«It seems difficult,» Dhegmussa said again.

That was as far as he would go on his own. Abivard prodded him to go further: «Would you want such a man close to the King of Kings? He might corrupt him with his own heedlessness, or, on the other hand, failing to corrupt the King of Kings, he might be moved to violence against him.»

«Fraortish eldest of all, prevent it,» the Mobedhan Mobedh said, his fingers twisting in a sign to avert the evil omen. Abivard imitated the gesture. But then, to his disappointment, Dhegmussa went on: «But surely the King of Kings is aware of the risks entailed in having this Videssian close by him.»

«There are risks, holy one, and then there are risks,» Abivard said. «You do know, of course, that Tzikas once tried to murder the Videssian Avtokrator by magic.» One of the advantages of telling the truth was the casual ease with which he could bring out such horrors.

Dhegmussa suffered a coughing fit. When he could finally speak again, he said, «I had heard such a thing, yes, but discounted it as a scurrilous rumor put about by his enemies.» He looked sidelong at Abivard, who was certainly no friend to Tzikas.

«It certainly is scurrilous,» Abivard agreed cheerfully, «but rumor it is not I was the one who received him in Across after he fled in a rowboat over the strait called the Cattle Crossing after his conjuration couldn't kill Maniakes. If he'd stayed in Videssos the city another hour, Maniakes' men would have had him.» And that would have made life simpler for both the Avtokrator and me, Abivard thought. Ever since he'd rescued Sharbaraz from Nalgis Crag stronghold, though, it had become more and more obvious that his life, whatever else it might hold, would not contain much simplicity.

«You swear this to me?» Dhegmussa asked

«By the God and the Prophets Four,» Abivard declared, raising first the thumb and then the fingers of his left hand.

Still Dhegmussa hesitated. Abivard wanted to kick him to see if direct stimulation would make his wits work faster. The only reason he could conceive for Sharbaraz' having named this man Mobedhan Mobedh was the assurance of having an amiable nonentity in the position. So long as everything went well, having a nonentity in an important place held advantages, chief among them that he was not likely to be dangerous to the King of Kings. But sometimes a man who would not or could not act was more dangerous than one who could and would.

Trying to avoid action, Dhegmussa repeated, «Surely Sharbaraz is familiar with the problems the Videssian represents.»

«The problems, yes,» Abivard said. «My concern is that he has not fully thought through the religious import of all these things. That's why I came to you, holy one.» Do I have to color the picture as well as draw it?

Maybe he didn't. Dhegmussa said, «I shall suggest to the King of Kings the possible consequences of keeping near his person a man of such, ah, ambiguous qualities and the benefits to be gained by removing him from a position where he might influence not only the affairs of Makuran but also the spiritual life of the King of Kings.»

That was less than Abivard had hoped to get from the Mobedhan Mobedh. He'd wanted Dhegmussa to rear up on his hind legs and bellow something like Get rid of this man or put your soul in peril of falling into the Void.

Abivard chuckled. Any Videssian priest who deserved his blue robe would have said something like that, or else something worse. The Videssian patriarch had come out and publicly condemned Maniakes for marrying his own first cousin. That wasn't so offensive to Makuraner morality as it was in Videssos, but even if it had been, the Mobedhan Mobedh would not—could not– have taken such an active role in opposing it. A Mobedhan Mobedh who criticized his sovereign too vigorously wasn't just packed off to a monastery. He was liable to be a dead man.

Mild reproof, then, Abivard supposed, was as much as he could reasonably have expected to get. He bowed and said, «Thank you, holy one.» The novelty of having Dhegmussa express anything but complete and glowing approval of everything Sharbaraz did might make the King of Kings sit up and take notice.

If it didn't… Abivard had tried direct methods of getting rid of Tzikas before. He'd been too late the last time. If he had to try again, he wouldn't be.

This winter a knock on the door to Abivard's suite of rooms did not provoke the alarm it had the past two years, even if it came at an hour when Abivard wasn't particularly looking for visitors. But when he opened the door and found Yeliif standing there, a memory of that alarm stirred in him. The beautiful eunuch might join him in despising Tzikas, but that did not make him a friend.

Ceremony nonetheless had to be observed. Abivard offered his cheek for the eunuch to kiss: Yeliif had influence but, because of his mutilation, not rank. Then Abivard stepped aside, saying, «Enter. Use these my rooms as your own while you are here.»

«You are gracious,» Yeliif said without sardonic overtones but also without warmth. «I have the honor to bring you a message from Sharbaraz King of Kings, may his years be many and his realm increase.»

«I am always glad to bask in the wisdom of the King of Kings,» Abivard answered. «What clever thought would he impart to me today?»

«The same thought he imparted to me not long ago,» Yeliif said; by his expression, he would sooner not have had that thought, whatever it was, thus imparted.

«Enlighten me, then, by all means,» Abivard said. He glanced over to Roshnani, who was sitting cross-legged on the floor by a window, quietly embroidering. Had she raised an eyebrow, he would have know he'd sounded sarcastic. Since she didn't, he supposed he'd gotten by with that.

«Very well,» the beautiful eunuch said. «Sharbaraz King of Kings, may his days be long and his realm increase, bade me tell you—and incidentally bade me bear in mind myself—that he requires Tzikas' service in the enterprise he has planned for the next campaigning season and that he forbids you either to harm Tzikas' person or to seek the Videssian's condemnation for any of the malfeasances he either has committed or may commit in future.»

«Of course I obey the King of Kings,» Abivard replied. Better than he deserves, too. «But Tzikas' obedience in such matters must be questionable at best. If he attacks me, am I to ignore it?»

«If he attacks you, his head shall answer for it,» Yeliif said. «So the King of Kings has ordered. So shall it be.»

«So shall it be,» Abivard echoed. If Sharbaraz really meant that—more to the point, if Sharbaraz convinced Tzikas he really meant that—all would be well. If not, the Videssian was already trying to find a way out of the order. Abivard would have bet on the latter.

«The King of Kings is most determined in this matter,» the eunuch said, perhaps thinking along with him, «and has made his determination perfectly clear to Tzikas.»

«Tzikas listens to Tzikas, no one else.» Abivard held up his hand before Yeliif could reply. «Never mind. He hasn't managed to kill me yet, no matter how often he's betrayed me. I expect I can survive him a while longer. What seems to matter here, though, is why Sharbaraz is insisting we both stay alive and don't try to do each other in. You've said you know.»

«I do,» Yeliif agreed. «And as I have also said before, it is not my place to enlighten you as to the intentions of the King of Kings. He shall do that himself when he judges the time ripe. Since I have delivered his message and been assured you understand it, I shall take my leave.» He did exactly that, sliding away as gracefully as an eel.

Abivard closed the door after him and turned to Roshnani. «So much for Dhegmussa,» he said with a shrug.

«Yeliif was right: the idea was worth trying,» she answered. They both paused in some surprise at the idea of admitting that the beautiful eunuch had been right about anything. Roshnani went on: «I wonder as much as you do about what's important enough to be worth keeping Tzikas alive. I can't think of anything that important.»