Nadine Book 6

11. The Visit

The map zooms into the kings office. It zooms in as much as it can with the empty area we have. We watch the 7 of them sit down at their conference table. "Brain laser them to our table so we can see where they sit and who is talking."

The brain shifts. The king sits at the end. Nikolas sits to his right. Another advisor to his left. The brothers sit side by side.

Dipak jumps straight up when he gets covered in lasers. "It won't hurt you. It would be weird to see."

"That was different."

He moves to my seat.

Tye, Kane, and Johen come in talking. They see the table and shut up.

"They can't hear us. We're waiting to see what they say. GUARD SHUT THE DOOR. NO ONE IN."

"Vault contents valued at 1.7m."

"Is that ok?"

Dipak shrugs his shoulders. "It's ok. It would depend on the village. They're not starving but there not doing major projects either."

"What do we have?"

"About 980m."

I realize I have no idea what that means. Tre winks. "We're good baby."

"It didn't go bad."

"How was it not bad? They sat there."

Nikolas says, "What did you expect them to do? They don't know us. But they did listen to everything we said. We answered their questions. They need to think about it."

"They were shocked by it. None of us expected an answer today. And you're right Nikolas. They did listen, they didn't throw us out. They listened to what we had to say. That's all we could hope for. They need time to sort it out."

"And you know they are going to be collecting intelligence on us now... Hell, they have a table magician. They are probably already in the village, making sure everything we said was true."

"They have a magician?"

"Yea, what was his name? Young human."

"Johen.. And yea, he is a magician. Marcus called for him to make a door back to their castle in front of us."

"Which one?"

"He escorted their princess."

"I didn't realize he was a magician. That does make more sense now. I could not sort out why they had a human at the table."

Nikolas nods. "They have more than 1. Omar is a human as well. But he disguises it better. I think he's the doctor."

"They have a doctor at the table? That's not a bad idea. For medical advise and attacks."

One of the advisors sits up. "Medical advise is always good."

"They are putting us together. But off on parts. They did figure out a lot."

Nikolas gets out a paper. "Have you thought about any other castles? There is a real chance they will come back with no. They don't know us well."

"Not really. I've met a few kings that seem to think their families are better than anyone. Then there's the small castles that are starting out, we couldn't join with them. They wouldn't even have the room. We'll have to wait it out if they give us a no."

"What about king and queen York. They are well established. They have a big castle. Plenty of room." Marcus tenses up.

The king shakes his head. "I will starve to death here before I put us with those horrible..."

"Troop count is 5,804. Servant count 47." Dipak writes it down.

"Wait." Nikolas stares at the ground. "That was 1 of the dragons at the Sandu castles last name. Which one?"

One of the brothers answers, "Marcus. He's the 1 with long hair."

An advisor guesses. "He is a prince. He could be their son or nephew or at least some family member."

The king shakes his head. "Or he could have the same last name. Move on. We have no way of figuring that out. I've never seen paintings of him whenever I am forced into going there by you assholes."

"You might want to try to figure it out before you go calling them names in front of the Sandu table."

Marcus shakes his head. "No it's fine. We'll join in."

"Or keep your mouth shut about them."

The other prince sits up. "I think that Marcus is her mate."

The king shakes his head. "We're not going to guess about who the princess's mate is. It's not even our business."

An advisor perks up. "I was thinking Dipak. They have him running everything and I seen them dancing."

Another prince shakes his head. "No. The way she was cuddled with Johen all night. I bet Johen."

The first advisor sits back. "I actually have a theory about that."

Nikolas stares at him. "What?"

"That princess is coming of age quick. What 10 years? I think her dad is trying to figure out which 1 of them is her mate. He's letting them run things. That girl has a real connection to everyone at that table. I don't think any of them have any idea."

Another advisor rolls his eyes. "So what? Her dad is going to let her screw everyone so he can see who is the best to run..."

"ENOUGH." We look at Nikolas. "Shut the f**k up. Why would you even say that? It's not any of our business who she sleeps with. If she is even sleeping with any of them. Just because she has a connection with them doesn't mean she's sleeping with everyone. Get your head out of your f*****g ass. When she comes of age, her mate can deal with that. Not us."

The king nods. "We're not going to speculate about who her mate is or what she has going on with anyone. It's not our business. What I do see is a table full of people who trust each other. They seem to have real connections and talk honestly with each other. What I hope for their princess, is that she too is able to communicate freely."

"I think she does. She doesn't seem to hold back. She says what she wants. She roams in and out the kings office. Or commanders office. Whoever the hell he is. She has an office on that floor herself. She met with Ylle. Which is amazing, I've only ever even heard of Ylle. She drinks with her friends. She dances with who she wants. She's not veiled or covered really. I think she's queen."

His dad seems shocked. "What?"

Nikolas nods. "That would make more sense. They are protecting her. Remember what Ylle said. She doesn't want the public to know who she is yet. That's why she is veiled for the village stuff. I think she has the throne. Dipak probably took it for her. I bet he's reigning king. They keep it secret so the public don't find out. So for pretend, they put her parents in the spot. Her dad's not going to tell her no about pretending to be king for a few events. Dipak won't care cause she's so young. He's probably dealing with everything anyways. Then steps in Marcus. He's probably learning about ruling because he is her mate. It'll give him 10 years to learn everything from Dipak."

The king raises his eyebrows. "Interesting theory. Ignoring the mate part. Why in the world would Dipak have taken the throne for a child?"

"I TOOK IT MYSELF ASSHOLES." I jump up on the table.

"Don't attack the laser people baby." Tre pulls me down on his lap.

"I don't know. But Dipak is strong. Maybe her dad was doing a bad job and he took the throne to the save the castle. He put her in the queen spot to... Maybe her dad was mean to her..."

"Or her family. Remember what Ylle asked her? How many times did your brother torture you?"

Nikolas nods. "Maybe Dipak took it to protect her. Then he put her on the throne so he would be the only person to outrank her. With her being so young, he wouldn't have left her to rule on her own and he could protect her from the king spot. He's strong enough to stay and old enough to understand everything."

"They have a son? I've never seen anything about a son."

"Maybe the son had the throne and Dipak killed him cause he was an asshole who was torturing his sister. Hell, maybe even more people."

The king shakes his head. "We are to far into the speculation now. It's getting more confusing. We could sit here guessing all night. I don't want to do that. Let's go back to what we do know. They have a table magician. That does worry me. He could be here right now invisible. We wouldn't know."

Nikolas shakes his head. "He's so young dad. No doubt he has an insane amount of power to be taken in by that table. But I'm positive he can't control it yet. He is to young and still learning."

"Why would they claim a magician that is still learning and that young?"

"Why not? He's powerful. Has a good connection to the princess. He fits in well. And think about that night at the arena. What the princess said about the guards. They are learning. Tell them what they are doing right. Tell them good job. Don't yell at them you'll stress them out. I think they are used to people that are learning new stuff."

"Hell half of them are young. They are learning together. The older group watches and tries to have patience. Taking in a young magician would work best for them. They can grow in their own ways. They don't expect perfection out of each other because they're use to people who are still learning."

"Would you rather have an all powerful magician who was a total asshole or a young learning magician who fits in and is friends with everyone?"

The king nods. "So, you do not think he is a threat to us?"

Nikolas laughs. "I have no doubt he could hurt us if not kill us. But I don't think he would. What they will try to do is gather intelligence on us. From what I seen, he could make a door here no problem. But I don't think he can go invisible or anything like that. He will get them here or to the village quick. They will come to check on what we claimed. He is helping and learning right now. I don't see him leading yet. He's to young."

His raises his eyebrows. "He'll grow into that. Being a human, this is probably new to him. Put him at a young table and he'll have the time he needs to grow. He'll be safe there too. They'll protect him. Someday he be a force."

Nikolas nods. "Exactly. And if they keep him protected and give him enough patience, he'll probably end up being the strongest 1 there."

An advisor sits up. "We should take him out while we have the chance." We stop moving.

After a second I jump off Tre and try to take the laser man's head off. "YOU ARE DEAD."

Dipak yells, "WAIT WOMAN."

"LET ME AT HIM."

"Oh it was a joke Nikolas. Sit back down."

"WOMAN YOU CAN'T KILL A LASER MAN." Tre is holding me back. "WATCH."

"TRE GET OFF. JOKE MY ASS."

"Joke my ass." Nikolas is walking to the advisor.

Dipak stands up. "WATCH."

Tre is still holding me back. But I'm on my feet with an eye twitch now.

Nikolas takes the advisor pins off him and throws them on the table.

His dad is rubbing his eyes. "That was a stupid thing to say."

"You are no longer an advisor."

"Oh fine. Whatever. This place is a joke anyways." The man stands up and Nikolas rips his head off.

I stand up straight and fix my dress. "Thank you. I needed that." Then I sit back down. "I feel better now."

"I don't think was entirely necessary Nikolas."

Nikolas sits back down. "I'm not having him run over there and tell them a bunch of lies about us. And he's an asshole. He would do anything to save himself. If they take us they do. If they don't, we'll wait on another castle to ask."

"Fair enough. How long do you think it will take them?"

"Few weeks or days I guess. I mean, they'll probably have more questions soon, if they're actually considering it anyways."

"There is nothing we can do but wait and see."

I jump up. "Come on Johen. We walk in. I'll ask how many troops they have. I want to see if they'll be honest. You make me a door back."

"Woman." Dipak shakes his head.

"They're going to end it anyways. I want to see. And I won't leave the room. You'll see us the whole time."

Omar glances around. "It would show them that we are talking about it. That might help some of their anxiety. They do seem worried."

"Fine. But neither of you leave that room."

"He don't like my parents. They are good people."

Dipak rolls his eyes.

Johen makes a door and the 2 of us step into the Blayze kings office.

"I was supposed to ask something." I stare at the ceiling. "How many troops do you have? Dipak wants to know."

The advisor by king flips through papers and Johen messes with the door cause it won't open.

"Well that jammed fast."

"To fast. I'll get it."

"5,804."

"Thank you. I should probably write that down." The other advisor writes it down on a piece of paper and hands it to me.

"Thank you." Then I glance at the dead guy. "And 2 advisors not 3. I'll let him know." Johen's still f*****g with the door. He keeps trying to release the magic from it. I watch him. "Sometimes they jam magically. Use the window if he can't get it open."

The king finally speaks, "Why did they send you princess?"

"Johen took the rest of them to a village somewhere and left them. This was apparently less dangerous than that."

Johen rubs his eyes. "I forgot how to get back to the village. I don't know where I left them."

I smile. "I'm sure they'll figure something out."

The Blayze's laugh.

Johen goes back to the door. He grabs the handle and shakes the door. "How is it this stuck?"

I shrug my shoulders. "I remember when Dipak had to put a hole in the wall beside the door. That jam would not go away."

The king cracks up laughing. "Oh I could imagine."

I sit in my spot at this table. "I have been informed of the situation and I don't understand it in the slightest. But I have been informed. Do you have any questions for me."

"STUPID f*****g DOOR."

"I'm sure we're not stuck here forever. Slow down and concentrate. If we have to, we can use the window and find another door."

"True. Thank you."

King Blayze smiles. "How many advisors do you have?"

"Personally, I think I have 3. Johen are you my advisor?"

"No, I'm Dipak's."

"3."

Nicolas checks his paper. "Is it hard being on the throne so young?"

I watch Johen and without thinking, I shake my head. "Dipak's always ran everything. I get to bored with the meetings. I mean... Um." They smile at me. "Yea, I guess I said that without thinking. Don't tell anyone."

"We won't. So what is your dad?"

Johen answers, "Dipak's advisor. Dipak is the 1 who signed him back in anyway. He does everything as king though. No one wants her out as queen yet. Address her as princess, not queen."

1 of the other princes winks. "So who is your mate? Will he take the throne when you come of age?"

Johen rubs his eyes. "I'm so... It was locked." We crack up laughing.

I stand up. "We'll get into that another time perhaps. Thank you for the information. I'll make sure Dipak gets it. But for now, we have to try and remember where we put him." They laugh again. "We'll see you soon. I imagine I'll be sent with 7 million questions."

"You are welcome at any time with questions princess."

"Thank you, sir." Johen pushes me threw the door first.

We get in Dipak's office and all of us lose it. Johen releases the magic from our door. "I had no idea it was locked."

Dipak rubs his eyes. "I thought you were going to rip the whole door off when you started shaking it. We were laughing our asses off."

"Did you know it was locked?"

Omar nods. "I did it once too. Now, I always check that first and you will too."

One of the Blayze advisors looks at the king. "I did not expect that."

The king gets a pen. "Any of that."

Nikolas smirks. "And no doubt they are in our village, like I said they would be."

"This is good. They took it serious and are at least considering it. They're gathering information."

"It's the most we could hope for."

The youngest prince throws his pen down. "I wanted her to answer the mate question. But he got the damn door open to fast."

"She don't like you. Let it go. If any of us have a chance with her it's Nikolas."

Nikolas shakes his head. "She don't like me like that either. That 1 girl at the ball said she's into girls. Maybe she is. It could be that her mate will be female and she is going to keep Dipak as her king forever. I mean, he's strong. Protective as hell of her. Why not? Maybe the men she has connections with are close friends."

The kings smiles. "That could be the case. She is a pretty girl. But those young men are probably hoping she changes her mind."

The young prince plops back. "She's not into girls. Her and Tye had dark eyes when they were dancing."

The king shakes his head. "Why?..." Then he shakes his head again. "Why does the mate of this princess keep coming up. Why? It does not matter. What she choses to do with her kingdom and who she puts in charge is her business. And honestly, her and Dipak are doing a good job. That girl has enough brains not to put someone stupid on the throne."

The advisor nods. "And Dipak would defend his throne against anyone the table didn't want as king. He's strong and smart. They work good together. And they have Marcus coming up. I bet you any amount of money, he will be able to walk as king as well. They are ruling that place together."

The other advisor smirks. "That's not the reason they keep asking about her mate though."

The king laughs. "Yea I don't suppose it is. Pretty young girl. Make sure you 3 stay respectful around her. She is a girl and a princess."

"Victor seems to like her."

The youngest 1 throws his pen down and rolls his eyes. "I'm curious. If we live there we have a right to know who the king would be. Or what is going on with that."

The king nods. "In time they will tell us. Let them get their information first. They aren't going to give any information about the princess if they don't find it absolutely necessary. He's not the 1 who likes her."

I jump up. "WHY DOESN'T VICTOR LIKE ME? WHAT DID I DO?"

"He hasn't even talked to you baby. I'm sure he'll like you fine. We just met."

I sit back down. "I didn't think about that. I'll make him like me, Tre."

Kane cracks up laughing and Tre rubs his eyes.

The brother sitting between Victor and Nikolas is laughing his ass off. The king gives him a dirty look. "Well it's not me you called out. I haven't said 2 words to the girl. She is pretty though."

The king points at him. "Corbin you leave her alone. You like entirely to many girls."

Victor chuckles. "And never for longer than a week."

"I said she was pretty. I won't touch her. Plenty of other girls out there to play with that I won't get killed for, if I touch them."

The king glances at his advisors. "At least they have enough sense to realize that."

"With young men, sometimes that's all you can hope for."

"They're good boys. They grew up well. They won't get themselves killed over a pretty girl. But in 10 years or so, she takes her mate then most of the stupid stuff will calm down. 10 years isn't that long to deal with a pretty girl. They can make it. They are grown enough for that."

"I do have good boys. Let's go to dinner. You're mother will be wondering where we are. We can meet back here in the morning."

We stand up. "I guess that works for us too."

"Dinner and then I want to talk to you and Tre in the morning room."

We leave for the dining room.