Private Grey and the Brigadier, standing near the back of the crowd, watched silently as the Princess, her hands manacled behind her back, was taken from one carriage to the other. “What do we do?” asked Grey, his hands clenched in anger.

     “For now, nothing,” replied the Brigadier. “She's in no immediate danger. Did you see how the guard handled her? With consideration and respect. And listen to the crowds. Listen to what they say to each other, low enough that the guards can't hear. They love the Princess. They see her as their best hope for a better future. No, her danger comes from the Radiants and the adoptees, not from the people of Carrow. Even King Nilon is no threat to her. He knows her value as a hostage so long as Leothan remains free.”

     “We have to get into the palace. Make contact with her.”

     “Yes, and I know how to do that. There's a man in the city I have to make contact with. He'll help us.”

     “A Helberion agent?”

     The Brigadier looked around to make sure no-one in the crowd was paying attention to their conversation. He moved a couple of paces away, to an empty space against the wall, just to be safe. “The head of the Charnox network. I’ve had dealings with him before. He'll be able to put me in touch with Wombat, our agent in the palace itself.”

     “We have an agent in the palace?” Grey stared in astonishment. “Why hasn’t he just killed Nilon?”

     “Because assassination is not a door we want to open. If we do it to them, they'll do it to us.”

     “They tried to do it to the Princess!”

     “Yes, and if we had credible proof, more than just Darniss’s confession, they’d have been condemned by the whole human world as a result. Besides, we’re better than that. We meet the enemy honestly, on the battlefield.”

     “Would you really rather lose honestly than win by assassination? Losing is losing, no matter how it happens.”

     “Obviously we want to win, but we want to do it in a way that will inspire future generations. We want to set an example.”

     “There have to be people to learn from that example! If we lose, it's not just us who lose. It's all humanity! Future generations will admire our code of ethics from inside cages.”

     “I am confident that we will win. There are things in motion that, for security reasons, you can't know about.”

     He moved back to the crowd and pushed his way through it to see the Princess’ carriage pass through the gates into the palace grounds. “We have to move,” he said as Grey joined him, and he led the way back into the narrow, claustrophobic streets of the city.

☆☆☆

     What an ugly palace! thought Princess Ardria as the carriage drove along the King's Road towards it. It was blocky and functional, made from great slabs of granite that made it look like something a child had made from toy bricks. What it lacked in style, though, it made up for in sheer size. Paisley Palace could have fit into the space occupied by one wing! It looked stronger as well. It looked as though it would have shrugged off the earthquake that had half destroyed Paisley Palace with a sneer of contempt, and that artillery shells would just bounce off it. Just an illusion, she knew. No rock could withstand artillery bombardment, but it was a powerful illusion nonetheless and it made her shiver with nervous fear as she was carried helplessly towards it.

     Other palaces were surrounded by gardens and decorative hedges. Greyspike Palace was surrounded only by grass and, immediately in front of the massive ironstrapped oaken doors, a large parade ground of the same crushed granite as the road. Ardria imagined hundreds of soldiers in splendid dress uniform arranged in ranks and files, parading across it to the sound of a brass band for the inspection and amusement of the King and his family. And also for the intimidation of the common people, she realised when she saw that the grass closest to the parade ground was of a poorer quality, as if the soil beneath had been compacted by crowds of thousands of people, brought in to watch.

     She imagined the great gates in the fence being opened for the King’s birthday and other special occasions and all the occupants of the city, maybe half a million people, flooding in, with no-one daring to remain outside in case they were marked by agents of the King for being unpatriotic. Then having to stand there for hours, cheering and clapping, with no food or water to see them through the day while the soldiers drilled and marched. And all the while the King and his family would be standing on the balcony, smiling contentedly at the total control they had over their people.

     The King was there now, she saw. Gloating over his moment of triumph. There was another man standing beside him, also dressed in royal finery. Prince George, she guessed. The man she had once been pledged to marry to seal the peace between their two countries. All a sham, she now knew. King Nilon had only pretended to agree to the marriage to hide the fact that he intended to invade Helberion, urged on by his adoptee advisors at the urging of their Radiant Masters. She wondered what kind of life she would be living now if the marriage had actually taken place. Probably not a pleasant one, she guessed. The adoptees would have had to find another pretext for a war with Helberion, in which case she would immediately have become a hostage to be used against her father. Strange though it seemed, therefore, Darniss might actually have done her, and Helberion, a great favour by blessing her. She glanced across as the woman sitting opposite her but said nothing. Her former matron had been motivated purely by ambition and greed, she knew. Her hatred of the woman remained as strong as ever.

    The carriage came to a halt in front of the palace gates and the Captain of the Palace Guard opened the door for her. He also had to help her out, to prevent her stumbling without the use of her hands to steady herself, and Darniss and Silva exited behind her. “The King has ordered you to be taken to the Great Hall,” he told her. “You will await him there.”

     “He'll probably keep you waiting for an hour or two,” said Silva. “It's his way, they say.”

     “If he has to resort to such tricks in order to establish his dominance over his guests," said Ardria, though, "what does that tell you about his confidence and sense of security? Right here, in his own palace?”

     “I advise you, Your Highness, to be careful what you say. There are some who seek to ingratiate themselves with the King by conspicuously punishing those who are, how shall we say, insufficiently respectful.”

     “Thank you for your advice, Captain Silva. You have been kind to me when you had no need to. I will remember that if some happier day finds me able to show my gratitude.”

     Captain Silva nodded, and the Captain of the Palace Guard move in to lead her away. He then leaned closer on the pretence of checking that her manacles were secure. “You are the hope of Carrow,” he whispered in her ear. Ardria tensed up in astonishment, then forced herself to make no reaction. “We merely wait for the day when the power of the army is broken. If Helberion has proven costly to conquer, that day may be near.” He then straightened and turned to the house guards emerging from the palace. “She is yours,” he said. Their leader nodded and led her away.

     Darniss and Silva made to follow her, but another house guard approached them. “Captain Silva, you are directed to return to Tibre. Colonel Hemdall is no doubt eager for you to resume your duties there.”

     “The King will want me to deliver a report on the Radiant attack on the train,” said Silva, though.

     “There was no Radiant attack on the train. You were deceived. No doubt a ploy by Helberion agents to sunder us from our Radiant allies.”

     “That's ridiculous! The Duchess here can confirm it, as can the Princess herself. The King must be told! He must be made aware...”

     “You spoke to him personally by telegraph, I doubt there is anything you can add to your rambling and incoherent account. Helberion agents deceived you. A final, desperate ploy to avoid defeat. Now be about your duties.”

     Captain Silva stared in disbelief, but he couldn’t disobey without being arrested and charged and so he merely spun on his heels and marched to the palace stables to borrow a horse.

     “And what about me?” demanded Soonia Darniss. “Am I to be dismissed to some far flung corner of the country too?”

     “Not at all,” said the house guard, smiling. “Lord Krell is waiting for you in the South Wing. After you have refreshed yourself from your journey he will debrief you, and then see about returning you to your family. No doubt your daughter is eager to see you, and you her.”

     “And when I have been debriefed, will the King see a copy of the report?”

     “Of course,” smiled the house guard. “What he will make of it, though... From what I've heard, the story you have to tell is quite fantastic! Will you allow me to escort you to the South Wing?”

     “Lead on,” said the Duchess dismally, and she allowed herself to be led to a smaller doorway some distance from the palace’s great main doors. It almost looked like a servants’ entrance.