Infinite Magic

1. A New Day-2

What still amazed Kinza the most were the abilities. People moved loads of rock through the air simply with their minds. A woman wove streams of water across a cleared boulevard to wash away the grime. Children were tended to in large gaggles by teachers who twinkled sparkling lights in the air to keep their attention. They were perpetually on a “field trip” as the schoolhouses had been demolished, and teachers were doing the best they could.

Kinza marveled at how well the Anunnaki worked together in near harmony when only days ago they were at each other’s throats. The Unfettered that had been captured were currently being held in one of the many empty buildings across the city under heavy guard and more than enough laqueus, but this was a side of the Anunnaki that Kinza hadn’t seen yet.

“And this plaza is one of the many business sectors. You will find high-fashion vendors, the best metal workers, and several accounting services here,” Mikah was saying as they entered a particularly large plaza near the center of the city.

As they strolled over the white limestone streets, eyes followed Kinza wherever she went. It truly was a relief to see people in every corner of the city now, as opposed to when she, Zaid, and Khalil felt as if they had been wandering through a ghost town. But she felt like she was an animal in a zoo. People gasped and whispered as she passed.

This time, two young girls ran up to her, saying something in Rhaptan before handing her two little flowers.

Kinza smiled but looked at Mikah hesitantly.

“They said, ‘For you, princess,’” he translated for her.

Kinza smiled and just said, “Thank you,” as she took the flowers. She tucked them into the top hem of her dress, and the girls seemed particularly happy about that. They squealed as they ran back to their mothers. As Kinza watched them run off, she caught two people in white robes across the plaza, eyeing her and whispering animatedly. The looks they were giving her were less than friendly.

“Old men will always bicker at the ascension of younger men,” Mikah said, his proud nose in the air. She wondered if he had ever been humble in his life.

“Who said that?” she asked as they resumed their walk.

“I did,” he said, affronted. “Don’t worry about them. Of course they would be upset when someone younger and prettier than them comes along with a claim to the Rhaptan throne. But it won’t matter. Those two have very minor positions in the city.”

Kinza hadn’t met all of the Elders yet, but their reactions to her were the same as the rest of the Anunnaki. Some adored her, some were merely curious, and some saw her as a threat and treated her with near hostility. She didn’t think they would harm her, but it made her nervous. Some of the kinder Elders were a bit more cautious than her, though.

She looked behind her and Mikah, and sure enough, her two shadows were lurking far behind her—but not too far. She had been assigned two guards to be with her at all times since her initial welcome into the city was anything but welcoming. They tended to stay out of the way, but their presence was guaranteed. She did feel safer with them around, not as safe as she did with Zaid, but it was better than nothing.

“Don’t I need them on my side, though? I thought how they feel about me is reflected on the people?” she said.

“True, but that was before,” he said. “Now that you are Kinza Solace, The Outsider from the Prophecy and Heir to the Rhaptan Throne, and not Mitra of Rhapta, it’s different.” He gave her a pointed look at the end.

Kinza chuckled. “You aren’t going to ever let that go, are you?” The sun shone down on the fountain in the center of the plaza. Just then, two men seemed to finish the repairs, and water started spurting out in a great gush, more forceful than it should have been. Children ran screaming in laughter at the spray.

“Not a chance,” he said with a smile. “I will admit that I was absolutely fooled.” He sighed. “Such are the charms of women.”

Kinza snorted. “Such is the blindness of men, you mean.” Even though they laughed, she was eternally thankful for the image of Mikah standing over her, an unusual coldness in his eyes as he defied his mentor and stopped Tahir from cleaving her in two. Even after realizing she had lied to him about her identity. She had expected him to be angry, but if anything, he was impressed.

“You haven’t had any official meetings about the, you know, queenship, have you?” he asked.

Kinza inwardly groaned. “I do tomorrow morning,” she said. “I’m supposed to meet all the Elders at the Grand Hall to talk about... that.” It was the last thing she wanted to do, but she acknowledged that it might be a teensy bit important. Would she be queen, or would she just go home?

might Mikah nodded. “Do you need any company? I mean, I’ll probably be there anyway, but...”

“Zaid said he would take me,” she replied. She didn’t mention that there was a chance he could be sent on another assignment before then, but she pretended it was otherwise.

Mikah’s eyes rolled so hard it looked like he was trying to look into his brain, and Kinza couldn’t hold back her laugh. “Ah, yes, your guard dog,” Mikah said. “You know, if you are feeling particularly unsafe, I’m happy to assign you two additional guards. Then you wouldn’t have the smell of wet canine following you around.” He spoke as if it was a perfectly plausible solution to an atrocious situation.

It was Kinza’s turn to roll her eyes. “I like having him around. But I’m sure I’ll see you there.”

Mikah sighed. “Fine, whatever Her Highness wishes. Come, let me show you the swiftest way back to your humble abode,” he said, seamlessly falling back into his teasing manner.

They made their way across the city, cutting through the central plaza that was packed with people going about their daily business. They passed into the abandoned eastern quarter that was no longer so abandoned. Since many homes had been destroyed, many citizens had set up temporary housing within the forgotten homes in the eastern and southern quarters. They pushed aside the overgrown vines and flowers and cleared away a few plazas to set up camp for the time being.

Kinza was given her own home in a small plaza not too far from the city center. Just like many others, this plaza was a dead end with buildings on three sides and the entrance to the street on the fourth. The white limestone walls and roof were still intact—which was saying something—and a door was eventually added. The central fountain was dried up and overgrown, but she still thought it was pretty.

As Kinza and Mikah entered her plaza, Mikah’s eyebrows rose high. “I see you have a few fans,” he said. All around the front door were flowers and tiny trinkets. They were gifts from Rhaptans who thanked her for saving them or from those who knew she was the heir.

“Wait here.” One of Kinza’s guards moved in front of them and entered the house. They did this every time to make sure no one was lying in wait, and when he came out, he gave her the all-clear.

Kinza turned to Mikah. “Well, thank you for the much-needed tour. I’ll see you tomorrow at the Grand Hall, then?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” he said with a slight bow of his head.

Kinza laughed as she walked toward the door. “Careful,” she said over her shoulder. “I might just start acting like a queen.” She heard Mikah’s laugh as she stepped inside.

* * *

Kinza ascended the steps out of the bathtub. Truly, it was more of a pool, but she was told it was used as a bathing chamber back when people still lived in this area of the city. The water had been a sweet relief from the baking heat of the morning, and she mused over the extravagance in such a simple dwelling as she got dressed.

She didn’t think she had been placed in a very large home, but she kept finding little luxuries like this one. There were five or six empty rooms in the house, most of which she hadn’t figured out what they were for, but she had selected the one with a high window looking out onto an inner courtyard as her bedroom. There was a bedroll with a mound of blankets, furs, and pillows, all gifts on one side. On the other side of the room were sets of clothes Ekaja had tailored for her, all in the Rhaptan styles.

She found a bright green set that she slipped on. It was a cropped, one-shoulder shirt and a wrap skirt with yellow and red detailing along the edges. She had noticed that all Rhaptan clothing tended to be bright and flowy, helping cool bodies down under the African sun.

It had only been a few days since all the chaos, but she could already feel herself moving into a routine, and the idea of even having a routine was mindboggling after days of near-death experiences. She almost felt guilty for enjoying a nice bath or an afternoon nap until she reminded herself that fighting for one’s life day in and day out was not what life was supposed to be, even if there was still work to do. Grams would tell her there was no point in being anxious over something meant to make you feel better.

Moving out into the main room, she noticed the sun was starting to set and cast a deep orange color on the far walls. There was very little furniture, and the few things she did have were more gifts from people around town or were scrounged up by Zaid. There was a low, square table that she kept the food on, but as she looked at it, she noticed a note had been left for her.

Her name was written on it in English, and the inside was written in English as well.

My lovely Kinza, come have dinner with the girls and me? Ekaja

My lovely Kinza, come have dinner with the girls and me? Ekaja

Kinza smiled broadly. Ekaja had gone into full motherhood mode apparently now that Zaid was home and Kinza was here without family. Ekaja had been one of those who had believed in the old prophecy that an outsider would come to either save Rhapta or bring it to the ground. She was also part of a small group that had believed that she would save it and truly believed in her and the good she could do. The group had helped her temporarily when she had needed advice, as well as over the past couple of days, and had shown her nothing but kindness and hospitality.

and Judging by the sun, she guessed it was dinner time and decided to head over there. As soon as she stepped outside, she stopped and realized she had no idea where she was going.

“Umm,” she said, pulling the note back out. She flipped it over, and there was an address written on the back. Smiling, she ran over to one of her guards that were stationed at the entrance to the plaza. “Excuse me, I need to go here. Do you know where this is?” she asked.