Ajax was in a foul mood today, despite the beautiful clear skies. But the wolf boy had never let a bad mood stop him from victory. So he continued to practice his stances with his sword, hour after hour. Unfortunately, no one else had been interested in teaching him, so Relma had to be the one to give him an understanding.

Relma had only been practicing with a sword for over six months. So things weren't going well. A breeze blew through the long grass near them and flowed through her golden hair and Ajax's silver.

"I hate this," snapped Ajax.

"Complaining never solved anything, Ajax," said Relma. "Though if it did, you probably would have fixed every problem in the world by now."

Ajax glanced up, his silver hair flowing behind him as he snarled. "How can mortals fight like this? Just practicing stances and rehearsing moves. Like I'm learning to dance."

"What did you think we did to learn to fight?" asked Relma, curious.

"I fight using the berserk fury of my heritage," said Ajax. "The instinct and powers ingrained within me from birth allow me to tear my foes apart easily. I have the blood of the Alpha in me, after all."

"That's nice," said Relma. Ajax had told her about the Alpha, and she'd read a bit. It was a werewolf belief in a deity that had taken on the form of a human peasant and fed itself willingly to five wolves. Each wolf then gained kinship to humanity and the intellect and strength that came with it. "Unfortunately, we mere mortals don't have instincts on that level. So you'll just have to learn to fight like everyone else who doesn't have a heritage." Ajax looked at her in surprise. Then he narrowed his eyes. Relma shifted beneath his gaze. "What?"

"You are the last person in the world to say that," said Ajax, lowering his sword.

"What do you mean?" asked Relma.

"You are the Heir of Kings. The last descendant of Anoa the Bright" said Ajax. "You are literally wearing the sword of a god at your side. Until you have a child or kill Baltoth, destiny will conspire to ensure you survive."

Relma glanced down to Lightning Trail. It didn't look like the sword of a god at the moment. If she had to pick two words, they would be aggressively ordinary. But then, that was the point, wasn't it?

What was all that about her being destined to survive, though? "I don't think it works that way," said Relma after a moment. "I think if I did something really stupid, I would get killed. Aunt Pan wouldn't be so protective of me if I were immune to everything."

Ajax shrugged. "Prophecies always come true. At best, you can twist them to fulfill the letter of the prediction while ignoring the intent. That's one of the reasons father broke up with Baltoth. He didn't want to end up on the losing side."

"Well yeah, but how do we really know that I am the last descendant?" asked Relma, lowering her sword. "Maybe Anoa had a mistress who was written out of the history books. Or maybe Anoa's reincarnation had a family, and they count as well. Or maybe Anoa could return from heaven and sire new descendants."

"Yes, but the prophecy also states that they will reunite Harlenor," said Ajax. "A descendant of a mistress no one knows about would never actually be able to get any support. It's the same for reincarnation and for returning from heaven...

"When was the last time anybody in Harlenor saw an angel?"

Relma thought about all her lessons with Aunt Pan. She searched through her memories for any mention of angels. Everyone knew angels existed, of course. They were natural counterparts to demons and spirits. But she couldn't think of a time they appeared.

"...Um, never," she said at last.

Ajax shook his head, sending his silver hair flowing around him. "A long time ago. Father fought with one once, but they rarely involve themselves."

"Why do you think that is?" asked Relma. She had her own ideas, but she was curious about his reasons.

"How should I know?" asked Ajax with a shrug. "Most gods have some kind of immortal servant who leads their armies. But Elranor is much more hands-off.

"He's doing something right, given that he remains the dominant power in this region of the world."

"I think Elranor wants people to make choices for themselves," said Relma. She remembered the last time she saw Elranor and how reasonable he'd been. Having angels coming in and leading the armies would interfere with that.

"I don't know," said Ajax. "But-" Suddenly, he sniffed up at the air. His eyes narrowed, and he sheathed his sword. His clawed hands were bared.

"What is it, you smell?" asked Relma.

"Estela," said Ajax. "She's coming up the path ahead."

Estela was back? Relma felt a surge of happiness at that news. "I'm going to go meet her."

"Go right ahead," said Ajax.

He turned and stalked off into the woods.

Shortly after that, Estela came around the bend. Her dark hair had been cut short in several places. Her armor was chipped and dented in several places, and her cloak was shredded. She looked up as Relma approached and blinked before Relma hugged her.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

The effect of the hug was diminished by the armor. Ow.

"Estela!" said Relma. "You're back from the war! What happened?"

Estela sighed. "The war is over, and we are victorious." However, she didn't sound very enthusiastic.

"So you beat the Calishans?" asked Relma.

"No," said Estela before walking past.

Relma ran after her. Why was she in such a bad mood? "Wait, but you said you won."

"We were winning," said Estela. "We had the entire army right where we wanted it. Then Duke Vanion had tea with their leader, King Banir, and released him and the entire army. So instead of pressing the attack, we sent the Calishans on their merry way." She sighed. "It was probably for the best. The Calishans were almost a sideshow compared to Wraith.

"Maybe he knew he was coming."

"Whose Wraith?" asked Relma.

"Laughing Wraith. Ancient, unknowable, demon thing," said Estela, raising one hand dismissively. "I don't know; I didn't quite get it. He screwed up our defenses right before the Calishans attacked. Also, he hurt a lot of people for fun.

"Baltoth was using him as a distraction so we could catch his armies. So the whole thing ended in a stalemate."

"Okay," said Relma. "So, um, what did you win?"

"We won the war right after that," said Estela. "There was this huge invasion of snake things with scythes for arms. Someone called them raishans. They fell out of the sky in Khasmir and started killing people.

"No plunder though, demons don't need money."

Relma tried to remember her geography classes. "Khasmir, that's north of Artarq, isn't it?"

"Yes," said Estela. "We got a call for help and followed it. It turned out that an evil sorcerer summoned them into Khasmir to destroy his enemies. He was called Karasush."

"So you killed the sorcerer," guessed Relma.

"No, we killed the raishans," said Estela. "Then we made a treaty with the sorcerer, and he got off with a stern warning. That one wasn't due to Vanion; he wasn't there. It was his son."

"You mean William Gabriel?" said Relma. She'd read his book recently and hadn't thought it was all that great. However, Arengeth had given her a copy. "What was he like?"

"I only saw him once or twice," admitted Estela. "He was dressed in black armor with a helmet like a skull. Also, Tanith was there. They got on great." Her voice went dark.

"Tanith?" asked Relma. What had she been scheming there?

"Yes," said Estela. "I'd have loved to dispense some justice, but it wasn't my territory. I wasn't going to kill a friend of the reigning Lord without a good reason."

"But couldn't you have told someone?" asked Relma.

"I did tell Raynald De Chevlon about it," said Estela. "Tanith simply denied it. And since she was his student, he believed her."

"But couldn't we do something about this? We could provide proof about what she did," asked Relma.

"Even if we could provide proof, Tanith is the daughter of Edmund Telus," said Estela. "One of the most influential friends of Duke Vanion in Haldren. Who are we? Gel Carn might have been Harlenor United's capital once, but you're a backwater now.

"Steward Benarus is a vassal of King Andoa in all but name. You don't have nearly enough respect to warrant that kind of attention. And you don't have any weight to throw around." Relma needed help figuring out how to continue this discussion. Finally, she decided to change the subject. "Where are Ronald and Frederick?"

"They should be coming up behind me soon enough," said Estela. "Frederick stopped to fight it out with a knight who insulted a lady. I think."

Best to change the subject. "So, how did you do in the war?"

"Fairly well," said Estela. "I wasn't commended for bravery like De Cathe. And I spent more getting to Artarq than I made with my pay. But if nothing else, I can say I've seen combat.

"Honestly, the whole thing was a wash regarding material gain. I didn't even make enough to repair my armor."

"So, you regret going?" asked Relma. She hoped not. Estela had spent months out there.

Estela gave her a grin. "Not at all."

As they walked along the road, Relma considered what else to ask. There were a lot of things she wanted to know about the north. But then, she ought to inquire as to the others first. "So what about Argath? Any news of him?"

"The last time I saw him, he was heading north to Estal," said Estela. "He was going to begin his raids against Calisha. That was months ago. He didn't seem very happy about it."

"Then why did he do it?" asked Relma.

"He serves Steward Benarus," said Estela, shrugging. "Benarus wanted to prove that Gel Carn was a power in its own right. Argath is the best tactician he has, so he sent him raiding whether Argath liked it or not didn't matter.

"I heard he burned several Calishan villages. Though the Calishans hit Antion from the Sea of Power to the east. They gave as good as they got."

Relma didn't really like this discussion. Neither did she like how Estela was condescending toward her realm of birth. "I just thought of something.

"What is it?" asked Estela.

"If Gel Carn is a backwater, then what does it say about you, a Princess of Escor, that you were sent here?" asked Relma.

"That House Vortegex needs all the help it can get if you must know," said Estela. "House Stomstrike has been looking to overthrow us for a long time."

"What kind of name is Stormstrike?" asked Relma.

"A pretentious one," said Estela. "A bunch of silver dragon worshippers. Where has Ajax gone off to, anyway? I saw his tracks nearby when I was passing.

"Why is he roaming free?"

"Yeah, um, one of the conditions of the treaty with Telix was that Ajax be allowed to walk freely," said Relma. "He's sworn to do no harm to any person in Gel Carn. Aunt Pan wanted to make a necklace that keeps him in line, but, well..."

"What?" said Estela.

"Telix wouldn't stand for it," said Relma. "I don't really blame him, to be honest. It would be like forcing him to wear a collar."

"I'm gone for a few months, and you give a half-demon the run of Gel Carn," muttered Estela.

"It wasn't my decision," said Relma.

"I'm sure it's somehow your fault," said Estela.

"Hey!" said Relma.

"I'm joking, obviously," said Estela. "Come on, let's get something to eat. I'm famished for anything but rations. The roads were insane and took way too long."

As they rounded the bend, they came within sight of Gel Carn. When Relma first came before it, it seemed like some castle out of legends, with exaggerated colors and shining spires. Since that time, it had changed to something more down to earth. She'd spent too much time around it for her awe to be the same. It was odd how things changed.

"Estela?" said Relma.

"Yes?" asked Estela.

"Will you be fighting in the Tournament of Kings?" asked Relma.

"What tournament?" asked Estela.

It looked like Relma would have to do some explaining of her own.