Oblivion's Queen

by M. H. Johnson

  Jess blinked, shocked by the magnanimity of the gesture. One of the most powerful lords in all of Erovering; a duke, in fact, for all that the diOnnis were content simply to be acknowledged as peers of the realm, had just given her and her companions the equivalent of permanent guest rights, and a promise of assistance with future ventures, should they but ask. It was a priceless boon.

  Twilight purred. “Just imagine all the fishies that man has access to with his trade routes! Well done indeed, my Jess.”

  As one, Jess and her friends formally bowed.

  A meaningful glance, caught and understood. Raphael turning and quietly whispering to loyal servitor and guardsmen, Chelton discreetly closing the door as the three left.

  The duke sat back in his leather chair, gazing contemplatively at the group before him. "And so now we come to the crux of it. The reason for your urgent travels, through the ancient heart of the great wood itself, I gather, thanks to the remarkable gifts of the talented Lady Calenbry." Jess nodded for all that she felt her cheeks flush under his considering gaze. "It was no easy journey, I am sure, and our House stands ready to assure your safety. You may rest and shelter here for so long as you like. A runner has been sent to assess the whereabouts and safety of young Lord Trepass, who shall also be offered succor at our manor, should he wish it."

  He gazed at the doorway contemplatively for some moments before nodding his head as if in answer to a silent question, his gaze once more fastening fully upon his son. “I believe these quarters to be secure, my son. Why don't you tell me now the true nature of your visit?”

  Jess blinked, exchanging gazes with her familiar. “Interesting,” Twilight said, immediately flowing off her shoulder and padding towards the doorway. Jess witnessed her familiar somehow slide past the firmly closed door, shaking off the constraints of reality and popping through as easily as she could burst through the surface of a still lake. She shuddered at the sight of it.

  Moments later, Twilight popped back in. "He is right, no one is listening. The passageway is completely clear."

  Jess grimaced. “I wish you wouldn't do that, Twilight.”

  Her familiar grinned.

  The duke looked at her enquiringly.

  “My apologies, Your Grace. Twilight was just making sure that the corridor was indeed clear of any... curious onlookers. I am happy to say that it is.”

  Raphael's father blinked but once, maintaining his composure even as he gazed upon his son.

  “Twilight is her familiar, Father. Alex suspects he represents an aspect of her druidic arts. He also helped us spot that impostor of a captain, and the crossbows his men were wielding, before we got too close to the chateau.”

  The duke nodded. “How remarkable. I would be most interested in meeting this clever fellow.” His eyes took in the entirety of the room.

  “I am sorry, my lord. It would be very difficult for you to see him, as he is sort of invisible,” Jess explained, Twilight flashing a grin at the man's expression before the lord once more regained his demeanor of perfect equanimity.

  “I see. A very useful familiar indeed.”

  Jess nodded. “Except for the fact no one takes me seriously when I mention him, just because they can't see him or hear him.”

  “That would be a problem,” the smiling duke allowed. “Nonetheless, you and your familiar, whether he is a separate entity or, if you will forgive me for suggesting it, an anthropomorphic manifestation of your own gifts, have more than proven your worth as allies of my House, for which again you have my deepest gratitude.”

  Jess blushed and dipped her head. “Thank you for the compliment, my lord. But I would be remiss if I did not make clear that I'm no Druid. I'm just good with plants.”

  “Understood. And exquisitely gifted you are with all things that blossom under the sun, from what I am given to understand. Talents that I would dearly love to see used to the tremendous benefit of both our Houses.” The duke's gentle expression turned grave. “But we can certainly save that conversation for another time, my dear Jessica de Calenbry. What concerns me of this moment is the source of your present... urgency.”

  Jess grimaced and nodded before locking gazes with Raphael, feeling that it would be best for him to explain.

  Raphael's expression tightened, and he took a deep breath. The sudden tension in the room was palpable when he spoke. "It is about the chalice, Father."

  Duke diOnni gave no indication he understood its significance, save for the slightest of shudders. Immediately Jess's heart began to hammer. Something was wrong.

  “The chalice.”

  Raphael nodded. “They know its true name. The documents containing all records of the artifact, as well as all our household accounts, were in the process of being burned by poor Dayton, himself under strange compulsion, before we... intervened. That was the artifact, the prize in our possession that Galeck Borson was so eager to obtain.” Raphael grimaced. “It seems it is not merely the esoteric artifact of a superstitious cult that we had believed it to be.”

  The duke was visibly shaking. Jess shivered, for once unable to tell if it was fear or rage that motivated the man. “The man behind this conniving you speak of. Galeck Borson? And he would dare, actually dare to make so bold a move against my own House, my own son?”

  Raphael gave a slow nod.

  Malek's laugh was low and ugly. "Rest easy, Duke diOnni. Our dear Galeck is unlikely to trouble you or your House, ever again."

  The duke flashed Malek an icy, approving smile. “Another debt I owe you, Malek de Sousel.”

  “Hardly, Your Grace," Malek assured. "We simply stumbled across him, while making our way through the heart of the great forest. In truth, we can't even be sure it's him. Just a clump of bones in a mound of loose soil, and rosebushes with the palest blossoms you ever did see. However, we did find a saber in perfect condition with his initials inscribed upon the pommel. And considering that we had chased him into those very woods but days before, his death seemed the logical conclusion."

  “It does indeed," the duke allowed, patting something about his neck, hidden below the line of his doublet, and Jess felt that odd twinge of discomfort yet again. "For that wasn't the first time Galeck Borson had attempted to seize the chalice in question." His smile turned grim. "The man has long been reputed to have something of a silver tongue, so precautions were taken. When he tried to entice me to part with that family heirloom for but a pittance, I was quite happy to inform him that he had overstayed his welcome."

  Alex raised his hand much like a student, the duke acknowledging it with a lift of his brow. “Forgive me, my lord, but to the best of my knowledge, our magical traditions have no counter to the magic of compulsion. So if you can give us any insight as to how one might take adequate precautions against the persuasive arts, it would be greatly appreciated.” Alex flashed a grim smile. “In fact, I doubt half the professors of Highrock will even acknowledge that magic outside the elemental and healing arts is anything more than myth and legend.”

  The duke folded his hands, looking approvingly at Alex before allowing himself a small nod. "Very well, young Lord Velice, I shall share this much with you, with the understanding that it's to be held by you all in strictest confidence." He waited till they gave polite nods of assent before proceeding. "Let us just say that in the sphere of trade, particularly when dealing with highly leveraged transactions, or property and assets worth a considerable amount of coin, there may indeed have been tricks of a persuasive nature developed over generations. And you may rest assured, young Alex, that individuals possessing such modest, highly specialized magery would hardly choose to call attention to themselves and risk anything from outright persecution and seizure of familial assets, to being drafted as agents, or worse, forcibly trained as battlemages for the king's pleasure."

  Raphael's father measured them carefully with a master merchant's gaze. "I am sure you can all understand why any adepts of talents not fitting perfectly within the modern elementalist pa
radigm would be loath to expose themselves to persecution unnecessarily, just as young men and women with a talent for fire, as they say, and a desire for power and glory, hungering for more than simply coin, might make every effort to be discovered by the great college of Highrock and trained as battlemages, much as is the case for yourself, young Lord Velice."

  Alex nodded solemnly. “An astute point, my lord.”

  The duke chuckled softly. "Indeed. And for the record, I am by no means claiming to have any such talent for... persuasion myself. Yet legend holds that there are at least a small handful of artifacts, the forging of which has no doubt been lost to time, that are reputed to be quite adept at... neutralizing the influence of silver-tongued merchants who might seek to use their talents to influence a bargain in ways not entirely favorable to the diOnni clan." He allowed himself a small smile. "And perhaps a lead or two has successfully panned out. A man whose fortunes were torn away by the cruel vagaries of fate has little need of such an artifact, after all, whereas a considerable boon gifted in return might be considered a wondrously fair trade. Both parties benefit, thus demonstrating the virtue inherent in trade, the very enticement that keeps so many rulers in line, their coffers benefiting more from peace than war."

  Jess grinned, appreciating the irony. "Poor Galeck. Having risked so much, bargaining with gods alone know what powers for a silver tongue in order to use his influence to win power and wealth, only to find his gift neutralized by the one subset within Erovering open to believing in, and protecting themselves from such dark talents."

  Duke diOnni chuckled wryly. “Precisely, my dear Jessica! Oh, the fit that man threw. He was absolutely livid. I had never seen such hate blaze forth from a man so. It was an absolute pleasure to have him booted from the manor.” He took a sip from a crystal glass, gaze contemplative as he swirled the contents. “I increased the men on watch, just as a precaution, but of course nothing happened. Men of trade rarely resort to violence when the source of their animosity is so apparent to all. For inciting the displeasure of the Lords Council and Royal Family alike is as sure a way as any to invite doom upon one's House, and no lord is so foolish as to act upon a grudge against a fellow lord who actually resides within the capital itself!”

  Raphael's father gave a regretful shake of his head. "It was folly not to realize how obsessed the man was, to appreciate just how desperately he coveted that chalice. To realize that he would indeed go so far as to make Highrock itself a target of his intentions, using deception and guile as opposed to outright force."

  Raphael gave a relieved smile. “Regret not, Father. For our dear friends have assured that Galeck's twisted machinations bore him only the bitterest of fruit. The important thing now is that the chalice is safe, and out of the hands of our enemies.”

  His father's expression, however, said all that needed to be said.

  “Bloody hells,” Malek cursed softly.

  Raphael grimaced. “May I ask what happened, Father?”

  The duke gazed thoughtfully out of one of the grand stained glass windows of his lushly appointed study, for all that the panes only glimmered with faintest traces of moonlight. "No foul play, my son. I can assure you of that, at least." He turned to gaze at his progeny, eyes utterly expressionless. "Before today I had thought all rumors about so called 'dark artifacts' were nothing more than ignorant superstition. I detested Galeck simply for his conniving ways and underhanded attempts to use arcane arts of guile and manipulation to coax me into selling an diOnni prize for far less than it was worth."

  The room was utterly still even as the duke looked through a cluster of documents, quickly finding the one he needed. "Nor am I quite so naïve as you may fear. Even I was somewhat reluctant to let said artifact fall into the wrong hands. Not that I feared any dark powers, mind you. Rather, I could just imagine a whole coven of discontented nobles, obsessed like Galeck Borson, using the chalice as a focal point for their madness and dreams of insurrection. I, of course, did not want our family's reputation to be tainted by even the loosest association to such corruption."

  Formally, he handed the document over to his son, who looked over it with a careful eye, gaze widening abruptly as he came to the very end. "By the gods! This Agent of the Crown offered three thousand gold eagles for the artifact?"

  The duke gave a firm nod, smiling grimly. “Indeed he did. Nor was he so foolish as to dare use a banker's note. He was made to wait, in the utmost of comfort I might add, while I had an independent banker authenticate the coinage before depositing it directly into our account. Said agent was quite happy to indulge my whim, as he put it, asking only that his own identity and the nature of the exchange be kept discrete. For as a representative of the king, he made it clear that the Royal House itself had an interest in taking said artifact out of circulation, assuring that it couldn't be used to assert ancient claims and serve as the focal point for even the slightest hint of insurrection. And quite frankly, I thought it a neat solution to the entire dilemma the artifact posed. For Galeck had made it quite clear that less than healthy interests desired to possess it, making it exceedingly dangerous to keep, and just as dangerous to sell." He flashed a satisfied smile. "The king's man solved that dilemma quite nicely."

  Raphael nodded. "And ultimately, what choice did you have, Father? If the king made it clear that he was willing to pay such a steep bribe to get that artifact out of circulation, to not acquiesce could easily have brought the wrath of the Royal House itself down upon our heads, and assure the doom of our entire family." Raphael shuddered. "We'd be lucky to escape with our lives, let alone our fortunes."

  His father dipped his head. “You understand precisely, my son.”

  Josie turned to Jess. "There. You see, Jessie? The problem is solved. The king himself got involved, once he got wind of all the nefarious goings-on, no doubt, and now it is out of play, so we are safe."

  Jera gave a slow nod. “Safer, anyway. But even if we don't have to worry about the Chalice of Absolution anymore, we still have to retrieve the wand, of course.”

  Jess's heart raced with sudden panic. She smiled to cover, even as Jera's expression grew suddenly concerned. For it was then she knew that something was wrong. The wand. She knew there was something about a wand, but she couldn't for the life of her remember what it was. She caught her shieldbrother's eye. Saw the doubt and worry there as well.

  “All well and good," Malek finally said aloud. "Assuming the man was, in fact, a Crown Agent."

  Alex squeezed his eyes shut and grimaced. “Damn it, Malek. You just had to say it, didn't you?”

  Malek flashed a bitter smile. “You are no fool, battlefriend. You know as well as I that it had to be said.”

  Josie turned pale and started to whimper, gently embraced by a sympathetic Jera, herself gazing intently at Alex, who only sighed and shrugged. “We need to find out, one way or another.”

  Raphael and his father, mirror expressions of one another save a few lines of experience, looked equally dismayed.

  “Until this moment, the thought of guile outside the context of counterfeit coinage wouldn't have even crossed my mind.” The duke shook his head. “At the time it meant no more to me than any other piece of art, despite its rather unfortunate history. The Crown offering an obscene fortune to take it off my hands made perfect sense in terms of securing any artifact that could be used as a pretext for insurrection, and I saw no reason to question the man's credentials, having no desire to antagonize our king.”

  Raphael sighed. "And now, knowing as we do that there might be far more to these artifacts than we had first thought, well, it behooves us to ascertain the truth of the matter, one way or another."

  Alex gazed thoughtfully at the duke. “I would advise caution, my lord. For certainly you would not want to alert the king that you had allowed to slip through your fingers a dark artifact that enemies of the state could use for fell purposes, if you can help it. If you will forgive my saying so, a prudent approach might be best. I'd adv
ise simply inquiring if there is such an agent by his name, and leaving it at that.”

  “He forgets himself, sometimes." Malek shook his head, and Jess realized that her friend had spoken boldly to one far above their station, for all that Duke diOnni had professed heartfelt gratitude to all of them. yet the man only smiled, Jess was relieved to see.

  “A fair point, young Alex," The duke allowed. "And you may rest assured, we plan something very much along those lines. It would not be the first time a commoner with airs had attempted to connive his way into our House's pockets, or so we will imply, curious only to ascertain the legitimacy of the individual in question, via very discrete and well-paid channels, I assure you, before we risk ruffling royal feathers unnecessarily."

  Alex blushed, suddenly aware, perhaps, of how his unasked for recommendations might have come across to the duke. “My apologies, Your Grace,” Alex uttered softly with a bow.

  The duke flashed a bemused smile. “No need for that, young Alex. You and your companions have obviously been conditioned to speak and act boldly, as future commanders and tacticians, trained for the harsh realities of war, as opposed to the finer points of politics and diplomacy. Frankly, Alex, I like a thoughtful man who is still bold enough to state his insights at the proper time, particularly when I have given said man leave to speak freely. And you may rest assured, you and your companions have earned that right, so long as you never question my decisions in public."

  “Yes, Your Grace.” Alex dipped his head, as did they all.

  The head of the diOnni Household gazed at them all with almost paternal fondness. "My son did well to befriend such talented youths as yourselves. A far better cut than most, of that I have no doubt." He gave a satisfied nod. "Very well, then. I shall summon Chelton to attend to us, and see to your quarters. Baths shall be made ready for you all to refresh yourselves after such a harrying journey, and I look forward to seeing you all at table at nine bells."

  Shortly thereafter, a brooding Jess found herself being led down yet another hallway to rather luxuriously appointed quarters that she was informed were at her disposal for as long as she liked. Jess gave an approving nod as she examined the finely crafted bed of chestnut and oak that Chelton assured was freshly turned that very morning, sheets of finest cotton covering a mattress filled with goose down.