On Astral Tides: From Humble Freelancer To Astral Emperor

Three Hundred And Seventy-Five

“Thanks. I appreciate it. Yes, I know it’s a pain, us only having just got back, but the situation has become… complicated.” As I finished up explaining to Fujiwara-san just what I needed from him, I turned to Shiro, who had been ringing Haru-san and explaining to her that she was in charge of my Territory and hers for the duration of this emergency. She gave me the thumbs-up, showing that Haru-san could handle it, which was a weight off my shoulders.

“I do think we shall need-need further support.” Shaeula said. “Brother Shaeraggo is still at quite-quite the loose end, so we shall rope him in. He will not-not refuse me, not when he is so eagerly trying to master another element, as is sister-in-law Selensha. With aid-aid from Kana and the twins, they may succeed, as Grulgor has. Anna can continue to guard the Spring, though my concerns there are fading, as the Fae Stone Wards are mostly-mostly complete, and the Spring is crawling with Way-Wardens and the many-many plantkin of Primal Forest.”

Speaking of Primal Forest… “We need to speak to him as well. While matters here are being prepared. First, we need to establish who is heading out. Shiro, I’ll need you for your buffs.” I tapped my Eye. “Worst case, we might need to buff it again.”

“Are you sure?” Eri said softly. “Last time you weren’t able to control it and were unconscious for a while.”

“It’s a last resort, but it’s a tool we might need in our box. Although, my Eye isn’t infallible.” There was always the danger any information it presented could be wrong. “Shiro isn’t a liability in combat since she has Tan, so…”

“Of course I’m not, Aki!” Shiro pumped her fists, hyped up. “Besides, I was a bit sad I missed out on your last trip.” She smirked. “But… what are we going to do? It’s not like we can stay in the United Kingdom long-term, for all the reasons you mentioned before. Nor can you kidnap the Princess like those Americans tried with you.”

“Yes. It’s a mess. Really, it’s the worst sort of battle for us. In Kyoto, even on the defensive, it was a straight fight of power versus power. I’m confident in that, everyone works really hard to grow stronger. We even have Tan’s seal of approval.” I smiled at that. “But here, while we might know the enemy, everything is obscured by fog. Max Power. Mary Stuart. The Favour of Nuada Airgetlám.”

Shaeula smiled. “One-one of the oldest Kings of the Tuatha Dé Dannan. Long before I, or even-even my father, were born. It is said that we are some of the descendants of the Tuatha Dé. The Fae are pulled from many-many lines, all mingled together. We have Dvergr such-such as Bjarki, from the cold lands across the far-far northern seas, those descended from Fomorians, such-such as Duke Formor, though many-many of those joined the Unseelie, as well as countless others descended from Kings, spirits and other-other mystical creatures.”

“That always makes me wonder. If the Gods are real, but they have thousands or more worlds to look after, how are they in our myths?” I scratched my head, thinking, and it was Tan that answered lazily, taking over Shiro for a moment.

“Perhaps in some cases, when this world was young, more malleable, some Divine beings may have come themselves, aiming to claim the world. But such jewels are seldom uncontested.” She snorted. “Perhaps Nuada, of the Endless Knot, did in fact bestride these lands millennia ago, and you are descended from his power. More likely, myths and doings from other, more primal worlds that make up the foundation, the Anchor of the Endless Knot, have mixed in with the understanding of this world. I myself am Divine, though a small being compared to my father, it pains me to admit, and to those above, I, without even a Territory of the Sixth to my name, am but a small ant. Yet even on this world there are tales of when the Buddha walked on by. It is rather vexing.” She curled Shiro’s lips unpleasantly, her ruby eyes glowering. “Most likely the being you know as Nuada, if he is indeed your ancestor, would be one of the many proxies of the Endless Knot. Creating life, seeding worlds, gathering aether, adherence and…” her lips shut, as she paused. “… suffice it to say, many worlds and many myths blend together. There is truth at the core, but what is true matters less than what is believed.”

Tan really likes explaining, despite saying she’s not allowed to. Really, she’s more of an Exposition-san than Ortlinde was, though if I tried to tell her that she’d probably try and set me on fire… “Thanks Tan. So, Endless Knot? Is that the pantheon Nuada would be in? Do you know every pantheon?”

“Of course I know the major pantheons. The Six Paths have fought against all of them, and had alliances with many, over the endless seas of time in the upper Astral.” She seemed proud of that, and for a moment I wondered what her crimson eyes had seen over the countless eons of time, and whether we too would walk that path, where our lives were measured in millennia, not years. “There are smaller ones that lurk in the furthest corners, hiding, biding their time, and ones that have fallen from grace. I do not claim to know every single one… but all those who have joined the war with the…” she winced. “No. that I truly cannot speak of. But is this digression necessary? Should you not be making haste?”

“She’s right.” Eri said. “Do you have time for this?”

“No.” I shook my head. “Eri, obviously you can’t come. Will you be all right on your own?”

She sighed, before nodding. “Of course. I’ll just prevail on Kana, she can look after me. She should consider it trying to get in my good graces.” She paused, thinking for a moment. “Akio, what are you going to do? Really?”

As I typed out a text to Kana, explaining her duties in our absence, I explained the plan. When I was done, Eri nodded as best she could. “I see. That’s very much like you, Akio. But do you think she’ll thank you for it? I don’t…”

“Does it matter?” I said with a bitter smile. “Nobody said saving the world was easy, or everyone would praise us for it.”

Moments later my phone rang, and it was Kana. Surprised, I picked up. “Hey, what’s up?”

“Don’t what’s up me!” Kana said, a bit irritated. “I told my teacher that it was a family emergency. What do you mean you’re going back to the UK? And taking the others? You’ve only just got back, and I was looking forward to spending some time with you this evening…”

“Sorry.” I apologised. “But when I’ve resolved this mess and everything’s settled, things should calm down for a while, and I’ll make it up to you. So just think about what you want, all right?”

There was a along silence, before she spoke. “You’d better, all right? I’m not trying to be one of those annoying, clingy girlfriends, but… I do miss you. And I want to go out to cafes, arcades, go shopping for clothes, do fun couple things. But I guess this is important. All right, I’ll look after Eri-chan, it’ll give us time to get to know each other better. Will you be gone long?”

“That’s the rub. We can’t afford to put our own lives on hold, even for this. So I’m hoping my new plan will either put an end to matters quickly, or if not, at least put us in a Kyoto-style position, where we can respond if required from Tokyo.”

“I see, well, I’ll take care of the training school and Eri-chan, so you do what you need to do. I won’t tell you to bring me back a souvenir, just bring everyone home safely. All right?”

Smiling at Kana’s kindness, I agreed. Once we were done with that, I made a few more phone calls. “I wish we could take Yasaka-san, but even with all our healing, there’s a limit to the backlash we can put him though. The last thing we want to do is damage our best source of information in general, we’ll have to rely on what we can see for ourselves. So, the team should be me, Shiro, Shaeula, Hyacinth, and Grulgor. All of us can handle ourselves, and access both the Boundary and the Material. But in addition to that, I think we will bring a special guest.” I smiled, having had an idea. I wish I could upgrade my Thrones further, but at two and a half million ether baseline, and three times that for the rush-build, they’ll have to wait.

“In that case, we need-need to return to the Boundary.” Shaeula advised, and I nodded.

“Shiro, Eri, keep making the arrangements please. And ask Haru-san…” once my instructions were given, we dived into the Boundary, and soon found ourselves in a meeting with Shaeula’s brother and sister, Ulfuric, Moira and the plantkin Ala, who had come from her work at the Spring. On our side we had me, Shaeula, Hyacinth and also Asha, who was smiling gently, looking contented and unconcerned. I’m glad someone is…

“So, we need-need your aid again.” Shaeula said, after a brief explanation.

“Little sister, I do have my own-own matters to attend to.” Shaeraggo said, exasperated.

“Are they as important as this-this?” Shaeula snorted in response, before lowering her voice, her tone grateful. “I am thankful you have been aiding Akio and me-me, brother. It is enough to wipe away the vile-vile taste of your behaviour at our reunion.” She held that over his head and he shuffled nervously. “As for you, Anna, I could not-not be more pleased at your aid. You are a fine older sister.” At that Shaeranna preened happily, her green eyes sparkling. “The time is nearly here when oversight of the Spring will be less-less important, as the defences are finally secure. As for Akio’s Territory, when we complete the next stage of our expansion, again, the need-need to protect it will diminish. So, please, just for now, your aid is vital.” She looked at them earnestly. “Besides, I do not-not expect your aid for free. Even between friends and kin, there should-should be reciprocation. Brother, you and Selensha should surely master an element soon-soon. I have instructed Kana and the twins to aid you, and if Grulgor can manage, you surely-surely can.”

“Have no fear, Ula, I will set aside, surely drop everything I am tasked with, to leap to your aid!” Shaeranna declared boldly.

“Good.” I said, but Shaeraggo looked a little hesitant, before speaking.

“Sister, have you told him of our father’s request?” he said, and I looked at Shaeula, who shrugged apologetically.

“Now is not-not the time for it. Akio has much on his mind with this dire-dire situation. But…” she turned to me, her expression complicated, a mixture of worry and anticipation. “We can put it off no-no longer. My father, Prince Shaetanao of the Beastkin, wishes to meet-meet my consort, and the one who reclaimed the Spring with me.” She paused. “He is more hot-tempered than Shaeraggo, and more-more doting than Anna. The cold political insight of my eldest brother too, and the strength-strength of Shaetourach. Father embodies them all. It wounded his heart to find-find himself manoeuvred into having to abandon me, and now-now I have returned, he has become rather… irritating? Is that the word? Yes-yes, perhaps. But he loves me dearly, and I appreciate him as my father, and want him to like-like you, Akio. So when this is all done…”

“I get it. I’ll meet him.” I promised.

“This is hardly relevant, you are in great haste, no?” Moira said, pursing her lips like an overworked secretary. “From a defensive standpoint you are correct, the Spring of Clear Reflections is almost entirely reintegrated back into the Seelie Court now. It is a foolish risk to slacken that defence now. The same for here. I have seen and approved of the plans. Now, with the Rhyming Trees so strengthened…”

Ala perked up at that, unsure of why she was called here as the proxy of Primal Forest.

“… we can push ahead with our planned expansion. But when things are going well, carelessness and complacency are the greatest enemy.”

“Yes, which is why…” I gestured to Asha. “… our intention is to be together.” I said to Ala, who looked at her curiously.

“You have shared a Kiss then, Dryad?”

“Long ago, when he saved me, I knew he was the one. But now my Tree flourishes, I feel the need to fruit, to bring new life to replace the lost sisters by which my survival was paid for by stealing their own lives.” Her smile was melancholic, but her yellow eyes were resolved. “As one who watched the Spring die, all life becoming little more than seedbeds for the Myconids, and as one who now watches the Spring bloom anew, I find myself wishing to be a part of it. But…” she reached out, taking my hand. “… not alone.”

“I see. I am pleased for you.” Ala bobbed her head made from vines, before peering at me. “Your aspect of nature, of wood, it has grown stronger, I see.”

“And it’ll grow stronger still.” I promised. “I hope you can see my commitment to nature. I am a human, so I want and expect progress, but I won’t wilfully destroy and defile the planet, nor the Boundary and lower Astral, to do so. In fact, we’ll use progress in science and mortal engineering to make a world that is better for everyone, while being beautiful and full of nature as well.” Some of the plans we are designing for the new buildings for the land Hinata bought for me are stunning. Not cheap at all, and they might even require some genuine mortal engineering to work, but nature and technology together…

“Japan will surely-surely bloom as the Spring does.” Shaeula promised, backing my words. “One day, we would be more-more than happy to show you around. But for now…”

“Is it possible to get another Ring Gate? I know that last time Primal Forest was extremely generous, but…”

Ala paused at my words, her vines twisting into an awkward expression. “The Mushrooms for the Gate are not easy to grow. We do not charge great price for them simply because we are greedy.” Shaeula, Shaeranna and Shaeraggo all made disbelieving noises at that, and I motioned for them to be silent, and let Ala continue.

“It is a rare, secret spot, where spatial, water and earth elements are in tune, where the mushrooms grow, drinking in the three energies. And their growth is slow. Otherwise, would not the Seelie Court have many more of these convenient portals?” Ala said, and Anna nodded at that.

“I see. So it’s not feasible?” I asked.

“Growth cannot be rushed.” She shook her head, and I frowned.

“Well, that’s a problem, but not an insurmountable one. How long before we could conceivably get another?”

“They grow slowly, as I have said, and already prince Shaeraggo took two sets as well.” Ala said, and he looked down, nodding.

“In that case…” There’s one other thing I can try. It’s an extremely long shot, but I’ve seen proof it’s possible… my gaze strayed to one of my companions briefly. “… I’m sorry for taking up your time. At least the Spring and Territory will be safe. This is farewell for now, we have to make haste.” With that we departed, before leaving, Hyacinth taking care of one small, important task…

********

“This jet is cramped, I’m afraid.” The pilot said. “But it’s also fast and has enough fuel to reach your destination.” I was seated in a private jet, a much humbler one than we had flown to the UK in before. Shaeula was on my lap, Hyacinth and Shiro beside me, while Grulgor was crammed into another seat. The final occupant was hunched down, nervous and sweating, so I spoke to her, reassuring her that we meant her no harm. Not so long as she does her job, anyway. Seeing her gave me complicated feelings, and reminded me of Nie Ling, who was still in prison, though she wasn’t being harshly treated. That’s another issue I need to resolve. But not yet…

“As Haru-san’s Chosen Hero, since Haru-san is my vassal, you obey my orders, right?” I said in Mandarin, and the woman nodded. She was short-haired, with typical Chinese features. She wasn’t beautiful, but she certainly would have attracted a certain sort of attention, looking like a well-to-do student. “You owe us this, Chen Na.”

At my mention of her name, she shuddered, but nodded. She was the Chinese Chosen that Haru-san had captured, and her abilities with barriers would be useful. “I will do as you order, lord!” She said, her expression downcast. Even so, I felt no sympathy for her, but still had my worries. She was involved in more direct actions than Nie Ling, up until her death anyway. But… she is dead. Haru’s Throne restored her just as the unlife the Judge of Death granted her was fading, so… do sins persist after death, is she is a new person, or should she be judged for her crimes when previously alive? Those were issues for another time, definitely, but it made for awkward relationships.

“So, Aki, what’s the play?” Shiro asked, and everyone looked curious.

“Simple. We are landing in northern France and from there, Fujiwara-san has arranged a small boat for us. We’ll cross into England secretly, we should be able to avoid detection easily enough with our abilities. From there… well, we can start by apprehending Maxwell Power, or whoever he claims to be. Then we can turn our attention to Mary Stuart and her goons.”

“Won’t the British be handling this themselves?” Shiro pressed, and Shaeula snorted.

“I do not-not know these people, for I was not-not able to go with Akio, but it seems to me he hardly believes they can-can do as they desire, no?”

“That’s right.” I looked down at my silent phone. “If Max Power is as dangerous as I think he is, and they can’t use any Chosen which might have been in contact with him, which is most of them… I don’t think it’s that easy for them. But I’m awaiting updates from the Prime Minister or hopefully Eleanor herself. As for us…” I looked at the group, smiling. Moments later, the plane was taxiing for take-off. “… we have a unique set of abilities. With my Eye, Shaeula’s winds, the barriers from Chen Na and more, we are perfectly positioned for capturing and interrogating them. It’s a shame we can’t bring Yasaka-san as well, but we can always have him flown over later if it becomes necessary. For now, he needs to rest to recover from his hard use, and when we capture them, we’ll buy some time.”

“So why the secrecy?” Shiro pressed. “It’s not like they will refuse our help.”

“I don’t trust anything about the situation.” I confirmed, the rumblings of the engines intensifying as the plane took off. “Without knowing what’s below the Tower of London, and whether Eleanor’s teammates are indeed prepared to betray her, working with Max Power, Mary Stuart, or indeed someone else who has remained hidden, I think we should go it alone. Hell, even if we can confirm some of her companions are trustworthy, that would be a help. But we can’t take forever doing this. We have our own problems. So…”

“A covert operation.” Shiro mused. “Got it, Aki. It’s a little exciting… and it’s also my first trip abroad.” She smiled.

“Grulgor says this is no sightseeing trip. Grul thinks you should be ready to fight.” He rumbled, and Shiro snorted.

“Guess you haven’t mastered thinking yet. Any time away with Aki, there’s always time for fun.” Hyacinth and Shaeula nodded, agreeing with her, and Grulgor shrugged his massive shoulders, looking rather dapper in his suit, if you liked muscles, of course.

“We’ll just look like tourists, and Fujiwara-san and Ichijou-san have a lot of contacts in Britain who have never met Maxwell Power, so they can aid us if we need them. This plane is also fitted with state-of-the-art technology to allow mobile connections, most business jets are nowadays it seems. So we can get information as we go. That’ll change our plans going forward, depending on what we hear…”

“Should we not-not bring Eleanor in on this?” Shaeula queried, and I frowned, troubled. I’m not sure on that one myself, but my instincts say not.

“For now, I think she’ll only rail against us if we suspect her allies again. The visions are indicative, but the Book of Providence is misleading, so I’m going back to first principles and scrapping everything we know, and only going by what we’ve learned. Max Power and Mary Stuart, as well as their organisations, are all as shady as hell, and I don’t trust her teammates yet. We’ll clear all those doubts away, and then we can work out how we’ll keep an eye on Eleanor’s safety in the future. For that, we’ll probably be relying on you, Hyacinth.”

Hyacinth frowned, but her violet eyes were resolute. “I shall dooo my best. No, I shall succeed, as this was a task yooou asked me to perform, Akio. There will be nooo failures!”

“If it works, it’ll prove incredibly useful in the future. If it doesn’t, well we have backup plans, and we have the flight to brainstorm ideas…”

As we talked and planned, several hours passing by, my phone rang, and I was disappointed to see it wasn’t Eleanor, but the British Prime Minister. On answering and giving our greetings, he got straight to the point. “I’m afraid we’ve hit some problems. We arrested the Silver Hands Foundation members and have been observing the followers of Mary Stuart, but…” he sounded embarrassed. “All of the so-called Choir and Judges, they seem to be ordinary believers, who had agreed to be decoys to distract us. Mary Stuart herself has vanished, and the soldiers watching her have been hospitalised. They should pull through, but without the aid of Healing, they won’t fight again.” He sighed.

“Troubling. But there’s only one place they can be headed.” I said, and the Prime Minister agreed.

“Yes, so we suspect. There’s a great deal we don’t understand about the other world the Queen calls Avalon, and you the Boundary. She might have retreated to her own lands there, not that we have found where she calls home, despite our efforts. Or…”

“More likely she’s after the Tower of London.” I mused. “It all comes back to that. Eleanor isn’t the prize, but she’ll be a collateral benefit.” If they have to break her Territory to seize the Tower, who would pass up the chance to destroy her Anchor and rip free her Divine Favour? But Mary Stuart doing that doesn’t fit Tsukuyomi’s visions, well, not all of them. I’m sure she’ll be confronting Eleanor, but… not alone, and unless… huh. No way. I had a very bad feeling all of a sudden. “Can you check one thing for me?” I asked, and the Prime Minister paused when he had heard what I had said.

“We have the information on file, from a census report. It stands to reason some of them would be, as one in twelve are, in England…” he said, troubled. “I’ll text you the findings.”

“So, what of Maxwell Power?” I asked, and he sighed.

“That is the second blunder. We lost him too. This time… there were deaths. We sent a team of SAS operatives to retrieve him, the operation should have been flawless, but… the bodycam footage was grim. Most of it was corrupted, but you can see…”

My phone beeped, indicating a video message. Opening it up I could see a grainy image of gunfire being blocked by a shining hand of silver, before that hand was thrust towards the person filming, and blood fogged the lens, but sounds of gunfire, explosions and violence could still be heard, until everything went still, and a large shadow, bigger than human, seemed to pass by, large foot casually stomping on something with the sound of breaking bones.

“A silver hand. That was Michael Silversmith’s Favour, right?” I said.

“DNA testing on the body should be back in a few hours. But dental records from the recovered body of Maxwell Power, which was at the location you said, match up. The time of death is around the same date in August as Michael Silversmith’s, though it’s hard to be certain due to the actions of insects and weathering…”

“So, the thing masquerading as Maxwell Power, be it a person or something else, has also gone missing. Considering he’s involved in poisoning the Princess to ruin her luck and invite misfortune, either she’s the goal, or something only she has access to is. In either case, there’s only one place he could be going…”

“Shit, this is going to be a four-way clusterfuck.” Shiro muttered, and Shaeula snorted her agreement.

“So, if I was to put in an official request for your help, would you come to Britain’s aid?” The Prime Minister asked. “I thank you for the intelligence, but if we can’t rely on our own Gods’ Chosen we will struggle to protect Eleanor.”

“Send a request to our Prime Minister, one leader to another, and we’ll look on it favourably, but obviously I can’t act without proper regard to the situation.” I lied, as we were already on route. “I’m sure that the Diet and the nobility will look at it quickly.”

“All right. I appreciate it, and so will her Majesty, I’m sure. This has been quite the trying time, I never expected when I took office this is the crisis I’d have to deal with…” I let him blow off some more steam, before hanging up.

“Look at Aki, our little liar.” Shiro laughed, before the look on my face stopped her. “I get it, you’re worried. But the Princess is in her castle, well, the Palace, right?” she continued. “Shouldn’t she be safe there? Even if Maxwell Power was able to take out a group of elite soldiers, the number of them in the Palace should be overwhelming…”

“Even so, I’m worried. If I wanted to draw her out, it’s easy enough. Just hit her Territory, alerting her to danger. She’d have to go herself, or risk losing all she’s built. Even if she doesn’t know about Conqueror and what will happen if another Chosen destroys her Anchor, she can’t afford to lose the area around the Tower, not if she won’t even let us help her. And if they send the other Chosen of Britain, who we don’t know are trustworthy…”

My phone beeped again, and all the names of the primary, second, third, fourth and fifth teams of Great Britain were sent to me, with census data. I thought so. Now, it doesn’t mean that they are traitors, just because of this, but it means Eleanor needs to be extremely cautious. Two in the main team, all but one in the second, and… I sent my concerns to Eleanor, and now, all we could do was wait…

********

“Finally!” I said with a sigh of relief, as my phone rang, and it was actually Princess Eleanor, at least according to the caller identification. Picking up, I greeted her, only to get a rather exasperated, argumentative lecture straight away. “Just what do you mean, accusing them of being in league with Mary Stuart? I told you, I trust them! Just because of their faith, you suspect the worst? I’m not impressed!”

“I’m just telling you to be extra cautious. Mary Stuart and all her followers have disappeared, leaving behind decoys to fool surveillance. People without ulterior motives don’t need to prepare such elaborate schemes.” I warned. “As for Max Power, or whoever is pretending to be him… he has proved he’s a threat. And all of your teammates have been working with his Foundation in some form or other.”

“But it’s all been charitable work and support for the cause.” Eleanor protested. “There’s been nothing sinister or selfish.”

“Maybe so, but what better way to hide ill-intentions than by masking it with aid and good deeds?” I pointed out. “What we know is that whoever is masquerading as Max Power is at least a murderer, poisoned you, and has now managed to kill a team sent to bring him in. And what could he be after? I can only think of two things. You… or the Tower of London.”

There was silence, before she answered me. “But I have to trust my allies. I can’t defend London alone, let alone Britain. You tell me, could you do everything alone?”

Beside me, Hyacinth’s expression was becoming murderous. Shaeula tried to calm her down as I continued trying to advise the Princess. “I understand that. I’m only asking you to wait for now, your Prime Minister is putting in a request for mutual aid with Japan. When Maxwell Power is captured, and we can sort out whether Mary Stuart is a threat, or just someone who speaks unpleasant words, then the danger goes down, and we can find out for certain. Eleanor, you have to believe that Max Power knows about the Tower. Mary Stuart certainly does, right? And I know you know of a reason why she would desire it strongly enough to get rid of you if you stand in her way.”

“But can I trust you, Akio?” she asked me piercingly, and at that Hyacinth could take it no longer, snatching the phone.

“You wooorthless trash! Akio is doooing everything he can to safeguard you, and you disrespect him sooo? Hyacinth is going to pull out your tongue and strangle yooou until you…” she squawked as Shaeula restrained her, and I retrieved my phone.

“Sorry about that.” I apologised.

“No, I see she is as feisty as ever.” Eleanor said softly. “You have to admit though, you have been good to me, with no reason for it I can see. So surely your words about Max Power can be returned to you? You could quite easily be fooling me.”

“Do you think that?” I asked, as Hyacinth raged behind me.

“Honestly, no. But then you do say I’m too naive and trusting, right? But I do believe in those I’ve fought beside these last months. So far, none of the psychological tests have indicated any brainwashing. You’re right though. The Tower…” I imagined she was making a very troubled face right now. “…no matter what, I can’t lose it. Even if I have to sacrifice for it. But… tell Hyacinth that I have listened to you. I promise to be as careful as I can be, but I don’t want to be the sort of woman who doesn’t trust her friends.”

“I do have a reason to help you.” I admitted. “Perhaps when we next meet we can talk about it. For now… just stay cautious. Do everything you can that your conscience will let you.”

“I will. Don’t worry, I have taken your warnings to heart. There’s a lot of precautions I can take without showing them I doubt their intentions. Now, I have to go. I’m safe here in the Palace, the best of the British Army is here to protect grandmother and me. I’ll… bear your warnings in mind. And…” she lowered her voice. “I’ll thank you for teaching me that trump card. Nobody but my brother knows about it, not even grandmother. So… I’ll be safe.”

As she hung up I shook my head. “I hope so, Princess. But for now…” Turning to the others, I spoke. “We don’t have too long until we land. Then we head for the coast and cross to the south of England. From there it’s a short jaunt to London. Rather than looking for a needle in a haystack, we at least have a good idea of the goals of our opponents…” the meaningless, uneasy blaring of my Foresight was in the background of my mind as I looked out of the window, the vista of France spreading out below us. Mary Stuart, the being masquerading as Maxwell Power, Eleanor’s companions… are they working together, or do they all have competing goals? Who can be trusted? Damn, it’s far easier when the enemy is clear, like the invaders of Kyoto…

Turning to help Shaeula calm down the red-faced and angry Hyacinth, it took until we landed to soothe her rage, and after passing through passport control, all of us on diplomatic passports, including Chen Na, we were picked up by a driver that Fujiwara-san’s contact had arranged…