“Claude Aubin, 1702. He claimed to have slipped back in time from the year 1834. While his claims remain unsubstantiated, he did make certain key predictions about the coming century that have led future generations to believe his story was genuine. He never returned to his own time.”

~ Bek Trent, M.A.S.O

There was no way to explain it all. Months after the fact, it had never occurred to Silver that her family’s houses seemed to be plagued by unexplained fires. Only now, in a stranger’s home, in a stranger’s era, had she stopped long enough to realize how grateful she should have been for all those years of peace. Instead, she had been bored, upset, tired of everything.

Bek and Illian had continued talking long after she had closed up inside her own thoughts. None of it had anything to do with her. The MASO, maps of the city, strange spells she had never heard of – it was not the first time she had felt out of her element around Bek. It was also not the first time she had nowhere to go to escape that feeling.

She would have continued to lean into her own revelations if Bek had not raised his voice to say, “There’s nothing more to tell, Illian.”

“You say you betrayed the MASO,” Illian stated calmly,” I want to know why.”

“I’m sure you can imagine,” Bek growled, “because as far as I see, you’re doing the same, and for much the same reasons.”

They both glared at each other over the table, and Silver knew that Illian understood even if she did not, and that the conversation was going to go no further. Clearly Bek and Illian, however destined they might have been to meet, were not destined to get along.

“From this moment on,” Illian finally said, as if he could not sense the stifling pressure that had moved into the room with them, “the two of you will know me in public as Illian Trent, appointed guardian of the daughter of the king, the princess Cevora Eldoreia Altin. In private, I am commander of a small but elite group of soldiers that I picked by hand to be the first and last defense for this city.”

“Your king must have better defenses than a handful of people working under you,” Bek stated pointedly.

“You’ll have to start calling him your king as well if you plan to live long here. At any rate, you are entirely right to think that the king has a trained army, his personal guard, known as the kivgha, and more importantly, the MASO. I, however, have divided loyalties, and different goals.”

“The princess,” Silver realized aloud, reluctantly returning to the conversation. Illian stared hard at her.

“My duty is to the princess and to this country, in that order. You must understand that we might have to move outside of the king’s wishes to protect Alti.”

“Or against the king’s wishes,” Silver translated. She saw Bek’s expression, and knew she had said exactly what he had been thinking.

At that moment, something heavy rapped against the front door of the house. Silver jumped, afraid because a heavy silence followed the sound, and Illian had risen halfway to his feet only to stop and stare at a point directly behind her head. She twisted around very slowly, staring at the door.

But what she needed to see was already inside. There was a figure at the edge of the hallway, a figure already bowed on one knee, dark eyes fixated coldly on her and Bek. And there was something else beside him, long, lanky, and familiar. A wolf, and a wolf with more than a passing resemblance to Elorian. They had the same silver fur, the same rust rings around their ankles, the same inquisitive gaze…and yet white socks climbed the beast’s legs, a splash of pure ivory against its chest.

“He is older than me…far older,” the wolf rumbled at her side. Silver knew it was the wolf, not the man, that had her friend’s attention. “This dwelling welcomes him. It is his.”

Silver wondered why the wolf had not mentioned before that there were other beasts living in the house, but now was not the time to ask. Instead, she stared. This wolf…she was suddenly certain she had seen him somewhere before.

“Faei.” Illian’s voice startled her. The strange wolf’s ears canted forward, topaz eyes touching each of them in turn before it went to Illian. It made no sound. Like a phantom, it left a chill in its wake, though Silver thought it was the chill of the outdoors rather than the chill of death. Only when the beast settled did she realize it was the wolf from the picture on the nightstand in the tower of the Castle of Divides. And Illian was the man.

For a moment, Silver fixed her gaze on him, but Illian was not paying any attention to her. His gaze was entirely for their late-night visitor.

“Illian, sir,” the stranger finally broke the silence, “Who are they?”

“No matter, Meian. Whatever words you have are for their ears as well as mine.”

The other man peered suspiciously at Silver and Bek, but seemed to take Illian’s acceptance of them in stride. Like her, he probably realized that Illian was trying to prove a point to the two of them, not to him. Saying nothing, Silver peered back, noting the glint of mail beneath his loose clothes.

“Disease has been confirmed in the Atlantis port district, sir. Ninety-six people died last night in the port district alone, but the death toll has risen above ten thousand.”

“Ninety-six,” Illian repeated, stiffening. “So suddenly?”

“Aye, sir. This disease runs its course quickly, just as it did within the capital. I would have returned sooner, but the city was quarantined.”

“Symptoms,” Illian demanded harshly.

“They were as I first reported, sir; a fever that grew into a cough after a couple of hours. As the fever worsened, many of them began to cough up blood, and appeared to be in pain.” Silence. Silver felt her eyes creep to Bek, who looked dangerously unsurprised. He had mentioned plague.

“What kind of pain, Meian?” Illian asked suddenly, breaking the momentary hush as they each took in the enormity of what Meian was claiming.

“Everywhere, all over, sir. They were screaming, said they were burning away from the inside out, clawing at themselves until they bled. Their only peace was in passing on.” Illian had averted his gaze and leaned back, rubbing his fingers across his forehead and then against his eyes, apparently thinking hard.

“I see. Similarities, Meian? Children? Women?”

“All ages, men and women, but not a one of them could use magic. Until today, that is. Among the ninety-six, there were two magic users. And it’s worse in the capital. The ports’ll not last long, and I’ve heard rumor that the trade ships sent to Alti are being turned away.”

“Then you’d best tell Nedorin to keep on his feet—,” Illian began, stopped by the slow shake of the stranger’s head.

“I’m sorry, sir. He was one of the first to die.”

All three of them were staring at him now, and Silver wondered if the other two felt as numb as she did. Not because of the death of a man she had never known, but because of the sudden and dark encroachment of death into a world where she had mistakenly felt free of it. Meian must have been more affected, but his face was blank, and his eyes as cold as ever. Whatever the case, he would not share that pain with them.

“I thought it would be more discreet to send someone with no magic – less threatening, but I couldn’t have known...Go back there, Meian, by whatever means necessary. Figure out anything more that you can about this mysterious disease. If possible, find its source. I’ll report to the king come morning.”

“Of course, sir,” the stranger answered, bowing his head a little lower and standing up. He had almost disappeared around the corner of the hallway when Illian called to him once more. He turned his dark eyes on them to listen.

“Don’t die, Meian.”

The man smiled. “Aye, I had taken that for granted, sir.” Then he was gone as if he had never been. Silver was left staring at the darkened but empty shadows of the hallway with the sense of Bek’s eyes on her and the sound of Illian’s slow rise, and then his heavy, receding footsteps as he retreated to the silence of his own quarters.

“That is all, for tonight. Everything we’ve discussed remains with the three of us. I will keep your secret carefully, as promised. Faei will watch over you now. I have other matters to attend to,” Illian told them. And then he was gone.