Chapter 844: The Way Below

Rhosyn listened while Trafalgar explained the situation on the walk toward Euclid's Gate.

Lyren had invited him to take part in the Myrrhvale succession as an observer. The position came with strict limits, and officially Trafalgar would have no vote, no authority over the succession, and no right to interfere with the internal decisions of another Great Family.

Rhosyn accepted the explanation without much hesitation.

"So that's why Lyren wanted you there. He doesn't expect you to stand around watching everyone argue. He wants you looking into whatever's happening behind the succession."

"Pretty much." Trafalgar kept his pace steady. "He thinks someone's already moving where they shouldn't be, and it's hard for him to investigate his own family without everyone immediately wondering what side he's on. I don't have that problem."

Rhosyn glanced toward him. "And you were planning to bring me with you before I decided for you."

"Yeah." Trafalgar looked at her briefly. "If this turns into something worse than a family fighting over a chair, I'd rather have you there. You've seen enough strange things to know when something doesn't fit."

Rhosyn gave a small nod. "Then I'll come. I'd rather be there if you need me than hear about whatever happened afterward."

That was enough for her.

They reached Euclid's Gate shortly afterward and passed through into Velkaris. The capital was cold too, though the heavy snow of Euclid hadn't followed them. The enormous Gate Hub was already crowded with travellers, soldiers, merchants, and servants moving between dozens of destinations.

Trafalgar had barely entered the main hall when a guard approached.

"Lord Trafalgar? Lord Lyren arrived a little while ago. He's waiting for you in one of the private rooms and asked me to bring you over as soon as you got here."

"All right. Take us to him."

The guard guided them away from the main flow of travellers and into one of the quieter sections of the Hub. The rooms there were reserved for nobles, officials, and people who preferred their conversations kept away from the thousands passing through the central halls.

Lyren was waiting inside.

He wore clothes meant for travel rather than ceremony, and his attention moved immediately from Trafalgar to Rhosyn when they entered.

"There you are. I was starting to wonder if something had held you up in Euclid." Lyren's attention settled on Rhosyn. "And I'm guessing she's coming with us."

"She is. This is Rhosyn. She works closely with me, and if I'm going into Myrrhvale for this, I want her there."

Lyren studied her for a few seconds before looking back at Trafalgar.

"Then I only need to ask one thing. If she hears or sees something inside Meraval that can't leave the city, can I trust that it stays there?"

"Yes. If I didn't trust her with that, she wouldn't be standing here."

Trafalgar didn't offer anything more than that.

Lyren appeared to understand the answer for what it was and didn't press.

"Fair enough. I can make it work." He thought for a moment. "You're already registered under my invitation, but Nerith still has a place available. I'll speak to her and have Rhosyn entered through hers."

Trafalgar frowned slightly. "Your sister's going to agree to that without even meeting her?"

"She will. Nerith already knows why I brought you into this and what we're trying to do. If you trust Rhosyn enough to bring her into the middle of it, she'll trust my decision to let her in."

The confidence in his answer caught Trafalgar's attention.

"You sound very sure of what your sister will agree to."

Lyren held his gaze for a moment before answering.

"I know her well enough to be sure about this. Besides, we've already talked through most of what happens once you arrive. She won't object to something that makes your job easier."

Trafalgar watched him for another second.

"You two are closer than I thought."

Lyren's expression barely shifted. "We're close. Right now, with the way my family is, that's probably one of the few things keeping this from becoming even worse."

Trafalgar left it there.

Whatever relationship existed between the two siblings wasn't his concern unless it started affecting the succession itself.

"All right. So where are we heading from here?"

"We'll take another Gate first. It leads to a coastal territory under my control. Once we're there, I've got transport waiting to take us the rest of the way to Meraval."

They left the private room and returned toward the secured lanes of the Gate Hub.

Trafalgar glanced toward him as they walked. "You don't have a Gate going straight into the capital?"

Lyren gave him a brief look. "Would you put one straight into the heart of Morgain territory?"

"Definitely not."

"You have your answer there. They're useful until the wrong person finds a way through one. I'd rather make the last part of the journey slightly inconvenient than give anyone a direct road into Meraval."

That was reasonable enough.

Several of the Great Families followed the same principle. Gates controlled trade and movement across enormous distances, but placing one beside the political centre of a Great House meant creating a permanent entrance into the place that mattered most.

After passing through the necessary checks, the three of them stepped into the next Gate.

Salt reached Trafalgar almost immediately when they emerged.

The city on the other side had been built along a dark coastline, with cliffs dropping into a vast sea below. Myrrhvale banners hung from several towers near the harbour, and many of the people moving through the streets showed clearer signs of aquatic blood than those Trafalgar had seen elsewhere.

Lyren led them downhill toward the water.

"Meraval's still a fair distance from here. The capital is farther out at sea and much deeper than this coast."

Trafalgar remembered the underwater settlement he'd visited years ago near the Primordial ruins.

"Like the city near those ruins I visited years ago?"

"Similar idea, but Meraval is on another scale entirely." Lyren continued toward the lower docks. "Millions of people live there. The city spreads through several rings and districts under reinforced domes, and the main castle sits right in the centre."

Rhosyn looked toward the dark water ahead. "And how are we supposed to get that far down?"

"We've got something for that. You'll see in a minute."

The harbour widened before them, but Lyren didn't take them toward any of the ships resting at the normal docks. Instead, he led them to a long enclosed structure built partly below the waterline.

Several guards opened the reinforced entrance.

Behind it waited a vessel Trafalgar recognised almost immediately.

Its hull was metal, completely sealed from the outside, with thick windows built into the sides and no sails or exposed deck anywhere along its body.

'That's a submarine.'

The design wasn't identical to anything from Earth, but it didn't need to be.

Lyren noticed the way Trafalgar was studying it.

"One of our newer transports. We use these to move between the coast and Meraval. It keeps the pressure inside stable, so we can descend without having to worry about what the water's doing outside."

Trafalgar looked from the vessel to Lyren. "So even your people can't just swim down there."

"Some can go very deep, but Meraval is deep enough that eventually the pressure becomes a problem for almost everyone." Lyren looked toward the water. "I'm fairly sure I could go farther than most."

Trafalgar waited for the rest.

Lyren gave him a dry look. "I'm also smart enough to know that testing exactly how far I can go would be a stupid way to die."

"I'd rather not explain to your sister that you got crushed on the way home because you wanted to prove a point."

"I'd rather not have you explain that either."

Rhosyn stepped closer to one of the thick windows and examined it. "How long are we going to be inside?"

"Not too long. You'll start seeing the outer districts before we reach the centre, so at least you'll have something to look at on the way."

They boarded through a sealed passage connected directly to the vessel.

The interior was more comfortable than Trafalgar expected. Padded seats lined the walls, mana lamps provided steady light, and the narrow windows were made from glass so thick that he wondered how much pressure they were designed to withstand.

Lyren spoke briefly with the crew before turning back toward them.

"I'm going up front for a while. There are a few things I need to make sure are ready before we arrive." He glanced toward the windows. "Get comfortable. Once we start going down, you'll finally get a proper idea of where you're about to spend the next few weeks."

"Go ahead. We'll be fine here."

Lyren left them to it.

Trafalgar took a seat beside one of the windows, while Rhosyn settled across from him. Neither spoke as a low vibration passed through the vessel and the dock outside slowly began to disappear.

Water climbed over the glass.

The last of the surface light faded behind them as the transport descended, carrying Trafalgar and Rhosyn toward the capital of House Myrrhvale and the succession waiting beneath the sea.