"Yes." Sukata was serenely certain. "Now, will you tell me something?"
"What?"
"Why is it so important to you to not admire Lady Rennyn?"
Kendall felt her face go hot. "Because she lies. And she decides things for people without asking first."
"Those are details."
"They’re damn important ones."
Sukata gave Kendall a pensive glance, but didn’t comment. They found Rennyn still in Sebastian’s room, standing at the window, but she just nodded and led them to the main hall of the barracks where Lady Weston was waiting with her Senior Captains and a small selection of Hand Magisters.
"You have sent your brother away, Lady Montjuste-Surclere?" Lady Weston asked.
"We’re moving into the most dangerous period," Rennyn said, even curter than before. "Shall we go?"
They went. Everyone including Lady Weston had learned that there was no point arguing with Rennyn when she went all brief and crisp. Exit Sebastian Claire, without so much as saying goodbye.
Grumpily, Kendall focused on her first excursion into the palace proper. She made herself enjoy it. Massive halls, tapestries, fancy pictures, golden candlesticks and mage glows fitted everywhere. It was worth looking at. Just as good were the goggling courtiers, who would stop and stare quite openly. Rennyn was worth watching, too; the many times great-granddaughter of the Black Queen, sweeping through the Halls as if they were deserted. Everything she did said hard and clear: "I want to get this over with."
They went to a chilly pale room with a black square in the centre, covered in glowing sigils. Rennyn removed the active spells one-by-one, politely informing the Grand Magister of the result of each divination, but going on to the next before anyone could try and discuss them with her. Kendall had no particular interest in a bunch of numbers representing the strength and speed of the storm raging in the Hells. The way Rennyn avoided looking at anyone except the Grand Magister was much more fascinating.
Was she really going to ask them to let her kill some of them? Would anyone actually volunteer? What if she needed to kill dozens of people? How many before it became too many? How many to make Rennyn as big a monster as the Black Queen?
With a glance Rennyn cleaned all trace of the divinations from the floor, leaving only the big central circle of chalk figures. Into this she carefully lowered the Black Queen’s focus. Nothing spectacular happened. Rennyn made the sigils glow, but the focus just sat there. Getting closer Kendall could see that it had filled with a murky blackness, though the focus was still visible, shining like a star in the night sky.
"This simulates the Eferum?" Lady Weston asked.
"As much as anything can." Rennyn picked the globe up. "The next time I take it into the Eferum, the link will complete as the compression of the greater focus begins. That’s what we need to talk about now."
"Ah." The Grand Magister looked relieved, as if she’d been biting back demands for answers all day. "An explanation past due, I think. Shall we return to the Houses?"
As Rennyn had predicted, no-one objected when Sukata and Kendall followed them back to the Sentene barracks. The main hall of the barracks stretched about a third of the length of the building, and rose two levels to a dim ceiling. It was overlooked by walkways circling the next level up, and had a single long table down the centre with plenty of space on either side. This was filled with a sea of black uniforms, made brilliant by the Montjuste phoenix, and sprinkled with senior representatives of the Hand and the Ferumguard as well. Tyrland’s defenders.
While Rennyn sat at the end of the table, Kendall tucked herself and Sukata away in the near corner. They were close to where Sebastian’s room sat empty, and had a good view of the audience, but could only see Rennyn in profile. She was turning the Black Queen’s focus slowly in her hands, examining it.
"This thing has a range," she said, before everyone had quite settled in. The words brought an instant hush, and every eye in the room focused on the dark-haired woman. "When my family were using it to push her back at the beginning of the Summoning the range was small, because none of the power of the full Grand Summoning was behind it. When this is complete, it will reach beyond the kingdom, the continent."
She looked up, her expression more resigned than anything else. "That range is a very important thing. Because sixty years ago was the first time a Kellian was within reach."
Kendall felt Sukata flinch. Whatever they’d been expecting her to say, the Kellian hadn’t anticipated an accusation.
"While Solace is in the Eferum, her link to the Kellian is severed," Rennyn went on, her voice pitched a little louder so she could be heard over the ripple of disbelief running through the room. "But for the final day before she returns, the attunement will be complete, and will act like a door between worlds. Solace will be able to project her will into this world. As my family believe she did sixty years ago, when my great-grandfather was murdered."
The human Senior Captain, Lamprey, was first to manage to speak, his hand on the arm of a Kellian woman as if to hold back her anger instead of his own. "You – you are suggesting that one of the Kellian killed him?"
"Solace killed him. But, yes, I am saying that the weapon she used was a Kellian." The words were flat, precise. Rennyn hadn’t wanted to tell them this, but she was quite certain of what she was saying.
Noise rippled through the room again, but Sukata’s mother quelled it with a brief gesture. "We are not the original Ten, Lady Rennyn," she said, very carefully. "We have more human than golem ancestry, and are by no means lacking in will. Why would your family believe that Queen Solace is able to control us?"
Rennyn had been staring across the room – to the place Captain Faille was standing – but she turned her head at this, then said: "Kneel."
Captain Illuma knelt. Without hesitation. Lively astonishment crossed her face – the most human expression Kendall had ever seen on a Kellian – then she stood up again, every inch of her radiating shock.
"The Kellian were made to be inherited," Rennyn Claire said, as the entire room took a single, outraged breath. "Though Solace’s control over you will be considerably more profound than mine."
Kendall reached out blindly to take Sukata’s hand, and had it immediately crushed. The Kellian girl’s face was frozen with horror, staring at Rennyn as if she were a nightmare made flesh. Which, to the Kellian, she must be.
"And you’ve waited till now to tell us this?" asked – shouted – Captain Lamprey.
"You would have preferred this was known earlier?"
"Of course!"
"Wait." Lady Weston, pale but unwavering, moved to the forefront. "See the consequences, Elias."
"The consequences?!" Captain Lamprey’s dark skin had gone a purple shade, but he stopped shouting and swallowed harshly as the Kellian woman he was with took one of his hands between both of hers.
"Debates in Council," she said, gazing steadily at Lady Weston and not anywhere near Rennyn. The Kellian had all turned their faces from her. As if it hurt to keep looking.
"The question of exile or imprisonment," the woman continued. "Imprisonment. The question of execution, for safety’s sake. It is exactly what we will face now, but with so little time left it does not have the chance to reach the same fever-pitch it would have after a full month. And it means we were there at Darasum House."
This calm recitation of exactly why it mightn’t have been a good thing to know earlier did a small amount to ease the anger in the room. But even the Kellian woman who had spoken so reasonably could do no more than glance at Rennyn before her eyes flinched away. Sukata was shaking.