After Shandrazel took the throne, the few meager items that Jandra could call her own had been brought back into the room. Her possessions were few: a small iron bed, its mattress stuffed with goose-feathers; a full length mirror in an oval wooden frame; a dresser upon which sat a collection of combs; a tall wardrobe; and a large oak trunk at the foot of her bed.
Her spirits lifted when she saw the lid of the trunk open, and various books and papers scattered randomly around it. This was how she'd left it after she'd searched through the trunk for Vendevorex's skullcap. She'd removed her tiara, donned his skullcap, and instantly discovered that his genie was more powerful than her own. Unfortunately, she'd donned the helmet on the same night that the Sisters of the Serpent had gone on a murderous rampage through the palace. This had launched Jandra into an adventure that had kept her from returning to the room. Her old tiara had been left sitting unprotected on her dresser.
In the moonlight, it was impossible to see from across the room if the tiara still sat on the dresser. She held her breath as she led walked toward it. A low, ragged groan escaped her as she neared. The tiara was gone.
"I'm so sorry," she said, shaking her head. "I've put you both in danger for nothing."
"It's not here?" asked Shay. "Who could have taken it?"
Jandra bit her nails as she thought. She said, "Hex was the only one who knew about the tiara's power. Maybe some palace guard took it. It looked like silver. It could have been sold easily enough."
"You've mentioned Hex a time or two," said Shay. "Why would he take this genie if he already had your other one?"
"Hex would want to destroy both genies. He had an innate distrust of power."
"That's an odd quality for a sun-dragon," said Shay. "They're the most powerful creatures of all."
"Hex didn't believe that might made right. In fact, he thought that might always eventually turned into wrong. He thought that all kings were inherently immoral."
"In other words," said Shay, "he was an anarchist."
"To the bone," said Jandra. "Fortunately, this made him the perfect companion to stand by my side and face up to the goddess. She was the embodiment of a power that had corrupted absolutely." She glanced into the mirror by the dresser, and then quickly looked away. With her baggy second-hand clothes and unwashed, tangled hair, she found herself frightening to look at. She sat down on the edge of her bed. Lizard hopped down from her shoulder. She stared down at the floor. "Until Hex betrayed me, I thought he was my best friend. I'm such an idiot."
Anza sat on the edge of the bed beside Jandra. Her eyes widened at how soft it was. She grinned and fell backwards onto the bed, her arms spread as she sunk into the silk-covered down.
Shay picked up one of the bone combs on the dresser, turning it over in his hands. Vendevorex had carved it from the femur of a bull, using the nanites at his command to carve Jandra's name in the surface of the comb hundreds of times in tiny decorative letters. Vendevorex had possessed the power to give her anything he could have imagined, but his gifts over the years had tended to be simple ones-object of bone and stone and wood rather than gold or ivory. He hadn't wanted her to become enamored with wealth.
After a long, silent moment, Shay asked the question ringing loudly in Jandra's mind. "So, now what?"
Anza rolled over to her side, her head propped on her fist as she stared at Jandra. She obviously wanted to hear the answer to this as well.
Lizard didn't care about the question at all, assuming he even understood it. Instead, he hopped down to the floor and stared into the mirror. The row of bristly scales along his neck stood up as he spotted the small earth-dragon on the other side of the glass. He stretched out his claw, then snatched it back as the other dragon reached to touch him at the same time.
Jandra got up and paced as she thought. If a guard had taken the tiara, it might be in the palace barracks, or it could be in Richmond at some pawn shop. Where could she begin the search for it? And what if it wasn't a guard who took it, but Hex? The genies were too advanced to be destroyed outright, but Hex could hide them, maybe dropping them into the sea, or burying them like they'd buried the goddess's genie.
Jandra snapped her fingers. Lizard startled at the sound, jumping away from the mirror and leaping back onto Jandra's shoulder.
"We need to go to the mountains," she said. "We'll probably never find my old genie. But I know the location of a third one. It's my best hope at regaining my powers."
Even as she said the words, she questioned their wisdom. They'd buried the goddess's heart-her genie-to ensure that no unseen remnant of her could somehow be revived. Was she really so hungry for power that she was willing to go back and risk the return of the goddess? Was this her idea, or the idea of the unwelcome second passenger in her brain? For an instant, she started to tell the others it was a dumb idea, that they should just return to Dragon Forge and help Burke build guns. But thinking of Burke's broken leg let her remember all the good she could do if she had her powers once more. She had to take the chance. What was there to fear? The goddess was dead. Her body had been burned. Genies responded to a person's thoughts, and thoughts were the product of a brain, and Jazz's brain had been reduced to cinders that had blown off in the breeze. The chances of recovering from that were somewhat remote, thought Jandra.
Anza got up from the bed. She looked toward the door, cocking her head as she held up her hand, motioning the others to stop talking.
"What is-?" Shay began to ask.
Anza gave him a dirty look and drew a finger across her throat. Jandra heard noises in the hall, the sound of armor-clad guards climbing up stone stairs.
"Hurry," she whispered. "The invisibility circle is still active. Get to the center of the room. The more open space we keep around us, the easier it will be to evade them."
A hushed voice murmured beyond the door: "It's as you said. The door's open."
A louder voice replied: "Vulpine's understanding of human motivations is unsurpassed. It's… perhaps motivations isn't the correct word. It implies a higher order of thought for which there is only the faintest evidence in humans. Urges? Desires?"
"Oh no," said Shay, grabbing Jandra's arm, speaking as softly as he could. "It's Chapelion!"
"He's not very good at stealth," whispered Jandra.
"He's half deaf. He probably thinks he's whispering."
An earth-dragon poked his head into the open doorway, his dull eyes scanning the darkness. Jandra recognized this dragon-it was Ledax. She'd saved his life during the attack of the Sisters of the Serpent, neutralizing a poison in his blood. Of course, he'd been unconscious and she hadn't stuck around to take credit. She couldn't count on his gratitude. Lizard's hind claws sank more firmly into her shoulders as he stared at the adult earth-dragon.
Anza silently drew her sword from its scabbard. With her left hand, she freed a tomahawk from her belt. Jandra reached out and touched her shoulder; Anza looked back. Jandra shook her head. They were still invisible. It wasn't yet time for violence.