Chapter 33

The darkness hanging over the D'ronstaq Manor had only just barely faded to deep indigo in the east as it was brushed by the first light of morning twilight.

The window above Sirinna's bed faced southwest, and its sky was still largely dark. Panting and the slide of flesh against fur from panicked shudders rose from within the dimness. Sirinna whimpered, drawing her knees to her chest, and shivered in fear. Her eyes darted under her eyelids as she was caught in the merciless grip of her own mind.

Her pants became anguished gasps, her whimpers a high-pitched whine of panic and hurt. Her lips moved, silent words of pleading falling on equally deaf ears. Confusion reigned as much as pain and sorrow.

She opened herself. She submitted. She didn't question it. She remained passive. Yet it still hurt. It still burned. The punishment would not stop. She must have done something very wrong, something so very bad, but he would not tell her.

She tried so hard not to cry, or plead, or beg, but she could not help it. It was too much. First she pleaded for him to tell her what she had done wrong. Then she begged to know what she was doing wrong now. Finally, she simply screamed for him to stop.

A whine became an cry, and she sat up with a tremendous gasp, her eyes wide in fear and pain. She trembled so violently that the bed shook. She let out a quavering sigh, raising a shaking hand to her heart, which pounded so hard that her chest ached. She pressed her hand against it, as if afraid it were about to burst from her body.

Soft movement rustled behind the curtained doorway to Amanda's bed chamber. "Sirinna?"

Sirinna jerked her head. She swallowed hard, and for a moment she was frozen in terror, as if the man from her nightmare was about to emerge from the darkness and descend upon her once more. She let out a shaky sigh when she realized it was Amanda.

"Sirinna, are you all right?"

Another panic set in as the voice grew closer. She hastily lay back down and yanked the furs back over her. She closed her eyes, though she immediately shivered and nearly curled into a fetal position when the image of that man appeared to her again for a moment.

Sirinna closed her eyes just as Amanda's hand swept the curtain to one side. "Sirinna?"

Sirinna remained as still as possible, though her body still quivered.

Amanda lingered for a moment, peering through the dark, her eyes narrowing as she struggled to make out Sirinna's form. Finally she could see her lover, and she held her breath until she noticed the rise and fall of Sirinna's sides with her breath.

Amanda tilted her head. She could see that Sirinna's breath was quickened, and she stared for another few moments, looking for some telltale sign that she was in the throes of another bad dream. Finally, she let out a small, relieved sigh and turned away. She slipped back into her bed chamber, the curtain falling back into place behind her.

Sirinna cracked open one eye, then opened both fully. She let out a shaky breath and rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling.

I don't understand. I don't understand any of this.

Sirinna tried to close her eyes to get some more sleep, but the terrible imagery threatened to return. Even when she managed to keep it at bay, her heart pounded too much to allow her rest.

She let out a sigh, opened her eyes, and simply lay there until the dawn.

The Lord Admiral slammed his fist atop the table, sending a gourd of rum nearly over the side. The Fleet Captain caught it before it could topple.

"What insanity has gripped the Imperium, Boddas?" Vortas declared. "Had I been handed these orders on parchment rather than by Farview, I would have questioned the authenticity of the message! Perhaps I still do!"

Boddas shook his head. "It was from the Emperor, my Lord. And it is about high time, too."

Vortas frowned, his eyebrows knitting. "No more of your politics, Boddas!"

"Not politics, my Lord. Just common sense. The Overlords are worse than the Noble Lords when it comes to their sheer arrogance. It is about time that the Emperor dealt with them."

Vortas rose to his full, imposing height and glowered at the Captain. "What he is ordering me to do..."

" ... is enforce the Emperor's will," Boddas completed with a smirk, taking a drink directly from the gourd.

"What he is ordering me to do is open fire on a target that has no defenses, no troops, no vital resources, and no strategic value whatsoever!"

Boddas shrugged and lifted the gourd to his lips again. Vortas snatched the gourd from him, splashing rum on the table. He set it down heavily. "Use a gods-damned goblet. Show some decorum that is befitting your rank."

Boddas sighed and stood. "Obviously the Emperor thinks there is some value, or he would not have ordered an assault," he said lazily as he drew a goblet from the cabinet behind him.

"He wishes to strike an Overlord Manor. The only thing that will generate is much needless death."

Boddas swept the gourd from the table. "Oh, but not just any Overlord Manor, Lord Admiral, but Roquan D'ronstaq himself."

"And this name is supposed to have significance to me?"

"As I understand it, he has been a thorn in the Emperor's side for some time." He poured rum into his goblet and lifted it from the table. He leaned casually against the door. "It is little wonder he has not done this before."

Vortas frowned. "I do not think I wish to know how you get this inside information, Boddas. And go easy on that rum. Hellfire, I have never seen a Captain so unruly and undisciplined as you!"

"Forgive me, I am not used to having someone as illustrious as yourself on board my vessel. Most of my orders come to me when I am in port." He took a long drink of his rum. "So, are we to change course for the D'ronstaq Manor?"

"No."

Boddas paused. "We're closest. We can be there inside a quarter moon."

"The Emperor wishes us off the coast to contain any incursion from the south, remember?"

"But if he thought this was more important..."

"I will not have you questioning my orders, Captain!" Vortas declared. "I have sent the Second Fleet. That is one of the more powerful fleets we have."

The Captain frowned. "And it's over a half moon distant. More if they have to fight against the current on the final leg."

"I am well aware of that. But this will give me time to see this fleet towards its destination and sail for the Manor on my own. I wish to command the Second Fleet myself."

Captain Boddas lowered his goblet. "I thought you didn't want any part of this."

"No, Captain, I will carry out the Emperor's orders. He told me to 'take care' of the Manor, and that is what I will do. But I will damn well find out what it is I am being told to take care of first before I begin raining Mage-fire upon it."

Boddas drained his goblet and set it down on the table. "A rather creative interpretation, my Lord. I hope it passes muster with the Emperor."

The Captain grabbed the handle of the door and pulled it open. Suddenly, the Lord Admiral was behind him and slapped his hand against it, yanking it from Boddas' grip and slamming it shut.

Boddas turned. "Yes, my Lord?"

"Do not for a moment think you may undermine my command with any... private inquiries with the Imperium," Vortas growled. "You may be considered one of the finest Captains in the fleets, but you will remember your place. You will do as I tell you to do. And you will keep your nose out of my business."

The Captain paused, then slowly nodded. "Of course, my Lord. I would not think of questioning your authority."

Vortas' jaw clenched. He drew back his hand and turned away from the door. Captain Boddas smiled at the Lord Admiral's back and left.

The morning was anything but silent near the coastal lowlands of the Appalanchian provinces. Regiment commanders shouted orders to soldiers as the legion broke camp. Lord General Rithas approached his mount and was about to ascend into it when there was a shout of "Lord General!"

Rithas turned as his primary adjunct Dollas ran up to him. "Yes, what is it?"

Dollas panted to catch his breath before he spoke. "Scouting report, my Lord, from Commander Foron. The enemy has taken up position at the ridge outside Torville."

Rithas nodded. "As we expected. It will form the western end of their defensive line. There should be good hunting today for the Commander."

"My Lord, there's more. The enemy is there, but they have not dug in for a protracted defense."

Rithas frowned. "Is he sure of this?"

"Yes, he thought it was odd as well, but he confirmed it."

"No defensive posture at all? Are they not expecting us to attack there?"

"Yes, they are taking up defensive positions, and their patrols have been spotted near Commander Foron's legion, so they are well aware of the impending attack, but they are not fortifying their position. They've kept to a largely mobile posture."

The Lord General looked thoughtful.

"My Lord, should we not keep better pace with his legion in light of this? If he achieves a quick breakthrough, he may out-pace our supply."

Rithas frowned. This would only lead him further way from the Imperial territories. He was confused as to why the enemy was not making a stand. A good defense at this ridge would force the incursion to stop and wear down the enemy, thus allowing them to regroup and entrench further afield.

"It will take him at least another day before he reaches that ridge," said Rithas. "Perhaps by then the enemy will have dug in and Commander Foron will no longer need us to be as swift. We will continue at the pace we have been for now."

"Yes, my Lord."

Rithas pulled himself up onto his horse at the adjunct scurried away. If I were the paranoid type, I'd say someone was playing a game with me, he thought. He was not sure if Lord Duric was that knowledgeable in military tactics. While it was true that the Imperial army had to relearn the discipline themselves, it had seen actual action and Duric's army had not.

The question on his mind was: would Duric be clever enough to purposely lead him away from the border in order to reduce Imperial troop strength near the Palace?

"Now, see here!" said a Mage Elder, shaking his finger. "I am well aware that it is the Guildmaster's prerogative to restrict communications with the outside world when he sees fit, but..."

"But nothing," said Mage Q'kollan smoothly, his voice far more calm than his more bombastic debate partner. "That is a power clearly granted to him by the Charter."

"And I have conceded that, blast it! The point I was going to make was that it is assumed that such power would be exercised only in times of emergency. When do you recall the Guildmaster ever declaring as such?"

Q'kollan sighed and glanced toward Q'ixanna for a moment. "I do not recall such a declaration."

"Ah-ha! See?"

"But the Charter does not specify that one is needed. It simply states that the Guildmaster will use discretion when applying it."

"And can you say that it has been used with 'discretion' as you put it? A blanket prohibition on all correspondence and upon personal travel with no explanation offered! Yes, yes, yes, I know!" the Mage cried in exasperation and throwing up his hands when it appeared Q'kollan would speak again. "He is not required to do so. But given the nature of the other crisis that confronts us..."

"Which we still have no definitive proof is real," Q'kollan countered.

"Oh, now, don't start that again!"

"Why not? You brought it up. I assume you will use that in defense of your argument. I have a right to question it."

The Mage Elder slammed his fist on the table. "Great gods, man! Did you listen to Journeyman Q'garra's testimony earlier?"

"I most certainly did. It seemed Q'yros was quite able to get the information he needed about that post-Portal energy."

"But only by defying the Guildmaster and manufacturing a story about attending to clan business. Why would he need to do such a thing if he did not believe the Guildmaster's restrictions unreasonable?"

Uroddus folded his arms more tightly. Katla leaned over to him. "Look at Q'ixanna up there," she whispered with a sneer.

The Journeyman shifted his eyes. The Guildmaster lounged in his chair, a small, satisfied smile playing across his lips. "What of him?" Uroddus said tersely.

"He's been smug ever since you mentioned what Q'yros had done. Look, he even just smiled when it was mentioned again."

Uroddus let out a strained sigh through his nose. "He likely understands now the nature of Q'yros' 'illness.' He knows it is the result of the Oath, and that it will likely keep Q'yros away from the proceedings."

"Not to mention satisfy his petty desire for revenge. And look at Q'kollan. I told you he would cause trouble, that he only cares about preserving the Guildmaster's power."

Uroddus paused, then shook his head. "I had a class with him once. He seemed to be a man of integrity. Q'yros even had something nice to say about him, and he rarely says anything complimentary about other Mages."

" ... and furthermore, I believe the Guildmaster wished to avoid the perception that the Guild Hall was presenting a potentially alarmist stance," said Q'kollan. "One only needs to look at what happened when information did get out via the illicit use of a courier."

Katla looked up, stricken. "Oh no..."

The first Mage Elder frowned. "I beg your pardon? What are you talking about?"

"I will tell you what he is talking about!" Q'ixanna suddenly boomed, sitting up straight in his chair. "Someone summoned a courier and had a parcel delivered outside of the Mage Guild against my specific orders!"

A waved of intense murmuring spread through the assembled Mages.

"And now look at the result! How many of you among the Mage Elders received panicked Farviews from Noble Lords claiming they needed help to protect themselves from an invasion conducted by Portal?"

The murmuring grew louder.

"I would not say that Lord K'toolus was panicked," said the debating Mage Elder. "Not exactly, anyway."

"The point is that this was the situation that I intended to prevent. Had I been successful, we would not be here!"

"Now wait one moment, Guildmaster. There is still the matter of refusing access to the artifacts until you were pressured into doing so. Then there was the undue restriction of communication without any word as to why. Then there was denying Q'yros his..."

"Enough of this," Q'ixanna declared, rising from his chair. "This debate is ludicrous. You argue in circles. You have yet to give me one shred of proof that I did not act in the best interests of this Guild!"

Another Mage Elder rose. "With all due respect, Guildmaster, I am not convinced. I believe there is still question here as to how far you should have extended your authority."

A third rose. "I concur. I must come back to the matter of this Portal research. To me, that is the crux of the matter. Q'yros was not free to disseminate his research to the rest of us. Once it was learned that the possibility of a radical breakthrough in Portal mechanics existed, that information should have been made freely available to..."

"Do not start with that again!" Q'ixanna roared.

"But it is most relevant, Guildmaster!"

"I contend that it is not! I judged this research to be foolhardy in the extreme! And as such, I did not want to waste the time of the Mage Elders, nor sound a false alarm."

"And as for that so-called false alarm, we have no proof that the courier had anything to do with that!"

A thoughtful Q'kollan rose. "You have a point about the courier. We do not know if it is related to this or not."

The Mage made a cutting gesture with his hand. "And it is not relevant to my point."

Q'kollan raised a finger. "Ah, but it is relevant to these proceedings."

Katla's eyes widened. She exchanged a look with Uroddus, and then with some of her nervous cohorts.

Q'land spoke up. "How so, Mage Q'kollan?"

"As much as I would contend that our esteemed Guildmaster does have -- and should have -- great leeway in leading this Guild, I do admit to some concerns and questions about this Portal research."

"I beg your pardon, Q'kollan?" the Guildmaster demanded.

Q'kollan regarded Q'ixanna with a placid look. "With all due respect, Guildmaster, the issue of the research is explosive enough that it needs to be decided. And I feel that knowing if the courier is related to this matter or not will decide it, once we learn the identity of the perpetrator..."

His gaze swept out over the observers.

" ... the purpose of the courier..."

His gaze fell upon the Empiricists' table.

" ... and the motivations of those involved."

His gaze remained fixed.

"He knows," Katla whispered. "Gods damn it, he knows."

Uroddus frowned. "But you said that the others were careful to avoid..."

"I know!" she hissed through clenched teeth. "But our cover was not perfect. We had calculated a probability of eventual discovery of..."

"Never mind that. You were considering revealing this anyway."

"But not like this! He will use it against us, I know it."

"Will you wish the use of the Pall of Truth, Master Q'kollan?"

Katla's eyes snapped forward.

Q'kollan let his gaze linger on the Empiricist table for another moment. By this time, Q'ixanna had also caught on. "Yes, by all means, Q'land," the Guildmaster said. "I demand it!"

Q'land sighed and shook his head. "Very well, as much as I do not care to use this." He stepped before the Mage Elder table and turned to face the observers of the court. "Now..."

"Wait," Katla called out. Several gasps were heard from her table. Ultimately, however, they knew as well as Katla did that there was no avoiding it. "I was the one that sent the courier."

A din arose as excited and shocked conversation rippled through the others.

"An Empiricist!" the Guildmaster declared. "I should have realized from the start. Another attempt to disrupt this Guild with your foolish..."

"Guildmaster, please!" Q'land called out. "If we are to resolve this, we need to hear testimony." He turned towards the Empiricists table. "Your name?"

Katla took a deep breath. "Journeyman Katla Q'yoona."

"Journeyman Q'yoona, take the podium."

Amanda looked up from her task and gave Lanno a sidelong glance as he spoke to Vanlo.

"Are you quite sure this is wise so soon after her ordeal, Lanno?" Vanlo asked, the dubious tone in his voice obvious.

"Well, she seems to think so, certainly."

"And do you always take diagnostic advice from the patient?"

"Oh, come on, Vanlo, this is not the same thing."

"On the contrary, she is very much still my patient despite where she resides now. Therefore it is up to me to judge what she is capable of doing."

Amanda looked up again, a flask that she had just washed held in one hand, still dripping.

"She needs something to do," Lanno explained. "And she's a Healer. And you could use the help."

Amanda put down the flask rather heavily, making a distinct noise against the hard counter top. Lanno turned his head and peered curiously in her direction for a moment, but by then she had looked away.

"You seem to forget that we already have an assistant," said Vanlo delicately.

Lanno rolled his eyes. "No, I haven't, but you have her only for the morning. Evella could cover the afternoon when Amanda is off to training."

Amanda refrained from putting down the next flask so heavily, but did give it a bit of a hard shove when she pushed it aside, clinking it loudly against the others. She sighed. Gods, stop it, she chastised herself. You're acting like a little kid being denied a treat.

Vanlo looked thoughtful. Lanno sighed in exasperation. "Come on, you're not still hung up on what she did with the Draught, are you?"

"As I have said before, I do not believe she is malevolent. But I do call her judgment into question, and that is not someone I feel comfortable with handing his Lordship's slaves."

"But Vanlo, you said yourself at once point that you wished you could consult with her on chemistry matters."

"That was when I was first conceiving of the changes to the Draught for his Lordship."

"Now you're just looking for excuses."

Amanda looked at Lanno again and frowned. She wished he would take a step back and realize that Vanlo had a point. While she thought it was terrible what Freya had done to Evella, it would never have happened had Evella not done Freya's bidding in the first place.

"Lanno, you are the one attempting to make a case for her working here and using the most specious arguments to do so." Vanlo raised his hand quickly when Lanno looked about to protest. "Simply put, she is not strictly needed here. The bulk of my business occurs in the morning hours, which Amanda covers more than adequately. There is little to do after midday."