“Sir?” Reigndale asked as Falconer stared back at the castle he called home for so many years.

            “I know. You want to know what just happened,” he related the story of how they were accused of treason. He told them they were now wanted men.

            Helshred slammed his hands on the deck with a clattering of the blades, “No! No, no, no! I did not murder!”

            “I know you didn't. But we have to find out who did. The Federation leaders are following the Chancellor on his every word. We will prove your innocence, my friend, somehow.” He looked to the baby as he held her. She looked up at him with her wide blue eyes, still calm and innocent. Falconer envied the fact that she had no understanding of how much she recently lost. “How will we take care of you in this?”

            “Where will we go?” Reigndale asked.

            “We will have to set down somewhere. Not too far away though,” he looked to Shira's body, still lying on the deck. “There's a village near here. Shira's family is there. Bring us down at the end of the valley.”

            Landing one of the ships can be a precarious job. It means slowing the spin of the stone just enough that it gently lowers the ship toward the ground. Slow it too quickly and it could stop altogether, causing a nasty crash. Reigndale piloted the ship low over the tops of the trees to the end of the valley that led up to the royal mountain. He landed the ship with a slight bump and shrugged. He wasn't a very practiced pilot. Helshred leaped to the ground and stood guard as Falconer brought Shira's body off the boat first. Then he went back for the baby. All along, Sersi  perched on the highest mast to keep watch. Once Reigndale was on the ground, he pulled one of the mooring ropes to tie off the boat to a tree. Falconer stopped him.

“I have another idea. Wait here,” Falconer flew onto the ship and set the stone in full spin to make the ship rise again. Once it was up at standard height in the air, he set a direction and locked the wheel. He stepped off the edge of the ship and drifted to the ground. He looked up from standing with his friends as the ship sailed away. “Maybe they'll think we're still on it.”

Falconer lifted Shira's body and they began their hike past the woods. The village lay offside the mouth of the valley about a mile through trees and mercifully flat terrain. The evening sun made streams of light through the trees and areas of the luminous grass were already glowing. Sersi flew from branch to branch, pausing occasionally to note the expression of determination on Falconer's face. She knew such a walk carrying someone wasn't an effort for him. The betrayal was another matter. Silence ruled their march. Even Helshred managed to make very little noise with his blades as they went. Reigndale held the infant Princess close to his chest with his rifle slung across his back. He looked down to find her sleeping. Being a man of action, he sometimes found castle life to be dull. He wished life were dull again. At the edge of the village, Falconer walked up to the door of the first stone cottage and kicked at the door.

            “Hey!” came a gravelly voice, “What's all that racket about?”  And old man whisked his door open in agitation, about to scold them some more. The sight that met his eyes froze him in place for a moment with drop jawed expression, “Ahh! Forgive me, I did not know it was you.”

            “We seek Shira's family.”

            “Third door on the left. Follow the trail. Oh I'll just show you,” he grabbed a stick and hurriedly walked with them. “Oh my, this is terrible. They will be so upset.”

            No one answered the man's prattling. They just followed in somber accord. In the village the homes were built onto one another with a few exceptions. The old man led them to the door he described and rapped on it with his stick. A woman answered and cried out at the sight of them. A large burly man came out and clapped a  hand over his mouth, his large fingers pressing his gray beard against his face. With watery eyes, he took her from Falconer and carried her inside. The woman motioned them to come in. The big man lay Shira on a bed in the corner and knelt beside her. He turned to them, “How has this happened?”

            “Are you her father?” Falconer asked.

            “Yes. Tell me now, how has this happened?”

            “She was killed in an attempt on the life of the Princess. The King is dead. We believe the Chancellor arranged it all.”

            “Then you must make him pay!”

            “We will. But first we must see to the safety of the Princess. He still means to kill her and take the throne.”

            “What can I do to help? I am Ulaf and I am one of the village elders.”

            “It is important that we not involve the village any more than necessary. It is important that no one saw or heard us here. They will come searching.”

            “Shira's position was everything to her. You brought her home and I will do all I can to help you.”

            “Thank you.”

            “How will you protect the baby, sir?” the woman asked, “I am Lya, Shira's sister. I can only assume that there will be some great trials ahead for you. How will you protect the Princess in the midst of them?”

            “I don't know yet.”

            “And, if I may ask, what did they name her?”

Falconer's heart sank. No one lived long enough to have the naming ceremony. The Princess had no name. “There has been no ceremony,” he heard himself say as if from a distance.

            “Someone must name her, sir.”

            “If the Chancellor is treasonous, it cannot be him,” Ulaf added.

            Falconer looked to Sersi, who perched on the mantle.

            “Name her.”

            “I can't.”

            “You must, sir,” Lya said. “She must have a name.”

            “I don't know the ceremony.”

            “What's more important now, a ceremony or a name?”

            “We will be your witnesses. In such trying times, desperate measures are called for,” Ulaf stood large in the room and Falconer could feel the wisdom in his words. It was strong wisdom to surpass such grief.

            “If it helps any, Sir, I agree,” Reigndale said.

            “Yesss,” Helshred added.

            Falconer ran his fingers across the traces of silky hair on the infant's head and looked into her innocent eyes. He tightened his lips as his heart ached for the deaths of the royal parents and Shira. Then he knew what to do. “Then, with the agreement of those around me, and as your protector, I name you Shira, after the woman who gave her life for you. Long live Princess Shira.”