Sovereign

Oh, that was coolly said, Gudon thought, and he could see that Lynan was amused by it as well.

'You and your followers will strike a blow for me, Eynon,' Lynan told him, speaking loud enough for all at the meeting to hear. 'And for all Cherts.'

'Then who are we going after?' Korigan asked. 'I speak for all the Chetts when I say we would like a second chance to attack the Kingdom, either against its army or against Daavis.'

'So would I,' Lynan said. 'But not now.'

'Why?'

'Two reasons. First, we don't know whether or not there are Kingdom reinforcements on the way. Second, it is the expected thing to do.'

'So we go after Salokan,' Ager guessed aloud.

There was a shocked silence. Eventually Korigan asked: 'But why make a second enemy? He's running away from the Kingdom, and as long as we don't interfere, he'll scarper all the way back to Haxus.'

'Salokan is already an enemy. Haxus was always a base for mercenaries during the Slaver War, and was again for Rendle this winter. I do not need to remind any here how much pain and misery the slavers caused the Chetts; without Haxus as their main base, they would not have been able to operate as freely as they did.'

'When do we go after him?' Ager asked.

'Is the army ready?' Lynan asked Korigan.

'Yes, your Majesty.'

'Then we go after Salokan tonight.'

CHAPTER 2

For the third day in a row Charion searched the eastern horizon for any sign of dust, puzzled and concerned she could not see any. She had been mentally preparing for an attack from Prince Lynan and his Chett army since the end of their first battle, but even her few remaining foot-scouts had found no trace of the enemy within five leagues. True, some of the scouts had not come back, but Lynan's own pickets would be out whether or not he intended to attack. She was puzzled because she had expected Lynan to use his army's greater mobility to surround her and try to finish what they had started, and concerned because she was afraid that instead he had manoeuvred around her to get to her capital, Daavis. Normally she would not have been worried; the Chetts were nomad warriors, and all their famed ferocity and courage would avail them nothing without a siege engine against the walls of Daavis. But after Salokan's siege, the poor city was in no state to resist a determined assault.

Galen appeared by her side. 'If Lynan was going to attack us, surely he would have been here by now,' he said.

Charion glanced at the Kendran noble and nodded. 'We have to get back to Daavis.' She looked at him warily, then. 'I have to get back to Daavis. I will not speak for you.'

Galen did not answer right away. He knew she was offering him a gift, and was surprised by it. The surviving knights of Kendra's Twenty Houses would follow his command, and Charion was letting him decide just how far her command extended in her own Kingdom. These are extraordinary times, he thought. He knew that half a year ago he could not have imagined that he would ever serve under an Amanite prince, let alone learn to respect him and mourn his passing. And now Queen Charion, perhaps the least respected of all the provincial rulers, was proving herself as much a diplomat as Sendarus. Maybe Usharna and Areava have been right all along. The Kingdom of Grenda Lear truly is more than just the city of Kendra.

'You have command here,' he said evenly. 'Unless Areava commands otherwise, I am at your service.'

'Did you send to her our messages about the battle and the death of her husband?'

'A pigeon went on the night.'

'I must protect my capital. From there I can regroup.'

'And the knights? They will fight behind the walls of Daavis if that is your wish, but they can be better employed.'

'For the moment I need a rearguard, one strong enough to dissuade any enemy scouts from following us but mobile enough to avoid serious trouble. Once we get to Daavis we'll have a better idea of our situation—and maybe news from Areava—and we can decide then how best to use your heavy cavalry.'

'When do we leave?'

'Tomorrow. First light, in case Lynan changes his mind about attacking us.'

'Your Majesty?'

The words echoed in the dark room. Orkid Gravespear, Chancellor of the Kingdom of Grenda Lear, felt foolish standing in the doorway of Queen Areava's private chambers. Behind him, Harnan Beresard, the queen's secretary, fidgeted with his writing equipment.

'Your Majesty? Your people have need of you—'

'Enough, old bear.'

Orkid sighed with relief. At least she was talking to him.

'The Kingdom needs its queen,' he persisted.

'My brother needs his sister,' she replied. 'The Key of the Heart has taken his mind, leaving nothing but a child behind.'

'I have correspondence,' Harnan said from the background in a hopeful voice. 'Urgent messages that need answers.'

'Orkid, you take care of it,' she said dismissively.

The two men looked at each other with something like resignation. 'I told you,' Harnan mouthed.

'Your Majesty, others can take care of his Highness,' Orkid said. 'But only you can run Grenda Lear.'

'Olio needs me.'

Orkid retreated from the doorway and a guard took his place. Harnan looked at him desperately. 'What can we do?' the secretary pleaded.

The chancellor shook his head. 'I'm not sure. If only there was some way to help her brother…' His voice drifted off for a moment, and then he said to Harnan: 'Find Edaytor Fanhow.'

'The prelate? All the magisters of the theurgia have said there is nothing they can do to help his Highness.

They say the Key of the Heart has stolen his mind. If the magisters themselves can do nothing, what can that fat bureaucrat—?'

'Just bring Fanhow to my office,' Orkid insisted and left before Harnan could argue any more.

Father Powl, Primate of the Church of the Righteous God, was leading the daily service for the soul of tiny, mutilated Usharna, the baby Areava had lost at the moment of birth at the same time she had lost her husband Sendarus at the hand of Lynan. The dead baby had been dressed and her body smeared with preserving lotions, the worst of her terrible wounds covered in scented wrapping. She would stay exposed on the altar of the royal chapel until Areava herself came to give her blessing for the child's cremation, and from all accounts Areava had not stirred from her rooms for over a day.

When the service was done, the other priests left to attend their duties, but Powl stayed behind, kneeling in front of the altar, his face contorted in concentration.

'Without your name the Kingdom cannot be protected from evil, my Lord,' he whispered fiercely. 'Please have mercy on your people. Please have mercy on Queen Areava, who has suffered mightily. Please accept this child's soul into your keeping. And please, Lord, please let me know your name so that Grenda Lear may be saved from all that is wrong with this world.'

He waited for God to answer him, hoping that he had been forgiven for murdering his predecessor—Giros Northam; without the name of God, Powl was primate in name only. But God, as always, remained silent.

Shaking with the effort spent praying, Powl rose unsteadily to his feet. He turned and saw Father Rown waiting for him at the end of the chapel. Powl swallowed, and wondered if his second-in-command had heard any part of his prayer. There was nothing in the priest's expression that showed he did, and Powl let himself relax.

'Father? Is there something I can do for you?'

'I am concerned for her Majesty,' Rown said.

'As we all are, my son.'

'I thought she might see me, being her confessor, but…' the priest shrugged '… but she will see no one, not even the chancellor.' He looked pleadingly at Powl. 'Your Grace, you were her confessor for many years before me. You may know her better than any living man. Maybe you can get through to her?'