They returned to Shell and Sir Estil. "I think we're ready," Arai said. "Sir Estil?"

  The old knight nodded and climbed back up on his horse; Arai handed him the reins of the other two. "As soon as you've collected the emperor, head due north of that big bell tower," he said, pointing it out to them. "I'll be waiting for you there, just outside of town."

  "Sounds good."

  He wished them good luck, and rode off into the night with the three horses.

  Arai turned to Lillandra. "Let's do this."

  She nodded, removed the Crux of Illusion from her pocket, and proceeded to cloak the three of them in illusion, transforming them, outwardly, into soldiers reminiscent of those camped out in the village. It was disconcerting to see Lillandra, and especially Shell, in the guise of these rough-looking adult males...and they didn't just look like men; they sounded like them, too. The illusion was perfect.

  Well, almost perfect. Curious, Arai reached out to touch the helmet that Shell-the-soldier seemed to be wearing, but his fingers passed through it as though it were smoke.

  "It's easy enough to fool the eyes and ears," Lillandra clarified, in her male voice. "It's much more difficult to fool your sense of touch. I could do it, but I don't want to waste the magic in this old zemi."

  Arai looked the disguises over. To all appearances, the three of them were a fairly ordinary-looking bunch of grizzled old veterans, wearing chain mail and boiled leather. Except for the officers -- the lords who commanded the various brigades of the Holy Legion -- Dayan's soldiers didn't wear uniforms, but they did wear red sashes and bandanas around their waists, chests, or necks, in order to identify themselves to each other; all three of them were so equipped.

  Lillandra, however, was frowning at him. "I can't disguise your sword," she said. "It won't allow itself to be blanketed in illusion."

  "But the spell is working on me?"

  "It seems to be. The sword protects you from harm; I suppose it doesn't consider an illusion like this to be harmful to you."

  "It's not important," he said. "What about Helene?"

  But Lillandra's sword had no trouble accepting the illusion, which Arai found passing strange. Helene obviously didn't have the same magic-resistant qualities as Silus, or if it did, it was manifesting them differently.

  This was all rather academic, though, and time was of the essence. "I don't know how long I can sustain the illusion," Lillandra said. "We should hurry."

  They headed for the camp. Though the sun had gone down some time ago, the camp was still alive with activity -- Dayan's soldiers were playing cards, eating meals, brawling, praying, arguing, and delivering messages within the haze of their torches and campfires. The smell of their cooking, and the smoke from their campfires, filled the air.

  There were also sentries marching around the perimeter of the camp, at least from this direction. Arai wasn't sure if they could get past them without being detected.

  "Any ideas?" he whispered to Lillandra and Shell. "They might ask us for a password, to make sure we're not spies."

  "Can't Lillandra just disguise us as mice or something?" Shell asked. "We could slip in without being seen by anyone."

  "There's not enough magic left in this Crux to weave those kinds of complicated illusions," Lillandra said. "The best I can do is alter our appearances slightly." She paused. "I could make us invisible, but only for a few moments, and the spell would use up all the magic still remaining in the Crux."

  "Oh."

  "I have an idea," Arai said. "Lill? Can you put Shell in a blue uniform, like one of those Carmaine regulars? And make her look like she's been roughed up a bit?"

  "That I can do," she said, and suddenly Shell was wearing a different disguise; she now looked like a bearded young man who had been badly beaten, his blond hair matted, his blue vest darkened with dried blood.

  Shell looked down at herself. "Ah," she said. "I get it."

  They stepped out of hiding and approached one of the sentries. The man scowled at them and immediately lowered his pike. "Who are you?" he demanded. "What were you doing out there?"

  "We found this man sneaking around the edge of the camp," Arai said, shoving Shell forward. "Where should we take him?"

  The sentry studied Shell's uniform, while Shell did her best to appear affronted; she glared at the sentry, baring her teeth. "Another spy," the man said wearily. "Lord Jailov will want to question him, I suppose. Take him to the granary on the other side of the village." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder, indicating the direction they ought to go.

  "You heard him," Arai said, giving Shell another shove. "Get moving."

  And they walked right into the encampment, with their "prisoner" in tow. When they were out of sight of the sentry, and while hidden behind one of the tents, Lillandra used the Crux to change Shell back into one of Dayan's soldiers.

  They were in; now it was just a matter of finding the emperor. "Which way?" Lillandra asked.

  Arai spotted the white-and-black flag of Balbaroy fluttering from a pole near the center of town. "Let's try over there," he said.

  They began making their way through the village. No one bothered to stop them or ask them their business; the camp was rowdy and disorganized, and there seemed to be a fair amount of drinking going on. This was to their advantage; the more chaotic the camp, the easier it would be to slip away unnoticed, with the emperor.

  The flag of Balbaroy, they soon discovered, was flying over a large building -- probably the town hall. A pair of soldiers were standing at the entrance. "This could be it," Arai said. Avoiding the soldiers, they crept around to the other side of the building, where they found a low window. It was too small to fit through, but it gave them a view into the first floor of the building, and allowed them to eavesdrop on the conversation taking place within.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  There were two men inside -- one a handsome blond man in his late twenties or early thirties, the other a graying, middle-aged man with a heavy brow and a heavy black beard. The former was wearing a spotless white tunic with gold trim, and lounging on a divan; the latter, wearing purple robes and a set of unusual iron chains around his neck, was pacing.

  "That one's a sorcerer," Lillandra whispered, although Arai had already guessed at that.

  "Could the other one be the emperor?" Shell wondered.

  They listened in on the conversation. "It's not the Trustees we have to worry about," the man in the purple robes was saying. "It's Duke Galagus."

  "We should consolidate our gains," the reclining man insisted. "Rushing off to fight Galagus, splitting our forces, while the Trustees regain their strength and the Crymortes plot against us..." He shook his blond head. "We should have stayed in Arl's City."

  "We can't afford to rest on our laurels," the other man said. "We don't have time. We need to take the Crevak and capture Carmaine before the Old Duchy decides to get involved. We need to prevent them from joining forces with the Marquisates. And we need to confront Duke Galagus."

  "We have nothing to fear from Galagus so long as we're holding Arliel."

  "That will change when we march north. Do you think Galagus will allow us to invade his own lands, simply because we're holding the emperor? He'll do anything to save his own skin."

  The younger man frowned. "This is the one part of your plan I've never understood, Bellarue. What is there for us in the north? The Baronies are lightly populated, hardly worth bothering with until after we've dealt the Marquisates a killing blow. And Velon? There's nothing up there but ice and snow."

  "Velon is essential, Dayan," Bellarue said firmly. "You'll find out soon enough."

  Dayan, however, was obviously not convinced. "I'm not interested in your portents," he said, rising to his feet. "I'm not going to split our forces until you tell me exactly why this northern expedition is so important."

  Bellarue scowled. He touched the iron chain hanging from his neck...which, Arai now saw, was decorated with little marbles, feathers, and other oddments. He put his fingers on one of the marbles and said to Dayan, in a calm and reassuring voice, "I've only ever wanted what's best for you...for you, and for the Holy Empire. We must march north."

  Dayan's eyes seemed to glaze over. "We must march north," he repeated, as though in a daze. "You're right, of course. Where would I be without your counsel?" He sat back down on the divan.

  "Indeed," Bellarue said, a smile tugging at one corner of his mouth. "Indeed."

  "What was that about?" Shell asked, as they ducked below the window.

  "That was an Eye of Domination he was holding," Lillandra whispered. "It seems this Bellarue is the real power behind Dayan's Holy Legion. But what does he want with Velon?"

  Why was Bellarue so interested in Velon? Dayan was right; it didn't make sense for the Holy Region to head north when they still had powerful enemies to the west.

  There wasn't time to think on it. "We should get out of here before he sees us," Arai said.

  "But what about the emperor? Where could they be hiding him?"

  But Arai had already noticed another two-story building, on the other side of the street, which was much more heavily-guarded than the one Dayan and Bellarue had commandeered -- six bored-looking soldiers were standing watch at its entrance. "I've got a hunch," he said, pointing the building out to them.

  "One of the soldiers guarding that building is a sorcerer," Lillandra said.

  "Powerful?"

  She shook her head. "No, but even the weakest mages can see magia. That's probably why he was stationed there, to sniff out sorcery. He may be able to see through our disguises."

  "Do you really think the emperor's in there?" Shell asked.

  "I think there's a very good chance," Arai said. "But what are we going to do about those soldiers?"

  "I have an idea," Lillandra said, and suddenly she had become Bellarue, while Arai had become Dayan. "We should be able to talk our way past the guards with these disguises," she said. "Now it's just a matter of drawing the sorcerer away."

  "I think I can handle that," Shell said. "Make me look like myself again."

  Lillandra removed the illusion from the elf girl. "Why? What are you planning?"

  "Hand me the Assassin's Cloak."

  Once again, Lillandra obliged, giving her the Cloak, which fell over her little shoulders like a living shadow. "What are you going to do?" Lillandra asked again.

  Shell had removed the last of her potions from her leather pouch. She unstoppered it and applied the few remaining drops to the tip of her Witch's Blade. "This sorcerer's going to take a little nap," she said. And without another word, she dashed off, quickly crossing the street and disappearing into an alleyway adjacent to the guarded building. The Assassin's Cloak hid her almost completely; all Arai could see of her was a moonshadow.

  She returned a few minutes later, grinning. "I got him," she said. "He was already drowsy when I left him; he should be asleep by now."

  "Good work," Arai said. He took a moment to consider their situation, then said to Shell, "Lillandra and I will take it from here. You should go find Sir Estil."

  "Are you sure?"

  "I doubt the emperor has ever seen an elf before. I don't want to confuse him. Besides, this is the most dangerous part, and I'd rather you were safe with Sir Estil than fighting your way out of this village with us."

  "I can fight, too," she protested.

  "I know you can," he said gently. "Go on, now."

  She made a face, but nodded reluctantly. "I'll see you soon," she said. And she darted off, in the direction of the bell tower.

  Arai rose out of his crouch. "Are you ready?" he asked Lillandra.

  "Yes," she said, in Bellarue's deep voice.

  They crossed the street and walked over to the building. The soldier-sorcerer whom Shell had poked with her Witch's Blade was sitting on a bench, on the eastern side of the building; he was snoring, and one other soldier was trying to wake him. When they saw Arai and Lillandra approaching, however, all of the men snapped to attention. One of them greeted Arai: "I thought you'd retired to your chambers, my lord."

  "I need to talk to the emperor," Arai said. "He's not sleeping yet, is he?"

  "I don't know."

  "Well, if he is, I'll wake him," he said, in as imperious a voice as he could muster. And he brushed past the guards, with Lillandra in tow, opening the door and heading inside. They didn't stop him.

  He breathed a sigh of relief. Not only had they guessed correctly -- the emperor was being held in this building -- they had managed to bluff their way past the soldiers as well.

  But where were they hiding the man? The building they now found themselves in appeared to be a tavern of some kind, dimly lit by a hearthfire and a handful of candles, and this first floor, at least, appeared to be empty. "Let's try upstairs," Arai said, and they climbed a set of steps to the second floor.

  They encountered another soldier here, sitting on a chair in the hallway. He was yawning, but when he saw Arai and Lillandra, he quickly stifled it and jumped to his feet. "My lord!"

  "I want to speak with the emperor," Arai said.

  "Y-yes, my lord," he said, fumbling for a key and unlocking the door. "He's probably asleep--"

  "We don't wish to be disturbed," Lillandra-as-Bellarue added. "You're relieved for now. You may return to your quarters."

  The man was obviously puzzled, but he nodded quickly. "Yes, Your Eminence." The man collected his belongings and scampered off.

  "Good thinking," Arai whispered.

  They entered the room, which was dark; fortunately the potions they had imbibed allowed them to see through the shadows. It was a small room, sparsely furnished, with a bed in one corner and a chest of drawers in another. Hardly appropriate accommodations for an emperor, Arai thought, but here he was: Arliel XXI, the "reigning" emperor of the great Holy Empire, was fast asleep on the bed. He was a young man, probably only a few years older than Arai, with unkempt brown hair and a boyish, freckled face, and at the moment he was snoozing contentedly on the bed, with one arm thrown over his head.

  Arai nodded to Lillandra, who removed their glamours. Then he bent down and shook the man awake.

  "Your Highness," he whispered urgently. "It's time to go."