“I’m sure Lucyan will have all sorts of suggestions and ideas when he comes back,” Alistair said. He glanced at Rofana. “Do you think he will come back safely?”
She smiled at him. “I have not seen anything to indicate otherwise,” she said. “I have not met him, but from the impressions I have gotten from the dragon god, he is very skilled and clever at what he does. I believe he will bring you something of great import on his return.”
“Excellent,” Dareena said. “Hopefully that means Basilla.”
“And information on what the warlocks are planning,” Drystan added.
A knock came at the door, which turned out to be the seamstress and her assistant.
Dareena squealed in delight when she saw what they were bringing in. “Are these your new robes?” she asked as they laid the silken garment out on the freshly cleaned table. It shimmered in the late morning light, pure white shot through with threads of gilded orange.
“They are,” Rofana said, beaming. “Drystan and I found a set stashed away in the temple, and we had them refitted for me, since the last owner was a man.”
“You should really have some new ones of your own,” Dareena said. “It seems a shame to reuse the ones worn by an imposter.”
The oracle shrugged. “It does not bother me,” she said. “These robes are only a construct, anyway, to convince those who see only with their eyes of the validity of my station.”
Drystan snorted. “You sound far more confident of your position than you did when I first met you,” he said. “It is as if you’ve grown into it overnight.”
Rofana smiled. “The dragon god visited me in my sleep last night. He helped me make sense of all this. I am a bit nervous about taking on the position, but I know without a doubt that this is what the god wanted, and I intend to serve him to the best of my ability. It is an honor.”
The seamstress ushered Rofana off to her bedroom to try on the robe. When she came out, she looked resplendent, the robes flowing around her body in a majestic fashion. There was an almost divine glow about her, Alistair noted curiously. Something that had been absent in the past oracle. He wondered how anyone had thought the imposter had been the genuine article now that he was looking upon the real thing.
“You look wonderful,” Dareena said, skimming her hand over Rofana’s arm to feel the fabric. “If anyone should look upon you and think you are an imposter, that man is a fool.”
Rofana laughed. “You are far too kind.” She turned to thank the seamstresses. “You have done a wonderful job.”
The woman and her assistant bowed. “I am honored to have the privilege.”
Drystan tried to pay the woman for her services, but she refused, claiming she could take no payment for something done in the service of their god. Instead, she merely asked that he credit her, and recommend her services to others. Alistair thought it was quite a nice gesture—though of course, an endorsement from any one of the dragon princes would bring the woman far more gold than what he would have paid her today.
“Well,” Dareena said, looping her arm through Rofana’s. She seemed to have taken quite a liking to the woman, not that Alistair was surprised. He imagined Dareena would feel a kinship since they were both women chosen by the dragon god. “I think you are more than ready. Let us go and introduce you to the council, shall we?”
Rofana smiled broadly. “I am very much looking forward to meeting them.”
They headed to the council room together, where the lords and ladies were already waiting. They looked surprised when Rofana walked in, and audible gasps filled the room as they took in the robes she was wearing.
“Lords and Ladies,” Drystan announced, quieting them down. “I would like to introduce you to Rofana Selorian, our new oracle.”
There was some scattered clapping, mostly from the women on the council, though a few men joined in. Many looked skeptical, and Alistair glanced at Rofana and his brother, gauging their reaction. Drystan looked irritated, but Rofana merely smiled, as if she had expected this.
They all had.
“How do we know that this woman is not another imposter?” Lord Brimlow scoffed, raking the oracle with a scathing glare. “We have not had a female oracle in living memory.”
“Seeing as how you are getting on in years, Lord Brimlow,” Lady Blakely said blithely, “I don’t think your memory is one we should be relying on.” Laughter rippled through the room at that, and his face reddened. “There have been female oracles in our kingdom’s history. I think it is unwise to slight the dragon god by claiming that the new one is an imposter merely because of her sex.”
“I agree,” Lord Renflaw said as the other councilman sputtered. “Surely there is a reason Prince Drystan has selected her. You just returned from speaking with the dragon god, did you not? Did he perhaps give you some sort of sign?”
Drystan opened his mouth, no doubt to tell them about the mark on the back of Rofana’s neck. But before he could, Rofana raised her arms. Suddenly, she was enveloped in a golden light so bright, Alistair was forced to throw his arm over his face to keep from being blinded. Cries of terror and shock rang throughout the room, but they were quickly overtaken by a deep, booming male voice.
“Lift your heads now, and look upon the mortal I have chosen as my vessel,” the voice commanded. Alistair’s arm dropped of its own will, and the light lessened, allowing him to look directly at the oracle. Her mouth was moving, but it was clearly the dragon god’s voice spilling out of her, a voice that inspired such terror and awe that Alistair could see it rippling through the council. “The people of Dragonfell have demanded an oracle, and I have provided. Now stop quibbling about the way she looks and get on with the business of saving my country.”
The light abruptly disappeared, leaving the room stunned. Chairs scraped back from the tables as every man and woman in the room bowed deeply, looking thoroughly cowed.
“A thousand pardons for what I said earlier,” Lord Brimlow said, his face pasty and beaded with sweat. “I did not mean any offense.”
“Yes, you did,” Rofana said dryly, “but I shall forgive you for your ignorance. Now, as the dragon god said, let us get on with the business we came here to discuss. I believe that is the scheduling of the upcoming wedding and coronation?” she asked Drystan.