Of Kings and Killers (Elder Empire Sea #3) - WIll Wight Page 0,44
was now crouched on the flat of the blade, scanning the floor as though there were something dangerous there.
Calder missed Kern and Teach more than he’d thought possible.
“What are you doing, Bliss?” Calder asked.
“Cockroaches,” she whispered.
“Did you see a roach?” The outer Palace by the walls was filled with shops and ordinary people, but this was the main Palace complex. It was kept fastidiously clean, alchemically sprayed against pests daily, and most of the walls were invested against intrusion even by insects. He had never seen a bug of any description here.
Bliss’ eyes didn’t stop moving. “I dreamed I did.”
Calder wondered why he had invited her to this meeting.
The conversation would have been more productive with just him and Cheska, and he pulled up a chair beside the Head Navigator, propping up his feet on the table beside hers.
He looked over at Cheska, but she was lost in her own thoughts. “How bad is it?” he asked.
She let out a breath. “Good news first: Loreli snuck off somewhere, reports suggest Izyria, and it seems like Estyr really did die of her wounds. None of our agents in Rainworth have reported seeing her or hearing anything from her all week.”
“No bad news could possibly crumple my confidence after hearing that,” Calder said, dry. “Continue.”
“The end of the good news is that we gave it an honest run. The bad news is that we lost.”
A servant slipped into the room and lit the fireplace with alchemical accelerant and a match. In moments, flames danced over the logs.
Calder watched the fire grow. “Could be worse. It could be raining.”
Rain had pattered constantly on the roof for the last hour. Outside, thunder rolled.
Cheska didn’t laugh, but some of the distant horror in her face retreated. She kicked his booted foot. “I’m serious. If we can’t win, the best thing we can do for the Empire is to give in and leave ourselves to the mercy of the Regents.”
“What about you, Bliss? What do you think?”
Bliss had hammered a second sword into the wall, climbing even higher. “Every Elder we’ve ever examined or conversed with has desired the fall of the Empire. Every prophecy concerns a step toward human disunity and the breaking of civilization. I do not want anything that Nakothi wants.”
The obvious question hung in the air between the three of them, resonating with the crackling off the flames, until Calder brought it to life. “Then what do we do?”
“Win.”
“Thank you for your contribution, Bliss.”
Bliss glared at him. “Don’t talk to me as though I am a child.” She was currently curled up against the corner of the ceiling. “I mean what I said. This game between the Guilds is not worth playing if it hands the victory to the Elders, but we need the authority of the crown to force the governors to spend resources keeping the Great Elders sealed. Most of them see it as Guild business and no immediate threat, so the security on the Great Elders has never been weaker. We must put an end to the Independents, and as quickly as possible.”
“Are the Regents not aware of that? They know more about what it takes to oppose the Great Elders than anyone.”
“I believe that the Regents trust in their own power and the power of the Emperor, but nothing else. They see us as sheep in need of protection.” At the moment, Bliss looked more like a bat than a sheep. “If they were interested in explaining themselves to us and how their methods would protect us from the Great Elders, I would listen, but they are not. So we must defeat them.”
Cheska threw her head back against her chair. “How? If we knew how to win, we’d have done it already.”
“We need another Reader on our side who understands our full capabilities and can operate on the level of the Regents.” She looked to Calder. “Wouldn’t that be your responsibility?”
Calder coughed. “I appreciate your estimation of my abilities, but—”
“No, wait!” Cheska shot bolt upright. “You have the greatest Reading teacher in all of history! Light and life, I’ve been so focused on what everyone says: never Read anything the Emperor touched. I’ve ignored it as a resource. You have a window into the mind of the Emperor!”
“No,” Calder said.
Both Guild Heads stared at him.
“I’m here because I don’t want to be him. If that’s what it’s going to take, you’ll need someone else.”
There was a long pause before Cheska said “Okay. I’ll do it.”