"And then Helleber knew that he was facing a dragon, and that he was in the domain of the Dragon Lady, and hope blossomed in his heart, for all the tales he had heard of her were happy ones.
"'Why, I am lost,’ he said, ‘and have no food, no water, and no way to get home.'
"'Then climb up on my back,’ the dragon said, ‘and I will take you to my mistress who made me, and I am sure she will be glad to help you.'
"So he approached, full of fear at the sight of the monster, but forcing himself to walk up to it calmly…"
– from the tales of Atheron the Storyteller
The humans aboard the Skyland spent the rest of the secondlight in dismal, nervous anticipation, and when the sleeping dark approached no one slept, or suggested sleep. The sun was sinking in the west, and they were nearing Fortress Holding.
By unspoken agreement, they gathered on the terrace where they had eaten lunch.
“He hasn't done anything,” the Skyler said.
“Are you sure?” Imp asked.
“Of course I'm sure! I've got my machines watching Fortress Holding, just as you do!"
“He hasn't done anything that I've seen,” Geste agreed. “Oh, a few of his machines fought off some of my saboteurs, but that's nothing."
“He must know we're coming,” the Skyler said nervously. “Why doesn't he do something?"
“I don't know,” Geste answered.
They were silent for a moment, and it was not a human who broke the silence.
“Excuse me,” the Skyland said, “but Thaddeus the Black is calling and wishes to speak to, quote, ‘whoever is in charge up there,’ end quote."
“There you go,” Geste said with a wave. “He's doing something. Talk to him."
“Oh, no,” the Skyler said. “You talk to him."
“It's your hold,” Imp protested.
“But it was Geste's idea to come here,” the Skyler insisted.
Geste shrugged. “All right. Put him on, Skyland."
A face appeared in the air, and Bredon studied it curiously.
So this was the infamous Thaddeus the Black! He had seen old pictures back in Arcade, pictures that Gamesmaster had shown him while explaining who Shadowdark and Thaddeus were, but this was the first live transmission Bredon had seen.
The first thing Bredon noticed was that, as the pictures back at Arcade had shown, he was not black, his name notwithstanding. His complexion was slightly darker than most of the other Powers Bredon had seen, but Leila and Hsin were both a good bit darker, and there were people in Bredon's home village who were darker, and the southern traders who came by twice a year selling metal pots and pans and tools were darker still.
His hair was black and curly, but that scarcely seemed enough to justify the name. His eyes were brown, and he was heavily bearded. The face behind the beard was lined and scarred, unusual for a Power, but no more so than many a villager's face was by his fortieth turn of the seasons, and by no means even close to the grotesquerie of Shadowdark's visage.
Thaddeus did bear some resemblance to his father; their eyes were similar, and both had prominent noses, though Shadowdark's was straight while Thaddeus had a definite hook to his.
And his face was oddly proportioned, like Shadowdark's. Bredon remembered that Thaddeus was said to be almost three meters tall. The image was only slightly larger than a normal head; either Thaddeus's height was entirely in his body, or he was using a reduced-size transmission.
It was a strong face, neither a particularly attractive one, nor one ugly or frightening enough to fit the stories told about its owner.
“Hello there,” Thaddeus said conversationally. “Only three of you? Are the rest somewhere else? I'll wait while you call them, if you like."
“There are only the four of us,” Geste replied, gesturing so as to include Bredon with the two women.
“Four?” Bredon was unsure whether Thaddeus's surprise was feigned or genuine. “Who is that, then? Has someone taken a new body, or been rebuilt? I thought that was an android or a primitive."
Geste turned expectantly, to let Bredon speak for himself.
“I am Bredon the Hunter, son of Aredon the Hunter,” Bredon announced, aware how foolish that once-proud declaration of his identity must sound to this unspeakably powerful and ancient being.
“A primitive-so there are just three of you. You will have your little joke, Geste, won't you?” He eyed Bredon warily, however.
“What do you want, Thaddeus?” Geste inquired wearily.
“I just want to come to an understanding."
“What sort of an understanding?” the Skyler asked.
“And where's Aulden?” Imp demanded.
“Aulden is right here, Imp; he's alive and well. As for what sort of an understanding, that's why Aulden is here.” The image of a handsome, rather distracted-looking, outwardly youthful man appeared briefly beside Thaddeus’ image, then vanished again before Bredon could even be sure of the color of his hair. “And Sheila, and Sunlight, and Rawl, and O, and Khalid, and even Brenner.” More faces flashed briefly, then faded. Bredon felt his throat tighten at the glimpse of Lady Sunlight's radiant features.
“What are you talking about, Thaddeus?” Geste asked.
“Bluntly, Geste, I'm talking about blackmail. I have seven of your friends here, all alive, at least for the moment, but all very much in my hands. If any of you interfere with my plans-for that matter, if any of you fail to give me your fullest cooperation-I'll start killing my prisoners."
He smiled malignly down at the party aboard the Skyland, and for a long moment no one spoke.
“Just what are these plans that we aren't to interfere with?” Geste asked at last.
“I would suppose that you've already guessed. You all know who I am. I intend to rebuild my empire, and this time I won't be stopped."
“No? You've lost two empires already, haven't you? Why should the third be any different?” Geste said sweetly.
Thaddeus’ expression turned dark, and he hissed, “Watch your mouth, Trickster, or I might just stuff Sheila's guts in it."
Geste's smile vanished, and Thaddeus calmed slightly.
“I should have expected that from you, Geste,” he said. “Yes, I lost two empires. The first one was poisoned against me by my father and my brother, so that I couldn't hold it. The second was built on a bunch of stupid primitives who betrayed me because they didn't have the brains or the guts to understand anything. This time that won't happen. I'll build my own empire, one that Peter and Shadowdark didn't meddle in, and I won't trust anything important to savages-I'll use artificial intelligences or my own tailored creatures instead, or just pre-conscious machines."
“And you expect us to just stand by and watch?"
“Oh, no, more than that; I expect you to help me. I've got your woman, Geste, and your man, Imp, and the others as well, and I expect you all to turn over all your equipment to me, so that I can use it to build my fleet. And in exchange, when I've built my empire, you can each have a planet to rule as my viceroy."
The three immortals on the Skyland exchanged glances with one another; Bredon looked from one to the next, but they ignored him.
Thaddeus did not, however. He said, “Oh, yes, and if you care about the primitives like your friend here, if you cooperate I won't kill any more of them, either, unless I have to."
“Any more?” Geste asked, startled.
“Well, certainly; I had to kill off all the tribes that lived right around the Fortress. I couldn't trust them, not after what happened back on Alpha Imperium. That was how I got Khalid here, as a matter of fact; he came to protest about one bunch that were his special pets."
The four stared at him, speechless.
Thaddeus smiled back. “Oh, I see you want time to think about it-or rather, to talk it over before yielding, in order to save a little face. That's fine; I won't rush you. I understand how it is. I've studied psychology for thousands of years, and I know that you need to salve your pride by holding out for awhile. You go right ahead; make a foolish gesture if you have to, but just remember, I have your friends here, and I have enough automated weapons to kill you all and build my empire without your help, if I have to.” He raised a hand in sardonic salutation. “Until the next sunset, as measured at the Fortress. I want your capitulation no later than that, or the first captive dies."