“That is, perhaps, more than we received,” Tartibsizlik said.
“Indeed?” Lilith arched an eyebrow in surprise.
“Indeed. Two days ago, Court time, the remnant tachyon streams of seven of our knights returned to the entroposphere. The other sixteen have yet to return, and we have been unable to detect their energy signatures in the continuum.”
Lilith grimaced. “That strikes me as unusual. I thought a knight’s energy pattern always returned to the Source?”
“Indeed.”
The silence was thick in the room; finally, Lilith spoke again.
“Well, would that not imply they remain — functional?” Lilith was not sure the term “alive” applied to Knights of Chaos.
“One should think,” Tartibsizlik said. “The only way to completely remove a knight’s signature energy pattern would be to lock it in a ground-state configuration. A full ordering at ground state would completely eliminate the original signature, even if the energy was subsequently released.”
Lilith thought for a moment, or pretended to. Based on the reports, she was almost certain that that was exactly what had happened. “I am not sure how that would be possible. Certainly, no demon could do such a thing.” She shrugged. “Therefore, your knights must still be alive.”
Tartibsizlik simply stared at her, hir face shifting in race and gender every half deminute or so. Finally, the baron(ess) continued. “Do you seriously think that a Knight of Chaos would remain prisoner for any length of time? It would fight to the death for its freedom and to return to the Source.”
“So how can I help you?” Lilith asked, trying to end this standoff.
“Who or what was the target of the Maelstrom?” Tartibsizlik asked.
Lilith shrugged. “Mount Doom.”
Tartibsizlik blinked in a highly unusual display of surprise. “Mount Doom? Is it not shut down?”
“It has been relit by a demon who claims to be the heir of Orcus.”
Tartibsizlik tilted hir robed head. “A challenger to the status quo?”
“No,” Lilith said emphatically. “It is an attempt to reestablish an old order. This demon seeks to restore the Order of Doom. An order that these courts”—she gestured to their surroundings—“the Courts of Chaos, are dedicated to challenging.”
Tartibsizlik stared at Lilith for several moments. S(he) was the only person Lilith had ever met — or rather, the only non-divine person she had ever met, who could behave so unnervingly in her presence. Lilith was the one who was supposed to make others uncomfortable.
“Very well,” Tartibsizlik finally said, nodding to her. “I appreciate your assistance in this matter.”
“As always, you are welcome.” Lilith smiled graciously.
Tartibsizlik bowed. “I take my leave, Your Majesty.”
“Of course,” Lilith replied. The baron(ess) turned abruptly and marched towards the doors, which quickly opened for hir at the butler’s hand wave.
As the doors closed with a solid thud, Yshmael coughed politely. “(S)he gives me the creeps,” the archdemon said.
“Indeed,” Lilith replied.
The bridge had been cleared of extraneous personnel, leaving only Captain Cranshall, the bridge crew at their stations, Chancellor Alighieri, Wing Arms Master Heron and Arch-Vicar General Barabus. Currently the captain and crew were going through their very thorough set of operational checklists for launching a new aerial vessel. Once done, the captain would relay the results to Wing Arms Master Heron.
As Barabus understood things, once Chancellor Alighieri had ceremonially turned the ship over to Captain Cranshall, the vessel was under military control and not that of the chancellery. This meant that the captain was the supreme commander of the vessel, reporting to Wing Arms Master Heron on matters of strategy and specifically, the mission. Operational command of the Inferno was Captain Cranshall’s sole province. This, Heron had told him, was in line with how their traditional aerial fleets worked.
It was, of course, not completely different from how the Rod worked. The Rod’s ships were actually provided by the Church of Namora and manned by her fleet sailors. The Rod were essentially the chartering clients of a large part of Namora’s fleet; Torean’s Rangers chartered a large number of ships as well. The remainder of the fleet that was not chartered was used to patrol and protect the Holy Etonian Empire’s interests at sea.
As a client, Barabus could tell fleet officers where to go and when he wanted to be there; but it was at their sole discretion as to how that was achieved. Thus, things were not dissimilar to Barabus’s role at sea; however, due to the Oorstemoth’ s more integrated forces, Heron could also order ships to attack enemy vessels. Under normal conditions, Barabus could only request such assistance. In the event of a war, as declared by the Holy Etonian Emperor, Barabus’s rank would become that of Holy Etonian Warlord, and he would have overriding command of the Rod, the Rangers, and the Fleet, as well as the Sky Wardens of Krinna and the Healers of Hendel.
Captain Cranshall presented the checklist to Heron, who reviewed it. “I wish circumstances had allowed me to review the items on this checklist in more depth ahead of time, Captain. There are enough variations from our traditional ships that I am not completely confident of my full comprehension of the list; however, I trust that you and Chancellor Alighieri have been thorough in your preparation of this list, in accordance with all appropriate military and legal standards?” He looked at the Captain and Chancellor.
“Aye, Arms Master. We have followed all standard new ship documentation and checklist protocols and are confident in this list,” the captain replied.
“Our courageous captain is completely correct—” Dante began.
“Excellent then. Approved!” Heron quickly snapped, cutting the chancellor off in midsentence to avoid another long and tedious answer.
“XO Stevensword?” the captain barked.
“All required and optional systems are go! All dock tethers are free and clear!” the executive officer shouted back.
At least the Oorstemothians can speak tersely when needed, thought Barabus. That was a huge relief.
“Bring us to hangar launch altitude,” the captain ordered. XO Stevensword began issuing the commands to raise the ship out of her cradle.
“Mister Tallswan, inform the hanger crew to open the hanger doors!” Cranshall ordered.
“Contacting,” the comms officer replied.
As the Inferno rose above her cradle, as indicated by the viewing mirror at the front of the bridge, the hangar doors began parting. Once they had fully opened, Cranshall ordered, “Take us out, Stevensword!”
A rumble from the belly of the Inferno could be felt as the forward drive engines engaged and the ship began moving forward, with a deep and oddly comforting thrumming sensation felt throughout the ship. Barabus was impressed by the seemingly effortless motion of the giant vessel. This thing was huge, and very heavy, but it was proceeding forward incredibly smoothly. Far smoother than any ship he had been on; much more like one of the giant imperial carpets that the emperor and his family used.
Within a few moments, the ship’s viewing mirror was showing an unobstructed view of the outside landscape. Barabus could see Keeper’s City off to the far left in the mirror.
Another few moments and XO Stevensword shouted, “We are clear of the hangar, sir!”
“Excellent! Take us to an altitude of six leagues!” Captain Cranshall ordered.
Barabus saw Heron start. “Six leagues?” The wing arms master asked. Ninety-five thousand feet was extremely high, but he had little experience with flying ships like the Inferno.