Chapter 73: Two or three witnesses

* * *

Ethan took a deep breath as he and his wives approached Delabor outside the wood-elven king's palace so the herald could guide them to their meeting with the Crown Prince.

*It'll be okay.* Alana thought to everyone, but it was probably intended for him.

*God, I hope so.* He replied, then waved to Delabor.

"Greetings, honored Prophet." Delabor bowed. "The King requested that I escort you to the dining hall."

"Thank you." Ethan replied.

He led them away from the palace's grand entrance toward a smaller but still grand building nearby. Of course, like all wood elven 'buildings', it was made of trees grown together. He really would've loved to know how they did that.

Thankfully, the inside of this other building was nearly as grand as the palace. Ethan had been hoping to show his wives just how incredible it was, and he was finally getting his chance. Their collective intake of breath brought a smile to his face. From floor to vaulted ceiling, the entryway to the large building was covered with one large, massive carving on the wall. This one was even done with several different types of wood to provide a variety of colors, making the whole thing absolutely stunning.

"Wow." Alana breathed.

Everyone else nodded as they looked around, Sarah seeming especially captivated by the artistic display around them. Delabor had a small smile on his face as he stopped and let Ethan's wives absorb the scenery. They did. All of them craned their necks to see into the ceiling high above them, slowly turning on the spot to take it all in.

"I see now why you wished to share this with them." Delabor said to Ethan after several seconds.

He grinned and nodded.

After a minute, they all followed the herald down a short hallway that made Alana's eyes get slightly watery, likely at the beauty, and then they entered what Ethan assumed was the room they'd be dining in. The table was very wide, at least six or seven feet wide and twice that long, and it was supported by an immense, thick slab of wood that ran the whole length of it. He wondered if that was to protect the legs and feet of people sitting at the table. It was set with gold and silver plates and cutlery, and the candlesticks were made of the same. There were exactly eight places on each side of the table.

No one was in the room though, which was a mild surprise.

"The King wished for you to have the opportunity to examine the room beforehand to put your mind at ease regarding any potential dangers." Delabor said. "Now if you will excuse me, honored prophet, I have a task to attend to."

Ethan nodded, and the herald bowed and left just as the door on the opposite side of the hall opened. The doors were set perpendicular to the table, in line with the center of the table, so it was between them. The newcomer was a woman who looked very young, late teens at the oldest. She had dark hair and her skin was about the same shade as Kendra's. She was wearing a dress that covered every inch of her skin except her face and hands; even her neck was covered by a high collar.

Ethan might've thought she was a maid or waitress except for her utterly emotionless face. It was truly impressive how he could read literally nothing about her and how completely devoid of expression or emotion her face was.

"Tabitha." Kendra said, looking at the newcomer.

"Kendra." Tabitha replied, but didn't say anything else.

*She's Aldmiri, or was when I left.* Kendra thought to the group chat. *She was easily the best of my class, though she was in a different training group so we didn't see much of each other. Falkaan said that she's the best he's ever trained.*

*Is that good or bad news?* Rachel asked.

*Yeah, she won't try something, will she?* Selene asked.

*Probably not.* Kendra replied. *She was always a bit emotional though, or at least she was the last time I saw her before we were sent to different teams in our mid-teens, so be nice.*

*Will do.* Ethan replied, then realized what Kendra had said and had to catch himself to keep from visibly reacting, which might give away the group chat. *Mid-teens? That's how old she looks; how old is she?*

*About my age.* Kendra replied. *I don't know exactly, but she certainly is older than she looks.*

*Okay, thanks.* Ethan replied to his twenty-three-year-old fifth wife.

"I am here to ensure no traps are planted while you examine the room." Tabitha said after a moment. It was incredible how she could speak entirely without emotion.

"Kendra." Ethan nodded at her.

Kendra went to work, inspecting every surface that could be accessed without breaking something. She checked everything, including under everything and behind everything while Tabitha watched impassively. Honestly, it was a little creepy how she could stand there so utterly without emotion.

"It's clean." Kendra announced when she had finished.

"The King and The Queen will arrive momentarily." Tabitha said a moment later.

"Okay." Ethan replied.

An awkward silence followed.

"How have you been Tabitha?" Kendra asked after almost thirty seconds of uncomfortable silence.

"Alive." She replied with less emotion than a computer's text-to-speech program.

Ethan chuckled. "Do they teach all of you to give nothing away?"

"Yes." Tabitha replied, again, entirely without emotion.

"There's an enchantment on the table." Alana said after a moment.

"It's a truce table." Kendra nodded.

Everyone nodded except for Ethan and Selene.

"There's a warding enchantment down the center." Alana explained, then she walked forward, picked up a fork, and gently tossed it toward the center of the table. It seemed to hit an invisible wall and was flicked upwards rather violently, hit the ceiling, and Kendra caught it on the way down and returned it to its place.

"A typical truce table has dragon steel embedded in the center for the enchantment." Beth volunteered.

Ethan nodded, rather impressed by the lengths the Crown Prince was going to. Though, it might be The King since it was in a wood-elven building.

* * *

*And you're setting sail soon?* Anthiel thought to her husband as she relaxed on the Argo's quarterdeck. Normally, there were all kinds of sailing tasks to be accomplished, but there were none here in port and she was enjoying the chance to metaphorically kick up her feet and relax.

*In the next day or two, yes.* Ralgar replied. *We will need to make several supply stops, and the journey itself will take over a week even with ideal wind, but I will be on course soon.*

She smiled. *Wonderful. I've missed you and Miri so much.*

*And we, you.* He replied. *Oh, and the artist arrived in town yesterday and will be free today, so I will be able to get Miri added to the family portrait before we leave.*

*Oh wonderful.* Her smile widened.

*I'll feel better when we arrive.* He continued. *I have a full two dozen sailors who used to be marines that I can use to protect you. They might not look like much, but every one of them is reliable to the hilt and tough as dragon steel.*

*I love it when you get protective.* She chuckled. It never ceased to amaze her, even with her being over one hundred years old, that her husband could still make her heart sing like a blushing virgin bride.

*Good, because I don't intend to stop.* He replied, and she could hear the smile in his tone.

*One moment.* Anthiel said as she noticed a group of people approaching the Argo, led by Delabor. Uncharacteristically, the look on the herald's face was a bit more stony than normal.

Behind him were several men, all of whom looked like they meant business. They carried themselves like Kendra had before marrying Ethan and they wore what looked like imperial guard uniforms. Thankfully, they were stopped by the Lightguard, the elves The King had assigned to protect Ethan while he was in Nalatia.

"Halt." One of the Lightguard said as the newcomers drew closer. "This dock is restricted access; the honorable Delabor may pass, the rest may not."

The imperial guard who looked like their leader stepped forward and addressed Anthiel, though he had to raise his voice as he was rather far away. "I wish to extend an offer to the crew of the Argo from the Crown Prince."

Anthiel looked at him for a moment, then got up and walked down the quarterdeck stairs and to the gangplank, but didn't leave the Argo. "What sort of offer?"

"I was required to ensure that you understand that this is a true offer, and there will be no reprisal should you turn it down." The man said, clearly not happy about that. "All those on the Argo may recount their tales of their time with the prophet to corroborate his story, if they wish to." He hesitated, then added. "There will be no reprisal for those who don't wish to do so."

Again, judging by his tone, he wasn't overly fond of that.

Anthiel smiled; that was a very shrewd move by the Crown Prince.

"I would be happy to." Victoria volunteered from behind her.

"I would as well." Thea said as she approached with Ahjah.

"My time with the prophet has been quite short, but I would be willing to testify as well." Ahjah said.

"Hello Cledus." Serif said, seemingly appearing out of nowhere.

The leader of these imperial guards paled slightly. "Serif."

"Tell Prince George that the Serif trusts Ethan Ejder." The wiry crewman said. "He often does not think before he acts and thus sometimes causes harm, but he does not act with ill intent."

The leader of these imperial guards -- Cledus apparently -- nodded slowly. "I have what we need."

"Cledus, collect their testimonies." Serif's tone had an edge to it. "Two or three witnesses Cledus, two or three."

Cledus nodded.

* * *

Alana walked up to the truce table and put her hand on it, marveling at the subtle craftsmanship on the table. From afar, it merely looked like an ordinary tabletop. However, on closer inspection, what appeared to be wood grain from afar was actually many subtle carvings of various great meetings that appeared to have taken place at this exact table. There was also plenty of space for new carvings to showcase more meetings as well.

She smiled at that.

She supposed she couldn't help it since she was a wood elf and so it was in her blood, but she loved things like this. She truly, deeply, did.

She moved her hand closer to the center of the table where she could feel the warding enchantment. It was obvious that it had been enchanted to protect it from disenchantment, but that actually made her real purpose easier: she wanted to know how the warding enchantment worked. One of the best things about making an enchantment disenchantment resistant was that it crystallized the enchantment, making it easier to 'see' how it worked. She reached out to get a sense of how it worked and had to resist the urge to let her mouth fall open.

It was dizzyingly complex.

It was like watching a courtly dance with a hundred members from above as they all moved in seemingly random directions and yet never collided or broke the constantly changing pattern. However this enchantment was done, it was the most complicated enchantment she'd ever seen by at least an order of magnitude.

"Problem?" Rachel asked her quietly.

"Look at this warding enchantment." Alana said after a moment.

"It won't mean as much to me as it does to you because I'm rubbish at enchanting, but okay." The redhead replied, then closed her eyes and touched the table as well. After a moment she frowned. A moment later, her lips parted slightly and Alana found herself losing focus just a bit; Rachel had the most wonderfully feminine lips in the world. She had long ago decided to create two categories so that Rachel and Ethan could both be the best; Ethan had the best masculine features, and Rachel had the best feminine features. That way, they were both the best and didn't conflict with each other.

"Sweetie?" Rachel said, waking Alana from the very enjoyable fantasy that had just started in her mind.

"Sorry, what do you think?" She asked.

"It is indeed complicated." The loveliest woman in the Ten Kingdoms replied, though her tone had a bit of hesitation in it as well.

"But...?" Alana prompted.

"I'm not sure it's too complicated." Their resident mage said after a moment. "If we had a warding enchantment to examine and a lot of time, we might be able to reverse engineer it."

"Exactly." Alana smiled. "Not here, not now, but if we had something with a warding enchantment, even a tiny piece..."

*My lord, do you think The King could give us a small piece of dragon leather or dragon steel with a warding enchantment on it?* Rachel thought to the group chat.

*Maybe, why?* Ethan asked. Rachel explained, then he continued. *I can certainly ask.*

*Thank you.* Alana replied. *It'll save a lot of time if we can work it out ourselves. Plus, it'll give Rachel and me something to work on while you're at that tournament to meet Duke Farbrottan, since we won't be participating in it.*

*I'll ask him the next time I get a chance.* Ethan nodded.

Alana and Rachel took almost another minute to examine the enchantment on the table before the door at the other end of the room by Tabitha opened and a man walked in. He was about as tall as Ethan and was wearing an Imperial Guard uniform that didn't fit him quite right. Well enough, but not perfectly. He looked rather fit, had sandy blonde hair, a short beard that was slightly darker than his hair, and bright blue eyes.

Sarah gasped. "Ellis!?"

"Hello miss." He gave her a respectful head bow. "I'm glad to see you are well."

Sarah smiled widely and took several steps toward him before she seemed to notice Tabitha nearby and then stopped. "How have you been?"

"I have been very well miss, thank you. And you?" He looked happy enough to Alana, though he didn't seem entirely comfortable in his uniform and -- if she had to guess -- he probably felt slightly awkward.

"Wonderful! I'm betrothed now." She grinned, then glanced at Ethan.

"Hello again." Ethan said. "I thought you worked for Lord Delmar."

"Until yesterday, I did." Ellis replied. "Prince George had me transferred to the Imperial guard."

Alana could almost see the wheels turning in her husband's head; he was wondering how much Lord Delmar was involved in this. Alana thought it was a valid concern, but she could see another potential reason for it.

"That makes some sense." Rachel spoke up, beating her to the punch. "Sarah is comfortable with Ellis." She looked at the guardsman. "She spoke highly of you."

He smiled and looked at Sarah. "Thank you miss."

"If Prince George was trying to make us more comfortable, choosing guards who some of us already knew and were comfortable with would make sense." Rachel finished explaining.

Not ten seconds later, the door behind Tabitha and Ellis opened again, and two men entered wearing imperial guard uniforms.

"Aaron, Sebastian." Kendra said to each in turn.

"Kendra." They replied one after the other.

"I trained with them." The former Aldmiri said to Ethan and her fellow wives. "They were among the ones I distrusted the least."

The door opened again and The King and The Queen came through it, followed by the Crown Prince Himself. Two women were behind him. One had almost impossibly pale skin and cool-toned blonde hair combined with ice-blue eyes and a calculating expression. The other had light brown hair, freckles on her cheeks, and radiated genuineness and warmth. However, she looked quite nervous as she entered, and somewhat more so as her eyes landed on Ethan.

Behind them was a young man of about twenty, or perhaps a few years more. He was clearly the son of the Crown Prince and the icier woman, but he appeared to take after his father and the warmer woman in how he presented himself, except that he didn't look as nervous as she did.

Behind the young man were two other men, both much older. One had the look of a mage, probably there to analyze the portions of their tale having to do with magic. The other was carrying a massive pile of paper that looked unused, and he had a satchel on his side that clinked gently as he walked; possibly bottles of ink? It was almost certainly a scribe to record their tale, which made sense. Behind them were a couple of young elven women who were almost certainly handmaidens to The Queen.

"Honored prophet, welcome to the Hall of Concordance." The King said.

"Thank you for hosting this." Ethan replied, then looked at the Crown Prince. "Hello again."

"Good morning." The Crown Prince head bowed. "Thank you for agreeing to this meeting."

"You're welcome." Ethan replied.

"These are my wives, Princess Silvia of the Winter Empire, and my second wife, Helga." Prince George replied, indicating each in turn.

Princess Silvia executed a flawless curtsy that would make any high-born lady jealous, while Helga curtsied in a less polished manner, still looking a bit nervous.

"And this is my oldest son, Thomas, who is next in line for the imperial throne." Prince George said, indicating the young man.

Thomas bowed. "Well met, potential prophet." His tone was clear and his diction perfect.

"Happy to meet you." Ethan replied, but they were too far away to shake hands or anything. Plus, the imperial guards and truce table were between the Imperial family and Alana's own family.

"This is my family." Ethan indicated his wives and introduced each in turn.

When he introduced Sarah, she was staring at the Crown Prince and Helga. "I remember you."

"I'm glad." Helga said with a warm smile, though she still didn't seem entirely at ease with Ethan there.

"You talked with me for over an hour about dancing and art." Sarah said after a moment, still slack-jawed. She looked at Prince George. "You carried a log in for the fire for me."

"You looked like you could use some help, and your father was ill that day as I recall." He replied with a shrug, as if it was normal for the second most powerful man in the whole Ten Kingdoms to help feed the fire in a remote inn.

Alana was watching Sarah carefully and the smile on her face was so lovely. It was a happy, contented, almost nostalgic smile that Prince George and Helga seemed to appreciate, since they were smiling as well. Maybe not the same level of happiness, but they did have subtle smiles.

"Come, let us take our seats and eat." The King said, gesturing to the table.

* * *

Ethan led his wives to the table and they took what seemed to be their assigned seats, since the napkins in each place matched his wives' dresses exactly. The seating alternated from Ethan's seat based on order of marriage, which put Ethan and Alana in the center, with Beth, Rachel, and Selene on Ethan's left, and Alana, Tee, Kendra, and Sarah on his right.

Thus, The King and The Queen were at the head of the table, and the pairs on each side facing each other in order were: Selene and Tabitha at the end, then Rachel and the scribe, then Beth and Helga, then Ethan and Prince George, then Alana and Sylvia, then Taloni and Thomas, then Kendra and the mage, then Sarah and Ellis.

No one was sitting at the foot of the table.

Seeing that gave Ethan an idea. It was a really dumb idea, or at least it could be. Though it could also turn out quite well. Really, it was the flip of a coin as to which way it could go, unless... He cocked his head to one side. With a slight modification, perhaps he could eliminate basically all of the downsides while still keeping the upside?

He briefly considered asking his wives, but there was no way to have that conversation without giving something away. He took another moment to think about it, and then decided it was worth the risk.

"Your Majesty, Prince George." Ethan addressed each in turn. "Would either of you object to including one more person? Specifically, the High Priest Plesius..." He looked at The King. "...provided he's willing to agree only to come as a listener, and thus only speak when spoken to, or when called on?"

All of his wives looked at him like he was nuts.

"Interesting." Prince George said, suddenly looking very amused. "Even with the rumors flying of a verbal altercation?"

"Honestly, it's because of the 'verbal altercation." He replied. "I stand behind every argument I made one hundred percent, but I was a little lacking in decorum. I'm kind of hoping this can be an olive branch, and maybe if he hears the whole story right from our mouths, he might be more willing to consider our side."

The King subtly inclined his head toward Ethan in a gesture of respect.

His wives looked unsure but pensive, especially Rachel. Though, he wasn't sure there was ever a time when the wheels in his wise redhead's mind weren't spinning.

"I don't want it to devolve into another fight though, so that's why I asked if he could just come as a listener." Ethan continued. "I don't mind him asking questions, but if he has to... I don't know, raise his hand or something before speaking, then at least we should be able to have a civil conversation. That way, he can get some questions answered as long as he isn't disruptive."

"I have no objection, as long as he doesn't disrupt the telling of your story." Prince George said after a moment.

"I will have him summoned." The King said, then looked at one of the servants, and that servant head bowed and then hurried from the room.

"Mending fences or keeping your enemies close?" Princess Silvia asked. Even the tenor of her voice was cool and calculating.

"A little of both?" Ethan shrugged. "I haven't been in the Ten Kingdoms for five months yet, but I've managed to rack up a long list of powerful enemies. I'd really like to move some of them to the 'friends' column if I can, but if I can't..." He shrugged again. "I can't make everyone happy."

"Many enemies, much honor." Princess Silvia replied.

"Many enemies, much danger to my family." Ethan countered. "I'd prefer zero enemies and a ton of friends, but then again, you can't always get what you want."

"But if you try sometimes, well, you might find you get what you need." Selene finished the song lyric, causing Ethan to chuckle.

Everyone looked at the two of them, prompting them to explain.

"Your home sounds like an interesting place." Prince George said.

"It is, but the Ten Kingdoms has its own attractions as well." He looked at his wives, a smile coming unbidden to his face.

"You aren't how I've heard you described." Helga said after a moment. She still looked nervous, but less so.

"How have I been described?" Ethan asked.

"Setting aside the accusations of necromancy, many believe you have a dragon's temper and thirst for blood." She replied.

Ethan winced slightly. "I don't have the latter, but the temper... um, I'm working on that."

"He has never had a taste for blood or violence." Alana spoke up. "Mostly, those stories have arisen from incidents where he felt that I or my fellow wives were in danger. When that happens, the aforementioned temper problem -- which he is indeed working on -- does tend to show itself."

Helga glanced at her husband with a small smile, causing Ethan to wonder if perhaps even the even-keeled Prince George could get angry when his wives' safety was threatened.

"Mr. Ejder, might I ask you to indulge a juvenile question?" Thomas spoke up.

"Go for it." Ethan replied.

"What does it feel like to fly with your own wings?" The young man asked, obvious excitement in his eyes even with his proper manners and excellent diction.

"I'm not going to lie, it's pretty great." Ethan grinned, then did his best to describe it. He wasn't sure he'd captured it perfectly, but the young man seemed very interested. To Prince George's credit, he let his son ask and didn't interrupt.

Not long afterwards, the food was served and everyone began to eat. Ethan noticed that Princess Silvia expertly steered the conversation away from important matters and kept it on superficial topics, like how they enjoyed Nalatia. Rachel and Alana obviously picked up on this, and did their part to keep the conversation at a similar level of non-importance.

Throughout the meal, Ethan noticed that Prince George kept a close eye on everything, though he wasn't obvious about it. Likewise, Tabitha almost didn't even blink in her silent vigil at one end of the table. At the other end on the same side, Ellis was watchful as well, but he did talk with Sarah a little.

"That was wonderful." Prince George said as one of the servants took his plate and silverware after the meal was finished.

"It was." Ethan agreed, and his wives did as well.

"Now, shall we move on to the task at hand?" Prince George asked.

"Sure, but we're still missing one person." Ethan replied, then looked at The King.

"Plesius arrived some time ago." The King said, then nodded to a nearby servant, who head bowed and then left, only to return shortly with Plesius in tow.

The High Priest looked slightly confused, uncertain, and even a bit wary as he entered the room. He was wearing what were probably his finest robes, though they fell short of being ostentatious. He looked at everyone assembled for a moment, then bowed first to Prince George, then to The King.

"Your Imperial Highness, your Royal Majesty; I am honored to be included as an observer, and give my word I shall not be disruptive." He looked at Ethan. "That it was your suggestion is... surprising."

"You'll find I'm full of surprises." He smiled back, restraining the impulse to chuckle at Selene's face as she assuredly recognized the quote. "I would ask you to keep an open mind though." He added. "There's a quote in the Book of Light about that, right? About hearing both sides before rendering judgement?"

Plesius nodded.

The High Priest seemed unsure how to react, like he had expected to be attacked but wasn't and he didn't know what to do with that.

"All I'm asking is that you keep an open mind." Ethan said, thinking about what he might say to someone who was undecided. "If you still think I'm a necromancer after we're done, that's fine. But please hold your final opinion until then, okay?"

Again, Plesius nodded. "I will."

Ethan could tell that the High Priest had a lot more to say, but he appeared to be restraining himself. Probably because he was only supposed to be here as an observer and had just promised not to be disruptive. Although...

Huh.

It occurred to Ethan at that moment that perhaps he wasn't the only person to whom The King had given a stern talking to regarding tempers.

"You may take my seat, honored High Priest." The Queen said, rising gracefully from her own. "It would not be proper to ask the honored High Priest of Illuminar -- blessed be He -- to sit at the foot of the table." She looked at her husband. "Might I have leave to gather some knitting and sit in a knitting chair instead of by your side?"

He nodded, and someone who was probably one of her handmaidens immediately hurried from the room, probably to get the knitting she had mentioned. Shortly thereafter, several servants had brought a profoundly comfortable-looking chair and The Queen was seated in it, working on something that didn't look much like knitting from Earth. Honestly, it looked an order of magnitude more complicated because it was three-dimensional.

"Now that everyone is here and ready, please, begin." Prince George said to Ethan.

"Sure, one thing first though." Ethan said. "There are some things that we aren't going to share or will be vague on. I just want to let you know that in advance for when you're trying to confirm our story." He nodded toward the scribe.

"Understandable." Prince George replied. "Provided that what you do say is true, that won't be a problem."

"Good." Ethan nodded.

"Please, begin." Prince George said again.

"Okay, a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..." He began.

Selene laughed.

* * *

Fiona thought her new bodyguards were perfect. They did their job flawlessly, they seemed aware, alert, they never intruded on her personal space, and were otherwise unobtrusive. They never made her uncomfortable, they would answer questions in complete sentences if she asked them, and she couldn't think of a single thing to mark down their job performance...

...but she missed Tabby.

Fiona wasn't even sure why, but she did. Maybe it was that Tabby was just so much more interesting. Her current bodyguards were open enough if she asked them personal questions, but unlike Tabby, Fiona never got the impression that they were particularly interesting people. Tabby was.

"Your attention is drifting." Mage Weston said.

They were sitting on the Helene's deck enjoying the morning air while she did her 'favorite' thing in the world. She resisted the urge to scowl as she looked at the bowl with a few large drops of her blood in it, hesitated a moment, then poked the tip of her finger into it and tried yet again to sense the presence of toxins.

A part of her wished that they were at the wood-elven palace since she had heard it was beyond beautiful. However, Lord Delmar was somewhat famous for remaining on the Helene even when visiting other lords. The rumor was that it was because Helene had loved the airship so much and he had loved her. However, Fiona thought it might be because he was a dragon or because he preferred his own security.

"The easiest way to sense the toxins is to circulate your mana." Mage Weston reminded her for the dozenth time, this time being a little pointed because her attention had wandered again. "You'll learn to do it without that eventually, but that's the easiest way when you are starting."

"I'm knowing that, I'm just not feeling..." She trailed off as she thought she felt something.

"If it feels like something is restricting the flow of your mana, or that your mana is flowing around something, that's likely them."

Fiona frowned. "I thought I was feeling something, but now I'm not sure." She said after a moment and then withdrew her finger from the bowl.

"Then that's enough for today." Mage Weston said with a smile.

Fiona felt the air around them get slightly colder, then a tiny flame burst into being inside the bowl, incinerating her blood.

"It's best not to leave that lying around; we wouldn't want a blood mage getting ahold of it." He winked.

She chuckled.

Blood mages hadn't been seen in the Ten Kingdoms in hundreds of years. Only places like the Wilding Lands used such barbaric things anymore, and thank Illuminar for that.

* * *

"So as we're climbing Mount Ianis, He asked me if I was a prophet, and I told Him that I wasn't, but everyone thinks I am." Ethan said, having reached that point in the story. The servants had kept them supplied with a marvelously refreshing drink that somehow completely prevented his throat from getting dry or scratchy, even with how much they had all been talking.

"According to your testimony, you seem rather consistent in denying that you are a prophet." Prince George said.

"I've finally stopped denying it, mostly." Ethan replied. "I don't like the title though because everyone expects me to speak for Illuminar, and frankly, I don't feel qualified. If He told me to tell someone something, sure, but otherwise..." He shook his head. "Having met Him, that's the last guy who I would want to put words in His mouth."

"That's wise." Helga nodded. Most of her apprehension seemed to have faded as the story wore on, and especially when his wives had talked about how he treated them.

By contrast, Princess Silvia seemed as aloof as ever. Her son Thomas seemed to take after his father and Helga more, because he had seemed very interested the entire time and asked several questions. Some of them had been good and insightful questions, but he'd also wanted something of a blow-by-blow of several of Ethan's battles. Since the young man's father hadn't objected, Ethan had indulged him.

Plesius raised his hand.

"Go ahead." Ethan said after a moment. Tellingly, it was the first time Plesius had asked to speak.

"You said that the God of Light asked you a question?" His tone was respectful, but skeptical.

"Yup, a rhetorical one as I realized later." Ethan replied. "Obviously He knew the answer, but I think He asked the question to steer the conversation."

The High Priest pursed his lips, but didn't say anything else.

"Plesius, have you never asked a question to which you already knew the answer?" Selene asked him.

He nodded.

"Then why couldn't Illuminar?" The caramel-haired beauty asked.

"His ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts." Plesius replied.

Ethan frowned. "So, I've never read a single word of the Book of Light, but are you telling me that Illuminar doesn't ask a single rhetorical question in the entire thing?"

"He does." Taloni said.

"That is a matter of opinion." Plesius said to Ethan, clearly annoyed but keeping his tone civil. "While translations might blasphemously have the all-knowing God of Light asking questions, Ancient Elvish does not make such things explicit."

Ethan very much wanted to call 'bullshit', but he couldn't read ancient elvish. He was 99% sure that Matthew and Yalia would be able to prove it when they arrived though. He was really looking forward to that.

"You do not purport to be a prophet?" Princess Silvia asked.

"Well, as Illuminar Himself pointed out, I've talked with God, talked with an angel, been given predictions about the future, and I was even told to relay a message from Illuminar to someone." Ethan sighed. "I don't know that I can honestly say I'm not, but I wish I could."

Plesius raised his eyebrows, but remained silent. At least he was good to his word on that.

* * *

"And that's when I introduced Myla to Falkaan." Kendra said, allowing a subtle smile onto her face at the memory. "I mentioned to him that she could've been the prophet's wife, but had declined out of concern for Ethan, and that caught his attention."

"They were smitten from the very beginning." Rachel grinned.

"And their wedding was so beautiful." Tee said with a contented sigh.

"I believe I misheard." Tabitha said, the first time she had spoken since before the meal. "Did you say that Falkaan married?"

"He did." Kendra confirmed. "And yes, I do mean the Falkaan who taught us both never to trust anyone. Ever. He trusted Myla enough to marry her and I've never seen him so happy." She paused. "Come to think of it, it's the first time I've seen him happy at all."

"Falkaan did indeed get married." Prince George confirmed.

Tabitha nodded once, then fell silent again. However, a very large portion of Kendra's training had been on reading people. Tabitha wasn't being her usual emotional self -- though, Kendra hadn't seen her in nearly a decade and apparently she'd changed -- but Kendra did notice something.

Tabitha's face, which had been a mask the entire time, was suddenly slightly less mask-like and it remained that way for some time. Even Kendra couldn't read her emotions or what she was feeling, but the fact that her mask had slipped even the tiniest bit seemed significant.

* * *

"And that basically brings us to today." Ethan finished their story. He was pretty pleased with how it had all gone, and especially that the prep work had paid off and he thought they'd avoided saying the things they didn't want to say without it being obvious or suspicious. Ellis had spoken up during his part of Sarah's story to corroborate everything, which had been nice.

The other side of the table had asked plenty of questions, mostly clarifying ones, but Princess Silvia had occasionally asked probing questions obviously intent on catching them in their words. Rachel had handled all of those questions like a pro, and he thought that he and the rest of his wives should probably reward her big time in bed that night.

One of the longest conversation points had been how they'd brought Beth back. The other side of the table easily accepted portal travel to another world, but blood transfusions and CPR took a while to explain to their satisfaction. Ethan was just glad they'd decided not to mention the defibrillator, as explaining electricity would've taken way too long.

The scribe put down his pen; man, it was impressive how fast he could write. Ethan was pretty sure he was using some sort of shorthand, but it was still impressive.

Prince George looked at Ethan intently for several seconds before leaning back in his chair with a thoughtful frown.

"Questions?" Ethan asked.

"A few, but not at present." He replied as he rubbed his chin while looking at Ethan. "I will go over the transcript later and might have some follow-up questions."

"Fair enough." Ethan nodded.

Prince George took a deep, thoughtful breath while scrutinizing Ethan, and then let it out just as slowly. He continued looking at Ethan for several seconds, then he turned to look at The King. "Your Majesty, might I request that the room be cleared so I can speak to Ethan alone?"

Helga snapped her head toward him and sucked in her breath. Princess Silvia raised her eyebrow at him.

"You promised." Helga said quietly, though not so quietly that those nearby couldn't hear.

He looked at Ethan. "Would you object to two of my bodyguards remaining?"

Ethan thought about it for a moment. He was wearing full armor and had a sword. With his additional strength and reflexes, he thought he would be safe even if they tried something. He didn't think they would, but he thought he would be okay if they did.

"That's fine." He shrugged.

"Come, let us adjourn." The King stood and everyone else stood with him.

*Be careful.* Alana thought to the group chat.

*I will.* He promised.

Everyone filed out except for Ethan, Prince George, Tabitha, and Ellis.

The Crown Prince looked at Ethan for almost a full ten seconds before speaking. "You're aware that the Book of Light requires two or three witnesses at minimum to legally establish the truth of a matter?"

"Yup." Ethan nodded, not sure where this was going.

"Obviously, you had eight witnesses to your story here." Prince George said. "However, in the Book of Light, there's a story recorded that makes it clear that the testimony of the accused can be treated with suspicion. If a band of robbers were caught and they all said they didn't steal anything, should they be believed?"

"That... that makes sense." Ethan conceded, still not sure where this was going.

"Your story has the ring of truth, but it will take some time, likely months, to confirm all of it." Prince George continued. "Even if it is all true, there is still the matter of Lord Delmar and Lady Ekthros's accusations of necromancy."

"I realize you might not believe me, but you do remember all the crap that we told you she's up to, right?" Ethan asked.

"I do, and I will ensure that she is thoroughly investigated for it." Prince George replied. "However, even if what you say is true -- that she is creating demon-possessed men in the Wilding Lands and even will-breaker rings -- I highly doubt that she would be careless enough to be caught. Even if she is, she will not be caught quickly."

Ethan frowned.

"Your story is not the first time she has been brought to our attention for illegal activity, yet every time she was cleared of all charges." Prince George added. "We do keep an eye on her, but she is exceedingly careful and skilled enough to give our men the slip. That by itself is not even suspicious, as we have similar difficulties with the other intelligence heads of other lorddoms. One does not rise to such a position without great skill and some level of paranoia."

Ethan inclined his head in concession, little though he wanted to.

Damn.

She sure was a slippery bitch.

"However, as it sounds like you wish to travel into the Wilding Lands to search out what you believe to be her base of power, I do have a proposal that I was going to offer anyway, and it might help." Prince George said.

"Oh?"

He nodded. "As I was saying, the Book of Light requires two or three witnesses. You not only need them to establish your innocence against the charges laid against you, but you would also benefit from having them with you to testify about Lady Ekthros's base, should it exist."

Ethan raised his eyebrow. "Did you say: 'having them with me'?"

Prince George nodded. "Your story seems plausible, but I think even you will agree that it would be the height of folly for me to accept it as true without verification, and I'm sure you would require the same if you were in my position."

Ethan hesitated a moment, then reluctantly nodded his head in concession. "I... I probably would."

"So this is what I propose, and I strongly suggest that you consider this suggestion seriously." Prince George said.

"How strongly?" Ethan raised his eyebrow. "Is this one of those 'you don't really have a choice' things?"

"You have some say." Prince George replied. "Again, your story has the ring of truth, but until it has been verified, some would say that I could be charged with dereliction of duty for not already having you and your wives arrested."

Ethan narrowed his eyes. "Is that a threat? Because I don't respond well to threats."

"It's a fact." Prince George sighed. "If you were in my shoes -- with one of the most respected and honorable lords in your domain making credible accusations of necromancy, with credible evidence and witnesses -- would you not consider arresting him?"

"Wait, credible evidence?" Ethan asked.

Prince George nodded.

"With witnesses?" Ethan asked.

The Crown Prince nodded again.

Ethan frowned. "Two or three witnesses?"

"Many more than just two or three, but not two or three witnesses who personally witnessed the same event." Prince George replied. "To be clear, if there wasn't also credible counter-evidence that you might be a prophet, the empire would have sent the Aldmiri to capture you months ago."

"Oh." Ethan grimaced.

"You see the position I'm in." Prince George said.

"Yeah, now I do, yeah." Ethan replied.

"I'm trying to handle this as delicately as possible." Prince George continued. "I recognize that you might be a prophet, but you might also be a necromancer. I need to seriously consider both options, as well as respect your right to remain innocent until proven guilty. This is perhaps the finest line I have had to tread in my time as Crown Prince, and I am balancing on a razor's edge. This is my attempt to handle things diplomatically and allow you both input and freedom while doing so. I could be more heavy-handed, and I might be if forced, but I would greatly prefer to avoid that."

"Thank you for that." Ethan said, seeing that the man was indeed in a tight spot.

"You're welcome." Prince George replied.

"Okay, what's the offer?"

"I will assign two people to the Argo." Prince George replied. "They will travel with you and observe you and your wives, including when you go into the Wilding Lands. They will report back to me personally -- no intermediaries, they will report to me personally and exclusively -- on your actions. Should you discover that this base that you suspect Lady Ekthros maintains is indeed real and can be firmly connected to her, then they will be able to testify to that as well. That will be evidence enough to arrest her."

Ethan took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Wow.

That was...

Wow.

He was trying to think about how that would work because it would be an utterly massive life change. It wouldn't be like when he'd invited people onto the Argo before. No, this would be intentionally inviting two people aboard whose actual function was to watch them. Really, almost spy on them. It wasn't quite spying because everyone would know they were doing it, but still...

He was trying to think of the effect that would have on the ship and the general atmosphere of the Argo; it would destroy it. The general feeling of family and camaraderie that had developed would almost certainly disappear as soon as these observers arrived.

On the other hand, this was the first time that he was being offered a possible way to actually bring some kind of justice to Lady Ekthros; to catch her in her misdeeds and maybe, just maybe, put her away for life. That was worth a lot. On yet another hand, Ethan wasn't sure that whoever Prince George would assign could be trusted. What if they tried to harm his crew? Or worse, his wives?

"Who were you thinking of sending?" He finally asked, the safety concern overriding all of his other ones.

Prince George extended his arms to either side to point...

...at Ellis and Tabitha.

They didn't react.

Apparently, they had known this was coming.

Ethan didn't have a problem with Ellis at all. The fact that Sarah thought he was a good man, and also what he'd heard and personally seen of the guardsman made Ethan perfectly comfortable with him. But Tabitha? He knew almost nothing about her except that she was more dangerous than Kendra. That alone gave him pause.

"Do I need to decide now?" He asked, pretty sure the answer would be 'no'. "I'd like to talk to everyone on the Argo first because it's our home."

"If you had decided here and now, I would've thought less of you." Prince George smiled. "Take your time to decide, but please do so before you leave Nalatia."

Ethan started to nod, but stopped since he was planning on attending and competing in that tournament to meet Duke Farbrottan. "How about 'before the Argo leaves Nalatia'?" He countered. "I might personally need to leave the city -- I did last time -- but I'll let you know before my airship departs."

Prince George scrutinized him for a moment before nodding. "That is acceptable."

"You aren't what I expected." Ethan said after a moment.

"What were you expecting?"

Ethan shrugged. "There are a lot of stories on my world, and seldom are the emperors or their families the good guys."

"Not long ago, it would've been true here as well." Prince George replied. "But I'm sure you know that at the end of the Great Civil War, Illuminar -- blessed be He -- installed my branch of the family with a stern warning that if we didn't rule well, he would remove us from power. We've taken that warning rather seriously."

"I'm glad you did." Ethan nodded.

"I am as well." Prince George stood, and Ethan did the same.

Ellis and Tabitha did as well and moved toward the Crown Prince, assuming what looked like normal protective positions near him.

"You picked them intentionally, didn't you?" Ethan asked.

"I did." Prince George replied. "I thought you would be comfortable with Ellis because of Sarah, and Tabitha has a skillset that might allow her to survive if you turned on them. Also, Kendra trained with her so she's not a complete unknown to your family, though she's not the same person she was when Kendra knew her. Further, until yesterday, she was the personal bodyguard of Lady Fiona Delmar, again whom Sarah knows well, and she could ask Lady Delmar about Tabitha if it would put your minds at ease."

"You're being pretty considerate." He pointed out.

"It's partially self-serving." Prince George replied. "If you are indeed a prophet of Illuminar, the imperial family would rather not get on your bad side."

"But that's not the entire reason, is it?" Ethan asked. "You're trying to be considerate because you think it's the right thing to do, right?"

Prince George smiled, but he didn't answer the question. "Have a blessed day Ethan, and may Illuminar -- blessed be He -- guide you on the path of light as you travel."

"And you as well." Ethan replied.

Thereafter, Prince George left the room with Tabitha and Ellis following him out, Tabitha walking backward and not taking her eyes off of him until the door was closed.

Ethan looked after them for a long minute, trying to decide what he thought of the Crown Prince's offer.

* * *

Fiona followed her husband to the gangplank on the Helene, not exactly sure why the Crown Prince had requested by messenger to speak to the two of them in private. His message said that it could take the rest of the day, and likely into the next day as well. Prince George wasn't far away now according to the messenger, and Lord Delmar hadn't wanted to keep him waiting, hence them waiting by the gangplank for him.

"Milord." She said to him as they waited.

"Yes Fiona?"

"Were you wanting to see Rachel while we're here?" She asked.

He made a thoughtful sound and didn't speak for several seconds. "I would not be opposed."

Fiona smiled.

"However." He added in a lower tone. "Given what I was required to do to drive her from Karnas, I do not believe she will wish to see me."

"You never know milord." She replied with a smile. "You're still her father, so she might be wanting to see you."

"Perhaps." He inclined his head toward the dock. "The Crown Prince approaches; we should cease discussing this at present."

"Aye milord." She nodded.

As the Crown Prince got closer, Fiona noticed someone mostly hidden behind him.

Tabitha.

Fiona full-on grinned at the prospect of her returning as a bodyguard. She had missed her. She wasn't even entirely sure why, but she definitely had.

"Lord Delmar." Prince George said when he and his accompanying bodyguards arrived.

"Your Imperial Highness." Lord Delmar bowed respectfully and Fiona curtsied, mostly because it just seemed like the right thing to do.

"I'll only be here a minute, but need to speak with you both privately." The Crown Prince said.

"My office will be a suitable venue, if you will follow me." Lord Delmar said, then turned and began walking, Fiona, the Crown Prince, and Tabitha right behind him.

"Please." Lord Delmar opened the door to his office on the Helene and indicated that the others should enter. They did, and he closed the door behind him after he also entered.

"I'll cut right to the chase." Prince George said. "I met with Ethan Ejder earlier today and heard his side of the story. As you are currently attempting to capture him, I thought I'd give you the chance to hear his side, exactly as told by him and his wives."

"How?" Fiona asked, since it was only the four of them in the room.

"Tabitha." Prince George smiled. "One of the things that makes her so good at her job is her memory. She can recite every single word of their story that was told to us, exactly as it was told."

"Really?" Fiona asked, her mouth slightly open.

"Tabby, could you be a dear and recite the very first conversation you had with Lord Delmar and Fiona both in the room?" Prince George asked with a lopsided smile.

She did.

Tabitha began reciting that conversation, mimicking the inflections and vocal tones of both of them. Fiona watched and listened open-mouthed with her eyes getting wider and wider until her former bodyguard had finished. Fiona obviously didn't have a perfect memory, but it sounded exactly right from what she recalled.

Lord Delmar raised an eyebrow. "That is an extremely rare gift."

"It is." Prince George nodded. "It allowed her to learn far faster than her peers, which is why she is so skilled in so many areas." He looked at Fiona. "I remember our discussion about keeping an open mind. Part of the reason I'm making this offer is for you." He looked at Lord Delmar. "The other part is because it's possible that he is indeed a genuine prophet. If that turns out to be the case, I can't have a lord of the Ten Kingdoms hunting him... if it's the case. It will likely take several months to fully investigate the story, and I won't know until then."

Lord Delmar made a negative-sounding thoughtful sound, but nodded once anyway.

Prince George's gaze turned serious. "Therefore, as Crown Prince of the Ten Kingdoms, I, George Calmarane, officially command and instruct you to change your bounty on Ethan Ejder and his wives to alive only. Further, if you capture them, you are forbidden from causing them any significant or serious injury for any reason whatsoever, self-defense after an unprovoked attack will be the only exception."

Lord Delmar set his jaw, but nodded once.

"I need to hear you acknowledge that you've heard and understand these orders." Prince George said.

"I have heard and understand." Lord Delmar replied, his face and tone Tabby-like in their lack of expression. "Ethan Ejder and his wives are not to be harmed."

"Good." Prince George nodded.

"I presume you will instruct Lord Farbrottan similarly?" Lord Delmar said.

"Leave Ivernia to me; you mind Narlotten." The Crown Prince replied.

Fiona resisted the urge to frown at that response; shouldn't it be the same everywhere? Was Prince George thinking of giving different instructions to Lord Farbrottan?

"Now, did you want to hear Ethan Ejder's side of the story, as told by him and his wives?" Prince George asked.

"I'm wanting to." Fiona said after a moment, then looked at her husband. "That is, assuming you aren't minding milord."

"I have no objection." Lord Delmar said. "I will listen also; I might learn something that will be useful in apprehending the necromantic false prophet."

It was Prince George's turn to make a negative-sounding thoughtful sound. "Be careful Xander, you're walking a fine line."

"I am aware." Lord Delmar replied. "I will obey all edicts and instructions from the imperial family to the letter."

Prince George narrowed his eyes slightly for a moment, then his expression softened. "It might help to know that according to everyone present -- including many expertly trained in reading body language -- your daughter appears to be deeply in love with him, in good spirits, and very well-treated."

"Can you prove her disposition is not due to compulsion?" Lord Delmar replied.

Prince George inclined his head in concession. "Lord Delmar, you are almost certainly the lord in the Ten Kingdoms most loved by his people. I also understand that your daughter travels with him and has married him. I understand that this is personal so I will be understanding of your attitude here. However..." He looked at him pointedly. "The imperial family has removed rebellious lords before, and even beloved lords. And since you have an heir on the way--" He indicated Fiona. "--my family isn't above removing you and appointing Sir Warrick as Lord Regent. I would hate to do that, but rebellion is rebellion."

"I will obey all edicts and instructions from the imperial family to the letter." Lord Delmar said for a second time.

"I'm glad to hear that." Prince George replied, but he didn't sound fully convinced.

Fiona certainly wasn't convinced.

"Perhaps consider your wife before taking any action." Prince George said a moment later. "You have the most marvelous taste in women; Helene was a delight and both Narlotten and the Ten Kingdoms at large are much poorer for her passing. I don't know Fiona very well, but I can say that in my estimation, you have married better than virtually every other lord in the Ten Kingdoms. Twice." He paused. "As I understand it, Fiona has already lost one husband to the grave; don't make her effectively lose another to the stockade."

Fiona looked at her husband, extremely pleased to see that Prince George's words appeared to have some effect. Lord Delmar inclined his head slightly and she could tell by his body language -- subtle though it was -- that he was genuinely considering it.

"I will consider Fiona's best interest before acting." He finally replied.

Fiona beamed.

Well, her heart also wanted to sink because it sounded like he was willing to defy the emperor to pursue Ethan, but that was mostly counterbalanced by the fact that he was putting her first.

"Tabitha, please return when you have finished, as there is much to go over." Prince George said to Tabitha, who nodded.

"Until next time, do please stay out of trouble." Prince George said to Lord Delmar with a significant look.

He nodded once.

Prince George looked at Fiona. "Helga tells me that she had a wonderful time and would like you to know that she'll likely call on you again sometime soon."

"I would be loving that." Fiona smiled.

"Until we meet again." He said to them both, then left.

Before Fiona could say anything, her husband addressed Tabitha. "Begin your recitation."

She did, leaving Fiona to wonder what Lord Delmar might say when she asked him about this conversation that night.

* * *

"Wait, so the Crown Prince sent men here to question all of you while we were away?" Ethan asked Anthiel when he and his wives had returned to the Argo and their pilot had reported what had happened in their absence.

"He made it clear that our cooperation was entirely optional and that there would be no reprisal if we didn't." Anthiel clarified. "But yes. I thought it was a rather shrewd and clever move on his part."

"Honestly, I'm not sure how to feel about that." He mused.

"Since it was entirely optional, I wouldn't think the less of him for it." Rachel spoke up. "He is investigating us after all, and the crew of the Argo are relevant witnesses. If you were a necromancer, he wouldn't be likely to get an honest answer unless you were gone."

Ethan frowned, but nodded his head in concession anyway." That's... I don't like it, but that's fair."

"We were all happy to tell our stories." Victoria said with a wide smile. "We left out anything you might not want said, but I think they might help."

"Especially Ahjah's since he hasn't been with us very long, and double especially Serif's." Thea spoke up.

"Serif?" Ethan looked at him.

"You often make poor choices and occasionally succumb to your dragon side's baser instincts." He replied. "However, you are not malevolent."

"Thanks." Ethan smiled.

"How did it go?" Thea asked Ethan and his wives.

"Pretty well I think." He replied. "But the Crown Prince made us an offer that I want to talk about with my wives first, then I'll want everyone else's opinion because it will affect everyone on the Argo."

"Color me intrigued." Victoria said with an almost Beth-like look.

"Then go, shoo." Thea waved them toward the captain's cabin. "Have your conversation so you can tell us."

Everyone chuckled, but they took her advice.

They went into the captain's cabin and he explained the offer to his wives, including Sarah. He had waited until now so he could tell everyone at the same time since Sarah wasn't connected to the group chat yet.

"So, thoughts?" Ethan asked when he was done. "Obviously it affects more than just us so I'll want to get everyone else's opinion as well, but I wanted to talk to you ladies first."

Their wide eyes and slack-jawed expressions made them look how he had felt when the Crown Prince had made the offer.

"Um, I don't know anything about Tabitha, but Ellis is a good man." Sarah said after a long moment. "I'm glad Prince George picked him."

"Agreed." Kendra said. "From everything Sarah has said about him, I don't think he'll pose a security risk."

"What about Tabitha?" Alana asked the former Aldmiri.

"Unknown." Kendra replied. "She tended to be somewhat emotional when I knew her, but appears to have shed that completely."

"She was so... cold." Sarah shuddered.

"We are trained to be that way." Kendra replied. "Some take to it better than others; I never did."

"Speaking of training, how dangerous is she?" Selene asked.

"She started younger than I did and had a greater aptitude for combat than I have." Kendra replied. "Nine times out of ten, she would easily defeat me."

Ethan grimaced.

"That's a big risk." Selene said, then looked at Ethan. "I can't beat Kendra but once in a blue moon, and you only do consistently with all your enhancements active.

He nodded. "True."

"That assumes that she attacks us." Rachel pointed out. "If she follows the orders that Prince George says he's going to give, then she won't."

"That assumes Prince George was honest about the orders he was planning to give her." Kendra countered.

"You think he's lying?" Alana asked.

"I have no reason to think he is, but I always assume the worst and hope for the best." The former Aldmiri replied.

"Would Falkaan know her better?" Rachel asked.

"Likely so." Kendra replied. "I didn't spend a lot of time around her since we were in different training groups, though we interacted very occasionally."

"Do you mind if I tell Myla so she can tell Falkaan?" Selene asked.

"I'd rather do that in person if possible, although..." A grin slowly spread on his face as he realized something. "It just occurred to me that with the two telepathic groups, we can inform everyone of everything telepathically and have private meetings even if we allow them onto the Argo." He looked at Sarah. "And one of us can just tell you privately until we're married and bonded properly."

"I can't wait." She sighed with a dopey grin on her face.

"It'll be legend... wait for it......dary. Legendary!" Ethan replied with a grin. That of course meant he had to explain the reference to everyone except Selene, who had burst out laughing when he'd done it.

"Anyway." Kendra said, her tone slightly pointed as she brought the discussion back on topic. "To summarize, if we can trust her not to attack, then there likely won't be any downsides."

"There will be one." Taloni spoke up. "I like how it's only friends and family on the Argo right now. I like how nice it feels when we all eat dinner because we're all comfortable with each other. It won't be the same with Ellis and Tabitha here."

No one spoke for a moment.

"Yeah, that's very true." Ethan nodded.

"I would hate to lose that." Sarah said after another moment. "But this might be a chance to catch Lady Ekthros; can we really say no to that?"

"We can if Tabitha is a threat to us." Kendra replied. "But if she's not, then no."

"It'll change our plans for helping Ivernia." Alana pointed out. "We can't exactly start a war with Lord Farbrottan when we have two agents of the emperor on board."

"Hopefully, the emperor will be convinced by the time we're done galivanting around the Wilding Lands." Selene replied. "If he is, we can offload them and then go after Lord Farbrottan."

Alana nodded. "And if he isn't?"

"I think we should cross that bridge when we come to it." Rachel said, and the rest nodded.

"Show of hands." Ethan said. "Who thinks it would be a good idea to accept if we can find some way to trust that Tabitha won't try to kill us?"

Slowly, haltingly, and with a few resigned sighs, everyone in the room raised their hands.

"Yeah, I'm not happy about it either." Ethan frowned when they were done. "But it does lead right back to an important question: is it safe to allow Tabitha on the Argo?"

"I could ask Ellis or Fiona." Sarah said after a moment. "Though, it would probably be easier to ask Ellis. I know he wouldn't lie and he might know her better."

"That's a good idea." Kendra said.

Ethan hesitated. "Okay, but take Kendra and a good portion of the Lightguard with you." He paused. "We really need to do something to thank them for protecting us."

"The Lightguard? We should." Alana agreed. "Rachel and I can brainstorm and come up with something."

"Yes, I'm sure you'll cum up with a lot." Selene winked.

Everyone chuckled, though Sarah blushed.

"I know it's embarrassing now, but it's wonderful." Taloni said to Sarah. "It makes you nervous at first, but once you relax, it's so lovely."

His betrothed bit her lip and nodded slowly. That simple motion reminded Ethan that soon, she would be fully his wife and he'd be able to take her to bed. He felt a familiar rush of blood in the direction of his loins at that thought and immediately changed the topic to distract himself.

"That should be fine as long as you can get in touch with Ellis." Ethan said.

"Thea could ask The King to pass a message along." Rachel suggested. "It would be best to go through official channels with something like this anyway."

Ethan nodded. "Okay, and it would be even better if you can meet him at the palace with Kendra and a bunch of the palace guard present."

"I love how you care so much." Sarah said with a smile on her face.

"How could I not?" He replied with a wink, then looked at Alana. "Okay, now that we have things with the Crown Prince somewhat sorted, we need to talk about how to proceed with getting your mother's shame removed."

"I suggest we wait until we have the rest of the Argo's crew around, and we need to tell everyone about the possibility of Ellis and Tabitha joining us anyway." She replied.

"Okay, let's do that then." He nodded.

* * *

Fiona stared at Tabitha, unable to believe what she was hearing.

"Yeah, I feel terrible about that, especially since the other soldiers might've had families too." Tabitha said, imitating a masculine voice that she had previously identified as Ethan's. She was very good at voice impressions and if her impression was accurate, he did actually sound sorry.

"It was my arrow, and I don't regret saving Ethan, but I wish it had never come to that." Tabitha as Alana said. "That goes double because Sarah told us how much it hurt Rachel's stepmother, and how she's a wonderful person."

"We'll have to apologize for that someday." Tabitha as Ethan said.

"Stop." Fiona managed to get out.

Tabitha fell silent.

Fiona took several deep breaths. Listening to how Sean had died had been hard enough, but this... Her heart was racing, her hands felt slightly cold and clammy, and she could feel herself wanting to shake.

"I... I'm needing some air." She rose as gracefully as she could and fled the room, trying not to be so fast that it would be suspicious. She walked up to the weather deck as quickly as she could without drawing attention to herself and didn't stop until she was on the Helene's quarterdeck at the very rear of the ship.

She took several deep lungfuls of air and blinked rather a lot to try and keep her eyes dry. She hadn't been expecting that. She had known it was coming, but she wasn't expecting it. It hadn't been five months yet and it was all still so fresh, and doubly so after hearing exactly how...

She swallowed, fighting back tears.

* * *

"You're okay with it?"

Alana smiled at the skeptical look on Ethan's face when the rest of the Argo's crew had agreed that they would be comfortable with whatever Ethan and his wives decided about Ellis and Tabitha.

"We trust you." Victoria said.

"And besides, we know you would never allow them on board if you thought they were a danger to your wives." Thea added.

"They are correct." Anthiel said.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Ethan smiled at them, but he looked tired.

"Unrelated." Anthiel spoke again. "I thought you would like to know that Ralgar will be setting sail shortly to come join us here, though he will need to make a few stops for supplies and even with ideal wind, the journey will take at least a week." She looked at Selene. "And yes, of course Mirella will be with him."

Selene grinned

Alana also grinned; it would be nice to see the rest of the Kiarien family again. They were lovely people and she knew that if she had been separated from Ethan as long as Anthiel had been from Ralgar, she would be climbing the walls. She was happy for their high-elven pilot, who clearly was also happy given the bright smile on her face.

"So, the next order of business is to figure out how to get Alana's mother's shame removed." Ethan said, then stifled a yawn.

"You should probably talk to Plesius next, but maybe not today." Alana suggested. "We've had a full day and everyone could probably use a break to rest."

He nodded. "Yeah, probably so." He suppressed another yawn, causing many others around him to echo the yawn. He got a thoughtful look on his face for a moment before speaking again. "I think I'll walk over to the Midnight Sun and ask Falkaan about Tabitha. We were sitting so long that another stretch of the legs would do me some good."

"Then, if it's okay, I might go visit Sarisa in her home in Nalatia." Alana spoke up. "I wanted to do that yesterday, but the Crown Prince's invitation sort of side-tracked everything." She looked at Thea. "If you don't think she would mind."

"She wouldn't." Thea smiled. "I'll come too if the excursion is okay with Ethan." She looked at him

"Yeah, enjoy." Ethan smiled at her. "Just make sure--"

"--sure to bring Kendra and the Lightguard." Alana smiled. "I know." She turned to Kendra, hoping she wouldn't mind coming for another reason besides protection as well. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all." She replied.

"Can I come?" Sarah asked. "I would love to talk to her about the way she decorated her home, since I would love it if Ethan and my wedding could have that same feel."

"Of course." Alana replied with a smile.

The various goodbyes were said and then Alana, Kendra, Sarah, Thea, and Ahjah set off with a decent chunk of the Lightguard falling into step several paces behind them.

"Thank you so much for doing this." Alana said to the Lightguard after they had set off.

"It is our honor and our pleasure ma'am." One of them replied, and the others echoed the sentiment.

"Thank you." Sarah said to them, then struck up a little small talk, probably trying to get to know them better. That made Alana smile; Sarah really did care about everyone and it was good to see.

While Sarah was distracted, the wood elf whispered to Kendra. "How is Sarah doing with the combat training?"

"She fights as well as a troll thinks." Kendra whispered back wryly.

Alana stifled a chuckle. "Do you really think she'll ever be good at it?"

"No." Kendra shook her head. "That was obvious after the first five minutes."

"Then why keep training her?"

"Her wrists." Kendra replied.

Alana raised her eyebrow.

"It's less likely since she's demon-possessed, but I saw her form when she attacked Kyrupto and it's a minor miracle that she didn't break both her wrists with her sloppy punches." Kendra explained. "Should she encounter a harder target -- like a demon-possessed man -- she could seriously injure herself by attacking poorly, or even defending poorly. I want to make sure that doesn't happen. Once she loses her demon, I'll switch to more basic self-defense."

Alana smiled. "Always the guardian?"

Kendra nodded once. "Always."

Alana smiled wider.

* * *

It had taken Fiona at least ten minutes to get control of herself. Her breathing had slowed down to something resembling normal, or at least close to it. Her heart was no longer racing and it was getting easier to breathe. Her heart still felt heavy, or maybe like it was crying. She probably could've guessed that it would've affected her that way, but she hadn't thought about it enough to consider that in advance.

Behind her, the two Aldmiri bodyguards stood the perfect distance away; far enough to give her space, close enough to still protect her. Oddly, Fiona would've preferred to have Tabby there right now. Her current bodyguards seemed perfectly competent and respectful, but that was it. She didn't get the impression that there was more going on with them, but had with Tabitha.

"Fiona." Lord Delmar said from behind her, and his tone was almost gentle.

She got a half-smile on her face as she turned to face him. "I... I'm doing fine milord." She paused. "Well, not 'fine', but I'll be doing okay soon."

He nodded once. "Tabitha said that the Crown Prince had guessed at your reaction to this portion of the story and told Tabitha that if you felt unwilling to continue, she should return tomorrow."

"I'll have to be thanking him; that's very thoughtful." Fiona's half-smile widened, but she couldn't turn it into a full smile. "I... I think I should be getting past this part today and then maybe hearing the rest tomorrow?"

He scrutinized her for a long moment. "Very well." He offered her his arm, which she gratefully took.

He led her back downstairs into the captain's cabin, which of course had long ago been converted into his office. Tabitha was still there, standing exactly where she had been before Fiona had left.

"Could you be finishing the part where they're talking about Sean, and then taking a break and coming back tomorrow?" Fiona asked as she and her husband sat back down in the chairs they had previously occupied.

Tabitha nodded once. "I will repeat the most recent sentence and then continue from there." She then spoke as Ethan. "We'll have to apologize for that someday."

"We learned later that it was all Hermair." Tabitha as Kendra said. "He didn't report Ethan's arrival until after Hermair had sent the men after Ethan and Alana."

"I don't know if you will see Fiona any time soon, but if you do, could you tell her that we're sorry." Tabitha as Ethan said. "I can only imagine how I'd feel if one of my wives..." Tabitha as Ethan trailed off and then she swallowed hard, obviously still imitating him.

"I'll make sure she gets the message." Tabitha as the Crown Prince said. "In fact, if you don't object, I suspect she would like to hear the entirety of your story."

"Sure." Tabitha as Ethan said. "And I doubt there's anything we can do or say to help her out, but if there is, let us know, okay?"

"I will." Tabitha as the Crown Prince said.

Tabitha then spoke in her normal, almost emotionless voice. "After that, the story continued and Sean was not mentioned again until you told Sarah that Ethan had killed him." Tabitha said.

Fiona blinked a few times and her throat got tight as she nodded. "Was... I'm assuming you are good at reading people. What...? I mean to be saying..." She swallowed, not quite able to get the question out.

"I could not detect any falsehood or pretense in their words or body language." Tabitha volunteered, obviously having guessed Fiona's question.

Fiona almost smiled at that; it was so incredibly unlike Tabby to volunteer information.

"Thank you." Fiona nodded, her voice cracking slightly. "I'm not knowing what to be thinking about all this, but thank you."

Tabitha gave a slight nod. "I will return tomorrow to finish." Afterward, she left the room.

The Helene felt emptier with her gone.

"Fiona." Lord Delmar said, rising to his feet. "Come here."

She did, getting up from her chair and walking the couple steps to him, her emotions an absolute maelstrom. She felt like crying, but was trying to hold back the tears for some reason, and she wasn't even sure why.

Then her husband reached out and pulled her close, into a slightly awkward hug.

She swallowed.

Her lower lip trembled as her eyes filled with tears. She blinked a few times and felt two of them spill over onto her cheeks, and she wasn't even sure why. She didn't know if it was because of hearing how Sean died, or because she was missing him, or because she was missing Tabby, or because she was pregnant with Lord Delmar's baby, or because she was missing Sarah, Amy, and Vera, or any one of a dozen other reasons.

But he was holding her.

Awkwardly, but he was holding her and it seemed like he knew she was about to break down crying.

She did.

She stopped trying to hold it in, and then it all came tumbling out in a messy, blubbering, emotional mess.

Still, he held her.

* * *

Ethan stepped onto the gangplank to the Midnight Sun, which thankfully was berthed at a pier next to the Argo. Near the front of the airship, Myla was sitting with Salma and her two older children. The boy, Ben, was listening with especially rapt attention.

"I told him that if he can learn to move his mana and create mental defenses, I'll let someone teach him how to throw fireballs." Talven said with a chuckle as he welcomed Ethan to the airship.

Ethan chuckled. "For a ten-year-old boy, that sounds about right."

Talven looked better. For some time, he had looked defeated and world-weary, but he had a mostly cheerful expression on his face and the light in his eyes was back. Perhaps not full force, but definitely back.

"You look like you're doing better." Ethan pointed out.

"I am." Talven replied. "Being able to help the Inohuttan tribe helped, and being gainfully employed here on the Midnight Sun has as well. I didn't like not being able to provide for my family, though I think Falkaan was too generous with his wages, I couldn't haggle him down anymore."

That made Ethan smile. "You're a good man Talven."

"Thank you sir." He smiled. "Falkaan is below decks."

"Thanks." Ethan smiled and then headed below decks, passing Falkaan's pilot Damon as he did so. The man was older and not very talkative so they exchanged a nod of acknowledgement and not much else.

"Ah, prophet, welcome." Falkaan said when Ethan had found him seated at the round oak table in the room under the captain's cabin. The room also had several racks of wine or mead, and the dark elf had a half glass on the table next to him. Also on the table was rather a lot of paper, most of which looked like shorter notes from various people since the handwriting on very few of them was the same.

"Please, take a seat; can I offer you some mead?" Falkaan asked as he gathered the papers into a neat pile.

"Sure, thanks." Ethan said as he sat down.

Falkaan grabbed a glass and poured two fingers of mead, then set it in front of his guest. "What brings you here?"

"Honestly, Tabitha." Ethan replied, and then told him of the Crown Prince's offer.

Falkaan took a sip of his mead and leaned back in his chair before replying. "Ah, Tabitha. She was my best student and has a gift for combat that surpasses even Kendra."

"Would you trust her?" Ethan asked.

"The only person who I truly trust is my wife." Falkaan replied. "Though, I consider you and your family to be somewhat trustworthy as well."

"Thanks? I think?" Ethan replied, not sure how to take that.

"It was a compliment; Aldmiri are taught never to trust." The dark elf replied. "Tabitha is no exception. I assume that in recounting your story, you mentioned in Tabitha's presence that I wed Myla?"

"Yup." He nodded.

"Then I expect that I will receive a visit from her shortly."

"Why?"

Falkaan looked at him for a moment before speaking. "Tabitha told me a few things in confidence many, many years ago. I will not break that confidence, though I can offer some insight into her."

Ethan leaned forward a bit.

"As I am sure Kendra mentioned, at one time, Tabitha struggled greatly with keeping her emotions under control." Falkaan continued. "I will not reveal why or how that changed, but the change was profound."

"How profound?" Ethan asked.

"Very." He replied, his tone both serious and grave. "However, there is one important detail I can share about Tabitha without breaking her confidence: how she came to leave the Aldmiri for the Imperial Guard."

"Oh? That sounds like a tale."

"It is." Falkaan nodded. "I cannot relay the particulars of course. However, for context, there was an attempted assassination on the emperor several years ago. It was rather less stealthy than most are, being a near-frontal attack by highly trained assailants while he was in the streets of the capital. He survived without injury, but most of his personal guard force were slain."

"Oof." Ethan grimaced. "Do we know who was behind it?"

"We do not." Falkaan replied. "Many have pointed fingers at the Winter Empire, but as far as I am aware, no credible evidence exists to support that."

"So how does that relate to Tabitha?"

"Around that time, she was sent on a mission whose result was considered a failure by Aldmiri command." Falkaan replied.

Ethan tapped one of his toe-claws on the decking as he thought about it. "That's an... interesting way of phrasing that."

"It is intentional." Falkaan replied. "Tabitha chose not to complete a portion of the mission because doing so would have put several children at great risk of harm via collateral damage."

"Hmm." Ethan leaned back in his chair and stroked his jaw as he thought about that. "That seems like a good thing, or at least a sign that she isn't a murderous psychopath."

Falkaan was unreadable as he replied. "That is not an assumption I would make."

"Oh?" Ethan raised his eyebrow.

Falkaan nodded once, then continued without further comment. "She was not reprimanded for the decision, but Aldmiri command was disappointed by her assessment of priorities."

"You mean, that she prioritized saving innocent children?" Ethan asked.

"Yes." Falkaan replied. "Regardless, because of the attempted assassination, the emperor asked the Aldmiri if they could spare some agents to bring the imperial guard back to full strength. Because of that mission and also her extreme effectiveness, Tabitha was chosen for transfer to the imperial guard."

"That makes sense I suppose." Ethan nodded. He thought about it for a moment and then looked Falkaan in the eye. "Bottom line; would she pose a risk to my family or the Argo's crew if we accepted?"

"That depends on what her orders are." Falkaan replied. "If her orders are as the Crown Prince has indicated, then she likely would pose little risk unless attacked."

"But?" Ethan asked. "It sounds like there's a 'but' coming."

"However, Tabitha was trained almost exclusively as an assassin." Falkaan replied. "That is her area of expertise, along with the ancillary skills necessary to perform that function. Her skill in protection stems from her being able to look at the protectee's defense from the viewpoint of an assassin."

Ethan frowned.

"Unlike Kendra, who was trained to be a more general-purpose agent and spent much time hunting dragons, the focus of Tabitha's training was almost entirely those skills required to be an effective assassin." Falkaan continued. "If she had orders to attack the Argo's crew, it is unlikely that any would survive except perhaps Alana, since she is with child, and Serif for obvious reasons."

"Thanks for sharing that." Ethan said after a moment. "I'm not sure if it'll make my decision easier or harder, but thanks for sharing."

"You are welcome." Falkaan replied.

"What do you think of Prince George?" Ethan asked after a moment. "Do you think he's likely to order her to do something?"

"From all accounts, he is an even-handed and open-minded man who prefers diplomacy to military action." Falkaan replied. "He is a very skilled warrior and tactician, but generally has employed a softer touch when making decisions. However, he is also quite shrewd and has more than once tricked political enemies into their own downfall. He does not appear to employ such tactics against those he considers friends, but he is well acquainted with them and their effective use."

"So it partially depends on whether I think he considers me and my family friends then." Ethan stroked his chin with his hand and made a thoughtful sound. "I don't think he does based on what he's said, but I don't think he considers me an enemy either. That makes it kind of hard to guess which tactics he'll employ."

"It would indeed." Falkaan replied. "It is quite likely that the orders he would give to both Tabitha and Ellis contain contingencies for what to do if they confirm that you are either a necromancer or a prophet."

"That would make sense." Ethan nodded. "Do you think he'd tell them not to attack us until they have confirmed it?"

"You assume that he has not made up his mind already." Falkaan replied. "It is entirely possible that he has either decided that you are a prophet and thus wishes them to facilitate communications between you and the imperial family, or else that he has decided you are a necromancer and wishes them to assassinate you at an opportune moment. Either is possible."

"You really don't trust anyone, do you?"

"My wife." Falkaan replied. "However, I have far more trust for you and your wives than anyone besides my bride."

Ethan smiled at that. "Thank you, I appreciate that."

"I do have two other pieces of information to share while you are here." Falkaan added.

"Oh?"

The dark elf nodded. "First, concerning Tabitha. While she is ruthless when given a mission to accomplish, I have never observed outright malevolence from her. To my knowledge, she takes lives only when ordered to do so and takes no enjoyment from it. However, if ordered to do so, she will kill without hesitation, except for the case already mentioned."

"Children." Ethan nodded. "So, you're saying that I should be more worried about what orders Prince George gave Tabitha than I should be about if she'll do something on her own."

"Precisely." Falkaan nodded. "That one mission excepted, I do not believe that she has ever failed to follow orders."

"Good to know, thank you." Ethan nodded.

"You are welcome." The dark elf said. "The other piece of information concerns Plesius; I have finished compiling the relevant information on him and can present it at any time."

"Thank you, I really appreciate it." Ethan said, and he meant it.

"Again, you are welcome." Falkaan replied.

"Okay, whatcha got?" Ethan asked.

"From early childhood, he has been ardently interested in Illuminar." Falkaan began. "He would reportedly spend hours at his local temple asking the luminar questions. By age thirteen, he knew the Book of Light better than all his peers, and nearly all adults in his acquaintance as well."

Ethan raised his eyebrow. "Really?"

Falkaan nodded. "Better than at least one luminar in his acquaintance, and he would regularly initiate theological debates with that luminar despite him being the head of Plesius's local parish."

Ethan chuckled. "I'll bet the luminar loved that."

"Indeed." Falkaan had a smile on his face as well. "That luminar recommended Plesius for seminary, and by many accounts, he did so in order to have some peace because Plesius rarely ceased discussion on the points on which they disagreed. The luminar thought Plesius would learn something and possibly come to his senses if he was better educated in spiritual matters."

"Well, you know what they say about the best-laid plans..." Ethan slowly shook his head and chuckled.

"The luminar added that Plesius had some of the strongest moral fiber of any of his students." Falkaan added.

"Oh?"

Falkaan nodded. "Those who knew him in childhood up to the present day all attest that while he can allow his zeal to overcome him and he occasionally falls prey to his temper, not a single one could recall him intentionally choosing immoral behavior. On this point, I labored quite ardently and was unable to uncover any evidence of immoral behavior, but I did uncover several instances where he behaved morally despite great pressure to compromise, and yet he has never publicized them and downplays them if asked. I am forced to conclude that he is as committed to living in accordance with Illuminar's standards as one would expect a high priest of Illuminar to be."

Ethan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "So, I've been misjudging him then?"

"In regard to his character, it would appear so." Falkaan replied. "However, not in regard to his zeal. It appears that he simply cannot remain silent nor refrain from action when he sees a problem that doesn't align itself with what he sees as Illuminar's commands. Currently, he mostly confines his zeal to practice and teaching among the luminars, and issues of gross immorality."

"Like when he thinks a prophet of Illuminar is actually a necromancer in disguise." Ethan sighed.

"You have accepted your role then?"

Ethan sighed again. "I wish I could say 'no', but at this point, it would be silly to deny that He seems to have picked me for that, little though I wanted Him to." He paused, then a small smile crept onto his face. "Though, that's arguably how I met my wives, so I probably shouldn't complain."

"Indeed." Falkaan nodded. "The rest of Plesius's career was notable for his zeal and willingness to engage with anyone with whom he disagreed on any important topic. In his youth, he would engage on any topic, but he has mellowed as he aged, and thus only pursues more important or significant topics at present."

"Thank God for small favors." Ethan frowned. "So he's a good guy, just misguided? Is that your read?"

"That would not be incorrect." Falkaan replied. "There is one other notable thing of which you should be aware."

"What's that?"

"He and his wife had enormous difficulty in conceiving and bearing children." Falkaan replied.

Ethan winced, his digs at Plesius about children suddenly not feeling so smart or clever.

"They had difficulty conceiving and his wife suffered several miscarriages that required the intervention of a healer for her to survive." Falkaan continued. "They currently have two children, both grown and happily married, but it took them many years and no fewer than six miscarriages."

Ethan winced again. "Damn. Now I really wish I had chosen my words more carefully."

"That is why I believed it should be brought to your attention." The dark elf said.

"Thanks." Ethan nodded. "I feel like a heel right now, but thanks."

"You are welcome."

Ethan sat there thinking about what he'd just learned for a moment before a thought occurred to him. "Does Plesius ever change his mind on anything?"

"He has, though rarely." Falkaan replied. "He has been studying the Book of Light from youth and more often convinces the man to whom he is speaking than he himself is convinced. He can be convinced, and will change his position when he is, but such occurrences are rare. Often, his positions proliferate because of his skilled exegesis of the Book of Light, and he is considered both a scholar and a persuasive speaker as well."

"That he can change his mind is good." Ethan replied. "Sounds like it won't be easy, but it's good that he isn't so set in his ways that he won't change."

"Indeed." Falkaan nodded.

"He was pretty agreeable earlier when we were telling our story." Ethan mused. "I'm not sure how convinced he was of it, but it seems like I might be able to have a conversation with him." He hesitated. "Maybe."

"Stranger things have happened; I am happily married." Falkaan replied with a subtle smile.

Ethan thought about that for a moment and then returned to the reason he'd visited in the first place. "So, bottom line: do you think it would be safe for me and my wives to accept the prince's proposal?"

"Advice is a dangerous thing, even from the wise to the wise." Falkaan replied. "I am happy to provide information to assist you in making a decision, but I would not advise on the decision itself."

"You've been around for over a hundred years, right?"

Falkaan nodded.

"And I would assume that you've heard rather a lot about the Crown Prince during that time, right?"

Falkaan nodded again.

"That's why I'm asking." Ethan explained. "I'm a fish out of water here in the Ten Kingdoms. Honestly, I couldn't even name half of the Ten Kingdoms if my life depended on it. Conversely, you've been around and heard things for a long time. I'm just hoping to get a better perspective on who Prince George is."

Falkaan smiled. "You have, perhaps, been spending too much time conversing with Thea and Ahjah, as the metal content of your tongue has risen."

Ethan chuckled.

"From what I know of Prince George, he is unlikely to give orders to eliminate your family." Falkaan replied. "That does not mean he hasn't, but it seems unlikely because the Aldmiri have been following you for some time now. He has had the opportunity to strike for some time and has not taken it. It seems unlikely that he would choose a time immediately after hearing your story to strike."

"Good point." Ethan nodded. "Yeah, that's a really good point."

"Thank you." Falkaan said, then took a sip of his mead. "Have you decided?"

"I think..." He took a deep breath. "I think I'll accept the offer. It'll be a huge change, and likely not a pleasant one, but if we really want to get Lady Ekthros behind bars, this currently looks like the best option." He paused as something occurred to him, then chuckled. "Ironically, her secret base in the Wilding Lands might end up being her undoing if this goes well."

"Possibly." Falkaan replied, though he didn't sound convinced.

"You don't think so?"

"She is not careless." The dark elf replied. "She was extremely well trained, has decades of experience, and by all accounts is extremely intelligent. It's entirely possible that she anticipated this possibility long ago and segmented her operations to prevent an exposure of this base from tracing back to her."

"That's a chance we'll have to take." Ethan sighed. "I'll talk to everyone on the Argo again just to make sure that none of them are bothered by it, since it's their home too, but I think it's the right call."

"I agree." Falkaan nodded, then took a sip of his mead.

Ethan took a moment to consider how much life on the Argo was about to change. He didn't know exactly how much, but he had a feeling it wouldn't be the same for quite some time.

* * *

Sarah sat in Sarisa's spacious Nalatia apartment listening to Thea recount everything that had happened concerning her and Ahjah. The elf himself was nearby, but said relatively little as the ladies talked. Sarah had had female friends to just hang out with when she was a little girl, before her problem, and it was wonderful. She had a contented smile on her face as she listened, not only happy for her friend, but glad to be in a group of wonderful women who were friends again.

"So when will you ask The King?" Sarisa asked Ahjah when the story was finished.

"I intend to ask Ethan to function as a meludori first, as I believe the appeal to older tradition will carry some weight with The King. It will signify that while I am asking for something that is somewhat non-traditional, I do respect tradition."

"Um, what's a meludori?" Sarah asked, since everyone else had nodded their heads in understanding.

"It's an old tradition, not confined to betrothal agreements." Thea replied. "When you wish to ask an extremely large favor or boon from someone, you pick someone that both you and the person you want the favor from know and trust to mediate between the two of you; that's the meludori. It's a way of subtly acknowledging that you are asking for something very large and you recognize that."

Sarah nodded. "I think The King will appreciate that."

"Indeed." Ahjah said. "I believe Ethan will agree, but of course, I have not asked him yet."

"Oh, he'll definitely agree." Alana said. "And even if he didn't want to, which I'm sure he will, he has seven wives who can be very persuasive."

Everyone chuckled.

"Speaking of wives." Sarisa looked at Sarah. "You might wish to contact The Queen soon regarding your wedding since she offered to assist in its planning. Wood elven decorum requires that she not bring it up again until you have, so if you don't, she will not."

"Oh, I'll have to do that then." Sarah smiled, scarcely able to believe that The Queen of the wood elves wanted to help plan her wedding.

Thea cleared her throat and then looked pointedly at Sarah, then nodded her head towards Sarisa.

Sarah bit her lip.

"Sari, Sarah has something she wanted to ask you." Thea said with an impish smile.

"Please, ask." Sarisa smiled at her. "I would be happy to help a wife of the prophet, and especially one who has been such a good friend to my sister."

"Um, I really loved how your house was decorated and I would love it if my wedding could feel something like that." Sarah said.

Sarisa beamed. "I would be happy to share what I know, though, I would not dream of usurping The Queen's role."

"You and she get along famously." Thea said. "I'm sure she'd love to have you on the planning team."

Sarisa smiled.

"I would love that too, if you don't mind?" Sarah asked.

Sarisa's smile widened. "Sarah dear, I would love to. It is entirely okay to ask and you needn't be so shy about it."

Sarah smiled. "Thank you."

That of course led to a discussion of what Sarah's wedding should look like, which was one of the strangest and most wonderful conversations Sarah had ever had. She was beaming the entire time, especially as Thea seemed in lock-step with her on their taste.

"Wow, I'll need to be mindful not to make my wedding just like yours." Thea laughed after several minutes of discussion.

"Um..." Sarah hesitated as an idea occurred to her. "I would need to ask Ethan, but what if... what if they were just exactly alike?"

Thea cocked her head to one side. "Really?"

Sarah nodded. "Well, I realize that double weddings aren't very common, but I'm not sure I want to be the center of attention with everyone who will be there." She admitted. "I'm just an innkeeper's daughter from a small town, and I wouldn't know what to do."

"I do believe your use of the word 'just' is misplaced." Ahjah said. "That would seem to indicate that you don't value yourself as highly as your friends do, nor as the prophet does, nor Illuminar Himself, as He chose you to be the prophet's wife."

Sarah smiled, but it was an embarrassed smile. "Ethan said something like that as well."

"I would be honored to share my wedding day with the prophet, should The King agree to my marriage to Thea." Ahjah added. "I would be just as honored to share it with a woman who has been such a good friend to Thea."

"I would definitely agree." Thea said hesitantly, but then added in a firm tone. "But only if you are the..." She frowned. "The common tongue lacks so much nuance."

"You mean, if Sarah is the Bride of the Honorable Position?" Sarisa asked, a similar frown on her face. "I believe that is the best way to translate that phrase into the common tongue."

"Perhaps, the Bride of the Prominent Position?" Ahjah suggested, and both Thea and Sarisa nodded

"What's that?" Kendra asked.

"When there's a double wedding, one of the brides can be considered in the more prominent position." Thea explained. "So while they're both getting married, the focus will be more on that bride as opposed to the other."

"Um, I don't want the focus all on me." Sarah said.

"Well, it'll still be somewhat split." Thea said. "More than if it was just you and Ethan, but you'll still be the more major focus."

Sarah hesitated.

"It's either that or you're the sole focus." Alana pointed out.

"Okay." Sarah nodded, looking forward to getting married at the same time as her friend; she thought that would be lovely.

Her face fell slightly as something occurred to her, but she tried to hide it.

"You don't want a double wedding?" Alana asked.

"I would love it." Sarah replied quickly. "I just want Fiona to be there too."

"Oh." Alana said.

No one spoke for a moment.

"Perhaps that is possible?" Ahjah said after a moment. "I realize that, perhaps, Lord Delmar is entirely hostile to the prophet. However, he is not hostile to you. Perhaps with the right argument, he could be convinced to allow her to attend."

"I doubt it." Alana frowned.

"If you do not ask, the answer will assuredly be 'no'." Ahjah pointed out. "What is the worst outcome that could result? He puts a bounty on Ethan and his wives?" He had a subtle, wry smile on his face as he said that.

"Basically, what do you have to lose?" Thea concluded Ahjah's argument.

"I haven't talked to her in ages." Sarah said after a moment.

"Perhaps you could visit her?" Thea suggested. "I know the Helene has docked, so both she and Lord Delmar are here. You probably shouldn't just visit unannounced, but I would imagine that if, say, The King's ward and her custodian were to visit and ask on your behalf if you could see Fiona, I bet that would go very well."

"You would do that?" Sarah asked.

"Of course!" Thea beamed, then hesitated and looked at Ahjah. "Sorry, I shouldn't speak for you."

"In this case, you are correct; I would be happy to assist." Ahjah replied kindly.

Thea smiled, then looked at Sarah. "So, what if Ahjah and I headed to the docks to talk to Lord Delmar and Lady Fiona, and only asked if Lady Fiona would be willing to meet with you, just two friends getting together to talk. If you think there's a chance, then at some point you could ask about her attending your wedding."

Sarah's smile widened. "I would love that, thank you both so much."

"For what you have done to advance the cause of Thea and I being wed, we would be honored." Ahjah said.

"It's late in the afternoon." Sarisa pointed out. "Perhaps such a meeting would be better suited for tomorrow."

Ahjah and Thea nodded, and Sarah couldn't help but notice how they both did it at the same time in mostly the same way. That made her smile.

"I would love to see Fiona again." Sarah's smile grew as she thought about that.

"Would you be willing to meet her on Lord Delmar's airship, or perhaps a teahouse in Nalatia?" Thea asked. "It'll be much easier to convince Lord Delmar if you offer a neutral location or a location he can control."

"Okay." She paused. "Maybe a teahouse? I think Ethan would worry if I met her on Lord Delmar's airship. Besides, I like tea."

"Ethan should be fine with that." Alana said. "Now, should we see about getting The Queen and Sarisa together with Thea and Sarah to plan what will probably be the grandest wedding Nalatia has seen in many years?"

"I do have a standing invitation to the palace." Sarisa replied. "I could, perhaps, send someone to see if she is free."

"Let's do it!" Thea grinned.

Sarah took a deep breath and let it out slowly, reminding herself that she was betrothed to Ethan and thus wouldn't be able to avoid the limelight all the time. It was a shame, but something she was happy to live with if that was the price of marrying Ethan.

* * *

Falkaan leaned against the railing of the Midnight Sun's quarterdeck watching his wife talk with Salma forward of the main mast. He had a small but contented smile on his face as he watched; it was still hard to believe that he of all people had found a wife he could trust. He felt that fact alone was proof that Illuminar did exist and worked miracles, for there was no other explanation.

His only regret was that they would be unable to conceive a child. Half-elven children with humans were already rare, and since Myla was already barren, it would be impossible for them. Still, he felt more than blessed and said a silent prayer of thanks to Illuminar for His bountiful blessing.

He watched for a little longer before he noticed...

He smiled.

"Hello Tabitha; I thought I might see you sometime today." He turned to see her drop onto the weather deck in total silence, obviously having scaled the rear of the airship in total silence as well.

She narrowed her eyes. "How?"

"Did I know you were there?" He chuckled. "An old Aldmiri can't give away all his secrets."

"You married." Tabitha said. It wasn't a question.

"I did." Falkaan replied, then voiced his earlier thought. "That I have found her seems to be proof that Illuminar not only exists, but also that He intervenes in the lives of mortals."

"That is not how you trained us." Tabitha said, her eyes narrowed. Likely no one else in the Ten Kingdoms would be able to see through her current mask, but he could. Well, a little. Training someone from early childhood did tend to make that person easier to read.

She felt... betrayed?

Possibly a little hurt?

"The Aldmiri teach us not to trust anyone, and I repeated that teaching because I thought it was necessary for your survival." He explained. "As it turns out, I was wrong."

Tabitha narrowed her eyes slightly more. "You changed your mind."

"As a man ages, sometimes, his opinions change." Falkaan replied. "The young often find themselves bound in rigid lines of black and white. As you grow in wisdom and maturity, you realize that while morals are indeed black and white, much of the rest of life is more gray. It took a good woman for me to learn that trust was possible."

Tabitha looked at him intently for several seconds before speaking. "Do you trust Ethan Ejder?"

"More than anyone except for my wife, Myla; but then, she is the only one I fully trust."

Tabitha didn't reply.

"Would you like a glass of mead?" Falkaan asked.

Tabitha gave the subtlest shake of her head once.

"You didn't come here to ask about Ethan Ejder." Falkaan said when she didn't speak. "What did you come here to ask?"

Tabitha didn't reply.

Falkaan sighed. "Well, I'm always here if you decide to ask. However, you should be aware of something."

Tabitha raised one of her eyebrows fractionally.

"If you harm a single hair on Myla's head, you will not wake up the following morning." He looked at her pointedly.

"I will not harm her." Tabitha replied, her tone as neutral and monotone as you might expect a stone statue to be if it could speak. Falkaan couldn't be certain, but he thought she was telling the truth.

Silence fell after that.

He wasn't sure if she was intending to ask another question or not. She definitely had gotten better at hiding her emotions.

"How have you been?" He asked after nearly a minute had passed.

"Alive." As usual, her reply was monotone.

"I can see that you're alive, but have you lived?" Falkaan asked.

Tabitha looked intently at him for several seconds.

"It's good talking with you, as always." Falkaan chuckled. "You can leave via the gangplank if you like, rather than climbing."

Without saying another word, she did indeed choose to leave via the gangplank. Before she'd even left the Midnight Sun, she assumed a nonchalant, casual persona and then disappeared into the crowds on the docks.

* * *

"Sarisa, darling, it's been too long."

Alana smiled as she watched The Queen -- Alana's aunt -- embrace Thea's sister with a genuinely affectionate hug. Apparently, The Queen had insisted on meeting quickly once Sarisa's servant had reached out. They were currently in an outdoor gazebo near the palace but not inside it, likely because of Sarah's problem. It was surrounded by beautifully kept trees and shrubs, and many of the latter had been sculpted into intricate shapes.

"What brings you here, and with such illustrious company?" The Queen asked once they were all settled and a servant had brought refreshments.

"Sarah." Alana prompted when she hadn't spoken up.

"Um, I was wondering if... um, did The King tell you about Thea and Ahjah?"

"I might have heard something." The Queen nodded, a subtle and sly smile on her face as she looked at Thea. As her custodian, Ahjah was right behind her.

"Um, I was wondering if... if The King agrees, if Thea and I could..." She took a deep breath, then spoke quite quickly. "Um, have a double wedding and Sarisa could help you plan it?"

"Only if Sarah is the Bride of the Prominent Position." Thea spoke up. "But I would love a double wedding as well."

"Oh my, you do like to create a scandal." The Queen laughed. "I don't know that a daughter or ward of The King has ever not been the Bride of the Prominent Position in an elven double wedding. That's a very non-traditional thing to do."

"But then, has a daughter or ward of The King ever had a double wedding with a prophet of Illuminar?" Alana spoke up.

The Queen started to turn her head toward Alana, then stopped and looked at Sarah, a smile still on her face. "I do believe the prophet's first wife is as clever as her parentage would suggest."

Alana smiled at the compliment.

"Would he agree?" Thea asked. "That is, assuming he will agree to me marrying Ahjah."

"I believe that if he decides that Ahjah is a suitable husband, he just might." The Queen replied, then looked at Ahjah. "Honorable custodian, you must promise to entreat my husband as soon as possible, for we shan't be able to begin planning in earnest unless we know whether there will be one bride or two."

"Honorable Queen, it would be my honor to do so." Ahjah replied. "I will request an audience forthwith."

"No need, I shall impress upon him that it is urgent that he accept an audience." The Queen turned and nodded to a nearby servant, who then nodded and began running toward the palace as The Queen continued. "I would wager you shall have your audience tomorrow, possibly the first of the day."

"Unfortunately, I have not been able to ask the prophet for his assistance as my meludori." Ahjah said.

"He will." Sarah said. "I know he will."

"Then it's settled." The Queen said, then looked at Thea. "You'll pardon my meddling darling, but I do so long to see you happily wed, and I do believe this is the first elf to put a smile on your face."

"Not the first..." Sarisa said in a slightly sing-song tone with a slightly impish smile, then took a sip of her drink.

That of course led to a discussion of every boy Thea had ever had a crush on since she had hit puberty, succeeding in turning the gorgeous elf bright red. Ahjah had an extremely amused smile on his face as this progressed, but remained silent as a custodian was generally expected to do.

"Anyway..." Thea said after Sarisa had finished recounting a more recent tale. "Sarah really likes how my sister's house is decorated and was wondering if maybe it could feel a little like that?"

"I don't see why not, especially as Sari has a lovely home." The Queen smiled, then looked at Sarah. "Which parts did you like dear?"

Alana found herself glad that her wedding to Ethan had been so impromptu as she listened to the wedding planning that grew ever more complex and intricate as the minutes wore on. The Queen apparently took Sarah's desire for something cozy and homey as a challenge to make every single piece of the wedding as intricate as possible to compensate. It would be homey, but in the most complicated way possible.

"Give her a few days, then she'll tone it down and it'll be more wonderful than you could imagine." Thea said when The Queen had stopped to draw breath.

Everyone chuckled.

It was a lovely afternoon.

Despite The Queen not addressing Alana directly nor using her name, Alana herself got the distinct impression that she would've liked to. As the meeting came to an end with the sun getting lower in the sky, Alana thought to ask something of the Queen since something from that morning occurred to her.

"Pardon me for asking, but if you wouldn't mind, could I ask for a small favor from The King." Alana said. "Very small, or at least, I think it would be."

"I believe The King would be kindly disposed to granting a small favor for one of the prophet's wives." The Queen said, not looking at her but clearly answering her.

"Would it be possible to get a small piece of something that's been enchanted with a warding enchantment?" Alana asked. "It can be tiny, I just want to see how it works so I can hopefully reproduce it on my husband's armor to keep him better protected."

"I do not believe he would refuse such a request." The Queen smiled, then addressed Thea. "Do remember this Thea, I believe the prophet's first wife is modeling an example of an excellent wife."

Alana beamed.

* * *

Fiona gently set Conner into his crib, sniffling slightly as she did. Her son was the very image of his father and while she wouldn't change that for the world, sometimes, it was hard. She stood over his crib, watching him fight sleep like Sean sometimes did, though thankfully, he wasn't crying right now. She took a deep, shuddering breath and then returned to her own room through the adjoining door and sat down on the bed.

Sitting felt like a lot of work.

She flopped down onto the bed, feeling more drained than she had in a very long time. She couldn't help but smile a bit as she thought about her husband holding her while she'd cried earlier. She hadn't cried like that since she'd been given the news about Sean's passing, and yet he'd held her.

That of course made her think about Sean's passing and how it had happened. She hadn't really known before. Lord Delmar had told her that he had been killed attempting to apprehend a necromancer, and she knew he really believed that Ethan Ejder was a necromancer.

She wasn't so sure.

Not anymore.

Nothing about his story that she'd heard so far sounded untrue. Even the possibility of him being from another world had been mentioned at the Karnas castle before, so she was willing to accept that.

But he had killed her Sean.

Or rather, his now-first-wife had. If the situation was accurately reported, then it really had been self-defense. Tabitha didn't think they were attempting to deceive, and she was apparently very good at reading people. She was also good at impressions, which Fiona knew from her imitating Lord Delmar and Fiona herself when she had recounted their first meeting. Based on that, the first wife, Alana, had sounded genuinely sorry.

Fiona didn't know how to feel about that.

But then, what if Alana and the rest of his wives, including Sarah, had been compelled? He was a dragon, so wasn't that possible? But then, Lord Delmar had said that someone couldn't be compelled to violate their moral convictions. But then again, Ethan might've compelled them to believe something falsely so they would speak about it while believing it was true.

And again, Sarah seemed to be in love with Ethan, but could love be compelled? Or at least, some form of infatuation since she doubted that real and genuine love could be compelled; she agreed with the Crown Prince that Illuminar would likely never allow that.

And then there was the Crown Prince to consider. He clearly thought the story was credible enough to order Lord Delmar to make the bounty alive only; did that mean something?

Round and round she went, turning it over in her mind as her feelings changed with every passing thought. First one way, then back again, to and fro as she considered different facets.

"Fiona."

She jumped, having not realized that Lord Delmar had even entered the room. It took a moment for her heart to calm down.

"How are you fairing presently?" He asked.

She gave him a half smile. "Better, but honestly, I'm feeling confused."

"About?" He asked.

"It's... it's a lot." She replied. "The story I mean."

"If it is true." He pointed out.

She nodded. "Aye, and I'm wishing I was knowing if it is."

He made a thoughtful sound. "One thing is true in both accounts; Sean McWilliams comported himself with the highest honor and discipline, performing his duty in an exemplary manner."

Fiona felt herself get choked up and her eyes watery. "Thank you." Her voice cracked slightly.

He nodded once. "You are welcome."

"Thank you for holding me earlier." She added as she wiped her cheeks. "It was meaning a lot that you care so much."

"In the interest of honesty, my actions arose primarily not from concern." He replied. "Rather, I did that with Helene when she was overcome with emotion. Thus, I surmised that it would be helpful to you as well, and such things are the duty of a man if he is to be the type of husband that the Book of Light commands."

"You're always doing that; why?"

He raised his eyebrow.

"Acting like you aren't caring about me, but I know you are." She said.

"You are entitled to your opinion, of course." He replied. Though, having now been married for a while and also having a lot of practice trying to interpret the much harder to read Tabby -- who she still missed -- she could tell that he was intentionally deflecting.

"Maybe you aren't realizing what you are feeling?" She suggested.

"Perhaps." His tone was neither dismissive nor confirming. "I shall retire now; I suggest you do the same."

She nodded, then moved to her usual spot on the bed as he took his usual spot as well. Her thoughts and emotions were still a tempest, but she felt better with him there. She might sometimes be frustrated by how unemotional he was, but she also appreciated that he was a rock that she could lean on. It was easier to process her emotions when he was there for some reason. Thus, she went back to turning things over in her mind as she'd been doing before he had arrived, and did so until she fell asleep.

* * *

Ethan exhaled heavily; what a day. He yawned, it feeling good to just chill on the Argo for a while after the flurry of activity the last few days. It was very nearly fully dark and the lanterns on the Argo cast a merry, flickering glow the way that only lanterns and candles can. Anthiel had made dinner since Sarah wasn't back with everyone yet, though he could see them coming in the distance.

Beside him, Bee and Tee were talking, as were Rachel and Selene nearby. The latter group appeared to be talking about children and Ethan thought that Selene was doing some subtle probing about Rachel's opinion on it. He smiled at that and hoped she came around. He thought she would make a wonderful mother and very much wanted to see that side of her.

He yawned again as he listened, enjoying the simple pleasure of relaxing with a few of his wives.

It was nice.

"We're back!" Alana announced as she and the rest of her group crossed the gangplank, and Sarisa was included in that group.

"Sari wanted to join us for dinner." Thea said, then added in a 'whisper'. "She gets lonely always eating alone."

Sarisa smiled subtly, but didn't deny it.

"I have the basics of dinner finished." Anthiel said to Sarah. "But if you want to healer it up, be my guest."

Ethan chuckled as Selene thought to him. *I guess it would be 'healer it up' here instead of 'doctor it up'.*

*Yup.* He replied, then yawned again.

"Um, Ethan." Sarah said as she made her way to where dinner was cooking. "Ahjah had something he wanted to ask you about Thea."

Ethan chuckled and then looked at the elf.

"I would be honored if you would function as the meludori when I approach The King to ask for Thea's hand; would you be willing?"

"Probably, but what does a meludori do?"

"In the modern age, his role is primarily ceremonial and symbolic." Ahjah replied. "You would come with me when I ask The King and say a few traditional words concerning your support for the union. Afterward, I would present my request."

"I'd be happy to." Ethan smiled.

"Told you." Alana smiled. "It'll be good to have something fun that we want to do for a change."

"Yeah, our 'to-do' list is getting rather long." Ethan said.

"It is." Rachel said, then ticked them off on her fingers as she listed them off. "Meeting The King tomorrow to help Thea and Ahjah, Thea and Ahjah were going to see if Sarah could get a meeting with Fiona to ask about Tabitha--

"Oh, about that." Ethan interrupted, then told them everything that Falkaan had told him. "Thoughts?" he asked when he had finished.

"Based on that, I think it's probably a good idea to accept the Crown Prince's offer." Alana spoke up. "However, I suggest that we wait to hear what Fiona tells Sarah about Tabitha before you make a final decision."

"Good idea." Ethan nodded

Everyone else agreed.

He turned to Rachel. "You were saying."

She continued. "Ethan needs to see about getting a meeting with Plesius, at some point, we were going to ask about the history between the Wildings and Ivernia, there's a wedding to plan, and then--"

"Actually." Alana interjected. "Possibly a double wedding."

"Wait, a double wedding?" Ethan asked.

"Um, is it okay if we have a double wedding with Thea and Ahjah?" Sarah asked him.

"Sarah would be the bride of the prominent position." Thea added.

"Um, sure." He nodded after thinking about it for a moment. As much as he wanted the wedding to be special, Sarah probably wouldn't appreciate all the attention. A double wedding with Thea would mean it would be grand, but then she wouldn't have all the attention either. Plus, for as odd a pair as they made, Sarah and Thea were becoming good friends and thus Sarah would enjoy a double wedding.

"Adding to the list, The Queen promised to ask The King to give us something that's warded for us to analyze." Alana said, then looked at Rachel.

The redhead added that to the list she was counting off on her fingers. "Plus, we still need to work on how to remove Kalaya's shame. Though, that'll be a lot easier when Matthew and Yalia get here."

"We have a full plate." Ethan nodded.

"And that's just in Nalatia." Rachel continued. "Once we leave Nalatia, we also need to locate a certain base, figure out how to destroy the demon-possessed men, and gather enough evidence to convince the Crown Prince. After that, we also have rather a lot of unfinished business in Nalatia."

"Oof." Ethan nodded. "Yeah, that's a lot."

"But one thing at a time." Victoria spoke up with a smile. "Thea and Ahjah might get betrothed tomorrow."

Everyone smiled, and Ethan wider than anyone since he knew that The King already wanted it to happen. He wasn't sure how it would, but he knew it would. As he looked at the young couple, he thought they had a bright future ahead of them, which put him in mind of his own future. Well, assuming his family survived what was coming.

"Dominus, what are you thinking about?" Beth asked.

He looked around at all his wives with a smile on his face. "Family."

TO BE CONTINUED...

Note: This chapter began and ended on day 136 of Ethan's life in the Ten Kingdoms.

IMPORTANT!!! -- I have been dealing with some health issues and I'm looking at possibly moving sometime soon. Thus, it's possible that there might not be a chapter next month. Certainly, sometime in the next couple months I'll almost certainly have to skip a month. I thought you all should have a heads up about that. Regardless, I'll submit the next chapter on the last Wednesday of the month, though it might not be next month. (They usually drop after the 2-3 day review process, so likely the Friday or Saturday after the last Wednesday of the month) No promises either way, and I'm sorry about the delay.

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

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