The Reformer

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Stop being fanciful, she told herself. Concentrate. Adrian had said she was under his protection, and oddly enough she believed him. But Adrian might need protection. Would the King protect him? Could his brother? She stepped back a pace, hating the necessity but wishing for a cloak, too.

'Adrian!' Esmond said, stepping forward and shouldering nobles and ranking officers aside. A little life returned to the carved planes of his face. 'Brother! By the shades, how did you get here?'

'Found an old access tunnel to that tower,' Adrian said, flushing with pleasure himself and clasping forearms. 'Blasted out the plug with some hellpowder, and went looking for trouble-and found you, eventually.'

Esmond laughed. 'I thought it was something like that. The Vaseans were retreating in pretty good order-stood up to the guns pretty well, even your sniping at their backs-and then they went to pieces.'

'Men will, when they're attacked from the rear,' Adrian said. 'You managed to cover yourself with well-earned glory, I see.'

Esmond laughed again; the sound was a little hoarse, as if he didn't do it very often. He caught the smaller man by the shoulder and pushed him forward unwilling, until they were before the throne. Helga slipped forward unobtrusively, absently knocking a questing hand aside with the rim of her buckler on its wrist bone, and ignoring the indignant yelp that followed.

'My lord King,' Esmond said; not shouting, but pitched in a public-speaking mode copied from his brother's rhetorical training, and found useful on the battlefield as well-much likelier to attract attention than the usual roar, as conversation built up in the throne room.

'My lord King,' he went on, grinning. 'Here is my brother, Adrian Gellert, who has served you well-not only the devices which battered down the walls and gates of Vase, but by taking the citadel from behind through a secret passage and blocking the escape of Director Franzois.'

Casull looked aside from a consultation with one of his admirals who'd brought him a tally of ships captured intact.

'Then he has served me well,' the king said graciously, waving aside a surgeon who was trying to suture the slash on his cheek. 'If the Director's heir-a pretender to this throne-had escaped, this victory wouldn't be complete.'

He gave Esmond a slight, hard stare at that; if the Director had won the fight, Casull might well have had to let him go. . which would have had much the same result, with the added disadvantage of the sort of colorful story likely to attract free-lances who valued a lucky commander.

'You'll not find me ungrateful,' Casull went on.

'My lord King,' Adrian said. 'Forgive me if I claim your gratitude so early, but there's a favor I would like to claim.'

Casull's eyebrows went up; it was slightly boorish to take him up on his offer so early. 'Ask,' he said.

Adrian reached behind himself without looking around; Helga squeaked slightly as his hand closed on her shoulder and pulled her forward. The fingers were slender but unexpectedly strong, warm through the cooling blood on the fabric of her halter.

'My way here came through the Director's-the ex-Director's hareem,' he said. 'I'd have this woman assigned to me, if Your Majesty would be so kind.'

Helga swallowed. Hell, it's got to be better than the hareem, she thought. Women in the Emerald lands were closer-kept than in the upper classes of the Confederacy, but vastly better than in the Isles. . and Adrian hadn't made the slightest objection when she took a sword and came along for some payback. He'd even thanked her for probably saving his life-it would have driven most men she knew crazy, to owe a woman that.

Although he has eyes in the back of his head, for a man who isn't paying much attention, she thought, puzzled for a moment. His brother Esmond, you could sense that he saw with his skin, like a cat. Adrian, he gave off a feeling you could walk right up to him and bash him on the head; only you couldn't, he'd start and look up and be ready for it, from what she'd seen. As if someone was talking to him, and paying attention when he wasn't.

The King's words brought her back to her own personal reality with a thump.

'That's a little irregular, but since they're Royal spoils. .' he said. Then he looked at Helga and laughed. 'I see the former Director wasn't averse to a little perversion-that one looks like a boy with tits, or a field woman. . no, those are acrobat's muscles, I suppose. Well, she'll be athletic, if you like that sort of thing. But what by the Sun God is she doing with that sword?'

The King's voice was amused, a little contemptuous. Adrian's was blankly polite when he replied: 'Killing Vasean soldiers, mostly, my lord King. Five. .' His head went to one side. 'No, six, with two probables, O King. Probably saved my life, as well.'

The King laughed uproariously. 'We can't deprive our master artificer of his bodyguard, then,' he said. 'By all means-'

'Excuse me, my Royal Cousin,' one of the nobles said. A tall slender brown-haired man, he'd had time to shed his armor, but the padded leather doublet underneath was rank with sweat. 'If I might?'

Casull nodded uncertainly, and the Islander noble came two steps down from the dais, giving Helga a slow head-to-toe.

'As you say, rather perverse. . but interestingly. By ancient law,' he went on, giving Adrian a cool glance, 'officers chose personal spoils by rank-and I believe I outrank this outlander.'

Casull's lips pursed in annoyance. He glanced around the circle of courtiers, and saw many nods and chuckles. Of course, Helga thought. An outlander, raised high so suddenly, was bound to arouse resentment-any Islander court was a snakepit at the best of times. And Adrian, unlike his brother, hadn't just pulled off a spectacular Wodep-like feat of public heroism.

'Unless,' the noble said, 'he'd like to fight me for her? No? I didn't think so.' The noble had several skull-and- bones earrings, and he moved like. . Like Adrian's brother Esmond, Helga thought. No! I will not go back into another Islander hareem! No!

The Islander stepped forward, and she tensed.

'Actually,' Adrian said mildly, 'I do object, and if necessary, I will fight you. But I appeal to our lord the King, whose wishes you are quite obviously contravening, my lord. . Sawtre, isn't it?'

Sawtre grinned, flushing and letting his hand drop to his sword. 'Interfering in the affairs of real men, little Emerald manure strainer? Better to get back to your toys. We should all consider the consequences of our decisions, shouldn't we? You are what you do, after all. And we know what you are.'

Adrian swallowed, shaking his head once and then again-as if, Helga thought under the rush of relief at his words and then horror at his prospects in a duel with this trained killer, he was talking to someone again. . and disagreeing with them.

'I think you're forgetting something, my lord,' Esmond said quietly.

'Yes?'

'Forgetting that if you harm my brother, in any way whatsoever, I'll kill you and piss on your grave,' Esmond said, smiling himself. His eyes had taken on the same febrile brilliance they'd had during the duel with Director Franzois, and Sawtre checked for a moment.

'You don't dare, Emerald,' he said softly.

'You'd be surprised what I dare,' Esmond replied, his voice equally calm.

Behind him the men of the Strikers tensed, and exchanged glances with Sawtre's fighting tail. Those men began drifting towards their lord; one of them dashed out, to collect others of their band who were lifting their share in the sack of the palace.

'Excuse me,' Helga said loudly. Sawtre's eyes did not waver. Helga tapped the edge of her buckler against her sword. 'Excuse me. You, the asshole in the arming doublet!'

That brought amazed snickers from the crowd around the throne; even Casull, half-risen in annoyance and