They filed into the King's Council's chamber and seated themselves around the heavy oak table: King Jonathan and Queen Thayet, the King frowning heavily; Shinko, pale-faced and twisting her fan nervously in her hands (Kel could tell she was resisting the very Yamani urge to hide her face behind it); either side of her, Prince Roald, concernedly gazing at his wife, and Yuki, worry removing all trace of her usual sparkle. Next to Yuki sat Neal, whose thoughtful frown told Kel that he was quickly reaching conclusions about what had just happened that she was sure would lead to him confronting her later. She felt a stab of guilt in her stomach - of all people, Neal would be upset that she hadn't told him about the dream of the Chamber, particularly after their shared experiences at Rathaussak. She couldn't have told him, though, without Yuki finding out - and Yuki was incapable of hiding anything from Shinko.
On the other side of the Queen sat Alanna, the Yamani mage, Raoul, and finally, between Raoul and Neal, Kel herself. Kel looked down at the table. She wasn't sure she could trust herself to maintain her mask if she looked at either Raoul or Neal right now. The King coughed. "This was not quite how I anticipated the tournament ending," he said seriously. "I would very much appreciate an explanation as to what just happened."
Sato calmly straightened the front of her silk tunic, and stood noiselessly. Kel glanced up at her. The mage's face was expressionless - even Kel, used to reading the tiny hints of emotion in Yamani faces, could not discern what she might be thinking.
"I had been aware for some days of some odd magic around the Princess," she began, and Kel hastily ensured her own face was as emotionless as the mage's. I was right, she thought. Just… also wrong.
Sato told the silently listening circle how she had noticed Shinko's blank moments, and seen hints of some strange magic around her. "I was not, however, sure if it was Tortallan in origin," she said.
Ronald frowned, and leaned forward. "You mean, you thought that perhaps one of our mages had bespelled Shinko?" he asked, mildly.
Sato's face did not change. "I have not…" her tone shifted, a note of discomfort entering her voice. "I have not made much study of mage-work outside of our own in the Yamani Islands," she admitted. "Until my Emperor commanded me here, in the name of strengthening the treaty between our two nations with an exchange of scholarship, I had resolved to dedicate myself solely to Yamani traditions."
Well, that explains that, then, Kel thought. Her memories of Sato had been correct - but an order from the Yamani Emperor was absolute.
"I hastily made a study of your language and customs," Sato continued. Kel saw Alanna glance at Raoul with a raised eyebrow, and wondered herself what the mage could achieve with something she had not just 'hastily' studied.
"After your Highness's gracious welcome here, I have nevertheless begun to realize just how advanced your own mages' knowledge and skills are," she continued, bowing to King Jonathan. "Particularly, I have enjoyed working with Numair Salmalín. As a result of our discussions, I realized yesterday that the magic surrounding Princess Shinkokami was not of Tortallan origin. Nor," she looked firmly at Prince Roald. "Nor is it Yamani. Beyond that, I have yet to ascertain, since I did not have an opportunity to directly examine the Princess."
Kel barely noticed that the silence in the room had been broken by that revelation. Her head was spinning. Before she had time to get her thoughts in order, however, she heard her name.
"Lady Knight Keladry was also aware that Princess Shinkokami was under a spell," Sato said. Suddenly, all eyes were on Kel.
"Lady Knight?" the King said, his tone demanding a response.
Kel got to her feet, feeling Neal's disappointed eyes boring into her, along with the concerned and confused gazes of her other friends. "I didn't know for sure until today, either," she said, wincing at the way it sounded like an excuse. She took a deep breath and let her eyes rest on Shinko, whose expression, despite the shock she had experienced, seemed more encouraging than the rest. "The night before the Opening Ball, I had a dream," she explained. "I dreamt that I went into the Chamber of Ordeal, and that it showed me a vision - a vision of Shinko, and of the ruin of Tortall." She looked away from Shinko, and found a blank patch of wall to stare at instead. She couldn't bring herself to look at any of her friends while thinking about what she'd seen. It still felt too vivid, and horrific.
She took another breath and continued, blocking out the audible gasps of her listeners. "I thought it was just a dream, but it didn't fade away like dreams usually do. I tried to forget it, but then I kept noticing that Shinko had moments where she seemed… off, somehow. Like she wasn't there."
"As Sato described," King Jonathan said, looking for confirmation. "And as we saw today."
Kel nodded. "Yes, but not as bad as today. At first, it was just like she was thinking deeply about something and ignoring everyone - except it was in the middle of a conversation, and I know Shinko. It's not like you," she added, giving her friend a small smile. "Anyway, after seeing her do that once or twice, I began to wonder if it wasn't just a dream - if maybe the Chamber was warning me about something. But I couldn't go and ask it, because the Ordeals were taking place every night."
The King frowned again. So did Neal, who also looked quite hurt. Kel knew his frown was for quite a different reason to the King, and felt again a pang of guilt for not telling him.
"Ask the Chamber?" Jonathan asked, his tone losing its earlier patience. "What do you mean?"
Kel sighed. You have no choice now, she told herself, although her inner voice sounded suspiciously like that of the Chamber. She half-wondered if it had intended things to play out like this all along, some strange game of its own that she was just a pawn in. Folding her hands behind her back, she explained, as briefly as she was able, the full story behind the death of Blayce the Gallan and her rescue of the children of Haven. Although her original report had explained that the Chamber had shown her Blayce and Stenmun before hand, and given her a quest, for some reason nobody had ever asked her about it. She had always wondered if something had somehow prevented others from noticing that part, or remembering it - perhaps the Chamber itself. Now it had to come out anyway.
She could practically feel the questions in the air, and knew that, at the very least, she was going to have to explain herself to Neal and Raoul after this, and probably to Roald, Shinko, and Yuki as well. The only person who didn't look confused (or angry) was Alanna, who if anything looked smug, although Kel couldn't for the life of her imagine why.
"So the Chamber has given you a quest before," the King asked slowly, his eyes narrow. "And you chose not to mention this!"
Kel sighed. "It was in my report after Rathaussak," she said, as calmly as she was able. "But when no-one ever commented on it or mentioned it again, I couldn't help but wonder if the Chamber was somehow able to affect whether or not people knew about that part. I thought perhaps it didn't want anyone to know it had sent me."
The King looked incredibly troubled, but before he could say anything else, Sato broke in, bowing deeply. "If I may, your Highness?" she said politely. The King nodded, mutely, clearly still trying to process all he had heard without exploding.
"I would still like to discover what magic, exactly, is affecting the Princess," she said. "And quickly, if whatever has been done to her will also spread to all of Tortall, as the Lady Knight's vision implies. Therefore, I have two suggestions." King Jonathan nodded again for her to continue. "Firstly, I would like to work with Numair Salmalín and Princess Shinkokami, to both discover who is behind this, and protect her from any further effects. Secondly, I would suggest that Your Highness and Lady Knight Keladry, perhaps along with others in this room, go and talk to this Chamber, to discover what it has to say."
All those in the room who had been through the Ordeal of Knighthood paled at the suggestion, even Kel. Usually, a knight had only two interactions with the Chamber: once as a squire, touching the door, and again at their Ordeal. Only Kel had been foolish enough to touch the door more than once; only Kel had gone back inside the Chamber a second time. It wasn't the thought of going back inside that made her pale - it was the thought of seeing the vision she had been shown for a second time, and of anyone else being forced to see it.
The King stood. "Very well." He called in a servant. "Fetch Numair here - tell him it's urgent." He looked at Sato, eyes serious. "I hope you can work quickly to protect the Princess - and the realm. I thank you for your efforts so far."
"I'll stay here with Shinko and the mages," Thayet offered.
"I will also stay," Yuki added.
"Thank you," Shinko said softly, her face now Yamani-calm, but her tone belying her remaining fear.
Jonathan turned back to Kel. "You and I will enter the Chamber, and see what it has to say. It is fortunate that there is never an Ordeal on Midwinter's Day itself."
Roald stood up. "I'll come too," he said. "If this concerns the safety of both my wife, and Tortall, then I cannot sit by and wait for answers from others."
The King looked, for a moment, as if he wanted to say no, but then nodded.
In the end, Kel, King Jonathan, Prince Roald, Raoul, Neal, and Alanna all entered the Chapel that held the door to the Chamber of Ordeal. The latter three, they had agreed, would stand guard outside while Kel, the King, and Roald entered the Chamber - ostensibly to prevent anybody interfering while they were inside, although each knew that for all they knew, it was also possible something could come out.
Somehow, it was worse, seeing the vision inside the real Chamber rather than a dream version. If Kel had still been trying to convince herself it was just a dream, this was the final nail in the coffin of that idea. As they exited the Chamber, she had to breathe deeply to prevent her breakfast from making an unwelcome return, and the pale faces of the others told her they felt much the same.
"There is a magical threat to Tortall," the King told Raoul, Neal, and Alanna. He looked at Kel. "Was that what you saw in your dream?"
Kel nodded. "Yes, sir," she said, wishing it were not true.
"Gods," Jonathan said softly.