Brunch was served on dusty plates, and the food looked as old as it was.

There was, however, a bottle of wine that had apparently survived the ages. A ghostly servant poured it into vintage glasses (I hastily shook the dust off of mine), and the red liquid looked just as good as any drink back home.

I took a cautious sip and was pleasantly surprised by the taste. It tasted like wine.

The Marquis smiled graciously. “I hope you’re enjoying brunch. It’s been a while since I entertained guests.”

I shot a glance at Strix questioningly, but she just raised a wineglass to her lips. She didn’t drink any, of course, but the Marquis didn’t seem to notice that.

I took another sip myself and nodded. “It’s good. I missed such pleasantries on the trip here.”

“Yes,” he said, “Strix told me you were from far off. We haven’t had many visitors to the city lately, mostly people leaving. I wish you could have come at a better time, that I might show you a proper view of the capital’s glory. Alas, I doubt things will be presentable any day soon.”

“We’ve had trouble too, but nothing like here. Strix tells me there have been riots, even uprisings.”

“Oh, yes. Nothing to worry about, just a few rough spots. I’m sure any day now the imperial guard will restore order.” Asellio continued to smile as he mimicked the motions of eating, but glamour told me that my words hit home. There was resentment there, aimed at a higher power. Aimed at the emperor.

“I’m not so confident, Marquis.”

“Please, call me Kaeso.”

I nodded. “I’ve seen the guard. I’ve read about Nero. Neither… impress me.”

He shrugged. “What’s to be done? He is emperor. They are his tools.” He agreed with me, but he wasn’t willing to express it. I needed to be the one to vocalize it, to turn idle fancy into actionable reality.

“What if he wasn’t emperor?”

The statement was treason, and he knew it, but it lured him all the same. He took another cautious fake sip and waved for me to continue. “What if?”

I put down my glass and leaned forward. “Kaeso, I’ve seen Nero, and I’ve seen others like him. They only have power so long as people think they have power. This empire deserves someone with real strength. Someone who is willing to do more about our problem than sit in an ivory tower and hold galas.”

“Someone like you?”

Internally, I freaked out. On the exterior, I just shrugged and said, “Perhaps.”

Was this what Strix had meant? Was that why she played coy? She wasn’t just using me to build a rebellion… she was trying to sell me as the next sovereign. Her deceit irritated me, but I still had a part to play.

“What matters now,” I said, “is building a coalition. Bringing together those who no longer have faith in the emperor and uniting them in a common cause. I believe you can help us do that, Kaeso.”

“Us?”

“Strix and I, of course.”

He tossed a shred glance at my spectral advisor. “Yes… I’m curious about that. It’s not like Strix to put her weight behind someone at random. Are you a conspirator in this, then? You agree with Valerian’s sentiment?”

Strix nodded. “Completely, old friend. The time has come for a great upheaval, and I believe Valerian is our best chance at such an event. She has my full support, and my explicit endorsement.”

That seemed to impress him, at least according to my glamour. “Well. That is a bold claim. An auspicious start to this venture, I suppose. Alright. I’ll participate in your little coup. What do you need?”

I gestured to Strix and she said, “For now, very little. Just an invitation to Lord Pictor‘s estate, and a small escort. The streets aren’t safe these days, and the imperial guard aren’t… fond of Valerian, let’s say.”

He gave a terse nod. “That can be arranged. Both of them. I assume you’ll want that letter as quickly as possible.”

“Of course. Time is of the essence. The longer we take to mobilize, the more chances Nero has to intercede.”

Like that, the meeting was over. Strix and the Marquis swept away in private conversation, leaving Duncan, Finn, and myself behind.

“Well,” I said, “that was interesting.”

Finn laughed darkly. “One way to put it. No backing out now; we’re conspirators in a coup. A coup against a ghost emperor. Not how I expected this trip to go.”

“Yeah. Kind of… intense, as far as outcomes go. Think we can pull it off?”

He shrugged. “We have to.”

Duncan seemed thoughtful. “Did you notice the same thing I did? The Marquis implied you were trying to be empress. Is that Strix’s real plan?”

“Maybe,” I said. “Hard to know for sure. It could be a convenient lie to unite the nobility. But why the necessity? Wouldn’t she prefer to be empress herself?”

“She needs us to provoke change, so maybe her plan wouldn’t work if she were the figurehead?”

“Could be. Maybe her plan is to use us until there’s enough momentum, then crown herself empress after the dust has settled.”

Finn asked the most important question: “Do we care? So long as we get access to the library, I don’t think it really matters who Strix wants in charge. This is a city of ghosts. Everything here is dead. Gone. Ancient history.”

I toyed with my wineglass and considered that. “Hmm.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Hmm?”

“I’m not so sure we should just discount this place. There are a lot of ghosts here, and if we could really unite them, find a way to break them out of this malaise… there’s power in this city. If I can seize it.” I brooded.

Duncan slowly nodded. “That’s a fair point. If we raised an army of ghosts, it might prove useful. They could at the very least augment our defenses. Help us, when the enemy arrives.”

I started to become more animated. “Exactly. And imagine the kind of message it sends back home if we reclaim the very heart of the fallen empire. We’ll be legends. Fuck the Council, we can go right past them and inspire the whole of the island. We might not even need the palace library if this plan works.”

Fin chuckled. “I guess being crowned empress is a pretty good way to convince people you’re the chosen one.”

I grinned. “With an empire at my command, the Council wouldn’t dare stand in my way. We’ll have free reign to fulfill the prophecy. Morgan will be forced to acknowledge me as chosen one. As chosen empress.”

I realized they were both looking at me funny, though neither said anything.

“What? Relax, it’s just a harmless bit of speculation.” I tried to turn my hungry grin into a friendly smirk, and didn’t entirely succeed.

Duncan said, “Don’t let this city mislead you, Gwyn. This place looks pretty, but I feel a darkness inside it. Lurking behind every one of these ghosts. I’m beginning to understand why the empire fell, I think.”

“Besides the Gates malfunctioning, you mean.”

“Mm,” she grunted in response, “I’m still thinking about that particular aspect.”

We bickered a bit more until Strix returned, alone.

She rubbed her ethereal hands together and said, “Good news, everyone. The improper dead are waking up.”

I frowned. “Out of context that line does not sound like good news. In context, I’m still not convinced. I take it your conversation with the fop went well?”

“Extremely. I was able to make serious progress in discussing new topics. He has promised to get us that letter of invitation, and a small escort to safely reach Lord Pictor. This is a small victory, Valerian, but a meaningful one. This is the beginning of a grand partnership, I just know it.”

It vaguely annoyed me that she kept using my fake name even when we were alone, but it wasn’t worth bringing up. “Yes… speaking of that partnership, I think you let a detail pass unnoticed: the throne. You wanted the Marquis to think I was trying to become empress, didn’t you?”

She smiled. “Guilty as charged. I don’t know what it’s like in your part of the world, Valerian, but the imperials do things a certain way. This is a rebellion, not a revolution. The nobility would never back an attack on the status quo, but a shift in power, that they’ll support. You must convince them that you are a worthy empress to succeed Nero, one who will reward loyalty and punish her enemies.”

“And what then? What if we take the throne? Do you intend to let me keep it, or will you swoop in to claim the prize yourself?”

She laughed. “Oh, please. They would never tolerate me as empress. Besides, once the palace is yours, I hardly think I’d be able to take it from you. No, I’m not planning a second coup, not when one will suffice. My interest is in seeing the empire redeemed, and nothing more. I am your faithful adviser.” Strix winked at me, which mildly undercut her trust-building attempt.

Regardless of what her intentions might be, we’d taken the first step. “Alright. Are we going now, or will it take time for Asellio to draft an invitation?”

“An hour. Besides, it would be rude to leave early.”

“Well we can’t have that,” I muttered. I polished off my wineglass and looked around for more. A servant obliged.

Duncan frowned. “I thought the empire mostly used slaves for menial tasks. These servants look like kindred. Why?”

Strix adopted an amused expression. “The kine are good for brute labor, yes, but little more. Many Lords employ them as laborers and on estates with taskmasters, but most kine work in factories or off-world.”

Duncan’s frown deepened. “Then… how did they manage to threaten you? If most of your slaves were elsewhere, why does the city bear so many signs of riot?”

I noticed that Duncan kept saying slave, while Strix insisted on kine. It was a small detail, but one I filed away.

Strix said, “Because most of our legions were also elsewhere. The heartland was secure, full of powerful warlocks and elite imperial guard. We… we never anticipated that the kine here would become a threat. Well, the empire never anticipated. Another ignored warning.” A touch of bitterness crept into her tone.

I asked, “Did you warn the empire about many things, Strix?”

I reached for the cold again and sent feelers towards Strix, but this time her emotions were more distant, harder to grasp. She was resisting me. Our eyes met, and I knew that she knew.

She replied curtly, “I voiced concerns. The details aren’t relevant to our current position. If I feel they become relevant, I will share.”

“Of course.” I let the matter drop.

Eventually the Marquis returned with a sealed letter (don’t ask me how he did that – I wasn’t even sure it had anything written on it) and two footmen.

“These boys will escort you to Pictor’s estate, and stay with you for as long as needed. Can’t have any trouble popping up, yes?” He smiled jovially and Strix returned it, cat-like.

“We’ll take good care of them, old friend. I look forward to our next meeting.”

“Likewise.”

Then we left, which meant more walking. To pass the time, I interrogated Strix about our next move.

“So, Strix. What are we trying to get out of Lord Pictor? Another pledge of support? More troops?”

“Oh, nothing of the sort,” she said breezily. “In fact, Lord Pictor would stand by Nero with his dying breath – or, his undying breath, I suppose.”

“What?” I demanded. “Then why are we going right into his domain?”

“Because, protege, in his slavish loyalty to the emperor he has managed to vex me, and make our plans the slightest bit more difficult. First, another history lesson.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Long ago, the empire had a senate that presided over matters, wrote laws, the like. A prior empress abolished the senate and replaced them with the Triumvirate, three Consuls that manage imperial bureaucracy and wield great influence. Traditionally, the Triumvirate has been instrumental in selecting the next sovereign.”

There was an expectant pause, and I reluctantly said, “Okay, so if we get the backing of the Triumvirate it will force the nobility to acknowledge us. Does the Triumvirate have a grudge against the guy or something?”

“In a sense. A century back, Pictor’s goons captured a Consul. The man they captured, Cossus, had enough wit about him to prepare for death, and possesses most of his faculties. Freeing him will put you in his good graces, and secure an endorsement. With that, we can begin recruiting the nobility in earnest.”

“That’s something, at least.” I paused. “How, exactly, are we going to pull this off? We have three ghosts and three living. I don’t think we can storm the castle.”

She shook her head. “Of course not. Stealth is the key. You’ll make niceties with him, take a tour, and explain you’re new to the city and that Marquis Asellio recommended you to him. Don’t mention my involvement. Play nice until you can get out of sight, then bring the footmen with you to the dungeons. Cossus should be there, and the footmen should be able to deal with whatever guards are posted, if you act quickly and throw in some sorcery to help out.”

“Hold up. What about you? You’re not coming?”

“Pictor and I aren’t on good terms. Even hiding our bid for power from him, he still knows of my anti-Nero sentiment. My presence would only diminish your chances of slipping under his notice.”

“Fine. I’ll make do without you, I guess.”

“You’ll be fine.” She smiled. “Trust me.”

I didn’t, but I nodded anyways. Finn and Duncan looked as uneasy as I felt.