ã€ŠBattlesquire Book I  -  First Bloodã€‹


 Chapter 1

    Battlesquire:  First Blood??????- C. 2017 M.H. Johnson

    "Estocs at the ready!" Jess shivered at those words, the strong baritone voice of her armsmaster washing over the collective assembly of Jess and her fellow Squires, presently mounted on their restive horses, each and every one of those mounts a destrier bred to endure the trials of war. Their owners wore identical steel helms and breastplates over full hauberks of mail, arms and legs additionally protected by thick plates of hardened rawhide, boiled and treated to resist rot and mold, with thick quilted gambesons underneath it all.

    To be fully warded as Jess and her companions were, protected by steel far more finicky to work with than it once had been, well able to ward any thrust or cut by sword or spear, gave the noblemen who could so afford to armor themselves a huge edge on the battlefield. Of course, the edge that coin brought could only take one so far.

    In mastering the arts of war nothing beat dedicated training, and Jess knew she could do no better than study the tactics and techniques of the most brilliant and feared commander ever to lead Erovering''s troops in living memory. To dedicate herself to the general turned instructor who was glaring at her even now.

    ¡°Jess! Focus!¡±

    Jess took a trembling breath and forced herself to concentrate, catching sight of her brother-in-arms, whose worried gaze Jess could sense even through his visor, and forced herself to focus on the here and now, slowly drawing her estoc, worthless for slashing but the best suited of all blades for piercing armor, as all her fellow Squires already had.

    ¡°Charge!¡±

    The crack of her commander''s voice. The sudden pounding of her heart as she, along with every other Squire of War, kicked their armored heels to their destrier''s flanks, a flood of horseflesh and steel surging towards the scores of armored mannequins just a hundred yards away, dozens of spring mounted spears jutting out of the ground as they charged right for them.

    "Jess!" She could barely hear him above the din, but the intensity of their nominal leader''s voice cut through the din. "Now, Jess!"

    "I''m on it, Neal!" Jess said, even as she leaned into the charge, tilting forward in her stirrups, head lowered, her blade held in tierce with braced wrist and thumb, estoc aimed straight ahead, ready to give point to devastating effect, even as the forest of spears parted for them but moments before impact.

    The sudden jarring of her estoc spearing into the frontmost target before her, effortlessly piercing the salted and dried pig''s carcass dressed in much-patched cuir bouilli, once her blade bit through the armor.

    Jess''s momentary elation turned instantly to panic as the blade rammed straight through to the hilt, and she had to immediately let go and draw Mercy''s reins as the thin leather cord securing her weapon to her wrist snapped away, so fast she had charged.

    A momentary jolt of pain, and hottest shame flushed her cheeks.

    She was using an estoc, not a spear or lance! Angled death was the order of the day. Not spearing straight on if she was to flow away as her fellows were doing, and form up for further charges.

    Unless slamming into her foes moments before lashing out with war hammer or saber in melee, the estoc was only for lancing her foes at angles. Clever angles that allowed her to pivot and lean forward so that her shoulder took no strain as her weapon plunged into her target''s torso an instant before she relaxed her wrist and dipped her shoulder as her arm gently windmilled back, the post mounted carcass spinning about from the power of Mercy''s charge, her blade sliding free as her destrier rode past.

    Expertly done, her foe would be spitted, spun about, and utterly disoriented for the few moments he still lived, organs ruptured as her blade tore free, with a minimum of strain to her arm. Done incorrectly, she could break her wrist unless coming to a quick stop or immediately releasing her blade, as she had been forced to do today.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    And here she was, all but flat-footed before an entire host of hypothetical foes, most of her fellow Squires already retreating.

    With a frustrated curse, she pivoted Mercy around and galloped back to the blank gazes of her peers, and the icy blue stare of her mentor, General Eloquin, froze her to her core.

    ¡°Calenbry!¡± His voice cut through her.

    "Yes, sir."

    Jess winced her eyes shut. She couldn''t help it, just imagining all the things he could say.

    Here she was, training so hard to be a part of their elite band, cut flat-footed like a fool in an encounter that could have spelled her death.

    That he said nothing for so long, just gazing at her so coldly, was a torment her racing heart could barely stand.

    ¡°Angled death for estocs, sir. Straight on charge is only for spear and lance, unless anduntil we are to engage in melee," Jess said, unable to bear the silence any longer.

    And even as those words escaped her lips she winced, knowing that she shouldn''t have said a word at all.

    Strangely, even as several soft whispers from her peers made her think she was truly in for it, General Eloquin did naught but give a single curt nod.

    ¡°See that your hands recall that as well as your head, Calenbry, and you might just live to see the far side of your first engagement.¡±

    Heart pounding, Jess just bobbed her head. For all that it was, for him, an exceedingly mild rebuke, still Jess wanted to curl up in shame.

    She had never made that mistake before.

    Why the hell was she so bloody distracted today?

    ¡°Perhaps it is not because of the fields of grass and flowers waving so prettily in the morning breeze, mistress, but what, during the dead hours of darkness, is soon to come.¡±

    Jess winced and nodded, refusing to say a word to the cat perched upon her shoulder.

    ¡°Squires! Ready yourselves. For we are to practice that maneuver again until every one of you gets it right! Your lives, and the lives of your brothers and sisters-in-arms depend upon it!¡±

    He turned to Jess once more. ¡°Calenbry!¡±

    Jess stiffened to attention. ¡°Yes, sir!¡±

    ¡°Retrieve your estoc! And do so at a walk. Gazing into the eyes of each and every one of your fellows. Let the shame of your failure burn only so long as it takes for you to remember that one day soon, far more than shame will be the cost of folly, when your peers lives are held in your hands.¡±

    So soft it was almost a whisper. ¡°Yes, sir.¡±

    At a walk, feeling the hot gazes of her fellows piercing her back, she made her way to the other end of their jousting run, taking deep, steadying breaths as she worked her weapon free of the massive carcass smelling of toughened rawhide and salted gamy meat, finding momentary peace in the vast and beautiful forest and fields all about the school she had called home these last few years, gazing with awe at the massive keep carved directly into the steep face of the mountainside, well deserving of its name Highrock, and its reputation as the best martial academy to be found anywhere in Erovering, and perhaps the continent entire.

    She, Jessica de Calenbry, for all her faults, was a student of this school, and a member of one of the most elite bands of proteges to be found anywhere in Erovering. She would bear the weight of her master''s displeasure with head held high.

    No matter her faults, she would prove herself worthy of the mantle Squire of War.

    Still, heading back to her band with over three score of her peers gazing right at her was almost more than she could endure. She didn''t even try to resheathe her estoc, so hard was her hand trembling.

    And when she arrived, pinned by the gaze of Neal, one of the most skilled tacticians among them, no scorn did she see in his gaze.

    He merely smiled and nodded. ¡°Angled death, sister. And for warding us from their death in turn, you have proven yourself, as always.¡±

    Perhaps because he was their squad leader, Eloquin chose to let Neal''s soft words of comfort go.

    Twilight smirked. ¡°Considering how useful you are, I think they can forgive you giving point less than perfectly. Still, let''s try not to mess up again, all right, my mistress? I don''t know about you, but I''m feeling a might bit peckish, and I can smell Cook''s wonderful whitefish stew, even from here.¡± Her familiar purred.

    Jess wisely said not a word, merely saluting her cold-eyed mentor with blade in hand before rejoining her peers, this time determined to be worthy of her band.

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2

    "How are you, shieldsister?" Warm words from the Squire that knew her best, sitting across from her at their preferred dining table, the murmur and din of their classmates all around.

    Jess winced and looked downward, staring intently at her admittedly tasty bowl of fish stew even as her familiar of starry midnight hue contentedly lapped the bowl Jess had placed in front of him, knowing that he was in no danger of being spotted. Indeed, whenever anyone looked dead on at her cat, they tended to go glassy-eyed, shudder, and immediately look away. Yet whenever she jumped on it, almost making a game of their reaction, they would always frown and give her the most curious of looks, utter sincerity writ across their features when they swore they had seen nothing at all.

    "Jess, you''re woolgathering again," Malek teased, gentle brown eyes filled with worry he couldn''t quite hide.

    It was then that Jess noticed the concerned looks of Raphael diOnni and Josie de Lakere, two friends dear to her heart, much like Malek, who had forgiven Jess her eccentricities long ago.

    Jess looked down once more at her bowl of soup, contents splattering ever so slightly from her trembling spoon.

    She took a deep breath and forced herself to still.

    "Jess?" Josie''s clear blue eyes stared deeply into her own, and it was Jess who flushed and looked away, even as Raphael flashed her the gentlest of smiles.

    "It will soon be time then, I take it?" Raphael''s quiet words, calculated so that no one outside their small circle at the corner of the grand table they sat at could hear.

    Malek chuckled softly, dressed in the standard Highrock school uniform of dark blue doublet and hose, with a white linen shirt worn underneath. The outer attire was most often wool, though cotton, linen, even silk might be worn. Since so many of the students were themselves of noble decent, the cut of the cloth and even the coloring were flexible, so long as one stayed true to the design.

    "If anyone would know what was to come, it would be you, I suppose." Malek''s teasing gaze turned hard as steel. "And some things are to be discussed not at all. Under any circumstances."

    Raphael, himself wearing a silken uniform of deep burgundy red, blanched at Malek''s expression before offering an almost apologetic smile. ¡°You know the value I place on both friendship and trust, Malek. Neither one of which I would betray. That being said, I am no fool, and rumor abounds like fruit on a summer vine. My only concern is for your safety. Both of you.¡±

    He turned his gentle gaze to Jess. ¡°Are you all right, my friend?¡±

    Jess grinned. ¡°Of course the son of the savviest trader in all of Erovering would weave finest cloth from the wisps of innuendo floating about this school.¡±

    Josie, healer in training, flashed Jess a teasing smile. "That, and you died your hair black as night. None of us are stupid, Jess. We all know what that means. We just want to make sure that, well, you''ll be okay."

    Jess swallowed and gazed at her soup once more. ¡°I know what''s coming,¡± she said, voice suddenly raw. ¡°I''ll be damned if I turn tail and run. Not now. Not... when I''m useful. When I''m needed.¡±

    Malek gently nodded. ¡°The first time''s always the hardest. That''s what Neal said. Rowan as well.¡±

    Jess squeezed her trembling hands into fists. ¡°And we will not flinch, falter, or fail... no matter how badly we make fools of ourselves on the training grounds.¡±

    Malek reached out, gently squeezing Jess''s hand with his own.

    Her heart raced despite herself, though she did naught but nod solemnly at her shieldbrother''s words. ¡°We will be ready, shieldbrother. Though I did make a disaster of today''s lesson. Not only when I gave point, but when I cut as well.¡±

    Malek shrugged. "Boiled rawhide is a hell of a lot tougher than most people realize. It isn''t leather, tanned and treated for suppleness, easily pierced by dagger or arrow. It''s boiled in glue. The average spearman can''t pierce it more than an inch, and any arrow shot at range or poor angle won''t penetrate worth a damn. It''s tough, cheap, durable if properly maintained, and most of the continent''s front line infantry are equipped with breastplates of that very material. Leggings as well, if they are lucky. Topped with simple iron helms baked in ash and quenched, those armaments serve as cheap, solid defense against the average pikeman, or against arrows shot at range."

    Jess nodded. "For all that limbs and neck are vulnerable to slashing blows, one still has to get close enough to deliver the cut. And a forest of pike three to five men deep means that few commanders are worried about sabermen breaking enemy lines and slashing their soldiers apart, as all of them are taught how to brace their weapons against charging cavalry."

    ¡°Exactly,¡± Malek said. ¡°And few save us Squires are trained how to cut through such armor in any case, and even with our specialized sabers...¡±

    Jess flushed and looked away. ¡°Everyone was staring at me, Malek. And Eloquin... I knew, even though he said nothing, that he was disappointed. I''ve been able to cut through cuir bouilli since we started this semester. But today?¡±

    Malek nodded. ¡°Today, with everyone staring, knowing what was coming, you lacked the focus to cut and slice with speed and power sufficient to bite cleanly through while on your mount. It happens, Jess, and when it did happen, you knew just what to do.¡±

    Jess smirked. ¡°Yeah, flip saber to armored shield hand, draw out my war hammer, and pound away like a madwoman on that dummy''s helm.¡±

    Malek winked. ¡°And dent it all to hell you did. Not even Eloquin could complain.¡±

    "Yes. Because a frenzy of fury and brute force is all I have going for me when I can''t focus worth a damn."

    Malek shrugged. ¡°Survival and victory forgive any number of sins of technique.¡±

    Their conversation flitted on to happier topics, Raphael and Josie both sensing a sore subject best avoided, and before long Jess''s brooding had been replaced by the warmth and camaraderie of good friendship and banter, and Jess flushed only a little bit when she felt hands both soft and powerful massage her shoulders before lustrous midnight tresses and the most beautiful ebony eyes Jess had ever seen suddenly filled her view.

    "Rowan," she said at last, earning a smile from the olive-hued beauty gazing so intently at her. Rowan''s coloring and the exotic tilt to her gaze evidenced her mixed heritage, as did her height, the tallest female Squire of their band, though not willowy by any means. Her body was as lusciously curved as any woman could desire, her limbs near as strong as any man. She was a year older than Jess, and loved to tease, declaring them exactly the same, save for coloring and height.

    At that very moment she was shaking her head as she brushed back Jess''s hair. ¡°You are going to have to try harder, Jess, if you really want to be Eloquin''s favorite little hellion.¡±

    She chuckled throatily as she said it, and Jess felt her cheeks flush hotly, even as Rowan teased Jess with her brilliant smile. ¡°I''ve fenced with you any number of times, my sweet little shieldsister, and normally you give me a run for my money, but twice I beat you in the bind today, and longswords are your strength.¡±

    She shook her head and tisked, soft fingers playfully stroking Jess''s throat. "So vulnerable, to let a cut like that get through. And normally it is you marking me," she said, gently clasping Jess''s trembling hand and poking her own chest with it. "A thrust right through the heart, when you shift my sword off line, running me through."

    Jess swallowed, staring grimly at her soup, even as her friends laughed.

    ¡°I think you should take Rowan''s tips to heart, shieldsister,¡± Malek winked. ¡°You''re quick and unpredictable, but Rowan''s very good at feeling you out, when your blades kiss in the bind.¡±

    Jess grimaced at her friend''s choice of words, noting the mischievous twinkle to Rowan''s absurdly beautiful kohl-lined eyes, filling up Jess''s world and leaving her speechless, as always.

    ¡°I look forward to our next match, little sister of the blade.¡± Rowan winked and sauntered off, and Jess couldn''t help but note how more than a few of the powerfully builtscions that inhabited their grand dining hall gazed after her like a pack of hungry wolves. And no dress did Rowan wear, but tight, formfitting doublet and hose, much as was Jess herself, though Rowan, both lush and muscular, filled it out in ways Jess could only dream of. Not that Jess hadn''t blossomed herself this past year, but talking to Rowan? Never easy, her tongue always tripping over itself and her dreams always restless, if she thought of her sister-in-arms too frequently.

    Josie grinned. ¡°I think she likes you, Jess. I really do.¡±

    Jess laughed. ¡°She likes to tease me, you mean. She has half the boys wrapped around her little finger. She wears the Highrock uniform because she likes the way it makes her feel, she said. But she can carry off a dress as well as any student that went to finishing school, and I know for a fact that two boys have already proposed to her.¡±

    ¡°But you like her.¡± Josie, eyes peering way too closely at Jess for her own comfort.

    ¡°Well of course I do,¡± Jess whispered. ¡°But I know she just likes to tease me, like I''m her little sister-in-arms, and it''s her job to take care of me.¡±

    Malek gave her dyed locks an affectionate rub. ¡°Of course. It''s our job to watch your back, sister, just like you ward our front.¡±

    And thankfully there was no more talk about Rowan as Raphael entertained them with his father''s latest exotic trade venture, and the way his father negotiated past the shark-filled waters of duplicitous factors and trade consortiums, slipping a fantastic fortunes in precious artifacts past crooked inspectors, all brought for a song, Jess almost felt as transported into the story as she did any tale of high adventure. Yet what truly made her smile was the way Josie hung on to every word, gazing at her beau with a look of sweetest adoration. A look Raphael returned, and Jess knew exactly where they would be going as the lunch bell rung.

    Jess sighed, walking beside her shieldbrother to their next class. ¡°They make a cute couple, don''t they?¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    Malek blinked. "Josie and Raphael? Come to think about it, I guess they are a couple now. For all that Raphael made it sound like they were Krona sophisticates just weeks ago, mutual admirers establishing a strategic alliance to wile away lonely hours together, I never saw Josie as the type to love with anything less than all her heart."

    Jess nodded. ¡°And the way they were gazing at each other, laughing over lunch... I don''t think she''s the only one feeling a spark... and he better not break her heart, or there will be hell to pay.¡±

    Malek chuckled softly at that even as Jess suddenly groaned, gazing at the anxious countenances of a number of her fellows rushing to their etiquette class as the sonorous notes of the bronze bell gently echoed through the massive keep. "I completely forgot about etiquette."

    Malek shrugged. ¡°Since when did you care so much about etiquette, let alone any other class?¡±

    Jess smirked. "I don''t. But madam Putrice seems to have it in for me whenever I attend her class, ever since she got back from her family estates, intimating that fixing me was to be her pet project this year.¡±

    Malek winced. ¡°That lady has it in for any girl who doesn''t look like she just came from a finishing school.¡±

    Jess shuddered. ¡°Please don''t even say that word. If I''m not damn careful, Putrice will see me in a dress before the year is out.

    ¡°Somehow, Jess, I just don''t see that happening.¡±

    Unfortunately, Jess did, finding class to be every bit as bad as she had feared. Their professor, though beautiful in a cold, elegant sort of way, wore a perpetual frown, never quite happy with any of their half-hearted attempts at mastering the social niceties of Court, and more than willing to put any student on the spot and lecture them before the entire body, whatever their social rank. Jess, for all that she was herself the daughter of a named lord, was spared not a wit from her professor''s caustic gaze or words calculated to humiliate or intimidate. If anything, Jess''s very heritage would be used against her, as she found to her chagrin that day.

    "Now I expect you all to have diplomatic Velheim protocol memorized in its entirity by the morrow. Class dismissed." Jess sighed with relief, sharing a smile with Malek, as more than a few frustrated sighs were emitted their teacher''s way.

    ¡°Calenbry. You will stay.¡± Cold eyes bored into her own.

    Jess swallowed and retook her seat, receiving a final sympathetic glance from her friend as Malek slowly parted from the room.

    "Your grasp of protocol and etiquette is appalling, Jessica. And though scholars can be forgiven a certain degree of social naivete, your understanding of diplomatic treaties between Erovering and her neighbors is no better than a child''s."

    Jess frowned. ¡°That''s not true, professor. I have a fair grasp of Velheim''s military...¡±

    A silken glove smacked Jess''s table.

    Startled, Jess jolted back, immediately stilling her tightly wound battle instincts as Putrice''s cold gaze locked upon her own. "This is not a course on military doctrine, nor is it about waving around your pretty sword and pretending you are a knight. You are a lady, Jessica, born to rank, with title and responsibilities. It''s high time you stopped playing games and started living up to them."

    Stunned, Jess blinked, at an utter loss for words.

    Professor Putrice let the silence build for some moments, looking both elegant and deadly in her silken dress, hair done up in a sophisticated weave, showing off her milky smooth neck to exquisite effect. Yet beautiful as she was, Jess saw only coldness in the woman''s eyes, gazing back at Jess.

    Jess had to fight not to look away.

    If anything, the professor''s gaze grew more disapproving. "Insolent as well as slothful, reckless, and poorly mannered, with absolutely no sense of family duty or loyalty. Your mother, dear Jessica, will not be pleased."

    Jess blanched. Her heart raced. ¡°You know my mother?¡±

    Lush lips curved into the coldest of smiles. ¡°Indeed I do. Agda and I are quite close. And I do not mind telling you that she is worried. Exceedingly worried about the well-being of her eldest daughter. And considering the quality of your studies and your absolutely inappropriate, even reckless focus upon pursuits suited only for the most brutish of lords, I must say that her concerns are well founded.¡±

    Jess swallowed, her heart now beating at a furious gallop, as if she was truly about to engage an enemy with live steel. Taking a deep breath, as if finding herself upon a precipice, she forced herself to speak. "I do the best I can, professor. But... academic subjects tend to stick to my mind no better than flour through a sieve. If it''s tactics or military history..."

    "I don''t give two damns about military history!" Putrice snapped. "And frankly, save for assuring your future husband''s interests are secure, neither should you!" She shook her head disapprovingly at a suddenly speechless Jess.

    ¡°I''ve talked with your other professors, Jessica. We have come to a consensus. Your talents as a scholar are appalling, and your focus on military pursuits is blatantly inappropriate for the daughter not only of a noble, but of a named lord at that.¡±

    Jess blinked, at an utter loss for words. Whatever she had feared would come of her professor''s lecture, never did she think it would turn as bleak as it had.

    Her familiar, curled up upon her desk, open one sapphire blue eye and winked at Jess. ¡°It is so nice when serpents reveal their true colors, particularly when they end up being puppets of your mother, who does pull so very many strings.¡±

    Putrice, of course, hadn''t heard a word, though she looked, if anything, even more displeased. "Quit woolgathering, Jessica. If you were any more distracted, I would think you mentally impaired!" She took a deep breath, pinning Jess with her calculating gaze.

    "I am well aware of the fact that your armsmaster convinced Echobart to allow you to stay on, despite your appalling academic performance last year. You may rest assured, however, that if you do not turn yourself around and cease risking your bloody neck prancing about on your horse as if you were anything other than a child at play, and comport yourself as a proper lady and apply yourself to your studies, I, along with every other professor suffering the grave misfortune of having you in their classes, will make the case before Dean Echobart that your appalling academic performance is completely unforgivable, and an insult to the deserving scholar that could be studying in your place. We shall insist that you be expelled at once and remanded immediately into your mother''s custody, where you can attend a proper finishing school, as I suspect should have been your lot all along!"

    The foulest words Jess could imagine buzzed about her ears. She was stunned, blinking in disbelief.

    To have any professor so coldly disparage her, to know not only that they disapproved but would actively seek to get her expelled, to separate her from the only band of friends and fellows who understood her or her fierce desire to fight and serve as a future protector of Erovering, consigning her instead to a lot no better than that of a second tier lady-in-waiting whose well-being depended upon slavish devotion to her mistress or future husband... the horror of it left her absolutely speechless.

    ¡°My mother put you up to this, didn''t she? She compelled you to organize all my professors against me. What does she have on you, I wonder?¡±

    Jess blinked, as surprised to hear the bitter words slip past her lips as Lady Putrice was to hear them.

    Lady Putrice''s open palm cracked against a startled cheek.

    Jess''s eyes teared.

    Her hands trembled in fury.

    ¡°Get out of my class!¡± Her professor hissed.

    Surprised to find herself shaking, Jess did just that, fists clenched to her side, doing everything she could just to make it to the door.

    ¡°Jessica.¡±

    She forced herself to turn around. Surprisingly, there was no malice from her professor''s gaze. Only an icy coldness. Whether contempt, disappointment, or disgust, Jess couldn''t quite tell.

    ¡°Wash that damned dye out of your hair. You are a Squire no longer. You are a noble lady, and it''s high time you started acting like it. And if you challenge me in this? You can expectto find yourself expelled. Now leave. I have nothing further to say to you.¡±

    The walk back to her quarters was both surreal and strange. She did her best to hide her face, shamed to be so marked, horrified by what her professor had revealed.

    ¡°By the gods, Twilight, by the gods!¡± She shook, stumbling into her quarters with only two curious stares sent her way, the door opening immediately to her touch, before shutting quietly once more.

    Her cat flowed off his favorite perch, having spent the entirety of their dizzy walk back to her own private quarters softly licking her cheek, as if to comfort her.

    ¡°I commend your remarkable show of restraint, my mistress, considering the depth of the machinations in play against you.¡±

    Jess dropped to her bed, head in hands, wincing only slightly at touching her cheek. "By the gods, Twilight, how dare she!" She trembled with frustration. "How dare she hate me so much that she would deliberately align all the pieces so as to see me struck from the board!"

    Twilight flowed to her table, nodding his head sagely. "Indeed. She never favored you, and always enjoyed putting you on the spot, but no more so than the boys who couldn''t give two figs for etiquette, any more than you do." Sapphire eyes locked upon her own. "You and I both know what this is really about."

    Jess grimaced and nodded. ¡°Mother. It was so hard even to get permission to attend Highrock. And when I went home for the height of summer before this semester, the way she would gaze at me, how she frowned whenever I practiced Eloquin''s techniques on the training dummy and the salted pork and rawhide I purchased with my own coin, thank you very much..." Jess shuddered. "I could tell even then, for all that I didn''t want to face it. And when I had the savvy to make my preparations to head back here weeks before the semester started, pinning Mother with a promise she had made to let me go back early, she had merely nodded her head, as if I had moved a piece in some great game we were playing."

    Twilight flashed a cool grin. ¡°Well do I remember that look. I knew it would be an interesting year then. Oh well, at least your father and brother gave you a warm farewell.¡±

    Jess nodded. "That they did. We shared wine and laughter, yet even then Father was trying to wheedle me into making certain promises that I could just taste were traps, for all that I know he loves me, and, well, you accidentally poking me just so, whenever he would ask his leading questions... such that I had to call it a good night and left the next morning, dreading what they might have cooked up if I had dared stick around for even one more day."

    Twilight nodded solemnly. ¡°It was probably wise for us to head out with what food we could steal from the cook, ordering the seneschal to send your luggage ahead at the earliest convenience. Your Squire armaments are stored here, and if denying you clothes or books sent was to be your mother''s counter, well, far better we let her vent her ire on something harmless.¡±

    Jess sighed. ¡°Yet everything arrived as expected, with additional cuttings carefully packed for me to transplant to the gardens here. Oh Twilight, she was too graceful in her letter of apology to me. I should have known it was merely silk over a steel fist, still intent on grabbing whatever it wants.¡±

    Twilight smirked. ¡°Your destiny. For you to be yet another adorable little doll upon your mother''s board.¡±

    Jess chuckled at that. ¡°Pretty much, Twilight. Pretty much.

    She bit back bitter tears. ¡°By the gods, Twilight, what am I going to do now?¡±

    Twilight said nothing at that, merely gazing at her quietly.

    Jess shook her head. ¡°That''s right. When it comes to decisions this big, you always leave it to me to decide.¡±

    "This affects you and you alone, my mistress. And it is your destiny that you shape now. The choice must be yours, the path you take. Any move I make at this point in time? Would be ill-advised."

    Jess frowned at that. ¡°What do you mean by that, Twilight?¡±

    Her cat just flashed his enigmatic grin, before curling up and, apparently, falling right to sleep.

    "You''re not fooling anyone, cat."

    Her familiar made no response, and Jess thought his idea a sound one, falling asleep as well.

 Chapter 3

    ¡°Jess, get up! Evening practice!¡±

    A groggy Jess forced herself to waken upon hearing Malek''s insistent knocking. A faint surge of her will and the door opened with hardly a sound, Malek pale-faced and swallowing before he shook it off with a smile. "A mage you are not, Shieldsister, but there''s no one else I''d rather have fighting by my side."

    Jess grinned. ¡°You''re just saying that because no arrow will dare mark my flesh.¡±

    Malek winked. ¡°That could have something to do with it. Wood likes you, shieldsister.¡± His frown turned serious then. ¡°Of course, with what''s coming... it isn''t your peers fighting in jest.¡±

    Jess swallowed and nodded. "But men who would kill us if they could."

    Her friend nodded. ¡°Will your gift hold, even when men are doing everything they can to spear us dead?¡±

    Jess grimaced. ¡°I can only hope, Malek. I can only hope.¡± She refused to meet his gaze.

    Malek''s frowned, gently stroking back locks of carefully dyed hair. ¡°Jess, what''s wrong?¡±

    A shuddering sigh was her only response. ¡°Come on, Malek, let''s train.¡±

    A short time later found Jess fully kitted once more, securing her helm with a final tightening of its strap, thankful as always that Eloquin had insisted on his Squires being equipped with the best quality steel armor the kingdom had to offer. Whereas most troopers were lucky for a simple bowl helm of iron that might or might not have been at all hardened by the charcoal it was baked in, Jess and her peers had been gifted with custom fitted helms of quality steel that protected her head from all angles of attack, with a visor to raise and lower as needed. It was an exquisite reminder of just how deeply General Eloquin and the Crown itself had invested in its Squires.

    And Lady Putrice would be all too happy to take that away from Jess, if she could.

    Smooth as silk, Jess withdrew her training blade, alike her longsword in terms of length and balance, save for exceedingly blunt edges and a rolled back tip to assure she wouldn''t accidentally penetrate even naked flesh with too hard a thrust, for all that her opponent would feel the force of the blow.

    ¡°Are you ready, Jess?¡± Malek asked some moments later once she had stepped out onto the training field, and Jess could sense his smile, even through his lowered visor as Rowan cheered them on.

    ¡°Impress me, Jess! Let''s show these lads what Valkyries are capable of!¡±

    Jess grinned at a beaming Rowan, doing her best not to let her friend''s stare distract her focus even as she saluted Malek and they began their deadly dance, blades in Ochs, points aimed at each other''s throats, each measuring the other, gauging shifts in balance and breath, before exploding into action.

    Jess lashed out, stepping forward and to the right, attempting to seize the Vor with a quick, snapping Zwerchhau strike, her wrists quickly windmilling her blade for a devastating blow to Malek''s left temple.

    The clang of steel as Malek managed to counter the blow, their blades pressed against one another, feeling each other''s strengths and weaknesses, Malek seizing his moment, attempting to power through the bind, blasting forward off his back foot in a blow that could well have spit Jess cleanly through, had she been unarmored against live steel.

    As it was, she had already spun to her left, meeting his strength with weakness, her blade flowing free of the bind even as Malek rushed forward, Jess stepping out of his line of attack as she snapped her hips, her blade whistling through the air in a tight arc, smacking the back of her friend''s helm even as he stumbled past, unable to ward himself in time.

    As one they stepped away and bowed. Rowan, visor raised, clapping Jess''s armored shoulder and smiled, her sensual gaze sending Jess''s heart aflutter.

    "Well done, sister of the blade! And now I shall best a far too confident looking Neal." And how did her friend manage to look so elegant when heat and sweat were the price they all paid, no matter that Eloquin relegated training in full armor to the hours around dusk and dawn? Yet before Jess could untie her tongue, Rowan was off with Neal, the pair chatting animatedly before visors were lowered and their own match begun in earnest.

    Jess blinked and turned her gaze where it belonged, noting Malek''s brooding countenance.

    ¡°Are you all right, shieldbrother?¡±

    Malek offered a rueful chuckle. "And here I was, worried about you. But the way you were gazing at Rowan, it seems you are yourself, once more."

    Jess grinned. "At least I know where I stand with the longsword, even if a certain girl''s gaze does throw me off, sometimes. Too bad I messed things up so royally on horseback this morning."

    Malek shrugged. "Your form was perfect if you were charging into the crush, but of course we were miming hit and run skirmishes. Don''t worry it like a dog''s bone, Shieldsister. In some ways, using the estoc as we do is trickier than the lance. We have to angle our blows and immediately dip downward after spearing footmen, or lurch and twist in our saddles if we lance horsemen so that our foe''s body twists around, and the only strain we feel is when our estoc is pulled free of our foes by the power of our own mount, before we ready our blades once more."

    Jess nodded. "The shock of impact and ruptured organs means that once our sword punches through, that''s one foe out of the fight. Still, it''s damn hard sometimes not to pierce our targets straight on, and then we must let go if we do not want to risk a broken wrist, even if our foe is as good as dead."

    Malek nodded. "And then it''s a simpler affair. We draw Eloquin''s brilliantly forged cavalry sabers, designed so well for the battlefield as opposed to Velheim''s fencing salons, and slice our foes wide open, whether they are on horse or foot."

    Jess nodded. ¡°For all that the longswords we seek to master allow us to be kings upon the field when on foot, readying us for the Zweihanders we will wield one day, on horseback it is saber or war hammer that will decide if the battle is won or lost, once lances break in the charge and estocs are no longer in play. And it is those weapons we must be ready to use when king and Crown cry havoc..."

    "¡­ and release their hounds of war." A dry chuckle followed. Malek stiffened even as Jess grimaced and forced herself to turn around, facing the most arrogant of students, Mord de Plaga himself.

    Sleek of build with saturnine features and a mocking gaze, his arrogance was not without merit. He was as handsome as any king, and twice as proud. After humiliating her so thoroughly the very first day she had attended Highrock, Jess still trembled with what she was sure was fury whenever his hungry gaze caught her own.

    ¡°That is one thing I admire about you, Jess. For all that you failed miserably to earn your spurs as a Knight Aspirant, being found unworthy of Lord Hyve''s glorious ranks, you still persevered like the most noble of fighting hounds, determined to make something of yourself, even if it is learning to fight in the trenches, as ruthless and savage as any assassin, learning the darkest tricks of the trade.¡±

    His twisted grin she recognized all too well, yet his words surprised her. ¡°Truly, I can almost admire that, Jessica de Calenbry. I said you belonged in a dress from the day we met, serving her master as is every woman''s lot, but you have made it quite clear that yours is a fierce spirit, not easily broken.¡±

    He radiated an odd sort of approval, save for his mocking gaze. "In fact, your skills with the longsword are almost... passable. Not that you will ever be my equal, of course. Something we established the first and only time we ever crossed blades."

    ¡°Any time, any place, Mord.¡± Nostrils flaring, Jess''s pride still stung from their first and only match.

    Mord chuckled dryly. "I think not, girl. We already established who is the master, and who is destined to serve. No need to confuse the issue any further, I think. Not that you will get much chance to do such, in any case," he said, his taunting voice causing Jess''s heart to race, and she understood in that moment that he knew everything.

    ¡°What the blazes are you talking about, Mord?¡± Malek demanded.

    "Oh, you didn''t hear? Your dear little shieldsister is forbidden to participate in the dark revels General Eloquin, with his deliciously savage reputation, has chosen for you to embrace."If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "Jess, what the hell is he talking about?" Malek tore off his helmet, his gaze a mixture of fury and confusion.

    Jess swallowed and lowered her gaze. ¡°Lady Putrice,¡± she whispered. ¡°If I don''t start wearing dresses and surrender my bid to be a Squire of War... she will seek to have me expelled from the school.¡±

    ¡°Bloody hells!¡±

    Mord smirked. "Oh yes, dear Malek. It appears your shieldsister is not exactly a scholar. In fact, she is, perhaps, the worst student every to attend this school. Lady Putrice knows that our dear Jessica being here as anything other than the daughter of a named lord being groomed for her future master... I mean husband, is a joke, a farce, a waste of a good seat a true scholar could put to better use. So, if dear Jessica does not apply herself to her familial duty at once, she will be expelled."

    Jess trembled, clenching her fists tightly together, not trusting herself to say a word.

    ¡°And how the hell do you know this, Plaga?¡±

    Mord did not even deign to answer Malek''s question, pinning Jess with his taunting gaze. "I told you I would see you in a dress, Jessica de Calenbry. And you''ve filled out in all the right places this last year, for all that your shoulders are too damned thick for any proper girl." He chuckled softly. "Fret not. Lady Putrice will try to make your taming as painless as possible. I understand she is holding a gala the very night Eloquin would have us blacken our daggers for king and Crown. What a remarkable coincidence. Who knows? Perhaps if you apply kohl and blush, I will even consent to let you attend me during the revels Eloquin honors all those who serve the king''s dark cause."

    Jess gazed at Mord in speechless horror, at a complete loss for words.

    ¡°Wait, bloody hells, you''re blackening your dagger? You, Mord?¡± Malek''s gaze was incredulous.

    Mord grinned. "Why yes, Malek. As you no doubt know, Eloquin and Hyve have their understandings. For all that it is not required, being as we Aspirants are the elite troops, Hyve has made it clear that blooding ourselves for king and country is a grave duty we will all be expected to embrace one day, and what better time and place than offering our assistance to our lessers? So we too can appreciate what life is like in the muck, I suppose."

    Malek shook his head. "I thought the entire lot of you were either too damned arrogant or too damned scared to actually blacken your daggers for anyone. There is no glory in what we''re going to do, Mord."

    Mord''s eyes flashed. "Don''t you dare question my motives, wretch!" He grimaced and blinked, mocking smile once more in place. "I will say this. At least I know you can use a sword. And whatever you might think, a few of us aren''t afraid to get dirty for the sake of a higher... cause." With a dry little chuckle, he turned about on his heels and sauntered off with a mocking wave and final words. "I look forward to seeing what you are really made of in the heat of battle, Malek. And Jess? I look forward to seeing you in a dress. And then seeing you take it off."

    ¡°Blood bastard!¡± Jess hissed some moments later, trembling with humiliated fury. ¡°He will not win... I will not let him!¡±

    Her fury quenched to dismay, however, when she saw the look on Malek''s face.

    ¡°Jess. What did Lady Putrice do? What did she say? Bloody hells, is that a mark on your face?¡± He shook his head. ¡°No. It''s already faded. There''s no way that could have happenedtoday, but why didn''t I see that mark before?¡±

    Jess frowned, glancing once for her cat, but he, as was often the case, was attending to his own mysterious duties, and would attend her in his own good time.

    ¡°Jess?¡±

    Jess shook herself, wondering why she had even bothered removing her helmet, knowing questions would be asked. But she was determined not to flinch away from ugly truths. "You and I and sixty odd Squires are to be blooded in three day''s time, Malek. Those of us willing to answer the King''s Call, anyway. Neal, Rowan, and a handful of others are the only veterans of any earlier engagements still at this school. For most of us? This will be our first. And this is to be a secret, a dead secret, with dire consequences for anyone who reveals a word, though Neal let it be known that rumor always follows us, and as long as no one dares mention our target or tactics, all is forgiven."

    Jess gazed down at her clenched fists. "And for Lady Putrice to plan her gala the very night of our departure, to align with all my teachers to see me expelled if I don''t comply with her wishes, seeking to overrule Lord Eloquin himself with every professor who has ever scolded or castigated me since I first got here, I''m sure." Jess scowled. "Somehow, my mother is involved. I just know it!"

    Malek grimaced and nodded. ¡°It was wonderful, visiting your family for the winter solstice. But even then I could tell that for all that your father and brother were proud of you, your mother was eyeing you like a cat would a bird she would bat from the air, if she could.¡±

    Jess chuckled ruefully. "That''s about it. I love her with all my heart, and the fact that I''m good with plants has redeemed any number of my numerous flaws in her eyes. But for all that she was ever content to let me putter about the orchards or garden, fire and steel really started to come to the fore when I showed a proclivity for the True Art, cajoling Father into teaching me the way of the blade, and maneuvering to become a student here."

    Jess shook her head. "The gaze she gave me when I thought I had just managed to escape her clutches after my last summer visit... blast. I should have known my days would be numbered, even after going out of my way to head back to school weeks early, just so I would be away from any traps waiting to be sprung."

    Malek offered a sympathetic smile. ¡°As Eloquin says, if you don''t know the terrain and don''t have time to scout it, avoid it. Such will spare you from even the deadliest of traps and ambushes, as you are not around to spring them.¡±

    Jess grimaced and nodded. ¡°Yet she has invaded our territory, conspiring with my least favorite professor and no doubt others as well, all to assure that her daughter is put in her place, living the life of a doll and not a boy, as she put it.¡±

    Malek''s gaze was solemn. ¡°What will you do?¡±

    Jess closed her eyes, ignoring the hot sting of tears, and shook her head. ¡°Honestly, Malek, I just don''t know.¡±

    "I know how you were trembling earlier, Jess." Powerful arms gently enveloped her, despite their armor. "I know the real reason why you''ve been distracted all day, forgetting to angle your estoc, pounding those helmets so furiously with your war hammer. It''s getting to you. Isn''t it, Jess? You''re having second thoughts, even without Putrice''s threats.¡±

    Jess shook in Malek''s gentle grip. "I... it was always so exciting, so fulfilling, proving myself...training as a Squire of War, as one of Eloquin''s elite... striving to be independent, free, worthy of that proud man''s fierce gaze. And I know... I know this is important... but yes, Malek." She forced herself to meet her shieldbrother''s gaze, sliding one gauntleted hand through his sweaty curls. "Should we present ourselves before our mentor three nights from now, we do so knowing that there will be blood on our blades and our souls before the night is out."

    Grimly, Malek nodded. "They are slavers, Jess. For all that Eloquin hasn''t said a word, Neal''s made it clear, the game Eloquin hunts. The blight upon Erovering''s soil, often sponsored by our enemies in Velheim, are bands of former soldiers, mercenaries, or desperate bitter men who have chosen to plunder our most precious resource, our own people, to line their pockets."

    Malek''s eyes flashed. "And so long as they consign themselves to serfs or freemen, most nobles refuse even to trouble the king with the shame of their inability to purge their own lands of that blight, save for lords without shame at all, who are happy to use their own failures as pretext to demand rights to yet more men-at-arms, which the king, understandably, is loath to give. And it is rumored that some lords even accept silver for their own people, brought and sold like chattel."

    Jess nodded. "I know, Malek. I tell myself that, every night I lay shaking, unable to sleep, knowing what''s in store for us."

    Malek flashed a bitter smile. "Yet still you shake. And I don''t blame you." Gentle fingers free of gauntlets stroked her cheek. "As much as we could use you, were anything to happen to you... I rue that day, Jess, for all that it has yet to come."

    Jess squeezed her eyes shut. ¡°Does Neal know... did Neal say what we are up against?¡±

    Solemnly, Malek shook his head.

    "So it could be anything. Forty hardened mercenaries sponsored by Velheim, with the most advanced crossbows, windlass affairs shooting bodkin quarrels that could pierce mail, the death of even a knight, for all that Eloquin''s priceless breastplates would protect us."

    Malek flashed a grim smile. "It is a risk. Or it could be a dozen disorganized former infantrymen with cuir bouilli breastplates, spearheads, and helms of brittle cast iron, and nothing more than that."

    Jess gave a wordless nod, in that moment knowing exactly what her decision must be. Had to be.

    Even if it got her expelled.

    Gauntlets of steel and hardened rawhide caressed his whiskery cheek, receiving a smile. ¡°Promise me one thing. You will tell Eloquin nothing. What will be will be. I will not whine to him like a child.¡±

    Malek chuckled softly. "Of course not. He would expect you to handle your own problems, to not let yourself be intimidated by any professor, even one so resourceful as to organize half the school against you."

    Jess took a deep, shuddering breath. ¡°Let''s call it a night, my friend. Classes start soon enough, tomorrow.¡±

    Malek shook his head. ¡°You would think we would be given leave to collect ourselves, considering what is to come.¡±

    Jess shrugged. "Neal did mention something about week-long revelry after our duty. Like soldiers on crusade, none will dare question us carrying on like, well..."

    ¡°... like a bunch of drunken students?¡±

    Jess chuckled softly. "Perhaps, but you know I am when drunk."

    Twinkling eyes told a blushing Jess that Malek remembered certain things quite clearly indeed, for all that so much had changed between them.

    ¡°Get some rest, Jess. And remember, you don''t have to do this. None of us do. And I sure as blazes wouldn''t want to see you expelled.¡±

    Jess nodded. "Let''s just see what tomorrow has in store for us."

 Chapter 4

    More than one student blinked in surprise to see Jess in a dress that morning, and that was not the only alteration to her appearance, Josie clasping her hand warmly, tightly, as if to make sure she wouldn''t try to bolt from all the stares she was receiving. ¡°Oh Jess, it is so good to see you in one of my outfits! Doesn''t it feel nice, the way the air flows comfortably about, cooling you, your legs not caught up and overheating you this time of year in those woolen leggings?¡±

    Jess shrugged. For all that she hated woolen leggings so soon after summer, before things had finally cooled down, linen and cotton were comfortable enough. Even silk, on truly memorable occasions. This dress on the other hand? She winced and turned away as yet another young Aspirant leered at her. Would-be knights, far too many of them had taken on the prickly arrogance characteristic of Mord and Knight Commander Hyve both.

    ¡°Well, well. The upstart is finally in a dress, where she belongs.¡±

    Jess clenched her fists and glared hotly at Calabrin, one of Mord''s cronies, he of sleek build and sensual features, skilled in lance and longsword both. Calabrin brushed back golden curls, frowning at the sight of her. ¡°Did your master finally get tired of watching you wallow in the muck?¡± He tutted and shook his head. ¡°Truly, Jessica, I don''t know why you even bothered. You already failed in your quest to become an Aspirant, the only truly worthy pursuit at this backwater school so far from the capital. You should have resigned yourself to your fate and duty as a would-be lady even then, instead of messing about with a bunch of would-be cutthroats, granted king''s leave or no.¡±

    Far too finely built hands that were nonetheless deadly quick lashed out, cupping her cheek even as Jess prepared to twist and pull back, stumbling instead as she realized at the last possible moment that she would have rammed Josie with her elbow, did she do anything but suffer Calabrin''s touch.

    Calabrin''s lips softened into a smile. ¡°There, now. Don''t stumble away from my touch, Jessica." He eyed her body much like Jess would the armored slabs of meat she was preparing to lance when charging across the field reserved for Squires, Calabrin at last giving her a satisfied nod of approval.

    "Your shoulders belong on a man, but the rest of your curves suit a woman''s dress well enough, Jessica. Though you like to play a fool with talk of a mysterious familiar, as if you were a Druid of old, I know your wit is sharp, and I confess to having smiled a time or two at your jests in the dining hall." He tilted his head. "Mother does favor Calenbry stock for her gardens, and there is much to be said for a lady with a wise woman''s knack. I think, perhaps, your obvious flaws aside, you would be suitable company for a man of my rank."

    Jess blinked and swallowed, stepping back, Calabrin smiling, and Jess realized to her horror that he wasn''t trying to insult her so much as... ¡°By the hells, Calabrin, is this your way of courting me?¡±

    Josie gasped, squeezing Jess''s arm, though whether in horror or approval, Jess couldn''t be certain and didn''t dare turn around, her eyes locked helplessly upon the man gazing upon her so strangely even now, other students quickly hurrying past, for all that Jess cringed at the gossip to come.

    Calabrin''s brows furrowed. "I merely say that you are not entirely unworthy, Jessica, and were you to conduct yourself with proper deportment, well," his gaze was almost one of confusion, shaking his head. "You really are quite beautiful, when you are not trying to play at being a man. In any case, should you present yourself before my quarters two nights hence, the eve of the gala, I will allow you to accompany me to the main hall." Giving a final nod as if he had paid her the greatest of compliments, he hurried on his way.

    Jess blinked, swallowed, utterly confused as to what had just happened.

    ¡°Josie. What just happened?¡±

    Josie''s lips curved into a teasing smile. ¡°I think, dearest Jess, that you allowing me just a moment to put on crushed rose hips and kohl, along with one of the few dresses I have that fits your shoulders was a very good idea indeed.¡±

    Jess flushed. ¡°But... I didn''t even look... I don''t even know what I look like. I just feel silly in this dress!¡±

    Josie winked. ¡°Relax, Jess. Calabrin''s an arrogant fellow, I know, but his family is quite well off, for all that he is a lesser noble. Very few of us come for named stock such as yourself, you know. That you and Raphael are both my closest friends is sweetest serendipity.¡±

    Jess grinned, and it was Josie''s turn to flush, Jess quite convinced that Josie and Raphael had gone far beyond teasing innuendo since their circle of fast friends had formed the year before.

    ¡°Come on, Jess, let''s get ourselves to deportment before the bell rings. You know how Lady Putrice carries on if we are even seconds late.¡± Jess couldn''t help chuckling as her friend rolled her eyes and smiled, making a delightful mockery of the woman in question, for all that Josie was among Putrice''s favorite students, no matter that Josie had skipped class the day before.

    Soon enough, Jess found herself seated in that very class, her cheeks flushing hotly as indistinct whispers filled the spacious room, well lit, thanks to grand, stained glass windows depicting what appeared to be a noble knight bowing before his queen. The woman''s hair had been done with exquisite care, the glass panes dazzling like jewels, and Jess secretly thought a real cut ruby had been used for the eyes, but she couldn''t be sure.

    ¡°Calenbry!¡± Their professor''s voice cut through the din. Instant silence.

    Jess swallowed and forced herself to look up and meet the hard, steely gray eyes of her instructor.

    Dressed elegantly in silk and lace, showcasing her family''s fortunes as much as anything, the exquisitely attired and made up lady gave what seemed the smallest of approving nods. ¡°I see you have paid heed to my words.¡±

    Jess swallowed and nodded.

    ¡°I expect to see a young lady before me, and in this, at least, I am pleased to see you have given proper heed to my words. Your dress is acceptable, your appearance passing-fair.¡± A breathless pause as she turned to address the class. ¡°In two days time our school shall be hosting a social event, and I expect all of you to attend. If you do not have a partner, fret not, I shall assure that you are paired up with someone... appropriate to your station.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    "And for those few of you girls still prancing about in boys attire, I expect you to be wearing dresses, just as is our own dear Jessica. Whatever man''s sport you think to pursue here, your real duties are to serve your families as compliant, dutiful daughters, your every action reflecting upon your family name, and you may rest assured, the time of willful disregard for propriety, appearance, and duty shall end very soon for this school. Are we clear?"

    Jess felt herself flush hot with humiliation, Putrice utterly uncaring that her words had jolted every student in her class. The whispers intensified.

    ¡°Lady Putrice, forgive me, but it sounds like you aim to make this war college a finishing school.¡±

    Jess blinked at those words, uttered by none other than Erica. Possessing an almost delicate beauty that hid surprising strength despite her willowy frame, she was herself a Squire, and even if the weakest of their band in terms of physical prowess, she was a brilliant tactician and the equal of any cavalryman outside of Eloquin''s band.

    The gaze she pinned Jess with as she looked back froze her to the quick.

    It was as if she thought Jess had betrayed their cause.

    Putrice only smiled. "That''s right, my dears. Highrock, as it stands now, is no place for a woman. Boys gird themselves for battle. A woman''s place is hearth and home. You will soon find, I think, that I am not alone in this sentiment. A great many other influential figures feel much the same. At the very least, the Nobles Council now understands the drawbacks to be had in women trained as hellions, as opposed to embracing their duties as responsible ladies of their household. In fact, I do believe our own dear Calenbry now realizes the value of proper etiquette and deportment. Isn''t that right, Jessica?"

    Heart racing, Jess forced herself to speak. ¡°Proper deportment and diplomacy are vital elements of almost all successful negotiations, professor.¡±

    Cold eyes seemed almost to smile. ¡°That is correct. I am pleased that you finally understand that. And Jessica?¡±

    ¡°Yes, professor?¡±

    "Your poorly dyed hair is ill-suited to one of your complexion. I expect to see golden tresses free of all stain and dye come the gala two days hence. Am I clear, Jessica?"

    Jess swallowed and bowed her head. ¡°Your words are crystal clear, professor.¡±

    "Jess, what the hell was that?" Erica, face flushed, glared angrily at Jess, piercing her with beautiful green eyes.

    Jess swallowed and looked away as the gossiping students, so many gazing strangely at Jess, drifted off to other classes or to embrace what free time they had.

    ¡°Jess? Talk to me. What''s going on?¡± Erica was no fool, Jess was glad to see, now coming over to clasp her hand. Josie''s final farewell look had been sympathetic, but a healer''s demands necessitated she spend most of her day in the august presence of her mentors, doing what they could for the maimed or ill nobles who were more than willing to pay a fortune to secure some of the best treatments to be found in all of Erovering.

    Jess took a deep breath, missing her familiar''s presence even now, forcing herself to speak. "If I don''t submit to Putrice''s demands... I will be expelled and sent home."

    Erica''s look was one of horrified outrage. ¡°She can''t do that!¡± she hissed, even now mindful of prying ears, both of them well versed in the importance of discretion in all things military.

    Jess gave the grimmest of nods. ¡°She can. For she has my mother''s support in this.¡±

    Erica grimaced, rubbing her brows. "I''m not an idiot, Jess. Your mother is on absolutely no lord''s lips when my father has nobles over to visit, discussing matters of Council, but whenever your clan comes up... somehow you know that a certain brilliant wife is responsible for keeping a territory larger than most duchies together, a barony to which at least a dozen of the lessers at this college owe direct fealty to, lands that half the dukes on Council would love to seize for themselves, yet somehow, never do."

    Jess gave a rueful shake of her head. ¡°You always were one of the sharpest Squires, Erica, and Eloquin takes only the best.¡±

    Erica sighed. ¡°So what does this mean, Jess?¡±

    Jess grimaced, fiercely holding back bitter, treacherous tears. ¡°It means that if I don''t acquiesce to dresses and dances, if I dare to ride forth or even train as a Squire, Putrice, along with every single one of my professors, will petition for Dean Echobart to have me dismissed. Sent home in disgrace, or perhaps with a padded diploma to soothe bruised egos, no one wishing to antagonize my father, for all that they hold me in absolute contempt.¡±

    Erica slowly nodded. "I know he fought beside Eloquin, though our mentor cuts you no extra slack for that. If anything, he pushes you harder than any of us."

    Jess flushed and bowed her head, not realizing it had been that obvious.

    ¡°Bloody hells, Jess! If you can''t fight with us, then that means...¡±

    Jess swallowed and nodded. "It means, expertly armored as we are, any siege bolt, arrow, or spearhead could still find its mark. It means as elite as Eloquin forged us to be, casualties might occur that could have been avoided."

    Gentle green eyes gazed intently at her. ¡°What will you do?¡±

    Jess sighed, leaning her head against the finely polished oaken door leading to her quarters. ¡°I''m not entirely sure.¡±

    Erica slowly nodded. ¡°Whatever you do, Jess, I support you.¡± She offered a smile. ¡°I can see how you would prefer to stay, even if it means wearing dresses. The gods know I''m more grateful than words can say to be able to escape my mother''s perfectly planned life, and forge my own destiny for a bit.¡±

    ¡°Exactly.¡±

    ¡°But if you dare to blacken your dagger, you will be expelled.¡±

    ¡°It sure looks that way.¡±

    A gentle grip, squeezing her shoulder in sympathy. "I''m here for you either way, Jess."

    Without thinking, Jess leaned back, softly kissing Erica''s lips with her own. ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Erica flushed and looked away. As did Jess.

    ¡°I''m sorry.¡±

    Erica gently shook her head. ¡°It''s alright, Jess. I know you''ll make the right choice for you. And as your friend? I stand by you.¡± Her smile turned rueful. ¡°Don''t expect Neal to feel the same way, though.¡±

    Jess winced. "Our battle leader? No way he will accept this. He''s counting on me to ward us, just as much as Eloquin."

    "Take care, Jess, okay? If you need a friend to talk to... my door is always open to you. Just..."

    Jess chuckled softly. "Just to talk. I know. Thank you, Erica." With that, Jess entered her quarters, her thick oaken door opening of its own accord.

 Chapter 5

    As rough as she had found etiquette that morning, firmly focusing upon her wax tablet as her loquacious mathematics professor waxed profound upon topics Jess barely understood, ears burning with the rumors circulating even in that class, so many curious stares sent her way. Whispers that she had been broken. Tamed. That she was consigned for finishing school, and a Squire no longer. Those last comments had sickened her, but not so much as the hurt stares flashed her way by Neal and Lucas both, fellow Squires who, for all their differences, had accepted Jess as one of their own from the day she had first kitted up as one of Eloquin''s Chosen.

    "Jess, is it true?" Four soft words. Jess was forced to look up from a bowl of stew she couldn''t bear to eat, Neal of the perpetually unruly hair pinning her gaze with his own.

    Hazel eyes demanded an answer.

    Jess grimaced and looked away. For some reason, she was unable to say a word.

    All but trembling, she waited until she sensed him turn away, only then looking at Malek, solemnly seating himself beside her, powerful arms squeezing her shoulders, saying nothing, waiting for her to speak in her own time.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    He shrugged. ¡°I didn''t go to class today because I wanted to strangle that bitch and throw her right through that stained glass window you so adore.¡± he flashed a bleak smile. ¡°Somehow, I didn''t think you or Eloquin would approve, so I just spent the morning pounding my frustrations at the pells. Not that those hunks of armored meat will be suitable for anything but pig scrap, well cured as they are.¡±

    Jess smiled. ¡°I''m glad you skipped class, then. Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor.¡±

    Malek grimaced. ¡°From what I could glean, Putrice really is playing a long game, and is deadly intent upon seeing you expelled. Frankly, I think you actually conceding to the dress just might have surprised her. Maybe you did do the smart thing. Maybe if you play the game she sets she will have to keep to her own accord, and not seek to see you expelled, for all that a friend assured me she had heard no less than three of our professors eager to see things come to a head for you." Malek flashed a bleak smile. "Or perhaps her ire is itself an act, and all this a farce to see you attend her little gala like a frightened doe, docile and compliant, sweetmeats for all the boys to gaze upon, making her fete a complete success."

    Jess winced, her stomach roiling at the news. To think that far more than bland indifference, her professors were actively conspiring against her truly sickened her.

    ¡°Jess. What are we going to do?¡±

    Jess turned to face Malek, gentle brown eyes filling up her world. She flinched and looked away.

    Some things could never be.

    "I don''t know, Malek. I just think back upon Eloquin''s lessons, and I remember that sometimes the hard choice is the one you must face, head-on. And sometimes it pays to do just what your enemies expect."Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    Malek flashed a grim smile. ¡°So that when you pivot and turn, it is when they least expect it, so certain they had you figured out. And somehow, I doubt Putrice thought you''d ever concede to dress and... makeup, I see.¡±

    Jess felt her cheeks redden. ¡°That''s Josie''s bit of magic. I''m afraid of what would happen if I tried.¡±

    Malek grinned, his gaze strangely gentle, which didn''t help Jess''s blush one bit.

    ¡°You know, Jess...¡±

    ¡°Don''t say it.¡±

    Malek chuckled softly. "I will say it anyway. Seeing you like this, as beautiful as any princess, makes me glad that maybe you can be spared the madness we will be embracing, two nights hence." His wink was teasing, but his words were painfully sincere. "It would be a comfort to me, knowing you will be safe here, no matter what fate has in store for us out there. Jess?"

    But Jess had already turned away, heart racing, darting for her quarters as fast as her legs swishing in clumsy dresses would take her.

    ¡°Jess, wait up!¡±

    ¡°Leave me be, Malek!¡± Jess snapped.

    ¡°Jess, hold on!¡±

    Eyes flashing, she turned on her friend. ¡°How dare you treat me as just another wallflower, Malek! We''re brothers in battle and blood, you said so yourself! When everyone else looked askance at us, we stuck together and doubled our efforts until the whole damn band of Squires had to acknowledge that we have just as much right to be there as them!¡±

    Jess clenched her hands into helpless fists. ¡°And my bloody mother, so damned determined to control my life, is making it impossible for me to fight by your side when you all need me the most!"

    A painful silence, Malek gazing at her strangely, before bowing his head. ¡°You''re right, Jess, I''m sorry. It''s just that...¡±

    ¡°It''s just that you care for me, you want to protect me, even though we are lovers no longer. I get it, Malek. I really do. My brother-in-arms, my closest friend, even if you''ve given your heart to another.¡±

    Malek squeezed his eyes shut, nodding once. ¡°Jacob needs me, Jess. You know that.¡±

    ¡°I do.¡±

    "Jess... I''m sorry. I just... I''d fight by your side to Hell and back, but all the same, if anything were to happen..."

    Jess flashed a bitter smile, ignoring the tears pouring freely down her cheeks. "Don''t you think I feel the same, Malek? About all of you? As terrified as I am of blackening my dagger, how much worse would it be to know you all were heading off to threats unknown, and I was forced to stay behind, worrying as to whether my friends were alive or dead, and knowing that there was not a damned thing I could do, stuck here in this stupid dress?"

    More than a few stares were sent their way, students hurrying past at a brisk pace, too discrete to gawk openly. Jess did her best to ignore them, prudent even now to speak only in the vaguest terms about what was to come.

    Malek gazed solemnly at a trembling Jess for some moments. ¡°So what will you do?¡±

    A bitter shake of her head. ¡°I don''t know!¡±

    Gentle arms swept her up, holding her close.

    There was nothing Jess hated so more than to feel so trapped and helpless, just another silly girl in a dress being comforted by her man. It didn''t keep her from sobbing in his arms.

 Chapter 6

    The night breeze blowing from the hallway window was cool against her skin, the scents of spruce and evening primrose heavy in the air. She didn''t know why she so intent on walking the school grounds in the dead of night, but wore Josie''s dress still, just in case, and the cold-eyed gaze of one of the many servants conveniently lounging near her quarters let Jess know that Lady Putrice had spared no efforts in her recruitment, and truly Jess thought it a sad thing to see that things had gone so far.

    "Hello, Tal," Jess said to the suddenly discomfited man whose fever and awful wheeze she had treated just months before. She remembered how hot he had been, moaning and thrashing, before she and Lady Salrie, the head herbalist and perhaps the only professor save Eloquin who truly cared about her, for all that Jess was not even formally her student, had managed to coax their tincture down his throat.

    Tal grimaced, dipping his head in courtesy. ¡°Hello, Lady Jessica. I hope... I hope you are doing well this evening.¡±

    ¡°Well enough, and I am glad to see you looking hale and healthy once more. Your family, they are free of the pink flu as well?¡±

    Tal nodded. ¡°Thankfully they didn''t get it at all, my lady.¡±

    Jess smiled. ¡°I''m glad. My hope was that when we cured the illness from your lungs, that those humors would fade entirely, unable to spread when you had ceased coughing.¡±

    Tal dipped his head. "And you never charged me, care the damn Healers Wing wouldn''t think to give lowly servitors. Only you and Lady Salrie ever take note of the people under your feet."

    Jess gently clapped his shoulder. "Don''t take such things to heart, Tal. The healers are quite busy in their own way. True, they rarely have time for any save injured students, but that is because they devote themselves to the wealthy patrons that help keep this massive fortress of stone awash in coin, so that I may attend classes, and you and your family be assured of full bellies, coin for your purse, and a safe place to rest your head."

    Tal''s brows furrowed as he gave it some thought, slowly nodding his head. ¡°You have a good point, my lady. Please... forgive rash words that perhaps should never have been said at all.¡±

    Jess winked. "''Tis quite all right, my friend. Believe me, there are certainly serpents aplenty in our fine school. Serpents that would do all they could to strike down a student for no greater crime than refusing to be one of her complaisant sheep. For daring to do what she had to, in order to protect the people of this school, and Erovering as well."

    Tal paled at that, giving a slight jerk of her head. ¡°I... I think you are right, my lady.¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°Which is why I know I can count on you to help me weed out the serpents. You, at least, I know wouldn''t betray me.¡±

    Tal winced. ¡°No, my lady. Never that.¡±

    Jess winked. ¡°So when Lady Putrice, who never gave a damn for anyone without rank, asks you to do your part to see me expelled from this school, I know you''re one friend who won''t let me down.¡±

    Tal sighed, shaking his head. ¡°''Tis possible rumor got out that sometimes I''m a bit too fond of the bottle. Things said in drunken jest, taken the wrong way... if it gets to the wrong ears...¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°I understand. Why give coin to servants when you can use intimidation instead?¡±Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    Tal frowned. ¡°My lady...¡±

    "She is a foul bitch, hungry for power, who enjoys squeezing students and servitors however she can, should they refuse to play her games by her rules."

    Tal barked a laugh at that, before clearing his throat, suddenly embarrassed.

    ¡°Fear not, Tal. I understand your position, and I''m happy to vouch for you, push come to shove. For the nonce, you can say, in all honesty, I left my quarters in a dress, unarmored, enjoying a walk, since I was unable to attend my... military lessons today.¡±

    Tal nodded sadly at that. "Rumor''s gotten around our way as well, Lady Jess. Word is Putrice wants to break the will of any female would-be Aspirant or Squire, make them no better than her lickboots, ladies-in-waiting ashamed of their own strength." The servitor bowed his head. "I''m sorry to find you under her gaze."

    ¡°And I you, Tal, so let''s look out for each other. Fair enough?¡±

    Tal smiled. ¡°Fair enough, Lady Jess. You enjoy your walk, not that we had this conversation at all, of course.¡±

    And with a farewell nod, Jess did just that, hoping her sense of Tal was correct, his aloofness having instantly melted when Jess compelled him to remember kindnesses she had done for him and his. Certainly she saw no malice in his gaze. Then again, neither had there been in Lady Putrice. Horrid as the thought was, maybe the lady actually felt justified in trying to crush Jess''s dreams.

    Knowing how many pieces were set in play against her did make her wince, but as Jess quietly walked the grounds just outside the massive stone fortress that served as the central building of their college, no further than would any proper lady enjoying the evening air, certainly not wandering off to training grounds reserved for Squires, she allowed herself a single bleak smile as things began to click in place.

    Friendship was important. As were extra linen and cotton sheets, and perhaps some more of the plant dye she had used on her hair. Finding comfort in a renewed sense of purpose, for all that she hated the way people now gazed at her so... appraisingly, with dress and make-up both in play, a resolved Jess was about to head back to the keep proper and her quarters when she was stopped dead in her tracks.

    ¡°Jessica.¡±

    She froze. Unable to move.

    Heart hammering, dreading what was to come, she slowly turned around, the icy blue gaze of none other than General Eloquin locked upon her own.

    ¡°You did not attend training. Neither today nor yesterday.¡± Unfathomable eyes froze her to stillness. ¡°In fact, no lass who would ride under my banner was anywhere to be found. Curious, don''t you think?¡±

    Jess swallowed. Throat suddenly parched, unable to speak.

    Eloquin''s piercing gaze never left her own. ¡°We leave at dusk. Mercy will be saddled and readied, your gear upon the table by her stall. If you would blacken your dagger for me, you have but to arrive at the stables.¡±

    And still, heart racing, Jess could barely breathe. There was so much she wanted to say, needed to say. About Lady Putrice conspiring with her fellow professors, conspiring with Jessica''s mother. No. As much as she admired the man before her so fiercely it hurt, there was no way, absolutely no way she could ever put her mother under the man''s gaze... not in this, at least.

    And Lady Putrice had played her hand masterfully. What Eloquin''s Squires would embrace were clandestine missions undertaken for the sake of king and Crown. Missions that were bleak, ugly, and could never to see the light of day, nor ever be acknowledged. And were Eloquin to fight Putrice too fiercely, Jess feared it would shine light upon that which the king himself wanted kept comfortably in the shadows. And somehow, Lady Putrice knew, and was more than happy to use those dark truths to constrain Eloquin before he could even fight to keep Jess.

    Jess shut her eyes to bitter tears, furious with her mother and Putrice both, so determined to decide what was best for Jess that they would destroy the life she had fought so hard to make for herself. All so her mother could live through her, vicariously savoring yet a second coming of age. Yet this was Jessica''s life, not her mother''s, and if she didn''t take a stand now, she never would.

    Jess took a slow, deep breath, trying to figure out still how to explain all this to her mentor.

    But when she opened her eyes, Eloquin was gone.

 Chapter 7

    ¡°Curious, don''t you think?¡±

    Jess gasped, a smile of delight coming over her features as a familiar weight settled itself upon her shoulder.

    ¡°Twilight, you''re back!¡±

    ¡°Indeed,¡± he purred, his head gently butting her own. ¡°And you are no doubt already better for my company. Still, very curious what Eloquin let slip, isn''t it?¡±

    Jess blinked, almost stumbling, immediately catching herself with a grace to do any Squire proud. Or laugh at her expense, as she had almost tumbled head over heels in damned skirts she couldn''t stand. "By havoc, you''re right, Twilight. What do you think our next step should be?"

    Her cat slowly shook his head. ¡°I think it''s best for you to deduce and decide what must be done, Jess. Not I.¡±

    Jess grimaced but nodded, knowing well how important the Rite of Free Will, as he sometimes put it, was to Twilight, for all that half the time it simply meant that her familiar would gaze at her with fond bemusement while she stumbled around in the metaphoric dark, trying to figure out what exactly it was she was supposed to do.

    ¡°Of course. The weight of choice fully upon my shoulders, and if I make the wrong one, it''s all on me.¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡± Her familiar grinned.

    Jess''s lips came dangerously close to a pout. ¡°Unless it''s something you want, in which case you''ll leave hints so blatant it''s like the rising sun. Funny, how that works out.¡±

    Her familiar chuckled. ¡°Isn''t it, though?¡±

    Yet quips aside, Jess''s pace quickened, for all that she found the swish of skirts decidedly annoying, and the dumbstruck gazes of more than a few boys who had paid her no mind before was both awkward, and perhaps just a bit delightful as well.

    But she was no pretty wallflower to be swooned, swept off her feet, and confined to nursery, grounds, and garden.

    And neither were her friends.

    Her pace slowed, her eyes sharp, and her breath hitched as she saw yet another watchful servitor who had chosen the oddest place to darn her load of laundry, an unused alcove just in sight of Erica Conveya''s quarters.

    The servitor locked eyes with Jess and paled.

    Jess offered the gentlest of smiles. ¡°Sola. It is good to see you working so arduously, even at this hour. Yet I worry for little Kelly. She had been sick with the chills just last month, no?¡±

    The servant swallowed, giving a slow nod of her head. "That''s correct, Lady Calenbry. And it was you standing so dutifully by as Lady Vaila fed my Kelly her tincture." A rueful sigh. "It was your tincture, wasn''t it, my lady? I''ve heard it said that when the Healers Wing needs a potion steeped in wise woman''s arts, they ask for your cuttings and no other.¡±

    Jess flushed and looked away, acutely embarrassed, though she couldn''t say why. ¡°I just have a way with plants, Sola, and I have no problem spotting the perfect sprout or bloom for healers to channel their own arts into, creating potions that work in ways far more nuanced than simply pouring their energies into ill patients alone.¡±

    Twilight nodded sagely. ¡°The healers here are actually synergizing two different disciplines, one far more ancient that the other, though they know it not.¡±

    Sola flashed Jess the strangest of smiles. ¡°I''ve always thought it a shame that there are so few wise women in tune with the old ways left in Erovering. My grandmother had the most delightful stories to share. There were different names for them once, long ago.¡± She chuckled softly. ¡°But not doubt you have your own duties to attend to. Your own friends to care for, and I suddenly find myself far more interested in seeing my daughter to bed than worrying about late night hemming.¡±

    Eyes far wiser than most people gave servants credit for locked upon her own. ¡°Be at peace, Jessica, and watch your step.¡±

    Jess swallowed, forcing her racing heart to calm. ¡°Sola... are you safe?¡±

    Tired eyes squeezed shut. ¡°A servant''s life is never without risk, dear Jessica. But you need not worry about me or mine.¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°If you have need, please let me know. I would see neither you nor yours suffer for the games played by arrogant tyrants in professor''s clothing.¡±

    This did earn Jess a rueful chuckle. ¡°I hope it doesn''t come to that, Jessica, but if I have need... thank you.¡±

    With a solemn bow, Sola was off, and Jess shuddered, wondering just how deep Putrice''s influence extended.

    ¡°Deeper than we would like, which tells us something all on its own, no? Still, ''tis wise indeed that you went to the trouble of befriending so many of the keep''s servitors since we first attended our little academy here.¡±

    Jess frowned at Twilight''s words. "You know as well as I that Lady Vaila courted me to go on rounds since she first found out that I have a feel for plants. And perhaps it makes me feel just a bit better about being a Squire, knowing I work to save lives as well as cut them free."

    Her cat chuckled softly. ¡°You do more for this college than most people realize, save for classwork, which you hardly do at all. And whatever the pretense, befriending the pawns upon the board is always a wise strategy.¡±

    Jess''s brows furrowed, more troubled than she cared to admit, as she knocked on Erica''s door.

    ¡°Go away!¡± Came a muffled voice, exhausted and worn.

    "Erica? It''s me. Jess."

    Some moments passed before a tight whisper could be heard from just the other side of the door. ¡°Jess, it''s best you leave. That bitch planted a spy on me!¡±

    Jess nodded, though of course her friend couldn''t see it. ¡°It''s okay. Sola''s decided that there are more important things than late night darning, such as seeing to her child.¡±

    A moment later the door cracked open, eyes puffy with fatigue or tears locking upon Jess''s own. Angst aside, Erica''s eyes were that of a professional strategist, coldly scanning the hallway and adjoining alcoves before giving a slow, relieved nod. ¡°Well played, Jess. I always admired your knack, the way common folk take to you, even if half the lordlings in the school think you the silliest thing. To hell with them, your strategy is brilliant. Harder for your enemies to catch you in a gambit, if all the pawns on the board owe you favors.¡±

    Jess grimaced. "It isn''t that calculated, Jera. I just help Lady Vaila on her rounds."

    Erica nodded. "Making tinctures so potent that I''ve heard your name on the lips of more than one healer. I have no doubt they''ll continue to court your friendship and Calenbry stock, even if that damn bitch Putrice manages to get us both kicked out of this school."

    Jess shivered. It was just as bad as she had feared. "What happened?"

    Erica, normally so sweet and lively, slumped back upon her bed while Jess slowly shut the door. Her pale blond locks were presently dyed black, much like Jess''s own. Green eyes normally twinkling with good cheer or flashing with competitive spirit now looked bleak and defeated.

    "You know how hard I try to excel in all my classes." Jess nodded. "I had always thought myself esteemed even in Putrice''s eyes, earning her nod of approval whenever I correctly answered questions of diplomacy, etiquette, and decorum.¡± Erica sighed. ¡°Her specialty, Velheim, being our neighbor and the source of so much conflict, I thought perfect for my studies. After all, what culture do we most need to understand but the one we are most likely to go to war with?¡±

    Erica gave a rueful shake of her head. ¡°And here I was, doing my best to master etiquette and strategy to prepare for battles or, perhaps, diplomatic assignments in the years to come, so focused on the future that I was oblivious to the intrigue right before me.¡±

    Jessica''s brows furrowed. ¡°What are you going on about, shieldsister?¡±

    Erica sighed, squeezing Jess''s hand for comfort, harder than one would think a girl her size could, those who failed to note how strong her friend truly was, slender build cloaking a wiry strength where most girls possessed only softest padding. Not that this had detracted from her admirers, of course, Erica being far more comfortable flirting with boys than was Jess.

    "After near everyone had left class, Lady Putrice followed your back with the strangest look, so odd I had thought to comment on it, before she fixated her gaze upon me." Erica shivered. "I had always found her an interesting paradox, but never had I experienced quite such a gaze, leaving me breathless, my heart pounding, my hand reaching for a saber that was not there."

    Jess nodded ruefully, knowing exactly what she meant.

    ¡°The way she smiled... like someone about to declare themselves the victor and youtheir rightful prey, to a game you didn''t even know was in play!¡±

    Jess squeezed her friend''s hand. "It''s awful, the way she gazes at you. Reminds me of my mother far more than I care to admit."

    Erica grimaced. "Me too. You''re not the only one with family that doesn''t exactly approve of your vocation, family that would protest most strenuously, did they know truly what we were about to embark upon. And here Putrice was, implying that my mother knew everything, absolutely everything about the monstrous breach in diplomatic protocol General Eloquin was about to commit, even going so far as to declare that I would be expected to testify in Lords Council before the year was out!"

    Erica paled and shook. "She even implied that there would be serious consequences for my family if I... engaged in war crimes. Then she said that my mother was coming to claim me in several days time, and that the only hope I had of even staying was to drop Eloquin''s classes and start acting like a lady immediately! And only because she favored me was I even being given this opportunity."This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    Jess swallowed, speechless. ¡°By all the hells.¡±

    Erica grimaced and nodded. ¡°Now you sound like Malek. But yes. The haunted gaze Neal flashed me when I caught site of him in the hallway made it clear that many of us were being given subtle warnings... and the scary thing is, only some of us take her class! So she can''t be the only teacher who knows things that no academic professor should. Things never to be said aloud, let alone used against us!¡±

    Jess swallowed her suddenly parched throat. "And most of us, never even blooded. How does Lady Putrice even know? What business is it of hers?" Jess sighed. "I thought, if anything, slavers were the curse of Erovering. The things Eloquin said, implying that they roamed unchecked in the wilder northern provinces, where we all happen to live, a fair distance from Krona and all the petty intrigues of the capital, farthest from royal patrols as well. But if we didn''t have the King''s leave, why we were able to freely borrow regimens of royal archers to teach us and train with us?"

    Erica shrugged. ¡°I sure as heck wasn''t going to expose our training to this viper. You know how moods and sentiments shift like the tide in Court, Jess.¡±

    Jess blinked, knowing no such thing at all.

    ¡°In any case, whatever unspoken permissions we are given, no doubt it can be retroactively suspended in a heartbeat.¡±

    Jess flashed the bleakest of smiles. "That could get us killed, Erica. Possessing crossbows is a hanging offense, though being as most of us are noble-born, we might just be exiled to our properties or a miserable diplomatic post instead."

    Erica shuddered. "After we watch our common-born friends kicking in the noose, hanged until dead."

    Jess squeezed her eyes shut at the thought.

    "Do you really think royal sentiment has changed so quickly?"

    Erica shrugged. "All I know for sure is that Putrice knows far too much not to be anything but in league with a coterie firmly against students of Highrock being trained as... bloodthirsty treasonous hellions, I believe Putrice put it."

    Erica shook her head. "One thing''s for certain. Eloquin''s prized secret is a secret no more. Somehow Putrice not only knows what we are, what we are training for, but has even arranged a gala on the day we are supposed to leave for our mission! She knows. That bloody bitch knows everything!"

    Jess swallowed and nodded. ¡°And that puts us all at risk. Even if we don''t all get expelled for our troubles, if our enemy knows we are coming, then we are not ambushing them, so much as walking into a trap. And if a consortium of nobles would make an example of us, actively working to blacken our cause, so as to force the king to dance to their tune... we could well become the swine herded to the slaughter.¡±

    Erica sighed. ¡°And to think, my mother expects to see me at that ball. Jess, what are we going to do?¡±

    Jess gazed intently at her grinning familiar. ¡°I think a council is in order, don''t you?¡±

    Twilight nodded. ¡°I will scout ahead, my mistress. Your plan is an excellent one.¡±

    Erica frowned. ¡°Did you say something, Jess?¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°We are meeting with Neal, shieldsister. We will have our own council of Squires, and decide upon our next move, together.¡±

    Erica tilted her head thoughtfully. ¡°It has merits. At the very least, we can see how many of us are being... pressured, and to what extent our opponent''s know, or only suspect. But Jess, the two of us together, at this hour? Even if every servitor who has ever needed a drought or poultice the healers are too busy to give them owes you and Lady Vaila a favor or three, one way or another, word would get out. Especially if we are seen heading to the quarters of fellow Squires!"

    Jess grinned. ¡°I don''t suppose you still have the dye you used for your hair?¡±

    Erica nodded. "A root and berry mash with a bit of salt and vinegar. It''s not as strong a hue as essence of logwood mixed with powdered iron and sulfur would be, but such requires far more skills and expertise than anyone here at Highrock has, especially if applied to the scalp and not just fabric. This mash serves well enough, and I keep it in a wax lined container. Neal is using it as well. It should last as long as we need it to."

    Jess smiled. "Plant-based, as opposed to cuttlefish. This is good. So, is there something going on between you and Neal?"

    Erica frowned. ¡°I love you like a sister, but frankly, that''s none of your business. Just what are you planning, Jess?¡±

    A short time later, her plans were all too clear.

    ¡°Are you serious, Jess?¡±

    Jess shrugged, looking at the bed linens she had covered in hair dye, now the dark blue of the deep sea. Perfect for blending into the night, Jess thought.

    ¡°The foot loops look stable enough, but how in the world did you manage to get the dyeto spread that evenly?¡±

    Jess winked as Erica groaned. "Of course. The dye, plant based. And the linen. Made of plant fibers. Is there anything you can''t do with plants?"

    ¡°Irrelevant. Now let''s make our way to Neal''s quarters, and allow our council of battle to begin.¡±

    Erica nodded gamely enough, though she was understandably hesitant to climb down the linen rope, hand and foot knots aside, until Jess had safely made her way down.

    ¡°But we can''t leave it here, Jess,¡± Erica admonished a short time later, not at all out of breath despite the exertion of her climb, such was the training both had received. ¡°And we still have to make our way to Neal''s quarters.¡±

    But with a single tug, a surprised Erica found herself holding a rope that had managed to coil itself neatly, even as it fell. It was a quiet night, the scent of pine and wildflowers enlivening Jess as they discretely slipped pass the one patrol and pair of servants taking an oddly late walk, as they made their way to Neal''s quarters, Jess having picked up the odd piece of branch on their way. By the time Jess had led them to Neal''s quarters, it took but a moment for the window to open to several pebbles clacking upon the wooden shutters, opening to reveal the brooding countenance of one of the more handsome lads the school had to offer, Jess thought, pretending she didn''t catch the stare he shared with Erica for too long a second before glancing to Jess.

    ¡°A council of war,¡± she whispered, her voice carrying to her friend who nodded but onceas Jess threw up the branch she had tied the rope to, Twilight being the first to flow up the rope.

    ¡°Quite acceptable, mistress, and Neal''s quarters aren''t that much cleaner than your own.¡±

    Jess smirked at that, gesturing to Erica who nodded gamely, scurrying up the knotted rope, Jess but an instant behind.

    Brilliant a tactician as he was, Neal''s room was as messy as any boy''s might be; clothes, towels, bedding, and assignments scattered haphazardly about his quarters, though Jess was pleased to see his armaments kept in excellent care, and positioned so as to be donned immediately, should he be called to serve.

    Hazel eyes gazed into Jess''s own, even as Erica brushed freshly dyed curls from his forehead, her hand quite naturally sliding into his. "Jess? Is everything all right?"

    ¡°If by all right do you mean are the Squires being cleverly hemmed in and compromised by one Lady Putrice, instructor of etiquette, decorum, and diplomatic relations, then yes.¡±

    Neal frowned at this. ¡°Explain.¡±

    And as succinctly as she could, Jess did.

    "Thank you for that. It fits the few glimpses I''ve had of the gameboard we only now find ourselves upon. But that still doesn''t explain why you''re skulking about at night, still wearing a dress, slipping through the gardens."''

    Jess crossed her arms. "Because, Neal, Putrice has mastered the board so well that she has not only persuaded professors and parents to her cause, but has been recruiting servitors to her purposes as well.¡±''

    Neal frowned. "This is bad, Jess."

    Erica smirked. ¡°Fortunately, too many servitors owe Jess and Lady Vaila favors, since none of them are rich lords able to afford the services of magical healers, and so they dare not neglect the hands that nurture them.¡±

    Jess nodded. "Multiple people keeping an eye on Erica and I both. And it''s interesting, is it not, the timing of the gala, our mothers all in arms about us attending said dance, to say nothing of supposed pressures being put into play at Court to defang Highrock entirely and turn our nation''s premier war academy into a finishing school."

    Neal nodded. "It is. And implying that Eloquin might one day be charged with war crimes...that is most especially interesting, is it not?"

    Erica''s brows furrowed in thought. ¡°Particularly odd, since Erovering recognizes no international treaty regarding war crimes. Eloquin''s tactics, ruthless as they are, is part of what keeps our neighbors on their toes, and us that much safer.¡±

    ¡°Do you think Lady Putrice was bluffing?¡±

    Erica shrugged. ¡°Your guess is as good as mine, Jess. The bottom line is, what are we going to do? I know that we weren''t the only one''s targeted. I saw some of the looks exchanged by several other Squires.¡±

    Neal frowned. ¡°It''s true. A few of our brothers quietly informed me that they, as much as they fiercely admired our mentor, were having second thoughts about blackening their daggers.¡±

    ¡°Which, in the long run, only serves to benefit slavers and destabilize our nation, if no one does anything to stop them,¡± Jess said.

    Neal sighed and shook his head, passing Erica and Jess both a flask that burned going down.

    Jess grinned in approval. ¡°Calenbry Red. A fine year. You have good taste in brandy, brother, but no more than a swallow. We need clear heads for what comes next.¡±

    Neal helped himself to a thoughtful sip, tilting his head for Jess to continue. ¡°I take it you''ve thought up a plan?¡±

    Jess sighed. "More like I wanted to make sure we were all on the same page, verify our concerns, and yes, seeing as things are as bad as we thought, stress how important it is that we Squires stick together." Jess''s eyes flashed. "No matter what, we need to be by Eloquin''s side. Because even if Lady Putrice has the best of intentions..."

    "We''d hardly be worthy of the mantle Squires of War if we let ourselves be hemmed in, not by superior forces, but by one clever lady who knows how to pull many strings," Neal said.

    Jess nodded. ¡°So Erica and I need for you to convey to the boys where we will be, come nightfall tomorrow.¡±

    Erica smiled. ¡°I''ll talk to the girls, few that we are, come morning. I suspect Lady Putrice thinks me sufficiently cowed that I will raise little alarm chatting with our sisters-in-arms, whereas Jess doing so would immediately put her on the offensive. The advantage of being the most harmless looking of us all, I suppose.¡±

    Jess flashed a grin. ¡°And I know how well you can handle saber and longsword both.¡±

    Erica''s gaze turned serious. ¡°But Jess, it sounds like Putrice really will have you expelled if you do anything to displease her at this point. And while she can make admittedly terrifying intimations that the Council will frown upon our actions, that would take months to enact, if at all. Even if she but plays with smoke and mirrors, using our own worst fears against us, the repercussions you will personally face are significant, Jess.¡±

    Jess grimaced and nodded. ¡°I could find myself trussed and saddled to a horse, headed right to the nearest finishing school, just because I''m a bit misunderstood.¡±

    Neal laughed, instantly holding out his hands at Jess''s glare. ¡°Peace, Jess. But even I remember that accountancy course, the way you and Malek carried on that day, and by the gods, how you managed to throw your table out the stained glass window... I knew you were strong, but we all respected your strength after that incident.¡±

    Jess flushed. ¡°Everyone acts like it was me alone that lost my temper, that day.¡±

    Erica nodded. ¡°But, save when he is with you, Malek is perhaps the most brilliant student in our class.¡±

    "I know. His answers I can at least be certain are correct when I copy them."

    Neal smiled at that. ¡°I think what Erica is getting at is that even if the rest of us can somehow slip past Putrice''s noose, she has you locked in her sites, a score of bolts aimed for your heart.¡±

    Jess paled at that metaphor, knowing that those quarrels, at least, she had no hope of warding.

    She swallowed, her throat bone dry. ¡°And if I don''t come, what happens to those of us that do?¡±

    Neither Erica nor Neal would meet her gaze.

 Chapter 8

    "Come, mistress, time to rise with the dawn and continue our pretense for yet another day, as you all had agreed was the most prudent course, and I do believe I hear Josie''s knock even now. Now doubt she wishes to doll you up with blush and shadow, crushed rosehips and kohl."

    Jess grimaced and curled up, but couldn''t tune out her familiar''s teasing purr, nor her friend''s ever more insistent knocks, taking a quick glance at the window, open as always and letting in a crisp, early morning breeze. The dye stained rope she had used the night before was presently hidden under her bed, nothing any more out of place than it normally was.

    Bright blue eyes, golden curls, and a beaming smile greeted Jess as she opened the door, and before she knew it, her friend had washed her face with water and was tutting happily as her brushes flitted across Jess''s skin.

    ¡°Oh truly, Jess, I think I have outdone myself today, and you look gorgeous in the emerald green dress Raphael sent off for!¡± She frowned. ¡°You would think the boy would have mastered my curves by now, knowing me as well as he does.¡± She blushed upon hearing her own words before emitting a throaty chuckle, and Jess couldn''t help but think her almost angelic friend had just a bit of a naughty streak, after all.

    "Anyway, I knew that with just a bit of darning, this would fit you perfectly. And there we are, Jess. What do you think?"

    Jess blinked and stared into the silvered mirror Josie handed her with a flourish, her cheeks blushing at the sight of such a pretty girl, and one who looked far more suited to a life full of courts and galas than one trained to deliver death against gravest odds.

    Jess swallowed and looked away, more than a little bit discomfited by the girl that had been gazing back at her from the mirror. ¡°She really is beautiful, Josie, thank you.¡±

    Josie arched her brows. ¡°She is you, you know that, right, Jess? You look just as good in a dress as you do sweaty and roaring like a boy with a sword in your hand. Dare I say it, you look even better. Now come! It''s off to Etiquette, and I understand that Lady Putrice has a surprise for us!¡±

    Jess couldn''t help grinning at her friend''s excitement. Truly, Josie was a far better fit for the life Putrice wanted them all to embrace, and Jess had no doubt that, should they have a department of healers worthy of the station, that Josie would be just as happy at finishing school as she had ever been at Highrock. Of course, she probably wouldn''t be permitted to be all but living in her beau''s quarters, so perhaps it was Highrock for them both, after all.

    Her friend tilted her head, gazing at her archly. ¡°Jess, why are you smiling? You are thinking something devilish, aren''t you.¡±

    Jess grinned. ¡°Only that you fit the definition of lady far better than I ever will. If Putrice is successful in her secret dream to turn this into another Ladies Academy, I''m sure you would fit right in.¡±

    Josie flushed prettily. "Oh, I could never go to a finishing school, Jess! They are lucky to have any access to healers at all! And besides... well... "

    ¡°Only in an academy of war could you be with Raphael? Where professors are far too focused on preparing students for the battlefields of war, trade, and diplomacy to care if they take an adult''s interests, as long as it''s coupled with an adult''s responsibilities?¡±

    Josie chuckled throatily, for all that she was blushing still. "Honestly, Jess, if I wanted to go to finishing school, it would only be to please Raphael, and I serve him quite nicely, just as I am."

    Now it was Josie looking smug and Jess feeling her cheeks redden, though she couldn''t imagine why.

    Jess had prepared herself for anything that morning as she made her way to class, Josie nattering contentedly by her side. She was prepared to be found out, knowing that not all the Highrock servitors looked favorably upon her, or even liked her at all. She grimaced to recall that there were a few who outright despised her. But there were reasons for that, hard truths that had to be taught, and she in the best position to administer those lessons. Yet most folks, Jess had found, had a noble core to their souls, however gruff their exterior.

    Yet the animated whispers as she and Josie slowly made their way to class had left her suddenly uncertain, slowing down her pace such that even Josie noticed, and Jess found herself having trouble swallowing, her heart racing so fast in her chest.

    Josie frowned, gazing at Jess curiously. ¡°Jess, dear, whatever is wrong?¡±

    Her cat, contentedly observing all from his favorite perch, flashed his mistress a mischievous grin. ¡°The thought of mortal combat just hours away, when the midnight bell tolls of death to come, fills you with darkest exhilaration. But the thought of facing your nemesis in silks and lace all but fills you with terror.¡±

    ¡°Hardly, Twilight,¡± Jess swallowed. ¡°If only this stupid dress allowed for a dirk.¡±

    Twilight nodded solemnly. ¡°It would have been a wise precaution, mistress. One never knows when enemy agents will be lurking between billowy skirts and petticoats.¡±

    ¡°Ha ha.¡± Jess stuck her tongue at her cat, earning not a few odd looks for the exchange. ¡°Besides, only Prisci wears billowy skirts. Even the most feminine among us are more sensible than that.¡±

    ¡°I heard that, Jessica!¡± Snapped none other than an elegantly coiffed Prisci, curls ofsilken fire swept up in a waterfall of ringlets flowing down her left shoulder, neck bare to both sensual and elegant effect.

    Jess swallowed as piercing hazel eyes captured her own.

    ¡°When the deluded girl talking to invisible familiars seeks to counsel me on fashion advice, then I consider my choices well made, and the effect well-served!¡±

    Jess sighed. The girl really did have such a spark to her, with the regal air, beauty, and arrogance of a queen. Jess knew she would be completely smitten by Prisci, if she weren''t such a bitch.

    And why was Prisci now gazing at her so strangely? An elegantly gloved hand reaching up almost as if to touch Jess''s cheek before she abruptly spun around, refusing even to glance Jess''s way.

    Jess gasped, fists clenched tight, holding back a killer''s instinct as strong arms wrapped around her waist.

    A powerful chuckle sent shivers down her spine. ¡°If it isn''t my lovely shieldsister, looking utterly adorable in a dress! I missed you in the training rings, Jess.¡±

    Jess couldn''t help smiling, turning to gaze into her shieldbrother''s twinkling eyes. His grin told her he was teasing her, rubbing her head as affectionately as he would his own sister, she was sure. He knew darn well what she was going through, and looked quite well turned out himself, wearing doublet and hose of finest cotton and silk, shirt sleeves as lily white as the clouds, a wonderful contrast to the rich sea green of the rest of his outfit.

    ¡°That is because Lady Calenbry has finally deduced that there are far more important things than risking her health and figure, howling about the training fields like a man,¡± declared none other than Lady Putrice herself, at last opening the door to the grand room Jess always thought ill served as just a lecture hall for the most boring of subjects.

    The crowd of students had hushed as one, and Jess grimaced, fearing the direst of lectures, yet strangely, Putrice''s smile was almost... forgiving.

    And Jess frowned to see not a lick of malice in the woman''s eyes, gazing so boldly back at her. Jess blushed and forced herself to lower her head, having no desire to antagonize the woman any further than she already had.

    It was neither the time, nor the place.

    Besides, how could Jess hate her? She didn''t hate Jess at all.

    Jess could no longer deny it, which meant that every lecture, every attempt to sway, influence, or lead Jess in the path that currently had her in dress and petticoats had been a cause Professor Putrice had believed in, not an excuse to torment her student, as Jess liked to pretend it was.

    And then Putrice smiled. ¡°''Tis all right, Malek. No need to bow. We are mentor and properly respectful students, and I am wise enough to see that you but jest with your friend.¡±

    She then turned to the class at large. ¡°I have wonderful news for all of you. Something of a surprise, I confess.¡±

    A breathless pause, everyone staring at Lady Putrice.

    ¡°We are not attending class today. Rather, we are heading to the private salon upstairs where we shall be putting into effect all the diligence and practice we have exerted in mastering our lessons this semester!¡±

    Excited whispers at this, more than a few students suddenly glowing with excitement.

    ¡°Oh Lady Putrice,¡± Prisci gushed, eyes twinkling with a warmth she had never once flashed at Jess. ¡°Are we having a private gala right now?¡±

    ¡°Indeed we are, dear Prisci, and best of all, you have all been excused from any other responsibilities you might have today, given leave to relax and indulge yourselves with some of the most eligible nobles to be found in the north!¡±

    Even Josie hitched her breath at this, eyes gazing with wonder, before abruptly shaking herself out of it, flashing Jess an almost apologetic grin. The boys, however, looked only mildly intrigued.

    Lady Putrice smiled. ¡°And not all of them are boys. Some exquisite specimens of elegance and beauty await your most graceful overtures, young sirs. Now come. I expect decorum and charm in all you say or do. You may think of this as mastering the softest of the diplomat''s arts. Courting friends, allies, perhaps even more.¡±

    As one the cluster of students and professor made their way up winding staircases, down a long hallway to the grandest of double doors, more than one student murmuring excitedly that they had never been down this corridor before, nor expected such a grand portal at the end.

    Jess caught several frowns from peers, however, each and every one belonging to a fellow Squire taking etiquette along with Jess.

    ¡°Malek, what''s wrong?¡± Jess whispered to her friend as Putrice gave a rap to the door.

    Yet her friend only shook his head, face set in hard lines, and Lucas, of stocky build and a Squire as well, flashed several hand signs that Jess recognized at once, even as Malek grimly nodded.

    The chambers ahead were the province of Squires.

    And now Lady Putrice had secured them for her own purposes.

    Before Jess could even think of a response, the grand doors before her were slowly opened, revealing an almost palatial suite that quite took her breath away.

    As vast and spacious as any ballroom, carved, obviously, into the mountainside itself, the massive chambers all but glowed with gentle light from the half score chandeliers of finest crystal tinkling softly overhead, magelights by the score giving the grand room a gentle warmth like sunlight and rainbows, the floor lined with fine woolen rugs of deep sea blue, and Jess was awed by the glorious tapestries depicting scenes of battle, triumph, and glory lining the walls.

    The grand domed ceiling itself was a masterwork fresco of clouds, stormy seas, and magnificent castles floating in the sky.

    The entire hall was like a work of faerie wonder, and Jess could all but feel the magic subtly echoing through the masterwork. Though art was something she could only appreciate, the energies she felt flowing through the chamber she sensed with exquisite clarity.

    Artists and mages both had done their part to forge this grand chamber out of bedrock, and Jess could only guess at how old this structure truly was. One thing she sensed immediately was that the magics resonating through the chamber had only the loosest association with the elemental arts.

    It was a revelation which left Jess the slightest bit disoriented, not protesting in the least to feel Malek''s powerful grip gently steadying her, even as her eyes caught sight of what seemed a score of the most beautiful lads and lasses she had ever seen, graceful and exotic both, features just a tad finer than those stamped upon the features of most of Erovering''s peoples, their skin was somewhat paler, locks of flaxen gold and eyes of cornflower blue the norm, not the exception. Come to think of it, their complexion matched her mother''s perfectly.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Jess swallowed as it all clicked together in a heartbeat, Malek''s suddenly tightened grip upon her shoulders letting her know that he had figured it out as well.

    ¡°Class, come greet our guests. They have traveled for some distance to attend our little get-together, and I do believe they are anxious to meet you.¡±

    At which point no less than half a dozen young men slowly approached, appraising eyes turning into subtle nods and smiles as if they liked what they saw, that bold handful showing no fear in approaching Jess and her peers with honey laden compliments and crystal glasses full of what looked to be the richest of wines.

    Surprised glances sent Lady Putrice''s way, earning only the most tolerant of nods. ¡°By all means, students, savor both the wine and the company. This is our private little gala, after all.¡±

    At which point the graceful music of harp and flute began to resonate through the chamber, a delightful little air that all but invited the more bold of students to dance in the center of the great chamber, and it was then Jess blinked in surprise, her cautious glance caught by the brilliant gaze of a young man even then offering her a glass of wine.

    ¡°I couldn''t help but notice how effortlessly you seemed to float in your gown, my lady. Perhaps you would allow this unworthy noble to steal a bit of your time?¡±

    Jess blushed and smiled at the compliment, unable to help herself even as her heart began to race. Yes, those eyes hinted at all sorts of possibilities. The way his smile grew at her frank appraisal made it quite clear that he was willing to be just as coy or as bold as she would like.

    Jess chuckled throatily at that. She couldn''t help it. Never had she been the subject of quite such frank appraisal, dressed up in petticoats and lace, blush and kohl.

    Strangely, this left her feeling awkward and shy, her chuckle aside, and she dipped her head, embarrassed by her own blush.

    Gloved fingers concealing a warrior''s strength caressed her chin. He smelled of cinnamon and the most exotic of spices, infecting Jess with a sudden hunger no Highrock fare could quench.

    ¡°There is no need to be shy,¡± the young man of powerful build and sensual eyesassured. "My peers and I have heard wonderful things about the quality of company to be found in these sacred halls, and wanted to make an adventure of it, traveling further south than we normally do, and truly, I am glad that we have."

    Jess smiled at that.

    When gentle fingertips brushed her cheek, she did not turn away.

    ¡°My name is Javiar. May I have the pleasure of your own?¡±

    ¡°Jess. Jessica de Calenbry.¡±

    Javiar grinned. He really did have a lovely smile, Jess thought, suddenly wondering what it would be like to kiss him. She took a sip of her wine, glancing about her, both pleased and surprised at how quickly formality had been replaced with sweet overtures of dalliance.

    She then frowned and looked down at her wine. Grimaced. More and more, it was starting to make sense.

    ¡°Do you like the wine?¡± he asked. ¡°It is rich... but common enough in more cosmopolitan courts, I assure you.¡±

    Jess nodded, peering into Javiar''s eyes carefully. He had sensual lashes and rich, full lips.

    And not the slightest trace of malice.

    Gently, Jess leaned forward, brushing her lips against his own.

    "You taste nice," she murmured as he blinked and stepped back, before chuckling softly.

    "And you are bold." His eyes flashed with approval. "Come this way, Jessica. Lady Putrice was delightful enough to supply not only the most delectable of culinary spreads, but game tables of chess, king and crown, and of course, divans for us to take our ease upon."

    Jess smiled and nodded even as she felt herself being led off, almost as if in a dream, strangely unwilling to fight it. Happy to savor it for as long as it would last.

    She caught Malek''s eye, surprised to see a powerfully built man beside him, looking sleek and elegant in black, a bit older than the youths their own age, yet not afraid to stroke Malek''s cheek as he sipped the wine. Jess saw Malek all but lean into the man''s touch, powerful hands now massaging Malek''s shoulders, Malek''s expression becoming one of sheer bliss before his lips puckered, and he frowned at the glass in his hand.

    He grinned in approval, however, upon seeing Jess, favoring her with a wink as Javiar led her off to who knew what mischief, the palm of her hand held so tenderly in his own, and Jess smirked back, freeing her hand from Javiar''s grip as if to cover the gentlest cough, wine going down the throat of sweetest innocence, her hand carefully flashing signs all Squires knew.

    Malek frowned, looking at the glass in his hand. He flashed a glance at Putrice, eyebrow raised.

    Jess slowly shook her head, calm smile in place, allowing her acquaintance to lead her to mischief she would savor every bit as much as he.

    His warm patter filled her ears and made her smile. She enjoyed the animated look in his eyes as he lost himself in tales of childhood misadventure. Jess found herself playing the role of admiring damsel, and not minding a bit. Whatever his original intentions, his interest in sharing his stories with her, and their shared laughter was genuine. And to her surprise, she found she quite liked the gregarious little boy Javiar had been, and the bold man he had turned into.

    Jess stroked Javiar''s strong cheek. "It sounds like you were a wild one, Javiar, and that the cook never forgave you stealing all the sweetmeats!"

    Javiar winked. ¡°Nor did my brother, when Father found the savories hidden in his pack, and blamed him for the sudden influx of rats in the manor!¡±

    Jess chuckled. "By the gods, the stories I could share of my own upbringing... the things I would do, the mischief I would get up to... how my brother and I would goad ourselves into the most outrageous of feats, our day not complete lest a cow, pig, or goat had strayed miles from their pens, and one of the other of us covered in dirt and muck and grounded forever!" Jess sighed. "Those were sweet times, when life was simple, and the whole world seemed innocent and pure."

    Javiar nodded. ¡°Only now do we realize how complex and nuanced life truly is, bitter and sweet both.¡± Powerful hands gently stroked her cheek. ¡°Yet I savor life all the more for its fierce complexity, and the absolute wonders it has in store for all those bold enough to seek them out. I wonder, dear Jessica, do you perchance feel the same?¡±

    When he kissed her, she did not turn away, savoring his taste, gazing into suddenly hungry eyes as her heart began to race.

    ¡°Javiar, may I ask a question?¡±

    Twinkling blue eyes smiled back at her. ¡°Of course.¡±

    ¡°It might sound silly, but you know that every girl has to be sure. Javiar, do you mean any harm to me or mine?¡±

    He blinked in momentary consternation, before flashing a rueful grin. ¡°I will admit, the thought of dalliance was intriguing... the idea of meeting a foreign woman, losing myself in her arms. But, truth to tell, Jess, I like you.¡±

    His hands stroked her cheeks once more, fingertips caressing her lips, and she smiled.

    ¡°Graceful, elegant, incredibly beautiful. Frankly, I''m surprised a man hasn''t claimed you as his own, sweeping you up in a life of bliss long ago. If you''ll forgive the question, Jessica, how old are you? Seventeen?¡±

    Jess grinned. ¡°Old enough to know what I want.¡± She stroked his cheeks and kissed him again. Tender lips caressed her own, sensual mouth slowly opening to taste her as she tasted him.

    Her heart was pounding and her breath ragged. Every nerve was tingling, leaving her dizzy with sudden need.

    With a breathless laugh, she pulled away, smiling to see that Javiar was no less flustered than she.

    ¡°If I didn''t know better, I''d think you like me.¡±

    He chuckled ruefully. ¡°Indeed I do. And I''d like to know you better. Much better. But hearing you converse, the sweetness of your smile, that means something to me.¡± Solemnly, he lifted her palm to his lips and kissed her softly.

    Her breath hitched.

    ¡°Tell me, Jessica de Calenbry, do you by any chance have a beau already?¡±

    Wordlessly, she shook her head. Upon occasion she might have savored sweet kisses and perhaps more with the very few boys who could match her skill with the blade, but the only man she had ever loved had already chosen another, and she loved him fiercely still, though now only as the best of friends. "No boy warms my bed, Javiar, if that''s what you''re asking."

    He nodded, tilting his head, suddenly at a loss for words.

    His confidence had been enticing. Yet now to see his lithe, powerful form, his arrogantly perfect features creased with uncertainty, vulnerability, was downright intoxicating.

    Softly, her fingertips brushed those strong cheeks, and she couldn''t resist tasting his kiss once more.

    Powerful hands gripped her tight, intent gaze shy no longer.

    And when he squeezed her close, exquisitely proper still as they were both fully clothed, yet delightfully improper as their bodies entwined, and a slow, glorious throb of pleasure built, his gaze was bold and hungry once more. A fierce predator locked upon his prey, and Jess hungered for his kill.

    Each pair of divans and the game tables between them had been thoughtfully walled off as miniature silk lined cubicles, and Jess thought it exquisitely clever of Lady Putrice, whatever else she thought of the woman. And soon all thought washed away to the shuddering pleasure of the man entwined about her even now, Jess''s eyes widening with surprise, gasping at the fierce heat she felt, shouting into her partner''s mouth, as he swallowed her sudden cry with a kiss.

    Jess shuddered and closed her eyes as Javiar throbbed against her, cashmere fabric brushing silken lace to delirious effect, before Jess trembled and sighed, resisting not at all when the powerful man caressing her so masterfully, so discretely, squeezed her to the point of breathlessness, drinking in her kisses, shuddering as he too peaked.

    Sweetest pleasure to feel his weight on top of her as he sighed, replete, before gently shifting his weight, hands smoothing over her dresses, and Jess was relieved to see not a stain, even as he gently kissed the nape of her neck, tingles coursing through her once more.

    ¡°That, Jessica de Calenbry, was completely unexpected, and utterly delightful.¡±

    Jess chuckled throatily. ¡°I don''t know what you are talking about, Javiar. All we did was kiss.¡±

    He suckled the nape of her neck once more, as if to mark her as his own. ¡°And I, for one, absolutely delighted in it. I cannot tell you how much.¡± Gently, he turned her cheek so as to catch her gaze once more. And Jess, suddenly shy, realizing what she had done, felt a fierce blush overcome her cheeks. ¡°Jess?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡± Her voice, normally so strong and sure, was now a soft, uncertain whisper.

    ¡°I would like us to be more than acquaintances.¡±

    Jess blushed, but smiled. "I promise you, that''s not something I normally do with any save the sweetest of friends."

    He frowned at that.

    She blushed and turned away. ¡°You, Javiar. I would cheat on no boy once I give him my heart. And pillow friends are just that.¡±

    "Ah." Javiar blinked and smiled. "Girls taking other girls as lovers is quite common in Velheim, and in most bastions of culture, it is not even considered cheating so much as... pillow talk between friends."

    Jess flashed a relieved smile, even as other fears were confirmed. ¡°Not that my family would understand. We are a bit more... backwards here in Erovering, I''m afraid.¡±

    Javiar chuckled. "Perhaps you should come back with me to Velheim. You would find yourself a welcome edition to my father''s court. Oh, I didn''t mean to startle you. I am not royalty by any means, but once my family ruled an independent duchy, and though our estates are now modest in size, we do quite well in trade. Perhaps I should have said my father''s hall."

    Jess grinned. ¡°I have a good friend you remind me more than a bit of. His family also swims in the waters of commerce and trade, and they navigate the currents most masterfully.¡±

    Javiar nodded. ¡°The diOnnis are renowned, even in the heart of the continent. Their network spans nations, and my father has embarked upon ventures to our mutual benefit more than once, with the esteemed duke.¡±

    Jess froze at that, before forcing herself to relax.

    ¡°Oh. Forgive me, I thought I heard you say that you were friends with the diOnnis.¡±

    Jess forced herself to chuckle. ¡°I''m afraid that with your kiss, sir, I quite lost track of whatever I had said.¡±

    Gently, his lips pressed against hers once more, and she did not resist his hunger, moaning softly as he did delightful things with his tongue that sent her shivering from neck to naval and below. ¡°I think, dear Jessica, that chance met as we are, perhaps there is some method to Mother Nature''s mysteries.¡±

    His gaze had turned intent, face radiating such hesitancy that Jess couldn''t help but stroke his cheek. ¡°I have known you for only the length of childhood stories and the most... passionate of kisses, but I already know I like you. Please, Javiar, say what it is you are going to say.¡±

    ¡°Would you like to come with me?¡±

    He blinked and swallowed, as if unable to believe the words flowing from his mouth.

    He laughed nervously, as did Jess.

    "I am sorry for the impulsive words, beautiful girl. Let me try this again and try not to make a jackanapes of myself."

    Jess sighed as he began gently massaging her shoulders with his powerful hands. "I am in desperate need, you see. My family demands I make alliances, preferably in fresh territories, even pressuring me to embark upon a trip I had no intention of enjoying. Knowing I would be consigned to a loveless arranged marriage if I did not make some sort of effort and buy my freedom for yet another year, I agreed.¡±

    Intent eyes locked upon her own. ¡°Now I find myself falling for a girl that I find witty, charming, and intoxicatingly beautiful, the daughter of a named lord much like myself, so there is absolutely no way my family could object to you, and I find myself desperately wanting to ask if, perhaps, you will consent to us being more than chance met friends.¡±

    Jess''s heart was hammering. She gazed at Javiar, speechless, not having expected this turn of events at all.

    Javiar''s face twisted into painful angst. ¡°Jessica, I think I genuinely like you. I think even now that that could grow into something significant. Something special.¡± He frowned and shook his head. ¡°What I am trying to say is... Jessica, will you let me court you?¡±

    Jess swallowed her painfully dry throat, at an utter loss for words.

    Javiar''s hopeful expression slowly collapsed into regret, and he began to turn away.

    Fiercely, Jess kissed him, and lost herself in his powerful embrace once more.

 Chapter 9

    Jess yawned, feeling both blissfully happy and strangely sore, blinking as walls of exotic silk, divans, and a grand arching roof overhead complete with massive chandeliers sparkling rainbows and the sound of flute and harp washing over everything with a delightful patter of noise.

    Gently, she slid free of the arm holding her on the divan, realizing what the odd stiffness that she felt was, though really, with all the nights she had slept under the stars, training for life as a Squire of War, romance upon a comfortable divan should be no problem at all.

    She smiled wistfully at a dozing Javiar, grateful both of them were still fully clothed and technically had done nothing beyond the bounds of decorum, for all that they had sundered those boundaries most satisfactorily, and spent some bittersweet moments wondering what it would be like to give up all pretense of being anything other than a beautiful girl in a dress, happily by Javiar''s side as he filled her days with delightful stories and company, and her nights with delights of a different sort.

    No doubt she would be deliriously happy, giving birth to some of the most handsome children any noble could want to continue his line.

    Jess closed her eyes, savoring the sweet fantasy, kissing Javiar''s beautiful cheek so softly he stirred not a muscle before slipping quietly away.

    Jess, skirts quickly smoothed, slowly made her way from the den of silken cubicles, both flustered and pleased to find upon discrete hardwood stands small decanters of perfume, which pointed to both a degree of thoughtfulness and jaded practicality that Jess both admired and was embarrassed by.

    Not that it stopped her from making use of a couple liberal squirts, for all that her dress was free of any stain that she could see.

    Jess was almost surprised to see that very few of the guests had proceeded so quickly to the back cubicles, most nibbling the many delicacies on display before them, though more than a few girls were laughing with odd abandon, cheeks flushed, seeming lost in a warm daze, even as their handsome companions plied them with food, conversation, dance, and as much of that curious, bittersweet wine as they wanted.

    Jess felt herself flush as whispers and pointed stares washed over her, some girls gazing at her with open disdain, others with frank admiration, every Squire that caught her eye winking and raising their glasses in toast.

    Embarrassed as she felt, her fingers twitched, and careful nods answered her.

    Savaged reputation aside, they understood, and that was all that mattered.

    Jess felt a jolt as Prisci''s hot gaze suddenly locked upon her own.

    "Jessica de Calenbry. With the social skills of a drunken mule, who, save for this week alone, wouldn''t be caught dead in a dress, nonetheless manages to seduce one of the most eligible men at this party. The son of a duke, no less."

    She flashed a bleak smile, sipping her wine, her friends gazing raptly on, before she raised it in a half-mocking toast. ¡°If you are going to whore yourself, you could hardly pick a finer prize. Well done.¡±

    Jess had the grace to blush, gossip both shrew and filled with the most jaded admiration washing over her. This was Highrock, after all. A college of war and, in some ways, the most ruthless of all finishing schools, for all that Jess normally refused to see it as anything like that.

    But girls who burned not with a desire to master blade or spell came here with another aim. Not to marry the cast-off fops circling the Nobles Council like flies on turds, but rather the hardest and most talented of men, those who would defend Erovering herself one day, their fortunes destined to rise beyond petty sycophants, should turmoil rock Erovering''s future. Girls who hungered for the potency of fighting men, or hungry just to test themselves, graced this school''s halls. Far bolder than most girls, Jess knew, whatever pretense they mimed for the sake of their families.

    Jess swallowed and dipped her head. ¡°I have broken no rule of propriety, Prisci, I can promise you that.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Prisci smirked. ¡°Clothes on. Well played. Pretenses observed, and still able to lead him on to so much more, should he court you in earnest.¡±

    Jess blinked at her throaty laughter. ¡°Ah Jess, I should have given you more credit! Playing the naive tart so well. Yet when Lady Putrice told you the lay of the land, you were savvy enough to change your tactics right quick, and to brilliant affect.¡± She tilted her head theatrically, and Jess thought that for all that she tried to hide it, Prisci was feeling the wine. ¡°I think, dear Jess, I brushed you off too soon. You definitely have potential.¡±

    Bold as brass she strode up to Jess, kissing her cheek. ¡°I stare at you too, sometimes. You really are a pretty little thing, when you put on a dress.¡±

    Jess flushed at this, even as their classmates and no few of the young lords and ladies visiting their school gazed at the pair avidly, as if watching a play.

    Still, for all that they had never been friends, Jess felt certain courtesies were owed.

    She softly pulled Prisci close, the girl''s eyes widening at Jess''s deceptive strength, melting into a dreamy smile as Jess kissed soft lips before blowing huskily into her ear.

    "The wine is spiked with laudanum. It is affecting your judgment. Have a care."

    Prisci paled and stepped back, gently pressing lips Jess had kissed, nodding once, favoring Jess with the most curious of gazes.

    "Well then, Jess, it looks like you are enjoying the party just fine. I will let you get back to Javiar," she said before slipping into a cloud of gossip and friends once more.

    Jess, pointedly not looking toward the silken cubicles so conveniently arranged in the far corner of the massive chamber, slowly made her way to Lady Putrice, even then chatting animatedly with several other Highrock professors and the gentleman who had been flirting with Malek, not that long ago.

    ¡°Well, it seems like you do clean up quite nicely, Calenbry. I hope you are enjoying the party, young lady. You never know where you will meet your future husband, but these soirees can be a wonderful opportunity,¡± opined her mathematics professor.

    Jess smiled at the older man, allowing his drivel to wash over her as she did all his classes.

    Lady Putrice''s gaze was both jaded and approving as she led Jess a few feet from the gossiping professors. "Despite our differences, I really am glad we came to an understanding, Jessica. Now tell me true, isn''t it worth a bit of time and care, donning dress and makeup, for the chance to meet a man of Javiar''s caliber?"

    Jess flashed a smile both sad and wistful.

    Javiar really was a sweet man, only a few years older than her, and Lady Putrice had not a trace of malice in her soul, at least towards her. ¡°I regret that we got on so awfully at first. And... yes. The company has been most sweet.¡± She paused a minute, rubbing her belly. ¡°Sadly I am not feeling entirely settled, as much as I am enjoying the gathering so far. Will you forgive me if I took my leave, professor?¡±

    Suddenly void of all warmth, cold eyes gazed into Jess''s own. ¡°Please tell me you are not going to do anything foolish, Calenbry.¡±

    Jess blinked in confusion. ¡°No, don''t worry. I''m not going to wrinkle my dress, but hang it before resting my belly. Josie explained it to me.¡± She shook her head ruefully. ¡°Sometimes I regret not understanding the ways of a woman better.¡±

    Putrice blinked, delicate brow marred by sudden confusion, quickly shaken away, her gaze now one of concern. "Do you truly feel sick? You had bet rest, then. No need to worry the healers with the trifles of over-indulgence when they have far more important issues to deal with." She nodded firmly, as if coming to a conclusion. "Yes. Go back to your quarters and rest, Jessica. And when you feel better? Come back. The soiree will be all night, our guests are housed in adjoining quarters, and will be here for the next handful of days."

    She winked and smiled. ¡°And I know one lad already who would very much like to see you again.¡±

    Jess flushed and turned, catching sight of Javier moving with the sleek grace of a hunting cat, slipping past people to approach her.

    A gentle hand brushed her cheek. He smiled. ¡°I had a delightful game of chess with you, Jessica de Calenbry. I was hoping we could play another game.¡±

    Jess blushed at that, her grin just as wide as his. ¡°I would love another game, but I''m afraid our last match quite wore me out. Perhaps we could enjoy a rematch together, after I refresh myself?¡±

    Javiar nodded. ¡°I look forward to it.¡±

    Jess savored a final kiss goodbye before slipping out the door as fast as her silken shoes could take her.

 Chapter 10

    ¡°Quite and interesting little get-together we''re having so far, mistress.¡±

    Jess blinked and caught sight of her familiar, shuddering as he seemed to bend at right angles to everything, oozing right through the door as it closed. Jess sighed at his words.

    ¡°What''s wrong? You''ve seen me pop through doors a dozen times, and it looked like you and Javiar were having a wonderful time.¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°We were,¡± she whispered. ¡°But the more we spoke, the more I felt that something wasn''t quite right. Considering the wine, how savvy our hosts were to our particulars, I just know something is up.¡±

    Twilight smirked. ¡°Was it the poppy extract in the wine? Or the way your lover knew so much about you and diOnni, among other players in Erovering''s Court?¡±

    Jess flushed. ¡°Pretty much, Twilight, and he''s not my lover.¡±

    Twilight arched his brow. ¡°Only by the thinnest of silken margins is that true, you know.¡±

    Jess winced. ¡°Well, yes. You''re right. But still.¡±

    Twilight nodded. ¡°You were gathering intel, seduction being but one tool in a Squire''s arsenal. Impressive, but I had the impression that was one line you weren''t willing to cross.¡±

    Jess flushed. ¡°It wasn''t like that, Twilight.¡±

    Her familiar''s nod was almost apologetic. ¡°I understand. You actually favor this Javiar, and pursued him from genuine interest. But as he was absolutely leaking interesting tidbits that might, or might not prove useful...¡±

    ¡°I soaked it up like a sponge. Yes.¡±

    Twilight nodded. ¡°And the way you threw Lady Putrice off the scent, blathering about dress maintenance when she was trying to catch you out in darker games...¡±

    ¡°Yes. I played the idiot. I do have a knack for it, after all.¡±

    Twilight grinned. ¡°It was a brilliant move, mistress. Since so often you aren''t pretending, no reason for her to expect duplicity now.¡±

    Jess smirked. ¡°Thanks, I think.¡±

    "And I do believe I see the corridor to Neal''s quarters to our left. A good thing his family is also of sufficient wealth to merit such exclusivity, as is the case with so many of your friends, conveniently enough. Hold but a moment, Jess. Let me make sure there are no lackeys of Putrice conveniently keeping watch."

    Jess immediately slowed to a stop, miming fiddling with her slippers as Twilight scouted ahead.

    ¡°The coast is clear, mistress, for all that we are many miles from any coast.¡±

    Jess flashed a tight grin, slipper straightened, proceeding onward at a relaxed pace past Neal''s quarters before abruptly darting inside.

    Half a dozen pairs of startled gazes locked on her, more than one Squire of War drawing blades technically forbidden for them to carry inside the keep proper, before shaking their heads and resheathing weapons once more.

    ¡°Bloody hells, Jess, you startled the nickers off me,¡± Malek said, brown eyes twinkling mischievously as he gazed upon peers far more discomfited than he.

    ¡°Neal, I thought you said the door was locked?¡± Scowled Lucas, as thick and burly a Squire as Eloquin had let into their ranks, and for all his rough manner, Jess quite liked him, and the fact that he could throw spells as well as use a lance had afforded him a certain amount offorgiveness for his rougher edges.

    Neal rubbed his sandy hair, frowning at the door. ¡°It was.¡±

    Jess had the grace to flash a sheepish smile. ¡°Sorry. I was in a hurry. And Lady Putrice is far too anxious to catch me in her webbing for me to take any chances.¡±

    Several of her fellows chuckled amiably enough at that, Erica gazing pointedly at Jess.

    ¡°What did you learn?¡±

    Such innocent words. Yet with Jera''s intent gaze it was enough to make Jess flush, and no one in that chamber was a fool.

    Jess swallowed, dipping her head. Bloody hells, she hated everyone knowing everything. "They are Velheim nobles. There can be no doubt. Eligible younger sons and daughters...and I sensed no malice when I gazed into a certain lord''s eyes."

    ¡°In between kissing him?¡± Smirked one of her fellows, Neal''s cool gaze immediately silencing him.

    "Yes," Jess replied, locking gazes with Mortant, the wiry young man with mouse brown hair immediately swallowing and looking away. "After we kissed. We shared childhood stories, more infused wine than I really should have let myself sip, and perhaps a bit of laughter as well." Jess found restless fingers absently rubbing the lace of her dress. How strange. She normally detested dresses. "He seemed genuine when he said that he is, for all intents and purposes, an extra son of a once powerful clan who still holds a certain amount of prestige and influence, pressured by his family to come along to this little soiree in the hopes of finding a possible love match, I take it, so long as his chosen is of rank and manners sufficient to please his clan.¡±

    Odd silence. Jess swallowed and spoke on. ¡°What I gathered is that, whatever else is going on, this really is a genuine gala serving to foster courtships between nobles of various clans. But it is not our northernmost neighbors being represented here, however these lads and girls were coached to present themselves. They are the second and third-born of Velheim families, seeking to marry into the clans of northern Erovering.¡± Jess bowed her head. ¡°After we... talked, he... proposed to court me.¡±

    Her peers were strangely silent, even solemn, as Jess swallowed, finding her voice once more. ¡°The way he looked at me, confident manner suddenly gone, as uncertain as any boy or girl whose heart beats too hard for artifice... he looked like my answer really mattered to him, in a rush to assure that he could take care of me, I suppose, that I would be accepted by his clan.¡± Jess grimaced. ¡°He claimed to be offspring to an exceedingly wealthy trading clan, and didn''t hesitate to make comparisons between his House and the diOnni clan.¡± Jess forbore to mention intimations of trade alliances already forged between the clans, caring for her friend Raphael too fiercely to risk blackening his family name under even the loosest of associations, should events truly take a sour turn in the hours or days ahead.

    "Bloody hells, this cannot all be coincidence," Malek declared. "Getting the Nobles Council up in arms about Eloquin''s elite, riling up all the professors to take a stand against you, a score of Velheim nobles hunting for marriage prospects at a war academy belonging to a former enemy, and not a single peep of protest here? Putrice must be playing a long game, with more shadow alliances than you can shake a stick at.¡±

    Jess nodded. "Pretty much, and their intel is exceptional. They know of Raphael''s clan, and Javier knows of the Calenbry clan as well, for all that he feigned not even to know my age when first we... kissed." Jess blushed at that, shaking her head. "Javiar unwittingly revealed his hand while hastening to assure me that his family would welcome and accept me if he managed to win my heart."

    Neal blinked. ¡°You managed to wrap him around your finger after a single dalliance? I''m impressed, Jess. I think you''d make a smashing good agent, if you work this fast.¡±

    Jess flushed and looked away.

    ¡°Ah. I... misunderstood. My apologies.¡±

    ¡°I didn''t intend for anything to happen. It did. And I think, as much as I know the whole thing is a bloody setup, as much as I know that there has to be some scheme behind all of this... I like him, and I think he likes me too.¡± She forced herself to look up. ¡°What I am saying is that at least some of those scions, perhaps most of them, are just pawns. Puppets dancing to their families'' tune. We know Putrice is involved. There is no doubt about that. But is she a rook upon the board? A pawn? A queen?¡±

    Jess gazed intently at her thoughtful friends. "Who arranged for them to come here in the first place? Who coached them about our families? Is it really as simple as fostering marriages between Erovering and Velheim? Simple matchmaking?" Jess shook her head. "We now know that someone is pulling strings, and we need to know how far it goes."

    Neal frowned. ¡°It goes far enough for them to drug their wine with the most exotic of vices. If that is not a recipe for seduction and dalliance, I don''t know what is.¡±

    Malek nodded, his arm giving Jess a companionable squeeze. ¡°Not so uncommon a vice as that, quite popular among the richest and most jaded in Krona, and let''s be honest, Neal, we both know more than one lord has used it to seduce young heiresses to considerable estates, further leverage to press a suit for marriage.¡±

    Neal sighed. "True. Still, such jaded politicking, with our fellow students as targets... You all know I can be a right ruthless bastard, but I can''t say I''m at all comfortable with this soiree. I seriously doubt the dean knows that Lady Putrice is using her influence to arrange for the seduction and marriage of several dozen of our peers to the Velheim nobility."

    Erica scowled, even as she leaned into Neal, his arm circling her almost of its own accord. "If that''s all this is, Lady Putrice using her influence to foster courtships between Erovering and Velheim, I think you''d be surprised, Neal, how many parents would be quite fine with it, so long as their prospective sons-in-law had assets worth the deflouring of their daughters." Jess couldn''t help frowning at this, for all that she knew it was true.

    Erica sighed. "But if that''s all this is, then why is Lady Putrice doing everything she can to hinder our ability to act as Squires?"

    Mortant frowned. ¡°What are you going on about, Erica? The lady has never even spoken to me, let alone tried to hinder me.¡±

    ¡°She''s targeting the girls of Eloquin''s band,¡± Malek explained. ¡°Noble lords are not that likely to care too much about the wild excesses of their boys, but girls are expected to live lives of propriety and decorum, or at least, to have less savory pursuits safely cloaked in anonymity. Some of our best tacticians are Erica and Jess, among the handful of girls who ride under ourbanner, and all of them are vulnerable to public opinion. Lady Putrice let it be known that she has taken steps to inform each and every clan exactly what we do, what Eloquin forged us to do, even going so far as to arrange for Jess and Erica''s expulsion, if they dare to don armor instead of dresses ever again while at Highrock.¡±

    Erica paled and swallowed. "I can only imagine how it is for Jess. My mother''s letter, hand-delivered by a grinning Putrice, made it quite clear that she has had us in her sights for quite some time, and that Mother is not pleased at all." She shivered, and Neal''s hard gaze went soft with concern. "Honestly, I think Mother is going to force me to come home, no matter what happens, once she makes her way to Highrock."

    Neal nodded. "And Lady Putrice is not just targeting the girls. Perhaps she wrote you off as a lost cause, Mortant, but she has made it quite clear to a number of our fellows that the Lords Council will soon bring Eloquin to trial in order to put a stop to his violent purges, and all who ride under his banner will be subject to formal censure as well."

    More than one Squire frowned at those words.

    Mortant paled. ¡°Eloquin has the king''s favor! There is no way the bitch could get away with that!¡±

    ¡°Come, Mortant, think it through,¡± Malek said. ¡°Lady Putrice obviously represents Velheim interests, probably springing from trade. There is a lot of coin to be made in trade, and a lot of wealth to spread around. I have no doubt that any number of lords with ties to various trade consortiums might find a lot of pressure brought to bear to strengthen ties between Erovering and Velheim. And for all that Eloquin has the king''s favor, everything we do is off thebooks. Black operations, you understand that, right, Mortant?¡±

    Malek gave a bitter shake of his head. "The king won''t even formally recognize and condemn the flesh trade that is so rampant in this part of Erovering, so poorly do so many of our northern lords maintain their fiefdoms. Too many lords would simply use the king''s formal concern as a pretext to demand the right to increase the number of men-at-arms they are allowed to have under their banner, claiming it''s necessary to put an end to the banditry within their lands. That is the most contentious of issues between Council and Crown, and even I know that to push too hard would throw Erovering in turmoil."

    Jess nodded. "Exactly. And for all that, many lords find slavery so damned profitable that they are loath to go against it. We''ve all read the accounts Eloquin gave us to study while we prepared for this day. How horrific life is for these serfs, jaded lords getting more coin to sell them than they would see in harvest profits, so finding it a simple economic equation, never mind that most of those half-starved farmers will end up savaged and brutalized within months, and dead before a handful of years pass.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    "So those same damned lords pushing for more power in court, claiming to be unable to keep their lands clean by themselves, are only profiting by the arrangement either way. Coin in their pockets for the status quo, or the hoped for rights of being able to accrue yet more power for themselves, becoming ever bigger thorns in the king''s side as time goes on."

    Neal''s smile was bleak and cold. ¡°So the king''s stance is both ruthless and logical. There is no slavery in Erovering. The lords have no grounds to sue for bigger personal retinues. And should horrors be witnessed that demand response, Eloquin''s blackened daggers will do what needs doing, without any politics getting in our damned way.¡±

    Numerous scowls and nods filled the room.

    "A bloody crime. I''d hang those bastards myself, if I could. ''Tis why I agreed to blacken my dagger after all," Lucas declared to heartfelt nods of agreement. No Squire was present, after all, who didn''t plan on embracing all of Eloquin''s lessons that night.

    ¡°But that''s not our real purpose. And Lady Putrice knows it,¡± Neal said. ¡°As righteous as our cause is, purging our homeland of slavers, tracking down strands of corruption for all that we dare not pursue actual lords without mountains of evidence, our true purpose is to master the most brutal aspects of warfare, so that should the king cry havoc and let loose his hounds of war, we, his most loyal wolves, will be ready to serve, hamstringing our foes however we can.¡±

    The room filled with feral grins at those words, and never had Jess felt such fierce kinship with her brethren as she did at that moment.

    ¡°None of us are fools, and neither is Lady Putrice," Malek said. "She knows damned well we are training to strike at Velheim as much as any place else. The Velheim Wars are where Generals Eloquin and Arthur both were forged, to savage effect. The horrors they had inflicted would have had both men tried for war crimes, if our king was silly enough to sign treaties that served only our enemies'' interests.

    "So what better coup could Lady Putrice hope for, than if she manages to defang Eloquin''s band before it can possibly become any type of threat? And what victory could be sweeter than his prized Squires marrying Velheim scions? Not only would that geld Eloquin, it would mean that half a dozen girls schooled in the most devious of Erovering''s military doctrines would be tied by marriage, and one day children, to the fortunes of our former enemy. And how long before any girl, no matter how fiercely loyal to our cause, would find her allegiance shifting from Erovering to the father of her children?"

    Even Erica swallowed at Malek''s cynical declaration. ¡°I can''t deny that once I''m married with a babe in my arms, I would do anything to protect her. Anything at all.¡± She shuddered, gaze strangely haunted. ¡°What mother could possibly feel any different?¡±

    Neal nodded solemnly. ¡°And if every female Squire training under Eloquin is betrothed to a powerful Velheim noble, Erovering''s battle tactics are utterly compromised, particularly as we can only assume that each and every one of their male offspring will be serving as officers in Velheim''s military, and what mother won''t do all she can to teach her son how best to survive a Squire''s tactics? We know damned well how ruthless we can be, after all.¡±

    Lucas chuckled ruefully. "And I was talking with the sweetest little thing, before Jess flashed her warning. Pity, too. With Jess leading the charge, so to speak, I thought the way was open for my little bella and I to also savor the delights behind those silken curtains. Even if she was intending to play me, she seemed more than willing to treat me as her true love for at least this one gala." Lucas vented a theatrical sigh. "Oh well. Some things are just too good to be true, I suppose. ''Tis back to the serving wenches for me, then."

    Erica rolled her eyes. ¡°A good thing you tip them. I don''t know how they can stand you otherwise.¡±

    Lucas looked almost hurt. ¡°They like me just fine. I have coin to spare, and when they tell me their little brother is just a silver away from a full apprenticeship and a better life, I''m not such a callous bastard that I won''t help out.¡±

    Jess grinned. ¡°And no doubt they show their appreciation with great enthusiasm.¡±

    Lucas flashed a cocksure grin. "Of course! It''s an alliance. I treat them sweet, so what''s the harm?"

    Jess nodded. ¡°You always do have the most sincere gaze when you ask for one of my tinctures, and I know your lungs are free of fluid, your heart beating strong. I never refuse you, but it is fun to see you blush when I smile at you.¡±

    Lucas winked. ¡°You are the savviest fool I know, Jess, and I do pass along who they can ask for a second dose, if their relative gets sick again. I wish to hell you took classes seriously, but you can couch a lance, and when it comes to plants, not even Lady Vaila is your match.¡±

    Jess smirked. ¡°Thanks. I think.¡±

    Erica nodded. ¡°I''ve never heard you slander your lovers for being of servant stock. Point to you for that, at least, but what if one of them catches your seed and blossoms? You''re no fool, Lucas. Even the sweetest girl whose family is struggling will compromise her virtue in the hopes of a better life, and you are the son of a lord.¡±

    Lucas flushed at that.

    ¡°In any event,¡± Neal said, ¡°it is clear that Lady Putrice has political incentive to work atcross-purposes to us. Knowing as we do how high the stakes have truly become, with more than one of us at risk of expulsion if we dare to cross her, who among those present are still willing to blacken their daggers this night for our mentor and master?"

    And Jess''s heart swelled with pride. Of the near twenty students that had trickled into Neal''s room, all of them slammed fist to chest, as fierce a salute as any commander could hope for.

    Neal flashed them a satisfied smile. "Good. Then I will share with all of you this: Victory this night shall prove our cause. Servants saved from horror, the heads of those slavers who dare to confront us. Men and women sold like chattel will be shipped off to Council to give their accounts, and for all that no names will be said aloud, it will suddenly become extremely impolitic to dare question the means and motives of Eloquin and his band." Neal''s brow furrowed. "Or at least, that is our hope. I did not realize how strong an influence Velheim had in certain circles, which is unforgivably foolish, I know. Even if they lack our military might, they are too savvy not to use what influence and resources they have at their disposal."

    Malek nodded. ¡°So what''s the plan?¡±

    Neal smiled. "The plan, for those that need it, is to sneak out by knotted rope, and I just so happen to have a number of such ready, for those presently under watch, who fear repercussions should they join us this eve by anything less than the most discrete means."

    Lucas nodded fiercely. ¡°And those of us that no servant or professor would dare try to intimidate will keep careful watch outside the windows of our friends. I know where all the girl''s sleep, of course, and should any thug seek to make a play from the bushes while Erica or Jess slip down, they will get a right good thunking on their noggin.¡±

    Jess and Erica shared a grin at that, for all that Lucas''s intimate knowledge of all their quarters from the outside gave Jess momentary pause. Her friend''s eyes, however, had only a zealous sort of friendship. Not an iota of malice, for all that he was one of the boldest men Jess had ever met, and not ashamed to flirt with girls of any rank, at that.

    Neal''s grin was equally sardonic. ¡°I will keep watch as well.¡± He gently squeezed Erica''s palm. ¡°Don''t be alarmed. Eloquin had all of us mind-map the quarters of our most vulnerable pieces, because you never can tell what the future might hold.¡±

    Jess flushed to think she was a prized piece that needed such care, both embarrassed and, yes, flattered as well. As fierce and bold as she liked to be, in her heart of hearts she appreciated when someone cared enough to be protective of her, whether or not she needed it.

    After carefully making sure that all the ropes would hold, Jess solemnly instructing her friends how best to knot it to thick oaken bedpost, making sure each could do so effortlessly for all that Eloquin had trained them in rappelling down cliff or castle face in full gear during their first year, they discretely began to break up and part in ones and twos, Jess earning more than a few looks when she would raise her hand and tell her friends to wait, that someone suspicious was glaring down the corridor before abruptly nodding, saying the coast was clear.

    Lucas scowled. ¡°And how do you know when people are looking this way, Jess?¡±

    Jess flashed a grin. ¡°My invisible familiar that none of you believe in is keeping watch and letting me know.¡±

    Her friend smirked. ¡°Sure, Jess. I take it it''s your warped gift, that you sense them near the doorways like an odd vibration of sorts?¡±

    Jess gave a thoughtful shake of her head. ¡°An interesting idea. I haven''t thought of that before. Nope, it''s my cat, but thanks for the idea, and you need to go right now, one of Putrice''s lackeys will be making a turn in seconds!¡±

    Twilight shook his head. ¡°You can lead a horse to water...¡±

    Lucas, however, had taken her seriously enough to dart out, female squire snug beside him as if they were courting and so more likely to be wandering about than not, and within seconds they were clear.

    Jess, among the last to leave, shared a farewell nod with Neal and Erica both, not doubting what was to be shared between them in the brief pause they had before all of them were bearing live steel, looking death in the eye. She had the grace to say nothing but leave with a farewell smile, Malek by her side as they left as one.

    An excited squeeze of her hand. ¡°Are you ready?¡±

    Jess flashed her friend a cheeky smile. ¡°Damn right, I am. We will catch out those damned slavers, free their victims, and prove to king and council once and for all how important we are, even if we must be discrete about it. The key players will know be forced to consider how bad they would look, crossing us in the future.¡±

    Malek smirked. ¡°Unless Putrice''s pull is so great that we really can be played off as savage murderers butchering without trial, to be exiled to our noble estates for years on end.¡±

    Jess grimaced and swallowed, not liking that idea at all.

    Solemn brown eyes gazed into her own. ¡°Jacob''s quarters are over here. And even though we''ve had our differences this week... I''d like to make peace before we do what needs doing.¡±

    Jess nodded her head. ¡°I understand. And I agree. You should.¡±

    Malek frowned. "Lady Putrice has focused upon you like a hawk. For all that she has been all smiles and lace with you tonight, I think she expects you to return after you have... rested. Catching our secret weapon up in a marriage alliance with our one-time enemies would be quite a coup for the Velheim camp."

    Jess smirked. ¡°Though I''m hardly a secret weapon, she did seem both surprised and pleased that Javiar and I hit it off so quickly.¡±

    Malek nodded. ¡°Do you want me to escort you to your quarters? On the off chance she is there, shouting at the door or some such, I can say I was escorting you to the Healers Wing, and there won''t be much she can say, daring to spike everyone''s drink with poppy extract.¡±

    Jess smiled and shook her head. ¡°No need, Malek, I told her much the same. You say goodbye to Jacob. If I encounter Lady Putrice, I''ll say something along those lines myself. I''d be surprised if it came to that, though. I didn''t see a trace of hate or malice in her gaze, for all that there is a coldness that would see me expelled, if I don''t dance to her tune.¡±

    Malek gave her shoulder a comradely squeeze. ¡°It won''t come to that, you''ll see. And Jess?¡±

    ¡°Yes, shieldbrother?¡±

    Intent brown eyes stared into her own. "Don''t come if you''re not ready for this. I mean that. I don''t care what Neal thinks, your safety is far more important to me than whether or not you can help us parry what will no doubt be a few poorly aimed crossbow bolts at best, no match for our armor unless they were arbalests or ballistae mounted upon a castle wall."

    Jess''s gaze was equally intense. ¡°There is no way I am letting brothers and sisters I''ve trained with since I first came to Highrock face danger without me, Malek. You know that. If even one of you were to perish to a slaver''s lucky blow... that''s not something I could bear to live with for the next forty years.¡±

    Malek nodded. ¡°You know I feel much the same way. I blacken my dagger for my brothers and sisters-in-arms every bit as much as I do for Eloquin''s cause.¡±

    Jess gave her closest friend a kiss on the cheek. "We are the same, then. I will see you when the moon is high, shieldbrother."

    Malek winked, quickly making his way to his lover''s quarters as Jess proceeded to her own, her mind flittering on a dozen things, her heart starting to race once more as she contemplated in what was truly in store for her tonight.

    For the first time since attending Highrock, she would be fighting in earnest, with live steel, against furious, desperate men all too happy for a chance to kill her, should she lose focus for even a second.

    She swallowed and turned the corner to her quarters.

    ¡°Jess, have a care!¡± Twilight hissed, but it was already too late.

    Jess, armed only in her skirts and makeup, locked gazes with two of the very few servants who had no reason to love her. No reason at all.

    Usel, the oldest of the two brothers tending to the pigsty some distance away from the central keep, glared at Jess, cracking oversized knuckles, his near-identical brother Vidic gazing at Jess with an oily smile. Both were broad-shouldered men, powerful limbs from grueling daily work assuring their considerable bulk was far more muscle than fat, and Jess knew all too well how hard Usel hit.

    ¡°In a dress, where you belong. Like any other bitch that knows her place. Not so mighty now, without your blade, are you girl?¡±

    Jess swallowed as her heart lurched into a frantic gallop, locking gazes with two men who had every reason to hate her, on the only evening she had ever walked the halls of Highrock completely unarmed.

    Vidic''s black toothed grin only widened. ¡°Now, brother, have a care. No one could prove we did anything to that bitch. We still have our jobs, and if no woman here will speak to us, there are always the whores in town. Things could be worse. Far worse. But they are better. Not only for us, but for this tart as well. Because you''re going to be a good girl, aren''t you, tart?¡±

    ¡°Damn good indeed.¡± Usel leered. ¡°You''re expected back at a certain dance, and we''re going to see you get there. We were paid good coin, being the strongest of all of Highrock''s working men, to give you... what''s the word, Vidic?¡±

    ¡°An escort, brother. We were paid to escort our little Jess by people who know not to listen to nasty rumors. People who could use strong servants with good heads on their shoulders, and not afraid to get their knuckles dirty for a cause.¡±

    Jess took a cautious step back.

    ¡°Don''t move, bitch!¡± Usel snapped. ¡°You like your privacy, and we like it too. No one is around, and I think it''s time we evened the score.¡±

    Smiling, Vidic slowly pulled out a massive cleaver. Jess couldn''t help but catch sight of the flecks of gore long since stained upon the blade, for all that the edge itself shone with deadly sharpness, no doubt recently whetted.

    ¡°Vidric! You were supposed to wait!¡± Usel hissed, drawing a wooden baton of his own.

    "The hell with that!" Vidic snapped. "Everyone''s focused on that damned posh gala. The corridors are empty, even the servants were given leave! Why the hell should this bitch get to marry foreign nobility after smearing our names and tarring our reputations through the whole damned school? She goes down, we drag her corpse in the storage room down the hall, cover her in the posh cape we stole, and plant the blade in that prissy nobleman''s room, just like we planned."

    Vidic''s laughter was dark and cruel. "Come, brother, we have a would-be knight all puffed up in silk and lace. It''s time we showed her what happens when you cross our clan!¡±

    Usel paled. ¡°You don''t say it aloud, idiot! Now we have no choice. Charge as one!¡±

 Chapter 11

    ¡°Jess, move!¡±

    Twilight''s words snapped Jess out of her momentary daze, sickened by the hate filled malice she saw radiating from their beady eyes, hate having grown so fiercely since the day almost a year ago she had found a young girl sobbing inconsolably, unwilling to say a word, and the two men glaring so lecherously at them both. Jess had been kitted in steel that day, blunt training sword still in hand.

    She had broken more than a few bones, and the battered pair of servitors and a girl who refused to say a thing had not helped her cause. But suspicions had been raised, and no one was willing to punish the daughter of a named lord for dispensing low justice as she saw fit. No one had been maimed or killed, and the men were forbidden to bother the frightened girl or Jess ever again.

    Servants are not fools, however, and in their own way they had dispensed justice of a sort, rat turds and foul tics to be found in their bedding, sharpened bones in their soup, and no matter how they tried and courted, no serving maid in the keep would accept their favors, their hands, or warm their beds.

    In a horrific flash, she saw it all. Jess should have seen this coming. She was a fool not to have.

    And now, the pair of men, given pretext to interact with Jess under cover of an exotic ball enticing so many to attend or serve, had made the best of a savage opportunity, charging with club and cleaver raised, furiously intent upon taking her life at all costs.

    In the middle of a stone lined corridor, wooden doors yards away, trapped in skirts and lace, Jess seized the Vor as best she could.

    She shouted and charged forward even as Vidric scowled in momentary surprise, upraised blade unable to swing down fast enough as Jess dove under his guard, bracing and curling herself as her back collided with powerful legs, and Jess could feel the blows that would become bruises as her nemesis howled and tumbled to the ground.

    ¡°Bloody whore!¡± Usel cursed, his club whistling for her skull.

    Grinning fiercely as strangely garbled words washed over her, Jess dipped back, daring no kicks, trapped as she was in tanglements of ruffles and lace, her fist smashing fiercely into Usel''s bulbous nose the instant his club whipped past.

    A crunch of bursting cartilage and a scream for her efforts.

    Momentary surprise.

    Right palm to chin, tight and hard. Teeth shatter and Usel stumbles back, blood spraying from his mouth, broken shards of black teeth trailing from bloody spit.

    Neck exposed. Don''t think. Act!

    Jess whipped her left hand around in a tight, arcing hook, rigid fingers stabbing into Usel''s vulnerable throat.

    A burst of sudden pain. Her fingers throbbed as Usel gripped his throat in surprise, gurgling and wheezing, eyes bulging with the horror of death to come.

    Eyes flash forward, furious beet-red countenance of Vidric stumbling to his feet once more, vicious cleaver raised high.

    Jess''s gloved hand caught Usel''s desperate wrist, still holding his baton as he keened for breath, wrenching the wooden club effortlessly from his grip before pivoting her hips and slamming the dying man into a charging Vidric.

    ¡°Brother!¡± Jess couldn''t deny the awful pain in the man''s voice, Vidric''s helpless panic turning to blind fury as he stumbled forward, lashing out with his fearsome blade for her throat.

    Her wooden stick countered, catching blade against baton before lashing out for Vidric''s wrist, snaring it while pivoting her hips and wrenching back his arm.

    An off-balance Vidric roared and stumbled to his knees, cleaver slipping from his suddenly lax grip as Jess side-stepped before spinning about, her seized baton cracking against his temple.

    Jess screamed, allowing mortal terror but a moment to vent itself before slamming her foe''s skull with all force and fury, pounding with a berserker''s rage as her stumbling foe crumpled then began to spasm, skull cracked.

    Black hate burns. Gloved hands to chin and throat. Furious wrench, neck snapped. Vidric collapsing to the ground, still as death.

    Jess took deep ragged breaths, heart racing still with the dark frenzy of terror and exhilaration washing through her, leaving her dizzy, sick, and as high on triumph as spiced wine could ever hope to make her feel.Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    Solemn sapphire eyes locked upon her own. ¡°Well done, my mistress. Well done.¡±

    Jess barks a single shaking laugh, almost a sob.

    ¡°By the gods, Twilight. By the gods.¡±

    ¡°If something had happened, my queen... my vengeance would have been beyond their ken.¡±

    Soft, dry words that made Jess shudder far worse than her scrape with death. ¡°Please... Twilight... don''t even joke.¡±

    Eyes blazing like pits of hell were the simple eyes of an eccentric cat once more. ¡°Of course, my queen. Forgive me for not scouting ahead.¡±

    Jess grimaced. "Here I am wearing an outfit that all but cripples a woman, not a single armament upon me, perfect prey for any man that would rape or butcher me. I will never ever allow myself to be caught so damned off guard again! If that damned fool Usel hadn''t used a wooden baton instead of a blade..."

    Twilight dipped his head. ¡°It does not bear thinking about. But you weaved away as adroitly as Eloquin could have hoped, for all that the club would not have marked you, would perhaps even have torn free of his grasp, had you wished it hard enough. Even had it been of lead, you would have dodged the blow and seized the baton, just as Eloquin has taught you. At least now you know what you are capable of with your martial talents alone. But you are right, my mistress. Let us never be caught so off guard again."

    Jess shuddered and nodded. A quick look around, and all was utterly quiet, more still than Jess had never known it to be before. Her enemies had chosen their ambush site well, for all that they were now dead before her, Usel spasming his last, hands desperately squeezing his throat still, Jess coldly staring as the last flickers of panicked life left his eyes, arched back collapsing with a crackling sigh, the stink of voided bowels suddenly filling the corridor.

    Jess frowned. "I know just the storage room they spoke of, the design of the keep not allowing for quarters too close to my own. Not ones befitting a noble, anyway. I didn''t mind the odd layout as I like my privacy just fine, and only now do I appreciate how it could all be used against me."

    Her laughter was brittle and dark. ¡°These fools were right about the storage room being an excellent dumping spot. It will indeed be used to host a body or two. Their own.¡±

    With that Jess began the arduous process of dragging the bodies to the stout wooden door that opened to her touch, quickly scouting the room to find it bare of anything save a fine fur coat, draping it over the pair of bodies before parting once more, sealing the door shut with a fierce act of her will.

    Twilight smiled in cold satisfaction. ¡°I doubt that door will give anytime soon.¡±

    Jess chuckled softly. ¡°Not unless their spells can burn through all the forests of Erovering, that door will remain shut against all the mages of Highrock, lest I will it otherwise.¡±

    Twilight frowned. ¡°But the putrid stink of rotting flesh...¡±

    ¡°Faint enough, from the door slit. I am the only one nearby, and I always keep my windows open for a good nighttime breeze. And if some vines somehow manage to creep into those rooms, I am sure there must be at least one window sealed only by poorly made shutters within. Then fertilizer inside covered with corpse flowers, roses, and tomato vines before you know it.¡±

    Twilight smirked. ¡°Not that I''d want to eat those tomatoes.¡±

    Jess chuckled. ¡°Fine for the pigs, though. All those years of those two tormentors gorging on the pigs they raised, now the pigs can savor turning tables, and all that.¡±

    Her cat nodded. ¡°It is a poetic justice of sorts. Now come, my mistress. We have blood to clean, and will no doubt need a handful of minutes for you to get over the shakes I see trembling through you even now, for I suspect that this is but the first encounter in a night that will no doubt be filled with horror and triumph unlike anything we have savored in quite some time.¡±

    With a shaking nod Jess did just that, rags dipped in water soaking up fresh blood quickly enough, hurriedly thrust atop the future compost presently in storage before the door was sealed once more, and Jess found herself spending some moments trembling and sobbing uncontrollably, even as she tore off her now much-hated dress and applied some of her special liniment to knuckles and back. She was no mage, but if the slight aches she felt even now were to fade completely by the time she was mounted upon Mercy once more, she wouldn''t be surprised. Not one bit.

    Gentle eyes gazed into her own. "You really don''t have to do this, my mistress. I would never shame you if you just wanted to curl up in that bed, dream sweet dreams, and wake up in your family home, to raise beautiful flowers, find a sweet boy, and never leave Calenbry lands again."

    Jess swallowed, heart racing, as her familiar spoke on. "If you wish it hard enough... I promise you... you will find it to be just so. It is your choice, my queen. But say the words, and when you next awaken, it will be safe and happy in your family''s bosom once more."

    Jess shuddered, squeezing her eyes shut, both terrified and awed by what was being implied, and somehow not at all surprised to know such things could be made true with a simple nod.

    At last she shook her head, smiling sadly. "And if but one of my friends fell to death''s cold grip, when my warding of spear, bolt, or arrow could have saved his life? No, Twilight. I will embrace the role I swore to, every day I looked into my friends'' anxious eyes and realize the terror they hide just underneath, praying for salvation that, without me, might never come. We train to fight against wild odds, and one day, death will come for us all."

    Twilight nodded. ¡°Yet you would keep dark death at bay as long as you can, even as you writhe with the memory of that pair of fools dying by your hand, however fierce you try to be. Yours is a noble spirit, my mistress. I pray that the horrors to come aren''t too awful, though of course we both know we will probably be drenched in blood before the night is out.¡±

    Jess chuckled and sobbed at those words, trembling hands struggling with formfitting linen armaments before donning quilted gambeson, reinforced boots and blade, knowing full well Eloquin had her full kit waiting for her at the stables, but refusing to walk the corridors of Highrock unarmed, ever again.

 Chapter 12

    A brilliant moon bathed the clearing in silvery light, the scents of wildflowers, jasmine, spruce, and pine permeating the air.

    Eloquin''s cool gaze looked over the assembled Squires, their eyes alight with excitement for what was to come.

    Out of a class of sixty, half their number had dared to answer the King''s Call. And of the Aspirants, Hyve''s chosen future knight commanders who under no obligation to partake of such dark acts, only two were to be seen. One was Johan Silverman, well versed in the poleaxe, smiling at his midnight brethren with eyes almost innocent, his chestnut hair blowing in the breeze. The other was Mord de Plaga himself, favoring his co-conspirators with the darkest of grins.

    Malek grimaced, exchanging glances with Neal and Erica both.

    ¡°I knew I should have accompanied her to quarters.¡±

    Mord smirked. ¡°Did you truly think your little lamb had the stones to blacken her dagger? The hot resolve to cleanse foul infection from this, the greatest of all nations?¡± He gave a mocking shake of his head, utterly ignoring Eloquin''s increasingly cold gaze. ¡°I had some faint hope that perhaps there was some fire to her after all. Oh well. She does look quite fetching in a dress, Malek, does she not?¡±

    Malek glared at the smirking Aspirant, far too handsome for his own bloody good.

    Jess couldn''t stand him. "Sorry to disappoint, Mord, I was delayed." As one, thirty startled pairs of eyes turned to her, Eloquin''s gaze the hardest, yet Jess felt both fierce horror and delight in knowing that she had caught him off guard as well. "Grass and twig give no echo, lest I will them to," she said softly. "Mercy and I walked in shadow, as you had taught, sir. Our armor is blackened, our links oiled, all of it tailored to be as silent as death. The noise you take for granted with our horses is undergrowth as much as anything else. And when grass and crackling twigs favor you, it muffles all sound, like wearing naught but silk."

    At that Eloquin gave the tiniest of approving nods, and Jess swallowed. ¡°I am sorry for being late, General. I was...delayed, and there was no one to help kit me up at the stables.¡±

    Their commander nodded once more, turning to Malek.

    ¡°Yes, sir. Jess? Let me make sure everything''s secure.¡±

    A shared grin, the tightening of a single strap, and Malek turned to their commander. ¡°I believe we are ready, sir.¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°Check your cavalry weapons. Warhammer, estoc, saber, and shield.¡± Jess did, finding her armaments secured to their saddle hooks and sheaths. ¡°Your longsword, dirk, and longknife. Are they secure upon your person?¡±

    Jess forced her racing heart to calm. She could draw her longsword from its carefully designed back sheath without fail. Her poniard, made for thrusting into weak points of armor in close quarters, or finishing off a downed opponent was also secure, as was the blade strapped to her left thigh, the short light sword to be drawn in the press of close quarters combat, used in tandem with the slender bronze bars presently secured to all of their armored left forearms, all Squires versed in how to catch cuts and thrusts with their gauntlets.

    Though reinforced parrying gauntlets were not as protective as shields, unlike a shield, it would hinder them not at all when using longswords, spears, or poleaxes on foot.

    ¡°Do any of you need to relieve yourselves or drink water? Now is the time. There is no shame, so long as you do not die, distracted by an aching bladder in the middle of combat.¡±

    Jess and Malek both shared anxious grimaces, and did what needed doing some feet away, their peers mocking them not at all, not even Mord, coldly smiling, sipping from his flask.

    ¡°Are you ready, Calenbry?¡± Her breath froze in her chest, heart racing, as Eloquin''s eyespierced her own.

    There was no hiding anything from that man. Her tremble worsened, even Malek looking at her with some concern. "Jess?"

    ¡°I killed two people today.¡±

    A sob, eyes widening with horror all around her and she shook in her saddle, unable to contain herself, when she had wanted so desperately to be as hard as steel.

    Soft whispers filled the clearing, and Jess wilted under her mentor''s gaze.

    ¡°Explain.¡±

    Jess swallowed, forced her breathing to slow.

    Panicked no longer, she was a simple soldier, giving her report.

    ¡°Two servitors I have a... history with attempted to accost me outside my quarters, returning from our meeting at Neal''s quarters, after slipping free of Putrice''s gala.¡± Jess took a deep breath. ¡°Usel and Vidic were their names.¡±

    ¡°I knew them, sir,¡± Erica''s soft voice broke the hushed silence. ¡°They worked in the piggery. Brutes, they had raped a girl two years ago, only no one could prove it.¡±

    Eloquin turned his gaze to Erica who paled, but did not look away. ¡°Rapists should never have been allowed to continue their employment, even if they had been castrated.¡±

    More than one boy paled and shuddered at those words. Erovering laws were rather old fashioned regarding rape, everyone knew, but to hear it said aloud...

    Calmly Erica shook her head. ¡°There was no proof. The girl wouldn''t come forward, and, well, with a charge that serious, no constable wants to risk condemning and castrating a man, lest it become a tool of politics and persecution.¡±

    And there was the rub, everyone knew. Without the strongest of evidence, any snake could use a law designed to protect the innocent to instead horrifically maim any man she was displeased with, or who competed against her own interests. Social censure and suicide were so common after such a sentence was carried out that it was considered more merciful to simply hang a convicted rapist outright, unless he pleaded for life, knowing what the sentence would be.

    For those of noble blood, no lord would dream of persecuting another for the precedent it would set, and as false accusations were also a serious crime, many women who had been ill-used were too terrified to speak out if their attacker held any kind of rank that would see favor in a justicar''s eyes. Practically speaking, most nobles were untouchable, so long as they limited their predations strictly to common folk.

    Jess shook her head. No matter the good intentions of laws designed to protect the victims of abuse, or the accused from predatory accusers, someone always suffered unjustly.

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°Yet the accusation still stuck, and no one was tried for bearing false witness.¡±

    Erica''s smile was bleak. ¡°It was Jess who made the accusations, offering to champion the girl in a trial by combat, and Jess being female and noble born both, no Justicar would dare dismiss her challenge, even if her foe had been of noble birth. Though of course if those bastards had been noble born, it would have been considered a trial of honor, and nothing more.¡± Erica smirked. ¡°Despite their bulk, Usel and Vidic had outright refused, as the two fools were already much the worse for wear after running into Jess fully armored. Jess could not force a trial by combat without at least one witness, but no one would take the words of filth over our noble sister. So the brothers were free to do as they would, for all that they were now openly despised.¡±A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Mord smirked. ¡°Stupid, Jess. You should have just killed them outright and claimed self-defense. No one would dare challenge your word for such filth, and I''ll bet most of the staff would have considered it good riddance to bad rubbish.¡± Mord glowered at several frowning Squires. ¡°You know it''s true, don''t you dare stare at me like that. After Jess blackened their names to the color of pitch, their hatred and thirst for vengeance was inevitable.¡±

    Eloquin''s gaze locked upon Jess''s own. ¡°Continue with your report.¡±

    Jess swallowed and nodded. ¡°No girl would share their bed, no man would call them friend. Humiliation had turned to darkest hate, and I, a fool, had thought it best only to avoid them this last year. Not to check to see if malice radiated from their pores.¡± Mord chuckled darkly at that.

    Eloquin''s mount whickered softly. A single pat of its mane and it was calm once more, Eloquin himself focused entirely upon Jess. "And tonight was the night they confronted you. When you were at your most vulnerable, constrained by a woman''s attire, caught in Lady Putrice''s snares.¡±

    Jess flushed and looked away. ¡°It is as you say. Fool that I was, I had not even mailed gloves or dagger upon my person. I well and truly played the victim.¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°You did. But you are here now, Calenbry. Survival forgives any number of sins, so long as you learn from your folly.¡±

    Jess dipped her head. "They had come to my quarters at Putrice''s directive." Eloquin''s gaze turned hard as steel. "No, General. I don''t think it was Putrice who put them up to it. I sensed no Malice from her, locking gazes with me. It was... different. I truly think Putrice was intent only on having me spend the night in the arms of a Velheim noble, a prize of conquest, but of the marriage bed, not the blade."

    Eloquin''s gaze did not waver.

    Jess licked her lips and swallowed. ¡°They gloated on how they were going to... do things to me, butchering me in cold blood when all was said and done, wrapping me in the cloak of a nobleman they had stolen and planting evidence to suggest that he, not they, had been the culprit behind a crime of passion and murder.¡± Jess shrugged. ¡°They talked a lot, as men who find courage only in fury and drink tend to do, before Vidic charged me with a cleaver.¡±

    Jess permitted herself a bleak smile. ¡°As you can see, I am still in one piece. But at that point, there could be only one outcome.¡±

    "Their deaths." Eloquin turned to her peers. "And this is just one example of why it is greatest peril, greatest folly, to leave any enemy at your back. What you thought was a mercy, a sign of compassion, is instead the greatest of weaknesses that leaves your whole family vulnerable to the vindictive madness of one you once held in your power. Horror and death, perhaps your children, perhaps your own, are the inevitable result of lacking the courage and conviction to do what must be done when your foe is at his weakest, and you at your strongest.¡± Eloquin favored Mord with the tiniest of nods. ¡°Mord understands this. See that you do as well.¡±

    ¡°Death to our enemies! May they suffer, may they burn!¡± Mord roared, slamming fist to chest like any Squire, all of them shouting in chorus, many gazing at Mord with newfound respect.

    Eloquin flashed the bleakest of smiles. ¡°Correct. And this is why we show no mercy when battle is joined. Why you will all show no mercy tonight. You will cut down every man who dares to unsheathe steel, no matter how they plead or beg, so they may never track your clan down and cut the throats of your children in the dead of night, ten years hence. Are we clear?¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± Squires and Aspirants shouted as one.

    A solemn nod. ¡°Good. On my mark alone do you show mercy to those who would see you dead.¡± Eloquin turned to Jess. ¡°The bodies?¡±

    Jess grimaced and swallowed. ¡°In storage, sir. The door is of wood.¡±

    A slow nod. ¡°Your brothers and sisters in arms will help you do what must be done in the days ahead. Discretely. And I shall assure that none see fit to look your way, let alone interfere.¡± His gaze left her breathless. ¡°Think upon it not a moment more, Calenbry.¡± He turned to the assembled students. ¡°Outside of a lawful duel, what is the price for a commoner bearing naked steel to one of noble rank, one of named rank?¡±

    "Death by torture, sir," thirty voices rang out.

    A satisfied nod in turn. "The sacred covenant between our nation''s enlightened policies and the serfs and freemen who benefit is that they dare not take their privileges for granted. They dare not let gratitude morph into ugliest arrogance, and they dare not think to callously threaten those noble men and women who even now fight for our nation''s sovereignty and freedom."

    A tentative hand raised, Eloquin''s eyes spotting it immediately.

    ¡°Yes, Smith?¡±

    A nervous swallow. ¡°But...what if we ourselves are of common stock, Commander? We, we master live steel, we train to master our foes against all odds, but what if the son of a tradesman crosses blades with the son of a baron?¡±

    Eloquin''s gaze caused Johnathen to pale, bowing his head. ¡°I''m sorry, sir.¡±

    ¡°You are a Squire, boy. And none can question your authority, purpose, or rights, while you fight under my banner. Know that in your heart.¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir.¡±

    Eloquin let loose a dry chuckle, one of the few Jess had ever heard from him. ¡°Do you truly think you would graduate as anything other than a lesser, with my name to your commendation, should you fulfill your duties to me as a Squire of War?¡±

    Johnathen swallowed, but was silent.

    "No, Johnathen. You were born of common rank, and the price for your scholarship is four years in the king''s service, though you are no fool, boy, for all that you are woefully ignorant in this. You will serve the king and I for so long as it suits us to have you, and you shall be feted as a knight for all intents and purposes, save different title and responsibilities. No commoner will you be, boy. Your duty to king and country will define you, and all will know to pay you respect."

    ¡°So long as you don''t go mouthing off to your betters,¡± Mord smirked.

    Jess hissed at Mord''s interruption, bold as brass, even Eloquin looking his way.

    "Correct," Eloquin said. "Respectful deference to any named lord, even any lesser, shall be your bulwark. Gracious courtesy which none can take offense at, or challenge you for. You serve the king directly, and it is his pension and stipend for loyal service, not land that you are tied to, so you are removed from the petty games of Court, and no Squire of mine is so foolish as to throw insults at named lords, and so shame yourselves and me as well."

    Johnathen paled, shaking his head vigorously. ¡°Never, sir.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡± Eloquin turned to Jess once more, his gaze now strangely gentle. ¡°Are you ready for what is to come?¡±

    Jess swallowed. ¡°Yes, General.¡± Forcing herself to say what needed to be said. Deference was no excuse for carelessness. ¡°Spearheads and poleaxe heads?¡±

    Eloquin nodded his approval. ¡°Sealed between multiple packs.¡±

    With that, a sharp series of whistles were blown, Jess and her fellows forming up ranks behind Eloquin and Neal.

    ¡°Jess, by my side. Assure neither dip nor brush nor bramble threaten the legs of our mounts.¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir.¡± A subtle weight, like silky smoke, flowed up her shoulders.

    "Ooh goody. Feel that evening breeze, the way the moon glows like the Lady''s own smile, as we make our way to the killing fields once more."

    Jess frowned at her familiar. ¡°You make it sound righteous, or like we''ve done this before.¡±

    Eloquin turned to Jess. ¡°Calenbry?¡±

    Jess flushed. ¡°Just talking to Twilight, sir.¡±

    Surprisingly, Eloquin only nodded. ¡°If he sees that which we do not, tell us immediately.¡±

    Twilight grinned. ¡°I knew there was something I liked about him. Is it his ruthless savagery? His fanatic devotion to a king who would happily use us all as tools for his own purposes? The dark secrets he keeps close that he thinks not even we can deduce? Perhaps it is all of the above.¡±

    Jess smirked. ¡°Let me know if you spot anything interesting, Twilight.¡±

    Her familiar purred. ¡°Don''t I always?¡±

 Chapter 13

    They took the high road for some time, all of them losing themselves in a meditative sort of silence, letting the cool breeze and brilliant moon overhead freshen mind and body as their horses trudged on through the night.

    Abruptly, Eloquin stopped near a grove of evergreens, some distance away from the college.

    Jess blinked, in a daze no longer. ¡°Sir?¡±

    Eloquin merely smiled, making sure all were in the grove, glancing toward Jess who flushed self-consciously, even as dozens of trees subtle shifted branch and needle so that their entire band was all but invisible to any travelers that might be passing along the main road in northern Erovering in the dead of night, of which there were none.

    Jess glanced at Neal who shrugged, flashing his hands, before grabbing one end of the rope Eloquin handed him, darting across the road, to huddle down by the slope.

    It was then that they heard the faint drumming of hoofbeats, and what appeared to be a messenger hurrying from the college at a gallop.

    Eloquin flashed his hands. Malek, Mord, and Jess immediately readying themselves even as Eloquin let loose a cry much like a night owl, and Jess sensed the line her mentor had tied off grow suddenly taught.

    A startled whinny as horse and messenger crashed to the ground, and Jess was racing towards the man as fast as thought, Malek and Mord by her side, estoc unsheathed and aimed for the messenger''s stumbling form, Jess leaning into the tilt, blade at angle as Eloquin had instructed, habits ingrained now to finest instinct, before Eloquin''s roar forced Jess to a stumbling halt, her deadly sharp estoc but inches from the terrified messenger''s face.

    Jess swallowed, waiting for her heartbeat to ease its stallion''s pace, pretending she hadn''t been a heartbeat away from running the man clean through.

    ¡°Please, don''t hurt me! I am just a messenger, I''m no one!¡± The man huddled, kneeling. ¡°I know not your faces or manner. Please, take my steed, she is worth fine silver, and all I have! Only let me live, I beg of you.¡±

    Mord laughed cruelly. ¡°So good at instilling terror, aren''t you, my dove?¡±

    Jess frowned, shaking her head, momentarily unable even to speak.

    ¡°Rope!¡± Malek hissed, Jess giving a length of twin with trembling hands Malek used to securely tie the messenger''s stunned hands moments after clocking him hard behind the ear, the man collapsing to the ground and twitching.

    Mord chuckled at that.

    ¡°I wasn''t going to give the fool the chance to draw steel, Mord,¡± Malek snapped.

    ¡°Oh, I''m not saying anything, Malek. Despite your flaws, you can be surprisingly effective.¡±

    Malek rolled his eyes at that, but forbore to say anything, merely handing Jess the dagger and saber the man had upon his person. The saber sheath was of exotic sharkskin and the hilt was of shiny inlaid brass. The steel of the blade was of decent quality, but unlikely to be able to slice through anything heavier than winter clothing, Jess cynically determined after examining the edge, grain, curve, and balance. Exceedingly light and balanced near the hilt, it was good for flashy whipping cuts against an opponent who wore nothing heavier than thinnest cotton. Though a master would score quite well, should he snipe wrist and neck with perfect timing, Jess suspected it would be all but worthless on horseback against any save completely unarmored troops, and would crumple should one be foolish enough to try to give point with it. It could not be any more different from Eloquin''s sabers, fearsome and almost unique in their ability to cut through even the boiled rawhide plates of elite infantry. The dagger, however, was long and of good quality steel, and quite unusual for its half basket hilt, plated with silver, no less.

    Jess frowned, glaring at the late night rider. He wielded not the weapons of a struggling freeman or a serious soldier, but of a noble who preferred salon fencing with a dueling saber as opposed to rapier.

    His skin was that of a man who ate well and had never suffered malnutrition or serious illness, rich curling locks of platinum, scented with exotic oils. Jess swallowed. He had far more in common with Lady Putrice''s noble guests than a lowly servitor forced to run midnight errands of whatever sort. Jess felt a curious lurch in her chest. He looked familiar. In fact, Jess was almost certain that she had seen him at Putrice''s gala. Soft green eyes gazing her way, a gentle smile upon his lips.

    Jess frowned, wondering why she hadn''t approached him, before remembering how thoroughly Javiar had swept her off her feet. She hoped he was peacefully sleeping even now, with no part in the dreadful games now being played.

    Within moments their captive was fully secured, dragged into the heart of the evergreen grove some feet from the road, empty as it was.

    The crack of palm against cheek had the dazed man groaning to consciousness soon enough, mumbling with a thick drawl before hitching his breath and blinking, gazing about himself in confusion, and growing terror.

    Soft green eyes, just like she had remembered. Bloody hells.

    ¡°Please, don''t kill me,¡± the man pled.

    Eloquin''s smile was cold. "I am going to ask a series of questions. You are going to answer them. Compliance earns you laudanum. Failure earns you pain."

    The man hitched his breath, even as Neal tightened the arm lock he had on the man, constrained as he was, ungloved fingers pinned between Neal''s powerful hands.

    ¡°Yes, yes, ask what you will, sirs. I''m just a humble messenger, that is all!¡±

    ¡°Neal.¡±

    "Yes, Commander."

    ¡°First joint, small finger.¡±

    Neal abruptly wrenched his hand. Jess swore she could feel the crack of bone in her gut as the man screamed.

    ¡°What is your name?¡±

    Screams abruptly broke off in desperate gasps. "Why, why did you do that? It''s not necessary to do such, I swear to you!"

    Eloquin gazed at Neal.

    Neal nodded, his hands wrenching again.

    The man''s screams gained a desperate pitch.

    ¡°Please! My name is Gaines Highgrove! I am a simple messenger, that is all!¡±

    Jess shivered before her master''s smile, for all that she was not its focus.

    ¡°It is awfully late for any messenger to be heading out on any but the most serious of matters, Gaines... Highgrove. I think you had best tell me the nature of your business. But first, Neal?¡±

    Neal grunted, face a dark cold mask so different from the bemused fellow tactician who would gaze at Jess with solemn warmth and friendship when they trained together under Eloquin. This was the face of a young man who had looked within himself and found the icy resolve to do whatever was necessary to see his missions through. At school, Jess knew the face of her friend. Here? The pitiless face she saw was that of a ruthless soldier.

    A Squire of War.

    This time Jess clearly heard the crack as the man writhed and screamed in Neal''s powerful grip, writhing and twisting desperately as Neal slowly ground shattered finger joints together.

    Eloquin''s icy gaze caught Jess like a blow to her chest as the man''s screams rung through the tiny grove.

    ¡°Jess?¡±

    A trembling nod, those screams slowly dying away in endless groves of trees stretching as far as Jess''s eye could see, not a single whisper leaking from their tiny grove. ¡°No one will know,¡± she whispered.

    Eloquin nodded, turning to their terrified, begging captive once more.

    ¡°Please, my lord. Please, have mercy! I beg of you!¡±

    ¡°I have no mercy for liars, Gaines. And I know you were about to lie to me. And you do as well.¡±

    Gaines shook his head in abject denial.

    ¡°Gaines. Look me in the eye.¡±

    Trembling, the man did, paling at what he saw.

    ¡°You were about to lie to me, weren''t you?¡±

    "No...yes, my lord. Yes, I was. Please, I beg of you, forgive me!"

    ¡°We are done with lies, are we not?¡±

    ¡°Yes, my lord.¡±

    A smile as bleak as death.

    ¡°Good. Now answer my questions. You were going to meet with someone, were you not? Someone most curious to know how things are developing at this college. Is that not so?¡±

    Eyes widening even further, their captive gazed at Eloquin in horror.

    Jess''s breath hitched, their worst fears coming true.

    "What is the name of your contact, Gaines, and where were you to meet? Don''t think it, say it!" Eloquin roared, Neal immediately snapping yet another one of the man''s fingers as he gave a piteous wail.

    ¡°Agent Cornelius at Whiteracer Inn, my lord!¡±

    The man''s complexion had turned ghastly. On the verge of a faint. He trembled under Eloquin''s gaze. ¡°Agent Cornelius at the Whiteracer Inn. And what were you to tell this Agent?¡±

    The man sobbed and trembled. ¡°Please, my lord. I beg of you, don''t kill me, I was just following orders!¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°I understand. Neal?¡±

    The further cracking of bone. Shattered fingers cruelly ground together. The man''s desperate wail turned to a high-pitched scream as he bucked and thrashed under Neals ministrations.

    Erica shuddered and looked away. And underneath Neal''s icy gaze, Jess saw something in his eyes that broke her heart.

    A moment later, desperate high pitched keening sobs. ¡°Please, please, stop! I beg of you, stop hurting me!¡±

    ¡°Gaines.¡±

    A shuddering gasp. ¡°Yes, my lord. Anything. Anything at all I will do for you. I will be your man in all things, just please, please let me go!¡±

    ¡°Gaines.¡±

    ¡°Please...¡±

    "You were coached, less than an hour ago, on the report you were to give." Words cold and measured, and suddenly Eloquin was in the terrified man''s face, roaring, his powerful hands covering the desperately struggling man''s mouth and nose. "Who did you talk to? What were there names? Tell me, tell me now, or death will be your only reward!"

    The man struggled for breath, eyes bulging, trying desperately to breathe, to scream, to speak.

    "Who was it? Who did you talk to? Give me their names! Give it to me now!"

    Eyes bulging, Jess saw the tiny flecks of darkness, vessels bursting, knowing the man was well and truly starving for air as he bucked and thrashed. Eyes pleading so desperately for precious sweet, sweet air, even as every fiber in his body burned and screamed from horrid, choking death.

    And like a gift of sweetest grace, Eloquin lifted one hand, allowing the young man one gasp. ¡°The name!¡±

    ¡°Putrice!¡± A shaking Gaines wheezed, gasping and sobbing for air. ¡°Lady Putrice! I am Lady Putrice''s man!¡±

    Eloquin''s smile, a truly awful thing. "I know." He turned to his Squires, locking gazes with all of them, even Mord gazing at the general with something close to awe, before Eloquin turned back to their desperately gasping captive. "We all already know you work for her. We already know the true purpose of this gala. This consortium. You but flitter over points already clear. It is only when you deviate that we shall let you taste the dark maws of death, clamoring for your soul. Let you taste sweetest agony yet again. Do you understand, Gaines?"

    A shuddering sob. ¡°Yes, my lord! Yes I do! I am yours, your in all things. All things, I swear it!¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°To what clan do you belong? What Velheim clan will claim you for ransom, should I choose to let you live?¡±

    A grateful sob, crying with relief Jess pitied to see. "Oh my lord, my lord, the Talbroch clan will pay you sweet silver and gold both, to see me home safe and sound. Oh could I undo these last few weeks, I swear to you I would, sir, I swear to you! My role is only the most peripheral, the most peripheral! I would never harm a soul. I could never harm a soul! All I am is a messenger, I don''t even want to be here, I swear it!''

    Eloquin nodded. "I know, lad. You are no doubt the thirdborn son of a struggling family looking for favor in Velheim''s court. It was easy for associates of Lady Putrice to recruit you. You and several dozen scions of various noble families."

    Jess swallowed, chilled. Eloquin''s tone had turned almost... fatherly.

    Her commander bent down, stroking the boy''s brow. "What I want to know is why aren''t you at the gala, carrying on, trying to seduce a beautiful young nobleman''s daughter and claim her for your own? You are a fine looking specimen, and will no doubt fence in salons once again, when your hand is set by our healers, I''m sure. Why would Putrice waste one such as you, riding into the night, when you could be drinking spiced wine even now with the most eligible ladies in the kingdom?"

    Gaines flashed a smile almost painful in its hope. Filled with relief and a boyish desire, a desperate need to trust. "Oh by all the gods I wish I were, General. I wish I were. In truth, I had caught sight of a peach that would have touched my heart to court... but, well," Gaines sighed, now every bit a young hopeful man speaking of dreams and desires, as innocent as any noble could be. "The girl I fancied had been snatched up by another before I could gather up my courage and say hello."

    A soft, rueful chuckle. "Oh, the twisted game the gods play. If Javiar hadn''t made a beeline for the baron''s daughter, maybe I would have given her cause to smile. I, unlike Javiar, actually like to fence."

    Jess felt a jolt of horror wash over her, biting back a sob, so dizzy she feared collapse, catching sight of Erica''s startled gaze, feeling Malek''s powerful squeeze despite their armor, centering her. Consoling her.

    Eloquin''s strong laughter filled the tiny grove. ¡°So you know of our Calenbry, hey? No more beautiful a girl in all of Highrock, and as fine a fencer as a man could want for a wife.¡±

    Gaines flashed Eloquin a brilliant smile. "Oh yes, sir. Yes I do. Fierce, beautiful, her father a named lord with properties the equal of any duke''s. She would be a fine prize for any man who could win her heart!"

    He caught himself, shuddering once as he remembered his position, desperate to keep Eloquin''s warm bonhomie, the desperate hope that friendship and alliances, not a cold lonely grave, might be his reward for this evening''s folly. "But of course, any thirdborn son can only hope to make as strong a match as he can. Please believe me when I say that the moment I caught sight of her, I truly thought that if I could win her heart? It would be a dream come true."

    Jess shook at those words. There was no malice behind them. So fervently he spoke, Jess could sense his candor and desperation both. No matter that it tormented her even to look at the trembling youth, knowing what was to come.

    "It''s okay, Jess." Malek''s softest whisper, as Eloquin spoke once more.

    "Of course, lad. Any man with a sense of duty to his clan will try to arrange as profitable a marriage for himself as he can." He winked at the boy. Jess caught sight of that, sickened by what it meant, how far her mentor would go. "This gala, it''s all about marriage alliances is it not?"

    Gaines gave an animated nod. ¡°Yes, sir. It really is! Lady Putrice, she comes from fine stock, a child of both our nations, I guess you could say. She, she and Duke Arbingion thought, what a fine thing, what a fine thing it would be if we could mend the rifts between our nations, to allow love matches and trade alliances to ease away tensions and... confusions that have caused such turmoil between our nations for so many years.¡±Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    "A fine sentiment," Eloquin opined, patting the lad on the shoulder. "I take it Lady Putrice and our Duke Arbingion are neither fools, that they have been laying the groundwork, courting alliances so that folks from both sides of the fence would see the benefits of just such a union?"

    The boy nodded enthusiastically. Hope now clearly written upon his features, for Jess could no longer look away from the face of a doomed lad who had thought he could love her.

    ¡°Oh yes, my lord. For the last few years, I am given to understand, Putrice and Arbingion have been working to mend bridges and suggest alliances... each from their respective sides of the mountain passes, one could say. Lady Putrice has hopes that this is but the first among many such soirees.¡±

    Eloquin actually chuckled at that. "Our Lady Putrice does have spirit, doesn''t she? To mend such a sore wound upon the heartstrings of idealistic children, siring families of mixed heritage and love for kin on both sides of the divide."

    ¡°You understand perfectly, my lord!¡± Gaines declared. ¡°We all hope for many future parties and galas, cherishing the opportunity for love to flourish and blossom between the noble houses of both our nations! And truly, Lady Putrice has spared no effort to bring the mosteligible of Velheim''s youth to delight Highrock''s finest students. Ladies and lads such as myself, of uncommon wit, beauty, and grace, all of us eager to find love, forge alliances, and share marvelous adventures with our new friends!"

    His gaze was hopeful and anxious both. ¡°You do understand, yes, my lord? I came here hoping to find my heart, not offend such a powerful man as yourself. This, I swear to you, I would never want to do.¡±

    Eloquin''s smile was as hard and unmoving as granite. ¡°It was unfair to the point of horrific, for Lady Putrice to force you out into the cold, bitter air of folly and death, when sweetest wine and even sweeter companionship awaited you back at the gala. And all because you were not so bold and callous as to try simple seduction, when you had hoped for a kinship of the soul. Is that not so?¡±

    Gaines swallowed and nodded, a tremble in his voice. ¡°Yes, yes sir! Why, by the gods, must I be out here running awful errands when all I wanted to do was find a girl I could fall in love with?¡±

    Eloquin''s nod was strangely sympathetic. "She should have had one of her own blackened daggers run these little errands of skullduggery. Not have the innocent son of a lord who had trusted her with your care take on this terrible burden, yes?"

    Tears flowing freely from eyes squeezed shut, Gaines nodded furiously. ¡°Yes, sir. It is so.¡±

    ¡°I know, lad, I know.¡± Hands upon each shoulder. Almost fatherly. Yet the grip, so closeto the throat. And a father''s rough sympathy did not completely erase the agony of a mutilated hand, the horror of agonizing suffocation but minutes back. ¡°You owe this woman who had so clearly thrown you away no loyalty, lad. Far better if you show that loyalty to me. The payoff will be immediate and give you succor beyond her power, I promise you that.¡±

    The boy shuddered at those words, gazing at Eloquin like a son desperately hoping to earn his sire''s smile, and not be sold at auction like chattel.

    Jess shuddered, not knowing where the thought had come from, yet knowing, somehow, that such practices had been common, centuries ago.

    ¡°Lad, you are no blackened dagger, to keep dark secrets and dark intent tied to your heart. You are an innocent noble. A square peg hammered into a round hole, at this moment forced to play games that sicken you. Is that not so?¡±

    Tears flowing freely, the boy nodded desperately.

    ¡°You would do anything to redeem yourself, to be worthy of the mantle of innocent lad guilty of nothing more than a desire for love at a gala, would you not?¡±

    ¡°Yes, my lord. By the gods, would I ever!¡± The boy sobbed.

    ¡°Then would you like a chance to be lifted free of that burden? The bloody stain of darkest conspiracies lifted like magic from your soul? To prove yourself no enemy of those under my care?¡±

    ¡°Yes, my lord. Yes. Oh so desperately I would!¡±

    Eloquin lowered himself, gently stroking the boy''s chin. Gaines shuddered and sobbed under the general''s touch.

    ¡°Then tell me, boy. Tell me what Putrice really intends with her messages this night.¡± His smile was bleak and cold as death once more, and Gaines could see it, Neal gripping his broken hand still, death but a horrific heartbeat way. The young noble sobbed, too exhausted to handle horror once more after being given such sweet moments of succor and hope, even fatherly camaraderie.

    "Tell me what her serpentine hand holds behind her back, even as the leftmost one bears fruits of sweetest friendship."

    The boy trembled and sobbed. ¡°Oh gentle sir, gentle sir, please understand, please understand that I detest this, all of this, that I just want to be courting love, that I have no interest in bloodshed or war!¡±

    Eloquin''s gaze was strangely gentle. "I know, lad. Believe it or not, I credit your soul with that innocence at least, and that is why you are not screaming with both eyes gouged out, and every bone in your body shattered, even now."

    The boy paled and sobbed, and what he saw in Eloquin''s eyes made him wail.

    ¡°Gaines.¡±

    Instantly the boy''s sobs stilled. Frozen by terror. Gazing at Eloquin like a mouse, hypnotized by the snake that would strike with venom coated fangs before devouring him alive.

    ¡°Gaines.¡±

    A trembling sob. ¡°Anything, my lord! Everything I have is yours!¡±

    ¡°If you would be worthy of continued mercy... you know what you must do.¡±

    Shuddering, the boy nodded. ¡°Yes, my lord... yes... I will tell you. Lady Putrice, she demanded. Demanded that I, a son of Talbroch, convey mysterious missives in the dead of night like a common courier! I swear to you, sir, I don''t even want to be here. All of us, all of us that came were assured, assured! That we would be exposed to no ugliness.¡± he grimaced a smile. ¡°No lord is so foolish as to think that peace does not come at a price, but it was sworn that none of us would be exposed to diplomatic exigencies, no matter their nature. We, we want only what''s best for our nations, no matter what else happens behind the scenes!¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°And yet treacherous Lady Putrice pulled you most firmly behind the scenes of the sweet play you were expecting, forcing you to look at the jaded rotting corpse behind the innocent beauty of her scheme.¡±

    Gaines paled at those words. ¡°I... I fear it is so, my lord.¡±

    Eloquin pinned the boy with his gaze. ¡°Now tell me what you were to convey.¡±

    ¡°I was to tell Cornelius, to tell Cornelius, that the doves have left the coop. That the... entire flock had fled the coop.¡±

    Eloquin frowned. ¡°What else were you to say?¡±

    Gaines shook his head furiously. ¡°Nothing, sir. That''s it. Just those words. Those very words!¡±

    Eloquin''s icy gaze held the boy''s before he slowly nodded. ¡°I believe you.¡±

    The boy let out a trembling sigh of relief.

    ¡°But there''s more, isn''t there?¡±

    ¡°Oh please, my lord,¡± the boy sobbed. ¡°I''ve told you everything!¡±

    Eloquin gave the gentlest nods. ¡°To a point, lad. Now tell me this. When you and your fellow... courtiers made your way down from the mountain passes to Erovering proper, you had armed bodyguards, didn''t you?¡±

    The boy gave a trembling nod.

    ¡°One could even call it...a royal escort.¡± Eloquin flashed a cold smile.

    The boy paled. ¡°They were Sir Kettil''s escort, my lord. Part of his diplomatic coterie. Perfectly legal, I assure you!¡±''

    ¡°Oh, I''m certain they assured you of just that. How many were in the coterie?¡±

    ¡°Only a score, my lord,¡± Gaines assured.

    Jess and her friends exchanged knowing glances. No diplomatic envoy representing a foreign power was allowed more than a quartet of troops to accompany him under any circumstances. Particularly not Velheim.

    ¡°And how do you know of the Whitehorse in?¡±

    Gaines frowned. ¡°All of us stopped there on our way to Highrock. It has the best accommodations outside of Krona, I am given to understand.¡±

    Malek and Jess exchanged glances. ¡°That''s not true by a longshot,¡± Jess whispered.

    Malek shrugged. ¡°It is if you discount all Inns with Guild ties.¡±

    Jess raised her eyebrows at this.

    "You know, the Adventurer''s Guild? People chasing figments of dream, legends come to life, and somehow making a fair bit of coin doing it, for all that it''s probably delusion and fancy? We all know it''s a cover for darker games. They probably have ties to the Crown, and so are subsidized. Lady Putrice is playing dark games of her own, so chose an inn outside that network, less likely to be housing spies that will report on her activities."

    Malek''s soft voice was completely covered by the sound of rustling branches overhead, so Eloquin spared him his icy stare as Jess nodded her growing understanding, though Malek did gaze up and frown, before smirking at Jess.

    ¡°Useful talent.¡±

    Jess grinned back. ¡°I know.¡±

    Eloquin squatted before Gains once more. ¡°And now onto another topic, lad. Has Lady Putrice ever discussed seized chattel with you or your fellows? Spoils of intrigue or conquest, perhaps?¡±

    Gaines'' brows furrowed, now looking truly confused. ¡°I am sorry, my lord. I am afraid I don''t quite follow.¡±

    ¡°Slaves, fool.¡± Mord spat. ¡°Our commander is asking if your associates have any truck with bandits that kidnap or simply purchase from jaded lords the most comely wenches upon their properties, the daughters of serfs and freemen any father would seek to hide from his master''s eyes, lest the girl suddenly go missing, only to show up in the care of grim-faced men heading on to southern ports or Velheim brothels.¡±

    Mord''s lips curled into a cruel grin as the young lord blanched and lowered his gaze. ¡°Ah. I see you have savored the nubile flesh of a trembling girl before.¡±

    "I didn''t know, I swear it!" A desperate plea. "Julius and I were drunk, we went to the brothel we always do, full of girls sweet and gracious who know how to please a noble''s appetites, fetching and graceful enough for dining and conversation as well! We were told that delights awaited in the backroom. Fresh caught delights! Julius laughed, declared it spoils of war. I... I had no idea what to expect, what game my friend was playing, but when I saw, truly saw the girls that awaited, I immediately turned around and left!" He paled, trembling, unable to bear their stares. "I left. I did not touch any girl that night, I swear it. There... there was nothing else I could do."

    ¡°Bastard,¡± Lucas growled.

    Eloquin locked gazes with Lucas. Locked gazes with them all. "Such things are common, in Velheim. Jaded nobility savoring the delights of terrified flesh. Never their own serfs, only those brought from far afield." His look for a trembling, sickened Gaines was almost pitying. Almost. "Gaines couldn''t do anything save suffer scorn and censure from his peers. It is an open secret, and no one on their Council is likely to do a thing about it, since they all savor those prizes of war. All except for your priesthood, is that not right Gaines?"

    Gaines nodded desperately. ¡°Nothing I could do at all! I went straight home, told Father I would no longer be drinking with Julius, and he said not a word in protest.¡± He swallowed and shook his head. ¡°That is one brothel I have always since avoided. I promise you that.¡±

    Eloquin nodded. "Is Lady Putrice working with Duke Arbingion, bringing in fresh... prizes of war?"

    Gaines paled and looked away. ¡°I promise you, I want no part in such things!¡±

    Eloquin grabbed sweat-soaked hair with force. The boy cried out.

    Eloquin''s gaze was pitiless and cold, for all that his voice remained soft. ¡°Nothing brutal, lad, I understand. Lady Putrice, Duke Arbingion. They have... arrangements with various lords here in the northern provinces of Erovering. Do they not?¡±

    Gaines trembled under the general''s gaze. Eloquin nodded. ¡°And Sir Kettil as well, I take it?¡±

    Gaines squeezed his eyes tightly shut. ¡°I swear, sir, I did all I could to pay her innuendo no mind. Only Kettil''s escort laughed. We nobles are of a better cut. She could tell by our glares that we wanted no part in such things. No part at all!¡±

    Eloquin frowned. "Then why are you acting as her pawn, even now, in the dead of night?¡±

    Gaines chuckled bitterly. ¡°My father owes her clan a considerable sum of money. And she promised to do her part to see that I... married well. Carrot and stick firmly put before my father and I both, it was made quite clear that I had no choice but to serve as her lackey... light as she swore my duties would be.¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°Of course. And you want to survive just a bit longer, don''t you?¡±

    The boy began to sob, bravado completely shredded. ¡°Oh please, my lord. Please... let me live, let me serve. I despise Lady Putrice. I detest that woman!¡±

    Eloquin''s smile was bleak. ¡°I have no doubt that, at this very moment, you believe every word you are saying.¡±

    Gaines gulped, Eloquin speaking over his desperate protests. ¡°Tell me the names and give me descriptions of every man under Putrice''s thumb, Gaines. Now!¡±

    Gaines sobbed, his thready voice leaving Jess and Malek chilled at the names they heard. Jess glanced Erica''s way, surprised and pleased to see her applying one of the college''s arcane pens to tightly spooled scroll. Worth a fortune and envied by many a lord, only the richest, like Raphael''s father, had access to such, as well as the most favored of future scribes, and of course, professors and Squires of War in the performance of their duties. Exotic a tool as it was, Jess was glad it was Erica scribbling away, and not her.

    She hated note-taking with a passion.

    Eloquin waited until the boy had whispered the last of five names. ¡°How many have you met?¡±

    ¡°The guard and the stableboy, sir. They... made sure you had left some time ago before... oh gods...before they saw me off.¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°Are the lads and lasses at the gala even now in any danger?¡±

    The boy desperately shook his head. ¡°No, my lord. The plan is for love to blossom, to flourish, as I hoped it would for myself! Lady Putrice, for all her vile flaws with the purchase of...merchandise, has nothing but love for the nobility of Erovering and Velheim both, dreaming of the day we are both one country once more!¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°And what do you know of Squires, boy?¡±

    The sudden pallor, the way his terrified gaze flickered to all of them, made it quite clear he knew of them perfectly well. ¡°Please, my lord... please...¡±

    Eloquin gently placed his hands on the boy''s trembling throat. Almost, a comradely squeeze of the shoulders. Almost.

    But the boy was no fool.

    Now sobbing openly. ¡°Please...¡±

    ¡°Lady Putrice took such an interest in the fillies under my care. And I believe you know why.¡±

    Panicked crying filled the clearing.

    ¡°It''s time we finished this, don''t you think?¡±

    ¡°Please, my lord!¡±

    ¡°Answer the damned question!¡±

    ¡°If... if we had found love... what girl would want to strike at the family of her husband? If... if we had seized the grandest prize...¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°If you had captured the queen, the board would be yours.¡±

    A breathless pause.

    Jess blinked in utter confusion, swallowing as more than one of her fellows looked her way.

    ¡°I''m no damned queen,¡± Jess whispered.

    ¡°They know of your gifts.¡± Neal. His voice utterly cold.

    Gaine''s head jerked up. Soft green eyes met her own.

    By all the gods. He looked frightened.

    Frightened for her sake, as much as his own.

    ¡°You''re supposed to be at the gala. Lady Putrice swore you''d be safe,¡± he whispered.

    Neal snapped another of Gaines'' fingers.

    The young lord writhed and screamed. ¡°Please! I am yours, utterly and completely!¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°You will never betray us. This I know, Gaines, so cease your sobbing and face me like a man.¡±

    The boy forced himself to silence, for all that tears streaked down his cheeks, the rustling leaves muffling all other sound.

    ¡°Who else knows?¡±

    The boy grimaced and looked away. Then gasped when Neal squeezed his hand. "Please! All I know is that Putrice declared Calenbry the greatest of prizes! One hundred gold crowns to whoever captured her heart. But please... it wasn''t what you think! When I gazed at her, saw her smile, I was in love. The gold meant nothing!"

    Cold eyes glared into his own. He shrunk. "Well, not nothing... but if we had married, the gold would have made both our lives so much sweeter. We would have spent it, together! Both of us rich and happy!"

    Jess shook her head, unable to bear gazing at such naked terror as she choked down tears of pity. His were the eyes of a young man that, had fate laid down a different card, she could have been so easily charmed by. She sensed no malice, only the panicked desperation of someone who knew he was savoring the final moments of his life.

    Jess shook away a bitter tear. Maybe she was a prize, but there had been no malice in Javiar''s gaze either. What was a hundred gold but a dowry of sorts? His affections had felt so real.

    ¡°What do you know of Jessica, Gaines?¡±

    He swallowed, turning his attention to Eloquin once more. ¡°She comes from a powerful family. Her father fought beside you during the Erovering Wars. And...¡±

    ¡°Say it!¡±

    ¡°She''s a Druid. One of the last living Druids. That''s what they say. The healers pay top coin for her cuttings, no arrow would dare mark her flesh.¡±

    Jess felt her heart begin to pound. Unable to utter a single word.

    Eloquin frowned. "Do Duke Arbingion, Sir Kettil, or Agent Cornelius know of these rumors?"

    Gaines paled, then screamed as Neal wrenched shattered fingers once more. "Yes! The Duke does, though he normally keeps his cards close, only gloating to my friends and I that he will soon have a prize to share with the king! But over the last few days, we heard just a whisper, a rumor, me, Javiar and several of the girls, and we figured it out! The legends are true. There really is a girl who can dodge any arrow shot at her. Druids still do flourish in Erovering, and if we can bring them to Velheim, we will never want for food again, we will never have to trade for another nation''s surpluses!"

    Eloquin nodded, eyes blazing like frozen fire. "You, Javiar, the ladies accompanying you, of which I spotted three; Lady Putrice, Duke Arbingion. Does anyone else suspect?"

    Openly sobbing, Gaines shook his head. "It is rumor only. Lady Putrice witnessed nothing. None of us did!" he paled and swallowed. "I will tell you a secret, one that not even Lady Putrice knows! For some reason, the duke took me into his confidences. Me alone, I know not why. He told me his speculations, that he had hired on several groundskeepers who had once worked at Highrock. He even told me that he thought I had a role to play!¡± Gaines shook his head ruefully. ¡°I halfway think he hoped I would be the one to win Jessica''s heart. And Lady Putrice was so animated in her whispered conversations with Sir Kettil. You could barely make out what they were saying but, after putting the pieces together, it became obvious. And, well, we heard a few students chatting... near where... where... the Squires train.¡±

    He shuddered and swallowed. ¡°Perhaps, perhaps they are the source of the whispers that reached our ears? None of us really took it seriously, you have to understand! A delightful fantasy, but our goal was the gold purse!¡±

    Jess shut her eyes tight as she dismounted, Eloquin gazing at her so intently, wishing she could take back the last hour, even the last several, wondering what it would be like if there had been no pair of mad brothers intent on killing her in the hallway, if she had given herself fully to the sweet noble son who had courted her. Spent the night in rapture, entwined in his arms. These thoughts raced through her mind as she sunk to the ground beside a confused Neal and a sobbing Gaines.

    Certainly she would not be shuddering even now as a short sharp snap marked a tragic end to a terrified life, beautiful green eyes blinking in confused panic before glazing over in death.

 Chapter 14

    A breathless pause filled the grove.

    Eloquin turned to Mord. "Signal Hyve. Aspirants are to be on alert. If any move is made against any of our students, Lady Putrice and her pawns are to be cut down to the last man."

    Mord''s smile was a dark thing as he slipped free a copper horn and blew a long haunting note that hung in the air.

    Malek chuckled softly. ¡°The Aspirants have been keeping secrets.¡±

    ¡°We have a few codes that serve us well enough, Malek. We are not the fools you would take us for, however deliciously devious your ways are, compared to Hyve''s.¡±

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°The Aspirants know. Hyve already knows my suspicions. Every Squire who fails to blacken his dagger this night, every Aspirant who will not heed the call, redeem themselves keeping watch over the sheep within our walls.¡±

    Malek blinked, gazing at his commander in growing awe. "You knew. Or at least, you suspected. All of this. Am I right?"

    Eloquin''s gaze was hard. "The clues were there for those with the wit to see it. I knew Lady Putrice''s goal was to flood the northlands with Velheim blood and sway ties of influence and loyalty under Velheim''s and particularly her own clan''s banner." He scowled. "I did not realize how ruthless and multifaceted this infection had become, and I had only an inkling that Putrice was involved in the flesh trade."

    The words washed over Jess, gazing into vacant eyes that had been so alive and filled with desperate hope, but minutes ago. Infatuated with her beauty but too shy to say it back when it might have changed everything, his head now hung at a horrid angle, lifeless and still.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    ¡°It had to be done.¡± Words ruthless and cold washed over her. ¡°Now, Calenbry, explain to me why.¡±

    "Because had we attempted to capture him... students on an unlawful mission constraining a recognized noble of a neighbor our king presently honors treaties with, based on confessions made under duress that he can recant in a heartbeat...his imprisonment would only have lasted until his screams for help were heard, and then it would be us under inquisition."

    A cold nod. ¡°What else.¡±

    "Just his appearance, even had you truly broken and mastered him, would have alerted both the guard and stableboy in Putrice''s pocket. She would have known, and, somehow, one or more of the scions under her wing would have rushed off to alert all vulnerable parties." Jess frowned. "And if it would have been hard to contain Gaines, it would have been impossible for us to barge into a gala sanctioned by our school, constraining twenty noble guests and a tenured professor at sword''s point."

    Jess squeezed shut eyes still hot with tears. "Nor could we pretend ourselves to be mere rogues, or anything other than who and what we are. He recognized us as Squires. Twice, he revealed that he knew exactly who you were, General Eloquin. There is no way we would not have been censured, banished to our lands at the very least, enemies at court screaming treason and madness so as to claim the assets of whoever among us holds wealth in our own name. Of a certain, the king''s secret project flying under your blackened banner would have died before it could even blossom, which would suit a power-hungry Velheim as well as anything else this evening."

    Eloquin gazed at Jess with a fierce sort of pride that left Jess shaken to her core. A savage, bloodstained wolf whose regard she would kill and die for, and the horror of that truth rocked her still.

    For it had been her arms that had snapped Gaines'' neck.

 Chapter 15

    Time took on a dreamlike quality for Jess then, as she and her companions rode quietly through the night. The brilliant silvery moon riding high overhead, gracious mistress watching them all, Eloquin and Malek flanking her sides as they rode through the night, her familiar keeping quiet companionship upon her shoulder, his fur brushing her cheek a constant comfort, as if the helmet she wore affected his touch not at all.

    ¡°Jess?¡± Malek''s voice. Filled with concern and fierce pride, so much said without being said at all.

    They already knew the fastest route to the Whitehorse Inn, and if one were to avoid the high road and instead cut through the fields and dare the messenger trails that the king''s fastest riders took in times of need, one could shave a full hour off the trip.

    Or one''s horse could stumble into a pothole in the dead of night, the poor rider tumbling off to his tragic death, neck distended horribly, fingers snapped and broken in a desperate attempt to break the fall, as had happened to poor Gaines, his lamed horse having been quietly led to the thick pocket of fruiting brambles nearby, contentedly munching and unlikely to move far from the spot. The tragic cause of Gaines'' death was obvious, and those few Squires who had made sure it was so had done the deed on foot, treading carefully as they had been taught during their first year.

    Of course Jess had been there. Every step of the way. For no one else had her gift with things that blossomed in forest and field. One thing was for sure. Absolutely no trace of their presence would ever be found, no matter how good a tracker incensed Velheim lords might lend to the cause.

    Secrets they would all keep to the grave. But the first of many, Eloquin had grimly assured, even then.

    Jess shook the memory away, turning to her closest friend, gazing at her so sympathetically, having accompanied her every step of the way. ¡°An exhilarating ride, is it not?¡± Jess chuckled softly, eyes closing, savoring the feel of the evening breeze against her skin.

    ¡°I am not sure that nighttime riding with our eyes closed is prudent, mistress,¡± Twilight dryly noted. ¡°No matter how deep our communion with the forests and fields on either side of the road might be.¡±

    "Jess." One word, quietly said.

    Jess shuddered, snapping her eyes open, forcing herself to focus upon the here and now, no matter how horrid it might be.

    Her commander''s piercing gaze froze her dreamy reverie like a splash of ice rimmed water.

    ¡°Focus.¡±

    Jess jerked her head in a nod. ¡°Yes, sir.¡±The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    ¡°Neal.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Commander.¡±

    ¡°To my side.¡±

    Within seconds Neal''s mount had flowed up the ranks to Eloquin''s side.

    ¡°You know our objective at Whitehorse Inn?¡±

    "Yes, sir. One of us is to impersonate as an associate of Lady Putrice, paid coin to deliver a message for Cornelius''s ears alone. According to Gaines, he will be of swarthy complexion, with a thick beard and locks of ink-colored hair. Perpetually angry, with coal-dark eyes. What Velheim possibly hopes to accomplish with such a man who looks nothing like northern Erovering stock, I have no idea, but we must assume he is a dangerous opponent, or certainly Putrice would be working with someone who would perfectly blend in.

    "Once there, whatever coin he offers, whether copper, silver or gold, we demand more, backing down quickly enough if he shows any sort of fire, so we appear both weak-willed and hungry for coin, just the type to run such a mission, and thus lower his defenses. When he leaves, he will do so with a little gift upon him. We will follow, and as he will be marked, he shall be easy to track, no matter if we give him considerable lead."

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°Correct.¡± He turned to Jess. ¡°Are you certain?¡±

    Jess shuddered and nodded. The acorn seed Neal held even now, marked with the blood of a young noble so hoping for love, who had been in absolutely the wrong place at the wrong time. She could feel his eyes burning through her in haunting accusation, even now. The acorn had popped into her sight the moment they had laid him down, Jessica''s own tears mixing with crimson, saturating the acorn, and in a terrible epiphany Jess had realized she would never forget the taste of that melding, and what a perfect little tool the acorn would be for the night ahead.

    ¡°May the gods forgive me, I will never lose track of that acorn.¡±

    "There is nothing to forgive," Eloquin snapped. "Not you, for doing what must be done. And there can be no forgiveness for Velheim, thinking to steal our nation''s daughters for their brothels, even as they would claim our noblest blood for their own."

    ¡°Yes, General,¡± Jess whispered, focusing intently upon the road ahead, sensing no growth, tree limb, or bramble that would dare to trip them up as they raced forth in the dead of night.

    ¡°Twilight?¡±

    ¡°Nothing ahead of note, Mistress. No pits or stones can hide themselves from my sight,¡±he assured. ¡°Jess?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Any time you like, but say the word and we will be off for high adventure, in any one of a dozen nations, and we never need look back at the past, not even once.¡±

    Jess smiled sadly. "And what happens if my companions were to be ambushed by the score of Velheim soldiers Sir Kettil had so casually brought with him... perhaps but one band among many? No matter how good we are, now matter how well armored... arrows, quarrels, pike, and halberds could pierce a skull and end a life, just as assuredly as I have ended poor Gaines'' life."

    Twilight sighed. ¡°There is that, of course.¡±

    Malek chuckled softly. Eloquin didn''t say a word. For all that neither claimed to hear her familiar, Jess sometimes wondered if perhaps they did.

 Chapter 16

    The sound of rushing water babbling by a river''s edge, a bridge of stone.

    "It looks secure, my mistress," Twilight quietly assured as they crossed the massive arched bridge of what even Jess could tell in the moonlight was carefully placed and mortared stone, making their way to the town on the far side, a few flickering lights to be seen in various windows of homes comprised of finest hardwood with slate tiled roofs, sharply sloping, for Northern Erovering was nothing if not snowy in winter, far off as that still was. For the most part, the town was lit only by moonlight, its ties to the shipping trade evidenced by the wharves on the riverfront, presently empty of ships, and the large structures that looked to be storage facilities just beyond.

    Malek frowned. "They lumber the edges of the Deepwood near here and ship the logs downstream, I suspect. Look at how carefully they constructed those wharves, so stray logs rolling downstream won''t damage them. The stone bridge we just crossed was a masterwork, built to withstand significant traffic, and as grand a structure as any I''d expect to see in Krona, not here in the northlands. Even the high arched shape combined with the gentle rise, that flagrant expanse of stone, makes little sense unless wood filled barges were regularly ferried underneath, and trains of lumber regularly carted over it. Such a structure would be beyond the coin of any but merchants or nobility expecting serious gold from their venture."

    Eloquin nodded. "That is correct. But only the edges. Ancient accords are still observed." He flashed a cold smile. "Or at least, such is what the northern lords upriver claim, and the Crown values the hardwood too dearly to bother with any but the most cursory inspections conducted by the most sympathetic of officers."

    His hawklike gaze took in the entirity of the town before them. "Whitetown is home to a number of carpenters and woodcarvers, many considered masters of their trade. Most skilled craftsmen are a prudent sort, rising with first light, and unlikely to drink to such an hour as this."

    Neal nodded. ¡°Which means only outsiders, merchants looking for trade opportunities, or folk who don''t really belong will be drinking at this hour.¡±

    ¡°Correct.¡±

    Neal''s gaze locked upon Jess and Erica, a now helmetless Rowan joining them as well. Exquisite olive features looked full on at Jess, Rowan''s gentle gaze filling Jess''s world, even as a gloveless hand gently stroked Jess''s cheek.

    "You were very brave," she whispered, even as Jess suddenly held her close, shaking but saying nothing, taking deep breaths until silent sobs had passed, no one saying a word when Jess abruptly stiffened once more, nodding to her commander, giving Rowan''s hand a grateful squeeze.

    Whereas Erica, gazing at Jess so strangely even now, was the most petite of their number, Rowan was powerfully built and as tall as most men, her potent physique hidden by lush curves that had inflamed more than one boy to heights of spontaneous poetry, to the good-natured laughter of all.

    Jess sighed. As beautiful as Erica''s compact form was, Rowan''s lush curves had fired more than one restless night for her, and she''d far rather lose herself in those gorgeous midnight eyes than think about the sudden wrench and snapping of bone, a foolish boy''s hopes and dreams ending in blackest horror.

    ¡°Jess, are you going to be all right?¡±

    Rowan could feel Jess trembling, her eyes filled with such concern, both their helmets now removed, hair blowing freely in the cool evening breeze.

    Jess didn''t think, merely pressed her lips to Rowan''s. Her friend stiffened only a moment before melting into the kiss, then pulling away with a sultry laugh.

    "I didn''t think you felt that way about me, considering how often I tease you."

    Jess flushed and looked away.

    ¡°Focus.¡±

    A sharp admonition. Jess cringed and bowed her head.

    ¡°This moment, Jess. We embrace this moment, and this moment alone, do you understand?¡±

    Jess felt her heart race with sheerest humiliation, to hear her master use such words with her, to feel the need to coddle her when she must be fierce and strong for them all...when she should be the hardest of all of them. No. She would weep for Gaines no more this night, bitter as her tears might be in the days and weeks to come.

    This night she would be hard as steel, as sharp as the most wicked of blades.

    Her friends deserved no less.

    Fist to chest. "It will not happen again."

    Eloquin gave a tight nod, turning to Rowan. His words were direct, his counsel eminently practical.

    ¡°Rowan, your figure is lush and hides your power quite well. For all that you lag behind us during our runs, your martial prowess are worthy, and your charms will serve us to excellent effect this evening... if you are willing.¡±

    Rowan''s lips curved in a sultry smile. ¡°I learned the ways of womanhood even as my mother trained me with the sword, my master. I will not let you down.¡±

    Something in her gaze. Jess blinked. So that was the prize Rowan was after.

    Twilight smirked. ¡°Took you that long to figure it out? She''s savored capturing the heart of how many of your peers? Whoever isn''t stuck on a willowy waif as the object of their affections. But her true prize has always been Eloquin himself.¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    Eloquin merely nodded at Rowan''s assurance. He turned to Jess, gazing intently into her eyes. Jess flushed, having to fight not to look away. ¡°How are you?¡±

    Jess swallowed. "I will back up my sister, sir. But give us moments to freshen ourselves and change out of gear and into the dresses you brought, and we will play the pair of courtesans hungry for extra coin."

    Eloquin frowned. "I know how you felt about an agent''s lessons, Jessica. There were some lines you would not cross, even among your peers. You do understand the risk of this role?"

    Jess shrugged. ¡°That he might tip us to top him off? Sleeping with a man I don''t care for was a line I wouldn''t cross as a student. Now? Our daggers our blackened, my friends are counting on me, and girls are being sold into slavery even as we waste time here. I killed three men tonight, Master Eloquin. This will be but the smallest of added stains to my soul.¡±

    Eloquin''s gaze hardened, more than one Squire hissing at her words. She forced herself to speak on.

    "As much as I hated the lessons those Agents tried to foist on us, I know that I''m built for this role... that my figure is lush, and made up, I look... more than passing fair. I''m curved, and far stronger than people suspect, much like Rowan, for all that she is taller than me." Jess frowned and shook her head. ¡°Don''t put Erica in my place. You know she''s not built for it, and the thought of sleeping with a man she didn''t adore would horrify her.¡±

    Jess looked Erica''s way, unable to understand the odd mixture of fear and pity that she saw in her friend''s gaze. When Eloquin turned to Erica. Jess caught the way she blanched and looked away.

    Jess pled with Eloquin''s steely gaze. ¡°Rowan''s a sister of my heart. I would not see her put in peril, unarmored, without backup. And you know damned well how hard I trained with fist, throws, and daggers, after Mord.¡±

    Mord chuckled. ¡°I''m so glad I could shape the fires of your heart, deadly one. And how fiercely you have grown on me, this night alone, our bloody work just begun.¡±

    Rowan gazed at Jess with naked gratitude, such that Jess swallowed and looked away.

    ¡°Honestly, Jess, I''m glad for the backup. And if anything should happen... I''ll handle that end. You just be safe, and watch our backs.¡±

    Jess frowned, even as Rowan put a lacquered fingertip to Jess''s lips, carefully, Erica having applied crushed rosehips and kohl to their cheeks, eyes, and lips; both of them shivering in the cool breeze in reinforced bodices and too thin dresses, their limbs having been briskly wiped down with damp linen cloth in the crisp midnight air.

    ¡°It will be okay, Jess. Just let me take the risk." Jess trembled under her friend''s gaze, seeing at last the pain always hidden behind Rowan''s smile.

    "I lost my innocence long ago. Only since I honed my fury, proving myself as a Squire, was I able to come to terms with what I had lost, and take joy in the sweetest of dalliances, even if it can never be more than that."

    ¡°You deserve more than a romp in the hay, Rowan. Any man who wouldn''t love you is a fool!¡± Jess hotly whispered, ¡°no matter what bitter secrets the past holds.¡±

    Rowan grinned at that. ¡°We will say not another word, shieldsister. Just look fetching and pouty. We are both harlots that dear Gaines favors, having paid us coin to deliver a message, our ''master'' having no interest in late night meetings.¡±

    Jess smirked "As arrogant a stance as any lordling might take. Of course, this fool could think it because Gaines fears a trap, happy to let us take the fall, or perhaps a disposable intermediary was always the plan, and dear Agent Cornelius thinks to finish us off."

    Neal frowned at that. "Seduction is too deadly a risk. For all that we were trained by agents, this man is one. We do not know what tricks he has up his sleeve, and you two are equipped only with carefully quilted bodices, and dirks we will pass off as harlot''s daggers. Your safety means everything to us. So I will have several Squires waiting at the top of the first floor of stairs. If this Cornelius makes a move to court you and you cannot find pretext to avoid it, will bring him down by the stairway." Neal turned to Eloquin who nodded in grim approval.

    ¡°It is good that I did not have to say it. You are learning command, Neal.¡±

    Jess could sense Neal''s fierce pride with those words, and smiled for her friend.

    ¡°And if you must intercept, do not put your safety at risk attempting to seduce. Kill him outright.¡±

    Eloquin turned to quietly address them all, hidden in shadow, but a block away from their target, not a soul to be seen anywhere outside the faint noises emanating from the Whitehorse Inn.

    ¡°Correspondence was intercepted. The strike-point has been verified. Our suspected target is less than an hour''s journey from this locale.¡± He flashed the grimmest of smiles. ¡°But as we have learned, unresolved enigmas remain. Our target itself could be a feint from enemies seeking to play us off. If we can coax Cornelius off at a hare''s pace and chase him to his warren, excellent. All the better if we find it is different from the locale we have targeted, and reassuring if it is one and the same. But all that aside, our core job is to hunt down every turncoat, spy, and loose end Lady Putrice and her co-conspirators have let fester within our heartland, and burn them out. Completely. No survivors, save the victims of their depredations. Are we clear?¡±

    Over thirty salutes did Eloquin receive, before giving a satisfied nod.

    ¡°Very well, then. Neal, you will keep watch. Lucas, Colin, you two know exactly where to place yourselves one floor up, so none mark your presence, fully armored as you will be.¡±

    The pair exchanged glances. ¡°Bored guards outside the nicest looking room, security for a rich merchant?¡±

    Eloquin nodded. "Should anyone catch sight of you, yes. Though you both know how to move silently, in pauses where no eyes are turned your way, and I expect you to use your skills to best effect."

    The pair nodded, even as Eloquin turned to Jess and Rowan. ¡°Are you two ready?¡±

    Rowan flashed a jaded smile, gently pinning Jess''s hair before draping an elegant fur cloak about her shoulders. "As much as a pair of courtesans looking to make extra coin could ever be.¡±

    She then turned to Eloquin, eyes flashing with the fire worthy of any Squire, no matter that she was dressed in sheerest cotton and lace. "And General? Please trust us. Gentle seduction might just be the way. I fear no man''s blade, steel or otherwise, and if I give Neal the signal, he must stand down." Her fingers brushed Jess''s cheek. "Come, darling. Let us show these northern prudes what sophisticated ladies of the capital are capable of."

    Eloquin frowned, conceding the point with the tiniest of nods. Jess could hear Neal''s sigh. She was grateful for his care, but as she and Rowan were taking the front line, it was best that they made the call.

    Jess smirked, following her friend, feeling naked, fierce, and vulnerable all at once as they entered the inn.

 Chapter 17

    The scents of mead, wine, oddly perfumed smoke, and roasted boar accompanied by raucous laughter washed over Jess as she entered the spacious drinking hall of the Whitehorse inn. Fitting even for a lord''s patronage, the finely polished chairs, tables, and bar counter were all made of finest hardwood despite the mixed clientele, not surprising considering that this was a town full of master carpenters, no doubt home to any number of journeymen needing work and coin. Jess was surprised to see more than a few men up, despite the hour, ribald laughter falling to softest murmurs upon their entrance. Gazes hot and raw locked upon her. She was drowning in a sea of naked hunger.

    Jess swallowed and bowed her head, feeling her cheeks flush so deeply they tingled.

    On the one hand, it was frightening. She almost stumbled, Rowan''s powerful hand clenching her own.

    On the other, it was exhilarating.

    With a shiver Jess snapped her gaze up, smiling boldly at the men gazing at her so ravenously, licking her lips as she did so.

    A sultry laugh cut through the air. ¡°My, my, how Whitetown hungers for sophisticated company. Sadly we are detained on business, sirs. But another time? I think my... sister and I would love to entertain you all with dazzling tales of the capital, and awe you gentlemen with our stimulating wit and intellect.¡±

    Rough chuckles and good humored laughter at that.

    ¡°I''ll bet you could, lass,¡± one man dressed in fine woolens declared, features hard but savvy, looking for all the world like a trader who had scrabbled himself together from the humblest of roots. ¡°Name''s Gelen. Perhaps I can help you pair out. Looking for special company, I take it?¡±

    Rowan licked her lips and smiled approvingly. "A noble gentleman even here. How utterly adorable. Yes, noble Gelen. We are looking for our friend Cornelius. A mutual acquaintance has the most delicious trade opportunities for him to consider."

    Gelen smiled at that. ¡°Now you are singing a tune I can dance to quite well, my lady. If you need companionship for a trade venture, you will find few more willing to appreciate the odd chance or... unorthodox approach than I.¡±

    Jess blinked, taking in the aura of confidence and sensual potency Rowan exuded. As tempting a fruit as any man could wish for, yet with a mixture of fire and softness in her gaze that would mute even darker urges into an odd sort admiration. She was a prize even the most roguish of men would want to be worthy of, her smile of approval as exhilarating as the touch of her flesh.

    Jess couldn''t help grinning, impressed by what came to her friend so naturally, whereas Jess found herself absolutely tongue-tied when gazing into the eyes of a boy or girl she actually cared for. How many months had she hungered for the girl by her side even now?

    "Gelen, you are a rare find. It is good to find a man who knows what he wants, who has a knack for seeing what others miss." Rowan''s smile turned to a playful pout. "Now if you could only help us find our dear friend Cornelius..."Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    "I am here, my lady." A sultry voice that sent shivers racing down Jess''s spine. Hungry dark eyes locked upon her own.

    Cornelius. It must be. His skin was a rich shade of golden brown, accented by a carefully trimmed beard that served only to emphasize his masculinity, his shimmering locks of hair as deep a midnight hue as Rowan''s own.

    He radiated a potency and charm that absolutely captivated Jess. As if she were but a doe, frozen by the tiger''s stare, entranced as he slowly approached. Jess swallowed and forced herself to focus. An outsider Cornelius might be, but no glaring-eyed madman. Rather, he appeared smooth and exotic, as one could only dream of foreign traders being, and the look in his eyes promised a nubile young lady any number of dreams, as hot and sensual as once could possibly imagine.

    His smile was brilliant. Jess felt a fluttering in her chest.

    She almost pouted when it was Rowan''s soft hands that caressed their mark''s chin, dark eyes gazing so intently into his own, and Jess blinked, suddenly noting similarities to their extraordinary beauty. The shape of their cheekbones, the exotic tilt to their eyes, the way they both stood tall and proud, their glossy manes of ebony hair shimmering in the candle light. All of it made Jess wonder at a shared southern heritage, perhaps generations back. For all that Rowan had inherited the palest of olive complexions, Jess couldn''t help but note the similarities between Rowan and the man before them now.

    Certainly, there was something there. The connection between Rowan and Cornelius was immediate. Magnetic.

    "But tell me how I may serve, my lady, and I am your man." His lips slowly curved into a smile. "In all things." He favored Jess with his smile as well. "Perhaps you would both like a drink? There are several quiet game rooms to the rear. Or, if you prefer... my quarters are as private as one could ask for.¡±

    The wildest of impulses. Jess grinned and swallowed, heart racing to see Rowan felt the same fierce desire to take him up on his offer, and spend the night in his arms. Both of them flushed and smiled.

    Jess could sense that Cornelius had picked up on this as well. ¡°Perhaps my quarters would be best.¡± His voice had roughened, a single flashed sign and the innkeeper brought what Jess thought a fine cask of brandy indeed, even as Jess sent a furious hand signal to a surprised looking Neal, who grimaced and dashed off.

    The would go upstairs, and there would be no interference.

    Jess gently stroked Cornelius''s cheek with her hand, capturing his gaze. She smiled, Cornelius blinking, as if suddenly realizing that he did indeed have two beauties paying very close attention to him. ¡°I think my sister and I would love to share your company and discuss a great many things. I have but one question... you don''t want to hurt either one of us, do you?¡± She smiled into surprised eyes, whispering softly. ¡°Any more than we want you to.¡±

    Cornelius''s grin was hot, hungry, and utterly without malice.

    Within moments the three seemed to float up the stairs in a cloud of warmth and laughter.

    Jess knew what was expected of them, how dire their circumstances were, and for those hot moments, she did not care, feeling a fierce hunger for the beautiful woman and man beside her, sharing jests and witticisms as if they had known each other for years, for all that they had met Cornelius but moments ago.

    Rowan''s gaze was as hungry as her own. They flushed with mutual shame and exhilaration.

    What they were going to do was so very, very wrong.

    Yet it felt so right, and Jess lost herself to the most exotic of appetites in the hot, dizzy moments that followed as they found themselves in luxurious quarters, drinks and laughter naturally flowing into sweetest bliss.

 Chapter 18

    Jess sighed, sinking into the softest of dozes, her body splayed upon a luxurious down stuffed mattress in what had to be the most elegant room the inn offered, rich tapestries and stained glass windows delighting her senses, a wonderfully detailed mural of knights and castles painted upon the domed ceiling above, a score of candles in silver candelabras giving the room a brilliant glow. Jess smiled as she sipped from their shared crystal chalice once more, having drunk deep of brandy and passion both, awash in the most delightful of tingles, Rowan''s gentle caresses as much sweet comfort as titillation.

    Cornelius, still flushed, was gazing at the pair of them with something close to awe. He shook his head and whistled. ¡°My ladies. I do believe I am in love.¡±

    Jess laughed at that, kissing Rowan softly as she retied her corset once more. A corset that was actually many layers of finely quilted linen faced with silk. As resistant to thrust or cut as the thinnest of arming jackets. A poor second cousin, compared to their padded gambesons, but many times better than nothing.

    Jess bent down to kiss Cornelius a well, feeling nothing but exhilaration, the way he squeezed her so tightly, kissed her so deeply, as if he would take her and claim her utterly once more.

    Jess gently stroked his cheek. ¡°You''re a beautiful man, Cornelius.¡±

    He smiled. ¡°As are you, dearest rose, whose name I never caught.¡±

    Rowan chuckled throatily. ¡°And yet you shared so much with us! I did think you''d be the death of dear Susie, so thoroughly did you spear her with your ready wit.¡±

    Jess blushed hotly at that, still aglow with sweetest comfort, washing away the sharpest sting of horrors endured, monstrous acts committed just hours ago.

    Jess nodded. ¡°You are a man a girl could lose herself with, utterly,¡± she whispered. ¡°Washing all sad thoughts away.¡±

    Cornelius winked. ¡°And what possible reason could two such damsels as yourself have for sorrow? When all the world no doubt loves you both.¡± He chuckled softly. ¡°Anyone save the wives of your admirers, of course.¡±

    Jess pouted, even as Rowan tied up her own corset.

    "Gaines was quite insistent, I''m afraid, for all that he is not one tenth the man you are."

    Rowan chuckled throatily, even as Cornelius''s warm gaze hardened. ¡°Truly, beloved Cornelius, your smallest kiss alights us with a passion that dear Gaines couldn''t muster with his entire body.¡±

    ¡°Gaines, you said. Very well, ladies, I would very much like to hear the gist of this message.¡±

    Silver coins upon the table. A gesture meant to seem magnanimous, a fortune to any desperate peasant, the munificence of a beloved patron now seemed just as cold and mercenary as it truly was.

    Jess blushed and looked away, cheeks flushing with a tinge of shame, for all that she had savored his love with utter abandon, but minutes before.

    "My dear Susie, I mean no discourtesy. But I fear time suddenly presses upon me, and I would very much like to know this message."

    Jess flushed all the hotter. Cornelius was actually gazing at her in pity. Apology. With concern at the very least.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    Jess forced herself to smile. ¡°I understand. Love is sweet, but the call of duty overrides all else.¡±

    A relieved chuckle. "You have the right of it, my dear. Now, if you please...

    Rowan''s gentle hands caressing his back, her lips upon his naked neck. ¡°Dear Susie, what were the words our paramour bid us to say?¡±

    Jess frowned, pretending hard thought. ¡°I believe he said something about a coop and a pen?¡±

    Cornelius froze, his gaze hardening, instantly inured to Rowan''s gentle touch.

    Rowan pouted. "You''ve gotten it all muddled, sister. Did dear Cornelius rattle your pretty little head that thoroughly?" A sultry laugh as Jess pouted, looking away, both embarrassed and chilled, suddenly realizing how dangerous a game they truly played, Cornelius''s entire manner turning hard as steel in an instant.

    "The doves, or perhaps it was hens? Have left the coop. That was the message, though if one''s livestock is roaming free, isn''t that for the help to handle?" Rowan tisked. "I imagine some poor peasant will receive quite the thrashing on the morrow."

    Hot eyes glared at Rowan, whose return smile was so bereft of guile that his gaze immediately softened, uncertain.

    Rowan gently stroked his cheek. ¡°Cornelius? Please tell me we made you as happy as you made us?¡±

    He turned his brooding regard to Jess, still turned away, blushing prettily, only peripherally noting their target, her gaze hidden by her hair. She didn''t mind looking the shamed, lonely tart, so long as he didn''t realize how he was being played.

    Strong arms suddenly gripped her. Jess held back furious instincts. Rowan''s surprised glance, but no alarm.

    Jess let herself sob once.

    Not so hard, hardly an act.

    So many things to be ashamed of this evening, did she let herself feel it at last.

    "Don''t you dare cry, my kitten. Don''t you dare." Cornelius''s kiss was fierce and sweet. His caress sent shivers down her spine once more. "I would claim you for my own. Claim you both! Did I have time."

    His gaze had turned strangely possessive. "You may both stay as long as you like. You will find I am not poor, not by any means. If you are looking to truly make some coin... or, dare I say it, mean what you say when you imply that I am beyond the pathetic dross of your former friends... stay here. You will not regret setting a course to match my stars, I promise you that. I promise you both that."

    He kissed them both, fiercely once more.

    "Where I am from, a man can take two wives, or as good as, such that no one dares call them anything but. I think you will find, my darlings, that I could make you both very, very happy, when this game I play finally comes to a head."

    At a surprisingly quick pace, Cornelius was fully dressed once more, Jess pretending obliviousness as the man put various pouches and packets upon his person, donning saber and poniard last of all. The saber, Jess saw, was a far more imposing thing than poor Gaines'' sword, even now slowly rusting to its sheath in the damp loamy ground that served as the poor boy''s grave.

    Jess bit back bitter tears and looked away.

    A gentle, powerful hand stroked her cheek, and Jess could tell the black glove he wore was lined with mail.

    An Agent''s trick.

    ¡°You are almost an innocent, are you not?¡± he said with growing wonder. ¡°You have not been long at the courtesan''s trade, have you?¡±

    Jess managed a winsome smile. ¡°Sometimes things happen, and you just want to run away from life. There was Gaines...and now you.¡±

    His chuckle was throaty. "I can tell our sweet rose there is a veteran of many battles, and I love her no less for it. But you, precious blossom, come to my bed practically a virgin." His gaze was fierce, hungry. "I meant what I said. But wait for me, and I will claim you both."

    With a final passionate kiss to a blushing Jess, stroking Rowan''s cheek in passing, he darted from the room as fast as his boots could carry him.

 Chapter 19

    "Jess." Silent moments. Jess, reeling still from a dizzying flood of pleasure, shame, and sweetest revelry, was surprised to find herself crying softly in Rowan''s arms.

    "Jess, are you okay?"

    Jess blinked away salty tears, smiling into Rowan''s eyes. ¡°I think I halfway love you, you know.¡±

    Rowan grinned. "And too shy even to make a pass at me, back at Highrock, or respond to my flirting, no matter how I teased you. And here we are, both courtesans if we take that coin, and I know neither of us will." She shivered and laughed. "And how we savored this last hour, partaking of sweetest revelry, a world so different from our own."

    Jess sighed in her friend''s arms. ¡°Maybe it was more than that. I think, maybe, we were also giving Cornelius the sweetest gift we could, before we take everything away.¡±

    Rowan''s gaze turned hard. "You know what has to happen, Jess, and I don''t like any more than you do."

    Jess clenched her eyes shut, nodding once.

    ¡°Is it on him?¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°The acorn is in his pouch.¡±

    Rowan looked down at herself, and Jess knew she felt the afterglow still, as did she. Rowan blushed sweetly at she grinned at Jess, for all that her gaze was hard as steel. ¡°We make quite a pair, don''t we?¡±

    Jess smirked. ¡°No doubt everyone knows.¡±

    Rowan shrugged. ¡°What of it? We are Squires serving king and Crown. No matter what filth we allow inside us, no matter the stains and blood we pour on our soul, if we make Erovering that much safer, the Crown cannot do other than love us.¡±

    Jess sighed. ¡°What happens in the halls of Highrock, stays in the halls of Highrock.¡±

    Rowan nodded. "And what a Squire does with blackened dagger is never spoken aloud at all." She winked. "Besides, after this night, gods willing we all survive, the revels Eloquin will provide for us will blow your mind." She smirked. "Putrice did but steal from Eloquin''s own stash. A week to drown all sorrows with the most illicit of pleasures and all the company you could ask for, then a week with nothing to drink but well water and bitter tears from hard training, purging all weakness away."

    Jess nodded. ¡°And when it''s all done, it is as if it never was. None of us pure after this night, yet all of us equal, in each other''s eyes.¡±

    Rowan smirked. ¡°Though whether or not Eloquin will ever love me is a question I will try not to torment myself with too deeply, considering how often I play the tart.¡±

    Jess softly stroked Rowan''s cheek. ¡°He loves Lady Vaila, you know. They share the flower that blossoms so sweetly, for all that she hides in her mother''s garden, almost never seen by a soul who does not tend to the rooftop garden.¡±

    Rowan''s gaze turned soft. "I know, Jess. A garden that no matter how sharp the fancy to explore it strikes me, I find myself never really curious enough to step upon those stairs leading to its entrance, when I get close." She shrugged. "Protective magics, no doubt. And if I thought Vaila and Eloquin still held a spark..."

    Jess smiled. ¡°They do. I see it every time he looks her way when he visits the garden, gazing at his little girl... for all that he turns around and leaves, the moment she looks his way.¡±Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    Rowan sighed. "Well then, at least I can console myself when Eloquin coolly pretends I''m just another Squire, not a girl after his heart." She swallowed and focused on dressing, her words tentative. "You know that... all this aside... as sweet and wild as it was..."

    ¡°One day you will make a man a proper wife, and never leave his side?¡± Jess flashed a bittersweet grin. ¡°I know. And you deserve that love, no matter what happened in your past, Rowan. In the meantime, we are bloodthirsty hellions determined to savor all of life''s pleasures, dark and sweet, even as we kill for king and Crown in defense of our friends.¡±

    Rowan smirked. ¡°That about sums it up, Shieldsister, and I would recognize Neal''s knock anywhere.¡± Rowan''s gaze turned strange. ¡°Jess... tonight... I know how sacred you feel life to be...¡±

    Jess sighed. "I know. You, me, Erica. Herbs from the garden by dawn. They will harm no life that has already quickened, but will put that part of ourselves to sleep. Because babies deserve tender mothers, not blooded killers. And for now? All three of us, as savage hounds of war as the king could ever desire, let loose upon his foes."

    A second knock upon the door, rapid, insistent.

    Neal and Malek, gazing at Jess and Rowan both with sweetest relief, then growing consternation.

    Neal looked downright embarrassed. Malek flashed a cheeky grin.

    "Embracing an Agent''s lessons after all, hey, shieldsister?"

    Jess smirked, cheeks flushing hotly, suddenly too tongue-tied to think up a witty response.

    ¡°Did he take the bait?¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°He did indeed. The acorn is in his coat pocket. Unlikely to be thought much of, even if he does feel it through armored gloves.¡± She turned to Neal. ¡°Did you all stay out of sight? Is he safely off?¡±

    Neal was still gazing at them both. Jess felt her cheeks heat up all the more, Rowan''s as well.

    "Stop it, Neal. We are Squires on a mission."

    Neal bowed his head. ¡°You''re right, Rowan. I have no right to judge. I apologize.¡±

    Rowan smiled. "I''m already over it. Is our gear ready?"

    Malek nodded, none other than Lucas bringing it in, smiling and shaking his head. ¡°I know you were both just acting as Agents of the Crown would, but by the gods, Cornelius was lucky.¡± Lucas''s grin turned wicked. ¡°Too bad his luck won''t last.¡±

    Jess and Rowan both frowned at that.

    ¡°You guys do know what has to happen, right?¡± Neal''s voice, suddenly filled with concern.

    ¡°Yes, Neal. As much as I regret the fact... if he''s involved, as he surely is, if things are as horrid and duplicitous as we know they are... this is how it has to be,¡± Jess whispered.

    Rowan grimaced, but nodded as well. ¡°But by all the gods, you can''t ask us to be the ones to strike him down. I don''t mind charming a heart to love me, but I could never betray it... not like that. An enemy turned, his secrets laid bare, are as far as I would ever go. I am a Squire, Neal. But tainted as I am, I could never be an Agent of the Crown.¡±

    ¡°Good,¡± declared a relieved Neal. ¡°Because we need you far more than they. Don''t worry, Rowan. I don''t think Eloquin would let either of you to be involved in handling Cornelius. Our master can be hard, savagely so, but he is never cruel. Not to the students he loves as fiercely as any mother bear ever did her cubs. But magic acorn or no, we have to get going. We did in effect pass along the message that we are coming, and our foes are preparing to spring what traps they have upon us.¡±

    "Not if we spring them first," Rowan fiercely declared, dress once more removed, donning her armor at a brisk pace.

    "Exactly." Malek smacked Jess''s helmed head some moments later, all of them fully kitted once more, making as discrete an exit as they could.

    ¡°Jess.¡± Malek, gazing so intently at her, all of them mounted and riding once more.

    ¡°Not a word, Malek. Not one damned word.¡±

 Chapter 20

    Their steady pace did not let up as the moon rode high overhead, the fruity scent of midnight blossoms and the crisp sharp tang of cedar and pine perfuming the crisp nighttime air.

    Jess lost herself in the feel of her mare''s steady stride, one with her mount, flowing as effortlessly atop of him as her Twilight graced her shoulder, peering forth like a hawk even now, neither of them detecting the faintest branch, bramble, or pitfall in the road ahead.

    Jess was grateful for her companion''s gentle silence. She knew he had been keeping an eye on her during the entirety of that encounter she dared not think too deeply of, and she knew that his sharp voice would have warned her of any danger, no matter how distracted she had been.

    At last their path branched off from the high road, a hard-packed trail near as wide as the main road, cutting into woodlands growing ever thicker, ever more primeval, until the bowers of massive trees arched overhead, the scents of oak, chestnut, maple and spruce tickling Jess''s nose, and Jess found a curious weight lifting from her chest, feeling strangely at home, for all that the path had grown pitch black, so thick was the foliage overhead, moonlight and starlight equally swallowed by the arboreal kingdom they had entered.

    ¡°Bloody hells, I can''t see a damn thing!¡± Malek hissed as they slowed abruptly to themost sedate of paces. ¡°How the hell is that bastard even able to see his hand in front of his face?¡±

    Jess frowned at that.

    ¡°Magelight,¡± Rowan whispered. ¡°I noted he was carrying one, as well as saber and daggers, when we... undressed him.¡±

    Jess was glad the pitch blackness hid so well her furious blush.

    "Well, we don''t have a magelight, not that I know of, so how do we push forward?" Mortant''s frustrated voice, still wise enough to be pitched low enough to drown out in the endless susurrations of leaves rustling in the wind.

    Lucas chuckled softly as soft blue light suddenly marked his smile.

    Neal nodded, impressed. ¡°I''m glad you haven''t been neglecting your arcane studies, no matter how Eloquin has been pushing you.¡±

    Lucas grinned. "And I''m almost good enough to start casting battlemagics, even from horseback." He frowned. "Almost. Right now I''m so tense that all the glyphs I have mastered inside my skull are a swirl of color. It''s hard to relax enough to even cast this globe, but, with Mortant''s quip... I couldn''t resist trying."

    Neal nodded. ¡°It''s true. Even the king''s own battlemages cast their magics from behind a wall of shieldmen protecting them, if they can''t cast from the safety of a tower or parapet.¡±

    Malek cursed softly.

    Jess gazed at her friend. ¡°What''s wrong, shieldbrother?¡±

    Malek grimaced, looked back at Lucas and turned to Jess, shame clearly written on his face.

    ¡°I should be able to do that, Jess. I should be able to help.¡±

    Neal shook his head. ¡°Don''t be, Malek. You are only a second year, and from what I''ve gathered, wards are your strength.¡±

    Malek chuckled bitterly. "And that''s pretty much all I can do. Cast an enchantment that might neutralize an enemy spell or two, and I can''t even cast a light globe with my heart racing like a stallion, knowing what were soon to face, and you all are counting on me."

    Lucas frowned. "Shut the hell up, Malek. I actually respect you. You can best me with a longsword, which I accept, for all that I work damned hard at it, but to find that you''re my match at wrestling when I''m so much bigger than you?" He chuckled. "You''re a freak of nature, Malek. Take pride in that. Who the hell cares if I can cast a pretty ball of light when my heart''s racing? We''ll have to put it out soon enough when we get close to trouble, if we don''t want our enemy to know we''re coming."Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    "Correct." Eloquin''s sharp voice cut through their banter. "Only by the rustle of branches and the cry of crickets do I give you leave to speak at all. Lucas, your skill is noted. And now you will quench your spell. We did not bring magelights for a reason, lest the slightest flash of light warn spooked prey that we are onto them. And Cornelius is no fool. Even with a magelight, he dare not go faster than a walk. No student of ancient arts is there to ward his mount''s hooves from roots and branches easily hidden in the shadows of such dim light. His gallop finished the minute he entered these woods.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Master Eloquin,¡± a suddenly shaken Lucas whispered, his brilliant blue orb immediately fading to a glimmer of light, then pitch darkness once more.

    Sapphire eyes, glowing brilliantly still, peered into Jess''s own. ¡°Should we tell them?¡±

    Jess smirked. ¡°No fear, my battle brothers. We can go faster than the slowest of walks. Twilight and I will lead the way.¡±

    "Your imaginary cat?" Lucas scoffed. "I''m sorry, Jess. Flights of fancy are one thing, a bit of madness helps in a fight, as you''ve proved a dozen times over, and I''m glad my mount is not tripping over roots. but this is reality, and you don''t really have a talking cat. The only reason why we dared the high road at a trot before was because of the full moon shining everywhere but here within this primeval forest."

    "As long as she can get us from point A to point B, I don''t much care whether her cat is real or not," Neal''s dry voice declared.

    ¡°Calenbry. Report.¡±

    Jess immediately stiffened. "I sense the path through the trees just fine, no light needed, sir. Just stay right behind my click and we can ride at a fast walk, as we have a good five feet of hardpacked road to either side of me." Jess frowned. She couldn''t help it. "This is a lumber trail. It has to be. Nothing else but the weight of massive logs dragged through the forest would turn loamy soil to hard-packed road. And Lucas is right about one thing, this is primeval woodland."

    Her fist clenched her stirrup. ¡°Accords have been broken. Accords sworn to, centuries ago!¡±

    Harsh whispers echoed through their band. Jess blinked and swallowed, surprised at how fierce she felt, hearing the echo of ancient promises whispered in the rustling leaves overhead.

    ¡°You will focus on the here and now, Calenbry. Transgressions will be handled in due time. As of this moment, near three dozen lives are in your hands.¡±

    Jess blinked at that, taking a deep, shuddering breath, the weight of sudden responsibility clamping down upon her like a vice. "I know, sir. The way ahead is clear, our target but half a mile ahead, though you can''t see him, as this logging road is curving to the culprit''s den, even now."

    ¡°And how the hell do you know that, Calenbry?¡± Mortant demanded.

    Mord chuckled. ¡°Don''t you get it, yet, Mortant? Velheim''s prize is our own. Their most handsome pieces on the board, and we still hold the queen. As long as the last living Druid is among us, the will of the forest is our own.¡±

    Jess frowned at Mord''s choice of words. The way his voice dripped with mockery and admiration in equal measure. The way he had smiled at her when she had exited the inn, face still lowered, feeling a hot awkwardness that she had been utterly free of an hour before.

    ¡°I don''t even claim to know what that is, Mord. I just have a knack with plants, and the acorn aside, Cornelius throbs like an aching pustule upon the face of this forest, as do all thedenizens of the grand fort we soon approach, sawed into the heart of primeval woodland. Against every treaty and accord.¡±

    ¡°Accords few even remember,¡± Mord noted. ¡°I''m surprised that one of your...scholarly temperament does.¡±

    ¡°Enough.¡± Eloquin''s voice silenced them both. ¡°Calenbry, focus on the trail ahead. Malek, to her right, hum and click as you will. Everyone else, follow at a fast walk.¡±

    Jess frowned. ¡°It''s not like I can''t hum and lead us at the same time,¡± she grumbled.

    ¡°Oh but that''s just it. You can''t, my mistress. You really can''t.¡±

    Jess stuck her tongue at her cat''s cheshire grin that she just knew he was flashing at her, for all that it was dark as pitch.

    ¡°Focus on your strengths, Calenbry.¡± Eloquin''s words, and somehow Jess knew he felt just the same as her cat.

 Chapter 21

    "Cornelius has stopped," Jess noted some time later. "There is a clearing ahead." And indeed, shafts of moonlight as bright to their light-starved eyes as the first rays of the morning sun pierced the forest''s edge, more than one Squire hurrying his pace to enter the clearing even as Jess abruptly pulled to a halt, raising her hand, more than one angry hiss and mutter making it clear that her abrupt stop was less than welcome.

    ¡°Bloody hells, Calenbry, if you''re not going to lead, get out of the way,¡± Mortant snapped.

    "Are you truly that stupid?" Rowan''s husky voice was sharp with disdain. "Think, Mortant. We seek to spring our foe''s traps. Not slip right into them. You don''t think we''d be immediate targets if we broke forest cover without scoping out the clearing ahead?"

    Eloquin''s dry voice stilled them all. ¡°Rowan is correct. Neal, Jess, Malek, scout the perimeter and report back when done, or if men come our way.¡±

    ¡°Yes sir,¡± Neal said. ¡°Jess? Malek?¡±

    And soon enough Jess found herself on foot once, more, crouched hardly at all, knowing with utter assurance that, lest she willed it, no one in the clearing ahead would see her and her companions as they slipped from pockets of darkest shadow to underbrush laden deadfalls, well able to see the massive fortress of rough-cut logs torn into the middle of this sacred forest, many still bleeding sap. A dark, brooding monstrosity of slaughtered ancient wood that Jess absolutely detested.

    "By the gods, that is an impressive looking fort!" Malek said with breathless awe. "It is as big as the king''s palace!"

    Neal frowned. ¡°Northern lord or no, there is no way the king can overlook such a fragrant breach of disarmament protocols all nobles swore to in return for fair treatment and independent Council, centuries ago.¡±

    Jess could just see Malek''s nod. ¡°You''re right, Neal. For all that any noble may own as glorious a palace as he can afford, not even a duke is allowed more than a single contingent of men-at-arms, though the wisest train their serfs and freemen to be competent pikemen, should the king declare war once more.¡±

    ¡°Exactly, Malek. And that''s not palace, that''s a fort with wooden walls as thick and stout as any castle. It is a slap in the face of the king! It does not matter how much we need the largest trees for our ships, the king cannot let this stand.¡±

    ¡°No, he cannot,¡± Jess snarled. ¡°It is a grotesque pustule writhing in the heart of this woodland. There is nothing beautiful about it at all. It must fall!¡±

    ¡°Focus on the mission at hand, Jess. And lower your voice. We do not want to risk alerting everyone.¡±

    Jess swallowed and stilled her wrath, for all that Neal gave only the softest of reprimands.

    Malek shrugged. ¡°It hardly matters, Neal. They have posted no guards. The periphery is all but abandoned!¡±

    And Jess nodded, for her friend spoke the truth. The field before the fort was cleared even of stumps. Jess frowned, for the sight was actually quite strange. And what reason for it? This was obviously the heart of a lumbering operation, whatever else it involved, and no need for a field clear and pristine, in the middle of their arboreal butchery. Doing her best to hold back her ire, her eyes flickered upon the sloping mounds of torn earth and piled stumps on either side of the grand road of packed dirt that led from the heart of the clearing to the road they traveled even now. No doubt as steady a source of lumber as one could want, logs being sent downriver to shipwrights to the south, once they were successfully carted out of the deepwood.

    Neal frowned, but couldn''t help nodding. ¡°You''re right, Malek. There''s not a soul out here, and the gates to their wooden palisade they''ve left wide open.¡± He grimaced. ¡°And that makes as much sense as spit. The Velheim agent did come this way, yes, Jess? So our foe should be alerted. Even if this is but a massive lumbering operation, and not a den of slavers at all, it is criminal nonetheless. They should at least shut their gates and slip away.¡±

    Malek snorted. "More the fools they. Sloppy on so many levels. If it is lumber and not flesh that these fools peddle, the king will give the lord no more than a slap on the wrist the moment he pens a formal apology. Our fleets need this hardwood bad, all accords aside, and Erovering is the only nation that has half its surface covered still by ancient woodlands, with trees that soar hundreds of feet in the air."

    ¡°And so it will stay.¡± Jess heard the words, hard as ice, even as the trees rustled with the urgency of a gale force wind, for all that the air was suddenly hot and still. ¡°The trees will stand tall, virgin forests spared the filthy touch of iron saw. For so long as Erovering would stand, the groves must never fall.¡±

    Neal shivered, gaze strangely haunted, staring up at Jess. She blinked, only then realizing Neal had stumbled, Malek also gazing at Jess quite oddly.

    "Are you all right, shieldsister?"

    Jess swallowed not knowing what to say.

    Neal gave an odd shake of his head, regaining his feet once more. "Let''s focus on the task at hand, Jess. All right? We need to investigate further. This placed looks all but abandoned, and we''re too savvy to let our hopes and fears this evening morph into seeing ghosts and spectres where there are none. If, despite all rumor, innuendo, and desperate confessions, this is naught but an illicit lumber operation, and not some dark consortium of flesh peddlers with ties to bandits and Velheim crossbowmen..."

    Jess trembled, suddenly sick. ¡°Then I killed a young nobleman pleading for his life even as I snapped his neck, a boy who thought he could love me... for no good reason.¡±

    ¡°Jess.¡± Neal''s voice had grown soft, and Malek''s arms fierce as he held a suddenly sobbing Jess close, shamed beyond words at the horror she had committed, taking away the beloved son of some family who even now no doubt missed him fiercely.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    All because they had blackened their daggers, fearing flesh peddling and darkest conspiracy, and couldn''t risk a soul knowing what they were up to, as what they were doing was itself utterly illegal.

    She who had once wanted so badly to be the noblest of knights.

    To be a hero.

    Two men seduced, three men dead by her hand, and the night was not even over.

    The bloody night had just begun.

    For that''s when Jess sensed it.

    The trap that would take all their lives, did she not dry her tears and look... truly look at the puzzle before her.

    ¡°Do you see it, mistress?¡±

    Soft words whispered into her ear, Twilight''s eyes blazing like stars in truth.

    Jess shuddered.

    Neal''s eyes gazing at Jess''s own so poignantly, hand raised almost to stroke her brow, for all that Malek held her still. ¡°Jess... what we do... we do for Erovering. We do for king and country. There is no shame, Jess. There is no shame.¡±

    Jess held up her hand, frowning. ¡°Do you guys sense that?¡±

    Malek frowned. ¡°What?¡±

    Jess bit her lip. ¡°Something''s wrong. Something''s hidden.¡±

    Neal''s brows furrowed. ¡°What do you mean, Jess?¡±

    Jess rubbed here eyes, squinting against the odd discrepancy. So subtly placed she hardly sensed it, yet the cries of dying logs, still green with sap, stacked precariously on top of one another and bound with a brooding slipknot did not match the quiet stillness of strangely voiceless stumps and dirt stacked so carelessly in great heaps along the entranceway to the ground proper.

    ¡°Do you understand, mistress?¡±

    And with a sickening shudder, Jess did.

    ¡°Two score crossbowmen. Two score! Twenty to either side of the road. And those are not simple pull lever bows, but arbalests with bodkin-headed bolts, capable of slipping right through most mail hauberks. They won''t get more than one shot, but even so, even so...¡±

    Neal paled. ¡°By all the gods. Forty of those. If you''re right, Jess, if you''re sure, though I see not a one, that''s forty rolls of the dice, dots for any of us hit on the neck or piercing shoulder pauldrons and thighs, for all that our heads and torsos are covered by the finest steel that smiths can forge.¡±

    Jess grimly nodded. Save rumors of the king''s own elite guard, extremely few smiths had been able to forge anything close to full, overlapping plate armor. Most suits turned out brittle, the plates doomed to crack if not shatter with the first blow of lance, poleaxe, or war hammer. A Squire''s breastplate and helm were masterworks of construction made by smiths who had been forging such according to exacting diagrams for many decades. Yet even those smiths consigned themselves strictly to helms and reinforced multilayered breastplates, and only half their masterworks passed the final tests. Those items, along with specially boiled rawhide plates over mail and padded gambeson to protect the limbs, meant that Squires and Aspirants were among the best armored of any of the king''s elite troops.

    Though a poleaxe would result in shattered bones if hitting full force, and a lance could well burst through anything save perhaps their breastplates, every lesser weapon was easily countered. But not armor piercing quarrels fired from forty arbalests in a surprise attack.

    ¡°Come, brothers, best we head back and explain all to Eloquin.¡±

    Her armsmaster did not look pleased, gazing at Jess with ice blue eyes that left her frozen on the spot. "You claim forty crossbowmen lay in ambush, a score on hardpacked banks to each side of the entrance, each with a trap of logs, and that we''d smash ourselves into hard-packed earth and spikes if we dared charge past."

    Jess swallowed and nodded. ¡°Yes, sir. The ground slopes down at an angle, like a ramp leading into a pit... you would crash into the wall of it and be sitting ducks as our foes rolled tons of smoothed logs onto your bodies, shooting full of quarrels anyone who managed to survive that horror.¡±

    Eloquin paled at that. ¡°Explain, Calenbry. All I see is a field, clear as moonlight, and not a soul to be seen.

    Jess swallowed and spoke what she knew would be shouted down as blasphemous delusion by the elementalist wizards who taught at their college, so certain they understood the fundaments of magic.

    ¡°Illusion, sir. The pit, the logs, the men waiting in ambush... all protected by illusion.¡±

    Quiet whispers flowed through the assembled Squires. Jess felt increasingly uncomfortable as cynical stares turned her way.

    "I''m sorry, Jess. I know you have your knack with wood, nature''s compensation for your warped gifts making you a failed mage, but not even failed mages can bend reality, or change basic arcane principle. What you suggest is impossible. Illusions, Faeries, magic rings and flying carpets, these are the things of faerie tales,¡± Lucas solemnly declared.

    Neal frowned. "I''ve never read any accounts of illusionists in battle, Jess. Only in fables and stories, centuries old, are such things even suggested."

    Rowan''s hand slipped free of her gauntlet to gently squeeze Jess''s own. "We''ve had a wild night, shieldsister, filled with revelry, danger, and a bit of tragedy as well. To say nothing of riding at a fierce pace after plenty of good wine, when by rights we should have been asleep, you and I, in that warm bed we left behind, hours ago. Is it possible that what you think you sense might just resolve itself differently after a good night''s rest?"

    Jess squeezed back, shyness long since burned away, boldly kissing Rowan''s soft lips. "If we charge head on, we are dead. It is that simple."

    Eloquin frowned. ¡°You suspect illusion. It matters not that such has not been reported before. For such could mean it is either delusion, or such a deadly threat that those who fall to its wiles leave not even a single survivor to reveal evidence of that most deadly magic. If you are certain, Jess, we lose nothing by taking careful measure, and refusing to play into their trap.¡±

    Malek frowned. ¡°Is there a way we can break the illusion?¡±

    Jess shrugged, turning to her familiar, who slowly shook his head. "You sensed it, carefully woven strands of the arcane subtly spun making it far harder to spot than most spells. But you are not quite ready, Jess. Your blood does not yet boil with sufficient potency and fury."

    And that was all he would say on that.

    ¡°Then how do we spring the trap?¡±

    ¡°You can sense it, my queen. That''s enough. It is a casting, not a construct, which means...¡±

    ¡°That when the wizard is dead, the spell is ruptured.¡±

    Twilight nodded. "Or, you can simply lead the way, and run them through."

 Chapter 22

    And sooner than Jess thought it would happen, she was leading thirty of her peers to the first of two empty looking mounds of dirt, stumps, and woodchip waste, focusing intently on what was ahead, and what they would need to do the instant they claimed the mound against a score of armed and ready crossbowmen.

    Silently they stepped just beyond the clearing, Jess already strengthening her kinship and love of all things that blossomed under the sun to include her entire coterie, as if they were one. Each of them with war hammers looped to their belts, their cavalry sabers secured in specially designed scabbards sheathed to their hips. In hands trembling with excitement and dread, they uniformly wielded spears as long as they could comfortably use in the charge, tipped with heads of finest sharpened steel, affixed to stout poles of ash Jess had used her unique gifts to bring forth, heading the call for an end to this blight upon their forest.

    "This is madness. Sheer madness!" Lucas hissed. Neal glared back at him.

    ¡°Silence. Hold your formation. The moment she charges forward, you join, spears in concert, a foot from your partner.¡±

    And such was the plan, Jess thought, even as watering eyes carefully squinted past the illusion of a peaceful mound to spot the twenty hunched or kneeling crossbowmen, some lying prone, all of them with weapons aimed at the hard beaten path leading straight to the massive fortress ahead.

    ¡°Not a damned fool is coming,¡± one of the crossbowmen hissed in a harsh northern accent, his companions murmuring assent, and Jess couldn''t help but smile.

    Just as none of Jess''s companions could see the crossbowmen, the crossbowmen did not even bother to look behind them, so confident that they were under perfect cover, their own rough chatter covering up the odd crackle of twig or leaf, for all that Jess''s gifts had muted the rustles of undergrowth from the pads of her fellow Squires as they prepared to spring their trap.

    And with the sharp cry of a hawk, they all charged forth as one. Jessica''s heart hammered with a wolf''s exultation. Her chosen prey, a kneeling man turning about at that very moment with the slightest of frowns, was sent crashing to the ground, writhing as her spear punched through his vest of rawhide, her foe bucking like a fish on the hangman''s hook. Jess felt only a moment''s resistance as she tore her spearhead free, hideous gasps turning to an awful shriek as frothy blood and endless loops of slimy grey intestines spilled out of the wound.

    A dozen other screams as an equal number of spears hit their targets, the stench of coppery blood and offal lancing Jess''s nose even as panicked shouts and the cries of the wounded assaulted her ears. For all that her fellow Squires were thrusting blind, they did it with measured force in concert with Jess''s own thrust, only two dropping their spears at the unexpected jolt of steel biting into rawhide.

    ¡°Sabers out! Clear of your friends! Strike to kill!¡± Neal roared, for whether it was by simple proximity or the pinprick of ruptured flesh, the wounded crossbowmen were suddenly as clear as moonlight to all of them, only a few Squires flinching back from their sudden appearance, and Jess smiled with fierce satisfaction to see the crossbowmen upon the other mound squint desperately at the melee unfolding.

    For obviously the spell still held, and their enemies could see past the illusion in this mound no better than her friends could see the new threat approaching.

    And so the second wave of crossbowmen stepped carefully down the massive stack of tightly coiled logs fronting their archery mound, logs intended to be rolled down upon foolishly charging knights even as they crashed into the sloping pit below, crushing them to death. Had such gone according to their enemies'' designs, the logs would have been released from their strained slipknots by a pair of levers upon either side of the mound.

    Levers which chose that instant to snap, for all that they were of stoutest hardwood, and not a soul was near them.

    The air rang with the cries of over a dozen men scrabbling desperately to clear themselves of an avalanche of wooden logs rolling atop of them, their panic screams breaking off in abrupt crackling gurgles. Jess smiled in fiercest pleasure as the wood began to claim its due.

    ¡°Jess!¡±

    Malek roared and Jess blinked, dodging back desperately as a furious crossbowman yanked free his sword and tried to run Jess through.

    Stupid! She couldn''t lose focus in the heat of combat, not even for an instant! She roared at herself, cheeks flushing with terror and fury even as her enemy''s blade near slashed open her cheek, Jess arching back with an almost painful wrench, her visor wide open, the one vulnerable spot her scowling foe targeted with a blade perfectly designed for close quarter fighting.

    And time seemed to slow, as terror and sweetest exhilaration took hold.

    Her right hand tightly clenched her saber hilt, wrenching her blade free of specially built sheath as her reinforced left gauntlet slammed aside her opponent''s blade, arching back her right shoulder and abruptly twisting her hips as she took half a step back, turning her desperate attempt to unsheathe her blade into a vicious slash of a draw cut, her foe gazing at her in stupid awe, stumbling back and dropping his sword as her saber bit through rawhide breastplate with a jerk and twist, Jess wrenching the blade completely free.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    Her foe collapsed, entrails and screams alike bursting forth from the man now writhing upon the ground.

    And Jess howled, awash in the coppery stench of crimson gore, embracing the hot, boiling rage suddenly roaring through her.

    The illusionist was neutralized. Whether by spear, saber, or crushing logs, Jess knew not. She knew only that all magics had suddenly been ruptured, the pair of crossbowmen charging her with swords drawn weer now plain for all to see.

    ¡°Jess!¡±

    She heard the twang of crossbows, felt but did not see the half dozen bolts aimed for her friends from the crossbowmen who had been savvy enough not to rush to their fellows'' aid, even as Jess had sprung their own trap upon them.

    And a half dozen quarrels whizzed harmlessly aside, even as Jess stumbled back from the frantically stabbing swords of her enemy, desperate to bring her down before they themselves were killed.

    Jess tasted death''s caress, manic laughter bubbling to her lips, sound growing tinny and strange as time stretched all the more under her furious gaze.

    A short blade with a flaring tip lashing out for her eyes. The clang of bronze hitting steel, parrying gauntlet slamming the blade away. Her foe''s eyes widened, the air filled with his wavering cry as his hand flew free, cavalry saber kissing flesh and bone, ever hungry for more.

    A scream cut off to the crimson spray of a ruptured throat, rawhide like paper to her saber''s kiss. The cry of a reed flute, the crash of armored flesh collapsing to the ground.

    The dying soldier''s partner gazed at Jess in horror, Jess having killed his friend in two strokes and as many heartbeats. His breath hitched, arms frozen to his sides, and Jess seized the Vor before the terrified man could so much as blink. And blink he did, to no avail, soft brown eyes tumbling to the ground, his headless corpse crashing atop his comrade but moments after her crimson saber danced across his soft, supple flesh.

    And two more soldiers charged as Jess furiously blinked away the hot salty blood stinging her eyes, saber now held in tierce, reinforced left forearm held out to parry.

    The stink of rotting teeth and wrath. Dark angry eyes fixed upon a pustulent face dwarfed by a massive frame wielding an an ancient bar mace of bronze, its shaft inured to the ways of wood.

    Jess twisted and weaved as the deadly weapon whistled but inches from her skull, her gauntlet knocking aside his partner''s desperate slash, a scarred face grimacing as his blade was momentarily trapped in softer bronze.

    Jess cleaved down even as she dodged back, bronze warhammer lashing out for her skull once more as the giant''s partner howled and shrieked, spraying coppery blood upon them both.

    "Focus, Jess!"

    Her familiar''s panicked voice, oddly tinny as her head rang with the force of the blow that had clipped her helmet and sent her stumbling, grateful the wounded swordsman had jostled his massive companion before he could strike again, and Jess realized how truly perilous her situation was. Should she be knocked senseless in this melee, death''s kiss would be the last ever to cross her lips.

    Her foe roared, his massive frame charging into her, and Jess did not hesitate to embrace the unorthodox, hunching down and crashing her armored torso into his feet, tripping him much like the swine herder who had sought her death, only hours before.

    And still she hissed with the blow of feet slamming into her side, for all that she was covered in rawhide and steel.

    But her foe had crashed to the ground, and a furious curse as he desperately struggled to his feet was no contest against a girl who had trained endless hours in flips, throws, and the mastery of rough and tumble melee, so boys like Mord could never again humiliate her so thoroughly as he had the first and only time they had ever crossed blades.

    A roar as her foe raised his bronze mace up high, before crashing to the ground. Hamstrung. Screeching in horrified disbelief as choking gurgles replaced desperate threats or pleas, her crimson saber drinking deep of the madman''s blood.

    "No!"

    Rowan''s voice.

    Jess lurched about in panic, saw her shieldsister pinned by a man ruthlessly trying to force his gladius past her desperate grip, and plunge it straight into her throat.

    "No!" Jess wanted to weep with terror for her friend.

    Her lover.

    A heartbeat from death.

    ¡°Jess! Behind you!¡± Twilight roared.

    Jess gasped and whipped her blade around, tearing open the face of a howling swordsman suddenly stumbling back before crashing to the ground, his iron helm crumpled, brained from a war hammer held in the hand of none other than a grimly smiling Mord who had somehow managed a shield in his off-hand, for all that he had joined Jess in leading with the spear but moments before.

    Her heart lurched in her chest.

    No time!

    Jess stumbled past a crumpled body as Rowan''s assailant tore his blade free of her desperate hands, plunging his sword straight for Rowan''s throat.

 Chapter 23

    A scream hung over the killing grounds as Jess charged forward, saber cleaving through the air.

    The jar of crumpling bone pinning blade, her weapon spraying the battlefield with blood as she wrenched it free.

    Her enemy dropped, spasming his last, helmet crumpled forward, blood and grey flecks of brain pouring from the back of his ruptured skull.

    "Rowan!" Jess crashed to her knees, terrified for the brilliant Squire she admired so fiercely.

    The girl she had cherished in silk and lace but an hour ago chuckled softly, lurching to her feet, wincing slightly. "I owe you one, Jess, thank you."

    Jess saw the cuts in Rowan''s hands. The result of a desperately parried blade piercing cuir bouilli, the tip wedging between steel links, both bruising and tearing into her flesh, but not too deep, thank the gods.

    Jess shook with relief to see that despite the gouge in her gorget of stiffened rawhide, Rowan''s throat was fine.

    "Damn it, Rowan, be careful!" Jess sobbed, blinking free hot tears, gazing about her, catching the widened gazes of her battle companions, seeing that, save for bodies writhing and moaning atop the mounds and in the sprung pit trap, not one foe was left standing.

    Rowan''s only response was to hold her fiercely tight, whispering words that made Jess blush, holding her trembling shieldsister close.

    "By all the gods, Jess, I thought I was dead."

    Jess found her heart pierced by the most captivating eyes she had ever seen. The softest lips she had ever kissed.

    "That was too close," Jess whispered. "Please don''t ever do that to me again."

    Her lover chuckled throatily. "One night in your arms, and I am a damsel in need of her knight." She shook her head. "I thought I had the bastard mastered, then someone smashed into my side and I toppled and, well, he held just the right sort of blade for close-in killing work, didn''t he?"

    Jess shuddered and nodded.

    What horrid games they played. All her friends, dancing so close to death. All of them, counting on her.

    She felt the sudden weight of intense regard upon her back, and spun around.

    Mord, gazing at her so fiercely, bowing his head.

    ¡°Well done, Jess. There''s fire in your soul. I can see that now.¡±

    Jess swallowed and forced herself to say it. ¡°Your war hammer was timely, Mord. Thank you.¡±

    Mord flashed her the strangest of smiles. ¡°I''m sure I can think of any number of ways for you to properly thank me later.¡±

    Neal''s intense gaze pinned her, his voice filled with concern. "Jess, you''re trembling. Are you all right?"

    A desperate shake. She would not weaken her resolve. Not even for a moment.

    ¡°Clean and sheathe your blades this instant! And pick up your spears.¡±

    Neal blinked before slowly nodding. A number of Squires flinching as they took in the cries of the wounded, trembling hands cleaning and sheathing sabers and war hammers before retrieving their spears.

    Jess forced herself to face the Velheim crossbowman closest to her, even then writhing upon the mound they had fought upon, bowels clearly lanced by the spear that had lain him low. "Quarter!" he begged. "You have taken the field. Please... a healer. I... gods, the pain!"

    He whimpered, gazing desperately at Jess, who was steeling herself for what must be done. "I was to be an officer. My family has coin. Please! You have our parole. Take us to a healer..." Eyes widening in sudden horror. "Oh by the goddess, please don''t!"

    And then the most horrified of screams as Jess ran him through. Again and again. The last thrust through her foe''s unarmored neck, cleaving into his brain. Only then was he still.

    ¡°Well?¡± Jess snapped, her friends stepping back. ¡°You''re Squires of War, and our daggers are as black as sin! You know our master''s lessons! No mercy, no quarter to ourenemies! Lest the man you spare would hunt you down and all your kin, but a handful of years from now!¡±

    Pale faced and grimacing, her peers nodded, finishing the grim task no matter how their fallen foes begged and pleaded, until at last the grounds were silent as death once more, all eyes upon Jess, solemn and grave.

    Jess shivered and looked away.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    ¡°Well done, Calenbry. Well done indeed.¡± Quiet words that filled Jess with fiercest pride, burning all shame away.

    Slamming fist to chest, Jess bowed before her leader. "Yes, my general. We live to serve."

    Eloquin flashed a bleak smile. ¡°Then next time, lower your damned visor. I don''t care how focused you are upon your Druidic arts, you''re too precious a prize to lose over such stupid folly.¡±

    Jess''s face flushed with shame, even as Mord''s mocking laughter washed over her.

    She turned to glare, then saw how he gazed at her, and she swallowed, speechless, focusing on anything but him.

    Jess took a dark sort of satisfaction seeing that she wasn''t the only one who had fought with visors raised. They all had. Each and every one of them. For in truth, most armored knights did, once volleys of arrows had passed. Fighting at night, in the moonlight, tingling with the rush of first blood, none of them had even though to lower them. Most visors were fragile things in any case, their exotic helms some of the few exceptions, and only against short thrusting blades designed for closest combat were they vulnerable. Exactly what the Velheim crossbowmen had used against them, smart in their own way, rushing the Squires when their ambush had failed, their crossbows proving useless. She swallowed and hung her head, as did half their number.

    Jess felt a curious rush of relief after Eloquin forgave them with the slightest of nods, curtly instructing them all to check for injury, quickly making use of the liniments Jess had prepared alongside Lady Vaila several days ago, and Jess was happy to note that save for superficial cuts and bruises, none of them had taken serious injury.

    Then she caught Rowan''s tremble, beautiful eyes too wide, gauntleted hands rhythmically clenching and unclenching.

    Jess gently clasped her hand.

    "Rowan, are you sure you''re okay?"

    Her friend shuddered and nodded. "Thanks to you, my Jess. Only thanks to you." Jess spent some moments carefully removing Rowan''s gauntlets, happy to see that the cuts she had suffered had not gone too deep, for all that she had been fighting off the viciously thrusting blade with armored hands alone. Jess carefully applied her liniments even as Rowan hissed, before bandaging her friend''s hands, gazing into eyes filled with a tenderness that sent Jess''s heart racing.

    "How does that feel?"

    Her friend gripped her spear tightly and smiled. "I will be fine with a spear, Jess. For your liniments and for my life... thank you."

    Jess grinned, stroking Rowan''s cheek but once before gently lowering her friend''s visor with a wink.

    Twilight, Jess could tell, did not look pleased. ¡°Outclassed as they were, multiple pairs sought to rush you. Somehow, they knew to focus upon you.¡±

    Jess had no answer for that, even as Eloquin turned to address them all.

    ¡°Squires of War. This, your first skirmish, and you have handled yourselves well. Prudent enough to scout out what would have been a deadly ambush,¡± he said this while gazing at the mangled bodies of the men who had been crushed under tons of logs, buried by their own trap. ¡°And wise enough to trust to the talents of your peers to give you the edge you needed to grasp absolute victory from this trial of battle.¡±

    Everyone beamed at the praise. Even Mord appeared moved, strangely enough, and Johan as well, both Aspirants slamming fists to chest, much as did every Squire.

    ¡°Yet this was but the first test you face. A massive fortress lies before us, and it is for us to enter, claim what prizes of war lay captured within, and cut down our foes to the last man.¡±

    Everyone nodded at this.

    "Do not be shocked by what you might see. The depredations of slavers are many and varied, and we do not know to what extent these predators have savaged their prey." His lips curled up in a cold smile. "What we do know is this: No slaver will be leaving this keep alive."

    Mord flashed Jess a fierce grin she instantly returned, a hungry wolf once more, eager to cut down these interlopers who had dared to rape and plunder her sacred forest.

    When Eloquin spoke, it was to business once more.

    ¡°Jess. Shorten a score of these spears to five feet. Neal, Mord, secure the poleaxe heads.¡±

    He turned to the others as Jess and her companions got to work reshaping near a score of spears to poleaxes, Jess giving a satisfied nod as she tested each head she placed upon shortened ash wood shafts, satisfied that the fusing would hold, the balance of the weapons just what they had trained with back at Highrock. Lighter than some poleaxe heads, the spiked tip was sharpened death, the axe blade and hammer head perfectly balanced.

    The weapon could be used like a quarterstaff, hands wide upon the shaft for countering other heavily armored knights with poleaxes or longswords, each seeking to master the center and drive their opponent off balance before finishing them off. Yet against standard infantry, the poleaxe could be held and used similar to a halberd or greatsword, thrusting the tip forward like a spear, or lashing out with fearsome overhand blows, capable of crushing even armored skulls, few weapons or shields able to parry such an onslaught.

    With now plainly visible tree stumps lining the field, Jess knew they would be fighting exclusively on foot, and so a score of poleaxe men made perfect sense, along with a dozen spearmen able thrust out in unison, break formations, and butcher their enemy before they could even close the distance. And as much as Jess loved her longsword, she knew the power and potency of formation fighting, and was able to use spear or poleaxe near as well as any member of their band.

    Horses secured in rich foliage that would serve both to feed and hide their mounts, they proceeded carefully across the pitted field, springing neither trap nor alarm, though now the gates were firmly closed.

    Jess looked up at the massive gate to the wooden fortress beyond, smiling grimly as she spied Velheim soldiers drawing a bead on her, quarrels from two crossbows whining harmlessly away, for all that hot eyes glared down at her from less than twenty feet.

    ¡°You had best leave while you can, scum! We have every right to be here, treaty signed by king and Crown! It is you who are trespassing, and you may rest assured that King Richard will hear of each and every one of your transgressions, General Eloquin!¡±

    Jess blinked and hissed, catching sight of an imposing man shouting at them from the roof of the keep beyond the gate, wearing a cloak and doublet of burgundy and crimson, well-barbered goatee and mustache affectations almost exclusive to those of noble blood, and how he glared at them all with darkest hate.

    Jess''s breath hitched as the horror of recognition washed over her, dreading what was to come.

 Chapter 24

    Eloquin smiled coldly, his powerful voice carrying effortlessly. ¡°Duke Arbingion, I presume.¡±

    The man hissed and spat. ¡°General Eloquin. Butcher of the Southern Plains, wanted for war crimes across half the continent!¡± He sneered down at Jess and her peers. ¡°Is this your latest band of cutthroat killers? Children? Lads and lasses only come to their majority this past year? You are beneath me, sirrah, and you may rest assured that the king will have no choice but to allow for your deportation, once he hears of your latest outrage!¡±

    Eloquin''s icy smile shifted not an iota. "And why would a duke who fawns over the Crown like a dog his kennel master be so far from warm, safe Krona? What possible reason could you have for breaking the oldest of accords, older even than the bans upon raiding and slavery, allowing your men to mow down ancient redwoods in the heart of primeval forest? Even as you molt within as grand a fortress of wood as any general would have erected on campaign, such a structure in clear violation of edicts only a handful of years old?"

    The duke''s laughter echoed across the clearing. ¡°Lumber? You dare to use lumber as your pretext for invading my lands, butchering my associates, some two score of my men dead to your savages? You fool! The king himself approves of my work here. It is his gold that pays for my lumber, his shipwrights that are determined to make the sturdiest, sleekest boats ever to sail the northern seas!"

    Eloquin speared Jess with his gaze. She shivered and kept focus. Knowing what he wanted. What he needed from her. Trusting her to do what must be done by her own unhesitating nod, even as they decided upon this very gambit, her trembling hand pressed against the massive hardwood gate before them, the screams of ancient redwoods echoing through the air.

    How they cried to be avenged.

    Vengeance which Jess promised, fervently, heart and soul, trembling with exhaustion that bordered upon delirium, Malek''s firm grip holding her strong and sure. Her familiar''s constant counsel she did without, her Twilight scouting that which presently remained unseen.

    "Yes, Duke Arbingion. I am here about lumber. And flesh peddling, so quaintly referred to as spoils of conquest; women and children gathered in bondage from any nation not Velheim''s own, honoring any contract for indentured victims, for all that they would be thrown out of any other court on the continent!"

    Eloquin roared the last, and Arbingion paled, holding tightly to fury still. ¡°You arrogant fool! There are no slaves here, I assure you of that! Only lumber, per the king''s will!¡±

    "And Velheim troops, scores of them, set up and alerted for ambush, by none other than a Velheim spy."

    ¡°How dare you speak to me of spies, you who would pimp out children as your assassins and whores!¡± the duke roared.

    Jess shuddered, desperately tuning out those insidious words as she focused on the one thing that mattered. The ancient spirits of wood and vine, trembling with a plea for vengeance Jess alone could hear.

    ¡°How many fight under your banner now, Eloquin? Do they truly have any idea of who you are, the things you''ve done, the blood on your hands?¡± A chuckle, low and cruel. ¡°I thought not. I have the advantage there, don''t I, old friend?¡±

    Eloquin''s voice lost not a wit of its iron edge. "Sir Kettil. Blatantly bringing across scores of Velheim crossbowmen, in clear violation of treaties between our nations. Agent Cornelius who has fled to your keep, less than an hour ago. Lady Putrice, your co-conspirator in the flesh trade, but one prong of your connivances, seeking to flood northern Erovering with the scions and bloodlines of Velheim, your shared goal to cement alliances and accords that would serve as the first crack in the foundations of peace that keep our nations from deadliest conflict. All of it threatens the stability of Erovering, and several prongs of your attack are hanging offenses, at that."

    Malek chuckled softly. ¡°Honestly, only the crossbows will damn him, Jess. Still, he does look a bit flustered, our dear Duke Arbingion.¡±

    Jess gave a tired smile, floating as much as standing, grateful to take the flask Malek handed her in trembling hands, immediately feeling better after drinking down the flask of cold spring water.

    "Jess, guard yourself! A full score of crossbowmen lay in wait just beyond the gate, and Jess, they have loaded bolts of steel-tipped bronze!"

    Jess shuddered at this, gazing up at Duke Arbingion in horror.

    He knew. Here greatest secret, her greatest weakness suddenly laid bare by an enemy clever enough to know just how to exploit it.

    ¡°But then, how...¡±

    Twilight grinned. "Why are bolts normally made of wood, only the tips of hardened steel? As deadly to you as they might be at close range, heavy bronze quarrels will falter to harmlessness by a dozen yards, as like as not unable to hit straight at even a score of feet. Those bolts would have been worthless in the ambush planned, spiraling wildly off target when fired at knights pinned under logs. Most importantly, perhaps, the players here thought you safely neutralized by Lady Putrice."

    Jess swallowed and grimaced. "But their trap is sprung, and forty of their men are dead. They know I am here, and so have taken steps."

    Twilight nodded as Jess took a shuddering breath, drinking deep from the second flask Neal handed her, exchanging worried looks with Malek, but she was beginning to feel herself once more.

    ¡°That is right, my Jess. They realize now that the queen is very much in play. And if they can''t control you, they must destroy you for their own sakes.¡±

    Jess nodded, gazing at her mentor, trading sallies with the duke still.

    ¡°Sir. A full score of archers ahead. Bodkin arrows. Shafts of copper. Range is poor, but I cannot counter.¡±

    ¡°Then you will smash the damn crossbows out of their hands.¡±

    Jess swallowed and paled at her commander''s words. He was serious. Jess blinked. Spoken so fast and harsh that the duke frowned in consternation.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    ¡°I suggest you leave now, Eloquin.¡± The duke''s smile turned cold. ¡°And tell the tarts in your party they played poor Cornelius as well as any agent. They were your girls you threw at him, no?¡±

    Arbingion''s harsh laughter cut through the air, his hot gaze spearing Jess''s own. By the gods, how could he know? ¡°What prizes your blooded little hellions will be to their clans. How proud their mothers must be. No doubt endless noble scions will be eager to marry such filth as bear arms in your name!¡±

    Duke Arbingion shook his head in contempt. "Go back home to your mothers and fathers while you still can! For I promise you this: Your parents will have nothing but scorn and condemnation for how you''ve all allowed yourselves to be used as pawns in a madman''s game. A wanted war criminal, scores of innocent men blooding your blades even now, your only saving grace is that they were of common stock!" He spat. "Go home, wayward children, and be grateful noble blood has yet to be shed, or there will be no forgiveness for you or your clans! If you do not leave at once, you will find yourselves tried along with your master. For even now, writs for Eloquin''s arrest have been presented to your dean, with the Crown''s seal upon them!"

    Eloquin''s laughter held not a trace of warmth. "A formal inquisition, then. Fascinating. You are not the first to try such a gambit, Arbingion, and perhaps you won''t be the last. But let me ask you this, duke. Do I stand before you, or do the enemies that would have seen me hanged?¡±

    Arbingion paled and swallowed. ¡°You lie. There was never any inquisition. Had there been, I would have brought the men involved all the drinks they could stomach, for as long as they wanted!¡±

    ¡°That would be quite difficult, Arbingion, as the men who sought my execution are themselves exceptionally dead.¡±

    Arbingion blanched and swallowed, before giving the tiniest of nods. "I wouldn''t put it past you. You no doubt had them killed. As you have each and every man who has ever crossed you."

    Eloquin''s deadly smile widened. "Did you know that if a man slips upon ice-slicked stone, his whole body can flip and slam to the ground with such force that his head bursts, much like one kicked by a mule? And drunkenness, though a virtue among the most jaded of lords, can cause some fools to embrace absolute folly. Imagine the madness of braving a cold winter storm, utterly naked, so drunk that alcohol leaks from your pores even as you freeze in cold so profound that your limbs shatter when they are futilely chipped out of ice, days later." Eloquin''s laughter sent chills down even Jess''s spine. "Let me assure you, Arbingion, the dying expression frozen upon your features would be anything but that of a happy drunken man."

    Jess noted any number of Squires exchanging odd stares, Mord chuckling, gazing at Eloquin with darkest admiration.

    "Even jousting practice has its risks, Arbingion. Though why a fifty-year-old man would tilt at the rings I cannot say, only that the doddering fool managed to catch his very neck in the loop while his horse raced on, yanking the man right out of his saddle.¡± Eloquin shook his head. ¡°I hear the poor fool kicked for quite some time. And that, dear Arbingion, is what happened to the puppetmasters behind the last Inquisition out for my head.¡±

    The duke stumbled back from the keep''s parapet. ¡°You are a bloodthirsty madman, Eloquin!¡±

    Eloquin smiled. ¡°I know about the crossbows loaded with bronze bolts just beyond, Arbingion.¡±

    A startled gasp.

    ¡°My question is this: Does Velheim''s king know of the gifts you fear so greatly?¡±

    The duke swallowed, licking dry lips. ¡°She''s here, isn''t she?¡±

    Eloquin said nothing, only stared at the trembling man.

    The duke took a deep, steadying breath. ¡°Cornelius said the message was from Gaines Talbroch. The girls he was with. They were your Squires, were they not? Is... is the boy alive?¡±

    Jess shivered, catching sight of haunted eyes, filled with a father''s pain.

    Slowly, Eloquin shook her head. ¡°We snapped his neck, and watched him die.¡±

    The man gazed down at them in horror. ¡°No! By all the gods, no! You did no such thing!¡±

    Jess let his tirade wash through her as he began to howl and rail at them, knowing she alone deserved every last shred of his hate.

    As he did hers.

    It was time.

    ¡°Squires, now!¡±

    Acting and moving as one, twenty halberds and a dozen spears shoved forward against the massive wooden gate even as the duke howled his horror and outrage, screamed as any father would who had lost the baby boy he had once cherished. Jess grimaced, having known this awful moment would come the moment the arrogant noble had revealed himself, sickened to see the similarities in face and feature between their nemesis and the boy whose desperate eyes haunted her still.

    Now the son was dead, and the father stricken so badly that Jess knew he was in no position to lead anyone.

    Exactly the way it had to be.

    ¡°Push, damn it!¡± Jess roared.

    With a sharp crack, the massive gate began its ponderous decent downward, as graceful as a fluttering leaf, slowly picking up speed, crashing with horrific force.

    What had seemed slow motion had been anything but, and Jess sensed by the sudden surge of death that a fair number of crossbowmen had been caught by the massive gate.

    Blood for sap, vengeance begun.

    ¡°Move! Jess screamed, shoving her friends to the side as a flood of quarrels streaked by.

    Jess felt the fierce echo of her outrage ripple through the heart of this forest, men crying out as masterwork crossbows burst to splintered wood in their hands, fingers mangled, faces perforated by hardwood shrapnel, stumbling back and fleeingas Jess howled and charged, her poleaxe aimed high for devastating blows, and she sensed Malek and Mord but feet behind.

    Screams and blood, panicked sobs and furious, desperate cries.

    The noise washed over Jess even as her fearsome poleaxe ruptured iron helmets with frightful ease, cleaving heads and desperately raised hands with sweeping blows worthy of any greatsword. Jess quickly shifted her style to half-spear thrusts and tightly controlled chopping cuts as she sensed her peers fighting by her side, timing her strikes to match her shieldbrothers, cleaving into their foes to devastating effect.

    Her enemies shouts of panic rung through the courtyard before the keep proper, the air a coppery tinged mist of blood and death. The shorter blades their enemy favored, ideal for striking levies in the thick of melee after rushing past a single row of thrusting spears, were all but worthless against poleaxes. As deadly as Velheim soldiers were with their sophisticated arbalests, cleaved free of their favored weapons, Jess thought her band now had a fighting chance, even embracing the madness of charging a well fortified keep head-on.

    The duke was no fool, however. For all that he had no doubt hoped to strike her down with a flood of bronze bolts, the majority of his men were prepared to fight to the death in disciplined ranks. The demoralized route of the surviving crossbowmen did not stop orders from being screamed to the scores of soldiers who had been pouring out of the central keep the instant Eloquin''s Squires had broken through the gate. Scores of disciplined infantrymen armed with steel rimmed shields and short thrusting swords now gazed with hardened eyes across the bailey at Jess and her fellow Squires.

    Limbs trembling with either exhilaration or exhaustion, Jess felt her lips stretch in darkest glee, sensing that the battle had just begun.

 Chapter 25

    Pincer wall, cut them down!¡± roared what could only be a Velheim officer as their foes closed ranks and marched at a trot, having every intention of flanking and pinning Eloquin and his Squires between the two wings of shields before ruthlessly butchering them all under a flurry of devastating thrusts, even as Jess and her friends found it impossible to effectively use their longer weapons with enemy shields pinning them tight. It was a devastating tactic that had won many wars before multiple overlapping rows of pike had become the norm. Against anything other than cavalry or several hundred well-trained pikemen it was still an excellent tactic, and one Velheim had used to decisive effect to guard their mountain passes for centuries.

    ¡°Bloody hells,¡± Malek hissed.

    Jess glared at the hard-eyed soldiers rapidly approaching, knowing they were seconds away from dire peril.

    "Now!" Eloquin roared, a dozen spears abruptly jutting forward, seeking not to strike the wall of shields before them, but rather thrust into the lightly armored legs below, the careful charge staggering to a halt as men tripped or desperately dodged.

    Injuries were few, but the strike was a resounding success, their foes momentarily flustered. And before they could regather themselves, the Velheim shield wall was ruthlessly yanked apart by poleaxes hooking shields and soldiers out of formation the instant before Jess and her fellow Squires roared and stepped into the attack, ramming their weapons like spears into the faces and throats of the now utterly disorganized mass of soldiers, forcing them back, breaking through their line, howling like madmen and lashing out with powerful overhand blows, cleaving through their enemies and sending the panicked, stumbling Velheim troopers crumpling to the ground.

    And Jess was lost in the storm of combat once more.

    Hands spread wide in a quarterstaff grip, Jess slammed upwards, a cleaving sword deflected as screams and shouts wash over her. Spinning to the left, a second foe''s furious charge was dodged as her poleaxe arced down, the slightest jolt as it cleaved right through the poorly forged helm before it, her foe crumpling in a spray of blood and brain.

    Another shieldman rushed forward and Jess seized the Vor, lunging into the charge. Her foe gurgled in wide-eyed shock as poleaxe spike plunged into his brain, her surprised foe''s wooden shield having ripped free of his grip, seemingly of its own accord.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    And another opponent howled and fell upon her, Jess desperately twisting to counter his furious lunge, her snarling foe suddenly choking in blood as the Squire behind Jess ran him through.

    Parry, dart aside, slam hammer end against helmet.

    A soldier groans and falls.

    Jess slipped and stumbled, barely raising her poleaxe in time as a howling berserker cleaved downward with his battleaxe, blinking in surprise as the wooden shaft sprang out of his hands an instant before Jess plunged her poleaxe straight through his heart.

    Cut, parry, dodge and strike. The dance of death weaved to the beat and blow of steel against flesh and bone. Screams and cries serve as the darkest of counterpoints, this the one dirge Jess could master, all others leaving her stumbling and confused.

    But here, now, in the mad melee of death, never had she danced so well.

    "Kill the queen! Bring her down!" The roar echoed through the Velheim troops inhabiting the keep. And Jess could only laugh as her closest foe''s vicious overhand strike sought her soul, the soldier grunting in surprise when he missed, Jess weaving aside and spinning about, her poleaxe cleaving into the soldier with such abandon that it sheered right right through his armored skull, each surprised eye blinking oddly out of sink, spraying Jess with blood as he stumbled to the ground, pulling Jess''s poleaxe free of her grip, lodged as it was in his armored chest, so deep had she cleaved her foe.

    ¡°Kill her!¡±

    Jess stumbled back, Erica''s spear bursting through a furiously grinning swordman''s groin, and how he howled as Jess unsheathed her longsword, her heart roaring in her ears as fear turned to darkest glee, and she embraced the killing frenzy once more.

    Sword held in Ochs, point straight ahead, Jess charged into the bloody melee howling like a madwoman, a blistering series of Oberhau and Zwerchhau strikes denting iron helmets, momentarily stunning her enemies, for all that her longsword could not burst iron with killing force like her poleaxe could.

    Yet never before in sparring had Jess struck with such frightful speed as she did while fighting for her life, furious slashes to her stunned foe''s throats sending them dropping to death faster than they could blink, desperately held shields giving way before her wrath, toughened cuir bouilli armor shredding like parchment to her cleaving blows.

    Every twist and dodge, every parry and strike, every cleaving blow was her body embracing the darkest of dirges, death''s handmaiden dancing her merry way through the crash and cry of steel, crimson mist the cloak she wore, reveling in the savage surge of sundered sinew and bone, the screams of foes consumed by her terrible thirst, body and soul.

 Chapter 26

    Jess blinked in the sudden silence, awakening from darkest dream with her sword raised high, all her battle siblings favoring her with the strangest of stares.

    Eloquin himself, blade smeared with brain and blood, favoring Jess with the tiny nod that meant everything.

    "By the gods, did you see how fast she moved?"

    "The shields ripped clean out of their hands! I''ve never seen such a thing."

    ¡°A sword shouldn''t cut through armor like that... not just rawhide, it cleaved through steel!¡±

    Jess felt a sudden chill, daring to gaze down at her sword. Seeing traces of sap along the edges, shimmering like dappled sunlight through leaves. She felt her lips curl up in a terrible smile, the howling fury of the ancient woodland roaring through her still.

    Eloquin''s gaze suddenly hardened. No one else dared say a word. "Well done, Squires. Our foe now begins to taste the bitter fruits of their folly. See that none of this scum lives to rue this day."

    The bailey where the duke had thought to finish them off was now awash in bodies and gore, littered in cleaved heads gazing at horrors they alone could see. Still riding the wrath of this ancient forest so brutalized by man, Jess was as cold and hard as Eloquin himself when she caught sight of men trembling in horror, not death, hesitating not at all in finishing off the few surviving soldiers screaming for mercy with quick brutal blows as her band made its way to the keep proper.

    Jess snarled as the door to the keep proper was slammed and bolted shut, glaring at the obstacle, in that moment sensing her allies as if they were but extensions of herself. Rowan safe by Eloquin''s side, Malek and Mord once more flanking her, closest friend and sweetest nemesis ready to fight once more by her side.

    Jess gazed intently at the door.

    Remembered when it had first bloomed, centuries ago, caressed by the smoke-free winds of endless forests on all sides, growing ever greater in stature as centuries passed, wise and majestic in ways hot-blooded creatures could never understand.

    And the agony of betrayal, accords broken, endless centuries of sagacious insight added with softest susurrations to every breeze enriching Erovering''s lore, strengthening her ties to all that was strong and sure in ways few would ever understand was forever lost, a sacred guardian sent crashing to the ground, the bite of axe and saw, branches and limbs cleaved free and used like bones upon this framework of betrayal, even as its heartwood was sent endless miles away, a captive of the sea, never to know the soft loamy feel of soil ever again.

    Jess howled in fury, feeling as much the forest in the guise of humanity as she did a Squire channeling the woods, and the door, trembling with the pain of its butchery, still bleeding sap, howled as well, bursting inward, filling the air with sharp wooden spikes spearing into the waiting guardsmen who stumbled back, screaming as their flesh was perforated by scores of sharp wooden spikes just before the bloodied weapons of Squires and Aspirants caved in helmets, ruptured hearts, and cleaved free limbs in a shower of crimson death.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    Jess and her battle-brethren poured into the keep, hungry for blood, howling for more.

    "Berserkers!" The desperate scream echoed through the air, and Jess howled with mad laughter, her blade laughing in its own way, lashing out so fast it seemed to bob and weave like a flicker of flame, as crimson as any fire, sprayed with a fine red mist as limbs were cleaved free of the soldiers who dared oppose her, suddenly shrieking men who hushed only when her blade licked their throats, bodies crashing to the ground, the gurgle of crimson showering her in warm mist, the sharp tang of copper permeating the air. When Jess licked the crimson spray from her lips, she found it as sweet as any wine.

    "By all the gods, you are a savage one! I look forward to taming you, Jess, body and soul."

    Sharing a single glance of darkest glee with a blood-spattered Mord, Jess raced off, feeling fiercest kinship with the man she so loved to hate, knowing that the rest of her pack was but feet behind her.

    Stechen thrust, step slide away, weave aside wild swing, cleaving blow in turn. Oberhau met Zwerchhau, blade flying free even as Jess''s own speared the surprised looking duelist through the throat, his eyes widening with horror as Jess wrenched her blade free, the man collapsing to the ground in a spray of blood. And the strange quiet roared through Jess almost as loudly as the screams of death and battle, of sweet gibbering madness washing over her still.

    Polished door of ancient redwood before her. Her foes trembling inside.

    The lock burst free, barricaded door swinging wide to her touch, and now it was a terrified Duke Arbingion who stumbled back, hands raised high, eyes locked upon the blade Jess held in hands trembling not at all with a killer''s fury. Jess had no eyes for the elegantly furnished room within, decanters of crystal upon a table laid out even now with a decadent spread, finely carved chairs slammed to the ground, screams of panic echoing through the air that were muffled not at all by the exquisite tapestries of bucolic countrysides hung upon each of the hardwood walls.

    Dressed as finely as any noble could be, the Duke Arbingion''s gaze of terror turned to bitterest fury.

    Jess shuddered. The man looked so very much like his son.

    And his first words were, ¡°Please, tell me that bastard lies! I will pay you any amount of coin, title and land will be yours! Please... just lead me to my son. Safe, unharmed, captured as leverage against me. But alive. By all the gods, I beg you, tell me he lives!¡±

    Mord''s cruel, mocking laughter washed over Jess and the desperate man before her. ¡°Ah, it is so much sweeter than that, dear Duke Arbingion. For not only is your precious little boy lying in a muddy ditch like a common cutpurse, it is the very filly you plead with that broke his neck in the first place! Delightful twist of irony there, is it not?¡±

    "You gods damned whore! My son, he had eyes for you, you damned fool. Did you not know? He didn''t even know, didn''t even know he was mine!" The duke began to sob. Jess refused to let it shock her, biting back bitter tears of nothing.

    ¡°Why? Why did you kill my son?¡±

    Her nemesis gazed at Jess with desperate eyes, hands even now clenched furiously upon a sword he dared not draw, and Jess realized she had no answer she could possibly give that would make things better. Make things right. The man before her that could have become her father-in-law.

    She could never heal the horror she had inflicted, the damage she had caused.

    ¡°Why... why did you kill my son?¡±

    She had no answer she could possibly give.

    So she ran him through.

 Chapter 27

    Mord''s mocking laughter echoed through the chamber, odd counterpoint to the increasingly shrill screams beyond. "Ah, Jess. Father and son, sent spiraling to Hell together in the same night, and you their dark executioner. The horror in their eyes as you mastered them both. Well done! You are as savage and bloodthirsty a hellion as any man could want to warm his bed."

    His nattering washed over Jess, having eyes only for the pair of men lurching to their feet even then, trembling before Jess as if she were an apparition come to claim their souls.

    "I am a diplomat of Velheim!" roared a stoutly built man of indeterminate age, his dark eyes seething with outrage, a hollow mask for the stink of his fear, hands trembling against a rapier hilt he dared not draw. "Here for lawful congress and trade! You are trespassing, and have no right to be here!" He swallowed and lurched back, his features for some reason turning deathly pale. Jess almost wondered why, before noting the tip of the gore stained blade upon the trembling man''s throat.

    Her own.

    How quickly she moved, when the fury took her.

    Jess smiled.

    ¡°Please. I...¡±

    ¡°You are here on lawful business. Trade, yes? And have no interest in intercene politics that have left father and son both dead by my hands this night. Is that what you wish to say?¡±

    Jess could feel her features light up in a deathly rictus, dark laughter bubbling from no throat save her own.

    The man before her, though considerably larger, swallowed and fell back into his seat.

    ¡°Yes,¡± he whispered, licking dry lips. ¡°That is exactly what I wish to say.¡±

    Jess nodded. ¡°Then perhaps you can explain the battered, half-naked girl chained beside you?¡±

    Jess allowed herself to look, serpent tongue betraying her furious focus, her senses having caught the stink of fear and bloodstained flesh, a ragged waif looking up at Jess, her body''s bruises hidden not at all by the sheer silks she wore, savage ministrations upon too lean a frame that nonetheless belonged to a heartstoppingly beautiful face.

    Gazing out with haunted eyes, trembling in fear and pain, even now.

    "You''re an ass, Kettil. I''m glad I at least get to see you run through." Condemnation from a voice that had enraptured Jess, such a short time ago. A lifetime ago. Before she had become the most savage of hellions. Cornelius. Glaring at the vile toad before Jess.

    Sir Kettil glared furiously at the agent. ¡°Shut up, cur! You serve me, your master commanded it! Rest assured, you will pay for that, once we get back!¡±

    Cornelius flashed the bleakest of smiles. "You''re a damned fool, Kettil. Do you really think either of us is getting out of here alive, no matter how you plead and beg?" A contemptuous shake of his head, even as the agent deliberately freed his sword belt, allowing saber and dirk to fall to the floor, gazing at Jess and her companions calmly, completely unarmed.

    Sir Kettil swallowed, grimacing desperately, turning his gaze to Jess. "It''s not what you think." He blinked once at the terrified, clearly ravished girl beside him, shuddering even now. "I... we rescued her, rescued them all, paid their family''s debts and now, to a better life! We merely..."

    ¡°Sampled the wares?¡± Rowan''s voice, silky smooth and deadly, entering along with Neal, Lucas, and Eloquin himself.

    But Jess had eyes only for Kettil, not even allowing herself to look at Cornelius. She had embraced the forest''s wrath, blade and body covered in crimson fury.

    There would be no going back. There could be no going back. No more than there could for the savaged girl gazing back at Jess, covered in bruises, whimpering like a tormented animal even now.

    ¡°Calenbry. Report!¡±

    The voice of her commander, rocking her to stillness.

    ¡°We have found the players, sir. Duke, agent, and diplomat.¡±

    Eloquin nodded. Dispassionate. Jess could sense that.

    ¡°And why is the duke presently dead?¡±

    ¡°He was more of a threat than the son. Let''s not fool ourselves. We knew he had to die.¡±

    ¡°And he dared to remind Jess of how thoroughly she had put down his son, the beautiful dream of alliances and marriage forever sundered, when our dear Jessica snapped his pleading neck.¡± Mord smirked.

    Jess swallowed and trembled, and did not deny it.

    "She cut down a fool that could have spelled our doom, who we all knew could not be allowed to go free, a duke who had intended all our deaths!" Malek snapped, glaring at Mord, who smirked back.

    ¡°I don''t deny that, Malek. I merely appreciate the delicious irony of all of this. Like the most grandiose of plays in Krona, no?¡±

    Even Lucas chuckled at that. ¡°By Justice it is, isn''t it?¡± he frowned. ¡°Jess... are you going to put down that blade? Jess!¡±

    But it was too late. Far, far too late. Jess had seen the malice in the diplomat''s gaze, even as he simpered and whispered dark secrets Jess was all too certain would tempt even Eloquin to hear.

    She gave her enemy no chance, her blade lancing forward seemingly of its own accord, blasting through finest raiments and fur cloak as a hot knife would through butter, the man before her clenching up as her longsword tore through his intestines.

    And she smiled when she twisted and pulled, watching her foe scream and writhe, blood shooting from his nostrils as his eyes rolled back in a spasm of unspeakable agony, even as Eloquin roared.

    ¡°Calenbry! Sheathe your blade, now!¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir.¡± A trembling breath. Jess desperately trying to sheathe shaking sword that hungered for flesh to sunder even now, and failing.

    Mord. Clenching her hands, devilishly smiling eyes gazing into her own.

    He kissed her cheek, even as he wiped off her blade, sheathing it, handing it to Malek. ¡°You play a dangerous game, Calenbry. I hunger to see what you do next.¡±

    ¡°Step back here, now!¡±

    Jess paid the words no heed, glaring the man who had gloried in breaking so many girls, smuggling in men to butcher her friends, happy to see him writhe and die at her feet.

    ¡°Jess, move!¡±

    Malek''s voice. Strangely urgent, grabbing her shoulders, propelling her backward.

    Eloquin''s eyes. Fierce and cold. Chilling her to the quick.

    Jess quailed, trying to hold onto her anger, freezing before this man''s wrath.

    A man she admired with all her heart, hungered for every bit as fiercely as Rowan, a father figure far more savage than her own, a man she ached to please beyond all others.

    Jess lowered her head and shuddered.

    Ice blue eyes that would not let her go.

    Endless heartbeats passed.

    At last, he spoke.

    ¡°You will tell me now why you struck him down, the battle over, our foes clearly within our power.¡±

    So many ways for a clever player to spin the truth to a web that suited their purposes, til the deception itself became the living truth, the spinner embracing the tale like no other.

    ¡°I wanted him dead.¡± No artifice would she give this man, who meant so much to her.

    Eloquin''s gaze hardened even further.

    Jess trembled, feeling hot tears struggle down her cheeks. Battle frenzy passing, she was suddenly so exhausted, she feared she would drop.

    ¡°Sir, she doesn''t look well...¡±

    ¡°Silence, Malek!¡± He turned to Jess once more. His voice measured. Controlled.

    ¡°We killed the pawns, well and good. But to butcher the pieces that could reveal the strategies and gambits of our enemies is beyond foolish. It is unforgivably stupid.¡±

    Jess squeezed her eyes shut, unable to bear the disappointment she sensed.

    ¡°Do not fail me like that again, Calenbry.¡±

    Jess swallowed. ¡°I am sorry, sir.¡±

    A cold pause. ¡°Too many pieces to this puzzle still need to be claimed. Proof of Putrice''s treachery, girls like the one trembling even now before us, evidence we can use to shame Velheim, and wring compromises from them.¡±

    Jess flinched in surprise as a powerful voice she knew intimately washed over them in words formal and direct, free of fear or panic.

    "Whatever questions you have, I can answer, sir. Whatever pieces to the puzzle you have yet to fill, I surely can, and of the twenty-five girls sired of free men that Arbingion and Kettil squeezed with the spectre of debt and imprisonment to sell to Velheim brothels and their own twisted pleasures, I can gain you them as well, and the papers of debt used to bind them. You could give these daughters back to their families, or aid them in whatever way you see fit."

    Eloquin turned to Cornelius, dark hawklike features proud and fearless, and a part of Jess quailed, her exhausted heart drained of fury, aching for this man she had let consume her so utterly, a final gift to an opponent she realized she didn''t have the heart to kill, after all.

    When he had said he would claim her as his own... there had been no malice in his awe-struck gaze.

    He had been smitten.

    And perhaps, wrapped so tightly in his and Rowan''s embrace, her heart swelling with fiercest desire and adoration for them both, she had been smitten as well.

    Her eyes sought Rowan''s, her friend gazing back at her with such sympathy that Jess couldn''t bear it.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    She shuddered and turned away, ready to flee the room, no matter that the corridors were red with the blood she had spilled.

    ¡°Agent Cornelius.¡± Eloquin flashed the bleakest of smiles. ¡°Yes, indeed. I suspect there are a great many questions you will find yourself more than willing to answer.

    Cornelius. Jess couldn''t help but feel a flash of fiercest admiration, their captive daring to meet Eloquin''s gaze as a man, not a broken supplicant, no matter the pain they all knew was coming.

    ¡°There is no need for that,¡± he said quietly. ¡°I am more than happy to share with you all the cards in your enemy''s hand. And before you doubt me outright, doubt proving your own undoing, you could ask me why I am so willing to betray my cause.¡±

    Eloquin turned to Neal, refusing even to be sucked into the game.

    Neal sighed, gazing at Cornelius, who did not resist when restraints were put on his wrists, his cloak removed, padded down for knives and darker weapons, of which Cornelius had plenty.

    Eyes bold and certain, he resisted not at all.

    ¡°There was a coup in the House of diplomats recently. My master, more honorable than most, and wanting only stability between our nations, was replaced with a hotheaded fool who actually thinks we can win a war with your nation, not realizing the allies he is sure would haveour back would profit most handsomely simply by waiting for our nation to fall and picking up the pieces, pushing your forces back only when Velheim was their territory.¡±

    Malek chortled softly. "So your present spymaster is a fool. Your nation is almost entirely protected by the Dragonpass range. So long as you guard it and guard it well, only the sliver of territory before that range can we grab without dearest cost.

    "As fiercely as we train to take you out, we all know in our savage little hearts that the Dragonpass serves as a perfect stalemate. The nation that loses patience and tries to cross first is the one most likely to lose the war. You have far more to fear from your western neighbors than us, for all that their forces, individually, are no match for Erovering''s."

    Cornelius grimaced, and dipped his head. "There are reasons for this blind stupidity, and no reason to leave you in the dark." He swallowed and spoke, his gaze making it clear that he knew exactly who Eloquin was. "Let''s just say, our present spymaster''s son was one of the players who had sought your trial, a handful of years ago."

    Eloquin''s lip curled into a too knowing smile. ¡°Velfrieg.¡±

    Cornelius nodded. "Precisely. He will do anything to see Erovering fall, but even more than that, to see you dead, or at least your plans fouled at every turn, and he is more than happy to break every treaty and understanding our nations and the players within have ever reached, using all his agents as expendable pawns to accomplish just that."

    Eloquin nodded. ¡°Whereas Lord Killen, for all that he is my opponent, has never broken his word, or broken the unwritten accords.¡±

    Cornelius''s eyes widened, and he swallowed. "You understand, then. For all that our agents will strike at your moles within Velheim, just as your Squires strike down our own Kettils..." He smirked, looking into the agonized rictus that would be the last expression Sir Kettil would ever make. "No Velheim agent under Lord Killen has ever struck at your heart."

    Eloquin''s eyes instantly hardened, the room going deathly still.

    ¡°State what you mean, Cornelius, if you would live to see the sun rise once more.¡±

    He paled, shuddered, speaking softly, for all that his voice trembled. "I would have your word... regarding my life and my freedom. And I, in turn, give my word to say nothing in turn about what is obvious now to so many players... and with the duke dead and me happy to share whatever story of his downfall you like, your leaked secret will only wilt into disinformation with me owing you that favor."

    Eloquin''s eyes flashed. ¡°So you know.¡±

    Cornelius did not deny it, his gaze locking on to Jess, a desperation that speared her heart. ¡°Of course I know. All of us know about the Druid you keep. And the secret is not safe, not by far. The suspicion is out there. And you know that I know, so let us not pretend my being cagey would have done anything but seal my death.¡±

    He licked his lips, taking as brave a breath as he could. "I knew her secret when I lay with her. I knew it when she trembled against me, wrapped so tenderly in my arms. I knew it when I was hit by the wild idea of taking both your Squires and racing for the southlands, where we really could start over, a man and his two wives and tall tales of our past selves to wile away the evening hours by firelight, with our children gazing raptly on."

    Jess shuddered and looked away. She couldn''t handle that. Not that. She trembled, bitter tears leaking freely from her shaking sobs, Malek holding her close.

    A soft purr. ¡°It is all right, mistress. Cornelius has your favor, and he is no fool. If Eloquin was dead certain that this agent must be put down, Neal would have already broken half his fingers. He is uncertain.¡±

    Jess gazed into her familiar''s sapphire orbs.

    ¡°There is a chance.¡±

    Jess smiled gratefully at her familiar. "Thank you, beloved one," she whispered, stroking the purring cat that only she could see.

    "By the gods, you mean that, don''t you." Rowan, helmet removed, gazed at Cornelius with a look Jess could hardly define.

    Her eyes had grown soft, and Neal frowned, his concern obvious.

    ¡°Don''t let him divide us, sister,¡± he said.

    And it was Cornelius who shook his head. ¡°No. I would not do that to you. I meant what I said.¡± He flashed a bleak smile. ¡°I recognized them in an instant. All of us know your female players, dear General Eloquin. And the way they looked at me... not as girls with a mark to kill, but as women who knew madness lay ahead, determined to savor a night, however brief, before thrown into the cauldron of battle, no matter that I might be among those they would fight."

    Cornelius sighed, lost in fondest reverie. "In that moment of truce, we were free. In that moment of peace, we could embrace the sweet dream of fantasies all of us knew were only that. But for that moment, that night, that hour, they were true."

    Rowan chuckled softly. ¡°And you are a poet as well. You sound like one of grandfather''s bards, back home.¡±

    Cornelius flashed a smile. "And wouldn''t Rubix love to know what his granddaughter was doing in the north, blending in so well with your countrymen, your mother''s blood so strong within you."

    Rowan paled. ¡°You know too much, sir.¡±

    Cornelius''s solemn gaze did not leave her own. "I know that I could love you, if I had the chance to. If you wanted me to."

    Rowan swallowed and looked away.

    Eloquin''s glare did not soften. "So my Squires had thought to seduce you, and it appears that you have turned the tables, winning their hearts, as you strive to do even now. And if you think that will stop them from embracing fiercest duty, you are wrong. More wrong than you could possibly imagine."

    Cornelius sighed. "Of course I know exactly how ruthless you are, General Eloquin, and how ruthless you taught your Squires to be. I have no doubt, absolutely no doubt that even the girl trembling as she gazes at this final scene playing out, gently braced in the arms of the boy who is so obviously her lover, I know that even she would run me through, did you but say the word."

    He flashed the most bitter of smiles, even as Neal glared, Erica shivering in his arms.

    "And I know that, for all of that, you are a man of honor, ruthless as the struggles between our nations forged you to be. Those few who earn the grace of your word do not regret it. I knew all of this, General Eloquin, even as I embraced the game, finding myself falling in love with the idea of these two beautiful women of such wit, charm, and sensuality being so much more than simple opponents across the board."

    Jess swallowed as Cornelius flashed the saddest of smiles. "And so I waited for their message, thinking either they knew I knew, and we played the sweetest of games; lust, not murder the contest we would embrace, or perhaps they sought to pass on a message, which they did. What I had half expected to hear... as much as it shocked me to hear it.¡± He chuckled ruefully. ¡°For I had fallen into the story as deeply as they. It was an abrupt, chill awakening.¡±

    Cornelius''s suddenly potent gaze locked upon Eloquin''s own. Jess swallowed, seeing not an enemy, but a fierce prince, bargaining for his life against death himself, and how a part of her ached to have him sweep her away, even now.

    ¡°I did not tell the duke and his rabble that the queen was under your command once more when I fled back to this keep, in the heart of ancient woodlands, where your Druid''s power is no doubt strongest.¡±

    He flashed the saddest of smiles. ¡°I feared our illusionist might get the best of you, so her wine I drugged, and she is lost in utter stupor even now, the former duke raging that she had picked a poor time to get drunk as a lord, so well do I know my craft.¡± His gaze hardened. ¡°And yes, I could have poisoned the two sweet roses who had loved me so passionately at any time. You note they are by your side, healthy and hale, thank all the gods, for I remember their taste even now. And it haunts me, the way they stare at me covered in steel and death, never to gaze at me with a woman''s desire ever again, I fear.¡±

    Jess buried her face in Malek''s arms, trembling.

    "By the gods, he plays this game well." Malek''s rueful, soothing words.

    Eloquin scowled, looking about him, forced to concede the tiniest of nods. "The traps were ill-suited to one with Jessica''s gifts. A girl you claim to adore." He smirked coldly at that. "You are a skilled agent, Cornelius, and your reasons why I should not cut your throat as first light hits, a quick death the only well-earned mercy I dare give you... are intriguing.

    "Let''s just say I consider your plea. You still need to give me coin worth your life, and my Squire''s secrets put in peril."

    Cornelius bowed his head. "I swear upon my soul and the souls of my future children, of which I will have none, should you cut me down, that nothing but disdain and disinformation will pass my lips, when and if any lord or agent ask about rumors of ancient magics to be found in the forests and schools of Erovering''s progeny.

    "I, sir, am no threat to you or yours, and I freely admit to being a horribly flawed agent, even in Lord Killen''s books. For useful as I may be, I could never butcher a girl I had held in passion''s grip."

    Rowan nodded solemnly. "It breaks the vows of the goddess, to spill blood upon the loam from which we all sprung. You adhere to the old ways still."

    Cornelius gazed coolly at Rowan. ¡°If it were just you and me, Rowana of the Silver Rose, would you cut me down after sharing blossoms by the moonlight with me? Even if I were to turn about and leave these chambers this very moment?¡±

    Rowan flushed and looked away. ¡°You know I can''t.¡±

    Cornelius nodded. ¡°Then you would make a fine wife. I could sleep soundly in your arms, for there is no treasure more precious than trust.¡±

    Rowan trembled at those words. "You can''t marry me. I fell from grace, long ago."

    ¡°Your uncle is dead.¡±

    The room grew deathly still.

    Rowan swallowed, speechless, saying not a word.

    ¡°I am sorry,¡± Cornelius whispered. ¡°I would tell you in other circumstances but... I might not be alive to do so.¡±

    Eloquin''s gaze tightened. ¡°You will stop now, Cornelius. I see how deadly a tool your silver tongue truly is.¡± He turned his gaze to his Squires. ¡°Neal. Malek. Please take Jess and Rowan and half our men, and make sure the hallways are clear of all hostiles.¡±

    Neal swallowed and saluted. ¡°Yes, sir.¡±

    Rowan trembled. ¡°Please... don''t kill him.¡±

    The room grew still once more, every Squire''s gaze locked upon Rowan, tears streaming freely down her cheeks.

    Quickly Cornelius spoke into the silence. "So you know I will not betray secrets I already keep close, your Squires harmed not at all, though I knew who they were!" Intent gaze, near panicked as he spoke on. "Velfrieg must fall, so that Lord Killen can come out of hiding and take his rightful place, and a dozen political arrows you do not even see are quivered once more!"

    ¡°Explain.¡±

    Cornelius took a deep ragged breath, grasping at a the straw that might be his salvation.

    "Velfrieg plans a strike against the Royal Clan itself! Lady Putrice is a fool. All she is doing, seeking to sow alliances between Velheim and Erovering, is but a smokescreen that spymaster Velfrieg will use for just so long as it suits him, Arbingion as well."

    Cornelius glared at the glassy-eyed corpse by Eloquin''s feet. "The duke thought himself a contender. It was why over a hundred troops were here, most now dead, and if I had the time, I would have drugged their food before you arrived. Because if the king dies, I know damned well that your Lords Council would have demanded war and the heads of all our nobles. For opening the central continent to campaigns of conquest is a goal half your nobility holds close to their heart, no matter how foolish charging the Dragonpass Range would be. Erovering possesses the finest steel and deadliest troops to be found anywhere, and your Council is eager to put them to the field. It doesn''t even matter if your nation could wipe Velheim off the map or not! Because once we are weakened, our neighbors would be all too happy to finish us off."

    Cornelius spat upon the duke, glaring at the body staring at horrors only it could see. ¡°And the serpent dead at your feet would have been all too happy for any pretext to cut us all down, even as he would use Velheim resources to solidify his own bid for the throne!¡±

    Jess felt a cold bolt of fear, Eloquin''s hard features tightening with dread.

    ¡°When.¡±

    Cornelius grimaced. "I was not that closely in the loop. Soon. I know that. And if you were to open the concealed panel on that dresser over there, you will find all the plans Arbingion dared to transcribe that I have no doubt your Squires are even now looking for. With those I can help you, intimately knowing as I do the codes he used, well able to read between the lines of his notes and plans.¡±

    Eloquin flashed a smile as cold as death.

    ¡°Congratulations, Cornelius. You''ve just earned the right to see the sunrise.¡±

 Chapter 28

    The air was heavy with mist as the first crimson rays of dawn graced the heavens. Some thirty exhausted Squries and Aspirants gazed at each other with expressions of relief and odd elation, counterpoint to the horror of bodies strewn about the path and compound, glassy eyes still accusing, silent screams from savage gashes, throats torn out by poleaxe and saber both.

    And not a single Velheim soldier had they allowed to live, no matter how they screamed and begged, desperately clawing at the earth, mewling like lost little children.

    The memory of it all filled Jess with a bleakness so terrible she wanted to sink to the ground and never move again. It was when those bleak moments hit that Jess put all her focus upon the single righteous act they had embraced, somehow making up for the dark horror they had reveled in, save at the very end.

    Behind their warhorses trailed an odd assortment of ponies, mules and the docile mares they had found at the fort, all serving as mounts for some twenty odd girls, gazing at the world through eyes as haunted as any Jess had ever seen, and not a one of them older than Jess was herself.

    Though only a few bore the savage scars of rape and abuse, that some did was enough to reignite Jess''s fury, burning away the awful ghosts in her mind''s eye; father and son pinning her with their desperate gazes as they died by her hands.

    Bitter accusations for the sweetness that could have been.

    Jess squeezed shut tears that threatened to overwhelm her, doing her best to focus not at all on Malek''s gentle pat of her armored shoulder even as he rode beside her, or the way her beloved Twilight butted his cheek against her own, understanding, somehow, that words could do nothing to ease the furious storm of pride, triumph, horror, and regret flooding through her.

    Gazing down at dismembered corpses.

    Knowing it was her frenzied blows, channeling a wrath so potent it was as if she had been but an extension of the wounded forest all around her, that had laid them low.

    Knowing that she was a monster to have butchered so freely, feeling such fierce pride at her friends'' quiet smiles, nods of respect, even as they kept their focus only on the path ahead or upon each other, shivering every time they caught sight of their own handiwork.

    Jess stopped then and looked back at the massive fortress of ancient hardwood, hearing the odd creak, even now.

    A colossal structure that in another time and place might last decades, perhaps even centuries, Jess had no doubt would soon be a massive vine covered mound of wood and mulch, and that fresh shoots chestnut, acorn, and ancient hardwood breeds for which there were no modern names would soon take root and flourish in the rich soil, fed as well by the remains of those who had dared to break ancient covenant, and the forest would be stronger for their blood.

    A bleak final smile and Jess turned around, her calm mare responding effortlessly to her touch as she led her band of brothers and sisters free of primeval woodland and a night of savagery that had seemed without end.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    The journey back to Highrock was otherwise uneventful, hours of forests, fields, and the occasional town serving to wash away the sharpest edges of desperate battles, such that the night before seemed almost like a dream.

    Almost.

    For the wide-eyed stares their train gathered from farmers and traders passing by on the road, Jess knew something about them had changed. Not the pleased smiles of freemen happy to see young lords embracing their pleasures, but the gaze of men and women terrified that blooded soldiers were so far gone that perhaps they no longer differentiated between peasant and pillager. Or simply no longer cared.

    Jess looked down and grimaced. For all that they had put on fresh white tabards to greet the sun, for all that it pulled the eyes away from their otherwise blackened attire, only a fool would doubt that they had seen hard action, and recently. Jess took a closer look at her friend''s grim countenances. For all that Malek, Neal, and Lucas gazed back at her with hard smiles of approval, even Jess could tell something about them had changed. Boys as much as men still, they gazed back at her with the eyes of those who knew what it meant to kill without mercy or quarter.

    Jess swallowed, wondering if she looked the same. Wondering what her mother would think, if she realized that far from simple sparring class in between lessons in etiquette, dance, cooking, and household management, her daughter was already the veteran of a blitzkrieg strike, scores of bodies fallen to her blows and the wood she commanded, herself but the willing conduit of an ancient grove that had demanded the steepest of prices for the gravest of sins.

    Jess turned to gaze at Eloquin, intently scanning the pile of papers seized from the keep, a discretely tied Cornelius seeming utterly at ease, having the knack of carrying himself like a lord conversing with his captain, and not a bound prisoner at all. His tone was deferential, explaining in hushed tones the relevance of all the correspondence Eloquin scanned at their sedate pace, Neal expertly leading Eloquin''s mare, along with his own.

    ¡°Eyes ahead, Calenbry,¡± her mentor admonished, giving no other clue that he sensed her distraction. Jess swallowed and nodded even as she caught Cornelius''s wink, and felt a slow flush creeping up her cheeks, doing her very best to put all memories of the man''s fierce embrace firmly out of mind.

    ¡°Do you know what''s going to happen to the girls?¡± Malek''s curious voice askedsometime later.

    Jess frowned. ¡°I imagine Eloquin with gather all their stories when there is time. Those who come from loving families will be returned.¡± Jess swallowed, fighting back a grimace. ¡°But we all know half their families will reject them, blaming them, somehow, with the taint of their own abuse. Never mind that they were the victims, and the slavers dead by our blades.¡±

    ¡°Easy, sister,¡± Rowan soothed. ¡°Those for whom home is not the safe haven it once was will find a new home here at Highrock. You know how grand a structure it is we live in, and we can always use fresh help in its upkeep and care.¡±

    Jess sighed and nodded, gazing even now at the magnificent structure of the giant central keep, so expertly joined to the very face of the mountain that garnered the school its name that Jess sometimes wondered if ancient peoples or magics had carved the grand structure out of the bedrock itself, for more than a few of the corridors and chambers burrowed into the mountain directly.

    Either way, it was a beautiful sight, the fields before their magnificent home alive with the scents of wildflowers in full bloom, a brilliant rainbow of colors dotting the verdant fields before the keep, almost as if spring itself welcomed them home.

 Chapter 29

    ¡°Bloody hells, look at that.¡± Malek''s whistle, a rueful shake of his head.

    ¡°By all the saints...¡± Neal muttered, gazing off at a sight that sent Jess''s heart racing.

    Lady Putrice, among ladies and lords enjoying the southern gardens, smiling so brightly, was more than passing fair. At that moment, n o impatient frown or steely-eyed glare marred her graceful features. Her face was a warm glow of brightness, lips lush and full, laughing with Jessica''s mother, and Erica''s as well. Three beauties among a handful of other noble women, all of them surrounded by Velheim''s courtiers.

    The young scions looked refreshed and vibrant, as if they had not spent the entirity of the night before in hedonistic excess with scores of eager Highrock girls delighting in sweet innocent vice, said young women no doubt sleeping away the morning even now as their exotic guests, tastefully dressed and sober as saints, entertained a coterie of their noble parents, perhaps speaking of formalizing courtships between their various Houses at that very moment.

    Putrice had never before looked so vibrant, laughing affectionately at one and all, until she turned Jess''s way.

    The etiquette professor blanched and stumbled back. Agda Calenbry frowned, Jess''s acute eyesight making out every minute detail of her mother''s features, even as she breathlessly led her mount at a gentle walk to the garden, her band of battle-brethren just behind.

    Then her mother turned, and caught Jess''s stare.

    A thousand odd emotions played across her mother''s features at a dizzying pace.

    Jess swallowed, realizing even then that her mother knew.

    Her daughter was no longer pure, neither to a man''s touch nor a blade''s kiss. Agda''s eyes widened with horror and regret as she gazed at Jess, who just knew her darkened hair was knotted with crimson spray, for all that she had worn a helm, her mount and armor covered with the gore of her foes.

    Even from a hundred yards away, her mother knew.

    And turned to gaze into Putrice''s horrified stare, her mother no doubt noting how the woman stumbled back from the grim-faced band of Squires and Aspirants still some distance away, and Agda''s face filled with hottest fury.

    Her fist whipped forth, cracking Putrice full force, sending the shocked woman sprawling.

    ¡°You would dare risk my child in your twisted games? I will see you dead for that, Velheim whore!¡±

    Jess was shocked and awed to see the depths of her mother''s fury, all artifice torn away in a mother''s hot wrath, knowing well how brilliant her mother truly was.

    But she had miscalculated.

    For all that Erovering ladies gazed in horror, Velheim dandies did not stand idle.

    Two dared to unsheathe blades, so distracted by Agda''s sudden burst of fury they had no idea of what approached even now at a furious pace, even as others demanded Lady Calenbry release their hostess.

    ¡°Unhand her now, woman!¡± One scion hissed in a voice bare of all sweetness and charm.

    "Save me, please!" Putrice sobbed as Agda roared, trembling with fury as she strove to strangle Putrice dead.

    And two men closed with saber blades flashing in the sun.

    And Jess screamed and struck, a dozen finely dressed noble lords and ladies staring at her in speechless horror as a crimson patina spattered doublets and dresses of sea foam and sky blue, two lords lurching and stumbling to the ground, throats torn open faster than most could blink.

    The garden filled with shrieks.

    Jess shook to gaze into her mother''s eyes, such a look of fear and terror and fiercest love left Jess speechless.

    Aching so badly to hold her hellion close, her mother had eyes only for the exquisitely forged saber now covered in blood, Jess having drawn and struck in the instant, her hands knowing lessons ingrained so fiercely, mind reeling only now with the blows.

    Effortless and fatal.

    And there was no going back.

    Jess looked down into the face of the man who had shared caresses and childhood stories less than a day before even as he choked and writhed, eyes widening with helpless terror, clawed hands trembling as they desperately grasped his own throat, unable to staunch the spray of his own blood spattering screaming lords and ladies alike, pinning Jess with beautiful eyes pleading with all his soul before he collapsed to the ground, pale as a sheet, his last spurts of blood trickling to nothing as desperate eyes glazed over in death, locked fast upon her still.

    Jess screamed. Falling to her knees.

    "Calenbry! Up and at the ready!" Eloquin roared, the entire clearing growing still.

    To her shock, Jess found herself on her feet, blade held in trembling hand still, knowing she could neither clean nor sheathe it, or even let go, so fiercely her hand shook.

    Eloquin caught her eyes, nodding once. "You flew like the wind, arriving at your mother''s side even faster than I. Well done."

    Jess swallowed and bowed her head, Agda looking as poleaxed as Jess felt, all eyes now riveted upon Eloquin as he loomed over a trembling Lady Putrice.

    ¡°You are a monster, a madwoman!¡± Putrice shrieked, glaring at Jess and Agda both.

    ¡°And you, Lady Putrice, are guilty of treason.¡±

    Words hard as steel struck Putrice. She grew pale and swallowed, haunted eyes blinking furiously for composure. Erica''s mother gasped and stood back, as did every other lady of Erovering, refusing even to meet the woman''s pleading gaze, all of them far too savvy to be associated with such an accusation, even after the shock of witnessing swords borne with killing intent, blood splashed upon the field before them.

    Agda fiercely clenched her daughter, trying to drag her away. Jess gazed once at her mother, who blanched and stepped back.

    Her own mother feared her.

    Just how horrid a creature had she become?

    ¡°How dare you accuse me of such a crime, you bloodthirsty madman! Calenbry is guilty of assault upon my person, her daughter guilty of murder, twice over!¡±

    Agda hissed and glared at Lady Putrice, but Eloquin''s smile was hard as steel.

    "Squires, swords at the ready!" he roared, and thirty finely honed longswords were drawn in an instant, blades in Ochs, aimed at the throat of the score of Velheim scions who grew instantly still, the young men slowly raising their hands, the girls uniformly bursting into tears. Jess blinked to find her saber held in tierce, slowly advancing upon the increasingly anxious looking lords, herding them away from Erovering''s nobility, increasingly anxious Velheim scions backing steadily away from the approaching Squires.

    ¡°I cry pardon for any offense rendered! I am here by lawful treaty! My family will pay any fines for crimes committed!¡± cried out one panicked scion, a cry soon echoed by the entirety of Velheim nobles present, many now openly sobbing, others pleading desperately.

    Jess grimaced, her guts knotting, heart already heavy with horrors committed.

    Neal glanced at Eloquin, who pinned them all with his gaze before nodding, eyes fastening to Jess once more.

    ¡°Rope. See to it!¡±

    ¡°Yes, Commander,¡± Jess all but gushed with relief, racing for the packmares, finding herself now able to wipe clean and sheathe her saber despite her tremble, yanking free loops of rope from saddle sacks, and within moments a full score of Velheim nobles had their hands securely bound behind their back, gazing at Jess with haunted eyes.

    ¡°You killed him! He favored you, and you killed him! You didn''t even give him a chance to explain! He didn''t know! Oh by the gods... none of us knew this would happen! Just... just this morning, Javiar had spoken of courting you. His face lit up so bright, sharing his hopes of taking you to our capital... how happy you both would be!¡±

    The words hit Jess like a blow. She turned to the girl who had spoken, now slumped to the ground, shuddering at Jess''s very gaze, sobbing her terror.

    Jess trembled, blinking back furious tears, stepping away.

    Lucas smirked and shook his head. ¡°Your handy with a blade, Jess, but those knots are a gnarled mess.¡±

    Malek chuckled softly. ¡°Silver to gold that not a one of those fools breaks free.¡±

    Lucas''s eyes lit, then his brows furrowed, gazing carefully at the rope. "It''s hemp. Isn''t it." He sighed. "I won''t take that bet, considering who tied it."

    The banter flowed past her like the warm cool rustling her hair, mind racing with horrors she struggled desperately to push aside, focusing instead upon Lady Putrice, even now shaking her head violently as Eloquin''s harsh voice washed over her.

    "You betrayed king and Crown, Putrice! Conspiring to see Erovering''s noble daughters spitting out children loyal to our enemy is but the least of your offenses. You dared to engage in the flesh trade to fatten your purse, even as you put the lives of multiple students at risk, arranging for a deliberate ambush to see my Squires killed, all to appease the men pulling your strings! That was an act of treason, Putrice, from which there can be no clemency; deliberately placing noble lives in the line of fire, fodder to be cut down simply to advance your own piece upon the board!"

    Putrice grew increasingly pale as Eloquin hammered her with accusation after accusation, and Jess was quietly impressed with how careful he was, saying nothing about any plots against the Crown. If enemies were listening now, they would walk away overconfident, even as Eloquin prepared to strike at their heart, when they least expected it.

    It was only a matter of time.

    ¡°That''s a lie! Absurd to boot!¡± Putrice blinked, gazing at them all with growing disbelief. ¡°You have not lost a single Squire, have you, Eloquin? Not a one!¡± She swallowed, grinning fiercely, as if her argument could possibly save her. ¡°You accuse me of treachery, conspiring with slavers and ambushes? Where is your proof? You students, our students! Stand strong and sure. I will bet not a one has perished this night. Is that not so? So what ambush is this? Or is this madness to ensure that no sensible lord dare take their daughters out of your nightmare program, lest you accuse them of hideous crimes?¡±If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    Eloquin chuckled coldly. "And how could you possibly know how many Squires I have, let alone whether or not they are in good health? Such information extremely few are privy to." His gaze turned hard. "Few even know that my Squires exist at all."

    Never mind that now the secret was sure to spread like wildfire, Jess mused. But perhaps that''s what Eloquin though would best serve them now.

    Putrice trembled and swallowed. "It''s known," she rasped. "I... I heard the rumors, put the pieces together in my head. My goal, my only goal, was to spare the daughters of Erovering the madness that is your training!" She gazed desperately at Lady Agda, for all that she had insulted her but minutes before. "Lady Agda, did we not work together, arranging your daughter to be free of this madness? And look, look before you. Two noblemen dead, by your daughter''s hand! One who had courted her, who she had been intimate with, only hours before!"

    Agda gazed at her daughter. Jess swallowed and looked away.

    "What of it, Putrice?" Malek snapped. "We recognized the shifts in balance, the hardened gazes of men preparing for the killing blow. Your sycophants were getting ready to butcher Lady Agda with their blades, hesitating only long enough to assure that it was her throat alone they sliced open, and not yours!"

    Agda glared at Putrice once more.

    ¡°A tragic misunderstanding, for which they have paid with their lives!¡± Putrice shrieked. ¡°If dear Jess had not been decked in the armaments of a bloodthirsty killer, even at this moment she might be in the arms of a man who would court her, a man who now lies dead at her feet, cut down by the saber she clenches so fiercely even now!¡±

    Jess swallowed, forcing her hand to relax and slip free of the hilt of her resheathed blade, gazing at her mother, forcing herself to speak. "Mother, did you... did you receive correspondence from Lady Putrice?" Her mother paled and looked away.

    Eloquin''s eyes were strangely gentle. "I care not what it says, Lady Calenbry. But if you have such a document, I would see the signature, did it please you."

    Trembling, Agda slipped free a folded piece of vellum, fine as any lord''s desk would hold, carefully holding it such that only the last paragraph and signature were visible.

    Eloquin gazed it for some moments before turning back to the trembling professor, flashing a bleak smile. "It has been a pleasure to watch you writhe on the hook, but it is time, I think, to end this farce." With that, gaze locked upon Putrice''s helpless stare, he slowly withdrew a packet of documents, and Jess could tell by the way Putrice flinched and looked away that she knew exactly what those letters said.

    ¡°Please...¡±

    "The girls are well in hand. Many fine fillies for our chosen to sire strong get upon. The prizes will fetch silver and gold, and the jesters will pay top coin for the wood that will be their undoing. May I forever be in your favor, Your Grace.... sincerely, LP."

    Eloquin turned to a stunned looking Agda, gracefully handing her the letter. ¡°Tell me, Lady Agda de Calenbry, does the handwriting match the correspondence you exchanged with Lady Putrice?¡±

    And to her credit, Agda took careful measure before giving a tentative nod. "The sweeps of the vowels are the same, and she seems ever uncertain when forming the top crest of formal names. A sad lack in her education, I suppose. The way the ink presses upon the page, the odd slant, as if a child who favored her left hand was forced to write with her right."

    Agda gazed solemnly up at Eloquin. ¡°I believe the handwriting to be identical.¡±

    "This is preposterous!" Lady Putrice sobbed. "Preposterous! Moments ago, you were attempting to strangle me, and your daughter is covered in the blood of my guests, even now! You are a clan of monstrous hellions, and I will see you pay for this, and pay dearly! I have friends in court, you know!"

    Eloquin nodded once, gaze like ice. ¡°I know.¡±

    Jess shuddered under her mentor''s gaze, knowing what she must do.

    Jess flashed a quick glance at Cornelius, smiling coldly at Lady Putrice, but making no move to intervene, for all that it would surely throw her off. Jess nodded to herself. It made perfect sense. The letters alone were sufficient to damn her, no need to reveal the hidden card up their sleeve.

    Jess turned, forcing herself to look at that which she realized she had been avoiding this last handful of hours. She stared at the cluster of awestruck, trembling girls astride mounts which had no problem with the journey, for all that the riders above looked ready to collapse from exhaustion. Several girls caught Jess''s gaze and it shook her heart, seeing looks of such abject terror and despair, more than one flinching away from the force of her gaze alone.

    ¡°Come. There is someone you all need to see.¡±

    ¡°Please, mistress,¡± one girl wailed. ¡°Don''t put us before her again, not like this. Oh not like this!¡±

    Yet despite their protests and sobs, even as several wailed and looked on the verge of collapse, Jess, Malek, Neal, and Rowan managed to heard the battered girls before a trembling Lady Putrice still furiously denying all charges of conspiracy, until her eyes locked upon the accusing stares of several dozen young women suddenly screaming. Screaming in terror, outrage, screaming for Lady Putrice''s very head, crying out horrid tales regarding the very professor now speechless before their gaze.

    All of them recognized her. For some, their first encounter with Putrice had seemed almost a blessing, the professor cajoling with smiles and promises for various freemen to accept sponsorship for their beautiful daughters, though the name she had gone under had been quite different then. Other tales were of a stern-faced Putrice judging them like slabs of prized meat, once the girls had been claimed, whether by guile or darkest horror, parents butchered as children were carted away. And how Putrice had gazed that them all so coldly, calling them but pathetic chattel once they were in her power, pinching naked flesh upon terrified girls, many sobbing in horror, all of them told they were worthless dung upon which true roses would flourish, and their only purpose in life was as fertile soil to till the seed of their betters.

    An exhausted Jess seethed with renewed fury as the stories of horror were told.

    Eloquin flashed a smile, bleak and cold. "Two dozen accounts of high crimes committed, documents tying you to the flesh trade, echoes of treason twining about your every word. I suspect, Professor Putrice, that your days under the sun will be far fewer than you would like."

    His gaze caught Jess''s own. She nodded, hands flashing in a brief flurry of code, Mord himself chuckling softly, picking up on all that was said.

    "Now, it is high time we ended this farce!" Eloquin gazed at the pale-faced scions of Velheim''s best and brightest, hands tied like common criminals, trembling in the morning sun, the stink of blood and offal offsetting perfumes of roses and wild blossom, even as the doom before them wilted all joy in the glorious day unfolding. "Lady Putrice will get her day in Court, little good that it will do her. But you, pathetic, sniveling wretches, seeking to claim our women as your prizes, here unlawfully after entering in the company of flesh peddlers and enemy agents slipping through under false pretenses... you fools have no protection at all from the king''s justice!"

    And with ice cold smiles, Jess, Mord, and a score of the remaining Squires and Aspirants present withdrew their longswords as one, perfectly sharpened blades flashing in the sunlight, as twenty-odd pairs of eyes widened in terror, girls sobbing and collapsing to the ground, young men falling to their knees, begging for mercy.

    ¡°Please! We had nothing to do with this, with any of this!¡± One boy cried.

    "For true love alone did we come," a girl, no less beautiful for the tears stinging silken cheeks pierced Jess with eyes that silently begged for her life.

    Jess swallowed and forced herself to glare, even as she coldly strode forward, blade raised high.

    ¡°Yes, Putrice was involved in the slave trade! She was using our carriage trains as cover!¡± One boy screamed, and everything grew oddly still once more.

    All eyes turned to the lad in horror, even as he trembled and shook. To their credit, half the visiting lords and ladies looked on in disbelief, for all that the others hung their heads.

    ¡°They were to be disguised as our servitors to aid us!¡± The boy cried, swallowing furiously, nearly ill with fright. ¡°I... I had no part in it, I was shocked to hear of it! But I had wondered why porters had served us only so far as to prepare our carriages before we crossed over, and when I thought to spy on Lady Putrice... the things I overheard her discussing with Sir Kettil...¡± he swallowed and paled. ¡°Kettil...somehow he knew that I had caught wind of their plans. He did things... he made sure I that would never tell a soul what I had overheard!¡± Hot tears streaming down his cheeks, the boy bowed his head, and Jess was suddenly sickened to wonder just how Kettil had terrified the boy into keeping his secrets close.

    Jess swallowed, a sudden flash of memory hitting her, what seemed a lifetime ago but was merely a handful of hours that stretched forever. This very boy, so young to be there, younger even than her, gazing at the assembled students under Putrice''s wing not with avarice, excitement, or curiosity, but with abject shame.

    Jess was no fool. She knew exactly what Kettil had done to that boy.

    A furious scream.

    Eloquin''s mocking laughter, cold eyes calculating so well.

    And Jess, her helmet removed, so careful not to look back....

    All Squires so distracted... many with the terrified nobles before them, others with the girls so horribly used, desperate for comfort and upon the edge of panic, several others before noble matrons who had nothing but praise for Highrock''s elite, all but pleading their utter ignorance of the dark gambits Putrice had in play.

    No one near the professor herself, nor had anyone secured the fencing sabers once worn by the two young men who had fallen to Jessica''s blade, and how they had managed such license as to wear live steel in a neighboring nation''s college of war Jess knew was utterly irrelevant, only that leaving Lady Putrice unguarded save for Eloquin''s mocking smile, right before such fine prizes, was an unforgivable lapse in near two score souls training so diligently for war.

    As was the way Eloquin turned to gaze in the direction of Velheim, paying the woman trembling in desperate fury no heed, no heed at all.

    ¡°You overplayed your hand, Putrice. Badly, I think. So tell me, how special do you feel now, all your co-conspirators dead to our blades, and you soon to be tried and publicly executed? The ladies you had once counted as friends now despise you, the Velheim aristocracy you thought would owe you such favors accusing you outright of the flesh trade, with dozens of your victims adding credence to their tales."

    Eloquin''s dark, mocking laughter washed over a shaking Putrice, and he held her in such contempt that he did not even glance her way. "Normally dignity, even in death, has been the king''s way, no matter how foul the miscreants he deals with. But in your case? I think he''ll make an exception. Perhaps he will even let you work off your debt in the very brothels you no doubt once thought to own."

    Jess would have been sickened by the mocking laughter Eloquin let roll forth, alien and odd to all sentiment shared before, almost as strange as Eloquin''s utter disregard for his own safety, strolling away at the cruelest of paces for the dean''s office, and no doubt the first step to Putrice''s censure and expulsion, so that academy grounds would be denied to her as shelter, her doom complete.

    She did not scream, at least. Jess gave her credit for that, Putrice possessing a certain amount of furious gall as she picked up one of the fencing blades, drawing it with surprising grace, no novice to the blade after all, and charged towards the helmetless Eloquin, her face a rictus of twisted hate, too savvy even to cry out as she closed, ready to cut down the man she despised before his ears even detected her presence.

    And stopped abruptly, eyes bulging, her mouth gaping open as blood shot forth in a sudden spray of crimson, a foot of steel bursting from her side as Jess ran her through.

    ¡°Jessica!¡±

    Her mother''s panicked shriek. Jess''s smile was cold. She knew what her mother truly feared, even as Jess locked gazes with half a score of horrifed noble ladies, transfixed by the scene unfolding still.

    ¡°It''s all right, Mother.¡± A voice, dry as the desert sun. Not her own. Not by far.

    ¡°Tell me, ladies, is it not obvious to all that Lady Putrice here was charging for my helmetless mentor, noble Eloquin, favored of the king, vulnerable as any innocent, Putrice''s blade raised high to strike?¡±

    Half a dozen frantic nods. Noble ladies pleading their agreement, as were the Velheim lords themselves, each and every one declaring the virtue of Jess''s act in desperate, strained voices. Jess couldn''t help smirking at that, for all that her mother''s solemn nod, gazing at Jess so strangely, not as a daughter but as a player who had impressed even a master of the game, left Jess feeling strange and cold.

    ¡°You bitch.¡± Lady Putrice''s awful laughter ended in blood and bile, pouring from her lips as she crashed to her knees. ¡°You played me from the start. May you burn in Hell.¡±

    Jess yanked out her blade.

    Putrice''s gaze widened as agonized fury turned to sheerest panic, eyes pleading desperately as she raised her arm, a futile attempt to ward the blade Jess now held high.

    "Please! Please, Jessica, don''t kill me. I... I was a pawn myself! I just wanted a better life for you, for Erica, for everyone." Tears poured down Putrice''s cheeks even as blood poured from her mouth, her desperate gaze firmly locked upon Jess''s own. "Please, Jessica. Whatever I did to offend you, however I wronged you, please... mercy!¡±

    Dry laughter that Jess alone could hear. ¡°If only this fool knew what that truly meant.¡± Gazing at the scene playing out from his favorite perch, Twilight''s eyes locked upon her own. ¡°It is a good thing that you understand mercy so well, my queen.¡±

    Jess flashed the coldest of smiles. ¡°I do. And mercy I shall give.¡±

    Hands windmilling forward, her longsword sliced through the air as decisively as any headsman''s axe, cleaving through the upraised arm and terrified features of one Lady Putrice, who might have survived being disemboweled, with the best battlefield healers in all the kingdom to be found but feet away, but no one could fix the horrific mulch of shattered bone and brain that Putrice''s once beautiful face had become as Jess''s blade blasted through her skull.

 Chapter 30

    ¡°Are you all right, Jess?¡±

    Soft words, sweet as a caress, Rowan gazing at Jess so tenderly as they soaked in the heated baths below, gently scrubbing Jess''s scalp as grime, gore, and dye were sloughed off her body, skin pink and soapy, and Jess had to fight not to sink into an exhausted doze.

    ¡°It''s not safe to sleep yet, Jess,¡± Rowan softly chided. ¡°That''s why no one''s ever allowed to bathe alone... most especially not exhausted Aspirants or Squires who could so easily slip into sweetest slumber, death but a gentle caress away."

    Jess shivered, even now fighting back flashes of all she had seen and done. ¡°That won''t be a problem, shieldsister. I just... I just want to forget. Everything we''ve seen, everything we''ve done.¡±

    Jess flushed and looked away from her friend''s arched smile. ¡°I just want to forget.¡±

    Warm soapy arms held her close. ¡°It''s been quite a night, has it not?¡±

    Jess chuckled at that. ¡°I never thought it would be like this.¡±

    Rich brown eyes strangely luminous in the muted light captivated Jess, soft lips gently pressing against her own. Sweetest flames of affection and desire coursed through her. Jess shuddered, losing herself in that kiss.

    "It was your first time fighting under Eloquin''s banner. Believe me, Jess, I know how you must feel." Rowan offered the gentlest of smiles. "I expected slavers, not international intrigue, same as you. Still, it feels good, knowing we saved so many girls, doesn''t it? Even if we can''t take back everything we did... over a score of lasses have been freed from horror, and every man to fall to our blade was an enemy. There is no shame in that, Jessica."

    Jess squeezed her eyes tightly shut, choking back a sob, Rowan''s tender embrace all but forgotten. ¡°What about Gaines? He was just a boy, just a damn boy looking at me with the horrified gaze of a young man who wanted to be the hero of the tale, who thought I might be his princess to rescue, only to find that he doesn''t get to play the hero at all. Not even the villain. Just a sad little boy who dies by the side of the road. For with our intervention his fiercest passions, the cry of his very existence, came to nothing at all. And who ended his life?¡±

    Rowan held Jess close as sobs she had buried in icy resolve for so many hours burst free at last. "I did, Rowan! I broke that poor boy''s neck. I gazed into his desperate stare, the stare of a man... a man who had dreamed of loving me... and his father. A man... only at the damned bitter end did I find had dreamed of an alliance between our Houses." Jess sobbed. "And I had killed his son. And when his eyes begged me for an answer, a reason, a way out of the madness consuming us both... I killed him."

    Jess shuddered. "I just... ran him through."

    ¡°You ran through a man who we know was contemplating regicide!¡±

    Rowan''s voice had turned harsh and cold. "Don''t you dare shed a tear for them, Jess! Do you really think Gaines was an innocent? He was the hidden son of a man who sought the throne! He was not sent because his arm was being twisted, he was sent because his father wanted him close, for the gambit at hand!"

    Jess grimaced and shook her head, hot tears pouring down her cheeks, for all that she fought back her sobs. ¡°No, Rowan. Gaines didn''t know. I didn''t feel that about him at all.¡±

    "It''s done, Jess. You killed them. You killed them both. And now the Arbingion clan is headless, father and son both claimed by the earth once more." Rowan scowled. "And when the king finds out, finds out how dark the tendrils in play were, I would not be surprised if the entire clan finds itself laid low by vicious mishap, all traces of claim or title burned from the royal records, the duchy itself soon in play."

    Jess swallowed. ¡°How many lives will be lost, do you think?¡±

    "Who cares, Jess? Those fools were planning regicide! Good riddance!"

    Jess bowed her head, having no more words to say.

    Rowan sighed. "This is what it means to be a Squire, Jess. This is not some honey-sweet faerie tale where all the handsome smiling men are noble and true, and the villains ugly and evil."

    Jess sobbed, her friend holding her close. ¡°Real life people are a mixture of both, Jess. Even Putrice. In her own sad way, she cared for her students. Even you. But she had dipped her toes in the foulest of waters, and had to be brought down.¡±

    Rowan flashed a dark, approving smile. "I only caught a bit of what Eloquin had flashed to you, but his goading was brilliant, and you, a mere student protecting her master, did just what was needed to be done." She chuckled softly. "Of course, we had to coach a score of very grateful girls who had been but a heartbeat from being sold off as pleasure chattel, and have words with near a dozen terrified noble ladies, desperate not be be associated with a matchmaker who turned out to be a Velheim slave-owner in close confidence with corrupt nobles planning regicide. But in the end, all of them quite agreed that yes, Putrice most definitely had saber in hand still, and was but a heartbeat from running you through, before you righteously cut her down." A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    Rowan dipped her head under the water, washing the last of the soap away, hair as lustrous as it had ever been, glossy with rich burnished highlights, like a lush, silken dream. "It''s good you killed her, Jess. This way, she can never align her pieces in Court and hope to throw testimony in any way that vindicates herself, or casts unwelcome light on operations that must remain forever in the shadows.¡±

    Jess said nothing, hands rhythmically soaking free the last of the coloring from her hair, plant-based dye all too willing to come free to her slightest touch.

    But the constant flow of soapy water cleaning out the last of the ichor her body had been spattered with was a soothing comfort she couldn''t bear to let go.

    Rowan, glowing pink with good health after the hot bath, no matter her dusky heritage, gave a satisfied nod. ¡°I think we are both clean, sister, and don''t worry. As long as we serve under Eloquin''s blackened banner, we have liberties and license denied any but the king''s own agents. Not that such is ever made public, nor will Eloquin overplay his hand, dealing those cards only when he must.¡±

    She gave Jess a satisfied nod. "Truly you are the sweetest of angels, Jess; fierce and beautiful, with a heart far too kind for the games we now play."

    She kissed Jess, slow and soft, and Jess did not resist, more desperate than ever to put all the horrors she had embraced behind her. To forget the coldly smiling creature who had worn her face, so high on righteous fury, reveling in the screams of every soldier she had put down.

    She had been a far more innocent girl, just two days ago. She wondered if she could ever be that girl again.

    Jess, be ready!

    Powerful fingers gently clasped her own.

    Jess lurched, suddenly pinned by Mord''s hungry gaze, not expecting to find him here at the baths when the revels had already started above.

    ¡°Mord.¡± Rowan''s voice, neither excited nor disappointed, merely acknowledging him.

    Mord handed a flask to Rowan, his gaze still locked intently on Jess.

    Rowan took a deep swig and sighed, a blissful smile caressing her sensual features. "Laudanum. Oh, you naughty boy. But what better night to embrace vice''s dark gifts than this night? When we have so very many sins to wash away."

    And now Mord did grin, his smile wild and wicked, even as hands oddly gentle stroked Jess''s cheeks. ¡°Isn''t that the truth, sister of the blade.¡± He turned to Jess. ¡°I underestimated you. I once thought you insufferably arrogant and cocksure, confident smile mocking the world with your mastery of everything you thought mattered, paying not a single student or class you disdained any mind.¡±

    His eyes grew momentarily hard, before softening once more. ¡°And tonight I saw that it was not merely the fanciful delusion of a girl capable of nothing, but a true warrior. A girl who chooses her own battlefields, who would let no one draw her into fights she did not favor, and when prey had caught her fancy, she dropped sheep''s clothing and struck, savage and true, as bold and ruthless as any wolf.¡±

    Mord chuckled softly, fingers caressing her lips.

    Her palm cracked against his cheek

    "Damn you, Mord! You made my years at Highrock unbearable with your constant sniping and picking at me, mocking me at every turn, and now you think to court me?"

    His bonhomie demeanor suddenly cracked, hungry stare reminiscent of the most savage of predators now fastened upon her. "I offer you pleasure, Calenbry. Escape from the dark glories recently savored. You''d do well to accept my offer." Mord chuckled coldly. ¡°Arrogant as a dozen lords, and never have I hungered to master a woman as I hunger to master you. Come, Jess. Sheathe your claws. You have led a merry chase, but you know it''s time to submit to he who would be yourking."

    Jess shivered, even as Mord teased her with the flask once more. "I think, Mord, I will pass. Keep your drink."

    Mord''s eyes flashed. His clenching fist ruptured the flask. The baths smelled suddenly of poppy, spiced wine, and fear. "You''d do well not to belittle my offer, Calenbry."

    A jolt of furious panic tore through Jess. Horrified fury coursing through her, even as she took in every inch of the baths, ready to do what must be done.

    Rowan''s sultry laughter suddenly filled the chamber, Jess and Mord both favoring her with the strangest of stares. "My, how you two do carry on. If we hadn''t just spent an endless night fighting back to back against foes thirsty for our blood, I''d almost think you two were going to kill each other. And wouldn''t that be a bloody shame? All those damned treacherous snakes trying to destroy us from within, and you two are happy to do all their hard work for them."

    Jess felt her cheeks flushing hotly and lowered her head, suddenly ashamed.

    She felt Rowan''s soft lips against her cheek, heart suddenly racing for far different reasons than mortal peril. "Come, battlesister. Let''s leave our brother-in-arms to bathe in peace, to ready himself for the score of admirers he''ll no doubt find at the revels. You and I shall savor quieter diversions, together.

    Jess spared one final glance for Mord, chilled by how fast he had changed his demeanor once more, gazing at her with the same cocksure grin he had flashed when he entered, his now naked and powerfully built frame soaking in the steamy bath. He deliberately turned away. "You''re dismissed, Calenbry. I have no further use for you tonight."

    Jess blinked, gazing at her nemesis in speechless, furious disbelief, even as a grinning Rowan gently led her away.

    "That arrogant jackanapes!" Jess said for the dozenth time even as Rowan slammed the door to her private quarters shut, warm fingers gently stroking Jess''s mouth, shocking her to silence.

    "Shush, Jess. Some things are more important than your battle with Mord." Rowan smiled, stroking Jess''s cheek before pressing soft lips against her own, stealing Jess''s heart with a kiss.

    Jess sighed, sinking to the soft bed suddenly before them, savoring Rowan''s laughter as she caressed her lover''s tenderest secrets, Rowan mirroring her every movement, waves of sweetest rapture washing so many awful memories away.

 Chapter 31

    The crack of lightning, rain pouring down just outside, and how her mother gazed at Jess, both of them having no idea what to say. Her mother, once a ravishing beauty renowned through the kingdom, a prize her father had brought home from campaign two decades ago that the king himself had once coveted, for all that none challenged the fiction that she too was noble-born, and a stunning beauty still, having run off with the man she would marry at an age when most girls were still in the care of their parents. But the Velheim Wars had been a time of hardship and horror, where those caught in the middle had to grow up fast, or not at all.

    Did noble Velheim blood flow through Jessica''s veins? Was her mother a captured pawn on the board her father had fallen in love with, ruthless captor eventually becoming devoted husband? Jess neither knew nor cared, loving her mother fiercely, however humble or exotic her origins, and knowing she could never be what her mother so desperately wanted her to be.

    Lost in the throes of a berserker''s fury, channeling the will of the ancient forest all about her, she had cut down so many soldiers during her very first mission, her own mother having seen all too horribly well to what degree Jessica had mastered the killing arts.

    As savage and wild as any Squire of War could hope to be.

    ¡°Now you know.¡±

    The words just hung in the air, her mother''s sky blue eyes, so like Jess''s own, gazed sadly at her, cornsilk hair bundled in an elegant bun for the rain, so like her daughters, Jess''s locks clean and free of dye once more.

    So much to say, and hardly the words to say it. Her mother understood so much, how close she had come to direst folly politically, and in striving to vindicate herself in the eyes of the most powerful of lords, had embraced the most perilous of gambits.

    "You tried too hard, going for Putrice. Eloquin would never move against the mothers of his Squires. Dipping your toes into Putrice''s schemes has left neither trace nor letter he himself hasn''t burned before our eyes. As vital as the information is, key facts alone were transcribed, and no Squire''s clan will pay for the sins of their sires.¡±

    Agda''s gaze did not waver. ¡°And so many letters did I see in Eloquin''s possession as he spoke in softest confidence with a man even I can tell was one of the players on the board you took. Tools, no doubt, to assure your general plenty of allies in Court, should he need them in the months to come.¡±

    Jess swallowed. "I pitied Putrice, gazing at me so desperately. But there was no way I was going to let her fork-tongued words damn a half dozen of my brothers'' and sisters'' clans in any trial. Eloquin understood instantly. A taunt she took, and my blade for her folly. And the dying screams of every man and woman I killed that night give me nightmares still."

    Her mother flashed the most jaded of smiles. ¡°Our name is clear of tarnish, our foes dead at your feet, and your battle-brothers tied to you tighter than ever, by bonds of loyalty and debts of honor. And I always knew, Jessica de Calenbry, that you were far smarter than the naive girl you so enjoy pretending to be.¡±

    Jess swallowed and bobbed her head.

    Her mother''s fingers gently stroked her cheek. ¡°I understand you had favored one of the men... taken down. I am sorry, Jessica. I truly am.¡±

    Jess would not say that her mother assaulting Putrice was what catalyzed gravest folly. Would not throw an iota of guilt upon a woman desperate to vindicate her clan, a woman who did love Jess fiercely, in her own way.

    Jess bit back bitter tears and only nodded.

    ¡°Are you going to court him?¡±

    Jess blinked at that. ¡°Who?¡±

    Her mother''s gaze hardened. "The man who has made his interest in you blindingly clear, since you certainly can''t court the girl, sweet as pillow friends may be."

    Jess''s heart started to pound. She suddenly wanted to be anywhere, save pinned by her mother''s too knowing eyes.

    ¡°I hate Mord. You know that. I can''t control what he does or says. I avoided the revels just to avoid him."

    Her mother''s gaze did not waver. Jess blushed and looked away. "Strange how the boy you claim to hate has been so attentive to you and your lover both, a proper gentlemen from what saw."

    Jess flushed and looked away, furious with an ever scheming Mord. "I was wondering why he was suddenly being so bloody civil, and Rowan was happy to have him play fetch boy for all the food and drink we could want from the revels." Jess sighed and shook her head. "Mord''s no fool. If you saw how he truly was, how hotblooded he was in the baths..."

    Her mother raised one eyebrow, pinning Jess with her stare once more. "How was he in the baths, Jessica?"

    Jess flushed and swallowed, at a loss for words. ¡°It''s complicated. Extremely... complicated.¡±

    ¡°Because you despise him.¡±

    ¡°Exactly.¡±

    "For all that he was ignoring the revels entirely, focused solely on attending you and your pillow friend, and I note you invited no other boys to your quarters, thank the gods, and as beautiful a girl as Rowan assuredly is, you and I both know it is a dalliance between friends. It is nothing more, it can be nothing more, which is why such affairs raise little more than stuffy eyebrows. Nothing can come of it, good or ill."

    Jess swallowed, heart hammering so loudly her ears roared with the sound of it, lodged in place by her mother''s stare, unable to move a muscle. "You mean offspring. Marriages, alliances... you seek to trap me in that still."

    Agda sighed. ¡°Thank you for my life, daughter. I love you more than you will ever know. And I care naught for a Squire''s revels, but I will say nonetheless, have a care. Poppy infused wine is good for pain and the horrors of war, but for no more days than fingers upon your hand before it becomes a trap, and the greatest horror of all."

    A gentle kiss to a speechless Jess''s cheek. "We will pretend I know nothing of my blooded daughter''s dark baptism, the wretched things I would butcher Eloquin for, had I lost you to that madness. Just as we will pretend I had never risked folly to our clan, conspiring with that harlot who schemed so boldly and well. But I will say this. Don''t bed any boy you don''t seek to marry, for even if you don''t intend to claim them, it is a safe bet that they certainly intend to claim you."The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Piercing blue eyes locked upon Jess once more. "Make sure, Jess. The Plaga clan is powerful, and would make a fantastic ally in games you only now begin to grasp. If he presses suit..."

    Jess swallowed, furiously shaking his head. ¡°It wasn''t like that, Mother. Mord was being so attentive because he knew you would be watching. Always watching. He cares nothing for me, save to best me in another ring, and Rowan is too diplomatic to castigate someone as wild and unstable as he. So when he knocked, she took his gifts with jokes traded and warm smiles, because she''s afraid he''ll hold a madman''s grudge otherwise, and as deadly as he is, he''s a damned useful man to have at your back in a fight. When next Eloquin cries havoc, I know Mord will blacken his dagger right alongside the rest of us, and only a fool turns away a useful blade just because she doesn''t like the color of the hilt." Jess swallowed her suddenly dry throat, wondering if her mother could possibly understand.

    Her mother pinned Jess with sky blue eyes that missed nothing. "Make sure, Jess. If he continues to pursue you and forsake the mad revelry that would be his for the taking, that shows a dedication, a zeal, not to be underestimated."

    And saying not a word further, her mother left the central keep, making her careful way to the carriage even now awaiting her, silken umbrella carefully folded away.

    Jess sighed, reaching her hand up to stroke her lifelong ally, quietly observing the world as he so often did from his favorite perch. ¡°Ye gods, Twilight, how much will I have to drink to forget that conversation?¡±

    Her familiar chuckled softly, butting her cheek with his head. "Quite a bit, beloved mistress. Though I believe there are a few choice herbs from the rooftop garden that will aid us in our quest of turning this entire day into the sweetest of dreams. Exactly what our dear Lady Vaila has concocted to wash away the memories of so very many Velheim scions even now attending the revels, so that all recollection of that rather bloody morning is lost in a haze of decadent fog, as our beloved Headmaster Echobart would so dearly appreciate not having to kill twenty of his guests.¡±

    Jess grimaced and nodded, her mind suddenly ringing with the silent screams of all the men she had killed, memories she had thought safely sealed between too much wine, brandy, and the sweet kisses of a girl she knew she was falling for. She gazed down at her trembling fist, knuckles pale white, so hard did she grip the hilt of her blade. Her soft voice free was of all bonhomie. "Would you think less of me, oldest friend, if I wanted to forget every bit as desperately as those poor fools we faced?"

    Twilight slowly shook his head. "Not at all, beloved. Not at all. The burden you bear is both bitter and heavy, and none know better than Rulia and I the tears you shed, no matter how diligently you try to drown it away with the finest Calenbry red." A soft paw patted her cheek. "Come, Jess. To the garden we go. I think Lady Vaila is expecting you."

    And when a smiling Rulia approached with flagon in hand, one look at Jessica''s expression and bonhomie instantly transformed to tender concern. Wordlessly, she squeezed Jess tight. "It hits heavy, the first time we are blooded, does it not? You think you are strong, fierce, on top of the world, and when you least expect it, then it hits you. Hard."

    Jess felt the sting of unshed tears. "I have to go to the garden, Rulia. There is something I need to do."

    Rulia dipped her head, wordlessly leading Jess through the maze of stone corridors leading at last to the staircase heading to the revered rooftop garden, Jess realizing once more for the first time how few people were even in that corridor, and how no one paid the ancient stone stairway any mind. And when was the last time she had seen anyone else up there save Lady Vaila, little Louise, and herself?

    Jess shook her head, frowning at Rulia''s pained gaze. "Rulia, what''s wrong?"

    Rulia only smiled, kissing Jess''s cheek before stepping back. "I hope you won''t forget me, at least, when you do what you must." And without another word she turned around and walked back down the corridor.

    "What was that about?" A puzzled Jess asked her familiar.

    Twilight only smiled. "For all that some burdens have become intolerable, other burdens weigh you down not at all. Come, my Jess. Rulia will be fine. The rooftop garden awaits."

    Jess smiled in the rain, the flood of water somehow mellowing into a drizzle where she stood, for all that sheets of water near flooded the grounds around the central keep. She took a deep whiff of roses, gardenias and a myriad wondrous scents that made up what was perhaps the most revered garden in all of Erovering, for all that hardly anyone save Lady Vaila and Jess bothered tending to it, the head herbalist at that moment gazing with gentle sympathy into Jess''s eyes.

    But that was okay, Jess thought, the rain washed away all traces of her tears.

    Wordlessly, the garden''s guardian raised a small wooden flask filled with tea the color of a woodland glade.

    Jess forced herself to say it. "I want to forget. I want to forget the face of the boy whose neck I snapped, after declaring he could love me. I want to forget Lady Putrice''s desperate pleas the moment before I cut her down. I want to forget the screams and sobs of all the men I killed these last few bloody days," Jess sobbed. "Please, Vaila, please tell me you can wash these horrors away!"

    So different from the fierce warrior who had struck down all her foes with ruthless zeal, the Squire crumpling to the rain soaked grown was naught but a sobbing girl of eighteen summers who had been forced to withstand horrors very few could endure free of bitter wounds, no matter how skilled they were with a blade.

    "Drink, dearest Jess. Drink and forget your dark duties as being anything more than the most vivid of dreams." A diminutive hand squeezed Jess''s shoulder with surprising strength. "Drink and rest. There is no shame in it, Jess, no shame in it at all."

    Nodding, Jess forced the bitter brew down, even as Vailia herself led Jess back down the stairway to her proper quarters close by.

    "I''m afraid Eloquin will think less of me," Jess whispered even as Vaila stripped soaking wet attire from her shivering frame, helping Jess into a clean white shift and gently tucking her into a freshly made bed.

    Vaila gave a soft shake of her head. "No, my Jess. My mate has taken the measure of all his Squires. He knows your strengths, he knows your weaknesses. Some are built for the most savage and brutal of conflicts, with minds unfazed by any save the most vile of horrors." She stroked Jess''s brow. "Others are gentle souls, noble souls, filled with love and laughter. And though they may have the steel, the inner fire to do what needs be done, it is not without cost. For Squires such as yourself, Jess, being able to replace visceral horror with a dreamer''s distance is the only way we can make up for the burdens you are forced to endure."

    Jess squeezed her eyes shut, smile filled with rue. "And with my gift, there is no question of whether or not I will be put in play. It is only a matter of when, and how."

    "Precisely. And for that reason as much as any other, Eloquin will always be grateful that you choose to stand by his side. That you will let no child of Highrock fall to spear or arrow that your gift alone could ward. For such fierce love and loyalty, giving you the grace of forgetfulness is the least we can do."

    Twilight nodded, splaying upon her chest, rubbing her chin with his brow. "She is right, my queen. Yours is a noble heart. You fear no foe and would face the very legions of Hell, I''m sure, to save your friends. But the weight of so many deaths, people that in another time or place you could have called brother, lover, or friend in these ugly games of politics is more than your heart is equipped to bear. Rest free of all guilt or burden, Jess. Awaken as the eccentric, absurd, wonderful dreamer you were always meant to be."

    "Until the next time the king cries havoc..." Jess whispered.

    "... and releases his hounds of war," Twilight finished, gently stroking a now sleeping Jess''s brow even as Lady Vaila whispered a soft druidic prayer, bowing before the champion of her grove before softly closing the door behind her.