The Last Dragon: Book Three

CHAPTER TWELVE

Princess Elizabeth

My position as the Princess of Dire had prepared me for many eventualities, and my father had used me many times to resolve issues in Crestfallen Palace. Some were important. Others were for my education. He often had me investigate minor corruption where he suspected it, from the armorer who sold us inferior weapons to the supplier of tainted meat for our kitchens. He also gave me the tasks of arranging the details of royal balls, as well as attending with him as my escort. In short, I performed the duties of a queen since my mother was long gone.

However, those obligations were also overseen by experienced and trusted servants, and whenever things didn’t go as planned, I had help for the asking—and sometimes before. A bevy of well-trained and qualified servants always leaped to contribute, even though I was fifth in succession and hopefully would never be crowned queen.

In contrast to that sometimes-excessive support I was used to, I now traveled almost alone on a ship to a foreign land. A land the ship couldn’t reach because of an endless mage-storm, so we were returning for the third time to the safety of the Bay of Trager. Once there, I had a vague set of plans, all of which included reaching Dagger in some way and completing the assignments given to me by my father.

One of my staff knocked on my partially open cabin door. It was Lady Grace, my too-polite and soft-spoken servant. Her intellect was above both Soren and Timor, but her presentation was as weak as mine. She asked timidly, “May I come in, Princess?”

I nodded curtly, careful to hold my face stoic. It was an opportunity to follow Will’s instructions. I would not be satisfied with whatever Lady Grace brought before me. It didn’t seem fair to treat such a sweet person like that but becoming a princess bitch was not an easy task for me, and I required practice.

“We have done as you asked, Princess. Two new suggested treaties are drafted, one for a king and one for a Council of Nine. Of course, without knowing their needs and wishes, they are vague.”

“I asked for specifics.” My tone was intentionally even, the statement left open for her to respond.

“You have to understand. We can’t do any better until we know what Kondor wants and perhaps what they will give up.”

Her answer guaranteed that if I entered a bargaining table with what she had written on the papers in her hand, I would fail. Will was right. I not only needed to be tougher at the table, but I also needed to begin acting like a royal representative now. Again, I kept my voice even, but insistent, “Go get Soren and Timor. Bring them here.”

I reached for the papers she’d tried to hand me earlier. When she closed the door behind her, I started to read. My anger swelled as fast as the waves when we turned south. I was on page three when another knock sounded. This time, I didn’t bother keeping my tone civil, “Enter.”

All three of my staff eased inside the room, all looking contrite and ready to defend their work. Obviously, Lady Grace had briefed the others. I held up the papers in my hand and shook them for emphasis. “This treaty you want me to fight for is being bought and paid for by Dire agreeing up front to limit our taxes on imported goods from Kondor? For this, we will receive a promise they do not invade our kingdom? These are the two points you wish me to fight for? I ask you as a group, would you agree to this if you were Kondor? It admits we are weak and willing to pay if we’re left alone. Is that what you believe?”

They had the humbleness to blush and avoid making eye contact, all of them.

“Not good enough. No, this is far too generous to agree to, let alone beginning with. Go back, outline a single treaty intended for no matter who I sit across from, and I will adjust it to fit my needs. It will favor Dire. Understand?”

They stood in stunned silence at the fury in my voice. Soren edged a small step ahead of the other two, but he’d always been outspoken, and in truth, I didn’t like him. “Princess, if I may explain. We are not in a position to request anything of value or demand Kondor give us much. Our purpose is to elicit a promise to keep them from invading Dire, and if the cost is a tariff on goods, that is a small price to pay.”

Timor, the youngest, almost relaxed as his mentor spoke. Lady Grace was more reserved, but she’d already seen a small portion of the anger inside me and remained uneasy.

I kept my voice soft and addressed all three, “If you were at the table with me, representing Kondor, would you see Dire as weak? An easy kingdom to invade and defeat with little effort, if this treaty was placed in front of you for your consideration?”

Soren had the intelligence to nod once.

I continued, “As I said, the three of you will outline a new treaty. In it, you will demand high tariffs and stiff fees for anyone or any goods entering Dire from Kondor. All sales in Dire of any products shipped from Kondor will have to pass through the new office of taxation. We will not permit foreign products to put our local craftsmen out of work so we will tax them heavily. We will restrict all weapons shipped from Dire to Kondor, and in return, we will prevent all weapons from Kondor to enter. Those foreigners will not carry weapons in our kingdom.”

Their faces turned ashen. My demands were as if Dire maintained a huge army, navy, and trade surplus. In truth, our army was small. We had no navy, our trade with other kingdoms was minimal. Dire was all but isolated by the geography of our land.

“You will express in bold writing at the beginning, that this treaty in no way contradicts the existing mutual defense treaties we have with the Kingdom of Angor and the Concordance of Palladium. However, if Kondor wishes our support to protect her borders as she protects ours, we will consider it at a later time. As a mutually defensible treaty, Kondor will consider any aggression on Dire as one on her soil, and of course, the reverse is true.”

They were stunned.

Soren said with a raspy voice, “That changes it all. The existence of those treaties was unknown to us. I have never even heard of Angor or Palladium.”

“They are across the sea and beyond the mountains that surround Dire.”

“I-I thought the mountains were impassible.” His voice trembled.

“You’ve lived in Dire your entire life and are not sure of that? And you have never heard of either, yet you are a chief scribe?”

“No, my Princess.”

I snapped, “What about you two?”

They shook their heads. They did not know of those kingdoms, yet, neither denied the existence of the mythical kingdoms or the treaties I’d lied about. No such places or treaties existed. I was both elated and disappointed.

Soren said, “May we see copies of the other treaties so that we can align this with them?”

“Do you suppose I brought them with me packed among my undergarments? That was one of your tasks, to bring relevant documentation and it seems you’ve failed. My father appointed the three of you to provide me with the outline of a new treaty, and yet you didn’t bother to research the existing treaties we already have in place? Very disappointing.” My tone was still level, but arms were crossed over my chest as I stared them down.

Their faces fell further. Tears appeared in Lady Grace’s eyes. She mumbled something that sounded like, “I’m sorry.”

I drew in a breath and gave them a few instants to think about their situation. Then I continued almost cheerily, “Okay, here is what you are going to do. You will begin a new draft. By the end of today, I will have a working draft in my hand as I’ve outlined. So that I may give up a few sacrificial items during the actual negotiations, you will include several of them, also. I don’t care what they are, even if you have to invent them, but if they are not excluded by Kondor, I want them beneficial to Dire.”

They retreated, almost defeated. I might have had sympathy if I hadn’t read the dribble they were prepared to send me with to face Kondor. Will was right. My anger rose.

I left my cabin in a whirl of rage, coupled with elated and optimistic surges of emotion. While I didn’t know all the answers, I at least knew what questions to begin asking. I was happy that even my staff had believed my lies about the mythical lands of the Kingdom of Angor and the Concordance of Palladium. They didn’t exist. However, if the residents of Dire didn’t know their existence was a lie, how would those in far-off Kondor? I needed to have substance to present to Kondor, and the belief that Dire had two other Kingdoms ready to defend her would help against any aggression or plans they might have to invade.

If I’m caught in the lie? I nearly stumbled out the door on to the ship’s deck. The motion of the ship had abruptly changed. The lean of the ship had increased. I imagined everything in my cabin sliding across the floor to one side. Again, I wondered about getting caught in a lie. It wouldn’t be the last time.

I gripped the railing and promised myself it wouldn’t happen. My people, the people of Dire, believed me. The wind was stronger, and I made my way down the rail while searching for Will. Instead, the ship’s purser emerged from an interior passage, paused after he latched the door against the stiff wind, and turned his head as he searched for something. That “something” must have been me because he headed right at me, nearly running in his determination to speak. His smile was the first I’d seen.

“Princess, have you heard?”

“Heard?”

He pointed. My eyes automatically followed his finger. It wasn’t what I saw, but what I didn’t. There was no line of dark clouds and flashing lightning along the horizon. Quickly, I oriented myself to be sure I faced south.

“The storm. It suddenly went away. One minute it was there, and the next it was gone. We’ve already turned south.”

“The captain sent you to tell me that?”

“He did.”

“Offer my thanks and keep me informed. Please request the captain to inform me of any changes as we sail to Vin.” I held his eyes as I talked, excited as a puppy with a new toy. My manner was not unpleasant, but the purser knew what I wanted. I hadn’t asked so much as informed the purser of what my demands were and what I expected.

My point being, I didn’t have to be rude to be decisive. However, I did need to impress upon people the fact that they needed to heed my wishes as if they were direct orders. I turned back to the rail. Now I had to look past the bow of the ship to see what lay south, as it should be.

Kendra’s name leaped into my mind. There had been rumors while we traveled together, rumors about her that I couldn’t believe. When I’d gone to Crestfallen for help, even more rumors emerged. Some were authenticated, and still hard to believe. The most disturbing was that she had somehow freed a true-dragon from chains and then used it to destroy the city of Mercia that clung to the side of a cliff between waterfalls. It had always been considered a magical place.

Several mages lived there, almost as many as were in Crestfallen. Wyvern flocked to the air above. Tales were whispered by servants and had been for generations. That is until my personal servant, and best friend visited Mercia and destroyed it, by using a dragon, the tales said. Kendra had somehow acquired a true-dragon? A creature she didn’t know existed weeks ago?

While those stories were unbelievable, other rumors told of her killing people who were trying to kill my father and overthrow the crown. They even had a double to replace the king.

A dragon had landed on their building in the Port of Mercia and smashed the building to splinters, along with the occupants. No other buildings were destroyed at the port, just the one. They were the sort of wild rumors usually heard on dark nights that were told by older children to scare or impress the younger ones. The problem was, they seemed to be true.

My servant and best friend destroyed a city with her pet dragon.

There was a whispered name of a Dragon Queen that was rumored to be Kendra, but more recently that name had become Dragon Tamer, and that name-change better fit Kendra. She didn’t wish to be queen, nor to step on my toes or our relationship. That she somehow told a dragon what to do should have been harder to believe—but was not.

I’d known Kendra most of my life and had always believed she would be a better princess than me. Part of me believed she was a lost princess from Kondor, so when the opportunity to travel there presented itself, I’d done my best to make sure she went with me.

The wind blew my hair back, and the air seemed to smell different, better somehow. I watched the horizon and enjoyed the scent and sounds of the sea.

I suddenly realized Will was at my side.

“Princess?” He said softly.

“I’ve been considering what you told me to do and how to act.”

“You’ve done more than consider, from what I hear.”

I paused, fearful at the answer to the next question. “Do you hear I’m a bitch?”

“No. But, I’ve heard you are someone to be reckoned with, which is far better.”

“I don’t know if I can do this.”

When no response came, I turned to ask him why. Will had disappeared again. So fast and so completely, I wondered again if he was a mage or magician. The last statement lingered on my mind. I waited on the deck for a long time, thinking about it. Then I headed for my cabin and the meeting with my staff where they were to bring me a revised treaty—one I wouldn’t approve.