The three glanced at each other.
“Yes?” Mykella finally said.
“Squad Leader Casaryk, Lady. Commander Areyst wishes a few moments of your time before he departs for Viencet.”
“I’ll be right there.” Mykella rose and walked toward the outer door.
“What is it?” asked Rachylana.
“It can’t be good,” replied Mykella, looking back. “He wasn’t supposed to leave until tomorrow.” She opened the door.
Casaryk had already retreated, and, some twenty yards away, Areyst stood at the top of the main staircase, wearing his undress blues, his visored cap in his hand.
Mykella walked toward him, stopping a yard or so away.
“Lady-Protector.” He inclined his head.
“Commander. I take it we face some unforeseen difficulties?”
“Not so much unforeseen as occurring earlier than anticipated. The Midcoast forces crossed into Lanachrona yesterday morning and attacked Thesma. The villagers had hidden all their grain already. They fled into the forests to the north. Skrelyn’s men put the empty village to the torch.” Areyst shook his head. “They won’t get supplies that way, but it’s going to be hard on the next two villages, one way or the other.”
“They’ll flee, won’t they?”
“Baryma has close to four hundred crofters and growers.”
Mykella understood. Short of burning their own grain and supplies, and driving their livestock into the woods where reclaiming it would be difficult if not impossible, the villagers had no feasible way to deny some of those supplies to the Midcoast forces.
“When do you want the auxiliaries?” she asked.
“Not before Tridi. Quattri would be better. I have already told all the headquarters staff to accompany Fourth Company. Captain Maeltor will accompany Undercaptain Salyna and the auxiliaries. She will have to leave half a score to keep the quarters and buildings, and those dealing with the gaol. Maeltor will leave those recovering from their injuries and a few others.”
“They will leave on Quattri, then. Do you think that this is designed to stir us up and that their main forces will regroup and rest before attacking?”
“That is possible. It is also possible that they feel an early and strong attack is more likely to be effective. I cannot tell from what has happened so far. I will send dispatches daily.”
“You do not—”
“I know you can see much, but there is much you cannot.”
Mykella had to grant that although she was beginning to feel that she should have spent more time working with the Table, distasteful as the proximity to the pinkish purple felt. “I will be there when it is necessary.”
“Lady, you should not…” Areyst broke off his words.
“I should not do what?” snapped Mykella.
“I am only concerned about you,” he said quietly.
“Concerned?” Mykella was about to say more except that she couldn’t but help sense the depth of feeling behind his words. She said nothing more, instead looking at him steadily. “I will be fine. If I do not stand for my land, how can I ask anyone else to do so?” Especially when you have shields and they do not?
“You will send word?”
“If and as I can. I would be there with the auxiliaries, except there are … signs that the Ifrits may also be about to try something, and I would like to be near a Table until I am needed.”
“Lady…” More unspoken concern lay behind the single word.
“Commander, we each will do what we must.” Although she wanted to reach out and touch him, at least take his hand, she did not—not with Casaryk and the stair guards watching, if from a distance. “I will join you as I can.” That is a promise in more ways than one.
The faintest hint of a smile crossed his lips, and he inclined his head. As he straightened, he murmured, “I look forward to that.”
Then he offered a last smile, turned, and headed down the main staircase.
Not wishing to seem too concerned—or lovestruck—Mykella also turned and walked back to the breakfast room.
Both sisters looked to her as she closed the door behind her and returned to her place at the table and her uneaten breakfast.
“What was that all about?” asked Salyna.
“Skrelyn’s advance forces put Thesma to the torch yesterday morning. Areyst got the courier message early this morning. He’s returning with Fourth Company and the headquarters group, most of it anyway.”
“Mykella … you know we’re outnumbered,” began Salyna.
“Yes, you can. I don’t like it. Neither does Areyst, but we’ll need every man.”
“What do you mean?” asked Rachylana.
“Salyna is going to take the auxiliaries to Viencet to handle all the support duties. That will free what … another company?” Mykella looked to her youngest sister.
“More like a company and a half. Perhaps two.” Salyna paused. “He didn’t come to me…”
“Captain Maeltor will accompany you. Commander Areyst asked me to tell you because of the press of time. Remember … he just found out a glass or so ago.” That wasn’t quite what Areyst had said, but in spirit it was true enough, and the fact that he had not said so directly told Mykella that he was worried indeed.
55
For the remainder of Decdi and all of Londi, Mykella saw Salyna and Rachylana only in passing, as both busied themselves with the coming transfer of the auxiliaries from Tempre to Viencet—excepting the handful or so aiding with prisoners and the gaol. Mykella did have to expend several hundred more golds for supplies and three wagons, in addition to almost another thousand golds to the Southern Guards.
On Duadi, after breakfast, Mykella made her way to the Table chamber to check on the progress of the coastal forces. When she entered the chamber, she could immediately sense that the purplish pink glow of the Table was brighter, not greatly, but noticeably; but that glow was not pulsing.
She forced herself to concentrate first on Cheleyza and Chalcaer. When the mists swirled away, she could make out the dark-haired figure of her aunt, mounted and reined up, seemingly on a rise or hilltop. Mykella fumbled mentally for a moment, then managed to refocus the image from a greater distance and some height above Cheleyza, showing her and her brother on a rise to the north of the road.
After several more attempts, she finally obtained a view that showed almost the entire column, clearly more than several vingts in length, riding along a stretch of the great eternastone road that looked to be similar to that in western Lanachrona. By raising her viewpoint, Mykella could just barely make out sparsely forested hills to the north of the road and a line of silver that was likely the River Vedra.
She blotted her forehead and let the image lapse.
After a moment, she let herself drop into the darkness, not so much because she intended to travel anywhere but to obtain a sense of what might be happening with the other Tables. Almost immediately, she could feel a difference in the orange and yellow that was Lysia, and she gathered more of the deeper darkness to her.
Recalling her past follies, the instant she emerged in the chamber in Lysia, she re-created full shields. She needn’t have done so because the room was empty. Even so, the Table was not only brighter, but the pulsations were stronger, yet she could determine no increased sense of the ugly purple pinkness that heralded the pending arrival or presence of an Alector. Finally, she dropped her shields and surrendered herself to the green darkness to make her way through the depths back to Tempre.
Frost billowed off her riding jacket as she emerged in her own personal chambers. From there, after doffing the nightsilk riding jacket and gloves, she quickly walked to the Finance study to see Haelyt and learn how the tariff collections had fared. Then, ledger in hand, she hurried back up to her study, arriving just before the glass to find Gharyk, Zylander, and Loryalt all waiting in the anteroom for her. With a smile and a gesture, she invited them in, then settled into place at the cherry conference table.
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“Before we begin, Lady,” said Loryalt, “might I ask if all the Southern Guard has left Tempre? Last Duadi, you mentioned that we would hear more about the ambitions of the coastal prince and that Commander Areyst would be here.”
“I did promise that, it is true. Unfortunately, my concerns and Commander Areyst’s predictions have turned out to be accurate. Prince Skrelyn and Prince Chalcaer look to be mounting an attack from the west. Arms-Commander Areyst has been quietly gathering the Southern Guard companies from all over Lanachrona for the past season and readying them for this possibility. He is mounting a defense to the west of Viencet.”
“That is well within Lanachrona. You did not suggest we would be fighting on our land.” Loryalt’s tone was mildly accusatory.
“Until Decdi we did not know for certain that an invasion was imminent. Commander Areyst received a dispatch that a Midcoast force had put the town of Thesma to the torch. He had warned the townspeople, so that there was little loss of life.”
“He warned them, but you did not defend them?”
Mykella looked directly at the Forester. “Because my predecessors gravely neglected the Southern Guards, we are outnumbered. While Commander Areyst has done his best to recruit and train more men, large increases in the Southern Guards cannot be accomplished in less than a season, and Commander Areyst recommended against losing men unnecessarily in defending a small town in terrain unfavorable to us. He is taking a stronger position to the west of Viencet, and he is using almost all available Southern Guards. Some of you may have noticed the women auxiliaries in the season-turn parade. They were organized and trained to undertake those duties that do not require men in order to free another two companies of Guards to fight.”
Gharyk nodded, and so did Zylander.
“With the situation you faced, Lady,” offered the Justice Minister, “that would seem prudent.”
“But there is no one here to protect Tempre…” Loryalt said.
“If Commander Areyst succeeds, there will be no need. If he does not, one or two companies would not avail against thirty or more.”
Loryalt swallowed.
“I have said little because I did not wish to alarm people. I also did not wish to accuse other lands of acts unless they so acted. Now that they have acted, so will we.”
“Might I ask…?”
“You may, but I cannot answer, because Commander Areyst is the one in charge of defending Lanachrona. I will commit that I will be present when he and his forces meet the enemy.” Somehow … But she had the strong feeling that the coastal attacks and the next Ifrit incursion were going to be simultaneous … or as close to that as the Efran Ifrits could manage.
“You…?”
“You were not here, Forester,” interjected Gharyk, “but you might recall that the Lady-Protector is not without certain skills that might prove useful in battle.”
“Ah … I had not thought … recent Lords-Protector…”
“I will aid our forces as I can,” Mykella said smoothly. And that certainly is true. “Now … since we can do little here to aid Commander Areyst, I would like to report on the situation with regard to tariffs and revenues. According to the figures available last night, all Seltyrs and factors owing tariffs have paid, with the exception of five, one of whom died last tenday, the most honorable Waoffl … collections are less than last year … and with the additional costs incurred by the Southern Guards … and the five hundred additional golds required for repairs of the sewers and the towpaths…” Mykella went on to give a quick summary of the finances of the Treasury. When she finished, she nodded to Gharyk.
“As all of you know, I suffered certain indignities last tenday, as result of my investigation into irregularities involving the handling of the gaol in Tempre…” Gharyk reported on the gaol situation, and the temporary use of stipended squad leaders and auxiliaries. “… are looking for a new gaoler and assistant gaolers.”
Zylander brought up the drover’s petition that Mykella had referred to him, noting that the decline in barge trade might possibly be partly because drovers preferred to work the coastal section of the River Vedra rather than the area between Hieron and Tempre.
After some discussion, Mykella concluded by saying, “After we deal with the coastal princes, I think we’ll need a meeting of Seltyrs and factors about the drovers and the costs of maintaining the towpaths and other services provided to the Seltyrs and factors.”
After the ministers filed out of the study, Mykella remained at her desk, thinking. Many of the problems she had faced had resulted from greed and corruption. They, in turn, had resulted from lack of knowledge and oversight by her father, and even by Joramyl. Oversight required either more effort or more people, if not both, but more people required more golds in tariffs to pay them. Even fear of the Lady-Protector was useless, as she’d determined in the case of the purported factor Caenoral, when she didn’t have enough knowledge. But higher tariffs meant people were less prosperous …
She frowned. Which people? If some of the tariffs went to pay people who kept things running better, wouldn’t they buy more, enough to offset the increased tariffs? But would they?
She had to admit that she didn’t know. Yet the way her predecessors had run the Treasury and the land hadn’t been working all that well … and she certainly didn’t have a Southern Guards of a size necessary to discourage attacks.
Finally, she stood and walked to the window, still thinking.
56
Well before her normal breakfast time on Quattri, accompanied by four Southern Guards from the single squad remaining in Tempre, Mykella rode her gray into the quadrangle in the middle of the Southern Guard headquarters. There, Salyna and Rachylana were supervising the outloading of the auxiliaries. From where the sisters had reined up beside a supply wagon, both turned in surprise at the arrival of their older sister.
“Mykella, what are you doing here?” demanded Rachylana.
“I shouldn’t come to see you off?”
“We can take care of ourselves—and the auxiliaries,” declared the redhead.
“I’m well aware of that,” Mykella replied with a soft laugh.
“You didn’t see Areyst off,” Salyna offered, with a smile. “Not from here.”
“Areyst isn’t my sister.” Mykella looked squarely at Salyna, then at Rachylana. “I want to make one thing clear. You are not to take the auxiliaries into combat.”
“What if we’re attacked?”
“Only if you are attacked, and you are not to place yourself where you will be attacked.”
Salyna did not quite meet Mykella’s eyes.
“I mean it. If things don’t go as planned, one of you could be heir to Lanachrona. It would be good if there were an heir.”
“What about you?” asked Rachylana.
“I’m going to have to balance dealing with Ifrits and the coastal forces. I will be there before battle begins. Don’t make me worry about you two.”
“Shouldn’t you be more worried about you?”
“I have shields. You don’t.”
“Why—” began Salyna.
“You’re more worried about the Ifrits, aren’t you?” interrupted Rachylana.
“Yes.” Mykella saw no sense in dissembling. “I have the feeling that somehow they’re using the Tables to see what’s going on and that they’ll attack in force about the same time as Skrelyn and Cheleyza.”
“But … you can’t do that. With the Table, I mean.” A puzzled expression crossed Rachylana’s face.
“In the last few days, I’ve been able to do more, but I’m learning by trial and error. They built the Tables, and they’ve had thousands of years’ experience.”
The two younger sisters exchanged glances, and Mykella could sense that neither had considered that aspect of matters.
“I’m asking you to be careful,” Mykella repeated.
“We will,” promised Salyna.
“More careful than that,” added Mykella.
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Even after she watched the auxiliaries finish forming up and ride out onto the avenue, Mykella had her doubts about just how careful Salyna would be. Still … Mykella would be in Viencet before any attacks. You hope you will be.
In the meantime, she needed to get back to the palace and check on the various Tables and the progress of the invaders … and to see how Areyst was organizing his defenses … and if they were located where he had indicated in his proposed battle plan.
57
Quinti and Sexdi passed with little change, except that Cheleyza and her forces were clearly in western Lanachrona, where their rate of advance had slowed. Was that to rest their mounts, to allow supply wagons to catch up … or for some other reason? From the Table, Mykella could not tell.
Then, Septi morning, while in the Table chamber, just before she began to study the coastal forces, she felt what she could have only described as a pinkish flash. Immediately, she called the greenish blackness and dropped into the depths, searching for the cause of that flash if that were what it happened to be.
Three Table markers were clearly brighter, the maroon and blue of Dulka, the sullen red that she thought might be Soupat, and a pink marker that she had never seen before, or not that she recalled. The orange and yellow Table marker of Lysia did not seem brighter, but that might have been because the others were far brighter than they had been.
Now what?
Did she have any choice—except where to go?
She knew that the sullen red Table mattered little except in support of other Tables, because that Table was the one buried in stones, timber, and rubble, and if she hadn’t been able to move there, certainly no Alector could, nor would their weapons be of much use against all the stone. That left Dulka, where she had never been, and the pink Table, whose physical location she knew not at all.
Mykella pulled on her gloves and fastened up the nightsilk riding jacket, then dropped into the depths, angling toward the pink marker. When she neared it, though, she discovered that it felt surrounded by a web of pinkish threads. The threads recoiled away from her, and she felt as though she was breaking through a silvery barrier …
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