The Strength of the Few

Deaglan returns and tells the other students what he has seen. The students speculate that the man is Gallchobhar’s scout. Tara explains that Lir never trusted Gallchobhar, but Donnan supported Gallchobhar’s promotion to King’s Champion after he saved Tara from an attack. Three years ago, Fiachra’s warriors murdered the previous Champion—whose spear Deaglan now uses—and cut Tara’s cheek. Gallchobhar then killed them. Fiachra intended to embarrass Ronan and remove Tara from the succession, as their culture believes that “only the unblemished […] may rule” (402).

Conor says that Deaglan used the nasceann during the fight, which Deaglan believes to be a kind of Will. Inspired by their camaraderie and support, Deaglan tells them about his real identity, his time at Solivagus, and going through the Labyrinth. It is the first time he has shared every secret in five years. His friends support him, and he feels at home.

Later, Tara says that Lir will visit Treanala in two months. Deaglan will need to train with the druids now that he has the nasceann. She believes they will be at war soon. As the leader, Tara will choose who joins their warband. She will not choose Deaglan because he lacks commitment.

Netiqret plans to sneak Siamun into the Temple during the festival of the Return in two months. He must pose as a dancer and sneak in with the entertainment troupe. She and Ahmose teach him dances.

One day, the iunctus girl Kiya accuses him of lying about coming from a desert community, saying, “the last independent community was absorbed” (409) 217 years ago. Kiya adds that Ahmose is an “integration error” (410) that must be removed. Siamun questions her, and she explains that there are 82 external Gleaners assigned to search for threats and 18 assigned to Ka’s protection. Those 18 remain dormant in a tunnel that connects the Temple to Ka’s Pyramid and will only wake if activated by an intruder.

Deaglan trains with renewed determination. He was shamed by Tara’s previous assessment and wants to prove himself. Two months later, Lir arrives for a Samhain celebration. He announces that the High King has died. Ronan and Fiachra both laid claim to the throne. The Grove, influenced by Ruarc, gave their support to Fiachra. Ronan and Fiachra are now at war.

Tara is tasked to form her warband. Each student has one last opportunity to showcase their skills. Though Deaglan does not want to fight for a king he does not know, he wants to protect his new friends. However, Tara still does not plan to choose him. Though he is a worthy friend, she says, his path lies elsewhere.

The Festival of Pletuna arrives. Catenicus, Diago, and Relucia walk through the city toward the Senate Forum. Discontent and unrest among the citizens has increased.

Relucia confides that her father placed her in a Sapper when she was 15 to pay off debts. She was left there for three years. She says that her father’s actions were logical. The real evil is the system that makes such behavior permissible. She has arranged for Anguis allies to break Lanistia out tonight so she will not be placed in a Sapper.

They reach the Forum, which is in disarray. Traditionally, the three factions meet during the festival as a show of unity. However, the highest-ranking Military senators have withdrawn without explanation. Governance and Religion fear it is an insult or scheme.

Catenicus meets with his friends, and they speculate about the Military. Emissa discusses the plan to release the conspirators’ names when they have them. Her father is willing to help if they can find proof. Before the conversation continues, Relucia returns to take Catenicus to his meeting, under the guise of walking her home.

The Anguis man meets them in an alley and finally shares his name: Ostius. Ostius is surprised by Diago, believing the alupi only guard the Nexus—a word Catenicus recalls from the ruins. Ostius asks about Catenicus’s disguise, and he reveals a collection of Will-imbued metal triangles that circle his midsection. With Will, he can control them to form a metal mask and a false arm. Satisfied, Ostius touches Catenicus and Diago as his eyes turn black. Catenicus feels a thrumming vibration. A second later, he is somewhere new.

Siamun, Ahmose, and Netiqret head toward the temple during the festival of the Return. Most of the Overseers guard the bridge and the surrounding area. This is the most distracted they will be for months.

They split up. Siamun and Netiqret continue to the outer wall of the Temple. Netiqret pays someone to sneak them in. The outer court of the Temple is where the wealthy party. He and Netiqret split up, and Siamun infiltrates the dance troupe as the troupe enters the inner court.

Ostius and Catenicus stand on a hill overlooking a bay, with a village nearby surrounded by a large wooden wall. Catenicus recognizes the shape of the bay as the one near Caten. Ostius says they are in Luceum. Ostius gives him a white cloak for disguise and leads him to the village.

In the village, people party, and Catenicus wonders if these people also celebrate the Festival of Pletuna. Chaos surrounds them, but people part when they see his white robe. They continue through the village. At the far side, they shift again.

They appear in the inner chamber of Basilica, Military’s center of operations. By shifting into Luceum, walking to the right geographical location, and then shifting again, Ostius can transport himself anywhere he wants, regardless of barriers or guards. They hide by a doorway and peer into a hall where Military senators argue. One of the loudest voices belongs to Princeps Exesius, the head of Military and one of the three Princeps who run the Republic.

The men argue about submitting to Governance’s demand that they disband their armies. Volenis, Belli’s father, is preparing to declare them traitors and raise an army against them, at which point Governance and Religion will support his cause. Some hope to avoid a civil war by acquiescing to Governance’s demands now. Others believe civil war is inevitable. Some argue that they must protect Birthright—the central laws to honor life—even at the risk of their own status.

Ostius listens with clear amusement. Catenicus feels Will building in strength beneath the floor. Ostius orders him to take off his shoes and Adopt that Will. If he does not control all of it, they will be killed. Then Ostius walks into the hall.

In the temple, Siamun finds the tunnel that leads to Ka’s Pyramid. The walls are lined with Gleaners. He knows he cannot afford to alert them. He leaves to meet Netiqret, who has brought Kiya with her. She leads him to an enormous hall filled with iunctii on obsidian slabs. At the far end is another room with a dozen more that are all children. Netiqret explains that children’s minds are more flexible and better suited to the Nomarch’s information processing needs.

Siamun connects with the Nomarch through the iunctii and is overwhelmed with a flood of information. He asks how he can get past the Gleaners guarding Ka’s Pyramid. The iunctii explain that the Gleaners will only leave their post in the event of a major disruption like structural damage to Duat. The last such instance was 642 years ago when the water filtration system was destroyed.

Netiqret demands that Siamun make the Nomarch forget her and Kiya’s identity, then demands that the Nomarch restore Kiya’s mind. Siamun realizes that Kiya is Netiqret’s daughter, whom she must have saved from the Nomarch. He tries to restore her mind, but it does not work.

Suddenly, the iunctii shout an alarm. Siamun runs, but an Overseer spots him. He leaps out of a window into the Infernis below. The Overseer follows. Though his Vitaeria keep him alive, they do not erase the pain. He wrestles the Overseer beneath the water until it dissolves. Then he crawls out of the river and hides.

To prove himself, Deaglan chooses to spar with Tara. He does not believe he can beat her but hopes to show her that he is committed. He is losing badly, until the nasceann takes over. The pain recedes, and he fights with new skill. Finally, he concedes. Tara accepts him, calling him Deaglan rather than Leathfhear for the first time.

Tara warns him that Lir will still take him away for training. Lir explains that the moment he saw Deaglan fight Gallchobhar, he always intended to train him. Lir promises that Deaglan will join his friends in Caer Aras, but they will take a separate path and arrive three days later. In the meantime, Deaglan must hand over his spear and be tested.

Ostius and Catenicus enter the hall. Catenicus steps onto a circle in the floor and Adopts its Will. Princeps Exesius recognizes Ostius as his nephew. Exesius sent him to Solivagus years before anyone else understood its value, so that their family could “make the most important decision to be made in three hundred years” (480). However, the Princeps of Religion outmaneuvered him, intending to save everyone, not just some.

Ostius explains that Republic’s symbol of three pillars symbolizes the “[t]hree Princeps […] All ceding to the man who is planning to kill us” (481). Exesius defends his actions, saying that the Cataclysm is necessary and it is better if they choose who lives, rather than “him” (482). Several men leap to the stone circle, planning an attack, but Catenicus has Adopted the Will, and they cannot access it.

Ostius produces a list of the senators who conspired with the Anguis and orders them sign it. If they do, he will give them the night to get out of Caten. After the men sign, Ostius invites Catenicus to take his revenge. To spur him on, Ostius shares his real identity and tells the senators to explain why they killed his family. They reveal that his father learned about the Cataclysms and threatened to reveal the truth. They also believe he found a weapon.

Catenicus screams, triggering Diago to kill the senators. Ostius rearranges the scene to make it look like a coup. He gives Catenicus directions to an alley outside the Basilica. Then he and Diago disappear.

Siamun sees a crowd near the wall between East and West and joins it. Ahmose has been cornered atop the wall on the edge of the river. An onlooker says that Ahmose is a iunctus caught trying to pass himself off as an Easterner.

Ahmose tells the crowd what he has learned about Ka’s identity. He pleads with the people to listen to him. Then he says that he now understands that all people should accept their end when it comes. He no longer wishes to avoid death. He jumps off the wall and into the river, dissolving. Siamun turns away and looks at the enormous bridge that spans the city. He suddenly has an idea of how to kill Ka.

Catenicus runs out of the Basilica and escapes down the alley. Ostius is waiting, grabs his arm, and shifts into Luceum. Now the Republic will be looking for an assassin with two arms in a white cloak and a mask.

While Catenicus changes clothes and washes the blood away, Ostius warns that war is coming and that the Republic will do horrible things to the citizens. He respects Catenicus for wanting to help, but he must keep his identity secret. If Catenicus promises to only help when he is disguised with the mask, then Ostius will feed him information. Ostius gives Catenicus a stone medallion that will protect him. Catenicus realizes that he is bait to lure out Ka. Ostius shifts them back to the Forum in Res.

Catenicus finds his friends and claims that he saw a disturbance and thinks something bad has happened. The crowd grows restless. The friends agree that they need to leave. Eidhin and Indol head home. Military, Governance, and Religion members break into a bloody fight. Aequa and Catenicus freeze, recalling the trauma of the naumachia. Emissa leads them away to hide.