Her Majesty, Queen Ilara Hipolita Särkkä of Severia, has patience, but it is running out. She is looking to receive word of your acceptance of her as true monarch of Forcadel within the next month. This will be our final letter on this matter.
Yours,
Luisa Loäät
"This is our final letter on this matter?" I said, shaking my head. "What in the Mother's name is she on about?"
"I don't know, but it was concerning enough for me to leave two days after it arrived and find out for myself what was going on down here," Ariadna said. "I offered my help to Brynna months ago, and so far, I haven't seen any significant progress. My people are suffering, and I'm getting pressure to acquiesce to Ilara's demands. Especially after that."
Ariadna glanced behind me at the open door, and Elisha's empty desk. I'd sent her off to the barracks to check for any messages so I could speak with my siblings in peace. She'd taken to hovering around the open door and eavesdropping.
"What is your plan, dear sister?" she asked.
"Felix will be bringing the Kulkan forces via the ocean from here," I pointed to Neveri on the map then moved to Skorsa and the Ash river. "And we'll be joining him, just as soon as we can get past the blockade." I tapped the black mark where I'd noted the heavy Severian presence. "I just wish I knew why Ilara was so hell-bent on this particular spot."
"Well, I say we just lob a flaming bag of ond and see what happens," Luard said. "We certainly brought enough to take out Ilara's forces."
That, I couldn't disagree with. Two days after Ariadna's ships arrived, another contingent of very small boats, manned by three soldiers each, arrived carrying mounds of ond. Their journey had been much slower, as they had to pull ashore at night. The Niemenian ore was so explosive that they risked certain death if they so much as had a spark of electricity from their clothes.
"I want to use ond as a last resort," I said.
"But you may be at that point," Ariadna said. "You've been in Skorsa for weeks now and there's been no progress. Surely, by now, Felix has made his move out of Neveri. He can't take Forcadel on his own."
"Brynna asked me to make decisions on her behalf," I said. "That doesn't mean we turn around and start blowing things up just because she's not here."
"Whatever we do needs to ensure victory," Luard said. "I understand you want to keep things civil, but I don't know if that's going to be possible. Not if they're shooting arrows at us before we can even get a word out."
Our conversation was cut short by Elisha's telltale stomping arriving in my office. She didn't bother to knock as she burst through the door, her cheeks ruddy from the cold. Her chest heaved from the effort of running across town, but her eyes were bright with mischief and perhaps something else.
"You got a letter," she said with a smile.
"Bring it here," I said, waving her in. I took a moment to examine it, finding the seal intact and the handwriting familiar. The letter inside was short and although it lacked the answer to my question, I had no doubts it was from Felix:
Our plan has been set in motion. Our western friend hasn't been playing nice, so we will take what was promised by force. We should be home within the next week. I will make contact with our local friends and ensure a warm welcome for you.
All my love,
Phoenix
"This was sent a week ago," I said with a frown. "He's already in Forcadel by now."
"Then we need to get ourselves there, too," Luard said. "Brynna surely doesn't have much time to waste. Felix doesn't, either. He's counting on us to bring half the forces necessary to conquer Forcadel. And we haven't even begun to think about how we'll get past Forcadel's defenses."
The pressure in my chest was growing stronger, especially as I had no other ideas. "We should attempt something else before we move to drastic measures. There must be a way we can get through without having to destroy everyone."
"Then what about my idea?" Elisha asked.
"Which is…?" Ariadna asked, a light smile teasing the corners of her mouth.
"We have this stuff called hyblatha and it makes people hallucinate," she said. "So I say we get a bunch of it and some arrows and start firing into the forest until they all drop."
Ariadna looked at me expectantly. "You haven't tried this yet?"
"In the first place, we don't have any clue how to get this powder," I said.
"I do!" Elisha said, taking a step forward. "You get it from Nestoris."
I sighed, already knowing the answer to my question. "Do you know of any in this city, Elisha?"
"No, but—"
"Then you're on a mission to find a Nestori in this city and rustle up some hyblatha," I said. "But do not leave the city limits. Am I clear?"
She grinned and ran from the room. Once the door slammed behind her, I shook my head in annoyance. "Hopefully, that will keep her busy for a while."
"And you think she'll stay in the city limits?" Luard asked.
"She'd better."
"Her idea isn't half-bad," Luard said. "I've seen that powder in action. It's potent. And there's some minty antidote called tinneum, too, so we wouldn't succumb."
"We have no Nestoris here," I said. "Unless there's some lurking to the north in Niemen, it's not a road we need to go down."
Luard made a noise and looked to Ariadna, who shrugged. I rose and walked to the window, staring out across the bay, deep in thought. "How long ago did you receive that letter from Ilara?"
"Three days before I departed."
"She's left the door open for a truce," I began slowly. "I wonder if her soldiers would have a different reaction if a contingent of Niemenian royal soldiers arrived with a letter from their queen?"
"And what would this letter say?" Ariadna said.
"Perhaps that you're ready to discuss a truce, in exchange for letting a few ships past the border," I said. "Or perhaps something else. The point wouldn't be the letter, it would be that we could get Ivan and Luard's guards close enough to see what we're dealing with. And at that point, we can look at different options."
"Didn't work," Ivan said, emerging from the forest.
"Not even a little," Asdis said, being carried by Hagan and Nils. Her shoulder was red and bloody from an arrow wound. When I rushed over to her, she waved me off. "I'm fine, just need to bandage it up."
"What happened?" Luard asked.
"We got within thirty feet of the border and the arrows started," Nils said. "Couldn't even get a word in. They aren't interested in talking. Just shooting."
"Did you tell them you were there on my behalf?" Ariadna said, bending down to help Asdis.
"Several times," Ivan said. "Screamed it, actually. They just started firing."
"I think it's time we consider drastic measures," Luard said. "I don't like it any more than you do, but it appears we have no choice. Brynna needs our help."
As much as I didn't want to agree, I had to. "I suppose, if we have no other options."
"You have my full support," Ariadna said, rising. "But it will have to be from afar. I must return to Linden in the morning and deal with my own warring factions." She nodded to our brother. "Luard, you have the command of all the soldiers in town to do with as you need."
"Thank you for all your help," I said with a smile. "I hope to bring good news the next time I see you."
She smiled and took my hands. "As do I, dear sister. As do I."
Another long day stretched into the night. After sending Ariadna off, Luard and I spent the afternoon coming up with our plan. My one ace would be Elisha finding a Nestori, but I wasn't confident—especially as she hadn't reappeared at all during the day.
My wife was waiting for me in the study with a small, cold dinner, and she listened intently as I told her the events of the day. When I came to the end, and our new plan to use ond, her tight smile turned into a frown.
"What if there are Forcadelian people manning the gate? What if those people…" She shook her head. "Brynna won't like it."
"We don't have much of a choice, my love," I said. "Ariadna's getting antsy. The soldiers are, too. What good are these forces if we're stuck up here?" I rubbed her shoulders, tight from work and worry. "Sometimes, we've got to make hard decisions."
"Are you making it, or is Luard making it?"
"My queen is telling me to make it."
"Your queen is Brynna," she pointed out. "Or have your loyalties changed?"
"Forgive me," I said with a half-smile. "Slip of the tongue and exhaustion. Being with Luard and Ariadna has been a reminder of what life used to be. I'm Brynna's loyal subject, which is the source of my heartache."
She settled in beside me. "Surely, there has to be another way."
"Elisha had another idea to use Nestori magic, but I have no idea where we'd begin with that. I gave her a small task to search the city for a Nestori." I half-smiled. "Perhaps she got lucky and found one."
"You can ask her in the morning. All the children have gone to bed." She smiled, a little devilishly. "As should we."
With her guiding me, as well as the promise of a night alone with her, I left some of my worries in the office. We quietly ascended the stairs, careful not to make too much noise and wake the children. She paused on the top of the landing and pointed to the bedrooms. I waited as she cracked open each door and peered inside. As she did, my heart warmed at how much she'd grown to care for these littles, and—
"Elisha isn't in her room," Beata's voice was loud and panicked.
"What?" I said, rushing over. Beata walked around the room with the candle, poking at the empty bed and opening the closets.
She turned back to me, her eyes wide with fear. "You told her to find a Nestori."
"I also told her to stay in the city," I said, my panic rising. "Very clearly."
One of the other doors opened and Paca appeared, rubbing her eyes sleepily. Beata softened immediately. "I'm sorry I woke you up, sweetheart. Go back to bed."
She nodded and closed her door, but I honestly wished she would've stayed to protect me from Beata's ire.
"I don't understand why you're looking at me like that," I said. "I didn't tell her to leave the city."
"And you've been driving her away since she arrived here," Beata said. "Telling her what she can't do instead of what she can."
My eyes widened. "But you've been right there with me, in case you forgot. We agreed to protect the children from all this."
"How is Elisha finding a Nestori protecting her?" Beata asked. "You'd better get every available soldier looking for her. And don't even think about coming to my bed until Elisha is back in hers."
She marched into our bedroom and slammed the door.