The Lord's Balcony jutted out into the open sky not far from the apex of the highest tower at the center of the palace. From that lofty vantage the landscape in three directions was clearly discernable. To the east the palace pushed up against a steep volcanic cone, which itself was flanked on two sides by vast fields of geothermal vents. To the south was downtown Kanti, the neighborhoods and industrial and market districts built in the shadow of a vast dam from the Golden Age of Magic. Finally, to the north the river basin continued on through a dense jungle toward the edge of the plateau. For the entire basin containing the river and the jungles and the mountains was itself raised into the wintery sky. Even in the warmth of the midmorning the Lord's Balcony was cool and the handrails were still coated in a thin sheen of frost.

  "It is quite a view," observed the man named Rodrigo Rosalia.

  He was the youngest of the two foreigners. He wore a neatly-trimmed beard and his dark hair had not yet begun to thin with age. His perfectly-tailored pin-striped suit and golden ornaments betrayed his family's financial background.

  "And that structure there, in the financial district," the man said, pointing. "Is that a stock exchange?"

  "You surmise correctly," Monroe replied.

  "A nest of coddled bean counters," complained Elio Demetra.

  Unexpected, Monroe thought.

  The man was clearly a military man from his uniform and marks of rank. A navy man, in Monroe's estimation. He found the man's assessment refreshing. He was expecting both of these potential allies to be hardcore supporters of their precious banks. Their ancestors had thought their banks important enough to break the world.

  "You spend too much time in your submarines," Rodrigo said. "You've addled your brain."

  "You make me want to join Adrian's obsessive quest to exterminate the bankers," Elio retorted.

  "You don't really mean that."

  "We'll see."

  The two Light Matrons remained silent during this exchange. They stood by the balcony door, one to either side, golden robes shining in the sunlight. Presently a pair of slaves opened the door and Reyndell the Paladin strode through. A mountain of a man, with arms like tree trunks and a jaw like a stone precipice. He marched across the balcony to regard the two foreigners. He looked slightly disappointed.

  "You need my help," Reyndell growled.

  "We are authorized to explore the merits of the possibility," the Rosalia man said cryptically.

  "That means 'yes' in banker-speak," the Demetra man added helpfully.

  Reyndell nodded. "I have terms. You will listen to my terms and then you will accept them."

  "We are listening," Elio said.

  "Monroe?"

  "Yes, Lord," Monroe said. He cleared his throat. "The lands controlled by House Rosalia and House Demetra will be federated with the city-state of Kanti and the surrounding lands. House Rosalia and House Demetra will send delegates to a new congress of our own design. These delegates will be allowed to vote on legislation and policy. Their votes will perfectly reflect Reyndell's desires. All military forces will be reorganized into a common defense force under the control of the federation. Reyndell will be given absolute command of these forces."

  With a flash of green light Felicia appeared beside Reyndell.

  "And Felicia, the First High Daughter of the Queen of Life, will be second in command of these forces," Monroe added.

  The Elemental bowed approvingly.

  "Furthermore, the Light Matrons and their Light Elementals will be reclassified as critical military assets and incorporated into the chain of command. Bankers will be permitted to travel with the military in order to continue to use the Light Elementals, albeit with a low priority. Finally, all members of the federation will contribute all industrial assets toward military applications. All Elementals will be made available to the military."

  "Anything else?" Elio Demetra asked.

  "Further details are unimportant matters of implementation," Monroe said.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  "We will need to discuss this with the bankers," Rodrigo Rosalia said.

  "No," Elio snapped. "We have sufficient authority. On behalf of House Demetra I accept these terms. We will join Kanti in federation and contribute our military forces to the common defense."

  Rodrigo looked antsy.

  "My companion might benefit from being stationed on the front lines," Elio added. "It might teach him how to make decisions quickly."

  "Fine," Rodrigo said. "I get it. On behalf of House Rosalia I also accept."

  "Excellent," Monroe said. "With these two Light Matrons as witness, I hereby announce the federation of the city of Kanti with House Rosalia and House Demetra. We will leave it to others to draft the articles of confederation and draw new maps."

  "We so witness," one of the Light Matrons said.

  "So what are your plans?" Elio Demetra asked. He was clearly addressing Reyndell.

  "I will keep my plans a secret," Reyndell said. "If we are to prosecute this war then secrecy and deception are paramount. As is loyalty. I will use the Light Elementals to vet the loyalty of my subordinates. I will use the Light Elementals to shield my armies from the questing eyes of the enemy Shadow Hunters."

  "You plan to deploy the Light Elementals to the battlefield?" Elio asked incredulously.

  "Indeed. Furthermore, all military manufacturing will move underground in remote coastal areas. I will have absolute control over the design and production of military assets. But even that might not be enough. Our enemy understands me better than anyone else. She knows how I think. She will contemplate my plans and therefore take steps to frustrate them."

  "Who is our enemy?" Rodrigo Rosalia asked.

  "That much is obvious," Reyndell said. "It is Klara, the Flame Keeper. Only she would intervene to save the Taisians from the ire of the banks."

  "I would not be so certain, Lord," Monroe warned. "Klara's intervention is most likely opportunistic. She is not pulling the strings."

  "I disagree," Reyndell said, "but I will hear your dissenting opinion so that it can be refuted by reality later."

  "Why did the banks suddenly decide to attack the Taisians?" Monroe asked.

  "It is no secret that Old King Varelion cursed his entire bloodline somehow," Rodrigo said. "Hundreds of bastard children, all marred with the golden brands required to bond Light Elementals."

  "Before that. If my intelligence is correct, then Adrian Maryy started slaughtering the intelligentsia in the streets of Heyl almost six years ago. Your bankers did something to spook him."

  "That is not information we are willing to reveal at this time."

  "Nonsense," Elio said. "They are our allies now. I see no problem in revealing this bit of intelligence."

  "As you like."

  "All across Taisian lands people suddenly started remembering past lives. One thing they had in common was that they were all pilots of flying machines in ancient wars."

  "Ah," Monroe said. "I think I know who the real enemy is."

  "Who?" Reyndell asked.

  "It can be Kai and none other. The exiled elf. He holds the bond with the High Daughter of Souls, which means he has free access to the Gray Circus and the Library of Memories. Furthermore, he has the High Daughter of True Death, which would allow him to perform powerful necromantic rituals. In my opinion, Lord, the elf Kai is our true enemy. Klara is acting of her own accord but her actions were perfectly contemplated by Kai beforehand."

  "For what purpose?"

  "Who can know the mind of an elf?" Monroe lied.

  "He just lied," one of the Light Matrons warned. "Rodrigo, he just lied to you."

  "As a subordinate in the military," Reyndell said, "you Light Matrons are now forbidden to inform them as such. Our plans require that we may need to deceive our own allies in order to overcome the Taisians. Do you understand?"

  "Yes," the woman said meekly.

  "We will have no more of that. Now, Monroe, you can tell them the truth. Why would Kai do this?"

  "He wants to put a bunch of crumby flying machines in his museum in the Gray Circus," Monroe lied again.

  Let them squirm, he thought.

  Reyndell nodded approvingly. Clearly he detected the lie and surmised that it had gone undetected among the foreigners.

  "You two are invited to return to your masters and inform them of the outcome of this meeting," Reyndell said. "The Light Matrons will remain in the palace. Rooms and handmaidens will be furnished for them. Kanti is now the capital city of the federation, and this palace is now the Capitol Building. You will send your bankers here to operate in close proximity to the Light Matrons. You will also send the top brass of your military forces into my presence so they can be sworn as my subordinates."

  He waved his hand dismissively. Monroe gestured for them to follow and he led them off the balcony. Then he bade the Light Matrons to leave the balcony as well and he closed the door. Reyndell stood at the edge of the platform, looking out over his beloved jungle rivers and snowclad mountains.

  "Is it time?" Reyndell asked.

  "Yes, Lord."

  "What is the path?"

  "Kai is very clever," Monroe said. "He must have surmised the weakness in the bank's designs."

  "Tell me the whole path."

  "The banks impressed upon the Dark Half of the Divine Power an aversion to flying machines. With the powers of darkness they were able to expunge flying machines from human memory. However, any action on one half of the Divine Power must have had an opposite reaction on the other half. Which means that there is a scar in the Light Half which exalts and celebrates flight. But this scar could not be tolerated in the Queen of Light herself."

  "Titania."

  "That's right. The bankers must have granted the scar to Titania. Kai must have surmised this possibility."

  "The path, Monroe."

  "Yes, Lord. Old King Varelion cursed his bloodline. They will start a crisis somehow. Perhaps involving portals to the Elemental Domains. One of the Varelion children will be flying in a flying machine near the portals. Titania will be released from her prison. Klara and her allies will find a way to stop Titania from drawing on the Dark Half. They will use Titania's power to free the Queen of Darkness."

  "So we play along."

  "Yes, Lord."

  "Until our mistress is freed."

  "Until our mistress is freed, Lord."

  Then we betray them, Felicia said.

  "Then we betray them," Reyndell agreed.