It was done.

Without even a whimper of defiance, the Inlet prince had fled from his childhood home without a word of goodbye to his longtime ally next door. He had lingered near the border as soon as Bjorn's challenge rang out, having been warned of it's coming by his son in the Arch. Solomon watched them leave with a jaw clenched so tightly that his head throbbed when he released the pressure in a frustrated snort, his dark tail lashing. It was one thing to know that Ironclad was intimidated by the grullo stallion, and another to watch him turn tail and flee without even attempting to protect the souls that looked to him for support. Solomon well knew that Bjorn was fierce in battle, but only a coward fled and left the majority of his family behind.

In the wake of Valka's… choice, Solomon could feel his crown wobbling atop his head. He had once thought that the Bay's ruler was firmly in her corner, but with the news that she had shared, he no longer felt as secure in his alliances as he had before. It was imperative that he tighten the loose ends before the knots came undone and he was left empty-handed with nothing for his sons to inherit.

Still, he could not afford to be hasty in his approach. Rushing would only convey the mistaken impression that he was either overeager to work with Bjorn (which was laughable, given the times they'd butted heads), or that he was desperate to keep his position. And while the crown was important to him, Solomon was not necessarily opposed to having to fight to keep it.

He'd beaten Bjorn before, and if necessary, would do so again.

But Solomon would be lying if Ironclad's sudden disappearance wasn't making him reconsider who he wanted to support in the Inlet. If the young grey was too cowardly to fight for his home, it made staying his partner an exercise in futility. If he wasn't willing to fight his own battles, then there was little chance that he would ever be willing to stand up and support Solomon if war ever came to Tinuvel.

That realization did not make his choice any easier. Ysabel had her own feelings on the matter, and while Solomon had not yet spotted the silver-maned witch that had accompanied Bjorn last time, he was not yet certain if his queen would continue to have problems with their neighbor. In the wake of Isabel's betrayal, they had only continued to fall further apart. It made it hard to justify keeping a queen that would barely speak to him, especially after the stunt she had pulled with Larkspur. He could expect such a childish thing from someone young like Isabel, or even from Sicily if he had the misfortune of pissing her off past the point of redemption… but he had not expected it from his Queen.

Shoving the domestic thoughts to the side, Solomon waited a few hours for the stallion and his pair of mares to settle before he moved inland to the heart of the Inlet. A few of the Inlet residents seemed to be hesitating as well, probably as shocked by this turn of events as he had been, and he debated calling for them first. Their wellbeing should have been the priority today anyway, and it was evident to the tobiano that such had not been the case.

But calling for mares that Bjorn may consider his own assets would not get their conversation off to an auspicious start, and so the Cove King lifted his head and whistled for Bjorn. They had business to discuss.

Solomon