The Worlds of Katherine Kurtz

Elsewhere in the city, people went about their business doing their best to pretend that the events of late did not happen, that life was still ordinary in all of its tedium and pleasantries. Two of these people included an old nursemaid and her ward, Gwendolyn, who felt that she was too old to be minded by the kindly crone, but was wise enough to not say so. She did her best to make conversation with her oldest friend, as well as anyone who did not call her "grimalkin" under their breath. She had secluded herself perhaps too well, lately, in the name of her studies, and so there was much to be appraised of. Anything not covered directly during the earlier mass that was yet public knowledge, she learned between purchases in the bustling market. She was a connoisseur as well as a lady, so in each shop, they took their time with their selections. By the end of the evening's adventure, she had acquired a lovely new pewter ring and a book she hoped to share with her uncle. The evening bells began to toll, and that told the pair that it was time to head home, before the dark of Autumn became more than merely moody. They were just at the edge of the market when the ringing stopped.

Idly, Gwendolyn asked over her shoulder, "What do you think of this ring? Do you suppose it will be useful?"

"Not for you," someone cackled. Gwendolyn whirled to see two men in obscuring hoods smiling at her like wolves. Before she could make out other details or wonder where her nurse had disappeared to, her eyes were blinded and her senses were scattered. The crowd, formerly equal parts disdainful and delighted with her, had nothing but shock and sympathy to offer now. A solution of alcohol, water, vinegar, and merasha wet her face and dampened her fine clothes, stinging as it entered her pores, mouth, and eyes. She dropped the book and clutched at her face; the tome flew away when one of the men kicked it disdainfully. They hastily grabbed her and marched her away, shouting for space from the shocked people. Just before they could disappear with her down an alleyway, guards appeared and ran to follow. Over their heads, somebody poured boiling oil like the kind used in the defense against sieges down into the alley, preventing them from closing the distance and leaving them yelping like children, having just avoided becoming soaked in the terrible stuff. By the time they gathered their senses, she was nowhere to be found.

(I know Lord Anthony is a minor character, but I must admit that's one of my favorite profile portraits, because I love the view from the City wall. I can imagine that being close to one of the main city gates, probably Bishopsgate, facing westward in the late afternoon close to sunset.)

Quote from: Evie on October 17, 2024, 01:40:07 PM

Quote from: DerynifanK on October 17, 2024, 01:11:13 PMAnd. Again, it's a long time til Monday

Oh, no worries, there won't be a Duel Arcane or even a challenge to join in one quite that soon. After all, Cinhil still needs to be Empowered first, which he will likely want to have both of his brothers available for, not to mention that Rémy will need to actually turn up first before Cinhil can issue any sort of challenge. Though at least now you have some inkling of Cinhil's short-term goals. Not that the poor lad is really in any position to make long-term goals these days.

For that matter, you now know the enemy's short-term goals too, now that Cinhil has made the war council aware of the intel gleaned from Lucie's mind.

I know it's wishful thinking but if only there was some miracle cure discovered to keep him alive longer. I know it won't happen but can't help wishing.

Quote from: DerynifanK on October 17, 2024, 01:11:13 PMAnd. Again, it's a long time til Monday

Oh, no worries, there won't be a Duel Arcane or even a challenge to join in one quite that soon. After all, Cinhil still needs to be Empowered first, which he will likely want to have both of his brothers available for, not to mention that Rémy will need to actually turn up first before Cinhil can issue any sort of challenge. Though at least now you have some inkling of Cinhil's short-term goals. Not that the poor lad is really in any position to make long-term goals these days.

For that matter, you now know the enemy's short-term goals too, now that Cinhil has made the war council aware of the intel gleaned from Lucie's mind.

And. Again, it's a long time til Monday

Quote from: DerynifanK on October 17, 2024, 11:40:21 AM

Quote from: Evie on October 17, 2024, 09:38:01 AM

Quote from: DerynifanK on October 17, 2024, 09:22:26 AMCinhil is a remarkable king who cares deeply for his kingdom and his people and also has a deep faith to sustain him. I hope Remy is fool enough to accept the challenge, that the terms are favorable to Cinhil and that he wins, while Remy dies in the magic circle.

Yes, Cinhil is remarkable. Hopefully you can see now why I fell so hard for him over the course of writing this story. 🥰

Rémy...is sneaky and cunning, but not the brightest crayon in the box, let's just put it that way. 😂

I certainly can see why you fell for him. You are not the only one. I really like all three brothers but I have to say I don't envy Nicholas having to follow in his brother's footsteps. Some really big shoes to fill.

Colin would rather not have to follow in those footsteps, although by this point he has accepted that he will eventually have to.

Just imagine, Cinhil has only been King of Gwynedd thus far for a short eight months, barely a footnote in the annals of history. Though let's hope that the upcoming Duel Arcane will result in him becoming something more than just a sentence or two briefly mentioned in passing in a history textbook someday.

Quote from: Evie on October 17, 2024, 09:38:01 AM

Quote from: DerynifanK on October 17, 2024, 09:22:26 AMCinhil is a remarkable king who cares deeply for his kingdom and his people and also has a deep faith to sustain him. I hope Remy is fool enough to accept the challenge, that the terms are favorable to Cinhil and that he wins, while Remy dies in the magic circle.

Yes, Cinhil is remarkable. Hopefully you can see now why I fell so hard for him over the course of writing this story. 🥰

Rémy...is sneaky and cunning, but not the brightest crayon in the box, let's just put it that way. 😂

I certainly can see why you fell for him. You are not the only one. I really like all three brothers but I have to say I don't envy Nicholas having to follow in his brother's footsteps. Some really big shoes to fill.

Quote from: DerynifanK on October 17, 2024, 09:22:26 AMCinhil is a remarkable king who cares deeply for his kingdom and his people and also has a deep faith to sustain him. I hope Remy is fool enough to accept the challenge, that the terms are favorable to Cinhil and that he wins, while Remy dies in the magic circle.

Yes, Cinhil is remarkable. Hopefully you can see now why I fell so hard for him over the course of writing this story. 🥰

Rémy...is sneaky and cunning, but not the brightest crayon in the box, let's just put it that way. 😂

Cinhil is a remarkable king who cares deeply for his kingdom and his people and also has a deep faith to sustain him. I hope Remy is fool enough to accept the challenge, that the terms are favorable to Cinhil and that he wins, while Remy dies in the magic circle.

Previous chapter: https://www.rhemuthcastle.com/index.php/topic,3251.0.html


Chapter Twenty-Six

August 27, 1464
Rhemuth Castle War Council
Mid-morning

Cinhil's War Council met the following morning after the arrival of the runaway war captive from Woodbury-on-Cleyde. The young lady herself was being temporarily housed in the Infirmarium while other lodging arrangements were being made for her, for as the war had continued on through the summer, the more full the castle and city had become with displaced persons seeking refuge. At the castle itself, those had mostly been various noblemen or their families, but the fact remained that the apartment blocks were nearly as full now as one might expect for an Easter Court or perhaps Twelfth Night, only these residents weren't likely to depart in just a week or two.

The Council met in the Royal Bedchamber now, for even getting in and out of his wheeled chair had become more of a problem for King Cinhil of late, though his mind and strength of will were still as keen as they'd ever been. Sufficient fauldstools had been arranged in a semicircle around the Bed of State, and he was propped against enough pillows that one might imagine him still seated on a throne, dressed in the Haldane crimson as a subtle reminder that despite the decline of his physical condition, he was still very much the King of Gwynedd.

Cinhil's keen gray eyes swept the room. To his right in the place of honor sat Alixa, his Queen. Lord Geoffrey Arilan sat beside her, having been spared from his duties at the Duke of Carthmoor's side for the dual purpose of representing the King's brother at this council and also reporting back to Prince Nicholas about its proceedings once the meeting was over. Cinhil suspected there might be another Council that Lord Geoffrey also wished to report to at some point, but that was fine–in fact, it might well suit his own purpose, though that was something to speak with Lord Geoffrey about later, under more private circumstances. Next to Geoffrey sat Princess Catalina, a vital cog in Cinhil's plans, for if he should die before Prince Nicholas's return to Rhemuth, as Gwynedd's new Queen she would be Regent of Gwynedd. His mother Queen Soraya sat next to young Princess Elisa, representing his Haldane Court, for Nicholas and Camber were both still engaged with enemy forces in the field.

Added to those familiar faces were three new ones, for their areas of expertise would be needed at this Council. Master Hugh Whytacre represented the Night Watch of Gwynedd, which had been receiving special training in recent months to help increase their vigilance against not just the usual threats to the City's peace, but also any threats from within who might seek to aid and abet those outside the walls who wished to cause the citizens of Rhemuth harm, for it was a known fact that many a besieged city had fallen not due to breached walls, fire, or starvation, but from treachery: someone on the inside with enemy sympathies who had given the invaders access from within. Lord Anthony Colfax was the commander of Rhemuth's garrison, his charge being to lead the military defense of the City of Rhemuth. And Lord Salim, Cinhil had deemed able enough to lead the defense of the Castle fortifications, should the city gates be breached or the enemy find some other way to threaten the safety of Rhemuth Castle itself.

Cinhil dearly missed having his King's Champion by his side, but the Duke of Corwyn's forces were currently herding the King of Nördmarcke's forces into a trap which, God willing, his brother the Duke of Carthmoor would soon be springing upon them. And on the western side of the Kingdom, Prince Camber's forces had made it back from the northern end of Travlum to Candor Rhea, rousting Prince Remy's mixed Jouvian and Nördmarcker troops from there and forcing them to retreat, though where they had retreated to, Camber's scouts had yet to ascertain.

As for the Eistenmarcker Queen Mother and her vicious progeny, as yet neither Haldane prince had seen any recent signs of their whereabouts. But Cinhil had a plan for that also.

"Healer James," Cinhil began the meeting, "how fares our new guest this morning? In general, that is; you need not share anything she would wish to be kept private."

"She does well enough, under the circumstances," the Royal Healer answered. "She requests that her name or other identifying information not be shared with any who do not already know those details, but aside from that, she is well aware that the information which she shared with you yesterday is meant to aid us in the war effort, and she has no objection to those details being discussed in Council. She would just prefer to be able to lead as normal a life as possible after all's said and done, rather than having her name recognized throughout Rhemuth and beyond as 'Prince Rémy's war captive,' with all the lurid speculation and gossip that would be likely to engender. Now that the Duchess of Carthmoor has acquired the information you wished to know, I have gone ahead and blurred her most traumatic memories as you have requested."

"Thank you, and her request to retain her privacy sounds perfectly reasonable," said Cinhil. "However, in the interests of having something to call her besides 'the escaped captive,' I will refer to her as 'Ellie.'" He looked around the room. "For those of you who have not already been informed, yesterday morning a young woman who recently escaped from Prince Rémy was brought to my attention. She is now under our personal protection. 'Ellie' has been traveling with the Prince of Joux's forces for the past three months and was able to supply some vital intel about their previous actions and also a few hints of what they are planning in the near future. Much of what she was allowed to overhear was unintelligible to her, since Rémy took the precaution of only speaking in Jouvian or Torenthi when discussing battle plans. Fortunately, the Duchess of Carthmoor happens to be fluent in both languages, and therefore was able to draw more information from Ellie's memories than even Ellie herself realized that she knew."

"As we have suspected for some time now, Prince Rémy is planning to stage a siege of Rhemuth in the near future. What we have just learned is that his forces will likely be reinforced by an Eistenmarcker fleet which is currently somewhere off the western coast of the United Kingdoms, partially relying on some sort of illusory magic to remain concealed, although since the Llyrians are particularly skilled in seeing through such deceptions, they have also used some older, more mundane methods of attempting to camouflage themselves against the ocean waters. Therefore, the ships I have ordered our fleet to seek out will likely have sails and rigging of Truyère Blue, and may also have their wooden planks coated with wax of the same color, to help them blend in with the blue seas they are sailing through. At least that is how they are likely to appear if they are still in oceanic waters. As they approach the mouth of the Eirian, it is more likely they will shed that blue hue and simply use the colors of a friendly nation in order to try to pass as regular merchant vessels. So our fleet captains and admiralty will need to use extra caution in the days ahead to ensure they are correctly identifying friend from foe."

"And who will be getting that word of warning out to our admiralty and the portmasters?" Lord Geoffrey asked. "Shall I add that to my list, or have you already sent couriers out?"

"My post riders left earlier this morning to spread the warning," Cinhil assured his Chief Intelligencer. "Though if you have any additional messengers to spare, that would be helpful, especially if they are aware of portal locations at port destinations to ensure the word travels more quickly than my post relays can manage. That said, even if we manage to stop the Eistenmarcker ships from sailing up the Eirian, Rémy's forces are still preparing to lay siege on Rhemuth sometime within the month. Where are we currently in terms of our siege provisioning and other preparations, Maman?"

The Dowager Queen drew herself up proudly. "We should have an adequate amount of timber and sinews stored up for our siege machine defenses, which I have been working together with Lord Colfax to find various storehouses for, so if one storehouse happens to be destroyed by enemy fire, our entire supply does not go up in smoke. We should also have ample stores of bitumen, sulfur, liquid pitch, oil, iron, coal, round stones, and wood with which to make our defense. Additional cisterns have been added within the City in case the enemy attempts to contaminate our wells by adding poison to our rivers, though we might need to ration water carefully if that should happen and if we are still under siege during the drier months. And the moat that our garrison has added as a partial defense outside the city walls should also hopefully prevent any enemy siege towers from getting too close to our walls, at least until they manage to fill it in, though I believe Lord Colfax said he has some defensive tactics up his sleeve if that eventuality should occur."

"I do, Your Majesty," said Lord Colfax. "Should that happen, our sappers are prepared to tunnel beneath the wall in order to excavate the ground beneath where they plan to place such a siege tower. I assure you it would not remain upright for long once the ground collapses underneath it. We can also place cranes on the walls if we need to increase the height from which we can drop burning tar and sulfur."

Cinhil nodded. "How do our food stores look?"

The Duchess of Carthmoor spoke up. "We have been stockpiling unmilled grains as well as hardtack, dried legumes, salted meats, livestock, root vegetables, preserved foods, animal fodder for our livestock, and salt. Since the start of the war, if not before, the people of Rhemuth have been encouraged to maintain their personal gardens with vegetable crops as well as using our common green spaces to grow additional food crops. The fields outside the city walls are currently being harvested, with those crops also being preserved as needed and stored within the city walls, both so our own people will have enough food for the siege ahead and to deny the crops to any enemy foragers seeking to live off the land. We also have ample stores of wine, wine vinegar, and poultry, since we will need the fowl to feed the sick should any disease break out."

"And how long are all those stores likely to last, given our current population numbers?" Cinhil asked.

"That is less certain," Catalina answered, "especially given the influx of travelers arriving to the City in the past month. But Lord Riordan and I have been looking at the numbers, and we think what we've collected should be sufficient to maintain the city and castle for about a year, hopefully slightly longer if need be, given careful rationing. I am certainly hoping our call for allied help will help us break the siege in far less than that, but I thought it better to prepare for a longer siege than a short one."

"And I trust all the warehouses are strongly guarded?" Cinhil asked.

"Yes," said Lord Colfax. "And anyone attempting to loot them for personal gain will be dealt with very harshly. I think that should deter repeat attempts."

The King nodded. "Lord Salim, what of our supply of defensive weapons?"

"Your Majesty, in addition to the ones Queen Soraya already mentioned, our smiths and woodworkers have accrued quite a large supply of arrows, javelins, lances, and lead-weighted darts for use here at the Castle, in addition to the supply being produced by the City's smiths and woodcrafters, and the armorers have been working long hours as well. Also, the Anvillers have sent a shipment of swords, shields, longbows, and crossbows to supplement what we already had on hand. Those were brought up from our river dock just last week," the weapon master replied.

"Very well," said Cinhil. "And Master Hugh, what news do you have for us from the Night Watch?"

"Well, Your Majesty," said the night watchman, looking slightly ill at ease in such august company, yet pleased to be included, "as you might imagine from the heightened influx of travelers arriving in Rhemuth, either to seek safe haven here or just passing through, the number of petty crimes has risen in the past few weeks, but mostly seems to be restricted to pickpocketing and theft. That may rise if a siege lasts long enough for there to be food shortages. Our primary concern has been keeping a sharp eye out for those who might be in league with the enemy, hiding out within the walls in hopes of giving access to enemy forces once our gates are barred against them. Thus far we have not found any enemy spies, but that is not to say that such spies don't exist within the City walls. It could just be that they've been very careful not to attract any notice."

The King nodded. "That's the sort of threat that is not as likely to become apparent until after the siege begins, but stay vigilant anyway." Cinhil steepled his fingers. "Hm. Food, weapons, defenses, what am I missing? Ah, yes, medical supplies. It seems likely we will need a lot of those, despite our best efforts. How are we stocked for those? Princess Elisa?"

Elisa blushed as everyone turned towards her. "Lady Gabrielle and I have been working with Healer James on taking inventory of our medical remedies and medicinal herb garden, and we have added several species of wild herbs to the castle garden which normally we would simply forage for outside the city walls. We've also increased our stock of simple remedies and sent out more to the various infirmaries around the City to ensure everyone has a good supply of medications likely to be needed against fevers, infection, pain, and some of the most common ailments likely to become a problem, especially if water needs to be rationed or, God forbid, somehow becomes contaminated. The physicks that were beyond our skill to make, Healer Saoirse has been assisting us with restocking, with Master James checking over all our work to ensure all remedies have been blended or brewed correctly. There is also an elixir made from an ancient recipe that the Anvillers had in their archives, which Lord Salim very kindly supplied for our use, that I think you will be most interested in. We only have small batches of it thus far, but we're trying to make as much as possible to send out to our troops in the field." Elisa smiled, looking very pleased with herself.

Cinhil, having already been privately informed of the properties of this particular elixir, smiled back at his younger sister. "Yes, please do that. Since I don't think Master James or Lord Salim have had a chance to inform everyone present what this Anviller elixir does, perhaps you would like to enlighten the others."

Elisa almost bounced with excitement in her chair, although she managed to regain her sense of decorum at the last moment. "As at least some of you know, our Eistenmarcker enemies have a Queen Mother who is very skilled at the illusory arts, and thus far it has been very difficult for our troops–even our Deryni soldiers–to see through her illusions, because Eistenmarcker magic seems to work differently from our more familiar Deryni spells and illusions. However, just because her special form of illusory magic makes the reality they conceal much more difficult to detect, that doesn't mean that detection is impossible. For our Deryni troops, there are certain Anviller techniques that can be used to see past such surface illusions, and some Llyrians know similar techniques. I believe Lord Salim has been working together with Lord Geoffrey and a few others to spread knowledge of those illusion-penetrating techniques among our Deryni soldiers in the field, but of course that is only a very small percentage of the total number of troops who are in danger of falling for such ruses. What this elixir does is it helps to sharpen the senses and observational abilities of ordinary humans for a few hours, to allow them to more easily notice any discrepancies between what their eyes are telling them and what is actually there. It's not foolproof, and it won't make the illusion go away. They will still see whatever it is that the Eistermarcker magic is trying to make them see. But...well, from what the Countess of Kierney tells me, it's almost like you see one thing but with a hint of a double image of something else superimposed with it, and you have to try to detect which is the true image."

Cinhil raised his brows. "From what the Countess of Kierney tells you?" he asked.

Elisa blushed again. "Well, we tested it on her, since she's human. Gabby and I couldn't very well test it to see how well it works for someone without Deryni powers, since we're both trained Deryni ourselves. But Countess Noella volunteered freely, once we told her what we were making. We had a Llyrian who is skilled with shapeshifting stand before her, and she was able to see both the illusory form and the true one, though it took her a little longer to guess which was which. As I said, it's not foolproof, but it gives our human soldiers more of a chance to avoid being fooled."

"I'm glad to know the elixir has been tested to be effective," said Cinhil, "but next time, it would be best if you could find a test volunteer who isn't bearing a child. The Earl of Kierney would hardly thank us if his heir ends up having double-vision or some other unexpected side-effect." At Elisa's stricken look, he added, "Though I very much doubt anything of the sort will happen. Let's just try to use more caution if another such situation should arise in future."

"We can certainly use as much of such an elixir on the battle front as you are able to create," said Lord Geoffrey. "For the most part, trying to track down the Eistenmarckers has been much like trying to chase down a mirage. We can easily see where they've already been, but trying to get ahead of them and prevent them from striking a particular location is the real trick. The one time when I feel pretty certain we came close to capturing Queen Ingrid, we suddenly found ourselves facing three different war bands going in separate directions, each appearing to be led by Ingrid, but when we tried to give chase, in each case the pursuit led us only a couple of miles in each direction when suddenly our quarry just vanished. I feel certain the real Ingrid had to be nearby somewhere, since from my study of their peculiar form of magic, most of the illusions require her to be within line of sight for them to work, though even that restriction is somewhat deceptive since 'line of sight' might not always mean it has to be within her line of sight in a certain physical location, if it's something she can visualize on a map or sketch instead."

"As I recall," said Catalina, "one primary vulnerability to her abilities is that if you can somehow limit or cut off her ability to see her target, whether it's the actual target or a symbolic representation of it, she will not be able to cast the illusions that make her so powerful. So I'm not sure what the solution to that would be, but it seems that if there were some way to impair her vision without impairing the vision of combatants on our side, that would help."

"If we could identify the correct Ingrid, we could just throw a bag over her head," joked Cinhil.

"You jest, Sire, but that is exactly what some of the ancient texts suggest," Lord Salim said. "More specifically, some suggest a leather sack, though I think that's mainly to ensure complete opacity so she can't see through it, since mere burlap or thin linen is unlikely to be effective in completely obscuring her sight. Though yes, something that direct would only help if we could capture her first."

"Smoke would aid with concealment," mused Lord Geoffrey, "though that would also keep our forces from seeing theirs easily. Warding our forces would help to obscure them from being seen clearly and would also offer protection, but that would also mean we wouldn't be able to strike at the enemy either. But it's a problem we can keep mulling over; perhaps some more workable solution will present itself eventually."

"All right.  I think I'm going to need to rest soon, but speaking of problems and possibly workable solutions, if you could stay for a few minutes after everyone else has left, Lord Geoffrey, I have a few questions I will need to put to you privately."

His Chief Intelligencer raised a sable brow in inquiry. "As you wish, Sire."

"One more thing. Master James, if we can find a room available for your patient seeking sanctuary here, is 'Ellie' free to leave the Infirmarium, or do you need to keep her under observation any longer?"

"She is free to leave, if she has somewhere else where she can go," said the Healer. "My initial thought, before we learned 'Ellie's' full story, was that she could share the room I've set aside for Healer Saoirse and Princess Cécile, but there are reasons why that would likely not be advisable, at least for now."

"I have an idea about that," said Catalina, "but I need to check with the current occupant of the apartment I have in mind to make sure she has no objection to sharing her lodging with a stranger."

"All right," said Cinhil. "If you find suitable quarters for her, be sure to let Master James know. We may need all the Infirmarium bed space we can get all too soon."


August 27, 1464
The King's Bedchamber
Rhemuth Castle
Late morning

"How may I be of assistance, Sire?" Lord Geoffrey Arilan asked the King after everyone else had left the room.

Cinhil didn't answer immediately, lost in his thoughts for a few moments. At last he sighed. "Colin isn't likely to be too pleased with this decision for multiple reasons, not the least of which is that it will mean I will need you close at hand once the siege begins, rather than on the battlefield assisting him, but I can't see any way around it unless you can think of a different solution. If Rhemuth comes under siege, I would prefer for my capital and my people to not have to endure the fear and uncertainty that comes from a prolonged enemy bombardment. Not if there is any alternative, anyway, and there is one, at least if Prince Rémy can be persuaded to agree to it, and I think he is fool enough to take the bait."

"What do you have in mind?" Lord Geoffrey asked.

"If Rhemuth falls under siege, I plan to be Empowered. And then I will claim the ancient Haldane right of Camberian Council arbitration for a Duel Arcane."

The intelligencer looked startled. "I was under the impression that going through a full Empowerment ceremony is very likely to kill you!"

Cinhil nodded. "It will. But not right away. Assuming it affects me as my potential-setting did, I would experience a surge of power first that is both psychically and physically energizing. That surge would only last a day or two at most, but that should be sufficient to get the job done if the timing is right and if I can call upon the Council to arbitrate when needed. I don't trust Rémy enough to challenge him to a Duel Arcane without the Council's presence to bind him and his troops to the terms of the agreement, because you know as well as I do that he would renege on any deal if he can."

"You have the ancient right to request Council arbitration, Sire. I won't dispute that. But what terms would you be asking for?"

"To settle our quarrel by single combat. I suspect that as the challenged, he will wish the duel to be to the death, with the winner claiming right to Gwynedd. He would assume that even as weak as his powers are, he can't possibly lose against a dying King, and Rémy is inclined to overconfidence. Although I will do my best to arrange more favorable terms that won't result in completely ceding Gwynedd to Rémy altogether even if I should lose, I am very much counting on the powers of an Unempowered Buyenne-Furstán with a weakened Deryni bloodline not standing up against an Empowered Haldane with a Deryni mother of the d'Auxerre line. I suspect Rémy also tends to forget that maternal lineage counts for something too." Cinhil smiled. "Though as a safeguard, just in case something goes wrong with the ritual and I'm unable to participate in the Duel afterwards, I will designate someone to serve as my Second beforehand. Under the circumstances, probably Maman, since my King's Champion is currently in Lendour and my brothers are otherwise occupied. I would trust Catalina's strength, and she would likely love to have a go at Rémy, but she's bearing Colin's heir."

"Don't forget that Prince Rémy's mother was Deryni also, but yes, even so I am pretty sure you would have the edge if you were Empowered first."

Cinhil grinned. "The Empowerment would need to be a given, Geoff. I'm not asking to be wheeled into the ritual circle on my deathbed. But the timing of the arbitration team's arrival and the Duel Arcane after that will be critical."

"You might need to be wheeled out of the circle on your deathbed, though," Lord Geoffrey said. "Cinhil, are you certain you want to go through with this? Rhemuth is well prepared to withstand a siege, at least for a while."

"Yes, but at what cost to the kingdom and to my people? We need an end to the bloodshed, and preferably sooner rather than later."

"And if Rémy's allies won't also agree to the terms?"

"Then at least the Jouvians would be bound to withdraw. And that would mean their allies would likely withdraw their support from Renier and Joux and their ambitions in the Forcinn. That would at least serve some purpose."

"And you are willing to shorten your remaining days just to see a partial victory? You might not live to see your daughter born."

Cinhil sighed. "Geoff, I am dying anyway. I would prefer for my death to mean something. And a partial victory is better than none at all, which is a very real possibility if Rhemuth should fall. Besides that, my friend, I don't believe the death of my mortal flesh is an end to be feared. I will see my daughter someday, if not in this life."

Lord Geoffrey Arilan bowed deeply, outwardly composed but inwardly heartbroken. "Very well, Sire. I will bring your request for arbitration to the Camberian Council when the time comes."


August 27, 1464
The Courtyard Garden
Rhemuth Castle
Late morning

Princess Catalina was heading back to her apartment after the War Council, deliberating the best way to approach the topic with Melisande of needing to move a complete stranger in with her and her children, and how to make the request not come across as a royal command which might add to the resentment that Mellie was quite possibly already feeling towards her. As she pondered the matter, the strains of a familiar Andelonian melody wafted across the courtyard, causing her to glance towards where the music was coming from. Near the center of the garden sat Lord Riordan and Master Devyn, the troubadour deftly plucking the melody on his lute while Riordan accompanied him with his wooden flute.

She detoured in their direction, waving them back down when they attempted to rise to greet her, and sitting on the empty spot on the bench beside Riordan. "Master Devyn, I believe you might be just the man I need to speak with," Catalina said.

"Me, Your Highness?" Devyn appeared surprised to be singled out by her, which was of little surprise to Catalina, since the number of times they had spoken to one another could be counted on one hand. She had first seen the troubadour at her father's Court in Andelon, but his visit there had been brief, and she had not had the opportunity to make his acquaintance at the time. Since then, she had been introduced to him briefly during his last visit to Rhemuth back in June, but aside from exchanging a few pleasantries, there had not been much opportunity to get to know each other better, since after a few days he had continued his journey towards Colin's war camp in Ramos.

However, as the likely future Regent of Gwynedd after King Cinhil's death and in her husband's absence, Catalina had already been entrusted by Cinhil with certain information she might find of benefit, and one such recently imparted piece of information was Master Devyn's role as an intelligencer which he used the cover of his musical talents to fulfill. Another was the long-standing friendship between this estranged, natural-born son of the Duke of Cassan and the Haldane family, particularly King Cinhil and his two brothers. And also, she had learned from her Mind-Seeing of Lucie's memories, it had been Master Devyn who had discovered and rescued young Lucie from her husband's hunting lodge at Candor Rhea.

"Yes," Catalina confirmed. "I believe you are exactly the right person I need to consult with at the moment. I understand that you are the one who discovered Lucie of Woodbury at Colin's hunting lodge. I have been tasked with finding her a place to stay, and my initial thought was that the apartment where Mellie and her daughters are currently residing has a spare room that would be suitable for the purpose. But you are better acquainted with all of the persons concerned than I am, so it would be helpful to know if there is any reason you can think of why such a placement for Lucie would be unsuitable. And I'm also not entirely sure if I'm the best person to broach the topic, since I wouldn't want Melisande to feel like she has no choice in the matter. Also, given my marriage to Colin, I might not be her favorite person to have requesting favors of her."

"Mellie is fair-minded," Devyn said. "I'm pretty sure she'll have known all along that Colin would need to marry elsewhere someday, even if she might have once hoped otherwise and though Colin himself was in denial of that during the early years of their relationship, so while I can see her feeling hurt, I don't think she will necessarily hold his marriage against you. But you're right, I am better acquainted with both, and I'm willing to speak with Mellie to see how she feels about being quartered with Lucie. I think they would get on fairly well and would find some natural sympathy with each other, and it could also be helpful for Mellie to have someone else living with her who can give her a hand with keeping the girls occupied. How old are they now?"

"I believe Anneke is six and Emmeline is three, unless either has had a birthday since Colin last mentioned their ages to me," said Catalina, making a mental note that she needed to learn such details now that she would be in more regular contact with her husband's children.

"That sounds about right," said Devyn, thinking back. "The youngest wasn't born yet when I left Rhemuth to begin my journey across the Southern Sea, but I think Colin had just learned she was on the way."

"Mellie is expecting a fourth," said Catalina. "In just a couple more months, I believe."

"Colin tells me you're expecting his heir," Devyn responded, wondering if Mellie's expected child was a sore spot for Colin's young bride, since from the timing he surmised the child must have been conceived very shortly before their marriage, though if it was, she showed no outward signs of distress. "He seemed pretty chuffed about it, last time I spoke to him." He put his lute back in its protective case. "If you can direct me to Mellie's current quarters, I'll see if she's minded to share her rooms with Lucie. I think once she knows more about Lucie's circumstances, she'll be all too happy to help."

"In that case," said Catalina, "you might wish to check with Lucie first to see what part of her story she is willing to have you share with Melisande. I know she asked for her name and personal details to not be shared with Cinhil's war council this morning. But it could be that she would be willing to make an exception for a woman displaced from her own home by Prince Rémy. As for Mellie's quarters, Colin says the chamberlain reassigned her the rooms where she once lived with Princess Miranda, if you remember which apartment that would have been. If Mellie agrees, please let me know; either way, I will need to ensure Lucie is settled elsewhere so I can let Master James know he can have use of her infirmary bed back."

"I should be able to find it easily enough, Your Highness." Devyn bowed, taking his leave of Colin's princess and her Andelonian liegeman.


August 27, 1464
The Parklands
Rhemuth Castle
Afternoon

Melisande was surprised to find Master Devyn standing at her door for the second time in only two months, only this time the circumstances felt much more awkward. At the hunting lodge, she had invited him inside readily, eager for news of his travels, knowing him well enough to know she was safe with him and that he would not attempt to take advantage of her seclusion, unlike some men in Rhemuth who had assumed if she was willing to be Colin's paramour, she would willingly lie with others also. Back here in Rhemuth, though, she felt like the eyes of the entire Court must surely be watching her closely, waiting for any misstep to start tongues wagging again, and allowing a handsome man with a reputation for being a footloose charmer to enter her chambers with no one but two young girls to chaperone them hardly seemed prudent.

Fortunately Devyn seemed to sense the dilemma she was struggling with as she stood in the open doorway facing him, and he handily solved the problem by inviting her to take a stroll through the parklands with her daughters, so they could stretch their legs and play for a few minutes in the sunshine while she and Devyn talked. That seemed safe enough, though she supposed tongues would still wag anyway.

The girls had spotted the fish pond and were clamoring to visit it, but Devyn steered them towards the orchard instead, much to Mellie's relief. She had not looked forward to trying to scrub mud stains out of their borrowed clothes, and she had not yet found the time to buy fabric to make more, or even to find someone who could look after her children while she attempted to find a suitable shop nearby, since Rhemuth had changed even in the few years since she last lived there.

"I'm very glad to find you here and safe, Mellie," he was saying. "I was very worried about you when I left Candor Rhea back in June, especially after seeing a few signs of enemy raids south of the Eirian between there and Ramos."

"Well, we're here now, and I expect stuck for the duration," Mellie answered. "You were right, Devyn, I should have left earlier. I honestly didn't think we'd be in any danger there, though, and you know how things were for me the last time I was here. I don't want Anneke and Emmie subjected to all that, especially Anneke, now that she's of an age to start understanding some of the gossip about me."

"Hopefully things will be better for you this time around," Devyn said. "And speaking of your girls, and also about gossips, there's something I need to ask you before I leave Gwynedd."

"You're off again?" Mellie looked startled. "You just got back!"

"Yes, Cinhil has more work for me. No rest for the wicked."

Mellie rolled her eyes at him. If Devyn was wicked, what did that make her? No, that was easy enough. According to the busybodies of Rhemuth's city and court, she was the Whore of Babylon, the great temptress responsible for luring Uthyr's second son into a life of dissolution and vice. "All right, so ask."

Devyn watched her girls at play, collecting apples. "I came back through Candor Rhea a couple of nights ago." Mellie caught her breath. "It was overrun by Jouvian forces, but I needed to be sure you and the children made it out safely, so I went by the lodge."

"Oh, Devyn!" She stared up at him, horrified. "You shouldn't have taken such a chance!"

"I've seen what the Jouvians are capable of. If there was any chance you were still there, I wasn't going to leave you in that situation. At any rate, you'd already been rescued by then, but I found someone else there. She's a young woman, maybe around the same age you were when you fell for Colin, but she had the horrible misfortune to come to Prince Rémy's special attention. He was using the lodge as his personal quarters, at least as of two nights ago, though he might have moved on since then. I found her attempting to escape, so I brought the girl back to Rhemuth with me so she could be seen by a Healer and so Cinhil could learn what she knows, but she needs somewhere to stay here at Court where she knows no one, and someone who will look out for her. If word gets out of what she's been through, she might also draw gossip and speculation, but right now I think she is still too fragile to know how to cope with that." He looked back down at her. "Even if I were going to be staying here at Court, I would be entirely the wrong person to try to protect her. You know what people would assume, especially since she's young and pretty. But I thought maybe you could use a friend at Court right now as much as she could, and she could also help you with the girls. Her name is Lucie. Would you be willing to meet her?"

"Yes." Mellie felt sick at the thought of her home not just falling into enemy hands, but into Prince Rémy's himself. The entire lodge would need a good scrub once she returned home. "I'm so sorry I put you in such danger by not listening to your warning sooner. Though at least I'm glad you were there when she needed you. Where is the girl now?"

"In the Infirmarium, but Master James says she is free to leave as soon as she has a place to go. Will you need any additional furnishings for her, like an extra bed or a pallet? I can ask Rhemuth's chamberlain if something can be brought upstairs that would serve."

Mellie shook her head. "Not unless she would prefer to have a bedstead.  I have two pallets for the girls, but they prefer to just share one, so the other has just been sitting unused. We haven't very much yet in the way of clothes and personal goods, but if I had some help with minding the girls, I could go into the City to buy what we need, or she could go if she prefers to do her own shopping."

"She's from a tiny village up near Culdi. Rhemuth is likely to be very overwhelming for her at first."

"Oh, bless!" Mellie gave a sad laugh. "I remember my first sight of the City well. It was terrifying. And the Court was worse. I'd been so afraid I wouldn't make friends here." But she had. And then she'd fallen in love with the wrong man.

No, not the wrong one. Even now, she knew Colin had always been the only man for her. She had no regrets about loving him. She only had regrets about everyone else she had hurt along the way, including Devyn.

"Tell Lucie she would be very welcome to stay with me. I'll be glad to have a friend here in Rhemuth."


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