"Shall we rest for a while on the terrace, My Queen?"
It was Calix who eventually reminded Kel of her original goal.
"You seem suspiciously polite," Kel frowned. "But let's go."
Calix took her arm in his and led her to the very terrace she'd been eyeing earlier. Their approach alone was enough to send all the other occupants running back into the hall with bows and apologies.
"Suspiciously polite?" Calix echoed Kel's earlier words as he pulled the curtains shut, shielding them from the rest of the hall.
Kel watched him with an eyebrow raised before turning away with a sigh.
"Usually, you only speak like that when you're angry with me," she explained, "but now I think you have a very specific goal in mind."
"Can't a man want to watch a beautiful view alone with the woman he loves?" Calix pouted, strolling up behind her as she leaned on the railing.
".. it is a beautiful view," Kel replied softly.
The water was like a great black void that went on and on forever. The sparkle of a thousand stars reflected off the surface, glimmering with the currents. It was frightening but calming at the same time. Looking out at the endless sea, while the waves lapped quietly against the shore, Kel felt so small.
She'd started life confined to Mevani, but her world had now expanded to Serin and Pandreia. The White Mountains in the north had seemed so far away--so big and so important.
But now, the entire continent felt insignificant compared to the great big world that lay beyond the silvery line where the water met the sky.
Kel stretched one of her hands out toward the horizon.
Immediately, Calix's arms wound around her. He squeezed her so tight she could hardly breathe.
Ugh, I knew it, Kel groaned internally. He did have dirty ulterior moti-
"Ack!" she yelped in surprise as the Emperor whirled her away from the railing and pushed her to the ground.
"Can't you control yourself for a minute!" Kel squirmed underneath him. "That hurt-"
She froze when she saw a knife sticking out of the railing she'd just been leaning against, spreading shards of moonlight as it wobbled back and forth.
Thrashing to try and break free of Calix's weight, Kel whipped her head around in search of the attacker. They were too vulnerable in this position and had already given whoever had thrown that knife more than enough time to launch a second strike.
"Shhh calm down," the Emperor whispered, keeping her pressed helplessly against the cold terrace floor.
The grunt of a man who'd been hit answered her before she could even ask why.
Several more whacks and grunts later, Calix finally lifted himself off of Kel, and they both jumped to their feet.
The first thing Kel saw was Thane with his nose bleeding, holding a man on his knees in front of him. Lucy stood off to the side, her sword drawn and a gash near her shoulder.
The man on his knees looked to be unconscious. Kel took a step closer, only to jump back with her arms raised in defense when the man's head twitched.
"Who.." she trailed off.
It didn't matter who it was. Obviously, he was trying to kill either her or Calix.
Or maybe both of them.
"So they made their first move," Calix snorted, walking toward the man on his knees.
The man's head twitched again, this time white foam pouring out from his lips.
"No!" Thane groaned in frustration, tossing the man's now limp body to the ground. "He must have had something in his mouth."
"Of course," Calix smiled grimly. "You didn't think they'd make it easy for us, did you?"
Thane sighed and shook his head. He glanced at the facedown corpse of the assassin once more and then turned to inspect his companion.
"It's a good thing those knives weren't poisoned," he huffed, gripping the bottom of his shirt.
In one swift move, he tore a large strip of fabric and began wrapping it around the gash in Lucy's arm.
"Still, it took both of us to take him down," he murmured as he worked. "And that was with sustaining injuries."
Lucy rolled her eyes as Thane finished his wrapping job.
With a click of her tongue, she also tore a piece of fabric from Thane's shirt and shoved it in his face.
"E-eh?" The knight blushed, his belly button now exposed.
"Your nose," Lucy explained, tapping the side of her own nose. "You're bleeding everywhere."
Thane raised his eyebrows as he noticed, for the first time, the droplets of blood on the front of his tunic and on the makeshift bandage covering Lucy's wound.
"Oh.. thank you," he nodded, wadding the fabric and pressing it firmly against his nose.
After quietly observing the spectacle of Thane and Lucy haphazardly treating each other's wounds, Kel turned to Calix, who was busy poking at the body with the toe of his shoe.
"I'm pretty sure he's still dead," Kel teased, walking up beside him.
The Emperor turned to her, his eyebrows scrunched together in deep thought.
"Right, but who knows how many other traps are on his body," Calix sighed. "I think it's safe to move him now, though."
"Move him ourselves?" Kel asked. "Are you planning on hiding this?"
"Mmm not so much hiding as ignoring," Calix clarified. "I'd hate to give whoever sent this guy the satisfaction they were looking for."
"Ah.." Kel nodded. "That makes sense."
It had turned into a political game.
And whoever flinched first was the loser.
"Thane, help me throw him over the railing," Calix ordered. "And Lucy, gather up all the knives and dispose of them."
"Yes, Sir!"
Thane and Lucy replied in unison and got to work.
After they had finished disposing of all the evidence of the attack, Lucy and Thane slunk quietly back into the palace in order to get proper medical treatment, leaving Kel and Calix alone again on the terrace.
But this time, Kel didn't dare let the sight of the ocean distract her.
"You know, you didn't have to shield me with your own body," she spoke, her eyes scanning the rooftop. "It's not like I can't fight. Plus, you were just as much of a target."
Calix's eyes were also busy scanning the building for any further threats.
"Don't worry," he grinned.
"You'll have plenty more chances."
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