Free Stained Glass Monsters by Andrea Höst

and to not have someone kill me. The best
chance for success is to avoid notice, not allow people to know
where I am, and not involve myself in anything else. I only warned
of the incursion in Asentyr because it was inside the city's
protective circles, and I may not have done that if the Sentene had
not already become aware of my existence. I was weighing up what
additional harm there would be in providing a list of the incursion
locations, given that it is basically a map of where I'll be
going." She put the piece of paper down. "Last night changed
everything."
    "That is something of an
understatement." Lady Weston rubbed her eyes, and Rennyn realised
the woman probably hadn't slept. "You were in the Eferum during the
incursion?"
    "Yes. It's the only way to continue the
attunement. During the first incursion, I noticed that the breach
was very large and stayed open for a longer period than those
recorded by Tiandel. Last night – the breach was a similar size and
duration to the first, but the Eferum-Get – I could not tell if
they had been swept together by the force of the Summoning, or if
they had deliberately gathered to wait for it. Neither possibility
is pleasant."
    "The Eferum-Get organising to exploit
the breaches, or Queen Solace deliberately thrusting them into
Tyrland." The Kellian mage, Illuma, was as expressionless as ever,
but had curled her hands into fists. She seemed to realise it, and
opened them, palm-up. She'd trimmed the dagger-points of her nails
on one hand, but the other palm was lightly cut. "Either way, a
war."
    "Do you really believe that?" Councillor
Vargas asked, looking from Illuma to Lady Weston to Rennyn. "That
the Black Queen would go so far?"
    "She has been in the Eferum an
unbearably long time," Lady Weston replied. "She may be mad, she
may be vengeful: we can do no more than speculate. Enough that we
could face the same number of Eferum-Get, or more, during the
coming breaches. You will work with us in combating this?"
    Rennyn nodded. "The locations I presume
you read. The younger focuses can be used to identify the exact
point of an upcoming breach."
    "And that makes a very large difference
indeed," Lady Weston said. "To know exactly when and where an
incursion will occur makes it possible to contain it. We will trap
the Eferum-Get even as they emerge. Am I right in believing that
there will be an increase in natural breaches during the
Summoning?"
    "Yes. The effect of the casting is much
like a storm in the Eferum – it places strain on the boundaries
between the worlds."
    "We must divide our resources. Lamprey,
you will have charge of the second and third squads, deployed to
the Sentene's regular duties. Illuma, Faille, the Hand will support
your squads in dealing with the major incursions and ensuring the
safety of the Montjuste-Surcleres. Fennis, I want you to revisit
the Loise investigation, and more generally try to uncover any hint
of who was behind the attack. Is there more you can tell us there,
Lady Montjuste-Surclere?"
    "We abandoned the title. As for Loise –
my great-grandparents travelled there together, and arrived late in
the night. My great-grandmother had stayed with the horses, and
heard a cry, then the sound of someone running. She found her
husband and the focus' vessel in pieces. And yet, the focus was
still there. The locals camped near the site were attracted by the
light she conjured, and so she had to leave him. She became...very
determined to find a way to stop the Grand Summoning after that."
Rennyn looked down at her bandaged hands, and thought of all the
chances she'd had last night to die. "You see where the strategy of
keeping ourselves invisible comes from? If we can be found, we can
be killed. And the first expression was a place we were certain to
be."
    "You will be well-guarded here," Lady
Weston began, but Rennyn shook her head.
    "Guard my brother, by all means. I'll
limit my exposure to the actual periods of the incursions."
    For the first time