* **
After he waved his friend a final goodbye, Drazhan quickly sneaked back into the temple. Carefully snooping around to see if anyone would notice him. To make up for an excuse of his absence he thought that when he is asked, he would simply reason that he had gotten lost inside the temple.
"Drazhan!". The king called in a rush and he felt his little heart leap out of his chest. He found himself frozen where he stood, he turned to see his father who was almost running towards him as soon as he spotted him.
*"Father, I--"
*"Where have you been my boy! Hahaha!". The king ran to his son and lifted him up in the air. Drazhan looked confused as his father had never treated him in such way ever before, he looked at the blind priestess behind his father who greeted him with an elegant smile and a bow.
*"Hahaha! My boy"
* "You are going to be King!". The king gleefully announced and danced around as he playfully tossed his son in the air and catching him with a welcoming embrace, proud of him.
*"The next king! My little king!". His majesty sang joyfully as the young prince just tried to process his father's unusual behaviour.
"The gods have chosen him, Your Majesty. His highness is simply the most blessed being out of us all". The priestess congratulated.
But in his mind, he doesn't know whether it is something to be celebrated or to be dreaded.
And so, for the rest of the night, the King threw a small yet glamorous feast in his son's honor. He gifted the temple generously for their efforts and forgave the grudge that they had almost lost his son just a few hours ago. The King thought of himself kind but to the monks in the temple, they were lucky they had escaped this ruthless man's anger. He could not care about anything else, now he finally knows who is to succeed him without the useless assumptions a father would have to make in order to determine which one of his children had a monolithic power similar to him worthy enough for the glory of the crown.
Although it was a party for Drazhan, he felt not belonged. It was unusual for him nor any of his siblings back at home to see their father nonchalantly sharing a laugh with strangers. They had never even seen him with a smile on his face, let alone laugh. He had always been a very stoic man and the prince doesn't know how to deal with this bright side that his father is showing. Throughout the party, he was sat beside the King while he mirthfully drank quality booze with his soldiers. These men who are his most loyal soldiers, his brothers in the battlefield that he grew up with. Drazhan couldn't do anything else but to be polite and forgave his father's careless behaviour. 'Is the crown really that big of a deal?', the poor boy could only think.
The foreigners drank and ate until they collapsed, it was probably a disrespectful thing to do at a temple in Edzhilan culture but the residents understood the differences, at least they were kind and generous. The King had not planned to stay for long but with this wonderful news, he chose to skip just another day at court. The temple gladly accommodated their stay, bringing out their expensive mats and bed for their stay over. The staff thought of them as rude strangers and complained but the priestess warned them otherwise. The man was not a force who can simply be insulted. While they were in her territory, she must dedicate her work to them wholeheartedly.
When she was confronted by her staffs she simply continued her prayer and gave them a reassuring smile.
"This is a home of worship, is it not? Who are we to not welcome them?"
The members turned quite. She was correct, they had no rights to judge this man, they were being selfish. For the rest of their stay, their slumber had been peaceful. By nightfall the village was asleep and so are the visitors. Only the prince and the members of the temple who were continuing with their nightly routine of a religious mass were the ones awake. He could not sleep as peacefully as his group even when he tried to.
He couldn't believe he was allowed the honour of being in the same bed as his father. In his drunken state he even carried conversations with the young prince telling him stories of his own childhood and his responsibilities. He wasn't used to his father being talkative. He wasn't used to him smiling. He wasn't used to see life in his eyes. Even with his siblings. They all knew the king to have a look of grim in his eyes and a cruel strict nature. If they weren't his children he would've ordered for their heads with the simplest mistake.
If he could escape and spend more time with his friend, he already would have. More than his father's unusual behaviour, he worried more about his friend. He simply could not get his mind off of her. He wondered why as though she speaks not of like any other children their age, to him Lupa seemed mature. But, are all Edzhilan children as hostile as her or is she just peculiar? He wondered. He worried if she is currently sleeping soundly or if she had gotten home safely and with his father's change, he also wondered whether his friend has a good relationship with her parents.
…...
The next early morning came. The young prince felt like he had just taken a nap instead of sleep when he was softly awaken by his father in a calm voice urging him to prepare for their departure for home. His vision blurry and bright from the lamp's radiance, he could vaguely see his father smiling at him. And when he remembered he is king, he quickly got up and obeyed orders but it only made his father chuckle how he was in a hurry to greet him.
The dreaded day came. It is now finally time to head home. As their carriage exited the temple, he tried to look for his friend but it was no use. It was still dark and the sun only beginning its rising. The village was still peacefully quite with only a few roasters signaling for the sunrise. He pondered on each houses possibly being his friend's until they exited the village. His heart weighted heavy as they left but there was nothing else he could do but to keep the promise he oath to his friend. If only he could, he would paint her face to be remembered. He'd miss his friend and the breathtaking view of the mountain, the unique food and the adventure. But one thing is certain, yesterday will never be forgotten.
* "So, how was your friend?", his father asked curious when he noticed his son's weighted expression. He had involuntarily admitted this information last night when his father revealed that he had heard him playing with another kid outside the temple.
* "Lively. I got punched for destroying a cart", he answered and continued looking out the carriage window unbothered by his father's ponder.
* "HAHAHA!", but the king laughed after a moment of silence which made him raise an eyebrow.
* "I see. You and him will most likely meet in war in the future", the king joked delightedly.
* "She's a girl", he corrected.
* "What? My son got punched by an 'Baeba'?", his father asked in an older dialect, a habit of his when he's surprised.
* "O', Yati", he simply nodded with a small smile and the king blurted out laughing even more.
* "How humorous. Come, tell me more about your little adventure Akil"
The prince glanced at his father. He couldn't even stomach the man before let alone his peculiar behavior but the favor of reminiscing his friend was heavier on his mind so he didn't mind sharing his little story.
Days came and started and finished as they traveled in the deserts. His bond with his father flourishing more and more as he cared for his son unlike all the others. Awkwardness was there but the king didn't seem to mind his son's timidness towards him. To Drazhan, his father was still the same, just more talkative. He was still strict, cold and fierce yet cooks his meals for him, teaches him how to hunt in the desert, how to read directions, rules and rules, traditions after discipline, how to survive and most importantly…conquer.
The sunsets in the deserts and the howling silence was peaceful to Drazhan that is why he doesn't mind the long travel with this odd group. But his father did warn him he must remain the same when they get home.
The travel for Solkara was as tedious as ever but after what felt like months of traveling under the scorching sun, a wavy image of distant structures almost in blur was now in sight. They were finally home. When they reached the mighty gates of the great sands of Solkara, the king's arrival was secretly announced by the loud horns as if he was a regular visitor, only to alert the court their king had returned.
They continued through the cities, as bustling as ever and the citizens not even recognizing their ruler passing among them, their disguise was perfect. The prince was hardly ever allowed outside the palaces so it has been a while for him to see his own homeland and people. The palaces were beautiful to no comparison but the cities also have their own charm that makes people feel at home. Each building and houses built with their line of tradition throughout generations, you could feel their history especially through the fashion and society. But the normal life was far from the prince's reach, it was how he lived before but it wasn't something he can pleasantly recall.
The familiar aesthetic of a mix of minerals like gold, garnet and jade in various kinds of sand and rocks (the most in common) through the engineering embedded in their architecture. Abundant of these earthly gifts because of their power. A sight to behold that marvels. Glistening and gigantic pillars, embracing systematic shelter from the sun.
When they reached the gates of the main palace, the young prince was asked to remain and hide in a special box in the carriage with his father's careful instructions. After all, their travel was just deemed as just a regular trip of his majesty and envoys. But his father finally turned serious as he usually was.
"They mustn't know you were with me", he warned his son.
The king entered while he was taken through the back of the palace where he was secretly lead back to his room in the Palaces of Kana where all the other princes and princesses reside.
Before they left, it was announced that the young prince had caught a terrible flu and had been sick ever since to the point where he had been bedridden in his room for weeks, that is, until now. But just to be sure, he wasn't allowed to join the family meetings and meals until 3 days from the king's arrival to be clear of suspicions. Through the lie and its success, it wouldn't have been made if not for the trusted servants of the prince who performed the act of his sickness. No one else in the kingdom knew that he had left but what they do not know and needed to, was the reason for his trip.
They welcomed him the moment he got back to his room and cleaned him from his travel to rest. Another interesting tradition they had is that for their comfort, every servants of the royal bloodline are all blind, some even mimed similar to the monks at the temple. They do this to keep anyone from knowing the crown's faces. Paintings of their visuals are severely kept and hidden among the most valuable treasures only when they are dead and worthy will their art be allowed on display in the ancestry halls, and only when they've come of age will their faces be revealed to the public, once. After that, they still need to wear masks but not as heavy as when they are children. Kings are allowed to show their faces but most are comfortable with the tradition and kept their identity hidden.
When his probation was over, he was finally out of his room and allowed to join his siblings, though he needed to act sickly. Although related by blood, most of them had different mothers through the king's concubines and affairs. The late queen had 5 children with the king and her seat had been vacant ever since her death.
He joined his siblings in their morning and afternoon leisure but it was common ground to them that they each were in their own worlds. They can be casual with one another for formalities, rarely ever friendships but there is always a sense of wariness among the children. After all, either one of them could be murdered by the other at any time. Out of the current 18 children of the king, 6 had already died. Considering his age, that many children isn't as plenty as the last. The King himself had thirty six siblings.
Their meetings and meals with their father continued as usual as if nothing happened. Each children sitting and chatting about in their own designated seats from eldest to youngest, the eldest being the closest chairs next to the king as to not confirm bias. Drazhan never liked his siblings company but he enjoyed the meals. Being the 8th prince, he was seated on the 8th chair across the king. That many chairs, that spaciousness of the enormous revolving table.
Dinner alone was like a market. And after every meal, they must bid their father a courteous goodbye and bless him a pleasant day. Lining up in front of him, each exiting the dining hall after their greetings due and when it was finally Drazhan's turn, his father acted the same as he usually does around his children, cold. Which made the prince feel like what happened at the trip was simply a fever dream.
When he exited the dining hall, he glanced at his father once more before continuing on his day. Unlike his trip, things were now back to normal. Him doing his princely chores of private tutoring like each of his siblings, combat practices where they often spar with each other, politics, etiquette, ethics, philosophy and training. After that, they can spend the rest of their day however they like. Instead of joining his siblings with the gathering for tea time at the salon or the pavilion, he prefers to spend his time alone.
He spent a good few hours reading and eating and having his own tea time in the library before finally deciding to see his older brother whom he had promised to tell his adventure to. This was the only sibling that he had considered an exemption from the rest, a reliable friend who's his confidant. He was excited to tell his brother all about his friend and his adventure.
But just as he was about to exit the library with some botanical books in his hand, he encountered his father in the hall unexpectedly. Them being the only ones in the library. The King stopped on his tracks along with his two guards, he locked eyes with his father before he bowed to gave him his greeting. Waiting until the king passes him before he could leave but when the king did walked pass him, he surprisingly received a simple pat on his head along with a smile before turning his back, something he has never done so before. They can have contact with their father to the level of his comfort, some even hugs him (especially the princesses) but he only gave back vague reactions and never…ever, genuinely smiled at them. It was as if his father was blessing him to enjoy the rest of his day.
The warm noon somehow felt even more warmer for him after that as he went along his way to his brother.