Chapter 328: Summer Solstice Part 1

The noon sun radiated warm golden light over the Ebon Realm. The longest day of the year had arrived and the Festival of the Gods was in full bloom in the streets of Undergrowth. Hundreds of stalls had gathered their stocks in preparation for this day. The influx of visitors from across the realm gathered for the tournament only helped bolster the anticipation of the merchants. Countless foods, drinks, pottery, trinkets, clothes, weapons, armor, entertainment of all sensual kinds, and more were on sale for whoever had the coin to spend.

Stryg walked down the crowded streets in a meandering path. A retinue of House Katag’s armored guards walked in a circle around him, forming a protective barrier of sorts. Drows, vampires, humans, orcs, and dwarves all stopped what they were doing as Stryg walked by. They pointed in excitement and fear, and whispered amongst themselves as they stared at Stryg and his two companions; his fiancé, Elena Katag, and his wife, Feli.

“It’s the Amethyst Mistress! She’s so pretty!” a young drow girl shouted as she pointed at Feli from atop her father’s shoulders.

“Be quiet!” the father snapped and put his daughter down. He met Feli’s gaze and quickly bowed in an apology.

Feli smiled warmly and waved at the little girl.

“Madam, would you like me to deal with them? Peasants should not be pointing at their superiors,” the guard captain stated.

“She is just expressing herself. Leave them be, they have done nothing wrong,” Feli shook her head.

“Uh, as you wish,” the captain said with a trace of confusion.

Elena nudged Feli’s arm, “Amethyst Mistress? That’s the fourth time I’ve heard that name in the last ten minutes. Is that what the common folk call you?”

“So it seems,” Feli admitted reluctantly. “They started calling me that ever since I came to Undergrowth.”

“I like it, I think it’s quite charming,” Elena smiled.

“Yes, good for you,” Feli said curtly and walked ahead, a few steps closer to Stryg.

Elena bit her lip in discomfort, but she took a deep breath and quickly smoothed over her features. Today was the first day it was just the three of them, she was determined to make a good impression with Stryg and Feli, no matter what it took.

Elena hurried her steps and caught up with them, “Undergrowth really went all out this year for the festival. It’s a nice break from all the tourney challenges.”

“Yeah, I suppose it is, but I still like Hollow Shade’s festival better,” Feli said.

“I like them both,” Elena said thoughtfully. “What about you, Stryg? S-Stryg…?”

“Hm? What?” Stryg looked up from staring at his feet.

“Oh, uh, I was just wondering if you liked the Festival of the Gods here?” Elena said uneasily.

“Oh, yeah, I guess it’s nice,” Stryg muttered.

“I see, that’s good…” Elena smiled weakly, “I, um… I wonder what everyone else is up to right about now?”

“...My teammates left early this morning, I have no idea where they're at. Probably drinking and having fun I guess,” Stryg said off-handedly.

“Rhian and Lysaila are definitely out drinking and eating whatever they think looks or smells interesting,” Feli chuckled.

“Gale took the day off from keeping an eye on me. She said she was going to some spa or something,” Stryg recalled.

“The spas here are nice. We could go if you’d like?” Elena said.

“Mm, maybe some other time,” Stryg said listlessly.

“I’d bet you would prefer it if Lady Mora came too,” Feli said teasingly.

“That’d be nice, but Maeve has been in her room the last few days,” Stryg sighed. “She’s busy with some stuff or so she said.”

“I was joking, Stryg. The right answer is ‘No, I’d rather spend the day alone with you at the spa,” Feli frowned.

“Oh, is that so…?” Stryg’s voice drifted off.

Elena glanced at Nameless hanging from Stryg’s hip. For whatever reason, he still carried around the broken blade.

“Ahem,” Elena cleared her throat. “I hear there are a bunch of master smiths and enchanters selling their wares today. I bet we could find you a new replacement for that sword of yours.”

“No!” Stryg snapped at her. His slit pupils were as thin as blades.

“S-sorry, I meant no offense!” Elena said worriedly.

Feli grabbed Elena’s arm and shook her head subtly. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault,” she whispered.

“O-oh…” Elena mumbled, relieved.

“Nameless means a lot to Stryg, even broken,” Feli stated. She glanced at him, “But that’s not what’s been bothering you all morning, is it?”

Stryg looked away glumly.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Feli sighed. “Let me guess, you’re still thinking about yesterday’s duel, aren’t you?”

Stryg nodded numbly.

“I thought so,” Feli nodded in satisfaction. “You’re worried about the final match.”

“H-huh?” Elena laughed and shook her head. “I don’t understand. Why stress about that? Sylvie defeated Calex. The other cities’ teams have been officially knocked out. Hollow Shade has technically already won. You guys did it! You won!”

Stryg sighed.

“That’s not enough for him,” Feli noted. “Sylvie and he have a history.”

“History?” Elena asked.

“A rivalry,” Feli said.

“Oh. Ooooohhh,” Elena said. “B-but, surely Stryg will win, right! Right…?”

“...I don’t know,” Stryg admitted quietly. “...I’ve fought Sylvie several times, and we almost came out about even. But every single time I always held back, I never used my true chromatic range of spells.” He sighed, “I just didn’t realize Sylvie was holding back way more. Whatever those golden flames were… I’ve never seen anything like it. The sheer power behind those flames… I don’t have any spell that can compare. She’s physically stronger and faster than me, she is a better swordsman than me, and now it turns out she’s even a better mage than me…”

“Stryg…” Feli whispered sympathetically.

Elena gently patted his shoulder, “Um, don’t worry! You’re a bonafide Ebon Aspirant, you’ll surely win the final match!”

“Doubtful,” Stryg sighed.

Feli clapped her hands together loudly, “Why don’t we leave such negative thoughts for tomorrow, hm? Today is the biggest festival of the year! Why don’t we enjoy it doing fun things!”

“Like trying to figure out a way to tell Nora that I failed to kill Nokti, the vampire who backstabbed Clypeus…?” Stryg said bitterly.

“No, you cheeky bastard,” Feli frowned. “I’ll tell Nora, so stop worrying about that.”

Elena scratched her cheek, “Um, I don’t know what you two are talking about, but I think that Miss Feli was referring to happy activities, like trying out some of the delicacies in the food stalls.”

“I could go for some cake,” Feli said.

“Cake?” Stryg asked. He stiffened and stopped walking, “Oh shit…!”

Feli looked back at him with a raised eyebrow, “So you finally remembered?”

Stryg chuckled sheepishly, “Um, I’m really sorry… I don’t really know what to say…”

“You could start with a ‘Happy Birthday’ and then another dozen apologies,” Feli said with her nose in the air.

Stryg smiled weakly, pulled Feli into his arms and kissed her, “Happy Birthday, my beautiful and lovely wife. I’m sorry for forgetting what makes today so special, you.”

“...Meh, it’s a start,” Feli said amusedly. “But you’re going to have to do a lot better than that.”

“The day is just beginning,” Stryg grinned confidently.

“Wait a sec! Today’s your birthday!?” Elena’s eyes widened. “That’s great! The priests say the ones born on the Summer Solstice are blessed by the gods and will have good fortune for their whole lives. You’re so lucky!”

“I don’t feel very lucky,” Feli said dryly. “I don’t think anyone would accuse an orphan of having a very ‘blessed’ life either.”

“You’re married to the first Ebon Aspirant in over two centuries, who is literally trying to please you right now, I’d say that’s pretty lucky,” Elena said.

Feli laughed, “You think being married to this Sylvan country bumpkin is lucky? You really don’t know anything about Stryg, do you?”

“Uh… I…” Elena blushed.

“First thing you should know about Stryg,” Feli smirked, “He bites.”

“Huh? What? What does that mean?” Elena asked worriedly.

Feli slipped her finger into Stryg’s mouth and lifted his upper lip, “His fangs are quite tiny, but those little fuckers are sharper than a goddamn needle.”

Stryg pulled his face away and licked his lips, “Why do I feel like you want me to bite you?”

“Not a chance, but that hasn’t stopped you before,” Feli said. “Oh, and by the way, Miss Katag. How do you feel about occasionally having your blood drunk?”

“Excuse me, what!?” Elena paled.

Feli smiled wide, “Today is going to be fun.”

~~~

Callum sat on a bench and watched hundreds of common folk mill about the festival as he sipped an expensive bottle of wine he had bought from some grape vendor. He definitely had paid too much for the bottle, but he preferred wine over the sweeter drinks offered in the other stalls. His girlfriend held a different opinion.

Belle held a mug in each hand filled with a hot drink, made of sweet fruits mixed with spices. How she could stomach drinking something so hot in the summer he had no idea.

Belle stared at the crowds with a constant scowl, her usual smile nowhere to be seen.

Callum coughed, “How’s the drink? Or drinks? I guess…”

“They’re fine,” Belle said gruffly and took another swig.

Callum swept back his black hair and wiped the sweat off his brow. He wished he had brought an umbrella like all the other vampires. He was half-human, the light of the sun didn’t innately irritate his pale skin, but he still wasn’t immune to the heat.

“Are you um, are you enjoying the festival?” Callum asked.

“Not particularly,” she shrugged. “The whole thing is just a giant mockery to the gods.”

“Mockery?” he frowned. “The Festival of the Gods is a day everyone gathers to celebrate the gods and pray to them in gratitude. How is that a mockery?”

“You think everyone here is thankful to the gods? Most of the drows in Undergrowth don’t worship the ebon gods and there are quite a few of them who don’t even believe the gods are real.”

“Okay, sure, but the majority of the realm still believes in the gods. Even drows, especially the ones in the North, like Frost Rim, still worship the gods. No one is here trying to mock the gods, even the ones who don’t believe.”

“You think so?” Belle chuckled sarcastically. “Tell me, how many statues of Solis do you see around?”

“What?”

“Solis, god of the sun, the deity who this entire day is dedicated to. I don’t see anything around that even hints at his existence. Do you?”

“Well, no. But no one really worships Solis anymore, he’s been gone for centuries.”

“The Keepers of the Dawn still worship Solis, even if he’s dead. They haven’t forgotten.”

“You mean the Valley Tribes that attacked us just a few days back?” Callum asked, confused. “Are you really certain we should be taking any tips from those savages?”

“Funny how the savages are the only ones who still remember what this day meant.”

Callum shrugged, “Well, either way, today is the Festival of the Gods, emphasis on the plurality.”

“You and everyone else can call it the Festival of the Gods, but I doubt the gods see it that way. It doesn’t matter if the people of this land have tried to distort the meaning; the Summer Solstice has and will always belong to the god of the sun.”

“I don’t know if that makes you pious or a heretic,” Callum smiled lopsidedly.

Belle finished her drinks and tossed her mugs aside, “I’ll see you back at the mansion.”

“Huh? What? Where are you going?”

Belle stood up and walked off into the crowd without a word.

Callum tossed his bottle aside and chased after.

“Sylvie! Wait! Sylvie —agh dammit, how do you lose a 7 ft tall woman!?” Callum glanced around helplessly, but she was gone.

~~~

Belle stepped into a dark alleyway, away from the stalls and festivities. She crossed her arms and tapped her foot, “I don’t have time to waste with you lot, come out already. That’s not a request.”

Four black cloaks slipped out from the shadows and gathered in front of Belle.

“Mistress,” they said in unison and bent down on one knee.

“Who sent you to spy on me this time?” Belle asked impatiently.

“I sent them,” a familiar voice spoke from behind.

Belle spun around with surprise, “Dad?!”

“And they aren’t here to spy on you. They’re here to protect you,” Dorian said.

“I don’t need anyone’s protection,” Belle growled.

“Maybe that was the case before, but things have changed, war is coming,” Dorian said lamentingly. “You’ve been gone from the Ebon Order for too long, Belle. It’s time to come home.”