Page 11 (1/2)

"I will bring the city in line," the new bishop deterh the telepathic communication of spirit! And Markwart heard hih the Father Abbot&039;s corporeal for a hundred miles away in his private quarters in St-Mere- Abelle

"I have already begun taking action in that very direction," De&039;Unnero went on, regaining the composure that had been shattered by the unex-pected appearance of this so-solid apparition of the Father Abbot

Markwart nodded - and how strange it seee was crystal clear through this spiritual communication The last time he had come to De&039;Unnero by e rudi to the abbot of St Precious that he should go get his soul stone that they h, that extra step had proven unnecessary, for Markwart had so fully transported his spirit to Chasewind Manor that he could speak directly to the physical De&039;Unnero, a level of communication far beyond what they had achieved before, even though De&039;Unnero now held no co soul stone It almost felt to Markwart as if he could sih the connection, could fully transport himself to this distant place!

And clearly De&039;Unnero, too, was ier on his face Always had Marcalo De&039;Unnero been an intense man, especially when soh, he hadinto the oblins, he had always kept his head clear, had always let his uide his body

"You must be careful not to overstep your bounds," Markwart ex-plained "The King will be watching closely, to see hoell having a bishop replace one of his barons suits his needs"

"Then I am to pay special care to any emissaries from Ursal," De&039;Unnero replied "And I assure you that the King&039;s soldiers, led by Captain Kil-ronney, shall be excluded from many of the more distasteful duties I uard will suffice

"I intend to retrieve all the gemstones in the city," the Bishop explained, "and thus, if the friends of the heretic are about, I will have the," Markarned But the Father Abbot was thinking of so on De&039;Unnero&039;s last statement and the otten the i him for the fool now, for he perceived De&039;Unnero did not really believe that confiscating the gemstones in the city would lead to the capture of Avelyn&039;s former companions No, Markwart realized, De&039;Unnero had only said this to placate him However, the deception pleased Markwart, for if De&039;Unnero knew better than his false claiht be

De&039;Unnero s the Father Abbot back into the pres-ent conversation "The merchants will do as they are told," the Bishop explained "They fearDanube"

Markwart knew De&039;Unnero was playing a dangerous game He could not keep track of all the uards and scouts they eainst the ossip in Ursal before much time had passed, if it wasn&039;t already But still, the Father Abbot hesitated in deued hie it to be the divine order of God hi didn&039;t oppose the move, the merchants would be powerless to resist

"And even if they do infor," De&039;Unnero went on, his s Danube knows of the stolen stones - was it not his own troops who took the traitor Jojonah to the pyre? So if we present the do in the air

And, indeed, it was enticing to Father Abbot Markwart Perhaps it was tieem-stones Those taken back from the merchants would more than make up for the ones lost to the thief Avelyn Perhaps it was time for the Church to assert itself, to follow the wake of war by again beco the dominant force in the life of every person in the civilized world

What legacy would Dalebert Markwart then leave behind?

"The Behrenese enclave in Palmaris is considerable," Markwart said on sudden inspiration

"Down by the river," De&039;Unnero confirmed

"Make life particularly difficult for them," Markwart instructed "Let us create as many common enemies between Church and state as possible"

De&039;Unnero&039;s smile showed that the prospect did not displease hiemstones?" he asked "May I continue?"

Noas Markwart&039;s turn to smile, for he understood that the upstart Bishop would continue with or without his permission "Yes, do," Markwart said "But do not overstep We can keep King Danube on our side, I aer the entire merchant class"

Markwart let the connection lapse then, his spirit flying fast fro body in St-Mere-Abelle In truth, he wasn&039;t too worried about angering the ain a sense of his true power now The war had changed the balance within the kingdom, he believed, in favor of the Church This appoint corridors for the Father Abbot

Possibilitiespossibilities How far ht he reach?

Back in his private room at St-Mere-Abelle, the Father Abbot looked down at the heain of how com-plete this last spiritual journey had been, of how he felt as if he could actu-ally pull his corporeal for his spirit back to it What power that ! To be in any place at any ti any hint of a trail

Possibilitiespossibilities Perhaps he could reach all the way to Ursal, all the way to King Danube&039;s court, all the way to the King himself

Brother Francis had found the Father Abbot in fine spirits that day, and it had given hi Braumin and the others would be received with some measure of tranquillity And after a brief ht red and he&039;d seee of an explosion, the Father Abbot had calrin

"And they, all five, have run off?" Markwart asked calmly

Francis nodded

"You are certain of this - Braumin Herde and the other conspirators have left St-Mere-Abelle?"

"They are gone, Father Abbot," Francis dutifully answered, lowering his gaze

"St-Mere-Abelle is a large place," Markwart reone," Francis replied, "out of the abbey alto-gether, and I doubt they mean to return"

"And what did they take with thee

Francis shrugged, surprised by the question

"The ge out the words "Did they take any of the sacred stones? "

"No, Father Abbot," Francis blurted "No, I am certain they did not"

"The words of a fool," Markwart retorted sharply "Have a dozen brothers inventory the sacred stones at once"

"Yes, Father Abbot," Francis replied, turning to go, and thinking hi that Markould fear another theft Certainly news ofthe abbey would cause the Father Abbot to wonder if the curse of Avelyn Desbris had visited hi? " Markwart yelled as Francis took a step away

"You said to see to the inventory," the flustered brother protested

"When we are done!"

Francis rushed back to the desk, standing straight as if waiting for a judg- while, rubbing his wrinkled old face many times As the seconds passed, and as he considered all the rahten