"And tell him so, for I will ease my heart,
Albeit I make a hazard of my head."

—From 1 Henry IV,
By William Shakespeare

"WHAT IN THUNDER?" Hugo muttered. "Carlyle, what was that? Was that you?"

"I... I... have no idea." He wished he could say that the magic had simply exploded out of him, an instinct beyond his control, but it hadn't. It had felt... not natural, not a part of his own essence like blood magic, but like he was drawing it out of some greater force than himself. He hadn't wanted the king to get away, so he had done something about it. It was as simple and complicated as that. "I don't know."

What he also didn't know was whether he could trust Hugo. The man had already betrayed the queen's orders—who was to say he wouldn't betray Alastair? Or perhaps the queen herself had told Ilyas—though knowing Jovana as he did now, she was unlikely to place any faith in the Lord Regent. It bothered him that he knew her, that he had gotten to know her more in every way instead of just searching for weaknesses to exploit.

"Is that all you can do?" Kaiden shouted, apparently having gotten over the jock of seeing a Mordanian guard with Atlan powers. "I have seen children with more prowess!"

Alastair gazes at the widening gap between himself and the king. A few more minutes and it would be too wide to leap across. He sifted through the heap of elements in his mind; heat and fire, he had tried and what good would it do him? Ice, perhaps?

Ice it was. He focused, throwing out his hands in front of him... and a bridge of ice appeared for he and Hugo to walk across. A large, unevenly cut slab and not the drawbridge he had been envisioning, but still usable. Then he firmly encased the king and his companion in ice up to the waist.

"Well, it seems you do have some talent after all." The king looked mildly delighted, glancing down at the transparent blocks that attached his legs to the ground. "I'm impressed."

The dark-skinned woman simply began melting the ice around herself, but not before Alastair reached King Kaiden and knocked unconscious with the flat of his sword and instructed Hugo to sling the man over his shoulder.

"I hope he still finds us impressive," Alastair muttered.

"Are you joining us?" Hugo called out, a tinge of humour entering his previously shocked voice. "We don't need you, we only came for the king."

They dashed back across the bridge, Alastair using his concentration to hold it steady when he could feel that the woman was trying to melt it. With a sigh of frustration, she followed them across the bridge and to remain with her king.

"I can still overpower you and take the king with me," the woman said.

"Perhaps, but then you would be in the middle of Mordania, as a foreigner, with one unconscious, injured man and no one to heal him. The Mordanians will not heal an Atlan," Alastair said flatly. "They would see him buried sooner than see him healed."

When they reached the still-waiting carriage, Hugo slung the king into the back and bound chains around his wrists. When Alastair moved to bind the woman, she gave him a look that reminded him of Jovana: try it and I will set you on fire.

"You are aware I could also set you on fire?" Alastair said.

"Yes. But your skills are clearly those of a novice magic wielder. No Atlan worth their salt would be so sloppy. Yes, you managed to wield it, but it was like comparing a child's finger paintings to an accomplished artist's watercolour. They are both art, but only one of them is skilled." The woman said all of this without malice, only with the detached detail of an observer. "You need more practice. If you ever want some... well, I would suggest you contact me, but I'm sworn to protect the king and I can't do that by inviting his enemies into his territory."

"No, I suppose not." In spite of the fact that they had been to kill each other, he found himself enjoying her company on the ride back to Hartfall. "But, I appreciate the offer."

"Are you two done flirting? The king is waking up." Hugo said from the backseat of the landau.

Kaiden's voice was groggy. "The next time I wake up in chains I hope it is for a more... pleasant reason."

Alastair rolled his eyes. "How depraved are your tastes?"

"I said nothing of a sexual manner, captain. It is your mind that wandered to such a concupiscent place, so perhaps I could ask you the same question." He sat up, his mop of dyed brown hair now visible. His green eyes seemed more unfocused than usual. "Now, tell me... what's this I hear about you flirting with my guard? I must warn you, she has very little interest in men."

"Oh, really? Who gave you this information?" The woman said, a momentary expression of infuriation passing over her face.

"You yourself after I studied you for so many years. You have never shown the slightest interest in any suitors," Kaiden said seriously. "I have to assume it is because you harbour an eternal flame for some man that you cannot have. Don't worry, it has happened to many women who spend time in my presence—"

The woman pushed on his chest, causing him to fall back onto the seat. "Oh, shut up, Kaiden."

Yes. She was definitely a lot like Jovana.

///

"WILL YOU TELL the Lord Regent about my powers?" Alastair asked Hugo.

He could not have any fear in his voice, or else it would be exploited as a weakness. He knew that now. He knew it and yet he could not carry it out.

Hugo sighed. "I honestly don't know. Our duty..."

"Is to the queen, not the Lord Regent." Alastair said. "Do we have an agreement?"

Hugo swallowed. "Listen, Carlyle. You are my friend..."

"Jovana is the queen. She is our ruler. Our duty is to her, not the Lord Regent." He could not tell, in this moment, if he hated Ilyas Durand or Jovana Dusang more.

"Perhaps. But for now, Ilyas Durand pays our bills. He pays for our armour, our food, our clothing, our board. The queen is nothing more than a figurehead." Hugo frowned at him. "Why are you so defensive of the queen? Are you fucking her?"

Alastair scowled at the vulgar language as well as the accusation. "I am not."

"Then why did you call her Jovana?" Hugo asked. "In Beaufort... In Beaufort that would be cause enough for concern."

He was right. Everyone in Beaufort had called the queen Her Majesty or else pronounced her name the common way.

"It's... no reason." He felt his face flush. "Look, are you going to snitch on me or not?"

Hugo sighed. "Of course not! Powers or not... you're my best friend here."

"I'm your only friend," Alastair retorted and they both burst out laughing, all secrets and tension forgotten.

At least, he hoped.