Rigel 2

[Wil Savage]

“Is this some kind of damned joke!” the gruff voice of General Morningstar came across all too loud and clear. “What the bloody hell is going on here?”

“General Morningstar. Sir. This is Colonel Savage reporting in.”

“Savage is dead. Who the hell is this!”

“I’m not quite dead, sir.”

“Damn you, Savage! You survived that transport explosion? How the hell did. . .” There was a brief moment of silence. “Savage, you have our ship, don’t you.”

“Actually, sir, I’m sitting in it now. I’m ready to return it to you, in new condition and fully checked out.”

“I KNEW IT! Damn you, Savage. Only you would survive something like that. Savage, it’s been months. What the f*** have you been doing!”

Savage couldn’t tell if the general was happy or furious, but he knew it was best not to lie. The I.I.S.C. had ways to get the truth out of a person.

“I’ve taken some time to contemplate my options, sir.”

“Savage, you’re an I.I.S.C. agent. You have no options. Do you have any idea how much time and expense went into searching for any remains of that ship so that it wouldn’t fall into the wrong hands? Do you what we’ve gone through to try to get a replacement built quickly? All while YOU are contemplating your options!”

“I think I have a pretty good idea, sir.” The lack of concern for his own welfare didn’t go unnoticed. Savage knew he was expendable. The ship wasn’t.

“Savage, you are hereby ordered to return that ship to Headquarters in the most expeditious way possible. You’re to turn yourself into Security for a complete debriefing.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that, sir.”

“WHAT!!”

Wil was sure they could have heard that response all the way down on Rigel. He could just picture the general turning a beet red with anger. “I can’t return this ship without first having an agreement on another matter.”

“Where are you, Savage? And what is this other matter?”

“I can’t reveal my location, but here’s the matter that needs immediate I.I.S.C. attention. Please pay close attention.”

Wil explained the situation on Rigel and what was being negotiated with Prince Sheldon and the Baron Stefano. He went into detail about the deal with the Hyperspace Trade Station in the Rigelian star system in order to avoid a possibly dangerous alliance between planets through the marriage of the Marchioness and the Prince of Volans. He also spoke of Drachen Walde Industries and the unique opportunity that the I.I.S.C. had in possibly obtaining a mutually beneficial weapons trade deal. Wil spoke of the protection he wanted for Azjah, and the termination of a politically dangerous regime on Volans. With such an agreement in place, Wil would return the prototype fighter to the I.I.S.C. General Lloyd Morningstar agreed and ordered Wil to remain wherever he was until further communication was established.

Savage ended the communication, shut down the ship's systems to a "sleep mode" and transported back to his room.

The knock on the door came before he had a chance to change out of the gray and black I.I.S.C. agent uniform. He turned to the door, "One second. I'm coming."

- - - -

At I.I.S.C. Headquarters, General Morningstar began to smile. He knew where Savage was thanks to the Emperor of Rigel. The general called in his assistant. "I have several agents on their way to Rigel. Inform them that they are to arrest Savage on sight and bring him back here."

[DUEL Azjah]

Azjah had finally given up waiting for Wil. It wasn’t like him to cloister himself away all day, even if she had kept him up most of the evening before. With a glance at the time, she made her way into her own suite, checked her appearance before heading toward Wil’s rooms. She paused just at the door and took a deep breath before knocking.

The sight that greeted her turned her blood cold. Wil was in uniform. She didn’t waste time on any preamble, “You have contacted them, haven’t you?”

Dread knotted in her stomach. She glanced around the halls behind her, “May I come in?” She toyed with the small spheres in her pocket as she stepped over the thresh hold and regarded Wil. “Our time is in trouble, isn’t it Wil? What did they say?”

She wanted to wrap her arms around him and never let go, but she was pragmatic enough to know that such would not solve what now lay ahead of them. He’d done it, he’d let them know he was alive, and that would change everything.

[Silent Sources]

Margit had completed her task of laying out how many steps between access points, and she was actually rather pleased with her report for The Merchant. She rolled up the paper and prepared to head back to her own rooms when she realized where she had finished up her account. She was at the Master Suite panel. The rooms that she hadn’t been able to gain any information on during several attempts in the past and the place where The Merchant’s target was residing.

Margit wasn’t well educated, but she could put two and two together. All these questions about this Colonel from someone like The Merchant meant that the man was likely going to wind up vanishing, or dead. She didn’t know why, but it didn’t really matter. She didn’t know the fellow, so that would make it easier for her. Besides, she wasn’t doing the actual deed.

She sat there a moment ponder whether she should attempt entry again. She slowly leaned against the panel and listened. There was nothing that she could discern through the panel. No hint of sound reached her ears. She tried the panel’s release mechanism, but it seemed that the Colonel had kept his locks in place. She frowned, but abruptly went very still. Someone was knocking on a door, and she distinctly heard a male’s voice say, “One second, I’m coming.”

Her heart pounded, had he heard her trying the locks? She worked to slow her breathing so she could listen to what was being said. The woman’s voice sounded like the Marchioness, but her voice was soft enough that she couldn’t tell for sure. It sounded like she was upset, that the Colonel had contacted someone. “What did they say?” Her question was one of deep concern.

She continued to listen; her new employer would be very interested in this news!

[Silent Sources]

Stefano remained very displeased about his Imperial gift, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. But what he had managed to do was bribe one of the servants who was assigned to Sheldon. She had been more than willing to feed back anything she could glean while she was in those rooms about the Prince’s activities and contacts. She’d fairly squealed with delight when he’d dangled the ear rings in front of her.

His magpie was avaricious enough to promise to spend a little extra time with the Prince’s man servant as well. He smiled. He might actually be able to garner some favor from the Colonel.

Dinner would be in an hour, and he set about dressing for another too formal affair.

[Silent Sources]

Dominik lay deep within the Triberg Haus basements. The suns were making their inexorable way westward across the skies, but it was much too soon for him to waken. But waken he did.

Metallic green eyes snapped open before his heart began to beat, but as the first thud of his heart began to pump blood, he lifted the soil off of him. The servant that he had drunk from was still in the hidden passages of the Haus, but her excitement level had reached through his rest to waken him hours before he should have risen.

Dominik moved then as mist through the house. The twin Rigelian suns causing him stabbing pain, but he needed to find the woman. Without a blood tie to the Marchioness, he could only garner slight hints to what she felt. She was very good at keeping a leash on her emotions, which made his job harder. But what he was getting from the servant was clear, and she was eagerly absorbing every word spoken by the Marchioness.

He found her sitting glued to the panel that opened into the master suite. He gave a snarl as he shifted into human form and grabbed the girl by the throat, “What are you doing here?” He knew, but he wondered if she would own up to her actions, or make up some lie thinking he had no way of knowing.

Margit’s scream was strangled off as Dominik shut down her breathing passages. “Do not lie to me girl.” His countenance was harder than anything Margit had ever seen. She couldn’t breathe and she couldn’t scream. She could feel her life slipping into the void of blackness.

Dominik let her hang on the edge of unconsciousness before easing his strangle hold on her throat, he hissed softly, “Speak quickly before I change my mind about letting you live.”

Margit’s throat burned, and she whispered hoarsely, “I was making a map for myself so I don’t get lost in here, and I heard voices.”

Dominik’s fingers tightened painfully once more, “You lie.” He began dragging her away from the panel by her throat. He could read her terror as she realized that he was not playing with her, and that her life was probably forfeit.

[Silent Sources]

Lord Chancellor Denning made his way toward the Kaiser’s day office. The reply from the I.I.S.C. would not please his liege, but it must be delivered.

He paused before seeking admission to the royal presence.

Wolfgang glanced up from what ever he had been reading, “You have a reply from them?”

Denning nodded, “Yes Sire, though it is very short and very cryptic. It simply states that they are considering your request. I have taken the liberty of responding in an effort to garner further information, but I would not expect any reply before tomorrow at the earliest.”

Wolfgang frowned. “Put a shadow on the Colonel until we have a response. We do not want anything to happen to the man that might put Our future position at risk.”

Denning nodded and made his obeisance before departing. He contacted Notheissen immediately and conveyed the Kaiser’s requirement to the head of security at Triberg Haus. The security chief had relayed the events of the previous evening and Denning sat deeply into his chair to consider this news. The relationship between the Marchioness and the Colonel was more than it had initially seemed to be. She hadn’t the same expression in her features when the Kaiser had altered his promise from the Prince of Volans to a mere Colonel. Now things made more sense. This was information he would keep for himself for the moment.

Meanwhile, Fulco had already set two men as shadows for the Colonel. The man would have a very hard time eluding both of them.

[Silent Sources]

Sheldon lounged negligently in a chair on the balcony of his rooms. He’d worked his way through most of a bottle of cognac, but while that should have put him in a mellower frame of mind, it had in fact turned his mood dark and very ugly. Word had come earlier in the day that the largest exporter on Volans was shutting down all further shipments to the capital city and to the Prince himself for non-payment.

He snarled nastily, there was a time when he could have forced obedience on even the biggest of industries on Volans, but as it was now, he couldn’t actually force anyone to do anything for very long. And the fact of the matter was that the treasury was empty, and too many knew that fact. It was making the dogs bold and unruly. Without an infusion of fresh resources, he could quite possibly face a civil uprising like his great grandfather had faced, and been murdered by the populace for over 240 years ago. Revulsion shot through his head and he shuddered at the idea. “Damned serfs don’t have any idea what proper behavior is!”

He HAD to gain access to the woman’s fortune. He had to! That was the only salvation he had, and the only way to regain a strangle hold over those upstarts who’d begun to challenge his authority. Once he had money in the treasury again, he would make a strong example of the president of this particular exporter. He would have the man disemboweled in a public execution. No, better still, he would execute the man’s entire family in one grandiose display of power and terror. Execute his wife before his eyes, then his children one by one, and finally the man himself.

A slow smirk slithered across his features at the notion. Yes, some of the oldest methods of torture were the most satisfying. The screams of each one would remind the crowd, a crowd that he would force into attendance, just how painful disobedience could be. Drawing and quartering was too good for the dog who dared to deny his produce to Sheldon, but it was the best way to make the man linger before his death.

S’Djaar was a wraith as he kept the glass topped off. Not daring to let it become empty given the Prince’s current state of mind. He sported several new bruises that were beginning to show compliments of today’s dark mood. It wasn’t that he was not used to such things, but that pretty little maid seemed to have taken a shine to him, and he hated that she might see the evidence of his abuse. She actually seemed amenable to letting S’Djaar touch her, and that made him smile. At least he could attract a woman, unlike the Prince, who had developed a reputation that made his company one to be avoided. S’Djaar very carefully hid his pleasure. He did not want the Prince to take any further notice of him this day.

Sheldon reached for a communicator and spoke in a low voice that S’Djaar could barely hear, “Message to The Merchant, update on status required today.” He hit send on the message and tossed the device back onto the table beside him. There was no reason to play coy, The Merchant would know who needed the update.

Once The Merchant completed his task, all he needed to do was lay his claim once more to the Kaiser. With the man dead, there would be no station on Rigel, and nothing to prevent him from regaining control of Volans.

[Silent Sources]

Baumann had completed his review of the candidates when Fulco knocked on his door, “A moment if I may?”

The Major Domo motioned for Nothiessen to come in, and raised a brow as the security chief closed the door behind him. “You are filtering through applicants, but before you call any of them in, make sure you provide me the list of whom you are promoting to the next level of consideration.”

Baumann gazed steadily at Fulco, “You have already done a security background check on these candidates. Why?”

Fulco settled into a chair opposite Baumann, “I was ordered from the top to put a shadow on the Colonel.” He let that sink in. “Something is going on that has gained the highest attention, and I want a more detailed background check on those you think are the best candidates.”

Baumann frowned slightly, “Here is the list I was going to propose to the Marchioness. There is one candidate that I do not feel 100% comfortable about, but his qualifications are first rate.”

“Which position is he in consideration for filling?” Notheissen watched Baumann intently. If the Major Domo had an intuition about the man, it would bear looking into with much more detail.

“A replacement valet candidate, the top name on the list.” Baumann handed the list over to Fulco. “I’ll need these names cleared fairly quickly. We need that valet for the Colonel rather quickly.”

Fulco took the document and rose, pausing to hold Baumann’s eyes, “I want that sailing trip cancelled Baumann. I know you can talk Her Grace out of it.” With that said; he strode to the door and disappeared around the corner.

Baumann sighed. He had less faith in his ability to talk her out of that sailing trip than Notheissen did, but Fulco wouldn’t make that request without good reason, so he would give it his best effort. He had left her in the Library, so he rose and hoped to catch her still there.

He found the library doors open and the Marchioness gone. He glanced at the stairs, in all probability she’d gone up stairs, but he couldn’t be sure without checking on her electronically. He stepped into the library and with the touch of a couple of keys called up the Haus’ surveillance. He located her signal in the Master Suite. Well, he certainly was not about to follow her there. He’d wait for her to come down for dinner.

[Wil Savage]

Wil was glad to see that it was Azjah at his door and no one else. He wasn’t in the mood for the annoyance of servants. They were something that he put up with for Azjah’s sake, but too often they were either too stupid or too loyal – either quality usually resulting in death. The smile quickly ran away from his face when she mentioned his contacting the I.I.S.C. He motioned her into the room, closed the door and locked it.

“Yes and yes. I contacted them; and, our time very well may be in trouble.” He saw the worry in her expression and unfortunately, this time there were some very good grounds for it. Instead of responding to her immediately, he just said, “C’mere,” and took her into his arms and held her for a moment. If felt good and he wished he could make time stop. Since he couldn’t, he released her and stepped away to begin to remove his uniform. The black and gray military jacket that hugged his body and accented his wide shoulders and trim waist was taken off and placed over a chair.

“We don’t have much time, Azjah. I.I.S.C. headquarters isn’t exactly around the corner and I needed to get things in motion if we’re to have some good news to tell the ol’ emperor.” He removed his shirt and turned and looked at her. “There are a few things you need to know. I have my ship in Rigelian star space. It’s cloaked and ready should we need it. Demat technology probably has reached here, but I’d guess you know about it. I needed the ship’s advanced communications; the Digi-pad would work, but it’s slow when communicating over such distances.”

Wil sat on the bed and continued as he removed his boots and socks. “The head of the I.I.S.C. is General Lloyd Morningstar. He acted surprised to hear from me, but there was something in his voice that told me he was half expecting it. I didn’t tell him where I am, but from my special request, any fool could guess and Morningstar is no fool.” Savage stood up and walked over to Azjah. He touched her cheek and gave her a faint smile. “It will take about three days for them to get an agent here. They have to schedule with the Shipping Guild to arrange for the hyperspace travel, and not even the I.I.S.C. can get instant response. I think the Guild delays just to infuriate the I.I.S.C. and demonstrate who is really in control. Without the Shipping Guild, the I.I.S.C. becomes immaterial – a moot point without a purpose. Hopefully, in three days, an I.I.S.C. emissary will arrive with ‘good news’ for the emperor.” He placed a kiss on her forehead. “I made a deal with the general. If he grants Rigel the HTS, he’ll get his prototype fighter back. And after thirty days,” Wil gave a playful shrug of his shoulders, “Morningstar can have a ‘change of heart’. We'll be married and gone.”

[Azjah von Drachen Walde]

Azjah stepped into the room and fought a wave of terror. Wil hadn’t told her much about his time with the I.I.S.C., but she knew that they wouldn’t take his disappearance lightly, and then there was the small detail of his prototype ship. He locked the door behind her before confirming that he had indeed contacted the I.I.S.C.

He softened slightly when he read the worry in her features, “C’mere,” and his arms opened to hold onto her for a minute. It was the comfort she needed, but a part of her said that it would be all too fleeting. He released her and began to remove his uniform. It was a uniform she was quickly growing to loathe, and not because Wil didn’t look superb in it, but everything it represented screamed that it would take him away from her.

Her brows rose when he told her about his prototype ship being in orbit around Rigel, although it was cloaked, there was enough space traffic to worry her, “what if someone detects it Wil?” She nodded when he mentioned the dematerialization technology. She’d seen working examples of it, although it wasn’t in widespread use on Rigel.

He sat down upon his bed as he continued to undress and tell her about General Morningstar. That the General might have been expecting to hear from Wil brought a frission of trepidation skittering down her spine. If the man knew Wil was alive, and had a good guess where Wil was at the moment, he could very well send someone after Wil.

Wil rose and walked toward her, lightly caressing her cheek, and the warmth of his fingers was in stark contrast to her blood, which had turned to ice in her veins. Three days…. It wasn’t nearly enough. But his next words sent her stomach sinking into her toes. “You made a ‘deal’?” Something in his light hearted shrug told her far more than his words had. He was in deep trouble.

“Wil? Why can’t we take that fighter and disappear?” She was grasping now at straws and she knew it. “I’ve moved assets; we can find another world that doesn’t know a thing about Rigel or the I.I.S.C.” Something told her this would be the fight of her life and she didn’t like the stakes. It had always been one thing when she only needed to worry about herself. This was quite another thing altogether. When he refused once again to flee, she stiffened her back and pulled herself to her full height. “Then Wil I need to know what it is we are going to face from your former employer. Please don’t let me walk into this unarmed with knowledge that you have.”

[Azjah von Drachen Walde]

Dominik snarled as he ruthlessly pulled Margit’s thoughts from her mind. He wasn’t being gentle in the least, and if he caused her pain, it was not his concern. She’d heard enough through that panel that he did not feel she could be turned loose with her memories intact. He now knew why Margit’s excitement had reached through his rest.

Dominik erased everything that Margit had heard, leaving a void that would trouble the woman. He wasn’t of a mind to be kind or gentle with her. She was in league with someone who wanted covert access to the Colonel. But all he could piece together was that the man went by the name “The Merchant”. Her images of him were nebulous and nothing to go on. He left Margit outside her own rooms before making his way through the main house and toward the Marchioness’ rooms.

He would wait for her return. What he had learned from Margit was sufficiently important that he wait for her, but not so important that he intrude upon her time with the man she hoped to marry at the end of their 30 days penance. He materialized inside her sitting room, content to wait.

[Silent Sources]

The Merchant roamed the Capital city for several hours after having had the poison analyzed. The Prince certainly wasn’t fooling around with this stuff. Not only did he assuredly want this Colonel dead, he wanted him to die horribly. The best thing he could do would be leave Rigel immediately afterward and go somewhere the Volan’s Prince could never find him, because the first rule of assassination was kill the assassin, and quite frankly, he wasn’t ready to molder in the ground somewhere. His system gave a soft chirp. Someone wanted him, and he gave the device an annoyed glance to find out whom. The ID simply flashed, “Private”.

He swore nastily. The only current client who had the power to keep his identity hidden was that damnable prince. Well, the man could wait. There wasn’t any news just yet, and it would be tomorrow at the earliest before he would talk again to the chit, what was her name? Margret? Margit? Yes, that was it, Margit. The stupid girl had gone into the electronic systems and he would guarantee that a flag had triggered security to check into it. If it hadn’t, it was a security system not worth the trouble of having it.

The Merchant made a stop in one of the clothiers and picked up some essentials for what he hoped was going to be a brief ‘new job’ before he could disappear and start anew in another place. He wanted off this rock and the sooner the better. He paid directly for his purchases, no transactions that could be recorded and tied to him.

When he returned to his room, he pulled out the communication device with a sigh and sent a reply off to the Prince. “No news to report. Expect summons in the morning for interview.” He sent the message and dropped onto the bed to stare up at the ceiling. He would have to dispense with the pharmacologist. He’d seen the poison, and if word got out that such had been used, he could open his mouth, and tie him to the toxic mélange. It was a pity, he’d been very helpful in the past, but he wouldn’t be back here any time soon.

[Azjah von Drachen Walde]

Savage took a clean white shirt out of the closet and started to put it on for dinner. “It’s difficult to know what the I.I.S.C. is going to do. If all goes well, the Emperor will be told that the request for the HTS has been approved, the I.I.S.C. will take their ship, I’ll be allowed to resign, and we’ll be married.” He approached her as he put the second cuff link in place and began to button the front of the shirt. “If all doesn’t go well, I might have to be away for a while and answer some questions.” He wasn’t going to worry her by describing the worst that could happen. Discipline for AWOL agents could run the gamut from years in an asteroid mining operation to execution.

He could see that Azjah wasn’t satisfied with his answer. “If I have to go to the I.I.S.C. headquarters, it will require a Shipping Guild transport. We can’t get there with our ships; it’s just too far. It’ll be okay, I know them. If they get nasty, I’ll just agree to work for them for a few more years. It’s not so bad, and the pay is very good.”

Wil took Azjah into his arms again. His voice was soft, “Truth is, I really don’t know what to expect. General Morningstar said he’ll discuss it with the Council. They want their ship – that was a given. There was also some decent interest in commodities of Drachen Walde Industries, so perhaps they’ll overlook my little sabbatical.”

He went back to the closet to get his slacks on, and came out tucking the shirt tails in his trousers. “Anyway, we have a few days of peace before the I.I.S.C. representatives get here. I want to see that ship you have.” He stood in front of her and gave her that bad boy grin.

[Azjah von Drachen Walde]

Azjah watched as Wil retrieved a dress shirt for dinner. The icy cold that had settled in her blood warmed slightly as she watched him don the shirt, she focused momentarily on the cuff links and his fingers, she almost missed what he was saying, “…allowed to resign and we’ll be married.” But just as she was starting to let go of some of the dread, his next words dashed any hope she had of that outcome happening any time soon, “I might have to be away for a while and answer some questions.”

“Wil?” However, he quickly recognized her expression and added that if they got nasty, he would agree to work for them longer.

She was already processing what she knew about that organization, and such a simple fix to such a problem as they had did not sound likely, but Wil had been good to them, and for them. Maybe? Hope lifted its head briefly.

He pulled her into his arms again as he told her he did not really know what to expect. She wanted to stay right where they were, not leave that room and let the outside world simply forget about them, but that was not Wil. He would miss being in the thick of things, involved in the intrigues and challenges of his world. Something about the image of Wil living a quiet life of a Peer just did not fit.

He released her and returned to the closet for dress trousers, returning as he said they had a couple of days. Then he melted her with just his smile. It was something he had been able to do since she’d met him that night in Teas n Tomes.

Azjah took a deep breath, he was simply too handsome for words, and much too charming for his own good. Maybe that charm would work on this General Morningstar. She could only hope. “Wil? If you have to go back, I want to go too.” She did not know how he would feel about taking her along, but one thing she knew was that she was not going to remain behind and wait for news. Not given what she could gather from her sources. No, she would go too. Who knew, she might even be an asset to him.

Then it dawned on her, he had been dressing for dinner, and she had been standing here like a schoolgirl entranced by his casual undressing and redressing in front of her. She colored suddenly, despite what had passed between them the previous night. “I’m sorry, I’ll leave you to dress, and I am certainly going to be in Katarina’s ill graces for rushing her so.”

Azjah fled her father’s rooms and made her way quickly to her mother’s rooms, she still thought of them as Ozeana’s. She stepped inside and closed the door, leaning against it as something unnamed threatened to reduce her to tears. She did not want to focus on what that ‘something’ was. She took a deep breath before opening her eyes to see Dominik standing there, utterly silent and motionless, but those metallic green eyes watched her keenly.

“Forgive my intrusion Marchioness, if you prefer, I will return another time.” He was the vision of elegance and old world formality.

Azjah blinked to regain her ability to focus on him, “No Dominik, please forgive my entrance. Please, what brings you here?” If Dominik were here, Katarina would not be. They would be late for dinner it seemed.

“One of your servants was caught outside the panel to the Grand Duke’s suite. She is working for someone trying to gain access to the Colonel.” He remained unmoving as he watched her reaction. “She heard more than is wise. She heard too many references to the I.I.S.C. and your Colonel’s association with them. And that there is a ship cloaked and in orbit.”

Azjah’s color faded.

“Her memories have been removed, but I do not know how many other things she may have heard previously and conveyed to this mystery person.”

Azjah studied Dominik’s expression. She did not doubt that he’d been rather harsh with the girl when he extracted what she knew. Something about him now said he was furious at catching her in such a flagrant act of spying. “Who Dominik? Who was it?”

“If you remove her, we will not find out who is after the Colonel.” The suns were nearly set and the eerie greenish glow of Dominik’s eyes came into play as he waited.

Azjah paced to the panel in her own rooms that would grant her access to the hidden passages, then she touched the mechanism and the panel slid open. The air inside was several degrees cooler than the room. She wrapped both arms around herself as she stared into the darkness. “Tell Wil.” She did not turn around to look, and she knew the instant Dominik vanished.

She closed the panel and rang for Katarina. There was no chance they would be on time for dinner with Grand Duke Asher. Besides, she was not in a hurry to meet up with the Volan’s Prince or the Baron from Deneb again, and they were the Grand Duke’s guests as well. Even her illustrious cousin would make an appearance.

Katarina came moments after Azjah rang for her. She tsked loudly as she set about getting Azjah ready with as much alacrity as she could muster. In forty minutes, Azjah stood before a full length mirror.




The gown was aqua lace with sheer overlays at the arms and down the skirt. It was accented with a necklace of aquamarine and amethyst, and the platinum picks in her hair had amethysts inset into the ends. She was as ready as she would ever be.

She went downstairs to the library where she found Wil already waiting. He had enough time to consider her request to join him in the event that he had to return to the I.I.S.C.

[Azjah von Drachen Walde]

Dominik materialized in the sitting area of the Grand Duke’s suite. The Colonel was dressed in shirt and trousers, but was still lacking the dinner jacket.

Without preamble, Dominik spoke; “Good evening Colonel, forgive my failure to knock, but I felt it better to keep this discussion short and unannounced. The Marchioness sent me, she knows I am here.” It seemed better to forestall his questions, and he sensed that by making sure the male knew Dominik did the bidding of the Lady, there would be less time wasted time. “You have a spy in the house that heard much of your discussion about the I.I.S.C. and your ship Colonel. I have removed her memories, but I cannot assure you that she has not passed information on other occasions to her other employer. If we are to find out whom she is working for, we cannot release her. The Marchioness sent me here to tell you who the spy is.”

Dominik maintained the stillness of his heritage. He no longer bothered with trying to emulate the living by feigning breathing. The discussion was short and Dominik gave Margit’s name to the Colonel before giving him a bow. “I will once again be at the Marchioness’ left side should you have need of me tonight.”

With that, the Dragonseeker faded from view, leaving Wil alone in the Grand Duke’s suite.