The master's eyes darted back and forth from Chainer to Skellum. "What do you want?"
Skellum started to speak, but Chainer stopped him with a raised hand. "If I'm supposed to provide information, I want that information. The Cabal has informants everywhere. I want to know what happened to Kamahl the barbarian after he left Cabal City. I want to know where the Mirari is. And," he winked at Skellum, "I want a cut of the proceeds from the match. The betting tables will be busy when we fight. I want my share."
The master's eyes gleamed. "Done," she said.
"We serve the Cabal," Skellum said.
"And the Cabal serves us," Chainer answered. "Now, then. Let's start with where my barbarian friend went. We can figure out what I'm supposed to tell his sister after that."
Veza never received a courier with false information for Ambassador Laquatus. Within two tension-filled weeks of presenting her idea to Empress Llawan, Veza was awakened a few hours before dawn by a ripping crack of thunder from her living room fountain. Veza had reassumed her legs the day after she last spoke to the empress. She climbed out of the tub and ran into the room.
Two cephalid imperial guards were already floating in the air beside a glowing disk of energy that used to be Veza's fountain pool. They were enveloped in liquid blue energy that kept them alive and upright as a third guard came through the portal. The two floating guards assisted him and two more like him into the water. Veza heard the crackle of portal transit, quickly bowed her head, and heard a large splash. She remained bowed until one of the floating guards touched her on the shoulder.
"Your empress awaits," he said. Veza rose, nodded to the guard, and stepped gracefully into the tide pool.
Empress Llawan floated deep, ten feet below the surface at the very limit of Veza's pool. The three tailed merfolk guards floated in formation above her, constantly scanning every possible avenue of attack. They eyed Veza as she descended, but let her pass without comment.
Veza lowered her eyes. "Empress."
"Director Veza. We require your assistance."
"I am at your service, Empress."
"We had our finest mind-rider investigate your notion of eavesdropping on Ambassador Laquatus's link to his familiar.
"Your hypothesis proved correct, Director," Llawan continued. "Congratulations."
"Empress," Veza flushed.
"In fact, it proved even easier to interpret the signals than you projected. Our expert was able to see Laquatus's thoughts quite easily. He has but one thing on his mind lately, an extremely powerful artifact called the Mirari."
Veza nodded. "I had heard such an artifact was uncovered recently. That kind of news even reaches Breaker Bay."
"It was in the hands of the Gabal patriarch. Laquatus happened to be visiting when the artifact arrived. He has done little but connive after it ever since."
Veza started to understand. "Has the Ambassador acquired this artifact?"
"No. Currently, it is in the hands of the Order."
Veza wondered why the empress didn't seem happier about this development. "Is that acceptable, Empress?"
"Barely. The Order are honest and try to be righteous in all things. They are like jellyfish in the hands of someone like Laquatus. It can only be a matter of time before he spirits it away through violence or deceit." Veza waited for the empress to continue. When she didn't, Veza said, "Then Laquatus will bring the artifact to Aboshan." Llawan stared at her for a moment then clicked out a sharp series of screeches to the guard above. The guard checked an instrument strapped to his wrist and nodded to the empress.
"The crystal did not glow, my empress. She is concealing nothing."
Llawan clicked again, and the guards swam off, out into the bay and well out of earshot. They maintained a clear line of sight on both Veza and the empress.
"Forgive us, Director," Llawan said, "but we had to be sure. If you had lied just now, that crystal would have flashed. I have negotiated many a favorable treaty with it by my side."
Veza simply stared uncomprehendingly.
"We can never be too careful when dealing with Laquatus. But now we must be completely frank with you. Aboshan already has the Mirari. Somehow the ambassador managed to get the Mirari away from the Order and into Aboshan's clutches without actually ever taking possession of it himself. The man's an idiot."
"So Aboshan has the artifact?"
"Yes."
"And the empress is worried that he will use it against her?"
Veza was shocked when Llawan laughed out loud. Cephalids made a high-pitched, staccato chattering when they laughed. It was too much for Veza. She burst into laughter as well.
Llawan quickly regained her composure. "If only that were our main concern! Aboshan collects artifacts, but he doesn't understand them. He wouldn't know what to do with a powerful artifact if it came with a guidebook and a tutor. If he gets his tentacles on the Mirari, he'll probably try to eat it.
"No, Director, we are concerned with what Laquatus will do once he has the Mirari. He claims to be working on behalf of the emperor, but he is a greedy and grasping child. It must truly gall him to see the prize that he so badly wanted in the hands of an oaf, and to know that he has no chance of wresting it free. If the thing is as powerful as they say-if it is as powerful as my mind-rider senses, then Laquatus will not allow Aboshan to have it for long. And when he gets it, the next obstacle between an ambassador's sash and the imperial cap is poor, exiled Llawan."
Veza's humor quickly cooled and vanished. "What will the empress do?"
Llawan extended a tentacle and gently took Veza's hand. "We will gather around us those who have served us well. Those who have served us loyally." She dropped Veza's hand and brought her other forelimb forward. On the end she wore a sharpened spike of whale's tooth. "And we will confront the oaf Aboshan. If we can push him, keep him furious and fearful of a renewed civil war, then he will cling tightly to his new toy and never allow Laquatus to take it. The harder the ambassador tries, the tighter Aboshan's grip will grow, and neither of them will be able to use it against us. Eventually, Aboshan will have Laquatus killed." She smiled a politician's smile. " It is never a good idea to be too ambitious when the emperor is feeling insecure. "We ask you to come with us now and stand by our side in the court of the emperor. We ask you to declare yourself as our subject, and to represent our interests. You are wasted here in Breaker Bay. Worse, you are insulted by it. Come with us now, and be our subject. We have thirty executives like yourself and another dozen cephalids of noble birth. We will present ourselves to the emperor and petition him for permission to secede from his empire."
"He will certainly refuse."
"He must. But he will observe the formalities of government. He will cite the existing treaty between us. He will bluster and threaten. He will try to have us killed by assassins, and try to have us executed publicly as traitors. And all that will buy us time."
"Time, Empress? Time for what?"
"To take control of the situation. To drum up more support among the oligarchs and nobles. To turn Laquatus and Aboshan against each other and divide their strength. To take this Mirari for ourselves and rid Mer once and for all of oafs and knaves."
Veza looked up at the surface of the pool above her head. Beyond it was her cottage, her paperwork, and her depot. Beyond that, the village and all its human inhabitants, with all their human tics and prejudices. And somewhere far beyond that was Aboshan, who cared only for the commerce and not at all for the people who conducted it in his name.
"I am yours, Empress Llawan," she said. "What would you have me do?"
Llawan smiled. "Come with us now. We are taking a water portal back to our city, where the imperial transport is being prepared for the journey north. En route, we will discuss statesmanship and strategy."