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face him squarely. “He and I have had words about that incident.” Which was true; they had discussed it, though the “words” were not punitive in any way. Still, her response was technically true, if not directly to the captain’s point, and that subtlety was often at the heart of diplomacy. “First encounters with new friends from across the galaxy seem to require a bit more flexibility than we might otherwise prefer. Fortunately, we’re all good natured about such things.”
    “How will your people escape in an emergency?” Orli asked, jumping in before Captain Asad could say something snide about good-natured encounters with newly made enemies. “What if something happens and there are no teleporters around?”
    Aderbury, looking relieved, reached into the collar of his robes and pulled out a cluster of amulets. He untangled a silver chain from the bunch and presented it to the group. A thumbnail-sized amethyst hung from it. “We use these,” he said. “They are fast-cast amulets. Everyone on Citadel is required to wear one. They can get themselves back to Prosperion in an instant if needs be. We’ll keep the mana in them regularly augmented for distances as we move along. Sir Altin has warned us about just how far away we might get someday.”
    Orli was familiar with the amulets, having seen one in action the day she thought Altin had died.
    “That’s all very good,” said the Queen. “Now let’s be on with it. The first stop on the tour is just through here.” She opened a door and a moment later they stood along the top row of a huge stadium looking down into an immense, dirt-floored arena.
    “My training grounds,” the Queen announced proudly. “I’ve got stables and barracks to accommodate a full five regiments of cavalry—three light and two heavy. On the next floor up,” she looked up at the ceiling which was fifty feet from the arena floor by Orli’s estimate, “is another parade ground of equal size in which my infantry and artillery can train.”
    The Queen swelled with pride at these announcements, but the amused expression on Captain Asad’s face revealed that he thought it completely ridiculous. He did have the admiral’s orders in mind, however, so he converted the smirk into a smile that looked properly impressed.
    From there, Aderbury led them through several floors, each housing various departments and stocked for various contingencies. All in all, there were twenty floors, complete with a central palace, an immense library—which was still being filled with books, for which Aderbury apologized and made excuses about how slow transcription could be—and a whole floor designated for Citadel’s hospital.
    When they’d finished a brief walk through the hospital, the Queen suddenly lit up in a way she hadn’t since the captains had first arrived. Proud as she had been through this part or that of Citadel , suddenly she became nearly as excited as a child on Winter’s Eve holiday. She practically pushed Aderbury out of the way as she completely took over the role of tour guide at that point. “Finally,” she said. “It’s time to show you the Concert Hall. The center of Citadel ’s power.”
    Captain Asad sent Captain Jefferies a meaningful look as if to say, “Pay attention,” and the other man nodded, though Orli thought Captain Jefferies’ expression seemed more than a little impatient now. Captain Asad’s probing questions and sober glances along the way had seemed to annoy Captain Jefferies more than they were setting off any alarms in his mind. She didn’t think Jefferies was one of the officers sitting around the fire at Captain Asad’s Camp Paranoid.
    They made their way up a winding stairwell that brought them to a grand gallery. It opened up on a vast garden, which was well appointed with native Prosperion plants and trees, some of them towering above and nearly touching the ceiling forty feet up. The group wanted to stop and marvel at the artificial