Aelic approached Antoinette on one of the more secluded balconies off the banquet hall. “What are you doing out here in the dark?” he asked.
“It’s not really dark when your eyes get used to it,” Antoinette replied. “Besides, the moon peeks out from the clouds every so often. It’s really quite beautiful. Have you seen it?”
As if on cue, the clouds parted and a little moonlight fell upon the balcony. “Yes, very pretty.” Aelic frowned. “I know you did not leave the feast to come gaze upon the moon.”
“I needed to think,” she said.
“And you could not think inside where it is warm and festive?”
“Are you kidding?” Antoinette asked. “With Mallik, Sir Rogan, and Boldoak having a belching contest, who could think in there?”
Aelic laughed. “I suppose you’re right, m’lady. Still, there are many dark tasks ahead of us in the coming days. Why not be merry for just one night?”
Antoinette turned her back to Aelic and watched a carriage glide over the cable across the gulf from the castle to a platform. “I promised Aidan,” she said.
“What? What did you—” Aelic squinted at her. “Oh, now I understand. This is about Kearn. Is it not?”
Antoinette nodded. “Aidan is counting on me! You said yourself that if King Eliam wanted me to reach Robby’s Glimpse, I would find him. And now I have.”
“But Antoinette, the fate of Robby’s Glimpse is out of our hands,” Aelic said. “Kearn has gone to Baen-Edge!”
“But we’ve got to do something!”
“Perhaps, m’lady,” said Aelic. He moved forward to stand next to her at the balcony rail. “But it is not King Eliam’s will for you to do anything about it now. Has it even occurred to you that once we return to Alleble, we may be sent out again—maybe to Baen-Edge—with an army?”
“But it could be too late by then!” Antoinette replied. “What if Paragor’s forces return on the Forest Road? Kearn could be killed, and Robby would be lost!”
“That is true,” Aelic replied. “And I sincerely hope that such a thing does not happen. My twin in your realm would be heartbroken—just as I have been heartbroken to see some of my friends in Mithegard and Clarion choose the wrong side.” Antoinette looked away, avoiding his stare. She hadn’t realized that Aelic too had seen friends join Paragor.
“But that does not change the fact that King Eliam has called you to be a part of this team on this mission. It is not his will for you to—”
“How do you know what King Eliam’s will is for me?!” Antoinette asked, turning her back to him. “Did he tell you?”
Aelic ran his hands through his dark hair. “Nay, the King did not come to me personally. He did not have to. We were both chosen by the King to travel to Yewland and restore the alliance.”
“And we’ve done that!” Antoinette spun around.
“But we have not captured the imposter,” Aelic replied. “You heard Kaliam. We need to go to Acacia. That is our mission. Can you not see that?”
“Yes, I know what Kaliam said.” Antoinette shook her head. “And he’s a great leader, but I just can’t sit here and do nothing.”
Antoinette and Aelic stood in silence at the balcony rail. Antoinette’s feelings were a train wreck. In truth, she had already decided what she was going to do long before Aelic came to the balcony. She had just hoped that Aelic would be more sympathetic. Now, she didn’t know what to do. Should she still ask him? Would he give her away?
A bank of very dark clouds smothered the moon, and Antoinette stood in the shadows and trembled. “Come with me,” she said quietly.
“What?” Aelic backed away from the rail.
“To Baen-Edge,” she replied, staring at Aelic with pleading eyes. “Tobias let me look at one of his maps while I was at the feast. It’s not that far. With two of the dragons Queen Illaria has provided, we could get there quickly—and maybe meet the others in Acacia later.”
Aelic was speechless for a moment. His eyes narrowed, and he said, “And suppose we do what you suggest and we find Kearn in Baen-Edge, what then? Will you just command him to follow King Eliam? Do you think it will be that easy? There are four legions of enemy soldiers there—Paragor himself is there!”
“I don’t know,” she replied angrily, wishing she had not asked Aelic to join her. “I haven’t really thought that far . . . maybe we can take him prisoner.”
“You are right, m’lady,” Aelic said. “You have not thought this through. I would go with you into the belly of a dragon—if I believed that King Eliam willed it to be so. I owe you my life, but, Antoinette, this is madness. To defy Kaliam’s orders, to refuse to attempt the mission for which King Eliam has chosen us—that I cannot do.”
Antoinette’s shoulders fell. She had thought that Aelic would refuse, but hearing him say it still crushed her. They stared at each other for a long moment before Aelic turned to leave the balcony. “Aelic, wait,” she said. “You won’t—”
“I will not tell Kaliam,” he replied. “Not tonight. I will wait and see what the morning brings. I am still hopeful that you will search your heart during the night and change your mind. But if the dawn finds you not among us, I will tell Kaliam everything.”
Antoinette slowly closed her chamber door. Lady Merewen had not stirred for a long time, but still Antoinette did not want to risk waking her. She crept up the torchlit hall, padding barefoot on the cold stone floor. She passed Kaliam’s chamber, Tal and Sir Oswyn’s, the others’. But when she walked by the room where Aelic, Nock, and Mallik slept, she felt the tugging of guilt. Well, she did search her heart, she rationalized. But she had promised Aidan, and she refused to go back on her word.
Her first stop was a small anteroom near the balcony. She had left her boots there and stashed some waterskins, as well as food she had pilfered from the feast. She sat on a bench and looked into the satchel. Cheese, dried meat, a little bread—it was all there. She tugged on her boots and was off.
Earlier, she had scouted the castle and discovered the pens for the white dragons on the lower level. Their pens are really set up like an airport, Antoinette had thought. The dragons step to the edge of the platform and, whoosh, they are gone. Just like that. The pens had been busy too. Dragons were coming and going the whole time Antoinette watched, but she hoped that it would be quieter now in the wee hours of the morning. She wondered if there was a guard assigned to the pens all night long. She hoped not. There were other worries as well. For one, Antoinette had never ridden on the back of a dragon. She had no idea what she would do if they did not respond to the leg commands and reins like horses and unicorns. And supposing she did get a dragon off the ground and escape into the night, she wasn’t altogether sure how to get to Baen-Edge. It was east of Yewland, and the Forest Road led to it more or less directly. If she could eyeball the road from the air, she reasoned, then she could find Baen-Edge. Easy, she thought. Yeah, right.
She trotted quickly down a spiral staircase and became a little disoriented for a moment. The door to the pens was supposed to be right at the bottom of the stairs. But no pens. Just a long hallway. She stared back up the steps and wondered how she could have gotten lost. At last, she realized what must have happened. She had missed the central stair in the upstairs hallway and wound up taking the stair at the end of the hall. She figured the door to the pens must be just farther up. And as she walked, the unmistakable scent of dragon pens made its presence known.
Antoinette found the pens and entered. No guards—so far, so good. She sat on a bench and started to double-check her satchel when—
“I thought I might find you here,” came a voice from behind.
Antoinette jumped up, her hand going to the hilt of her sword. A tall, cloaked figure came out of the shadows. The figure lowered a dark burgundy hood, revealing long silver hair that rested upon her shoulders like layers of silk.
“Lady Merewen!” Antoinette gasped. “How did you—”
“How did I know you would come to the dragon pens in the middle of the night? Is that what you want to know?” Lady Merewen laughed.
Antoinette nodded. “Aelic didn’t tell you, did he?”
“Nay,” Lady Merewen replied. “He did not need to, for you gave yourself away. What else was I to think when you kept staring at that strange little picture—the one you pulled from the book—during our most recent visit with Queen Illaria? And the look in your eyes screamed of disappointment when Kaliam told you we would not go to Baen-Edge. Instead of enjoying the feast like the rest of us, you were out exploring the castle—at least I thought that was you I saw. But the decisive clue was that you wore your armor to bed! You have much to learn about being stealthy.”
Antoinette sighed heavily. “So what will you do now? Turn me in?”
“That depends upon your reasons for wanting to go to Baen-Edge,” Lady Merewen replied. She sat on the bench and motioned for Antoinette to sit next to her. A white dragon in the nearest pen woke up and peered with sleepy eyes over the gate at the late-night visitors. “Tell me now,” said Lady Merewen, “what is so pressing in Baen-Edge that it cannot wait until we can return with the King’s full armies?”
Antoinette reached into a leather satchel and removed the photo of Robby. She handed it to Lady Merewen. Then she explained everything about Robby’s Glimpse and her promise to Aidan to help if she could. Lady Merewen nodded when Antoinette was finished.
“And so you fear any delay could have dire consequences for Aidan’s friend?”
Antoinette nodded. “I have to do this,” she said.
“Well, now that I have heard your tale,” Lady Merewen said, “I will not stand in your way. But I will tell you what I think. In spite of your noble motives, I believe it is still a rash thing that you do. You will be flying into deadly peril, for Baen-Edge is a foul place, one of Paragor’s chief trading partners. It is full of ruthless brigands. Villains from all over The Realm buy and sell illegal wares there. And Baen-Edge is notorious for its slave trade—I can only imagine what price you might bring since you are not Glimpse-kind.”
Antoinette shuddered.
“If this Kearn is as close to Paragor as you say he is,” Lady Merewen continued, “you will find it nearly impossible to gain an audience with him. And even if you do, he will not change allegiances easily. For he will not want to give up the power.”
“What do you mean?”
“Glimpses serve Paragor for many reasons,” Lady Merewen explained. “But chief among them are fear and power. Those who join the enemy out of fear can be turned. Fear of harm, fear of pain, fear of loss, fear of loneliness—all fade in the radiance of King Eliam’s enduring love. They need only to learn that servants of Alleble are never alone!”
“Is that why you renounced Paragor and came to Alleble?”
Lady Merewen nodded. “It is, and I will never look back. But for those who crave power, the transition is far more difficult. If Kearn is one of these, he lives to control others—to rule over them. He finds meaning only if he is superior. And if he needs to enslave, torture, or kill Glimpses to establish his power, then he will do it. Powermongers of this kind have never been loved, and so love means nothing to them. If Kearn is one of these, then he feeds upon the fear of others.”
“How can I reach him then?” Antoinette asked.
“You may not be able to,” Lady Merewen answered. “That is why I urge you to reconsider your course of action. Do not go, Antoinette. Trust that King Eliam’s plan for you is the right one. And wait to see what is in store.”
“I’m going,” she said.
“Very well,” Lady Merewen replied. She handed a bundle to Antoinette. “Take this then. It is a fine hooded cloak, the finest from Alleble’s market. It is light in weight, but sturdy against the wind—and prying eyes that would wonder about the color of your skin.”
Antoinette stowed the bundle in her satchel and took a very deep breath.
Lady Merewen smiled sadly at Antoinette. “You are resolved, I see,” she said. “I say this to you then. Seek a notch in Kearn’s prideful armor. Find a way to make him trust you—even if that means you have to cut off one of his arms! Often those who use force will respect only force.”
Antoinette nodded. “I will try,” she said. “But, uh, there’s one more thing. Do you know how to ride a dragon?”
Lady Merewen laughed. “Of course, and so do you! They will respond to your commands just like the unicorn. But remember to squeeze with your knees and feet. Do not kick.”
“Why?”
“A sharp kick to a well-trained dragon means to loose a stream of fire!”
“Oh,” Antoinette replied. “Good to know that.”
