abducted and then disappeared to make it look as if she had nothing to do with it? Lagan found
his age-old distrust of the strange Westerners resurfacing. Why was his son the one being
dragged to a humiliating fate in Brigard and their Princess nowhere to be seen? She could even
now be hidden aboard one of their vessels, using this as a chance to declare war on Gerfal. After
all, you never really knew what those white-faced women were thinking.
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The next reports from his spies in Brigard added further to the alarm and confusion.
"Your Majesty," said the forest warden, kneeling before the King in the council chamber, "I have ridden far into Brigard disguised as a farmer and return with a harvest of grave news. Fergox
Spearthrower is massing his armies all along our border. Reports from Felixholt, Niril, and
Manford tell the same tale: soldiers are arriving from all over the Empire and digging in for the
winter. It is likely they mean to make an assault on us come the spring thaw."
"We have feared this for some time," said King Lagan, glancing at the stern faces of his ministers gathered around him. "And we are prepared."
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While trying to appear confident before his subjects, Lagan thought privately that his divisions,
strung out in a thin line along the Brigardian border, were unlikely to be able to withstand this
attack. If only the alliance had gone ahead, he would have a navy to defend his coasts and troops
to spare for the border where the blow would fall first. But now, he had to prepare for an attack
from the sea as well as by land.
"And, Sire, I bring other news," the warden continued, looking uncomfortable.
"Is it of my son?" Lagan asked eagerly, sitting forward.
"Yes, Sire. A merchant friendly to us in Felixholt told me that his royal highness had been seen.
He is a guest of Fergox himself in the citadel."
"A prisoner, you mean?"
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"My informant was not certain. He only knew that Prince Ramil had been present at the testing
of someone he called 'the Blue Crescent witch.' I think he meant the Fourth Crown Princess."
Lagan sat back. "Testing? What does that mean?"
"According to my man, she was denounced as a heretic, stripped of the symbols of her rank, and
is now a penitent in the houses of the priesthood of Holin the Warmonger."
Lagan closed his eyes briefly, remembering the innocent face of the girl he had talked to on the
terrace. He regretted now that he had suspected her.
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She too was caught in Fergox's trap. But how had she got there and what part had his son
played?
"And my son was present at this ceremony?"
"Apparently so, Sire."
"Willingly?"
"I do not know."
The councillors sat in silence while the news sank in. They all knew that Ramil had despised his
intended bride, but to take her to Fergox for such treatment would be unforgivable. And how
did that balance with the story that Ramil himself had been dragged to the Spearthrower's
court?
"Your Majesty." Lord Usk was on his feet. "I beg leave to go in search of Prince Ramil."
"And I," added Hortlan and Yendral.
Lagan sighed. He knew how they felt. If he did not have to attend to the affairs of the nation, he
would jump on a horse and go and find his boy himself.
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"I understand your concern, my lords. God knows, I feel it too, but I need all my young warriors
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with me at this time. An army stands between us and Rami! if the reports are correct. You would
be riding to your deaths. Your duty now lies with the men of your houses and lands. We will
soon have a fight on our hands; every one of you has a part to play in defending Gerfal."
"But, Sire!" protested Usk.
Lagan raised his hand. "I appreciate your zeal for my son but there is nothing you can do. I will not believe he stays of his own free choice: he is a prisoner of war. I fear we will hear all too
soon Fergox's conditions for his release."
"What of the Blue Crescent delegation, Your Majesty?" asked Lord Taris.
"Should we tell them this news?"
King Lagan tapped his fingers on the arm of his throne. He was facing war with the most
powerful naval empire in the world all because of a
misunderstanding. He needed some brilliant stroke to avoid it, but what?
Some gesture of good faith, a pledge of his son's honor. (Ramil had to be innocent, he had to
be!)
"I have little doubt that the Blue Crescent will have their own informants in Spearthrower's
court. They will hear this news eventually. Far better if we show our friendly intentions by
revealing it now. Summon the delegates and--" Lagan ran his hand across his brow, weary and
grief-stricken. It was hard to think like a king when he was full of the worries of a father "--wake the Princess Briony. I will require her to be present at our meeting with the delegates."
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An hour later, the Etiquette Mistress and Chief Priest were sitting opposite the King. A tousle-
haired princess perched on his knee, half asleep, a robe over her nightgown and her favorite doll
on her lap. Lagan hugged her fiercely.
"You'll have to trust me, Briony," he said in a low voice. "You'll come to no harm."
Briony, who hadn't been worried before, now felt alarmed. She stared anxiously at the strangers
opposite, wondering what was going on.
At a sign from the King, Lord Taris presented the delegation with a copy of the written report by
the Gerfalian spies. Lagan gave them a chance to read it, then spoke.
"You will see that our information is far from complete."
"Your information," snapped the Etiquette Mistress, incandescent with rage,
"says that your son witnessed this sacrilege but did nothing to prevent it!"
"What could he do, a prisoner himself?" Lagan asked, keeping his tone even.
"We do not know that he is a captive!" said the priest angrily. "Your spies"
reports are at odds. Prince Ramil made no secret that he disliked this union.
How do you know that he did not plan this?"
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"I trust my son." As Lagan pronounced his conviction, he recalled Ramil's words said in anger only a few weeks ago. Like a cloud shifting from the face of the sun, he felt his private doubts
dispel. Ramil could be foolish and downright annoying, but he wasn't so base
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as to plot against the Princess and the wishes of his own father. "And as a proof of this trust, I offer you my only remaining child, the Princess Briony, to be a pledge of her brother's honor."
"Father!" exclaimed Briony, squeezing his arm in shock.
Lagan held her small hand reassuringly. "I entrust her to you in the knowledge that you will treat her as one of your own until such time as the Princess Taoshira is restored to you or the full truth
of these terrible events is revealed."
The Blue Crescent delegation were visibly taken aback by the magnitude of the gesture on the
part of the Gerfalians. After a brief whispered exchange, the Etiquette Mistress rose and bowed.
"We accept that the father has had no part in the affront to our nation, but it remains to be seen whether the son lives up to his sire's greatness," she said. "We will treat the Princess Briony with all the honor that should now be shown to the Princess Taoshira but is denied her; your
daughter will receive comfort and freedom while our beloved Crown Princess receives taunts