Near the border of no man's land but right on the cusp of the Carolingian Empire was a wide swath of farmland, mostly of fruits and vegetables, and a cabin. The spring season was shifting into summer and the harvest would happen soon. Inside the cabin, the occupiers were supposed to be planning tactics of war and survival.
But Erich had other things on his mind as Jai rolled his hips in pure concentration. His hands brushed past his lips and closed eyes to his strands of dark hair bundled up in a knot, and then fell back on his waist with his thumbs brushing against his round belly.
His partner was toughened by life with proof by the scars on his arms wrapped in bandages. Spoke words churly and blunt but could sing hymns to a dying man, convincing him he had a hundred more years to go. And money was, above all, the most important thing on his beloved's mind--and even then, Jai hadn't pressured him to make a choice one way or the other.
His cock squeezed in and out as Jai moaned above him rolling his hips slow as if he could break him. Jai stuck out his tongue and Erich resisted the urge to bite. Instead, he raised his legs and tucked Jai tight against his lap as his cock nestled in tighter.
"Erich--I--," Jai groaned as his hands grappled his chest and bounced on his lap. With his head rolling in the same time as his hips, he said, "--hold me."
He lifted up and clutched him close, with one hand cradling his neck and the other on his hip, as his sack tightened and hips stuttered another thrust. Jai's moans fell in his ears like music and then fell into a sigh. They both slid on their side with Jai's leg hooked over his hip. His fingers strummed against his thigh until Jai came to with focused clarity.
Jai asked, "Are you tired?"
It was the sort of question none of his family members asked of him. Part of him was certain they didn't care if he was.
"I don't want to talk about it."
The wooden cabin was a one-room place with a desk tucked in the corner and a table next to it with three seats. A few candles were perched on the cabin's shelves, but only the one by the bedside was lit.
The light flickered as a breeze swept in.
Fingertips tapped against his chest and he knew Jai wanted to speak but wasn't going to say anything. He was just going to stare at him with knowing eyes until, he broke out, "I don't want the throne."
He thought, maybe, in this moment, Jai would leave. Get rid of the baby later. Or he'd find the baby swaddled at his front door one morning. Alone. He hadn't known he'd squeezed his eyes shut until Jai thumbed them open and sighed.
"I know," Jai sighed again. "I'm glad you're smarter now than you were when we first met."
Erick crinkled his nose and said, "I thought you said you liked my smarts and my brains."
"I said I liked your smarts and your freckles," Jai added with a grin. "I can't remember once I've said a thing about your brain. Not out loud."
"I think there's an insult in there."
"Ah, so now you see why I don't talk about your thinking."
Erich exhaled sharply but felt this admission was only half the battle. The other half--"What will I do?"
"You're going to have to convince them that you're not the one for the job but do so without pressuring the Emperor, his council, or your mother," Jai said thoughtfully. "I think getting the help of Hamza would be best. And if worst comes to worst--"
"No," Erich huffed. "I won't be selling my land to that pompous, ego-driven--"
"--very rich man who is known to be kind and generous." Jai finished. He patted Erich's chest as if to console his damaged pride. "There are options. I think the most difficult hurdle is making sure this appears a longtime coming."
"As in what?"
"As in, it will be related to being a laborer or the church," Jai said. "Perhaps you wish to be a future priest, landlord, explorer, or missionary. We share this farmland with a few of our neighbors and we've always offered our abundance. Why not use that, but frame it in a different perspective? We've been scammers before. Pretend this is merely the final round in a lifetime of rounds."
"I don't know anyone in the church."
Jai sighed, deflated. "Neither do I but someone in this village has to. And Hamza wouldn't lead us astray."
The wind rattled the cabin lulling Jai asleep but Erich's eyes stared at the roof all through the night. He wondered how far his mother was willing to destroy his chances at ever being an average man. Her words convinced his brother but Charles was always of that nature. And he couldn't fault him. It was different for an omega--to be poor and lack status. Just the idea of being king and having to be responsible for an entire empire brought shivers to his bones.
"Go to sleep," Jai mumbled in his ear before a hand splayed over his face, covering his eyes. "Busy. Tomorrow."
The omega snored into sleep and the muffled shaking of the bed rocked him into it. In the morning, Jai woke him up with nuzzle against his cheek and a whispered, "We need to wake up now. Those neighborhood kids are here." His lover left the cabin in those few minutes and returned with the sound of a bowl sliding on his bedside table and the sound of a gentle splash.
"You checked the wagon?"
"I did but you're checking the horse."
"Hm," Erich hummed and then rolled over for a few more minutes of sleep. "Keep the kids distracted while I dress."
Jai laughed but he could hear the sound of rustling and his dressing for the day.
Wagons and carts were few and far between in these areas with just as few horses, primarily used for emergencies and farmhandling. The two had been saving up for a few oxen to add to the farm but present escalating issues distracted them. With the wagon and horse they had, they transported the neighborhood kids to the nearest village for work and food orders for extra income.
Jai left the cabin and Erich's wakefulness came to as he heard the children giggling outside. He took the washcloth and freshwater basin on his sidetable and began to wipe himself. The cool freshwater about as refreshing as could be. Now, he was up.
He stretched out all the kinks in his muscles and dressed for the day before whipping open the door to the shouts and laughter of the kids with Jai, surrounding him with fast chatter. One of the kid's baby sister was hitched on Jai's hip gurgling with waving hands.
The sun was high up in the sky and the situating of their housing wasn't made for them to be inside for long. Their cabin was their sleeping quarters with an outhouse on the three corners of their land, the nearest one on the other side of their open-roomed kitchen quarters, which is where he found them.
Their kitchen space was truly only a few poles, cloth to block out wayward winds, and a wooden sloped roof to catch rainwater at the back. Their countertops, tables, and storage covered neatly, safely underneath. Jai tossed him the pouch full of horse food as Erich grabbed the woven bags and carrying cases, snatching them to toss into the wagon before he walked across the farmland, a decent distance away. It didn't take long to reach the trees and small shed where their horse was tied but the heat was warm today.
"Farmer Castro," said one of the young farmhands, the oldest of the group, a young omega girl, Anna Shoemaker. Dark-haired and blue eyes, Jai sewed and gifted a lace veil for her protection from the sun in these seasons. But Jai often told him his worries about the young girl, who was nearly of marriageable age, that the veil was for more than that one reason. "I've checked the plots and we well watered all of them. I even brushed Lillith for you. Did teacher Jai find out when he'll be able to finish our classes?"
Erich laughed and said, as he untied the horse with a gentle pat, "Jai informed me that you're fluent in Zhuong and halfway there for Djemma. Your calligraphy is top notch and if we had the funds, we would've invested in etiquette school for you."
"Oh! I've been saving up for it but I'm short fifty coins, but I'm halfway there after only two years," Anna said as they both began walking back to the other side of the farm. "I figured if I go into the village--"
Erich cut in, "How about you help Jai prepare for some dinner meetings we'll be having with some friends over the next few weeks? And we'll pay you for the help. I think about thirty five coins we can spare. And you can make the rest up as we get our harvests finished."
"Oh, are you sure?"
"Of course, we're sure," Erich added. "Besides, there's some things Jai wants to speak with you about," and then lowered his voice, "omega things. And I can't help with that!"
Anna nodded and then said, "My mother spoke with me a little a few days ago. She said I have another year or two before they'll start looking. It's the first time she really spoke to me and sounded--I don't know. Not worried but interested in my days to days."
Erich and Jai had never met Anna's mother but over the years heard things that were bad. She never left the home. Never spoke to her children. She had given birth a few years ago but Anna said she mostly helped in the caregiving there. Usually the baby was hitched on Anna's back and the veil was long enough to cover them both during the hot days. But since her mother's husband wasn't her birth father, they expected as much out of an alpha in these areas, when it related to Anna. But to not care about their alpha child either?
Those people just weren't good people in any shape or form even if he tried to pretend.
"Let me or Jai know if they start talking serious, you understand?" Erich sighed. "You can always knock on our cabin if you need an extra place to sleep. I can sleep out in the kitchen quarters if need be, got it? That man with your mother doesn't have a legal claim to her or you, me and Jai checked every village in our borders over the last year. We'll help you and your sister out if need be."
Anna nodded again and said, "She's pregnant again but she's--not doing so well. I think focusing on me is helping a little. We'll be fine."
"I wish we could do more, but," Erich cut himself off this time.
There was nothing else to say.
When they finally reached the kids and Jai, the kids were already sitting in the wagon waiting.
"Anna," Jai said and smiled, with his hand outstretched, and kissed her forehand after wrapping her in a tight hug. "I was worried when I didn't see you."
"I told you," Anna repeated while holding her hands behind her back and waffling side to side. "We're fine."
"I know. I know," Jai sighed and turned to him. "I'll be staying back with Khuri and Anna, then?"
His eyes pointed as if he dared Erich to say otherwise and so he nodded, like a soldier saluting.
"We're going to take some early orders for the harvest tomorrow and I'll check in to see if Hamza arrived to harbor yet."
"Good, be safe."
They were waved off as he snapped the reins of the horse and made their way off on the sandy path leading to the nearest village, Aquileia.
The farm kids were a rascal-y bunch, except for Qasim. The fourteen year old wasn't as clever as Anna and was the one Jai worried the most for but his father was a well-off merchant and he hoped that it would balance out his fortunes. For what little they knew of Srikumar, Qasim's father, they knew he cared enough to visit every few months and left two servants to take of him. But what they also knew is that his housing wasn't much bigger than Jai and Erich's and that the servants had Qasim help with most of the chores. As far as things go, there was a big question mark for the kid who didn't like reading and didn't have any interests outside of flashy fabric and jewelry. Things that he never wore.
The next oldest was Jasper Lockwood, ten years old, an alpha child who just designated, more stubborn than a mule, and smarter than some of the smartest cats he's ever seen roaming the village. He knew how to read but was a bit too much like Jai. All he cared about was accounts and money. If the numbers were even slightly off, he would read the thief. Erich liked having Jasper when he did deals because the kid couldn't hide his expressions yet and he always knew when he was being scammed. Without Jai always there, Erich tended to read people at face-value. The
Jasper's brother, Javon Lockwood, six years old and just a quiet little thing. He picked up what he could and did what he was told. A good helper and Jasper watched him well so he never got into real trouble.
The last kid of the group is Cyrus Laughlin. His father is Jacques Laughlin and if someone had never heard that name he would call them a liar. When the Emperor's purge swept through the kingdom, to scare off the plague as he said then, one of the families hit was the Laughlin. Wealthier than most and with two alpha children, they were the first killed off. The old man had gone from opulence and wealth to nothing but a decently sized cabin, albeit larger than Jai and Erich's, with the barest of access to freshwater and food. The old man paid Jai well enough for his teaching services and to keep his son safe when he went off haggling or making deals. Erich had no complaints.
It was midday when they reached the village and saw the harbor empty of any ships. He cursed under his breath and sighed before unloading the bags. Each of the older kids held onto the larger bags while the younger two had them on their back with a nice little woven clasp to keep the bags closed.
"We'll return when the sun meets the horizon. If you need help, I'll be waiting by the wagon and if I'm not here," Erich points at the wagons under storage. "You can hide in here if you really need to."
The two blonde-haired brothers whispered to each other while the dark-haired boy, Qasim, nodded before he ran off into the village. Cyrus only lowered his head, though, shuffled from foot to foot.
Erich patted the brown-haired boy's head and said, "Qasim didn't stay and help you out."
Cyrus shook his head.
"How about I go around and help you check in then," Erich said, resigned. It wasn't as if he had anything else to do with Hamza still not at port yet. "Stay close."
The market vendors were busy and rowdy with people shouting prices, handing out produce, and customers talking amongst themselves of the ongoings of the day here. He could taste the river water in the air.
Cyrus scuttled ahead with his carrier bag on his back and Erich remembered when he was a child working a similar route. The difference is that such a market wasn't accessible then. He had to go farmhouse to farmhouse, transporting goods from place to place. His younger brother then would fish and help repair his shoes that would get damaged from overuse. Their mother appeared once a week doing what he now knows is haggling, brokering a network, and pushing him to a position where he could vy for the throne. But she was absent of the good times amongst the rough times.
He hoped his children wouldn't have to work as hard as these children and the cycle would weaken as time went on. They would have more opportunities for growth and ease of life as their empire prospered in turn. It would be a beautiful balance of peace and properity.
As they wandered from vendor to vendor, and wary glances fell on him before handing their orders off to the children, he noted a few peculiar things. The first was that most of the market vendors were omegas. The women were of varying ages but all omegas. It wasn't all that odd, technically. But he had never seen it before.
He asked Cyrus, "How long have all the vendors been omegas?" on their way to the next vendor with a quick nod at an amiable passerby. "The alphas--they're mainly working the shipwork now?"
Cyrus frowned and then said, "I don't know about the ships, but I heard they're recruiting soldiers and such. Jasper said he would've applied if it wasn't for his poor eyesight. Father said he wishes my brother and sister were still here to bring the family's honor back but then he fell asleep."
"He's drinking again."
"Yes Farmer Castro, but I think he has good reason."
After picking up another order, Cyrus went back to the wagon and dropped off the order. This was where he usually waited by the wagon but he didn't think it was appropriate now that he said he would walk with Cyrus.
"Let's wait until one of the others return," he said as he leaned against the wagon and Lillith neighed as her hooves tapped the stone. "We can take turns and give you each a rest."
Jasper and Javon were the first ones back. When Jasper saw them, he scoffed, "You can go if you need to finish your route. We're done ours."
"Because he's the king!" Javon crowed and Jasper puffed out his chest.
Erich laughed. "Pardon our incapabilities. We'll get on making up for lost time," and then led Cyrus back into the market. He peered over at the sky and saw the sun hovering above the horizon but the sky slowly but surely purpling into sunset. "Be on the lookout for Qasim too. We can get back early if we catch him first."
Cyrus clutched his bag and with a new energy approached the vendors with furrowed brows. He said, "I'm here for the Farmer Castro's orders." or "Farmer Castro's orders should be done." or "My bag is to be full with Farmer Castro's orders." with a stern expression unbefitting of a child but each and every time he was handed the orders. The orders in his carrier fit right above the lid but Cyrus had finished.
"Hopefully, Qasim will have arrived," Erich said as Cyrus skipped along returning to the wagon. But, Qasim was nowhere to be found. He found Jasper and Javon napping in the wagon and the sun meeting the horizon as the purpled sky turned to darkness. "Have you two seen Qasim?"
His voice woke Jasper up as Javon slumped over, still asleep on his brother's shoulder. The older brother yawned, "I haven't seen him yet. Or heard his voice since we left."
There was an uncomfortable itch as he scratched his neck that he felt there was something desperately wrong. He told them to wait, picking up Cyrus into the wagon, and then said, "If you see anything suspicious or off, you have the right to take the horse back to the farm."
"Without you?" Javon questioned.
"Exactly."
Javon slowly nodded and was fully awake now, realizing the seriousness of the situation. "I'll stay up and watch."
"Good," he said before he entered back into the marketplace as vendors, one by one, began breaking down their stalls. The flood of people ebbed out as less and less people took up the town center. It wasn't much longer after he paced back and forth several times that the entire marketplace was empty. He called out then, "Qasim! We're done for the night! Qasim!" and wandered around the town. The exterior of the town was where the laborers settled in. Those who worked with the dockworkers and those who lived in the residences above the town sheds. There was an inn towards the middle, further back of the exterior where he found a few horses and a rather expensive carriage--a familiar carriage. He gritted his teeth as he walked into the inn and introduced himself to the bartender, "The name is Erich Castro."
The bartender quirked a brow as he pulled out from underneath the bar, a key, pushing it towards him, as he said, "Room 7."
Erich snatched the key and stomped up the stairs listening as women giggled through the walls, the sounds of sex and dulcet tones, and he felt sweat pool on his brow. He reached Room 7 and scrambled to twist the key in and then nearly fumbled it before unlocking the door, pushing it open.
"Qasim!"
The kid's body thumped into his chest as Qasim repeated, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I didn't think you would show up." and Erich yanked him behind him before glaring at the figure inside--his mother Laurel Castro, adorned in the finery deserving of a wealthy noble.
"You still haven't gotten bored of playing house," she said and then Erich noticed the two guards, dressed in palace uniform, waiting at her beck and call. "Here you are playing maid to a couple of children you're not even blood with. Truly, what is wrong with you, my son? Is there an affliction we need to help you excise?"
Erich slowly moved back, shielding Qasim from their eyes, as he replied, carefully, while tracking their every twitch and muscle tightening, "I take great pleasure in the pure life of--of--as a child of the Church. There is no greater giving than to give charity to those who deserve more."
"What--?" his mother's eyes widened into a glare. "You've never even walked into a church! There's no point in lying to me. You waved those chainmail plates and that sword for years in practice. For peace? Don't make me laugh. What you've always wanted, always desired was to be a leader and to lead. What greater leader is there than an Emperor?"
"To rule over man," Erich scrambled for a quote from the holy writings, "is to rule under sin. But to rule over your soul, is to rule over sin."
His mother's cheeks nearly burst from anger as she exhaled sharply and said, "It's of no matter. You won't change the course of fate. You'll realize soon enough there is no choice for you. It's the throne or nothing. And you're not a man who can be content with nothing."
There was threat hidden in her voice.
"Qasim," he said as they inched even more out of the room, "we're returning to the wagon now. Let's hurry then."
They snapped around and he tossed the key over his shoulder, listening to the thing clatter to the wooden floor as they raced down and out the inn. He snapped up Qasim and ran faster towards the wagon, reaching the wagon, and checking that everyone was in before hoisting himself on Lillith with a sharp 'Hah!'.
Galloping back to Castro Farm.
His mother's words repeating in his mind, 'you're not a man content with nothing'. and snapped the reins harder.