I sighed and shook out my hand as if I’d done heavy labor as I walked through the corridor of the base’s command center, taking a turn into a small garden. This used to be the mansion of the local lord, before he’d been killed fighting for the conspirators. At least it meant there was some color and life here, besides the bustle of cultivators managing the campaign.

“I don’t know why I even bother,” I grumbled. “Things were fine before.”

Tenira grinned. “You didn’t have to start with it. You could just say no. Of course, that might not be good for morale.”

I rolled my eyes. “I didn’t know what I was getting myself into. Bless one person and suddenly everyone wants me to touch them …”

She chuckled, and after a second I joined in. Although I was only half joking. Soldiers asking me to bless them in Rijoko’s name was happening more often, and I didn’t like it. Of course, I generally obliged them, anyway.

I didn’t know for sure whether it did anything. I hadn’t sensed any qi activity, but for all I knew Rijoko might actually be marking them. I didn’t even know if he ever listened to, or answered, any prayers.

I’d really like to test that. But if I was to design and conduct an experiment, he would know and might mess with it on purpose. Turns out religion is even harder for science when you have a psychic link to a spirit. Who knew?

I shook my head and returned my attention to the present. Tenira’s hand was questing for mine again, so I grabbed it and pulled her in for a short kiss. She smiled at me and pushed me onto a garden bench, snuggling into my side. Ever since we’d finally worked things out a few days ago, she’d been quite enthusiastic about kissing and cuddling.

“Is it wrong that I’m happy,” she asked, her thought seemingly going in the same direction, “in the middle of a war like this?”

“Would you being unhappy make things better?” I pulled her a little closer. “There’s nothing wrong with seizing happiness where you can. And you’ve definitely brightened my days a lot, even with all the annoyance of fighting the conspirators.”

Unfortunately, it didn’t look like the fighting would end soon. After our repeated victories, they’d gone to ground even farther. Many of their fighters had almost disappeared, doing their best to melt into the civilian population of the areas they’d previously seized. It made it hard to clear them, and even harder to strike another decisive blow against the insurgents. Especially since their leadership stayed on the move a lot.

“Yarani’s coming back,” Tenira said after a minute. She pulled back a little, facing me. “You haven’t spent much time with her lately. Or even with Kajare before our departure.”

I cocked my head. I didn’t think she was really talking about me just spending time with them. “To be honest, I wanted to wait and talk to you, make sure I know where I stand.”

She frowned a little. “I appreciate the sentiment, but I don’t want to keep you from them.”

“So you don’t mind sharing me? Well, not sharing in that sense. But, you know … You don’t mind if I sleep with them?”

Tenira shook her head. “No. I can’t say I like the idea, but it doesn’t really bother me. I want you to be happy, Nari. Just because I don’t need that sort of thing doesn’t mean you don’t, and I’d feel bad if you were denying yourself for me. Not to mention that they were with you before me.”

I considered her for a moment. “You’re sure you really don’t mind?”

“Of course. They can give you what I can’t. And I actually like both of them. Especially Yarani.” She paused for a moment. “How about this. You promise me that if you ever want to have another consort, I’ll be involved in that decision?”

I smiled and kissed her cheek. “Of course. I promise. And the same for you?”

She snorted. “I’m not likely to fall for someone else, but certainly.”

I grinned. “For someone else, huh?”

Tenira blushed a little. Then she returned my grin. “I stand by what I said.”

This time, it was my turn to blush, but I gathered myself quickly. “That’s good, since I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you, Tenira.”

We kissed again.

Then we cuddled and talked about less important things, like how our projects were going. Suaki’s assistance was helpful, especially with streamlining the formations we used. Here, in the middle of a war camp, we couldn’t do much practical work, anyway. Most of the team was still back in the palace, and it wasn’t like we had the Internet to facilitate communications, but we made some small progress.

Finally, I sighed and sat back against the backrest of the bench. “It’s almost time for my meeting with Salira.”

Tenira nodded. “Do you want to stay here?”

“Sure, why not?” I took her hand again and gave it a squeeze. “You can watch me in my sleep if you want, though if you want to leave, don’t feel like you have to stay. Aston and the others will take care of me.”

“I’m a little curious if I can sense what happens when you cast your mind out like that, actually. Or if I can sense something.”

I smiled. “Okay. Tell me if you catch anything.”

Then I closed my eyes and exhaled. I had to consciously make myself relax, and not think about the fact that people might be able to see me sleeping or that Tenira was watching. But this was nice, too, and I didn’t want to get up and cut our time together short. So I just focused on the flow of my qi and let myself slowly drift into sleep.

Once I was asleep, I took a moment to get a sense for the sleeping minds near me, then cast my senses out farther. I knew where Salira was, at least roughly, and remembered the feel of her mind well, so it didn’t take long to reach her. She must have been waiting for me, as her mind yielded to my entrance easily and let my consciousness into her dream. It resolved into sharper focus.

‘Salira,’ I greeted her, making sure my visualization of my body was working properly.

She bowed. ‘Princess Inaris.’

Our dream-selves were standing in a room packed with bookshelves, perhaps a library. There was a table with several open books in front of her, and I wondered if she’d actually fallen asleep here.

‘If Hajake calls me Sister, you can do the same,’ I told her with some amusement. ‘No need to stand on formality. How have you been?’

She smiled. ‘Of course, Sister Inaris. I’ve been well, thank you for asking. The war is going reasonably well here. I imagine the Zarian’s attention is elsewhere. I’ve heard they’re pushing you heavily?’

I sighed. ‘Yes, unfortunately. We barely manage to erect new defensive lines in time for the fighting to reach them. I fear Blue Valley City won’t hold out for much longer. All the more reason to deal with enemies in our own lands quickly.’

‘I can imagine that’s not easy. And I’d like nothing more than to deal with Hajake, but I’m afraid rushing things would cost us.’

I sat down in one of the chairs, although I couldn’t really feel it. ‘Yes, you’re right about that. Have you found out anything more?’

She shook her head. ‘A few more details, but nothing truly important. I’m beginning to get a good idea of his network of allies and supporters, as well as which government officials he might have corrupted, but there’s little to act on.’

I nodded. That was to be expected.

‘I’ve also built up my own support,’ she continued. ‘Of course, it’s made harder by the fact that I’m still on the Earth Continent. Mother is helping, but I don’t think telling her everything would be a good idea, so I have to move carefully with her, as well.’

I’d have to trust that Salira knew what she was doing in that regard. ‘Can I help with that?’ I asked. ‘If there are certain people you would like me to contact, I could. I might also take a look at the sleeping minds of our enemies, though that sort of approach needs to be handled with caution and a good dose of skepticism.’

Her face brightened. ‘Oh, yes. That would help quite a bit.’

We talked for a while longer, while she provided me details on important figures or circumstances, and explained possible targets. She was quite methodical, and I had a decently-sized list once she finished.

‘It was good talking to you,’ I finally concluded. ‘I’ll look forward to seeing you in person again.’

Salira smiled. ‘The same goes for me, Sister.’

I nodded at her, then extracted myself from her dream, casting my mind and my senses out again.

Unfortunately, my plan turned out to be harder than I had expected. I hadn’t met most of these people personally, so trying to find their minds in my dreaming state was quite a challenge. It didn’t help that I knew few of them would be asleep. I’d have to check back periodically over the next while, but I would still do what I could now.

I managed to find a few sleeping minds that fit, carefully brushing over their dreams to get an idea of their identities and the dreams’ contents. Then I reached out to influence them, careful to keep it subtle, and inserted my own mind into the dreams in order to reach the dreamers.

Those I contacted in this way were pretty surprised, but they adjusted quickly. Their dreams were blurry, and I could tell they thought this might just be a normal dream. None of them had a perfect memory, or any training in controlling their minds in such a situation. I talked with them for a bit, getting an idea of their status and their thoughts, before I left them to their sleep.

With those I wanted to covertly observe, I was a little more careful. I disliked the idea of invading their mental privacy like this, and I definitely wouldn’t stoop to attempting anything like actual mind control, even if I could. But I reminded myself that if they were working for Hajake in his schemes, they were my enemies, and every edge could help blunt the fallout of this confrontation.

The most notable one was one of the top generals of the Kingdom’s forces on the Earth Continent, who also happened to be from a prominent house. I gently brushed over his dream, trying to get an idea of what I was dealing with. His mental defenses were a little sharper than most, but nothing I couldn’t handle. Instead of entering it with my consciousness, I cautiously insinuated a thread of my mind into his dream, careful not to change anything or do something that would raise his suspicion. It was probably too paranoid, but I’d never done this before.

His dream was a chaotic swirling of images and sounds. He seemed to have a pretty visual mind, and the pictures dominated, resonating with surprising clarity and focus. I watched for a while, trying to puzzle out what his dream could tell me. There were a lot of clearly personal elements to it that didn’t mean much to me. I could only guess he had trouble with siblings or close friends, a dispute over hunting a spirit beast. Unless that was just an invention of the dream. But Hajake also featured in the dream, and it seemed to get darker and more shadowy when he did. I watched glimpses of hushed conversations in dark corners, perhaps memories, perhaps allegories of the secretive nature of their collaboration. The maps and faces of other people that came up with it gave me some clues to their plans, and who else might be involved.

After a while, I judged that I’d seen all I was going to, and exited the dream again. That wasn’t a total waste, but nothing I could really bring to Salira. I’d sharpened my skills, but didn’t have much concrete information to show for it. Still, I didn’t want to wake up yet.

When I scanned again, I startled as I recognized someone else who’d just gone to sleep. Prince Jian of the Velisha. I carefully reached out to his mind, trying to analyze it.

His mental defenses were quite good. I didn’t get any of the content of his dream, and I had to keep my mental touch light for fear of calling his attention to me. I retreated for a moment and considered what I was sensing more deeply. His cultivation wasn’t that high, and his defense seemed suspiciously good. I braced myself and reached out again, very carefully, trying to get a better sense of what I was dealing with.

I caught a hint of foreign qi and knew immediately it wasn’t from a mortal. Isuro, perhaps? I paused and considered the sensations more deeply. Close, but it seemed more like Jideai himself. Interesting, and problematic. They’d definitely notice if I broke through. I hadn’t encountered something like this before, but it didn’t feel that strong, or like a direct boost to his strength. Some kind of protective blessing, most likely. To protect his mind, and perhaps a little more.

Well, it was a good thing that I had other options at my disposal.

I mentally retreated a little and searched for another familiar mind, happy to find him asleep, as well. Not stopping the sleep schedule we’d established paid off.

I reached out and pushed on his dream, waiting for him to recognize me and send a feeling of welcome, before I fully pulled my mind into the dream. My visualization appeared on a mountain peak I recognized as belonging to the Central Mountains, not too far from the palace, where Lei’s dream self had set up a blanket at a spot with a nice view.

‘Inaris!’ he greeted me cheerfully. ‘It’s good to see you again.’

I hugged him, then settled down beside him. ‘Likewise, Lei. How have you been?’

For a few minutes, we chatted about what we’d done and how things were going both in the Earth Continent and for me. The war didn’t seem to affect him much, although I noticed he spent less time talking about tech and more about the various people there.

‘So. To what do I owe the chance to bask in your presence, Luminous Princess?’ he asked with a grin.

I swatted at him. ‘It’s definitely not your overflowing charm, Lei. But, no, there’s something else.’

‘I’m all ears. Are we finally making a move against Hajake?’

‘No. Jian. I want you to go arrest him, on suspicion of treason. But don’t give them details.’

That would stir things up a little. Most people should assume it had something to do with the attempted coup, but it might startle his or Hajake’s associates. And I was getting a little tired of pussyfooting around.

Lei raised an eyebrow, searching my expression for a moment. ‘Inaris, did you talk about that with Kiyanu and Kariva?’

I pulled a face. ‘No?’ At his expression, I raised a hand in surrender. ‘Okay, you should wait a day longer, and I’ll consult with her.’ If nothing else, she could have agents in place who might need to know about this.

He nodded. ‘Of course, I can do it. The Velisha are our vassals, and not in a position to stop our elites, anyway.’ He paused, then prodded me, ‘So you’ll talk to Kariva. And Kiyanu?’

I shrugged. ‘I kind of thought it might be a good test …’

‘Inaris,’ Lei groaned. ‘You must have read too many bad dramas. Come on, you don’t want to slight your regent like that.’

I sighed. ‘Alright. You’re right. I’ll clear this with him.’ Then I brightened up and I grinned at Lei. ‘Good to see you’re not as bad at politics as you pretend, anyway.’

‘Hey now,’ he grumbled. ‘Don’t go ruining my reputation.’

I just winked at him. ‘No promises.’