Tyrant of the Ruined Sun-Chapter 192: The Banquet’s Second Event and Public Announcement

A loud round of applause rippled through the hall, as everyone clapped in hearty welcome for the king and queen of the Astrapi kingdom, our gracious hosts that were dressed in the most resplendent of regalia, as they ascended and mounted the elevated stage, before us all.

"My lords and ladies." Began Aegaeon, declaring with a thunderous voice that silenced the clamorous hall, as he again, much like in his opening speech ten days ago, lifted a golden chalice in the air. "Tonight, as all things are, must mark the end of a beloved time, as the first third of the two hundredth and nineteenth Banquet of Concordia comes to a timely close, so too does the much enjoyed first event we had prepared for this centenary occasion, the Nights of Masquerade, that I and all those of my nation hope you had roistered in to your heart’s content."

Another round of applause, born not out of politeness but of genuine appreciation for the exquisite implementation of the aforementioned event, followed his words with a rolling wave of great gusto, as everyone showcased their own adoration and regret for it’s premature end, knowingly having hoped in utter waste, to be able to relish more in it’s nocturnal delights, that they had bathed in for the past week and a half; even if it was slightly disturbed by the unpleasantness of my unseen war with Octavian and Marius, that despite it’s hectic and nerve racking nature still not reaching it’s conclusion, did nothing to significantly effect the celebration, under the expert handlings of the Storm King’s court.

"Yet with the departure of one, another will naturally rise to take it’s place, ready to fill the shoes of it’s predecessor, and I can confidently say that so too will the next event we have conceived for the facilitation of your friendship founding and merry making prove itself to be. And so without further ado, we shall now reveal to you the nature of the much awaited Joust of Jewels." Aegaeon confidently declared, as he moved slightly aside for his beloved queen to take his place on the centre stage, as a hundred or so servants carrying four large golden vessels and many dozen of medium sized silver bowls of unknown contents, began to make their way through the gathered guests, the first of whom being those of the four cardinal empires.

A bowl in which we quickly discovered was filled to the brim with gold rimmed obsidian shards, a quarter the size of one’s palm, with the sigil of the empire masterfully carved upon it on one side, while the mark of the Ruinous Dragon was chiselled on the other.

Something we discovered to be unique of every given bowl, after a very brief moment of careful observation of those around us.

The large golden bowels were given only to those of us from one of the four great empires of the world, while naturally the silver ones were handed to everyone else, with the contents of them being all different than the other, such as the Yue Dynasty having silver rimmed jade pieces in their bowl, with their insignia along with that of the Celestial Dragon cast upon them, while the Boreas Empire possessed ones made of ivory and almost fully encased in platinum, and again chiselled with the same sort of emblems upon them.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is my greatest honour to be the one to explain to you the nature of the second event." Queen Aella’s naturally warm and graceful voice resounded through the hall, as she continued. "Originally, we had devised for the Joust of Jewels to be a simple series of martial tournaments, with a subtle twist to them of course. But after prolonged a period of habitation with you all, gaining a better sense of familiarity and understanding of all your noble selves, we have come to the realization that not all of you would feel fulfilled with such an event."

Many grew exponentially more curious after her honest words, with some even beginning to grow impatient for her to reveal the apparently amended format of the second event.

"So after much contemplation, we have decided to combat the issue by expanding upon the event, so that it may encompass all of your many and diverse interests; be they amongst the martial or musical arts, the calligraphic or visual arts, or whatever else your heart desires." She finished to a great, sweeping wave of applause, praising their decision without regard for moderation, as it truly showcased their consideration, generosity and commitment to the Banquet’s original purpose of promoting peace and harmony through carousing and feasting, as expanding upon the already luxurious event was without a doubt an expensive decision to make.

Once the cheer finally died down, queen Aella, now decorated with an enchanting smile upon her face, continued "And now allow me to explain to you the mechanism we have devised to distinguish the Joust of Jewels from other similar events; and as many of you have probably already guessed, it does indeed relate to all the encrusted gems that have just been distributed to you all."

Many began to look more closely upon the items within the bowls they received, especially those who only thought them as mere decorations or gifts, as they awaited the Storm Queen to further shine light on their doubts, which she did a second later, after she took a deep readying breath "These tokens, as we have come to call them, carved and made of materials symbolising each of this century’s participants, are made to be given in tribute to any among the competitors of the Joust whose talent, expertise and talent may catch your eye, signifying your appreciation of them and their abilities."

A loud murmur passed through the crowd, before they again quieted down again, after queen Aella continued in a stringent tone "But to better adhere to the ancient traditions of the Banquet, we have decided to implement a few rules upon the use of your tokens, so I ask that you all listen well." She paused for a moment, gaging everyone’s reaction to her words, and finding that almost everyone was paying close attention to her words, enraptured by the second event’s regulation, she began "The first guideline we ask you to follow, is the disallowance of hoarding your own tokens, as they must be given to others and should not be safeguarded. Of course we do not mean for you to award every token in your possession if you do not wish to, or simply wish to keep a few as a keepsake of the Banquet, but we implore that most of your tokens must be given."

Another murmur passed through the hall following the showing of the rule, but it quickly turned into a wave of acceptance, as it was more than fair, as it merely prevented the souring of the event by those of ill intent and character, so they quickly then prompted the queen to carry on with her speech, which seemed to greatly relax her, as evident by the visible ease of her tense shoulders.

"The second rule we ask you to take into consideration, is the limiting of the tokens you award to nations you already possess friendly or amicable relations with, and instead encourage you to bestow them upon factions your people may not have interacted with a lot, or not held in the highest of regards." Aella then announced the second set of rules with far more confidence than she did the first.

And again, the gathered men and women found this law to be nothing but reasonable, as it encouraged the attendees to not only remain within their predetermined cliques and cabals, but try to expand their web of acquainted further abroad, which also perfectly adhered with the Banquet’s ultimate aim.

"The third and final law we have decided to implement, with the full consent and knowledge of the involved parties of course, is the inhibition of our participation, as well as that of the queens of the Omorphia Isles in the Joust of Jewels." She proclaimed the final law, and an almost audible sound of a flood of released breathe was heard in the vast hall, as seemingly every woman let out the air they had unintentionally trapped within their lungs.

"We will implement no further limitations upon your use of the tokens, as they are solely under your own judgement and jurisdiction, so you may grant them all to a single display that steals your breath away, or you may simply disperse them across every nation present in this hall this century." Aegaeon then culminated his wife’s speech to another round of cheering ovation.

The royal couple of the Astrapi Kingdom then allowed anyone who had any doubts or questions about the event to voice their concerns in a public manner, but I felt no need to continue listening to their words, as the design of the second third of the Banquet was simple in both it’s design and aim, which was to sow the seeds of the foundations of friendly relations between nations by allowing everyone to openly witness and praise each other’s talents and skills without prejudice with the esoteric use of these so called tokens.

So instead, I decided to turn my attention to the lady by my side, who was absentmindedly rolling a token between her slender fingers, while seemingly drowning in her own thoughts.

"What bothers you love?" I whisperingly asked, nearing my mouth to her ear, causing her to snap out of her trance, almost making her drop the token she was unconsciously playing with.

"What makes you think that something is wrong?" She asked in reply with dry tone of voice, as she returning the token back into the wide golden bowl before us.

"Your reply was evidence enough I would say." I smirkingly replied, before reminding her with a light laugh, as I pulled her closer into my arms. "And have you already forgotten that no one else in this world could ever know you better than me love?"

She didn’t immediately reply to my words, continuing to stare off ahead of her for a few seconds, before she then whisperingly admitted "...I am more prone to jealousy than I initially thought."

"Is that so?" I lightly replied, as an uncontrollable grin spreading gleefully across my masked features.

"You seem glad about that thought." She irritably stated, noticing the blatant joy within my whispered voice.

"Because it means you’re starting to fall for me love." I unhesitatingly declared, like the devil’s seducing whisper, tempting her to fall deeper into my sweetly abyssal clutches, as I slightly lifted my mask to plant a light kiss on her temple, causing her unconsciously let out a satisfied "Mmm."

Yet before she could explain away the unintended sound she had unwittingly emitted, she was saved by none other than queen Aella herself, whose husband had just finished answering everyone’s questions, and then proclaimed with a wide smile across her gentle features "My lords and ladies, before we end tonight’s ceremony, allowing you all to continue enjoying the last day’s ball of the Nights of Masquerade, we have but one last announcement for you to hear."

Everyone again quieted down, intending to listen to the surprise announcement they had not expected.

"It is our great honour to be the first to declare that the Ruinous Dragon, the Bloody Emperor and the Mad Monarch; Master of the Scorching Desert, Lord of the Southern Realms, Holder of the Black Throne of the South, and Emperor of the Eclipse Empire, his majesty Alexander the third, has finalized his engagement with the future mistress of the south and empress of the Eclipse Empire, her imperial Majesty Eve." She finished with a wave of her hand in our direction, prompting every eye in the hall to instantly land on us.

Before then a loud ruckus immediately erupted after the end of her words, as exclamations of good will and congratulations instantly congested the surrounding air with clashing syllables that fought for supremacy to reach our ears, which ultimately allowed only a fraction of them to complete the arduous trek and to their destination.