"Excuse me?" Atitaya's brows rose and her jaw dropped. "Are you telling you were with Raya last night?"

"Yes? What of it?"

"What of it?" Atitaya repeated the words in a breathless rush, "What of it? Namaari, consider for a moment the fact that the princess of Heart gave you a hickey."

"A hic-" Namaari choked on nothing, "What? No! No! By the dragons no. This is, we had a tussle last night. She threw me into the ground."

"A tussle? Really?"

"Atitaya, what sounds more likely? Raya and I having a fight or her giving me a hickey."

"The fighting would make more sense."

"Thank you. Really," Namaari huffed and under her breath, she said, "A hickey, really." She rubbed at the spot with the heel of her palm.

"But you can't blame me, given how much time you've been spending together."

"What would that have to do with anything?"

Atitaya stared at her blankly for a few moments, "Namaari, really?"

Namaari stared back with an expression just as blank, then she blinked and a red hue crept up on her cheeks, "Does it look like that? Do we look like that?"

Atitaya snorted and just walked away. Namaari went after her, "Atitaya!"

"No, you don't look like that." Atitaya said, "Not with the way you two tiptoe around each other half the time, like you're expecting to step on broken pottery with a misstep. Mostly from your end."

Namaari spluttered.

"You're still trying to apologize for your actions."

"And you still think that's the wrong course to choose."

"The way you're doing it, yes." Atitaya looked at her, "Your words on the past are worthless without actions to change the future."

"Have I ever mentioned how much I detest it when you sound like my mother?"

"Several times."

"I already have one of her. That's enough."

Atitaya snorted, shaking her head.

A servant knocked on the door, "Princess, General, the engineer, and the builders have arrived. And Princess Raya is awake."

"Thank you. Send everyone else in."

Atitaya glanced at her again, "We're beginning without your mother?"

"We had a conversation about it this morning before you were awake. She agrees with me that the vaults could take us out of the red with our costs, but she still thinks searching for the other two is an extravagance we can't afford to put people into without certainly. For now, she's trusting me with the excavation of the one we have found."

Atitaya hummed softly.

"You can't make that sound and not tell me what's on your mind."

Atitaya smiled, "She's trusting you with more responsibility."

"She's just testing me. Like she's always done."

"No. Not like she's always done. She's let you lead before, but she'd also be in this room with you. She thinks you're ready to do this on your own."

Namaari made a sharp sound of disbelief and rolled her eyes, "There are other things to be done. She's not here because she had better things to do than babysit me. It's going to be decades before I'm ready to do this without her."

"You say that Princess, but I think even you know that you're more ready than you're willing to admit."

The door opened, silencing their conversation. Four people entered, bowing to Namaari. She invited them to sit and explained what they'd found and their plans.

"Do you think you'd be able to construct a pump, Sonan?" Namaari asked the engineer.

They rubbed their chin, "It's not a matter of if, Princess. Could I? Yes. Easily. It's a matter of how long it would take me. The entrance you found was some distance from the main chamber, yes?"

"We must have walked, 600 meters, more maybe."

"A system of that length, to build underground. It will take some time." They said, "And there's the issue of materials. That much piping, we're going to need to pull from materials set aside for the expansion."

Namaari shook her head, "Unacceptable. This cannot interrupt the timeline for the expansion."

"That's going to extend the time we need to drain the chamber, Princess."

"I understand that. But the content of that cavern isn't moving. But our people need homes now. That is the priority."

"Understood." They gave a deep exhale, "We could potentially dig straight down to set up the pump. I'd have to calculate where the cavern is in relation to the surface."

"Can you do it?" Atitaya asked.

"Of course."

The conversation continued, Namaari outlining everything that needed to be done, with her people offering their advice on what was feasible or not.

"Princess Namaari, if this is the vault of legend, shouldn't we have diverted our soldiers to guarding it."

"We've already assigned men."

"Yes, but surely protecting this would need more than a few spare soldiers. If the other tribes were to learn of this, there's no doubt they'd come to claim it."

"That's not a worry. No one outside of Fang is aware of it. We'll have it properly secured before anyone else can learn of it."

"The Heart Princess is already aware of it. Who's to say a company of Heart soldiers won't arrive on the morrow, claiming the right to our jade with some factious claim that we're all Kumandra so our treasure is shared."

"We are Kumandra," Namaari said, her voice steady.

"Does all our jade belong to Kumandra?" One asked.

Atitaya glanced at Namaari, keeping her own expression neutral. She could see Namaari's face shift just slightly, a hesitation, as she tensed her jaw for a beat.

"Our resources will go towards helping our people. Make no mistake of that," Namaari said, mimicking her mother's calculated tone, "Now, are you going to continue asking me irrelevant questions not related to the construction that needs to be done? Or are we done here?" Her tone said there was only one right answer and everyone in the room understood what that was.

"We'll begin preparations right away," The engineer said. They stood first, leading the others out of the room.

When the door closed behind them Namaari let out a long frustrated huff, "Now, I do wish mother had been here."

"You handled it well."

"No, I didn't. I danced around the answer."

"True, but you act as if your mother hasn't done the same. Or any ruler before you. But they broach a valid concern. If we share the name of Kumandra now, how much else do we share?"

"I hope you're not expecting an answer from me now," Namaari said as she stood.

"No. But I would be impressed if you did have one."

"You could surprise me and offer a solution."

"No. I couldn't possibly step out of my station. I'm the General. My concerns are with the army and defense of our people."

"Suddenly it's inappropriate for you to step out of your station," Namaari said with an amused snort.

Sensing that Namaari wanted solitude, Atitaya didn't follow her. Namaari preferred to think on her own. She never sought her mother's council, unless she had some semblance of an idea first. She wanted to be able to offer solutions, not just expect her mother to solve the problem for her. When she had something that truly left her in a conundrum there was one of three places she'd retreat to, her room, the archives, or the stables. Today she went to the latter.

But the solitude she was seeking wasn't to be found. Once she was within earshot of the stables she could hear, "I don't know what you want. I, I can't help you. Stop. Please, stop."

Namaari stepped into the stables, to see Raya in-between Tuk Tuk and Seo-Jin. The serlot was curling against Raya, rubbing his cheek against her. She was frozen, every muscle stiff, her hands, trying not to touch him any more than she already was.

"Seo-Jin, calm." Namaari said.

The serlot's ear perked towards her, his whole head following the movement a moment after. With a slow, languid gait, he turned and padded towards Namaari. Namaari ran her fingers through the fur under his neck. "What are you doing, hmm?" She asked him.

"I swear, I didn't provoke him or anything," Raya said, her hands still up.

Namaari laughed, "That wasn't him being hostile. That was him saying hello. Granted, more affectionately than he usually is with strangers. He must remember you helping Atitaya. He's her mount."

"Oh, well if that was a thank you, then, you're welcome, I suppose."

"Did you just want some rubs?" Namaari worked into the thick fur between the shoulders, handing combing down the spine. Seo-Jin started to make a deep rumble in his chest and stretched.

"Usually seeing a serlot that close would spell bad news for me."

"Luckily for you, most serlots are just big softies on the inside. Isn't that right boy? Except for my best girl. You're vicious through and through, aren't you Sinn?"

One serlot still in a stall perked up, yawned, and then settled back down.

"Thank you, Sinn, for proving me wrong." Namaari deadpanned.

Raya chuckled, "So, Sinn is yours?"

"I raised her from a cub." Namaari's pride warmed her voice, "Watch this," She said to Raya, and then barely above a whisper she said, "Sinn, food."

Sinn's head perked up again and this time she padded across the area to Namaari. "You are too spoilt," Namaari said, scratching behind her ear. She opened a barrel with smoked fish stacked up and tossed a few pieces towards Sinn who snatched them out of the air.

She missed one piece and fell near Raya's feet. Sinn turned, following the fish, but stopped a few feet from Raya. Large, intelligent eyes trained on Raya with an unbreaking gaze.

"Sinn, calm." Namaari said.

The serlot's body posture didn't change.

"I said, calm," Namaari grabbed her by the scruff, pulling the serlot's head around, "Don't look at me those eyes. Yes, I'm aware we've tracked her in the past. But she's not an enemy anymore." Namaari's cheeks darkened and she looked at Raya, "Don't judge me that I talk to my serlot like she's a person."

Raya held up a hand, "No judgment here. Tuk Tuk was the only one I had to talk to for years. I get it."

"Raya's an ally, Sinn. Friend"

"It's okay if she wants to stay acquaintances," Raya said.

Namaari snorted, "No it's not. Come here. She needs to get used to you."

"I'm good."

"Don't be a baby about it. She won't hurt you with me here."

"This isn't an 'I don't trust you' thing. This is a 'those are sharp claws and teeth' thing."

"Give me your hand." She held her hand out.

Raya hesitated, but she stepped forward, placing her hand in Namaari's open palm. Namaari guided Raya's hand forward.

"If I lose any fingers I'm cutting off yours."

Namaari laughed, "She likes this spot on her neck best. Scratch right…" Sinn started purring as Raya's fingers combed through her fur, "there." Namaari finished with a grin, "And look at that, all fingers still intact."

"They're not so bad," Raya said, the tension leaving her a little, "When they're not chasing me."

"Yeah," Namaari laughed nervously, "We did do that a few times."

"It's all good. You were never good enough to catch me."

"And there's the Raya sass I detest so."

"You say that. But I think you like it. Why else would you banter me every time we saw each other?"

"It's called distraction."

"Shitty distraction."

"I will make Sinn attack you."

"But we're friends now."

Sinn was purring in Raya's hand, seeming like she was utterly content. And despite it all, Namaari smiled.

Nardragon- until the next page.