“House Pellon, you say?” Tasia asked the General. “I would imagine that you, like Lord Albert, are especially interested in winning back our Imperial territories.”
The General straightened proudly at the mention of his Great House, whose land holdings were easily three times the size – and ten times the wealth – of House Druet. “Of course, Empress. House Pellon remains committed to victory in the East, both for itself and for the Empire. I am sure your Majesty knew my brother – Lord Voris of House Pellon?”
“I do know Lord Voris,” Tasia said. “He was the one who united the Eastern lords behind me and sent troops to intercept my grandfather’s delegation, even when supporting my claim to the throne was an act of treason.” Her brow furrowed. “But you speak of your brother in the past tense; has something ill befallen Lord Voris? I’m afraid we’ve heard very little news out of the East since ousting the false Regent and the other conspirators.”
“Sadly, yes,” said General Ambrose. “When the delegation traveled to the East to sign the peace treaty with the mountain tribes, the tribesmen gave Lord Hermant a contingent of Imperial prisoners as a good faith gift. My brother was amongst those prisoners, along with my sister-in-law and my three nieces and two nephews.” The big man paused, drawing in a breath. “Lord Hermant knew my brother had conspired with you to defeat him. He had every highborn prisoner executed, down to my nine year-old niece.”
The Empress’s eyes flitted away from Ambrose’s, a subtle crack in her royal composure. Tasia’s defeat by her grandfather, and the many deaths that defeat had led to, still haunted her dreams. Although Tasia had never admitted it aloud, Joslyn suspected that one of the reasons she insisted upon leading this campaign herself was for her own personal redemption.
Ku-sai would have said that any personal redemption, revenge, or vindication, had no place on a battlefield. But Ku-sai was gone. And Tasia was here. And Joslyn would see her through this, regardless of what motivations drove her.
“I am terribly sorry to hear about your family,” Tasia said, and there was authentic remorse in her voice. “Does that mean – should I be referring to you as ‘Lord Ambrose’ instead of ‘General’?”
Ambrose smiled, and despite his personal tragedy, Joslyn’s dislike for him instantly deepened. His purpose in joining Lord Albert to greet Tasia was now perfectly transparent: He’d wanted an audience with the Empress to make it known that he was now the de facto lord of one of the largest Great Houses in the East.
Of course, the Empire would need to win back the lands signed over to the mountain men by the false Regent’s treaty before Ambrose became Lord of anything.
“Your Majesty,” General Ambrose said with a little chuckle, “I’m sure we can work out who is now Lord of House Pellon at some point. But first we have a few battles to win, don’t we?”
Joslyn clenched her jaw. She wondered if the man had rejoiced when he heard news that his brother and all his brother’s children had been slaughtered.
“Indeed,” said Tasia, answering the General’s light-hearted chuckle with a thin smile.
Tasia was no fool. She understood the General perfectly.
“My Lords, forgive me for cutting this fond reunion short, but the soldiers and I have had a trying voyage,” Tasia said. “Would you be so kind as to direct your forces to unload our vessels and guide the new arrivals to a place where they might set up camp?”
“Of course, Majesty,” Lord Albert said. He turned to General Ambrose. “General, perhaps you could handle that? And I can escort the Empress and her household to the House of Tergos.” He gave a half-smile and swept a hand towards the city behind him. Castle spires peeked above rooftops in the distance. “House Tergos’s castle is not nearly so luxurious as the palace in Port Lorsin, but I imagine it will be more comfortable than a tent pitched outside the city.”
“Where is the Lord of the House of Tergos?” Joslyn asked. “I am surprised he did not come to the docks to greet his Empress.”
All three of the highborn men turned to her at once. They’d been so focused on making a good impression on their Empress that they hadn’t bothered to notice Joslyn. But now the General’s gaze was upon her, inspecting her, doubtless wondering if this was the Terintan swordswoman he had heard so much about, the Shadow Slayer, the Heroine of Port Lorsin. Joslyn would not let herself look at him.
At least Lord Albert met Joslyn’s eye without the naked appraisal the General gave her.
“Joslyn of Terinto, I presume? Commander of the Empress’s Palace Guard?” Albert asked.
Joslyn gave a single nod.
“I am glad to make your acquaintance. And I thank you for protecting our Empress,” he said. “Even here in remote Tergos, they know your name and the story of how you saved our capital city, the Empress along with it.” Albert cleared his throat. “To answer your question, however, Lord Micah of House Tergos is missing and presumed … lost. He fought valiantly with a detachment of soldiers from this region, but – and keep in mind these are only rumors obscured by the fog of war – apparently he was injured by a shadow-infected. We suspect Lord Micah and the soldiers who were with him fight on the side of the tribesmen now.”
“These are precarious times,” General Ambrose said, nodding.
“Lady Beryea of House Tergos is ill-disposed, which is why she and her household did not come to greet you today,” Lord Albert continued. He paused. “She has been bedridden since news of her husband’s fate reached Tergos.”
There was something Lord Albert wasn’t saying. Joslyn could see in Tasia’s eyes that she also detected it.
“That’s very understandable,” Tasia said. “I will call on Lady Beryea once I settle into my quarters.” Tasia gestured towards the city ahead of them. “Lead the way, my Lord.”