Page 93 of Ties of Dust

Cassius blinked, trying to look as though he was part of this plan.

“You’ve come to the wrong kingdom then, Floriana,” her brother said dryly.

“No, I haven’t,” she contradicted. “King Aelius needs more incentive to form an alliance with Siqual. And Dernan is going to be that incentive.” She must have seen her brother’s indignation, because she hurried on. “It will be very much to Dernan’s benefit, don’t worry. Carrack and Siqual together have what Dernan sorely needs, but they need a unifying factor to bring them together and point out the benefits of a three-way alliance. My marriage to Cassius will be that factor.”

“How so?” The king was frowning.

“Yes, how so?” Cassius asked, fascinated.

“The chameleon steel,” Flora said. “It’s time to stop pretending.”

The royals stiffened, their eyes flicking to Cassius, but Flora pushed on.

“I’m not the traitor you think me. I haven’t said a word all these years, but it’s time to be candid.” She turned to Cassius. “Dernan has a vast amount of unrefined chameleon steel, as you’re aware. But you’ve been led to believe that they trade it sparingly purely to control the resource and retain its high value. What no one knows is that the real reason is Dernan can’t keep up with the refinement process. Almost all of what’s been refined has been traded. Dernan has very little arable land, and desperately needs the income.” She glanced at her family. “At least, that was the case five years ago.”

“Thanks to Dernan’s innovation, the refinement has doubled in the last five years,” her brother said tightly.

Flora shrugged. “So it’s a slightly larger small fraction of the ore that’s being turned into chameleon steel.”

“Floriana, you disgrace your position by turning on your own kingdom,” her father said angrily.

“I’m not turning on Dernan,” Flora said with a flash of fire. “I’ve had no interest in claiming a position here for years, but I still don’t wish ill on the kingdom. Dernan needs the wealth chameleon steel can bring. It’s your pride that has harmed the kingdom, by refusing to let anyone in on the secret of the refinement, meaning that you can’t barter for the help you need.”

“Pride is something you would do well to have more of,” her mother told her.

“Ihateyour pride!” The words burst from Flora with a passion that took Cassius aback. “I’ve always hated it. Yourpride is what made my life a misery before I escaped, and your pride is what kept me from coming back. I can’t stop you from being ruled by it—I can’t stop Dernan from suffering from your excess of it, either. But I can refuse to be ruled by it myself.”

There was a moment of silence, no one knowing how to respond to the outburst. Cassius felt a heaviness in his chest as he thought of the role his own pride had played in Flora’s considerable suffering. If he hadn’t been too proud to tell his father about the tether and his loss of face in front of the Siqualians, she would never have been so vulnerable. The gossip of the servants and the mistreatment by the court had stung him because, deep down, he knew he was to blame.

And yet somehow, not only did she forgive him, but she loved him in spite of it.

He didn’t deserve her, but he wasn’t going to turn away his good fortune. Whatever plan she had to make their union possible, he was behind it without reservation.

“What is the limitation in the refinement process?” he asked, when it was clear none of her family would respond to her accusations about their pride.

“A couple of things,” Flora said, turning to him in relief at the topic change. “One is space. The chameleon steel has to be refined at very high temperatures, but the influence of fire destroys its magical properties. It has to be sunlight. Sunlight can be channeled through magically enhanced glass panes in order to be hot enough. But the area of Dernan that gets sufficient sun for the exercise is very small. And it can’t be dedicated solely to refining the ore. It’s the kingdom’s most arable land and is needed for farming. Thus the refinement process is slow.”

“You share our secrets very freely for one who claims nobelonging to Dernan,” her brother said through clenched teeth.

“Cassius can be trusted,” Flora told him. “He won’t use the information to exploit you. If you would put aside your pride for five minutes, you’d see that cooperation with the other kingdoms will drastically increase the benefit Dernan derives from the chameleon steel stores.”

Cassius considered her words. “Do you suggest that Carrack offers use of a patch of land as part of the alliance? It could be considered, but it won’t be a large space. Our sunniest regions are also our primary farmland.”

Flora shook her head. “No, Carrack’s land isn’t needed. I’ve given it a great deal of thought over the years, and there’s a perfect solution. The desert in Siqual’s northwest. It’s very sparsely inhabited, with huge swathes of unused land. And it gets near constant sun.”

Her father opened his mouth, paused, then closed it again.

“Carrack has put in a lot of work already towards an alliance with Siqual,” Flora went on. “They will be in a better position to negotiate an agreement. But that’s not your only role.” She smiled up at Cassius, who was watching her with intense focus. “We also need your cobaltite.”

“Our cobaltite?” he repeated, startled. “But it’s not a valuable ore at all.”

“That’s because its full potential hasn’t been explored,” Flora informed him. “The chameleon steel, once melted by sunlight, has to be poured into a stone mold. Don’t ask how we know it has to be stone, it’s been a tortuous process to figure it out over the years since chameleon steel was first discovered. But the stone requires certain properties, including a high level of resistance to heat. Most moldsbreak after one use, which, again, makes the refinement process incredibly slow. Based on the research I did at school, I think cobaltite would be able to withstand the refinement process without breaking down. But Dernan has not a speck of cobaltite to be found within its borders.”

She turned to her parents. “The way I see it, if Carrack brokers a deal with the Siqualians to use their land, and agrees to provide cobaltite for the refinement process, Dernan will be doing very well for itself out of the alliance.”

“Naturally Carrack and Siqual will both expect a significant increase in the import of the refined chameleon steel,” Cassius chimed in. “But we will be willing to pay a fair price for it, and I imagine Siqual would as well.”

“Dernan’s prosperity could only increase,” Flora informed her parents. “And,” she added innocently, “you would be rid of me forever, in a very respectable way.”

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