Gaius Sextus‘s mind was reeling when he walked out of the little room housing the injured boy. The boy whose existence turned the world on its head. It had just taken him one look at Tavi to know that Septimus must have been the father. The boy looked just like his son had at eleven. But how this was possible? Who was Tavi‘s mother and why had Septimus never told him? Had his son be afraid of his disapproval? Septimus had known about Sextus’s plans to find a suitable wife for him and he had not been pleased at the suggestion of Invidia Aquitaine. Maybe his son‘s plan had been to just do what he felt was right and he had not worried about the consequences for the realm. The fool! Even though Sextus missed Septimus every single day, he still clearly remembered how furious his son‘s idealism and defiant streaks had made him over the years. It was fitting that the much-needed heir for the realm was a bastard boy left by his late, head-strong son.

An heir. He had stopped believing in a future for his house a decade ago. His marriage with Caria would not produce an heir even if he could bring himself to sleep with her. He just was too old. He had resigned himself to fight for his waning position until he had absolutely no choice anymore. Only then, he would appoint a successor. It was a grim and depressing situation, but he had made his peace with it long ago. It was… enjoyable at times to best the young usurpers at their own game. Now he had options again. But what do with them?

Sextus exited the steadhold as unseen as he had come. His crafting veiled him from any prying eyes. He was not in the mood to talk and he needed some privacy to think. Following his instincts, he rose in the air and took the short flight to the princep’s memoriam. He felt a stab of old pain as he entered the beautiful building. It was grand, but it still felt inadequate as a monument for his son. He had not been here since he had raised it almost fifteen years ago. It was a reminder of his failure. He had failed to protect his son, failed to predict the actions of the forces conspiring against the crown. He lived with this failure every day, but coming here added a sharp emphasis which he could hardly bare. It was different from his wife‘s grave somehow. He visited her every week and it brought him peace and reminded him of happier times. Here, he only felt sadness, shame and an enormous, impotent rage. It was not fair that his son had been killed!

„You seem troubled, child,“ said Alera behind him. Sextus had gotten used to her sudden appearances over the years, but she still startled him at times. „Shouldn‘t you be happy?“

„I don‘t know,“ he said. „Should I be? I am still trying to process what the boy means.“

„Hope, I would assume,“ she said. „He is your grandson, after all. The heir to the realm. Even though it is quite unusual for the prince to work as a shepherd.“

„How could I not know about him? Why didn‘t you tell me?“

„I know a lot of things, Gaius, but not everything,“ she said. „And there are a lot of small children on this world. How was I supposed to know that this one was important?“

„I should have paid more attention on the aftermath of the Marat attack,“ said Sextus. „I might have realized who he was. Araris‘s presence is a giveaway. His disguise is good, but there are only so many master metal crafters in the land.“

„You might have, but you didn‘t,“ said Alera. „And it hardly matters now, does it? The boy is alive and seems to be quite resourceful.“

„He has no furies,“ said Sextus. „No furies at all. How is that possible? Every Aleran commands at least one of them and as Septimus‘s child, he should be very powerful. Septimus started crafting at five years old and it was a struggle to keep him from setting everything on fire.“

„It is very unusual,“ agreed Alera. „I don‘t know why he has no furies. And I don‘t see anything we can do in that regard except to wait. Maybe he is just a late bloomer.“

„He wants to go to the academy,“ spat Sextus. He raked an agitated hand through his hair. „The fool doesn‘t realize what he is asking for. He will be surrounded by the most powerful young crafters of the realm. They aren’t going to be kind to him.“

„I don‘t think they have been overly kind to him here,“ said Alera. „He has a certain sadness in him.“

„He deserved a better childhood than being stuck in a steadhold on the fringe of the realm without any furies,“ said Sextus. „He deserved proper parents, a father that was alive and well. But fate rarely ditches out what is deserved. All I can do now is to give him a chance. I will send him to the academy, maybe he will grow into his furies until the term starts.“

„And if he does not?“

„Then he will have to find a way to get through the academy without them. He’s a smart boy and seems to be very resourceful. He will manage. Probably. I will have to make some arrangements, of course. There might be something I can do to make his life a little easier. It is the least I can do.“

„You are hoping that he will grow into a worthy successor,“ said Alera.

„Yes, and before you say anything, I know his chances aren’t good,“ said Sextus. „Not without strong furycrafting, a proper education and powerful friends. Tavi clearly isn’t ready for the snake pit of Aleran politics. Maybe he will never be. But he is my blood and the first ray of hope I have had in a long time. I will not give him up without any tests.“

„Of course,“ said Alera. „I am only making sure that you see the situation for what it is.“

„The realm has an heir again, Alera, and with a bit of luck, you’ll get to follow the fate of the house of Gaius for another generation. As I’ve said, I need to make plans for the boy. Getting him into the academy is simple, but I also have to find a way to give him the best possible help. Maybe some physician in the capital can help with his lack of furies.“

„Possible, but unlikely,“ said Alera. „As far as I know he is the only Aleran without any furies.“

„There are a lot of Alerans with very weak furies,“ argued Sextus. „Maybe he is just an extreme case. It certainly isn’t going to hurt. I can‘t believe that the boy managed to stop a Marat invasion without any furies. Very impressive.“

„Yes, turning the Marat onto each other made the difference,“ said Alera. „It was a close thing nevertheless. I told you that the Marat were unusually active in this region. You said that they were nothing to worry about.“

„And I would have been right if Fidelias hadn‘t chosen to betray us,“ said Sextus irritably. „Garrison would’ve held against the Marat without any treachery. And they would have been able to send for help. The Marat don‘t stand a chance against the legions unless they have a huge number advantage. Besides, what was I supposed to do? Tell Riva to mobilize his legion this late in the season because of some vague intel about Marat movement? He would have refused or dragged his heels for so long that help would not have arrived in time anyway. I was fortunate.”

„Very,“ agreed Alera. „This valley breeds strong crafters. Less powerful holders would never have been able to defend their homes.“

„Being on the frontier seems to push people,“ said Sextus. „From what I have heard, both Tavi‘s aunt and uncle are gifted as well. I need to find out more about the boy‘s childhood and his remaining family. I want to know what Septimus‘s role was in all of this.“

„I thought that was pretty clear,“ said Alera, eyes sparkling. „I hardly need to tell you what happens if a man likes a woman.“

Sextus scowled.

„That‘s not what I meant. The Marat invasion in which Septimus died wiped away all traces of the crown-legion and of him. I want to know who the boy‘s mother was. He lives with his aunt and uncle, but they could’ve adopted him even though he isn’t related to them. The invasion produced a lot of orphans after all. Was he true-born or is he a bastard? I doubt that Septimus married the boy‘s mother, but my son was always full of surprises and quite the romantic. I cannot rule it out. Araris might know something about this, but I doubt that he will be eager to share.“

„Does it really make a difference?“ asked Alera. „You could recognize or adopt the boy anyway. And if Septimus did marry the boy‘s mother, it will be hard to prove without any witnesses and official records. Any way, you will have to fight for it if you want Tavi to be your successor.“

„I am well used to fighting,“ said Sextus. „And I will be most fortunate if I only have to worry about proving that the boy is a legitimate son of Septimus to put him on the throne. The events of the last few days have shown again how loose my grip on the realm has become. I have underestimated Aquitaine. I did not anticipate his usage of the Marat as a weapon against me. It was a very clever plan. He could have undermined my authority without risking the life of a single of his legionaries. The Marat would have done his dirty work and I would have been hard-pressed to keep my position. He probably had some further moves planned to present himself as the best man to take over. He is a dangerous opponent.“

„Ruthless as well,“ said Alera. „The Marat invasion would have killed everyone in this valley. The Marat might have conquered further parts of the realm as well. It would have required a significant amount of troops to repel their attack.“

„Yes,“ said Sextus, making a fist. It made him furious how callous Aquitaine was with the lives of his fellow Alerans. The man would sacrifice thousands to become the first lord. Sextus had done similar things in the past, but that did not justify Aquitaine‘s tactics.

„And now he has Fidelias at his side to help him. That will make him even more dangerous than he was before. I must be losing my touch: I never thought that the old spy would betray me like this.“

„At least the girl refused to join him,“ said Alera. „You still inspire loyalty.“

„Loyalty,“ said Sextus with a grimace. „In a few, maybe. In most, I only inspire fear and even that impression is slowly fading. I am growing too old to inspire fear. Aquitaine and the other slives hungry for the throne are living proof to this fact. They would never have dared to show their disdain for me that openly ten years ago. And it will only get worse. Every month that goes by without an officially appointed heir who actually has the power to hold the position will encourage the usurpers to accelerate their plans.”

„But now you may have an heir,“ said Alera. „Even though he is a bit young, powerless and a shepherd apprentice, he is your grandson.“

Sextus found himself smiling at that.

„Crows, that makes me feel old! I still remember being at the academy, my term in the legion. Thinking that I had all the time in the world. Somehow it all passed so quickly.“

„That is because you are still very young in the grand scheme of things,“ said Alera. „It really is a pity that you humans are such a short-lived race. It would solve a lot of problems if you lived for a thousand years, rather than a hundred at most.“

„Maybe, but it would also raise a lot more,“ said Sextus. „I am in my eighties and already younger men want me to die and make room for their dreams. Imagine how mad they would be if they had to wait nine-hundred more years.“

„I have wondered: Does it really make a difference who is the first lord?“ asked Alera.

„In the short-term? Absolutely. In the long-term? Probably not. I am hardly a perfect first lord, as is obvious by the amount of maneuvering I have to do to keep the position, but I am not the worst one either. That title would probably be earned by Kalarus if he ever got his hands on the realm. He is already ruining his lands with impressive speed. I shudder to think what he would do with all of the realm. Fortunately, it will not come to that. I can barely stomach the thought of Aquitaine ruling the realm - the man is at least a competent ruler - but I would never let the realm fall into Kalarus‘s hands. The good news is that the usurpers are fighting among themselves enough to keep me in power for the moment. I will need the time to get the boy ready.“

“And you think you can do that?”

“Planning is what I do best”, said Sextus with a small smile. He felt younger than he had in a long time despite having learned that he was in fact a grandfather. The history of the house of Gaius was not over yet.