“Where are you, Brianne? And the rest of my staff?” I asked beginning the painful process of filling in the blanks, of trying to make sense of the System quest and the hints the Abhaic had given. Her pain and tears solidified my certainty that the Summerland’s screwing with time had put my people in peril, but I ignored those emotions. I had to if I wanted information that I could trust and that would give me the answers I needed.

“When you didn’t show up, Duke A’Daoine allowed us to continue to guest with him for a while,” she began. “He was solicitous and assigned a protection detail. Leian was transferred to him without any further problems. And the investigation into Alys’ death was moving forward.

“But when we received a System Regional announcement that a dungeon had been closed, Duke A’Daoine’s authority as it pertained to any of our House was withdrawn. He was forced to stand aside and watch as Consort Puck conducted his own investigation, their Majesties were not pleased.

“The Duke tried to shield us, and he was successful until Cedric, Lohne, Uron, and Irvin were placed in custody. He revoked guest rights and ordered us to leave his lands, opening his city portal, allowing us passage to neutral territory.

“Cedric, Lohne, Irvin and Uron were arrested not long after the dungeon was closed, a month at most after you vanished. They have been ‘guests’ of the Seelie Court since then. No one is certain what is happening to them, other than whispers and innuendo. Voices in the wind that hint of vile torture and rape.

“Occasionally, they are paraded before the court. Manacled and chained in iron to bind their powers. Raw seeping wounds where the iron had burned into their flesh,” she almost whispered, even the mention of the horrors they had endured frightening her.

“No one is allowed to speak with them. They have become another object lesson of what happens when you anger their Majesties.

“Jennie called in favors with her clan and managed to get those of House Teigh to safety. She gathered those that had been staying at Duke A’Daoine’s lands and had been banished, the guards, servants, and retainers you had assigned to accompany us, along with those that had been with you before you vanished, those few Consort Puck ignored when he arrested Cedric, Uron, Lohne, and Irvin.

“Since we have had to flee Seelie lands, and Duke A’Daoine felt guilty about revoking guest rights and opened his portal to neutral territory, it made scouting a location to set up a base difficult. No one was familiar enough with the territory to chose a place of safety, and once we arrived, we discovered that our communication was spotty at best.

“Our M-AI devices lose connection frequently, an issue that we have found problematic. The communication grid that the Seelie and Unseelie employ to connect the M-AI network is practically none existent here. Coverage is spotty at best, and If we are disconnected, it will mean the network has crashed again in our area,” Brianna warned.

“Jennie suggested emphatically that we not place ourselves in the hands of the Unseelie, afraid of the consequences when the Morrigu find out what had transpired and been kept from them.

“So, we have fled to Delar, not large enough to be a city, a small community located in the neutral territory, that espouses faction. Fortified with walls, guards, and Slaugh, it was the safest place we could find on short notice to bunker down and wait for your return. It doesn’t matter if you are Seelie or Unseelie here. I’ve made use of the funds you provided to purchase a small estate that is large enough to hold the people that are left.

“As far as we can tell, Irvin has been forced to bear the largest share of the anger and recriminations that have been levied against you. As an adopted member of your House, he has been publicly tortured. The Seelie Court has not even tried to hide their actions. There have been no pretty lies to shield the ugly truth this time. Queen Mab’s fury required an outlet. Irvin has become her whipping boy.

“Herd Lord Blayney has petitioned the Herd council, advocating for action, periodically demanding the Herd declare war on the Seelie because of Irvin’s treatment.

“How damaged is Irvin?” I demanded.

“Crippled. His shape-shifting abilities blocked. They have been castrating him weekly, only to heal and regrow the appendage so that they can repeat the torture the next week. What Thom did to him and his parents, was child’s play in comparison. Lord Blayney’s voice, petitions, and threats perhaps the only reason Irvin has not been killed. More likely, their Majesties enjoy their cruel sport,” she finished mockingly.

“So far Lord Blayney’s petitions have been blocked or ignored. But he is garnering sympathy. The longer Irvin is held, held without a reason, tortured without justification, the more people are beginning to question Queen Mab’s motive.

“Lord Blayney’s even been able to influence other Sidhe lesser-fey, he has stirred up old grievances and reminded those with a vendetta that the Seelie are not the only Power. That it may be time to initiate a pogrom, a reminder that the Seelie are on the decline and that they don’t have the numbers if a Sidhe uprising were to challenge that rule, a reminder that there are other Powers in the world just as capable,” her warning ominous and dripping with elements of prophecy.

“How long has this been going on?” I demanded.

“As I mentioned, it wasn’t much longer than a month after the dungeon was closed and you’d failed to return. It was assumed either you died when the dungeon collapsed, were stranded with no way back, or choose to remain where you were.

“Their Majesties have hinted and vilified you and your motivations, suggesting the possibility that you remained because you would be the most powerful magic user by doing so. They have been insinuating that your elevation to Prince from commoner was part of the problems that had been infecting System,” she informed me.

“What excuse did they use to hold hostage the Vassals of a Ranked Prince?” I demanded. “Even if my absence has exceeded a year, the Sidhe are prescient enough to understand that a year is nothing in the scheme of things. When we can live forever? There must have been a reason for their swift action?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe Lord Blayney or Duke A’Daoine have figured out their reasons for acting so quickly.”

“Is Basil still with you?” I asked.

“Everyone that you had contracted or taken Oath with, except for those hosted by Their Majesties are here. It is one of the ways we knew that you were still alive. Our Oaths were still in force.

“It was another avenue Lord Blayney attempted to use in his quest to free Irvin. If the Oaths were still active, then Irvin, as a member of your House, and your other Vassals were protected, shielded by your Rank and historical precedent. They should have been safe from reprisals.”

“Brianne,” I began explaining my absence, “For me, I have only been gone a few hours. A half-day at most. I entered the Dungeon, completed my quest, and returned via the Summerland Portal. It was the only way to return once Cedric had blown the entrance and closed the portal as I had instructed.

“I have not abandoned or neglected my people. The vagaries of time and the quirks of Summerlands have conspired to make, what for me seemed no more than a few hours, into an absence of over a year.

“Let my people know. Tell them that I have returned. Let them know that I did not forsake my Oaths. Let them know that I was unaware of all that has transpired. Let them know that I will seek justice and vengeance. And let them know that my retribution and anger will not be quenched by pretty words or sophistry.

“We will join you in those lands you have escaped too.

“Once there, we will set in motion those plans for Kingdom that we discussed.

“And then, I will free those that I have sworn to protect, and we shall see how the Seelie court answers a Ranked King.

“My immediate plans are to contact Blayney and Aengus A’Daoine. I will find out who or what manipulated events to steal those I most trust from me.”

Signaling she understood, Brianne bowed, her anger not assuaged, rather banked. She would give me the benefit of the doubt, trust that my words had the conviction of truth. Not convinced, but with enough faith and certainty that I would exact justice and deliver freedom to watch and see.

She would continue to follow me until I proved myself Oath-breaker. And would, by proxy, soothe the rising tide of anger that my House would need to unleash. The future had arrived, an auspicious beginning it wasn’t. But we would contend with Fate and House Teigh would become a Power.