years as a performer in shabby carnivals had taught him the
skills of swaying crowds of people by eloquence and by his
commanding presence. His profession, however, was held in
low regard, and this did pain him deeply, for Scarpa hath an
exalted opinion of himself.’
‘He does indeed, little lady,’ Caalador agreed. ‘if what the
thieves of Arjuna tell me is anywhere close to being accurate,
Scarpa probably believes that he could fly or walk on water if
he just set his mind to it.’
‘Truly,’ she agreed. ‘he hath, moreover, a deep contempt for
the Gods and a profound hatred of women.’
‘That’s not uncommon among bastards,’ Stragen said clinically.
‘Some of us blame our mothers – or our Gods – for our
social unacceptability. Fortunately, I never fell into that trap. But
then, I’m so witty and charming that I didn’t have the usual
inadequacies to try to explain away.’
“I hate it when he does that,’ Baroness Melidere said.
“it’s only a plain fact, my dear Baroness.’ He grinned at her.
‘False modesty is so unbecoming, don’t you think?’
‘Be clever on your own time, Stragen,’ Ehlana chided. ‘Did
Zalasta tell his son all the details of this conspiracy, Anarae?’
‘Yes, your Majesty. Given the nature of the two, there was
surprising candor between them. Scarpa, however, was very
young and had an exaggerated notion of his own cleverness,
although Zalasta did quickly realize that the rudimentary Styric
spells which he had imparted to his son during his infrequent
visits to Arjuna might serve to deceive rural bumpkins, but they
would scarce be adequate for the business at hand. Therefore,
took he his son to Verel to place him under the tutelage of
Ogerajin.’
‘When was this, Anarae?’ Caalador asked curiously.
‘Perhaps five years since, Master Caalador.’
‘Then it fits together with what we found out. It was almost
exactly five years ago that Scarpa disappeared from Arjuna.
Then a couple of years later he came back and started stirring
up trouble.’
“it was a short education,’ Xanetia said, ‘but Scarpa hath a
quick mind. In truth, it was his tutor who did suspend his training,
for Ogerajin was much offended by the young man’s
arrogance. ‘
‘This Scarpa sounds like the sort you have to stand in line to
hate,’ Talen noted. ‘I’ve never met him, and I already dislike
him.’
‘Zalasta was also taken somewhat aback by his son’s abrasive
nature,’ Xanetia told them, ‘and thinking to awe him into some
measure of civility, he did take him to Cyrga that he might
come to know their master. Cyrgon did question the young man
closely, and then, evidently satisfied, did he instruct him in the
task before him. Scarpa came away with no more respect for the
God of the Cyrgai than he had felt ‘ere they met, and Zalasta
hath lost what small regard he previously had for his son. It is
now in his mind that should their conspiracy succeed, Scarpa
will not long survive the victory.’ She paused. ‘An it please thee
to view it so, Sephrenia, thy vengeance hath already had its
beginning. Zalasta is a hollow man with no God and with none
in all the world to love him or to call him friend. Even the scant
affection he had for his son is now withered, and he is empty
and alone.’
Two great tears welled up in Sephrenia’s eyes, but then she
angrily dashed them away with the back of her hand. “it’s not
enough, Anarae,’ she said adamantly.
‘You’ve spent too much time with Elenes, little mother,’
Sarabian said. That startled Sparhawk just a bit. he could not be
sure if the brilliant, erratic Tamul Emperor used that affectionate
term deliberately, or if it had been a slip of the tongue.
‘Who recruited the others, Anarae?’ Vanion asked, smoothly
moving away from a slightly touchy situation.
“it was Scarpa, Lord Vanion,’ she replied. ‘Cyrgon had
directed him to seek out confederates to stir rebellion in western
Tamuli, thus to bar the way should Anakha come with the
armies of the Church, for Cyrgon would not willingly pit his
cherished Cyrgai against such as ye. Now Scarpa did know a
certain out-at-the-elbows Dacite nobleman who, plagued by
gambling debts and the ungentle urgings of his creditors to settle
accounts, did flee from Daconia and conceal himself for a time
in the very Arjuni carnival where Scarpa did practice his dubious
art. This scruffy nobleman, Baron Parok by name, did Scarpa
seek out on his return home from Cyrga. Parok, desperate out
of all measure, soon willingly fell in with his former associate,
for the inducements Scarpa offered were enticing. Consulted
then the unscrupulous pair with the debauched Styrics at Verel
and followed their counsel to seek out the merchant Amador in
Edam and the poet Elron in Astel, both men being much taken
with themselves and resentful of the station in life which fate
had assigned them.’
Bevier was frowning. ‘We’ve encountered both of them,
Anarae, and neither one strikes me as a natural leader. Were
they the best Scarpa could find?’
‘Their selection was determined by their willingness to
cooperate, Sir Knight. The ability to sway men with words and
that commanding presence which doth draw all eyes to the one
in question can be elevated by certain Styric spells. Unimpressive
though they are, it was the quality of desperation in them which
Scarpa did seek. both Amador and Elron suffered agonies by
reason of their insignificance, and both were willing, even eager,
to go to any lengths to exalt themselves.’
‘We see it all the time in Thalesia, Bevier,’ Ulath explained.
‘We call it “the little man’s complaint”. Avin Wargunsson’s a
perfect example. he’d rather die than be ignored.’
‘Amador’s not all that short,’ Talen pointed out.
‘There are all kinds of littleness, Talen,’ Ulath said. ‘how did
Count Gerrich in Lamorkand get involved, Anarae? And why?’
‘He was recruited by Scarpa on Zalasta’s instruction, Sir Ulath.
Zalasta thought to stir discord and turmoil on the Eosian Continent
to persuade the Church of Chyrellos that her interests
required that Anakha be dispatched to Tamuli to seek out the
roots of the disturbances. Of all of them, only Zalasta hath his
feet planted on both continents, and only he’ doth understand
the thinking of thy Church. In truth, Elron and Amador are but
pawns, knowing little of the true scope of the enterprise they
have joined. Baron Parok is more knowledgeable, but he is still
not privy to all their designs. Count Gerrich is peripheral. He
follows his own purposes, which only occasionally match the
purposes of his colleagues here in Tamuli.’
‘You almost have to admire them,’ Caalador said. ‘This is the
most complicated and well-organized swindle I’ve ever heard
of. ‘
‘But it all fell apart when Xanetia opened the door to Zalasta’s
mind,’ Kalten said. ‘As soon as we found out that he’s been on
the other side all along, the whole thing began to crumble.’ He
thought of something. ‘How did Krager get mixed up in this?’
‘Count Gerrich did suggest him to Scarpa,’ Xanetia replied.
‘Gerrich had found the one called Krager useful in times past.’
‘Yes,’ Ulath said. ‘We saw him being useful outside the walls
of Baron Alstrom’s castle in Lamorkand. Martel’s still coming
back to haunt us, isn’t he, Sparhawk?’
‘how much did my Minister of the Interior and the other
traitors really know about all of this, Anarae?’ Sarabian asked.
‘Almost nothing, Majesty. In the main they did believe that
their activities were but a part of the ongoing struggle between
Foreign Minister Oscagne and Interior Minister Kolata. Kolata
offered them profit, and so they did follow him.’
‘Ordinary palace politics then,’ Sarabian mused. “I suppose
I’ll have to keep that in mind at their trials. They weren’t really
disloyal, only corrupt.’
‘All except for Kolata, your Majesty,’ Itagne noted. ‘His
involvement almost had to have gone deeper than simple
garden-variety political bickering, wouldn’t it?’
‘Kolata was a dupe, Itagne of Matherion,’ Xanetia corrected.
“it was Teovin who was ever Zalasta’s man at court. It was to
him that the one called Krager did bring Zalasta’s instruction,
and Teovin did tell Kolata only so much as it was needful for
him to know. ‘
‘This brings us to the coup-attempt,’ Ehlana said. ‘Krager told
Sparhawk that it wasn’t intended to succeed – that it was only
designed to force us to reveal our strengths and weaknesses.
Was he actually telling the truth?’
‘in part, Majesty,’ Xanetia replied. ‘in the main, however, was
Zalasta uncertain about the truth of Anakha’s declaration that
he had cast Bhelliom into the sea. Sought he by raising rebellion
in the streets of Matherion and endangering all whom Anakha
held most dear to force him to reveal whether or no he still did
possess the jewel.’
‘We played right into his hands by going after it, then, didn’t
we?’ ~Khalad suggested.
“I don’t think so,’ Sparhawk disagreed. ‘We’d never have