Lord of the Fading Lands (39 page)

«Border lords,»
Dax supplied before Rain even asked the question.
«Barrial was the one who stood up with Teleos yesterday. He holds the land along the Elden border from Carthage to Kreppes. Morvel controls everything from the Estemere seaport to Norwal.”

Dorian was offering nearly a sixth of the Elden border.

Rain eyed Dorian with new appreciation. The king had been very busy—and much more effective in dealing with his nobles than Rain had been. "Indeed. Such consideration is a great honor to the Baristani family and the Fey.”

"Excellent. My queen and I hope you and your Feyreisa will honor us with your presence at Prince Dorian and Lady Nadela's betrothal ball." The ball would initiate a week of city-wide celebrations leading up to the betrothal ceremony itself.

"We will be there, and we thank you for the honor of the invitation." Rain bowed.

"Your attendance will bring us joy." Dorian smiled and laid his hand over his wife's. Her face was a frozen mask.

«Lillis and little Fey'cha are but children.»
Stalking at Rain's right hand side as he and Ellysetta walked away from the throne, Kieran did not even attempt to disguise his displeasure.
«.Fey do not sell children, not even to protect Eld border land.»‘

"I
don't like the idea of betrothing Lillis and Lorelle to anyone," Ellie whispered at the same time. "They should have a chance to grow up and find someone they can love.”

Rain wove a quick net of Air and Spirit about their small group to ensure privacy before he responded. "It is the offer of alliance that is important, not the manner of bonding “

"Then why would the king mention marriage?" Ellie asked, frowning at Rain.

"He was telling us Lords Morvel and Barrial are willing to garrison Fey warriors in their holdings," Dax said. "Ellysetta, they know the Fey would not leave your family members anywhere in Celieria without a substantial number of warriors to protect them.”

Rain wondered how the king had achieved such a coup. As he'd spent the past few days discovering, reason alone didn't seem much of an inducement to the nobles.

"And," Marissya added, "by publicly inviting you to the Prince's ball and mentioning the possibility of a betrothal between your sisters and two of the Great Houses, the king has also made it clear that you and your family are to be accepted by the other nobles.”

"That's all well and good, but I don't want Mama or Papa thinking high-ranking political marriages are in the girls' best interest. Lillis and Lorelle aren't chattel to be bartered and sold.”

"Las, shei'tani."
Rain said. "I will speak to Morvel and Barrial and make it clear that no formal offers of marriage are to be extended to your parents." He dispelled the privacy weaves and turned to the prime minister. "You may begin the introductions, Lord Corrias."

During the next two bells of introductions and polite mingling, Lord Corrias introduced Ellie and Rain to what
seemed
like hundreds of Celierian nobles and whispered a steady stream of information into Rain's ear as they went, identifying each individual's estate holdings, and what each one stood to gain or lose if the Eld borders were opened for trade. Ellie's head was swimming with the bombardment of information, but Rain seemed to take it in and process it with enviable efficiency.

She stood at Rain's side, trying her best to be "grave and gracious" It was a good thing Master Fellows had told her not to smile, as that would have proven difficult. The Tairen's Eye crown and bracelets, while physically light, discomfitted her. A low, constant hum of power radiated from the crystals, resonating in her skin and setting her nerves on edge.

Despite the king's announcement, many of the approaching nobles made a point of eyeing the sparkling crystals before forcing themselves to bow before the woodcarver's daughter. Some pretended to be more welcoming. They smiled with too-bright smiles, complimented her hair and dress, and murmured concern about yesterday's attack, but she knew their hard, glittering eyes were sizing her up and searching for any little fault in her appearance or behavior that would put Rain to shame. She refused to give it to them. Holding her head high, she greeted each with solemn reserve. Rain, to his credit, kept his temper in check—and was even on occasion rather charming. The nobles who'd come hoping to gawk at a wild tairen and his peasant bride found themselves meeting a Fey king and his reserved queen instead.

After the first dozen or so introductions, Rain began sending little private communications to her on weaves of Spirit, things like
«You didn't like Lord Braegis at all, did you, shei'tani? Can you tell me why?»
or
«You seemed to like Lady Clovis. Perhaps we should arrange for you and Marissya to meet her for tea.»
His Spirit voice was calm, reassuring, and even occasionally wicked:
«Lady Zillina had best not lean over tonight or those breasts might just leap for freedom.»
The intimacy of the conversation—private words shared only between the two of them—made the ballroom seem less crowded and the nobles a bit less terrifying. Occasionally Rain would reach over to stroke the hand she kept on his wrist, lift the corner of his mouth in the faintest of smiles, and whisper in her mind,
«You're doing fine, shei'tani. You bring pride to this Fey.»

One of the few genuinely friendly faces in the crowd was a Fey-eyed border lord named Teleos from the west, whom Rain greeted with a warmth he'd not shown any other Celierian. Even without Lord Corrias's whispered summation, Ellie knew who Lord Devron Teleos was. His family's ancestral estates lay at the foot of the southernmost Fey' mountains, guarding the Garreval, gateway to the Fading Lands. On that land, fifty miles north of the Garreval, the battle of Eadmond's Field had been waged, and Sariel had died.

"Lady Ellysetta." Teleos bowed to her. "The gods have shone their grace on the Tairen Soul indeed. You make me envy him his good fortune.”

Ellysetta blushed at the generous compliment. Just as she'd sensed the false welcome in the other lords, she sensed the truth in Teleos. Like the Fey, he looked at her and saw beauty. How amazing. "You are too kind, Lord Teleos," she replied, "but in truth, I received the greater grace. What girl has not dreamed of Rain Tairen Soul and Fey devotion?”

"And all this time, I believed the thought of me would send them fleeing in fear," Rain quipped with a faint smile. In a more serious tone, he told Teleos, "My thanks for your courage in Council yesterday. It is good to know that common sense still prevails in some parts of Celieria.”

"I should have spoken sooner." Teleos's green eyes held genuine regret. "Had I known what was done to Ser vel Jelani, I would have, but I never suspected such animus.”

"Dax tells me you are the descendant of an old friend of mine, Shanis Teleos," Rain said.

"My great-grandfather's great-grandfather," the border lord confirmed.

"He was there that day at Eadmond's Field. I am glad to know he survived it. He was a great warrior, and a true friend.”

"According to the family history I learned as a boy, he saw an opportunity to flank the Merellians and took a force of his best men to circle round from the north. He wasn't on the field when you … when the Rage took you.”

Rain nodded somberly; then a ghost of a smile lightened his eyes. "He always could read a battlefield … and had the gods' own luck. We were
chadins
together in our youth at the Warrior's Academy in Dharsa. Then I found my wings, and he went south to Tehlas, to continue his training under the tutelage of his uncle and namesake, Shannisorran v'En Celay.”

That was a name Ellie had read in numerous tomes of Fey history and poetry. Shannisorran v'En Celay, Lord Death, one of the greatest, deadliest Fey warriors ever to have walked the earth, as infamous in battle as Rain was for the scorching of the world and Gaelen vel Serranis for sparking the Mage Wars.

"I did not see your folk there by the Garreval when we passed through the Mists," Rain said. "Shanis always kept the custom, but I suppose things have changed.”

Lord Teleos smiled at the probe. "The land remains in our family, but we no longer live there. After the Wars, the king granted Shanis a northern estate bordering Eld and the Feyls. We now guard Orest and Kiyera's Veil.”

Rain nodded. "So Dax told me. It is a handsome land .. . and a dangerous one. The Eld I knew always coveted that stretch of the river." Orest, the City of Mist, lay at the foot of the Feyls, wreathed in the mists and rainbows of numerous waterfalls that fed the mighty Heras River. About a mile northwest of the city in the river gorge, Kiyera's Veil was a legendary gauntlet of towering waterfalls pouring into the Heras from opposite mountains, filling the gorge with water and mist and blocking a pass rumored to lead into the Fading Lands.

"And still do." The border lord's expression became grim. "I lose a dozen villagers every year to Eld raids—not murdered, just gone—but the attacks seem to be lessening of late.”

"You're the first I've heard to blame the Eld and not
dahl'reisen.”

Teleos grimaced. "Yes, well, Sebourne and his pack don't think a fly dies on the borders these days except by
dahl'reisen
hand, but the raids on my land just don't have the feel of
dahl'reisen.
I can't really explain why.”

"Do not discount your intuition, Lord Teleos. You're Fey enough to perceive things beyond mortal senses. The Eld I knew always longed to drive a wedge between Celierians and Fey. Murdering Celierians and blaming the Fey—or the
dahl'reisen—is
just the sort of deception they would employ." From the corner of his eye, Rain saw Lord Corrias signal. "It has been a pleasure meeting you, Lord Teleos. I hope we have the chance to speak again.”

Teleos bowed graciously. "The pleasure is mine, My Lord Feyreisen. It would be my honor to host a dinner for you before you return to the Fading Lands. Though I'm unlikely to instill trust in those who doubt the Fey"—his Fey eyes gleamed with wry humor—"I know many lords who remain more open-minded about certain things than Sebourne.”

Rain inclined his head. "A most generous offer, my lord. It would be our honor to attend." He offered an arm clasp and a traditional Fey warrior's greeting which roughly translated to "Sharp blade, sure aim, swift strike.”

Teleos returned the greeting in perfectly accented Feyan and added on the common Spirit path, «
You can count on my support, My Lord Feyreisen. Both my voice in Council and my sword, if you need it. These are unsettling times, but I fear much worse is yet to come.»

«
Beylah vo, young blade brother,»
Rain answered.
«And for a son of Shanis's line who guards the Veil, the doors of the Warrior's
Academy in Dharsa are always open. When you wish it, I will send a warrior to guide you through the Mists.»

Lord Teleos's eyes widened.«
You honor me.”

That was very kind of you,»
Ellysetta sent as they walked away.

«Not entirely unselfish,»
Rain admitted.
«Any man who guards the Veil should be Fey-trained in weapons and war. You liked him?”

«Very much. More than anyone we've met so far.»

«Good. I liked him, too.»

In sharp contrast to Lord Teleos, Lord Morvel was a towering iceberg of a man with thick, unpowdered white hair, a hawklike nose, large nostrils, and piercing blue eyes. After a brief, chilly greeting, those eyes speared Ellie, delved ruthlessly into her very soul, then withdrew with an indecipherable look that left her wondering if he despised her or simply found her unworthy of even that much of his great regard. She was in good company. Lord Morvel's dissecting gaze fell upon Rain and withdrew with the same results.

"Let me be frank," Lord Morvel said bluntly. "I'm not offering marriage to any of my noble sons or grandsons. But I do have a son, duAlbuth, whose mother was my armorer's daughter. I've had him trained in warfare, and he currently serves in my infantry. Marriage to a woodcarver's daughter would not insult his lineage, given his already-common stock. I would, of course, expect a dowry at least as generous as what you gave the butcher, so he could purchase a lower- gentry title and a bit of land and still have enough to ensure advantageous marriages for his own children.”

"I see." To his credit, Rain did not pull steel. "And what might the Fey receive in return—besides the gracious offer of blood-ties to the House of Morvel and an opportunity for the Feyreisa's sisters to ascend beyond their lowly roots?”

If Morvel noted his sarcasm, he showed no sign of it. "The king shared your concerns about the Eld with the Twenty. I have eight castles on the Elden March between Eastmere and Norwal, each capable of garrisoning between one and two thousand men. If it's men on the Marches you want, I can help … depending on the outcome of our negotiations, of course.”

"Of course." Rain smiled without a hint of warmth reaching his eyes and bowed his head. "I look forward to further discussions. Dax and I will call on you tomorrow.”

«Never,»
Ellysetta bit out as she and Rain shook off that wintry encounter and moved on to greet the next group of nobles.
«Never will either of my sisters wed into that man's family. And I don't care if the entire world depends on it.”

«Las, shei'tani. An offer is not a betrothal. Besides, you heard him say everything was negotiable. Woodcarver's blood may insult him, but he seems rather fond of Fey gold—and you did notice, I hope, that I let his insults pass without challenge.”