Ashley considered. That was the best she would get. When Xan figured out how to beat King Barius, the queen and general would see the brilliance and go along with it.
“This talk assumes we’ve allied ourselves with the wizard,” the queen said. “That is far from a settled matter. A binding agreement must be crafted.”
Perfect. Ashley didn’t let her internal grin touch her face, not even her eyes. Time to manipulate the situation to her benefit.
“The wizard Gryphon showed he’s willing to compromise,” Ashley said, “but I’m positive there are a few issues he’ll not yield on, like his ability to recruit mages from the whole of the three kingdoms, a guarantee of the humane treatment of mages controlled by other monarchs, and the sovereignty of Eye Lake.”
“Whose side are you on, child—his or ours?” the queen said.
“Believe me, I have much experience with his stubbornness,” Ashley said. “Neither side benefits if you draft an agreement he has no chance of signing.”
And after he had his alliance, she’d make sure he knew exactly who to thank.
“I guess recruitment must be allowed … as long as we’re building a superior force.” Queen Anna eyed the general.
“Absolutely,” he said. “We have far greater resources. We’ll clear even the smallest flyspeck villages of potentials before he can get to them.”
One of the other advisors, a man who reminded Ashley of her father’s clerk, Ricly, pulled a huge stack of papers from a satchel. “There is precedent. This treaty submitted by Truna eight years ago stipulates that Duke Whiteknapp could recruit volunteers from Loronia and goes into quite some detail about the rules under which that process was to be carried out and, of course, the remuneration to be paid.”
The group went on for hours talking about the specifics. Xan was to be given permission to move through Bermau and recruit mages, paying the queen five gold per mage found. Guaranteeing humane treatment was a much easier topic, and after a half hour of discussion, they readied a statement to that effect.
“What about the sovereignty issue?” Ashley said.
“That, I’m afraid, is the deal breaker.” The queen’s tone was sharp. “He’ll just have to sign without it.”
“Regretfully,” Ashley said, “I don’t think he will.”
“Then all this has been a waste of time. What’s the point of saving Bermau from Dastanar only to have it fall into civil war? If I grant a commoner sovereign rule of Eye Lake, that’s exactly what will happen as soon as the dukes find out.”
Ashley smiled. “I have the perfect solution….”
92.
Xan paced around the camp.
Again.
He’d been doing a lot of that since he’d started dealing with the queen, probably because she took every opportunity to have him wait before summoning him. Best not to let her little games bother him. She could have her fun.
As hard as he tried to do just that, though, he failed.
Miserably.
As he passed a tent near the outskirts of the encampment, Dylan poked his head out. “Hey, man.”
“Hey.”
Dylan cleared his throat. “I … uh … got engaged.”
“Wow, that’s … big. Really big. Congratulations. Good luck to you. I hope the two of you are happy as can be. I mean it. You deserve it.” Xan had always thought Dylan would be the best of the three of them at love.
“That’s the thing,” Dylan said. “I kind of promised Mari I’d find a way to make it through this battle alive, but I’m not seeing how I have any chance of doing that.”
“If Barius doesn’t bring all his mages, it’s possible.”
“But if he does?”
Xan exhaled. “I keep thinking and hoping some brilliant idea will occur to me, but it hasn’t yet.” He smiled. “Don’t worry, though. I’ll come up with something. I always do, right?”
What he needed most was more focus. Like the kind the seeds gave him. The bush at Goldstream had been destroyed, but surely he could find a source somewhere. He had plenty of money and …
No! That was his addiction talking. Sure, he’d devise a plan all right, a reckless disaster that would get everyone killed. He had to resist.
“I suppose,” Dylan said. “But …”
“What?”
Dylan’s hands went to the neck of his tunic before he dropped them back to his side. “I don’t get why we’re fighting.”
“Are you serious?” Xan said. “Have you heard Brant’s stories about what it’s like for mages in Dastanar? I don’t know about you, but I have no desire to be a slave. I want freedom for you. For myself. For all mages. A chance to live in peace.”
“I meant why are we fighting here?” Dylan said. “When I’m negotiating a contract, I don’t let the other merchant decide where we meet or even the paper, pen, and ink we use. You’re letting King Barius dictate literally everything.”
Xan pressed his lips into a thin line. “What choice do I have? I can’t let them take Asherton, and Ashley is convinced her father won’t run no matter how fruitless it is for him to stay.”
Dylan raised his eyebrows as if to say “And?”
“Don’t you understand?” Xan said. “If your dad were about to be killed, I’d risk just about anything to save him, and I feel the same about her that I do about you and Brant.”
“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?”
Xan paused. “I don’t know, man. Probably me. Friends, loyalty … that’s important stuff. I’d be dead if you and Brant and Lainey hadn’t put your own lives on the line. Can I do any less for Ashley?”
His life, yes, but what about the people who followed him?
“But is that the right thing to do? The best decision or even a good decision?” Xan said. “I have no idea. I’m never sure about blasted anything anymore. The only way I can see out of this mess is to unite Bermau against Dastanar and somehow, some way overcome their numerical superiority.”
Dylan frowned. “At least you’re not proceeding down the wrong path blindly, which, truthfully, I was hoping you were doing.”
“Why?”
“Because then maybe I could justify leaving. Since someone in charge is actually considering our best moves, though …”
“Hey,” Xan said. “I have to do this, but you don’t. Take Marisol and leave.”
Dylan let out a big sigh. “What kind of life would either she or I have under King Barius? If I can help stop him … Besides, you wouldn’t desert me, and I won’t desert you and Brant. Whatever happens, I’m here.”
* * *
Xan’s heart pounded as he stepped into the queen’s tent.
He had no idea what she would decide about the alliance, and even if she agreed to all his demands, he still didn’t know how to defeat Dastanar. On the dais, Tasia stood next to Ashley, not a good sign. Ashley had probably invited her to soothe him if he got mad again, which meant there would be reason for him to get mad.
When the queen laid out her terms, however, he was pleasantly surprised. They were quite fair, granting access for recruiting in Bermau and a promise to push for the same in Kaicia. She also read a statement guaranteeing how mages would be treated in the kingdom. He winced at some of the restrictions but understood the need from her point of view.
She paused at the end of that reading and asked Xan if he took any exceptions.
“I want Goldstream.”
She looked over to a scrawny older man with thick glasses.
“It’s a blighted town between Asherton and Ruferburg,” the man said. “There’s a gold mine, but it isn’t usable due to the blight.”
“That’s the one,” Xan said. “I want it and permission to move to and from it without tariffs.”
“You’ve discovered a way to use it despite the blight?” the queen said.
Xan just shrugged, even though the answer was obvious.
“I can give you limited access for half of what you pull from it,” the queen said.
“That’s quite generous considering I could simply find my own blighter.”
“And I could mine the place dry in a few days if I had to,” Xan said. “Of course, it would mean using my resources now, resources more properly used to keep Dastanar from taking large portions of Bermau.”
They went back and forth for a while before settling on Xan paying a ten percent tariff on all gold extracted. Further negotiations regarding trade and recruitment went on for hours.
“This all sounds good,” Xan said, “But I can’t help but notice we haven’t talked about one of the most important issues.”
“You’re quite right,” the queen said. “As soon as we resolve that, we can finalize the treaty.”
Finally. He was so ready for the whole thing to be over. “Great. Recognize Eye Lake as its own land with me as the sovereign ruler, and we’ve got a deal.”
Ashley smiled at him, and Xan got the distinct feeling he would not like whatever came next.
“Understand that I’m in a difficult position. My dukes will never tolerate a commoner as my equal,” the queen said. “I will raise you to nobility, of course, as a part of the treaty process, but that’s not enough.”
Xan narrowed his eyes. He definitely wouldn’t like the condition she was about to impose. “Go on.”
The queen pursed her lips. “To grant you the freedom you want, you must be tied to us,” the queen said, “and a wife is the traditional way. I had an arranged marriage to my dearly departed husband, and it worked out well for both of us.”
Wait … Was she saying he had to marry a noble?
Xan would have preferred his legitimacy not be the result of anything other than being a wizard. The nobles could always claim they gave him his power, which he didn’t like at all. And would all future leaders of his kingdom have to marry a noble as well? Or be nobles themselves?
He was tired of the entire system, and Eye Lake gave him the opportunity to establish something new, something in which the station of one’s birth played no role in what they could achieve. Some type of meritocracy, perhaps.
But to have any future for his people and his kingdom, he needed an alliance with the queen, and her requirement wasn’t too onerous. Tasia had been raised to nobility as Duke Asher’s niece, and Xan had planned on marrying her eventually, anyway.
He’d hoped to do it right. Court her. Figure out the most romantic way possible to ask for her hand.
If the queen insisted, though …
Hopefully, his second proposal would be better received than his first.
“Fine,” he told the queen.
Xan walked to the just below where Tasia stood on the dais and dropped to his knee. “Lady Tasia, I’d hoped to give this more consideration. To have a wonderful meal, to arrange a show, something truly special. I fear, though, that events force my hand. Know this, however—I do this because I want it, not because the queen or anyone else demands it of me. I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you do me the glorious honor of wedding me?”
Tears dripped down Tasia’s cheek. He’d never seen her so happy.
“Oh, Xan—”
“Whatever are you doing?” the queen said.
“You said I had to marry nobility,” Xan said, “so I’m proposing to a noble.”
Ashley whispered in the queen’s ear.
The queen nodded. “I see, but I’m sorry. That girl simply won’t do.”
“What? Why not?”
The queen eyed Tasia. “That girl is little more than a peasant herself. Her parents had no noble blood. She was titled only because her aunt married Duke Asher. That’s just not enough.”
“You’re saying I can’t marry Tasia?”
“Don’t worry,” the queen said. “We’ve determined a suitable match. You shall marry Lady Ashley.”
93.
Xan clenched and unclenched his fists.
Not burning a hole in the queen’s smug face took all his willpower. And Ashley! She looked like she’d swallowed a canary.
He snarled at her. The forced marriage was her doing.
“No!” Xan said. “Not again. Simply no!”
“Wizard, consider your actions,” the queen said. “It is a time-honored tradition and a reasonable request. There will be no alliance without this marriage.”
“Tradition or not, reasonable or not, the condition is intolerable,” Xan said. “My final answer is no.”
The queen glared at him. “Then the alliance is off.”
“So be it,” Xan said. “I’ll gather my forces and leave—”
Tasia stepped forward. “Xan, please reconsider. The alliance is bigger than us.”
“You don’t want to marry me?” He felt like he’d been stabbed.
“Of course I do!” Tasia’s voice cracked. “I can’t tell you how much I do, more than anything else I’ve ever wanted, but I want more to do what is right for everyone, not just what’s selfish for us.”
Xan looked at her, fighting the fire that raged within him. “The right thing is for me to marry the person I love. The wrong thing is forcing someone to marry someone for your own purposes.” He glared at the queen. “The wrong thing is manipulating a situation to get what you want at the expense of everyone else.” He glared at Ashley.
“Xan,” Tasia said, “I’m sorry. I …”
“I will not be told who to marry, not even by you.”
Tasia inhaled sharply, tears still streaking down her face. “You’re correct. Who you marry is for you to decide, and I certainly have no right to determine that for you. Who I marry, however, is for me to decide, and I will not be the one responsible for destroying this alliance, for dooming Uncle Auggie and all the good people of Asherton. Hear this well, Alexander Conley, whoever you decide to marry, it won’t be me.”
If an arrow had struck his heart at that moment, the pain would have been less. He couldn’t breathe.
So close. He’d been so close to getting everything he wanted. The alliance. Means to fight Dastanar and hopefully gain freedom for himself and all mages.
Tasia.
Everything.
And to have it snatched away at the last instant. Everything was gone.
He stormed out.
94.
Ashley smiled.
Xan had been so angry as he’d stormed from the room. So cute. Like a toddler throwing a tantrum.
Well, he had every right to be upset. She’d won. He’d lost. No one, least of all a man, liked to lose, but he’d come to his senses once she made him understand what marriage to her meant.
Tasia moved to chase after him, but Ashley grabbed her by the shoulder.
“No, I’ll go,” Ashley said. “After all, he is to be my husband.”
Okay, so maybe she shouldn’t have rubbed it in. Her daddy always taught her to be a gracious winner, but gloating felt so good! The little twit had thought she could win in a contest involving a man?
Ashley chuckled. She was of noble blood and the most famous beauty in Bermau. Tasia was barely more than a commoner and really not that pretty.
Xan made it to his tent before Ashley could catch him. She called to him, but he didn’t stop, instead pushing through the flaps. When she tried to follow, his guards stopped her.
“You imbeciles!” she yelled. “Don’t you know who I am?”
Neither of the two brutes moved.
“I’m the niskma of Vierna.” She stamped her foot. “Soon, I’ll be married to the lord wizard Gryphon. Move aside, or I’ll have you beheaded.”
“Let her in, please,” Xan called.
His voice sounded sad. Resigned.
Ashley plastered a smile across her face as she entered. “That’s three times you’ve rejected me.”
“Yes, and I wish you wouldn’t force me to do it again.”
“Come on, Xan. Is the prospect of marrying me so bad you’d risk the lives of your people? Give up on the alliance?”
“Yes! It is!”
“You’re
just saying that because I outplayed you,” she said. “Don’t be such a sore loser.”
“Why can you not understand that this is not a game? Get this through your head—I will not marry you. Ever. For any reason. No matter what you do.”
“You don’t mean that.”
He exhaled sharply, exasperated. “Please reconsider your actions. You have more to lose than anyone, and we all have a lot on the line.”
“You think this is all my doing, but it’s not. The queen will never accept anything less than you marrying a noble that the dukes know and respect. Her political situation is too precarious for her to do otherwise.”
“Then I guess we’re doomed.”
“Xan, think about what you’re giving up, about what your refusal to marry me means for your people. I know we’ve had our difficulties, but I promise I’ll change. I’ll become the girl you want me to be. In time, you’ll forget about Tasia.”
“You still don’t get it. I will never forget her, and there’s nothing you can do that will make a difference. Even if you always acted as selfless and wonderful as Tasia, I still would not love you.”
Ashley opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.
“I’m serious, Ashley. Change the queen’s mind on this, or I swear to you that one of these two things will happen—either she retracts the condition of marriage or, in the morning, I’m taking my mages and leaving.”
Clearly, Xan was not the boy who was so enamored with her that he’d risked his life and the lives of his friends to rescue her from that manor. What if he really wouldn’t marry her? What if he did what he’d just threatened? His leaving would be disastrous.
“You wouldn’t,” she said.
Her control over men was absolute. He’d come around. Surely.
“I absolutely would.”
They stared at each other for a while, eyes locked on one another’s. She looked away first, telling herself she didn’t care about such petty little contests.
“Please leave my tent. I have a lot of packing to do and preparations to make.” He turned from her to focus his attention on gathering papers on his desk.
Gryphon (Rise of the Mages Book 2) Page 49