Valeria Antano strolled down the dock and stepped into the aluminum fishing boat. It rocked beneath her weight but soon leveled out as she lowered herself onto the cushioned vinyl seat.

As the Dragonlord’s Spymaster, Valeria had seen more than her share of secret nighttime meetings. Even if she spent more time behind a desk these days, there were some tasks she couldn’t trust to anyone. Not even her most loyal Fangs.

No one could know about this meeting, especially not her brother. The Dragonlord had sworn an oath not to attack Elend Darklight or anyone under his protection. This also compelled him to stop anyone from attacking them on his behalf.

What would happen if her brother discovered this meeting? She honestly couldn’t say. Perhaps his oath would force him to kill her contact. Perhaps he’d even be forced to kill Valeria herself, depending on the severity of the oath. She hadn’t been there when he’d sworn it, and no one else had heard the words.

Even if she’d been there, she couldn’t claim to understand a Grandmaster’s intention. Especially with Elend Darklight, who was clearly an expert in this field. That had been her brother’s first mistake. The Dragonlord specialized in combat and raw power, but he’d tried to outwit a Dream Artist.

They’d had Darklight at their mercy for weeks. They should have killed him when they had the chance, then dealt with the consequences later.

But no, her brother had done the “reasonable” thing. Unfortunately, that only worked against reasonable opponents.

Valeria had altered her appearance tonight, hiding her hair, and making her features look more dragon than human. Technically, any Master-level dragon could shapeshift in this way. It was a remanent from the Primordial Age—a time when aspecting meant something far different from just altering your soul’s mana.

Then again, Valeria was one of the best shapeshifters in the world. Unless you counted Dream Artist. But why count them? Dream Artists could deceive your senses, but they couldn’t change reality itself. That was the power of the immortal Angels. That was the goal every Mana Artist strived for, but few would ever achieve.

Valeria guided the boat across the river, using subtle pushes of her mana against the water. It was well past midnight, and she’d expected to see another boat by now. Instead, she saw a man sitting cross-legged directly on the water’s surface. The wind blew in heavy gales from the east, but the river remained still around him.

A Water Artist.

Either that, or he’d consumed a vial of water mana and learned this one technique. That seemed like overkill for this meeting. Then again, the Sons of Talek had always liked theatricality.

The figure took his time getting to his feet. His soul only showed an Artisan’s power, but souls could be veiled. Veleria was veiling her own power at this very moment. After all, what use was a physical disguise when Creta only had two Masters?

The man stepped closer, revealing his face in the moonlight. He wore his black hair back in a knot, and his features looked more Shokenese than Cadrian. A thin black beard framed his face, but he couldn’t have been older than twenty.

“Your name?” His tone was curt and swift as an assassin’s knife. Yes, he must be a Master. No Artisan would dare speak to her like that.

Twenty was young for a Master, but Shoken had a wealth of secret knowledge when it came to Mana Arts and advancement. People called her brother a tyrant, but the Shokenese Empire had once colonized half the world and hoarded vast libraries for themselves.

Now, in this modern and civilized age, they frowned at anyone who sought even a small piece of it.

Valeria let her features fade back to her normal appearance. This man was obviously her contact, so she had nothing to hide from him. Green light flashed around her as she transformed. Human hair fell around her shoulders, and her skin regained its human-like softness.

“Valeria Antano,” she said. “Spymaster of Creta, and Left Wing of the Dragonlord. I’m calling in a favor for my brother.”

Her words were technically true, even if her brother had forbidden this meeting. A good Wing didn’t just listen to her Dragonlord’s commands. She gave him what he actually needed. She even kept such things a secret when necessary.

Elend Darklight might be untouchable now, but the same wasn’t true for his students. Valeria could ignore how they’d left their lives of luxury to invade a poor nation. She could ignore how they’d aided Kyzar’s band of insurgents and left hundreds of dead bodies in their wake.

But Akari Zeller had killed Valeria’s only son. For that, the girl had to die.

“A pleasure to meet you.” The man pressed his hand to his palm and gave her a shallow salute. “My name is Sozen Trengsen. I think we can help each other.”