Nastasia blinked her eyes open with a jolt and tightened her grip on the reins instinctively, then let out a faint groan. She'd been dozing off again, as she had for the past several hours. Sir Arlov had given her a chance to rest a little earlier while he guided Moxie, but that rest had been short-lived.

They had swapped places a few hours ago and Nastasia had been guiding Moxie while Sir Arlov slept. He was currently still sleeping, his weight slumped against her back and his head nestled in the crook of her shoulder. Nastasia glanced back at the Knight as he mumbled something under his breath.

She waited to see if he woke, but he didn't. She let out another bored sigh and faced forward. Thankfully, the towers of Jalil were in sight now and steadily growing larger. Nastasia guessed they'd arrive within another hour, and then she'd have a chance to get a little more sleep before they left for Andrian.

I wonder if Volya has arrived yet, she thought to herself. He'd gone ahead shortly after they left the dunes and was out of sight within two hours. Sir Arlov hadn't been pleased about losing track of Temnota, but Volya had promised to place him with Mischa and Yuri. She hoped he'd keep to his word.

Nastasia granted Sir Arlov another twenty minutes of sleep before nudging him with an elbow. "Mm," he grunted, not opening his eyes. Nastasia elbowed him harder. "What?" Sir Arlov lifted his head and squinted against the late morning sunlight. Nastasia pointed to the city in the distance and Sir Arlov straightened. "Finally. My back is killing me."

She offered him a sympathetic glance. If it was still dark, she'd use her magic to soothe his pain again, but it was too risky to do so now. She knew Sir Arlov was aware that she'd done something to help him, though he didn't know what. The vague words he'd said last night told her as much. But they also told her that he wasn't going to mention what happened to anyone else, and that was a relief.

They rode in silence for the remainder of the journey and were greeted by a flurry of well-wishers when they rode into Jalil. People darted out of houses, each carrying baskets of sage. The road beneath Moxie's hooves was already purple and green, but became even more so as fresh sprigs were thrown. Nastasia grimaced at the pungent scent. She didn't mind the smell of sage, but not in this quantity.

Sir Arlov leaned towards her ear to whisper. "Do you think they did this for all of the Knights? Because if they did, their temples are about to run short on sage." Nastasia snorted at the comment and Sir Arlov grinned.

As they continued onward, Nastasia began to pick out some familiar words in the Seenanite tongue and pieced together the phrases they were calling. "Ismene has blessed you. Praise be to your worthy hearts. Well done Knights of Nyctoli."

Gradually, the crowd thinned as they neared the palace. They were greeted by a much smaller crowd there. Nastasia smiled when she spied Josephine and Elise among them. Mischa, Yuri, and Danitza weren't far behind. The two men approached as she drew Moxie to a halt and waited for Sir Arlov to dismount.

"Welcome back," General Nikita called, walking up behind them. "Volya said you were on your way but I was beginning to doubt him. I'll let their Majesties know you've returned."

"How many Nyctolians were lost?" Sir Arlov asked as the General turned to leave.

The answer came as a resigned sigh. "Five."

Nastasia bit her lip and dismounted while Sir Arlov and General Nikita walked away. So many were dead already and just for the sake of winning her hand, which she didn't intend to give away.

What if all we're doing is making things easier for Kazimir? She wondered. If more Knights are killed during this tournament, that makes it easier for him to strike at any of the rulers.

She didn't have long to ponder before Josephine and Elise joined her and led her away. They were only halfway to their tent when something else caught Nastasia's attention. Volya stood outside an Andrian tent, face to face with Vadik Kamenev.

"You left me there," Volya snarled, the words barely audible. Josephine and Elise tightened their grip on her arms, but all three of them slowed their pace.

A cold smirk slid onto Vadik's lips. "The Emperor told you his protection was limited, and I warned you when we were in Eldon. Make yourself useful or next time, I'll make sure you don't come back."

He turned away, but Volya snagged him by the shoulder. "I did not offer to help you do this."

"Of course you did. You were just unaware." Vadik's smile turned into a dark scowl. "Now run along, or we'll have one less competitor now rather than later." Volya spat at Vadik's feet and stormed away.

Josephine, Elise, and Nastasia sped up again before either man could notice them lingering. Only when they reached the safety of their tent did they relax. Nastasia ripped her scarf off and raked her fingers through her hair, blowing out a heavy breath.

"What did they mean?" Josephine asked. "They couldn't..."

"They could and they do," Nastasia interrupted. "It's no coincidence that we're losing more men now as the tournament gets closer and closer to ending. Kazimir and Vadik are doing something and Volya has to be in on it."

"But why?" Elise perched on the lid of a trunk and wove her fingers together nervously. "Why would Volya help them murder other Knights?"

To make it easier for him to win me? Nastasia thought to herself. Is he really doing all of this just to spite Nikolai? She mulled over the possibility a moment longer, then squared her shoulders and faced her friends. "Which Knights have we lost so far?"

Perhaps some of the deaths had been accidents, but she was willing to bet Kazimir had a few select targets that Vadik had handled for him. If they could figure out who those targets were and what the pattern was, perhaps they could find a way to warn the next would-be-victims before they headed to Andrian. She had a feeling there would be even more casualties there than anywhere else.

•༻᯽༺•

"What happened out there?" Yuri demanded, eying Nikolai's back in the safety of their tent. Nikolai let his head slump into his palms while his friends surveyed the damage his father's apparition had done.

"Visions, just like the Queen said," he mumbled. "But they were more than that. They were real, in a sense. I saw Nastasia...and my father. He's the one that did this. I don't know how."

"It's not a complicated concept," Danitza scoffed, kneeling behind him with a needle in hand. Before she could move any closer, Yuri snatched it from her and pushed her aside. "Hey!"

"He doesn't need any of your degrading harshness right now," Yuri snapped. "We'll handle this. Why don't you go bother someone else?"

"Excuse me?"

Nikolai raised his head. "Stop it, both of you." The two of them glared at each other for a minute longer, before Yuri pried his gaze away and turned his attention to Nikolai's back. Danitza crossed her arms and retreated a few paces. "So how did an apparition do this?" Nikolai asked finally. He winced as Yuri began stitching one of his tender wounds.

"The Dunes of Azzam contain a powerful magic. It looked inside your mind and conjured up the things that would test you on the sins the Queen mentioned. I guess in order to do so, the apparition had to appear real to you in every sense."

"It took my sword," Nikolai explained, his voice faint. "And then Toska became a whip, but once I got it out of my father's hands, it turned back into a sword."

"Another illusion," Danitza replied. "And I assume the desert decided to test you that way because it saw your father do the same in your past."

Nikolai couldn't stop himself from tensing and let out a hiss as the stab of pain from the needle. Yuri murmured an apology. "Yeah," he conceded. "You're probably right."

Silence fell through the tent once more and stretched on for each painful moment Yuri spent stitching his wounds. At last, Danitza rose with some muttered excuse and ducked out. It wasn't long before Mischa followed, claiming he'd find something for Nikolai to eat.

"Are you all right?" Yuri asked when the tent flap fell behind Mischa.

Nikolai's throat bobbed but he nodded. "I just didn't expect to see him, or for him to be so real. It was like...like he'd never died, and I'd been lying to myself the whole time."

"He's dead, Nik, and no desert magic will change that."

Nikolai blew out a sigh and ran his fingers through his hair, relieved to feel his own curls instead of Sir Arlov's. He was growing tired of wearing another man's body all the time. "I know. But damn I wish Nasi was here. Seeing her there was almost worse than seeing my father."

Yuri listened in silence while Nikolai recounted the entirety of his time in the dunes. The only thing he failed to mention was the ride back in which the Silent Knight had done something to ease the pain in his wounds. He was going to keep that to himself. When he finished, Yuri spoke again.

"I think seeing Volya was another test, even though he was real. I'm glad you saved him. If you hadn't, you both could've died. And what he said about you and Nastasia..." Yuri bit off the string as he finished stitching the last of Nikolai's wounds, then stood. "I guess he's not a complete asshole after all."

Nikolai gave a small chuckle. "I guess not." He rose, but hesitated as a pensive look crossed Yuri's features. "What is it?"

"Speaking of Knights who didn't return, Sir Gareth was reported dead," Yuri sighed. "Another Knight claimed to have seen him be dragged under the sand."

"Shit. He was annoying but I didn't think he was entirely a bad man."

Yuri bit his lip and opened his mouth, then seemed to think better of it. Nikolai gave him a prompting look. "Daryn was afraid of this," Yuri admitted. "He told me at the ball. With Sir Gareth dead, he'll be sent back to Eldon and he has no prospects there."

"Why? Working for a Knight had to have given him some recognition. At least enough to find another job."

Yuri shook his head, blond wisps of hair falling across his worried gaze. "Sir Gareth is the only reason he isn't dead. He said that people always speculated about him but he was able to keep his relationships secret until ten months ago."

Nikolai waited patiently while Yuri appeared to debate with himself. "He was caught in the act. He didn't tell me all the specifics of what happened, but his lover was killed, and he would've been if Sir Gareth hadn't stepped in. Sir Gareth saved his life and took him in to serve as his aide, but returning to Eldon without his protection would basically be a death sentence."

"Why would Sir Gareth save him?" Nikolai couldn't help but ask.

Yuri's gaze darkened. "Daryn's mother is a whore. Sir Gareth's favorite in fact. In exchange for saving Daryn, he asked that she serve him freely whenever he wished."

Nikolai ground his teeth at the thought. If someone treated his own mother that way... Someone already had. How else had he and Volya come to be? His parents' marriage had never been one of love. Nikolai closed his eyes briefly.

"I know we have enough to deal with as it is, but I can't let him return to Eldon only to die."

Nikolai nodded and met Yuri's gaze. "Ask Daryn to travel with us. Sir Gareth and I were becoming friends, so it's only natural. That can be our explanation if anyone asks." A relieved smile lit up Yuri's features and he started towards the tent flaps.

"But Yuri," Nikolai called, "he can't know the truth. It's safer for him that way." Yuri pursed his lips but nodded his agreement and vanished from sight.