CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Cor led Jin to a place near to the spire, but far enough away that it'd been spared from Deebee's flames. The surviving structures here were broad and squat, never rising above a second story. The roofs were terraced, often with doorways leading down into the building below. It wasn't until Cor led Jin to one with smoke rising from a thin chimney that Jin saw the roofs had once been home to gardens long ago.

One ancient home in Marwin was inhabited. The roof garden held a number of potted plants, some of which may have soon bore fruit. Jin was no botanist, but she recognized that most were tomato vines.

"How long have you been here?" Jin asked Cor as they approached the old dwelling.

He hummed in consideration. "Not long. A hand of weeks. Two hands."

Jin frowned but quickly hid it. She kept close on Cor's heels. "I imagine someone who lives for hundreds of years hardly notices the months passing by."

"She is not wrong. This is true."

"I've heard dragons I know say much the same, and that their perception of time can make mortal lifetimes seem fleeting. That is, until they 'slow down' as they put it and start paying attention."

"Yes, dragons sight these same problems."

Jin had had enough of this farce. She came to a stop and waited for Cor to notice and turn back around. He gave her a look of confusion.

"We near to path's end," he said, gesturing towards the dwelling and its garden.

Jin shook her head. "What I think you mean to say is 'I sight end of path'."

Cor furrowed his brow.

"Mighty," Jin said. "Not dragons. Not 'this is true', but 'this is thing that is'. I would even accept simply 'is', if you were feeling terse. I suspected, but now I am sure. You've never spoken with that dialect until today."

Cor stared at her with his jaw slacked open. He then gave his head a small shake and threw his head back in laughter.

"Oh, she is smart." He cleared his throat. "Forgive me, Highness. I mean to say, that was well deduced. I had not realized you had become so familiar with the dark folk that you could pick out a counterfeit accent."

"Marginally," Jin admitted. "Enough to know the more common phrasings, and I hold one goblin in particular as dear as my own sister."

"Rippling Moon, I imagine," Cor ventured. "Yes, Young Starra was especially keen that we know of her. Understandable, given what she is."

Jin widened her stance. "And what is Moon?" Jin asked suspiciously.

"The mother of a feyling, of course," Cor laughed. "As you may be able to guess, we've been rather interested in feylings for-" He looked skyward as if looking for the words. "-perhaps five hundred years. A bit of time after the very first feyling was born to your Queen Founder. I will not get into the particulars just now. That's for you and Jiranthis to discuss."

"Jiranthis?" Jin raised her chin. "Would that be your empty one?"

Cor held up his palms. "If you wouldn't mind, please hold back from calling him that. A lark on my part, and I do beg your pardon for the deception."

Jin held up her own palm in a solemn gesture. "It is cleansed."

Cor burst into laughter again. "I truly did underestimate you. Well done, Highness. Well done, indeed."

"To be honest, I am not as versed in fey dialect as I would like to be. It comes as a relief to learn you elves are not either." Jin narrowed her eyes. "Though, I am curious as to why you felt the need to play these games."

"Oh, a number of reasons."

Jin pursed her lips. "And that number would be..."

"Closer to zero than I think you would appreciate, Highness. Now, do come inside. Jiranthis has been looking forward to this, and I imagine the girls have put on some tea for you."

She followed Cor as he started walking again. "There are lady elves with you?"

"Just one. Her name is Inathraxis, and she's as cold-hearted a woman as exists anywhere on the Continent."

Jin scoffed. "Did she say not even if you were the last man in the world, then hold to that promise?"

Cor chuckled and held an expression between amused and revolted. "More or less. You see, she is my sister. We are first-generation fey, which I imagine you haven't encountered before. We were called by the same bloodsong. In our reckoning, that makes us siblings."

"I see. My apologies. And so these girls you mentioned? If not elves, are they another race of fey?"

Cor looked over his shoulder with a smirk. "One is. Sort of."

"She is... like me?"

"A feyling, yes," Cor said. "The other is her protector. Now, do stop dawdling, Highness. These girls have come a long way, and we think you may be able to help them."

"Help them?"

"Yes. Starra had it passed on to us through her contacts in the Spired City that you plan on returning to Shan Alee after this visit. Is that so?"

"It is. Are you and the other elves a part of the Merovech's cabal of demon hunters, then?"

Cor grinned. "Highness, we are the Cabal. But, back to these girls. It would save us a great deal of trouble if you could take them with you when you go. If that's amenable, of course."

Jin didn't much like how Cor sidestepped her questions, nor did she care for having errands foisted on her. Nevertheless, she didn't mind lending assistance. So long as it didn't delay her. "If the Gladiator consents, I see no problem."

"Wonderful," Cor said as he came to the front door of the dwelling. "You may be interested to learn, these girls are acquainted with someone you've had dealings with."

"And who might that be?"

He didn't answer as he pushed the door open and called into the dwelling. The doorway was slightly too small for him to enter without crouching down. "Sister, I have returned. I bring a guest."

Jin entered after him. Without thinking much about it, she retrieved her sword from the holding spell and leaned it against the doorframe. She'd been offered tea, and that was as good as guest-rights. It was only polite to follow custom.

The interior was humble, but it looked like someone had taken the time to clean up. The stone walls didn't show any cracks from long years of neglect, the floors were scrubbed, and there wasn't a single grain of sand or ash to be seen. The elves had taken every pain necessary to return the dwelling to a livable state, up to and including the repair of ancient spellwrought stonework. That meant at least one among the elves was an arcanist. Or an exceptionally skilled mason.

The entryway led immediately into a long hallway with four branching doorways. Each held thick curtains instead of doors, as wood was probably too scarce even after the rejuvenation to make new ones. Jin surmised that each doorway led to a separate domicile.

"What was this place?" she asked.

"The home of voori," Cor replied over his shoulder.

Jin nodded, remembering the little she learned of the old empire's cast hierarchy in Chaya Domun. "Fifth Summit, the lowest rung of society outside of the slaves."

"Little better than slaves themselves," Cor said. He motioned for Jin to accompany him down the hallway. "They spent their lives doing their utmost to stay out of the way of their social betters, seeking a way to advance in standing and perhaps one day ascend to a nomin or even a sion. A harsh system, as higher summits had total power over those below them. Your Althandi way of doing things is somewhat less cruel."

Jin raised an eyebrow. "Only somewhat?"

Cor shrugged. "Every social order has room for improvement, wouldn't you agree?"

"I suppose. As you say."

"I will admit that yours does have an element of allure to my kind. We can only be what we are, and that is admirers of the possibility to advance one's position. The privilege, the responsibility, and the duty to rise. I believe that is how you Althandi put it."

Jin remembered a shadowed forest of black and silver mist.

"Rise."

She rubbed at her temples. She felt her head growing cloudy for a moment, but she pushed that fleeting memory of a dream aside. She grew distracted and almost didn't notice when Cor paused outside the last door on the right.

He looked at her with concern. "Are you well, Highness?"

"I've not slept since yesterday. I am well enough."

"If you need a place to rest, we will be happy to provide you with a pallet to sleep on."

"Unnecessary," Jin said. "Let us continue."

"If that is your wish." Cor pushed the curtain aside and ducked through. He held the curtain open for Jin to follow and let it fall back into place behind her.

Jin found herself in a comfortable and homey living room. It was lit by the sun streaming in through small windows high on the walls. Countertops had bowls of fruit and vegetables sitting on them. One of the counters was of a darker hardwood, spellwrought, and an arcane sigil glowed with white etherlight on its surface. Beside the sigil sat a kettle with steam rising from its spout. There were more curtained doorways leading to sleeping chambers, one to a cramped indoor bath, and another led to a staircase up to the roof garden.

A girl of perhaps sixteen poured the kettle's contents into six wooden cups. She was dressed in the fashion of rural Althandor— a high-necked cotton dress dyed a light green, sturdy walking shoes, and a shawl covering her hair. When she turned towards the new arrivals, Jin saw that she truly was Althandi. She had a solid build, a strong jawline, and a bold brow. Her hazel eyes came close to golden in color, and strands of black hair peeked out from underneath her shawl.

At her side was a second girl, the same age or a year younger; it was hard to say for certain. She was dressed the same way, only her dress was a pale tan. Her shawl was down on her shoulders, uncovering her light brown hair. Unlike the other girl, her frame was thin and delicate. And she was lovely, almost unnaturally lovely. So much so, in fact, that Jin had to force herself not to stare.

Both girls paused in pouring tea and dipped into excessively low curtsies. Jin believed neither had ever had much cause to do so.

"Your Highness," they said demurely.

Jin inclined her head to them. "Thank you for your hospitality, Goodwomen." She looked to Cor. "I was expected. Did you see me arrive on the Gladiator?"

"Inathraxis saw you, yes," Cor replied. "She should show herself any moment and bring Jiranthis. For now, allow me to introduce our young wards of the last few months." He indicated the older seeming girl with the stronger build. "This is Gillwyn Forester, formerly of Moorhaven."

Gillwyn shot Cor a dubious frown. "I do mean to go back, Master Cor."

Cor gestured flippantly, unconcerned.

"Moorhaven," Jin said. "That is within the Senwood, is it not? Just south of the border with Melcia?"

The question snapped Gillwyn's attention back to her in an instant. She let out a nearly inaudible squeak and dipped into another hurried curtsy. "Yes, Your Highness. Our families are from there, and we're both lookin' to head back home once it's safe again."

Jin furrowed her brow. She didn't know anything about it not being safe in northern Althandor. This was new information. Then again, she supposed it wasn't safe anywhere outside Shan Alee for a feyling.

"And the other," Cor said, indicating the unnatural beauty, "is Cana Miller, also of Moorhaven as they mentioned."

"A pleasure," Jin said. "Would you by chance be the feyling Cor spoke of?"

Cana drew into herself somewhat and nodded shyly. She had a furtive manner, as if she was having as hard a time looking at Jin as Jin was at her. "Y-yes, Your Highness. What... what gave me away?"

Jin blinked in surprise. She thought it would be obvious.

"Feylings are adept at recognizing others like them," Cor said. "Mistress Gillwyn, Mistress Cana, the truth is that Princess Jin is also a feyling."

Gillwyn squinted at Jin. Her gaze went from Jin's eyes to Cor's, then she gave a slow nod of understanding.

"Like me?" Cana gasped.

Cor twirled his wrist in the air. "Well, not exactly like you. Her forebear was not a nymph, young mistress. You see, this is something of an important day for Jiranthis. Her Highness is his great-great-... then some... greatdaughter."

Gillwyn and Cana went wide-eyed in awe.

"Stay, Highness," Cor said. "I will see what is keeping the others. Mistresses, please see to our guest until then."

He turned on his heels and swept through the curtain. Jin was left alone with the Althandi girls, feeling rather like an invader and entirely like an awkward fool.

Cana came a step closer. She held forward a filled cup, and her hands shook badly enough that it was near to spilling. "Um... tea?"

Jin accepted the cup, and once it was in her own grasp, she saw that her own hands were shaking. For a different reason than nervousness. "May I sit?" she asked.

"Of course. Please." Cana gestured hurriedly to a low table surrounded by seating cushions.

Jin lowered herself, mindful of keeping her back to a wall and every doorway in the living room within her line of sight. She held the cup in both hands to keep it steady and took a sip. It was bergamot tea, dark and savory. It was Jin's favorite.

Good fortune, Jin thought, or Starra has passed on more than I expected.

The girls sat across the table from Jin, and they were most definitely staring. Jin met each of their eyes in turn.

"So..." Cana began. "Are you really the princess of Althandor?"

"One of them, yes," Jin said. "I am the second daughter of King Cathis the Algara."

Gillwyn squinted. "You don't look like a princess."

Cana gasped. "Gill!"

Gillwyn went on the defensive. "What? All I mean is she don't look like any royal what I've heard of. You see them arms?"

Cana sputtered and the two looked ready to fall into a squabble over proper etiquette. Jin took another sip of tea and peered at them from over her cup.

Her sixth sense was tingling.

"Moorhaven," Jin said to put things back on track. "What reason led you to leave and come into the company of elves?"

They looked back at her, and something like fear passed behind their eyes. Whatever reason it might have been left them haunted by it.

Cana was the first to speak. "I'm a... a feyling, Highness. I didn't even know what that was until a few months back." She set down her cup and dropped her eyes to her lap. "Folk back home talked. They had stories of my pa's mother being a nymph, but no one really believed it. Then..."

As Cana quieted, Gillwyn took up the story. "Only, it turned out to be true. I learned my family was set to watch over the Millers, help keep them hidden. Then something came looking for feylings. It came for Cana."

"A demon thrall," Jin guessed.

"A skindancer," Gillwyn said. Her jaw twitched, and her throat tightened. "It killed my little sister, Highness. It wore her skin, tried to trick us into letting it take Cana away. That... thing... killed Cindel, but we stopped it. Cana started talking in some old language, and she killed it with fire."

Cana sniffled. "But I don't remember any of that."

Gillwyn put a hand on her shoulder, but she didn't take her eyes from Jin. "Goodman Wizard back home, he told us about these old friends of his. We left home to go looking for them, and when we found them, they brought us here. We've been hiding out here ever since, where the old masters won't find Cana."

There was plenty in that story Jin had questions about. She started with what seemed most pressing. "Why did you come with her?" she asked Gillwyn.

Gillwyn blinked. "I... I couldn't let Cana go on her own, and my pa needed to stay with Goodman Miller. Ma and my other sisters needed to put what was left of Cindel on her pyre. It had to be me, and..." Her hand dropped beneath the table, and it was plain to Jin's keen eye for such details that she'd just taken hold of Cana's. "I couldn't leave her."

"This Goodman Wizard," Jin said, "he knew of the elves but couldn't escort her himself?"

"That kooky, old librarian kept talking like he was too busy. Blustering old coot probably just isn't as smart as he lets on."

Jin aborted her sip of tea and nearly spat it back out. She set the cup down with a loud thunk.

"Librarian?" Jin exclaimed.

Cana and Gillwyn looked up, startled. They nodded.

"Silly hat," Jin said. "Pointy, gray beard and a blabbermouth?"

They exchanged looks before nodding again.

Jin looked down at the table and wrinkled her nose in displeasure. "That old alligator. Meddling, blustering reptile. What doesn't he have his claws in?"

"You know Goodman Varn Wizard?" Gillwyn asked. "He's been in Moorhaven since forever, it seems like. Do you know him?"

Jin sighed. "Were you aware he is a dragon?"

"A what?" Cana shrieked.

"You're having us on," Gillwyn declared. "Everyone knows dragons aren't..."

Jin fixed her with a pointed look. "Has no one told you where it is you are going?"

"Shan Alee," Gillwyn said. "Ina and the others said the Dragon Empress might help Cana, but... that's just a... a thing they call her. There aren't really dragons there. Are there?"

Jin raised an eyebrow. "How long have you been out here?"

They conferred quietly for a moment.

"Six months," Cana said once they came to a decision.

Jin sighed. "You can be excused for not being aware of current events, in that case. Still, your hosts have been abysmal failures at keeping you appraised of what's been happening in the Five Kingdoms."

"She's right," Gillwyn said, leaning towards Cana. "They really are."

Cana nodded sagely. "Even when the land changed, they just sorta looked outside, shrugged, and carried on as if it wasn't the weirdest thing what ever happened."

"Why have the elves not taken you to Shan Alee themselves?" Jin asked.

"They're an odd bunch," Gillwyn said. "The sort what gets off on being mysterious."

Cana swatted Gillwyn without looking at her. "They don't want to reveal themselves. They say Shan Alee isn't on their side, and they're not on Shan Alee's side. Even if they both fight the old masters, the elves don't want to be found by anyone they're not sure they can trust."

Jin nodded and supposed that wasn't entirely unreasonable. Irritating, but not unreasonable, and certainly not of much benefit to Gillwyn and Cana. "There are things I should warn you about," Jin said, more than ready to assume custody of these two from troublesome fey. "Were you informed the elves want me to take you to Shan Alee?"

"They mentioned it," Gillwyn grumbled. "Didn't much ask us."

Cana elbowed her in the ribs.

Jin managed not to laugh. She was certain her sixth sense was on the mark this time. If those two weren't courting already, they needed to start. "Then it is unlikely they told you I will most likely fly to Shan Alee with a dragon named Grimdar the Gladiator."

Their jaws dropped.

"Despite the fierce name, he is a gentleman among the mighty, I assure you. Furthermore, Shan Alee is home to a large population of shifters. I hope that will not be a problem."

Gillwyn shot to her feet, bent almost double with her hands braced against the table as she leaned over it. "Shifters?"

Jin picked up her tea. "Yes. A few thousand, in fact. The first minister is a selkie, and one of the great houses is mostly vampires."

"Weres?" Gillwyn demanded. "Are there weres?"

Jin nodded. "Most shifters in Shan Alee are weres, yes."

Cana tugged on Gillwyn's skirt to make her sit back down. Once she complied, Cana held onto her shoulders. "Other weres, Gill. You think you might be related to any of them?"

Jin blinked. "You are a shifter?"

Gillwyn bit her lip as she nodded. "I am."

Upon hearing Gillwyn admit it, Cana became animated. She addressed Jin with enthusiasm. "Gill's amazing. She can turn into all sorts of animals. She even turned into a panther to save me from the skindancer!"

"Well," Jin said with a smile, "that answers my next question about why the Forester family was trusted to guard feylings." She took a sip before continuing. "I feel as though I've heard your tale before. A skindancer attempting to capture a nymph feyling was among the first rumors we heard about the old masters moving openly within the world. Now that the Great Spider has been freed from his prison, the demons are no longer as interested in securing a feyling, but I imagine they will still seek you out. The old masters' goal are to use feylings to further their aims to return the firstborn to the world and begin their own era."

Cana looked enthralled. "You sound like you know a lot about all this business. We didn't know anything about... a Great Spider."

"The skindancer said something about a spider," Gillwyn muttered. She let out a rueful laugh. "The monster let on more than Goodman Wizard and these blustering elves all put together."

"Others know more on this subject," Jin said, "and they can be found in Shan Alee. I believe I can promise you that you will both find shelter and the answers you need there. Empress Enfri will protect you."

Gillwyn grabbed Cana's hand. "How can you be sure of that?"

"Because she has already begun. Mortals, dragons, fey, and shifters all live together to build their empire. Her new Shan Alee is..." Jin let out a slow breath. "It is almost too good to be true. It is everything these ruins were supposed to be and failed to become."

"I think I'd like to see it," Cana murmured.

The curtain into the hallway swept open as Cor returned. "I believe you will get your chance, Mistress Cana. Now, if you would please, Jiranthis would ask to speak with our guest in private."

Gillwyn and Cana got to their feet and offered unpracticed curtsies before withdrawing. They linked arms, heads together in whispered conference, as they headed for the staircase up to the garden.

Cor watched them leave through lidded eyes. "Charming girls, if somewhat unaware of the ways of the world."

"And whose fault might that be?" Jin asked. She curled her lip. "If you've taken responsibility for them, the least you could do is tell them why they are in danger."

"Circumspection is a virtue," Cor scoffed. "The old masters have eyes and ears everywhere. Only a fool allows their opponent to learn of what they know." He held the curtain open. "Enough about that. It is time you met your ancestor."

Two figures ducked in through the doorway. The first was a woman, as tall as Cor, with dark brown skin and long, black hair. Her features were just as angular and inhuman, but there was a softness to her face that her brother lacked. She had a lithe and slender frame with feminine curves to rival any mortal woman in the Five Kingdoms. As with Cor, she wore a simple robe-like garment that ended well above the knees to expose her thighs. Jin assumed her to be the Inathraxis she'd heard mentioned.

Following her into the room was the third elf. He looked marginally older than the other two. His hair was silver in contrast to their black, faint lines were at the corners of his eyes and mouth, and he wore a longer garment that clasped at both shoulders with ivory brooches.

Jiranthis walked with a heavy limp. His left leg ended above the knee, and a wooden prosthetic attached to the stump. Inathraxis had his arm in her grasp as she assisted him to sit across from Jin at the table.

The woman sat on Jiranthis' right and Cor on his left. Together, the three elves met Jin's stare. Each had blue eyes that glowed softly in the indoor light. The slit pupils contracted slightly as they focused on her, just as Jin knew her own would be doing.

"Child of Algara," Jirnathis said. His voice was deep and baritone. It felt as if it echoed in the small room. "Child of mine. I have heard the student of my student speak of you. It has at last come time for me to behold you with my own eyes."

Jin swallowed her anxiety. "Me in particular, or would any Algara suffice?"

Jiranthis' eyes softened, and he smiled faintly. "I know only one Algara," he said softly.

"The Queen Founder?"

He nodded.

"You knew her," Jin said. "You had a child with her, but that does not answer my question. Why have you asked for me?"

"Because the doom has arrived," Jiranthis said. "You are at the center of it. You are fifth of the Five, and so it will fall to you whether this world endures or is reborn as a demon's Paradise."

Jin inhaled sharply. "I do not believe in this talk of the Five."

"Your belief is irrelevant," Jiranthis said. "We are more concerned for your faith."

She frowned. "Faith in what, exactly."

"Also, irrelevant. It does not matter what you have faith in, so long as you have faith in it."

Jin slid her cup of tea away from her with the back of her hand. She leaned forward. "What is it you want of me?" she asked in a quietly demanding voice. "Is it to listen to vague prophecy? To dire warning lacking substance? As you say, the doom has come. The old masters no longer stir, they march. Althandor balances on the brink of ruin, and the rest of humanity will share in my kingdom's fate whether they fight for Althandor or against it. If you have knowledge for me, give it." Her frustration finally boiled over, and she pounded her fist on the table. "If not, stop wasting my time!"

Cor and Inathraxis remained impassive throughout her tirade. Jiranthis leaned forward in mirror to her.

"Do you know what an elf is, Highness?" he asked.

Jin narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"What spirits were called to create us?"

Jin shook her head. "I've no idea."

"Ambition," he said. "We are born of the spirit that drives mortals to rise, to excel. That which compels kings to claim their crowns, merchants to aspire for wealth, and craftsmen to create works that will become legend beyond their time. Ambition is a force mortals perceive, and so it was given will and form. When it was called into your world by Mother Sun's elder magic, it became the elves."

Jin set her jaw, expectant. If there was a point to this, he'd best get to it soon.

"Our race fought the Aleesh at the behest of our king, Akazewi," Jiranthis said. "All our people, every last one, was within the Empire of Scales when Shoen's Sin fell upon the land."

"Other than you, of course," Jin said.

"No," Jiranthis said. "We three were also there." He gestured to the woman on his right. "Inathraxis served as shield bearer for Akazewi." He gestured to his left. "Corfalthlar carried his spears. And I, Highness, was given the task of guarding the queen he served."

"You were in Shan Alee," Jin said. "If that is true, how did you survive the death curse?"

"Because of Algara," he said. "She had only possessed her magic for a few short years, but she had become exceptionally talented with wards."

Jin eyed him from across the table. "Is something like that possible to ward against?"

Jiranthis nodded. "Her ward was crafted out of desperation, but it worked. The kings and queens of mortals, the blessed saints chosen by their gods, those who were nearest to her were spared from the destruction wrought by the Imperial Diamond. Algara saved the lives of a handful of kings and their retinues. She could not save my people."

"Why tell me this?" Jin asked.

"Because I was at her side," he said, his manner growing intense. "I saw her spell with my own eyes."

"Meaning what?" Jin demanded. She opened her mouth to reiterate that she hadn't come to get jerked around when she understood. Her eyes widened by a small degree. "You're a sorcerer."

He nodded.

"Ethersight," Jin said. "You saw how she manifested this ward."

"The demons do not attack Althandor only to destabilize humanity beyond hope of recovery." Jiranthis leaned closer. His voice dropped to a whisper. "They come for their weapon, Highness. They come for the weapon your father holds. When it is theirs, they will use it. Only this time, it will not be used to kill a demon. The Imperial Diamond will open the gates to their Paradise."

Jin felt short of breath. A second death curse. In Althandor.

"When that time comes," Jiranthis said, "will you have the ambition your elven spirit gives you? Can you succeed where the woman who would become my wife failed? Can you excel beyond mortal ability and save them all?"

Jin didn't have an answer for him. She could only look down at the table and try to think.

A shadow passed over the dwelling's windows, and there came a loud shriek from above on the roof. A moment later, Gillwyn came hurrying down the stairs. She was panting, and her eyes were as wide as dinner plates.

Inatraxis turned towards her and looked concerned. "What is it, girl?" she asked with a melodious voice. "You look like you saw a..."

Gillwyn pointed up the stairs. "Dragon!"

The dwelling shook from a nearby impact. There came another shriek, and Cana came hurtling down the stairs to cling to Gillwyn. She buried her face in the other girl's shoulder. Gillwyn put her arms protectively around Cana.

A moment later, there was a knock on the door.

Jin sighed and pushed herself up to stand.. "I believe that is for me."

"I will bring your Gladiator," Inathraxis said, rising before Jin got to her feet. "I have come to adore the mighty of this era."

"How did he find me?" Jin muttered once Inathraxis left the room.

"The marking spell," Cor said with a yawn. "I noted its presence while you were dreaming. Seems an old one."

Jin growled. She should've suspected Grimdar hadn't spied on her for the entirety of the last three months. He must've secretly placed a spell to help him keep tabs on her at some point early on.

Grimdar stormed into the living room in something of a rush. Inathraxis followed him in.

"Highness," he said, short of breath.

"Lord Gladiator." Jin crossed her arms. "A marking spell?"

"Obviously." He looked perplexed that it was even in question. Grimdar gave his head a shake and motioned urgently for Jin to follow him. "We must leave, Highness. We must leave at once."

Cor and Jiranthis stood, giving Grimdar inscrutable looks.

"Why is this, Child of Reev?" Jiranthis asked.

Who in the name of the king is Reev? Jin wondered.

Grimdar only had his attention on Jin. "Highness, we're out of time. You must come and see for yourself, but we need to return to Shan Alee immediately. The empress has to be warned."

Jin didn't understand, but she understood Grimdar. The Gladiator wouldn't be out of sorts over something small. She looked to Gillwyn and Cana, huddled together on the staircase. "If you are coming to Shan Alee, gather your things and meet us outside. We are leaving now." She looked to Jiranthis. "This was cut short, so I will take you also, if you are willing."

Jiranthis shook his head. "No. The war continues on more fronts than you realize. We will remain, but rest assured. This will not be our last meeting, Granddaughter."

She held his beast-like gaze for a moment longer before turning away. She found that Grimdar had already run out of the dwelling. Stopping only to confirm that the girls were indeed gathering packs and supplies, she left the living room and walked with purpose down the hallway to the front door. Without pausing, she snatched her sword up from where it lay against the doorframe.

Outside, Jin saw that Grimdar had already assumed his truest form. In the cargo nets beneath his belly, a horse and scale lion dangled amidst perhaps a few too many tethers securing them to the harness. Scorpion was awake and appeared especially grumpy over his situation. Ura, interestingly enough, seemed perfectly comfortable and turned her head to look at Jin approaching.

"How did you manage that so fast?" Jin asked.

"I never entered the building," Grimdar explained. "My illusion did."

"I see. Now, what is this all about?" She took a running leap to grab the lowest ropes of the net and hauled herself up. As she climbed, she pulled half an apple she snitched from the elves' home and fed it to Scorpion as an apology.

"You will see once we're in the air," Grimdar said. "I must apologize for my abruptness."

"Think nothing of it. I'm grateful." She reached the saddle at Grimdar's nape. "We are taking two passengers with us. Could you lend them a hand up here?"

"Of course. I've enough harnesses in my holding spell for a full crew."

"They've believed dragons to be a fairy tale until today," Jin warned.

"Then this shall be quite the tale for them to tell their grandchildren. I have every intention of making as much haste as possible."

Jin swallowed in anticipation of another bout of motion sickness.

Gillwyn and Cana came scurrying out of the dwelling with their arms loaded with their things. They barely had enough time to gape in awe at Grimdar's size before he reached for them and plucked them squealing off the ground.

Once they were deposited onto his back beside Jin, she hurried to put harnesses on them and attach their snap-locks. Just as she finished, Grimdar beat his wings against the air and kicked off the ground into the sky. The village girls clung to Grimdar's scales and screamed their heads off, but Jin's attention was drawn elsewhere.

She looked down at the restored dwelling, its rooftop garden and the thin plume of smoke rising from the chimney. Jin looked down as the three figures exiting the structure watched her leave.

"Until next we meet, Grandfather."

Grimdar leveled off higher up than he usually flew. His course was eastward towards Shan Alee, but he indicated with a claw towards the southwest. "There, Highness. Do you see?"

Jin shielded her eyes with a hand as she scanned the distance. All she saw was a dark cloud low on the horizon a couple hundred leagues off, and nothing more. She manifested an ocular enhancement, and once her vision lengthened, her blood ran cold. It was not a cloud.

It was the Jade Empire's armada.

There were dozens of airships. Hundreds, and each crewed by soldiers armed with flintlock weapons, each bristling with cannons. Each flying on a direct course for New Sandharbor. Jin clenched her fists to keep them from shaking.

"Grimdar, give a sending."