Chapter 48

The Urisi dignitaries had begun to arrive at the Manor just before dawn. A steady trickle meandered from the Portal chamber to the reception area prepared by their gracious Inonni hosts. The Inonni had spared little expense. They could avail themselves of fine wine and exotic pastries while they waited for the grand event, standing under great pavilions festooned with the banner and coat-of-arms of the Urisi Nation.

The transformation was so complete that no one would be able to tell that an Overlord's quarters once stood there.

By the time Norlan had arrived, the atmosphere was fairly festive. Where few of the High Lords or Ministers would themselves appear -- preferring to send representatives to perform their purchases for them -- there was not as much formality and restraint. People gathered in loose groups and gossiped and laughed with one another, as if this were some other social event.

Yet few could take a furtive glance at the stage and not feel a sense of growing anticipation as the sun climbed over the horizon. Norlan slowly smiled. He felt more at home here than he ever did at court. In some ways this was more familiar to him.

"Ah, would that be the redoubtable Lord Ambassador himself?"

Norlan turned quickly at the sound of the familiar voice. "Technically, it is still former Lord Ambassador, but I suspect that will change before very long. It is good to meet you in person, Jollis."

Jollis smiled, a robed and hooded Cohort by his side, and bowed his head. "You honor me, Lord Ambassador. And I, too, am hopeful that you meet with good fortune again."

"Really?"

"I believe we work well together. Your audacity in sending me that Farviewing pearl did, in a way, helped achieve what you see." Jollis swept his hand out over the crowd and let it linger towards the stage.

"So you are auctioning every one of Roquan's slaves?" asked Norlan.

"Every last one, Lord Ambassador. And every last one of every other Overlord."

"There are those in Urisi that have oft predicted the death of the Overlord system," Norlan commented mildly. "I doubt they expected it would turn out like this."

"We, too, believed that the Overlord system was nearing the end of its usefulness. We simply decided not to wait for it to collapse on its own."

Norlan raised an eyebrow. "And that is your real purpose? To take down the Overlord slave system?"

The Cohort turned his head towards his Master. Jollis looked thoughtful and smiled. "Perhaps that is enough said on the matter for now. I am quite sure that you will reclaim your title, and you will have many opportunities in the future to spar verbally with me."

Norlan smiled and chuckled. "Very well, Jollis. It is not like the High Lords are scrutinizing their sudden good fortune very closely. Nor are any of the others towards whom they have shown good favor by allowing them to attend this auction. You should see some lively bidding, I daresay."

"Ah, but is it safe to say that you, perhaps, already have your sights set on your particular purchase today?"

"Now that would depend on how the bidding goes."

"I suspect that Amanda would make a good fit for you, Lord Ambassador. I would strongly suggest holding out for her."

Norlan looked intrigued. "Indeed?"

"You cannot deny the fascination she holds for you."

"This is true. But she is also a handful. She would tax my patience a bit, I would suspect."

Jollis smiled. "Ah, very good, very good, Lord Ambassador. You already attempt to negotiate."

Norlan grinned. "It is a habit, yes. But it will be up to whoever can show the most platinum. If you would excuse me, Jollis, I wish to partake in some wine before the auction begins."

Jollis bowed his head until Norlan had turned away. The Cohort turned and leaned towards his Master, speaking in low, agitated tones. "Look at them, my Wanderer. Look at them wallow in their own self-importance and false superiority. Most disgusting. They are far worse than the Overlords ever were. We have taken jewels from goats and have given them to pigs."

"Easy, my friend, easy," admonished Jollis. "Your indignation is understandable, but misplaced. We abet them by selling those jewels you speak of."

"Only for a greater good, Wanderer. It is that thought alone that keeps my stomach from turning at the sight."

"Nevertheless, as distasteful it is, we have our duty. Now, the time is close at hand. We must prepare the slaves."

The Cohort bowed his head. "Yes, Wanderer, at once."

Amanda came running back towards her quarters, glancing behind her fearfully as if expecting to see a phalanx of Inonni marching after her. She stumbled once and nearly ran into the closed door of the building. She had to fumble with it in her rising desperation before she could throw it open and rush inside.

"Sirinna! Oh gods, Sirinna, it's today! It's... !"

She stopped short as Sirinna came up to her and put her hands on Amanda's shoulders. "What is it? What's today, Amanda?'

"The auction! They're going to do it this morning. They sent me away when I tried to go into the Healer office. The office is closed, Sirinna!"

Sirinna swallowed and let out a ragged sigh. She tried hard not to panic herself. "A-All right, Amanda, please, calm down. We knew this was going to happen. We..."

Amanda shook her head, her eyes blurred with tears. "You don't understand, Sirinna. I snuck a peek at the place where they're going to do it. They're selling us to the Urisi!"

Sirinna gave Amanda a stricken look, her own eyes shimmering. She drew Amanda into a tight hug. "Oh gods..."

"This is like a nightmare," Amanda said in a shaky, hollow voice. "I-I keep thinking I have to wake up from it. But I'm not. We're really never going to see each other again."

Sirinna closed her eyes tightly. Tears flowed despite her best attempt to suppress them. She tried to be strong for Amanda, but it was impossible. Roquan had been everything to her next to Amanda. With him gone, she had no support and no solace. "Amanda, p-please, don't say that," she begged softly.

Amanda drew back from the hug angrily. "But it's true. Stop denying it! This isn't like a contract. We're just property now, just commodities!"

Sirinna struggled to hold on to her sanity. "Amanda, maybe someone will buy the two of us. Or maybe people from the same family. That's possible. That has to be possible!"

Amanda uttered a small gasp and rushed towards the door. She cracked it open slightly, then leapt back in horror.

"Oh gods, they're coming for us now! Sirinna, stall them!"

"What are you doing?"

Amanda ran for her bedchamber. "What I told you about last night!"

"Amanda, you can't get away with that, not with..."

Amanda had already disappeared past the curtain and slipped into the sanitary. The door behind her opened. She spun around with a gasp.

Several Inonni warriors stood just inside the door. Two of them were carrying thick cuff restraints and matching collars. Chains trailed from the collars and dangled just above the floor. One of them looked around. "Where is Amanda?"

"U-using the sanitary," Sirinna said in a quavering voice.

"We have others going around the back of the building," said another warrior in a warning tone.

"I said she's using the sanitary, she's not trying to escape."

"Call her, now."

Sirinna swallowed. "Amanda, you have to come out here now."

In the sanitary, Amanda let our a sigh of frustration. "I'm just finishing up, I'll be out in a few moments!" she called out.

The warriors exchanged a look. "She is here, at least," said one.

"Yes, but we cannot delay," said the other. "We will not wait long."

In the sanitary, Amanda slid her feet a little further apart. She pressed her finger against the pearl until the pressure was too much. She closed her eyes and let out a slow breath. Come on, relax. Please, relax, gods damn it.

She teased her womanhood directly until the stimulation caused moisture to ooze from her slit. The pearl slipped into her tunnel. She winced as she tried to force her muscles to work, already tense from her anxiety. Finally, the pearl was drawn deeper inside her, and she let out a sigh of relief.

"She must come out now," one of the warriors said.

Amanda swept aside the curtain and ran through the next one, leaving it billowing in her wake. "I'm here," Amanda said. Her eyes fell on the collars and cuffs. Her heart pounded. "All right, I'm ready."

The lovers continued to look at each other's eyes, as if trying to imprint the memory of them in these last few moments. Sirinna was cuffed first, and then Amanda. Amanda was abruptly turned so that she could no longer look at Sirinna.

The collars were closed about their necks. Sirinna uttered a shuddering gasp, not having worn a collar for so many years. Amanda simply bit her lip and tried not to think of her time with Freya.

The chains were snapped. Both Sirinna and Amanda came to attention, blinking a few remaining tears from their eyes. The warriors said nothing more to them. They simply tugged on the chains and shepherded them outside.

Duric stood at the bottom of the dais in the audience chamber. He remained there despite the urgings of the Inonni Cohorts to ascend and sit upon the throne for this visit. The man approaching him hardly seemed to be the type that would mastermind an invasion. He had expected all the trappings of a conqueror, resplendent in finest attire and traveling with a large entourage of advisors and sycophants. Instead, what he got was an elderly man in a simple, flowing robe.

The man came to a stop several arm's length before Duric. He bowed. "An honor to meet you at last, Emperor Z'garon."

"You will forgive me if I do not return the honor."

The man nodded once. "Understandable. I am called Kyllos among my people, and that will suffice as both name and title. I wish to thank you for your foresight and making this transition as smooth as possible."

Duric bristled. "I did it simply to spare lives and nothing more. Spilling blood would have been a useless endeavor. Do not take it for a moment to mean I willingly hand control of the nation to you."

"And I do not ask you to relinquish control. It is, in fact, why I wished you had decided to retain your position as Emperor."

"Oh, but I do retain it, Kyllos. I will remain as Emperor only because I feel I owe it to the people that carried me into power."

Kyllos nodded slowly. "Ah, I see." He glanced past Duric for a moment. "When I did not see you upon the throne, I thought..."

"Get used to it, Kyllos. That throne is a symbol. It represents the power of the Emperor to honor and protect the nation, and to give the people wise guidance. So long as you remain as occupiers, I am not protecting the nation. Therefore, I will not claim that throne. You have me as Emperor in title only. You have ripped out the heart of what it means."

Kyllos appeared disappointed. "I do hope that in time you will see things differently, Emperor Z'garon. There is so much more than you understand."

"But this is what you get now," said Duric. "My sole concern will be for the people and seeing that they are not unduly affected by your conquest. You will get little more from me."

Kyllos nodded. "That will suffice for now."

Duric raised an eyebrow. "For now?"

"This is a continuing journey, Emperor. You may see the invasion as an end, but it is really a means to an end that is far greater. This is just the start of the journey. A small step. You are young enough that you will glimpse where we wish to take your people. You will see more of it than even I will. And in that, I envy you."

Duric laughed. Kyllos looked at him quizzically.

"Never has someone ever talked about conquest and annexation of territory in such flowery terms," said Duric with a humorless smirk. "You ought to write poetry."

Kyllos shook his head. "And that is the gulf that we must bridge. It will come in time, I am certain of that. I will be in touch again soon. Good day, Emperor Z'garon."

"You pretentious bastard."

Norlan took a sip of his wine before he turned around. "Ah, from a voice I wanted to hear to one that I would be happy to die never having heard again," he said in a bright voice and with a sunny smile. "And just how are you on this lovely day, Mandas?"

"Just tell me how you did it."

"Did what?"

"How you rated a trip to the slave auctions. You don't even have an official title anymore!"

Norlan smirked. "I paid for the privilege, Mandas, that's how. Hopefully that satisfies your little superiority complex."

Mandas sneered. "Well, so much for being in good with the High Lords once more."

"If I had wished it, I could have easily asked for favor and it would have been granted. I did not feel it proper to do so until my title was fully restored. And that will not happen until the High Lords are satisfied with what they will be purchasing today. Some of us prefer to earn favor and reward and not simply expect it."

"You could not have possibly had enough funds to charter Portal passage without favor or rank!"

Norlan sighed. "If it helps any, Mandas, I will be chartering a ship back to Urisi instead of a Portal. I wish to save my funds for other matters."

Mandas laughed. "You are not seriously going to bid on the slaves yourself?"

"That is my business. Really, Mandas, I am at a loss as to why you continue to latch yourself to me in this manner. Why you dog my footsteps if you consider me so beneath you."

"Because I do not take kindly to lies being told about me at court by you and your High Lord lackeys! How dare you attempt to circulate a story that I did not tell everything I knew about those infernal Distant East Portals!"

Norlan shrugged. "All I told the High Lords was that you did not bring back the whole picture on these Portals, despite having the Emperor's ear."

"He would not tell me anything, you idiot!" Mandas hissed. "I had to extract the information myself. It was a tremendous effort to obtain what I wished!"

Norlan snickered. "Yes, cavorting with nubile women in the bath house can be rather taxing on one's endurance. Perhaps a more capable man in that regard should have been sent."

Mandas clenched his teeth in fury. "I have had it with you, Norlan. You think your wit can sustain you where your total lack of rank, privilege, or platinum leaves you lacking. I intend to prove you wrong. I will show you how much they mean." He paused as movement caught his eye.

A man was climbing atop the stage, one who wore the weatherbeaten leathers of a merchant. An Inonni Cohort handed him a large cone. He stepped to the front of the stage and spoke into the narrow end of the cone.

"Hear ye, here ye all! The auction of the D'ronstaq slaves shall commence momentarily. Please be aware of two things. One! All sales are final. Two! No credit will be extended, all payments are immediate and in platinum. Allowances will be made for obtaining additional funds by Portal, but all sales must be concluded by dusk."

A sly smile crossed Mandas' face. "Yes, Norlan, those three things mean everything. Especially platinum. It is perhaps the most important of all, as you will soon see. Excuse me." Mandas bowed his head slightly, then headed off into the crowd that was now gathering around the stage.

Norlan let out a long sigh through his nose. How important was Amanda to him? Not important enough to bankrupt him, that he knew. But the last thing he wanted was Mandas to get the better of him. He could foresee Mandas causing him great problems at court now. It was bad enough he would be gone for nearly a moon having to take a ship back.

Yet he also had a small amount of compassion for Amanda, though he would not admit it openly. He did not want the likes of Mandas owning her. He knew of Mandas' shadier dealings with slavemasters of questionable ethics.

Norlan glanced down the path that led deeper into the Manor. He could see the first set of slaves being brought to the auction. Amanda was not among them. He would have some time.

He made sure that Mandas was sufficiently engaged before he slipped away and headed back towards the Portal chamber. When he was reasonably sure he was unobserved, he took out a Farviewing pearl and waved his hand over it. It was soon answered by Lord Ardon's Viewer. "Yes?"

"Please fetch High Lord Ardon, this is important."

"Council is in session, he is not to be disturbed. I will see that he gets your..."

"Lovely Ladies Languish Lividly."

The Viewer paused. "One moment, my Lord."

Norlan nodded once. The apparently nonsensical phrase was a code. Each High Lord had their own, intended to allow only certain people to bypass the standard "I will see that he gets your message" response.

Not long after, Ardon settled into view. "What is it, Norlan? Is there a problem at the auction?"

"In a way, yes, my Lord, and I hope you will find it in your heart to help out a pretentious bastard."

Ardon blinked. "I beg your pardon?"

Norlan grinned. "Allow me to explain..."

Vanlo stepped into the back room and scanned the shelves, checking for any personal effects he may have left behind. He had no idea what would become of the Manor, having no insight into the Inonni plans. He wanted to make sure he left all the normal Healer supplies in case another would need them.

He was about to turn away when he heard a soft noise from the treatment room and stepped up to the door. "Lanno, what are you doing here?"

Lanno was startled by the voice and spun around. "Sorry, Vanlo. I, um..."

"The office is officially closed unless there is an emergency," said Vanlo as he stepped forward.

"I know!" Lanno sighed. "I know. I just don't want to leave. I don't want to believe it's over."

Vanlo folded his hands and nodded sadly. "I understand. I have spent far more years here than I can remember. This place became something of a fixture in my life." He smiled softly. "I had the vague notion that I would never quite retire. I would simply continue working here until my services were no longer needed or I passed on."

"But you are going to retire," Lanno said accusingly. "That's what I had heard."

Vanlo nodded. "Yes, Lanno, I am. My services are no longer needed."

"That's just here, right?"

Vanlo shook his head. "My services are no longer required anywhere. I am an anachronism. My kind of work is simply not valued, or it is valued for the wrong reasons."

"But you're the only one that cares about what matters! You're the only one with knowledge that matters!"

Vanlo paused and managed a tiny smile. "I appreciate your praise, but..."

"But nothing! Hellfire, Vanlo, I've learned more from you in the time I've been here than all my time at the Guild Hall. You are far more competent at your craft than half the Healer Elders."

Vanlo was struck speechless for a moment. "Lanno, I ... I am truly touched by your words. I am happy that I have had some positive impact on you."

"That's an understatement. And now I won't get to learn chemistry from you, either."

"What of Evella? She appears to be as competent as I am."

Lanno was shaking his head. "She's already gone. She decided to take the Inonni up on their offer."

Vanlo let out a breath as a small sigh. "One day she will learn to think through on her decisions."

"So I'm stuck now."

"You could return to the Guild Hall and seek a new assignment."

"I'm not sure I trust the Guild Hall anymore, to be honest. Maybe Evella was right about them. I certainly know you were right about them. Vanlo, where are you going from here?"

"I will be leaving for port at dawn tomorrow," said Vanlo. "I have chartered passage on a merchant vessel in exchange for some Healer services. I have a small plot of land on the mainland continent, not too far from Keyas, just on the outskirts of a peasant village. I trust I should be able to secure enough supplies to live out my remaining years in quiet." He smiled softly. "I am told I will likely be made a Village Elder and be sought for my wisdom and advice."

Lanno smiled faintly. "And certainly you won't be doing any Healing."

"I imagine I will do some, but only if the village Healer is unable to cope."

"Vanlo, can I go with you?"

Vanlo hesitated. "I beg your pardon?"

"I want to complete my chemistry education with you. Please, Vanlo, this is very important to me."

Vanlo sighed. "Lanno, I am afraid..."

"Just listen to me for a moment. You yourself lamented the loss of this subject matter at the Guild. You and Evella are perhaps the last ones to have any decent knowledge in it. I have no idea what will become of Evella, and you ... you're ... you're not long for this world. I mean compared to..."

Vanlo nodded. "I concede the point, no need to dance around it. Continue."

"And once you're gone, that's it. It will have to be rediscovered all over again. Or we have to beg for favor from our occupiers for the knowledge. I get the impression from them that they consider themselves superior to us and won't deign to bestow that skill even if we did ask. At least if you teach me, I may be able to pass it on to someone else. Or write it down. Or something."