The king of Cabaral had lost many children and wives to assassination. He had enough of both to be unbothered by it, but a recent attempt had targeted the king himself. King Caba had withdrawn to an impenetrable fortress outside the oasis city of Zyr Cavala. He suspected the involvement of a courtesan named Sol, who had fled the city after bringing him poisoned tea. What he did not know, however, was whether Sol had accomplices. I was to find and question Sol’s child, the king’s youngest living son, Prince Saffira.
It would be preferable to deal with Sol directly but she was hiding in the Unowned Desert, or the “Free Plains” as it was called in Cabaral. To dispatch a spy there would violate treaties that even King Caba did not wish to breach. After Sol’s escape, his army had set up camp a
