Excellency’s wit would be lost on her.’
‘You might be right, my dear,’ Sarabian agreed. ‘i’d really like
to get rid of her, though. She’s irritated me since the day she
was born. What are you doing back here in Matherion, Norkan?’
One of Ambassador Norkan’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Things have
changed, haven’t they, Oscagne? Are we supposed to tell him
to his face what’s really going on?’
‘Emperor Sarabian’s decided to take charge of his own government,
my friend,’ Oscagne sighed mournfully.
‘isn’t that against the law?’
‘Afraid not, old boy.’
‘Would you consider accepting my resignation?’
‘No, not really.’
‘Don’t you want to work for me any more, Norkan?’ Sarabian
asked.
“I have nothing against you personally, your Majesty, but if
you decide to actually meddle in government, the whole Empire
could collapse.’
‘Marvelous, Norkan. I love the way you start talking before
you’ve saddled up your brains. You see, Ehlana? That’s what
I was telling you about. The officials in my government all
expect me to smile regally, approve their recommendations
without question, and leave the business of running things
to them.’
‘how boring.’
‘indeed it is, my dear, but I’m going to change it. Now that
I’ve seen a real ruler in action, whole new horizons have been
opened to me. You still haven’t answered my question, Norkan
What brings you back to Matherion?’
‘The Atans are growing restive, your Majesty.’
‘Are the recent disturbances starting to erode their loyalty?’
‘No, your Majesty, quite the reverse. The uprising has them
all excited. Androl wants to move out in force to occupy
Matherion in order to guarantee your safety. I don’t think we
want that. The Atans don’t pay too much attention to rank or
position when they decide to kill people.’
‘We noticed that,’ Sarabian replied dryly. ‘i’ve received all
sorts of petitions of protest from the noble houses of Tamul
proper as a result of the measures Engessa took to put down
the coup.’
‘i’ve spoken with Betuana, your Majesty,’ Norkan continued.
“She’s promised to shorten her husband’s leash until I get some
instructions from you. Something short and to the point like,
“Sit! Stay!” might be aPProPriate, considering Androl’s mental
capabilities. ‘
‘how did you ever get to be a diplomat, Norkan?’
“I lied a lot.’
‘A suggestion, Emperor Sarabian?’ Tynian offered.
‘Go ahead, Sir Tynian.’
‘We don’t really want to ruffle King Androl’s feathers, so a
suggestion to him that he’s being held in place to meet a far
greater threat might be preferable to just sending him to bed
without any supper.’
Sarabian laughed. ‘What a novel way to put it, Sir Tynian. All
right, Norkan, send Engessa.’
Norkan blinked.
Pay attention man,’ Sarabian snapped.
‘That’s something you’ll have to get used to, Norkan,’
Oscagne advised. ‘The Emperor sometimes takes verbal
shortcuts. ‘
‘Oh. I see.’ Norkan thought about it. ‘Might I ask why Atan
Engessa would be better qualified to carry out your instructions
than I would, your Majesty?’
‘Because Engessa can run faster than you can, and he’ll be
able to put our commands to Androl in language far more acceptable
to him. There’s also the fact that using Engessa hints at
a military reason for the decision, and that should smooth
Androl’s feathers all the more. You can explain our real reasons
to Betuana when you get back.’
‘You know something, Oscagne?’ Norkan said. ‘He might just
work out all right after all – if we can keep him from making
too many blunders right at the outset.’
Oscagne winced.
Sparhawk touched Vanion’s shoulder and motioned with his
head. The two of them drifted back to the rear of the throne-room.
‘I’ve got a problem, Vanion,’ Sparhawk muttered.
‘Oh?’
‘i’ve racked my brains to come up with an excuse for us to
get out of Matherion for long enough to retrieve the Bhelliom,
but I haven’t had a single idea that a child wouldn’t be able to
see through. Ehlana’s not stupid, you know.’
‘No, that she isn’t.’
‘Aphrael won’t say anything definite, but I get the strong
feeling that she wants us to sail on the same ship with Emban
and Tynian, and I’m starting to run out of excuses to keep delaying
their departure. Any ideas?’
‘Ask Oscagne to help you,’ Vanion shrugged. ‘He’s a diplomat,
so lying comes second nature to him.’
‘Nice idea, but I can’t really tell him where we’re going and
what we’re going to do when we get there, can I?’
‘Don’t tell him, then. just tell him that you need a reason to
be out of town for a while. Put on a gravely mysterious face and
let it go at that. Oscagne’s been around for long enough to
recognize the symptoms of official reticence when he sees them.’
‘Why didn’t I think of that?’
‘Probably because your oath keeps getting in your way. I know
that you’ve sworn to tell the truth, but that doesn’t mean that
you have to tell the whole truth. You can leave things out, you
know. Leaving things out is one of the prerequisites of the office
of Preceptor.’
Sparhawk sighed. ‘Back to school, I see. I think I’m doomed
to spend my whole life getting instructions from you – and being
made to feel inadequate in the process.’
‘That’s what friends are for, Sparhawk.’
‘You’re not going to tell me, are you?’ Sparhawk tried very hard
to keep it from sounding like an accusation.
‘Not yet, no,’ Princess Danae replied, carefully tying a doll’s
bonnet on her cat’s head. Mmrr did not appear to care for the
idea, but she endured her mistress’s little game with a look of
resignation.
‘Why not?’ Sparhawk asked his daughter, flopping down into
one of the blue armchairs in the royal apartment.
‘Because something might still come up to make it unnecessary.
You’re not going to find Bhelliom until I decide to let you
find it, father.’
‘You want us to sail with Tynian and Emban, though?’
‘Yes.’
‘How far?’
“It doesn’t really matter. I just need Tynian with us when we
first set out, that’s all.
‘Then you don’t really have any set destination in mind – with
that ship, I mean?’
‘Of course not. I just need Tynian to be along for a couple of
days. We can go out to sea for a couple of leagues and then sail
around in circles for two days if you want. It’s all the same to
me.’
‘Thanks,’ he said acidly.
‘No charge. There.’ She held up the cat. ‘isn’t she darling in
her new bonnet?’
“adorable. ‘
Mmrr gave Sparhawk a flat look of pure hatred.
“I can’t tell you why at the moment, your Excellency,’ Sparhawk
said to Oscagne later that same day when they were alone in
one of the hallways. ‘All I can say is that I need a reason to be
away from Matherion with a group of nine or ten of my friends
for an indeterminate period of time – several weeks or so. It has
to be significant enough to convince my wife that it’s necessary,
but not so serious as to worry her, and I have to sail on the same
ship with Emban and Tynian.’
‘All right,’ Oscagne agreed. ‘How good an actor are you,
Prince Sparhawk?’
“I don’t think anybody’d pay money to watch me perform.’
Oscagne let that pass. “I gather that this ploy is primarily
intended for your wife’s benefit?’
‘Yes.’
‘Then it might be best if the idea of sending you off someplace
came from her. I’ll maneuver her into ordering you off on some
inconsequential errand, and you can take it from there.’
‘i’d really like to see you try to maneuver Ehlana.’
‘Trust me, old boy. Trust me.
‘tega?’ Sarabian asked his foreign minister incredulously. ‘The
only superstition they have on the Isle of Tega is the one that
says that it’s bad luck not to raise the price of sea-shells every
year.’
‘They’ve never mentioned it to us in the past because they
were probably afraid we’d think they were being silly, your
Majesty,’ Oscagne replied urbanely. Oscagne looked decidedly
uncomfortable in the blue doublet and hose Sarabian had
ordered him to wear. He couldn’t seem to think of anything to
do with his hands, and he appeared to be very self-conscious
about his bony legs. ‘The word “silly” seems to strike at the
very core of the Tegan soul. They’re the stuffiest people in the
world.’
“I know. Gahenas, my Tegan wife, can put me to sleep almost
immediately – even when we’re…’ The Emperor threw a quick
look at Ehlana and left it hanging.
‘Tegans have raised being boring to an art form, your Majesty,’
Oscagne agreed. ‘Anyway, there’s an old Tegan myth to the
effect that the oyster-beds are haunted by a mermaid. Supposedly
she eats oysters, shells and all, and that really upsets
the Tegans. She also seduces Tegan divers, who tend to drown
during the exchange of pleasantries.’