by Andy Havens
Looking around, he saw a woman standing with her back to the room, staring out of a large, picture window. She wore a glorious, flowing red robe trimmed with white and gold. Some minor Way kept it moving as if in a breeze, though the air in the room itself was still. Her black hair, which might have hung past her waist when falling free, was done up in a series of intricate loops and chains woven through with pearls, diamonds, gold and silver wire.
As Charlous approached, she sensed his movement and turned toward him. She was a stunning beauty. Skin the color of honey, eyes as dark as night. Under the robe she wore only a thin, sheer, white silk wrap. Though unadorned and plain, it was clearly of the greatest workmanship, showing no seam or stitch. It seemed to enhance her delicate figure, leading the eye down along her otherwise naked limbs and back up to her thin, delicate neck and perfect face.
Charlous had heard of the Queen’s beauty before, but never experienced it directly. Her presence was, itself, a kind of intoxicant. A personal Way that demanded the answer to a very specific, direct question from those rouged lips:
Why should I care?
For as lovely as she was, it was clear from her posture and expression that she demanded you not be boring. Matters of state? Pah. Delegations of clerks? Yawn. Please. If you did not come to offer her a break in the boredom and tedium of her days… just leave.
I wonder what it has been like for her, Charlous thought. Four-thousand years since Monday judged and killed Maemnon. Four millennia of this and only this.
She didn’t introduce herself. No need to. She didn’t ask for his name. She didn’t care.
Nevertheless…
“Queen of Flux,” he said, taking a knee on the stone pavers, “I am called Charlous, born of Earth though lately of House Increase. I serve the Warden directly in his person and have come on a matter that requires your direct attention.”
She looked at him and he felt small. Unworthy of even her disdain. He wanted to do anything to impress her. Either something heroic to gain a nod or smile, or something deeply offensive and shocking to wipe the smug, neutral frown from her face.
“Rise, Charlous,” she said. Her voice was silk on silk. As beautiful as her face. But still, without emotion. Completely flat and bleak.
As he stood, she turned and said, over her shoulder, “I cannot imagine what Increase might want of us that he cannot grasp himself.”
I remember that I practiced something, he thought. I had this speech all ready. But something about this place… and the sound of her voice… even her scent in the still, moist air… something makes me feel…
Out of place.
“I am sorry, your majesty,” he managed to stutter. “I do have a request. But I am feeling… It’s just that I…”
“You are content in your lot,” she replied, still facing the other way. He had to listen hard to hear her over the dribbling of the water and murmur of courtiers. “Our court will never be comfortable for you.”
She turned back around. “Speak quickly. Do not concern yourself with protocol or flowery speech. I do not.”
He nodded and tried to collect his thoughts. I do not want to be here today, he realized. I have work to do. I have things to accomplish. I am wasting my time. This is silly. What can Flux offer? Monday can make do with four of the Seven. This is a farce.
Hahang Su looked at him struggling and tilted her head to the side in a way that made her seem even more lovely and, maybe, a little vulnerable. A Queen who needs my help? No. A Queen who wants to test my resolve? To seduce me? To set me a task?
A dozen ideas and fantasies wove their way through his brain in the span of two breaths. Finally, she seemed to take pity on him as he stammered and wrung his hands together. She stepped forward to stand in front of him, a full head shorter than he yet still so much more compelling. As much as his own master, the Warden, she was—a presence.
She lifted one bare, perfect hand and pinched his chin between two elegant nails, turning him to stare directly into her black, shining eyes.
“Relax. Tell me why you’re here. Do it in as few words as possible. Because you are boring me.”
He felt a great calm sweep through him. He didn’t understand why. But he was grateful.
“The Librarian and the Warden are convening a council of the Law. They seek a representative of Flux. Either your Majesty in her person or an assign.”
Charlous took a deep breath and let it out in a relieved sigh.
Hahang Su released his chin from her fingers and shut her eyes for a moment.
“The Law,” she said. “Monday and his Law. How very predictable.”
She turned away from him and returned to staring out the window.
Charlous waited, unsure of whether to repeat himself or try different words. He was still uneasy, though much less so. Still shy and embarrassed in her presence, though he didn’t understand why.
Finally, just as he was about to mumble a repeat of his little speech, she turned back and said in a soft yet commanding voice, “Leave my Hall. I have relayed your request to my subjects. If any wish to represent my House, they will follow.”
“Your highness, the council only requires one from…”
“They will work it out among themselves. I will be surprised if you get one. More than that? No. I think not. It’s just too tiresome.”
She turned away again, releasing him with a small motion of her lovely hand.
He did not wait for a final word of dismissal, but made a short bow and backed out of the royal presence. Turning, he saw that all eyes in the courtyard were on him. Courtiers had stopped talking, drinking or playing games. They regarded him with the same boredom and hostile disinterest as had their Queen.
He hurried from the courtyard, the liquid plops of the fountain receding behind him.
None followed from the Fountain Court. He passed back through the hallways and rooms he’d seen on his way to meet the Queen. All the Reckoners stopped and stared as he went by, but none rose to go with him.
Why does this bother me so much more than facing an Earth Lord like Damon Mohz in deadly combat? he wondered.
He found his way back to the front hall, but none had joined him. He looked at the front door and thought about going back without a representative from Flux. He knew that both Monday and the Warden would be displeased.
So he headed up the grand staircase to the main ballroom. The few engaged in jaded leisure there gave him the same blank stare as the others. Beneath chandeliers of priceless crystal and on carpets of wondrous style and craftsmanship, they looked at him as if he was a bug. Not a very interesting one at that.
He wended his way through hall after hall, down corridors and through room after room, but always the same. Many of the chambers he saw were empty. Waiting in perfectly kept elegance as if expecting, at some date in the remote future, to be filled with life and energy.
In some rooms, people. Women in ball gowns. Men in uniforms. Women in more sleek, modern-seeming garments possibly suited for sports or martial activities. Men in spotless hunting clothes. Women in elegant yet casual outfits appropriate to study or reflection. All of their outfits and accessories of the highest quality. All of them arrayed and trimmed with the canes, watches, jewels, bags and shoes of luxury and success.
All of them stiff and weary, boredom rolling off them like waves of heat from the hood of a car whose engine has given out. All of them staring at him. Judging him. Finding him wanting.
After an hour or so, Charlous realized he’d begun to repeat himself. On his second pass, the Reckoners of Flux didn’t even bother to stare at him. They’d seen him once. They’d made their choice. He no longer even warranted the label “curiosity.”
Emerging from a side corridor back into the entrance hall, he thought, Well, that’s it. I guess ceding your rights in a decision is as much of a decision as actually…
“Did you find her?” Annie asked.
Once again, he’d overlooked her. She was back in her spot b
y the door, almost perfectly camouflaged by the drapes her costume mimicked.
“Uh, yes,” Charlous answered.
“And? Did you find what you sought?” She’s odd, he thought, but at least she’s slightly less than completely bored with my situation.
So he answered, “She didn’t assign anyone to come with me. And it appears that there are no volunteers.”
Annie nodded, twisting a lock of her annoyingly blue hair around two fingers. She was staring at him. But as if she was waiting for him to say something. Not just waiting for me to go away.
“Unless… Do you want to come with me?” he asked on the spur of the moment. He wasn’t sure that asking was proper. But the Queen hadn’t said he couldn’t.
Annie looked at him for a long moment and then came to a decision.
“Sure. I’ll come along. Just let me change.”
Without another word, she left through the same hallway he’d recently come down. He waited, standing, for a few minutes and then took her seat by the window just as she returned.
This time she was wearing a simple but elegant suit of black and purple that went very well with her features. Her long hair was tucked up into a fashionable hat and the few strands that escaped provided a somewhat interesting and, to be fair, lovely accent to the outfit. She had a bag over one shoulder; more of a men’s messenger bag or laptop case than a purse, and wore a pair of round-framed dark sunglasses. The complete affect was one of a stylish yet idiosyncratic rock-star or maybe a fashion designer.
“Lead on, Charlous,” she said. “Wherever we’re going, I’m sure it’s less wearisome than here.”
He opened the door and watched her stride through.
Long, steady, strong gait, he thought. She does seem like a swimmer or fighter. Something athletic. Certainly more active than you’d expect in this place.
He signed out of the guestbook on the porch. She did not, stepping briskly down the stairs and out into the yard.
“Are you coming? You’re the one who knows where to.”
He nodded and followed her to the lawn of the estate, bowing slightly to her as he passed, heading out to the nearest Narrow Road. He could feel her following behind, and as they put distance between themselves and Pendulum Hall, he felt his nervousness and tension flow away.
Glad that’s over, he thought, summoning one of the Warden’s vehicles. And glad somebody from Flux decided to come along. I have no idea if she’ll be any help, but it can’t hurt to have as many Houses as possible represented.
As they waited for the car—they could do it on foot, of course, but the limo would be more comfortable and get them there a bit more quickly—Annie messed about in her bag until she found a long, silver tube which she put in the corner of her mouth.
Making some kind of adjustment to a knob on the device, she began to puff on it and, after a moment, a thin mist came out of her mouth as she exhaled. Charlous stared, clearly puzzled.
“You’ve never seen someone vape before?” she asked.
He had not. “What is it? A drug?”
“It’s an electronic cigarette, basically. A heating element turns a liquid to vapor that you inhale.”
“Why?”
“It delivers nicotine, or other drugs, without the smoke. And it tastes good. And it’s an oral fixation that doesn’t have any calories. And it’s a prop. Gives me something to do with my hands.”
He nodded. There were many stranger customs and quirks among the Domains.
“Also, it annoys my family.”
That made him chuckle.
“Oh, that one I totally understand.”
The limo blurred into existence off the Narrow Road and the driver got out to open the back up for them.
“Fancy,” Annie said, stepping inside.
“Working for the Warden has a few perks, yes.”
The door slammed behind them, the driver jogged around to his side and they got underway.
Whatever she’s smoking… or vaporizing… whatever… it does smell pleasant.
“That’s a nice scent,” he said, making conversation.
She’d removed her hat and her turquoise hair, now mostly contained by a black ribbon, spilled attractively over one shoulder.
“It’s called ‘Thistle and Nut,’” she said. “I’m not sure what all is in it. But, yes… it has a nice woody tone without being too heavy or masculine.”
Just like Mundanes with their wines, he thought. Can’t not talk about them.
They rode in silence for a few minutes until Charlous felt a vibration from his phone and checked a message.
“Ah,” he said. “They’ve decided on a meeting place. Sanctuary Cathedral in the Tamerlane Hills.”
“OK. Whatever you guys say, I’m along for the ride.”
“Have you ever been to the Cathedral?” Charlous asked. “I’ve been to several of the Sanctuaries, but never that one. Some say it’s the oldest of them.”
“Yes,” she agreed. “I read once that it predates the War, even. The original structures, anyways.”
A few more minutes of silence. Annie seemed content to vape and watch the world whiz by as the driver took the Narrow Roads at ever increasing speeds.
Another buzz: a second message. It seemed as if the Reckoner of Release, Niles Fayton, was willing to represent his House at the meeting.
A third message right on the heels of that said that they wouldn’t actually convene the council for another two days because Fayton needed a day or so to tidy up some business of his own. Some of them were going early. Monday and Ezer were going to do some more research. Charlous could go to the Library or head directly to the Sanctuary.
He told Annie about the messages and asked, “Do you want to go straight to the Sanctuary? Or somewhere else?”
“It’s fine by me. Let’s go straight there.”
“Works for me. I’d like to recon the place.”
“Recon…”
“Get the lay of the land.”
“Got it,” Annie said, releasing another fragrant cloud of vapor. “Maybe get in some sightseeing, too. Plus, I don’t like the Library.”
“To tell you the truth, neither do I.”
“Even if it’s dull as heck, it’ll beat the action back at the Hall by a long yard.”
Charlous wondered about how polite it would be to agree with her, so he said only, “The architecture there is impressive.”
“Pfft. Architecture. It’s never felt like home to me,” she said, switching out one part of her cylindrical device for something with a much greener, minty scent.
“That smells good, too,” he offered.
She held it out for him to try a puff and he shook his head, declining.
“I’ll smoke a single cigar after a successful mission,” he said. “But mostly I stay away from anything that might alter my consciousness or blood chemistry. It always ends up messing with my balance or aim.”
Shrugging, Annie puffed on the tube and then said, “Well, assuming this ‘mission’ is successful, get a cigar for me, too. I haven’t had one in a long time.”
He nodded, already in planning mode. He and the Warden had discussed several scenarios involving the end-game of this little plot of Blood and Earth. Some had involved other Houses, some had Increase going it alone.
Never bad to have allies, he thought. Though looking at his companion, he was really unsure what Flux would bring to the table.
If nothing else, her vice is a pleasant smelling one, he thought.
* * * * *
“What’s it called again?”
“I’ve told you three times.”
“Lake Wampanagonkee?”
“No.”
“Wampachucka?”
“No. And also not a real lake.”
“Wazzapamani?”
“No.”
“That’s kind of real. It was the lake in ‘The Blues Brothers.’ With the Palace Hotel Ballroom.”
“I’ve never seen ‘Blues Brothers.’�
�
Kendra punched Wallace in the shoulder.
“What?”
“Seriously? Dude! There are like ten or so perfect movies that everyone has to see. I’m not talking ‘classics’ like you study in film class or whatever. Just movies that are so much part of the hive mind that you can’t not see them.”
“The zeitgeist.”
“Yeah. That. Anyway, you have to see ‘The Blues Brothers’ or we can’t be friends.”
“Then we’ll do that. Or I will. At my earliest opportunity.”
She blew him a raspberry and, for the fifth time in twenty minutes asked, “Are we there yet?”
“We are almost there.” Which is what he’d said every other time.
I wonder, she thought, does Sight have an instinctual, Household problem with humor?
This time, though, they actually were almost there. They’d gotten off the Narrow Roads about five miles out from Lake Winnipesaukee and were driving without Ways. Kendra had expressed an interest in actually viewing the “lake with the funny name” as they drove past.
They didn’t get a very good view from the road they were on, though, as it was on the other side of a slight ridge. Which was fine with Kendra. She’d just wanted to have a few more minutes of driving time before they got to the next “real” part of this…
This what? Adventure? she thought. Quest? Crisis? Mystery? What am I doing with these people? Why am I even involved?
“Why am I even involved with this thing we’re doing. This conference about the Law. Wallace?”
Wallace hadn’t had a lot of experience driving on Mundane roads, so he was paying attention to the twists and turns on this narrow country lane and answered without thinking, “You’re a clue.”
“I’m a what?”
Realizing he’d probably said it badly, he tried to recover while still not driving off the road into the woods.
“I don’t mean… I think… Look. I think that what happened to your mom and you qualifies as ‘very interesting’ even if the story was what we all originally thought. Along comes the Warden of Increase who says that he initially thought your story had something to do with a plot between Release and Increase to take over Flux. OK. That’s pretty unique. But then, no… that plot was a ruse to distract him, somehow, from some kind of pact between Blood and Earth.”
