The queen grasped the image of the goddess that hung about her neck.
'I pray that you are right, Sky Warrior.'
***
A long causeway stretched out from the fortified settlement of Dunavon to a small island in the estuary. Ships lay at anchor beside the many wharfs and warehouses that lined its muddy shores. Some were big transport vessels. Others were sleek warships with dragon prows and banks of oars. Shrines to the Holy Mother reminded visitors that they had entered territory controlled by natives still loyal to the religion of their ancestors.
The warriors who defended the island were dressed in brightly coloured tunics and carried shields emblazoned with the head of a boar, the emblem of the Catti. Their allies in the dragon boats wore sealskin and their shields were decorated with a winged dragon, the emblem of the powerful maritime tribe of Galboreth.
On that sultry summer's day, sailors lounged around half-naked on the decks of the transports. It was hot by local standards and they were content to soak up the sun and let others get on with the job of loading the boats with lead and hides for the long trip back to Ibero and other parts of the empire.
No one was interested in the boy, sweating beneath a sealskin cloak. He plodded up a ramp and arrived on one of the huge decks. His sack crashed down unconvincingly. An agent of the empire would have recognised that there was something very suspicious about the lad.
He stepped over the sack and made his way down a hatch to the main cabin. A man sat there on a padded bench beside a porthole. He wore baggy trousers and a linen tunic that hung open to reveal a powerful chest covered in dark hair. His face was clean-shaven and the hair on his head was grey. He rose and smiled.
'I am glad you were able to come.'
'I am glad to see you, Uncle.'
Adrina pulled back the hood of her sealskin cloak and dumped the garment on the floor. Her long black hair was gathered in a bun. Beads of perspiration ran down her face. She shook her hair loose and undid the toggles that fastened her tunic.
'Phew. That was hot work.'
She spoke in the southern language.
The man viewed her through hooded eyes.
'You have grown since we last met.'
'Aye.' Adrina smiled. 'I have grown bigger and you have grown more handsome than ever.'
Her uncle's eyes continued to bore into her.
'Your mother worries about you.'
The reply was not welcome. Adrina knew her mother worried. That's what people did when they got old. They saw problems everywhere. Once you fell into that trap you were finished. You might just as well be dead. Success came to those who seized the moment.