The Cast Die

Medea sat in boredom while dressed up in her regal garments and adorned with jewels, atop her dragons perched high up on a building. She was hidden out of sight from those enjoying the festival below, waiting for the moment to make her grand entrance. Her clothes were in the ancient traditional style, that were only used for official functions like these. If not for Vac being with her, she'd be bored out of her mind.

The festival was held in the capital, with an open invitation to all citizens. Of course not all would show up, largely because they couldn't afford to. But Pyrrhus and Medea herself both knew that when King Pyrrhus sent out the invitation, as the true purpose of the act was to cultivate the people's respect. The current king had built his reputation on the principle of “fairness” and merit based appointments.

She shook herself out of her thoughts and turned her attention back to Vac, who was watching the proceedings below with rapt attention, the fascination evident in his eyes. She smiled and said with a laugh, “You seem to be enjoying this far more than anyone else, Vac. You've been sitting here and watching over from up here since before I arrived, and didn't say a word about me or my clothes when I did. I'll have you know that's no way to treat a princess.”

He turned to her as though snapping out of a dream and rubbed his head bashfully as he replied, “Ah yeah, sorry I'm just not used to all… this.”

He gestured to the crowd below. She looked down and had to admit it was quite a sight, probably not something he was used to. The huge swathes of people from all over the country seemed to envelop the area. They'd set up many massive tents to add more shelters. There were stalls set up along practically every road, and some were even placed on the roofs of people's houses, with ladders to the side to let people climb up. Food and wine flowed freely.

Even Medea, used to extravagance as she was and having been the one who originally came up with the idea, worried about the cost, but Pyrrhus dismissed her worries and said, “You needn't worry, it's part of the push for morale we need before our next step. Besides, certain dignitaries who are very interested in our recent discovery were willing to foot part of the cost.”

Since Medea did trust in his competence as a king, she accepted it.

‘Seems like he built on my rough idea in greater detail than I expected.’

Vac spoke sheepishly as he continued, “But your clothes do look great. It's, um, very pretty.”

She looked him over as well. Just like her, he'd been dressed in traditional garments though less ostentatious than hers, and more suited to the “hero” role he'd be playing. Personally she thought she'd prefer his clothes over her own.

‘Still, he looks good, I suppose all he needed was some cleaning up.’

With a chuckle, she asked, “Me or the clothes? Well, nevermind. It's just about time for our grand entrance. Are you ready?”

With a sigh, Vac responded, “Sure, but do I really have to be part of it? I'm not sure I really want to be that kind of public figure, and I don't see why you need me there.”

Medea shook her head and said, “You're the wielder of the die, the only one capable of channeling the powers of multiple gods. What you represent is more significant than you realize. Besides, I thought you liked some showmanship. You certainly had a flair for it in the stories you told me of your time back home.”

Before Vac could respond, Medea heard their cue delivered by King Pyrrhus, and dragged Vac onto her dragons as she said, “Nevermind, it's time, let's go!”

As they flew down to the roaring crowd, she did a couple of spins, twirls and dives. They landed onto the prepared stage, just as Pyrrhus announced, “And of course, it's time to greet our stars! First is of course our very own princess of Sicily, the wise strategist, the fierce warrior, and my beautiful daughter, Medea!”

She winced inwardly at the last line, but kept a poker face and began the practiced routine. She leapt off Solaris whom she was seated on, flipped in the air, and as she landed created a tall pillar that raised her high up.

Then Pyrrhus continued, “And next is our guest, a follower of Jupiter, who repelled the wretched followers of Minerva from his home and helped us repel the bandits and gain access to the once lost Labyrinth, the legacy of Ceres herself! What's more, he's no ordinary warrior, for he can wield the powers of all six major gods!”

On cue, Vac began to toss and juggle the die, and each time he caught it and had a different face against his palm, and then used its magic. Well, only the four that could be feasibly demonstrated were shown, with a water pouch being provided to help in being able to use Neptune’s power.

The crowd oohed and aahed over his performance, as he swirled a gust of wind around himself as he spun, shot a ball of fire into the air, raised earth pillars in an X shape as he crossed his arms, and swirled a rope of water around as though in an elegant dance. It'd taken quite a bit of practice for him to pull the show off, and Medea understood why he was miffed about putting effort into something that seemed frivolous. But they'd given him enough mana gems to use for it, so he didn't have to worry about getting drained of energy.

‘Personally though, this sort of thing seems more suited to him than something like combat. He's a thinker, a survivor, and a potent symbol, but he's not a warrior in that he doesn't have that mindset. Though he is a bit of a sore loser.’

Once the performance was done, they boarded the dragons and flew off once more. As they did, Medea had her dragons release their flames in a beautiful pattern, the symbol of her kingdom, the Sun.

After heading back to drop off her dragons, she asked, “Would you like to go back to the banquet, or would you like to rest and relax, Vac?”

Vac thought about it for a mere moment before responding in the affirmative, and so she made preparations to set out. She normally would've gone ahead in her carriage in her role as the princess of Sicily, but Vac seemed uncomfortable with the idea and so they went incognito. She changed into a simple bluish-black dress with a hood, though it had some tricks hidden. She removed her makeup and ornaments as well. Once ready, they headed into the festival.

As they walked through the crowded festival, Vac noticed a strange stall. It seemed like a drinking stall at first, but he noticed that there were round targets placed on poles, and that after drinking each cup people would flick their cup towards the target in a throwing motion, to launch the remaining drops of wine at the target and knock it down. Medea noticed him looking at the stall and said, “Oh, that game is called Kottabos. This version is particularly popular here. We have one on one contests with multiple rounds. Each round you drink a cup of wine before flinging what remains at the target, and you must not spill it before it reaches the target. The one who misses first loses. Would you like to try?”

Vac thought about it and asked, “Can I? I've heard the drinking age used by most cultures down here is eighteen, though back home we weren't that strict about it. Granted, wine itself was a luxury. I'm only seventeen. Well, technically, I should be only a few weeks from my eighteenth.”

Medea smiled and said with a wink, “You're right, the rule is eighteen is the requirement, but I'll let it slide since you're more of a special case. And a few months difference won't matter. I'll vouch for you, let's go.”

As they entered the stall, the owner approached them to ask for their identification, but as soon as he saw Medea he immediately bowed and began to say, “Oh I'm hon-”

Medea held a finger to her mouth to quiet him, and then in a low voice said, “We're looking to keep my presence here quiet, so please do so, good sir. Now, my friend and I would like to participate, is there room for us?”

Medea has worn a hood with relatively simple clothes for this reason.

The man nodded vigorously and replied, “Oh yes we most certainly do have room. Just this way, ma’am.”

The stall was loud and energetic, the people clearly in a good mood. It'd been organized in accordance with the social class, the lower ones closer to the entrance and given more basic accommodations, while the more luxurious spots were further in.

The aroma of wine and food filled the air, and random chatter could be heard throughout.

“Did you see the event! Isn't our princess incredible!”

“That young man was so curious! One who can use all the powers, what could it mean?”

“Oy, Fabi, get us some more wine over here!”

“Hah, you suck at this game, Antonius, why don't you learn to hold your drink!”

As they moved towards the end, it got less rowdy, though the gossip didn't stop. It seemed like the wine opened people's mouths wide open.

The accommodations they were given included a plush sofa, the food was of a similar quality to the one he'd been given in the palace, and there was even an ornate music box playing a soft tune.

Once everything was set up, they began. Vac took up his cup of wine and sniffed at it. It had an interesting aroma. This was his first time drinking wine, aside from what time he'd managed to sneak away with a sip of wine his granny had managed to obtain, one of her few interests. He cautiously began to drink it, in order to get used to the taste. Meanwhile Medea drank it up with ease, and calmly hit the target with a flick of her cup.

She then smirked and gestured, as though daring him on. Vac took the bait, and sped up, and managed to complete the throw, though it was a close call. He wasn't quite used to the game, but managed to hit it nevertheless. Medea however seemed fairly skilled.

‘Oh boy, I'm going to get beaten up here aren't I?’

But to his surprise, he didn't really feel the buzz of drunkenness. Only after five drinks did he feel some lightheadedness. Medea meanwhile was swaying on her feet, as much as she tried to hide it. She played it cool and said, “Thass a surprise, you can hold yer drink! Well, you're still a newbie. Watch and learn.”

He chuckled and said, “Medea, you're slurring your words.”

She pouted and stubbornly said, “No, I'm nawt!”

She then proceeded to stumble on her toss, overshooting the target by a bit.

She grumbled in annoyance and in a mildly annoyed yet joking voice said, “Well, I let ya have tha one. Still, this’ss ridiculous, yer alcohol tolerance makes no sense, especially since this is yer first time drinkin.”

They took a break from the game and spent over an hour chatting with each other. While he'd told her about the events that resulted in his arrival here, he hadn't really spoken much about his culture, about his regular life there prior to stealing the die, and about his grandma.

She listened to him attentively, and if his eyes turned a little misty, she said nothing.

The conversation grew more light-hearted and relaxed as time passed. While Vac had done his best to repair his friendship with Nero, and Aurea had been somewhat fun in her own way, he hadn't had a proper friendship in a while, and so he enjoyed this time with Medea.

As Medea was sharing a joke, he found himself distracted by a conversation in the background, which Medea took note of and listened in with him.

“I’m telling ya, the dowry they're asking for is ridiculous!”

Vac frowned in confusion at the words, turned to Medea as the drunk man continued to complain, and asked, “What’s this dowry he's talking about? Sounds like something for marriage, but I don't get it. Why is a gift necessary for that?”

Medea sighed and said, “It's technically not necessary, it's just a custom we follow. It technically goes to the bride, it's just managed in trust by the groom. If the marriage fails and it's proven that the groom failed in his duties in court, the dowry is returned, and the groom must also compensate for his failure. And if the groom dies, full control goes to the bride.”

Vac furrowed his eyebrows.

“But then why would it be managed by the groom? Everything else makes sense, but what say does the bride have?”

Medea smiled sadly and said, “Yes, the rights available to women in this country aren't too significant in places. Yes, I'm the princess of Sicily, and I will succeed to the throne and have full control over it, but I will also have to marry. There are alternative paths to women of course that don't have anything to do with marriage, like the priestesses of Vesta. And we're moving forward, slowly but surely. Our country values custom and has a tendency to resist change, but we project that within the next twenty years we'll have dealt with this issue.”

Vac was about to reply, when the rant of the man they were overhearing was interrupted by his friend.

“Hmph, at least you have an eligible match for your daughter. Young men these days are pathetic, they don't make them like they used to.”

“Speaking of eligible matches, what do you think about that young man we saw today? As formidable and beautiful as our princess is, she hasn't had many eligible young men around for potential marriage candidates, has she? Do you think they're building towards bringing this man into the family? Maybe an alliance with Aeolia through him?”

“Hah, no chance. Some vagrant from the island in the sky being given a seat besides our future leader? No chance. I know Aeolia has its glory days, but they were conquered by those Minerva worshiping scum, and are just relics of the past, whereas we've held strong against them for years!”

Vac was annoyed and disappointed by the insults to his people, but it wasn't his place to speak out rashly here, since that could affect Medea as well. He clenched his palm and said to Medea, who looked miffed and somewhat ashamed, “Well it's not a big deal, they weren't that insulting. And frankly I've heard worse.”

Medea shook her head, but before she spoke, the two gossipers continued their conversation.

“Hmm, true enough. Well we've succeeded as much as we have thanks to our king. Thank the gods he took over from those fools.”

“Hey, keep it down! The previous rulers still have some of their supporters living, and even our king himself has decreed that they aren't to be disrespected.”

“Hmph, not like anything is going to happen. Relax!”

Medea stood up and said, “That's it. Don't worry, I won't do anything rash, I need simply reveal myself.”

She called the owner over, and when he arrived, she raised her voice and spoke clearly, “I'm very pleased with this stall of yours, good sir. You've done a good job.”

As she spoke, she removed her hood, letting her lush black hair fly as she shook her head elegantly. She snapped her fingers, and the blue-black minerals that'd been embedded in her dress subtly vibrated and turned a vibrant gold, in a beautiful pattern. She flexed her hand before her chest, and the royal emblem she'd hidden away in her pocket flew out into her hand. She even subtly altered her voice to the one she used in her role as the princess of Sicily.

She continued, “The game was indeed fun, and I'm glad to see my fine fellow citizens enjoying themselves. Though I must say, the conversation was more lively and revealing than I expected.”

On the last line, she subtly sent a withering stare in the direction of the two gossipers. They turned pale and gulped, clearly catching on.

She continued, “We have indeed been gifted with freedom, the virtue of Jupiter, thanks to the abundance our goddess has blessed us with. I pray that we all use it with the thoughtfulness the benevolent Ceres values. I hope you all enjoy this festival, and may our nation of Sicily prosper!”

With that, Medea left with Vac in tow.