Chapter 25

The shimmering Farview image of Master Kyllos hovered near the hearth, one hand cupped under his chin. His face was drawn into a look of deep thought. The silence was such that the somber tolling of deep-toned bells and soft chanting could be heard in the background from where Kyllos received the Farview.

Jollis felt a twinge of anxiety. He assumed that this meant his Master had retreated to the Temple to meditate, hoping that some communion with the divine might help guide him. He did not consider it a good sign. It could mean that his Master had no greater wisdom to offer.

"Forgive my insolence, Master," Jollis finally said. He was reaching the end of his patience, but there was no telling that from his voice or eyes. He had at least that much discipline left. "But surely there is some sense to be made of my decision. Unless you have other wisdom to bestow upon me. I will gladly defer to your guidance instead."

"No."

Jollis hesitated. He was not sure to which part of his statement his master had responded.

Kyllos lowered his hand. "There is no wisdom from my end, on the other side of the world, that can match what your own senses can tell you."

Jollis gave a single respectful nod, but he was no less confused by these answers.

"You see no other way?" Kyllos asked.

"Do you believe there should be another way, Master?"

"That is irrelevant, for the reason I have already stated. I cannot come up with anything better than you can. But I wish to insure what you have devised is the best that you can come up with."

Jollis paused to collect his thoughts and draw in a deep breath. "I would wish there were another way, Master. I can think of none."

Master Kyllos appeared to consider for a moment before stating flatly, "We are not ready."

Jollis felt another twinge. "I understand, Master."

"But that doesn't matter, does it, Jollis? A decision had to be made, and you have made it. It is up to us to see it through regardless of the cost."

It was a test, Jollis was sure of that now. It was a test to see how strong his convictions were. It was difficult. Kyllos was staring at him hard. It was a struggle to insure that the thoughts that were coming to him were things that he believed himself, and not simply things that his Master "wanted" to hear.

Jollis raised his eyes to his Master and held them steady.

"I see no other way. Even now, Duric's army trains hard. He is short on material but bountiful in men and morale. He has plans to approach the Imperium by stealth. There are obstacles in his way, and I am unsure exactly how he will overcome them, but Duric is a most resourceful man."

"And the Imperial legions?"

"I can only assume Duric will time his attack such that Z'haas has already launched the offensive against Colos. Besides giving him the moral high ground -- that of revolting against a regime that is conducting an illegal incursion into another nation -- it will mean the Imperial Palace will be lightly defended."

"Are not Z'haas' armies much better equipped?"

"Yes. It matters not. Battles are won or lost on morale and inspiration, not swords and arrows. And because the Emperor believes that the information regarding an attack from the south to be false, he is not devoting enough resources to defense. My cohorts that trade with the Imperial Palace tell me that all his security appears geared towards stopping a palace coup. He is convinced that the Caucus is the threat."

Kyllos considered for another long moment. A bead of sweat trickled down Jollis' forehead and into one eye. He blinked it away, maintaining a steady gaze on his Master.

Jollis plunged ahead, his voice growing more urgent. "Master, the original outcome we had hoped for is all but impossible now. There is scant chance that Z'haas will discover Duric's plans in time to crush his army before it can strike. The only way this can happen is if the Emperor leaves behind at least two legions to cover the Imperium. It is my understanding he will be leaving behind only one."

Kyllos nodded slightly at this, but still said nothing.

Jollis swallowed. He felt as though he was withering under his Master's gaze. This was indeed the hardest test he had ever experienced. He had to explain all of his thinking.

He wondered if he had to explain to his Master the original plan, despite it having come from Kyllos himself. How the plan had been to deeply polarize and divide the nation against itself, then guide it towards a slow buildup to massive conflict. Then the war would begin with two evenly balances sides, so that it would drag on and tie up all their resources. Into the midst of all this would come the Inonni. Both sides would be too mired in their hatred and loathing for each other to recognize the new threat from abroad. Each would think it a new attack from the other and fail to coordinate their forces against it.

Oceanus would fall in a quarter moon.

"Master, the original plan has failed," Jollis said, his voice catching a bit on the last words. "It assumed that we could operate in complete stealth. Instead, the Mage Guild can track our Portal openings. They know it is from a foreign power. I fear my complicity in the stilling of the Healer's Portal sense is close to being uncovered. I have no time. We have no time. We must take drastic action if we are to be assured of victory."

Jollis did not pause, even as his Master straightened and folded his hands behind his back, a gesture that meant he was close to making a decision... or was about to give a rebuke.

"The only way it will work is to force a bloody confrontation now. Two evenly matched armies pitted against each other at the gates of the Imperium. Even if Duric gains the upper hand, the failure of a swift victory will mean Z'haas has time to barricade himself in the Palace and wait for his armies to return. Once the blood flows it will not stop. Their culture will dictate a constant flood until one side or the other wins. It will be a mad scramble on both sides to field armies against each other. It will be chaos. It will be a key distraction we need, so that we may accomplish our goals with more limited resources. It is the only way.

"But the battle must happen. If the two sides turn away, if they decide to fight another day, it will let both sides cool down and reconsider the war. It will temporarily re-stabilize the realm. And the risk of our discovery increases a hundred-fold."

Silence. Kyllos continued to regard Jollis. The Wanderer was confused. Was his Master awaiting more explanation? Did he want more justification? He would get none. There was no more to be had. Jollis had explained everything he knew, everything he had thought about.

"Master?"

Kyllos stirred, taking a deep breath before he spoke in slow and somber tones. "Your proposal carries great risk itself, Jollis. Are you prepared for that?"

Jollis' heart thumped. "As I try to be always, Master."

"This all hinges on the two armies clashing in blood. Is there anything you can do to insure that this will come to pass?"

"I can only hope to continue prodding them into a situation where both sides feel they have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Once the armies clash, they will be committed."

"And so will we," said Kyllos.

"Yes, Master. And so will we."

Another silence. For an eternity.

Kyllos nodded once. "So be it."

Jollis' eyebrows rose. He felt... he realized he didn't know what to feel.

"I trust your judgment, Jollis. I always have."

"I have made mistakes in the past, Master," Jollis said, lowering his eyes.

"Yes. You have. Remember, Jollis: The appearance of no faults is the mark of the trickster; it is the honest man that has his faults and learns from them. The plan will continue. You will see it through."

"Even if the plan now bears little resemblance to what it did at its inception?"

A small smile curled Kyllos' lips. "If it had, I would be far more worried than I am now. There is such a thing as something being too good to be true."

Jollis managed a small smile of his own. "Understood, Master. I trust you will start preparations on your side?"

His smile widened a touch. "I already have."

Jollis looked surprised, until the full measure of what his Master had said was realized. Then he was purely astonished. It meant that Kyllos had already seen the merits of his thinking and had begun the process on his end. This indeed had been a test as he had thought.

Now Jollis allowed himself to feel elated. He bowed to his Master. "Your wisdom is far greater than mine, Master."

"You hold far more wisdom than you give yourself credit for, Jollis. You will realize that some day. For now, continue as you have been. It is your hand that guides all our destiny."

"I will do all I can to live up to that honor."

"I have no doubt of that at all. I will speak with you again soon. Good fortune to you, Jollis."

His Master's image faded from sight.

Vanlo held himself erect, his hands folded placidly behind his back as his eyes gazed down at the apparatus in the far corner of his chamber. As his slightly glistening eyes beheld it, he drew in his breath and let it go as a slow, deep sigh.

It was ready. It actually had been ready for the past two days. Each of those two days he had stood over it at various times as he did now. Each time he had resolved he would begin the new experiment. Each time he had let it go.

Vanlo turned away from the apparatus, his head drooping as if in shame. He was a coward. It was a horrible reality to face this late in life, but the truth did not respect either time or the wisdom of the ages. In this case, the truth simply was.

Vanlo stepped out of his chamber and started down the path to his office. Above his head, the sun played hide-and-seek with the clouds as they raced across the sky. He glanced up at them a moment as the sunlight faded, then looked away when it came out strong again. There was a storm coming, he was sure of that. If that was the case, many would be holed up in their quarters by midday.

Which would mean an opportunity would be lost.

Vanlo reached for the door to the office and stopped. His hand dropped, and he turned away from it.

He took another deep breath. He was not sure how he could call himself a Healer anymore. Healers were supposed to be bold. They were supposed to be fearless when it came to the well-being of others. He felt neither.

It was bad enough when he had to carry the burden of what he had discovered about the Draught. There had always been a convenient excuse for not raising the point with Roquan. But he had no such excuse now.

By midday, a storm would roll in. The weather Mages had warned it would be several days of rain and wet. Several days when Vanlo would not be able to get what he needed.

Vanlo turned back to the office door. He opened it and leaned inside. "Master Lanno, you will tend to the Healer Office until I return. I have some urgent business to conduct."

He did not wait for a reply. He simply closed the door and headed off.

The sun had been up for awhile. He reasoned that by this time, Jollis would be up and about his business. If he were lucky, the Tradesman would be away from the Manor on some errand for Roquan. He knew that Duric had asked for a rather sizable favor that needed the merchant's tremendous resources. He did not know specifically what it was.

Vanlo cut through the gardens to the west side of the Manor. He intended to approach the gate by that road rather than the one that ran before Roquan's quarters. He wanted neither the Overlord nor the merchant to see him and question him.

Yet as Vanlo turned a corner onto the west road, and his gaze followed it to the gate, he suddenly came to a stop and stared.

He had caught a flicker of movement at the gate. Someone had just passed through the gate and out of the Manor. Vanlo had not seen the face, but he thought he had recognized the clothing.

Vanlo's eyes narrowed, his jaw tightening as he attempted to quell rising anger within him. He marched with a surprisingly spry step towards the gate. The guardsman on duty nodded and gave a polite greeting, but it was largely ignored.

The Healer headed down the main road. He had not come down here himself for some time, so he was not sure himself where it was. But as he came to where there was a break in the lush, jungle-like foliage, he heard a rustling noise.

Vanlo looked down the path that forked off from the main road, the one that led to Jollis' quarters. And there was Lanno, skulking down the path, trying to be quiet and being anything but, his arms brushing against branches and snapping twigs that overgrew onto the path.

Lanno heard a noise behind him. He stopped and quickly turned around, bringing his arms up as if to defend himself. With his youth and strength, he could have easily sent Vanlo to the ground. But he was simply too astonished to react when one of Vanlo's hands flicked out, grabbed him by the collar of his tunic, and yanked him off the path and against a tree.

"Vanlo! What in the hells are you... ?!"

"Shut up," Vanlo hissed. "If there were any graves out here, you would most assuredly have disturbed their residents' slumber. Get back to the main road."

Lanno sighed and rolled his eyes. "All right, fine, you found me out, but..."

"I am not joking, and I am not going to argue with you here. You will move. Now."

"I am not an apprentice that you can..."

"Then stop acting like one. I am not your Master, but I am the senior Healer of this Manor, and as such, I have the authority to order you about when I think you are doing something exceedingly stupid. If you had paid the least bit of attention in your Healer Ethics class, you would know this. Now... move!"

Red-faced with fury, Lanno balled his hands into fists and remained where he was for a moment like a recalcitrant child. Finally he let his breath go as a sigh and snapped his gaze away from Vanlo. He marched indignantly towards the main road.

Vanlo glanced down the path towards Jollis' quarters before quickly following behind Lanno. The younger Healer rounded on him the moment Vanlo stepped back onto the main road.

"I demand to know why you are treating me with such disrespect. You may have some authority here, but..."

"This is not the time or the place for this. Come."

Vanlo turned away from him and back towards the gate. Lanno fumed, his lips drawing to a thin line, and his hands balling again. He stomped down the road after Vanlo. By the time he caught up with the older Healer, Vanlo was turning towards the guard.

"Good day to you, guardsman," said Vanlo.

"Very good day to you as well, Healer," replied the guard with a small smile and nod of his head.

"May I inquire as to whether the Overlord's Tradesman Jollis has been through the gate this morning as yet?"

"Merchant Jollis? No, I don't recall seeing him, unless he went through before my shift. Though I was here since before dawn, mind you."

Vanlo smiled slightly and nodded once. "Thank you." He turned to the somewhat nonplussed Lanno and said simply, "You are a supreme fool."

Lanno's mouth dropped open and heated words rose to his lips again.

Vanlo held up a finger and shook his head. "Not here." He gave Lanno a hard look and turned away, heading back through the gate.

Lanno gave a frustrated growl and raced through the gate, past Vanlo, and turned in front of him, causing Vanlo to come to an abrupt stop.

"I've had enough of this," Lanno declared.

"We shall discuss this back at the office," said Vanlo, starting to turn away.

Lanno reached out and grabbed the older Healer by the arm and spun him around. Vanlo nearly lost his balance. He looked at Lanno in astonishment and some fear.

"We'll discuss it here!" Lanno exclaimed.

"You will keep your voice down. The Overlord's quarters are only..."

"To blazing hellfire with that! I don't care if he hears. Maybe he should know how you've been treating me all this time."

Vanlo was unfazed. "I just stopped you from doing something very stupid."

"And just what insight do you claim into what I was going to do? You automatically assume I was up to something?"

"Then how am I to interpret the phrase 'you found me out' that you so conveniently spoke when I caught you?"

Lanno clenched his teeth and uttered an exasperated noise. "Damn you, Vanlo! Must you feel you have to control every action I make? If you are oh-so-wise that you know what I am up to, then why are you not thanking me for doing it?"

"Thank you? For nearly getting yourself into serious trouble? For taking a stupid risk? For failing to take a simple precaution that..."

"At least I bothered to do something, unlike some others I know."

Vanlo fell silent.

He stared at Lanno for a long moment. The words reverberated in Vanlo's mind, cutting more deeply each time he replayed them in his head. He turned his eyes away from Lanno for a moment, and said softly, "I deserved that."

Lanno was too surprised by the sudden turnabout in Vanlo's demeanor to respond at first.

Vanlo clasped his hands behind his back and turned towards the younger Healer again. "In that case, Lanno, I commend you for the spirit behind your actions, if they are what I am assuming they are."

"You mean getting the goods on Jollis?"

Vanlo tilted his head slightly.

Lanno smirked. "Sorry. Offworld expression I heard once."

Vanlo nodded. "If it means anything like 'acquiring corroborating evidence, ' then yes, that is what I had meant."

Lanno was confused. "Look, I just want to know, why were you so upset just now? You condemn me one moment and commend me the next. What..."

"It is because your work is still not up to snuff, Master Lanno!" Vanlo declared in a suddenly loud voice.

Lanno looked aghast. "What??"

"It has been a full moon now and I am still seeing extremely shoddy work. I do hope this is not what they are teaching at the Guild Hall these days, or I may have to have a word with them."

Lanno was just seconds away from exploding when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. His head whipped around to see someone standing off to the side, smiling pleasantly.

"Good day to you both."

"Good day to you, Merchant Jollis," Vanlo said smoothly.

Lanno just stared until Vanlo nudged him with an elbow. "Kindly do not add disrespect to my growing list of grievances towards you, Master Lanno."

Lanno's jaw clenched briefly. "Of course not," he said with a forced smile to Vanlo. He turned back to Jollis and gave a formal bow of his head. "Good day to you, Merchant Jollis."

"Forgive our loudness, Jollis," said Vanlo. "Sometimes it is necessary when disciplining an inferior."

Lanno quietly seethed. He knew that Vanlo was just making a cover, but he felt Vanlo was taking it a little too far. And probably thoroughly enjoying it on top of that, he thought bitterly.

"Not at all, good Healers," Jollis said. "I am simply passing through. There is always much work to be done for the Overlord."

"Indeed, indeed."

Jollis' eyes appear to flick from one to the other of them for a moment before he finally turned away.

As soon as Jollis was no longer watching, Vanlo gestured to Lanno quietly and the two of them turned in the opposite direction towards the Healer Office.

"All right, fine, I made a mistake," Lanno admitted.

"A rather large one, Master Lanno."

"But at least it didn't happen. At least you stopped me."

Vanlo turned to Lanno. "Only because you were very lucky I was there. Perhaps this was a good day for me to decide to take action on this matter after all."

Lanno raised an eyebrow. "Well, it's about time. What in the hells took you so long?"

Vanlo's voice grew cool. "I said I had deserved it before, Master Lanno, but I did not invite further language in that tone. Shall we cease talking at each other and perhaps start talking to each other instead?"

Lanno was often frustrated by the way Vanlo would cut off the argument just as Lanno was building up a head of steam. Sometimes he felt that the best way to deal with something like this was to push it as far as it would go and let everything come out at once.

They continued walking towards the Healer Office. "All right, fine," Lanno said tersely. "I admit, I messed up. Or almost did. But what were you planning to do?"

"Perhaps you should tell me what you were going to do?"

"Well, I thought I would look around, see if there was anything obvious. Like some correspondence or something like that. Anything that might hint at his complicity."

"It is unlikely that he would have any sort of evidence like that after all this time," Vanlo said patiently, looking straight ahead as they walked. "And if he really is as accomplished a spy as I suspect, he would not only have no evidence about, but he would know someone had intruded on his quarters, no matter how careful you were about it."

"Wait a minute. Spy?"

Vanlo stopped and looked at him. "Yes, spy. There would be no other reason for doing what he did, unless it was to perform some clandestine operation involving a Portal."

Lanno frowned. "Okay, so your turn. What were you going for?"

"A few strands of hair or flakes of skin. Something with genetic information on it."

Lanno's eyebrows rose. "You want to repeat the same experiment?"

"Yes."

"But I don't remember you setting up the apparatus for that again."

"I did so in my own quarters. I was trying to be discreet."

Lanno nodded slowly. He folded his arms. "But wait a minute... That sounds about as risky as me poking around for papers or journals. What makes you think you'd do any better?"

Vanlo hesitated, then sighed. "I do not."

Lanno looked confused. "But isn't that rather risky for... ?"

He had stopped himself, but Vanlo smiled humorlessly and finished the thought. "For someone of my advanced age, hmm? Perhaps that is the reason I am the better candidate."

"I don't understand."

"I am old, Master Lanno. I am reaching the end of my usefulness. It would be better to go out on one final blaze of glory as it were."