20 Ascending Water
From his vantage point on the other side of the plaza, the dark-skinned Vizier observed the vessel about to dock at the Quay of Twilight. The Golden Barque's arrival signified the immanence of night across Creation... and the time of his meeting. He proceeded softly onwards, occasionally nodding his biretta-clad head to an acquaintance or minor functionary god who bade him good evening. Turning down a side street into one of the 'lower quarters' of Yu-Shan brought him to his destination, or rather the portal to his destination.
A few muttered words and the bricked-up archway glowed with Old Realm runes allowing him to step through the fabric of reality and onto a small stone balcony, jutting out from the sheer cliff all around. His eyes settled on the sweeping vista before him and lit upon the last fires of daylight sparkling off the river and its tributaries far below. "That such beauty should go unworshipped these days is indeed a shame," he remarked.
"You are very kind to say so, your emininence," were the soft, like the sounds of a babbling brook, words of response from behind him and he turned to behold stepping forth from the River's Womb, 16th of the Heavenly Gates, its olive-skinned Guardian, the goddess Anisatsis. "The Lady is expecting you. She bids you welcome and asks you join her in the Forest Sanctum."
Bowing deeply in respect, he moved through and into the temple complex, headquarters of the Convention of Wood - a place far removed from the heat and glass of his own domain. He walked the corridors without guide, drawn by the presence of the Lady who dwells within, eventually passing through a beaded curtain into a sanctum of dappled light and emerald shades.
The curly hair of the young girl within contrasted with the brightness of the amber tiara threaded through the locks and the intelligence that blazed in those green eyes. The man bowed once more. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company Mistress Ura?" he asked casually, as if unaware he addressed the leader of those Chosen of the Maidens who notionally ascribed to the Vision of Gold.
"Courtesy, Lord Nazri."
The Chair of the South smiled and settled himself on a low couch. "Courtesy would be when your youngsters introduced themselves to me in Chiaroscuro. This is more than mere courtesy."
"Indeed. I know you have little time for either me or Lord Kejak but this once I ask a boon for a favourable outcome for both you and me."
"I'm listening."
"You guess rightly that a deputation will come before you shortly. A circle from one of my Conventions. Synovar at the Violet Bier is preparing a mission as we speak. All I am asking is that you don't attach an monitor - we will submit the necessary Essence reports."
"You're asking me to turn a blind eye to something going on in my territory? I could be accused of favouritism. My position would not be tenable."
"You haven't heard what I am offering yet. In return, I will not oppose any candidate you choose to support for the empty Chair."
"You would leave me and Kejak to fight for the North? That is a pretty big concession. This mission must mean a lot to you."
She smiled demurely. "I have my reasons. I respect you Nazri and I hope we can work together. These are troubled times and everyone needs allies. I'm not asking you to compromise your neutrality. This is a personal request."
His dark brow furrowed and he unconsciously moistened his lip in pensive reflex. "You offer me a significant prize which leads me to wonder exactly what you will be getting out of this. Suspicion alone inclines me to decline your request. I must think on this."
He stood and turned to take his leave. Without he looking back, he pushed aside the beaded curtain before continuing, "You will have your answer when the circle introduces themselves to me. Good night Ayesha."
She watched him go, a tense expression marring that beautiful visage.
Despite the baking heat of the southern skies and the abundance of focusing, refractive glass, the Vermillion Tower remains comfortable all year round. At the heart of one of the most shattered districts of Chiaroscuro, its location and glamours prevented all but the most foolhardy or cunning scavengers from attempting to near it. The former often impaled themselves on the shards that lay treacherous about. The latter… well, they certainly looked like they did the same.
Within the spire of sparkling sanguine ceramic, Nazri stared deeply into the flames of knowledge, ignoring the soft footfalls of his subordinates as they stepped carefully around him to leave reports on the small glass lectern beside the Convention leader. The loudest sound in the room was the idle tuneless tapping of his ebony fingers against the sculpted stand. What does she want? What does she want? What is her angle on all of this? Thoughts of duplicity and schemes within schemes played through his mind. Of course she was up to something. She wouldn’t have asked that he didn’t attach a monitor to the mission if she weren’t. It was just a question of finding out what and whether it was something that would harm his own plans.
Turning away from the flickering light, he padded down the stairs back to his office, lips pursed in pensive contemplation. Lady Ura said that the mission was being prepared by Synovar… Taimyo of the Grave Accidental, the God of Collateral Deaths. So someone had to die. But who? And why was this important to Destiny? Perhaps he ought to have the circle followed. But who could he spare? Resources were stretched thin at the moment and with a number of his key agents still in Yu-Shan monitoring the Chejop Kejak situation, there were few he could rely on. Perhaps he could lean on Synovar, get some more information that way.
As he started penning a note to that effect, there was a soft knock at the door before it opened to admit his personal aide, Ressil. “The recent Essence reports from Paragon, sir. Some blips around the Artisans District but nothing that we can get a firm handle on. I’ve assigned a pair to follow it up though.” Nazri nodded in distraction. The aide continued, “I know you don’t often take much notice of the usual gate notifications but this one’s unusual. A bit of a rush job from the Convention of Essence Wielders. They apol-”
“A Circle?” Nazri snapped to attention at hearing this.
“Yes sir. An auspicious one, no less. We have their names here if you’d care to take a look.” He moved forward to slide a sheet of paper across the crystal desk. The Independent Vizier perused the list, an eyebrow rising in surprise at the names. Two immediately sprang out. “Tell me Ressil, what was-”
“Silent Sunset’s last mission? I thought you might ask that so I made a few enquiries. Divisional operation, overseeing a Haltan/Linowan border skirmish. He returned to Yu-Shan about three days ago.”
“Delay them for a day and get me anything we have on the others, especially that dandy of Venus. When they come through, I will see them personally.”
“Surely you’re not thinking about declining the request sir?”
“Somehow I feel that if I were to, the matter would not be taken to the censors. And even so, Wong Bongerok is sympathetic to our cause. But that is not your concern. Just get me what I have asked for please.”
“I’ll get on that immediately sir.” The Chosen of Journeys turned and left the room and his mentor to his own thoughts.
Nazri moved to the window, looking over the cracked splendour of the city’s former glory, a glory he could remember from before the fall of the Shogunate, towards the Bright District. Schemes within schemes. What was she playing at? Asking him not to attach a monitor and then sending one of his own students on the mission. Unless she didn’t know but surely that was unlikely. Wasn’t it?
Nazri, you old fool, he silently chided himself. You could spend days tying yourself up in knots trying to figure out what’s going on. She obviously thinks it’s important – is it really worth turning down what she is offering? With the North under your control, you might be able to put pressure on the Capital Convention to restore a kind of balance… Not to mention your professional curiosity has been piqued.
He moved back to his desk and sat down having decided to wait and see what Ressil came back with before making a final decision.
The Chair of the Convention of Fire watched them leave, their heels ringing on the polished glass and thoughts of deep consternation playing through his mind. An Auspicious Circle was very rare these days, divisional, factional and conventional rivalries being as they were.
So…that was the Circle Mistress Ura had assembled? Well, that the Division of Endings had supposedly arranged. But still, a curious mix for a curious request. An auditor as part of the group when she had specifically asked for one not to be assigned. She must know I have mentored him. Has she subverted him? I must make sure his debriefing is extremely thorough when he gets back. And the boy of Secrets walks the line between the factioneering too. Well, we’ll see what we can offer him if he can provide us with useful information. Good agents in the Manse of Ivy are hard to come by these days.
Does she dangle the carrot of a new recruit in front of me whilst simultaneously taunting with the one that got away? Master Jerefin could have been a valuable agent if those Bronze meddlers had not interfered with the Battle of Fondvar and pushed him over the equilibrium. His effectiveness in dealing with the demon incursions around here was nearly unparalleled. Is that why he has been assigned though? Maybe she suspects demonic presence.
But what of the other two? One, a Bronze deserter who spent much of his time in Creation running errands for his new Gold masters. The other, a Joybringer of seedy repute, truly a whore in all senses of the term, doing the dirty work of the Cerulean Lute with a delight that beggared belief. He got the job done but still… there was something fishy about him. Yet the file had nothing of substance – merely supposition and conjecture. Maybe that could be rectified if Mist came on board…
They were heading south, towards the mountains. Lots of mining towns and banditry in those regions. He shuffled through some papers on his desk but could not find any indications of increased or significant demonic activity that might indicate a potential problem. He put aside a report mentioning a rise in incidents of kidnapping in Chiaroscuro for later perusal before turning to his aide who had been patiently waiting for him to acknowledge his arrival.
“Ressil, what are the current Hunt statuses?”
“Um, the ‘Abbot’ hasn’t done anything with his one for a while – they’re still stationed in the Lap. The other is on routine patrol in the south-east, in the environs of Rathess I believe. There are reports of Regalza having been sighted at the top of her tower more often in the last few weeks but nothing untoward to draw their attention.”
Nazri leant back, running his hand over his smooth pate as he considered the situation. Well, he’d given his consent. Accepted her offer for good or ill. He would just have to hope that the precious jewel of impartiality had not been damaged in any way. Sitting back up, he looked across the glassy expanse of his desk, a faint smile playing across his lips. “Ressil…”
“Yes, sir?”
“I hear Icehome is very nice at this time of year…”
So... a boy had to die. One mortal perishing in order to meet her mission. Or is it to do with the demon? Is her scheming tied into whatever brought the demon forth from Malfeas? As if I don't have enough demon-related problems to deal with already.
He cast his eyes over to the report on kidnapping that he had put aside previously. Hmmm, Viridian says there are a group of Luna's Children in town investigating these disappearances. Well, so long as they deal with it I can let their presences go, for now. Hopefully they won't be too... clumsy. Stewards often have a habit of not quite caring for their urban surroundings. Barbarians!
But which strand to follow. Demon or boy? Plus the mystery of the boy's mother abandoning town and children is strange. I think it bears further investigating. But there are other matters to attend to...
"Ressil, contact Crystal. He'll be able to sort out the employment situation in Texia. And tell Viridian he needs to go see his brother. I want a full report on Texia, double check Sunset's tale and pay attention to the Korth family. There may be something important going on with them. The Golds are trying to effect some kind of plan and we need to know if it's going to affect our operations."
Ressil raised an eybrow. "Crystal? Crystal Weaved in Servitude? That Crystal!"
"Unless you know of any other Crystals who have access to the Loom?" A heartbeat's pause. "Yes, that Crystal," he returned witheringly.
"But he's strange. And unreliable!"
"My requests are not to be gainsaid, Ressil. He's a Harbinger, works in the Bureau of Humanity and, more importantly, owes us a favour. Your personal differences aside, he's the best person for the job." A stern glance from Southern Chair quelled his aide to hold his peace.
"I just don't trust him not to mess this up. But I'll make the request, sir. Will that be all?"
"You may go Ressil." Nazri watched his assistant close the office doors, bowing respectfully as he exited, before pursing his lips in worried concern. He had promise but still some rough edges. Some time in the North would definitely be good for him... and my cause...
The final pieces were slotting into place. Mistress Ura had been true to her word and at last week’s final Convocation had rather delightfully sparred with Lord Kejak and smoothed the route for his own chosen candidate, Mordant Respite, to ascend to the Chair of the North. He wasn’t quite sure how the Syndics would deal with it but that was a problem to be dealt with later. For now, it was a case of getting things up and running properly once more. The Northern Convention had too long been paralysed by inaction. It needed revitalisation and quickly… though without undue haste, of course.
It did mean he would be losing Ressil to the cold of Icehome but it would serve his education well to spend some time aiding another. And reporting back to him, of course.
Ah well, time to promote a new Auditor to be his personal aide. Silent Sunset was a promising candidate for such a position. He resolved to check Sunset’s report when the Chosen of Saturn returned from his mission. Nazri smile; it wouldn’t hurt at all to have a Reckoner as his emissary, would put others a little off their stride just thinking of potential ulterior motives for his appearance…
A tentative knock brought him from his reverie of planning. The carved doors parted to admit a rather dour-faced aide. “Ah, Ressil. All set for your departure then? Mordant is expecting you soon, give him my regards and tell him I expect to see some results soon.” He took another look at the Harbinger’s expression. “What’s wrong, Ressil?”
“I bring some bad news, sir. I have just had word from the Violet Bier. Silent Sunset has… been killed in action. The Circle have returned to Yu-Shan and filed their reports. From what I can gather he was killed in some kind of Essence feedback explosion.”
“Before you leave then, please get me the full report,” Nazri responded tersely, his previous good humour having now evaporated on hearing this.
Ressil grimaced. “Unfortunately, the Forbidding Manse has put a block on their reports. It was all I could do to get that much out of the on-duty supervisor in Synovar’s office.”
“Really all you could do?” Nazri raised an ebony eyebrow querulously.
“Well, short of a false censure indictment to threaten him into telling…”
The Southern Chair pursed his lips, considering. “Who is it?”
“Splintered Stone, minor functionary. No real connections to anyone in authority.”
“Do it. I want that report. He was one of my best field agents. I can’t have him disappear just like that.”
Ressil nodded solemnly and bowed before departing the office. Nazri watched him leave, his ire rising. She planned this, didn’t she? She was hoping he would perish in this mission no doubt. Getting rid of one of his best Auditors, just like that. Well, two could play that game. The Scriptorium was now effectively under his control. Time to step up his oversight…