 
# Destiny's Queen

#

# Princess Wars—Book Two

#

# J. D. Rogers

***

# Smashwords Edition

# Text copyright © 2016 by J. D. Rogers

# All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for quotations in printed reviews, without the written permission of the author.

# All characters are fictional. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

#

# COVER PHOTO: Courtesy of Pixabay.com

# Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

# Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

LOST IN TIME

BOOKS BY JD ROGERS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

# Prologue

I was six years old the first time I saw the Cemetery of Would Be Queens. It was a warm summer evening. The sun was low in the sky, casting everything in an orange glow.

The cemetery was located at the top of a hill just north of the Summer Palace. A hill that stood out from the surrounding hills, which were covered with grass, wild flowers, trees, birds, and butterflies. In sharp contrast, the hill containing the cemetery was brown and lifeless. There was no carpet of green grass, no yellow and purple wild flowers, no trees, no birds, no butterflies. Even the warm summer breeze seemed to avoid that lifeless hill.

My mother didn't allow me to climb the hill with her. She made me wait at the bottom with Patera LaCere, Captain of the Queen's Guard. I didn't argue with her, mostly because I didn't want to go up there. The place scared me.

I stood next to Patera and watched as my mother headed up the hill alone. "Who's buried up there?"

"Your mother's sisters. Among others."

"I didn't know she had any sisters."

"She had five sisters."

"And they're all dead?"

"Yes."

"When did they die?"

"Before you were born. Before your sisters were born."

"They must've been way older than her if they died before any of us were born."

Patera didn't say anything. He just stood there and watched my mother walk up the hill.

"How come there's no grass on this hill?" I asked. "Or flowers?"

"Keep watching," Patera said. "You'll see."

It was pretty clear that Patera didn't want to answer any of my questions, so I stood silently and watched my mother climb the hill. There were no headstones up there, not like you saw at other cemeteries. As as far as I could see there was nothing up there. That hill was as barren and as lifeless as anything I had ever seen.

When my mother reached the top of the hill, I realized that the place wasn't as barren as I had thought.

"Do you see them?" Patera whispered.

I saw them, looking just like you'd expect ghosts to look, white, transparent, floating above the ground instead of standing on it. There were dozens of them and they were all young and female.

"Who are they?" I whispered.

"Your aunts, and great aunts, and great great aunts."

"Why are they buried here?"

"Your mother will explain that to you," Patera said. "When she returns."

That was the day I learned how the next Queen of Adah would be chosen, through a series of battles between me and my three older sisters, battles which were known in my homeland of Adah as the Princess Wars. Every ghost on that hill had once been an Adan princess, just like me. Every one had lost the Princess Wars.

***

Fourteen years later, my mother passed away and my sisters and I began our version of the Princess Wars. Actually, it began an hour before my mother died, when I had a vision of my oldest sister, Bedonna, running her mammoth broadsword through my heart. Naturally, I didn't stick around to see that happen. I slipped out of the palace and headed west on horseback. My goal was to win the support of General Dacus and the Army of the West. I knew that General Dacus didn't like or trust Bedonna. He knew that she longed to go down in history as a great conqueror, no matter whose blood she had to spill.

I reached the Army of the West only to discover that General Dacus wasn't in control. One of his commanders, Trager Selis, had tossed General Dacus in the dungeon and proclaimed himself King of the Western Hills. Turned out he was being controlled by a powder witch.

I managed to kill the powder witch only to be drugged by a man she brought with her, a man from the lands located on the other side of the desert. That man was Edgerton Hooks and he was Chancellor of Vassa. His queen was dying and she needed an heir. Not just any heir. She wanted a princess, and as luck would have it, I was the first princess to cross Edgerton's path. That was why he kidnapped me. That was why he was taking me back to Vassa. And why he took the time to teach me the Common Tongue, not to mention the history of Vassa and the countries that surrounded it.

What he didn't tell me was that his queen had enemies, people that wanted her dead. People that wanted me dead. I learned that the hard way, when assassins attacked us, and then again when men posing as river pirates burned our ship.

One of the people that wanted me dead was the Duke of Genese. A man who was supposed to be an ally. A man I had just dined with. A man I just had a vision about. A vision that warned me that when dinner was over, and I had retired to my suite, he was going to try and kill me.

# Chapter 1

The Duke of Genese entered my room wearing the same black and gold outfit that he wore at dinner. The Knights of the Royal Brotherhood medallion hung from his neck, identifying him as a man that was opposed to women sitting on thrones. Women like me. He clutched his sword in his right hand.

"I've been expecting you," I said, once he was inside the room.

As I spoke, Bokham, my personal guard, closed the door and took up a position in front of it, sword in hand. The duke heard the door slam shut and spun around.

I raised my cutlass in front of me. "Don't worry about him. He's not here to kill you. He's just here to make sure you don't run away."

The duke glanced at Bokham, then at me, then at Bokham, then at me. The look on his face said it all. He didn't know what was going on, but he knew that things weren't going the way he planned.

"I'm going to kill you myself," I said. "When you're dead, I'm going to take that medallion you're wearing as a trophy. Perhaps, I'll wear it the next time I meet Maximillian Bedard."

The duke glared at me, then raised his sword and charged forward. The fight didn't start the way it did in my vision. In my vision, I was the aggressor. In reality, the duke was the aggressor. I parried his charges with the cutlass in my right hand. After a couple of minutes, I switched the cutlass to my left hand, and let my right arm rest. A couple of minutes later, I switched back.

We danced around the drawing room, iron clanging against iron. We danced into my bedroom, over my bed, and back into the drawing room. I continued to switch hands. The duke continued to swing his heavy broadsword with both hands.

Eventually, a sheen of sweat broke out across his brow. He probably wanted to take his heavy velvet waistcoat off, but I didn't give him that luxury. A short while later, he began breathing through his mouth. A short while after that, he paused to catch his breath.

That's when I went on the offensive, giving him no chance to rest. We danced around the drawing room again, into the bedroom again, across the bed again, and back into the drawing room. Iron clanging against iron. This time he was backing up. This time, I was pressing the action, taking the fight to him.

"You don't fight like any woman I know," the duke said.

"That's because I'm not like any woman you know."

"How did you know I was coming for you?"

"What do you care? You'll be dead soon."

The duke didn't argue with me. Probably because he knew the truth. Even if he managed to defeat me, which must've seemed doubtful at that point, he wouldn't have enough strength left to defeat Bokham. He knew that he would die tonight, either by my hand, or Bokham's.

Eventually, the duke became too weary to keep up with me. My attacks began to draw blood. At first the blows were just glancing, no more than nicks. As the fight wore on, the cuts became deeper and blood began to seep through the duke's expensive clothing. That sapped more of his strength and slowed him down even more.

The end came suddenly. We were in the drawing room when the duke dropped his sword. I lunged forward, plunged my cutlass deep into his gut, and left it there.

He looked at his skewered stomach and dropped to his knees. He wrapped his hands around the blade, tried to pull it out, but lacked the strength. All he succeeded in doing was cutting his hands.

While he knelt there, dying, I walked up to him and removed the medallion from around his neck. "This is mine."

The duke didn't argue. He didn't do anything except gasp a couple of times, collapse onto his side, and die.

"I better tell Edgerton and Romeus what happened," Bokham said, sheathing his sword. He headed out of my room, then stopped and looked back at me. "If your sister is better than you, then you're right. I wouldn't want to face her."

By the time Edgerton and Romeus arrived, I had pulled my cutlass out of the duke's lifeless body, wiped the blood on his velvet waistcoat, and sheathed it.

"What happened here?" Edgerton said.

"What did Bokham tell you?"

"Just that there was something we needed to see."

"The duke came here to kill me." I held up the medallion. "Do either of you know what this is?"

The looks on their faces told me that they both knew what it was.

"Where did you get that?" Romeus said.

"The duke was wearing it around his neck."

"It's a medallion," Romeus said. "It's worn by . . . . "

His voice trailed off. Either he didn't want to tell me what it was, or he was too embarrassed to tell me.

"She knows what it is," Edgerton said, studying my face. "She's a seer. That's how she knew he was coming here to kill her. And if she knew he was coming here to kill her, then she knows why."

He looked to me for conformation. I nodded. "It's worn by men of royal blood. They belong to a secret society called the Knights of the Royal Brotherhood. They're opposed to any woman sitting on any throne. This is why Queen Catlett sent you to Adah. She didn't want just anyone as her heir. She wanted a princess that wouldn't be afraid of a group of men that had dedicated their lives to killing her. There's only one place in the world where you can find a princess like that."

"Adah," Edgerton said.

I slipped the medallion around my neck and tucked it inside my shirt. I turned to Romeus, and said, "Is the king a member of this society?"

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because he has a daughter."

I don't know why that surprised me, but it did. "The King of Holt has a daughter?"

"Yes."

"Does he have a son?"

"No."

"How old is his daughter?"

"Ten," Romeus said. "I think she's one of the reasons the duke joined the KRB. He resented the fact that she would ascend to the throne instead of him."

"Does the king know his brother was a member of the KRB?"

"He suspected, but I don't think he knew for sure."

"Who will take the duke's place here in Genese?"

"I don't know."

"How will the king react to the fact that I killed his brother?"

"I don't know."

"Will it have an adverse effect on his relationship with Queen Catlett?"

"I don't know."

"Why should it?" Edgerton said. "He attacked you. You didn't attack him. The fact that he came to your room with sword in hand is proof enough. The fact that you took that medallion from around his neck is proof enough."

"Since we don't know how the king will react," Romeus said. "It might be best if you're out of the country when I tell him of his brother's death."

"What about Captain Hubbard and his men?" I said. "And the men you sent out to aid them?"

"Until the king declares otherwise, our two countries still have an alliance. If Captain Hubbard and his men are able to reach our border, they'll be given safe passage."

"We'll leave at first light," Edgerton said.

"No," I said.

Edgerton looked at me. "I think it best if we get you to Vassa as quickly as possible. Before we run into more trouble."

"I killed the king's brother. The least I can do is explain how and why it happened."

"Not to dwell on the obvious. But if you do that, the king might throw you in the dungeon, maybe even execute you."

"Executing me would embolden the KRB."

"So?" Edgerton and Romeus said together.

"Once I was out of the way, who would their next target be? Aside from Queen Catlett."

"The king's daughter," Romeus said.

"Like it or not, Counselor, the king needs me alive." Romeus didn't argue, although it looked like he wanted to. "When Captain Hubbard and his men arrive, when the gowns and boots I ordered are finished, we'll ride to the king together. I'll explain to him what happened and why he needs me. There'll be no rift in his alliance with Queen Catlett. I won't allow it. In the meantime, Counselor, you should give the duke whatever sort of burial you think he deserves."

Romeus rounded up some servants to remove the duke's body from the floor, ordering them to wash it and prepare it for burial. Shu found another suite for me to sleep in, one which didn't smell of blood. Much to my surprise, I had no trouble sleeping that night.

They buried the duke the next morning, in a cemetery behind his castle. The same cemetery where the all the other dukes were buried. Romeus, Shu, and the duke's four suitors attended his funeral. The Lady Tabitha didn't. Neither did I. It didn't seem right to kill a man and then attend his funeral.

Captain Hubbard and his men arrived that evening, tired but alive. Maximillian Bedard's pirates gave up the chase when they encountered the duke's horsemen. Luckily, the duke never told his men that he had a secret alliance with the King of Dunre. If he had, Captain Hubbard and his men might be dead.

The next morning, the gowns and boots I ordered arrived at the palace for a final fitting. I told the tailor and the cobbler that I needed them by tomorrow morning. Both assured me that they would be ready.

Horses were procured, and the next morning, we set off for the King of Holt's palace. We took the road that bordered the Istansada River's southern bank, heading for the City of Hensel, Holt's capital. Hensel was located in the middle of Holt. Like Genese, it bordered both sides of the river. Like Genese, most of the buildings were made from logs, with a few of the larger ones being made from stone. Like Genese, there were no bridges crossing the river. Rowboats ferried people between the cities's northern and southern halves.

A castle sat on the highest hill that overlooked the river. It was built in the same style as the duke's castle, a gray granite box with red roofed towers of various heights placed randomly around the castle. The only difference I could see between Hensel and Genese, was that the king's castle was on the southern side of the river.

"Are you nervous?" Shu asked me as we rode through town.

"About what?"

"Having to tell the king that you killed his brother."

"I defended myself against a man that invited me into his home then tried to assassinate me. I have nothing to be nervous about." No matter how much the King of Holt loved his brother, I suspected he loved his daughter more. I was counting on that love to help him see my side.

I was wearing one of my new outfits. A red velvet riding skirt and a black velvet top with long sleeves, a scoop neckline, and a built-in corset. My boots were like the ones the Lady Tabitha wore, except they had a much lower heel, kind of a cross between the dress boots she wore and the riding boots the men wore. A black velvet cloak with a red silk lining completed the outfit.

As usual, my hair was pulled back into a ponytail and tied with the choking device. The cutlass remained strapped around my waist. I was also wearing the Ruby Crown. Much to my surprise, Edgerton secured it from my things after he drugged me.

"I was saving this as a surprise, thinking you might want to wear it when you meet Queen Catlett," Edgerton said, when he brought me the crown. "But I'm thinking it might not hurt to wear it today, to remind the King of Holt that he's dealing with high royalty, and that his actions will carry repercussions."

Shu wore an outfit identical to mine, except it was made out of black velvet. The Lady Tabitha wore her usual form fitting gown and high heeled boots. The gown was silk and bright yellow in color. Because the outfit restricted her mobility, she had to ride sidesaddle and be helped on and off the horse. Bokham wore his red and white uniform. Edgerton wore his usual black. Romeus wore the same thing as Edgerton, perhaps it was the standard uniform for royal advisers, perhaps he was still mourning the duke's death. Captain Hubbard and his men wore their freshly washed red and white uniforms.

There was no wall surrounding the king's castle. Like the duke's castle, a pair of guards with pikes manned the front doors. Where the duke's men wore black and gold livery, the king's men wore silver and blue, blue knee breeches, blue tunics, and silver breastplates with a gold crown inlaid on the chest.

Romeus informed the guards that we had news concerning the Duke of Genese. All of us, save for Captain Hubbard's men, were admitted into the king's throne room. It was empty when we entered, but the king arrived minutes after we did.

He was a taller, older version of the duke, same jaw, same cheekbones, same eyes, same brown hair. The same classic good looks that drew women to his brother. The only differences were the gray hair around his temples and a clean shaven face. He dressed much more casually than his brother. Black riding boots, worn brown leather breeches, and a white cotton shirt that tied in the front. Only a blue velvet waistcoat that looked like it had been hurriedly tossed on, gave you any indication that he wasn't a common laborer.

A girl of about ten accompanied him. She wore her long brown hair in a ponytail and dressed in an outfit identical to her father. She was a pretty girl, and when she reached adulthood, would be a striking beauty.

As her father plopped down on his throne and stretched out his long legs, she moved to his right hand and stood quietly, studying the people standing at the foot of the dais. It wasn't long before her brown eyes lighted on me and the red and gold crown atop my head. I smiled at her and she returned my smile, although I wondered what she'd think of me when she learned that I killed her uncle.

The king addressed Romeus. "I'm told you have news about my brother. Since you made the trip yourself, I'm assuming it's bad news."

Romeus bowed. "There's no easy way to put this, Your Highness, other than to come right out and say it. Your brother, the Duke of Genese, is dead."

"When?"

"Two nights ago."

"How did it happen?"

"A sword fight."

The king sighed. "So, the blade master finally challenged someone who was better than him. I thought he picked his opponents more carefully."

"It wasn't a duel, Your Highness."

"What was it?"

"An attempted assassination."

"Sounds like it was a successful assassination."

"The assassination attempt wasn't on the duke, Your Highness. In point of fact, the duke was the assassin."

The king turned his attention to the rest of us. He noticed Edgerton, then me, then the Ruby Crown. I could see him putting the facts together. Edgerton making a trip to the far side of the world to find a princess, then showing up here with a young woman wearing a strange crown.

When he grabbed his daughter's hand, I knew that his brother had been a concern for him. He had been troubled by torn loyalties, loyalty for his brother vs. loyalty for his daughter. He wouldn't come out and admit it, couldn't come out and admit it, but I had solved one of the biggest problems in his life. He no longer had to worry about what his little brother would do when his daughter assumed his throne. Would his brother try to assassinate her? No longer a problem. Would he rebel against her and start a civil war? No longer an issue.

If the girl was upset over the news of her uncle's death, she didn't show it. Maybe she didn't know him that well. Maybe she knew him too well. Kids are pretty perceptive when it comes to how people feel about them.

"Did anybody see it happen?" the king said.

Bokham stepped forward. "I saw it all, Your Highness."

"Tell me what happened Captain Bokham." Apparently everybody knew everybody in the Finger States, but then why wouldn't they. The countries weren't that big. Bokham bowed and gave the king an extremely detailed account of my sword fight with the duke. When he finished, the king spoke again. "Do any of you have proof that my brother was a member of the KRB?"

I took the gold medallion from around my neck and tossed it to the king. He caught it out of the air, suppressing a smile over the insolent way I handed it to him.

"Your brother was wearing it when he slipped into my room."

"You speak the Common Tongue," the king said, sounding surprised. "I wasn't aware they spoke the Common Tongue in the barbarian lands."

"We don't. Edgerton taught it to me during our trip across the Great Desert. What we barbarians call the Desert of Shifting Sands."

"And now you wear this medallion as a trophy?" The king tossed it back to me.

I slipped the medallion around my neck, then let it disappear into my cleavage. "I thought about hanging one of your brother's ears around my neck, but this seemed more convenient."

I got a few gasps for that comment. Not from the king, mind you, but from Edgerton, Romeus, and the Lady Tabitha.

For his part, the king remained calm. "Do you always take trophies from the people you kill?"

I looked at the king's daughter. "Only from those that belong to secret societies that believe princesses shouldn't be allowed to sit on thrones."

"I know Captain Bokham and I consider him to be an honest man," the king said. "I believe he spoke the truth when he said the duke entered the princess's room uninvited and threatened her. As such, she had a right to defend herself. Relations between Holt and Vassa will not be affected by this incident. Neither will relations between Holt and . . . ."

He looked at me and waited for me to tell him the name of my country. "Adah."

"Neither will relations between Holt and Adah, such as they are."

Edgerton breathed a sigh of relief. Until then, he hadn't been sure of what the king would say. For a smart man, and an adviser to a queen, he wasn't very good at reading people. Either that, or I was better at it than I realized.

"I do have one small problem," the king said. "The duke's throne is now empty."

"If I may offer a suggestion." I paused to see if the king wanted to hear what I had to say. He waited for me to continue, so I did. "Have you ever thought of putting a woman in charge of Genese."

"Why would I do that?"

"To prepare your subjects for the ascension of your daughter to your throne. It might be an easier transition if they're used to seeing a woman rule in Holt."

"An interesting theory," the king said. "Problem is my brother wasn't married and I have no sisters or female cousins. And my daughter is too young to serve as the Duchess of Genese."

"How about a woman serving as the Steward of Genese?"

"Who do you have in mind?"

I put a hand in the small of Shu's back and pushed her forward. "Shumaredena Kestan. Daughter of Romeus. She's from Genese. She's lived in the castle. She understands the political workings of Genese. And she's served Genese loyally, working as a spy in the high sage's palace."

"First you kill my brother, now you tell me who should sit on his throne. That's a bit presumptuous."

"I'm thinking of what's best for your daughter. Making the Lady Shumaredena the Steward of Genese would benefit the princess. The question is: are you prepared to do what's best for your daughter, or are you too worried about what others might think?"

There were a few gasps from the people standing next to me. Apparently, they weren't used to hearing people challenge royalty. When you grow up with a mother who's queen, royalty loses its aura.

The king looked at his daughter, then turned to Romeus. "What say you, Counselor? Do you think your daughter is qualified to serve as the Steward of Genese?"

Romeus bowed. "She would have an experienced adviser at her right hand."

"Perhaps it's time a woman was in charge of something in this country." The king looked at his daughter a second time. "I shall have a commission drawn up appointing the Lady Shumaredena the Steward of Genese. She will hold that position until my daughter reaches her eighteenth birthday, at which point, she'll become the Duchess of Genese. The Lady Shumaredena will then serve as her chief counselor."

Shu curtsied. "As you wish, Your Highness."

The king turned back to me. "How did you know my brother was going to attack you?"

"I'm a seer."

"As well as a blade master. Impressive."

"I'm hardly a blade master. Where I come from, I'm merely adequate."

"Catlett told me that she was going to turn our world upside down. I asked her how she intended to do that. She told me about a country that has so many princesses, they kill each other just for the right to sit on their mother's throne. She said that she had made arrangements to bring one of those princesses here, to become her heir. I told her it was a fool's dream and that she was throwing her gold away. Now, I'm thinking that even fool's dreams come true."

# Chapter 2

I was in my suite in the king's castle when I heard a soft knock on the door. I slid into the drawing room, thought about picking up my cutlass just to be safe, then decided I didn't need it. If someone was coming to kill me, I would've had a vision warning me. I opened the door to find the Princess Vanessa standing there.

The first thing I noticed was that she had changed clothes. The tomboy outfit was gone, replaced by a red velvet dress with a high collar and a flared skirt. I wondered if her father knew she was at my door, wondered if he would approve of her associating with her uncle's killer.

"Hello," I said. "Would you like to come in?"

She stepped into my drawing room, which was decorated in creams and yellows. She looked around, then said, "Are you really a princess?"

"Yes, I am. My mother was the Queen of Adah. It's a country on the other side of the Great Desert."

"You said your mother was the queen."

"She died recently."

"My mother died when I was little."

"I'm sorry," I said. "Should you be talking to me?"

"Why would anybody care?"

"Your father might not want you talking to the person that killed your uncle."

"My father and my uncle didn't get along. I think it had something to do with me."

"Not so much you. Your uncle just had a problem with princesses and queens. That's why he tried to kill me."

"Because you're a princess like me?"

"Yes. He believed only men are fit to rule."

"Why?"

"I don't know why. Maybe he was jealous of you."

"Why would he be jealous of me?"

"Because one day, you'll be the Queen of Holt, while he would never be more than the Duke of Genese. Perhaps he wanted to be king."

"He did want to be king," King Linus said, appearing in the open doorway. He had changed clothes, into black riding boots, black cotton breeches, a white cotton shirt, and a black velvet waistcoat. "He used to remind me that the only reason I was king was because I had the good fortune to be born first."

"I'm sorry you lost your brother," I said. "And that I had to be the one that took him from you."

"I lost my brother a long time ago. The day my daughter was born. The day he realized that he would never be king. It's kind of fitting that it was a woman that ended his life."

"Did you know he was a member of the KRB?"

"I suspected. I didn't know for sure."

"What's the KRB?" Vanessa asked.

The king didn't seem to know how to answer that, so I knelt down and looked Vanessa in the eyes. "It's a group of men that doesn't like women."

"By women, you mean princesses?"

"Yes, but you don't have to worry about them, because I intend to get rid of each and every one of them."

The princess did something unexpected. She hugged me. When she finished, King Linus placed his hand on his daughter's shoulder and steered her toward the door.

"Why don't you head down to dinner, I need to talk to Princess Lila." King Linus waited until his daughter was out of the room, then turned back to me. "You were very brave, coming here after what happened back in Genese."

"Not really. If you were you planning on killing me, I'd know about it."

"Because you're a seer."

"Yes."

"You certainly are going to turn things upside down in this part of the world. Half the royals are going to want to kill you, the other half are going to want to marry you."

"Is the KRB that large?"

"In truth, I have no idea how many people are in the KRB. I didn't even know my brother was a member."

"But you suspected."

"I suspected."

"Since you're not one of those that wants to kill me, can I assume you're in the half that wants to marry me?"

"I think my marrying days are behind me." King Linus grinned, a wolfish grin if I ever saw one. "However, I wouldn't mind bedding you."

"Are all the kings in this part of the world as blunt as you?" If he expected me to blush, then he was going to be disappointed.

"One of the advantages of being a king is that you can be as blunt as you want."

"How would Queen Catlett feel about the two of us sleeping together?"

"I think she'd prefer you sleep with an ally instead of an enemy. In fact, I was thinking that you and I could get together later, after dinner."

I had a vision right then. I saw myself naked and tied spread eagle to a large four post bed. Silk scarves bound me to the bed, another silk scarf gagged my mouth. Silk pillows beneath my hips raised my bottom high in the air. King Linus stood over me holding a riding crop.

"As an ally of Queen Catlett, I can't kill you," he said. "However, I can make sure that you remember there is a price to pay for killing my brother."

With that said, he brought the riding crop down on my bare bottom, over and over and over. I fought my bonds but the silk scarfs held fast. Likewise, the silk scarf in my mouth muffled my screams. When he began to draw blood the vision faded. I found myself back in my suite. King Linus was standing in front of me, looking puzzled.

"Princess are you all right?"

When I saw the king standing in front of me, my first reaction was to retreat a couple of steps. I suppressed that reaction and forced myself to hold my ground. Yes, King Linus loved his daughter. Yes, he understood that his brother resented his daughter. That didn't stop him from loving his brother. It certainly didn't stop him from resenting me for taking his brother's life.

"I'm fine," I said. "A little hungry perhaps. A little tired definitely. After dinner, I think I'm going to turn in. Perhaps you and I can get together tomorrow night, after I've had a chance to rest."

The king bowed. "As you wish."

I had no intention of being here tomorrow night. I didn't want to spend a lot of time in the castle of a man that wanted to punish me for killing his brother. First thing tomorrow morning, I intended to continue my journey to Vassa. I'd have Edgerton make up some excuse about needing to get back to Vassa as quickly as possible.

***

We left the castle right after breakfast. King Linus wasn't a member of the KRB, but he had a cruel streak beneath his carefully polished surface, and he wasn't a man I wanted to be around for any length of time.

We were on horseback, traveling on the horses supplied to us by Romeus. I said goodbye to Shu that morning. She would head back to Genese with her father and begin her reign as the Steward of Genese.

"I will come to your coronation," she said, as we hugged goodbye.

"Assuming there is one," I replied.

We ran into no more trouble in Holt, and by the end of the day, crossed the border into Enid, Holt's western neighbor, Vassa's eastern neighbor. The countryside looked pretty much the same, a green river valley bordered by roads on both sides of the river and littered with small fishing villages.

"What can you tell me about the King of Enid?" I asked Edgerton. We were riding in two columns. The Lady Tabitha and Bokham rode just behind us. Captain Hubbard and Evan Tanner rode just behind them. The rest of Captain Hubbard's men followed.

"He's a man of about forty, short, fat, quite jovial. Can I ask why we left Holt in such a hurry?"

"King Linus wanted to hurt me. Punish me for killing his brother."

"And you know this because?"

"I had a vision." I looked at Edgerton, whose expression seemed to question what I was saying. "You don't believe me?"

"I've known King Linus a long time. He's not a violent man."

"Perhaps you don't know him as well as you think. He has a sadistic streak. One which he keeps carefully hidden."

Edgerton snorted, still not believing me. I responded by slowing my horse down, until I was riding between Bokham and the Lady Tabitha.

"Is something wrong, Your Highness?" Bokham asked me.

"Edgerton asked me why I was in a hurry to leave Holt. I told him, but he doesn't believe me. I don't feel like riding beside a man that thinks I'm a liar."

Bokham rode ahead and started talking to Edgerton. Captain Hubbard pulled up next to me, having overheard what I said to Bokham. "If it's any consolation, Your Highness. My men and I will never question your visions. If it wasn't for that vision you had, warning us about the pirates, we'd all be dead right now."

"Edgerton has always been a big admirer of King Linus," the Lady Tabitha said. "He believes that Linus is what all kings should aspire to be. Queen Catlett told him that one day his admiration for King Linus would get him into trouble."

"And now it has," Captain Hubbard said.

***

We reached Enid City around midday. Enid City looked like most of the other cities on the Istansada River, log cabins, dirt streets, and a gray stone castle on a high hill. This one was built on the southern side of the river.

King Karl was everything Edgerton said. A short rotund man of around forty with a thick brown beard. His wife was just as short and just as plump. His teenage son was also short and plump. All three of them greeted me with open arms, and by the end of the day, I had learned three things about them. They loved to eat, drink, and laugh. Edgerton didn't seem to like King Karl nearly as much as he liked King Linus. That only made me like King Karl more, since Edgerton was in my opinion, a poor judge of kings.

"You're still mad at me," Edgerton said, when we rode out of Enid City and headed for Vassa.

"Not mad, disappointed in your judgment. Any man that admires King Linus over King Karl is a fool. From what I've been told, Queen Catlett is aware of your foolish preferences. Which is a good thing."

By the end of the day, we reached the border between Enid and Vassa. Vassa looked identical to Enid, a small country centered around the wide and slow moving Istansada River. Most of the country's population lived in villages that bordered one or both sides of the river.

The people in the villages turned out to cheer our party as we passed through, going so far as to toss flowers in our path, while shouting, "Welcome."

I was wearing another one of my new gowns, the one patterned after the gown I saw Queen Catlett wearing in my vision. The gown had a high collar, long sleeves with belled cuffs, and a belled ankle length skirt. The dress had a silk lining topped by several layers of chiffon. It was pale rose in color with the cuffs and hem turning a deep red. I was also wearing the Ruby Crown, as well as my cutlass.

My hair was down, rather than pulled back in a ponytail. The choking device I used to keep my hair in a ponytail was wrapped around my left wrist, its carved bone handles making it look like a barbarian bracelet. My boots were calf high, laced up the front, and had a low heel. A black velvet cloak with a red silk lining topped everything.

"Everyone seems to know about your trip to the other side of the world," I said to Edgerton, as yet another village cheered and threw flowers at our feet.

"Vassa is a small country. Rumors travel fast."

"It's nice to meet people that don't want to hurt me, unlike your King Linus."

"Would it do any good to say I'm sorry? For not wanting to believe what you told me."

"The damage is already done, Chancellor. Your blind adoration for King Linus, and your decision to question the veracity of what I told you, will from here on out influence the weight I give to your opinions. Perhaps that was what Jarvo was talking about when he told me that there were things he could teach me that you couldn't, that there were things he knew about the people that ruled this part of the world that you don't.

"You want to divide everybody into two classes, good and bad. What you fail to understand is that nobody is all good or all bad, that most people are shades of gray. Some are darker than others, but no one is a paragon of virtue or a pillar of evil."

"Does that include you?"

I laughed. "That especially includes me, Chancellor."

It was late afternoon when we reached Vassa's capital city of Ranetown, the only city in the entire country. Queen Catlett's castle reminded me more of the high sage's palace than the castles in Holt and Enid. It was made out of yellow brick instead of gray stone. Orange domes topped its towers instead of red cones. It rested on the river's bank rather than on top of a hill.

As we entered the city, large crowds gathered along the side of the road, cheering and laying flowers at our feet.

"I suspect Queen Catlett knows we've arrived," Edgerton said. The knowledge that he would soon be reunited with the love of his life seemed to cheer him considerably.

"You've missed the queen," I said.

"This is the longest I've ever been apart from her."

"Was it worth it?"

"My opinion isn't the one that matters."

That much was true. It didn't matter what Edgerton, or anyone else, thought of me. The only person whose opinion mattered was Queen Catlett, who at long last, I was about to meet.

# Chapter 3

"The Heir's Suite is on the third floor," Edgerton said, as we entered Queen Catlett's castle. "But since you refused to use the Heir's Suite on the Star of the Sea, I'm guessing you don't want to use it here."

"If and when the queen decides to make me her heir, if and when I decide to become her heir, I'll move to the Heir's Suite. Until then, you can have the servants move my things into one of the guest suites."

Edgerton bowed and relayed my orders to the servants. With that finished, he turned back to me. "I'm told the queen is in her suite resting. Apparently, she wants to talk to me, Bokham, Captain Hubbard, and the Lady Tabitha, before meeting you."

"She probably wants to hear about your journey, not to mention hear everyone's opinion of me, get an idea of what kind of person I am before actually meeting me."

"Probably, but she'll form her own opinion of you."

"As I will of her." I felt it was necessary to remind Edgerton that this was a two way street. I had no desire to become the heir of somebody I didn't like or trust. I could always move back into the high sage's harem. It wasn't a great option, but it was an option. "This isn't a done deal just because she wishes it. If I don't like her. I won't stay here. I won't become her heir."

"Understood." Edgerton bowed and headed up to the third floor to meet with the queen, as did Bokham, Captain Hubbard, and the Lady Tabitha.

I found myself alone in the castle's great hall. None of the servants scurrying about asked if I was hungry or offered to show me to my suite, so I found a marble bench near the front doors and sat.

I must've dozed off, because the next thing I knew, someone was standing over me. I opened my eyes to find a beautiful and elegant woman studying me. She was tall and thin with snow white hair that reached to the small of her back. She had a sharp chin, high cheekbones, a long narrow nose, and pale blue eyes.

She was wearing the silver and blue gown that I patterned my rose and red gown after. A silver crown topped with seven peaks rested on her head. She looked younger in person than she did in my vision. In the vision, I figured her for an elderly women in her seventies. I could tell now that she was probably in her forties. I also noticed that she had jaundiced eyes and seemed a bit tired.

"I told the chancellor to bring you to me," Queen Catlett said. "He returned a few minutes later saying he couldn't find you. I asked him where he last left you. He said in the main hall by the doors. I asked if he had checked in here. He said you wouldn't still be in here."

I stood. "No one showed me to my room. No one has even talked to me."

"I don't think they know you can speak the Common Tongue." Queen Catlett looked at my dress. "I like your gown."

"I patterned it after a gown I saw in one of my visions. It looked more comfortable than the gowns the Lady Tabitha gave me."

"I was just about to eat dinner." The queen offered me her arm. "If you'd care to join me."

I took her arm and we headed for what I assumed was the dining hall.

"If I'd known you just watched your mother die, I wouldn't have brought you here to watch me die."

"I never actually saw her die. I fled the palace an hour before she passed."

"Running from your oldest sister, Bedonna."

"Yes."

"Your sister sounds like a fierce woman."

"She looks like a fierce woman," I said. "And she is a fierce woman."

"I'm told I could've saved myself one hundred thousand gold sovereigns by simply asking your mother for one of her daughters."

"She would've paid you to take one of us off her hands."

"Perhaps, but would she have given me the one I wanted? Still, I must apologize for the way you were brought here. I'm told that had we left you alone, you might now be the Queen of Adah."

"I could also be in an unmarked grave in the Cemetery of Would Be Queens. Right alongside my sister, Salisha."

"How did your mother feel about her daughters being forced to fight each other for her throne?"

"She never talked about it." I paused for a second, remembering her last words to me. "Although the last thing she ever said to me was save your sisters."

"What do you think she meant by that?"

"I think she wanted me to stop them from killing each other. Although why she asked me, I'll never know. She would've been better off talking to them."

"Perhaps she felt you were the only one that would listen."

"I listened, but I failed. Bedonna killed Salisha."

Sensing my guilt, Catlett deftly changed topics. "I understand you've been busy since arriving in our part of the world."

"If you call cutting off an assassin's hand, being tossed into the high sage's harem, chased by Maximillian Bedard's pirates, and killing the Duke of Genese, as being busy, then yes, I've been busy."

"I'm told you even pulled nets on a fishing boat."

"We needed to eat. Edgerton was too hung over to pull nets and Tabitha is too much of a lady."

"You don't consider yourself to be a lady?"

"Haven't you heard, I'm a barbarian."

"Lucky for me. A lady would not last very long on my throne."

I liked Catlett. It was hard not to like her. She was beautiful, elegant, honest, and tactful. I could see why Edgerton was in love with her. I could see why her people were in love with her. I could see why Maximillian Bedard and the Knights of the Royal Brotherhood feared her.

"Can I ask why you've never married?" I said.

"I never found someone I wanted to marry. Can I ask why your mother never married?"

"The Queens of Adah don't marry. They take consorts."

"And what of you," Queen Catlett said. "Will you take consorts or will you marry?"

"One could argue I've already done both. I took my first consort back in Adah, when I turned eighteen. And I was informed by Counselor Jarvo that I'm the thirteenth wife of the high sage. So I guess I'm already married. Although I get the impression that people in this part of the world don't take marriage to the high sage too seriously."

"Would you?"

"If the high sage dies without naming an heir, I intend to take it very seriously. I intend to make a claim for his throne."

"What was it like to take a consort at eighteen?"

"My mother chose him. He was the same age as me, and just as inexperienced, which made it awkward and uncomfortable."

We reached the dining hall. Rather than having three long tables set in a U, Queen Catlett had four crescent shaped tables set up to form a circle. Where most dining halls were empty save for a lot of servants, this one was full, with everyone dressed in their finery. As soon as we entered the room, they all stood.

"We heard you had arrived in Enid," Queen Catlett said. "So we had time to prepare you a welcome dinner. I just wish they hadn't left you sitting on that marble bench for three hours."

"Nobody tied me up, tried to kill me, or tossed me in a harem, so it was a good three hours."

We circled around the table to the only two chairs available. The queen moved to hers, which was the largest chair in the room, and I moved to the only one remaining, the one at her right hand. Edgerton sat on the queen's left. The Lady Tabitha sat on Edgerton's left. Bokham sat on my right. Captain Hubbard sat on his right. I didn't know anybody else at the table, although there were about four dozen people. The queen sat, then I sat, then everyone else sat.

The queen waited for everyone to quiet down, then spoke in a soft voice. "You've all heard the rumor, that our brave chancellor ventured to the other side of the world and returned with a beautiful princess. That much is true. What you haven't heard is that she didn't come here of her own free will. In point of fact, we kidnapped her."

A few murmurs circulated through the crowd. Queen Catlett waited for them to die down, then continued. "Despite that fact, she has used her gifts, which are considerable, to save the lives of our chancellor, as well as those of Captain Bokham, Captain Hubbard, the Lady Tabitha, and the men that crewed the Star of the Sea. I hope all of you will try hard to make her feel welcome here, so that she will come to view Vassa as her second home, and all of us as her second family. With that said, I would like to introduce to you, Lila Marie Haran, youngest daughter of Bella Justine Haran, the twelfth Queen of Adah."

The people at the tables stood and cheered, long and loud. As they did, Queen Catlett leaned toward me and said, "That is for you, Lila."

"They cheer out of love and respect for you, Your Highness. Me, they don't know."

"Some of them do." The queen nodded in the direction of Bokham and Captain Hubbard. She waited for the cheering to die, then whispered, "You should probably say something, just to let them know you can speak the Common Tongue."

I stood and looked the crowd over. "I wondered what could compel men to travel across the Great Desert, to a land they've never seen, to a people they've never met, in search of a princess they know nothing about. Now that I've met Queen Catlett, I understand their devotion." There was a goblet of wine in front of me, so I picked it up and offered a toast. "To Queen Catlett."

Everyone except the queen stood and raised their goblet in a toast. Dinner was then served, as a fleet of servants brought in all kinds of dishes, ham, roast beef, roast chicken, baked potatoes, baked beans, apple pie, cherry pie, and red wine. Everyone ate heartily except the queen, who didn't seem to have much of an appetite.

"Tell me about your scuffle with the late Duke of Genese," the queen said, as she pushed some roast chicken around her plate.

"He came to my room intending to kill me. I was waiting for him. We dueled. He lost."

"Yet you stopped to explain what happened to King Linus."

"He's an ally of yours. I didn't want to cause a rift between the two of you."

"Bokham said you had a disturbing vision involving King Linus."

"I did, but I left before it could come true, so what I saw doesn't matter."

The queen didn't press the issue. I think she just wanted to let me know that she didn't blame me for what happened back in Holt. Instead, she changed subjects, asking me about my mother. What did she look like? What kind of a person was she?

"All the Queens of Adah have a nickname," I said. "My mother's full name was Bella Justine Haran but they called her Bella the Beloved. She was tall and slim and pale and beautiful and could deliver bad news with a soft touch. She was much loved. She was much like you."

"And now you get to watch her die a second time."

"I never had an opportunity to say goodbye. Perhaps, I've been given a second chance."

After dinner, the queen took me around and introduced me to the people we dined with, court advisers, court scholars, lords and ladies, anyone and everyone that helped run Vassa. It was during these introductions that the queen grew fatigued. Her breathing became labored and she needed my arm for support.

When we had a second alone, I said, "Perhaps we should draw these festivities to a close, Your Highness. It's been a long day for all of us."

Queen Catlett nodded. "You can take me up to my suite. The Heir's Suite is at the other end of the floor. I've already had them move your things there."

I didn't argue with her. I couldn't argue with her. She was too much like my mother. That was something I hadn't expected. I expected Catlett to be a tough old broad that was nearing the end of a long healthy life and wanted to put her affairs in order. That's what she looked like in my vision, and that's what I expected to find. The woman next to me wasn't like that at all. She was a lot like my mother, beautiful, gentle, beloved, and dying way too young.

When we reached the top of the stairs. The queen pointed to the left. "The Heir's Suite is at that end of the hall. I can show it to you if you'd like."

She didn't look like she had the strength to show it to me, so I said, "I'd rather see your suite, if you don't mind."

The queen patted my arm and smiled. We hung a right and headed for her suite, walking down a hall lined with oil paintings. The queen saw me looking at them. "These are the Kings of Vassa. I'd tell you about them, but I really don't know anything about them. You see, they're not part of my family. Truth be told, we recently came to the throne. My grandfather was an adviser to the king when the king was injured in a hunting accident. The king had no heirs so he made my grandfather his heir at the last second, even though my grandfather was only a baron."

She stopped by a portrait of a tall slender man with white hair. He looked to be in his fifties.

"Your grandfather?" I asked.

"He was fifty-five when he became king." We moved on to the next portrait. A similar looking man, but younger in age. She smiled at the portrait. "My father. He was already an adult when grandfather became king. They called my grandfather the usurper king. They called my father the parvenu king."

"I'm familiar with the word. The Duke of Genese used it when speaking of your family. He then asked me how long my family has ruled. I told him. Over twelve generations. When he told me his family had ruled Holt for six generations. I said, 'so you're also a parvenu royal.' He stopped talking to me after that."

Catlett laughed. We moved on to the final portrait in the hallway. It was a picture of Catlett. She looked to be no more than twenty-five. Even then her hair was long and straight and as white as a fresh dusting of snow. In the painting, she looked young and healthy and beautiful.

"This was commissioned the day of my coronation. I was frightened to death, but I told the artist to take the fear out of my eyes." She paused for a second. "They call me the barren queen, not very flattering, but accurate. One day, they may come up with an unflattering title for you."

"They already refer to me as the barbarian princess."

"Then they will probably call you the barbarian queen."

"And it's a title I'll gladly embrace, for if they're civilized, then I'm proud to be a barbarian." I smiled. "Perhaps one day I'll invite my sister Bedonna to come visit. Then they'll learn what a true barbarian queen is like."

We reached the doors to the Queen's Suite. Two men stood guard, both tall and blond like Bokham. They wore uniforms identical to Bokham's uniform, black riding boots, white cotton breeches, a white cotton shirt, and a red cotton jacket trimmed in gold. They wore no headgear but did have broadswords strapped to their hips.

As the guard on the right opened the door for us, the queen turned to the other one. "Call my physician. I need my medicine."

I didn't hear the guard's response because another vision swept over me. I saw the queen sitting on a divan, resting. Edgerton was sitting next to her and she was holding one of his hands in both of hers. She smiled as she spoke. "She's everything I hoped she would be. She's young, strong, smart, beautiful, and insightful. She can be as soft as velvet one moment and as hard as iron the next. She's also brave, braver than I ever was at that age, braver than I've ever been."

"Then you're pleased?" Edgerton said.

"I'm very pleased. She'll make a magnificent queen."

"I'm pleased that you're pleased, Your Majesty."

"I can't believe her mother didn't fight harder to place her on the throne of Adah."

"She's been through a lot since her mother's death. Perhaps the woman you met today isn't the girl her mother knew and loved. But her mother did make her the heir hopeful, which is as close to an heir presumptive as they have. That's what the crown she wears signifies."

"Then we were right in kidnapping her, for her mother wouldn't have given her to us willingly." Queen Catlett smiled. "She says that I remind her of her mother."

"You are mother to all of Vassa."

"It's not the same, Edgy. But thank you."

The door opened and a middle aged man waddled into the room. He was tall and fat and bald on top. The hair on the sides and back of his head was long and black and he wore it in a braid that reached to his shoulders. He dressed in white--white knee socks, white cotton breeches, a white linen shirt, and a white wool waistcoat--which only made him look bigger and fatter. He carried a small brown bottle in his right hand.

The queen smiled when she saw him. "My physician is here."

"I have your medicine, Your Majesty." The queen's physician bowed and handed her the small bottle. "I've increased the dosage, to help you sleep better."

The queen opened the bottle and drank the medicine. The vision then changed. I saw the queen's physician enter a crowded tavern. He paused just inside the doorway and looked around, then worked his way to the back of the room. He checked to see if someone was following him, satisfied that no one was, he sat down across from a man that could best be described as dangerous.

"This had better be important," the dangerous man said.

"The barbarian princess has arrived at the palace."

"Tell me something I don't know."

The queen's physician glanced around the room to make sure no one was eavesdropping, satisfied that nobody was listening, he leaned towards the dangerous man and lowered his voice to a whisper. "I gave the queen a fatal dose of the poison. She won't wake up again."

"Then she didn't have time to make the barbarian princess her heir."

"She did not."

"This is good news." The dangerous man reached inside his long coat and pulled out a small leather pouch, which he slid across the table. The queen's physician looked inside the bag and smiled, clearly satisfied with what he saw. "You'll keep us informed of further developments."

"I remain a loyal member of the Brotherhood," the queen's physician said.

As he stuffed the pouch inside his waistcoat, the vision faded and I found myself standing beside Queen Catlett, just outside her suite.

"Are you all right, Lila?" She was looking at me with more than a little concern.

"I'm fine, Your Highness."

"You had a vision?"

"Yes."

"Was it good or bad?"

"I'll tell you inside." I escorted the queen into her drawing room and over to the divan I saw her sitting on in my vision. Then I hustled back to the lone guard still at the door. "When the queen's physician arrives you'll escort him into the drawing room. You'll then remain inside the room and block the door so that he can't leave."

I didn't give the guard time to argue. I just closed the door and hurried back to the queen.

"What did you see?" Catlett asked me. When I hesitated, she smiled and spoke in a gentle tone. "Don't be afraid to tell me what you saw. Your traveling companions have all assured me that you're a seer of unparalleled talent. Even Edgerton trusts you, although he doesn't always like what you tell him."

"You're not dying," I said. "Your physician is poisoning you. He's a member of the Knights of the Royal Brotherhood."

Queen Catlett showed no emotion. "And tonight?"

"He intends to give you a fatal dose of the poison, before you have a chance to declare an heir. If you drink the medicine that he's bringing you, you'll fall asleep and never wake up."

There was a knock on the door. The queen took my hands and pulled me down beside her. "Why don't you sit next to me."

Queen Catlett told the guard to enter. The door opened and the guard let Edgerton into the room.

Edgerton bowed. "Your Highnesses."

"I'm told we have a spy in our midst," the queen said.

"Not just a spy," I said. "An assassin."

"Who?" Edgerton said.

"Cortland," the queen said.

"Your physician?" Edgerton looked more than a little surprised.

"He's a member of the KRB," I said. "They've been paying him to poison the queen. He intends to give her a fatal dose tonight, before she has a chance to declare an heir. If she takes the medicine he's bringing her, she'll fall asleep and never wake up."

"She had a vision. Right after I asked one of the guards to fetch Cortland."

There was another knock on the door. I assumed it was Cortland, the queen's physician. Edgerton looked at the queen. "What do you want to do?"

I turned to the queen. "Think back, Your Highness. Since he's started treating you, have you gotten better or worse?"

"Worse, but he said my condition was degenerative, that I would get worse, that there was nothing he could do."

"He lies. Whatever bothered you enough to seek treatment has only been exacerbated by the poison he's been giving you." I turned to Edgerton. "Give me a chance to expose him. If I'm wrong, the queen loses a night's rest. If I'm right, she may get her life back."

"I say we give her that chance," Edgerton said. "If it weren't for her visions, none of us would've made it here alive."

Queen Catlett nodded and turned to me. "The room is yours, Lila."

Edgerton went to the door and opened it. Cortland, the queen's physician waddled into the room, looking just like he did in my vision. He was taken back over the number of people in the room. He was even more taken back when the guard blocked the door and placed his hand on the hilt of his broadsword.

"Is everything all right, Your Majesty?" Cortland said to the queen.

"I assume that's the queen's medicine." I pointed to the small bottle Cortland was carrying. He opened his mouth to answer, but I never gave him a chance. "In my country, the queen's physician was required to take every medicine he gave her. That way if he tried to poison her, he would die with her. Starting tonight, you will take every medicine you give Queen Catlett. We'll start with that bottle you're carrying."

For a big man that looked like he sweated a lot, Cortland did a good job of keeping his cool. Very calmly, he bowed and opened the bottle. "As you wish, Princess."

He held the bottle to his lips and pretended to take a sip. Maybe even did take a tiny sip.

"Drink all of it," I said, when he put the stopper back in the bottle. "Every single drop."

"This is ridiculous," Cortland said. He looked to Edgerton for help. "It took me days to mix this potion. It'll take me days to make more. The queen's pain will increase if she doesn't drink this."

Edgerton didn't move, didn't say anything. I drew the cutlass I still had strapped around my waist and pressed the tip of the blade against Cortland's oversized belly. "You'll drink all of it, Physician. Or I'll skewer you like a pig."

Cortland might not have been sweating before, but he was sweating now. He pulled the stopper from the small glass bottle and held the bottle to his lips. He started to take a drink, but couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he tossed the bottle on the floor and threw himself at the queen's feet.

"They threatened to kill me if I didn't help them, Your Majesty. They threatened to kill my family."

I pressed the edge of my blade against his throat and held it there. "And what of the bags of gold they've been giving you? Did they threaten to kill your family if you didn't take their gold?"

Cortland looked at me, his eyes full of fear and surprise. "How did you know about the gold?"

"Hidden beneath your shirt is a medallion. If you value your despicable life, you'll take it off and hang it on the end of my blade. Now!"

Cortland didn't hesitate. He reached beneath his shirt, removed the KRB medallion from around his neck, and placed it on the end of my blade. I raised my blade high enough so the medallion slid to my hand. I hung the medallion around my neck, then returned the blade to Cortland's throat.

"If this were my kingdom, these would be the last seconds of your treacherous life." I paused just long enough to make him wonder if these were indeed the last seconds of his life. Then I withdrew my blade and slid it back into its scabbard. "Lucky for you, this isn't my kingdom."

I stepped back and turned to the queen. I had proved my point and had no more to say.

A stoned faced Catlett turned to her physician. "Tell me the truth, Cortland, are the effects reversible?"

Cortland hesitated a second, then looked Catlett in the eyes. "I honestly don't know, Your Majesty."

"What would be my best course of action?"

"You must drink lots of water, flush as much of the poison out of your system as you can. A diet of coarse fiber will also help. The rest will depend upon your body's ability to heal itself."

Edgerton turned to the guard blocking the door. "Lock him in the dungeon. I'll deal with him later."

The guard drew his broadsword and pulled Cortland to his feet. The queen waited until the guard had dragged Cortland out of the room, then turned to Edgerton. "Give me and Lila a minute."

Edgerton bowed and backed out of the room. When we were alone, I knelt at the queen's feet and placed my head in her lap. It was a habit I develop with my mother. Catlett was so much like her that it was hard not to fall into old habits when I was around her.

"I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, Your Majesty. I didn't come here to take the people you love away from you."

"You haven't taken anyone away from me, Lila. You've merely opened my eyes to the truth. And who knows, you may have given me my life back." She stroked my hair a couple of times, then said, "Now go rest. It's been a long day for both of us."

I pushed myself to my feet. "There's something I must do first."

"I'm almost afraid to ask what it is."

"There was a second man in my vision, a dangerous looking man. He's waiting for your physician in a tavern called the Fisherman's Rest. I need to take some men down there and have him arrested, before he can bribe someone else in this castle."

"If he hasn't already," the queen said.

"If he has bribed somebody else, we need to find out who."

"Give a description of the man to Bokham. He can take some men to the tavern and arrest this odious fellow. I'll sleep better knowing you're safe in your suite. And send Edgerton in. I want to talk to him in private." The queen smiled. "Although if you saw me with Cortland, then you probably saw me talking to Edgerton. Which means you already know what I'm going to say to him."

I smiled and backed my way out of the room. "Sleep well, my western mother."

I didn't bother to tell the queen that I intended to go with Bokham. There were wolves hiding among the queen's flock and I intended to root them out.

# Chapter 4

"We don't need you," Bokham said, as we headed down the stairs with half a dozen guards. "You gave me a good enough description. I can find the man without your help."

"Maybe," I said. "But I'm coming anyway."

I changed clothes before telling Bokham about the dangerous man. Donning a pair of black riding boots, black leather breeches, a white cotton shirt that laced up the front, and a black wool cloak. I tied my hair into a ponytail with the choking device and strapped the cutlass around my waist.

"Does the queen know you're doing this?" Bokham asked.

"I don't need the queen's permission to go somewhere," I said.

"I'll take that as a no."

We rode to the Fisherman's Rest, which was on the same side of the river as the castle, but in the heart of the city. There was a full moon out and it was a warm cloudless night. The Fisherman's Rest was a single story log structure with its front door facing the river's docks.

"Does this place have a back door?" I asked Bokham.

"Of course."

I pointed to four of the soldiers. "You four cover the back door. Don't let anyone leave. Force them back inside at the point of your swords if you have to."

The four guards headed to the rear of the tavern. Bokham, myself, and the remaining two guards dismounted, tied our horses to the hitching post in front of the tavern, and went inside.

The tavern was crowded, which was probably why the dangerous man selected it. The place was loud and raucous, so much so that no one even noticed when three soldiers blocked the doorway.

The dangerous man sat at the same table he had been at in my vision. He was leaning back in his chair, balancing it on its hind legs. When he saw us, he didn't sit upright, didn't show any signs of concern other than to set his drink down and slide his right hand to the hilt of his sword.

I could tell that he knew why we were there, and that he didn't intend to go without a fight. We certainly had the numbers to take him, but the place was crowded with innocent fishermen, some of whom could get hurt if a fight ensued.

I was looking for a way to take him, when an idea hit me. With the way he was balancing on the hind legs of his chair, it wouldn't take much to get him to tip over backwards. If that happened, we could take him before he had a chance to get back on his feet.

I grabbed Bokham's arm and pulled him toward me. "I'm going to try something. Get ready to rush the man in the back. The one sitting by himself, balancing his chair on its hind legs."

"How will we know when to rush him?"

"When he falls over."

I closed my eyes and pictured myself standing on his table, my sword pointed at his chest. Then I changed my appearance. I pictured myself with wings like a bat, spread ready for flight. I pictured myself with long pointed ears, and the face and fangs of a lion.

A second later, I saw the dangerous man from the perspective of someone standing on his table. A second after that, he must've seen the image I created in my head, because he stared up at me with a startled look, then lost his balance and tipped over backwards.

I let the image fade and opened my eyes. The dangerous man was lying on his back struggling to get up. He never made it. Bokham and the other two soldiers reached him first. All three had their swords drawn and pointed at his chest.

"What was that?" the dangerous man sputtered.

Bokham, the only person here who knew about my gifts, smiled. "Perhaps it was a demon, sent to make you pay for your evil deeds."

He grabbed the dangerous man's sword. The other two soldiers pulled the dangerous man to his feet. By this time, the dull roar of a room full of people talking at once had died down. Everyone watched as the two soldiers dragged the dangerous man to the door.

I backed out of the tavern ahead of everyone and waited for Bokham to lead the others outside. Once they joined me, I stepped in front of the dangerous man and ripped open the front of his shirt. Hanging around his neck was a KRB medallion. I took it off of him and draped it around my neck. I pulled out the other two I was wearing beneath my shirt and showed them to him.

"As you can see, I'm a collector of these little trinkets. One day, I intend to own all of them. Including the one that hangs around the neck of your boss, the King of Dunre."

"Not that you'll live to see that day," Bokham growled in the dangerous man's ear. He took a rope from his saddle, tied one end around the dangerous man's wrists, and the other end to his saddle.

We collected the four soldiers that took up positions behind the tavern, mounted our horses, and headed west. Queen Catlett's castle was just outside the city, one side bordered the river, the other three sides were surrounded by a plush green lawn. The dangerous man followed on foot. The rope around his hands forcing him to keep pace.

I slowed my horse down, until I was riding alongside of him. "Have you ever met Queen Catlett?"

He glared at me. "I don't need to meet a skunk to know that it stinks."

Bokham heard what the man said and didn't like the answer. I knew he didn't like the answer because he set his horse to a gallop, causing the man to fall face first onto the ground and be dragged down the street by his hands. Lucky for him, it was a dirt street and not cobblestone.

"Mind your tongue, spy," Bokham said, as he drew his horse to a halt.

The man struggled to his feet and we resumed our trek through Ranetown. Once again, I fell in alongside of him. "I'm guessing your mother abandoned you when you were young, probably leaving you in the care of people that weren't very nice to you."

"A lot you know," the man said. "My mother beat me with a stick until I grew bigger than her, ripped the stick out of her hand, and beat her to death with it."

"So, it's not really Queen Catlett you hate, it's female authority figures." The man didn't say anything, so I continued. "Is that how they recruited you into the Brotherhood? They found out you hated your mother enough to kill her and figured you'd be a good candidate for the Brotherhood?"

The man didn't respond, but he didn't have to. The moonlight was bright enough to allow me to read his face. What I saw in his dark eyes told me that I had uncovered a truth.

"Thank you," I said. "You've been most cooperative."

"I've told you nothing," the man said.

"On the contrary, you've told me quite a bit. I know that you're of royal blood, that you beat your mother to death when you were a teenager, and that the Brotherhood researched your background before approaching you.

"It will now be easy to find out who you are and who your associates are. After all, royal circles in this part of the world, in any part of the world for that matter, are relatively small. I'm guessing you're the second or third son of a baron, too insignificant to become a baron yourself, but just the kind of person the Brotherhood needs. Working for the Brotherhood was the perfect job for one such as yourself. It made you feel like you were part of something important, something bigger than yourself. Plus, it paid well, and it enabled you to work against those you hate the most, namely women in positions of authority."

Once again, the man's expression told me that I had uncovered a truth. He may have looked dangerous. He may have been dangerous. But he was easy to read. I rode on ahead, until I was alongside Bokham.

"The queen has a scholar that tracks royal lineage," Bokham said. "An elderly fellow by the name of Zerbel Moke. He should be able to identify this man, assuming what he said is true."

"It is."

"You seem rather sure."

"My mother was very good at reading people. She taught me everything she knew, tried to teach me everything she knew. Never thought I'd remember any of it, but some of it seems to have stuck."

***

I met Zerbel Moke a couple of days later, in a room on the castle's first floor. The room was full of parchment scrolls and handwritten leather bound tomes. Zerbel Moke was what you would expect from a scholar, short and balding, with a thick gray beard. He dressed like Edgerton, black boots, black breeches, black waistcoat, and a white cotton shirt that tied down the front.

The biggest difference between the two men was that Zerbel Moke was a lot smaller than Edgerton. In fact, he wasn't any bigger than me. He walked hunched over, probably from years of carrying the oversized leather books that filled the room's shelves.

"I've researched what you requested, Your Highness." He shuffled over to one of the shelves, pulled a heavy leather bound book off it, and set it on a table in the middle of the room. He opened the oversized book and leafed though its stiff yellow pages. Near the back of the book, he found a page with a hand drawn sketch of the man we arrested. "His name is Louis Selve. Lord Louis Selve to be exact. He's the third son of Baron Kelland Selve."

"What country is he from?"

"He's from right here in Vassa. His father's estate is south of here."

"And his father's a loyal supporter of the queen?"

"Very much so." He flipped a couple of pages in the book, to show me a sketch of the father, made when he was a young man. It listed his name, birth date, and contained a map of his lands. It also listed the name of his wife, as well as the names of his three sons.

"And you know the baron is loyal because?"

"The baron has never given us a reason to doubt his loyalty."

"What can you tell me about the two older sons?"

Zerbel flipped to another page, showing me another sketch. "The oldest son is Ellix. He helps tend his father's holdings. He's happily married with three daughters."

"No sons?"

"No sons." He flipped to another page, showing me a sketch of the second son. "This is Zane. He's married to the Baron of Reilly's daughter. He helps his father-in-law run his lands."

"I'm guessing Louis is single."

"He is."

"With no holdings of his own."

"None whatsoever."

"A perfect candidate for the Brotherhood."

"So it would seem," Zerbel said.

"Did he kill his mother?"

"His mother died under mysterious circumstances. Louis claimed he found her in the barn and that she had been trampled by one of the horses. No one disputed his claim, although the local physician said that the bruises didn't look like those made by a horse's hooves."

"Do you know if she beat her sons with a stick?"

"I know she had a reputation for being strict."

"A third born son that gets less attention than his older brothers might resent her strictness."

"That he might," Zerbel said.

"The question is: what do we do with Louis?"

"If everything I've heard is true, he did conspire to poison the queen."

"Everything you've heard is true."

"What will you tell the queen if she asks for your advice?"

I thought for a minute. "I'll tell her to say that she cannot in good conscience condemn the son of one of her most loyal supporters. She should let the father decide the son's fate."

"You'd test the father's loyalty?"

"I'd test everyone's loyalty, but I don't think Queen Catlett will."

"I don't think she will either," Zerbel said. "She trusts people and rarely questions their loyalty."

I thanked Zerbel for his time and headed back to the Heir's Suite. I didn't see the queen that day, nor did I see her the next, as she remained in bed. I learned that her being up and around, like she had been on the day of my arrival, was rare. The good news was, she was no longer taking the poison and was drinking plenty of water. Whether that would make a difference remained to be seen.

During this time, I developed a daily routine. In the mornings, I worked out with Bokham and the rest of the queen's guard. We began the day with a run around the city, then returned to the castle and practiced our sword fighting on the castle's expansive lawn. Afterwards, I would bathe, change into a gown, and eat lunch.

I would spend my afternoons with Zerbel, helping him write a text on my part of the world, a text he titled: The Barbarian Lands. We began by drawing maps that included countries, cities, rivers, and roads, then moved on to my family's lineage. A second scholar soon joined us. He specialized in languages and was overjoyed to learn that I spoke Adan, Gibean, and Talish.

My evenings were spent in the dining room entertaining guests, of which there were many these days. Most were from Vassa and the other Finger States. They came to pay their respects to Queen Catlett and see the court's newest oddity, the barbarian princess.

***

One week after my arrival, the Baron of Selve arrived, demanding to see whoever was responsible for his son's imprisonment. I met him in the heir's court, a smaller version of the throne room. It contained a granite dais at one end of the room with a high backed oak chair sitting in the middle of the dais. The rest of the long narrow room was empty, save for the afternoon sun filtering in through a row of blue, green, and yellow stained glass windows that lined the western wall. Edgerton and Bokham accompanied me into the room.

I was wearing a red silk gown with a flared skirt and a built-in corset. The gown contained long sleeves and a scoop neckline. The hem, cuffs, and neckline were trimmed in white lace. I wore my hair in a braid with the bone handled choker tied at the bottom of the braid.

The Baron of Selve's thinning hair was gray. He had a face scarred by some childhood disease. Time had added extra pounds to his frame, most of it in the belly. He dressed like any well heeled royal that abhorred physical labor, polished black riding boots, black silk breeches, a white silk shirt that laced down the front, and a black velvet waistcoat.

"You're the one responsible for my son's imprisonment?" the baron growled, as I took my place on the heir's throne.

"Your son is the one responsible for his imprisonment." I locked eyes with the baron. If he thought he could intimidate me then he was in for a surprise. "He conspired with the queen's physician to poison Queen Catlett."

"He says he's being framed. He says you're trying to make him a scapegoat."

"He was wearing this." I tossed the gold KRB medallion to the baron. He caught it out of midair and looked at it.

"He also had this on him," Bokham said, tossing the baron the bag of gold we found on his son. The gold he intended to give to the queen's physician as payment for poisoning her.

"Where would your son get that kind of money?" I said. "He has no holdings."

"You might want to look at whose face is embossed on the gold inside the bag," Edgerton said.

The baron opened the bag and looked at the gold. He saw what we already knew. Embossed on the gold coins inside the small leather bag was the face of Maximillian Bedard, the King of Dunre.

"We have a signed confession from the queen's physician," I said. "He admits to poisoning the queen. He also admits that your son has been paying him to poison the queen, and that your son has been acting on behalf of the Knights of the Royal Brotherhood. He says your son recruited him into the Brotherhood."

"We searched the physician's quarters," Bokham said. "He had five identical bags of gold stashed there. He says your son gave them to him."

"What did my son tell you?" the baron asked.

"He's refused to talk," Bokham said. "Not that we needed him to say anything, the physician has said plenty. Plus, the owner of the Fisherman's Rest has seen your son pass bags to the queen's physician."

"That's where your son was arrested," I said.

"I'm sorry, Kelland," Edgerton said, using the baron's first name. "But the evidence is overwhelming. Despite what he claims, your son is a member of the KRB and has been conspiring to poison Queen Catlett."

"So what's to become of him?" The baron placed the bag of gold and the KRB medallion on the front of the dais. Any fight he had in him was gone, taken out by the evidence against his youngest son.

"That's up to the princess," Edgerton said.

"Excuse me?" This was news to me.

"I presented this problem to the queen. She said that since you were the one to uncover the conspiracy, you should be the one that decides the fate of the conspirators."

I thought for a minute. "If the queen dies from being poisoned, the conspirators will be put to death. Hung in the town square the same day the queen dies. If the queen recovers, they'll spend the rest of their lives in chains. I've been told the Kingdom of Poshta buys prisoners to work the iron mines in the northern mountains."

I turned to Edgerton for conformation. He nodded. "That's true, Your Highness. A prison ship is due to pass through here in about a month."

"That's perfect." I turned back to the baron. "A month from now, we should know whether the queen will recover. If she does, the conspirators will be sold to the Poshtan prison ship. If she doesn't, they will be hung."

"What about the Knights of the Royal Brotherhood?" Bokham said. "They could buy the prisoners from the Poshtans and set them free."

"The strength of the KRB lies in the anonymity of its members," I said. "They have no use for people we know about."

"The Poshtans work their prisoners hard," Edgerton said to the baron. "But they treat them fair. The hardest workers can even earn rewards, include their own cabin and the right to take a wife from the female prisoners. Family is even allowed to visit them. Assuming you want to make the journey."

"Louis is no longer a member of my family," the baron said. "As of today, I'm severing all ties with him. Do with him what you will."

"I'm sorry we had to meet under such inauspicious circumstances," I said to the baron. "I would've preferred to meet someone the queen values as much as yourself under more pleasant surroundings."

In truth, I had no idea whether he was important to Queen Catlett or not, but when you had as many enemies as she did, it was best not to alienate your friends.

"The fault is entirely mine, Your Highness." The baron bowed. "I should've done a better job of teaching my son right from wrong."

"Perhaps you could talk to him. Ask him if there are other conspirators here in Vassa. If he could lead us to them, we could amend his sentence, keep him here in Vassa so you could visit him."

"I can't visit a man that's conspired to kill the queen I've sworn to serve." The baron bowed again and left the room.

"Louis always was the black sheep of the family," Edgerton said. "Many people believe that his mother wasn't trampled to death by a horse, but that he beat her to death in a rage."

"What does the baron believe?"

"Kelland never talked about his wife's death, but I suspect he knows the truth. Whatever it might be."

"Maybe that's why he didn't fight harder for his son," Bokham said.

I pushed myself out of the heir's throne and turned to Edgerton. "This will carry repercussions. My passing judgment in the queen's stead." Edgerton smiled, which made me think that he knew something I didn't. "All right, out with it."

The smile on Edgerton's face widened. "Out with what?"

"Whatever it is that put that grin on your face."

"Your passing judgment on the baron's son won't carry as many repercussions as what the queen plans to do next."

"Which is?"

"She's decided to make it official and hold a ceremony declaring you to be her heir."

# Chapter 5

One week later, I met Queen Catlett for lunch. To say she looked different from the last time I saw her was an understatement. The dark circles under her eyes were gone. Her snow white hair, which looked limp and lifeless the last time I saw her, was now thick and glossy. Her jaundiced eyes were clear and bright. She had gone from being a woman that looked like she was at the end of her life to a woman that was still in her prime.

She was wearing a yellow and orange chiffon gown. The body of the dress was bright yellow, its high collar, belled sleeves, and belled skirt turning orange. She wore her hair long and straight, it reached to the small of her back. She was sitting on one of the divans in the drawing room of her suite.

"Your Majesty," I said, curtsying.

"I hope I look different from the last time you saw me."

"The last time I saw you, you looked like a woman that needed an heir. Today, you do not."

Queen Catlett smiled. "I haven't felt this good in a long time. Partly because I'm no longer being poisoned. Partly because I've been sleeping better. Having you and Edgerton here has enabled me to relax and not worry about the kingdom's affairs."

"I'm glad to be of service, Your Majesty."

"When we're alone, you don't have to call me, Your Majesty," Catlett said. "In fact, I prefer the nickname you gave me."

I smiled and curtsied. "As you prefer, my western mother."

The queen offered me her arm and we headed into the queen's private dining room. Lunch was already laid out, potato soup, fresh baked bread with butter and honey, and a large mug of cool clear water.

The table itself was small and round, just big enough for two people. A white linen tablecloth covered the table. The dishes were made out of a pale wood and polished until they shined. The room was small with no windows. It did contain a clear glass skylight, allowing the noonday sun to brighten the room. A hand woven blue and gold rug covered the floor beneath the small table.

"We're going to hold a formal ceremony," Queen Catlett said, as we sat. "In which you'll be declared my heir. Afterwards, there'll be a ball in which the men will fight for your attention."

A male servant dressed in a red jacket and white breeches stepped forward and ladled soup from a tureen into each of our soup bowls, first the queen's bowl, then mine. He buttered a chunk of bread for the queen and a second piece for me. He stepped back into the corner and we started eating.

"Did they fight for your attention when you were made the heir presumptive?"

"Everyone just stood around and stared at me. I think they were all too shocked to see a woman made the heir presumptive. "

"And you think it'll be different this time?"

"There are still a few people that resent a woman sitting on a throne, like those in the KRB, but most have come to accept it."

"But will they accept someone that wasn't born in Vassa?"

"Once you've been made my heir, you'll tour the country, introduce yourself to the people. Once they get to know you, they'll come to love you like those of us here do."

I couldn't help but think that a tour of the country would give the KRB several opportunities to kill me. Not that I was going to worry about the KRB, or let them intimidate me.

"Can I ask you a question?" I said.

"You just did," a grinning Queen Catlett said. "But you can ask a second one if you want."

"Why does Maximillian Bedard dislike you so?"

"The answer to that one is very simple. Several years ago, he asked for my hand in marriage."

"And you rejected him?"

"I wasn't in love with him. I told him I would only marry for love."

"I guess he's not the kind of man that takes rejection well."

Queen Catlett smiled. "Do you know any king or queen that takes rejection well?"

"Certainly not my mother," I said, with a grin of my own. "Although as far as I know, none of the men she wanted as a consort ever turned her down."

"Did she take many consorts?"

"My sisters and I all have different fathers. Plus, it's not easy for the women in my family to get pregnant. We have to work at it. If that answers your question."

"Your mother makes me feel like the celibate queen."

"Don't you take consorts?"

"Consorts would only complicate my life. If I took a consort, others that care about me might get jealous. I wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings."

"By others, you mean Edgerton."

"He told you how he feels about me?"

"Hardly, but when he talks about you, his feelings are obvious. A man doesn't travel to the end of the earth for just anybody."

"I trust you'll remember that when one of your old beaus shows up at our front door."

"Men don't chase after me," I said with a laugh. "I'm the girl they turn to when the girl they want rejects them."

"Coming in second isn't so bad."

"Have you ever thought of taking more than one consort? It would be hard for Edgerton to get upset if you took him, and say, a younger man, at the same time."

Queen Catlett blushed, which was nice to see considering the last time we dined together, she was way too pale to blush. "I haven't been healthy enough to even think about such things."

"But you're getting better, and you're still young and beautiful. I warrant this kingdom is full of men that are in love with you. Why not make a few of their dreams come true? Why not let them make a few of your dreams come true?"

"And give my enemies more fodder?"

"Your enemies will find reasons to hate you no matter what you say or do. You can't live your life trying to make them like or accept you. The best you can do is make them respect and fear you."

"You're very strong for someone so young," Queen Catlett said. "Much stronger than I was at your age. Much stronger than I am now."

"When you grow up knowing that your destiny lies in one of two places, either on the throne of Adah, or in the Cemetery of Would Be Queens, you learn to be strong, less you end up in an unmarked grave."

"I still can't believe how your country throws its daughters away."

"Not all daughters. Just the queen's."

"One day, you'll be in a position to do something about that."

"You mean rescue Bedonna's daughters?" I couldn't imagine anyone that might spring from Bedonna's loins as needing to be rescued. No matter how I tried, I couldn't picture Bedonna's daughters looking like anyone but her.

"Why not?" Queen Catlett said.

"When I try to picture Bedonna having daughters, they all end up looking like her, big strong scary girls with mustaches."

Queen Catlett giggled. "Your sister has a mustache?"

"And anyone that notices it risks getting skewered by her sword."

We changed topics after that. The queen asked me about my gifts as a seer. She wanted to know how long I had the gift, how it worked, and whether I could control it. I answered her questions as best I could. When I finished, she raised an interesting question.

"Do you practice?"

"Practice?" I wasn't sure what she meant.

"You said the visions come just before someone tries to hurt you, so you can't practice having visions, but do you practice watching and listening to others? Do you practice letting others see you, or whatever you want them to see?"

"Do you think I should practice?"

"I was thinking that perhaps you haven't reached the limit of your powers, that if you practice, they might continue to grow and develop."

"Grow how?"

"The only way to find out is to practice." She paused to take a drink of water. "I'm not saying your powers will grow. I'm just saying the only way to find out if you've reached the limit of your abilities is to practice."

I decided that Queen Catlett was right. The only way I'd know if I had reached the limit of my abilities, my powers, was to practice using them. After lunch, and before my afternoon session with the court scholars, I retired to the Heir's Suite to practice using my gifts, or powers, or whatever you wanted to call them.

The Heir's Suite was nearly identical to the Queen's Suite. It contained a drawing room, a dressing room, a bedroom, a dining room, a study, and a bathing room. The only difference was the color scheme. Whereas the Queen's Suite was done in blues and golds, the Heir's Suite was done in reds and golds. Red and gold were the official colors of the Kingdom of Vassa, while blue and gold were the colors on Queen Catlett's family crest.

I slipped into the heir's study, which was dominated by a heavy oak desk that looked like it had been built for a man, which it probably had. On the front and sides of the desk were bias reliefs of men hunting deer, wolves, and bears.

I closed the door to the study, sat behind the desk, and closed my eyes. I pictured myself standing in front of the mirror in my dressing room, which was at the other end of the suite. A second later, I saw the empty room, then I saw a ghost image of myself in the glass.

I wondered if I could add color to my image, so I pictured myself looking like I normally did, long black hair, bright green eyes, dressed in a red silk gown. My image seemed to solidify, going from a ghostly white to exactly how I looked now. I wasn't sure how the mirror could reflect something that wasn't real. Maybe the same way a mirror reflected a sunbeam. You couldn't touch a sunbeam, but a mirror could sure help you see it.

This could prove very useful the next time I was threatened or hunted by someone. If my image looked real enough, they would attack it, which might give me enough time to slip away or even attack them from behind.

The problem was, I couldn't do both things at the same time. I couldn't project my image while moving my real body. My real body had to remain in one place and I had to have my eyes closed, so I could concentrate. Or did I? Maybe with a little practice, I could project an image and move my body around at the same time. It would be hard, because I'd have to concentrate on two things at once, but just maybe, I could do it.

I decided to try something simple, like moving my image. I pictured my image walking out of the dressing room and into the drawing room, then watched from my image's point of view as it did just that.

I imagined myself walking out the door into the hallway, then watched through the eyes of my image as it walked to the door and grabbed the door's handle, or tried to grab the door's handle. My image's hand looked real, but it wasn't. The hand went right through the door. I could make the image look real, but I couldn't make it touch or move anything that was real.

I turned the image around, walked it over to one of the red velvet divans, and had it sit. I maintained that picture in my mind then opened my eyes and pushed myself to my feet. I walked out of the study and into the dining room while still maintaining the image of myself sitting on the divan. When I entered the drawing room, I almost leapt for joy. My image was still sitting there, looking not like a ghost, but like me.

I had the image look at me and give me the thumbs up sign. It did. I had it smile. It smiled. I closed my eyes and my point of view shifted. I could see things from my image's perspective. I could see myself standing there with my eyes closed. I opened my eyes and my point of view shifted again, so I could see my image sitting there.

I pictured the image fading away and it vanished before my eyes. I pictured it returning, only this time I kept my eyes open. Much to my delight, the image returned. Creating and maintaining an image was simply a matter of forming a picture in my mind, colors and all, then maintaining that picture in a corner of my mind. As soon as I let the picture fade from my mind, it faded from the room.

I wondered if the there was a range limit on my ability to see and hear other people. I knew I had to be able to picture them in my mind to see them, but I wondered if I could see someone on the other side of the world, like Bedonna, or Iderra, or Vomeir.

I wasn't sure I wanted to see what Bedonna was up to, probably planning her war on Sorea. Nor was I sure I wanted to see Vomeir. I had been gone long enough for him to move on with his life, to forget I even existed. I was curious to see how Iderra was doing. I never had a vision of her dying, so I assumed she was still alive. I wondered if she had reached Sorea, and if it was all she had thought it would be, hoped it would be.

I closed my eyes and pictured Iderra in my mind, as I had last seen her. Her hair cut short, wearing men's clothes and a pointed wizard's cap, carrying an old knapsack. A second later I saw her.

She was in a dungeon, locked in a cell with gray granite walls on three sides and iron bars on the fourth. There was nothing in her cell save for a wooden bucket to relieve herself and a pile of straw to sleep on. There were cells on both sides of the dungeon and they seemed to go on forever. As far as I could tell, the cells were all empty save for the one Iderra was inside.

I knew a few things from the size of the dungeon. She wasn't in Adah, we had no dungeons that large. Besides, if Bedonna had captured Iderra, she wouldn't have thrown her in jail, she would've killed her, just like she killed Salisha.

Iderra wasn't in Gibney. They had no dungeons that large. Besides, they didn't lock people up for crossing their borders. They just tried to sell them things. I knew she wasn't in the Sugar Islands. They didn't keep slaves in dungeons, they kept them in above ground holding pens.

That meant she had made it to Sorea. Whether it was run by dark wizards, like most people believed, or by people with scientific minds, like Iderra believed, it was clear they didn't welcome visitors. My guess was the dungeon was close to the Adan border, probably located somewhere in the Dark Forest, the heavily wooded area that defined Adah's southeastern border and Sorea's western border.

I pictured my image appearing inside Iderra's cell, wearing the same red silk dress I was wearing now. My hair tied back in a single braid that fell down my back. I pictured the proper skin color and eye color. A second later, my viewpoint shifted, from someone that was floating inside Iderra's cell, to someone that was standing inside her cell.

I checked my hands and dress to make sure they looked real. They did. My image looked as solid as it had here in Vassa. Unfortunately, I couldn't tap Iderra on the shoulder, let alone talk to her. All I could do was stand there and wait for her to open her eyes and notice me. Seeing others, and being seen by others, had its advantages, but it also had its limitations.

I tried waving my hands in front of Iderra's face. She must've sensed my presence because she opened her eyes and looked up. To say that I startled her was an understatement. She leapt to her feet and stumbled backward until she hit the wall.

"Are you really here, Mouse, or am I going crazy?" Iderra said.

I shook my head no, as in, no I wasn't really there, and no, she wasn't going crazy.

"No, you're not here, or no, I'm not going crazy?" I let my image fade away, then made it reappear. Iderra smiled. "No, you're not here. And no, I'm not going crazy."

I returned her smile, and pictured myself mouthing the words, "It's good to see you, Idy."

"It's good to see you too. You know where I am?"

I mouthed the word, "Sorea?"

Iderra nodded. "Somewhere beneath the Dark Forest. I barely crossed the border when a couple of their soldiers grabbed me. It was eerie how quickly they found me, almost like they knew I was coming. They took my knapsack from me and tossed me in here. I told them that I'm a scientific thinker like them and that I was seeking asylum, but they didn't seem to care. I'm beginning to think that I was wrong, that Sorea isn't run by scientific thinkers like myself. I've been here for nearly three weeks. I'm afraid I'll spend the rest of my life here."

I pretended to spoon some food into my mouth.

"They feed me twice a day. Once at sun up. Once at sundown. My evening meal should be here soon. But enough about me. How are you?"

I mouthed the word, "Fine."

"Are you in Adah?"

I shook my head no.

"Gibney?"

I shook my head no a second time.

Iderra thought for a second. "You've crossed the Desert of Shifting Sands."

I nodded yes.

"Are you happy where you are?"

I nodded yes, then changed my image, until I looked like Queen Catlett, like she had looked today in her yellow and orange gown, with the addition of her silver crown upon her head. I then had her open her arms in a welcoming gesture.

"You've been welcomed by a queen?"

I pictured the image changing back to me. Once I saw the red silk dress, I nodded yes.

"Don't suppose I could come join you," Iderra said.

I nodded yes.

"Would I have to cross the desert?"

I shook my head no.

"You want me to go by sea?"

I nodded yes.

"Aboard a Gibean merchant vessel?"

I nodded yes.

"How would I find you once I got to that part of the world?"

I changed my image to that of Queen Catlett, then changed it back to myself.

"I'm to look for a land governed by a queen with snow white hair?"

I nodded yes.

"Are there a lot of queens in that part of the world?"

I shook my head no.

"How many are there?"

I held up a lone finger.

"She won't expect us to fight each other to the death like mother did?"

I smiled and shook my head no.

"Now that that's settled, we have one more problem to solve. How do I get out of here?"

I changed my image to one of Bedonna, in her gray leather skirt and silver breastplate. Her massive biceps bulging as she held her giant broadsword in her right hand. I pointed the sword at Iderra's chest.

"You're going to force the guard to unlock my cell when he brings me dinner?"

I nodded, or more accurately, Bedonna's image nodded.

"It might work." Iderra tried to touch Bedonna's sword, but her hand passed right through it. "As long as the guard doesn't try to resist. Of course, I'll have to do all the talking."

I changed Bedonna's image back to mine and the broadsword to that of a big yellow butterfly, which I had flutter out of my hand. I had it circle Iderra a couple of times then had it flutter away, vanishing through the ceiling.

Iderra laughed. "Your powers are very impressive, Mouse. The fact that you can see me even though we're on opposite sides of the continent is amazing. The fact that you can allow me to see you, is even more impressive. It makes me think the rumors about your father were true."

I wrinkled my image's brow in confusion.

Iderra saw what I did. "That's right. You never heard the rumors. Actually, I was very young at the time, supposedly too young to remember rumors floating around the palace, but as you know, I've always had a very good memory. Anyway, when mother was pregnant with you, there was a rumor that your father was a powerful wizard from Sorea. I never put much stock in that rumor, until now. Although now that I think about it, after mother got pregnant with you, she stopped referring to the men that ran Sorea as the Dark Wizards of Sorea. Perhaps your father was a seer. Perhaps this is a land of seers. That would explain where your powers come from, not to mention how their soldiers found me as soon as I crossed the border."

Iderra's attention was diverted by some noise at the end of the dungeon. "I think my dinner's coming. If you're going to help me, your best bet is to disappear and then reappear behind the guard. I'll tell him to look behind him, and with a little luck, he'll unlock my cell door and I can get out of here."

I let my image fade away. I watched from above as a lone guard approached the cell carrying a tray with a bowl of stew, a hunk of bread, and a mug of ale. He balanced the wooden tray in his left hand and carried a big iron key in his right hand. His clothing was all military. Polished black boots, black woolen breeches, a black woolen shirt topped by a silver breastplate. Strapped around his waist was a broadsword.

I waited until he had Iderra's cell door open then pictured Bedonna standing behind him, in her gray leather skirt and silver breastplate. Instead of picturing her holding her broadsword, I pictured her with a crossbow, aimed at the guard and ready to fire. I chose a crossbow so he wouldn't be tempted to draw his sword and fight back. If he tried to fight back, he would learn that I was nothing more than a ghost.

"You might want to look behind you," Iderra said.

The guard swung around, saw the image of Bedonna standing there, and dropped the tray of food. Before he could decide what to do, Iderra snatched the heavy wooden tray off the floor and smashed it over the guard's head. The guard fell face first to the cell's granite floor. He was out cold.

Iderra picked up the hunk of bread and stuffed it in her jacket pocket. She grabbed the key he was carrying, pulled him into the cell, and locked him in. She then headed in the direction he had come. I followed behind, maintaining the image of Bedonna with a crossbow.

"There's one other guard here," Iderra said. "They're stationed in a small log cabin directly above the dungeon. With a little luck, the one I knocked out is the seer."

There was a heavy wooden door at the end of the dungeon. Iderra used the key to unlock it and then lock it behind her. On the other side of the door was a narrow granite stairway leading out of the dungeon. At the top of the stairway was a heavy wooden trapdoor.

I let the image of Bedonna fade, then floated ahead of Iderra. The trapdoor was open but the other soldier wasn't there. I figured he was inside the small log cabin, which sat next to the trapdoor. I reappeared at the top of the stairs, as myself, and waved Iderra on up, letting her know the coast was clear.

Iderra scrambled to the top of the stairs, turned west, and headed off, moving through the trees as fast as she could go. She stopped about one hundred yards away and looked back at me. I changed my image to that of Iderra and waved goodbye, letting her know that I would remain behind as a distraction, just in case the other guard tried to come after her. She nodded, letting me know that she understood, and took off, disappearing into the forest.

Less than a minute later, the second soldier burst out of the cabin, sword in hand, as if someone had told him that his prisoner had escaped. I figured he must have been a seer. How else would he know something was wrong. When the soldier saw me, I leveled an imaginary crossbow at him. He hurried back inside the cabin, shutting the door behind him.

I took off, heading in the opposite direction that Iderra had headed. I took my time, making sure the guard could see me when he popped out of the cabin. Sure enough, he did. I heard him running after me, yelling in Gibean, telling me to stop, that I couldn't get away.

I didn't listen to him. I kept Iderra's image moving, leading the guard further and further away from the real Iderra. When I was sure he had run too far to turn around and catch her, I dashed behind a tree and let my image fade away. He sprinted right on by and kept on going.

I focused my attention on Iderra, picturing her in my mind. Her scuffed brown boots, dirty brown breeches, white cotton shirt, brown leather jerkin, brown wool coat, and dusty wizard's cap. A second later, I saw her. She had left the Dark Forest behind and was strolling south on the Eastern Road.

The Eastern Road was a part of Adah, it signaled the end of Adah and the beginning of Gibney and Sorea. It was also patrolled by the Army of the East, which meant Iderra no longer had to fear the Sorean soldiers. She only had to fear being recognized as a princess of the realm and hauled off to Bedonna for execution.

To the west, the sun was low in the sky, as the day was drawing to a close across the plains of eastern Adah. There was no one else on the road, so I pictured myself walking alongside of Iderra, wearing an identical outfit to what she was wearing. A second later, my viewpoint shifted from above and behind her to alongside of her. Idy didn't even flinch when my image reappeared beside her. She just looked at me and smiled. "Nice outfit, Mouse."

I returned her smile and had my image primp its dirty brown traveling clothes.

While I did that, Idy pulled out the hunk of bread that she salvaged from her dinner and began to munch on it. "You know there was another rumor about your father. Not only did some people believe that he was a wizard, they also believed that he had been the King of Sorea, and that he had been driven from power by a rival wizard. If that's true, then you're the first princess in Adan history to descend from two royal lines. Needless to say, I never believed either of those rumors, until now."

About a mile down the road, a peddler on a two wheeled cart pulled by a lone ox appeared, heading in our direction.

"You better go before we run into some soldiers," Iderra said. "No one pays attention to me, but you're way too pretty not to get noticed. I'll just continue south, to Pipho, where I'll book passage on a Gibean merchant vessel that's headed west. With a little luck, I'll find my way to wherever you are in two or three months."

I ran ahead of Iderra, then turned around, so my image was facing her and walking backwards.

"Thanks Mouse," Idy said. "I never would've gotten out of there without your help, and even if I had, I wouldn't have known where to go. I was convinced the people in Sorea were scientific thinkers like myself, convinced they would welcome me with open arms. Perhaps it was just wishful thinking on my part."

I blew Idy a kiss goodbye and let my image fade away.

# Chapter 6

Two weeks after Queen Catlett told me that she was going to make me her heir, the day of the ceremony arrived. Everyone of importance in the Kingdom of Vassa would be there, as well as several important people from outside Vassa.

The morning of the ceremony, Edgerton called me into his suite, which sat on the third floor next to the Queen's Suite.

"I don't know if you remember," Edgerton said, leading me into his study. "But when we were crossing the Great Desert, I promised that I would make you my heir, even if Queen Catlett rejected you as her heir. As such, I figured it was appropriate that I give you this today."

Edgerton handed me a parchment. It was rolled up and tied with a red ribbon. I untied the parchment and read it. It was written in the Common Tongue. In very formal and long winded language, it turned over all lands east of Hooks Road, with the exception of the Estate of Hooks, to her Royal Highness Lila Marie Haran, fourth daughter of Bella Justine Haran, the twelfth Queen of Adah. Edgerton had signed the parchment and had pressed his signet ring into a wax seal next to his name.

"You are now the sole owner of the Barony of Haran, which makes you the Baroness of Haran. I know it isn't as impressive a title as Queen of Adah, but I owed you something for taking you from your homeland without your permission."

"Barony of Haran?" I said.

"In Vassa, the land changes its name to reflect the person who owns it."

Edgerton handed me another parchment. It was similar to the first, except it turned over all lands held and owned by her Royal Highness Queen Catlett Shay Laamatt, except for all the lands within the Istansada River Valley, to her Royal Highness Lila Marie Haran, fourth Daughter of Bella Justine Haran, the twelfth Queen of Adah.

"Queen Catlett owns two pieces of land. The land due north of the city, which was originally the Barony of Laamatt, and all of the Istansada River Valley, which her family inherited from the previous ruling family. The Istansada River Valley will remain under her control and will continue to be known as the Dutchy of Laamatt. She has turned ownership of the old Barony of Laamatt, including her family's old estate, to you. As of today, it becomes part of the Barony of Haran. This was all done to fulfill the second requirement for becoming the queen's heir, namely, you must be a landowner in Vassa."

Edgerton pulled out a map and showed me the lands that I owned. In terms of square miles, I was the largest landowner in Vassa. In terms of wealth, I was second only to the queen, who owned the very valuable Istansada River Valley, including all of the land within the city.

In Vassa only the royal families owned land. Everyone that lived on that land paid rent to the family that owned it, with the rent determined by the head of the governing family. There had been six royal families in Vassa before my arrival. With the queen and Edgerton deeding a portion of their lands to me, there were now seven royal families in Vassa, with me being the seventh.

Ceremonies declaring an heir weren't a big deal. Queen Catlett was making this a big deal for two reasons. The first reason was to let her enemies know that even if they succeeded in killing her, another woman would take her place on the throne. Her second reason for making this a big deal was to let everyone know that she was back. People knew that she had been sick, what they didn't know was that she had recovered. This was to be her coming out party.

As such, she had invited the other leaders of the Finger States--as well as the man behind the KRB, Maximillian Bedard---to attend the ceremony. I didn't know whether Max would show up or not. I suspected he would, probably to see how close Catlett was to death. Wasn't he in for a surprise.

The ceremony declaring me to be the heir presumptive was to take place in the late afternoon. It would be followed by dinner and a ball. After meeting with Edgerton and lunching with Queen Catlett, I headed to my suite to get dressed for the ceremony. The Lady Tabitha was there with a couple of serving girls. Much to my delight, Tabitha had a new gown. It had a flared skirt, a built-in corset, a scoop neckline, and long sleeves. It was gold silk and matched the color of her hair.

"I like the gown," I said.

Tabitha twirled. "It's certainly easier to move in than those hobble skirts everybody else is still wearing."

"Aren't you worried about being out of style?"

"As far as I'm concerned, everybody else is out of style."

"Good for you," I said.

The outfit I was wearing for this ceremony consisted of a red velvet gown trimmed with snow leopard fur. The gown had a flared skirt with snow leopard fur around the hem. The top part of the gown had a built-in black velvet corset, a squared neckline, and long belled sleeves with more leopard fur around the sleeve cuffs. A red velvet robe trimmed with snow leopard fur went over the shoulders and trailed behind me. My hair was loose and had grown long enough to reach the bottom of my shoulder blades. Queen Catlett suggested I wear the Ruby Crown, although it would be replaced with the heir of Vassa's crown--a silver headband with a lone peak at the front--during the ceremony.

Just as I finished dressing, Captain Hubbard arrived with a new cutlass for me to wear. This one had a gold blade guard instead of a brass guard and was kept in a silver scabbard. The scabbard's belt contained a silver buckle with a gold bias relief of Adah and a rose made out of rubies in the middle of Adah.

"Why a rose?" I asked Captain Hubbard when he presented me with the gift.

"Because it reminds us of you. Beautiful to look at, yet capable of drawing blood. To my men and I, you are, and always will be, the Rose of Adah."

The Rose of Adah. I liked that nickname. It was better than Mouse, or Lila the Insignificant, or the Barbarian Princess. Classier.

"Your gift is greatly appreciated, Captain." I buckled the cutlass around my waist.

Captain Hubbard bowed. He was wearing his red and white uniform with one addition. A brimless black hat with a long crown that curved from front to back. His bright red jacket also contained something new, gold braids draped from each shoulder.

"Those are new," I said, pointing to the braids on his jacket.

Captain Hubbard smiled. "The queen's given me a promotion. I'm now Commodore Hubbard. It was a reward for getting you and the chancellor safely home. I tried to explain to her majesty that it was you who got us safely here and not the other way around, but she insisted on giving me a promotion."

"Commodore Hubbard. I like the sound of that. I'm just sorry you no longer have a ship to call your own."

The smile on Commodore Hubbard's face widened. "There's good news on that front. The queen has commissioned the building of a new flagship for the heir."

"So, there'll be a new Star of the Sea. That is good news."

"Very good news. However, it won't be called the Star of the Sea. This ship will be given a new name. The Rose of Adah."

I was dumbfounded. They were going to name a ship after me. No one had named anything after me. Ever. "You're going to name it after me?"

"It seems fitting," Commodore Hubbard said. "To name the heir's flagship after the new heir."

"You've left me speechless, Commodore."

Commodore Hubbard laughed, then grew serious. "You know Maximillian Bedard is here today."

I nodded. "Queen Catlett wants him to see that he failed, failed in his attempt to poison her, failed in his attempts to prevent me from getting here."

"A man like Maximillian Bedard won't view those as failures. He'll only see them as setbacks. As long as he's alive, he'll keep trying to kill both of you."

"Hell hath no fury like a king scorned," the Lady Tabitha said. She moved behind me and picked up the hem of my robe. "It is time to go, Your Highness."

I donned the Ruby Crown. Commodore Hubbard offered me his arm and we headed off.

"How does this work?" I asked when we reach the doors to the throne room.

"A herald will announce you," Commodore Hubbard said. "You'll walk up the aisle and stand to the right of the throne. The herald will then announce the queen. She'll enter and take her place on the throne. She'll order the heir's crown to be brought forth. She'll then ask you to kneel in front of her. She'll then replace the crown you're wearing with the heir's crown. Which I must say isn't nearly as impressive as the one you've got on. When that's done, the queen and you will leave the room together with you at her right hand. From this day on, you are the queen's right hand."

"I'll carry the hem of your robe up the aisle," the Lady Tabitha said. "But I won't ascend the dais with you. Only the queen and the heir are allowed on the dais. I'll pick the hem up when you step off the dais and head out of the room."

"I believe its time for me to take my place," Commodore Hubbard said. He bowed to me, then disappeared inside the throne room.

I peeked into the throne room when the servants manning the doors opened them for the commodore. There were a couple hundred people in there, which was all the room could hold, kings and dukes and barons, duchesses and baronesses, their adult sons and daughters, lords and ladies all. There were no chairs in the room save for the queen's throne, so everyone had to stand. They left an aisle in the center of the room for us to walk up.

A minute later, Queen Catlett descended the staircase, accompanied by Edgerton and a lady carrying the hem of her robe. She wore a gown and robe identical to mine with the exception of the color. Instead of red velvet, her gown and robe were made out of a dark blue velvet. Like mine, they were trimmed with snow leopard fur, a sparkling white fur with small black spots. Her snow white hair glistened like a pale waterfall, reaching to the small of her back. On her head was the crown of the Queen of Vassa, a silver headband with seven peaks.

Catlett whispered something to Edgerton, who bowed and disappeared into the throne room. That left the queen, myself, the Lady Tabitha, and the queen's lady in waiting, a beautiful auburn haired woman in a pale blue dress named Eness Ellbey. Her dress was cut identical to the Lady Tabitha's dress, which didn't surprise me. There was no way Tabitha would let anyone into this procession who wasn't up on the latest fashions.

"How do I look?" Queen Catlett said.

"Like the picture of health."

"I feel like the picture of health, much to the chagrin of some of the people in that room."

"And the delight of those that love you."

"Might as well get this started," Queen Catlett said. She nodded to the young man standing in front of us, a herald dressed in the red, gold, and white of Vassa.

The two doormen opened the room's heavy double doors and the herald stepped into the doorway. Somewhere inside the throne room a pair of trumpets blew, announcing the ceremony had begun. When the trumpets stopped, the herald spoke. "Presenting her Royal Highness, Lila Marie Haran. Baroness of Haran. Princess of Adah. Holder of the Ruby Crown and Heir Hopeful to the throne of Adah."

I headed into the room, moving as gracefully as I could manage, which wasn't nearly as graceful as Queen Catlett seemed to move. I smiled and nodded at the people to both my left and right, most of whom returned my smile.

Most of the people I didn't know. On my right, the King of Holt was there with his daughter. The girl smiled when I looked her way. Her father didn't. Clearly, he still resented me for killing his brother, probably resented me more for never giving him a chance to punish me. Standing on the other side of his daughter was Shu, who had a big grin on her face.

The King of Enid was there, looking as plump and as friendly as the last time I saw him. Maximillian Bedard was also there. He smiled when I looked his way, but it wasn't a pleasant smile. He looked unhappy to see me alive and healthy, which made me wonder how he'd feel when he saw Queen Catlett looking equally healthy. If Commodore Hubbard was right, then he was already plotting his next move to kill both of us.

The front row on my right consisted of Edgerton, Commodore Hubbard, and the other barons and baronesses of Vassa. I smiled at them and they all returned my smile, save for the Baron of Selve, who was still smarting over his youngest son's exile to the prison camps of Poshta.

When I turned to the front row of people on my left, my breath caught in my throat. Vomeir was standing there, dressed in his green and silver ceremonial uniform. His helmet tucked under his right arm. To his left stood Sardis, Derbe, Militus, Botek, Solek, Tolek, Captain Patera of the Queen's Guard, and the rest of the Adan soldiers. All dressed in their ceremonial uniforms.

For a second I froze, wondering if I was seeing things. How did they get here? That was an easy question to answer. They must've come with the soldier Edgerton left back in Adah. Commander Conkling Eades. The bigger question was, why were they here? Why did they travel to the end of the world, to a land they knew nothing about? My guess was they were running for their lives. Once they had sided with me, it was either leave Adah, or risk being executed by Bedonna and her supporters.

The civilians, like Zore the stable boy, and Talia Pock, the daughter of the Queen of Thieves, could slip back into society unnoticed. No one would even know they had supported me. Vomeir, Patera, and the other soldiers weren't that lucky. Bedonna would know they hadn't supported her and would resent it.

Thinking about a throne reminded me of where I was and why I was there. I continued to the dais, where the Lady Tabitha released my robe and took her place alongside Edgerton. I stepped onto the dais and took my place to the right of the throne. Once I was there, the trumpets blew again, and the herald stepped forward. "Presenting her Royal Majesty Catlett Shay Laamatt, Duchess of Laamatt, Queen of all Vassa."

The herald stepped aside and Queen Catlett entered the room. As she walked up the aisle, she smiled and shook hands with several of the people standing on the aisle.

I watched Max. By the time Catlett reached him, he had a phony smile on his face that couldn't hide the truth. When he first saw her, his cheeks paled considerably. Clearly, he hadn't expected her to look as healthy as she did. He reached for her hand, which she gave him. When he leaned forward to kiss it, she pulled her hand away and turned to the people on the other side of the aisle. Max looked at me and glared, as if I had told her to do that. I felt like saying to him, "Don't glare at me, I'm not the one that paid people to poison her."

When the queen reached the dais, the Lady Eness released her robe and took her spot alongside the Lady Tabitha. Queen Catlett ascended the dais and sat upon her throne.

"We are here today to make a formal declaration of the heir to the throne of Vassa. Before I do that, I want to tell all of you how much this young woman means to me. Most of you know that I was sick for quite a while, very sick. What you don't know is that I was being poisoned."

The queen paused for the gasps of surprise, of which there were plenty. When the crowd quieted down, she continued. "What you need to know is the princess was the one that discovered I was being poisoned. If it wasn't for her, I would be dead. So it is with great pride and pleasure that I ask her Royal Highness, Lila Marie Haran, Baroness of Vassa, Princess of Adah, to kneel before me."

I moved in front of Queen Catlett and dropped to both knees.

"Bring forth the heir's crown," Queen Catlett said.

Two young men in red, gold, and white moved to the edge of the dais. One carried a red velvet pillow with the heir's crown, the other carried an empty red velvet pillow. Queen Catlett stood up, removed the Ruby Crown from me, and placed it on the empty pillow. She picked up the heir's crown, moved back in front of me, and placed the heir's crown upon my head.

"Repeat after me," Queen Catlett said. "I, Lila Marie Haran, promise before the One God, the maker of us all, to support, defend, and protect the people of Vassa with all my heart and soul, until my last breath."

I repeated the statement. When I finished, the queen spoke. "I hereby declare Lila Marie Haran, Baroness of Vassa, Princess of Adah, to be the heir presumptive to the throne of Vassa."

The queen offered me her hand. I stood and took my spot at her right hand. The trumpets blared again, and we headed out of the room, side by side.

"Did you like my surprise?" Catlett whispered, nodding in the direction of Vomeir, Patera, and the others.

"When did they get here?"

"They arrived yesterday, along with Commander Eades. The man that stayed behind in Adah, so there would be room for you on the sand ship."

"I remember him, Commander Conkling Eades."

"Your men were very upset when we didn't let them see you. I had to talk to them myself, which wasn't easy considering they don't speak the Common Tongue. With Edgerton's and the commander's help, I finally managed to convince them that you were fine and they could see you today. Mind if I ask who they are?"

"The ones in brass are regular soldiers. The ones in silver are members of the palace guard. The ones in gold are members of the queen's guard."

"Are you glad to see them?"

"I'm always glad to see people I care about. Although I'm a bit surprised they're here. Shocked might be a better word."

Queen Catlett smiled, a smug smile. "As someone once said to me: men do not travel to the end of the world for just anybody."

She was repeating my words, but from my perspective, it wasn't the same thing. Edgerton and the others traveled to Adah because they loved their queen. Vomeir and his men were here because they had no choice. If they remained in Adah, Bedonna would've executed them for not supporting her. Patera and his men were here out of love, but it was love for my mother.

I thought we might go outside and wave to the masses, but apparently there were no masses to wave to. In this part of the world, royal ceremonies took place indoors, with only the landed gentry attending. It was much different back in Adah. Coronations were always held outside, so everyone could attend.

Instead of going outside, we moved to the dining hall, where dinner was ready and waiting. I sat on the queen's right. Edgerton sat on her left. The rest of the queen's court sat to the left of Edgerton including, Commodore Hubbard, the Lady Eness, the Lady Tabitha, and Bokham. Directly to my right sat Vomeir, Patera, and the other Adan soldiers. They were attracting a lot of attention from the crowd, who had no idea who they were.

Even I had to admit that they stood out from the crowd. They weren't as tall as the men from this part of the world, but they were a good deal more muscular. While most of the men from this part of the world were clean shaven, most of the Adan men had facial hair, although their beards were neatly trimmed. Their ceremonial uniforms also helped them to stand out.

The uniforms consisted of gold, silver, or brass breastplates over green tunics, knee length gray leather skirts, and gold, silver, or brass shin guards. They all wore swords around their hips and had green capes trailing down their backs. They carried their helmets under their right arms and set them on the table in front of them.

Once everyone was seated, Queen Catlett rose to her feet. "I'm pleased that all of you made it here safely. I also suspect that most of you are wondering who the men to Princess Lila's right are. I can tell you that the men wearing the brass armor are members of the Adan Army. The men in the silver armor are members of the Adan Palace Guard. The men wearing the gold armor are members of the Queen of Adah's Personal Guard. And yes, I've been informed that their armor is solid silver and solid gold. They took an oath to defend the princess against anyone that might want to harm her. Seeing how far they've traveled, I think it's clear that they take that oath seriously."

While the queen spoke, a grinning Patera leaned across Vomeir and whispered to me in Adan. "I see you've landed on your feet."

I couldn't think of a response to his comment, other than to return his grin and shrug my shoulders.

Vomeir leaned toward me and whispered in Adan. "Don't suppose you can tell us what she's saying?"

"She's telling the man sitting directly across from us, the one dressed in purple and black, that the next time he tries to kill me, he's going to have to go through all of you. In diplomatic terms of course."

Vomeir sat back in his chair and mumbled under his breath. "I hate court politics. Always have. Always will."

I laughed and listened to the rest of Queen Catlett's speech. This had turned into a very good day, even if there was one king sitting across from me that wanted to punish me for killing his brother, and a second that wanted to kill me for simply existing.

# Chapter 7

An explosion woke me. I barely had time to sit up when a second, a third, and a fourth explosion rocked the castle. I didn't need to wonder what happened, I already knew. Maximillian Bedard had struck. The explosions told me what kind of an assassin he used, an alchemist.

Most of my knowledge of alchemy came from what Iderra told me. She said that certain elements mixed together could cause explosions. At the time, I dismissed what she said as fanciful thinking. Now, I knew better.

I donned a red silk dressing gown over my sleep shift and burst into the hallway. Smoke was rising from the Queen's Suite at the far end of the hall. More smoke was filtering up the stairwell from the second floor, where our guests were staying.

I ran down the hall toward the Queen's Suite. As I got closer, I could see that the heavy wooden door that led to the Queen's Suite had been blown apart. The four guards that had been stationed at the door lay face down in the hallway, pieces of the broken door lay on top of them, pools of blood lay beneath them. Edgerton, dressed in a black velvet dressing gown, crouched next to them, checking to see if they were alive. He looked at me and shook his head.

I started to dash into the Queen's Suite, but Edgerton stepped in front of me. "I'll go inside, Your Highness. You wait here."

He nodded at the two guards that had been standing in front of my door and had run down the hall with me. They grabbed me by the arms and held me between them. Edgerton turned and disappeared into Queen Catlett's smoke filled suite.

I didn't try to fight the guards, they were too big and too strong. Instead, I closed my eyes and pictured Edgerton walking into the Queen's Suite. A second later, I was floating above and behind him. As he surveyed the sitting room, I did the same. It was a mess. Furniture was overturned and broken. The door leading to the bedroom was shattered, only splinters of it remained, scattered across her dressing room.

I floated past Edgerton. The smoke was even thicker in the bedroom. The bed was destroyed and what remained of it, which wasn't much, was on fire. The alchemist must have planted his weapon beneath the bed. Amid the wreckage, I saw something else on fire, the remains of a body. Queen Catlett, my western mother, was dead.

"The queen is dead," I said, opening my eyes and looking at the two guards that held me.

Edgerton appeared a few seconds later. His face covered with shock, anger, and grief. "They killed her. Although, I don't know."

"Alchemy," I said. "Max brought an alchemist with him. He must have planted his weapons when everyone was downstairs, dining and dancing."

"Why didn't they come after you?" Edgerton said.

"Word's out that I'm a seer. If they tried to harm me, I would've had a vision warning me that this would happen. I would've been able to save Queen Catlett."

I couldn't help but wonder why I didn't have a vision warning me about this anyway, granted my life wasn't in danger, but it wasn't in danger when I had the vision of Queen Catlett being poisoned. Then again, if they had succeeded in poisoning her, maybe my life would've been in danger. As Catlett's heir, I had money, land, and manpower. If she had died before naming me her heir, I would've had none of those at my disposal.

Commodore Hubbard, Bokham, Conkling Eades, the new physician, and several other guards arrived, swords and cutlasses in hand.

"What happened?" Commodore Hubbard asked.

"Queen Catlett is dead," Edgerton said.

"How?" Bokham asked.

"Alchemy," I said. "Certain elements, when mixed in the right amounts, can cause explosions."

Edgerton turned and disappeared back inside the Queen's Suite.

"You did say Max might try something," Bokham said.

"I just didn't know what," I said.

Edgerton stepped out of the smoke filled suite carrying something. Because it was tarnished by smoke and scorch marks, it took me a second to figure out what it was, it was Queen Catlett's crown. He held out the tarnished silver crown, offering it to me.

"It's not my time," I said, lowering my voice so that only he could hear me.

"It's why I brought you here. And it is your time."

I studied the tarnished crown for a moment, then took it and placed it on my head. I couldn't help but notice that it was still warm from the heat of the explosion.

The people around me began to drop to one knee, first Edgerton, then Commodore Hubbard, then Bokham, then Conkling Eades, then the others.

"Queen Catlett is dead," Edgerton said in a loud voice. "Long live Queen Lila."

"Long live Queen Lila," the others said in unison.

Edgerton rose to his feet and the others followed suit. "What is your command, my queen?"

"There were several explosions on the second floor," I said, reminding myself that he was talking to me. "I want the guards and physician to go down there, see who's dead and who's hurt. Help those that need help, then report back to me."

Bokham, Conkling Eades, the physician, and several other guards headed for the stairs. Edgerton, Commodore Hubbard, and the two guards that had been assigned to guard my suite remained with me.

"What about Bedard?" Edgerton said. "I think we know that he's behind this."

"Give me a second," I said. "And I can tell you where he is."

I closed my eyes and pictured Maximillian Bedard in my mind. A second later, I saw him, standing on the deck of a ship similar to the Star of the Sea. It was floating down river, already several miles from the castle. Dawn was just starting to break over the Istansada River, the sun peeking over the eastern horizon. Someone was standing next to Max, talking to him, explaining about elements and explosions, and how the explosions could be hastened or delayed, depending upon how much of each element was used. That someone was his alchemist. Roehl Tharrington. The King of Kavel. The fifth Finger State.

"He's headed down river with his alchemist. Roehl Tharrington."

"The King of Kavel?" Commodore Hubbard said. "But he's an ally."

"Not any longer," I said. "He was just telling Max how the explosions could be delayed by mixing the elements in just the right amounts."

"That explains how their assassin got up here without attracting attention," Edgerton said. "Tharrington had breakfast with the queen and I just yesterday. In her suite. She complained about being cold. He fetched one of her cloaks from her dressing room. That's probably when he planted his explosives."

"I wonder what prompted him to turn on us," Commodore Hubbard said.

"Gold," I said. "As well as the promise of more power."

"Queen Catlett's flagship is in port," Commodore Hubbard said. "Should I order it to give chase?"

"Max will expect that," I said. "He probably has several ships just down river, waiting for us to come after him. We won't be so foolish as to retaliate now, when they expect it. We'll retaliate in our own time, not theirs. The first thing we need to do is get dressed."

Edgerton and Commodore Hubbard bowed to me and headed to their respective suites. I headed back to mine at the far end of the hall. As I passed the stairs, Vomeir and Patera appeared.

"What happened?" Vomeir asked.

I switched to Adan. "Maximillian Bedard used an alchemist, Roehl Tharrington, the King of Kavel, and a former ally, to kill Queen Catlett. They've already made their getaway."

"The Kings of Holt, Enid, and Tash, are also dead," Bokham said, bounding up the stairs.

I told Vomeir and Patera what Bokham just told me, then turned to Bokham and switched to the Common Tongue. "Gather up some servants and have them put out the fires and collect the dead. Tell all of our guests to gather in the throne room as soon as they're able."

"What are you going to do?" Bokham said.

"Get dressed. Then I'm going to tell everyone what happened."

I switched to Adan, then repeated what I had just said. Once I finished, I headed to my suite to get dressed. When I got there, I found Shu and the Princess Vanessa sitting in my drawing room.

"You're not hurt," Shu said, when she saw me.

"You of all people should know that I'm not easy to kill."

Shu forced a smile that she wasn't feeling. "I'm glad of that."

"I'm glad to see the two of you are unharmed."

"We both turned in early last night," Shu said. "We went out for an early morning walk. That's when we heard the explosions."

"We tried to get to my father's room," Princess Vanessa said. "The guards wouldn't let us go inside."

I knelt at the princess's feet, took her hands in mine, and looked her in the eyes. "Your father is dead, Vanessa."

Not exactly subtle, but there's no easy way to tell a child that their father's dead. I remained where I was and watched as the tears welled up in the little girl's eyes, tears which she tried to fight.

"It's okay to cry when those we love are taken from us."

"My father said that I'm a princess, and that I must be better than others, which means no crying. That's what he said."

"He didn't mean that you couldn't cry for him. He meant that you shouldn't cry over unimportant things. I'm a princess and I cried when my mother died. I cried again when my sister Salisha died. And when there's time, I'll cry over Queen Catlett."

Vanessa threw herself into my arms and let the tears flow. I didn't cry then, although I wanted to. I just knelt there and held her. Shu knelt next to us and wrapped her arms around both of us.

When Vanessa had cried herself out, she pulled away from me. "I don't know how to be queen. I'm only ten years old."

I brushed her chestnut hair out of her eyes. "I've learned from two of the best. I'll teach you."

They had taken Catlett from me, but they wouldn't get Vanessa. I planned to see her on the throne of Holt long after Maximillian Bedard and Roehl Tharrington were dead.

***

One half hour later, I walked into the throne room with the Princess Vanessa at my side.

Edgerton, Commodore Hubbard, Bokham, Conklin Eades, Patera, Vomeir, and the other Adans followed behind us. Vanessa's personal guard, four soldiers in silver and blue, brought up the rear.

Our guests were already there. Perhaps, I should amend that. All of our guests that were still alive, or hadn't fled the city, were already there. That included Vassa's barons and baronesses. The dukes and barons from the other Finger States, as well as their counselors, guards, and servants.

I wore a new outfit. Black leather breeches tucked into black riding boots, a long sleeved red silk shirt that laced up the front, and a black velvet waistcoat. My hair was in a ponytail, tied back with the choking device. The cutlass I killed the Duke of Genese with was buckled around my waist. Queen Catlett's crown of seven peaks was on my head, still tarnished by smoke and scorch marks.

I strode up to the dais and sat on the throne. Vanessa followed me, standing at my right hand. There was supposed to be an elaborate ceremony when one became queen, but we just had one elaborate ceremony and no one was in the mood for another.

"Queen Catlett is dead," I said. "So are the kings of Holt, Enid, and Tash. The wives of the kings of Enid and Tash are also dead."

"Who killed them?" someone yelled.

"Look around," I said. "Who isn't here?"

"Bedard," someone else said.

"And Roehl Tharrington, his alchemist and newest ally," I said. "They fled the city on Bedard's ship."

"Are you saying they did this with alchemy?" someone said.

"I am indeed."

"And you know this because?" the Baron of Selve said.

"I have a sister who studied alchemy. She told me that certain elements can cause explosions. Plus, I saw Roehl Tharrington talking to Maximillian Bedard, explaining how the explosions could be delayed when the elements are mixed in specific amounts."

"Saw them when?" the Baron of Selve said.

"This morning, on the deck of Bedard's ship."

"How could you see them talking on his ship when you were here in the castle?"

The Baron of Selve had decided to challenge me, challenge my authority as the new queen. I wasn't surprised. He still resented me for arresting his youngest son. I expected this and knew what I had to do, so I closed my eyes and pictured myself standing to the left of the throne. A second later, my point of view shifted. I saw my body sitting on the throne. I saw the crowd gasp as they saw my image standing next to my body. I let the image remain transparent for a few seconds, then pictured it looking exactly like I looked sitting on the throne.

The crowd gasped again as my image seemed to solidify. I had my image step off the dais and walk toward the crowd, which collectively retreated. I walked my image up to the Baron of Selve and looked him right in the eyes. His face blanched with fear and he stepped backward, stumbling into the people behind him. I figured I had made my point and let my image fade.

"That's how I know who's behind this," I said. I stood and placed my right hand on the hilt of my cutlass. "Does anyone else wish to challenge my knowledge or authority?"

I wasn't thrilled about letting people see what I could do, but these were Queen Catlett's friends and allies. If they were to be my friends and allies, I needed them to trust and respect me.

No one spoke. No one challenged me. They were all too stunned or too scared. Maybe someday that fear would become respect, but until then, I would take what I could get.

"Why would Bedard do this?" someone asked.

"Two reasons," I said. "First. He lusts for power. He isn't satisfied ruling Dunre. He wants all of the Finger States, as well as Landish. Second. He wanted revenge against Queen Catlett. He's sought her death since she rejected his marriage proposal. Many of you know this."

"Why is the Princess Vanessa with you?" someone asked.

"Because she's safe with me," I said. "Bedard knows that I'm a seer. That's why he didn't try to kill me. If he had, I would've seen what he was going to do and been able to prevent it. To ensure her safety, the Princess Vanessa will remain with me until Maximillian Bedard is dead."

"What do we do now?" someone said.

"We need to declare war," someone else shouted.

"We don't have the manpower to declare war on Dunre," I said. "Maximillian Bedard has an army of over two thousand men at his disposal. An army trained to fight as a single unit. We can muster one thousand men at the most, even then, they're disjointed groups that aren't trained to fight as a cohesive unit."

"What would you have us do?" someone said.

"Go home," I said. "Crown your heirs, help them solidify their power. Strengthen your armies as best you can. Act swiftly. Act with purpose. Act with unity. Bedard did this to try and create a power vacuum in the Finger States, which we cannot, and will not, let happen. When the time is right, We'll make Bedard and Tharrington pay for the misery they've caused us. On this, you have my word."

I waited for someone to challenge me. No one did. The kings of Enid and Tash had married late in life and their oldest sons were still young, barely into their teenage years. The King of Enid's eldest boy was a plump lad of fifteen. The King of Tash's eldest son was a thin lad of fourteen. As luck would have it, I was now the oldest leader in the four remaining Finger States. The only one prepared to take command.

I rose to my feet, drew my cutlass, and raised it high into the air. "To the still united Finger States. Holt, Enid, Vassa, and Tash."

Those that had swords raised them high into the air. Those that didn't raised a fist. As one, they cried out, "To the Finger States. Holt, Enid, Vassa, and Tash." Each group shouted loudest when their own country was mentioned, which was how it should be.

Commodore Hubbard stepped forward, faced the crowd, and raised his cutlass into the air. "To Queen Lila. Long may she reign."

"To Queen Lila," the crowd repeated.

I sheathed my cutlass and strode to the throne room's entrance. I took up a position in the doorway and made a point of taking the hand of every single person that filed out of that room, be they baron, soldier, or servant. The last one out was the Baron of Selve. When he reached me, he placed both hands on my shoulders. "I can see why Catlett went to such great lengths to bring you here."

The Baron of Selve strode out of the room on his long legs, his newest wife and eldest son in tow. I breathed a sigh of relief. He had been my biggest critic, and for the moment, I had won him over.

"Your mother would be proud of you," Patera said, coming up to me. "You took command and silenced your critics before they could raise their voices. Bella couldn't have done it any better."

"Thank you, Captain," I said in Adan.

I looked at Princess Vanessa, who stood silently at my right hand. She looked like a smaller version of myself, having changed into black boots, black breeches, a red shirt, and a black waistcoat. She had tied her chestnut hair in a ponytail, and even wore a small sword around her waist.

I couldn't help but wonder, when had I become the one people turned to for leadership? When had I become the person to emulate? Yesterday, it look like it would be years before I would have to worry about commanding anything. In a matter of seconds, everything had changed.

"What time is it?" I asked no one in particular.

"Nearly noon," Bokham said.

I realized that I hadn't eaten since yesterday, that the Princess Vanessa hadn't eaten since yesterday. I smiled at her, and said, "I don't know about you, but I'm hungry."

"Me too," she said. I gave her my hand and we headed off to the dining room, our guards in tow.

"We cannot let Bedard get away with this," Edgerton said, when we were in the dining room, eating a lunch of beef stew, fresh baked bread, and apple cobbler.

Most of our guests had left, including Vassa's barons and baronesses, who seemed in a hurry to get back to the safety of their own estates. Only Vanessa, Shu, and Romeus remained.

"He won't get away with it." Edgerton sat on my left. The Princess Vanessa sat on my right. Everyone else was on either side of them. "But we will move at a time of our choosing, not his. The worst thing we can do right now is chase after him. That's exactly what he wants, what he's prepared for, what he's hoping for."

"How will we go after him?" Bokham said. "You said it yourself. We don't have the manpower."

"First, we will build a fleet of ships faster than anything afloat. Then we will rid the Istansada River of his pirates."

"Where will we get the knowledge to build such fast ships?" Conkling Eades said.

"My sister, Iderra, already possesses such knowledge. Even as we speak, she's on her way here. Commodore Hubbard and her will work together to design these ships."

"Can your sister speak the Common Tongue?" Shu asked me.

"By the time Iderra reaches Vassa, she'll be fluent in every language spoken in this part of the world."

"We'll need wood," Commodore Hubbard said. "Lots of it."

"The land Edgerton gave me contains an untouched forest. We'll build our fleet from those trees. I'm told it's good hardwood."

"We'll need to hire woodsmen to cut the trees," Edgerton said.

"Then make it so," I said. "Have them send the logs down the East Hooks River."

The East Hooks River cut through the middle of the land Edgerton gave me and connected with the Istansada River just east of the city. The ship builders could set up their operation where the East Hooks River flowed into the Istansada.

"And the money to pay for the workers?" Edgerton asked.

"The Barony of Haran is ready to harvest and sell its crops," I said. "Use that money to pay the woodsmen. The money for the ship builders can come from the Duchy of Laamatt's treasury."

When I became queen, I also inherited the land Catlett still owned, which meant all of the Istansada River Valley within Vassa's borders, the taxes and other profits that went with it, were now mine.

"Consider it done," Edgerton said.

I leaned forward and looked down the table at Vomeir, who sat on the other side of Vanessa, Shu, and Romeus. I switched to Adan, and said, "I need you to send Sardis, Militus, and Derbe to Unrein to meet Iderra and escort her back here. They'll need an interpreter, so Commander Eades can accompany them."

I switched to the Common Tongue and told Conkling Eades what I just told Vomeir. He nodded in acknowledgment. "When do you wish us to leave, Your Highness?"

"You can leave after the queen's funeral. Iderra's ship won't reach Unrein for a couple more weeks, so there's no hurry." I turned back to Edgerton. "How tall is the ceiling in the throne room?"

"Twenty-five feet," Edgerton said. "Give or take a foot."

"I want you to find a sculptor, one that works with marble or granite. Tell him that I want two statues of Queen Catlett, Both to stand sixteen feet tall. I want them placed in the throne room, one on each side of the dais. I want her to look like she looked yesterday. She was the first Queen of Vassa, in what from this day forward will be a long line of queens, and should be honored as such."

Edgerton didn't ask me what I wanted to use to pay the sculptor. I suspected he would take care of that himself. Instead, he changed topics. "I realize that this isn't the best time, but you should designate an heir, Your Highness."

"Iderra is my heir," I said. "Should something happen to me, she will take my place on the throne. Should something happen to both of us, you will send someone to Adah and inform my eldest sister, Bedonna, that she is the new Queen of Vassa. You will tell her how this came about and who killed her sisters. She will do the rest."

If Maximillian Bedard succeeded in killing Iderra and myself, then I would give Bedonna what she wanted the most, a world waiting to be conquered. I hoped it didn't come down to that, but if I had to choose between giving this half of the world to Bedonna or Maximillian Bedard, I would choose my sister. She killed Salisha, but she gave her a chance to defend herself. Bedard didn't even do that. He took the coward's way out. He planted explosives then ran away.

"What about Roehl Tharrington?" Conkling Eades asked. "He betrayed those who trusted him. He betrayed his father's and grandfather's wishes. He betrayed all of the Finger States."

I reached up and touched the bone handled choking device I still used to tie my hair back. "I'll take care of Roehl Tharrington personally. That's all any of you need to know."

We had one thing going for us when it came to dealing with Roehl Tharrington. He had aligned himself with Bedard, but didn't know that we knew. I was betting that when the dust settled, I could lure him back here, lure him into my bedroom. If not, I would travel to Kavel. One way or another, one of us would not come out of that bedroom alive.

***

Later that evening, after the Princess Vanessa had gone to bed, I visited Edgerton in his suite. I found him sitting in the drawing room. He appeared to be staring at nothing in particular, but his eyes were red from crying. I wasn't surprised. Catlett was the love of his life, even if she hadn't loved him the same way.

I sat on the divan next to Edgerton. "The other day, I told Catlett that she should consider taking a consort or two. She giggled and made excuses as to why she couldn't, but I believe she was actually considering the idea. I even suggested that she make you one of her consorts."

Edgerton managed a sad smile. "I'm glad we didn't have time for that to happen for I would've embarrassed myself considerably."

"I don't think she would've noticed. Or cared. She knew how you felt about her, even if you couldn't tell her."

"I've spent my life in service to her. I'm not sure I can go on now that she's gone. I'm not sure I want to go on."

I dropped to my knees in front of Edgerton and took his hands in mine. "I've lost too many people already. My mother. Salisha. Catlett. I cannot lose you."

Edgerton smiled, another sad smile. "Didn't anyone ever tell you that a queen doesn't kneel?"

I ignored his comment. "You must promise me that you won't leave me."

Edgerton didn't say anything, but the look in his eyes told me all I needed to know. It was a promise that he wouldn't make and couldn't keep. His heart was broken. His will to live gone. Nothing could mend his heart, nothing could bring back his will to live. It was only a matter of time before he followed his beloved Catlett to the grave.

I finally broke down and cried. I cried for the queen I had found and lost. I cried for the chancellor I would soon lose. I cried for myself. I was caught in a maelstrom of change, a storm that began the night my mother died. I didn't know where it was taking me or how it would end.

# Chapter 8

One month after Catlett's death, something good happened in my life. At the time, I was in the throne room, conversing with a trade delegation from the Land of Nomads, the country that lay due south of us.

The Land of Nomads contained no cities, no single leader or government. It was ruled by three tribes which were constantly on the move, the Northern Tribe, the Central Tribe, and the Southern Tribe.

Every fall, the Northern Tribe would send a trade delegation to the Finger States to buy grain. In exchange, they would trade hand woven rugs and tapestries, as well as bolts of silk. I had just finished meeting with that trade delegation when Sardis and Conkling Eades strode into the room. They had just returned from the port of Unrein in southern Standish. Someone was walking behind them, I couldn't see who it was, but I suspected.

It was Sardis that spoke, in the Common Tongue, no less. He bowed to me, and with a big grin, said, "Your Majesty. I am proud to present her Royal Highness, the Princess Iderra Derbe Haran."

Sardis and Conkling Eades stepped aside, revealing my sister. She looked the same as when I helped her escape from the Sorean dungeon, wearing dusty brown riding boots, brown leather breeches, a white wool shirt, a brown leather jerkin, and a brown wool long coat. Her brown hair was still cut short and she still wore a broad brimmed wizard's cap.

She looked at me, sitting on the throne, and grinned. I was dressed in polished black riding boots, black leather breeches, a silk shirt, today's was canary yellow, and a black leather waistcoat. I had a cutlass around my waist and the crown on my head. Vanessa stood on my right, dressed in an identical outfit.

The grin on Idy's face widened as she removed her hat, swept it across her waist with an exaggerated flourish, and bowed. In the Common Tongue, she said, "The pleasure is all mine, Your Majesty."

She was mocking me and I loved every second of it. She noticed Princess Vanessa standing next to me, dressed exactly like me, and a puzzled looked crossed her face, apparently Sardis and Conkling Eades hadn't told her everything.

I indicated Vanessa. "May I present her Royal Highness, Princess Vanessa Anne Terrell, heir to the throne of Holt. Her country is being governed by a steward. A friend of mine named Shumeredena Kestan. When the time is right, Vanessa will take her place upon the throne as the Queen of Holt. For now, she's living here, as my ward. Vanessa, this dusty ragamuffin is my big sister, Princess Iderra."

Iderra accorded Vanessa the same sweep of her hat and exaggerated bow that she accorded me. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness. You couldn't have picked a better mentor to study under. My little sister is destined for greatness, and if you pay close attention to what she says and does, you will one day be a great queen yourself."

Vanessa grinned and returned Iderra's bow. She had never seen a princess quite like Iderra, and was fascinated by her. I dismissed Sardis and Conkling Eades. When they were gone, I rose out of my throne, marched down to Iderra, and wrapped my arms around her.

"It's good to see you, Idy," I said, switching to our native tongue.

"It's good to see you, Mouse," Iderra said, returning my embrace. "Although I hardly recognized you. You've changed since I last saw you sneaking around the halls of the palace."

I stepped back and looked her up and down. "I've changed? Have you checked your appearance in a mirror recently?"

"You know how I feel about mirrors. They've always been the bane of my existence."

I hugged Iderra a second time. "I'm glad you're here. I'm in need of a chancellor to advise me. Plus, I've already declared you to be my heir."

"What about the man that brought you here? Edgerton? I was told that he's Chancellor of Vassa."

"He's lost interest in everything, save for the construction of the two statues I had commissioned. Both are of Queen Catlett. Both will stand in this room when completed. Someone must fill his post and that someone must be you."

"I've never been a royal adviser," Iderra said.

"Bull. You started advising mother as soon as you could talk."

"Mother never listened to what I said, so I don't think that counts."

"I'll listen," I said. "You remember that ship you designed when you were fourteen? The one you said would be faster than anything afloat."

"Of course I remember. I remember everything."

Back home, when people heard Iderra make comments like that, they thought she was being a braggart. When you knew Iderra as well as I did, you knew that she never bragged, nor did she engage in false modesty. She merely stated facts and opinions. When it was a fact, she let you know it was a fact. When it was an opinion, she let you know it was an opinion. That was just Iderra being Iderra.

"We're going to build a fleet of those ships," I said. "You and Commodore Hubbard will head the project. The wood is already being cut and shipped to a point just east of here. A shipwright has been hired and is setting up a shipyard at the same point. All that is needed is for you to show Commodore Hubbard and the shipwright what you want them to build."

"I can do that," Iderra said. "Although I'd like a chance to bathe and eat. And if you could find me some clean clothes to wear, I'd appreciate it."

"They just finished renovating the Queen's Suite. As my heir, you'll move into my old quarters, the Heir's Suite. I had them put some outfits in there for you to wear. If you need something else, tell one of your servants to send for the royal tailor. After dinner, I'll introduce you to Edgerton."

***

Edgerton rarely left his suite these days, except to visit Queen Catlett's tomb, and of course the sculptor working on the twin statues of her. He had lost weight since Catlett's death, going from a plump man with a neatly trimmed beard to a skinny man with a scraggly beard. I made a point of dressing up when I visited him. Tonight, I wore a white silk gown with gold trim around the hem and cuffs. It had a flared skirt, a built-in corset with a scoop neckline, and belled sleeves. A white silk bow tied my hair back.

Iderra accompanied me, dressed in a similar gown made out of yellow silk. Her short brown hair was freshly trimmed and unadorned. I thought she looked better with short hair, thought that it drew less attention to her nose and more attention to her high cheekbones and doe eyes.

Vanessa remained in her suite, tending to her evening studies with the tutors that moved here from Holt. I felt it was important that her tutors come from Holt, that she learn about the world from their perspective, since one day, when it was safe, she would move back there.

"I've brought someone I want you to meet," I said to Edgerton.

He was sitting in his drawing room, dressed in black clothes that were now too big for his frame. In his right hand was a goblet of wine. His drug of preference these days. The tray of food sitting in front of him remained untouched.

I stepped aside so he could see Iderra. "I'm pleased to present my sister, Princess Iderra Derbe Haran. Iderra, this is Chancellor Edgerton Hooks."

Edgerton looked up but didn't really seem to notice us. Iderra curtsied, and spoke in the Common Tongue, with no trace of the accent I knew I still carried. "The honor is mine, Chancellor. Lila has told me that you have one of the finest minds that she's ever met. I look forward to finding out if it's true, or if she exaggerates. Right now, I'm inclined to believe that she exaggerates."

That brought Edgerton out of his drunken reverie. I suspect in his long life, he had never met anyone that had introduced herself in such a manner. For her part, Iderra was just being Iderra. I did tell her that Edgerton had a fine mind, and she did want to find out just how bright he was. Iderra always said what she thought, and meant what she said. If she had a weak point, it was that she was too blunt. Social niceties just weren't her strong suit.

Edgerton did something completely unexpected right then. He smiled. Something I hadn't seen him do since Catlett's death. Still smiling, he set his wine down, pushed himself to his feet, and bowed. "I'm glad to see you reached us safely."

"It was an enlightening trip," Iderra said. "I've learned much about this part of the world, but not nearly as much as I'd like."

"Iderra can never learn as much as she'd like," I said. "She has an insatiable curiosity and a unique ability to retain everything she sees and hears. And I do mean everything."

"She doesn't look like you, but she does have her own unique beauty."

Iderra blushed. It was the first time I could remember her blushing over something a man said about her.

"She does indeed," I said.

"Lila tells me that you're grieving the loss of Queen Catlett," Iderra said. "I hope that your grief doesn't take your life before I've had a chance to pick your brain."

That statement caught Edgerton completely off-guard. For a few seconds, he did nothing. Finally, he broke out laughing, which caught me off-guard. "And just what do you hope to pick from my brain, Your Highness?"

"Why everything in it."

"Of course." Edgerton glanced around, and noticed the untouched tray of food. "Suddenly, I'm very hungry. Would you ladies care to join me for dinner?"

"I just ate." So did Iderra, but she had a bottomless pit for a stomach and was always ready for another snack. I never figured out how she could eat so much and remain so skinny. I suspect she burned it off thinking. "I'll leave Iderra to start picking your brain, Chancellor."

***

When Iderra finished designing her new ship, she brought the sketches to my study to show me. Commodore Hubbard, the shipwright, and the Princess Vanessa joined us.

The first thing I noticed was that the deck of Iderra's ship looked like that of any other caravel, with a raised foredeck, a low middle deck, and a raised afterdeck. There were three masts. The keel contained a dorsal fin in its middle. She added two small wings to the keel's fin. I also noticed the ship's bow was narrower than a caravel's bow. As a whole, the ship looked like it would carry a lot less cargo than your standard caravel.

"You didn't ask me to design a cargo ship," Iderra said, when I mentioned that to her. "You asked me to build a ship that would be faster and more maneuverable than anything afloat."

I looked at Commodore Hubbard and the shipwright, to see what they thought.

"We built a model of your sister's ship," the shipwright said. "And compared it against an identical sized model of the standard caravel."

"And?"

"Your sister's ship was significantly faster," Commodore Hubbard said. "But those were models. The only way to tell if a full-sized version will work is to build it."

"Why wouldn't it work?" Iderra asked. She launched into a detailed explanation about how scale models could predict the performance of full-sized ships. When Commodore Hubbard's eyes, not to mention those of the shipwright, started to glaze over, I held up a hand to silence her.

"Let's build her ship," I said. "When it's done, we'll test it against the Queen of the Sea. If it's as good as Idy says, we'll name it the Queen Catlett. Then we'll build a second, a third, and a fourth ship. The second will be named the Edgerton Hooks. The third will be named the Princess Vanessa."

That brought a smile to Vanessa's face, which I thought it would.

"We should name the fourth the Rose of Adah," Commodore Hubbard said. "If you remember, Your Majesty, Queen Catlett was going to build a new ship and name it the Rose of Adah."

"I remember, but in light of recent events, it would seem more appropriate if we named the fourth ship the Lily of Vassa. Lily's were Catlett's favorite flower."

Commodore Hubbard bowed. "As you wish, Your Majesty."

"I wish," I said.

"If the Queen Catlett wins the race against the Queen of the Sea, we won't need the carvelle anymore," Commodore Hubbard said.

"The Queen Catlett will win easily," Idy said in a matter of fact tone.

"If the carvelle loses the race, we'll sell it," I said. "It has a large cargo hold, plenty of merchants can use it. Selling it will also help defer the cost of our new fleet."

I dismissed Commodore Hubbard and the shipwright. Princess Vanessa went with them, having been promised the model of the ship that would bear her name.

"I sent a message to the King of Kavel," I said, when Idy and I were alone. "Inquiring as to whether he survived the brutal attack that killed Queen Catlett."

"Didn't you say that he was the alchemist responsible for the attack?"

"He was, but I don't want him to realize that I know that."

"You're telling me this because?"

"Because I just got a reply from him."

I pulled out a piece of parchment that contained a letter Roehl Tharrington had written me and handed it to Iderra. She read it. "He's invited you to come visit him at his castle on the Western Sea."

"I'm thinking of going."

"Is it safe?"

"Of course it's not safe, but I promised our friends and allies that I would avenge the deaths of their kings. And that Roehl Tharrington would die by my hand."

"Didn't mother ever tell you not to make promises that you can't keep?"

"I intend to keep that promise," I said.

"How do you intend to kill him?"

"I intend to invite him into my bedroom and just when he thinks things are getting interesting, I'll strangle him."

"I have a better idea," Idy said. "Awhile back, I read about a plant that would paralyze someone when dried, ground up, and mixed into their food or drink. They can't move a single muscle in their body except their eyes."

"How much of this plant would he have to ingest?"

"Very little. Its effects are quite powerful."

"How long do the effects last?"

"They're permanent."

"Could you make this compound from plants found in this part of the world?"

"I don't believe so."

"Then why are you telling me this?" I asked.

Iderra was dressed similar to me, black riding boots, black leather breeches, a silk shirt, and a leather waistcoat. Where my shirt was red, hers was emerald green. She reached inside her emerald green shirt and pulled out a large gold locket. Engraved on the outside of the locket was the royal seal of Adah, the body of a lion with the wings of an eagle and the head of a woman wearing a crown, in this case, the woman was Iderra. It was the same seal found on the signet ring that I still wore, with the exception of the woman's head.

"I have some of that powder inside this locket," Iderra said. "Enough to incapacitate three people."

The number of people that she could incapacitate wasn't lost on me. I tried to remember when I first saw her wearing that locket. Near as I could remember, it was around the time mother took ill.

"You were planning on using that on us?" By us, I meant, Bedonna, Salisha, and myself.

"I toyed with the idea of slipping it into your dinners. Night after night, for one full month, just before mother died."

"Did Bedonna and Salisha suspect anything?"

Iderra scoffed. "I never worried about them figuring it out. Just you."

"I never suspected. I never imagined you wanted the throne that much."

"I didn't want the throne. I just thought I should get you guys before you got me. The thought of having to assume the throne was what kept me from using the powder."

I couldn't suppress a shiver from coursing up my spine. I always knew Iderra was smart, but I never knew she was dangerous. Of course, she never actually tried anything. If she had, I would've had a vision warning me.

"Now, it's time for you to confess," Iderra said, forcing a smile that didn't quite mask the guilt on her face. "What nefarious plans did you have for getting rid of Bedonna, Salisha, and myself?"

"I had no plans for getting rid of any of you. The last thing mother ever said to me was 'save your sisters.' My plan was to ride west and seek the support and protection of General Dacus and the Army of the West. I knew he liked me better than the rest of you, and thought that with his support, I might be able to get Bedonna and Salisha to lay down their arms."

"That's one of the reasons mother made you the heir hopeful. She knew the rest of us were plotting against our sisters and it angered her. She even knew what Bedonna and Salisha had planned. She admitted that she didn't know what I was up to, but she knew that I had something up my sleeve. She told me as much."

"Bedonna's plan was to have the palace guard round us up and toss us in the dungeon as soon as mother died. You've told me about your plan. I've told you about mine, such as it was. What was Salisha's plan?"

"Salisha tried to convince some of her suitors to assassinate us. Why do you think Vomeir left her?"

"He said he left her because she accused him of being one of Bedonna's spies."

"Not true," Iderra said. "He left her because she asked him to kill you. Not only did he refuse, he told her that he would kill any assassins she sent after you."

"Why didn't he tell me that?"

"Perhaps, he didn't want you to think ill of your sister. Perhaps, he thought you wouldn't believe him."

Suddenly, I felt very naive. I knew Iderra, Salisha, and Bedonna had been planning and plotting. I just never realized they had taken so many steps to carry out their plans, and that their plans had been so devious. I was beginning to understand why Bedonna had been so angry the day she killed Salisha.

"Say something," Iderra said, when I just sat there.

"I feel like a fool. One of the advantages of being a seer. I guess. You can afford to be a naive fool."

"If it makes you feel any better, I feel like a fool for even thinking about committing such a dreadful act. Especially after all you've done for me."

"That does make me feel a little better. Although since mother died, you've harmed no one. I on the other hand, have strangled a powder witch, cut the hand off an assassin, plunged my cutlass through the chest of Vanessa's uncle, and sent two men to a prison camp in the snowy north."

"You've got nothing to be ashamed of," Iderra said. "Defending yourself against people that want to hurt you isn't the same as plotting to destroy a sister that's done nothing but love and admire you. Mother was right. Out of the four of us, you're the only one qualified to be a queen."

"It's hard to feel good about myself when I'm sitting here plotting to kill Roehl Tharrington."

"Think of him as a murderer, because that's what he is. Queen Catlett invited him here as a friend, and he repaid her hospitality by taking her life, not to mention several other lives. Someone has to be the sword of justice, and it would appear the One God has selected you for that position."

Personally, I thought it dangerous for anyone to start thinking of herself as God's sword of justice. Not that I thought that way about myself. If anything, I considered myself to be a naive fool.

"Here's what you do with Roehl Tharrington," Iderra said. "When the Queen Catlett is ready to sail, you take Roehl up on his invitation and sail the Queen down river. When you reach his capital city, you invite him to tour your new ship. When he boards the ship, you sit down for a glass of wine, maybe even dinner. When the drug is coursing through his blood, you lean down and whisper in his ear, telling him what you did to him and why. He'll have the rest of his life, such as it is, to lie there thinking about what he could've done, should've done, different. Best of all, no one will know that you're responsible. You can call his physician in and his physician will think his heart betrayed him."

"It's a good plan." I picked up the pendant and locked it in one of my desk drawers.

"I can see that I've shattered your imagine of me as a loving sister," Iderra said.

"Just a bit."

"Everybody has a dark side, Mouse."

"I know. I said the same thing to Edgerton not so long ago." It was just that knowing everyone has a dark side, and coming face to face with that dark side, were two different things.

# Chapter 9

It doesn't snow in the Finger States, not even in the middle of winter. However, it does rain, and when it isn't raining, it's cloudy and windy. It was just that type of day, overcast, windy, and drizzling, when I was given a message. It was a message I didn't want to hear. Edgerton had taken a turn for the worst and wished to see me.

I changed before paying him a visit, putting on a blue and green chiffon dress with belled sleeves. I tied my hair back with a matching green ribbon then headed for Edgerton's suite. According to the court physician, he didn't have much time left.

He had recovered briefly following Iderra's arrival, trimming his beard, cutting back on his drinking, and eating regularly. That recovery turned out to be temporary. The closer the two statues of Catlett came to completion, the worse Edgerton's health grew. It was almost as if seeing her in marble reminded him just how much he missed her. I couldn't help but wonder if I had made a mistake in commissioning the statues, couldn't help but wonder if they were hastening Edgerton's demise.

I found him sitting up in bed, propped up on several goose down pillows. That's where he had been for the last month, following the day they installed the two statues of Queen Catlett in the throne room. To say that he didn't look good was an understatement. He was skinnier than ever, looking nothing like the robust man that rolled me up in a rug and tossed me over his shoulder back in Adah.

His beard was neatly trimmed, not because he kept it that way, but because I had ordered his servants to keep it that way. His sunken eyes had the same jaundiced looked that I saw in Catlett's eyes the day I met her. Only this wasn't caused by a poison someone had slipped into his food. It was caused by something much simpler, a broken heart.

"If this is what falling in love does to someone, then I will never fall in love." I sat on the edge of Edgerton's large bed, then kicked my legs up and propped myself up on a couple of pillows, stretching out next to him.

Edgerton took my right hand between both of his. Once his hands had been plump and strong, but now they were frail and bony. He flashed a weak smile. "All my life, I dreamed of sharing my bed with a queen. It's only been in the last month, when I've become too weak to do anything about it, that a queen has finally climbed into bed with me."

"Get better," I teased. "And I'll give you a night that you'll never forget."

Edgerton patted my hand. "I'm afraid it's too late for that."

I smiled, a sad smile. "And I'm not the right queen."

"No, but you are a great queen."

"How would you know? You never leave this room. This bed."

"You've flooded my room with pretty young maids. I talk to them. They talk to me. I hear them talk to each other when they think I'm not listening. They say there is an energy, a vitality, in this castle they've never seen before. This castle, this city, this country, are fast becoming the place where everyone wants to be."

"Why don't you get better. Then you can resume your job as chancellor, and once again make this the place not to be."

Edgerton managed a laugh, albeit a weak one. "How did the Queen Catlett's maiden race go?"

We had just tested Idy's newly finished corsair against the Queen of the Sea, a standard caravel. "The corsair won easily. Just like Idy said it would. Sometimes, I think that you kidnapped the wrong sister."

"Your sister's very smart. But she would not make a good queen."

"Why not?"

"She doesn't know how to relate to others."

"How would you know? You've never seen her talk to anybody but me."

"Last week, she told me that she had picked my brain of everything she wanted, and that I was free to die. She hasn't been back to see me since."

I hadn't known that Iderra had stopped her evening visits to Edgerton, let alone told him that he was free to die.

"I'll talk to her," I said. "Tonight, she'll come and see you. And she'll behave herself. You have my word."

"It doesn't matter. The point is, your sister doesn't have the gift."

"What gift?"

"I don't know what you call it. It's that indefinable something that draws people to you, makes them want to be around you, work with you, work for you. Whatever you call it, energy, vitality, charisma, you have it. Iderra doesn't. As much as it pains me to say it, Catlett didn't have it either. She was kind and beautiful, but she didn't possess the fire and determination that it takes to be a great leader." Edgerton closed his eyes and paused to catch his breath. His breathing was heavy and labored. After a couple of minutes, he opened his eyes and continued. "My one regret is that I won't be around to see you when you're in your prime."

"I'll be twenty-one in a couple of months. Many would argue that I'm in my prime now."

Edgerton scoffed at that notion. "A woman doesn't enter her prime until she's thirty. You're still a good ten years from your prime, and if all my pretty maids are to be believed, you're already a better queen than Catlett. By the time you reach your prime, you'll be a sight to behold, sexy, smart, beautiful, confident, determined. All men will want you. All women will want to be you. All leaders will envy you."

Now it was my turn to scoff. "I've heard that dying makes one delirious. Now, I know that it's true, for you're talking nonsense."

Edgerton didn't argue with me. He just chuckled and changed topics. "The papers leaving the rest of my estate to you are in order. They're locked in a drawer in my desk. When I die, you'll own one-third of Vassa. None of the barons will dare challenge you. Not that they would want to."

"I don't want you to die. I'm tired of losing people that I love."

"The One God has plans for you, Lila. Some of us must step aside for those plans to be carried out."

"What plans?"

"First, there's something you must know. Something the One God has told me."

"I didn't even know you were a religious man."

Edgerton chuckled. "All dying men are religious men."

"What has the One God told you?"

"You have yet to discover all of your powers. There's one power that you have yet to learn about. You must master it if you want to defeat your enemies."

"What kind of power?"

"I don't know. You'll have to discover that for yourself. I do know that dark forces are rising, Maximillian Bedard and Roehl Tharrington are among them, but they're not chief among them. They're just pawns."

"Who is chief among them?"

"I don't know. I only know that it wasn't coincidence that brought you to me. It was ordained by the One God. Catlett wasn't strong enough to defeat these dark forces. You are. That's why the One God brought you to me, and why I brought you here. That's why your mother had to step aside as Queen of Adah. Why Catlett had to step aside as Queen of Vassa. Why the kings of Holt, Enid, and Tash had to step aside. And why I must now step aside."

"I don't want you to step aside."

"The Prince of the Air is bringing his king into play. The one the prophets called the Dark King. The One God is countering with his queen. The one the prophets called Destiny's Queen. You are Destiny's Queen, Lila. I can see that now." Edgerton saw the tears trickling from my eyes and raised my hand to his cold dry lips. "Be happy for me. I'm going to be with the queen that I love. The other queen that I love."

"You'll tell her that I miss her?"

"I will. And I will tell your mother that you miss her. I will also tell them about the queen you have become and will become."

Edgerton didn't talk after that. He just closed his eyes and held my hand. I stayed with him for a couple more hours. Until his labored breathing softened, then stopped all together. Until the hands holding mine grew stiff and cold.

When I left his room, I didn't feel like Destiny's Queen, I felt like a harbinger of death, for whenever someone's life came into contact with mine, death seemed to swallow them up.

***

I did something different that evening. I paid a visit to the temple of the One God. It sat on the highest hill on the other side of the river. The clouds had cleared enough to allow the sun to peek through, scattering its orange, pink, and red rays across the sky.

Gray granite blocks made up the temple, although at this time of day, the setting sun gave the place a pinkish appearance. The building was round and open. Granite steps circled a dome supported by eighteen large granite columns. Torches on the inside and outside of each column lit the place. In the middle of the building sat a round granite altar littered with offerings, fresh fruits, loaves of bread, coins of silver and gold. About a dozen people surrounded the altar, standing and praying, kneeling and praying. A priest in a white robe circled the altar, praying with people, talking to them. Occasionally, he would take something off the altar and give it to someone.

I felt more than a little conspicuous as I climbed the steps, accompanied by Bokham and six members of the queen's guard, as well as Vomeir and six of Patera's men, all armed and dressed in their various uniforms. I was still wearing the blue and green chiffon dress, but had added a black wool cloak with the cowl pulled up, hiding both the dress and my face.

"Wait here," I said, when we reached the columns. "I want to talk to the priest. Alone."

Bokham and Vomeir had their men fan out, until they had the building surrounded. I would've preferred to make this trip alone, but that was out of the question. A queen is rarely alone.

A couple of the people in the temple saw the soldiers surrounding the place and decided that it was time to leave. The others paid them no attention.

The wind was blowing hard on top of this hill, whipping through the open air temple, sending embers from the torches to the top of the granite dome. I placed a bag of gold on the round granite altar that sat in the middle of the temple, then knelt and said a prayer for Edgerton's spirit, asking the One God to grant him peace and to reunite him with the queen that he loved most.

Back home, I never paid much attention to religion. Probably because I was never sure which god you should pray to. We had a god of the sky, a god of the land, a god of the sea, a god of the underworld, a god of the spring, a god of the harvest. Miners prayed to the god of the underworld. Sailors prayed to the god of the sea. Farmers prayed to the god of the harvest. I was never quite sure who a queen or a princess should pray to. Here it was easier. You prayed to the One God. The maker of everything.

Eventually, the priest worked his way around to me. He was tall, with broad shoulders and salt and pepper hair cut short. Not as short as Bedonna wore her hair, but almost.

"You have questions," he said to me.

I stood and lowered the cowl on my cape. "You know who I am?"

"A better question would be: do you know who you are?"

That was another reason I never liked visiting priests and temples. They spoke in metaphors and answered your questions with more questions.

"I know who some people think I am."

"Who do they think you are?"

"They think I'm someone your prophets wrote about long ago. Someone called Destiny's Queen."

"Does the idea that you might be Destiny's Queen scare you?"

"I spent my childhood learning how to die. Death doesn't scare me, for I know I'll be judged on what was in my heart when I hurt, helped, or ignored those around me."

"That doesn't answer my question," the priest said.

"The writings of people who lived and died long before me don't scare me either. Nor do they interest me. Much."

"Then what does interest you, Your Majesty?"

"The individual your prophets wrote about. The one that serves the Prince of the Air."

A knowing smile crossed the priest's face. "The Dark King."

"What can you tell me about him?" We were walking now, circling the altar. The priest kept his hands tucked into the large sleeves of his white wool robe. I kept mine hidden beneath my cloak.

"He comes from the end of the world, from a land he once ruled. He does not rule a land in this part of the world, but manipulates those that do."

"Who is the Prince of the Air and why does the Dark King serve him?"

"The Prince of the Air is a higher being. He was created to serve the One God, but he wasn't happy being a servant and wished to become a god in his own right. He gave the Dark King certain powers. In return for those powers, the Dark King worships and serves him."

"What are those powers?"

"Among others, an unnaturally long life, as well as the ability to influence those around him."

"Do you believe the Dark King exists? That he's alive right now?"

"What I believe doesn't really matter."

Talk about not answering a question. "What can you tell me about Destiny's Queen?"

"She comes from the doorstep of the land the Dark King once ruled. She springs from his seed."

"If she springs from his seed, wouldn't she be evil?"

"No one is born good or evil. We become good or evil through our choices and our actions."

"What does the Dark King want?"

"He wants what his master the Prince of the Air wants."

"What does the Prince of the Air want?"

"He wants to be a god, wants to be worshiped like the One God."

"And how does he accomplish that?"

"By having his servants conquer the world. Then they can force those they rule to worship their master, the Prince of the Air."

I thanked the priest for his time, pulled my cowl over my head, and turned to go.

"There's one more thing you should know," the priest said. I stopped and waited for him to continue. "Destiny's Queen possesses one power the Dark King does not."

"Which is?"

"She can move things with her mind."

"And you're telling me this because?"

"You must master this power if you are to defeat the Dark King."

"I possess no such power. Which means I can't be this Destiny's Queen your prophets spoke of."

The priest didn't say anything for a few seconds. Then he threw out another question. "Do you know what the word catlett means?"

"I thought it was a name."

"The word is from a language which fell out of use long before you were born. It means wind." The priest looked at me. "A catlett signaled the beginning of a new season. To be precise, it was a wind of change."

"So?"

"The prophets said the winds of change would usher in the arrival of Destiny's Queen."

# Chapter 10

I was sitting in my dining room eating breakfast when a strange thing happened. I poured myself a second cup of tea, then reached for the honey to spoon into my tea, only to have the honey bowl slide across the table and into my hand. Even stranger was that I felt the honey bowl in my hand before it was actually there. I thought about wanting it. Then I felt it in my hand. Then I saw it slide across the table and into my hand.

Is that what it meant to move something with your mind? First you think about it? Then you feel it in your hand? Then it moves into your hand? I tried something else. I imagined the plate of bread in my hand. A second later, I felt the plate in my hand. A second after that, I saw it slide across the table and into my hand.

My excitement grew considerably. So much so, that I didn't bother to finish my breakfast. Instead, I set the butter knife on the edge of the table, stood, and backed up a few feet. I imagined the butter knife in my hand, then felt it in my hand, then saw it fly off the table and into my hand. The wooden handle ended up in my hand, just like I wanted. The metal blade pointed straight up, just like I imagined.

Now this was a power I could use. I dropped to my knees, said a prayer of thanks to the One God that granted me such a power, then scrambled to my feet and tried something more dangerous. I pulled my cutlass from the scabbard. I laid the cutlass on the table then backed up a few more feet.

I imagined my hand gripping the hilt, imagined the blade pointing straight up. A second later, I felt the cutlass in my hand, felt my fingers wrap around the hilt. A second after that, my cutlass flew through the air, hilt down, blade up. It flew right into my hand and my fingers wrapped around the hilt.

I wondered how big an object I could move. I tried the chair. I imagined picking it up and carrying it to the other side of the table. A second later, I felt the chair in my hands. A second after that, the chair rose off the ground, circled to the opposite side of the table, and settled back down.

I tried moving the table itself. It jiggled a little but only two of its four legs rose off the floor. Okay, so this power was limited to whatever I could physically lift. That was a good thing to know.

I wanted to run out the door and show somebody what I could do. I wanted to show them, but I didn't. I decided to keep this ability to myself, and to save it for when I really needed it. Oh, I would practice using it when I was alone. Just like I practiced using my other powers. As my mother once said, "It's harder for your enemies to prepare for battle, if they don't know what you're capable of doing."

I certainly had enemies, Roehl Tharrington, Maximillian Bedard, maybe even this Dark King. I found it hard to believe that there was someone out there strong enough, powerful enough, to pull Maximillian Bedard's strings. If he did exist, could he have been the one that revealed the knowledge of the alchemists to Roehl? Could he be the one that wanted me dead, the one that ordered Bedard to try and kill me?

If I knew what he looked like, I could spy on him. Then again, maybe I did know what he looked like. The priest implied that I was his daughter, and Patera said that my father looked like me, with black hair, green eyes, and a similar face.

I moved to the drawing room, sat in a chair, and closed my eyes. I pictured a man that looked like me, with black hair, green eyes, and a face similar to mine. A second later, I saw him. He wore black, the same outfit worn by all royal advisers in this part of the world. He was standing next to a throne occupied by Maximillian Bedard, a large wooden throne covered in purple velvet. Bedard wore his usual purple and black. He was talking to a group of well dressed men.

Max didn't interest me, not this time. Now that I knew he was just a puppet. I was here to learn about the man that was pulling his strings. My father. He was short, just like Patera said. His jet black hair was long and pulled back into a ponytail, much like mine. He was clean shaven and had a boyish face, too boyish for someone his age. In point of fact, he didn't look any older than me. He looked more like a twin brother than my father. That reminded me of what the priest said. That his master, the Prince of the Air, had granted him an unnaturally long life.

As much as I knew I should be, it was hard to be afraid of someone that looked so much like me. I was still thinking that, when my father looked right at me with green eyes as lifeless as any I had ever seen, and whispered in a voice that sounded like two voices. "I know you are here, daughter."

I fled right then, back to the safety of my drawing room, where I opened my eyes, bolted to my feet, and wrapped my hand around my cutlass. I hadn't made myself visible, but he had sensed my presence.

Okay, so his powers were more developed than mine. That shouldn't surprise me. He had been using his a lot longer. The One God only knew how old he was.

It was the eyes that got to me. I had never seen such eyes. On the surface, they looked normal, but underneath they were cold and lifeless. Any humanity that had once been in them was gone, replaced by something dark and evil. The same could be said for his voice, which had an eerie quality about it.

I barely had time to collect myself when he appeared in front of me. Or at least his image did. It was different from his real image. His eyes looked normal, rather than cold and lifeless. The image remained transparent then changed until he looked solid. Then he, or it, did something unexpected. He spoke in a voice that sounded perfectly normal and lacked that eerie quality his real voice had.

"We finally meet. Daughter of mine."

I had to force myself to hold my ground and not reach for my cutlass. I knew better than anyone that he wasn't really here, that he wasn't anything more than a ghost, and that my cutlass wouldn't do any good. I wanted to ask him how he could make his image talk. Not that I did. That would just tip him off as to how limited my powers were.

"What do you want?" I said.

"You should leave Vassa, return to your homeland. You'll be safe there."

"I wish that were true, but as powerful as you and Bedard are, you're still the lesser of two evils."

My father laughed. "It's been a long time since I've been called the lesser of two evils. May I ask who you fear more than me?"

"You tell me, you're a seer."

"My powers don't allow me to see across the Great Desert."

Okay. This was interesting news, assuming he was telling the truth. I had no trouble seeing Idy when she was locked in that Sorean dungeon. Nor did I have any trouble letting her and the guards see the images I created. Did this mean that our powers weren't identical? That he could do things I couldn't do, and I could do things that he couldn't do?

His image flickered, turning transparent for a second, before it solidified. Did that mean he was having trouble maintaining the image? I was beginning to think that not only was he limited in how far he could see, but in how long he could see and be seen.

As much as I wanted to ask him, I didn't. He wasn't my father. He was the enemy. This man, or what had once been a man, was now what the priest called the Dark King. This was the man that had Catlett poisoned, and when that didn't work, blown up. This was the man that sent assassins and pirates after me. This was the man that sent the Duke of Genese after me.

He waited for me to speak, but I didn't. I just stood there, watching for signs of weakness, signs that would show me what he could and couldn't do. His image flickered a second time, then solidified.

"We will meet again," my father said.

Before he could leave, I said, "Why do you want me dead? I've done nothing to you."

"You will if you remain here long enough. Like you said. I am a seer."

His image became transparent. I don't think he wanted to do it that way. I just don't think he could maintain the solid looking image any longer.

"I don't even know your name."

"Corbett Barr."

"Lila Marie Haran," I said.

Corbett Barr, the Dark King, bowed, or more precisely, his image bowed before fading away. I sat back down in the chair, closed my eyes, and reached out, probing, testing to see if he was still here. He wasn't. I found him in Max's castle, sitting behind a polished black desk. This time, I imagined my presence as tiny as an insect, no bigger than a flea on the wall. No bigger than a speck on a flea.

There was a knock on the door to his office. A second later, Maximillian Bedard slipped into the room.

"What do you want?" my father said, using the voice that had an eerie timber, as if it were two voices instead of one.

"You left the throne room so suddenly, I wondered if you were all right."

"I had some business to attend to, business that doesn't concern you."

"Have you decided what our next move will be?"

"The time is ripe for you to move against the High Sage of Landish. The Finger States are too weak to come to his aid. The kings of Standish and Poshta are occupied with the internal rebellions we've fermented within their borders. It's time for you to issue a public statement, claiming you're tired of Landish pirates cruising up and down the Istansada River unchecked. Since the high sage won't take action to curb these pirates, you have no choice but to remove him from power and restore order to the Istansada River yourself. When you've issued that statement, marshal your forces and move them to the Dunre--Landish border."

Max bowed. "As you command, My Lord."

I allowed the tiny presence I was maintaining in my father's office to fade away. When I was back in my drawing room, I paused to consider what I had just learned. My father was clearly running things in Dunre, not Maximillian Bedard. He was a seer that could do things I couldn't do, like speak through his image. But he was limited in how far he could see, and in how long he could maintain his presence elsewhere.

He managed to detect my presence the first time I dropped in on him, but now that I thought about it, so did Idy the day I saw her in that pub back in Adah. That led me to conclude their ability to detect my presence had less to do with any special powers they had and more to do with the fact that I made no attempt to keep my presence hidden.

The second time I eavesdropped on my father, I made a point of keeping my presence as small as possible. As far as I could tell, he hadn't detected my being there. That meant that I could spy on him if I was careful. I would also have to get into the habit of searching for his presence before talking to others.

My other problem was that he had ordered Max to move against the high sage. A two thousand man army wasn't much compared to the size of our armies back in Adah, but it was large enough to defeat anything the high sage could muster. If I wanted to prevent Maximillan Bedard and my father from conquering Landish, I was going to have to convince the high sage that he was in danger, and that he needed to prepare for war.

I mulled over what I learned as I went out for my morning run with the queen's guard. By this time, the people around the city had grown used to seeing me and a couple dozen soldiers running up and down the streets of the city and many turned out to watch and cheer as we ran by.

We finished our run by returning to the castle, where we paired off and practiced our sword fighting on the lawn in front of the castle. Today I was paired with Bokham, and as we dueled, his broadsword against my cutlass, I told him what I learned.

"We have a problem," I said.

"What's that, Your Majesty?" Bokham attacked with two hands on his broadsword, forcing me to retreat.

"Max is planning to invade Landish, remove the high sage from power, and place himself on the high sage's throne. Even as we speak, he's ordering his army to marshall on the Landish border."

Bokham didn't ask how I knew all of this. He just continued to go on the offensive and force me to retreat. "And this concerns us because?"

"If Max claims the high sage's throne, he'll have twice as much gold, enough to build an army twice the size of the one he currently commands. When he comes after us, we won't be able to stop him."

Swinging the heavy broadsword after a good run was beginning to tire Bokham out. I switched my cutlass from my left hand to my right and went on the offensive, forcing Bokham to retreat.

"You must tell the high sage what's happening. Tell him that if he doesn't raise an army, he'll lose his throne and his life."

"I don't think the high sage has enough time to raise and train an army big enough to defeat Max's army."

"Then he must hire some mercenaries."

"Where does one find mercenaries in this part of the world?"

"There's only one place," Bokham said. "The Land of Nomads."

"The nomads are trained mercenaries?"

"The Central Tribes train to fight on horseback. They will also fight for pay." Bokham took a deep breath and went on the offensive, once again forcing me to retreat. "The nomads will fight for the high sage if he asks for their help and pays them well. You just need to convince him that his life and throne are in danger."

The last time I tried to warn Counselor Jarvo about Max, he ignored my warnings and tossed me into the high sage's harem. He might ignore my warnings again, but at least I wouldn't have to worry about being tossed into the high sage's harem.

The last time I visited him, I was just a princess from the far side of the world. I had no money, no manpower at my disposal. Now, I did. I was Queen of Vassa and leader of the Finger States. With Max coming after him, Jarvo couldn't afford to offend me. He might choose to ignore my warnings, but he couldn't do more than that.

I decided it was time to end my fight with Bokham, so I imagined grabbing his broadsword and tossing it on the ground. A second later, I felt the sword in my hand, felt myself toss it on the ground. A second after that, the broadsword flew out of Bokham's hands and crashed to the ground.

I pointed my cutlass at Bokham's chest, and said, "I believe this fight is over, Captain."

I'm not sure if Bokham suspected I did something to his sword or not. He just smiled and bowed.

After my morning workout, I bathed, changed into a velvet gown of forest green, and donned the queen's crown. I ordered the servants to find Patera and send him to the throne room. The room looked different now, with the two statues of Catlett standing on each side of the dais.

I was sitting on the throne when Patera entered. Bokham, Vomeir, and my usual retinue of one dozen guards lined the walls on both sides of the room. An official court scribe, a young man in his early twenties, stood off to my left at the foot of the dais, standing at his scribe's table with a quill pen in his right hand. It was his job to record any and all decrees and proclamations that I might issue, and pass them on to the rest of the castle, city, and country.

"Approach the throne, Captain," I said, when Patera entered the room.

Patera walked to the foot of the dais. He was wearing gray leather breeches, a green tunic, and his everyday brass breastplate rather than his dress gold. His broadsword was slung across his back and his brass helmet was tucked under his right arm.

"Your Majesty," Patera said, speaking the Common Tongue. He stopped at the foot of the dais and bowed.

"I've decided to give you a new job, Captain." Patera opened his mouth to speak, but I raised my right hand, silencing him. "It will not interfere with the final orders my mother issued to you, so you can relax."

"What is this job?"

"From this day forward, you'll serve as a personal adviser to the Queen of Vassa. As one of my advisers, you'll have to be available to me at a moment's notice. Therefore, you will move into Chancellor Edgerton's old suite on the third floor."

Patera bowed again. "As you wish, Your Majesty."

He probably thought I was just being nice to an old man, but that was only partially true. Now that I knew my father was pulling Max's strings, I needed Patera. He was the only person around that was old enough to remember my father's arrival at my mother's court some twenty-two years ago. There might be things in his brain that could help me defeat my father, things he didn't even know were important.

I rose off my throne and headed for the exit. "Walk with me, Captain."

Patera fell in alongside of me. Vomeir, Bokham, and my other twelve guards fell in behind me, walking in two columns. The Vassans behind Bokham. The Adans behind Vomeir.

"Something is on your mind," Patera said. It was a statement, not a question.

"Just a second." I stopped walking and probed for my father's presence, checking to see if he was here, spying on me. If he was, I couldn't detect him. I resumed walking. "Maximillian Bedard is not running things in this part of the world."

"Who is?"

"Someone you met twenty-two years ago. My father."

Patera stiffened. "And you know this because?"

"I've seen him, talked to him."

"When? Where?"

"This morning. In my suite."

"He was here?"

"His image was here. He's a seer, like me."

"What did he want?"

"Probably the same thing I wanted when I went looking for him in Max's castle, to look the enemy in the eye."

"I thought the images you created couldn't talk?"

"His can."

"It sounds like he's very powerful."

"He's stronger than I am in some areas, but not as strong in others. Our powers are different."

We passed out of the throne room and into the great hall. Patera looked around the empty room. "Is he here right now?"

"No."

"You're sure?"

"As sure as I can be."

"What did he look like?"

"He looked a lot like me. Short. Slim. Long black hair. Green eyes. Young."

"Young?" a puzzled looking Patera said. "How young?"

"About my age. Maybe a couple years older."

"That's impossible. That's what he looked like some twenty years ago, when he first showed up at your mother's palace."

"It seems he has made a deal with a higher being known as the Prince of the Air. This being gave him certain powers in exchange for his fealty."

"What kind of powers are we talking about?"

"An unnaturally long life. The knowledge of the alchemists. The ability to sway and influence those around him, including kings."

"That explains why your mother acted so odd when he was around."

"Odd how?"

"You know how much she hated war, not to mention the Battle Crown."

I nodded. "When we were young, she told us that she prayed none of us ever wanted to wear the Battle Crown, and that she would weep for the one that did."

"Yeah, well, not long after your father showed up at court, she started wearing that very crown. Not only did she start wearing it, she started talking about going to war against Sorea, destroying the dark wizards that threatened our borders."

"What was he doing in Adah?"

"Somebody in Sorea drove him from power. He came to Adah and tried to use our armies to destroy his enemies in Sorea."

"I wonder what stopped him."

"The people that drove him from power didn't like him setting up camp on their doorstep. So they drove him out of Adah and across the desert, where he couldn't threaten them."

"That explains why he left so suddenly. Do you remember any strangers coming to the palace around the time he left?"

Patera thought for a second. "There was a man that showed up requesting an audience with your mother. One that I had never seen before or since."

"What did he look like?"

"He was a bald man, with eyes so black, you couldn't see his pupils."

"Tall or short, thin or heavy?"

"Tall, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist."

"Young or old?"

"It's hard to remember. Somewhere in between, I guess."

"He must've been the one that drove my father out of Adah and across the desert."

"Perhaps," Patera said. "What difference does it make now?"

"If I could talk to this man, he might be able to help me. He might be able to tell me how to defeat my father."

"You're not thinking about going to Sorea?"

"Not physically."

I was thinking about using my powers to talk to this man, assuming he was still alive. But before I could do that, I had to take care of one not so small detail, I had to figure out how to make my image talk.

# Chapter 11

One week later, I invited Iderra and Patera to join me for lunch. At the end of our meal, I told them what I was going to do. "As soon as this meal is over. I'm going to take a trip deep into Sorea, to try to find the man Patera mentioned, the one that drove my father from Adah some twenty odd years ago."

"I assume you mean a metaphysical trip and not a literal trip," Iderra said.

"You think that's wise?" Patera said. "If this man is as powerful as you think, he could trap you there, or whatever part of you travels when you use your powers."

"I don't think this man is evil. My father is the evil one."

"Even so, what if he doesn't want you poking your nose into his land. Evil or not, he might not let you return to us."

"How are you going to tell him what you want when you can't talk to him?" Iderra asked.

"I've been working on that."

"On making your image talk?"

"Yes."

"What if he thinks you're working with your father?" Patera said. "You do look an awful lot like him."

"I don't think he can do anything to her if her body is here," Iderra said. "If he had that kind of power, he wouldn't have had to go into Adah to drive her father out."

"Just in case," I said. "I want the two of you to keep an eye on me. If I haven't returned by nightfall, I want you to bring me back."

"How are we supposed to do that?" Patera asked.

"It could be as simple as pinching her on the arm," Iderra said. "Something physical. To pull her out of whatever realm she's in when she's using her powers."

Patera shook his head. "I don't like it. I promised your dying mother that I would defend you with the last breath in my body. But I can't bloody well defend you when you go where I can't follow."

"You managed to follow me to this part of the world. If part of me gets trapped in Sorea, I have no doubt that you'll find a way to follow me there. That's why mother made you a captain. And why I've made you one of my advisers."

"Bah," Patera said. "You made me your adviser because you needed a doddering old fool to replace the doddering old fool that just died. You got that from your mother. She liked to surround herself with doddering old fools."

Iderra grinned. "It gives us hope, that one day we too will become doddering old fools."

"Anyone that'd poke their nose into Sorea, whether it's their physical nose, or their metaphysical nose, is already a fool."

We finished lunch and moved to the drawing room. I sat in a chair, closed my eyes, and pictured the man Patera described, tall and bald, with black eyes, broad shoulders, and narrow hips. A second later, I saw him, sitting on a throne made of white marble. I immediately made my presence as small as I could, smaller than a flea, more like a speck on a flea.

He looked exactly like Patera had described him. He wore sandals, a white wraparound silk skirt that reached the ankles, and no shirt. His head was completely bald, even lacking eyebrows. His face was wrinkled now, looking like that of an old man rather than a middle-aged man.

Some young children were performing a play. Judging by the way the King of Sorea was laughing, it was a humorous play. I couldn't understand the language they were speaking, so I wasn't sure what the children were saying.

His throne room was larger and more ornate than mine here in Vassa. It was made entirely out of white marble, with a white marble floor, and white marble columns supporting a white marble ceiling. There were marble walls on three sides. The fourth side opened to a courtyard. Oil lamps shaped like teapots lit the room. They had been carved directly out of the sides of the marble blocks that became the columns. It was early evening in that part of the world, so flames flickered out of their spouts, adding a warm yellow glow to the place.

I waited until the children's play was over. I'm not sure what it was about, other than it involved a lot of pratfalls. They didn't burn an Adan princess in effigy, so I took that as a good sign.

Once the children left the room and the king was alone, I allowed my image to appear in front of him, looking exactly like I looked now, wearing a forest green velvet gown with a matching green silk ribbon tying my hair back in a ponytail.

I allowed my image to solidify, trusting, that I had finally figured out how my father was able to make his image speak. To see someone, I had to picture them in my mind. To let them see me, I had to picture myself standing before them. Talking worked the same way. Just hearing the words in my mind wasn't enough. I needed to hear the words in my mind then imagine them coming out of my image's mouth.

"I'm Lila Marie Haran." I said the words in my mind, then imaged each word coming out of my image's mouth. "Heir hopeful to the throne of Adah. I come seeking your help against a common enemy, Corbett Barr."

The King of Sorea did something totally unexpected. He rose out of his throne, dropped to one knee, and bowed his head.

"I am Kelce Manalac," he said, speaking my native tongue of Adan. The same tongue I used to speak to him. "And I have been expecting you, Your Majesty."

"Why does the King of Sorea kneel before me?"

"I am not the King of Sorea." Kelce Manalac raised his head, but he didn't stand. "I am merely its overseer. As you can see, I wear no crown."

"You drove Corbett Barr from power. That would make you the new king."

"Sorea has but one ruling family, Your Majesty. I am not a member of that family."

"But you did drive Corbett Barr from power."

"No, Your Majesty. I did not drive Corbett Barr from power. The Crown of Sorrows drove him from power."

"I don't understand."

"Our first king feared that many of his descendants would be corrupted by their power, so he created the Crown of Sorrows. It was the Crown of Sorrows that drove Corbett Barr from Sorea, and then from your homeland of Adah."

"Tell me about this Crown of Sorrows."

"Just before he died, the first King of Sorea placed a curse on his crown. The curse causes the crown's wearer to experience all the sorrow he's caused others since he last wore the crown. That's why it's called the Crown of Sorrows.

"Corbett Barr turned out to be a selfish king, raising taxes to support a lavish lifestyle. Not surprisingly, wearing his crown caused him much discomfort, so much discomfort that he left the country, fleeing to a land where he wouldn't have to wear his crown. If he has returned to your land, then his powers have grown considerably, for our seers have not detected his return."

"He's not in Adah," I said. "He's in the unknown lands, in a country called Dunre. He resides in a castle on the Western Sea, as far from your country as one can get."

"I don't understand how this concerns us. Or you for that matter, Your Majesty."

"It concerns me because I'm also in the unknown lands, in a country called Vassa."

"You're not in Adah?" That news seemed to surprise Kelce Manalac.

"No. Your seers couldn't tell you that?"

"Our seers cannot look for someone they have never seen. You of all people should know that, Your Majesty."

"Now they can," I said.

"Their powers do not reach to the other side of the desert. Even Corbett Barr does not possess such ability, and he is the most powerful seer I have ever met." Kelce Manalac paused for a second. "Until today."

"When Corbett Barr first arrived in Adah, he tried to manipulate my mother into invading Sorea. Why did he do that?"

"The only why to break the curse on the Crown of Sorrows is to burn the remains of the man that placed the curse upon the crown."

"Sorea's first king."

"Yes."

"Corbett Barr is trying to take over the world," I said. "The half of the world I'm in. I was hoping you could help me stop him."

"I am but a humble servant of Sorea. I possess no power that could defeat one such as Corbett Barr."

"You drove him from Adah."

"When our seers discovered that he was planning on using Adah's armies to invade Sorea, I paid a visit to your mother's palace and demanded that he don his crown. The curse compels him to don his crown when one of his subjects asks him to, so he was compelled to put on his crown. Once again, he felt the pain his actions had caused others. Rather than change his selfish ways, he chose to flee to a place where I couldn't reach him."

"There's no where left for him to flee," I said. "He lives in a castle on the Western Sea, as far from Sorea as one can get."

"You're wondering what would happen if someone were to ask him to don his crown."

"If he still has his crown with him."

"He still has it," Kelce Manalac said. "Once you don the Crown of Sorrows, you cannot give it up. It is with you until you die."

"What would happen if he wore the crown?"

"It's been decades since he last wore it. As such, he would experience a lot of sorrow in a very short time, probably more than the human heart could take."

"In other words: wearing the Crown of Sorrows will kill him."

Kelce Manalac nodded. "I believe so."

"He's been trying to kill me since I arrived in this part of the world. My first night here, assassins burst into the inn I was staying at. A short while later, pirates attacked and burned the ship they thought I was on. A short while after that, a man who was supposed to be an ally tried to kill me. I don't suppose you can tell me why?"

"You are his daughter, one of his subjects. Which means you have the power to compel him to don his crown."

"Do I have to be standing in front of him or can I talk to him like this?"

Kelce Manalac smiled. "There is only one way to find out."

"Have you ever heard of a higher being called the Prince of the Air?"

Kelce Manalac shook his head. "I am sorry, I have not."

That meant Corbett Barr made his deal with the Prince of the Air after arriving in this part of the world. The Prince of the Air probably told my father that he could extend his life and help him recapture his throne, help him break the curse on the Crown of Sorrows. In return, he intended to use my father to make people worship him as a god.

"I thank you for your time, Kelce Manalac, Overseer of Sorea," I said, curtsying. "You have been most helpful."

Kelce Manalac bowed his head, then rose to his feet and pointed to the marble throne behind him. "If you succeed, you will come and claim your throne?"

He caught me off-guard with that question. That wasn't my throne, anymore than Sorea was my country. I couldn't even speak their language. Then there was the Crown of Sorrows. There was no way I was going to wear a crown that had a curse on it. My lust for power wasn't that great.

"I can't answer that question," I said. "Right now, I'm just trying to survive. Not to mention protect those that I love."

"Our seers have been monitoring your homeland. They tell me that your sister, Bedonna, wants to invade us."

"I'm aware of that."

"Our seers claim your sister plans on building an army so massive that we won't be able to stop it."

"She'll meet opposition. We've never successfully invaded your country. Many of the generals will oppose her for that very reason."

"If she has her way, many lives will be lost. On both sides."

"I know."

"You're the only one that can prevent another war between our two countries."

"My father wants to conquer this half of the world. My sister wants to conquer that half. Problem is, I can only deal with one of them at a time. Since my father is closer, I'll deal with him first. Once I've dealt with him, I'll worry about Bedonna." Assuming I lived that long.

Kelce Manalac bowed his head. "I will pray for your welfare, Your Majesty."

I let my image fade away. I opened my eyes, to find myself back in my drawing room. Idy and Patera were still on the divan facing my chair.

"Well?" they said in unison.

"His name is Kelce Manalac," I said. "He's the Overseer of Sorea."

"Overseer?" Patera said. "Don't you mean king?"

"Corbett Barr is still the King of Sorea, and will be until he dies. At that point, his heir will inherit the throne. Assuming I'm still alive and wish to claim it." Iderra stared at me for a few seconds, then started to laugh. Which prompted me to ask the obvious question. "What's so funny?"

"When mother died, I headed east, toward Sorea, and you headed west, toward a father that wants to kill you. If we had been smart, I would've headed in this direction, where no one knew who I was, and you would've headed for Sorea, where you would've been welcomed with open arms."

When she put it that way, it was kind of funny.

"Did you learn how to defeat your father?" Patera asked. Clearly he didn't share Idy's sense of humor, but then few people did.

"I did." I went on to explain what I saw and learned.

When I finished telling them about my encounter with Kelce Manalac, Iderra spoke. "So all you need to do is get close to your father, at which point you can compel him to don his crown."

I nodded. "Once he's wearing his crown the curse will do the rest."

"You're sure this Crown of Sorrows will kill him?" a skeptical Patera said.

"Kelce Manalac thinks it will."

"And if you were to don your father's crown, you'd be under the same curse?"

"That's not going to be a problem," I said. "I have no intention of claiming my father's crown."

"You might not have a choice," Iderra said.

"What makes you say that?"

"Bedonna wants to go down in history as the first Queen of Adah to conquer the unconquerable Sorea. Without you leading them, without your powers, Sorea could fall."

"They've done okay without my father on the throne. I suspect they'll do okay without me."

"They did okay without your father on the throne because mother was the Queen of Adah and she hated war. We both know that Bedonna isn't mother. As much as we want to avoid it. I fear that one day, fate is going to force one of us to square off against our big sister."

Patera looked at me. "What's our next move?"

"Our next move is to take the Queen Catlett up river and warn the high sage that he's about to be invaded."

"And if he won't listen?"

"Then he and his kingdom will die."

# Chapter 12

Jarvo might not have been paying attention to Maximillian Bedard, but he was keeping tabs on who sailed in and out of his city. Less than one hour after the Queen Catlett docked in Istansada City, Jarvo came riding up in a red and black carriage. He climbed out of the carriage, and escorted by a pair of Commodore Hubbard's men, headed up the gangplank.

I met him at the top of the gangplank. I wore black riding boots, black leather breeches, a black silk shirt that laced up the front, and a black leather waistcoat. The Queen of Vassa's seven pointed silver crown rested on my head, keeping my hair pinned behind my ears. The silver and gold cutlass with the Rose of Adah on its belt buckle hung from my left hip.

The last time I had been here, a little less than one year ago, I was a barbarian princess that had been kidnapped and brought to this part of the world against my will. Now, I came as the Queen of Vassa and the unchallenged leader of the Finger States. I had land, money, and manpower. Plus, my powers had grown. If Jarvo thought he was meeting the same girl that he tossed into the high sage's harem, he was in for a surprise.

"Your Majesty," Jarvo said, bowing. "Had I known we were about to be honored with your presence, I would've prepared an appropriate welcome."

"I bring pressing news," I said. "There wasn't time to send you advanced notice of my visit."

"Then why don't we adjourn to the palace. I know the high sage will be excited to see you."

"It would be safer if we talked in my cabin. The high sage's palace has too many ears."

Jarvo didn't argue. He just bowed again and fell in beside me as I headed for my cabin beneath the ship's foredeck.

"This is a new ship," Jarvo said, looking around.

"It's called a corsair. Designed by my sister, the Princess Iderra. Built at the Haran Shipyards in Vassa."

"Did you have any trouble with pirates on your journey upriver?"

"We encountered six pirate ships. We sank one and left the other five dead in the water."

"You do have a lot of soldiers on board. Some wearing uniforms I've never seen before."

"The men you're referring to come from my homeland of Adah."

"I heard about the deaths of Queen Catlett and Chancellor Edgerton. Not to mention the kings of Holt, Enid, and Tash."

"The work of Maximillian Bedard," I said. "Which is why I'm here. I regret to inform you that he's about to move against another ruler."

"The high sage?"

"Yes."

I led Jarvo into my office, which connected to my bedroom and lay across the passageway from a pair of guest cabins. Shu followed us into the room. Bokham and Vomeir remained just outside the door.

"You remember Shumeredena Kestan," I said, sitting on the front edge of my desk.

We picked Shu up in Genese, where she was serving as the Steward of Holt. She insisted on coming with us, thinking maybe she could help convince Jarvo that the high sage was in danger.

Jarvo sat in one of the captain's chairs that faced my desk. "I remember who she pretended to be when she was in the harem, but I can't say I ever met the real woman."

"The real woman was a spy for the late Duke of Genese," Shu said, sitting next to me on the front edge of my desk. "The high sage's harem is littered with spies. And I'm not even talking about the ones that report to you."

Jarvo scowled at Shu, making no attempt to hide the fact that he didn't like her, or what she was telling him. But then he had reasons not to like her. Not only did she spy on him for the Duke of Genese, she helped me slip out of his grasp. Instead of responding to her, he turned to me. "You believe Maximillian Bedard is planning on assassinating the high sage?"

"He's not planning an assassination. He's planning an invasion. Even as we speak, his army is marshaling on the Landish-Dunre border. Once his army is ready, they'll invade Landish and kill the high sage. Max will then claim the high sage's throne for himself."

"Maximillian Bedard knows everything that's going on here," Shu said. "The high sage's first wife is one of his spies. Thanks to her, he knows that you're not ready for war. He knows that you don't even suspect what he's up to."

The look on Jarvo's face told both of us that he didn't know the high sage's first wife was a spy. Still, he composed himself quickly. "The harem is isolated from the rest of the palace. How much can she learn?"

"More than you know," Shu said. "The servants and guards in your palace talk freely. Especially to those that pay them well. And she pays them very well."

"You told me that you'd worry about Maximillian Bedard if and when the time came," I said. "Well, the time to worry is now, Counselor."

"How big an army are we talking about?"

"Two thousand men, possibly more."

"I can assemble eight hundred men at the most, not nearly enough to stop Maximillian Bedard's army."

"You must send someone to the Land of Nomads," I said. "To recruit the horsemen of the Central Tribes to fight with you."

"The mercenaries from the Land of Nomads are expensive."

"You have plenty of gold to give them," Shu said. "If you don't spend it now, then Maximillian Bedard will spend it when you and the high sage are dead."

"Even with the horsemen from the Land of Nomads, we won't have enough men to defeat the King of Dunre's army." Jarvo looked at me. "But if the Finger States were to join us."

"I'd gladly give you my men, and I suspect Shu would do the same."

"But?"

"Many in the Finger States view your country as a heathen land. Convincing them to help you will not be easy."

"Even knowing they'll be the next to fall?"

"They believe the One God will deliver them from their enemies through someone called Destiny's Queen. Then there's the King of Kavel."

"What about the King of Kavel?"

"The King of Kavel has aligned himself with Maximillian Bedard. He was the one that planted the explosives that killed Catlett and the others."

"So Landish is left to stand alone against the might of Dunre," Jarvo said.

"Probably," I said. "I'll call a meeting of the leaders of the remaining Finger States, tell them that you requested our assistance in your upcoming battle with Dunre. But it will be difficult to convince them to fight on your behalf. The barons in my country, and the other countries, view this place as a heathen land that worships heathen gods."

"I'll urge the high sage to send envoys to the Land of Nomads," Jarvo said. "But first, you must tell him what's going on. Maximillian Bedard has been working hard to convince the high sage that they're allies. I'm not sure he'll believe me if I tell him that Max is about to invade us."

"I'll talk to him as long as you don't try to toss me in the harem," I said jokingly.

"Perhaps if you had stayed in the harem, we'd be more prepared for war and Max wouldn't have as much influence over the high sage as he currently has."

"I came here as soon as I found out what Max was planning. And if I had stayed in the harem, you couldn't expect help from the Finger States."

"I'm not expecting help from the Finger States," Jarvo said. "I know how your people feel about us and our gods."

"It does no good to sit here and argue what might have been," Shu said. "We must deal with what is."

"The Lady Shumaredena is right," Jarvo said. "And just for the record. We do not kidnap queens. An act like that could lead to war."

"And you cannot afford a war on two fronts," Shu added.

"We cannot afford a war on one front," Jarvo said.

Shu and I headed for the high sage's palace in Jarvo's carriage. My guards followed the carriage on foot, while Shu's guards remained with the ship. Shu wasn't worried about being tossed into the high sage's harem and neither were her men. I wasn't worried about being tossed into the high sage's harem either, but Bokham, Vomeir, and Patera didn't trust Jarvo.

I changed clothes before climbing into Jarvo's carriage, getting rid of my black leather breeches and replacing the riding boots with dress boots. The dress boots were black, laced up the front, and contained a four inch heel. My black silk shirt was just long enough to cover my bottom, with my cutlass buckled around my waist, it looked like a short dress.

"I think you'll be surprised when you see the high sage," Jarvo said. "Training with the scimitar has helped him to slim down. He's no longer the pudgy boy you remember."

He wasn't lying about the high sage having slimmed down. I hardly recognized him when I met him in his private quarters. No longer overweight, he wore black silk balloon pants and an emerald green vest that he left open. I assumed that was so he could show off his newly developed arm, shoulder, and chest muscles. He still wore his red hair short, with tuffs sticking out from beneath his emerald green turban.

Even as a pudgy boy, he had a handsome face, with a square jaw, a small nose, and bright green eyes. With the baby fat gone from his face and body, he was down right striking. A scimitar hung from his left hip, something that hadn't been there the last time we were together. Green silk slippers covered his feet.

"You're starting to look like a real leader," I said.

My comment wiped the smile from the high sage's face. "Just starting?"

"Real leadership is determined by the decisions one makes during times of crisis. Whether you like it or not, the first, and perhaps the biggest crisis of your reign, is upon you."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Lila, but it's good to see you."

He tried to hug me, but I held out a hand, stopping him.

"Even as we speak, Maximillian Bedard is marshaling his army on the Landish border. He intends to invade your country, kill you, and claim your throne. What you decide to do about it will determine whether you are a great leader or a foolish one."

"Max is my friend," the high sage said. "Unlike you, he visits me regularly. I didn't even get an invitation to your coronation."

"My coronation was a rather informal one. It occurred around six in the morning, in the hallway just outside Queen Catlett's suite, minutes after she had been killed by Maximillian Bedard and his allies. Besides, everybody knows that the world comes to the high sage and not the other way around."

"Max told me that Queen Catlett's death was the work of a organization called the Knights of the Royal Brotherhood. A clandestine group of minor royals that wishes to kill all the rulers in this part of the world so they can claim power for themselves."

"The Brotherhood doesn't wish to kill all rulers," I said. "They'd never hurt the one that pays them. Your so called friend, Maximillian Bedard."

Jarvo stepped forward. "You must send a scout to the Dunre border, Your Supreme Highness, find out if the Queen of Vassa speaks the truth."

"It would take a full week for a scout to ride to the Dunre border and back," I said. "Plus a couple of days to locate Max's army. You don't have that kind of time. You must marshal your forces now, prepare for the defense of your country."

"I'll do what Counselor Jarvo suggests," the high sage said. "I'll send a scout to the Dunre border to see if Max is marshaling his forces as you claim."

"Even if you had time for that, which you don't. That scout will be captured and killed. He won't live to report back to you."

"And you know this because?" the high sage said.

"Because Max has a seer at his disposal. He'll see your scout coming."

"You're sure Max has a seer at his disposal?" a surprised Jarvo said.

"I'm sure," I said.

Jarvo turned to the high sage. "Perhaps we should marshal our forces just to be safe."

The high sage shook his head. "I'm not going to prepare for war against a friend and ally until I have proof that he's planning on betraying me."

"You have the Queen of Vassa's word. Isn't that enough?"

"I've seen Max six times since I last saw her. Each time, he's assured me that we're allies. Why should I take her word over his?" The high sage folded his arms across his chest and thrust his lower lip out in a pout. He had changed physically since the last time I saw him, going from a pudgy boy to a handsome young man, but inside, he was still a boy. And that boy was mad at me for not visiting.

I placed my hand on Jarvo's arm. "Why don't you give us some time alone. Perhaps until morning."

"I will leave the two of you to talk in private." Jarvo bowed and backed out of the room.

I got the impression that the high sage still didn't like Max, and that he was just doing this to get some attention from me. The question was: how much attention was I going to have to give him? Hopefully, no more than one night.

As soon as we were alone, the high sage hugged me. "I've missed you, Lila."

"I doubt that," I said. "You have a harem full of wives."

He felt different from the last time he hugged me, leaner and stronger and less doughy. He felt like a man and not a boy. Whether he liked it or not, whether he was ready or not, it was time for him to become a man.

"They're not my wives. They're Jarvo's wives. He selects them for the harem. He checks up on them. I doubt they would recognize me were I to walk through the harem." He finished hugging me then stepped back, so we were an arm's length apart. "I took your advice after you left. I demanded that Jarvo have someone teach me how to use a scimitar. I've been practicing hard since you were last here."

"That's good," I said. "Because you may have to use that scimitar in the coming days. Whether you believe me or not, you will be invaded."

The high sage moved to a pile of pillows and plopped down on them. "I don't want to talk about Max. I want to tell you what I've been doing. And I want you to tell me what you've been doing."

I moved to the pillows and sat, so I was facing the high sage. "Fine. Tell me what you've been doing."

The high sage told me about how he confronted Jarvo and demanded that he be allowed to train with a scimitar. He told me about his instructor and how he insisted that the high sage was the best pupil he ever had. He recounted how he practiced five to six hours a day. When he finished talking, he leapt to his feet and drew his scimitar. "Draw your cutlass, Lila, and I'll show you how much I've learned."

I didn't feel like dueling with the high sage, but I figured the only way I was going to get him to focus on Max and the upcoming war was to let him get everything else out of his system. So I pushed myself to my feet and drew my cutlass.

I decided to start with my left hand. I wasn't as good with it and figured it would make for a fairer fight. After all, I'd been training with a sword since I was six, while the high sage had been training for less than a year. I moved to a part of the room where there weren't any tables or pillows, held the cutlass in front of me, and placed my right hand behind my back. The high sage held his scimitar with his right hand and took up a position facing me.

The high sage tossed his turban aside. "Perhaps we should have a wager."

"What kind of a wager?"

"If I win the duel, we'll spend the rest of the evening doing what I want."

"And what do you want to do? Besides duel."

A wicked smile spread across the high sage's handsome face and his eyes raked over my body. "I want to see you naked. I want to touch you while you're naked. You see, I've also been studying the female body. Where it likes to be touched. How it likes to be touched. Every time I studied it, I thought of you."

He was an eighteen year old boy. What did I expect? Still, part of me was flattered. He had a harem full of wives and a palace full of serving girls. He could have any of them any time he wanted, and he only seemed to want me. Go figure.

"And if I win?"

"If you win, I'll order Jarvo to assemble my army. Just like you want."

I was curious to see what the high sage had learned in the art of lovemaking, but I needed him to assemble his army, so I switched my cutlass to my right hand and slipped my left hand behind my back.

"I'll expect you to honor our bet when I win," I said.

The high sage smiled. "And I'll expect you to honor our bet when I win."

I bowed. The high sage returned my bow and the duel commenced. I let the high sage take the offensive. I have to admit that he was good. He had learned more than I thought he could in less than a year. Not that he was good enough to beat me. And even if he had been, I still had the power to remove his scimitar from his hand anytime I wanted.

I let the fight continue for quite awhile, mostly because I didn't want to embarrass the high sage. He was doing this to impress me and I found that flattering. About a half hour into the duel, in which we thrust and parried our way around most of the high sage's private suite, the high sage stepped back, lowered his scimitar, and bowed.

"I must concede," he said.

"I haven't won yet," I said.

The high sage smiled. "You've been toying with me, Lila. I'm bright enough to know that you could've ended this fight anytime you wanted. You've let it go on this long so as not to embarrass me. Perhaps, that's why I like you so much."

"I started training with a sword when I was six years old." I sheathed my cutlass. "I have a fourteen year head start on you."

The high sage sheathed his scimitar. "Tomorrow morning, I'll order Counselor Jarvo to assemble my army."

"Your army isn't big enough to defeat Max's army. You need to send envoys to the Land of Nomads, to recruit mercenaries."

"If you think that's best."

"It'll help, but I fear it won't be enough. Tomorrow morning, I'll return to Vassa, call a meeting of the Finger States, and inform them that you've asked for our assistance in your fight against Maximillian Bedard."

"And if the Finger States won't help me?"

"Then you must find a way to defeat a superior force."

"Why would Max do this? Why would he claim to be my friend while plotting behind my back?"

"He's not in control of what happens in Dunre," I said.

"How can he not be in control? He's the king."

"He's being controlled by a man of great power, a man that comes from the far side of the world. This man was a king before Max was even born and has been by Max's side since he was a young man, whispering in his ear, influencing him the way Max has tried to influence you."

"He must be very old."

"He is, although he doesn't look it."

"How can one be old, but not look old?"

"Years ago, he made a deal with a higher being called the Prince of the Air. This being granted him an unnaturally long life in return for his allegiance."

"How do we defeat a man powerful enough to control kings?"

"That secret has already been revealed to me." I removed the silver crown I was wearing and placed it on the closest table. I unbuckled my scabbard and laid my cutlass next to my crown. "You don't need to worry about that."

I moved toward the high sage and started to unlace my black silk shirt-dress.

"What are you doing, Lila?"

"I failed to disarm you and you failed to disarm me, which means our duel was a draw. Since you're honoring your end of our bet, I'll honor mine."

"You don't have to do that, although I'd be lying if I said I hadn't dreamed about this."

I had never been anyone's dream girl and it was flattering. Especially when you considered all the women the high sage had at his disposal. Plus, I liked him. He had changed in the past year, going from a pudgy boy to a handsome and athletic young man. While he still had a lot of boyish enthusiasm, he wasn't naive enough to be deceived by Max and his pretense at friendship. Even so, the odds were pretty good that he'd be dead soon, and it just didn't seem right to let him die without spending a night with one of his wives.

Plus, I had another reason for wanting to sleep with the high sage, a selfish reason which had nothing to do with the pleasure he or I might receive. I had done some studying on Landish law and discovered that should the high sage die without naming an heir, his wife would take his place on the throne.

If the high sage had more than one wife, which all high sage's did, then the first to consummate her marriage to the high sage would ascend to the throne. It had only happened twice before in Landish history, but that was enough to establish precedent.

The two women that sat on the throne were known as the first consummate. Not what I would call a subtle title, but one I could live with. The high sage didn't know that I spent a few nights in his harem, but according to Shu and Jarvo, it had been recorded in the palace records. I was and forever would be, the high sage's thirteenth wife.

Tomorrow morning, I'd make sure that everyone knew the high sage's thirteenth wife was the first to consummate her marriage. Should Max succeed in killing the high sage, I could make a legal claim to his throne, which would make it harder for Max to assume the throne.

***

"You planned all of this," Jarvo said, as he escorted me out of the high sage's private suite the next morning.

"If Max kills the high sage and claims his throne, someone will need to step forward and claim to be the legitimate heir to the high sage. As first consummate, I'm now in a position to do that."

"Why do I feel like I've been set up."

"Perhaps next time, you'll think twice before you toss someone into the high sage's harem."

"I fear there won't be a next time. If you can't convince the Finger States to fight with us, then we will fall. Even if the emissaries I dispatched to the Land of Nomads return with a sizeable army of mercenaries, we'll still be outnumbered."

"Miship says he'll lead his army into battle."

"It's Landish tradition. The high sage leads. He doesn't follow."

"He knows nothing about war."

"He's studied Landish battle tactics. And he'll have people to advise him."

"How big an army will you be able to assemble?"

"Around eight hundred men, although it will take time for those from the outlying districts to arrive here. I also dispatched one dozen emissaries with enough gold to recruit four to eight hundred mercenaries from the Land of Nomads. If you and your remaining three allies join us, we'll have more men than Max has, if your report on the size of his army is to be believed."

"Don't be surprised if Max brings more than two thousand men to the battle."

Jarvo looked at me. "You know something I don't?"

"I know something of the man behind Max. It wouldn't surprise me if he's built a larger army than we're expecting."

We reached the palace's main hall, where the party celebrating the high sage's ascension had been going on for the last two years. Over the course of the night, that two year celebration had ended. The only people in the hall were Shu, Patera, Vomeir, Bokham, and some members of the palace guard. Shu spent the night in the harem, catching up with old friends and doing who knows what else. I'm not sure where Patera and Vomeir spent the night, but they looked happy, if not well rested. Bokham didn't look happy or well rested. He looked like a man that spent the night worrying about my welfare. No big surprise considering what happened the first time we were here.

I looked at Jarvo. "What happened to the party?"

"Rumors of war bring parties to a quick end. Even in Landish."

"I don't believe the Finger States will join you in your war with Dunre."

Jarvo nodded. "Nor do I."

"Tell your generals that the Queen of Vassa and the First Consummate of Landish offers them sanctuary within her borders. If they retreat south, to Vassa, instead of back this way, they won't be slaughtered. I don't believe Max will pursue them into the Finger States." That was because my father hadn't given Max permission to attack Vassa. Yet.

We reached the others and stopped. Jarvo turned to me, and bowed. "Your offer is most gracious, Your Majesty. I shall inform our generals of it."

"My motives are entirely selfish," I said. "The remnants of your army will strengthen mine, and that will improve my chances when Max decides to move against me."

"Perhaps we'll surprise you and drive Maximillian Bedard back from our borders."

"I look forward to hearing such news, Counselor."

With that said, I gathered my people and left. I had been there for less than a day, but accomplished everything I hoped to achieve. It was time to meet with the other leaders of the Finger States, find out if we were going to war.

# Chapter 13

One week after my meeting with the high sage, the kings, dukes, and barons of the Finger States assembled in Vassa to discuss the high sage's request for assistance. Much to my surprise, Roehl Tharrington agreed to attend, no doubt sent by my father to push the Finger States toward neutrality in the upcoming war between Dunre and Landish.

Roehl still believed that I didn't know about his part in killing Catlett and the others, nor would he find out, not until he had ingested some of the powder hidden in the locket I now wore around my neck. He would come to the gathering a healthy young man. He would leave unable to do anything except blink. He would spend the rest of his life that way and he would know why.

***

After lunch, the leaders of all five Finger States assembled in my dining room. The oversized tables were laid out in a pentagon, with each country having its own table. Flags flew at each end of each table, identifying which country sat at which table.

Once everyone was assembled, I stood. "I've called this meeting for one purpose. To inform all of you that Maximillian Bedard is assembling his troops on the Landish border just north of here. Once his army is ready, he'll invade Landish, kill the high sage, and claim his throne. The high sage has requested our aid in his upcoming battle with Dunre. The question is: do we join Landish in their war against Dunre?"

I sat and waited to hear what the others had to say. Not surprisingly, Roehl Tharrington stood up next.

"If Dunre is indeed planning on invading Landish, like you claim, then they are doing it for all of us. The high sage has allowed piracy to run rampant on the Istansada River. The King of Dunre has visited him repeatedly, warning the high sage that he must take steps to curb this piracy. Landish has become a lawless land and Maximillian Bedard is trying to restore order to this lawless land. I say, we would be better off with him on the throne of Landish instead of the young fool that currently sits there. Kavel opposes aiding the high sage."

Murmurs of agreement issued from Roehl's table. Roehl sat and took a sip from the goblet of wine we placed in front of him. A goblet that contained some of the paralyzing powder Iderra gave me. Little did he know, he had just spoken some of the last words of his life. As he sipped from the wine, I said to myself, "That's for Catlett, and Edgerton, and everyone else you killed the last time you were here."

The King of Tash stood up next. He was a tall, skinny, pimple faced teenager of fifteen. He looked more than a bit uncomfortable at having to speak in front of all of us.

"Tash believes the King of Dunre merely wants to put an end to the rise in piracy, just as the King of Kavel states." The boy seemed to lose his train of thought, until one of his advisers whispered something in his ear. He nodded, then continued. "Plus, we have no defense treaty with Landish. As long as the Finger States are not directly threatened, Tash opposes any military action against Dunre."

The young man sat down, looking relieved that he didn't have to speak anymore. It wasn't surprising that Tash would side with Kavel. Dunre lay directly north of both countries, while neither country bordered Landish.

Shu stood up next, speaking for the Princess Vanessa, who sat on her right. "Unlike some of you, we in Holt know a little something about the pirates that have been causing havoc on the Istansada River. Even though they sail in Landish longboats, the men controlling these ships work for Maximillian Bedard. This so called piracy is nothing more than an excuse to give the King of Dunre a reason to invade Landish and claim the high sage's throne for himself. We believe that when Bedard has conquered Landish, he'll turn his sights on the Finger States. We believe it would be in our best interest to stand with Landish."

Shu sat and everyone turned toward the King of Enid. The short, rotund, teenager who looked like a chipmunk cheeked version of his late father. He listened to the man on his right, then stood. "Enid also believes it would be best to stand with Landish."

Holt and Enid's positions weren't surprising. Landish bordered Holt to the east and the north, while it bordered Enid to the north. If Dunre invaded Landish, then the ensuing war would occur on both Enid's and Holt's northern borders. Both countries feared Max's army would turn south and preferred to join forces with the Landish army.

"My country cannot and will not declare war on our northern neighbor," Roehl Tharrington said. "A neighbor who has never made any threatening moves against us and has been a good trading partner. If this council decides to go to war against Dunre, then it will do so without Kavel's army."

Roehl sat and took another sip of his wine. A second later, he began to jerk spasmodically. His eyes rolled back into his head and foam sputtered out of his mouth. A few seconds later, he collapsed face first onto the table in front of him, spilling what was left of his wine.

I stood. "Why don't we take a short break. It appears the King of Kavel has taken ill."

Roehl's people scrambled out of their seats and huddled around their fallen leader, trying desperately to figure out what was wrong with him. Not that they would figure it out. Only two people knew what was wrong. Myself, who poured the powder into his wine, and Iderra, who gave me the powder. Before they took Roehl Tharrington home, I would make sure he knew what had happened and why. So he could spend the rest of his life, such as it would be, thinking about the people that he killed.

My personal physician appeared and took a look at the young man. I had no idea what he would conclude, probably that Roehl's heart had temporarily failed him. I doubt if anyone in Roehl's camp would suspect poison. After all, the King of Kavel was among friends.

With the meeting having paused because of Roehl's sudden illness. I met in a corner with Vassa's four barons. The Baron of Selve. The Baron of Reilly. The Baron of Elleby. And the Baron of Larimore.

The Baron of Selve spoke first. "We cannot go to war against Dunre unless all of the Finger States are united. Plus we owe nothing to Landish. It's a heathen land that worships heathen gods. As far as I'm concerned, the world will be a better place with the King of Dunre on the high sage's throne."

I looked at the Baron of Selve. "Wouldn't it be better to fight the King of Dunre now, while we can join forces with the Landish Army?"

"There's no guarantee that he'll turn his army on us," the Baron of Reilly said.

"He killed Queen Catlett," I said.

"And he gained nothing from it. Vassa is as strong as ever. Perhaps stronger. He knows it's folly to move against a country that worships the One God."

"Bedard's feud with Catlett was personal," the Baron of Elleby added. "He never forgave her for rejecting his marriage proposal."

I looked at the Baron of Elleby. "If that's all it was, then why did he kill the kings of Holt, Enid, and Tash? I believe he did it because he plans on invading the Finger States."

"We're not ready for war," the Baron of Larimore said. "No matter what we believe will happen. We're just not ready. We need more time to build and train our armies."

"You're right," I conceded. "We're not ready for war, but whether we like it or not, war is coming. I guarantee it, for I know something of the man behind Maximillian Bedard. The man that's pulling his strings. The question is: is it better to let Landish fall and build up our forces, or take what we have and fight with the Landish Army?"

"Build up our forces," the Baron of Selve said.

"Build up our forces," the Baron of Larimore said.

"Build up our forces," the Baron of Elleby said.

"Build up our forces," the Baron of Reilly said.

"Do I have your guarantees that when you go home, you'll build up your armies? That your words aren't hollow?"

"The Dunre-Landish border is north of my land," the Baron of Larimore said. "I have no choice but to build up my army and move it to the border, less the fighting spill onto my land."

"My land also borders Dunre," the Baron of Elleby said. "I have no choice but to build up my army and move them to the border, just to keep the King of Dunre's army from thinking they can move south onto my land. I suggest you do the same, Your Majesty, seeing how your northern lands also border Dunre."

"It's already been done," I said. "Fifty members of the queen's guard were dispatched to my northern border along with fifty newly trained recruits. They can't stop a full scale invasion, but they should be able to intercept any scouts that Max sends south."

I called the meeting to order. Once everyone was seated, save for Roehl Tharrington, who had been taken to his room, I stood and let everyone know Vassa's opinion.

"Vassa is not yet prepared to go to war," I said. "We do believe that war between Dunre and the Finger States is on the horizon, for we know full well who was behind the death of our beloved Queen Catlett. As such, we will build up our forces, hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst. We urge the barons, dukes, stewards, and kings of the other Finger States to do the same, acting with haste, for time is short. With that said, it appears this meeting is over. By a vote of three to two, the Finger States have decided not to get involved in the Dunre--Landish war. I will inform the high sage of our decision, which he will find regrettable, but not surprising."

A sense of relief filled the room. No one wanted to go to war, including me. Did I think we were better off joining forces with the high sage or waiting? I thought we were better off waiting. According to Sardis, the queen's guard was getting ten new recruits a day. At that rate, we would have six hundred new recruits in just two months. A force nearly equal to that of the high sage's army. Plus, I knew what kind of training our recruits were receiving. I didn't know what kind of training the high sage's army had.

"Are you disappointed?" Iderra said to me. She spoke in Adan, so those we didn't trust couldn't understand us.

"It went as expected," I said in Adan. "We'll be no worse off if we wait."

"Will you take the Queen Catlett back up river? Inform the high sage of our decision?"

I shook my head. "I can inform the high sage of our decision without traveling upriver."

Iderra switched to the Common Tongue, so everybody could understand us. "It's a shame the King of Kavel took ill."

"Let's hope it isn't serious. For he is a good friend."

"Perhaps, you should pay him a visit this evening. Nothing cheers up a young man quicker than the sight of a beautiful woman."

"Perhaps, I shall," I said.

***

I paid a visit to Roehl Tharrington's suite that evening. Most of the others attending the council had already gone home. Roehl and his people remained here, gravely concerned for their king, who was unable to talk or move any muscle in his body save for his eyes.

"Has his condition improved?"

Roehl's chancellor, Jonas Sowe, was escorting me through the drawing room toward the bedroom. He was a tall man. He wore his snow white hair in a ponytail. He dressed in black, like most royal advisers. He had a complexion the color of wheat, with eyes the color of cinnamon. Despite his snow white hair, he didn't look much older than Vomeir. He was clean shaven and had a boyish face marred only by a small scar on his upper lip.

"His condition remains the same," Chancellor Sowe said. "He's awake but is unable to talk or move."

"Did my physician know anything?"

"He thinks the king's heart failed him. He says he's seen this in other, albeit older patients, where a brief failure of their heart leaves them unable to move part or all of their body."

"But the king is so young. It seems odd that someone so young and strong should suffer a brief failure of the heart."

"His father's heart failed him when he was in his early forties. The same for his grandfather. Your physician says he could have inherited the condition."

"Could the stress of war aggravate the condition?"

Chancellor Sowe shrugged his shoulders. "Tomorrow morning, we set sail for Kavel. Hopefully the king's personal physician will be able to help him."

"Perhaps the smell of the sea will improve his health. In one of his letters, he told me that he loathed traveling inland for he missed the smell of the sea."

"Let us hope so," Chancellor Sowe said.

"Who'll govern Kavel while the king is in this condition?"

"Roehl will still be the king. Albeit in name only. He has no heir, so the day to day governance of the kingdom will be left to myself."

"Will you fight alongside your brothers, if Dunre turns its armies on the Finger States?"

"I don't believe the King of Dunre will move his army against us. Attacking a heathen nation such as Landish is one thing. But to move against states that worship the One God, like we do, is to move against the One God himself."

"You didn't answer my question, Chancellor."

"Let us cross that bridge when we come to it, Your Majesty."

I took that as a no, as in no, they wouldn't help us in a war with Dunre.

Chancellor Sowe opened the door to Roehl's bedroom and stepped aside. "I'll give you and the king some privacy. Perhaps a beautiful queen is just the medicine he needs."

I smiled at the chancellor then headed into Roehl's bedroom. An attractive young woman with long red hair was sitting on the bed next to him, holding his hand. She scrambled to her feet when she saw me and shuffled out of the room, curtsying as she passed. She shut the door on her way out, leaving me alone with the King of Kavel.

Roehl was in the middle of the large bed, his head and shoulders propped up on pillows. The blankets were pulled up to his waist and his arms lay quietly on top.

I stood at the foot of Roehl's bed, where he could see me, and removed my red silk robe. Underneath, I wore a red silk corset, red silk stockings, red silk briefs, and a pair of black dress boots with four inch heels. The corset was so tight, my breasts looked like they were going to pop out, which was exactly what I wanted.

"Do you like my outfit?" I twirled, so he could see me from all sides. "I wore it just for you."

I climbed onto the foot of the bed and crawled on my hands and knees to where the redhead had been, moving as slowly and as sensuously as I could. I wanted Roehl to see me. I wanted him to see what he could never have, what he could never touch. When I reached the head of the bed, I sat next to him and stretched my legs out in front of me.

"I'm guessing that girl was your lover. You realize that if you don't get better, you'll never be able to touch her, let alone make love to her. You'll only be able to lie there and think about what you're missing. Being as young and as beautiful as she is, she'll undoubtedly take another lover."

I turned and leaned over Roehl, positioning myself so my lips brushed his ear, so he could see nothing but my breasts. I lowered my voice, so that even if someone had been in the room with us, they wouldn't be able to hear what I was saying.

"I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that if your heart did fail you, like everyone believes, you might get better. You might be able to make love to her some day. The truth is, you're not going to get better. You're going to be like this for the rest of your life. Never again will you be able to touch a beautiful woman. Never again, will you enjoy the feel of her ripe breasts in your hands. Never again, will you be able to caress her silky skin or whisper sweet nothings in her ear. For you see, you're not the only one that knows alchemy."

I leaned back, so I could see Roehl's eyes. His pupils dilated when I mention the word alchemy, but that was the only change I saw in him. Otherwise, he remained perfectly still. He didn't move a single muscle, save for the involuntary blinking of his eyes and the gentle rise and fall of his chest.

"I saw you talking to Max on his ship, the morning Catlett and the others died. I heard you explain to him how you used alchemy to make your weapons." I played with Roehl's hair, then let my index finger trail up and down the bridge of his nose. "I'm not exactly sure how the stuff I slipped into your drink works. According to my sister, it destroys the connection between your brain and your body. It's kind of ironic when you think about it. You used alchemy to kill those who trusted you, and now alchemy has made you completely helpless. So helpless that I could pinch your nose until you couldn't breathe, and you wouldn't be able to do anything about it."

I let my index finger pause on the tip of his nose, just long enough to make him think I might actually do it. "Of course, I would never do something like that. I'll leave that to your chancellor, or perhaps to that beautiful redhead that was just in here.

"They won't do it for awhile, years even. Eventually, they'll realize that you're not going to get any better. They'll get tired of changing your diapers, and chopping up your food, and spooning it into your mouth, and wiping the drool off your chin. Then one day, one of them will enter your room and do something simple, like sit next to you and pinch your nose. You won't be able to cry out for help or push their hand away. You won't even be able to thrash about. You'll just lie there until your lungs burn and you begin to black out. You'll realize that those are the last seconds of your sad and pitiful life.

"Once you're dead, you'll be given a quick burial, nothing elaborate since everyone will be glad you're finally out of the way. Within weeks, you'll become a joke. People will remember you as the king that did nothing but soil his diapers."

I slid off the bed and slipped into my robe. I leaned across the bed and kissed Roehl on the lips. "Enjoy your new life. Traitor."

As satisfying as that task had been, I had an unpleasant task to perform. I had to inform Jarvo and the high sage that the Finger States wouldn't be joining them in their upcoming war with Dunre.

# Chapter 14

The morning after the Finger States decided not to get involved in the upcoming Dunre--Landish war, I sat behind the desk in my study and used my powers to visit Jarvo and the high sage.

I found Jarvo in the harem, talking to a couple of female guards. As soon as the guards left, I let my image materialize in front of him until it looked real.

Jarvo's eyes widened in surprise when he saw me. He retreated a couple of steps then did a double take. "Lila?"

"We need to talk." I said the words in my head, then imagined them coming out of my image's mouth.

"I knew you were a seer, but I didn't know that you had this kind of power." Jarvo circled my image. He reached out to touch the image, but his hand passed right through it. "This is amazing."

"I'm not here to show you what I can do. I came to tell you that the Finger States voted against providing military aid to Landish."

"So, we are on our own."

"Have you heard back from any of the envoys you sent to the Land of Nomads?"

"One of twelve has returned. He brought fifty trained horsemen with him."

"That's good," I said. "If the other eleven do as well, that will add six hundred men to your ranks. It will give you a fighting chance."

"I fear they will not return in time. The Land of Nomads is a big country, and the people that live there are not easy to find."

"How is the high sage?"

"Anxious for battle. He believes this will be his finest hour."

"Is he still here?"

Jarvo shook his head. "He left yesterday. At the head of his army. They march west, to the Dunre border. Five hundred strong."

"You said you had eight hundred men."

"We had some defections. The idea of going to war scared some of our men away. And we had to leave a few of our soldiers in the southern part of our country, in the cities located along the Southern Sea. In case Bedard decides to attack those cities with his navy."

I noticed that we had attracted a crowd, female guards, female servants, and the high sage's wives were gathering around us. "We seem to be attracting a crowd."

Jarvo smiled. "You're attracting a crowd. Which is to be expected when you appear out of thin air."

He said something in Old Landish and the women dispersed, albeit reluctantly.

"I came to offer my services as a seer. The King of Dunre has a seer at his disposal. It's only fair that the high sage have one at his disposal."

"Your help will be most welcome, Your Majesty. Although if what our scouts report is true, I doubt if a seer will make much of a difference."

"What have your scouts reported?"

"Bedard has at least fifteen hundred men on our border and more on the way. By the time they invade, they will be two thousand strong. With a four to one advantage, he won't need a seer to defeat us."

"What's happening here in the city?"

"People are packing up and leaving, heading south. I suspect they won't stop until they reach the Southern Sea."

"And the high sage's wives?" I nodded in the direction of the women that were still watching us, albeit from a safer distance.

"They leave tomorrow, for the port of Jovan on the Southern Sea. There is a small palace there."

"They'll travel by sand ship along the edge of the Great Desert?"

"Of course. It's much faster than horseback. Horses must stop and rest."

"What about you?"

"I'll travel south with what remains of the palace guard. Once there, I'll set up the government at the palace in Jovan."

"Is there anything you need?"

"Only for you to know that all court records will travel south with the high sage's wives. Perhaps I should say, his other wives. You are listed in them as the first consummate. Should the high sage fall in battle, you will be next in line to claim his throne. That's been made public knowledge here at court and will be made public knowledge when I reach Jovan.

"Should the Finger States fall when Bedard turns his army on them, you will have a refuge at our palace in Jovan. A mountain range separates our southern ports from the rest of Landish. It will provide a defendable barrier against Bedard's army should he choose to march south. The Nomads will give the remnants of your army safe passage through their lands, so you can join us in Jovan, if you so choose."

"Hopefully, it won't come to that." I let my image fade away.

I opened my eyes to find myself back in my study. I took a minute to relax, then closed my eyes and focused my thoughts, this time picturing the high sage in my mind. A second later, I saw him. He sat on a black stallion, riding at the head of his army, some of which was on horseback, most of which was on foot. He wore black silk balloon pants tucked into black riding boots, a red silk tunic, and a red silk cape. A gold crown sat on his head. It consisted of a gold headband with a leaping lion rising above the front of the headband.

His army was dressed identical to the high sage, except of course for the crown. They carried scimitars on their hips and longbows across their backs. The men on horseback carried black silk flags with a leaping red lion.

I imagined myself sitting on a white stallion. When my image materialized in front of the high sage it caused quite a stir. The high sage pulled his horse to a sudden halt, as did his generals, some of which started mumbling in Old Landish.

"Don't be alarmed." I said the words in my head, then imagined them coming out of my image's mouth.

"Everybody relax," the high sage said, holding up his right hand. "It's the First Consummate of Landish and the Queen of Vassa. Not a ghost. I knew you were a seer, Lila, but I didn't know that you possessed the power to transport yourself anywhere you wished to be, let alone bring a horse with you."

"I'm not really here," I said. "I'm still back in my castle in Vassa. What you see is merely an image created by my mind."

The high sage drew his horse alongside of mine and reached out to touch me. When his hand passed through me, he jerked it back, as if he had been burned.

"It's good to see you," the high sage said. "But why are you here?"

"I'm here to offer you my services as a seer."

"If you're offering your services as a seer, then I'm guessing the Finger States have elected not to join us in this battle."

"I'm afraid not."

"We do not need a seer," one of the high sage's generals said. He was a short squat man with a shaved head and a bushy black mustache that hid his upper lip. "And the battlefield is no place for a woman. Or the image of a woman. Or whatever you are. You will be nothing but a distraction."

"The King of Dunre has a seer. He'll tell Bedard how your army is deployed. Without my help, you'll be slaughtered. Although you may be slaughtered anyway. You're already outnumbered three to one and by the time you reach the Dunre border, you'll be outnumbered four to one."

"What would you have us do?" the general said. "Surrender?"

"Head south. You can hook up with your southern divisions and the mercenaries from the Land of Nomads. The mountains that protect your southern cities will provide a defensible position. To meet a larger better prepared army in an open field is suicide."

"We do not retreat against invading armies," the general said. "We meet them head on, no matter how big or small they may be."

"Your help is most appreciated, Lila," the high sage said. "But General DaQuan assures me that we'll be victorious despite the numbers."

"How?"

"We will head north and circle around their army," General DaQuan said. "Once we are behind them, we will bury them beneath a hail of arrows. Their best troops will be at the rear and will fall first."

"It's not a bad plan," I conceded. "Except for one small detail."

General DaQuan glared at me. "Which is?"

"Bedard has a seer. He'll tell Bedard what you're doing. Bedard will split his army in two and trap you in the middle. You'll be slaughtered, down to the last man."

"Perhaps you overestimate the skills of this so called seer."

"Perhaps you overestimate your skills as a general."

General DaQuan moved his horse beside mine and tried to slap me with the back of his hand. Since I was just an image, his hand passed right through my face. "In Landish, a woman does not question a man, not even if that woman is the first consummate."

I glared at the general. "You're lucky I'm not here, because if I were, you'd be missing that hand."

General DaQuan reached for his scimitar then realized there was no point. "We are wasting time. Tell her to go away, Your Supreme Highness."

"I'm sorry, Lila," the high sage said. "General DaQuan is our most respected military leader. He's in charge of this campaign."

"Don't you mean, he's in charge of this slaughter. Because that's what he's leading you toward."

I opened my eyes to find myself back in my study. Once again, I took a few seconds to relax, then closed my eyes and pictured Maximillian Bedard in my mind. A second later, I saw him.

He was sitting in a large tent made out of alternating strips of purple and black silk. The tent was round and supported by a single pole in its center. Hand woven purple rugs made up the tent's floor. Chairs consisting of wooden frames with leather seats and leather backs were scattered randomly around the tent. Small tables consisting of wooden frames with thick leather tops sat next to the chairs.

Max sat in one of the chairs, sipping wine and eating bread covered with honey. My father sat on his left. Two men sat across from them, military men dressed in the purple, black, and silver uniforms of generals.

The first thing I did was make my presence as small as possible, smaller than a flea, as small as a speck on a flea.

"The high sage has left Istansada City," my father said. "His army consists of about five hundred men."

"That's it?" Max said. "He plans on meeting us in an open field with only five hundred men?"

"He has a couple hundred more men on Landish's southern coast. They will remain there because he fears an attack by sea."

Max smiled. "So all we have to do is cross the border into Landish and wait for them to engage us."

My father shook his head. "The general leading the high sage's army plans to move north, circle around us, and attack us from behind."

"We must split our force in two," the first general said. "Let the Landish army believe they have succeeded in getting behind us. Then we attack them from both sides, smashing them between the hammer and the anvil."

Max looked to my father for approval. My father nodded. "It's a good plan."

"What's happening in the Finger States?" the second general asked my father.

"They've moved a few soldiers up to their northern borders, but that's about it."

"No marshaling of their armies?"

"None."

"Once we crush the high sage's army, we should turn south, attack the Finger States before they have a chance to gather their forces."

The first general nodded in agreement. "Once the Finger States fall, we can split our army in two, send half to occupy Istansada City, leave the other half to occupy the Finger States."

"They won't know what hit them," the second general said.

I decided it was time to make my presence known, before my father gave them the go ahead to attack the Finger States. Maybe I could bluff them into thinking we weren't as unprepared as they thought.

I pictured myself standing in front of the four men, dressed in black leather breeches and a red silk shirt. I thought of the words I wanted to say then imagined them coming out of my image's mouth. A second later, my point of view shifted from above the men to directly in front of them. As my image materialized, I heard myself say, "Go ahead, father, give them permission to attack the Finger States."

Three of the men leapt to their feet. Only my father remained sitting, not the least bit bothered by my sudden appearance. The generals drew their broadswords. Max slid behind my father for protection.

"She called you father," Max said. "You didn't tell us that she was your daughter."

My father rose to his feet and forced a smile. "Your powers are most impressive, Lila."

"You haven't began to see the extent of my powers. Attack the Finger States and I'll show you things you've never dreamed of, my dear father."

I let my image disappear in a puff of imaginary smoke. Okay, so it was a bit over the top, but it did manage to make Max and his generals jump. I never left their tent though. I just shrunk my presence down to something smaller than a flea, a speck on a flea.

When they thought I was gone, Max started to speak, but my father held up a hand, silencing him. He began to probe around the tent. When I sensed him probing in my direction, I moved my presence to another part of the tent. I'm not sure how to describe his probes. It kind of felt like he was looking in my direction, even though his eyes were closed. Eventually, the probing stopped and he opened his eyes. "She's gone."

"How can you be sure," Max said. "You didn't even know she was spying on us, not until she revealed herself."

"Her powers are greater than I realized."

"We need to kill her. The sooner the better."

My father closed his eyes for a second. When he opened them, his voice had that odd timber to it, making it sound like two people were speaking at once. "I will take care of the Queen of Vassa myself. You concentrate on destroying the high sage's army."

Max and his generals didn't argue. They just turned and left. I wasn't sure how my father controlled them. I only knew it was one of the gifts he got from the being called the Prince of the Air.

I opened my eyes to find myself back in my study. Once again, I took a second to relax, then closed my eyes and focused my thoughts on Jarvo. A second later, I saw him. This time he was striding down a deserted hallway. My image materialized beside him. "General DaQuan wants to circle around Max's army and attack them from behind."

"Sounds like a good plan." Jarvo didn't even flinch at my sudden appearance. He just kept walking. "Considering they're outnumbered four to one."

"The problem is, Max and his generals know what DaQuan is planning. They're going to split their army in two and crush the high sage's army between them."

"Tell them that."

"I did, but DaQuan won't listen to me, he has a problem with women, thinks they don't belong anywhere but on their backs."

"What do you want from me?"

"Order everyone to evacuate the city then burn it to the ground. Don't leave anything for Max to claim except scorched earth. Cave in your gold mines, don't let him capture them. This part of Landish is lost, it will soon become a part of Dunre."

"Everyone who wants to leave is already leaving. I can't order the city burned because some people refuse to leave. This is their home and they intend to stay here regardless of who's in charge. I will order the gold mines collapsed and the palace burned before I head south. That's the best that I can do."

"I'm sorry your kingdom is collapsing. I wish that I could do more to help you."

"You could make an appearance in Jovan. When the high sage is gone, the people will need to see a new leader, as first consummate, that duty falls to you."

"When the high sage is gone, Max and his generals will turn their eyes on the Finger States, I fear I'll be too busy to journey anywhere."

"You could appear as you are now, no one will know the difference."

"I make no promises." I let my image fade and opened my eyes to find myself back in my study.

Idy was sitting on the other side of my desk, having just joined me. "Mind if I ask where you've been?"

"In Istansada City talking to Counselor Jarvo. With the high sage and his army marching toward the Dunre--Landish border. In Maximillian Bedard's camp along the Dunre--Landish border. And then back in Istansada City."

"What did you learn?"

"Max's generals know about the high sage's plan to try and circle around their army and attack them from behind. They're splitting their army in two, so they can trap the high sage between them. He's outnumbered four to one and will be destroyed."

"You warned them of this?"

"I did."

"And they didn't listen?"

"The high sage's commanding general doesn't put much stock in what women say. Northern Landish will soon become a part of Dunre."

"And then the Army of Dunre will turn their eyes on us."

"Before that happens, my father is going to make another attempt on my life."

"How?"

"I don't know." Idy still looked worried, so I smiled. "Relax. He'll be way too busy to come after me until the high sage is dead. I'm safe until then."

# Chapter 15

The high sage died one week later, caught between the hammer and the anvil of Maximillian Bedard's superior army. I watched most of the battle, but didn't stay for the very end. I left just before Max plunged his sword through the high sage's heart.

My father stood beside Max throughout the battle, unrestrained glee covered his face. Whatever he had been when he was the King of Sorea, he was no longer. He had become what his master, the Prince of the Air, was, a being that lived for the death of those who refused to bow down to him.

"The high sage is dead," I told Jarvo moments later. "They slaughtered his army down to the last man. In a few days, Bedard's army will occupy this city."

Jarvo was in the palace's great hall, surrounded by a dozen guards. He motioned to the guards. Each of the guards grabbed a torch, dipped it in a jar of oil, and set it ablaze. They spread out, through a palace that was empty of everyone and everything of value. All that remained was the building itself, and it was about to be scorched.

"Once the palace is destroyed," Jarvo said. "We'll ride to the edge of the Great Desert, where sand ships will carry us south, past the mountains that divide our country in half. Landish will survive as a kingdom, albeit a much smaller one."

The guards returned moments later. Black smoke began rolling out of the hallways and into the great hall. Flames followed the smoke, roaring out of the hallways. The guards tipped over several large jars of oil scattered throughout the great hall, then tossed their torches on the oil, setting the great hall on fire. Jarvo and the guards then retreated out of the building, where saddled horses were waiting for them.

Once he was mounted, Jarvo looked at me. "You must come to Jovan. You must make an appearance as the first consummate. Landish, or what will be left of it, is now in your hands."

"I will come," I said. "One way or another."

I opened my eyes to find myself back in my study. A second later, a vision hit me, the first I had in quite awhile. I was in my bedroom changing clothes when Shu stepped through the doorway. She watched me for a moment, then drew her scimitar and swung it at my neck. The vision ended seconds before she chopped off my head.

I opened my eyes to find myself back in my study, sitting behind my desk. So that was how my father was going to come at me, through my friend, Shumeredena. I doubt if he had ever met Shu, but Max knew who she was, and would be able to describe her to my father.

Before I could decide what to do about Shu, who was scheduled to visit me tomorrow, Iderra stepped into my study. She grabbed one of the chairs that faced my desk and plopped down. I told her about the vision I just had. When I finished, Iderra said, "You had no visions about me?"

"Perhaps my father doesn't remember you."

"He doesn't know Shumeredena."

"Perhaps there's another reason he couldn't get to you."

"Such as?"

"Maybe your mind is too strong for him to control. Maybe the fact that you already had a chance to kill me and rejected the idea puts you beyond his reach."

"Or maybe he just hasn't gotten around to me yet."

"Do you remember any weird dreams that you might have had in the past week?"

"I don't dream," Idy said, surprising me.

"Ever?"

"Ever."

"Not even when you were little?"

"Not even when I was little."

"Maybe that explains why my father wasn't able to get to you."

"How do you figure?" Idy said.

"Your mind works differently from other people's minds."

"That would also explain why that odd voice you've heard him use to control other people doesn't work on you. Your powers originate in your brain, which means it works different from a normal brain."

"Which means he can only control people with normal brains," I said.

Idy grinned. "Freaks like us are beyond his reach."

"Thank God," we said in unison.

"What are you going to do about Shumeredena?" Idy asked. "Refuse to see her?"

"Just the opposite. I'm going to see her. Alone."

"She'll try to kill you."

"I have to confront my father. I have to show him that he can't use my own people against me. Shu's the smallest and weakest of the people he's controlling, she'll be the easiest to defeat."

"What if his power gives her some kind of super strength, or extra skill with a sword?"

"Then I'm in trouble."

***

I dined with Shu the next evening. Just the two of us in my suite. She had a scimitar around her waist, but that wasn't unusual. She started wearing it after we escaped from the high sage's harem. She wore black leather breeches tucked into black riding boots, and a dark blue silk shirt that laced down the front.

I dressed in black for this evening, black leather breeches, black riding boots, and a black silk shirt. My cutlass was around my waist. My hair was tied in a ponytail, using the bone handled choking device rather than a ribbon.

My ability to move small objects with my mind had progressed to the point where I could wrap the choking device around my hair without laying a hand on it. I had been practicing in the mornings, when I dressed, using my mind to move the choking device off the dressing table where I kept it, and through the air, finally tying it around my hair without ever touching it.

We ate a dinner of roast chicken, potatoes boiled in milk, fresh baked bread, and wine. Shu talked about the progress in building up Holt's army. They were five hundred strong and fully mobilized for war. She asked how the buildup of our forces were going here in Vassa. I gave her no details, not knowing if I was speaking to her or to my father.

When dinner ended, we moved from the dining room to the drawing room. When the servants left, a grinning Shu followed them out the door, only to return a moment later with something wrapped in white silk.

"A gift," she said, handing it to me.

"What's the occasion?" I unwrapped the white silk.

"It will soon be one year since we met. Seeing how neither of us may be alive when that date arrives, I figured I would give you your gift now."

Inside was a pink silk shirt. It laced down the front and had long puffy sleeves. Underneath the shirt was a pair of calf high pink leather boots.

"You're starting to look like a royal adviser, with all the black you've been wearing. I thought you needed a little more color. Then I realized I've never seen you in pink."

"Never really thought of pink as my color," I said. "But thank you."

"Try them on. Let's see how you look."

I felt a chill creep up my spine. This was my vision. Me in my dressing room, changing into some pink clothing. Shu slipping up behind me, drawing her scimitar, then swinging it at my neck.

Even though I knew what was coming, I took the clothes and headed into my dressing room. I left the door between the two rooms open, but slipped out of view for a minute. I tossed the clothes aside, drew my cutlass, and pictured myself in my mind, wearing the pink shirt and boots. A second later, my point of view shifted a few feet, from where I was standing, to where my image was standing.

My image walked to the doorway, its back turned toward the drawing room, its imaginary hands busy with the imaginary laces on its pink shirt. I maintained that image in my mind and opened my eyes. My image was still in the doorway, still busy lacing up its pink shirt.

I couldn't see Shu from where I was standing anymore than she could see the real me, but I could hear her, rising off the divan and walking across the drawing room. I heard her scimitar slide out of its scabbard. A second later, I saw her stop behind my image. She raised the scimitar, then hesitated, as if she were fighting for control of her body.

Shu lost the battle for control and swung the scimitar at my image's neck. When her scimitar passed through my image's neck, I imagined my head separating from my body and tumbling to the floor. I also imagined blood spurting out of the severed neck, then imagined my body falling next to my severed head.

I thought if I could fool my father, make him think that I was dead, he would release his control over Shu. When she bent down to touch the body, I knew it wouldn't work and let the image fade away.

I stepped out from behind the door with my cutlass raised. "Really father. Did you think it would be that easy to kill me?"

Shu didn't respond, she still seemed to be fighting my father for control of her body. Once again, she lost the battle for control. I knew that when she straightened up and an ugly sneer crossed her face.

"To find out how powerful a seer is, you have to test them," my father said, speaking through Shu.

"To control someone without being here must tax your powers considerably," I said. "I could end this fight right now, but I'm curious to see how long you can control another person."

"Long enough to separate your real head from your real neck, daughter."

It felt weird to have Shu sneering at me while calling me daughter. I had to keep reminding myself that she wasn't in control.

"Fight him," I urged Shu. "The harder you fight him for control, the harder he has to work. The harder he has to work, the sooner he'll lose control."

"You underestimate my powers, daughter."

"Perhaps you overestimate your powers, father."

"You think I have to work to control a simple minded creature such as this?"

"I think you have to work very hard to control someone as strong willed as Shu. If you didn't, we'd be engaging in a sword fight right now instead of a discussion."

"You want a sword fight, daughter? Then we will have a sword fight."

And so it began. Shu rushed at me, holding her scimitar high above her head and swinging it with both hands. I began with my cutlass in my left hand, content to remain on the defensive.

I did learn one thing. My father was limited by the size and strength and skill of the person he was controlling. He might have the ability to control people, but he couldn't enhance their skills. Shu was a decent swordsman, but not good enough to threaten me. After a couple of minutes, either she began to grow weary, or my father began to grow weary from controlling her. I hoped that it was the latter.

"Two minutes and you're already growing weary. Your powers are laughable, father."

I switched my cutlass to my right hand and went on the offensive, forcing Shu to retreat. I drove her out of my dressing room and into the middle of the drawing room.

"You'll have to kill her," my father said, still speaking through Shu. "It's the only way that you can end this fight."

That's what you think. I imagined Shu's scimitar in my left hand. A second later, I felt it in my hand even though it wasn't there. A second after that, it flew out of Shu's hands and into mine. I then imagined myself untying the choking device from around my hair and tying it around Shu's wrists. A second later, I felt myself doing just that. A second after that, the choking device unwrapped itself from around my hair, flew through the air and wrapped itself around Shu's wrists. Just like that, the fight was over.

"It's time for you to go, father." I sheathed my cutlass and transferred the scimitar to my right hand. "There's no reason for you to remain here. Nor is there any reason for you to try and use anyone else against me. I can disarm them as easily as I disarmed Shu."

"Your powers are impressive, daughter, but I still possess the superior army."

And bringing that army to the Finger States will bring you close to me, which means I can use the Curse of the Crown of Sorrows against you. Not that I was going to tell him that. There was no way I was going to tip my hand and let him know that I knew how to destroy him.

Shu's eyes closed and she collapsed to the floor, rolling onto her back. She remained like that for a few seconds then opened her eyes.

"He's gone," she said, looking up at me.

I didn't need to probe for my father's presence to know that he had gone. The look in Shu's eyes had changed, along with the way she talked. She looked and sounded like her old self again.

She struggled to a sitting position, with her hands still tied in front of her.

"Tell me what it felt like," I said. "From the time he took control of your body to the time he left."

"It was weird," Shu said. "One second, I was sitting there waiting for you to finish changing, the next second, it felt like there was someone inside my head, ordering me to do things that I didn't want to do. The next thing I knew, my body was moving, obeying him and not me, then I was drawing my scimitar and swinging it at you. Or what I thought was you."

"Did you fight him?"

"When we were fighting, I kept yelling at him, telling him to leave me alone and go away. He was still in control, but I think it became a lot harder for him to maintain control."

"That must've been the point when you seemed to grow tired."

"I figured it would be better if you killed me than if I killed you, so I kept yelling at him to go away. The Finger States will survive without me. I'm not sure they'll survive without you."

I used my power to untie the choking device from around Shu's wrists. It unwrapped itself from around her wrists, flew through the air, and wrapped itself around my hair, so my hair was once again pulled back into a ponytail.

"Nice trick," Shu said, scrambling to her feet. "You surprised your father with that one. He didn't know you possess that ability."

"I know." I gave Shu's scimitar back to her. She slid it back into its scabbard.

"I'm sorry for trying to kill you, Lila."

"It wasn't you," I said. "It was my father."

"Why does he fear you so?"

"As the King of Sorea, he carries a curse, one that can destroy him. As his daughter, I'm the one person on this side of the desert that can activate that curse." He wanted to kill me before I found out how to activate the curse. Little did he know, I already knew how to activate it. I just needed to get near him.

"What do you think your father's next move is going to be?"

"I think he made that clear. He's going to use the Army of Dunre to try and kill me."

"Then war is upon us."

I nodded in agreement. "War is upon us."

# Chapter 16

Two weeks after my father used Shu to try and kill me, the Army of Vassa gathered in the city. I had six hundred men under my direct command. A one hundred man security force that guarded Edgerton's estate. The two hundred members of the queen's guard. And the three hundred men and women that had recently joined the queen's guard. The new recruits came from everywhere, brought here by a desire to serve the woman they believed to be Destiny's Queen.

The Baron of Elleby and the Baron of Larimore, the two northern baronies that sandwiched my northern lands, didn't show. The Baron of Reilly, one of the two southern baronies that sandwiched my lands, didn't show. The Baron of Selve, whose youngest son I sentenced to a prison camp for conspiring to kill Queen Catlett, didn't show. They sent messengers, informing me that they believed the dispute between me and the King of Dunre to be of a personal nature. They preferred not to get involved in what they considered to be a private matter.

The King of Tash didn't show. He sent a messenger, who said they preferred not to get involved in a dispute with their northern neighbor. When I pointed out that Bedard had killed their previous king, the messenger said they had no definite proof that Bedard had been behind the assassination.

I thought they were all fools, believing my father and Bedard would let them live, not to mention retain their lands. If my father succeeded in conquering the Finger States, he would kill all of them whether they took sides or not, just like he killed all the barons and dukes in Dunre.

I gathered my army of six hundred and headed east, where we hooked up with the Army of Enid. The young King of Enid contributed four hundred men to our cause, probably because he had no choice, not when his country lay between the Army of Dunre and Vassa. When we reached Holt, Shu added five hundred men to the cause. We marched into Landish fifteen hundred strong.

It wasn't as many men as I hoped to have. To make matters worse, we weren't a cohesive unit. My six hundred men never drilled with the men from the other two Finger States. Nor did I know what kind of training the armies of Enid and Holt received. That raised a question: how did we fight a larger force that had trained as a single unit? My two most senior advisers, Patera and Vomeir, both agreed that we should set up a defensive position and wait for them to come to us.

"We can't go on the offensive," Vomeir said. "We're not organized enough. The results would be disastrous. Our best chance of victory, our only chance of victory, is to establish a defensive position and wait for them to come to us."

"The Porch Hills would be a good place," Patera said. "They would give us the high ground."

The Porch Hills formed a barrier between Holt and Landish. They were a series of gently rolling hills with a few rocks and trees on them. On the southern side of the Istansada River, they overlooked a flat plain that was a good mile wide. If we took up a position there, it would give us a good view of the entire Army of Dunre.

"The Porch Hills are as good a place as any to establish a defensive perimeter," I said. "Especially on the southern side of the river. Once we set up camp, I can use my skills as a seer to monitor the Army of Dunre."

And so we set up camp on the Porch Hills. We stationed our troops on the southern side of the Istansada River, but kept a pair of corsairs, the Queen Catlett, and the newly completed Edgerton Hooks, nearby, in case they tried to flank us and we needed to ferry a large number of troops across the river.

It was late winter, so the hills were still brown. The scattered groves of trees that covered them were barren, as were the bushes that surrounded the trees. Mounted soldiers set up camp between the gently rolling hills. Foot soldiers set up camp on the hills with their commanders tents pitched at the top of the hills. I ended up on a hill in the middle. The Army of Enid was to my left. The Army of Holt was to my right. The Army of Vassa lay directly in front of me.

My tent sat on a hill void of trees and bushes. Its knee high grass was brown and flattened down by the constant winter winds. Overhead, the sky was gray, but no rain was falling. The tent itself was round and supported by a single pole. It was made out of alternating strips of red and gold silk. Unlike the King of Enid and his barons, who brought carpets and furniture for their tents, I didn't bother.

I was Adan and Adan's traveled light when they went to war. They carried food, weapons, and a bedroll. Except for the tent, I was no different from my men. My men differed from everyone else's in another way. Everyone else divided their foot soldiers into archers and swordsmen. All six hundred of my men were trained to use both weapons, three actually, swords, crossbows, and longbows. They used the longbows for long range fighting, the crossbows for medium range fighting, and the broadswords for fighting up close.

Once we had set up camp, I retired to my tent, unrolled my bedroll, and sat on it. I closed my eyes and pictured my father in my mind. A second later, I saw him. He was inside a tent, with Max and his two generals. They were sitting in their wood and leather chairs, gathered around a small round table with a leather top. They were studying a map drawn on a piece of sheepskin.

The first thing I did was make sure my presence inside their tent was too small for my father to detect. Once I did that, I listened to what he was saying.

"Does it look like they're planning on remaining there?" the first general said.

It sounded like my father had told them where we set up camp, which was to be expected.

"Hard to say," my father said. "They could be planning on making a defensive stand there, where they have the high ground, or they might be planning on moving in the morning."

"How big is their army?" Max asked.

"Not as big as ours," my father said. He looked more than a little pleased over that fact. "With our reserves having replenished our ranks, we're up to three thousand strong. They look to be about half that."

"Plus, it's not a real army," the second general said. "None of their armies have trained with each other. As such, I propose we meet them head on. A professional fighting unit such as ours will crush them.

The first general nodded in agreement. "The sooner we attack them the better. The longer we delay, the more time they'll have to train."

"Agreed," the second general said.

"Agreed," Max said.

They all looked at my father, who sighed. "I guess there's no point in delaying the inevitable. Tomorrow we march west. In two days, we'll meet the Army of the Finger States where they stand."

"And your daughter?" Max asked.

"Order your men to kill her on sight. The sooner she's dead, the sooner their army will collapse."

The meeting broke up and I let my presence fade away. The pieces were now in motion. In two days, the fate of this part of the world would be decided. Either it would fall under my father's control, or it would remain in the hands of those opposed to tyranny.

***

Sleep came fitfully over the next couple of nights, both for me, and I suspect, the men on the surrounding hills. Only Iderra, who shared my tent, seemed to have no trouble sleeping. Days were spent preparing our defenses, building walls out of trees and rocks, so we would have protection from the Army of Dunre's archers. On the morning of the third day, the Army of Dunre arrived.

Like us, they were on the southern side of the Istansada River, where the valley was wider. You had a good mile of relatively flat land facing the Porch Hills, providing enough room for an army to spread out. And spread out they did, clad in their purple, black, and silver uniforms, until they stretched from the river's southern bank to the hills a good mile south of the river.

A rider carrying a white flag rode ahead of the Army of Dunre. Two men rode with him. They stopped about halfway between their army and ours.

"Looks like they want to talk," Iderra said.

I sat on my white horse, Biscuit. To my right, Iderra sat on her horse, the crown of the heir upon her head. A mounted Patera sat next to her. Vomeir and Bokham sat on my left. Patera's twelve men and twelve of Bokham's men sat on horses directly behind us. Sardis, Botek, Miletus, and Derbe were further down the hill, commanding our troops.

"Do you want one of us to ride down and meet them?" Vomeir asked. "Find out what they want?"

"I can talk to them without anyone riding down there," I said. "Besides, I know what they want."

"Our deaths?" Bokham said.

"My death," I said.

I closed my eyes and pictured myself dressed in black leather breeches, polished black riding boots, a red silk shirt that laced down the front, and a black wool cloak that framed my body. Queen Catlett's seven pointed crown rested on my head. My black hair was tied in a ponytail. And of course, my cutlass was strapped around my waist. I pictured myself sitting on my white horse with his red and gold saddle. Two quivers of arrows were attached to my saddle, but I carried no bow or crossbow. I didn't need one.

A second later, my point of view shifted, from where I was, to where my image was, which was right in front of me. I pictured the image of Biscuit and myself walking down the hill, moving toward the three men that wanted to talk.

As my image neared the three men, I recognized two of them. The men on each side of the soldier holding the white flag were the two generals that I had seen conferring with Max and my father. I wasn't surprised that Max and my father weren't with them. They would be tucked safely in the back, behind their best troops, as far away from danger as they could get.

"What do you want?" I said, stopping my image a safe distance from them. Because I had let my image walk down the hill, instead of just appearing in front of them, they wouldn't be able to tell if it was the real me or just an image.

"You are hereby ordered to surrender yourself, your lands, and holdings, to Maximillian Bedard, the soul and rightful king of all lands this side of the Great Desert," the soldier holding the white flag declared. "Failure to do so will result in the immediate destruction of yourself and your army."

"Why would I surrender my lands to a puppet?" I tried to add as disdainful a sneer to my voice as I could.

"You're out numbered two to one," the first general said. "You can't win."

"If you surrender now, the lives of your men will be spared," the second general said. "And your execution will be as quick as possible."

"If you refuse to surrender, their blood will be on your hands," the first general said. "And your death with be slow and painful."

"I have a counter offer," I said. "You turn Max and my father over to me and I will allow you and your army to return to Dunre. If you refuse this offer, then the two of you will be the first to die in this battle. Along with your king."

I pointed at the two generals, so there would be no doubt as to who I was referring to. Needless to say, they both laughed at my threat.

"I guess we'll do this the hard way," the first general said.

He turned his horse around and headed back toward his troops. The other general and the soldier with the white flag followed suit. I let my image fade away, but maintained a presence behind them, following them to where Max and my father sat on their horses at the rear of their army. Once I knew where Max and the generals were, I opened my eyes.

I was back on the hill, sitting on Biscuit. I drew four arrows out of one of the quivers attached to my saddle and tossed them into the air. Then I used my power to move small objects to send the four arrows flying down the hill.

The arrows took off, gaining speed as they moved. I closed my eyes and followed the arrows, pushing them so they moved faster and faster, keeping them close together, so they looked like a single arrow. I pushed them over the heads of my army. I pushed them across the brown plain that separated our two armies. I pushed them over the heads of the Army of Dunre.

As the four arrows neared their targets, I separated them. I sent one toward the first general, one toward the second general, the third toward Maximillian Bedard, and the fourth toward my father.

Being a seer, my father saw the four arrows speeding toward them. I suspect he had a vision of one of the arrows striking him in the heart. Which was why he spun his black stallion around and retreated at a full gallop.

Max and his generals didn't know what my father was doing, let alone why he was running. They barely had time to turn in the saddle and watch my father ride away before the arrows hit them. A single arrow struck each of the three men in the chest, penetrating their breastplates and lodging themselves deep within each man's heart.

The three men gasped in surprise then collapsed face first onto the necks of their horses, before falling sideways off their horses and onto the ground. Dead, dead, and dead.

With that accomplished, I changed my focus to my father, picturing him in my mind. A second later, I saw him, still retreating, his black hair and black clothes flying in the wind.

I let the arrow fall to the ground because it had done its job. He had been so concerned about the vision of the arrow striking him in the chest, that he hadn't bothered to warn Max and his generals that there were arrows headed for them. Besides, I had little doubt that something as simple as an arrow wouldn't kill my father.

I pictured a transparent image of myself floating in front of him. When that image appeared, I said, "Where will you run to father? The Finger States are mine, Landish is mine, and now Dunre is mine. It's time to stop running. It's time to remember that you're still the King of Sorea. It's time to don your crown and become a king one last time."

My father pulled back on the reins of his horse, drawing it to a stop. He looked at my image, floating in front of him, and sighed. "I knew this was how it would end when I learned that Queen Catlett wanted to bring an Adan princess to this part of the world. That was why I tried to kill her, and then you."

With that said, he dismounted, opened one of his saddlebags, and pulled out something wrapped in black velvet. He unwrapped the velvet, revealing a crown, a golden headband with a series of interconnected half circles rising above the headband. Circling around the middle of the headband were fifteen jewels, each a different color.

My father studied the crown for a second, then with shaking hands, tried to place it on his head. When he couldn't do it, he looked at my image. "I need your help, daughter."

I knew what he wanted me to do, so I imagined holding the crown in my hands and placing it on his head. A second later, I felt the crown in my hands. A second after that, I saw the hands of my ghost image take the crown and move it toward my father's head.

"This crown will soon become yours, daughter. Don't let power corrupt you the way it did me. And never make a deal with the Prince of the Air, for he will betray you in the end." My father smiled. "But then why would you lust for more power. When the sun sets on this day, you will rule a fair portion of the world."

The crown settled on his head.

I don't know what he saw or felt, I only know that his hair turned white and his face grew wrinkled and weathered, as if his unnaturally long life had finally caught up with him. The next thing I knew, he collapsed onto the ground. Whether he died from overwhelming sorrow, or from old age, or a combination of the two, I cannot say. I only know the Crown of Sorrows, and the curse that it carried, had done its job.

I opened my eyes to find myself sitting on Biscuit, with Iderra still alongside of me. "It's over."

"What's over?" Patera said.

"The war is over."

"It hasn't even started," Vomeir said.

"Bedard is dead, as are his two generals. My father is also dead."

Nobody asked me how they died. They all saw me toss the arrows into the air. Saw them fly off toward the Army of Dunre.

"What's next?" Bokham asked.

"I have a pair of crowns to claim."

"Do you think that's wise?" Vomeir said. "Riding into the heart of the Army of Dunre. An army that's been ordered to kill you."

"The men that gave that order are dead."

I started down the hill. When Vomeir, Patera, Bokham, and their men started to come with me, I held up my hand, stopping them. "I have to do this alone."

"We took an oath to defend you," Patera said.

"You can't protect me against an entire army. Plus, your presence may anger them. I'll do this alone."

Bokham pulled his horse alongside of mine and lowered his voice to a whisper. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"The people of Dunre used to worship the One God. Before my father and Bedard forced them to worship the Prince of the Air. They know about the prophecies concerning Destiny's Queen. I don't believe they will try to kill someone that might be Destiny's Queen."

I rode alone, toward the bottom of the hill. I rode past our embedded troops. I rode across the brown plain that separated our two armies. I rode into the heart of the Army of Dunre.

They parted to let me pass. Perhaps because they knew their king was dead. Perhaps because they believed me to be Destiny's Queen.

Eventually, I reached the bodies of Maximillian Bedard and his two generals. The soldiers had taken their horses away and laid the three men on their backs, with the two generals flanking Max. Their weapons were at their sides. The arrows that killed them were still in their chests.

The Army of Dunre gathered around me, waiting to see what I would do. What I did was picture the Queen of Vassa's crown floating off my head and into my lap. Once the crown was in my lap, I pictured the King of Dunre's crown on my head. A second later, it floated off Max's head, through the air, and onto my head. As far as the men surrounding me knew, the One God himself had transferred the crown from Max's head to mine.

I admit that it was a bit showy, but when you're surrounded by three thousand men that came to kill you, it pays to be a bit showy. Mother always said that a queen is judged by what she says and does, not by how she feels. To say that I was a bit nervous, sitting on my horse, surrounded by the Army of Dunre, would be an understatement. My heart was pounding so hard I thought it would burst out of my chest.

"My father's body lies on the ground a half mile east of here," I said to the nearest mounted soldier. "The Crown of Sorrows lies upon his head. Bring it to me."

The man bowed and rode off at a full gallop. Once he had gone, I turned to the soldiers surrounding me. "I need to speak to your ranking officer."

"We have no ranking officer," one man said, steering his horse in front of mine. "Our army is divided into two divisions of fifteen hundred men each, with each division headed by a general. But both generals are . . . ." His voice trailed off as he looked at the two dead generals.

"Who reported to the generals?"

"That would be the brigade commanders. Each division is divided into ten brigades with each brigade headed by a commander. I am Tatis, Commander of the Fifth Brigade, First Division."

Lying beside the dead general closest to Tatis was a silver helmet with a plumage of purple feathers. I used my power to move the helmet off the ground and into the hands of Commander Tatis.

"You were, Commander Tatis, you are now General Tatis, Commander of the Army of Dunre. You will appoint two new division commanders, who will report to you. You will report to me."

Tatis studied the helmet for a second, then donned it and bowed his head. "What is your command?"

"Take your men home, General. The One God has granted the prayers of their loved ones. He has removed those that worshiped the Prince of the Air from power. When you get home, tell those that are in charge of the palace to prepare for their queen's arrival."

I waited until the soldier returned with my father's crown. I dropped it in my saddle bags then turned Biscuit around and headed back toward my army. This time the Army of Dunre didn't just watch me pass. With the Crown of Dunre upon my head, three thousand soldiers dropped to one knee, acknowledging their new queen.

When I was safely beyond the reach of their arrows, I breathed a sigh of relief. Somehow, I managed to pull it off. Somehow, I managed to bring peace to this side of the desert with a minimum of bloodshed. Even so, it was hard for me to get excited. Not when I knew that Bedonna was on the other side of the desert, preparing for a war that would make the one we just averted look like child's play.

# Chapter 17

"You're making a mistake," Iderra said. "A big mistake."

We were eating breakfast in the dining room of my private suite. I just told Iderra of my plan to sail to the other side of the continent and try to stop the war between Adah and Sorea. Needless to say, she didn't like the idea.

"It won't be my first mistake," I said.

"But it could be your last." Iderra leaned across the table and looked me in the eyes. "Why should we care what happens on that side of world? This is our home now. We have a good life here. With the deaths of Max and your father, we have a chance to usher in an age of peace and prosperity. Why would you want to sail to that side of the world and throw yourself into the middle of another war? Especially with Bedonna there. You know she'll settle for nothing less than your death."

"I won't tell her about this side of the continent. If that's what you're worried about. I won't tell her that you're here. I'll let her think I've spent the last year inside Sorea."

"I'm not worried about me, Mouse. I'm worried about you. I'm worried that you'll be killed and I'll never see you again. I'm worried that I'll be left to run your empire without you." Iderra smiled, a sheepish smile. "When I put it that way, it does sound like I'm worried about myself."

"If I don't go, thousands of people will die, Adans and Soreans. I can't allow that to happen. Not when I have the power to do something about it."

"Adah has never conquered Sorea. What makes you think that Bedonna will succeed when all of our grandmothers failed?"

"In Sorea, the king or queen is their most powerful seer. Without me to tell them when or where their enemy will strike, they're vulnerable."

"They didn't have any trouble capturing me when I crossed their border. What makes you think they'll have trouble with Bedonna and her soldiers?"

"The seers guarding their border have limited skills. They can only see a mile or so in either direction. That's why their guard shacks are so close to the border. They don't have the ability to watch an army of twenty thousand men. Only their king, or in my case, their queen, possesses that ability. If I don't go, Bedonna will conquer Sorea."

"So, let her have it."

"Once she conquers Sorea, she'll turn her eyes toward Gibney."

Iderra saw where I was heading and finished the thought for me. "And once she conquers Gibney, she'll hear stories from the traders, stories about a barbarian queen that rules on the other side of the desert."

"And knowing Bedonna, she won't rest until she brings her army to this side of the world and kills both of us. I either stop her at the Sorean border, or within a couple of years, she'll rule the known world."

"Her dream come true," Iderra said.

"Yes."

"What if you can't stop her?"

"Then I can slow her down, buy you some time." I smiled. "If there's anybody in the world that can come up with a way to stop Bedonna, it's you."

"How long before she invades Sorea?"

"The Soreans believe she'll be ready to go by fall. I doubt if she'll wait that long. You know how impatient Bedonna is."

"It'll take you a month to sail around the continent."

"Which is why I have to go now. The spring winds have arrived. They'll quicken my journey."

Iderra sighed. It was a sigh of resignation. "I knew one or both of us would have to face Bedonna sooner or later. I was hoping it would be later, much, much later. Like when we're all old and gray."

"You and me both," I said.

"I feel guilty, sending my baby sister to fight Bedonna." Iderra looked at me and smiled. "But then you're not my baby sister anymore. The past year has changed you. You've gone from being our little Mouse, to the woman everyone calls Destiny's Queen."

One week later, I boarded the Edgerton Hooks, which I hoped would carry me safely to the other side of the continent. It seemed appropriate that I return home on the ship named after the man that brought me to this side of the world.

***

Four uneventful weeks later, we were standing on the afterdeck of the Edgerton Hooks, surveying the Sorean coast.

"It all looks the same," Commodore Hubbard said. "Uninhabited jungle."

Sorea was a much flatter country than Adah. While Adah was mountains and hills, Sorea was forested lowlands. Its southern coast was covered in a tropical rain forest that ran all the way up to its sandy beaches.

"If there are no cities on the coast, how do we find the Soreans?" Bokham asked.

"About five days journey from the Adan border, we'll come to the mouth of a large river," I said. "We're to sail up that river. The people of Sorea have been told to look for a vessel the likes of which they've never seen before."

"They've never seen a sailing ship?" Vomeir said.

"They're familiar with the triremes used by Gibney and Adah," I said. "They're also familiar with the catamarans used by the people in the Sugar Islands. They've never seen a caravel or a corsair."

"How far up river are we supposed to sail?" Commodore Hubbard asked.

"About two days. I'm told we'll come to a city. When we reach it, we're to put into port. The people are expecting us."

"This city have a name?" Bokham asked.

"Margos," I said.

"And they'll welcome us?"

"If they want to avoid a war."

Four days after passing the border, we came to the mouth of a wide river.

"This has to be it," I said.

"It hasn't been five days," Commodore Hubbard said.

"Kelce Manalac based the distances on triremes, which don't move nearly as fast as Idy's corsairs. Plus, he said it would be the first large river we came to. This is definitely the river."

We turned and headed up river. The river was wide and slow, similar to the Istansada. The biggest difference between the two rivers was the surrounding countryside. The Istansada was surrounded by grassy hills. The land surrounding this river was flat and covered with thick tropical vegetation that went right up to the river's banks.

Commodore Hubbard worried about the vegetation, fearing that it was just as thick in the water, and that it would tangle on our winged keel. We stayed in the middle of the river just to be safe and encountered no such problems. A day and a half later, we reached what I assumed was Margos.

The city was carved right out of the jungle. The buildings were made out of white marble. They were single story structures with large stone columns on the outside. The columns supported a flat marble roof and rested upon a marble floor. From my spot on the afterdeck, I could see that the middle of each building contained a courtyard.

A large stone bridge arched over the middle of the river. It was an impressive feat of engineering, at least a mile long. Like the buildings it was made out of white marble. The underside of the bridge contained two dozen arches, big enough for boats to pass underneath, but way too small for a ship. Whether this was the right city or not, it was as far as we could go.

There was no dock big enough to birth the Edgerton Hooks, so we lowered sails and dropped anchor in the middle of the river. People of all ages gathered on both sides of the river, as well as on the big stone bridge. To say they weren't used to visitors was an understatement.

"At least they're not armed," Patera said, noticing all the people staring at us.

They all wore hats that looked like inverted volcanos. The hats were brightly colored, yellows, oranges, reds, greens, and blues. The men and women both wore wrap around knee length skirts that matched the color of their hats. The men were topless, as were the children. The women wore sleeveless vests similar to those worn by the women of Landish. However, there was one big exception. The vests didn't cover their breasts, they merely framed them.

As soon as the crew saw the way the women were dressed, they scrambled to the edge of the ship to get a better look.

"All things considered," Commodore Hubbard said. "I don't think the crew should be given shore leave."

"I'll go ashore," I said. "Everyone else will remain on the ship."

A large outrigger canoe left one of the small docks and headed for our ship. Sixteen men with paddles sat in the canoe. All sixteen wore yellow skirts and hats. A man dressed in a purple skirt and hat stood in the middle of the canoe, looking and acting like someone important.

"At least they're not sending a war party," Patera said.

I had Bokham fetch my father's crown from my cabin. It was in a leather satchel which I draped over my shoulder. I then headed below deck, working my way to the ship's stern and the hatch that opened onto the little deck we used to climb in and out of the pinnace. By the time I reached the deck, the outrigger canoe had been steered to the rear of the ship.

The man standing in the middle of the canoe bowed when he saw me, and in perfect Adan, said, "Your Majesty. I would recognize you anywhere."

"Lila Marie Haran," I said.

"Gano Barr," the man said. He was short and slim with freshly cropped black hair. He bore a strong resemblance to my father and myself. "Before you set foot off your vessel, I must see the evidence of your father's demise."

I pulled my father's crown out of the satchel and held it out for Gano to see.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." He bowed again.

I tucked the crown back into the satchel. While I did that, they pulled the canoe alongside the ship. Gano held out a hand and helped me step into the canoe. There were no seats in the middle of the canoe, so we remained standing. The men with the paddles turned the canoe around and headed back the way they came.

I wasn't used to standing in a canoe, even one this large, and I spent the short trip to shore trying not to fall over. When we reached the small wooden dock, Gano jumped out of the canoe and helped me out.

"Our clan doesn't maintain a residence here in Margos. So we're forced to stay in the guest residence. It's probably smaller than what you're used to."

"I just spent a month on a sailing vessel. I'm sure the guest residence will be more than adequate."

I was more interested in the fact that the residences, and I suspect the color of everyone's clothing, were divided by clan. "You're a clan based society?"

"Yes," Gano said, leading me down a crushed marble street toward the guest residence.

"When a man and woman marry, whose clan do they join?"

"Men and women don't marry in Sorean society."

"Then how do the clans grow?"

"When a woman bears a child, the child becomes a member of her clan."

"And if a non-Sorean woman gives birth to a child, it becomes a member of the father's clan."

"Yes, but since we're a closed society, that rarely happens."

But it did happen. I was proof of that. "How did our clan become the royal family?"

"The most powerful seers have always come from our clan. Although I don't think we've ever had a seer capable of conversing with others on the far side of the continent." Gano looked at me and smiled. "Until now."

"The Queen of Adah is moving an army of twenty thousand men to the Sorean--Adan border, how many men can we muster?"

"I'm not a military adviser, Your Majesty. I'm afraid I can't answer that."

"What are you?"

"I'm a historian and a geographer."

"How are we related?"

"Cousins. Your father and my mother were brother and sister."

"I'm assuming I have no brothers or sisters."

"No."

Of course not. If I did, they wouldn't need me as their queen. "But I have some aunts."

"You had several aunts, but only one remains alive. The youngest of your father's nine sisters. Her name is Sester and you look very much like her."

"Why can't she become queen?"

"The queen, or king, must be a seer of great power. They must be able to see deep into Adah. Sester doesn't possess that kind of ability. Her skills lie elsewhere."

"Who is Kelce Manalac?"

"He is the overseer."

"What does he oversee?"

"He oversees the king or queen. Makes sure he or she doesn't abuse his or her authority."

"Who has been running your country for the last twenty years?"

"Each city-state is governed by a council of elders. When your father left the country, each council sent one elder to sit on a national council of elders. They have been running the country for the past twenty years."

"Is everyone happy with the job they've done?"

"As can be expected."

"Sounds to me like you don't need a king or queen anymore."

"We will always need a seer with the ability to protect our borders."

We reached the guest residence, a square building surrounded by a white marble portico supported by columns that were three times my height. As we climbed the steps, Gano looked at me, and said, "Can I ask you a question, Your Majesty?"

"Anything you want."

"Why does Adah want to invade us? We've done nothing to them."

"Bedonna, my big sister, and their current queen, wants to go down in history as a great conqueror."

"So it has nothing to do with us, or the fact that we prefer to remain a closed society."

"No, this is all about her. Who she is, who she thinks she is, and what she wants out of life."

Gano nodded and led me into the guest residence. A narrow marble hallway circled the residence, with twenty rooms on each of the residence's four sides. Each room had its own doorway, although there were no doors, just curtains made out of polished wooden beads.

The rooms were small, designed for sleeping and dressing and little else. Each room contained a wooden bed. The beds contained no mattresses, just a piece of cloth attached to a wooden frame. Chairs were similar in design, a simple wooden frame with a piece of cloth stretched over the seat and back. Each room contained a second door, leading to the courtyard. There were no trees or bushes in the courtyard, just grass, a marble pool, used either for swimming or bathing, and a barbecue pit, which at the moment, wasn't being used.

"Each community maintains a guest residence for visitors. As you can see, they're not fancy, but they are functional."

"It's fine," I said. "Can I ask how far away your army is?"

"About four days by river. We'll leave first thing in the morning."

"I have several men that want to come with me. They have a stake in the battle with my sister."

"I'll secure a second outrigger for them."

***

The next morning, we headed up river in a pair of outriggers. Gano and I sat in the middle of the lead outrigger, protected by a canopy. My men followed in a second outrigger, paddling it themselves. As soon as we started our journey, I closed my eyes and pictured Supreme General Tronzo in my mind. The man in charge of the Sorean Army. According to Gano, he was a short, muscular man with a shaved head, pale blue eyes, and bushy white eyebrows. A second later, I saw him.

He wore the garb of a soldier, polished black riding boots, black woolen breeches, and a black tunic topped by a silver breastplate. He wore his broadsword strapped across his back, the hilt of the blade sticking up over his right shoulder. He was walking through the forest, but it wasn't the tropical jungle we were in, it was the Dark Forest found on the Adah--Sorea border. A forest made up of twisted oaks that were hundreds of years old.

I allowed my image to appear alongside Supreme General Tronzo. He didn't jump when my image appeared, but he did take a second look at me.

"I was about to call you, Sester," he said, referring to my aunt. "Then I realized that I am too far away for Sester to contact me. Plus, she is not so vain that she would make herself look twenty years younger than she really is."

"I'm Lila Marie Haran," I said. "Heir to the throne of Sorea. Heir Hopeful to the throne of Adah. First Consummate of Landish. Queen of Dunre. Queen of Vassa."

"Supreme General Thoris Tronzo. Commander of the Army of Sorea. Can you tell me the size of your sister's army?"

"Rumors circulating around Adah place it at twenty-thousand men."

General Tronzo let out a low whistle. "That's twice as many men as I have."

"How many men do you have?"

"Eight thousand men are camped here in the Dark Forest."

"That will be enough for what I need."

"Which is?" General Tronzo said.

"A show of force."

"Eight thousand men will not scare twenty thousand, Your Majesty."

"I don't need to scare Bedonna's army. I just need to make sure they don't interfere when I confront Bedonna. The presence of your army will keep Bedonna's men from interfering in my personal business with my sister."

"You intend to challenge your sister to a duel?"

"I intend to give her a choice. Be content with the throne of Adah, or die."

"Are you capable of killing your sister?" General Tronzo asked.

A year ago, the answer to that question would've been no, but a lot had happened since then.

"Yes," I said. "I'm capable of killing my sister."

***

It took four days to reach General Tronzo and the Army of Sorea. The streams we used to get there were too small for the Edgerton Hooks to sail up, which is why we took the two outriggers. Gano served as our guide. Commodore Hubbard and his crew remained on board the Edgerton Hooks, which headed down river. Without me and the other Adan soldiers on board, they would be more than welcome in the port of Nadal, where they would either wait for us, or return home without us, depending upon what happened during my confrontation with Bedonna.

Eventually the terrain changed, going from jungle covered lowlands to forested hills. When the terrain and vegetation changed, so did the weather, going from hot days and steamy nights, to warm days and cool nights.

We passed a few small villages as we headed up stream, but no cities. According to Gano, most of the cities were in the eastern half of the country, far away from the Adan border. Not long after abandoning the outriggers, and heading off on foot, we reached the Dark Forest. A couple of days later, we encountered General Tronzo's men, who took us to the general himself.

"So?" General Tronzo said, when he saw me. "What's happening with your sister?"

He didn't waste any time in getting down to business, but he had probably seen what was happening on the edge of the forest and knew that time was short. I used my time in the outrigger to look deep into Adah and see what Bedonna was doing.

"Bedonna left the southern palace in Nadal yesterday," I said. "She arrived in Pipho a few minutes ago. Tomorrow, she'll head north along the Eastern Road. Tomorrow night, she'll rendezvous with her army, which you already know, camps on the edge of this forest. In two days, she'll be ready to make war on Sorea."

"Will you be ready to confront your sister two days from now?"

"I'll be ready," I said.

# Chapter 18

The day I spent my whole life dreading finally arrived. It was time to face my oldest sister, Bedonna, in a duel to the death.

A little over a year after my mother died, I returned to Adan soil, leading the Sorean Army into battle. It was early morning and Bedonna was marching her army toward the Dark Forest, the heavy thump of their boots shaking the ground beneath our feet.

The Sorean Army stood in front of the forest, remaining close enough to the trees so Bedonna wouldn't know how many more men might be hiding in the forest.

If things didn't go as I hoped, General Tronzo's men would launch a volley of arrows, then drop back into the forest, forcing Bedonna's superior numbers to fight on unfamiliar turf. Adan soldiers were trained to fight in open fields, not forests. The career soldiers would adapt without too much trouble, but I suspected the new conscripts would have problems.

When I surveyed Bedonna's army, I noticed that she had placed her conscripts in the middle of her line, with the career units flanking them on the left and right. If war broke out, the Sorean Army would launch their first volley at the middle of Bedonna's line, trying to rattle the conscripts.

The sight of the Sorean Army standing at the edge of the Dark Forest brought Bedonna's army to a halt. All they could see were two lines of soldiers. The lines were as long as theirs, and they could only guess at how many more men were hiding in the trees. Little did they know that we had no more men.

We waited to see what Bedonna would do. In short order, a soldier galloped out of the middle of her army carrying a white flag.

"The Queen of Adah wishes to speak to whoever is in charge of this army," Bedonna's man shouted, speaking the language of the traders. "She will meet you where I plant this flag."

The man, who I recognized as a member of the palace guard, turned his horse around and rode back toward Bedonna's army. Halfway between the two armies, he planted a spear with a white flag on its end into the ground. The flag flapped in the early summer breeze, designating our meeting point on the grassy plain that separated the two armies.

"It's time," I said.

I climbed aboard the horse General Tronzo gave me and set off at a leisurely trot. General Tronzo accompanied me, as did my cousin Gano, Bokham, Vomeir, Sardis, Miletus, Derbe, Patera, and Patera's men, all on horseback. Botek, Solek, Tolek, and the rest of Botek's men remained in Vassa, serving as Iderra's personal guard.

I wore all black, black riding boots, black leather breeches, and a black silk shirt. My silver and gold cutlass was around my waist. My hair was in a ponytail. The Ruby Crown was on my head.

Bedonna rode from the other end, accompanied by a dozen soldiers. She was dressed in silver, silver shin guards over sandals, a battle skirt made out of silver strips that stopped just short of her knees, a silver breastplate over a tunic made out of silver chain mail, and the crown she had always coveted, the solid silver Battle Crown. Her broadsword was strapped across her back, the hilt of the sword sticking up over her right shoulder. Her brown hair was still cropped close to her head, and she was just as big and as strong and as scary as the last time I saw her.

Bedonna gave no indication of recognizing me, although I hadn't changed that much. Her men certainly recognized me, not to mention the Ruby Crown I wore.

The man that planted the white flag rode between the two parties, and in a loud voice, announced, "Her Royal Highness, Bedonna Tadmore Haran, the thirteenth Queen of Adah."

Vomeir rode forward, and in an even louder voice, announced, "Her Royal Highness, Lila Marie Haran, heir to the throne of Sorea, and holder of the Ruby Crown by way of her mother, Bella Justine Haran, the twelfth Queen of Adah."

He didn't mention Vassa, Dunre, or Landish because I told him not to. I promised Idy that I wouldn't mention her or the lands that lay beyond the desert.

Bedonna rode toward the white flag and I did the same. When we were face to face, she squinted at me. "I thought it was you, Mouse, but I figured my eyes must be playing tricks on me."

Bedonna was so big and strong and intimidating that I all but forgot about her one weakness, her eyes. Her eyesight, which had always been bad, must have gotten significantly worse if she needed to be right next to me to recognize me. I knew right then why she was in such a hurry to conquer the world.

"You're going blind." It was a statement, not a question. "How long do you have?"

"Court physicians aren't sure, one year, maybe two. Certainly no more than three."

"How long have you known?"

"Too long. Way too long."

"That's why you've always been in such a hurry."

"I don't want to be remembered as Bedonna the Blind." She nodded at the Dark Forest. "So, how did you end up as Queen of Sorea?"

"My father was their last king. And I'm not the Queen of Sorea. The crown has a curse on it, so I refused it."

"A technicality," Bedonna said. "You know I killed Salisha."

"I saw. I also know about the assassins she sent after you."

"I don't know what happened to Iderra. She seems to have disappeared."

"She's probably studying something somewhere. Idy was always more interested in learning than in ruling. Wherever she is, she's no threat to you."

"As much as I love this reminiscing. It's time to get down to business."

"Fine," I said. "I have an offer for you."

"I'm listening."

"You can have mother's throne if you give up your dreams of conquest."

"You would give me the Ruby Crown?"

"If you agree not to attack Sorea, or any other country, you can have Adah. The rest of the world is mine."

"Lila the Conqueror?" Bedonna sneered. "It doesn't have as good a ring to it as Bedonna the Conqueror."

I felt like telling her that I didn't need to conquer the rest of the world because it was already mine. I wanted to tell her, but I didn't. I made a promise and I intended to keep it.

"You can't defeat me," I said. "I have powers far beyond what you can imagine. If you're smart, you'll accept my offer. You'll have a long healthy life as Queen of Adah with nothing to fear from me or Idy or anyone else. When you finally pass, perhaps they'll remember you as Bedonna the Benevolent rather than Bedonna the Blind."

"Big talk for a small girl." Bedonna dismounted and drew her heavy broadsword. "But I have an alternate proposal. You order the Army of Sorea to lay down their arms, and I'll make your death as quick and as painless as possible. I'll even let your people bury your body wherever they wish. If you reject my offer, I'll make your death slow and painful and will toss your lifeless carcass in an unmarked grave next to Salisha's."

Bedonna wanted to fight. No surprise there. Fighting was what she did best. I dismounted and drew my cutlass. I moved toward Bedonna and pictured eleven more copies of myself surrounding her. One by one, the images began to appear until there were twelve of us forming a circle around Bedonna, each looking like the next. I had the twelve of us circle around her. With Bedonna's bad eyes, it didn't take long before she had lost track of the real me.

"It's hard to kill what you can't find," the image that faced Bedonna said.

Bedonna swung her sword at that image. She tried to lop off its head, my head, but her sword passed harmlessly through the neck.

"I don't want to kill you," a second image said, this one directly behind Bedonna.

Bedonna spun around and swung her sword at that image. Once again, her blade passed harmlessly through my image's neck.

"Mother's throne was enough for her," an image to Bedonna's right said. "Why isn't it enough for you?"

"Because I'm not mother." Bedonna swung her sword at that image. Once again, with no effect. "Mother had the kind of face that people love. I don't. I have the kind of face that people fear."

"People fear you because you want them to fear you," another image said.

Bedonna swung at that one, once again with no effect. To keep her confused, we circled around her again, so she couldn't tell who she had attacked and who she hadn't.

"You realize that I could've killed you already," I said, when I was directly behind her. "Struck you down while you were attacking one of my images."

As I suspected, Bedonna didn't spin around and attack the real me. Instead, she tried to second guess me by attacking the image directly in front of her. Once again, her massive broadsword passed harmlessly through my image's neck. Before she could spin around and attack the real me, we circled around her yet again.

"That's why you don't deserve to be queen," Bedonna said. "Not Queen of Adah, not Queen of Sorea. Queens need to make life and death decisions, and you don't have that in you, Mouse, you never did and you never will."

"A queen needs to be both strong and compassionate. Mother lectured you for a full hour on the need to temper strength with compassion, yet it's obvious you didn't hear a single word she said. That's why she didn't give you the Ruby Crown."

"Why don't you face me like a normal person, or are you afraid?"

"Your gifts are your size and strength," one of my images said as we circled Bedonna.

"Unfortunately, I'm not blessed with the gifts of size or strength," another image said.

"So I must use what I've been given," a third image said.

"And this is one of the gifts I've been given," I said.

"But not the only one," a fourth image said. "I have others."

I showed her my other gift, my power to move objects, by sending the sword of one of her guards right at her. It flew out of his scabbard and through the air, passing harmlessly over the head of one of my images. Bedonna didn't see it coming until it was almost too late. She managed to knock it out of the air a second before it would have struck her.

"What the hell are you doing?" she said, turning and glaring at her guard.

"I didn't do it," the guard said, holding up both hands. "Someone pulled it out of its scabbard."

"He speaks the truth," I said.

I ripped a sword out of the scabbard of another one of her guards and sent it flying at her. Once again, she didn't see it until it was almost too late. This one slashed her right bicep as she sidestepped it, drawing first blood.

"You have two choices," one of my images said, as we circled around Bedonna yet again. "You can be content with mother's throne, or you can die."

"I will not be known as Bedonna the Blind."

She was growing frustrated, which wasn't surprising. Bedonna wasn't used to losing fights. She was used to winning, used to being in control. For the first time in her life, she wasn't winning a fight, nor was she in control.

I knew that she was about to snap, so I doubled the number of images surrounding her, until there were twenty-four identical images of myself forming a much wider circle around her. Sure enough, Bedonna went crazy, swinging her sword at every image within her reach. Fortunately, I was standing on the other side of the circle when she attacked.

While she tried to find the real me in a maze of fakes, I used my power to pull her knife from the scabbard on her right hip. She was so busy attacking my images that she never saw the knife coming. It struck her in the side of the neck, going in deep enough to make her scream and drop to one knee.

She pulled the knife from her neck, looked at it, and smiled. "My own knife. Nice touch."

She tossed the knife on the ground and rose to her feet, ignoring the blood that was running, and not just trickling, out of her neck. I let the images of myself fade away, leaving me to face Bedonna alone.

"Why can't you be content with being the Queen of Adah?" I raised my cutlass and braced myself for Bedonna's attack. Even though she was bleeding heavily, I knew better than anyone that she was far from finished.

"Now that you've wounded the bear, you're prepared to go against her one on one?"

"You always assumed that you were better with a sword than Salisha, Iderra, or myself. In point of fact, you were never a better swordsman, you just had enough strength to overpower us. All I've done is sap some of your strength and even up the odds. Now, we'll see who's better with a blade."

Bedonna raised her sword in front of her. I noticed that she was holding it in both hands, instead of just one hand, which was her usual preference. That meant the wound in her neck had already sapped some of her strength. Not that it stopped her from attacking me.

She rushed at me, swinging her broadsword in a slashing blow. I went on the defensive, parrying her blows while retreating. It was the same style of fighting I had practiced every day for the past year, letting a bigger stronger opponent go on the offensive while I defended with my left hand. The wound in Bedonna's neck continued to bleed and after several minutes of fighting, she began to breathe through her mouth instead of her nose.

When she did that, I switched my cutlass to my well rested right hand and went on the offensive, forcing Bedonna to retreat while maintaining the furious pace she had set at the beginning of our duel. For several more minutes, iron clanged against iron. No more blood was drawn, although the blood on Bedonna's neck was now running down the front and back of her silver breastplate, staining both sides.

I began to wonder how she could lose so much blood and continue to stand up, let alone continue to fight. But fight she did, even to the point of going on the offensive again. I switched my cutlass back to my left hand and went back on the defensive. Sweat began to appear on my brow. It trickled down my temples and into my eyes, making it hard for me to see, making me wonder if I had underestimated my big sister, or overestimated my own stamina.

Just when I thought I might lose, it ended. Bedonna's sword slipped out of her hands and fell to the ground. She followed it, collapsing to her hands and knees.

"Kill me." Blood bubbled out of her mouth and ran down her chin.

"I can't." I sheathed my cutlass and picked up Bedonna's broadsword, holding it in front of me. It was so big and heavy that my tired arms could barely lift it, making me wonder how she had wielded it for so long.

"Why not?"

"Because you're my sister."

"What will you do with me?"

"You will be taken to the palace in Sorea, where you'll remain a prisoner until your sight is gone. When your sight is gone, and you're no longer a threat to me, you'll be allowed to return home, to live out your days as you wish."

"I don't think so," Bedonna said.

She pulled herself to her feet, rushed me, and impaled herself upon her sword, which I still held in front of me. The massive blade pierced the front of her silver breastplate, penetrated her stomach, and came out her back, piercing the back of her breastplate.

She looked at me and smiled. "I will die a warrior. Not a helpless blind woman."

She collapsed onto her side, her sword skewering her, her front and back drenched in blood. I rushed to her side, dropped to my knees, and cradled her head in my lap. I took the Battle Crown off her head and placed the crown I was wearing, the Ruby Crown, upon it. "You will die the Queen of Adah."

"You will place a statue of me in the hall of queens?" Bedonna said, spitting out blood.

"I will."

"What will you engrave," she paused to spit out more blood. "What will you engrave beneath my name?"

"Bedonna the Brave, for that is what you have always been."

"I'm sorry I didn't make a better sister."

"You were an excellent sister," I said. "You forced me to learn how to fight and taught me to fear nothing, not even death."

I don't know how much she heard, for she died while I was still talking. I was surprised to find a tear running down my cheek, surprised because Bedonna was never my favorite sister. In point of fact, she wasn't even my second favorite sister. But she was my sister, and if I didn't shed a tear for her, I suspected no one would, certainly not the generals, commanders, and guards that sat silently on their horses watching us, certainly not the twenty thousand soldiers that stood silently behind them.

I placed her head on the ground, wiped the tear from my eye, and rose to my feet. I marched over to the generals and commanders that accompanied her. "You will take her to the Winter Palace in Nadal and prepare a tomb for her next to our mother's tomb. You will tell the royal sculptor that he is to begin making the statue that will be placed in the hall of queens. Beneath her name, and above the year she reigned, he is to carve the words, 'Bedonna the Brave.'"

General Grutza, a short stocky man with a pug face, and in command of the Army of the East for well over a decade, nodded. "As you command, Your Majesty."

"Tell the conscripts that their duty to Adah has been fulfilled and they are free to return to their civilian lives, should they wish. Those that want to remain in the army are welcome. Make sure the royal treasurer pays those that wish to leave."

General Grutza nodded. I walked over to the man that had been Bedonna's second when she headed the palace guard, a tall broad shouldered fellow named Ingram Pugh.

"I have a special job for you and your men."

Commander Pugh nodded. "We are yours to command, Your Majesty."

"You and your men will ride to the Summer Palace in Morchesha. When you get there, you will find a sculptor and have him carve a headstone for my sister, Salisha. On the stone, he is to place the words, 'Princess Salisha Padmore Haran, Salisha the Beautiful.' When that stone has been placed upon her grave, you and your men will set about identifying each and every body that is buried in the Cemetery of Would Be Queens. You will place wooden markers on the graves, naming each and every princess. You will tell the sculptor that he is to replace those wooden markers with stones as quickly as he is able. While he is carving those headstones, you and your men will construct a stone fence around the cemetery. When that is done, you will plant grass and flowers and trees inside that fence."

"Some of those graves have been there for hundreds of years," Commander Pugh protested. "It will be almost impossible to identify them."

"There are ghosts on that hill, Commander. Once you've spent some time there, you'll discover that for yourself. They're waiting for someone to acknowledge that they existed, and that they mattered. Once that's done, they'll move on. I'm giving you and your men the honor of helping them do that. Treat them with the respect they have so long been denied, and they'll help you with your task."

"Nothing will grow on that hill, Your Majesty. It won't do any good to plant there."

"Once you've done what I've instructed, the grass and flowers and trees will grow. This I promise you." Commander Pugh was getting off easy and he knew it. It was rare for a transition in power to occur in Adah without hundreds, sometimes thousands of people, dying. The people that supported the losing princesses were usually put to death. Even so, Commander Pugh didn't look very happy, which is why I gave him a final admonishment. "Do not take this task lightly, Commander, long ago, the ghosts that reside on that hill accepted me as one of them. Since then, I have long considered myself to be one of them."

I didn't tell him about the deal I made with those ghosts, back when I was ten years old, the first time I visited the Cemetery of Would Be Queens alone. I told them that if they helped me become the Queen of Adah, I would not only acknowledge their existence, I would make that hill my final resting place, so that one day, a queen would lie on that hill, so that one day, it could no longer be called the Cemetery of Would Be Queens.

Did I inherit my powers as seer from my father? Perhaps. But who had ensured my powers were greater than his? And who had interceded at the throne of the One God, convincing him to give me the power to move objects without touching them? I owed a debt to those ghosts and I intended to repay it.

I walked back over to my men and mounted my horse. I took the reins from Vomeir and turned to Supreme General Tronzo, Commander of the Sorean Army. "Take your men home, General. There will be no war today."

"Or tomorrow?" a hopeful General Tronzo said.

"Or tomorrow." I turned to Gano and handed him the leather satchel containing my father's crown. "Return this to your council of elders. Tell them their king is dead and his daughter does not want his throne. Tell them that as long as I have anything to say about it, there will be no war between Sorea and Adah."

Still on horseback, Gano bowed. "As you wish, Your Majesty."

I turned to Vomeir. "Let's go home, Captain."

"Which home?" a smiling Vomeir said. "You seem to have acquired a lot of them in the past year."

"We ride to the Winter Palace in Nadal, so I can pay my final respects to my mother."

I rode toward the Army of Adah. Bokham, Vomeir, Patera, and the other Adans fell in behind me. Bedonna's generals, commanders, and guards parted to let us pass, then fell in behind us. I noticed General Dacus was among them. Which meant that he was back in control of the Army of the West.

The foot soldiers, all twenty thousand of them, parted to let us pass. As I rode past them, they removed their helmets and dropped to one knee, acknowledging their new queen.

# Chapter 19

I was sitting on my mother's throne at the Winter Palace in Nadal. I wore a silk gown of emerald green. It matched the Emerald Crown that sat upon my head. The only one of my mother's crowns that remained. I buried the other two crowns with Bedonna. The Ruby Crown was on her head. The Battle Crown lay on her chest.

Bedonna was given a queen's funeral. I don't know if the people thought she deserved it, nor did I care. She had ruled Adah for a year and deserved to be treated accordingly. A statue of her would stand in the hallway that led to the throne room. Called the hall of queens, it contained statues of everyone that sat upon the throne. Those that ruled briefly, before being deposed by a sister, were set in alcoves off to the side. They were considered minor queens. A new alcove was already being prepared for Bedonna's statue.

The statues of those that ruled for long periods, the twelve legendary queens, like my mother, stood on pedestals in the middle of the hallway, so you couldn't help but notice them when you walked down the hall.

Even though Bedonna impaled herself upon her sword, I was the one holding it. As such, I felt responsible for her death. Taking the life of one's own sister isn't something I would wish upon anyone, for it put me in a depression I couldn't seem to get out of, not until Vomeir marched into the throne room dressed in his usual green, gray, and silver uniform.

"You've checked the dungeon beneath the palace?" I said.

Vomeir bowed. "As ordered, Your Majesty."

"And?"

"As you suspected, all of the people down there opposed Bedonna."

"You released them?"

"All but one."

"Why is that one still down there?"

"To be honest, I'm not quite sure what you want to do with her."

"Her?" I said, wondering who it might be.

"I could tell you who it is," Vomeir said, "but I'm not sure you'd believe me."

In other words, he wanted me to see for myself. Which I did.

The dungeon beneath this palace was identical to the one beneath the Western Palace. Cells lined both sides. Gray granite walls made up three sides of each cell. Iron bars made up the fourth.

Each cell was empty except for a pile of straw and a waste bucket.

All the prisoners had been released save for one. She sat in a cell at the back end of the dungeon. Her arms were wrapped around her legs. Her head rested on her knees. Her blue silk dress was tattered and dirty, so dirty that I almost couldn't tell its original color. Her blond hair had grown back to shoulder length, but was ratted. Pieces of straw stuck out of it, which she paid no attention to. She bore a wicked scar on each of her cheeks.

"Stand for the Queen of Adah," the jailer said.

She struggled to her feet, holding her left side as she did, as if it hurt when she moved, which I suspect it did.

"Hey Mouse," Salisha said when she saw me. "I heard you were around. Of course, I didn't believe it. Not until Vomeir showed up and let everyone out of their cells."

I wrapped my hands around the cold iron bars that separated us. "I saw you die. I saw Bedonna plunge her sword into your heart. I heard her order her men to dump your carcass in the Cemetery of Would Be Queens."

"She missed my heart. Thanks to you."

"I don't understand."

"When you yelled, 'no', Bedonna heard you and got distracted. Her sword missed my heart and went into my side. She failed to notice that I wasn't dead. Her men were afraid to tell her that I was still alive, so they dumped me down here with the rest of the political prisoners. Lucky for me, my cellmate was a surgeon in the Army of the East. He had a lot of experience in treating battle wounds."

"Why was he down here?"

"Same reason everybody was down here, they opposed Bedonna's war with Sorea." Salisha pushed some ratted hair out of her eyes. "Rumor is you killed Bedonna in a sword fight."

"I wounded her. When she dropped her sword, I picked it up. She impaled herself upon it, said she didn't want to be remembered as Bedonna the Blind."

"I tried to kill her you know, sent a couple of assassins after her. They failed of course."

"I know."

"I tried to convince Vomeir to kill you. I suppose he told you that."

I shook my head. "He never did."

That seemed to surprise Salisha. "Really? I wonder why?"

"Maybe he didn't want me to think less of you. Maybe it was because he loves you."

"But you knew anyway."

"Idy told me."

Salisha perked up. "Idy's alive?"

"I've acquired a couple of thrones on the other side of the desert, three to be exact. She's over there, running things while I'm away."

"I never did have the heart to send an assassin after her."

"What were you going to do with her if you became queen?"

Salisha shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. Let her do whatever she wanted. How she's doing anyway?"

"She doesn't like having to make decisions that affect people's lives. She's anxious for me to return."

Salisha smiled. "That sounds like Idy." The smile faded from her face. "So, what's going to happen to me?"

"What would you do if you were in my shoes?" I said.

"Knowing that I tried to send an assassin after you, I'd probably have me executed."

"It's not easy to watch your sister die. I know because I had to do it twice. First with you, then with Bedonna."

I motioned for the jailer to unlock the door to her cell, which he did. Salisha made no move to come out. "You still haven't told me what you're going to do with me?"

"First, I'm going to clean you up. Then I'm going to feed you. I'm thinking it wouldn't hurt to have the court physican take a look at you. When you're strong enough, I'm going to put you aboard my ship. A ship which Idy designed, by the way. It will take you to the other side of the continent. Once there, you'll assume the throne of a country called Dunre, where you'll serve as my regent. The woman currently serving as my regent is old and suffers from failing health. She agreed to serve until I could find someone to replace her. You will be that someone."

Salisha touched the scar on her right cheek. "I'm not sure I'm fit to sit on a throne. Not anymore."

I stepped into the cell and offered Salisha my arm. I noticed that she smelled, which wasn't surprising since she probably hadn't bathed in a year. "On the contrary, you're perfect for the job."

"How do you figure?"

"The people on that side of the desert call this side of the world the barbarian lands. They won't be surprised to see a barbarian princess bare the scars of battle. If anything, they'll respect you for having them. I know I do."

"There are forces here in Adah that won't like the fact that you refused to kill all of your sisters."

"Which is why you must go to the other side of the desert. You'll be safe there."

"What about you?"

"I can take care of myself."

"So I am learning." Salisha placed her hand on my forearm. Together we headed out of the cell. Her touch was light and she moved slowly, gingerly. I realized then, that she had been clinging to life by a thread.

As we headed toward the door that would take us out of the dungeon, Salisha looked at me and smiled. "I'm glad you're here, Mouse."

"I'm glad you're here," I said.

And I was.

# LOST IN TIME

Lila might have defeated her father and oldest sister, but that doesn't mean her troubles are over. In her next adventure, a Sorean time walker abandons Lila in the past, some thirty-three years in the past. Before she was even born. Not only is she not the queen in this time, she's not even a member of the royal family.

She finds herself stranded in Adah's capital city, on the day her grandmother died, on the day her mother began her own version of the Princess Wars. Lila has to find a way back to her own time without getting involved in her mother's fight for the throne, and without changing history. But as she quickly learns, both are easier said than done. Look for LOST IN TIME. Book three of the Princess Wars.

#  BOOKS BY J. D. ROGERS

Love in the Rough

### Low Campbell Adventures

Dirty Little Mermaids

Deadly Little Mermaids

Deranged Little Mermaids

# Princess Wars Series

Princess Wars

Destiny's Queen

Lost In Time

The Competition

# ABOUT THE AUTHOR

J. D. grew up in a house where women were in charge of everything, which may explain his preference for strong female characters. He studied history and law in college and uses that knowledge to help build the worlds he creates. J. D. makes his home in Montana.

You can check out all his books, including what will be released next at:

<http://www.jdrogersfiction.simplesite.com/> or <http://www.jdrogersnovels.simplesite.com/>

