Two days later, Catherine de Litran uses a wand of sending to request a secret meeting with Cansellarion. She's expected to be a future ally, and they've worked together before - He tells her to visit his estate disguised and under the name Salda. The guards let her in, and lead her to a study within a private sanctum.

"I think you know who Freedom is, or at least how to reach her."

"If I knew that it would be secret. I decline to comment."

"Well, if you do know how to get in touch with her, or how to send her resources - Cheliax is planning to abduct her via wish in the middle of her next broadcast. I'm also intending to tell Morgethai. You're both targets too. Am I correct in guessing that between the two of you you have enough resources to make sure this fails?"

"We can protect ourselves. If one of us knows how to reach Freedom we'll be able to protect her too. Do you need any protections? Do you know who else is a target?"

"Cyprian, Codwin, myself, Marshal Belmont. And presumably others. From the timing, I would guess that Freedom is the primary target and the rest of us are opportunistic. Can you - discreetly - make sure Cyprian is tipped off and on his guard? He and I aren't on the best speaking terms right now.

...And yes, I'd appreciate any additional protections you or Lastwall can provide cheaply, I think I'm adequately prepared but it's not something I want to take risks about."

"...Of course. Come to Vigil that day if you can, unless Morgethai suggests somewhere else." He goes to his desk to take out a sending wand and warn Cyprian. Catherine takes out her own wand to inform Morgethai.

Cansellarion summons Iomedae to his office in Vigil the day before the broadcast. It's not the first time he's done so, so it shouldn't stand out much.

Did she fail to clean her room Iomedae comes promptly like a responsible professional adult.

She looks nervous. He'd tell her she's not in trouble, but she kind of is. "I've recently learned that Cheliax is going to attempt to have you kidnapped via wish spell during your broadcast tomorrow. We're planning to cast some spells on you that will help you resist the kidnapping, and to otherwise proceed as normal. This is secret and you should not tell anybody - Cheliax will probably learn that we knew, but we might get away with them thinking you are much more powerful than they think, or your normal protections are strong enough to prevent this, and even if they do determine that we knew the less they know about how much we knew and when the better. Do you understand?"

"- yes." She had no idea a spell could do that. She in fact wasn't clear on whether Wishes were a real thing anyone could just do or if they were something only Aroden could do or something. "Is Alfirin safe? It'd be even worse if they got her, she knows more."

"I know that they are targeting more people than just you, I don't know Alfirin to be one of the targets - We think this is revenge for your last broadcast. I don't yet have any reason to believe that Cheliax knows Alfirin exists. But you're right, that we should try to protect her too…do you know if she is Good?"

"- I would really expect so! We have been doing all the same things, for all of the same reasons. Are we safe in a Forbiddance?" She hasn’t had time to get caught up on all of the possible interactions of magic - and most of what she did learn was aimed at understanding magic warfare so they could figure out which weapons it was most important to make soonest - but Lastwall has lots of Lawful Good Forbiddances, they are safe to walk into and out of only if you're Lawful Good, and one can't Teleport directly in or out of them, she knows that much.

"Wish is - I think the only known spell, though I'd have to ask a wizard to be sure - which can teleport someone out of a forbiddance. If it couldn't - I expect they wouldn't try it. I asked if she was Good because some of the protective spells that we'd use only help Good people…I think we will not be able to protect her as well as we can you, even if she is Good. Paladins are already very resistant to magic and the same protections we have that only work on Good people work better on Paladins. I'm sorry."

Iomedae nods, tightly. There's no point getting upset with him about it. "May I tell her about this."

"Yes. Tell her not to tell anyone else, of course… And bring her with tomorrow, to the broadcast. Dismissed."

" - if the things that we did go wrong, and Cheliax kidnaps me, what should I do."

"I don't think you'll be given the opportunity to kill yourself, or Alfirin or any other people they get, but if you do get it take it. We'll try to get you back regardless, but - raising you might be the easiest way to do that. And it gets you out of their hands. We'll go to a priest of a Good god, so you know it's us."

"I could wear an explosive vest? Probably not by tomorrow. I'll ask Alfirin."

"If she can make one by then it seems like a good idea."

Iomedae does not try to find Alfirin until their workday is done, and it is totally unremarkable that she'd try to find her at that time.

"Hey, you. How are the crank-guns coming along?"

"Overheating at half the rate of fire that is supposedly obtainable. Though that's still 200 rounds a minute, so I wouldn't say they're useless in the field as is. You can take a look tomorrow, see if I'm missing something obvious. Shall we get dinner?"

"Sure." Neither of them need to eat, but Alfirin mostly appreciates this for the ability to get absorbed in work and skip lunch with no consequences. It feels weird to skip every meal just because they can. "Company mess or should we have them bring us something?"

"We should have them bring us something, I have another engineering project I maybe wanted to throw at you when we're in more private."

"Okay." They go mention it to their secretary and then head back to their suite.