93, Going

The king didn’t give Ayya an answer, instead he turned to the people and held up a hand. The crowd quieted down, and he stepped up to the edge, facing them. 

“People of Dermes, we have been through eighteen years of despair, fear, and death. But it has now come to an end thanks to lady Ayyanapia, her aari and the grey riders. We can never repay what they have done for this city and our kingdom. But a good place to start is by offering Salmisara our friendship in hopes of mending old wounds. The Lady have been kind enough to send further help to make the poisoned wells safe, and I have sent communication to her, offering to let a permanent base for the aari to be set up in Dermes, and if all goes well, in other cities in Domne.” The king had to pause as the crowd roared at the news. After a moment, the king raised his hand again, asking for silence. “For our saviors, could I please ask the three aari to join me,” he said, looking back at them. Firlea and Hinat looked at Ayya. She shrugged discreetly, and they walked to stand by the king. “It is my honour as king of Domne to stand before you. It has been my privilege to get to know you these weeks and I hope this is not the last time we look upon each other. As the sovereign king, in accordance with the decision of our council and with the recommendation of the holy church, I hear by proclaiming you protectors of Dermes, a title usually only offered to knights and high-ranking military officers. But no one deserves to wear it more then the three of you. We thank you for your service and you will forever be remembered as our saviours,” the king said. Zerden walked up to him, holding an ornament box. The king picked up something from the box and walked up to Ayya. He smiled at her as he held out a badge. It was about an inch across with the word ‘Protector’ engraved in it. At the bottom, the royal seal was engraved, and in the middle, a diamond had been set to it. The king pinned it next to Ayya’s aari badge. She was lost for words and he moved on to place one on Firlea and Hinat as well. Ayya noticed that the stone in the centre matched her friends’ aari badges. The crowd cheered, and Ayya took a moment to collect herself. She looked questioning at the king and he smiled, nodded and gestured for her to take the place at the front of the platform. As she stepped up, the crowd grew silent. 

“I thank the king, the council and the church for this honour. We will carry our titles with pride and they forge a bond between us and this city. I was born here and although I no longer call it my home, it, and its citizens, will always hold a special place in my heart. It is time for us to head back to Salmi, but we have strengthened the bond between our nations. The help and support me and my friends have got, not only from the king, the council and the church, but from ordinary citizens as well, has proven how much you all love the city. We hope we will return in times of less strive. Until then, we will keep you in our prayers, and in our hearts,” Ayya said. The crowd cheered, and she turned toward the king. 

“Your majesty, thank you for being open-minded and for your hospitality,” Ayya said in a lower voice. 

“Lady Ayya. Thank you for answering our plea for help and for saving my life. I will miss our talks. They have been both enlightening and amusing,” he told her. Ayya smiled and nodded. She felt a friendship towards the king and she hoped they would be able to keep in touch, both for their country’s sake, but also for her own personal sake. 

“Council man, thank you for everything,” Ayya said as she faced the head of the council.

“My lady, it is I that should be thanking you. It has been a privilege to see you in action. I am going to steal some of your tactics to use when I need them,” he told her. 

“Father Link, thank you. Both for what you did for me when I was a child, but also for having faith in me now,” Ayya said to the priest. 

“My child, it has always been a pleasure to know you. With your permission, I would like to keep you in my prayers,” he said. Ayya was more than happy to give her permission. Zerden stood at the king’s side and Ayya nodded at him, and he returned the gesture. When all goodbyes had been made, Tenac took them back to the carriage, and they started moving. As they left the city, it was like a burden was lifted from Ayya’s shoulders. She had done it, she had faced her past, and she had come out in one piece. 

“Are you okay?” she asked Jason. He nodded.

“I have never been outside the walls before,” he told her. 

“I know. There are a lot of things to see out here,” she said. There was silence as they continued to move further away from the city. After a while, they stopped.

“We are just going to wait for the storage waggons to catch up with us,” Ayya told Jason. 

“So, Jason, do you want to start learning Salamis?” Hinat asked as they waited. Jason looked nervous, but nodded. Ayya and her friends started teaching him some words, just like Ayya had done when she had learnt the language. After about an hour, Tenac opened the door.

“The waggons are here. We will continue toward the camp,” he said. Ayya nodded. 

“What happens if I don’t know Salamis before we arrive in Salmis?” Jason asked. 

“No one expects you to learn it that quickly. Most people in Salmis know Common. Don’t push yourself. The language will come when you are ready for it, and it will be easier to learn once you are there and can listen to people speak it,” Ayya reassured him. Jason looked relieved and nodded. 

As dusk approached, Ayya could see the hill with the camp on it. The fires from the camp were lighting the area. She pointed it out to Jason, and he looked at it with big eyes. As they drove into camp and stopped near the middle, Ayya could see Sinhera come walking and Ayya just couldn’t stop smiling. As Tenac helped her down from the carriage, Ayya walked up to her friend and gave her a hug. Sinhera laughed and hugged her back.

“I knew you would miss me after spending all that time with Tenac,” Sinhera joked. 

“Things have changed a little, my friend,” Ayya said as Tenac came walking with Jason. 

“Ah, so this is our newest member. Hello, Jason,” Sinhera said.

“Hello,” Jason said. 

“Jason, this is our friend Sinhera. We told you about her,” Tenac said. Jason nodded.

“It’s the one that is almost as good of an officer as you are,” Jason said. Tenac, Ayya and Sinhera all laughed. 

“I hear I need to clear my name. You will learn, my friend, that Tenac just feels insecure around me and that is why he makes these jokes,” Sinhera told Jason. “What is this change you talked about Ayya?” she then asked. Ayya looked at Tenac and he smiled at her. “No,” Sinhera said, looking at Hinat, who nodded. “Well, it was about time. I have been waiting for this since the first day we went to the marketplace and I saw how Tenac acted around Jontak. It was, of course, before Jontak had met Firlea,” Sinhera told them. “You are as fast as a snail, my friend,” she added, patting Tenac on the back. 

“Is everything ready for us to leave tomorrow?” Tenac asked, trying to change the topic. 

“We have been ready for days. It has been a nice little vacation, but I’m ready to go home,” Sinhera told them. 

“Good, I think we are all eager to get back. Let’s have some dinner and then I think we will all like an early night so we can get started early tomorrow,” Ayya said and reached out her hand to Jason. 

“I’m presuming you and Tenac…” Sinhera asked as they were walking to the tent, looking at Jason.

“Yes, Tenac and I adopted him,” Ayya confirmed. 

“Good, it makes sense. Have you told the ones back home?” Sinhera then asked. 

“No, we didn’t want to do it in a letter,” Ayya said.

“Even better. I didn’t want to miss out on that,” Sinhera told Ayya with a grin. They walked into the tent and while they waited for dinner, Ayya showed Jason around. An extra cot had been placed in the same part of the tent as her own. It looked like when she had been travelling to Salmisara for the first time. Ayya also showed him where Tenac would sleep, making sure he knew he was surrounded by people he could trust. They sat down and had a simple evening meal. Ayya could see Tenac relaxing as they were now surrounded by grey riders and out of the castle and the city.