Chapter 76: "Conceal me what I am..."

* * *

Ethan smiled widely as Sarah leaned up against him during Ahjah and Thea's betrothal kiss. He put his arm around her, guessing that she was thinking about their betrothal kiss like he was. The two betrothal kisses had at least one thing in common.

Ethan had been in the Ten Kingdoms long enough to know exactly how a betrothal kiss tended to go. While the father chose his daughter's husband, it seemed that the girl was usually happy with the result because the jokes about betrothal kisses extending longer than was ideal were numerous. His wives had even once had a conversation where they talked about the longest ones they'd seen.

Ahjah and Thea were certainly following that pattern.

Tellingly, Ahjah ended it just as The King opened his mouth, probably to tell them to stop. Ahjah had even done that with his eyes closed, which Ethan thought was pretty damn impressive. However, just because the kiss had ended didn't mean the closeness did. Their faces remained quite close and he could see Ahjah's lips moving, but couldn't make out what he was saying. Whatever it was made Thea grin even wider, and she got the tiniest hint of a blush before Ahjah straightened up and offered his arm to Thea. The gorgeous elf happily hooked her arm through his, and he led her to the side of the room near Ethan and his wives.

Thea was beaming.

Ahjah was more reserved in his expression, but if you looked at his eyes, he seemed no less happy.

Everyone looked at The King, who looked at Delabor and gave a small nod. The herald approached with a scroll in his hand and gave it to The King.

The King took it and then addressed everyone. "There are two more items of business to conduct. While they might be conducted in private, I have elected to conduct them in public." He looked at Ahjah. "Ahjah Golden Tongue, approach."

Thea reluctantly slipped her arm out of his and he moved to stand before The King.

"You are hereby formally discharged from your duties as a custodian for my beloved ward."

"You are wise, honored king." Ahjah bowed.

"However, she shall retain the custodial bracelet." The King added with a twinkle in his eyes. "It would not do to misplace your betrothed before the wedding."

Everyone chuckled, including Thea.

"The second item of business is this." The King extended the scroll toward Ahjah.

The newly betrothed elf took it, clearly confused, then unrolled it and began reading. His eyes got wider and wider as he read.

"Please, inform the court of the contents if it is prudent to do so." The Queen asked, though Ethan hadn't noticed her arrive. She seemed to appear out of nowhere rather often.

"It, it's a leasing contract..." Ahjah said, disbelieving wonder in his tone. "...for the Nomad's Pride."

"My ward considered it one of the finest airships she has ever set foot on." The King said. "And while I could allow her to have a single room aboard the Argo, it is a great blessing of wealth for a man to dote upon his daughters. I considered her being the mistress of a whole airship more appropriate to her station than mistress of a repurposed storage room."

Both Ahjah and Thea looked dumbstruck.

"What is the rate of the lease?" The Queen asked, and Ethan had noticed that she tended to ask the exact question necessary for The King to make his point. He wondered if, perhaps, The Queen was just as good a wife to The King as her niece was to himself.

It took Ahjah a full three seconds to reply. "The rate requires a lump sum payment for a 200-year lease..." His voice was slightly hoarse. "...at the rate of one copper per year."

*That's only two gold total.* Rachel thought to everyone. *And most elves don't quite make it to 200 years old; they'll be able to travel on it for the rest of their lives.*

Ethan grinned.

*And better, because it's still owned by The King and has a member of his family on it, it can fly the royal version of the wood elven flag.* Alana added. *That means attacking it could be considered an act of war against the wood elves, unless it's in self-defense. That'll help keep them safe wherever they travel.*

Ethan's grin widened; he was absolutely sure that The King had planned this all out in advance. Man, he was one sharp cookie.

"Honorable Golden Tongue." The Queen said with amusement in her tone. "If the offer requires this much deliberation, perhaps you could negotiate."

Ahjah shook his head slightly and seemed to come to himself. "That will not be necessary, honorable Queen." he looked at The King. "This offer is most magnanimous and exceedingly generous beyond any thought or expectation I ever held." He reached into a small pouch that was attached to the belt around his waist and produced two gold coins, which Delabor stepped forward to take.

The King addressed everyone. "That concludes this audience. Normal proceedings will reconvene in the throne room of the palace in two hours' time." He smiled. "Now, you will excuse me as I have some pleasant business to attend to. Wild Child, Golden Tongue, come."

The King stepped down from the platform, made eye contact with Ethan, then pointedly flicked his eyes in the direction of a side door. Ethan, his wives, Ahjah, Thea, The Queen, and Delabor followed The King out through that door to a smaller room on which there was a desk with two bottles of ink and two quill pens, probably to sign the lease for the Nomad's Pride.

"Thank you!" Thea nearly shrieked as she virtually tackled The King in a hug the moment the door closed behind them. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

The King laughed as he hugged her back. "I could not do less for my beloved Wild Child."

Thea gave him a kiss on the cheek and then let go, her eyes watery and her smile ear-to-ear.

"I considered myself in your debt when you agreed to the betrothal." Ahjah said, his tone still tinged with disbelief. "And now I find myself hopelessly so."

"Endeavour to ensure that my ward is provided for, cared for, and protected to the best of your ability, and I will consider that debt discharged." The King replied.

"For a woman such as Thea, how could I do anything less?" Ahjah replied with a bow.

Thea was very nearly crying happy tears.

* * *

If there was one thing that Rachel truly enjoyed, it was seeing the ones she loved being happy. Thea wasn't as close as her fellow wives of course, but she was a delightful woman and her joy brought a smile to Rachel's face. Thea's smile grew even wider as her new betrothed and The King signed the lease for the Nomad's Pride.

"Yeah." Alana said from next to her with a grin.

"Honored prophet." The King addressed Ethan after he had set down the pen he had used to sign the lease. "You are accruing quite the fleet."

"Fleet?" Ethan cocked his head to one side.

"The Argo, the Midnight Sun, the Nomad's Pride, and Ralgar's airship." Rachel counted.

"I guess that is a fleet. Huh." Her husband chuckled.

Ahjah looked at Thea. "My betrothed."

Her smile got even wider and she wiped her cheeks, which still had residue from her happy tears.

Ahjah continued. "I shall need to inquire about hiring one or two deckhands for the Nomad's Pride. She could be crewed by only two, but it might be better to have another one or two with us to crew the ship while we sleep if we are going to sail in formation with others."

Thea nodded.

"Do not concern yourself." The King said. "I have already put plans into motion on that account."

Ahjah looked at him. "Your generosity truly knows no bounds." He bowed deeply.

"It is my desire to see my ward protected." The King replied. "Now, I believe there is one with whom my ward would wish to celebrate her joy, and I have arranged a surprise for the first Mrs. Ejder." He looked at Alana, then gave Delabor a short nod.

The herald bowed and left the room.

"Thank you for saying my name and looking at me in front of the court." Alana replied, getting slightly choked up.

Rachel had been smiling when that had happened, and she still was. The King was very much intended to be the one setting trends in the realm. Because he had addressed Alana by name, it was likely that the vast majority of wood elves would as well. As Rachel's mother-in-law might say, it 'made her heart happy' that her best friend was finally being accepted by her people.

"You are welcome." The King smiled. "However, I do believe there are others whom you would prefer to speak your name."

Beth opened her mouth, assuredly to ask who, when Delabor opened the door and entered with three people behind him. The first was a relatively tall older elf who carried himself like a military man. His blonde hair was relatively short in the style of the wood elven military and the exact color of The Queen's hair, only with a bit of gray about his temples. Next to him was an older elf who looked very much like how Rachel guessed Alana would look when she was of the age to be a grandmother. The third person was an elf with red hair who looked as much like Thea as sisters usually did.

Alana gasped as her beautiful mouth fell open.

"I present the honorable Halvaer Kalon, called House Head, and his wife, Railen Kalon, called House Matron." Delabor said.

"Alana." Halvaer and Railen said at the same time, both of them looking directly at her. Railen opened her arms and after a stunned moment, Alana ran to her grandparents. Halvaer made it a group hug, a smile cracking his military demeanor.

"I also present Sarisa Numatia Asimentae, called Beautiful Philanthropist." Delabor said, then stepped aside as Thea's sister hurried into the room and hugged Thea tightly, then they started jabbering away in elvish.

Ethan looked at The King. "You're really pulling out all the stops today."

"A benefit of being a king: one is capable of such things." The King replied with a smile.

"I knew I liked you for a reason." Ethan smiled at him while Alana and Thea started talking to their relatives.

Rachel smiled.

She loved seeing her lovely friend happy, and never more than now. Things had been so hard for them recently, especially with the ambush, and this was such a breath of fresh air. And, unlike the previous joyful events where she had felt like she was -- as her husband might say -- 'waiting for the other shoe to drop', she didn't feel like that right now.

Oh, there were surely hard times coming when they went to the Wilding Lands, and she highly doubted that their troubles were fully over in Nalatia. However, she wasn't waiting for the other shoe to drop anymore. That was wonderful.

Ahjah spoke to Ethan. "Honored prophet, I have not forgotten that Thea and I promised to speak to Lady Delmar on behalf of Sarah." He glanced at Sarah, who was talking to Taloni and Beth.

"She'll really appreciate that." He grinned. "Congratulations."

"Thank you, I am honored to have her hand." He said as he looked at Thea fondly. "I think it is fitting that after everything that you and your wives have done to help us become betrothed, the first thing we do as a betrothed couple -- after the initial celebrations -- will be to speak to Lady Delmar on your behalf."

"A seed of kindness grows into the tree of friendship." The King smiled at his future son-in-law... or at least something like a son-in-law since Thea was his ward, not his daughter. "Come, I have had a celebratory luncheon prepared so that all might get acquainted and share in the mutual joy."

Rachel smiled at that.

As they left the room, Thea maneuvered herself beside the redhead and spoke quietly. "Do you want Ahjah and me to say anything to Lady Delmar about you? Or perhaps ask her to pass along a message to your father?"

Rachel hesitated before answering.

Ahead of her, Alana was talking with her grandparents and all three were all smiles. Rachel loved seeing her best friend so happy with her family, but Rachel's own situation was different. Alana's family wanted Alana, but Rachel's father didn't want her. She swallowed as her eyes suddenly felt a little dry.

"I'm sorry." Thea's face partially fell, likely in sympathy, but she was clearly far too happy to be sad right now.

"Thank you for asking, but I don't think he wants to hear from me." She replied, but as she thought about it, maybe that wasn't true? She remembered how he'd pulled her off of the Argo during that fight. He hadn't hurt her, and she wondered if perhaps he had been trying to protect her. She just didn't know.

"Would it be better if I just mentioned you to Lady Delmar and see if she says anything?" Thea asked.

"Okay." Rachel nodded, not sure what else to say.

"You're his daughter; there's no way that he could not care." Thea said gently.

"Thank you, I hope so." Rachel replied. "Now go, celebrate; I'll be fine."

Thea looked at her for a moment, then nodded. "We'll do it first thing after the luncheon."

"Again, thank you."

Thea went to rejoin the others, and Ethan appeared at her side the moment the elf was gone.

"Are you okay?" He asked quietly.

"I... I don't know." She replied honestly.

"Your father?" He asked.

She swallowed, then nodded.

He put his arm around her. "If I could wave a magic wand and make that go away, I would. Sadly..."

"Thank you." She replied. "If I just knew he cared, that would mean a lot. It seems too much to ask for though."

"You never know." Ethan replied. "Speaking from what little experience I have--" He nodded toward Alana. "--I find it hard to believe that a father could ever truly stop loving his daughter."

Rachel nodded, hoping it was true but not daring to think it was.

* * *

Ethan had a wide smile on his face as he watched his family getting along splendidly with everyone. Alana had her extended family around and one of the largest smiles he'd ever seen on her face. Everyone else was mingling and talking without much awkwardness at all. It was good to see.

"Pardon me, honored Prophet." Sarisa said from beside him.

"Hey." He smiled at her, then nodded toward Thea. "Your sister seems like she's on cloud nine."

"I assume that is an idiom for 'very happy'?" The elf replied.

"Yup." He nodded.

"Then she is, and I thank you for that, and also for all the progress you have made toward freeing Kalaya from her shame."

"I'm not sure that I've done much for Kalaya yet, but I'll work on that next." He replied. "I have some people coming into Nalatia that will be able to help figure out how they screwed up their understanding of that 'shame verse' so much."

"Yes, the 'the' versus 'this' distinction." Sarisa nodded. "You have already made more progress in months than I have in decades; I'm sure you'll succeed."

"I'll certainly try."

"I know." She replied with a contented and hopeful smile.

After a moment, Ethan spoke again. "So, what about you? Is there anyone out there who would make you smile like that?" He paused. "Well, besides Kalaya."

"No." Sarisa replied with the same calm and settled certainty that one might use if asked if there was a chance that the sun wouldn't rise the next day. Though, then she added. "Perhaps, if it did not trouble Navaro, I could marry him to be with Kalaya. I respect and admire him, but nothing more than that." She got a small smile on her face. "I think he would be a good husband, but without Kalaya, I would never consider it."

"I'm not surprised." He replied pensively. "Would they mind?"

"I have never asked, and I will never ask." Sarisa replied. "That is not the kind of thing a friend should ask."

"Fair." Ethan nodded. "But you hope they'll offer?"

"No, I hope they will be happy." Sarisa replied with a small but utterly genuine smile. "Because of my persistence, I was eventually able to exchange letters with Kalaya. At Navaro's request, I occasionally mentioned to Kalaya that I had greatly enjoyed something that we had never shared, but that she had shared with Navaro. She always replied to those with enthusiasm. That enthusiasm has never wavered over these long years. Without Navaro, Kalaya will never truly be happy, and the reverse is also true."

"Maybe, just maybe, Kalaya is like her daughter." Ethan said, then pointedly flicked his eyes to where Alana and Rachel were talking. A casual observer would think they were just good friends, but a close observer might notice that they were more.

"That would be wonderful." Sarisa replied. It was a simple statement of fact without an expression of hope attached. However, he was pretty sure that was only because she didn't want to get her hopes up.

* * *

Fiona sighed as she exhausted her mana supply attempting to purge the toxins from the small amount of her blood in a bowl in front of her. She really hated doing this, but could absolutely see why it was a good thing to learn. She hoped that she would never need it, but if -- Illuminar forbid it -- someone ever poisoned her or she got seriously sick, it would be important.

"Well done." Mage Weston said as he paused reading a book and looked at her over the top of his half-moon spectacles. "I know many a young mage who would believe himself blessed by Illuminar himself if he could master such things so quickly." He paused. "Are you sure you don't wish to pursue more magical learning? You appear to be quite gifted at it."

"Thank you, but I'm not wanting to." Fiona replied, pretty sure that her 'gift' with magic was because she was bonded to a dragon since it had taken her longer than most to find her mana. "I'll be having two babies soon, and babies are needing their mother a lot in the first few years."

"I'll ask again when they're a little older, unless you and your husband keep having them." By his tone, he thought it likely.

"We'll be seeing." Fiona replied noncommittally. She would love to have more children with Lord Delmar of course, but she wasn't sure he wanted that.

Lately, she had been spending a lot of time thinking about the story Ethan and his wives had told to Prince George, which had been recounted word-for-word to her by Tabitha. She wanted to attack the story, but it seemed consistent. It honestly made rather a lot of sense to her, and slightly more sense than the official story from Narlotten. It had also tugged at her heartstrings when his wives had described how he treated them. That affected her more than she would've liked to admit.

She also found herself considering the evidence that Lord Delmar had against them, specifically Ethan himself. The strongest parts of it came from the court mage of Ivernia, Theo Melek, who had been in The Arena when Ethan had raised Kendra. While thinking about it, an idea occurred to her.

"Mage Weston, can I be asking your opinion of Theo Melek, the court mage of Ivernia?"

He didn't respond immediately.

After a second or two, he slowly closed his book, gently laid it on the table, then removed his half-moon glasses and set them gently on the book. Only once that was done did he look at her, but she couldn't place his expression.

"Why do you ask?" He said after another moment or two.

Fiona looked around the Helene's deck to make sure no one else was nearby, then lowered her voice. "My husband was telling me about the strongest evidence he's having against Ethan, and Mage Melek is figuring prominently in that."

Mage Weston slowly nodded, a thoughtful frown on his face. "Mage Melek is one of the most brilliant Arch Mages in the Ten Kingdoms. His command of magic is legendary, almost as legendary as his hatred of dark magic. He is a generally affable, pleasant fellow, who is ready and willing to discuss any topic at the drop of a hat. He is well-informed and speaks quite eloquently, and as such is popular with almost everyone he meets, especially the ladies, though he practically never returns their affections."

"Especially the ladies?" Fiona asked. That seems strange for an Arch Mage, especially since they tended to be older.

"He is unusually attractive." Mage Weston replied. "Women seem drawn to him, but he has become an expert in politely rebuffing their advances. He has never married, and I have never seen nor heard of him paying undue attention to any woman, no matter how attractive."

"Are you trusting his testimony?" Fiona asked.

"On any element of magic, certainly." Mage Weston replied. "However, his hatred of dark magic is legendary, surpassing even your husband's hatred of it. That might, perhaps, cloud his judgement on this matter. That he detected dark magic usage when Ethan raised Kendra seems unquestionable. Whether it was Ethan is far less certain."

Fiona nodded slowly.

She thought about that for several seconds before something caught her attention. On the dock nearby, about a dozen members of the palace guard were approaching the Helene. At their center were two elves, a man and a woman, who were taller than the guards. The female elf was easily the most beautiful woman that Fiona had ever seen, no comparison. The other was handsome, but not especially so. Both had wide smiles on their faces that were probably subconscious, and they would occasionally glance at each other, then smile wider.

They approached the Helene's gangplank and Lord Delmar emerged from the captain's cabin, probably to greet them.

"Go, we can resume tomorrow." Mage Weston indicated the visitors, then incinerated the blood in the bowl.

Fiona nodded and went to stand by her husband as he spoke to the newcomers after inviting them onto the Helene.

"Honorable Ahjah Golden Tongue, honorable Pelathea Wild Child; congratulations on your betrothal." Lord Delmar was saying.

"Thank you." The elven woman beamed and glanced at her betrothed. She had a glow about her that Fiona more often associated with newly-married women.

"Thank you." Ahjah said, then head bowed. He was far more composed about it, but he had something of a glow about him as well. "We come bearing an invitation that might give you pause, however, I ask that you hear the request in full before rendering judgement."

"Very well." Lord Delmar nodded once.

"You might know that I have been traveling with the Prophet of Illuminar." The gorgeous elven woman said. "In that time, I formed a friendship with his betrothed, Sarah."

Fiona was suddenly paying much more attention.

Thea looked at Fiona. "She's been missing you terribly and would love to meet with you."

Ahjah addressed Lord Delmar. "However, she is also sensitive to the fact that you likely would have security concerns about such a meeting."

"I would." Lord Delmar replied.

"I spoke to my guardian, The King, earlier." Thea said. "He agreed to allow such a meeting to take place in the Hall of Meeting, attended by his own personal royal guard, and also as many of your own guard as you wish to attach to your wife's protection."

"Neither the Prophet, nor his other wives, nor anyone who travels with him would be allowed inside the Hall of Meeting until Lady Delmar has left after the visit is concluded." Ahjah said.

"Can I?" Fiona looked at her husband.

He didn't reply immediately.

"If you find these security arrangements unsuitable, they could be modified, within reason of course." Ahjah added.

"Ahjah Golden Tongue; you are well titled." Lord Delmar said after a moment.

"Thank you, Lord Delmar." Ahjah replied. "My betrothed and I made the arrangements in advance to ease the offer."

Thea glowed just a little brighter and released a contented sigh when Ahjah referred to her as his betrothed.

"I could accept those arrangements, provided I was close at hand to personally intervene if the false prophet moved against my wife." Lord Delmar said after a moment, and Fiona thought there was a hint of protectiveness in his tone. That, of course, made her heart soar.

"The Prophet guessed you would reply as such, and he insisted on being exactly as close as you are; no further." Ahjah replied.

"It was your daughter, Rachel's suggestion." Thea added, and Fiona thought she was watching them both quite closely as she said it.

Fiona looked at her husband to see how he reacted, but he was being unusually controlled in his reactions at the moment.

"Please milord?" Fiona asked.

"The palace guard and your own personal guard can be as close as you would prefer; in the same room if you wish." Ahjah said.

"I have seen the Prophet train on the Argo." Thea added. "Even when trying his best, he would be no match for a dozen of The King's best guards in a confined space. Perhaps in an open space because of his wings, but not in a confined space."

"Please?" Fiona put her hand on his arm.

He looked at her, which of course meant that he was looking down because he was a whole foot taller than she was.

"Very well." Lord Delmar nodded once.

"Thank you." Fiona smiled.

"Sarah made it clear that she would be available at your earliest convenience." Thea said.

"Um, I'm needing to feed Conner soon, but could we be doing it right after? It would be within the hour." Fiona asked.

Thea grinned. "Sarah was hoping for that as well."

Ahjah looked at Fiona. "A palace messenger will come to escort you when all the preparations are ready, likely within the hour." He looked at Lord Delmar. "I assure you that even if the Prophet was a necromancer and wished your wife ill, he is not foolish enough to spit on The King's generosity and protection. Lady Delmar will be safe from the Prophet, even if he wished her harm." He paused. "Though, I should add that I have personally witnessed the care that the Prophet has for his wives and others, care a necromancer could not have."

"Even Saidow clothes himself as an angel of light." Lord Delmar replied. "Even the most discerning man can be deceived."

Thea spoke up. "Lord Delmar, pardon my Wild Child ways, but I should like to point out that my guardian has called you a very discerning man before." She looked at him pointedly, the implication obvious.

Lord Delmar looked at her. "It is said that after many years of marriage, spouses come to resemble each other in habits and traits. You appear to be well in advance of that usual progression, as you are betrothed to an elf with a Golden Tongue."

Thea got a slightly sheepish, slightly embarrassed smile on her face. "Thank you."

Fiona couldn't help but notice that her husband hadn't answered Thea's implication, but had deflected instead.

"Sarah is so excited to see you." Thea said to Fiona with a grin.

"And I, her." Fiona grinned back.

* * *

"Conceal me what I am, and be my aid for such disguise as haply shall become the form of my intent." Selene quoted as she held Ethan's new disguise gem, freshly delivered through the portal stone from Elder Goman.

The brunch to celebrate the newly betrothed couple had gone very well. Alana's grandparents were delightful people, the food had been good, and it had sometimes been hard to tell who was happier: Alana because her extended family was there accepting her, speaking to her, and using her name, or Ahjah and Thea for obvious reasons.

"Huh?" Beth looked at Selene like she'd sprouted an extra head.

"It's from a famous playwright on Earth." Selene explained as she looked at the disguise 'gem'.

It did have a small gem in it, but it was mostly composed of dragon steel. It was oval in shape, perhaps two inches on the major axis, slightly over one inch on the minor axis, and about a third of an inch thick. It was smooth and rounded, and there was a small white oval gemstone in the center. The coloring fit Ethan quite well, especially when he was wearing his white armor.

"It's perfect." Alana said after Selene had handed it to her to look at.

"Better than his current one?" Beth asked.

"Definitely." Alana closed her eyes and slowly moved her hand over the disguise gem. "I won't pretend to understand the whole enchantment, but it looks like part of how it works is looping the enchantment back on itself to..." She frowned, then shook her head. "No, no it feeds into the wearer, but that wouldn't work unless..." She frowned again and trailed off.

"There's a note." Beth said. "It says that Ethan needs to put a drop of deep mana into it to make it work. He also strongly warns against anyone else doing that, or even trying to use it after Ethan has bonded to it." Her eyes got a little wider. "He says it could be dangerous for a non-dragon."

"I can see why." Alana said as she ran her hands over the disguise gem again. "Disguise gems have never been able to completely hide someone because all mortals constantly draw mana in from the Ether. That draw disrupts even the best disguises in subtle ways that a magic user can detect. However, since Ethan is a dragon, he doesn't draw mana directly." She nodded slowly, then ran her hand over the disguise gem again. "This was designed for a dragon."

"That explains how my father went so long without being detected." Rachel said.

"It does." Kendra agreed. She was sitting in her wheelchair, intently looking at her lower legs. She had progressed to moving her lower legs a little, but it was still slow and took concentration.

"I'm sure this one isn't as good as his because no one has ever seen through his, obviously, and one that good would probably take months to make." Alana said, then offered it to Ethan. "No one should see through this disguise unless they are looking for it, unlike with your old disguise gem. And I doubt anyone would see through it with a casual inspection like they could with your old disguise gem. However, a mage could probably see through if he was looking for someone wearing one and was paying attention."

"So it's a major upgrade, but not foolproof." Selene summarized. That seemed good, since people had noticed that Ethan was using a magical disguise before with his old disguise gem, even when they weren't looking for it.

Her husband held it in his hand and got a look of concentration on his face for a moment, then slipped it on. "Okay, here goes nothing."

A moment later, his appearance changed. The old disguise gem had created a gossamer outline of the disguise that Selene had been able to see through after bonding to him. This one still created an outline, but it was more solid and defined than the old one had been. She could still see through it easily, but it did seem more substantial.

Ethan looked at Sarah. "Well, what do you think?"

"Um, it looks the same to me." His betrothed replied.

"The upgrade will only make a difference when someone tries to see through it." Alana said to Sarah.

"Well, here's hoping it'll get me into Lord Farbrottan's tournament." Ethan said after looking at himself.

"Lord Kalus sent a message too." Beth said, looking at it. "He says that they will pass by the Wilderness Outpost tomorrow and he will extend Thea's invitation to Colonel Forsythe."

"Good." Ethan nodded. "I would hate for Victoria's future husband to be captured by Lord Farbrottan."

Everyone chuckled.

*Selene?* Thea's voice came to the second group chat. *Mission accomplished; Lady Delmar is willing to meet Sarah within the hour, and we didn't even have to make any concessions after the initial offer.*

*Damn! Well done!* Selene replied, then looked at Sarah and relayed the message.

Sarah beamed. "Really?!"

"Yup." Selene nodded.

Sarah squealed and jumped up, clearly for want of another way to express herself.

*Oh, please tell Rachel that I did mention her.* Thea added to the second group chat. *But her father is really good at hiding what he's feeling.*

Selene relayed the message.

"Um, I can ask Fiona." Sarah volunteered. "She's his wife, so she should know."

"You would?" Rachel asked.

"Of course." Sarah replied with a smile. "I know how hard it is on you, so I'll do whatever I can to help."

Rachel appeared to get slightly choked up and her voice had the tiniest edge of a crack in it as she replied. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sarah smiled encouragingly.

They talked for another few minutes before there was a knock on the entrance to their suite. Selene liked the fact that they were safer there, but she was really starting to miss the Argo. Thor clearly was as well, since he had taken to pacing around and getting standoffish when it came to bedtime; he clearly preferred the Argo's bed. Their bed here was extremely comfortable, and even a little larger than the bed on the Argo, but it wasn't home.

The door opened and one of the Lightguard stepped in, then bowed. "Delabor King's Herald to see you."

"Send him in, and thanks." Ethan gave the Lightguard a thumbs-up.

"Honored Prophet, I bring such supplies as were discussed by The Queen and your wife, Alana Ejder." He bowed.

Alana smiled when the herald used her name.

Delabor stepped aside and several servants came in carrying many, many bolts of cloth. They were all different kinds of fabric with different patterns on them.

Ethan looked at Alana.

"I mentioned to The Queen that we needed to make new dresses with more coverage for better protection, and she lit up like a bonfire." Alana explained. "Apparently, she likes designing clothes and doesn't get to do it as often as she would like with her queenly duties. But since I'm her niece and 'the Prophet's wife', she's going to help, and she sent all of these in advance so we could look at them." She looked at Sarah. "She said if you were there, she could design dresses and a wedding at the same time."

"Well, you come by your dress-making skills honestly then." Selene chuckled.

"Huh?" Alana asked.

"It's an idiom; it means it's in your genes." Ethan explained.

That was met with more confused looks.

"He means that it runs in your family." Selene explained, not wanting to get into a discussion of genetics; if that happened, Beth would be asking questions for weeks.

"There is one more item, and also a matter to discuss." Delabor said as the servants set the bolts of cloth on a table in the living room. "The King wished to give this to Alana, as she requested it several days ago and the court mage has only just completed it."

One of the servants had been carrying a small wooden box and handed it to Delabor, who then walked to Alana and offered it to her. The wood elf opened it with Selene looking over her shoulder. Inside was a piece of leather about two inches square. Somewhat unusually for something from Nalatia, it was completely unadorned. Alana reached into the box to grab it, but her hand seemed to hit an invisible wall.

She grinned. "It's a piece of dragon leather with a warding enchantment, so Rachel and I can figure out how it works." She looked at Delabor. "Thank him for me, would you?"

"Of course." He bowed to her, then looked at Ethan. "Lord Farbrottan's airship reached our borders not an hour ago. He was informed of your protected status and declined to remove the bounty, and was thus turned away."

"Will that cause problems with Ivernia?" Ethan asked.

"No true troubles; it will be a minor inconvenience at worst." Delabor replied. "However, the court mage of Ivernia, Theo Melek, has business with The King's court mage. For diplomatic reasons, he was transferred to a wood elven airship and will be present in Nalatia soon."

"Okay." Ethan nodded. "Should I be worried?"

"His hatred of dark magic is legendary." Rachel spoke up. "If he thinks you're a necromancer..."

"She is correct." The herald replied, then looked at Ethan. "However, he expressed a desire to meet with you personally, in whatever way you would be comfortable doing so, and your wives also if you would be willing. He specified that the entire Lightguard and half the palace guard could be present if you so desired, and it could happen on palace grounds, and he was even willing to wear anti-mage cuffs if you so required."

"That's..." Ethan started to say.

"Interesting." Alana finished, and he nodded.

"Why does he want to meet?" Beth asked, beating Selene to the punch.

"He would not say." Delabor replied. "I believe his unwillingness to state the reason is why he is willing to be so accommodating when it comes to arrangements for such a meeting."

"And this is Lord Farbrottan's court mage?" Selene asked, finding that hard to believe.

"That doesn't bode well." Ethan frowned.

"Pardon me, honored Prophet, but might I offer an observation?" The herald asked.

"Please do." Ethan nodded.

"Mage Melek is, by reputation, more reasonable than his lord." Delabor said. "I would not presume to advise the Prophet of Illuminar, but I do not see how such a meeting could be disadvantageous."

"He has a point." Selene replied. "He clearly wants to meet with us, and if he's willing to do it with the Lightguard present and anti-mage cuffs on, I don't see how it could be a problem."

"Yeah, fair point." Ethan nodded. The rest of his wives generally agreed as well, and then he spoke to Delabor. "Okay, tell him that we'll meet with him then."

"I shall, honored prophet." Delabor bowed, then left the room.

"Man, it feels like Christmas around here." Selene said as she looked at all the newly arrived items for them.

Ethan chuckled.

* * *

Sarah paced nervously in the same room where she, her betrothed, and her fellow wives -- well, future fellow wives -- had told their story to the Crown Prince. It was dominated by the truce table, which had a warding enchantment down the middle to protect both sides of the table from each other, not that she and Fiona would need that. Her friend hadn't arrived yet, but then again, Sarah was rather early.

There were a dozen members of The King's personal guard standing at attention around the room.

"It'll be fine." Thea said encouragingly.

"I just haven't seen her in a long time and I'm worried that she'll treat me differently because I'm betrothed to Ethan."

Thea raised an eyebrow. "Have a little faith in your friend."

Sarah hesitated, then nodded.

The door on the opposite side of the room opened and a half dozen Narlotten guards entered the room with Fiona in the center of them.

"Sarah!" Fiona waved excitedly the moment their eyes met.

"Fiona!" Sarah grinned and waved back.

"Please be waiting a moment, my husband is being over-cautious." Lady Delmar replied.

Sarah chuckled, her spirits flying sky-high to see the smile on Fiona's face at their meeting. "I know what that's like; Ethan is the same."

Fiona's grin took on a strange nuance that Sarah couldn't place, but it didn't fade.

It only took a minute for the Narlotten guards to inspect the room, then step aside so Fiona could leave their protective circle. Sarah and Fiona ran around the table to each other and embraced in a tight hug.

"I missed you so much!" Sarah gushed and her heart felt lighter than air, and she was surprised they didn't float up to the ceiling.

"I'm knowing the feeling." Fiona gave her an extra-tight squeeze. "But not too tight; I'm carrying precious cargo."

"You are?!" Sarah almost jumped back and looked at her friend's stomach, but of course couldn't see a baby bump or anything.

"I am." Fiona's grin, which was already ear-to-ear, seemed to grow in depth since it couldn't grow in width. It almost looked like she was glowing.

"You're happy." Sarah said with a sigh.

"I am." Fiona replied contentedly. "And it's looking like you are too."

"I... well, mostly." She remembered the ambush of the previous day and her cheerful mood lessened. "Um, did you hear what happened yesterday?"

Fiona's face fell as well. "I was hearing, quite literally. I assume that was your betrothed roaring."

Sarah nodded. "He um, he gets really angry when someone tries to hurt us. His wives I mean."

Fiona nodded slowly, then looked around and indicated two of the chairs at the end of the table right next to them. "We could be sitting down."

They did.

Fiona hesitated a moment, then spoke again. "So, is he treating you well?"

Sarah smiled despite the memory of the ambush being dredged up; she had been working hard to suppress it. "He's the kindest man I've ever met, but he's strong too." Her smile widened. "We um, he tried to get rid of my demon and it didn't work. He..." She swallowed. "We found out that it was partially because I didn't want to let it go in case I needed it to protect my new family."

"Oh." Fiona replied, her face falling.

Sarah nodded and could feel her eyes getting watery. "He... I know he was disappointed in me, but he told me he loved me and still wanted to marry me. He gives me a kiss on the forehead every night and every morning. And he gently tries to remind me that I don't need the demon, so I can get rid of it." She wiped her eyes and her finger came away wet, even though she was smiling. Well, maybe imitating Thea a bit as she was somehow smiling and grimacing at the same time.

Speaking of, Sarah heard a door open and looked to see the gorgeous elf slipping out. Thea gave a short wave, mouthed: "Talk later", then closed the door behind her as she left.

"I think I should be apologizing." Fiona said, her expression grim. "I was the one suggesting that you shouldn't need to be afraid because of the demon." She grimaced. "I'm sorry about that."

"It wasn't your fault." Sarah replied.

"I'm bearing at least some of the blame." Fiona replied.

"Well, I don't think you are, but I would forgive you even if you did." Sarah smiled.

"Thank you."

"Um, is Lord Delmar a good husband?" Sarah asked after a moment, mostly because she didn't know what else to ask.

Fiona nodded. "Honestly, he's still grieving the death of Helene. But even with that, I can tell he's trying to be a good husband. He's more distant than Sean was, but I can tell he cares." She smiled slightly. "He gets protective when he's worried."

"Yeah, that's a wonderful feeling." Sarah smiled.

They shared a smile and it occurred to Sarah just how much had changed since they'd last seen each other. Sarah remembered almost being afraid of her own shadow and Fiona had been nursing emotional wounds from Sean's death. Now Sarah felt much more confident and she was betrothed to Ethan, and Fiona was married to Lord Delmar with a child on the way.

"Um, I promised to ask you two questions and, if it's okay, I'd like to do that first so I don't forget." Sarah said after a moment.

"What questions?" Fiona asked. Her tone wasn't exactly suspicious, but maybe 'suspicious adjacent'.

"Um, you know that Ethan married Rachel."

Fiona nodded.

"Well, Rachel has been really sad about her father lately and thinking that he doesn't care about her." Sarah explained. "Please don't say anything you shouldn't, but if you can, is there anything I can tell Rachel to help her?"

Fiona smiled. "He's missing her, and worried for her, and he still loves her. He's thinking she's with a necromancer and while he isn't saying much, I know he's very, very worried about her."

Sarah smiled. "I thought he would be."

Fiona spoke again after a moment, and Sarah got the impression that she was choosing her words carefully. "I can't be saying much about this because I was promising not to. But she should know that what seemed to be happening when Lord Delmar told her to leave isn't what was actually happening. I can't be saying more, but she should be knowing that he was loving her and trying to take care of her even then."

Sarah frowned. "Are you sure?"

Fiona nodded. "I can't be saying anything more, but I am sure."

Sarah nodded slowly. "Okay."

"What was the second thing?" Fiona asked in her slight accent.

"Um, please don't tell anyone except your husband this, but Prince George wanted to send two people with us on the Argo to prove if we're good people or not." Sarah explained. "One of them is Ellis."

"He's a good man." Fiona smiled.

"I agree." She smiled back, then her smile faded slightly. "Um, we know almost nothing about the other one though, but Prince George said that she was your bodyguard for a while and that we should ask you what you thought of her if we weren't sure. We aren't, and her name is Tabitha."

"So that's what the assignment was." Fiona got a genuine smile on her face that was tinged with sadness. "I'll be missing Tabby. She doesn't say much, and she can be frustrating because of that, but I think she has a good heart and she would've died to protect me. I guess if I'm having to lose her, I like that she'll be guarding you."

"So, you would trust her?" Sarah asked, just to make sure.

"With my life." Fiona replied without a trace of doubt in her tone. "She's odd, but I know she's caring, especially about Conner."

"Oh?" Sarah asked.

"Aye." Fiona nodded, her smile losing much of its sadness. "One night, Conner was fussing and I heard a woman singing to him so softly it was barely audible. When I got up to look, no one except Conner was in there and he had fallen back asleep without crying at her singing. Obviously, I wasn't seeing her, but I'm knowing it was her."

"Really?" Sarah felt her jaw drop. "She got Conner back to sleep without him crying? How?!"

"I'm not knowing." Fiona chuckled. "But that wasn't part of protecting me and she was doing it anyway. She protected Prince George's wife, Helga, before me and Helga was saying that she was loving Tabby too. She had also noticed that Tabby was loving children as well, and especially babies."

"Oh, okay." Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. "I think she makes everyone nervous."

"Aye, she was making me nervous at first as well." Fiona replied. "But she was growing on me and I'll be missing her when she's gone."

"What did she do to grow on you?" Sarah asked as she scooted forward in her chair and leaned forward, no longer asking to get information, but rather because it was a natural way to continue the conversation with her friend.

* * *

"This is making my head spin." Alana set down the piece of warded leather that The King had given them and sighed. She was sitting at an end table with Rachel as they put their heads together to try to figure out how the warding enchantment worked.

Rachel slowly nodded, then picked it up and closed her lovely, feminine eyes and got the most adorable look of concentration on her face, especially with the way the bridge of her nose crinkled.

"Something isn't right about the enchantment." Rachel said after a moment.

"What?" Beth asked from nearby, causing the couple to smile at each other.

"There is too much happening." Rachel began to explain. "I understand that the enchantment is complex, but this is too complex."

"Was someone adding extra stuff to make it hard to figure out?" Beth asked.

"Not quite." Rachel frowned. "From memory, this looks exactly like the enchantment on the Truce Table, which makes me think that all of them are like this. It's like..." She cocked her head to one side. "It's like there are more elements here than needed, but they're clearly all being used."

"Exactly." Alana nodded, then looked at Beth. "It's like a badly designed dress that has too many ties. Yes, they're all being used to keep it together, but it could be done with far fewer if it was better designed."

Rachel closed her eyes and held the warded leather for another few moments. "I think that's it. The extra elements of the enchantment are functional, but they make it so complex."

"How much smaller would the enchantment be without them?" Beth asked. "Could you fit more enchantments if you simplified it?"

"Theoretically yes, but not practically." Alana replied. "It's like the ties of an over-designed dress; yes, they add complication, but it's not like they're large or weigh a lot."

"I would've said that the enchantment was designed lackadaisically, but I think there's more to it." Rachel added. "I think it's intentionally complicated because I think most mages would just give up upon seeing how complicated it is. That makes it easier to gatekeep who can do the enchantment."

Alana nodded. "Teasing out what does what will be a nightmare."

"At least I have a dream partner to work on it with." Rachel replied, her extremely fair cheeks getting a bit of pink in them.

Alana's heart suddenly felt very full.

They worked on it for several more frustrating minutes, then there was a knock on the door.

"The Queen to see Alana and the Prophet's wives." One of the Lightguard announced.

"Send her in!" Alana jumped up, making the decision herself since Ethan was outside the Hall of Meeting where Sarah was meeting Fiona. Everyone, including Ethan, agreed that he didn't need to be that close. However, her husband was insistent that he didn't feel comfortable being further away.

The door opened and The Queen came swooping in with at least a dozen women behind her, all carrying fabric or sewing supplies.

"Oh, my lovelies are all here except the brides." She said looking around at all of Ethan's wives, except for Sarah who obviously wasn't there. "No matter, we have dresses to design for all occasions: a ball, a wedding, and of course several dresses each for everyday wear."

"Several dresses?" Alana asked.

"Each?" Tee said in a slightly awed whisper.

"Of course my dears, and for your traveling companions as well, and all with double enchanted fabric, of course." The Queen smiled. "I can't have my family in danger when I could protect them."

"But we're not family." Beth said. "Alana is, but the rest of us aren't."

"Elizabeth, darling, you're forgetting how the wood elves view family." The Queen replied with a smile. "While a niece by marriage is not as close as a niece by blood, it is still a niece. And since you are wed to my niece's husband, not a single elf in our realm would bat an eye if you were to call me 'aunt'."

"But several dresses?" Alana's eyes widened, remembering how ungodly expensive the double enchantable fabric had been in Timarou. "That's too much."

"Oh tosh dear, even if my husband The King hadn't immediately approved when I asked, he would've upon reflection because you have been attacked twice now in our fair city while you were our guests. The last time, he furnished you with elven blades and dragon-skin-lined shields. Did you think he would do less now?"

Alana tried to think of a reply, but couldn't.

"Besides, you are the wives of the Prophet; should not a kingdom as blessed with wealth as ours do all we can to aid the Prophet of the God of Light?" The Queen pressed.

"Okay, and thank you." Alana replied, seeing that she wouldn't talk her aunt out of it.

"Excellent." The Queen beamed. "Now my lovelies, let us design some dresses!"

* * *

Fiona breathed an internal sigh of relief that Sarah seemed truly okay as their long talk was drawing to a close. She had been there long enough that she needed to get back to the Helene, her husband, and especially Conner. Still, she was delaying as long as she could because it was so good to talk to Sarah.

Admittedly, for as close as they were, Fiona hadn't known Sarah very long. However, they had become quite close in the time they'd known each other and Fiona could read her quite well. Sarah was happy. Well, mostly happy since her disposition soured whenever anything related to her demon came up. But apart from that, she really did seem happy.

Her face even lit up a little when she talked about Ethan.

Fiona hadn't been expecting that. It made sense after hearing their story, but seeing Ethan's effect on Sarah seemed to confirm that their story was true. Or at least, if Ethan was compelling her, it must have been the most powerful compulsion a dragon had ever put on a mortal. Somehow, Fiona thought that was unlikely.

"And then Victoria told them to lick the cake off." Sarah finished recounting some of the funnier, more personal details of Selene's wedding that hadn't been included in their official story, and Fiona couldn't help but laugh as well.

"You look so happy." Fiona said when they had finished laughing.

"I am." Sarah sighed.

"Sadly, I should be going." Fiona said after a moment. "I was promising Lord Delmar that I wouldn't be staying too long."

"Well, can you ask him if you can stay a little longer?" Sarah asked.

"I could, but I would have to be sending a messenger or leaving myself." Fiona replied, a little confused at the request.

Sarah opened her mouth, closed it, cocked her head to one side, then opened her mouth and almost started to speak, then stopped.

"What?" Fiona asked her clearly confused friend.

"I was thinking you could ask him now, but--" Sarah stopped and clamped her mouth shut, then got a slightly guilty expression.

"Ask him now? How could I be asking him now...?" Fiona trailed off as she remembered several points of their story that hadn't made perfect sense. They had an explanation, but it occurred to Fiona that it would make a lot more sense if one of them besides Selene was telepathic. But why would Sarah think that Fiona was telepathic?

Fiona lowered her voice. "You aren't thinking that I'm telepathic, are you?"

Sarah shook her head. "No."

"Were you thinking Lord Delmar was?"

Sarah shook her head again. "No."

"Then how could I be asking him now?"

"Um, I said too much." Sarah grimaced. "I just thought that since you were bonded to a--" Sarah inhaled sharply and covered her mouth as her eyes went wide. "Um, I meant that... uh... I thought maybe because of the bond that... uh, never mind."

Fiona narrowed her eyes and lowered her voice a little more. "Bonded to a... what?" She knew that her husband had fought them as the black dragon, and it seemed impossible that they could've figured out that Lord Delmar was a dragon from that. But given what Sarah had just said, it seemed likely.

"Um, never mind?" Sarah said, her tone sounding more like a question than anything else. She looked very uncomfortable all of a sudden. She looked almost shifty and nervous, and she wiped her palms on her dress more than once.

Fiona hesitated.

As a friend, she wanted to let it go. A good friend would let it go, and she would've if it had been anything else. But if Sarah really did know that Lord Delmar was a dragon, then Ethan and his wives knew too. If they did know, then her husband really needed to know that they knew. She internally cursed that she was being forced to choose between her friendship with Sarah and her marriage to Lord Delmar.

It wasn't right.

It wasn't fair.

And Fiona hated that.

But she still had to choose. She took another moment to think about it, swallowed, then spoke. "Sarah, bonded to a what?" She tried to make her tone firm but kind.

"Um..." Sarah hesitated.

"Sarah, I'm sorry, but I can't be letting this go." Fiona apologized.

"Um, I thought that since..." Sarah leaned in and spoke so quietly that Fiona could barely hear her. "...since Lord Delmar is a dragon and you bonded to him, that you could... you know." She sat back up.

Fiona stared.

She realized her mouth was open and closed it, then leaned in and whispered as quietly as she could. "How are you knowing that?"

"Um, I think I said too much and probably shouldn't say more." Sarah whispered with a grimace, still leaning in closely.

Fiona nodded; she owed Sarah at least that. "If you don't mind saying, there's a way I could be talking to him now?"

Sarah hesitated, then nodded.

Fiona took a moment to think about it, then asked another question just as quietly. "Is it like how old married elven couples can talk to each other without being telepathic?"

Sarah hesitated again, then nodded again. "It happens very fast with... um, well, you know."

Fiona nodded slowly, then paused as she realized something. "My husband is already knowing this, isn't he?"

"Um, maybe not?" Sarah replied, but she wasn't very convincing.

Fiona closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Her husband had known that he could be communicating with her telepathically? And he hadn't told her? She took another couple of deep breaths, then opened her eyes.

Sarah looked very nervous.

"I'm not upset at you." Fiona clarified through gritted teeth. "I'm trying to decide how mad I should be at my husband."

"I'm hoping my betrothed won't be mad at me." Sarah grimaced. "Um, I don't suppose you could not mention this to Lord Delmar?"

"With how I'm feeling, he'll be knowing." Fiona replied, trying to keep her tone calm and civil. "I'm going to be giving him a piece of my mind."

Sarah bit her lip.

"That's his most closely guarded secret." Fiona explained. "I need to be telling him that Ethan and his wives are knowing. I'd be feeling like I was betraying him if I didn't."

"Okay, but could you please not tell anyone else?" Sarah pleaded.

"I promise I won't, but he might."

Sarah swallowed, then nodded. "Okay."

"I'm sorry." Fiona whispered. "I'm feeling bad that I was pressuring you into revealing it, but I'm hoping you understand why I was?"

"I do." Sarah replied. "You love your husband and want what's best for him. I can't blame you for that." She paused. "I understand that, and actually kind of admire you for it."

"Okay, good." Fiona breathed a sigh of relief.

"I um, I should've been more careful." Sarah said. "Really, it's my fault for saying too much."

"I'm hating that my husband and your betrothed are working at cross-purposes." Fiona sighed. "I'm wishing it wasn't that way."

"Me too." Sarah gave her a weak smile. "Maybe one day, they could be friends?"

"I would be liking that." Fiona replied, though she didn't hold out much hope.

"Yeah." Sarah sighed wistfully.

After a moment, Fiona spoke again as quietly as she could. "Though, I'm thinking it's funny that we were both marrying... well, you know."

Sarah almost chuckled at that. "It is."

"Who else knows?" Fiona asked after a moment.

"Um, I think just us." Sarah replied. "They all talked about it and decided not to tell anyone."

"Well, maybe that'll be changing his opinion then?" Fiona suggested, trying to put a positive spin on it. "Maybe Lord Delmar knowing that they didn't tell could be a good thing?"

"Even if it is, I still hope Ethan isn't mad." She averted her eyes.

Fiona nodded. "Well, from what you've been saying, he's only getting mad when his wives are in danger."

"Um, maybe 'mad' wasn't the right word." She bit her lip.

"Sarah, you're worrying that he won't be wanting to marry you after this, aren't you?"

"Um, not really." She paused. "Okay, I'm not worried up here--" She touched her head. "--but down here..." She touched her chest right over her heart. She hesitated, then spoke again. "Um, you don't seem as angry at Ethan as I thought you would be."

"Well, I was having a few people point out that I was judging him before hearing his side of the story." Fiona replied. "Then Prince George was offering to let me hear your side, and combined with the other things I was hearing, I was deciding to try being impartial. Well, at least as much as I can."

"I'm glad." Sarah smiled. "But how did you hear our story?"

Fiona then explained about Tabitha repeating it word-for-word.

"Oh." Sarah didn't seem to know how to react to that. "Ethan will want to know."

"Aye." Fiona nodded.

"He really is sorry you know." Sarah said after a moment. "It came up a few times in conversation and he really does wish that Sean hadn't died."

"I was getting that impression from Tabitha's telling of your story." Fiona replied, then took a deep breath.

Silence fell for a moment.

Sarah looked deep in thought and had a pensive frown on her face. It was incredible how much her friend had grown. Sarah had a new confidence about her and spoke her mind more easily. She seemed less afraid and calmer, more settled. It was a good change and it was that change more than anything else that made Fiona think that perhaps Ethan was who his story made him out to be.

"Um, so I wanted to ask you something." Sarah said tentatively. "I realize the answer is probably 'no', if only because your husband won't allow it, but I wanted to ask." She took a deep breath. "Um, could you come to my wedding, to Ethan?"

Fiona hesitated. "That's... well, I'm wanting to be there for you, but I'm not knowing how I would be reacting to Ethan and Alana. And you're right, my husband wouldn't be wanting me there." She felt her heart fall slightly at that; she didn't want to miss Sarah's wedding, but didn't see how she could attend it.

"I'll be asking my husband." Fiona finally said. "Though, I don't think he'll be letting me."

"I didn't think so." Sarah replied, and Fiona could tell that she was trying to conceal her disappointment. "But I wanted to ask anyway."

"I'm appreciating that you did." Fiona smiled.

Sarah nodded.

"Um, I really should be going." Fiona said after another minute. "Conner will be wanting to eat soon."

Sarah nodded and they both stood up, then hugged each other tightly.

"So much has changed since we said goodbye in Karnas." Sarah said in the middle of the hug.

"Aye, I'm hoping things won't be changing so much between now and the next time we're seeing each other."

"Me too." Sarah nodded, then the hug broke.

"Be taking care of yourself." Fiona said.

"I will." Sarah nodded.

They parted ways and Fiona started trying to plan how she was going to break the news to her husband that the man he hated most in the world knew his deepest secret. Plus, she wanted to know why he had never mentioned that they could've been talking telepathically this whole time.

* * *

"I'm so, so sorry that I let it slip; please don't be mad."

Ethan took a long, slow deep breath as he considered what Sarah had just told him, then exhaled just as slowly. "I'm not mad." He said after a moment.

"Um, what are you then?" His betrothed ask, her voice small and quiet.

"I'm... I'm trying to decide what this means." He replied.

Ethan and all his wives, including Sarah, had all assembled when Sarah had returned from her meeting with Fiona saying that she had something important to share with everyone.

"Sarah, it's obviously not good that you let it slip that we know what he is." Alana said. "However, I'm proud of you for saying something immediately, even though you knew it would be hard and uncomfortable."

"Agreed." Ethan nodded, reminding himself to focus on the more immediate problem of Sarah's state of mind instead of running to what her slip meant and how to fix it. "Yeah, it was a slip, and a bad one. But Alana is exactly right; you did the right thing by saying something immediately and I'm proud of you for it."

Sarah half-smiled, but she still wasn't meeting anyone's eye, her shoulders were hunched, and she basically looked like she wanted to crawl under the nearest couch.

"I don't think that slip changed anything." Rachel said after a moment. "My father almost certainly could communicate with my mother telepathically, and he's smart enough to figure out that we could too. I doubt that Sarah told him anything that he didn't know."

"But what about..." Beth said, then lowered her voice. "But what about her letting slip that we know he's a you-know-what?"

They all moved in a little closer to each other and lowered their voices, just in case.

"Thoughts?" Ethan asked quietly.

Alana frowned, obviously thinking about it, so he looked at Beth.

The blonde hesitated a moment before speaking. "I guess, we've known for a while now and haven't told anyone; maybe he'll think that's a good thing? Maybe it'll help him trust us?

Alana, Rachel, Kendra, and Selene all looked at her with indulgent smiles tinged with a bit of amusement.

"What?" She asked a bit defensively.

"Powerful men with secrets can react in very unpredictable ways when those secrets might be exposed." Kendra whispered. "He'll probably think that we're holding onto it not as a gesture of goodwill, but rather to use as a weapon at an opportune moment."

"What Kendra said." Selene nodded.

"What will he do?" Beth asked.

"I don't know." Rachel replied. "But whatever it is, I bet it's the last thing we'd ever expect."

"That sounds ominous." Alana said, and Ethan noticed that she rested her hand over her womb. "Were you trying to sound ominous?"

Rachel shook her head. "It might not be ominous. He might even do something that'll make it harder for him to pursue us, or that could benefit us in some way. It's just not predictable, which is my point. I just don't know."

"I hate not knowing." Beth sighed.

"I know." Ethan winked.

The blonde sighed and rolled her eyes.

"What did Fiona say about Tabitha?" Kendra asked.

"Um, mostly that she really likes her, thinks she has a good heart, and that she would trust her with her life." Sarah replied.

Ethan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "So, it sounds like we'll have two guests on the Argo when we leave then."

Everyone nodded, apprehension on their faces as well.

"Um, and Tabitha has a really good memory." Sarah added, then explained.

"Well, we'll have to keep that in mind." Ethan frowned, thinking of what that could mean. "That might even be a good thing if we can find Lady Ekthros's base in the Wilding Lands; she'll be the perfect witness."

"And Prince George obviously wanted us to know that Tabitha can do that, given that he suggested that we talk to Fiona." Rachel said.

Everyone nodded.

"I'm sorry that I said too much." Sarah said after a moment.

"I know the perfect way for you to make amends." Ethan said as an idea occurred to him.

"How?" Sarah asked instantly.

"You can take dance lessons before the upcoming ball, and our wedding." He replied with a smile.

Sarah stared. "What?"

"You can take dance lessons before the upcoming ball, and our wedding." He repeated, then added with a wink. "Did I stutter?"

"But, but why?" She finally got out.

"Don't you like to dance?" He asked while resisting the urge to chuckle.

"I love it, but why..." She trailed off for a moment. "Oh, this isn't about making amends."

"Of course not." He smiled. "You made a mistake. We all make mistakes, every one of us. You can either keep kicking yourself for them or try and learn from them and move on. For you, I know that dancing will take your mind off of it, and so that's what I think you should do."

"I'm sure we could ask The Queen for a dance instructor." Alana spoke up. "Honestly, I'm quite rusty at elven dances."

"I only know what we practiced on the Argo." Taloni said.

"I would love to practice dance." Kendra said from her wheelchair, her face falling. She was able to move her upper legs slightly at this point, but certainly couldn't stand on her own, much less dance.

"It's only been a day; it'll get better." Ethan assured her.

"And I'm pretty sure that The Queen won't limit us to practicing for one day only." Alana added.

Kendra nodded, but didn't say anything else.

"Rachel." Sarah looked at her. "I did ask Fiona what your father thought of you."

"Oh?" Rachel replied. Her eyes widened slightly and she leaned forward a bit, though she bit her lip too.

"Fiona says that he still loves you, and cares about you, and that when he chased you out of Karnas, he was trying to take care of you even then." Sarah explained. "She said that she shouldn't say more, but I could tell that there was more."

The corners of Rachel's mouth twitched upward as she swallowed and then blinked a few times. Her eyes seemed watery and she blinked a few more times, then she wiped her eyes and looked away a bit, using her hair to partially hide her face.

"Sorry." She said as she sniffled.

"You have nothing to be sorry for." Ethan assured her.

"He cares." Alana said. "Your father's wife insists that he cares about you." She paused. "That means that when he took you off the Argo while we fought him, he was probably trying to protect you."

Rachel sniffled again and then wiped her eyes again, still hiding her face with her hair. Ethan got up and sat down on her other side across from Alana and put his arm around her.

"He cares." Ethan said.

"But that doesn't change anything." Rachel sniffled again.

"Yes it does." Alana said gently. "Maybe not our situation, but it's okay to feel relieved that he cares."

Rachel nodded, but she was still hiding her face with her hair. It took her another minute to compose herself, and when she had, she stood up, walked over to Sarah, and opened her arms to offer a hug, which of course Sarah accepted.

"Thank you." Rachel said, her voice cracking slightly.

"You're welcome." Sarah replied with a smile. "I was happy to help."

Rachel inhaled, and it had a slight shudder to it. "Thank you so much."

"Again, I was happy to." Sarah replied.

Rachel held onto Sarah for a bit longer than a normal hug might last, and it looked like she gave an extra-tight squeeze at the end. Rachel wiped her eyes again when the hug was over and Ethan thought his dragon eyes spied a wet spot or two in Sarah's hair.

"You don't need to hide how you're feeling from us." Alana said.

"I know." Rachel nodded with an apologetic smile. "But old habits die hard."

"I could help you kill them." Kendra said with a mostly deadpan expression on her face.

Everyone chuckled.

"Or at least, I can try when I get out of this damn wheelchair." Kendra huffed.

"It'll happen." Rachel said. She was smiling even though her voice wasn't back to normal and her cheeks were a bit wet.

"Not soon enough." Kendra replied with a sullen tone, then she looked at Rachel pointedly. "But your father still cares about you. I have no idea what he'll do about us knowing he's a dragon, but he cares."

Rachel nodded.

* * *

Fiona knocked on the door to her husband's office while reminding herself to take deep, calming breaths. She had purposely gone and fed Conner first, mostly because she always found that to be soothing. It hadn't helped this time. Not at all. Instead, she'd been left with little to do while nursing except dwell on the fact that her husband had the ability to communicate with her telepathically and hadn't even told her that! She tried to remind herself that they hadn't married for love, but he should at least be seeing that she loved him. He should've told her.

Her husband glanced up, saw her through the window, and gestured with two fingers for her to come in. She slipped in, closed the door behind her, and marched right up to his desk.

He didn't look up.

He was writing something out and didn't even pause.

"Milord." She said, doing her best to keep the cold fury out of her tone.

He held up one finger to indicate she should wait.

She wasn't inclined to.

She leaned forward over the desk and spoke as quietly as she thought prudent. "Ethan knows you're a dragon."

Lord Delmar paused his writing, frowned, then struck the ink off of his feather quill, set it into its holder, and capped the ink bottle. Only once that was done did he look at her. "You are sure?"

Fiona straightened up and nodded. "Aye, Sarah was accidentally letting that slip while we were talking."

The thoughtful expression on his face deepened and he repeated her words very slowly and carefully. "She accidentally let it slip while you were talking."

"Aye." Fiona replied, then described the conversation. Afterward, she took a deep breath that was supposed to be calming but definitely wasn't, then tried to keep her tone civil as she continued, though, she did remember to keep her voice down. "Is it true that we could've been communicating telepathically because you're a... well, you know, and you and I were bonding?"

"That is correct." He replied almost absentmindedly, still clearly deep in thought.

"And you weren't thinking you should be telling me that!" Fiona said through gritted teeth, her tone coming out more like a hiss than she wanted it to.

He looked at her, raised his eyebrows slightly, and made a thoughtful sound that had a touch of surprise in it. "Would you have preferred that I mention it only to tell you that the option was not available?"

Fiona stared.

"Not available?" She finally got out. At this point, her face was hot and she was clenching her fists.

"As I told you when I proposed, and repeated several times before we married, I did not marry for romance." He replied, clearly entirely unbothered by her demeanor. "I have a perfect memory, including for the emotions attached to my memories. Consider how you felt when you discovered that your first husband had died. That is how I feel every moment that Helene comes to mind. Speaking with you telepathically would be an ever-present reminder of her. Thus, I did not intend to make it an option."

Fiona swallowed.

She had broken down crying when she'd found out that Sean had died. No, she was sobbing. She'd been inconsolable. If she hadn't had Conner to take care of, she might not have left her bed for days. Her family had made sure someone was with her around the clock to make sure she was eating and drinking enough. If he felt like that whenever he was reminded of Helene...

"I'm sorry, I wasn't remembering..." She trailed off, not wanting to remind him again.

"It is forgiven." He replied, then took a deep breath and stood. "Take a few minutes to compose yourself, then we shall make all haste to the palace."

"The palace, why?" Fiona asked.

"I must speak to the Crown Prince immediately and require your presence to do so." He replied, then hurried from the room.

Fiona had never seen him hurry.

Ever.

She felt her heart start to sink; why did he need to talk to the Crown Prince?

* * *

Ethan was pleased to see that Rachel had some extra bounce in her step the rest of the afternoon. She was usually one of the most serious of his wives, but she was smiling more, laughing more, and even joking more than was usual for her. It was good to see and did his heart good.

He and his wives had returned to the main living area where The Queen and many of her handmaidens were neck deep in fabrics, thread, and discussions about styles and what was currently in vogue in Nalatia and the Ten Kingdoms at large. Ethan wasn't really interested, nor involved, but he did somewhat enjoy watching his wives get to be normal women for a change.

"Honored Prophet." One of the Lightguard said. "The King is here to see you."

"Send him in." Ethan smiled.

The King entered with a squire who was carrying an ornately carved box that was a little over two feet long and six or eight inches on a side.

"Afternoon my friend." Ethan smiled at him. "What can I do for you?"

The King smiled in return. "I come not so that you might do something for me, but rather, so I might do something for you."

He gestured to the squire, who presented the box to Ethan. Ethan took it and found it to be lighter than he had thought it would be.

"I would call it a gift, but more accurately, it is a token of remuneration that I hope will slightly balance the scales of the debt that the crown owes the Prophet for allowing him to be frightfully attacked while under our protection. Twice."

"For everything you've done for me and my family, you don't owe us anything." Ethan smiled.

"We must agree to put that disagreement aside for now." The King replied, then indicated the box. "Open it."

Ethan did.

He pulled the top off and shook it gently. A roll of leather slid out. It was relatively thin and flexible, about two feet wide, and he unrolled it into a teardrop shape that was about five feet long. It looked like a shield, but didn't have any arm straps. It did have some leather where they would be, and additionally had what looked like a handle.

"At the dinner last night, The Queen overheard Sarah saying that you might be departing on a trip soon." The King explained. "I would not have you leave without this shield."

"Wait, The Queen overheard that?" Ethan asked. He and Sarah hadn't been talking loudly and he hadn't thought The Queen was close.

The King smiled. It was a subtle, satisfied smile with a hint of pride in it. "It is best to assume she hears most things said at court, and everything in whatever room she currently occupies."

"Really?"

The King nodded, that same proud smile on his face. Then he looked over at the ladies. "Alana Ejder."

She looked over at him, smiling when The King addressed her directly and by name.

"Your enchanting services are required." The King said, then indicated the shield.

Alana hurried over, but she had barely touched that shield when she gasped. "It's warded." Her mouth fell open. "There's an activatable warding enchantment on this."

"And that is not all." The King said, his smile growing.

"It has a fire-resistant enchantment, and it's bonded to..." Alana's eyes went wide. "This is..." She trailed off, and when she spoke again her voice was tinged with awe. "This is two layers of pure dragon leather. No normal leather, it's pure dragon leather."

"Isn't that insanely expensive?" Ethan asked as he looked at the shield again. There was indeed a tiny, almost imperceptible seam around the edge of the shield, indicating that it was indeed two pieces of leather.

Alana nodded. "I wouldn't even know how to start calculating the value."

"The crown cannot provide one such as this for all your wives." The King said, and he sounded slightly regretful. "However, for the Prophet himself who has found himself in conflict with Dragos more than once, this should aid you."

"Thank you." Ethan said, scarcely able to believe it.

"Here, let me pair it with your vambraces." Alana said.

Ethan summoned his vambraces and handed both to Alana. He pretty much only used a shield on his left arm, but the option to switch would always be nice. She closed her eyes with her hands on both the vambrace and the new shield, then a minute later handed them back to him.

"It should work with the hardpoints on your arms, and the vambraces as well." She said. "You'll need to put a drop of deep mana into the shield first though."

He put a drop of deep mana into the shield to bond to it, then summoned the shield to his arm and activated it. It was about half the thickness of his previous shield, but it seemed to snap to its rigid state much more strongly and quickly.

"It will easily stop arrows from an orcish warbow." The King said. "And possibly even some small ballistae from an airship. Though, I would not test that if I were you."

Ethan reached out and touched the front of the shield, but he felt only a slight resistance. It was nothing like the truce table and didn't seem strong enough to be useful.

"You won't be able to feel it." Alana explained. "You bonded to the shield, so the warding enchantment should barely affect you."

"Might I demonstrate, honored Prophet?" The Squire who had carried in the shield asked.

"Sure." Ethan held the shield up.

The squire produced what looked like a mace head that had a leather wrap around it. Ethan felt the use of magic and the leather snapped straight to form a mace with a leather shaft. The squire then raised the mace and swung it at Ethan's shield. Hard.

It felt strange.

Ethan had been hit on the shield with powerful weapons before and it was always jarring. This wasn't. He definitely felt the impact, and the mace did indeed strike the shield. However, the impact was muted and softened, almost completely blunted. He could've blocked blows like that all day long. Obviously, an attack from a minotaur or Drago would be more dangerous, but even those would be much more survivable.

"Thank you." Ethan breathed. This was a huge upgrade.

"It is my honor." The King bowed slightly. "Also, several of the palace guard have expressed an interest in training with you. It would honor them greatly if you would accept, and it would give you a chance to test your new shield. I could also, perhaps, summon the sword master for the palace if you wished for further instruction. He has well over one hundred years of experience with the blade and is considered the best swordsman of our realm."

"I would love that!" Ethan grinned.

* * *

Fiona walked behind her husband as he strode toward the wood elven palace. She had to hurry slightly to keep up since he was a whole foot taller than she was and thus had much longer legs. About halfway there, he glanced behind himself at her and slowed slightly, setting a pace she could much more easily match. Still, he was moving very quickly.

"Why are you needing to talk to the Crown Prince?" Fiona asked.

"I will not explain in public." He replied. There were Narlotten guards around them, plus they were walking down a public street.

"You could be if we could be talking privately in public." She replied, still rather annoyed that he hadn't even mentioned that they could've been talking telepathically.

Without breaking stride, he strode into the palace where one of the Imperial guard was waiting. "Lord and Lady Delmar, please follow me." He bowed, then turned and they followed, Fiona assuming that he must've sent a messenger ahead to let the Crown Prince know that they would be coming.

Fiona found herself getting distracted by the incredible beauty of the decor. The walls had exquisite carvings that she kept wanting to stop to look at and had to remind herself to keep up with her husband.

The imperial guardsman led them through the castle to a small room that had no windows, and curiously, it seemed exceptionally quiet. Eerily quiet. The imperial guard closed the door behind them and suddenly, all sound from outside abruptly ceased. She assumed that it was enchanted to be soundproof.

Prince George was there alone.

There were no guards.

It was only Prince George, Lord Delmar, and herself.

"What was so urgent that it could not wait?" The Crown Prince asked, and he sounded slightly annoyed.

"Apologies Your Imperial Highness." Lord Delmar bowed. "I have just been made aware that the false prophet and his wives know my most closely held secret. My fear is twofold. First, that the false prophet will use it for blackmail. Or second, as has already happened, one of his wives will let it slip accidentally. As such, I have decided to reveal it to you before either can happen."

Fiona stared.

"Milord." She whispered urgently, not believing what he was saying.

"Your wife seems to think that is a poor idea." Prince George replied with a thoughtful frown.

"She has not had decades to consider the possibility." Lord Delmar replied.

"Can I be talking to you first?" Fiona asked, not even wanting to think about what this could mean for herself, Conner, and the unborn baby in her womb.

"I am not human." Lord Delmar said.

Fiona's heart sank.

Prince George blinked. "I'm sorry, I believe I misheard you."

"I am not human." Lord Delmar repeated. "I am a dragon of near Drago level power." He paused. "And to confirm that I am indeed the same Lord Delmar who was crowned lord of Narlotten, I invite you to remember the words that passed between us, and us alone, just before the coronation, when I expressed doubt about my ability to rule Narlotten well."

"I told you that I felt the same about my first rulership." Prince George nodded. "Then I offered a piece of advice; what was it?"

"To remember that lofty positions exist to serve the people, not the one in the position." Lord Delmar replied, then added. "I am not human; I am a dragon."

Prince George frowned. "You are not jesting?"

"No, I am not."

"You're a dragon?" Prince George said, his tone skeptical.

"I am." Lord Delmar nodded. "I will deactivate my disguise gem to prove it."

Prince George took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. "Do it."

He did.

Fiona could see right through his disguise of course, but she could also see its outline. The outline slowly faded away to nothingness, leaving her husband in his natural dragon form.

"A black dragon." Prince George said, a bit of wonder in his tone. He cocked his head to one side. "The black dragon that attacked the Argo?"

"Yes." Lord Delmar nodded.

The Crown Prince's gaze shifted to Fiona. "I suppose he needed someone to pull the arrow out, and had some reason to trust you, so you knew he was a dragon and that's why he proposed?"

"Aye." Fiona nodded, trying very hard not to hyperventilate.

"Helene knew." Prince George said after several long moments. It wasn't a question.

"She did." Lord Delmar said. As usual when she came up, there was a slight variance in his tone and body language.

"And her father?" Prince George asked. "Did he know as well?"

"He did." Lord Delmar nodded once.

Prince George stood up and began to slowly pace, every so often looking at the black dragon in the room. Often when he did, he would slowly shake his head. Fiona couldn't tell if it was because he didn't believe it or because of the absurdity of it. Fiona certainly remembered her initial reaction: denial. It hadn't seemed possible.

"Begging your pardon Your Highness." Fiona said. "I'm knowing what you're going through and I'm just wanting to be assuring you that he's the same Lord Delmar that he's always been."

Prince George inclined his head, though he was frowning too. "Honestly, in hindsight, it makes a certain kind of sense." He stopped pacing and looked at him. "You really did love Helene, didn't you?"

"Not 'did'; do." Lord Delmar replied.

He looked at Fiona. "You knew the whole time, still married him, and still fell in love with him?"

"Well, I wasn't knowing until he was proposing, but aye." She replied, and couldn't help getting a small smile on her face. "He's a good man, or dragon, and while I'm not pretending it's easy, I'm glad I was marrying him."

Her husband looked at her for a moment, then made an almost imperceptible thoughtful sound.

"Oh, Xander." Prince George slowly shook his head. "Of course I have to tell my father; the emperor needs to know."

"I assumed as much." Lord Delmar replied.

"Who else knows, besides Ethan, his wives, and the people in this room?"

"To my knowledge, only Lady Ekthros." Lord Delmar replied. "However, after hearing the false prophet's story, I suspect that they have told Elder Goman in Arcanum."

"I was thinking the same thing about Elder Goman." Prince George nodded slowly. "Well, that explains why you trust Lady Ekthros so much."

Lord Delmar nodded once.

"I'm not sure if my father will want you to continue reigning as lord of Narlotten." Prince George said after another moment.

"That is, of course, his choice." Lord Delmar replied. "However, should he choose to remove me, I would then be free of my promise to Helene to rule Narlotten as well as I am able, which is the only reason I have ruled since her passing. I would then devote all my energies to fulfilling my other promise to her."

Prince George's face suddenly turned serious. "Let me guess: taking care of your daughter."

Lord Delmar nodded once. "I could not allow her to remain in the clutches of a necromancer. She is bonded to him, and there is only one cure for that."

Fiona swallowed.

Hard.

Her heart seemed to freeze in her chest as she realized the game her husband was playing.

"That is quite the statement." Prince George replied after a moment. "From anyone else, I would consider it a threat. From you..."

"Your Highness, I am the most powerful being within a hundred leagues; I have no need of threats." Lord Delmar said calmly, as if he was discussing the weather or the proper amount of salt to put on a dish. He said it as if he was merely stating a fact and no more.

Prince George narrowed his eyes. "I thought I had a good handle on negotiation and political strategy. Apparently, I have a lot to learn."

Lord Delmar didn't reply.

"How old are you, really?" Prince George asked.

"I have never outright lied about the details of my life, including my age." Lord Delmar replied. "I have not even lied about being a dragon, for no one has ever asked."

"It is still a lie by omission." Prince George replied with a thoughtful frown. "And by commission when you consider the disguise gem you're wearing."

"I made an oath to Helene that I would never reveal to anyone that I was a dragon unless it was a dire circumstance." He replied. "I could not break my oath to her."

Prince George inclined his head in concession, then resumed pacing slowly. After a minute, he spoke again. "And if the imperial family called your bluff, what then? Would you abandon Fiona, Conner, and your unborn child?"

"You would personally ensure that she, the child, and Conner were cared for." Lord Delmar replied without emotion. "Do not deny it, for we both know it would be a lie."

Fiona stared at him.

Her mouth fell open.

"You... you wouldn't?" Fiona gasped. "Would you?"

"I will need to think on this, and you need to talk to your wife." Prince George said immediately with a pointed look at him. "Lord Delmar, don't leave Nalatia until we have spoken of this again."

He nodded once, reactivated his disguise gem, and then Prince George left the room, leaving it utterly silent as before. Well, silent to anyone's ears except Fiona. She could feel her blood pumping furiously in them.

"Milord, how could you be aban--" Fiona started to say with her temper flaring.

"I would not." He interrupted, his voice not loud, nor flustered, nor anything else other than slightly pensive as he looked at the door the Crown Prince had just left through.

Fiona opened her mouth to reply, but wasn't sure what to say. "So... you wouldn't be abandoning me?"

"No." He replied simply. "You forget, we have bonded. I would slowly lose my grip on sanity if we were parted for too long. It was necessary for you to have a genuine reaction in front of the Crown Prince. He needed to believe that I would indeed abandon you, even if I would not for the aforementioned reason."

"Oh." Fiona did her best not to let her shoulders slump and face fall completely.

"Additionally." He said, still speaking absent-mindedly and looking at the door. "I do believe that, on occasion, I would regret being parted from you permanently."

Fiona smiled at that. "Milord, why are you always underselling how you are feeling?"

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "We should return to the Helene."

"Can you please be answering my question before we do?" Fiona asked.

"For the same reason that you do not intentionally recall the moment you discovered that your first husband died." He replied, and his tone wasn't quite neutral when he said it.

"Okay." She replied, remembering his incredible memory. "But you won't be abandoning me?"

"No, Fiona, I will not." He replied, then added. "I had not anticipated enjoying your presence in my life."

"I'm glad." She smiled wider.

He nodded once. "Come, we should return to the Helene."

She nodded and fell into step with him as they left, her heart feeling much fuller than when she had arrived.

* * *

Sarah winced as Ethan took yet another blow from the old elven sword master. As usual when Ethan trained, he wasn't using any of his enhancements so he could get the full benefit of training, and it showed. He was holding his own against the members of the royal guard, but against the sword master, he lost every single time. It was hard to watch, but she wanted to be near him right now.

"His armor could stop even a sharp sword; he'll be fine." Kendra assured her. She was sitting in her wheelchair and splitting her time between working on mobility for her legs and watching them spar. She could move both of her lower legs and some of her upper legs at this point, though Sarah thought it might be a few days before she was walking around by herself.

Next to them, Selene was watching intently. "He's learning reasonably fast, but he's wasting this opportunity."

"Agreed." Kendra nodded. "The opportunity to learn from someone like this sword master doesn't come along very often. "He enchanted himself to learn faster once before, but he could make better use of the opportunity if he improved that enchantment now."

"You want to suggest it, or should I?" Selene asked.

"I will." Kendra said.

Of all of Ethan's wives, Sarah always found it the hardest to tell when Kendra was talking to the group chat. All of them were getting better at not showing it, but Kendra had always been impossible to tell. Ethan bowed out of his next match, stepped to the side, and then closed his eyes.

"He's doing it." Selene said to Sarah.

She nodded.

He resumed sparring again shortly afterward and to Sarah's untrained eye, it did seem like he started learning and improving faster. She was mostly glad that he was taking fewer hits.

"Well, Alana summons." Selene said about twenty minutes later. The gorgeous woman looked down at her beautiful charcoal-gray dress and slowly shook her head. "One day, when people aren't trying to kill us all the time, I'm going to wear this one again."

"Better safe than sorry for now though." Kendra said.

"Yup." Selene agreed with a sigh, then headed out.

Sarah agreed, but she was conflicted about her own dress. She loved it. She truly, dearly, and deeply loved it. It fit her so perfectly, and she had gotten betrothed to Ethan while wearing it, and she loved seeing how his eyes lit up every time he saw her in it. But on the other hand, she had covered it with blood during the ambush. She knew that self-cleaning clothes didn't actually stain, but she felt like it had. Or maybe that she had. Thus, a part of her wanted to keep her current dress forever, and a part of her never wanted to see it again.

"Copper for your thoughts." Kendra said as she resettled herself in the wheelchair. She did that a lot.

"Um, I was just thinking about the ambush." Sarah replied. "I can't believe Ethan still wants to marry me after that."

Kendra got an expression on her face somewhere between a smile and a grimace; she'd clearly been spending too much time with Thea. "I would happily trade you; I nearly killed him several times."

"Oh." Sarah bit her lip. "Right, I didn't mean to... um..."

Kendra held up her hand. "You didn't. I'm fine. I was merely pointing out that it could be worse."

Sarah nodded, then went back to watching Ethan spar.

"Sarah." Kendra said a few minutes later.

"Yes?"

"Do you ever feel like you owe Ethan for how much your life has changed?" The warrior woman asked, and she seemed more open now than she usually was. Not so much in her face or body language, but more in her tone. Anyone watching from far away might think she was a stone statue for as much as she was emoting. But her tone was tentative and almost vulnerable.

"Um, it depends on what you mean." Sarah replied. "He saved me from rather a lot, so of course I'm incredibly grateful. And we're betrothed, so of course I owe him my love, respect, and all the other things that a betrothed woman owes to her future husband. But I don't think that's what you mean."

"He saved me." Kendra looked at her, her jet-black hair and darker skin betraying a softness that Sarah had never seen from her before. "You and Taloni had hard lives before meeting Ethan, but mine was miserable. I would rather die than go back to that because it was so lonely, isolating, and..." She swallowed.

"Oh, I think I see what you mean." Sarah frowned. "But..." She cocked her head to one side. "Hmm, so you feel like you need to pay him back?"

Kendra nodded.

"But what if you had saved Ethan?" Sarah replied. "Would you want him to feel like he owed you?"

"No." Kendra replied. "But that doesn't change the fact that I feel like I owe him. Do you ever feel that way?"

"Um, yes and no at the same time." Sarah replied. "I suppose if I think about it, I probably do. But then, I know he wouldn't like that. So, I guess if he doesn't hold me to it, then I probably shouldn't either, you know? It's like if you borrowed some coin and then the person later told you to keep it as a gift. If you kept trying to repay him, it's almost like you're being rude by rejecting the gift."

Kendra got a thoughtful frown on her face for several seconds, then she pursed her lips. A moment later she cocked her head to one side and her eyebrows went up a little and she hesitated. A moment later she started shaking her head, then stopped and cocked it to the other side. A moment later, she made a thoughtful sound and inclined her head a little, almost as if in concession but not quite.

"I hadn't thought about it that way, like it's rejecting a gift." Kendra finally said almost a minute later.

"That's just how I would see it." Sarah replied.

"It does make sense." The other woman said with a thoughtful expression. About ten seconds later, she spoke again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sarah smiled, then winced as Ethan took another blow from the elven sword master.

"He's good." Kendra said in a more businesslike tone. "Not only with the blade, but also as a teacher. I wish I could spar with him." She sighed and looked down at the wheelchair, then began working her legs again.

"You'll be better soon." Sarah smiled.

Kendra nodded, but didn't stop working on her legs.

* * *

"That never goes away."

Ethan turned to see Prince George standing behind him. Ethan had just finished his sparring session with the elven sword master and he was sore everywhere. Literally every part of him except his groin had been hit by the elf; repeatedly. He had already healed the bruises of course, but for some reason, magical healing never alleviated the aches from injuries. It usually took a good night's sleep for that.

"What doesn't go away?" Ethan asked.

"Getting schooled by superior fighters." The Crown Prince replied. "I've had the best teachers in the Empire since I was old enough to hold a blade properly, and those same teachers still best me."

"Happens." Ethan shrugged. "I still haven't ever beaten my father in a debate, and no matter how hard I worked, my business never grew as fast or as profitably as his businesses have."

"I know the feeling." Prince George nodded, paused, then spoke again. "I heard that Sarah spoke with Fiona; what say you to my proposal?"

Ethan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "We'll do it. It'll be a massive change having Tabitha and Ellis on the Argo, but we'll do it."

"Good." Prince George nodded. "Until then, I'll keep them with me. Ellis is an excellent fighter, but the trainers I have with me can teach him much before you depart."

"Makes sense." Ethan nodded as he moved an arm to work the kinks out of it. "I have a lot to learn myself."

"Now if you will excuse me, I have a rather complicated situation that requires my undivided attention." The Crown Prince said.

"Take care." Ethan waved with two fingers, then paused. "Wait, if you have a moment, what's your opinion of Theo Melek, the archmage of Ivernia?"

"An enigma wrapped in a mystery and then obscured by a puzzle." Prince George replied. "He appears to temper Lord Farbrottan somewhat and the imperial family has never had reason to be concerned about him, but why he remains in Ivernia is a mystery. With his skills, he could do anything in any court or realm, and yet he chooses Ivernia."

Ethan smiled. "In his defense, Ivernia does have a certain appeal that's hard to define."

Prince George inclined his head in concession. "Until we meet again, may Illuminar guide you on the path of light as you travel."

"And you as well." Ethan said, then the other man departed.

*Well ladies, we're officially going to play host to Ellis and Tabitha.* Ethan thought to the group chat, then added. *Kendra, can you tell Sarah?*

Not far away, Kendra beckoned Sarah over and whispered into her ear. Moments later, his betrothed smiled. For some reason, and Ethan wasn't sure why, Sarah had wanted to watch him spar. He didn't mind at all of course, but it was a little odd for her. That went double because both Kendra and Selene had informed him separately that she winced every time he was hit.

Oddly, despite being the most powerful member of their little band because of her demon, she was easily the least suited for combat of any kind. He honestly thought that if she accidentally sat on a bug, she would be sad about it. He liked that about her. He appreciated his more combat-oriented wives as well, but Sarah's softness made a good contrast.

*Sarah is looking forward to having Ellis on board.* Kendra thought to everyone. *Personally, I'm not looking forward to having the walking security risk that'll accompany him.*

*I don't think Prince George means us harm.* Ethan replied. *Thus, I highly doubt Tabitha will do anything.*

*Unless she decides to go rogue.* Kendra countered. *She's a completely different person now than she was when I knew her. We sparred a few times and the one time I won was because it was easy to get under her skin. She's changed a lot.*

*Sarah trusts Fiona, and Fiona trusts Tabitha.* Selene countered. *I don't think we should be careless, but Kendra, you know better than anyone that a little kindness can go a long way toward turning an enemy into a friend.*

Ethan smiled. He seriously thought he had the most wonderful group of women in the entire world.

* * *

"Milord?" Fiona said tentatively at the end of the day as they were getting ready for bed.

"Yes, Fiona?" He said as he locked the door and then pulled his disguise gem off.

"What could Prince George be doing now that he's knowing?" She asked, almost afraid of the answer. She had been happy after the emotional whiplash from the meeting earlier, but the more she thought about it, the more worried she became.

"Nothing." He replied, then slipped into the bed and under the covers.

"Nothing?" She asked.

He patted the bed next to him, so she slipped into bed next to him and then he leaned in close and spoke in a voice so quiet that she could barely hear. "There is no poison potent enough that I could not clear it before it did real harm, no weapon wielded by a mere man could cause significant damage, and no dragon powerful enough to pose a threat would work with the Empire." He sat up straight and spoke at a more normal volume. "You needn't concern yourself."

Fiona nodded slowly. "And, you're sure?"

"Yes." He replied. "Additionally, the imperial family would not risk the false prophet's safety by removing me from the lordship of Narlotten."

"But what if others are finding out?" Fiona asked. "What if it's becoming common knowledge?"

"I have had decades to prepare for that possibility." He replied calmly, and Fiona couldn't detect even a trace of unease. "The people of Narlotten are quite likely to accept me, and the enemies of Narlotten will fear to act against me if the truth is known."

"How can you be knowing they would accept you?" Fiona asked.

"Because I have had decades to prepare for such a possibility." He repeated his earlier statement.

"How were you preparing?" She asked.

"I will not explain in this place." He replied. "Unlike the Narlotten castle, it is not secure; ask once we have departed and I will explain."

She hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Okay." She hesitated a moment more. "And you're sure nothing terrible will be happening?"

"No man can be sure of that." He replied. "However, again, I have had decades to prepare for this possibility. I do not foresee an unsatisfactory outcome."

"Even for Conner and I?" She asked.

He nodded once. "It would be the height of folly for anyone to harm either of you."

"Why?"

He raised one eyebrow fractionally, then spoke in a tone that seemed to indicate that she should already know. "Because it would be a death sentence; there is not one place on this world that the ones responsible could hide from me, and not one being who could protect them from me."

Fiona smiled as two very different types of warmth began to spread throughout her body. "Milord, can we be praying together, and then, I think I'm needing to ensure I'm fulfilling my wifely duties to my husband."

His one eyebrow raised another fraction, then he nodded. "Very well."

They did pray together, and then Fiona made good on her suggestion with every ounce of skill she possessed.

* * *

Ethan was in no hurry to get up despite the early morning light streaming in through the window of their suite in Nalatia. Ironically, despite the fact that he was going to leave for the tournament in a few hours -- or maybe because of that -- neither he nor any of his wives had initiated their usual morning 'exercise routine'. Instead, they were all snuggling together on the bed, fully naked and fully awake.

He was also thinking about what they needed to do later, which included a meeting with Theo Melek that morning, right after breakfast. He put that out of his mind though; he had six wonderful women who loved him right there; he could worry about Lord Farbrottan's court mage later.

"We need Sarah here." Kendra said out of the blue.

Everyone looked at her, including Rachel who was in Ethan's arms.

"Obviously I agree, but what makes you say that?" Alana asked.

Kendra sat up, putting her many scars on display for everyone to see. She seemed to have shed her concern for that some time ago, and they clearly didn't bother Ethan's other wives.

"Everyone here cares." Kendra explained. "But she cares in a way that few people do. We need that."

Everyone nodded or verbally agreed.

"We should get up, get dressed, and do this in the living area so she can be a part of it." Kendra said after another moment.

"Come here." Ethan reached over Rachel, pulled Kendra a bit closer, and then kissed the top of her head. "Good idea."

They all got dressed and left the room, to find Sarah slowly pacing in the main living area. Her face lit up like a Christmas tree when she saw them. Less than a minute later, they were haphazardly flopped across various couches and chairs, with Sarah sitting next to him and snuggled up against him. She let out a soft sigh and then wiggled a little closer.

He put his arm around her and smiled. "It's good to have the whole family together."

"Only until you leave." Beth said sullenly.

"He'll be back." Sarah said. "And they say that absence makes the heart grow fonder."

"Sex can do that too..." Beth replied with an impish grin.

Sarah blushed.

"I promise we'll introduce you gently." Ethan said as he gave her a gentle squeeze. "We won't throw you in the deep end, and it can be just you and me if that would make you more comfortable."

"Um..." Sarah's face was rapidly approaching the color of a beet. "I... I think I would be more comfortable if Alana was there." She hesitated. "And, um... well, maybe everyone?"

"Everyone?" Ethan asked.

Sarah managed to look him in the eye for a moment before nodding and averting her eyes. "I feel really comfortable with everyone, and I don't know how to do anything, and since they know, I thought that... Um, I think that maybe..." She seemed to lose her nerve and fell silent.

"Okay." Ethan said. "But, remember that you have time to think about it, and if you change your mind, just let anyone know. I want to make sure you're comfortable."

Sarah nodded. "Thank you." She hesitated. "Um, I think I'm pretty sure, but thank you."

"You hate when you feel like you aren't a full part of things, don't you." Rachel said. It wasn't really a question.

Sarah nodded.

"Because of how your problem isolated you growing up." The redhead said. Again, it wasn't really a question.

Sarah nodded again.

"That's why you want everyone there, because then you'll feel like you're fully part of the family, but if everyone isn't there, you won't as much." Rachel finished. For a third time, it wasn't a question.

Sarah nodded a third time, though this time there was a sheepish tinge to her expression.

"We'll come up with something." Rachel assured her, then her voice came to the group chat. *Seriously, we should brainstorm at night while Ethan is gone and see if we can't come up with a way to make it special for her even with all of us there.*

*Agreed.* Selene chimed in. *You all did it for me, though obviously she'll need a lighter touch.*

"You're all talking about how to do that for me, aren't you?" Sarah asked, her cheeks still crimson but her tone blissful.

"Of course." Ethan kissed the top of her head.

"I'm going to talk to The Queen and Thea; see if we can't schedule the wedding for right after Thea's coming of age ball." Alana said.

"Amen!" Ethan grinned.

* * *

"Ready?" Kendra asked her husband and fellow wives as they all stood outside the meeting room in the Hall of Meeting. Thankfully, no one made an issue of them wearing their concealed weapons like travel swords, and Ethan was carrying his war sword, hammer, and dagger with him all the time now. She didn't think the arch mage would attack, but it was always better to be safe than sorry.

"We're as ready as we can be when we don't know what he wants to say." Alana replied, and most everyone agreed.

"Remember, try to keep the telepathic communication to a minimum so he doesn't notice." Rachel said quietly, then looked at Sarah. "Sorry; someone will recount what was said as best as we can remember afterwards."

"Thank you." Sarah smiled.

They waited another minute or two and then the door to the meeting room opened to reveal Delabor, who bowed and then spoke. "Honored Prophet, Mage Melek has arrived." He then held the door open wide.

Beginning with Ethan, everyone filed through the door into the same room where they had told their story to the Crown Prince. As before, the immense truce table was between them and the opposite door. Down the center and hidden by the table itself, it had a warding enchantment that would protect both parties.

"He's a mage." Selene said quietly. "I thought physical wards can't block magical attacks."

"It has both." Rachel replied.

"There are two pieces of dragon steel in the center of the table." Alana explained. "One has a magical ward, one a physical ward; we should be quite safe."

"Do I want to know how much that table costs?" Selene wondered.

"Probably not." Rachel replied.

Ethan chuckled.

Kendra, though she was listening, never took her eyes off of the opposite door through which Mage Melek would come. After about thirty seconds, he did. The door opened and half a dozen of the palace guard escorted him in.

Mage Melek was reasonably tall at about six feet and well-built. He looked about fifty or so, and his dark hair had just a hint of gray about the temples that made him look very distinguished. Plus, objectively speaking, he was probably the most attractive man that Kendra had ever seen. He was like a male version of Selene, Myla, Victoria, or Thea. He had a chiseled jaw, rough, masculine features, and a hint of beard stubble that made him look roguish instead of unkempt.

He seemed entirely unaware of that though.

Nothing about his body language, posture, or clothing gave the impression that he was arrogant or self-absorbed. On the contrary, he looked pensive and thoughtful. His dark brown eyes seemed like they could look right through her and despite the intensity, she didn't get a hint of derision or superiority from him.

Kendra glanced at her fellow wives to see all of them draw their breath in a little as they saw him, especially Sarah; probably because she was the only one not bonded to Ethan. Kendra herself felt something of an instinctive draw toward him, but she wasn't sure why. She hoped that she wasn't shallow enough that it was his looks.

"Ethan Ejder." Mage Melek spoke. His voice was deep and soothing, perfectly matching his features.

"Mage Melek." Ethan replied.

The mage looked at all of Ethan's wives, but stopped when he looked at Selene. After a moment, he chuckled. "I wager that if you and I were to compare notes about fending off the opposite sex, we could commiserate at length."

Selene chuckled. "Yeah, probably so."

"You know so." Mage Melek replied with a somewhat fatherly air of correction. "False modesty does not become anyone, Mrs. Ejder. Make no apologies for what Illuminar -- blessed be He -- has given you; yet also, do not slide into the trap that Saidow fell into, confusing the radiance of his glory with superiority over others. There are two ditches that one might fall into: pride and false humility on one side, and self-abasement on the other. As is often the case, the only firm and stable ground lies somewhere in between."

"It sounds like you've given that speech before." Rachel spoke up.

"I teach the students who show the most promise in magic throughout our fair land of Ivernia; too often, they need a lesson in humility without overcorrection into self-abasement." The mage replied.

Rachel nodded her head in concession.

"Come, shall we sit?" Mage Melek asked.

They did, sitting on opposite sides of the table.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Ethan asked.

"A portion of the story you told at this very table." Mage Melek replied. "It was a very interesting story."

"You've heard it?" Ethan raised his eyebrow.

"Of course." Mage Melek replied. "It has not been widely circulated, but it has been circulated. I'm sure Prince George told you that would be the case."

Kendra resisted the urge to frown because Prince George hadn't. She supposed that was the obvious implication of him having brought a scribe and a mage, but he hadn't actually said that he was going to spread the story around.

"Sure, go on." Ethan said, but Kendra guessed that he was slightly bothered as well.

Mage Melek looked at Beth. "Please, describe the difference between the supposed possessed men and the dark figure you said you encountered in Arcanum on the Astral Plane."

Kendra didn't miss that Mage Melek had said "supposed possessed men", nor that he specified that Beth had said she'd seen the dark figure, not that she actually had. Apparently, he wasn't entirely convinced.

"Well, the possessed men are like normal men." Beth paused. "Well, like normal men on the Astral Plane. Everything is purple, but possessed men have this dark aura around them that's actually black, not just a dark purple. You can see them like anyone else on the Astral Plane, except they have that dark aura." The blonde hesitated, then shuddered. "The one in Arcanum was different. It was like he was entirely black, but like a dark hole is black, not like the color. It was the absence of light, like... like..."

"Like a concentrated version of the aura around the possessed men?" Mage Melek suggested.

"Yes! Exactly!" Beth exclaimed.

"How did you know?" Rachel asked.

Mage Melek leaned back in his chair, got a thoughtful expression on his face, then steepled his hands. "Ivernia sends airship patrols into the Wilding Lands frequently to ensure the Wildings aren't building forces for a massed attack. More than one of them saw a young giant recently, not full size, and it likely only just reached adulthood."

Kendra grimaced; everyone knew where giants came from, and the implication made her think twice about their plans to visit the Wilding Lands

* * *

Ethan saw all of his wives except for Selene grimace, and the general air of the room suddenly was one of apprehension and almost fear.

*I'll ask; I need to save my Boss's sterling reputation.* Selene quipped to him privately, then spoke aloud. "So, bearing in mind that I'm not from around here, what does that mean?"

"You don't know how giants are made?" Beth asked, her jaw dropping.

"Um, when a mommy giant and daddy giant love each other very much..." Selene trailed off, her joke falling flatter than a pancake. "I'm guessing I'm wrong?"

All of his other wives nodded.

"So how then?" Selene asked.

"Nesteri." Alana replied.

"Wait, I thought 'Nesteri' were demons." Ethan said.

"Not quite Master." Taloni replied. "A 'demon' is a fallen angel, but there are other spiritual beings who fell that weren't angels, like elemental spirits. 'Nesteri' refers to all of them. Though, I think only a demon can create giants."

"How?" Selene asked.

"Remember how Gabriella has a body, and even ate cake with Selene?"

"Yeah, so?" He shrugged.

"And Gabriella said that Illuminar had created a body for her to use when He wanted her to visit the mortal plane?"

"I remember that." Selene said. "She said that she'd heard that chocolate was better than sex, so apparently she wasn't missing anything because she'd never had sex. I asked about that, and she said that angels were incorporeal, so of course she'd never had sex."

"That's only because she obeys Illuminar." Taloni said quietly. "She has a body, so if she wanted to..."

"Angels and mortals?" Ethan raised an eyebrow. Though, on balance, it wasn't the craziest thing he'd heard in the last few months. He supposed that if an angel had a body, the angel would be capable.

"Not angels and mortals; that would be disobeying Illuminar." Alana corrected. "It's only Nesteri and mortals."

"Wait, so you're telling me that if an angel and a mortal fell in love, Illuminar would forbid that?" Selene raised her eyebrow.

"There are stories that, on the extremely rare occasion when they have fallen in love, Illuminar has allowed an angel to become mortal in order to marry a mortal." Kendra said. "But Illuminar forbids angels, including fallen angels like the Nesteri, to fornicate with mortals because of what such a union produces."

Ethan hesitated. "What does it produce?"

"Divine beings and mortals are different orders of being." Mage Melek said. "In some ways, they are similar. But in many others, they are utterly incompatible. A child is a fusion of his parents. As Illuminar -- blessed be He -- made mortals in His image, so also, a child is made in the image of his parents." The arch mage paused. "But what if the image of his parents isn't compatible?"

"They can't conceive?" Selene guessed.

"No, that's what happens when two incompatible mortals couple." Mage Melek replied. "The souls of mortals and immortals are more like fire and ice; when they meet in the creation of a child, each portion damages the other and the result is less than either is alone. Thus, when an embodied divine being -- for example, an angel with a body like this 'Gabriella' -- cohabits with a mortal, the result is monstrous, both in appetites and size."

"Giants." Rachel said.

"So, giants are evil?" Selene asked, and Ethan was glad that she had so he didn't need to.

"They aren't good." Taloni shuddered.

"She's underselling it." Kendra stated. "They tend toward excesses of every kind; monstrous appetites, as it were. Murder, rape, fits of rage, cannibalism, and most other unsavory appetites."

"And this is common knowledge?" Ethan asked. Though, come to think of it, the reactions to mentioning giants before had been pretty negative. Selene had mentioned them at Sarisa's house and everyone had looked disturbed.

"It is." Beth nodded.

"You think that the being that Beth saw in Arcanum was an embodied Nesteri." Rachel said to Mage Melek. "That would explain what it looked like."

Mage Melek nodded slowly. "Giants are always sterile, much like a mule is always sterile."

"A mule is the offspring of a horse and a donkey." Beth volunteered.

"I know that." Ethan rolled his eyes.

"I didn't." Selene admitted. "City girl."

"So someone saw a giant that wasn't fully grown, meaning that there's an embodied Nesteri sleeping with mortal women?" Ethan mused.

Mage Melek nodded.

"How would a demon even get a body?" Ethan asked. "I mean, Gabriella got hers from Illuminar, but where would a demon get one?"

"From Illuminar before the demon fell Master." Taloni spoke up. "That possessed man we fought in Dotmier said that they didn't initially revolt because they thought Illuminar might destroy them if they did. Before they fell, many of them were given bodies to interact with mortals at Illuminar's direction."

"I'm sure that my reputation for abhorrence of dark magic has preceded me." Mage Melek said after a moment, then he leaned forward. "Demons are worse. I know not if you are a true prophet or a necromancer, but I do know that giants will not long cooperate with anyone, even a necromancer. Thus, on the off chance that you are indeed a prophet, I thought you should consider this."

Ethan leaned back in his seat and put a thoughtful frown on his face, mostly as a way to disguise the telepathic conversation that he wanted to have with his wives. However, before he could ask them what they thought, Mage Melek spoke again.

"I have spoken my piece, and now have other matters to attend to." The mage stood. "If you are a prophet, you will find this embodied Nesteri -- likely in the Wilding Lands since that is where the young giant was seen -- and slay it. If you are not a prophet but rather a necromancer, then you should realize that an embodied Nesteri will likely see anyone called a Prophet of Illuminar -- blessed be He -- as an enemy, regardless of whether he is or not. Thus, you should seek to slay it regardless. Perhaps one of you will triumph over the other, or perhaps you will mutually destroy each other."

"Playing both ends against the middle?" Ethan asked.

"No." Mage Melek shook his head. "I am ensuring that no matter the outcome, there is less evil in the world."

"Fair." Ethan inclined his head.

"You don't want to ask more questions about whether Ethan is a necromancer or not?" Alana asked.

"No." The mage replied. "Every question I would have asked -- such as how one might raise the dead without dark magic or how a necromancer might use lightning -- was answered by your story. Until the independent investigation has concluded, we would be wasting both of our time. That is, unless you wish to add a detail you omitted from your story."

"No, we're good." Ethan replied.

"Then may Illuminar -- blessed be He -- guide you on the path of light as you travel..." He looked pointedly at Ethan. "...even if you are a necromancer casting a dark shadow on that path."

"You as well." Ethan replied.

Mage Melek head bowed, and then left the room.

Once the door closed, Ethan took a deep breath, let it out slowly, then looked at his wives. "Thoughts?"

"What kind of threat would an embodied demon pose in combat?" Selene asked. "I could see it being far stronger than a possessed man, but maybe weaker too."

"Why weaker?" Beth asked.

"I don't know, it's just a thought." Selene shrugged. "The possessed men are attached to a real person and augment him, whereas an embodied demon might be limited by the body." She paused. "But then, they might not be limited by their bodies and be unstoppable juggernauts."

"They aren't." Taloni said. "In the Book of Light, Illuminar called on mortals to kill all the embodied Nesteri because once their bodies are killed, they become like any other Nesteri without a body. He warned that if they didn't kill them, they would cause untold harm. Mortals didn't listen and left some of them alive."

"So if normal people can kill them, then a dragon should be able to." Selene said, then looked at Ethan. "Ethan Ejder, called 'Demon Slayer'."

Everyone chuckled, then the mood grew a little more somber.

"What kind of 'untold harm'?" Ethan asked after a moment.

"Master, one of them pretended to be an elf and corrupted an entire kingdom, though it took a long time." Taloni replied.

Ethan frowned, several things occurring to him at once.

"My lord, Illuminar told you that He brought you here to solve a problem." Rachel mused. "I know we've been thinking that it was the tyranny in Ivernia, but what if this is the problem He wanted us to solve?"

"The two aren't mutually exclusive." Alana pointed out. "Ivernia borders the Wilding Lands. What are the odds that this embodied Nesteri is exerting some influence on Ivernia the way that the Nesteri did in the Book of Light?"

"I'm sure it is Master." Taloni said with absolute confidence.

"Evil rarely stays in one place for long." Kendra agreed. "That might also explain the movement of the wood elven youth away from Illuminar that The King told you about." She looked at Ethan. "Didn't you say that The King said they had never seen anything like it before?"

Ethan nodded. "Yeah, and both Ivernia and the wood elven kingdom border the Wilding Lands." He tapped one of his toe claws on the floor as he thought about it.

"Um, Master." Taloni said tentatively. "That might be who's making the will-breaker rings too."

"Damn, yeah." He nodded.

Silence fell for a moment.

"This is it." Ethan said after a moment of thinking about it. "This is the root cause of all the bad crap that's been happening. I don't know how Lady Ekthros is tied up in all of this -- though maybe this embodied Nesteri helped tempt her to the dark side -- but it explains everything. Why Ivernia is so bad, the will-breaker rings, the possessed men, the thing Beth saw in Arcanum, everything."

"The curse." Alana spoke up. "That curse that was on the gold cube that Lord Delmar -- or more likely, Lady Ekthros through Lord Delmar -- gave to you and Beth after your wedding. I know a lot about enchanting, and that definitely wasn't a normal enchantment; it was demonic. Kyrupto even said so."

'Yeah, that too." Ethan nodded. "And given that it came from Lord Delmar -- likely via Lady Ekthros -- it seems like she's definitely tied up in this somehow. The only real question is if she's aware of this embodied Nesteri or if it's just using her."

"Given what Luminar Kossel told you, I would guess that she's being used." Alana suggested.

No one disagreed, but no one agreed either.

"I don't think we can know for sure." Rachel said after a moment, then added to the group chat. *But given Ethan and Kyrupto's revulsion of anything demonic, it seems like dragons are repulsed by anything demonic, thus...* She spoke out loud. "I don't think my father is involved, or at least not knowingly."

"Agreed." Alana nodded, and everyone else did too.

"This is it." Ethan said after a moment. "I've been here for nearly five months and with everything that's happened, I think this is why Illuminar brought me here. He probably wants us to help Ivernia too, but this just feels like the real reason."

"I think so too Master." Taloni agreed, her tone certain.

"That does seem right somehow." Alana said with a thoughtful frown. "I'm not sure why, but it does."

Beth nodded. "It does."

"It makes sense why you needed to be a dragon too." Rachel added. "Dragons seem to have an easier time detecting demons. Though, I'm not sure if that holds true for an embodied demon."

"Not to mention the possessed men." Kendra agreed. "A non-dragon wouldn't stand a chance."

"That does make sense." Selene said. "And oddly, Illuminar bringing us here to deal with an embodied Nesteri, an embodied demon, it does feel kind of 'right'."

Sarah nodded. "It does."

Selene chuckled. "So, it seems like we -- and by 'we', I mean Beth -- met the big bad a long time ago, we just didn't realize it at the time."

Ethan nodded his head in concession. "Yeah, I guess so."

"So, what now?" Beth asked.

"Now, we finish getting Ethan prepped for the--" Alana paused, probably not wanting to say 'tournament' in case they were overheard. "For his trip. That's the next thing. After that... yeah, we'll need to talk more seriously about this."

"I should tell The King and Prince George about the embodied Nesteri, though Prince George probably already knows." Ethan mused. "Probably Lord Kalus when he gets here. And we should update Elder Goman too."

"Rachel and I can 'write a letter' to him." Alana said slyly.

Rachel's extremely fair skin got a touch of pink, but she smiled and nodded. "I could do that; I wouldn't want to let my skills atrophy."

Everyone sniggered except for Sarah, who blushed.

"Okay, so in addition to a lord that's a you-know-what." Ethan said, not wanting to out Lord Delmar as a dragon. "And a lord that's a tyrannical prick, and the demon-possessed men, and the giants, and possibly dealing with Nesteri influencing the elements to fight us while we're in the Wilding Lands, we have an embodied demon to find and kill." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Eh, sounds like a Tuesday for us." Selene quipped.

Everyone chuckled.

"We can do it Master." Taloni said. "If Illuminar brought us here to do it, then we must be able to."

"Tee, sometimes, I wish I had your faith." Ethan looked at her fondly.

"Someday, I think you will Master." She smiled back.

"Maybe." He shrugged and then looked at his wives. "Alright ladies, you up for this?"

They all either nodded or verbally agreed.

He took another deep breath and then let it out slowly. He had no idea how they were going to do it, but it felt like things were coming together. First, all the good news since the ambush, and now he thought they not only knew what the root of all these problems were, but he could also see the light at the end of the tunnel. This felt like the last piece of the puzzle of all the shifting goals that they'd had since he'd arrived.

Oh, there would be hiccups and smaller goals along the way, but this really seemed like the endgame. Lord Delmar, Lord Farbrottan, Lady Ekthros, likely some giants, and an embodied demon. It was a tall order, but as he looked around at his wives, he knew that's what needed to be done to give them the long, happy, healthy lives they deserved.

It might be a tall order, but it was absolutely worth fighting for.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Note: This chapter began on day 138 of Ethan's life in the Ten Kingdoms and ended on day 139.

IMPORTANT: It's looking very likely that I won't drop a chapter in December. Not definitively certain, but very likely. I'll try to get out a little mini-chapter or something if I don't, but I make no promises on that. Regardless, the next chapter will be submitted either the last Wednesday of December or January, and it should drop after the review process. (Usually 2-3 days)

I'd like to extend a very special thanks to my editors, and also several of my patrons, one of whom didn't want to be credited by name. So "Anonymous", Joseph, Waniel, 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