Ruler of Naught Read Free

attention to Barrodagh, but then, the Avatar’s
secretary was merely rehearsing what Anaris already knew. Anaris’s fingers
itched for his own compad, but no Dol’jharian lord could be seen in public dependent
on a mere device. Even though they’re generally more trustworthy than a
Catennach.
    Anaris studied Barrodagh’s haggard face. The Avatar’s
lieutenant had not interfered with Anaris’s other channels of information. He
was playing a careful game.
    Even so, what hidden struggles have I missed?
    “Operating through the Syndics of Rifthaven, we have
encouraged raids elsewhere in the Thousand Suns by non-allied Rifters to
confuse the strategic picture, with excellent results.” Again, more familiar
details followed.
    In the normal course of affairs a succession duel would take
years. But we are no longer on Dol’jhar . Eusabian no longer had the
luxury of time, just as the Panarch had said, in the fey convulsions induced by
a shock collar. Whether my father realizes it or not, the Panarchy is far
more dangerous and subtle than Jhar D’ocha. There is much room for error.
    And Barrodagh knows that applies to me as well as to my
father.
    The thought gave him a frisson of challenge.
    “As a result, resistance has been sporadic and ineffective,
and is dwindling rapidly. Our force’s ability to keep ahead of the news of the
attack combined with the power of their weapons guarantees that nothing can
stand between us and complete control of the Thousand Suns,” Barrodagh
finished.
    He had elided immense complexity, but it would not do to
underestimate the Avatar’s secretary. Eusabian’s fierce will had driven the
war, but Barrodagh’s planning had carried it off.
    Eusabian remained still.
    “Nothing except Ares, and the Fleet,” Juvaszt finally said
in a flat voice, with a glance at the Avatar.
    “They cannot stand against the power of the Suneater, even
without the Heart of Kronos,” Barrodagh stated.
    Heart of Kronos? Anaris had learned about the
Suneater when he was briefed about the imminent attack on the Panarchy, but he
had been given few details. He cut a questioning glance at Morrighon, whose
compad’s display flipped to accommodate him.
    KEY TO FULL SUNEATER POWER. THOUGHT LOST BY TREACHERY.
    Perhaps my new Bori is going to be of more use than I assumed. Anaris sensed attention, and discovered Barrodagh watching him, his
forehead tight, making Anaris wonder if Barrodagh hidden this crucial fact from
him as touching the Avatar’s Will.
    Or to keep me safely ignorant.
    “The Panarchist Fleet is more dangerous than you can imagine,”
Juvaszt replied, and Barrodagh’s facial muscles tightened even more. “Let me
remind you that it was treachery that bought us Arthelion. They very nearly
defeated our forces at Narbon and Lao Tse, the other key systems...”
    Almanor gave a thin smile; no doubt she’d managed the moles
who had undoubtedly been worming into Panarchist defenses throughout Anaris’s
stay. He appreciated the irony.
    As for the fight itself , Avatar’s Sword and Hammer
of Dol , two of the laboriously-constructed Dol’jharian destroyers nearly up
to Panarchist technology, had been at Narbon, Anaris knew. They had done
fearsome work against Admiral Koestler’s forces before being demolished. The other
destroyer, Urtigen’s Wrath , had been battered nearly to scrap at Lao Tse
by the battlecruiser that had brought the Panarch and the Privy Council there.
It might spend months in repair and refitting.
    Anaris was surprised at Juvaszt’s forthright acknowledgement
of his losses, and he wondered again what had happened yesterday.
    “... and partly the auxiliaries, who performed better than I
had expected.”
    “Yes, it was our Rifter auxiliaries that helped carry the
day, there and elsewhere,” Barrodagh said, bringing the meeting’s focus back to
himself.
    Anaris knew that after the war began Juvaszt increasingly
challenged Barrodagh’s control of their Rifter forces, arguing that