The knights pulled out chairs at one end and sat quietly. Dan was sweating. Sullivan admired the paintings of samurai, funny looking-castles, maidens talking to skinny dragons, and waited. The Iron Guard and his men stood behind them.
The ambassador joined them a minute later. He was very old, thin to the point of being bony, with an impressive mustache that was deftly waxed into points. Since he’d been entertaining guests, the blue sash crossing his suit was covered in medals and ribbons. A guard pulled out the chair at the head of the table. The ambassador sat and placed his hands on the table, looking completely ambivalent about the knights presence.
The two sides watched each other without speaking. Serving girls in kimonos appeared, set down cups, and filled them with steaming tea. Sullivan had been told the Imperium had a complicated ceremony for drinking tea, but apparently they were skipping the ceremony tonight. The girls fled behind the screens just as silently as they’d come in. Neither Grimnoir drank the tea.
“You are knights?” The ambassador’s voice was surprisingly high pitched.
“We are,” Dan answered.
“Are you here about the attempt against your president?”
“That depends. Was it you?”
“Your government has already decided that we were not involved.”
“They decided the same thing about Mar Pacifica.”
The ambassador gave a slight nod. “I have been told that the assassin was a Grimnoir.”
“Then you were told wrong.”
“You were among those that attacked the Tokugawa?”
“We were.”
“I see…”
The ambassador didn’t appear threatening in the least, but if the rumor was correct, then he was, or had been, an Iron Guard, which meant that he was exceedingly dangerous. Most people would have thought of Dan Garrett as innocuous too, but get him motivated and the Mouth could talk you into blowing your own brains out. The reedy little ambassador probably had something similar up his baggy silk sleeves.
There. It was just the gentlest of nudges in his head. Sullivan could barely feel it, but there was another presence skimming the surface of his thoughts, just testing the waters. Somebody was subtly trying to Read them. The Active must have been behind the screens.. No. Sullivan recognized the concentration hiding behind the nonchalant mask. The ambassador was a Reader, and he was good.
“You admit to attacking the Imperium flagship… Yet, you dare come here?” The ambassador stroked his moustache thoughtfully. “Tell me why I should not simply have you killed?”
“The Enemy has returned.”
“Enemy?”
“The thing that pursues the Power across worlds. We understand the Chairman was something of an expert on it.”
The ambassador paused to take a sip of tea. “I was not aware the Grimnoir held such superstitions.”
Sullivan spoke. “The Chairman’s ghost told me.”
Gently, the ambassador set the tea cup down. “Such rumors… I’m afraid you are mistaken. The Chairman is in Edo, alive and well as only an immortal can be. It seems you have risked your lives for nothing.”
“He told me the Pathfinder is almost here, and that Dark Ocean is the key to stopping it.”
The ambassador would have been an excellent poker player. His eyes flicked over to the Iron Guard and then back to them. “How do you know of such things?”
“You’re a Reader. See for yourself.”
Caught, there was no point in being discreet, and the ambassador used more Power. Sullivan felt the intrusion, but rather than fighting it as instinct demanded, he concentrated on remembering the Chairman’s phone call as clearly as possible.
The ambassador must have been well trained to not display any emotions, because he almost pulled it off, but now there was a hint of fear breaking through the mask. He looked to Toru and the guards. “Leave us, all of you.” There was a rustling as the Iron Guard shifted nervously and asked something in Japanese. “That is unnecessary. Leave.”
Toru was obviously distressed over this development, but he did as he was commanded. The Iron Guard gave the order and the troops filed out. Doors slid closed behind the screens.
Once the doors were closed, the ambassador wasted no time in dropping the polite act. “What is the meaning of this?” he demanded.
“You tell us,” Dan said.
“I’ll have none of your trickery, knight.”
“I was there. Your Chairman was blown to kingdom come.”
“You will not deceive me. Baron Tokugawa cannot die.” He spoke with the fervor of a zealot. “Nothing can harm him.”
“He knows,” Sullivan said. “You know the Chairman’s dead, don’t you?”
“I know nothing of the sort.”
Dan shook his head. Mouths tended to be good judges of character, even when they weren’t burning Power. “You suspected it, then… Look, I don’t know what the Imperium’s game is, but you need to alert your people or you need to tell us how to take care of this Pathfinder ourselves.”
The ambassador may have known the truth, but he wasn’t about to reveal weakness to his enemies. “How do you know of the Dark Ocean?”
You know how, Sullivan thought hard. I’m telling you the truth.
“The truth, and what is believed to be the truth are seldom the same thing.”
“Deny it all you want, but I watched the Tokugawa explode myself. I don’t need you to admit he’s dead. No skin off my nose. But about the Enemy, if I’m wrong, I’m wrong, but if I’m right… Then we’ve got real trouble coming, and it is coming fast.”
The ambassador did not speak for nearly a minute. He just glared at them, stroking his mustache and thinking hard. “Let us speak of this Enemy, then.”
The Iron Guard closed the door to his chambers and immediately went to work preparing the spell. He had to move quickly.
Toru was not happy. Ambassador Hatori was his superior and as such, Toru was required to obey his orders without question. Even when it seemed the height of foolishness to leave him at the mercy of murderous Grimnoir, Toru had done as he was told, but the ambassador’s ultimate welfare was Toru’s responsibility and Toru took his responsibilities very seriously.
Grimnoir were foul assassins. Without honor, they chipped away at the Imperium’s great mission of purification. They had killed many of his brothers, usually through ambush because they lacked the courage to fight face-to-face as befitted warriors. On several occasions they had even tried to hurt the Chairman himself, which was foolish, because everyone knew nothing could hurt the Chairman. Toru despised the Grimnoir and everything they stood for. Yet now, his friend and mentor was consorting with them as they spoke about the most forbidden of subjects.
He was loyal to the ambassador, but there were two people to whom he owed far greater allegiance: the Emperor, whom he had never even seen, and then the Emperor’s advisor, Chairman of the Imperial Council, Baron Okubo Tokugawa, whom he’d had the incredible honor of meeting in person twice. Toru did not know what to do, but when the situation concerned the safety of the Imperium, there was no shame in seeking wisdom.
Spell completed, Toru took a step away from the mirror as it flashed with Power. The other side of the glass displayed the Edo Court. Incoming messages from the diplomatic corps always sounded an alarm so it did not take long to get a response. The servant that appeared was of lower standing than an Iron Guard, so Toru did not bother to address him other than to immediately state his report. The servant took the message and disappeared from view. Toru went to his knees and waited. A response could take some time. Hopefully it would not be too late.