The Prince felt the eyes on him, and raised his head. The Duchessa Aiwenor made no attempt to hide her presence, however she did bow deeply to him. “You’re early.” He said, he did not raise his voice, it simply carried over the unoccupied room.

She didn’t raise her head to speak, and he let out a heavy breath, moving his hands away from where he was stroking Sobella’s back. He took his demon-elf paramore's hand and helped her to rise. “Yes, Prince Rasgen, it seems that I have misunderstood something. The invitation said everything would begin before the sun set.”

Nua’s voice, confident in everything he’d heard in their brief acquaintance, had a rare air of uncertainty, her ears twitched and she looked around the empty room and brought her right hand’s fingers tightly together, cracking her knuckles as they came together in a frustrated fist.

“Yes, yes you have.” Sobella stood at the stone rail and leaned against it, she wiped her eyes fiercely, then holding onto the rail, she explained, “If the invitation says before the sun sets, it means that it will be several hours ‘after’ the sun sets. No noble is expected to actually show up ‘on time’ for anything short of an official meeting. Celebrations are to be leisurely, feasts long, wine ample, and sex like all of that at once. And like sex, one should never come early, at least no man should.” She gave a smug and self satisfied sharp nod to the elf at the door, and a lingering wink over her shoulder to her lover.

Nua let out a belly laugh that filled the hall like a crowd of its own as she walked forward. “If I should leave and return later…”

“No, no, you’re here now, and perhaps some company would be welcome. Come and join us.” Sobella replied and waved an arm toward the stairs. The hesitant steps of their newest noble became long confident strides that quickly closed the distance between them. The clipped walk up the stairs was like the marching feet of a soldier, and yet they barely made a sound despite the boots she wore.

“You’re hardly dressed for a party.” The Prince remarked after waving her to a seat.

Nua faintly flushed. “I apologize for my untoward appearance, things have happened today that keep me very occupied.”

This drew both pairs of eyes to her, the green of the prince and the solid red of his lover, and the Prince was quick to address it. “Tell me.”

Nua folded her hands one over the other in front of the man who had become ‘her’ Prince. “My Prince, one of my two slaves that acted as a personal attendant, has been stolen.”

“Well if she is a very great beauty, even a bronze will not…” Sobella began to say before Nua cut her off with a shake of her head.

“She is a pretty girl in a way, but… not the sort that has men or women willing to risk their lives to steal for themselves. I am certain she has no lover outside my service… so there is only one reason to take her.” Nua’s lips went tight.

“Could she have simply run away?” The Prince asked, “Even a bronze can be tempted by freedom. And you were gone for some time.”

Nua shook her head again. “My first thought was as yours, My Prince. But I am sure she has not. She is not the sort, and her lover was left behind. They bonded closely, and there is more as well, reported by another of my slaves.”

They listened as Nua explained everything, up to and including the ‘borrowing’ of a regiment. “If my slave overstepped her bounds, she was a purple tag, I cannot punish Kaiji for acting on my behalf in this way, I will take what punishment you decree, I ask only that you allow their use until my property is recovered.”

Sobella, and Rasgen, felt their hearts skip a beat in unison, and their beating hearts remained united as they sought deception or disingenuity from the Duchessa seated before them with a serious face and unblinking calm eyes. They found none.

“Not many… would risk a penalty for their property, most would throw their property under the carriage.” Prince Rasgen spoke hesitantly, slowly, leaving room for Nua to backtrack.

Nua sat back against the springy wood of her chair, and looked at him, affronted. “My Prince… she is mine. I am responsible for what she does, any sin she committed against your law, falls to me for not properly briefing or controlling her. Too, she acted in her zeal to find what belongs to me, if I punish a slave for acting to the fullest extent of her loyalty, I can’t expect any to be loyal to me at all.”

Sobella reached out and touched Nua’s left hand, feeling the chill of the grave within the glove, she was nonetheless undeterred. “There was no violation… use them with our blessing. It is unorthodox, but you are a Duchessa, you have the right to use the city’s soldiers to protect your property, living or nonliving alike.”

She inclined her head gratefully. “I will brush up on the city’s law after I have settled into my home. We’re leaving the hotel tomorrow. I’ll be moving my soldiers onto the grounds before I tour my demesne. On to something else… Lady Sobella, may I confess something to you?”

“If this is a love confession, I have no eyes for any but my Prince, however if you would like to sample both… these are my last days and I’d like to enjoy them.” She gave a sly look with her little half smile and a twinkle in a solid red eye.

The Prince’s expression did not change, he only took her hand and squeezed it when their fingers were interlocked.

Nua shook her head, “No, though it is a ‘like’ confession. From the moment I met you, I found you impossible to dislike. You are open, gentle, playful, and generous. I was compelled to enjoy your company. And because of that, I thought a great deal about finding some way to save your life. However, I found none, and I am sorry.”

“That is very kind, Duchessa Aiwenor but…” Sobella began, only for Nua to cut her off.

“But I found a way to avenge you. Doing so however will require that I reveal something that may be used against me. You both placed great faith in me, a stranger in a strange land. In return, while I carried out my task, I have not had occasion to show the same trust. If it pleases you, I will do so.” Nua ceased to speak, she could feel the tension rise and the couple tightened their grips on one another’s hands.

“Go on.” The Prince replied, and Nua removed the black glove of her left hand exposing the white metal, the glowing light blue gems and the slightly curved black circle gem in the palm. “I make no secret of my foreign faith. Yes, I am a death worshipper, I think nothing of using the undead. But this… is something else again. I’m sure your own attempts at discovering more about me returned that much knowledge.” She gave them a friendly expression in the pause between words before she carried on.

“But what you could not know, is the power given to me by this hand. I harness the power of death itself, not just drain it, not just squeeze it out like juice from an overripe peach. With this… I can lay a curse that will destroy many of your enemies. However… that curse will be on you, Lady Sobella. It may hurt, I don’t know how much, or it may not hurt at all. Curses are unpredictable. Accept my magic, and be avenged. That is all I can do for you.” Nua took up the black glove she previously set aside, and on donning it, she yanked it down with a sharp, crisp snap.

The Prince lowered his head as he leaned forward, one arm folded in front of him on the table. “How…?”

“The emperor will die. His incompetent sons will be ‘nudged’ towards the more brutal behavior toward their own. They will be divided, their court will go with them, and with that…” Nua spread her hands open at the table, “it will be civil war. Tens of thousands of Tlalmok will perish. Their male, female, their children… their empire will tear itself apart for months, perhaps years.” Nua explained it in the simplest terms.

“And if the curse is discovered?” Sobella asked quick as the tip of a whip, her red eyes focused on Nua.

Nua simply shrugged. “They either kill you slowly, which they may do anyway, or if you must, blame me. Deny the knowledge of the Prince, or identify me as an agent from a foreign kingdom. The latter part is true enough at least.” She let out a light, bitter laugh, “but if they don’t expose it, and they almost certainly won’t, then you will have killed thousands of your enemies in a single act.” Nua’s left hand clenched tight enough that her glove made a faint but audible creaking noise. “The choice is yours, Lady Sobella. And so… I give my faith to you both that this secret of mine is kept. Your Starwatchers would no doubt take a dim view of a curse-giving death worshipper at court. I’m surprised they’ve said nothing about me already.”

“You weren’t a noble, for all they knew, you’d leave. Now that you’re here to stay? Expect a knock on your door.” The Prince’s voice was very dry, and said plenty to Nua of his thoughts on the matter.

“I’ll do it.” Sobella said instantly, leaning forward as far as the Prince. “If I’m going to die, I’m taking them with me.” A fierce snarl bared her teeth, “I’ll be the worst meal in their history. What do I have to do?”

“Tell me what parts of the body are reserved for their elites. I will lay my hand there… and pass a curse to you through your flesh.” Nua explained it like she was explaining how to find her hotel room, and to the ears of Prince Rasgen, that made it more like a bolt of lightning out of a clear sky, not less.

“I see. If that is all that can be done…” His bright eyes dulled and the lids of them hung low without closing. “Come to my room tonight, tell no one who sees you, why you are coming. Believe me, nobody will think twice about a beautiful woman coming there late at night.”

Nua let out a pleasant laugh, “Your charm could end or begin many, many, wars, Prince of Pas’en. Careful about that, you might make me too fond of you, and the last man I became too fond of for my own good, I drew one knife against a nation to protect.” She winked at him, and though she smiled bravely, the welling of tears in her eyes said far more than she intended.

“How did you save him?” Sobella asked, reaching out across the table and taking the cursing hand without fear.

“I didn’t. Not yet. But maybe one day?” Nua turned her eyes toward the door below, away from her hosts.

“Forgive me, I asked something I shouldn’t have, after you showed such trust and kindness toward me.” Sobella replied and bowed her head.

“No, it’s fine, I shouldn’t have said as much as I did. So what should I expect this evening?” Nua asked, still glancing toward the door.

“Expect to be my personal guest up here with me and my council, and expect nobody down there,” he waved to the great table below, “to be especially happy about it.” He let out a mild snort and his cocky, toothy grin came back despite the prior minutes.

“So politics? Even for… this occasion?” Nua asked the question and shifted a little in her chair as if she’d sat on a tack.

“Always. But maybe,” the Prince raised a hand up to eye level and closed his thumb and forefinger close to within the thickness of a half a finger, “just a little bit less. Sobella is popular enough that many will miss her. She is responsible for the formation of many of the current anti-cruelty laws we have in place regarding the treatment of slaves.”

“And the slave companies were alright with this?” Nua looked at them both with measurable surprise on her face, her bright eyes came to theirs and reached out like the drowning to a line thrown into the tumultuous sea.

“Heh, no, not at all. But I bought them off by promising to handle the sales of all captives for the next four years and letting them take a commission off of every one.” Prince Rasgen raised his chin proudly as if to dare the violent death worshipper to argue.

‘Why is she silent? Someone of her temperament should be arguing for the Lur’gin Slave Company’s interests, or the necessity of violence to keep slaves submissive.’ Rasgen let his eyes roam up and down her torso from her belly to the top of her head, searching every motion for some hint of disapproving body language, and found none but it’s opposite.

“What ‘kind’ of anti-cruelty measures?” Nua inquired, leaning forward and folding her hands together, only the slightest hint of tension in her right hand.

“The slaves in brothels must be checked monthly by certified healers from the mages school and their students to ensure their health. Similarly rations are tracked and registered, with stiff fines for those who leave their stock hungry. Inspections of the body are done to ensure that the lash is not too liberally applied, and restrictions exist on the number that can be bought in a given year. Similarly, they must be accounted for, if too many should ‘die or disappear’ the right of acquisition might be stripped away.” Sobella explained patiently, “This keeps most of the worst cruelty at bay. Such a denial would ruin most industries that rely on the labor.”

Nua chewed on her tongue as she listened to the rattled off restrictions, “That is… kind of you.” The words dripped with sincerity, but Sobella waved them off.

“I was one of their number, once. I might not like the trade, but we can’t do without it, slaves are the majority tribute to the Tlalmok, if we tried to harvest regular citizens, we’d face rebellions every year. And they comprise the greater part of our labor forces, there’s simply no other choice. But we can at least ensure their existence is not too terrible.”

Sobella gave her a winsome look, “I understand if someone like you doesn’t approve, I’ve heard of how terrified your property is of you, how you beat your Komestran stock into submission with your bare hands. But please understand, there is more to this world than cruelty and dominance. Perhaps someone of your wealth, who has stood atop broken enemies and broken blades for a lifetime, can’t believe that.” She covered Nua’s hand again in a sudden gesture, “But please believe me, Duchessa Aiwenor, there is more to this world. Even here on the edge of death.”

Nua closed her eyes to keep back tears and nodded in silence, promising herself, ‘You will not cry at being called a monster, she doesn’t mean it that way. She doesn’t know.’

“I will… take that under advisement.” Nua said with a militant crispness. “I promise I will not run afoul of your laws. It is true, I have been cruel to them, but hammer blows forge swords. And I show them more than that. I promise I am as loyal to my possessions as they are to me. They are not my equals, but they are not mere trash to be discarded either. Think of the effort I am going through to find my missing slave. I’m not ‘all bad’ you know.” She matched that winsome look and wondered faintly if she were trying to convince them, or herself.

That thought was interrupted by the cracked voice of a young boy shouting, “Announcing the arrival of Contessa Lodira, and her husband Minister Ulmin.”

There was no time for her self reflection after that.