InTheQueensLibraryDelluth led the way into the corridor, turning in the direction of the library, still clearly preoccupied. Claudio followed along, not saying anything for the moment while they were still in transit, though at one point he glanced off in a different direction with his brows knitted. Once at the library, and finding it unoccupied, Delluth collapsed into a comfortable armchair, leaned his head against its back and rubbed his face for a moment, then his scalp. "Damn," he added quietly, as if any commentary were necessary. "I don't suppose you could give me a better idea of what's going on?" Claudio asked diffidently. He didn't sit down yet, instead abstractedly inspected his surroundings as he talked. "Or let me know if I can be of help. All I know is that there've been more different kind of energies tossed around here this evening than I ever remember experiencing before. And I suspect it's only the start of something very, very bad." "'Very, very bad' matches my suspicions," Delluth said dryly. "I learned from the Ambassador this evening that Uther Helgram claims to have been appointed Minister for Ordered Affairs." "Duke Helgram?" Claudio echoed, appalled. He knew Uther Helgram only by reputation, but hadn't liked what he'd heard. "And I think she'd only learned of it recently, because I caught a hint that she wanted to know if I knew about it. As if I would," he shrugged. "That smacks of a rather desperate lack of information, and that concerns me very much indeed." "Then that must be who--" Claudio murmured, then broke off and moved closer to Delluth. "I got a trump call from Pavlo this evening," he said in a low voice. "Seemingly he's just arrived at the barracks in the Scar. For some reason," a thread of irony laced his words, "he's not interested in getting together for dinner, but more interested in getting me out of Amber. And somebody there was being referred to as 'His Grace.'" "Funny, I was just wondering if there was anybody I know assigned to the barracks just now," Delluth murmured. "That would be the most likely place for him to go..." He stared at the shelves of books opposite the chair for a moment. "The thing is, the event here on the Queen suggests that he's been working on this for rather longer than tonight. What happened is that the staff accidentally uncovered an agent of his, and the Duke eliminated him." Claudio arched an eyebrow. "'Accidentally'?" "Unless the fellow was instructed to cause a ruckus here. But that would be an awful waste of a good source of confusion to Amber's allies." "You'd think so. Which suggests that His Grace didn't choose his agent too wisely," suggested Claudio. "What did the fellow do, anyway?" "Assaulted one of the ladies, I'm told," Delluth said. "Definitely a display of poor judgment on his part. But there are only so many dispossessed heirs around to choose from ..." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Claudio, how urgent was your brother about your leaving?" "Hard to say," answered Claudio. "We weren't in contact long before his attention was drawn elsewhere. But he said something about 'trouble like you wouldn't believe' and said 'the whole place was going--'" He frowned. "Urgent, I suppose, but not urgent enough to make me leave without more information than that. And without knowing what might happen to Pavlo. Can you see me trying to explain to Mother?" He'd already lost the doctor's attention before he got to the question; Delluth was staring at the books again, frowning in thought. Claudio didn't seem to expect an answer, anyway, for what had been essentially a rhetorical question. After a full ten seconds, Delluth gave a sharp shake of his head and reached into a pocket of his jacket, retrieving a bag of black silk of an appropriate size for holding traditional Trump cards. "Claudio, check and see if that door locks, would you?" Claudio moved to the door to do just that, at the same time reaching into his breast pocket. Meanwhile, Delluth selected a card from his small collection and focused on it, taking a long, full minute to activate it. Once he was certain the door was secure, Claudio withdrew his own slim case of Trumps. He thought this might be a good time to contact Irulan and let her know what seemed to be happening. But first he would check and see if any of the Trumps he held were active. Delluth's obviously would be, since he was about to make a call, but Claudio didn't intend to eavesdrop on him. Anyone else... it would depend. Delluth's was active and so, suddenly, was Irulan's. Claudio's mouth twitched into a slight smile. Two minds with but a single thought. It made sense, of course, since Delluth was of House Corrino. He let his mind skim the edge of the contact, just to confirm his guess. After that, he'd wait his turn. They seemed to be in contact. And then Claudio heard the word ... Barimen. ...and couldn't resist, carefully, prolonging the contact. It might not have anything to do with him or his immediate family, but on the other hand... he knew Pavlo was in the Scar. And he heard... Delluth was speaking... "Irulan, I don't know what to do. Do you need me there? Should I object if Helgram tries to pull the city down around my ears? Stay out of it entirely? Try to keep an eye on Helgram?" A pause. Then Irulan spoke, her tones clear, cool and measured. "Watch Helgram. And be prepared to leave Amber in a hurry -- if the situation here worsens or if Amber falls." Claudio slipped back out of the contact. That was all he needed to know, really. He continued lightly monitoring the cards until he knew Irulan was free. He'd want her to know where he was, if Delluth hadn't said, and perhaps ask a few questions of his own. He could sense that Irulan was aware of a presence, and lightly probing... He decided not to respond to the probe for the moment. He would explain to Irulan presently. As he sat still, waiting, Claudio became aware that the connection between Delluth and Irulan had been ended. He began to concentrate on Irulan's Trump, taking extra care to mask the call from eavesdroppers -- such as himself, moments ago. Delluth, during his conversation, had sat up straighter and more tensely, a tension that remained as he abruptly moved to put away the card. He stood, looking toward Claudio. Claudio appeared to be in the midst of a Trump call of his own; he had his cards out and was staring at the top one. Irulan's face came into view. She looked tired, and there were signs of strains around her eyes. "Clau..." she began and then broke off. He could almost feel the force of her concentration. "Was that you?" she said suddenly. "When you spoke to Delluth just now? I'm afraid so," Claudio admitted. "Not that I overheard much that I couldn't already guess. We're both here in the library of the Ramblin' Queen. "My lady," he went on somberly, "I need to know about Duke Helgram. How much Imperial sanction does he have for what he's doing?" "You've doubtless heard that it's better to ask forgiveness than permission in Chaos?" said Irulan with a slight pout. "He is empowered to investigate and report -- and to take preventative action if the situation warrants. There is some feeling here that such a line amounts to a ringing cry of 'Go get 'em!' as far as Helgram is concerned. Unfortunately ... the forces of sanity are in shorter supply than usual at the moment." "So if he should do something that really was unforgivable, it's unlikely he would be called to account until it was far too late to matter," Claudio guessed, then went on to hazard, "But if he weren't occupied here, he might be causing even more trouble at the other end of things, is that it?" "At the moment, we hardly need him to cause trouble," said Irulan wryly. "Those who adhere to the concept of Amber extant are doing a terribly good job of tearing themselves apart ... If he delivers a fait accompli, the Emperor might even be relieved." "Much as I'd like to oblige the Emperor, I'm afraid that after a month's residence, I'm even more firmly in the 'Amber extant' camp than I was before," said Claudio. "But what do you mean? What are Amber's other champions doing to themselves?" "A feud," said Irulan. "Between House Ishtar and House Sawall. There is a danger..." She paused and then said, her tone cool and measured, "There is a danger that House Barimen will be implicated, allied to House Ishtar." "I see." Claudio knew of no formal alliance between the Houses -- not involving his branch of the family, anyway -- but he also knew perfectly well the state of the informal relations between members of House Barimen and House Ishtar, since he'd been very much a part of them. "And House Heldt? Where do they stand?" It was a reasonable question, since that was his mother's House, but he was also thinking that while it would probably be a bad idea to contact Helena under the circumstances, Amba would almost certainly know anything Helena did. "They hold with Hendrake," said Irulan. "And for the moment Hendrake sits ... and waits ... and watches..." And it might not just be the feud they were watching, of course. More than one House might see this as a chance to seize an unguarded throne ... "Characteristic," said Claudio. He could guess now why Delluth, in the snatch of conversation he'd overheard, had asked if his presence was needed in Chaos. For himself... He was neither warrior nor healer, and his own inclinations aside, could probably best serve by staying where he was. "I shall keep you informed, my lady," he told Irulan, and went on to give her a quick precis of the evening's events aboard the Queen. He suspected Delluth had already told her most of it, but a little redundancy never hurt. Irulan listened intently, and at the end, nodded. "Helgram is cunning," she said. "And you, Claudio, might be well advised to look for a ship into Shadow." "What, and miss all the excitement?" he responded. "Besides, if Amber goes, Shadow may not be safe either. I'll keep you informed, my lady ... and try not to do anything unforgivable." "Very well," said Irulan. "And ... Claudio ... if you see..." She broke off with a little laugh, half-embarrassed. "Give my respects to the King." She ended the connection abruptly. Meanwhile, Delluth crossed to the library's drinks table, surveyed it, and chose the strongest item on offer. Then, glass in hand, he began to pace, staying a courteous distance away from Claudio. After only a few turns across the room, however, he returned impatiently to his seat and set the mostly-full glass on the small table beside it. Adopting a relaxed posture, hands lying open on his thighs, he summoned the Sign of the Logrus once again. After a moment's thought, mindful of the renewed headache he was courting, he continued. Nothing visible happened, unless there was a faint quivering of the air. Invoking the Sight, he observed the shimmer of Trump energy around Claudio and of the Logrus around himself. Satisfied that he was using the barest minimum of energy -- and that this probe might, therefore, go unnoticed -- he extended his perception further, through the ordinary matter of the ceiling, along the walls of the rooms above (in case some sensitive person wandered through the space the energy was not precisely occupying), and at last onto the terrace deck and the open air above the ship. It seemed a calm and peaceful night. They were, as usual, hoved off the shore. Amber's shore was where it should be, faint lights on the horizon. The full moon glowed overhead and that most beautiful of sights, the city of Tir-na Nog'th, was glimmering into view in the night sky, clear and mysterious. Which was, in itself, unexpected when the full moon was three days away. Delluth frowned slightly, and considered, his physical eyes still closed against visual distractions, his awareness mostly filled with what he perceived outside the ship. Then he sent the faint, faint thread of power spooling out across the deck of the ship, heedless of what might be in the way, and then above the water. It ought not to be noticeable, he believed, against even the slight background levels of Chaos energy to be found here. Unless someone knew or guessed what to look for, and where. His goal now was Kolvir. If someone was this interested in Tir-na Nog'th, that was clearly the place to be, figuratively speaking. It was halfway across the bay that he encountered the block -- a wall of what seemed to be remarkable Chaosian power. He studied the barrier, impressed despite his increased concern. Waves seemed to pass through it unimpeded, and the wind ... but what about something like the ship? Lady Petra would have to decide whether to make the experiment. He was not at all sure he wanted to try it himself. The fish down below seemed to be going through the barrier. Or perhaps under it. He sent his thread of power under the water to begin exploring its dimensions. It seemed to be curved, like a globe or a bubble, stretching far down to the ocean floor. The fish swam through it without even seeming to notice it -- but the Logrus was firmly excluded. And a sphere, Delluth concluded gloomily, was the most efficient way to completely enclose something. Like a city. He left off exploring, unwilling to waste what was beginning to seem like precious time, and drew the tendril of power back to the library. The last thing he could do on his own was to try to reach out through Shadow and back in again to Amber. He chose as his specific target Zhenechka, waiting for him in the palace dining room, and carefully made the attempt. Just then Claudio looked up. He had a rather bemused expression as he slid his Trumps back into their case. He glanced over at Delluth but didn't attempt to interrupt whatever he was doing. A few moments later, Delluth made an annoyed sound and looked up. "Claudio! Were you talking to Pavlo again?" He had the abstracted sort of expression of a person concentrating partly on something else, but also seemed more agitated than Claudio had ever seen him. Even before the younger man could answer, he was getting to his feet. Claudio shook his head. "Why? Do you think I should?" "Only very carefully," he said, moving to stand near Claudio. "There's a barrier of Chaos power around the city. It blocks or interferes with Logrus and sorcery for sure, but I don't know about Trump. I'd try it myself, but that's more likely to prove what we already know -- that I'm not very good with Trumps." "A barrier? That doesn't sound good." Claudio frowned. "And what would you wager that Pavlo's all too near the source? Well, I'll try it. I have a perfectly good reason now to be concerned about him, don't I?" He withdrew his Trumps again and sorted through them to find Pavlo's. While he was sorting through them, he checked to see if any of the Trumps he held were active. His mother seemed to be in conversation with someone -- but that was hardly extraordinary. Finding a time when her trump was not occupied was more often the problem. He decided to leave that alone for the moment. It might or might not be relevant to the present situation, but the odds were against it. "That might be a good reason not to call him," Delluth worried. "Maybe a place Trump would be a better choice. Someplace away from the Scar." "Mmm, possibly. I have one of my flat," Claudio offered, bringing that card to the top. It was cool and 'live' to his hand. "Seems to be working," he noted. Before he could do any more, there was a knock at the door and then a woman's voice, crisp and authorative. "Dottore? The Signora asks you to attend her in her office immediately. Your help is required." "Now what?" Delluth muttered. "Claudio--" He moved to get past Claudio, to unlock and open the door. "Right." Claudio moved aside, at the same time slipping his Trumps back in their case, then made to follow Delluth. Portia looked a little askance at Claudio. "This is a medical matter, signore," she murmured. "Doubtless one of our ladies would be pleased to keep you company." "In happy ignorance? Thank you, no, signora," replied Claudio. "But I'll leave it up to the Doctor to decide whether or not he wants my company." "Come along. No time for arguing or looking for people," Delluth said, going into the hall, urgency in his every movement. "Which way's the office again? Is the PM still with her? And tell me what new burden's been added to my lot, please." His tone was decisive, even commanding -- quite unlike his usual pleasant amiability. |
