"Let's work on that later," said Zayn with a wink. "Can we celebrate for a few hours first?"
Laughing, Vin responded, "Oh yes, sorry!"
As they gathered their gear, Zayn peeked from behind the curtain to see if their maetrie guest was still there, only to find his seat empty. It was clear that their human audience thought the play was a hit, but he had no idea if their maetrie audience was just as intrigued. As good as the performance went, none of it mattered if they didn't get invited to The Diamond Eternal Ball.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Third Ward, April 2016
The minotaur in the maze
With the trials of integrating Petri into the play over, Zayn focused the team on preparations for Instructor Minoan's maze. He would have liked for them to have more time to prepare, but with The Diamond Eternal Ball coming up in a few weeks, and finals after that, he wanted to take this problem off their plate so they could focus.
Zayn gathered them in the living room, where Portia was already sitting on the couch opposite Keelan, scratching Marley's back as he lounged in her lap. Skylar was last to arrive, but Vin was still sketching new lines for the play at the dining room table, so Zayn had to wait to get his attention.
"What if Keelan said instead, fate is not a cruel mistress but a disinterested lover whose time was at an end...? No, that's not right either," said Vin, lips bunched to one side as he scratched out new lines.
"The play can wait, Vin. We've got an annoying instructor to deal with first," said Zayn.
Vin looked up as if he were going to argue, but noticed the others had arrived and closed his mouth.
"Before we go back into the tunnels beneath the house, do we have everything?" asked Zayn.
Keelan opened up a velvet bag, revealing bronze bracelets with jade runes, and started throwing them to everyone.
As Skylar caught hers, she said, "Isn't this the same one you gave us for countering the maetrie charm?"
"It is, but I've improved it since then," said Keelan. "It's a catch-all against passive charms and influence spells, which includes the maetrie, the confusion charm in the maze, and some other things."
At other things, Keelan nodded towards Zayn, letting him know they should work against Petri as well.
"What about our scouts?" asked Zayn.
"We're ready," said Portia. "We made some practice runs, tracking down all the gelato shops in the area. Not only are we a good team, but mango gelato es delicioso."
Marley stood on his hind legs, made a fist before his mouth as if he was holding an ice cream cone, and mimed licking motions while making the "yes" sign with his other hand.
Turning to Skylar, Zayn asked, "Deceptions?"
"I see everyone got my memo about attire, nothing you're not willing to burn afterwards due to Instructor Minoan's confection fetish. Otherwise, I've got a few tricks up my sleeve."
With a magician's flourish, Skylar pulled a shadowy card from her sleeve, and when she tossed it into the air, it broke into tiny shadowy sparrows before flying up the stairs.
"Nice," said Keelan.
"Alright, now we can—"
"What about me?" asked Vin.
"You've been busy with the play, which is way more important. If we don't get into The Diamond Eternal Ball, none of this matters," said Zayn.
"Oh, right," said Vin with a self-satisfied grin.
When they opened the cabinet to the tunnel beneath their kitchen, Zayn had a moment of worry that Instructor Minoan had blocked it, but the way was open, and they made their way into the tunnel without incident.
Behind him, Skylar muttered, "I always wanted to go through a wardrobe to another world, but definitely not a cabinet to a confusing sugar maze."
Once they were all below, Portia and Marley took point, marching ahead through the sticky liquid at the center of the tunnel, and though the callolo had a major sweet tooth, he made no indication he wanted to drink, which said a lot about the power of Instructor Minoan's illusions.
The pair stopped frequently as they encountered traps, which Portia quickly disarmed. At regular points, they placed tracking beacons, which they'd developed with Keelan's help. They navigated the sugary maze with ease, finding an opaque door that looked similar to a glazed window at the end of a hidden passage.
"Get ready," said Portia, about to open the door.
When she flung it open, Zayn expected to see another room in the maze, but instead, they were confronted with a ladder going down. On the back wall, peeking through the bars, was a graffiti version of the instructor's face with a stupid smile on it.
After Portia climbed down it a ways and then back up to them, she pronounced, "It kept going, maybe all the way down to the Undercity. But that's not the biggest problem. There's a stronger confusion charm down there, heavy enough to overcome my bracelet. I came back up before I couldn't figure out which way was up. Sorry, Keelan."
Vin groaned. "Not more mazes. I thought we were through this!"
The team looked generally demoralized, except for Marley, who somehow had a bite-sized chocolate bar in his hand, nibbling at the edges.
"If I'm being honest, I'd say that I don't want to go down there. Screw this Instructor Minoan," said Keelan, receiving nods from the others. "It just feels like an endless con, designed to drive us mad. I bet there's no grand prize either."
Zayn had both hands on top of his head. Something about what his cousin said sparked a thought.
"What was it that he said to us in the maze last time?" asked Zayn, who already knew it, but wanted to hear someone say it out loud.
Doing her best impression of the condescending instructor, Skylar said:
"Sugar and lies
and everything nice
that's what I'm made of
find me or divine me
but surely don't bind me
or you'll get nothing at all
this maze is a test
and if you're the best
then you'll win the grand prize of it all."
As soon as she was done speaking, everyone went quiet. Glances passed between them, which told Zayn that they'd heard what he'd heard as well. He kept quiet until someone finally said it.
"Find me or divine me," said Vin, shaking his head.
"We've been playing this game all wrong," said Keelan.
Skylar smacked her hands together as if she were squashing a bug. "We've been playing by his rules."
"I think that's the lesson," said Zayn. "We're thinking like students, but life isn't like that. There's not always a textbook answer."
"So how do we find him?" asked Vin.
"Ignore what he said," said Zayn. "It's meant to confine our thinking. If you're going to find someone who doesn't want to be found, how would you do it?"
"Depends on where he is," said Portia.
"We know he's in the city," added Keelan.
"Do we?" asked Zayn. "He's always shown up on his time. He could be coming from anywhere."
"What about what we know of him? You know, that he's like Dionysus, or maybe is Dionysus," said Keelan.
"Then we're looking in the wrong spot," said Skylar. "Ain't no way the god of wine and parties is in the Undercity. He's probably in a bar in the city."
As soon as Skylar said it, everyone's eyes widened with understanding.
"And we know someone who knows like all the bars in the city," said Skylar.
They hurried back to the house, finding Petri in the living room on the couch eating a bowl of cereal with an overlarge spoon. Her mouth was full when they burst in. She stared back at them, looking like she had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.
"Wha—"
"Do you know any bars with a heavy wine, honey, and madness theme?" asked Skylar.
Petri crunched down on the cereal and proceeded to finish the bite in her mouth while they watched. When she was finished, she asked, "Asylum Grapes?"
"That's got to be it," said Zayn.
They rushed out
the door, headed straight to the Green Line, checking their phones for the location of the bar. When they made it to Asylum Grapes in the fifth ward, they realized Marley was still with them, but no one questioned the orange tabby as they burst into the bar.
The place was a mix between a harem and a mental hospital, with padded walls covered in vineyard designs. Thankfully, it was still early afternoon, so the place was relatively empty, except for a private room in back. They found Instructor Minoan in robes, lounging on a bed of pillows with three half-naked attendants, two female and one male, conversing quietly while sipping on wine and nibbling on fresh bruschetta.
As soon as they burst in, his eyes widened with surprise. He dismissed his attendants, poured a glass of wine, and held it up to them.
"Congratulations," slurred the instructor, clearly a little drunk.
"We've won the game," said Zayn. "Hand over the grand prize."
"Have you now," he said as he took a sip from his glass.
The instructor's form wavered slightly, indicating an illusion. Zayn moved towards the door, but Skylar was faster, throwing a shadowy rope around Instructor Minoan before he could escape.
"Gotcha," said Skylar.
"Not quite," said Instructor Minoan with a victorious smile on his lips. "As I said in my riddle, you cannot bind me!"
"But you're not bound," said Skylar with an equally victorious smile. "This is but a shadow. You're free to leave at any time."
The instructor tested the rope of shadow around his waist, finding it insubstantial.
"Clever girl. I thought that clause would keep me safe." He sighed. "I guess I actually have to hand over the prize. Priyanka warned me there were some cunning teams."
"You've talked to Priyanka recently?" asked Zayn, hopefully.
"Ah," said the instructor, passing his fingers across his lips as if they were a zipper. "I cannot say."
When Instructor Minoan reached into his robe, everyone reacted as if he were about to escape. But he pulled out a stoppered jar and handed it to Skylar.
"Six doses of ambrosia," said Instructor Minoan. "One for each of your team."
"What does it do?" asked Skylar, holding up the jar to the light. A glistening orange liquid, almost like a marmalade, sloshed around inside the glass.
"It gives protection for a short time," he said. "Use it wisely, for you will never receive it again. Farewell, it appears my time is at an end."
Instructor Minoan gave them a flourishing bow at the same moment a waitress in a toga came in with a tray of fruits and cheeses. When they looked back, he was gone.
The waitress frowned. "So...who's going to pay his bill?"
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Wayward Theater, May 2016
The golden ticket
With the sounds of applause still ringing in his ears, Zayn slumped into the makeup chair, throwing his boots onto the counter. In their final week at the Wayward Theater, they'd performed five shows, including two on Saturday. With the Sunday matinee complete, they were done with their obligations.
The others weren't as worn out as he was. They were having drinks with the owner in the greenroom. Zayn had left because he didn't want to bring down their mood with his aggravation. The play had been a smashing success, they'd had packed audiences every night after the first show, but they'd failed at the one thing the play was meant to do: get them an invite to The Diamond Eternal Ball.
Zayn crumpled up a piece of paper and threw it at the calendar on the wall. The picture for the month of May was a cat on a stage doing what he assumed was Hamlet based on the tiny skull in the cat's paw. But that's not what he was mad about. There were only three days before The Diamond Eternal Ball. Not enough time to do another show, one that would get them an invite.
He sensed a presence lurking behind him. The owner kept coming back to drag him into the other room, not only for drinks, but to extend the run of the play. But as successful as it'd been, they hadn't come to Invictus to be on stage, and so he'd declined, regardless of the rising percentage of cut offered each time.
"I told you, I'll join later," said Zayn, ripping another flier in half, before crumpling it into a ball. "I just don't feel like celebrating right now."
"Are all human actors this moody? Especially after a successful play?" asked a cold voice from behind him.
Zayn nearly fell out of his chair as he pulled his boots off the counter, looking up into the almost golden eyes of the hooded maetrie he'd seen at the back of previous shows. Precept. Zayn recognized the maetrie from when he'd broken into the embassy.
"May I help you?" asked Zayn.
Precept tilted his head, a sign that something was wrong. When Zayn remembered the bracelet on his wrist blocking the maetrie's passive charm, he let his face slacken and his eyes take on a glossy quality. The change brought a slight creasing around the eyes.
"Your play is quite remarkable," said Precept.
"Thank you," said Zayn, trying to sound like he'd just been drugged.
"Though no match for the proper forms in the Eternal City, it was amusing enough." Precept handed him a glass ball that glowed with a golden warmth. "This will get you into The Diamond Eternal Ball three days hence. You will perform for the prince, but do not presume to make eye contact, or change anything from what I have seen thus far. It was good for a human play."
Zayn thought he was going to say more, but the tall maetrie swept from the room as if the walls themselves would obey his commands.
Holding the warm golden ball on his palm, a profound sense of relief overcame him. He'd been pursuing the idea of the play getting them an invite for so long without fruition, he'd thought that he'd led the team wrong. Even in that moment, with the invite in his hand, it didn't feel real.
He found the others in the greenroom with the owner. Petri was perched on the back of the gray couch with a mug clutched between her hands, still in her stained glass face makeup. Her dark hair had been untamed and hung around her shoulders. She looked like she was trying to hold back a smile, but doing a terrible job.
Skylar was alternating between taking drinks and wiping silver paint from her face using a handy wipe while laughing and talking with the others, who stood at the center of the room in their costumes. The owner, upon seeing his arrival, raised a glass in salute and slipped from the room.
"About time you joined us, cuz," said Keelan, wrapping his arm around Zayn's shoulder.
"Good you came," said Portia, "It wasn't right celebrating our last play without you."
"It's not our last play," said Zayn.
No one reacted at first, except for Keelan, who punched him in the arm and said, "As fun as this has been, we really need to get back to focusing on the Academy. I'm so behind on my homework for O'Keefe. If I screw up another trinket, she said she was going to partner me with Eddie next year in the advanced class."
"No," said Zayn, holding up the golden ball, "we're not performing at the Wayward Theater."
"Is that...?" asked Keelan, eyes white with excitement.
"An invite to The Diamond Eternal Ball, yes."
The others whooped and hollered, patting him on his back.
"You were right," said Vin. "They invited us. I was beginning to doubt they would."
"Me too," said Zayn. "Which means we're not done. We need to prepare for the next show, but this time the stakes are higher. We're performing for the prince."
Skylar let out a low whistle.
Keelan shrugged his shoulders. "What's the worst that can happen? We'll be in the embassy where we want to be, even if we bomb."
Zayn saw where their thoughts were going. "Remember what we're learning in Konig's class? Focus on the play, nothing else. We're there for a performance, just like we've been doing for months now."
"Right," said Keelan, shaking his head, looking sheepish for his comment, "sorry."
"No worries," Zayn said. "But make sure we're prepared in three days' time. No talking about it, or thinking about it. Focus on
the play, and only that, but you know, bring some extra gear in case we get asked to do more than The Liebereisen of Kanedari."
When Zayn moved to leave the room, Keelan said, "But you just got to the after-party."
"If we're headed to The Diamond Eternal Ball, I have some things to do before we go. Nothing big. I just need to check on things."
They seemed to accept his lie, or knew there was no point in asking because he wouldn't tell. Zayn had one more thing to do, but it didn't have anything to do with The Diamond Eternal Ball. It had to do with a certain question he'd been asked by the Lady of Varna. He didn't have an answer, yet, but he was close.
Chapter Thirty
Honeycomb, May 2016
Winding up the agent
A day before The Diamond Eternal Ball, Zayn was standing in the back of Instructor Konig's class, barely paying attention to the lecture about how quazaefs are used in some divination rituals, because he knew this section of the classwork tome by heart.
He was busy thinking about Varna and waiting for class to end so he could ask the instructor a few questions. He'd nearly made up his mind on how he would answer the Lady's question, but it was a matter of which method.
"...but these are the recorded and generally known procedures of divinations. But don't forget that prophecy or fortune-telling can be wrong. As we've discussed time and time again, when a seer peeks at the future, they're not seeing a version of the future that's written in stone, but a likely probability based on the intentions of those involved. Sometimes intentions tangle, creating a tipping point." Konig made a T with his hands, rocking the top portion. "A nudge here sends the prophecy this direction, or a bump here sends it the other way. This can happen when there are competing intentions, creating a multifaceted future. Of course, a good seer can see through these conflicts and suss out the answer to this complex statistical conflux, but going down this path takes you into the deeper mysteries of the Oculus Hall. For the Academy, it's enough to understand the possibilities."
Instructor Konig glanced at his watch.
"And that should do it for today. Remember next class, your divination stone should be ready. I will test it and grade accordingly. If it cannot predict a randomly chosen and rolled dodecahedron within an 86.7% hit rate, then you will not pass this portion of the class. You are dismissed."
The Veiled Diplomat Page 17