A/N: I promised the next one would be quicker, and here it is. It feels as good for me as I hope it does for you. Especially because this is a pretty big chapter, all things considered, with something that I've been waiting to do for a long time.
As always, though, feel free to favorite/follow and leave a review if you like the story. Enjoy the next chapter!
Ch. 34: Deals and Demands
They flew on and on, as the light of day turned to night, and then to light again as the days passed by. The going was slow, with the same issues of bickering and minor fighting persisting among the tribes, but they moved ever forward until finally the desert turned to trees and glens. Dunes were replaced with hills, and red rock formations with rivers and streams. Once more, they were on the peninsula.
For Darkstalker, it was good to be home, but there was still a ways to go to the capital and word had reached the Night Kingdom of their approach before their arrival. Soon, down below, he could see the first of many of the famous air defense crews that guarded the kingdom, the Nightwings ready to fight and defend their homeland. And it appeared that they were prepared to do just that, whether or not there was a Nightwing army flying alongside the Icewings.
He'd visited one of the air defense emplacements once, when he'd been younger. It had been on a visit to see his mother where she was stationed. He'd always been struck by how efficient the crews seemed in their drills, as well as the size and strength of the great weapons they used. Mighty ballista guarded the skies—the pride of Nightwing engineering—ready to tear down any offender that dared cross their path. Over and over throughout the war, they'd more than proved their mettle, being instrumental in stopping countless Icewing attacks and excursions into their territory. Now, far below, Darkstalker could see the crews scrambling again to aim them for what may be the last time. Even if their fight would be against a far larger army than they'd ever had tried to defend against before.
That fight, thankfully, was not meant to be. Being loath to fire into a force traveling with their own tribe, the Nightwings hesitated long enough for a message to be sent. Before a shot could be fired, Queen Diamond descended along with General Stargazer and the Nightwing leaders, and they spoke to the heads of the forces below. Slowly, the guardians of the Night Kingdom relented as they heard what had transpired, and the Icewings passed by.
A pattern emerged, then. The Icewings would fly on until they came across a Nightwing force, whereupon they would halt until a surrender was offered and accepted. Some of these "negotiations" took longer than others, but on the occasion a commander was being too stubborn, Diamond would reveal to the defenders the head of their former queen, and that was enough to make the Nightwings lose faith. It wasn't too long before they were clear of the boarder defenses and making their way to the very gates of the capital.
The spires of the Night Palace were a welcome sight to Darkstalker, their familiarity relieving against an evening sky. For the first time in what felt like years, he was home again. And it seemed that he wasn't the only dragon happy to see it, as a great cheer arose from the Icewing soldiers once it appeared on the horizon, even if their excitement was for different reasons.
As with the military emplacements leading up to the capital, it was clear that the coming of the Icewings was not unannounced. Darkstalker could see the hasty fortifications made to the walls and towers of the capital, as well as the increase in soldiers patrolling it, a number that only grew larger as they saw the force coming from afar and took their positions. As they got closer, Darkstalker could also see dragons fleeing south, no doubt civilians fearing a sack of the city.
"Tell Stargazer to have his soldiers land in the forests outside the city, and have him come and join me." Diamond ordered one of her captains, and the Icewing left to make it so. As with most of the trip, Darkstalker had been flying near Diamond at the head of the army, practically in her entourage. She seemed intent on keeping him close, too, which was also the case with Arctic—Diamond seldom let her son out of her sight, it felt like. Considering what caused the war, Darkstalker couldn't really blame her, and nor did he complain so long as the Seawings were able to fly with him.
The Nightwing army did as was ordered, thousands of dragons dropping from the sky and landing in the forests not far from the walls. Soon, General Stargazer approached with a few of the other Nightwing leaders, Clearsight among them, more than a few of them looking wary.
"What do you intend to do?" Stargazer demanded once he came close enough to fight. "I can see that you're not having your own troops land. I'll tell you this, Queen Diamond, you may have our weapons and armor, but we will not let you simply take our capital unopposed. If you mean to attack—"
"I will do as I see fit, and you will obey," Diamond hissed in response, "If I desired you and your tribe dead, your own soldiers would not be alive this moment. I have done and will do exactly as I told you I would from the time we departed. We will make peace, but peace must be established first."
"All the same, you cannot expect us to stand by as our city falls," he growled.
She fixed him with a look that silenced him, daring him to defy her again. "Do as I say, and it will not."
A silence fell, the Nightwing's eyes searching hers. Then they flickered to Darkstalker, who gave the general a nod.
"Trust her," the voice of Clearsight urged from among the Nightwings, and the dragon's head fell.
"What would you have me do?" he sighed.
"Tell the city guards to lay down their weapons and surrender, as you've done before," she instructed, "My soldiers will take your armory, the walls, and establish control of the city center. In essence, you will surrender the city to me."
"But I just said that we couldn't…" he growled as he trailed off, and Clearsight approached to touch her wing to the general's. "Fine," he conceded, and without another word he folded his wings and fell, descending towards the city.
Diamond frowned for a moment, then shook her head. "Good. Now," she turned to her own generals, "Take our best soldiers and seize the most strategic locations, and take the armory first. I want the city in complete Icewing control before the day is up. And tell the soldiers this: no looting. We are not here to plunder or steal. Any Icewing caught looting will be required to repay twice what he or she took, and any who kill civilians except in self-defense will forfeit their own lives. Make sure they know this, for I will not suffer my command to be ignored."
"Yes, my queen," the relevant commanders said as one, before flying back to their positions. Darkstalker could hear over the wind, as well in their minds, the orders being relayed. Soon, hundreds of Icewings were descending on the city, although a not insignificant force followed the queen.
"What about us?" Darkstalker asked as he watched the white dragons fill the air like a winter flurry.
Diamond grinned. "We have an appointment at the palace." She flew on, and Darkstalker followed. As did the Seawings and the royal guard led by Snowcap, along with the remaining Nightwing generals. It was a smaller group than Darkstalker had expected, although he had a suspicion that it would not be needed.
Indigo flew at his side as they approached the familiar terraces of the Night Palace, close enough now that he could just about make out the window and balcony of Fathom's room. "What does Diamond intend to do?" she asked, and he could hear a little bit of doubt in her mind. Which was to be expected, he supposed. After all, if Diamond held control of the city and of the palace, she could essentially do whatever she wanted, peaceful or not. And, had her entrance to the city been under different circumstances, he imagined that it would not have been a peaceful time at all.
"Whoever is currently in charge of the kingdom is probably waiting in the palace," he explained, "Likely, its Vigilance's daughters, if not one of them who went ahead and made herself queen after hearing the news. If we want to negotiate a treaty, it will be with them."
"Or through them," he heard Fathom mutter beside her, the prince having been listening, "She's already proven she's fine with killing royalty."
"I don't think that's her intent," Indigo told him, "But still…"
She easily could, her mind finished, and it was true.
"Well, we'll see how it goes," Darkstalker told them, "I do trust my grandmother, though."
Funny how that still sounded odd to his own ears. Although it was a trust, too. Darkstalker had tried looking ahead a few times since leaving the desert, and he hadn't been able to see clearly how it would go. Like with the meeting, it was a jumbled future in his mind, although he was pretty sure the worst of the possible outcome lay behind them at the desert, not ahead. The futures he had seen with any degree of clarity had been bright enough.
They landed at the main palace entrance, Queen Diamond striding ahead of her guard as if she were the queen of the land returning home and not a foreign ruler. Two Nightwing guards stood outside the large wooden doors, but as they approached, instead of blocking the entrance, they opened the doors for them.
A third Nightwing appeared before them as they entered the halls, a somewhat familiar servant that Darkstalker knew he'd seen before. The dragon bowed low before Diamond, wings spreading in respect and snout nearly touching to the ground.
"Welcome, Queen Diamond of the Icewings, Lady of the North, Ruler of the Ice Kingdom and protector of the Seven Isles. The daughters of Queen Vigilance welcome you to the Night Kingdom."
The daughters of Vigilance, Darkstalker thought, That means they're all still alive. He'd half expected that they would have torn each other apart trying to fill the vacant queenship—in a few of the futures he'd seen somewhat clearly, they certainly had—while they had the chance. All of them had been left behind for the meeting, so they had indeed had their shot at it. Perhaps they had known it was futile with the approach of an enemy army.
"They await you in the throne room, with the nobles of the Night Kingdom," the servant continued, "I will take you there, if you wish."
"That will not be necessary," Diamond said dismissively, "Prince Darkstalker will lead the way. If you wish to be useful, locate General Stargazer in the city. Inform him to join us once he is able."
The servant nodded and departed. Darkstalker did as his grandmother had requested and led them through the corridors of the palace, winding through the halls to their destination. It was eerily quiet, much of the hustle and bustle of the palace gone. Likely, the dragons had chosen to save themselves from the danger they perceived. Why not, when the queen they served was dead?
In no time, they had made it to the throne room entrance, a large pair of doors matching those at the entrance of the palace itself. The only thing now in their way was a second pair of guards, neither of which even drew their weapons or said a word to stop them as Diamond herself threw open the doors and stepped inside.
It was the same throne room as always. The same high ceilings, extravagant pillars, and long walk to the throne. It was the same majestic stained-glass moons hanging over that throne, which now illuminated the room with the light of a setting sun. From the end of Vigilance's reign, nothing had changed so soon about the room itself.
Darkstalker had never heard it so loud before, though.
There were probably around fifty Nightwings in the room (only a fraction of what it could hold, yet still more than he could ever recall seeing in it), each yelling and clamoring and arguing and trying to talk over the others. He could hear fear and panic in their voices and minds as they cried out. He recognized many of them, too. These were the nobles of the Night Kingdom, many relatives to the queen and those that held power, barons and lords and all other sorts of titles, as well as princes like Batcatcher. Many were in the queen's council. At their head, in front of the throne but not atop it, were the princesses. There was Vigilkeeper, the eldest who's hatching day party had been on the night he confessed his feelings to Indigo and who looked the queenliest of the sisters in that moment, as well as Shadowhider, the second-oldest, and Marvelous, the youngest and weakest of the sisters. Each tried to be calming the nobles and establishing order. None of them looked to be succeeding, as the shouts of the nobles over how to handle the situation and what to do, or what they wished to be done, drowned out their voices.
The noise only lasted for a moment, though. The wooden doors hit the walls with a loud and reverberating bang, and every head turned to see their approach, hushed silence falling even as the echoes of shouts still resonated off the walls. At the sight of them, several dragons even turned to flee. A half-dozen, by Darkstalker's estimate, rushed past the princesses and disappeared through a concealed exit near the throne. Diamond let them go.
Those nobles that remained parted like water before them, allowing them to approach the throne and Vigilance's daughters. There was fear and betrayal in the eyes of many of them directed towards Darkstalker as he walked next to Diamond. He didn't mind it too badly. Many of these dragons had never liked him to begin with.
"Greetings, Queen Diamond," Vigilkeeper spoke first, her voice surprisingly even as she bowed her head lightly, "Welcome to our halls. We have heard much of your coming, and we are prepared to speak of peace, and to see your terms for ending this war."
Neither Vigilkeeper nor her sisters had ever had the strength of their mother when it came to resisting a mindreader, and as such Darkstalker could hear their thoughts relatively clearly. While her words were even and diplomatic, her thoughts and those of the other princesses were fearful and wary.
Please let her be willing to sign a treaty, Princess Marvelous, the youngest, was thinking, We don't have the forces to resist if she refuses. Beside her, Vigilkeeper more or less echoed her thoughts, pleading to the moons that Diamond was not here to slaughter them.
Their sister, Shadowhider, had different thoughts. I wonder how I can barter for my life or better treatment? Gems and gold from the treasury are of little value and can be taken easily. Perhaps I can lead her to my mother's hidden vaults in exchange for my freedom.
The Nightwing princesses, it seemed, were a pessimistic lot.
"There have been many mixed reports that have come ahead of you," Vigilkeeper continued after Diamond remained silent, letting a worrying quiet fall, "Many have said that Queen Vigilance has been killed. Is this true."
Diamond snorted and motioned to one of her guards. The Icewing came forward and, as had been done in the past, revealed the head of the former queen to them. Vigilkeeper swallowed nervously, and Marvelous looked like she would be sick. Murmurings immediately broke out among the nobles, who shifted nervously. They too were worried for their lives.
"She attempted to kill me," Diamond spoke aloud as the remains were placed back in the sack they'd been carried in, and the guard returned to his station behind her, "As did my own niece. Your own generals can confirm this, or the Seawings present that you sent to mediate. They orchestrated this war for personal gain at the expense of both of our tribes. I intend to end that conflict."
Vigilkeeper glanced at her sisters, a cautious optimism spreading through them. "If this is the case, then we will gladly discuss your terms for ending this war. Let the villainy and blood be on their wings, and we can move forward together."
Darkstalker resisted the urge to snort. The princesses were in a rough place, and their words reflected it. They weren't even questioning the story they were given, even if it was indeed the truth. But it was better to yield to Diamond than challenge her, for she was the one who's guards were in the Nightwing throne room and not idly sitting outside.
Diamond knew this too, and was silent for a while, her eyes brooding. She tapped her tail against the floor, the sound of the ice spikes clattering echoing throughout the room. Drawing herself up regally, she gave the three princesses a knowing and self-assured look.
"And what terms would you accept?" she asked them, "And what terms can you refuse? Where is the Queen of the Nightwings to beg and to barter? She is gone, and her throne is empty. My soldiers sit inside the walls of your great city as well as without, and even now they stand unopposed within your palace. The Night Kingdom is mine, should I choose to take it, and no trio of princesses or frightened group of nobles can keep me from it. Should I ask for a single gold coin, you would fetch it for me gratefully. Were I to demand the entire wealth of the city, you could not withhold it. You ask for my terms? I shall give them to you. And you will accept, and you will obey."
The nobles did not like that. Neither did the princesses, as Darkstalker heard the sparks of hope evaporate in their minds. But what Diamond said was true: they could not oppose her. Not with her armed guard prepared to seize them and to even slay them at an order, and with their own army surrendered and far from them.
Vigilkeeper nodded, and Darkstalker could respect how she maintained her air of calm despite the situation she found herself in. She looked queenly, and she was the most in-command of the Nightwings present. "This may be so, but even as we are, Nightwings do not give up so easily. Speak and tell us what you have a mind to do, if you really came for peace, or did you come just to plunder and carry off spoils of war?"
"Were my desire your destruction, you would have seen it already," Diamond answered her, "As I said, my aim has been peace. I pursued it in the desert and slew your mother when she opposed it. Now I pursue it here. And I desire a lasting peace, one that will not fade as soon as white wings leave the boarder of this kingdom."
"Then speak," Vigilkeeper prompted, "And we will see if it can be done."
Diamond fell silent again, her eyes roaming over the Nightwings. Gauging them. Judging them. Darkstalker knew that she knew full well the game she played, and she played it now with great advantage.
She raised a claw and pointed it at Vigilkeeper. No, not at Vigilkeeper, but behind her. Diamond pointed her claw at the Nightwing throne.
"The Nightwings do not have a ruler, unless you or your sisters have crowned yourself," she spoke, slowly and clearly, "Your queen is dead, and your armies are subdued. If we are to have peace, a lasting peace, you will entrust to me that leadership. Give me the throne, and this war will end without any further suffering."
The eyes of the princesses widened, but they did not even get a chance to speak.
"Never!" shouted one of the nobles, and another joined his cry before the room erupted in noise.
"We'll die before we give our kingdoms to the Icewings!"
"You dishonor us!"
"We'll never follow a foreign queen!"
They snarled and stamped their feet, the fear from before turned to anger and loathing. Vigilkeeper raised a claw to try to calm them, but it was no use as they yelled and growled. It was not until a Nightwing stepped forward towards the queen and the Icewing guard reacted, soldiers with spears stepping forward menacingly, that the room began to quiet.
"We cannot meet this demand," Vigilkeeper finally spoke once it was quiet enough for her to speak clearly, "The Nightwings will rule their own. We will not allow you to exercise dominion over us. We cannot allow the queen of the Icewings to be our queen."
Diamond snorted, her first real expression since last she'd talked, having been silent and calm throughout the Nightwings' tirade. "You misunderstand," she said simply, "I do not wish to be your queen. There are enough duties in the Ice Kingdom as it is. What I seek is to put a dragon on your throne. One that will lead in a way that is satisfactory to all our interests."
Darkstalker looked on in interest, wondering who she had in mind. The thoughts of the queen had been mostly unreadable to him in the flight, and he really didn't know much of her purpose. All he'd seen was a brighter ending to the vast majority of the futures in the path they were in. Getting there, like the meeting in the desert, was something he was less certain about.
"And who do you propose?" asked Princess Shadowhider. "No doubt one of your own Icewing servants. It will be little better than if you were here yourself."
"The one I choose would not be so divisive," Diamond huffed, waving a claw at the princess's prediction, "The correct choice, I believe, would be a dragon that has been here among you. One you are familiar with, and who knows your ways."
"You speak of Arctic, your son?" asked Vigilkeeper, shaking her head, "Mating a Nightwing does not make him one of us."
"A valid assumption, but no," the queen answered, "There is little chance of you submitting to a dragon that came from without. But from within is different. Would you accept a dragon that was hatched and raised within your own tribe, as one of you? If yes, then we need look no farther than this room. My grandson, Prince Darkstalker, will have the Nightwing throne, and we will have peace."
Darkstalker blinked, then looked over at Diamond in shock. He had…he had not been expecting that. In no way had he anticipated being put forward as the King of the Nightwings. It made sense, in a way, but it had not been anything that she had talked to him about, nor had it been revealed in her difficult-to-read mind.
But even aside from that, it felt impossible. Darkstalker had given up his aspirations for the throne. He had chosen to avoid it, for the sake of Indigo. He'd actively forsaken it, and since then avoided looking at futures where he was king. Those had been futures full of grief and pain, where his ambition drove away the Seawing he loved. Now, unexpectedly, it was being put in front of him again.
Vigilkeeper was quiet for a moment, and in fact the whole room was. There were no shouts of anger, although Darkstalker could read the hesitation and wariness in the minds of the nobles, but not outright dismissal. "What you ask is no easy thing," the oldest princess said, her eyes scanning them and landing on him, "You would expect my sisters and I to surrender our birthright? And even then, there has not been a king in Pyrrhia since the fall of the Silver Empire. Are we to follow one now?"
"Had you so desired your birthright, you would have taken it long ago," Diamond snorted, giving the sisters a pointed look. "As for a king…a queen has failed to serve this kingdom well. Perhaps a change will prove better for you."
Another brief silence fell, the only sound the tapping of tails and the shuffling of feet as dragons considered her words.
"Darkstalker has been raised as one of us, and in the palace. He knows and respects our tribe," a voice from among the nobles pointed out, and Darkstalker recognized it as Prince Batcatcher. "Certainly, he is not the worst choice."
Muttering and bickering spread again through the dragons present. Some, Darkstalker could tell, hated the idea. Others entertained it better. A number were willing to go along with whatever Diamond proposed so long as it kept their heads on their necks.
"So, to put it simply," Vigilkeeper spoke again once the talking died down, "You wish to make your grandson, a half-Nightwing hybrid, king over us. Then what? You simply leave."
"I will sign a treaty with him," Diamond nodded, "Then yes, I will take my armies and leave, and it will be as if we had never come."
The sisters looked at each other, wordlessly talking with their eyes. "And none of us in this room will be harmed?"
"Your futures will be in the claws of Prince Darkstalker," she answered, "His will be the power to have your life or station, not mine."
Darkstalker swallowed, lashing his tail. He opened his mouth, and he said something he hadn't expected: "That is, if I want to do it."
Diamond whipped her head around towards him. "What?" she demanded.
Vigilkeeper and the rest of the Nightwings, too, looked at him with confusion. Apparently, none of them had expected him to not immediately accept this proposition.
"What if I don't wish to be king?" he asked, "What if I don't want the throne? I…I need time to consider this."
The Icewing queen growled, for the first time since the minutes of their initial meeting looking displeased with him. "Then consider it quickly," she told him, "I will not wait too long."
Darkstalker blinked at her bluntness, taking a moment to realize that she was telling him to do so right this moment. He hesitated, and then with a word excused himself, turning and leaving the throne room. He could feel the thoughts and gazes of Icewings and Nightwings alike on his back as he went, and he could feel his own heart pounding.
The Nightwing guards were gone from the throne room entrance, and he was grateful to be alone. He needed to think. He needed to look ahead. This was a crossroads, he could tell. Would this choice define him forever? Or had that already been determined?
His mind turned to the throne, to the crown. The desire he had held for so long. He wanted it, wanted to rule. Darkstalker had wished to be king since he knew what a monarch was.
But his mind turned to Indigo. To purple scales and a beautiful smile. To hours and days of happiness. A beautiful future shared with a dragoness he loved. He wanted that. He wanted it so badly.
But it was impossible to have both. He'd seen it before. He'd seen what the road to the throne would do to Indigo. He knew that she'd never stand for what he had to do to get it, with killing Vigilance and…and…
Darkstalker paused, frowning. Something was no longer right in his thoughts and future seeing. A realization was beginning to dawn on him. His expectations about being king…they had been clouded. He had thought that the only way he could ever take the crown was to kill Vigilance in an equivalent of a Queen's Challenge—something Indigo would have opposed. He had thought the only way had been through dark and selfish actions that turned her away, but that was no longer the case. He did not have to deceive or kill for the throne, not now. Vigilance was dead, and not even by his claws, but by Indigo's! All those fears and worries about becoming king were no longer relevant. It was far different now, a completely different situation.
He looked into the future quickly, searching now for futures where he did indeed rule. There was brightness there, and happiness. No signs of shadow or malice save for the farthest corners where dark futures would always exist. It looked…it looked good. Although there was one thing that yet needed to be confirmed…
He heard the door open and close, and he left his visions to see who had followed him. He'd expected it to be Indigo, but the scales were not purple. Instead, the dragoness was Clearsight, who'd come with the group of Nightwing generals and diplomats that had accompanied Diamond, and who shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.
"Well?" he asked her, not bothering to clarify. He knew Clearsight well enough to know that she'd come to speak with him, even without the ability to read her mind.
"I…" she began, but stopped and hesitated, "You should accept what Diamond has in mind."
He gave a short snort. "Oh?"
"It's for the best," she told him, "I've looked and seen. The brightest futures see you ruling the tribe. You can do it well, and it will ensure peace with the Icewings for a very, very long time."
Darkstalker met her eyes, and although they looked tired, he could see no lie in them. Her words reflected what he himself had just seen, but not all he wanted to know.
"What about Indigo?"
Clearsight faltered. "Indigo?"
"You know I love her," Darkstalker pressed, "What will this mean? I already will have it difficult to rule, being a hybrid. Will the tribe also accept a Seawing as my mate?"
Clearsight sighed, wings drooping. She looked away as she rubbed her arm with a claw. "It would be selfish of me to say no," she told him, her voice quiet, "So I won't, even though part of me wants to. If you rule well, if you are a just and good king, then yes. Not all will love Indigo, but they will accept her for the sake of their king. And you will have a long and happy rule together, one that…that…"
She looked away, and Darkstalker saw a tear escape her eye. He knew what she meant to say, though.
One that we might have had ourselves, once.
He reached out a wing, and set it on her. "Thank you," he whispered, and she trembled as she nodded.
Darkstalker reentered the throne room, then, a confidence in his step that had not been there before. Finally, it felt like the future was clear for him. For the first time in a long time, he could see what would be, and he liked what he saw. Behind him, Clearsight entered as well, as did General Stargazer, who had apparently concluded his efforts in the city. Darkstalker heard Clearsight say something to him, but didn't pay them much mind.
His eyes scanned the nobles and royalty of the Night Kingdom, many dragons that had once held themselves above him. Their eyes watched him back with wariness, interest, and expectation. These were the dragons whose names held weight in the kingdom, who Darkstalker knew he would have to hold sway over, and he lifted his chin and fixed his stride as he approached.
"Well?" Queen Diamond asked. From the looks of things, she had been discussing her proposition further with the Nightwings present, and there was a look on her face that silently cautioned him not to mess with her plans. Luckily for Diamond, he was not planning on that.
"I accept," Darkstalker told her and all present, raising his voice so that it filled the room, "So long as all here swear fealty to me, I will be king."
Diamond nodded in approval. "Good."
But her sentiments were not shared by all present. He could hear grumbling in the voices of many nobles, and displeasure in their minds. It was the only deal they were given, though, and few other options were available. As the thought of one dragon that Darkstalker happened to catch put it:
Better a half-Nightwing king than an Icewing queen and our heads on spikes.
"What of us?" Princess Shadowhider asked, gesturing to herself and her sisters, "What if we should seek the throne?"
"It has not escaped my memory that in similar situations to this, potential challengers are often killed by the incoming monarch," Vigilkeeper added, "I would prefer to avoid that."
Darkstalker glanced to Diamond, but did not ask for her help. He had been content to let her take the lead on things up until now, but no more. If he was indeed to be king of the Nightwings, he would no more be a passive observer.
"Like the others, you will swear fealty," he told them, speaking in the diplomatic voice he'd learned from his father and his time in the palace, "You will renounce your claims to the throne and to your royal titles and take an oath of loyalty to myself and my heirs. In return, I will allow you to keep your royal estates outside of the palace and the wealth therein, but not anything of the royal treasury. I will give you a new title and station, and places upon my council, should you wish them."
The sisters looked at each other for a moment, then stepped back to discuss his words in a hushed whisper. Not that Darkstalker was too concerned about it. As Vigilkeeper herself had pointed out, historically speaking, a change in the ruling house or family was normally unkind to the heirs of the previous queen. Anything that wasn't death or exile was a strong offer from him to them.
A moment later, the princesses turned back to him, and their words reflected that. "A fair deal," Vigilkeeper declared, "We accept your conditions."
"I was never expecting to be queen anyway, not with mother on the throne," Darkstalker heard Marvelous mutter under her breath.
"What about us, then?" one of the nobles called out, "Will our treatment be the same."
Darkstalker tapped a claw on the ground, taking a moment to think before speaking. "You served Queen Vigilance at her pleasure, and you will serve at mine. Of titles and lands I will make no promises save this: I will reward those that are good to me and serve me well, and I will punish those that do not. And to all who will give their oaths of loyalty to me, I will guarantee them their lives and wealth."
More mutterings and rumblings, which was to be expected. The powerful did not like the idea of losing that power, and more than a few no doubt expected that to happen. After all, those that had made no small show of their displeasure towards him before would now be at his mercy. It would wound the pride of many dragons, and he knew some would never forgive him. Oaths of loyalty or not, he knew he would have to keep a careful eye on the nobles before him once he was ruling.
"And what if we refuse? What then?" one of the nobles had the gall to ask, and Darkstalker snorted.
He turned and motioned to Stargazer and the rest of the generals that had come with them from the desert and who had been standing silently for the length of the exchange. Slowly, they stepped forward. Darkstalker knew that some of them shared the same sentiments as many of the nobles, but he also knew what their response to his question would be.
"Generals Stargazer, Warbringer, and Swiftclaw," he addressed the three highest ranking present, giving each a nod as he did so, "Can I count on the support of the military, and of you, should I be king?"
There was a brief moment of silence then, as usual—or at least it seemed as such—Stargazer was the first to step forward. He lowered himself and bowed, spreading his wings out in respect. "I will serve you, King Darkstalker," the general said, "And I pledge the soldiers under me as well."
Darkstalker straightened himself, feeling suddenly how real this was. To have a dragon bowing, naming him his king. He was a ruler, in charge of a kingdom. This was not a vision, or a fantasy, this was real.
I will need to reward Stargazer, Darkstalker thought to himself as the other two generals also gave him their support and the support of the Nightwing—of his—army. The dragon had done a lot for the sake of peace and had put no small amount of faith in him and Clearsight, and Darkstalker had to wonder if it would have even been possible without him. Regardless, Darkstalker was resolved to send a title or two of nobility his way, at the very least.
But that would wait for later. Now, assured of his military support, he turned back to the nobles. "If you refuse," he answered the dragon that had challenged him, as well as all that thought similar, "Then you will be committing treason and rebelling against the ruler of the Night Kingdom. As king, I will deal with you as any king must, with all the force necessary to protect my kingdom."
That silenced them, although not every noble was sold on the idea. But that did not matter; he did not have to have the wholehearted support of the whole of the council and nobility. After all, he would be the king. He could make a new council and nobility.
A new silence fell, and Darkstalker looked over the crowd of Nightwings, wordlessly daring any others to ask questions or to oppose this deal. The terms had been set forth and accepted by the princesses. Those who disliked them would either be forced to agree anyway or face the consequences. This was the situation that Diamond had so cleverly maneuvered, and which Darkstalker reaped the benefit of.
"If there is no opposition to this arrangement," Diamond spoke, "Then it will be so. We will meet back here tomorrow, and those of you who will give your allegiance to Prince Darkstalker will do so, and crown him as your king."
Diamond turned and left, then, leaving the nobles to once more bicker and argue amongst themselves. Darkstalker followed her and the rest of the dragons that had accompanied her out of the room, and he could not suppress a feeling of giddiness. Soon, he would be king—something he had dreamed about since hatching. He would be the head of the tribe, one of the most powerful and influential dragons in Pyrrhia!
But as he walked out of what would soon be his throne room, he couldn't help but notice that one dragon didn't quite share his mirth. Despite Clearsight's words, Indigo's eyes were downcast, and a small smile she gave him felt very forced. He took a step towards her, hoping to explain, but Diamond called his name to ask directions out of the palace. By the time he was finished with that and led them out, he realized that the Seawings hadn't followed, probably having gone to their rooms inside the palace. He would have to wait to speak with Indigo, and he could only hope that the bright futures he'd seen weren't just wishful thinking.
He'd been confident before, but after her reaction it was hard to feel sure of anything anymore.
A/N: At this point in time, I am reasonably comfortable in saying that there are two chapters left, plus an epilogue. Not too much left to go!