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It was a warm morning, neither too hot nor cold. It was a perfectly pleasant day in Jaideria today. Within the high walls of the royal palace, the queen and her guard were enjoying their favorite childhood activity together. Archery.
The Queen stood exactly one hundred large paces away from the red and white bull’s eye in the rear courtyard of the castle. She was dressed in a pair of leather pants and boots with a white shirt that had a tight leather vest over it. Esmedella wore her hair pulled back in a pony tail and a glove in her right hand for holding the arrow. To the eyes of the men who have seen her dressed this way, she looked like the image of the goddess of the hunt.
She looked over to Kaiser, who was still dressed in his typical uniform, and smirked at him. The young blonde haired woman picked up the dark wooden bow that sat on the ground. Reaching to her right, she pulled out a long arrow from the quiver stand. Esmedella lowered the bow in front of her and nocked it into the string. She looked up at the target, her focus at one hundred percent. The Queen raised the bow, pulled the arrow back, straining the wood of the bow, and then released. The arrow flew through the air with a whistle and thudded into the wood.
Without even having to run towards the target, she knew exactly what she got. A bull’s eye, dead center. The blonde haired woman grinned to her male companion and stepped away. “Let’s see if you can do better.” The duke nodded with a smile. It was almost impossible to beat a dead center shot. Almost.
The man stepped into the exact spot that the Queen once stood and picked up the second bow that sat upon the lushes green ground. Doing the exact same movements that Esmedella did, Kaiser began to focus on hitting the target.
The woman examined the duke’s body. Everything he was doing was exactly as she did. The way he held the arrow, the slow movement in pulling back on the arrow, the positioning of his feet. Everything was the same. Except for how far back the projectile was pulled. Since he had far more upper body strength, he was able to pull the arrow back more. Esmedella noticed that he was holding the arrow for far longer than he should and when he finally let go, there was a short whistle before the sound of cracking wood.
The queen looked at the duke with confusion and then went to go examine the target, the male noble in close pursuit. When she was within ten feet of the target, she thought she was either imagining what she saw or that, somehow, Kaiser had cheated. His arrow had shot across the field and shattered the shaft of her arrow before digging its way into the bull’s eye. The blonde woman kneeled behind the target and even found the metal point of her arrow on the ground. She looked at her guard with disbelief, her mouth agape. The moment of shock, however, was cut short.
A young servant boy came running across the field towards the two nobles. He gave to a quick stop in front of his superiors and gave a deep, low bow. It was clear that this boy was new to the messaging game and had just run a long distance. The boy’s breathing was deep and heavy as he tried to regain his breath so as to pass along the message.
“Your Majesty…. Someone… here… to… see you,” he said in between deep breathes. Kaiser looked at Esmedella with a smile and sighed. The blonde queen looked to the young boy. “Another suitor?” she questioned simply. The servant nodded as he stood up straight, regaining his breath. The blonde woman sighed and smiled to the boy. “So tell me. Which stuck up, self-centered, egotistical narcissist is trying to woo his way into my heart?” The boy, now back to his normal self, did something unexpected. He shook his head in denial. “It’s not a noble, Your Highness.”
The duke stepped forward, bow in a gripped hand, and questioned the servant. “If it isn’t a noble, then who is it?” He wasn’t trying to sound forceful, demanding, or intimidating. But it became second nature to him to speak that way when questioning. The servant became intimidated and stammered his response. “I-Is-Ismandi Rezuldo, sir.”
Kaiser’s eyes opened a little wider after hearing the name of the person who was here to see the queen. The boy saw how his grip on the bow tightened and was frightened by the white of his knuckles and how the wood began to crack a little. “Thank you. You are dismissed,” he said in a blunt, unemotional voice. The servant boy ran away faster than when he came.
Esmedella carefully stepped to the man’s side, being wary of how she spoke next. “Kai?” she asked with concern clearly expressed in her voice. Almost as if pulled out of an angering trance, he turned to face her with a relaxed body. The blonde woman lowered her head, a bit scared of asking the question. “Ummm….. Who’s Ismandi Rezuldo?”
The duke turned his head in a downward angle, avoiding her eyes. But there was no use in doing that. Ismandi was here and wanted to see her. He raised his head and met her eyes. “As you know, Naden is a port region that makes its wealth in trade. However, it is also the headquarters for the sky pirates.”
Kaiser began to walk and Esmedella immediately started to walk at his side. “In the past, the sky pirates have been nothing but trouble for Naden because of various reasons. It could be because the ruling noble was either too afraid of them to do anything or was too open and had them hunted down. But it could also be that some of the pirates grew bold and practically took over the port or that they were smart and found some other place to pillage so that they wouldn’t be killed by the royal guard.”
The queen wasn’t quite familiar with how the politics of that area worked, but she knew that there was always tension between the sky pirates, the merchant/tradesmen, and the nobility. As they passed through the arched, stone doorway back into the palace, she casually asked, “So, how have things been ever since you became the ruling duke?” The blonde haired guard simply answered, “A lot better than they have been in years. You see, despite what people say, the sky pirates have a specific system of management. There are pirate crews who handle various tasks of the pirate way that are both good and bad, such as regulating black market goods and disciplining acts of cruelty. But every single one of those crews answer to only one man, they call him The Governor. However, everyone else calls him Ismandi Rezuldo.”
Things had made a lot of sense now. The queen had always wondered how the sky pirates were so proficient in what they did, but never imagined that they were so organized. She just assumed that they were clever enough to almost never get caught. Almost. The two were now walking the halls of the palace, on their way to the audience chamber. There was just enough time for Kaiser to speak of his relation with the notorious sky pirate Governor.
He spoke with the same emotionless tone for the next portion. “When I became the duke of Naden, I wanted to eliminate the problems with the sky pirates in the region so that we could both benefit. I sent several letters to Ismandi, asking for an audience. But for some strange reason, my messenger always ‘lost’ my letters just before passing them on to Ismandi’s assistant. So I decided to pay him a visit and it ended up costing me two broken doors.” Esmedella laughed at that, bringing forth a slight chuckle from the blonde man. “However, I did sit down with him and the dozen other pirates that surrounded us. We negotiated and formed an agreement. As long as the sky pirates are within the boundaries of Naden, whether it is on the ground, on the water, or in the sky, no official can touch him for any reason. However, if any pirate is found carrying illegal objects or breaking any law, then the officials can approach and arrest them.”
The queen was completely thrown off by this agreement that the two of them made. “I don’t understand what you accomplished. They can’t do anything illegal otherwise they’ll be arrested. But they can’t be touched as long as they appear to be doing nothing wrong.” Kaiser nodded in approval. The woman then pointed out something critical. “But they can still do their illegal activities as long as they aren’t caught.” The duke nodded again and replied, “Exactly.”
He began to elaborate on the deal. “You see, Ismandi is a very intelligent and clever man. He knew that I’d have more guards stationed around the port at all times, so robbing ships was no option. He also figured out that illegal trade and vending would be very limited as well. But that didn’t mean that they couldn’t vend legal goods, even if it was stolen.” Once again, the meaning of something so complex was simplified by the duke’s explanation. She pointed out each little piece of information as she repeated them. “If the guards can’t touch the pirates, they can walk freely among the crowds. But if they do something illegal, they will be arrested on sight. That means they can’t steal, kill, or anything else because of the high number of guards. If they do decide to do anything illegally, it would have to be under the table and would be limited to trading illegal goods. However, if they were to steal goods from outside the port and then return to sell the goods legally, then that would be okay.” The queen looked at Kaiser with an astonished look on her face. “You negotiated so that the sky pirates would become part-time merchants!” The duke smiled in response.
She, however, was still confused by one thing. “But I still don’t understand why you don’t like Ismandi.” Kaiser smile quickly vanished. He responded with a little spite in his voice. “Because of what he truly is.” The blonde woman was confused by his meaning. Knowing that she would be confused, he responded. “Despite this act of good intentions and willingness to negotiate, Ismandi is a dangerous man who will do whatever it takes to get what he wants. And his ambitions are always extremely high.”
With what seemed like less than a minute, the two were now nearing the audience chamber. Esmedella was now very tense, her muscles tightening. This man was dangerous and nothing like the hundreds of nobles who have been arriving the past few weeks. Once entering the large, echoing room, the two caught sight of only one man, who had his back turned to them. The majority of his reversed image was taken up by the large, maroon colored coat draped over his shoulders. The bottoms of his pants were a dark green color and his boots black. Atop his head was long, chestnut brown hair that was held back by a dark green head band that had faded on both the top and bottom edges.
Apparently, the stranger heard the footsteps of the entering nobles and turned to face them after the sound of four steps from each. His face and front portion of his body was now visible. Around his waist, a maroon sash held a rapier that was actually held by a hidden leather belt. His coat was open and the fact that he wore no shirt helped to accentuate the foot long, two inch wide scar that extended from the left side of his chest to just above his right hip.
It was obvious the queen that this man was a pirate, but what caught her attention wasn’t the vast amount of exposed tan skin. It was this stranger’s eyes. The swirled in various shades of light blue and sea foam green. She had become lost in their mesmerizing beauty. Her trance was broken by the sound of Kaiser’s voice. “Welcome to the Royal Palace, Ismandi.”
The sky pirate smirked and held out a hand as he approached the duke. “Glad to be here, Kaiser.” The blonde man reached out and shook hands with the Governor. The two men pulled their arms apart Ismandi’s gaze moved to the blonde haired woman. He lowered himself into a bow and spoke with a smooth, deep voice. “Your Majesty, it is an honor to finally be in your presence.”
Taking the guard’s words of caution to her heart, she gave a curtsy, despite the fact that she wasn’t wearing a dress. “I’m pleased, Governor Ismandi,” she said with a small smile. The pirate stood up straight and chuckled. “It seems that you already know my name and status and it makes me wonder.” His eyes turned to the duke at the queen’s side. “I wonder what else the dear general has told you,” he said with a voice saturated in mockery.
Before Kaiser could say a word, Ismandi spoke. “Your Highness, there is something I wish to discuss with you. In private,” he said with emphasis on the last two words. Without shifting his head, the eyes of the chestnut haired man turned to the face of the guard at Esmedella’s side. The queen gaze moved to Kaiser and the blonde man’s eyes shifted from the woman to the man. He then bowed and turned to walk. The guard whispered just loud enough for Esmedella to hear just before walking away. “I’ll be watching.” Within a few seconds, he was out of the room and the sounds of his boots were now a fading echo down the corridor.
Esmedella’s gaze followed the duke to the exit and watched the doorway after he left. Her staring was broken by the sight of the elbow and forearm of Ismandi being offered to her. She looked up at his smiling face and was lost in the beauty of his eyes as she took his arm, being lead away by the pirate to where ever his rebellious heart wanted.
This entire situation was completely strange to the young royal. She had taken the arm of a man other than Kaiser and was being lead to who knows where in the castle, which was rather awkward. Yet, somehow, she didn’t mind having this chestnut haired, ocean eyed, pirate captain treating her as more than just a prize or key to the throne.
Ismandi took her to the Imperial Garden in the very heart of the palace. This garden clearly showed the unification of nature’s beauty and man’s innovation. This entire open skied garden was made of white stone, with rounded off paths in the ground that crystal clear water flowed through, winding around like vines in the stone. This water fed life to the various plants that lived amongst the cold white stones. The plants vary from the ivy clinging to the walls of the stone gazebo in the center to the moss hugging the cheeks of the white angel statues.
The chestnut haired man took his protégé over to the ivy covered building, crossing various stone bridges that helped traverse the water. The two went into the shade beneath the white domed gazebo and sat across from each other on the small benches. Their eyes met once again, each waiting for the other to say something.
Ismandi was about to break the silence between them with a compliment, but the blonde royal beat him to it. “What do you want?” she questioned bluntly. He gave a half-hearted laugh and smirked at Esmedella. “Right to the point, are we?” he responded quickly as if it were a joke. However, the queen was not laughing. The pirate decided that it would be best to just get on with his business. After all, that was why he was there.
The Governor leaned backwards onto the railing of the building and laid his elbows on it, his arms and hands dangling in front of him. “Esmedella, you and I both know that I’m here for something,” he stated with a simple matter of fact tone. Just the fact that Ismandi would have the nerves and confidence to call her by her first name astounded Esmedella. And it also frightened her.
Making sure not to show any emotion, the blonde woman asked, “What is it that you want, Governor?” The chestnut haired man stretched his neck a bit and responded. “When the Duke and I made our negotiation regarding sky pirates in the Port of Naden, profits have soared for us in that area.” He leaned forward, propping himself up with his elbows on his knees. “I want to expand that profit throughout the world,” Ismandi said with a tone that clearly showed that he was dreaming this.
The queen quickly made an assumption and then stood up. She glared at the pirate and spoke quickly. “If you wish to marry me and become the king, then you might as well leave before I have my guards tear your head off.” After all, that was what everyone else wanted as well. To marry her so they could get the throne and all of its spoils. Just as she turned to leave, Ismandi was on his feet and in front of the blonde in almost no time at all. Esmedella was caught off guard and was almost frozen in her spot by the shear gaze of his watery-colored eyes. He spoke in a lowered voice that was almost seductive. “I think we can help each other out.”
The queen swallowed hard, feeling a lump in her throat. “W-What do you have in mind?” she questioned with nervousness showing slightly. Ismandi smirked and spoke with that same lowered voice. “You give my pirates the same conditions to every port Kaiser gave to us in Naden, and I marry you.”
Esmedella was shocked and stepped away from him. “How dare you suggest that? I was told that you were a dangerous man, but to even suggest that is outrageous!” she yelled with anger. What she really meant to say was that it was out of the question. Not only would she be marrying a man outside of both royalty and nobility, but the Governor of the sky pirates on top of that. Ismandi leaned against the railing with the same smirk on his lips. “You didn’t let me finish,” he said.
The blonde woman turned her head to face him with a confused look. What more could he have to say that would even remotely change her mind about what she should do? He stood up straight and continued. “You do what I asked and I marry you, but I will give you full ruling power,” he said with confidence. She had thought her ears were fooling her. Did the pirate Governor just say that he would make sure that she kept her power if she married him? It seemed far too good to be true.
She shook her head and laughed nervously. “Oh no. No, no, no, no…. There has to be something else to this.” Esmedella paced around in deep thought. There must have been a silver lining to this whole situation. A man like Ismandi doesn’t show up out of nowhere with a deal to help you without there being a catch. There didn’t seem to be one, but she had this deep feeling that there had to be something she wasn’t seeing.
Ismandi approached the queen with his devilish smirk, making her stop, and spoke charmingly, “Think about it and let me know what your answer is.” He then leaned forward and kissed her cheek. Esmedella’s face blushed a dark red before she watched the pirate walk away from the garden, his maroon coat flowing behind him. She was completely confused about what to do or what to think. This deal he was offering her was too unreal to be possible.