Issari stepped forward, waving the smoke aside, and beheld the strangest man she had ever seen. At first, she almost thought him one of her father's demons. The abina—or king—of Goshar was obese, pink, and bald. He was so large she doubted he could walk or even stand. He lounged upon many tasseled cushions, smoking from a hookah, wearing nothing but a golden blanket upon his lap. What he lacked in clothes he made up for in jewels; golden chains and strings of gemstones hung around his neck, bracelets shaped as snakes with jeweled eyes circled his wrists, and a headdress of topaz and amethysts perched atop his glistening head. His eyebrows thrust out, seemingly the only hair on his body, long as fingers and dyed green. Many golden bowls spread around him, containing sweets, skewered scorpions, and even an entire roast peacock with its bright tail reattached.

Issari walked up toward the abina, head held high. "Merciful Abina of Goshar! My father has abandoned the great kingdom of Eteer, Guardian of the Coast. For many years, Eteer of the Sea and Goshar of the Mountains have fought bitter wars. Let us unite water and rock. I've come to forge an alliance between our kingdoms."

The obese man stared at her. Issari could not decide if his eyes were narrowed shrewdly or simply engulfed by folds of fat. Those small, blue eyes moved up and down her body, and finally the king sucked on his hookah and barked a laugh. "It is told in Goshar, child, that Eteer is overrun. That your father meddled in affairs no mortal should, that the terror he unleashed has toppled his towers. It is said that ragged, starving refugees of Eteer now camp outside my walls, begging for mercy." He snorted, spraying spittle. "You come to forge an alliance? You come as a beggar queen in exile, pleading for a few drops of water and scraps of dry bread."

She bared her teeth and stepped closer. "The walls of Eteer are overrun; it is true. My people have wandered the desert, and they seek aid; that too is truth. My armies are shattered, and I cannot even return to my palace. Yes, I am exiled. But I still have my title. And Eteer still guards the sea. Whether its walls and towers stand does not change that fact. Whether soldiers or demons sprawl along the coast, that coast still leads to an empire of trade." She took a deep breath, her fingers tingling. "I will give you access to that sea. I will free you from your landlocked existence, ever your bane, ever the reason Goshar languished in the shadow of Eteer."