Chapter 59: Red vs. Blue

I now have an editor, so you all shouldn't need to put up with my typos and poor/dyslexic editing skills anymore. :)

* * *

Fiona took a deep breath as she looked up, trying to calm her nerves by focusing on what her two new handmaidens were discussing behind her.

"Hey." Glessie said to her fellow handmaiden.

"Yes?" Nessie replied.

"You ever wonder why we're here?"

"That is one of life's great mysteries, is it not?" Nessie replied. "Why are we here? Are our life paths the product of a random coincidence, or is Illuminar truly guiding everything with a plan for us?"

Fiona smiled as she listened.

"What?" Glesse replied. "No, I meant why are we standing here before dinner? Are we going to eat in the great hall, or is there somewhere else that handmaidens eat?"

Fiona glanced behind herself at the two handmaidens who were waiting at the doors just like she was. Her husband, Lord Delmar -- that was still a strange thought -- had stepped away to take care of something and hadn't returned yet. They were waiting for him so the newlyweds could enter the great hall together for the first time as husband and wife.

After the wedding but before dinner, the couple had taken a moment to stop at the announcement balcony so the citizens could see their new First Lady. The cheers and applause had been thunderous, even more so than during the announcement. It made Fiona quite uncomfortable being in front of that many people, but she had agreed to be the First Lady and knew that was part of her role.

She took another deep breath and let it out slowly; she could do this, she would be fine.

"Fiona." Lord Delmar said as he returned, then he offered his arm and she hooked her hand on the crook of his elbow. It was strange; she could see right through his disguise now. She could see the gossamer outline of his disguise, but she could also see through it like it wasn't there. She was holding the arm of a dragon who was also the Lord of Narlotten.

"Come." He said, then walked forward and two guards opened the doors ahead of them.

"For the first time, I present to you, the Lord and Lady Delmar." Sir Warrick announced as the door opened.

Everyone jumped to their feet and clapped. Most of it seemed genuine, but Fiona wasn't naïve enough to think that everyone was happy. All the servants seemed genuinely pleased though, which she appreciated.

As they approached the high table, something occurred to Fiona: where would she sit? She definitely didn't feel comfortable taking the Lady Helene's chair, partially because it had sat empty for seventeen years at that point. To Fiona, it felt like sitting in it would be a statement; it felt like she would be replacing the Lady Helene and that was the last thing that she was wanting.

"Milord." She said before they'd truly arrived. "Could I be sitting on your right this evening? I'm wanting to thank Sir Warrick properly and Lady Ekthros isn't back yet so there's an empty chair."

He glanced at her and nodded once. "Very well." The corners of his mouth were perhaps fractionally higher than they had been before she'd asked. It was subtle, but she was pretty sure she wasn't imagining it.

That made her smile.

* * *

Alana walked down the streets of Dotmier hand in hand with Rachel as they went to collect the bride and groom since they were rather late for their own reception.

"I sometimes wish my honeymoon phase would've lasted a little longer." Alana said with a sigh as they neared Matthew's house.

"Alternate perspective: every time Ethan marries another woman, the honeymoon period gets extended for everyone." The Redhead chuckled. "So really, you've had the longest honeymoon of any of us."

The wood elf laughed. "It does extend things for everyone a little, doesn't it?"

"A little." Rachel nodded. "And I... I want to participate."

"Yeah?" Alana asked as they stopped at the house matching Ketura's description of Matthew's house.

She nodded. "Can... can you help me?"

The wood elf felt like her heart would grow larger than the town. "Are you asking what I think you are?"

Rachel nodded slowly as her entire face went scarlet.

"Did you have an idea when you wanted to... 'participate'?"

"Um, not with everyone." The redhead squeaked out. "At least not at first. I don't think I could yet. I was hoping it would just be..." She swallowed. "...um, just be... be us. Um, you and I."

Alana couldn't have stopped smiling if she wanted to. "Name the time and place and I'll be there."

"Um, not until after the orc battle and Selene finishes with the portal." Rachel replied. "I would be too distracted and worried if we did it before then. But..." She bit her lip.

"But...? Maybe after?" Alana prompted.

Rachel nodded, her cheeks were still very red, though she had an embarrassed smile on her face too.

"I can't wait." Alana beamed, then knocked on Matthew and Yalia's door. "Matthew! Yalia!" She called through the door.

They heard the sound of movement behind the door for almost a minute, then the door opened. The newlyweds were a hastily-dressed mess. Their hair was all out of place, their clothes were rumpled and not put on quite right, and they both looked exactly how Alana had felt on her wedding night.

"I know that look." Rachel said with a smile and slightly pink cheeks.

Matthew's dopey smile got a bit wider as he scratched the back of his head. Yalia just looked up at him adoringly.

"Come on, it's time to head back." Alana said. "It'll all still work the same way when the reception is over, and I promise it gets better the more you practice."

"Better?" The newlyweds said at the same time, both with their eyes wide.

"Much better." Rachel nodded. "And I promise you can 'practice' more after the reception."

"Oh, we will." Yalia said dreamily as she looked at her husband adoringly, then she went bright red.

Alana and Rachel laughed as Matthew beamed.

* * *

"Would you like to dance, Mrs. Ejder." Ethan asked Kendra as he extended his hand towards her.

"I would love to, Mr. Ejder." The dragon huntress replied, taking his hand.

The reception was in full swing now that the newlyweds had returned. Dinner was good because apparently the people of Dotmier really knew how to cook. The chapel was the only large unused building in the town, so everyone had moved the seats to the edges to make room in the center. Ethan led Kendra out onto the dance floor and started leading her in the only dance he knew.

"I assume we're leaving with Lucien tonight to be ready for the orc battle?" She asked as they moved on the dance floor.

"Yup, Anthiel will fly us there during the night." He replied.

She nodded and he spun her. "Good idea, and I assume that--"

"Kendra." He interrupted with a pointed look. "It's okay to relax and just enjoy dancing for a while."

The raven-haired woman nodded and then she did seem to relax a bit. He finished the dance with her and she was grinning silly by the time they were done. She really did love to dance. All his other wives wanted a dance afterwards, and he was only too happy to oblige.

Eventually, the festivities started to wind down.

Someone called for the opening of presents and it seemed like all of Arven's, Ketura's, Matthew's, and Yalia's friends had been holding onto them for a long time anticipating this day. It was wonderful to watch. As he did, Harold Gladstone came up to him.

"My daughter told me about the birthdays." Victoria's father said quietly enough to not be overheard.

"You should know that I only told her because someone asked." Ethan replied.

"I know, she told me about Myla and Thea as well." Harold replied. The man looked at him for a long moment, took a deep breath, and then spoke. "Take Vicky with you, and you have my permission to marry her if you choose her. And no bride price; I'm already in your debt for saving my family."

"I'm not sure that's the safest idea." He replied. "You saw the possessed man who attacked us."

"I did, but I also know how hard it is for her to trust anyone." Harold replied. "She doesn't know that I know she's telepathic -- I have mental defenses because I'm a lawyer -- but her telepathy has been terrible on her. She doesn't like people or trust that anyone is better than 'mostly terrible'. Victoria doesn't like people and yet she likes you and your family."

"I'm glad, but we're talking about her safety."

"You don't have children yet." He smiled sadly. "One of the hardest lessons about parenthood is that you are responsible for more than just your child's safety. Yes, that takes priority when they are young, but once they are older, there are other things to consider. For example, if one of my sons wanted to volunteer at the Wilderness Outpost, I would support him even if it grieved my heart."

"Wilderness Outpost?" Ethan asked.

"It's below The Gap, on the southern side of the Ivernian Mountains where the Wilding Lands meet the thin stretch of land between the southern side of the Ivernian Mountains and the Gulf of Sayora." He explained. "It's the most dangerous military posting in Ivernia, but it also guards a crucial point of attack into Ivernia. It's honorable, noble work to defend your country, even though it's dangerous."

Ethan nodded slowly, trying to imagine what he would think if one of his future sons wanted a posting like that.

"Being a parent is serious business." Harold continued. "There's a fine line between a man protecting his children versus allowing them to grow into who Illuminar created them to be. While I would prefer my children were all safe of course, I won't deny my daughter a chance of happiness by denying her the opportunity to spend time with the one man who she hasn't completely dismissed and intentionally driven away."

Ethan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I hate to agree, but that does make sense."

"Good." Harold nodded. "You're a good man Ethan, but I think you'll find that being a father will change your view of the world more than you could imagine." He looked at Victoria, who at the moment was talking with some other guests before he continued. "Sometimes, you can hurt someone you love by protecting her too much."

"I think I'll have a hard time learning that lesson." Ethan admitted while thinking about his unborn daughter growing in Alana's womb.

"And that's half the reason I am giving you my permission to marry my daughter; you care deeply about your family and even a blind man could tell."

"They make it easy to care." He smiled, then looked at Harold. "What's the other half of the reason?"

"You're a prophet of Illuminar. They rarely lead easy lives, but I have yet to hear of one who wasn't a good man. Besides, I don't think Illuminar is done with you yet. I think we can expect great things from you Mr. Ejder."

"Thank you." He nodded.

"Do your best to keep my girl safe." Harold said in a forcedly even tone, though his voice hitched slightly.

"I will." Ethan promised, and afterward the conversation turned to more pleasant topics.

A few minutes later, Taloni skipped up to him. "Master, come on; Alana wants you to see the present you gave to Matthew and Yalia."

Harold laughed. "I've often been curious to see what presents I got my children as well."

Ethan chuckled as he followed the Fey teen over to the presents' table where his first wife held something small out to the happy couple. It looked like a small coin purse and he recognized his wood-elven wife's handiwork in the stitching and scrollwork.

"I made and enchanted the purse, Shara and Lyra filled it." Alana said as Matthew took it. Judging by how his hand dropped slightly when she dropped it into his hand, it looked heavy. Matthew's eyes went wide, then he let Yalia hold it for a moment and the young nymph's did as well.

"Well, take a look." Lyra urged, since she, Shara, and Lucien were standing right there.

Mathew undid the two strings that held it shut and the newlyweds looked inside, their jaws dropping as they did so.

"T-that's, t-that's..." Yalia stammered.

"That's more than I've ever seen..." Mathew trailed off.

"Consider it a down payment." Lucien said. "Yalia showed me a portion of your translation of the Book of Light while my family was dining at Arven's house. I would like a copy for the Timarou Library when you complete it."

"We hope this gold will enable you to spend more time working on it." Shara added.

"Just don't forget to have fun being married." Lyra added with a sly grin.

The newlyweds stared at them, mouths agape. Ethan's dragon senses could tell that the coin purse was mostly full of gold. He wasn't sure how much money was actually in there, but he was willing to bet that Matthew and Yalia had just become the richest couple in Dotmier by a large margin.

The newlyweds seemed stunned for the next half hour, much to the amusement of everyone who knew what was in the coin purse, which was limited to Lucien's family and Ethan's family. As the festivities died down, Lucien approached Ethan with a small wooden box.

"For your collection." The lord said as he extended it.

"What is it?" He asked as he took the box.

Lucien gestured to it, so Ethan opened it to see a small, thick metal disc about four inches in diameter with a nearly two-inch hole in the center. It looked to be made of dragon steel and there was a thin membrane of something that resembled water with a subtle reflectance in the colors of the rainbows.

"A portal stone?" Ethan asked quietly.

Lucien nodded. "With the Timarou crest so as not to be confused with the others."

Ethan looked and sure enough, the Timarou crest of a rearing horse was present, engraved into the metal itself.

"This will allow us to keep in contact should it be necessary." The Lord continued. "Shara instructed the Timarou mages to begin work on it when our wives visited Laerten."

"Thank you." Ethan nodded. "I really appreciate this."

"If it was not obvious by now, you are a friend to Timarou; merely say the word and you shall have our aid in whatever noble endeavor you are pursuing."

"I appreciate your friendship even more than the gift." He replied.

"Good." Lucien nodded. "Now come, battle awaits us in the morning and it would not do for late revelries to prevent us from being well rested."

"Agreed." Ethan nodded, then slowly started herding everyone back to the Argo, including Myla, Victoria, and Thea. Lucien also came, since that was the most efficient way for him to get there.

* * *

Fiona took a deep breath as Lord Delmar offered her his hand as he stood up when dinner was concluded. The food was incredible but the bride hadn't eaten a lot, being nervous about the upcoming wedding night. She wasn't entirely sure why she was nervous though. She wasn't a virgin and knew how sex worked. Then again, Sean had always been clear that he found her attractive whereas her second husband had given no indication of a similar opinion.

She took his hand and he led her gracefully from the great hall. Unlike her first wedding, there weren't any whistles or teasing comments from the guests. Both hers and Sean's families had made no secret about how happy they were about the match, and both sides had made both bride and groom blush as they left the reception. She had hated being so embarrassed at the time, but it was a fond memory now.

"This way." He said, turning and heading in the direction of his office.

She followed him through the familiar corridors but he turned before they would reach his office and went down a blind corridor that she had never been down. It was unremarkable except that there were two guards stationed at its entrance. The corridor wasn't very long and he stopped at the end and turned to face his left.

There was a door that wasn't ornate, but something about it seemed different than the other doors in the castle. It looked stronger and perhaps a bit thicker somehow, though that was obviously just her impression.

Most notably, it had no door latch.

Her husband -- that was still such a strange thought -- rested his hand on it for a moment, then pushed it open, stepped back, and indicated that she should enter. She did, not sure what she would find. Apparently, no one except Lord Delmar had been in the room for seventeen years, not since the Lady Helene had died.

The bedroom was large and rectangular with a large bed in the center of it. The bed was large enough that if she laid on it with her arms stretched above her head and tried to touch both the headboard and footboard at the same time, she would probably still be two feet short. It was almost that wide as well. What was surprising was the color and pattern. It was a soft purple velvet with a flowery pattern embroidered into it with purple thread. There were two pillows on the bed, one of which was the same color and the other of which looked like it would've exactly matched the Lady Helene's hair.

On the same side of the room as the red pillow was an obviously feminine dresser with a large central mirror and two mirrors beside it at an angle. In front of it was a chair obviously made for a woman, plus she doubted that Lord Delmar could've fit into it. There was a hairbrush on the dresser as well.

It still had a few red hairs dangling from it.

Fiona felt her throat get slightly tight as she saw that. Beside the hairbrush was what looked like a hairpin and a few other things that a typical noblewoman might have. Honestly, it looked like a woman had just finished getting ready for her day in a hurry and left a few things out in her haste. There was no dust on the dresser or items, and yet Fiona knew their owner hadn't needed them for seventeen years. Perhaps Lord Delmar dusted and put them back?

There was a feminine wardrobe on that side of the room and it also lacked dust of any kind. Nearer to the door of the room, there was a feminine rocking chair situated next to a much larger, more masculine one. Although the masculine one appeared to have collected dust from lack of use, the feminine one looked like it was cleaned regularly.

In fact, if Fiona hadn't known that the Lady Helene had died seventeen years ago, she would've guessed that a woman still lived in this room.

"I had planned to move her things." Lord Delmar said as he closed the door behind him.

She looked at him, her eyes feeling a little moist. Likewise, his eyes appeared to be a bit moist as well. Not enough that most people would notice, but she noticed.

"I'm sorry." She said softly, looking around the room. "I don't think I was quite understanding how you were feeling--" She stopped, then corrected herself. "--how you are feeling about the Lady Helene.

He nodded once but didn't reply. He then stepped into the room, which took him past the smaller and more feminine rocking chair. As he passed it, he gently touched it with a few fingers as he passed by. She noticed that the rocking chair appeared to have a significant wear spot right where he had just touched it. Ordinarily, that would be odd since it was on the top back of the chair where its occupant would never touch it.

"I will move them now." He said as he looked at the items on Helene's dresser, but he didn't move.

"Milord, maybe there's no reason that they are needing to be moved." She said after a moment.

"I would not ask you to live in her shadow." He replied.

He still didn't move.

"You aren't asking, I'm offering." She replied. "Maybe you are forgetting that I've lost a spouse too." Her voice cracked slightly. "I'm hating to admit it, but I'm thinking you were loving Helene more than I was loving Sean. I know what my Sean's death was doing to me, so I can't be imagining what this is like for you. Anything I can be doing to be making it easier on you is something I'm happy to be doing."

"What you did at dinner with the seating was appreciated." He said after a moment.

She tried to smile, but it came out as more of a pained smile than anything else. They both stood there somewhat awkwardly for several seconds. Well, she felt like it was awkward; he didn't seem bothered, merely contemplative.

"We should begin the wedding night presently." He said after nearly a minute.

"Aye." She replied, remembering that the traditional wedding night activity and resultant children were the entire reason that she was married right now.

"When you are ready, you may remove your dress."

"I was hoping you might be helping me with that." She replied, allowing her voice to be slightly coy.

He reached down and took the medallion on his chest off, then set it on the dresser on the other side of the bed before returning to her. He looked entirely the black dragon now without even the gossamer outline of the Lord Delmar that she had grown used to over the last several months.

He stepped close to her and slowly raised his hand. It passed over her front, close but never touching her. Something about that motion made her shudder in an entirely good way, even though he hadn't touched her. His hand continued upwards, not touching her but remaining intimately close.

She smiled.

He was looking at her and the moment she smiled, his hand faltered for a moment. Suddenly, he got a slightly faraway look in his eye that she'd learned to associate with him being reminded of the Lady Helene. That look remained in his eyes for a moment before he refocused on her.

He swallowed and blinked once or twice as he looked at her, then his expression subtly changed. Whereas before he had looked somewhat neutral, now his face looked even more neutral, almost like a mask sliding into place. Yet at the same time, the look in his eyes was more expressive; more pained.

"Is your dress self-repairing?" He asked after a moment.

"Aye."

The lord slid a single claw out of its sheath and, moving with a fluidity that was at once graceful and almost scary, he slipped the claw in between the tiny amount of cleavage her dress had. Continuing the same fluid motion without even scratching her, he cut down to her knees so the dress was cut almost in half in the front. Robbed of its structure, it slid off her shoulders and pooled on the floor at her feet.

She was naked.

She automatically moved her hands to cover her slit and breasts. Since she was nursing, her breasts immediately made their weight known.

"It will be difficult to impregnate you if you hide yourself from me." He pointed out, his face still almost unnaturally neutral.

She swallowed, nodded, and then moved her hands, painfully aware that she had a few small stretch marks from her pregnancy with Conner. She was fit and in good health otherwise, but she was aware of them and hoped he wouldn't mind.

Apparently he didn't.

She found herself staring at his nether regions as his cock and balls slid out of their protection and met the air. Despite how impossible it seemed, he was still growing larger. Her logical brain reminded her that she had given birth so it would fit, but her instincts told her quite another thing.

"I'm... I'm thinking it'll be hours before I'm prepared for that." She finally said.

"That problem is easily remedied." Lord Delmar replied. "Look into my eyes."

She did. She met his eyes and all of a sudden a powerful wave of arousal washed over her. It was like nothing she had ever felt before in all of her time being married to Sean. She tried to look away, but couldn't.

"Milord?" She said, not entirely sure what was happening.

"Compulsion." He said. He blinked and instantly she could look away. The sudden wave of arousal stopped building, but what had accumulated didn't dissipate.

He spoke again. "You will be unlikely to fit me without significant discomfort unless I use it."

"Okay." Fiona said, taking a deep breath and then meeting his eyes again. Barely a moment later, her arousal began to build again like it never had before. All of a sudden, her slit felt like a small waterfall. She could actually feel a bead of moisture running down her leg.

Lord Delmar took a step closer and for some reason, she felt herself taking a step back. He did this twice more until she bumped up against the bed. He took another step forward and she let herself fall back onto it, not realizing until she had that she had automatically spread her legs. She was nearly panting at this point. She had never been so aroused in her entire life, and yet somehow she could tell that it wasn't entirely natural.

She didn't have a moment to consider that though because her new husband stepped forward. In a single smooth motion that satisfied the yearning ache her slit had begun to feel not even a minute ago, he slid inside of her without preamble. He was looking into her eyes, but somehow she got the distinct impression that his mind was elsewhere.

He started thrusting and the sensation was entirely beyond Fiona's ability to describe. It was stupendous, sublime, breathtaking, transcendent; it was all of that and so, so much more. Her body locked up as an orgasm washed over her. It shattered every orgasm that Fiona had ever experienced by leagues. It was the most physically pleasurable sensation she had ever felt, no question, no contenders; nothing she'd ever felt even came close to the inconceivable, mind-melting pleasure coursing through her body...

...and then it was over.

Lord Delmar let out a subtle groan and she felt a burst of warmth inside of her. He pushed deep inside of her and held there for several long seconds, then withdrew. Fiona panted for a moment as Lord Delmar released her from the compulsion and the artificial arousal that she had felt abated very quickly. The sensation was strange and left her feeling somewhat bereft.

She hadn't even had an orgasm on her wedding night with Sean and yet it had been far more satisfying than the earth-shattering orgasm she had just enjoyed. To be sure, Sean had tried to give her one, but it was another few days before he had succeeded; he was very persistent in his attempt to ensure she enjoyed herself, and she had.

But this...

This wasn't that.

Something about it didn't sit right with her.

"Unless you require something else, I shall retire for the night." Lord Delmar said.

"I'm not needing anything." She replied, not sure what else to say.

He nodded once, then walked around to the other side of the bed, slipped under the covers, and his breathing patterns changed not thirty seconds later.

He was asleep.

Fiona sat up as she got her breath back, feeling somewhat stunned by this abrupt turn of events. She was pretty sure that Lord Delmar had 'done the deed' as fast as he possibly could. She wasn't even sure a whole two minutes had passed between her dress falling to the floor and him finishing. There was absolutely no doubt in her mind that he could've gone much longer -- possibly hours -- but he certainly hadn't.

On the other hand, there was absolutely no denying that it had been the most physically pleasurable experience of her life. He certainly hadn't ignored her pleasure, but now that she thought about it, she wasn't sure she wanted it; not if it would be like that. She would've preferred he was that quick without the compulsion to what had just happened. She didn't think that he had intended it this way -- it seemed like he had tried to ensure that she enjoyed it judging by that orgasm -- but she hadn't despite how incredible it had felt physically.

Not sure what else to do, she moved around on the bed and slipped under the covers. Despite the incomparable difference in physical pleasure which bordered on obscene, her least satisfying times with Sean -- even the early ones without her orgasming -- had been far more enjoyable. Despite having just had the most physically pleasurable orgasm of her life, she actually felt rather frustrated.

It just wasn't the same without love.

Not at all.

She decided to talk to Lord Delmar about it in the morning. She scooched a bit closer to him in the bed, closed her eyes, and resolved to fall asleep. Well, asleep until Conner needed feeding in a few hours. Lord Delmar had informed her that the nursery was just off the bedroom and Conner would be in there with Nurse Belcosta.

* * *

Sarah loved the fact that Amy was so happily married to Rindrin. She was slightly less fond of the fact that Amy was so vocal about being happily married in the wee hours of the morning. It wasn't even light out yet, but Sarah could hear them through the walls. Well, hear Amy anyway.

She got up and slipped on the plainer of the two self-cleaning dresses that Lady Ekthros had given her since it was more suitable for everyday wear. Despite who had given it to her, she was still going to wear it; it was a nice dress.

She had just decided to make an early start on breakfast when there was a knock on the door. Who could be knocking here at this hour? Thinking that maybe it was someone who wanted some early blacksmithing work done, she went to the door of the shop and opened it. A man wearing a Narlotten surcoat was standing there, and he looked like one of the messengers from the castle at Karnas.

The moment the door opened, he gave a head bow and spoke. "Good morning ma'am, might the innkeeper's daughter named 'Sarah' be around?"

"I'm Sarah."

"I have a letter for you ma'am." The man said as he held it out.

She took it, wishing that she knew how to read it. "Who's it from?"

"The future first Lady of Narlotten." He replied, then paused. "Though by now she will be the current First Lady of Narlotten."

Sarah stared.

Who could she know that would be the First Lady of Narlotten? She really only knew one person in Narlotten, but it seemed impossible that Fiona... Wait, it couldn't be Fiona, could it? She looked down at the letter, suddenly wishing that Amy would finish with Rindrin so the newlywed could read it to her, since Fiona hadn't finished teaching Sarah how to read.

"I will stay at the inn until midday should you wish to write a response." The man said, then gave her another head bow and left.

Sarah looked down at the letter, suddenly very excited for Amy and Rindrin to emerge from enjoying their nuptial bliss.

* * *

Ethan yawned as he stretched, Alana stirring sleepily in his arms. He wrapped his arms more tightly around the wood elf, which of course meant that his left arm landed on Rachel as well. It was still very strange that he didn't have a hand on his left arm right now. Looking at it, it looked like a bit of his arm had already regrown, which might explain the gnawing, aching pit where his stomach usually was.

"It's too early to get up." He yawned.

"It's not that early Master." Tee said brightly from the desk next to the door. Kendra was right next to her, both were naked, and Tee's copy of the Book of Light was open on the desk with a candle providing light.

"You two are way too gorgeous to be this awake this early." He replied with another yawn. "If we didn't have a battle to fight, I would take advantage of you in the best possible way."

Beth started rubbing her butt up against him from his other side. "We don't need to take a long time Dominus."

"Bad girl." He said with a wink. "When I get back, I will need to correct your behavior most sternly."

"Oh, please don't spank me Dominus." She said as she rolled onto her front and pushed her butt into the air. "I promise I'll do better."

He gave her a playful smack on the butt and then sat up with one part of him more awake than the rest of him. "Okay ladies, I need to get going."

"We'll come with you." Alana said, starting to disentangle herself from Rachel since the two were hopelessly intertwined with each other, both looking radiantly happy.

His wives all got dressed and followed him out of the captain's cabin. He could see the sky just barely starting to lighten in the east and the deck was still lit by lanterns. Anthiel was up and had something in a large pot, probably a breakfast stew. Lucien was sitting beside the pot with a bowl and it looked like he was almost done eating.

"Good morning." The lord nodded to them.

"Morning." Ethan yawned again as he grabbed some stew.

Thor decided to make his presence known, doing that thing that cats often do where they are entirely underfoot and acting like they don't understand why that's a problem. He went around sniffing everyone, and when he didn't find Selene, he did what he usually did. He walked over to where she had usually sat and flopped down looking forlorn. Kendra petted him and he seemed to appreciate that, but he didn't look less forlorn without the caramel-haired beauty present.

"I would make a request of you and Alana if you would permit it." Lucien said when they had gotten their food.

"Oh?" The couple said at the same time, prompting grins from everyone.

"Indeed. You know the battle plan and how it hinges on the Red Hand clan choosing to pursue our orc friends immediately after the battle commences."

"Right." Ethan nodded.

"I believe it is far more likely that they will give chase if we arrive at the pre-battle negotiation with Alana present."

The wood elf nodded slowly and then spoke in a rather good imitation of an orc. "Tree elf have weak honor." She chuckled and then spoke normally. "I can see how they would find that insulting."

"What's a 'pre-battle negotiation'?" Beth asked.

"It is customary among the orcs to--" The lord began, but was interrupted.

"Wait!" A feminine voice came from the lower decks and they heard the sound of someone running up the stairs before Thea appeared on the weather deck. "Did I miss anything?!" She asked with a huge grin.

"Not really." Ethan replied while resisting the urge to laugh.

"Okay good." She breathed a sigh of relief. She looked a mess. A gorgeous mess, but a mess. Her hair was all out of place and it looked like she had been sleeping on her side because his dragon eyes could see that she'd obviously slept on several folds of fabric, the imprint of which hadn't faded yet. Her turquoise dress was rumpled and yet despite all of that, she was probably objectively more beautiful than any of his wives had ever been.

"I was just asking was a pre-battle negotiation is." Beth explained to Thea.

Lucien began to speak as Thea grabbed a bowl and some breakfast. "The orcs conduct warfare far differently than men or elves do. Before every battle, they have a meeting to agree on the terms of the battle, the victory conditions, and what the winner will receive after the battle."

"Really?" Ethan asked.

"Yes." The lord replied. "In many ways, they are more civilized about how they conduct warfare than men and elves."

"You're not kidding." Ethan nodded.

"However, there is a 'catch', as you say." Lucien continued. "Each side brings six people to the negotiation. However, every non-elder must participate in the battle."

"I don't want Alana anywhere near the fighting." Ethan shook his head, thinking about how the goblins had tried to swarm him the first time he had fought them. Anyone who couldn't fly wouldn't stand a chance and would likely be eaten alive.

"If you remember the battle plan, she won't need to be." Lucien replied. Ethan opened his mouth to reply, but the lord beat him to it. "I understand your hesitation. I would not put Shara and Lyra anywhere within leagues of a battlefield if I thought there was a danger to either of them. However, remember the battle plan. She would be with the second contingent of archers who would include Grobozlesh. It took their 'strongest climbers' nearly an hour to scale the overlook, and the cover is perfectly capable of stopping orcish arrows. She will be safe and need only fire a few arrows to qualify. They can be in the opening volley, after which she may safely take cover the remainder of the battle, should it last longer than the opening volleys."

Alana looked at Ethan. "Sir, I would be happy to go if it will help."

"Then I'm coming too." Rachel announced before Ethan could reply. "I don't need to be at the negotiation, but I can make it my mission to cover Alana with a shield since she needs two hands for her bow. Plus, I can use magic if any of the enemy does manage to scale the overlook; you know how effective air-rams can be where there's a long way to fall."

"Ladies, I don't think--" Ethan started to say, but was interrupted by Thea.

"Can I come with them as an observer?!" Thea asked with a beaming smile.

"No." Ethan, Alana, and Rachel all said at the same time.

"The battlefield is no place for civilians." Lucien agreed. "I would not want Alana there except that it will ensure beyond a reasonable doubt that the Red Hands will be enraged enough to chase the Blue Circles when they initiate their retreat."

"It's up to you Sir, but please let me." Alana looked at him, resolve in her eyes as she rested her hand over her womb. "I'm carrying precious cargo, so believe me when I say that I won't take unnecessary risks. But if I can virtually ensure victory with my presence, I want to."

Ethan took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, thinking about what Harold had said the previous night. Alana obviously wasn't a child, but the same thing about being overprotective seemed to apply. He frowned as he looked around at everyone. "This won't be the last time that one of my wives ends up in danger, is it?"

"If you are referring to the orcs, it likely will be." Lucien said. "If you are referring to the more serious war with Lord Delmar and Lord Farbrottan, then likely not."

"I was afraid you'd say that." Ethan looked at Alana and then Rachel. "Promise me that you'll take every possible precaution and not take a single risk that isn't absolutely necessary."

"We promise." Alana replied.

"We will." Rachel agreed. "I'll even use the shields the wood elven king gave us. He said they could stop an orcish warbow."

"I would need to fly both of you out of there, and we only have the one weight reduction necklace." He pointed out.

"If everyone is willing to donate mana, I can add an activatable weight reduction enchantment to your armor." The wood elf replied. "It won't take long, then one of us can wear the necklace while you carry her and the other can ride on your back."

Ethan hesitated a moment and then inclined his head in concession. "I still don't like the idea of you being at the battle, but okay."

The mood became a bit more somber after that. Ethan knew the battle plan and Lucien was right; there was almost no risk to Alana and Rachel where they would be. However, he still didn't like putting his wives in harm's way, no matter how low the chances of harm were.

Strangely, that put him in mind of Selene.

She was back on Earth on an incredibly dangerous mission and he hadn't been very concerned about her. He wasn't sure why, but he wasn't. It had occurred to him that the mission could go south, but somehow he had never seriously thought it would. Come to think of it, it had been a while since he had checked in on her. He should probably do that.

* * *

*Selene?*

The Brazilian woman felt a smile creep onto her face at Ethan's mental voice. She was lying on the cot in her cell, the dimmed lights telling her that it was nighttime. She had slept better than she would've thought, but had woken up early and couldn't get back to sleep.

*Hey, what's up?* She replied.

*Getting ready for the fight with the orcs.* He replied.

*Oh?* She asked.

*Yeah, we're heading out soon. What are you up to?*

She sighed. *Nothing but waiting, waiting, some more waiting, and then after yet more waiting, I waited some more.*

She could feel his amusement as he replied. *Sorry about that. That's how I felt until we found Sarah, so I know what you mean.*

Selene sat bolt upright. *Wait, you found Sarah?*

*I didn't tell you about that?* He paused. *Oh, right. I forgot that you closed your connection to the group chat.* He then proceeded to tell her about how he had met Sarah again. The story was a bit halting and Selene could tell that he was multitasking, but he did get through it eventually, finishing with Sarah's birthday.

*So, another one for the harem, huh?*

*Selene, I really don't think of my wives that way.*

*I know.* She meant it, but decided to tease him a bit anyway. *I'll admit I thought you were just a horndog at first, but after living with you all for a month, I've decided that you aren't just a horndog.*

She could feel his amusement over their bond, enough that he had probably laughed out loud. *Touché.*

*I'm happy for Sarah.* She said after a moment. *She's had a giant crush on you since forever, which only got bigger after you were so nice to her after she beat you up.*

*Really?*

*Really.* Selene even felt a smile creep onto her face. *Promise me that you'll invite me to the wedding and that you'll take good care of her.*

*I promise.* He replied, and she thought he sounded much happier now that he'd learned that Sarah had a huge crush on him as he continued. *I just hope that she somehow figures out that lady Ekthros lied about me, about us.*

*Agreed.* For a moment, Selene mentally included herself in 'us', then remembered that she wasn't a part of the Argo's crew anymore.

She wasn't sure she liked that.

*Hey Ethan, say hi to Kendra for me, will you?*

*I will.* He replied. *We're coming up on the orc camp right now and I'll be pretty busy fighting the battle, so we can talk more later.*

*Sounds good, take care of yourself out there.*

*You too.* He replied, then added more seriously. *I mean that Selene, you don't take good enough care of yourself but you should.*

*I will.* She promised.

*Bye for now.*

*Bye.*

She took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to imagine what her life would be like not living on the Argo. It wasn't as easy as she thought it should be.

She lay in bed for some time thinking about life until she heard the lock on her cell door sliding open and sat back up. It was Yvonne. The agent popped in with the mannerisms of someone in a hurry and she spoke very fast.

"I only have two seconds, but I thought you should know that Clive apparently figured out how to move his mana and invited one of the top brass to see a demonstration. The brass wants you there, and I think I can swing some time in the shower for you before they arrive."

"Oh thank God." The Brazilian woman said, missing regular bathing even more now that she wasn't wearing self-cleaning clothes.

"I'll let you know later, bye." Yvonne said, then she was gone.

Selene smiled.

She had grown sick and tired of waiting in this stupid cell and wanted to be doing something. She couldn't help anyone sitting in this damn cell.

* * *

Sarah wondered why she hadn't worn a hole through the floor with her pacing yet. She had tried cooking breakfast, but for quite possibly the first time in her life, cooking wasn't distracting enough and she abandoned the attempt before she wasted food. She felt like she had been pacing for hours but certainly wasn't going to go looking for the couple. It was almost dawn and yet Rindrin wasn't up; she couldn't remember the last time he hadn't been pounding steel by dawn.

Finally, the door opened and Amy came out giggling while Rindrin tried and failed to look gruff.

"Amy!" Sarah beamed, ran up to her, and grabbed her arm. "I need to talk to you."

"Um, okay?" The newlywed said as Sarah practically dragged her out of the room and into the guest room.

"Can you read this for me?" Sarah asked as she held up the letter.

"Sure, but who's it from?"

Sarah explained, after which Amy quickly opened the letter and began to read aloud. "My dearest Sarah and Amy, I'm wanting to be telling you the news before it's reaching you another way. The Lord Delmar was proposing to me and--"

Amy stopped to look up slack-jawed at Sarah, mirroring the expression on Sarah's own face. It was several long seconds before Amy raised the letter again and began to read again.

"The Lord Delmar was proposing to me because he was needing an heir, and I was accepting his proposal. By the time you're reading this, I'll be married. I was wanting both of you to be there, but things were happening so fast. I'm wanting you to know that you two are the best friends I was making at the castle and I'm thanking Illuminar for you both. I'm hoping that at some point after things are settling down, I can maybe be paying for you two to visit me in Karnas. I would be loving that. They are planning a grand wedding in the spring and I'm wanting you both to be there. Please be replying by the messenger because I'd love to be hearing from you both and how your journey was going. Wishing you all of Illuminar's blessings, Fiona."

Sarah and Amy looked at each other, both rendered speechless by the letter.

It was several seconds before Sarah realized something: There was no possible way that Lady Ekthros would dare to hurt Fiona or Conner now. She just couldn't. Lord Delmar might not take much notice if a servant died, especially if the death wasn't suspicious, but Sarah was sure that he would go to the ends of the Ten Kingdoms and beyond if anything happened to his wife or now-adopted son.

They were safe.

There was no way that Lady Ekthros had a strong enough hold over Lord Delmar that she could get away with harming them. It would take nothing short of the 'lady' having put a will-breaker ring on Lord Delmar for her to get away with murdering the First Lady, Fiona Delmar. It was strange to think of Fiona with 'Delmar' as her last name, but it was her last name because she was now the First Lady of Narlotten and Lord Delmar's wife.

Sarah breathed a sigh of relief.

Fiona and Conner were safe.

Sarah felt her cheeks pull into quite possibly the widest smile she'd ever worn as she realized that Illuminar had answered her prayer. They were safe. Almost immediately, her mind turned to Ethan. If he came back, she could talk to him; she could talk to Selene. She could talk to anyone again. Illuminar had given her an unmistakable sign that she would be part of Ethan's life, and she wanted to go with him the next time she saw him.

But she was betrothed...

That was a problem, but maybe not an insurmountable problem? Betrothal required a divorce to break of course, but she knew that Illuminar allowed for divorce for several reasons in the Book of Light. The trouble was, no one had ever wanted her to visit services because of her problem, so she didn't know what all of them were.

"Isn't it wonderful?!" Amy gushed at the letter just as Sarah spoke. "Would Rindrin divorce me?"

The two stared at each other for a moment, Sarah feeling a little silly and Amy looking like Sarah had just sprouted an extra head.

"I want to marry Ethan." Sarah explained.

Amy cocked her head to one side. "But, it seemed like you didn't like him the other day."

"I had to do that because--" Sarah stopped mid-sentence, realizing that telling Amy about Lady Ekthros would probably put her in danger. As it was, Lady Ekthros had no reason to hurt the newlywed and Sarah wanted to keep it that way. "Well, it's complicated. But I don't dislike Ethan, it's actually the opposite."

"How much the opposite?" Amy asked with a sly smile.

"Very much the opposite." Sarah replied, feeling her cheeks get a bit warm.

"Then I think Rindy would divorce you, but you would need a cause. He would never do anything that would give you cause to divorce him, and you're too good to give him cause to divorce you."

"I know." Sarah groaned. "But maybe there's something? Do you know the reasons a husband could divorce his wife?"

Amy frowned. "Um, I know adultery, and I know there's more but I can't think of them."

"I obviously won't commit adultery so that won't help, but maybe the others will." Sarah said firmly. "I need to talk to a luminar."

"But the luminar in town didn't even want to be near you."

"There's always the monastery down the road." Sarah replied. "They might not want to talk to me either, but Selene said that they were very nice and since they are monks, they spend a lot of time reading the Book of Light. They should know."

"Rindy has a lot of work to do though." Amy countered. "He won't be able to take you for several days."

"Amy, you saw what happens when someone tries to hurt me; I'll be fine." Sarah replied, thankful that her demon protected her as a small counterbalance to all the problems it had caused.

The newlywed nodded slowly. "Okay, but please be careful?"

"I will." Sarah promised, not that she needed to. Outside of Lady Ekthros, no one could hurt her. "But first, we need to reply to Fiona. Can you write it?"

"Of course." Amy smiled.

* * *

Ethan hopped down from Kendra's canoe-sized airship with Alana and Rachel right behind him. Lucien stepped out as well, then Kendra gave them a wave and took off again. They were perhaps a hundred yards from the planned site of the battle and he was still having trouble believing how incredibly civilized the orcs could be about their warfare. The initial battlefield was a large clearing in a mostly flat area. It was dotted with a few scraggly bushes and surrounded on all sides by trees or hills, and sometimes both.

Ethan could see the Red Hand camp in the relatively bright sky that was only a few minutes before sunrise. It looked like there must be at least a thousand Red Hand orcs, maybe more. By contrast, the Blue Circle camp had less than half of those numbers, maybe three hundred or so. Ethan knew that a fair-sized portion of the Blue Circle army was elsewhere for the second half of Lucien's battle plan, but still.

All of the orcs on both sides were armed. Most of the Blue Circle orcs had large-ish shields and a one-handed spear, though some had bows as well. Of course, their one-handed spears were about the right size for a two-handed spear for a typical man. Standing there facing hundreds of hulking orcs who were powerfully built and at least a foot taller than him, Ethan couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

"You sure about this?" Ethan asked Lucien as they walked to meet their orcish allies.

"Of course not, little is sure in battle." The lord replied. "But I have studied warfare and tactics for well over half my life now and the battle plan is solid. By noon, there likely won't be a single Red Hand orc still living."

Ethan looked at Lucien, then the Red Hand army that greatly outnumbered the Blue Circles, then back at Lucien. "Not a single one?"

The lord nodded once, not a single ounce of bravado or cockiness showing, only calm confidence.

"Okay." Ethan nodded, hoping he was right.

"E-tan return!" Grobozlesh called loudly from the camp and came bounding out to meet them, all smiles on his face as he approached them. "Groboz learning the being tactician." He announced proudly.

Ethan grinned. "Good for you! I'm glad to hear that."

The orc looked at Alana. "Tree elf finish bow? We must have contest, see who stronger."

Ethan couldn't help but notice that the orc's English was much improved; probably the result of talking with Lucien over the last week.

"It's finished and ready." The brunette replied with a grin.

"Where bow?" Groboz asked.

Alana whipped her left hand down to her 'belt buckle', which was really the grip of her travel bow as her right hand flew to the small leather pouch on her actual belt. She snapped the travel bow open and nocked an arrow without drawing the bow.

The orc's eyes went incredibly wide. "Groboz excite!"

"Me too." Alana said as she returned the travel bow and travel arrows to their places. "After the battle and maybe a rest, we should have that archery contest."

"Why contest wait?" The orc grinned, showing his tusks as his eyes lit up. "We have match in battle. Who kill more, win."

"Deal." She nodded.

"Come, see clan chief, elders." Groboz waved towards the camp and they all fell into step behind him, an odd group though they were.

Ethan chuckled.

"What you think being funny?" Groboz asked.

"Us walking into camp together sounds like the beginning of a joke." Ethan explained.

"Indeed." Lucien nodded with a small smile. "Lyra would assuredly provide a humorous and slightly inappropriate punchline."

Everyone chuckled.

The Blue Circle camp didn't even consist of any tents. Mostly, it was groups of orcs sitting around eating what looked like raw meat. Some had packs near them, but most didn't. It seemed that with battles planned in advance, they could travel light. From what little he could see of the Red Hand camp, it looked similarly devoid of the usual baggage of a traveling army.

Grobozlesh led them to the front of the camp where Hobdrizen, Drazglent, and the rest of the ancient orcs were waiting.

Lucien said something in orcish that sounded like a greeting and the orcs replied with a single word in orcish, then Hobdrizen looked at Ethan. "You return. I hope you ready for battle."

"Why you bring tree elf?" Drazglent growled.

"Because of that exact reaction." Lucien replied. "The Red Hands have weak self-control. When they see we have brought a wood elf to the pre-battle meeting, they will be enraged and their weak minds will make them make weak decisions in the battle."

Drazglent shook his head. "Battle meeting for strong warriors. Tree elf not strong."

Grobozlesh shook his head. "Tree elf is better accurate than I with bow. She strong."

"Perhaps runt not strong." Drazglent shot back while eyeing Grobozlesh with a sneer.

Runt?

Ethan frowned as he considered what Groboz had been called. Groboz definitely wasn't a small orc, though he wasn't unusually large either. Honestly, he seemed about average and yet was called a runt? Ethan thought there must be more to it but wasn't sure what. Maybe something cultural?

"Drazglent." Hobdrizen admonished the chieftain. "Grobozlesh is strong with bow and strong in truth-telling. If he say tree elf strong, tree elf strong."

"She strong." Grobozlesh said firmly.

Hobdrizen indicated the lord. "Then Lu-shen have a strong plan."

"Thank you." Lucien nodded, then looked to the horizon, where the sun was going to crest the horizon any minute now. "Then I suggest that Ethan and Alana join the pre-battle meeting."

"If join meeting, must fight." Drazglent grunted. "Tree elf not good in fight."

"Not with a sword or spear, no." Alana replied, not looking the least bit intimidated even though the orc chieftain was almost two feet taller than she was. "But with a bow? There's almost nothing I can't hit and almost nothing my arrows won't pierce."

"She strong." Grobozlesh said firmly.

"Look at arms." He indicated Alana's slender arms. "Weak arms, weak warrior."

"Pick up your shield." Alana said. "I'll show you my 'weak arms'."

The orcish chieftain shrugged and picked up his shield.

Alana moved as swiftly as greased lightning as she drew her travel bow, nocked an arrow, and let it loose at the large shield. The arrow punched through the shield easily, leaving a hole in it. Thankfully, Alana had aimed so the arrow missed the orc holding it. Alana called the arrow back and caught it in its rolled state before putting the travel bow and arrow back. The entire thing had only taken a few seconds.

Drazglent grunted, inspected the hole in his shield, and then mumbled. "Tree elf not weak."

"No, she's not." Ethan said proudly, beaming at his beloved first wife.

"Come, dawn approaches." Hobdrizen said as he pointed a bony finger at the horizon where the sun was just starting to peek over the horizon. "We go meet Red Hand clan and decide terms."

* * *

Selene had taken to pacing in her cell while waiting for the upcoming meeting and was looking forward to a shower. It had been a few days by now and she was starting to feel gross. It wouldn't have been so bad with self-cleaning clothes, but they didn't have those here. More importantly, they didn't have Ethan, Kendra, or Thor here either.

In her head, she knew that part of the reason she was missing Ethan so much was because of their bond. She couldn't explain it, but she knew that's where it was coming from. Kendra, not so much; she simply missed her friend. She really missed her little kitty too. She hadn't realized how much she'd grown to love him snuggling up to sleep with her until he wasn't around.

But despite how much she missed her friends, she couldn't see herself going back to live on the Argo. A part of her definitely wanted to, and a large part, but she had oriented her entire life around becoming an FBI agent so she could help people. Sure, she would probably help people on the Argo as well, but she didn't think she could help nearly as many.

She heard the lock on her cell door slide and then the door opened. Yvonne was there with a pair of female soldiers.

"Miss Dawson." Yvonne said in an entirely businesslike fashion. "We're expecting some top brass later and he will want to debrief you. These ladies will escort you to the showers where clean clothes will be provided."

"Sounds good." She smiled.

"Make sure you take a long, hot shower." Yvonne added, looking at Selene pointedly but so the other two women couldn't see. "Trust me, you don't want to make a poor impression."

Selene doubted that Yvonne was serious about the last part, but she definitely seemed serious about the first part.

The two female soldiers led the Brazilian woman down a short hall and indicated a door, through which she walked. It was a very spartan, utilitarian room that was almost small enough for her to touch the walls without moving. It had a small shower area, a sink, a mirror above the sink, and that was about it. There was also a chair where clothes almost identical to the ones she'd been wearing when she had arrived were lying neatly folded and obviously freshly cleaned. There was a cordless electric hair dryer lying on top of them, as well as a brush.

"Thank you." She aloud, though she knew Yvonne wouldn't be able to hear her.

She wasted no time slipping out of the dress she'd been wearing non-stop the last several days and turned the water on. She slipped under the spray once she'd got it to a decent temperature and nearly moaned out loud. God that felt good. She took way more time in the shower than she usually did, determined to enjoy this as much as possible. She spent a solid twenty minutes enjoying her first hot shower in over a month, and that wasn't including the additional time she spent making sure every nook and cranny of her exquisite body was squeaky clean.

It felt good.

Near the end, she remembered what Yvonne had said and turned the hot water up as high as she could stand it. Then thinking it might not be hot enough, she stepped out of the stream, turned it all the way hot, and just let it run like that for a few minutes while she enjoyed being truly clean for the first time in days.

Eventually, she turned the water off and stepped out of the shower. The mirror was completely fogged over and she could see something written on it, likely by Yvonne.

It said: "Check under pillow in cell. Wipe mirror."

Selene read it twice and then thoroughly wiped the mirror, wondering what she would find under her pillow when she returned. She knew there hadn't been anything there when she left, so she assumed that Yvonne was going to put something there while Selene was out. She dried off with the towel, blow-dried her hair, brushed it, and then got dressed, the pants feeling slightly odd after a month straight of wearing dresses.

She felt good though.

She looked in the mirror and she both looked and felt like herself again. She missed her badge and gun, but didn't think she was likely to get those back anytime soon. Taking a final look at herself in the mirror, she opened the door.

The two female soldiers outside looked at her and one of them spoke. "Miss Dawson, Agent Benson asked us to escort you to the waiting room for your meeting as soon as you were done."

"Lead on." Selene replied since she didn't have much choice, though she was disappointed that she would have to wait to see what Yvonne had left in her room under her pillow.

* * *

Alana thought she was doing a pretty good job of not looking intimidated while being surrounded by orcs that were probably at least three times her size, going by weight. It wasn't easy though. It would've been a lot harder if her husband wasn't right there with her. It never ceased to amaze her just how much better she felt with him around.

There were six of them walking towards the center of the field. It wasn't perfectly flat, but it was mostly flat. There were also a half dozen Red Hand orcs walking towards them. Alana's group was composed of herself, Ethan, Lucien, Hobdrizen, Drazglent, and another orc she didn't know. By contrast, the Red Hand group was composed of two older orcs and four of the largest orcs that Alana had ever seen. They were all around Drazglent's size and he was nearly seven feet tall.

She could almost feel the contempt for her pouring off of the Red Hands. They were looking at her the way people might look at a particularly foul-smelling bit of manure that had gotten stuck to the bottom of their shoe. Their noses were turned up and they started muttering in orcish as the two parties closed.

They appeared to be heading for a meeting point where three other orcs were waiting. Those three orcs clearly didn't belong to either clan though. One had a yellow tree on his leather vest, another had a blue triangle that was probably supposed to be a mountain, and the last had a purple square. None of these orcs were young, but neither were they frail with age either. Notably, they were all unarmed.

"Who are they?" She asked.

"Witnesses." Lucien replied. "They will observe the battle terms and report to the other clans if either clan doesn't abide by them."

"We abide." Drazglent growled. "Even Red hand abide. Clan no abide, clan no have honor; other clans destroy. Not even Red Hand strong enough to fight all clans."

*Interesting, huh?* Ethan thought to her. *I swear the orcs are more civilized about their warfare than anyone else we've encountered.*

*Oddly, I would agree.* She nodded.

"Let the orcs and me do the talking." Lucien said quietly as they got closer, then added to Alana. "Unless you can find an appropriate place to insult them; more fuel for the flame."

"Will do." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Next to her, Ethan seemed slightly distracted so she thought to him. *Something wrong?*

*No, I'm just wondering if I'll have time for another bite to eat before the battle starts.* He replied.

She chuckled. He had eaten a very large breakfast and yet was hungry less than an hour later. She supposed that she shouldn't be surprised though because she could definitely tell that his arm was beginning to regrow, and fast.

Finally, the two parties met.

They stood perhaps ten feet from each other in two lines with the observer orcs off to one side. The Red Hands couldn't seem to take their eyes off of her. They were muttering in orcish and looking murder at her. She decided to follow Lucien's advice and goad them, so smiled back.

The largest of the Red Hand Orcs snapped something in orcish at her.

"You not have strong manners?" Hobdrizen chided. "Speak common tongue so all can hear.*

The largest Red Hand orc snapped something at Hobdrizen, after which a slightly smaller orc spoke. "Burtizveldan not stain tongue with hu-mans speech."

The Largest Red Hand orc growled, looked at Alana, and then spoke sharply again.

"Burtizveldan want know why tree elf at warrior meeting."

"Tree elf strong." Hobdrizen replied as if it was obvious.

All the Red Hand orcs looked incredulously at him, then several started laughing while the largest looked livid enough to boil an egg on his forehead. The largest Red Hand orc let loose a long stream of orcish, his volume rising and bits of spittle flying from his mouth as he unleashed a verbal tirade that Alana couldn't understand, but got the point of perfectly. This went on for the better part of a minute before he finally seemed satisfied that he'd expressed himself, after which his translator spoke.

"Burtizveldan say tree elf honor weak. You clan weak. Red Hand eat weak clan."

Alana chuckled.

She was laughing at the incredibly short summary of the long diatribe, but they clearly thought she was laughing at what was said. That in turn did nothing to calm them down; quite the opposite in fact. Some of them were actually snarling at her, but not a single one moved to attack her.

"Terms." Drazglent said. "Battle terms; what terms?"

The Red Hand leader spat on the ground and then spoke harshly again.

"Burtizveldan say 'no mercy ask or give'."

"Are you sure?" Lucien spoke up. "If you insist on those terms, there will not be a Red Hand warrior still breathing when the sun sets."

Seeing an opportunity, Alana spoke up. "The Red Hands are too weak to win." She looked directly at their leader. "Weak in body, weak in mind, weak in honor."

The Red Hand leader took a menacing step forward, but the three observing orcs all said the same word in orcish at the same time.

He instantly stopped.

"They said 'shame'." Lucien explained. "Or possibly 'dishonor', I'm not quite sure."

The Red Hand chieftain stared pure murder at her, hissed out several words in orcish, and then spat on the ground at her feet.

"Burtizveldan say he make piss bag from tree elf skin."

Alana put on her best look of haughty disdain, looked him up and down, and then shrugged dismissively as if she was completely unconcerned. "When someone who isn't weak threatens, then I'll care."

Burtizveldan looked like he was dying to launch himself at her, but didn't move.

"No mercy ask or give." Drazglent said to the massive Red Hand Orc as he raised his hand with the fist extended. The Red hand leader looked at the extended fist, then closed his own hand into a fist and touched his own fist to Draglent's, then spoke in orcish.

"Burtizveldan say: 'no mercy ask or give'."

"The terms are set." Hobdrizen said.

The three observing orcs said something in orcish which sounded like it was agreeable, then one said something to Hobdrizen.

The ancient orc looked at Ethan, Alana, and Lucien. "They confirm terms, ask me to translate since they not speak common tongue."

Ethan, Alana, and Lucien nodded.

"Battle begin, two fists." Drazglent stated.

The Red Hand leader spoke again, still glaring at Alana.

"Burtizveldan say, two fists."

"The time is set." Hobdrizen said.

The three observing orcs spoke in unison again, immediately after which the Red Hands turned and stormed away. Alana could almost feel their heavy footfalls they were stomping away so angrily.

Hobdrizen looked at Ethan, Alana, and Lucien. "Other clans confirm, the time is set."

"Thank you for translating." Alana said.

The ancient orc nodded.

*I had a lightning bolt aimed at that Red Hand chieftain's head the whole time.* Ethan thought to Alana.

She turned to him and smiled. *I love you.*

*I love you too.* He smiled back, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Then, something occurred to Alana so she looked at Lucien. "Wait, didn't you say that they also decide what the victor earns by winning the battle?"

The lord nodded. "The phrase 'No mercy ask or give' has a special meaning in orcish battle negotiations. It effectively means 'winner take all'. That is, the winning clan takes all of the losing clan's land, flocks, children, women, camps, etcetera. In this case, the battle terms also decide the spoils of battle."

"Ah, okay." Alana nodded, not exactly happy about women and children being included in the list of spoils. On the other hand, it was definitely better than the children being raised by a clan that would teach them to hunt and eat humans and other orcs.

"Two fists." Drazglent said, stacking his fists on top of each other and then holding them up so that from his perspective, they would block the sun from the horizon upwards. She assumed that was the countdown to when the battle would begin, probably when the sun was high enough that two fists would no longer cover it.

* * *

Fiona felt herself slowly drift back to consciousness, feeling rather sore in her nether regions. It was no wonder since her husband was so big. Her husband; what a thought. She yawned, then realized that it was quite light in the room and yet she hadn't fed Conner yet.

She sat up and looked around, blinking her eyes.

There was a large window that she hadn't noticed the previous night on one wall of the room and light from the risen sun was streaming in through it. Lord Delmar was slowly pacing the room with Conner in one of his arms and what looked like a long letter in the other. Almost miraculously, Conner seemed content in his arms.

"You are awake." He said after a moment, though he was still reading.

"Yes milord." She replied, then yawned again. It was warm enough in the room that she didn't feel the need to cover herself up for warmth so she deliberately didn't. Sean had always liked when she was naked when they were alone, so she was hoping that Lord Delmar would as well.

"Was Conner missing his nighttime feeding and breakfast?" She asked, her breasts feeling somewhat uncomfortably full.

"I instructed Nurse Belcosta to procure a wet nurse for the nighttime feeding in case you were fatigued." He replied, still engrossed in what he was reading. "He will be ready for another feeding soon, so you should not experience any pain from being overfull."

"Thank you, that's meaning a lot." She smiled at how considerate he was being. "I don't think I was realizing how much I was needing to sleep in."

He made a sound that probably indicated acknowledgement, but said nothing else.

"And thank you for taking care of Conner."

"I promised to treat him no differently than my other children; I did this with Rachel when she was a baby, thus I am also doing it with Conner." His reply was almost entirely without emotion, as if it was a task to be accomplished and little else. He also still seemed engrossed in what he was reading.

"I can be taking him." She offered as she slipped out of bed, completely naked and hoping he would take notice.

He didn't.

He gently handed Conner over to her and then went back to what he was reading. He had looked at her to hand Conner over of course, but he wasn't intentionally looking at her body even though she was naked.

"From now on, you will be spending many hours a day with Mage Weston who will instruct you in magic, focusing on healing magic." Her new husband said after lowering what he was reading.

Fiona smiled at her son as she replied. "I never was getting the hang of magic. I can be moving my mana and activating enchantments of course because they're so easy, but I never was able to be doing much more."

"Then you will learn." He stated it as a fact without emotion, either positive or negative.

"Why are you wanting me to learn magic milord?"

"Helene succumbed to a disease that a well-trained mage or healer would have been able to purge from his or her own body." He replied, his tone subtly different from before. "Since I am unlikely to find another woman with your discretion, I cannot allow for the possibility of that happening with you."

"Oh." She tried to keep her tone casual, but wasn't entirely successful. She knew that he didn't care for her as much as he had for Helene, but that still stung that his concern was for the difficulty of replacing her and not for her herself.

"Fiona." He looked at her. "The night I proposed to you, you indicated that you prefer the truth to falsehoods. You might not like what I say, but it will be the truth and never a falsehood."

She nodded slowly. "Aye, that's fair."

"Since you are awake and have taken Conner, I shall commence my day." He said, then strolled to the door and left. He didn't seem angry or upset or anything like that, he just seemed businesslike and practical.

Fiona stood there for several seconds in stunned silence, not sure what to think or how to feel. Her husband wanted her to learn how to heal herself not because he loved her, but because she would be hard to replace. He had been totally upfront that the reason he wanted to marry her was practical and not romantic, she just hadn't expected to encounter that truth so starkly.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to remember that she had gone into this marriage knowing what it might be like. Part of the reason that she had married him was so she wouldn't be lonely in her old age. However, it hadn't occurred to her that perhaps being married to Lord Delmar might actually be more lonely than not being married at all.

* * *

Sarah walked along the road to the monastery with fire in her heart and a smile on her face. Fiona and Conner were safe and she had a sign from Illuminar that she was going to be a part of Ethan's life. She and Amy had spent a little time composing a response to Fiona's letter, Amy had written it, and Sarah had delivered it to the messenger before she had started heading for the monastery.

It was a bright, nearly cloudless day and she noticed that the leaves on a few of the trees were just starting to turn colors. Only one or two tree species were doing that, and they were species that did so quite early in the year, but it was a sign that summer was drawing to a close and autumn was approaching. The day was warm, but not quite as warm as it had been for the last month or so.

As she drew closer to the monastery, she got simultaneously more nervous and more excited. She wasn't worried about robbers on the road -- her problem made that a non-issue -- but more about how the monks would react to her. She hoped that one of them would at least be willing to talk to her.

The monastery was a large stone building that was far larger than her father's inn, though its size seemed less impressive now that she'd been to Karnas. It was surrounded by a medium-gray stone wall about a dozen feet high with a wrought iron gate that was taller still.

The gate was currently open and a very large man with a quarterstaff was sitting on a stool just outside of it. He was over six feet tall and looked as strong as an ox. He had a dark, full beard and slightly wild-looking face but kind eyes. He wore white robes with Illuminar's sigil of a seven-pointed sun that was traditional for a monk, though the white was more like a natural linen color and the sun a common yellow.

He broke into a smile as she came closer and spoke in a deep, kind voice. "Hail traveler. I am Brother Kalen; what brings you to our humble estate?"

"Hello." She waved back as she walked up to the gate. "I was hoping that someone here could tell me what the Book of Light says about divorce."

Brother Kalen frowned, crossed his arms across his chest, and narrowed his eyes slightly. "Illuminar -- blessed be He -- is quite clear that marriage is permanent unless a spouse breaks their covenant in some way."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She grimaced sheepishly. "I don't want to divorce my husband or anything and I'm not married yet, only betrothed. I want to know if he can divorce me."

The monk raised his eyebrow.

"I'm sounding really strange, aren't I?"

He nodded. "Perhaps you could tell me more about your situation and then I could be more helpful."

She took a deep breath. "Um, my name is Sarah and my father is Festus, who owns the nearby inn."

Brother Kalen's eyes widened and he stood up rather quickly from the stool he had been sitting on. He swallowed and his eyes darted towards the iron gate as he gripped his quarterstaff more tightly.

Sarah sighed. "I won't attack you."

"I'm not worried about a physical attack." He replied cautiously.

"Demons aren't contagious." She pointed out. "I only wanted to ask if my betrothed can divorce me."

"Does he know about your... problem?"

"He does." She nodded. "He knew when he paid the bride price to my father."

"And now he wants a divorce?"

She shook her head. "Well, actually it's--" She stopped, realizing that explaining it would take far too long. "It's complicated. Can you tell me the reasons that a husband can divorce a wife?"

He looked quite unsure.

Sarah felt a tiny smile creep onto her face as she remembered something that Ethan had recently said and decided to use it. "I promise I'll leave when you do."

Brother Kalen nodded, still looking wary. "If she lies with another man, if she lied about being a virgin, if she refuses consummation of the marriage, if she exposes herself in a lewd manner, or if she abandons him for a sufficient time."

Sarah nodded slowly, trying to commit those to memory. Obviously she hadn't lain with another man so the first two didn't apply. The third didn't apply and couldn't because she was only betrothed. She had never even considered exposing herself to a man. Well, maybe in her dreams to Ethan as she imagined them being married but certainly not in real life. Possibly abandonment?

"I said I would leave and I will, but would you permit me to ask another question?"

He nodded. He seemed to have relaxed slightly as well, though not fully.

"How long is abandonment?"

"The Book of Light isn't clear, but the consensus among luminars is at least a year." He hesitated, then added. "That would be a sin though; Illuminar commands a husband and wife not to abandon one another."

Sarah let her shoulders slump. "Well, then I can't do that."

Brother Kalen looked at her for a long moment and then stroked his beard. "You seek to please Illuminar." From his tone, it was hard to tell if it was a statement or a question.

She nodded.

"I would not have expected that." He tapped one of his fingers on his quarterstaff, which he was no longer holding as tightly.

"Someone with my problem needs Illuminar's help more than most people." Sarah replied.

"That is true." The monk nodded slowly. "I do believe I owe you an apology, Sister Sarah. I made a judgment about you without knowing you or considering that perhaps you were more troubled by your affliction than those around you. I am deeply sorry and I humbly implore your forgiveness."

"I forgive you." She smiled. "Thank you, most people don't get to know me well enough to understand."

"Judging from your reaction to learning you would have to commit a sin to achieve what you so obviously desire, I suspect that is a loss for them." He nodded slowly while making a thoughtful sound. "Is there anything else I might help you with Sister Sarah?"

"Not today, but thank you for offering." Her smile grew wider.

"I have gate duty most days since I prefer the outdoors and the solitude." He replied. "Should you have further questions, please don't hesitate to return and ask. I cannot guarantee my brothers will see things as I have come to, but I will assist however I am able."

"Thank you very much." Sarah beamed. "I should be going, but again I appreciate that."

"May Illuminar -- blessed be He -- guide you on the path of light as you travel."

"And you as well." She replied, then turned to leave. However, she hadn't gotten more than a few steps before something occurred to her; something that might help with her divorce problem. She stopped and looked back at Brother Kalen. "Actually, I do have one more question."

* * *

Ethan would've been lying if he said he was comfortable with two of his wives being on the battlefield. Thankfully, he didn't see any goblins around and thus the likelihood of them getting swarmed was very low. The sun was past two fists high judging by his hands, but then his hands were smaller than an orc's hands. He was standing in the center of the battle line in the rear of the line since it was a couple of orcs deep. Behind him, Alana and Rachel were holding hands and looking a little nervous.

"The moment the retreat starts, I'll fly you to the overlook." Ethan assured them.

Alana nodded, then pulled the weight reduction necklace out of her dress pocket and put it on. "Until then, could I sit on your shoulders?

"Why?" He asked.

She pulled her travel bow out. "Cut off the head and the body dies."

"That would not be wise." Lucien said from nearby. "While I would normally welcome such an action, the Red Hands must remain coherent enough as a force to follow our retreat without resorting to a free-for-all. That could be disastrous."

"You'll just need to kill him later." Rachel said coldly, her attitude towards the Red Hands having soured significantly since she had learned of their threats against Alana.

"You can still sit on my shoulders." Ethan offered. "There will be plenty of other targets once the fighting starts."

"But also more exposure to arrows." Rachel pointed out while holding one of the large leather shields that the king of the wood elves had given them. "I can't protect her while she's on your shoulders."

"Good point." Ethan nodded.

They waited another few minutes until suddenly, the Red Hands as one all shouted what sounded like a war cry. Almost immediately, the Blue Circle orcs all shouted a similar but different war cry.

"Remember the plan." Lucien called loudly when the Blue Circle's war cry had ceased. "Stand your ground for only a few seconds, then retreat."

"We know plan." Drazglent growled back.

"Someone's in a good mood." Ethan said dryly.

One of the nearby orcs called out something in orcish, after which Lucien spoke as he raised his shield. "Arrows."

As one, the Blue Circles all raised their shields high. Ethan had his deployable shield attached to his left vambrace, so he activated it and sought cover behind it while Alana and Rachel took cover behind Rachel's shield.

The arrow impacts were jarring. Orcish arrows were over half an inch thick and so hit the shields hard. Thankfully, they had been arced in, not fired directly at the Blue Circle lines, or Ethan guessed some orc shields would've been punctured. They still hit hard though. Ethan grunted and Rachel actually had the shield pushed down a bit, but she held. Around them, a few cries of pain were heard. Apparently the Red Hand arrows had either penetrated a few shields or else hit gaps between them. No Blue Circle orcs went down though, so hopefully they weren't bad wounds.

The Red Hand army shouted again in one voice. Ethan couldn't quite see them start forward because he was still hiding behind the shield and Blue Circle orcs, but he could almost feel it in the ground. A thousand large and powerfully built orcs almost shook the ground as they advanced. It almost felt like they were stomping in unison to amplify the effect as they came forward.

In addition, they were almost shouting as they chanted rhythmically in a way that reminded Ethan of a few documentaries he had seen where tribal warriors would shout a rhythmic chant to intimidate their enemies. They were harsh, guttural sounds that were accompanied by the Red Hands smacking their weapons against their shields.

Ethan looked at his wives and grimaced.

They returned the expression.

To their credit, the Blue Circles didn't move a muscle. They didn't twitch, they didn't blink, and they gave no indication of being intimidated by the thousand-orc-strong army advancing on their position. Ethan glanced at Kalus and saw the lord standing there cool as a cucumber and not looking even remotely bothered.

"How are you so calm?" He asked as the opposing army drew closer.

"A raging opponent strikes fear into his enemies, but a wise man who prepares and remains calm will prevail." The lord replied.

"The Book of Light?" Rachel asked.

Lucien smiled, but didn't reply as he raised his voice. "Hold!"

As one, the Blue Circle orcs leaned forward slightly, planting their feet to meet the coming charge. Ethan glanced at his wives, rather glad that they were almost directly behind Drazglent. The orc chieftain might be pig-headed, but he was a damn good fighter. It was only seconds later that the armies clashed.

The impact was deafening.

Ethan was momentarily reminded of the movie 300, where the initial attack from the Persians against the Spartan lines had slid them back several feet. That happened here as well. Ethan and his wives almost jumped back to avoid being trampled by the Blue Circles who had been slid backwards by the force of the charge.

The Blue Circles held though.

It felt like a minor miracle, but they held.

Lucien put something to his mouth and spoke, his voice suddenly magically magnified and cutting above the din as he almost chanted like a military cadence.

"Rah, Rah, RU-RAH!"

The final word was louder than the others. The moment it was uttered, every single Blue Circle Orc moved in perfect unison. As one, they all put everything into a single powerful push that drove the Red Hand front line back a couple of feet. The moment there was space, the Blue Circles counterattacked.

Unlike the Red hands who had a variety of weapons, the Blue Circles were all armed with spears and large shields. The spears weren't particularly long for an orc, but they were long enough for both rows of Blue Circle orcs to counterattack at the same time. Ethan felt his jaw drop at their precision and how the entire group worked as a seamless unit. It seemed like the Red Hands had been expecting a series of one-on-one battles all across the line. Ethan didn't think they were expecting a unified force moving as a coherent unit.

Regardless, the Blue Circle counterattack seemed utterly ineffective.

Strangely so.

In fact, every single Blue Circle spear impacted on a Red Hand shield with nary a single exception that Ethan could see. He didn't hear any cries of pain either.

Again, Lucien spoke into the small device, his voice sounding worried but his face utterly calm and collected. "It's not working, retreat!"

The lord looked at Ethan and smiled.

Ethan had never seen that expression on Lucien's face before. The lord had smiled before of course, but not like this. This wasn't the kind and gentle man that Ethan had grown to know. This was the General. This was the warrior lord. This was the brilliant and devious military strategist in his element.

Suddenly, Ethan was very glad he considered Lucien a friend.

*Time to go.* He thought to his wives.

He ducked down and Rachel jumped onto his back while he scooped Alana into his arms. He then activated the new enchantments in his armor, reducing his weight to almost nothing and taking off. It was a lot harder to fly with him being weightless and a fully weighted person on his back versus when the passenger wore the weight reduction necklace, but he managed. He made sure to stay low as he flew to the point that Lucien had specified earlier.

The rendezvous location was near the site that Lucien, his son Taiven, Kendra, and himself had scouted out only eight days ago. That felt like so long ago. It was a winding ravine between two large, rocky hills which had sparse vegetation and steep sides. The ravine's sides that faced each other were at perhaps a 60-degree angle. They were also pretty smooth and rounded as you got closer to the bottom, as if someone had taken a giant ice cream scoop and hewed out the ravine. He was sure that it would be almost impossible to climb from the ravine.

Those sides rose perhaps 30 feet before reaching a flat ledge that was between 10 and 20 feet wide and ran along almost the entire length of the hill above the ravine below. It looked like it hadn't always been this wide though. He could see indications of recent stonework that had widened the ledge above the ravine in several places.

Ethan landed on this overlook, looking around at the Blue Circle orcs that were lying in wait for when Lucien's trap was sprung. Grobozlesh -- who had left the camp after the negotiation to return here and tell the Blue Circles of the battle terms -- came up to them.

"E-tan brings wifes; Groboz protect." He thumped his chest once and grunted, as if to affirm his own words.

"Thank you, and I'll hold you to that." Ethan replied, then turned to his wives. "You two be careful." He said, looking at each in turn.

"I promise Sir."

"I do as well my lord, and I promise that I'll keep Alana safe."

Ethan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Good."

"Go, we'll be fine." Alana replied.

He kissed them both quickly, then took to the skies again. He flew over the battle, seeing that -- as planned -- it was becoming a fighting retreat. The Blue Circles were moving as a single cohesive unit, whereas the Red Hands appeared to lack that ability. It was almost like watching a large swarm of flies trying to attack an elephant. The Blue Circles had definitely lost some fighters, but not many. In fact, it looked like the Red Hands had so far taken more casualties, though they didn't seem to care.

Ethan was pretty sure that the incredible level of cohesiveness in the Blue Circles was because of Lucien's training. Damn, he was good. He was there in the center of the Blue Circle formation, still calling out orders with his magically magnified voice.

The Blue Circles had made it into the forest by now in their fighting retreat and weren't far from the opening of the ravine between the two rocky hills. It wouldn't be long until the true battle began.

* * *

Fiona closed her eyes and waited for the pinch of the needle. It came right when Mage Weston said it would and she set about healing the small wound it created with magic according to his instructions. It took forever. It felt like it took ten minutes before it stopped bleeding, though it wasn't actually that long. She wasn't even sure it had been her; maybe it had just stopped naturally?

She was in the mage's office on the upper floors of the castle in Narlotten's capital of Karnas. Like most of the castle rooms, it wasn't very large. This room seemed a bit smaller than most though because virtually all of the wall space was devoted to bookshelves that were completely full. On top of those bookshelves, more books were neatly stacked. Interestingly, his books weren't standing on end like is normal for a bookcase, but instead were stacked neatly on their sides.

The room was lit by a single window, though a chandelier was hanging from the ceiling. It wasn't lit and it hovered over a table that was round and perhaps five feet in diameter. They were sitting at the table with some self-cleaning cloth nearby to wipe up any blood that spilled.

She looked up at Mage Weston and shook her head. "I'm not doing well at this."

He smiled. "You are doing better than you think you are."

"It's taking me forever to heal and most of my mana too."

"Of course it is." He replied kindly. "You have never even attempted this before; for a first attempt, it went rather well."

"Well, I'm glad to be hearing that, but I used so much mana that I won't be able to practice much until I get better."

"Not to worry, I hired a dozen mana sinks on Lord Delmar's orders."

Fiona groaned.

A 'mana sink' was a profession where the person's job was to donate mana and then meditate to restore it as fast as possible. Often, enchanters and magical researchers would employ them to overcome their own mana limits or to prevent wasting time regenerating their own mana while they had work to do. It was a clever thing that Lord Delmar did by hiring some, but that didn't mean she was liking it much.

"Alas, they appear to be running late." Mage Weston said as he looked at a small pocket watch.

"I'm not complaining." She said with an expression that was half grimace, half smile.

"Students of the magical healing arts rarely complain about a reprieve." He replied with a chuckle.

After several moments, Fiona spoke again. "He must be serious about me learning this if he hired that many mana sinks."

"You know how Helene died; can you blame him?"

"No, I can't be blaming him for that." She shook her head, remembering her earlier conversation with him. She had been a little hurt at the time, and she still was now, but something about what he had said seemed... strange. She hadn't spent a lot of time around him, but enough time to start getting a sense of his mannerisms. That was especially true because he had talked to her about the Lady Helene several times. He never betrayed a lot of emotion, but he did more when she came up.

There had been a subtle difference in his tone when he'd mentioned the Lady Helene's death. Not just sadness, but something else. Something she couldn't quite pinpoint, but in context, she was starting to have an idea. His expression and mannerisms had changed when he said that Helene had died because he hadn't made her learn magic. As she thought about it, she didn't think that was accidental.

"Lady Delmar?" Mage Weston said.

It took Fiona a moment to realize that he was addressing her. "I'm sorry, I'm still getting used to being called that."

"No need to apologize." He smiled.

She smiled in return, but her mind was elsewhere. The mana sinks arrived not long afterwards and she returned to practicing healing. However, she found it hard to give healing her full attention as she started realizing something about her new husband.

* * *

Ethan flew high above the battle below, watching carefully for any signs that Lucien's plans had gone awry. There weren't any. The Blue Circles had allowed the Red Hands to push them back to the ravine between the two large, rocky hills that had the ledges on either side of it, and the Blue Circle orcs were now starting to fill it. About half of the Red Hand orcs had broken off the attack and were circling around the small hill to attack them from the other side, just as Lucien had predicted.

He continued on overwatch as the second group of Red Hands made it to the other side of the ravine and began spilling into it, trapping the bulk of the Blue Circle army in the ravine. Ethan knew the battle plan and that this was part of it, but he found himself rather nervous for the trapped orcs. Lucien himself was still with them and he didn't look worried at all though.

It was maybe five minutes later that all of the orcs, both Red Hands and Blue Circles, were in the ravine. The Blue Circles had taken up a position near the center of the ravine and it looked like the fighting was fierce. However, the Red Hands were definitely losing more orcs despite the fact that it looked like the Blue Circles were still playing an almost entirely defensive game.

Even as high up as he was, he heard Lucien's next magically-magnified command echoing through the ravine and above it as the lord shouted a single word in orcish.

A moment later, Alana thought to him. *Grobozlesh says that means 'drop'.*

*Thanks.* Ethan thought to her. Then, knowing that Lucien's counterattack was about to begin, spoke aloud to no one in particular. "Here goes nothing."

* * *

Alana had been nervously fingering her bow for the last fifteen minutes waiting for the call to come and it finally had. She looked around at the fifty or so orcs who had sprung into action the moment Lucien had shouted.

She was on a ledge that was only ten to twenty feet wide, but it ran much of the length of the valley. The orcs had stockpiled the overlook with large boulders ranging in size from one foot in diameter to almost four feet. She had seen a nearby area that was filled with such boulders on the journey in on Kendra's airship, but it was hard to believe that in just a week, they had moved so many here. She supposed that a few hundred orcs all working together could achieve wonders. She wasn't even sure how they had managed to get them into position, but they had.

When Lucien had shouted, one of the orcs near her put a horn to his lips and began to blow. She recognized it as the same type of horn that the Red Hands always blew before attacking the miners. Right, they always announced themselves before ambushing. Several seconds later, all the Blue Circle orcs began to push the boulders over the edge toward the Red Hand orcs in the ravine below.

The slope of the valley here was reasonably steep; it was certainly too steep to climb, but not steep enough that the Blue Circles were dropping the boulders directly on the Red Hands. No, with the sloped sides of the ravine, they wouldn't just drop on the Red Hands.

They would roll into them.

A straight drop would've been better for the Red Hands, especially because the boulders were rolling down the incline and picking up speed as they did. They weren't falling very far -- maybe thirty feet -- but that was enough.

Ethan had once described the Earth game called 'bowling'. The smallest rocks were larger than the 'bowling balls' that Ethan had described and the largest ones had to weigh a thousand pounds or more. All of them hurtled down the sides of the ravine, picking up speed as they hurtled towards the slopped sides at the bottom that would send them rolling into the Red Hand lines.

Roughly two hundred Blue Circle orcs were overlooking the ravine, split into four groups of about fifty each. The Red Hand army was split into two groups of about five hundred each. Each half of the Red Hand army had two groups of Blue Circle orcs rolling boulders into it from above, one from either side. They were all pushing the boulders into the ravine at the same time, boulders that averaged several hundred pounds each and were relatively round.

Some of the Red Hands had clearly heard the horn and were looking around trying to figure out where the ambush was coming from. Some of them heard the boulders and looked up, followed by shouts of warning to their comrades

It didn't help.

The Red Hands were pulverized.

Smashed.

Crushed.

They were hit from both sides and too densely packed to even attempt to avoid the boulders that were rolling down on them. And because of the slope's angle and the rounded sides of the valley, the boulders didn't just stop when they hit the bottom either. The bottom of the ravine was slightly rounded, curving from the steep walls gently into the floor, so the boulders didn't stop.

They kept rolling.

The ravine below had basically become a meat grinder.

Thousands of pounds of rock rolled into the lines in dozens of places. Some of the boulders hit each other and broke apart spectacularly, often crushing a Red Hand orc in between them. The smaller rocks simply broke legs or bounced into torsos and heads, none of which looked survivable. The Red Hands were dropping like flies.

The same thing was playing out further down the ravine, where other Blue Circle orcs had done the exact same thing to the other half of the Red Hand army who had tried to flank the Blue Circles. The Red Hands in the ravine were being devastated; utterly annihilated.

The only place this wasn't true was near the Blue Circle lines, where the orcs above the ravine hadn't dropped boulders to avoid crushing their own clansmen. Still, most of the Red Hand army had fallen prey to Lucien's tactical genius. Out of the original thousand Red Hand orcs, less than a third of them remained after the devastating boulder attack.

Then Lucien called out again with his magically magnified voice.

"Loose!" Grobozlesh translated from beside her as he nocked an arrow into his orcish warbow.

Alana drew her travel bow and looked over the side to aim.

There was more red covering the bottom of the valley than the natural rock color after the boulder attack. She picked a target that was still standing and loosed an arrow. Lucien had told her to aim for the orcs furthest from the Blue Circle lines and work her way inwards.

She did.

All two hundred of the Blue Circle archers on the ledge overlooking the ravine did the same. With two hundred archers and not more than three hundred targets, half of the remaining Red Hands were dead after the first volley. The remainder were targeted by multiple archers each. By the time the last ones went down, they looked like pincushions as more and more Blue Circle orcs fired at fewer and fewer targets.

Alana would've felt sorry for them if they hadn't been eating people.

She didn't stop firing until there wasn't a single target left.

Not to be outdone, the Blue Circle defensive line had instantly changed tactics at the command to 'loose'. Whereas before their spear thrusts had been mostly ineffective and struck shields, now they suddenly started aiming for the gaps in the enemy shield wall. It looked like there were a lot of them since the Red Hands weren't fighting as a cohesive force. Instead, they seemed to view a battle as a series of one-on-one engagements and fought accordingly.

The Blue Circles didn't.

Probably because of Lucien's training, they were covering each other. One would attack a Red Hand orc who would block the attack, but in so doing he would often open a hole in his defenses that another Blue Circle orc would exploit. They switched from a defensive wall to an aggressive battering ram.

The Blue Circle archers picked the line apart from the rear while the orcish spearmen attacked from the front, thinning the lines out incredibly fast.

The Red Hand army didn't last long.

Three minutes.

Alana guessed that from the moment the first boulder fell to the moment the last Red Hand orc fell had been about three minutes. Much of that was cleaning up the Red Hand lines since the archers didn't want to shoot too close to their own lines.

Three minutes.

Lord Lucien Kalus had somehow created a battle plan that allowed a small force to defeat one twice its size while losing only a dozen or two orcs and wiping out the enemy force to a man. She thought she had seen a few Red Hands escape the ravine, but Ethan would take care of those.

She looked down at Lucien from her vantage point, suddenly having a whole new appreciation for the great military reputation he had earned. Suddenly, she was very glad that he had befriended her family.

"Not strong contest." Groboz said from beside her as he looked into the ravine. "Not enough Red Hand, Lu-shen tactician too strong." He looked at her. "We have contest like before with target, strong tree elf."

"That sounds like a plan." She replied. She wanted to smile, but the spectacle in the ravine below was making her slightly sick to her stomach.

* * *

Ethan dived again, using his sword in spear mode and pulling up at the last moment as he simply held his sword out and let his flight speed do the work. The Red Hand orc never knew what hit him.

*That's the last of them.* Ethan thought to Alana as he flapped to gain altitude again and circled back around to fly over the main battlefield in the ravine.

It was red.

Entirely red.

It was almost a literal bloodbath in the ravine below.

There was so much blood that it almost looked like a red river as a thousand Red Hand orcs bled out. The Blue Circles were apparently abiding by the terms of 'no mercy ask or give' to the letter. They were systematically going through the battlefield and stabbing every single Red Hand orc through the chest and the throat. It looked like they were being careful not to miss a single one.

Ethan wasn't bothered by that, though he wasn't sure if he should be. The Red Hands had insisted on the terms and they had been eating people for months, maybe years. It occurred to Ethan that he didn't actually know how long that had been going on. A single time was too many of course, but he did wonder how long it had been going on now that he thought about it.

He turned and came in for a landing next to Alana and Rachel. The former looked slightly sick to her stomach and the latter looked slightly green around the gills.

"That was something." He said for lack of something else to say.

"Uh-huh." The wood elf nodded.

Rachel covered her mouth and didn't speak, but she did nod.

"Well, I guess I know never to get on Lucien's bad side." Ethan joked, though it fell flat.

"I've heard that Lord Delmar is every bit the tactician that Lord Kalus is." Rachel said with a grimace.

Ethan took a deep breath at that. Given what he had just seen, the idea that their most implacable foe had similar skills was truly scary. Add to that the fact that Lord Delmar himself was a Drago and the combination became downright terrifying.

"Who Lord Delmar?" Grobozlesh asked.

"Someone who is trying to kill us." Ethan sighed.

"You danger in." The orc stated. "You need strong tactician."

"I think I need to become one, yeah." He nodded. "I can't really ask Lucien to get involved; that might cause a war between Timarou and Narlotten."

"Agreed." Rachel said.

*Master.* Taloni thought to the group chat. *We can't find Thea; she's not on the Argo.*

Ethan, Alana, and Rachel all looked at each other.

*Didn't she want to watch the battle?* He replied.

*She did ask Master.*

*What are the odds that she's headed towards the battlefield, or already here?* Alana asked.

*Not good.* Kendra replied. *She would've needed to run almost the entire way and I doubt she has that kind of stamina; even I barely do.*

*I'll head out to look for her.* He volunteered. *Kendra, can you come pick up Alana and Rachel.*

*I'm already on my way Drago.* She replied with a smile in her tone.

*Thanks.* He gave Alana and Rachel a quick kiss each and then took to the skies.

He spent the next five minutes flying high and searching the ground for any sign of their newest guest. She wore a turquoise dress so he didn't think she would be that hard to spot, unless she changed clothes of course. It took about that long for him to realize that Thea wasn't that dumb. She seemed sharp and he seriously doubted that she would really try to run all that way, especially when she didn't know exactly where the battle would take place.

*Ladies, is there some other way that Thea could've reached the battlefield?* He thought to everyone. *She doesn't have a mini-airship or anything does she?*

*Unlikely, but she might have a set of skyweights.* Kendra replied.

*Come again?*

*That might be hard; you aren't here.* The raven-haired woman quipped, then he felt a rush of embarrassment over their bond.

He laughed.

*Go Kendra!* Beth exclaimed.

*Anyway.* Kendra continued pointedly. *Skyweights are a set of personal ballast logs paired with a weight reduction necklace that a person can put on and use to hover. If you take a running jump and use them to control your altitude, you can move pretty far relatively quickly. They are extremely expensive since they need to be matched to the owner's weight, plus the enchantments are complex from what I hear.*

*They are.* Alana interjected.

*I don't think the expense would be a problem for the ward of a king.* Rachel pointed out.

*Okay, I'll start searching the skies then.* He sighed.

Two minutes later, he saw her.

Or rather, he saw something that looked way too odd to be natural. There was a large bird that was leisurely flapping its wings but not moving forwards or backwards. It was being moved a bit by the gentle breeze, but not by its wings. He was pretty sure it was a disguise gem. Further, this impossible bird was roughly above the battlefield and someone with elven eyes would be able to see everything perfectly.

He reached the bird and started flying around it in a tight circle. "Fancy seeing you here." He said when the bird didn't react at all. Birds always reacted to him.

"How did you know?" Thea's voice replied from the impossible bird.

"I'm not just a pretty face." He replied with a wink.

Thea laughed.

"Wild child." Ethan said as he slowly shook his head while still circling her. "I can see how you got that as your elven title."

"Sorry?" The bird abruptly disappeared and Thea was revealed. She had a halfway apologetic grimace on her face but also an embarrassed smile. She was wearing what looked like hip waders, to which two smallish logs and perhaps a dozen other pieces of wood of varying sizes had been attached. There was also a tiny 'control panel' like the Argo had, which he assumed was to control the ballast logs.

"You're going to be a handful, aren't you?" He mused, thinking that Selene, Myla, or Victoria would never have pulled a stunt like this, nor would any of his current wives, or Sarah.

She waggled her head side-to-side for a moment before speaking. "Not intentionally?"

He sighed. "I'm going to fly under you so you can drop onto my back and then I'll fly you back to the Argo."

"Thank you." She smiled and looked genuinely happy and grateful for the offer.

He found it slightly hard to be irked with her while she was looking at him like that. It took them a few tries before the elf was on his back, but they managed. It seemed like Thea had adjusted the weights immediately after landing so at least she wasn't heavy on his back.

"So, I take it you saw the battle then?" He asked once they were underway.

"I did." She replied, her tone pensive.

"And?"

"I didn't know war was that fast, or that bloody."

"It usually isn't." He replied. "Lucien-- Uh, Lord Kalus, planned the battle and he's a master tactician. Plus, I would guess that the orcs are more comfortable with blood than most races."

"I almost felt sorry for them." Thea said after a moment.

"Don't, they were eating people; likely eating them alive if the stories are to be believed."

"Still..." There was an odd note to her tone that he couldn't place so he looked behind him to see her expression. She had a thoughtful frown on her face and her turquoise eyes looked sad.

"Still... what?" He prompted.

"I wonder what happened to make them that way." She replied after several long seconds. "My guardian says that most orcs don't eat sentient beings, so I feel bad for the orc children that grew up in the clan that lost. They didn't ask to be raised or taught that way and maybe they didn't even know it was wrong. That doesn't seem right that they didn't get a chance to live another way."

"The orcs that died never would've changed." Ethan replied.

"I know, and I'm glad that they died so they don't attack innocent people anymore." Despite her words, her tone was sad. "They deserved it for what they've done, I just wish that they had had the chance to be raised differently; to not be so... evil."

"I never thought about it like that." He frowned. "We can't change what happened, but I suppose if they had been raised differently they might've been good people. That still doesn't absolve them of their guilt though."

"No, no it doesn't." Thea agreed, her tone still sad. "At a certain point, no matter how badly you were raised, your actions become your own responsibility. I just wish someone had been there to help them become something else. Something better."

He glanced back again and it looked like Thea was wiping the corners of her eyes. He wasn't sure if it was tears or simply because the wind from flying did tend to blow water out of the eyes a bit.

He considered what she'd said about people being responsible for their actions at a certain point. She was right. He found himself wondering if Thea would have similar sympathy for Lord Farbrottan, Lord Delmar, or Lady Ekthros. They certainly had done their share of evil. Perhaps they had also been raised badly, but they were all well past the age where there needed to be a reckoning for what they'd done.

* * *

Selene was led into what was obviously a waiting room across from a much nicer set of doors than the rest of the doors in the base. They were double doors made from what looked like paneled oak, whereas the rest of the doors in the base were steel with a small reinforced glass porthole. The waiting room was just across the hall from the room with the nice doors, so she assumed that she would be called in when they were ready for her.

The room she was led into was much like the rest of the base: utterly utilitarian in virtually every way. The chairs were metal, the walls concrete, and every surface was entirely devoid of decoration of any kind. Score one for military efficiency.

"We'll be just outside and call you when they're ready." One of the two guards told her. She nodded and they left the waiting room.

For lack of something else to do, she checked her bond with Ethan. He seemed pensive right now, which contrasted with his emotions earlier.

*Ethan?* She thought to him tentatively.

*Hey Selene, what's up?* He replied with a smile in his tone. She liked that.

*I wanted to know if the battle was over and how it went.*

*It is and it went... well, I never want to make an enemy of Lucien Kalus, I'll put it that way.*

*Oh?*

He summarized the battle and how the lord had wiped out the enemy to a man with barely any casualties.

*Wow.* Selene replied. *That's incredible.*

*And you didn't see it; it was grisly.* Judging by his mental tone, he was likely underselling it.

*I'll bet.* There was a moment of silence before she unblocked her connection to the group chat and thought to everyone. *How is everyone?*

*Selene!* Beth and Taloni both exclaimed at the same time. The warmth in their mental tones was heartwarming.

*We've been well.* Alana replied.

*My jaw still clicks occasionally after the attack, but it doesn't hurt and otherwise I'm well.* Rachel added.

*Wait, what attack?* Selene asked, remembering that earlier she had somehow missed the news that Ethan had found Sarah. Now she was wondering what else she'd missed since closing her connection to the group chat.

*The possessed man found us when we docked at Dotmier.* Ethan replied.

*Holy shit!* Selene exclaimed. *And you're all okay?*

*Yeah, we're fine.* Ethan assured.

*Except for Ethan.* Alana corrected. *He blew his hand off to kill him.*

*What?!* Selene's jaw dropped. *What happened?!*

They then summarized how the fight had gone and Selene found herself wishing she had been there to help. She wasn't sure what she could've done, but she wished she could've done something.

*I'm glad everyone is okay.* Selene said when they were done. *What else did I miss?*

*Well, Matthew and Yalia got married after he challenged the luminar, we met the wood elven king's ward, and I found out that Alana kept Rachel's will breaker ring in the captain's cabin.* Ethan replied, and she could just imagine the way his face would scrunch up when he chuckled.

*What? I leave for a few days...* She shook her head. *Still, I'm glad it's not still on Rachel.*

*Me too.* The redhead replied. *Much longer and it couldn't have come off without it killing me.*

*But you could've got around that, right?* Selene replied. *I mean, someone could've cut off your finger, pulled the ring off your detached finger, and then reattached the finger.*

*It doesn't work that way.* Kendra corrected. *A few decades ago, the Aldmiri captured several high-ranking nobles who had fallen victim to will-breaker rings. They tried that method but the ring still killed the victim. They tried several other methods on the other victims like disenchanting, cutting the whole arm off, and several more. Nothing worked; they all still died, even though the necromancer who had made the rings was dead.*

*It's because of the enchantment.* Alana added. *I examined it pretty thoroughly and it was extremely tamper-proof. The enchantment was almost impossible to break anyway, but if someone succeeded, before the enchantment was fully broken, the person wearing it would die, no matter how close or far away the ring was. Will-breaker rings bond to the person, not the finger, which is why the kill spell works even if detached. It's like how Ethan can call his weapons when they're far away. I assume it's the curse that needs the proximity since it broke when I removed the ring.*

*What about Aharown?* Selene asked, thinking about the angelic blade that Ethan had been carrying around for quite some time. *Surely that would do it."

*You should try that Dominus!* Beth exclaimed, and Selene couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm and the look she knew would be on the blonde's face.

*That would almost certainly destroy the demonic element.* Alana replied. *But if the curse is fused to the enchantment like Kendra said it was all those weeks ago, then it would almost certainly trip the enchantment and kill the person wearing it.*

*But you could destroy the curse on my ring, right?* Rachel asked.

*I can try as long as it's safe.* Ethan replied. *Alana, Kendra?*

*It should be.* Kendra replied. *The curse already broke when Alana removed the ring and the enchantment already triggered and tried to kill Rachel.*

*It damn near succeeded too.* Ethan said, his tone grim. *Thank God it didn't.*

*Amen.* Alana added vehemently.

Selene smiled and slowly shook her head. *Just like old times, talking about demons, angelic swords, magic, and something that tried to kill us.* She couldn't actually hear their laughter, but she knew them well enough to know that they would be laughing. She smiled too, and then remembered that she had lied to them.

Her smile disappeared.

She needed to confess.

She needed to tell them that she'd lied to them and ask them to forgive her. She didn't want to, but she needed to. She was tired of kicking herself and they needed to know. She hoped they would forgive her and even thought they might, but she needed to tell them even if they didn't forgive her. They had been so good to her and she just couldn't stand it any longer.

She had lied.

She needed to apologize.

She didn't want to do it via telepathy though. That would be taking the easy way out. Telling them when she was worlds away wasn't the right way to do this. The right way to do it was in person, face-to-face. That was the right thing to do.

Before she lost her nerve, she spoke up. *So, if I make it out of all this with the portal and Gonorran, I need to talk to all of you. In person. Um, about something serious.*

There was an unusually long silence before anyone replied.

*About what?* Kendra finally asked.

*Um, something important.* Selene replied. *It's um, it's...* She felt her cheeks grow warm. *I really want to talk about it in person.*

*Okay.* Ethan replied after a few moments. *Whatever you have to say, we'll listen.*

*We will.* Alana echoed and then the rest of his wives did as well.

"Thank you." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. This was such a big deal that she was tempted to say a quick prayer that they would forgive her; Tee must be rubbing off on her. She shook her head and dismissed the thought though. Illuminar had partially landed her in this damn mess and so she sure as hell wasn't going to ask for His help getting out of it.

Even if they did forgive her, she wasn't sure she could return to the Argo. She wanted to, but as she sat there thinking about it, she wasn't sure she should because she was telepathic. She had always wanted to work in the FBI's kidnapping division because of what happened to her brother. That had always been her goal, but her budding telepathic abilities made it seem more important. How many people could she help by being telepathic? How many victims could she find? She wasn't sure, but she figured it was a lot.

She couldn't do that from the Argo.

She couldn't help those kidnapping victims if she wasn't on Earth. The Ten Kingdoms already had telepaths; it had other people like Myla, Victoria, and Thea who could help people there. Earth had no telepaths; she was the only one. A large part of her wanted to return to the Argo, but she didn't know if she could live with herself if she selfishly turned her back on the people she could help on Earth to make herself happy.

She sat there for a while, turning the situation over and over in her mind and not able to come to any other conclusion. Eventually, the door opened.

"Miss Dawson, they're ready for you." One of the female guards said.

Selene nodded and stood up, taking a deep breath once she did so. She had a sneaking suspicion that the situation with Gonorran and the portal was coming to a head very soon, quite possibly that very day. One way or another, she was pretty sure it would all be over soon.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Note: This chapter began on day 106 of Ethan's life in the Ten Kingdoms and ended on day 107. I submit new chapters on the last Wednesday of every month, and they usually drop after the 2-3 days review process. Thus I'll submit the next chapter on July 31st, and it'll probably drop on August 2nd or 3rd.

I'd like to extend a very special thanks to two of my patrons, one of whom didn't want to be credited by name. So "Anonymous" and Joseph: thank you so much for your support. I really appreciate it.

STORY TAGS: dragon, magic, elf, teen, romantic, virgin, harem, blonde, brunette, redhead