Chapter 6: The Knights of Custon

Zehra:

"So, what do you think, future leading baron?" Zehra flashed a cheeky smile and nudged Arnaut, who stood with Inferno at the edge of the hilltop.

He examined the countryside. Its villages, farmlands, and the knightly fiefs, aided by Inferno's sight. "Don Pablo is capable enough, but I see room for improvement."

"Indeed, you shall be the perfect baron, I should think. You know, when you finally get your barony, someday."

Zehra tried to shove Arnaut by his shoulder, but the massive knight proved too firm. She then yelped and jumped away with smoke rising from her hand. Zehra gritted her teeth at the unrelenting burning pain and scowled at Arnaut, who flashed a smirk back at her.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Insulting a man made of magma. I thought you were more civilized than that."

Seraphina chased away Arnaut's grin with her stern expression and washed away the burns on Zehra's hand with some bright water. The former Invadores noblewoman exhaled in immense relief when the pain vanished, and she adjusted her hand.

"At least she has humility."

"Gracias, Seraphina. You are very civilized." Zehra now grinned back at Arnaut, and steam rose from his body. Inferno growled at Zehra, but she responded by showing her now-healed hand.

"Are you lot done playing around? We do have important duties to attend to. Don't we, Garcia, don't we! Si, mama loves you. Si, she does."

Isabella's voice softened in an instant, and Zehra cringed a little when she saw the baroness cradling a baby boy in her arms. Wiha panted and nuzzled the child with gleaming eyes. Garcia had his mother's complexion and emerging blue hair like hers. However, even at three months old, Zehra could see just how much the boy resembled his father.

Pedro put his arms around Garcia and Isabella while Gleam licked the baby and nuzzled Wiha. "I think someone is more excited to see his abuelo." Zehra wanted to roll her eyes but found herself entranced watching the family. Seraphina smiled with her, and a grin escaped Zehra. She nudged the lumen, gesturing to the baby and then Arnaut. She eagerly awaited her friend's fluster, but the young woman just sighed and shook her head.

"No, I gave up such a path when I became a lumen. Still, I am happy for them. Their first child."

"And heir," Arnaut added. Zehra wanted to say something snarky back but realized she would have said something similar a few years prior. However, the young woman suppressed some giggles when she saw Seraphina's eyes narrow at him.

"A loving family lay before us, and all you see is their status?"

"I'm just being practical. As a-"

"Future baron."

Seraphina finished, and Zehra left the two to argue and approached Rodrigo, who stood before the castle with Blizzard. The prince conversed with Don Pablo, the local baron. A little older than Pedro and Isabella, Pablo, with a stockier barrel-chested frame kept under his red epaulet jacket cape. The baron and his red dragon stared at a series of wagons gathered behind Blizzard. There, groups of local clergymen, clergywomen, and staff from Pablo's manor loaded up gleaming magical gemstones.

"I had great plans for that stored magic." Don Pablo grit his teeth and stared at the glowing rocks. Gleaming rubies grew over Don Pablo's hand as he balled it into a fist.

"More important than feeding your people?" Rodrigo spoke in an even tone, but Zehra felt the air chill around them. Despite this, a fire lit inside Zehra, and she raced beside her prince when his icy stare silenced the baron.

"Si, do not forget that King Sancho named him minister of agriculture, and you did not object to his recommendation at the last council meeting."

Zehra backed up Rodrigo and savored Pablo's pale expression, plus the beads of sweat across his brow. Seeing such confidence brim in Rodrigo over these last few years proved more than entertaining, especially before men like Don Pablo. A part of Zehra almost wished she could see him put her brother in his place. Then again, she might get that chance one day. The thought made her smile a wide grin.

"Si, forgive me, Prince Rodrigo. I forgot myself." Don Pablo adjusted a few gold rings, each adorned with a gleaming gemstone. His dragon did the same with a gold necklace around his neck. Zehra wanted to seize them off Pablo's fingers, but a glance from Rodrigo made her think he might have read her mind. "Indeed, let us not forget that our nobility was a gift from the Father, Don Pedro. Let us not forget that he blessed us so that we might tend to his flock."

Rodrigo flashed his fingers before the lord, emphasizing his lack of jewelry. "There are more important things in life than comfort. I am glad in this time of famine and abundance of freed slaves. We could help ensure your people have enough food to survive." Rodrigo picked up a larger gemstone from a wagon and tossed it to Pablo. The baron caught it, and Zehra smirked when the lord's eyes went wide.

"The council chamber's main light fixture?"

"Si, that's what I've come to love about Tierrero. Its nobles set a good example for everyone to follow, unlike my heathen people."

Zehra picked up a few others shaped specifically for an illusion chamber and savored Pablo's pale expression. He started to sweat with his dragon and, after a moment, took out a christogram and stared at it. "...Si. Pardon me for a moment." Pablo waved over a few of his men-at-arms, then raced back inside the estate. Zehra leaned on Rodrigo, who cooled her in the rising sun's heat. A year had passed since their successful slave rescue, and since then, they completed no less than a dozen more raids, flooding Tierrero with more people. With this influx, Sancho assigned Rodrigo as Minister of Agriculture to ensure all in the kingdom had bread for their tables.

"He reminds me of my brother. Then again, I don't think even you could bring any goodness out of Ozil." Zehra sighed as her childhood memories with him came like a terrible flood.

 "You ever did talk much about him since we met," Rodrigo said, and Zehra avoided his gaze.

"There's nothing more to tell you than I already have. Ozil is of the Diwan class set to succeed our father one day. A proper man of his rank who enjoys the finer things in life is devoted to the gods and a master swordsman."

"Surely there has to be more to him than that." Blizzard nudged Zehra, who puffed up her cheeks and pulled away from them both. She knew Rodrigo only meant well, but Zehra cursed herself for bringing Ozil up.

"I guess you weren't close with him."

"I'd have killed for a brother like you, Rodrigo. You live in a separate Kingdom and still make time to visit your little sisters. Ozil and I lived in the same estate, and he felt like a stranger. Once, he caught me practicing fencing from a manuscript with a sword and backhanded me. 'A woman must never touch a weapon!' hump. I hope we get the chance to drag him down one day. I'd love for him to see me as a barbarian chivalric maiden and devoted child of the Father."

Zehra furiously took out and kissed her christogram, but a pit formed in her stomach in the place of warmth she usually felt with the cross. "Zehra." Rodrigo's hand cooled the burning rage in her. "He's still your brother. Hating him isn't going to bring you any peace. If you ever do meet Ozil again, you have the chance to make amends and have the relationship you always wanted."

"Humph!" Zehra puffed up her cheeks again and shook a little.

"Wait! My prince, don't leave yet!"

Don Pablo raced out with his soldiers, staff, and dragon, each carrying gleaming gemstones. All of the baron's jewelry lay in his hands before he dumped them into the nearest cart. Zehra's heart soared when she saw their stock replenished from what they gave to Don Pablo's people.

"Gracias, Don Pablo. The border provinces will put this to good use." Rodrigo and Don Pablo performed the holy sign together, and soon Zehra did the same.

"Saint Honorius." They prayed together. Yet, the prayer was soon interrupted. Zehra saw the prince's eyes go wide and face turn pale as he looked at something in the distance. Blizzard, however, panted with his tail wagging and nudged Rodrigo forward despite his protest.

Comprehension soon dawned on Zehra, and excitement tickled every inch of her body until she almost exploded in laughter. Hurried footsteps and high-pitched screams echoed across the land, and before they knew what happened, a flood of young women from Don Pedro's estate and the surrounding villages swept over them. Each of them squealed with hearts for eyes and bright pink cheeks as they came at Rodrigo and Arnaut.

Unlike the prince, Arnaut smiled and emphasized his physique and handsome features as several dozen women surrounded him. The ladies cried their names and fought each other to get closer.

"Prince Rodrigo! The hero of Tierrero and his loyal knight Don Arnaut!"

"They're even more handsome than I imagined!"

"Your majesty, why aren't you married yet!?

"¡Sí! Marry me!"

"No, marry me!"

"¿Tú? You're just a blacksmith's daughter!"

"Fine, I'll be your mistress!"

Zehra's sides almost split open when she saw fatigue take its toll on Rodrigo. He looked more fatigued than he had after many battles. Blizzard did not help as he nuzzled many of the girls and tried to push Rodrigo closer with his tail.

"Good boy, Blizzard, Good boy."

Zehra petted the dragon's head and earned a happy whine as he nuzzled her. However, the situation with Arnaut proved night and day. Unlike Rodrigo, he took in his adoring fans and laid on the charm. He pulled out roses and stroked a few cheeks. This made several of the young women melt even without his magma. Inferno howled in delight, but Seraphina shook with boiling rage. Zehra never imagined such emotions from a lumen. Her peaceful demeanor almost melted with each girl Arnaut flirted with, and soon, even Inferno looked frightened of her.

"Huh? What's wrong with that lumen?"

"Is she mad he's flirting?"

"She doesn't have to be such a prude."

Zehra's face turned pale and sheepish. This had gone on far enough, and Isabella clearly thought the same based on her exacerbated look at Arnaut. The two women nodded, and Zehra put herself between Rodrigo and his adoring fans.

"Ok, that's enough. His Majesty must go now. He'll get married one day to a proper lady of his rank. I'm sure you all will find men for yourselves one day." Despite Zehra's commands, the young woman did not listen, and her forehead twinged. Instead, she sharpened her teeth into fangs and snapped at them. "That means get lost!"

At this, several yelped and ran off while others glared before doing the same. More pouted and complained as Pedro gave a cheerier version of her speech while dragging Arnaut away. The Conquete knight sighed, but soon, the color vanished from his face when he saw Seraphina's expression.

"I, they, what do you care?"

"Humph, I don't care. I just think you ought not to be leading those young women astray, is all."

"Oh please, I was just flirting."

The two went back and forth until Rodrigo pulled them apart, and Zehra threatened to explode into more laughter. However, her joy faded when they finished up and soon found themselves flying south.

"Saint Circe, preserve me from this horrible beast." Zehra held her mouth shut and grimaced as she tried to remain upright in the back of Blizzard's saddle. The dragon's sharp turns and constant shift in direction all but turned the young woman's stomach upside down.

"What's wrong, elegant chivalric maiden, can't handle a little flying?"

Arnaut's chuckles lit a fire in Zehra's churning belly, and she snarled back at his smirk. The knight flew a few yards away with Seraphina behind him, deep in prayer. "Rodrigo, tell Blizzard to stop flying like this unless he wants me to throw up on him." Zehra's breathing grew heavy before a cool hand rested on her forehead and eased some of the knots in her nerves.

"Mi amiga, cut him some slack. My dear partner is carrying a heavy burden for Tierrero."

Rodrigo flashed her a smile and gestured to the massive wagon dangling below Blizzard by four chains while the contents rocked around. The black and blue dragon let out a sharp whine and flashed puppy dog eyes at her. Zehra, however, narrowed her gaze back at Blizzard, whose expression soon morphed into a cheeky grin before he huffed out a breath of frozen air.

"Hmp, uncivilized overgrown beast," Zehra grumbled as she wiped some of the ice off her face. Seraphina guided some gleaming water over and around Zehra, washing away her motion sickness.

"Ahhh, gracias. Rodrigo, I insist on just riding a horse next time. Dragon's do not agree with me."

Pedro chuckled from behind them, and Zehra puffed up her cheeks when Blizzard started nuzzling and licking the young woman. "Si, it sure looks like it."

"Besides, you wanted to come along, and we do not have time to slow down for horses on such a vital task," Rodrigo chuckled, and he gestured to the farmlands below them.

Zehra shook a little when she saw wagons of glowing gemstones brought to the area by clergymen and women. The peasants seized these glowing stones and began grinding them into dust before spreading them over the crops again and again. Others joined the clergy in prayer before the fields. Zehra noticed just how many peasants and freemen filled the villages and settlements below them. Not just Tierrero Envidians but former slaves intermingled among them. They worked, prayed, played, and ate together.

"Beautiful, isn't it."

Rodrigo took Zehra by the shoulder and turned her to a young Envidian man and former slave woman outside a small house, a baby in their arms. Zehra's heart melted, for she remembered the young woman. She wiped away a few tears and nodded.

Zehra lost herself in the freed slaves below, thriving in their new lives. Not all worked as peasant farmers, though. She spotted a few from her first foray, with Seraphina working as a craftsman or musician in a small village or musicians at taverns. Intermingling with slaves and barbarians like this was still alien to the former Invadores noblewoman, who sighed the more she thought about her old life and family. Zehra grimaced at the thought of Rodrigo asking again, but to her relief, the topic was not brought up again.

"Si, and all of it is because of you, Rodrigo," Zehra said and playfully smacked his shoulder.

"I didn't do this alone. We all helped free these slaves," Rodrigo added.

"Si, but that was the fun part. You did the boring part, integrating them into the kingdom and giving them livelihood here. Not to mention feeding them," Zehra laughed and soon the others smiled at Rodrigo too. "We have us a saint in the making."

Blizzard nuzzled his rider, and a slight smile crept onto Rodrigo's face as he took all of his hard work in. "Perhaps. At the very least, it will show mi padre that I'm ready to take responsibility for Riquezarra, too. Maybe he'll finally come and see what I've done."

Zehra gritted her teeth with Arnaut. Seraphina, Pedro, and Isabella sighed while Blizzard whined. The chivalric maiden considered finally confronting Rodrigo on his father but thought better of it.

Instead, their flight toward the border province proved more entertaining as Zehra poked fun at Arnaut by pointing out all of the land below them belonging to the Knights of Custon. She savored his fiery snarl after asking how many new barons could have been named from so much territory. Zehra only stopped after Isabella backhanded them both with water whips when their shouting awakened Garcia from his nap.

"You two best watch yourselves. There's nothing more dangerous than an angry mother," Perdo chuckled back at Zehra, who rolled her eyes until she saw Isabella's feral gaze. At that, she went pale and locked her lips up tight. Soon enough, the chivalric maiden's hand found itself gripping her rapier's hilt when she looked below again.

The ruins of a small village rested beside a forest, with the charred remnants of buildings creaking in the wind like ghosts. The nearby farm fields looked no better, and Zehra held her heart when she saw the burned fragments of crops and livestock lay hewn alongside a cemetery with fresh graves. A few peasants and clergy set flowers and prayed before the gravestones while others inspected the field itself.

Seraphina started a prayer that soon spread to the others. While she prayed, the chivalric maiden's grip on her weapon tightened even more after she spotted groups of knights and men-at-arms adorned in white with red christograms patrolling the various roads and settlements.

"Mi padre has kept taking well to his new position."

Pedro gestured to a dozen or so limp figures near a road along the tree line. All four dragons growled, Seraphina almost yelped, and Isabella covered Garcia's eyes. Zehra could not see through Blizzard's eyes like Rodrigo and thus had to wait until they got closer. She blinked and tapped the hilt of her sword. Pedro was right, and his father did not disappoint. The figures were all Invadores men, mangled, beaten, and limp as they hung by their necks from the trees. These were not ordinary soldiers; instead, they wore baggy pants with colorful jackets and torn-up armor patched around them, mixed and matched as if taken from multiple sources. However, they were uniform regarding the signs hung around each of them, written in Invadores. Zehra sighed.

"Bashi-Bazouks, you are warned. Well done, Don Rafael, though I doubt he'd scare those crazy heads even if he hung ten thousand of their corpses up."

"Recognize any of them?" Arnaut jested, but Zehra shook her head.

"I was a noblewoman, remember. If a bashi-bazouk was caught near me, I'd be punished, and he'd lose his head. The masses may enjoy the slaves and plunder they bring back, but nobody really wants them around. They cause just as much trouble back home when there's no enemy to fight. I remember one of my father's friends once caught a bashi bazouk near his estate and had the fool's head cut open to see if he had a brain inside."

"What a pleasant thing to do in front of children." Isabella held Garcia tighter.

"Well, did he have a brain?" Arnaut asked despite Seraphina hitting him on the back of his head.

"Yes, surprisingly enough, he did." Zehra chuckled with Arnaut until glares from Rodrigo and Isabella silenced them. They passed a few castles flying the red Christogram banner. At last, they arrived at the grand fortress three times the size of the others they passed.

"We're here, abuelo's new home."

Isabella held Garcia up again when they flew in closer toward the largest turret, where a golden dragon just like Gleam rested. Pedro's partner howled upon seeing him and zoomed past the others. Soon, both dragons nuzzled each other and jumped around, tails wagging. Zehra saw a man standing before the second golden dragon. Despite his prominent role in the court, she had never met Don Rafael in person before but knew him the moment she laid eyes on him. He was a middle-aged version of Pedro to a tee, so much so that she wondered if Pedro's mother passed on anything to him.

"Hola, welcome to mi humilde hogar." Don Rafael's voice and expression only furthered the idea to Zehra that the Father may have simply recreated him exactly in his son. However, unlike Pedro or the others, he now wore a white coat with a matching white epaulet jacket cape donned with the red Christogram sigil. Pedro leaped down from Gleam and embraced Don Rafael.

"Padre."

"Mijo. Ahh, I am honored. Prince Rodrigo, welcome."

Don Rafael inclined his head before turning back to Pedro and Isabella, who had come up beside her husband. "Plus the new Baron and Baroness de líder. I have so many esteemed guests, but where is he? Si, there he is." Don Rafael reached out and, with tender care, took a laughing Garcia into his arms.

"Say hola to abuelo." Isabella's face beamed as Don Rafael held the baby. However, Zehra saw Rodrigo and Arnaut looking over the castle's ramparts. Men in white gambesons patrolled the walls with crossbows and performed maintenance on scorpios while chaplains inspected gemstones embedded into the stone. Soon, Don Rafael led them inside and past dim hallways. All the glowing gemstone light fixtures' slots lay empty with the chaplain and knight brothers praying, training, or performing other duties in simple candlelight.

Zehra almost wanted to scoff at the primitive candles but kept such thoughts to herself for a moment. Instead, she smiled a little when she glanced out a window at the fields restored with the gemstones they had brought. The humility of the castle itself also drew her eye. Unlike the various royal estates or baron manors, the Knights of Custon's chief fortress had no decorative art or other means of hubris. Instead, it bore simple wooden Christograms and their banners.

As much as she appreciated what the Knights of Circe did for the sick and enslaved, Zehra's respect for the Knights of Custon grew the more she learned about them. Originally founded in the Holy Land of Outremer, the order devoted itself to protecting pilgrims trying to reach Dieurbem, the City where the Father lived, preached, died, and rose again. Over time, the order spread to Envidia, too, and acted as crack border guards and elite shock troops on the battlefield.

More than once, they launched forays into Invadores territory and responded to raids. She stared out one window into the courtyard where the knight and sergeant brothers trained. Men on equoferri and horses jousted while others on foot clashed with swords and polearms. This is the right way to serve the father. Zehra grinned and longed to join them. But alas, she followed the others into a dark chamber where they sat around a table.

"Perdónanos, we are not ones for fancy living." Don Rafael gave a sheepish smile as two chaplain brothers set down bread and water on the table before them. Pedro and his father both lit up the dark chamber with golden light magic alongside their dragons. "Such a beautiful boy. He reminds me of your mother." Don Rafael sighed and held Garcia close while the infant reached for his face.

"I don't know, Padre. I think he looks more like you."

"You mean the both of you." Isabella giggled. Don Rafael's dragon, Glint, panted and licked the top of Garcia's head. Rodrigo raised his glass of water in a toast to Rafael's election and was soon joined by the others. "Gracias, your highness. However, I'm not the first lord to get elected grandmaster upon my entry. Had to be sure my lineage was ensured before I did so."

Rafael smiled down at Garcia before handing him back to Isabella, who began nursing her son. "Will the gemstones we brought be sufficient?" Rodrigo's face tensed up, and Zehra rolled her eyes. He had already received an answer over a week prior at the council meeting but still went on about ensuring everyone in Tierrero got fed.

"Si, more than enough despite the increased raids by our enemy and the influx of freed slaves. All thanks to the lumen." Don Rafael inclined his head to Seraphina, who turned a little pink and nodded back.

"Hump, we saw the work you did cleaning up those brigands, Don Rafael. An excellent start to your position. Now we just need to follow it up with an incursion into enemy territory."

Zehra flashed a wide grin and envisioned herself at the head of a grand host sweeping over the Invadores empire, freeing countless slaves and dragging her brother from his estate. However, Arnaut scoffed.

"That's ridiculous. I thought you used to live among the Invadores. Tierrero alone cannot launch a major invasion. A wise ruler like Rodrigo will take it back piece by piece, securing strategic castles and consolidating gains."

"Back and forth with the castles. You want this to go on forever! Wait for the right moment, then strike with everything we've got! Come on, don't you want to fulfill Rodrigo's Dream in your lifetime?"

Zehra grabbed Rodrigo by the shoulder until he pulled himself free. 

"The only way we could accomplish that is if the Papst called a crusade and somehow got past the rocky barrier fast enough to organize a proper crusader army. But unless you've forgotten, everyone willing to go on crusade from the other lands is getting ready to head to Outremer since Emperor Caesar allowed the Sonn Empire to reform!" Arnaut snarled back with steam rising from his armor.

"In this case, Arnaut is right. Tierrero does not yet have the means for a major attack. Liberating the lands piecemeal might take longer but will ensure Rodrigo's dream." Rodrigo put a hand on Zehra's shoulder, but she puffed up her cheeks and looked away.

"What's gotten you so worked up?" Isabella kept a watchful eye on Zehra, who waivered a little before her stare.

"I just don't like the idea of countless sieges dragging on forever. A proper campaign should have us sweep over them rapidly!"

"Like when your ancestors first came here," Pedro chuckled.

"Yes, that's exactly. Very funny." Zehra pouted harder at him and Gleam, who flashed toothy smiles her way.

"Be careful what you wish for, Zehra. Trouble is brewing with the increase in raids from our enemy."

Don Rafael's voice dimmed, snapping the others back to reality. Zehra likewise grimaced and nodded with a somber expression. She also knew that increased raids by Bashi-Bozouks was a prelude to a larger campaign. The irregular plunderers would ravage the border provinces first and soften them up for the main army to come in. It was a standard practice.

"Grandmaster Anton tells me his spies haven't gotten anything from Ciuperdida as of late," Don Rafael said.

"Neither have our agents," Seraphina sighed, and Rodrigo leaned in closer.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, apparently, Ciuperdida has been locked down since the Caliph Suleiman returned from his disastrous campaign against Mardierra." Don Rafael did not even finish before Arnaut scoffed. Zehra almost wanted to do the same. She imagined word had spread as far as the Sonn Kingdoms north of Dieurbem's empire by now. Suleiman had tried to restore his reputation by launching a major naval invasion of Mariderra in concert with his pirates. However, King Ferdinand and his navy ambushed both fleets as they tried to link up and sent the Caliph fleeing away on his abra while his ships sank beneath the waves.

"No word as to what's going on, but I have a feeling something significant will be revealed once those doors open."

Don Rafael finished, and Zehra thought of Ozil again. The pit in her stomach returned as she imagined an angry mob beating up her brother and tearing apart their home.

"Suleiman will weather this. He always does." Zehra spoke out loud but more to herself than anyone else.

"That probably explains the increased raids on our lands. He's trying to achieve something tangible and save face. But by the Father's grace, we have the Knights of Custon." Pedro flashed a bright smile at his father. This light rekindled the grandmaster, who nodded. 

"Si, but I cannot claim too much credit. Grandmaster Jacobo gave his life to fight them off, and he could not have done so without these castles King Sancho retook a few months ago."

Zehra struggled to suppress a grin. Despite the king's initial setbacks against Selim, Sancho finally regained his lost castles along the border after Suleiman recalled his general and sent a replacement, who was promptly killed with his host when he tried and failed to ambush the King of Tierrero. 

"Oui, the importance of castles for bases of operations and safe havens for our people."

"What of Selim?" Rodrigo's cold tone and question chilled the entire chamber, and a shiver ran down Zehra's spine.

"We know little, I'm afraid. I suppose we are blessed he is still recalled. I'm not sure we would have achieved success had he done so." Don Rafael's voice dimmed again, and Rodrigo stared at the Invadores Empire on the map of Envidia before them.

Rodrigo turned back to Zehra, who almost jumped. She had already told the prince everything she knew about him years earlier, but his curiosity remained unquenched. Still, she could not blame him either. Selim was the best Invadores general in generations. He had defeated Rodrigo's grandfather and killed his uncle.

"He comes from the fringes of the Diwan class and is hated by the more established families as an upstart. However, his success has kept him as Grand Kazasker despite this. My father and brother complained about him all the time and once even made whispers about assassinating him, but they might have just had too much to drink."

"The common people. He is a hero to them, is he not?" Rodrigo asked, but Zehra had the feeling he already knew the answer. 

"Indeed, some have even called him a son of Gazap. What are you getting at?" Zehra feared Rodrigo's answer, and he fixed his eyes on Ciuperdida so hard that she feared the table might shatter.

"Something has happened there."

Seraphina nodded, and her eyes fell upon Ciuperdida, too, and Zehra's heart started to race. She longed to call Rodrigo paranoid but knew her former people too well.

"We need to find out what's happening, then warn my grandfather and the other kings."

"An excellent plan, but how to pull it off?" Pedro stroked his chin while Isabella held Garcia tighter. 

"Certainly, there are better times and places for such discussions, Rodrigo." She narrowed her eyes at the prince, but he remained as firm as ice. Arnaut, however, jumped up with fiery enthusiasm in his eyes and grinned.

"When then, after it's too late? Rodrigo is right! Grandmaster, why not take advantage of the chaos and-"

"Launch a full-scale invasion!" Zehra finished, mirroring his expression.

"No, haven't you listened to anything!? We seize more nearby castles and-"

"Calm down, everyone!"

Rodrigo silenced both with his icy voice, and a thick mist escaped his body. "Perhaps I was too impatient when I last spoke, but we-"

"Grandmaster! Grandmaster!"

The doors burst open, and a chaplain-brother, soaked in sweat, scrambled inside. Don Rafael steadied the man while Seraphina eased him with some magical water.

"Luis, respirar. What's happening?"

"Grandmaster, our lookouts have spotted more Invadores raiders approaching from the south, mounted archers and bashi-bazouks."

"Abra riders?" Don Rafael gritted his teeth, and Zehra's stomach hardened in preparation for the answer.

"Si, at least two were spotted." Luis pointed to spots on the map, and Zehra grabbed the hilts of her blades as she waited for Rafael and Rodrigo's command.

"Get word to Don Carlos and Don Javier to defend the farms after the locals are evacuated. Damn, abra riders."

"Padre, you have us." Pedro stood tall with Arnaut, Rodrigo, and Zehra.

"Si. Where do you need us, grandmaster!?" Zehra tried to emphasize herself. However, despite her growth to five foot seven after years of eating aciemes food, she still stood in the shadow of the enormous men.

"I won't be joining you." Isabella clutched onto Garcia, and Pedro nodded with Rafael. The grandmaster pointed to three spots on the map.

"Si, you stay here and protect the fortress. My prince, head toward this village and head off the Abra rider before he gets there."

"It shall be done," Blizzard growled and flexed his wings.

"Arnaut, I want you here. Take the fight to the enemy."

"Now we're talking. I'll try to bring some prisoners back to." Arnaut cracked his knuckles while magma dripped out of them.

"Seraphina, we have another lumen here. I want you both to evacuate the local villages to our castles." She nodded while Don Rafael turned to Pedro. "Mijo, you and Zehra head here and intercept any Invadores moving north."

"Si, padre."

"Si, indeed." Zehra flashed a broader and brighter grin than Pedro. A proper fight protecting peasants from nefarious bashi-bazouks was just what she needed to clear her mind.

"Be careful, mi amor." Isabella pulled Pedro into a kiss while he also stroked Garcia's head.

"Fear not, mi amor. I'll have Zehra and Gleam with me."

"Si, he will. Get me a proper horse, and let's ride!"