Temple Commander

3. Lidenbach-2

"Yet those same patrols refuse to intervene when trouble threatens?"

Nina stood, her nostrils flaring. "Do not lecture me on my duty. We possess no power here or permission from the king to arrest criminals even if we wanted to." She forced herself to take a deep breath. "In time, you’ll see what a hopeless situation we are in, here in Lidenbach."

"Hopeless?" said Danica.

"Yes. The people of Arnsfeld barely tolerate our presence, and the king would prefer to see us gone from this land."

"Surely he’d want us to counterbalance the threat of the Halvarians?"

"You would think so, wouldn"t you?" said Nina. "You should try raising that issue with His Majesty, assuming he even agrees to see you."

"Are you suggesting you carry no influence at court?"

"That"s putting it mildly. Ever since word came of the Cunars’ abandonment, we"ve been publicly ostracized. The king refuses to send his own warriors to keep the darker elements of society at bay. Quite honestly, it"s enough to make one cry."

"I"m sorry to hear that," said Charlaine. "I had no idea things were so dire. What was it like before the brothers left?"

"The influence of the Church on matters of state has been dwindling for years. I"m surprised we didn"t join the exodus ourselves." Nina looked around the room. "I would be lying if I said I would miss this place. It had its charms initially, but I’ll be glad to be rid of it. Do you know how they mean to employ me back in the Antonine?"

"I"m afraid not."

"Ah, well. I shall go where I"m needed, although it would be nice to receive an assignment where I could make a real difference for a change."

"How long do you need to hand over your command?"

"A day, at the most, I would imagine. I"m sure we can find you rooms here in the commandery while you wait."

"That"s quite all right," said Charlaine. "We"ll remain aboard the Valiant."

Valiant"Very well. I shall send word once I"ve vacated my office."

"What of these decorations?" asked Danica. "Do you wish to take them with you?"

"And carry them all the way to the Antonine? No, consider them a gift. You may deal with them as you see fit. Now, if you"ll excuse me, I have much to do."

Dismissed, they made their way out to the street.

"Well," said Danica. "That was not what I expected."

"Are you suggesting it went better than expected?" asked Marlena. "Or worse?"

"At this point, I"m not entirely sure."

"Was she like that in Ilea?"

"No. In a sense, she was worse. Back then, she didn"t care about anything other than her own position."

"And now?"

"It appears all her attempts to make changes were rebuffed." Danica turned to Charlaine. "I don"t envy you. It sounds like you"ll have a hard time of it."

"So it would seem, yet I can"t help but feel there"s more to this place."

"Meaning?"

"Nina suggested the king was uninterested in enforcing his own laws. Does that sound reasonable to you?"

"You mean, regarding the king, or Nina"s claim?"

"Either or both, if you like."

"Well," said Danica, "an illness might explain the king"s indifference to the plight of his subjects. Or perhaps he"s recently lost his wife or child? Grief can have far-reaching implications."

"And Commander Nina?"

"I think she feels slighted by her superiors, yet she was promoted to Temple Commander. She was either very effective, like you, or possesses some powerful friends."

"Couldn"t she be both?" asked Marlena.

"Yes," said Charlaine. "I suppose she could. We remember her as an ineffective leader, but our memory is tainted. Perhaps she’s learned to thrive since her reassignment?"

"You"ll find out soon enough. You"ll have access to all her logbooks when she hands over command. That should give you a good idea of what they"ve been up to for the last few years."

"Assuming she"s kept them up to date," said Danica.

"I remember her as a stickler for details," said Charlaine. "And if I recall, she constantly kept notes back in Ilea. If anything, I"d expect those logs to be very thorough."

"So what do we do now? Return to the Valiant?"

Valiant"It"s only mid-morning. Can you think of nothing better to do?"

"I can," offered Marlena.

They both looked at the adjutant. "Well?" said Charlaine. "I can"t read your mind."

"I propose we return to the Valiant and change into plainer clothes."

Valiant"To what end?"

"It would serve us well to get a better idea of how this city is organized, and our cassocks would make us stand out."

"There is some wisdom in that," said Charlaine. "We could walk around the city without drawing undue attention."

"Yes," said Danica, "but what else is there to see? It"s not as if we could enter the Palace without the king"s permission."

"True, but we could see what remains of the Cunar commandery."

"To what end?" asked Marlena.

"The grand mistress promised us more knights."

"And?"

"What better place to house them than a commandery."

"But it’s a Cunar commandery."

"I fail to see why that matters. The layout of all the Temple Knight commanderies is identical."

"I suppose that makes sense, but that being the case, why visit it at all?"

"To ascertain what condition it’s in. Doubtless, the walls and doors will be in decent shape, but we must be mindful of other things."

"Such as?"

"Beds, tables, chairs, not to mention the state of its kitchens."

"Good point," said Danica. "How long until the extra knights arrive?"

"My orders don"t say."

"Which means?"

Charlaine shrugged. "They might take months, or they could arrive before the end of the week."

"Then I suppose we’d better make equipping it our top priority."

"And how do we pay for all that?" asked Marlena. "It"s not as if we have any wealthy patrons here in Lidenbach."

"Then maybe it’s time we found some," suggested Danica. "I can start by making enquiries down by the docks. Perhaps we"ll get lucky and find a merchant willing to sacrifice some of his ill-gotten gains."

"And if we don"t?"

"Then I shall take the matter to the king," said Charlaine.

"Speaking of the king, why do you believe he won"t enforce his laws?"

"I suspect he has his reasons, although what those would be is anyone"s guess."