Page 16 of The King of Koraha
She sensed a trick. The blueish color of the metal on his crown had to be osmium and not platinum. He wore a silver and sapphire necklace around his neck. There were three droplet-shaped gemstones. The one in the middle was about five centimeters long, while the other two were about three centimeters long. Nothing to suggest it would block her magic.
Yet, when she reached with the power of The Eyes, she didn’t pick up on the King’s thoughts or learn his emotions. There was nothing but amusement glinting in his eyes.
“I can’t. You must be wearing some kind of protection,” she said.
“See, Najib? I am the rightful king after all.”
“I never said you weren’t, sire. No one has. It’s your own inner doubts causing you to worry.”
“Excuse me,” Shyla interrupted what she suspected was a well-trodden argument. “Can you explain what’s going on?”
“The Eyes don’t work on the legitimate ruler of Koraha. I don’t know why. Frankly, I don’t know why water listens to my commands either, but I’m the only one in Koraha who can move it. Actually, there should be another—my eventual replacement. Except we haven’t found him yet.”
“He’s just a baby, sire.”
She was confused and fascinated at the same time. “How do you know he’s a baby?”
“Because the old King of Koraha died one hundred and five sun jumps ago,” the King said. “When he returned to the Sun Goddess, she picked another to take his place…or, rather, mine. There are always two kings living at one time. The King and the king-in-training, which I was until the old king died. And now there’s a one-hundred-and-five-sun-jump-old baby out there who will eventually replace me.
“It’s not well known. Well, the monks all know, but they’re sworn to secrecy as we don’t want a bunch of parents trying to trick us into thinking their son is the next in line.”
And now she knew, which meant they would never let her leave. Her fingers tightened around her cup. But something didn’t add up. “Wait. Your emissary arrived in Zirdai eighty-two sun jumps ago, which means he had to leave Qulsary before the old king died.”
The King beamed at her. “You are paying attention. Excellent. When the messages about the arrest of the monks and then the change in leadership in Zirdai arrived, we were all very concerned. What if the people behind that coup set their sights on the King? Advisor Yiesha sent the emissary to assess the situation.”
“But what about my summons?”
“The monk who told us about Hanif’s arrest also mentioned that a sun-kissed woke the power of The Eyes.
I had no power or resources to demand Hanif’s release, but…” He glanced at Najib. “I gave Bilal that summons for you just in case you were behind the coup.”
“When you didn’t have the authority.” Najib tsked.
“The King was close to death. I took a chance.”
“Why are you telling me this?” she asked.
“Because you’re in a unique position, Shyla. Before Tamburah became king, it was standard practice for the king’s trusted advisor to be the one who claimed the power of The Eyes. They would make the sacrifice and take the leap of faith, demonstrating they were the chosen one. Together the king and his advisor worked together to rule Koraha.
“Tamburah decided that he wanted the power of The Eyes all to himself, and that didn’t go well for anyone—we think it led to his madness. After the Invisible Sword assassinated Tamburah, it was decided that no one should have that much power ever again and The Eyes were hidden away.”
“So the stories of Tamburah using his intelligence and charisma to gain power are false?”
“Yes. About four circuits after a king dies, there is a search to find the next king-in-training. Tamburah was found and taken to Zirdai to prepare for his eventual role.”
“Wait. How do you find the new king without The Eyes?” she asked in alarm. Were they going to ask her to do the job? She didn’t want to get involved. All she wanted was to travel with Rendor.
“Every child who is born on the same sun jump the king dies is tested.”
Memories of being confined in the Invisible Sword’s testing chamber surged through her. She’d never wish that on anyone, let alone children. “How are they tested?”
“They are immersed in water. The new king will be the only one who can control it.”
“And the others?”
“Drowned.”
Horror filled her and she cracked her cup.
