As Tyranny descended the litter, she coyly held out one hand for the prince to take, and he had no other choice but to do so. Immediately sensing Tristan's discomfort, she couldn't help but take advantage of it-presumably as payback for having made her ride in the litter, Tristan assumed.

Surmising that one of these two women-probably the redhead, she thought-must be the famous Celeste, Tyranny leaned over, gave Tristan a short kiss on the cheek, then linked her arm through his and smiled cattily at the two other women.

Later on, a grinning Wigg would tell Tristan that when all of this happened, the prince's face had become as red as the lead wizard had ever seen it. For his part, Faegan had simply covered his mouth with one hand and let go a quite unnecessary cough. After the rather stiff introductions had been made, they had all adjourned to the palace.

Now, his dreggan and throwing knives hooked over the back of his chair, Tristan told them everything. In between bites of food and cups of wine, he described in great detail his capture, his time rowing, and his meeting with Krassus and the herbmistress Grizelda. He went on to tell them of his rescue by Tyranny, the attack by the screechlings, their time on Sanctuary, and their fight with the pirate fleet only hours earlier. He also explained how he had marooned the raiders on Sanctuary rather than killing them, and that he had ordered a small contingent of Minion warships to stay behind to guard them.

He did not, however, demand answers from them regarding the mystery surrounding the existence of Sanctuary, for he realized that the two secretive wizards would not wish to discuss it in the presence of two relative strangers.

Wigg and Faegan listened to his story intently. They asked questions from time to time, but for the most part they remained still. When Tristan finally finished, the room went completely quiet, the only sound the purring of Nicodemus, Faegan's blue cat. It was Wigg who finally broke the silence.

"It seems we have much to thank you for, miss," he said, turning to Tyranny. "But tell us, why did you decide to go demonslaver hunting in the first place? It seems like a particularly dangerous occupation to take up, even for a person as capable as you appear to be."

Tyranny's face darkened. "They took my brother," she answered, "and killed my parents in the process. I escaped, and I have been searching for my brother ever since. My family name is Welborne, and we lived in Farpoint. My father ran a fleet of fishing vessels there. Scars and I know the Sea of Whispers as well as anyone alive." Then she looked over at Tristan, and a smile crossed her lips. "Besides," she added, "I am not so easily captured."

A look of recognition flashed over the lead wizard's face. "The Welbornes of Farpoint?" he said. "A very long time ago, I knew such a family. There was once a privateer, Isaac Welborne, who sailed in the service of the Directorate. But that was more than three hundred years ago, during the Sorceresses' War."

"Isaac Welborne was one of my ancestors," Tyranny said proudly. "My father used to love to tell the story of how, just after the end of the war, Isaac loaned his battered ship to the newly formed Directorate, so that they might use it to banish the sorceresses from Eutracia. The ship was a galleon named the Resolve. But that was a long time ago."

It might have simply been the retelling of the story, or it might have been due to the lead wizard's recent, heart-rending experiences in the Chamber of Penitence, but for whatever reason, Wigg's eyes grew shiny. He wiped them with the sleeve of his robe.

"Tyranny has brought you a pair of gifts," Tristan added softly. "She agreed with me that they probably belong here in the palace, where they could be protected."

He gave Geldon a nod, and the two of them left the room for a moment. When they returned, they were helping each other carry two rather unwieldy packages. Each was wrapped in bloody sailcloth and tied securely with ship's rope. They placed them on the table before Wigg, then sat down again.

The lead wizard raised an eyebrow. "What are they?"

"The only way you're going to know is by opening them," Tristan answered, a smile on his face. "As far as I know, even you and Faegan can't see through things."

From the other side of the table, Faegan gave one of his wry cackles. "Don't be so sure."

Wigg looked down at the crudely wrapped packages. He couldn't imagine what they might be. Nor could he remember the last time anyone had given him something, for that matter. Narrowing his eyes, he called on the craft. Almost immediately, the sailor's knots began to untie themselves. As they did, Tristan looked over at Tyranny and Scars to see that their eyes had become as big as saucers.

As the sailcloth was unwrapped, it revealed a worn ship's wheel-the one Tristan had ordered taken from The People's Revenge just before she went down. The other package contained the wooden-and-brass plaque that listed not only all the names of those who had commanded the Resolve, but also the various other vessels the wheel had been passed down to over the centuries by the Welborne family.

Rather high up on the list, it said, wigg, lead wizard of the directorate of wizards. commander of the resolve. The last entry read, tyranny of the house of welborne. captain of the people's revenge.

The wizard's eyes welled up with tears as he ran his ancient fingers over the engravings. He then looked up at Tyranny with genuine affection.

"My greatest thanks, child," he said softly, his voice cracking. "I couldn't possibly know how to repay you."

Pushing his tongue against the inside of his cheek, Tristan looked over at Tyranny. "Actually," he began, "there is a way…"

"And that would be?" Faegan asked suspiciously.

Tristan indicated to Tyranny that she should hand over the promissory note. When she gave it to him, he unfolded it and passed it over to the lead wizard.

As Wigg read the note, his eyes went wide. He remembered all that Tristan had just told them about his recent adventures, though, and his expression softened a bit. Still, he wasn't convinced that such a huge amount should be paid.

He finally passed the note over to Faegan, who scanned the page. With a cackle, he handed it to Shailiha. Everyone around the table eventually read it. After they had, quiet settled in as they all waited for the lead wizard to speak. Wigg looked down at the ship's wheel and plaque again, then back up at the sea captain.

"Forgive me, Tyranny, but I simply must ask," Wigg said quietly. "Did you give me these gifts just to soften my mood?"

"No," Tristan interjected firmly. "It was all my idea." Then he smiled. "Still, I didn't think it would hurt."

Wigg shook his head adamantly. "Tristan, surely you must realize what a huge sum this is!" he countered. "I fully understand that it is the identical amount that was once offered for your capture, and as such it may therefore possess some small degree of justification. But such a sum is without precedent in the entire history of Eutracia! Such a reward would make Tyranny the wealthiest woman-nay, perhaps even the wealthiest person-in the entire nation!"

But Tristan wasn't about to back down. She had saved his life twice. And he had given her his word. A deal was a deal. Leaning over the tabletop, he looked Wigg directly in the eyes.

"Then it's a good thing we're all sitting in the Chamber of Supplication, isn't it?" he asked Wigg seriously. "What better place to grant such a request?" He leaned back in his chair and looked around the table again. "Besides," he said shortly, "there are other things I wish her to have, as well. Things that are now in our own best interests to provide."

"And just what might those be?" Faegan asked.

"I want the two of you to grant her letters of marque, just as you once did for Isaac," Tristan said. "These times we live in are no less dangerous than then-perhaps even more so. I want you to draw the papers up immediately. They are to validate her rights as a privateer to prowl the waters off the coast of Eutracia, and to attack and commandeer any demonslaver vessels she might run across, and any pirate ships that might have slipped away during our recent battle. Despite the efficiency of the Minion fleet, given the great scope and confusion of yesterday's confrontation I would be very surprised if at least several of the raiders' vessels hadn't eluded us. In return, Tyranny is to give over three-fourths of whatever booty she collects to the monarchy. The remainder she is free to do with as she wishes."