The three remaining members of the Basement flinched slightly at my approach. I didn’t know how much of that was because of the attack or because they’d just seen me shrug off a hole in my torso. From their expressions, they were probably in too much shock to differentiate much, anyway. Not that it mattered.
I glanced at what remained of my assailant, lying in a small puddle of blood. Her eyes stared upwards, still wide open, her face distorted in a grimace.
“Now what am I going to do with you?” I mused in a casual tone, looking at her comrades. The two men flinched again.
“They weren’t involved,” Elis spoke up. His own gaze was hard.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
“Their surprise is real,” Elia said. “As far as I can tell, they didn’t know anything about this.” She grimaced. “Of course, we couldn’t tell what was about to happen with the other one, either.”
I nodded. That was really concerning. “You didn’t catch any hostility?”
They shook their heads, and Elia’s grimace deepened. “As far as our ability knows, there was nothing to see, because until that moment, she didn’t have any intention of killing you.”
I nodded and stepped back from the remaining Basement members. I’d decide what to do about them later. For now, I looked at Tenira and Aston, who was standing there with his hands crossed behind his backs and a stony face.
“Do you think she was controlled?”
“It shouldn’t be possible,” Tenira said, “but given what happened …”
“Hm.” I frowned. “That sudden increase in her strength was something else. It took us all by surprise, except Aston, I guess.”
My bodyguard inclined his head. “That’s because I knew to watch out for something like this, my lady, so I didn’t stop seeing these people as potential threats.” From the way he looked at his subordinates, butts were going to be kicked.
“From your own experience?”
“Yes, I learned about it from Mior. This wasn’t outright possession, I don’t think, but not a normal technique.”
I sighed. “Well, we do have a number of spirit-children among the opposition now. One of them was probably involved. Who knows what sort of abilities they might have?”
Tenira drew in a sharp breath. “That is a scary prospect. You think there are more like this just waiting for us?”
I shook my head. “This was probably done by someone close by, though not anyone we’d see. I don’t think there are any real long-term sleeper agents. That ability would be too game-breaking.”
“What?”
“Sorry, just an expression.” I ran a hand through my hair, watching as Aston sent out guards from the room. “There are limits to spirits’ descendants’ abilities. That could come from the Greater Spirits or just because of how much qi it takes, it doesn’t really matter. But I doubt anyone in the Zarian templar wannabes is a child of a Greater Spirit. Certainly not a direct child.”
Tenira nodded slowly. “So, they’ll be weaker than you.”
I smiled wryly. “Oh, I’m probably right at the upper end of the curve of what’s possible for spirit-children, given my origins. And most abilities seem to be more ‘non-combat’ focused. Their shapeshifting is going to be a lot worse, at least. Not to sound arrogant, but you need more than a little mental fortitude to get to using shapeshifting at my level, not to mention knowledge and practice.”
“We can only speculate,” Kajare said. “For now, we have more pressing concerns to attend to.”
“Right.” I turned back to the Zarian we’d been talking to.
They still looked like they could hardly believe what had happened. Not that I could blame them. Coping with assassination attempts out of the blue was nothing new for me, by now, and I managed to roll with it pretty well, all things considered. That didn’t make them any less shocking, or dangerous.
“We’ll need to go through your organization with a fine-toothed comb,” I told them. “I want you to work with us on that.”
“Of course, Your Highness,” the older man answered. “We need to find out everything about how this could have happened, and if there are any further traitors in our ranks.”
I nodded. “Frankly, I’m not sure you have the expertise in terms of cultivation to investigate it properly. Oh, I’m sure you must have sympathizers higher up in the Dominion, or you wouldn’t be standing here. But not the kind of strong cultivators with experience you need.”
They exchanged another one of those looks, and inclined their heads. “Of course, Your Highness,” the younger woman repeated. “We’ll be glad to work with your people.”
“Good. This might lead to closer contact and give us a closer look into your organization than without this unfortunate turn of events, but we should make the best of it. And I also intend to make proper use of you going forward.”
The older woman looked up, her eyes brightening. “You will?”
I smiled thinly. “Oh, yes. Consider yourself recruited.”
One of Jideia’s goals in this must have been to sour my relationship with the Basement and prevent us from working together. I wouldn’t let him succeed in it. As I’d mentioned, we would probably come in closer contact, after this, and I’d take control of them a little more than I might have wished, but the attack had changed the parameters of the situation. It might be a calculated risk, but I think it’ll work out. And if not … so long as we’re careful not to make ourselves truly vulnerable to them, we’ll always be the ones with the strength to crush them.
“You won’t regret it,” the older woman swore.
I smiled again. “I look forward to working with you.” It wasn’t a lie.
----------------------------------------
The sound of conversation, laughter, and the clinking of glasses and cutlery echoed down the building, still too close for comfort. Or at least, too close for me to feel comfortable, although I’d gotten my introverted aversion to crowds and parties under control.
“They seem to be enjoying themselves,” Yarani observed.
I grinned. “See, I told you this was a good idea.”
We stood in the palace that used to belong to the mayor of the city, where someone had decided to quarter me and managed it in a remarkably short time. I wasn’t above taking advantage of it, and had decided to throw a dinner for my senior officers, the leaders of the army, and a few other guests. We had, after all, successfully conquered the city, more or less, even if it hadn’t been very hard. And after that, for tonight, I’d decided on a party with a broader guest list, inviting some of the important Zarian who’d found themselves in our care.
Stolen story; please report.
Of course, I was only technically throwing the party. In reality, I’d simply expressed what I wanted and let other people make it a reality. Tenira had rolled her eyes and complained about more work, but so half-heartedly that I knew she thought it was a good idea.
She shook her head now, declining to comment on that. “It certainly helps to take our thoughts off the fact that someone tried to kill you. Again.”
Yarani tugged at the sleeves of her gorgeous blue dress. “I don’t think there’s any question that the Storm was behind it. Again, as you said. I don’t know about you, but I’m getting sick of it.”
“Of course.” I pulled a face. “And I know it will be far from the last time. He’s not losing much, is he? He’ll just keep trying. Keep me on edge. Eventually, he might find a way. There’s not much I can do to hurt him in return. I can’t really strike at him, certainly not with anything I’m not doing anyway.”
Tenira frowned deeply. “Yes, it’s not a pleasant prospect. You don’t sound very afraid of dying, though.”
I sighed, watching rain patter against the window of the corridor we were standing in. We hadn’t planned to meet here, it had just happened that way. Even in a back corridor few guests would see, the window was patterned with delicate patterns of flower petals, the frame gilded. It showed the age of this building, and its city.
“Jideia might be trying to kill me, but I have a Greater Spirit protecting me, too,” I answered Tenira after a moment. “I’ve survived everything so far. Maybe Rijoko wouldn’t expend too much effort, if a time comes where he’d have to, but the Storm’s so far limited himself to working indirectly, too. And there’s always Mior. Somehow, I doubt they would just let me die even if Rijoko decided to write me off.”
“Let’s hope you’re right,” Yarani muttered.
I nodded soberly. “Yeah. I guess the better things go for us, the more we risk pushing Jideia into taking new risks.”
We all fell silent for a moment, considering that. I took Tenira’s hand and felt her give me a reassuring squeeze. Even though they would be in danger, too, the two of them and the rest of my companions were clearly concerned for me, not for themselves. I appreciated that more than I could properly express.
“We should go back to the party,” Tenira finally said.
We started walking, accepting her change of subject easily. “I wasn’t sure it was a good idea to invite Basement members as well as city functionaries,” Yarani said. “But at least there hasn’t been any violence.”
Only some of the Basement leaders were actually there, of course. Many would have security concerns about outing themselves if the Zarian got wind of it, and had family or friends who might pay the price for it. That only made sense.
I nodded. “I was afraid the latter would see it as an insult. But I suppose that has its good side, too. It lets us see who’s going to be openly offended, and who’s smart and cool-headed enough not to act on it.”
Tenira chuckled. “You might be underestimating the effect of being violently conquered, love.”
I pulled a face. While it was undoubtedly true, the notion that I was leading a conquering army that would, by its very nature, subjugate the conquered territory and people took some getting used to.
The concert of voices in the hall took a noticeable dip when we entered. The people closer to us bowed deeply, some of them fast, while some took longer to notice us or react, so the effect looked a little odd. I nodded and made my way through the hall with my girlfriends at my side. The guests parted in front of us like the red sea. Most of them wore a shimmering rainbow of silk, other precious fabrics, gold, jewels, and things I couldn’t name and wasn’t very interested in.
At moments like these, I was very glad my own wardrobe and cosmetics were handled by professionals. This evening, I wore a set of blue and silver robes with lots of gold thread and pearls, which still somehow managed to seem elegant instead of overdone. At least the party gave me the opportunity to see Tenira and Yarani equally prettied up. It was worth it for that sight alone.
I didn’t recognize many of the people filling the hall, but of course my own identity would be rather obvious. I wore a slim golden circlet set with gemstones for the occasion, and its weight seemed to increase on my head under the regard of the guests. But I looked past them to the main table, where Kajare stood and turned towards us. Instead of robes, he wore an outfit more like a suit of shimmering dark silk, which emphasized the set of his shoulders a lot better. I knew he’d caught my gaze when his lips twitched slightly as he bowed and offered me his arm.
“You still look gorgeous, Inaris,” he said. I’d officially been gone to change my outfit, although I’d only exchanged the shoes.
“Funny, I was about to say the same,” I replied and smiled at him.
“You as well, Tenira, Yarani.” He nodded at them. “The party seems to be a rousing success.”
“Right.” I turned to look over the guests again.
Many of the movers and shakers of the city had fled along with most of the people in the high stages, but a surprising number had remained and surrendered without putting up a fight. It might be that they’d been too distracted by the Basement to get clear in time. And clearly some stayed because this was their home and they felt honor-bound to remain instead of run away.
Niali was the administrative capital of a province, or at least a sector, which constituted a smaller unit. The governor had fled, but apparently, he had less actual power than the major, who was from an old and wealthy family. That one numbered among those who’d stayed.
After a moment, I shook my head and turned back to the others. It would probably be better to talk to him in a more private setting later.
“You know what the party is missing?” I asked, grinning. Then I captured Kajare’s hand. “You have the honor of the first dance, my prince. Come on.”
At my discreet wave, the attending servants removed one of the lower, now empty tables and cleared space for a dance floor. Someone brought in a recording crystal and music started to resound through the room. I pulled Kajare to the center of the dance floor, and he put his hands around me with a twinkle in his eyes. Then the music swelled and we started to move.
I’d had the way he placed his hands to warn me we were going to do a Terbekteri dance. Kajare was a good dancer, and guided me through the steps with a light touch. The people watching us faded into the background of my awareness. Cultivator dances were nothing for the faint of heart, and could only have been performed by the best dancers and acrobats on Earth. One time, he lifted me into the air with one hand, and I jumped clear over him for the next move. My body seemed to know the steps. As we danced, I recalled glimpses of a sunlit hall, strands of music, and an instructor calling moves. Apparently, dancing had been part of my education, just like riding and poetry. Not that I needed resurfacing memories to know I couldn’t pen a good sonnet if someone held a gun to my head.
When we stopped, more couples had joined us on the dance floor. The next song was a quick one in three-eight time, and I grinned at Kajare, then adjusted our position before starting to move in a dance from Earth. He didn’t know the steps, of course, but he followed my lead well, and it was simple enough, since I’d only chosen a basic Viennese waltz. I’d never been much of a dancer and would have been hard-pressed to do more than that, anyway, but my cultivation gave me enough grace to hide that fact.
When we finally stopped after several more pieces, over half of the guests were dancing, and I was surprised to realize how much I’d been enjoying myself. I left Kajare to Tenira, who cut in with a grin, and ambled across the room.
I paused close to one of the large windows offering a nice view over the city, which was lit by thousands of lamps that spread out like a sea of fireflies. Yarani joined me there not two seconds later.
“Should I be offended you didn’t ask me to dance?” she teased.
I smiled. “Later. I need a break.”
My girlfriend followed my gaze out the window. “It’s a nice view,” she conceded. “Although it’s going to be a little brighter than usual tonight.”
“Oh?”
She pointed, and as I followed her finger, I found a warmer spot than most not too far away from the palace. It quickly grew, until there could be no doubt this was no lamp or lightstone.
The sight quickly destroyed my good mood. I sighed. “You disapprove?”
Yarani shook her head. “No. On the contrary. But many people will. Especially of those you’ve gathered here.”
Already, the fire was starting to be noticed. I watched as more and more of the guests paused to look out the window. The mayor turned unerringly to me, his dark eyes glinting in the light of the lamps. I met his gaze calmly and held it for a few seconds, until he bowed his head and glanced away.
“No doubt burning the Temple of the Storm will foster resentment, even hate,” I agreed. “But I’m hoping that once people realize how much our system offers them, the effect will reverse.”
“You could have waited until then,” she pointed out.
I shook my head. “That would be an uncertain gamble. Better to get it out of the way now, while we’re still in the ‘conquer and occupy the city’ phase. That’ll make it more clearly a part of this war. Plus, at least we made sure no one could be caught in the flames.”
Yarani nodded. “I suppose it sends a pretty clear message, too. Especially after the assassination attempt.”
“Yes, but I hope that one won’t become public knowledge.”
We watched the fire for a moment, before Yarani laid a hand on my arm. “So, how about that dance you just promised me?”
I smiled and took her hand, turning to head back to the dance floor. “Your wish is my command.”
I tried to put the issue out of my mind and get back to enjoying the evening. After cycling through my three partners and roping in Lei and Elis, who turned out to be pretty good, I even managed it.