The next morning, nobody wanted to do anything but discuss the Pitten Islands. So Acen made them train. It didn't help much. The knights were good enough at fighting each other that they could often carry out a conversation the whole while. They took things a little more seriously when they dueled Navirians. When our knights fought against normal Navirian soldiers, they usually won. When they trained with other specialized knights the competitions got more interesting. They won, lost, or occasionally tied, and for whatever reason Acen had made it his mission to make sure I understood what was going on in every fight. Over the following week, he often stood beside me to watch a duel, and peppered me with questions.

It was working. I was starting to pick out details about each of the knights that I had never really considered before. That afternoon, the twins were working together against a pair of Navirian soldiers. I knew it was only a matter of time before Acen asked me something, so I mentally went over everything I had noticed about Ender and Kor.

Out of all the knights, they were the least comfortable with fighting in close quarters. On the other hand, they were the best at fighting together. They always seemed to know exactly where the other was, and they moved around each other seamlessly. They were fast, and used their speed to their advantage.

Acen's constant questioning had shown me a lot of differences in the way the knights approached fights, and it wasn't all due to their weapons of choice. The twins were quick and agile. Mandell and Joen were slower, but much stronger. Acen and Jalor hovered somewhere in the middle of that scale. It was Evrik who surprised me. In my mind I'd always lumped him in with the twins, as the younger knights. But when it came to fighting, he was more like Mandell and Joen—forceful as opposed to fast.

"So, tell me what you're noticing."

I cast Acen a quick glance as he stepped up to lean on the fence I was sitting on. I was prepared for this. "They're quick," I said, turning back to the fight.

"Why do you think that is?" Acen asked.

That was when the questioning got more complicated. Acen didn't want me to simply see things, he wanted me to understand why. "Well... I guess it's because they're not as strong as the rest of you, so they make up for it by being quick. I think they would rather stand back and shoot."

Acen nodded slowly. "Anything else? Aside for speed, watch how they're moving."

They were moving as smoothly as they always did. Ender on the right and Kor on the left. I watched as Kor stepped up to deflect a blow that had been meant for Ender, and I saw it. "Ender's favouring his left side," I said. "But Kor's covering it for him."

"So, if you were fighting them, what would be your approach?"

"I guess I'd try to get Kor out of the way so I'd have access to Ender's injury. But I wouldn't want to get caught between them, so I'd have to move Kor. Maybe force him around to Ender's right side." I shrugged. "Wouldn't I have to know about the injury for that to be useful, though?"

Acen shook his head. "You can see that Ender's favouring his side. You don't need to know why in order to realize that it's a weakness you should try to exploit."

"Well... I guess that makes sense," I said. "But I still don't understand why you're teaching me do to this."

"The best soldiers are the ones who can read their opponents quickly and accurately."

"I'm not a soldier."

Acen clapped me on the shoulder. "Hop down, we're going to try something."

So I found myself standing in the middle of the ring, facing Acen. We both held wooden swords, to my immense relief. Being hit with what was basically a stick wasn't nearly as scary as an actual sword. Aside for Joen, who was on duty with Tannix, the knights had gathered around to watch. Our three Navirian guides joined them. They were all talking quietly, probably discussing how quickly Acen would beat me.

Acen moved forward, holding his sword lazily at his side like Tannix sometimes did before a duel started in earnest. I wondered briefly who had the habit first. My grip on my sword was tight by comparison. Acen had agreed to let me hold it with my left hand, but it didn't help me feel any more confident.

Acen started to circle, forcing me to do the same. "What have you noticed about me?"

I didn't have the knights' skill for talking and fighting at the same time. I tried to remember without losing focus. "You're the best swordsman. Except maybe Tannix."

"Don't tell me what I am compared to the others. Just tell me about me."

"You like to strike first," I said, watching him warily. "And you don't give your opponent a chance to strike back. You don't mind—" I faltered, almost tripping over a loose cobblestone.

"Pay attention to your surroundings," Acen said. "What were you saying?"

I glanced down at the stone, just so I could remember where it was and avoid it. Just in time I noticed Acen swing his sword at me, and I ducked instead of trying to deflect it. As I took a step back to maintain the distance between us, it occurred to me that forcing me to talk was likely part of the training. Maybe he made the knights practice, and that was why they could talk so casually while trying to whack each other.

"You fight properly," I said. "But you don't mind breaking the rules if you have to. You'll pull out your bigger knife and use it with your left hand. Doing it slows you down a bit, but it tends to surprise your opponent."

Acen nodded. "Good. And?" He moved closer again, forcing me to keep backing up. "Think about how you could beat me."

"I can't," I said. "I'd turn and run."

"If you had no other choice."

"I guess I'd have to be quicker than you."

Acen lunged forward again, but instead of swinging his sword up near my shoulders he swung lower, anticipating my duck. I leapt forward, elbowed him sharply in the stomach and got around behind him. By the time he turned around, I'd moved too far back for him to slash at me again. There were cheers from the knights.

Acen smiled. "There you go. You have good reflexes. You're small and agile, use that against me." He started towards me again.

I thought of all the times I had watched Acen practice with the other knights. He was usually more aggressive, but he was holding back for me. "How do we know when someone's won?" I asked. The idea of me winning was laughable, but I doubted Acen would actually hit me.

"I'm teaching you. Neither of us is going to win," Acen said. "Come on, attack me."

"I'd rather you do it."

Acen twirled his sword at his side. "Why is that?"

"Because if you attack, all I have to do is get out of the way, and I'm good at that," I said, eyeing the sword. "But if I attack, you'll knock the sword from my hand and that'll be it."

"True," Acen said. "But what if I don't attack first?"

"You always do."

"That doesn't mean I can't change my strategy. The idea is to predict what your opponent is going to do, without being predictable yourself. I know that you know that I tend to strike first."

But he didn't know what I was going to do. An idea came to me, a trick that had once worked on Tannix. I went still and let Acen advance towards me. He knew I was up to something, but he was going to play along just to see what it was. I waited, tense, ready to jump forward as soon as the opportunity arose. Acen slowed down, probably trying to guess what I would do. We looked at each other for a moment, then he struck.

I dropped my wooden sword and dove under his arm, rolling to my feet behind him. I held one of his real daggers in my hand, having slipped it from its sheath as I rolled past. He turned, I held up the dagger, and it worked. Just as it had years ago with Tannix. The blade bit into the wood of Acen's training sword, and he stared at it blankly.

Grimacing, I let go of the dagger and stepped back. The dagger was stuck so firmly into the wood that it didn't fall. My right wrist ached from the jarring blow it had just taken, and I rubbed it absentmindedly while flashing Acen a grin.

"Didn't see that coming, did you?"

He wrenched the knife from the wooden sword. "Interesting technique. Wouldn't be very effective in a real fight, though."

"In a real fight I would have rolled past and kept running," I said. "I get that you're trying to toughen me up, but I'll always pick flight over fight."

Acen slid his knife back into its sheath. When he looked up, his gaze lingered on my hand. "Are you hurt?"

I waved away his concern. "It's my bad wrist."

"You have a bad wrist?"

"I'm riddled with old injuries, haven't you noticed?"

Acen shook his head at my light tone. "Still, I want Jalor to take a look at it. If it isn't serious, we'll keep training."

My wrist earned me a break, but only until the next day. Acen wanted to watch me fight someone else, and Evrik volunteered. The fight was almost exactly like the one the day before. Evrik and I spent most of it pacing around each other, and every time he attacked, I got out of the way.

"Come on, Finn," Acen called over to us the fourth time I'd ducked away from Evrik. "Think about the fight. There's something specific about Evrik you need to realize. Sort of a weakness."

I stared at Evrik. He looked bored, holding his wooden sword loosely in his right hand. Looking bored didn't mean he wasn't alert. While Acen had continuously moved, forcing me to back up, Evrik often just stood still and stared at me. I thought about his fight with Valari. How stationary he had been with his shield.

"He's an axeman," I said.

Evrik lunged forward and I scrambled backwards. "How exactly is being an axeman a weakness?"

"It isn't! That isn't what I meant," I protested. "I mean that we're fighting with swords. You're good. I'm not saying you're not good. But you're less comfortable with swords. If I was an excellent swordsman, I'd have a chance against you."

"Yes," Acen agreed from the sidelines. "Evrik tends to move differently than a classically trained swordsman. It doesn't make him any less proficient, but it does change his attack patterns."

"How does knowing that help me?"

"You'll have an easier time anticipating his movements if you understand where they come from. In his case, it's because he's used to an axe. If you didn't realize that, you might mistake him for a weak or inexperienced fighter, which would end badly for you."

"I don't have to assume he's weak for this to end badly," I said.

"True."

I sighed. I was tired and I wanted the fight to end, but unfortunately, I couldn't resort to my usual trick. Not only was Evrik expecting it, he wasn't wearing a knife I could grab. I needed to think of something else.

Nearby shouting drew my attention, and the next thing I knew, I was knocked to the ground. Evrik swung his wooden sword at me and I only just managed to hold mine up in time. I used both hands—my left on the sword's grip and my right at the end of the wooden blade. Evrik was momentarily taken aback and I flung myself to the side, trying to roll away from him so I could get to my feet. Evrik tossed aside his own sword to grab me. He stood and hauled me to my feet, easily twisting my left arm behind my back to keep me still.

"You can't get distracted," he said. "Not only did I get you, but you just cut your own hand off."

I stepped away as soon as he let go of me. Evrik grinned and held out his right hand, and after a pause I shook it. Despite the rough way he'd handled me, I smiled back.

"Good job, mate!" Kor yelled across the courtyard. He and Ender were standing with Acen, having just noisily arrived. "You just beat a boy half your size. Must make you feel powerful, aye?"

"Come fight me, my friend," Evrik shot back. "Unless you're worried I'll beat you, too?"

Kor laughed. "Another time, mate. My brother and I have pressing matters to attend to. A message from our dear Lord West Draulin."

"Oh?" Evrik and I walked over to join them. "Any news on the Queen's decision? I thought he had her with the Pittens."

"He had her," Acen said. "But going to war isn't a decision she can make without consulting her council. So, what is the message?"

Ender answered. "He's having a private dinner tonight with Queen Navire. Acen, he wants you to take the shift. Moral support, I reckon. He asked for Finn, too."

"The Queen asked for Finn," Kor corrected.

"Why?" I asked. "What does she want with me?"

The twins shrugged. Ender said, "Reckon you interest her, mate."

"I supposed I should go talk to him," Acen said. "Evrik, come with me. You should be replacing Mandell on duty anyway. You two, keep working with Finn. Take things slowly, give him a chance to read you."

"I'm tired." I couldn't help how whiny I sounded.

"An enemy won't care if you're tired," Acen said. "You're doing well." He nodded at Evrik and the two of them walked out of the courtyard.

One of the twins nudged me. "Mate, we'll give you a break, aye? Besides, we've got something we want to try." It was Kor speaking, I realized when I turned around. "Come, brother." He took something from Ender's hand that I hadn't noticed before. It was a flat, round piece of wood on the end of a stick—a tiny target. Kor started backing up. "Shoot me."

Ender slipped off his bow and pulled an arrow from his quiver. "Farther back, mate."

"I'm still moving." Kor looking over his shoulder to see where he was going, then flinched as an arrow embedded into the target he was still holding. He didn't say anything, but shot his brother a glare. Ender was already pulling out another arrow.

I hoisted myself onto the fence and sat down. "Didn't you almost kill each other once by doing this?"

Ender laughed. "That was when we were young and stupid."

"What are you now?"

He cocked an eyebrow at me. "Well, not quite as young."

"And not quite as stupid!" Kor called from the other end of the yard. "Now try that again, mate. Or, Sir Ender, are you ready to surrender?"

Ender drew back and released another arrow. "You truly are a master at wordplay," Ender said dryly. "Thank the Goddess and all the powers of Roe that I have you as a brother."

They continued bickering, but Ender's aim never wavered. Soon, Kor's little target was filled with arrows. He carried it back across the yard and started to yank the arrows out.

"Why do you worship Roe?" I asked as I watched them struggle to free all the arrows. "Tannix mentioned it, and I've heard other Crelans say it. But he's not your god." Roe was my ocean god, it didn't make any sense to me that Crelans would believe in him.

"Oh." Ender slipped another freed arrow into his quiver. "Well, Teltans have their Goddess, aye, and you have your gods and goddesses. Crele used to have one, too."

"He was called the Old God of the Sea," Kor said.

"Then the Teltans came along."

"Aye. Crele's a small island, mate, we didn't put up much resistance."

"They told us to forget about the Old God of the Sea, and made us believe in their Goddess."

"But then they came here, and they brought Crelans with them."

"The Crelans believed in the Goddess by then."

"But then we heard about your god Roe and realized that—"

"—he and the Old God of the Sea are one in the same."

"So we Crelans tend to believe—"

"Secretly, sort of. Not that it's a well-kept secret. Probably why a lot of Teltans dislike us, actually."

"—secretly believe in what we call the Dyad."

I cut in then. "The Dyad?"

"A pair. A group of two," Kor said. "The Teltish Goddess and Roe, together."

"Your people used to carve Roe's symbol onto the bottom of their ships," Ender said. "Did you know that? Crelans do the same."

"Secretly."

"Secretly. The Thief Queen's got it. It's meant to appease Roe."

"All right, mate. Your turn." Kor handed the little target to Ender, and got to work stringing his bow.

I glanced back and forth between them. "Do you practice that speech?"

"We never practice anything," Ender laughed.

"Well, except archery," Kor said. "And fighting, when Acen makes us."

Ender started across the yard, holding the little target high in the air. "After your turn, mate, we work with Finn."

"Aye." Kor pulled an arrow from his quiver and knocked it.

I smiled to myself, knowing that it wouldn't take long for them to get distracted and forget all about training with me. I'd get to rest after all.

If anyone's wondering if I named Ender solely so I could one day make the joke about Sir Ender sounding like surrender, the answer is yes. I definitely did.