by Guy Antibes
“We can start with the three of you, but our primary focus is on Trevor Arcwin,” The woman said.
The questioning began with who they visited in Collet and why. After a few questions, the man stood up and looked at Brother Yvan and Volst. “You two can leave us now. I suggest you return to the seer headquarters.”
Trevor almost winced when the uniformed man said it. There was no respect in those words for the seers. He waited for Volst and Brother Yvan to leave. When the door shut, he sighed.
“You don’t like the seers?” Trevor asked.
“I’ll do the talking, Arcwin,” the woman said. “Did you know you are not allowed in Ginster?”
“I didn’t. I know I’m not to return to Presidon, but we entered the country from Jilgrath. There are no restrictions to my movements in Viksar. Lilith told me I wouldn’t have anything to worry about once I left the country. She either lied or was overruled by my mother.”
“Your mother is the queen and can overrule Princess Lilith,” the woman said. “I didn’t introduce myself. I am the Presidonian ambassador to Ginster. The Ginster prime granted my request to have you arrested. You made the mistake of telling a gate officer that you were in Collet to see Lister Vale. From that point on, the city guard merely waited for you to leave the seer headquarters.”
“That makes sense. Is it your intent to kill me?” Trevor said. He thought he might as well get the bad news out of the way.”
“It may be the Presidonian queen’s intent, but not necessarily Ginster’s,” the man said. “Presidon hasn’t granted the lands promised for our assistance in the overthrow of your father.”
“And you are a Ginsterian officer, not an officer in the city guard?” Trevor asked.
The man nodded. Trevor looked at the woman. “Does Presidon dictate Ginsterian policies?”
The woman blushed. “It is none of your business.”
Trevor barked out a laugh. “I insist that this entire conversation is my business.” He whipped out his commission. “I represent Dryden. I have papers certifying that I am a duke in Brachia. The domain of Listenwell is mine to rule.”
“Anyone can forge papers,” the woman said.
Trevor tossed his messenger appointment in front of the officer. It wouldn’t do any good to have the woman touch it. The officer picked it up and read. He stopped a few times to stare at Trevor and read a little more.
“He holds the rank of a seer,” the man told the woman.
“Nonsense. There are no seers as young as this traitor,” the woman said.
Trevor had never read the appointment, and if he made it out of jail alive, reading that document would be the first thing he did.
“My mother never replaced Brother Yvan?” Trevor asked the woman.
“Of course not. She hasn’t made up her mind about installing a new one,” the woman said.
“Do you think you will be committing sacrilege if you kill me now that I am a seer?”
The woman narrowed her eyes at Trevor. “I don’t work for Dryden, young man. You can stop thinking that an ecclesiastical position will stop me from having you executed.”
The officer put his hand on the woman’s wrist. “It will stop you from killing him in Ginster,” the officer said. “Our relations with the seers aren’t the warmest, but we are a nation of Dryden followers.” He waved the appointment sheet before placing it in front of Trevor. “I know what the position of Dryden’s Messenger is. I went to a Dryden monastic school. The last messenger died in an assassination after saving the world hundreds of years ago. It is held in reserve until needed. This appointment removes Trevor Arcwin from any restrictions in Collet and in Ginster,” the officer said to the woman.
“Then I can leave?”
“I will be clear that there are Presidonians in Collet, and assassins can still reach out from Presidon. We believe that Queen Hyra has turned away from Dryden, and you’ll receive no protection in your home country, and you are exposed to whatever Presidon may try to do here.” The officer looked at the ambassador. “An assassination will be an illegal act, but you know that, don’t you?”
The ambassador grunted. “Then I have no further questions,” she said and left the room.
“I am free to go now?” Trevor asked.
“No. We go to visit the prime. I want to hear how you intend to save the world,” the man said.
Chapter Eight
~
T revor was still under guard with hands manacled as the officer, Trevor, and a squad of guards walked through the prime’s residence, the Ginsterian equivalent of a royal palace. The hostile stares from all they passed in the residence corridors made Trevor uneasy. He was sure he wasn’t out of danger.
They walked into a meeting room toward the back of the residence, where Trevor spent the next hour alone in the room. He opened the door a few times, but the guards outside never left.
Finally, the officer opened the door and stepped to the side of the open door. “Rise for the Prime of Ginster.”
A youngish woman walked through wearing a pale blue gown with a jeweled headband. She sat at the end of the table and tapped her finger on the mirror-finished wood. Trevor looked behind to see the door left open and guards standing ready and within hearing.
“You are the prince?” she asked without asking for an introduction.
“Former prince,” Trevor said. “I am currently the duke of Listenwell. Listenwell is a domain in Brachia.”
“I know where Listenwell is. Don’t you think I prepared for this meeting?” the woman snapped back. She moved her fingers and uttered a spell under her breath. Trevor had no idea what the spell did, but the officer moved a pace closer to the ruler. A dusky woman sauntered into the room. Neither the prime nor the officer acknowledged her. Trevor couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows at the arrogance of this Maskumite magician. The woman leaned against the wall and folded her arms. Trevor made sure he didn’t make eye contact. It was the same strategy Trevor had seen played out before, but the magician did not attempt to whisper in the prime’s ear.
Trevor, still standing, gave the prime a bow. “I don’t know what you know and what you don’t.”
The prime pursed her lips. It didn’t look like she was pleased with Trevor’s response. “You have an appointment from Dryden?”
The woman extended her hand. Trevor had to move to the head of the table and put the appointment letter in her hand. She made a show of reading every bit of it. The prime scowled when she read it.
“This puts me in a bad spot,” she said. “I have a treaty with Presidon that they haven’t honored. I should have annexed all of Presidon’s northern border, but Queen Hyra has been reluctant to pay her allies. Hyra’s ambassador demands your death, but I have no guarantee that will get me the land that is rightfully Ginster’s.”
Trevor would have said any Presidonian land wasn’t rightfully hers for betraying a neighbor, but he kept quiet. If he was to be messenger, he had to create an alliance, and with King Worto sniffing at Ginster’s western border, he couldn’t alienate the prime.
“Is Ginster more important than some mountain lands?” Trevor asked. “Even with their mineral wealth, if King Worto’s army invades, do you think my mother will hand over land that she could use to appease the Brachian king?”
The prime scowled. “You know your politics too well, and you intend to deal with King Worto?”
“I do. I’ve met him before, have you?”
“No, but he has a delegation in the city,” the prime said.
Trevor was certain this silent woman was one of them. “I will tell him how his magicians have perfected an invisibility spell that allows them to eavesdrop on heads of state like you.”
Trevor shifted his gaze to the intruder, who made eye contact. She put her hand to her mouth and then bathed Trevor in white lightning. Trevor walked up to the amazed woman and punched her in the face. It was the only way he was sure her spell would be broken.
The prime rose t
o her feet and stared at the officer. “How could you let this woman get this close to me!” she said as the magician must have appeared on the floor.
“Don’t blame him, blame Gareeze Plissaki, King Worto’s Chief Magician. I have done the same in Okora on the way here. There are magicians in Jilgrath engaged in creating charms that might defeat Maskumite invisibility spells. I’ll do the same with King Worto. I’m sure he won’t be pleased that Plissaki is secretly advising him through whisperings in his ear while staying invisible.”
“And you helped kill the queen of Jarkan doing this?” the prime asked.
“I didn’t kill the queen. King Worto encouraged a very willing lord to rebel. His first act was to assassinate the queen. I helped King Turgul legally take the throne of Jarkan.”
“And you have proof of this?” the prime asked.
Trevor sighed. Reena was days away in Jilgrath. “I can produce the former focus, Reena Corulu.”
The prime nodded. “Right, they use the term focus for their seers. Bring her.”
“She isn’t in Collet,” Trevor said.
“Do you want to be set free?”
Trevor ground his teeth, and then he nodded. “I will need one of my companions to help me,” Trevor said.
~
Trevor and Reena appeared in a prime residence hallway. Trevor had to return Volst to Jilgrath to keep a transfer available in the magic imbued in his weapon and armor.
Reena immediately stepped to the window to look at the courtyard below. “I wish you were around the many times I had to go from Derwizul to Argara and back,” she said to Trevor. “I’ll be ready to go in a moment.” Reena shook her head slowly. “It’s a little disorienting.”
“It is your first time,” Trevor said. “This way.” He didn’t tell Reena that his head hurt so severely he could barely see. Using Volst as the source of magical power wasn’t very pleasant.
They proceeded to the same meeting room while a guard fetched the prime.
“It is hard to believe you went to Jilgrath and back,” the prime said as she entered the room.
“This is Reena Corulu, the former focus of Jarkan.”
“What happened in Jarkan?” the prime said.
After Reena finished her short description, the prime asked a few questions about Jarkan, and then she turned to Trevor. “She really is the focus. I thought you were trying to fool me.”
Trevor shook his head. “I haven’t misrepresented anything. Presidon doesn’t need another dead prince, and Dryden would rather put me to better use.”
She looked at Trevor’s appointment still on the table. “I must believe you, but you must do something for me first.”
Trevor sighed. He didn’t want to go on some unrelated task.
“I want you to turn King Worto’s army away from Ginster’s border. It is expensive to support a watching army,” the prime said.
Since Trevor had no idea where he was to go next, he thought for a moment and agreed. “You will give me something to allow me to move freely in Ginster?”
“Our Presidonian ambassador won’t like it, but Ginster takes precedence. I don’t need the Presidonian land if the truth be known. Your father provoked most leaders of the countries surrounding Presidon, but your mother is doing plenty of provoking on her own. Come with me.”
Reena and Trevor followed the prime through the residence and ended up in the prime’s office. Trevor looked at the decorations in the room. Ginsterian sensibilities were evident in the simple yet elegant lines. A scribe was already sitting at a small desk, working in the prime’s office.
“I want three documents that allow Trevor Arcwin, Reena Corulu, and Linwood Volst to move freely in Ginster. All three are under the protection of the prime.” The prime consulted a book on her desk. “If you excuse me, I have other appointments today,” she said as she rose. “My scribe will get the proper spellings on the documents.”
Trevor sat with Reena. “Do you want to go back to Jilgrath or stay in Collet?”
The woman laughed. “You need to ask? I’m here. Lissa can bring my things. I suggest you get Volst back. The prime’s permission slip won’t stop the point of a sword.”
Trevor had already figured that out. They waited a bit more until the scribe asked for the names’ spellings, and then guards escorted them out of the residence. Brother Yvan sat on a bench on the square opposite the prime’s home. After dodging a few horses and carriages, he jumped up, made it to their side, and hugged Reena.
“Nothing for me?” Trevor asked with a smile.
“Not this time,” Brother Yvan said, taking Reena’s hand. He looked at the former focus. “You are going to stay?”
Reena gave Brother Yvan an unexpectedly shy smile even after they had traveled hundreds of miles together. “I was hoping I could. I will need to purchase a few things.”
“A lot of things is fine with me,” Brother Yvan said. “I’m sure the head seer is anxious to meet you.”
“I’ll need you to check my sword for magic,” Trevor said. “If you could do that before you visit Lister Vale, I’ll be able to retrieve Volst.”
“Of course. We wouldn’t want Volst to have to visit his father and other friends, would we?”
“Maybe tomorrow?” Trevor said. “We didn’t settle on a time.”
“I, for one, didn’t expect you to be released so quickly. What happened?” Brother Yvan said.
They climbed into a carriage, and Reena explained what happened in her first meeting with the prime of Ginster.
~
Lister Vale listened to Trevor tell his experience with the prime and then excused him to have a more private conversation with Brother Yvan and Reena while Trevor returned to Jilgrath to retrieve Volst.
“Are you ready to return?” Trevor asked as he found Lissa, Glynna, and Custik drinking ale with Volst at the inn where Lissa and Reena stayed.
“Sit down. We don’t have to hurry, do we?” Volst said, pulling out the chair next to him.
“They don’t sell Zinkel’s in Collet,” Trevor said with a smile before lifting his hand to summon a serving maid. “I suppose a recharge won’t matter much.”
“They are making some progress,” Volst said, nodding to Custik.
“We couldn’t have done it without Lissa,” the magician said. “What we’ve come up with is more of a counterspell embedded in the charm.”
“Like a ward?”
Custik’s face brightened. “We will make a magician out of you yet, young Arcwin. It is like a ward, but something a little different. Lissa was the one to think of it and made the first one. If she still sought out the gold, I think the innovation might be enough to raise her level.”
“I’m not interested in being a gold as long as I know I’m good enough,” Lissa said. “My priorities have changed.”
“Test it some more. I’m pretty sure my first task is confronting King Worto in Fuleria,” Trevor said. “The Ginster prime said as much.”
“But that carries so much risk!” Glynna said. “You could lose your dukedom with a snap of Worto’s fingers.”
“I’m more concerned about my head at the moment. My choice is to visit the Brachian king or be turned over to the Presidonian ambassador,” Trevor said. He told them all about his meeting with the prime. “How sure can you be that the charm works?”
“We can’t be absolutely sure until we find a cooperative Maskumite magician who will use the spell,” Volst said with half a smile.
Trevor nodded. “Gareeze Plissaki, but he won’t be cooperative. How does someone use the charm? Can they see through the spell like me?”
“The charm operates by touch, and only the person using the charm will be able to detect a magician using any kind of spell,” Gorian Custik said. “Reena was able to see Lissa clearly, but Glynna could only see Lissa’s glowing shape when she invoked her spell. However, it also works against any spell directed at you. For example, the charm would alert the wearer if a Brachian singer used magic.”
“Is there another Brachian in Jilgrath?” Trevor asked.
“No, but there is a professor who can come close to Mara’s technique,” Glynna said. “We tested it and accurately detected when a spell was used.”
“So, it has other applications.”
“We could be wealthy if we sold the things,” Glynna said, “but we aren’t concerned about wealth—”
“Yet,” Gorian said. “We will be making one hundred charms in the next few days.”
“Do you need me to return Reena?”
Lissa shook her head. “No, but she helped with the testing. I wish I could go with you to Collet, but I’m needed to make the charms.”
“You’ll get your chance.” Trevor lifted an empty mug. “I’ll have a few of these before Volst and I leave.”
Trevor was reluctant to leave his friends, but Glynna left and returned with a small purse in his hand before he left. “There are five charms in here. We will have more when you next see us.”
“I may have to give most of these to King Worto,” Trevor said. “I don’t want to be a wanted man in Ginster any longer than I have to be.”
Volst and Trevor left Jilgrath from a corridor in the inn and appeared in the ancient room underneath seer headquarters. They walked up to the main level. There were fewer surprised glares this time. Seer Vale was alone in his office where Trevor told him about the charms and showed him one.
“I can test these if you say they can detect a Brachian singer. We have a seer-in-training who is from Brachia,” Lister Vale said.
He sent one of his aides to fetch the young man while Trevor and Volst sat in the head seer’s office, watching the man shuffle through his paperwork. Finally, a young man knocked and bowed at the head seer’s door.
“Come in and meet Duke Trevor. He now owns the Listenwell domain.”
“That is where I am from. What happened to the regent?” the seer-in-training asked.
“He was punished for his misdeeds by the citizens of Parkintown.”
“Why aren’t you there?”
“I put another regent in charge who Jacob Stoolage is helping.”