1217-08-22
Gold:
Silver.
The same color my hair has turned… silver—the same silver as the bars that had trapped me. The same silver as the emblem of Maranona. A nation of strong, prideful people. A nation with its hands tightly wrapped around my neck.
The ship glided through the water, following behind the armored fleet as they made their way back to Maranona.
Marano—a name meant to degrade these people. A word used to diminish those born there, to label them as pigs, as if we could do nothing but crush the strongest among us. Stone people. A stone country. A proud country.
A country I hated.
I sat on the boat, the six of us remaining silent for most of the trip. The scene played over and over in my mind: could I have done something? Could I have saved them?
Though I wasn't close to Warwick, though I was close to Jude—the man I had once called a friend, the man who struggled with me, who kept me warm—I cried quietly, day after day, as we navigated the dragon-infested waters.
I couldn't eat, even though we had plenty of food. My thoughts gnawed at me. The bodies rotted on the planks, and I could only hope someone took the time to bury them, though I knew no one probably had.
Books sat next to me. An understanding smile crossed her face, a solemn smile, as she read silently.
The sun began to shine, casting light over the helmsman's armor—the same armor of Maranona.
The stench of the soldiers we had thrown overboard, or killed, still lingered. They piled below deck, their bodies forgotten in the chaos. Helm wore the armor to avoid suspicion, blending in with the rest of us.
Books continued, "Jude had spoken to me about renaming ourselves to Nor."
"Why?"
"He never told me, but I think, in honor of him and Warwick, we should."
"We need a new name anyway," the leader piped up.
"I refuse to be called by the name Maranona gave us."
"Nor…" I said under my breath, almost testing the name.
"I like it," I smiled.
"Do we know what day he… they died?"
"The dates haven't mattered in Elan… nor for a long time."
"That's the first thing we need to ask Shartar, if we're able to ally with them."
I had heard plenty of things about Shartar during my time in the castle—the ruthless queen, her sun dragon Horus, that those who opposed her were sent to work camps, that those who hated her didn't live long, and that those who stole for her were given the worst death of all. I wasn't inclined to believe any of these stories.
The lives and words of Maranona meant nothing to me. I was angry at them, at Milton, at my daughter for being naive—and yet I loved her. I cradled her in my arms, a constant reminder of King Milton, and yet, she's perfect. Her hair had grown, silver like the rest of us. A stark, shining silver.
She doesn't look like me. She's the embodiment of Milton.
Where my skin is light brown, hers is tan. Where my hair is curly, hers is straight. She used to have brown hair, but as with everyone, her hair here changed to silver-gray.
Her eyes aren't like mine either, a deep red like Milton's.
Samantha—the name Milton had given her. An awful name. Another reminder.
It hurt to look at her, but I knew that no matter what, no one would care about her as much as I did.
Though her spirit's weak, I'll give her a childhood. I'll be there for her.
"I know…" a voice called out to me.
"You know?" I looked to Dara.
"You'll have to be our leader in Jude's stead."
"Dara, why would you say that?" Books yelled at her.
"It's the…"
I looked to the wood of the boat. She was right. With Books and the leader not in condition, I needed to lead the next generation—to be their queen. No, not their queen—their monarch, their leader.
"As your leader," I said, "I make two decrees."
The first, I yelled to them: "Samantha's name will be changed!" The second, "Once we know what day it is, we will mark it as our Independence Day from Marano!"
The leader nodded in agreement, and Books smiled at me.
"What are you going to name her?" Dara asked, looking into her eyes.
I looked at my child. I thought about the name I had called her. If she knew the truth when she was older, she would regret it. She could hate it. The dragon she had come to play with is gone. The father she had is gone.
So, I'll lie. I'll say her father died. Jude died fighting Marano.
"Norah… Norah is her new name," I said aloud.
"And my family will be called Glacia."
"Norah Glacia…" I heard Helm mumble.
Helm, who had remained quiet until now, spoke up.
"I think it's a great name."
"It has more significance than she'll ever know."
Dara jolted up, bowing before me. "Gold Glacia," she smiled as she bowed.
Dara is the youngest, besides Norah. With that, we need to get into a position where we can have children. We also need to prevent inbreeding, but these problems can be solved later.
The boat slowed to a stop next to a glacier that was sticking through the water. Helm maneuvered the ship, practicing efficiently as we went in a different direction from the armada.
Our next destination: Sha'tar.