Innkeeper Chronicles 3.5: Sweep of the Blade Page 22

  must be plotted through rough space, because one has no alternative.”

  Here we go.

  “If one were to provide a safe harbor, a protected haven, for such

  courageous seekers of wealth and knowledge, perhaps new routes could

  be plotted to take full advantage of it.”

  Nuan Cee sat up straighter. “If such a harbor were to appear, one would

  be a fool to not take advantage of it.”

  Maud pretended to toy with her glass. “Yes, but would one example,

  even that of an illustrious being, inspire others?”

  “Those of us in positions of power can be remarkably persuasive,” the

  tachi queen said.

  Maud held back a sigh of relief. They had just promised to actively

  campaign to divert traffic from the Kozor system to this one, provided a

  trade station could be built. It was their own version of a fire triangle: to

  create fire, three things are needed, heat, air, and fuel. Remove any one

  of those three things and fire stopped. To prosper, a nation of pirates

  had to have prey, weapons, and means of fencing the stolen goods. If

  the shipping lanes shifted away from Kozor, it would remove both prey

  and the means to dispose of the stolen merchandise. Kozor and Serak

  would wither while House Krahr reaped the benefits.

  Nuan Cee crunched his cookie, delicately brushing crumbs from his

  whiskers. “Of course, to truly commit to such a course, one would have

  to have a vested interest in the venture.”

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  Maud took a sip of her juice. Ilemina was very clear on what could be

  promised. “A safe harbor in space has three major applications. First, it

  is a base of scientific inquiry, a natural gathering place where multiple

  species could come together in comfort and security to share their

  findings. Second, it is a hub of shipping and supply, a port where cargo

  can be bought, sold, and moved, and weary sailors can rest before

  resuming their journey. Third, it is a military installation, equipped to

  repel attacks and shelter those within. The might of the Holy Anocracy,

  and House Krahr in particular, is unmatched. If only suitable partners

  could be found to fulfil these other roles.” Maud sighed. “of course,

  such cooperation could only be possible if iron-clad alliances could be

  agreed upon and financial and other obligations were determined and

  evenly assumed by all involved.”

  The queen’s color darkened. “An even contribution from each species

  would be only fair. Such a place would require advanced technology and

  modern construction to be truly effective.”

  “And of course, it would require a sufficient infusion of capital coming

  from a partner intimately familiar with the peculiarities of space

  trade.” Nuan Cee bared his teeth in a quick smile.

  “If such plans would be put in writing, in secret, of course, progress could

  be made on the path of mutual cooperation. And benefit.” There, she

  laid it out. Send us the plans, and we’ll get the ball rolling, provided you

  agree to military alliances.

  Nuan Cee turned to Otubar. “Does the Undermarshal agree?”

  Oh crap.

  Otubar stared back at the Merchant. “I’m standing here with her, am I

  not?”

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  Maud had to seal the deal. She nodded at the retainer waiting at the

  other end of the plaza. The woman disappeared behind the tree and

  returned with a huge metal chest. Square and reinforced, it looked

  impregnable enough to take a grenade blast from the inside. The

  retainer carried it over with obvious strain, set it on the ground next to

  Nuan Cee, and withdrew.

  “A gesture of good faith from House Krahr,” Maud announced. “We are

  grateful for Helen’s rescue and hope Clan Nuan will share the antidote

  with us for future use.”

  Her personal unit, which she had programed prior to the meeting, sent a

  signal to the box. It split with a clang, and a metal spire shot out, like the

  pistil of a flower. The top of the pistil unfolded, revealing the bottle of

  green mist.

  “A weapon of Nexus,” Maud said, “meant to render the lees infertile.”

  Nuan Cee jerked back.

  “House Krahr has no need of such things now that it has found a willing

  and reliable trade partner in Clan Nuan,” Maud said. “We do not commit

  lightly and once we do, we stand fully behind it.”

  “The depth of your commitment is stunning,” Nuan Cee said. “It is a

  proper bargain. We shall share the antidote.”

  “It brings me and Lord Consort great joy,” Maud said.

  Lord Consort was doing his best to impersonate a thundercloud.

  Maud nodded. “Of course, one has to wonder why certain parties would

  seek to sever the buddying ties of alliance between the honored guests

  of House Krahr present here and their hosts. What possible short-term

  gain could one achieve by making either one of you to withdraw?”

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  The tachi queen crunched her mouth, sounding like a handful of walnuts

  being crushed, as close as she could come to giggling. She leaned

  forward and said softly, “One has to wonder what both of us have here

  that could pose a threat or inconvenience our other guests. Something

  we have in common, something that brought us both here.” She

  rose. “This has been a most enlightening meeting, Maud of the

  Innkeepers. We have many plans to make.”

  Polite goodbyes were said and both the lees and the tachi departed. As

  she watched them walk toward the breezeway, Maud turned to

  Otubar. “They both have ships in orbit.”

  “Well armed ships,” Otubar said.

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  Chapter 15 Part 1

  September 14, 2018 by Gordon

  Maud strode down the length of the bridge, measuring it with her

  footsteps. It was early morning, and the sky was lightly overcast, the sun

  playing tag with ragged clouds. Next to her, Helen yawned and rubbed

  her eyes.

  Last night Maud had reported the conversation with the lees and the

  tachi to Lord Soren and Karat. She had no doubt that the Lord Consort

  would give a complete account of it to Ilemina. Lord Soren agreed with

  her assessment – the Serak and Kozor were targeting the battle station,

  but how exactly were they planning to pull it off was anyone’s guess.

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  Last night Arland was still out. It bothered Maud, and she spent the

  evening being vaguely annoyed and irritated, until she finally realized

  that she missed him. His absence gnawed at her. She kept imagining

  wild scenarios, each of which involved him dying in his sleep,

  defenseless. She even considered walking into his quarters through the

  private hallway and watching him sleep but decided that would be

  creepy. Nothing was going to happen to Arland; he would sleep off the

  booster while a cocktail of drugs the medic had administered repaired

  his injuries. There were a lot of injuries. It was perfectly reasonable for

  him to remain asleep for another day or more.

  Maud kept moving. A refreshing wind pulled at her hair, throwing the

  short strands in her face. She’d always had a vivid imagination. When

/>   they were exiled to Karhari, it caught her by surprise. By then she was

  used to Melizard’s schemes, but she never expected exile. He was the

  younger son, the beloved and spoiled. His sins, however grievous, were

  always forgiven. He always got away with crazy shit. The exile shocked

  her. From that point on, she expected the worst. If Melizard was

  delayed, it was because he was dead. If Helen ate a piece of unfamiliar

  fruit, it was surely poisonous, and she would likely die. If she met

  strangers on the road, they were assassins sent to kill her. And Karhari

  had proven her right again and again, feeding her paranoia.

  Now Arland had joined the short list of People Whose Death She

  Imagined. There were only four names on the list: Helen, Dina, Maud,

  and now, Arland. She kept waking up, checking on Helen, and when she

  drifted off, he died in her dreams, and she would jerk awake. A couple

  of times she got up and prowled on her balcony, like a caged cat.

  If only she could have seen him this morning, if she had touched him and

  felt the warmth of his body, it would have reassured her that he was

  alive. She had rolled out of her bed planning to do exactly that. Instead,

  Karat had barged into her quarters as soon as the sun was up, announced

  that Ilemina required her presence, and took off.

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  They passed through the arched entrance to the Preceptor’s tower.

  “What are we doing today, mama?”

  “Today we’re going on a hunt,” Maud said.

  She’d reviewed the agenda late last night after giving up on getting any

  sleep. At the core, vampires were a predatory strain of human. They

  were mostly carnivorous, and hunting was in their blood. Humans had

  retained some of those primitive memories, too. No matter how

  civilized they became or how evolved the art of cooking became, nothing

  beat a piece of meat roasted over a fire.

  The Holy Anocracy was not that civilized. They didn’t bother to make any

  excuses or to distance themselves from their predatory past. As soon as

  a vampire House claimed territory, they did two things. They planted a

  vala tree and they designated hunting grounds.

  House Krahr maintained a huge hunting preserve. Today, at noon, they

  would be riding through it. Missing the hunt was unthinkable. She could

  get away with missing games, skipping a formal dinner, even being late

  to the wedding ceremony, although that last one would require

  reparations for the offence to the newlyweds. If she missed the hunt,

  however, the insult to the hosts would be monumental. Even children

  were brought to the hunt as soon as they were old enough not to fall off

  the mounts.

  “What kind of hunt?”

  “Do you remember when daddy and I took you to House Kirtin and we

  rode out to hunt bazophs?”

  It had been one of the rare bright moments in their exile. Melizard had

  landed a position with a stable House and for two months they had a

  brief taste of normal Anocracy life. And then he had punched the Kirtin

  Marshal and it all ended.

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  Helen’s eyes lit up. “Can I come on the hunt?”

  “Yes.”

  Maud realized that if she had told an average Earth woman that she

  would be taking her five-year-old daughter onto a temperamental alien

  mount and allow her to ride in a large pack of homicidal vampires to hunt

  an unknown but surely dangerous beast, the woman would have tried to

  take Helen away from her on the spot. Some people had PTA meetings,

  she had hunts.

  Helen would enjoy it and Maud wanted her to be happy. Plus, after the

  poisoning, letting her daughter out of her sight without an army of

  bodyguards ready to tear any attacker to pieces was out of the question.

  Whatever Ilemina wanted would likely take place before the hunt.

  They reached the Preceptor’s study. The door was retracted, the

  doorway framing Ilemina bent over her desk. The older vampire woman

  seemed deep in thought, her expression focused and predatory.

  A feeling of dread mugged Maud. Now what?

  She halted in the doorway. “My lady?”

  Ilemina raised her head. “Come inside.”

  Maud walked into the room, bringing Helen with her. The door slid shut

  behind them. Traped.

  Ilemina fixed her with a heavy gaze. “Lady Onda and Lady Seveline have

  invited you to the bride’s wassail.”

  The wassail was a long-standing vampire tradition. Despite the grand

  name, it was basically a brunch, light on food, but heavy on drinks, which,

  for vampires, meant caffeine. An average vampire could drain a bottle

  of whiskey and remain perfectly sober, but Maud had seen them down

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  an expresso and dissolve into a soggy mess of slurred words and draping

  arms declaring their undying love and devotion to a stranger they met

  ten minutes ago.

  The wassail involved a large punch bowl filled with a caffeinated

  beverage and each guest would be served from it, toasting the host. It

  was common before a wedding; in fact, the tradition prescribed having

  several wassails for both the bride and groom. Maud had attended

  several wassails before. It was mostly a hilarious experience. Inevitably

  someone challenged her to a drink off, which ended with them under the

  table and her, completely sober, urgently looking for a bathroom.

  Ilemina’s face promised doom.

  “Is the invitation cause for alarm?” Maud asked.

  “No female members of House Krahr received an invitation. It is a family

  wassail. You are the only outsider.”

  She would be isolated and surrounded by knights of House Kozor. House

  Krahr was honor bound to respect their guests’ privacy. If something

  happened, there was no guarantee back up would arrive in time or at all.

  To decline the invitation would be both rude and cowardly and Onda and

  Seveline were counting on that.

  “It’s a trap.” The words came out flat.

  Ilemina nodded. “They will provoke you. They will try to test you to see

  what you know. Failing that, they will seek to humiliate you.”

  “If they can’t get me to respond, they will try to provoke Arland on my

  behalf. If they insult me enough, and I run to him crying, he will be honor

  bound to do something about it. They’re getting bolder.”

  Ilemina’s gaze was direct and cold. Maud had seen this exact expression

  on Arland’s face, right before he threw himself at a world-destroying

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  flower. Ilemina had made up her mind. Neither Kozor nor Serak would

  get off this planet unscathed. It chilled Maud to the bone.

  “Do you want the post of Maven?” Ilemina asked.

  She didn’t even have to think. “Yes.”

  Ilemina turned to the screen glowing on the wall. A recording began

  playing. On screen, Seveline dashed at a group of Otrokar. Each of the

  five Horde warriors was bigger than Seveline. Maud had fought the

  Hope-Crushing Horde before; they had earned their name and then

  some. Seveline danced through them, slicing limbs, cutting bodies,

  graceful, lethal, unstoppable… A radiant smile played on the vampire

&nb
sp; knight’s lips. Blood stained her blonde hair. She looked like a berserker,

  lost to the slaughter, but she moved like a fighter completely in control

  of her body. Fluid. Precise. Aware. Underneath a caption glowed.

  Seveline Kozor

  57 confirmed kills

  Shit.

  On screen, Seveline beheaded a warrior with a single swing and

  laughed. She seemed to know where every one of her opponents was at

  all times, anticipating their movements before they made them.

  Ilemina sank steel into her voice. “You will go to this wassail and you will

  endure every assault on your honor and dignity. Under no circumstances

  are you to draw your sword. Do you understand me, Maven?”

  “Yes, Preceptor.”

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  268

  Chapter 15 part 2

  September 20, 2018 by Gordon

  “So, is it customary for humans to be kept as pets?” Seveline asked.

  Maud sipped her coffee. It was genuine Earth coffee, given as a gift to

  the bride by House Krahr, and sweetened with some local syrup until it

  was less drink and more dessert. The bridal party about lost their minds

  when they watched her pour cream into it.

  She was painfully aware of both Onda and Seveline starring at her. The

  questions started the moment she sat down and became progressively

  more outrageous. The last one was an insult. If she were a vampire, by

  now there would be blood.

  It wasn’t a bad plan. Isolate her. Get her drunk. Insult her until she

  threw the first punch, then kill her. They were likely recording this to

  absolve themselves of blame. Maud had done a mental sweep of the

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  room when she entered. The situation hasn’t changed. They were in a

  tower, in a round chamber. Eight tables, four vampires each. She could

  hold her own, but nobody was that good. Ilemina was right. If I draw my

  sword, I won’t make it out of here alive.

  Her best defense was to pretend to be dense. “I do not know what you

  mean,” she said.

  Seveline heaved a sigh. Onda leaned forward, brushing her chestnut hair

  out of the way. “It is a logical question. You are not a member of our