ToTheCastleIndex | Time Under Chaos | Game Logs | To the Castle Claudio put his Trumps away and made a quick foray back into the café to retrieve his satchel. Lilith and the others were too busy eavesdropping on the soldiers to take much notice. Fortunately there were always a few of the most broken down and desperate hackneys hanging around the late night cafés and restaurants in the hopes of earning a few coppers. They might not be the vehicle of choice for arriving at the Embassy, but Claudio was not inclined to be fussy. He wasn't exactly dressed for a formal audience himself, if it came to that. "Spire Hill," he told the driver. "The Chaosian Embassy. Double the fare if you can do it in less than a quarter of an hour." Paloma was waiting outside for him, dressed in a long dark cloak. Her dark eyes seemed to be glittering rather more than a human form could contain. Not that this was particularly bothersome to someone who'd grown up in Chaos. Claudio knew plenty of people who shifted their eyes to accommodate the lighting conditions without even thinking about it. A rather more respectable Embassy carriage was awaiting them both. "Your Excellency." Claudio paid off his driver, including the bonus he'd promised, made his bow to the Ambassador, then offered his arm. The carriage seemed to take some time travelling up to the Castle. There seemed to be more lights in the Barracks too than one would expect at this time of night -- and even a group of flickering lights on the side of Kolvir. "How much do you know about what has happened tonight?" asked Paloma. "Know?" queried Claudio. "Or guess? You'd get a somewhat different version of events, depending -- and I think it may be important, at a time like this, to separate out fact from speculation." "A good distinction," agreed Paloma. "If you would be so kind ... tell me what you actually know -- and then what you surmise." Claudio sat forward on the carriage seat, hands folded over the top of his walking stick, and thought for a few moments, reconstructing the evening's events in his mind. "I know the moon was full three days earlier than it should be," he said, "because I've been keeping track. And I know the city of Tir na Nog'th appeared in the sky, because I saw it. I also know that a barrier of Chaos power was placed around Amber; I was near the edge of it, on the Ramblin' Queen. From there I also saw the cloud that covered the moon and made Tir vanish." He looked up at Paloma. "That's what I could say I witnessed. Perhaps I should also mention that earlier in the evening, I sensed inimical Logrus energies aboard the Queen, and a few moments after that, I passed out. Judging from the fact that the Prime Minister and, I gather, some of his guests had appeared on the Queen by the time I regained consciousness, I would surmise that I'm not the only one who felt the effects of ... whatever it was." "It was felt here, more strongly," said Paloma. "In reality, I should be seeking out his Grace the Duke of Helgram who is in Amber at present, charged by the Emperor as Minister for Ordered Affairs. But ... I think, at this time, I prefer to seek out the King. And the arrest of Dr Corrino has given me every reason to do that." She smiled at Claudio, but he was aware of quivering tension in every line of her body. "I certainly agree with you on that, Your Excellency," Claudio said grimly, "since my guess is that we have His Grace to thank for most if not all of the phenomena I described. Though I've never met him, his political views are well known in the Courts; so you can imagine my thoughts when Dr. Corrino told me of his appointment earlier this evening. I also learned from the Doctor that an undercover agent of the Duke's was unmasked aboard the Ramblin' Queen this evening. Whether that was what triggered the rest of it or whether that would have happened anyway I'm not in a position to know." Paloma reached out suddenly, and laid her hand on Claudio's. "Mister Barimen," she said quietly, "for good or ill, the Duke is here at the Emperor's command. He speaks with the Emperor's voice and we are all loyal subjects of Chaos, are we not?" "I am loyal to the Emperor, of course," replied Claudio, holding her gaze steadily. "But I don't feel that obliges me to agree with the Thelbane's every thought and action. I'm loyal to my family, too, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't try to dissuade any one of them from a course of action I thought disastrous ... or simply wrong." Paloma's hand stayed where it was. "Tread very carefully, Mr Barimen," she said. "You bear an unfortunate name ... as far as those in the ascendancy of Chaos are concerned. Your loyalty will be suspected before you say a word. And, at the moment, it is extremely dangerous for any Chaosian to have their loyalty queried, even if all they intend is an honest critique." "I am aware," Claudio said levelly. "But then, I'm just a younger son of a minor House... not an important person at all. Who's going to ask my opinion?" "I am," said Paloma, and even in the darkness of the coach, he could see her smile. He smiled back. "And I've given it to you... for what it's worth." She withdrew her hand. "We seem to have come to a halt. If we're at the gates, can you ensure the guards take news of our arrival to the King?" Claudio peered out the window of the coach. Then he opened the door and stepped out. He let the guards see his deferential bow of the head to the Embassy coach's occupant before he addressed them. "Her Excellency the Lady Paloma Baccaran to see His Majesty," he said crisply. The guards exchanged uneasy looks. "It's after two in the morning," said the older guard. "He's either drunk or asleep, or possibly both. Is it urgent?" "I'm afraid it is," Claudio said firmly. And I somehow doubt he slept through tonight's events, he thought, then added to the guard, "It concerns the safety of the realm." Let's not ask which one. The guard peered at him for a moment. Claudio returned his regard studiously, his posture relaxed but alert; one hand rested on the top of his walking stick. Then the guard said, with brusque finality, "Wait here." And he sent a younger guard scampering off towards the castle. Claudio nodded acknowledgement, then turned back toward the carriage and Lady Paloma. "Word has been sent," he informed her. "Would you rather wait out here, or inside?" Paloma held out her hand to be assisted from the carriage -- assistance that she was not, as Claudio well knew, in any need of. Nevertheless he offered her the ceremonial support of his arm. "Out here, I think," she said, "to take advantage of the night air." She paused, in the gateway, looking up towards the Castle, a long thoughtful look. Then she turned and seemed absorbed in the city below. And Claudio was aware of a sudden tension... "Mr Barimen," she said, "what part of the city would you say that is? That's appearing extremely well lit?" Claudio followed the direction of her gaze. After taking a moment to superimpose his mental map of the city on the darkened vista in front of him, he replied, "Five Corners, I should say." "Odd," said Paloma. "But at least nowhere near the Embassy yet. Still, it wouldn't hurt to have an extra detachment of guards just in case of trouble." She threw her cloak beack with a smooth, practised gesture, revealing she was holding a card in her hand and focusing on it, but she spared time to explain to Claudio. "My counseller -- Ingrey Wererathe. He went to the barracks." Claudio nodded his comprehension. "Can you make out any details from this distance?" Claudio's vision was good. "What I see is a collection of small points of light ... and they appear to be moving through the streets." Paloma seemed to have made contact now, although Claudio could not hear what she was saying. The guard who was left came to stand beside him, gazing out over the city. He was looking worried. "Do you have friends in that Quarter?" Claudio asked him sympathetically. He had a few himself, acquaintances he'd made in the past few weeks, and he wondered what was going on. The lights looked to him like flames, though at least no buildings seemed to be on fire. A torchlight procession, in view of the other events of the night, was rather less likely than not to be celebratory. The guard shook his head. "They're over to the west," he said. "But look -- it's darker -- but you can see people moving -- over there ... and there..." He pointed -- and Claudio saw he was right. There were smaller, scattered groups moving through the city -- including some of the wealthier districts. Suddenly they saw the flare of a fire -- almost alarmingly close to the Castle. "That's one of the villas in River Fall," said the guard. "I think ... it belongs to one of those merchants. Fair Winds Trading -- they say that the Princess Larissa is behind it..." Sparks were blown towards them on the night wind. Claudio wasn't sure what the Princess Larissa had to do with it -- he'd heard the name, but not met the lady -- but other implications were quickly becoming clear to him, making his stomach knot. "Serpent's Mercy!" he whispered. "Don't they realize they're playing right into Helgram's hands? No, of course they don't ... they're just angry ... frightened..." Unless, of course, someone had engineered it that way. An agent of Duke Helgram's had been uncovered only tonight, and where there was one, there were more than likely others. The guard looked at Claudio a little uncertainly. "Helgram? Do you mean the Baroness? She's a sweet girl ... and that fox of hers!" He looked with some uncertainty over the city. "They wouldn't be mixed up in anything like this, would they?" "Baroness?" queried Claudio, confused. "Girl? No, I'm ... thinking of someone else entirely." Just then his attention was diverted by the approach of Captain Morgan. (continued in Collecting the Ambassador) |
