Blin tightened her grip on his arm. “Wait and see what happens first.” She pointed over the wall.
Zane and Marlo were both holding out their arms to the officers. One of them nodded. “So what are you two gents doing out here in the dark?”
Marlo put a hand on Zane’s shoulder and pulled his lute into view. “Well, you see, sir, there’s this girl that my friend here really likes but he’s too shy to say anything to her so we’re out here composing a love ballad to sway the beautiful damsel’s heart.”
Zane pointed back toward the grove. “We didn’t exactly want to work on it where it might bother anyone else. This seemed like a spot far enough away that we wouldn’t disturb folks trying to get some shut eye.”
The other officer chuckled and patted Zane’s arm. “Good luck to you, lad. Hope you can win her over. I know how hard I worked to catch the eye of my wife.” He turned to his companion and began telling him about his attempts to win his true love.
Blin pointed to the paving stones they were crouched on and laid down. He followed her example. He could hear the trickle of water below them and wished he’d been able to quench his thirst back at Cloud Tower.
The officers walked past them. Blin waited until they were out of sight before rising. She looked toward the trees. “I hope Zane and Marlo are still there.”
Askaro got up and walked with her down the steps into the lower garden. He couldn’t tell what kind of trees were growing here. There were also flowering bushes that hid the low stone wall. He caught his breath. “I hear water.”
Blin grinned. “Why do you think I chose this spot. Not only is it hard to see through the trees but this is another of those rare places where you can find water.”
There was a soft whistle. Marlo and Zane strolled out of the grove. Marlo waved. “Glad to see you two survived.”
Zane frowned. “Did you run into trouble?”
Askaro realized what the issue was. “I’m sorry I lost the wig. And Blin’s shirt got torn. Since I still had mine on under everything...” He saw Blin tense. “I gave him mine.”
Blin relaxed. “We came up through the warehouse and Cloud Tower.”
Marlo backed up a step. “Whoa ho! Getting up in the world, are we?”
Blin sighed. “Why didn’t Authority give you more grief?”
Zane and Marlo both held up their forearms. Zane tapped the leather band at his wrist. “We’re citizens. What are they going to say?”
Blin looked away. “Lucky you.”
Zane’s grin faded. “I’m sorry. I should have realized.”
Askaro looked between Blin and Zane. “I don’t understand.”
Marlo pointed at the leather band that Askaro had wrapped the chain of the pendant around. “But aren’t you a citizen?”
He looked at the band. “Because of this? No, this just protects your arm when your sewing canvas.”
Blin tugged at the chain. “How does this have anything to do with sewing?”
Askaro shook his head and undid the straps. He held up the pendant. “My grandfather gave me this for my birthday. It’s just a necklace.”
Marlo reached out and held it so he could see it better. He whistled. “Far more than just a necklace. This medallion is your contract status. You’re an Officer.”
Askaro gasped. “How do you know that?”
Marlo grinned and pointed to the small symbol in the center of the inscription. “That, sir, is a symbol of station. Those bars indicate that you are a ranked Officer. Every paid airman gets a ship’s pendant. That’s how they can go into any city without issue. It’s kind of like your writ of citizenship to your ship.” He looked at it again and his breath caught. He looked up at Askaro, his mouth open. “You’re the grandson of Captain Delkaro.”
Askaro was confused by Marlo’s change of tone. Zane and Blin had both backed up a step. “What of it? My grandfather is a good man.”
Zane bowed slightly. “No doubt of that. He’s a legend, the greatest of all the Sky Wizards.”
Marlo cleared his throat. “You probably don’t understand.”
Blin coughed. “There’s a lot of things he don’t understand. Like apples and fairies.”
Marlo released the pendant. “You should be wearing that around your neck, not hidden up your sleeve.”
Zane chuckled. “Now that’s a trick my father would have appreciated.” He went serious. “So why is Golarin so hot to get his hands on you?”
Askaro felt tired. He looked at Blin. “Did you say something about water being here?”
Blin nodded. “This way.”
He followed Blin and the others fell in behind him. They moved toward the center of the grove and came out in a small clearing where a stream of water trickled down a pile of rocks into a basin surrounding them. Askaro knelt beside Blin as she scooped up water. “Let me guess. This is another fountain.” She nodded but kept drinking.
Zane sank to the ground and leaned back against a tree. He patted the grass beside him. “Might as well have a seat while they catch up.” He started pulling carrots out of his pockets. “When you’re done there, I’ve brought something to munch on. Not nearly as good as those meat pies but it’s something.”
Askaro wiped his face and backed away from the water. Zane tossed him a couple. Blin finished and sat down next to him. She held up the carrots Zane tossed to her. “And I don’t suppose you know what these are.”
Askaro swallowed a bite. “Of course I do. These are carrots. We grow them in our garden on the ship.”
Blin paused with a carrot not bitten. “You have gardens on your ship?”
Askaro finished the first one. “Yes, in beds similar to the ones we hid in except we don’t cover the watering ditches. The gardens are above the Officers Salon where my family lives so my mother and I often tend them.”
Marlo tossed the carrot tops back to Zane who put them in his bag. The musician looked up at the leaves above them. “So how is it that the grandson of Captain Delkaro is being tracked by Golarin?”
Askaro did his best to explain the circumstances surrounding his mother and himself. Zane and Marlo asked questions to fill in gaps. By the time they had finished, he was certain they understood his situation. He looked over at Blin. Her eyes were closed and she was breathing softly. He lowered his voice. “How can he sleep when it’s so cold out here?”
Zane wrapped his arms around his body. “This isn’t cold. Wait until winter. Now that’s cold. We get loads of snow. This is just autumn and the beginning of the rainy season.”
Marlo looked around. “As tired as I’m sure everyone is, this really isn’t the best place to sleep, especially for Blin. Zane and I are citizens and you have a ship’s pendant, but he doesn’t have anything.”
Zane looked down. “Not a good deal. My aunt and uncle couldn’t afford to buy citizenship for their son. One day soldiers just came and took him away. There was nothing anyone could do about it.”
Askaro frowned. “Wasn’t he born here?”
“Oh, he was born here all right, only after the King died. That was the problem. My parents didn’t have to buy my citizenship and I’m betting Marlo’s parents didn’t either. That didn’t start until the Regent took over.”
“No one seems to like this Regent. Why is he still in power?”
Zane shrugged. “That’s just the way it is.”
Blin moaned in her sleep and woke with a start. She looked around. “Why are we still here?”
Marlo got up and offered a hand to Zane. “We were just discussing that very topic.”
Askaro rose and held out a hand to Blin. “Come on. The sooner I get back to the ship, the better. There’s a lot I need to talk to my grandfather about.”
Blin let him pull her up then pulled her hand free. She turned to Marlo. “You said you could get Askaro back to his ship from here.”
Marlo swung his lute over his shoulder. “Quite easy really. We just go through Garden Tower, dow
n Flower Street, and then straight down the Boulevard. That leads right to the Grand Portal.”
Blin went pale. “You’re just going to waltz by the main castle gate? Are you mad?”
Marlo grinned. “The way to outsmart your enemy is to be in the place he least expects you to be. Golarin thinks he’s looking for a run away slave. He won’t be expecting us to use the Boulevard. As far as the castle goes, it’s almost morning. There will be plenty of people coming and going on Flower Street and the Boulevard by the time we get there.”
Blin was shaking. “Why not just go back to High Street and take that to the Boulevard?”
Zane slung the bag strap over his shoulder. “Because as we were coming up the Boulevard yesterday, we saw some of Golarin’s men headed down High Street toward the Winged Horse.” He chuckled. “I must have been pretty convincing.”
Marlo started off through the trees. “Don’t worry, Blin. I have an idea. Let’s see if we can get into Garden Tower before the shift change.”
Askaro was concerned about Blin. “I’m not going to let anyone hurt you.”
Blin scowled at him. She didn’t say anything but followed Marlo toward the street.
The eastern sky was glowing with radiant color by the time they reached Garden Tower. The glass surface reflected the dazzling display and made it appear even more breathtaking. Askaro looked upward. He could see many floors as it rose into the sky. “This is all a garden? All inside?”
Zane held the door open for him. “I have to admit, it is an impressive structure. I wish we had time to take you to the top floor. That’s the most amazing of all and the view, well, that’s the best part. You can see the whole city from there.”
They walked past several rows of plants before the pathway teed. Straight ahead of them was a circular stairway that went both up and down from the landing. Marlo turned down the side path that led to another door. A man stood there, looking outward expectantly. The musician walked up to him. “Excuse me, sir. I was hoping you might be able to help us.”
The man glanced at him. “What do you need?”
“My younger brother was working down on level two yesterday and he lost his identification bracelet. I was wondering if anyone turned one in. You know how Authority gets if you go anywhere without it.”
A bell rang somewhere in the building. The man sighed. “Look, I haven’t heard of one being turned in.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a yellow band. “Have him wear this for now and have him check in with his shift manager later. Sometimes they end up in the drain baskets. Have a good day.” He opened the door and hurried down the street.
Zane’s eyes were wide. “You are so amazing. My father would have hired you in a heartbeat.”
Marlo grinned and gave the yellow band to Blin. “Put this on. It’s a temporary bracelet. They’re color coded so that one is only good for today but it will get us past any guards who might question us.” He turned to Askaro. “If any guard or Authority comes towards you, just hold up your pendant.”
Blin’s hands were shaking as she snapped the bracelet closed. “How did you know he would give you this?”
Marlo went out the door. “Well, I happen to have a younger brother who works here who did lose his bracelet once. Experience is a wonderful teacher.”
Zane sighed as they walked down the street. “The flowers still look pretty this time of year. It won’t be too long before the snows come and there won’t be any flowers on Flower Street.”
Askaro was more interested in the view beyond the flowers. To their right was a sheer drop after the wall that bordered the rows of flowers. He could see part of the forest where they had spent the night.
Blin bumped into him. She was staring in the other direction. He turned and gasped. There was a massive castle surrounded by a wall. The wall was well placed cut gray stone. The castle was bright white with a red tiled roof. It was stunning.
Zane leaned close. “They say the corners of the castle walls are studded with diamonds and the walls of the Great Hall are lined with gold.”
Marlo looked back at them. “We’re going to stay on this side of the street. There’s plenty of traffic going both ways. I doubt anyone will notice us.”
Flower Street ended in front of the entrance to the castle grounds. They moved with the flow of people that turned down the street away from the castle. Askaro had seen the row of buildings that extended across the chasm between two mountain peaks. Now he was walking across it. “This is amazing. How did they build it?”
Zane looked around. “Who knows. There’s a lot of bridge streets like this in the city. They were all built before I was born but it must have been something.”
The street turned and curved upward past more shops. The view changed abruptly as they crested the top of the hill. The Boulevard dropped by levels, down a long steep set of stairs, that stopped at intervals for landings to cross streets.
Askaro’s view was drawn upward. The long forward bowsprit of the Falcon appeared to be almost overhead. The large dirigible blocked the rising sun. The hull rested beyond the edge of the quay. The ramp extended between the Beak and the main gate.
Zane exhaled loudly. “That is amazing.”
Blin gasped and grabbed Askaro’s arm. “It’s the Seeker!”
Askaro followed Blin’s gaze. He was coming up behind them. He moved with the flow of other pedestrians. “I don’t think he’s seen us yet.” He tapped Marlo on the shoulder. “Let’s go.”
Marlo started down the stairs. Zane held back. “You and Blin go next. Let me go last.”
Askaro didn’t argue. He and Blin hurried down the stairs. They reached a broad landing with a busy intersection. Askaro glanced back to make sure Zane was safely following.
“There he is!”
The shout startled Askaro. He swung around and studied the crowd on the stairs below them. He already knew Bruvano was there. That was a voice he’d never forget. But so was Golarin and several of his men.