Devrim exited the tent and held out his hand to shield himself from the afternoon sun. He could hear Mairwen's voice, but it was not until his vision adjusted to the light that he could identify one of the other speakers. "Captain Caleb? What are you doing here?" Devrim asked, surprised. The Captain of the palace guard bowed before the Emperor. "Forgive me, Your Highness! I got caught up in the siege of the Southern Fort. I was checking on supplies and preparations to report to the Empress when everything went wrong. The gnomes attacked from below and nearly collapsed the whole fortress. We were forced into the desert and lost many soldiers to quicksand and the heat. "When we thought all was lost, these strange animals appeared like ghosts in the desert. I believe they are called camels. The Dunesmen put us to sleep and brought us here. We have been regrouping to make an attack on the fort ever since." Caleb stepped aside, and Devrim viewed the camp of the People of the Drifting Dun

Back at the palace, things were coming to a head. The palace was nearly reconstructed, and that meant that Baak would be moving his "trophies" soon. There was little time to lose.Alvar had been changing his appearance often to avoid detection since his arrival. So far, no one seemed to suspect that not one, but two elves were hiding in plain sight.Brinn had decided not to tell Alaron about her beloved's arrival. The prince was surprisingly tolerant of many of her antics lately, including a heated discussion of whether to serve chocolate gnomes as the dessert for the coronation feast."Princess Mairwen" had insisted it would be fitting, but Cafer did not like the idea of people eating the heads off the little edible sculptures. In the end, Brinn prevailed, knowing that she would enjoy destroying the little chocolate beast almost as much as taking down a real one.However, the spymaster was not sure that his tolerance would extend to Alvar or to the upcoming escape of Bukuri and compa

Behind the blond assassin were two more men who looked equally as dangerous. Renat recognized them immediately as the men who tried to kill Mairwen. An anger at their actions fueled a fire in his eyes, but he realized quickly that he could not act just now.A fight in the dungeon would draw unwanted attention. Anyway, the knife at his throat limited him options. He had a better idea."There you are!" he said with annoyance. "We have been looking for you. Why did you not stay by your cell and wait for us?" he turned his head ever so slightly to those behind him. "I found the other assassins. Now we can finally leave.""You were looking for us?" the second assassin asked. His intentionally bald head and hazel eyes made his age unreadable."They are assassins?" the third man asked almost simultaneously. His dark, wispy hair looped around his many earrings.Nurlan was quick to jump on the plot. He slouched slightly and sneered in a way that made him nearly unrecognizable. "You think you w

Brinn was surprised when Alaron offered his arm for her to take. Clearly he was trying to make a point.Walking past Cafer, Brinn looked over her shoulder to see his resentment and anger at his defeat. She worked to quickly hide her satisfaction and turned back to the prince.The fake Mairwen took her brother's arm and felt his weight lean into her. She pretended to need more assistance and brought her other hand to his elbow to support him further. Brinn could feel that Alaron's strength was fading. They walked quickly into the palace."That ball of light…" Brinn whispered.The boy gave a smile, but it was weak and strained. "The ball is one of my newest tricks. An extension of the sound barrier I have done before. With all the magical creatures around, I knew I needed to try to be stronger.""But its size!" The green-eyed elf still could not fathom it.Then she felt Alaron stumble and quickly steadied him, snapping her from her thoughts."Renat?" Brinn called gently to Alvar. He did

"What do you mean, the final straw?" Brinn asked.The prince remained still for a long time before answering. "I had myself convinced that even with all I have done, I could still be a good Emperor. I thought in the end the good would make up for all the bad. I was wrong. All this time I was just being 'handled'. I pushed myself further into the grandeur of fame and honor and glory. All because Cafer told me I deserved it. That I was worthy. But deep down I knew: it was all a lie. I am a fraud." Alaron's voice was full of grief."You mean…" Brinn was not sure she was hearing correctly."I mean I cannot be Emperor." Alaron's tone was firm even as his eyes filled with tears. His shoulders slumped. "What am I going to do?"The spymaster patted the boy's back "There is hope for you yet, Prince Alaron," Brinn assured him. "Though you very nearly missed it.""I had good timing," Alvar smiled. "Managed to arrive in time for the battle to be over!"Brinn stared solemnly at the elf she loved.