Chapter 19

Emperor Z'haas was not a patient man by any stretch of the imagination in less eventful times, and even less so once he received word that the Conclave had started. He had given Gronnus a quarter moon, yet he found himself anxious for word of progress after only the second day.

He summoned the Overlord over Farview late that morning. There was a long pause before it was answered, Z'haas having to restrain himself from passing his hand over the pearl again and again.

"Your timing is very fortunate, Z'haas," Gronnus said as soon as his image shimmered into view before the sovereign. There was a trace of irritation in his voice. Only moments ago, he had finished returning Amanda to Roquan and shooing Freya from his quarters. The latter had been the more difficult action.

"The timing is whatever I make of it," the Emperor said haughtily. "I wish to know your progress."

"Normally, I would complain that it has not been enough time, but this is such a sure thing that I have no qualms telling you about it."

The Emperor's eyes narrowed at the Overlord's insufferable smirk. That was yet another thing to add to the long list of changes he intended to implement once the crisis was over and the power of the Overlords broken. They would soon learn to show more respect for the Imperium. "Then you will be successful in deposing Roquan?"

Gronnus' smirk faded slightly. "In only a day's time, Z'haas, I have already done several deals with various Overlords to lock Roquan out of any vote in his favor. In fact, I secured a very key vote, which is that of Overlord Trennan D'vard. Where he goes, several other Overlords follow."

Z'haas took a deep breath to keep himself calm. He folded his arms, his eyes hard. "That did not answer my question, Overlord."

"I did not answer it because it is not relevant to the Conclave proceedings."

"But it is what I want. I wish Roquan removed. Have you started this?"

Gronnus sighed. "No, I have not."

"Why?"

"Really, Z'haas, is this necessary? I tell you that the vote is sure to go against Roquan. He will have no allies after this. He will likely be shunned by the rest of them after this debacle!"

"As I have told you before, Gronnus, this is no longer enough to satisfy me! Yes, I wish the vote to go against him. But I wish that vote to be followed by a formal Tribunal. I want Roquan removed as a threat."

Gronnus remained silent for a long moment.

"Well, Overlord?"

"Deposing Roquan... may prove more difficult than anticipated."

Z'haas frowned deeply. "And why is this?"

"I am no longer at liberty to disclose the information about the slave Amanda."

"You are what?!" Z'haas exclaimed. "I have told you before, this is not the time to worry about keeping your pathetic little secrets!"

"That has nothing to do with it!" Gronnus declared. "Z'haas, please reconsider this, it..."

"I demand to know why you cannot proceed with this plan."

Gronnus appeared nervous for a moment. "I chose to disclose the information to a fellow Overlord," he finally said in a lower voice. "And she decided she wished to use it to her own ends."

"She? You shared this information with Freya D'yros?"

"Yes."

"Have you taken leave of your senses?!" Z'haas roared, his voice echoing through the chamber. "I am not an Overlord, and even I know of her wiles! She is not the person to trust with information such as this!"

"Gods damn it, Z'haas, I needed help! I needed an ally! And if you do know as much as you claim about her, you will know that she is someone you would rather have for you than against you! If that does not suit you, then cease making impossible demands of me!"

Z'haas took another deep breath. His eyes blazed anger, his face a scowl, making him look even more hawk-like than normal. "What is she doing with this information?" he finally asked in a terse voice.

Gronnus paused a moment. "I believe she wishes to use it to pursue her own deal with Roquan."

He was not about to mention that it was a deal for Amanda herself. For all he knew, the Emperor had other plans for her, and it was best that Z'haas did not know that these were thwarted as well. Gronnus had enough to deal with as it was.

"And how do you know that she is not intending to betray you and side with him?"

Gronnus laughed. "Then you truly do not know Freya as much as you think. No, Z'haas, she will not turn to him. I have seen to that."

The Emperor said nothing. He was not convinced. He was rarely convinced of anyone's plans other than his own. The key to success in his mind was to follow his commands and nothing more. He knew the situation. Everyone else did not.

"Since it appears you wish to receive constant reports from me, Z'haas," Gronnus said. The Emperor caught the slight tone of disdain in the Overlord's voice. "Perhaps we should agree on a time of day so I can be sure to be available."

"There will be no need, Overlord," Z'haas said stiffly. "Proceed as you have been."

Without waiting for acknowledgment, the Emperor waved his hand over the pearl and terminated the conversation, the Overlord's form vanishing into nothing.

Z'haas picked up the pearl and gripped it in his hand tightly, as if imagining crushing Gronnus himself in his fingers. He realized now he should never have bothered with the Overlord in the first place. It came down to this: if Roquan were out of the picture entirely -- if he were dead -- there would be no need for a vote.

He placed the pearl back into its case and proceeded to the audience chamber. There he found the Mage waiting patiently for him, his hands folded over the top of his staff.

"Good morning, my Emperor," Q'yros said, bowing his head.

The Emperor returned the greeting with nothing more than a curt nod, though inwardly he was grateful for the gesture. At least the Mages knew how pay proper respect to the Imperium. "Tell me something, Q'yros."

"Yes?"

"The Overlord Freya D'yros. She is of the same Clan as you?"

Q'yros' face hardened. "If I am forced to admit such a thing, yes," he said tonelessly. "She is my granddaughter."

"Indeed?"

"I must manage your expectations now, my Emperor. If you believe that this means I have even a modicum of influence over the accursed girl, you are sadly mistaken."

"From what I know of her, it is doubtful anyone has influence over her."

"She did not listen when others told her she would be best suited for Magery. Instead, she chose to replace her father at the D'yros Manor. A female Overlord. Bah! I am embarrassed to claim her as my blood kin."

"Oh? She has magical ability?"

"Yes. Never developed it properly. That's not to say it doesn't manifest. Or do you believe her charms are from her beauty and wit alone?"

Z'haas raised an eyebrow. He would file that bit of information away for later. At the moment, he had more pressing concerns. "Have you completed the work on the wards?"

"Aye, my Emperor," Q'yros said. "They are as strong as they can be."

"And there is no chance of unwanted intrusion?"

"None at all."

What Q'yros did not say was that there had been no chance of it before, either. The power on the wards only went so far before there came a point of diminishing returns. Simply put, no one could possibly bring a Portal Focus anywhere near or inside the Imperial Palace without it triggering one or more of the wards. The person would be struck dead by a guard or marksman before he could activate the Portal.

But try telling this to the likes of the Emperor! Q'yros thought it best to play along with Z'haas' paranoia to satisfy the sovereign and earn himself some platinum to boot. He was very tempted to offer the sovereign some "extra" protections, which really would be overkill, but did not wish to press his luck.

Yes, there was always a small danger. Were someone to disable a ward somehow, one could conceivably gain enough time before the ward deactivation was detected in order to open the Portal. No magic on Narlass could actually stop a Portal itself; it could only detect or disable the focus used to summon it.

"Is the Guild continuing to monitor the D'ronstaq Manor?" Z'haas asked.

"We have detected no new Portals in the vicinity."

"You will inform me if they do."

"Of course."

Z'haas looked away and sighed. "I fear something is being planned, Q'yros. I fear that we are not doing what we need to stop it."

"We are doing our best, my Emperor," Q'yros said smoothly.

Inwardly, he sighed. He realized as well as the Guild did that something was happening in the Far West, but he sincerely doubted their reach into Oceanus. Yes, there was a problem. Yes, they may have transported something to Roquan's island. But he was also growing increasingly convinced that the Emperor was jumping at mere shadows.

Sirinna could tell that something was bothering Amanda. She was very quiet and reserved when they came to the Circle for the midday meal, and now that it was Amanda's turn to eat, she ate slowly and without much enthusiasm.

Finally Sirinna reached out and gently cupped her fingers under Amanda's chin, lifting her lover's eyes to her own.

"Yes, mistress?" Amanda asked automatically.

Sirinna sighed. For once she actually wished she could let Amanda call her by name despite where they were. Suddenly "mistress" sounded so cold. "Are you all right?" she asked softly.

Amanda was not all right. Her pussy still ached. Despite the fact that the next Overlord to whom she had been delivered had been interested only in what she could do with her mouth, she didn't feel any better from Freya's treatment. She knew that she would be granted a trip to the Healer's office if she asked, but she felt that would be a sign of weakness on her part.

This was even more so after remembering what Freya had said. A normal slave would have enjoyed a continuous orgasm like that, regardless of what it made her feel like afterward. It just reinforced the notion that something was wrong with her. She did not want anyone else to find out.

What really disturbed her, however, was the fact that it was as if Freya somehow knew that Amanda was deficient in some way, and was determined to prove it.

"I'm fine, mistress," Amanda said, lowering her eyes.

"No, you're not."

Amanda's gaze snapped back up again.

"Amanda, what's wrong?"

Amanda sighed. "What difference does it make? You're just going to tell me I need to behave like a proper slave."

Sirinna was taken aback by the bitterness in her charge's voice.

"I'm sorry, mistress," Amanda said defeatedly. "You can punish me later for that."

"Are you having trouble with the Presenting?"

Amanda paused a moment. "I thought it was only supposed to run for a day. This is the second day. And I have to go back after this."

Sirinna nodded. "I know. It's... unusual."

Amanda's eyes flashed anger. "Unusual? That's all you can say?"

"Did you have trouble with another Overlord?"

"With the same Overlord," Amanda muttered darkly.

Sirinna looked confused. "The same? But you're not supposed to be given to the same Overlord twice."

"Wait... I'm not?"

"No. Not usually, anyway. But... but if Master Roquan felt..."

Amanda could not stop herself. She rolled her eyes. "So anything is okay as long as Master Roquan says it is, right?"

"Amanda..."

"Yes, I know. Show respect for the Overlord. Sorry, mistress. I'll be good, mistress."

"Amanda!" Sirinna hissed. She glanced around for a moment and slid closer. "I just wanted you to lower your voice, that's all. You're obviously quite upset about something or you wouldn't be acting this way. Now what is it, love?"

Amanda paused. That was the first time she had heard Sirinna use a term of endearment for the past two days. And she had never used it outside of their quarters before. "So you do still care," Amanda said softly.

Sirinna smiled. "I never stopped."

"It's... it's just been hard to tell."

"I know. We haven't had time together..."

"I don't mean just that. I mean you were more concerned about how I was acting as a slave rather than as your... " Amanda lowered her voice to a whisper. "... your lover."

"I was just proud of you, Amanda, for everything you've accomplished."

"I know. But... but it's not good enough. Not for Mistress Freya, anyway."

Sirinna looked surprised. "Was she the one you were taken to again?"

"Yes. Only I don't think Master Roquan meant it that way."

"I don't understand."

"I was given to another one. Master Gronnus, I think his name was. But when we got into his quarters, he gave me to Freya. Is he supposed to do that, mistress?"

Sirinna hated questions like this. They set her love for Amanda in direct conflict to her loyalty to Master Roquan and Overlords in general. She knew what the "right" answer was, but she knew that Amanda was not looking for that now. She had to be Amanda's lover right now and not her Trainer. "No, Amanda," she said in a very low voice. "That was... a... a breach of protocol."

Amanda blinked in surprise. Sirinna had just come out and admitted that an Overlord did something wrong.

She was about to ask why Gronnus did this, but she thought she already knew why. The female Overlord was up to something. She had specifically planned this with Gronnus. It did not seem plausible that she just happened to be there. It explained why Gronnus had met Roquan halfway. He had been the only Overlord that had done that. For all the others, Roquan had to deliver her right to the door.

But to what end? Just to show how "bad" a slave she was?

And then there was yesterday, asking questions as if trying to trick her into revealing she never had the Draught. Were the two connected?

"Should I tell Master Roquan, mistress?" Amanda asked.

Another hard question to answer. Sirinna knew that slaves were told to quietly report to their Overlord any incidents of abuse from a client. Yet did this constitute abuse? Amanda was not obviously injured or bruised.

Sirinna could only push things so far in her own mind. "If he asks, yes."

Amanda just nodded, but inwardly sighed. It was probably asking too much for Sirinna to tell her "yes". However, she had heard enough at least to know that perhaps some of this was not her fault.

"Mistress, I would like to visit Master Vanlo before you take me back to Master Roquan," she said evenly. "My pussy feels a little sore."

Sirinna nodded. "Of course, love." She had noticed that Amanda's labia looked a bit red. "He'll be able to give you something that will make it feel better right away."

"Thank you, mistress."

As Doran had predicted, the other Overlords showed little interest in maintaining a strict attendance record for the Conclave.

When Rennis stood before the others to make his statements of support for Roquan's cause, there were barely half the Overlords present. Most were off at the bazaar outside the Manor gates, the merchants plying their wares to them. Like Roquan and Doran before him, he kept his speech short and to the point. Roquan could at least be content that most of the Overlords that were present appeared at least mildly interested.

It was also possible that they were simply waiting their turn at Amanda.

Amanda stood off to the side, her wrists in restraints and her chain in Roquan's hand as Rennis spoke. She was feeling a little better now, at least physically. The salve that Vanlo had given her had worked very well indeed, leaving only a very small residual ache. The Healer had examined her and found no damage of any kind.