Storm Breaking

Silverfox cut short Karal's attempt at excusing himself politely. 'Go, off with you!' the kestra'chern said. 'You can talk to me anytime, and I'm not half so pretty as Natoli is.'

That last comment made him blush all over again, but this time he didn't care. His long-distance romancing of Natoli appeared to charm everyone. They all stayed discreetly out of the way when he spoke to her, and they all seemed to go out of their way to give him occasions to talk to her on the teleson.

Altra followed on his heels, to act as the facilitator for the conversation. It was amazing that Altra didn't ever tease him about anything that passed between himself and Natoli, but even Altra apparently regarded the growing relationship as a private matter between the two of them, and not for any outsider, not even a Firecat, to intrude upon. No matter what either of the two said to each other, Altra never commented on it, either during the conversation or afterward. In fact, Karal was able to completely forget about Altra's presence most of the time.

But Natoli had disturbing news for him that had nothing whatsoever to do with their personal matters. 'Elspeth and Darkwind reported that they are already getting Storms in Hardorn,' she said gravely. 'They aren't dangerous yet, but it's only a matter of time before things degenerate. We have already started preparations here to handle whatever comes up.'

'That's probably why the mages and all finally made up their minds which device to use,' he told her. 'I suppose Master Levy must have agreed on their choice, since he is the one doing the mathematical modeling for the solution.' He hesitated, and looked down at his hands a moment, then looked back up and told her the truth. 'I'm going to have to be a Channel again.'

She didn't say anything, but her face grew pale and she bit her lip. 'Well,' she finally managed, 'that's what you're there for. You have to do your job, just as I have to do mine.' She rallied a bit. 'Speaking of my job, I'm in charge of some of the emergency plans. We're going to have to evacuate the Palace at the very least, and maybe even parts of Haven, just in case that node under the Palace goes unstable. All the highborn have gone home, and as of today they've dismissed the Collegia and sent the trainees home as well. Even the Healers have dispersed. The trainees that don't have homes to go to are supposed to go off with their Masters if they're Bards, off to one of the Houses of Healing as Healer-trainees, or riding circuit with full Heralds if they're still in Grays. It's a little crazy around here, since things still have to get done, and it's getting to be that whoever has a pair of hands free just does whatever it takes. They say that the gryphons will stay until the last moment and set spells to keep out looters, then they'll fly away. It'll be a relief when everyone is actually gone.'

He didn't have to ask why she was still there; she could not sit back while others were in danger any more than he could. She would probably remain there until the very end because that was what her father would do. Herald Rubrik was in Karse, so perhaps she felt it was up to her to take on the familial duties. 'Well,' he replied. 'You do what you have to, right? If your job is to be there, then you need to do it.' Clumsy words, but he hoped they told her what he wanted to say—that he still would never ask her to stop doing what she considered to be her job just to be 'safe.' If there even was any place 'safe' anymore. 'I want you to know that I really don't think any of us here are in any more or less danger than you are,' he continued, trying to give her reassurance. 'The one thing I am concerned about is that after the last time, the others here are all so fiercely determined to protect me that I'm more afraid for them than I am for myself.'

She smiled tremulously. 'You would be anyway. Just promise me that you'll let them take care of you. Not at the expense of getting the job done, but let them protect you from what they can.'

'If you'll do the same,' he demanded. 'Before you go flinging yourself into exploding boilers, wait and see if someone more suited to that particular job is already doing it! You know, it just might be that, capable as you are, someone else would manage that particular rescue a little better than you!'

'You drive a hard bargain,' she retorted, and shook her head, a little of her old humor returning to her eyes. 'All right, I promise.'

'And so do I,' he pledged softly, and basked in her smile.

The wind of a full-scale blizzard howled and whined outside the windows of his suite, and icy drafts forced their way past windows and thick curtains, but Baron Melles didn't care. Enveloped in one of the heavy woolen tunics that had become fashion out of necessity, with a second layer of knitted winter silk beneath that, he brooded pleasantly over the reports of his network of spies within the households of the members of the Court. Virtually every one of those pieces of paper reported a new attitude toward him on the part of anyone of any importance.

Fear. He was delighted at their reaction. They might hate him, they might envy him, they might (rarely) even admire him for his ruthlessness—but they all feared him now, and feared to have even the appearance of opposing him.

He shifted his weight in his chair, and repositioned his feet on the warming pan beneath his desk. His last object lesson was more effective than he had thought it would be, and had spread far beyond the immediate household and friends of his target. Clearly it was much wiser and more expedient to show that the children of his would-be enemies were vulnerable than it was to threaten the enemies themselves. And as for those who had no children, well, there wasn't a single one of them who didn't have some other person for whom they cherished tender feelings. Anyone who would threaten a child obviously would have no difficulty with targeting an aged and infirm parent, or a sibling, or a lover. Even Tremane had dependents he would have been very upset at losing—that old mage, Sejanes, for one.

It was ironic in many ways, for it would have been very easy for any of them to make him or herself invulnerable. There had not been another person besides himself here at Court who had read and understood the lesson old Charliss had given to them in the course of his own life: Trust no one, care for no one, depend on no one. They had all persisted, even in the face of obvious disadvantages, to fall in love,