Veza also had duties assigned to her by Laquatus. With the ambassador's armed guards by her side, Veza inspected the canyon walls for stability. Under their careful watch, she enchanted a series of blue crystals and affixed them to the walls along the entire length of the chasm. They crystals could relay magical impulses to one another. Veza used them to transmit data up and down the length of the flood zone. She also knew Laquatus intended to use the crystal arrays as a weapon. If he were forced to quit the chasm, he would send a signal to the crystals that would bring the walls crashing down around whoever was inside. He smiled when he told Veza of his plans, but he made it clear he did not fully trust her yet. He made sure that she was not allowed to alter the spell that powered the stones, so they could only transmit magical impulses, and only within the chasm. If anyone but Laquatus tried to use them in any other way, they would shatter.
Finally, Llawan herself arrived at the head of another flotilla of ships and leviathans. Laquatus had sent Burke to collect Veza and politely forced her to sit and watch the show.
Beyond the front, safe from the fighting, sat Llawan's private yacht, a smaller, slower version of her transport leviathan. Laquatus made sure the empress was indeed on board, and that Veza had an excellent view before he rolled out his surprise. The long, familiar shape of Llawan's transport leviathan streaked out of the chasm and plowed through her forces on a direct line of attack for the empress. Laquatus had not in fact slaughtered the empress's transport vessel, he had commandeered it and sent it into battle against her. Veza almost wept when the empress's troops were forced to strike the leviathan down with spell blasts and giant ballista bolts.
Hours after the destruction of her transport, Llawan unleashed a squadron of heavily armed cephalids. Just as they came into range of the mercenaries' weapons, the squadron vanished from sight. The invisible squadron did a lot of damage to their unsuspecting foes before the enchantment wore off, and they were only captured and killed when they tried to storm Laquatus's command ship. After the initial exchange of hostility, the front stabilized just outside the chasm and each side settled in for a long siege. Not in the strictest sense of the word, Veza knew, because either side could abandon the battle any time they pleased by simply turning around and swimming away. Veza had been close enough to both Laquatus and Llawan to know that neither of them were going to do that. The entire empire was watching this conflict, and whoever came out of it victorious would have enough political and popular support to claim the imperial throne.
Meanwhile, Veza continued to watch and research, Laquatus stayed safe in his canyon, and Llawan stayed safe in her luxury vessel while their troops tore each other to bits at the mouth of the canyon.
Kamahl strapped on his broadsword and took a few tentative steps across his tiny room. He was nowhere near full recovery, but he could walk. If he could walk, he could fight.
Kamahl was sensitive to the Mirari, and he could feel the powerful forces gathering around it. He was uncertain but unafraid. Unknown challenges were a barbarian's stock in trade, after all, and the promise of a good contest was more than enough incentive for Kamahl to meet this one.
Kamahl left the public house and joined the crowds of people heading for the Cabal City pits.
Cabal City's anniversary games drew more spectators and more combatants than any event ever before. Everyone in and around the city either wanted to take a shot at the Mirari or wanted to watch others do so. From his vantage point high above the arena floor, Chainer watched the crowds and the fighters buzz and vibrate like a huge hive of wasps.
Chainer looked around at the former First's private box. It was a luxurious, round, floating platform with all the amenities visiting dignitaries expected. The First often watched important games from here, or rather, watched the crowd watching the games. Among the First's finery, with the Mirari safely hidden in his chambers, Chainer understood what Skellum meant when he spoke of the good things in life.
Chainer leaned over the side of the platform with a dizzy grin on his face. All of the contestants had been assembled in the main pit below, and it was literally full of hundreds of humans and monsters crammed together under Chainer's box. Down there, they were waiting. Up here, he simply was, and would be until he decided to start the action.
"Ladies, gentlemen, and others!" The announcer's voice was much louder up here than it was at ground level. "Welcome to the Mirari Games." A small cheer went up through the crowd.
"Today we have something truly unique in store for you. The largest collection of fighters in the world has gathered for the right to claim the Mirari, the sphere of wonder. There will be only one winner. There-" A bolt of lightning shot up from the floor into the magical apparatus that amplified the announcer's voice, and his introduction sputtered and choked. Intrigued, Chainer peered more closely at the tall figure standing alone at the center of the only clear space on the arena floor.
"Murderer," the figure cried, his voice echoing like a gong. "Destroyer of the innocent. The Order is here for retribution."
"I know, justicar," Chainer said softly. "I've been counting on it."
Justicar Gobal's hood and robe had been burned off by his initial blast, and he stood sparkling and crackling in his polished armor. Beside him, three more robed figures cast off their outer garments to reveal terrible, white-winged angels armed with flaming swords. All around the arena, other fighters began to unsheathe their weapons. Others who were wiser, or perhaps more cowardly, quickly tried to exit the arena.
"Your attack on our hospital killed more than healers and wounded soldiers. It killed the angels. In their place, Angels of
Retribution have arisen. Your end comes now, Cabalist." The jus-ticar pointed his hand at Chainer, and the angels took wing. The justicar sent another bolt of lighting up toward Chainer's platform. The platform was thoroughly warded against all types of attack, however, and the justicar's bolt faded into nothingness before it ever touched Chainer.
"Oh, no," Chainer said dramatically. "Angels and justicars! The Order has come for me! Whatever shall I do?" He focused on the Mirari back in his chamber, concentrated, and every door in the huge arena slammed shut and melted into the wall around it. His eyes were long gone, and his voice boomed out louder than the announcer's. "Come one, come all. The Mirari awaits. Who is strong enough to take it from me?"
Veza was poring over a scroll when Burke entered her chamber. The gel man wore a small, circular hand mirror around his neck, and from it came Laquatus's voice.
"Please follow my jack," Laquatus said. "There is something! want you to see."
Burke kept pace as Veza swam through the ship. She noticed that his hands and feet became flatter and wider when he swam, and he stayed by her side easily no matter how fast she went. She stole as many glances at his expressionless face as she dared, searching in vain for some flicker of recognition, or at least independence. Burke was as inscrutable as a mask.
Laquatus had taken to filling his command ship with air, both for his mercenaries and in case anyone tried to teleport in. A cephalid assassin would find himself floundering on the floor as soon as he arrived, and they would drown without so much as touching Laquatus. Veza and Burke stepped into the chamber, and Laquatus greeted Veza with a warm, loud call.