To Be Victorious: The Maestro Chronicles Book 6

by John Buttrick

  “Our patrol-boats continue to be on the lookout for enemy ships and so do Pythons of the royal navy,” the Admiral replied in a business-like manner. If he was worried about the incident at the naval facility, it did not show on his face. “With the exception of a few tests of our resolve by the Pentrosans, the sea has been quiet. Captain Vermalien of the Equalizer reported a storm forming in the center of the sea, but there is nothing unusual about a summer storm.”

  Jeremiah Lassiter’s dark brow wrinkled as if he was trying to recall something, and after a little more pondering, he nodded affirmatively. “Accomplished Lela Kafiss, who serves aboard the Equalizer, recently reported feeling powerful harmonic waves while the boat was on patrol near the middle of the sea. But we are all feeling the ripple effects of high power spells on a near constant basis, so I paid it little mind, especially when we were planning the raids.”

  Daniel had not needed to be reminded who captained the Equalizer or which Accomplished of the Defense Department served aboard the vessel, but recognized there might have been some in attendance who did not know. He could not blame Tim or Jeremiah for failing to realize the two events were related, especially since he would not have connected them if not for Slinky’s sending. “Tarin Conn was in the middle of a conjuration in the Taltin Sea when he heard I was alive and attacking Port Joppa. He placed a Da Capo on the spell and will soon go back with the intention of increasing the strength. We need to contact Lela and have her focus Find All in the area of that summer storm. Tim, you or Gina need to have the Equalizer get as close to the conjuration as is safely possible.”

  “I will send the order,” Gina quickly replied.

  She had been staring at him the whole time as if wondering when he was going to bring up the little plot to pull him from the presence of Tarin Conn. She seemed relieved he was calm and speaking in a tone that was all business. The presence of Bella Sander had a lot to do with it. The Senior Soarer and Scholar of Aakadon was a keen observer and Daniel did not want Aakadon to know what had been done to him. His ego was not the problem; it was the undermining of his office he did not want bandied about and the lack of trust in his decision making by people who should have known better.

  Daria Copa’s hood was pulled back, revealing her long brown hair and a communication array with rows and rows of gems circling her head. “I have relayed your orders to Accomplished Kafiss. We will soon learn what the Dark Maestro is up to in the Taltin Sea.”

  “I hope so because he promised the damage would be widespread,” Daniel replied.

  Bella stopped stroking his beard and brought his hands to rest on the table. “You must have scouts imbedded very close to Tarin Conn in order to have learned so much,” he paused as if allowing time for his words to sink in and then continued, “You would have made an excellent Eagle. Be that as it would have been, I was given the impression you have been asleep for the past twelve marks and no one knew when you would awaken. I was beginning to worry you would miss the meeting in Aakadon.”

  “The scouts of the Atlantan Guild are very good at what they do,” Daniel replied.

  “Thanks for noticing,” Samuel interjected, seeing as his department did most of the information gathering, so far as Bella knew. The expressing of gratitude was a good way of keeping the existence of the animals scouts a secret.

  Daniel gave him a nod and then continued. “I did spend most of that time sleeping, but received a briefing just before coming to this meeting. It helps to have information ahead of time,” he paused and glanced significantly at Leah, Tim, and Gina. If his parents or Carlos had been in attendance, they would have shared in the glance. “People have been known to perish for lack of knowledge.”

  Martin Varroon, Conductor of the Department of Education and Research, nodded in agreement. His black beard was thick but nowhere near as long as Bella’s. “Right you are Maestro. Good and timely information leads to good decisions and the lack of both can be fatal.” The eldest department-head had not been involved in the plot hatched by Leah and carried out by Carlos, a fact Daniel felt good about.

  Bernard Kleopis, Conductor of the Department of Emissaries, cleared his throat. “Maestro, Vice Count El Marzon left Starling Cove about eight marks ago. He was pleased when I first met him. Evidently Conductors are held in high regard in the Zeuthan Empire. I regret to say he was displeased over the fact that you did not come to meet him.”

  Daniel had locked the meeting away in the deep recesses of his mind and events had kept it there. The get-together had become one of those things that had fallen off the proverbial plate before he could get back to it. “What did he say?”

  “Join the empire now and the Atlantan Guild will have an honored place among the Zeuthans. He will give you time to think the matter over. In the meantime he made it clear we should stay out of his way or face the consequences,” Bernard replied.

  Bella’s bushy white eyebrows nearly climbed his forehead. “What empire and who is this Vice Count?”

  A snowball had greater chances of staying frozen in the blighted desert of Ecoppia than the Atlantan Guild had of joining the empire, but Daniel had too many things on his plate, and did not need to worry about Zeutha. “I will share what we know about the Zeuthans at the meeting in Aakadon,” he told the Scholar, who nodded acceptance, and then focused on the Conductor. “Did you give him my message?”

  Bernard eyed Bella briefly, as if trying to decide how much to say in front of him, and then said, “I made it clear we will not tolerate our vessels being assaulted, as you commanded. Their warship appears to be quite lethal and dwarfs our patrol-boats, a few of which he saw while at the marina. I do not know how seriously he took our stance, but we do have an understanding. Each will steer clear of the other.”

  “Let’s hope we can avoid hostilities,” Daniel said, then rubbed his hands together, and asked, “Is there anything more that needs to be discussed?”

  “I have a captive from this morning’s raid of Taracopa you may want to have some words with,” Chas Herling spoke up.

  “Fine, you and I will go speak to him or her and everyone else can get back to their chores,” Daniel replied and stood up.

  “Jeremiah, Samuel, Franklin, Daria, please meet me in my office for a brief discussion. I will be with you shortly,” Leah called to them.

  As people were filing out the door, she tapped Daniel on the shoulder, and he came to a stop. “Maestro, I am not sorry Carlos conveyed you from Port Joppa, but am sorry for failing to consult you ahead of time,” she spoke softly. “You are aware of my reasons but they are not an excuse. I also want you to know that no one but we few who were involved with the decision, and those who were at the bungalow when you arrived, knows the conveyance was against your will. It was never my intention to undermine your authority as the leader of the guild; the intention was to save your life. Most everyone believes you stuck with the plan and were upset when the operation ended and you had to withdraw right after Tarin Conn arrived.”

  He nodded to Sherree as she exited, leaving him and Leah alone in the room, and then gave the First Accomplished his undivided attention. “I fully understand the reasons and agree they are no excuse. Everyone seems to know how angry I was, but fortunately few know why, and we will leave it at that. You managed to contain knowledge of the undermining of my office and decision making; that limits the damage. Intentional or not, you demonstrated a lack of trust in my leadership, and what needs to be done now is for you and Carlos to find a way to rebuild my trust in you, which has been severely damaged. I was not exaggerating when I spoke of nearly destroying the Wager. I was seconds away from focusing Shatter Sphere. If Carlos had timed his spell differently, even by fractions of a mark, and we had arrived facing the bungalow, you and everyone who was on the porch would have been killed. Don’t you think I have enough to worry about without having to wonder if one of my companions is going to convey me elsewhere when I am in the process of casting a spell?”

  Leah let out a sigh. “
I know you have plenty of concerns and I am truly sorry I have added to them,” she paused, blinking her eyes, and then swallowed before asking, “Do you want me to step down?”

  She was far too competent to demote and although Daniel was peeved with the Five-bolt Accomplished, he could not imagine running the guild without her. “I don’t want you in a lower position. What I want is to be able to trust you to have my back without wondering if you are about to trip me.”

  She let out the breath she had been holding while listening to his response. “How can I go about rebuilding your trust in me?” the First Accomplished asked, clearly relieved. She really did think he was going to strip her of rank. She certainly deserved to be.

  “So far as I know, you have never lied to me, kept things from me, but never lied. Each time we communicate, I am going to ask you questions like, have you been given information from my Seer pertaining to me, and have you made any plans that could interfere with what I am about to do?”

  She nodded her understanding. “That could make our conversations convoluted if you have to ask a lot of questions before we get to the point of the discussion.”

  “True, but I don’t want to be surprised again. If not for the swirling of events that worked the situation out to where nothing was destroyed, you, my parents, Tim, Gina, and a lot more people could have died,” he paused at seeing the contrition in her eyes. “Don’t worry, I’ll probably ask a lot of questions at first, but as time goes on, and my trust in you grows, the queries will decrease,” Daniel added and then asked, “You called for a meeting of your Conductors, what would you have done if I had asked you to resign?”

  “The meeting was to inform them of my demotion. This morning was not the first time I withheld information from you and I expected to pay the price. I was going to ask Jeremiah if he would accept me in his department,” Leah told him. “Thank you for giving me another chance. I will not make the same mistake again.”

  Daniel placed his hand on her shoulder. “Our association started with just the two of us and grew into the Atlantan Guild. You were the first Accomplished to openly join me in my fight against Tarin Conn and I’ll not cast you aside so easily. Besides, I need you to run the guild while Sherree and I are in Aakadon.”

  She touched his arm. “We have come a long way and will make the guild even stronger in the future. What we have built will not end after the defeat of Tarin Conn,” Leah said and smiled. “Have no worries, I will keep the guild intact while you vacation in the ancient city.”

  He let his hand drop and started for the door. “Vacation, it is the only place I can go where no one can convey me elsewhere.”

  Her smile vanished, replaced by a firm line. “I know, that is why you need to be careful,” she replied as they stepped into the hall. Their relationship was strained but not broken.

  He nodded to Chas, who had been waiting patiently in the hall. “Where is the captive you think I should have a talk with?”

  The Commander watched as Leah walked to her office and then replied, “In the lockup within the Sentinel quarters of this complex.”

  Shantear only had a small contingent of Sentinels and that section was eight levels down and three spans to the east, a long way to walk when there were other things needing attention. The Queen, because of the healing she received, would know the twenty-first Royal Knight of her Realm had come to Shantear, and would likely send for him. He would have to give a report. On top of that minor thing, the war had not stopped during the twelve marks he had been asleep, and he needed to catch up. “Win before the fall or you might not win at all,” the Seer’s words echoed in his mind, and were a constant poking-prod in the backside, especially since fall was thirty-one days away.

  Daniel glanced down the hall where Carlos, Sero, David, Silvia, and Simon, who must have joined them right after the meeting, were waiting by his office door. The Chief Aid was the only one whose countenance came close to being cheerful. He must have sensed the brief meeting with Leah had gone relatively well. The man knew his Maestro better than most of the people serving in the guild. The others wore solemn expressions and worry creased their brows, as was fitting. If they had been proud of keeping vital information from the Chosen Vessel, his attitude toward them would have hardened, and the consequences harsh. Their eyes followed him as he approached the door.

  “Simon, you can come with me. Commander Herling and I are going to speak with the captive. You four,” Daniel said, while focusing on the bodyguard, the pair of Teki, and the assistant, “wait in my office.”

  “I would like to say on behalf ..,” David began to say, but cut off when Daniel raised his hand.

  “We will discuss what happened when I have the time for it.”

  They went inside and Simon closed the door behind them. “Has there been any changings of status you would like me to make known to the guild?” he inquired, perhaps wanting to verify his assumptions concerning Leah.

  “No, but it would be helpful if you have a critter in the Sentinel quarters that can provide a visual,” Daniel replied.

  Simon’s lips grew into a broad smile, likely a result of hearing there we no changes to be announced. “What makes you think I have creatures from my menagerie scattered to such an extent here at Shantear?”

  “Because, not all of the rodents, spiders, and bugs in this place are part of my swirl, I just don’t have any in that particular area at the moment. I figured much of the rest of the creepy-crawlies belonged to you, but if I am wrong, I can send in one of my multi-legged scouts to acquire the visual,” Daniel replied.

  Simon raised his hand. “No, you are not wrong,” he said and closed his eyes, no doubt acquiring the conveyance point.

  “Got it,” the Chief Aid announced and then glowed with potential for the spell.

  The three of them vanished in a flash, were swallowed into the darkness between here and there, and then arrived in a sphere-lighted, but deserted, corridor. Daniel glanced both ways and then started to the left after recognizing where he was. Simon and Chas followed him to a door guarded by a pair of Sentinels, Shella Gabler, who, as all female Sentinels, wore her hair in a single braid hanging below her helmet, and Kala Warner, dressed identically, except the first had a pair of gold stripes on the sleeves of her blue coat. Both were Ducaunans, dark-haired, and tall.

  Shella nodded a greeting to Simon, she once commanded the unit that had temporarily been assigned to him. She then gestured with her hand to Kala, who opened the door. “Thank you,” Daniel told them and entered with Chas and the Chief Aid filing in behind.

  The Commander took the lead down yet another corridor which led to a steel door. Inside was another pair of Sentinels who were sitting at a desk. Behind them were rows of chambers filled with recent captives. All of the detainees were non-Aakacarns and most of them would soon be transferred to Ducaunan military prisons, seeing as Her Majesty’s forces had more room, and could hold larger numbers.

  Beefy Boe Camin and wiry Jax Talmin stood up and saluted Daniel and Chas. “The captives are quiet and under control,” the second man reported. He was usually out with the fighting units but had been rotated in for rest and recuperation. The man was so zealous he had to be ordered to take a break from combat.

  “I am taking Sir Daniel to see Detainee Joppa,” Chas informed the guards.

  “Of course, Commander, he is in the last chamber over there to your left,” Boe replied.

  Joppa, Serena believed Van Joppa to be dead, was he still alive?

  Daniel pondered the notion but decided to hold his tongue, knowing the answer was a few paces away. He eyed the beefy Corporal and remembered restoring him from the effects of the spell, Condemnation. His knees had been fused and his legs shortened to the point where it had been easier to move using his arms, which had been extended so he could swing his body forward. It was good to see the young man standing tall and in good health.

  Simon was the first to reach the chamber. Daniel allowed Chas to walk ahead of him and
open the door. Inside was a man, perhaps in his mid-twenties, with light brown skin, and wearing what in the recent past was quality wool clothing the color of purple. His silk shirt was stained and dirty and the suit-coat ripped, wrinkled, and soiled with dried blood. Whatever wounds he hand taken must have been healed because unblemished skin was visible between the rips and holes. By the look of it, he had taken a dagger lance through his right arm and another through his left shoulder. Other than that, his hair and beard were neatly trimmed.

  He was sitting on a bench and looked up when the cell door closed. His eyes widened as they fixed upon Daniel. “I know you.”

  “Sir Daniel, this is Steffen Van Joppa. His Uncle Cyrus was killed in the raid, as was his Aunt Aleen and six cousins. He is the next in line to inherit the Van Joppa holdings,” Chas made the introduction.

  Daniel fixed his gaze on the heir and thought of the conversation he overheard in the throne-room at Filia. “Your mind is linked to Serena Lowell-Conn,” he stated as if a fact, even though it was an educated guess, going by the last words he heard before Sherree ended his communion with Slinky.

  Steffen’s mouth dropped open and he stammered, “H-how did y-you know?”

  Daniel produced a smile he did not feel and was about to make his reply, but held back when the words came from another source. “Nothing is hidden from Our Maestro,” Simon answered. “He knows many things beyond the understanding of ordinary men and uncovers the deepest of secrets. His vision spans east and west, north and south, and under the oceans.”

  A Teki performer could not have embellished the facts with any more skill than the Chief Aid demonstrated. Daniel almost chuckled, except doing so would have spoiled the effect the sandy-haired Accomplished’s words were having on his audience of one. Van Joppa’s mouth had snapped shut and he was shaking and growing pale in the face.

  “She only visited my dreams a few times,” Steffen began in a steady voice after composing himself. He wiped his brow and shook his head despairingly. “Up until now I was not important enough to warrant much of her attention. I expect that to change now that Uncle Cyrus is dead,” he seemed more upset by the prospect of the haunting than the death of his father’s brother. “Serena came into his mind whether or not he was asleep. It was frightening to watch. He would be in the middle of issuing orders and his face would suddenly go blank for however long the communication lasted, then he would start perspiring, and would have to take wine to settle his nerves. Sometimes he would fall over in mid-stride when she contacted him. My uncle was a great and ambitious man, but she turned him into a puppet. Lyle Van Kestrel got his revenge for what my uncle had done to him, arranging the abduction and all, but believe me when I say the payback started well before Cyrus died. I do not want to end up like him. Is there any way you can break the spell Serena has on me?”