A Crown Imperilled

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Nakor swore.

‘We can run faster than these horses,’ he complained to Miranda.

‘Yes, but after a few hours we’d need to eat them. And there are enough Kingdom patrols between here and Sarth I don’t wish to have to explain myself to.’

‘Well, Martin gave us a pass,’ responded Nakor.

Arkan and Calis said nothing, content to let Nakor and Miranda do all the talking. Arkan was fascinated by the human landscape as they rode past farms and villages down the coast road from Ylith to Sarth. His only remark had been to comment on the richness of this coast compared to the Northlands.

Nakor was riding a bay gelding that seemed to slow down every time he stopped applying heel to barrel, determined to browse anything he could crop irrespective of Nakor’s wishes. Miranda had a speckled roan mare that seemed on the verge of breaking down due to an old spavin on her left hind leg. The elves had found a pair of bay geldings, one with a white blaze, both old enough they could not outride the other pair of mounts. So the best they could manage was a posting trot most of the time, with an occasional canter tossed in to break the monotony.

Nakor continued with his complaining. ‘I just wish we could have found better horses.’

Miranda smirked. ‘The good horses went south with the army, and the five-gaiters went with their rich owners anywhere the Keshians weren’t. Be glad we’re not riding mules.’

Life along the shore of the Bitter Sea was picking up slowly. Martin had tried to find them a boat to sail directly to Sorcerer’s Isle, but it had been impossible. The only boat available was the dinghy used to spot the water demons and even with a demon’s strength they couldn’t row that many miles.

So they found two horses not worth much and paid too dearly for them, and headed south. Neither Miranda nor Nakor worried about provisions, as they could hunt and forage. Neither was averse to eating raw meat and their taste was diverse. If it could be eaten, they’d eat it. And both elves were expert hunters so if provisions couldn’t be purchased, game could be killed.

As for other travellers, few were encountered. A few dispatch riders heading from Sarth to Ylith. Miranda had Martin’s report to take to the garrison at Sarth, as she would reach that city before anyone else. There just weren’t horses to spare and besides, Martin had to keep his entire force intact to face the Keshians in the middle of the city. The gods only knew how long that armistice would endure.

They had been on the road three days since the truce had been declared, and were determined to reach Sarth as quickly as possible. There they would find whatever craft they could to sail to Sorcerer’s Isle. Miranda was constantly battling her frustration at all those things she had once known how to do, as Miranda, rather than Child.

And that was another thing: she and Belog were thinking of themselves more and more as Miranda and Nakor, not as their true demon identities. The emotional wear of wanting to see Pug and Magnus, the mourning over the loss of Caleb and Marie, all of it was as real to her as if she had always been Miranda, and it was taking its toll. The original Miranda, despite years of life experience, had always been impatient and impetuous, perhaps a product of her childhood where she had to scramble to survive. Her mother had been a powerful magic-user, last known as the Emerald Queen, but called Jorma when she was married to Nakor in her youth. The real Nakor and Miranda had never really decided if that in some strange way made them kin, but it had never been an issue, for they were good friends. Her father was Macros the Black, but she had only met him a half-dozen times growing up. If there was ever a man less suited to be a parent, Miranda hadn’t encountered him, but in the end he had died heroically, and Pug had survived because of that, and for that she had always been grateful to her father.

She had never truly loved a man until she met Pug, or at least not in the way she had come to understand while with him. Before him there had been lovers, the last being Calis, which was why it was odd for Child to confront the elf prince and feel Miranda’s emotions at seeing his face. He had been a partner in many ways, in the first resistance to the demons and Pantathians when the Emerald Queen’s army had overrun Novindus. Before that she had been a vagabond, taking and leaving men as she found them. Some she grew fond of, but never enough to give up travel and discovery. A few she thought of from time to time, drifting for a moment on memories centuries old, but one thing she shared with people like Nakor, Amirantha and Pug was that most of the people she had loved.

And apparently, she thought dryly, even dying didn’t mean you escaped that fate, it seemed.

The sun was setting as they came upon a village and for the first time encountered problems. Six men, mercenaries from the look of them, deserters most like, were standing near the communal well when Miranda and Nakor rode into view.

Their leader was a disreputable-looking fellow with yellowing teeth, a wall eye, and a large floppy hat underneath which stringy light brown hair flowed to his shoulder. He wore what once had been a fine officer’s riding jacket with an array of brass buttons, most of which were now missing. His grey riding trousers and black knee high boots had seen better days. But his weapons appeared well cared for and the six men with him all looked capable enough.

‘Well, what have we here?’ he asked as Miranda pulled up.

‘Travellers,’ she answered, ‘bound for Sarth. Seeking a night’s respite.’

‘Well, that’s a problem,’ said the man as his companions spread out. ‘We’re Sarth militia, you see, and we’ve been sent here to keep the road clear of Keshian spies.’

‘Deserters, you mean,’ said Nakor, jumping down from the horse. He walked up to stand before the leader and said, ‘You’re bandits plaguing these good people. Now, why don’t you leave?’

The man laughed and turned to his companions. ‘Do you believe this little fellow?’

Two of the bandits had crossbows, which were instantly brought to bear on the two elves before they could unlimber their bows. The leader made a ‘tsk, tsk,’ sound. He turned back suddenly with his sword coming out of his scabbard, but before he could draw it fully free, Nakor reached out and shattered his wrist with a single squeeze. The man’s howl was turned into a gurgling gasp as Nakor reached up and tore out his throat.

Onlooking villagers retreated into their homes, several pulling the heavy cloth doors closed, while others peered out of the windows. The two men with crossbows let fly, but Arkan and Calis were already out of their saddles, half-falling, half-leaping as the bolts sped through empty air.

‘That tears it,’ said Miranda leaping from her horse. With two steps she stood next to a bandit attempting to string his bow. She ripped it from his hands and broke it over his head, his eyes rolling up into his skull as he fell to the ground.

Within a minute the other bandits were dead and Miranda called, ‘You can come out now! They won’t bother you.’

The doors remained closed for a full minute, until a man came out, his face a mask of fear. He held a large out. ‘It’s all we have. Take it. Please, take it and go.’

Miranda glanced at Nakor. They didn’t need a place to sleep, but comfort was always preferable to the ground. Yet these people were so terrified of what they had just witnessed, they would do anything to see Miranda, Nakor and the elves depart, despite having just been saved from the bandits.

Miranda said, ‘Keep your food. You need it more than we do.’ She turned away. They mounted the horses and moved off down the road as the sun turned the sea to the west of them emerald green tipped with amber.

After a few moments, Arkan said, ‘That was odd. You saved them, yet they were more frightened of you than the bandits.’

‘Normal humans don’t break wrists with a single squeeze of the hand, nor crush skulls with a blow to the head with a bow.’ She took a deep breath, and then let a long sigh escape. ‘We move too quickly, we’re too strong. We may look like other people, but we’re not.’

Calis shrugged. He knew Miranda wasn’t the women he once knew and loved, but he also didn’t know exactly what she was. He didn’t press for answers. By nature, he was patient and he knew that the truth would present itself eventually.

Nakor said, ‘No matter how vivid our memories, we will never be one with them and they will never accept us.’

Miranda spoke quietly. ‘Pug might.’

Nakor didn’t know if that was an opinion or a hope. He said nothing.

Sarth had proven an unexpected trial. The city was garrisoning levies of soldiers detailed to Krondor, but Krondor was already over-burdened by those forces already housed there. The entirety of the Armies of the West that had answered the Prince’s call to muster had arrived. Garrisons from Yabon in the north, Land’s End to the south-west, and everything between Krondor and Malac’s Cross to the east.

Had they had somewhere else to go, things might have been fine, but they didn’t. They were hunkered down waiting for a Keshian offensive that never came. So the Prince’s Knight Marshal of the Principality detailed as many men to Port Vykor and Sarth as he could.

Now there were thousands of bored, uncomfortable, and soon-to-be hungry troops milling around. The armistice was too new for the Prince to send anyone home, though after Martin’s report reached him he might choose to return the Yabon garrison north, or at least send enough veteran troops to relieve Martin.

Miranda found the local commander and introduced herself. He was somewhat sceptical of the odd-looking quartet, until he read Martin’s report and saw it embossed with the ducal signet bearing the upward-facing crescent, the mark of the second son.

The captain, an old soldier from Krondor, asked, ‘So Duke Henry is dead, then?’

‘Yes,’ said Miranda. ‘He was returning to Crydee from the road to Ylith when goblins attacked. One got lucky, or he was unlucky.’

The old soldier got up from behind the table he was using as a desk. He had occupied a chandler’s home so the furniture was well-made. It probably had the most comfortable bed in the town. ‘I’ll pass along the boy’s report to the Knight Marshal. Word should reach the King within a fortnight.’

Miranda said, ‘Not to make too fine a point of it, Captain, but that “boy” held Crydee for a week, then retreated and held Ylith again against a full legion of Keshian Dog Soldiers, twice that number of auxiliaries, and a full company of Leopard cavalry. With two hundred men-at-arms from Crydee and the rest of the local muster, those left over after the Earl of Ylith marched south. I’d say he’s shown that he’s more than a boy.’

‘Fair point,’ said the captain. ‘Is there anything I can do for you, lady?’

‘If there’s a boat for sale or hire, I need to travel to Sorcerer’s Isle.’

‘The Isle? Even in peace time you’d have trouble finding anyone mad enough to make that journey. It’s right off to the west of Krondor you know, and every ship in and out gives it a wide berth.’

‘I know where it is, captain. It’s my home.’

The captain looked as if he was uncertain what to say. Finally he said, ‘Tell you what. Go to the docks and look for an old mad man named Sully. He has a little sloop he’s been boasting is the fastest thing in these waters. If Kesh or Queg gets a notion, you might find out if it’s true. I’ve held him here in case I needed a fast boat to Krondor or Ylith, but so far I’ve had no need of him.’ The captain crossed back to his desk and quickly wrote out a note, signed it, and affixed his seal of office to it.’ He handed the folded document to Miranda and said, ‘Tell him he’s already being paid if the subject comes up. It’s a returned favour from the Prince for bringing us this report.’

‘You’re more than fair, Captain.’

As they turned to leave, the captain said, ‘I’ve fought Keshians before. If the boy faced Dog Soldiers and Leopard cavalry, he’s got sand.’

‘Yes, he does,’ said Nakor.

They left and went searching for the man named Sully.

The Seafoam Lady, a converted freighter turned into the gaudy personal transport of the Duke of Ran and his guests, hove to in the harbour in Rillanon waiting for the proper conduct from the harbourmaster to a berth at the royal docks. Normally a personage of the Duke’s rank would be given clear access to the quayside, but as every duke with a ship was either already at anchorage or just arriving, things were getting very crowded and the harbourmaster was down to his last iota of patience.

Eventually, the Duke’s party was given clearance and a nicely-appointed longboat was sent from the quayside to the ship. A cleverly-designed if somewhat cumbersome platform on pulleys had been devised as a means to get the Duke’s portly wife to the longboat without demanding that she sacrifice her dignity by trying to climb down netting or being carried by sailors in a sling. The device was torturously slow, but eventually the Duke, Duchess, two small sons, and their four guests were in the longboat.

Reaching the quayside, they found a carriage waiting to conduct them to guest quarters in the palace. The carriage barely held the Duke and his family and the two ladies. Ty and Hal were content to borrow horses from the escorts for the ride to the palace.

Both young men had been to Rillanon before, Hal once and Ty on several occasions, but each experienced the same sense of wonder riding from the docks up the King’s Highway to the palace. The city was breathtaking from this vantage.

King Rodrick IV, known to some as the Mad King, had undertaken a city renovation project in his first year, insisting that every inch of the palace be faced with the finest rose- and-gold quartz interspersed with brilliant white and pale blue tilework. Then he fancied the idea that the entire city be likewise finished, his ambition being to turn the city into the most beautiful in the world. His vision had been carried through by his successors, Kings Lyam and Borric II.

Now as the carriage rolled along cobbles chosen for their rosy colour, the noon sun turned the entire royal hillside into a stunning display of reflected glory. Light played off one surface then another, as brilliant white facades glimmered with hints of aqua and lavender, rose and gold. Not only the palace and the homes of the powerful and rich were finished in the brilliant stone, but the public face of every house in every sector save the warehouses near the docks. Even those drab precincts were elevated from the mundane by the light that washed over them.

But of course otherwise this was a city like any other: in dark corners evil was plotted and behind those brilliant faces, dark alleys lay wherein murder was done. A brothel or drug house might be dazzling to behold, but the trade within was the same as in the seediest corner of Durbin. As Hal’s father had warned him about Rillanon before he set off on his journey to Roldem, ‘A whore may be the most beautiful woman you’ve seen, my son, but she’s still a whore.’ And as they entered the palace marshalling yard, Hal dismounted and thought to himself, But she is indeed a beautiful whore.

Grooms wearing powder blue livery trimmed with golden braid hurried to take the horses and help the guests dismount from the carriage, while a line of royal household guards stood at attention, their black trousers and large, red-plumed black hats, and tabards with a golden lion on a red field making them the smartest-looking soldiers Hal had ever seen. Then his father’s voice came to him: ‘But can they fight?’

Several officials came forward to greet them, and with what appeared to a genuine love of the theatricality of the moment Duke Chadwick informed the palace’s major domo, ‘I have the honour of presenting Her Highness, Princess Stephane of Roldem, who seeks audience with His Majesty at his earliest convenience.’

The manager of the King’s palace had the good grace to look nonplussed for the briefest second. Then he turned to his second and said, ‘Make sure that the royal guest quarters are readied at once!’

The speed with which that official took off convinced Hal that in the time it took Stephane and Gabriella to walk to the guest accommodations set aside for visiting royalty, windows would be opened, fruit and chilled wine placed upon the table, candles lit, and bedding freshened, as if they had been expecting her all along.

Ty whispered to Hal, ‘I think if Sung the White showed up-,’ he meant the Goddess of Purity, ‘-he’d have her room ready.’

The entire party was ushered into a receiving area where a party of government officials were waiting. Standing in the middle of the group was a gentleman of middle years wearing a well-tailored dark green coat of simple cut. He bowed to Stephane and said, ‘Highness, allow me to present myself. I am Sir William Alcorn, the King’s Chancellor. I can only say this is a most welcome and wonderful surprise. His Majesty will of course expect you to dine with him tonight.’ He turned to the Duke and said, ‘Your Grace,’ then he greeted the Duchess, and returning to the Duke said, ‘Many of the Congress have gathered to discuss the coming peace with Kesh. An informal dinner has been arranged for that purpose, if you’d care to attend.’

‘Yes, of course,’ answered Duke Chadwick.

Turning to the two young men, Sir William said, ‘Young Lord Henry, we anticipate your father’s arrival with the other western lords in the company of Prince Edward soon. Until then please be our guest.’ To Ty he added, ‘And you, Master Hawkins, are welcome as well.’

Stephane turned to Hal, her expression fixed in a smile, but her face almost devoid of colour. ‘Would you be so kind as to call upon me once you’ve settled into your quarters, Lord Henry? You as well, Master Hawkins?’

For the briefest moment, Sir William’s expression flickered as if he was thinking of a reason to object, but finding none he merely smiled and said, ‘Ask any servant and you will be shown the way. Now, if you excuse me, I must attend to the business of the day.’ He bowed and moved away, whispering to a subordinate, and various servants immediate began escorting guests to different parts of the palace.

The King’s palace was set atop the highest hill overlooking the harbour at the northern end of the Island of Rillanon, birthplace of the Kingdom of the Isles. Buried below the foundations of this city were the ruins of earlier settlements and villages. History began where lore ended, and tales of great heroes sung by bards were transcribed and gathered and thus was the history of nations fashioned.

Hal walked past a garden, remembering that Dannis, the first island monarch to set his standard on the mainland, had made a conquest from this calm sanctuary but rather from a torch-lit stone tor a hundred feet below this palace, covered by centuries of detritus, a single tower that had been raised over a thatch-roofed village of daub-and-waddle huts protected by a log palisade. The mighty Kingdom fleet had comprised a dozen long barques with single masts with less than thirty warriors per boat, and Bas-Tyra had been a rival village on the mainland with its own single tor overlooking log walls.

Still, thought Hal as they reached the apartment he’d be sharing with Ty, thinking of the past with more glory and beauty than it deserved was a common failing of conquerors, and it provided goals for dealing with the dark and murderous reality of today.

Rillanon might be the most beautiful city on the planet, but conquest and murder, betrayal and mayhem had made it that way.

Ty and Hal followed a servant to the Princess’s quarters where they were quickly admitted by Gabriella. Both young men were wearing clothing that had been provided by the palace: to their amazement it fitted well, right down to highly polished boots.

The Princess rose and said, ‘Please, come into the garden.’

Ty and Hal exchanged glances: in the late afternoon the garden would be quite hot.

Gabriella moved quickly around the perimeter of the garden, obviously looking for eavesdroppers. The garden presented one open side to the city and harbour below, perfect for watching the sunrise should one be up that early, and two low walls, behind which no one lurked.

Softly the Princess said to both Hal and Ty, ‘That man who greeted us?’

‘Yes?’

‘That’s Lord John Worthington.’

Both Hal and Ty looked at one another then back at the Princess.

‘I know you’ll think me mad, but you did meet Lord John at the reception after the Masters’ Championship. Don’t you remember?’

Ty and Hal again exchanged glances, but neither could conjure up a good memory of Lord John Worthington. Finally, colour rising in his cheeks, Hal said, ‘If I’m to be honest, Stephane, I remember little except being in a bit of pain; and seeing you for the first time.’

Stephane’s eyes widened slightly and a slight smile passed over her lips, but then her expression became serious once more. ‘I’m not jesting with you. If that’s not Lord John Worthington who greeted us, it’s his twin.’

Ty said, ‘I vaguely remember Lord John, but truth to tell, I was in much the same position as Hal …. without the pain, of course.’ He smiled.

Stephane didn’t. She looked at Gabriella.

Lady Gabriella said, ‘They are like twins, gentlemen. I’ve been the Princess’s companion for five years now, and I’ve encountered Lord John on dozens of occasions over the last three. They could be the same man.’

‘If they are twins,’ said Hal, ‘that begs many questions.’

‘Worthington is an Isles name,’ said Ty. ‘Cousins perhaps?’

‘More than that, I am certain of it,’ said Stephane. With a slight inclination of her head she instructed Gabrielle to take Ty to the far side of the garden so that she could have a moment alone with Hal. When they were as far removed from the other couple as possible, she said, ‘I wanted to thank you for everything.’

Hal found himself suddenly speechless, as flummoxed as he had been the first time he had met her. Now, as then, she was dressed in court finery, and although her hair was not set in some grand fashion, it was freshly washed and framed her face in natural waves. Her wide blue eyes stared at him in a way that made him feel amazed and disconcerted at one and the same time. ‘Ah,’ he began, ‘no need. I was only …’ He couldn’t speak.

She looked up into his dark brown eyes and stepped close. Putting her cheek against his, she said, ‘I know. I see how you look at me. I treasure that love.’

Hal’s mouth was dry.

Stephane whispered, ‘Until I return home safely, please do not leave my side.’

Trying to still his pounding heart, Hal spoke quietly. ‘I am your obedient servant, Your Highness. I will be but a call away from now until you are with your father.’

‘Thank you.’ Standing on her toes, she kissed him on the cheek. With her lips next to his ear she whispered, ‘I have never met your like, and I will hold you in my heart until death.’ Then she turned away, saving Hal further awkwardness.

So many things had happened since that first night Hal had seen her. His feelings were a jumble, and he was desperate to say more to her, but he knew that he never would. She would marry someone important to the Kingdom and he was, at best, years away from becoming a rural duke in the far west. Title and land he would possess, along with responsibility and obligation, but the sort of political influences needed to make him a suitor for the hand of the Princess of Roldem would be but an idle dream. The possibility that she might look upon him as something more than a loyal friend at one and the same time buoyed and sank his heart. He pushed down the ache that was growing and reminded himself that he had been raised to do his duty to king and country.

His reverie was interrupted by the arrival of a page who said, ‘Lord Henry of Crydee?’

Hal turned. ‘Yes?’

‘The King is asking for you now, sir.’

Hal glanced at the Princess, and she indicated with a tilt of her chin that he should go at once; she’d be fine in the company of Ty and Gabriella.

Hal hurried after the page who led him through a series of corridors so that they approached the King’s royal apartment though a side door, out of sight of the throng of courtiers waiting in the main hall of the palace for their chance to speak with the King.

Hal stepped through the door held open by the page and was surprised by how sparsely decorated the room was. There was a desk by a window that offered a lovely view of the harbour, a single ancient tapestry hanging on one wall, a small table with a pitcher and goblets on it, and a single chair at the desk. In the chair sat the King.

Hal bowed and the King rose, extending his hand. Hal gripped it and looked into King Gregory’s face. He was shocked.

In the few months since he had been presented at court, the King’s health had obviously declined. He was thinner, his complexion gone sallow, and his hair hanging lifelessly to his shoulders.

‘My boy,’ said the King. ‘We fear we bear grave tidings and wished to be the one to tell you.’

Fearing the worst, Hal said, ‘What is it, sire?’

‘Word has reached us from Krondor that your father was taken in battle. You are now Duke of Crydee, Henry.’

Hal was too stunned to speak.

The Princess, Ty, and Gabriella comforted Hal as best they could. While they waited for the summons to the royal dinner Hal recounted his boyhood in Crydee and the good times he remembered with his father, mother, and two younger brothers.

At one point he looked at the ring on his finger and said, ‘This will go to my eldest son one day.’

‘Your father’s signet?’ asked the Princess. ‘You will take that?’

‘It will be buried with him as is traditional, and a new one will be forged for me. My brothers will then give me theirs and will receive rings for whatever offices the Crown sees fit for them.’ He sighed and sat back. They were in the little garden next to the Princess’s chamber sipping iced drinks of fruit juice and white wine as the afternoon heat was falling away. ‘I knew this day would come, eventually, but to come so soon and … unexpected.’

Stephane took his hand and gripped it for a moment.

Trying to lighten the mood, Hal said, ‘Ty, why don’t you come to Crydee? You’d be the greatest swordmaster in history.’

‘You’re drunk,’ said the young man from Olasko. ‘Or you should be.’

‘Maybe later,’ said Hal. ‘I do not want to embarrass myself before the King in my first official act as Duke of Crydee. What about it? Care to train farm boys how to be soldiers?’

Ty laughed. ‘I don’t think I’m cut out for that life, Your Grace.’

Hal held up his hand. ‘Not yet, please.’

‘I’m an eastern lad, Hal. I love the cities and the dining, the gambling and …’ he looked at Gabriella, ‘the ladies too much.’

She fixed him with a slightly disapproving eye.

Hal went on, ‘Assuming there’s a Crydee to return to. The reports forwarded to me are not good. A great deal hinges on what sort of peace the King can arrange with the Emperor. I may be a duke without a duchy.’

‘I’m sure something good will come out of all this,’ said the Princess.

Gabriella smiled. ‘Her Highness has always had a far more cheery outlook on how life works than most.’

‘Not a bad way to be,’ conceded Ty. ‘Many get worn down by worry and fretting over things we cannot control.’

‘But you have to be prepared for all eventualities,’ said Hal, ‘including the most dire.’

‘Which is why you’ll make a wonderful duke and I will not,’ said Ty, lifting his glass.

A page arrived and announced the reception would be underway soon. Hal and Ty excused themselves to retire to their quarters and when they reached them, found that sumptuous court raiment had been laid out for them.

Hal was given a russet tunic with the ducal crest of Crydee over the heart, a golden seagull in flight, black leggings and boots adorned with what appeared to be real gold buckles. A finely-made chain sword-belt with a scabbard covered in matching russet velvet set with a line of black opal surrounded in gold completed the outfit. ‘Gods, what this must have cost!’ he said examining the clothing.

Ty was equally impressed with a powder blue tunic with a small insignia denoting the earldom where his father was reputedly a squire; a fiction created by the Conclave of Shadows for his father when he served them, but as far as the Kingdom’s heraldic office was concerned, young Ty was entitled to the rank of squire, even if they had no idea where he was from, or to whose service he was pledged. White hose and black boots and a silver chain sword-belt with a gold-topped scabbard in dark blue velvet studded with three diamonds completed his regalia.

Hal looked at it and said, ‘I see your title of Champion of the Masters’ Court won you the better scabbard.’

Dryly, Ty said, ‘Yes, Your Grace,’ as he began to change. That earned him a pillow thrown at his head. ‘Better get used to it, Hal. You’ll hear it a lot tonight.’

Hal was silent for a moment, thinking of his family, then he began to dress.

They entered the vast hall and a squire showed Ty to his place at a lower table, as befitted his rank, and then escorted Hal to his place at the King’s table. He found himself standing next to Lord Chadwick who quietly said, ‘Sorry to hear about your father, lad. He was a very good man.’

Between Chadwick and the empty chair next to the throne where the King would dine stood two other men who nodded politely. Hal recognized them as Lawrence of Salador and Geoffrey of Bas-Tyra. He returned their greetings and they waited until at last the Master of Ceremonies announced the King.

The King entered with his queen on his arm, and Hal was struck by the contrast. The Queen was a beauty to rival Princess Stephane, yet there was something about her that was … empty. She smiled and nodded to various members of the court, her behaviour bordering on the flirtatious, and Hal wondered if some of the rumours about her that had reached Crydee before he left were true. However, the rumours were immaterial as she had still not given the King a son, so questions of paternity were moot. And from what he had seen of the King’s deteriorating condition, it appeared unlikely there would be one.

Behind them came James, Duke of Rillanon, perhaps the single most powerful noble in the Kingdom. Behind him walked two other men, one whom Hal recognized instantly as Sir William Alcorn, and the other he reckoned must be Montgomery, Earl of Rillanon, the Duke’s second-in-command. Suddenly Hal began to understand what a dog-fight would erupt over power if this king died without naming an heir. The only other player who would matter was Prince Oliver of Simrick, who was absent. Hal felt his stomach tighten as he realized he would be concerned with none of this had his father lived.

Once the King was in his place, he waved for the assembled guests to sit. ‘My lords, ladies, and gentlemen, our first duty tonight is a sad one.’ He motioned for Hal to come and stand on the other side of the table, which the young lord from Crydee did at once. ‘I present to you Henry of Crydee, now Duke, upon the death of his father also named Henry, our most loyal servant in the west, and our beloved cousin.’ He motioned and a page brought over a cushion upon which sat a golden signet ring. ‘As is custom, the late duke will be buried with his signet and I have taken it upon myself to present the young duke with this new one, as a token of affection for my beloved cousin. Kneel.’

Feeling a little awkward, Hal did as ordered. The King stood up then declared, ‘Rise Harold, Duke of Crydee.’

There was a smattering of polite applause in the room and Hal received the new signet from the page. He felt the weight and realized it wasn’t gold over bronze as his father’s ring had been, but rather made of solid gold. He put his old signet in his belt purse, against the day he had a son to whom to give it, slipped on the new ring and found it a good fit.

As he came back to his chair and sat, Duke Chadwick leaned over and said, ‘That was a bit of an odd play, don’t you think?’

‘The table certainly made it awkward.’

‘No, not that. He could have waited until court tomorrow to invest you, but he chose to do it here, before all the members of Congress. He might has well have gone out to the archery range and fetched back a target to affix to your back, boy.’

Hal was still coping with the gravity of his new title and missed the point. ‘What? I’m sorry, I don’t …’

‘He named you cousin, before every lord in the palace. He’s tossed you in with me, Oliver, and Montgomery.’ Quickly the Duke added, ‘I pray to any god who’ll listen not to give me the job of king. Montgomery is not a man for the job, any more than Prince Edward in Krondor is. That leaves Oliver, but now there’s you.’ With a humourless chuckle, Chadwick said, ‘Be cautious, boy. You’re about to make a great many new friends, and enemies as well.’

Hal sat back, trying not to feel overwhelmed.

A few minutes later the squire announced Princess Stephane, who made her entrance as the entire company of nobles rose and bowed. Hal could barely breathe at the sight of her. It was the gala for the Masters’ Court Championship all over again. The Queen’s seamstresses had worked magic in creating a stunning lilac gown edged with embroidered golden pears. She wore a matching set of jewellery, as well as a gold embroidered shoulder wrap. Gabriella entered behind her in a shimmering gown of dark green that set her colouring off to good effect, as did as fine a set of emeralds as Hal had ever seen. He suspected the jewellery were on loan from the Queen’s collection.

Stephane moved gracefully until she stood before the King’s table and bowed. ‘Welcome,’ said Gregory. He indicated she should come around and sit to the left of his wife, and when she was in place, everyone again sat down.

Hal hardly noticed when the first course of dinner was placed before him. He looked around the hall and saw it with different eyes, as if he was in the most improbable wilderness one could imagine. Some of these nobles were harmless, while others were as dangerous as any predators in the wild.

He felt eyes on him, and turned to see Sir William Alcorn watching him for a brief second from a seat at the far end of the table, before turning away as if in conversation.

Hal had never felt more out of his depth in his life.