by P. S. Power
"I was thinking that Taman could do it. Tiera and I are working up a baking project. The idea was to help the homemaking students that needed the extra work, but I misjudged the need there. We can do something though. Maybe do some extra baking for the school meals? The fare is a bit plain. I don't want to make everyone fat, but some nicer rolls and bread won't hurt anything, and the occasional cookie might be appreciated." It was a bit presumptive of him, subjecting that the school menu to changes like that, but it really was kind of basic. That was down to the Count too, since he was in control of the budget. The cook, Millis, and his people had the skill set, if not the time for fancy baking. They lacked the materials though.
Lairdgren, possibly because he was so very old, didn't seem to have a problem with that at all.
"I'll drop a note. Can you two do that regularly enough do you think? Don't forget the alternate program there either. They're used to higher quality foodstuffs. Then, I charge their parents more for the privilege, so it works out."
Tor actually felt a little better, knowing that he had two whole things to look into suddenly. True, it wasn't a lot of work, but it would tide him over until he found something that interested him long term. He hoped so at least. He was far too young to be bored yet.
The world was vast and interesting after all, he just had to find things to keep himself busy.
He smiled a bit, feeling almost complete for the moment. He had everything done, didn't he? Some things that he had to work on, but nothing pressing. Some space craft, just in case the fleets incoming weren't a joke, but that was mainly a lark, he was pretty sure. Who'd come all that way just to attack? For that matter, who'd bother making the trip? There was a lot of gold to spend and that was kind of a chore, but he could get other people to do that part for him. At least a bit of it. The other option was to just stop taking coin for things at all. That didn't really work though, so he decided to see about that part soonish.
Tiera had that matter with those people she wanted to kill and it was going to be hard to actually encourage that, especially when one of them was a little girl, but Tor didn't really think she had a lot of choice there. Nearly a month before he'd told her that Sandra would let things go and it wouldn't be a problem. That had ended so badly he was kind of shocked Tiera hadn't tried to kill him over it personally. Now he was pretty certain that he wasn't smart enough to know what anyone would do. It was clear to him though that if Sandra was his sister or daughter, it wouldn't go over well if someone wanted to kill her.
That did bring up the question of where Count Morris had gotten too.
He looked at Tovey, since he was nearly right across from him, leaning back a bit, though not looking tired at all.
"I noticed that Count Morris wasn't at the meeting..."
That got a nod at least.
"Right. His current heir is sitting for him. Special dispensation, given the trial coming up. As you might imagine, that's slated for the last few days of the council. It gives us a few weeks. Any word as to what Tiera has planned in that regard? There's some talk of renewed warfare there..." He didn't even so much as glance at the King, who had gone more than a little still. Count Lairdgren actually frowned, which was a big deal for him. Little things like wars didn't normally get him to react much at all.
"She plans to kill the Count, Countess and his entire family, I believe. Then throw in with the rebels. More to the point, she's already in talks with them. I think her taking over Morris is part of their plan to see if she's truly on their side." It was tempting to wait for the explosion to come, just to see how everyone reacted, but Tor smiled at the King first, which got silence instead. "I'll warn you now that she's serious about killing Morris and Sandra. If the council doesn't do it that is. The other two are my idea. Or, more accurately Cordes's. I'm personally not that wild about it, but I can see that my plans for how to fix things there haven't worked at all so far. I was the one that told her to let them surrender in the first place. I thought I was being noble and intelligent, but look where that got us."
"Ah." The King looked at the others in the room and grimaced a little. They were all loyal, but who knew what the Counts had snuck in? They weren't subject to truth verification and most of them had actually avoided it, because they had secrets. Not all of them bad, as far as things went, but it still meant they might have spies or magics in place to listen in to what they said. "Do you think she plans to kill me herself?"
For the life of him, Tor couldn't tell if the man was kidding, or just asking a bland and normal question that could apply to almost anyone.
Tor shook his head.
"Nooo... Remember, you and Connie are family now. You by marriage, but that counts too. That little bit of annoyance for me is a great boon to you at the moment. She might bloody your nose sometime, or call you names, but she'd never try to really harm you. I don't even think she's that mad at you now, having a bit of a chance to calm down and figure out why you seemed to be backing Morris before. Still, it's a good way for her to get in good with those others, don't you think?"
If Fines hadn't known they were on the eve of a rebellion, he did now. The man didn't react though, not even internally, his mind staying smooth and calm, much like what Doris always did. Or, Tor supposed, how he seemed to others, if they bothered to try and read him at all.
A sense of relief rolled off of Rich then, as if he really figured that Tiera was going to turn on him or something. That might have been her plan, but it wouldn't have ever really happened, Tor didn't think. She was too smart not to see that as a horrible idea.
Shortly after that, the little group broke up, which meant walking to a side room where Alphonse was storing the others that had come with him, giving them a chance to catch up. It was nice and a thing that they hadn't gotten to do in a while. Just talk about things that didn't really matter to anyone else. Birthdays and trips.
"Tim has a whole group going to Soam soon. We were going to cancel it, due to the plague, but now it seems that everyone can go. Are you and Ali headed down too? Karina is going with them. I can't, being the Heir and all that. Not this time."
Tor shook his head a bit.
"Ali has school and I'm staying there for a while. I've been about the worst husband ever so far. At least I gave her some flowers the other day, but... I need to be there for her, I think."
"Far from the worst. No one can doubt that you've had a good reason for all that you've done at least, which is better than some people ever manage. You do have a point though, if you actually want to be close to her. Taking a trip together for pleasure isn't a bad idea though, if you get a chance. Oh..." He held up a single finger, the large hand held at about his own head height, so well over seven feet up. "Mother was worried that you wouldn't come to her birthday party this year, since there was that mild bit of slightly shocking news."
He mugged a bit then, for affect.
"Notice how well I played that down? I told her I would. Anyway, the party is going to be vast this time. You're paying for it, but Bonita and Collette have their fingerprints all over it, so I figured you wouldn't mind. Street fairs and games, free food and drink. There's even a flying pageant being held outside the city walls. Flying rigs and some other craft. I know that isn't for a long while, but it will make her feel better if you come. She's been pretty upset. Actually she thinks you might hate her now. I told her that was silly, but she still has some problems that way."
He nearly froze, but managed to shake his head a little and smile. It really was a long way off in time and it wasn't like she would require him to have sex with her or anything.
"Of course I'll be there. Wouldn't dream of missing it."
Chapter ten
The dinner was a bit of a pain. Not a nightmare exactly, since everyone was tolerably polite to him, though it was clear that not everyone was excited or thrilled to see the Lairdgren Group was in the room, or that it had grown as fast as it had. That part wasn't missed at all, with several of the Counts clearl
y having rather good information about how many people were supposed to be in it, including names. Not all of them were friends of his either, though it was pretty clear that Holly Printer knew a lot more about them than almost anyone.
She was decently casual about dropping hints to that effect, and when he read her field he was able to pick up on the fact that she had several spies working for her. Including, after a fashion, Judith Kerry. She was her heir after all. That part was news to Tor, who'd thought the large combat giant was just a scholarship kid, but it came up in conversation before dinner was served.
Everyone managed to get through the meal without either starting a fight or using the wrong utensils, which wasn't that hard, since the servants brought them with each course. In all, it was mainly the glaring that was off-putting to him. A little over half the men and women in the space seemed to think he was...
That part was hard to pick up, since the reason for their dislike of him was so varied it smeared and muddled what each one was thinking. Some, he thought, worried that he was too powerful and that he would back the King against them personally, which might make it too hard to take over. There were others, in an almost equal number that thought he was secretly behind the takeover plan, and might be moving to take the throne for himself. That was baffling to him, since he couldn't imagine wanting it. It was way too big for him, for one thing.
A much smaller group, mainly made up of a few Counts and Countesses he didn't know were clearly upset that he hadn't backed up Tiera against the Morris family well enough yet. They were as upset with Burks over that at least. It was a bit strange to think of, but Tiera clearly had real friends here already. Which didn't make a lot of sense to Tor, since when he was in school, he didn't know anyone of note at all. Some of them were even ready to go to war, as in real combat, for her too. The only thing holding them back was the upcoming trial.
That left Connie, who wasn't angry with him, but thought that he was upset with her, even though it was clear she didn't understand how they'd ended up being related any more than he did.
In all, the only people that weren't at least a bit upset by him were those he counted as close friends in the main. They were all concerned about different things though.
Everyone at the table, a huge thing made of old wood and polished to a shine that almost made it seem like focus stone, if in a richer color and lighter weight, had some serious doubts about the others around them too at least. It was a vast and dark pool of negative energy that he didn't want to soak in any longer than he had too. Making it worse was the fact that every single person in the room was hiding what they were feeling. It was confusing and made him feel like the whole world around him was a lie.
Almost everyone was doing that. The exception was Count Lairdgren, who sat calmly, his face bland and relaxed looking. Everyone else seemed ready to boil over though. The new people and most of the Lairdgren Group were just nervous though, so he could forgive that. No one wanted to look like they didn't fit in, since that could cause the wolves to scent blood and attack. The rest seemed to have an agenda of some kind.
As things broke up the King escaped to the back room, along with the older Count, Isle, and Countess Thorgood. No one else was invited, but unlike most meetings, the assembled guests didn't stick around, waiting to be called themselves or hoping to make contacts or contracts. Not this time. Instead they all stood, nearly as one, and headed for the doors, clearly trying not to be trapped into having a meeting with their fellows, if they could help it. Counts and Countesses fleeing like that would have been funny, if the sense of panic underneath it wasn't so sharp and telling.
They were all, friend and foe alike, worried that hostilities might well break out that very evening.
Because he was there.
That made him wonder what they were thinking, but it was really very clear, so he didn't really have to search for it in their fields, the feeling rolling off of over half of them, along with some very sharp glances that he hadn't expected from them at all. Normally some of the women would have at least bothered to flirt a bit, and the men would come and see if he had any devices for sale that they might get at a bargain price. Even that wasn't really fair of him to think, since at least some of them were willing to pay very well for new magic and the others weren't exactly cheap, they just appreciated good deals. That was the country way too, bargaining for every copper, so he could see the value in it.
This time they all but ran from him.
It wasn't a pleasant thing at all.
Green moved in alongside of him, watching the others go, his face unlined and his brown eyes slightly pleased seeming. As if Tor sending these others away in fear was a good thing?
The Ancient smiled at the thought and shook his head, ever so slightly.
"It isn't that they're afraid of you personally, or at least most of them aren't. It's that you brought in a small army of builders on a few moments notice, from two thousand miles away. It took a bit of time, but they all started to realize that you and your people could reach them in their homes inside that same time frame, more or less. The buzz started after the meeting earlier, and the question was if Richard was telling them that he could remove them from the playing field instantly. It's considered very poor form to kill a sitting Count or Countess at the council, but it's been known to happen in extreme cases. At least a few of them also remember what you did to Baron Rochester. Beating a man to death with your bare hands while ill yourself makes an impression." The old man started walking, not waiting to see if Tor would too.
He did of course, since it would be rude to just stand there, wouldn't it? Ali stuck by his left hand side closely, her head about five inches higher than his own now. She looked thinner, in that way that most of the young nobles got as they sprouted. She'd probably end up at least a foot taller than she was too. Maybe taller than that, since her mother and sister Karen were both large. Right now though her face was a mask, even as her inner self was a bit worried about the reaction of the others.
Tor didn't let himself feel anxious however. That got locked down with an iron will in fact.
"Oh? Well, no doubt that's what Richard was calling for earlier. At least as a show. The thought probably isn't wrong. Not that I'd do anything here, but that the amount of force that could be brought to bear is a lot greater than most have actually thought out yet." The words were for the few that might still be in ear shot, not that anyone seemed to be listening that closely. They were also the truth, or close enough that it would make sense.
The Count next to him just nodded.
"I agree. We should talk, and then you and these others might be best served going back to the school and preparing for your off days. This business shouldn't take all the fun out of life. Not at this point at any rate. I do have some information however. Perhaps you could ride with me to your house? That's where Tiera is waiting, isn't it?" The tone was, Tor realized, the same one that the man almost always used. He didn't go overly into inflection at all or anything, and never did.
"Certainly. Ali, would you take my Fast Carriage and see to the others? Count Lairdgren and I will walk back." It wasn't like they had some arduous trek ahead of them, it was only a few miles after all.
His wife frowned though.
"Is that safe? Maybe you should come with us and talk at the house?"
Count Lairdgren nodded at her, as if it made perfect sense.
"Don't be concerned. I have my own craft with me. We'll be perfectly well protected. I imagine the conversation will take about half an hour. Does that meet your plans dear?" He asked Ali this directly, and cutely enough she tilted her head and thought about it.
"That should be fine. I'll see about keeping everyone ready to head back." It seemed like she wanted to know more about what they were going to be speaking of, but she didn't ask at all. That, Tor decided, was her super power. Not building, or being cute, even though those might actually be part of her, but her ability to keep a secret was better than alm
ost anyone he'd ever met. That probably came from her childhood and life on the streets, but she didn't even think of it after a few seconds. Instead she just walked toward the side door they'd come in through and waved for everyone else to follow her after Tor handed the Fast Carriage amulet over with a small and playful flourish.
"This way, we'll have to use the one vehicle, but there will be room. Come along." She sounded very efficient suddenly. Enough so that even the older men did what she said, as if it were just the plan. Instructor Roberts wasn't subtle about looking at her behind as she led the way out the door, and it wasn't lost on Tor that Sam was looking at the same spot himself. They kept their distance though, for the moment.
Green put a hand out, to get him to wait until after the purple rectangle was loaded and lifted off, headed for his house outside the city walls, near the river. The floating line of water that ran around the top of it was glowing a nice shade of purple, which let him see the vehicle until it passed over. Then it vanished, covered by the glare. It wasn't a bright light, not enough to read by, but it was enough to be decorative.
Then the man next to him, the one that looked almost identical to him, moved to set up his own vehicle. It was a Fast Carriage too, but green.
Also not one that Tor had built at all. Not even a copy. It was an original build. Clearly made to seem like the craft that he'd created, designed along a similar plan, but it was different. He didn't comment on that part of things until they were up in the air, heading slightly North.
"So, this is nice. Can it go into space?" It was just an offhand comment, but the Count took his hands from the control unit and left them hanging in place in the air.
"Yes. I wasn't certain that the Larval might not kill you, so I started working on this. It has air recirculation and cleaning, as well as the ability to make living quarters, recycle water and produce artificial gravity. It took me a few weeks to work out how you'd done the work originally, but after I realized that you mimicked plant growth for it, the field was simple enough to construct. It's a technique that I've used to good effect myself in the past. I even added in full spectrum lighting and furniture, for comfort on longer voyages. Radiation shielding as well, which isn't hard, since the basic material is an organized shield space anyway. No food production yet, but if we make the internal space larger we can have gardens without any real changes to the system."
