35, The prince

The Orechal palace was located at the peak of the city. Its white domed roof could be seen from every part of Archam. It had been built about a hundred and fifty years ago by a local ruler that wanted to make Archam the centre of his expanding kingdom. The construction of the palace had brought the kingdom to bankruptcy and the ruling family soon fled and left the city to its own devices. The city had asked to become part of Salmisara and now the palace acted as the local aari headquarters and official building for the city. It was an impressive building and the surrounding garden wrapped around it and used the cliff as a backdrop. The days leading up to the prince’s arrival they were all busy to get situated and learn the layout of the palace and the city. After all the preparations, the day finally came and Ayya stood on one side of Tariana and Mikhalie on the other. They stood on a raised platform, decorated with flowers, on the dock where the prince’s ship would dock and watched the ship manoeuvre into port. There were two docks in the city, one was located towards the river, for the smaller river going ships, and the larger one for the seafaring ships was located towards the sea. The ship that was docking before them was huge and decorated with swooping fabric in deep red, gold, and white. It was tied to the dock, and the gangway was put in place. The men that came walking down towards them from the ship were all dressed in the traditional Ne’xsissian clothing. It consisted of flowing pants that ended just below the knee, soft sandals, a long-sleeved shirt that was tucked into the waistline or under a belt, and a long vest that was open and flowed all the way down to the ankles. All the garments were brightly coloured and decorated with stones, pearls, gold and silver. It wasn’t hard to spot the prince. He was a tall man that moved like a soldier. His clothes were deep blue and red with gold ornaments. He had rich sepia coloured skin and golden eyes that were accentuated by black and gold lines that were painted around them. His head was shaved on the sides, but in the middle there were long, black braids that were pulled together in a thick ponytail, held together by gold bands that were spaced out along the ponytail. The prince walked down the gangway with confidence and came to a stop before Tariana.

“My Lady,” he said with a graceful bow. 

“Prince Neherim, welcome to our shores. It’s an honour to be a part of your introduction tour. I hope your time here will be fruitful. Let me introduce my candidates. This is Mikhalie and this is Ayya. They will be guiding you on your visit,” Tariana said. The prince looked with evaluating eyes on both Ayya and Mikhalie before he bowed to them.

“Your graces,” he said. Both aari returned his bow and greeted him. They made their way back to the palace and the prince and his group were shown where they would stay for the visit and given time to settle in. 

They all met up a couple of hours later for the official welcoming dinner. Once the food had been eaten, all speeches had been dealt with and the initial formality was easing off, it was time to mingle in the grand meeting hall with an open side that led out to a balcony that had a stunning view over the garden, the city and the ocean. Ayya and Mikhalie were getting a glass of lemonade as they were approached by the prince and the man that always seemed to be by his side. 

“Your graces, I feel like we haven’t had a chance to talk yet,” Neherim said with a slight bow. 

“Your highness,” both Ayya and Mikhalie answered and bowed in return. 

“Please, would it be possible to put the formalities to the side? If we are to spend the coming two weeks in each other’s company, I would appreciate if I at least don’t have to be so formal,” the prince asked. The two aari looked at each other, and Ayya turned to him with a smile.

“We would appreciate it as well,” Ayya told him.

“Oh, good. Then it is settled. Please call me Neherim, or Neri for short,” the prince said. “This is my right-hand man, Pehobo. I’m afraid his Common isn’t the best, so he will not speak as much.” The man beside the prince bowed to them. Unlike most of his countrymen, Pehobo didn’t have braids in his black hair. It was cut short and was hanging loose in tight curls that glistened in the light. He had a serious expression that reminded Ayya of the one her father had when he was working. 

“If it’s preferable, we can switch to Ne’xiss,” Mikhalie told Neherim.

“You both speak it?” he asked, surprised.

“Not fluently, but I think we can get by,” Ayya answered.

“Well, this is a welcome surprise, don’t you think, Pehobo?” the prince said, switching to his mother tongue. 

“It is,” the man behind him agreed without letting a trace of emotion into his voice. Ayya smiled. She had a feeling that Pehobo wasn’t talkative, even in his own language. 

“Is this the first stop on your journey?” Ayya asked.

“Yes. With the closeness between our nations both geographically and political, it seemed like a good place to start,” the prince said. 

“I hope you will be happy with your stay,” Mikhalie offered in a forced way. She wasn’t as relaxed using a new language, and Ayya had been surprised that she suggested switching to Ne’xiss. 

“I am sure I will be. I have been honoured with being guided not only by the Lady, but also by the two of you. That can only lead to a fantastic stay,” he said. They continued to small talk. As Ayya had expected, Pehobo remained silent except for when he was forced to speak. She also realised that the prince was skilled in smooth talking. Everything that he said came out as a compliment. Ayya had grown up in the proximity with the court and was all too familiar with the behaviour. It wasn’t as common in Salami and maybe that was why Mikhalie was lapping it all up. Ayya, on the other hand, found it shallow. If you only sought to find the positive things, the conversation could never develop into something meaningful, in her opinion. 

“If Mikhalie is responsible for the tour of the irrigation systems, the debate on ship standards, the lunch with the agricultural representatives, the tour of the gardens and the tour of the harbour. When will I get to enjoy your company, Ayya?” Neherim asked.

“Oh, I will be handling the lunch with the ambassador, the traders summit, the tour of the textile industry, the debate about protection for certain animals and, as an extra treat, one of the Che’hul clans is camped not far from here. I will take you on a visit,” Ayya told him.

“We are visiting the Che’hul?” he asked, and for the first time, Ayya could see genuine excitement from him.

“Yes, it so happened that the clan is camping nearby, and we thought it would be a fun thing to do,” Ayya told him. 

“I have always wanted to see one of the legendary herds of the Che’hul. Do you think they will show us any of their highest prized horses?”

“I think so. They love to show them off when they get visitors. I know that the clan has at least three star horses in their herd,” she told him. 

“If that were to be the only thing on the schedule for my two weeks here, I would be happy,” the prince said with a grin. 

“I think we can manage a bit more than that,” Ayya told him. After a while, the prince moved on to talk to others. Ayya and Mikhalie walked out on the balcony to get some fresh air.

“Why does he only seem interested in the visit to the Che’hul?” Mikhalie asked, almost in a whining voice. Ayya looked at her with surprise.

“I’m sure that’s not the case. But most people with an interest in horses find the Che’hul interesting. We knew the prince was interested in horses, that’s why we arranged it,” Ayya said. 

“You arranged it. I just think it’s unfair that you get to do the fun things and I’m stuck with debating the measurement of ships,” Mikhalie told Ayya. Ayya looked at her friend for a moment and then shook her head. 

“I arranged, and I got the task to do the tour because I’m a member of the tribe. If you would like, we can switch. I can do the debate about the ship standardisation, and you can do the tour of the clan,” Ayya offered. 

“No, that won’t work. I don’t know the first thing about the Che’hul,” Mikhalie sighed. “But thanks for the offer.”

“Any time,” Ayya said. Ayya had a hard time understanding why her friend was upset. In the end, this was about strengthening the bonds between the two countries and taking the opportunity to discuss issues that would benefit them both.