Schism of Blood and Stone (The Starfield Theory Book 1) (26 page)

“Training to be an Averion? I don't believe our family has had any in their honored ranks,” Damien said, hiding his disgust. He knew Richard was lying. Isarla had been the trade Salena made with the Azuren to save her precious son's mangled arm.

Richard shook his head. “No, though the Tetons shared better relations with the Azuren than the Stens did, certainly. Isarla has been working with them for a few years now. It's rare that we get to see her, but we're so proud of what she's done. Have you children of your own, yet?”

Richard knew better. Damien almost chuckled, but instead offered a friendly grin. “No, I'm afraid not. Border protection leaves little time for such experiences.”

Richard nodded sagely. “I understand. I tell you, my life changed forever when Magnus came along. It had only been a year since I met Salena, that is, a purely political marriage of course, but Magnus changed that. I had something worth my life then. I hung up my sword, and stepped back into a political role. No more fighting for this knight, not anymore.”

Damien arced an eyebrow, trying to hide the shock on his face. “You haven't seen combat since Magnus was born?”

The nobility retained their military positions their whole lives unless wounds or political considerations necessitated their discharge. Even Peter kept up on his skills in simulators at the very least all during his reign as Archduke.
Was it cowardice then? Or was Salena pulling the strings?

“There were a few border raids by the Treth, but that was the end of my military career. I suppose partially it was Salena's wish. It'd do no good to have the children growing up without a strong male influence you know,” Richard explained.

Damien doubted the strength of that influence.
It seems as though Salena has this man completely wrapped around her fingers. I wonder if he has a thought that she hasn't personally authorized.

“Magnus has shown a considerable military aptitude,” Damien said carefully.

“Oh, yes. He planned and led the assault to remove the Sørensens from power himself. We worry for him of course, every time he goes into combat. He is very eager, almost too eager to fight. I hope that desire is tempered when he marries Kendra Mason. She is a lovely lady, very intelligent and loves Magnus dearly. Maybe when he has something important to lose he will not be so eager to throw his life away.”

“Sometimes having something to fight for makes us fight all the harder,” Damien said before he could stop himself.

“I suppose there is some truth to that as well. You are invited to the wedding of course. It won't be for another year or so, but I do hope you'll join Sal and I at the ceremony.”

Richard made a clicking noise with his tongue as if he'd just remembered something important. “Salena also sends her regrets for being unable to attend your arrival personally. She is quite busy as I'm sure you understand.”

The union between Mason and Teton-Sten is very concerning. Once they are wed, they will form a potent power bloc in the Conclave. Their armies will cement Salena in power. So much for staying on safe ground. Let's probe a bit.

“Of course. I suppose she has much work to do in the Conclave.”

Richard narrowed his brow. “How so?”

“The legality of succession without a chosen heir is rather tricky,” Damien tossed out the bait to gauge Richard's reaction.
How much does he know about Kristoffer?

Richard cleared his throat. “Indeed. With Peter childless, I realize that you were the most likely candidate for the throne, but the Sørensens acted so swiftly.”

He has no idea!
Damien realized with a start.
Salena never told him about the twins!

“Who knew what the Sørensens had been planning or how long they've been doing it. I knew Dietrich was crafty, but this? Anyway, Erik Sørensen is handling the clean up of his house.”

“Erik Sørensen?”

“Ah yes, a relatively younger man. One of Thaddeus' grandchildren, or great grandchildren or something. Apparently he was aware of Dietrich's schemes and has taken over as House Master. He will rebuild his family.”

“Perhaps you could explain the situation for me. News travels slowly on the border,” Damien lied.

“Of course. You were at the meeting with the Sørensens at Remmington so you know about their nonsense looking for a suitable replacement in the family trees. Salena saw right through it as a Sørensen plot to take the throne for themselves. Surely you saw the same thing?”

Damien hedged and feigned surprise. “I had not detected such a plot.”

Richard grunted in solidarity. “You were not alone,” he said with great sympathy. “Anyway, Dietrich was maneuvering in the Conclave to get their backing for his coup. Fortunately, we seem to have intervened before Dietrich could become too entrenched in his position. Magnus' offensive was swift and managed to crush the Sørensens in less than a day! It might even rival some of your own great victories if you don't mind the comparison,” Richard gloated, beaming broadly.

In fact, Damien did mind the comparison.

“After routing the Sørensen forces,” he continued, “Salena declared her ascension. Lord Dietrich himself and several others blocked her entrance to the throne room and he was subsequently arrested.”

“I hope no one was injured.”

Richard shook his head, laughing. “Not badly, no. Lord Dietrich was quite liberal with the use of his cane, I believe, but he and his cohorts are resting comfortably in custody.”

Damien's heart leaped into his throat as, for the briefest of moments, he actually wondered if Dietrich was capable of taking the throne for himself. Had Dietrich been lying about the twins and had Salena actually managed to detect some sort of plot? Were the twins merely random lowborns to distract he and Salena while he masterminded a take over?

He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. No, Dietrich would never attempt a usurpation. It had simply never been done by any Sørensen in a thousand years and Dietrich had presided over the passing of two other Archdukes and never once shown any intention of not releasing power back to the Stens. Why would this time be any different? More likely Salena, with Filipov's help, had framed the Sørensens and stormed the palace, not to save the Commonwealth, but to steal it.

“Has there been resistance?” Damien asked the obvious, but not so innocent question.

Richard cleared his throat, choosing his words more carefully. “There are some groups, terrorists more likely, who went to ground and have been launching attacks on convoys and civilian centers. We believe they're led by rebel Sørensens, probably Odin and Astrid. Magnus will have them cleaned up shortly.”

Damien nodded, wondering how deep the resistance went. The Sørensens had protected Magdeborg for centuries and he knew they had reserve shelters and caches of weapons and money hidden across the planet. Damien had seen some of them personally. If there ever was an invasion of Magdeborg, the Sørensens had enough equipment to last them several years.

“Is there anything I could do to be of assistance?”

Richard thought for a moment, pensive, then looked out the window at the passing trees, the lights from the motorcade flashing off his forehead. Finally, he lowered the pitch of his voice and spoke almost to the floor. “The situation is unstable. Salena needs your support, Damien. I fear for her. Peter's assassin is still on the loose. There are still Sørensens out there plotting another coup. I couldn't bear to see her suffer the same fate as Peter. You will help her, won't you? Your family has already suffered too much and Salena is dear to me. If anything were to happen to her...and my children...”

Suddenly, Damien realized that this was not part of Salena's plan.
Richard's not even supposed to be here!
Salena had sent her children to receive him then leave him to travel alone in the limousine. Richard had tagged along and decided to accompany him on the ride. He wanted a private moment between brothers-in-law.

He thinks I can help protect Salena. Not only that I might actually consider it, but do so out of duty. Is he so ignorant of the political situation or does he think something might actually change?
He wondered.

Damien chose his words very carefully, imagining the flickering flame in his mind's eye. Blow too hard and the candle went out. “I can only promise to do what is best for the Commonwealth. I'm afraid you may have overestimated my influence with the other Conclave houses. Salena will be safe enough on Magdeborg under the protection of Conrad and the House Guard and your own forces. Magnus is a smart and able young man, yes? I must return to the border as soon as possible.”

Richard seemed almost hurt by Damien's noncommittal response, but nodded understandably. He returned his gaze to the window, seeming content to mull over the conversation and leave Damien in peace for now.

Damien leaned back in the leather seat and closed his eyes. Richard was an odd member of the nobility. He meant well, but he had no knack for politics or people. He'd inherited his dukedom thanks to the laws of primogeniture. He was the oldest male and therefore heir. As far as threats went, Richard was pretty minimal. His son, however, was a different story. If Richard was telling the truth and Magnus had planned and executed the attack that wiped out the Sørensens, then he was certainly dangerous indeed. The fact that Magnus had toppled the Sørensen defense in less than a day either spoke to his ability or to the lack of Sørensen preparedness. If Dietrich Sørensen had usurped the throne, he'd have been better prepared to defend the planet. That meant Magnus had taken them by surprise and no Sørensen coup had actually occurred. If Salena's reign on the throne proved permanent, he stood as her heir and future Archduke. He must learn more about Sir Magnus Teton-Sten.

Salena's claims might have fooled the Conclave, and even cowed them into submission, but Damien was unconvinced. He immediately began compiling a list of people he needed to talk to. Strangely, Richard did not mention Conrad Sten or his unit and Damien started to ask about him when Richard looked up suddenly, concern etching his face as he strained to look out the window. Curious, Damien followed his gaze. The streets ahead were choked with people. Lots of people.

Another welcoming crowd
, Damien surmised.

Richard opened a compartment in the car's seat and pulled out a radio. “Commander, where in Ithix did these people come from?”

The radio crackled. “Unknown, sir. I don't know how they got our route.”

Damien narrowed his brow. “What is this, Richard?”

Richard cast him a look, apparently unwilling to answer. Damien looked outside as the car began to pass the throngs. There were easily several thousand people screaming and yelling, holding signs and pounding on the cars as they rolled past. Of course, the car's windows were bulletproof so they posed no actual physical danger even if they were armed, but the effect was still startling.

“End the tyranny!”, “No war for peace!”, “Dead Commonwealth Soldiers = Sten Failures!” some of the signs read.
Protestors
, Damien mused,
how unusual.

“I'm sorry, Damien. Your brother would never had tolerated this nonsense,” Richard said.

And you were not meant to see this
, Richard probably would have liked to add, but had the good sense not to. Protests against anything were highly unusual. Most citizens and newspapers had the rights to free speech and press as far as the local nobility allowed, but assembly was not among those rights. It was one thing to have ideas, but it was another to try to voice them to large groups. That law was the result of an inherent fear the nobility had of the untamed masses. There were so many of
them
and so few of
us.
Allowing too many to gather in one place was asking for trouble. What Damien found was that the harder the authorities squeezed, the more the populace grew discontent. For every Starfield Theorist the Azuren killed, more took his place. Either Salena understood this or things were much worse than they seemed. Damien bet on the latter.

One man walked alongside the vehicle, his hands pressed against the windows, shouting, “Why do you let your sister take advantage of us, Damien. She jails our friends, our families, and she has no regard for the law your brother maintained! Why won't you help us?”

Damien watched him intently, saw the fire in his eyes, his face pleading. He was nicely dressed as far as the lower classes went, a cap on his head and a cloak over his shoulders. “My daughter fought with you on Skagen and gave her life in service to the Commonwealth. Won't you do something for her?”

He fought against the pull of the crowd, but only managed a few more paces before being swallowed again and slipping out of sight.

Richard ignored the crowds as most nobility usually did, but he was watching the car in front of the limo, the car that contained his children. It was much more top heavy and wobbled dangerously back and forth as the crowd assaulted it.

“Sergeant...”

“I know, sir. The lead cars are having trouble making a path. I'm not sure how much more we can last here,” the man on the radio shouted back. “We're requesting permission to open fire.”

“No! Do not shoot at these people, it will only inflame the situation,” Damien ordered.

Salena would have had shoot on sight orders before the convoy even moved
, Damien thought.