Willem's head flies back with the punch and he makes a sound of pain as he brings his hands up to his now doubly bruised, probably fractured, jaw. An exclamation in a foreign language spurts from his bloodied mouth, then he is giving Fei a frustrated furrrow of his brow.
"
Dolle naa lost!!" he takes his hand away from his face and scowls. "Things HAVE changed, Serumen!"
He wipes his chin with the back of his hand and watches as he heals Tam.
"The Court is in turmoil. Many of the young and less conservative have begun to protest the treatment of the
pereagar and
umarth...the half-bloods and the ill-fated," he brings his eyes to meet the vampire's. "Tradition is being questioned and in some cases rejected. And it has come to a breaking point...ancient laws being thrown into the Endless. Their Majesties are being forced to comply. Do you understand?"
Pulling a scarf from beneath his sleeve, he presses the material to the corner of his lips. He still speaks as he does so.
"If you can get past that over-sized ego and stubborn pride, you could change everything. The traditionalists could see you are not a threat and the radicals could be appeased. Plus, you would gain powerful new allies. And no matter how much you believe you do not need them now, there is always later."
His head begins to shake as he continues.
"And yes, there are those that oppose this still, but I swear to you that you will be heavily guarded. Even if
Aran himself wished to harm you, he could not," he narrows his eyes. "All you are expected to do is show up and meet with the elders. Tamrissa will be introduced to what she should have known all her life and you will find the past you can't remember. It is a small price to pay for those two things, hmm?"
He pulls back his sleeve from his wrist suddenly and shows the strange symbol etched into his golden skin.
"Yet, you will not find Eire without having to put up with me, if that's what you are planning. Unless you have the blessing of Kemen as well?"
His pearly whites break through the swelling of his lip as he watches Fei's reaction...
Meanwhile, Tam opens her eyes...