Pari watched the crowd from her window as the staff parked the carriage. Though they were happy to see their lord returned, that happiness was directed away from her, another kind of barrier between the Sapphire and outsiders. Since their arrival, she had seen many such barriers, from physical ones like the bridge, the guards, and the walls themselves, to more subtle ones; the abundance of blue flags, the smiles kept for locals only, the way traders from other houses had been partitioned into a separate area. All were weapons to dishearten non-Sapphire visitors.

Well, we have weapons of our own.

‘I’m not sure I can do this,’ said Arkav.

‘I am.’ She took his hand. ‘I’ll be with you all the way.’

‘High Lord Tanzanite is using us.’

‘Of course she is.’

‘She says she wants me to succeed, and I believe her. But in her heart, she expects me to fail. She’s planned for it.’ He looked away. ‘If our words don’t bring High Lord Sapphire to justice, then our blood will … I don’t think we’re coming back from this, Pari.’

‘Nonsense! We will see this through, save House Sapphire from itself and annoy Priyamvada in the process, and look fabulous while doing it.’ She frowned. ‘How is my face looking? Be honest?’

‘They’ve covered the bruises and I can only see the swelling up close.’

‘That will have to do. Shall we?’

The door was opened, and the two of them climbed out, her dress and his jacket so long that servants carried the ends of them to keep them from the dirt. At her nod, they unfurled a banner of seven colours – purple, black, blue, violet, red, white, green – and marched behind them with it. It made clear that they came as representatives of all the houses joined together rather than just Tanzanite.

People hushed as they passed, and Pari approved of this. She did not look at them, keeping her eyes forward and her mind on the future. A servant, rather than Rochant himself, came to welcome them, and led them into the keep. A rather unnecessary number of guards were in evidence inside, and she wondered if they were for her benefit. In fact they were so ubiquitous that when she passed a corridor without any, it invited comment.

‘What’s wrong with that hallway?’

‘I beg your pardon, Lady Pari?’

She stopped. Arkav and his staff stopped, and, a step later, their escort stopped. When she was sure she had their attention, she gestured lazily towards it. ‘That hallway there. Does it not deserve protection too?’

‘Ah, that has been cleared for the Bringers of Endless Order to use, as is tradition.’

‘Marvellous,’ she replied, and started down it. When she began to walk, so too did Lord Arkav and his staff.