Caught completely off-guard, Raidan slipped his arms around Jelena almost without thinking. He held her until the spate of tears had passed and she broke the embrace. Wiping her eyes on the hem of her sleeve, she lifted her chin and stared back at Raidan with calm resignation.
“You’re right, of course, Uncle. My place is here with my daughter and I’m ashamed I had to be reminded of it.” She paused, took a deep breath, then asked, “Is there any treatment you know of that might help my father?”
“Nothing specific, other than supportive care,” Raidan replied, moving closer to the bed so he could examine Keizo more thoroughly. “My brother has a very strong constitution. I have every reason to hope he will survive.” He leaned in close and spoke into Keizo’s ear. “Can you hear me, Brother?”
The king moaned and his lips worked but no words slipped out.
“Don’t worry, Keizo. Sen and I know what must be done.” Raidan spoke in a rapid whisper. “Alasiri will not fall, not as long as there is a single elf left alive to defend her. I swear to you on the graves of our father, brother, and mother, that I will not let the humans take our land from us!”
“I’m here too, Father.” Jelena came up beside Raidan and closed her hand around Keizo’s. Lifting it to her lips, she kissed her father’s palm, then pressed it to her cheek and closed her eyes.
“Where is Sonoe?” Raidan asked, surprised and puzzled at the absence of Keizo’s Companion.
The girl shrugged. “I don’t know. When I arrived to see my father, she wasn’t here. He must have taken ill after she had gone out for the day. I doubt she would have left him, otherwise.”
“I’ll send a page to find her. She should be here with him,” Raidan said. “Jelena, things are going to get difficult very soon,” he continued. “As much as any of us hate to admit it, there’s a good chance the elves will lose this war. We are badly outnumbered by a determined enemy.” He paused to gaze deep into his niece’s eyes. What he saw there reassured him. “It may very well fall to you to assume leadership of our people should the worst happen and your father, myself, and my two sons don’t survive.”
“But, Uncle, the elven people won’t accept me as their queen…” Jelena began, but Raidan interrupted.
“The elven people may have no choice,” he countered firmly. He paused to take a breath, then continued. “This is very difficult for me to admit, but I was wrong about you. When you first came to Sendai…more specifically, when we all learned the truth about you, I was angry, no, furious is a better word. Despite your protestations to the contrary, I did view you as a threat and-please don’t be afraid when I say this-I was fully prepared to eliminate you.” Jelena’s eyes widened in shock. Her lower lip trembled, but she remained silent, her face gone pale.
“I’m a proud man, sometimes arrogant, this I know, but I like to think I’m ruled by reason and not passion,” Raidan continued. “I wish I could say to you that I saw reason, but the truth is much less tidy. My wife stayed my hand, Jelena. She asked, no…” He smiled wryly. “She ordered me not to harm you. Taya is the only person, other than my brother, who can order me to do anything! It seems you have a destiny not even I can interfere with.”
He took Jelena by the hand and led her to a cushioned bench against the wall opposite Keizo’s bed, and together, they sat. Raidan kept her hand folded in his as he spoke. “I can’t point to any single moment when my heart changed, Niece, but it was definitely you who changed it. You are Keizo’s daughter, a true Onjara, and you are old enough to rule. Alasiri will need an adult of royal blood at the helm should the worst happen, someone able to make hard decisions. I have come to accept that this person is you.”
Jelena bit her lip and lowered her head. Reaching beneath the collar of her tunic, she withdrew her Griffin Ring upon its sturdy chain. She stared at the heavy circle of white gold, then closed it in her fist. She lifted her face to meet Raidan’s eyes, and in that instant, he witnessed the completion of her transformation from bastard outsider to royal princess.
“If the One decrees it, I’ll be ready,” she replied.
Journey’s End
Gran awoke from the mage sleep two days later. Her thin face still bore traces of the tremendous strain she had endured, but she seemed to have regained most of the strength she had spent to save their lives. After breaking her fast on bread and cheese, she climbed out of the barrow chamber, Ashinji and Magnes at her side.
“How are you feeling Ashi?” Gran cupped Ashinji’s face between her hands, her pale eyes boring into his. The gesture reminded him of his mother.
“Better. You were right. It didn’t take me long to recover.”
Gran dropped her hands, nodding. “How much longer ’til we reach Amsara?” she asked.
“About ten days, if we don’t encounter any trouble,” Magnes replied. “The road is pretty good all the way.”
“We’re so exposed out here. It makes me very nervous,” Ashinji said. “How likely are we to run into trouble?
“Not very,” Magnes assured. “The Imperial Army lies well to the west and the land hereabouts is thinly settled. Shepherds, mostly. Even if we do encounter any people, as long as you and Gran are disguised, they’ll probably leave us alone.”
“We’d better get going, then,” Gran said. “We’re running out of time.”
“Have you sensed something new, Gran?” Ashinji asked, a thrill of fear spurring his heart into a gallop.
Gran shook her head. “No, no, Ashi. Nothing has changed.” She reached out and patted his forearm. “I just meant that we can’t afford to dawdle.”
Ashinji took a deep, calming breath, then did some quick calculations in his head.
Ten days to reach Amsara, then another couple of days to the Alasiri border. After that, we’ll need at least two days to skirt the Fens and two more to reach Kerala Castle. We can get supplies and fresh horses there for the ride to Sendai. Gran can’t ride as fast as I can, so that’ll add a day or two. We should reach the capital in six days, seven at the most.
And when we finally do reach Sendai…
His mind shied away from the dark thoughts now trying to push their way to the fore of his consciousness, thoughts of suffering and loss yet to be endured. He did not feel ready to face them though he knew, in the end, he must.
They packed their meager supplies then set out across the rolling countryside. The sun had nearly reached its zenith by the time they found the road. As the horses clopped along its uneven surface, their unshod hooves kicked up puffs of red-brown dust that floated away in lazy wisps on a light breeze.
They encountered no other people that day. To Ashinji, it felt like they alone inhabited the world, save for the sheep dozing in clusters by the roadside, or standing in bleating groups beneath the precious shade of solitary trees.
That night, they took shelter in the ruin of a stone tower. The tiny fire Magnes built served mainly to chase away the shadows, for the night was warm and they had no fresh food that needed cooking. Ashinji fell asleep to the sound of the horses cropping the thick, sun-scorched grass beyond the tumbled stones of the tower’s fallen upper stories.
The days passed in a somnolent blur, falling away behind them like barely remembered dreams. They continued to have the road to themselves. Only the occasional herder or crofter seen in the distance reminded them that people did make this desolate area their home.
After the fifth day, the land began to change, the rolling hills giving way to flat, cultivated fields.
“We’ve crossed into Veii,” Magnes informed them. “Amsara’s southern neighbor. My father sold Jelena to Veii’s duke. If she hadn’t had the courage to defy my father and run away…”