Rhiannon crossed the room slowly and calmly, her eyes on Selvina the whole time. She stepped onto the balcony and stopped at the balustrade, placing her hands upon it. After several silent and tense seconds she looked away from Selvina and gazed at her city.
"Now would be a good time to explain yourself, Selvina," she said in a quiet voice tensed with potential venom, like a coiled serpent waiting to strike. "Your fairy friend can stop hiding as well."
Selvina glanced to the side, where Tinkerbelle had flown behind Amalthea, who was still seated, and then eyed the white-haired woman. Amalthea did not seem troubled. In fact, she looked strangely pleased to see the empress. With a muster of courage, Selvina took a step toward the empress.
"I..." she started, struggling to find the right words. "I didn't know how... Um, I..."
"Start at the beginning, Selvina," said Rhiannon, still gazing at the city. "Tell me why you left the room without warning."
Selvina instinctively reached for her elf-arrow necklace but struggled to stop herself. She eyed the ground at Rhiannon's feet, avoiding the dangerous woman's face, even though it was turned the other way. Somehow it still felt as if the empress was staring directly at her. "I didn't feel safe around Queen Svala..." It wasn't a complete lie, at least.
Rhiannon sighed slowly, purposely drawing it out. "That is not the full answer." She then turned, her golden eyes frowning with intensity and boring holes into Selvina's soul. The empress walked up to the frightened girl and eyed her chest. "Show it to me, Selvina."
She can't use magic, Selvina remembered. She can't force me to do anything!
Gathering more courage, Selvina frowned and eyed the empress directly. "No! I won't!"
Quicker than she could follow, Selvina's throat was suddenly gripped by Rhiannon's slender but iron-strong fingers. They weren't squeezing but the grip was firm nonetheless. Selvina went to fight it but they clenched painfully for a moment, driving the point home. Meanwhile, Rhiannon's eyes stared unwaveringly, her irises narrowing into cat-like slits.
"I don't need magic to kill you, Selvina," she said, and Selvina believed every word of it.
Reluctantly, Selvina reached for her necklace and lifted the amulet over the top of her dress. She closed her eyes in defeat as the empress reached for it with her free hand, the other still gripping her neck.
Something strange happened then. Instead of wrenching it away to keep for herself or destroy, the empress held the elf-arrow amulet in the palm of her hand and smiled warmly. Selvina thought she saw moisture in the woman's eyes but knew she had to be mistaken.
"In all my years," she whispered, "I have never set eyes on one. Do you understand what you have here, Selvina? Do you understand the novelty of this artifact?"
"It's an elf-arrow from the swamps," Selvina explained, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "Robin Hood told me they were extremely rare."
"That would be an understatement," she replied, still studying the elf-arrow with fascination. "There were only ten elf-arrows made in the entirety of history. To see one here now is like witnessing the past."
Selvina kept her mouth shut about how she and her friends had found more than one elf-arrow, especially considering that the troll chief Serna now owned them. She had no love for the trolls but she didn't want to cause a genocide anyhow. Selvina then remembered about something and glanced at the empress's long, silky hair.
"What are you going to do to me?" Selvina asked, fearing the answer.
Rhiannon met her gaze, held it in silence for several minutes, and then let the elf-arrow drop to her chest and removed her hand from Selvina's neck. She took a step back and crossed her arms behind her back. "Keep it out of sight."
Selvina furrowed her brows in confusion, glancing at Tinkerbelle and Amalthea. "You're...not taking it away from me?"
"You can keep the elf-arrow, Selvina, but that does not mean you go unpunished. You freed one of my prisoners and for that I must educate you on the wrongness of that decision."
"She was dying," Selvina said, growing confident and strong with the elf-arrow still in her possession. "I had to do something! She's the one who brought me here, Rhiannon. I need her, just like you need me!"
Rhiannon raised one of her perfect eyebrows and glanced from Amalthea to Selvina. "Are you defying me, Selvina?"
"I am. I will not be punished for doing the right thing! You were killing her! For what? She was only trying to help!"
"She was upsetting my plans and I will not-"
Selvina stomped her foot. "To hell with your plans, Rhiannon! Why do you care so much about your war plans?! The Writer is the real threat here! You can end this war and not have to worry about any plans or strategies or whatever! Amalthea told me I need you to help me to stop the Writer and you know it. You know that the Writer is more dangerous than any army. He's who we should be focusing on, not King Arthur or Frenis or Sauradia or any other kingdom or army!"
Rhiannon's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Tell me, Selvina, how will you stop the Writer?"
Selvina frowned and pursed her lips together, having no answer.
"My point exactly," the empress continued. "You do not know how. You think that we shall just walk up to the Writer and the answer will come to us naturally. I do not know how to stop him either, but I do know one thing. Powerful as he is, the Writer is yet mortal. I am stronger now than I was when I last fought him but I will not take any needless risks with fighting him alone. I need assistance."
"Amalthea is here!" Selvina gestured to the unicorn woman, who was still sitting in her chair with her eyes closed, basking in the sun, seemingly content. "She can help you again! I'm sure if you asked him, Merlin could help you too. And I'll be there..."
"The Writer has been preparing for his return and now that he is back he will not be caught off guard. If either Merlin or I died in the battle there would be no one left to remedy the magical imbalance. My plans include a solution to this problem, Selvina. I need more time, however."
"Your plan will fail, Rhiannon," Amalthea said, speaking for the first time. She opened her eyes and stood up, tall and elegant. She was thin and ragged but she appeared to glow with life. Selvina glanced from her to Rhiannon, noticing the stark contrast and yet clear likeness between the two. White and black, light and dark, they fit together, like sisters of a sort. "You must abandon it."
Rhiannon's lip twitched into a brief snarl. "Do not try this again, Amalthea. I know it will work. You are mistaken."
Amalthea shook her head, appearing saddened. "I am not, Rhiannon. Your goal is pure and noble but what you plan on doing will cause more harm than you intend. Your plan will not save us but instead doom the world forever."
Rhiannon fought back a retort and instead looked at Selvina, her expression hard. "Do you understand now why I had to keep her contained in the cell? She will ruin all of my hard work, Selvina. Amalthea does not believe my plan will succeed, but it will."
"I...don't even know what your plan is," Selvina mumbled, utterly confused.
Rhiannon smiled. "Let me show you, Selvina, and you too shall understand how I am right and precious Amalthea is wrong. Perhaps then you will see my reasoning in why I had, and may yet still need, to keep her imprisoned."
As the empress left the room, Selvina exchanged a glance with Amalthea, who looked disappointed, and eventually followed the empress. Tinkerbelle flew on her shoulder and said nothing, her nail-sword held at the ready.
****
Artemian wiped his brow of sweat and drank thirstily from a water flask offered to him. Beside him was Allan Quatermain and sitting with them were two dwarves. They, along with the other dwarves, sat in one of three rowboats that were tied off to The Nautlius's bow. The submersible had come into troubles and lost all power, forcing her crew to board all available rowboats and tow her to land. They were still several days away from the Noyran shores but the seas, for now, were kind and progress was slow but steady.
"This is the last time I get into a damned underwater boat," the huntsman growled as he lifted his oar and began rowing again. "I'm a hunter, not some dim-witted, filth-ridden..."
Allan cleared his throat and gestured to the two dwarves seated on the rowboat's other bench, rowing away. "I'm not particularly fond of all this rowing either but at least my arms are getting stronger!"
Artemian rolled his eyes. "Your optimism is sickening."
"I always try to find the good in any situation. If you don't, life gets dull and dreary. I believe that all struggles of life are an adventure. They may not be ones you wished to undertake but they test you all the same, perhaps even better than any other challenge.
"Just look at you! When I first met you I thought you were a terrible person but by the gods, Artemian, you're almost likeable sometimes."
"Oh do shut up..."
Allan laughed. "Admit it, Artemian, even though this journey is rather, well, unfavorable, at the moment, you did enjoy some of it. I know you did."
Artemian shook his head. "I wish I had never met you at the dock."
"You don't mean it. Stop lying to yourself, Artemian."
"I do mean it, now shut up and keep rowing. Once we get to Noyr I'm leaving you, Nemo, and all these dwarves forever."
"Oh. Um, well, I was going to ask if..."
"No, you're not coming with me."
"It's settled then, I'm coming with you!"
Artemian growled and rowed more powerfully, his face red with frustration. Allan chuckled and kept pace with him. The day wore on with the rowers making good progress, according to Captain Nemo's predictions. As the sun was setting they were readying to set anchor and settle for the night inside The Nautilus. Though it couldn't move itself anymore it was still dry and comfortable and better than sleeping out in the open.
As the rowboats were rowing toward the floating submersible, a call was heard from the southernmost boat. The dwarves and men stopped rowing and looked in that direction. The dwarves aboard it were pointed to the southwest, where an odd sight revealed itself.
"What is that thing?" Artemian asked, shielding his eyes from the setting sun with one hand.
Allan and the two dwarves with them shook their heads and shrugged.
As it drew nearer, Artemian saw it more clearly and felt an uncomfortable coldness seep into his skin. The strange sight looked like dark lump thrashing through the waves in a direct line, unwavering and unceasing. It split through the water like a knife and never slowed in the slightest.
When it passed The Nautlius and the three rowboats, Artemian's eyes widened. There, several dozens of yards away, was a terrifying creature of nightmare, like some demonic sea snake, and seated just behind its head was something Artemian recognized immediately.
The Black Knight.
The mount and rider sliced through the water without slowing, there one moment and gone the next, heading in almost the same direction the rowers were. For a few terrifying seconds, Artemian saw the knight turn its head and look right at him, its blood-red eyes glowing with malice. The cold grip of fear lingered long after it had looked away and continued on. No one moved or said anything for many minutes after both terrors were gone from sight.
Eventually, Artemian broke the silence. He looked at Allan, frowned, and said, "Well, what does your optimism have to say about that?"