Author's Note: Hello again! I'm now going to satisfy my hungry readers and make this chapter unbearably long. Hahaha Hahaha hahahahahahaha. That is what you get for pushing me. Now you must bear my wrath.
Enjoy.

Veil of light

Chapter Eight: The Spymaster

Calminen was standing next to me when I went into the trance; he was the first, therefore, to notice something was wrong with me. "Kelly, Kelly are you all right? Hello do you hear me? Answer me!!!" I think it was this last desperate cry that shook me out of my dormant state.

I gazed around blinking in the light and wondering why everyone was looking at me as if I had turned green. "What? Do I have something on my face?" I asked, inviting everyone to lighten up.

That didn't work; they all had still had that same serious contemplating looks on their faces. Aly looked the most relaxed but I could tell her mind was working like mad under that calm interior. For in fact Kyprionth was personally telling her every little detail of my vision. Later, she told me, when he told her that this vision wasn't given to me from himself, but was from a power that was all my own, she hadn't believed him in the slightest.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I was in the hospice again. Under the 'oh so tender' care of Ochobu, trying to discover what I had done to deserve the care of this monstrosity. I suppose you think me unkind to think this. Well I don't see you in this hospital bed listening non-stop to cracks about my heritage.

"If it had been my granddaughter with that vision she wouldn't have fainted!" That was her favorite one. I heard it about 15 times over the course of an hour. It wouldn't have been so bad if I had gotten visitors once in a while, but even that pleasure was denied me. They said it was so I could recover my strength, but I think they were using slow torture to get information out of me. For I had flat out refused to tell the details of my vision to even Kyprionth.

I think my silence made everyone mistrust me. Everyone but Aly it seemed was determined to cast me out. Even Aly would have cast me out if it hadn't been for my skills in the necessary areas.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Once I got out of the hospice Aly asked me to come to come to the stables where her meetings were kept. I was uncertain about the purpose of this meeting.

When I arrived, I arrived to be greeted by the whole group. They were waiting for me all with serious looks on her face. "Who died?" I asked jokingly

"This is serious Kelly. It concerns your future here."

'Great,' I thought 'just what I need, a talk about my future. I thought I escaped all this when I left my own world.' But what I said out loud was considerably more casual. "Okay shoot."

"I have been thinking of how you can best help our cause. And we have come to the decision that we are in need of a spymaster. You know, some one to keep track of all the information coming in, and on occasion go on missions to operatives and such. I know this is a big step but I feel you will do well." This proposition startled me. I thought hard on if I was going to except.

In the end the lure of adventure and excitement won out over caution. "I'll do it."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

For the next two weeks I got acquainted with all our spies. It is amazing how many people it takes to run an operation like ours. I met a woman who was a servant in the palace. I talked with slaves all over the place.

It was on a trip to meet an operative that I stumbled on something that changed everything.

I was traveling to the capitol with Calminen for protection. Aly wanted me to get into contact with a servant of a highborn lord that was feeding us info about what the lords in the capitol were talking about.

"Are you sure this is the way to the safe house?" I asked Calminen when I felt it was taking to long. I had refrained from asking the time- honored question, 'Are we there yet?' for way to long.

"Yes, I'm positive. I have taken this same route many times before. I would appreciate it if you stayed down so no one would see you." He sounded annoyed so I complied. But I couldn't resist one more jibe.

"Are we here yet?" I said as I dodged a weak punch to my arm, and dove out of sight.

Over the weeks Calminen and I had become good friends. He had appointed himself personal bodyguard over me, and I provided the laughs. Someone had to do it right.

"Wake up Kelly, we're here." he said even though he knew I wasn't sleeping. It was the signal for stay down it's not safe yet.

"What's going on Calminen? I thought this was a safe house."

"It is, or was. Looks like they found it. We got to get out of here. Stay in the wagon and get word to Kyprionth. Tell we need to know where Aly wants us to go next."

"Okay, give me a sec." 'Kyprionth are you there?' I asked my silent benefactor.

'Yes I'm here are you enjoying yourself at the moment?'

'You know full well that I am not. I need you to ask Aly what we are to do next. Tell her what has happened here. She will wont to know that the spy is nowhere to be found. So she was either found or got out before it happened.'

'I will tell her this. You two kids have fun.' Then his presence disappeared and I settled back to wait for a reply.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Aly was sleeping when my message arrived. So the god just went straight into her dreams.

'Aly I've got news.'

'Is nothing sacred anymore? When anyone with a wisp of talent can invade my very dreams. What is this message?'

'So sorry about the interruption, but Kelly said it was important. The safe house in the capitol has been discovered and the spy was either found or had already fled. She wants to know if you have anything else for her to do while she is there.'

'Yes tell her to see if she can establish a look out in the castle. It is about time for us to have a look out in the heart of the enemy. Tell her I know it will be tricky, but I have faith in her abilities.'

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

'Okay Kyprionth thank you.' I said after he gave me Aly's message.

"So what did she say Kelly? Are we going home or not?"

"Not even close. We are somehow going to penetrate the castles thick outer shell. Go in, and establish an operator and get out undetected. But don't worry Aly has faith in my abilities. I'm sure we will be fine." I said this all with such a straight face that if it wasn't such a grave matter Calminen would have cracked up laughing.

"Oh so that is all. I was thinking from the look on your face, I thought that we were going grocery shopping. You needed some excitement in your life and you know it." Calminen always did have such a carefree attitude, Even if I felt this mission would be the end of us.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Note: So how you like them apples. Oh yeah over 1,000 words. Is that long enough for you cretins. R/R!!