by Pam Uphoff
City of Discordia, Auralian Empire
Discordia was a huge city. Oscar and Bran had managed to get out of the strange vehicle and boat and away from the docks, then a little illusion to get their clothes nice and fashionable, their hair darker so they weren't so obviously foreign and they strolled up the hill to the Palace. The Oners were easy to spot, wearing the loose pants and belted loose shirts as if they were indecent. Solti Mubera had turned over a section of the palace to the Oners, and they were drilling the local militia in the use of long guns similar to the Earthers'.
Bran waved him over. "Quartermaster's there. If we get some uniforms we won't have to worry about illusions as much." He warped light around himself and Oscar did likewise. A faint touch to suggest to the quartermaster that he needed to check something in the other room, and they picked out everything they would need and were gone before he returned.
They found empty beds and slept in them, ate breakfast with the troops and waylaid two of them and took their places on the training grounds.
"How can you idiots forget so much overnight?" The Oner glared down at Oscar. "I thought we were getting the best, for this demonstration. One help us!"
Oscar fumbled with the long gun, trying to not display his complete ignorance.
The Oner snatched the weapon and showed him how to load it, slowly and carefully. Oscar repeated his motions satisfactorily, and the drill sergeant turned to the next man, who didn't look a bit like Bran. With the advantage of Oscar's lesson, he managed well enough. Then they formed up and marched around carrying the guns, stood with the guns in any of three positions, and finally marched out to the target range to actually shoot the 'rifles'.
They were instructed on aiming and firing, avoiding shooting their fellow soldiers, then issued five 'live' 'rounds' each. The sharp recoil surprised him the first time, but his next four shots at least hit the painted target. Bran actually received praise for his five near center hits.
"It's just an odd sort of crossbow, stop thinking it's something strange and you'll be good too." Bran glanced across the grounds toward their barracks and stiffened. "Here comes trouble."
Oscar winced. "I thought that sleep spell would last all day." He stepped out of rank and dodged around a corner, warped light and hustled back the other direction.
"Well, learning the weapons isn't really what we need to do anyway." Bran said. "Let's go see if the Solti is dining with the Oner officers."
Their targets were dining in the absolute privacy of the harem. Very unusual. The Solti, three Oners, something like a hundred women. Huge eunuch guards were at the entrance and spotted around the dining room. Oscar followed a tray of food through the entrance, then veered off. ::We need different disguises, if we're going to hear anything. We'll get bumped if we go closer while warped.::
::We're too small to pass as eunuchs, so it'll have to be harem girls.:: Bran snickered.
::Some of them are pretty well covered up,:: Oscar pointed out. ::And there's always illusions . . . although I think we may need to be cautious using it around these Oners.::
::Yeah,:: Bran looked around. ::Let's go find some clothes.::
They slipped back to the back of the women's area and found the deserted laundry room. They released the light warps and started looking for long pants. Two girls hustled in, their arms full of clothes. They all four froze for a moment, then the girls looked around cautiously, and started grinning. "Ooo! All ours!"
It took awhile, as the women—all hundred of them at one time or another—were quite certain that they must bathe, be completely shaved, perfumed, their eyes made up and then dressed appropriately, with scarves over their hair, except for the artistic curls escaping to the front. As the women sighed over Bran's red curls he muttered something about keeping his hair shorter. Oscar nodded, looking at the appalling apparition in the mirror. Blonde waves around the big blue eyes, then the scarf looped tantalizingly to hide the rest of the face.
They scooped up trays and sallied out to serve fruit and cheese. Then wine. Then desert. Then more wine.
"Such pretty red hair. I don't remember you, but I will tonight!"
Bran dropped his eyes demurely and turned away, and managed to only squeak when the Solti pinched his butt. The Solti chuckled and turned back to his guests. "So, I shall see you in Fascia then."
The Oner commander nodded, as he shoved off one of the lounging couches the Solti apparently enjoyed lolling around on. "Thank for your hospitality, Solti."
Bran scooted quickly into the back, but Oscar lingered a bit.
"I'm sure the Amma will be impressed with the excellence of the troops we have trained."
Oscar slipped into the back, where a girl with an illusion of bright green eyes and very red hair was leading the Solti off.
"We need to get out of here." Bran muttered in his ear.
Oscar shook his head, grinned. "I'm not sure about that. I believe the Solti is headed for Fascia, to take credit for these trained troops. Surely the Solti will be taking some of the girls along with him, and since we could use a ride to Fascia as a next leg of our ride home . . . "
Bran snickered. "I'll bet the Amma's guards will be so busy looking over the soldiers, that the women will just be hustled into private quarters. "
"On a fancy yacht or some such, not a troop transport. But if you'd prefer . . ."
"Oh, shut up, you've made your point. We can pack some of those fancy guns, take them to General Rufi."
They snuck out to spy on the officer's training sessions during the day. And the girls kept them even busier the three nights before the Solti's yacht was ready to depart. The Solti hand picked his (current) favorite twenty-five wives to take along, and somehow that included the rather tall redhead and blonde.
Chapter Fifteen
10 June 3478 / Late Spring 1361 Local
Karista, Kingdom of the West, Comet Fall
Lefty settled into the chair across the desk from his boss. "How closely are you watching the Earthers?"
Rufi gritted his teeth. "We've come to the conclusion that we've been suckered. They drove through the pass in one of those gyps of theirs, ran out of fuel in the middle of nowhere and sold gems to hire teams of horses to pull them into towns where they bought distilled alcohol to fuel the gyps with. They pulled up to the Palace and said they had a reply from the President of Earth. Jerold Hastings and Ivan Kolnavik of the Department of Native Affairs."
Lefty wrinkled his nose. "Oh. Them."
Rufi nodded. "We've lost your spies. There were, at about the right time to be the Earthers, two Traveler's wagons that crossed the pass. But we didn't bother tracking them, as the Earthers had already blown by. Checking later, our watchers in Bridgeton never saw them. By the time we realized they'd actually detoured through Ash, the trail was cold. They passed through on the solstice, with all the witches up on Mount Frost, and no one else recognized them for what they were. None of the Karista Gate guards remembered Traveler's wagons. We're keeping our eyes open, checking Havwee for instance. But we haven't spotted them."
Lefty winced, as much at the general's tone as the content. "There really isn't much we wouldn't want them to see. And what we hope, that they'll find no One World influence, they hardly need help with. Here, at any rate. If they get people into Fascia it would be a different story." He made a face. "And the Travelers wagons may be a dead end too. They may have just used our rig for practice, and plain wagons for the infiltration. Or they could have hiked in on a foot trail and bought wagons. Or they just learned to drive wagons as a skill they might need."
Rufi sighed. "At any rate the people you had picked as the infiltrators-in-training, that have disappeared from their camps over there, fit the descriptions of the Travelers that passed through Ash. So we know who to look for." He raised his head suddenly.
Lefty looked around—two pages were scowling at each other in the doorway.
Rufi held out both hands and received two folded sheets of paper. He scanned them
both quickly, then nodded to one boy. "Tell the King I'll be there directly." Then he turned to the other. "Please tell the King's Mage that I will send someone to keep the terrors out of trouble, and see him at the meeting."
The boys trotted off, still jostling for position.
Rufi grinned. "How would you like to go down to the dock and meet Oscar and Bran? They've just gotten close enough for Selano to notice them. Or feel them or whatever you lot do."
"It's closer to vision than anything else. Like thinking you've seen a far off light house through the fog. What should I do with them?"
"Keep them out of trouble? The meeting shouldn't take long. Buy them a beer and make them walk? I'll leave it to your ingenuity, to decide what they need."
"They're mages. I know what they think they need."
Chapter Sixteen
1 April 3478/ Early Summer 1361
Karista, Kingdom of the West, Comet Fall
Damien enjoyed the one day a month he didn't work. So to speak. In the early dawn they drove the bear wagon away from town, and from a different spot each time, sent a micro burst repot, and received one in return. Mike swore their satellites could locate their transmission down to a kilometer radius, and aim the return signal right back at them. In any case, it worked. The remainder of the day he generally took anyone who wanted to get away from the wagons and drafty shed into the city. He wound up at the Sooty Duck for lunch, as often as not. They knew a bunch of the regulars by sight, already.
Jeinah brought them another round, managing to brush up against Max. "Code doesn't talk about anything but your horses. I think he's hoping to get a wagon himself, and start earning the kind of money you lot make."
Damien nodded. "He's a good kid. Reliable."
She snickered. "I shouldn't laugh, though. He's not thieving anymore, and I didn't think that was possible. My little brother, an honest hard worker." Her eyes tracked something behind him and lit up. "Oh, ho. Right off a ship!"
Damien winced. She's too damn young to be a whore. Max scowled at the newcomers, then hastily looked away. Damien glanced over his shoulder, then turned away casually, and did not stare at Lefty Lebonift.
"Stay and watch him." He barely breathed it. Max nodded. Damien let someone elbow him away from the bar. Their tab was paid, so he stepped outside, and walked away. Turned a corner and turned on his radio, shoved the receiver bud into his ear.
<< Anyone here? Lebonift is back in town, perhaps we can trace him? >>
Mike answered immediately. << I'm on. Where is he? >>
<< Sooty Duck. Max is watching him. >>
Mike's voice faded as he spoke away from the pickup. Others of the team must be with him. Damien sauntered off toward the government buildings, cutting over until he was on a route one would ordinarily take, from the Sooty Duck to either Council Hall or Palace.
<< Got him, still eating and drinking. His buddies ran off for a quickie with the pros. I'll get closer. >> Max's voice sounded in his ear.
Carl's voice joined in a moment later. << His friends are back, one blonde and one redhead, all three in uniform. I think the redhead is named Bran. >> There was a long silence. << The blonde is Oscar. >>
<< Take notes, don't talk. >> Mike cut in.
<
There was a long silence.
<
Damien turned and walked further, and as the spread-out watchers collected and checked the trio of natives he realized that they were indeed headed for the government buildings. Damien strolled out into the big park that separated the hill of the Council Hall from the hill of the Palace. Both complexes fenced off a square mile, and were separated by this quarter mile wide park. He placed himself to be able to view the front of the Council Hall, and if he hustled, would enable him to see the front of the Palace.
Allie was the closest when the trio failed to turn in to the Council Hall, and Damien got up from his bench.
<
"Right." He strolled like he had a lot of leisure time, aiming vaguely for the south side of the Palace complex. The offices of the King's Own were on the street that ran east-west just to the north of the Palace. They were the Palace Guards, the bodyguards of the royal family, their military intelligence unit and several mobile platoons that could be sent about the kingdom at need. But why were the trio of natives cutting diagonally to the south?
Lebonift had been seen leaving General Rufi Negue's residence, two months ago. The General lived in a separate mansion around the corner south of the main palace building. Right. Damien turned to be certain of staying out of their sight. "They may be headed for Rufi Negue's mansion. Can anyone get sight of it?"
<
Damien reached the southern edge of the park and strolled west. He spotted the trio and turned away. Lebonift walked like he meant it, and the other two trailed him by a bit. Damien kept the trailing redhead in the corner of his eye, as he turned and admired some roses, then walked back into the park a bit. From behind thin bushes that he thought would prevent recognition he could see the trio turning along the southern boundary of the palace grounds. He found a convenient spot with a view of the intersection, and proceeded to attempt to look relaxed and unimportant. For three hours.
The other seven walked by, took cabs by, and Max fetched the wagon from the Sooty Duck and drove by it once. Mike and Allie, strolling hand in hand and stopping for a kiss, caught Lefty's exit.
<
<
<> Mike sounded unsettled.
<
Damien spotted them coming his direction and walked away himself. They all met where Max waited with the wagon.
They drove back out to their shed, cursing the time spent in slow travel.
Damien looked at Allie's pictures, called up all of the reference photos they'd brought along.
"That's him. The Auld Wulf. Damn." Mike scowled at the picture. "But we know to look for him now, and that height will make him easy to spot. I think we may have just seen the difference between a half breed and a real Oner. So, what did they talk about in the bar?"
"Just about grabbing Selano, before going to a brothel for a real orgy. Guess a quickie wasn't good enough. Lefty said he's a respectably almost married man."
"That got quite a laugh." Max took over the commentary. "The other two seemed to think the guy's wife is a real terror, and the man lives in fear of her. Lefty looked pretty smug, I didn't catch all of his reply. Something about magicians and orgies."
Allie drummed her fingernails on the bench. "I've only heard, well, read, the name Selano a few times, and every time it was Selano Discorski, the King's Mage. Apparently an advisor. So . . . was it some other Selano, a joke, or do these guys socialize with the king's advisors?"
"We know they report directly to the head of the military." Damien shrugged. "But perhaps the so-called magical community is small and close?"
"And strange." Allie said. "The Auld Wulf is one of the names for the God of War. Maybe the Oners have taken advantage of the local mythos, and slipped into the roles of the local gods."
Chapter Seventeen
1361 Late Spring
Ash, Kingdom of the West
Never hadn't worked in the Tavern for years. Just di
ning here made her home sick. All the time I've spent away from here, for so many years. The Earthers will be changing all of that. The Army will probably take over exploring completely. Civilian volunteers will probably be given short shrift.
Lefty was in contact with the string of observation posts; no doubt they would eventually hear what the king wanted done about the Earthers.
But it hasn't been all bad. Without our trip to Earth, Question wouldn't have Jek, wouldn't have thought about potions for everyone. I wouldn't have had my understanding of history blown to itty bitty bits.
Never brought her thoughts back to the present.
They looked like a proper family, husband and wife, son and daughter, another child clearly on the way. All sitting down together for dinner at the Tavern. Idea and Kindly were cooking, and Harry's current strays, twin girls aged about thirteen, and Weg were serving. Of course her mother and grandmother wouldn't let Dydit set foot in the house, and tried to keep her so busy that unseemly things like dining together would rarely happen. And they tried to ignore all the time they spent together exploring.
She reached out and took Dydit's hand, distracting him from his study of the merchants who had invaded their village. He'd been as proper a father as a man could possibly be to her daughter, and loved her deeply and completely. Why was she still living with her mother?
Where could she build a house to tempt him away from living in Nil's wizard tower? She couldn't see him living in the village. Nil had moved far enough away that he didn't have to worry about Dydit or Question losing control of the power they were learning to wield in huge amounts. Never needed to keep that in mind. Not that she'd ever seen Dydit lose control, but . . .
She needed to also consider the kids' schooling and friends.
I need to be close, for my own training, and working with the pyramid.
Actually there were little hot springs all through the hills, following a fault zone thousands of miles long. She could search along there first.