The heated conversation at the throne ended abruptly as Daniel downed his two assailants within seconds. Daniel’s eagle eyes flicked up at the now shocked Ice Queen as he advanced on the throne. The other fae and their champions looked at him with a mixture of fear and curiosity. Other guards came out of the icework, but were now not as hasty to move on him after seeing him take down two of their own so easily. Daniel stopped within a foot of the Queen, still holding the spearhead in his hand. He spoke clearly and evenly so that she would hang on his every word. With someone standing so close to you with a weapon in your hand, that kind of thing deserves notice. He addressed the Queen. “I have no idea what is going on. I have no idea why I was brought here outside of that some wolves are knocking on your door and you need people to protect your girls.” He said with a tight voice as he reigned in his anger at being jumped. “Lily asked me to help her again, and that is what I plan on doing.” Daniel reversed the spearhead in his hand and presented it to the Queen with the point facing him so that all she had to do was shoot her arm out and it’d gut him on the spot. The Queen studied him again, this time in a new light. The corners of her mouth twitched up in a smile. “Humans,” she said at long last. “You continue to surprise me. You are a warrior among your kind?””Lily didn’t bring me along for my looks, I don’t think.”Now the Queen smiled broadly at the human’s bravado. “Indeed,” she said, taking the spearhead from him and handing it over to another guard. “You might be useful after all.” She shooed Daniel back a couple of steps for room as she began to pace in front of her throne as she thought things over. Daniel stepped back down the stairs to be within arm’s reach of Lily. The Queen then stopped and regarded him. “Lily has, no doubt, informed you of the situation we are facing. What do you think of it?””I think that y’all are screwed.” Daniel said. He swept his hand down to indicate the two guards that were now being helped up by their friends. “I’ve faced play-acting guards who know better than to close within arm’s reach of an unarmed subject while wielding a polearm. Had they any sense, they wouldn’t have got so close to the point that I could grab their weapons. I’ve been in security and law enforcement long enough to know that you have complacent guards placed haphazardly around here to the point that had I wanted to do you harm, I could’ve taken you down, mowed through about half of your contingent and been out of this chamber faster than your subjects could say ‘My God, what happened here?'”Daniel walked in a slow circle around Lily to keep her close to him while he looked around the throne room. He gave the place an appraising gaze. “You have at least a dozen or so nooks, crannies, and blind spots in here that an assassin could hide in for days waiting for you to expose yourself. One good shot with a rifle or even a crossbow and your people would be selecting someone new to lead them.” He stopped and gave the Queen a hard stare. “I’m guessing that it’s been some time since you’ve been in a real conflict?””Not so long ago in our terms,” the Queen sniffed indignantly, her nose raised high. Daniel glanced at Lily for confirmation and she pondered the question. “I think that you humans call it The Middle Ages?””Holy shit,” Daniel rolled his eyes. “Yeah, in that time humans have fought multiple wars; two of which were on the global scale. You might’ve heard of them?””Yes, we had to bring the seasons about quickly during those times for fear we would be caught out in the open,” the Queen said.”I don’t blame you. Had Hitler and his goons got a hold of one of you; God knows what he could’ve found out.” Daniel didn’t even want to contemplate what could’ve happened in history if that had happened. Glowering, the Queen narrowed her eyes at Daniel. Her gaze flickered briefly at Lily, who wrapped her arms around one of his. “Very well,” she said stiffly. “You have certainly shown your prowess and intelligence. We will see how long you last in the trials, if you survive at all that is,” she told Daniel. “So long as you are here you will submit to our laws and Lily will be your steward.””Thank you, your highness,” Lily beamed, bowing low at the waist with a curtsey of her legs. She held it long and gave Daniel a quick tug on his arm.”Oh, right, nobility,” Daniel said, getting the idea. He gave a low, formal bow as if he were play-acting in the SCA. “Thank you for keeping me, your highness,” he added.”Well, at least it can be taught manners,” the Queen sighed, dismissing them with a wave of her hand. She looked up to her subjects and raised her voice. “All Champions and Maidens are to get rest and relaxation tonight. At the next dawn the trials will begin to see who will represent Winter when we meet the other seasons.” She clapped her hands three times before turning to retire to her own chambers.”Other seasons?” Daniel asked, frowning, as Lily took him by the hand and they walked out of the throne room. “You Fae are not all united?””Are all of you humans united?” Lily asked innocently.”Point,” Daniel said with a slight shrug and bob of his head. He couldn’t really argue against simple logic like that. Humanity has been at each other’s throats ever since Cain had a sideways glace in Abel’s direction. “So how do you all break down the seasons? By two or by four?””Four; Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter,” Lily said. “Right now Autumn is in ascendance. Soon, it will be Winter’s turn.””Ascendance? As in they’re in charge right now?”Lily nodded, leading him through a maze of large snow tunnels with doors lining the walls until they came out inside a grand cavern that went for several thousand feet deep. Daniel let out a low whistle as he looked down into the central part of what he could only imagine was the center of the Winter City that he’d seen in his dreams. It reminded him of the cliff cities that he’d seen one time when he went to Arizona; only in ice and snow. “Wow, you live here?””Actually, I live up here on the highest level since I am one of the Queen’s Maidens.” Lily said, turning him around and showing him an ornate door of ice that looked like it was carved into the side of the wall. I want you to wait in my chambers while I go check on something. I won’t be long.””I’d like to come,” Daniel said at once, moving to follow her.