Inez trotted forward, Medya at her side, to meet the rider who sat still on his horse awaiting them. He was a handsome man with light hair and hazel eyes, but put way too much effort into his appearance, and looked over coiffed. The women stopped several paces away from him, noticing the group of men on horses further back beyond him.

"What can I do for you?" Inez asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Princess Inez, my name is Prince Joppa, the son of King Hudd. And I've come to help you get your throne back," the man said with a smile.

Inez didn't say a thing, this was certainly not what she had expected as she approached the city. Looking over her shoulder she caught the eye of Liana. "Liana, can you bring Nahmia up here please?" She turned back and smiled at the prince, not saying a thing until the others approached. Once they got there, Inez noticed that Liana's hand was in her pouch, hopefully gripping her truthstone. "Ladies, this is Prince Joppa, he says he's here to help me regain my throne."

Joppa nodded and smiled widely. "It was actually very bad timing. I think I just missed you as you were getting freed in the Great Hall since the fire was still hot when we got there. Had I been an hour earlier, you likely would be on your throne already."

Inez saw Liana nod slightly and was somewhat shocked that such a story was the truth. "And now you're here to help me get your father off the throne?"

"Yes, I very much desire to get my father off the throne, and I know in this our interests are aligned. If they weren't, I could have met you here with an army," Joppa pointed out.

Liana nodded once more at that, and Inez felt a rush of excitement. This could be a much easier way for them to get into the palace. Medya, on the other hand, was frowning at the prince. She didn't like him at all and was worried about what he might mean for the future. A princess needs a prince, and lo and behold, here was a friendly prince offering the throne to her on a silver platter.

"Prince Joppa, we'll talk more later, but in the meantime, we have to keep travelling to go see your father. Why don't you keep six of your fellows there, and send the rest home? That way nobody gets held up more than they need to," Inez directed.

"Of course, Princess Inez, I'll lead your troops towards the castle." Joppa bowed his head, and then went back to his men. Most of the men left, heading to the south, away from the castle, while six stayed with him. They were soon travelling some distance ahead of Inez's troops, and they set a good pace.

"I have to admit, those answers were startling," Inez remarked. "He and his men must have been that group that was approaching us when we left the Great Hall." She smiled lightly at the memory of their toboggan ride down the mountain and vowed that they would have to do that again, perhaps with Katja too.

"It seems so. Nobody else would have a reason to be up there." Medya agreed quietly.

"Are you okay?" Inez cast a worried glance over at her. She wasn't normally this quiet.

"I'm fine, just tired. It was a late night," Medya reminder her.

Inez nodded, though she wasn't entirely convinced. She knew that she could get the answers later though.

They rode into the sunset, a brilliant display of color that had many of the people in the troop smiling. Inez couldn't wait to show Medya the sunsets from the top of the castle tower, those had always been her favorites when she was growing up. But for now, the sunset was the signal that they should stop for the night and get some sleep.

Medya and Inez set up their tent together, taking special care to make sure the center pole was secure, just in case. Once the pillows were spread out, Inez grabbed Medya and pulled her into a fierce kiss, her lips hungry for her lover and serving as a reminder of what she hoped for more of later that evening. The Kittani moaned into her, body pressed tight and her good hand gripping the broad back of her queen, all thoughts of her previous nerves blown away.

"Mmmm... Don't go so fast my queen. Let me go get some food so we have energy for tonight," Medya murmured, trying to withstand Inez's mouth which was currently nibbling on her neck.

"Why go for food when everything I want to eat is right here in my arms?" Inez countered as she moved her hands down to the slim hips of Medya, carefully avoiding her tail for now.

"I'm dessert, but you have to have energy for that! If you're good I'll let you eat me later till you're full," Medya purred into Inez's ears, getting the desired reaction. "Oh, and I thought I might bring Katja and Noa here for dinner, to make sure she is good enough for our daughter." She added with a silly smile.

"As long as they don't join us for dessert!"

"No chance, dessert is just us!" Medya promised.

Medya pushed aside the silk door of the pavilion and made her way over to the other tents that were springing up and the cooking fire where some sausages were being quickly roasted by several of the troops to put onto rolls. It wasn't fancy, but it was fast, filling, and tasty. Seeing Katja sitting with Noa, she crouched down next to them. "Hey, would you like to join us for dinner tonight? We haven't seen much of you lately, and we'd like meet Noa in a relaxing manner as well," she asked.

"Of course! It's been a bit busy with training and ummm... stuff. But we can do that!" Katja exclaimed happily.

"Kat baby, go ahead and spend time with them, I'll bring a bunch of food as soon as it's ready, okay?" Noa suggested politely.

Medya immediately gave her points for knowing that Katja hadn't seen them much and giving up time for that. "Thank you Noa, that would be wonderful."

Katja chastely kissed Noa on the cheek, and then got up to join Medya on the walk back to the tent.

"She seems nice," Medya noted quietly.

"She is. And so patient and caring. I think I might be in love. Is that crazy?"

"Not at all. I remember how you helped me realize that I fell in love with Inez fast too. Sometimes your heart just knows. Other times, you just have to figure it out. I think she is great so far though."

As they reached their tent, they were just in time to see Prince Joppa enter it ahead of them. Medya curled her lip at the sight, and then sat down to the side of the tent. "I'm not getting near that man."

Katja sat next to her, relaxing and putting her head on the Kittani's shoulder. "I wouldn't want to be near him either."

Inside the tent, Inez was surprised to see Joppa enter instead of the food delivery, but she sighed as she stood. "Prince Joppa, what can I do for you?"

"Well, when you said we'd talk later, I was hoping this would be a good time," the man said smoothly.

"If it is fast, I'd like to have dinner before too long." Inez hoped to move the man along.

"I have a proposition for you. As you're well aware, you haven't been seen in over 40 years, and most don't even remember you. In that same time my father has maintained a firm grip on the country. I fear that were you to simply remove him, and take power, that there are those who would resist the change. Most notably in the military and some of the younger nobles."

Inez nodded at that. She wasn't surprised to hear such a statement. Those who came to wealth with Hudd's new policies may want them continued, and it could cause turmoil while they tried to get the country back on the path that it had been on before. "I could see that happening. Change isn't always popular. What is your solution to this problem?"

"Simple. When my father is gone, you marry me. The people who would worry about your rule would feel better having a familiar face on the throne, and yet you would have the throne to enact the policies you desire," Joppa suggested.

"You don't care what policies I enact?" Inez asked.

Outside the tent, Medya's heart clenched. She had hoped to hear Inez reject the suggestion out of hand but started to get a sinking feeling when she didn't. Katja's hands squeezed hers, as she saw the tears building in Medya's eyes.

"My father is a poor king. Any of my older sisters would have made a better ruler than I, and since he has been older, he has little time or energy to train me as a ruler. You would be far better at that than I, and I can concentrate on other matters," Joppa admitted. "You have your Kittani slave girl for your pleasure. I have heard what you were like in your youth, and I doubt that has changed. I'll have my own toys. But we both know the country wouldn't allow a slave on the throne, let alone one that isn't human."

"He is a poor king. He has done the country a great disservice. I am going to rectify that one way or another. The Kittani has nothing to do with the situation, so keep her out of the discussion. I think your idea would help settle things fast, so I will accept the proposal for now. But we need to talk more about it with my advisors once the king has been removed," Inez told him. "Now go, I need dinner."

Joppa bowed, and then left the tent, sighing happily before humming a tune while walking away towards his tent.

Medya stood shakily once he was out of sight. Unsteady on her feet, she stumbled away from the tent and heading towards the west, not sure what to do but feeling completely empty inside. This had always been her biggest fear, and it was crushing her soul. She barely felt it when Katja caught her wrist, spinning her around.

"Where are you going? You can't leave!" she begged.

Medya reached into the pouch at her waist, pulling a small box out and handing it to Katja as tears flowed down her cheeks. "I told you before, the slave girl doesn't get the princess. I knew it all along but still let it happen, and it hurts so much! Give this to Inez and tell her I'll take care of the Hudd problem. But I have to go, I can't look at her with someone else. I can't look at her at all right now. I don't know how I can even breathe or stand right now." She stepped forward, taking Katja into a hug, and kissing her lightly on the temple. "I'm sorry to leave you. Take care of Inez, and love Noa. I love you too, and I'll always remember you."

She never waited for a reply but turned and raced into the darkness while Katja fell to her knees sobbing and clutching the box tightly in her fist. Medya ran until the ground became too rough, her tears blurring her vision while she stumbled along on her way westward. She didn't know where the castle was, but she knew she'd find it once the sun came up.

She tripped over a rock, stubbing her toe, and causing her to cry out. Getting onto her knees, she crawled for a bit before trying to get back to her feet and continue, before colliding face first into a heavyset figure, causing her to fall onto her back with a groan. Looking up, she saw the close-cropped grey hair and armor, and knew he was a soldier.

"Ahh, the Kittani girl, you have perfect timing!" the man grinned, and then leaned back and kicked her in the chin.

Her body flew backwards as pain exploded in her face. She felt her back hit the hard ground as she cried out in pain. She could only cry a little more before she was soon lost in the darkness.