Philo looked around the forest of the Great Surrounding. They were somewhere close to the East Village. The trees were all almost bare showing that winter was only a few weeks away, and soon the forest would be filled with snow and frost. Philo wrapped his cloak around him tighter against the cold. He never did like the cold. He enjoyed late spring and summer. The cold made him feel vulnerable and irritable.

He looked over and saw his three soldiers he had brought with him. He had not brought a large party as he did not want anyone to be hurt today. He hoped everything would go smoothly, and that Marcus would come willingly. If he didn’t, between Cassia’s charms, and Philo strength, they could take him unwillingly but safely. He didn’t worry about getting Marcus to follow him eventually.

Cassia had written that Desmona would not go against her father or her queen. She would not go to Aurumist willingly. Should said her betrothed would not go along with it either, and Desmona refused to charm him in any way. Cassia told Philo they needed to act quickly, as she was sure Desmona would go to Hector and then the queen.

Philo had arranged his schedule to come as soon as possible. Now he stood out in the cold forest in mid-morning waiting to see his son for the first time since the attack on the Valley. He didn’t know if he would say he missed his son, but he wanted to have Marcus with him. Marcus was his only child, and when Philo took the right to rule from the Adalwen line, he would need someone on which to pass the line. Marcus was the only child Philo would ever have. He was essential to the Quick legacy.

Philo would toughen Marcus up. He would use Cassia to charm him and keep him docile. Philo would show Marcus what it took to rule a kingdom, and once Gryphon and the others were defeated, Philo imagined Marcus would fall in line very quickly. He always was fond of Gryphon, but once she was gone, Marcus would become who Philo needed him to be.

Philo took a breath as the air around him changed. He felt a slight disturbance and suddenly Cassia and Marcus were in front of him.

“Here we are, dear Marcus,” said Cassia sweetly as she held on to Marcus’ arm. “Isn’t this a nice surprise. Your father longs to see you.”

Philo looked at Marcus. His eyes were unfocused, and he had a small smile on his lips. Marcus looked at his father and his eyes went wide as his smile faded.

“Father?” Marcus asked as he looked at Cassia. “I don’t understand, why would you bring me here to see him?”

Cassia took Marcus hand and pulled him, so he was looking at her. “Your father loves you, Marcus, and he has missed you. You should be with him and your mother.”

Marcus shook his head and tried to pull away from Cassia. “My father has done awful things. He has hurt my friends and my people.”

Cassia took his other hand and pulled Marcus to her. She reached up and took his face. “Your father has only done what is necessary, and he has done it for you. Now you will claim your place by his side. You will do this for you and for Desmona.”

“Desmona wants this?” asked Marcus. Philo could see Marcus was trying not to look in Cassia eyes.

“Oh, yes,” said Cassia as she dragged Marcus’s face close to hers. “She wants this very much. You will be king someday, a handsome wonderful king, and Desmona will be your beautiful, glorious queen.”

Marcus looked confused. “But Griffa is the queen.”

“Not for long,” said Cassia as she tried to look into Marcus’s eyes. “Soon she will be gone, and your father will take her place.”

“Gone?” asked Marcus, looking at the ground. “Where will she go?”

“Don’t worry about it,” said Cassia laughing. “All that matters is you and Desmona will rule Regventus. You will live in the palace and have a wonderful life. You want to make Desmona happy, don’t you?”

Marcus looked up, and Philo could see him become lost in Cassia’s eyes. “Yes, I want her to be very happy.”

“You want me to be happy, don’t you?” asked Cassia as she stared at Marcus, her face very close to his.

“Yes,” breathed Marcus looking down at Cassia.

“Then let’s go greet your father.”

Marcus nodded as Cassia pulled back. She held onto Marcus’s hand and walked him to Philo.

“Hello, Philo,” said Cassia smiling at him. “As you were promised, here is your son.”

Philo looked at Marcus and smiled. “It is good to see you, Marcus. Your mother and I have missed you.”

Marcus only nodded as Cassia squeezed his hand.

“Your mother is dying to see you. You will travel with Cassia and me to the palace to see her.”

Marcus looked at Cassia who smiled encouragingly. “Of course, you want to see your mother, Marcus. You haven’t seen her in so long.”

Marcus looked confused as he stepped back from Philo and Cassia. “Desmona is in Abscon. My queen and my people are in Abscon. I belong there until Gryphon moves on the city.” Marcus looked up at his father angrily. “She is fighting you, and you want to kill her.”

“Grab him, Cassia,” said Philo. “Do it quickly.”

Cassia reached out and grabbed Marcus’s hand. She pulled him in forcefully and kissed him. When she pulled back, Marcus eyes were unfocused, and he looked like he might fall over. Philo walked up and grabbed his son.

“We will all travel to Aurumist, now,” said Philo.

Cassia nodded as Philo turned to look at his soldiers. Philo kept a tight hold on Marcus and closed his eyes. He felt Cassia put her hand on his arm, and Philo felt himself travel with his son in his arms and Cassia by his side.

Later Philo sat in his study reading messages from various Viceroy’s throughout Regventus. Gryphon had not been seen out in the kingdom. Her protector’s guards had been delivering cure to small villages, but they all left as soon as they delivered the cure. Gryphon seemed to have retreated to Abscon.

Philo wondered what she was planning. If she was not going out into the kingdom, that could mean a few things. She could be waiting until spring to strike. She could have retreated to her home to wait out the winter. The other option was she was organizing her forces to attack Aurumist quickly. Philo wasn’t sure which he preferred. He would have to be ready soon either way.

A knock at the door made him look up from his messages. He watched as the door opened, and Helmer stuck his head inside.

“May I speak with you for a minute, Philo?” asked Helmer.

Philo stood and nodded. Helmer entered the room and came to the front of the desk. He sat down in one of the chairs found there as Philo sat down as well.

“I have given something to Marcus to keep him calm. He is with your wife in your room at the moment. I will give him more later, and something to help him sleep. I suggest you keep in him a locked room under guard. If he can manage it, he will travel back to Abscon as quickly as he can.”

“I will send Cassia to him as well. She is staying in a room close to mine, and we should put Marcus by us as well. He will not have a chance to think of anything, but what we tell him.”

Helmer nodded. “I want to speak to you of a couple of other matters. First, I have figured out how to do the potion to increase your magical power. I am collecting all I need at the moment, and it can be ready in just a few weeks.”

“How long will it increase my magical power?” asked Philo.

“Forever, I believe. You might need to take subsequent doses, but that will not be a problem. I will make as much as you need.”

“Work on this as soon as you can. I want it done as quickly as possible. I am not sure when Gryphon will strike, but it could be soon.”

“That brings up another thing I wish to speak of with you,” said Helmer. “More magical users are becoming ill. Have your leaders of your army spoken with you recently?”

“Last week was the last report. Why do you ask?”

“I believe some of your soldiers are starting to be affected. I have seen a few at the Belles mansion with the ill.”

Philo sat forward and knitted his eyebrows together. “Are you sure? I have heard nothing.”

“I am sure at least a few are effected. You will want to check your forces.”

Philo sighed and sat back. If his city soldiers were becoming ill, it would change many things. Philo had hoped to have time to recruit new soldiers. He wanted a large force to face Gryphon and her allies, but if his current forces were becoming ill, he wouldn’t have time to create a larger force.

“I will go check as soon as you leave. Do you have any other news?”

“No, I haven’t figured out any way safe way to unlock magical users as of yet. I believe I have figured out the elixir Golnar may have used, but if it is causing illness, we will not want to use it now.”

“Why?” asked Philo. “Why not go ahead and use it in the fourth and third rings at least? We could even go out to some large villages. If we use it, we can unlock many magical users to recruit to our army. They will not be ill for a while. We can use them while we can, and then when they become ill, it will just be more people we won’t have to worry about in the future. Regventus resources are already stretched too thin. A little thinning of the herd will help.”

Helmer looked at Philo with concern but then nodded his head. “Of course, you are right. I will see to making it, and I will use my own blood. We can try it out as early as next week if you like. We can try to find some willing folk who want to use their magic.”

“I don’t care if they are willing, just identify some you can use, and force them if you have too. You could trick them. It makes no difference to me.”

“Very well,” said Helmer standing up. “I will work on the elixir for releasing magical users, and have your potion ready in two weeks.”

“Earlier if you can for me. Work on it day and night if you need to,” said Philo. “If my soldiers are falling ill, we will need to meet Gryphon in battle soon. I need to take the line from her quickly and defeat her allies.”

“How soon do you think she will strike?” asked Helmer.

Philo smiled slightly. He needed Gryphon to come out of her hiding place. He needed her to act before she was completely ready. He had some ideas to make it happen.

“If you can get everything ready, I have ways to ensure she is forced to strike very soon. We will make it so the queen can’t hide away in Abscon. We will make her come out and play on our terms.”