Dragonlord of the Savage Empire

The three surviving attackers were taken to the infirmary, where Sandor put them to sleep, doing no more for Bril than to stop his bleeding so that he would survive for his execution.

The gash across Lenardo's shoulder was not deep. Sandor laid his hand over it, and the familiar heat of Adept healing spread through his shoulder as he sat on the edge of the infirmary table, talking with Helmuth and Arkus and Julia, who refused to be shepherded off to bed until she was certain that Lenardo was healed.

"They killed two guards on the way in here," Arkus said. "Slit then- throats. But my lord, I don't understand. How could they sneak up on you? You've always known before."

"I was asleep," he explained.

Arkus and Helmuth looked blank, and Julia said, "So was I-and I Read them!"

"And that, child," said Lenardo, "is what saved my life. I thank you."

"But why didn't you Read them, my lord?" Helmuth asked.

"One of the most difficult lessons a Reader must learn," Lenardo explained, "is not to Read in his sleep. It is not that he might discover something but that he might reveal something, for no one can control his own dreams."

"I still don't understand," Arkus said. "Who could Read your dreams?''

"Julia or any other Reader. Where I come from, Arkus, people with varying degrees of Reading ability are as common as people with varying degrees of Adept talent are here. In the empire, a Reader with a slight talent-as you have a slight Adept talent-would be trained in an Academy to make the most he could of his ability. Can you imagine the chaos in an Academy full of children if each time one had a nightmare, it was broadcast to all the others? And what of the traumas of growing up? Consider how you might have felt had your adolescent fantasies been broadcast to all your fellow soldiers in training."

Arkus blushed scarlet. "I see," he murmured.

"But protection from embarrassment is not the main reason a Reader must guard his sleep. Theoretically, a stronger Reader might guide the dreams of a lesser one, specifically to elicit information. That is now a forbidden technique, for Readers are not gods. Because that technique, developed for teaching and for treating some of the problems Readers have, was in the past vilely misused, now every Reader is taught self-protection from earliest childhood. I shall have to teach Julia-a difficult task, as it means staying awake for many nights, monitoring her sleep. I fear it will have to wait until our situation here is much more stable."

"My lord," said Helmuth, "you are going to have to tell us how to protect you."

"Yes," added Arkus. "This incident tonight should have been prevented. Twice you have proved that you could Read danger and prepare for it, even recognize poisoned wine so that no one could be harmed. It crossed my mind last evening that after you revealed yourself as a Reader, I should increase the guard here, but then I thought, no, you will warn us far in advance of any attack. How much more effective to let your people see that you have no more need of an armed guard than the strongest Lord Adept."

"I haven't, except when I'm asleep," said Lenardo. "But you must tell us when you are vulnerable," Helmuth insisted. "A Lord Adept must have protection when he has used up his strength in applying his powers. Now that we know you must be guarded while you sleep, we will protect you."

"I'm still not used to thinking of myself as needing protection," Lenardo explained. "A clean battle is one thing, but assassins in the night-"

"You defeated them," Sandor put in. "No need to spread the word that you had even a small wound. Try your shoulder, my lord. Any soreness left?"

"No, Sandor. Thank you very much."

"Sandor is right," said Helmuth. "It won't hurt at all to let your people think you're invulnerable. Mutiny, poison, assassination-and there you are, unscathed, while your attackers are all dead or scheduled for execution. The word will spread tomorrow, my lord. With Bril dead, there is no one with a personal grudge. This should be the last attempt on your life until your people have a chance to see how you rule. And if you rule well, it may be the last attack ever."

Before the executions, Lenardo had the distasteful task of Reading the condemned men to discover whether they had acted alone or represented a larger group of malcontents. It was a skill he had learned years ago, interrogating savage prisoners for the Aventine Army. To his relief, he found that Bril had trusted no one but the three who had joined him, formerly wealthy businessmen with whom he had often traded financial favors.

When Lenardo stood once more on the steps, bracing himself to witness the executions, Julia joined him. "I told you to go to the watchtower, child."

"They tried to kill you. I want to see them die." Sensing that he would have her removed bodily, she tried a different tack. "Please, my lord. I must learn my duty."