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They walked into the throne room where Queen Gisla was holding court. They did not wait to be announced. Aein forgot the power that the queen commanded. Though she traded her black armor for a brocade gown of blue, and her thick hair was braided like a wreath rather than fitted beneath a helmet, Queen Gisla was still a warrior. She was taller than any man in the room. Her strong, muscular body said without words that she could fight any one of them and win.
Queen Gisla was busy examining a scroll when they entered. She glanced up, her shocking blue eyes flashing with irritation. But she took one look at Finn, Aein, and Lars, and fell into a dead faint.
The guards rushed to her side, fanning her and wetting her brow. Finn raced forward and Aein almost called him back, frightened he may not have wrested himself under control. But he bounced all over the queen like an excited puppy, licking her face and squirming his body against her side. Queen Gisla came around, as if she couldn't believe it.
"Finn?" she whispered, holding his black furred face in her dark, brown hands.
Aein smacked Lars on the shoulder, remembering their courtly manners and that they should be kneeling. It had been awhile. They both fell to the ground, as if pretending they hadn't forgotten.
The noise caused Queen Gisla to pull herself away from her commander and acknowledge them. She gasped as if she was just as happy to see them as Finn. "You survived! All of you! You are alive! The road to the swamp..."
Aein gave her a warning glance and Queen Gisla caught its meaning. She turned to her court. "Remove yourselves."
They helped Queen Gisla back to standing and then scurried out of the room. Finn wouldn't leave her side and she left her hand resting on his shaggy head.
"Let us go where the walls don't have ears." She motioned for Aein and Lars to follow her.
They walked into the private petition room. It was the same room where Queen Gisla originally gave them their orders. Aein could not help but think about everything that had happened since the last time they had been there. Queen Gisla wanted to send her and Lars into the swamp alone, and Finn had insisted he go with them. None of them would be alive if it hadn't been for this decision.
New tapestries hung on the walls and deep carpets lined the floor to muffle the sound. Queen Gisla stepped on to the dais and sat upon her throne. It was so foreign, Aein thought. The manners. The pomp. She had to keep reminding herself what it meant to be a loyal subject to the queen.
"Tell me what has happened," the queen commanded.
And so they did. Aein and Lars told of the swamp and the betrayal by Lord Arnkell, the road which he had set on fire, of their journey back to the Haidra lands and their time across the border. They told her of King Vadim and the shifter kingdom and how, as soon as he healed, he would be coming to their aid. And lastly, they told her of Finn's power.
"He can shift in the sun?" asked Queen Gisla, her eyes at once full of love and hope.
"Not for long," cautioned Aein. "It causes him to revert back to the wild if he does it too long, but he can."
Queen Gisla smiled down at her old friend. "Well, it is a start."
"And what has happened while we were gone?" asked Aein.
Queen Gisla let out a frustrated sigh and clenched her fist. "We have many enemies here. Enemies who would rather fall under Lord Arnkell's rule than follow a bewitched ruler. The traitors began slaughtering our wolves."
"How?" asked Aein, horrified. Finn whined and Lars looked as if he might be sick.
"Those are our old kinsmen..." Lars whispered. "Our friends..."
"They killed them while they were human," Queen Gisla said. "We would find a corpse here. A corpse there. One strangled. One stabbed. There was never any pattern. Never any repeats. It was impossible to guess when the murderer might strike next. Even their scent was masked, covered by wolfsbane."
Aein let out a deep breath. "We shall have to be extra vigilant."
"The wolves blame me for allowing our pack to be killed," confessed Queen Gisla, her head bowing and her hands going limp.
"There is nothing you could have done," replied Aein, hating to see that Queen Gisla blamed herself. "There is nothing any of us could have done."
"They are scared," she replied.
"We have two paths of hope," Aein said. She turned to Finn. "They can choose to learn how to shift on command or..." she then turned to Lars. "We have some berries. We can end it all right now."
In shock, Queen Gisla looked at Lars. "Are you free from the shift?" she asked, as if fearful his answer might not be what she wanted to hear.
He nodded. "Indeed, I am. I ate several of the berries and am now only a man. We brought you a supply."
Queen Gisla collapsed back in her throne. Her jaw hung slack. "It can all be over now?"
But Finn looked up at her and gave a warning growl.
"There is an issue..." said Aein, stepping forward. She hated to interrupt this moment of salvation for the queen, but they had fought their way through the entire swamp to warn her of the coming danger, and that was more important.
"And what is that?"
"Because Lord Arnkell left the border unguarded, the swamp is expanding. It is why the monsters have come and attacked your lands and your castle. Your border is protected. But they are coming up from the Arnkell lands and they will keep coming from the south road until his border is protected again." Aein cleared her throat. She didn't want what she said next to be a statement on either of the choices Finn or Lars had made. "We... I would caution... sometimes the best way to fight an almost immortal foe is if you are almost immortal yourself."
"But you do have the berries?" Queen Gisla asked as if not hearing what Aein had said.
"Yes," responded Aein.
"Give them to me now."
Lars held out the small, insignificant-looking sack. Respectfully, cupping the back of the queen's hand in his palm, he gave them to Queen Gisla.
Aein felt a strange rise of anger. It should not have mattered who delivered the berries, but she had carried them safe all the way through the swamp. Lars had taken them from her saddlebag without asking, as if he didn't trust Aein to pass them along. And then he had taken the moment. He didn't even acknowledge Aein and Finn as he presented them to the queen. They had all fought to bring them back. It shouldn't matter, Aein repeated to herself in her thoughts. But it did.
Queen Gisla did not seem to care who handed her the berries, though. She clasped the bag and closed her eyes in thanks to the gods. "I shall ensure these are locked away safely in my treasure room." She gazed down. "After all, I may not be here long enough to fight those monsters from the swamp."
"Your majesty?" asked Lars with concern.
"Lord Arnkell's army is on the march," confessed Queen Gisla, motioning back towards the formal petition room. "Those papers I was reviewing when you came in were from a spy. We have a few days, maybe a week before he arrives. We shall not be able to withstand another assault."
"How large an army does he command?" asked Aein.
"I do not know. The note was smuggled out unfinished and I have not heard more from the woman who sent it. I assume she is dead. If Lord Arnkell didn't kill her, most likely something loose from the swamp did." Her finger tapped the wood armrest of her throne. "You say more monsters are coming?" stated Queen Gisla.
"Indeed, they are, your highness," replied Aein. "Without a doubt, they are."
"We had an ogre attack." Queen Gisla tilted back her head and stared at the ceiling. She closed her eyes as if she was exhausted. "And some wild werewolves. We learned the werewolves have to be stabbed through the heart with silver. Nothing else stops them and we lost so many good men and women learning this lesson. Even though we know how to defeat them, it struck fear into every man, woman, and child in my kingdom, which is a greater danger than anything that can be sent from the Arnkell land. Lord Arnkell is luring people to his side by declaring that the werewolves are monsters and the only way to salvation is to exterminate them all. Including me. And people, because of their fear, believe him."
Aein realized that if Queen Gisla took the time to learn how to shift at will, she might not be alive long enough to benefit from the fruits of her labors. But if she chose to be fully a human, Aein was not sure the queen would be ready to face what was coming from the swamp. Aein bowed her head. "It is a difficult decision, but we are your servants and shall stand behind you whatever your choice."
Queen Gisla bent down and wrapped her arms around Finn's neck. "Oh, it is so good to see you my friend." She then looked at Lars, thoughtfully. "I would rather it not be known that Lars is free from the spell. Others will wonder why I have not partaken of the cure immediately. They will believe it is a sign that I either wish to stay bewitched or I cannot be cured."
Aein glanced at Lars trying to figure out a solution. "We could have him stay out of sight when the sun goes down. If anyone sees him, we can tell them he learned how to shift like Finn."
Lars looked at her. "But that's not true at all."
"It is enough truth," she replied, having no better suggestion. "You did not learn how to control the shift like Finn learned it. But you did learn how to stop it. You ate three berries."
"I don't know..."
But Queen Gisla silenced them. "So it shall be. There is an army on the march which I just learned about and I must attend to it. We shall not let them know that the berries are here. We shall wait until the time is right."
Aein bowed her head in acceptance and Lars did, too. They didn't have time to think on it anymore because Queen Gisla said with finality, "You are dismissed."
Aein and Lars backed away and Finn followed.
Lars turned to Aein. "I hope she has not made a grave mistake."