The Dawn Star Read Free Page B

doing both?
    Mel spoke to Agate. “We are sorry to hear of His Majesty’s illness and pray for a full recovery.”
    Relief flickered in Agate’s eyes. “The people of the Misted Cliffs share your prayers.” To Cobalt, he said, “We honor the House of Chamberlight.”
    Cobalt’s voice went cold. “The way you honored the Chamberlight Heir while you watched him being beaten senseless?”
    Agate looked as if he felt ill. “It was no honor, sire.” In a low voice, he added, “It was a nightmare.”
    Mel froze, afraid of what Cobalt might do. Agate was the only one of Stonebreaker’s officers she had ever heard admit the truth. Of all the adults in Cobalt’s life, only two had regularly sheltered him: his mother, Dancer, and a stable hand named Matthew Quietland. Dancer had taken Stonebreaker’s violence on herself by interceding when Stonebreaker abused the boy; Matthew had hidden Cobalt in the stables or even his home and borne the vicious brunt of the king’s rage when Stonebreaker couldn’t find his grandson.
    Mel spoke into the strained silence. “You have done well to bring us the news with such speed, General Cragland.”
    â€œI am sorry it isn’t better news,” Agate said, his face pale.
    â€œYes.” Cobalt stood abruptly. “Good night.”
    Both Mel and Agate jumped to their feet, and Agate bowed deeply. Cobalt glanced at Mel, and she could tell he wanted her to come with him. Then he strode from the room.
    She spoke quietly to Agate. “Thank you, General.”
    â€œI deserve no thanks, Your Majesty.”
    The title disquieted Mel; she was the reluctant queen of Shazire and Blueshire. Would Cobalt soon rule the Misted Cliffs as well? It would make him the most powerful sovereign in the settled lands, similar to the legendary Dragon-Sun Queen in Taka Mal who had lived two centuries ago. She had allied with Jazid, and they had descended on Cobalt’s ancestors with their wild, fierce armies, severing Blueshire and Shazire from the Misted Cliffs.
    After Mel and Agate parted, she walked to the suite she shared with Cobalt, preoccupied with her thoughts. She knew the lure of the desert lands for Cobalt. Jazid and Taka Mal. It was more than righting the wrongs of an ancient war. Taka Mal and Jazid were prosperous countries. Taka Mal caravans were famous for precious silks, spices, pottery, and jewels, and its architects spread their exquisite works across the settled lands. Jazid had mines rich with ores and gems. How long before Cobalt turned his conqueror’s eye to those rich lands? When he spoke of his dreams of empire, it stirred a ferocity deep within Mel, the wildness of her ancestors. She didn’t want the temptations he offered, but she couldn’t deny the lure of that seductive power.
    Cobalt had once told her: If ever I go too far, pull me back. She didn’t know if she was capable of being the conscience of a tyrant. At his core, he was a profoundly decent man. But for all that he had controlled his darkness, it simmered within him.
    Waiting for a rebirth.

2
Topaz Queen
    V izarana Jade, the queen of Taka Mal, felt great pride in her country. The sun beat down on a starkly beautiful land softened by green oases. Quaaz, its capital, was the oldest city in the settled lands, a place of spires, arches, and onion domes. Ancient lanes curved through its center, crowded with oxen-drawn carts, running children, and people on errands. Mosaics shimmered in stained-glass windows, around keyhole-shaped archways, and in columns that supported even the most modest houses.
    As her father’s only child, Jade had inherited the Topaz Throne. She intended to keep it, even in this country where most women had few rights. Her Topaz Palace rose above Quaaz, golden in the sunlight, a wonder of yellow stone surrounded by a great wall and protected by the Queen’s Guard, warriors unmatched in skill or