"That issue is closed."

Cardinal Zaarbach wouldn't believe what he heard. Employing godless to fight godless. "But, your holiness, from Rhuin?"

"We will not use the heathens from Rhuin in the field. Only as instructors. Learned men, if you want."

That really closed the discussion. Holy mother church and her tool, the Holy Inquisition, hunted practitioners of witchcraft and heathen beliefs, but in truth she was more concerned with deviants. The closer to her bosom the more dangerous were false beliefs. Learned men, even heathen priests visited the Midlands with a blessing of the church.

With the official blessing of the church at least. Ira was just a little too close for comfort, and Rhuin just a jump tower further away. The church kept her activities away from the Sea of the Mother, and Rhuin, Ira and Khanati all turned a blind eye to what happened to anyone who spread forbidden words or used the gifts without sanction here.

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Officially the church had a monopoly on miracles. They were a sign of His powers. Officially any unsanctioned miracles thus had to be the work of Satan, and the thought of several eights of learned men arriving within a few eightdays didn't ring well with Zaarbach.

Battlemages were the realm of heathens. That the church should sanction the use of them was bad news, even if no papal forces would include them. Not in the beginning, at least. What do we do when we find out that the balance has twisted away from our favour?

He kissed the outstretched ring, rose and bowed before leaving the papal chair.

Garnhalt would have even more forces available then. Was it days since retaking fortified Mintosa had seemed an impossibility? Now it was suddenly a horribly costly possibility. Strong in faith, they would truly need to be strong in faith the boys and men who were sent against those walls.