Lord of the Sky (The Young Ancients: Timon) (13 page)

Taman turned it on and squealed a bit, holding up her small fist, a nimbus of death around it. She didn't leave it on, putting the ingot away before anyone could steal it from her. She was smart enough to know that her new toy could be taken away if she didn't use it right. Maybe even bright enough to understand it wasn't really a toy at all.

Tor laughed a bit, which actually had a relaxed quality to it for once, instead of sounding like he was secretly baffled about the whole world. It got almost everyone else to follow along at the same time. It probably seemed strange to most of the adults that Guide, a fourteen or fifteen year old man would have sent such a thing for the little girl, but Timon knew that Taman had baked some cookies for him some months back. A Conserina doing something like that for a poor backcountry boy had a real impact. He probably wasn't even lobbying for a future marriage, like the nobles would think, but was just trying to be a good friend, and give her gifts that would be impressive enough to match her perceived station.

With that, and some hugs being passed out to various people, a small group was able to free themselves without being sent to the kitchen to help with the dishes. Tor, being good to his word, stayed, and actually headed that direction to help Maggie with the next meal. The rest of his family was headed back to Two Bends, having a celebration with his oldest brother's family that evening. Tal and his wife had some little kids now, two of them, so it made sense. No one loved Noram Day like small children.

Petra and Judy actually managed to find a task for themselves that would take them to Printer. From the hesitation at the start of the sentence, Timon realized that Petra was going to head there by way of County Ward first, most likely. That was fine, since the Count and Countess clearly weren't actual traitors. It was so obvious that they couldn't be that the ruse was most likely going to fail, but that wasn't his job to worry about, as long as they weren't going to get themselves killed doing it. Even then. They were adults after all.

Gerent got ready to go around with him, but Count Lairdgren moved in and patted him on the back.

"Sorry, but we need you back in Grenwyn for the celebration tonight. Everyone wants to meet you. I won't order you to come, if it makes you uncomfortable, but it would be nice having you. I didn't know that you'd have plans..." Then he stared at Timon, with a smile that he clearly didn't mean.

Tim waved his right hand gently.

"I can muddle through, but I expect you for the wedding Gerent. You too, Grandfather." At least he really meant it with one of them. That didn't seem to be lost on the Count, who sighed and shook his head ever so slightly.

That meant that, about fifteen minutes later, he had one of his new craft up, since it was more comfortable, and settled into the pilots chair with Trice along side of him, and Sherri Bonner in the back. She didn't explain why she was coming at all, but had moved with them when they walked out. It wasn't until they were halfway to Barony Coltress that he worked it out, based on the fact that she just sat, not speaking.

"Oh, you're here as our chaperone? That makes sense, Trice being a well known wanton." He was playing, but his newly intended bride made a hurt face. It wasn't totally fake, which surprised him.

"That's a bit mean, Tim. I may not fit your country rules perfectly, but I'm no worse than most that way. In fact I've been too busy to have a proper complement of lovers for a while now."

Sherri looked away, clearly thinking that a real fight was about to start. It probably would have, if he cared at all about things like that.

He didn't.

"Well, you can sleep with anyone you want. I was actually thinking it a good trait, really. I'm not sure how Tor will react... You can probably get Gerent to go along with you. The man really needs to boost his self-esteem. I don't think he's adapted to his new position yet really." That got him to turn and look at Sherri.

"Speaking of which, you should make a play there Sherilyn. He's older than you are
and
a Countier. Right now he holds the purse strings on about five percent of the wealth in Noram, and I think Tor is doing some magic on him to make him taller and probably fix some of his physical problems. If you get with him now, you can be in place later when everyone wants him. Plus, how often do you get to date a midget? That alone should have you knocking on his door later tonight, if you're an adventurous sort." His eyes stayed locked to the front for most of it, since he was flying, but there was no gasp or denial of interest from the back seat. It would be rude after all. Instead there was silence for a bit and then a rather rational answer.

"That makes sense. Should I send a message to that end with one of you? I don't want to steal your boyfriend Trice, but if your future husband is recommending him to both of us, he has to be a good person, doesn't he?"

"Damn straight he is." Trice turned to look back at the girl who was some ten feet behind her in a rather soft looking gray leather chair. There were ten of them, all facing front, but only in two rows with lots of room around them. The rest of the craft was empty space, but left large, about fifty feet left behind the last row of seating. "He's one of the best people
ever
. I have to agree with Tim on that score, you should get in early before all the other noble girls catch on to what he's going to be. I can pass an invitation along for you if you like? I wouldn't wait too long. Maybe ask if he'd like to come to the wedding with you tomorrow?"

They chatted about that while Tim looked at the map on his Austran handheld. He vaguely knew where Barony Coltress was, but had never been there himself. It was a little strange, but Trice pointed to her right after about an hour of flying.

"Over there. That's their city. They don't have a wall, but the rivers around it make a natural barrier. The Palace is in the middle there. I think we can land in the back..." There was concern there, but Timon just caused the craft to shrink by about half. It was still big, but now they'd have plenty of space.

Since no one came out to throw rocks at them or scream for them not to land, it seemed safe enough. The silver mirror sheen of the craft was in his style, and it was close enough to what he normally flew that Collette didn't seem agitated when she walked out onto the back steps with half a dozen servants, being joined a few minutes later by the Baron himself. He was a tall and good looking man, with blond hair and blue eyes like his daughter. His clothing was bright and festive, as was Collette's, but the rest of the people were in plain black, so it was hard to tell if they were the wait staff for meals, or guards. There were three women and three men, all decently large, so that
probably
meant the latter.

Tim let the craft hover about a foot above the ground and opened the door slowly, waving to the people that stood on the back steps so that they wouldn't worry overly. It wasn't an invasion after all, just a visit.

Even with all that, the guards produced weapons as he stepped out, which got Collette to go wide eyed.

"Timon! Is everything alright? I wasn't expecting you. Who's with you?"

He noticed several things, almost at one time. The Baron and Collette had come out of the house themselves, not letting the craft that almost certainly had friends in it be met by the guards alone, which is what they would have done if there had been a real attack. They were seriously interested in who he had with him however, but again, if they suspected an armed battle group, they wouldn't be meeting them in the open like they were.

That meant they had information of a threat, but it wasn't anything that they thought would be
real
, just annoying.

He nodded, getting the basic idea then.

"I have Ducharina Patricia Morgan and Baronetta Sherilyn Bonner with me. I also have a Truth amulet, wait a second." He had to fish under his shirt for it, but pulled it out and reaffirmed who he was, then waved for the others to come out through the shield window of the craft. It didn't take long for them to all be cleared.

"So, has your mother escaped from her rest facility then?" It was a bit of a thing, since the woman had been covertly attacking Bonita for years, breaking her heart using players and bribable nobles, until the woman was convinced she was ugly and useless to the world.

When Count Lairdgren and Tor learned of it, they worked together to punish the woman, by using a tiny disguise amulet to make her look like an ugly person and having her locked up in a country facility for people that believed untrue things, like they were secretly a lovely Baroness, when all evidence said otherwise, so the lady could relax and hopefully learn not to be evil. So of course she'd escape, eventually. All she ever really had to do was turn the amulet off and walk out. She might not know how it worked, but it was clearly magic, and that meant it most likely would be structured in the familiar pattern. It wouldn't have fooled him for long, Timon didn't think. Or even Collette.

Carol Coltress wasn't that bright, thankfully.

The Baron made a face and Trice turned to stare at him hard, as if he were saying something out of turn, but Collette just let a strong breath out and shook her head, clearly trying to deny the whole situation.

"Yes. Four days ago. No one knows how she did it, but this seems a likely place for her to head. That or to her mother's barony. It doesn't seem that she learned much, in her time away." The woman smoothed her dress, which was a slightly gray colored blue, and long, covering her from neck to shoe. Those were black and shiny, with gold buckles on them. It wasn't real. Not any of it. "Have you come to visit us? I was planning to come back down to the Capital next week. Ice sales are up a little this time of year, but not so much that the staff can't handle it."

Timon shrugged.

"You're both due in the Capital tomorrow. An official wedding came up. Actually we should grab you today Collette. We can take the Baron with us too, if you'd like, sir? That or pick you up in the morning. If you want to come. You're invited, but only Collette is actually required for this, I think." He smiled, since she wasn't really needed for that at all, but she was the only person that could actually get into Tor's vault, other than his brother, who was reluctant to bother with it if he didn't have to.

The woman made a face that said she was a bit disgruntled, then stared at Sherri for some reason.

"Do you know what this is all about or do I have to try and pry it from Lord Tightlips here?" She waved at Timon, as if that made sense at all. He told people almost everything they wanted to know after all.

The schoolgirl stood a little straighter, her mouse blond colored hair and blue eyes almost sparkling through sheer effort of will.

"Timon Baker is set to marry Patricia Morgan tomorrow. It's being held at the Palace in the Capital. The King's Palace, not Tor's." She seemed almost proud of it for some reason.

Instead of seeming shocked, the Baron nodded at Trice and smiled gently.

"That's
a
solution at least. Except that now, with a husband, you'll eventually have to tell him all of your secrets." It could have been an offhand comment about life and being a noble, but it wasn't. Timon could tell that so easily the man almost would have been better off not trying to be circumspect about it at all.

Trice just shook her head.

"I'm almost certain that he already knows them." She didn't bother explaining why that would be.

Collecting Collette was remarkably easy, once that bit of news was out and it only took her about an hour to pack and get ready. Her father wanted to send along armed guards, but she waved that away almost without a thought.

"No, thank you. I have my shield and that will be enough I think. She's my step-mother, and while we don't get along, I doubt that she's developed magical talents of note in the last six months. Or even a cohort of guardsmen to aid her. No, we need to watch for poison, slander campaigns and for her to force her way back into this place, using right of marriage, not for physical attack. Besides that, I have Timon and Patricia to guard me." She winked at Sherilyn then. "Baronetta Bonner too. You have a shield and weapons on you, right?" She was clearly joking, but the girl nodded.

"Tor gave them to me. Just an air-lance however, for weapons, that and a small cutter, just in case need arises. A shield and flying gear, as well as military Tor-Shoes." She seemed pretty proud of her collection of stuff. Not that Tim would blame her. It was about five thousand gold worth of things that most people couldn't have paid for, even if they had the coin.

Collette looked at her father then and gave him a tiny bow.

"There you go father. This small group of people is probably better armed and protected than most military battle groups. We should be fine."

"I just worry dear. As to the wedding tomorrow, I'd be most pleased to attend. Would it be possible to be picked up in the morning? I can pay, of course."

Timon shrugged.

"That makes no sense at all. That, or an evil kind of cold merchant logic. Hold a wedding and then
insist
you come, only to charge you for passage? Heh. I should have thought of it sooner. Seriously, Collette can arrange for that I think." She'd taken to arranging the schedules for his company. It was nearly the perfect way to spy on a lot of movements in the kingdom. She sold the information on the side and passed it to her father, but Timon didn't really mind. She hadn't even asked for a salary yet, after all.

The very pretty blonde woman nodded and suggested that it could be done, if she could find someone close enough to make the trip.

Sherri smiled demurely, or at least made a pretty good effort toward that end.

"I could do it, if I had a Fast Craft. I can fly one now. Tiera taught me, I've practiced daily for the last month."

Timon looked at her, a bit of annoyance creeping into it. He tried to hide it. She wasn't being
bad
, sleeping with his sister. It was his problem, not hers after all. After making his mind go clear for a few seconds he pointed to the craft.

"The front trunk inside has some. You have to work for me, so no fair taking fares for free... Or at least outside the rules. We can go over that later. You don't get paid unless you're working." Morgan did, and Mark, but the rest of them just got a percentage of the coin they brought in. It was normally a good bit, if they had work at all.

Sherri clapped, which was a very Ali like thing to do. They were roommates at school, so it felt right.

"Thank you! Now I can go and visit other lands and things on my breaks from school."

It was a good point. Really, they needed to see if someone would go to Austra for them and see to things there. Just before he started to mention it, Collette moved into the craft and planted herself in one of the back seats, her eyes appreciative.

"This looks a bit different. Is it something Tor made?"

That started a full explanation, most of which took place as they headed to the house in the Capital. Trice did the honors there, but without asking she grabbed two of the amulets from the back, put one in her side pouch and handed one off to Collette.

"Timon, can you make this larger again? The full size?" The woman ignored her bit of implied theft and clearly expected him to as well. He pointed at the pocket on her side lazily.

"Collette works with me. Are you signing on too? It makes sense to keep things in the family, but if you're going to have one you need to be part of the concern."

Her mouth popped open and she actually looked slightly annoyed with him for a few seconds, then she scowled.

"Tor always just lets me have things like this." There was a hint of hurt in the words. It was almost cute.

"Tor is
rich
and hates dealing with finances or confrontation. You might be entitled to things like that tomorrow, but for now you need to ask. It's only fair."

"Oh. Sorry." The words were a bit grumpy, but he didn't back down, just waiting to see what she'd do. It didn't take long.

"I suppose I could sign up in theory. Just piloting?"

"It probably won't come up really, but that's a bit better. I'm not mean that way, but I sometimes have plans for things, so please at least check with me first before doing things like that."

That caused a strained silence, which lasted until he pushed the moving craft to reform, growing many times longer and several wider. It was the size of a small warehouse, about a hundred feet by two hundred, when he was done, and nearly twenty feet high. Collette actually stood up and walked to the back, her eyes wide.

"Put in a bed, possibly a water tanks and a shower and this place could be a home for a family of six."

Not having gotten to try it out yet, Timon focused, making a single bed appear first, about halfway back. Then a bathing chamber and a kitchen space. Sherri looked at the silver bit she was holding in her hand and smiled suddenly.

"Timon, you're my boyfriend now, aren't you? I'm pretty sure you just bought my affection for a
long
time. This is incredible." There was a teasing quality to it, playful, like she both didn't mean it and did, at the same time. It was a pretty good gift, but that was part of why he was holding her to the deal they'd made. A lot of people would want something like this really.

Collette chuckled softly, but after looking around resettled in the seat she'd started in.

"Brilliant. Does it have a way of getting water?"

"Pumps that can be set up, like the new cottages, if you're near water. A holding tank is a good idea, but I hadn't thought of it. I think we can do it anyway, by making a small room for it and letting it fill with water from the outside. We should try that later. The heating and cooling will only work on the ground, or over the ocean. That's never as good. The temperatures are too cool in the water."

He shrunk the whole thing again as they moved over the Capital, mainly because no one had seen anything flying that was even half as large as what they were in and he didn't want the population to panic. He started to do that at least, but then stopped, his hand still on the control. Instead he started to pulse alternating red and green colors along the length of the thing, glowing brightly enough that people would easily be able to see it. Trice, who was watching out the front widow seemed to work out what he was doing and pointed it out to the others.

"We're just a friendly Noram Day decoration. Good idea. Let people see this as harmless the first time they get a good look at it. Then we land in front of your house and everyone will know-"

Timon grinned and rolled his eyes for a second.

"Then everyone will know that
Tor
did it again. Well, it
could
be worse. He could have come along so that the first person anyone saw when they got out was him. This way everyone will just assume I'm Terry and leave it at that." It wasn't fair, but it also wasn't that big of an issue. It bothered him from time to time, living in his brother's shadow, being blocked by it in some ways so that no one could see him for who he really was. On the other hand, the game wasn't over yet. They had thousands of years, at least potentially, for that to change and Tor was already spending most of his time working in a
bakery
. It was almost as if he were trying to even the playing field on purpose.

Even his having Timon do some of his work was kind of doing that, wasn't it? His brother probably didn't see it that way, but the effect was more or less the same.

They settled gently in front of his place, which was empty. There was no reason for Mona, his cleaning lady and cook, to come in that day. After all, she had a family and both he and Gerent had been gone.

Trice started to stand when a brilliant blue light flashed on and off from her hip. She pulled out her new communications device and spoke instantly, her voice polite and professional sounding.

"Patricia Morgan, how may I help you?"

"Hey Trice! This is Alphonse, we were wondering if you knew anything about a giant fireworks display thing over the Capital? We aren't certain if it's supposed to be there or not, but it was headed toward Tor's?" He sounded amused by the idea at least.

Trice chuckled and winked at Tim.

"That's one of the new Fast Cargo and pleasure craft that Timon made. You should come and see it, if you get a chance. Or we could bring it to you. If, you know, there's any sweet caramel pudding in it for us."

"That second one. I do think I heard mention of such a pudding coming a bit later and
might
be able to procure some. You're expected here in a bit anyway. Tim too."

Timon thought about it, but it was doable, if he made the craft smaller. The landing area outside the Palace wasn't that big, and he really didn't want to freak out the Royal Guards overly. Who knew what they might get up to, if he annoyed them too much.

"We have Sherri Bonner and Collette Coltress with us as well. They're in on the planning committee I think, to protect me from your mother mainly." It was a good idea, but for some reason Sherri jumped up and hugged him from behind, making a happy sound. Collette was far more subdued, but given everything she was probably thinking up real things to do already.

"Oh? Good, bring them both, please. How long do you think it will take? A few minutes?"

That was an over statement if they left directly, but Trice shook her head no for some reason.

"Two hours. We have arrangements to make first and might as well come marginally prepared."

"Got it, see you then! Happy Noram Day!"

They all repeated that, and then Patricia cut the line.

"Shall we go in? It won't be more comfortable, since this is actually pretty nice, but it seems more normal, don't you think?"

It did really. His place wasn't locked, though it had a solid latch on the door. There just wasn't anything inside that would be worth taking. True someone might steal the whole thing, if they knew to take it down using the amulet that hung on the central post, but other than that no one could harm it at all. It smelled slightly of citrus inside, from some cleaning product or another, and other than the three people sitting at his table, clearly waiting for lunch it was pretty much the way he'd left it.

The girls seemed a bit surprised to see him, but he recognized them as Mona's daughters. The older one was named Stara, he thought. They hadn't been around that much when he was, for some reason. To keep them from bothering him he thought, rather than any concern for their well being. He was friendly after all.

The man jumped up, his face looking scared, as if using Timon's place was against the rules or something. It probably was, a little bit, if he was going to be a jerk about it, but he hadn't been using it and it was probably a bit nicer than what they had in town. He could be nice for a single holiday.

"Happy Noram Day!" That got the women with him to say the same and the girls to relax, saying it back quickly enough.

Bowing a bit he looked at the bearded man in front of him.

"Millert?"

"Yes, sir. Your Lordship, I mean." He wiped his brow, which still seemed dry and then did the same with his hand, against the leg of his plain brown canvas trousers. "We were just..."

What he wanted to say was lost in the sound of Mona coming out of the kitchen. She was a bit plain looking, but her teeth were all her own and had a decently white color to them, having been replaced with a healing item in several cases. She was in plain brown herself, but had a pretty red ribbon in her hair. In her hands were three focus stone trays of food, balanced on her arms.

"What's the noise about...
Oh
." She nearly froze, but had to keep moving or lose the center tray. Momentum was important in situations like that, after all.

Timon felt almost at a loss for words, since these people had clearly and knowingly invaded his space and were, by the looks of it, eating his food. On the other hand, he hadn't gotten Mona a holiday bonus or a gift. That was pretty rude really.

"Ah! Wait a few seconds. Be right back..." He ran out the door, going to where he'd left his craft set up, knowing that he probably shouldn't have and jogged back to where his trunks were. He got a single amulet out, knowing that it would be too much for a serving woman really, and also pulled two silver coins and a gold. When he got back in everyone was making awkward conversation.

"I work doing hauling mostly, working the ice manufactory, ma'am." This was said to Collette, who clearly had been asking where she knew him from.