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These visions came every day now, and they would continue to do so because I was the new Keeper. I had a destiny of my own to fill.

Aneri returned, then, with Caelum. After a shuffle of seats, Caelum wasted no time.

“What did she say?” he asked Nerys.

She explained his question to the others, telling them first of the queen’s summons to the meal and then again last eve.

“It is my belief,” she said, “the queen knows I plan to challenge her. I am uncertain how she learned this since none beyond this courtyard have been informed.”

“The queen is not a stupid woman.” Caelum stretched his legs out in front of him, crossing his arms. “She knows you are more powerful than her. It is the reason she brought you to the palace. To watch, and monitor.”

“If you are more powerful, which I believe you are,” Marek added, “then the Tidal Pearl has been losing its effectiveness for some time.”

“Yet she did not call for the challenge,” I said.

Aneri sighed. “Some give up their rule more willingly than others. And tides have turned in recent years. There has been a growing sentiment that we are too isolated, and it has not made Thalassaria stronger for it. She knows this.”

The explanation was made for me, I realized. That she’d accepted me so readily into this inner circle was surprising. I ignored a pang of guilt for keeping my own secret when I was welcomed into their fold.

“What, precisely, did she say?” Caelum asked.

“She asked how the human emissary had been occupying his time and what more he’d told me of his mission.”

I avoided Nerys’s gaze, not wanting to make the same mistake I did with Marek by unwittingly revealing too much of our relationship.

“Why do you believe she knows?” Marek asked.

This was my least favorite part of the story and one that cemented my dislike for Queen Lirael.

“She said, ‘Keep close watch on him, Nerys. It is your duty. One which you are uniquely qualified for, as your parents were before you. Thalassaria is lucky to have you… as a Stormcaller and diplomat.’”

Aneri’s grey brows furrowed. “That is all?”

Caelum answered her question. “I know the queen, as Nerys does. It was not a compliment but a warning. She was reminding Nerys of her role and not to reach too high above it.”

“That was my belief as well,” Nerys said.

“A subtle warning,” I added, “but one Nerys will not heed.”

“No,” she confirmed. “I am committed to challenging her. And should have done so long ago.”

As I looked at the faces of those around me, those closest to Nerys, who cared the most for her, I made a decision. “There is another reason the queen may be suspicious.”

Nerys’s head snapped in my direction. If Nerys trusted those gathered around us, I would as well.

“I am here on a mission from King Galfrid and his daughter, Princess Mevlida. Since she slipped through the Gate, which, as you know, has been closed for many years, there is renewed hope it might be permanently reopened. To achieve that end, they need the Tidal Pearl. I am here to receive it, or at least promise of its use, when necessary.”

Everyone began speaking at once. I answered their questions, or those I was able to answer. While I did so, Aneri never took her eyes from me. It was as if she could hear what I did not say. See me in a way the others could not.

Did she know Nerys and I had been together, perhaps? She had lived for many, many years and was perceptive in a way I could never fully understand. It was easy, at times, to forget how very different we were. Immortals and humans.

Perhaps I was thinking too much on the matter, but behind her kindness was a wariness too. One I could understand if she suspected there was something between us.

“Do you think the queen believes Nerys will challenge her so that she can give you the Tidal Pearl?” Marek asked. “Is that why you do it?” he added to Nerys, as if an afterthought.

Nerys raised her chin. “I do it because the most powerful among us has a duty to challenge the current ruler. I do it for our people and our future. And aye, I do it for Rowan and King Galfrid and Princess Mevlida, and for all humans, because the Gate should be reopened.”

Her words were like a challenge themselves.