I look at the group of Elves surrounding the Dwarves. They are wary, but relaxed. I know there is no way the Dwarves could have made it this far into the Queendom undetected.

Mori keeps her ball of energy at the ready as Miri goes to quietly speak to the head of the guard surrounding the Dwarves. She nods and quickly comes back over to me. Quietly, she say, “It is OK, My Queen. They have come to congratulate you on becoming Queen and would like to talk after the festivities. They have brought you a coronation present.”

She nods and the Dwarf that is obviously the leader comes over and bows deeply at the waist. He hands me a very heavy, ornate box made of gold. I open it and gasp. The largest Ruby I have ever seen—which, honestly is not saying much, I guess, is nestled in the box. It is as big as my fist—and gleaming blood red.

I smile and say, “I am not sure I can accept this. At least not without knowing your name…and what the occasion is. I believe you must be the first Dwarves to set foot in the Queendom in centuries…” Mother and Aunt Lothi nod in unanimous agreement. Mori still has not openly settled down, although, I can tell her energy ball is more for show now…she must not sense any ill will or Darkness coming from the Dwarves, either.

He smiles… At least I think he does. It is not really a pretty sight. He says, “Your Majesty, I am Kir Godgold. We request an audience when you are finished celebrating. We are here to open discussions on a pact between our Realms—if you are interested. Either way, the bloodstone is our gift to you. It is worthy of a Queen, don’t you think?”
I nod and say, “Welcome, Kir Godgold and others. Please join us in the festivities. I am not sure that we have anything fit for a Dwarf, but you are welcome to what is here. We will discuss your proposal in the morning. Miri, can you see to it that Kir and his fellow travelers receive appropriate accommodations?”

Miri goes to talk to the head house keeper and I turn back to Alyan and say, “And I think we have a dance to finish?” I smile as the music starts back up. Alyan and I finish our dance and I excuse myself from him. He smiles and bows.

I go over to Mother and Lothi. They are watching the festivities from a side table, each with a golden goblet of wine. I sit and take a goblet for myself. I look around the room. The Dwarves are not to be seen at the moment. I ask, “What do you make of this business with the Dwarves?”

Both shrug, but Mother says, “We will know more tomorrow. Mori sensed no ill will. Neither did Miri. You obviously saw no Darkness in them either. This could be a very good thing!”

I wake up after a good three hours of sleep. My head hurts… Partly because of the wine from last night—partly because I realize as soon as I wake up in the Queen’s chambers that it was all real.

I get dressed and go down for breakfast. I eat lightly, then go to the audience room to prepare for the meeting with the Dwarves.

Thirty minutes later, they are escorted in. Mother, Lothi, Miri, and Mori are at my side. We sit at a large round table and Kir slides a large bag across the table to me.

He ‘smiles’ again and says, “We know you have gone to a great deal of trouble to get these in the past. It has been a great game for us… You have been the best, so far… A worthy opponent, for sure.”

I open the bag to find enough dried moonfruit to last a year. I look at Mori and she shrugs and smiles.

I say, “Thank you, Kir. I was not aware that you knew it was me. If it makes you feel better, I barely escaped.”

Kir goes on to introduce us to Dike Goblinbreaker, Hesdib Mountainfighter, and Sora Bloodquartz—the others in his band.

I introduce my main court to him and have refreshments brought in. The housekeeper had quickly researched Dwarf desires and needs and accommodated them fully in the refreshments.

Kir is impressed, “I did not expect such hospitality, especially given our past. But, that past is why I am here. I am authorized by the Main Council of Clans to offer a pact between the Realms to fight off Drakyre. He is getting bolder and his minions are encroaching more and more on all of the Realms. To be honest, we also plan to talk to the Humans and offer a Peace Stone to them, as well. Only together, will we be able to hold him off…”

I look at Mother and she nods. I whisper to Miri, who quickly leaves. I look back at Kir and say, “This sounds like a great offer, Kir. I would like to hear more about your troubles and what the terms of this pact might be. We are not having major issues with Drakyre, yet. At least none that we cannot handle; although, I agree he IS getting bolder.” I think of the battle at the Border Tree stemming his vile poison from entering the Realm.

Kir nods and gets ready to respond, when Miri returns. I smile and say, “Kir, I would like you to meet my Father—King of the Humans. Maybe we can just turn this into a three-way talk?”

Kir stutters, obviously taken by surprise, “Your Highness. I have no offering for you. I was not expecting this…”

We spend the entire day talking and planning. In the end, we agree to the pact. Father agrees, but says he will still have to discuss it with his court before he can fully commit. Ordinarily, this would not be required, but he is still trying to gain back the trust of his kingdom after having been gone so long…

We break up the meeting and wearily go to the dining hall for a late supper.

I go to bed soon after that. Tomorrow is when Mother and Father leave for the Human Realm…

My dreams that night are tormented. I dream of impending battles with Drakyr…invasions by his minions into neighboring Realms…the Elven Realm harboring fugitives of all races…

I wake up after my usual three hours, drained… It was not a restful night… The dreams were almost like premonitions, but I have never had such dreams before… What is going on? Just stress from the meetings, yesterday? That must be it… They were just run-of-the-mill nightmares… Yes, that has to be it… Right?