By late afternoon, word got back from the Emperor's Palace that situations had degenerated badly after they had left the scene.
Zander and Mira were seated on the large tapestry upholstered settee facing the huge bay windows on the third floor of the circular turret. The windows overlooking the Tamein Estate's front gardens, gave the best views of the outside world, but at this moment, there wasn't much to see.
After a brief respite, the snow had begun blowing again, this time far heavier than before. The wind shrieked and moaned like a howling banshee, roving through the grounds. The gardens were blanketed with a heavy layer of fluff that stuck onto three limbs and bushes, creating a strange macabre, colorless realm out of some Dr. Seuss 3D animation.
The frigid gloomy exterior contrasted greatly with the cozy warm interior of the Tamein palace. The white silk lanterns that the serving maids had placed around them glowed amber pools of light, chasing the gloom back into the darkened corners. To one side, a fire crackled with joy, popping and snapping on the scented resinous veins of the aged wood.
They were enjoying their tea and hors d'oeuvres with Daran Duluth, and laughing at his detailed accounts of what had transpired.
Daran Duluth, Captain of the 32 Division Ground Combat, sat straight as a soldier on the ornate overstuffed pink brocade love seat, holding onto his steaming translucent bone-ceramic tea cup with large deft fingers. He had come directly from the Emperor's Palace, bearing tales of royal adventures, and social disasters.
Apparently, after Zander and Mira had left, the Crown Prince De Erick Rashak had returned to the Royal Green House alone, sporting a bright red imprint of a lady's hand on his face.
Since Zander and Mira were no longer even on the grounds of the Emperor's Palace, everyone assumed that the winner of that duel to determine Princess Celeste Zaravan's fate was Erick Rashak himself.
Unfortunately for Jade Kingdom, however, Erick Rashak only came back to formally and apologetically take his leave, stating that he would be going on a 'brief, but extended' retreat to the coastal village of Turtle Cove to do some deep sea diving with a few of his good merfolk friends.
Mira pursed her lips. What in heck did 'brief-but-extended' mean anyway?
The Emperor, of course, was livid, but his sputtering fell on the Prince's disappearing backside as Erick ran off with the serving maid to refill his glass of mead directly from the wine cellar.
The Princess Celeste Zaravan of Topaz was silent throughout this entire episode, observing and annotating each detail, with diffidence, or so Daran reported.
It wasn't until an hour later that a panicked handmaid had run into the King's Court, crying hysterically, that the Princess had gone missing. Soon thereafter, word got back to the royal household that a lone carriage with only two attendants had been seen leaving the Palace.
After turning the palace grounds upside-down and inside-out, they finally got enough sense to go check the gate guards, who verified that the Princess Celeste Zaravan of Topaz had, indeed, left the gates earlier that day.
Since the blizzard had truly begun to blow hard, it was almost impossible to go after Princess Celeste, especially since they had no idea in which direction she had gone.
There was also the growing problem of the roads, which by then, had been buried by snow piled five feet from the ground.
It would not take much effort for the Emperor's men to clear the roads, except for the fact that the blizzard was still blowing, which meant the snow would pile up just as fast as it was cleared. There was no way to put that many men in danger without knowing at least the direction in which the Princess had traveled.
"So you are telling me, a lone princess is out there in the driving blizzard, with only two people to attend to her?" Mira interrupted his tale.
"It appears to be so, m'Lady."
"How is she going to survive in that kind of environment?"
Zander reached out for a strawberry. He dipped it into a dish with fluffy whipped cream and then brought it to Mira's lips. "That Princess comes from Topaz. Their specialty is fire magik. If anyone can survive in this blizzard, it will be Princess Celeste Zaravan."
Mira licked the cream from his fingers and then took the strawberry with her lips. What would happen between the kingdoms of Jade and Topaz, if the Princess did not marry either Erick Rashak or Zander Tamein? She did not know enough of Ashryan history or politics to understand fully, the situation.
"Do you know who the King of Topaz is?" Zander fed her another creamed strawberry.
Unable to say anything with a mouthful of the red berry, she could only shake her head.
"He was supposed to have been my father."
"What?"
"He and my father had an all out duel for the Princess Kalara Rashak."
"Let me guess. The King of Topaz lost the duel." Mira laughed.
"King Horacio Zaravan of Topaz was so badly beaten, he could barely move for a week," Zander stuck his index finger into the cream, and then placed the cream onto Mira's lips. "...or so I was told."
Mira laughed inwardly. Zander wasn't as interested in feeding her strawberries as he was, getting his fingers licked. "Was he that bad with a sword?"
Zander laughed. "They weren't dueling with swords. It was an all-out battle of fire against ice. In that fight, ice won, but it could have just as easily been the other way around."
"And then what happened afterwards?"
"Princess Kalara ended up traveling to the Northern Realm with my father. She eventually gave birth to me and my three sisters."
"And what happened to King Horacio Zaravan?"
"He went on to marry one of the Princesses of Peridot."
"Peridot. I think you mentioned it before. Isn't it one of the cities to the east?"
"Yes. The people of Peridot are farmers. Theirs is the magik of the land, and of growing things. Much of our trade with Peridot revolves around their harvests, of potatoes, corn, rice, and vegetables of all types. Even these strawberries came from Peridot just last night, before the blizzard shut the passes." He pushed another strawberry into Mira's mouth. "Daran Duluth's family is from Peridot."
Mira turned to Daran. "Do you still have family there?"
Daran nodded. "I have two brothers and a sister still living in Peridot. Between the three of them, there is a brood of kids."
"Would you like to go visit your family in Peridot, Daran?" Zander picked up his tea cup and gazed intently at the steam rising from the amber liquid.
Daran's eyes widened and he gave a hard stare at Zander. After a long pause, he nodded. "If that is your wish, Master, I will go."
"Go. When the weather permits, take the water route."
"Yes, Master."
Mira picked up on the heaviness of the situation immediately. "Why do you call Zander 'Master'? Are you a bonded slave or something?"
"No, m'Lady." Daran looked at Zander with a look of high respect. "De Zander Tamein is not just a Crown Prince of the Northern Realm, he is also a Grand Master of the Magik of Elements. I am his student, therefore I call him Master."
Ahhh. Mira whispered. She knew so little of this man who insisted on calling her his wife. Although it would be completely strange to consider herself as the wife of a wizard prince on Earth, in this realm, it seemed perfectly normal and natural.
"There is one other thing I would like to ask, m'Lady." Daran reached out to replace the cup back on its saucer.
"Yes?"
"Would it be acceptable for me to bring Caroline here, to Ashrya?"