By the time the bells began to ring, Princess Elara had already signed three orders sending men to war.
The first would reinforce the eastern watchtowers before dawn. The second would reopen the grain roads through Veyr, where a duke had decided hunger made his tenants easier to tax. The third, written in a hand so calm it looked almost tender, informed Lord Merek that the crown would not be purchasing his river fleet at twice its worth merely because he had arranged for the harbor master to lose the original bids.
She sanded the last page, pressed the seal into red wax, and watched the crowned stag emerge.