Oathbreaker

The kyree looked at Jadrek -- seemed to look through him-his eyes glowing like topaz in the sun. Then he bowed his head once in respect to the Archivist, and mindspoke to all three of them.

:I am Warrl. We are Captain Idra's friends; we want to kelp her, but we cannot if we do not know what has happened to her. Wise One, you are one of the few honest men in this place. Will you not help MS?:

Jadrek stared at the kyree, his jaw slack with astonishment. 'But -- but -- '

:You wonder how I can speak with you, and how I managed to remain concealed. I have certain small powers of magic,: the kyree said, nearly grinning. :You may have heard that the barbarian brought her herd dog with her. I chose to appear somewhat smaller than I am; the stahlehands think me a rather large wolf-dog cross.:

The Archivist reached for the back of a chair beside him to steady himself. He was pale, and there was marked confusion in his eyes. 'I-please, ladies, sit down, or as a gentleman, I cannot -- and I feel the need of something other than my legs to support me -- '

There were only two chairs in the room; Tarma solved the problem of who was to take them by sinking cross-legged to the floor. Warrl curled behind her as a kind of backrest, which made the room look much less crowded. While Kethry took the second chair and Jadrek the one he had obviously (by the book on the table beside it) vacated at their knock, Tarma took a quick, assessing look around her.

There were old, threadbare hangings on most of the stone walls, probably put up in a rather futile attempt to ward off the damp chill. There was a small fire on the hearth to her right, probably for the same reason. Beside the hearth was a chair -- or rather, a small bench with a back to it -- with shabby brown cushions. This was the seat Jadrek had resumed, his own brown robes blending with the cushions. Beside this chair stood a table with a single lamp, a book that seemed to have been put down rather hastily, and a half-empty wineglass. Across from this was a second, identical seat; To Tarma's left stood a set of shelves, full of books, odd bits of rock and pieces of statuary, and things not readily identifiable in the poor light. At the sight of the books, Tarma felt a long-suppressed desire to get one of them in her hands; she hadn't had a good read in months, and her soul thirsted for the new knowledge contained within those dusty volumes.

In the wall with the bookcase was another door, presumably to Jadrek's bedchamber. In the wall directly opposite the one they had entered was the window.

Pretty barren place. This time Tarma was thinking directly at the kyree.

:He has less -- far less -- respect than he deserves,:

Warrl said with some heat. :This man has knowledge many would die for, and he is looked upon as some kind of fool.:

'I ... had rather be considered a fool,' Jadrek said slowly.

The kyree raised his head off his paws sharply, and looked at the man in total astonishment. :You hear me?:

'Yes -- wasn't I supposed to?'

Tarma and the kyree exchanged a measured glance, and did not answer him directly. 'Why would you rather be considered a fool?' Tarma asked, after a moment of consideration.

'Because a fool hears a great deal -- and a fool is not worth killing.'

'I think,' Kethry said, leaning forward, 'you had better begin at the beginning.'

Some hours later they had a full picture, and it was not a pleasant one.

'So the story is that Stefansen intended some unspecified harm to his brother, and when caught, fled. In actuality, Tindel and I overheard some things that made us think Raschar might be considering assuring that there would be no other male claimants to the throne and we warned Stefansen.'

'Where did he go?' Kethry asked.

'I don't know, I don't want to know. The less I know, the less I can betray.' His eyes had gone shadowy and full of secrets.

'Good point. All right, what then?'

'Have you had a good look around you?'