Queen Istaria paced the stone floor of the palace, the soles of her polished, delicately crafted slippers clicking rhythmically. Though it was bitterly cold, her face was flushed, and she had cast off her thick robes. For a moment, she was too angry to speak. Finally, she flung a heavy crystal decanter at the mage seated on the floor. It shattered on the ground only a meter from the man, spraying fragments of glass in all directions. The symbolic act wasn’t as satisfying as she had hoped it would be. What Istaria really wanted was to hurt him, to make the man bleed, but doing so would only cause him to drop his link to the Azure Scorpions, and she had more to say to them before that happened. So, she managed to curb her temper, if barely. She could, of course, simply make the connection herself, but she preferred not to invite an assassin into her head, not when she could order someone else to do it for her. Finally composing herself, Istaria turned back to address the guild master.

  “How,” she snarled through ruby red lips, “could you have let her escape not once but twice!? You assured me that this would be done by now. You assured me that the money I paid you would not be wasted. And still, I am disappointed. How can one servant girl evade an entire guild of trained assassins?! Can you tell me that?”

  Her fists clenched so tight that her long nails bit into the flesh and dark, viscous blood ran across her palms, dripping onto the stone below her. Istaria ignored it. After a short pause while he relayed her message, the mage spoke.

  “Your Majesty, you must understand,” he repeated the words verbatim, trying to match the tone and inflection precisely, as he had been trained. “This is not merely a servant girl. We believe she is being assisted by the Maaskalan government. It has complicated matters significantly. But I give you my word, we will complete this task. We just need a little bit more time to adjust to the changed circumstances.”

  “Your word, is it?” Istaria’s voice dripped disdain. “Forgive me if I do not find that especially reassuring, Guildmaster. I want something more concrete.”

  “I am afraid I do not know what else you want me to do.”

  “You?” she snorted. “I don’t want anything else from you. I will be sending some of my own people, immediately. From here on out, your assassins will work with them and follow any orders my people give.”

  “I really do not think that that is necessary,” the assassin protested.

  “And I really don’t care what you think is necessary. I need the woman back, now, and I will do whatever it takes to make that happen. You will meet my people at the border, you will get them into the country, and you will fulfill our agreement. Do you understand?”

  “Frankly, no, I don’t understand. Why is one slave worth all this trouble?”

  “That is none of your business. Just do as I say or resign the job. It is your choice.”

  “We do not resign jobs, Majesty,” the man sighed. “It will be completed as per your request, then. I will arrange for your people to get across the border. We will work with them to retrieve Jade and send her back to you.”

  “I am very glad to hear it. I warn you not to disappoint me again,” Istaria severed the link by jamming the pointed toe of her slipper into the mage’s stomach.

  The man gasped, doubling over in pain and losing the connection the instant he lost his focus. Normally, that would cheer her up, but not today. Today it would take more than one bleeding servant to improve her mood.

  “Incompetence. I am surrounded by incompetent fools! She is just one woman! How hard can she be to find? You,” she gestured at the closest servant, who instinctively flinched away from her. “Bring me V’arret. Now.”

  Istaria sat and massaged her temples. This was not how her new rule was supposed to be going. She was not supposed to be throwing tantrums like a child in her own throne room, but she was starting to get desperate. Because, above all else, there was one thing that was never far from Istaria’s mind: her current power was not really her own. It was a gift, a gift from her Master. If she could not prove that she was worthy, if she could not perform even this simple task, she knew that He would find someone else who could. It had taken her many long years to gain his trust, many long years to work her way up to this position, the one she had always deserved. But it could all slip away from her in an instant. Istaria could not afford to fail.

  “Majesty?” the voice broke her reverie and Istaria looked up sharply.

  “V’arret, good,” Istaria rose, standing over the kneeling man. “I require something from you.”

  “Anything, my Queen,” her mage commander bowed his head low.

  He was one of Istaria’s most reliable men, having been in her employ long before she became Queen. Istaria knew that she could trust him, when all others failed.

  “I need you to gather a small team of mages that can leave immediately for Maaskal. The assassin’s guild I hired has not been able to retrieve my property. I need you to go and bring her back, alive.”

  “A team, Majesty?” he looked up, puzzled. “Is that really necessary?”

  “Necessary or not, it is what you will do. I cannot stress enough how much I need Jade returned to me, V’arret.”

  “What exactly is this girl? Is she really so important?”

  “I’m sorry, V’arret, I wasn’t aware I had to explain my actions to you,” she fixed him with a cold stare.

  “Apologies, Majesty,” V’arret dropped his forehead back to the cold stone, supplicant. “Of course you owe me no explanation. I just thought the information might be useful in her apprehension. I did not mean to question you.”

  Istaria pressed her fingers into the corners of her eyes, trying to quiet her pounding head,

  “I understand, V’arret. Thank you for being thorough. But who she is, and her importance, will have no effect on your mission. She is just an escaped slave, being harboured by an enemy nation. Do whatever you have to do to find her and retrieve her. Kill anyone who tries to stop you. If anyone hides her from you, do not hesitate to take them to Cyarian,” Istaria paused as V’arret’s eyes widened. “I mean it when I ask you to do whatever is necessary. Will that be a problem?”

  “No, my Queen,” V’arret raised his eyes to meet hers. “I will do what you command. I will bring her back, whatever it takes.”

  Istaria smiled, making sure that he knew his pledge had pleased her. She knew the effect that had on him. The effect it had had on many men before him. Istaria placed a gentle hand on the side of his face.

  “I need you, V’arret,” the hint of a tear glistening in her eye.

  “Do not worry, Majesty. I promise that I will not fail you.”

  “I know that you won’t,” she caressed his cheek gently. “Now, hurry. Time is of the essence.”

  V’arret rose,

  “I will gather my men and leave immediately.”

  “I await your return, my knight,” she purred.

  V’arret turned on his heel and left the throne room. Istaria watched him walk away, an amused smirk dancing across her features. His infatuation was not lost on her, but she allowed it to continue because it was convenient. V’arret was only a mediocre mage, not a great talent by any measure, but he was fiercely loyal to her and that was what really mattered in a situation like this. If she asked him, she was sure that he would die for her. Just the thought of it made her heart race with excitement; it would be such a thrill to watch him lay down his life for her. She hoped that she would be present to enjoy that, eventually. But for now, he was more useful to her alive, so she would leave such thoughts for another day. After all, there were plenty of other things to occupy her mind. With all the distractions, she had been neglecting her main duty, which was preparing her army for war. With someone reliable handling this situation for her, she was now free to return to her main task. Istaria rang for a servant,

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  “Summon my generals,” she instructed. “I expect everyone in the war room immediately.”

  The woman scampered off to fulfill her orders. Istaria rose, collected her robes from the ground and headed for the war room. There was a lot of work to do, and the first order of business would be replacing Avrinly Carayn as her advisor. Recent events had made it abundantly clear that she was not equal to the task. Hopefully, this was not a sign of things to come.

  **

  Av’ry was beginning to get concerned. It had been 2 days since he had broken the news to Jade, and though she had initially appeared to take it well, in the time since she had withdrawn. It had gotten so that he could barely coax a sentence out of her. Mikiva, for her part, was being equally stand-offish with Jade. Afraid to trust her too far, now that her origins were so uncertain, Mikiva was not being very sympathetic to the other woman’s situation. Av’ry didn’t really know what to think about who Jade used to be, but he did know that the woman she was now was hurting. He wanted to help her. But he didn’t know how to do that. So, the three of them simply sat, pouring over old books, trying to pretend everything was fine. Av’ry was just reaching for another volume when K’ivin appeared in the doorway and beckoned for Mikiva. Another of their chats, it seemed. That was happening more frequently, of late. Alone with Jade, Av’ry decided to try and talk with her, one more time. He moved to sit next to her on the sofa and she looked up from her book,

  “Can I help you with something?” she asked.

  “Jade, don’t you think we should talk about it?”

  “What is there to talk about?” she dismissed him.

  But he wasn’t going to let it go so easily this time.

  “You know perfectly well,” he retorted. “So how about you share it with me?”

  “That probably isn’t a good idea,” Jade sighed. “In fact, it is probably better if you avoid spending time with me altogether. I could be a traitor, for all you know.”

  “Ah, you heard all that, did you?” Av’ry cringed internally.

  Her behaviour had caused him to suspect that she had listened in on his conversation with Mikiva that day, but he hadn’t been certain. At least it explained why she was so upset with them.

  “Yeah, I heard. My origin is uncertain. I can’t be trusted,” she slammed her book down on the table. “Right?”

  “That isn’t fair, Jade,” he protested.

  “No, that’s the problem, it is perfectly fair,” Jade rubbed her hands over her face. “Under the circumstances, I’m not sure I trust me either.”

  And there it was. She wasn’t angry with them for suspecting her, she was afraid they were right. He could see it in her eyes.

  “What do you do, if you find out that you don’t like the person you were?” she asked softly.

  “If?” Av’ry laughed sardonically. “You join the club.”

  Jade raised an eyebrow.

  “Few people live their lives without regret or shame,” Av’ry elaborated. “In fact, ask anyone, I bet they all have moments that they would rather forget, if they could.”

  “Rather forget, huh? I wonder,” Jade chewed her lip, “Part of me thinks that it’s worse this way. Better to know than to have to wonder.”

  “And the other part?” he prompted.

  “Thinks I’m better off not knowing. Because what if I find that I can’t live with who I used to be? Istaria is a tyrant, a cruel and dangerous woman. If I was close to her… involved in her schemes… What does that say about me?”

  “If it helps, I think you know a lot more about yourself then you believe.”

  “What do you mean?” she seemed puzzled.

  “Think about it for a minute. Everyone knows you don’t act like you should, based on your known history. So, who do you act like, do you think?”

  Jade smiled crookedly,

  “I guess I see your point.”

  “Look, all I know is that who a person is runs deeper than just their collective memories. You can’t erase it so easily. If you want my opinion, you are essentially who you’ve always been, just somewhat… lost. If and when you regain your memories, I doubt you are going to suddenly transform into some other person.”

  “And if you are wrong?”

  “What, you mean if you regain your memories only to discover you were some sort of soulless monster who turned over a new leaf thanks to all the wonderful people you’ve spent time with since then?” he retorted sarcastically.

  “Well, it sounds ridiculous when you put it that way,” she sighed. “But humour me.”

  “If I am wrong, and you don’t like who you find on the other side of that wall, then be someone else,” he shrugged.

  “That simple, huh? Just, be another person?”

  “Not necessarily another person. You can be who you are now. I mean, people change all the time. You’ve just got a head start on it.”

  Jade laughed,

  “I guess I must sound a little paranoid, eh? Jumping to the worst-case scenario like this.”

  “Maybe a little,” he chuckled. “But it seems to me you are just being cautious. Hope for the best, guard against the worst, right?”

  “It’s a bit sad that I need to guard against myself,” she replied.

  “Well, once you know everything, you won’t need to, right? And I will do whatever I can to help. I promise.”

  “Thanks, Av’ry,” she smiled, clapping him on the shoulder. “I appreciate the thought. But don’t let my problems distract you. You have much more important things to worry about right now, after all.”

  Av’ry sighed deeply,

  “Well, it is thanks to you that we’ve actually made some progress there. We finally know the name of the artifact,” Av’ry took her lead and changed the subject. “That journal was an invaluable find.”

  “Yeah, well, it would have been better if it had given us more than a name to go off of,” Jade grumbled. “I mean, all it really told us was that the only artifact they could be after is called ‘The Dawn’s Blood’. That isn’t much, is it? No description, no idea what it is used for, no clue as to where it is now. All it tells us is that it existed, and that it was looted from the draconic ruins. We really aren’t much further ahead than we were to begin with.”

  “Those tomb raiders probably didn’t write what the object did because they had no idea themselves,” Av’ry chuckled. “But the name gives us a place to start, at least. So that we could go back to the books, try to find more records on the relic. B’elitz and Bareina must have sold it, maybe we can still find who bought it, where it went after that. We can try to track it now, to its modern-day owner. Just because we haven’t found anything yet…”

  Jade rubbed her neck, clearing her throat uncomfortably.

  “I take it you don’t like that plan?” Av’ry raised an eyebrow quizzically.

  “No… not really, I’m afraid,” Jade replied hesitantly.

  “Why not?”

  “Well, I have been thinking about this for a while now,” she said slowly. “And here is the thing: how long do you think it will be before all-out war?”

  “It’s hard to say,” Av’ry mused. “But all the signs indicate it is close, very close. If nothing changes, I’d say a few weeks, maybe a month if we are lucky. Why?”

  “A month, eh?” she shook her head. “That’s the problem. Our friends in the royal palace have been working on this for over 2 years now, Av’ry. How exactly do we plan to catch up in only weeks following evidence that is centuries old? In fact, even catching up isn’t enough, we would need to actually find the thing, a feat that, by all indications, they haven’t managed in all these years.”

  “So, what are you saying, Jade? That we should give up?”

  “Perish the thought,” she dismissed him with a wave. “But I am suggesting that, even though we found the book, we may still need to take the shortcut we talked about.”

  “Which shortcut is that, again?”

  “The one we discussed the night I retrieved the journal, remember?”

  In truth, he had been so focused on the journal and everything that had come with it that he had nearly forgotten.

  “You mean giving up the relic hunt and hunting Istaria’s people, instead?” Av’ry recalled.

  “Exactly,” she smiled. “All we have to do is find some of their agents and have them give us a little synopsis of what they’ve found. We could save ourselves years of research.”

  Av’ry nodded,

  “And now that we know the name of the artifact, we should be able interrogate them properly about it. But how do we find the right people? I doubt Istaria is sharing this information with just anyone.”

  “That's the beauty of this plan. They will be here, easily accessible. From what we've seen, this object is important to them, and they are actively seeking it. There is no way that they are just sitting on their hands now. Someone will be around, looking for it, discreetly.”

  “What’s to say that we aren’t too late? Maybe they’ve already found it.”

  “Nope, then there would be no need for this precipitous war,” Jade reminded him. “Whatever this Dawn’s Blood is, they are getting impatient, and they are ready to risk everything for it. Because make no mistake, even though they are nearly guaranteed to win the war, it will be costly and there is risk involved. Once Istaria begins open aggression, all bets are off. And once she takes the empire, she will likely have some trouble holding it. Obviously, they want this badly enough to risk it.”

  “Ok, I’ll believe that. But how does that help us? We don't know where to find the people looking for the object any more then we know where to find the object itself. We are back to the same problem.”

  “Not quite,” Jade leaned back, tenting her fingers. “Like I said, it is much easier to chase down a flesh and blood human than a centuries old legend. We can use the information we do have to identify where they would have started and track them from there. And at least we know what they are looking for, now. So, where would you go, if the books weren’t enough?”

  Av’ry thought for a moment,

  “Well, it would make the most sense to go to someone familiar with the area and with the subject matter. Likely a historian, specializing in the draconic age and the related artifacts. Obviously, given the illegal nature of that work, those researchers stay underground and are somewhat difficult to find,” he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “But that might help us, because it also means there aren’t too many to choose from. I have some friends I can reach out to, ones who can make introductions for us. If we talk to the experts, I bet we can get a lead on our targets.”

  Av’ry was slowly beginning to come around on this plan. It might actually work.

  “Perfect,” Jade looked more enthusiastic than she had in days.

  Jade rose from her seat and stretched.

  “Well, I am suddenly starving,” she announced. “I’m going to go grab a sandwich. I don’t suppose that will give you enough time to find us a contact?”

  Av’ry chuckled and shook his head. Jade sighed in mock frustration and headed for the door.

  “You want something while I’m in the kitchen?”

  “I could eat. Whatever the cook has lying around is fine, I’m not picky.”

  “Alright. I’ll be back,” Jade slipped out into the hall, closing the door behind her.