The Fireseed Wars

II

Verkan Vail was waiting at the Transposition Depot of the Paratime Building to welcome Inspector Ranthar Jard, who had just arrived from Hos-Bletha for a debriefing and some time off on Home Time Line. The large depot room was crowded with hundreds of Paracops of every description, some in standard green-issue uniform and others in out-time garb, like a trio dressed in turquoise blue tunics and floppy hats, four men in buckskins wearing coonskin caps, a man in full armor except for a helm, three women in hoop skirts and several officers wearing banker's suits, with top hats and vests. Ranthar, obvious by both his height and high-combed steel helmet and back-and-breast, stepped off a slideway and waved.

"Hi, Chief."

"How are you, Ranthar?"

"Great, Chief! Playing the Prince of Bletha in exile has been a lot of fun. Everyone on the team has been great, even that minstrel Gasphros. We've got all of Hos-Bletha spinning like a top; there must be four claimants to the throne now. It'll take them fifty years to sort this mess out. That 'steal from the rich, give to the poor' idea of Kalvan's worked like a charm!"

"That Robin Hood story is a common children's tale on most Europo-American subsectors," Verkan said. "Kalvan just applied it to a new situation. Otherwise, it could be interpreted as Paratemporal Contamination. I'm not sure how the Paratime Commission would view your part as the Prince in Exile, either."

"It was Kalvan's plan and Duke Skranga is the operative in charge." Ranthar smiled, "I'm just following orders."

Verkan laughed. "As long as you don't step out of character, I don't see any problem." He longed for the days when he could work undercover and make decisions without outsight committees and newsies judging his every action.

"The Blethan Operation is going great; they've been unable to supply the Grand Host with a single company. I even ordered a copy of The Adventures of Robin Hood from stores. I've read and re-read the book half-a-dozen times. The genius part was Kalvan's idea of applying it to the situation in Hos-Bletha. We've been hijacking and ambushing Styphon's House priests and noblemen in our green jacks and green hose. The commoners love us. I myself haven't had this much fun in a hundred years! However, Styphon's House has put a price of twenty thousand gold rakmars on my head."

"Then don't get caught."

"I don't intend to, Chief. But we sure have Styphon's House in a lather."

"That's the goal, Ranthar. Your party is tying down several thousand troops that won't be able to join the Grand Host in their hunt for Kalvan."

Verkan noticed that the crowd had suddenly quieted; he looked up to see it breaking open for Danthor Dras, in his Styphon's House Inner Circle hooded yellow robe with the red border, signifying his rank as Archpriest. Everyone moved away from him as if he had a Fourth Level plague. Danthor looked every inch a Styphon's House Archpriest and his face was set in the grim demeanor that they habitually wore.

"Hello, Dras."

"Chief, I didn't expect to find you down here," he said with a welcoming smile. They clasped hands and began to walk toward the antigrav lift.

"I'm here to debrief Inspector Ranthor."

"Oh, the Man in Green, as Styphon's House calls him," Danthor said, with a smile. He turned to Ranthor: "You've caused the Inner Circle no end of headaches!"

"That's the plan."

"Well, it's working. I've been questioned by everyone from Styphon's Own Voice to some Blethan upperpriests about what to do about the Hos-Bletha rebellions. I'm the only Archpriest in the Inner Circle from Bletha so that's made me the local expert on all things Blethan. Fortunately, Anaxthenes has needed me to spy on Great King Cleitharses so no one's considered sending me to Bletha, so far."

"That could prove to be a problem. How is the old king?" Verkan asked.

"He died a ten-day ago from colon cancer," Danthor said, with a frown. "The horrible diseases these outtimers suffer… I don't know where they get their courage. Cleitharses lived three ten-days longer than anyone, including myself, expected. I think he was hanging on in hopes that his nephew would arrive."

"I read your report. Did he ever get Anaxon's reply to the phony letter?"

"No. If he had, it would have killed him right away. I still feel bad for giving that document to Anaxthenes and counterfeiting the new letter."

"Don't feel too bad," Verkan said. "When it comes to Outtime work, we all have to do what's necessary to maintain our covers, and, as an Archpriest of the Inner Circle, you're at the top of the heap on Kalvan's Time-Line."

"I've done worse things in my career than betray the old King, but I really liked him. Cleitharses was a good man and never meant anyone harm. Unfortunately, he was a weak ruler and allowed himself to be bullied by Styphon's House."

"Cleitharses should have been born a shopkeeper or music teacher," Verkan observed.

"He would have been much happier. Has anyone in Agrys City received word of Styphon's spring campaign?"

Verkan shook his head. "If Grand Master Soton bulldozes through Agrys City like he did with Hostigos Town, there won't be an independent kingdom on the eastern seaboard by the end of next year."

"That wouldn't be good for your friend Kalvan."

"Agreed. It would be a disaster. The fall of Hos-Agrys would allow Styphon's House to concentrate all its military, political and economic strength toward removing Kalvan no matter where he goes."

Danthor paused to remove his clay pipe from an inner pocket in his yellow robe.

"Come on, let's go to my office, Danthor. You, too, Ranthar."

The three of them took the antigrav lift to the Paratime Police Chief's office. All three were smoking by the time they reached Verkan's horseshoe desk in his private office.

"My whole life, I never thought I'd be invited into this-the inner sanctum of the Paratime Police," Danthor said, "at least, not as a free man."

They all chuckled.

Danthor's disdain for the Paratime Police had been legendary. Or at least up until a year ago, Verkan thought. Thanks to fast-unfolding events at Balph we settled our mutual differences and found out we actually liked one another.

Before sitting, Verkan took out a flask with a fancy glass stopper in the shape of a halberd head and of obvious outtime manufacture, offering everyone a drink.

"I haven't had that in a while," Ranthar Jard mentioned.

"This is pretty raw brandy," Danthor said, making a face and drawing back from his glass. "What time-line is this from?"

"Kalvan's Time-Line. This is the famous Hostigi brandy, invented- with some help from King Kalvan-by that time-line's first scientist and distiller. The Hostigi call it Ermut's Best, after the inventor. He's the new Rector of the University of Hostigos. It's crude, but it grows on you."

Danthor nodded, taking a small sip. "It's stronger than most of the swill on Aryan-Transpacific, but it definitely needs some work. Now, if we can just get Kalvan and his Hostigi through this next winter or two, he might have a chance to improve on it."

Verkan and Ranthar nodded in agreement.

"I may even have an idea that will help Kalvan."

"What's that?" Verkan asked, sitting up straight.

"What if I send one of my Balph Study Team assistants to Agrys City? I have one or two that I've helped climb the hierarchical ladder of the Balph priesthood. Mathrov Verth would be ideal; he's a savvy University undergraduate that I've helped promote to Highpriest. He uses the name Mathros on Kalvan's Time-Line. He'll lose his usefulness to the Balph Study Team, but he might have more value as a Styphoni turncoat in Agrys City. I can have him travel overland to Hos-Agrys, where he can inform one of Kalvan's allies about Soton's plans to besiege Agrys City If that doesn't wake up Great King Demistophon, nothing will."

"Does Kalvan have any friends inside Agrys City whom I can use as a contact?"

Verkan took his pipe out of his mouth and emptied the dottle into an ashtray. He opened a small pocket knife to clean out the ash while he used his First Level perfect recall to run through the possible Hostigi exiles in Agrys City.

"I've got it, Chief," Ranthar said. "Old Xentos, isn't he Primate of that Dralm outfit that's headquartered in Agrys City?"

"Yes, but I don't know how much of an ally of Kalvan's he is these days. Xentos left a trail of broken promises behind when he left Hostigos. If he'd spent half as much time helping Kalvan as he did to promote his own career, things might have turned out differently."

"Don't be too rough on the old priest," Ranthar said. "He's way over his head with this Fireseed War business, and no one expected Styphon's House to react so quickly and decisively."

"That's true," Verkan replied. "What do you think, Danthor?"

Danthor gave a self-satisfied smile. "It doesn't matter. If Xentos is the top ecclesiastical figure at the High Temple of Dralm, he'll do just fine. No one connected with Dralm will want to see Styphon's House conquer Agrys City. The Primate is a big enough fish that even Demistophon will have to heed his warning. Plus, I'm sure that the King has his own agents within the League of Dralm."

"Of course, he does," Verkan said.

"Good. Maybe they'll even have time to prepare a proper welcome gift for Grand Master Soton and his army."