Chapter 34 – Thirty-six stratagems…
” You didn’t eat dinner with me” I pouted sadly as he entered the chamber with a scowl on his face. He always wore the same expression after every court meeting. His ministers always disagreed with him and he always had to refrain from forcing them with threats. They knew what he was capable of doing yet they kept on testing his nerves. He was obviously in a bad mood and I stood up holding my long white nightgown so I wouldn’t trip, that was when I saw a black mass of insects following him. I screamed out and he had to gather me in his arms and cover my mouth with his large hands.
” Calm down Lyn. They are my Hornets” He said calmly and my panic increased tenfold. Hornets? Annoying creatures that sting people badly? He noticed the panic in my eyes and used his strength to prevent me from running away.
” They won’t hurt you, Lyn. Be calm”
” Okay I’m calm” I tried to say but his insane large hand was muffling my words. ” I will remove my hand now, please don’t scream. I have a terrible headache from dealing with those old men” He whispered and I nodded trying to appear as calm as possible but the buzzing of those insects was fueling my panic. He slowly removed his hand from my mouth and I gulped staring at those terrifying insects.
” Get them away from me!” I screamed running towards the bed but they followed me while I shrieked louder. He started laughing hard and I fixed him a glare. Who the hell keeps insects as pets?
” Lyn..” He called my nickname again but I refused to open my eyes or move away from the wall where I was now trapped with the vicious insects surrounding me but they were not attacking me, they just flying around me like they were playing with me.
” Guys stop scaring her” He chuckled and the tiny little devils flew away from me and then towards him in a black mass. They were too many that they were creepy.
” Are you talking to them?” I gasped and he nodded with a grin. His foul mood was gone, he was now crazy. Because he wouldn’t be talking to insects if he wasn’t crazy.
” Come on, you are not the only one with Powers you know,” He said with a wide grin, the exact one that makes his grey eyes twinkle making him look more handsome to me.
” I don’t understand,” I said watching him control the bugs far away from us. ” You get your healing powers from Natalí’s tears, I have a lot of Nati’s abilities, and talking to hornets is just one of them” I opened my mouth wide in shock at his words. He could control insects this whole time and he was just telling me?
” Wow, where do they live? And how do you control them?”
” I can control them because they were Nati’s soldiers, I have every one of Nati’s abilities including his strength and super sight on the battlefield. The hornets are my soldiers also, they fight with us on the battlefield and they live in this room too with us, they just went crazy today because of my mood” He explained and I felt my jaw hit the ground. The hornets have been in this room? That was shocking, I have never seen one.
” I still can’t believe that,” I muttered in awe.
” They won’t harm you. You are their queen and you can even command them at your will, They were the ones who told me you were in danger the other night” He said and I nodded slowly. I keep learning about mysterious things in Nayak every day. No wonder this country has never lost a war since the time of the first king and queen.
” And do you want to hear something crazy?” He winked at me and I nodded with a giggle. ” Only you can sleep in this room, if another woman sleeps here, the giant ones among the hornets will sting the woman to death”
” Wait what?” I laughed, he must be lying. He can’t be serious, oh no wonder I was the first and the only woman to sleep in the king’s chamber. Take that Meisi! You won’t even last a day inside my husband’s bedroom. ” Just keep this a secret, no one else must know,” He said with a serious tone and I nodded. Of course, I won’t tell a soul.
” So why were you in a terrible mood?” I asked and he sighed scratching his head. Two maids entered and helped him out of his robes, dressing him in his nightwear. He drank a cup of tea before joining me on the bed.
” The barbarians of Aransas are acting suspiciously around Nayaki borders. One of my trackers informed me that they are planning to wage a war against us. One of the hornets confirmed the suspicion too but my too cowardly court members are telling me that I shouldn’t prepare an army because people are still recovering from the famine in the south” He sighed relaxing into my arms. I traced my fingers on his smooth face and along his cheekbones before running them through his soft hair. He closed his eyes as I continued massaging his scalp.
” Have you eaten anything?” I asked with a frown and he nodded, he knew I wouldn’t allow him to sleep without eating something. He didn’t have dinner with me, maybe he ate with one of the consorts.
” But if you don’t prepare in advance, thousands of Nayaki will die if they were to suddenly March on our lands” I muttered and he nodded his head as my hands continued to work their way through his hair.
” For the first time, someone understands my point. Those stupid old fools want me to wait for the barbarians to make their first move because they don’t want to send their sons to the battlefield, but they had no problems sending their daughters to my bed” He gritted his teeth together so hard they almost turned to dust. Treven has the battle blood of Nati Niamh running through his veins, he won’t sit still and watch his country get invaded by the barbarians.
” But why will the barbarians want to wage a war all of a sudden?” I asked getting curious. No kingdom in their right senses will try to wage a war against Nayak because of their strength and valor in battles, Nayak has never lost a single war because of Nati’s protection and Natalí’s support.
” According to my sources, they recently came across a very dangerous black magic. It puts horses to sleep and that brings us to a slight disadvantage because we majorly rely on Calvary. This magic also controls night wolves that can tear an army apart, so that gives them the courage to go against Nati’s dragon. I will crush them with their wolves and drink their blood, whether the ministers support my decisions or not. I am the King and I have the final say, I will March on the land of Aransas and teach them a lesson, no one messes with the dragon” Raising his head from my body, he stared at me with such intensity that made my insides clenched in pleasure. The amount of power and authority radiating from his words aroused me but I needed to keep those aside and assist him.
” I have an idea,” I said and he raised his eyebrows at me.
” Why don’t you let them attack first? That will give you the right justification for matching on their lands.” he stared at me as if I had grown two heads within two minutes.
” No, my Queen, I am a descendant of Niamh, I do what I need to do. I don’t need to justify my actions to anyone” He said proudly and I shook my head at him. Something was wrong and I could feel it, I don’t want him to walk into a trap.
” Mobilize your army in secret, Nobody must know. Tell the ministers that you agree with them. Meanwhile, The palace Treasury will fund the battle. Send more hornets to Aransas and let them give us information about everything happening there so we can know how to plan our defense.”
” How do you know about wars so much?” He stared at me in awe and I blushed. I used to enjoy reading the thirty-six stratagems as a kid. My father always shipped war books from another continent and the ideas always fascinated me. One of my favorite principles in the book is “Deceive the heavens to cross the oceans” which means to conceal one’s true intentions when fighting in a war.
” I read” I smirked and he brushed one of the stray hairs behind my ear, my hair had healed so much within two months.
” I wonder how many things go through that little head of yours,” he said planting a kiss on my lips, well let’s say I got greedy and decided to have his lips to myself. I pulled him closer to me and I ravaged his lips to my satisfaction.