Chapter 60: A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief

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

* * *

Fiona gently rubbed her eyes and blinked several times, feeling like she was going blind after staring at the same spot on her arm for the last few hours. "I'm not liking this at all."

"I have yet to meet someone who enjoyed training in magical healing." Mage Weston replied with a sympathetic smile.

They were still in his office where they had been half of the morning while the court mage had been teaching her to heal herself. On Lord Delmar's orders, the court mage had hired a dozen mana sinks -- people whose job it was to donate normal mana so a person could practice beyond his normal mana capacity -- and she had already burned through all the mana they had to give. Not improving her mood was the fact that she needed a wound to heal in order to learn magical healing, and thus had been repeatedly jabbed with a small needle.

"Can I be stopping?" She asked. "I'm thinking that I used all the mana in the castle by now."

The mage chuckled. "We'll resume tomorrow; you made excellent progress today."

"I'm not feeling like it."

"You closed the wound in under thirty seconds during your first session. That is an extraordinary feat."

"It was just a pinprick though." She replied.

"All things in time." He replied. "And if it's any consolation, not everyone who is gifted with magic takes to it naturally."

"Oh?"

"The most gifted mage that I ever taught is Rachel Delmar." He replied, a grandfatherly smile appearing on his face as he spoke. "And yet she was unusually bad at magic when she started, just like her mother was. However, Rachel overcame that through hard work. And then one day, magic seemed to 'click' for her, as they say. Thereafter, it was as natural to her as breathing and she progressed rapidly. I never told her how impressive her magical skills are, and she is likely still unaware herself, but one might almost call her a prodigy. Yet even she struggled immensely when she began."

"Okay." Fiona nodded, not looking forward to future practice. She already had a 'healer's scar', which was an almost invisible tiny round scar that developed from repeated poking with the needle to practice healing. As Fiona thought about Mage Weston had said, the part about the Lady Helene stuck out in her mind because of what Lord Delmar had said that morning in their room.

"You were saying that Helene was struggling with magic; were you teaching her?"

"No, she was taught by my teacher, the former court mage of both Helene's father and Lord Delmar." He smiled again, though it was a slightly sad smile. "Illuminar rest his soul."

"Amen." She said. "Can I be asking a question about Lord Delmar?"

"Of course." The mage replied.

"Was he always so strict with the rules, or was that happening after Lady Helene died?"

"It is hard for me to say because I wasn't the court mage when Helene died and thus I had very little contact with him back then." He replied. "My memory is a bit fuzzy on the timeline, but it might have been around then."

Fiona nodded slowly, wondering if her suspicion was correct. "Is there anyone who would be knowing for sure that I could ask?"

"Sir Warrick would know. He's been the head of the Narlotten council since before your husband became lord."

"My husband." She repeated slowly.

"Give him time." Mage Weston said with a kind smile. "You are a good woman, he is a good man, and you two are bonded. He will likely fall for you eventually, though I suspect he will resist doing so for the sake of Helene's memory."

Fiona nodded, then stood. "Well, I suppose I should be seeing if Sir Warrick is having a moment."

He stood as well. "Or, you could send one of your handmaidens to arrange a meeting for you. If you arrange every appointment yourself, you will likely do little else before long."

"Aye, I could be doing that." She nodded.

* * *

"Have a seat, Miss Dawson."

Selene did, watching the man who had spoken as she did so since he was clearly in charge. He reminded her of a slightly older, more self-important version of Lucien Kalus. He was perhaps an inch taller than she was and was built solidly, but didn't look like a gym rat. He still had a little bit of a dark color in his mostly white hair and short beard, though the lines in his face weren't very deep yet. The way he carried himself told her that he was confident almost to the level of arrogant, but he also didn't seem like a pompous asshole either.

Thank God for small favors.

The room looked very much like a stereotypical Wall Street conference room on TV, except that it had no windows. The table was long and made of some expensive-looking wood, the walls were blue, and there was a large American flag trimmed with gold fringes in one corner. Yvonne was sitting at the table in a professional-looking business suit with her hair done up and elegant glasses on her face. Opposite her was Clive Eustace Humphry, aka, Smithbond. Selene chose to sit on Yvonne's side of the table, though with an empty seat between them so they didn't look chummy.

"And who might you be?" Selene asked, making sure to keep her tone conversational. Luminar Kossel had repeatedly told her not to be too serious when dealing with the leadership, and maybe crack the odd joke if one occurred to her. Apparently, it would make her look more confident and help with any nerves she was feeling. He wasn't wrong, at least about the second part.

"Mr. Brass." He replied with a straight face. He didn't even seem to be joking.

She raised her eyebrow. "Well, 'the brass' being named 'Mr. Brass' seems unlikely."

"Pseudonyms are standard practice in our agency." The man replied, his tone neutral enough that Selene couldn't get a read on it. "Names hold a certain kind of power, the power to know who someone truly is. Isn't that right, Miss Dawson." He hadn't emphasized her name in any way with his tone, but it felt like he was making a point anyway.

"I think Clive over here might agree." She replied, nodding her head towards the man but not looking at him.

The corners of Mr. Brass's mouth rose slightly. "They both said you were perceptive. I hope that quality will translate well into an accurate, honest, and complete account of your month-long stay on 10k1."

"The Ten Kingdoms." Selene corrected. "As best as I can figure, there are a bunch of kingdoms collectively called 'The Ten Kingdoms' under an emperor, and then there's a whole world beyond it with other countries."

"Please, recount the tale from the moment you left Earth." Mr. Brass said.

Selene looked at him for a long moment. It seemed strange that someone as important as this fellow would be present for this. He seemed like the kind of fellow who was high enough up to read reports, not be there collecting the data firsthand. That's when she realized something.

"Oh, Clive here screwed up again." She chuckled. "He was supposed to debrief me but never did, instead deciding to indulge in a little petty revenge because he didn't like that I knew how incompetent he is."

Clive opened his mouth to speak, but Mr. Brass raised his hand to stop him before speaking. "Incompetent?"

"Very." She replied. "To show you just how incompetent, let me start at the beginning and tell you how I came to be on the base in the first place.

"I used standard onboarding practices." Clive said. Neither his tone nor his body language was defensive, and yet he somehow came across that way anyway.

"Standard practices for turning a hostile agent." Yvonne corrected. "Not standard practices for onboarding a member of law enforcement with a psyche profile like Miss Dawson's."

"Kids, please, don't fight in front of dad." Selene quipped.

Yvonne chuckled.

Clive glared.

Mr. Brass raised his eyebrow. "You may start your story from the beginning then."

"Well, I was born at a hospital at a very early age, mostly so I could be near my mum." Selene replied while managing to keep a straight face.

Yvonne chuckled.

Mr. Brass just looked at her.

"Okay, here goes." Selene said, then she began to recount her story from the beginning.

* * *

Rachel watched the loveliest woman she'd ever met put the last arrow into the bullseye and felt her smile grow wider. All of Alana's arrows had landed in an area the size of an apple at 100 yards, while Grobozlesh's arrows were clustered in an area the size of a small melon. Beside the redhead, all of her fellow wives plus Myla, Victoria, and Thea were watching with interest. Lucien was there as well, and he stood on Grobozlesh's side to show support for the orc.

They had all returned to the Blue Circle camp after the battle, though there was still cleanup happening. Once the battlefield was confirmed clear of Red Hand orcs, Taloni had flown down and -- accompanied by Groboz and Ethan -- had done what she could to stabilize the most seriously injured Blue Circle orcs. Currently, the Argo was anchored close to the Blue Circle camp and the archery match was taking place just outside of it so that none of the crew needed to prove their strength to enter it.

Groboz also shot his last arrow and then lowered his bow. He looked at the targets, then at Alana. "Tree elf very strong. Come, see targets."

The group walked to the targets and Groboz inspected them, his wide smile never faltering even when he closely inspected Alana's clearly superior shooting. Further, Alana's arrows had gone significantly deeper into the target than Groboz's arrows, a fact which oddly seemed to excite the orc very much.

"Tree elf very strong." He said with a wide grin. "I train; become stronger, and we have again-match."

"Rematch." Lucien corrected. By his tone, it sounded like he had been coaching the orc's use of the common tongue.

"We have re-match." Groboz corrected himself while still looking at Alana.

"I'd be happy to, but I don't think it would be fair." The wood elf replied.

"What is word 'fair'?" The orc asked.

Rachel explained, after which the orc spoke again. "Fair not make sense. Life not fair. Fair not matter; only strong matter." He paused, then looked at Alana. "Why not fair?"

Alana explained how her bow was light to draw but released at high weight.

Groboz shrugged. "You make strong bow?"

She nodded.

"You strong twice; make strong bow, be strong archer." He looked at Ethan. "You must be strong husband to defeat strong wife."

Ethan chuckled. "Thank you."

"I want become stronger archer." Groboz said, then looked at Alana. "Can you teach to become stronger archer?"

"I would be happy to, though I think we're leaving the area soon."

"Didn't I hear that you are already the strongest archer in the camp with a bow?" Rachel asked, his question not making much sense to her if that were indeed the case.

Groboz nodded with a grunt.

"Then why?" The redhead asked. "Why is it so important to you to become even stronger if you're already the strongest in the camp?"

The orc frowned, which had the side effect of emphasizing his small tusks. He looked at Ethan, then Lucien, then at all the ladies before finally speaking. "E-tan friend, Lu-shun friend, E-tan wifes friend." He looked at all of them again. "Groboz trust all friend." The orc's normally excitable and jovial disposition faded as he looked down at the ground. "Groboz has a weak."

"Has a weakness." Lucien corrected, somehow managing to sound encouraging. "What weakness?'

"Groboz is runt." The orc said, and his tone and body language would've fit someone confessing to mass murder.

"What does that mean precisely?" Rachel asked, having a guess but wanting to be sure.

"Groboz not defeat brothers to become orc." He replied. "Brothers killed by animal. Groboz no prove stronger than brothers to become orc."

The redhead nodded, her suspicion confirmed. Orc males were always born in groups of three, and whichever of the three proved 'strongest' would become an orc and the others would remain goblins. If Grobozlesh's goblin brothers had been killed, then he wouldn't have had a chance to prove himself stronger than they were. It was the kind of thing that she could see being a social stigma in orc society. It was sad, but she could see why the orcs would then view him as a 'runt'.

It also explained why he didn't hold a higher position in the camp despite being both a great archer and quite clever. The inability to rise from a low initial status reminded Rachel of the caste systems that some places outside the Ten Kingdoms employed, and she could see how such a stigma could have a similar effect in orcish culture.

"Groboz also want become tactician." The orc continued. "Being tactician prove Groboz strong. Strong in bow, strong in tactician will make Groboz strong."

"My friend." Lucien put a hand on the orc's shoulder, though it was a bit of a reach. "I cannot assist with the bow, but I can with tactics. If you would be willing, I extend an invitation for you to join me in Timarou to study tactics with the best tacticians and military minds in my country."

Groboz stared at him. "Lu-shen is being seriously?"

"Is Lucien being serious?" The lord corrected kindly. "And I am. You are a good orc with a sharp mind Grobozlesh; you should be given the opportunity to excel so your clan might see that you are indeed a very strong orc."

"Groboz not know way to Tim-roo." The orc replied, sounding slightly unsure.

"Fortunately, I have an airship." The lord smiled. "You would be welcome to travel with me and my wives when we begin the voyage home, which will be later today." The Lord's expression softened slightly. "I have not seen my younger children in far too long."

Groboz looked at him for a long moment before he blinked a few times. "Lu-shen is very strong friend." His voice cracked slightly as he spoke.

"As are you." Lucien smiled back. Talk then turned to arrangements, which made something occur to Rachel, but Thea asked before Rachel got a chance.

"What will happen to the women and children in the Red Hand clan?" Thea asked.

"They join our clan." Groboz replied. "Women burn Red Hand vest, make Blue Circle vest. Women become wives, childs adopted, raised as Blue Circle orcs."

"Good." Thea smiled. "I'm glad to hear that."

"What about the elders who didn't fight?" Beth asked.

"Red Hand elders give weak advice." Groboz replied. "They join clan, clan not listen to their weak advice. They given weak work that weak body can do."

From beside the redhead, Alana took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Hey."

"Hey." Rachel smiled back.

"One down, one to go." The wood elf said with a sly smile.

Rachel swallowed, remembering what she'd said she wanted to do with Alana once the orc and portal situations had been dealt with. She could feel her blood rushing to all of the most sensitive places in her body as she considered that.

"I can't wait either." Alana gave her hand another gentle squeeze with a smoldering look in her eyes.

Rachel resisted the urge to moan, but it wasn't easy.

* * *

"So, that's why I think Clive here is pretty much incompetent." Selene summarized after explaining all of the things that Luminar Kossel had pointed out to her. "And by the way, Adrian Kossel pointed most of these out to me. He says 'Hi' by the way."

Mr. Brass steepled his fingers together, leaned back in his chair, and pressed his lips into a thin line. Without moving his head, he moved his eyes from Selene to Clive and then back again. He made a thoughtful sound and then tapped his forefingers together.

Finally, he spoke without taking his eyes off Selene. "Agent Benson, why was command never informed of this?"

Yvonne looked at him, her smile rather forced as she did so. "I have been contacting everyone in the chain of command for a long time trying to inform anyone who would listen, but he got short-term results so no one paid any attention. If you like, I can start pulling all the reports I've filed over the years; I'm pretty sure I would've destroyed a forest if they all had been printed."

"No need." Mr. Brass turned his eyes on Clive, still without moving his head. "Is Miss Dawson's account of the events accurate?"

"Taken out of context and phrased to cast me in the worst light possible, but none of the details were actually false." He replied, his tone a bit stiff.

Selene laughed and shook her head. "What, you didn't start our association by threatening me and getting me fired when simply telling my boss to order me to cooperate would've worked better? You didn't beat me to a bloody pulp when your strong-arm tactics backfired on Hailey, Melinda, and Jason? Plus, threatening a pregnant woman?" She shook her head, then realized that Melinda had probably given birth by now.

"It was effective." Clive replied.

"It was foolish and shortsighted." Selene corrected calmly, remembering her father's advice to always remain calm. He had always said that the first person to become emotionally involved in a debate always lost, even if he was actually right. "You alienated everyone that could've helped you in the long term with your brutality and strong-arm tactics. Did it even occur to you to simply ask for what you wanted?"

Clive didn't reply.

"Oh, I want an answer to that one." Selene pressed, previously thinking it was a rhetorical question but now suspecting it might not be.

Clive glared at her slightly.

"I would like an answer as well." Yvonne said.

Clive set his jaw.

"Answer Miss Dawson's question." Mr. Brass said, his hands still steepled and his lips still pressed in a thin line.

"And remember, you aren't nearly as good a liar as you think you are." Yvonne said.

Clive seemed to fight an internal battle with himself for several seconds before he spoke. "No."

"No what?" Selene asked, already knowing the answer.

"No, it didn't occur to me to ask." He admitted after another moment.

Mr. Brass took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Agent Humphry, consider your leash very short from now on."

"Yes sir." Clive replied, still glaring at Selene.

"Since we've established that he's incompetent, can we talk about how it's a colossally bad idea for Mr. Short Leash here to use dark mana?" Selene looked at Mr. Brass, figuring that this was a perfect time to point how how stupid Clive's plan was.

"Have you witnessed it first hand?" The man replied.

She shook her head. "No, but it's a universally acknowledged fact there."

"On Earth, it was once a universally acknowledged 'fact' that the Earth was the center of the universe, that it was flat, or even that you could turn base metals into gold." Mr. Brass replied.

"It's also a universally acknowledged fact that there's no such thing as magic, and yet we're discussing its merits." Selene countered.

"The reports tell me that this 'magic' is merely a different way of harnessing fundamental forces that physics already understands." Mr. Brass replied. "You are asserting that element forces have a moral component, and doing so without evidence. Your assertions about it corrupting someone's soul would have more merit if they weren't based on the myths of indigenous natives."

Selene stared at him. "Indigenous natives? You make it sound like they run around in loincloths and think shaking a rainstick will make it rain."

"Their beliefs about 'dark mana' and this 'Illuminar' are hardly better." Mr. Brass replied. "Science has moved beyond the need for gods and devils."

Selene looked at him for a long moment, trying to decide if she should mention Sarah who was literally demon-possessed. After a moment, she realized that Mr. Brass simply wasn't open-minded enough to consider it. Plus, saying something would probably damage her own credibility, so she decided not to mention it.

"Continue with the debrief, Miss Dawson." Mr. Brass said after a few moments.

She did.

Selene recounted the broad strokes of what had happened in the Ten Kingdoms while she was there. She didn't go into a lot of detail, though occasionally one of the others asked questions. They seemed especially interested in the airship battle, though none of them looked impressed with the technology by the time she was done. She supposed that airships were a little underwhelming since Earth had jets and hypersonic missiles.

"Your analysis of the potential use of magic on earth?" Mr. Brass asked when she had finished.

"Honestly, it would be useful but not sustainable." She replied honestly. "The barrier is just too thick here and it would take a long time to collect enough mana to be useful." She hesitated, then added. "I'm sure it's occurred to you to send your agents to the Ten Kingdoms to get trained in magic and then bring them back, but realize that takes many, many years."

"You learned in less than a month." Clive pointed out, obviously accusing her.

"It took most of my mana pool to heal a small cut to my cheek." She replied. "And that's after spending a lot of focused time learning from two master mages, and a lot of people donating mana so I could practice. Under normal circumstances, It could've taken me a year to learn that much." She looked at Clive pointedly. "I'm sure you tried it; how much mana did it take to heal a pinprick? Could you even heal it?"

Clive set his jaw but didn't answer.

Mr. Brass clearly noticed.

Selene plowed on. "It typically takes years of near-constant study to learn enough to be useful from what I hear. That Fey girl I mentioned, Taloni, has those kinds of skills in healing magic, but she's been doing it for most of her life. It's the same with that mage, Rachel. She started when she was a young child and had a lot of people donating mana to her so she could practice far beyond what her normal mana limits would allow.

Mr. Brass frowned.

Selene continued. "Both of them took what, ten or fifteen years of constant practice to achieve their current level of mastery, and that's not counting all the people who donated mana so they could learn. The personnel requirements would be huge, and that would add another ten years of training to any agent you wanted trained that way. Even then, they would need to be fully recalled, sent to the Ten Kingdoms, and then redeployed every time they used their abilities."

"It sounds like you don't want us to have magic." Clive said. There was no trace of accusation in his tone, but that was clearly the implication.

"More accurately, I don't want you to have dark magic." Selene replied. "Obviously everyone will gravitate towards it because it's the only easy source of mana on Earth. That'll lead to a lot of people becoming murderous psychopaths."

"Miss Dawson, we've already been over this." Mr. Brass said.

"I know." She sighed. "I suppose it'll take Clive here going ape-shit because of dark mana before you believe me."

"Do you have anything else that's relevant to add?" Mr. Brass said, his tone indicating that dark mana wasn't on that list.

"Only one observation." Selene replied after a moment. "I think that the study of magic has handicapped the advancement of the Ten Kingdoms, technologically speaking."

"Explain."

"Well, one of the smartest women I have ever met -- Rachel, one of Ethan's wives -- outright mocked science and scientists. I think that their reliance on magic in preference to science led to a short-term gain, but a long-term loss. I would be careful with magic, because..." She glanced at Yvonne and then paraphrased Yoda. "If once you start down the magic path, forever, will it dominate your science. Consume your technology it will, as it did in the Ten Kingdoms."

"I'll take that under advisement." Mr. Brass replied, but his tone made it clear that he wouldn't. She was pretty sure that was intentional. The man looked at Clive. "We will continue with the scheduled test: you will open the portal at the scheduled time, with Gonorran there in case you are unable to."

Selene frowned. "I don't suppose I can convince you to reconsider?"

"Not unless you have first-hand experience with dark mana and its supposed corruptive effects." Mr. Brass replied.

Selene leaned back in her seat. "I don't, just don't say that I didn't warn you."

"Noted." Mr. Brass stood and looked at Yvonne. "Have Miss Dawson escorted back to her cell."

"Yes sir." She nodded, and Selene fell into step behind her as they left the room. Outside, the two female guards were standing at attention.

"Escort Miss Dawson back to her cell." Yvonne ordered, then looked at Selene. "Mr. Brass had previously indicated he wanted you at the portal opening; I doubt that will change. Be ready."

"Yes ma'am." She nodded, then followed the guards back to her cell.

Once she was there, she glanced at the camera and then at her pillow. Yvonne had left a message earlier that she'd left something under Selene's pillow and Selene didn't want to chance anyone seeing what it was. On the off chance the camera was still working and Yvonne hadn't disabled it, she wanted to be subtle about getting what the agent had left there.

She walked over to the bed and flopped down on it with her back facing the camera. Then, she slid her hand under the pillow and felt something hard. It took her a moment to realize what it was, and when she did, she smiled. She pulled the thin blanket up over her and then slid the item out from under the pillow, using her body to shield it from the camera as she took a look.

It was a Glock 43.

The slim line Glock was one of the smallest that the company made, but it was chambered in 9mm and held 7 rounds; 8 if there was one in the chamber with a full magazine. A quick but subtle check revealed that the magazine was full and that there was indeed a round in the chamber. Interestingly, it seemed like Yvonne had scribbled a note on the pistol's slide in what looked like lipstick.

It read: "Just in case"

Selene smiled.

She would feel a lot better about being in the same room with Gonorran if she was armed.

* * *

*Thanks for the update Selene.* Ethan thought to everyone as he landed on the Argo's deck after the archery match.

*I'll be praying for it to go well.* Taloni added.

*Thanks Tee.* The Brazilian woman replied.

"Well, at least she's armed." Alana said as she reached the top of the Argo's rope ladder with Rachel right behind her.

"Indeed." He replied, looking around the deck. Lucien and Grobozlesh were already on the deck, having climbed the ladder before his wives.

The orc was looking around with a wide grin on his face that showed his small tusks. He looked over the side of the ship and his grin widened. "Strong view. Groboz would like to painting."

"Groboz would like to paint it." Lucien corrected. "The common tongue often needs an object for verbs."

"Groboz would like to paint it." The orc nodded. "Groboz thank; Lu-shen strong teacher."

"Thank you." The lord nodded, then turned to Ethan. "Thank you for the accommodation; The Timarou flagship should arrive within the hour."

"It's our pleasure, and I mean that." Ethan replied. "I never could've taken care of the orc situation by myself."

The lord nodded respectfully.

About forty-five minutes later, the flagship of the Timarou air fleet did indeed arrive. It was an impressive vessel and far larger than the Argo. It was at least twice as long and twice as wide with more decks. It had six masts, counting upper and lower, and at least three decks; possibly four? The sails were large versions of the Timarou flag with its stylized white horse rearing on a blue background. The wood on the ship had been painted blue as well, though it had nice white accents in many places.

Anthiel told Tee to dock the airships and his Fey wife did so without hesitation. She really was becoming very comfortable behind the ship's wheel and that was wonderful to see. The crewmen on the two airships threw lines and tied them together, then the Timarou flagship extended a long, wide, and enchanted leather gangplank complete with railings.

The moment the gangplank was fastened, four children ran across it and made a beeline for Lucien, who knelt down with his arms wide. They collided with him and knocked him over as he wrapped his arms around them, though Ethan was sure that the lord's 'fall' was entirely intentional. All of the children began talking all at once, the way little kids do when they are excited about something and can't wait to share.

"That'll be us soon." Alana said from beside him.

He grinned, put his arm around her, and pulled her close. "I can't wait."

His other wives collected around him, all watching the lord who had annihilated an orcish army without mercy just hours ago embracing his children and smiling widely, the affection between them obvious.

"He is a singular man, and I've never met his like." Shara said as she regally stepped down the gangplank onto the Argo's deck. "He can slaughter without mercy in the morning and be a doting father in the afternoon."

"And be an amazing..." Lyra got a sly look on her face as she stepped onto the Argo behind Shara. "...husband in the evening." Her tone left no one in doubt about what she was referring to.

Bee and Tee giggled, Alana and Rachel chuckled, Kendra and Ethan slowly shook their heads with a smile.

Before long, Lucien managed to stand up and his children seemed to remember their company manners. They could be perfectly polite and proper while still being obviously overjoyed that their whole family was together again. Ethan greatly enjoyed the other family's company and conversation as they began talking.

A while later, Alana nudged him and then nodded her head towards Rachel, who was kneeling on the decking and had made some kind of marionette without strings composed of fire. There were two of them, one obviously male and the other female, and the teen mage was making them dance over the deck without burning it. It was pretty damn impressive, especially considering that the woman's skirt would swish like a real one would. The girls seemed enthralled by the dancing, the boys by the fire, and both were grinning silly.

Thor was watching intently from quite far away, clearly both interested and unsure.

*The control she has over that flame is incredible.* The wood elf thought to him privately. *I knew she was good, but that level of control is almost unheard of. I'll bet most master mages couldn't do that.*

Ethan smiled proudly at his fourth wife, though of course she didn't see. He was married to the most amazing women he had ever met, and that was before you took their skills into account.

* * *

"I don't know Sarah, maybe?"

The innkeeper's daughter frowned and paused scrubbing a corner of Rindrin's house that hadn't been dusted in... well, probably ever. Sarah looked at Amy, who was positively glowing in happiness. Seriously, if getting married to the right man made a woman that happy, Sarah couldn't wait to get married herself. Hopefully to Ethan, which is why she'd asked Amy about the idea that had occurred to her after talking with Brother Kalen at the monastery earlier that day.

"I hope so." Sarah said as she finished cleaning the corner and moved on to the next one. "It should technically count as a reason to divorce, right?"

"Um, I think so?" Amy grimaced. "But that's an obscure story in the Book of Light, so I'm not familiar with it."

"Well, one of Illuminar's prophets had a wicked wife who, um..." Sarah's cheeks got a bit pink. "...she exposed herself -- all of herself -- to a man who wasn't her husband, trying to entice him into bed. The man never touched her, but the prophet asked Illuminar if he could divorce his unfaithful wife when he found out about it and Illuminar allowed it. Thus, Brother Kalen said that a woman intentionally exposing herself to another man has long been considered a legitimate cause for a divorce, because of that story."

"But, you weren't trying to entice anyone into bed when those bandits attacked you, Ellis, and me." Amy replied. "I know his fireballs burned up your dress enough that it fell off, so you were completely exposed, but you weren't trying to entice, so..." Amy frowned, somehow managing to almost glow while frowning.

"I'm glad you're so happy." Sarah said, unable to not smile while seeing her friend so happy.

"I am." Amy sighed, got a dreamy and faraway look for a moment, and then refocused on Sarah. "I think Rindy might accept that as a reason for a divorce, if only because he wants you to be happy."

"I'm going to ask him when he breaks for lunch." Sarah said.

"That should be soon." Amy replied. "I convinced him to come in at a regular time for lunch instead of working straight through lunch since he's had so much work lately. He's such a hard worker." She sighed with a dreamy expression on her face.

Sarah silently chuckled as she continued helping to clean the place up.

Rindrin did indeed come in for lunch, though the sun was significantly past its apex when he did so. As usual, he smelled like wood smoke and hot metal. Sarah had never quite understood how hot metal could have a smell, but it did. Amy nearly skipped over to him and gave him a kiss that made Sarah avert her eyes slightly. Before Sarah did though, she saw him return the kiss with rather more tenderness and affection than Sarah had ever seen from him before.

She was glad of that for Amy's sake.

They all sat down at the table and Amy laid out some cold chicken with toasted bread, butter, and jelly. It was pretty good. Sarah could think of a few things she could've done to make it even better, but of course didn't say anything because she didn't want to be rude.

"So, Sarah; you wantin' to talk about something?" Rindrin asked.

She froze slightly. "How did you know?"

"I've known you since you was crawlin' and you ain't exactly subtle." He shrugged. "No sense waiting, spit it out."

"Well, first I should probably tell you about something that happened on our way back to the inn." She then explained how they had been attacked and how the mage had incinerated her dress, leaving her naked in front of him before she had killed him.

"Ah, so you're wantin' me to divorce you on account of that then."

She nodded.

"That right there is a mighty strange way to be taking that story." The blacksmith frowned. "I see what you're getting at and all, but you'll need to find a luminar who thinks that reasonable. You do that, and I'll sign a bill of divorcement."

"I'll go see the local luminar right after lunch." Sarah said with a smile.

"I'm glad you two weren't hurt by that mage." Rindrin said, then tucked in to his food.

"My dress was though, and--" She gasped. "The letter!"

"What letter?" Amy asked.

Sarah groaned. "Mage Weston gave me a letter to give to Rachel if I saw her again. It was in my side pocket when that mage attacked. It might've been burned up in the fight, but it wouldn't matter because I completely forgot about the dress and left it behind." She groaned again, feeling terrible that she'd promised the castle's mage and then completely forgot.

"Oh, I have the dress." Amy said with a smile.

Sarah turned her head so fast it almost hurt. "You do?"

She nodded. "I grabbed it while you and Ellis were digging. It wasn't useful as a dress, but I figured that since the fabric was self-repairing, it would be useful for other things."

"That's my wife." Rindrin grunted proudly, then took another bite of his food.

Sarah sat in stunned silence, then got up and gave Amy a huge hug. "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome." Amy beamed at the praise from the two of them.

"Is the letter okay?" Sarah asked. "Was it burned up?"

"Um, I don't know." Her friend replied. "I packed it into one of the traveling bags and haven't looked at it since."

"Which bag?"

"I'll get it." Amy hopped up, left the room, and then returned a minute later with the tattered remains of the dress that Sarah had been wearing that day. "Here it is."

"Thank you!" Sarah took the dress and looked for the pocket in which she'd stowed the letter. She found it, stuck her hand in, and pulled out an almost entirely intact letter. One of the corners had been burned off, but otherwise it was intact.

She breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Illuminar."

"Blessed be He." Amy echoed. "Now, eat up; you need to go terrify the local luminar." She winked.

Sarah laughed.

"You might want to wait until I can take you." Rindrin said after swallowing.

"I don't need protection." Sarah replied. "There really isn't anyone who can hurt me."

"I ain't worried about you bein' hurt, I'm worried about you relyin' on that problem of yours a bit too much." Rindrin gave her a piercing look. "Maybe no one can be hurtin' you, but that's 'cause of your problem and there ain't no justifyin' letting that out except in the most dire circumstances. I'm not liking that you're being so cavalier about it, given what it is. You used to have more sense about you. You used to be scared of it and ashamed of it, now you're relying on it. That ain't something that one of Illuminar's faithful ought to do."

Sarah winced as she felt her cheeks get hot, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. "I um... I hadn't realized that I was doing that."

"Yeah, I didn't figure you had." Rindrin replied without judgment; he was simply stating a fact.

"Um, could I borrow your horse?" Sarah asked a moment later. "That way, I can simply ride away if I do run into anyone, and my... my problem won't need to come out."

"Yeah, I suppose." He shrugged.

"Thank you." She said, not entirely sure when she'd become so comfortable with her problem... her demon. She grimaced, realizing that maybe she'd changed more in Karnas than she had realized. To have become so comfortable with a demon was... she slowly shook her head; that wasn't good.

On the other hand -- and she didn't like this -- but there was definitely a part of her that was glad for her problem. She felt a wince of guilt about that, but except for that one time with Lady Ekthros, it had protected her. She was painfully aware that her reliance on it wasn't good, but she couldn't deny that it had indeed protected her.

A tiny part of her mind whispered to her that it had even protected her when Illuminar hadn't. She swallowed, not liking that thought at all, and yet she couldn't refute it either. Of course, Illuminar had protected her a lot throughout her life and she hated how she'd come to rely on His enemies, but she couldn't deny that she had come to rely on her problem.

She didn't like that.

Not at all.

* * *

"Thank you for meeting with me Sir Warrick." Fiona said, rising and giving a slight curtsey as the man entered the Gibstine drawing room.

"My Lady." He gave a respectful head bow before heading to the table she had been sitting at. "I must say, you seem to have picked a rather... excitable handmaiden." It was said with a smile and twinkle in the eyes, as well as the edge of a chuckle.

Fiona sat down, her expression not dissimilar to his. "Aye, but she's also honest and quite handy with a needle; did you know that she and her friend were designing my wedding dress?"

"I did not; good for her." He sat down. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, I was having a question about Lord Delmar."

"One that you didn't want to ask him?" He seemed amused by this.

"Yes, but mostly because we aren't usually good at noticing things about ourselves."

"True indeed; ask."

"So, I'm wondering when he was becoming so strict about following the laws." Fiona replied, wanting to know if her hunch was correct.

Sir Warrick got a knowing smile on his face. "I knew you were perceptive Lady Delmar, but I did not realize how perceptive."

"Thank you." She replied, then added. "Lady Delmar; it's still feeling strange being called that."

"It will be until you have heard it many, many times." He replied with a smile. "I felt equally strange being called 'Sir' for quite some time, but I think you will wear the title well with a little practice."

"Thank you." Fiona took a deep breath. "When was it that Lord Delmar was becoming so strict then?"

"When do you think it was?" Sir Warrick replied.

"I'm guessing not long after Lady Helene died."

He nodded. "As I said before, perceptive."

She smiled, hesitated, then plowed on. "Is he blaming himself for her death because he wasn't making her learn to heal herself?"

Sir Warrick looked at her for a long moment, then leaned back in his chair and stroked his short-ish beard thoughtfully. "He has never told me so, but there is an event that might shed light on this."

"Oh?"

He nodded. "There is a little-known statute in the code for Narlotten lords that specifies that the lord and his immediate family are required to learn healing magic, including the purging of toxins and sicknesses from the body. After Helene died from a sickness, Lord Delmar came to me so I could arrange magic lessons for Rachel as soon as she was old enough. During that conversation, that particular statute came up and he had never heard it before." He paused. "Do you know what a 'portrait-perfect memory' is?"

"Aye." She replied. "It's when a person can be seeing something once and then recalling it perfectly forever, like it was a portrait in front of his eyes."

"I am quite certain that Illuminar blessed our lord with such a memory, for he can recall the exact wording of the most detailed statute in an instant."

"Aye, that's making sense." Fiona smiled, thinking that he had probably enchanted his memory to be so good rather than it being a natural gift from Illuminar.

"Lord Delmar always did care about the law and following it. Then he found a statute that -- if he had been aware of it and followed it -- would have prevented Helene's death."

"That's explaining a lot." Fiona felt her heart sink for her husband. She couldn't imagine how terrible he would've been feeling after learning that.

Sir Warrick nodded and then continued. "After that conversation, he read every law and statute on Narlotten's books. I assumed that he was partially distracting himself, but I am certain there is more to it."

"Oh?"

Sir Warrick sighed heavily. "Lord Delmar remembers the names and history of everyone in the castle like he can read it off of a ledger. He remembers everything and I do not believe I have ever seen him forget a single thing." His eyes turned sad. "Now consider, would that apply less to his long history with Helene?"

"Oh." Fiona felt her heart ache for her husband even more at that thought.

"You yourself have lost a spouse." He said sadly. "I know it was only a few months ago, but has the pain lessened slightly in that time?"

She felt her throat get tight, swallowed, then nodded. "Aye, but only a very little."

"Lord Delmar's memory appears to be perfect." Sir Warrick continued. "I would wager a large sum of gold that he feels the pain of Helene's death now with the same intensity he did when she died, or during her funeral, or during her burial."

Fiona could feel her eyes begin to moisten thinking about that. She had been inconsolable when Sean had died and it had taken a solid month before she had felt up to dealing with the world again. If he felt like that all the time...

"Oh." She said as something occurred to her. She felt like a heavy weight had settled on her heart as she realized why he was keeping her at arm's length.

He didn't want to be hurt so deeply again.

She swallowed and blinked a few times, trying to control the emotions that were threatening to leak out from the corners of her eyes. If Lord Delmar could feel all the raw pain and anguish of Helene's death undiminished through the years, he surely wouldn't want to put himself in that position again.

Sir Warrick gave her a comforting smile. "I believe he has grown used to living in the past by constantly focusing on the memory of his dear, departed Helene. As such, I would wager he has a dim view of life. Yet I believe that you can bring light back to his life, Lady Delmar. True he is wounded, but a good woman tending those wounds has worked wonders on many a good man in the past; I think the same could be true of Lord Delmar."

She nodded, wanting more than anything to do something to help her husband with his grief. She couldn't even imagine being in his situation. She felt like she would've broken after Sean had died and it was mostly Conner's need for a mother that had kept her going. If Lord Delmar was feeling like that all the time...

She couldn't even imagine.

"I wish Helene was learning how to heal herself." She finally said, thinking this could've been avoided if she had learned.

Sir Warrick slowly shook his head. "Helene was hopelessly atrocious at magic, though certainly smart enough to learn if she had applied herself. She had stubbornly refused to learn it both in her youth and after she had grown. I do believe that Lord Delmar didn't have it in his heart to make her learn since she hated it so much."

"And now he's blaming himself for her death." Fiona completed the thought, shaking her head slowly and trying to imagine how that must feel.

She couldn't.

She couldn't imagine how terrible she would feel if she felt like there was even a chance that her first husband's death was her fault. She wouldn't feel any less bad if she could've prevented it but hadn't. She didn't think Helene's death was Lord Delmar's fault, but she could see how he might think it was. She would probably be blaming herself if she was in his position.

"Thank you for meeting with me Sir Warrick." She finally said. "I think I'm understanding him better now."

"I'm glad." He smiled. "Though, I would suggest that this conversation not leave this room, except for your husband of course. I don't think he would appreciate such information circulating."

"Aye, I'm not thinking he would either."

Sir Warrick stood. "He is a good man who is hurting deeply. I understand that you are hurting as well, but remember that he has the constant reminder of the pain of Helene's passing as an incentive to remain at arm's distance from you. Give him time to soften and I think you will grow to love the man on the other side of his pain, and love him deeply."

"I'm glad to be hearing that." She smiled, a painful smile though it was.

"One day, we should have an entirely pleasant conversation in this room." He said as he looked around.

"Aye, too many heavy matters and not enough light ones." She replied as she stood.

"All things in time." Sir Warrick bowed slightly. "Good afternoon Lady Delmar, I will pray that Illuminar guides your path forward."

"I'm really appreciating that." She smiled.

He took his leave and she didn't know what to do. She had confirmed her suspicion, but it was so much worse than she had ever imagined. She had a hard time understanding how her husband was still functioning, much less ruling an entire lorddom with such pain in his heart. She couldn't have done it. She thought it had been bad when Sean had died, but learning all this about Lord Delmar...

She shook her head slowly.

How was he even still functioning, much less ruling so well? She took a deep breath, realizing that she needed to do her best to help. She wasn't entirely sure what to do, but she could think of one thing she could do right now that might help. She wasn't looking forward to it, but she thought it might help her husband and that was very important to her.

Several minutes later, she located Glessie and Nessie. "Ladies, can one of you be asking Mage Weston to provide a list of healers I can train with after our morning sessions? I want to be spending more time on that until I'm very proficient."

"I can do that!" Glessie beamed.

"Thank you." She turned to Nessie. "Could you be finding a dozen mana sinks who would be willing to work with me so I can be practicing more?"

Her more reserved handmaiden nodded. "I shall make a list, shall I assume you wish them to be highly recommended and discrete, even if such hires require more coin?"

"Aye, and thank you both." Fiona replied, after which the two girls went to fulfill their missions. Fiona hoped that her learning how to heal herself like an advanced mage might help. She was planning to work on it daily until she knew it well, if only because it might help her husband worry less.

* * *

"Well, thank you anyway." Sarah sighed, then turned away from the luminar who had steadfastly refused to even consider granting her a divorce, or even hear her reasons. Honestly, she was pretty sure he had refused just so she would go away. She walked back to the hitching post where she had tied Rindrin's horse, acutely aware of everyone in the town stealing glances at her.

Like many luminars, this town's luminar was a cobbler and she had just exited his shop. It seemed that word of her had spread since she had visited the tailor with Lady Ekthros less than a month ago. It seemed like much longer than that, years even, but it really was less than a month.

She smiled at someone who was staring at her and he quickly looked away. She sighed, mounted the horse, and then started riding back. She was halfway there before she decided to visit the monastery and see if Brother Kalen or the other monks could help.

"Hello!" She called when she was close enough.

"Hello Sister Sarah." Brother Kalen said, getting to his feet. "To what do I owe the honor?"

"Um, I was hoping that maybe you or another monk could help me with something." She replied as she guided her horse closer. "Can anyone here write a certificate of divorce?"

"I'm afraid not." The monk shook his head. "That's not something our order does. Traditionally, you need the luminar at your local parish to write it, though exceptions are made for high-level luminars."

"Oh." She sighed as her shoulders slumped.

"Might I ask why it's so important that you get a divorce from your betrothed?" He asked, sitting back down on his stool.

"You'll think it's silly." She replied, feeling rather foolish herself.

"You are in love with someone other than your betrothed." Brother Kalen said without judgment.

"Is it that obvious?" She grimaced.

"It is." He smiled kindly. "You are not the first woman on such a quest, not do I expect that you'll be the last, but you seem unusually determined; why?"

"It's... it's the prophet." She finally said.

The monk raised his eyebrow.

"Really, it is."

"That sounds like a very interesting story." Brother Kalen said, then leaned against the gate and appeared to make himself comfortable as he looked at her expectantly.

"You want to hear it?" She asked.

"Of course, though, wait a moment." He got up and walked inside the high stone walls only to return less than a minute later with another stool like the one he was sitting on. He set it down near his own and then looked at her. "There's a stake with a horse-tie over there where your steed should find plenty of fodder." He indicated a small field that was just across the road from the monastery's gate.

"Really?" She asked.

"Of course."

Sarah smiled, hooked Rindrin's horse to the stake in the grassy field -- which the animal obviously appreciated -- and then she sat down on the stool and began to tell her story.

* * *

Selene took a deep breath and then stepped through the door into the portal room. The guards who had escorted her remained outside, though there were plenty more inside the room. The room itself was large and round with probably a dozen fully armed guards with weapons free. No one had a finger on the trigger, but they did look wary.

As usual, the portal was standing upright with a ramp leading up to it. Its control podium was nearby and several goats were tied near that, bleating occasionally. Mr. Brass, Clive, Yvonne, and Gonorran were all there as well. The necromancer looked at Selene when she entered, but other than a quick up-and-down look at her body, he didn't look impressed.

"Another woman?" The necromancer said, somehow sounding both pretentious and insulted at the same time. That was about when Selene remembered Gonorran's dismissive attitude towards women the last time she'd met him. She wanted to call him on it, but since she had a pistol in her pocket, she thought it would be best if he kept right on thinking that she was beneath his notice. People tended to ignore those they disdained, which would likely make it easier to take a shot if she got a chance.

"Yes, another woman." Yvonne said, maintaining an entirely professional demeanor and tone while also clearly not pleased. "We're good for more than just pretty faces you know."

Gonorran shrugged as if unconvinced as he looked down his nose at her, then turned to Mr. Brass. "Your Agent Smithbond is ready."

Mr. Brass checked his watch. "Three minutes."

Selene went and stood next to Yvonne, then spoke loud enough that Gonorran could hear. "You'd think that him getting his ass handed to him in a magic duel by a teenage girl would've made him less of a misogynist."

"Mr. Brass." The necromancer said, seemingly ignoring them. "Do you know the difference between women and children?"

"What?" The man replied, looking skeptical.

"Male children can mature."

Clive laughed.

The two women exchanged a look. Selene drew her lips into a thin line and slowly shook her head. She really wanted to start trading insults with him, but decided she would need to actually take the high road if she wanted to claim it... not that she wanted to. Besides, given the pistol in her pocket, she really wanted him to think she wasn't a threat in any way.

At least Mr. Brass seemed unimpressed by the joke.

The next couple of minutes were a bit tense, or at least they felt that way to Selene. She was half tempted to talk with Ethan while waiting to help with her nerves, but didn't. She had made her choice; she was going to move back to Earth and become an FBI agent. Yeah, that's what she was going to do.

Yeah...

"Time." Mr. Brass said.

"Kill the goats." Clive said.

A man standing nearby drew a suppressed pistol and put a single round into the head of each goat. They dropped like a ton of bricks. Clive walked over to them and raised his hand towards them, much like Rachel had described Gonorran doing during their fight.

"Clive, last chance." Selene said. "Don't do it; there's no coming back from this."

"Women." Clive said dismissively to Gonorran, clearly intending to agonize her.

She ignored that and slowly shook her head. "Your funeral."

Clive raised his hand towards the dead goats. By happenstance or intent, Clive was facing Selene when something that looked like heatwaves began to rise from the dead goats towards Clive's hand. Selene watched his eyes, actually feeling a little sorry for Clive even though he'd done some terrible things and had some truly horrifying appetites.

It didn't take long.

After the waves -- which she assumed were dark mana -- touched Clive's hand, it was perhaps a few seconds before his blue eyes began to darken. It didn't happen like flipping a light switch, but it did happen. Clive put his other hand on the large gem in the middle of the control podium. The gemstones on the portal slowly began to light up as Clive's eyes began to darken. It took almost a whole minute for his irises to fade from light blue, to medium blue, to dark blue, to navy blue, and then finally to black.

The moment the last vestige of color left his eyes, his expression changed. It was hard to describe how because it was subtle. He somehow looked... less. Something of the light behind his eyes seemed to dim; it became colder and less human. At the same time, he got a subtle smile on his face. It reminded Selene of a scene she'd once seen in a movie where an addict had shot himself up with some narcotic; you could see how happy it made him, but at the same time it was also destroying his life.

It was honestly sad and somewhat pitiful.

She hadn't expected to feel that way about Clive, but she did. Despite him being a terrible person, it was still hard to watch him somehow become... less.

"Good, keep feeding it into the portal." Gonorran said.

Clive did and the gemstones continued to light up. At about the point where they were all lit and the portal membrane had begun to spill from the inside edge of the ring towards the center, Selene noticed something. Something in the air changed slightly and she didn't think it was the portal. It took her a moment to place the sensation and when she did her eyes went wide.

It was mana being gathered for an air ram.

She recognized it from having fought beside Rachel and it was unmistakeable. She opened her mouth to shout a warning, but didn't get a chance.

She was too late.

Apparently Gonorran had taken his time to gather a very powerful air-ram. Nearly everyone in the circular room was standing opposite the portal, and every single one of them except for Gonorran was blasted backwards by one of the most powerful air-rams that Selene had ever seen or felt, and that was including the one Rachel had released to save Alana from Lord Delmar. Apparently, having prep time made a huge difference.

Selene's father primarily taught Brazilian Jujitsu, but he also taught several other martial arts including Judo and others that had an incredible array of ways to cushion or break a fall.

She used all of them.

She used everything she could think of to break her 'fall' as she was blasted backwards into the concrete wall. Pain shot through her body as she hit the wall hard despite everything she tried. Frankly, she was surprised that she didn't break anything. Hoping to improve the element of surprise, she let herself fall to the ground and lay there rather still. Unfortunately, Gonorran was partially facing her so she couldn't pull her pistol without him seeing.

No one else was as lucky. Yvonne and Mr. Brass lucked out in that they were blasted against someone else, which cushioned the 'fall' into the concrete, but almost no one else was that lucky. Clive was farthest from the wall and it looked like he managed to break his fall similarly to how Selene had. Mr. Brass and Yvonne were still conscious, though they weren't moving very much.

The Portal had sputtered, and without Clive feeding the last bit of mana into it, it seemed to fizzle and then drain away, like water spiraling down a drain.

Gonorran casually waved his hand and half a dozen of the now-unconscious guards were blasted towards the door and piled up in front of it, which would make getting reinforcements problematic. He then waved his hands a few more times and blasted all of the guns in the room across the room into a haphazard pile. They were too far away for anyone conscious to get them.

Clive stood, then smiled. "Take me with you."

Gonorran looked at him.

"You want to go back to the Ten Kingdoms, right?" Clive continued, his tone both emotionally neutral and oddly sinister at the same time. "That's why you waited until the brass showed up, right? So you could use him as a hostage to bargain, maybe for safe passage or to bring weapons with you?"

The necromancer didn't reply.

"I can get dozens of rifles and more ammo than you could carry." Clive offered. "Take me with you. With your magic and my technology, nothing could stand in our way."

Still, Gonorran didn't speak.

"You need proof that I'm serious?" Clive asked. When the necromancer didn't reply, Clive apparently took that as a yes. Clive stepped towards one of the semi-conscious soldiers and before Selene had a chance to react, he snapped the man's neck without hesitation. Clive stood and looked at Gonorran with his cold, black eyes. "We would be unstoppable together."

Next to her, Mr. Brass's eyes widened.

"I told you." Selene whispered, feeling terrible for the man who had died because of Mr. Brass's stupidity. Mr. Brass nodded slowly, apparently realizing too late that there are more things in heaven and earth than were dreamt of in his philosophy.

Gonorran regarded Clive for a long moment before speaking. "I can't leave knowledge of magic behind in this place, much less have an imbecile follow me home." He smiled, and somehow it sent shivers down Selene's spine as he continued. "But don't worry, I would still like to repay you for your..." He sneered. "...hospitality."

Gonorran raised a hand towards Clive.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then Clive seem to get slightly uncomfortable. He shifted slightly, then grimaced, then groaned, then winced. Something started coming from his body; something that looked exactly like the heat waves that had risen from the dead goats.

It was mana.

It looked like Gonorran was pulling the mana from Clive while the man was still living. Judging from how Clive was contorting himself and now doubling over, it looked painful. Very painful. Gonorran took a step closer to Clive and it seemed like the 'heat waves' that were actually mana seemed to flow faster from Clive. into the necromancer. It looked like the agent was trying to stand but couldn't. He fell to the floor and started contorting himself as he cried out in pain. It looked like he was trying to crawl away, but Gonorran took another step closer, turning slightly as he approached the agent.

His back was partially to Selene.

This was her chance.

Using Clive's loud screams of pain as cover, she reached into her pocket and pulled out the Glock 43. She raised it, took a whole second to line up her shot while trying to focus through Clive's now-fading screams of pain, then pulled the trigger.

BANG!

Selene's bullet impacted Gonorran's skull and he dropped like a marionette with its strings cut.

Selene hesitated a moment, then adjusted her aim.

BANG!

The largest gemstone on the control podium virtually exploded as her bullet hit it. Alana and Rachel had assured her that destroying even a single one of the gemstones would render the portal completely inoperative from Earth. Someone would need to enchant a whole new set to make it work, and anyone who knew how to make a new set would know enough to make a whole portal. It could still receive an outside portal projected to it, but it couldn't project one anymore.

Mission accomplished.

Gonorran was dead and the portal was effectively destroyed.

But it wasn't over yet; now she needed to deal with all the fallout.

She was acutely aware that she had just destroyed one of the most valuable things that this nameless agency possessed, and done so in front of 'the brass'. She figured that there would be consequences for that, but she had known that going in. It was time to pay the piper.

* * *

"And that's why I want to marry the prophet, because I had a sign from Illuminar and I'm hoping I can be the prophet's wife." Sarah finished recounting her story to Brother Kalen. She hadn't given every detail of course and mostly stuck to the broad strokes. She had mentioned Lady Ekthros of course, but not by name or with enough identification that the monk could figure it out. She thought that might put him in danger and she didn't want that.

The monk took a deep breath and let it out slowly, a smile growing on his face as he did so. "Of all the people in the Ten Kingdoms who might've told that story, I would not have expected it from a woman who is demon-possessed." He shook his head slowly and looked to be on the edge of laughing.

She wasn't sure what to make of that.

Her uncertainty must've shown because Brother Kalen continued. "I meant no disrespect nor offense. Let me explain." He seemed to collect his thoughts for a moment, then continued. "There is a woman who travels around the area selling soap."

"Soap?"

He nodded. "She makes the best soap that I have ever used and trades it to the monastery in exchange for ash to make more. From what I hear, she sells it very cheaply throughout the area despite the exceptionally high quality."

"Okay." Sarah said, not sure where he was going.

"The day that news of a new prophet reached this monastery, she came by with a letter." Brother Kalen continued. "She asked that if I ever met someone who seemed like they might travel with the prophet, that I should give that person the letter that she then gave to me. Curiously, she said that it wasn't for the prophet, but rather for someone that might travel with him."

Sarah stared. "What?"

Brother Kalen nodded. "That is what happened."

"Um, can you describe her?" She asked after taking a moment to recover and thinking that she might know who this soapmaker was.

"She looks reasonably young, but if you look into her eyes she seems far older than she looks." He replied. "She always wears white clothing and her hair is either blonde or white; sometimes it's hard to tell depending on the lighting. I always feel more relaxed and cheerful when she's around as well."

"Gabriella?" Sarah asked.

"That is her name." Brother Kalen replied. "I see you've met her."

"I have." Sarah nodded. She was tempted to tell him that Gabriella was an angel, but didn't feel like she should for some reason.

The monk reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out a letter that was sealed with wax. "Here is the letter. It seems she had a good guess about someone stopping by."

Sarah took the letter mutely, half tempted to ask Brother Kalen to read it since she hadn't finished learning to read yet. However, she again felt like she shouldn't. She didn't have a good reason other than a guess that the letter's contents might reveal Gabriella as an angel, and Sarah guessed that Gabriella wouldn't want that.

"Thank you, and thank you for listening." She said, tearing her eyes off the letter to smile at him.

"You are welcome, Sister Sarah."

"I suppose I should be getting back." She looked at Rindrin's horse grazing in the field, trying to decide how fast she could get back to Amy so her friend could read the letter to her. Then, she was determined to learn how to read. Always asking everyone else to read things for her was too much; she definitely didn't want to inconvenience others like that.

* * *

"He's dead Jim."

Selene couldn't decide whether to be disturbed or chuckle at Yvonne's assessment of Clive's body since she had done an excellent imitation of Dr. McCoy's infamous line from Star Trek. The dead agent looked... odd. His eyes were still black and somehow his skin looked partially... desiccated. It looked like the life and possibly some of the water had been sucked out of him, leaving him more gaunt than he had been in life.

Selene shuddered and looked away.

"This one too." Yvonne said after checking Gonorran, though that wasn't surprising since Selene's bullet had gone through his brain.

"I'll take that pistol, Miss Dawson." Mr. Brass said. He had been slower to recover than Yvonne, but he was on his feet now.

Selene nodded, dropped the mag, cleared the chamber, and then handed the small pistol to him with the slide locked open.

"The ammo and magazine too." Mr. Brass added.

Selene hesitated for only a second before handing them over. The man slipped the magazine into the gun, racked the slide to chamber a round, and then pointed the loaded gun at her. "Hands on your head."

She sighed but complied anyway. "Hell of a way to treat the girl who just saved your life."

"Had you stopped at the first shot, I would be recommending you for a medal." He replied. "It was the second shot that prompted the arrest. Do you know what you've done?"

"Stopped this nameless agency from invading another world. And maybe more importantly, I've stopped necromancers from being created on Earth." She replied. She sure as hell hoped this wasn't going to cost her a life sentence in prison or her life itself, but she was willing to pay that price if need be. Of course, that was an easy thing to think and Selene believed it was true, but she'd done a pretty good job of ignoring that possibility so far.

Mr. Brass shook his head. "You stranded dozens of agents on a foreign world with no backup and not enough supplies to survive." He narrowed his eyes. "There is no excuse for that."

"Do you at least believe me about dark mana then?"

"After seeing what happened to Agent Humphry when he used this 'dark mana', I understand your concerns." The man replied. "I also see something that you likely hadn't considered."

"Like?" The Brazilian woman asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Consider; what if someone weaponized this 'dark mana'?" He replied, the placid mask slipping slightly and probably intentionally to reveal some actual concern. "Consider, what if a government weaponized it so they could turn anyone they wanted into a psychopath?"

She grimaced.

"But, that doesn't excuse you destroying the portal." He continued, his face becoming unreadable again. "With it, we stood a chance of getting our people home. Without it..." His eyes narrowed.

Selene took a moment to brush Mr. Brass's mind. For some reason, it wasn't as easy as other minds she'd visited. His mind seemed to actively resist her intrusion, though not nearly as much as someone with true mental defenses would. It took her several seconds of careful poking to find a way through without applying force, but she did manage to.

Right now, his emotions were like standing in a blizzard without a coat. The only phrase she could think of to describe it was 'cold fury', and it didn't seem like it was coming from the loss of the portal either. She couldn't be sure, but it seemed like it was coming from their men being stranded in the Ten Kingdoms. She hadn't been expecting that.

"They aren't stranded." Selene said after pulling herself out of his mind.

"Explain." Mr. Brass ordered.

"I only destroyed the control gem, the portal ring itself is still intact. It can't create a portal, but it can receive a portal projected from somewhere else."

"Which is useless unless someone from the Ten Kingdoms collects our men and projects a portal here." His gaze was cold. "That won't happen."

"Well, actually..." She got a sheepish grimace on her face.

"I think what Selene means to say is--." Yvonne cut in and then clearly started quoting something, complete with a voice imitation. "--Excuse me, Mr. President, that's not... entirely accurate."

"Huh?" Selene looked at the female agent.

"Independence Day, a movie from 1996." Mr. Brass said absentmindedly without taking his eyes off of her. He looked at Selene for several long moments before speaking again. "You turned yourself in. You came back to Earth intentionally because you wanted to destroy the portal."

It wasn't a question.

"Busted." Selene admitted.

"Why?"

"For the reasons I've already stated." Selene replied. "I don't want Earth tech over there for some random warlord to get his hands on and start slaughtering people, and I don't want dark mana over here for obvious reasons." She looked pointedly at Clive's corpse, her hands still on top of her head since he was still pointing a gun at her.

"You have a way to contact 10k1 and get our people back?" Mr. Brass asked.

"I do, thanks to Adrian Kossel." Selene replied. She didn't want to admit that she was telepathic, but she needed to admit something. "It's one-way, but it's enough that I can signal him to project a portal here."

"How?" Yvonne asked. "We're at least dozens of light years away, and probably hundreds or thousands."

"Magic." She replied with wink.

Judging by their expressions, neither agent was amused.

"Look, I came here thinking it would be a one-way trip." Selene explained. "However, I still don't want our two worlds mixing."

"Our two worlds?" Yvonne raised her eyebrow.

"You know what I meant." Selene sighed. "Luminar Kossel is in the Ten Kingdoms with a fully functioning portal, and he's anchored about five miles south of your base. If you can order your men to pack up, Luminar Kossel can send them back here."

"Luminar Kossel?" Mr. Brass raised his eyebrow. "The man I knew wasn't religious."

"Well, apparently a lot can change in what, twenty years?" Selene shrugged. "Hell, for all I know, it's his cover because he definitely got involved with some black ops types while over there."

"That does sound like him." Mr. Brass said, though his tone gave nothing else away.

"If someone with some clout from your agency can come with me, Kossel can portal us to his ship, then he can portal us to your base and you can order them to close down. Kossel is willing to fly his airship to the base so they can leave through his portal; everyone and everything can come back to Earth."

"You planned this in advance?" Yvonne's eyes widened slightly.

"Well yeah, I didn't want to leave everyone stranded over there."

Mr. Brass took his finger off the trigger, but kept the gun pointed at her. "How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"Ask Yvonne here." Selene said. "She's the one who compiled my profile; she'll tell you."

The female agent nodded. "Unless she's been exposed to dark mana -- which is unlikely because her eyes are the correct color -- she would never want to leave people stranded on 10k1."

"One last question." Mr. Brass's eyes narrowed. "Where did you get this gun?"

"That was me." Yvonne spoke up. "I figured that Gonorran or Agent Humphry would try something and I wanted a little extra insurance."

Mr. Brass looked at the gun, where the phrase 'just in case' was still visible, written out in lipstick. He looked at Selene for several long seconds, glanced at Yvonne, and then lowered the gun. "Agent Benson, since you are so comfortable with risky endeavors, you will accompany Miss Dawson to the Ten Kingdoms, order the base to close ASAP, and then return here."

"Yes sir." Yvonne replied, then looked at Selene. "You swear that I'll be able to get back to Earth?"

"Unless someone at the base does something really stupid, yes."

Yvonne nodded. "Okay, signal your contact. We warned the base that the next portal opening might be delayed because we were training someone new to open it, so hopefully both of us showing up so far behind schedule won't be too much of a problem."

"Okay, I'll let him know." Selene nodded, incredibly grateful that this had gone so well.

* * *

*Okay Selene, I'll have someone send a note to Elder Goman and let you know when they're ready to open the portal.* Ethan thought to everyone since Selene had contacted the group chat. They were still congregated on Timarou's flagship, having been invited for an early dinner by the royal family.

Near him, Kendra had a blissful smile on her face and she was looking upwards. Her lips were moving but he couldn't hear what she was saying; probably a prayer of thanks to Illuminar for Selene's safety. He knew exactly how she felt. Their resident telepath had given them the super short version, promising the full story later.

He missed her.

He knew it was just the bond, but damn if he didn't miss her.

"I miss her too." Alana said softly from right beside him.

He smiled at her. "Are you sure that you aren't the telepathic one?"

"No." She winked.

He chuckled.

"I can write the note now." She said, then glanced at Rachel. "I think I'll get Rachel to help me."

"Yeah, it's a shame you have so much trouble writing by yourself." He winked.

She rolled her eyes, then collected Rachel and they headed back across the gangplank to the Argo.

"Good news?" Shara asked as she seemed to glide over to them.

He explained and the amber-haired queen smiled. "I am overjoyed to hear that Selene is safe. I assume you will be piloting the Argo to collect her soon?"

"Probably." He nodded, thinking about the 'serious thing' that Selene had said that she wanted to talk to him and his wives about. He hoped she was going to apologize for lying to everyone, but of course wasn't sure that was it. Another thought popped into his head. "You know, I might fly to Dotmier before we get underway though; see how Matthew and Yalia are getting on."

"Give them Timarou's regards." Shara said warmly. "I have seldom met a couple more ideally suited to one another, and that is without taking into account that Yalia is a nymph."

"Truer words have rarely been spoke." He replied.

"Please, stay a moment." Shara said. "My husband has something for you and perhaps now would be an opportune time to present it."

"Oh?"

She smiled at him, then glided away to where Lucien was discussing something with an official from Timarou. She said something to him, then the lord went to the captain's cabin, only to exit it moments later with a book in his hand.

"As you are becoming involved in a war, I thought this appropriate." Lucien said, holding the book out to him as he drew near.

Ethan took it and looked at the cover. The title was: "The Art of Battle".

"Of the many tomes I have read on the topic, this alone is a complete explanation of all the fundamentals." The lord explained. "I hope it will aid you."

He smiled. "Thank you; I have a feeling I'll need it."

Lucien nodded. "Unfortunately, so do I."

* * *

"And that should do it." Alana said as she finished writing the note for Elder Goman and then slipped it through the portal stone to him. She then turned to Rachel, who was standing right there. "So, that's two down..."

Rachel smiled and bit her lip, hesitated a moment, then nodded.

The wood elf stood up and stepped closer to her best friend who was also much more than just a best friend. She slid her hands around Rachel's waist and leaned into her as the redhead also wrapped her arms around Alana. She stayed like that for a moment, with her head resting under Rachel's chin before an idea occurred to her. She wanted to make Rachel's first time with a woman special and that meant not a spur-of-the-moment thing. However, that didn't mean she couldn't tease a bit now; you know, let her get a preview of what was coming.

She adjusted her head and tenderly kissed Rachel's neck.

The redhead froze.

Then a moment later she sighed and seemed to relax slightly. Alana kissed her neck again, this time more gently.

"We should stop." Rachel said while adjusting her head to give the wood elf better access.

"Why?" Alana asked, kissing the soft, smooth, delicious skin of Rachel's neck again, this time a bit higher.

"Because..." The redhead whimpered as the wood elf kissed her again, this time almost to the jawline.

"Because... why?" Alana kissed the spot where the back corner of the jaw met her neck and Rachel shuddered as she let out a breathy exhale.

"Because... Um..." Rachel whimpered as her head rolled slightly.

"Oh, we're not going all the way today." Alana whispered into her ear as she brushed her finger across the bare skin of Rachel's thigh, just under the hem of her dress.

"Why?" Rachel moaned softly.

Alana chuckled at the sudden reversal.

"Because it should be more special than this." She replied softly, then caught Rachel's earlobe with her lips and started to gently fondle it with both lips and tongue, occasionally adding a little sucking.

Rachel's knees seemed to fail slightly before she caught herself. Alana pressed forward, guiding the redhead to walk backwards until she hit the bed and fell backwards onto it, Alana following right after. The lithe wood elf slipped her legs up until she was straddling the panting redhead and then looked deep into her gorgeous pale blue eyes.

"And because our husband should be here, at least at the start." She smiled ear-to-ear. "You're going to freeze up a little when we start and I know he'll be able to help you relax, won't he?"

Rachel bit her lip, then nodded.

"It has a kind of poetry to it." Alana said softly. "I was able to help you relax with him, he'll be able to help you relax with me."

The redhead nodded, then spoke softly. "Alana?"

"Yeah?"

Rachel smiled. "Kiss me."

She did. She pressed her lips tenderly to her best friend's lips and let everything she felt for her flow into the kiss. Rachel seemed to be doing likewise because Alana could actually feel how much Rachel loved her as the redhead wrapped her arms around her.

They stayed like that for some time.

* * *

"And this is it." Sarah said, holding up the letter so Amy could see it. The artistic girl had been outside, painting a tree when Sarah had returned to the house. Sarah had recited the whole story and Amy's jaw had dropped when she got to the part about the letter.

"Can you read it?" Sarah asked, offering it to her.

"Of course!" Amy took the letter, broke the wax seal, unfolded it, and began to read. "To Illuminar's beloved daughter, Sarah."

Sarah beamed at that.

Amy continued. "Before addressing Sarah, my Lord would like to congratulate Amy on her recent marriage and--" Amy stopped and looked at Sarah. "How did she know?"

"Gabriella is an angel." Sarah replied with unconcealed glee on her face.

Amy just stared. "An angel?"

Sarah nodded.

"You've met an angel?" Amy said in an awed whisper.

She nodded. "What's the rest say?"

It took Amy several seconds to pick her jaw up, then she started reading again. "Um,...on her recent marriage and also on the twins." Amy froze, her jaw dropping and eyes growing large as saucers as she whispered hoarsely. "Twins?"

"You'll be a wonderful mother." Sarah beamed.

Amy just gaped at her, staring unblinking for several seconds. "B-but... b-but..."

"But nothing." Sarah beamed and gave her a hug. "You'll be a wonderful mother."

"How can you be sure?" Amy asked.

"Because I know you." Sarah gave her a little extra squeeze and then let go. "Trust me."

"Okay." Amy took a deep breath and then started reading again. "Um,...on the twins. Don't worry Amy, you'll be a wonderful mother."

Sarah burst out laughing.

She actually bent over double laughing for a moment while Amy gave her the stink eye for a moment and then started laughing too.

Eventually, Amy started reading again. "To Sarah, the next time you see the prophet, tell him that: 'Talven and Salma urgently need help'." Amy stopped and looked at her. "Who are Talven and Salma?"

Sarah shrugged. "I have no idea."

Amy went back to the letter. "They will be safe until the prophet hears this message, but they will be in imminent and grave danger by the time he does. Sarah, as it concerns your future, don't worry. As I promised before, and as my Lord wanted me to remind you: Everything will be okay in the end; if it's not okay, it's not the end." Amy frowned at that, then continued. "It's signed 'Illuminar's faithful servant, Gabriella'."

Sarah frowned as well. "That ending sounds..." She couldn't think of the word.

"Ominous?" Amy suggested.

Sarah nodded.

"Maybe it's meant to be encouraging?" Amy suggested, though both her tone and expression were a little hesitant.

"I think it is, but I don't think she would've reminded me of that unless something bad was going to happen." Sarah took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

She had been through bad things before and Illuminar had taken care of her; He would again as He had just reminded her in the letter. There might be difficult days coming, but Illuminar had promised that He would see her through them. She was going to focus on that.

At the back of her mind, she also remembered that she had her problem to protect her as well. She didn't like that the thought had occurred to her, especially after what Rindrin had said earlier. He was right of course, but that didn't mean she was happy about it.

She put it out of her mind to concentrate on the good.

"So, twins?" She beamed at Amy.

Her friend whimpered slightly despite the smile on her face.

* * *

Ethan touched down in Dotmier and folded his wings, not entirely sure why he had gone except that he wanted to check on the happy couple. It had occurred to him on the way that he didn't know where Matthew's house was, so he had gone to Arven and Ketura's house instead.

He knocked and was rather surprised when Harold Gladstone, Victoria's father, opened the door.

"Harold, hi." He smiled. "I wasn't expecting to see you here."

"Arven and Ketura generously offered to let us stay for a few days before my wife and I set off for Timarou." He explained, then stepped aside so Ethan could enter.

"Oh, one of my wives said you found a place to stay, but I didn't realize it was here." He said as he entered.

"Ethan, welcome!" Arven said, waving him inside from his seat at the kitchen table.

"Prophet Ejder!" Yalia called, exiting her old room with Matthew right behind her, her husband holding a box with what looked like her stuff that she hadn't moved the previous day.

"There's the happy couple." He grinned at them. "How's married life treating you?"

"Great!" Matthew beamed.

"Yes, he treats me very well." The nymph nearly purred.

Everyone chuckled as she went a little pink.

"We were just getting some my wife's stuff." Matthew explained.

"Yes, please call Yalia your wife at least one more time." Harold chuckled. "I'm afraid we didn't hear you the first dozen times."

Everyone laughed, but Matthew didn't look the least bit perturbed or embarrassed. Instead, he looked at Yalia and spoke with a mostly straight face. "Well my wife, how does it feel being a wife now that you are my wife."

The other newlywed matched his tone and expression. "I don't know my husband, but I hope you're as happy being my husband as I am being your wife."

Everyone laughed.

"I'm glad you're getting on so well." He beamed. "I wasn't sure Matthew would be able to get that tongue of his working when he challenged that luminar, but I'm glad he did."

"Yes, he's very good with his tongue." Yalia said almost absentmindedly as she looked at her husband dreamily, then bit her lip. There were some amused glances all around, and then Yalia seemed to realize what she'd said aloud and went beet red.

"Ah, young love." Harold chuckled. Ethan couldn't help but notice that the man seemed much improved from the rather gaunt, overly-stressed man he'd met only a few days ago. True, he was still thin, but he had more color in his cheeks and seemed much healthier. Apparently, no longer playing steward for the horrible Baron Martel agreed with him.

It occurred to Ethan that this was Victoria's father, and thus potentially his future father-in-law. Given that, he had an idea occur to him. "Harold, how were you and Carla planning to get to Timarou?"

"The old-fashioned way." Harold stuck out one of his feet.

"Dance." Matthew quipped, prompting more laughter. Ethan smiled; the Matthew he'd originally met would've never done that for lack of confidence. The change was good to see.

"Why do you ask?" Carla Gladstone asked.

"Just checking." He replied, then thought to the group chat. *Hey, do you think Lucien would be willing to give the Gladstones a ride to Timarou? They were planning to walk, but I would rather they were safe, especially because of Victoria.*

*I'll ask.* Alana replied.

*Thanks.* Ethan replied then mostly listened to the cheerful talk around Arven's table for a minute until Alana replied again.

*Shara says that she would be happy to send someone to collect them and bring them to their flagship.* Alana replied. *They're going to Laerten of course, and they'll be able to do almost anything they want from there. I might've mentioned the birthdays, which I'm pretty sure helped.*

*Okay, thanks.* He chuckled, then spoke aloud. "Harold, Carla; how would you like to hitch a ride to Timarou's capital on the Timarou royal airship?"

They stared at him.

"I asked, and they said they would be happy to take you with them." Ethan explained.

Harold smiled. "Is this partially because of Victoria?"

"I'll admit it occurred to me because of that." He conceded.

"What about Victoria?" Ketura asked, a sly smile on her face.

"It's not that, or at least not quite that." Ethan replied, and then explained about the birthdays. "So I suppose there's potential there, but I haven't... well, I don't plan on rushing that decision."

"You haven't told many people about this, have you?" Arven asked.

"No." He shook his head. "Lucien, Shara, and Lyra know, but no one else except the obvious people."

"Thank you for trusting us then." Matthew said, Yalia nodding beside him.

Ethan shrugged. "You're all good people; I do trust you."

Everyone smiled at that, including Ethan. It was funny; he had never had many friends on Earth because he'd been so focused on building his business. He had made more and better friends here in the Ten Kingdoms than he ever had on Earth, not to mention his wives. Despite the dangers and all he'd been through, his life was unquestionably better now.

He had a smile on his face for the rest of the visit after realizing that.

* * *

Selene didn't much enjoy the dynamic in the portal room. She wasn't actually being guarded, but everyone in the room except for Yvonne and Mr. Brass kept throwing suspicious looks her way. The medics had tended to the agents that Gonorran had injured, and the agents that hadn't survived had already been carried out in black body bags. For some reason, she got the distinct impression that they were blaming her for the agents' deaths. A super quick brush of a few minds confirmed that suspicion.

She almost brushed Yvonne's mind, but decided against it. She really didn't want to make a habit of just peering into people's heads. Maybe a little brush just to ensure that no one was malevolent, but she'd already verified that about Yvonne and didn't want to abuse her power.

*Selene?* Ethan's mental voice came directly to her.

*I'm here.*

*Elder Goman just replied. Luminar Kossel has the portal all set up and Elder Goman targeted it to the portal in the base you're at. Let me know when you're ready and he'll open the portal.*

*It's probably best to just open it because I don't want to let on that I can receive direct messages via telepathy.* She replied. *I really don't want to be a lab rat.*

*Fair.* He replied with laughter in his mental tone. *Standby.*

About two minutes later, Selene noticed something happening in the center of the ten-foot-wide portal ring. It looked like something resembling thick water bubbled for a moment, and then something like water started spiraling outward. It was like water circling the drain, only in reverse.

"Look alive." Mr. Brass said only a moment after it started, drawing everyone's eyes to the portal. "Agent Benson, Miss Dawson; prepare to move out."

"Yes Sir." Yvonne said, touched the pistol on her hip, and then strode forward to meet Selene in front of the portal.

"Fair warning, it's pretty uncomfortable passing through." Selene said as the water-like membrane of the portal finished spiraling out and touched the inside edges of the portal.

"Noted." Yvonne said. A moment later, the portal's surface changed and gained a slightly rainbow-like reflectance, like a soap bubble. "You're sure I'll make it back to Earth?" Yvonne said as she hesitated.

"Unless one of your men at the base does something stupid, yes." The Brazilian woman answered.

"Move out!" Mr. Brass ordered.

"Come on." Selene waved Yvonne forward, then stepped through the portal. It was just as uncomfortable as usual. Her entire body suddenly felt very cold, then the coldness was replaced by a warming sensation accompanied by no small amount of chills.

Unfortunately, the ground on the other side of the portal wasn't at the same level as Earth's side of the portal. Selene stumbled at the unexpected four-inch drop but recovered her balance. Behind her, Yvonne did the same thing before recovering as well.

Selene looked around, trying to get her bearings. They were in a small clearing in a forest, and she assumed about five miles south of the base because that's where Luminar Kossel had said he would wait with his airship. The airship was above them, anchored in place by a long anchor line. Extending down from the airship were two long ropes holding the portal upright.

In front of her, Luminar Kossel was standing by a portal control podium, holding what looked like a paired portal up to it. The paired portal had an opening that was larger than Ethan's portals. This one was large enough for a hand to pass through it, and an elderly hand from the portal was on the large control gem in the control podium.

Elder Goman's hand?

That would make sense since a portal took about two people's worth of normal mana to open and no one else was around.

"As I live and breath." The luminar said with a wide smile as he looked at Yvonne. "Agent Abernathy, it's good to see you again."

Yvonne smiled. "Actually, it's agent Benson now." She raised her hand and pointed to her ring finger, which curiously didn't have a wedding ring on it.

"Benson?" Kossel smiled wider. "You finally nagged Benson into taking you out on a date huh?"

"I did nothing of the sort." Yvonne replied good-naturedly. "He was lucky I said yes when he asked."

Kossel laughed at that, then pointed up at the sky. "Is that... Do I see a pig flying?"

The two women chuckled.

"I'm glad; Benson was a good man." The luminar said after a moment.

"He still is." She smiled warmly. "Good father too."

"And you're a mother too? Wonders never cease." Kossel said, clearly ribbing her.

"What about you and that biologist?" Yvonne replied. "You two were flirting up a storm before going through the portal and she was the sweetest girl I ever met."

Luminar Kossel's smile became more pained. "She..." He sighed, lowered his head a little, and then slowly shook his head.

Yvonne's face fell. "I'm sorry."

"Thank you." He took a deep breath and his face became all business without the sadness, rather like Kendra sometimes did when her 'mask' slipped into place.

Kendra...

The next time she saw her best friend, she needed to apologize. She wasn't looking forward to it, but she needed to. Selene put the thought out of her mind to concentrate on the current mission. It wasn't as easy as she would've liked though.

"We should get you two to your destination." Luminar Kossel said. "Elder Goman will retarget the portal, which will probably take ten or fifteen minutes, then we'll send you off to the base. Once you've confirmed that they are willing to pack up using this portal--" He indicated the one they had just passed through. "--Selene will let Ethan know, he'll send a letter to Elder Goman, who will send one to me. Then I'll move the Midnight Sun to over the base, lower the portal, and they can start the Evac." He looked at Yvonne. "Standard type 4 outpost correct?"

"Yes."

"So, they should be packed up and gone before dawn." Luminar Kossel said. "With an archmage fueling the portal, it can remain open for ten minutes at a time before it will need to be closed. There will be five minutes of downtime before it can be opened for that long again."

"That should be plenty of time." Yvonne nodded.

"Okay, then let's get this base on the road."

* * *

Ethan dropped to the Argo's deck, a smile still on his face after visiting Dotmier. The Timarou flagship was still alongside the Argo, though the crews of each were untying the moorings and the gangplank had already been put away.

"Hang on a moment ladies." He said to his wives, then jumped into the air and glided to the other airship, tucking his wings and landing next to the royal family.

"Well met Ethan." Lucien extended his hand and Ethan shook it.

"Take care and safe travels." He said.

"We shall." Lucien replied

"You need not worry about safety." Shara said with no small amount of pride. "I do not believe there is a single airship in the Ten Kingdoms that could stand in battle against my husband. If you believed the orcs were disciplined and well-trained, you should see Timarou's elite troops."

"I believe it!" Ethan laughed.

"And yet, even I would not wish to engage Lord Delmar." Lord Kalus said.

"Because you wouldn't want to hand him an embarrassing defeat?" Lyra quipped, then turned to Ethan. "Since you have two more wives to wed, let us know when you find them and please, invite us to the weddings if at all possible.

"I will, though I think I've already found all of them, even if I'm not sure who the next one will be." He then explained about Sarah and her birthday.

"The possessed girl and the prophet." Lucien said with an amused smile. "If someone needed proof that Illuminar has a sense of humor, this would suffice."

"That, and the duck-billed platypus." Ethan chuckled, after which of course he had to explain the strange animal.

"You're having a go at us." Lyra said suspiciously when he was done.

"Nope." He shook his head. "I saw one at a zoo once; strangest animal ever."

The ash blonde shrugged. "Okay, not having a go at us, but one of your wives might've hinted that you should have a go at them..." She winked.

Shara let out a long-suffering sigh while Lucien slowly shook his head.

Shara opened her mouth to speak, but Lyra beat her to it, a decidedly impish grin on her face. "No, I won't learn 'proper decorum' and if you keep trying to make me, I might decide to not 'have a go' at you for a while.

The other queen pressed her lips into a thin line, but didn't speak.

"If you will excuse me Ethan, I do believe I need to attend to my wives." Lucien said with a perfectly straight face, but his eyes were twinkling.

"Enjoy." Ethan chuckled, then added. "And may Illuminar--" He paused, trying to remember the exact phrasing they always used, because 'when in Rome'... "--guide you on the path of light as you travel."

"You as well my friend." Lucien replied.

They shook hands again and then Ethan returned to the Argo as Timarou's flagship began to turn gracefully to sail home. Well, Dotmier to pick up Harold and Carla Gladstone, then home. He was glad that Victoria's parents would have safe passage; Ivernian roads weren't the safest from what he'd been told.

Victoria rushed up to him and threw her arms around him when he landed on the Argo. "Thank you; I'll feel so much better knowing that my parents are safe."

"You're welcome." He smiled at her when the hug broke.

She looked at him for a long moment. "If you were anyone else, I would think you were trying to seduce me."

"I think I'll take that as a compliment." He chuckled. He would've liked to imitate Joey Tribbiani's famous pick-up line from Friends as a joke, but he knew she wouldn't get it and didn't feel like explaining it.

"Smart man." She looked at him for a few seconds, opened her mouth, then closed it and gave a quick shake of her head. "Anyway, thank you."

"You're welcome." He smiled again, then looked up and called out loudly. "Ladies, got a minute?"

Not long afterwards, he and all of his wives plus Myla, Victoria, and Thea were standing in a circle.

"So, next steps." He looked around at everyone. "Now that the orc situation is resolved and the portal is destroyed, where to next?"

"Vacation Master!" Tee's wings vibrated.

"After we pick up Selene." Kendra corrected, then smiled. "But a vacation after that."

"And perhaps after that, we should get Thea home." Ethan looked at the wood-elven king's ward.

Thea shrugged. "There's no hurry for that. If you wanted to get back to Nalatia by way of the Southern Lands and then Arcanum, that would be fine."

"Those are in opposite directions." Tee said, raising her eyebrow.

"She knows." Alana said wryly, beating Ethan to the punch.

"I'm just saying that I actually need to get back at a specific time." The elf replied with sly grin. "It's not like they'll start my own coming-of-age ball without me." She winked.

Everyone either chuckled or shook their heads.

"Speaking of, we really should write a note to the king of the wood elves to let him know that Thea is here." Ethan said.

"I already took care of that." Alana smiled. "Actually, just hours after she arrived, before Matthew and Yalia's wedding."

"Damn, thanks." He grinned. "I know there was a reason I married you."

"I know." Alana said, then added in a mock-diva-esque tone while fake fanning herself. "All the men were chasing me because of my note-writing skills."

Everyone laughed.

"Dominus." Beth spoke up. "This isn't a destination, but what about your parents? We could meet them using those linked portal rings that Luminar Kossel made for you. I would love to meet them and see what they're like."

He felt his heart get lighter at that idea. "Absolutely. We'll need to get the receiving ring to them, but we should be able to do that with the portal that Luminar Kossel has with him." As he thought about sailing there, he remembered someone else who was rather dear to him that was nearby.

Apparently it showed on his face because Rachel spoke up. "My lord, did you want to check on Sarah again?"

He hesitated. "Yes, but I said that I would stay away. Although..." He cocked his head to one side, then thought to everyone. *Selene, got a minute?*

No answer.

*I think she has her connection to the group chat closed right now.* Kendra suggested.

He nodded, then thought to Selene privately. *Selene, you got a minute?*

*Sure, I'm just waiting for Elder Goman to finish retargeting the portal. What's up?*

*I'd like to ask a favor.*

*Anything.* She replied instantly. *You name it.*

He was half tempted to tease her about that, but decided not to; things just weren't that way between them anymore. *I wanted to check on Sarah when we came to pick you up, but she asked me to stay away.*

*I would love to go see her and make sure she's okay.* The Brazilian woman said with genuine warmth in her tone. *I've missed her a lot.*

*Thanks.* He breathed a sigh of relief. *I really appreciate it.*

*You're welcome, and I'm happy to.*

"Selene will check on Sarah for me." He looked around at the ladies on the Argo. "So, picking up Selene and checking on Sarah first, then we'll see about arranging a visit with my folks while we travel to the Isle of Moragana for vacation, then Nalatia." He looked at Alana. "And we might even be able to do something for your parents, especially your mother."

Thea opened her mouth, looked at Alana, and then raised her hand to speak, though she only had her forefinger raised on that hand. "Who are your parents? Maybe I can help?"

"My mother is Kalaya Kalon." The wood elf replied.

"Oh." Thea smiled. "My sister was best friends with her growing up..." She cocked her head to one side. "Oh, I bet that's why she paid for me to come meet you guys; she's hoping to see her friend again, probably hoping you can help with that because you're her daughter." She finished speaking by looking at Alana.

"Your sister knew my mother?" Alana's eyes grew wide.

Thea nodded vigorously. "Absolutely, they're about the same age and were best friends since childhood. My sister still talks about her all the time; she uses Kalaya's name and everything. I know she's been trying to see her for... uh, actually, I think since Kalaya was shamed."

Ethan and all his wives stared at Thea.

"The connections between Pelathea Wild-Child, the prophet, the King, and House Kalon would seem to be a coincidence of rather extreme improbability." Myla said after a moment, though she was smiling and Ethan got the impression that she was alluding to divine orchestration rather than hinting that anything was wrong.

"Um, only sort of." Thea replied. "My father was a liaison between the head of House Kalon and the King, so my family knew both of them well. When my parents died, my sister was of age and my father had left everything to her, but she couldn't raise me because she was too young and wasn't married. The King volunteered to take me as his ward because my father did something for him at some point that was a 'great service' to him."

"What great service?" Beth asked, though it looked like she'd beaten Alana to asking by fractions of a second.

"I don't know." Thea replied. "No one would tell me. They just kept saying they wouldn't tell me until I was of age."

"Of age." Rachel nodded. "That isn't uncommon for serious matters, which is why you had to wait until you were twenty-three."

"Twenty three?" Ethan asked. "Is that when elves come of age?"

"Yes." Alana replied. "If we would've met a few months before we did, I would've been ineligible to marry."

"Oh. I didn't know that." He looked at his first wife, thinking that Selene would probably make a teasing comment about him 'robbing the cradle' with how young several of his wives were.

"Now you do." Alana smiled.

"Yes, Dominus knows us very well." Beth grinned slightly.

"In the Book of Light sense; we know." Victoria chuckled.

"Master, some of your wives have short memories and we wouldn't want to forget what that's like..." Tee grinned.

Ethan assumed a mock pensive posture and tone as he nodded slowly. "That could indeed be a problem. We might want to take steps to rectify that."

"To confirm." Alana interrupted. "Picking up Selene, then she'll check on Sarah, then we'll see if we can see your parents while we're sailing towards the Isle of Moragana for a vacation, and after that to Nalatia?"

"Any objections?" He looked around.

No one objected.

"Then Sir..." Alana almost purred. "...I find myself being forgetful and in need of some knowing."

Ethan put on a mock-longsuffering expression and said in a mock exasperated tone. "Work, work, work."

Myla got a small, amused smile on her face while Victoria and Thea shook their heads and chuckled.

* * *

Selene shuddered as she passed through a portal for the second time in under an hour. It was just as unpleasant as every previous time, only the welcoming committee wasn't as genial as Luminar Kossel had been. The inside of the ruined temple looked exactly the same as it had when she'd left it a few days ago. It looked like a stereotypical temporary military base that she'd seen on TV, except that everything was far more squared away and orderly.

However, she did notice the looks of relief on several faces as she and Yvonne came through the portal.

"Agent Benson, we weren't expecting you or Miss Dawson." The base commander said. She was an imposing woman built like Brienne of Tarth from Game of Thrones. She also looked relieved as she continued. "The portal was an hour and a half overdue."

"That's because everyone on Earth who is capable of opening it is dead." Yvonne replied.

Selene heard more than one sharp intake of breath, mostly by the more scientist types.

"Then how did you arrive?" The base commander asked.

"Miss Dawson here secured a local asset who can operate a portal." Yvonne explained. "Your orders are to pack up and head home because travel between the two worlds is about to end; you have twelve hours."

The base commander shook her head. "There's no way we can move that much gear that fast; not with the portals only staying open for one minute."

"This guy can keep it open for ten minutes, with only a five-minute break in between portal openings." Yvonne replied.

"Okay, I'll need command authorization." The base commander replied.

"Charlie, Zulu Foxtrot, Niner, Niner, Echo, Papa, Siera."

"That'll work." The commander replied, then looked around. "You heard the lady, pack it up."

"A local airship will be arriving with another portal." Yvonne added. You'll load everything through that one because this one isn't capable of creating a portal, only receiving one."

The base commander nodded, and ninety seconds later she had men starting to dig a narrow trench into which the incoming portal could sit so it would be level with the ground. The entire camp had come alive and everyone was moving with purpose, and frankly, it looked like no small amount of relief. Apparently, having a scheduled portal open so late had driven home the very real possibility of getting stuck on this planet.

Having nothing else to do, Selene mostly tried to stay out of the way. At this point, the sun was starting to get rather low in the sky, though it hadn't set yet. She hoped that by morning, the entire base would be gone.

*Well, mission accomplished.* She thought to everyone after reopening her connection to the group chat. *They're packing up everything now and Luminar Kossel will be here with the portal soon.*

There was a longer-than-usual pause before she got a response, and when Ethan did reply, he seemed very distracted.

*Okay, thanks.*

She frowned, then checked her bond with him to see why he was-- Oh. That. She felt her cheeks grow warm and closed her connection to the group chat as she started looking for something else to do.

* * *

Fiona sat in a rocking chair in Conner's nursery, feeling groggy after the short nap she'd taken after all her healing training. She had spent practically the entire afternoon practicing and training magical healing with a Mage Weston-approved teacher, and had spent a not insignificant amount of coin on mana sinks to replenish her mana so she could keep practicing.

She was getting better though. She could feel the difference and her teacher said that he'd rarely seen someone take to healing that well before. She wondered if perhaps that was because she was bonded with a dragon, but obviously wasn't going to say anything about that.

She was finally done and sitting in the nursery that was directly off of Lord Delmar's room, sitting in a rocking chair with Nurse Belcosta in another rocking chair doing some knitting. The nursery was nice, though it clearly had been decorated for a girl, not a boy. Honestly, it probably hadn't been redecorated since Rachel had slept in here.

Fiona yawned.

She'd taken her nap on the couch in the nursery since she felt rather strange about being in Lord Delmar's bedroom alone. She knew in her head that it was now her bedroom as well, but she didn't actually feel like it was her bedroom, and not even because Helene's things were still in there. Oddly, she found that rather comforting because it reminded her that her husband had real emotions, even if he kept them bottled up.

"It's not often that someone voluntarily spends more time practicing healing." The nurse pointed out when Fiona had explained why she was so tired in response to the nurse asking.

"I... I'm..." The copper-haired woman yawned. "I'm knowing that, but considering how Helene was dying, I'm hoping this will be helping Lord Delmar not to worry so much."

The nurse smiled and she clicked away with her knitting needles. "I've seen many devoted wives in my time; you're up there with the best of them."

"Thank you." Fiona smiled. "I'm just knowing that ruling Narlotten is such hard work and I'm not wanting to make it any harder on him."

"That's a wonderful thing." She smiled.

Fiona looked down at her Conner as he nursed. She had a blanket over herself of course, but she looked under it. He seemed to be getting sleepy as he finished.

"I'm right there with you little guy." She smiled.

He drifted off to sleep after he was done and she put him in the crib. She stood watching him sleep for a few minutes, marveling that she and Sean had created a tiny little life together. She also found herself wondering what her son from Lord Delmar might look and be like.

Knock, knock.

"Enter." The nurse said without looking up.

One of Lord Delmar's errand boys stepped into the room and bowed respectfully. "Begging your pardon my lady, Lord Delmar would like you to join him in his office."

"I'll be coming presently." Fiona said, then yawned again.

She left a minute later, leaving Conner in Nurse Belcosta's care. It was a short walk to his office because it was located close to the bedroom, off of which the nursery was located.

"Lord Delmar was asking to see me." She said to one of the guards outside.

"Enter." Her husband said from inside the room before the guard could reply.

She did so, noting that he wasn't seated at the desk but rather standing and looking at the large map of Narlotten on the one wall.

"You were asking to see me?" She said.

"Lady Ekthros has returned from her fact-finding mission concerning the orcs in Ivernia." He replied without preamble. "Once she learned that we were wed, she asked if she could meet with you alone."

Fiona frowned.

"I understand that you have a personal dislike of her." He continued. "However, she is a high-ranking member of my council and you will likely find yourself in close proximity to her on a regular basis. You do not have to like this fact, but it is a fact."

"That there is a fact." She frowned. "I might not be liking her and her heartless ways, but I can be treating her with civility."

He looked at her for a long moment before speaking again. "Do you know who the Sisters of Mercy are?"

"Aye." Fiona had heard of them often, mostly in larger cities where there were enough patrons to support their work. "They're an organization of women devoting their free time to help mothers who have miscarried or had a stillbirth."

"I pay the members of my council very well." He continued, though she had no idea where he was going with this. "They are given a coin purse on the first day of every month. Every single month since Lady Ekthros came into my employ, upon receiving the coin purse, she exits the castle, purchases a few small necessities, and then visits the Sisters of Mercy chapter in this city. She always exits the building without the coin purse. Perhaps not coincidentally, they have been able to expand greatly since she came into my employ."

Fiona stared at him for several seconds. "Are you being serious?"

He nodded once. "I would not use the word 'heartless' to describe her. Ruthless? Yes. Dangerous? Certainly. Overzealous? Without question. However, she is not heartless. I have been forced to reign in her more severe punitive tendencies more than once, but she has only ever directed them at the wicked. She has also championed the rights of Narlotten citizens and works tirelessly to improve their lot."

"I'm still not liking her." Fiona said after a moment, not entirely sure what to make of that new information. The Sisters of Mercy were universally respected and regarded as righteous women doing noble work. Still, just because Lady Ekthros gave almost every copper she made to a good organization didn't make her a good person.

"That is your prerogative." He replied. "However, she wishes to meet with you regarding matters of castle security so I must insist that you meet with her, regardless of your personal animosity."

"Yes milord." She nodded. "I can be getting along with her, little though I'm wanting to."

"She will be waiting in the Gibstine drawing room at sunset. I will see you at dinner afterward." He gave her a respectful nod, then looked back at the map.

"Um, milord?"

He turned back to her. "Yes."

"How is the orc situation?" She was curious, but she also wanted to talk to him a little longer.

"It has been resolved." He replied. "Lord Kalus of Timarou was involved, but I have not heard the full report yet. You may inquire of Lady Ekthros for the specifics."

"Thank ya, I'll be doing that." She replied.

He gave her a respectful nod, then turned back to the map again. She almost said something else, but decided this wasn't a conversation that she wanted overheard by the guards, no matter how discreet they were. She decided to bring it up with Lord Delmar before they went to bed that evening.

She was also wanting to discuss how they coupled. Despite how physically pleasurable it had been on her wedding night, she was wanting something a bit more real, even if the purely physical pleasure was less.

* * *

Selene was rather amazed at how fast the base could be broken down, and it was rather like watching a perfectly choreographed dance. It seemed like everyone had been given an evacuation plan far in advance and they knew it by heart. She supposed that she shouldn't be surprised since the nameless agency apparently had a near-limitless budget and seemed to only hire the best people.

Luminar Kossel had arrived an hour ago and whoever was piloting the Midnight Sun had expertly guided the still-hanging portal into the slot dug out for it. Luminar Kossel had come down with the control podium, placed the small paired permanent portal on top of the stone, and then the portal had opened about a minute later. Ever since then, there had hardly been a single moment where someone wasn't going through the portal to take something to Earth.

They were extraordinarily efficient.

As it neared sunset, Luminar Kossel had called Yvonne over, talked to her for a moment, and then the agent took his spot near the control podium while the man himself started walking towards the forest.

That seemed odd.

Why would he go now and trust Yvonne to watch the portal when he could wait and go later? She frowned, hesitated, and then followed him, walking as quietly as she could.

He only walked a few dozen yards into the forest before he stopped by a stone formation that jutted out of the ground. The stone formation appeared to be ancient, composed of a few large stones that probably had been destined for the ruined temple nearby. It looked like a couple of the large stones had broken ages ago and been dumped here. The way they had been dumped created a small alcove that was about a foot wide, and the rocks forming it were about two feet tall.

Luminar Kossel stood looking at them for a long moment. She could only see his back but his head was bowed, maybe he was praying? After a minute or two, he knelt down and reached into the small alcove. His arm moved several times, though it was hard to tell what he was doing.

"You won't be able to satisfy your curiosity from that far away." He said after a moment with his back still turned.

She winced. "I didn't know you saw me."

He chuckled, but it was a strange sort of humorless chuckle that sounded pained. "I helped train Serif; of course I saw you."

"Fair." She replied as she came closer.

The tiny alcove was about one foot wide and roughly square-shaped, formed by the intersection of the large, mostly buried stones. There was a patch of ground perhaps one foot square into which a small wooden cross was stuck. The cross had been painted -- or perhaps magically colored? -- white and appeared to have been made with rather a lot of care. In the center of the cross, someone had carved two letters:

"J.R."

It didn't take a genius to figure out what that meant, nor to guess why Luminar Kossel was here. Suddenly, she felt rather uncomfortable and awkward about following him.

He carefully started cleaning the leaves and small sticks away from the cross and the small area around it. He didn't speak as he did so and he seemed unusually quiet. He did this for about 30 seconds until it was clear of debris and looked somewhat neater. Then he reached into his shirt, pulled out a single flower, and laid it in front of the cross.

He stood and took a deep breath that had a slight shudder in it.

Looking at the size of the patch of earth, Selene realized that there was no way a full-grown person or even a child could've been buried there. This was a baby at the largest, and possibly one that had never lived outside the womb.

"Um, I don't want to intrude." She said after a moment, not sure what else to say.

"You aren't." Luminar Kossel replied. It was hard to tell in the shade of the trees since the sun was getting low, but his eyes looked somewhat watery.

"I'm sorry." She said after a moment.

"As am I." He stared at the little cross for several long seconds. "She insisted on naming him 'Adrian Junior'." He said with the air of someone reminiscing. "She said that she wanted him to be just like me because I was the best man she'd ever known. I told her that I wasn't that good, but she insisted." He got a pained smile on his face that was more pain than smile. "I didn't have the heart to tell her no."

"The biologist that Yvonne mentioned?"

He nodded. "She was the sweetest, kindest, most loving woman I ever met." He chuckled, though it was tinged with pain.

"She must have been wonderful." Selene replied.

He nodded. "She didn't care about my past." He got a pained smile on his face as he looked at the small cross. "When we realized that we were stranded here, she said that she didn't care as long as we were stranded together."

"Aww." Selene blinked a few times, her eyes now getting a bit watery as well. "What happened to her?"

He gave another pained chuckle that seemed more pain than mirth. "Our choices have consequences. Even choices made with the best of intentions can have..." He looked down at the grave. "...unforeseen consequences."

"I'm sorry." Selene said softly.

"As am I." He replied quietly.

Not sure what else to do, Selene stood there quietly. She did what she remembered helping after her brother had died; she just stayed there not saying anything. Sometimes, words just weren't sufficient to express the pain.

Luminar Kossel spoke after a few moments. "My wife was determined to make this world a better place, and she has, but the cost..." He slowly shook his head.

Selene wanted to ask more, but it didn't feel like the right time to ask. Frankly, she doubted there would ever be a good time. He was usually so tight-lipped and she was pretty sure the only reason he had spoken was because they were standing by his son's grave.

"I ask that you be discreet about this." He said after a moment. "I won't ask you to never reveal it, but at the same time, I ask that you keep it to yourself unless you have a very good reason to reveal it."

"I can do that." She replied, a bit surprised that he hadn't sworn her to complete and total secrecy. For a moment, she wondered if perhaps he had intended for her to see him visit the grave. The Serif could've easily slipped away without her noticing and Adrian had helped train him, so assuredly Adrian could've slipped away unnoticed as well.

Why didn't he?

He interrupted her train of thought by speaking again. "Since you will be on the Midnight Sun for several days while we await the Argo, I would be willing to teach you some of what I know about both unarmed combat and the use of a sword."

Selene's eyes grew wide. "Seriously?"

He nodded, though he was still looking at the small grave. "Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I asked you to be discreet and prefer the carrot to the stick."

"Deal." She said, then looked at the grave again.

It was such a small grave.

She couldn't imagine what that must've been like to go through. She didn't want to. It seemed like it would be such an overwhelming thing. She had felt crushed by the grief when her brother had died; she couldn't imagine what it was like to lose a child. Despite never having known the baby, the mother, nor knowing Luminar Kossel very well, she could feel her throat get tight and her eyes get moist.

* * *

Fiona took a deep breath outside the Gibstine drawing room, knowing that Lady Ekthros was waiting for her on the other side of the door. She took a moment to remind herself that she was a noble lady now, the First Lady in fact, meaning that Lady Ekthros couldn't do anything to threaten or intimidate her. She reminded herself that she needed to be civil and polite, but nothing more.

She held her head high, took another deep breath, opened the door, and walked through.

The Gibstine drawing room was decorated in a pale green color with several bookshelves, a few narrow windows to the outside, several couches, and a few tables. Lady Ekthros was sitting at one of the tables sipping some tea, which she set down and then stood as Fiona entered.

"Hello Fiona--" She stopped, then corrected herself. "Hello, Lady Delmar." She then did a respectful head bow. Fiona was pretty certain that she hadn't forgotten to address her as Lady Delmar, but had intentionally used her name and then corrected herself to the title to acknowledge the difference between them now; to acknowledge the change.

"Lady Ekthros." Fiona forced a smile and then joined the other woman at the table.

"May I speak first and have permission to speak freely?" Lady Ekthros asked.

Fiona nodded.

"Thank you." The other lady replied. "I won't be at the castle long since I'm about to leave again to question some associates of the false prophet."

"You are?" Fiona asked

"Yes, informants of his." Lady Ekthros nodded. "They fed him some information about an Ivernian official who the false prophet subsequently attacked; twice. The Ivernian military found out and burned them out, but the prophet apparently escorted them to safety. I've known about them for a while, but have been chasing more prominent leads."

"Well, I'm hoping they tell you something useful." Fiona said, trying to keep her tone in check. She felt the urge to rage whenever her first husband's murderer was mentioned.

"Oh, they will." Lady Ekthros said confidently. "I'm even bringing some of my best agents in case he tries to intervene."

"Good." Fiona said firmly. "But I'm thinking that isn't the reason you were asking to see me privately. What is it you were wanting to talk about?"

"Straight to the point, I can respect that." Lady Ekthros replied. "I see no point in sugar-coating the obvious. You and I don't like each other and that's not likely to change much. You dislike my practical approach to the world because you think it's heartless and cruel. I dislike how naïve you are about the world, even despite the heartbreaking events recently in your life."

Fiona wanted to object that she wasn't naïve, but she could admit that she didn't deal with wicked men often. She supposed that from the other woman's perspective, she might be.

"I don't think we would make good friends." Lady Ekthros continued. "Fortunately, we don't need to be friends for our roles. I would be a poor First Lady and you would make a poor intelligence specialist."

"Aye, that's fair."

"And for the record, I do think your husband's death was a tragedy."

Fiona narrowed her eyes. "I wasn't getting that impression when you were saying that Lord Delmar was wasting his time visiting me to offer to take care of me and my son." She tried to keep her voice even, but wasn't very successful.

"Do you know how long it took for him to travel to the various widows from the false prophet's attack and make a similar offer?" Lady Ekthros replied.

"No, I'm not knowing that." She conceded.

"Over a week." Lady Ekthros leaned forward slightly. "During that week, he had to cancel two council meetings, eight diplomatic meetings, reschedule a dinner with the nobility of Narlotten that had been months in the planning, and turn back an envoy from the wood elves that had just arrived. Do you have any idea of the diplomatic incident that caused with our honor-obsessed neighbors?"

"No." Fiona admitted.

"You were understandably upset because your husband had just been murdered." The other lady went on. "I wasn't objecting to Lord Delmar taking care of the widows; I was objecting to him ignoring serious and pressing matters in favor of gallivanting all over the countryside to personally visit each and every one of the widows when he could've easily summoned them to the capital and met with them personally there. That choice caused months of diplomatic havoc that we're still dealing with. The wood elves almost rescinded Narlotten's invitation to the coming-of-age ball for the wood elven king's ward for God's sake. They didn't, but it was close. It was that bad."

"I wasn't knowing that." Fiona admitted.

"Which is why I'm telling you." Lady Ekthros replied, though she didn't sound upset. "Objectively speaking, he did waste his time traveling to meet everyone."

Fiona frowned, not able to say she was wrong and not liking that fact.

"Lady Delmar, it might surprise you to learn that I think you'll be a positive force for Narlotten as its First Lady."

Fiona stared.

"There are two kinds of people in the world." Lady Ekthros continued. "Those who make the world a better place, and those who make the world a worse place. I do whatever I can to help the former, and whatever I can to eliminate the latter."

"Eliminate?" Fiona raised her eyebrow.

"Eliminate." Lady Ekthros confirmed, her tone indicating that she thought this was both right and proper. "I have been called a heartless bitch before and I'm happy to own that title. The world is a heartless bitch sometimes and wicked men only speak one language. The ones who won't change are a blight upon society and they need to be cut out like cancer. One bad apple spoils the whole bunch, so I smash the bad apples."

"That's a terrible way to be looking at the world." Fiona wasn't sure what 'cancer' was, but got the gist from the context. The other lady wasn't wrong about everything, but her approach seemed entirely without mercy or the potential for forgiveness and reform.

"Like I said, I would make a terrible First Lady, but I'm damn good at what I do." Lady Ekthros replied. "I follow all the happenings in the castle closely and I can say without equivocation that you will make Narlotten a better place as a First Lady, even though I don't like your naiveté. The people will like your gentle spirit and kindness; the criminals will love it. Thankfully, Lord Delmar and I will deal with the criminals, not you."

"I'm not sure if you're insulting me or not." Fiona said honestly.

"The right person for the right job." Lady Ekthros shrugged. "A knife is terrible for transporting goods and a cart is useless for self-defense. You're the right person for First Lady, I'm not. You aren't the right person for law enforcement, I am."

"And why are you saying all this?" Fiona asked after a moment.

"Because I want you to realize that ultimately, we're on the same side and we want the same things." Lady Ekthros replied. "We pursue that goal differently, but we both want Narlotten to be safe, happy, prosperous, and crime-free. You can help one way, and I another, but ultimately we are on the same side despite our different approaches to achieving our shared goal. I have no desire to be your friend, but I'm hoping we can at least put aside our mutual dislike in recognition of our shared goals."

Fiona thought about that for a moment. She still didn't like the lady's methods, but Lord Delmar independently confirmed what she was saying on more than one occasion. That didn't mean Fiona liked it, but she could see that perhaps at least there were good motives behind the horrible actions.

"How many times have you made that same argument to others in Narlotten?" Fiona asked after a few moments.

Lady Ekthros chuckled. "More than once."

"I suppose that -- while I'm still not liking your methods -- I can be admitting that at least your heart is in the right place."

"I was hoping you would say that." The other lady said, a small smile on her face.

"Though, I want to be making clear that good intentions can be harming people just as badly as poor intentions." Fiona clarified. "They're saying the road to Saidow's Lair is paved with good intentions, and they're saying that for a good reason."

Lady Ekthros looked at her for a long moment. "Have you heard of the Star-Hand Gang that was active in Karnas until recently?"

"Aye, but what's that having to do with anything?"

"They would use attractive young women to lure men into deserted alleyways, rob them, and often kill them in cold blood." Lady Ekthros leaned forward. "Now please, tell me how good intentions could result in cold-blooded murder?"

"Okay, I'm not seeing how." Fiona admitted.

Lady Ekthros spread her arms, palms up, as if to indicate that her point was made. Fiona decided not to pursue the matter any further. She knew that something wasn't right about the way Lady Ekthros saw the world, but couldn't quite put her finger on it.

There was a short silence, then Fiona remembered something that Lord Delmar had said that she could ask about. "How is the situation with the orcs?"

"Resolved." Lady Ekthros replied, then took a sip of her tea. "It turns out there was only one orc faction attacking the miners. Lord Kalus of Timarou led another orc faction against the problematic orc clan. I left a spy airship behind and it looks like Lord Kalus wiped out the problematic orc clan to a man-- err, orc."

Fiona breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad to be hearing that."

"Curiously, it seems like your first husband's murderer was involved." Lady Ekthros added.

"Oh?" Fiona clenched her jaw at the mention of the false prophet.

"It seems like he actually helped Lord Kalus a little." Her tone indicated surprise. "I think he might be trying to get allies and thus is likely on a 'heart and minds tour' of late, trying to convince everyone that he's not a murderous necromancer."

"Even Saidow himself is disguising himself as an angel of light, so that's not surprising." Fiona shook her head.

"Indeed." Lady Ekthros nodded. "Now, to the reason I asked for this meeting."

"Lord Delmar was saying it was having something to do with castle security?" Fiona asked.

She nodded. "Well, more your security than the castle's, though those two are linked. Have you ever heard of a kidnapping ring?"

"No." Fiona shook her head.

"Here, I brought one to show you." Lady Ekthros picked up a small wooden case and set it on the table. Judging by the way she handled it, it seemed like something heavy was inside. She opened it and pulled out a piece of steel shaped roughly like a water drop with a flat bottom that was about three inches in diameter and had a leather cord poking out of the top.

"Now, watch what happens when I activate this ring." The lady pulled a small ring out of the case and a moment later, the leather cord attached to the weight snapped straight and began pointing at the ring. The lady moved the ring and no matter where she moved it, the cord pointed straight at the ring.

"Oh, I think I'm seeing." Fiona said. "If you're being kidnapped, you activate the ring and the cord will always be pointing at you, so you can be found and rescued."

"That's the idea." Lady Ekthros smiled. "I would like you to wear one just in case someone gets the 'bright idea' to kidnap you. We'll be able to find you and then put them in the ground faster than you would believe."

"I suppose I could be doing that." Fiona shrugged.

"The only caveat is that you need to wear it all the time." The other lady said. "Kidnappers don't tend to give a warning and so it's best if you never take it off, even to sleep." She lowered her voice. "I don't expect that anyone could get past your husband at night, but if he is away and you've built up a habit of taking it off..."

"Aye, that's making sense." Fiona nodded.

Lady Ekthros had a few rings with her of various sizes but with the exact same design. It was a fairly plain and unobtrusive design with some scrollwork and a small gemstone embedded into it. It wouldn't catch anyone's eye, but also it wouldn't look out of place with even a fancy dress.

"Are you giving these to all the high-ranking members of Narlotten?" Fiona asked as she looked at them.

"No, I only gave them to the ruling family, so just Lord Delmar and his daughter Rachel." Lady Ekthros replied. "Though, Rachel appears to have removed hers."

Lady Ekthros pulled out something like a key ring, but instead of keys it had incrementally larger sizes of holes to check a person's ring size. She found Fiona's size, then pulled a ring out of the case and handed it to her.

"You activate it like any other enchantment, but I wouldn't unless you are in danger." The lady said.

"Okay, I can be doing that." Fiona held the ring for a moment, something seeming 'off' about the whole thing. She wasn't sure what though. Plus, Lord Delmar was trusting Lady Ekthros, so she put it out of her mind.

She slipped the ring onto her finger.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Note: This chapter began and ended on day 107 of Ethan's life in the Ten Kingdoms. 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 August 28th, and it'll probably drop on the 30th or 31st.

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, romance, virgin, harem, blonde, brunette, redhead