Pacifica had a bad feeling since she woke that morning. It hadn't abated in the slightest as she prepared to head into Sandharbor, and it only got worse throughout her ride in the steam carriage. She was a complete bundle of nerves by the time the slate-tiled roofs of the village came into view.
Pacifica tried to focus on the village itself. It was a quaint town, orderly and homey. From the way Enfri had spoken of it during unguarded moments, Pacifica had built up some lofty expectations for the place. So far, Sandharbor looked more than capable of living up to them.
That couldn't hold her attention. She kept thinking about what waited for her ahead.
Pacifica cast a surreptitious look at Brother Joshuan, sitting opposite from her in the carriage. She could and had admitted to some measure of infatuation with the boy and didn't think she could be blamed for it. He was, after all, the one primarily responsible for challenging the very concept of death and returning her to life. That sort of thing had a way of ingratiating a young man to a young woman. Adding to that, he was intelligent, kind-hearted, and more than a little handsome. Starra had even gleefully reported to her that Krayson was expressing some small interest in exploring a romantic relationship. One of the few problems was how useless he was at noticing Pacifica's regard.
Oh, Saveen and Starra were both dropping hints on his head that would clue in a stone, but Pacifica would rather they wouldn't. It wasn't as if she intended anything, and it certainly wasn't like she could just outright tell him if she did. Absolutely not! A princess couldn't just confess her attraction.
Her expression fell. No, Krayson wouldn't ever likely be the sort of paramour Pacifica desired. She longed for someone who could be casually affectionate— like Ban was with Rippling Moon— and as admirable as Krayson was, that wasn't him.
She recalled the feel of soft lips against hers. A gentle hand around her waist as she was pulled back into the sunlight. Then months later, a similar situation. Darkness and an unfathomably great Beyond her mind couldn't even begin to comprehend. And then, waking once more with those same lips on her mouth, another's sweet breath mingling with her own and reaching into her very soul.
Pacifica startled. Waves and tides, why had she started thinking about that? No, no, no, Pacifica had a courting preference for men. Men! At least... that's what she'd always assumed about herself.
She buried her face in her hands and shook her head. She wanted distraction, but not like this. Why in the name of tides had Enfri given the reins of her empire to a complete and utter twit of a princess?
"My lady, are you well?" Krayson asked.
Pacifica's eyes snapped up. "What?"
"Flames," Saveen mumbled. "I haven't seen a journey of facial expressions like that one since... well, since ever."
The blood rushed to Pacifica's head so fast there was an all too real risk of losing consciousness. She was mortified. Floundering mortified. She would've been had she been alone, but to have someone actually witness her small psychotic break was a thousand times worse.
Pacifica took in a breath to steady herself and let it out again. "It's nothing. Just trying to distract myself."
"Meditation?" Krayson asked.
"Something like that." Pacifica leaned her head against the window and sighed. "I want to thank you, Brother Joshuan."
"For what?"
"For being here. Starra has her own responsibilities and can't wait around for me while I'm regent. I don't think I could do this on my own."
Krayson frowned and averted his gaze. "I doubt I will be of much assistance, my lady. Diplomacy is not among my skills."
"It's enough not to be alone."
He opened his mouth to say something, closed it again, then opened it once more.
Pacifica raised an eyebrow at him. "Yes?"
This time, he was the one turning a little red. "I don't know how to phrase it."
"Admitting that much is more than many negotiators are willing to do." Pacifica smiled. "Go on, Brother Joshuan. I promise not to be offended."
He pressed his lips together before speaking. "This will be only your second negotiation since losing your bond with Adar the Ascendent. Might that be the source of your unease?"
Pacifica clasped her hands in her lap and stared at them. "I'd be lying if I said that wasn't part of it. A large part. In Drok Moran, it was simple. The Nadians already knew what we wanted and were practically falling over themselves to give us all we needed to leave. Even so, I felt... incomplete. Like a part of me was missing."
Saveen flapped her wings, mindless of how she battered them against Krayson's face. "We'll get the Eldest back, my lady," she said with confidence. "I know we will. We got Kimpo back, and we'll do the same for Adar."
"Saveen," Krayson said, fending off her wings. "Would you mind terribly if I asked you to head to the edge of the village and do some scries? I'm worried Omolade might try summoning the fey army Nkeoma failed to."
Pacifica came alert. He wouldn't be... Oh no.
Saveen cast a quick look between her and Krayson before her face split into a wide grin, and she nodded. "As you say, master. I'm getting good at divination. I'll... take my time with it, though."
"Not too long," Krayson said. "I want you back before the talks start."
Saveen muttered something under her breath that neither of the mortals were quite able to catch. She grasped the window ledge with her claws and heaved it open before leaping outside and taking wing.
"Thundering lizard," Krayson grumbled as he shut the window again. He sat back down and faced Pacifica, looking somewhat anxious. "My lady... Lady Regent, I should say. There was something I wished to discuss with you, now that we're alone."
"O-of course. Please, go ahead." Pacifica felt her heart racing. Surely, Krayson hadn't asked Saveen to go because he wished for a private moment.
I mean, it's Brother Joshuan, Pacifica thought.
Then again, he'd proven himself capable of surprising Pacifica before. The inexplicably charming things he'd said at their first meeting, his quiet intellect, not to mention how he led the unison link that saved her life. Maybe it wouldn't be such a terrible thing if he was about to extend an offer of courtship. Pacifica sat up straight and prim, her hands folded in her lap, and she tossed her head slightly to get a few wayward strands of hair out of her eyes.
He looked down, unable to look her in the face. "This is awkward for me."
"It's alright, Brother Joshuan. I'm listening." Waves and tides, but this was precisely as she imagined it going.
"I want you to know that I am not making this proposal lightly. I have given it a great deal of thought."
"Yes?" Go on, go on! You're following the script perfectly!
"With Starra about to be absent for the near future, I would be willing to impart what knowledge of wizardry I can."
"A deviation," Pacifica whispered.
His brow knit together. "Pardon?"
Pacifica gave her head a sharp shake to clear it. Shouldn't she have been disappointed? Why in the name of tides was she feeling... relieved... that Krayson hadn't confessed to her? "Nothing. I'm sorry, Brother Joshuan, but why send Saveen away for this?"
He grimaced. "She gets touchy enough when I'm on the tasks Her Majesty gives me. I don't want her thinking she'll lose more instruction time to another apprentice."
Pacifica gave a sage nod. "Wizardry. That was all?"
"Yes. It would..." He turned red again and looked away. "It would also help me carry out another task I was given."
"What task? Given by whom?"
"Reyn. Before she left, she asked that I keep an eye on you for her."
Pacifica felt a curious warmth growing inside her. Not what she'd expected, but welcome all the same. Maybe this was a little better. It felt good to know that even though she was far away, Reyn's thoughts were still with her.
The memories of receiving Reyn's Breath returned, and Pacifica nearly squawked at their sudden arrival. Terribly inappropriate to think about. Reyn was with Starra, and Starra was Pacifica's master. That just had to be unethical.
Waves take her, but why was she wishing for ways it might actually come to be?
Pacifica rested her elbows on her knees and her face in her hands. She blew out her lips in frustration.
"My lady?"
She raised her eyes to his face. "How old are you?"
He blinked in confusion. "Seventeen, my lady."
Drat. I guess that makes him of age by Althandi standards, but not by Altieri. She sighed. Of course, by Altieri standards, she herself was only just barely of age, but Pacifica was of a mind to take any excuse to abandon this passing infatuation she could and put it behind her. "I'm sorry, but I can't court you."
"Did... did I ask something I didn't intend?" He drew back into his seat, growing agitated. "If I gave offense..."
Pacifica sat up straight again and adjusted her braid. "Not at all. I've just been acting like a fool for far too long. In short, yes, Brother Joshuan, I would be happy to accept your offer. Platonically."
He narrowed his eyes. "I hear that a lot, unsolicited. Do I give the impression of being a flirt?"
Pacifica smiled. "Not in the slightest. I think that may be the most charming thing about you."
"Thunders, make sense, woman."
"Respectfully, I decline." She felt the carriage's steam engine slowing. A look out the window confirmed that they were passing through the lanes of Sandharbor and coming to a stop. Pacifica smoothed the fabric of her skirt and fought down a resurgence of her anxiety. It was easier than she expected.
Admitting something to herself after trying so hard to deny it for a long time was more liberating than Pacifica ever dreamed. It was as if a weight had fallen off her shoulders. There were plenty of other burdens still there, of course. Adar was gone, and he probably didn't know Pacifica was alive. Starra was about to leave with Lidya on a new task. An empire had a Dragon Lord lacking a dragon instead of its rightful empress. More immediately, Melcia and Shan Alee were poised to continue a senseless confrontation.
Plenty of things to worry about, but Pacifica felt prepared to deal with them all. She'd taken the first step in coming to terms with feelings she'd been struggling with for weeks.
First, her betrothal with Ban had been the reason she fought against it. Then, the aftermath of Rodrik's Rebellion had forced her to put her own issues aside. The march north, the battles, the tense negotiations, dying, all of it took priority over Pacifica's silly fancies. But, through it all, those feelings had remained ever since she carried another's Breath within her.
Reyn had moved on. It was time Pacifica did, also.
"Now," Pacifica said, smiling, "let's proceed."
Krayson gave her a dubious look before opening the carriage door and stepping out. Pacifica took a bracing breath before following. She took the hand Krayson offered to assist her out of the carriage.
It was a shame, really. Pacifica supposed that after all the nonsense during the rebellion, Fate just didn't have a romance in store for her.
The old grump of a spirit. Someone really needed to kick that bastard in the crotch.
oOo
Ban didn't like this one bit. There was a sense in the air, one of anticipation, and it was spreading to include the Aleesh armsmen. He felt tension rising around him as hands gripped tighter to spears and crossbows.
Their destination was the Sandharbor trading post. It was little more than a raised foundation open to the air. Fabrics of many different varieties and colors draped between poles driven into the stones. The merchant stands lay bare, so the villagers must've taken their goods and produce elsewhere. That is, what the Crescent Legion hadn't already procured for themselves.
Ban had only met a single family from this area. He had no ties to this place. Yet still, he was outraged on their behalf. Even if Ban could accept that King Adeyemi was ruthless, he'd thought better of Zoputan. He'd thought better of all of them. Waves, but he'd admired them all and named them among his friends.
At the same time, a voice from his past named him a naive fool. Kastus' teachings were never far beneath the surface. Of course the Melcians had done as they did. This was war, whether he wanted to believe it or not. And in war, the goodfolk suffered. Accept it or rail against the heavens because of it, it was the way the world was. Pretending otherwise only made a general weak.
Were their fortunes reversed, Ban knew he'd be doing the same. Resupply, recoup losses, recover from defeat. That was the only way to mount an effective counterattack, and the Akazewis had done it without killing innocents and drew Shan Alee into a stand-off nearer to their border at the same time.
Ban hated that he found himself admiring their gall.
The Melcian delegation had already arrived. As expected, there were a large number of armsmen bearing the cerulean and silver hydra of House Akazewi on their tabards and shields. A full company of five hundred soldiers, ten knights, and a cadre of twenty-five fey bodyguards. The fey were mostly angels, but Ban spotted the twisting horns of a handful of succubi in the mix.
We're outnumbered five to one, he thought. He quickly amended himself. He'd brought two dragons, three if he counted the Bastion. The odds were stacked, but not in Melcia's favor. He glanced up to where Jin rode at the nape of Grimdar's neck. Yeah, we definitely hold the upper hand here. Let's hope the Akazewis realize that, too.
Dismounting from Arnln, Ban tossed his reins to a nearby armsmen. For this, he came in his uniform, not his armor. That was another thing to make him nervous. It was one thing to lose plates of steel covering his vital organs, but not having all his sigils on hand left him feeling vulnerable. All he had was a set of bracers engraved with strength and warding sigils beneath his coat sleeves.
He suppressed the urge to check his axe hanging on his back. It wouldn't be very diplomatic of him to keep grabbing at his weapon while Pacifica tried to talk their way out of another fight.
Behind him, Jalla and Grimdar knelt down. They both lay like house cats, each in a different lane leading into the village square. It was Pacifica's hope that if the male dragons stayed in their truest forms, the Melcians wouldn't be familiar enough at telling the mighty apart to realize they weren't Kimpo and Deebee.
The Melcian armsmen kept their eyes on the dragons. Their nervousness at being this close to Grimdar and Jalla was plain as day. A few gaped openly at the Gladiator's sheer enormity. Ban would've bet gold marks against a scub that Grimdar's tail had yet to fully enter the village.
As Jin, Kora, Ascania, and Moon disembarked their dragons, Ban looked around at the buildings and homes lining the square. He saw plenty of frightened faces, blanched white and peering out through window shutters. Enfri had warned Ban that most of her neighbors hadn't known about Deebee while they lived here. Suddenly having two of the mighty lounging in front of their trading post might not have been the best way to make an impression.
What must they be thinking? he wondered. To them, the Aleesh are only known by the pretty sky woman who once lived up the lane. Now, an entire empire has materialized as if from nowhere and has started rattling sabers at Melcians. And Melcians, them they know. Them, they've been raised to respect. What are we?
The Crescent Legion must've seemed like a favorite uncle who'd grown inexplicably violent, and Shan Alee was the scale lion prowling in the front yard. In such a situation, the frightened child had a choice of whose leg to cling to. Ban held no illusions of whom that would be for Sandharbor. Here, he was the invader.
Pacifica and Krayson were climbing out of the steam carriage, but before the regent could approach the negotiation table, it fell to the First Knight to open proceedings. Ban held up a hand to signal his crewmen. Knight-Lieutenants Natanya and Karlo stood on either side of him, an honor guard of ten aviators armed with spears and shields following.
Nat and Karlo were in full plate, at least. Ban was willing to expose himself to an arrow in the chest, but he wanted his officers ready for anything. Both of them were inexperienced, barely a month of knighthood between the pair of them. However, they were competent soldiers from good families. They had Ban's confidence.
Ban led his small detachment up a short flight of steps onto the foundation of the trading post. The Aleesh side of the post was clear of Melcians, the line of angels and succubi in spellwrought glass armor forming a clear boundary at the halfway point.
"Knight-Marshall Bannlyth," came Zoputan's voice from the ranks of his soldiers. "How shines the daylight?"
Ban walked right up to the seely fey before coming to a stop. "Over warm, Prince. I find myself ready for the shade of my tent. That would be preferable to sweltering on a battlefield."
The succubus directly in front of Ban stepped aside. Zoputan came forward to stand in her place on the line. The Boy General looked tired, a weariness lurking in his lavender eyes. He'd taken the woven gemstones out of his short, dreadlocked hair, and Ban wished he could remember if that was a good sign or not.
Zoputan extended his hand across the line. "It is good to see you well, mine friend. I mean this truly."
"You, also," Ban said as he clasped his wrist. "Will your sister not be joining us?"
"Will your empress?"
Ban wanted to swallow his anxiety, but stopped himself from showing his worry. "Her Majesty..."
"Come now, Ban," Zoputan interrupted. "It is clear. You would nay risk having her here today, as I would nay risk mine father's heir. You and I both know what happened in Moran Valley was an unfortunate turn on Fate's web, one we both fell prey to and can nay afford to repeat."
Ban let go of Zoputan's wrist. "I take it word's been spreading that it was Elise who attacked you. Not us."
"Spreading, yes." Zoputan averted his eyes. "Believed, however, this is nay so."
Ban opened his mouth to protest.
"Nay believed by they whose voices make such decisions," Zoputan said. "I, on the other hand, know whom mine enemy is, and the man before me is nay him."
That was about the most hopeful thing Ban could remember hearing all week. He nearly sagged with relief, however a tug at his ether warned him that it wasn't everything. Ban didn't need insight to note the inconsistencies between what Zoputan said and what he did.
"Why are we here, Prince?" Ban asked quietly. "Not negotiating, but here at all? Why is the Crescent Legion acting like a pack of floundering bandits?"
"Aye, Brother," Nkeoma said, stepping into the trading post with her guards. "This question weighs upon mine heart, as well."
Zoputan exhaled heavily at seeing his youngest sister alive and well. His eyes flickered to Jin and Ascania as they arrived along with her. "We received your letters, Sister, but still we feared the worst."
"And every word within them was true," Nkeoma said. She flashed a disapproving look at Ban. "Though perhaps nay containing as much truth as I intended."
"Oh, come off it," Ban growled. "Dress it up in all the flowery prose you want, you were still trying to send off an exact count of our forces." Ban looked helplessly to Zoputan. "I made her cut out a few paragraphs with sensitive information, but I didn't tell her what to say otherwise."
"Lout," Nkeoma huffed.
Zoputan chuckled, too relieved to be overly concerned with supposed censorship. "Sister, I believe you were given more considerations than the law strictly required."
"I nay dispute it."
"Akazewi honor requires you show gratitude where it is due."
Ban held up a palm. "Really, she's been a... pleasant guest. All around, a good egg, your sister." He gestured for Karlo to go fetch Pacifica.
After Karlo snapped a fist to his chest and hurried to obey, Zoputan addressed Ascania. "Mine lady, it has been many years."
Ascania smiled fondly for him. "So it has, Prince. I still remember a certain precocious fourteen-year-old who was terribly forward during the Autumnal Equinox Ball in Parnaia."
Zoputan beamed and gave his reply without missing a beat. "I trust you have since forgiven a foolish boy nay prepared for the splendor of Lady Ascania Karst."
"I saw no need to forgive anything. I hadn't been that flattered since my wedding."
"And so I am surprised," Zoputan said, his smile fading only somewhat as his tone grew saddened, "to find the unrivaled beauty from mine youth outfitted for war."
Ascania unconsciously plucked at her flight armor. "As a hydromancer, I feel I have some authority on the future. The roles we find ourselves within are seldom the ones foreseen, Prince. As for my own, Karst is now an Aleesh house, and so I have followed my son in swearing the oaths of an Arcane Knight."
Zoputan sighed and nodded. "I nay doubt you shall do their ranks credit, mine lady."
Lastly, Zoputan cast a wary eye towards Jin. Neither said anything, but Ban felt like he could cut the tension lying between them with a knife. A bead of sweat appeared on Zoputan's brow, and he looked away from Jin.
The last group of the Aleesh delegation arrived. Pacifica came, holding on to Krayson's arm. Saveen sat on her master's shoulder. Lady Kora Mensc and Rippling Moon served as Pacifica's guards. Light Hoof, Fallen, Ritt, and Tor came in after them.
Ban spared a quick appraisal for Moon. The arrival of her and the empty ones caused a small stir among the seely bodyguards. Whether it was surprise to see a fey woman wearing the uniform of another kingdom or some sort of prejudice between the bright and dark folks was hard for Ban to tell. Moon's pregnancy was starting to show a little, even through the coat of her uniform. She remained stone-faced and stared straight ahead, avoiding the eyes of Zoputan and the seely fey in front of her.
As he looked at her, he saw Moon furrow her brow. She turned her head slightly towards the north, a frown on her lips.
Ban looked to Zoputan. "I wish the negotiations well, Prince. I will withdraw in favor of Pacifica."
Zoputan inclined his head to him. "I will speak with your Lady Regent. I pray an accord will be struck."
A surge of elder magic pulled at Ban's ether. It almost seemed to howl at him, begging to be heard. He stopped walking away in mid-step and looked back.
"Lady Regent," Ban whispered. "You... Zoputan, did you already know about Pacifica's appointment?"
Zoputan blinked, his smile now appearing forced. "I have made a simple series of deductions, mine friend. After all, though I treat with Aleesh, it appears I am talking more and more with the Altieri. And so..."
"No," Ban said, turning to face him fully. He peered at Zoputan, searching for answers. "Don't try to deflect me. It won't work. How could you possibly know Pacifica was named as Enfri's regent?"
He looked to Nkeoma, hoping to find a smug look about how she'd snuck some information past his scribes. Instead, he found her just as confused as he was. Ban let his insight in, but it only told him what he already knew.
"The traitor," he said under his breath. Ban's eyes narrowed dangerously. "You've been getting information about us from an unexpected source, haven't you?"
Zoputan swallowed. "As you would censor mine sister's letters, so must we take clandestine measures. Surely, you understand, mine friend."
Darian must've found a way past Rav and the Onyx Knights. Or, it'd never been him to begin with. That, or Shan Alee's problems were larger than Ban thought.
So very much larger. Because, if Zoputan knew about Pacifica, he must've known why she was named regent.
"Waves take me. Enfri." Ban backed up a step. "Moon, what are you hearing?"
Moon startled at being called on. She'd been looking northeast, her ears all but twitching as she strained to listen to a sound inaudible to the rest of them. "Songs," she hissed once she understood what she was hearing. "I hear battle-songs of dark kith."
The Melcian soldiers tensed as Ban took an angry step towards their prince. "Where is Omolade?"
Zoputan raised his chin. A dozen different emotions fought behind his lavender eyes. When he spoke, his voice was strained. "I am sorry, mine friend. It should nay have come to this, but mine duty is to serve mine father's heir."
"Shan Alee!" Ban shouted, maintaining eye contact with the prince. "Take the wind!"
There was confusion among his people. Only Moon and Pacifica seemed to understand that these talks had only been a ruse. A distraction to hold their attention while the Crescent Legion prepared to march back towards their own borders, then beyond. If the Melcians knew Enfri was gone, Ban could only assume they also knew where she went.
They were heading for the Reach.
"Zoputan," Jin snarled. "Explain yourself!"
Zoputan's eyes were on the ground. He couldn't even look at her. "I do not dare ask your forgiveness, little viper. Mine sister... she will nay abide the return of your beloved's empire. Nay for any promise, nor for any cause."
"Brother," Nkeoma gasped. "You cannae allow this? Peace was offered us. All we wished for and more. Our father would see the wisdom."
Zoputan pressed his lips together. With a start, Ban realized he was doing so to hold back tears. "Our father... is nay king of Melcia any longer. The reign of Queen Omolade the Akazewi has begun." He grit his teeth and looked away. "For as long as Fate wills it."
Ban opened up to the elder magic, but he found it to be a maelstrom. Too many things vied for his attention, and trying to see to them all would leave him lost in the past and drained of ether— ether he would need. He turned around and followed the others. The Melcians made no move to stop them.
Except one. Zoputan grabbed Ban's shoulder.
"Bannlyth, please. We will honor the truce of neutral ground. Mine soldiers here will nay raise arms. Please, stay. You must nay go."
Ban pulled against Zoputan's grip. "That ship's sailed, Prince. You want us as your enemy so badly, so be it."
"You nay understand. Ban, please!"
Moon ran up to Ban and grabbed his arm. "White-scented speaks clouds," she growled. "We must fly, Ban. Fly and keep path white for Enfri."
Zoputan looked at Moon. His eyes went to the slight roundness of her belly and back to Ban. His voice dropped to a pleading whisper. "Ban, for your own sake, you must nay go."
"You have your duty, Prince." Ban tore away from Zoputan and took a step after the others. "I have mine. I'll give prayers to every god who might hear we don't meet on the field."
He left Nkeoma with her brother. Whatever else was said about this day, Shan Alee lived up to its side of things. The princess was their prisoner no longer.
Jin wasn't wasting time. Under her direction, Grimdar's crew was climbing aboard his harness and taking their posts. Ban sent Nat and Karlo to serve as her first and second officers. The remainder of Ban and Kimpo's crew would remain with Pacifica. There was enough space on the Gladiator's back for the empty ones to join them. With a battle imminent, the fey wanted to rejoin their warriors as quickly as possible. Ascania and her second officer directed Jalla's crew, and Ban made his way towards them.
"Permission to come aboard, Opal Knight," Ban called to his mother.
"So long as you bring my first officer," Ascania shouted back. "I'm afraid I'm not as well-versed at this as she is."
Ban earned himself a sharp look when he tried helping Moon into the harness. While he waited for her, he turned to Pacifica and Krayson. "Storyteller's crew will escort you back to the camp. Krayson, you're with me. Saveen with Pacifica. We'll need you two to give sendings to keep us in contact."
"Be careful, Ban," Pacifica said. "But no matter what, we can't let the Melcians find the Reach enclave. It'll be just like what happened in Ejasta."
Ban gave her a nod and turned to climb onto Jalla's harness. Krayson whispered an incantation and flew— well, it was more like falling wrong— up to the Historian's back.
"Death Fire," Light Hoof shouted from Grimdar's back. "White-scented seek to bloody home of fire-scented. This is stone?"
"Not if we have anything to say about it, Brother," Ban called back. He raised his voice to be heard by the crews of both dragons. "Arcane Knights of Shan Alee, our beloved's people— our people— are in danger. Come what may, we will pay any cost to defend the Aleesh and the Dragon Empress. Are you with me?"
Around him, fey, mortals, and mighty answered his call. "Again and forever!"