"How can a girl be queen when there is a male heir?" Witichis asks, incredulous. "No way would the fighting men acclaim a woman if there's anybody else."

"They do things in other ways, in other lands," Wachis says. "You've got the best teacher, boy; you'll be doing fine. Revenants are hard to kill, tales say; you need to use magic or destroy them in special ways, the tales say -- is that so?"