Rezkin replaced his usual worn belt with a new black one that was embossed with the images of ravens in flight along its length, and he mentally chuckled at the sight of the ravens. His scabbards and hilts were polished to a shine. On his feet were polished black boots in a dress military style. His clothes were not the ridiculously frilly garb typical of the courtiers. This was the fine dress style of a practical man of station, a man of power, a man who did not care for the opinions of others but demanded their respect instead.

Rezkin knew he should not have been, but he was surprised to see Frisha in a gown. It was a deep burgundy that brought out the hidden red highlights in her otherwise brown hair. The neckline was cut low, and her bosom was pushed up as though the two were attempting to switch places. Mounds upon mounds of silky fabric swirled around her legs, which had completely disappeared. Rezkin thought she looked lovely as usual, even if the dress was completely impractical. This was the way of nobles, though. He was not the only one who had to practice proper decorum when the situation demanded.

The Lady Adelina escorted Rezkin to the dining room, and he was seated to her right in the place of honor. This made Rezkin feel a little uncomfortable since he did not know why he was being treated so. Tam sat to Lady Adelina’s left, and Frisha was to the right of the general next to Tam.

After a bit of small talk the general commented, “So, Rezkin, I take it that is your battle charger in my stable. I went out just before supper to check on my own, and imagine my surprise to find another. Wherever did you get him, might I ask?”

This was a difficult question for Rezkin to answer without going into the details of his life at the fortress, something he was not willing to do with the general considering he had been ordered to kill fifteen of the kingdom’s strikers. Rezkin decided to hedge. “I sort of inherited him from my masters upon completion of my training.”

“I see,” the general commented neutrally. “And, where did you train?”

Frisha perked up at finally having something to share about Rez that she actually knew. “He was raised in a fort by a bunch of soldiers. I’m sorry, Rez, I cannot imagine what it would have been like to have been raised without your family,” she said, looking at him with compassion.

Rezkin shrugged and replied, “It is simply how things were. I knew no different, so I missed nothing.”