Chapter 29: The Founding of the Alliance Part 5: Goldpaw Joins the Alliance

About an hour later, Ya Ya reappeared wheeling a trolley laden with eight large bowls which were all covered to keep the contents warm, eight pairs of chopsticks, eight drinking glasses and a number of golden jugs of water and juice. "Master Pugnacious will join us shortly," she explained. "He is just getting changed into more formal attire."

And so he did, reappearing in his silk robes after Ya Ya had finished laying the table, and took a seat. "Now," he declared. "Let us eat."

Roland removed the cover to reveal the contents of the bowl; Noodles with mixed vegetables and slices of meat in a broth soup. It looked as delicious as it smelled and hopefully tasted. He eyed the chopsticks and inwardly sighed; He did not have much experience with using them, and so glanced at the others out of curiosity to see how they were faring. The others were picking up their own and examining them in confusion or fascination, or were watching Pugnacious and Ya Ya eat in order to gain a better understanding of how to use them. Lofty had forgone the chopsticks entirely and was noisily and eagerly slurping up the noodles directly from the bowl, leaving the higgledies free to examine his chopsticks for their own interest.

"Lofty!" Aranella scolded.

He stopped. But instead of apologising, he grinned and declared. "Delicious, mun!"

She shook her head but quickly decided to drop the issue over his lack of manners, instead moving swiftly onto another. "Our apologies, Master Pugnacious, but I'm afraid we are rather uneducated on the use of these particular eating utensils."

"Oh," Pugnacious realised belatedly. "But of course. My apologies for being such an ignorant host." He gave them a demonstration on how to correctly use the chopsticks. Evan and Aranella struggled with them, while Batu and Tani took to them surprisingly well, while Roland only managed as well as he did due to previous – if limited – experience. But Pugnacious patiently continued to tutor them all until eventually they were all eating. Lofty on the other hand lacked any fingers with which to hold them and so continued to slurp the noodles from the bowl.

Evan's face lit up immediately after taking his first mouthful. "This is delicious!" He exclaimed, a compliment the others echoed with similar enthusiasm.

"As I said, Master Pugnacious is an excellent cook," said Ya Ya.

"He sure is mun!" Lofty agreed.

Pugnacious inclined his head in gratitude. "You are too kind."

"Out of curiosity, where did you learn to cook?" Roland asked.

"I took a job when I was but thirteen years of age in a noodle shop, in order to help support my family. My main responsibility was cleaning the dishes, and the shop as my small stature at the time allowed me to access hard to reach places. But I expressed a desire to learn how to cook, so the owner's daughter took it upon herself to teach me."

"That was kind of her," Aranella remarked.

"Indeed. But that is enough about me. King Evan, you wish to forge an alliance between our two kingdoms do you not?"

"I do," Evan confirmed.

"Then we will need to discuss the terms and conditions of a treaty."

"Actually, we already did that," said Tani. "Took us nearly all day as well, so I hope it's good enough."

"We took the liberty of drawing up a preliminary version," Roland elaborated. "We're calling it the Treaty of Alliance, but we'd appreciate your input."

Pugnacious blinked. "Ah. How efficient of you. Very well," he held out a hand, "if we may see the treaty for ourselves?"

"Of course." Evan retrieved the document from his armsband. As he was sitting next to Pugnacious, he then simply handed it over. Ya Ya, who was sitting on Pugnacious' other side, leaned in for a better look, and he held the document so that they both could read.

"Fascinating," Pugnacious commented of Roland's handwriting. "Is this Sky Pirate script?"

Roland exchanged looks with Tani and Batu before replying. "Uh. Yeah. It was so the Sky Pirates could read it. And the Dellian translation was for Evan and Aranella."

"Yes, that is quite understandable." He and Ya Ya lapsed into silence and their expressions became one of deep concentration as they turned their attention to reading each part of the treaty carefully and in full. "Well, these terms and conditions are not unreasonable," he spoke at length. "But I feel they could benefit from further refining."

"I figured as much," said Roland.

Once they had finally finished negotiating the terms to their mutual satisfaction, the treaty was declared to be complete. And once they had all finished eating and had placed their chopsticks across their empty bowls, so was lunch. Pugnacious wiped his face and hands with a napkin before standing. "Now that we have finalised the treaty, such an important document requires official documentation," he said. "Since you do not have the necessary resources, please allow me," he placed a hand on his chest, "to do the honour."

While Roland, Batu and Tani all looked confused at exactly what he meant by that, Evan and Aranella did not. "That would be most kind of you, Master Pugnacious," she said.

"Gosh, I've never seen an official document being crafted before," said Evan.

"Nor I," Aranella confessed.

"Uh, same," Roland added.

"What he said," Tani agreed.

"Aye."

"Higgle."

"Then today shall be your first," Pugnacious replied. "If you would all please follow me."

Roland looked to Batu and Tani, who shrugged in reply, looking just as confused as he did. But instead of voicing their confusion, they wordlessly followed; Exactly what the discussion was over was going to become readily apparent in only a short time. Pugnacious lead them down the hall to his office. He took out a blank scroll, a quill pen and a pot of what Roland assumed to be some kind of ink, except it was a strange silvery white instead of black. The parchment was wrapped around and already attached to an umbicilus made of gold with a turquoise gemstone set into each end. They all watched in fascination as he sat, rolled back his sleeves, dipped the quill into the silvery liquid and began to write. Roland could've sworn he watched the man write out an entire essay's worth of writing, yet not one word remained visible on the page. Instead the words seemed to give shape to the document itself. A border appeared on the paper, then a header, then a decorative background in the shape of an elaborately formed wheel with a sun at its centre. He paused in his work and held out a free hand. "Your copy of the Treaty of Alliance if you'd be so kind, so that I may transcribe it into the document."

"Of course." Evan retrieved the Treaty from his armsband and handed it over.

Pugnacious spent another few minutes in silence broken only by the sound of quill on paper as he transcribed the terms and conditions of the revised Treaty of Alliance onto its official documentation. When he was done, he set the quill down and stood. "The crafting of this document will be complete open the receipt of the first signature; That would be yours, King Evan. Simply touch your Royal Item to the document," he gestured towards said document, "and the enchantment will be finished."

"All right." Evan drew out his Royal Wand. He took a breath. "Here goes." He gently touched the tip of the wand to the document. Everyone – with the exception of Pugnacious – jumped back involuntarily, and the higgledies shouted when the wheel sprang from the page. A flower like pattern appeared, as if taking on the role of one of the spokes of the wheel, and then within the flower something else took form; A stylised eastern dragon with swept back antlers and long, trailing whiskers, coiled into a shape resembling the symbol for infinity. The wheel returned the page as they puzzled over the significance. Was this Lofty's insignia? Why was it a dragon? What did that mean?

"Lofty?" Aranella asked as Pugnacious rolled up the document and placed a golden seal over it. "What is that?"

"What's that, you say?" Lofty repeated, looking very smug indeed. "You remember I said I could become much grander than what you see hyur when the kingsbond reaches a certain threshold, right?" He grinned as he continued. "Well that's my grand form, see. My true Kingmakerly visage, you could say."

"Then you mean to say that you can become a dragon?" Ya Ya asked.

"I can!"

Aranella placed one hand on the side of her face. "Who would've thought?" She said, more to herself than anyone else.

"I can't wait to see you in action, Lofty," said Tani, raising her fists in excitement. "You're going to look proper amazing!"

"Oh yes!" Evan agreed, mirroring Tani's posture.

"Higgle pig!" The higgledies thirded.

"Too right I will!" Lofty added, puffing up in pride. "But in order to reach that threshold, we'll need more people."

"Well, speaking of people," said Ya Ya. "We took in a number of refugees who fled Ding Dong Dell after the coup. They have received news of your appearance in Goldpaw and wish to speak with their King. I would imagine they wish to join you in your new kingdom."

"Gosh!" Evan exclaimed.

"And we would love to have them," said Aranella. "But do you have any idea where we could find them?"

"Yes, actually," Ya Ya confirmed with a nod. "We took down their names as well as their current residence, or place of work if applicable." She pulled out a list. "You will find them at any of these locations."

"Wonderful, thank you," she replied as she took the list and began reading the names.

"The Treaty is now ready for its first official signing," Pugnacious reminded them. "Perhaps once the signing is complete, you could see about tracking them down," he suggested.

"We could certainly do with more people in our kingdom," said Roland. "But we came here for another reason besides the Treaty."

"I have some questions myself, so perhaps we should continue this discussion after the signing?"

"Sure."

"Very good. Here is the completed Treaty, King Evan." He held it out and Evan carefully took the scroll in both hands. "Now if you would all please follow me to the main room." So they followed him out of his office, down the corridor and back into the main room, where he stopped before the Grand High Roller's seat and then explained. "In order for me to sign the document, I need only touch my Royal Staff," he held it up for emphasis, "to your Royal Wand."

"Is that it?" Lofty asked.

"Yes," he nodded, "that is all the signing requires."

"No, no, no, mun," he shook his head vigorously in rejection. "That's too dull. Too simple. Look," he gestured to the gathering crowd of state employees and soldiers, "we've got an audience watching us, like. You need to say something as well."

"Yeah!" Tani agreed. "Like how you're both going to stand together to protect everyone, or something."

"Higgle!" The higgledies seconded.

"That's right, mun! Let me think now…" He paced up and down muttering to himself for a moment while they all watched on in bemusement. At length he spoke. "Righto!" He pounded a tiny fist into the palm of his other hand. "I think I've got something like." He looked from one to the other. "Are you both ready?"

They exchanged looks. "I am when you are, King Evan."

"Then yes," said Evan with a nod. "We're ready."

"Go on then," said Lofty, gesturing commandingly. "Take out the Treaty now."

He nodded. "All right." The scroll began to glow with a golden light and rose into the air. The golden seal shattered, and the parchment unrolled. Suddenly what was a wordless document became filled with text as line after line of writing in Dellian script appeared one after the other in gold, before setting onto the page in black.

"Dellian script?" Roland asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"Of course," Pugnacious replied. "I saw it fitting to enchant the document in the Dellian alphabet considering King Evan's birthplace."

"Fair enough."

"Righto, Evan. Repeat after me, and raise youer wand. Let our nations be joined for the sake of the world."

"Let our nations be joined for the sake of the world," he dutifully repeated as he held up the wand.

"Now you, Pugnacious; Let us all stand together against the threat now emerged."

"Let us all stand together against the threat now emerged," Pugnacious repeated as he raised his staff aloft.

"Together now; United we stand, to protect the land!"

"United we stand, to protect the land!" They chorused as their Royal Items touched. The wheel sprang from the page, just like it had with Evan's signing. Lofty's insignia rotated to the left, making way for the formation of another flower pattern, this one bearing Longfang's insignia – another stylised dragon with Longfang's mane, scaled wings and three of his five tails. And then it returned to the page.

"It is done!" Pugnacious declared and there was a cheer from the party as well as the onlooking crowd.

"I see the alliance has gone ahead," Ya Pi observed as he joined them, and as the crowd began to dissipate now that the excitement was over.

"Indeed," he replied with a nod. "Goldpaw is now allied with the Kingdom of Evermore."

Roland folded his arms as he said. "This'll very likely be making it onto Leafbook in the new future. Not that King Mausinger is in a position to be making any significant moves against us at the moment, but news of the alliance with your nation will hopefully discourage him from making any future plans." His expression became a mild frown as he continued. "Though I would prefer if we could inform the wider world on our own terms in an official press release, there doesn't seem to be a way to contact the Leafbook Moderator directly."

"Indeed," Pugnacious agreed. "Then it would seem than an announcement to the people of Goldpaw will have to serve as our next best option."

"Sure. I guess we'll let you handle that."

"But this leads me onto my next question," said Ya Pi. "Which is, what do you plan to do next?"

"Precisely the question I wished to ask," Pugnacious agreed.

The party exchanged looks. "Well…" Evan replied before looking to Roland and Aranella for help.

"In terms of the Treaty of Alliance, we were hoping to follow the trail to Broadleaf," Roland explained. "The technology they have-uh, we have there will allow us to investigate Ding Dong Dell."

"Yes, I'm sure they will," Pugnacious agreed with a nod. "But what I wonder, are your plans for Ding Dong Dell?"

"We're still working on that."

He spread his hands in a gesture of offering. "Then perhaps you would allow me to offer you my council?"

"Of course," Evan encouraged with a nod.

"First I must ask if word of the oppression of mousekind is indeed true?"

Evan dropped his gaze at that, so Aranella was the one to answer. "I'm afraid it is."

"I see." He and Ya Ya exchanged looks before he continued. "Then tell me of the previous King, Leonhard Tildrum. What kind of man was he?"

"He was ever so kind," Evan enthused, a fist clutched to his chest. "Not just to me, but to all of his subjects. He wanted to make everything better between mousekind and grimalkin, he really did! That's why he made…" He swallowed and dropped his gaze briefly. "Why he made Mausinger his chancellor, and let mousekind work in the castle. He even let them become soldiers too!" He spread his hands. "So they could help protect the kingdom."

"His Majesty was a good man," Aranella added. "And he tried to mend the rift between the grimalkin and mousekind as best he could, but…" She gave a hopeless shrug. "I'm afraid it was never good enough."

"I see…" Pugnacious stroked his chin with hand as he continued. "So as chancellor, King Mausinger worked closely with King Leonhard before his death?"

"He did, yes. There were many who presumed them to be close friends, such as myself, but after what he did, I'm afraid that friendship has been thrown into doubt."

"Certainly, if King Mausinger was then the one leading the coup against King Evan," he agreed. "Now you said there was a mousekind presence in the castle, more importantly, among the military. Forgive me this next question, but… How many of them participated in the coup?"

Evan averted his gaze again, this time with a droop of his ears, so Aranella was once again left to answer. "It… seemed to be everyone. Or the vast majority at least; I'm sure there were those who did not participate."

Pugnacious hummed and twirled his moustache. "From an outside perspective, I must confess it is difficult to believe the claim that King Leonhard was a good person actively trying to mend the rift between an oppressed people and their oppressors," he spread a hand, "if that is true." Batu and Roland frowned as Evan looked up sharply, and he and Aranella began to sputter protests. "Unless," he cut in, silencing them with a raised hand. "Perhaps this Doloran was involved. And if that is true, that he did in fact have a hand in the instigation of the coup, then as one who has suffered at his hands, I believe King Mausinger should be given the chance to see the light and make amends."

"And if he wasn't?" Roland asked.

"Then in the interest of peace, I believe King Mausinger should be given the chance to state his case. If this all happened without any outside interference, then such extreme actions are rarely done without cause and I have only your word," he gestured towards them, "that King Leonhard was who you believe him to be."

Aranella's eyes narrowed. "What are you implying?"

He shrugged. "I am simply observing that your view of King Leonhard and that of the mousekind, appears to be quite at odds. If King Mausinger worked closely with King Leonhard, and then later came to lead a coup against King Evan, it does not seem that he liked what he saw, and upon King Leonhard's death saw an opportunity for mousekind that would likely not present itself again." He spread his hands again. "Perhaps he even feared King Evan would be much or more of the same?"

Evan's mouth fell open. "But…"

"He did more than just that, Master Pugnacious," she said, her brows knitting together in a displeased frown. "King Leonhard's death was not the whim of fate you see; King Mausinger slowly poisoned him over a period of time in order to make it look like an illness."

Ya Pi folded his arms and frowned. "So he orchestrated the entire affair."

"He did."

"He must've been planning this for some time then," Ya Ya added looking perplexed.

"So it would appear."

"How did you learn of this, if I may ask?" Ya Pi ventured.

"I was able to interrogate one of the soldiers as the coup was underway. He told me everything, or at least everything he knew."

"One of the soldiers," he repeated. "By that you mean, one of the infantry?"

"Yes, that's right."

Ya Pi frowned. "If even the infantrymen knew the truth of King Leonhard's demise, that suggests they were all complicit from the very beginning."

"Indeed," Pugnacious agreed. "But it only serves to strengthen my point. King Mausinger had his reasons for taking such actions, and those reasons may very well be not to your liking."

"I am afraid that I must agree, Miss Aranella. And add that this bodes very ill for King Leonhard's character."

Aranella folded her arms. "You do understand that he tried to take Evan's life as well?" she asked, her expression becoming further displeased. "We were all incredibly fortunate to escape with only minor injuries."

"I am under no such illusions to the contrary, nor does it change anything," Pugnacious replied cooly before turning to Evan. "So what will you do with King Mausinger should you choose not to forgive him? Will you kill him and replace him with someone more to your liking?" He spread his hands. "Even if the people of Ding Dong Dell would accept such a ruler, what gives you the right? You have renounced your claim to Ding Dong Dell have you not? So how could you justify controlling who sits upon the throne of another kingdom? With that in mind I cannot," he shook his head for emphasis, "condone any such hostile action against Ding Dong Dell. Indeed I would be forced to reconsider joining the Treaty of Alliance if such a course of action is taken." A silence fell on the room at these words, as no one knew what to say.

Roland broke the silence at length. "Well… thanks for your input," he said diplomatically. "But like I said, we're still working on it."

"The uncertainty o'the'ole affair be what'oldin' us back fer the most part," Batu added. "That be why we be wantin' te investigate, afore we can be makin' any decisions."

"Then I would encourage you to do so as well as report any findings back to me," said Pugnacious.

"Sure," Roland replied. "But this leads us onto our next issue; Getting to Broadleaf. We don't have a means of crossing the ocean so we currently have no way to get there."

"You are from Broadleaf are you not?" Ya Pi stated more than asked. "How did you get across the ocean to come to be in Ding Dong Dell?"

"Same way Bradley did; I had a boat. But it'll have run out of power a long time ago, and even if it hadn't, it's in the northern Summerlands, which as you know is the territory of Ding Dong Dell."

"Ah, I see," he said, nodding slowly. "Retrieving it would be quite troublesome then."

"Right. So we need another way."

"We have a shipyard," said Ya Ya. "It's a protectorate called Capstan-upon-Hull. You would most certainly be able to purchase a vessel there."

"Yeah, Bradley mentioned it to us. The problem is," he grimaced, "we're kind of low on funds at the moment…"

"I see. Well, Goldpaw will be happy to lend you some money," Pugnacious assured them. "Though considering the current state of Goldpaw," he shrugged apologetically, "I'm afraid it can only be in the form of a loan."

"That's understandable," he replied. "But depending on what the cost ends up being, it may take us some time to pay it back."

But Pugnacious chuckled and shook his head. "You will find that it will be repaid much sooner than you would think."

"Huh?" He exchanged a confused look and a raised eyebrow with Aranella and Batu.

"What d'ye be meanin' by that?" Batu demanded.

He smiled. "You will see." Was all he would say. "But I will also send Ya Ya," he gestured towards her, "to help you negotiate the cost, as well as the terms of the loan."

Ya Ya took a step back in surprise, one hand flying to her chest. "Me, Master Pugnacious?"

"Yes, Ya Ya," he nodded. "I am appointing you as my successor, so you will need to begin taking a more active role in leading the nation. And what better time to start than now?"

"B-but," she sputtered. "But Master Pugnacious," she objected. "The Grand High Roller has always been chosen from those gifted with foresight." She placed a hand on her chest. "I have no such gift!" She shook her head to emphasise her point further. "I'm not even magical!"

"You are mistaken, Ya Ya, as that is not always the case. They are helpful qualities certainly, but neither are necessary for running a country, nor are they qualifications demanded by our Kingmaker, Longfang; It is the quality of your character that is most important."

"He's right mun!" Lofty chimed in. "We Kingmakers want the right kind of person to be our ruler, like, so the type of person someone is, is what we base our choices on. Being magical and the like," he shrugged dismissively, "that's more of an added bonus see."

"Indeed. I had yet to give much consideration on the matter of my successor until recent events, but I have been reflecting on the issue ever since, and your actions the other day," he gestured towards her, "have served to help me decide as to who that will be. You showed great courage when you stood up to me, Ya Ya, when you stood up for the people of Goldpaw."

"But-but that was-" Ya Ya protested.

"You must learn to have courage in other aspects of your life as well. And I am confidant, that given opportunity," he smiled warmly, "you will."

"Indeed," Ya Pi agreed with a nod. "You have the makings of a fine leader in you, Lady Ya Ya, if you would only believe yourself to be capable."

She clutched a fist to her chest. "It's true that I was honoured to be appointed to the role of Second Roller, but…" She cast her gaze downwards as she continued. "Is it really right for me to think of myself as leadership material? When I did nothing to stop you for so long?"

"No-one be wantin' te think ill o'someone they trust," said Batu. "And ye were trustin' Pugnacious a great deal."

"Right. Mistakes are something to learn from," Roland added. "Not beat yourself up with."

"… I suppose you're right…" She straightened her posture in an effort to look – and feel – more confidant, allowing her hand to fall to her side. "Very well, I will… I will do my best."

Pugnacious smiled and nodded. "That is all I ask, Ya Ya." He turned back to the party. "Though I am afraid that getting to Broadleaf is more complicated than the simple acquisition of a vessel, especially since you will be purchasing it from Capstan-upon-Hull, as well as finding the money needed to buy it. You will also need to find a way to cross the great rifts spanning both hemispheres, as the shipyard is sighted on the Rift Ocean."

Roland recalled from the map that the Rift Ocean was the body of water sandwiched between the Northern and Southern Rifts. "Riight… Any ideas where we should look?" he asked.

"The answer lies in Hydropolis. They are rumoured to be in possession of a technology that allows them to cross the rifts – or at least the Southern Rift – at will. If you can persuade its current ruler, Queen Nerea, to join the alliance, then perhaps they can also be persuaded to share this technology, thereby opening the way to Broadleaf."

"So we need to shoot for Hydropolis in order to shoot for Broadleaf in order to learn more about what's going in on Ding Dong Dell?" He summarised.

"Indeed," he nodded before his face assumed a more serious expression. "But a word of warning; The stars of Hydropolis tell of a troubled fate, and I hear that they are not so welcoming of outsiders these days," he said, shaking his head. "I fear persuading them to join the alliance may not be so easy a task."

"I'm sure. But you should let us worry about that."

"Of course," he nodded. "I will trust to your capabilities."

"Since I am to be journeying with you to Capstan-upon-Hull," said Ya Ya. "I will need some time to prepare; As I do not have the luxury of being magically inclined, it will be a four day trip to the shipyard by manticore."

"Manticore?" They repeated and briefly exchanged looks of confusion. "Wait, you mean those huge things,"Tani held her hands wide, "we had to fight on our way down to Goldpaw?"

"Yes the very same," she confirmed with an inappropriately cheerful smile and nod. "Though our stock is taken from the lesser manticores which you may or may not have seen roaming the Calmlands alongside their greater cousins. Perhaps you mistook them for juveniles or cubs? They are smaller in size, not to mention much more docile in nature so were consequently far easier to manage."

She raised her eyebrows as she commented. "This'll be interesting."

"Interesting, sure," Roland agreed. "I don't think any of us have any experience with riding. At least I certainly don't."

"Nor do we," Aranella confirmed.

Batu scratched the back of his head. "We pirates'ave our sky skimmers, but I can't be sayin'ow much that'll help."

"They're not animals," Roland elaborated for the dogfolks' sake. "They're machines."

"I see," Ya Ya replied. "Then you may find that riding a manticore will be like riding a sky skimmer with a personality." Batu chuckled at that. "But we can give you a lesson before we set off for the day. We'll be riding mostly over even ground and in a straight line, so it wouldn't take much instruction."

"All right," Roland nodded. "We may have to stock up on a few things ourselves. Otherwise we have other things to do while we're here, and we'd need to leave bright and early to go to Capstan anyway."

"Indeed. Tomorrow morning then?"

"Sure. Where should we meet?"

"As you are visiting royalty and are therefore my guests," Pugnacious replied. "I invite you all to stay at my personal residence for the evening."

"That's very generous of you, Master Pugnacious." He looked to the others. "How do we all feel about that?"

Aranella folded her arms. "Well… I suppose it would be rude to decline." Evan hummed and nodded his agreement.

"You won't find me saying no," said Tani, gesturing to herself with a thumb.

"Aye," Batu agreed.

"Then we'll be taking you up on your offer," said Roland.

"Very good," Pugnacious replied. "My staff are currently occupied with other matters at the moment. If you have business to attend to in Goldpaw, then depending upon the hour of your return, you may have to prepare the guest rooms yourselves."

"Fair enough."

"What about dinner, mun? And breakfast?" Lofty asked.

"It will be no trouble for me to take up the role of cook once again if needed, but the staff should have returned by then."

"Tidy!"

"There was another reason we came here," said Roland. "As we are now allies, we were hoping this would mean you would grant us access to your library. Assuming it survived the fire that is… And is still open."

"You will be pleased to hear that it did and that you are more than welcome to peruse its contents if you so desire." He gestured helpfully. "Perhaps you may find more information on more, potential allies while you are there."

Tani assumed a thoughtful posture. "Wouldn't the greenlings be a potential ally?" She wondered aloud.

"Aye," Batu frowned and folded his arms, "but it be Niall that we'll be askin'."

"Indeed," Pugnacious agreed. "I fear his answer may not be one to your liking. But I would urge you not to be discouraged." He spread his hands. "He may come around in time."

"I guess we'll see," said Roland. "So where would we find the library?"

"Ah, yes." He paused to rub his chin in thought. "As you are not residents of Goldpaw, it may be necessary for me to write a message to the head librarian informing her that you are to be granted access rights. Hmm. Better yet, Ya Ya," he gestured to the party as he continued, "escort our guests to the library so that you may inform the head librarian yourself."

She nodded. "Of course, Master Pugnacious. If you would all follow me, I will show you the way."

"Thanks. We'll see you tonight then, Master Pugnacious," said Roland.

"Indeed. I will be returning to the city myself to help where I can, until the light is lost. If I am yet to appear by the time you return here, then please make yourselves comfortable in the dining area while you wait."

He nodded. "Will do."

"Very good," said Ya Ya. "The please follow me."

A/N: Pugnacious' rehab continues with having him be the one to forge the document itself, thereby giving him and Goldpaw more relevance to the story, instead of the document being pulled out of nowhere.

Also Pugnacious' council re Mausinger, each of the rulers will be having their own opinion regarding his shenanigans that will hopefully be befitting their character. In Pugnacious' case, given his background, it made sense to me that he'd be more sympathetic to Mausinger's motives and open to hearing him out.

And lastly Ya Ya being lined up as the next Grand High Roller wasn't something I'd actually planned, lol, it was just another one of those things that happened while I was writing. So take that as you will.