The Ouroboros Cycle, Book Three: A Long-Awaited Treachery

by G. D. Falksen

  “It is conspiracy,” she said.

  “It is necessary,” Philippa countered.

  “You realize what will happen if we are found out. It is conspiracy and conspiracy is treason.”

  “No one would believe it,” Philippa said. “You the Strategos, I a member of Council. We are above reproach, thank God.”

  Zawditu considered this and nodded slightly.

  “How do you plan to explain yourself to Lady Sophio when she returns?” she asked.

  “There is no guarantee that she will return,” Philippa replied. “She is departing on her first sojourn in five hundred years. She claims that she will return by Easter, but I know the lure of a lengthy wander. It may be years before we see her again, and in that time order must be maintained.”

  Zawditu looked back at Philippa and said, firmly, “I will maintain order...and security. Neither you nor any other member of the Council need worry about such a thing.”

  Philippa quickly raised her hands, conceding the point to Zawditu.

  “That is all I ask.”

  “Good,” Zawditu said. She took a step toward Philippa and said to her, very directly, “We will speak no more of this. It is not safe, not even here.”

  “Agreed,” Philippa replied.

  Zawditu made for the door, and Varanus and Ekaterine quickly ducked back into the darkness of an adjoining cellar to avoid detection. A short while later, Philippa followed, leaving them alone again.

  “What do you make of that?” Ekaterine asked as they resumed their journey.

  “Politics,” Varanus said, unable to keep the distain from her voice. “I have no time for it.”

  “Don’t you think we should tell someone?”

  “As she said, who would believe us?” Varanus replied. “After we are finished here, we will tell Lord Iosef and see what he has to say about it. I suspect he will say we should not worry about such things.”

  “And he will ask what we were doing down here,” Ekaterine added, sighing.

  That gave Varanus pause. It would be terribly awkward to explain how they came to overhear the conversation in the first place. And after all, Iosef had always advised her to avoid embroiling herself in Shashavani intrigues. Perhaps it would be best to say nothing and leave the matter to older heads with far less important things to do.

  “On second thought, let’s not mention it,” Varanus said.

  Ekaterine looked conflicted about the matter, but she nodded.

  They made their way to the grotto entrance, and together they pushed the altar away from the passage. They had become quite used to the effort over the past three attempts, and now it was almost easy.

  The rest of the activity had become equally routine. They descended into the tunnel and walked in silence to the grotto. Varanus glanced at the murals watching her from the walls. For some reason, she could not shake the irrational feeling that they were looking at her and that they were very displeased. Such nonsense! It was clearly Ekaterine’s nay-saying getting to her. If Shashava and the Companions had known what she was doing, surely they would have applauded it! The others might talk about the “sacred nature” of the water and the ritual surrounding it, but Varanus felt certain that had Konstantine enjoyed access to a modern microscope, he would have used it to examine the water just as she was doing.

  Varanus collected her samples as quickly as she was able, though she made sure to fill each bottle to the absolute top. This would be her last trip there for a while—until Ekaterine saw sense and accepted that it was a good idea—and Varanus would have to make do with whatever she brought back this time.

  Stoppering the last bottle, she placed it into the Gladstone bag and hefted the collection. It was not heavy—well, not for her in her current state—but it was certainly cumbersome. She and Ekaterine returned through the passage again in silence. Varanus glanced at Ekaterine and Ekaterine glanced back, but neither seemed sure of what to say.

  But, as she climbed the steps, Varanus felt quite cheerful. They had done it! Another collection successfully made; another batch of samples to examine. And now, Varanus had a much better sense of what tests to perform. She would unlock the mystery of the Shashavani. It only required time.

  At the top of the steps, she froze. In the doorway to the chamber, she saw Philippa the nun waiting for her, arms folded patiently, her expression curious and more than a little angry.

  Ekaterine gasped and quickly covered her mouth with a hand.

  “Oh dear,” she murmured.

  “I thought so,” Philippa said, slowly approaching them. “Doctor Varanus, Sister Ekaterine.... What precisely are you doing here?”

  Chapter Ten

  •

  “What were you thinking, Varanus?” Iosef demanded, as he closed the door to Varanus’s cell.

  The news of Varanus’s transgression had taken him completely by surprise, and he was still unsure of how to react: whether he should be furious at her for violating such a sacred trust or impressed at her audacity.

  Varanus was seated on a simple wooden divan at the far end of the cell. She looked up at Iosef, her expression conveying nothing so much as irritation at the whole situation.

  “Why am I here?” Varanus asked.

  “You know the answer to that,” Iosef replied, slowly approaching her.

  “I know that I was taken here and imprisoned against my will for having been in the catacombs,” Varanus said, “which I had always been told was a place open to all of us...however uncommon it is to visit them.”

  Iosef sighed inwardly. Varanus was being stubborn, as was her custom. It was one of the many qualities he admired in her, but this was one of the times that an admirable quality displayed its downside.

  “You entered the grotto without permission and stole the waters of life,” Iosef told her. “Until now, that was almost inconceivable. And it is treason.”

  Varanus stared at him with absolute astonishment.

  “Treason!” she exclaimed. “Why would it be treason?”

  “Varanus, do you not understand the implications of your actions?” Iosef could scarcely imagine her ignorance on the matter. “The waters of life are our most carefully guarded secret. It is our duty to protect them from the corruption of the outside world. If the unenlightened were to obtain them—”

  “What does any of that have to do with me?” Varanus asked, rising to her feet. Her face still held its look of irritation, but now it was tempered with a growing pallor of concern; she was beginning to understand the full implications of her situation. “I took the water for experiments! I am trying to discern its nature!”

  “Why?”

  “Why? Why not?” Varanus replied. “That water is the key to our nature. My Lord, I have been trying to unravel the secrets of the Shashavani condition for almost two decades, and before me the Order has wrestled with the question for centuries. And all for nothing!”

  “Hardly for nothing,” Iosef said. “We have learned much about the capabilities and limitations of our bodies. We know how much time is required to harden ourselves against the touch of the sun. We can predict the longevity of those of us who still walk in the Shadow of Death. We understand the development of our physical capabilities such that we can, through selective training, speed their progress fully within just a few years. We know much, Varanus.”

  “But we do not know the cause!” Varanus protested. “The water is the source, but we do not know why! That was the purpose of my experiments! And I am so very close, I know it! The answers are just within my grasp!”

  Iosef shook his head. Varanus was so consumed by her curiosity that she put aside all concerns of personal safety and of protocol. It was a common affliction among the Shashavani, but in most cases such transgressions ended in minor injuries and arguments, not in something so profane.

  “It was not your place to do
so,” Iosef said. He kept his voice soft, but the fervor was there, lurking behind it. “Why did you not ask permission first?”

  “I...” Varanus stammered. She quickly fell silent, unwilling to answer.

  Iosef knew why. She had not asked because she knew the request would have been refused.

  Varanus folded her arms in anger and looked away.

  “I planned to make a full report once I had conclusive results. I was trying to benefit all of us, My Lord. But I do not make a habit of divulging my experiments until they have borne fruit.”

  “You cannot expect Sophio and the Council to accept such an explanation,” Iosef said. “You do understand what they believe was your intent, don’t you?”

  Varanus was silent for a few moments. Presently, she said, “No, I do not.”

  “It is believed that you may have intended to use the water to give the gift of the Shashavani to the uninitiated,” Iosef replied.

  He did not believe it, of course. Such a thing would have been unlike Varanus. But the others thought it, and that was a problem.

  “No!” Varanus exclaimed, aghast. She understood the implications of such a thing. “No, I swear it!”

  Iosef nodded. “It may be difficult to convince the Council of that, but I will do everything I can to clarify your actions to them.”

  “I thank you for that,” Varanus said. She still sounded torn between apprehension and anger.

  “And regarding Ekaterine—” Iosef began.

  “Where is she?” Varanus demanded. It sounded as though she had been harboring the question for some time, but was afraid to ask because it might have put Ekaterine in danger to mention her.

  “In a cell of her own,” Iosef replied. “She has already been questioned regarding your actions. Now she will be left to wait in solitude that she may better reflect upon her transgression until such time as her fate has been decided.”

  Varanus sighed with relief.

  “She had nothing to do with it, you know,” she told Iosef.

  “I find that unlikely,” Iosef replied.

  “It is the truth,” Varanus insisted. “She did not even know what I was doing. She...she followed me into the catacombs and...and she tried to stop me. She argued that what I was doing was wrong, and truly I ought to have listened. But as she was attempting to convince me to return the water and never venture there again, Sister Philippa came upon us, and she clearly did not take the time necessary to realize Ekaterine’s innocence.”

  Iosef was silent for a time, and he felt a small smile creep across his lips.

  “What is so amusing?” Varanus demanded.

  “Ekaterine said almost the same thing about you,” Iosef replied. “She insisted that it had all been her idea. You had protested, but in the end she convinced you to do it with assurances that it was a right and fitting course of action.”

  “It is a lie!” Varanus protested. “It was all my idea!”

  “Yes, I know that,” Iosef said. “Ekaterine would not have committed such a transgression. But similarly, she ought to have restrained your impulses more effectively. She has her own culpability.”

  “She is not my keeper.”

  “No,” Iosef agreed, “she is your friend. And as your friend, I would have expected her to give you better council before you did something as foolish as this.”

  “I already told you, My Lord, she did not know,” Varanus said.

  “Of course.” Iosef sighed and folded his hands. “Varanus, listen to me very carefully. Soon you will be brought before the Council to account for your actions. When you do, you must be as polite and respectful as you are able. You may not agree that you have done wrong, but you have, and that is how they see it. They will expect arrogance. You must show them contrition.”

  “I understand,” Varanus said after a lengthy pause. “I will be...contrite.”

  “Good,” Iosef said.

  His nodded to Varanus in a manner that he hoped might be reassuring but which probably was not. Turning, he made for the door. After a few paces, he heard Varanus call to him:

  “My Lord, there is another matter you should know of.”

  Iosef looked back and asked, “What is that, Varanus?”

  “The woman who found me in the catacombs...Sister Philippa,” Varanus said. “There is a reason why she was down there to catch me about my business.”

  “Oh?”

  “She and Lady Zawditu were meeting in secret there,” Varanus explained. “They were discussing certain actions to be carried out once you and Lady Sophio departed for Asia.”

  Iosef cocked his head and studied Varanus carefully.

  “What sort of...actions?” he asked.

  “From what I overheard I cannot be certain,” Varanus said, “but there was talk of changing guard assignments in the castle. Philippa wanted assurances that the soldiers in the Council chamber would be loyal to her. I cannot say for what purpose, but I do think it warrants investigating...as much as my little transgression.”

  “Did Ekaterine overhear any of this?” Iosef asked.

  Varanus hesitated before replying, “Possibly. I cannot say. You will remember, she followed me into the catacombs. She did not accompany me. I cannot say what she may have overheard.”

  Iosef narrowed his eyes and frowned. Conspiracy? And to what purpose? Philippa had been a loyal member of the Council ever since Sophio had first assumed the throne, and as Strategos, Zawditu was equally above reproach. And, of course, no one would believe such a claim, certainly not one made by someone so young who awaited trial for treason. They would say that Varanus was merely trying to turn the attentions of the Order away from her and onto others. And perhaps she was....

  But I do not think so, Iosef told himself.

  And, of course, Varanus may have misunderstood what she overheard. It may have been perfectly innocent. Then again....

  “Thank you for this information, Varanus,” he said, turning again to depart. “I will investigate accordingly.”

  The timing of it was so utterly impossible, Iosef knew. Only a few days before he and Sophio intended to depart.... He could not bring these concerns to her directly. If Sophio feared conspiracy, she was likely to cancel the sojourn that her mind so desperately needed. And she might not entertain the possibility again for centuries. Her sanity would not bear the strain of it all for even another hundred years.

  “My Lord,” Varanus called to him as he reached the door.

  “Yes, Varanus?”

  “Am I.... Am I going to die?”

  Iosef looked into Varanus’s eyes clearly and directly. He waited a moment for the connection to be made and understood.

  “No, Varanus,” he said firmly. “Not if it is within my power to stop it.”

  * * * *

  Varanus’s talk of conspiracy and secret meetings troubled Iosef, and he went in search of Lady Zawditu. He found her in the main armory, overseeing a complement of soldiers as they took inventory of the weaponry. Swords and pistols, bows and rifles were laid out on tables, waiting to be checked, oiled, listed, and restocked.

  Zawditu turned at Iosef’s approach and nodded to him.

  “Iosef,” she said.

  “Strategos,” Iosef answered in greeting. “May we speak?”

  Zawditu looked at him curiously. “Koba,” she said, passing her pen to the soldier next to her, “finish cataloguing the needle rifles, then ask Boris if the mitrailleuses have been cleaned and oiled.”

  “Yes, Strategos,” Koba said, bowing his head.

  Zawditu approached Iosef and said, “We may speak. What do you seek?”

  Iosef was silent for a moment, carefully considering his words. While he did not doubt the truth of Varanus’s story, neither did he doubt Zawditu’s loyalty. He needed to get to the heart of the matter without his questions being mistake
n for accusations.

  “I do not mean to trouble you, My Lady,” he said, his voice low so as not to be overheard, “but it has come to my attention that you recently met in secret with Sister Philippa in the catacombs and that certain matters of a...questionable nature were discussed.”

  Zawditu’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly at Iosef’s words, but her face was emotionless and inscrutable.

  “From whom do you receive this information?” she asked.

  “You already know that,” Iosef answered.

  “You are right, I do,” Zawditu said.

  Given the timing of the meeting coupled with Varanus’s arrest, there could be little doubt about that. Of course, for Zawditu to acknowledge as much was as good as admitting that she had been there, but why should she hide it? She was above reproach.

  “Was there such a meeting?” Iosef asked.

  “You realize that you have no authority to question me,” Zawditu said.

  “Of course,” Iosef replied, bowing his head to show that he did not mean to challenge her. “You are Strategos. You answer only to Sophio and to the Council.”

  “And still you ask?”

  “I do not accuse you of conspiracy,” Iosef said.

  “But you accuse Sister Philippa?” Zawditu asked, the hint of a laugh in her voice.

  Iosef hesitated. Accusing an elder of the Order, especially a member of the Council, was dangerous. He enjoyed a privileged position as Sophio’s only student, but that would not protect him if Philippa took offense at his unproven insinuations.

  “I am curious as to what passed between you,” Iosef answered. “What she said to you. Whether I should suspect her of something.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I want to protect my wife,” Iosef said. “And that means I want to know whether a member of the Council is plotting against her.”

  Zawditu was quiet for a time, mulling over Iosef’s words. Presently she smiled at him.

  “Philippa came to me concerned, she said, about the possibility of unrest in Sophio’s absence. Not at first, of course, but within a few years.”