“Moonriders, Brennan, no backup planned. Arden: Brita and Robin. Huon and the archivists: Brita’s going to get the Trump from Dad or Caine, and I can loan you a card for Caine, Brita. Possibly Signy if she’s not on Moonrider duty. Klybesians and the Rebman heir: Celina, Merle, and Vere, maybe Jerod. Dad’s suite: Folly and Hannah. Klybesian rutter: Ossian, maybe Jerod. Diplomat duty and research: Garrett. Parisian ladies: Folly, after Dad’s suite. Gerard: Solange. At the moment, no firm decision: Raven, Fletcher, and Ambrose, with the zombies being the big item left. And Conner finding the sapphire, but he’ll need a team for that and … are you going to deal with the Rebman heir for now, Conner?
“And Edan and I have to report to Dad, after which we’ll figure it out, but my first stop is Rebma to pick up Lark and wherever I go I’m going to have the universe’s most dangerously precocious child, at least as far as children who’ve grown to that age without sorcerous help.”
“I don’t think you understand, Highness. ‘No firm decision’ makes it sound like I can’t make up my damn mind.
“I’ve made up my damn mind. All of this – all of it – is a threat to the safety of the realm. But in that whole bloody list… ain’t a whole lot of it I’ve been pulled after as hard as some other folks. Seen a bit of the Klybesians. Seen a bit of the zombies, but I kind of feel like that’s not a going concern – if I had to guess, the zombies that were elsewhere were coming from whichever one of the bloody Triumvirate it was that Weyland entombed, some sort of trade network or some shit. She was creating enough of them, from what they were sayin’ in Gateway, even before we took care of Dexamene. Supply’s been cut off there; sure, there’s probably plenty out there, and who knows for how long, but… who wants to bet money on the Klybesians havin’ them?
“Anyway. I’m a city kid and a sailor; ain’t gonna be a lot of use in Arden, but I’ll give it a shot if I’m asked to. This whole ‘Rebman heir’ thing… I dunno. Seems like it’s Rebma’s concern, and that’s the Rebman folks’ concern –
“Huh. Possibly-my-da’s beholden to that throne, and Ma’s got something going on that way, which I really need to corner the uncle on the other side that I didn’t fucking know about and ask some questions there. Wonder how much of Rebma’s gonna end up my problem eventually?
“Right. Shelving that for now.
“Moonriders… well, aside from Conner choosing to try and get himself killed five minutes after we’d had the discussion about whether he’s actually my father or not – which is a conversation I’m saving for when we’ve had a chance to talk to Princess Fiona and it’s proven one way or t’other – and a potful of legend… I don’t have much.
“Point is… I don’t know a whole hell of a lot here still, or at least it feels like it. And the one thing I really want to chase is mostly off the table for now, sounds like, but it’s a thing I mean to follow up with on later when there’s less people around determined that there’s no point in going home. Without that on tap… again – all these things are in some way a threat to the realm. I’ve a sworn duty to protect the realm, and that’s what I mean to do, even if I don’t have the strong pull towards any one thing that others have.
“But somebody’s got to either toss me a line or order me onto a deck here.”