The Scholar Queen

by Renee Carr

  “It must have been very difficult for you to go through this,” he said. “When you first found out.”

  Sarah shrugged as she fiddled with the straps on one of her arm guards.

  “I saw it first as an annoyance, and then as a challenge,” she explained. “As more and more things went wrong, I just kept finding ways around it. And things are not... always bad, John. This will not be an everyday occurrence.”

  “I know,” he said. “Just when we are out there... you let me know what you need.”

  She wanted to kiss him then and there, but she didn’t think it was appropriate. There were so many other things to attend to, and the clock was ticking down.

  They would take a ship to the wolf territory that bordered on dragon lands, with an estimated time of arrival of sunset. The wolves, according to Joshua’s report, were amassing but hadn’t yet marched. That told Sarah that they were waiting for more numbers.

  “Nathan,” John looked up, alerting Sarah to the fact that they were no longer alone. They were very careful with whom they let into their bedchamber. Usually, everyone knocked, and the guards they kept at the doors screened all guests. However, today, all the guards were out front, waiting for the orders from Joshua to board the ship. “What are you doing here?”

  “I have an unconventional suggestion,” Nathan said. “I’ve been dwelling on it all night. I think it’s worth a shot.”

  “Out with it, then,” John said as he sat on the bed to put on his leg guards. They were flying in full armor because the wolves had a reasonably strong air defense unit, and they didn’t want to risk being boarded without having an advantage in their armor.

  “All the other wolves have blocked us on the interplanetary message service,” Nathan said. “We couldn’t get a message through to them if we wanted to. Except for one. On my messenger, Devon lingers online continuously. I’ve seen him sign in and sign out several times, so I know it’s not just a glitch. He’s active, and I could compose a message to him if I wish.”

  “What would we say to him?” John asked. “Tell your traitorous father that...”

  “Wait,” Sarah cut in. “I don’t think Devon is involved. I told you when he came that I felt like he was just being dragged along.”

  “Tell me what I am supposed to do now?” John’s voice was suddenly louder than normal. Sarah jumped and then held her ground. “Because all of you have opinions and then it won’t be your heads on the chopping block.”

  “It’s not like that,” Sarah said, recognizing the fire in his eyes. It seemed to be happening more and more. John was under so much stress, and she understood he didn’t have a moment to recover. It was all she could do to steer him away from the darkness that often consumed him.

  “Their blood will be on my hands!” he cried and Sarah reached out to touch him. Nathan put his hand on John’s other arm and the three of them sat in silence for a long time. “It will be,” John said quietly, at last.

  “It will be on all our hands,” Nathan replied. “If we make an error. Which we won’t.”

  John seemed to calm and Nathan turned to Sarah, changing the topic back to Devon.

  “I believe you are right. But that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t tell his father exactly what we said,” Nathan replied.

  “So lie to him,” Sarah replied.

  “Tell him that we’re scared?” John smiled at her.

  “Not quite,” she said, meeting his eyes. “Do you know what I’m thinking?”

  “Yes,” John replied. “Although it’s insane.”

  “Do you have another plan?” she asked and John sighed. “Remember what we agreed? You’re not allowed to hate my plan unless you have a better one.”

  John looked like he wanted to say more on the matter, but he bit his tongue, turning to his brother instead.

  “Nathan, I need Joshua to send me his battle plans.”

  “You want to send them to Devon?” Nathan raised an eyebrow.

  “After I edit them,” John said. ”I want you to send them to him, like you are giving a secure message to the troops. Can you do that?”

  “I could actually send a secure message to the troops and include him on it,” Nathan replied. “It would be a lot of work to tell them that’s not ACTUALLY the plan, but...”

  “Leave that to Joshua,” John said. “If Devon thinks he’s accidentally intercepted something, he will take it to his father and they will likely change their formation.”

  “Would you believe that?” Sarah asked him honestly. “I would like to think that my enemy was smarter than that.”

  “I would like to think they would think better of us than that as well,” John said. “But somehow, I don’t think that they would.”

  “Are the hostages prepared?” Sarah asked Nathan. The prisoners from the dungeon had refused to talk, and so they were taking them as hostages, hopefully, to bargain with Stanley.

  “They are already on board, guarded by at least fifteen guards,” Nathan said.

  “Good,” Sarah said. “I wouldn’t trust them as far as I could throw them.”

  Once Nathan left, John touched her back.

  “Are you alright?” he asked. She gave him a funny look.

  “I’m fine,” she assured him. “Why?”

  “You’ve gone pale again,” he said.

  “Ugh,” she grunted, rubbing her cheeks. “I’m alright. Perhaps I’m just tired in advance. It’s going to be a long day.”

  “But when the dawn breaks, it’ll be a successful one,” John assured her.

  “If we don’t kill each other first,” Sarah answered wryly, referring to the fact that they still were surprised by each other’s opinions on tactics.

  “I think we’re getting along fairly well,” John said with a smile. “The kingdom is probably scandalized, but there are other things to care about when we are going to war.”

  “I’m ready,” she said, standing up. “How do I look?”

  His eyes took in her body, and she could see the admiration in them.

  “Like a queen,” he said. “Like the battle queens of old.”

  “John...” she paused. “I know that I studied all this in school. And I know that I look like I’m decent at it... but I really do hope that this is the last war this kingdom ever sees. I’ve studied so many outcomes and...”

  “I know,” he said. “No one ever wins in war.”

  Chapter 19

  “Devon has read the message,” Nathan said, about an hour into the trip. It was actually Cory who had wrangled the technology enough for them to alter the report and then send it to the troops and accidentally include Devon on the message as well. As soon as the message was out, Cory recalled it from everyone but Devon’s inbox. Nathan, who was still signed in, could see that Devon had read it, although he wasn’t able to see exactly what Devon had done with it afterward. “So I guess we will see what he does with that.”

  “I have a lock on their line-up,” Joshua said as the flagship soared through the air. “We will be able to see if they change formation.”

  “Or if they completely rebel,” John said and Sarah gave him a look.

  “There’s a risk with every battle choice,” she said. “You can never have 100 percent of the information.”

  “I know,” he said. “But I think this one is high risk.”

  “Just wait,” Sarah said, her eyes locked on the screen as they got closer to the territory lines. The ship was huge and she wished that they had more time, because she would have chosen to take small ships and surround them. John had always known battles to be fought with the most intimidating of the flagships. Dragons were known for their displays of fire and force, and Sarah completely disagreed with that.

  “There,” Joshua said when they were half an hour away. “They have changed formation.”

  “They have?” Despite the fact that it was Sarah’s own plan, one in which she had complete confidence, she was a little stunned that it had worked. She had written plans like t
his out in textbooks half a hundred times, but this was the first real-time situation she was putting her knowledge to use.

  “To what?” John asked, not willing to just jump to conclusions.

  “To what was suggested,” Joshua said, squinting at the new formation. “At least... I think it is. That’s not the way I would do things either. Look,” he pointed at the screen. “Do you see the way they’ve arranged themselves now? That’s Devon, over there, completely unguarded. Anyone could swoop into the back and...”

  Sarah stared at the fuzzy image, trying to make sense of what the new formation was.

  “Why would they do that?” she asked John. “That seems like the stupidest...”

  “Nathan?” John asked. “You’re close to Devon, aren’t you?”

  “I—” Nathan hesitated to speak. “You’re the one who meets with him every month, John.”

  “Yes,” John said. “I did. But the two of you had an uneasy friendship, did you not?”

  “He did not always agree with his father’s choices in things,” Nathan said at last. “But it didn’t mean that he could speak freely about such things.”

  “You think he’s put himself there on purpose?” John asked Nathan, who winced.

  “I couldn’t say.”

  “We could find out,” Sarah suggested.

  “How?” John asked. “Wander up and ask him?”

  “Don’t ask anything,” she replied. “Swoop down and take him. From what I’ve read of Prince Devon, he’s smart and he’s a fighter. If he doesn’t fight... he wants to be taken.”

  “And if he does fight, we will rock a terminally ill relationship into death,” John pointed out. “It’s a dangerous suggestion, Sarah.”

  “John, they’ve declared war and attacked the palace,” she argued. “I really don’t think that taking the crown prince against his will is going to make things any worse.”

  “And if we take him willingly, he’s going to have to put on one hell of an act,” John shook his head. “This is too risky.”

  Sarah put her head in her hands. They had been getting along so well, at least for them, and now it seemed like they were taking a step backward in progress.

  “John,” she said, “he’s not hanging out in the back of the formation for his health. Unless he’s a coward...”

  “Devon is no coward,” Nathan assured her.

  “Is he the last hope?” she asked him. “Like Cory? Because he shouldn’t even be on the battlefield then.”

  “No,” Nathan said. “And the werewolf crown is not so cut and dry. They inherit only half the time. The other half, they will fight for it. So while Devon is expected to inherit the throne when Stanley passes, he will have to fight any Beta who has a claim to it.”

  “Interesting,” she said. “So they don’t protect their princes as much then?”

  “No,” Nathan said, and she crossed her arms, staring at the screen again.

  “Frankly,” Joshua said, “I like the idea of capturing him. Just because.”

  “Just because is not a battle strategy, little brother,” John said. “We are going to land first, and march from there. If Devon is still in the same formation that he is in now, then we will reconsider this option.”

  “It’s the best choice,” Sarah argued with him.

  “You can stay and watch from here,” John said, tapping at the screen. “It’s the safest option.”

  “No.” Sarah looked at him like he was mad. “I’m coming with you.”

  “Sarah,” John responded, taking a deep breath. “If you really believe in this plan of yours, no one is mad enough to risk it unless you are at the helm. And the helm needs to be here, not screaming our conspiracy plans on the battlefield.”

  He did have a point, although Sarah wanted to argue that she could orchestrate an attack from anywhere.

  “I will watch for half an hour,” she conceded. “Or until you spring into battle. That’s it.”

  “Half an hour?” John asked. “What do you think we are going to do, stand and stare at each other?”

  “Are you not even going to try and negotiate?” she cried. “Do you know how much death you are going to...”

  “I know,” John said. “But I will not sit there and let him attack my lands. Stanley lied to our faces about the rebellion and now he’s leading an attack. This is the end for him, Sarah.”

  She didn’t want to say the words that tumbled out of her mouth next. She trembled as she asked the question she didn’t want to ask.

  “You want to kill him?” she asked.

  “Without a doubt,” John said.

  “Why?” Sarah asked. “So Devon can know the pain you just went through?”

  John’s mouth fell open and his eyes flared yellow. He said nothing to his wife, turning around and storming out of the ship. His brothers followed and Sarah heard the troops mobilize. Frustrated and fighting back tears, she turned to the screen, watching the formation. They were certainly expecting the numbers in the falsified message, and they had arranged themselves for a very different kind of attack. Squinting at the camera, she watched Devon, in human form at the back of the line. He appeared to be watching his father at the front, but she saw him angle himself towards the ship and look towards their ship. He stared up for such a long time that she was certain it wasn’t just a coincidence. He was shifting back and forth, occasionally paying attention to the troops, but also looking up more often than was natural.

  Sarah was certain of her theory as he gazed up at the ship. She turned around to call after her own troops, but they were gone, already marching toward Stanley’s army.

  She had to at least talk to the wolf prince and see exactly what he wanted. And the only way to get to him without making it obvious was to transform, and quickly.

  She knew what a risk transforming would have on her body, especially given that it been compressed with armor for the last few hours. Pushing into dragon form was going to take strength, and she didn’t exactly have the time to do it slowly.

  “Creator help me,” Sarah said, frustrated that John had not left her a lifeline to communicate with. Sarah took a deep breath and then stood up, heading towards the back of the ship. She briefly considered running after them, but she knew that would look weak. She needed to be strong and lead her own plans through to the end, no matter what John thought.

  Sarah took a step outside the ship, onto the grass, and then gritted her teeth. The recent infusion of dragon fire that she had in the med bay had made her feel better for a few days, but she could feel herself sinking back to baseline with each passing moment.

  “Come on!” she grunted, annoyed when the transformation didn’t happen right away. She pushed and then pushed again, and it was only on the third time that she felt a shock of dragon fire through her veins. She roared, embracing her dragon side, and a line of fire shot into the sky.

  She had her wings before she knew it, and flapped upwards, achieving an almost perfect but slightly unstable vertical lift.

  It was from that angle in the air that she saw John lead the attack on the wolf army. She was blinded with anger as she flew upwards, hoping that the wolves didn’t have their ships on high alert. They seemed to mostly be fighting on the ground, but she hadn’t taken time to analyze the horizon.

  John hadn’t even tried to negotiate. He hadn’t tried a hostage trade, nor had he called out to Stanley. From what she could see, he marched into battle like he had never experienced the recent pangs of death.

  She whipped her head away from him in order to find Devon in the crowd. He was fully plated in silver armor, so he was going to be heavier than normal to carry. She noticed that his shoulders, where she would normally grip to carry someone, were covered in armor, so she would have to carry him around the waist with her talons.

  He was still pacing and appeared to be shouting orders. She swooped overhead, and he looked up. And then, as if to give her a sign, he took a giant step back.

  Sarah saw her chance an
d swooped down to grab him. Despite the fact that he had put distance between himself and the other wolves, they still leaped to protect their prince. She felt teeth sink into her scales and she felt her tail burn with pain as she got low enough to grab Devon. He didn’t seem to understand that she needed to grab him sideways, and she winced as she gave him a light shove, tossing him to the ground. She intended to pick him up that way, but the wolves were on her faster than she had calculated.

  Sarah sucked in a lungful of air and then forced fire out of her nostrils. The smell of burnt wolf flesh made her sick, but she felt that she had no choice. As they fell back, she picked up Devon from his place on the ground and flapped her wings twice to get lift.

  She felt dizzy and cursed her body. She knew that she had transformed too fast, but she thought, just for once, that there would be a reprieve. She thought that the Creator would give her strength when she needed it. She needed to get them to safety, away from the others, so that they could talk. There was a clearing just past the forest in front of her, technically not a long distance for a dragon. However, her vision was starting to swim, and she prayed as she flew that at least one of them survived the distance. Otherwise, all of this would be in vain and nothing would change in her new kingdom.

  Chapter 20

  “We will take no prisoners this time,” John said as they marched forward to the wolf army. “We will not trade their hostages. We will only fight until the entire planet is ours. The wolves have lived here long enough.”

  “Their armor is weak on their collarbones and under their arms,” Joshua informed the rest of the troops as they marched. “You will advance in KX protocol and then you will attack under the DE plan. Is that clear?”

  “Sir, yes sir!” came the cry from the troops. As soon as John was in yelling distance of Stanley, he gathered air in his lungs.

  “Stanley, Alpha of the wolf tribe,” he called. “Today, you walk to your grave.”

  “You think that, young prince?” Stanley called back. “You will never be half the man your father was.”