Megan knew that something was wrong the moment she woke up. There was a great deal of shouting outside her dorm room window that woke her. She shot out of bed with a surprised squeak and ran to the window, nearly slipping on the piece of paper that was left beside her bed. She caught herself with one hand on her bed frame and looked down. A note scribbled in Samuel’s handwriting, she saw.

Please come to my office as soon as you can. Our plans may have to change.

The shouting was continuing, and she glanced out the window. Figures were rushing back and forth, while Masters of the College were calling out orders. It reminded her of the videos she’d seen on riots, with police officers shouting, attempting to restore order. What had caused so much chaos? Then she spotted them. Members of the Queen’s Guard were spread throughout the property, stopping people and searching through their belongings.

“Megan!” Rachel’s voice sounded from the other side of the door. It banged open without warning. “Megan, wake up!”

Rachel and Jordan barged in, looking strained. Michael wasn’t with them, she realized. Their expressions changed from worry to relief as soon as they laid eyes on her as if they’d expected to find her gone. Or dead. She took an involuntary step back. The tensions running through the college had gotten to her already, and she felt herself putting up her guard.

“What is it?” She asked. “What’s going on?”

Rachel scanned the room quickly, spotting the note clutched in her left hand. “Attos soldiers invaded the city last night. They broke into the prison and set Anya Tokugawa free.”

For a moment, she didn’t know what that meant. Then it registered with her. That was the woman who had allied with Attos. She’d tried to murder several people in the Temple District after Hammerbrewer died, and had even injured several innocent civilians. Her brother and father had both defeated her, leaving her to rot in the palace prison. Now she was free? Would she go right back to Attos when she got the chance, then?

“Okay,” Megan said slowly, trying to work through all the implications in her mind. “That would explain the Guard here. But why do you look so relieved to see me?”

“World is there were some College students involved in the fighting,” Jordan said. “Three proficients were killed. We thought….”

Megan understood. “I’ve been here all night.

She wasn’t the type to do any night-time wandering, let alone fight criminals. But Michael was, she thought. He’d relish the chance to prove himself against those who would threaten his home. Suddenly, that tight feeling in her chest was back, and much stronger than before. “Where’s Michael?”

Jordan’s expression said it all. “We don’t now. We’re going to hunt him down next.”

Megan dashed over to her closet and pulled her red Proficient’s robe over her nightclothes. There would be time to properly change later, she told herself. Rachel noticed the new urgency in her actions and put a hand on her shoulder to still her. “You take your time. We’ll go ahead. The Guard will want to question you.”

But Megan shook her head. “I’m not rushing out to find him, and neither should you. I’m going to Samuel.”

Rachel glanced at the paper in her hand again. “Why?”

“He’ll be able to find Michael in an instant,” she replied, already leading the way out of her room. “I’ll be back once I know he’s okay.”

She tore down the hallway, breaking into a sprint before she could hear what they had to say. Her room was on the first floor, at the far end of the East Wing of Proficient Hall. There was activity at the end of the hall, and on the floor above, where the second-year Proficients lived. She could spot members of the Queen’s Guard in the lobby. One saw her approaching, and broke away, clearly expecting to stop and question her.

“Name and rank, please, miss,” he said, a tired sort of tone in his voice. “Tell us where you were last night.”

“Megan Richards,” She said quickly. “I’m a first-year Proficient. I was in bed. Please, let me through. I need to go see Archmage Bragg.”

“No,” he said, moving to block her as she tried to push past. “You must stay here, I’m sure you understand. Nobody is to leave the campus.”

“If I was sleeping, I didn’t have anything to do with the incident yesterday,” she said impatiently, attempting to push past in the other direction. “Let me through. I’m a Paragon Apprentice, and my mentor needs me to come to him now.”

He glanced at the gold embroidery on her robe and nodded slightly. “I know who you are, miss, but you have to stay here.”

She let out an impatient sigh and took a step back. The guard, clearly relieved, and thinking that she was deciding to obey him finally, relaxed his posture. But then his look turned to one of slight annoyance as he saw her starting to cast a spell. The annoyance turned to outright hostility, and he charged towards her. The instant before his hand clamped down on her forearm, she disappeared.

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She reappeared in front of Samuel, who nearly knocked her over. He’d been in the process of racing towards his door, she noticed. His hand flashed out to steady her at once, and he too heaved a sigh of relief. She understood Rachel and Jordan’s concerns over her safety, but surely he had a way to confirm that she was fine, didn’t he?

“Samuel,” she said, slightly out of breath with the rushed teleport. “What the hell happened last night?”

“Attos operatives invaded the palace prison,” he said, and she cut him off.

“I know that already,” she said impatiently. “They broke Anya Tokugawa out of prison. But why is the Guard searching everyone in the College? Don’t they already know who the college students involved were? Who were the Proficients that were murdered?”

He put up a hand to stall her flood of questions, taking a step back himself. “Calm down. I’ll explain everything in due time. For now, I need you to come with me. We have to go to the Palace.”

“Before that, can you check on one person for me?” She asked. “It’s my friend Michael Ciayol. We haven’t been able to find him, and I want to make sure he’s alright.”

Samuel didn’t question the request and quickly cast the spell. For a few seconds, his face was taut with concentration, eyes open and searching for something she couldn’t see. Then his face relaxed, and he ended the spell. “He’s fine. He’s sleeping in one of the dueling rooms downstairs. Not sure why he’s there, but he seems uninjured.”

Megan let out her own relieved sigh and nodded her gratitude. So he’d been up training all night, she thought and passed out from exhaustion, most likely. She adjusted her robe and stepped aside to let him lead the way. He moved off at once, only briefly pausing at the door to carve another portal with mana. She recognized the throne room of Milagre on the other side and followed him through without another word.

There were several dozen Maravino stationed throughout the throne room, and they all turned, weapons raised, at the sudden appearance of two mages in their midst. They relaxed the instant they recognized Samuel, however, and watched him and his apprentice with curious looks. Clearly, he was expected. Samuel simply gave a quick, courteous nod to the closest guards, and paced across the expansive hall, Megan on his heels.

They reached the end of the room, where the Queen’s throne was located and walked past it to the right. A small, unadorned door was located in the corner, tucked away behind some large beautiful potted plants. This door led to a much smaller room, dominated by one large table. A sand map had been constructed here, showing the prominent features of Tyrman. There were a dozen people around it, all staring down at it with intense concentration.

Samuel and Megan paused just inside the door, waiting to be introduced, and Megan took in the faces of those in attendance. Several were likely government officials that she wouldn’t recognize, but there were a few that she did know. The Archmage of Divination, Sefina Ashara, was there, as was the Captain of the Queen’s guard, Enri Ciayol. Beside Enri was a heavily muscled man she didn’t know, but she recognized the livery on his armor that marked him as the General of the Maravino. That would be Markus Ciayol, she thought.

To Enri’s left, at the head of the long table, was a rather short woman with long silvery hair. Megan would have no problem recognizing her even if she wasn’t wearing the Drake Crown, the symbolic jewelry worn only by the ruler of the country. It was Queen Elena Ciayol, Bora Bora’s granddaughter and the eldest of the fae bloodline.

“Lord Bragg has arrived, Your Majesty,” the Royal Steward, standing in the corner by the door, spoke up, distracting the conversation. The Queen’s head snapped up at the words, and she immediately moved away from the table to rush over. Her arms went out to embrace him. “Samuel, it’s good to see you. How are Ryllae and little Elena?”

Samuel bestowed a quick hug on the Queen, having to bend down considerably to accomplish it, for the woman barely came up to his chest. “They’re fine, El. I’ll make sure to send your love when this is over. This is my apprentice, Megan Richards.”

The Queen turned to look at her, and Megan immediately dropped to one knee in a respectful bow. She’d never in her wildest dreams thought that she’d be meeting the Queen today, let alone any other day. The Queen placed one hand on her shoulder to get her to stand up. “Welcome to my home, Proficient Richards. Please, come join us at the table, you two.”

Samuel directed Megan wordlessly to the end closest to the door, while he followed the Queen back to her original position, quietly replying to words of welcome from the others. Enri in particular seemed to share the Queen’s relief at his appearance. It was clear, even to an outsider like Emma, that Samuel’s opinion and skillset were greatly appreciated by the council.

“Right,” the Queen continued without preamble. “What do you think, Samuel?” We’re trying to figure out where they might have gone to ground.”

Samuel rubbed his chin thoughtfully, leaning down to study the map closer. Every single eye in the room was on him as he thought. How much had he done, Megan thought, to get this level of respect from not only the leader of the country but also her followers? She pushed the thought away as he gestured to two areas of the map. The first was the city of Rabanul, and the second was the Scorched Lands.

“If I were them, I’d either go to the Scorched Lands, or the Free Market of Rabanul.”

“Why the Scorched Lands?” Enri Ciayol asked at once. “Everyone knows that land is impassable. You either go around it, or you don’t go near it at all.”

“It’s actually quite possible to pass through,” Samuel corrected him. “If you have strong fighters and a mage that’s capable of handling the chaotic energy there.”

The others nodded thoughtfully at that, and the Queen picked up the conversation, asking the other obvious question on their minds. “Do you really think that the Black Hand would shelter them? I can’t imagine that they would betray me to that level.”

“They may not even think of it as betrayal, El,” Samuel said softly. “They might now know what’s happened yet. If they just met a few followers of Attos wanting a place to lay low for a few days, they’d accept. Particularly if they were willing to pay the fee.”

“But if that’s true, then our hands are tied,” Markus Ciayol said, speaking up for the first time. “Our treaty with the Black Hand prevents any military force entering the city under orders.”