>>5196858>>5196859>>5196921You stop mid stride as you and Alys leave to get the surgeons, the guards stepping back in to watch the prisoners. "Sudden question, but do you have means to detect if someone is with child?" She blushes for a moment, surprising you, before composing herself. "Yes, that is within my capabilities. You don't mean?" You nod. "The way she reacted when I said she was dying, I expected resignation, but there was a deep fear there. Seeing how close she was to this Reiji, I made an assumption. This complicates things, but it also gives us more leverage. Do you think she knows Imperial Law requires the unborn be brought to term before execution of the mother?" Alys snorts. "Do you think dear brother cares? You saw him before, he's never been like that. He's furious." No doubt. "Rightly so. But the wound is fresh and he has ever been reasonable. I can make the case to postpone things when his blood is cooler. It sounded to me she knows more than can be imparted in just the time before a regular execution is carried out. I would like to find out just what. This better world worries me. The girl, Vera, is garbed as a priestess of the Deep Lady. I actually don't think it a mere disguise, as she has the temperament for it. The big brute is clearly an Ard Negh, savage fighter like them all. Something that could turn the two of them into fanatics against Imperial order has a power we cannot ignore. The Emperor can be convinced to utilize all resources to their fullest, I'm sure." She sighs, shaking her head, her hood briefly falling to her shoulders and revealing crimson locks before the woman habitually brings it back up over her head despite there being no need for anonymity in her own home. "Better you than me, then, Will. I don't think I can handle an audience with the Emperor just now, I'm barely together as it is." You give her a concerned look. "I can handle the rest tonight if you need rest." A cold glare. "I do as the Emperor bids." You shrug, but the concern remains. Battle has taught you what can happen when someone doesn't know when they need to stop.
