The train marched on after the strange creature had appeared and disappeared. Enki grew agitated after the sighting but point blank refused to discuss the creature. The only further acknowledgement he gave it was a warning.

Kiddo, you stay away from it. If it ever comes near you, just get the hell away. Don't talk to it. Don't get near enough for it to touch you. That thing is bad news. It's the worst news. And don't think for a second that was a mistake. It wanted you to see it.

After that Enki grew distant and distracted. It lingered for an hour or two. I felt it was nervous that the creature would reappear or approach. But after some hours, as we put hundreds of miles between us and the lava field, Enki became detached and eventually left my presence.

It suited me very well that Enki had had its visit and that it had left in distraction. Dodge loomed and I had a plan to enact, one I had been working on in my mind for a long time. I didn't want Enki to know about it. Having spent time with me, I had fair hopes the entity would be busy elsewhere for a time and that I could act without its knowledge.

The landscapes continued to blur and merge into each other as the Footfield devoured the miles. They had told me this would eventually become monotonous. When I first wore the suit and took hold of the universe-bending power of the Footfield, I denied the possibility. How could a wonder so vast and dynamic ever become a boredom? It turned out that repeated obliged use could make a dredge out of almost anything.

***

Dodge continued to bloom in the fading evening light. It hadn't been so long since I'd last passed through the town. My town. Even in that short time the main street had evolved a little. New taverns were completed, empty lots had begun to sprout the skeletons of new buildings.

I left the train at the gates and continued inside. I noted fine carriages parked on the main street. I heard lively music through some of the doors. I saw girls dancing on a stage as I passed one tavern. I couldn't help but pause to admire the bounty of flesh that was on show.

"Are… these brothels?" I asked myself, resuming my march into the city. Cassius had blathered on about his plans for the city, but despite my enthusiasm for the resurrection of the town, despite my own personal stake in Dodge's fortunes, I hadn't absorbed everything he had said. He had spoken of entertainment districts. I wondered on it, somewhat uneasily.

I found Cassius directing a team of workers installing signage on the most recently constructed tavern. This was a task far beneath him, but I could see the enthusiasm he had for the establishment in the personal interest he took.

He shouted up to the roof where men struggled to erect a large billboard. "No, no! Good enough is not good enough! It needs to be perfect! Perfect, I say, not crooked!"

The sign read, The Prince's Sheathe. There was what could only be a likeness of myself in my armor, painted—quite well—on the billboard, my arms full of buxom damsels in nearly no clothes at all. Below it, a caption: Only the Worthy may insert. I groaned, more audibly than I intended.

My groan drew Cassius' attention and he turned his head to me. Honest delight seemed to capture his face.

"Lord Bloodsword! So good to see you! What do you think? This will be the flagship of the street."

I said, "I'm… I'm not sure I understood what you meant by entertainment district…"

Cassius waved me away, either not detecting my hesitance or ignoring it.

"Not to worry! Not to worry! Leave that with me. I'm gathering the finest ladies from East and West. Already we have a congregation of wealthy Freemen enjoying the… facilities. They hitched a ride on a Griid train. It's all working splendidly. We're isolated, governed by no laws, pay no taxes. Men, and indulgent ladies, can travel from far and wide on the arteries of trade that flow through here anyway. A place to spend a weekend, and a small fortune, far from the eyes of wives, or subjects, or pesky regulations."

I was about to muster some objection when he said, "Will you enjoy the treats while you're here? I have a special new resident for the Prince's Sheathe, a bastard daughter of the ruling house of Miami. Lovely, tiny, exotic little thing. Very enthusiastic."

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His words made me think of Katya, back in Boston, more than a week removed from the death of her beloved. It took the wind out of me and I couldn't muster the strength to argue about the whores, the brothels, what he meant by skirting regulations.

I said, "No. I haven't slept well lately. I must leave again in the morning."

He said, "Have you a train assigned?"

I shook my head. "No. I was going to pick one up."

He said, "There's a gaggle to choose from, several heading East. Take any you want."

I paused to think for a moment. "Any going to Pittsburgh?"

"Indeed there is! It's yours. Now, was there anything else you wanted? I must honor your trust in me and see this project is something we can all be proud of."

I eyed the signage again, noting how the ladies in the painting were depicted quite beyond any proportions that nature or surgery could probably produce. I said, "I wanted to speak with Leona."

"Of course, I'll fetch her for you right away."

I said, "No. Could you send her to the ruined monastery, where I found my father's body?"

He hesitated, put off by the strange request. Then a sly grin spread across his face.

"Oh… I see. But there's no need for that, Lord Bloodprince. Dodge is the spirit of discretion. I can have her sent to a room—"

I waved my hands frantically. "No! No! It's not that! Nothing like that!"

If anything, Cassius seemed slightly disappointed. He also seemed to lose interest. Turning his attention back to the crew of workers on the roof, he said, "Very well. I'll summon a horse and some guards. She'll meet you there in an hour or so."

He waited, respectfully, as if he expected me to move on. After a moment, he said, "Was there something else?"

I nodded, producing a bundle of envelopes from a fold in my suit, just above where the Power Axe still hung.

"Could you see these delivered for me?"

He accepted the bundle, inspecting the names. "Some of these are for Boston? Would it not be easier to take them yourself? Not that it's a trouble."

I said, "I'm detouring through the Burgh. I don't want to delay."

He leafed through the bundle, inspecting the addresses. He paused at one, and looked up.

"You have a note for me?"

"Instructions."

He nodded slowly, consideringly. He was making for himself a kingdom here in Dodge, but it was still my city. This was a reminder of that.

He said, "Of course. And, if I might ask, to what does all of this pertain? Why the urgency for these communications to make it to Boston before you, if they do indeed make it so?"

I said, "It's time for me to take a firmer hand on my business interests. And to make better use of the resources."

***

I more than half expected to find Joel waiting for me when I entered the basement under the ruined monastery. It seemed his agency was being employed elsewhere. This suited me fine.

I felt the peace of knowing Enki couldn't join me here. It felt truly quiet inside my brain.

I wrote a note to the lunatic wild knight and tucked it away in the hiding place he had told me about. The note reported that I had been to Baltimore and learned some history of Cleveland and his and Danefer's involvement. I told him it didn't convince me of anything. But all the same, I volunteered that I would be back in a month, events permitting. Why did I do that? I thought I wanted nothing to do with him.

Events kept pulling me deeper and deeper. Even when I wanted to escape the conspiracies, I was repeatedly impaled on the spear of secrets. F'ael hunted me, it seemed. Danefer gave Lauren's killer refuge. My father—seemingly not my father—had gathered many boys. Why had I been the one promoted to the post of son? What had been my qualifications?

I stared around the room as I waited for Leona. Father had made for this spot to escape the Horde. Those doors, seemingly invulnerable, must have been openable to him. What kinds of secrets could a man such as Father keep behind unbreakable doors that nobody else could open? What kind of answers?

I turned as I heard Leona descending the steps. The basement was so insulated that I hadn't heard the impacts of her horse's hooves, nor the hooves of her guards.

She descended the stairs looking nervous in the extreme. Her anxiety bled through expression and posture, compelling me to assure her, "I just want a favor."

She said, "A favor?"

I nodded. She descended to the floor and looked around, taking in the room with some awe. The massive refuse heap did little to undermine the magic here. Soft electric lights glowed without an Order field. The huge doors were clearly ancient and mystical.

She said, "What kind of favor?"

I said, "You said you wanted to make amends for what happened in the arena."

It was her turn to nod.

I said, "Do you mean it? I know you told me about conspirators in Boston, but there's something else I need from you. It's not large."

She unfolded a little bit, brightening. "Yes, Tiberius. If there's something I can do to make amends, I'd jump at the chance. Besides, you're sort of my liege lord, aren't you? I should help you regardless."

"Liege lord?"

She said, "Well, yeah. Dodge is your city. You literally own it. No territory extends here, so the laws here are the ones set by you…"

I pursed my lips, smirking slightly at the thought.

She said, "What is it you wanted?"

I said, "I want books."

She stepped back, nearly startled. "Books? Tiberius?"

I said, "I have a list. History books, religious texts. I'll update the list as I go. I'll leave it here. You'll stow the books here. Tell no one. You should have no problem procuring them using the network that flows through Dodge. You can use my expense account to finance it— as much as you need."

She looked around the room. "But… why books? Why here?"

I couldn't tell her the entire truth. But there, in the secret place under the ground, where Enki could neither hear nor see, I told her as much as I needed to to start walking the path that might lead to freedom from the voice.

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