"Even the meanest subject of Her Eternal Majesty can be confident that they are treasured by Her and the Empire. Where a man or woman has no work, work will be found for them so that they can have a roof over their head and a place to sleep at night. Where they cannot work, the generosity of Her Eternal Majesty and the Nobleborn of the Empire is evident with the existence of homes for the elderly and cripples throughout the Empire."

Two Thousand Years of Empire by Jahangir Amini

=====

Ester stared at the Inquisition's sigil floating in the air above her hand for a few long seconds. She looked up at Sir Vitaly and then back down at the sigil.

This was too much, on top of everything else. She groped for a second for an appropriate word.

"Fuck!" She winced instinctively at her own exclamation. That wasn't a word a respectable young weaver's daughter in Trevayn used, let alone a female apprentice in the Academy. When the half-expected chastisement didn't come she forced herself to meet Sir Vitaly's amused eyes. "You're an Inquisitor?! My lord." She hurriedly added.

"Fortunately for both of us, yes."

"But…" She struggled to find words through her shock. "You're…" Ester gestured at him in what a small part of her was shouting was probably quite a disrespectful manner and certainly not appropriate for an Inquisitor. "You're so loud. And and… ridiculous and brash and obnoxious!"

"Well, yes. It's a pretty good cover isn't it?" That… why did he look so smug?! "It wouldn't be all that good a secret if I was going around being an intelligent man who likes to investigate things. Some Inquisitors act publicly. Others, like me, are more discreet."

Ester goggled at him for a second, the idea of Sir Vitaly being discreet was difficult to accept. Although she supposed that was the point.

"I… I see My Lord Inquisitor."

"Oh, none of that. I've got no intention of giving up my cover. Not unless I have to anyway." He smiled thinly, a very un-Sir Vitaly like smile. "So please, and I cannot emphasise this enough, call me Sir Vitaly, even in private."

"O o of course, My… Sir Vitaly." Ester gave herself a shake, she needed to pull herself together. She glanced down at the Duke, only to realise he was covered in an inky black sphere, so dark that it seemed to absorb the light around it. She hadn't even noticed Sir Vitaly cast anything! Was he a witch? A Mage? What did you call an Inquisitor who did magic?

Sir Vitaly followed her gaze. "Couldn't have him listening in, that would have been a complete pain to deal with. Now, I can see you're practically bursting with questions and I'd rather not have you explode on the way out of here, so come on, out with them. Let's get this over with."

Ester opened her mouth to protest that she certainly wasn't, and then closed it again. If he was willing to answer, then she was going to ask. It was definitely better than spending the next month going over her questions in her head over and over again.

"Why?" That wasn't much of a question. She quickly continued, "why do you keep following me. Do you think I'm a criminal? I'm loyal to the Throne!"

Sir Vitaly stared non-plussed at her for a moment and then burst out laughing. It was shockingly normal. No booming guffaw, just a calm, but delighted chuckle. "Me, following you? You keep on popping up and interfering in my investigations. I'm doing perfectly well with my business and then you appear and set everything on fire."

Ice speared through Ester's veins, that sounded like one step away from treason. "I'm sorry! I had no idea, I'd never try to interfere in the Inquisition's investigations My L…" She cut herself off as Sir Vitaly held up a finger in admonishment. "… Sir Vitaly."

"Oh, no. Of course not. You're under no suspicion." He paused and then shook his head. "Well, no more than any other prominent figure anyway." Was she a prominent figure? She was just a newly graduated Mage. "It's just a bit of a pain. Ha! You're lucky I've got a good sense of humour!"

Despite her best efforts Ester couldn't quite keep her brow from furrowing in irritation. This wasn't at all funny. She'd nearly died! "Then why were you here?"

"Try not to sound so petulant, it doesn't suit you." He ignored Ester's deepening frown. "Like I said, I had my own investigation going, which you've trampled straight through." He shrugged, "although I really can't complain about the outcome, so there is that."

"So you already knew about the Duke?"

"Oh, unfortunately not. I did, however, suspect him. Or at least one of his family."

"But if you suspected then why wasn't he already under arrest while you searched his palace?!" Was the Inquisition as ineffective as everything else in Vass Karan? "You're an Inquisitor, you speak with Her Eternal Majesty's voice!"

"Well, only when I'm really angry." Before Ester could fully process him almost making a joke about the Undying Queen, he barreled on. "If I'd known for sure, then absolutely, you're right. I'd have his entire family imprisoned and his estate being searched with a fine-toothed comb faster than you could say 'Nobody expects Her Eternal Majesty's Inquisition'. As it was, I had my suspicions, but no more than that. If I acted and I was wrong, or even if I acted and they were able to hide the evidence, then at best my career would be over and more likely I'd just disappear. Look at what happened to poor Farzim."

"But…" Ester struggled to get her head around what he'd said. "But the Inquisition answers only to Her Eternal Majesty, it has unlimited power."

"Oh yes, that's true. To a point." Ester resisted the urge to point out that that wasn't what 'unlimited' meant. "No one truly has unlimited power, not even Her Eternal Majesty."

"You can't say that!" Ester gasped.

"Of course I can, it's true. She has a great deal of power, but if She allowed treason to fester, alienated the most powerful nobles and Mages and ignored Her duties then She could be overthrown." Just saying that was practically treason! It was difficult to even think about the idea of Her being overthrown. "Don't look so horrified, you know perfectly well it's true. That's why we have the Inquisition and that's why Her wisdom and leadership is so important. She earns her position every day. As for me, a mere Inquisitor. I too have a great deal of power, but Inquisitors can be murdered, or if they use that power against the wrong subject there can be retaliation." He looked up for a second as if he was thinking. "Much as I dislike the idea, it's probably ultimately a good thing. Absolute power comes with problems of its own after all."

"This… This isn't how I thought things worked." Admitting that hurt more than it should have.

"Well, no. It wouldn't be, would it. No reason for you to know any better. From Trevayn where things work better, commonborn, taught all the right lessons. It's hardly a surprise. Luckily you're a bright girl. You'll figure it all out sooner or later." Ester was too stunned to even bristle at that. "Anyway, as I was saying, a little bit of circumspection can be very useful in my role. So I employed the Golden Shadows to shake things up a bit and was hanging around to see if anything interesting happened. Speaking of which, you don't happen to know where they got to do you?"

Ester repressed a shiver at that. Surely he didn't know what she'd done… "You employed the Golden Shadows?!" If she ignored his question she might get away with not answering it. "But they're criminals!" A thought occurred to her, it was ridiculous, but given everything else, it might just be right. "Or are they? Is that just another cover? Are they Inquisitors too?" At this point she could believe it.

"Ha, very good, but no they're criminals."

"Then why?"

"Well, I couldn't get caught sneaking around here, not if I didn't want to die in pain. But they're both much better at sneaking than I am and not linked to the Inquisition in any way. Everyone knows they're terrible criminals that steal from the nobility after all. I wanted to see what they'd find going into the Vaults."

"But what if they'd been caught?"

Sir Vitaly shrugged. "That would have told me something too. If they were paraded publicly and then executed to deter others, then no harm would have been done. It would suggest the Marcnis weren't hiding anything, or at least that the thieves hadn't discovered it. If they'd simply disappeared, well. That would suggest House Marcni very much did have something to hide. After all, you'd expect them to want to show that they caught the thieves no one else could. If the Golden Shadows caused a commotion of some kind then that would be an opportunity for me to intervene too. I do love a good fight after all." Ester shivered as he winked at her. His cheerful tone hadn't changed in the slightest when he talked about the thieves potentially dying just to give him a clue. "Anyway, what happened to them?"

Ester briefly considered lying, but this was an Inquisitor. Spirits only knew what that might lead to. "They helped me capture the Duke, so I let them go."

"Hmm, fair enough. Probably for the best, I'd just have had to arrange for them to escape otherwise."

"Help them escape? But they're criminals! Shouldn't you be telling me off for letting them go?"

"No?" He paused and then grinned at her. "You sound like you want me to be angry. I can come up with some kind of punishment if you really want. Frankly I don't care about thieves. Treason, necromancy and summoning, those are my remit. Anything else is petty crime for the Watch and nobleborn to deal with. So, no I don't really mind that you let them go, there are bigger fish to fry."

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

"But you said you'd have helped them escape. Why would you do that? You didn't seem to mind if they died."

"Well it's not the same, is it? Dying in the service of Her Eternal Majesty is honourable. There's a purpose to it. However, I don't throw tools away and they're a useful one. They've also proven that, when it truly matters, they'll put the Throne and the Empire above their petty greed. There are plenty of nobleborn I couldn't say that about."

Ester wasn't sure that made any sense, but she wasn't going to argue. "So you're not going to punish me for it?"

"Great Spirits no. We'll want to keep this whole thing as quiet as possible, although there's only so far I'll be able to swing that. You, hmm." He glanced up as he thought. "A reward, some recognition. Not as much as you deserve, inevitably, or maybe more than you deserve given your tendency to poke your nose where it doesn't belong. I really don't want to encourage you after all." He chuckled at that. "But yes, I think you should come out of this quite well. Although if I were you I might be a bit hesitant about eating anything some of the Great Houses offer me for the next few months."

At that point Ester couldn't even tell if he was joking or not. So she just nodded. It seemed like the safest thing to do. "So what do we do now?"

This time Sir Vitaly grimaced, his good humour vanishing as quickly as it had come. "We're going to have to be quite careful. It seems like at least Rasce Marcni had no idea what his brother was doing, or he would have been considerably more discreet, but this is a threat to the existence of House Marcni. When one of them finds out we have the Duke, they're going to be extremely tempted to make us disappear. No doubt the Duke too, perhaps he'd die bravely fighting Ester Mazar the evil necromancer. I'll reveal myself if I must, but I really would prefer not to. So here's what we're going to do…"

=====

Abiel busied himself with quickly changing into the servant they'd waylaid's clothes. Ruben and Aliana would pass well enough, no one would even remember the visiting lord's servants. He, on the other hand, had been more prominent and so they needed a disguise.

He finished buttoning up the man's plain tunic and then placed his hand around the small golden statue in his pocket and focused. His meagre Talent combined with the Schema took effect, his vision blurring for a moment. He knew that if he were to look in a mirror his face would have changed subtly. Not so much that he looked completely different, but enough that no one would recognise him at first glance. It would have to do.

"Let's go."

They didn't need to discuss anything. The others knew what they needed to do.

The three of them strode out of the office they'd purloined, worried looks on their faces, but with purpose in their steps. Each of them carried something they'd grabbed and kept their heads down. Looking busy was key. Now they just needed to find an exit from the palace before things came to a head.

House Marcni would no doubt try to cover up the Duke's indiscretions. Even for a Chartered Mage that might be a worrying prospect, but for three mere thieves it would be terminal.

Anyway, Abiel had heard enough about Ester Mazar's exploits in the months she'd been in Vass Karan. He doubted House Marcni would do more than slow her down. That was all to the best, she had saved their lives after all. Now the three of them just needed to escape before the Marcnis worked out who they were and made them disappear. They'd better do it fast too. It wouldn't be long before the Inquisition, Watch and Throne knew what else was swarming all over the palace.

=====

Ester couldn't help breathing a sigh of relief once they reached the deepest parts of the Vaults. It wasn't until she was out of them that she realised how unsettling the catacombs underneath them had been.

The bound, gagged and hooded Duke tried to pull away again and was rewarded with a kick from Sir Vitaly that sent him staggering forward.

"None of that now necromancer scum, it's justice for you!" He was back to his obnoxious booming. By now Ester was completely sure that the man rather enjoyed the act.

She came to a stop and held a hand up to signal to Sir Vitaly. There were voices ahead of them, further up through the Vaults. This was it, things were going to get dangerous now. She had to stifle a giggle at that ridiculous thought after everything that had happened in the catacombs.

Ester wasn't looking forward to it at all. Hopefully House Marcni's retainers would know their duty, but Sir Vitaly had been worried and if an Inquisitor was worried then there was probably good reason to be.

After a moment she pursed her lips, squared her shoulders and started walking again. They had a plan and, in the worst case, Sir Vitaly had said he'd reveal himself. She wasn't sure exactly what he could do, but he'd seemed supremely confident that Lord Rasce and the Marcni retainers couldn't stop them if it came to it. Of course he could have been lying, one thing that had quickly become clear when he'd revealed himself was that the man could lie very very well. No, that was a pointless line of thought. The plan would work and soon she'd be safely out of this place.

A couple of minutes' walking brought them into sight of the other group. A cluster of armoured men with spears and more people behind them. As Ester's small party came into sight, they stopped and raised their spears. Behind them Ester saw magic spring up, forming protective barriers.

With only a tiny quaver in her steps she kept walking forward.

"Stop right there! Don't move!" One of the guards shouted. "Kneel down and…"

"Lady Mazar, is that you?" Lord Rasce's voice rang out over the guard's. "Great Spirits it is! You survived! Sir Vitaly too." He sounded slightly less enthusiastic about that. "Let them through! Let them through! What happened my lady?" Ester relaxed slightly. This was a far better reaction than she'd feared.

"We captured the necromancer my lord. I have him here. I need to bring him to the Watch as soon as possible for interrogation and to be handed over to the Inquisition. But in the meantime the catacombs under the Vaults are crawling with undead, they must be sealed off immediately." Ester didn't break her stride as the guards lowered their spears, visibly shuddering at her words.

"We must rejoice for…" Lord Rasce trailed off as he looked over her prisoner. "Great Spirits, is that Se…"

"Stop you idiot! He was cut off by another man. One Ester hadn't seen before, although he looked somewhat like both Lord Rasce and the Duke. "This is a trick. The girl has taken our lord prisoner." Ester's heart sank, this wasn't going to be as easy as she'd hoped.

"Yes, I have!" Despite her nervousness, Ester kept her voice level. "He is the necromancer, he's been raising undead down there for years. It is…"

"She confessed it herself, she has attacked House Marcni and is trying to justify it with ludicrous claims about our lord."

"Brother…" Lord Rasce spoke up hesitantly.

"Shut up Rasce, your idiocy has let this snake into our Vaults. Who else has even seen evidence of the undead? She said there was a necromancer and you allowed her to waltz off into the Vaults on no more than her word." Outrage flared in Ester at the accusation. Had he known about the Duke's necromancy? Was he one too? She should burn him where he stood!

"Ha, you disparage the word of a Chartered Mage?" Sir Vitaly boomed before Ester could say anything. "I too was down there. I saw the undead and the Duke's actions Do you also dare to question the word of Sir Vitaly Shajarian?!" The man actually struck a pose.

"A braggart knight? Your words are meaningless." The third Marcni brother made a dismissive gesture. "I know my brother and I know you too, a glory seeking troublemaker. Guards, Adepts, arrest her and the knight too. We shall save the Duke and then we shall find out why she has set herself against House Marcni."

The guards glanced at each other before raising their spears and taking a hesitant step forward.

Ester ruthlessly stamped down on her rising panic. Sir Vitaly had said this might happen. Ester knew what she was meant to do. With a grim look she stepped forward to meet them.

She couldn't show any of her fear. Any hesitation would leave her and Sir Vitaly fighting for their lives. At best.

"The Duke is a necromancer. House Marcni is finished. I am taking the Duke to the Watch until the Inquisition can be summoned. If you try to stop me from doing my duty you will die." With a thought Ester flared light around her, surrounding herself with a bright halo to contrast with the dim light of the Vaults. She tried to make it sound like something inevitable, rather than a threat. "You may accompany me to ensure that there is no treachery, but my duty to the Empire and to Her Eternal Majesty will allow no more."

"A pretty speech with little meaning. Kill her!" The Marcni brother drew his sword. Lord Rasce reached hesitantly for his too and then thought better of it.

Most of the guards hesitated, but not all of them. Two hefted their spears and advanced on her. More worryingly magic flared around an Adept as he began to chant.

"Fjal railati spèittan'ai'saig vlidsich kel'mar njadh'ai'kattreachd."

Ester didn't want to hurt these people, they weren't criminals, they were just trying to do the right thing. Except they were criminals. They were threatening her to defend a necromancer. She couldn't show weakness. Not now. Not unless she wanted to die.

The Adept was the real threat. Behind her she heard Sir Vitaly draw his sword.

"Dachaid." With a word she broke the Adept's spell before it could fully form. "Cuvlug diwaien'fa." Her own spell formed, more complex than the mere words might suggest.

"Dachaid." The Adept tried to copy her own disjunction. His magic tangled with hers briefly and fell apart. A moment later her spell hit him, slamming him off his feet and straight into a wall with an audible crunch.

The two guards had barely had time to take a couple of steps before she turned her attention back to them.

"Lobhta." Their spears shivered and then simply fell apart in their hands, crumbling to dust.

Ester didn't let her expression change. "Anyone assisting a necromancer condemns themselves to death." She glanced at the Adept she'd slammed into the wall. There was blood on it where his head had impacted and he lay slumped on the ground, unmoving. "You have a choice, you can stand with the Throne, or you can stand with a necromancer."

She hated the terrified looks they gave her, but she knew she was right. Their loyalty couldn't be allowed to put the city in danger.

After a long moment the guards and remaining Adepts stepped back, almost as one. Thank the Throne! They didn't want to fight!

"Thank you." Ester meant it. "Now we are going to go to the Watch and the Duke's brothers are going to accompany us. If you are innocent you have nothing to fear." She hoped that was true.

The third brother finally regained his voice. "No! Do not listen to her! She is an enemy of this house! Arrest her or you will find what it means to be an enemy to House Marcni!" She needed to stop him before he gave the guards their courage back, or scared them more than she did.

"If he will not come to the Watch with us, then drag him." Would the guards even obey her? Sir Vitaly had said she needed to just assume they would. However, before they could move the Duke's brother threw himself forward with a shout.

"Xànjar diwaien'fa." She didn't hold back, sending a razor sharp blade straight at him only to see it crumble on a Schema in a flare of magic. Ester was about to throw herself out of his way when suddenly Sir Vitaly was between them.

With a one-handed swipe of his oversized sword Sir Vitaly smashed the man's weapon out of the way. With his other hand he simply punched him in the face. There was a brief flare of magic from a Schema, but it seemed to do absolutely nothing to slow Sir Vitaly's fist. With a crunch he hit the Duke's brother in the mouth hard enough to slam him off his feet.

How strong was the man?! Ester stood open mouthed for a brief second before giving herself a mental kick. Obviously it wasn't pure strength. Sir Vitaly must be using magic, why had she even considered anything else?

The silence that followed was only broken by the Duke's brother's groaning from where he lay on the hard stone floor, surrounded by a scattering of his own teeth. What was wrong with these people? The Duke was a necromancer and his brother didn't even seem to care. Her ally was an Inquisitor who thought it was funny to go around shouting at people about fighting. Had the world gone completely mad?

With a start Ester realised everyone was looking at her.

"Any more objections?" No one spoke up, in fact none of them would even meet her eyes. "Good. You and you," she pointed at two of the guards, "pick him up and carry him. You," she chose another, "check whether the Adept is alive and if he is, bring him."

This time there was no hesitation, they practically leapt to do as she ordered.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.