Bargain

by Riley S. Keene

  But Merylle lowered her mug with a smack of her lips and continued. “I was—or rather, I thought myself as—more. As the beloved of Teis.” There was a bitterness to her tone that made Elise look away from the Overseer. “You see, He would visit me in my dreams and we would talk and laugh and enjoy each other’s company. Anything He would ask, I would do, without question or hesitation.”

  Elise squirmed in her seat. The far-off look in Merylle's eyes was not that of a fallen Priest. It was that of an abandoned spouse, one who still remembered better days. Elise’s stomach turned. The faint smile that crested Merylle’s mouth when she spoke of Teis was one of a love that Elise didn’t feel for Ydia. It made her uncomfortable to think that at one point Elise had wished to be High Priest herself. Would she have eventually become this devout, or was the honor of being Ydia’s most faithful servant forever out of reach?

  “Things changed, but gradually. I almost didn’t notice at first. His laugh was a little slower, His smile was a little sadder. I thought that it was just the burdens of being a God weighing on Him.” Merylle gestured impatiently with her mug. A man entered the room almost immediately with a fresh one, putting it into her hand before taking her empty mug away. She took a long pull of the ale, emptying half of the pale amber liquid immediately. “Nothing I would do could make Him open up to me like He used to. He—he—”

  Merylle paused and ran a hand through her hair, and once more Elise could see that her fingers shook. From the words Merylle spoke, Elise would have said it was sorrow that shook the Overseer so. But as soon as she met her eyes, Elise knew it was rage. Merylle was once more a predator, fangs bared and hackles raised.

  She tried to calm herself with a deep breath, but it seemed to do very little. Even the ale seemed to do little to temper the mood. Eventually Merylle pushed herself away from the table and stood to pace back and forth like a caged beast. She tugged at her hair as if the pain would sooth away the emotional burden.

  Elise and her companions sat in silence as the Overseer dealt with her anger. Ermolt refilled their teacups and Athala picked at a cracker with her fingers. They seemed as confused and uncomfortable with the Overseer’s anger as Elise felt. At least she wasn’t alone.

  Eventually Merylle’s pacing slowed and she returned to her seat at the table. Her eyes were red, although no tears had been spilled that Elise had seen.

  “My apologies. The burdens of my past are mine alone, but when shared with others they make me see how foolish I was.” She flashed them a smile, although it was a rueful and hollow attempt. Elise nodded in understanding and Merylle’s smile grew slightly warmer.

  “When Teis finally confessed to me what was the matter, it became clear that I had been an idiot. He told me He found someone else.” Merylle growled low in her throat. “That He didn’t need me anymore. That I was a useless child that—” She hesitated and swallowed her anger. “He said it would be too hard for Him to have me there still.” She took a deep breath and folded her hands on the table. Merylle’s knuckles were white with the force of her stillness. “So I left.” The word hung in the air for a moment. “I always did what He told me. I was always loyal and loving. And so without another thought I left quietly like He asked.”

  “And it was your friend,” Ermolt said as he lifted his teacup, his fingers almost comically enormous around to the tiny vessel. “She replaced you.”

  “Jutta Mauss,” Merylle spat, slamming her half-full mug to the table. Elise winced at the suddenly loud noise, and the splash of beer that escaped onto the table. “I could have forgiven her, and I would never have been angry with Him, if they had waited even a full day out of respect for me. But it was barely hours after I left that the mantle was passed to her.”

  Elise grimaced, but kept her thoughts to herself. The quick turnover wasn’t surprising. Temple command structure was heavily dependent on the connection between the God and the High Priest. As a Conscript, she didn’t fully understand the Gods, but had heard plenty of ‘funny’ stories that led her to believe that the Gods didn’t fully understand human emotions.

  It was pretty obvious that Teis probably didn’t understand the idea of respecting a person’s leaving. And if Merylle interpreted their relationship as romantic, there were plenty of mortal men and women who didn’t understand the appropriate amount of time to wait before taking a new lover. How could a God—a being that didn’t experience time as mortals did—be expected to know any better?

  “Since that day, all I’ve wanted is to hurt them,” Merylle growled. “Him and her. I want to hurt them the way them hurt me. All of these skirmishes, these little fights and robberies and shakedowns... They’re just an annoyance to them. If you’re planning something bigger than that, I want to be a part of it.” She clenched a fist in front of her face. “I want them to hurt.”

  Elise noted—with some discomfort—that both Ermolt and Athala were looking at her. She reached for her cup of tea, carefully taking a sip and swirling the liquid in her mouth to give herself a moment to think. It was a nice black tea, with a hint of spice to it. Possibly Cave Pepper. Jalovan’s were so very fond of the obnoxious little gray pepper. But where the famous beer tasted of spiced swill, this at least had a gentle heat that was complimented well by the—

  She was stalling. Elise let out a heavy sigh.

  “If you want to help us, then you will need to actually help us.” Elise said, cautiously. There was something to be had here. And she knew just how she could get it. “We can discuss the details of our plans later, and I’m sure they will be discussed at great length. But first, we need to know everything you can tell us about the construction of the Temple.” Elise put her teacup down and laid both hands flat against the tabletop. “We need it all. The ways into the Temple itself, of course, but also what you can tell us about the secret entrance to the dome.” She paused and leaned back slightly savoring the slight widening of the Overseer’s eyes. “But we also require information about the dragon, Sirur.”

  Where Elise had surprised Merylle by mentioning the dome, she had not surprised her by naming the beast that was hidden there. Merylle would know of the dragon’s slumbering existence, seeing has how she had been High Priest. So why no surprise?

  Did she already know they sought Sirur? Had word traveled so quickly from Khule? Was Meodryt’s freedom such common knowledge? Or was there something else going on—some other secret not shared?

  But aside from a narrowing of her eyes, the Overseer made no other motion. Instead she let silence hang between them for just long enough for Elise to worry that she had gone too far, or provoked the Overseer somehow.

  “You drive an interesting bargain, Conscript,” Merylle said at last. She knocked on the table three times, and a man appeared from behind a tapestry. Elise hadn’t been aware there was a door back there. “Fetch my maps of the Temple,” Merylle said without turning to address the man. He bowed at the waist even though she couldn’t see him, but as he turned to leave she clicked her tongue to the back of her teeth. “And another ale. I fear this one and its predecessor will not nearly be enough to dull the evening’s work.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  A flurry of orchestrated chaos ripped through Merylle’s office. Elise was surprised that there had been so many Overseers either on hand or within earshot. They were like dancers in a troup, first clearing the tea and snacks while others brought forth armfuls of scrolls and materials.

  When all was said and done, a series of maps, each around the length of Elise’s arm, were strewn about the table. Merylle casually dug through them. Elise could see various parts of the city—even the Hall of Records and a few of the more well-known taverns—all detailed beautifully with the straight lines and detailed notes of a master cartographer.

  Despite herself, Elise was impressed. She knew that was what this show was for, and knew that being impressed was falling right into Merylle’s capable hand. But it was so easy. The woman had a gentle touch that could coax a Mountain Savage t
o lay down their arms and have a cup of tea.

  Merylle drew three maps from the pile and carefully deposited the others to the floor, where they were fetched by lingering Overseers. The three maps Merylle chose were layered on the table in front of her.

  “You might as well come over here to get a better view,” Merylle said with a casual tone.

  A cold sweat broke out along Elise’s brow. Getting closer to the woman wasn’t something that she thought was conducive to business, but Ermolt and Athala were already scooting around the table. And Merylle was staring at her. Elise flashed an awkward smile in response and stood up. She walked around the table and knelt down next to Merylle, between her and Athala.

  Merylle leaned away from Elise for a moment. The two women stared openly at one another. There was no threat of violence, but sweat danced along Elise’s scalp once more. Elise fought to keep her expression as neutral as possible. The Overseer smiled after a moment, happy with whatever she saw, and she relaxed and returned to the maps. Elise fought a quick sigh, as that would only give away her discomfort more.

  The Overseer smoothed her hands over the first map. “This is the first floor of the Temple,” Merylle said in a wistful tone.

  Elise was immediately struck by how accurate Athala’s crude maps had been in the inn room earlier. The wizard had done an excellent job capturing the scale and general layout of the Temple, even if it had been much more haphazard.

  Merylle circled the main rooms of the Temple with one short-nailed finger. “These rooms and courtyards are all for show and serve no real purpose. As God of the Sky, Teis’s magic causes the ceilings in these rooms to look like a sun-lit blue sky. It even glows with natural light, so plants grow down here. It’s essentially an indoor park.”

  “What? Why?” Ermolt asked. He looked up at the others, confusion plain on his face. “That seems like a lot of effort for no tangible benefit.”

  “No, it makes total sense,” Athala said in a chipper voice. “You see, there are two things of note about a God’s power that aren’t widely understood. First—”

  “Short version for now, Athala,” Elise chimed in absentmindedly, trying not to laugh.

  “Right. I can explain more later,” Athala said, giving a weak chuckle. “You see, a God’s power is based in human belief. Spectacles like the Temples are important to inspire faith and belief, drawing more power to themselves.” She shrugged and waved a hand through the air with a twirl of her wrist. “Dragons are involved somehow, but at its core, the spectacles of the Temple are supposed generate more power through belief than they cost to maintain.”

  “Close enough,” Merylle said, her lips drawn into a thin line. She returned her attention to the map. She pointed haughtily to a large central room just beyond the useless park rooms. “The main altar here is where sermons are held, usually every bell. So this room is always busy during the day. The entrances are well-guarded at night. This is a problem for us, since the stairwells to the next floor are behind it. The area isn’t guarded otherwise, and it’s not restricted or anything. But needing to just walk in limits us.”

  “Alright,” Elise said, her brow furrowed. She looked around at her friends. “So the three of us together would be conspicuous.” She looked to Merylle again. “Double so if we had anyone with us who was known to be one of the Overseers.”

  “How observant,” Merylle said with a chuckle. She shook her head before going back to the map. “The first challenge is getting through this place and to the second floor without raising an alarm. They won’t stop you from reaching the second floor, because it’s possible that someone may have business with one of the Clerics or Priests there. But if you’re obviously suspicious, a Conscript or even a Temple Guard may approach you to ask you what you’re doing, or just to follow you to keep an eye on you.”

  “So we need a distraction,” Elise said, leaning forward, “like your skirmish. And we need to use it to cover our entrance here, not to cover our actions later. Which means once we’re in, we need to avoid being seen.”

  “Or deal harshly with anyone who does see us,” Merylle said casually. Elise grimaced, but the Overseer moved on. “Once we’re there, the entrance to the dome is to the east.” The Overseer peeled away the top map, setting it aside to show them the next floor. “It’s a hidden entrance here, against the wall. It goes right up into a side room on the dome.”

  “That’s not so bad,” Athala observed. “I thought it would be farther from the stairwell.”

  “Ah, but you are technically correct. There’s a catch.” Merylle drew her finger across the map, around a long circular hallway to a room far from the stairs. “There is a hidden lever in the High Priest’s office. It’s the only way to open the dome entrance.”

  “So we’ll have to sneak all the way there, hit the switch, and sneak all the way back,” Elise said with a frown. “And hope that nobody is near the hidden entrance to see or hear it open and raise an alarm.”

  “There’s more,” Merylle said with a smirk. It was obvious she was enjoying this on some level, and Elise tried to keep her glaring to a minimum. Merylle only grinned and tapped on the map. “The lever is on a time release. It’s more than long enough to get there and get in, but unless someone stays back to hold it down, or push it again, it will shut behind us and trap us in the dome.”

  “That’s ingenious,” Athala said breathlessly, looking between Merylle and the map with a small sense of awe.

  “Yes. For obvious reasons, only the High Priest is allowed up there, and if she ever had a reason to go there, she would tell someone how long she wanted to be there, and someone would push the lever again to let her out then.”

  “A clever feature, but one that complicates our approach,” Ermolt said. He looked bored out of his mind. Stealth and planning wasn’t much his style, and so Elise was proud of him for at least paying attention.

  “Very much so,” the Overseer said with a nod. “I can show you the switch easily enough, but we will need to have someone stay behind and keep it pushed. Possibly a group, so that they could barricade themselves in the office and keep it that way. Not to mention the hidden entrance itself would then be held open to let anyone who knew where we went to run right up behind us.”

  “So even if we wanted to,” Ermolt said, “we couldn’t go in alone. If we had to leave one of us behind to ensure we could escape, we wouldn’t be able to, er, do what we came here to do once we got in.”

  “We can deal with that when we come to it,” Elise said sharply. She shook her head. Problems were mounting, and this wasn’t even the hardest part. “What will we find when we get there?”

  “A giant glass dome,” Merylle said, peeling the second map back to reveal a third. This third map was more crudely drawn than the others. There seemed to be a lot of guesswork involved, and Elise assumed it was drawn either from Merylle’s memory, or from her explaining the area to someone else as they drew. “A few rooms near the entrance. It is one big open space, otherwise.”

  “Glass?” Athala asked. “It appears solid from the outside. Is it the same magic as the first floor?”

  “I am unsure,” Merylle said, frowning. “It makes sense, but nothing in Teis’s world looks the way it is. It’s just as likely to me that the dome is made of glass and the stone from the outside is the true illusion. More magic went into the dome’s construction than the floors below.”

  “And what will we find in the dome?” Elise asked, leaning closer to Merylle.

  “The Treasures of Teis,” the Overseer said. She kept her eyes on Elise as she pointed back to the map, gesturing to the sides of the massive dome. Elise noted the side rooms that were drawn and circled in red ink. “Some of it is sentimental. Things like mementos of former High Priests, relics of famous prophets of Teis, or stolen relics of other Gods—from the times when wars between them were common. A few magic-imbued items as well.” She drew her finger to the middle of the dome. “And here, in the center, is the dragon Sirur.”
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br />   “How?” Athala asked quickly, leaning in over the map. “I mean, in what state?”

  “It is suspended in time,” Merylle said, giving the wizard a curious look. Elise didn’t like it. The Overseer wasn’t surprised by Athala’s knowledge, and was instead almost placated by it. The dragons were forbidden things, thought long dead. How did Merylle know they suspected otherwise? “Its wings are spread in flight, but it hovers in the middle of the dome, perfectly still. There are some runes floating around it, but when I was made High Priest, my first contact with Teis involved a long discussion of His expectations. He had a lot of rules regarding the dragon and those runes.” She smirked and shook her head. “Personally, I am more concerned with the artifacts. If we can get into the room, there are a few things I feel entitled to that I know will make Teis regret His behavior. If I can get those in hand, you’re free to do whatever you like beyond that.”

  “So why haven’t you done it before?” Ermolt asked. “You know how to get in, where to go, and what you need.” He leaned back and crossed his arms. “Why are those artifacts still in the dome instead of lined up on your mantle?”

  Merylle was quiet for a moment. “This might surprise someone of your skillset, but some tasks are still difficult even when you have all the information. The Overseers aren’t up to such an assault. I’ve put together plenty of plans that get us into the dome, but security is too tight for us to go unnoticed. We would leave the dome by walking into an army of Temple Guards. It isn’t even like we would get to pick when we take them on, since if they take the High Priest’s office from whoever we leave there, they can trap us in the dome and only flip the switch again when they’re ready for us.”

  “So you need us to take on an army,” Elise said with a grimace as she looked over the maps again. After a moment she reached out without looking up and smacked Ermolt on the shoulder.