Zander led Mira through the castle halls and into the large dining area overlooking Diamond Valley. His parents were already seated at the table, sharing a quiet meal together.
"Mother. Father." Zander bowed his greetings.
As she had done before, Mira gave a desultory bow, not sure if she was doing it correctly.
Queen Kalara Rashak of Tamein raised an eyebrow when she saw the crowns on their brows.
"Welcome to our humble abode, Princess." She turned to her son. "Why did you not send a message that you were coming? We could have made the meal a bit more celebratory."
"Come." King Leo Tamein extended a hand. "Sit and eat with us."
Zander took her hand and led her to the dining table where he seated her in the appropriate position, and then took his own seat.
"I see you have formally and ceremonially acknowledged the Princess' position," Queen Kalara fixed her eyes on the band of gold on Mira's head.
"Yes Royal Mother. Although her name has already been recorded into the Royal family's records, our wedding day was yesterday, when I presented the new Queen with her bridal gifts, including the crown." Zander's tone was light, but his meaning was clear. Mira was no ancillary wife. She was the Queen of the Northern Realm.
Queen Kalara said nothing. A stiff smile touched her lips.
King Leo nodded. "Welcome to the Royal Family. Will you be moving into the main palace?"
Zander shook his head. "No Royal Father. That has been your home for a very long time. You and Royal Mother should remain there."
Queen Kalara shook her head. "That would not be appropriate. You should take over the throne, now that you are back at the kingdom. Your wizard strength is legendary, and you have been protecting this Northern Realm, along with Jade Kingdom for years now."
Zander grimaced. "There are too many things I still need to do. I need Royal Father to continue the administrative duties in the kingdom."
"You rascal. You make me do all the boring Court work while you romp and play outside with your new wife." King Leo stabbed fiercely at his breakfast sausage with a steely fork. "When do I get to retire? I am so tired of having to pander to all those Court jesters who pretend to do their jobs, but in reality, do nothing but test my patience."
"Jade is currently under attack." Zander peeled a mandarin orange and placed the fruit slices on Mira's plate. "There has been an unseasonable blizzard of epic proportions that has stressed Jade and her inhabitants." He looked up at King Leo. "There is a definite magik signature to the storm. It was created by a wizard."
King Leo's eyes momentarily flashed, his nostrils flaring. "From where did the magik signature commence?"
Zander sighed. "Topaz."
Queen Kalara stiffened. She cut into her meat pie with her ornate bronze knife to hide her agitation.
"You should be here, at troubled times like these." King Leo shifted in his chair.
"And what of Jade?" Zander asked with deceptively light tones.
"What of it?" King Leo glared at Zander, and then snuck a glance at his wife.
Queen Kalara said nothing, but her face had blanched.
"The Northern Realm is the land of my paternal roots, but Jade Kingdom is my maternal homeland. The safety of one is not more important than the other."
"Jade has a ruler." King Leo brusquely shoved a slice of ham into his mouth.
"Uncle Emperor has no Elemental Magik. He is an old warrior who can no longer even lift a sword from its scabbard." Zander cut cantaloupe slices into small chunks and transferred a few pieces onto Mira's plate. "Furthermore, Erick has left Jade to go wandering again."
"The both of you wander from home far too often," Queen Kalara set her spoon down. She could no longer eat. "Erick is Crown Prince. He should begin to think about the Ashryan Empire, instead of traipsing around all over the countryside."
Zander shook his head. "He announced the trip as if it was a spur-of-the-moment pleasure outing, but the truth is, he and I had discussed this earlier. He left for the west coast."
"He is in Turtle Cove?" King Leo pursed his lips. "I wonder how that sneaky ass Barnacle is doing."
"The Monarch Barnabas was the one who requested the meeting, so Erick journeyed to the Kingdom of Mer to meet him."
"That sly dog Barnacle. If he requested a meeting, he should be the one to do the traveling, not the other way around." King Leo sniffed with disdain.
"You know how difficult it is for merfolk to travel on land for any extended period of time. Even with magik to maintain their physical appearance, they still need to be near a body of water. It was determined that it would be easier for Erick to come to King Barnabas, so he made the journey, right after he refused Princess Celeste Zaravan's hand in marriage."
"I heard she has gone missing," Queen Kalara spoke up. "Has she been found?"
Zander shook his head. The Princess Celeste Zaravan of Topaz was still a sore point of contention for the Tamein family, but at the moment, they all ignored that quagmire and continued with their discussion of Jade Kingdom.
"So even crusty old Barnacle is sensing trouble brewing." King Leo sighed. "Storm Magik is not widely known outside of the Northern Realm." he rubbed his nose. "How did Topaz get their hands on a Storm Aeromancer?"
Zander shook his head. "What is more troubling than the Storm Aeromancer is that someone is controlling the bogwargs and the chiros on their vultores, into fighting squadrons. They attack from land and air, simultaneously." He glanced at Mira. "We got a taste of that the night I escaped Jade Palace with Erick." He reached out to touch her hand. "If it wasn't for my Queen, working her alchemy magik to help us, we would have been in serious trouble and Erick would have died."
An Alchemist Healer!
The Royal couple raised their brows and peered at Mira with newfound appreciation. She was neither Ashryan nor Entryon. She was a human. She should not have been able to do any type of magik. It was unheard of for the human hybrids to possess any form of magik.
"Any idea who is behind all this?" King Leo pulled on his short stubble beard. "Don't tell me it's that old Horacio Zaravan."
"It is a possibility, but I have a feeling the King of Topaz is only a pawn in this chess game." Zander sat back with his head tilted and his arms crossed over his chest. "If I had to hazard a guess, it would be Prince Alastaire of Rashak."