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perfumed cloth, mouth upturned as if something reeked; High Shin Cantor, black skin shiny against his whiter robe; and High Shin Berenil, his complexion the opposite of Cantor’s. Each led the factions pertaining to an element of Mater—the Streams being foremost, followed by the Forms, and finally the Flows.
    Nine other Tribunal members, including High Shin belonging to various divisions, were seated according to the essences they represented. Sigils and colors on display, their expressions were serene though some had revealed pride at Irmina’s success in Castere. The victory had gained them another foothold in Ostania. Quintess and Hardan however, showed no such pride. Quintess’ line of questioning had been particularly scathing.
    She grimaced as she regarded the one High Shin in the inky black robes of shade. Though Streamean worship taught equality among the religions, the same way the Tenets governing the elements spoke of harmony, she believed any representation of the shade was blasphemy, even if the color was required. The world suffered enough by those who worshipped its chaos. There were those who would argue that light was to shade as order was to chaos—one could not exist without the other; the world required balance—but she did not care. When questioned, Shins made it seem as if the shade’s representation was of no consequence, a mere symbol in respect to teachings passed down through time immemorial.
    Irmina knew better.
    Some within the Iluminus worshipped Amuni and his shade. As weak as they were, the Shadow Council existed, as did the Gray who claimed to remain neutral. The White Council opposed them with its dedication to Ilumni, Bragni, and Rituni, the three most pious gods. And yet, not even their subservience to the light was allowed to appear as if it dominated. Unless of course, one wanted to forget that almost everyone within the Iluminus gave their praises to Ilumni. Irmina smiled at the thought. Such a fine distinction to show whom the Ashishin really served.
    Irmina wondered who belonged to which sect. Jerem had made it clear that of the three, the Grays might be trustworthy, and then only to a certain degree. She shook her head. The man found conspiracies in seemingly inconsequential acts.
    In her simple blue tunic and trousers, the situation reminded her of a senjin player in Ishtar’s renowned arenas before an announcer prepared to declare the sport’s results. In her case, the High Shin represented the judges who determined the subsequent reward for the victor and punishment for the vanquished. Depending on the circumstances, the sentence could be death.
    “So,” High Jin Quintess said, “you believe killing a king was the right thing to do?”
    “I was under orders from High Shin Jerem,” Irmina answered.
    Murmurs spread through the gathered elders. Qunintess raised a hand and the whispers died.
    “As much as High Shin Jerem is a senior member of the Tribunal, he overstepped his bounds in this case,” Quintess said, voice calm, but her eyes burning with anger. “We were not prepared, nor do we condone his actions.”
    “But—”
    “Think, Shin Irmina.” Quintess cut her off, using her title as a reminder of her proper place. “You have been on enough missions now to realize you have placed us in an almost untenable situation. Already, many of the other kingdoms have fled not only Castere, but Astoca as a whole, retreating to their own countries and consolidating their positions not only against the remnants of the shade’s armies, but against us also.”
    “I was under the impression the Tribunal always wanted to gain a stronger hold in Ostania, Jin Quintess.”
    “Ashishin Irmina,” Quintess paused, “it is Ashishin Irmina Nagel, isn’t it?”
    As tempted as she was to say she knew her name only too well, she bit her tongue and nodded.
    “Do not forget to whom you speak. Last I checked, you are not on this Assembly, and therefore would not begin to know what