"I have been told some very disturbing stories by merchants trav-eling from the North," King Danube Brock Ursal stated bluntly as soon as the abbot of St. Honce arrived. Uncharacteristically, this conversation between the two leaders was private; only three other men were in the room - a bodyguard and a recorder for King Danube and a single monk who stood beside Je'howith.
"No doubt, the transition will be difficult," Je'howith replied. "The Church asks for your patience."
"There are rumors that your Bishop has decreed that all gemstones are to be returned to the Church," Danube pressed, pulling no punches. The ruling family of Honce-the-Bear possessed quite a collection of such stones, gifts from abbots dating back centuries and even several "gifts of office" from the periods when the King also held the title father abbot.
"I cannot speak for the Father Abbot," Je'howith admitted, "for truly your words have caught me unprepared. I would assume the situation in Palmaris is unique, for that is the region where the followers of the thief and heretic Avelyn Desbris are said to be."
King Danube nodded and uttered a few uh-hums, obviously far from convinced.
"I intend no such decree in Ursal," Je'howith flatly stated.
"Nor would one be advised," Danube remarked, his tone showing the words to be an open threat. "And how far do you expect your Church to reach in this time of uncertainty? I do not doubt that the Abellican Order can be comforting and helpful to people, especially following the devasta-tion to our northern reaches during the war, but I warn you now that there is only so much I shall tolerate."
"You have charged us with a most vital mission," Je'howith replied. "The calming and reordering of Palmaris is no small matter. But I beg you to have patience. Let our results be the determining factor, not the messy details of this transition period."
"Am I to ignore the pleas of some of my favored merchant families?" the King asked skeptically, "men whose fathers served my father, whose grand-fathers served my grandfather?"
"Delay the answers," Je'howith suggested. "Explain that this is a critical time and that all will be put aright soon enough."
King Danube stared at the old abbot doubtfully for a long while. "You understand that even Constance Pemblebury would be hard-pressed to support your Order on this matter." He chuckled and looked around at the empty room. "And you know, of course, the likely reaction of Duke Targon Bree Kalas. I granted your Church the rulership of Palmaris but only for a trial period. I bestowed the title of bishop, and I can revoke it" - he snapped his fingers - "just like that. And further understand, and do inform your Father Abbot, that if I am forced to revoke the title and privilege, your Church's standing will be greatly diminished within my kingdom. Do we understand each other, Abbot Je'howith? It would displease me greatly to think that you left here now not recognizing the gravity of this situation. You asked for patience, and so I shall be patient, but for a short while only."
The abbot thought of several responses, but none seemed fitting or useful. The King had caught him off guard; Je'howith had no idea that ambitious De'Unnero had moved so quickly and so forcefully to solidify his base in Palmaris. Did Father Abbot Markwart even know of these developments?
Je'howith smiled slightly as he mulled over that question. He remem-bered his frightening spiritual communication with Markwart, and did not doubt that he kept in similar regular contact with De'Unnero. No, this situation might prove to be a true crisis between Church and state, he real-ized, for if the Father Abbot himself had formulated the Palmaris policy, then Markwart and King Danube were surely riding right at each other on a narrow trail.
The abbot wondered then if he should begin his own campaign. Might now be the time to begin distancing himself from the Church hierarchy? If he whispered to King Danube a subtle denouncement of the Father Abbot in general and of this policy in particular, might he be laying the foundation for an even stronger position for himself should King and Father Abbot. come to open conflict?
But memory of the unpleasant spiritual contact with Markwart stood out in Je'howith's mind, the sensation of power he had felt in Markwart. He would have to be careful, he realized, for if the situation deteriorated between the King and the Father Abbot, Je'howith was far from certain which one would win. And to be on the wrong side of that conflict, he knew, would be dangerous.
"I will learn what I can and report fully to you, my King," the Abbot said with a bow.
"No doubt," Danube replied dryly.
Pony was bent over a basin, throwing up. She tried to keep the telltale sign secret, though Dainsey Aucomb had been giving her suspicious looks lately.
Pony took a sip from a cup of water, swished it around in her mouth, then bent over to spit it out.
She heard the footstep behind her, heard the creak of the opening door. "Dainsey," she began, standing and turning, but she stopped short, sur-prised to see Belster O'Comely in the doorway.
"You are sick every morning," the innkeeper remarked.
Pony stared at him hard. "I've not been feeling well," she lied. "Not so bad that I cannot do my work."
"As long as you loosen your apron strings to make room for the belly," Belster replied slyly.
Pony looked down automatically, a bit confused, for her stomach was just beginning to bulge.
"Well, not yet, perhaps," Belster said.
"You make many assumptions," Pony said, a hint of anger in her voice. She walked to the door and pushed past Belster. He caught her by the shoulder and turned her so that she was facing him squarely.
"Had three of my own," he said.
"You speak in riddles."
"I solve riddles," the innkeeper corrected, a wide smile on his face. "I know that you had time with your lover. I know that the demands of the war had lessened, and I know what young people in love do. And, my secre-tive friend, I know what morning sickness signals.
"You are with child," Belster said bluntly.
The edge of defiance faded from Pony's bright blue eyes. She gave a slight nod.
Belster's smile nearly took in his ears. "Then why are you apart from Nightbird?" he asked, and then he frowned suddenly. "He is the father, of course."
Now it was Pony's turn to smile and to laugh aloud.
"Then why are you here, girl, while Nightbird's up north?" Belster asked. "He should be beside you, taking care of your every need and desire."
"He does not even know," Pony admitted, but then she told a little lie. "For I did not know when I left him in Caer Tinella."
"Then you must go to him."
"To be caught in a blizzard?" Pony asked skeptically. "And you are assuming that Elbryan is in Caer Tinella. Since the weather has been so mild, he might already be on his way to the Timberlands." She held up her hand to calm Belster, who was growing visibly agitated. "We will meet again soon after the turn of spring, soon enough to tell him," Pony explained. "Fear not, my good friend. Our roads have separated, but not forever, not even for long."
Belster considered the words for a moment, then burst out in laughter and wrapped Pony in a great hug. "Ah, but we should be celebrating!" He roared, lifting her from the ground and spinning her around. "We'll have a great party in the Way tonight!"
For Pony, it was a bittersweet moment, and not just because she knew that a party, or any other open proclamation, was out of the question. Mostly it was Belster's reaction that stung her heart. It should have been Elbryan lifting her and spinning her, Elbryan sharing in her joy. Not for the first time, the woman regretted her decision not to tell her husband.
"No party," Pony said firmly when Belster put her down. "It would only draw unwanted questions. No one knows but you, and that is the way I prefer it."
"Not even Dainsey?" Belster asked. "But you should tell her. She is a good friend and loyal. And though she might not be so quick about some things, in others - and likely this is one of them - she is wise indeed."
"Maybe Dainsey," Pony agreed. "But in my own time and way."
Belster smiled and nodded, satisfied. Then suddenly, he burst out in laughter and wrapped Pony up again, twirling her about.
"Time for going!" came a call from back in the main room.
"Ah, yes," Belster remarked, lowering Pony gently and putting on a serious expression. "In all the excitement of your throwing up, I almost forgot. A crier, a monk from St. Precious, just walked down the street, calling all good Abellicans to gather at the town square before the doors of St. Precious. It seems that our new Bishop has a speech to make."
"I'm not certain that I would be considered a good Abellican," Pony said, "but I would not miss this gathering."
"A chance to learn more about your enemies?" Belster asked sarcastically.
Pony nodded, taking the question seriously. "And to learn more about the disturbing events in Palmaris," she said.
"Leave your gemstones," Belster advised.
Pony agreed wholeheartedly; after all she had witnessed these last few days, a person-to-person search in the town square would not surprise her in the least. The new leader of Palmaris did not seem interested in the rights of his citizens.
"Dainsey will see to your face," Belster remarked, "unless you dare to walk undisguised among the crowds."
Pony considered it for a moment. "A bit of a disguise, perhaps," she decided, for she did not want to go through the ordeal of the full transfor-mation into Belster's older wife, nor did she believe that she would have trouble blending in with the masses.
Pony, Belster, and Dainsey left the Way soon after, joining the hundreds of people moving down the streets toward the great square. As Belster had suggested, Pony carried no gemstones with her - a decision that gave her quite a bit of comfort as she moved into the crowded square and saw the whole place was surrounded by armed soldiers, with monks mixed among them, all studying the crowd intently.
The new bishop stood on a platform erected before the abbey's great doors. Pony had seen the man once before, within a ring of defensively circled merchant caravans that had been assaulted by raiding goblins. Pony and Elbryan had helped the merchants survive. This man and his fellow monks, who had been not that far back down the road when the gob-lins attacked, showed up only after the battle had ended. Even then, the only monk who had helped tend the wounds of the injured was the kindly Jojonah, and it had been obvious to Elbryan and Pony that Bishop De'Unnero was no friend to Jojonah.
As she worked her way to the front of the crowd in the square, Pony realized that her first impressions of De'Unnero agreed with what she saw now. He stood with his arms crossed over his chest, surveying the crowd like some god-empowered conqueror. Pony was a perceptive woman; she could read De'Unnero now, quite easily. His arrogance surrounded him like a shroud; his stern gaze was all the more dangerous because this pride-ful man held himself above all others and could therefore justify practically anything.
The closer she got to the platform, the more keenly Pony believed her initial perceptions. De'Unnero's physical posture - his taut muscles, crossed arms with robe sleeves pulled back enough to show his powerful forearms, his predatory eyes and closely cropped black hair - screamed at her to beware. As his gaze scanned the area where she was standing, she was certain that he was looking directly at her, only at her.
The moment of panic passed, for Pony soon realized that everyone in the area, indeed everyone who fell for only a brief instant under that pene-trating gaze, shared her reaction.
The crowd continued to grow, whispering this or that rumor. "I'm hearin' that he's payin' back the filthy merchants for all the years they robbed us," one old woman said. "And the yatol priests," said another. "Dirty scum from Behren. Put 'em all on a boat and send 'em south, I say!"
Listening, Pony grew concerned. De'Unnero was furthering his ambi-tions and hunting for Avelyn's followers, and he was creating scapegoats for any dissatisfaction in the general populace. He had treated the merchants horrendously, and the Behrenese even worse, but if he could portray them as enemies of the common people, then might not those people rally behind him? Pony shuddered.
The Bishop stepped forward and held his arms out wide. Then, in a pow-erful, resonating voice, he called for prayer.
Thousands of heads bowed - Pony's included.
"Praise God that the war is ended," De'Unnero began. "Praise God that Palmaris has survived and has found its way back into the arms of the Church."
He went on from there with the standard speech of all Abellican minis-ters at large gatherings: calling for good crops and no diseases, for pros-perity and fertility. He cued the crowd to chant at appropriate places, timed perfectly to hold and heighten their attention. Then De'Unnero began improvising. He made no mention of Baron Bildeborough, Pony noted, nor of King Danube, though he reverently invoked Father Abbot Markwart's name repeatedly.
When he finished and called for a final arm-uplifting, all hands reached skyward.
And then the crowd began to whisper once more, and many made as if to wander away.
"You are not dismissed!" De'Unnero cried sharply. Every head turned to the man, and every whisper halted.
"There is another issue for discussion," the Bishop explained, "one not for prayer but for pragmatism. You citizens of Palmaris, perhaps more than any others in Honce-the-Bear, have borne witness to the horrors of the demon dactyl. Is this true?"
A murmur of "Yes, my lord," rumbled through the crowd.
"Is this true?" De'Unnero roared, so suddenly, so frightfully, that Pony jumped.
Now the response was tremendous, an agreement yelled in fear.
"Blame naught but yourselves for the rise of Bestesbulzibar!" De'Unnero screamed at them. "For the blackness in your hearts spawned the demon dactyl; the weakness of your flesh gave flesh to the diabolical creature. You cannot avoid the blame! Not you, nor you, nor you!" he yelled, running across the front of the platform, pointing at various terrified individuals. "How great have been your tithes to the Church? And what tolerance have you shown for pagans? Your docks are littered with the unwashed unbelievers.
"And who has been your leader these past years?" he cried. "Abbot Dobrinion? Hardly, for you, like so many others, have heeded the words of a secular leader."
He calmed and stood still. The whispers began again despite the fear, for he had just spoken ill of Baron Bildeborough, who had been so beloved by the folk of Palmaris.
"Do not misunderstand me," De'Unnero went on. "Your Baron Bilde-borough was a fine man, a humble man who did not place himself above God. But now, my friends," he said, raising his fist in the air before him, the muscles on his forearm tightening like iron bands, his face brightening with sheer intensity, "now we have the chance before us to lay Bestesbulzibar and all its evil demon kindred to eternal sleep. Now, because of the wisdom of King Danube, Palmaris shall shine as never before. We are the borderland, the sentries of the kingdom. King Danube knows this, and knows, too, that if Palmaris finds its soul, Bestesbulzibar cannot pass through our gates!"
The flourish as he ended the statement brought a great cheer from the crowd. Not from Pony, though. She looked around at the faces of the common folk, many wet with tears. He was good, she had to admit. This new bishop understood his flock. First he took action against the two classes that the Palmaris commoners were more than willing to consider enemies: the merchants and the foreigners. And now he was calling them to spiritual arms. So many of them had lost loved ones in the fighting - and even before the war, so many of them had faced death daily - that De'Un-nero's hint now that they might somehow transcend their meager existence was obviously appealing.
"You must come back to God!" De'Unnero cried. "I will look for every one of you - for you and you and you," he said, again pointing and rushing across the platform. "No longer will the monks of St. Precious minister to a paltry few. No, I say, because God has shown me the truth. And God has spoken to your King, has inspired him to give the city into the care of the Abellican Church. Thus, we will be the guardians of the soul. We will defeat the seeds of Bestesbulzibar. I will show you how."
The cheering grew with each proclamation, and Pony studied those around her, looking carefully for signs that this public accord might not be as deeply rooted as she feared. She did see many people holding their hands out to the Bishop, desperate to believe in something; but she saw many others going along with the cheering simply out of fear of the ever- present monks and soldiers.
It wasn't until De'Unnero finished that Pony looked back at the platform and saw him standing with his arms crossed again. He was an inspiring orator, a man who stirred the soul. But Pony knew the truth and knew that his actions in the name of God were designed, in fact, to serve a mortal being.
But the people didn't know it, she reminded herself, scanning the crowd; and their ignorance could allow De'Unnero to exact a brutal toll on anyone who did not agree with the Church. Still, Pony was convinced that there was skepticism here, waiting to embrace the truth.
Now all she had to do was figure out how to get her message to the common folk.
While presiding over the morning prayers of the younger students, Father Abbot Markwart recognized the tingle of spiritual communication. Someone was trying to contact him using a soul stone, but the telepathic intrusion was so slight that Markwart couldn't recognize the soul.
The Father Abbot abruptly excused himself, turning the duties over to Brother Francis, and hurried back to his private quarters. He started for that most private room of all, but hesitated, remembering that a spirit- walking monk could see his physical surroundings. Even if he went out spiritually to intercept the monk, might the man slip past him and view that room?
Markwart laughed aloud. No, this monk, whoever he might be, was a puny thing, a mere child. Holding the calling spirit at bay, Markwart col-lected his soul stone and, with hardly a thought, he fell into the smooth grayness of the hematite, his spirit walking free of his body.
He saw that Je'howith had come a-calling, and he saw, too, that the spirit of the other man already showed signs of magical weariness. Markwart's spirit waved the abbot away, making clear that they would communicate in St. Honce and not here. Then he went back into his body, moving into the room with the pentagram, where he felt his power most keenly.
In moments, the specter of the Father Abbot appeared in Je'howith's quarters to face the physical man. It was obvious to Markwart that Je'howith's spiritual excursion to St.-Mere-Abelle had exhausted him. After Markwart calmed Je'howith, the Father Abbot ordered him to speak plainly and quickly.
"The King is not pleased with Bishop De'Unnero's actions in Palmaris," Je'howith explained. "He is taking gemstones from merchants - stones they bought from us. It is incredible that De'Unnero would show such nerve, and so soon after taking - "
"Bishop De'Unnero acts with my blessing," Markwart replied bluntly.
"B-but, Father Abbot," Je'howith stuttered, "we cannot anger the entire merchant class. Surely the King will not allow - "
"This is not a matter for King Danube," Markwart explained. "The gem-stones are the gifts of God, and thus, the sole domain of the Abellican Order."
"But you yourself have sold them to merchants and nobles," Je'howith dared to reply. A cold feeling washed over him even as the words left his mouth, bringing a sensation of dread beyond anything he had ever before known.
"Perhaps I was not as wise in my younger days," Markwart replied, seeming calm - and that only unnerved the abbot even more. "Or perhaps I was too bound by tradition."
Je'howith looked at him curiously. Markwart had always prided himself on tradition; in fact, whenever the College of Abbots had objected to his decisions, he had nearly always used past practices as justification.
"You have learned a better way now?" the abbot asked cautiously.
"Witness my growing power with the stones and understand that to be a manifestation of a greater insight to God's desires," Markwart replied. "I have come to see that our selling of the sacred stones was wrong." The Father Abbot paused, for his own words had struck him as curious. After all, had not Avelyn Desbris espoused the very same argument? Was not the abbey's selling many of the stones Avelyn had collected on Pimaninicuit one of the primary causes of his desertion?
Markwart was amused at the irony, for, yes, the actions had indeed been the same, but the reasons were very different.
"Father Abbot?" Je'howith asked curiously after several long moments had slipped past.
"Bishop De'Unnero acts in accordance with my new insights," Markwart stated firmly. "He will continue."
"But he angers the King," Je'howith protested. "And do not doubt that King Danube considers the appointment of bishop a trial only, and will revoke the title and place a baron - and likely one not so favorably inclined toward the Church - to oversee Palmaris."
"King Danube will find it is more difficult to revoke a title than to grant one," Markwart replied.
"Many believe the Church and the state are separate entities."
"And they are fools," said Markwart. "We cannot claim rulership all at once," he explained, "for that would surely incite the frightened rabble to act on King Danube's side. No, our domination will be a step-by-step acquisition of Church control over one city, one region at a time."
Je'howith's eyes widened and he looked away, staring at the corner of his room. He had not heard of this plan before and had no idea that Markwart's ambitions ran so high. Nor was he comfortable with the thought. Abbot Je'howith had a secure and comfortable life in the King's court at Ursal, and he wasn't thrilled with the idea of anything disrupting that luxu-rious existence. And he could not dismiss the thought that he could even end up on the losing side of a titanic battle.
The abbot looked back at Markwart's spirit and tried hard not to show his fears, for he understood there was hope of a compromise with the Father Abbot on this matter.
"King Danube will understand my view," the Father Abbot assured him.
"And what am I to do?" the dutiful abbot asked.
Markwart chuckled. "You will discover that you have less to do than you believe," he said mysteriously. Then he faded from the room.
A moment later Markwart blinked open his physical eyes. His room was as he had left it; even the candles had not burned down noticeably. But before Markwart could ponder the miracle of this spiritual communica-tion, he had the feeling something was out of place. Slowly he scanned the room. Nothing seemed different, but Markwart sensed something had changed, that someone, perhaps, had entered the room.
Yes, that was it. Someone had entered the room, had witnessed him at his work. Markwart leaped to his feet and rushed into his office.
This room, too, seemed unchanged, but Markwart again sensed that another person had recently been here, as if the intruder had left behind some detectable aura.
Markwart went into his bedroom next, and in the doorway he felt it again. Even more astounding, the Father Abbot realized he could trace the intruder's very steps. The man had come through the office and to the bed-room door but then had turned and gone into the summoning room. It all seemed remarkably clear to him. . . . Perhaps his work with the hematite had allowed him to leave behind enough of his awareness that he could reg-ister the events about his corporeal form.
Markwart nodded, thinking he had the puzzle figured out.. . and he also had a fairly good idea of who the intruder was.
Back at the Fellowship Way, Belster remarked to Pony and Dainsey, "He had them on their knees. They're needing something to believe in. Our new Bishop knows that."
"And will try to take advantage of the situation," Pony added.
"Pity the Behrenese then," Dainsey said with a snort. "If the Behrenese are deservin' of any pity!" The woman started to laugh, but she saw that her attempt at humor wasn't appreciated.
"That is exactly the attitude Bishop De'Unnero hopes for," Pony said to Belster, "and the attitude we must fear."
"Few of the Behrenese are well regarded in the city," Belster admitted. "They've got their own ways - strange ways, that make folk uncomfortable."
"Easy targets for a tyrant," Pony reasoned.
"What're ye sayin' then?" Dainsey wanted to know. "Now I've never been fond o' churchmen, especially since they been takin' me in for their questions of late, but the man's the Bishop, put there by the King and the Church."
"Two marks against him," Pony said dryly.
"And what're ye thinkin' ye might do?" Dainsey asked. When Pony looked at Belster, it was obvious to her that he was thinking much the same as Dainsey.
"We have to use De'Unnero's own actions against him," Pony explained, improvising as she went along. Her mind was whirling - she knew she had to take some action against the Bishop, had to try something to stop him from securing his hold over Palmaris. But what? "We have to let the people of Palmaris know, Belster," she decided.
"Know what?" the innkeeper asked skeptically. "The Bishop explained everything he means to do."
"We have to make them know the reasons for these acts," Pony declared. "De'Unnero is not concerned for the people - not in this life or in any that might follow. His goal, the goal of his Church, is power, and nothing more."
"Strong words," Belster replied. "And I am not disagreeing with you."
"You have an extensive web of informants already in place," Pony rea-soned. "We can use them to keep people together . . . and keep them informed about the actions of Bishop De'Unnero."
"Are you looking for a fight, then?" Belster asked bluntly. "Do you think that you might create a riot in Palmaris that will sweep away De'Unnero and all the Church - and all the soldiers?"
The question set Pony back. That was exactly the thing she was now fan-tasizing about, but when it was spoken so openly, she realized just how des-perate, even ridiculous, it sounded.
"I've a network, indeed," Belster went on, "for protection - hiding folks who have fallen into trouble - for helping to keep your own identity secret. Not one for fighting a war!"
"Ye'll not do that," Dainsey added. "Oh, I've wanted to kick them damned monks all the way across the Masur Delaval, but if ye raise an army o' peasants, ye'll soon enough have an army o' dead peasants."
Belster put his hand on Dainsey's shoulder and nodded grimly. "A tall order, going against St. Precious and Chasewind Manor," he said.
"Not taller than the odds we faced in Caer Tinella," Pony replied, and a grin spread over Belster's face.
"We can at least act as a voice for the common folk," Pony went on. "We can whisper the truth, and if they hear it often enough, and measure our words against De'Unnero's actions, perhaps they will come to understand."
"And then they'll be as miserable as ye make yerself," Dainsey argued, "and with nothin' they can do about it."
Pony looked at her long and hard, then stared at Belster.
"I have some friends," the innkeeper explained, "and they have many more friends. Perhaps we might arrange a meeting or two and voice our concerns."
Pony nodded. She was hoping for a bit more fire from her two closest companions in Palmaris, but she realized she would have to be satisfied with that.
She went back to her own room to rest before the evening crowd began to gather.
Dainsey's words followed her to her bed. The woman's attitude might be more pragmatic than pessimistic, Pony had to admit, and that thought distressed her greatly. She wanted to fight De'Unnero, wanted to expose the Church for the evil institution it had become, but she could not deny the danger to herself and to any who allied themselves with her. Suppose she did raise the common folk, had them shaking their fists in the air defiantly and marching boldly against the abbey and the manor house . . .
That stirring image was erased when she envisioned the trained, well- equipped army that would confront them, an army reinforced by magical gemstones - and St. Precious, no doubt, had a fair supply of those.
How many thousands would die in the streets before the first morning of the insurrection was at its end?
Pony slumped in her bed, overwhelmed, and she reminded herself she had to move slowly. Whatever happened, she decided, she would find a way to do battle against wicked De'Unnero.
Brother Francis knelt on the floor in the corner of his room, facing the wall. His face was in his hands, a sign of humble submission to God - one not often used in the modern-day Abellican Church. But now the brother felt every gesture was important, as if somehow giving himself fully to his prayers would bring an end to the confusion that tore at him.
Of late, Francis had almost managed to forget the death of Grady Chilichunk. Francis believed his helping Braumin Herde and the others escape from St.-Mere-Abelle somehow made up for that - at least in part. Now, though, the image of Grady, lying lifeless in the grave Francis had dug, was haunting him. He remembered Grady. He saw again blasted Mount Aida, Avelyn's arm protruding from the ground. And most vivid of all, he couldn't stop seeing Father Abbot Markwart sitting cross-legged beside a pentagram - a pentagram! - candles burning at every point and a wicked book,The Incantations Sorcerous, lyingopen on the floor beside him.
But as horrifying as that image was, Francis tried to hold on to it - both to try to make sense of it and to block the more frightening image of Grady, dead in the hole.
But Grady's lifeless face would not go away.
Francis's shoulders shuddered as he sobbed - more from the fear he was losing his mind than from guilt. Everything seemed wrong, upside down. Another image - Jojonah's torso bursting open from the heat of the pyre - flitted through his mind. The memories mixed together into a great jumble of agony.
Soon the image of Markwart sitting cross-legged drifted to one side and the other three to another: Avelyn and his friends against the Father Abbot. Francis now saw there could be no peace, no reconciliation, be-tween the two.
He sighed, then froze. He'd heard a slight rustle behind him. He held still concentrating, listening intently, terrified, for he knew who had entered.
A long moment passed. Francis suddenly feared he would be brutally slain.
"You are not at your appointed duties," came Markwart's voice, calm and pleasant.
Francis dared to turn and lift his face from his hands to regard the man.
"Your duties?" Markwart reminded.
"I ..." Francis started, but he surrendered at once, unable even to remember where he was supposed to be.
"You are troubled obviously," Markwart remarked, walking into the room and closing the door. He sat on Francis' bed and stared at Francis, his face a mask of peace.
"I ... I only felt the need to pray, Father Abbot," Francis lied, pulling himself up from the floor.
Markwart, calm and serene, continued to stare at him, hardly blinking - too much at peace. The hairs on the back of Francis' neck stood up. "My duties are covered by others," Francis assured the Father Abbot and started for the door. "But I will return to them at once."
"Be calm, brother," said Markwart, reaching out to grab his arm as he passed. Francis instinctively started to jerk away, but Markwart's grip was like iron and held him fast.
"Be calm," the Father Abbot said again. "Of course you are fearful, as am I, as should be any good Abellican in these troubling times." Markwart smiled and guided Francis to the bed, forcing him to sit down. "Troubling, yes," Markwart went on. He stood up, moving between Francis and the door. "But with a promise not seen by our Order in centuries."
"You speak of Palmaris," Francis said, trying to remain calm though he wanted to run out of the room screaming - maybe all the way to the sea wall, maybe over the sea wall!
"Palmaris is but an experiment," Markwart replied, "a beginning. I was just conversing with Abbot Je'howith ..." His tone was leading, as was his gesture - his arm pointing toward the hallways and especially to his room.
Francis thought he had not changed his expression, but he saw from Markwart's eyes that he had betrayed himself. "I did not mean to enter your chambers unbidden," Francis admitted, lowering his gaze. "I knew that you were there, and yet you did not answer my call. I feared for you."
"Your concern is touching, my young friend, my protege," Markwart said. Francis looked up at him curiously.
"Ah, you fear De'Unnero has replaced you as my closest adviser," Mark-wart said.
Francis knew the Father Abbot was diverting the conversation, knew that the words were ridiculous. Still, he found that he could not ignore them, and he hung on the Father Abbot's every word as Markwart continued.
"De'Unnero - Bishop De'Unnero - is a useful tool," Markwart admitted. "And with his energy and dominating spirit, he is the right man for the experiment in Palmaris. But he is limited by ambition, for all of his goals are personal. You and I think differently, my friend. We see the larger picture of the world and the greater glories in store for our Church."
"It was I who told Brother Braumin and the others to leave," Francis blurted out.
"I know," Markwart replied.
"I only feared ..." Francis began.
"I know," Markwart said again with conviction.
"Another execution would have left a foul taste with many in the Order," Francis tried to explain.
"Brother Francis included," said Markwart, stopping the younger monk cold. Francis slumped, unable to deny the charge.
"And with Father Abbot Markwart as well," the old man said, taking a seat next to Francis. "I do not enjoy that which fate has thrust upon me."
Francis looked up suddenly, surprised.
"Because of the times, the awakening of the demon, the great war, and now the opportunity that has been laid before us, I am forced to explore everything about our Order, the very meaning of the Church. Even the dark side, my young friend," he added, shivering. "I have brought minor demons into my chambers to learn from them, to be certain that Bestesbulzibar is truly banished."
"I - I saw the book," Francis admitted.
"The book Jojonah meant to use for ill," Markwart went on, seemingly unconcerned that Francis had seen him. "Yes, a most wicked tome, and happy I will be on the day that I can once more relegate it to the darkest corner of our lowest library. Better for all if I just destroyed it outright."
"Then why not?"
"You know the precepts of our Order," Markwart reminded him. "All but a single copy of a book may be destroyed, but it is our duty, as pro-tectors of knowledge, to keep one copy. Fear not, for soon enough the wicked tome will be back in its place, to remain unused for centuries to come."
"I do not understand, Father Abbot," Francis dared to say. "Why must you keep it? What might you possibly learn?"
"More than you would believe," Markwart replied with a great sigh. "I have come to suspect that the awakening demon was no accident of fate, but an event brought about by one within St.-Mere-Abelle. Jojonah, pos-sibly with Avelyn, tampered with this tome secretly. He - or they - may have gone places, perhaps accidentally, where they should not have ventured, and may have awakened a creature better left dormant."
The words hit Francis hard, left him gasping. The dactyl demon awak-ened by the actions of a monk in St.-Mere-Abelle?
"It is possible that Avelyn and Jojonah were not as evil as I believed," Markwart went on. "It is possible that they began with good intentions - as we earlier discussed, the basis of humanism is good intent - but that they were corrupted, or at the very least, horribly fooled, by that which they encountered.
"No matter," the Father Abbot added, patting Francis on the leg and standing. "Whatever the cause, they are responsible for their actions, and both met an appropriate end. Do not misunderstand me. I may feel com-passion for our lost brothers, but I do not grieve over their deaths, nor do I forgive their foolish pride."
"And what of Brother Braumin and the others?"
Markwart snorted. "All the kingdom is ours to take," he said. "I care nothing for them. They are lost lambs, wandering until they meet a hungry wolf. Perhaps I will be that wolf, perhaps Bishop De'Unnero, or, more likely, perhaps another unrelated to the Church. I care not. My eyes are toward Palmaris. And so should be yours, Brother Francis. I expect that I will be journeying there, and you will accompany me." He went to the door, but before he left he threw out one last tantalizing tidbit. "My entourage will be small, including but one master, and that man will be you." Markwart left.
Francis spent a long time sitting on the bed, trying to digest all he had heard. He replayed Markwart's words, seeing them as an explanation for the evil tome and the pentagram. Those horrid images swirled about him, but now the one of Markwart did not seem so troubling. It struck Francis that the Father Abbot was incredibly brave and stoic, accepting these bur-dens for the greater good of the Church, and, thus, of all the world. Yes, this battle was a wretched thing - and put in that context, Francis found it much easier to forgive himself for Grady. The fight was a necessary one, and when theologians and historians looked back at this pivotal time, they would recognize that, for all the painful personal tragedies, the world emerged a better and holier place.
Francis found his perspective again.
"Master Francis?" he asked aloud, hardly daring to speak it openly.
Father Abbot Markwart was pleased with himself when he returned to his room. The truth of real power, he understood, was not a measure of destruction, but of control.
And how easy it had been for him to play on Francis' weakness. On the guilt and the fears, on the flickering speck of compassion and the desperate ambition.
So easy.