The stunned cephalid floated peacefully in Llawan's grip. The final two assassins looked at each other, then one loaded his trident into the other's crossbowlike launcher.
The shooter sighted down the center prong of the trident, targeting Llawan's head. The empress paused momentarily, listening. She could hear her bodyguards and the Imperial Guard approaching, and the water around her began to whirl and churn. She clicked at the assassins in disdain.
"Too slow, cretins," she said. The whirlpool around her solidified into a hard, transparent shell, complete with phantom eyes that blinked as the assassin's tridents bounced off their surface. Llawan's shield defenders had finally arrived. These strange creatures were pledged to put themselves between harm and their empress, and they were capable of transforming their bodies from flesh to water to a substance harder than polar ice. The assassins launched a second volley of tridents into the unyielding barrier around Llawan, and the empress turned her back on them just as a dozen lean, savage bodies exploded out of the corridor behind her. The vicious fish tore into the cephalid assassin's arm before he could pull the trigger again, and the forgotten trident fell straight to the coral floor.
Each of the empress's barracuda was three feet of tooth and muscle and killer instinct looking for a target to maul. They had been trained to tear huge, bloody scraps off of anything that she ordered them to attack or threatened her. Llawan watched impassively behind her shield defenders as her more aggressive bodyguards reduced the remaining assassins to chum and clouds of inky blood.
The survivor in her tentacle shuddered as he woke. Llawan brought him close to her face, with her harp beak a short lunge from his eyes.
"What do you want?" she said. She didn't expect an answer from a professional assassin, but if he was a zealot or a deluded patriot
She shook her captive. Behind her, she could hear the palace guard darting up the corridor. Her barracuda continued to squabble over scraps of the still-heaving shark-man.
"Answer us."
The assassin's eyes fluttered. He struggled for focus, recognized Llawan, and his face fell.
"We asked you a question." Llawan tightened her grip. "Tell us."
The assassin sneered. In a series of clicks and calls, he said, "You and Laquatus both shall fall." And then he flicked his tongue at Llawan in the undersea equivalent of a spit in the eye.
Llawan squeezed his brain again and watched his eyes roll back. As the captain of the Guard swam onto the scene, she clicked, and the transparent shell in front of her dissolved and began to reform itself into her servant's bodies. Llawan slung the unconscious assassin at the captain of the Guard like a stone.
"He probably won't say much," Llawan said, "but ask him in earnest. Just in case."
"Empress," the captain struggled to salute and control the assassin's limp body simultaneously, "are you all right?"
"We endure. But there will be a serious inquiry into this episode. Fools will be punished."
"Yes, Empress."
Llawan clicked for her barracuda, and they obediently fell in alongside her as she swam for her throne room. Her evening's rest was ruined, now that she had business that wouldn't wait until morning.
She maintained whatever power she had by staying on top of situations that involved her. Her own subjects were trying to kill her, and Ambassador Laquatus had been mentioned by name. If Laquatus was involved, Aboshan was involved. If Aboshan was involved, she could not miss an opportunity to slap him back into line like the egotistical child he was. Aboshan and Laquatus had made three attempts on her life since her retirement, all of them half-hearted affairs like this one. Some husbands send gifts to their wives. Hers sent killers. Still, she regarded the attempts more as reminders to stay alert and informed rather than actual death threats.
The empress needed more information, and she needed to know the extent of Laquatus's involvement. As one of the only merfolk on or around Otaria, Laquatus was not tied to the empire by family or tradition. Indeed, his human features reflected a decidedly human character. He was a consummate politician, a notorious opportunist, and ambitious to the point of lunacy.
Llawan needed to talk to someone with a better understanding of how he thought.
*****
The Mer empire encircled the entire continent of Otaria and stretched far out into the depths of the ocean. The coastal waters around Otaria itself were called the shallows, and Director Rillu Veza lived there on the coast in an area called Breaker Bay.
Veza acted on behalf of the empire as combination negotiator, harbormaster, and customs inspector for all commerce between the Cabal's northern stronghold and the empire's southern quarter. It was not a prominent position to hold. Most of the trade between Otaria and Mer was routed through ports and storage depots further north, along shipping lanes that were better protected. In Veza's opinion, she had been confined to such a remote weigh station for not being a staunch supporter of the emperor's faction. She also believed she was in charge of Breaker Bay depot because she was qualified to run it. Her comfortable bayside cottage with access to the sea and the main road into town were proof of the emperor's partial approval. After all, he could have put her in charge of a bare piece of rock completely off the trade routes and without any other inhabitants.
Veza slept in a sunken tub filled with sea water. This morning, she was awakened by an insistent knocking at the cottage's front door. She shook drowsiness and salt water from her eyes, submerged for one last gulp of gill-filtered air, then climbed out of her tub.
Veza's hair was soft and greenish blue. After a quick wringing to squeeze out excess water, she let her unbound locks fall down to the small of her back. She grabbed a waterproof dressing gown from a hook. Though she was covered from head to toe in glistening blue scales, she respected the customs of her land- bound clients and wore unnecessary clothing whenever she might encounter them.
She was still adjusting the robe and her dripping hair when she got to the door. She opened it and found a small human boy looking nervously up at her.
"Missus Mermaid?" the boy said.
"Yes." She did not reach out to the boy. He seemed spooked enough by her huge black eyes and scaled skin. She didn't want to see him panic when confronted by her long, webbed fingers.
"There's a guy waiting for you in the water out there." He gestured vaguely to the bay behind him. "A fish guy. He says he can't come up on the land."
"Thank you," Veza said. "Did he say what he'd give you if you helped him?"
"No. He just said I should help him." Veza could see that even this scared little boy knew a raw deal when he saw it.
"Well, I think you helped him just right. How would you like to swim on my private beach today? If you come back after lunch, I'll make sure the groundskeeper lets you in."
"Thank you," the boy said glumly. Of course, Veza thought, he lives on the shore. A swim in the ocean probably isn't all that exciting for him.
Veza took a small notebook and an ornate quill pen from the hallway table. "So let's say later today, sometime after noon? I'll tell the groundskeeper to expect two of you, so you can bring a friend. Oh, and remember, the spell only lasts for an hour, so be sure not to get too far from shore."
The boy looked confused. "Spell?"
Veza smiled. "Yes, the enhancement spell. It wouldn't be much fun to swim in the ocean if you couldn't breathe and see underwater, now would it?"
The boy's face lit up. "No, ma'am."
"After lunch, then."
"Yes, ma'am."
"And bring a friend."
"Yes, ma'am." The boy ran happily off, fairly skipping back down the road into town.
Veza put the pad and quill back on the table. There was no groundskeeper, so there was no need for a note, but there was always a need to keep up the dignity of the empire. She would receive the boy and his friend herself, show them the sights only visible beneath the bay, and introduce them to some of the residents.
Now, for her other mystery gu
est. Veza closed the front door and backtracked into the cottage. The waters of her bay lapped gently against her living room floor, and she dropped her robe and dove in. She swam under her own floorboards and out into the sea.
The cephalid male was waiting for her a hundred yards from shore. He wore an imperial seal on his skullcap and a curved sword in his belt. His limbs twitched impatiently as he tread water waiting for Veza.
"Is that the fastest you can swim, land crawler?" he sneered, glancing at her legs. "I've been waiting forever."
"My door is always open," Veza said coolly. "And I can accommodate all callers. If you'd been braver, we could have started this discussion when you arrived."
The cephalid snarled. "It's not my bravery that's suspect, it's your loyalty. Last night our empress was attacked, and she barely escaped alive."
"Long live the empress," Veza said automatically. Llawan may live in exile, but she was still a member of the royal bloodline, and there were formalities to observe. "Our lady is well?"
The cephalid twitched uncomfortably. "She endures. I bring an inquiry from her to you."
"I'm ready to hear it."
The cephalid arranged his arms around him to float more comfortably. "You are Veza, director of this depot?"
"I am."
"Her majesty the Empress Llawan wishes to inquire if you still maintain the ability to transform between a human's legs and a fish's tail."
Now it was Veza who squirmed. "Yes," she said finally. "Tell the empress that I do." Just as long as I have plenty of warning and a half-hour to recover, she added privately.
"Very well." The cephalid took a small crystal gem from his courier's pouch. He turned his back on Veza, raised the globe over his head, and crushed it in his forelimb.
A high-pitched whistle blasted out of the gem, and a blue-white arc of energy radiated outward, away from the shoreline behind them. Veza watched the arc advance, growing smaller and fainter until it disappeared entirely.
The cephalid turned back to her. "The empress will contact you shortly." He handed her a small hand mirror made of tinted blue glass. "Keep this by your side until you hear our lady's voice. She has urgent issues to discuss with you." He looked Veza over once more, lingering again on her legs. "Do not keep her waiting."
In a flurry of bubbles and powerful strokes he was gone. Before she could stop herself, Veza cursed him out loud like the air breathers she spent so much time with. Underwater, the effect was minimal and she was instantly ashamed of herself for trying.
Angrily, she kicked her webbed feet and streaked back toward her cottage.
*****
Three hours later, Veza sat dozing over a pile of paperwork. The seasonal winter storms had not taken the expected toll on shipping, but pirate activity was way up from last year. As much as the numbers fluctuated on the hundreds of reports she reviewed each week, the situation in Breaker Bay never really changed.
From somewhere on her desk, a fanfare of horns began playing Llawan's imperial theme.
"Director Rillu Veza, stand ready," a woman's voice sounded over the trumpets. "Your empress awaits."
Veza shoved the papers out of her lap and picked up the mirror. "Long live the empress. I am at her disposal." Veza felt a curious detached anxiety as she waited for a reply. She was the same age as Llawan and had attended the same government career training schools, but they had never moved in the same circles. When Aboshan became emperor, Veza was packed off to the shallows and Llawan retired. Veza had only heard rumors regarding her former classmate ever since. The trumpet music finished with a flourish, and the woman's voice spoke again. "Behold, subject of Mer, your Empress Llawan."
Llawan appeared in the mirror, and Veza bowed her head. She wondered again why the empress had reached out so far to such a desolate place, and if this latest assassination attempt was tied to Breaker Bay.
"We are the Empress Llawan of Mer." The empress was obviously talking into a mirror like Veza's because only a small portion of her large face was visible. She seemed suspicious of the device and held it at limb's length.
"Empress," Veza said, "I am Rillu Veza, director of Breaker Bay depot, and your humble servant."
"We understand you are capable of walking on legs." Llawan's voice and image dissolved into static as she absently shook her mirror. The static cleared and Llawan's eye appeared in the glass, filling it from side to side. "Well?"
Veza flushed. "Yes, my empress. That is true."
"Excellent. Director Veza, you will now scan your chamber with the mirror."
"What? Forgive me, my empress, I could not hear you clearly."
"We do not repeat ourselves."
Veza hesitated then carefully held the mirror face-out, slowly pointing it at every corner of the room. When she reached the small interior fountain on the east wall, Llawan called out, "Stop." Veza's arms began to tremble from holding the awkward position.
The fountain stream froze in midair and the surface of its pool began to glow silver-white. The light was reflected in Veza's mirror and she could hear Empress Llawan in it, pronouncing the words to a spell Veza didn't recognize. A soft, insistent whine rose behind the empress's voice.
With a ripping crack, the surface of the pool became a three-dimensional disk of energy. The crest of Empress Llawan's skullcap broke the surface of the disk, and her large, round head continued to rise through the portal until it was physically in the room with Veza.
The disoriented empress's eyes darted around the room until she spotted the bay waters lapping up on Veza's living room floor. Llawan threw herself out of the portal and into the water with a splash. She rolled over once, regaining her bearing and adjusting to the temperature and purity of the bay. Veza took one last look at the glowing portal in the corner, then joined her empress under the waves.
"Greetings, loyal Veza. We must speak quickly and plainly, so listen well. You will contact the Ambassador Laquatus on our behalf. From time to time he makes use of a mirror similar to the one we gave you. We will provide you with the means to access his mirror. Something is stirring in the land to the north, Veza, and its effects are being felt down below, even in our city. News from the shores and shallows rarely filters down that far, which we would now remedy. The most recent assassination plot was conceived, planned, and launched nearby, where we would not discover it.
"Rest easy," Llawan added, "we know that you are loyal to the empire and to us. But there are others to the north who are not so reliable. You have heard of Laquatus?"
"Yes, Empress."
"You are to learn what the ambassador is doing in Cabal City. We would also know how and to whom he is doing it. There is no point in trying to keep our interest in this from him, but you must disguise your true intent. Lead him to believe that we are inspecting the emperor's newly drawn trade routes, or that we are in hiding until the threat of assassination is removed. I recommend you introduce yourself as my agent and then present yourself as a disgruntled member of my court, persecuted and ignored as a 'crawler. That will appeal to Laquatus's pride and also give him the illusion of something in you that he can exploit."
Veza swallowed heavily. "Yes, Empress."
"But you are to use every available method to discover what Laqua-tus is up to and how Aboshan is involved. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Empress."
"No one knows I have come to you, or what I have said. If you fail or are found out, you are the only one who will suffer."
"I understand, Empress."
"Keep us informed. We expect regular communication from you from now until we are satisfied with what you discover."
"It will be done, Empress."
"You will be rewarded for your service, Veza."
"Thank you, Empress." "This audience is over." Llawan held out her forelimb, and Veza kissed the tip. Llawan left a small, waterproof scroll with her seal on it in Veza's hand. "Read that account of recent events before you contact Laquatus. Access to his mirror is also inside." Veza nodded
and tucked the tiny scroll behind her ear. Llawan waved her tentacle carelessly over her shoulder.
"You may conduct us back to our city."
"Empress." Veza swam up and pulled herself out of the bay, standing between the empress and the fountain. The empress then shot up out of the water and landed in Veza's outstretched arms.
Llawan's weight and soft body caused her to sprawl in a manner most undignified, but Veza averted her eyes and gently placed her empress in the portal head-first. Llawan disappeared into the portal like a stone down a well, and the glowing disk snapped shut behind her.
"Do not fail us, Veza," said the empress's faint voice in the mirror. Then the mirror went dark as well and became an ordinary reflective surface.
Veza went to her personal library to review the information on the scroll and anything else she had on Ambassador Laquatus. She knew him by his formidable reputation, but she needed to know a lot more if she was going to determine his motives and report them back to Llawan. She had many duties in Breaker Bay, and now she had one that was more important than all the rest combined.
An angry knock sounded at her front door. Veza swore softly, startling her own ears. She retrieved her crumpled dressing gown from the floor and opened the door. An angry human woman stood on Veza's doorstep with the little boy who had knocked earlier clenched tight in her fist.*
"Did you threaten to cast a spell on my son, you miserable sea hag?"
Veza was caught off-guard, but she was becoming sadly accustomed to this level of discourse.
"What? Of course not. He was very polite and helpful to a guest of mine, and I promised him a reward."
The woman glared at Veza suspiciously. "You threatened to make him one of you." The boy at her side looked completely miserable.
"I offered to let him swim unencumbered on my private beach."
The human sneered. "Sure you did. Well, thanks but no thanks. He won't be coming by here again, and he doesn't need your kind of reward."
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