Agadart called on her best court manners to stay still and nondescript during dinner with the officers. Dr. Worthan fidgeted a bit next to her, but on the whole, dinner was a quiet affair. The usual compliment of smaller tables had been moved and the tables fitted together to make one large, oblong table for all of them to sit around. Agadart got odd looks from the servants bringing in the dishes, but she honestly did not know why she was there either, so could only commiserate with their confusion. She had been included in the invitation sent to Dr. Worthan, who had himself been confused by the invitation because he had assumed he was going to join the admiral for dinner anyway.

Everyone was simply confused overall, she mused, watching some of the junior officers trying to throw each other looks of uncertainty and urgency.

By dessert, there was some murmuring around the table, and Doctor Worthan was conversing with a young lieutenant of the Dragon Corps in a genial way about the weather, when Admiral Leonteinparre rapped his glass with a spoon. The room went instantly quiet, people even freezing in their quest to scrape the last of the porrono custard from their bowls.

The admiral nodded in acknowledgment of their united attention. To his right, his cousin Lord Brerttin sat looking grim, staring at his glass of wine. On his left, Guardian Roki looked around the table as if weighing the soul of each person there, and finding them all lacking. It was a fierce expression that stirred something unwanted but pleasantly warm in her belly and she firmly told herself to get a grip.

“Lord Brerttin brought us news of the war with Iskaryyva.” He paused, looking over at Guardian Roki for a moment. “I will speak more on that in a moment. What I wish to inform you first is that Guardian Roki has asked, and I have affirmed, to raise his status to Matrica of Endestern.”

The dragons present all gasped, while the humans mostly looked puzzled. Doctor Worthan, though, nodded in obvious approval.

“I know that Matricas are not in place here in Kaaltendt, and have been unknown in Watt since the death of Queen Esthae, may she fly in peaceful skies eternal.”

Lord Brerttin and Doctor Worthan mumbled the final phrase along with him and raised their glasses.

One young Dragon Corps officer raised his hand like a schoolboy.

Admiral Leonteinparre blinked at him for a moment, then nodded.

“My grandmother was one of the last two Matricas to Queen Oltia’s court. So, we’ve had them in place, in the past.” He looked around uncertainly. “I just wanted to point that out?” He tipped his head to show his throat, which made a few of the other Kaaltendt dragons snicker.

“Thank you, Lieutenant Ruditt. I was unaware that a Matrica had been in place so recently.” Admiral Leonteinparre didn’t smile, exactly, but his lips twitched in that direction. “I know that it seems unusual to promote Matrica Roki to this position now. What need has Endestern for a dragon-human liaison? One has not been needed here in generations.”

Most of the Kaaltendt officers, human and dragon alike, nodded in agreement.

“Which brings me to my next point.” He stopped and took a deep breath. “Prince Tonae and the five dukes of Watt have ordered the entirety of Endestern to the cause. We leave for the Isle of Watt as soon as possible.”

There was a stunned silence for a single fragile moment before chaos erupted. Agadart moved as if to get up — she wasn’t even sure to what purpose, whether to leave or perhaps throw cold water on the panic-stricken lieutenant next to her — but Worthan put his hand over her forearm, pressing down. She glanced at him as he genteelly sipped his wine.   

Finally Captain Wildt banged one of the salt kettles on the table until everyone went quiet. He turned to Admiral Leonteinparre. “With all due respect, His Majesty does not have the authority to order Kaaltendt forces into war, much less call us away from our own shores.” He looked genuinely regretful to say it, but also firm. Many other officers nodded in relieved agreement.

The admiral nodded slowly. “My orders to come to Fort Endestern were a joint collaboration between Queen Theaedra and Prince Tonae. I was given complete discretion on my authority here, with instructions to follow the orders of each monarch as if they were both my own.”

Matrica Roki stood up. “I witnessed Queen Theaedra signing that order myself.”

Captain Wildt was still standing, a salt kettle in one hand, a shocked expression on his face. “How?”

Roki glanced at Admiral Leonteinparre, who nodded, before talking. “The respective monarchs of both Watt and Kaaltendt have been fully aware of Emperor Rhezv’s ambitions for some time, although for obvious reasons they have not admitted such openly. There has never been any doubt that war would come to all of us; the only question was when.” He frowned, tapping the table with one finger. “Most political observers had placed the start of aggressions several years out. No one knows, or at least no one has yet shared, why the emperor has begun now.”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“The giants of—” someone started, but Admiral Leonteinparre cut them off.

“No, I do not believe that. It’s possible but unlikely. I suspect there is a motive obscure to us at this point.”

Captain Wildt nodded thoughtfully. “With all due respect, Admiral, you remain a citizen of a foreign nation, despite your diplomatic ties to the Court of Queen Theaedra. I had assumed you were put in charge of Endestern in a primarily advisory way, and you have never countered that assumption. I would like to see these orders of yours, both of them, for myself.”

There were a few scandalized gasps from around the table. Agadart knew that sharing orders with staff was highly unusual, and for a subofficer to demand such was nearly tantamount to treason in the eyes of some. Yet, she could not fault Wildt for the request, since neither Admiral Leonteinparre nor his guardian — his Matrica, now — were citizens of Kaaltendt. Even Agadart felt an uncomfortable itch between her shoulder blades at the thought of leaving her natal land. She did not consider herself a possessive sort of person, but this was her country, the place she was born, where her father still lived. She joined everyone else in looking expectantly at the admiral.

He had not moved since Wildt made his demand, but Matrica Roki had, putting a gentle hand on the admiral’s forearm in much the same way Worthan had settled her down earlier.

The admiral finally nodded, but stayed silent as Matrica Roki turned to face them. “I will hold the orders for Captain Wildt to read, in the admiral’s office after dinner.” It was clear that only Captain Wildt would be reading them, but that settled everyone else at the table.

Lieutenant Gravsech, who was probably a decade older than everyone at the table other than Worthan, sighed heavily. “To set a whole flight to travel is no simple thing, and no one in living memory has ever heard of the entire Fort of Endestern packing up to go overseas for a fight, if it ever happened at all. If we are to leave immediately, we’re only as good as the preparations needed. May I suggest that dinner be concluded so that we may all take stock?”

“An excellent suggestion, Lieutenant Gravsech. If you would kindly inform Mistress Seraphinite of our orders, as well? The dragon maids will be traveling with the wing when we depart,” Admiral Leonteinparre said.

“Naturally, sir,” Lt. Gravsech said, throwing a look over at Captain Wildt before standing up and bowing, everyone else quick to their feet to follow his example before shuffling out the door.

This left the admiral, Matrica Roki, Captain Wildt, Worthan, and Agadart in the room. She glanced over at the doctor but he gave her a minute shake of his head, so she kept her seat and simply folded her hands in her lap as everyone else sat back down.

Matrica Roki sat back and folded his hands over his abdomen, staring at the far wall. The admiral went back to finishing his dessert. Captain Wildt was still for a moment before leaning forward and putting his head in his hands. No one spoke for a while, until Worthan stood up to reach for the wine jug.

“You didn’t expect anyone to be ecstatic about this, surely?” he said to the room at large as he refilled his glass.

“Of course not.” The admiral pushed his dessert dish away.

“Fort Endestern has not even seen battle in twelve hundred years,” Captain Wildt said, sitting up properly and attacking his own wineglass. “It’s a lot to ask twenty dragons and five hundred soldiers to pick up sticks and go to Watt on the orders of a foreign prince.” He paused. “No offense meant, Admiral.”   

“None taken.” The admiral settled into his chair, his own wine in his hand. “Maid Aegirine, please, feel free to have a glass of wine if you like.” He smiled at her politely.

Dragon maids were not supposed to drink alcohol, ever, for any reason. Doing so could be grounds to get her thrown out of the corps entirely. She eyed the wine jug for only a moment before taking her as-yet unused wineglass and filling it. Worthan snorted in amusement, and Matrica Roki tipped his head to give her a benevolent grin.

“To your…is it a promotion?” She looked over at him with her glass held up. Captain Wildt and Worthan quickly imitated her.

“Not technically, but I suppose in this situation it very much is. Prior to this I held no official position on the rolls of Fort Endestern.” Matrica Roki’s eyes crinkled up into half-moons in amusement.

“Then congratulations, Matrica Roki. We are honored.” Captain Wildt finished the toast for them and they all drank, some more deeply than others.

“None of that, please.” Matrica Roki stood up. “Captain, let us adjourn to the admiral’s offices so I can show you the orders.”

Wildt responded with a weary nod and followed him out. The admiral watched them go, his face set in the usual unreadable countenance that seemed to be more due to personality than to being a dragon. Compared to him, some of the younger dragons were extravagant emoters.

“The emperor has grand appetites if he’s set his gaze on Kaaltendt,” Worthan said quietly, studying his wine. “But he’s been content to play his cards slowly so far.”

The admiral nodded slowly, then leaned back in his chair and tipped his head up, closing his eyes. Agadart glanced away from admiring his noble profile as he spoke. “Every intelligence brief I’ve been privy to has made it clear that at his current rate of armament, full-scale war was two to five years out. Something tipped his hand. We don’t know what, or it has not been shared outside of my brother’s counsel in any case, but there is something. Emperor Rhezv is many things, but he’s not a fool.”

Agadart kept thinking about what Captain Wildt said. According to the histories she had read in her father’s library, Kaaltendt was simply too remote from the other great nations to bother trying to invade. Fort Endestern was technically a defensive measure, but in practical terms was too remote from any important cities in Kaaltendt to factor into politics much at all.

It seemed ironic to her that if Watt fell to Emperor Rhezv, Fort Endestern would become immaterial to Kaaltendt’s defense. The hordes of Iskaryyva would simply overrun them.