James Galloway - The Tower of Sorcery

"I will not tolerate rebellion in my own Tower! " The Keeper said in an absolute explosion of fury. "That boy will learn now just who holds his leash, I swear it!"

"Keeper!" Amelyn gasped. "Tarrin isn't entirely stable! If you push him, he'll go mad, and then what use will he be to us?"

"I don't care ," she snapped. "I want Tarrin back in class, and I want it now . He has got to be ready, and this new problem of his is going to jeopardize things as it is. We absolutely cannot allow any delays."

"But if he goes mad?"

"Then we'll just have to find a way to reverse it," she snapped. "We don't have any more time, Amelyn! Don't you understand that? We have to take risks now!"

"I think the risk you're talking about is too great," she said. "All he wants is to be allowed off the grounds to visit his family. That is not an outrageous demand."

"It is," she said grimly. "I just came back from court, Amelyn, and King Erick knows about Tarrin. He demanded that we hand him over to him. Now more than ever, we have to protect him, because Erick's not the only one that's going to come after him. If someone else takes him, or someone kills him, then where will that leave us? Or Sulasia? Or the world? The Wikuni and the Selani don't have his power, Amelyn. I don't know if they can do it. Even if I have to keep him chained in a cell, we're keeping our hands on that boy. And when the time comes, we'll release him to do what must be done."

Amelyn looked about to say something, but the door to her office burst open, and an infuriated Darvon marched in. He looked completely enraged, and the Keeper inwardly groaned. Darvon was almost too stubborn to handle, and it looked like he wasn't about to be put off by anything. "Keeper, we will talk, now," he said hotly. "We're going to have a little talk about Tarrin."

Now what? "What did he do now?" she demanded irritably.

"Tarrin told me that you're keeping him trapped on the grounds," he said. "He also told me that he has refused to do anything else until he is granted the same rights as the other Initiates."

"He's being held on the grounds for his own safety, Darvon," the Keeper said calmly, but it was even clear to him that her voice was highly strained. "Someone with considerable resources at his disposal is trying to kill him."

"Yes, and I think you know all about that," Darvon retorted. "What you're doing to him is wrong. He has a phobia against being caged. I think you know that too. Well, he told me that he's taken as much as he can stand with being caged on the grounds. If you don't let him out, he's going to end up hurting someone."

"He'll just have to endure it, Darvon," she told him. "It's much too dangerous for him to be outside of our protection."

"And what of his decision to strike against you?"

"That won't last long," she said in a sudden growling voice.

"So, you would oppress your own people, when all they want is to be treated like everyone else?" he asked pointedly.

"He's not everyone else!" she said in sudden fury. "He's a Were-cat, and he's as dangerous to the people of Suld as he is in danger! He stays on the grounds, because it keeps him safe, and it keeps Suld safe from him !"

Darvon gave her a calm look. "I see," he said. "Then that is your choice."

"You better believe that it's my choice," she said with a hot look.

"Fine. I should tell you, then, that we have long considered Tarrin and Allia to be our own. And not long ago, I decided that they have indeed earned the right to have their names on our rolls. I have Knighted them both." The Keeper's expression went from anger to horror in the blink of an eye. "Because Tarrin feels himself treated unjustly, he has decided on a non-violent means to solve his problem. As Lord General, I fully support the actions of my Knight. Furthermore, our code demands we do the same." He said that last with a slight, evil little smile. "We are All One Under Karas. So, the Knights hereby withdraw their support from the Tower and the katzh-dashi until such time that our Knight is treated with the respect due to his station. All Knights will remain on the grounds or in the chapterhouse, and all Knights in the field are going to be recalled."

"You can't do that!" the Keeper gasped. "Tarrin's an Initiate, bound by the oaths of the katzh-dashi ! He can't take the Oaths of the Spurs as well!"

"He didn't," Darvon said with a wicked smirk. "He is Knight by title only. We lay no claim on his services, but his station does grant him the right to our support. So, you can keep trying to control him, but know that the Knights will fight you every step of the way."

"You fool!" she said explosively. "Do you have any idea what you are doing? What you're jeopardizing?"

"Oh, am I throwing sand into the plans of the katzh-dashi ?" he asked mildly. "And what plans would those be?"

The Keeper gave him a furious look. "What I'm about to say goes no further than this room," she told the Lord General.

"Keeper, is it wise-" Amelyn began, but the Keeper cut her off.

"Amelyn, if Erick knows, then Darvon won't be long in finding out," she said dismissively. "And perhaps Darvon can help us get Tarrin back under control."

"What are you talking about?" Darvon asked suspiciously.

"Sit down, Darvon," the Keeper said, motioning at one of the chairs in front of her desk. She sat down as he did, and then she calmly explained the entire situation to him.

Darvon's eyes rose, widened, and more than once they gaped at her in shock. But it was the truth, the real truth, and he knew it.

And it made his blood run cold.

After he regained his composure. "I may understand why it's necessary, but you have a very edgy Were-cat on your hands, Keeper. It would be wise to give in to his demand. Tarrin is unbelievably stubborn, and if you push, he'll just dig in his heels and won't budge. I think we can reach a compromise that gives him his freedom while still keeping him protected."

"I'm listening," the Keeper said after a moment.

Bandit was the name that Keritanima had given to her cat, and he had a personality to match that title. He was michievious, fearless, and he absolutely would not mind the Wikuni at all. He held himself aloof from the Wikuni princess, and his imperious manner irritated her to no end. The cat should know, after all, that it was being addressed by royalty. Entire armies would obey her commands, and she was one of the most important women in the world. The very power of life and death was being held by her, capable to use as she saw fit, and the blasted cat still had the nerve to claw up her curtains, tear up her bedding, and use her favorite chair for a scratching post.

More than once she considered passing sentence on the rebellious feline for crimes against upholstery, and have Binter execute it on the spot. But she needed it. And as if it could understand how important it was, it did whatever it wanted with absolute impugnity. But then again, cats always did that anyway. It wasn't like it was intelligent or anything. It just had no idea who it was dealing with.

And thus began the brief but memorable war between Keritanima and Bandit. But the High Princess of Wikuna discovered, to her chagrin, that the the cat was even more stubborn than she was. No matter what punishment she used, the cat simply would not get it through its thick skull that what it was doing wasn't acceptable behavior. Even getting a pitcher of water dumped on it wasn't enough to keep it from tearing up her curtains. That was when Keritanima resorted to Sorcery. After discovering that Bandit didn't like loud noises, she wove together a weave that created a loud bang every time she caught him doing something that he wasn't supposed to be doing. It was a loud noise, it went everywhere, and it soon had all the Initiates on her floor complaining.