Scrambling for Purchase
THE DISSIDENTS’ COUP had thinned the ranks of Imperial guards.
My departure was showy enough to ensure enemy eyes watched Tilly and me disappear into the woods, but after several squads of demon troops pursued me in a futile search, Tilly and I sneaked unseen back onto the grounds.
The palace towers were tall and numerous, easy enough to hide amongst if one kept their head on a swivel and eyes on the ground.
Thus, as night fell and the aurora shimmered under glittering planetary rings and winking stars, nothing stood between us and Princess Marie’s chambers.
If only I knew where they were.
I couldn’t simply fly around the towers, peering into windows and hoping to see the right one.
The palace was too large to search in one night.
Besides, somebody would spot me. For the same reason, I couldn’t dismount and look around for a map.
No, I needed a guide, which left one risky choice for me to make.
I brought Tilly up to a balcony, hidden from the gaze of rooftop guards, and said, “Ingvar, are you there?”
Silence. I waited, hopeful, but there was no response. The hordling had not come. Maybe he couldn’t come. Maybe he was loyal to the dissidents. Maybe he was imprisoned or serving another demon lord at the moment. Or maybe he simply couldn’t hear me.
I spoke louder. “Ingvar, if you’re there, I need you.”
“I would lower my voice if I were you, sir. We wouldn’t want any unwelcome additions to our little party, would we?”
I had never thought I would be so relieved to see an Imperial, but the hordling’s soft, susurrating voice brought immediate joy to my face. I twisted about on Tilly’s back to look at the Imperial servant. “How is it you always arrive right behind me?”
“Trade secret, sir. Now, if you’ll excuse my rudeness, we should get on with our business quickly before somebody spots us.”
“And what business do you think that is?” I asked.
Ingvar raised one bushy eyebrow in a perfectly servile manner, nevertheless implying even I should know such a simple answer. “Rescuing the Emperor, sir.”
I wanted to believe him, but my recent experience made me wary. “How do I know you mean us no harm? I thought Count Zukov was trustworthy, and look what happened.”
“I have concerns about Prince Selnikov as the next Emperor,” Ingvar answered. “The lives of hordlings and other civilians were better under Emperor Astrid’s reign. I would rather serve her than him.”
“A fine story, but why wait until now to act? You could have done something when Selnikov threw his coup,” I countered.
Ingvar pointed at Tilly. “I did do something, sir. I released your steed.”
I looked down at Tilly in surprise. “Tilly?”
Tilly whistled affirmatively, and Ingvar spoke. “Indeed, sir. She nearly took my head off as she sprinted from the stables.”
“But, you’re Imperial. I thought all Imperials hated SI,” I said.
Ingvar’s nose wrinkled, like he had just smelled a particularly noxious turd. “I’m not comfortable with them as a whole, but I trust this one will listen to you, sir, and I thought you would need all the help you could get to save the Emperor.”
I patted Tilly’s chassis. “You’re not wrong. It’s why I came back.” I drifted closer to the hordling on the balcony. “Can you tell me how to get to Princess Marie-Christina’s chambers? She’s the Stelsylvanian representative.”
“I’m aware of who she is, sir,” Ingvar said with a slightly patronizing smile, then pointed. “You will find her suite on the third floor from the top, with a courtyard-facing balcony. Not the worst accommodations, but not as luxurious as those enjoyed by the main combatants, such as yourself.”
I thought back to the tiny room where I had spent maybe half my nights on this planet. It was lavish for a soldier direct from the front, but severe for a League royal. “I certainly hope Princess Marie has a better room than mine.”
“Much better, sir, but not so fine as that which your prince enjoys,” Ingvar assured me. “Will there be anything else?”
“I’m certain there will be, but I need to assemble some allies and plan first. Will you be available when I next need you?” I asked.
Ingvar gave me his small, knowing smile once more. “Of course, sir. Just say the word.”
I made to kick off, but a thought made me pause. “Ingvar, what I’m about to do is insanely dangerous. Most of my possible futures wind up with me dead very soon. Why are you willing to risk your life to help me?”
Ingvar paused just outside the balcony door, considering before he answered. “A servant chooses little in this life, but the one thing they may choose is their master.” The hordling gave a little bow and vanished inside.
Ten minutes later, Tilly and I hung upside down above the Stelsylvanian suite’s balcony, shielding ourselves from prying eyes and infrared goggles in the protective overhang of obsidian crystal.
I did not have a key, and I dared not knock.
If a servant answered instead, I’d be lost. Thus, I settled in to wait until Princess Marie came outside.
At least, I desperately hoped she would.
My legs were cramping and my back ached by the time the balcony doors opened, but it was not Marie who emerged. It was Darius.
I watched in silence as the Yezhidian archduke walked to the railing.
He was half-undressed, his jacket missing, cravat gone, and shirt collar undone in a relaxed, after-party look, the disheveled disorder of the private chamber, not an outfit he would wear out.
Had I gotten the wrong balcony? But no, here came the princess, dressed in a shimmering evening gown and white fur stole, moving to stand next to the archduke.
“Are you certain you wish to do this? You don’t have to say yes,” Darius said.
Princess Marie smiled sweetly, but I could see a hint of melancholy in her eyes. “After the events two evenings past, I see no other way to save my nation. Worry not, it’s a sacrifice I am willing to make.”
“I hope you don’t think it too great a sacrifice,” Darius replied.
Marie gently placed her hand on his cheek. “It could be far worse. Against my expectations, I find you’re a good man, not at all the treacherous, untrustworthy, bloodthirsty snake I was warned about.”
Darius grimaced. “That bad? Well, I hope your people will accept our deal. Do tell them I tried to keep casualties to a minimum, but we Yezhidians practice aggressive warfare. It’s brutal, but it’s meant to be quick.”
“And we Stelsylvanians adhere to the defense. Outrun, outbuild, outlast. We preserve our society, no matter how long it takes,” Marie said, stepping in and laying her cheek on Darius’s shoulder.
Archduke Darius held her comfortingly, gently stroking her hair. “Well, you succeeded. Stelsylvania will remain, despite the Federation and Empire’s chaos. Besides, following up on this declaration should be more pleasant than receiving our declaration of war.”
Princess Marie softly laughed. “I’m not worried about that part, but I do hate abandoning my allies.
The League governments in exile at our court; the Royal Commonwealth, they deserve better.
The Despotate, I don’t mind so much, but it feels wrong to turn on those I promised to help, like something the Federation would do. I wish there were some other way.”
“Well, in that case, I’ve got good news for you,” I said.
The two former League royals jumped and spun as though electrified.
Darius reached for the dirk he ordinarily wore on his hip but which was not there, and Marie took in a breath to scream.
Before she could, I spurred Tilly forwards, battered Darius aside and clamped my hand over the princess’s mouth.
“Don’t. I’m not here to hurt you. If I get caught, I can’t offer you a way to get everything you want from this peace,” I hissed, glaring at the princess and the archduke.
I felt Marie relax in my hands as she recognized me, and Darius straightened from his fighting posture, his eyes wide with wonder. I released the princess and nudged Tilly back, retreating into the shadows again.
“Stars above, where did you come from?” Darius asked.
“We thought you were to be returned to the Commonwealth and executed,” Marie said.
“I decided it wasn’t for me. Now, will you two invite me and Tilly in so we can get out of the open?” I asked.
Immediately, Princess Marie walked to the door and opened it. I spurred Tilly inside, then landed, swinging from the saddle to rub the cramps from my legs.
“You mentioned a deal?” Archduke Darius badgered me the moment he closed the doors and polarized the windows.
I stood, noticing the fresh flowers, opened champagne, unfolded blanket and tumbled cushions on the sofa. “I’m sorry, I appear to have interrupted a most pleasant evening.”
Princess Marie blushed a deep shade of crimson, but Archduke Darius waved my objection away. “Never mind all that, tell us why you’re here and not, say, escaping to another planet to live your life in peace?”
I glared at the Imperial ally. “Do you honestly think I could live with myself if I left now, when I still have a chance to make things right?”
“So you have a plan?” Marie asked. “A plan to restore what we’ve lost?”
“I have the outline of a plan,” I admitted. “It needs fleshing out. That’s why I’m here. My government wants to arrest me, the Imps want me dead, and the Federation would turn me over to either before I could scream. You, Princess, are the only ally I have left. I come asking for aid.”
“And what does that make me? Tinned beef?” Archduke Darius half-playfully grumbled.
I gave him a sharp look. “Technically, our nations are still at war, and you are allied with the Empire. I didn’t know if I could trust you.”
“There’s a lot you don’t know,” Darius said.
“I dislike this coup almost as much as I want this war ended. Selnikov’s a snake, and I can’t trust he won’t absorb Yezhidia once he no longer has to fight you Allies.
You tell me you can stop Selnikov and the Federation before they carve up the quadrant between them? Then I’m in.”
I felt a warmth at the bottom of my chest at his words, but I could not trick him or the princess into joining me. “Are you certain? Both of you? It’s going to be rough. Honestly, I don’t expect to survive this, and I don’t want to put either of you in danger…”
“I said I’m in. Princess?”
“My guards are at your command,” Marie replied.
“There it is. Now, where do we begin?” Darius asked, cutting me off.
I grinned. “First things first – we need troops and weapons. Then we go save the Emperor.”