The Virtoris Armada could face not one fleet, but two. That wasn’t even considering the threat of the mages on board the ships. We might lose most of our sea power. A great house. Those Sayyida and Vidar loved, and possibly even my friends themselves.
Across the table, Saga stood, silent and stoic, though I saw the fear in the taut lines of her body. I suspected she too was thinking of losing Sayyida.
“We can’t let this happen,” I breathed.
“I have a few larger ships at the coastal towns that sail under my banner.” Lord Riis pointed out the areas where the ships would be. “Not many, but we could use the merchant ships to assist House Virtoris.”
“Is it possible to get there in time?” I asked, trying to determine the distance from Bitra to the coast.
“We’ll have to fly.”
Which meant no army. Just fae who could fly, whether by their own steam or on the backs of gryphons and Rynni. We’d brought some of House Balik’s gryphons in addition to our own and the few that Lord Riis still had on hand for his soldiers. That meant we had about fifty. Not enough.
“Can soldiers fly that far on wing?” I asked.
No way I could, but I’d been flying a very short time. Perhaps soldiers trained for this?
“With breaks, many can. But not all, of course. Some fae races do not have wings at all,” Caelo said. “We’re lucky that the weather is warm enough to fly for extended periods now.Perhaps to prevent fatigue and save their wings for battle, they should rotate their breaks on the gryphon’s or Rynni’s back?”
“And how many soldiers have come through the gateway as of now?” Thyra asked.
“Over seven hundred at last count. That was nearly an hour ago,” Lord Balik said. “Luccan is holding strong.”
“And if we don’t go?” Thyra asked. “Will the Virtoris fleet truly be destroyed? Can’t we send a raven to tell them to retreat?”
“We can.” Lord Riis cleared his throat, “however, there’s no guarantee the king won’t send ships to their island to fight. That would keep them away from Avaldenn during the actual battle for the capital.”
When we’d need them again to pummel the king’s forces from the sea. No matter which direction we chose, we gave up a slight advantage or put our allies in great danger.
Thyra pressed her hands onto the table. “Isolde and I need to speak. The rest of you discuss every contingency. Every pitfall we may encounter, as well as every way we can succeed. Saga, join us?”
The princess cocked her head but recovered quickly and nodded.
I, however, continued to stare at my sister. She had experience with actual battles, small though they may be compared to what was to come. I had almost none. Around this table stood a group of lords, knights, and soldiers who knew better. What was she doing?
“I don’t think?—”
“Come,” Thyra pulled me by the arm. “We’ll convene in two hours’ time.”
We left the room and found Hátlu waiting, ready to fulfill our needs. Saga joined us, and our Valkyrja, all five, fell into a circle around us.
“Hátlu, is there a potions workshop?” Thyra asked.
“Of course.”
“Take us there.”
“What in the nine kingdoms are we doing?” I asked Thyra as we began walking.
“We’re going to use the Frør Crown.”
“The Crown?” I blinked, understanding where she was going but not how she believed we’d get there. “You mean the one that hasn’t worked for me since the day I found it? And only works for you when you’re sleeping?”
“Yes.”
“Stunningidea.”
Thyra arched her eyebrows. “Sarcasm is really more my thing.”
