Aylem, Is’syal, Harvest Season, 6th rot., 4th day, evening – Foskos time

  I actually slept in the saddle on the flight home. I didn’t awaken until Asgotl started his banking turn to land at the Is’syal House of Mounts. There was an officer from the citadel waiting for us to land. She ran up as soon as Asgotl was on the ground.

  “Great One, there has been an accident,” the Lieutenant began.

  “My babies,” I panicked and started to undo the flying straps.

  “The twins are fine, Great One. The Revered Lyappis slipped on the back stairs to the kitchen and fell. She’s being treated at the healers’ chapel shrine on the second floor for broken bones and a concussion."

  “Can you take care of yourself, Asgotl?” I asked him.

  "Of course, I can," he replied. "When she wakes up, tell Lyappis she needs to stop making out on the back stairs.”

  That made me laugh despite the adrenaline of my worry.

  Imstay and I shed our flying cloaks and leggings for the grooms to take and half-walked, half-ran up the causeway to the south-side palace doors. I ran down the hallways, startling those I passed, and through the door into the chapel shrine of Mugash, nodding my reverence to the bust of Mugash on her tall pedestal as I sped inside.

  A young healer at the greeting counter was scared of me, but that didn't prevent her from keeping me out of Lyappis’s treatment room. “I’m sorry, Great One, but Healer Kidsodos is currently treating the concussion. There is swelling. Please do not disturb her.”

  Imstay caught up to me, “How is she?”

  “The Revered Lyappis has experienced some occipital bleeding and swelling inside the skull,” the young healer told the King, looking nervously from me to Imstay and back. “The Healer Kidsodos is currently rendering care. Supervising Healer Sidhulboy is scheduling monitoring shifts for the next several days.”

  “Ah!” the staid and competent Healer Sidhulboy appeared, wax tablet in her hand. “Great One, Mighty One, you’re back. The Revered Lyappis fell on the stairs from the nursery to the kitchens. Young Prince Garki felt the Revered One’s initial panic and knew something was wrong, so the boy looked around with his fledging clairvoyance and found her.”

  “Garki did that?” Imstay was pleasantly surprised. Then he smiled, looking both proud and satisfied, “Of course, he did.”

  “Where is the Revered Garki now?” I asked.

  “We sent him to fetch the Holy Kamigishi.”

  “Aylem, love,” Imstay clasped my hand, “why don’t we freshen up and check on the twins? Then, we can come back down to check up on Lyappis. Relax. She’s in good hands. You can let someone else take care of this.”

  "Yes, yes, I know, I know," I fidgeted without realizing it and then stopped myself. I let out a sigh, purposefully relaxing my shoulders. "Yes, that is what we should do,” I shook my head, “I just worry about the old lady. I’m afraid I’ve come to rely on her to keep me from falling apart.”

  "Lyappis is one of those irrepressible haup Essoes," Imstay put his arm around my waist. "She'll be fine, especially with the palace healers watching her. Let's check on the twins, and then we can come back down."

  “My Mother! Where is my mother?” A wild-eyed Kamagishi stormed through the door into the chapel shrine as we turned to leave. “Great One, Mighty One,” she bobbed a quick reverence to us. “What did Mother break and when will she be conscious?” She looked at everyone around the greeting counter, searching for an answer.

  Kamagishi was in a simple kirtle under a cloak, which she obviously threw on in a hurry. She wore bedroom slips on her bare feet, and her hair was down in a braid. I don't think I had ever seen her in such a state. She was usually so well-dressed. I guessed she had already retired when Garki ran to the Shrine to fetch her.

  Speak of mushrooms and up they pop! Garki appeared in the palace chapel shrine doorway, looking a little winded. Kamagishi obviously had run ahead of him.

  “Holy One, I am Supervising Healer Sidhulboy,” she smiled at Kamagishi, radiating a sense of competent calm. "Please, why don’t you step into my office, and I can update you on what happened to your mother.” She took Kamagishi gently by the elbow and guided her down the hall to her office.

  "We'll be back down as soon as we check up on the twins," I told Kamagishi and saw her nod that she heard me.

  "And you, young man," I looked at Garki, who was catching his breath. I got on my knees in front of him, which put my eyes level with his, and gave him a big hug. "Thank you, Garki, for finding Lyappis so soon after she fell. If the swelling in her skull was left untreated, she could easily have died. You probably have saved her life, son."

  “Mother Aylem,” Garki gasped, “I can’t breathe.”

  - - -

  Kayseo, Healing Shrine, Harvest Season, 6th rot., 4th day, evening – Foskos time

  “I’ll raise you five,” I tossed five dried bog berries into the ante pile.

  “I’m out,” the Holy Rakkalbos threw down her cards with a disappointed face.

  Irralray and Sutsusum had already folded.

  “Let’s see what you got,” the Holy Fassex demanded.

  My Mistress had a straight. Fassex had three-of-a-kind. Me? I took the pot with my four-of-a-kind. I was raking in my winning when Lisaykos sat up and then tranced. We all waited until she came back up.

  Lisaykos sighed and shook her head. "I will be leaving with you, Sisters, in the morning. I need to stop in at Is'syal. That was the Queen who just contacted me. The Revered Lyappis fell down some stairs and injured herself. Apparently, the Holy Kamagishi is beside herself, lurking by her mother's treatment room at the healer chapel shrine in the palace."

  “Grandmother Lyappis fell?” I looked up in alarm. “Oh dear, I should tell Otty.”

  "You may want to hold off on visiting until Lyappis has stabilized," I advised. "The concussion is serious, and she will be on continuous monitoring for several days. There's nothing worse than having too many visitors underfoot in a cramped chapel shrine like the one at the palace. Remember, they only have twelve treatment rooms stuffed into that space at the far end of the center gallery."

  “Poor Grandmother Lyappis,” I worried. “I wonder how she fell. That’s not like her.”

  “The haup Essoes are a very sturdy bunch,” my Mistress remarked. “Lyappis will outlive us all. She will be sitting in bed two or three days from now, making us all miserable with that tongue of hers while she is bored from sitting in bed recovering. The worst patient any healer will ever have...”

  “Is another healer,” I finished the sentence for her. We both laughed because we knew it was true.

  Usruldes as Lord Irhessa, Kwabin, Harvest Season, 6th rot., 5th day – East Coast time

  The three Revered Ones and I spent the night at the Provincial Governor’s Palace in Kwabin. The representatives of the Foskan delegation currently ruling Mattamukmuk arrived too late in the afternoon to start talks yesterday.

  We began talks on the morning of the fifth day after the morning repast. The Mattamesscontan contingent consisted of Marshal Lowawathas, First Advisor Nomogeekaw, and some staff to take notes. On the Foskan side of the table were the three Revered Ones: Healer Othnay haup Gampff, Warmage Othulmos haup Kas, Watermage Deoykoya haup Kesmat, and me.

  Marshal Lowawathas started with a contentious topic: despite the new Foskan strictures against piracy and privateering, Mattamukan pirates were still raiding merchant ships.

  “We're inspecting cargoes and manifests and have customs agents in all the minor ports now, Othnay protested. "We've caught and hung seven captains and condemned their crews to the galleys. We've burned three illegal anchorages. The Chem have scoured the Strait of raiders and slavers. I'm satisfied that we have the situation under control."

  A servant came in carrying a set of government rolls, which she handed to the Marshal. Lowawathas set the rolls on the table and looked at their labels. She picked one and unrolled it, spreading the vellum in front of her chair.

  “Here, look at this. On the second day of the fifth rotation, the Asapete out of Kora Kor docked with seven injured crew after fighting off a pirate along the north approaches to the Strait. And here, on the seventh day of the fourth rotation, Kwabin shoreliner Linnitektek brought survivors from the former freighter Tight Aft, sunk by a pirate, again off the north coast of Alkinosuk. Now, if we look at the correspondence rolls,” Lowawathas untied and spread out the beginning of another vellum roll, “we received a communication from the independent port of Souk, which is a Coyn settlement. They wrote us at the beginning of the third rotation that they believe, based on their own experience and reports from the Imkalemi and Korakorans, that Mattamukan raiders have established new bases somewhere along the northeast coast of Alkinosuk and off the Cliffs of Gong.

  “Given our own information gathering, we believe your new vassals have set up remote operations to hide their activity from your port authorities. Given the continued menace of Mattamukan pirates in our shipping lanes, I doubt your small fleet is up to squashing the pirate menace. The Mattamukan Navy conscripts its crews from Mattamukmuk's so-called merchant ships, so the overlap between your navy and your pirates is a problem. The willingness of your navy to even chase after pirates is compromised because they are crewed by the same people.

  “Now, do you understand why I do not trust your assurance that I can move most of the Kwabin fleet to the Gulf of Chipagawkpaw? I can’t trust the Mattamukan Navy to police the Strait because it is crewed by the same sailors who crew the pirate ships. Just taking over Mattamukmuk and passing some laws against piracy doesn’t solve the recurring piracy problem. And Foskos is not a maritime country. You have no experience with navies or marine merchants. Your new subjects are out to sell you hemp for silk and you’re so inexperienced with naval matters that they are getting away with it.”

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  My three Revered Ones looked like they had just swallowed sour milk.

  “Zuppistabbers,” Othnay swore angrily, shocking me, Othulmos, and Deoykoya.

  The Marshal obviously knew the Foskan swear word as one speculative silver eyebrow rose on her forehead. “I do hope,” Lowawathas said, “that you were referring to the pirates and not to any Mattamesscontans.”

  Othnay immediately blushed. “Please, forget I said that. I believe I am a bit put out right now. I thought we had the piracy problem finally taken care of. It is most unpleasant to be served an unpalatable dish of hard-to-swallow truths so suddenly. I find that I can no longer advise you to send most of your fleet into the Gulf because I am no longer confident my navy will adequately patrol the Strait. Based on your records, you are justified in retaining a large portion of your fleet to protect your merchant ships.” Othnay pinched her nose and grimaced. “I wish to formally request to examine your documentation on pirate activity in the Strait and north of the coast of Alkinosuk.”

  Lowawathas frowned, “I regret that you flew all the way here when the one thing you had to bargain with, namely your navy, can not be trusted to keep the sea lanes clear of malefactors.”

  “Would it possible to make a deal with the Chem to patrol the Strait?” Deoykoya asked, stroking his braided beard. “Wouldn’t a hundred Chem ketches be adequate to keep the pirates at bay?”

  “Not with the cold season almost upon us,” I replied. “That’s the great weakness of the Chem. They can not tolerate the cold. They have pulled all their forces south now that they have achieved their goals in the areas north of Toyatastagka.”

  Lowawathas gave me a look, “Really? Please, Lord Irhessa, do you know if they had any other goals than freeing their fellow Chem? As the person whose legions suffered the most at their hands, I would honestly like to know. They never once approached us to negotiate a more peaceable solution to their grievance."

  I had to sigh, “They are not like us, Ma’am. To us, their values lack nuance. As a race, once another sapient or creature is labeled as an aggressor, their communal response is to destroy it. For the Chem, the Mattamukan and Mattamesscontan slave raiders are the aggressors, and the Chem do not give quarter. In some circumstances, they will demand unconditional surrender, but if capitulation is not given immediately, they will utterly annihilate their enemies or die trying. Once engaged in a fight, they fight until they either win or perish. They are terrible foes.”

  “I have heard about what they do to those who have surrendered,” Lowawathas glowered. “They blind their prisoners.”

  “Slave raiders have been blinding Chem for over three thousand years,” I explained. “They feel that taking prisoners is an act of mercy and that blinding those prisoners is justice for all that they have endured. We should be relieved that they do not consider every Cosm to be complicit in the enslavement of their race. They also have no tolerance for those who have rejected Vassu. For the Chem, the followers of the false Cragi are apostates and should not be allowed to live."

  "That's an uncomfortable statement for those of us who were raised in the worship of Cragi," Lowawathas grimaced. "Were it not for the orders of the Empress Presumptive, I would never have questioned my belief in Cragi. I still find it difficult to be truthful. Had I not seen the Prophet's godmarks and the blighting of Priestess Ishapur’s hand, I might have been one of those who tried to overthrow the Exalted Moo’upegan’s rule two days ago. It is difficult to change the habits of a lifetime.”

  “But to your credit, you did,” pointed out Deoykoya. “Vassu is a merciful god to those willing to return to her.”

  “I earnestly hope that is true,” Lowawathas said, sighing deeply.

  "It is, Marshal," Deoykoya replied with an understanding smile. "Vassu has sated her anger with the destruction of the heretics in Toyatastagka. Even then, she sent the Prophet with a warning for the followers of Cragi to change their ways, giving them a year to do so. That, too, was an act of mercy. I find it regrettable that many did not take advantage of Vassu's clemency."

  “And yet, I was one of those who did not heed that warning,” Lowawathas remarked. “Had I been in Toyatastagka when the Chem fleet arrived, I would probably be dead instead of sitting here, talking to you.”

  “But you were not,” Deoykoya pointed out. “Perhaps you owe Vassu thanks for your life.”

  "For my life of shame as a defeated commander? I would be stripped of my command and executed for losing four-fifths of my legions if the former Emperor were still alive. I am lucky that the Exalted Moo'upegan is not cut from the same cloth as her late father." Lowawathas then looked at me, "Tell me, Lord Irhessa. You seem to know more about the Chem than anyone I have met. Did they have any motive in invading Mattamesscontess other than the liberation of their own kind?"

  “Yes. There was a foretelling from the god of fate, Galt, about your legions," I explained. "Two avatars of Galt, one from Foskos and one from Impotu, received foretellings that the bridge in No'ank had to be destroyed or the war in Impotu would continue for several years. The Chem would have chased you out of the Mattaheehee Valley even without this knowledge because the legions were an impediment to freeing their kin. But the gods made it clear that unless the Chem destroyed the bridge, the war would not end in a timely manner."

  “What?” Lowawathas looked appalled.

  “Destroying the bridge was to prevent you from going over the passes in the Gogolluer Mountains and entering eastern Impotu. If you had done that, you would have met Arkalline Ugi, the Impotuan Empress Presumptive. The two of you would have combined your forces, thus prolonging the war in Impotu. Arkalline Ugi will lose that war, and you and your legions would have been destroyed along with her.”

  Lowawathas was speechless, consternation written large across her face.

  “So, what you are saying is that the invasion of the Chem was sanctioned and, in some aspects, orchestrated by the eleven gods,” said First Advisor Nomogeepaw, “and that we have been fighting on the wrong side of that war.”

  “In a word, yes,” said Othnay.

  Lowawathas dropped her head into her hands and groaned. Then she looked up, “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that my legions took such a beating at the hands of the Chem if eleven gods were on their side while we relied on a dead imposter deity." She sighed. "But that fact doesn't solve any of our current problems. Vassu told my ruler she had to follow the Prophet and she won't return until Growing Season next year. She appointed General Gowatonk as regent, but now Gowatonk, Infanta Moo’aganti, and twenty-seven other silverhairs are in the dungeon under a charm of eternal sleep for trying to prevent the restoration of Vassu and the other gods.

  “The other four provinces are in revolt. Where we once had almost three hundred polyremes, triremes, and cutters, we have fifty-six ships left, and none of them are in the Gulf where we need to protect our coastal settlements and shipping from Mattamukan pirates. The Empress Presumptive left orders to negotiate peace with the Chem, eradicate the false belief in Cargi, and restore the worship of the eleven gods. Toyatastagka is a ruin and refugees have overrun the central province, while most of our surviving legions are here where they are useless to restore order.

  “The only thing that I can look forward to, I hope, is negotiating a pact with you, the new rulers of Mattamulmuk, that you won’t take advantage of our current weakness to raid or invade my coastal settlements.” Lowawathas nailed Othnay with a threatening glare, “Just remember that while you may have a bigger navy right now, I still have a legion and a half ready-at-arms in Kwabin.”

  “Peace,” Othnay held up her hands. “Foskos has no desire to invade or raid. I would be happy to craft a treaty ensuring that your shipping and coast settlements are safe from the vassal state of Mattamukmuk.”

  "We can also help you to negotiate with the Chem," I offered. "I know their leadership, and I speak the water tongue. Also, have you considered hiring the Chem for a season to patrol the Gulf? Unlike Kwabin and the Mattaheehee Valley, the Gulf stays warm enough for the Chem. That would solve your naval problem, at least in the short term.”

  Lowawathas and Nomogeepaw looked at each other long enough that I was sure they were holding a conversation by mindcasting. Then they looked back at us.

  “Your proposals have merit," Lowawathas said. "You trusted us enough to come here to negotiate. We accept this as a token of your goodwill. I suggest that we break for now and reconvene after the midday repast. That will give you time to consider what to do about the ties between your navy and the still-operating pirates."

  “That is acceptable,” Othnay said. “Can we stay here, or is there another place where we can speak among ourselves until then?”

  “You can use this room,” Lowawathas said. “We will leave these rolls with you so you can examine our records on pirate activity. I will send up refreshments while you deliberate and a runner when midday repast is ready.”

  The two Mattamesscontans left along with their staff.

  After the door closed, Othnay smacked her hand on her forehead. “We need to look at these rolls.”

  “Yes, we do,” said the usually silent Revered Othulmos, Priestess of Erhonsay. “We need to determine if this pirate activity is from a handful of malcontents or is something more serious. I wish we could haul in all the ship captains and merchant guild masters and toss them into the Well of Galt for questioning.”

  “Yes, but the King instructed us not to use such a heavy hand,” Othnay responded. “He wants to win the Mattamukans over, not intimidate them into submission. The Queen already did that.”

  “If they have deliberately deceived us, I would argue that they have lost the privilege of a light-handed rule,” Othulmos countered. “We trusted them to take the right actions about piracy and the slave trade. If they have betrayed that trust, then it is foolish to continue a policy of leniency."

  “We have a problem that we need to consult with the King before taking such measures," Othnay pointed out, "and there are only eleven of us. Regardless of our power, if the Mattamukans wanted to oust us, they could assemble enough mages to do so. The only thing keeping them in line is their fear of the Queen."

  “Well,” Othulmos chuckled, “the Queen did raze the temple where all the black market charm gems were made and destroyed the city center.”

  “Yes, and she compelled all the soldiers sent to attack her to take off their clothes in the middle of a city street to stand at attention in their underpants,” Othnay grinned. “I wish I could have seen that.”

  “Our problem is that the Queen is unavailable, at least for another two seasons,” I commented. “Given that the twins were born early, she won’t leave them so soon after birth.”

  “Can we threaten a visit from the Queen?” Deoykoya aksed. “The Mattamukans don’t need to know she can’t travel.”

  “That’s a good point,” I nodded.

  “Let’s prioritize what we need to do before mid repast,” Othnay stated. “We need to look at these rolls and form an opinion of how bad the problem is. After the Queen attacked the city, the Mattamukans had an entire season to set up remote pirate bases before we arrived. Too bad we can’t request a search for pirate ports in the Great Crystal of Tiki.”

  “I might be able to contact the Queen,” I revealed. “I’m not sure it will work, but anything is worth a try. The worst that would happen would be the magic depletion headache afterward.”

  “How is that possible, Lord Irhessa?” a bemused Othnay asked.

  "I have two different methods I can try," I replied. "The first is to get a boost from the three of you while I use a magic tool the King made for me. The tool is one of a pair of private messaging crystals. The King has the other. I don't know if it will work. I've never tried to contact him from this far away. The second method is probably better; however, it uses an intermediator, and the person on the other end must be the Queen. The intermediary would be the spider monster Ud, who has been a magic instructor for both of us."

  "Ud was your teacher?" Othulmos asked, "And the Queen's too? How did you meet the legendary Ud?"

  “You do know that I ran away from home?”

  “Yes,” Othulmos nodded. “It was quite the news. I don’t know what was more startling—that the Heir of Gunndit ran away and was missing for years, or that the Holy Lisaykos covered it up for an entire year.”

  I had to grimace at her blunt description. Then I put the feeling aside and answered, "I explored the wilderness across the Great Cracks and eventually reached the Fenlands, where Ud makes her home. Ud took me in. She taught me magic while I stayed with her. Because of that, if I reach out to her, we can mindcast. The Queen stayed with Ud after the incident with the Prophet and the Blessed Asgotl. She, too, can reach out to Ud. Because of this, I can reach the Queen through Ud if necessary. If the King is with the Queen, we can speak with him directly through Ud and the Queen."

  “Then that is what you should try to do, Lord Irhessa," Othnay directed, "before it gets too late in Foskos. It should be after the first night bell in Is'syal, so let us not wait."