Serra sat in silence, Iiandere across from her. She was pouring through records of heraldry.
A bird of prey clutching a wheel, it didn’t sound familiar, but she also wasn’t an expert, and her records weren’t complete. But one didn’t trouble the heraldic council unless one had exhausted all other avenues.
Still, the inquisitor didn’t strictly need to be present. And having her watching was irritating. Serra couldn’t tell her to piss off, though. Or she could; it would just cause problems.
So she put up with it and swallowed the sigh that wanted to rise in her throat.
It was Iiandere who broke the silence. “Her Immenance has asked me to assess him.”
Hardly surprising, of course, she would want to know more after yesterday’s conversation. It was only sensible to employ Iiandere in that task, too; after all, she already had access.
“Why not the Captain?”
“I can’t trust her opinion; she won’t be honest with me.”
Sera paused, dipped her pen into the inkpot, and made a note to follow up on a likely crest.
“And you expect me to betray my husband?” It didn’t surprise her but still stung.
“I’ve made the determination that given your temperament, you’re more likely to provide a true accounting of his character.”
Serra turned the page, examined the inventory, and changed the subject. “Have you found anything relating to the family records I dug up?”
Iiandere didn’t answer immediately, and in the periphery of her vision, Serra observed the inquisitor examining her. Finally, the other woman spoke.
“I’ll be interviewing the mother today. Then we’ll know more. She’s seen something, I’m sure. It will just be a matter of securing her cooperation.”
Serra nodded. “Then let’s hope she’s amenable.”
They lapsed back into silence, the still air stretching between them. There was really nothing to discuss.
Yet Iiandere lingered, watching Serra work. Her presence was uncomfortable, and perhaps that was the point. Or maybe Serra had an overactive imagination.
Finally, she set her work aside and turned to the inquisitor. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“No, carry on.”
She didn’t get up, and Serra heaved a long-suffering sigh. She supposed they’d just have to get into it. “Iiandere-”
“Serra!” She looked up and found Alex approaching through the stacks.
“Alex?” She stood as he approached, and he threw his arms around her neck.
“I wanted to see you,” he said, “I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course not.” She squeezed him tight, his presence warm and comforting. “You’re always welcome.”
She led him back to the table and sat him down. She would have liked a chance to warn him, but too late for that.
Iiandere smiled faintly at him. “It’s nice to see you again, sir.”
“You’re that inquisitor, right?”
“Yes,” Iiandere said, “I had intended to introduce myself properly the other day, but things ended up becoming complicated.”
“They did,” he said, “didn’t they? I guess I didn’t help with that.”
“No,” Iiandere agreed, “you didn’t, though it was an impressive display.”
Serra’s eyes widened at the barb, but he just laughed. “You’re a spicy one. I like it.”
Iiandere flicked her ears dismissively. “I see no reason to lie about it. You made an already complicated situation more so. You’re a strange man; I find myself intrigued. Would you mind if I asked some questions?”
“Of course,” he said, “I’d be happy to.”
He turned to Serra. “Though, I had wanted to spend some time with Serra.
She smiled at him and took his hands. She wanted to tell him to go back to Lisril and get a lesson in the perils of speaking to an inquisitor. Instead, she said, “it’s alright; we’ll have time later.”
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“If you’re sure,” he said, turning back to Iiandere, “what would you like to know?”
“Well, as might befit my station, I find myself curious as to Dyrantoro religious practice.”
He pursed his lips. “I guess that makes sense,” he said, “it’s not the same everywhere, but most people in the federation are Protestant Christian.”
“Christian?”
He paused. “It’s actually pretty similar to what you call the Word. At least, that’s what I’ve gathered from Lisril.”
“And Protestant would be the dominant denomination?”
He opened his mouth, closed it, and blew a breath out between tightly sealed lips. “Basically?”
Iiandere raised a brow, and he shrugged. “It’s more complicated than that, but yeah, more or less.”
Iiandere pursed her lips, seemingly ready to push him farther, but in the end, she simply gave an irritated twitch of her ears and said, “this would be your denomination, then?”
“No,” he said, “ah, my mother raised me Catholic, but I guess you could call me a Deist.”
“A Deist?”
“I believe that the Lord is uninvolved in his creation.”
Iiandere blinked and shook her head. “You’re an atheist?”
“What?” he seemed genuinely shocked, “no, what? Don’t put words in my mouth; of course, God is real; I’m talking to the proof.”
“Beg pardon?”
He huffed a sigh. “Do you honestly think it could possibly be coincidental that we’re sitting here having a mutually intelligible conversation?”
It was the first time Serra had ever seen Iiandere at a loss for words; she found it more amusing than was perhaps appropriate.
Alex pressed on. “You Dyrantsia are impossible, you know. Natural processes don’t adequately explain you. If you were the result of alien meddling, we’d expect you to have some record of it.”
“Providence, then,” Iiandere said, regaining her composure, “but that would seem to contradict the idea that the Lady is absent.”
He frowned, shook his head. “Do you think it’s beyond the Lord God to set creation in motion as He pleases? That he needs His hand in all things to see His will carried out? No, I don’t think so. The Lord is not like you or I, who need to keep a hand on the rudder to maintain a ship in its course. The currents carry us where He wills, and simply because He wills it.”
It was bizarre watching a layman challenge the piety of an inquisitor and more than a little entertaining. Still, his ideas were more than unorthodox, and while his proximity to the Empress would probably protect him, it seemed prudent to change the subject.
“Alex,” she said, “I’d like to know more about your people. What’s it like living in your country?”
Iiandere shot a glare in her direction, but Alex just smiled. “It depends on where you live,” he said, “the canals of Dallas are different from the treehouses of Redwood. And of course, most people live in the Atlas towers, and moving around is cheap and easy, so some people never stop moving.”
“What’s an Atlas tower?” Iiandere asked, apparently curious despite herself.
He scratched behind his ear. “It’s a tower supported by a medium inside its super-structure rather than the tensile strength of its materials.”
“Why?”
“Why build something like that?” He asked, and Iiandere nodded. “You can get higher and bigger; we wouldn’t be able to comfortably house our population otherwise. The ring is actively supported, too. Which reminds me, of course, we have the people living off-world, too.”
“But now I’ve sat here telling you all the ways I can’t give you any details. There are commonalities; there’s no wilderness in the federation. All the land is managed and cultivated. There are no wild animals; we’ve engineered them all to our purposes.”
“How have you managed that?” Iiandere asked.
He shrugged. “The same way you domesticate animals, only faster. We use genetic engineering to make a super fox, or spider, or whatever, whose traits benefit us, then release it into the wild, and the new breed takes over the niche in a couple generations.”
“Interesting, and to what practical purpose can a spider be put?”
“Managing flies, for one thing,” he said, “but you can also engineer them to excrete substances other than silk. Concrete, for example, we have spiders that maintain our structures in good repair. You can get more exotic materials that way too, and use them for building.”
“Interesting,” Iiandere said, “to set such a creature to a practical purpose. It sounds as though Earth teems with wonders.”
“Nyx too,” he said, “if I have my way.”
“Is that so?”
He glanced between them, and his eyes lingered on Serra. “The Lord has given us reason and a universe penetrable to it. Why wouldn’t I want to share the fruits of our labor with my women?”
Iiandere fixed him with a pensive gaze. “You know,” she said at last, “I think you might actually mean it.”
“Of course I do; I love my wife, I-” he paused, smiled at Serra, “I love all my women.”
She smiled at him, licked his cheek. She felt the same way. It had only been a few days, but already so much had changed. Her priorities had shifted, and she found what had been her whole life had become secondary.
She squeezed him to her and reminded herself that he was being interrogated. “Would you go and tell Lisril I’m almost done here?”
He nodded. “Alright, but don’t be long, okay?”
“I’ll fly to your side,” she said, “the moment I’m able.”
He smiled and kissed her cheek as he stood. “See you soon.”
He slipped away and left a cold void where he had sat.
She turned and found Iiandere glaring at her.
“What are you doing?” the inquisitor demanded.
“My womanly duty and nothing more.”
“Are you?” Iiandere scoffed, “well, there’s a first time for everything.”
Serra’s jaw clenched. “That must be easy to say,” she said, “with a personality so repulsive no man has ever willingly escorted you.”
Iiandere blinked, visibly stunned, before regaining her composure. “Well, at least you’ve half the spine your man has. Maybe one day you’ll manage a bit of valor.”
Serra’s looked away, fist clenched; in other circumstances, she might have issued a challenge. But at that moment, she wasn’t at liberty.
She searched for a moment for a retort, but when she looked up, the insult died in her throat. There, cold green eyes glittering with starlight was Alex.
“Hey,” he said, voice hard and stony. “What’s your problem?”
Iiandere started, twisting around in her seat to face him.
Her posture relaxed, and she said, “what indeed?” She stood, pushing her chair in. “Unfortunately, I have another engagement; you’ll have to ask your fiancée.”
The inquisitor strolled past him, and he turned as though to follow, but Serra jumped to her feet, catching him by the hand.
“Don’t,” she said, “it’s not worth it.”
“Yes, it is,” he said, tugging his hand out of hers and taking another step after the other woman.
She caught him again. “No, it isn’t.”
She rounded on her. “Yes, you are.”
She swallowed, looking away from him. “I should explain.”