"He should have had to before he could even lay a finger on you." Talon lowered her head, ignoring the pain that small movement sent shooting through her neck and shoulders. "I failed you."

"Say that again and I'll beat you up myself." More tears spilled down Shasta's face as she reached out and gently cupped Talon's cheek. "I don't deserve you, Talon. When I think about everything I've put you through...I've been such a child. So selfish and petty. And you still would have died for me." She drew a shuddering breath. "Now Captain Vaughn's talking about war, and revolution, and mustering an army to retake the palace from Kumire. What right do I have to ask anyone to risk their lives for me? To die for me?"

Talon reached out to wipe Shasta's face with her thumb. "Because you're special. You are the Queen of Ithyria now. And who wouldn't want to die for a queen as beautiful as you?" Her tone held a hint of mischief, just enough to break through Shasta's troubled thoughts and put a little grin on her face.

"Look at you, all black and blue and still as big a flirt as ever." The Princess smoothed Talon's hair away from her face gently. "Look, I'm trying to say that I'm sorry. And to say thank you, for staying with me. After Father died, you didn't have to. You could have left at any time, and you didn't."

"It never crossed my mind," Talon replied firmly. "Highness, I know you think I was only looking out for my sisters, but I really do care about you. I want you to know that."

"I do." Shasta gave a small smile. "I knew the moment I saw those tears on your face in my chamber, when Kumire..." She shuddered a little, but ran a finger lightly down Talon's bruised cheekbone. "I'd never seen you cry before."

Talon wasn't quite sure how to respond. She felt like she might be blushing and hoped the heavy discoloration of her face would conceal it. Trying to think of some way to change the subject, she cast her eyes around the dark room and noticed the light scent in the air, a warm blend of incense and earthy smells.

"Princess, where are we?" she asked.

"Verdred Temple. The Honored Mother of Verdred has granted us sanctuary until we can figure out what to do next." Shasta grinned wryly. "Of course, by 'we' I mean Captain Vaughn. He's been plotting and planning nonstop for the past quarter-moon or so, and I don't understand half of what he's talking about."

"Where is he?"

"Probably asleep. It's pretty late."

Talon realized that Shasta had dark circles beneath her eyes. At first she had attributed them to the shadows cast by the lamp at her bedside. But on closer inspection, the Princess looked quite pale and exhausted, and her cheeks were sunken as though she'd lost weight.

"Highness, you should go to bed. You don't look well."

"Ha. I bet I look better than you." Shasta stuck her tongue out and Talon chuckled, then winced as the movement sent sharp, stabbing pains through her lungs. "Besides, I've waited for a half-moon without knowing if you were going to die or ever wake up again. All we could do was keep pouring water and broth into you and hope it would be enough to keep you alive." She straightened abruptly. "Are you hungry? You must be, you haven't had any real food for a long time."

Talon shook her head. Her stomach did feel almost painfully empty, but she couldn't imagine trying to chew or swallow anything at the moment; it was hard enough just to get those small gulps of water down. "No, I'll be fine. I can wait until morning. I'll be here when you wake up. I promise." She made her voice as reassuring as she could. "Go on." Shasta stood reluctantly, but kept hold of Talon's hand, and so gently Talon separated their fingers and pulled her hand away. "Good night, Princess."

"Good night." Shasta picked up the lamp and took a few steps, then paused and turned back around. "Talon?"

"Hmm?"

Her eyes glowed amber in the lamplight. "I..." But for some reason she couldn't seem to finish the thought and finally gave a little shake of her head. "Good night."

Captain Vaughn's face looked like it had gained thirty winters in a matter of days. Lines creased his handsome forehead and gathered deeply at the corners of his eyes, and he seldom smiled anymore.

Talon gazed at her mentor with sympathy. She couldn't imagine how difficult recent events had been for him, feeling the sole responsibility of the kingdom and its Princess on his shoulders. She rolled the mug of tea slowly between her palms. "So after Kumire took the castle, he laid claim to the crown?"

"That's right. Conniving little bastard called a conference with the provincial governors to declare that the palace had been attacked by an army of barbarians from Dangar, and that they'd killed the royal family and ransacked the place until-and get this-Kumire himself rallied the royal guard together and drove them away." Vaughn gave a humorless laugh. "Then he declared that as Queen Talia's nephew and a member of the house of Rane, he was next in line for the throne, and proposed that they pronounce him king."

"But they didn't."

"Not yet. They all saw King Soltran with their own eyes, but Kumire couldn't produce the Princess's body or the royal signet. Kumire's excuse is that the barbarians carried them both off, but there are those among the viceroys who have speculated that perhaps Princess Shasta was taken alive. They're grasping at straws and they know it, but some of them just can't stand the thought of Kumire on the Ithyrian throne and they're trying to delay it as long as possible, hoping for a miracle."

Talon nodded slowly. "So why don't we just find some way to present Shasta to the supportive viceroys? Let them know she's not dead?"

"Kumire's got Ardrenn locked up tight as a tomb. No one going in or out. He says it's for the citizens' own protection, to keep the barbarians from getting in again, but that's bullshit." Vaughn pounded a fist on the table in frustration. "Conveniently enough, the viceroy of Daiban and the viceroy of Striniste, Soltran's strongest supporters, were reported dead in the palace attacks, yet not one of the representatives from the seven northern provinces, all friendly to Mondera, were harmed. It takes a unanimous vote from the viceroys to place the crown on Kumire's head without the royal signet. Right now the viceroys of Olsta, Verdred, and Marinland are all that stand between Kumire and the throne."

Talon slowly exhaled. "And with all of them sealed up in the palace, there's no way to get Princess Shasta in front of them? To prove she's alive."

"Not without putting her in enormous danger, no." Vaughn wrinkled his brow. "The provincial viceroys would recognize the Princess's face-they've seen her enough times-but if we can't get to them, our only other hope would be to appeal to the provincial senates of the five southern provinces. None of those men will recognize her on sight, though. And with the rumors of her death they'll demand proof that she is who we claim she is. For all they know we could be a couple of swindlers with some amber-eyed girl we picked up off the street."

Talon put a hand in the pocket of her trousers, grimacing as the movement sent pain shooting through her still-mending ribs. She'd been healing much more quickly, now that she was awake enough to consume a proper diet and provide her body with the fuel it needed to repair itself. However, she was still in a lot of pain and although much of the swelling had gone down, her fractured leg and ribs were taking longer to heal. She gave a sigh of relief to find that the object was still in her pocket where she had left it. Thankfully her pants had not been torn badly in the fighting, so they'd been folded and set aside until she could wear them again. She held the precious symbol up to Vaughn in the palm of her hand.

"Will this help?"

Captain Vaughn gasped and stood so suddenly that his chair fell over behind him. His eyes fastened on the ring in Talon's hand and he reached out to take it, reverently. "The royal signet. How did you get this?"

"King Soltran gave it to me. Put it in my hand right before Kumire struck." Talon was filled with sorrow as she recalled the King slumped in his study chair with Kumire's dagger protruding from his chest. She watched her mentor turning the signet in his fingers thoughtfully. "Do you think that will be proof enough for them?"

"I think it will be perfect." Vaughn met Talon's eyes. "With this, no one will question Shasta's identity or her claim to the throne." His hand tightened around the ring. "This gives us a glimmer of real hope, Talon. We might just have a chance against Kumire after all."

Shasta frowned curiously at the captain. "So you want me to write letters?"

"That's right. Five of them, one to each of the southern provinces. You need to let the senates know that you're still alive and that you're disputing Kumire's attempt to take your throne. Explain his treachery and ask for the help of their provincial guards, according to your right as Queen. We have to muster an army to retake the palace. It's certain that Kumire won't give up quietly. We're going to have to force him out."

The Princess looked uncertainly at the signet in her hand. It was far too big for her fingers, so she carried it on a leather thong around her neck with Daric's blue feather. "Will you read them over for me? Make sure they sound all right?"

"I'd be honored, Highness."

She twirled the quill in her hand, then dipped it in the ink that the priestesses had provided and made a few marks on the parchment. "But Captain, how will the senates get these letters? I don't think the regular messenger service should be trusted with them, do you?"

"I'll carry them personally, Princess. With your permission, of course."

"It's too dangerous," Shasta protested. "If any of Kumire's supporters catch you with these-"

"I'm the only one you can trust at this point, Your Highness. And I should be fairly safe. My travel route will keep me within the borders of friendly provinces. I should never even have to enter hostile territory."

Shasta was still worried, but she had to admit that Vaughn was right about one thing: he was the only person she trusted who could do this for her. "Very well." She began to write in earnest, filling the parchment quickly with neat rows of script.

When the letters were finished, her hand was cramping from holding the quill for so long. Vaughn looked them over, and with his approval Shasta folded them all carefully, then took the stick of red wax that Vaughn was holding out to her. She'd watched her father seal court documents and letters hundreds of times, but this was the first time she had done it herself. She held the tip of the wax into the flame of a candle until it softened to near liquid, then rubbed a good portion of it onto the fold of the parchment. Before it cooled she pressed the signet into the hardening wax, leaving a clear imprint. Anyone who looked at that seal would know it had been executed by royal hand.

"When do you leave?" Shasta asked as she repeated the process with the other four letters.

"Right away, Princess." He tucked the crucial letters into a small brown bag at his belt. "I'll start with the senate here in Verdred. If I'm successful, the Verdred provincial guard will be sent here to the Great Temple to prepare for battle. I'll send word from the other provinces as I go." He saluted, then spun on his heel.

Shasta watched him walk away with a profound sense of gratitude, but also a steadily deepening dread. There was no turning back now. Ithyria was headed straight for civil war.

Chapter Twenty-One.

"Tell me again that I did the right thing," Shasta said.

"You know you did, Princess," came Talon's calm reply, but Shasta paced in agitation.

"Then why do I feel so guilty? This is war we're talking about, Talon. Captain Vaughn's already taking a huge risk, carrying those letters to the provincial senates, and," she wrung her fingers anxiously, "it's been almost an entire moon without word from him. For all we know, he could have been captured and killed already."

"You're going to wear a hole in the carpet with all that pacing, Highness," Talon gently upbraided her. "Captain Vaughn's not dead. Bad news travels faster than good news. No word means that he's probably right on track with the Verdred senate."

"Or else he's lying in a ditch somewhere."

"Princess," Talon's voice held a hint of amusement, "you have to learn not to be so pessimistic."

"I can't help it." Shasta met her eyes fearfully. "I'm not ready for this, Talon. I have no idea what I'm doing. How can I lead my country into civil war when I know nothing, nothing whatsoever, about battle or strategy or politics? Oh, I wish I'd paid more attention in lessons."

"It's going to be all right, Highness." Talon pulled away from the table slightly so that it wouldn't bump her rib cage whenever she moved. Three half-moons after the battle at the palace, and she was finally able to leave her bed. Her fractured leg had been set in a splint of slender iron bars and tight wrappings, and with the help of a cane, she was able to move around the temple a little. The healer said in another half-moon she would be able to do away with the splint entirely. Her ribs had healed almost completely, though they were still tender, and one of the priestesses had removed the stitches for her. All in all, she was looking much better.

She eyed the Princess sympathetically. "Anyway, that's why you have me, isn't it? Luckily for you I always paid attention in my lessons." A glassy tinkle made both of them look toward the beaded curtain across the doorway, and a Verdred priestess entered with a curtsy. "Your Highness, you have a visitor."

"A visitor?" Shasta rose to her feet as a handsome young man in a green military uniform marched into the temple room and gave a sweeping bow.

"You are Princess Shasta Soltranis of Rane?"

"I am." Shasta held out the royal signet suspended from her neck so that he could see it, and his eyes widened as he looked from the signet to her face. He dropped to one knee.

"Your Royal Highness, I'm General Harneth of the Verdred provincial guard. I was sent by our provincial senate in response to your letter."

Shasta clasped her hands with excitement. "You mean Captain Vaughn was able to reach them?"

"Yes. The senate have sent me to verify the captain's claim that you are still alive." He looked up again, surveying her closely. Satisfaction lit his face. "There can be no mistaking the famous amber eyes of Rane. Princess Shasta..." He tugged a piece of folded parchment from his belt and held it out. "This is a message from Captain Vaughn. My orders are to deliver this to you and send word to the senate verifying that you are indeed alive. Praise be to the Goddess, Your Highness, that you are still with us, and may I offer my most sincere condolences on the death of your father. He was a good man."

Shasta did her best to maintain her composure as she accepted the letter and broke the seal. Talon rose to her feet and limped to Shasta's side, leaning heavily on her cane. She looked down at the young soldier intently. "General Harneth, was it? You seem very young to have acquired such a prestigious rank."

"I was fortunate, my lord, to be appointed to my commission at a very young age. I assure you that in spite of my youth I am well equipped to lead the provincial guard of Verdred." He took a closer look at Talon and asked, "Forgive me, my lord, but am I right in assuming that you are Lieutenant Talon, the Princess's personal guard? The one they call the Marvel?"

Talon inclined her head in the affirmative and the young general rose and saluted.

"It is an honor, sir. There's not a soldier in Ithyria who has not heard the stories of your bravery and devotion to our Princess."

"Exaggerated, I'm sure," Talon replied dryly, "but thank you."

Shasta returned her attention to the paper in her hand. "General. I have new orders for you." Her eyes flicked over Vaughn's letter again to be sure she was reading it correctly. "I am invoking my right, as heir to the Ithyrian throne, to call upon the services of the provincial guard for the defense and preservation of my crown. You are to assemble every able-bodied soldier in Verdred and set up a temporary base of operations around the Great Temple. Choose representatives from among you to organize battle training and field exercises and to ascertain what weapons and armor will need to be made to properly equip each man for active combat." She followed the text with her finger. "The men must be battle-ready by the Seventhmoon. When the guard have been gathered from the other provinces as well, I will give the marching order and we will advance on Ardrenn to retake the palace." She inhaled quickly and reread the last line to be sure she was interpreting it correctly. Then she met the general's eyes. "We're declaring war on Chancellor Kumire."

Harneth saluted. "Understood, Your Highness. I will begin right away."

He turned smartly and left the room, the beaded curtain swinging behind him as he made his exit, and Shasta sank back down into her chair with a heavy sigh.

"One province down, four more to go." She handed Talon the letter. "He's on his way to Striniste next."

Talon skimmed the letter quickly, her dark eyes jumping from line to line. "From the sound of this, Kumire's already gathering together his own army from among the northern provinces. Even if we succeed in recruiting all five of the southern provinces to come to your aid, we're still going to have a difficult fight ahead of us. He has the barbarians and the northern provincial guard, not to mention those of the royal guard that he's turned against us." She looked up at Shasta. "You did very well, by the way. Issuing those orders like a true queen."

Shasta gave a short laugh. "Hardly. I read them almost verbatim from the captain's letter."

"It doesn't matter," Talon insisted. "It's more about how you say it than about what you say. You delivered those commands with as much authority as your father ever had." She folded the parchment up again and set it on the table, then squeezed Shasta's shoulder gently. "I know you're scared, Princess, but I believe in you. You've got the blood of kings in your veins. You're going to be just fine, you'll see."

Shasta smiled up at her gratefully.

By early summer, Verdred Temple was completely surrounded by the tents and fires of a military camp stretching for a radius of almost a league. Unlike the royal guard, who were trained in the fine manners and pleasantries of the court, the provincial guard were a much coarser breed. Shasta found their untamed facial hair, rumpled uniforms, rough manners, and boisterous laughter unnerving. She usually avoided stepping out of the temple, preferring instead for General Harneth to come to her when he had updates.

She had grown to like Harneth immensely. He had not yet reached thirty winters, yet he had an aura of strength and confidence about him that suited his hefty responsibilities. He reminded her of Captain Vaughn, with the same friendliness and self-assured manner. He also had a talent for explaining things in simple terms so that Shasta actually understood why the information was important, and she found herself learning more than she'd ever wanted to know about the operations of a military base.

One morning while Erinda was brushing and plaiting Shasta's hair, a loud scuffle erupted outside her window and Shasta was shocked to see two young soldiers engaged in a violent physical altercation, rolling around on the ground while yelling obscenities and throwing punches at one another.

She threw open the window. "What's the meaning of this? Stop fighting at once!"

They looked up, startled, and their mouths dropped open when they realized that the young woman in the window was not an Ithyrian priestess. They might not have recognized Shasta, but they must have known the Princess was somewhere in the temple. Both of them stood and dusted their trousers sheepishly. One of them had something red in his hand that he appeared to be trying to keep away from his companion.

"What's that?" Shasta demanded. "Is that what you two are fighting over? Give it to me." She bent down over the ledge and held out a hand.

The two men exchanged hesitant glances but finally handed over a small apple. "You two are ready to kill each other over a little piece of fruit?" Shasta glared down at them in disbelief. "Get out of here. Both of you. And I don't want to hear another disturbance like that again."

As the two soldiers scuttled off toward the tents, Talon approached to see what the fuss was about. "You shouldn't sit in an open window like that, Princess," she admonished gently. "It's not safe."

"Bah. They weren't trying to hurt me, they were trying to hurt each other. Over this." Shasta handed the apple to Talon. "Come with me. We're going to see General Harneth right now. Foolishness like this should not be tolerated."

Shasta stomped from the room and out the tall, heavy front doors of the temple to the top marble step. There, she paused in confusion. She had no idea where Harneth was in this sea of tents and horses.

Without waiting for Talon to lead her, she hailed the first man who happened to pass by them, an older soldier with a grizzled beard, and asked to be taken to General Harneth.

A pair of watery blue eyes scanned her from top to bottom until they settled on the heavy gold signet hanging from her neck. The soldier gave a little start and bowed deeply. "Your Highness. It would be an honor. Please, follow me."

They wound in and out of several of the tents and cooking fires and passed by a fenced arena where some sort of organized sparring was going on. Next to her, Talon walked with a scarcely noticeable limp; her splint had been removed days ago and her leg was almost completely healed. When they reached a large canvas shelter, supported by tall beams of wood planted in the ground, Shasta saw Harneth sitting at a table inside with several other men in uniform.

They all jumped to their feet and bowed when they recognized their visitor.

Shasta greeted them and took a seat on one of the benches. "Please, sit down. I'm sorry to have interrupted your..." She eyed the plates on the table and her nose wrinkled. "Is this breakfast?" She picked up a fork and poked at the lumpy white substance on one of the plates. "What in the name of the Goddess is that?"

"Rice gruel, Highness," Harneth replied.

"It looks awful."

He chuckled. "Yeah, doesn't taste like much, either, but," he shrugged, "it's standard issue in wartime."

"What do you mean? Surely your soldiers don't like this stuff. Is it good for them?"

"Not particularly. But the provincial guard has a limited budget, and we're already overstretched as it is trying to get proper weapons, armor, and horses for all these men. Ask any soldier out there and he'll tell you he'd rather have a good protective set of armor than a full belly when he marches into battle."