at the seating change, looking to one another for what to do. It was clear they had not seated the Great Mage, even Bog could tell.

“Bring my meal, you bumbling babes!”

“Actually, that was one of the topics I wanted to discuss with you this morning.” Namas spoke from behind his napkin, dabbling his moist lips. He watched Bog stare stupidly back at him as the soldiers placed his food and drink before him. His gray gaze was glazed with annoyance.

“Lord Bog, do you know why you were appointed as Viceroy of Western Wind?”

“Well …” the viceroy’s voice died. His answer sounded ridiculous, even to his own ears. Glancing back nervously, he decided to play ignorant. Nobles liked to talk, did they not? He had gathered that much from his father. “Not exactly, my lord.”

“Well, perhaps the problem lies there,” the mage said curtly. He took a sip of nectar to dampen his throat. It could be a long explanation. “Before I comment further, may I ask why soldiers of Western Wind are tending your gardens, answering your door, serving your meals, and other domestic chores about your estate?”

“I thought that since the capital was as peaceful as it was that it gave the stationed men something to … do…” his voice faltered as he felt a heaviness settled in the dining room. What was happening, and why was he the only one who seemed to notice it? Was this Namas’ doing? He dared to look at the advisor, but he quickly wished he had not.

“Bog,” Namas said in a placid tone as he put his right hand on Bog’s left, “I recall you were offered staff from Heaven to accompany you here. You also could have employed some Western subordinates to attempt to gain the people’s trust. Why then have you chosen this course of action? Surely, you have some logical reason to demean the once most powerful army in Aurora, or was there some other motive that I have missed in my observations?”

The viceroy felt fear rain down upon him. He had heard that Namas was a passive man. However, it was common knowledge that he was a serious individual. His loyalty to King Zemnas was notorious, having served him since the Great War. So great was this devotion, he had challenged one of the guardian gods of Aurora. If he felt the king’s honor or safety was at stake, he could be sadistic to the ones responsible. Bog found himself on that side of the Great Mage, and he knew that there was no reason he could give that would please his ear.

Bog was nothing more than a child, giving out commands for amusement. When he was appointed, it was because his father had turned down Namas’ commission, but for some strange reason, he had recommended his son instead. He still could not understand why Namas had accepted the recommendation. When he had arrived, he thought Western Wind was full of disgusting common wanderers who longed to hang his head as a sacrifice to regain their lost god. He had wanted nothing to do with them, but he needed protection. As long as he was comfortable inside his walls, he was satisfied.

“Well,” Namas asked calmly, looking the other in the eye, “have you nothing to say?”

“No.” Bog whispered. He teared up as he realized he could not lie. He could hardly hold back anything. It was as if he were compelled to speak. The coward had never felt so frightened than at that moment in his life. “I have exploited the country’s resources and people without reason.”

“I see then,” the mage said with no change in tone. He retracted his hand, returning to what remained of his meal. The Wind soldiers behind Bog gaped at his pathetic state and answer to match. The viceroy sat frozen, as if he could not move without pardon. When Namas finished the last crumb, he took Yishmael’s closest hand. “Thank you, Yishmael.”

“My lord,” the young Wind soldier sighed lightly at the touch, drawing Bog out of his daze. The carefree smile made the Light envious of his comfort with the mage. Yishmael paid the viceroy no mind as his gaze was fixed on Namas. “Shall I fetch you anything else?” The tone hinted that the desire to please was high.

“Not for now, Yishmael,” Namas replied pleasantly. “Please clear my place and leave the viceroy and myself until I call for you.”

“As you wish, my lord.” He obeyed without a fret and left with the dishes. He left only the cup the Great Mage continued to sip from which was still mostly full.

“Now then,” the mage fluidly returned to the initial conversation. “I am not an unreasonable being. I can be gracious and merciful. Your appointment was permitted to give you a chance to make a political mark for yourself. King Zemnas has placed faith in you as well to oversee his people here in the west. Our king loves all of his subjects. It is my wish that all of his desires for Aurora see the light.

“However, I see I should have placed more of a grip on your power here. Too long have I overlooked the silence in the west. King Zemnas was wise to place his regents after you, for you have issued unprecedented hardships upon the people of Wind. I know you view the citizens as a sore upon your heel. I have been informed of your cruel treatment toward women in the capital, your downsizing of the army, and your blanket accusation against the Wingies of harboring Lord Zion to mark their heads. I must say, for a man with no reason to exploit his charges, your actions seem to reflect a purposeful end.”

Namas silenced, letting the words sink into Bog’s simple mind. He had not raised his voice or altered his tone. Every word spoken was devoid of emotion. The Great Mage showed little care or stress when presenting evidence that warranted punishment. Some whispered that he found pleasure in pointing out faults. Right now though, he was nipping a rotting plant that had barely concealed its stench for two decades. Before he ripped out the plant completely, he wanted to see if there was any hope for growth.

“That aside,” he spoke just before Bog cracked from the stillness. “I am willing to turn a blind eye to the past if you can redeem yourself.”

“What can I do to earn such favor, Great Mage?” Bog cried in a pathetic voice. Namas had exposed his weakness completely, and his cowardice did nothing to conceal anything anymore. “I will do whatever you ask! I only beg you do not banish me!”

“How fitting that you speak of banishment, for that is what shall await you should you fail after this.”

“What must I do, Lord Namas?”

“You are aware that I am here regarding a letter Regent Willow sent, at my request, for information of any strange happenings in Wind as of late. She wrote of a mysterious appearance in their market, involving a soldier of Heaven, a Wind woman, and an unknown male. As I am sure you know, Captain of the Guard Celestial was raptured from Heaven by a Wind god and youth. My intuition has led me to believe there is a connection between the two events, which is why I have come to your city to investigate further.”

“Do you wish for me to assist in this investigation then? Why not directly work with Willow?” Bog asked in a confused tone. “Why sidestep to the capitol?”

“To offer you a chance at redemption, Bog,” Namas replied with a sigh. Honestly, the viceroy was too thick to even understand his present position. The mage had originally thought he would be a simple doll to play a ceremonial part to keep the West from falling apart. He had become more of an animated vessel over time, and Namas was now trying to both save face and remedy any festering wounds in Bog’s wake. “I do hope your mind can keep up, or your throne of pillows will run out from beneath you by their tassels.”

“I will act only as you desire me to, of course,” Bog bowed in his seat. “Thank you for sparing my name in public.”

“I never said you would be spared anything,” the mage said in a dark tone. His right hand reached for the viceroy’s scalp, pushing downward with the tips of his fingers. He stopped when the fool’s face pressed into his meal before him, which he had neglected during their conversation. “Along with aiding my inquires, you will be overturning your own wrongs here in the capitol. Wind is just as much an equal province as the others in Aurora, you dimwit. It might have lacked structure, but it was built upon a loss you would never fathom how to recover from.”

As he retracted his hand, the mage turned his head to finish his nectar in his left hand. Bog pulled his face out of his food far enough to glare up at Namas from beneath his fallen black locks. His chest swelled with rage and fear at the same time. How dare he treat him so shamefully! How dare this pompous politician subject him to such inhumane treatment! As angry as he felt, he held his tongue. It could get far worse if Namas willed it so. He would play his game for now.

“Now if you will excuse me, viceroy. I have some records to inspect. I forwarded a letter to Regent Willow, seeking her guards’ cooperation before you bothered to rise. I suggest you eat your fill. You have a long day of amending ahead of you. Yishmael?” When the young man appeared, Namas stood to leave the younger Light to his thoughts. “Oh, I will require a servant while I am here. Might I borrow Reserve Yishmael?”

Bog just nodded in response. The mage did not look back at him as he walked out of the dining hall. Bog waved a guard over, fearing to even yell a request in hearing range of the Great Mage. A stunned soldier leaned down to hear Bog’s request. Quickly, the viceroy grabbed the soldier’s vest, whispering quite hostilely.

“Fetch me another plate, you fool!”