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U ncle Tank looked sour as he made his way up to the battlements. Climbing stairs hurt his knee. He stood next to her silently, looking out over the landscape. It was overcast, but there was warmth in the air. They were expecting the caravan at any time.

After a while, she asked, “Why didn't you train me as a soldier?”

He raised a brow. “When would I have time? Your mother did some things I disagreed with, but she raised you well. You had every bit of history, strategy, politics and trade knowledge she could cram into your head. She knew what was coming. Every minute was spoken for, and nothing was wasted.”

Zelda looked back over the wall in silent disagreement.

“It would have been stupid to train you as a common soldier. I can have hundreds of those. It would have been a waste of your brain and abilities.”

When she still looked moody, he added, “That, and you have scrawny arms. Any ordinary soldier would mow you down.”

She laughed. Her uncle was something else.

“You're worried about how you performed during the battle?” he asked shrewdly. He looked thoughtfully over the landscape, considering the problem.

“What we need is a liaison. I've seen you connect to the castle and you don't have the attention span to pay attention to it and the battle. No one does. And yet, the castle is our greatest weapon. You need someone to stand beside you and help you direct that weapon.”

She finally looked at him. “Who?”

“I’ll work on that. Also, we should do some drills. After all, no one rises to the occasion. We fall back on our level of training.”

She'd heard him say that before, and it was a good thing to remember.

“It will also give you time to explore the castle’s capabilities. You’ll feel more confident when you know how it will perform in battle.”

It was a good plan. “I like it,” she said, feeling better.

“Good. I'm starving. Let's get some dinner.”

The caravan arrived just as the townspeople were finishing dinner. Excited, Zelda ran outside, hopeful that everyone had made it back in one piece. If the shipment had been successful, it could solve so many problems.

To her delight, she found that everyone was safe, and the carts were laden with food.

Ozzy was there, talking to Quill as he unhitched a sheep in the castle courtyard.

The castle was being used as storage, as it was the most secure location.

Sheep and wagons lined up in orderly rows, and the townsfolk had come out to help unload.

Quill saw Zelda and called, “Lady Zelda! Great timing. I wanted to introduce you to someone. Pella, meet Lady Zelda.” He gestured to a young woman holding her daughter's hand. The woman had healing bruises on her face.

Zelda frowned. “You were hurt?”

The woman looked startled. “No, my lady. This happened before. It's nothing.” She put her hands on her daughter's shoulders. “This is Yada. She summons shadow beasts. Cave bears, actually.” She cleared her throat nervously. “Quill says that you’re hiring mages?”

“Yes, I am!” Zelda said enthusiastically. Quill had done exceptionally well. “I'm so happy to meet you both!”

She looked around and spotted Steward. “Steward! Madame Pella and her daughter Yada will be staying with us. Please give them a hot dinner and set them up in a guest room. Yada is our new mage in training. We will negotiate wages later, but put them on the books. They get room and board, of course.” she smiled at Pella. “Does that sound good?”

Pella looked overwhelmed. “Yes, my lady,” she stammered. Looking dazed, she followed Steward into the castle.

“You get a bonus,” Zelda told Quill happily. “How would you like to be the official caravan master?”

“Thank you. I'll have to think about that,” Quill said slowly. He hadn't realized he was getting paid for this, and now a bonus? He thought he'd been getting food for his tribe, a necessary and dangerous chore. It was startling to realize he'd been working for lady Zelda all along.

“Tell me about your trip. Did everything go smoothly?” Zelda asked.

Quill snorted. “Definitely not!” He filled them in on the details, including what he knew about Pella and her daughter, which wasn't much. Pella was quite closed mouth.

“It was a good thing we found them, too.

I didn't like relying on a four-year-old, but those cave bears saved our lives. We were attacked a second time, and they had planned better. The crossbows helped, but Yada summoned two cave bears who tore through the briar wolves.” His grin faded as he talked about it.

“She was pretty shook up. I doubt her mother is going to let her go on another caravan trip, at least while we're fighting with the Beast Queen.”

Zelda frowned. “No doubt.” No one expected a child to fight battles. This might have been a one-time deal. It did prevent a catastrophic loss however, so she was very happy about it. “Still, good work all around! I'm sure you're tired, so I'll get out of your way.”

They worked out what was needed for immediate distribution and went their separate ways.

Zelda had gotten word that more tribes were on the way, including some of the northern tribes that were famous for their war eagles. That was an exciting development.

Speaking of excitement, Kite’s experiments had borne fruit. His kites were able to lift him in a basket along with a passenger. He was able to control up to three kites with cargo.

More interesting still, some of the village lads had discovered that they could make their own kite flyers. They had to take off from high places and there had been a lot of crashing. Lots and lots of crashing.

Fortunately, there were no serious injuries. The kites were still experimental, but should prove useful for surveillance. Eventually, they might even be used for cargo runs.

While she focused on trade, she knew the tribes were preparing for war. She did what she could to fortify the Castle, and her Uncle Tank coordinated with Ozzy and the tribes.

They were making progress, but it felt so slow. There was always something more to do.

The biggest annoyance was the castle's drain on her. There had to be a way around that. If she could just solve that, she could focus on solving some of the more urgent problems.

As if on cue, she felt the castle tug on her, intent on expanding the great hall.

She frowned. “No.”

The castle tugged, insistent. They had many visitors lately, and that was probably spurring it on.

“I said no,”she repeated firmly. “If you want to expand the room, do it with your own energy. I need mine.”

It was like fighting a great big dog on a leash. All night she battled with it, to the point that it robbed her of sleep.

They didn't need a bigger great hall, she wasn't about to give in.

***

T HE GREAT HALL WAS bigger the next morning. She glared at it. It wasn't as big as the castle wanted, but it had expanded.

She stabbed her breakfast, trying to think of a strategy to dominate the castle. She'd made some headway last night, so it could be done.

Ozzy Redbone walked in, smiling like he just had the best night's sleep. She instantly wanted to smite him.

“How is my future wife today?” Ozzy asked smoothly, unaware of his impending doom. He was carrying a small wooden box.

Zelda gave him a flat look. “We do not have a marriage agreement. I do not agree.” Since he was particularly stubborn, she felt the need to repeat herself.

Also, this was not the first offer of marriage she had lately. Everyone wanted an alliance, and it had made her jaded.

His smile was warm with what looked like genuine appreciation. If he didn't really like her, he was an excellent actor.

He noticed her studying him and his gaze heated. “What will it take to change your mind?” His voice was inviting, and his smile...

She raised her brows, ignoring the way her heart thumped. Stupid fleshy organ. It wasn't in charge around here! “You're persistent,” she said, doing her best to make it sound like a dry observation.

“I didn't become chief by walking softly. Name your terms.”

“Why are you in such a hurry?” she asked suspiciously. She hadn't done anything particularly amazing, that he would be genuinely attracted to her. Had she?

“I like what I see. I want to claim it. And you?” he asked boldly.

She sighed in frustration. She had no interest in examining her feelings for him this morning or anytime soon. There was too much to do.

Time for a subject change. “You know I'm not a morning person. Can we just have breakfast today?” She frowned. “For that matter, why are you here? Shouldn't you be eating with your own people?”

“I'm actually here on their behalf,” he said, accepting the subject change. He presented the box. “It's a small token of our appreciation for everything you've done for the tribe.”

Curious, she opened the box and found a glittering wine glass sitting on velvet. Stemless, was made of cut crystal and glittered in the light of the newly formed windows.

She held it up to the light, admiring the way it cast rainbows on the table. She had never seen anything like it. “Very pretty! I like it, thank you.”

“It's our pleasure. Our people think very highly of you.”

She waved for him to have a seat, and the maid brought an extra plate and mug.

As he served himself from the breakfast tray, she asked, “How are your people settling in? Are your sheep pens finished?” They were building stone enclosures to keep the sheep in at night in the valley at the mouth of the cave.

They chatted about that for a while and then he said, "My spies have uncovered some information about the Beast Queen. We know where her fortress is and how she gets her supplies, and we’re doing our best to map her vulnerabilities.

Sometime soon, it will come down to war.

It's unlikely to be that easy, but it would be nice if we could just assassinate her.”

Zelda stared into space. No brilliant plans appeared in the air, written in flaming letters. “I've got nothing.”

He smiled slightly. “As I said, it won't be easy.”

She exhaled. They needed more information, and no one had been into the Beast Queen's fortress. “We need a spy. But who would be smart, or stupid enough to infiltrate her lair?”

“Something will turn up,” he said, refilling her tea. “We are working on the problem, and we will find a way.”