The Roses of Airon Read online

families had brought with them. There were five swords, five ornate clay jars with lids, five roses, five large leather-bound books, five horse shoes, and five hawking gloves. On each seal where the girls had stood only a few months prior now stood five young men dressed in the clothes of nobles. The kings and queens stood off to the side, all looking upset.

  The princesses hesitated in the doorway until Aden beckoned them over. “The pact must be strengthened. These items will strengthen the bond between Airon and the Spirit Guides. The swords from the Metalkin will be blessed so that they might kill the Dark Spirits. The jars from the Stone Clan will become Soul Vessels to protect our princesses during their transition from one life to the next so that the Dark Spirits will not find and devour their souls. These books, provided by the Sun Temple, contain a complete record of the pact, and space to fill in every meaningful encounter and the date of each rebirth. The horse shoes and gloves represent the mares and hawks from the Animal People waiting outside. They will be blessed with speed to be used for emergencies – to send messengers and guards, or messages. And the roses from Evergrowth will be transformed into a new rose, the sacred sign of the pact. This was decided by Airon.

  “The first part of the ceremony will involve blessing these items. The second will be the marriage and soul-binding of the princesses to these suitors you have brought.”

  There was instant outcry from the kings and queens but a stern look from Aden silenced them.

  “The princesses will be vulnerable during their time of rebirth. By joining their souls to their husbands the Dark Spirits will be confused and will not find the souls of the princesses. With each rebirth of the princesses the Sun Princes will also be reborn. The princesses will not be complete without their soul mates. The joining of each prince and princess in each rebirth will keep the pact strong.

  “The final part of the ceremony is the coronation. The princesses were selected by Airon to rule, and he will make their rule official. When you leave here today the princesses will be the true rulers of each province. Is the Captain of the Guard from each province present?”

  Five men in varying styles of armour stepped forward.

  “Once the ceremony is complete you will be taking your oaths of service to the princesses.”

  “Won’t we be queens now?” Ashlyn asked.

  Aden shook his head. “You shall remain princesses. Without each other you cannot rule. No one of you is supreme or best. You are the Princesses of Airon, the Guardians of the Pact, and the Protectors of the People.”

  “That’s easy for you to say,” Celio said, stepping forward. “You get to remain High Priest. You get to keep your power even as you strip away ours. What if we won’t step down?”

  “Then your daughters may have to have you arrested.”

  Celio laughed. “I’m leaving, and Vonica is coming with me. You didn’t do your job right and now everything is falling apart. You want us to step down and let you mess up again. I won’t allow it. We will set to rights what you have broken. Sera, Vonica, we’re leaving.”

  “Celio,” Vonica said, calling her father by name for the first time in her life. “You will remain and stand witness, as Airon requests of you. You will not bring further shame on my people. Airon is your True God, your High God, and your Spirit Guide. You will obey him. And if not, you will obey me.”

  Celio strode across the room and struck his daughter across the face. “How dare you speak to me this way?! I am your father! I am your king!”

  “You will be under arrest as soon as the ceremony is over,” Vonica replied calmly. “Return to your place.”

  There was fire in Vonica’s eyes, fire that looked too much like the light that had shone from the mosaic. Celio swallowed hard and stumbled back to where the other kings waited.

  “Let us begin,” Aden said.

  The first part of the ceremony was simple and short. While the former rulers of the five provinces stood off to one side, the princesses stood off to the other, and the soon to be princes stood on the five seals, Aden prayed over each offered symbol, asking for blessings and a strengthening of the pact. In turn each item glowed with intense sunlight even though the day was cloudy.

  Presently he turned to the girls and beckoned them over. “Please stand at your seals; it is time for the soul binding.”

  The girls had started meeting suitors months before the first ceremony and each was familiar with the young man who now stood with them. Shy smiles were exchanged as Aden instructed them to join hands. The seals beneath their feet began to glow as Aden began the blessing.

  “Airon, God of Light, Protector of the Island, shower your blessings down on your chosen daughters and their husbands. Garret Iron Shield, Sheldon Sun Dome, Shawn Wide Field, Darcy Fair Clay, Jonathan Wild Hound, the five of you have been called upon to stand before Airon as the shields that protect his roses. Your souls will defend the souls of our princesses in this life and in every following life. Do you five swear to uphold the pact, to protect your soul mate, and to honour Airon and the Spirit Guides?”

  “We do,” the young men answered.

  “Airon, God of Light, Protector of the Island, bless your chosen daughters with wisdom, strength, determination, faith, and compassion. Bring stability and prosperity to your Island once more. Bring strength to the pact; protect us from Dark Spirits that threaten your people. “

  Aden turned away from the altar and approached Ashlyn and Garret. “Today you shall be joined, not your bloodlines or your families or your wealth but your souls. From this day forth your souls shall call out to each other, seeking each other beyond death and into your new lives. Do you accept this blessing and burden?”

  “We do,” they said.

  “Then receive the blessings of Airon, Princess Ashlyn Jewel-Rose and …”

  Kenneth barreled forward. “Jewel-Rose? What nonsense is that? She’s an Iron Blood! The last eight kings were Iron Blood! There is no Jewel-Rose family in our province!”

  A priest and two guards stepped forward to restrain him.

  “You can’t just erase our bloodline like this!”

  Aden’s attention remained on the ceremony and once Kenneth had been removed from the temple he continued. “Receive the blessings of Airon, Princess Ashlyn Jewel-Rose and Prince Gavin.” He moved to the second couple, naming them Princess Vonica Bright-Rose and Prince Sheldon, then Princess Betha Rose of Roses and Prince Shawn, Princess Rheeya Stone-Rose and Prince Darcy, and lastly Princess Taeya Living Rose and Prince Jonathan.

  “All that remains is to make your positions formal,” Aden stated. The great gong rang out and acolytes filed in, two coming to rest behind each couple. In their hands rested golden pillows and on each pillow was a crown.

  Starting with Ashlyn and working his way around the altar he crowned each couple. He then stepped back. “As decreed by Airon, and as witnessed by those here, so shall you five rule until the end of your natural days and again when your souls are reborn. Long live the Roses of Airon!”

  Everyone in the room, some more enthusiastically than others, echoed, “Long live the Roses of Airon.”

  The final part of the ceremony was very short as the Captain of the Guard from each province swore their oath of service. Celio was led away to the palace where Vonica would deal with him. The other former rulers were escorted out of the temple to their waiting carriages.

  The girls lingered in the temple.

  “What happens now?” Betha asked.

  “We go home and rule as best we can,” Ashlyn said, placing a reassuring hand on Betha’s arm. “We have those special hawks now, right? If there’s any problems we can get word to each other quickly.”

  The other girls nodded. “What about later, when we die? What happens when we are too young to rule?” Rheeya asked.

  The heavy silence was broken by Vonica. “We’ll just have to have stewards. We’ll train them and then they can help us rule when we are children. They can be a sort of bridge.”

  The ot
hers nodded.

  “The rest I will take care of,” Aden said, joining them. “Your souls will return to the Island in the Big World but Airon has shown me the gate and the signs to find you by. This knowledge shall be passed down to each High Priest so that we never lose you. We will survive.”

  “No,” Taeya said. “We will prosper.”

  Above them the sun mosaic glowed.

  Casia Schreyer writes everything from romance to fantasy to science fiction to literary fiction. She lives in Manitoba, Canada with her amazing husband and two kids on 10 lovely acres. As well as writing whatever she feels like she also reads everything she can get her hands on, in her genres of choice and beyond. Her other hobbies include knitting and crochet, cooking and baking, camping and hiking, and shopping. Her current job is raising children and keeping the house clean but she has worked as an Educational Assistant and plans to return to that career when her kids are older.

  You can find Casia at her blog (https://casiaschreyer.wordpress.com); on Twitter (@CasiaSchreyer); and on Facebook (www.facebook.com/schreyerauthor)

  The following books are available by Casia Schreyer

  Pants on Fire – available for Kindle

  Off the Market – available for Kindle

  The Witty Bard Science Fiction Anthology – available for Kindle, and in print from Amazon

  Race to Redemption – available for Kindle; writing as Megan Faust

  Race to