Upon returning to Maron, Captain Hook and Selvina were immediately confronted by Sir Perceval, who came riding to them with all haste. The large, bald man, adorned in his customary plate armour, appeared alarmed, though he hid it rather well.

"There is an emergency war council, happening immediately," he said to the captain after a hasty salute. "Word has come from Frenis. It is disheartening." The Avalonian knight shifted his gaze to Selvina. "You need to be there as well."

Hook and Selvina exchanged worried glances before following Sir Perceval to the tent.

"Let Red and Jack know I'll be with them after this is over," Selvina whispered to Tinkerbelle.

"But I want to be there too!" exclaimed the fairy.

"I'll tell you all about when it's done," Selvina whispered back. "Please, Tink. Remember last time?"

She could barely hear it but the fairy sighed dramatically before fluttering away.

After several of the war councils she had attended, Selvina learned quickly that if someone wasn't invited then they should not be there. Tinkerbelle had been listening quietly during one such council when a newly arrived Knight of the Round Table, Sir Kay, had noticed the fairy and demanded she be slain for spying. It had taken much convincing from Selvina and all others gathered to convince the irate knight that the fairy was an ally and not an agent of the empress. She dared not repeat that mistake this time.

They soon arrived to the massive tent in the center of the huge military camp, guarded by two halberd-wielding soldiers in full plate armour. They hardly glanced at Hook and Selvina when they entered. Once inside, they found two seats at the large round table and settled in.

To her relief, Selvina found that Cindy was present this time and was lucky enough to find a chair beside her. The young teen did not attend as many councils as Selvina did but it was always welcoming when she did. Whether it was because Selvina was no longer the youngest attending or having a friend there made it more comfortable she wasn't certain but assumed it was a bit of both.

On Cindy's other side was her middle-aged, grizzled, bearded, and battle-scarred uncle Ruslan, who greeted Selvina with a firm nod. Selvina smiled and nodded back, before sitting down and leaning toward Cindy.

"What's this all about?" she whispered.

Cindy shrugged. "I was in the forest training with Merlin when all of a sudden Sir Perceval came riding in and told us to get to the council tent immediately."

Selvina glanced at the table and those attending but did not see King Arthur or Merlin. Sir Lancelot sat beside two empty chairs and the other chairs were filled with a variety of Avalonian Knights as well as Queen Marian and her two generals. Sir Kay was present and, after narrowing his eyes at Selvina, seemed pleased to see no fairy upon her shoulder.

The hum of murmurs and whispers broke the silence for several minutes until finally King Arthur burst in, Merlin at his heels. The aged King was tight-lipped, wide-eyed, and clearly upset about something. Merlin, normally calm and collected, was visibly flustered and pale-faced. Selvina felt a chill rush throughout her body, making her tremble.

This was definitely bad news.

King Arthur gave everyone a short greeting before seating himself and taking a deep breath, as if trying to quiet his racing mind. After a few minutes of composing himself, he clasped his hands atop the table before him and eyed them momentarily, as if choosing his words carefully.

He soon cleared his throat and gazed at everyone assembled. "I wish to thank you all for coming under such short notice. It comforts me knowing that I have such loyal and honourable companions at my side." He sighed. "Unfortunately, the news I carry is heavy and is, quite frankly, most dismal."

King Arthur paused, gave Selvina a quick glance, and continued. "I was given a letter from Prince Charming today. As you know, we have been attempting to make contact with our Frenisian allies but the Noyran blockades prevent any of letters or avian messengers from reaching them. There is a magical shroud around the entire nation as well, which prevents Merlin from using his far sight. Unable to read about or glimpse at what is happening in Frenis, we assumed the worst.

"Or so we thought.

"It appears that something far more terrible than our direst suspicions is the reality. By sneaking his fishing boat past the blockade of Our Lady under the cover of night, a brave man by the name of Captain Phoebus managed to reach Kenmard with all-important news. From there he hired a ship to sail him here.

"It is with great sadness that I must impart the news of his death. The ship suffered damage on its way to New Avalon and Phoebus was wounded. He survived long enough to speak to Sir Perceval—who found him beached during one of his patrols—and tell him his story before handing him this letter."

King Arthur revealed an opened envelope bearing the red wolf's head seal of Frenis. "According to this letter, Prince Charming was nearly slain in an attack by not an army but a single, terrifying figure. It arose from the sea in search of someone and, when not finding her, set about destroying everything in sight. Most of the city now lies in ruin, including its legendary cathedral."

Quasimodo! Selvina thought with alarm. The gentle hunchback lived within the cathedral and she hoped he had escaped in time.

King Arthur went on, his eyes shifting uncomfortably on Selvina. "That figure was the Black Knight, and it was searching for you, Selvina. Survivors of the gruesome attack are demanding that you are found and given over to it so that no more lives need be lost. You know as well as I that that cannot be done."

"But if she doesn't then more innocent lives will be slain," piped Sir Kay.

King Arthur gave him a deeply furrowed brow. "Selvina is far too important to the entire future of this world to be sent to die. The Black Knight's demands will not be met."

"I have family in Frenis," growled Ruslan. "Must they die as well before something is done?"

"Even if we wished to do something," started Lancelot in a tone of annoyance, "we can't send anything past the Noyran blockades."

"Where is the Black Knight at this moment?" asked Sir Galahad, his fiery-haired face stern and determined.

"The letter does not say," King Arthur replied quietly.

Sir Perceval cleared his throat and folded his hands on the table. "Before he passed away, Captain Phoebus told me that he saw it sink back into the sea, heading southwest."

"That would bring it here!" exclaimed Sir Kay.

"It is walking along the ocean floor," Lancelot said unconcernedly, patting the air with one hand. "It will take months, if not years, for it to arrive here. There is no reason to fear."

"In the meantime," spoke King Arthur, "I suggest that we gather the fleet that we have assembled and prepare to engage the blockades. Admiral Smollett will be arriving within days with more warships and once he does, the fleet will sail out."

"Smollett, sir?" Captain Hook asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Indeed," replied the king. "He is an able and reliable fellow, if a bit...stiff."

"He's also an insufferably pretentious dick," added Sir Lancelot.

Hook sighed dismally. "I was afraid of that..."

"You know him?" Selvina asked him.

Hook nodded. "Unfortunately, I do. I knew him when I was very young. He was my first captain when I began sailing the seas. It was with him that I met Long John Silver. I may hunt pirates for a living but I'd much rather have wanted John Silver as my captain than Alex Smollett. It appears that he has not changed in all those years."

Selvina remembered the story of how Long John Silver had assisted Red, Jack, Hook, Belle, and Sinbad in reaching Sauradia. Red had told her that at first she despised him and wanted nothing to do with pirates but, near the end, she found out that he was a good man, in his own way. In fleeing Sauradia aboard a swift caravel, Captain Hook and his company had nearly been bombarded by Noyran frigates until Captain Silver had arrived in time to rescue them. It had cost him his life, however, and Hook had taken it hard.

King Arthur gathered everyone's attention again before speaking. "Until the blockades are removed, we can send Frenis no aid. Thus, it is imperative that we succeed in doing so. If we fail in breaking the blockades we render ourselves open to getting blockaded ourselves."

"Did the letter say anything about the Swordenish assault?" asked Ruslan.

"The only mention of that is when Phoebus spoke of King Charming doing all he could to defend his capital city, which is why it was the prince requesting our aid and not him. It is possible the capital city, New Alsar, is besieged as we speak and King Charming himself can get no word in or out about what is happening around him. He may not even know that the Black Knight attacked Our Lady. That, indeed, is another reason we must succeed in our naval assault. King Charming's life depends on it."

"Let us hope the ogres remain where they are," grumbled Ruslan.

King Arthur nodded grimly. "Frenis is nearing its breaking point, I fear."

"What of Sauradia?" asked Hook. "The sultan has ever been a firm ally of the Charmings. Is he not sending aid?"

Merlin answered. "I peered into the flames last night and saw only disorder in Sauradia. Sultan Ali Baba lost much during Empress Rhiannon's attack. His warship fleet has lost a third of its fighting force and many of his best fire mages were also taken from him. That is nothing to say to how many civilian lives were lost as well.

"His capital is in near-ruin and public order is at its lowest. I have also discovered that the sultan's greatest rival, High Flame Gaphir, has escaped imprisonment. The cell where he was held was damaged during the attack and he, along with many of his supporters, were freed. They have been gathering strength and are turning the sultan's people against him, proclaiming that he is more willing to spend funds and send aid and supplies to his allies than to his own people. They say the empress's attack could have been avoided altogether if Gaphir had been sultan. With so many homeless and left with nothing, it is easy for the people to believe him."

Selvina could sense the heat emanating from Cindy at the mention of Gaphir. The vile man had tried to entice her to be his pupil but after nearly getting Belle and Beast killed, Cindy wanted nothing to do with him. Knowing that he was alive and well and only getting stronger was clearly upsetting the young teen.

Merlin sighed solemnly. "I dread to say that it appears as if we are alone in this fight."

"Everything counts on us breaking those blockades," said King Arthur. "I have faith in our chances."

"Faith does not win battles, my friend," Lancelot muttered gravely.

King Arthur was too weary to retort. Selvina could almost see him nodding in agreement. The situation was grim indeed. She reflected on what she had just heard, her spine chilling as she thought of the Black Knight, slowly making its way to her, like a disease that took years to manifest, like a cancer gradually sapping her life force until she could hold out no longer and succumbed.

Not truly knowing why, she raised her voice to be heard over the mutters and mumbles and asked, "What happens if we fail to break the blockades? Are we strong enough to take the empress on ourselves?"

Sir Lancelot and King Arthur eyed her directly, their expressions terribly demoralizing. The king inhaled slowly and said, "If Frenis is defeated and Sauradia falls to rebellion I do not think we can win a war against the Empire of Noyr on our own."

"But your army is huge! Just look outside!"

King Arthur smiled weakly, suddenly looking decades older. "Empress Rhiannon's is larger, by far. She also has the armies of Sworden by her side, which are rather impressive themselves. The best we can do is hold her back from claiming New Avalon. Our war would be a defensive one, that I have no doubt."

Queen Marian, who had said nothing the whole time, asked, "What of the spring campaign? If we're just going to sit back and take it up the ass then why not attack now before Frenis is conquered and Sauradia is in chaos? Why let the empress get stronger and do horse shit about it?"

Lancelot chuckled at the queen's words. "Always the eloquent maiden, eh Marian?"

Marian frowned and jabbed at finger at Lancelot, seated across the table from her. "Call me a maiden again and I'll turn you into one!"

Sitting beside the queen was the hulking form of General Little, known as Little John to his closest friends. He was smiling at his queen's reaction and patted her back, speaking softly to her. "Easy, my queen. There were will plenty of colts to geld soon enough."

Seated on the queen's other side was her other general, Robin Hood, Red's older brother. He exchanged a wink with Little John before taking the queen's hand in an effort to calm her. A month without battle had clearly set her on edge as she was unaccustomed to sitting idle and having her broadsword sheathed for so long. The warrior queen needed violence and adrenaline and a fight with Lancelot, Avalon's finest swordsman, was something she apparently deeply craved.

"So there is nothing to be done?" Robin asked the Avalonian king as his beloved queen chewed on her lip.

Silence was his only reply.