Upon stepping outside the castle, Selvina found a horse-drawn carriage waiting in the expansive courtyard. The empress's guards mounted two horses as she entered the carriage, beckoning Selvina inside.

Still disturbed by what the empress had said about the destruction and reconstruction of Caer Gobiyth, Selvina's steps were reluctant as she climbed into the carriage and sat across from Rhiannon. She had questions but was uncertain how to ask them.

The carriage lurched forward and set out at a swift and steady pace as Selvina struggled with her unasked questions. If the empress seemed to be wanting to unite all races together, why had she been so cruel to dwarves? Why had she also attacked Sauradia's capital city, in effect killing hundreds, if not thousands, of innocent civilians?

"War is cruel, Selvina," Rhiannon said all of a sudden, once again as if reading her thoughts. "It is simply the way of things."

Selvina gulped and gathered what courage she could grasp. "I...I didn't see an army attacking the dwarves in those tapestries, um, your highness. I just saw a single dragon."

Rhiannon smirked and raised an eyebrow. "How observant of you, Selvina. I am impressed. You are correct, after all. There was no army battling the dwarves. There was indeed only a single dragon." Her expression hardened and she held Selvina's gaze firmly. "There was only me."

Selvina brushed aside the small curtains from the carriage window on her right and gazed outside. They had just left the castle grounds, crossed a wide river which also acted as a moat, and were now moving down a road heading away from the surrounding city. Selvina could see men, women, dwarves, and elves moving about down the avenues and streets of Corbeau, all of them appearing at peace with one another.

"Why did you attack the dwarves?" Selvina asked, keeping her gaze on the window and not daring to look Rhiannon in the eye. She didn't feel comfortable questioning the powerful dragon empress and worried she'd break apart if she looked into her eyes. She needed to be strong...as much as she possibly could.

"Caer Gobiyth was the perfect location," Rhiannon answered calmly and almost proudly. "I had a goal in mind but I needed a safe place to launch it from. The dwarves would never let me simply have it and thus I took it from them. This was several centuries ago, you understand, when I had no kingdom, empire, or even an army. It all began here, in Caer Gobiyth, which eventually became Corbeau.

"Dwarves hold long grudges and some of their kings even write them down in great tomes for future sovereigns to clear whenever it is possible. Knowing this, I had several rebellions and riots to quell before they realized I was here to stay but eventually, after several unruly decades, they accepted my rule of Caer Gobiyth. Dwarves are stubborn and vengeful but one thing they all respect is strength and I had proven mine to them.

"Conquering the human settlements from there was simple enough as most were only villages and small, unwalled cities. The dwarves were reluctant to attack the humans they had peacefully lived alongside for so long thus I did it myself for the most part. After the first few demolished villages, most of the others surrendered without a fight. Humans, for the most part, know when to fight their battles."

"You say that like as if you aren't human," Selvina said, glancing at the empress's ears to make sure. Her long, black hair was brushed behind them but they were clearly rounded and human-like.

Rhiannon glanced sidelong at Selvina, catching her gaze before she could look away. "Well, I am not like most humans." Looking out of the other window, she continued, the carriage rocking slightly as the road grew bumpier and less well-traveled. "The human settlements were more willing to give me their soldiers and with them, as well as some of the dwarves that decided to fight for me in the end, I began my conquest. Elves began pouring in when word was spread that they were welcome within my borders and, long tale shortened, here we are."

The final three words had a double meaning, Selvina discovered, as she gazed out the window and gasped. For miles around were tents of red, black, purple, blue, and green with thousands upon thousands of soldiers gathered all about. Many different types of banners and flags flew about but most of the camp was dominated by the full moon and raven of Noyr. At the fringes of the massive camp were huge, hundred-foot huts that appeared to made of trees all strung up together in a crude conical shape. Gathered around those were giants that made the swamp giants Selvina had encountered seem like children. They resembled gargantuan humans with sloped foreheads, eyebrow ridges, and wide jaws. Out in the fields beyond were scores of horsemen racing about in various formations, switching from tightly grouped to loosely formed and back again. Sometimes they split off in many units of a dozen or so and then joined together as one huge mass. The coordination was impressive, Selvina could not deny.

At the corner of her eye was movement and Selvina looked up, gasping once more as she spied creatures that resembled King Arthur's gryphons but were black-feathered, slimmer, and more of a mix between crow and panther than eagle and lion. A formation of ten soared over the camp, their riders raising longbows in salute at the sight of the empress's carriage.

"Corvugriffs," Rhiannon explained, watching Selvina's reactions. "They hail from west of here and are far smarter than any gryphon and thus, more difficult to train. I've only a handful of them but they have served me quite well."

"Is this your whole army?" Selvina asked, awestruck at the size of it all. This camp was many times larger than King Arthur's which, Selvina believed, was most of Avalon's forces.

"It is a sizeable fraction of it, but not even half of what I can muster. I rule an empire, Selvina, which means several kingdoms of, for instance, Avalon's size."

Selvina gulped. Her quest against The Writer didn't have her play any parts in Faeryum's wars but after having known King Arthur, she deeply worried for him. There didn't seem a way possible for him to win against the Empire of Noyr. Its army was simply much too massive for anyone to defeat.

Finally, after passing into the tented camp for several minutes, the carriage stopped in an open area and both women stepped out. A horn sounded and Selvina gazed about in fascination as every soldier in sight knelt to the ground in respect of their empress. Even a nearby giant lowered himself to one knee, his great bulk casting a shadow over the tents and soldiers around him.

Rhiannon spread her arms wide and bowed slightly. "A good morning to you all, my wonderful warriors. I am only here to supervise so please, carry on with your business. Unity and Pride."

"Unity and Pride," was repeated by every mouth in the vicinity. The sound was so sudden and deafening that Selvina stumbled back in shock. She gazed about, taking in the sights, sounds, and scents of the unbelievably huge camp as everyone resumed their tasks. The giant walked away, its booted feet making the ground rumble with every step.

A man in dark armour approached, the red cape at his back sweeping from side to side. Under one arm he held a crested helm and in the other hand a plank of wood, a quill, and an unrolled scroll. At his waist was a sword with a silver hilt. His hair was long and white, his eyes a shiny amber colour, and his rather long ears pointed like daggers. He stopped before Rhiannon, gave her a bow, and then turned his long, angular face toward Selvina.

"Found yourself a new handmaiden, your highness?" he asked in a soft yet clear voice.

Rhiannon sniffed and smiled lightly, eyeing Selvina. "Not exactly, Legatus." She emphasized the title with a wink and then added, "She is a friend and someone whom I wish to introduce to you, but, preferably, in private."

The man, who was undoubtedly an elf, nodded and gestured to the side, where a large tent stood nearby, guarded by two burly men in heavy armour. Rhiannon's own guards took positions beside them and as Selvina entered the tent she could hear them chatting amiably with one another. Once inside the tent the three figures sat at the table in its center and the man placed his plank of wood and helm aside and flatted the scroll on the tabletop.

"Selvina," Empress Rhiannon said, gesturing to the man sitting across from her, "this is Legatus Accolon, the top commander of Noyr's armies." To Accolon she said, "Accolon, this is Selvina, someone who will aid us with a potentially great threat."

Accolon's eyes met Selvina's and he nodded to her. "I am pleased to meet you, Selvina." He studied her closely, eyeing her shoulders, arms, and entire body, his eyes furrowing deeper with every second.

Clearing his throat, he eyed his empress. "I mean no disrespect to either of you but she does not have the body of a warrior. Is she a mage then?"

"No," Rhiannon said. "Do you recall of the danger in Raven Peak that I spoke to you about?"

Accolon nodded. "I do, my lady." A moment of thought passed before his expression changed completely and he eyed Selvina in an entirely new light. "This is her!"

Selvina glanced from empress to commander, growing confused and uncomfortable. "Um, I'm who?"

"The world was nearly lost the last time The Writer was awake," Rhiannon said. "It took the combined powers of Faeryum's strongest beings to simply put him to rest. You, Selvina, can do so much more. You, my dear, can kill him!"

"What?" Selvina exclaimed. "I wasn't told I had to kill him!"

"How else did you presume you would stop him?" Accolon asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, I dunno, I thought I'd maybe put him to sleep again or something or strip him of his power...I dunno! All I know is that I'm not a killer!"

"The Writer is the only force strong enough to put an end to the greater world my empress is attempting to create," Accolon said. "She has poured her life's purpose into making this world a place of acceptance and freedom for all. Not everyone sees it that way, of course, but if The Writer is not stopped before he acts out, all will be lost. No one knows when he'll strike but Rhiannon believes it will be soon. You are the weapon we need to use to put an end to him before he does. With you, Selvina, there is hope of a better future for everyone."

Selvina inhaled deeply, taking it all in, and glanced at the empress, who had been staring at Accolon the whole time. She didn't miss the fact that he had called her by her name and not her title and now it looked like Rhiannon wasn't even trying to hide her affection of this rather handsome elf. Selvina felt like she was in on some big secret and wasn't entirely sure how she should feel about it.

"No one understands my plans for Faeryum like Accolon does," Rhiannon said, finally tearing her gaze from him. "We have been fighting to make this world unified and free for, what has it been now, fifty, sixty years?"

"Seventy one," Accolon replied with a smile. "Though you had been conquering without me long before that."

"Yes, but it was you who turned my conquering into liberating. I was..." Rhiannon glanced at Selvina and smiled. "Forgive me, Selvina, I am rambling. You have no idea how refreshing it is to be among someone who understands you completely and accepts you for who you are, flaws and all."

Jack's face immediately flashed in Selvina's mind. "I do, actually, have an idea..."

Rhiannon raised her eyebrow in interest. "Oh, do you now?"

"Um, yeah," Selvina replied, feeling uneasy talking about Jack with the empress. She was reminded again how, as a dragon, she had attacked the ship Jack, Hook, Cindy, and Red had been on. This powerful woman, who so far seemed rather kind and generous, had nearly killed all her friends. She of course had no idea that's who they were but for some reason Selvina felt a prick of anger toward her.

Accolon tapped the table, catching the empress's attention. "I am overjoyed that Selvina is now with us, Rhiannon, but there are some matters that do need to be discussed."

"What matters would those be?" she asked, shifting her gaze from Selvina to Accolon.

As Accolon went on to talk about food and supply shortages and something about a fight between giant clans, Selvina felt a sudden urge to run away. Now, more than ever, she wished to be with her friends. The empress and her general seemed to have made plans for her already, without mentioning anything beforehand, and everything was moving so fast. Selvina wasn't ready. She had no idea what she needed to do to stop The Writer, let alone kill him of all things.

I can't do that, she thought as the tight grip of panic began to clench. I can't kill someone. I mean, sure, I killed a basilisk and maybe I killed a troll or two but like, this is different. Isn't it? Maybe not but this is The Writer, someone so strong that even Rhiannon herself nearly failed at stopping. What the hell am I supposed to do? What do they expect me to do?

I need Jack, Red, and Cindy right now. Heck, I'd go for Hook, Sinbad, Bigbad, and everyone else too. I don't want to be here. I really don't want to be here... I want to go to my friends. I want to go...

I want to go home.