She Who Has No Name (The Legacy Trilogy) (12 page)

‘It seems remarkable that they could doubt us, Grand Master,’ said Goodfellow.  ‘I didn’t think that anyone could doubt what we saw.’

‘Inconvenient facts are easily dismissed, Master Goodfellow.’

‘I must agree—in part at least,’ the Empress said.  ‘Even General Ruardin, bless his golden heart, is blinded by his Imperial pride and is easily goaded by the others.  What do you think is happening, Grand Master Anthem?  Tell me what you believe these invaders are intending.’

‘It seems obvious the Paatin are taking advantage of our warring with the Gartens, but their final objective remains to be seen. 
Their motive
could be anything from religious zeal to cultural intolerance, or simple plunder.  Whatever the case, it seems sure they are set on taking Cintar, for reports indicate they have plotted a course directly towards us.  We know nothing about them and we can’t even begin to guess their motiv
e
but
,
from what I can see, they do pose a great threat. 

‘Even so, the Empire is in danger of falling long before even one bow is drawn before the city.  These bureaucrats need to stop their filibustering and start making plans.  They seem more intent on keeping you from making your own decisions than saving their own empire.  I find myself longing for the days of the Emperor
,
although I never thought I would hear myself say such a thing, if you forgive me for saying so, Your Highness.  He would have cut off twenty heads the moment he caught wind of such sedition and put an end to it at once.  Still, he may have cut off many good heads in the process, so I can’t say those old days were truly all too grand. 

‘There is no doubt that they are trying to usurp your power, Your Majesty
,
and it makes my blood boil.  At a time like this, when every delay costs hundreds of lives, it is unforgivable.  Do you know, I have heard them casting doubt on the lineage of your son?  I bet my old whiskers they plan to intervene before he can become of age.  I had the feeling something like this would happen, so I had several mages scry the boy to prove he is the true heir.  Do you know what they did then?  They began to undermine me and the Order as well!  Calling me a Garten upstart!  Damn the fools!’

Empress Lillith gasped at this.  ‘This is despicable!  Why haven’t I heard such things before?’

‘I have been busy at the front, Your Majesty, and that has kept my attention, but I see now that things have begun to get out of control.  We need to rein back this madness before it goes any further.’

‘I will speak with them immediately,’ she said.

‘We may need to do more than that,’ Anthem said.  ‘They will placate you with the most sincere of apologies, but they will only continue their plans behind your back until your rule is symbolic at best.  They could even resort to violence.  I would not put it past any of them to arrange the murder of a mother and her son.  I only hope they have more sense than that.  The people of Turia have
instilled
their
love
in your boy.’  He mulled over the thought solemnly.  ‘No, far better that they keep you, remove your power and manipulate you for their own gains.  Once young Leopold is of age, they will not need you at all, for they will have ensured that his education was
tailored to fit their schemes
.  He would be nothing more than a puppet.’

The Empress considered his words carefully.  ‘I don’t want to offend you, but Chancellor Donovan did tell me to expect the Order to attempt to strengthen its position in the palace.  I have long trusted you, Grand Master, but all this is quite shocking and confusing.’

Old Anthem only smiled at this.  ‘I’m sure he has told you much, but that only proves to reinforce my feeling that Donovan is a conniving wretch.  The Order has no interest in running an Empire.  That is far too much trouble for us.  We much prefer our books and quiet places.  I must admit we have had our own fair share of politicking in the past, but I will allow no more of that.  I think the Magicians’ Council has learned its lesson in that regard.’

‘Then we shall see about this,’ Lillith stated defiantly.  ‘I am not about to see the Empire falling to such upstarts.  With Ruardin spellbound by their verbal trickery, I don’t know who else I can depend upon.  Will you support me
,
Grand Master Anthem?  Since Lord Samuel made his great display of saving the city, the Order is in favour like never before.  The people will rally behind you.’

‘Of course, Your Majesty,’ old Anthem declared with a bow.  ‘This battle will be fought on many fronts.  Perhaps the greatest will be here within the walls of the palace and this is a battle that I will not lose.  The Empire and I have had our differences in the past, but I refuse to see it fall into the hands of scoundrels like Donovan and Madhaven.  I will begin by subtly letting them know their place and
,
if that does not work, we can look at taking more drastic measures.  In the meantime, we will need to shore up our defences against the Paatin.  Recall our forces from the territories—as many as we can possibly afford.’

‘So be it,’ Lillith responded.

With that, the meeting ended and the Empress and her entourage departed, with one of the maids carefully cradling the sleeping boy in her arms, so as not to wake him.  Samuel believed what the wily old Grand Master had said, for he had a glint in his eye and his hackles were up; a sure sign he meant business.  He would not be surprised if Anthem simply turned the royal advisers to ashes just to teach them a lesson. 

It was only as they were striding away from the room that the Grand Master surprised them both by chuckling to himself.

‘Did you see how that works?  Now, we have the Empress in the palm of our hand.’

‘What do you mean?’ Samuel asked of the old magician.

‘It is a simple matter to plant some suggestions and let others believe they had come to their own conclusion.  In one swift move, we have the Empress onside.  If it’s a war they want, it’s a war they’ll get and no pompous Turian can match this old Lion.  When I begin to show my claws, those fools in their counting houses
will turn to jelly.’

‘I must admit I was surprised by what you said about the Council, Grand Master,’ said Goodfellow.  ‘I can’t imagine some of them giving up their old ways.  They are awfully fond of their meetings and deliberations and so forth.  They never seem to do anything
except
talk about having more power over the Empire.’

‘How true, young Master Goodfellow.  The nature of these Turians cannot be changed, but the Empress is a useful ally.  We will need her if we are to put Donovan and the likes back in their places.  This could be a dangerous situation for the Order.  And what a woeful time for it!  Now, if we can get that old bull Ruardin onside we will have nothing to worry about.  The last thing we want at a time like this is more trouble for the Order.  And if we are going to win this war and repel the Paatin, we cannot afford such shenanigans.  Once things return to calm, we will be the only ones advising the Empress and the balance of power will rest with us.’

Samuel was about to object, but thought better
of it
and kept his mouth shut.  It seemed a strange turn of events
at
such a calamitous time.

The royal advisers had locked themselves indoors for an evening of deliberation, to which the Order—much to Anthem’s chagrin—w
as
not invited.  Samuel decided to visit Master Glim and set out
through
the palace gates as dusk was just falling across the city. 

He made his way across the bustling streets and pushed through the din of the markets, following the zigzagging routes he had learned over his many years in the city.  He half-expected that the city would have become as quiet as the palace, perhaps beset by fear of the impending invasion, but it seemed not.  It still thrummed with life and was as vibrant as ever.  The only notable absence was that of all the dark-skinned desert traders, but it seemed others had quickly taken advantage of the situation and set up their own stalls in place.

Magical lanterns were set about the School of Magic, hanging from the doorways and along the curving stone paths, creating little pools of clarity in the dim.  As Samuel neared, each one was supposed to grow brighter and then fade away again after he had passed, but the lanterns sat idly.  The spells tied to each could not detect him.  At times, his innate lack of
presence
could be as much of a curse as a boon and so he trod the paths in darkness.

He came to Master Glim’s little cottage and rapped on the door.

‘Come in, Samuel,’ the voice of Master Glim beckoned from inside.

‘Remarkable!  How did you know it was me?’ Samuel asked, stepping into the room.  His old teacher was studying at his desk, as expected, with his eyeglasses dipping from the end of his nose.

‘Rather, I can presume it’s you, young Lord Samuel, when knocks sound on my door and no one seems to be there to make them.  It’s not such a great leap of reason, is it?’

Samuel shut the door and came to sit opposite the aging teacher.  ‘It’s good to see you, Master Glim.’

‘I can return the sentiment.’  He set his notes down and pushed his emptied dinner plate to one side.  He seemed frailer than Samuel remembered and a sliver of shadow lingered in his features, where the light should have prevailed.  ‘When Anthem returned and brought news of what had happened, I certainly feared the worst.  However, I could not believe that you would be killed so easily.  Surely, it would take more than an army to defeat you, Samuel.  You are the Saviour of Cintar, after all.’   

Samuel screwed up his face in feigned distaste while Master Glim chuckled softly to himself.

‘It seems we find ourselves deeper and deeper
in
hot water, Samuel,’ the teacher mused.  ‘While we thought we were striding into a new
A
ge of
R
eason, it seems we have only stumbled into a renewed time of anarchy.  If the Empire crumbles, the people of Amandia will suffer even more than
they did
under the Emperor’s totalitarian rule and, with the way things are going, the Order just does not seem strong enough to prevent it.’

‘So it seems.  But I never thought you were fond of the Empire, Master Glim.’

‘Of course not.  You know I have never cared for the Empire, but it had just reached the stage where it
could
start to become something unifying and benevolent—’ then he threw up his hands, ‘and now all this.’

‘
H
ow go things in the School?’

‘Bah!  We may as well give up now.  I have a handful of students and barely the teachers to teach them.  This war has taken its toll on us all.  It will take us years to recover—decades.’

‘I’m sure we can get through this difficult time eventually.  One day, I’m sure the Order will become the bastion of reason that we have long sought.  It may just take longer than expected.  We have been through much worse in recent times.’

‘I wish I could share your enthusiasm, Samuel, but I have started to feel a weariness in my bones.  I am really quite tired and find myself just wishing to shut the gates of the school and keep the woes of the world outside, if only I could.  Actually, while I think of it, Master Pot came seeking my advice today on a similar theme.  It seems you two are at odds at the moment.’

‘It’s true.’

‘And you can’t see your way to giving him some respite?  This has been a difficult time for him, also.’

‘Not as difficult as ours,’ Samuel stated.  ‘While it took us a week to make our way back to Cintar on foot, he saw himself back here in a jiffy.  I’m not surprised he didn’t mention it.  We were rushing back in a panic to spread the news of the Paatin invasion and he was sitting in a local tavern with his feet up the whole time.  It is an abuse of power, if you ask me.’

‘So he can use his Great Spell
,
after all,’ Glim said with interest.  It seemed to attract the curiosity of magicians at any hint of its mention.

‘Whenever he chooses, so it seems.’