by Kelly Carr
Nevertheless, when he offered her a hand to lead her into a dance, she accepted it. They exchanged a few pleasantries, but Liana was afraid to waste the opportunity of talking with the king of Karzay. As soon as possible, she once again launched into a summary of the Trevi's difficulties. King Amir's eyes never left Liana’s face, but his own expression was too guarded for her to make out anything of his reaction to her tale. She imagined he must make a shrewd and wily king, definitely not one to be taken lightly. When she had finished her explanation, he gave her nearly the same answer as King Haku had, but with one addition.
“If your allegations about the kingdom of Lezar prove false, but your people still desire a new place to live, my kingdom is always open to them. Perhaps you could come and visit me there. My wife and children would be glad to hear stories about magic, as would I,” he said. The music faded, and King Amir let her go, kissing her hand politely before moving off into the crowd.
Liana shivered, relieved to be out from under the man’s penetrating gaze, and gladly moved on to find Senator Elara of Bethen. She turned out to be an elderly woman who had no inclination to dance, but seemed pleased to sit and talk with Liana. She listened and nodded politely, but the glazed expression on her face told Liana clearly enough that this woman was no more receptive to her news than any of the kings had been. She clenched her jaw in irritation as she was told yet again that the king of Lezar would arrive soon and she should wait and talk with him personally.
“Go and enjoy the ball, my dear,” the senator said, patting Liana’s hand kindly. “You’re young. Find a handsome young man to dance with, and forget all this morbid worrying about monsters and war.”
Liana gave a resigned sigh and thanked the senator for her time. Walking out into the empty hallway, she took a few breaths, trying to calm herself. She slammed her fist against the wall in frustration.
She felt a hand on her arm and, wiping angry tears from her eyes, turned to find that James had joined her.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
Liana took a trembling breath and shook her head. “My plan is falling apart. I was sure that I’d be able to get some kind of help from one of the kings once they understood the situation, but no one really wants to listen to me. They’ve all been very kind, but none of them will help me until they’ve seen some kind of proof, and I don’t have any. I’ve done everything I can think of, and it’s still not enough!” The stones around them began to tremble with the force of her frustration. Quickly, she took several deep breaths to calm herself.
“You underestimate yourself,” James said. “You may not have won armies here tonight, but over the past few weeks, you’ve earned the respect and loyalty of many of my people. Most of them are prepared to follow you into battle if you ask it of them.”
“Do I really have any right to ask them to put their lives in danger for my cause?” Liana said wearily.
“You have no right to demand it, but every right to ask,” James said. “Now come; clearly you’ve had enough politics for one evening. I insist that you come back and dance with me. It'll cheer you up.”
With that, he took her hand and led her back into the ballroom. He pulled her into the dance without missing a step, and for a time, Liana let herself forget her troubles. She enjoyed James’ company and the sight of her friends dancing nearby with smiles on their faces. Even Elias had been claimed by a tall, striking woman whose unsubtle advances seemed to be making him increasingly uncomfortable.
At last, however, James allowed the topic of conversation to drift back to Liana’s current situation.
“What will you do now?” he asked quietly, as though reluctant to hear the answer.
Liana sighed. “I’ve failed in my goal of obtaining military assistance. Tomorrow I must return to my people and try to devise another way of saving them. I’ll be sorry to leave. Despite the circumstances, these past few months have been the most exciting and liberating experience of my life.”
“How so?” James asked, spinning her in a circle and catching her neatly.
“I have the freedom to be myself and act as I choose here. I have no such freedom among the Trevi. There are many expectations I have to live up to. Here in Torvain, I have had a brief opportunity to live a life that is, at least to some degree, of my own choosing. It’s hard to give that up.”
James nodded sympathetically. “I know what you mean. To be the heir to a position of leadership from birth is to never have the freedom to simply be yourself or do what you want. Sometimes I’m jealous of my sister. She can get away with doing many things I can’t even dream of.”
Liana tilted her head thoughtfully. “And if you could be who you wanted to be and do what you wanted to do, what would that be?”
James was about to answer when a voice was raised above the music, announcing a new arrival. Many people turned in surprise to see who it was. It had been over an hour since the last guest was announced.
“Queen Katya of Lezar,” the voice repeated.
There were exclamations of surprise from several people and from across the room, Liana caught the eyes of King Haku and Senator Elara.
The crowd parted to allow the new arrival access to the thrones at the far end of the room. As Katya strode forward, Liana found herself with her first clear view of her enemy.
The woman appeared to be eighteen or nineteen years old. She was short and slender with pale skin and long glossy jet black hair.
She wore a gown of white silk, streaked with thick black lines at odd angles as though an evil spider had wrapped her in its web. Her throat, arms, and ears glistened with diamond and onyx jewelry, and on her head was a matching crown.
She walked slowly, back straight and head held high as if all the attention fixed on her was beneath her notice. Several intimidatingly large guards trailed behind her. As she passed the place where Liana and James stood watching, she turned her head, and their eyes met briefly.
Liana inadvertently gripped James’ arm to keep herself upright as she looked into the piercing blue eyes of the woman responsible for the deaths of her people. A wave of suffocatingly powerful evil magic washed over her. The corners of Queen Katya’s lips lifted upwards in a satisfied smirk before she looked away and continued on to greet the king and queen.
Liana suddenly realized that James was shaking her.
“Liana! Liana! Are you alright?”
Liana collected herself somewhat and shook her head to clear it. “I never imagined evil could be so beautiful,” she said.
James seemed to be about to reply, but at that moment, Queen Katya reached the end of the room and swept a deep curtsy before her hosts.
Chapter twenty-one: james
“Greetings, Your Majesties,” Katya said, her voice a light soprano. “I apologize for being late.”
James gaped at the confidence with which the young woman faced his parents. In previous years she had always stayed in a corner, doing her best not to be noticed by anyone.
The king and queen appeared surprised as well. “And greetings to you, Katya. You look well, but where is your father?” the king asked.
“My father died several months ago in a terrible accident,” Katya replied, pretending to wipe a tear from her eye as startled murmurs swept across the room.
“Why has word not reached me of this?” the king asked angrily.
“None of my messengers have made it through the Erean Forest. They’ve been attacked by the creatures that live there.”
James saw his father’s eyes flicker over to where Liana stood. Liana shook her head slightly in denial.
“I’m very sorry to hear of your loss, my dear,” the Queen said, “but why are you not in mourning? This dress is hardly somber enough to reflect the loss of a parent.”
Katya smiled. “Your Majesty, this is a ball. A dress of plain black is much too dreary for a ball. Tomorrow I will be back in proper mourning attire.”
The queen grumbled slightly about the impropriety of it,
but let it pass.
“I have come, Your Majesties, not just for the ball, but to create an alliance between our kingdoms against the creatures in the forest who threaten my people,” Katya said solemnly.
Beside him, James heard Liana gasp. In an instant, Katya had turned her from a leader seeking military assistance to a monster trying to trick them all. She turned to James, a question in her eyes. He met her gaze and shook his head. Katya might always have kept to herself, but the king and queen knew who she was. Her words, whether or not they were lies, would carry more weight than Liana’s.
“This is a difficult matter,” the king said thoughtfully, “and now is not the time to discuss it. We may speak further on the subject tomorrow.”
Katya inclined her head in polite assent and turned away. Slowly, the music started up again, and people began to talk and dance once more.
James stiffened as Katya turned and began to walk towards him. He felt the floor shudder slightly beneath his feet and reached for Liana’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly. The ground grew still again.
“Hello, James,” Katya said pleasantly. “Would you care to dance?”
James met her gaze and looked deep into her eyes. They blazed with a strange intensity, and he felt unable to look away until Liana tugged on his arm. He looked back at her and saw the fear in her eyes, though her expression was carefully neutral.
“I’m sorry, Katya,” James said, not a hint of discourtesy in his voice. “I’m afraid my dances have already been spoken for this evening. Perhaps another time.” Without waiting for a reply, he wrapped an arm around Liana and allowed the flow of the dance to lead them away. Just before the other dancers blocked her from view, James caught a last glimpse of Katya’s face. Her mask of bland civility cracked for a moment, and a flash of anger crossed her face, anger that made him want to put as much distance between himself and the Queen of Lezar as possible.
Back in the hallway, out of sight of the other guests, Liana began to shake, but James took her firmly by the hand and led her towards the entrance hall.
“No time for that,” he said. “The game has changed. You have to make decisions fast before Katya convinces my father you’re the enemy in all this.”
“You mean you still believe me?” Liana said.
“Of course I do,” James replied. “How could I not, after spending these months watching how you care for the people around you? I believe there is more going on here than we’re aware of, but I don’t believe you’ve ever had any ill intentions towards my people.”
He said nothing else, and Liana let him lead her out of the castle and onto the grounds.
Chapter twenty-two: Elias
Elias had to fight his way through the ballroom as the dancing resumed. He craned his neck to keep sight of Liana, and more importantly, to ensure that Queen Katya was nowhere near. There could be no question now: the young woman had been possessed by the Vorshi. He had seen it in her eyes. Whoever she had been before, now she was nothing but a puppet.
Liana and the prince slipped out into the hall, and Elias hurried to follow. He felt a touch at his elbow and turned to see Valeria and Susan following him, their expressions grim. They caught up with their friends at the edge of the castle grounds. No one spoke, but they all looked at Liana, waiting expectantly.
It was several minutes before she spoke. The silence hung heavily between them with the weight of this new complication. As usual, Valeria was the first to grow impatient. Finally, she voiced the question that was on everyone’s mind.
“What now?”
Liana didn’t answer immediately. She appeared to be thinking very hard. “I don’t know,” she finally admitted. “It would help if I knew what her intentions were in taking such a public stance against me, but short of getting us arrested and putting the people of Torvain off their guard, I don’t see what else it will achieve. Elias, what do you think?” she turned to Elias, and he saw her uncertainty, though he hoped the others had missed it.
“Without knowing what her next move will be, I think all we can do is be on our guard and make preparations for a possible attack,” Elias said.
“Like what?” Susan asked.
They all looked back at Liana. Elias met her eyes and nodded. She knew everything she needed to meet this challenge. Her expression hardened, and she stood taller, straightening her shoulders.
“James, you need to go back to the ball before people start to ask questions about your absence,” she said. “Act normal, but avoid Queen Katya if possible. Susan, you go back as well. I need you to talk to as many influential people as you can. They know you, and they’ll trust your word more than mine. Convince them to help us if you can, but barring that, persuade them to return to their kingdoms immediately, and with as much secrecy as possible. It worries me that Katya has the leaders of all the kingdoms within her reach here.”
“Should I reveal my new powers to them?” Susan asked calmly.
“Only if absolutely necessary. We have the element of surprise on that front. I don’t want to lose it,” Liana said.
“And what if Katya attacks tonight?” the prince asked pointedly. “Where will you be?”
“I need to alert the Trevi in the city. I doubt Katya will try anything tonight, but if I’m wrong, give a signal. I’ll consider any unusual activity at the castle reason to return immediately.”
The prince nodded, and he and the princess turned back the way they had come.
“What can I do to help?” Valeria asked.
“I need you to go to the forest and alert the Trevi. If any are willing to come into the city and be prepared to defend against Queen Katya, bring them back before dawn so that no one sees. The rest need to make sure they are as well concealed as possible. I won’t have Katya attacking them again.”
“I’ll report back to you when I return then,” Valeria said, pecking her cheek and hurrying off to retrieve her glider.
“And me?” Elias said, raising his eyebrows expectantly.
Liana gave him a brief crooked smile. “Would you leave my side even if I told you to?” she asked.
Elias returned the smile and shook his head. “Not tonight.”
“Well then,” Liana replied, turning her back on the castle, “we have things to do.” With that, she strode briskly down towards the city without looking back.
The next few hours were spent in a flurry of activity. The harvest celebration of the townspeople always took place three days after the Autumn Ball at the castle. Even at such a late hour, there were many people out helping set up the festival, so word spread quickly among the Trevi of Torvain that Queen Katya had made an appearance at the ball.
Liana gave instructions that everyone was to remain alert and never go anywhere unarmed. Everyone must know a route out of the city in case of an emergency. Lessons outside the city were suspended until the danger had passed. She did, however, take the opportunity to teach them a few extra defensive moves, just in case.
Elias watched with pride as she organized the Trevi. He kept a careful eye on her, and never strayed far from her side, but he passed the time working on his own project. He selected several of the quieter Trevi and charged them with keeping a close eye on the goings-on around the city. Any unusual events were to be reported back to him immediately.
They were in the center of a tight knot of people at The Chestnut Mare when someone shouldered their way through the crowd, knocking several people over. There were grumbles of irritation.
“Liana, is that you?” a deep, booming voice called.
Elias’ eyebrows rose. He recognized that voice.
Liana leapt to her feet. “Davu!” She pushed her way through the knot of curious townspeople and threw herself into the arms of her friend. “I heard that you were here. I’m so glad you found me!”
“What’s going on?” Davu asked. “I keep hearing people mention Queen Katya. Is she here?”
“Yes, she is,” Elias said grimly.
Liana hurriedly
explained the situation and introduced Davu to the onlookers. The Trevi of Torvain appeared understandably intimidated by the appearance of the Oread. He stood several inches higher than the tallest of them for one thing, and looked like a giant shadow surrounded by the citizens of Torvain. However, his friendly manner quickly won them over. Elias shook his head. He had always marvelled at Davu’s effortless ability to make friends.
Davu instantly joined their efforts to spread the word about Queen Katya and make arrangements in case of an attack. The hours passed quickly, but Elias frequently caught Liana glancing worriedly towards the castle, alert for any sign of trouble. None came.
Finally, as the sky began to lighten, Elias saw Liana sway. He caught her just before she collapsed from exhaustion.
“Come on,” Davu said, lifting her from Elias’ arms with ease. “Time to get you to sleep.”
“There’s still more to do,” Liana protested.
“You’ll be no good to anyone if you don’t get some rest,” Elias said firmly.
Reluctantly, Liana allowed herself to be carried up to the castle. The guards at the gates were students of Liana and Elias and let them pass unchallenged, though they were unable to conceal their surprise at the presence of Davu.
Elias couldn’t suppress a small smile when he opened the door to Liana’s room and found that it was already occupied. Valeria and the princess were asleep on the bed, and the prince was dozing in a nearby chair.
“It seems there are still some things to be discussed before I can get some sleep,” Liana said with a small sigh. She gestured to be let down, and Davu set her gently on her feet. She went over to Valeria and laid a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “How long have you been here?” she asked when the young S’Aidan’s eyes opened.