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choose.”
    “We need to make a decision this eve,” the Fourth
said, her cowl turned toward the Fifth and incidentally, away from the First.
“I think we may start to implement this plan. It can be modified as need
arises. Are any opposed?”
    Assent was almost unanimous. The First did not favor
the plan, but she did not oppose it directly, either. If it worked, then their
cause was furthered, and the Face would have to be dealt with some other way.
If not - then the Face would fall flat, and would be out of the picture in
terms of her threatening position to usurp power. So she neither assented nor
opposed the plan. Other plans would be made and instituted once more
information had been garnered.
    “There is one other avenue I think we should consider,”
The Fifth said, moving her head as if looking around, a gesture purely for
drawing out their attention. “If the Heir’s negligence could actually be
proven, we would have a lever powerful enough to catapult us to our plan’s
culmination even before the turning of the age by pressing the challenge.”
    “We would need concrete evidence to do that,” the
Second said. “Challenging the Heir was merely a diversion - a brilliant one,
since the opportunity was there, but one that was not fully discussed or
thought out. To actually continue to use it in some way might endanger our
other plans if the Public Face were to come under too close scrutiny before
enough suggestions of control have been made. After all, she was hurt, very seriously if she has not found her way home by now; and since her body has not
been recovered and there has been no outcry from the land, we know that she is
not dead, but she may have come close to dying. Her injury could be enough to
strengthen her claim and exonerate her negligence.”
    “Not if she left the bulk of her escort to go into
the wilds alone,” the Fifth said, and a silken thread of low triumph marred the
carefully modulated voice. “I have word from my sources that she parted company
with the bulk of her protectors before entering the unclaimed lons and after that she stumbled into one of our - experiments. Her escort was certainly not
with her, or why send out a search egwae?”
    “Again, we need proof,” the Third said, the cowl
shaking in negation. “How do we prove that she left her escort? For if she
truly did, then they would have returned to the Ritious City in secret, or
somewhere close to it. Then they would wait for her to summon them, so that
none would know that she was alone and without protection. We would be unable
to use them against her, for by now they are probably shortening the way for
the search egwae as we speak. And few know about the search egwae - we know, because we were expecting one, and our spy saw it. But any evidence that
we might use to strengthen the challenge is tainted. Our spy is inadmissible by
its very nature - such a creature would condemn us faster than the challenge
would. The Heir’s injury through negligence is inadmissible because of its manner - it was more likely than not one of our experimental
plantings that caught her, and if those are brought under scrutiny, they would
show our influence. Again we would be condemned out of hand. To confront the
egwae openly is useless, for they would have any number of legitimate reasons
for being where they are. The only feasible way to press the challenge would be
to find her before the search egwae does and hold her in our care, then present
her back to her own Family. And they have the advantage on us, both in
resources and the Rite of Seeking.”
    “Yes; how they managed to complete it so fast almost
bespeaks the will of the Goddesses,” the Fourth said. “Our warru are in pursuit
of her but cannot snare her. I do not see how we can prove any of these things.
I say we focus on the facts needed to rescind the challenge gracefully and save
the Public Face. Actually trying to win the challenge against the Heir-” she,
too, shook her