Chapter Fourteen
The Most Honored Lady Diti, still being the foremost woman in the land, even in her current demoted state had far greater independence than was thought prudent among some courtiers at the palace. She exercised it on rare occasions and this was one such occasion. She'd managed to convince the eunuch guard of the women, Ruz, to allow her to leave the palace grounds whenever she willed, without the king's consent or the knowledge of the courtiers. She was no longer the king's favorite and was considered too old to have children. This was enough for Ruz to turn a blind eye. God is with me surely! she thought. This was urgent. She gathered her few trusted and loyal people around her.
Most Honorable Scribe Eliaz,
I shall send Fricka to you. Keep her with you until the letter is found and then have her bring it to me. Find that letter! May God cloak our cause, bless His name.
Most Honored Lady Diti
She had instructed Eliaz in her letter. That was days ago and now the King's Guard was busy turning out these families and putting them in the prisons. There was no telling if Eliaz could even get his hands on it. Diti had decided to create a distraction. The king would be arriving any day with his new bride but she felt she had at least some small sway with the people and though the king was dissatisfied with her, he held no ill will toward her. She broke into a sweat after she'd read Eliaz's letter. Her signet ring and the secret globe she kept, both of which also were homing beacons, lit up that night, telling her his mechanical hummingbird was searching for a resting place and had a message. Which truly alarmed her. The few who had such things used them only rarely but this told her that Eliaz did not trust anyone with the message. She remembered how it seemed to slip in and out of shadow. The mechanical birds could seem to disappear at times, depending on how the light fell upon them. She had her own bird, hidden in her interior room.
She would go to the arena prisons and speak to the arena master. She was not sure what would happen but if she could at least save the children. . .
A big commotion was made as she and her guards and her maidservant Zigal raced through the streets in her bronze chariot with her red stallions. She was dressed in her greatest finery, a wrap dress of gold and golden threaded veils and her circlet of electrum and lapis lazuli and diamonds. Her rings and gold armlets glittered. Her step chains tinkled restlessly from the speed of the chariot. The housewives and maidservants at the main water-well looked to see the great commotion and began whispering and wondering at the sight of the former queen riding by. They bowed as she passed and called out blessings.
“May you even live forever!”
“May the king realize his true queen!”
“Bless you our great lady of Hybron!” The chariot turned a corner and approached the arena, massive and monstrous. It stood like a threatening maw in the middle of the city. Uwain wheeled the chariot around and stopped. She and her servant woman climbed out. Her guards dismounted from their horses.
“My Lady Diti. . .” Sputtered a guardsman stationed at the doorway, surprised at her immediate presence.
“Amat! Take me to him.” She commanded. He led them in. They descended deep into the bowels of the arena into the dungeons where men practiced in the fighting rooms and others slated to die waited in the prison cells. At the gate it was locked. They banged on the gate. Torches guttered slightly.
“Open the doors!” Uwain, the queen's guard, barked.
“Who is it? It is early yet!” Snapped a voice.
“It is the queen!” Said Uwain. Footsteps hurried at those words.
“The queen?” The voice called out, incredulous. Amat gazed at the queen and her guards at the door.
“Why, Lady Diti, I. . well. . .” Amat looked confused. “Why do you come to this place? Who are you here to see, my lady?”
“As if you did not know!”
“She is still Her Greatness!” Growled Uwain.
“It is all right, Uwain. I am queen no longer, even in name. Still,” She said resting her gaze upon Amat, “I am here to see you. We will speak in private, Amat.” Amat looked unsure but let them in, bowing nervously, clearly taken by surprise. He led them to a little room at the end of a hall. Ten candles were burning, the whole room was illuminated. Amat had been at his desk counting stones and recording his accounts in the clay tablets on the desk. She thought of each stone as a person he had been paid for, herded into these dank, filthy prison holes.
“My Lady Diti, if you would care to sit down. . .”
“I will stand, thank you. Let us get to the heart of the matter. It is unseemly for me to be seen about the city and even more, to be seen with a man who is not my husband. So, I come here risking my reputation and even my life on a grave matter. I would not do this otherwise.” Amat's surprised expression turned into a suspicious look.
“Yes, my Lady?” He asked, looking from her to the guards.
“I was told that you were given instructions to put to death people of the Aishanna-La, those who have not paid the new temple tax.”
“What? I have never received any such instruction! I do not know what you mean!”
“Come now! You were not given a box of gold for this? A promise of gold coins for men, silver for women and coppers for children? Do not lie to me.”
“Who told you this?”
“Why does it matter?”
“Because I am afraid someone is filling your ears with false information. Who is it?”
“You will address me as my lady, nor will you question me.”
“You are not queen. I take no orders from you and not from any woman!” He sneered. Diti's gaze did not waver and neither did his.
“I may not be queen any longer but the king is still my husband. The letter Shishak showed you was a forgery. Please believe me when I say that this letter was not from the king. This scheme does not have the approval of the king and yet it will be done in his name under his very nose at his own wedding celebration?”
“And why would it matter to him about some rabble who cannot pay their taxes? People are thrown in the arenas to die every week, my lady!” He sneered.
“It will matter when I tell him. For you see, he is born of the Aishanna-La himself, though he left. He will not look kindly on the massacre of these people in his name without his consent. The issue here is authority and King Khalit is a proud man with a quick temper and he expects swift obedience. He will not take kindly to subjects who have gone in with those who wish to usurp his kingship! With traitors!” She snapped.
“Surely you cannot mean this! Traitors? You are mad!”
“Am I? You may forge ahead if you dare but remember, Shishak and Teman are Ainash, first and foremost. They all despise you and all others who do not worship as they do. They are not above using outsiders to do their bidding but when the time comes for the truth to come out, YOU will be laid bare before the king. Do you have the letter they showed you in your possession? When you are questioned about this, how will you defend yourself? How will you prove they had anything to do with this? Someone will have to pay. It will either be the captain of the guard or yourself. Perhaps the Hatchet Men will pay you a visit to prevent the truth getting out about how they bribed you. Do not let them catch you up in their games Amat, because it will be you and your men who work in the dungeons burning as torches during the winter festivals, lighting up the grand streets of Jhis. A high price to pay for a box of metal rounds.” This had the intended effect. The color drained from the arena master's face. Amat glanced frantically from her to her guards, licking his lips again.
“I do not know that you are telling the truth, my lady. As far as I know, I have received a royal command. You. . .you cannot stop that!” The sneer had fallen from his face and the derisive tone from his voice.
“But you did not receive a royal command. However, do as you will. Believe as you will. You are right, I cannot stop you. Just make sure you produce the king's letter when he inquires of you as to why you have done this and looks
for this so-called official letter written in the king's own hand. No one but the king gives an order for execution. And especially of children.” Amat's eyes widened like round clay tablets but he said nothing. Diti pulled her veils and mantle about her and readied herself to leave. Her servants glowered at Amat. The arena master dropped to his chair, looking up at them, pale and in a panic. She glanced around the dingy room with disdain and then fixed him with a hard stare.
“I wonder, Amat. How do you think you will die in here? You have seen many men go bravely to their deaths. How will you go? I wonder if this letter from the king will somehow disappear?” With that she left. Though she felt panic rising in her, she did not let it show.
“My lady, what can we do now?” Asked Uwain once they had ascended the stairs. Diti said a silent prayer. Then she suddenly had an idea.
“Uwain, take me back to the palace! I know what I shall do!”
“But Your Greatness, is it true? Did the king truly give this order?”
“No! What I say is true, Uwain. This order did not come from the king. Let it suffice to say that the one who told me speaks truth and would know.”
“But does the king really care, Your Greatness?” Asked Zigal. Lady Diti shook her head.
“Who can really know? What I do know is that he cares a great deal about his pride. If I make it a public matter, that will get his attention.” They rode to the palace and Diti spoke to her most trusted maidservants about what was about to happen to her people and she began to weep. They tried to comfort her but she took off her jewelry, had them dress her in a long, plain black wrap gown that bared her shoulders and put a black mantle over her head and a black veil over her face. She turned to her maidservants and she said:
“If you care for me in my distress, join me in my grief. What evil seeks to remain private must be made public.” She wore her circlet over the veil and had her guards take her to the royal square where she would be seen by everyone. She sent Zigal to hire the professional mourners and when they came, she and all her women servants and the mourners sat in the square and they prayed and fasted all that day and that night and when the call to Night Prayers came she and her women raised up a loud crying and wailing all that night and the next day in front of the people. It attracted many hundreds to her as they found it was the former queen. Then she got up and addressed the people.
“Listen, oh people of Jhis! Listen, for I have a controversy with the priests of the Golden Temple. A great evil will take place at the king's wedding. The priests have gone astray in their wickedness and scheme to kill their own. How much better will those who do not worship their god fare when they get a whim? We are none of us safe while this evil takes place!”
“Listen to my voice, my people! I do not weep for my fate. If it pleases the king to take another queen I do not dispute it but great evil is being done in the king's name when he is not here to defend it! I will defend it! Tell those that because the king is away does not give them them right to do bad in his name! Innocent people, men, women and children will be thrown into the games and how do you know your own families will not be next? The Ainash scheme to pour more gold into their temple! If you ignore this, perhaps they will come after your own families next! An order has been given by them to execute those who are poor, who cannot pay the temple tax. But will it stop there? Can men who grasp for power and receive it stop at one morsel? And will you be able to save your own hides? Has not the king rescued you from the evils of the Kushigyar and his men? Many of whom still live and serve in the Golden Temple?” She wailed. Soon such a terrible commotion was wrought that she and her women had the entire city in an uproar and as many people in Jhis did not trust the priesthood of the Golden Temple, they began to consider her words.
“The queen wails and weeps for the king! Let her be blessed and curse the Ainash!”
“Let the priests of Airend-Ur be cursed and go down into the dark fires of Helus!”
“The queen! The queen weeps! Hear her, oh people of Jhis!” Cried one of the Mourning Women. Diti had managed to whip up such a controversy that it reached the temple within a few hours that day and it was only just after sunrise. Shishak and the others, including the high priest became enraged. When he'd heard of the commotion, Amat hurried to the temple to tell them of her visit.
“Let her create her theater!”
“But the king is coming soon!” Cried Amat.
“And when he comes he will see a cast out, unwanted harlot wailing before him to put a stop to his new wedding. Do you think this will make him happy? He may very well hang the stupid woman on a stake!”
“But if I could only have a copy of the letter.” Pleaded Amat. Shishak narrowed his eyes.
“You shall have a copy of it by the end of the day. I promise you.”
“What will happen now?”
“We will put a stop to the arrests, temporarily. It is a delicate matter because of Lady Diti. Do not worry. We will handle her.” Amat's face turned ugly.
“Be sure you do, priest! I do not like being crossed.” He grunted and left, furious and fearful. Shishak sat back, in thought.
“What now?” Asked Teman.
“Let her make her controversy. When the king arrives with all his retinue and sees this, he will put her to death for dishonoring him.” Said Shishak.
“Or he may listen to her and demand to see what this is all about. Or Amat and the captain of the guard could turn on us.”
The Herald of King Khalit went riding before them and came to the city as far as the West Gate and when he got to see the commotion the entire city was in, he was aghast.
“What is the meaning of this lawlessness! What is happening here?” He demanded. “The king is less than two days from here! What is all this?”
“It is the queen!”
“The queen? She has not yet arrived!”
“It is a matter between Lady Diti and the Golden Temple.” Said one of the King's Guard at the gate.
“Queen Diti! Queen Diti!” He heard everyone chanting which flustered and angered the herald.
“You men!” He shouted at the King's Guard, “contain these people! I will get to the bottom of this.” He took his own men and went to the royal square. With great difficulty they took the queen and brought her before the head of the chief tribunal of the city to question her.
“Why have you created this disturbance, Lady Diti? And near the eve of the king's wedding and all his vassals here in the city! Do you think to dishonor him?”
“My lords! You are all well aware that the king has chosen a new queen. It is not that, that I object to, but to an order that the priests of the temple have said comes from the king. A letter with his seal, yet one that he did not sign or seal at all.”
“What letter do you speak of?”
“An order of execution for those too poor to pay the new temple tax.”
“How do you know this is not from the king?”
“I know because it is being carried on in secret. The king would never carry on a thing like this in secret. This thing has been done while he was away. If he has ordered the execution of hundreds of people at his wedding I would have learned about it at court well before now. This order did not come from the king.”
“And how did you come to know of this letter?”
“I cannot tell you.”
“Then it would seem, my lady, that we have a problem. We cannot investigate if we do not know.” Said one of the judges, smugly.
“I appeal to the king himself!”
“He will not see you.” Said the chief judge.
“He will see me on this matter! I appeal to the king when he arrives! I shall appeal to him in front of the people that this great badness should not be done!” She did not trust the tribunal. There were Ainash supporters among them. Yet, not all had love for the Ainash. One spoke up, an ancient man, a worshiper of the sun god.
“Let the queen alone. If her cause is right, things will be sorted out. If she be
wrong she will be punished, yet, I think she may be right. I say she must see the king, if he consents.” The chief judge tugged at his beard for a few moments, thinking on it, his gray brows furrowing in deep thought. Then he nodded.
“The Most Honored Lady Diti shall have the right to appeal to the king on the matter.” His voice was the final word on the matter until the king arrived. Diti was escorted back to her house. As she was taken away she heard the riots as the city was in turmoil over the looming fate of many families.
“Curse the Ainash! Curse the Ainash!” They screamed. Diti really had no idea what the king's reaction would be or whether she herself would be thrown into the furnace for her actions but she had risked everything and now all she could do was wait and see. Later that evening, as she gazed out of the windows from her room she heard the soft pattering of Fricka's feet. She turned and saw that something was in Fricka's pack. It was exactly what she'd hoped Demos and Eliaz would find. She took the letter from Fricka, read it and hid it beneath her veils. She called for her guards and commanded them to have the herald come see her immediately.
Schisms Page 14
