Chapter 32 – Strategy
"Are you going to get up today?" Dave asked.
As SJ stirred from her slumber, her mind immediately flicked back to the earrings.
In a panic, she sat up, immediately calling the pouch to her hand and juggling it as her pulse raced in her frantic attempt to check the contents. Her fingers struggled to untie the string as she became more agitated.
"Calm down," Dave said.
SJ stopped. Her fingers trembled. Closing her eyes, she exhaled before concentrating on untying the pouch. She slowly slipped her hand inside, a sense of dread in the pit of her stomach as she did. Gently, she grasped the earrings and identified them.
The sense of relief that washed through her at seeing that they hadn't deteriorated any further made her feel lightheaded. Letting out a deep sigh, she closed and tied the pouch again.
"And morning," Dave said.
Sorry, good morning.
"Fas is up, I heard him talking to Yawnee. He did come in to check on you. You were doing a great job of trying to bring the house down, snoring, never mind the pool of drool," Dave laughed.
What? He did? SJ thought as she looked at the pillow; there was no sign of drool on it. Then she looked across in the dresser mirror at the state of herself. Her eyes were puffy, her hair scraggly and unkempt, and she had slept in her clothes. Her cheeks coloured at Fas seeing her in this state, and if she had been snoring!
You're lying.
"A little perhaps, you were snoring, but only lightly and okay, I'll admit there was no drool. I'm a little concerned that your emotions have spiked so much about Fas seeing you sleep," Dave mused, humour in his voice.
It's got nothing to do with Fas seeing me; it's concerning anyone seeing me sleep. Especially in how paranoid you make me feel at times. I'm surprised I can actually sleep. SJ snapped.
Dave chuckled in response.
Dave's tendency to jib her could be frustrating, but this morning, they were exactly what she'd needed to distract her and pull her mind away from the impending quest and how on Amathera she would go about trying to convince the chief about immortality. She had been thinking about it into the early hours and hadn't come up with a feasible plan.
She climbed out of the bed, stretching. She slipped from Cristy's room and could hear Yawnee in the lounge.
"Just going to freshen up," she called, heading upstairs. She heard the door open below, but didn't turn as she reached the landing.
Fas had made the bed before he had left. She looked towards the bathtub.
I wish I had a shower.
"Get one installed then."
SJ had mused for months about getting showers. She had running water at Asterfal, and the tub filled quickly. But still, they were so practical.
Perhaps I'll speak to Barry. I'm sure he could come up with something.
"I've told you before; they exist. It's the water pressure that prevents them from being functional, without magic, and you know how much that can cost."
That's why I want to speak to Barry. See if he can come up with a cost-effective solution.
"Cost-effective. Everything that Gnome does costs extra; it doesn't save." Dave scoffed.
SJ undressed, had a body wash, then pulled her dress back on and headed downstairs.
"Morning."
Fas sat nurturing a mug, and Yawnee was in the middle of explaining her current problems with the Ponzi scheme. Fas agreed and nodded in understanding of her frustration.
"Morning," Yawnee said. "You slept late."
"I didn't fall asleep until late."
"You want a coffee?"
"Do I ever refuse?"
Yawnee laughed as she walked from the lounge.
Fas looked at her for a moment before speaking; his usual demeanour appeared damaged this morning. There was a frailty to him she hadn't seen before. Last night's revelation had taken a lasting physical and mental toll on him.
"I promised you a book," he winced as he said it.
"You did, but we can sort that out later. We have to come up with a solution for the chief."
Yawnee entered, handing SJ a mug. She took it gratefully, sipping the hot liquid.
"What are you going to do about your problem?" Fas asked Yawnee.
Yawnee turned to him. "SJ said she would look into it for me. She knows more about these things than I do."
"Maybe I can help her," Fas said.
"That would be appreciated."
"Not at all. If anything, it will be to thank you for your hospitality this morning."
Yawnee blushed; the fur on her cheeks rippled. Gnolls didn't blush like other beings.
"We'd better get going," Fas said as he stood.
"Yes. We have things to do," SJ said as she finished the coffee.
"And I should get back to helping Lurtew."
SJ and Fas walked in silence back to the Gryphon. The large double doors at its entrance were still firmly closed.
"I wonder when it will reopen?" SJ said.
"I can't see it staying closed for long. I know the chief may have been angry, but she won't want to lose the coin. It's one of her main income streams."
They walked around the side and entered through the rear garden into Fas's apartment. Benji was busy cleaning when they arrived. The surfaces gleamed from his attention.
"Benji, take the rest of the day off," Fas said as he went to leave.
Benji stopped in his tracks. "Are you sure?"
"You've been working so hard recently; you deserve it."
"Thank you," Benji said, grinning. "I wanted to go to the market in District 12."
Fas just smiled as he left before moving to his desk and slowly pulling the drawer open. SJ was sure she noticed his handshake as he lifted the black book from its hiding place. He turned, walked towards her, staring at the small book in his hands.
He didn't look at her as he handed it to her. "Here, a promise is a promise."
SJ felt a surge of excitement yet overwhelming trepidation as she took hold of it. She knew it contained secrets that Fas had kept for a very long time. She held it in her hand, with a feeling of reverence, before looking at her friend. "Are you sure?"
Fas laughed hollowly. "No, not in the slightest."
"I don't have to read it if you are really that concerned."
"It's not a concern. It's embarrassing. That is from a time when I was at the height of my game in Asterfal. Before who I am now. A dark period in my life, as I explained. I'm not even sure that some of the scribbling is even my own."
SJ frowned at his comment. "What do you mean, not your own?"
"It's my writing, just not me who wrote it. I can't explain."
"That confirms that he had to have been charmed," Dave interjected. "I've seen that before, beings that have been charmed performing actions they were not aware of once released from the spell. Many end up going insane after they find out, but at least Fas just continued being normal. Well, as normal as a renowned assassin can be."
SJ sat down as she looked at the book. The battered leather binding, the yellowed edges to the pages, and even a sign that it had got damp at some point. It felt heavy in her hands as she opened the cover. Fas walked from the room into his private area. She had never been in any other room in his apartment. The door clicked as he left, SJ glancing over at the door before starting to read.
The script was tight, neat, and beautiful, with precise quill strokes. Not flowery, but practical as she would have expected from a 900-year-old being. As soon as she started reading, she was absorbed. It wasn't so much a book of notes, more a diary of his life. A history of a time long since past.
As she gently turned the pages, afraid of damaging them, and absorbed the details she learned about Fas. Who he really was at that time in his life. Efficient, practical, directed. The details were fascinating and in-depth. Target's weaknesses, conversation snippets, all precisely noted. SJ didn’t even hear Fas re-enter; she was so absorbed. It was as she read that more of Asterfal's recent history became apparent. There were names in the book that she knew. Recognised from conversations in the tower. Some of the beings who worked there also had dark secrets.
Any journalist in modern times would have given their right arm for such a precise text as SJ was privileged to read. Then she reached the first note about Gallenshaw. It had to be him, but his name wasn't written in full; it was just G. It started as a chance meeting that grew as their lives became more intertwined. SJ noted the subtle yet noticeable change in the text's tone. This was the time Fas wasn't even sure about himself.
Dave whistled and commented as she read some of the reveals. This wasn't just a notebook; it was a confession, a dark biography of a professional assassin and the embodiment of his role. Then it came on to the chief. A full descriptive passage about her appearance. Notes and details about her movements, actions, and behaviour. There were finely crafted ideas and thoughts about the interactions and discussions Fas had at the time. Details of meetings and conversations. All leading to the crescendo as Gallenshaw and the chief met.
As she read the final page, she understood as best as she could. Not that she would ever fully appreciate it, but there was enough of Fas's life and details to give her something to think about. With regal care, she closed the book, holding it gently in her hands.
SJ looked up. Fas was sitting opposite; there was a glass of honeywine sitting on the table in front of her. She hadn't even noticed him place it there; she had been so absorbed.
"This is your personal diary," SJ said, her voice soft.
"Yes." His eyes met hers with caution. She could see nerves. Fas never showed signs of nerves.
"I'm honoured you allowed me to share it."
The smile was weak. "Not the proudest moment in my life."
"It has given me some ideas, though, about the chief."
Fas nodded with understanding.
"There is a being mentioned several times. A close being to the chief, who initially was your go-between when you first started meeting her. Cortisar."
"Yes, Cortisar was one of the top members of her gang back then. He disappeared not long after the Master arrived."
"It doesn't say much about him. Is there a reason?"
"No, not really. He was probably equivalent to what I was to Gallenshaw."
"It says that he was actively seeking information about immortality."
"He did. He was as obsessed as the chief was."
"I think I just found our angle."
"What?"
"Could you become him? Return with information, a way into her inner circle again."
"No. Not that I couldn't, he would be dead by now; he was a human."
"That's even better," SJ smiled.
Fas frowned as he contemplated her words.
"Oh. I like it," Dave said. "Cortisar returns. For him to still be alive now, the only reason would be if he had either achieved immortality or at least something to extend his life significantly."
Exactly.
"Hmm. Are you sure that it's something Fas could do? He has bared his soul to you, told you some of his darkest secrets. He may be a dragonling, but even I can see the trauma he suffered from that time."
Dave's pragmatic response took SJ by surprise. His emotional development had increased substantially since they had first met, and he was showing true empathy. That wasn't the trait of an AI. That was the trait of a living being.
"You want me to become him," Fas said after several moments.
SJ nodded, meeting her guardian's eyes. "Only if you are able."
Fas leaned back on the sofa. "It's been a long time since I saw him or heard him speak."
"Does that matter? I don't mean for you to walk up to the chief and offer her immortality. I mean, we start rumours on the streets. Plan and deduce a way to bring the chief to you. Not you to her. We establish his return."
"He was her closest ally back then. I'm not sure even I could pull off that act."
"You did it with Otherlisar's nephew easily enough."
"Otherlisar was emotionally unstable when I did. She wouldn't have noticed subtle differences. The chief has always been cold and calculating. She knows Cortisar should be dead by now, but why would he suddenly return after all this time? He would have had to have achieved immortality long before now to still be alive. Why would he have left it so long?"
SJ held the bridge of her nose. "I'm not sure yet, but it's the only viable option I think we have. Gavia is too much, but Corista, r you have an inroad. A means of unbalancing the chief. From what your diary states, she would do anything to achieve immortality, even become a vampire."
"True, but even back then, she was cautious and protective. She doesn't fully trust any other being. She never has and doubt she ever will."
"How old is she now?"
Fas scratched his head as he thought. "I'm not entirely sure, but she has to be in her eight hundreds by now."
The life expectancies of the various races were significantly different, but SJ was aware that elves were among the longest-lived races. "I assume elves and dark elves have similar lifespans?"
"Yes, why?"
"She is nearer her death than her birth. If she has always wished for immortality, won't she become more desperate as her time on Amathera gets nearer? Couldn't that make her more vulnerable?"
"Perhaps, but she is extremely cautious. She wouldn't have got to the position she holds still in Asterfal without being so."
"Do you know whether she still seeks immortality?"
"I can't be sure, but I would assume so. It was her one focus she had always maintained. I've had very few direct dealings with her since back then. She doesn't know the being I am now. I have lived several different lives, as you can imagine."
"But she knows you?"
"Knew me back then. I'm not the same being now."
"You mean in person or in looks?"
"Both."
SJ sat thoughtfully. "Do you mind if I ask why you stay here at the Black Gryphon, if it is so close to your history and what was obviously a difficult time for you? Why stay in a place that reminds you of your difficulties?"
Fas shrugged. It wasn't nonchalant. "It made sense. I have mentioned before that the Black Gryphon is one of the best inns in the city for gaining intelligence and information about targets. Many tongues wag. I didn't move here because of my ties. I moved her for practicality and my profession."
Even after all the pain he obviously suffered, his professional reasons overtook his personal emotions.
