Wesson looked up in surprise. “But you are amazing how you are!”
Rezkin grinned and watched as the meaning dawned in the mage’s eyes.
“Oh.”
Rezkin tilted his head and settled a sword on to the crate. “Now, I need you to look at this.”
Wesson lowered his face to peer closely at the weapon. He said, “It is a sword.”
“I know,” said Rezkin. “It is the mythical Sword of Eyre.”
Wesson looked at the sword again. He lifted it from the crate and turned it in every way. “It is only a sword. It is not even enchanted—not in any way. It contains no mage materials. There is nothing special about it. It would be impossible to set it aflame for any length of time.”
Rezkin nodded as his suspicions were confirmed. The prophecy of the Sword of Eyre was a fraud.
Frisha looked in the mirror. For the second time, a stranger stared back at her. “Do you think it’s too much?”
Celise laughed. “This is very not much. You look pretty, but we can have more?”
“No, it’s enough. It’s just that I don’t recognize myself. My eyes look huge and bright, and my lips—do you think it sends the wrong message? I know most of the ladies at court wear face paints, but I never—”
“You must stop this worry,” said Celise. “You are not to be queen, but we still want to have status, yes? We must impress them. If we look to have … um, this is the word for knowing we are good?”
“Confidence?”
“Yes, we must look to have confidence, and they will think we are important. Trust me. This is how it is done. We must hurry.”
“What’s the rush?” said Frisha.
“We are almost the last to leave the ship. It is not good to be last. This shows a worry that we are not good enough to be ahead of others. To be first is to be too eager. We are at a good time now.”
“She has a point,” said Moldovan. Frisha jumped, not having noticed him standing in the doorway. He said, “I have decided to escort you down the gangplank. A lady should never go it alone.”
Celise’s expression fell. “My Wesson is not here to be escort.”
Moldovan smiled, the wrinkles around his mouth and eyes becoming craggier. “Then I shall have the pleasure of escorting two beautiful women.”
Frisha watched her feet as she descended the gangplank since she did not want to make a fool of herself by falling into the water. When she looked up, she was confronted by a stern-faced high lord with every reason to be angry. They stared at each other, he the judge and she the accused. Finally, his expression softened, and he said, “I am glad to see that you are well.”
Frisha smiled, but his attention had already moved on to the old king at her side. After Tieran introduced himself, he said, “Do I know you? You look somewhat familiar.”
Moldovan’s expression was hard. He said, “Lord Tieran Nirius, I met you only once, I think. You would have been a small boy then.”
Frisha said, “This is King … ah, I mean Prince Moldovan of Ferélle.”
Tieran’s brows rose, and then he stepped back and performed a courtly bow. “Greetings, Your Highness. I have the honor of offering you Cael’s finest hospitality—such as it may be. I must apologize in advance. Ours is a young kingdom, and the accommodations will not meet the standards to which you are accustomed, but we will do our best to address your every need.”
Moldovan raised his chin and looked down his nose at Tieran in judgment. Then, he winked at Frisha and said, “That is how royalty should be addressed.” He turned back to Tieran. “Thank you, I humbly accept your gracious hospitality, Lord Tieran—or is it prince? Were you not named heir presumptive?”
Tieran’s grin appeared forced. “Well, we have not yet worked out the system of titles and holdings. Lord Tieran will do for now.”
Moldovan nodded and said, “I did not come for the comforts. I came to see my daughter.”
“Of course, I will escort you directly.”
“No, you stay and enjoy the company of these lovely ladies.” He pointed to the personnel running around the dock in newly designed palace livery. “I would be glad to have one of these servants show me to her.”
After Tieran called over a servant to escort Moldovan, Frisha said, “This is Celise, daughter of Queen Erisial. She is … ah … a friend? … of Journeyman Mage Wesson’s.”
Celise’s joy was bright enough to fill the dock as she said, “Yes, I have claimed sweet Wesson as my first consort. It is a pleasure to meet you, Lord Tieran. Frisha has said much of you to me.”
Tieran glanced at Frisha. She released an uncomfortable laugh and said, “Oh, you know, just the little things—nothing serious. I’ve been telling her about our projects and some of our experiences trying to govern together.” He said nothing, at first, only staring at her with eyes the color of the ocean far beyond the influence of land. She shifted under his silent gaze.
“Yes, I understand,” he said. “It is the little things we often find ourselves pondering. I think, sometimes, that they are thieves, stealing importance from other matters.” Frisha was not sure how to respond, but it became unnecessary as he turned his attention to Celise. He performed a small bow, glanced at the blue ribbon in her hair, and said, “We are honored that you have joined us, Matria Celise.” His gaze darted to Frisha before he looked back to Celise and said, “We have heard only rumors of the events that took place in your queendom. I shall be most grateful to hear an accurate telling.”
Frisha pursed her lips. “What you heard is probably true. Rezkin married the queen and became king of Lon Lerésh. Moldovan abdicated to Rezkin, so now he’s king of Ferélle, too, which makes him emperor of an imaginary place called Cimmeria, and Cael and Ashai are supposed to be a part of it.”
“It is true, then? Rezkin married Queen Erisial? Does he recognize it?”
She huffed. “No, and believe me, we would know if he did. Malcius accidentally recognized Yserria’s claim, and now they’re married.”
His eyes widened. “This is going to be an interesting story, but it will probably best be told when you are both rested. I shall escort you to your quarters.”
As they walked through the corridors, Celise stared in awe at the mesmerizing enchanted palace, reminding Frisha of her first time walking the halls. Eventually, Celise said, “I hope my Wesson will recognize my claim. He did not accept it, but I will show him that it is good.”
Frisha said, “Why did you choose Wesson?”
Celise grinned. “He is not a warrior. He is not scary.”
Frisha looked at her sideways. “You know that he completely obliterated an entire warship?”
Tieran turned to her. “He did what?”
Celise bobbed her head. “Yes, but he did this with Mage Threll, and we were in the water. It mostly sank, I think. He was saving us with his power. He is not a bad dangerous.” Frisha started to correct her but then decided to let her think what she wanted about Wesson. She seemed very happy, and Frisha only hoped Celise did not suffer when she realized the truth.
Celise was placed with Ilanet, who had moved rooms when Frisha went missing. She offered a slight protest since she wanted to share a room with Wesson. It was decided that the two of them could discuss that once he returned. Tieran turned to Frisha as the door closed. He said, “I just realized that we seem to be collecting princesses.”
Frisha laughed. “Royals, in general.”
He chuckled and then said, “Perhaps you would join me after you are rested? We have much to discuss.”
“Of course.”
Upon arriving at Fort Ulep, Rezkin’s entourage was met with a mixture of forced deference and poorly concealed hostility. The ten stone men had been moved to the center of the village that had grown around the fort. They had been arranged in their original circle with a stone pillar at the center. Their names and ranks had been engraved on the pillar, and a garden of red solanias, perpetually blooming vimaral flowers, had been planted at their feet.