Ever since she had been crowned empress, Sanaki had attended the senate's meetings, listening and learning. Lehran and Maian had done the talking for her; their wishes and dreams were the same. But now, at the age of ten, she was finally old enough to speak for herself, and sometimes, she even made decisions without consulting her guardians beforehand.
"That is acceptable, as long as you have given the matter some hard thinking and are ready to carry the responsibility by yourself", Lehran had explained.
However, there was something that Maian found worrisome – occasionally, Lehran would display clear signs of suffering from depression. She had tried to talk to him about it the first couple of times it happened, but Lehran had always brushed her off and downplayed the whole thing. Maian wasn't happy about this habit of his, but there was little she could do. She could only guess as to the cause, and if he was unwilling to do anything about it, the only thing she could do was try and be there for him, and cheer him up. Lehran always enjoyed spending time with her and Sanaki, and teaching them magic.
They were in the middle of a senate meeting when the doors were thrust open and a servant hurried in.
"Please forgive the intrusion, Your Holiness, but a soldier from the Crimea-Daein border has just arrived – she says she brings ill news."
"Show her in immediately!", Sanaki ordered.
A pegasus knight entered, bowed and took a deep breath.
"Daein has declared war on Crimea. The Daein Royal Army is marching toward Melior as we speak."
Several senators started shouting.
"What!", Sanaki exclaimed. "This is preposterous! Has King Ashnard stated his reasons?!"
"We haven't heard an official justification, Your Majesty. There have been several skirmishes between Crimea and Daein lately, but nothing that would justify a full-scale war!"
"Hm. Now that is mysterious..."
"Oh no, just what shall we do?", an older member of the senate wailed. "Now that the Prime Minister has left Begnion to travel the lands..."
"I believe I will be quite capable of managing without him", Sanaki said coldly. "After having been in office for five years, I know how to rule a country. Senator Maian, do you have any ideas?"
"This is a difficult situation, and above all, we must not make hasty decisions. Daein has clearly broken a law by declaring war by herself – Begnion is the suzerain state, and King Ashnard would have to consult with us before declaring war."
"Well, then let us simply punish him", the vize-minister suggested.
"Vize-Minister Lekain, do you ever listen to a word I say? We must not make any hasty decisions! Ashnard is no fool, he knows that by ignoring the law, he is inviting us to attack him. That might be precisely what he wants."
"Uwee-hee-hee! Does he honestly believe he could defeat us?", Senator Valtome, Duke of Culbert asked.
"I do not presume to know the thoughts of King Daein", Maian replied archly. "But we do not know the exact numbers nor the strength of the Daein Army. And do not forget the Four Riders."
"The Four Riders?", Senator Hetzel asked. "Please enlighten us, Senator Maian. Who are those?"
"Some of you might remember the song about the Great Riders of Daein: 'Bryce, Tauroneo, Gawain and Lanvega, four Riders of Daein, one Country, one King. While they bear our banner, a free Daein shall sing.' Those Four Riders are the 'successors' to the Great Riders. Sir Gawain mysteriously disappeared, and Lord Lanvega left the army. General Bryce and General Tauroneo now are members of the Four Riders, the other two are General Petrine, the woman with the fire lance, and the mysterious Black Knight."
"Who is he?", Bishop Oliver, Duke of Tanas asked.
"Well, that is the mystery. He wears black armour and a helmet, which he never removes, along with a crimson cape. I have of course never met him in person, but I have heard the stories. No-one knows where he is from, what he looks like, or what his name is. That man is an enigma. And a mighty warrior. He rose to this position on his own merits, not because of his connections."
"Is he as powerful as our General Zelgius?", someone asked.
"I cannot say. But I know that King Ashnard chooses his generals according to strength and skill. He might actually have some surprises prepared."
"So, what do you suggest we do?", Sanaki asked.
"We wait", Maian replied. "Maybe Crimea will be able to fend off their attack, which would be ideal. We would just send two or three regiments to ensure order is restored, and that King Ashnard is punished."
"And if Crimea loses?"
"Let us worry about that when it comes to this", Lekain suggested.
"Very well. Thank you for informing me", Sanaki said to the soldier. "Rest for tonight."
The soldier bowed and left.
"Hear my decision! We will wait to see how the situation develops. And I need to speak to General Zelgius and General Sigrun immediately! They shall come to my rooms."
Maian was greatly troubled by this turn of events. War was a bad thing, for everyone... She could not understand why Ashnard would do such a thing. She was very glad she had managed to persuade Sanaki and the senators to wait, hoping they could keep the casualties to a minimum.
Seven years had passed since Maian had started working for the senate. Much had changed since then. Almost half of Maian's guard now was made up of laguz. Maian had been promoted onto the Council of Seven, the ruling body of the senate. The other members were Lehran, Lekain, Valtome, Oliver, Hetzel and Duke Numida.
Lehran had taught her a lot of what he knew. Maian was now one of the Empire's strongest sages, and the only one who could speak the Ancient Tongue – if not yet fluently.
Rescuing laguz slaves had become more and more difficult and soon, Maian had to give it up. But there were others, waiting in the shadows, ready to take her place. They called themselves the "Laguz Emancipation Liga". They broke into houses to free the slaves.
"Melior Castle has fallen. The deaths of King and Queen Crimea have been confirmed", an exhausted-looking messenger said.
"Daein is that strong?", Hetzel asked, stunned.
"Perhaps, but do not forget that they had the element of surprise on their side", Lekain replied.
"What of Duke Renning, the heir to the throne?", Sanaki asked.
"The Prince rallied the Crimean Royal Knights to lead a counter-attack against Ashnard. That is the last I have heard."
"And the princess?"
"She managed to flee the castle and was headed in the direction of Gallia. But her escort was waylaid, and some of her knights captured, others killed. The Princess herself went missing."
"That means there is a great possibility that the royal line of Crimea will end here", Maian said.
"Gallia and Crimea are allies", Sanaki said. "How does King Caineghis respond to this?"
"We're not sure the news has reached Gallia, the Daein Army has not conquered much of Crimea yet. They are still securing the capital."
"I see... then we will have to wait again... how tedious."
A week later, they received news that Duke Renning had fallen, and Ashnard now controlled all of Crimea. But there was some good news as well – a carrier pigeon had arrived, carrying a letter from Lehran.
"Princess Crimea is still alive", Maian announced to the senate. "She has hired a group of mercenaries, and a few Gallian soldiers have joined them. They have embarked on a ship and intend to come to Begnion."
"Princess Crimea is travelling with a group of sellswords?", Lekain asked in disbelief.
"They seem to be quite famous in Crimea. And they also seem to have ties to King Gallia. Furthermore, they have won every battle against the Daein Army so far – or survived, at least."
"So, there is still hope for Crimea", Sanaki said. "How long will the journey take them?"
"If it is a calm and quiet journey, about two months."
"Which is very unlikely, since they have to cross the seas of Kilvas and Phoenecis. Those 'shipless pirates' are certainly going to attack them", Hetzel predicted, wringing his hands.
"So we wait again...", Sanaki concluded.