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Hi, and welcome to what I like to call my literary home. My name is Jeff, and I write fantasy novels from the heart. My stories are full of interesting characters that you will love to meet. Unlike other fantasy authors, many of my stories have a bit of a twist. You see, I spent a long time in the US Navy. During that time, I learned a lot of good things about life and a few less pleasant things as well.

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About Jeff Long

 I have seen many places around the world. In many ways, I guess you can say I started to write as a way of processing what I have experienced. That is why many of the combat scenes and action sequences in my novels are so realistic. Unlike other authors, I don’t need to make it up. I have been there, seen it, and managed to come out on the other side. I have always had a passion for fantasy and character-rich stories. The road was long, but eventually, I managed to create my own stories worth publishing. Novels and writing are my two big passions in life. Even though they have their basis in fantasy, I draw on my personal experiences in my books

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You can certainly expect some exciting action. But, there is more to my writing than action-packed adventures.

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I have a passion for history, and I love weaving history into the plot. Before I sit down and put pen to paper, I do a lot of research. I want my books to make the reader feel that he is part of another world. 

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We all need a bit of escapism in our lives. Escapism is one of the most vital elements in my books. Unlike other authors, I like to base my books around my characters. Each one of my characters develop as the book progresses.

Dire wolves were the defacto pets of the Elindari as old wolves were sometimes adopted by hunters. More often, hunters brought home puppies that soon became family pets. Evan understood pack law all too well; Frost would try to become pack leader, unless he came down hard on him and made him submit. Where an over-proud Elindari might harbor resentment, Frost just bent his back end towards him as a sign of submission and followed behind without further thought.
Jeff LongFrom the Book 'A Changing Tide'

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Jeff Long

Sometimes when I write, I don’t go where a character is going to take me. I give it wings and let it fly. That is very much my philosophy. Writing for me is very much like going on a personal quest. That is why history is such an integral part of my novels. My characters often find themselves in many different periods in history. They are just as much home in medieval times as they are during the renaissance era. I let my imagination take flight. Subsequently, my characters slowly reveal themselves to me. That is what makes them so exciting and intriguing. The plot matters as well. I like to develop strong plots that allow my characters to interact with each other.

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Revenge served hot

Evan rode out, removing the wards that guarded Lira. He carefully inspected her wounds, finding them well on the way to healing. He needed to be on the road but realized that he would do well not waking her. She required the separation of a night’s sleep from the horror she endured. She was a proud woman, and she had been both deeply offended and humiliated. He sighed before settling back, watching the sun drop from midday till the moon rose against a darkening night.
                Goddess, what is wrong with me? Why could I not just have given Tanith what she wanted? He thought he saw a flash of silver-white out of the corner of his eye. He was about to dismiss it when he remembered the giant wolf—the one called Frost. Wanting no more confrontations that night, he set up an outer ward thirty feet out that would shock the hell out of anything that crossed it. He then moved ten yards further in and set a lethal ward that would kill anything that didn’t get the hint. Next, he picketed both horses and pulled the scabbard off his saddle, resting it on his knees. He closed his eyes and waited for the dawn.
                He awoke to a canine howl straight from the bowels of hell, shortly followed by a female scream. Evan suddenly found himself standing bolt upright. A mind long used to emergency streamed in facts faster than an eye could blink. Lira was still sleeping, the horizon showed the first pink of dawn, nothing was near him, and his sword-blade had blue, glowing rune script down both sides. He’d never seen those runes before and hadn’t a clue what they were. Evan had experienced some blown ambushes before, but this was extraordinarily inept. He removed the sleeping spell from Lira and then made his way towards the nonstop cursing, dispelling his wards as he went. He kept his sword out as he wasn’t sure what he would find. He hadn’t lived this long without taking a few precautions.
                He moved forward, smelling singed fur, and knew what was ahead.
                “Good morning Tanith, Frost.”
                Tanith was sitting on the ground, holding a burned foot, and Frost was licking at a burned nose. Evan raised his eyes to a still black sky and muttered a prayer of thanks to the Goddess for protecting fools in the night.
                “Evan, you burned Frost and me!”
                “You burned yourselves. What in the name of the Goddess were you thinking trying to sneak up on me sleeping? Count yourselves lucky to be alive.”
                “We didn’t leave on the best of terms. Aurelia found me and told me what happened to Lira. Then, she told me what you said about me. Why did you shave her bald? I figured that you had to be with Lira out here, so I came.”
                “Aurelia got exactly what she served up. I’d consider her lucky if she escapes a noose. Now, why are you here? Without saying a word, you don’t hail a strange camp before trying to sneak in?”
                Tanith stared at the ground, looking for the entire world like a four-year-old caught with her hand in a honey pot. “The way we left, and after what happened with Tiernan, I, well …”
                “Ah, so you thought you’d sneak in and catch me sleeping with Lira?”
                “I, oh, bleeding hell… am I ever going to stop looking like an idiot to you?”
                “I could say when you stop acting like one. Tanith, there is no one I want to sleep with besides you! What is wrong with everyone? I remember fondly a time when I was whom everyone worried about, and now I’m the starving voice of reason? Please, honestly, check to see if the sun is rising in the west because something is terribly wrong!”
                “No, keep going. You are on an excellent roll. I was wondering that myself.”
                Evan looked back to see Lira standing sans the blanket he had laid over her, and minus even a stitch of clothing on. He groaned and put his face in his hand. “I was trying to tell Tanith how we are not sleeping together, and you are standing there like that.”
                “Since I have spent the night comatose, I think you are pretty safe. Tanith, I will not sleep with Evan. I am hoping Hunter will take up with a fallen woman. Ah, well, most of my new stripes are gone, so I have to assume that you learned from my healing lessons,” Lira said.
                “Your clothes are in the mare’s saddlebags; would you mind dressing so that the squirrels don’t start humping your leg?” Evan joked.
                “Always such a prude, I thought you were going to lay Tanith and take care of that?” Lira said while struggling with a too-tight pair of pants.
                “I wish! Damn him,” Tanith grumped.
                “Evan, we had this discussion, absence does not make the virgin grow fonder,” Lira said.
                “If you two start agreeing, I am going swimming out to sea to drown myself.” Evan busied himself with the cinch straps on the horse in a valiant attempt to end the conversation.
                Tanith saw Lira start to open her mouth and stopped her with a look. “Don’t even think about it, this is what got you into trouble in the first place.”
                Lira’s mouth opened, her face clouding with the shock of remembrance. Evan noticed and had Lira in a close hug before the first tear started. “It is over now; you are under my protection.” He rubbed her between the shoulders until the tears stopped. “I have spoken to Aurelia and the rest; they will never do such a thing again.”
                She kept her face pressed against his chest; her words barely reaching his ears. “I had some of that coming, I know it. I just never expected such hate.”
                Evan saw Tanith’s face stiffening at the sight of him holding Lira, and he let go. Don’t go borrowing trouble you don’t need. With what he hoped looked like a friendly and supportive hug, he helped Lira to her saddle.
                A sudden jump placed him on Firewind’s back, and he secured his bow in the saddle’s bow case. He found himself wishing against every hope that he’d had enough drama for one day. He started the war stallion at a leisurely walk since he was all too aware that Lira would be weak from the healing and the trauma. It was all too soon when he heard Tanith urging her mare, Star, to catch up with him. He repressed a sigh that would lead to another argument. As if anything would stop us fighting again…
                Sure enough, Tanith put Star beside him, and Firewind saw Frost keep trying to get between the horses. A flying hoof from Firewind caused Frost to dodge and yelp. Evan fixed the wolf with a hard stare. This is my pack, Frost, not yours. Unless you wish to challenge me for the leadership, you will keep your place.
                Dire wolves were the defacto pets of the Elindari as old wolves were sometimes adopted by hunters. More often, hunters brought home puppies that soon became family pets. Evan understood pack law all too well; Frost would try to become pack leader, unless he came down hard on him and made him submit. Where an over-proud Elindari might harbor resentment, Frost just bent his back end towards him as a sign of submission and followed behind without further thought.
                Tanith frowned but said nothing about the incident and Evan knew her mind was on something else.
                “We have things to discuss Evan,” Tanith said.
                “I thought you had made your decision after slapping me in the chest and putting Frost between us,” Evan said.
                “I was hurt, Evan.”
                Instead of sounding apologetic, she looked angry. Evan said nothing, keeping his eyes forward and nodding in acknowledgment.
                “I could have handled it better,” Tanith ventured.
                “If you are trying to apologize, say it as if you meant it.” He regretted the words, but they were out of his mouth before he could stop it.
                “Do you have to be such a stubborn ass about everything, Evan?” The line between her eyebrows gave a clue to her vexation.
                “Perhaps I am a bit of a mule about some things, but I don’t make decisions about both of us without your consent Tanith. You decided it was high time to make love and do the irreversible without so much as asking me a thing,” Evan said.
                Tanith’s head jerked up as if stung. “Is making love to me so hard?”
                Evan struggled to keep a frown off his face. “It is more than that, and we both know it. No, I want nothing more than to lie down with you and call you my wife forever. That isn’t the issue. If what you say is true, then we have centuries. Why the rush?”
                Lira’s voice came from behind him, proof that every word that had been said she had heard.
                “What exactly have you told him Tanith? You know that there are things that only the order should know about!” Lira said.
                “Lira, you are not supposed to be listening to us! Evan wields the way better than either of us. How are the people served by keeping secrets from a prince of the realm?”
                Lira rode up on his left, sitting her saddle a bit tenderly. “There is a reason for our secrets Tanith.”
                Tanith snorted with derision. “Like the one that would have him assume that I will die before he will? Your secrets keep us apart, Lira.”
                Evan looked at Lira, his eyes questioning. “I’ve risked myself on your behalf, Lira. I’ve defended you when I had no reason but friendship. I carry every military secret the clan has, and share only what has to be shared. Do you honestly think I can’t be entrusted with this?”
                Lira gulped as her eyes met his, and she relented. “I owe you too much to refuse you, Evan. It is the Imril trees, not the fact we have Elven blood. Even the high Elven keep Imril trees around those stone mansions they build. They extend a lifespan four or five times.”
                Evan slapped a hand over his face in shock and frustration. “What would be the reason to keep that a secret?”
                “Neither of you have thought this through. The reason for the dark elf invasion is overpopulation. The Tir-la-Noc are looking at nothing less than mass starvation if they don’t start moving to new lands. Just what do you think would happen if a woman of two-hundred-and-seventy years were still giving birth as our women can? What happens when humans find out and start planting groves?”
                “They are not stupid, Lira, as much as we want to think humans are less than we are. They are not less than we are. They would adjust as we have, slowing their birth rate.”
                Tanith shook her head. “Lira is right. Eventually yes, we’d learn as you have, but before that, the peasants would breed out of control. After the mass famines and the revolutions that followed, yes, things would change; the Kovir Empire would cease to exist, and invasions would follow as sure as the sun rises.”
                “Not one in twenty Druids knows the secret, Evan. You were not told to keep the fact from getting out to the world. None of us needs that much chaos,” Lira said.
                “The full Elven sail the seas with those great ships and all those warships. How do they live so long?” Evan asked.
                “None of us has ever seen an Elven ship, Evan. We don’t have that answer; they keep their secrets,” Lira said.
                “Not much longer. According to the message I received, there is one waiting with the Cistian Ambassador aboard waiting for us to greet them and send them on to Virago. The king wants me to represent the clan,” Evan said.
                “I’ll make sure I get a look at that ship,” Lira said.
                “They may be more than reluctant to let you see their ship Lira,” Evan said.
                “Ha! Since I am no longer in a relationship, I feel entirely free to use my charms as I see fit. I will get aboard fear not,” Lira smirked.
                Tanith groaned a bit but said nothing.
                “What no sharp remarks about my being a hussy?” Lira asked.
                “At least you are going to get laid,” Tanith said somewhat tightly.
                “You can come with me Tanith,” Lira said.
                Tanith stuck a thumb in his direction. “I’m trying to get Prince tight pants in my bed. That won’t help.”
                Humans are complete idiots. You want her to have her and get her with pups. This makes no sense at all. Frost chipped in.
                “Great, just great. Now, Frost is telling me how to act as well,” Evan said.              
                “You could use the advice, Evan. Frost has lots of pups, and all you have to show for the effort has to be a damn near permanent hard-on.” Lira smirked.
                Evan looked up at the sky as the women laughed. This had all the markings of a long day.

Delyth’s Party for the 34th

It was two weeks after the wedding when the evening of the party started. It began with the wagons, long lines each with a cargo of widows and baskets of food. Word had been sent that the widows were throwing a feast in the corps’ honor to show gratitude for the defense of the land. Clark had expected to find that the women were older; he still wasn’t sure why, as he’d never see an aged Elindari before. The few Elindari women he had met were in roughly spun work dresses or breeches with a blouse. Yet, they came, and the park around the garrison looked like a siege train, in which a feast was set for all the empty wagons.
                The widows had arrived, and he and the men of the 34th Corps were introduced to the Elindari women and spider silk raiment. The widows were tall, at least as tall as his soldiers, and often taller. For all their height, they were tended to slenderness, taut bodies, and curves to make a man’s eyes widen. The dresses were in all the colors, soft plum, harvest gold, autumn silver, and grays. They all wore white spider silk nets over their heads dangling gemstones. Some of the women sang accompanied by lutes, mandolins, and lap harps. As the sun began to set, the women brought their baskets to the men they had chosen to approach. Clark watched as it looked like a beautiful and intricate dance for all that it was just introductions that took place.
                It struck him that none of the women had approached him and worst of all, Delyth was not there. A feeling of bitterness, sadness, and understanding, crept over him. He smiled ruefully knowing that at forty-five years, he was nearing the end of his life. Delyth had promised to hold a party she hadn’t said that she’d attend. These women were looking for younger men. A soft chuckle escaped his lips at his own foolishness. His dog robber would have a dinner laid out for him back at his quarters, and he’d make do with that, best to leave the young to their fun. He told himself that but it did nothing to the lingering ache of loneliness, and disappointment.
Delyth had received what she had needed. She’d promise him nothing after all. He had been the one that assumed his feelings towards her were reciprocated. The ache went right from his heart and to his throat. He’d not let one of the others see it, however. He was far too proud for that. He had decided long ago that he’d give his heart when he was sure that the lady was offering a life together and not just time together. It wasn’t his fault that it had never happened. All too often he’d have to console one of his men with a broken heart, all for not understanding the difference. He turned smartly on his right heel and went back to his quarters. The muted echo of his boots down the wood hall seemed to echo the emptiness of the barracks and his heart.
                Upon opening the doors to his quarters, the smell of his dinner hit his nose. Clark carefully hung his uniform jacket in the valise and unbuttoned the high collar of his shirt. The paperwork involved in running a regiment was endless, and the stack of reports was a good four inches deep. He pulled the plate with his dinner over to his working table. The potatoes, mutton, and leeks seemed a bit drab compared to the feast but eating alone out in the feast just seemed humiliating, but at least the mulled wine was decent. He was working his way steadily through the stack of reports signing and annotating points of concern when a knock at the door interrupted.
                “Come,” Clark responded to the knock without further thought, returning to his paperwork.
                The door opened, but he paid that no mind; the soldier would announce himself and then he’d go around addressing the problem. He finished the report on the regiments manning quickly, he didn’t have a single man in the hospital at the moment, and only two minor wounds. It began to occur to him that the soldier still hadn’t spoken.
                “Soldier, name, and rank, surely you haven’t forgotten protocol?” He snapped, still not looking up.
                “Princess Delyth Silverway, currently head of the ministry of military secrets. Are we really going to be that formal tonight? I should think it would make for a rather stiff festival.”
                The voice was calm but amused, and Clark felt his head swiveling upward before he thought about it, and he took a vision that made his mouth drop. Delyth was a beautiful woman in any description of the word. Her amused aquamarine eyes crinkled at their corners, showing the suppressed laugh. Her hair was a deep walnut with the highlights of a copper flashing here and there. Her long hair was gathered by a single silver torque at the back of her neck. A circlet of delicate silver chain wreathed her head with a single sapphire dropped on her forehead. Her dress was also spidered silk but pure white. A belt of silver disks dropped over her hips and fell to trail down her front.
                She reached over and took the quill pen from his nerveless hands and placed it back in the brass holder. Delyth carefully corked the bottle of ink and stacked his reports neatly.
                “I came last to make my grand entrance! Now, I find that you had retreated to your office. I would like you to offer me your arm and escort me back to the feast. We may dine on that huge basket that I brought. You can make up for spoiling my entrance later.”
                 It came to Clark that he was sitting down in front of a member of the royal family with his coat off and his shirt unbuttoned. Perhaps for the first time in decades, he felt his cheeks heating. He was a man that attended to details and everything about his work depended on that kind of attention. Yet, here he was, half-dressed in front of a princess. A part of his mind wondered what kind of hidden talent women had to make a competent man feel like an errant child.
                He stood up so quickly that his hip brushed the desk, and Delyth had to grab the ink bottle to keep it from falling over. He noticed, of course, but his hands were already flying to his open shirt seeking the buttons. She brushed his hands aside, buttoning his shirt with sure hands.
                “One of the women said that you had looked hurt. Oh, she said you were hiding it well, but it was there to be seen. Clark, is there something that you should tell me?”
                He’d fight battles and see good men that he’d grown close to, dying before his eyes. Why in the name of the Gods was this so damn hard?” He shook his head slowly.
                “I’ve been alone all my life except for the company of fellow soldiers. I have feelings for you, and I hoped that you did too. I thought I had been wrong, that I had misjudged your feelings. It hurt, the idea that maybe, just once, I could hope. Anyway watching, all those people pairing up just drove home the fact that I was alone again after all.”
He stopped speaking when his throat tightened up. He had a lifetime of controlling his feelings. Talking about his hurt left him feeling like a small child begging. He looked up, expecting mockery, but instead, he saw Delyth’s eyes misting up. Her head lowered as she continued to button up his shirt. Well, she had never promised to love him, had she? Then, he noticed dark circular stains on one of the arms of her dress as the tears were absorbed by the spider silk. She spoke softly, but her voice was tight and strained.
“There are quite a few of those women that would have approached you, if I had let them. I told them they were invited and there was only one rule, that Lieutenant Colonel Clark Grimsby was mine. I am still struggling with my feelings. My father would have hated you for being this close to me. That said, Clark, I do have feelings for you, just give me some time to sort it out, please?”
Clark nodded it was a significant step forward for Delyth, and he knew it. He grabbed his coat and put it on, and on an impulse, he leaned over and kissed Delyth on the cheek. Her smile made it worth it.
“Let’s go and make a grand entrance.”
 
***
 
                Delyth was being walked down the root hall, still feeling the tingling of Clark’s kiss on her cheek. She still wasn’t absolutely sure about just what she was feeling for Clark. Yet, when there is a problem, you look for him beyond all others. Oh, what about that sinking lead weight in your stomach when you thought he wasn’t there? She shoved those thoughts down and had less success with the butterflies in her stomach. The portal opened to present the 34th Corps’ men settled in with thousands of widows. Between eating and anxious conversations, they were ignored.
                “I am afraid that I have truly ruined your grand entrance.”
                Clark’s voice carried a rueful tone, and a sideways glance confirmed that he thought he’d ruined her evening. She found that far from being upset, she was happy that they would have some time to sit together and eat without the press of business. She tugged at his arm, playfully, and graced him with her brightest smile.
                “Nonsense, I have a huge basket of delights for us, and, for once, we can eat without fear of being disturbed.”
                Clark’s smile of relief was all the reward that she needed. With a slight pull of her arm, Delyth guided him to a table that had been set for them. Accurate to her word, the basket was huge, it had to be. One thing she had learned was that the imperial soldiers missed the meat-rich diet they had once enjoyed. For the Elindari, it was simple math. It took seven pounds of grain for livestock to make one pound of meat. However, there was one type of animal that had found favor with the Elindari. Pigs would eat almost anything that the Elindari would. Table scraps and even whey leftover from making cheese made the pigs happy. They also produced lots of manure that made the Imril trees happy. Delyth then provided a five-pound sugar-cured ham and sausage, and a heavy gravy made from grease and flour with some salt and pepper resided in a crockpot. She had also had a loaf of rye bread baked over objections from her cooks. The open-mouthed Clark had provided all the proof Delyth needed that she had scored well with the food in any case.
Clark ducked his head slightly a hint of a smile threatening to break out.
“You have gone to such lengths for the Corps. You took my breath away up in my office. You are such a beautiful woman, and when you dress like that, well, angels have reasons to be jealous. The Corps and I have reason to thank you.”
Delyth couldn’t have stopped smiling if Tiernan had ordered it. He had rendered her quite speechless, so, she covered it by cutting a generous slice of ham and sausage for him and plated it with a covering of gravy. When she passed him the plate, their fingers brushed, and she almost dropped the plate.
“It is the least that I could do, after all, that you have done for my people and me.”
Just tell him how you feel! Just say how you go to sleep thinking about him! You are an idiot! She kept trying to look at him, but then she would feel the blush rising in her cheeks and had to look away. They worked together all the time; why on earth would she have problems now? Because no man has ever been so close to your heart? She’d felt like a young girl unable to say what she thought, but kept making small talk and kept finding ways to touch him.
The music had begun again, and couples were rising to dance. Delyth couldn’t resist, and rose to her feet, extending her hand.
“Would you dance with me, Clark?”
Clark’s eyes widened in surprise, and a flush went up to his neck and straight to his cheeks.
“Ugh, this is embarrassing. Delyth I don’t know how.”
Now she was shocked. Clark was nothing short of competent at everything he did. She’d learned that he was almost as new as she was to the intelligence business. He’d barely been at the job of the 34th Corps’ Intelligence Officer for three months. In that time, he’d learned every facet so well he’d been teaching her. Every man she knew in the corps swore he’d risen faster in the ranks than anyone they’d ever heard of. In this, she could teach him for once, and it would be a way to bridge what had been a sweet but awkward date.
“Then, if you can bend that ferocious need to be perfect at everything, then let me teach you, for once.”
Clark chuckled ruefully and a bit sadly.
“It isn’t that, Delyth. Well, it is, but not in this case. The men can’t see one of their senior officers stumbling about like a drunk.” He ran a hand through his short-cropped hair. “You have no idea how much I’d like to dance with you.”
She smiled at that and reached out, taking Clark’s hand.
“Come with me, and we will use that darkened corner of the root halls to let us practice. A princess shouldn’t be seen as a dance instructor either.”
The sun was halfway down over the horizon, and the junction of the root halls cast a darkened shadow that allowed enough light to see their own feet. The music drifted over them as they walked over faint but clear. She showed him how to hold her and lifted a foot, placing it to their left.
“Now, place your foot outside of mine, and I will follow each of your steps.” She walked him through each of the steps of the dance. He was a quick learner, she observed. Delyth suspected that a man who had learned all the intricate movements required in close order marching, and then of combat, made it easier for him. No one would accuse the man of being graceful, but the Clark made the steps precisely, and far sooner than Delyth would have guessed. Before long, they were sliding through the dance in time with the music. Clark spun her through a twirling movement when their feet tangled. She started to fall, but Clark’s reflexes were quick and sure. He stopped her fall, pulling her to him over to his center of balance to find that their lips were within an inch of each other.
Delyth didn’t know who started the kiss, and nor did she care. She’d read more than her share of the romance books that were so popular now among women. They spoke in poetic words of the beauty of the first kiss and concluded they just didn’t have a clue what they were writing about. It was much better. Her lips opened as her hand broke the proper dance hold and her hand found the back of Clark’s neck. She’d have called the kiss sweet, but that would be like describing the color blue to a blind man. There were no words to describe how it felt. Clark’s arm wrapped around her waist, drawing her against him, and she pressed her body fully against him.
“I hate to interrupt you two, but the announcements are about due.”
Delyth looked up and then up some more. At five feet and eleven inches, Delyth didn’t have to look that far up to many men. It was Dai, of course, and it had to come at just the moment she’d least wanted it. Of course, it was the exercise of the dance that had her in full blush.
“Oh!”
She should have sprung apart from Clark like a kid caught stealing a pie. Instead, she slowly and reluctantly slid her hands off of Clark, drawing her right hand down his left arm, taking his hand in hers.
                “I arranged a pleasant surprise for this dinner for the couples that wish to take part in it. Would you accompany me to the reviewing stand, Clark?”
                “Ah, so you would take an officer, umm, let’s see, ninth down his chain of command and present him as the co-originator of your gift? I would prefer that you allow Count Abernathy, of whom you are dependent on, to present your surprise with you on that stage. Lt. Col. Grimsby would be seen as upstaging his superior’s place, and rightly at that. We will be waiting right here for you, Delyth,” Dai said.
                She would have protested further, but Clark shook his head his eyes solemn.
                “As much as I would prefer to remain on your side for this, Prince Dai is quite correct. I cannot afford to embarrass Count Abernathy. He’d be within his rights to have me shipped back to the empire for insubordination. Even if he did not, I would be serving under a dark cloud from this night on.”
                Delyth did not like this a bit. She noted the strain between her brother and Clark. There would be words exchanged as soon as she was out of earshot. Worse, Dai wouldn’t make the mistake of humans, and would know just how far the Elindari could hear. She couldn’t put off the announcement either. Delyth could see Count Abernathy waiting on her by the ramp to the reviewing stand. She squeezed Clark’s hand and left the reviewing stand.