Kilpa's narrow build led the way through the maze-like city in the trees. Igmi and Hayzen followed behind her. Their three boys trailed behind them, and Tecka and Drust brought up the rear with the eagerly squirming Lissa held firmly on Tecka's hip. Kilpa led the group past home entryways and storefronts that appeared fashioned from still-living vines. They had arrived at the city around midday, and the walkways near the market were filled with enticing aromas as vendors hawked fire-roasted fruits, vetables, and spiced meats. Hungry bellies rumbled, but there would be time to eat after their audience with the [king].

As they walked, Kilpa instructed them on the proper protocol when addressing the [king]. The man apparently loved children—his young heir might even be in attendance—, so no one needed to worry about any social missteps the kids might make. Dappled sunlight, fireflies, and those interspersed glowing trees gave the meandering path through the city an otherworldly feel to the eight immigrants. Kilpa's route led them up winding stairways and across surprisingly stable rope bridges until they were nearing the forest canopy. All the while, the group drew closer to that gap in the trees where fluffly white clouds and rich blue sky could be seen.

"...and, finally, after your audience, I will escort you to the register of deeds who will ensure that you are able to find suitable accomodations," the [guard] finished.

Kilpa's monologue ended as the group stepped onto a path formed by the branches of a tree that glowed subtley from between the cracks in its bark. The beautiful saphire sky shown from a nearly perfectly round opening in the forest canopy not twenty paces down the path. They realized as they looked around the edge of that gap, that every tree—every single tree—that touched the edge of the clearing bore the same green-gold glow.

Kilpa stepped to the side and motioned for Igmi to continue leading the group down the path. Igmi gulped, nodded, and strode purposefully toward the end of the path, as sure-footed as if she'd walked this way dozens of times before. Her husband and children followed after, and Drust, Tecka, and Lissa lagged a few paces behind. Igmi arrived at the end of the visible walkway, turned to her right and dissappeared out of the view of those behind her. One by one, Hayzen and his children similarly passed out of view.

Tecka, still carrying Lissa on her hip, finally arrived at the end of the path, and looked out and over at the scene before her. Near the center of the relatively open space was a crystal clear pool of blue water. It was deep enough that she couldn't see the bottom, even with the perfect clarity of the water, and the blue seemed to deepen and deepen the longer Tecka and Lissa gazed at it. A ring of rainbow colored sandstone rimmed the edge of the small pond. Narrow stone-lined paths created an assymetrical balance through the lush garden surrounding the pool when viewed from above. Each path was lined with flowers and small unusually colored trees, with benches nestled in more secluded areas to enjoy the large garden.

On the far side of the garden from the path they had arrived on, a man, who couldn't have been much older than Tecka, sat on a low cushioned bench playing with a young boy. The stocky man, whose skin was as dark as midnight, wore a simple silver circlet atop glossy black ringlets. The boy, who appeared to be around Lissa's age, bore the same dark handsome features, but his build was slight. If they hadn't arrived from above, though, they wouldn't have been able to see the pair at all from ground level through the dense foliage of the garden throne room.

It was only when Drust gently touched her shoulder that Tecka realized she had stopped walking to gawk at the beautiful scene below. She turned to the right, and realized there was a long stairway wrapping a full quarter of the way around the edge of the garden that ended at ground level. An attendant waited at the bottom, presumably to escort any visitors to the [king]. Tecka immediately resumed her walk, one hand supporting Lissa, the other gripping the railing. Her sister, and even Hayzen, had made it look so easy on the way here, but Tecka was still struggling to find her 'treelegs.'

Igmi, Hayzen, and their boys arrived at the bottom of the stairs well ahead of Tecka, Lissa, and Drust, but the attendant waited until they had all arrived at the bottom of the stair before escorting them through the garden. As the group walked behind the attendant, a mild breeze stirred the garden. Suddenly the light, bright scent of orange blossoms wafted through the air, and that of sakura blossoms followed soon after. Bend after bend, they wended their way through paths much longer than they had appeared from above. Perhaps it was a security measure, or perhaps Tecka had judged their distance poorly. Soon enough, however, the flower-laden boughs gave way once again to clear sky and green grass, and the group filed out before the handsome [king] who was still playing with his small son.

Tecka finally set Lissa down so that she could kneel with the others before Zharim I as Kilpa had instructed them.

Igmi was the only one to kneel fully before the [King] said in a jovial, resonant voice, "Wait, wait! Igmi, Hayzen, come now, you and your families have no need to kneel. Not you!" He stood up from the bench, taller than even the tall Hayzen, and motioned animatedly for them to all stand. "Please, please, get up."

Before the group had had a chance to stand fully upright again, he whistled a series of ascending notes, and an attendant appeared suddenly from the wall of greenery surrounding the small audience glade.

"Milty, please bring benches and the gifts I prepared for the Albehsons and Brightglenns," the King said.

The woman, whom the king knew by name, gave a short bow and disappeared back into the garden. As the attendant left and Tecka stood upright, she gaped down at her sister. The woman hadn't stood at all, but had instead pressed her forehead into the grass, knees still tucked beneath herself as she collapsed at Zharim I's feet.

Igmi's muffled voice came out choked and sobbing, "O great and merciful king, I beg of you, release me from my vow!"

Tecka stared dumbly at her sister's back. What vow could she have possibly made to this king? Tecka glanced around at the faces of her other family members. Hayzen's tanned face had turned paler than his blonde hair. Falton had turned a sickly green, but Cammind looked as confused as her, and Bup, normally brushing off stressful events like water on a duck's back, looked as if he were about to cry. She looked to Drust, whose brow was furrowed and jaw clenched. He may not have known the specifics, but, as a diplomat's son, he'd seen his fair share of vows gone sour.

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Lissa, however, was not looking at her nearly-prostrate aunt. She was instead studying the king's son. The dark-skinned boy, who could not have been much older than her, stared back impassively at Lissa with eyes as deeply blue as the pool in the center of the garden. As Tecka observed the boy up close, she noticed that his small silver circlet rested atop pointed ears. Lissa was reaching up to touch her own ears and beginning to mutter to herself.

All this Tecka observed in just a few heartbeats. As Igmi cried out, the king's bright smile dimmed sadly. Whether it was an act or not, the man seemed genuinely moved by her sudden tears. He stooped down and placed one onyx-black hand on her shaking shoulder, his eyes closed and crowned head bowed. When he spoke, his rich voice was quiet and tender, "I am deeply sorry, Igmi, but I cannot do that. The fate that binds is not something even I as king can unbind."

The [king's] broad shoulders slumped, and he sighed heavily as he stood up again. "Please get up, Igmi. I had hoped this reunion could be a joyful time. Besides... ," Zharim I paused, "it would appear that not everyone here knows what you've promised."

Igmi's sobs cut off suddenly as she remembered they were not alone, and she slowly pulled herself up from the ground. Her normally serious features were streaked with tears, and she quickly covered her nose and mouth with one hand. The attendant, Milty, returned along with several others who carried three benches cushioned in velvet, a small, low, glass table, and a pile of what appeared to be intact nut shells that varied in size from a small robin's egg to a large melon. The benches were spaced evenly about the circumference of the small clearing including the bench already present. They positioned the table in the center, placed a soft woven cloth atop it, and piled it high with the nuts of varying sizes. As she passed by Igmi, Milty also produced a soft grey-green handkerchief, which she handed to Igmi, before she and the rest of the attendants once again departed seamlessly through the pathless green edge of the glade. Before she had been out of view more than a moment, the [King] called out to her. "Milty, perhaps a light meal would serve us well."

A low whistle of three descending notes sounded, as if just the tones of saying, "Yes, my king."

The family began to settle onto the newly provided benches, no different in quality or height from the one that the [king] and his son had been using. As the last note of Milty's response sounded from beyond the greenery, Lissa's high-pitched voice spoke loudly, "Hi! I'm Lissa. What's your name?" Lissa, to no one's surprise, was not even moving toward a seat, but had instead approached the [prince]. The two were staring at each other. The boy was not smiling. Lissa's hand was extended in front of her, anticipating a handshake.

The blue-eyed, pointy-eared boy turned his face away, but held his hand out to shake hers anyway. "I'm Ezharim," he said almost too quietly for even Lissa to hear him.

Taking note of the exchange, his father sat back down next to Ezharim and wrapped an arm around the boys shoulders, tucking him against his side. The boy pressed his face, and the small points at the front of his crown, into his father's bare side. The man barely winced, as if accustomed to the feeling.

"With such a boisterous father, this one is quite shy," he said affectionately. "Please, sit. You all must be tired after such a long journey, and we apparently have much more to discuss than I realized."

They did so, though Lissa attempted to crawl up onto the bench next to her new "friend." Tecka grabbed her from behind and settled her daughter between her and Drust on the bench to the [king]'s left. A confused Cammind and sober Falton settled on a bench opposite them on the [king]'s right. On the bench opposite the [king], Hayzen sat between the sniffling figures of his wife and his youngest son with a comforting arm around each of them.

As they all settled, Tecka had a better opportunity to study the young [king]. He couldn't have been older than 25, but he had stood taller and broader than even her large brother-in-law, Hayzen. His dark eyes gleamed with quick wit, intelligence, and kindness. Zharim's silver-crowned face was handsome with a straight, broad nose, high cheekbones, and full lips. His rueful smile revealed perfectly straight white teeth. He wore clothing in a similar style to those they had seen on the road coming in: a tight-fitting sleeveless silver top left portions the black skin about his mid-rift exposed, and loose, billowing ultramarine pants covered in intricate silver embroidery cinched neatly at his ankles. The man was barefoot, and his spread toes suggested that was a normal state for his feet to be in.

Not the least bit uncomfortable under the group's unabashed scrutiny, the [king] asked Hayzen, "Would you like to explain, or shall I?"

At this point two things became obvious: Hayzen knew whatever Igmi had done, and keeping it hidden any longer was not an option. All eyes except Lissa's, which were still staring at the prince, and Falton's, which were glued to the ground, turned to Hayzen. Hayzen in turn looked down at his sniffling wife, who reluctantly nodded at him.

"I will explain, your majesty," he began. "It was when Igmi was pregnant with Bup, you see. Igmi had been having a difficult pregnancy, as you already know. We began to worry that the child wouldn't make it, and we'd already lost... With a four year old and a two year old and Igmi unable to work, almost all of the burden fell on me. I'm sorry we didn't tell you how serious it was. I think we were just too overwhelmed, and after the other... lost children, it was too hard to talk about that we might lose another."

He heaved a weary sigh, clutched his wife and youngest son closer to his body, and continued, "Late one night when Igmi was about five months along, we heard a knock at the door. Igmi was already on bedrest, so I answered the door. Here was this young man and his elven wife who was about to give birth right there on our doorstep. So of course I let them in, and let them use our main room. Before morning, there was a new life squalling in his mother's arms.

"We sheltered them for a few days, just until they were fit to travel again. They told us they were traveling south, preparing to establish a new [kingdom], and told us to consider moving when it was well and truly ready."

Hayzen paused in his retelling, as if about to divulge a hard secret he had kept for nearly six years. In fairness, that's exactly what he was about to do.

"While they were with us though, they noticed that Igmi was struggling with the baby. The new mother, Tri, offered to diagnose the issue. She said—," He choked as his eyes began to glisten.

"She said that Bup wouldn't make it, and that Igmi would probably die since she was so far along." Large sparkling tears spilled out onto his cheeks. Igmi's quieted sobbing resumed. Bup, for his part had also begun to cry.

After a few moments, Hayzen found his voice, constricted as it was, and continued, "It was the worst we could have feared, but then. Then, Tri said that she could heal the baby. Said that it was costly, but could be done.

"They told us that such magic changed fates and so another fate would need to be changed to save Bup's life. Not only that, but such magic would come at a personal cost to Tri and Zharim, so they would require a vow from Igmi as well that she would ensure the price be paid, lest the fates take the cost out on their new [kingdom].

"Obviously, we agreed," he said defeatedly.

Tecka was too stunned to speak. It was Drust who had the quiet wherewithall to ask, "What was the cost, and what did Igmi vow?"

Hayzen's grey eyes met Drust's dark ones, and he let out a weary breath. "The cost was the lifelong fealty to Zharim of one of our sons when he came into his magic—fealty as a defender of the realm. And the vow was twofold: that Igmi and I would become [spies] for king until that time and personally bring the child here when he came of age."