CHAPTER 398: CHAPTER 398 - A SECRET KNOWN, SHARED, KEPT

They walked toward a small grove of trees that grew near the wall. Far enough from the celebration that conversations couldn’t be overheard. A voice carried forward toward the back of the reddish-blonde girl, low and dazzlingly confident.

"You know, I’ve found that honest conversations work best when everyone understands what’s going on. Would you agree, Lady Nysoi?"

"I... yes, Commander. Negotiating parties should have a vast amount of honesty between them if the goal is alliance and not superficial give and take. Honesty is... *usually* the wisest approach."

Nysoi’s voice was steady, but she also started glancing around them with increasing nervousness. Her Astralism was giving strange results and she finally found a route that she ’normally wouldn’t take’ that told her why.

"Actually... we should pick a different direction. That way."

She pointed toward a cluster of supply tents and Leysah whirled around with her hand on her weapon hilt. Those sharp eyes locked on hers just like they had all the times she ’ran’ in her Clairvoyance usage.

"Why?"

"Please. Trust me on this."

"I did not say I didn’t. What are you sensing?"

Nysoi sighed and pointed at her chest, intending to mean ’behind me’.

"...Someone following us. About fifty yards back. They are trying to stay hidden behind the wagons but... all I saw was their retreating form after you’d catch me. You’re both very fast."

Her voice carried absolute certainty in all she said, despite the impossibility of her knowing this through normal means. Qatrand’s expression hardened at hearing they had a pursuer.

"How many?"

"Just one. I think it’s a young woman. Hold on, let me try again now that... oh."

Soft, pale lilac eyes held that unfocused look that sometimes accompanied longer Clairvoyant visions. Often using it in short bursts between blinks, as trained by the spiritualist she was allowed to take lessons from, so that any but the most spiritually observant would fail to notice.

"She’s just... curious rather than hostile, I think."

Without hesitation, Qat changed direction toward the area indicated. It only took a short burst of movement for her tendrils of Primalist spirit to find who the Valmenf likely referred to. And brushing the Empath’s spirit was a familiar enough experience that her guard lessened.

In the shadows, crouched behind the wheels of a supply cart, the healer of the strike force confirmed what Nysoi had supposedly detected through Clairvoyance. Realizing that the gossip loving woman likely couldn’t resist the emotional turbulence that had been radiating, the blonde swordswoman studied the situation for a moment.

"First, I want to acknowledge that you just proved yourself to be a rather useful cultivator. That was well done, even if it wouldn’t be of help in the fight against Voidlings. The invasion cycle isn’t everything."

"I... thank you. I hope I can continue to be helpful with my ability rather than problematic."

Genuine praise from one of this cohort’s young heroes made Nysoi flush. She tried to maintain her composure, and really didn’t think anything much more of it... for her eyes still cut toward the curved blade wielder. To see if she in particular agreed or disagreed that she’d ’done good’.

"Well, that will depend on how this conversation goes."

Seeing that she was being looked towards, Leysah offered this answer coolly... before exhaling audibly through her nose. She decided on adding another line, just a little more warmly, for already she had shown plenty enough of a ’nice’ side. Pretending that she was too stringent might not have as much effect at keeping the teenager in line.

"But... you’ve made a good start. Well done."

A hand swiftly moved up to cover the embarrassing grin that pleasure brought out, even as the Valmenf daughter turned away. Nysoi made unintelligible happy noises in her head for a pair of seconds before she got ahold of herself.

’Ugh, I already know she fancies males. Why am I still looking to get her attention? I should have learned by now how these infatuations end up. It will fade if I just let it fade!’

She knew that to do so also meant letting the woman know her attraction out loud, for real, and not just in a little foresight test. Otherwise there was always a little uncertainty that remained... over whether her ability was accurate that time or not. Because it definitely was not a foolproof use of spirit!

However, Elua er Goltbred certainly would have praised the young spiritualist. For the ingenuity to use it for testing possibilities - and not as an absolute belief in outcomes. Or at least... for not aiming after her Qat despite knowing they were female.

Then again, that ancient cultivator knew something about the reddish-blonde haired cultivators that many did not. While her mother actually had a genuine Fidelity Astralism, being highly respectful of existing partnerships was practically a genetic trait. Or a spiritual part of those people with ’practically pink’ hair.

For the Silver Divinity too, had been born with that same trait - and she just loved lasting, devoted marriage stories to death!

"Zonnel. Over here. Now, please."

Her voice had maintained the same low authoritative tone she’d used in her earlier declaration. After some apologies and begging not to be kicked off the strike force, Qatrand positioned herself where she could observe both the path they’d taken and the three woman clustered together with her at the little grove.

"Well then, what is it that we are here to address exactly?"

"Lady Nysoi knows something that she shouldn’t. About you. Something you’ve told me in private."

The Empath glanced between her squadmates with obvious confusion, but her spiritual sensitivity picking up the tension without understanding its source.

"Commander, I’m not sure what’s going on either from that explanation."

"In a moment. First, I need to understand exactly how much you know, how you know it, and more importantly... who else you might have told."

Genuine distress flooded the Valmenf girl’s composure. Her careful noble-like manners which her father pressed her to embody gave way to the pure feeling of a teenager being underestimated.

"I haven’t told anyone. I swear by all the Divinities. I have never spoken of what I... observed... to anyone other than this woman here."

"It was something you discovered through your Clairvoyance, correct?"

Leysah’s hand remained near her blade as she studied the young woman’s face. More out of habit than any desire to harm her... not that she was unprepared to defend herself or the people she’d been into battle with.

"Yes. During your speech earlier, I was testing different interjections I might give to see your reactions. My Astralism showed me several possible futures, and in them you... in them I saw how you would react."

"React to what, exactly?"

The Yecine asked calmly, not bothered at all by the description of the use of the ability. Her cute wife was constantly using ’illusions’ in ways that were so complex that this didn’t phase her in the slightest. It also was worth noting that more than one Clairvoyant had existed in the Yecine numbers over the centuries, so family records over that was something she had read about in the past.

"If I spoke truthfully and passionately about my attraction to women. You neither seemed disgusted nor... so I pressed further a number of times until a combination finally led to you adding a certain truth to your announcement."

"Wait, what exactly are we discussing here?"

The healer was trying to keep up with the points of gossip, but felt like she was missing the key piece they were dancing around. Qat curled a tendril of spirit around the Empath to check... something the woman had gotten used to ignoring over time. Compared to some other powerful spiritualists, it was practically a whisper of feeling in the first place!

’Of course, Qatrand still has not announced openly that they became a Primalist in spirit first instead of their physical energy like might be expected of a Yecine. Is that the secret? No, that doesn’t make sense... does it? No, what does that have to do with-’

Zonnel’s emotional state held plenty of ’curiosity’ and ’confusion’ - but no *malice*. That was enough for the blonde to make another firm decision today. The loyalty she’d shown to the strike force suggested trustworthiness and - despite her wife’s dislike of Empaths - her reputation for seeking out gossip might actually make her a useful test case.

"We’re discussing the fact that certain assumptions everyone makes, or is made to make, about my identity are... incorrect. And how Lady Nysoi’s Astralism has revealed information that could be politically dangerous if mishandled or revealed outside of the four of us."

"I would never-"

"I believe you."

Qat interrupted as the other teenager began to assert and Nysoi shook her head rapidly. It wasn’t enough to be believed for the sake of it. She needed to make it clear.

"Truly. Only glimpses related to our immediate conversations. I don’t spy deeply on people’s private lives, Lady Qatrand. What I saw was accidental, revealed only because I was testing how it might feel to respond with such... firm feelings."

The Empath looked between them with eyes as wide as saucers. The ’lady’ titling had finally made everything click about what was ’seen’ - what the secret was. Her hand went to her chest while the other slapped over her mouth.

With all three of the other’s attention so firmly on her after that combination of movements, she eventually said what she needed to.

"Are you saying that Commander Qatrand is... that the Yecine heir is a woman?"

"Exactly. And now you understand why this conversation needed to remain private without you sneaking after us."

While Leysah responded grimly, Qat studied the healer’s reaction. Shock was there, but also *fascination* rather than judgment. She had been pretty sure that would be the case for Zonnel.

The Yecine was coming to understand that there would be a lot of allies if she just spoke the truth to them... but having allies was not exactly having the heirship maintained without being stripped away. That was still going to be a problem that would only be solved with results too grand to ignore.

"How do you feel about learning this information?"

"Honored. And terrified of the responsibility to keep quiet... even more than following this team around when I can barely fight."

The healer was a noncombatant foremost, but the strikeforce couldn’t coddle her constantly. She’d learned to dodge quite well, if not actually ’fight back’.

"If this became public knowledge..."

"It would destroy everything I’ve worked to build. My position in my family is not as stable as I’d like. The others involved in maintaining this secret are only a fraction of the total council of elders."

The heavy blade wielder finished for her second in command, with more personal details than Leysah would have given. Nysoi stepped forward, her training reasserting itself as she moved into negotiation mode.

"Which is precisely why I still want to propose an alliance that serves all our interests. Without any of that silly marriage or concubine talk. My family’s shipping networks are extensive throughout the southern coast and beyond."

"...And?"

With a casual ’so what’ tone, the curved blade wielder effectively destroyed the merchant daughter’s positioning. Her face flushed red and she coughed into her hand repeatedly.

"...W-when the competition grounds are developed into a permanent settlement - and everyone knows that’s the inevitable reward for your achievements on the battlefield... you’ll need reliable trade agreements and political backing outside of just your family. I want to be responsible for them."