Scepters

by L. E. Modesitt Jr.

  He’d brought in Agherat late on Duadi, and the old usurer had clucked and mumbled and muttered, then found almost ten more places where Weslyn had concealed overcharges. “Never liked him. Too friendly. Kind that smiles while he cuts your purse.” Those had been Agherat’s only words about the late colonel.

  After the usurer had left, Sanasus and Alucius had both taken deep breaths.

  Alucius might suspect, but the more they looked, the clearer it was that there was no evidence within the Northern Guard records that pointed to misdeeds—except by Shalgyr and by Weslyn. Alucius had no doubt that others were involved—or that, barring some mistake or disclosure, he’d never find proof of his suspicions.

  Feran returned to Dekhron on Tridi, striding into headquarters in midafternoon and settling into the chair across from Alucius.

  “How was Sudon?” asked Alucius.

  Feran grinned. “Captain Estepp said you were the only colonel who’d dare to make him a captain. He also said that he’d even volunteer to take a company against the Matrites, if you needed it.”

  “Dezyn?”

  “He should have been waiting with a letter of resignation.” Feran laughed harshly. “Instead, he asked when he’d be promoted to overcaptain because all the heads of training had been overcaptains before.”

  “How did you break it to him?”

  “Not well. I told him that he was lucky you hadn’t assigned him personally to a suicide attack against a crystal spear-thrower, and that he could consider himself fortunate to be able to resign, rather than being dismissed or court-martialed for incompetence.”

  “He protested, of course. That kind always does.”

  “Not for long. I’d made sure Estepp was promoted first, and called him in.” Feran’s grin widened. “I’ve never heard such a detailed listing of incompetence. Never heard one so well presented, either. I did ask Estepp to write it up and send it here.”

  “To you, I hope. As deputy commander.” Alucius handed Feran a sheet of parchment and a set of insignia. “It’s official, now. You are number two.”

  “You rushed that.”

  “No. I should have done it within the first day, but I dated back to then, so you’ll get paid for it.”

  Feran shook his head. “You do know what lancers think is important.”

  “I hope so. Put on the new ones.”

  “Here?”

  “Here.”

  Feran took off the overcaptain’s bars.

  Alucius looked at the majer’s insignia on Feran’s uniform collar. “Those look good. Unlike some of us, you look old enough to be a majer.”

  “That’s another legacy I have to bear,” Feran snorted.

  “You’ll handle it fine,” Alucius insisted. “Better than I do.”

  “Not better. Differently. We make a good team.”

  “As a team,” Alucius began, “we still have to figure out how to strengthen all the companies in the west. We haven’t heard from Lujat.”

  “He’s cautious. He’s probably gathering information on his own, to make sure that you’re really in charge.”

  Alucius hoped so. Again, he was hoping too much.

  115

  By Quinti morning, dispatches were flooding in from all the outposts and companies. Alucius walked into Feran’s study and handed several more to the majer. “I think these are the last. It’s almost as if they’d all cross-checked with each other.”

  “They probably did. Once they saw senior squad leaders getting promoted and Weslyn’s flunkies getting sacked, they decided it was real. Estepp sent a note with his report on Dezyn’s incompetence. He got a note from Sawyn—he’s senior squad leader with Twelfth Company—wanting to know if you were really colonel.”

  “You think Sawyn…?”

  Feran shook his head. “Senior squad leader is where he belongs. He can get anything done, but he’s never had an idea of his own in his life. Captains sometimes have to think.”

  “I’ll be glad when we get the last of the new officers in place.”

  “Except that’s when they’ve got to get to work.” Feran glanced at the reports. “Are you finished with all that work on the ledgers?”

  “We had to go back over things after everything that Agherat pointed out, but we did find a number of other discrepancies. Sanasus has some loose ends, but it’s done. At least, everything that we could do.”

  “And?”

  “We figure—it’s a guess—but we think Weslyn diverted close to twelve hundred golds. Who got the other eight hundred or so…who knows? The house was only fifty golds, and even with that matched pair of his and the carriage…”

  “Only fifty golds for a house? Imagine that. I’d have to save every copper for three years. And that’s at the munificent pay of a majer…”

  “Then there was the wine. Agherat told me some of the bottles cost a gold apiece. There were two hundred and five bottles.”

  “A mere hundred golds more,” suggested Feran. “That leaves seven hundred. You think it was Halanat?”

  “That’s my guess, but there’s not too much I can do. There’s not a shred of proof.”

  “That hasn’t stopped you before.”

  “Not knowing why, what they did with the golds, or the reasons just might stop me.” Alucius cleared his throat. “Anyway, I’ll have to be careful. I’ve got to meet with this Traders’ Council tomorrow. They’ve suggested some place called the White Bull.”

  “An old tavern on the river. That’s not so bad. Things have quieted down. If you don’t accuse anyone, they’ll probably stay quiet.”

  “That’s what bothers me. I get a cordial letter from Halsant, promising cooperation. Sanasus says that we’re getting solid and lower bids for flour and feed. It’s as if nothing ever happened.”

  “You think something is about to happen?”

  “Yes. They could be waiting to hear what I have to say, or they could already be planning something.” Alucius paused. “What did you think of Majer Lujat’s report?”

  “He thinks the Matrites are waiting for warmer weather to attack.”

  “So do I,” replied Alucius. “I just hope we can get those companies reinforced, and the new captains have time to get settled and ready.”

  “That’s already happening. We’ve got good lancers. You wouldn’t believe the difference in Seventh Company under Egyl even in a few days. We can send them out to Wesrigg in a week, and they’ll be a big boost.”

  “When does Estepp think we’ll have enough trainees to reestablish Nineteenth Company?”

  “Midspring. I’ll need until then to find the seasoned squad leaders, and a nucleus of decent lancers from other companies.”

  Alucius was glad that he had Feran as his deputy because he’d been able to leave the military organization side of things to the older officer while he concentrated on unscrambling the logistics and disbursement mess, although he had doubts that all the questions would ever be resolved.

  116

  The White Bull was indeed an old tavern, on the river and less than a quarter vingt west of the high road and the ancient eternastone bridge over the River Vedra, set in the middle of a block of even older structures. The wooden front had been slathered with so many coats of brown that the paint doubtless had more strength than the wood beneath. The windows were clean, but the panes were blued with age, except for the handful that had been replaced. Fewal and Roncar rode with Alucius, but remained mounted outside the tavern as he walked in.

  About twenty men sat at the tables in the public room. All looked at Alucius. No one said a word. Alucius took several moments to survey the group before he finally spoke.

  “I appreciate the chance to meet with you. I’m afraid that I don’t know any of you. At least, I can’t say that I recognize any of you, and if I should, I must apologize.”

  The sandy-haired and heavyset man who walked forward to greet Alucius looked far older than the thirty years suggested by Kustyl. He carried the aura of purpleness that bespoke s
ome ifrit contact, an aura stronger even than that which had surrounded Colonel Weslyn. His eyes scanned Alucius before he spoke. “I’m Halsant. I suppose…well, normally Tarolt would be doing much of the talking, but he couldn’t be here today.”

  “I see. Do you know why he couldn’t?”

  “No, Colonel. I don’t ask other factors their business.”

  Alucius offered a smile. “I wasn’t suggesting that. Sometimes, people explain why they can’t be places. I certainly wasn’t prying. If the honorable Tarolt didn’t say, then that’s his business, and I certainly respect that.”

  Halsant nodded. “There have been stories of all sorts about what’s happening with the Guard…”

  “That’s one reason why I suggested that we meet. Another reason is that the militia and then the Northern Guard have been so closely tied to the traders and factors in Dekhron.” Alucius turned slightly so that he faced all the traders. “I don’t know if Halsant shared what I wrote, but I was asked by the Lord-Protector to become colonel because an inspection of the Northern Guard last year had revealed some serious problems.” He took the sheets of paper he had had prepared and laid them on a large circular table to his left. “These are some papers outlining what we’ve discovered so far. When you have a moment, feel free to look at them.” Alucius paused, hoping that someone would ask a question or move and look at the documents. He really didn’t want to do all the talking to a silent audience.

  “Some folks are saying that you were ordered to take care of Colonel Weslyn, just get rid of him.”

  Alucius shook his head. “I was sent from Tempre to replace the colonel. The documents on the table show that there were no orders and no hints to do him harm. The Lord-Protector had accepted the colonel’s resignation—”

  “Weslyn didn’t resign.”

  Alucius smiled pleasantly. “That was a polite way for the Lord-Protector to allow the colonel to save face. If the Lord-Protector had wanted to be harsher, he could have dismissed the colonel or ordered a court-martial for malfeasance.”

  “We liked the colonel. He was a friendly sort,” offered a dark-haired man to the rear of the group. He seemed to bear little trace of the ifrit purple aura.

  “I’m certain that you did. He was a pleasant man. But the colonel never fought in a pitched battle, and he never commanded lancers in battle, and it has been clear to battle-tested officers in both the Northern and Southern Guard that it was time for a change. As most of you should know, I did not seek this position. I only accepted it under duress, and at the personal request of the Lord-Protector. I accepted it because the war with Madrien is far from over, and because the Iron Valleys would suffer greatly with the Guard in the condition left by Colonel Weslyn.”

  “Why did you have him shot?” That came from another factor, a ginger-bearded and balding man.

  “I didn’t. He shot me. Only after he and Imealt fired at me did my men return fire. I was unarmed at the time. There were more than ten witnesses, and a number of them were not my men, but the colonel’s.”

  “He must have had a reason.”

  “He did. He was afraid that if I survived, he’d be punished after I discovered his crimes.”

  “You broke into his house. Why?”

  “To recover the golds he’d stolen from the Guard accounts.”

  “You took his savings, according to his boy Lynat.”

  “We found a chest with over three hundred fifty golds in it. Colonel Weslyn did not come from a wealthy family. Nor did he marry wealth. He’d been a buyer for Ostar after he’d first left the militia. In fact, according to those who knew him, he had almost no coin when he returned to the militia as Colonel Clyon’s deputy. In the less than six years he was with the militia, then the Northern Guard, his total pay was less than one hundred fifty golds. Would any of you care to explain how an officer who was coinless managed to purchase a large house, with a stable, costing over fifty golds, a matched team and a carriage, and still come up with more golds than twice his pay?” Alucius swept the room with his eyes.

  Not a single trader even met his gaze.

  “What he was doing, so far as the ledgers show, was to get a good price from you and from other traders and crafters, then charge the Guard almost twice that. He pocketed the difference. He disbanded two companies and never told the Lord-Protector, and pocketed the extra payroll as well. The Guard’s not exactly in the best position because of this. And neither are you and your businesses.”

  “So…you’re going to increase our tariffs?” suggested Halsant.

  “No. The Lord-Protector was most specific. I have no powers beyond those that Colonel Weslyn had. Tariffing still rests with the Lord-Protector. My authority extends just to those matters affecting the Northern Guard.”

  “Why do we have to get involved? Either as factors or as people in the Iron Valleys?” That came from the dark-haired man in the back.

  “You might recall,” Alucius said quietly, “that the Matrial invaded the Iron Valleys several years ago, and it was a hard fight to push the Matrites back. Now, the Regent of the Matrial has refused any terms with Lanachrona and demanded all of the south back and all of the north, and ten thousand golds. I’d imagine, since the Iron Valleys have an eighth of the land area of the rest of Lanachrona and less than a tenth part of the population, our share might only be one to two thousand golds. Whether we like what was done in the past or not, we are involved, and the only question is how we deal with it from here on.”

  Several traders exchanged glances.

  “…never should have gotten into this…” came a whisper from the back table.

  Alucius refrained from pointing out that their unwillingness to support the militia years earlier had created the problem. “We’ve changed the ledger system back to something resembling the older system, and we will be asking for various bids in the weeks ahead. We’ve also been strengthening our forces in the west because it’s likely that the Matrial will attack in the spring. As I mentioned a moment ago, Colonel Weslyn was indeed lining his own pockets. I’ve asked several respected traders and crafters to look at the Guard ledgers as well to attest to what we have discovered. Some of your goods were involved. Because of the way in which the colonel arranged for purchase of the goods at your standard prices, you would only get your normal price and would not know of this.”

  Alucius was lying here, because there was a strong suggestion, both in the ledgers and from the fear emanating from a number of the traders, that more than the colonel had been involved, but he could not prove it and doubted that he ever could, not in a way to be laid before a justicer or the Lord-Protector.

  “Unless other problems arise, of course, I see no reason to dig into the past. We certainly can’t recover coins already spent. We can only make sure that both you and the Guard get value for coins in the future.” Alucius offered a smile.

  “You’ve been most forthcoming, Colonel,” Halsant finally said.

  Alucius could sense the worry from the man, worry and an aura of fear that intensified the purple miasma that drifted around him.

  “After all I’ve said,” Alucius went on, “I’m certain that you’ll all wish to look at the documents here, and I’ll wait in case you have any questions.”

  As Alucius had suspected, there were few questions indeed, but more than half the traders did stop to examine the papers and documents. None asked him anything new.

  After less than a glass, he was on his way back to Northern Guard headquarters, still musing over the meeting, and why Halanat and Tarolt had not been there. Was it because they were closely connected with the ifrits and didn’t want Alucius to know? Or because they thought he was just beneath notice? Or because they intended to act against him and didn’t want to alert him, knowing that a herder could sense that?

  He didn’t know and couldn’t come up with any more plausible reasons on the ride back to Northern Guard headquarters. But he needed to find out. That thought remained with him as he dismounted and tur
ned the chestnut over to Fewal.

  “I don’t think I’ll be riding out this afternoon.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Alucius had been back in his study for only half a glass when Feran appeared in the doorway and stepped inside.

  “Lujat sent another dispatch,” offered the older officer as he sat down on the edge of the chair across from the young colonel.

  “About what? That he’s short of supplies, payroll, mounts, equipment, and experienced officers?” replied Alucius dryly.

  “It wasn’t that bad. He has enough payroll and mounts. He also expressed his appreciation of the recent reorganization—that’s the way he wrote it—of the officer corps. He said that would be of great help, especially if the Matrites did not attack in the next few weeks.”

  “I’m glad someone thinks we did something right.”

  “He also wrote that they found several Matrite deserters—dead, without a mark on them.”

  “The torques. They’ve got them back working, maybe all of them.” Alucius still didn’t know how, but it wasn’t something he could explain to Feran.

  “Can’t say that I like that.” Feran paused. “How was your meeting with the traders?”

  “I’d guess we’ve reached an unspoken truce, of sorts, except with Halanat and Tarolt. Tarolt wasn’t there, and Halsant was doing the talking for him and for his father.”

  “You think that the two older traders not being there means something? That they don’t want to agree or meet with you? Or that they’re guilty and know that because you’re a herder, you’d know if you met them?”

  “That’s my guess. I was willing to let it go, if they’d have come, but without seeing them…”