Enfri could feel the sweat beading upon her brow. She took uneven breaths, labored and painful. Her muscles and joints ached, every movement bringing retribution. It was torturous. Her blood burned with its need for what she denied it.

"I am here, my heart," Jin whispered to her. She had a strong voice, but it was gentle. Dark in timbre and hypnotic.

Fingers brushed against Enfri's face. This was her light. Her love. Enfri squeezed the hand holding hers. She knew Jin was with her, and that knowledge eased her pain.

Deep inside Enfri's core, a different presence mingled with her soul. It was as comforting to Enfri as the hand she held. All her life, it had been there. Protecting her. Teaching her. Enfri had never known herself without it, and she didn't care to. The presence belonged to Enfri's mother of the heart, and Deebee was a far gentler parent than the woman who bore her. Mighty and clever and ancient, her silver Storyteller.

Enfri now suffered the price for her actions. A choice, perhaps a foolish one, brought her to this state. Power and safety at the expense of her body and health. The oren gave much, but nothing in this world came without a cost.

Time had lost meaning for Enfri. The waxing and waning of her pain was the only ticking clock she had to measure the minutes and hours. The days. As Enfri began to feel an oncoming fear, that this pain and darkness would never end, she opened her eyes.

The first sight to greet Enfri from the darkness was a young woman, beautiful and strong. The muscles of her bare arms were developed and powerful. Her shoulder-length black hair was straight, yet it managed to find itself in disarray. She possessed a dainty nose, full lips, a strong jawline, and pristinely pale skin. Austere features for a stoic warrior. Princess Jin Algara's tilted and narrow eyes were closed, her lips were slightly parted, and her head leaned against the back of the chair at Enfri's bedside. She was at rest, and one that Jin richly deserved.

Jin's hand rested on Enfri's arm, her pale skin a contrast against Enfri's umber tones. The worry that Jin had remained there since Enfri's ordeal began was a pressing one. Surely, someone would have nagged Jin to see to herself. It was sometimes hard to see her as a mere mortal, but she was as human as anyone.

The scars Jin bore attested to that. An ivory slash crossed Jin's left cheek. It was what remained of the wound Josy gave her. Most of her injuries, small cuts and burns, left marks that were all but invisible and would fade with time. Others, like the pale slash or the long gouges beneath her armor on her abdomen, would be carried for the rest of her life.

Enfri felt tears welling up in her eyes. It seemed that since the two of them met and fell in love, the assassin was slowly being ripped apart, and not only physically. It was all Enfri could do at times to keep her held together.

For now, Jin could sleep.

Enfri lay abed in a room with nautical tapestries hanging on the limestone walls. Fine, wooden furniture sat about in rearranged jumbles. It seemed that a large number of people had come through here, and they had sat with her in watches.

This was the chamber Pacifica had given her within the royal wing of the Salt Stone Palace. Since leaving her little cottage on the desert's edge, Enfri had never spent more time bedding down in the same place.

Enfri turned her head with much difficulty. She was weak. Winds and storms, she had never felt so weak in all her life. Not when she had been half-dead of dehydration in the desert, or even when she had been all-dead to circumvent an interdiction spell.

I guess compared to that, Enfri thought, I really can't complain about this. She tried to push herself up on an elbow, failed miserably, and flopped back down onto her pillow. I'm alive, such as it is.

The bedding was fresh. As was her shift. Enfri flushed with embarrassment that she'd been dressed and cared for as an invalid. Then again, that had more or less been the case.

Withdrawals from alchemical concoctions weren't a stroll through the garden. That was certain. Oren claimed the lives of those who took it after three days at the most. Only continued use kept the withdrawal at bay. To Jin's knowledge, no one had ever survived denying the oren.

Until today, but Enfri had cheated.

In her mind, a dark voice spoke to her. It used Enfri's own thoughts, but she didn't recognize the will behind it. You should not have denied the oren. It could have given you such power.

Enfri grimaced. I don't want anything to do with it. Shut up, and leave me alone.

Always obedient, the voice retreated.

Winds take me, Enfri thought, suddenly breathless. I'm losing my marbles. No. Just tired. It's been a crazy few days.

A little bundle on her stomach wriggled and groaned. Deebee rolled about, then flopped off of Enfri onto the soft, downy mattress. The tiny, silver-scaled dragon rose unsteadily to her feet, then peered into Enfri's eyes.

"You wicked, little thing," Deebee scolded. "How long have you been awake? Winds and storms, love, we've been beside ourselves worrying over you."

"I know," Enfri replied. She reached down and gathered Deebee in her hands, then held her close for a thorough nuzzling. Her guardian dragon sputtered and protested such treatment, but she was nearly as weak as Enfri and couldn't fight her off.

Deebee settled down and gave in to Enfri's affection. She let out a long and relieved sigh of content. "I'm pleased to see you recovering, love. My dearest girl. My sunrise. Were I able, I'd change into a form more suited for cuddling."

"Are you that drained?" Enfri asked, concerned.

"Don't you worry about that," Deebee said. "You needed to take every speck of healing through our bond as you could. As it was, drawing from me barely kept you alive through the worst of it. I needed to shrink down and give you the excess energy from the lost mass to keep up with the demand. I only require time to build it back up again."

Enfri bit her lip in worry. "How long?"

"Years, if left to itself. Don't underestimate how large I really am, but you should remember that there are simple shortcuts around problems like this."

Enfri chuckled at the memory. "Shall we inquire around for stag beetles?"

"Already done," Deebee reported. "Rippling Moon was kind enough to offer her services. I believe she's out looking as we speak. Altieri glacier beetles are the same genus, so their hearts should prove just as effective a reagent."

"Moon was here?" Enfri asked in surprise.

"Of course she was," Deebee said. "She and Light Hoof even took shifts watching over you. The goblins have grown rather fond of their 'green one'."

"And I of them."

Deebee pounced to the floor. She sat and fretted with her claws, wringing them together in anxious knots. Her tail stood straight in the air, and her wings were trembling. "Winds, but keeping you warm was a trial. You were so feverish, but the heat was being sucked out of you all the same. It was the most dreadful experience on my end, so I can't imagine what it was like on yours."

It was true that the room carried a chill, but Enfri could hardly remember the last time she was truly warm. It was snowing outside even though it was spring. Altier Nashal was a frozen kingdom.

Can it even be called a kingdom anymore? Enfri wondered.

Enfri reached up and gave her cheeks a slap. She wouldn't have that. Not a whit. Enfri refused to start glooming and dooming on her recovery bed. As a sky woman and healer, she held the opinion that a negative attitude after a malady swiftly brought another.

"We all have taken our turns sitting with you," Deebee continued. "These chambers were halfway to a warcamp before the royal surgeons said you were out of danger. The goblins, soldiers from the Lost Company, the new king, and even Princess Pacifica and that odd-smelling handmaiden of hers have been through."

"She has a name," Enfri said with a frown.

Deebee cleared her throat. "Reyn, then."

In Deebee's defense, Reyn had a mysterious air about her, and Deebee had never been fond of what she couldn't quantify. Even so, Enfri wished Deebee would put more effort into being civil now that they existed more in the open.

Stranger still was that King Sasha had taken the time to sit with her. They got on quite well, but Enfri wouldn't have expected him to use his time for her sake. He had so many troubles already.

Deebee smiled at Enfri with those big, amber eyes of hers. "No one, however— not even me— has been so dutiful as your assassin. She hasn't left your side since it began. I believe this is the first real rest she's received."

The way Deebee regarded Jin warmed Enfri's heart. For weeks, the two most important people in her life existed at odds, disagreeing over nearly every matter that crossed their path. That Deebee could look so kindly upon Jin was the finest gift Enfri could think to receive.

Winds take me. I'm crying now. Enfri wiped at her eyes, and summoned up some indignation to make up for it. "That won't do. Please tell me that someone got her to eat. Ban, at least, would have been looking out for her."

Deebee fell silent. She looked away.

Enfri lifted her head from the pillow. "Deebee? What is it, love?"

"Ban..." Deebee swallowed, then sighed. "Ban and Kimpo haven't yet returned."

"What?" Enfri asked out of surprise. "Deebee, how long have I been out?"

"It's been four days since you became unresponsive."

Four days. Her withdrawals struck two days after the Battle of Ecclesia. That meant that Ban and Kimpo had been gone for nearly a full week.

"Something has happened." Enfri got herself to a sitting position. "Winds, Deebee!"

The little dragon pounced and planted herself on Enfri's forehead. The added weight, minuscule as it was, proved more than enough to keep Enfri pinned to her bed.

"Fool girl. You will not leave this bed until the surgeons say otherwise. Do you hear me?"

"Surgeons? Bah. Nobles take men with not half a sky woman's skill and call them the superior healer. It's insulting! One of them even had the gall to call my herbalism quaint. To my face! The fool man about earned himself a blaze-lance. Then we would see who's blustering quaint."

Deebee was clearly holding back from laughing, yet she was adamant. "Your word on it, love," she demanded. "I won't speak another peep about Ban or anything until you settle those eager breeches of yours."

"Fine, blustering lizard. I'll stay in bed."

Deebee hopped off of Enfri's head. She began ordering lengths of Enfri's golden hair into place as she spoke. "I can do without that 'lizard' nonsense. The mighty are not lizards, just as mortals are not monkeys."

Enfri hadn't the slightest idea of what a monkey was, and she couldn't be bothered to care. Her guardian dragon was skirting perilously close to making Enfri angry. She sat back up before speaking. "Tell me about Ban, Deebee."

An anxious twitch ran up and down Deebee's tail. "I know little more than you do. After the battle, Kimpo and Ban flew off to the north. They were alone, and no one has seen a single sign of either since."

Enfri wrung her hands over her chest. "Ban didn't take his armor or his full blade with him. Both of them had injuries."

"You mustn't worry so much, love," Deebee said. "My Huntress is a warrior born. Red dragons are among the strongest living creatures in the world, and Kimpo is Eldest of her kind. Not only that, but you forged a bond for her. She has her Ruby Knight, and I could scarcely imagine a mortal man better suited for her. Not to mention that both are formidable arcanists."

Enfri let Deebee's words comfort her. "That's high praise, Deebee. You think highly enough of Ban that you would trust him with the dragon you love?"

"Kimpo thinks highly of him," Deebee said, "and I trust her judgement. Truly, I would be lying if I claimed not to be impressed with Bannlyth Karst. There are few, even among the mighty, who could face down a legion with only four hundred soldiers. Or defeat a hierarch in single combat. Yes, love, I believe in Ban, and I am appreciative of how he dotes on you."

Enfri allowed herself a soft laugh. "With those two bonded, I suppose that makes me and Ban siblings of a sort."

Deebee hummed in consideration. "You are both marked by elder bloodlines. It's not a perfect analogy, but I suppose if my empress wishes to think of her first knight as a brother, I see no cause to stop her."

Ban as her brother. Enfri decided she liked the idea. Winds knew they both had imperfect families. The notion was pleasant enough that Enfri could ignore Deebee's comment about being an empress.

Deebee finished combing Enfri's hair with her claws. "I imagine you're positively famished. Shall I fetch something for you to eat? Nothing too heavy, mind."

The Altieri dined primarily on seafood. Enfri supposed she could stomach some, but she'd ask Deebee to make doubly certain it arrived cooked. How the Altieri could ingest so much raw fish without getting sick was beyond her.

A knock sounded against the door. Before Enfri had a chance to give them leave, the door was pushed open by a harried-looking knight in battered full plate. His scarlet hair was tied back into a long tail. A dreadful scar carved down the center of his face and across the bridge of his nose before putting a wide cleft into his lip. A fearsome mark for a fearsome man, and Trent Urdov had earned every ounce of that reputation. Regardless, Enfri believed him to be a secret softie at heart.

Two other soldiers of the Lost Company, a tough-looking woman in worn leathers and a straight-jawed man in a chain hauberk, followed on Trent's heels. Enfri had only met them briefly, but she believed their names were Uwe and Grellin, the best outrider and head scout respectively. All three looked surprised and pleased to see Enfri awake.

"My lady," Trent said, knuckling his forehead. "I no be thinking you be up and about yet."

Enfri had to blink twice before Trent's words made sense to her. That thick Southron accent of his was distracting. It was strange to hear it from a face that was so distinctly Altieri, but House Urdov had blood ties to the frozen lands that lay across the Southern Sea.

"Up, yes, but not quite yet about," Enfri replied.

Deebee broke into the exchange with an indignant fluttering of her wings. "Knock, await leave, then enter. Winds, but one would think you Altieri wanted to see a young woman undressing."

Enfri was about to come to Trent's defense, but then she saw his eyes flicker to her and the low neckline of her shift. She resisted the urge to cover herself with blankets. "Is something wrong?" Enfri asked. "Has there been word from Ban?"

Next to her, she heard Jin stir. Before Enfri could turn to look, Jin was on her feet, and her hand rested on the pommel of her sword. "Knight-Lieutenant Trent," Jin said in greeting.

Trent averted his eyes from Jin, her beast-like gaze difficult for most anyone to meet. Between her mark and her strong build, Jin was an intimidating young woman to come across.

Jin's attention landed upon Enfri, and her eyes widened with surprise. Enfri returned her a warm smile, and she could see that Jin's mind went blank for a moment.

Winds take me, she's adorable.

"There be nothing new of the captain," Trent reported. "My lady, Your Highness, there be riders and carriages seeking entry into Ecclesia and quarter in the Salt Stone Palace."

Jin furrowed her brow. "I do not rule here. Why inform us?"

"I come on King Sasha's order, Your Highness. The riders be flying the royal banner of Melcia and the personal colors of King Adeyemi the Akazewi."

Jin swallowed. "He is... a long way from home. King Adeyemi could not have possibly come so soon with the rail lines shut down."

"He be wondering when the wedding of Princess Pacifica and Prince Regent Bannlyth Karst be occurring," Trent said with a shrug.

Deebee snorted. "Not quite in the loop, is he? That marriage has been canceled more times than I care to count."

Jin shot Deebee a pointed look before addressing Trent. "Are you saying King Adeyemi is unaware of Rodrik's Rebellion? That he is simply... here for the wedding?"

"I no be knowing," Trent replied. "King Sasha asked that you be told, so you can be seeing to matters as you deem best, Your Highness."

"Thank you, Knight-Lieutenant. Please tell King Sasha that I am appreciative of his consideration."

Trent and his soldiers turned to leave, and Jin knelt down beside Enfri's bed. She took Enfri's hand in both of hers. She would have said something, undoubtedly heartfelt and romantic enough to turn Enfri into a melting mess of a girl, but they were interrupted yet again.

A small, young woman burst into Enfri's chambers, and she about toppled Trent onto his backside in her rush. Her legs were coated in fine fur from her waist down to her dainty, little hooves. The only clothing she wore was a loincloth and a rabbit-pelt binding over her narrow chest. Platinum blonde hair, nearly white, fell about her head in an array of small braids. Rippling Moon's eyes were large and far apart— distinctly inhuman— but her most striking feature was the pair of short antlers growing out of her brow. They had grown a good deal longer since Enfri saw her last.

Moon's expression was frantic. When she saw Enfri sitting, the corner of her mouth quirked upwards, but she immediately became serious once more. "God-sighted must come," she said to Jin. "Far-sighting kith return from white place near to kith-home. They bring..."

"Easy, girl," Trent said to her. His palms were raised in a placating gesture. "Her Highness already be knowing of the Melcians."

Moon wrinkled her nose at him. "Bright Knife is rocker. White-scented not what I speak of."

"Aha," Deebee said. "You found a beetle, then?"

The flush in Moon's face spoke to her frustration. Goblin speech was often difficult for all involved. Though, Ban always seemed to understand them, and Rippling Moon in particular, just fine.

Moon reached a four-fingered hand into a pouch tied to her loincloth then flung a wriggling creature at Deebee. The dragon caught it easily.

"Mighty is rocker!" Moon shouted, eliciting a scandalized gasp from Deebee. "Far-sighting kith return to White City. Lost Company Tribe has sighted Ban!"

Enfri came fully alert. "Your scouts saw Ban?"

"The captain?" Trent exclaimed. "Where he be?"

"They carry Ban," Moon said, distraught. "Ban has walked black path, and he is blooded!"

Deebee almost dropped the bug in her surprise. "What of Kimpo?"

"Black penitent's path is clouded to kith," Moon said, shaking her head. "God-sighted must come."

Jin nodded. "At once. Lead the way, Moon."

Moon sighed out of relief.

Before Jin could rush off, Enfri caught her wrist. "I have to go with you."

Jin started to shake her head, but Enfri couldn't just stay here in her chamber while Ban was hurt.

"Please, my light. I have to go to him."

"Green one is wise, but green one is blooded," Moon said. Her concern for Enfri was painted across her face. Goblins, as all fey, wore their hearts on their sleeve. "Is she stone?"

Jin looked to Deebee. Not to ask for her help in discouraging Enfri as she might have feared, but in seeking permission.

Deebee sighed. "As if we could stop her. Lord Trent, if you'd be so kind to leave the Lady Yora's chambers as she gets dressed?"

Enfri couldn't have loved any of them more if she tried. However, she still wasn't used to being referred to as "Enfri the Yora". A title of nobility was still new to her.

"No time for getting dressed," Enfri said. She used her grip on Jin's wrist to slide her legs over the bedside. "A coat, but that's it." She addressed Jin in a quieter voice. "I don't suppose you'd mind if..."

Jin caught Enfri's meaning, and her expression softened. From her, that was as good as an ear to ear grin. With only the slightest hint of effort, Jin gathered Enfri into her arms and carried her along as they followed Moon through the palace halls. The princess even managed to move at a brisk jog. Deebee alighted on Jin's shoulder, and Trent and his soldiers followed a pace behind.

There wasn't much dignity in being hauled about like this, but Enfri was too preoccupied with worry for Ban to care.

Disgraceful, the dark voice muttered. This is not how an empress should be conducted through a palace.

Sod off. An empress can be conducted however she wants, Enfri thought back.

The voice fell into a sullen silence. It couldn't argue with that logic.

It was a relief to be free of the voice if only for the moment. These dark thoughts came more and more often, ever since the Battle of Ecclesia. At times, it grew so pervasive that Enfri had difficulty recognizing which thoughts were truly hers. Sometimes, it could be encouraging, telling her that she could do whatever she set her mind to. Other times, as now, it said the most detestable things. She'd come to know it as the voice of her own selfishness. Pride. Her cowardice.

Enfri hated what lurked inside her, but she could at least force it into submission and send it away. For a time. The voice would return.

It always did.