Oberon's Dreams - By Aaron Pogue Page 0,26
collected more than a dozen of them, and he came to me for another.”
“Perhaps—”
“Every one has been an order for excess rations. If he has kept them all, he has enough to feed an army for years.”
“An army like the Guard?”
She shook her head, definite. “An army such as Gesoelig has never seen. We have our regiments, but Oberon does not maintain a standing force.”
Corin licked his lips. “You suspect he intends an uprising?”
“What? No. What would he have to gain from fighting Oberon? Oberon has laid low every pretender this corner of shadow can raise against him. Even Ephitel would not dare.”
“But in my time—”
She raised a hand, cutting him off. “Tell me nothing of your world, stranger. But Ephitel need not rise up against Oberon to betray him. And us.”
Corin frowned, considering everything he knew of the tyrant god. And what would that god do with a standing army? “You mean war? He intends to start a conflict?”
“Yes. Conquest. There are lands rich enough out there to make another kingdom. Another power.”
“There are other kings than Oberon?”
She frowned for a long moment. “No. Not yet. There are city-states and tribes. There are manling nations growing. There will be kings in time, but Delaen advised against establishing them outright.”
Corin frowned. “What? Who is this Delaen?”
“You will meet her soon enough. And…how many strictures am I breaking? You have a talent, stranger. You are a compelling listener.”
Corin grinned at her. “I’m compelling in more ways than you could imagine.”
She shook her head, irritated, but a blush touched her cheeks.
After a moment had passed, Corin said, “You suspect Ephitel intends to carve a nation from among the city-states?”
Aemilia frowned at him instead of answering. Her eyes darted again, searching the crowd for the blank-faced investigators. Corin was keeping careful track of the three in his field of view. None was close enough to overhear.
“I would expect him to choose a city somewhere near the center of the Meddgerad’s northern coast,” Corin said. “Those are the places we call—”
“No!” Aemilia shouted, pressing her palms hard over her ears and drawing far more attention from the investigators than Corin’s calm voice could have done. “You must tell me nothing of your world!”
“I won’t! I won’t!” Corin pulled her arms down and dragged her through the crowd, around a corner, and up another cross street just to escape the piercing eyes that had watched them.
He stopped on another busy street to let Aemilia catch her balance and her breath. He couldn’t quite suppress a chuckle. “You aren’t very careful, for a secret agent.”
“I am not a secret agent,” she said. “If anything, I am an auditor. The druids were not meant to hide in shadows, but Ephitel—” She stopped herself short and fixed Corin with a vicious glare. “Why can’t you hold your tongue?”
“You have my apologies,” Corin said shortly. “It will not be a problem again. Just lead me to this Delaen, and I will trouble you no more.”
Aemilia huffed once and rolled her eyes. Then she pushed away from the wall. “Very well. Come. It is not far now.”
CHAPTER TEN
Moving faster now, she led him up a broad boulevard and into a sprawling plaza. Paving stones of marble gleamed, bright and clear, and the storefronts facing the plaza displayed luxuriant wares. At the heart of the plaza stood a fountain larger than a house, carved with the figures of these lords and ladies, intermingled with woodland beasts and all manner of strange creatures.
This seemed the perfect place for a conclave of the king’s favored people. Corin marked three buildings among the opulent shops, any one of which might have served as a council hall. Any one of them would have deserved a plaza all its own in Aepoli.
Aemilia sped ahead of him, slipping through the crowd and clinging to the edges of the plaza. She moved along the storefronts to her right, away from all the halls Corin had noticed. He frowned, fighting to catch up with her despite the crowd, and asked, “What is this place?”
“The Piazza Primavera,” she said, distracted. “One of the busiest in the city, which serves us well. Do you see any investigators?”
“What?”
“You have displayed a knack for spotting them. Is anybody watching us?”
Corin frowned. “I see no one.”
“Good!” She grabbed his hand and dragged him off the plaza into a dark, close alley between two of the towering mansions. Corin gawked. At the very edge of opulence, this dismal alley looked too much like the rough