I apologize for the gap in chapters; I've been traveling quite a bit for work. Aereal has properly taken me to task for my negligence.

The silence was almost deafening as all eyes focused intently on the strange woman in their midst. Most regarded her with a measure of fear, but of those present, there was also a sense of awe. She calmly stood still after her small display and made no effort to raise the ire of the wall of guards around the two monarchs. Karigan tried to peer around the solid line of bodies that had materialized around her when the woman made her appearance, but the Weapons stood firmly between her and the visitor. With a scowl, she snaked around and crept up behind Zachary. He looked down at her briefly and squeezed her hand but returned his attention to the woman, seemingly coming to a decision.

He ventured forth slowly with his hands raised in caution. 'You stated that you wish to speak to me, my lady?'

The woman gave a toothy grin and nodded, 'Aye that I do. I wish to offer my assistance.'

Zachary hesitated before he offered a small smile in return, 'A generous offer. Are we to know your name?'

'Sire!' General Isleigh hissed. 'We cannot trust this creature.'

The king gently held up a hand to quiet the irate general, his eyes still focused on the woman as she watched the exchange. After a few moments, she straightened her shoulders and smiled affably, 'I suppose the name that your generation would be familiar with is Yolandhe.'

'Oh, even better. A witch!' General Isleigh declared with a snarl, tensing as he lowered his chin defiantly.

Yolandhe lifted an eyebrow imperiously, 'A label that has been bestowed upon me by many an ignorant fool.'

The general looked at her incredulously, 'Would you deny it after your shameless display?'

She waved a hand dismissively, 'That was merely a trick. Something to gain your attention.'

Zachary interjected, 'Forgive me, Lady Yolandhe, but why make yourself visible now?'

Yolandhe sighed and placed the chart back down on a side table, turning to face him once more. 'I have witnessed the turn of events these past few centuries with little satisfaction. Although myself and the others vowed to step back in the affairs of this continent, we can no longer sit idly by while Mornhavon gathers his forces.'

Karigan pushed past Fastion and spoke hesitantly, 'The others?'

'The weyrs,' Yolandhe answered simply. 'The sea dragons of your legends have detected the taint of dark magic in their waters and wish it gone.'

'These weyrs . . . they wish to aid as well?' Zachary ventured.

'Under the right circumstances, they will help to mitigate the threat from the seas with your cooperation. I have come forward to broker an alliance of sorts.'

General Isleigh raised an eyebrow derisively, 'You suddenly appear in our midst, amongst a group of refugees, and present yourself as an ally?'

Yolandhe inclined her head, 'Enabling the refugees to make an effective escape seemed to be an opportunity to prove myself.'

'You stated that you ensured that the soldiers following your party did not escape? What sort of devilry did you employ to dispose of them? '

Yolandhe stiffly drew herself up, 'Water is water, no matter the amount of waste in that filthy tunnel. My devilry as you call it is nothing more than the magic of the sea that runs in my bloodline. I raised the water levels in the tunnels; there was no way that they could have survived.'

Zachary turned to Fastion and quietly spoke a few words under his breath. The Weapon reluctantly relaxed his fighting pose but kept a wary eye on Yolandhe as he signaled the others to stand down. The king courteously held out his arm to Yolandhe, directing her to a chair as the others nervously went about their business. 'I had learned in my studies as a boy that there were some who would call your bloodline royal.'

Yolandhe gracefully seated herself and nodded at the king. 'There were seven royal bloodlines, known to you as the Sea Kings, that once ruled over Sacoridia. I was of one of those lines, engaged to a prince of another line.'

Karigan sat nearby, her features betraying her curiosity, 'And did you marry that prince?'

A shadow crossed Yolandhe's face. 'No. He disappeared at sea, never to be seen or heard from again.'

'Forgive me, but you seem to be longer lived than the lore would suggest,' Zachary said delicately.

She gave a small chuckle, 'When many of the bloodlines were eradicated in one great upheaval, I fled to the sea to hide in the last vestiges of our kingdom. The weyrs collectively agreed to extend my life and allow me to rule in their territory. Since then, I have maintained my domain over the southern seas and quietly watched the landscape of my nation change over time. Back in my day, magic was rather commonplace.'

General Isleigh grunted at his desk but kept his head down as he steadily wrote out his correspondence.

Yolandhe gave a wry smile in his direction. 'Things have clearly changed since I walked the land.'

'There are still those who wield magic in Sacoridia,' Karigan said quietly, casting a glance at Zachary. Yolandhe's gaze fell to the horse brooch pinned to Karigan's greatcoat and she nodded in acknowledgement. 'Aye, I can see that.'

Zachary rose and picked up the sea chart, unfurling the delicate material in his hands. 'This was from you?'

'I had a spare in my collection and thought you would appreciate the addition to yours,' she stated sincerely. 'Given the amount of activity your southern provinces have seen, I would hope that it was of some use to you?'

'We have only recently received it,' Karigan said apologetically.

Yolandhe frowned, 'I sent it well into last summer to Hillander with a letter. Do you not make at least a yearly visit to your province? Even before the hostilities started?'

Zachary turned a slight shade of pink, 'I was otherwise engaged.'

Yolandhe grinned at his blushing countenance, 'Ah, yes the new queen. The gulls, little gossips that they are, could not stop chattering about the pair of you. Regardless, I am here now and can offer more than just a simple chart.'

General Isleigh snorted, 'Considering your reputation, how do we know that this is not a trap?'

Yolandhe looked rather affronted, 'I am a ruling monarch in my domain, but the fact that I possess magical abilities has long been a strike against me in the eyes of the Sacoridian people. Prudes.' she sniffed. 'As it were, Blackveil is my concern as well as yours. The beasties entering my waters are . . . perverse and as I said are threatening the peace of the weyrs. They are demanding action and have offered their services in rendering the fleet incapacitated but need the cooperation of the land-folk to accomplish this.'

Zachary nodded slowly, 'I would be willing and grateful for whatever support you and your counterparts would be able to offer.'

General Isleigh visibly kept himself in check as he scowled at the king's acceptance.

Yolandhe gave the king an approving look and one of exasperation was aimed at the general. 'Since the demise of the royal lines of the sea kings, and that of the mages, the Sacoridians turned on the seven weyrs and forced them into hiding. Called them mindless beasts. The weyrs used to help channel the flow of magic in the land, in conjunction with the Eletians and the other magical folk of the time. And thus, they were rendered untrustworthy. I imagine what is left of magic in the land is but a shadow of what it once was.'

'I assure you, I will not tolerate any sort of disrespect towards your person or that of the weyrs,' the king said solemnly.

'I appreciate the sentiment, Firebrand. Only together will we be able to face this growing threat,' she said sincerely.

Karigan worriedly sat back against the canvas of her chair, 'Have you seen more to come from your vantage point?'

The sea queen pursed her lips before she continued, 'I fear that I must be the harbinger of ill news. It has been confirmed through several sightings, that one who wears the dragon ring leads the forces of the Second Empire.'

Karigan's brow furrowed in confusion, 'What is the significance of this ring?'

Yolandhe took on an air of sadness and grief. 'This particular ring was worn by my love; it was the signet of his family line. I found the man who possessed it, hoping somehow, that it was he whom I had lost. The perversion that now wears the dragon ring is none other than your relation, Xandis Amberhill.'

Zachary looked up sharply, 'You are sure of this?'

Yolandhe nodded her assent wearily, 'Quite sure. In the past year I have made inquiries with several seaside villages, and have placed him and his fleet under constant surveillance.'

Karigan's face fell forward into her hands, 'I knew of his other proclivities but why this bid for power?' She raised her head to look at Zachary beseechingly, 'Has your cousin ever given any indication that he wished for the throne?'

Zachary shook his head, 'No, I gathered that his true desire was only to live comfortably and quietly in Hillander. He was always the poor relation but never did I detect any sort of bitterness.'

'I may be able to provide some insight, Firebrand,' Yolandhe said gently. 'Your cousin, I imagine, was a very good sort of fellow before taking to sea but the finding of the ring and the subsequent discovery by Mornhavon twisted his soul into something unrecognizable.'

General Isleigh spoke, his voice now more modulated as he looked at Yolandhe, 'This ring is responsible for his treason?'

'In part. The ring can influence you in certain ways, and based on the strength of your character, will steer you down a particular path,' she answered. 'I must also explain what I have been able to gather from my sources in regards to Mornhavon himself.'

Gathering a deep breath, she plunged ahead, 'When Rider G'ladheon destroyed the Mirror Mask, Mornhavon was thrown forward in time, but only by a few months. His soul found a more than willing host in Amberhill; who possessed enough animosity towards his cousin to allow the bonding to occur.'

Zachary's countenance was visibly shocked, 'And is my cousin lost to Mornhavon?'

'I do not know if the bonding is permanent, but it has held now since the late autumn. Mornhavon has used his new body to gather the descendents of his former army. People who have been living in exile for centuries in scattered colonies, a shadow of their former selves. Now many are reduced to piracy or scrapping out a living in poor fishing communities,' she answered heavily. 'Their ire and resentment runs deep.'

General Isleigh crossed over to an open map of southern Sacoridia. 'And you have been able to monitor his progress over the winter.'

She nodded, 'They originated to the east, sailed south, past Blackveil, and have wintered in the southern seas to await the opportunity to attack the deep seaport of Corsa.'

'Their first stepping stone in a nationwide invasion,' Zachary murmured, coming to stand next to the general as they peered at the map.

'Indeed. So we are now at the beginning of that invasion, and with quite a lot of work ahead of us, but first we must get a good night's rest.' Yolandhe said, rising gracefully from her seat and adjusting her skirts. She turned her attention to Karigan, 'May I beg your indulgence madam and procure some sort of accommodation for the night?'

Karigan nodded and gestured for an aide to come forward, 'Of course, Lady Yolandhe. We will also have a Weapon assigned to you for your stay with us.'

Yolandhe waved her hand airily about, 'Oh no need for such measures, my dear. I can place a few wards around the entrance of my quarters. I suspect I will see you at breakfast?'

'I am afraid we do not keep to formal meal times in the field, things have been rather hectic in camp as of late. We eat as we work.' General Isleigh said dryly, gesturing towards a stack of dirty tin plates and mugs that perched precariously on a chair.

The sea queen wrinkled her nose in distaste, 'How . . . ingenious of you to economize your time while you labor. You really ought to make time for such things. One would think you were raised by a pack of wolves.'

'There are better things to do than to sit on my posterior, drink kauv, and eat buttered toast,' he responded brusquely.

Karigan and Zachary watched the battle of wills between the two individuals with a measure of fascination and anxiety. While the king felt he ought to interfere on behalf of his general, he knew such measures would not be appreciated by the older man. Both monarchs knew it was highly unlikely that the animosity would go beyond a verbal battle but the flames that the two strong characters gave off were enough to warrant a small amount of alarm. Mostly when one thought of the creature retribution Yolandhe could inflict on the brazen soldier.

Yolandhe shrugged one shoulder delicately. 'One must not forget the basic necessities, even when in a field of battle. Food, clothing . . . .' she tapped the side of her nose with an index finger, 'And hygiene.' The general sputtered and opened his mouth to retort, but the look of warning on his king's face caused him to abruptly close his mouth. Still fuming, he slunk into his chair and pretended to ignore the presence of the others in the tent as he angrily scribbled once more.

Yolandhe turned to the young couple with a sigh of resignation. 'The absence of magic and manners in your time, I find it to be most disconcerting,' she said with a toss of her head. After taking her leave, she followed the aide out of the tent and into the light rain that gently fell against the oiled canvas.

Inside the tent she had just vacated, the occupants were largely silent once more. Most reeling with the newfound knowledge that yet another childhood story had become more than just a myth, and that this war, this conflict would soon begin in earnest.

Karigan gathered her things and brushed by Zachary, grasping his hand at her side for a few precious seconds. She squeezed his fingers ever so slightly and asked a silent question with her eyes. In response, Zachary tilted his head to the side and nodded almost imperceptibly, conveying that he would be along shortly.

She gave a brief, fleeting smile and left with Brienne following closely behind.

Zachary turned back to his staff, his mind wearily trying to catch up with the events of the day as he also began to gather what materials he wished to peruse that evening. The sight of General Isleigh staring after the space that Yolandhe vacated caused him to cease and examine the angry man a bit more closely. 'You'll alert me if anything of note is reported tonight?'

Isleigh nodded curtly to his king but did not relax the pose he held that was reminiscent of one of Zachary's riled up terriers. Zachary suppressed the smile that threatened to erupt on his face and slid his greatcoat. 'It is a very fortunate occurrence that we were able to meet Lady Yolandhe, do you not agree?'

The general's bushy eyebrows rose higher on his forehead as he turned an interesting shade of puce. His mouth moved to open then close, but no words were issued as he struggled with his composure.

Brightly, Zachary offered his wishes for a good night's sleep and quickly vacated the tent with Fastion. He was not but a few yards away when he heard the string of colorful curses erupt from the Isleigh's mouth. Tugging his collar closed against the chill in the air, he allowed the suppressed smile to overtake his features as he made his way back to his wife.