One meeting ended, and another began.

Sahshir despised these small details. But he knew well they were necessary for the negotiations. So he spoke, argued, planned, and gradually, an agreement was hammered out. Nagos seemed to dislike the negotiations even more than him. Often, during the discussions, his eyes would drift out to an open window. There, the sea blazed beneath the midday light.

Thus, that task was left to Sahshir and King Belosh. Belosh proved adept at the financial aspect of things. He had drawn up numerous reports on the value of different islands. Sahshir, meanwhile, seemed to be the only one who cared about the honor of their nations.

Several times, things had gotten heated. Nagos was able to mediate several heated disputes, fortunately.

Ironically, it was Yugos Suvvest who presented the most serious problem. The man was bitter and angry. And unlike Sen Kaba, he was unwilling to compromise and kept making demands that had to be reigned in. Nagos' attempts to placate him were largely a failure. They could only make any progress when Nagos offered to replace his arm.

Apparently, there were many worshippers of Fortenex in the Islands of Power. Fortenex had the power to create limbs of metal. Even if a man was wounded in spirit so his arm could not be restored, Fortenex could make one of steel. This placated Yugos enough to let everyone else finish the actual business.

Coincidentally, it also gave an incentive to keep the local populations alive. Which Sen was not happy about.

"Well, that was all necessarily dull," said Belosh, sipping wine. That was in direct violation of the teachings of Baltoth. Sahshir felt his opinion lower. "Now, perhaps we should move on to the more interesting part of this particular story."

"What story?" asked Yugos flatly, leaning on the table with his one good arm.

"Sen, I believe you wished to discuss it," said Belosh.

Sen had his hands clasped before him. "I am translating the Necromancia."

"What?" said Carath.

Yugos scoffed in contempt. "Impossible, this is the first time anyone has succeeded in reading the entire book through. Not without going mad. Let alone translating.

"I made a fortune having my priests tend to the men your Father drove mad."

"Yeah, I looked at the copy of the stuff once. I had a headache for weeks afterward," said Nagos nervously. "It starts out fairly normal, but the pages get weird as you go further in it. Then it gets really unsettling, and well...

"Actually, I stopped reading at that point."

Everyone stared at Nagos.

"I was given to understand that the Necromancia had only one copy. And that was indestructible," said Belosh.

"Oh, I was on the ship that got it for House Kaba," said Nagos. "That was a bit of an adventure. Ansif lost two men to that book, and we were attacked by monsters from the depths the whole way. Eventually, we just docked on Antion and walked the rest of the way."

"I can confirm this," said Sen.

"...In any case," said Carath. "Not reading the whole thing was a wise decision. The book and all its copies are imbued with the power of the Fish King. They are said to drive mortals mad."

"Which is why I decided to translate it," said Sen. "If he wants that information hidden, I want to know it. Besides, the Fish King is the God of the Unknown. He crawls beyond the range of conscious space. So it stands to reason that to expand our understanding is to harm him.

"I dedicated many of my finances to knowing the unknowable. I have already translated large parts of it."

"And how did you do that?" asked Carath, who'd been silent until now.

"It was a simple matter of delegation," said Sen. "I trained many people in the dialect of the merfolk. It was part of the schools I set up. From there, I had each of them examine a single page of the document. When a particular page proved too much for them, I divided it and had two people work on it.

"Once they had translated it, I had them write a page summary.

"By dividing the horror into manageable chunks, I hope to gain access to the full work. Of course, as our work advances, we've had to divide the pages into paragraphs. Still, by allowing my researchers plenty of rest, I can get maximum use from them.

"We've only had forty or fifty suicides in a staff of five hundred."

"An immense success," said Carath with a tone that said otherwise.

"My Father's efforts saw six hundred men dead. The rest were traumatized. All without any meaningful information" said Sen. "My record is a vast improvement.

"The men knew the risks and were paid extras for taking them.

"At any rate, with the summary, I devised an element of the Fish King's plan. Part of it was to convert the savage populations in the Islands of Power gradually. Their bloodlines are particularly susceptible to the taint.

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"Thus, I adopted a policy of organized destruction.

"By working them to death in plantations, I increased my personal fortune to combat this threat. At the same time, I could decrease possible combatants in the Fish King's armies. Take away his minions, and you will have weakened the power he gains from worship."

"A common misconception," said Yugos. "I'm not surprised you made it, Kaba.

"Gods do not gain power from worship. Worship merely allows them to manifest their power at the behest of their worshipper."

"I'm certain the gods want us to think that," said Sen, and he eyed Yugos with a murderous gaze. It was returned in kind.

Sahshir had thought his people would be more violent. But these 'civilized' men seemed to hate one another far more for their inability to kill directly. He supposed there was a lesson in there somewhere.

"Both are theories," said Carath quickly. "No need to dwell on which is true; let's deal with the business at hand."

Sen and Yugos looked at Carath with a somewhat less murderous gaze and finally relented. Sen shrugged. "For my part, it is irrelevant. Slowing the Fish King's power is also a valuable accomplishment. However, we can discuss something else.

"My actions have gotten the Fish King's attention, and he has stepped up his plans."

"How?" asked Sahshir.

"The runes I established deter the Fish King's bloodlines," said Sen. "However, he's trying to get back in.

"Slaves have already bred with better races, even here in Suvera.

"And I believe some form of the cult may have come about. Several areas were found where ritual sacrifices were set up. Humans killed, their bodies drained of blood."

"I have heard of these," said Yugos. "However, I took them to be the work of Zigildrazians." He eyed Alkela in contempt at this moment. Alkela, meanwhile, merely gazed back without making a sign.

Belosh shifted but said nothing. What was he thinking here?

"You perceived wrong," replied Sen. "Unlike some, I have been monitoring the depths of this world. Powers are shifting and changing, and disaster will follow if action is not taken."

"How is any of this my problem?" asked Sahshir flatly.

Sahshir did not particularly like any of these people. Carath seemed about as good as any of them got. However, none of them are considered good people. They were all obsessed with profits and holdings, not those who ran them. And if he did not have to get involved, he'd much prefer not to.

"If the Fish King awakes, he will destroy the world. Well, unless he is stopped," said Sen. "Anything that weakens him will help."

"Unless your actions hasten the rate at which he does awaken," noted Sahshir.

"And even putting that aside, Sen, how are you sure this is making a difference?" asked Nagos.

"I do not," admitted Sen. "I am striking at the Fish King in whatever way I can as I try to learn more of his power. And the cults that he has in Sorn have become a serious problem.

"Still, King Sahshir, I believe you could immensely help me here."

"What do you want me to do?" asked Sahshir.

"The Sword of Order is a powerful artifact. Tuor has given me the details," said Sen. "It possesses a unique ability. The power to restore the natural order of any element in the world. Winds summoned by spirits will quiet. Curses that have been in effect for years will be soothed."

"I'd like to hear the details behind that," said Yugos.

Was he not a priest? He didn't dress like one, but he clearly held some high position in the temple. Yet the man seemed to know virtually nothing of the divine if he didn't even know what the Sword of Order did. The blade had played an important role in the war against Sorn, perhaps even spelled their defeat. And the information was on hand, surely.

Belosh looked at him. "Sahshir, perhaps you could explain things to our friends."

Sahshir drew the blade slowly and set it across the table. "There are two aspects to this universe, in the end—the spiritual and the physical. The physical world is easy to see; it is all around us. In the table below us, on the wall. It has certain immutable rules that govern it. Even without the spiritual, those rules function.

"Then there is the spiritual, gods, demons, angels. They exist in a realm beyond the spiritual that is separate. The spiritual realm uses the physical realm as how battle is conducted. And sometimes, the spiritual realm interferes with the rules of the physical.

"The Sword of Order can dissipate the magics of other divine entities. It restores the natural order of the world."

"It will prove to be a counter to the Fish King," said Sen. "As an entity of the unknown, he is no doubt vulnerable to Order."

"What are you basing that off of?" asked Yugos.

"If the Order were to gain power over the world, miracles would disappear," said Carath quickly. "The natural order would be restored, rendering this world a mathematical algorithm."

"Algorithm?" asked Nagos, blinking. Yugos looked at him with contempt.

"A term in the language of mathematics," said Serna, who had been silent fo some time. "It is a set of actions determined by preset conditions. One that cannot be altered to fit unexpected events.

"In this metaphor, the spiritual world is an unexpected living event, I would guess."

Sahshir nodded. "This is true. However, my question remains unanswered. What do you want me to do?"

"I would ask for your help destroying these cults," said Sen. "In exchange, I can help you with your mission. When you return from your quest into Harlenor, I can provide you an escape and cover."

It dawned on Sahshir that this place was the precise opposite of Chaminus. Aside from himself and a few others, everyone here hated everyone else. They would gladly put a dagger in all the others. Even the court after Father had left had been alright. Asim had wanted Sahshir dead because he thought he was a failure. How was it possible for any kind of trust to be made in these conditions? Then Sahshir remembered Garrick's ideology.

Enlightened self-interest.

As if the pursuit of the self was the only worthwhile pursuit. Sahshir decided he was done with the charade. Kaba might help, and Sahshir would rather not have the man at his back as an enemy. "Very well then, Kaba. I will assist you in this. But I warn you, this will end in disaster for everyone involved.

"Throwing down the gauntlet with the gods is not something to be done lightly."

"The Fish King killed my mother and turned my father into even more of a monster," replied Kaba. "He threw down the gauntlet. And he will regret giving me the chance to pick it up."

"As long as you accept the risk and responsibility, you can do what you like," said Sahshir. "I will cooperate for the sake of my mission."

Carath gave Sahshir what might have been an apologetic gaze, and then the door opened. Sahshir looked back and saw a boy with long, messy black hair. "Brother!"

"What is the meaning of this?" snapped Yugos.

Sen raised a hand, however. "What is it, Makus?"

"There's been another killing," said Makus. "We need help now."

"Lockdown the site at once," said Sen to the guards. "No one will enter it. We'll be there as soon as we may." Then he looked to Sahshir. "It seems you'll have your chance to see firsthand what we face."

"So it does," said Sahshir. "Alkela, I'll need you for this."

"Excuse me," said Serna. "I'm learned in the dialect of the Fish King. I might be of some help here."

"Then you're welcome to come," said Sen. "Just don't get in the way."

"Wonderful, another interruption," muttered Yugos.

Then he walked out, and Nagos walked with him and the others. Nagos had his hands in his pockets. He looked to Sahshir and spoke. "You know, I'm getting a bit sick of Sorn."

"Not here, Nagos," whispered Serna.

Sahshir shared the opinion but said nothing.