The Seer (12 page)

A long silence
fell when Mistral finished speaking.  Mage Grapple turned his goblet of
wine in his hands, gazing thoughtfully at the ruby liquid.  ‘And … Vilius
De’ath?’  he finally asked in a cold voice.

Mistral felt
the twins’ surprise ring in her mind.  Mage Grapple had obviously been
made aware of Putreo’s illicit activities and was now concerned that Vilius
would be tempted to do the same.

‘Er … well,
Mage De’ath is … how can I put this?’  she looked at the twins for help.

‘Under the
thumb?’  Phantom suggested quietly.

Mistral
stifled a laugh, ‘That would be accurate!  I think that Mage De’ath would
only take up the slightly shadier aspects of his role if his wife told him to.’

Mage Grapple
nodded; his scarred face impassive, ‘And what of Mycroft Casterton?’

‘He intends to
present a case for becoming the next Divinus but has no untoward plans ... only
an awful lot of self-belief and  a strong desire to share it with anyone
in earshot,’ she added quickly, worried she might have presented Mycroft in too
good a light.

‘And that
brings us to the final contender.’  Mage Grapple iron gaze held
hers.  ‘Your Training Captain.’ 

Mistral
glanced uncomfortably at Leo, sat silently in the armchair by the fire. 
Fabian squeezed her hand reassuringly, his thoughts willing her to speak
freely.  ‘Well,’ she began then paused and met Leo’s icy stare, listening
to his thoughts.  There was no anxiety in them, only a cold confidence and
complete disinterest in anything she was about to reveal.  Drawing in a
deep breath, Mistral took the plunge.  ‘Master Sphinx is completely
unhindered by what he regards as wasteful emotions; love, charity, generosity …
kindness.  He is mercilessly ambitious, intelligent and focussed.  He
believes utterly in his ability to be the next Divinus, but not for personal
gain – he believes resolutely in the ideals of the Ri and is convinced that our
future existence can only be assured through developing stronger links with the
Council.’  Mistral finished and waited for Leo to leap up, loudly
denouncing her as a liar but he said nothing and continued to regard her with
icy detachment.

Mage Grapple
nodded thoughtfully, ‘Thank you.  You have been refreshingly honest. 
I would have expected you to have been intimidated by the presence of your
Training Captain and attempt to lie to me, but once again Lady De Winter, you
have surprised me.’

‘Er, well …
I’m actually a terrible liar.’  Mistral confessed.

‘Then I
welcome you at my Council.  You will be unique.’

‘We need to
talk about your proposed schedule Eximius.’  Fabian said quietly.

Mage Grapple
raised a scarred eyebrow briefly, ‘Yes, I am sure you consider the Contract
requirements I have submitted to be excessive.  I am also sure that you
are aware that our fragile existence is severely threatened by the Rochfortes’
continuing plans and a Seer’s presence at the meetings I have outlined would be
most beneficial.  However, if you remain unsatisfied, De Winter, then
perhaps we can discuss the exact schedule on another occasion.’

Fabian met
Mage Grapple’s iron stare and nodded curtly.

‘Good. 
Then we turn to the final matter.’

Mistral drew
in a sharp breath and leaned forwards, her eyes gleaming with
anticipation.  Here it was.  The Contract she had heard in his
thoughts at the banquet.  The one she had traded a year of her life for.

‘What’s
this?’ 

Xerxes looked
at the rolled up scroll of parchment Phantasm placed on the table in front of
him.

‘Present from Mistral,’
he replied, dropping onto a chair and leaning back casually.

Xerxes put his
tankard down and unrolled the parchment, giving it a cursory glance he tossed
it down with a snort of disgust, ‘A Contract?  She needs her head
testing!  Cain gets a shop and I get a Contract?’

‘It’s for all
of us actually, and I think you’re going to like it.’  Phantasm said
confidently.

Xerxes frowned
and unrolled the Contract, his eyes sliding straight down to the Contract value
section, ‘Hells teeth!’

‘What?’ 
Brutus leaned across and peered over the top of the parchment. 

There was a
brief silence while the two brothers carefully deciphered the ornate script.

‘How
much?’  Brutus exclaimed in disbelief, his eyes finally finding the
section that had made his brother swear.  ‘That’s a fortune!  What’s
this Contract for?  An assassination on Mage Grapple?’

‘Don’t even
jest about such matters!’  Phantom muttered, glancing warily over his
shoulder to see a couple of warriors at the bar watching them interestedly.

‘What? 
He’s left the Valley now hasn’t he?’  Brutus said blithely, his eyes glued
to the Contract in his brother’s hand.

‘Yes,
thankfully.  However, he gave this little beauty to Master Sphinx before
he went and he saw fit to issue it to Mistral who, for some reason, thought of
her brothers.’

‘Mistral …
thoughtful?’  Xerxes looked dubious.

‘Just read the
details Xerxes.’  Phantasm said coolly.

‘Details!’ 
Xerxes made a disgusted noise but began to read the Contract carefully. 
‘It can’t be!’  he looked up and stared in open mouthed astonishment at
the twins’ smug expressions.  ‘How … just
how
did she pull this one
off?’

‘What’s she
done now?’  Cain asked wearily, placing a full tankard of ale on the table
and sitting down.

‘Only gone and
got us the Ten Year Cull!’ 

‘What?’ 
Cain was suddenly alert.  ‘How?  It normally goes out to tender with
the three Agencies then they have to run a lottery for all of the warriors on
their books.  I’ve even heard of warriors killing each other to get this
Contract!’ 

‘Ah, yes, well. 
I think we’d better keep it quiet then.’  Phantasm murmured and tilted his
head meaningfully towards the bar where the two warriors were still casting
them curious looks.

‘Come on,
how’s she done it?’  Brutus demanded a low voice.

Phantasm
didn’t reply immediately but reached out for his tankard of ale and took a long
drink, placing it carefully back down on the table before he looked up, his
green eyes strangely disapproving,  ‘I believe she struck a deal with
Master Sphinx.’

All three
warriors stared at him incredulously. 

‘And how
exactly did she get Captain Uncompromising to agree to a deal?’  Brutus
frowned.

‘Was she
wearing that dress?’  Xerxes leered.

Phantasm gave
him a cool look, ‘As I understand it, she’s agreed to work solely for him for
the next year in return for her apprenticeship fees … and this Contract.’

‘She’s tied
herself to his Lordliness the Leo for an entire year to pay back her
fees?’  Cain shuddered.  ‘Rather her than me!’

‘Ah, but she
did it for us too.’  Xerxes grinned.  ‘I always knew she’d come good
in the end!’

‘The Ten Year
Cull!’  Brutus echoed, gazing at the Contract with reverence.  ‘Read
out the details brother.’

Xerxes cleared
his throat dramatically and began to read from the document in his hands, ‘“In accordance
with the requirements laid down in the Control of Dangerous Beasts Act, the
annual census of the dragon population of the Isle has been concluded and the
Councillor responsible for the Control and Maintenance of Dangerous and
Endangered Beasts –”’

‘Mage Bertram
Pickering,’ interjected Phantom knowledgably.

‘Pickering …
Pickering.’  Cain mused.  ‘I know that name.’

‘Course you do
brother, he’s got that bonkers wife, Maldita … you know, breeds bonacon but
doesn’t seem to be able to keep control of them.  There can’t be a month
goes by where one of us hasn’t had a Contract to round the damned things up
again –’

‘Er, do you
mind?’  Xerxes demanded, waving the Contract impatiently at them.

‘Oh, please
don’t say you’ve lost your place have you brother?’  Brutus sighed and
winked at the twins.  ‘It’ll take him ages to find it again.’

Xerxes shot
him a filthy look and ran his finger quickly down the Contract, ‘Ah!  Here
we go … “has identified a number of dragons in excess of the recommended herd
size.  A license for a cull has therefore been granted to be collected
from the Council by the hunting party who will sign a Declaration of Intent to
abide by the rules set out in the Control of Dangerous –” … oh, for crying out
loud … blah blah … ha!  Now that’s more like it!’  Xerxes paused and
raised an eyebrow, reaching for the tattered piece of parchment in his top
pocket.  ‘Care to wager how many we have to cull?’

Cain narrowed
his eyes thoughtfully at Phantom, ‘Don’t suppose you happen to know what the
recommended number of dragons is in this Dangerous Beasts Act do you?’

‘Six.’
 Phantom responded promptly.

Cain nodded,
‘I wager a round of drinks we have to cull one then.’

‘Two,’ said
Brutus confidently.

‘All of them.’
 Grendel grunted.

‘Ah, wishful
thinking there brother.’  Xerxes laughed.  ‘It’s actually two –’

‘Ha!’ 
Brutus cried triumphantly and banged both his hands on the table.  ‘Get
the round in Cain!’

‘Two what
though?’  Cain demanded sulkily.  ‘Male or female?’

‘Hold on!’
 Xerxes scanned the Contract again, running his finger down the parchment
until he found the relevant section.  ‘Two females of breeding age.’

‘How are we
meant to identify them as being firstly female and secondly of breeding
age?  Ask them if they like flowers and how old they are?’  Cain
demanded with a frown.

Phantasm
reached down into his saddlebag and pulled out a large, leather-bound book and
dropped it onto the table with a heavy thud. 

Brutus read
out the title on the front of the dusty manual.  ‘“Dragon Lore: The
Definitive Guide to Breeds, Identification, Control and Breeding Habits.” 
Er, please tell me you’ve read it already?’  he asked, looking hopefully
at the twins.

They both
nodded smugly.

‘That’s a
relief!  I reckon we’d still be sat here next solstice if we had to read
that thing before we took the Contract!’

‘We’re going
to kill some dragons!’  Xerxes sang under his breath and dropped a kiss
onto the document in his hand.

‘For an
amazingly, beautifully ludicrous amount of gold!’  Cain added with a
grin. 

‘I bet Mistral
was unbearable once she knew the Contract was in the bag!’  Brutus
laughed.  ‘She’s been desperate to have a go at a dragon for ages!’

‘Hmm, she was
fairly animated.’  Phantasm agreed drily.  

‘That’s
putting it mildly!’  Phantom exclaimed, ‘I thought she was actually going
to kiss Mage Grapple when he gave the Contract to Master Sphinx.’ 

‘Where is she
anyway?’  Cain asked, looked around with a frown.  ‘In Toothe and
Nayle buying the entire stock in preparation for the cull?’

‘Going home
with her Mage to pack as we speak,’ said Phantom.  ‘Which is a relief
actually, her staying was a bit like having a whirlwind in the house.’

Cain laughed,
‘I’m glad she didn’t want to stay in my flat!  Not that there’s much room since
Brutus and Xerxes moved in,’ he added, glancing ruefully at his brothers who
were poring over the Contract again. 

‘I’m surprised
her Mage has agreed to her going.’  Brutus said, looking up from the
Contract.  ‘It’s not exactly going to be safe work and he was slightly
over protective before she had the Sight.  I can’t imagine what he’s going
to be like now she’s the Isle’s only Seer.’

‘He didn’t
have too much to say on the matter actually.’  Phantom smirked.

‘Never says a
lot anyway.’  Cain muttered into his tankard.

‘Getting fed
up with her already is he?’  Xerxes nodded understandingly. 

‘Hardly. 
It’s been like a re-enactment of the love scene from The Nymph’s Ballad in our
house for the last couple of days!’  Phantom grumbled. 

‘So how come
he’s letting her go then?’  Brutus persisted.  ‘Or is there something
about this Contract you’re not telling us?’

Phantasm
sighed, ‘No brother, this Contract has been issued by Mage Grapple
himself.  It’s probably the most legitimate Contract you’ll ever be offered. 
However, if you really insist upon knowing why Mage De Winter was reluctantly
amenable to Mistral taking the work then I shall tell you, although it really
has no bearing on the Contact whatsoever – ’

‘Just tell us
brother.’  Xerxes growled impatiently.

‘Well,
firstly, he didn’t really have a choice since Master Sphinx issued Mistral with
the Contract and she’s agreed to work solely for him for the a year – not that
Mistral would have ever turned down this one anyway – but it also appears that
Mage De Winter didn’t feel he was in a position to argue, having inadvertently
managed to upset her earlier in the day.’  Phantasm finished
diplomatically.  

‘Easily done,’
said Cain sympathetically. 

Brutus
laughed, ‘And he’s still breathing?’ 

‘Perfectly
healthy.’

‘Is she losing
her touch?’

Phantasm
frowned thoughtfully and reached for his tankard, ‘No, she was typically
irrational.  However, I have to admit that it wasn’t quite in her usual
way.’

‘She didn’t
threaten to kill herself again did she?’  Cain sighed.

‘No … just sat
on our sofa crying and holding a bucket of kittens.’

‘A bucket of
what?’

‘Kittens. 
Want one?’  Phantom enquired brightly.  ‘I woke up with one of the
little gits asleep on my face this morning!  I can still taste fur –’

‘Not hungry
thanks.’  Brutus replied with a grin.   

‘I’ll take
one.’  Xerxes said quickly.

‘I’m not
having a kitten in my flat.’  Cain said sharply.

‘Don’t
worry!  It’s not for me!  It’ll make a nice present for the girl from
the saddlery … can’t remember her name right now … anyway, girls like kittens
don’t they?’

‘Apparently
Mistral does, but I don’t think she’s a good example for you to use.’ 
Phantasm mused.

‘You can say
that again!’  Xerxes agreed and took a long drink from his tankard. 

‘Time
scale?’  Grendel asked, banging both hands down heavily onto the table and
bringing their attention sharply back to the Contract.

‘Ah,
yes.  The time scale is a bit tight to say the least.’  Phantasm
lowered his tankard and reached out to take the Contract from Xerxes.  ‘Unfortunately
the census was held late this year due to the Rochfortes’ inconsiderate
attempted invasion –’

‘I actually
thought it was very considerate of them to provide us with a damned good fight
after Mistral’s wedding!’

‘Yes Xerxes,
wasn’t it just.  Well, back to the Contract … we need to cull the two
females before the breeding season begins in early spring.  They’re
notoriously aggressive anyway, but once they have eggs to protect they become
unbelievably savage.  We can forget about being able to get anywhere near
the mountain range after the January snows have fallen … which leaves us with
the very small time slot of – ’

‘Now.’
 Cain concluded with a grin.

‘Precisely.’
 Phantom confirmed.  ‘We leave in the morning, meet Mage De Winter
and Mistral on the cliffside path heading north and travel straight to the
Council to collect the license and our official escort –’

‘Our
what?
’ 
Xerxes looked up sharply. 

‘Details
Xerxes!  It’s all in the details!’  Phantasm drummed his fingers
irritably on the Contract.  ‘The Isle’s dragon herd are the only ones in
existence and Mage Grapple feels that their continued existence is somehow
important to our identity as a nation –’

‘Yes, the
dragon is the emblem of the Isle after all.  “A symbol of strength and
majesty”, or so it says in that book.’  Phantom added with a casual flick
of his hand towards the dragon lore manual on the table.

‘Thank you
brother.’  Phantasm said crisply.  ‘As I was saying, herd numbers are
rigidly controlled, hence the Ten Year Cull; but for some reason Mage Grapple
doesn’t quite trust Ri Warriors not to be overly enthusiastic when faced with
the opportunity of hunting such a legendary creature, so he insists upon a
party of Mage Councillors being in attendance to ensure that some dragons are
left alive.’