Chapter Eighty-Three: ‘Relations from afar...’

It was nearing the end of Lynnette’s shift. For the first couple weeks, it had been just her on round-the-clock guard duty, sleeping only rarely. After Harper was back on his feet, however, the man was gracious enough to begin trading off with her, since there was no one else in Sescoria who could really protect Queen Helen.

As ever, Lynnette observed Her Highness’s meetings in silence. Deliberations with the Minister of Defense took up most of the evening, as the man was--perhaps understandably--concerned about the troubling developments and conflicting reports in Sair. Lynnette imagined that the sudden talk of a possible civil war was unsettling to just about everyone on Eloa, so the fact that two entire countries, Lorent and Callum, both stood between Atreya and Sair was probably of little comfort to the minister.

The Queen, however, seemed as calm and collected as ever, and even though it took a while, she convinced the man that she would not overlook the matter, despite the Agency of Foreign Affairs still being in a questionable state after she had all but dismantled it.

Soon enough, Harper arrived to take her place.

Lynnette stood for a quick handshake. “Sleep well?” she asked him.

“Sure di--” The man broke himself off, glancing to his side and then back to Lynnette. “Darsihm says there’s something strange about you, Miss Edith.”

Lynnette eyed the Queen, who spared them a look before returning to her mountain of reading and paperwork. Lynnette stepped into the quiet hall so as not to disturb her, then addressed Harper again. “...Darsihm? Ah, is that your reaper friend?”

“Yeah. He’s been unconscious ‘til now, so he’s never seen you before.”

“Oh, I see.” She pulled off her glove to reveal her bone half-gauntlet. “Then, I’m sure he is sensing this. It apparently spooked Garovel and the others as well, but none of them could tell me anything about it that I don’t already know. I was meaning to ask you about it when your reaper woke up.”

“Oh! Shoulda shown it to me earlier. I know just as much about it as Darsihm does. Where’d you get it from, by the way?”

“A division of the Vanguard in Callum,” said Lynnette. “They were doing experiments on it. I didn’t intend to steal it from them, but... it just sort of... worked out that way.”

A grin split Harper’s flat face. “Might not wanna be so forthcoming with that information the next time someone asks. Lotta my colleagues are a touch stingy, you know, and they generally frown upon thievery--particularly of a thing like that.”

Lynnette pursed her lips at the man. “Well, I’m glad you’re not upset.”

“Oh, you can blame that on Darsihm. I used to be a real stick in the mud--not very lenient or understanding of other folks’ plights. But as I get older, I find his laidback disposition to be a more agreeable means of continuing through this dimly lit passage we here call existence.”

Lynnette just kind of looked at him.

Harper returned a chuckle. “Pardon my sophistry.”

“I suppose what I want to know most is whether or not I should expect any kind of drawbacks to wearing this gauntlet. So far, it’s been surprisingly easy to control.”

“Aha. Wondering what the catch is, huh? As far as I know, there isn’t one.” A beat passed, and then Harper added, “Well, apart from not being able to take it off.”

“So there really is no way to remove it?”

“Not without taking your arm with it. Oh, and I guess that leads to another downside, doesn’t it? Certain folks will try to kill you for it. Because it’s so rare and powerful, you see.”

“Right... Do you know why it can’t be removed normally?”

“That’s an easy one: because it’s not just bound to your arm. It’s also bound to your soul. It gives your soul physical weight relative to your own body. Like superglue. Except not really. In fact, forget I made that analogy. I suck at analogies. Dunno why I even tried.”

“Uh...?”

“Oh, and another downside I forgot about. Er--sort of. You might consider it a good thing, I guess.”

She waited with a disjointed expression.

“You can’t have kids,” said Harper. “Your living shadow will prevent your eggs from being fertilized.”

Lynnette’s eye widened.

“It’s weirdly sexist, too, because when it’s bound to a man, the shadow doesn’t prevent the guy’s sperm from fertilizing an egg. I guess it’s a matter of protection versus penetration? Or maybe it just has to do with bodily proximity. Very odd either way, if you ask me.”

She still didn’t have a response for him.

“On the plus side,” said Harper, “it means you don’t need to worry about using contraceptives. That’s neat, right?”

Lynnette just squinted at him. She was wondering if he was about to admit to joking, but apparently, he was being serious.

“Then again, if you really want to give birth, you could amputate your arm. Or try a surrogate. Personally, though, I’d just recommend adopting. Not enough people adopt, you know. The world already has plenty of kids in need of a good parent, but hardly anyone considers adopting unless they can’t have kids of their own. It’s a real shame.” Another beat passed as he watched Lynnette’s face. “Before you ask, yes, I’ve adopted many children.”

She wasn’t going to ask that.

“They’re all grown up now. It’s why I like to travel so much. They live all over the world. I’ve been thinking of doing it again, but now that I’m with the Vanguard, raising a child would be more complicated. Could also be more exciting, though.” He smiled and let his eyes wander upward a little. “Could take ‘em with me wherever I went and keep ‘em safe while I show ‘em the world. Fantastic, that’d be.”

Lynnette hadn’t realized Mr. Norez could speak at such length so easily. She was starting to think he’d just keep talking unless she stopped him.

“Anyhow, you’re still young. Probably haven’t given any real thought to such things, have you?”

She would have liked to say he was wrong, but he wasn’t. Lynnette had never been the type to fantasize about being a mother or a wife. If it happened, it happened. She didn’t see much reason to dwell on it any more than that. But now, apparently, her options had already dwindled without her knowledge.

An unsettling realization.

She resolved to think about it later. There was still an important question she needed to ask this person. “Can you tell me how to use Incineration?”

Harper briefly turned to the empty space next to him. “Are you talking about your glove’s hidden ability?”

She cocked an eyebrow. “Hidden? I only heard it mentioned in Callum. I don’t know anything else about it.”

“Ah... well, unfortunately, neither do we. I’ve heard that these items have secondary powers, just like aberrations themselves do, but I’ve only met a handful of people who are actually using them like yourself. And what’s more, I think only two or three of the ones I’ve met had managed to draw the power out. I didn’t think to ask for an explanation as to how they did it. Sorry.”

“Mm.”

“Having said that, though, I could point you toward some folks who can tell you more. There’re a few in Callum, but I’m guessing you’d rather not speak to those.”

“Preferably not.”

“Then, I know a fellow named Haqq Najir who’s been studying aberrations since they first started appearing. Crazy smart, that guy. And not a member of the Vanguard, either, so he definitely won’t rat you out for stealing.”

“How do I contact him?”

“I could call him right now, if you like. Knowing him, he’s probably still awake at this hour. Thing is, I’m sure he’ll want to meet you. He’s very... enthusiastic about his research. He’ll probably drop whatever he’s doing and--”

The sight of Prince David caught their attention. He did not seem to be in possession of his usual humor, hardly even acknowledging their presence before proceeding into the Queen’s chambers.

Lynnette eyed Harper. “Perhaps now isn’t the best time.”

“Perhaps not.” Harper placed a hand on the door but didn’t follow David just yet. “I’ll call Haqq in the morning, then. Go get some sleep. You look tired.”

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She rubbed below her one eye and squinted. “Will do. And tell me what they’re getting up to in there, yeah?”

“Sure thing.”

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-

Until now, Helen hadn’t had the time for this meeting, nor had she been particularly looking forward to it. She hadn’t seen Luther in person since fleeing Sescoria, but after her conversation tonight with David, Luther had jumped to the top of her priorities.

Luther smiled upon seeing her, David, and Harper approaching. “Ah, there she is. Finally, the prodigal sister deigns to grace me with her presence.”

As she looked at him, she could hardly believe this was the same man. The face belonged to him, but the expression seemed nothing of the sort. He was pleased. And she had a pretty good idea why.

David, Meriwether, and even Mehlsanz had told her about this--Luther’s madness. But even so, she’d felt as though they must’ve been exaggerating the point somewhat. Even after everything that had happened, it was still a difficult thing to take someone’s word for.

“And what, may I ask, is the purpose of your visit?” said Luther. “At this time of night, it must be urgent.”

Helen pressed the button on the speaker box to allow her voice through. “It seems that the Minister of Finance and the Lord High Treasurer have both inexplicably left the country tonight.”

“Oh?” said Luther. “How curious.”

“What do you know of this matter?” Helen was not in the mood to mince words, but she doubted that would make much difference to Luther right now.

Luther took a seat on his milky white bed. His prisoner’s uniform was also white, but the thick vertical stripes of orange ensured plenty of visibility. “What makes you think I know anything?”

“I have multiple reports stating that you frequented the Royal Treasury over the past eighteen months,” the Queen said.

“It is an interesting place.”

“You also claimed that your contingency plan involved money.”

Luther looked at David with false shock. “You told her? Brother, how could you?”

David merely observed their conversation in silence.

“Luther, what have you done?” she tried. “Tell me.”

“Is it not more fun for you to guess?” he said. “You will find out sooner or later, regardless. In fact, sooner, from the sound of it.”

Helen eyed his cell. “You want something in exchange, then.”

“I understand why you would think that, but the truth is, you have nothing I desire. Apart from my freedom, I suppose, but I suspect that is not on offer.” His eyes briefly went to David again. “And after the stunt with my television, I have no wish to make any more deals.”

Helen squinted. “I do not understand your purpose in doing any of this.”

“Then perhaps that is the question you should be asking me,” said Luther. “The crown has made you very demanding, sister. It is unbecoming. A lady should try to be more understanding of others’ feelings.”

“Explain, then. Why did you betray me?”

“Because this country needed me to,” said Luther. “There are over 150 sovereign nations in the world, and yet only ten of them have monarchs. And of those ten--”

“--only four possess virtually unchecked power as I do,” finished Helen. “I am aware.”

“Do you see no problem with that, sister?”

It was an argument she’d been hearing since childhood, an argument she’d once believed in herself. “So, rather than speak to me of your concerns, you decided that it was better to force a regime change by having me assassinated and plunging Atreya into a war with its neighbors. I fail to see how you could believe these actions would benefit the country.”

“Necessary change is often the most painful.”

“I suppose you would have Atreya be coddled by the illusion of a republic or democracy, instead?”

Luther only tilted his head at her.

“Do you honestly believe such governments can last in earnest? They can be founded on such idealism, perhaps, but it is inevitable that they will give rise to new royalty and be ruled by it. The only difference is that the kings of democracy can hide themselves behind a veil of elected figureheads.”

The man was quiet a moment as he blinked slowly at her. He looked at David another time. “Did you know she was this cynical?”

“Yes, I did. You would have known as well, if you had ever bothered to get to know her the way a brother should.”

“It seems we are guilty of that on both counts,” said Helen. “If I had known Luther’s heart even just one year ago, we would not have these problems now. And our family might still be together.”

Luther exhaled a short laugh and shook his head at her. “You genuinely believe that a monarchy is the best method of governance?”

“In this instance, ‘best’ is a term of gross oversimplification,” said Helen. “Monarchy is a high-risk, high-reward system. Under the right leadership, it can be more efficient, moral, and just than any other; under the wrong, it can destroy its people. That is why the most important decision a monarch will ever make is choosing his or her successor.”

“I suppose the person with all of the power would believe that,” said Luther.

“I did not come here to have an adolescent debate with you,” said Helen.

“No, you came here, because you had no choice.”

“Tell me what you have done to the nation’s finances, Luther.”

“Or what? You will have me tortured? How mundane.”

The Queen rolled her eyes and sighed. “I outlawed torture three years ago.”

“Is that supposed to mean something to me?”

“You might hold my word in low regard, but it does not matter. You will have plenty of time to see the truth for yourself.”

“Torture or not, I see no reason to tell you anything.”

“Hmm. You have a point.”

Luther cocked an eyebrow at her.

Helen turned to the others. “Please leave us,” she said.

David and Harper both hesitated at that request. Darsihm and Mehlsanz were also present, but their ghostly expressions remained unfazed.

“I am in no danger,” Helen assured them. “You can wait for me upstairs, if you prefer.”

Harper glanced at Darsihm, who shrugged and floated off, after which Harper soon followed. David frowned but did as she asked. Only Mehlsanz remained behind, floating silently by the Queen’s side.

And perhaps he sensed an unfavorable change in the atmosphere, because Luther backed away from the glass of his prison cell.

Helen iced her expression. She’d hoped she wouldn’t need to resort to this tactic, but it seemed there was no helping it. “One of the reasons I have taken so long to come visit you is because I wanted to do my homework first. It may not make up for years of inattentiveness, but on the other hand, I feel it grants me a bit of perspective.”

“What are you talking about?” said Luther.

“David told me that your categorical hatred of royalty is due to our father, but that is not the whole story, is it?”

Luther lowered his face a little but didn’t remove his gaze from the Queen.

“This was not the first time you have attempted to destroy a government,” said Helen. “Nineteen years ago in a tiny country called Snider--that was your doing, was it not?”

Her brother chose not to answer.

“The King of Snider had a reputation for brutality, but nonetheless, Father was on good terms with him. You spent only a single summer there, supposedly enjoying a leisurely time as any prince would. And yet, no more than six months after your visit, the King of Snider was overthrown in a bloody conflict. One might call that a coincidence and be satisfied, but for two entire years after that rebellion, there were several other families attempting to seize power--and all of their efforts were in vain. In fact, each claimant to the throne died rather gruesomely or mysteriously. Or both. Until, finally, democracy took hold.”

Luther was expressionless. “You believe me responsible for all of that? Perhaps I should be flattered.”

“Mm. It was quite difficult to find out the details of that summer visit of yours. You were careful, even then, but you were young. I have spoken with several of your attendants from that time, and they all mentioned your habit of disappearing. For me, however, the truly convincing piece of evidence was the girl.”

Luther turned away and paced toward the wall.

“I have her name written down.” She reached inside her flowing coat and pulled out a notepad. She flipped through the pages. “Lila Vance. She was only six when the King of Snider had her parents executed for blasphemy. She was only seven when you met her, no? Despite lacking the means, she was able to move out of Snider after your visit but before the rebellion. She has lived quite comfortably in Kahm ever since, under the name Lila Demitri. She is but a simple flower vendor, and attributes her wealth to her rich uncle.”

Luther spun around to confront his sister again. “Enough of this. What is your point? Are you trying to make me believe that you will hurt Lila if I do not cooperate? Do not make me laugh, Helen.”

“She has a husband and two daughters now,” the Queen continued, “but I am sure you knew that already.”

Luther looked at her coolly. “I know you are bluffing, sister. You would never do such a thing.”

Helen expected this. Now she had a choice to make about how best to convince him that she was not bluffing. The temptation, of course, was to stare him down and tell him he was wrong to doubt her with as much severity as she could muster, but she did not believe that would work on this person. This was a man who held no respect for her whatsoever. No, the best tactic here was surely just the opposite. She had to be nonchalant, as if taking the life of an innocent person was of no consequence to her, as if Luther’s suspicion made no difference at all. And that meant she could show no hesitation.

“My only dilemma now is that I have four candidates to choose from,” said Helen. “I assume you care for the husband the least, so I shall begin with him and work my way toward Lila. I am sure you will understand my conviction by the time I reach her. Or would you prefer that she die second as a small measure of mercy for her children?”

“You would never harm a child.”

Helen kept her expression utterly flat. “There are over forty million people in Atreya. Roughly one quarter of them are children. How many of those would die if I were unwilling to take the lives of two foreign girls? I wonder.”

Luther clenched his jaw and squinted at her.

“Perhaps I should start with the daughters, then, and spare the husband. That way might prove more expedient.”

“You wouldn’t--”

Helen returned the notepad to its place inside her coat. “I will bring them here to visit you so that you can see with your own eyes that I am not playing a trick with corpses. You will exchange words with them, confirm their identities for yourself, and then watch them die.”

“Fine,” said Luther, “you win. I will tell you what I have done.”

Helen’s gaze flickered. She hadn’t expected him to give in so quickly. He didn’t look especially unsettled by Helen’s threats, either.

“There is nothing you can do,” he said. “That is why I am telling you. Because it is already too late.”

Helen merely waited.

“You see, I have discreetly removed all of the money from the Royal Treasury and replaced it with borrowed funds. Atreya now holds nothing but debt.” He didn’t smile. If anything, he only looked even more callous than before. “You think you have won your kingdom back, sister? Far from it. Atreya belongs to over a dozen other countries.”

She said nothing, still, only letting her eyes drift vacantly to the side a little. If he was lying, then she would confirm it easily enough; but Luther would know that, of course, which meant that, for now, it was a safe assumption that he was telling the truth.

“They will come to you soon in search of their money,” he said. “Some may be understanding of your circumstances, but I do not think Intar, Horsht, Korgum, or Dozer will be very agreeable. You owe them quite a sum, and any one of them might become upset when they learn that you have done business with the others.”

Intar, Horsht, Korgum, and Dozer. Intar was difficult to deal with on a good day, but the other three were easily the most volatile nations on the continent. As soon as he uttered their names, there was no hope of Helen concealing her exasperation. She shut her eyes and turned away from Luther to press a hand to her forehead.

She needed to think. She’d expected the problem to be bad, but this? Could anything even be done? If the Royal Treasury really only contained borrowed money now, then everything would be made more difficult.

Whatever the case, she had to start asking questions. She required information, and Luther was perhaps the only person who could give it. “You are talking about nearly two hundred billion troas. How could you have possibly removed that much money from the Royal Treasury without anyone noticing?”

“Have you not realized by now?” said Luther. “Someone did notice. In fact, not only did they notice, they helped me. But not because they wanted to, of course.”

Helen put it together. This was why the Minister of Finance and the Lord High Treasurer had fled. Luther bribed or coerced them. Either way, it didn’t make much difference now. She moved on to a more important question. “What did you do with the money you removed?”

“That was the real challenge. I had no great need of the money, myself. If anything, it was a burden and a risk to keep around. I considered throwing it all into a volcano, but that would have required quite a bit of manpower, and frankly, I doubted that any reasonable person would perform such a task for me without succumbing to temptation. In the end, I gave some of it away to the less fortunate. I would have liked to give more, but too much would have surely drawn attention from the media, so the rest went to Abolish for their services. It would seem I did not get my money’s worth on that front, but then again, I knew I was overpaying from the beginning.”

Abolish. She would have liked to go a while longer without hearing that name again. If they had the money, there was no telling where it was now. She didn’t even know if any of them had survived the Battle at Rathmore. Harper hadn’t been able to tell her how many he killed.

She intended to press Luther for details, but she didn’t expect to learn anything else of use, and indeed, that proved to be the case. She decided to leave before Luther wasted any more of her time.

Mehlsanz followed her up the prison stairs. ‘What are you going to do now?’

‘...I am open to suggestions.’

‘Wow. It’s that bad, huh?’

‘If you have any ancient wisdom for me, now would be the time.’

‘I’m not sure I have any ancient wisdom that’s worth two hundred billion troas.’

‘I thought as much.’

‘Perhaps we should find someone who can materialize gold or silver,’ said Mehlsanz.

Helen stopped climbing the steps to look at her reaper. ‘Do you know of such a person?’

‘No, but I’m sure they exist.’

She started up the steps again. ‘Yes, well, when you find someone like that, let me know.’

‘Knowing our luck, they probably work for Abolish.’