The roar of approval from the crowd nearly deafened Mari.
Sien gestured toward the crowd. “The little one there. The child in red and gray. Come here.”
A man and a woman led out a small girl, all three of them staring around anxiously.
Sien reached into the box held by the still-kneeling Colonel Hasna and brought out a headband of gold with a large emerald set on the front. She looked at it, then at Mari. “The mundane crown of Tiae is a simple, straightforward thing, is it not? Yet despite how light it seems, I expect it will weigh heavily on me.”
Turning to the little girl, Sien offered the crown. “It is for the people of Tiae to crown their ruler. You will represent them, for you are among those who will inherit this kingdom when it has been reborn.”
The princess knelt before the little girl, who with shaking hands and nervous eyes set the crown on Sien’s head.
Sien stood up, adjusting the crown so the emerald gleamed on the center of her brow.
Colonel Hasna stood as well. “All hail Her Majesty Sien, Queen of Tiae by right of blood and right of worth, the choice of her people and the savior of her kingdom!”
The crowd roared again. Sien gripped Mari’s arm, and Mari felt the tremors in the new queen. “Stay with me,” Sien murmured just loudly enough for Mari to hear. “It has been a hard day.”
“Alain and I will stay with you,” Mari said.
“Thank you. Colonel Hasna! One more task for this morning. Find the commander of the Syndari troops in this city and inform him that he has until sunset to have them all aboard their ships and out of our harbor. Post guards to ensure that none of the Syndaris take anything with them that they did not bring.”
* * * *
By the time the rains ended and the land grew firm enough for campaigning again, Mari’s arm had healed. Only a scar remained to remind her of the injury. To her surprise, visions of Marandur came far less frequently in her nightmares. Perhaps Alain had been right that returning there had helped her deal with some of the inner scars of her first visit to the forbidden city.
The Pride had safely reached Pacta. Word came to Mari that Dav was still unable to walk without assistance, but was recovering well with constant attention from Mage Asha. The texts had been offloaded and safely placed within an old bank vault. A few weeks after the Pride arrived, so did a ship from Altis carrying a dozen men and women who identified themselves only as librarians and had with them a letter from Mari authorizing them to copy the texts. Only Mage Alera, Mage Alain, and Mari knew where Alera had delivered that letter along with news of the texts’ recovery.
Other ships had carried copies of one of the technical texts to every country on Dematr as concrete proof that the technology the Mechanics Guild had long monopolized would be shared with everyone. As Professor S’san pointed out, the text also served to demonstrate that even though the technology had been shared, making use of it would still require trained Mechanics, thus reinforcing Mari’s messages that no retaliation or reprisals should be taken against members of the Great Guilds. Mari had carefully chosen a text which dealt with medical devices, to ensure what was in it couldn’t be used against her.
A few more would-be assassins tried the defenses of Tiaesun and failed to reach Mari. Otherwise, the Great Guilds were suspiciously quiet. Mari feared that it was because they were husbanding their strength, but the spies sent to learn more of what the Great Guilds were doing either disappeared without a trace or could find out nothing. New Mechanics and Mages continued to arrive to join Mari, but not in the numbers they once had. Those who were willing and able to leave their Guilds had done so. The remainder were either loyal to the Guilds or unwilling to risk breaking away from them.
Rumors had worked their way west and south from the Empire, offering a distorted version of the recovery of the texts. The people of the Empire were trading stories that Mara the Undying had come out of Marandur again, had threatened the Emperor personally and strode across the waters to cast Imperial warships into ruin before flying into the west. The Emperor had vowed to destroy the Dark One.
Alain and other Mages had been working with some children who showed aptitude in Mage skills, trying to find new, non-abusive ways of sparking the ability to cast spells. There had been no success yet, but some promising signs.
Prince Tien’s body lay in the old royal mausoleum. Queen Sien had told Mari that most of her subjects appeared eager to forget his existence, but she intended to remind them strongly once Tiae’s government had been rebuilt enough to be able to undergo some significant changes.
More rifles came to Tiaesun, along with more volunteers for Mari’s army.
And, as the skies cleared, Mari faced another decision.
* * * *
General Flyn sat down, facing Mari. “Lady, it’s been a hard year and more for you. While others rested, you always had another task ahead, often one requiring personal risk and danger and tremendous physical exertion. Yet the greatest demand on you is yet to come, when the Great Guilds cease trying lesser measures and hurl their utmost forces at you. It would be well if you were rested in body and in mind when that challenge came.”
Mari sat back, blinking eyes tired from going over documents. “What exactly are you suggesting?”
“That we do as we have discussed in the past: send the army on campaign without you.” Flyn held up a hand to forestall Mari’s objections. “You yourself have said numerous times that it is dangerous for the cause of overthrowing the Great Guilds for it to be dependent on one person. If we can show your army that they can work together and fight well without the daughter being there, they will be better prepared to cope if the worst happens.”
“The general speaks wisdom,” Alain said.
“I know he does.” Mari squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them again. “The plan is still for the army to march south to Siadarri and then east to retake Awanat and Trefik before coming west back to Pacta, right? We shouldn’t face anything worse than petty warlords.”
“If handled well, the campaign should go as easily as such things can,” Flyn agreed. “Ambushes would be the greatest danger, but with your Mages scouting ahead on Rocs they can spot such traps before we walk into them. After we return to Pacta, we can quickly refit. We’ve been concerned about being able to free all of the Confederation from the domination of the Great Guilds in one campaign. But if the army sees it can be led by someone other than you, we can enter the Confederation using two columns. You can lead the more powerful one up the coast through most of the major population centers, while I lead the other up the center of the Confederation. With the willing assistance of the Confederation’s own forces, we should be able to free the entire country in one campaign.”
“This is a very good plan,” Alain said.
“I think so, too. But…please let me tell you what I’m thinking,” Mari said. “I’m thinking that I don’t like fighting. I don’t like worrying about myself and my friends dying, and I don’t like having to shoot at other people. And I am tired. I really want to do as you say. And that worries me. Am I inclined to agree because it is the easiest course for me rather than the best thing for our army and our cause?”
“Lady,” Flyn said, “may I be blunt?”
“Always.”
“I think you also fear to leave the task to another. That you want to be on the field because those who were there might not handle things as well as you.”
Mari paused, looking down at her desk. “Yeah,” she finally said. “It’s sort of hard to let go. Which is ridiculous. You’re much better at commanding armies than I am. You’ve got good subordinates. There are good Mechanics to send in place of me or Alli. And if Mage Dav goes he can help with any problems with our Mages. Why do I feel like this?”
“Because you’re human,” Flyn said. “The cause, the army, everything, is your baby. Your responsibility. And because you are Master Mechanic Mari, you do not want to pass off any of that responsibility to others. But you mu
st. Not only to rest yourself, but to prove to yourself that you are the person you have always claimed to be, the one who does not think she is all that special, who does not want power but only that her actions benefit others.”
Mari snorted in self-mockery. “You’re right. I’m starting to like being the daughter in some ways, to think maybe I am… That’s scary. All right. Let’s do it. The army will finish reclaiming most of Tiae without me. I will stay here in the luxury of Tiaesun and take long baths and sleep in a bed every night and not tell anyone what to do.”
“Including me?” Alain asked.
“I’ll try,” Mari said. She laughed. “Oh, it feels so good to have made that decision. I didn’t want to, even though I knew it was right.”
“There will still be danger,” Flyn said. “Assassins will still seek you here. But I believe this is the right decision, even if it is hard for you.”
* * * *
It was harder still the day Mari had to watch her army march past, the soldiers waving at her as she sat astride a horse for the sake of ceremony and waved back. Calu, riding along with some other Mechanics, gave her a jaunty salute. “Don’t get hurt!” Mari yelled at him. “Alli would never forgive me!”
The cavalry and the foot soldiers and the wagons kept going past for a long time. Mari kept waving, hoping that none of these brave volunteers would be hurt, but knowing that some would be. The thought almost made her ride into the column to join them, but she managed to stay where she was. Having Alain alongside her may have been all that gave her the strength to do that.
Afterwards, despite the soldiers of Tiae whose numbers and abilities were now enough to control and defend the capital, the city of Tiaesun felt oddly empty to Mari. Regardless of the nearly constant stream of documents arriving by ship and riders from the north, all demanding her decision and response, Mari felt detached from important matters. And she worried. The limited range on even the newer far-talkers meant she couldn’t stay in touch with her army. They had kept one Mage who could create Rocs available in Tiaesun in case of emergencies, but when word came that a soldier’s spouse was very ill Mari authorized the Roc to fly the soldier home.
She found herself staring at the ceiling one night, unable to sleep.
“You are not resting,” Alain said.
Mari sighed and held him, resting her face near his shoulder. “It’s too hard. I keep thinking of things that could go wrong. I keep thinking I should see my mother to let her know I’m all right, and talk to my father and maybe finally resolve that. I keep thinking I should see the texts again myself. We should head back to Pacta.”
“If it will allow you to relax, perhaps we should.”
“You’re all right with that?” Mari asked, feeling combined relief and happiness. “I know Sien will be unhappy, but—"
The messenger who pounded on their door was out of breath from running. “Lady, Sir Mage, there is a courier from the Confederation.” The messenger paused to catch his breath. “I was told to bring you as quickly as possible.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Mari said to Alain. She threw on her clothes in a rush, but she refused to run as they followed the messenger. Seeing her running would set in motion a flurry of rumors, most of them bad. She had to walk. Quickly, but still in a walk. Anyone watching would think the message was something urgent, but nothing she couldn’t handle.
Mari reminded herself to tell Alain later that she also had learned to create illusions.
Queen Sien was waiting in a small room. With her was a man in the uniform of the Confederation army, his face drawn with fatigue, clothes dusty and sweat-stained. When he laid eyes on Mari he knelt before she could stop him. “Lady, in its darkest hour the Confederation begs the help of the daughter of Jules.”
“What’s happened?” Mari asked. “Get up and tell me.” She helped the man to his feet.
The courier paused, recalling the exact words of his message. “This is an official request from the Bakre Confederation to Lady Master Mechanic Mari, the daughter of Jules. The Confederation and all of Dematr are in great peril. We have discovered that the Empire has reached an alliance with the Great Guilds, in which all will combine their strengths to defeat the daughter. In pursuit of this goal, the Empire has prepared the greatest military expedition in the history of the world, with full backing from the Mechanics Guild and the Mage Guild.”
“That is dark news,” Queen Sien said.
“There is darker,” the courier replied. “The expedition is supposed to sail very soon from the Empire. It will face contrary winds but could arrive at Dorcastle within a couple of weeks. Our spies report that the Empire and the Great Guilds mean to demand the surrender of Dorcastle, and if the city does not yield they will overrun it.”
Alain turned a somber look on Mari. “Even Dorcastle could not stand against such power.”
“No, Sir Mage,” the courier said, “it could not. And if Dorcastle falls, the legions will continue south to seize Danalee before striking at the daughter’s growing army in Tiae. Half of the Confederation would be gone, and the rest exist only at the sufferance of the Empire.” The courier blinked, concentrating his thoughts. “I am also to inform the daughter that the Empire has formally annexed the Sharr Isles, and now has complete control over those islands.”
Mari shook her head in amazement. “The Great Guilds are giving the Empire everything it ever wanted. They must know how hard it will be even for them to control the Empire if it grows that powerful.”
“The Great Guilds must be desperate,” Alain said.
“There is more,” the courier said. “Syndar has gathered forces in secret and intends soon striking at Pacta Servanda and other places along the coast of Tiae. Syndari warships are already positioning to attack shipping and may already be picking off ships traveling between the Confederation and Tiae. That is why I was sent overland with the warning.”
“It is well that General Flyn left sufficient forces at Pacta to defend it,” Sien said.
“The Confederation has just learned all of these things?” Alain asked. “At the last possible moment when we can act?”
“I do not know the whys and hows of it, Sir Mage,” the courier said. “But leaders I believe in told me that the information was true to their best of their knowledge.”
“I believe the why is clear enough,” Queen Sien said. “Who would benefit from Lady Mari hearing that Dorcastle was so threatened? That news would have caused you to strip forces from Pacta and send them north.”
“Leaving Pacta a much easier target for the Syndaris,” Mari said. “So the Syndaris grab Pacta and everything there, while the Empire and the Great Guilds take heavier losses attacking Dorcastle. It’s all good for Syndar. That’s why they leaked the news of the Imperial expedition. But then who leaked to the Confederation the news about the Syndari attack plans? Oh.” The answer had come to her as she asked the question. “It was the Senior Mechanics. The Mechanics Guild would have wanted the Syndaris to hit us in Tiae to keep our forces pinned down while Dorcastle and Danalee fell. But the Senior Mechanics don’t want the Syndaris to get their hands on the technology and weapons at Pacta, even though they probably promised the Syndaris just that in order to get them to attack us. They covertly let us know about the Syndari plans so we’d reinforce Pacta, and then we and the Syndaris would take losses fighting each other while the Great Guilds and the Empire rolled through the Confederation.”
“It is useful when enemies work at cross-purposes,” Queen Sien said. “The selfishness that led our enemies to ally against us has also caused them to betray each other. Unfortunately, both were wise enough to provide the information about the other with just enough time left for us to react, but not enough time to plan and prepare.”
“We know what is coming,” Alain said. “What do we do with this information?”
“Lady Mari,” the courier said, his voice strained, “the Bakre Confederation begs your presence. Without you, Dorcastle will fall, and half
the Confederation will be conquered in short order. Please come to Dorcastle.”
Mari felt a strange sense of inevitability fall over her. It was finally happening. The great battle at Dorcastle that Alain had seen soon after they had met. Everything she had done to try to avoid that battle had failed. “Certainly we will come. If Pacta is threatened, I can’t draw away any of the forces defending it, but the rest of my army will come. It is marching to the east and south of Tiae, so it will take some time to get word to them, and for them to countermarch back here, a week at least, but as soon as they get here…” Her voice trailed off at the despair on the courier’s face.
“Daughter,” the courier said, “the expedition could arrive at Dorcastle at any time. We think there is only a week or two at best before the hammer of the Great Guilds and the Empire falls upon Dorcastle. If the daughter is not in the city, the Confederation cannot sacrifice Dorcastle and a large portion of its army in a hopeless fight. We will evacuate the city and yield it to the Empire. But if the daughter is there, the Confederation will fight.”
Mari spread her hands helplessly. “My army can’t get there any faster, and I can’t pull forces out of Pacta since the Syndaris are planning to attack there.”
“We need you, Lady. We need you in Dorcastle. Without you, there is no hope. With you, we will believe victory is possible.”
She finally understood. They needed the daughter.
Her. Not her army. Her. Against the Great Guilds and the Imperial legions.
Sien was staring at her as if she were seeing Mari for the last time.