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.If you will not do it, we are morethan happy to show ourselves to the throne room."The guard started to make a jeering remark, but finallynoticed the figure across Ivan's saddle.He vanished through theguardhouse door and a moment later the gate was raised.174 | Megan Derr – Burning BrightIvan was not surprised that, once inside the palace, theywere quickly surrounded by soldiers."There was probably an easier way to do this," Razcommented as they obediently dismounted."You are under arrest," a guard with captain's marks said,and he signaled the others soldiers to grab them.Ivan was just about to start breaking noses when someonecalled out, "Hold!"Everyone froze, turned and watched as Krasny descendedthe stairs to the palace, the High Priest just behind him."Release them," Krasny said.Ivan almost didn't recognizehim.The man he'd met had been dressed all in black, roughfrom days of hard travel.The man before him was dressed inblack breeches, stockings, and silver-buckled black shoes, buthis coat was of the deepest violet and decorated with variousornaments of state.His hair was loose, all the more vivid againstthe purple jacket.A heavy rubi ring was on his finger, andthough Ivan had never seen it, everyone knew the Tsar's ring."Majesty," he greeted, kneeling as Krasny turned to facehim.Krasny looked amused."Guards, get Zholty down from thathorse.Take the horses away.Release them!" The guards whostill had hold of Raz and the mermaids hastily let them go andstepped back."Come with me."Ivan stood, sharing a look with the others as he obedientlyfollowed Krasny into the palace.Krasny led them down themain hall, and then down a series of smaller hallways, up anarrow flight of stairs, and down one last hallway to a smallroom that was mostly comprised of a curving wall of windowsset above padded benches.Ivan glanced out them and saw theyoverlooked the city a great distance away."Sit, tea should be here shortly," Krasny said.He gestured tothe guards who had followed them silently the entire time."Wait outside.""Your Majesty—""Outside," Krasny said and stepped back when another setof guards brought Zholty in and, at Krasny's bidding, laid him175 | Megan Derr – Burning Brightout on a settee in the corner.They had only just departed whenthree women and a footman came in bearing a teacart andwent about setting up the table in the center of the room.Ivan wished they would just lock him up already.He wouldrather have been in a prison cell than having tea with thescorching Tsar.He turned to Raz, but Raz was staring hard at theHigh Priest who was, in turn, starting just as hard back.Rolling his eyes at the entire situation, Ivan moved to stareout the window some more, joining Shio and Shinju there."So Iguess you two must be pretty pleased that your mission ofensuring the Vessels die is accomplished.""We don't like it," Shio said."We don't want Raz to die.Wedidn't want Pechal to die.They were nice to us.""Yeah, funny, when I don't want people I care about to bekilled I don't turn them in to ensure it happens," Ivan said."Keep trying to justify your actions all you like; you're nothingbut a couple of scorching fish to me."Shinju started to say something, but cut herself off with arough, angry noise.The sound of the door closing drew theirattention, and they all turned to see the servants and remainingguards had departed"My life has never been a boring one," Krasny said."Asmuch as I have traveled, I was fairly confident I had seeneverything.But I admit I have never had a wanted criminal walkinto my courtyard and demand to see me, bringing suchinteresting company with him: A traitor, two mermaids, andthe last Vessel." He swept an arm mockingly at the table."Shallwe have tea?"Ivan sat, not at all certain what he should have been doingsitting next to the scorching Tsar having tea.He settled formimicking Krasny and Dym, grateful that Dym poured tea foreveryone."So how did you capture Zholty?" Krasny asked."He came after me," Raz said."He spoke of losingeverything if I died, though whether it was the failure of his ownplans or that he would fail Teufel, I could not tell you." Hedrained most of his teacup and began to explain what had176 | Megan Derr – Burning Brighthappened to him.Ivan had already heard it from him when theystopped to rest on their journey back to the Heart.It soundedno less horrific in the retelling, and he shivered all over again,chest aching with the memory of the curse Zholty had placed onhim.When Raz had finished retelling his part, Ivan picked it up,relating the way Zholty had nearly killed Gleb, Ferapont, andAilill.It was only when he said Ailill's name that he realized hiserror.Krasny's brow shot up."Ailill.Not Ailill le Blanc, the WhitePanther of Verde?"Ivan sighed at himself."The very same, your Majesty.""Dare I ask what he was doing here, and why he was clearlytrying to hide that fact?""He was looking for a comb, some treasure of Verde.Zholtyhad it; we got it back for him.Ailill should have headed home awhile ago, but he stayed to help us."Krasny grimaced, set his teacup down, and leaned back inhis seat, folding his hands in his lap."Well, I am glad hesurvived.I shudder to think what would happen in Verde if theyhad to wait for a new White Panther to appear.Given howyoung they are when they are revealed, it would have been aneven greater disaster for their already quite tragic ceremony."Tamping down on his curiosity about Verde because it wasneither the time nor the place and completely pointless anyway,Ivan asked, "What are you going to do with Zholty?""Execute him," Krasny said, picking up his tea and sipping it."He's a traitor and, more importantly, extremely dangerous.We'll do it tonight, quietly.He has no family, and even beingengaged to Princess Sonya has not really won him any allies.Noone will inquire closely about his absence—if they inquire atall—and in a few months we'll quietly announce his death." Hetilted his head, gave Ivan a speculative look, and then glanced atDym.They seemed to have some silent conversation.Ivanremembered when they had done that before.He was learningto really hate when they did that—and hated more that he'dseen it enough to have learned to hate it
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