RE: Monarch
Author: Eligos
Chapter 275: Kholis XX
Several details with grim implications flitted through my mind.
When I spoke, my voice was calm. Far calmer than I'd typically expect, given the potential for betrayal. "Encouraging the two of us to come to Kholis practically unguarded, making the journey yourself, buttering us up with presents and kind words." I looked around at the dingy cellar. "Maybe I'm just jaded. But this is feeling a
like a calculated ambush."
"No. He would never do that. Right, Lucius?" Maya watched him carefully even as she said it, clear, strict warning in her voice. With movements so subtle they were barely noticeable, she shifted into the precursor of a fighting stance.
"It was not my intention." Lucius shook his head, slowly descending another few steps. "And again, even if you had, I'm not sure how angry I would actually be. He made my lady wife's existence hell for every minute he was alive. The moment he met his bitter, isolated end, we shed the prerequisite tears... but in truth breathed easier. So. Did you do it?"
It was tempting to drag this out. Bait him into revealing what he believed had occurred before renouncing my involvement, using the tension of ignorance to draw greater detail than what he might have offered otherwise. If he were an enemy, or even a neutral party, I might have done just that. But Lucius was a friend. And for his sake, I fought the instinct.
"It would have been difficult to find the time. Between internment and subsequent release, being monitored over the course of years."
"It's true." Maya agreed quickly, looking between the two of us. "Lucius, Cairn was effectively a ward of the Enclave. He was constantly being watched, and if he'd slipped away—even for less than a day—someone would have noticed."
"Yes." Lucius nodded along. "Yet as we all know, gold and power open many doors, and according to the reports, for the majority of your stay there, you were moving freely. It wouldn't have been impossible to get the word out if you wanted something done. Either of you know anything about Laudenshade?" He asked, seeming to change topics quickly.
But he wasn't. Not really.
"Right. Quite potent. Potent enough that—" His finger wandered, pausing mid-air before jerking to point at me, "—you employed it to turn the tides against a demon. When you told my father the tale of my rescue, that was what you said. It turned the tides of the battle."
Lucius nodded, distracted, as if listening to something only he could hear. "It was gone. That knowledge. Banished from my mind, along with whatever subconscious suspicions I had. Over the last year, there were several deaths. Men who worked at the mill. They just... grew sick and pale one day and died in their sleep. Healthy one day, gone the next."
He paused, and I could see the weight of those deaths pressing on him.
"People were getting angry, blaming each other, on the verge of going out to scour the Everwood for witches, civil war, or worse. Until an infernal with a talent for botany pointed out a patch of Laudenshade growing near the path. A small patch. Close enough that they brushed past it every day they went to work." He squinted. "The giveaway was a detail several physicians, priests, and myself entirely overlooked. A slight bruising beneath the fingernails and nothing else. An element they shared with the former duke's cadaver."
"
" Maya's eyes flashed. "If that is what killed the Duke, it's hardly a smoking cannon. People suffer from accidental exposure to Laudenshade all the time. Example in point,
These accusations—"
Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
I raised a hand, and Maya trailed off. "The plant grows in this region. He's aware it can cause havoc even if not directly weaponized. There's something he's holding back, hoping we'll contradict ourselves or give something away for free."
Lucius's eyes widened, but he recovered just as quickly. "Interesting. That's entirely correct."
"It's what I'd do in your position."
Maya's lip twisted, unamused. "Well. Out with it then."
"Very well." Lucius stuck his hands into his pockets, troubled, and for a moment I saw an echo of the child he used to be. "The first year was the most difficult. Millicent and I were still discovering what we were to each other, my authority had yet to be established, and of course, Deseric was alive. He bled for our attention and spurned it in equal measure, not unlike a newborn. He'd feed me breadcrumbs any time I inquired about the terrible pursuits that consumed him so. Not the sort I wanted. Vagaries and half-truths. Nothing specific or actionable. Then Uskar's fabled spymaster paid me a visit..."
Maya gasped, and I breathed out, shutting my eyes for a moment.
"...Asked all sorts of questions. I answered as honestly and thoroughly as I could. Repeating things I'd told the rangers several times over. Most of the questions regarded you, but he also asked a great deal about the current state of Kholis and the previous duke's handling of his holdings."
Lucius chuckled a little and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I remember being shocked at how accommodating he was about stripping the title and handing it off like it was nothing. By the standard, it should have been a process. My account, then the Duke's, weighed against each other before a magistrate and a priest. But no. Made a Duke with nothing more than a flick of the spymaster's pen. And a month later, Deseric died. Long enough that I didn't immediately make the connection."
Now that he'd spoken his accusation in full, Lucius grew quiet. He quietly passed us by, then stood before the casket with still-burning incense and bowed his head in supplication. "But we were separated a long time. When you left, you were worried about them. The cult. There was a coldness in your heart, even then. If you discovered something damning, something that made them out to be an even greater threat, and Deseric posed a danger, again I couldn't blame you for taking action. It changes nothing."
Despite the assertion, Lucius placed a gentle hand on the casket's lid, near the effigy's finely carved boots. Now that he'd spoken his peace, he sagged, as if from effort.
"You need to know," I repeated.
He nodded, grimacing a little. "It shouldn't matter. But it does."
It was a relief to be wrong. Because this wasn't an ambush. He held no weapon. A brief expansion of mana along with a handful of sparks confirmed there was no contingent of guards lying in wait either. Even now, he was intentionally putting his back to us as he paid respects to the departed.
I drew in a long breath. "Well. Might as well get the easy part over with. No, I had nothing to do with what happened to the Duke. The only contact I've had with Thaddeus over the years was through whatever handful of missives sent to others he's intercepted."
"Of course not." Lucius leaned back on his heels with his eyes closed, in clear relief. "I was in the wrong."
"Furthermore, everything I've learned about spymaster Thaddeus paints him as the methodical, slippery sort." Maya frowned, rubbing her chin. "It would be particularly sloppy to question the family of a man you intend to assassinate a fortnight later. If he did it, he would have used someone else. The fact that he showed his face here at all feels very unlike him."
"Astute." I had to agree. "The exposure is the part that makes the least sense. Had he done it at the behest of the crown, it's easy for someone like Thaddeus to completely insulate himself from this kind of undertaking. He's probably done it countless times. Send someone else to ask the questions, charter the assassin, and show your face halfway across the kingdom for good measure."
"There's only two real possibilities," Maya murmured, musing as much to herself as aloud. "Either it has nothing to do with him and only the timing was suspect..."
"Possible, but unlikely."
"Or there was some critical piece of information he needed to confirm himself. Something he couldn't take the risk of circulating, even among his network and trusted contacts." Maya finished. The way she said it was odd, cagey. Then I realized she was waiting for me. Letting me decide how much to reveal.
"What could possibly be that important?" Lucius asked, simultaneously relieved and troubled.
"Likely something regarding the Order they shared." I said, feeling bad that we didn't have more specifics. Thaddeus had been so damn elusive since my return. Lucius's eyebrows shot sky high, and I interrupted before the inevitable torrent of questions. "It's new information, but we believe Thaddeus is among their number."
"Tell me everything," Lucius said.
When I spoke, my voice was calm. Far calmer than I'd typically expect, given the potential for betrayal. "Encouraging the two of us to come to Kholis practically unguarded, making the journey yourself, buttering us up with presents and kind words." I looked around at the dingy cellar. "Maybe I'm just jaded. But this is feeling a
like a calculated ambush."
"No. He would never do that. Right, Lucius?" Maya watched him carefully even as she said it, clear, strict warning in her voice. With movements so subtle they were barely noticeable, she shifted into the precursor of a fighting stance.
"It was not my intention." Lucius shook his head, slowly descending another few steps. "And again, even if you had, I'm not sure how angry I would actually be. He made my lady wife's existence hell for every minute he was alive. The moment he met his bitter, isolated end, we shed the prerequisite tears... but in truth breathed easier. So. Did you do it?"
It was tempting to drag this out. Bait him into revealing what he believed had occurred before renouncing my involvement, using the tension of ignorance to draw greater detail than what he might have offered otherwise. If he were an enemy, or even a neutral party, I might have done just that. But Lucius was a friend. And for his sake, I fought the instinct.
"It would have been difficult to find the time. Between internment and subsequent release, being monitored over the course of years."
"It's true." Maya agreed quickly, looking between the two of us. "Lucius, Cairn was effectively a ward of the Enclave. He was constantly being watched, and if he'd slipped away—even for less than a day—someone would have noticed."
"Yes." Lucius nodded along. "Yet as we all know, gold and power open many doors, and according to the reports, for the majority of your stay there, you were moving freely. It wouldn't have been impossible to get the word out if you wanted something done. Either of you know anything about Laudenshade?" He asked, seeming to change topics quickly.
But he wasn't. Not really.
"Right. Quite potent. Potent enough that—" His finger wandered, pausing mid-air before jerking to point at me, "—you employed it to turn the tides against a demon. When you told my father the tale of my rescue, that was what you said. It turned the tides of the battle."
Lucius nodded, distracted, as if listening to something only he could hear. "It was gone. That knowledge. Banished from my mind, along with whatever subconscious suspicions I had. Over the last year, there were several deaths. Men who worked at the mill. They just... grew sick and pale one day and died in their sleep. Healthy one day, gone the next."
He paused, and I could see the weight of those deaths pressing on him.
"People were getting angry, blaming each other, on the verge of going out to scour the Everwood for witches, civil war, or worse. Until an infernal with a talent for botany pointed out a patch of Laudenshade growing near the path. A small patch. Close enough that they brushed past it every day they went to work." He squinted. "The giveaway was a detail several physicians, priests, and myself entirely overlooked. A slight bruising beneath the fingernails and nothing else. An element they shared with the former duke's cadaver."
"
" Maya's eyes flashed. "If that is what killed the Duke, it's hardly a smoking cannon. People suffer from accidental exposure to Laudenshade all the time. Example in point,
These accusations—"
Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
I raised a hand, and Maya trailed off. "The plant grows in this region. He's aware it can cause havoc even if not directly weaponized. There's something he's holding back, hoping we'll contradict ourselves or give something away for free."
Lucius's eyes widened, but he recovered just as quickly. "Interesting. That's entirely correct."
"It's what I'd do in your position."
Maya's lip twisted, unamused. "Well. Out with it then."
"Very well." Lucius stuck his hands into his pockets, troubled, and for a moment I saw an echo of the child he used to be. "The first year was the most difficult. Millicent and I were still discovering what we were to each other, my authority had yet to be established, and of course, Deseric was alive. He bled for our attention and spurned it in equal measure, not unlike a newborn. He'd feed me breadcrumbs any time I inquired about the terrible pursuits that consumed him so. Not the sort I wanted. Vagaries and half-truths. Nothing specific or actionable. Then Uskar's fabled spymaster paid me a visit..."
Maya gasped, and I breathed out, shutting my eyes for a moment.
"...Asked all sorts of questions. I answered as honestly and thoroughly as I could. Repeating things I'd told the rangers several times over. Most of the questions regarded you, but he also asked a great deal about the current state of Kholis and the previous duke's handling of his holdings."
Lucius chuckled a little and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I remember being shocked at how accommodating he was about stripping the title and handing it off like it was nothing. By the standard, it should have been a process. My account, then the Duke's, weighed against each other before a magistrate and a priest. But no. Made a Duke with nothing more than a flick of the spymaster's pen. And a month later, Deseric died. Long enough that I didn't immediately make the connection."
Now that he'd spoken his accusation in full, Lucius grew quiet. He quietly passed us by, then stood before the casket with still-burning incense and bowed his head in supplication. "But we were separated a long time. When you left, you were worried about them. The cult. There was a coldness in your heart, even then. If you discovered something damning, something that made them out to be an even greater threat, and Deseric posed a danger, again I couldn't blame you for taking action. It changes nothing."
Despite the assertion, Lucius placed a gentle hand on the casket's lid, near the effigy's finely carved boots. Now that he'd spoken his peace, he sagged, as if from effort.
"You need to know," I repeated.
He nodded, grimacing a little. "It shouldn't matter. But it does."
It was a relief to be wrong. Because this wasn't an ambush. He held no weapon. A brief expansion of mana along with a handful of sparks confirmed there was no contingent of guards lying in wait either. Even now, he was intentionally putting his back to us as he paid respects to the departed.
I drew in a long breath. "Well. Might as well get the easy part over with. No, I had nothing to do with what happened to the Duke. The only contact I've had with Thaddeus over the years was through whatever handful of missives sent to others he's intercepted."
"Of course not." Lucius leaned back on his heels with his eyes closed, in clear relief. "I was in the wrong."
"Furthermore, everything I've learned about spymaster Thaddeus paints him as the methodical, slippery sort." Maya frowned, rubbing her chin. "It would be particularly sloppy to question the family of a man you intend to assassinate a fortnight later. If he did it, he would have used someone else. The fact that he showed his face here at all feels very unlike him."
"Astute." I had to agree. "The exposure is the part that makes the least sense. Had he done it at the behest of the crown, it's easy for someone like Thaddeus to completely insulate himself from this kind of undertaking. He's probably done it countless times. Send someone else to ask the questions, charter the assassin, and show your face halfway across the kingdom for good measure."
"There's only two real possibilities," Maya murmured, musing as much to herself as aloud. "Either it has nothing to do with him and only the timing was suspect..."
"Possible, but unlikely."
"Or there was some critical piece of information he needed to confirm himself. Something he couldn't take the risk of circulating, even among his network and trusted contacts." Maya finished. The way she said it was odd, cagey. Then I realized she was waiting for me. Letting me decide how much to reveal.
"What could possibly be that important?" Lucius asked, simultaneously relieved and troubled.
"Likely something regarding the Order they shared." I said, feeling bad that we didn't have more specifics. Thaddeus had been so damn elusive since my return. Lucius's eyebrows shot sky high, and I interrupted before the inevitable torrent of questions. "It's new information, but we believe Thaddeus is among their number."
"Tell me everything," Lucius said.