Draconas held out his hand and a woman strode forward. She walked with dignity and grace, and the crowd parted as she came.

“This is Anna, the High Priestess of Seth,” said Draconas.

“Your Majesty,” said the High Priestess, and she made him a low bow. “My sisters and I can defend you against the dragons. That is why we have come.”

Before the king could reply, shouts went up from all parts of the castle, crying that the enemy had regrouped and was launching the attack.

“Get back to your posts!” Edward commanded.

Men returned to their positions. The warrior women took their places alongside the soldiers, who glanced at them askance, but were too busy preparing for the assault to have much to say to them.

Marcus heard the command, but he did not move. News of the dragons and the enemy attack made little impact. He stared, entranced, at the High Priestess.

“She is lovely,” he said softly, to himself, or so he thought.

“Yes, she is,” said Ven.

Marcus looked from his brother to the High Priestess and flushed. “I am sorry, Brother. I didn’t mean—”

Ven smiled. His smile was stiff, for it hadn’t been much used, and he wasn’t certain quite what to do with it.

“Admire Anna as much as you like,” Ven said. “She and I are friends, that is all. I have a family of my own to look after now. Twenty brothers and sisters. I’ll explain later,” he added, his smile warming as he saw Marcus’s astonishment. “Now, we had best prepare to deal with the dragons.”

“There is no need to be diplomatic, Your Majesty,” Anna was saying, responding to the king’s delicate questions. “We know the truth about the dragon, as we know about the deceit that was practiced on our people. We know that the Mistress of Dragons, the woman we revered, was actually a dragon herself.”

Her gaze went to Ven. “We know about the babies that were stolen away in the night and taken to Dragonkeep. We know about the dragon’s children. We have taken them in and offered them sanctuary. And we have come to your kingdom to stop the dragons from enslaving you as they did us.”

“Your help is most welcome, High Priestess,” said Edward. He was glad to see that many of his commanders were standing within earshot and that they were listening intently. “Let me know what you need.”

Voices cried out from the watchtowers and the walls. The attack was commencing. Globules of fire, like balls of molten lava, flew over the walls. The flames spread rapidly, feeding off whatever they touched, be it cold iron or human flesh.

“Put out those fires!” Gunderson roared.

“Do not use water!” The commander of the warrior women shouted. “Water spreads the flames! Smother them with wet straw or blankets!”