The meeting with General Beadu took precedence, and the ladies were escorted into a large building that was designed for such gatherings. It smelled of musk and dirt, and Mairwen was glad that the windows along the walls were open wide to let in the sun and fresh air. This meeting was not particularly secretive, which would have been held in a more private location. The General wanted to make a good impression.

The room held a rectangular table, and the kitchen staff brought in some food and water from its stores to set on it. Brinn and Mairwen were directed to sit while Eira took a place along one wall. She was also offered food and water, but only took the second. Since the princess was merely tagging along on this part of the expedition, Brinn asked all the questions.

"You received our communication about what happened at the palace four days ago?" The elf raised her eyebrows and unconsciously scratched at her ears. It had been a long while since she had shape-shifted into her true form, and she was tired.

"Yes, spymaster. We have already reinforced the barricade and are adding wooden spikes to the bottoms of the wall and metal studs around the top. Why are we not using stone or metal spikes at the base?" The general inquiried.

Brinn's mouth turned downward and she tried to find the words. "How much do you know of what happened at the palace?"

The general exchanged a glance with Mund and cleared his throat. "The report said that Xander was there. I assume he had his new weapon with him. And former Chief Cafer and Prince Alaron caused quite a problem too. I am very sorry, Your Highness." Beadu bowed his head as he apologized. He could see the sad look on the girl's face.

Mairwen blinked back the tears quickly. "No need to apologize. I was there. Problem is an understatement."

"How is Her Majesty? The report only indicated that she was injured but gave no more information." Mund asked sympathetically.

"Mother will be fine. She is a fighter." The princess smiled.

"Fates be praised that is good news!" the lieutenant could not help but exclaim.

"We are glad that Empress Aurora will recover," Beadu agreed.

Brinn redirected the conversation. "The problem that Cafer and Prince Alaron caused included the use of magic." She waited for the men to react and was pleased that they accepted her words at face value.

"Does not surprise me one bit," Beadu said with conviction. "The way Cafer always had Empress Zephyra's ear was frightening. I knew there was something strange about him. It felt like he could talk her into almost anything." The general had always found the former chief unnerving. He was glad when Cafer was deposed.

"Yes, well…" Brinn had nothing to say about the former Empress's relationship with the gnome. "Cafer's magic is ground based, so he can move metal and stone if he is connected to it through the earth. Wood breaks that connection."

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"You are very clever, spymaster. We will keep building then, though keeping the wood slightly wet is becoming taxing." Beadu shook his head. The two wells inside the fortification provided plenty of water, but drawing it up took time.

"Why does the wood need to be wet?" The princess wondered aloud.

"If it gets too dry, it is liable to catch fire. This is why we keep buckets along the wall to minimize risk." The General did not mind her question.

"Hopefully the extra caution will be short lived. Any news on our pirate friends?" Brinn wanted as much information as possible.

Beadu's expression hardened. "Rumor is that their number has grown. But they have gone quiet as far as I can gather. It makes me uneasy, if I am being honest. We did find an island last week with a lot of abandoned plunder, but the brigands had already moved on. I know you tried to get men on the inside, but their bodies washed up on shore before the events at the palace. Some of the soldiers on patrol recognized them."

Brinn balled her fists. She had seen the report, but the news still made her angry. The spymaster had lost connection with her agents weeks ago, which had prompted her to go undercover herself. Somehow the agents had been discovered and disposed of. She hated Xander even more.

"Back to defenses," the elf could not dwell in the sadness for long. "Tell me about…" the princess listened as long as she could to talk about battlements and weapons' stores, but beyond the number of archers that the garrison had, she was not interested. She had eaten as much of the food on the table as she could bear and more than enough water in order to keep herself occupied. Finally the water got the best of her.

"Pardon me," she said, standing. "I will be back."

Brinn looked at Eira, who fell in line behind the princess as they exited the building. After being directed to the proper facility, Mairwen decided to look around the garrison. As the girl was dressed in traveling clothes, she stuck out among the soldiers. Those who had seen the Princess enter earlier stopped and bowed as she passed, and the others followed suit so they would not be reprimanded later. Mairwen bobbed her head and smiled.

"Where is the garrison's kitchen?" she asked a soldier.

"Outside the wall. I can show you, Your Highness," came the response.

Unlike the large front gate, a gate barely wide and tall enough for a fat cook was unlocked for the princess to exit. The soldier pointed to a building a short way off. "Thank you." Mairwen curtsied quickly.

"When you need to come back, knock to have the guard let you in. Glory to the Empress!"

Mairwen and Eira exited the garrison and headed toward the kitchen. The aroma coming from it was delicious, and four of the kitchen staff were feverishly tending to the large fire. Various boiling pots hung over the flames. The kitchen itself was a three-sided structure. The fourth side was open to the air and elements. Guessing that the large assertive woman near the center was in charge, the princess approached the cook with her nicest smile. The lady barely gave her a passing glance.

"Excuse me ma'am. I am looking for Renat." She began.

"You and me both, Missy. That boy should have been back with wood an hour ago. Probably found a snail or something and decided to study it," the cook responded gruffly.

"Well, could you tell him that…" Mairwen was startled when the woman cut her off again.

"I am not in the habit of relaying messages, and I do not intend to start now. If you head on back toward town, you are likely to find him, but if you delay him, I will be sure to find a way to punish you both." The cook turned her back on the girl and went back to chopping vegetables.

Eira stepped between the princess and the cook. "You do not know who you are taking to."

"Your Highness!" Brinn huffed as she came up behind them. "I knew I would find you out here. I have pulled the 'excuse me' maneuver too many times not to see it."

At the mention of 'Your Highness', the kitchen staff all fell to the ground bowing except the cook. She curtsied slightly and went back to her work. It was obvious that she had no intention of apologizing. For some reason that made Mairwen want to laugh, but she needed to answer the spymaster's accusation instead.

"I did not do it on purpose. I just could not help but explore." The princess pushed out her lip and looked remorseful. She was prone to wander even in the palace. The people at court tried not to speak of her often, because like a ghost she would appear. Her explorations led her to new and exciting discoveries, but also more than a little trouble.

Brinn rubbed her forehead and smiled weakly. "Well, your query is coming this way. I can just make him out on the horizon." The elf was focused on the skyline. Her keen eyesight meant she could see what others could not.

The Princess's excitement grew until the cook interrupted. "Do not delay him, Your Highness. I need that wood." Her lack of deference in the face of royalty reminded her of another large woman.

Mairwen nodded graciously while wondering in her head, 'Is she related to Nanny?'