Victor of Tucson

1 – Onward to Bandia

When Victor stepped through the portal into the palace at Gloria, a dozen soldiers lowered polearms in his direction, though when their captain saw it was Victor, he quickly barked, “Stand at ease!”

Victor nodded to the man, tugging at the lapels on the brocaded uniform jacket he’d put on for the visit. It was part of his official attire as Gloria’s champion, and he never wore it when he was at Iron Mountain. Since the queen had returned to her palace, though, she’d been more of a stickler about formality.

This was his third visit since she’d moved back into the renovated capital, and nearly a month had passed since the previous one. Victor had an idea about why he’d been summoned; Bryn had come to him just the day before with rumors that Kynna had finally cornered Queen Madge Hajarnen of Bandia into accepting a duel—the first Victor would have to fight since defeating Trinnie Ro almost four months ago.

As he walked, nodding to the guards and royal staff he passed by, Victor couldn’t help feeling a little dread at the thought of another duel. It wasn’t that he was afraid. No, it was more the opposite; Victor didn’t want to be pitted against someone he could easily dominate. The three kingdoms between Gloria’s expanding borders and Bandia had all bent the knee to Kynna, folding after only a little pressure—a result of Victor’s hard-fought triumph over Trinnie Ro. They simply didn’t have a champion in Victor’s league.

The same could be said about Bandia, from what Victor had learned in his intelligence dossiers, but Kynna wouldn’t allow Bandia to bend the knee, not without death for their queen and banishment for the royal family. Kynna had come to believe in her accusation that Madge had been behind Thorn’s betrayal, and she wouldn’t let her rival walk away from the situation with her life. Of course, that put Victor in the position of having to fight whatever champion Madge could come up with.

When he arrived at the queen’s study, the two Queensguards stationed there saluted sharply, and one of them opened the door wide, announcing, “Your Majesty, I present His Grace, the Duke of Iron Mountain.”

Victor nodded to the woman—a familiar face, but he’d never learned her name—and stepped through the door. Kynna sat, regal as always, behind her enormous polished desk, the cherry-colored wood luminescent in the light streaming through the blue-and-white, stained-glass windows. Kynna’s crystal crown reflected that light and seemed to gather it, creating a sparkling halo effect between its tall peaks. Her lips smiled when she looked at Victor, but her blazing, fiery eyes were intense, and no humor marred the angle of her brow. “Thank you for coming right away. Please sit.”

“Your Majesty.” Victor bowed and then did as she’d asked, sitting in one of the high-backed chairs before her desk. Things had been more stilted between them lately. He figured it had started when he’d implicitly rejected her advances after his win with Trinnie Ro. It didn’t help that the queen felt some guilt about that duel—she’d received very favorable terms for not contesting Lovania’s sudden acquisition of a steel-seeker champion from the eastern continent. In her mind, she’d put Victor’s life at unnecessary risk, though he’d assured her that he was up for it.

“Things are…peaceful, I guess, is the best way to put it. The Haveshi clan do most of my job for me, so I’m left to my own devices.”

Kynna smiled and nodded. “It was wise of you to employ them in the management of your duchy.”

Victor snorted, shaking his head. “You were the wise one. I just followed your lead.”

“You’re kind to mention it. So, tell me about them, these ‘devices’ of yours. What have you done with the months since you were last called to do battle?”

“I’m pretty sure you know. You hired half the personnel in my palace.”

Kynna’s smile faltered a little, maybe turning a bit more toward chagrined, and she tapped her nails on the desk as she admitted, “More than half, I’d wager.”

Victor smirked, mimicking her by drumming his fingers on the arms of his chair. “So, wouldn’t it be easier if you just asked me what you want to know?”

“Hmm.” She leaned back in her chair, the leather squeaking slightly as it compressed. “Tell me about the project you have the Artisan Trobban occupied with. My people tell me he’s taken over the western ballroom of your palace and that no one is allowed in and out.”

“You don’t know any more than that?”

“Only that you have guards watching over him around the clock, and rumor has it that he’s working with materials valuable enough to warrant new magical wards being engraved on every wall and even the ceiling.”

Victor didn’t want to lie to Kynna, but he also wanted to protect Arona’s secrets. If he were honest, he’d admit that he thought Kynna knew more than she was letting on, that there was no way Trobban’s activities could have been thoroughly hidden. That being the case, he knew honesty would be the best road forward. “I hired Trobban to create a new vessel for a friend of mine, one who had her body destroyed in a dungeon.”

“Her spirit is intact?”

“Yeah. She had a phylactery.”

“Ah,” Kynna frowned, distaste clear on her face. “A Death Caster. I hope you haven’t—”

“She was a Death Caster. That’s going to change when her new vessel is complete.”

“Ah! A change of affinity? Yes, the materials your Artisan is working with must be potent, indeed. So.” Once again, her nails drummed on her desk. “Need I worry that this ‘friend’ of yours will distract you when your project is finished?”

“I’m not sure what you’re suggesting,” Victor sighed, “but no. If anything, I’ll be able to focus on my duties more easily, knowing I have an ally close at hand.”

“Very well. You’ll tell me nothing more about her?”

“What more can I tell you? She’s a friend, and she needs a new vessel. It was a project I took on before coming here, so I felt duty-bound to complete it. She’s not going to cause any trouble for you.”

“Isn’t that what you said about your other ally? The one who mysteriously appeared at Iron Mountain without using the teleportation network?”

“Kynna, what are you fishing for? I introduced you to Tes the day after her arrival. She’s been at Iron Mountain the entire time since, and she’s been nothing but helpful. She’s training me. You should be grateful to her, not suspicious.”

The queen folded her arms over her chest, causing the pearl-studded embroidery on her sleeves to shine and glitter in the sunlight that shone through her high windows. “You certainly have a way of surrounding yourself with interesting, potent women.”

Victor’s mouth partially opened, but he stopped short of asking her if she was jealous. He was beginning to think that was exactly what the issue was, and he didn’t want to upset her by calling her out, not directly—that wasn’t how things were done on Ruhn. Instead, he tried to placate her. “Kynna, your words are true, and no, I don’t know why, but I’ve always had more female friends than male. I’m lucky to have you and Bryn—strong women I can confide in—but I’m reasonably good friends with Draj and Feist and Florent. I’ve spent many long hours with Trobban as he worked on his project, learning from him as he went.”

“And Tes? She’s not steering you away from my ancestor’s plan?”

“What? No, Kynna! She’s just being a good friend, trying to help me prepare for the champions I’ll face when we start challenging the great houses. She’s smart, and her advice is objective—she doesn’t have a dog in this fight.”

“A dog in—”

Victor waved his hand, shaking his head. “Never mind. That’s a saying from my home world and one I’ve never used before—no idea where I dredged it up from. All I’m saying is that she’s not part of the political machinations on Ruhn; it’s been good for my mental state to have her to talk to. She’s simply a friend.” He shrugged, deciding not to elaborate further—better to let Kynna fill in the blanks.

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“Thank you, Victor, for being willing to share that with me. I’m your queen here on Ruhn, but I know better than to consider you a simple subject. I know, especially with a friend like Tes, who seems able to travel between worlds without using the System Stones, that you could leave me and all my problems behind. I suppose it’s simple insecurity that has me making such personal inquiries.”

“I made you a promise, and before that, I made one to your ancestor. I’m not someone who would back out of obligations like that.”

Kynna inclined her head, the light glittering in her crown dazzling Victor as it reflected on the walls of her study. “Understood. Shall we speak about why I called you here? Shall I confess yet another reason for you to hate me?”

“What? Kynna, I don’t hate you!”

She smiled wryly, the right side of her mouth higher than the left as she shook her head and clicked her tongue. “Perhaps you don’t, but you’ve reason to. I’m not proud of the negotiations I made before your duel with Trinnie Ro. Now, I have an opportunity to advance our cause, but it, once again, comes at your expense. Will you hear it?”

“Have you agreed to it yet?”

“No.” She shook her head. “Nor will I, should you refuse.”

“Then there’s nothing for me to be upset about. Stop being so hard on yourself. Kynna, you’re a queen. Your people are your main priority. I don’t think the deal you made before my last duel was unfair. Didn’t I tell you that I could win that fight?”

“It’s not a matter of whether I was right, Victor. No, the issue is with how I felt when I made those negotiations. I knew what the great houses were doing. I knew why Trinnie Ro was suddenly willing to fight for an insignificant kingdom thousands of miles from the center of the empire. Trinnie Ro was manipulated, I was manipulated, and, in turn, I manipulated you. I knew you would agree to the fight! Have you ever backed down from one?”

“Um…” Victor couldn’t remember doing so.

“So, I used you. Whether I was right to do so matters not to me. Victor, as a queen, I’ve had to study philosophy and ethics. Most rulers follow a simple dictum: what benefits the most people in their care is the correct choice. My father ruled differently. He believed that every individual was inviolable. Do you know what that means?”

Victor frowned. “That he wouldn’t use a person for something.”

“Precisely. In his mind—and he credited the Philosopher Surnass for this—no man or woman should be used for a purpose that wouldn’t align with their own free will. Most rulers would say, ‘One man to save a thousand is a good trade.’ My father believed in absolutes, however, and he believed that there was no situation in which even a single person should be used as a tool, no matter the benefit to the nation.”

“Sounds like he was a man I’d like to follow, but it also sounds like it would be hard to stick by those words when push came to shove—as a king, I mean.”

“I learned that lesson very pointedly when I chose to allow you to fight Trinnie Ro with no preparation and without trying to void her placement as Lovania’s champion. I fully expected you to die, and regardless of your assurances, I cannot allow myself to accept what I did lightly.”

“Fair enough, Kynna, but just so you know, I’m not holding a grudge about it.” Victor shrugged. He thought her father’s philosophy was admirable, but he also understood perfectly well the pressures Kynna had felt.

“Thank you, Victor. However, that brings me to our current situation.”

“Which is?”

Kynna stood from her chair and approached her tall, multi-paned windows. The panes in the center weren’t stained glass and provided a clear view of her rebuilt palace gardens. Victor stayed in his seat, watching her, and after a few moments, she began to speak, “This situation has much to do with Trinnie Ro, so it’s appropriate that we began this discussion with a reminder of what I did prior to that duel.”

“Yeah?”

She turned to face him. “Yes. You see, the reason you haven’t had to fight since that duel is because Trinnie Ro obviously outclassed the champions on the western continent—all of them. When you beat her, it sent a message to our neighbors: to stand against Gloria is to court death. So, we’ve annexed three more kingdoms, and now we surround and harass Bandia, the seat of Thorn’s cousin, Madge.”

“I’m aware.” Victor folded his arms, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“She’s tried to sue for peace already, but she knows I won’t let her remain in power, so she stops short of offering a full surrender. Now, I have her surrounded on all sides save one: the east, where her country has two hundred miles of coastline. You know Gloria was besieged by Xan and Frostmarch, but we still held out for nearly six years.”

“So you’re saying it could be a while before Bandia is suffering enough that the people force the duel?”

“Exactly. Of course, I’d try to speed things along with statecraft and other pressures—buying the loyalty of her nobles and the like—but yes, she could hold out for years, perhaps decades.”

“But…” Victor was still waiting for her to get to the point.

“But she’s come to me with an offer. She’ll accept a duel on two conditions: I must agree to allow banishment for her and her kin, and she insists that no champion in her stable can stand against you and offers a choice.”

Victor sighed, unfolding his arms. “Are you going to make me beg to hear it?”

“She will agree to the duel if you don’t participate—I can choose another champion from my stable—or if we allow her to field two champions against you.” Maybe Victor didn’t react as she’d expected because her eyes narrowed in consternation when he simply nodded, frowning thoughtfully. “Have you nothing to say?”

“Is that allowed? I mean, will the veil walkers let me fight two champions at once?”

“Unbelievable!” Kynna clicked her tongue again and turned back to the window. “I should have guessed you wouldn’t back down, and here I am again—some part of me knew you wouldn’t. So, do I use your foolish pride to get my way, or do I refuse, regardless of your willingness?”

“Is it allowed?” Victor asked again.

“There is precedent, yes. Similar accommodations have been offered on more than one occasion to coax a lesser kingdom into accepting a challenge.”

“And, any idea the ranks of Bandia’s champions? Do I need to worry about the great houses sending more ringers down here?”

“I inquired with the Council of Oversight and received assurances from Grand Judicator Lohanse that no changes have been made to Bandia’s roster. He also indicated that if it happens after we agree to the two versus one duel, he would invalidate the agreement and force new negotiations.”

Victor smiled and stood up. “So, any idea who I’ll be facing?”

“Two iron-rankers, Victor. Should I infer that you are willing, then?”

“I’m willing. I don’t want to wait decades, Kynna. We need to keep this ball rolling.”

“Well.” Victor saw resignation in her eyes—resignation and guilt. He didn’t know how else to reassure her, and he didn’t think anything he said would matter. She was struggling with her inner demons and the expectations of a father who was no longer there to temper his past words. She’d weigh whatever Victor said against her father’s tutelage, and Victor was pretty sure his words would come up lacking. After a long moment, she nodded. “I will have my people send dossiers to Bryn.”

“Was there anything else?” Victor wasn’t trying to be rude, but he also wasn’t enjoying the queen’s stuffy, formal behavior or her constant attempts to make him see her behavior as a betrayal when he didn’t think it was.

“I’ve had reports that the great houses are increasingly suspicious of me. After we take Bandia, assuming you win, I will no longer have an excuse for expansion. Already, Gloria holds the largest economy on the western continent. By land, we’re the third largest, and with your display against Trinnie Ro, you’re ranked as the top champion. We’ve begun to look like a threat to the great houses. Once I declare a challenge against one of the eastern kingdoms, I won’t be able to disguise my intention to start a war of succession.”

“Which will mean what? More assassination attempts?”

“Yes, from the great houses. They’ll attempt to put us down before we can engage them in a challenge. We have eight nations to get through before challenging the closest great house, Voth. That said, I'll want you close if we win our fight against Bandia.”

Victor nodded. “Makes sense. Should I move back here?”

Kynna reached up to tap her crown, and it rang like a chime as a shield of blue Energy surrounded them. “My study is warded, of course, but a little extra caution makes me feel more at ease.” She stepped closer to him, and Victor noticed her fingers nervously worrying at the fabric of her wide cuffs. “I think Iron Mountain is more secure than this palace. I have too many cousins whom I don’t trust living here. I will make the move, but I won’t announce it. We can coordinate the first strike against the eastern continent from your palace.”

“Will they accept the duel? It seems like it would be hard to put pressure on a kingdom across an ocean.”

“We’ll have to choose a strong kingdom—a ruler with great hubris and a likewise-minded champion. We’ll seek a king or queen who will be confident enough to take the risk in order to snatch up all that we’ve built. You can rest assured that they’ll be aided by the great houses, so the champion you face after Bandia will be deadly.”

“I figured.” Victor shrugged.

Kynna’s eyes narrowed in consternation, but she didn’t object. She gestured to the door, and though the flick of her fingers was dismissive, her tone was almost mournful as she said, “I’ve nothing more for you at this time, then. I can find no fault with your willingness to fight, Champion.”

Victor wanted to comfort her—to try to make sense of the impossible standard she was holding herself to, but, on the other hand, he thought it was good that they had some professional distance between them. Victor liked Kynna. He liked that she seemed to care so much that she tormented herself over decisions that would have been a snap judgment for most rulers. On the other hand, her moral philosophy was so strict that she seemed to be causing herself pain by simply making good, solid decisions for her nation.

All that said, when Victor’s first impulse was to reach out and comfort her further, he stopped himself because he didn’t want to send the wrong message. He wasn’t sure he was the right person for anyone at that time in his life, let alone a queen with a guilty conscience. So, he saluted sharply, snapping his heels together and pounding his fist against his chest. Then he bowed and turned to the door. Before he stepped through, he turned to face the queen, and, unable to ignore the pained look in her eyes, he said, “I’ll be ready, Your Majesty. Honestly, I usually fight better against more than one enemy.”

“I hope you’re ready for the hero worship coming your way if you pull this off.”

Victor stepped closer, putting himself back into the dome of her secrecy spell. “Do you mean the duel or the toppling of an empire?”

Kynna sighed, and Victor could see her fighting and losing the battle against the corners of her mouth as they turned upward in a small smile. “Both, you impossible braggart. Both.”

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