would be cause all on its own. Well, that's unfortunate.” Tor felt a lot worse than that about it, but held his voice steady.
It was never a good day when someone wanted you dead.
“At least he registered it as a duel without encumbrance, so it shouldn't be too the death.” The woman’s voice was concerned and after a minute Tor got it. She was worried that Tor would kill the guy. Ah.
“I take it that he's been restored to health then?” He asked with a smile, letting it carry into his voice.
“Oh my yes, we have a wonderful traveling doctor in the area with one of your healing devices. He did charge Brian through the nose however, I believe it was something like five hundred gold? Worth it though. Perfectly fine now. I told him he should count himself lucky and let it go, but he didn't listen. He often doesn't. A bit of a hot head, not that you heard it from me.”
Tor sighed and made sure she knew that she was invited to stay in one of his houses for the event and that they could send a transport around if desired. She accepted with a bit of excitement. More than the others had even. She'd always wanted to fly after all. Even before it was something actually possible.
The instant the connection was broken Collette jumped to her feet, looking ready to fight the Baron herself right then.
“That… monster! He must have heard about your current state and wants to capitalize on it. What are we going to do?” She sounded really worried.
“Um, tell him no?”
“But then you'll lose face and people will look down on you…” Her words were flat though, as if she thought it was a good idea, but really didn't want to be seen as coaching him to that end.
Thinking for a while he finally stood himself, a laborious thing that took the better part of fifteen seconds.
“Well, or he can wait half a year for me to just heal up. Either way works for me. I mean, I get that he might have some hard feelings. That isn't really my issue though is it? Plus, maybe we shouldn't jump to conclusions. He may just be looking to pay me back, not knowing that anything is going on with me at all. When he's told he might just withdraw his claim, or at least wait. If not, then, well. Tough. It's too stupid to worry over and if people want to think I'm not fighting because I'm scared, well, that's the truth, isn't it? I really don't want to be beaten to death if I can help it. It's my least favorite way of dying after all. Other than burning, or being buried alive I mean.”
That actually got her to calm down and they managed the rest of the day’s work pretty smoothly. Count Rodriguez was a little cool to him at first, but warmed up when he got his invitation.
“I'd heard from sources you were having everyone in, but I didn't think I'd make the list. When we last met it wasn't under the best circumstances.”
It hadn't been. It was the only other duel he'd been in. Well, except for the fight with the seven Larval assassins. He'd gotten the guy to withdraw, mainly by torturing him into it. As a seated Count he couldn't really just be killed, not in a duel. That would cause his county to cry foul and go to war. He'd challenged David Derring to a fight to the death, to try and punish his father it seemed. Tor had kind of recklessly gotten him to fight him instead. It probably saved the Counts life. David had orders from his dad to “accidentally” kill the man if he didn't withdraw in shame first.
“But we left as friends. You don't leave your friends off the list if you can help it, right?” His words sounded innocent, even to him.
The Count went silent.
“Um, you can't see it, but I'm bowing to the little speaking plate. That's… rather more than I expected. I would be honored to attend. Thank you.”
“Wonderful! See you then.”
The next few days were similar, but got a little easier, thanks to him getting his health back. The only hard part, for Tor, was that nothing new was coming in from Denno. He'd said it might take a while and that seemed to be playing out. He did have some information, for instance there were fifteen agents in the kingdom, spread out some, but most in and around the Capital. Only half were women. That couldn’t account for anyone that had been enlisted by Daria as she acted as an agent though. Only the ones actually from Austra.
No one could explain the murders directly however. It certainly wasn't procedure. Daria Serge was definitely still in Austra however, working with her father regularly enough that it would be hard, but not impossible to get to her. The information about how to do that was heartening.
Because it meant that it could actually be done.
That meant another trip for Tor himself, first to the palace to get Karina and then Lairdgren to pick up Kolb. He'd taken notes and drew out maps by hand, based on a book he borrowed from Rolph, showing the best routes in and explaining what was known about her daily habits.
Tor didn't mention what his plan was and didn't let the others talk past saying hello. Karina seemed down and dark again, but Kolb just looked hard and like he could take on small armies by himself. Since he literally could, armed as he was and with his skills, that worked.
They hovered then, in a carriage that could get them anywhere in the world in less than a day, hanging over Lairdgren school about six thousand feet up. This craft was purple, and shaped like a teardrop, just because that's the shape it had been in when it was taken to Austra. Tor had made it bigger, and changed the color from blue, but that was it. Holding the thing steady, Tor passed the stack of papers back to Sir Kolbrin and waited for him to look through them. Karina didn't say anything, or even shift overly.
It was a royal thing, he knew, the King’s family in particular, learned to wait for people to get up to speed and accepted that sometimes they didn't get to know what was really going on. It had to happen and they were there too often for it to be left out of their early training. When he'd been learning his letters and helping out in the bakery for half days, this girl had been learning to fight off multiple opponents, lead a battle charge… and to wait. She was good at it.
The large bald man, smiled.
“How good is this information?” He spoke conversationally, it was friendly sounding even.
“Gotten from someone that claims to have a personal reason for it to be done, that I don't think wants to have my ill will. Who he got that from I don't know. My guess is from the Austran spy network or military, maybe both, so you know if it's possibly avoid killing that sort, since they might be our friends, even if they don't realize it.” Tor shut up and let the man think for a bit, which he did for nearly half an hour, then he passed the papers to the Princess.
“If it's good, we can go on it. Assassination of a leader is a dangerous practice, but the Austrans took that restraint off the table when they bombed the palace last year and sent assassins to attack the Queen’s day celebration.” He let the girl read then.
Finally she sat up and nodded.
“I… see it as valid. Why though? I mean I don't love Glost Serge and think he needs to be killed, but it isn't common practice. We normally act with greater honor, as a kingdom.”
They did. That was part of the reason for floating up in the air away from spies like they were. This action had nothing to do with courage or honor, not with anything good at all.
“Because Daria Serge is living with the man right now, during the last week of each month. That's unusually close for Austra by the way. I don't think it's incestuous, but he watches her like a hawk. Probably because she'd do him in if she could. If we strike at the right time it will look like simple retaliation. They don't think we can do it.” Tor waved a hand over his shoulder, not at them, but his craft, which had kept growing stronger for months. Faster.
Not the equal of the best Austran craft, but a solid two thirds of their best craft speed. Also about a million times better than the not flying at all that Austra still probably expected out of Noram. Things had changed pretty quickly on that score.
“If we do this right, we end the war inside a month. If we do it wrong, we also end it in a month, just with actual fighting and dying, which I personally would like to avoid. For either side, as much as possible.”
The Princess nodded, excitement coming off her like she was five and getting a puppy. It wasn't cute at all though, because it meant the death of at least two people. Tor couldn't judge there, it was his idea. He just wished she didn't seem so very pleased by it. It was off-putting. Scary.
“ I…” She looked at Kolb and shook her head. “I want Lilli dead Kolb, but I can't order this. Not alone. Let me get with my parents and, the others too I guess, and run it by them. If you could have your forces prepared and
