Murmurs rise like a wave in the crowd. Tension in the room ratchets up.
“Never fear—your high lord will keep you safe.” He licks his lips. “I am pleased to announce that just this morning, Queen Penelope of Darnuith accepted my proposal of marriage, and we were united in matrimony only hours ago.”
The murmurs grow louder. A desert dweller pops from his chair and moves to storm from the room, but another at his table grabs his arm and escorts him back to his seat. No one looks happy. The expressions in the room range from alarm to disgust.
Niall lowers his head, his voice growing serious. “With our marriage comes an alliance between our kingdoms. Darnuith has promised protection to Rogos, and Rogos has agreed.” He scans the crowd as all levity melts from his face. “Come sunrise, Rogos, together with Darnuith, will prepare our troops, we will align with the Defenders of the Goddess, and together, two kingdoms united, we will declare war on Paragon.”
Leena droppedher quill as the ballroom exploded into shouts and confused murmurs. The woman in the jade necklace whimpered and appeared to faint in her chair. The heavyset elf jumped to his feet, shaking his fist and yelling his displeasure at this turn of events. Guests headed toward the doors, anxious to find other guests and to speak about the announcement.
“By the goddess,” Marjory said, her face paling. She grabbed Leena’s arm. “War? A political marriage? Now? Do you know what this means?”
Leena wasn’t sure she did. After spending time with Colin, she’d come to realize that war was inevitable, but the other citizens of Rogos in the room seemed to come out of their skin at the thought. Admittedly, she’d never expected it to happen this fast. What did this mean for the temple? She blinked back a flood of anxiety, then realized that her role was the same as always.
“I need to get this down.” She tapped her quill to her scroll. “Everything that I see and hear. When we get back to the temple—”
Marjory’s gaze snapped to hers, and the look in her eyes bordered on panic. Leena recoiled.
“Our high lord has just declared war, my daughter,” she whispered. “I believe it is still to be learned what the future of the temple will be.”
“What do you mean?”
“Rogos will prepare its army, and we have a number of able-bodied men and women in our ranks, all of them trained to defend themselves.”
“We’re trained to defend the scrolls,” Leena said. That was why she’d learned to shoot poison arrows with her bare hands.
Marjory gave her a pitying look, tipped her head to the side, and pursed her lips. “We need to prepare ourselves. Everything will change.” Marjory laid a hand on her arm. “The ambassador to Niven is heading this way.”
A lithe but elderly elf that Leena had met once years ago came to stand before them, extending his hand. “Quanling Marjory, it’s a pleasure to see you again.”
“And you as well, Ambassador Rajesh.” Marjory gave a small bow. “You remember my scribe Leena?”
“Of course. Actually, she is part of the reason I’ve sought you out tonight.”
Oh no.A dark, sinking feeling welled in Leena’s gut.
“First, I must inform you that troops will be descending on Niven in the near future to harvest the goddess’s tears for use in weapons against Paragon.”
Marjory bowed her head. “I expected as much. We have preserved the knowledge of these weapons from long ago, and our scribes will aid our soldiers in any way needed.”
“Excellent.”
Leena’s stomach clenched. Soldiers at the temple?
“Which brings me to Leena,” Rajesh added. “It seems her help is an integral part of the war effort. Something about finding a crypt and a weapon. I can’t say I understood it all. But High Lord Niall has insisted that her role is key and she must not be removed from the task.”
Panic rose like bile in Leena’s throat. “No,” she blurted. That was louder than she’d intended. She cleared her throat. “Excuse me. I’m sure what he meant was that a scribe’s involvement is key. The Defenders of the Goddess need a scribe to research graves to find a potential weapon hidden there. Any scribe could do it. It doesn’t have to be me.”
The ambassador shook his head. “He made it very clear. Only you.”
Leena turned toward Marjory. “May I speak with you privately for a moment?”
Her Quanling pursed her lips until tight vertical lines appeared beneath her nose. “Excuse us, Rajesh.” The older woman gripped her arm and pulled her to the side. “What is wrong with you? When the high lord asks for your service, it is your duty to comply.”
“I… I can’t.” She pressed a hand to her stomach and lowered her voice. “The reason Colin escorted me back here now was so that you can assign an alternate scribe to the task, Mother. Our… relationship… has become inappropriate.” Heat crept up her neck to her ears.
She knew her Quanling noticed the blush because her eyes narrowed on her cheeks. “What do you mean, inappropriate?”
“He has expressed feelings for me,” she whispered.
