"Cursed, that is what it's called?" Vasco clarified. Kelton nodded. They were walking behind the wagon due to the beautiful weather. Vasco was using the time it took to walk to the library to gain more insight about Aragonia from Kelton. They were careful not to let others hear their conversation.

"Aye," Kelton replied, patting his lower arm. "A wilted rose is tattooed on their wrist to mark them." He paused a moment as his thoughts congealed. "Now that I have seen this place, I believe there is more behind it. I think it is done for profit, as much as punishment."

"But you said there are no owners."

"Aye, no owners as there are here. In truth, the Brethren own all and use the King as their silver." Kelton sighed and looked about as they walked, his eye finding some viners laid out in their dreams. There were five of them masked in the shadow of a wall and a leafy tree that grew next to it. He pointed. "Do their numbers grow?"

Vasco's eyes followed Kelton's finger, and he shook his head. "It is the weather." He looked thoughtfully at them for a moment and shrugged. "Mayhap, there are more than when I was as young as you. It is a slow thing if it grows at all."

"The King is a fool to allow such a thing," Kelton said.

"As foolish as the man who says such words out loud?" Vasco whispered.

"They do not see them, why would they hear me?"

"Do not push too hard. Master gives you much leeway. Do not think others will do the same."

"Aye, for your sake I will whisper my misgivings. It is odd that a kingdom structured for profit would allow such laxness. It does not fit."

"You can not judge a thing's end without knowing its beginning. As in all things, it has evolved over time."

"It is a waste no matter the speed it came about." Kelton took a last look of the drooling viners. He decided he would rather be owned Tarvakian than a slave to the vine.

Gladfee did not greet Kelton with his usual smile. Nor did he test Kelton's memory of the King's truth.

"Princess Alliette desires you to read a tome she has chosen; Do you have time this day?" Gladfee asked. Kelton looked to Vasco, who nodded. "It is for your eyes alone," Gladfee added for Vasco's knowledge. It struck Kelton odd that a book could be private in a such a place. Stranger still that a copper should be allowed to read what a silver is denied.

"I will pursue our line of thought on shipping," Vasco told Kelton. It was code to let him know he would be looking into Barrekee. Of interest now was House Mortique's presence on the King's Counsel. Although it was probably another dead end, it was a direction.

"You are to follow me," Gladfee instructed Kelton. They were deep in the corridor between towers when Gladfee spoke again. "My Master may not approve of what you are to see. His daughter holds his ear, and it is at her direction that I act." A weak smile appeared on his face. "It is hard to serve multiple masters. I was there when the Princess took her first breath, and I will see her requests done. Know that there are three who know of this, and it should remain only three."

"I do not wish to cause an issue," Kelton said, slowing his steps. "Is it best to refuse?"

"Nay," Gladfee replied, then chuckled. "The Princess is not someone you wish to deny. Her words can feel like the Lesson when she deploys them in anger. It is a fine line to engage with the royal family. Now, you are walking that line as well." He stopped before a door. "I know not what she desires to discover through you. It is something she does not wish to ask outright. Or, mayhap, she has, and distrusts the answer given." He produced a key from inside his gray robe and unlocked the door.

The light of a single candle flickered in the air disturbed by their entrance. It was a small room without windows, the door the only exit. A table, on which stood the candle, was set in the center of the room. Next to it was a cushioned chair. On top of the table sat a large book.

"It is not the best light, but it is all I could do. Unmounted oil lamps are not allowed in the library. Candles are easily hidden." Gladfee waved his hand to indicate Kelton should enter. "I am to lock you in but will remain outside. Knock if there is a need." Kelton entered, and the door closed. He heard the mechanism latch.

Kelton sat down and took a deep breath. He wondered if he should open a book cloaked in an ominous cloud. It did not look too old. Curiosity battled his reason and won.

It was true, the book wasn't as old as some he had seen. The first page noted the scribe, and all those who came before him or her, who had copied the text. By the dates given, the words were ancient. A series of copies, each a century between. It was text from the time of King Assima Victalica. If the first paragraph was true, it was an account of the King's own words, periodically re-scribed to last into eternity. Volume eleven of twelve.

To Kelton's delight, the journal began a brief time after King Victalica's loss at the hands of the Nagada. The King's mind was deep in the defeat, calculating how it had gone wrong and the strategies he would deploy in a future battle.

The Nagada did not respond as other enemies the King had fought in the past. He had set up his forces to assault and was taken by surprise when the Nagada failed to hold their ground and advanced as the aggressor with speed unexpected for ground troops. They moved as one, thwarting two flights of arrows by altering their advance with impeccable timing.

The King had thought the Nagada's lack of armor and shield a weakness. Instead, the lack of added weight added to their speed and granted them great agility. They broke through the King's line not by force, but by going over. He was amazed at the demonstration of training and discipline.

Women filled the ranks of the Nagada. In any other war, it would have been considered an act of desperation. To the Nagada, it was added strength. They fought as well as the men, their sharp blades making good use of agility as opposed to brute force.

It was the swords that intrigued the King the most. Shorter than what he thought necessary for battle. He assumed wielding two swords required less weight if agility was vital. The Nagada as a whole didn't seem to favor an arm. It was difficult to combat an enemy when you didn't know which sword to counter. It made his troops cower behind their shields, a delaying tactic at best.

There was respect in the words. The King was awed by the skill the Nagada showed. He had expected a rudimentary defense and was met by an aggressive force far more determined than his own forces. The source of the Nagada's cohesive motivation was not well understood. It had an underlying religious component, something to do with being the chosen of the All-Father. The few Nagada the King's forces had been able to capture, died of wounds while professing their devotion. Their words a guess, since only rudimentary interpretations were available. The Nagada language was based on an ancient tongue called Tarkeni, only well understood by scholars who weren't near the battle.

Kelton wished to he had access to the previous volume, numbered ten. This felt as if it were a rehash of some of the facts of the battle, thoughts that the King was considering during a voyage to a place called Karinoka. He had temporarily abandoned his conquest of the jungle to reassess his strategy. To his surprise, the Nagada had no desire to follow up on their success and claim land to buffer a future defense or possible offensive launches.

The King struggled with a viable strategy to counter a force he had never imagined could exist. He calculated he could overwhelm the Nagada with numbers, but had difficulty accepting the vast amount of lives as a worthy sacrifice for what would be gained. And he worried about sustaining such action so far from adequate supplies. It would be an enormous undertaking, the cost in men and coin would be greater than any before it. Twice he chastised himself for being vain and letting the shame of the loss be part of the calculation for re-engagement.

The text about the Nagada suddenly stopped. A gap of close to a month was missing. Kelton turned the pages back and forth, upset that there was a hole in the words. It was if many pages had been torn out, yet no page seemed to be missing. They may have been removed from the original. The copy Kelton was reading had nothing to indicate something was missing. The words started up again on the return voyage from Karinoka. The tone had changed. What had been foremost in the King's mind was no longer there.

An internal argument of pending legal decrees replaced the King's thoughts on battle. It was if the idea of conquest had vanished. He became concerned with the smoothness of trade and the quality of life. Kelton recognized the beginnings of the laws that now govern the Kingdom. Profit to drive men forward, a demand for minimum care of the enslaved who powered the engine of commerce. Something dramatic had changed. It was if the King no longer cared how large his Kingdom was, only that the lives within it didn't overly suffer.

Something he had learned in Karinoka had altered his view of the world. The Lesson was born in the words that followed. Pre-punishment to mold the mind and facilitate compliance. A technique that was known to create obedience and forestall dissent. Something about experiencing the worst so that the present becomes preferable. All of it was learned in Karinoka.

Deep in the discussion of new governmental structures, there was only a brief mention of the Nagada. The cost of victory was calculated as too high. If the Nagada wished no expansion, the King wouldn't re-engage. Then followed a cryptic phrase. "With the longevity of my name no longer a concern, it is best I create a world for living and not drive others to an early death."

What followed was more back and forth about laws and decrees. The King's mind was sharp as he considered possible side effects of new rules, trying to structure them so they would not be too onerous or disadvantage some party in lieu of another. The last page ended his deliberations prematurely. Kelton was sure they continued into the next volume.

War and conquest had left the King's mind. It annoyed Kelton to be teased with incomplete information but was denied seeing the sum total of it all. The tactics of the Nagada were only spoken of in generalities. Kelton wanted to know how one line of warriors can go over another, instead of through. He wanted to know how two short swords could outmaneuver a trained soldier with shield and longsword. The details he most desired were missing.

Kelton closed the book and knocked on the door. Gladfee released him from the room, then relocked it.

"It is done," Gladfee said, his relief evident.

"I know not what makes the tome a secret," Kelton whispered. Like Vasco, Gladfee held his respect and Kelton didn't want to damage it by blurting out the man's indiscretions. "An account is all. An extension of what the Princess and I have talked about in the past. Nothing more."

"It is for her ears alone," Gladfee said. "My Mistress has a mind that my Master would prefer not to be so awake. I assume it was my words that lead her to you. And it is your picture mind she wishes to fill then pluck at." He chuckled, then smiled at Kelton. "We walk a fine line - at least it isn't an ugly line."

"Aye," Kelton agreed, sharing the smile. "It is a pleasant line." The Princess wasn't as warm as Juno, but she did please his eyes.

Kelton was failing as he tried to find a reference to Karinoka in the maps section of the library. He felt a reference would give him some context as to where the King was when he wrote what he did. Or at least where he was sailing to and from. It was there that the Princess found him.

"Maps? You planning trip?" the Princess asked. Kelton turned and fell to one knee. She was wearing a functional dress, built more for comfort than show. Tan in color with a golden tasseled belt hanging loosely on her hip. She made it look better than its structure.

"Working on my escape plan, high Mistress," Kelton said and bowed his head.

"You feel our familiarity allows a jest?" It was said firmly. Kelton's head snapped up in a panic, and he looked into a warm smile. Relief. She signaled him to rise, which he did.

"I meant no insult, high Mistress."

"Shush," the Princess said, waving away Kelton's apology. "I have demanded much of you. Gladfee as well. You have every right to assume some familiarity, and I won't dissuade you." She smiled, then added. "When we are alone."

"Purple, high Mistress. The color just next to the orange on a good sunset," Kelton said with humor in his eyes. If they were to be friendly, then he would see it through.

"I'm not..." The Princess smiled when it came to her. "Zello's favorite color."

"Aye, and it was a no small feat to acquire it without him knowing. I hope it is of use, for I made like a fool to find it out. He must have thought me daft," Kelton said. The princess' laughter echoed through the tower. She covered her mouth to stifle it further.

"I am happy it pleases you, high Mistress," Kelton said, exaggerating a bow.

"Aye, it does please me. More so that you feel no ill will for doing so," Alliette said. "I would prefer we sit." She turned and headed for a pair of cushioned chairs set away from others' ears. Kelton followed, noting that the command to sit was implied. They were familiar but not equal in any way. She was born to her demeanor, so he ignored the demand and treated it like an offer in his mind.

"I have pushed Gladfee, and I have pushed you," Alliette began. "He does so knowing the risk I have placed on him. Has he made his reservations clear?"

"Aye."

"And yet you still did as requested."

"Gladfee trusts you, high Mistress. I shall as well, though I know not why such a book was forbidden to me. It held less than I desired to know, and I read nothing that could harm your families rule, much less the Kingdom."

"You lack context," Alliette said. "And though it gnaws at you, it is best it stays that way. What did you think of the King's thoughts on the Nagada?"

"Incomplete, high Mistress," Kelton said. "It teased me with small bits, yet hid the whole picture. The previous volume must hold more of what I seek."

"Knowledge of how a force can defeat the Kingdom's armies?"

"Ahh, it is part of why the books are forbidden." Kelton nodded. "It was clear that the Nagada were well trained and vehement in their warring. I would think it part of their lives, not something that could be easily duplicated. And the Nagada showed no signs of desiring conquest."

"They did not," Alliette said. "Did you rethink why the King didn't re-engage with the Nagada?"

"It was the strange part of the text, high Mistress," Kelton replied. "It was if many pages were missing, then the King changed, and thoughts toward re-engagement had fled." He looked away from the Princess, examining the rows of books that surrounded them. "Structure became more important than expansion. I would not doubt that the beginnings of this library were born then."

Alliette's eyebrows rose. "It is as you say, the decree for the first tower was issued upon his return."

"All his calculations changed. One day, he saw himself building a kingdom through expansion. The next, solidifying the Kingdom as it stood." Kelton turned back to Alliette. "I now wish to know the missing pages, high Mistress."

"What do you think were in them?" Alliette asked. She leaned forward in anticipation. Kelton realized this was the question she really wanted answered. Her interest in the Nagada was only to spur him forward into deducing the reason for the King's mind change.

"You do not know, high Mistress?" Kelton asked to verify his assumption.

Alliette shook her head, all superiority fleeing from her face. "It is a puzzle I am not to talk about."

"Where is Karinoka, high Mistress. I was trying to deduce it when you arrived."

"An ancient name for a place I am also not to talk about." Alliette sighed and sat back in her chair. "You would not know of it, and there few references I can find." Her eyes scanned the shelves of books. "All of this knowledge and still secrets are hidden from me."

"Are not the answers in the same place where you acquired the King's journal?"

Alliette's lips tightened, anger leaking out between them. "I am not allowed there. My brother has been, yet he is forbidden to speak of it. Men before women, even in the royal house."

"Then...how did I read such a journal, high Mistress?"

"They watch much, but think me innocent," Alliette said, her eyes returning to Kelton. "Books such as the one you read need to be re-scribed from time to time. It is a simple thing to stall it in its travels."

"If you are not to read it..."

"Aye. I have asked much of you, and you have risked more than you know." Alliette reached out and grasped Kelton's hand. It was unexpected, and out of character. "Know that I would use all I have to forestall retribution for you or Gladfee if it came to that."

"I am only property, high Mistress," Kelton said. Alliette let go of his hand, startled at the sternness of his response. Kelton would have read the journal anyway but would have preferred knowing his life was at risk before the reading.

"I do not think you less human for it," Alliette said.

"Your great father learned something in Karinoka," Kelton said with cursedness. The Princess desired his analysis, and he would give it. Gladfee was right, she was not someone to deny. He was sure any retribution would span to House Tarvakian, and he had no desire to damage the house. "He was no longer concerned with legacy and sought only stability for the realm. In my mind, it was then he became King. Prior, he was brutish, wishing only fame through conquest."

"Aye, but what did he learn?"

"A secret that hinders your family rule today," Kelton said, struggling to keep his voice steady. He wanted to like the Princess, yet she risked him without a thought. He was beneath her.

"We are not hindered!"

"What has changed in all that time?" Kelton asked. "Still you own property. Still, you allow the seizing of ships. Today, I again saw a group of viners drooling dreams upon the ground." His hand pointed uselessly in the direction of where it had been seen. "Is that what your rule means? People wasting away while others suffer in bondage." He knew his anger was getting ahead of him, yet it felt good to let it out. She deserved no less.

Alliette's back stiffened, her face warped with anger equal to Kelton's. She rose from her seat and looked like she meant to call for assistance. "You speak harshly, without respect." Her words were a cruel whisper. A warning of what would follow if he continued. He had to think of House Tarvakian, of Yanda.

"My sorrows, high Mistress." Kelton dipped his head and closed his eyes. It had been a useless rant.

Alliette sat back down. Her voice calmed, as did her expression. "Know that I do not see the wrong of things as you do. I know them skewed by your measure, yet it has always been so."

"I was angered by not knowing what I risked, high Mistress," Kelton said with as much respect as he could summon.