“We left in the early morning. Desa chose the route from five possible by rolling a die, and we headed out along the eastern trail. It seemed to go well for most of the day, but just as we were preparing to make camp for the night, the ambush hit.” Phynis hesitated, then bowed her head slightly. “I don’t remember much. A spell hit me early on which left me dazed, but I vaguely remember the combat. There were two dozen of them, and three mages who exchanged blasts with Desa. I think she was weakened somehow. There were at least five attackers for each of my guards and then some, most of whom came after me. They had a sack over my head before I recovered from the spell, and they tied me up and quickly headed south for Grayhold. There they… branded me first, then I was given a private room and servants to keep me comfortable while they prepared to transfer me to Westgate.”
“I see. That makes me wonder about the situation. Do you think that Captain Desa could have…?” The queen began to ask, and Phynis took a moment before she realized what her mother was implying.
“No! Of course not!” Phynis protested hotly. “She was captured, branded, and raped! Plus, her magic was sealed away, and you know how important her magic is to her! There is no way in the Hells she would have given me up!”
“Calmly, Phynis. We have to examine every possibility,” Queen Calath assured her, smiling slightly as she shook her head. “I didn’t think she would either, but I had to ask. Your reaction tells me much, though, and we’ll see what the reports can reveal. Now then. Tell me about this Sistina you met, if you would?”
* * *
Captain Desa went to a knee and bowed her head as she spoke, somewhat nervously. “Greetings, Your Majesty.”
“Rise, Captain.” In her full royal regalia, Queen Calath was intimidating, even if Desa had met her in private before. There was no smile on Calath’s face at the moment, and her eyes were hard.
Desa rose and took a parade rest stance, not even glancing at the two guards behind Her Majesty’s chair, and trying to ignore the other two behind her. She stood there and waited for the queen to speak as her monarch studied her with narrowed eyes. And slowly, the butterflies in her stomach grew still more active as several minutes passed without the queen speaking. It was almost a relief when she finally broke the silence.
“How were you captured, Captain? You’re a master ranked ice mage. You should have been able to take out fifty soldiers attacking with a single powerful spell.” The queen’s question was blunt, and the anger in her eyes couldn’t be feigned.
“The opposition used a mana dispersal chime as part of their opening assault. Moments later, their mages activated restriction wards all around the area, severely weakening my magic. I attempted to counter attack, but was facing what I believe were two adepts and a master mage, all of whom were drawing on mana stones,” Desa reported, then hesitated before admitting. “While they were fighting me, one of the soldiers managed to hit me with an ensorcelled dart which knocked me unconscious. I believe they were well-prepared for our party in particular.”
“I see. And what happened to you after your capture?” Queen Calath’s eyes hadn’t softened at all, and Desa swallowed hard at the response.
“I was kept unconscious until they branded me with the slave crest, Your Majesty,” Desa explained, then closed her eyes, swallowing again before continuing. “Then they… took me and the other guards and gave us to the orcs for two days. We were allowed a day of recovery before they set out for Westgate.”
The words finally caused a flicker of shock to run across the queen’s face, and after a moment, she spoke. “Princess Phynis didn’t report that aspect, Captain. Why not?”
“Because we didn’t tell her, Your Majesty. She was anxious enough, without knowing about… that,” Desa explained, shuddering even as she shook her head.
“Very well. Now then, why did you volunteer to undergo this… process with the entity known as Sistina?” The queen moved on, to Desa’s immense relief.
“Because after what had happened, I knew that I was utterly helpless with my magic sealed. I’m a modest swordswoman at best, and Private Evrial chose not to volunteer for the ritual. We were leaving in the morning, and the ritual could be used to free me from influence of other orders permanently, at least in theory. And last of all, I wanted to be able to defend myself if we were caught again, Your Majesty,” Desa told her, shrugging slightly. “And since the others were more hesitant than I was, I thought that someone had to do it. If no one was willing to attempt the process, we have no way of knowing whether Sistina’s solution would be able to help. No one has mentioned noticing any problems with my behavior yet, and I’m only slightly less powerful than I was before.”
“Hmm…” The queen looked at her for a long moment, then nodded. “Now, how do you think that this whole incident came about?”
“That is a… complicated answer, but I’ll tell you as best as I can,” Desa replied after a pause, taking a deep breath. “There are six people who I told what route we were taking back here before we’d left the city, Your Majesty. Myself and Princess Phynis, of course. Then there’s Captain Varthal Ansov, of the city guard of Galthor. Baron Galthor also knew, of course, as did Duchess Elina, and General Fairbrook. Our route had to have been leaked by one of those six, and I cannot imagine that it was myself or Her Highness. So it has to be one of those four.”
“Indeed. An excellent assessment, Captain Desa.” Queen Calath finally smiled with a hint of warmth, shaking her head. “And I’m glad that your head for threats hasn’t dulled too much. I didn’t really suspect you, but it’s best to be certain. Oh, we can’t fully trust any of you to guard Phynis on your own for a while, and we’ll have to keep a close eye on you, but I don’t really believe that you’re a traitor in any way. And besides, Phynis would be upset to lose your company, and I can’t say that I blame her. I’m sorry to hear about your treatment, though. I won’t tell Phynis.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Relief flooded Desa, and she took a deep breath as the queen got up and walked to where she could look out over the castle gardens. “What do you wish of me, then?”
“Please be honest with me, Desa. Is Sistina a threat?” Queen Calath asked, glancing over her shoulder at Desa.
“Ahh… doubtful, Your Majesty?” Desa blinked in shock. That was the last question she expected to be asked just now. “She’s a genius loci.”
“And why is that a factor in this? She obviously possesses the ruins of some part of Everium’s capital,” the queen challenged, not turning around this time.
“Because a genius loci, while they can expand, finds it difficult to grow beyond a certain point. Their territory appears to be restricted to an approximately spherical area around their… core, for lack of a better term, and every expansion takes enormously more magical power than before. I have never heard of any of them managing to grow more than ten to fifteen miles across, and that includes the much-rumored dungeon called the Road to Hell,” Desa told her. “Now, that doesn’t mean that inside her domain she can’t be incredibly deadly, but she didn’t hurt any of us, and actually helped us with no reason to do so. I don’t think she’s a threat.”
“Fair enough. Did Phynis tell you that she wishes to be set aside as Crown Princess in favor of Zanath?” The queen shocked Desa again, as she felt quite off-balance by this point.
“Yes, she did. She said she was a liability, approximately, so long as she is branded,” Desa managed to say, hesitant now. “She said more, but that is what it amounted to.”
“Indeed.” Turning back, Queen Calath smiled again, thinly. “Now, Captain, why would each of the people you told about your route betray you?”
“Umm… Captain Varthal probably wouldn’t. He’s a career guard, and has worked his way up the ranks for nearly a century. By the same token, though, he has no noble ancestry, and he’s likely about reached the limit of how high he can climb in the ranks. An appropriate reward from Kelvanis might be able to tempt him, no matter how honorable he might
seem to be.” Desa’s mind raced, and she spoke as fast as she could, knowing that Her Majesty had a tendency to try to get instinctive responses out of people. “Baron Galthor’s son was courting the princess during parties while she was there, and had difficulties taking no for an answer. It’s possible that he overheard which route we were taking and chose to take some form of revenge. I can’t imagine the baron doing it, as he’s lost so much territory and people to Kelvanis, but with the reduced attacks I’ve heard about, it’s possible that he cut a deal with them. I hate to even consider it, but it is possible.
“Duchess Elina is courting Zanath, who is the heir after the Princess even if you don’t set her aside. Zanath seemed to be receptive the last I had heard, so it’s possible that the duchess wishes to be queen after you.” Desa took a deep breath before continuing on to the last of the suspects. “And General Fairbrook has been courting the Princess for at least four years that I am aware of. Just like Baron Galthor’s son, it’s possible that he finally ran out of patience and decided to try something stupid. It’s also possible that he intended to try for a daring rescue, but circumstances went against him.”
“Again, an excellent assessment. Your only mistake is that the General has been asking me for Phynis’ betrothal for the past decade.” Queen Calath smiled thinly. “So here’s your task, Captain Desa. When you aren’t with Phynis, you are to try and figure out which of them betrayed you. I’ll have investigators as well, but you might just shake them up since you were one of those targeted.”
Desa swallowed as the blood drained from her face at the thought of the task before her.
Chapter 17
The outfit didn’t itch nearly as badly this time, but Serel was still less than thrilled with how it stuck to her body. The thing chafed, too. On the other hand, at least this time she wasn’t the only one having to deal with the annoying outfit.
Some of the other Enforcers had grumbled about the outfits, and a few had been sloppy about putting them on at first. They’d changed their minds when she’d pointed out to them that if they didn’t have them on correctly, the goddess would wake up and kill all of them. That had solved their resistance quickly enough, and now her worries were focused on Medaea herself. Subduing a goddess shouldn’t be as simple as what she’d been ordered to do, but a deity also wouldn’t normally be sleeping indefinitely where someone could reach them.
There were seven of them this time, and Serel had already ordered the high priestess to stay outside, which had only made the woman even more unhappy with her situation. The woman would likely consider attempting suicide if she knew what was planned for her, though.
“Everyone is clear on the location that they’ve been assigned?” Serel asked softly, pausing in the stairwell heading downward.
“Yup,” one of them muttered softly.
Another chuckled before she spoke. “Of course. I see what you meant about this outfit after your trip. It’s horrible.”
As the others agreed with the statement, Serel smiled thinly under the tight wrappings of her outfit, then continued. “Good. Now, remember, we have to press our gems against her body at the same time, and once you feel them start being absorbed, pull away immediately.”
“What happens if we aren’t quick enough?” Adam asked curiously. “I’m going to try to be fast enough, of course, but do we know?”
“I’m not sure. The Archon didn’t say in his notes, and I personally don’t want to find out,” Serel replied tartly, frowning.
“Alright, I was just curious,” Adam murmured, shaking his head in amusement.
“Any other questions? The only time I’ll speak after this is to say when to use the gems,” she asked. When none of them spoke up, she nodded and ordered grimly, “Let’s get this done.”
She went the rest of the way downstairs, annoyed at how long the trip was, but unwilling to complain to the others about such a petty frustration. And when they finally reached the room, she winced as one of the others behind her gasped at the shockwaves of power being emitted by the goddess. The Enforcer’s awe wasn’t surprising to her, considering how overwhelming the power was, but it definitely made her tense up. They couldn’t make any mistakes on their attempt, and even the slightest noise worried Serel.
Fortunately, Medaea didn’t seem to have noticed the gasp. She was slowly breathing in and out, deep in her slumber. Serel really couldn’t understand why the goddess had been sleeping for so long, but that was what she was doing. And that was extremely fortunate, given that Serel could hardly breathe in the power she was exuding while simply asleep.
Stepping into the room, she took a deep breath, gesturing for the others to stay back as she stepped up next to the goddess. The deity didn’t react, but the power flowing off of her grew denser, causing Serel’s breath to catch for a moment. Reaching out, she trembled as she carefully tugged at the loosely tied sash around Medaea’s waist that held her robe shut. The robe had to have been here as long as the goddess herself, yet it seemed like it was in perfect condition. Serel had to wonder if the silky material was deific in origin or simply preserved by the goddess’ presence. Under the steady pull of her hand, the sash came loose ever so slowly, almost as if it had been tied only a few minutes before. Then the sash slid to either side of the goddess, taking the robe almost far enough apart as it showed a few tantalizing inches of flawless skin, but not quite enough for the job in store for them. Taking another breath, Serel inched the robe to either side carefully, feeling relief when it slid easily and didn’t seem to disturb Medaea at all.
And even better, she saw no pubic hair, which should make the step after this one much easier. She stepped back and took several more breaths, then gestured the others in nervously. This could go very badly, and she was trying not to lose her nerve. The others came into the room and approached to take up their positions while she slowly stepped around to near Medaea’s head, producing the gem which she’d assigned herself.
The gem was a spindle, like most mindshards, but this one was unusual in that it was a deep amethyst color, where most were clear. Most potential slaves only got these shards after they were already branded, and even then, having a single one implanted was rare. Looking at her six companions, each carrying a different gemstone, all of them amethysts of various forms, she supposed she shouldn’t be surprised that it was going to take all of them to at least partially control a goddess.
She prepared herself, looking at the others, and stepped forward, holding out the spindle near the crown of Medaea’s head. Oval gems were held near her forehead, the top of the breastbone in her cleavage, her navel, and the spot where the slave crest would sit, while more faceted jewels were near her throat and solar plexus. All of the other Enforcers seemed to be having trouble breathing, and Serel took a deep breath before nodding and whispering, “Now.”
Serel pressed the gem against the crown of Medaea’s head at the same time as the others, and her eyes went huge as she felt a sudden heat and pressure bear down on her. It was immense, almost suffocating, like the charge in the air when lightning was about to strike. From the tension of the other Enforcers, Serel was sure that they felt something similar as well, and she tensed to pull away as quickly as she could.
Medaea’s breathing hitched for a moment as she let out a soft gasp. The goddess’ finger twitched ever so slightly and fear coursed through Serel. Had they failed? Were they about to be utterly destroyed?
The moment she felt the gemstone grow warm and start to sink into the goddess’ skull, Serel pulled back her hand, gasping as the sense of a charge vanished with a faint pop. All of the others pulled back as well… but James, who was pressing the jewel against the deity’s lower body, wasn’t quite fast enough.
James didn’t even have time to scream. His body and clothing suddenly lit up like a small sun had appeared within him. An instant later, he vanished in a sudden haze of ashes that glowed as they disintegrated as well.
Everyone froze as Medaea stirred more, and Serel�
��s eyes were fixed on the golden-haired goddess’ eyelids as they twitched several times. The jewels slowly melted into her body, the oval ones remaining exposed as strange adornments… and then Medaea slowly relaxed again, settling back into her sleep.
Serel motioned the others out, and they were almost at the top of the stairs before Adam let out a nervous laugh and spoke. “Well, now we know why we had to pull away so quickly.”
* * *
“Please stop pacing so much,” Serel said, annoyed as she glanced up at the high priestess. She didn’t make it an order, since too many orders could eventually have unanticipated consequences.
The dawn elf stopped pacing, glaring at Serel for a moment, then sighed and asked, “Enforcer, may I ask a question?”
“You just did,” Serel replied mildly, taking another sip of wine as she studied the book on magic she’d found in the library. It was quite interesting, even if she had a few difficulties with the language. While she could speak and understand elven fairly well, reading it was fairly difficult, and she continued to speak. “You may ask others, though. I likely will not answer them, but you may ask.”
“Thank you.” Visna paused for another moment, then finally asked, “What are you doing in the shrine downstairs?”
Serel glanced up at the elf, then went back her book, ignoring the question. That wasn’t something she was going to tell the high priestess, no matter what happened. Instead, she turned the page, continuing her study of their healing art. It was a different style of magic than was described in most of the texts back in Kelvanis, and Serel thought it might also be easier to understand and utilize.
“Fine. May I at least ask what’s going to happen to my fellow priestesses and I?” Visna asked, frustration in her voice.
“Most of your number are going to be instructed to stay here and do what’s needed to keep up the illusion that nothing untoward has happened,” Serel spoke unhurriedly, looking up and smiling thinly. “Unfortunately for you, my initial instructions were to bring the high priestess and five ranking priestesses back with me. I don’t know what is planned for you, but given your rank, your situation may or may not improve.”
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