The knight, the dragon and the necromancer. Daert dilogy-1

— Have you heard the news, mistress? — She asked, smoothing her dishevelled hair with the palm of her black gloved hand.

— Mm-hmm... what kind? — Rosa put the quill away and blinked. She rubbed the bridge of her nose and lifted her glasses. Her eyes were watering, but she felt great — she was beginning to form an idea. That feeling of a near breakthrough, a way out of a seeming dead end, always thrilled her.

— A delegation of elves arrived at Auguste's camp. — The woman sat down on her chest, stretched out her legs. — The scouts saw the banners of both principalities. And half an hour ago, a boatload of big-eared folk docked on our shore. White-flagged. They've been taken to the separatist headquarters. Not only is the general there now, but the eldest son of the Duke de Velonda.

— Hmmm... — Rosa rubbed her chin. — Interesting. I don't think we should plan anything important for today. If something important is going on, the mentor is bound to get involved. And she might need us.

She was right. By supper time, the whole camp was buzzing — having spent the day with Auguste's army, the elf embassy had forded the Shaanta. No one had sounded the alarm, but many of the soldiers had climbed the fortifications themselves to gawk. A hundred horsemen crossed the river unimpeded, forming in three ranks near the water. From the artillery position from which Rosa was watching, the horsemen seemed like tin figures — like those on Marshal de Cotoci's map. Three cavalrymen separated from the group and rode forward. In front of the earthen ramparts they were met by de Velonda's officers. Without further ado, the duke's men led the elves to their camp. The rest of the troop followed. Probably, the squad that had arrived by boat in the morning had informed the rebels of the embassy's plans in advance. Half an hour later Luka brought a note to Rosa — her mentor was waiting for her in her tent.

— Did I tell you that? — The girl grinned, showing the slip of paper to Jeanne. The woman grinned back. Having taken the oath of allegiance to Rosa, the guardswoman had become less stiff, and now showed more emotion. Her sullenness hadn't gone away, though.

— Don't get carried away, mistress, — the black-haired woman said, stroking the scabbard of the dagger at her belt. — If Donna Vittoria thinks you understand her too well, she may find you dangerous and try to remove you.

— Haha. Yep, — the girl gave a fake laugh. She somehow doubted that Jeanne was joking.

When they entered the necromancer's tent, there were already guests there. Elves, of course. A stocky man was seated in a chair, and a tall woman stood beside him. The man was clearly Anelonian — swarthy, black-haired, bearded, looking like a fellow countryman of Rosa's. He also boasted a high forehead with a bald spot and fixed, short ears. Looking at him, the young sorceress understood where the rumours about the mixed anelons' origins came from — supposedly, they were all descended from the marriages of elves and humans. It was feisty nonsense, scientifically insane. But... the elves of Anelon were indeed different from their mountain kin scattered across the continent. His companion looked much more familiar — slender, fair-skinned, with a beautiful face and bright violet eyes. Her straw-coloured hair fell loosely to her shoulders, but below it was gathered into a short braid and twisted with a blue ribbon. Long thin ears stuck out to the sides, almost parallel to her shoulders. While the man wore a black and purple caftan and fashionable trousers, the elfess wore something like a dragon knight's costume. The black leather jacket, trousers, long gloves and high boots with narrow shanks seemed to form a whole, tightly fitting the woman's body like second skin. A dagger and a straight sword with a simple cross instead of a wicker guard hung from her belt, while the Anelonian carried only a broad, curved sabre.

— Here are the ones we've been waiting for. — Donna Vittoria nodded to her student, leaning back in her chair. — We may begin. Please, all chairs are at your service. — She glanced expressively at the elf. She sat down with apparent reluctance. The long scabbard of her sword rested on the carpet.

When everyone was seated, the necromancer continued:

— Allow me to introduce. Captain Utlt, son of Noholt. From the Principality of Anelon. Lady Captain Lytel, daughter of Eramont of the Principality of Liarat.

— I dare to add that although Lady Lytel is the Prince's tenth cousin, I am twice captain, — the stocky elf said with a smile. — Of the squad and of the ship. The ship, however, is far away from here.

— And these are my companions, master Rosa Granchi and Jeanne. — The red-haired donna didn't seem to notice she'd been interrupted.

— Pleased to meet you. — Lady Lytel smiled unexpectedly, too — Rosa had expected her to be cold and haughty. — You are Jeanne of the letter, I believe. I've never heard of you before, master Rosa, I'm sorry.

— Don't confuse the girls, Lytel, — the bearded elf snorted. He managed to sprawl out on the chair like a soft armchair, and was still smiling. — Let's go in order.

— Indeed, — the lady captain agreed calmly. Her voice was strong and melodious. Almost like Jeanne's, only without the light hoarseness. — Excuse me. We've already introduced ourselves to Donna Vittoria, but let's start at the beginning.

— Technically, Lytel and I are in charge of the embassy security. — The Anelonian sat up straighter, palms on his knees. — The ambassadors themselves have already visited King Auguste, and now they're talking to the son of the Duke here. They are persuading them to reconcile. Everyone realises it's useless. The embassy must simply demonstrate the principalities' attitude to the war. The real task is given to the two of us. We are investigating the death of Queen Octavia at the behest of our princes.

— You see, — Lytel picked up, — the queen meant a lot to the elves of the Coalition.

— Why? — Rosa was surprised. — I've never heard of such a thing.

— Octavia had been raised far from the royal court. — The elfess turned to her, stopping to smile. — Many of her teachers were elves. We made sure that her mentors developed tolerance, broad-mindedness, and a belief in the equality of the peoples of the Coalition. The girl was already very kind and inquisitive. Did you know that exporting goods from Anelon to the kingdom is subject to a special tax? Whereas the trading republics are tax-free. That the kingdom buys ore from Liarath at a reduced price? There are restrictions on crafts and trade for elves living in human cities. And many other things along the same lines. No one expected Octavia to sit on the throne, but we hoped she could influence her older siblings. When the princess suddenly became the sole heir, many in the principalities thought it was a miracle.

— And they thought it would all work itself out. — Captain Utlt curled his lips. — We helped Octavia to the throne and left her on her own. We were afraid the elves at court would cause a stir. And that's what happened.

— I wanted to guard Octavia myself, even assembled a group of trusted warriors. — The Lady Captain shook her head. — I was forbidden to go to Daert. When the queen died, I was put on to track down the culprits. I quickly learnt of the plot the crown necromancer was investigating for Octavia.

— And then both princes received letters from the Donna, containing very interesting accusations... — Utlt nodded at Vittoria, who sat motionless. — And no less interesting information.

— I decided to start with the elves, knowing their interest in Octavia's fate. — The red-haired donna ran her palms across the table, glanced at Rosa. — They could have been attracted with less evidence.

— Because we learnt a lot of things on our own. — Lady Lytel's ears perked up. It looked so funny that Rosa almost giggled. — The information from the Donna's letters fitted well with the big picture. From it we added to the scheme of the investigation and made a couple of discoveries of our own.

— In short and to the point, the Princes have blessed us to co-operate with you. Me and Lytel, — Utlt said, tapping his finger on his knee. — Auguste's connection with the aliens from the other world is disturbing. First of all because of his ambition. Even the aliens themselves can do less harm than a king who has had his way with them. But we are not prepared to turn against His Majesty directly. The principalities will not fight.

— What do you suggest, Captain? — Vittoria leaned forward, leaning against the table.

— Information exchange, — the bearded elf replied. — In the long run, a little support in money and resources, access to networks of informants. Personal assistance — Lytel and I will leave when the embassy is over, but we will return. The more you undermine Auguste's position, Donna, the bolder our rulers will become. On the whole, they're on your side.

— Just cowards, — said Jeanne suddenly. She had been glaring at the guests with her heavy gaze during the whole conversation, but she spoke only now.

— It takes an elf fifty years to reach adulthood, my lady, — Utlt told her with no offence. — It was not uncommon for an elf couple to have an only child over the centuries. An elf is no harder to kill than a human. Yes, we are cowards. Every major war with humans is a catastrophe for us, my lady. It takes centuries for a nation to recover from. That's why we gave you almost the entire continent in the past.

Jeanne mumbled something under her breath and looked away. The elves looked at each other and nodded. The lady captain pulled back the cuff of her glove and pulled out a piece of paper, rather crumpled, from beneath it. She placed it on the table in front of the red-haired donna:

— It's an advance, in a way. From you we learnt about the atomic bombs brought by the outsiders. The note contains everything the princely intelligence has learnt about the possible location and movement of these weapons. According to circumstantial information, three bombs could have been delivered to the Republic of Iolia a couple of years ago. Several others may have been sent out to the Grand Duchies. All but Auguste's domain. There were some shipments within the kingdom, but we can't find much about them.

— Three bombs, three capitals of the Republic, — Vittoria stretched out thoughtfully. — The Iolian government is sending soldiers to help Auguste... it adds up, yes. That could be used.

— One more moment. — Lytel pulled off her glove. — We were trying to trace the conspiracy network in its entirety. Including the threads stretching east into the Empire. The outsiders don't seem to be doing so well there. But we happened to catch something... strange.

— Even weirder than aliens from a world without magic? — Rose asked incredulously.

— Yes, — the elf replied gravely. — We know for sure that the Empire didn't know about the aliens until recently, didn't cooperate with them, didn't receive their technology. The outsiders didn't send their bombs to the Empire. But... one of the princely spies, an Imperial elf, saw something that resembled... the use of an atomic bomb, as you described it. An abandoned fort far from the border that seemed to have been melted by fire. All of it. The forest around it turned to ash. The ground turned to glass.

She fell silent, and for a full minute no one dared to say a word. "Could it be that the Empire has created a magical analogue to the alien bombs?" — Rosa thought. She believed in magic enough to come to the disappointing conclusion that it could be. The silence was broken by Donna Vittoria taking a box from a desk drawer:

— I have prepared for you a fuller report of my investigations. It's written in the cipher, the key to which was in the first letters. Two copies, for each principality.

— Thank you, Donna. — Captain Utlt rose from his chair and bowed. Lady Lytel took the necromancer's box. — We will bring them home with the embassy and return to you at the earliest opportunity.

— Even if Prince Elunas changes his mind, I will return anyway, — the Lady Captain said, holding the box in one hand and resting the other on the cross of her sword. — Albeit alone. I've already listened to reason and caution once, and I've had enough.

— Yes, young people don't like caution or reason. I'll bet they do, — the Anelonian grinned. By human standards, he and Lytel seemed to be the same age, and they looked to be in their thirties. Rose knew where to look, though — Utlt's eyes were a dull blue, betraying a solid age. The irises of elven eyes pale with age, and the bright-eyed lady couldn't have been more than three or four centuries old.

— I'll see you then. Captain. Lady. — The Necromancer also got up to see her guests off. When she returned, she said to Rosa and Jeanne:

— The first card has been played. We are no longer alone.

— It's a great success, — Jeanne agreed. — Such allies are likely to leave us in distress, but they are unlikely to turn to the enemy.

— Rosa is a good influence on you, — the red-haired donna said, sinking back into her chair. — Your misanthropy and paranoia have subsided.

— Yes, milady, — the warrior nodded. — In another week or two, I'll stop locking the chest at night. In a month, I'll have the dagger out of my pillow.

— I don't think we should rush into that, — said Vittoria, smiling wryly. — Rosa, I advise you to reflect on what you have heard and seen today. I, too, have a lot to think about. We'll discuss it tomorrow.

— Milady, I would like to tell... — the girl hesitated. She was really beginning to think about the elves' visit, and the thought that had come in the morning had faded a little, some details were forgotten. Perhaps she should have gone back to the tent, reread the notes. Instead, Rosa blurted out: — I've figured out how to get Donna Minerva back to human form! — and then added in a less confident tone: — Probably.

— So fast. — The necromancer raised her eyebrows. — You please me, my dear. How do you intend to heal her?

— Well... — The young sorceress looked back at Jeanne. Warrior nodded, even though she didn't know what Rosa was talking about, just as a sign of support. — In fact, you'll have to heal Minerva. Following my instructions... milady.

Chapter 13

— There were too few precedents to form a coherent method of treatment, — Rosa told Don Marius as the final preparations were being made. Twenty-four hours had passed since the visit of the elven ambassadors, and the sun was slipping back into the horizon. In the tent where Minerva was kept, the oil lamps had been replaced by bright magical lanterns that gave an even golden light. — The Imperials don't use blood bonds, they just train dragons. Like normal animals. In the Republic of Erdo, the island dragons are partly intelligent, and do without riders at all. We are limited by the experience of our ancestors and nearest neighbours.