As much as I enjoyed my quiet mornings, Luka's requested favor was time-sensitive. I rose long before most others were awake. Shira's nightmares had exhausted her to the point of a relatively deep sleep, so she was still curled up in my bed, clutching at the covers like a protective shield. I sighed and changed into fresh clothing, grabbing Woe automatically as I made my way to the door.

There was a soft, familiar patter of a knock on the door. I opened it without a moment's hesitation, catching that wonderful smell of the aromatic tea that Melody could brew with such an artistic hand. Normally fabrics and information were her domain, but this was something she had brought with her from her homeland, far across the sea.

Melody offered me a small smile. She was a delicate woman, like spun glass, who moved in swaying ways. She was always mindful of where her body was, as her bones were fragile. Her eyes were always hooded, almond-shaped and dark, and she kept her black silk hair in a complicated knot at the back of her head. The weak sunlight meant she was as pale as I was, her once wheat-colored skin now almost porcelain white. "I heard you had a difficult campaign, Aleyr."

I motioned for her to take a step back and then pointed to the central table, surrounded by low couches. When I shut the door behind me, it was with a delicate touch to prevent any sound. Normally we shared tea at the low table beside the largest window in my room, but Shira had only started to actually sleep an hour before dawn. She needed rest, and I was not inconsiderate.

"And here I was hoping to meet your newest stray," Melody said lightly.

"You will be disappointed in her gossiping skills. She only speaks in sign," I said, taking the tray from her delicately and then placing it down on the table. Rich, red-brown tea in delicate ceramic cups formed the pools for foam fish to swim in, artfully drawn.

Melody sat down across from me and picked up a cup, inhaling steam deeply for the fragrance as she collected her thoughts in response. "I heard what happened. Amputation is such a crude punishment, Aleyr."

"A crude punishment suits a crude transgressor. Though perhaps Naltheme was right." Varys left a sour taste in my mouth.

"What did she say?"

I relaxed, arching my back in a stretch. "Her recommendation was castration."

Melody laughed. It was always a beautiful sound, soft and silvery. Everything about her had that air of delicacy that made people forget the needle-like precision and focus that her relentless mind brought to bear. Not just anyone could lead the Sashes, my personal guard, from secret. "That would have been a most suitable punishment."

"Only if it were permanent," I muttered. "Rhandiir had better rein him in or I'll stake him out in the real sun and carve his head off with a dull penknife."

"He is growing unfortunately bold. Might I recommend you make use of Luka's little favor and remind people why you are feared?"

I arched an eyebrow as I sipped from the cup. Faint notes of cinnamon and other spices mingled with the richness of the tea leaves themselves, sweetened just enough by honey. I set the cup down carefully, just as mindful of my movements as she was with hers. "What can you tell me about this dispute of theirs? It's odd that Luka would want to draw an outsider into a fangwarden quarrel."

Melody shrugged. "He has a familial bias to one side. Riyd refused the Shadeclaw's son as a mate several times. When she persisted in ignoring him, he went to his father to demand that she be compelled to accept. The match would have been most beneficial for all parties, if Riyd wanted it. That if, of course, was the sticking point. You know how Riyd adores being controlled."

I snorted at that. "How many pieces did she carve him into?"

"He is in one piece, but that pretty face of his was ripped half off by her claws. When he bemoaned the pain and ruination, Riyd remarked that it was a substantial improvement. The Shadeclaw was not amused."

I sighed. "I imagine not. From what I understand, usually such things are resolved by dominance display and posturing."

My delicate friend inclined her head slightly. "Precisely. There were traditional, diplomatic ways of resolving such things. Riyd has no patience for such things. It always astounds me that she's Luka's daughter."

"She's also Redda's daughter," I pointed out. Everyone knew the stories of the Wolf Queen, even if most had only seen her as a bas relief on the walls near the Circle, a legend of feral might carved into the weathered stones. The Wolf Queen had been more of a force of nature than a person, nature red of tooth and claw taken to the extreme. As far as mastery of mayhem and havoc went, not even Vex could compete with the woman. The lands beyond the Eternal Kingdom had breathed a great sigh of relief when she was finally brought low.

Luka had roasted her betrayers on a spit, one at a time, for all to see when he found the men responsible for abandoning the Wolf Queen to succumb to her wounds. There was nowhere they really could have run to, not when the man they sought to escape was the King in Black's personal spymaster. His reach spanned continents. The savage satisfaction he had taken in their horrible agony was enough to turn most stomachs, but I understood the impulse. To lose something so beloved...

At least he still held Riyd.

Melody seemed to sense where my thoughts had gone. "You know the practice of retaliation among the fangwardens, Aleyr. Luka no doubt seeks to preserve his fragile web of alliances by either moving the outrage into your lap or stopping the cycle of blood-seeking in kind with some other kind of agreement."

"He told me that the Shadeclaw refused wergild, which from what I understood, is what normally would prevent a feud." I wasn't entirely clear on how the system worked, but Luka had explained many times that wergild was the amount of wealth equivalent to a mortal's lifeblood. The more of it was spilled, the higher status the victim, the more wergild was paid.

"Yes, well, the Shadeclaw has never been particularly reasonable." Melody shrugged. "In my humble opinion, he was looking for an excuse to usurp Luka as leader and Riyd was volatile enough to provide him with one."

I could already feel the headache coming on. Luka was asking me a much larger favor than I'd received from him, which grated on my patience. We would have to talk about it later. "The son?"

"I doubt he was involved in his father's machinations intentionally. He strikes me as lazy, entitled, and shortsighted. An unfortunate consequence of no longer having the Wolf Queen around. In her day, he likely would have been exposed at birth. However, he is his father's favorite, and you know how deep family connections run among their people." Melody saw my frown and her smile widened slightly.

"Do you have any advice on handling them? Diplomacy is not my strong suit."

"So play to your strengths," Melody advised impishly. I knew there was a level of serious mixed in with the flippant response. "Just be aware that the Shadeclaw might challenge your intervention fiercely. He already chafes under the rule of non-shifters. If he is successful in ousting Luka, he might pull support from the Undying Court. I would advise against killing him, however. He does have supporters and plenty of them. His bloodline holds almost as much power as Luka's and any bad feeling...well, they do like to retaliate."

I finished my tea. "I suppose I should stop dawdling, then. I only have to go save the Court from splintering and tame a few beasts," I said dryly.

"Do try to enjoy yourself, Aleyr. I will look after your little lost lamb," Melody said. She patted a small roll of cloth near her, full of needles and pins and various measuring tools. "I can have her measured and fitted in a day. I will keep her fully preoccupied until you return. Also, La'an told me that he can sign and she'll be quite safe with him."

"Good choice," I said approvingly. La'an was a fearsome warrior, but soft spoken and moved like a mouse. People rarely expected the ferocity he could bring to bear, which made it all the more potent for being unexpected. He was also human, which Shira would no doubt find less frightening. "If Vex shows up, tell her to arrange an extra watch of wights. I sincerely doubt even Varys would seek entrance to the Winter Palace with thoughts of defying me, but his insolence does tend to defy expectations."

Melody laughed and set her cup down. She reached out, catching my hand, and squeezed softly. "I look forward to that penknife's use."

"Not half as much as I do." We said the rest of our goodbyes and I set off on my way, stopping only long enough to put on the armor that Ember had cleaned for me. I knew better than to risk my own hide in such endeavors. Besides, I wanted to be seen as a warrior, not a lord.

The Circle stood outside the gates of the Sanctum, across the bridge to the north that led into the Wilds: coarse heather and moors blending into dark pine forests full of brooding shadows. It was beautiful in its harshness, the jagged crags of the mountains capped in white snow. It was a wilderness that defied boundaries, stopped in its spread only by the borders of the ocean itself. The entire northern half of the continent was utterly undeveloped and left as it had always been, barely aware even of the touch of a logger's axe. The undead had little use for it. There was no need for them to plow a field or sow, no need to build a house to shelter them from the weather or construct endless inroads.

Besides, the fangwardens would have objected fiercely to any such intrusion. It had been a constant source of wars between them and the barbarians in the mountains, but now that the tribes had moved south and joined the King in Black, that tension evaporated. Now if the barbarians wanted food or supplies, they could either request them or better yet, raid Rusa and the other border kingdoms. It seldom resulted in a full-scale war like the one we had just finished. Most of the Light knew to cringe like a kicked hound at the mere thought of the Eternal Kingdom's power, settling for skirmishes that never even crossed over our border.

Luka was waiting for me at the Circle, a collection of monolithic standing stones arranged in synchrony with the constellation called the Beast. He was not alone. It looked like the whole bloody bunch of them were there, those at the back of the crowd wearing their beast forms so their hearing would be sharp enough to catch every word. This was going to be a very, very public spectacle.

Hopefully, I could navigate this so I wasn't the one playing the fool.

As soon as he saw me, the Shadeclaw's face turned practically purple with rage. He was a giant of a man, with a wild black beard and long, sharp teeth. Instead of Luka's leanness, he was built with the muscle mass of a mountain bear, broad and deep-chested. "This human is your arbiter?"

"You might consider looking more closely at that human before speaking so dismissively," Luka said with a sly half-smile.

The fangwardens were often in the wilds for so long they forgot faces, so I pulled off my left gauntlet. The sight of a golden ring melded to my flesh and bone was unique enough to jog the memories of most. A whisper went out through the crowd in a ripple.

The Shadeclaw almost choked on the words he was about to use at the sight of that ring, molten and unshapely from the way the King in Black had bonded it to me with the spellfire of his rebirth. "This is not the business of His Majesty's Beloved," he said, more muted in tone even as a fury blazed in his eyes.

"I concern myself with anything that threatens the stability of the Eternal Kingdom," I said, taking a seat on a flat slab of rock. I unbelted Woe, setting the blade next to me. I made no move to peace-bond it, as all the fangwardens had their own weapons. For one, I couldn't suddenly manifest claws and teeth, and two, I had the right to bear arms anywhere I pleased as far as I was concerned. "This dispute threatens to do so."

Luka gave me what he probably imagined was a chastising look, as if I was saying the quiet parts too loudly. My expression remained profoundly indifferent.

Riyd looked my way, giving me a nod of respect. That was more than she gave just about anyone else, but we had fought alongside each other enough that she knew I wasn't soft meat. She looked painfully like her mother, with flaming red hair and high cheekbones, her eyes permanently gold and wild from spending so long in animal form. Her beauty was untamed and striking, as harsh as the mountainscape behind her. If she was worried about anything, it didn't show.

Then again, why would Riyd worry? She seldom thought of consequences before she acted, this being a prime example.

"Why have you refused the wergild?" I asked, looking over at the Shadeclaw.

The black-bearded fangwarden bristled under my scrutiny. "Look what she has done and tell me if mere wealth is acceptable in exchange." He gestured to the man to his left, who pulled back his hood.

The younger fangwarden's face was an absolute wreckage on the right side. His eye had been gouged out and his jaw was half gone, probably ripped off by Riyd's claws. Strips of flesh were still missing, though magic had healed them into furrowed scars.

"He is fortunate the daughter of the Wolf Queen did not do so to both halves of his face," Luka said pointedly. "Your son is alive. Let us pay it and be done."

I waved my hand like I was shooing away a gnat. I knew Luka was trying to needle him into just accepting wergild and smoothing this all over, but all interested parties knew that there was more at stake. "I am going to assume you are an intelligent creature, Shadeclaw." It was more generous than I wanted to be, but I was here to play the role of mediator. I kept my tone calm and even, cold as ice. "The purpose of wergild is to prevent an endless cycle of retaliation that would reduce your people back to feuding little packs with no power or influence within the Eternal Kingdom. To refuse it suggests a motive that reaches far beyond the maiming or your swatted ego."

"You insinuate that I intend to sabotage our people?" he snarled.

I drummed my fingers on Woe. "Am I insinuating? I thought I made myself quite clear. After all, why would the Beloved of the King in Black interest herself in an affair unless it had implications that spanned the Undying Court and beyond?"

He shifted uncomfortably, as if he had suddenly become so much more aware of the threat I posed. I had no intention of allowing him or Luka to make this a quarrel about power between them. Their petty games threatened to weaken the Eternal Kingdom and that was a sin I would not tolerate. I owed Luka a favor, so he would get part of what he wanted, but that would be the end of it. His were not the hands that guided my strings.

Luka's glare vanished. He looked down at my feet, as clear a sign of submission as ever there was one among fangwardens. Even Riyd shifted as if the air around had suddenly cooled a few dozen degrees.

"If you wish the true strength of our people at the King in Black's call, you would depose that sniveling coward and allow actual power to rule us," the Shadeclaw growled.

He towered over me from where I sat, but the longer I stared into his eyes, the more that position seemed reversed. "Do not think to dictate your will to me, creature, or you will find there are worse hells than the roasting spit."

The Shadeclaw took a step back, shoulders rolling forward in submission.

Even without the menace of the King in Black's power at my back, I had done things just as cruel as Luka when wronged. More than one place our army had gone through had been reduced to ashes and pikes impaling the living. I was not called Frostborn because it was my family name or because I had come from the north, though the foreign often assumed it was both such things.

Her heart was born of frost, the soothsayers said when I walked back into the villages of my people with an army of undead at my back. The first few revolts I had put down only cemented that truth in the minds of the common folk, and so a name had grown out of it.

"I will give you a choice, Shadeclaw. Your line are the wounded party, after all," I said bluntly. "You can accept double the wergild that is normally appropriate from Luka, paid once for the maiming and once for the wound to your son's pride. If that is so intolerable for you, you may have your blood price and forfeit your son into my custody."

"My son?" he demanded ferociously. "Why?"

"If wergild cannot ensure your loyalty, I will do so," I said bluntly. "He will be kept as a guest of the King in Black and every offense you make against the peace will be taken out of his flesh. You will have what you feel is due you and I will have what is due me. Make your decision: blood or gold."

"You have no right!"

"Who built the Eternal Kingdom, Shadeclaw?" Molten metal would have frozen on contact with my voice.

"The King in Black." He stared again, defiant.

"And who has been at his right hand since the beginning? Who razed Shana'ai into the ashes of memory? Who shatters the armies of Light every time he wishes it be so? Who wears his ring?" I held up my left hand, allowing the sun to glint off the band. "I am his will made flesh. I am his eyes, his hands, his mouth. The drops of blood I have shed, my own and others, to break every prophecy that ever promised our doom have purchased me the right to act in His Majesty's best interest. So unless you are prepared to try and take this ring from me by force, Shadeclaw, and all the suffering that bearing it brings, I would suggest that you abide by the judgment that I have spoken."

Shadeclaw seemed to shrink into himself, defiance fading. He glanced at his son, then let his gaze drop. "The wergild."

"Father, she's just a—" Shadeclaw's son started to protest.

"The Beloved has spoken," Shadeclaw growled sharply, pivoting to face his own son. "We will accept her judgment, coming as the will of the King in Black. The dispute is over." He glared over at Luka. "You heard her. Double the price."

"My ears are quite intact," Luka said. I had a feeling he was relieved that Shadeclaw had backed down. A bloody purge would have resulted otherwise, and while I would have enjoyed it, he would not have.

I rose to my feet when the Shadeclaw went to turn away. "I want your oath, Shadeclaw," I said sharply. "You and Luka both. This wergild seals the quarrel and it is buried here beneath the exchange."

"What is the point of such a thing?" Shadeclaw's son grumbled.

"There is a special hell for oathbreakers," Luka said in a low voice. He knew people who had gone to it. The King in Black was a power that believed very firmly in law, and honoring one's word was a cardinal part of that. "You have my oath, Lady Frostborn. After the payment of wergild, it will be settled, and Riyd will think twice before using her claws so again."

Shadeclaw's jaw flexed for a moment like he was chewing gravel. "Very well," he spit out finally. "You have my oath. The quarrel is buried."

Luka sliced his own palm with claws and then held it out to Shadeclaw, who did the same. They did not clasp hands, but allowed the blood to mingle as it fell onto the sacred soil of the Circle. They would keep the peace, at least until a new and better pretext could be found.

I patted myself on the back mentally. Clearly Melody's lessons in my youth were finally beginning to stick, because that hadn't ended in the skull-crushing it might have in the past. Now I could go back to dealing with my other problems.

While the Sanctum was my home, it always had an uncomfortable number of schemes and power struggles running at all times. I envied His Majesty so much at times. What was it like, to be so powerful that one could exist almost in a different plane, above all the scurrying of little ants. At the end of the day, I was just a frail form encased in a thin layer of metal, not even immune to cuts from paper. I had to not only endure the enemy, but these so called allies and all the mud and poison they liked to throw around.

Was it any wonder I preferred my private world in the Winter Palace?