“You demanded our presence,” said the Arwin Tsocco as he was shown into the conference room. “And so we came. I assume you wish to know whether we will assist you in your war with Carrow.”

     “I can already guess the answer to that question,” said Leothan. “We declared war because you left us no choice. You were about to formally dissolve the agreement between our two countries, whereupon they would have invaded us and probably conquered us very quickly. Our only chance of winning was to start the war on our terms. We still may not win, but we will at least make them pay such a high price that they will regret having started this whole thing.”

     “You still maintain that Carrow was responsible for the Empire’s recent misfortunes, then?”

     “It is the truth, Ambassador. Ambassador, you yourself stated that stealing your export markets would only make sense if it was part of some larger scheme. I asked you here so I could ask whether you have any idea what that larger scheme may have been.”

     “No, but we deduce its existence from your actions.”

     “Our actions? You mean declaring war on a larger, more powerful country after having alienated the only ally that could have saved us from defeat?” A look of doubt appeared on the Ambassador's face, and Leothan allowed himself to feel a grain of hope. ”Use your imagination, Ambassador. What might that larger scheme be? Never mind whether there's any evidence, or even whether it makes any kind of logical sense. Just let your imagination fly. What might that larger scheme be?”

     “The evidence against you is overwhelming. Your agents left identification at the crime scenes. A saboteur was killed by guards, in his pocket was a photograph of himself in the uniform of the Helberion army holding a half raised adopted cat. Helberion coins were found at the scene of another act of sabotage. They must have fallen from a hole in a saboteur’s pocket...”

     “Ambassador, just how incompetent do you think our agents are? Do you think we send clowns to sabotage factories? Returning to the ‘larger scheme.’ Perhaps you think we intend to hire a huge mercenary army with the money we make from your export markets? Use it to conquer Carrow and then go on to declare war on Kelvon itself? I'm genuinely curious, Ambassador. What do you think this larger scheme is? What might it be? Come on, Ambassador! Use your imagination!”

     “Please do not raise your voice, your Majesty. It is unbecoming.” A look of fear crossed Arwin Tsocco’s face as he realised he'd crossed the line of protocol, but Leothan was prepared to overlook it, being encouraged by the Ambassador's growing discomfort.

     “Ambassador, it has just come to my attention that there is indeed a larger scheme, but it is not a scheme of ours. There is something bigger going on. That is why I asked you to come here. I need to know. Is the Empire aware of something else going on? Something concerning the Radiants and the Hetin folk?”

     “You're not suggesting that you have allied yourself with them?”

     “Not us, but someone might have.” He beckoned the Brigadier to come forward and stand beside him. “This is Brigadier Weyland James. He has recently returned from a successful mission to find a cure for Princess Ardria.”

     “Successful? That is wonderful news, your Majesty. As for the Brigadier, his reputation precedes him.”

     “Indeed. That is why I place great weight on what he has just told me. While on that mission, he discovered that there is a threat to all of us. Not just Helberion, not just the Empire, but the whole human world. I'll allow him to explain.”

     The Brigadier gave the same account of his mission as he'd just given the King, and outlined the conclusions they’d drawn regarding the Radiants. He showed him some of the artefacts he'd brought back from the long buried city, and the translations of the Hetin books. Lastly he told the Ambassador what they'd learned from the Princess just a few minutes before. “The Radiants intend to destroy our civilisation,” he concluded. “They will do it by starting wars between human nations, to prevent us from learning of their involvement. I now believe that the war between Helberion and Carrow was started by the Radiants, although we don't know whether the Carrowmen are willing participants or unwilling dupes.”

     “Then stop the war,” said the Ambassador. “Withdraw your armies.”

     “We can't. Carrow wants war. They could have agreed to the royal marriage, then seized control of the unified country. Your own analysts must had wondered why they didn't do that.” The look on the Ambassador's face confirmed it. “I now believe that it's the result of Radiant influence. They don't want a single unified kingdom. They want two kingdoms in ruins.”

     “You could deny them that by refusing to fight.”

     “I will not sacrifice my kingdom,” said Leothan adamantly. “If you will not help defend us, we must defend ourselves.”

     “Even if you’re doing just what the Radiants want you to do? Some might see this as a last, desperate attempt to secure Imperial support for your war with Carrow. Help us or the Radiants will get you next.”

     “As the largest and most powerful human nation, they must already be drawing up plans against you,” said the Brigadier. “What we need to know is whether any other nations are behaving in unexpected ways. Whether tensions are growing between former peaceful allies, that sort of thing. We have our own intelligence service, but we lack the resources that yours do. If the Radiants are exerting their influence over any other countries, the Empire would probably know about it before we do.”

     “I am not privy to Kelvon intelligence reports.”

     “Then we ask that you pass on the request to the Emperor,” said Leothan. “If the Radiants are taking action to destroy our civilisation, we must know about it so that we can stop them. I must ask, though, that you convey our suspicions to as few people as possible. So long as the Radiants do not know that we’re on to them, they have no reason to act prematurely. Their plans against us may take years to mature. That gives us plenty of time to plan and prepare.”

     “Your Majesty, you must realise how this looks to me. These are extraordinary claims you are making, and you have nothing more to back them up than a few dusty artefacts and the uncorroborated testimonies of three individuals...”

     “One of whom is my daughter,” said the King in a growl.

     “With all due respect, Majesty, she was hardly herself at the time. Her body was changed in dramatic ways. Can you be sure she was completely rational? Maybe she imagined the voices of the Radiants. The goat girl, well, a less reliable witness can hardly be imagined, and you yourself said that the museum curator might have had an innocent reason to lie to you.”

     “All the more reason to gather more information,” said the Brigadier. “We must all share what we know.”

     “And we must avoid fighting amongst ourselves if at all possible,” added the King. “Our hope is that, if our present operation against Carrow is successful and we reduce their army by the amount we hope to, they may agree to a negotiated settlement, especially if the Empire lends its weight to it. Then we share resources. All the human nations of the world. We create a special international intelligence service to investigate the Radiant threat. We have to get ahead of this thing while we still can. We have been extraordinarily lucky to learn what they're doing so early. We must not squander the opportunity we've been given.”

     The Ambassador squirmed uncomfortably. “I know how Emperor Tyron will react when I take this to him. He'll say that you’re mad and that I'm gullible for believing you.”

     “So you will take it to him?” said the Brigadier.

     Arwin sighed. “I will tell him what you've told me. What good it will do...”

     “All we ask is that you try,” said the King. “The Brigadier will go with you, and he will take some of the Hetin artefacts with him. As you yourself said, he has a reputation that extends to the Empire. His word will carry weight.” The Brigadier looked at him and nodded.

     “I'll make preparations to leave straight away. I was probably about to be recalled anyway. I've instructed my staff to act on the assumption that Kelvon is about to sever all diplomatic contact with your country.” He looked at the Brigadier. “You are, of course, aware that members of foreign armed services are only allowed in Kelvon with special permission from the Emperor.”

     “The Brigadier is retired," said the King, "and his batman has never been formally recruited into the army. They will be travelling as private citizens.”

     “Armed private citizens. Still, with the brigands and highwaymen that plague the countryside, I can't imagine anyone objecting to that.”

      The King rose, and the other two men stood as well. “I know you still don't fully believe me, that you still have doubts about our protestations of innocence. I want to thank you for giving us the benefit of the doubt. We have been friends for a long time. I would like to think that we are still friends.”

     “Your Majesty, on the one hand I would like nothing better than to know that you are telling the truth and for our friendship to be reconfirmed, but on the other hand, if you are right about the Radiants...”

     Leothan nodded. “May Those Above be with us all," he said.