42 Cider

"So how does this work?" Nikolai asked, spinning an uncut gem on his table. The light warped around it, creating an eerie halo, like something inside wanted to consume reality itself. Which, in a way was true. Transferring the warp-lich from the pair of velvet gloves had been an ordeal, taking dozens of containment and restriction spells, whose after effects still lingered in his laboratory. Magic was a means to defy the natural order after all and spells that created instantaneous effects warped the world for only a moment. Balls of fire or blasts of lightning were natural phenomena, maybe not to the scale a true Master Mage could invoke, but they had their corollaries in the real world. Dealing with souls on the other hand broke the bounds of reality, creating weak spots in the fabric of existence that made it harder to cast more spells. It also let Demons come through if a Mage forgot to prepare their spells to shore up the damage they caused.

Magic was serious business.

"Would you stop spinning that cursed thing?!" Natalia raised her cane and Nikolai flinched, quickly leaving the gem alone. "It's bad enough you keep creatures like that locked away. Why you want to keep it near you baffles me. I can feel its evil from here."

"The missive I received from the Avarian Embassy in the Capital stated their carrier would arrive today to pick it up. I hate this thing as much as you do but the quicker I give it away the better."

Natalia snorted, rolling her eyes at his explanation. With a grunt she hobbled out of her wheelchair and circled the semi-conscious woman restrained in a chair. Pulled from her incarceration in the guards chambers this, was the merchant arrested for carrying cases of Stardust in plain sight on the streets of Konstanz. She'd thrown a fit, raging about the injustice and horrible conditions she faced, which was patently absurd. A Demidov no matter how distantly related, couldn't be thrown into a prison without drawing the ire of the entire House, which meant she was locked up in a well furnished chamber and served food far exceeding the quality most guardsmen received. Her ranting had brought down Natalia's fury and Nikolai had been forced to lay a silencing spell on the merchant before his Great Aunt by marriage, almost marriage, whacked her with a cane.

"So how does it work?" Nikolai asked again.

"Not much to say. As long as someone speaks I can tell if they're telling the truth. There's a… resonance when people tell the truth and a distorted vibration when someone lies. It's like listening to a piece of music and hearing misplaced notes." The old woman's brows were furrowed with effort as she struggled to explain her senses and she returned to her wheelchair, sighing in relief once she was off her feet.

"Music isn't one of the things I understand very well." Nikolai muttered and Natalia cackled at the remark.

"No you wouldn't be. That's not your style. It's not just about listening though. The words people say affect all my senses. To me, when my Eyes are open, I see blue when I hear the truth and red when someone lies."

"I would love to study the effect someday. But how do you explain that strange compulsion to be truthful around you?"

"Ah. Well if someone wants to lie they'd still be able to. as long as I don't apply all my abilities. But in my presence people try to… it's difficult to explain. It's like a person becomes exhausted of their lies and only wants to speak the truth. I'm not actually forcing them to do anything."

"The world hates lies." Nikolai whispered, mind spinning with old memories. Startled, Natalia glanced up at him and nodded.

"Yes. That actually makes sense. The world itself wants the truth. Wise words boy. I may have misjudged you."

"While I would love to take credit, it's something my Master told me during his lectures." Nikolai's lips quirked at thoughts of the old man. He had to find a way to deliver the wedding invitation to him somehow although his presence could be disastrous. Once the man was drunk, which was almost always, his mouth refused to shut.

"A wise man." Natalia remarked. "Now undo whatever it is you've done to this girl."

"I don't think she'll respond to you." Nonetheless, with a chant and a flick of his wrist, the silencing spell came undone, and he nodded at Natalia.

"So girl, what's your name?"

"How dare you speak to me hag! Don't you know who I am?" Freed of the magical restriction, the merchant screeched once more and Nikolai plugged his ears. The woman had the most grating voice, scratching at his mind in the worst way possible.

"No. That's why I'm asking." Natalia didn't seem fazed by the insults but there was a fire raging in her eyes and Nikolai's leg twitched in memory of the old woman's violent responses. He had a horrifying premonition that Natalia's suppressed anger would be directed towards him. He seemed to draw most of her ire these days. Not that he was free from blame, constantly getting into arguments, whether it was during his research into the Emperor's blood or just conflicts in their attitudes.

"Remember this hag. You're in the glorious presence of Baroness Anita Koroshek Demidov." The merchant declared proudly. Natalia's tepid response invoked the woman's fury and Nikolai could tell she was about to launch into a tirade.

"You should be aware you are speaking to Duchess Natalia Suzdal." Nikolai said drily. "Grand Duke Suzdal's sister, in case you didn't know."

Anita froze, terror dawning in her eyes at his words. People who relied on their lineage wilted in the face of someone with 'greater blood'.

"So girl. What were you doing with all that Stardust?" Natalia crooned, eyes fixed on the terrified merchant like a bird of prey.

"I-I-I was moving it for a friend."

"You were in possession of an outlawed substance Baroness." Nikolai pretended to read the information from a sheet of paper. "Almost a hundred pounds!" Even now the amount shocked him. It didn't seem possible for that much Stardust to even exist. The stuff was notoriously difficult to manufacture, and you only needed a pinch to experience the effects. The merchant carried enough to distribute to the entire town.

"It really was for a friend. All I had to do was carry a case out of town. I didn't even know what was inside."

"You knew what was inside." Natalia declared, mouth twisting in distaste at the lie.

"No. No I didn't." The merchant struggled in her seat, trying to break free.

Light dimmed as Natalia opened her Eyes, fixing the unfortunate prisoner with a powerful glare, sapping her of resistance. Anita's eyes opened wide and her mouth fell in a silent scream. Flashes of terrified light flickered through her expression and she writhed against her bonds, struggling until cuts formed at her restrained wrists. Whatever she'd seen left her broken, slumped within her restraints and Nikolai was shocked by how similar this was proceeding to his own interrogations, with less magic and subterfuge though.

"You knew what was inside." Natalia repeated, eyes fixed on the woman.

"Yes." She whispered, still shivering in terror.

"Who gave it to you?"

"I don't know."

"Lies!." Natalia hissed.

"I… can't tell you." Anita pleaded, head hanging in shame.

"Why did you agree then?"

"I received orders from the family, and before you ask I don't know who specifically sent them." Anita froze, mouth widening in horror. "What have you done to me? I can't stop talking!"

"Nothing harmful." Nikolai said but felt a twinge in his stomach. "I think."

"Don't give me such weird looks, she'll be fine. She may die as a result of our actions, but not due to our magic or abilities." Natalia's explanation didn't comfort the merchant, but Nikolai was relieved there would be no lasting harm. While he wanted to pull down the Demidov's influence, he had no desire to get into a large conflict with them because of one inconsequential merchant.

"Why was the guard letting you through without checking?" Natalia demanded.

"Because of my status of course." She declared haughtily, a little fire returning to her eyes. A quick glimpse of Natalia's sour face quelled any thoughts of arrogance though. Unfortunately her response didn't make sense, her status wouldn't stop searches, just harassment. She was simply too minor a character in the scheme of things. He glanced at Natalia and she mouthed the words truth and belief. She'd explained before they'd brought Anita in, that if someone believed something to be the truth, it would not be considered a lie unless it fundamentally went against the rules of the world. When Nikolai tried to discover what the 'rules of the world' were, Natalia had shrugged, saying that was how she had been taught by the previous Truth Seer of House Suzdal. She'd whacked him before he could dig deeper into the subject and he'd trailed off, sulking while they waited.

"Why are the Demidov's involved in the drug trade?" Nikolai asked. He felt like shaking his head at this woman. She appeared to be no more than a patsy for someone more important and capable.

"Money. The demand in the Capital is skyrocketing, especially amongst the younger Nobles." Resigned to her fate the woman spit out answers to their questions not even trying to hide the truth. Unfortunately she managed to resist telling them names. keeping her mouth shut despite Natalia's abilities. She retained too much presence of mind for Nikolai's spells to influence her, and due to her backing he couldn't make her disappear like an Enforcer.

Frustrated, they returned her to the 'cell'.

"That didn't tell us much." Nikolai grumbled once she was gone.

"We've confirmed the Demidov's hand in the pot so we have better places to look now boy." Natalia slapped her armrest, weariness lacing her voice. "Take the small victories. You can't always find solutions."

"Magic should be able to." He whispered, glancing at the tired old woman and sighing. The strain from using her abilities was massive. She'd only opened her Eyes twice during the entire session, but the wrinkles in her face had deepened, making her seem withered. Thanking Natalia, he gave her some alcohol and a few eggs, ushering her out of the room before her grumpiness turned into a free for all with the cane. The twinkle in her eyes as he wheeled her out of the door made him feel she knew what he was doing but with a tot of nameless alcohol was willing to go along with him.

No sooner had Nikolai returned to his desk then Petrov came hobbling through the door, his face rosy and healthy.

"You're in a good mood Commander."

Without a word Petrov pulled a small flask from his sleeve and Nikolai's eyes lit up.

"Your mother made another batch?"

"Yes Milord." The man coughed lightly, but a grin tugged at his lips.

"What are you waiting for? Open it up." Madame Petrov was well known for her cider. Pressed from special snow apples grown on their families orchards, it had a fruity flavour and minimal alcohol content, a drink which provided the buzz but without the bite. "You should sneak some more away, Aunt Natalia would love it."

A trace of fear wormed its way onto the Commander's expression. "She terrifies me Milord."

"She's not that bad." Nikolai chuckled. The old woman's terror spread through each word and action, leaving even hardened men and women shaking in their boots.

"Easy for you to say Milord. Were you able to discover anything?" Petrov poured the cider into two tall glasses Nikolai stashed in one of his cupboards for this particular drink. Dug up from an ancient tomb, the glasses were inlaid with a crest of a family long lost in history. Nikolai wasn't sure why but anything poured into them seemed fresher and cleaner but he'd tested them and couldn't find a hint of magic.

"Nothing that we didn't know or suspect." He caught Petrov sigh into his glass, almost relieved. "You seem awfully happy for the lack of knowledge Commander."

Startled the man looked up and smiled weakly. "Forgive me Milord but thinking my people were unable to extract information worried me."

"No one can be perfect Petrov, myself included. That's why we have advisors." He took a sip of cider, sighing as the heat spread across his body. It wasn't cold today but the tension of the last few days was getting to him.

"Your wisdom is infinite Milord." Petrov bowed at the waist, raising his mug in salutation. An absurd move, meant to tease him.

"Don't tease your Count."

"I wouldn't dare to Milord."

They chuckled at the exchange and sat in silence, enjoying the cider and forgetting the tasks that faced them. Sometimes it was necessary to forget a single bad move on your part could destroy thousands of lives.