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J ai’s consciousness swam back to the surface, the flurry of movement around him slowly coming into focus. He was sitting in his throne, Winter’s head in his lap, lapping the dried blood from his fingers.

He felt no pain, only a lingering... what would he call it? Weakness? It seemed little time had passed, for the black cloud that infected his body, and stilled the mana in his core, remained.

Indeed, Jai was in his own tent, the room arrayed as it had been the night before, Kidara rushing to carry thrones, furs and the banners of each house into the chamber. It seemed the khans of the Sithia waited for no man, even the one that had just fought to unite them.

Absent was the Tejinder throne, and Jai could see Feng instructing servants to leave a space.

‘—Remind them of his failure,’ Feng said. ‘Wider. Wider I said!’

He looked up, as if feeling Jai’s gaze upon him, and hurried to Jai’s side.

‘You’re awake,’ he said. ‘Kiran said you would return to us soon. Forgive me – there was not time.’

Jai nodded slowly, feeling his senses find their way back to the fore. He gestured to the thrones quizzically, his throat too parched to speak.

‘The smaller tribes say they will leave before sunset,’ he said. ‘There is word that the legion marches this way, and many lose their nerve. We dared not wait.’

Jai nodded slowly, taking a gourd of rosewater offered him by a nearby Kidaran servant, dashing it over his sweaty body. Now that he was awake, others rushed forward, only for a warning growl from Winter to send them scampering back.

The dragon looked up at him, and gave a snort that told Jai he was not to be forgiven in a hurry. It appeared her clash with the roqs had left her none the worse, though there was a scratch along her snout that had not been there before.

He stroked it, wishing he had use of his mana to heal her. Her eyes gazed up at him, a dull sense of concern drifting down their muted connection. Jai kissed her snout, sending her all the love he could muster.

But there was work to be done, and he could still see the blood that caked his fingernails. Jai coughed, and took a proffered wet cloth, using it to wipe the worst of the grime and blood from his face and arms. His hand was dotted with fresh scars, where the glass had dug into his palm. He felt like some small fragments remained within, sharp and painful, healed over by the spell.

He would dig them out later. Later... what came later? His mind was dull.

‘My khan,’ Feng said, motioning behind the throne. ‘We have your vestments here for you. There is time yet to dress.’

Jai waved away the suggestion.

‘Let them witness the warrior, not the royal,’ he muttered, his voice hoarse. ‘They have more need of the former.’

He closed his eyes, tried to think.

‘Where is Teji?’ Jai asked.

‘Gone, my khan,’ Feng said. ‘Nazeem and some small number of his nobles and liegemen with him. They and some Tainted mercenaries, members of Nazeem’s former tribe. Teji took all he could carry, but the treasury remains intact. And he has Zayn too.’

Jai sucked in a breath.

‘How many fresh khiroi do I now command?’

‘A moment, my khan.’

Feng’s feet thudded away, a whispered conversation that Jai would have usually heard, were the mana not sealed within his core. But it was slow fading, and already a trickle of mana was bringing him back to his senses. He straightened his back, and took another swig of water.

The thrones were crowding close now, far more than the last meeting.

‘From the Tejinder we have gained two hundred mercenaries,’ Feng said, hurrying back. ‘And another hundred former Kidara. Their mounts are either the poor stock we gave them or fresh caught from the wild, no breeding at all. But in all, more than a thousand riders under your rule alone. No other tribe commands such a force.’

‘Make sure these so-called Tejinder are treated well,’ Jai said, leaning close. ‘Harleen will see that there’s no bad blood, now our brothers have returned. Have Sindri invite the Tainted mercenaries to join the tribe, and pay them whatever Teji owes.’

Feng bowed. No argument now, it seemed. Jai had proved himself to more than just the khans of the steppe.

‘Your will, khan,’ Feng said.

After all he’d done, it was a simple duel that confirmed his place.

This is a world of violence , he thought, and hated the truth of it.

Jai longed for a kind word from his vizier. But that was not the life of royalty, of khans immemorial. Friends would never be equals. Only family... and he had none.

‘Where are the Caelite?’ Jai asked. ‘Where is Erica?’

Feng shook his head.

‘The Caelite claim they have said their piece. They will protect the innocent, nothing more.’

Jai cursed, but knew he should not push his luck. In the end, they had given them what he needed. He could wage war against the legion without his soldiers worrying about the Gryphon Guard running rampant across the steppe, slaughtering at will. No more would innocents suffer.

‘And Erica?’ Jai asked.

‘She did not wish to intrude, she said—’

‘That’s all of them!’ one of the servants called.

‘Sire,’ Feng said. ‘We should not tarry.’

Jai sighed, but lifted Winter’s head from his lap. She sat straight, and readied herself, unfurling her wings in a grand display.

‘Send them in,’ Jai said.

Feng gave the command, the partition of the tent thrown back, men and women pouring through. Many took halting steps as they entered, transfixed by the sight of the bloodied Jai, his dragon casting shadows from the fire in the hearth behind.

Now as many as thirty khans took their places, their viziers perched in awkward stances, crowded by the many thrones. These new ones, further away from the main table, were less grand in design, many made of simple bamboo, some no more than a saddle mounted upon a wooden block.

These were the smaller tribes, those who had no sooner arrived than wished to leave, thanks to the legion in supposed pursuit. But they were here now, because of him, and that was all he could ask for at the moment.

Looking at the table, Jai saw Feng had laid out in clear detail their position. The legion was no longer moving east. Indeed, the meeting of the many tribes had changed their direction, if they had caught wind of the council. Not west... but south.

Jai pondered this, as the khans took their places, some jostling for position, scraping their thrones closer, others complaining their positioning was not proportionate to their importance.

A fist slammed upon the table silenced them – Tenzin’s. Jai nodded to the man, then stood... and spoke.

‘There will be no ceremony today,’ Jai said. ‘You only need hear one name spoken – mine. I am Jai, son of Rohan. I have done what has been asked of me, and you know what I am here to ask of you.’

He let the words settle, sweeping his gaze, meeting their stares with one of his own.

‘I was raised a captive in the court of our enemies, learning at their greatest general’s feet. I have proven the rumours false through my duel – I did not kill Leonid. Rather, I was there when Titus spilled my brothers’ blood, and in turn, that of his own lineage. All for a war of vanity.’

Now Jai heard the anger among the khans, whispered curses, dark glances. They believed him. He could feel it.

‘I stole a dragon in my escape, and was hunted the breadth of the empire until I was fettered in the great prison of Porticus. Even then, my resolve would not be broken.’

He leaned over the table, knuckling it with his fists.

‘I broke out with new allies, the Dansk’s queen and Huddite warriors, men who will rally their brethren to our cause. Even now, the Dansk pledge their dragons to come to our aid, should the Gryphon Guard return to our skies. These dragons are more than up to the challenge. I myself have killed a gryphon and its knight.’

Fresh whispers now, from those who hadn’t been in the tent during the first council, but Jai ignored them, raising his voice above.

‘I climbed the Yaltai’s highest peak, and joined the sect of the Caelite, as my father once did. They will protect our tribes when our armies ride to war. Now I return to you, my people, to continue my father’s legacy. We will drive these legions from our borders, and ride on, into the heart of their rotten empire!’

Voices, raised in agreement, fists thudding upon armrests, feet stamping on fur-clad rock.

‘Fifty. Thousand!’ a voice bellowed.

Jai saw Hari, standing upon his throne, his hand raised for silence. It came, and Jai allowed him to speak, for to try to hide this truth would be seen as weakness.

‘That is how many legionaries march in the Northern Tundra, right now,’ Hari said, stabbing a finger to the west. ‘And when they’re done with the Dansk, they’ll march on us. This warmonger seeks only revenge, for his brothers, for his father, for himself. Do not be dragged into his vendetta. We must sue for peace!’

Applause, at first hesitant, then louder, as Hari nodded, smiling, before gesturing at Jai.

‘He is young,’ Hari said. ‘No man here doubts he is a warrior born. But he will not be the one riding his khiro into a line of glittering steel. He’ll be flying above on his pretty dragon.’

‘Enough!’ Jai said. ‘All may speak at this council, but I will not be insulted in my own tent.’

Hari bowed. ‘My apologies, khan,’ he said, his voice slick with sarcasm. ‘I seek only to speak the truth. Tell me, have I lied?’

‘Tell me , do you not distort the truth? Do you really dare to suggest in the presence of your equals that I am afraid to get my hands bloody?’

He spread his hands flat across the table, where blood remained beneath the nails, and caked the soft hair of his arms. Hari looked away, cowed.

‘I thought not,’ Jai said, disgusted. ‘How many men can the gathered tribes muster?’ he asked, leaning close to Feng.

Feng chewed his lip, calculating, before saying, ‘Ten thousand. Perhaps five thousand more eventually, but it would take time to break the khiroi, forge the weapons.’

He took in that information, and then addressed those gathered once more. ‘Hari indeed speaks the truth about one thing,’ Jai said. ‘Though the legion that marches our lands is only five thousand, ten times more may follow. But it is for this very reason that we must fight!’

His words were met with worried glances, viziers once again leaning in, their whispers stirring the air.

‘We are fifteen thousand riders,’ Jai called out, his voice settling the room to a low buzz.

‘Fifteen thousand cannot defeat fifty,’ Hari said, nodding sagely. ‘That is more than three times as many. So it is decided. Let us send an envoy to the legion that marches on us.’

‘It is enlightening to see you know your numbers,’ Jai said, and Hari flushed. ‘Do your calculations take into account that they are on foot in the Great Steppe, then, while we ride the mighty khiroi and are born of this very land? Of course they don’t,’ he said, dismissing the man. ‘Even as you again obfuscate the truth.’

‘How so?’ Hari dared ask.

‘In that they do not march on us,’ Jai snapped. ‘They run for the Kashmere Road to the south. They will seek reinforcements, or retreat back home.’

‘Then our job is already done!’ Hari called as if in victory. ‘Let us wait, and see how the Dansk war fares.’

It was disheartening, the murmurs of agreement, scared men and women already shifting in their seats, looking to the door.

‘Wait for them to bolster their ranks? Let them escape when we can finish this before it starts?’ Jai looked around the table, pinning to their chairs those that were growing restless. ‘Most of these legions are untested, green boys from the fields. Would you place such a child above a Kidaran knight?’

‘You should know more than anyone that the Sabine war machine is the single greatest force in the world today,’ Hari said, seeming to gain confidence once more and preaching to the crowd around him. ‘Or are you so foolish as to forget the lesson your father never learned.’

Jai had to resist the urge to strike the smug man, whose eyes gleamed with a light that told Jai he was goading him. Whatever the outcome of the duel, Hari was still Teji’s man. And still a khan in his own right – the fact that he hadn’t been challenged by the members of his tribe spoke of something that kept them loyal and in line.

He spoke like a fool, but he still had power. Just as Teji did. So just like with Teji, Jai needed to take down this man.

‘How quickly your word changes, Hari,’ Jai said. ‘Last night, you agreed we would war against the Sabines if I won my duel. Now you go back to begging surrender.’

‘I said no such thing!’ Hari cried, turning to the khans around him. ‘Did you agree to such a thing? Why, the boy thinks himself High Khan!’

‘We were not there,’ a lesser khan called. ‘The Great Tribes do not speak for us. We have chosen no High Khan.’

‘And why not?’ Jai demanded. ‘Am I not my father’s son?’

Shouts of agreement, angry khans standing, stabbing fingers in Jai’s direction.

‘We can beat them,’ Jai said, his voice near lost in the din. ‘Titus is no Leonid.’

‘Prove it, then!’

Jai turned, for it was the booming voice of Tenzin that had spoken. The big man got up, towering tall even beside those standing upon their thrones. The leader of the mammoth-riding tribe commanded respect, and even Hari fell silent under his dark gaze.

‘To become High Khan of all the Sithia is no small thing,’ Tenzin said, his voice low and serious. ‘You have achieved much, Jai, but you are a young man still. One with blood hot for battle.’

‘You were the one that—’

Tenzin held up his palms in peace, and Jai bit his tongue.

‘You command an army of one thousand, against the legion’s five,’ Tenzin said. ‘With a few hundred more men, you’ll match the odds we might face in this war.’

Jai did not like where this was going, but he had no way of changing things.

‘What of it?’ Jai asked.

‘If such odds can be beaten, then prove it. Prove yourself worthy to be our High Khan. Lead your army against this legion. Give us such a victory that will strike fear into the hearts of our enemies, and make them dread the day they set foot on our lands again.’

Jai stuttered, even as the khans began to bang their fists and stomp once more, calling out support for the plan.

‘You want me to fight your battle for you alone?’ Jai asked, sweeping a stabbed finger across the arrayed khans. ‘While you hide like cowards far from harm, under the protection of the Caelite that I myself secured for you?’

The khans avoided his gaze, their shame evident. That was exactly what they wanted.

‘Oh, I wouldn’t say alone,’ Tenzin chuckled. ‘You’ll still need another... what, five hundred warriors?’

He thumped his chest.

‘The Mahmut tribe rides with the Kidara, now and hereafter. Any who wishes to join us can.’

Jai stared, his grip on the meeting fast unravelling.

‘Know this,’ Tenzin growled to the others. ‘You are to prepare for war. Sharpen your blades, wean the calves and tighten your lassos. When you hear of our victory, you will answer the call, to your new High Khan. Or we’ll come back and take your tribe for ourselves, mark me!’

He glowered at the khans around him, then turned, and winked at Jai, as if he’d somehow won Jai some great victory. Jai was speechless.

‘Swear it now,’ Tenzin growled. ‘You first, Hari.’

Hari paled, clambering down from his perch. Jai could see the fear in the man’s eyes. He was scared of the Sabines, of their legions. But it seemed the idea of the combined might of the Kidara and Mahmut tribes riding him down seemed all the more real, here and now.

‘Hari!’ Tenzin roared.

‘All right,’ he snapped. ‘I swear it. High Khan, if such a victory is possible.’

More murmurs came, half-hearted, none spoken in loud voice. But Tenzin was undaunted, staring down each khan until he had verbal confirmation from everyone.

‘It is agreed,’ Tenzin said, finally nodding.

‘Anything else, Khan Jai?’ Tenzin asked, turning back to him.

Jai gulped. He had not had time to think, to plan. He had expected to lead a great army to crush the invading legion. Instead, he would be fighting a battle with a force smaller than he anticipated... and he did not yet know how to win.

Still, with his mind racing, he beckoned Feng closer, keenly aware of the gazes of the rest of the khans, boring into him.

‘Pretend I’m talking to you,’ Jai whispered. ‘I need time to think.’

Feng murmured, ‘Aye, my khan. Then... I will think also.’

They stood this way for a few heartbeats, enough for Jai to contemplate his next move. Finally, something clicked, and he turned to the khans.

‘If I am to fight for you, I will need your blacksmiths, and steel.’

‘They will give it,’ Tenzin assured, brooking no refusals. ‘I’ll make sure of it.’

‘They will not give khiroi or their weapons,’ Feng hissed. ‘What else?’

‘I want all the spare bamboo, and any pelts for leathers, too,’ Jai called.

‘That too,’ Tenzin said, daring the khans to dissent. None did. Indeed, many of their faces were a picture of relief.

‘Swear it,’ Jai said.

‘Go on,’ Tenzin barked. ‘Swear now, in the sight of the Mother’s eye.’

‘I swear.’ The response was weak, but Tenzin once again glared until all had spoken.

Jai nodded, slowly. There was no changing this. Their path was set.

‘So be it,’ he said. ‘Join us, if your conscience allows. Tenzin and I march at first light.’