The First World Sphere

Chapter 92 The Stuffed Goose

Gareth and I went back to our room.  Gareth seemed uncomfortable, “Storme, are we really going to do this?  Isn’t it time that we go to the lowlands?”

I collapsed on my bed.  I was at a crossroads.   Why was I willing to become involved?  Put my safety, my family’s, and my friend’s safety at risk.  “It doesn’t feel right, Gareth.  I am a nobody.  Why go after me with so many resources?” 

Gareth looked at me for a long moment.  “You need to talk to Loriel,” he said, producing the communication stone.  I wasn’t even aware he still had that stone.  After the Sowing Festival, I had thought he had cut contact with Loriel.  Gareth had told me as much.  She was responsible for initiating this mess.

“I can’t believe you still have that.  Are you still talking to her?” I asked bitterly.

Gareth flushed, “I see her every seventh day, Storme.  She stays at the Shiny Platinum with Isla.  I just think she forgot she gave me this.”

I took the stone, rotated it in my hand, and then activated it.  A husky male voice came through the stone, “What do you need?”  We looked at each confused.  “This is Loriel’s bodyguard.  What do you need?”  He repeated.

I figured out it was Gammon the Wolfguard.  I asked with some irritation, “This is Storme.  Can I talk with Loriel?”  

After a lengthy pause, Loriel’s voice came through the stone, “Storme!  What can I help you with?”  Her voice was much too cheery for my liking.

I paused and asked, “Is this conversation private?”  I didn’t know if she was in a public venue.

Without hesitation, Loriel said, “You can talk openly.”

I inhaled and began, “Some members of the Riffolk family are in Hen’s Hollow.”  I decided to tell her everything, “They were planning to abduct my sister to leverage me,” my anger bled through in my tone.

After a long pause, an extremely serious Loriel said, “Bring her to my estate on the capital island.  I can protect her there for you, Storme.”

I boiled over and angrily replied, “I can protect my sister on my own.  I want to know what is going on!  I know you are aware of everything.  Tell me the extent of it.”

Loriel took a moment to respond, “The Bricios are reeling financially.  My allies have been taking the Bricios assets like falling dominos, declining to extend loans.  They are being forced into a corner.  After the Sadian attack, I think they might be seeking the Shiny Platinum.  It is a valuable asset; they could sell it to cover some losses.  It is valued at over 50,000 gold from your upgrades.”

“That doesn’t make any sense!  The deed is in Wynna’s and Callem’s names!  They own the building!  I couldn’t give it to them even if I wanted!”  I spat out.  I had protected myself from a scenario like this.  I may run the establishment, but the delve team was the only thing that was completely in my name.

Loriel didn’t speak for long, “I may have misled some people on this point.  I was trying….”  Before she could finish, I shattered the stone into the wall, my anger getting the better of me.  It was a lesser tier 4 communication worth quite the sum of gold.  It made me feel better, and I didn’t want to hear her out.  Whatever she was scheming, I wanted no part of it.  

Gareth looked a little shocked at what I had done.  He finally asked, “So what do you want to do?”  

I looked at my friend, “I want to erase whoever they send here on the skyship and then Trojan Horse to get to whoever thought they could go after my sister.”

Gareth looked confused but said, “I am on board, but what is a Trojan Horse, and how are horses going to help anyway?  They have skyships.”

I spent the next ten minutes in a long-winded explanation of what a Trojan Horse was.  My explanation was a bit muddied as I had trouble recalling details.  More past memories were hazy memories.

<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>> 

The last three days of testing had a cloud over them.  Callem remained in Aegis City to watch my family.  Elijah announced that he was not staying for the third term.  He was returning to the lowlands.  Selina was leaving to teach at the Mage Academy in Skyhold.  Bleiz was on the all-day watch of the skyship platform for the Riffolk ship being sent to abduct my sister and secure me.

It turns out he did need to be.  Word started trickling into our small town of Hen’s Hollow.  The Miaden 17^th in line for succession had met with an unfortunate accident.  He was delving into a dungeon, got separated from his party, and was killed.  He was already known for being reckless, so it was plausible.  Then, the 11^th in line for Miaden’s seat skyship crashed a day later, starting the exodus waves of Trivumerverate families from the capital.  Many sought refuge in the Citadel, behind the Blackguard, but those who were not made their way to other islands.

Regular skyships were now seen arriving in Solaris City nearby.  The rumors were thick in the capital with whispers of potential open conflict, and anyone smart enough was planning on getting out of the way.  Since Titan’s Shield, our island, was the second most populous island, it was seen as a decent haven.  I almost wished I hadn’t smashed the communication stone with Loriel.  She would have been able to tell us exactly what was happening. 

We communicated with Callem, and Loriel was not at the Shiny Platinum.  No doubt, she was one of the targets of the Bricios, being raised to the 20^th seat now that some of her family members were killed.  She might even be their top target if she had been truthful to me on the communication stone and was the architect of the Bricio’s financial downfall.

I was sitting next to an invisible Beiz, watching the skyships in the distance, landing in Soloris City.  Bleiz seemed excited and somewhat amused by everything happening around him.  “You know,” Bleiz started with his wolfish tone, “I am glad I am working for you instead of Otieno.”

“Yeah, you may wish to change your mind.  My resources are extremely limited, and I am vastly outnumbered,” I said, trying to infuse some humor into my voice but failing.

Bleiz considered for a moment, cracked his neck, and asked, “What is your plan, Storme?  Get to Halifax and his sons so I can help you kill him.”  Bleiz appeared and leaned against the wall in the shadows, “I could probably get past his guards, but he must have half a dozen defense items on him.  It probably wouldn’t go well.”

That was exactly what I had planned, but it sounded foolish coming when he said it.  “What do you suggest?”  I asked Bleiz.

“Do nothing,” he started, and I had a shocked look.  Bleiz laughed at my amazement, “Prepare, Storme.  Be ready to react.  You are the small cog here.  An insignificant cog, defelct and react.”

I threw up my hands, “What?  Do they teach political intrigue at the Wolfguard training academy?”    

Bleiz shrugged, “In a manner of speaking.  We need to understand the dynamics of the political landscape.”

“What can you tell me about the political landscape?”  I asked, now somewhat intrigued.

A clear smile, even in the shadows, came to his face.  Bleiz started to lecture me on Wolfguard, “The Blackguard are required to remain in the Citadel.  They can not leave unless there is a unanimous vote by the Triumvirate.  They will protect everyone, no matter the family who is in the Citadel.”

“What about the personal retinue Wolfguard, like you?”  I asked.

Bleiz fingered the pommel of his short sword and had a far-off look, “We are tools.  We obey our bonded, no matter the request.  We are not supposed to engage unless in self-defense, but that is just what they tell the public.”  Bleiz looked away, “When Otieno came to me and told me I would be serving him, he said I would help bring order to Skyholme.”  A long pause before he faced me again, “I didn’t understand what that meant until I spent the last few weeks with you.”

“What did you learn from your time with me?”  I asked but was on guard as I sensed Bleiz getting agitated.

A low growl emanated from Bleiz, “That Skyholme is a lie.  The Wolfguard doesn’t protect Skyholme from its enemies.  We protect Skyholme from itself.  We are the only thing holding it together.  We are mutually assured destruction.  If one family used their Wolfguard to attack another, then all Wolfguard would be involved, and we are much better warriors than you humans.  Not many would survive.”

“What do you plan to do about it?”  I asked the tense Wolfguard.

He looked at me like I was an idiot, “Pomare didn’t make a mistake in bonding me to you.  It is beyond rare for a Wolfguard not to be bonded to the Triumvirate seat or one in line for the seat.  You are a free agent, which makes me a free agent.”

I shrugged, “So you think Pomare wants me to become involved and do what?  Kill Abaddon?  Baladon?  Otieno?”

Bleiz chuckled, “Probably.  I advise you to stay out of the line of fire.  Let the families destroy themselves and protect your own.”  

Bleiz was right.  I started thinking of some way to evict Loriel from her apartment at the Shiny Platinum.  I needed to cut ties with her completely.  Otherwise, I would continue to be drawn into her schemes.  I hadn’t heard from Tessa at all since the Sowing Festival.  Which, I admit, hurt.  If I hadn’t been dealing with the trouble of casting my spells, I might have visited her in the capital.   Not having access to my lightning reflexes spell made me hesitate to appear in the capital. 

Gareth was watching the town gates a few hundred yards away and came jogging over to our position.  All three of us were immediately on alert.   On a normal day, the number of visitors to Hen’s Hollow could be counted on a single hand.  

Gareth had ill tidings, “A lower magistrate just arrived in Hen’s Hollow with his family.  I heard him talking to the guard.  Pomare Torrent has just been assassinated within the walls of the Citadel.”  The civil war had started.  

I was shocked.  I had liked the old man.  He might have taken some time to get me what he had promised me, but eventually, he had.  I thought maybe the dungeon essence had been laced with something at first due to the pain, but Wynna assured me that once a seal was broken on a dungeon essence, it needed to be consumed immediately.  You couldn’t tamper with it.

I discussed the implications with Gareth and Bleiz when a small trader descended onto the Hen’s Hollow platform and landed in the cradle.  We all looked at each other.  After drinking the invisibility potions, we went to check on the ship.  Bleiz used his necklace and followed.  A half dozen armed men were on the deck, and two men descended from the stone platform.  When they reached the bottom, they started looking around, expecting someone.  I got close enough to use my assess person ability on them.

They were both Riffolk.  These were the men who were sent to take away my sister and use her to get to me.  They might have the answers that I needed.  When the men walked out of the sight line of the armed men up on the platform, I acted.  I gave one of the men a blow to the back of the head, knocking him out.  Bleiz took down the other man.  Gareth materialized a second later, just a heartbeat behind Bleiz.  Gareth looked slightly upset that Bleiz had been faster than him, but they both picked up the two men and hauled them away.

When we had secured the men in the barracks, I wished that Callem was here.  Everyone else had left to go home for the break between terms, and Callem was at the Shiny Platinum.  I couldn’t do what Callem did.  Torture and interrogation were not something I was comfortable with.  Seeing my hesitation, Bleiz offered, “Do you want me to question them?”

I looked to Gareth, and he looked as reluctant as I was to recreate Callem’s methods.  I nodded to Bleiz, who got both men in chairs and got one of them awake.  When the man got his senses, he recoiled from Bleiz, clearly afraid.  “What is going on?” He stammered.

Bleiz looked at me, and I asked, “You are here for the girl?”  He nodded slowly, confused.  I continued, “Where were you to bring her and why?”  The man seemed to have lost his tongue, and Bleiz motivated him.  It was not long before he was talking.

“We were to land at the Bricio estate near The Black Spire and transfer her to the Harbinger ship docked there,”  he revealed while bleeding from a deep cut on his face.  

“What were they going to do with the girl?”  I asked impatiently.

He looked fearfully at Bleiz.  The general population had a healthy fear of the prowess of the Wolfguard.  He started talking, “She was our insurance for you to come peaceably.”  He eyed Bleiz, “And to make sure the Wolfguard didn’t interfere.”

Gareth interrupted, “What is happening?  Did they kill Loriel Miaden?”  There was some concern in his voice.  Did he have feelings for Loriel?  He had been working hard to get back in Fera’s good graces.

The man laughed, suddenly emboldened, “The Bricios are taking back their assets.  A new order is coming.  After the next two days, there will only be one family.”

Gareth asked, exasperated, “What about the Blackguard?  Are they not supposed to stand in the way of one family from attacking the other families?”  

The man suddenly looked too smug for me, and I wanted to strike him, but he kept speaking, “The Blackguard only keeps order in the Citadel.  The Citadel is locked down, but that makes the rest of Skyholme fair game.  My family has dozens of teams across the islands helping the Bricios secure assets and streamline the transition.  That doesn’t even account for….”  He suddenly shut his mouth, realizing he had said too much.  He tried, “Release us, and you may get out of this alive.”

Gareth looked at me, “What are we going to do?”

It took me a few minutes to come up with a plan.  I finally spoke, “We will take the skyship up on the platform and fly to Aegis City.  Then we will get everyone on board and go to the lowlands.”

Gareth’s eyes popped in disbelief.  “We are just going to leave?  My parents won’t come.”  A few days ago, fleeing to the lowlands had been his suggestion.  Now, he had changed his mind.

I waved him off, “Let’s take the skyship first.  They already crossed the line.  If the Bricios win, then we will not be safe in Skyholme.  I doubt Otieno is making a move without a high probability of succeeding.”

One of the men started to say, “You are right.  You…”  Gareth clubbed over the head, knocking him out. 

Gareth finally said, “Ok, Let’s do this then.”

Twenty minutes later, we were ascending the platform, all invisible.  It was a competition between Gareth and Bleiz to take down more men.  There were six men on deck and three below deck.  They split 3-3 on the deck, but Bleiz got all three below deck.  His extrasensory perception made it easy for him to locate the enemies.  I healed the injured ones, not wanting anyone to die—yet.  We brought up the two men and held everyone in the cargo hold. 

The flight controls were universal and very similar to Loriel’s ship.  I was the designated pilot, and our first stop was to pick up the other two men at Callem’s farm.  It gave me time to get some familiarity with flying the ship.  My landing at the farm was unpleasant, and I clipped the edge of the drying shed that Gareth and I had built for Callem, destroying it.  That was better than crushing the tobacco plants in the fields.  Somehow, Callem managed to keep his tobacco crop in rotation while being an instructor at the academy.

We added to our collection of Riffolk and dumped them in the hold with the others.  Gareth took to gagging every one of them, as when they came to, they just screamed and threatened us. 

The next leg of the journey was to Aegis City, due north.  I had traveled it enough to know the way without using the navigation, but when I was passing over Solaris City, I almost ran into another skyship that was departing.  I admit I knew very little about actually flying a skyship.  The controls were easy, but I think I was supposed to have either a spotter or a scanner array.  I hadn’t gotten far enough into my enchanting work to know how to make one, and I didn’t think this cheap small trader had one anyway.

I chose to land the ship on top of the Shiny Platinum rather than at the dockyards.  This landing was slightly better after getting a feel for the gravimetric rune controls, but I still took out a row of planters on the roof.  Fera would be upset, but hopefully, she would join us on our flight to the lowlands.

Callem was on the roof before we even departed our ship, and his weapons were drawn.  Sammie and Ullmark were standing behind him.  Callem swore, “Damn it, Storme, you gave everyone a heart attack.  The entire building shook when you landed.”  I was about to respond, but then I noticed Aelyn by the stairs, and my tongue was caught.  It had been some time since I had seen her.

Gareth jumped to the roof and said, “What do you think of our new acquisition, Callem?  We are calling her the Stuffed Goose.” Gareth’s attempt at humor fell flat.

I was soon standing next to Gareth in front of Callem, “I got us transportation to leave Skyholme.”  Callem looked at the ship and slowly nodded.

He offered, “I will send someone to explain the landing.  Things have been crazy here.  Tell me what is going on.  Sedbastian’s stone has been silent.”

We retreated to Callem’s apartment, which was filled with everyone except my father who was working at the docks.  We explained what we learned from the Riffolk tied in our hold.  Wynna explained what they knew.  Basically, everyone not involved in this struggle for power was fleeing to the other islands. 

I kept avoiding eye contact with Aelyn, but after the explanation was all completed, she voiced, “I can read their minds.  I think it is best to know the Bricio’s plan even if we are going to the lowlands.”

Everyone was surprised, but tiny Lana shrieked, “You can read minds!  Did you?  Please tell me you didn’t?”  Aelyn just wore a smug, knowing grin, which caused me to grin at Lana’s face turning bright red.

Given that Aelyn was willing to reveal her secret made me consider the offer to read the minds of our prisoners.  The men on the skyship were just pawns on the Bricios.  Callem didn’t wait for everyone’s disbelief to settle.  “Good idea.  Aelyn and Storme, let’s go ask some questions.”