Disappearing Act

Chapter 5

With the man called Picard safely planted on the periphery of the grounds, Jili alternately crept and sprinted until gaining a foothold on a darkened side wall. Roving guards with torches were little problem, since she went into stealth at their approach. She benefited from a working knowledge of the vast temple's layout, courtesy of drugged Inquestor priests she'd waylaid days before. When the coast was clear, she used the magic cord to pull herself up to a barred window. An acid vial from her belt made a clean path for entry. She carefully set the bar back in place and dropped into the corridor.

Patrolling sentries weren't smart enough to keep quiet; Jili heard their converse well in advance. Once, she was caught in a long hallway with nowhere to hide except a table. She crouched beside it and collapsed into stealth magic. A table was of no interest to the guards, and so they failed to take a close look. Then she ran silently for the next level, here being caught again in the open. This time, she shot the cord upward and reeled herself up to the ceiling, another place of little notice to passing guards, especially when the intruder was practically invisible. Little by little she homed in on the target upstairs. Her plan was much more than a hit; she was going to make the target disappear, sending a clear message to the Green Tips. Even they couldn't pull off such a feat.

Frustration mounted as she passed cells where village soothsayers and healers were being ripped of their magic talents. Nothing must announce her presence here. The moment arrived when she attained the fourth level of the complex. A problem presented: a pair of pages stood on duty outside the Grand Inquestor's chambers. She decided on a distraction rather than stunning them, since that would be clear evidence of an intruder. This must be a total mystery.

From her cloak she withdrew a dead rat. One of her most useful talents was necromancy, and she was now accomplished enough to bring back humans. But the rat would do fine. She cast the spell and set it loose, commanded to gallop down the banner-lined hall. The pages gave chase; if such a critter got into the master's chamber, they'd suffer the consequence. Jili had brought the rat back to life as an ordinary type, rather than endow it with talents like fire-spitting and fangs.

She dashed into the outer chambers, relieved to find no servants present at this late hour. She'd timed it to be close to the master's usual bedtime. Slipping through the velvet curtains to his work study, she took time to evaluate for traps. Her fingers closed on a special needle from a belt vial. It contained one of her special recipes, passthrough, which had a most useful, fatal, and ongoing effect. The formula was painstaking. She had made the current batch in her tower pad down in Sewer Town. It entailed mixing black water, found only in temples dedicated to dark gods, with dried vampire blood. It had to be cured beneath a gravestone for two weeks and harvested under a full moon. The result was a dark red liquid she drew into needles by capillary action.

A sudden dash to the Inquestor's desk delivered the sting to his neck. The green-robed priest, bald like all Fringians, jumped up with a hand back there, eyes bulging. So fast did the poison work that he wasn't able to cry out. His skin rapidly became gray, which wouldn't be a problem in the poor light outside if anyone saw him. He went slack-jawed and waited.

"Come with me," Jili instructed. She led him to the window and opened it. Another sentry was close to the exit point, prompting her to withdraw a dead bat. This one, once reanimated, was ordered to attack the guard and drive him off. Again, there would be no evidence of an intruder. The guard obliged under the demonic assault, running away and calling for help. "Quickly," she ordered the Inquestor. She took hold of him and eased out the window, using her magic cord to lower them down to ground level. Quickly she pushed him around a corner into the shadows. As luck would have it, another roaming sentry approached out of the darkness.

"Holiness," said the surprised man.

Jili had given the priest instructions. He spoke in a mechanical voice. "I am taking a short walk. Go about your duties."

The guard bowed, and went in another direction, not seeing Jili in the darkness.

A last hurdle lay ahead: an iron fence close to the shore. No guards were down here, since they kept watch on the sea from towers. Jili was obliged to pull her charge over it with the cord, then descend to the sandy beach area. They walked to where the sea lapped at the shoreline. "Walk," she said, "and keep going until you reach the frozen southern wastes." He walked into the sea and slowly became submerged. He'd never reach his destination, as a combination of decay and deep-sea predators would do their work. Now it was time to rejoin Picard at the northern boundary.

Outskirts of the Royal District

Picard hadn't counted on Jili's decision not to be seen during the return to the Montfort. He had talked her into taking him there so he could brief Admiral Janeway on events of the evening. Whenever he was stopped by a patrol of the King's Guard, he presented the credentials drawn up earlier by Sisra, the administrator of Montfort Abbey. Jili lurked somewhere nearby in case there was a problem, but Picard's story about being waylaid by bandits earned him the guards' sympathy. A detachment even escorted him to the commercial district where the abbey was located.

At the tall iron gates of Montfort, Picard presented his credentials again, and was admitted downhill to the sprawling complex. A guard led him to the service wing on the left, where was found the kitchen, laundry, and office centers. He waited in the grand foyer with its armor suits and pennants while Admiral Janeway was sent for. The smiling Janeway remarked on how cold and miserable he looked before taking him to the dining area for tea and a late meal.

Maids attended them at a long table draped in white, close to where wall stairs led up to servant and visitor rooms. Janeway had starved herself of coffee from her magic cup for the occasion, relishing it as Picard savored his tea. She looked past him through the tall windows into a lighted courtyard where deliveries were made. A few supplicants gathered around barrel fires, hopeful of finding work.

Picard had informed her of the mission's success. "Now it's up to the Green Tips. Their fury will know no limits. Jili will certainly be their next target. After the incredible feat she's pulled off, they'll be driven to duplicate it by killing the world's premier assassin."

"Are we confident she can prevail?" Janeway asked. She took a bite of cheese crumpet. "Everything depends on it. With Jili gone, the Inquest will begin targeting all who use magic. Like Sisra."

"Where is Sisra at the moment?" Picard tried not to let his worry show.

"Supervising a late tour of the maze. She convinced the council to authorize escorted visitor jaunts down to sub-level two. It's a risk, since any fatalities there will add fuel to the fire of Inquest demands to shut down the magic school."

Picard cradled the hot mug in hands just beginning to warm up again. "Then it's a waiting game. I wanted to ask Jili what her plan was. Obviously she'll let the Green Tips come to her, but I have a feeling she's going to choose the battlefield." He took out his communicator. "I wonder if she'd agree to using yours? I could observe from a distance, give her reports."

"I'm sure the enemy will anticipate that," Janeway said. "He'll spot you, and you know what that means."

"Right." Picard welcomed a cozy bed, but doubted he could sleep.