Ashtium: City of Sun

ENOCH

“So, Adler, have you seen Mother’s new temple? I was overseeing its construction today. At least one hundred homeless were counted entering its parameters. I told you this would happen. We have a population issue, what am I to do?”

“It is too early to tell of such a thing,” he argues while pacing ahead.

He stops by the Shelliv mural painted on the wall. It’s a glorified painting of our domed city surrounded by an orb of sunlight. As if outside these walls a great light lives, when in fact, it is quite the opposite.

I never did understand the point of it.

It’s been a long time since I came in here with my father.

The mouseio is an empirical owned facility that houses our city’s most old relics such as the one painted on this wall. I don’t find our history appealing so I really have no interest in this dusty place.

“What is it?” I ask wondering if he knows.

He’s the one who reads the Book of Sood.

“What do you think?”

“The sun. What do you think it is?” I ask.

“An explosion. The end of the world, our world, Enoch. That is what it portrays to me. The count down grows smaller every day. Can’t you feel the slight warming? Other things, innate changes will be occurring soon. The Shellivian mind will become more animal-like. Our people will be ruled by a greater fear than what we all live with already.”

I walk up beside him, hoping he keeps opening up. I need to know when the end will be.

He continues, “The courtmaidens will be busier more than ever as the mongrels lose their minds over such news. Families will fall apart. You know how people get when they are afraid. Speaking of being afraid, have you slept with Greta yet or is she still ripe for the taking?”

What kind of question is that? It is none of his business. We are only friends anyway. I don’t see us getting married at least right now. Everything is still too new to her here.

“No! You should not be speaking so crudely about such a private matter. What concern is it of yours anyway?” I fire back.

“I’m just trying to look out for my future daughter-in-law. She would make a much better mother than Femke, don’t you think? It pleases me to know you are taking this slow. For her sake, I think it best.”

“Right,” I scoff. “It’s funny you say that. Weeks ago, you appeared to be on the opposite end of the spectrum. She’s finally accepted herself as ‘Greta’ now. You know, she told me her god asked to remove her chest wrap. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

We turn away from the mosaic and head down to the mouseio’s lounge where Brommy, his friend, waits.

“I do not,” he answers plaintively.

His pasty skin can’t hide from me the secrets he keeps unsaid. It darkens to a grey as we pass several old marble statues and urns. By the time we reach Brommy, Adler’s skin is dark purple from his head to his toes as he shakes hands with the other advisor.

It’s his own ink. Such a chemical reaction occurs when males of our race feel aggravated or aroused. For most male Shelliv, who aren’t pale like him, the change in skin tone is unnoticeable.

Brommy points at my necklace Greta gave me the other day.

“That’s a unique trinket, Emperor.”

“It was a gift.”

Adler folds his arms. He must be irritated I’m stealing his listener’s attention. Well, too bad. I’m Emperor so he’ll have to deal with it. He scratches his chin while eyeing my necklace.

He takes a stiff step toward me and has a close-up look for himself.

“Truly special,” he grunts while standing up straight and making a point to peer down at me. “Isn’t he, Brommy?”

“Well I should think so. Seeing as he’s your only son,” Brommy agrees. He hands me a stack of parchment containing our latest census count. “Please look over these, your mother will take them when you’re done verifying the numbers.”

“With what?”

Adler smirks, handing me a scribe pen.

“As Emperor, you get to go door to door and tick off the number of our city’s members. That is, after you’re done counting up the ones who came to court already and signed off their presence. You may not delegate advisors to go in your place. You are a man of the Shelliv. You will be honored to meet your people as they will be to meet you.”

“You got to delegate this task to your advisors!” I argue.

“I’ve been around much longer than you, Enoch. You will not earn respect by hiding in your room in the palace all day. The people want to match a face to the one they pay taxes to. You will do this.”

Brommy nods in agreement looking between my father and I.

This just goes to show the division among my so-called closest resources of help. My word should be law, but in their minds, Adler’s voice still rings above mine. I should have expected this from Brommy.

Brommy is closer in age to me. I’ll be able to win him over eventually. I don’t need Adler making a puppet out of him when war comes.

I actually like planning and organizing things. So that’s something I’m not going to let Adler get the opportunity to ruin. Clearly, he’s got it in his head he can control me now.

“Fine, whatever. I think I have a right to privacy though and feel quite insulted by your over-stepping of boundaries. Despite being my father by blood, you compose yourself, willingly, as my rival, Adler. I can see right through you. This is the last time I’m going to warn you to keep out of my personal affairs.”

“I understand where your paranoia is coming from,” Adler says. “I hope you do not see me as a threat, Enoch. You take your mother’s words about me as the truth. Do remember I have gone out of my way for this child to be protected from the woman who plots to kill her. I only cut the tail off the snake, Enoch. I leave it to you to cut off the head.”

“You’re insane!” I shout in disgust at the idea of doing such a thing to Mother as he did Urdmin.

Adler shrugs.

“Then Greta will suffer. Make no mistake, when she does, this city will fall into shadow and no amount of your begging will make me fix it. You will protect my little pearl or I will let you drown in the very darkness of the desert and send Rog out to eat your remains and then your mother’s.”

“Your ‘little pearl’? What a predator you are. Lusting after a woman a hundred years your minor. Letcher. All I have to do is go to Mother and you’d be taken care of. She hates you, but I won’t do that. I’ll make Greta hate you first.”

His smile doesn’t falter.

“You have my word, Enoch, Greta’s feelings for me remain platonic. Your concern is for nothing. She is just helping me talk out my thoughts...something your mother once did long ago. That is the only value she provides me. Knowledge. No more now. I will keep my distance. I should not have went off on such a silly treasonous speech. I pray you forget it and we can move on to better days. I, um, suppose I’m still harboring some anger over my divorce.”

He isn’t wrong about my mother. I know for a fact she feels threatened by Greta. I also know the empress has destroyed families over other women she fears or feels threatened by.

However, I wouldn’t ever be able to bring such a punishment upon the one who brought me into this world. No, exile would be a better option.

“I understand your concern, Adler. No one is as perfect as you. We all speak things we wish we can take back. It’s better to talk about our feelings before acting on them,” I think out loud. I hope he listens. “You’re my advisor so I’m willing to forget such speech. That aside, I’d like to discuss a better alternative regarding the Empress. Not now though,” I finish.

I raise my hand. Brommy slaps Adler across the face for me just as he is lawfully to do at my signal. My father’s shocked expression is the highlight of my day.

How nice of a change to see him stalk off alone, humiliated and exposed.

The best part is he brought this on himself. I’m not letting him get what he wants out of it.