By the time we’d sorted out the aftermath of the battle, Elis had clammed up. I tried to press him — gently, I didn’t want to alienate him — but he evaded my questions and gave noncommittal answers.

I could understand why he might not trust me, of course, but I still found it pretty irritating. The information he had on the Zarian could make our campaign a lot easier, and the insight into their social dynamics and current upheaval might be invaluable. Not to mention that he was the brother of my friend, and he’d been supposedly investigating their father’s death.

In the end, I surrendered to the inevitable and let him and Elia catch up while I talked to the Imperial army officers to sort things out. The one-star general, who was apparently named Ling Juan, had things well in hand, although there was some uncertainty about how many soldiers to send out as scouts to see if we could confirm that the Zarian were really gone.

When I rejoined the others, they’d taken over some space in one of the rough houses, and Elia and Elis were talking while Lei lounged next to Elia, watching her brother with pretty well concealed wariness. I entered the room and shut the door behind me quietly, listening to their conversation, which appeared to have gotten heated.

“I can’t believe you just up and left them!” Elis shook his head. “And in an occupied foreign city.”

“Look who’s talking.” Elia snorted. “You’re in no position to judge anyone for leaving their family. Besides, you weren’t there. You don’t know how things had become.” She sighed. “I do wish I could go back and get them, but what can we do?”

He pulled a face. “You’re right that I wasn’t there. And I knew Ki was a little hellion, but I would never have thought he’d actually say that to a Zarian officer.”

Elia nodded. “We were lucky that we all got out of that in one piece, even if we lost the estate. And that’s just the tip of the hill, really.”

“Is Ki one of your other brothers?” I asked, choosing a chair.

Elia nodded. “Yes. Well, half-brother.”

“Oh?” I cocked an eyebrow.

“It’s not important,” Elis said.

Elia frowned a little. “Only Elis and me are actually my father’s children, if you must know. The younger two, well, aren’t. I guess things weren’t well between our parents, with him being gone all the time and everything.”

“And your father knew about that and still stayed?” I asked. There was no way a child of the Sun didn’t know, but I still found that a little shocking.

“Well, they weren’t exactly together a lot of the time, anyway,” Elis said with a grimace. “But they stayed married. Dad mostly did that for our sake, I think. He even made every effort to treat the other two well. People back home weren’t especially fond of adulterers or their bastard children, but while there were rumors, no one ever talked too loudly about it.”

I was tempted to ask when the two of them found out, if it was because of their bloodline, but suppressed the urge. Clearly, their family was a sensitive subject, and I didn’t know Elis that well.

“Our family wasn’t exactly perfect even before his death,” Elia said, looking at her brother. “And it only got worse once you left, Elis. I regret what happened and the way it did, but I don’t think I was wrong to leave them.”

“I know. I’m glad that at least I got to see you now.”

I shook my head. And I thought my family was a little dysfunctional. But I put that thought aside and instead watched silently as they shared a smile. It was pretty plain to see that Elis and Elia had been close, and that some of that closeness still lingered.

Lei watched and listened to all of this in silence. His expression had remained even throughout, though he’d taken Elia’s hand at some point. She must have talked to him about this before. Now he stirred, and looked at me. “What are we going to do now?”

I sighed. “We’re probably going to leave and go further north. We can’t guarantee that they’re not going to come back in force to get Elis. Or me. Leaving might help that. This outpost is still going to need reinforcements from wherever we can find some.” I pulled a face. We had too few soldiers to go around in the first place.

“Makes sense,” Lei said. “Are we going to leave by ship?”

“Yeah.”

It didn’t take long until we were ready to go. None of us exactly had much to pack. I talked to the officers in charge a bit more and spent some time with the formations. We needed to salvage the wards or put new ones up quickly, and my knowledge and skill were helpful. But they had enough soldiers with the necessary ability here that they could do without me, so once Aston got impatient, I excused myself.

We took one of the faster Imperial ships. I stood on deck and watched it navigate away from the rocky coast, while Aston beside me scanned the horizon. There was no sign of any hostile ships, or airships for that matter. These waters had gotten dangerous for them, especially since we had not just the sea dragons, but Terbekteri ships on our side.

I got distracted from my thoughts when I noticed Elis off to one side, hanging over the railing. He heaved, although not much came out. I suppressed a grin and walked over.

“Are you alright?” I asked.

He glanced at me, then turned his head back. “I hope so.” I heard him swallow. “You know, this is only the second time in my life I’ve been on a ship. I don’t think I’ve missed out.”

I smiled, trying to look sympathetic. “Well, I doubt it’s going to be the last time. But we do have some good airships in the Empire. Those tend to sway a little less.”

“Sun, I hope so.” He groaned.

“I have some pills that might help with your nausea,” I offered.

“Yes, please. I didn’t really have a chance to pack a lot of what I might need when I left.”

I passed him a pill from my always-prepared storage ring and watched as he swallowed it with a sip of water from a bottle he pulled from his own. Clearly, he managed to take at least some things with him.

“I’m impressed that you managed to escape from the grasp of those wannabe paladins at all,” I said. “Did you have a bit of warning?”

“Ugh, this is better.” He shot me a sideways look. “Yes, a friend of mine told me they were, well, turning hostile. I didn’t think they’d strike that quickly, but I moved to a safehouse and hired a few local muscle as guards. They managed to pass me the word in time for me to slip into the sewer system and sneak out of the city. And before you ask, no, that’s not going to work as an entry point for Imperial soldiers.”

I nodded, not reacting to the insinuation in his last statement.

“It was about time for me to leave anyway,” he finally continued. I had the impression he was deliberately keeping his tone casual and diffident. “I was actually going to go back to the Earth Continent and visit my family.” He chuckled. “Well, at least that part took care of itself.”

I waited beside him in silence for a while. He didn’t seem to mind my company. While he was clearly feeling better, he didn’t move away from the railing.

“What are you going to do now?” I finally asked.

He raised an eyebrow at me. “Are you not going to insist that I stay with you? I wouldn’t be in much of a position to refuse if you choose to be … assertive about me seeking sanctuary within the Empire.”

I smiled and shook my head. “No doubt. I think you could be very useful for the Empire, Elis. But I’m hardly going to force you to do anything you don’t want to do.” I shrugged. “I’m not an idiot, and trying to coerce a descendant of the Sun, especially one with your experience, strikes me as a stupid idea. Not to mention how Elia would react. I do value her friendship, believe it or not.”

He regarded me silently for a moment or two. I met his gaze calmly, watching the thoughts flitting through his eyes. I couldn’t help looking at him with some curiosity. Elis wasn’t as handsome as Kajare, but there was something about him. I wasn’t sure exactly what to think of it.

“I see,” he finally said with a slight smile. “I suppose I should be grateful my little sister is so good at making friends. But to answer your question, I suppose I am going to stay. It’s not like there’s anywhere else I can go, and I don’t want to leave Elia so soon after we’re finally reunited. Besides, I can’t say I dislike the prospect of maybe getting a little payback from the people who put me in this situation.”

I returned his smile. “I’m glad to hear that. I think I should introduce you to my cousin Kariva, I expect you’ll be able to find a lot of common ground.”

His expression brightened. “Lady Leri Kariva? I’ve heard of her. Yes, I would certainly like the opportunity to meet her. Her reputation in certain circles is quite something.”

“Good. I’m sure she’ll be delighted to meet you.” Or if not, she’ll certainly pretend like she is.

Silence descended again, though it was less tense this time. I looked out over the sea, as did Elis, but I also kept a metaphorical eye on him. His aura was pretty interesting, although I didn’t manage to get much of an idea for what abilities his bloodline might have given him.

“You’re going to invade the Dominion,” he finally said, calmly. “Attempt to conquer it. Aren’t you?”

“Yes. I am.”

He nodded, as if he’d expected that answer.

“Do you think we’re strong enough to do it?” I asked.

He turned his head to face me more fully and raised an eyebrow. “That’s a bit of an odd question to ask. If you weren’t confident in your victory, why would you even try it?”

I shrugged. “I certainly am, but that’s neither here nor there. You can’t know everything about the situation in the Empire and the factors deciding our military strength. I’m interested in getting your opinion, from your perspective.” And I wanted to learn what his attitude was to know what I should expect from him.

“Well, I wasn't in the Zarian military and hardly privy to their strategic deliberations or assessments. But you’re right, I do have some information about their strength in the northern cities.” He paused for a moment. “Yes, I think you can do it. It’s not going to be easy, but I wouldn’t bet against it. Unless the Storm or certain supporters of his decide they don’t like that prospect and to do something about it.”

“Good to know.” I smiled at him, showing that I wasn’t concerned. We were almost certainly stronger than he knew, and if Jideia had been able or willing to intervene too directly, the Zarian would already have conquered the Empire.

The conversation trailed off there, though I stayed to look out at the sea some more. A sea dragon would probably come to talk to me soon. They always seemed to find me and show up whenever I was at sea.

Finally, Elis wandered away, and I made my way across the deck, as well. I could sense that Elia had joined her brother, and they were probably talking again. Before I could decide what I wanted to do with my time, I happened upon Lei.

He was sitting cross-legged in a little corner of the deck, beside the cabin and where the ship started to narrow. I paused and watched with my qi senses as he sank deeper into meditation, and I felt the flow of qi joining the circulation in his body. He went into a deep meditative state quickly, and judging from the force I could dimly sense, I knew this was more than ordinary cultivation. He was finally breaking through to the fifth stage. Maybe the fight gave him a nudge? Or talking with Elia and Elis.

I leaned against the railing a short distance away from Lei, where I could keep an eye on him, even though I knew he was perfectly safe here.

And I had no doubt about his ability to break through. He might do it at an older age than Tenira, but I knew that wasn’t because he was in any way lacking in ability. He simply didn’t devote as much effort to his cultivation as some. And even then, the fifth stage at his age is still an accomplishment.

It would be nice to have him in that stage. I had no fear of what might happen if Elis turned on us, considering the presence of my guards and soldiers, but Lei would be able to keep up more, like Tenira. And Kajare could very well have broken through the next time I saw him, too.

I shook my head. I knew my standards were pretty warped, even if you didn’t count my own unnatural progression. Lots of nobles didn’t even reach the fourth stage at Lei’s age. But everyone around me seems to be advancing quickly. I wonder if I’m just that inspirational?

I frowned and took a step further away, letting the sensation of the ocean’s tide wash over me. For all I knew, I might have some passive aura that helped the people around me progress in their cultivation more quickly. Or, what was probably more likely, my father might be subtly giving them some help.

Not that I was about to complain.