Enfri worried she'd made a mistake. Reyn sat with some trepidation on her left, slowly taking the chair as if she expected someone to demand why she was being so impertinent. She was blindsided by this, and if there'd been an opportunity, Enfri would've tried to give her more warning than she had.
I should have made the time, Enfri scolded herself. I let myself get caught up in meeting the pilgrims and slacked off in my responsibilities.
Inwe chuckled. You will come to learn there are never enough hours in the day, my empress. You can only mitigate this by surrounding yourself with those you trust to act as you would, or at the least act as you can live with.
Enfri took in a breath. She heard more truth in that than she wanted to. It sounded awfully tiring.
"Firstly," Enfri began, "I'd like to thank you all for coming on such short notice. I know you must all be buried up to your armpits in your duties, so I'll try to make this as brief as I can."
There were a number of soft laughs around the table. At her side, Reyn muttered about an empress using a word like "armpit" at an official meeting.
"If I may, my empress?" Ban spoke up.
Enfri looked to her right and saw Ban's grin. She nodded for him to continue.
Ban stood and tugged at his gray paladin's coat. "One thing before we start. There've been rumblings about how this will be the first full session of the imperial council, all twenty-five Dragon Lords and the Dragon Empress. I ask that this won't be recorded as such."
"The reason being?" Enfri asked.
"We're not all here," Ban said, and his eyes went to Pacifica.
Of all the Dragon Lords, only one didn't have a partner. The empty space in front of Pacifica where a tiny gold dragon should've been seemed even more bare for a moment.
"The full council can't be in session until Adar the Ascendent is returned to us," Ban said.
"I will second the motion," Lord Wallace the Corwyn, Lord of Moonstones, said.
His ivory dragon, the Tactician, added her own two scubs. "The gold chroma has yet to appoint an interim representative in Adar's absence. At the very least, it can't be considered a full session until all peoples of Shan Alee have a voice."
Jin spoke next. She'd taken on the task of serving as Enfri's bailiff in these meetings. "Is there dissent to the motion?"
None was forthcoming, so Enfri nodded to Ban. "The motion carries. Today's meeting remains an informal conference."
As Ban sat back down, Enfri noticed Pacifica catching his eye and mouthing a thank you. Ban returned her a wink as he settled into his chair.
Enfri sat straighter as she spoke. "There is much we're all here to listen to, and I'd like to give it all the attention it deserves. However, before we can, there is one point that needs to be laid to rest before anything else. The matter of succession. The fact of the matter is, there are no heirs to Shan Alee, and I would sooner give myself over to Cathis right now than allow Elise Alinwe to lay claim on what we've built together. To that end, as laid out as my right in the constitution you've all ratified, I move to appoint Reyn of Rosewater as my First Minister, to be granted the powers of regency. Should I be captured or otherwise rendered unable to rule, Reyn will rule Shan Alee in my stead until I return or such time as a suitable heir can be chosen by a full session of the Dragon Lords."
Pacifica added her voice. "I second the motion. Point of order, as imperial right, the confirmation requires a simple majority vote from the Dragon Lords to pass rather than a two-thirds majority as with other appointments."
"Is there dissent to the motion?" Jin asked.
Reyn slapped her palms on the table and shot to her feet. "I should say there is!"
Enfri heard someone laughing. She looked to the chairs lining the wall and saw the blind guide, Kai, shaking his head and chuckling to himself. Enfri stared at his face, what wasn't covered by his blindfold, and furrowed her brow. Have I... met him before?
She had the most curious feeling that he was familiar. As if she'd once seen him in a dream. From the corner of her eye, she saw Jin peering at Kai in much the same way.
Abruptly, Enfri was confronted with the fact that the entire table was staring at her and Reyn with befuddled expressions. Reyn herself was breathing heavily and looming like an angry fangblade.
"Your Majesty," Reyn panted, mastering her temper, "this is ridiculous. I am..."
"Perfect for the job," Starra said. "Bloody hell, but I can't think of anyone who knows Shan Alee's finances better. Not even Lord Dunmar, no offense."
"None taken," Dunmar, Lord of Tourmalines, said. Tsaia the Banker at his side covered her mouth as the little teal stifled giggles.
"We also can't deny Mistress Reyn's tactical sense," the Ulthred added. The burly Altieri lord was a bear of a man and just as shaggy. As Lord of Garnets, he and his russet dragon were primarily concerned with military matters. "We've all heard from Fallen of how Mistress Reyn single-handedly maintained the defense last night."
"It was hardly single-handed," Reyn argued.
"Is stone," Fallen broke in with her voice like velvet, "blooded battle-kith live when they would be ended. Sea-scented blue guarded them with her magic. She then bloodied the bright-kith of the white-scented."
"And took the most valuable hostage we could hope for," said Lord Hugin of the Emeralds.
Hugin's husband, Lord Rav of the Onyx Knights, thumped his fist on the table in agreement. "She's been invaluable to the security of the legion. I've caught more infiltrators coming in with the supply wagons than the stockades can hold thanks to her. Algara and Nadian spies, even Courtesans. Mistress Reyn knows how to defend against espionage."
Their dragons, Nooka the Artificer and Elloo the Constable, voiced their support along with their knights.
Lord Thaan stroked the long whiskers of his mustache and listened as Krayson murmured something in his ear. The Lord of Spinels nodded before addressing Enfri. "I'm told, Your Majesty, that your appointee is a master scrivener. Able to utilize fractal sigils, was it?"
Reyn stiffened. "My lord is too generous with the word 'master'."
She shot Krayson a fierce look. Krayson shrugged in response.
"In any case," Thaan continued, "I would have no objection to matters being overseen by a young lady with demonstrable experience in the arcane. This... meritocracy... Princess Pacifica endeavors to create, I think appointing someone outside the nobility as first minister would go great lengths to show Shan Alee's commitment to the ideal. Though, I should like to hear the opinion of the Amber Knights."
Reyn, still looking flummoxed, lowered herself back to her seat as everyone turned to Vanya Dale, Lord of Ambers.
Vanya was the youngest of all the Dragon Lords and was clearly nervous to be among them. He was just seventeen but already a full graduate from the Japaxian University with an expertise in engineering. The Altieri boy was a commoner employed by the Ulthred's house for the development of the orichalcum mines on his land. The Ulthred had nominated Vanya to be an Amber Knight after the deaths of Sheeku the Architect and Knight-Captain Gerard. As the only current Amber, he was made a Dragon Lord by default but had proven capable at handling the responsibility.
"I couldn't rightly say one way or the other," Vanya began.
His bonded dragon, Toomat the Groundbreaker, barked a rebuke at her knight. "Don't hedge, boy," the gruff, little yellow said. In her tiny form, Toomat looked even more like a winged toad than when at her full size. "This is important. Mistress Reyn as first minister would prove goodfolk like yourself have just as much opportunity to rise as a noble."
Vanya frowned at Toomat. "Look, love, I'd vote to confirm an aurochs if I thought they'd pass the funding we'll need when we start laying infrastructure." He got a chagrined look before bobbing his head towards Reyn. "Not that you're an... Err... Waves, I'll just shut my mouth."
Kolbat of the Pearl Knights sniggered. She was leaning forward with her elbows on the table and scratching the back of Darva the Corsair, her... paramour, Enfri supposed, as well as her bonded indigo dragon. "One common-born to another, Vanya. I've never heard a politician say they'll keep their mouth shut before."
The Shotoese people had a reputation for being disdainful of nobility, and Kolbat did little to refute those stereotypes. Nonetheless, she was taking to her role as Lady of Pearls and safeguarding Shan Alee's maritime interests exceptionally well. Additionally, Enfri had Kolbat to thank for how well her tattoos were coming along.
"Reyn has fought for Shan Alee," Ban said. "She saved lives at Mount Vorti and in Moran Valley, even before that in Ecclesia during my brother's attempted rebellion. All the world knows how strong she is, because unless I need to remind everyone, she was part of the apotheosis that brought Pacifica back from the Beyond."
"The spell echo felt around the world," Starra said. "Made by five mortal arcanists."
That last was said with a pointed look towards Krayson, but Enfri hadn't the slightest idea of what was meant by it. For some reason, Ban's jaw dropped at what Starra said. Putting them out of her mind, Enfri faced Reyn.
She was staring at the table, dumbfounded.
"I apologize for surprising you like this," Enfri said. "Whatever else is said, I need you to know that you've had my trust for a long time now. Whatever Shan Alee is to become, I want you to be a part of it. You see things in a way I simply am not experienced enough to see. You know things I could never understand the way you do. Shan Alee will be a bastion, a safe haven for all people, no matter whether they're human, fey, dragon, or..."
Reyn looked up sharply.
"Or anything. I know that's something you long for, and I need your help to make it so. As first minister, you'll be my voice. If I can't rule any longer, I know you'll make certain Shan Alee doesn't become what it was in the last age."
Pacifica took Reyn's hand and gave it a squeeze.
"I have one question, Your Majesty," Reyn said quietly.
"Please," Enfri said.
"I will not be required to have a dragon bond, will I?"
Enfri blinked. "No, I don't think that'd be necessary, but..."
"Then I can accept," Reyn said. "Conditionally. I will accept this appointment only if you, Your Majesty, promise to never leave me holding this bag you've packed. If you do something foolish and get yourself killed, so help me, I will drag you out of the Beyond by your hair."
Deebee laughed. "Well, there's certainly precedent."
The Dragon Lords chuckled also, but Enfri was stuck on imagining Reyn pulling her hair in ways a first minister had no business doing with the empress.
Winds and storms, Sunny. Get your head out of the trash barrel.
Enfri told her father she would absolutely love to, but selkie Voices were somewhat impossible to ignore. She fought down her flush before anyone could notice it.
I hate to be the one to suggest it, Yora said, but I think you're going to need to kiss the girl.
It would be pragmatic, Inwe agreed. You will be forced to work in proximity in the days ahead. Better to immunize yourself to her Voice by accepting her Breath.
Why you dirty, old lechers, Enfri thought at them. It won't happen. Jin won't let me.
She startled herself by claiming it wouldn't happen, not because she didn't want to but because she wasn't allowed to. Winds, but Reyn did a number on her.
I'm a blustering mess.
Somewhere during Enfri's internal struggle, the Dragon Lords unanimously confirmed Reyn's appointment as First Minister of Shan Alee. Inwe had some commentary on why there was hardly any resistance to the motion, but Enfri was still doing her best to stop thinking about how Reyn's lips might feel against her neck.
They'd feel good, certainly.
Jin nudged her arm. "My heart?"
"What?" Enfri blurted, nearly at a squawk.
Jin narrowed her eyes. "The next item on the agenda."
Enfri held Jin's gaze for a little longer than was strictly proper. It helped remind her of her priorities. "Yes, moving on. We'll hear of the Lady of Diamond's negotiations with Drok Moran."
"I will be concise, Majesty," Pacifica said as everyone turned to look at her. She bore the attention immeasurably better than Enfri ever could. Unlike a silly sky woman, Pacifica had been raised from birth to do this. "Lady Starra and I secured the services of two airships from the Sky Corps."
Enfri grimaced. "I asked Fen for three."
"And we need only one," Pacifica said with a knowing smirk. "I offered to ask for one fewer. In return, we'll be given a small discount on the supplies we purchase from the Nadian trade lords."
Lord Dunmar of the Tourmalines clasped his hands and raised his eyes in thankful prayer to the spirits. He was grinning when he addressed Pacifica. "Not easy to bilk a Nadian, my lady."
Pacifica affected a modest shrug. "They were manageable. Between capturing Nkeoma and Her Majesty seeming to have scared the whiskers off Fen last night, my counterpart across the table was eager to reach an accord and see us leave Nadia."
The Ulthred barked a bitter laugh. "The wretches pulled some nonsense on us. Poisoned tea? Hiding a Melcian strike force? All after we've dealt with them in good faith even after they bore arms against us alongside Adeyemi. Not unreasonable to say we ought've raised our demands."
"Our requests, my lord," Pacifica corrected gently. "Better to continue to deal with others in good faith. Especially with elder houses. How we comport ourselves today will inform on how they deal with us tomorrow. As my father used to say, 'hard feelings make for poor soil', and Shan Alee has yet to put down roots."
Plenty of the Dragon Lords from the more civically inclined knighthoods murmured agreement. The military knighthoods were still coasting on the clouds over the latest string of victories and were beginning to think of Shan Alee as unbeatable. Enfri could appreciate their pride, but she'd rather it not lead to arrogance.
"More importantly than the airships," Enfri said, "were you able to secure a pact of non-aggression? Tempting as it is to think otherwise, we can win a battle against Fen but not a war."
Pacifica grew pensive. "I was, Your Majesty, with a caveat. Fen will not attack, threaten, or otherwise work against Shan Alee or our holdings, but the pact is void if countermanded by the Highest King."
"That's not a pact at all," the Ulthred protested. "We won't be a league out of Nadia before Cathis calls his uncle to chase after us."
Kimpo waved a claw for calm. "It's not as bad as it sounds. Right now, Althandor's legions are engaged in the east to secure the border with the Protectorate and in the Spired City herself. The Crescent Legion will be weeks before its a credible threat again. Fen may be ordered by Cathis to attack us, but he won't obey."
"I believe the Huntress is correct," Pacifica said. She furrowed her brow and lowered her gaze. "The Nadians... They seemed frightened, more than I'd expect them to be. I believe they see us as an even greater threat to them than we realize."
Jin took in a breath, troubled.
The Tactician voiced her agreement with Pacifica and Kimpo. "Fen won't risk facing the Arcane Knights in open battle alone. The one advantage Nadian forces have is air superiority, and we outclass them in that field."
"Airships are made of wood, and wood burns," the Groundbreaker said. "Half those contraptions would shatter if a dragon so much as thought about hitting them."
"I've thought about them hitting me, I assure you," Elloo the Constable said. "Most of the Sky Corps is only useful for ferrying goods to the City of Althandor and back, but there are warships among them. We've seen the dreadnoughts at a distance, and flames save us if we ever need to face them. Twenty mounted ballistae, a hundred veteran aviators, and enough alchemical bombs to wipe any three townships off the map. I don't see even a formation of dragons downing one of those beasts without heavy losses."
Lord Grellin, formerly a common-born armsman and scout of the Lost Company, now the leader of the Quartz Knights, soothed Elloo's concern. "The 'noughts 'ave a weakness, sir. Their armament don't elevate past fifteen degrees."
Most everyone blinked in confusion.
Grellin had become something of the foremost expert on aerial combat, and his aviator's mind worked in ways that were often difficult to follow. His accent from the Altieri hinterlands didn't help.
Enfri almost gasped when she realized exactly what weakness Grellin was pointing out. "They can't defend against attacks from above."
Grellin pointed a finger at her. "Aye, lass. You get it. You've the head for flying better than most anyone save a dragon. Three-dimensional like thinking. Imagine a big feller like the Gladiator diving outta the sun or cloud cover so the archers don't see 'im." He punched a fist into his palm and made a boof sound. "See, that's why I'm not all that chuffed over the floundrin' Sky Corps."
He looked Altieri, but winds if that man wasn't a fey by how incomprehensible he was sometimes. His rustic accent was thick enough to choke a bear, though Enfri was still smiling over being told she had the head for aviation.
Elloo cleared his throat and raised a claw. "I withdraw my concern, Majesty. Lord Grellin made a good observation. I think."
"If there are no further points on the matter?" Jin prompted. None were forthcoming, so she looked to Enfri.
"The Aleesh," Enfri said. She gestured towards Landon by the front door. "As I'm sure you all know, Goodman Marchand has led one hundred and seventeen Aleesh to us. I'd like to know the legion's ability to see them protected."
"Easily, my empress," Ban said. "Waves, but of everything we're dealing with, that's the easiest."
Young Lord Vanya spoke up in support. "Aye, Majesty. Would be different if they were refugees or sommat, but they came with enough supply to see to themselves for the next few weeks. What's more, they've all trades, and a good worker can be worth ten armsmen. It's not just that we could use them. We need them."
Landon stood from his seat. "Your Majesty?"
Enfri nodded to him. "Yes, Goodman. We value your input."
"With all the respect due, Your Majesty, it sounds as if you plan on there being fighting in the future."
"Plan, yes," Enfri said. "The goal of this march, Goodman, isn't to look for a fight. We're going to Melcia to find an enclave of our people hiding there."
Landon paled. "The... The Reach Enclave, Majesty?"
Enfri sat up straighter. "You know of it?"
"Oui, Majesty." He wiped at his brow. "Stories. Rumors. Lautha Weaver, his people came from Iylis, near to the Reach on the northern frontier. He passed to the rest of us the tales he was brought up on, of Aleesh living in hiding amongst the moors and lowlands. Within the hydra-infested swamps, a lost clan of Aleesh makes their home. They live among shifters, or they have become shifters themselves."
A few Dragon Lords muttered about demon-spawned monsters under their breath. Enfri cast a concerned look towards Reyn, but she remained stone faced.
Deebee fluttered her wings. "We already knew of the shifters," she reminded everyone. "My Huntress learned as much from the White Lady. I won't presume to comment on the exact relationship between them, but we know by Nashal's true words that a clan of shifters protects the Aleesh."
"Which means," Enfri said pointedly, "these shifters are our allies."
"Do they know that?" Kolbat asked. "I will make friends with whoever you tell me to make friends with, but I don't like the idea of going in blind."
Starra drew herself up. "Where it comes to shifters, Shan Alee fortunately has some advantage." She flashed her fangs. "I'm charming, am I not?"
Lord Rav laughed. "Aye, my lady, but we've just one shifter with us and who knows how many with them."
"I'm certain I can manage, dear man. With the help of our new first minister, I don't see it being much of a problem at all."
It was astonishing that Starra didn't burst into flames from the glare Reyn was giving her. Enfri could deduce Reyn's issue easily enough. It was all well and good if Starra wished to be out in the open as a shifter, but she had no right to expose Reyn.
Fortunately, the idea that Reyn might also be a shifter didn't seem to enter into anyone's mind.
"There remains the greatest problem," Enfri said. "Should we succeed, we will have many more Aleesh but nowhere to put them. Shan Alee needs a home."
"Put me down as a hard pass for the Espalla Dunes," Ban said. "Unless it miraculously becomes something other than the epicenter of an arcane apocalypse, we should avoid settling in the Imperial City."
A shame, Inwe said. I loved that city once, though it was little more than a village when I knew it.
Maybe someday, Grandfather, Enfri thought. She raised a hand to draw everyone's attention. "As to that, I have a proposal I've been considering for some time now. For the moment, we need only enough land to settle several thousand people."
Lord Vanya looked over some papers his scribe held out for him. "We'd need more eventually. Especially if the enclave we're looking for has more folk than we're expecting."
"Would a parcel of land approximately fifteen by five leagues in size be enough?" Enfri asked him.
"Seventy-five square leagues?" Vanya exclaimed. He blew out his cheeks. "The space isn't an issue, in that case. If there's water sources. Certainly. Are there already any settlements around where you have in mind?"
Enfri smiled. "One, an established trade post."
"Farmlands?"
"The goodfolk have grown wheat, barley, and cotton there since forever."
"Might be too much to hope for, but roads?"
"The main route between Adezu and Drok Moran passes nearby."
Vanya snorted. "Waves, but sounds like an ideal setup to me."
"How do we obtain this parcel of land?" Lord Thaan asked.
"I already own it, more or less," Enfri replied. "Might have to barter with a hammer-brained blacksmith to buy it back, though, but I can get Haythe to do anything if his sister's on my side. I propose settling Shan Alee on the land already granted to House Yora by the Highest King. On the desert's edge by a village called Sandharbor."
Deebee let out a loud and crowing laugh. "Oh, I love that idea, love. Awfully convenient for me, as my lair isn't far and I'll need a place to nest fairly soon."
Pacifica appeared thoughtful. "A relatively undeveloped area, one Princess Maya wouldn't be disinclined to let us have. Once she fulfills her side of your terms of allegiance, the Sandharbor region could be proclaimed part of a new client kingdom without anyone making a fuss. All the surrounding lands belong to Garret the Merovech, and I dare him to protest while he's in our custody."
Lord Dunmar nodded along. "Any locals would likely welcome anyone who came to develop the land. Particularly if we bring gold and trade with us."
"Found a new center of arcane learning," Thaan said wistfully.
"Could protect them from any external threats," the Ulthred said.
"Or internal ones," Rav added.
Enfri was pleased beyond words that her suggestion was going over well. She'd half expected everyone to start listing reasons why it would never work. To get the exact opposite was among the finest gifts she'd ever received.
"If I may, my heart," Jin whispered to her.
"Go on," Enfri replied.
Jin nodded and raised her voice to be heard by everyone. "Until my sister secures her ascension, Sandharbor remains in Althandi territory. My father will see any settlement, particularly by Aleesh, as a provocation."
Ban nodded. "Then we can only hope he won't risk recalling one of his legions to send after us."
"As you say," Jin said. "Short of a preemptive strike, which none of us want, I see no alternative but to wait and see. Peace between House Algara and House Yora is difficult enough, but I would wish it to be more than a simple tenuous truce before the empress and I wed."
"On that," Hugin declared suddenly in his bass rumble of a voice, "congratulations are in order for your betrothal, my ladies."
"And about time, too," Rav quipped.
The Dragon Lords laughed and applauded. It left Enfri feeling awfully bashful all of a sudden, and Jin appeared little better.
"I am clouded," Light Hoof said. "Are empty green one and god-sighted not already mates?"
"Mated, perhaps," Deebee muttered, and Enfri quickly covered the blustering lizard's mouth to another round of laughter.
"Mates in the kith sense," Ban explained to his brother-in-law of sorts. "Not yet in the Five Kingdoms sense."
Light Hoof nodded in an exaggerated way. "Ah. I sight this unclouded. As with Death Fire and Rippling Moon."
"I won't ask for a vote just yet," Enfri said to bring them all back to the matter at hand. "I'm sure there's much to consider about something so important as where Shan Alee will actually be, and I would ask you all to bring this to your staff and knights. Find everything that can go right and go wrong. Come up with what we'll need to acquire or get done. Once we have a complete measure of the task ahead of us, we can put it before the council and give it our full, undivided attention. In the meantime, the goodfolk of Sandharbor have a history of welcoming Aleesh. They're my dear friends and neighbors. I know they'll be able and willing to shelter Goodman Marchand's people at the very least."
The Dragon Lords murmured their agreement. Some seemed especially eager to take on the challenge of founding a new empire on unbroken ground.
Enfri looked to Jin, who nodded and rose to her feet.
"If there are no other immediate concerns, that will adjourn this conference of the Dragon Lords."
They began to rise to their feet. Enfri stood also.
"Thank you, everyone. Before I send you off, I'll need some of you to remain for two additional matters of some sensitivity. Lord Thaan and Brother Joshuan, Pacifica and Lady Starra, Minister Reyn, my First Knight, and the empty ones of the kith."
Lord Thaan furrowed his brow. "In regards to what, Your Majesty?"
Enfri glanced at Starra and received a nod in return. "The imminent threat of the old masters, my lord. As the head of our arcane knighthood, there is a great deal you need to be briefed on. Additionally, there's an urgent matter that's come to our attention we need a blood runner to investigate."