CHAPTER 12: Commitments
The clopping beat of the horse’s hooves echoed in the deserted streets. It was already midmorning, the sun high and hot, and they drove through a city that had been abandoned to shards of paper and straw. Aiyan had had the cabbie raise the leather hood, supposedly for shade, but he sat low and kept his head back so not to be seen. Out in the harbor, dozens of ships fled their anchorages, raising sail and making for the open sea.
They passed the Palace of the Old Kings and turned onto the avenue fronting the royal residence. The bleary-eyed guards officer at the gate was somewhat pale and wobbled a little.
Kyric had drunk too much wine with Jela and her friends, but after they left New Market Square, Jazul insisted on treating the four of them to an early breakfast at the Hotel Abalone. That had probably saved him from the worst of it.
When it became clear that Jazul intended to take them all the way to Jela’s door in his hired carriage, Aiyan had tried to decline the offer. But Jela spoke over him saying, “Jazul has a room on Coopers Street, behind The Peacock’s Tale — so he can be close to Bruli — my house is right on the way.” Aiyan said nothing more, but Kyric could tell that he was not comfortable with anyone knowing where they slept. They had stumbled into the house about an hour before first light.
“Her Highness welcomes you,” the officer said with little inflection upon checking his list. After they were admitted it was still a bit of a drive to the main house.
“I don’t like this,” Aiyan said looking around, taking in the grounds of the estate. “There’s too much ground, too many trees. In the dark of night you could sneak right up to the house.”
Kyric saw that he was right. The grounds extended a quarter mile from the house in every direction, with three wooded parks and plenty of sculpted hedges and flowering plants. He never imagined that an in-town house would rest on so much land. He looked at Aiyan. “The wall around the place is twelve feet tall.”
“It wouldn’t stop me,” Aiyan said.
As they approached the house Kyric saw that it was the sort built in the Long Winter, with over a dozen chimneys and rows of large glass windows to let the warmth of the sun in. Those windows had long ago been set on hinges, and now stood open to the breeze.
They were directed to the stables, and Princess Aerlyn was waiting there with Eren, Kaelyn, three beautiful horses, and two good-sized ponies. Aiyan and Aerlyn chatted about the horses and tack for a moment and then they all mounted, Aerlyn wearing a riding suit that was much like a man’s, with pants and boots. Aiyan had been able to wear Sedlik’s old brown sporting suit, but Kyric wore his everyday clothes with a sash for hidden pistols and ended up looking like one of the stable hands.
“I can’t wait for the society pages to come out tomorrow,” Aerlyn said to Aiyan. “I can see it now: Her Highness was seen dancing with the mysterious cavalier, Sir Aiyan Dubern —” She imitated the wavering, piccolo voice of a lady Kyric had met at the reception. “— whom she afterward engaged in a secluded tête-a-tête.
“If we are seen together in public again it will be quite the scandal.” She smiled in a way that said she couldn’t care less if they were seen together.
But Aiyan couldn’t return her smile. “I must apologize, Princess. I never meant to impune your reputation. I don’t even know why I asked you to dance.”
She gave him a level gaze. “I know why. And I am glad. That was the first time I have danced since my husband’s death. And even though we have only just met, we are already past this sort of conversation, Aiyan.” The knowing smile returned. “And if in private you do not call me by my name, I shall have to address you as Sir Knight.”
“As you wish, Aerlyn.”
The two of them rode in front, and Kyric stayed behind, flanked by the children on either side. “Your seat isn’t very good,” Prince Eren said to him.
“Pardon?”
“You need to lean forward a little and place more weight on your stirrups. It makes it easier on the horse.”
“I see.”
Eren was terribly serious for a nine year old. “That’s what a good rider does. He makes it as easy for the horse as possible, even at the expense of his own comfort.”
“You must have a very good riding master to teach you such things.”
‘My father taught me how to ride. He died when I was five. He said the same rule applies to leaders and the led.”
“He must have been a wise prince.”
“He was, as I shall be when it is my time.”
Kyric tried to hold back a laugh. “Eren, are you sure you’re only nine?”
“Nine and a half.”
They skirted a patch of woods, finding some shade on the other side, and Aerlyn said to Aiyan, “I looked in the Book of Heraldry this morning and found the coat of arms of your order. I thought it was beautiful in its simplicity — a flaming sword held between two firebirds. I hope you don’t think ill of me for saying this, but I was relieved to find it.”
“I’m relieved as well.”
“So I sent word to the Royal Library for any history of the Knights of the Flaming Blade that could be found, and I received a tome simply titled The Book of Spring, but naturally I haven’t had time to read much of it.”
“It details the last year of the Long Winter,” Aiyan said.
“Yes,” she said. “I did read one part. It mentioned that your order defended the house of Quytis on this very spot when the forces of the warlord Fernoc broke the west gate and overran the city. It says that they fought with swords that caught fire — a misquoted reference to the heraldry I suppose, or something lost in the translation.”
Aiyan bowed to her in the saddle. “Perhaps,” he said. “But I’m surprised they did not send you The Book of Autumn as well.”
“What would I find in that?”
“Stories from the last year before the Long Winter, some that you might find hard to believe.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “Then I shall send for it with all haste.”
They rode in silence for a time, listening to the chirping of birds and the creaking leather of their saddles. At length Aerlyn said, “I have decided to attend the Senate and vote against the formation of the Spice Island Company. If this is something that could invite war with the Baskillian Empire then another year of consideration is not too long.”
Aiyan nodded. “I must admit that I’m glad to hear that. But it might be a good idea if no one else hears of it until the day of the vote.”
“I can tell them today that I haven’t yet decided, but a clever politician will know that it only means I have decided against him.”
“Anything that gives Lekon and Morae the slightest hesitation works to your advantage, Aerlyn.”
“You never said which nation Morae served. The Kingdom of Jakavia is the only one that really makes sense. King Orstiano would be very pleased to see the Aessian and Syrolian states weakened by a war with Baskillia.” She looked to him for confirmation.
“Let us say,” he replied, “that there is a faction within the Baskillian Empire which is shut out of the spice trade. Even if they possessed charts of the lost spice islands, they could not use them without the established spice clans calling down the Imperial wrath. But if they allied themselves with the military clan, then a war with Aeva and the western states would serve them well. They would have already established themselves in military politics and would exert considerable influence, and should the lost islands be wrested away from the interloping Aessians they would no doubt become the military governors of the newly conquered territories.”
“And Morae is an agent of this new faction?”
“It is what I believe, based on the words of my fellow knights who have traveled in the empire. I know for a certainty he is not what he seems and that Lekon is his loyal servant.”
Kaelyn guided her pony closer to Kyric. “Did you throw straw into the fire at midnight?” she said to him.<
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“I was busy at midnight, but I threw some in later. Did you have a straw man last night?”
“I fell asleep, and no one woke me up.” She made a face at Eren. “Now I have to keep my bad luck.”
“No you don’t,” Kyric said with a grin. He took out the wooden coin he had saved and gave it to her. “There. Now you have all the good luck you need.”
She held it up for Eren to see. “Good luck,” she said to him, throwing her head back in defiance.
They rode a winding course across the estate, and when they came to a meadow Aiyan and Aerlyn broke away in an impromptu race, returning at the trot smiling and arguing about who had won. At the end of the morning, back at the stables, after the grooms had taken their horses and the children had run down to a nearby pond, Aiyan spoke quietly to Aerlyn.
“You must know that by following my advice you place yourself at risk.”
“So I’ve been told,” she said.
Aiyan’s gaze turned hard. “I’m not speaking of business threats. These men are willing to do anything.”
“Certainly I’m safe here,” she said. “A troop of royal guardsmen are assigned to me at all times.”
“Most likely they would try to arrange an accident on your way to the Senate, and if you don’t mind I would like to accompany you there on Wineday morning. In the meantime I would have the guards captain increase the watch if possible.”
“You’re serious,” she said.
“I am. And I am sorry, Aerlyn. I never should have come into your life.”
“Don’t say that.”
Aiyan smiled sadly. “I never should have butted into your politics then.”
“If I believe what you say is true, then I must be grateful and act according to my conscience. Simply because the royal family no longer holds any authority doesn’t mean I cannot act for the good of my people. If I were to succumb to cowardice, how could I face them, who would I be?”
When Aiyan said nothing, she asked him, “If I do feel threatened in my home, how would I reach you?”
“For the safety of all I must keep that a secret. But I tell you this, Aerlyn: If your need for me is great, I will know.”
After the cabriolet passed out the gate and had turned onto a public street, a shadow crossed Aiyan’s brow. He brooded as they clopped past the Palace of the Old Kings. The sea breeze raised the detritus of four days of games and twirled it in eddies at the street corners.
“I tell myself,” Aiyan said, “that she would be in greater danger had I not come near her. But is that so? Their threats may have frightened her into abstaining from politics.”
Kyric turned to him, sitting upright. “And she may have decided to vote against them on her own. She would have been in more danger without you then.”
“I should have asked if I could dine with her tonight. She surely would have said yes.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“I could not bear it if she ever felt I was forcing my attention on her.” He shook his head to drive away the thought. “But I would liked to have seen the inside and met her staff and servants, particularly the captain of her guard. It’s so easy for them to get hold of a maid or footman and force them to take the blood.”
“As I well know,” Kyric said. He wondered if the memory of that taste would ever fade.
They headed south along the Way of Kings, the statues of sword-wielding angels looking down upon them. All the theatres and cabarets had signs hanging on their doors that read ‘Closed Tonight.’ Aiyan had the cabbie drop them at Candles Street so they could take the back alleys and arrive at Sedlik’s house unseen. As they stepped down from the cab they could see past the old docks and into the harbor.
Suddenly, Aiyan broke into a broad grin, pointing to a small sloop-rigged boat approaching from the southwest. “That’s Swordfish, one of the boats we use for traveling between Esaiya and the mainland.” He let out a huge breath. “At last. Let’s go down there and see who it is.”
The wind was from the southeast, and the boat was coming in on a starboard jibe. A catboat had left the docks, heading to pass Swordfish on the port side. They were set to pass fairly close, no more than a few dozen yards. Swordfish was busy lowering its headsail, seeming not to notice when the catboat suddenly tacked and steered an intercept course. There was a puff of smoke from the catboat, and the figure of a man leaped headlong over the rudder, swimming away furiously.
Aiyan grabbed Kyric’s sleeve. “They don’t see it,” he said. “They don’t see it.”
It took less than a ten count, but the wait was agonizing. Swordfish tried to turn away at the last moment, but it was too late. The catboat hit and began to scrape along the hull. Then it exploded in a ball of fire and splintered wood. A roaring thunder echoed across the harbor. Half of Swordfish shattered, the other half a flaming mass that tilted over and sank at once.
Aiyan broke into a run. “I saw someone jump from Swordfish. There could be survivors.”
They ran down the boulevard all the way to the old docks. A few small craft circled the wreckage on the water, apparently finding nothing.
Aiyan climbed onto the base of the statue in the harbor square while Kyric caught his breath. He scanned the water and looked up and down the shoreline. “That could be him,” he said, jumping down.
They went down to where the fallen tower met the sea, and there, hauling himself onto the land, was a broad-shouldered man with shaggy blonde hair. He stood there, fully dressed, letting rivulets of water run from his clothing.
“Teodor,” said Aiyan, running to him, “are you wounded?”
“A bit of a headache,” he said, letting Aiyan take his arm.
“Who else?” demanded Aiyan. “Was there anyone — “
“Candidate Radic,” said Teodor. “He was at the tiller. I told him to jump. He didn’t feel the danger, didn’t see the smoke. I think he tried to maneuver . . . I looked for him in the wreckage.” He sat on a rock and emptied his boots. He wore a sword much like Aiyan’s, protected by leather wrappings, but it was a little different. The same silver locket with the emblem of the flaming blade hung at his waist. He looked at Kyric and then to Aiyan.
“Kyric is my friend, and he’s a friend of the order as well.”
“I am?” Kyric said.
Teodor smiled thinly. “What Aiyan has told me is that you know of the Knights of the Dragon’s Blood, and the true purpose of our order. And that you are worthy of trust.”
He turned to Aiyan. “Master Bortolamae was worried about you. I take it his concern was not misplaced.”
“We can’t stay on this spot,” Aiyan said. “Chances are that one of their informants has a spyglass on us right now.”
They crossed the harbor road, and pushed through a small crowd at the square where everyone vied to see what was happening on the water. Entering one of the quiet alleys, the only sound was the rhythmic squish of Teodor’s boots.
“Radic was going to stay with the boat and return to Esaiya when I had some news of you,” he said.
Aiyan threw out his arms. “They must have been waiting for days. Can you imagine the preparations involved in this kind of ambush? They would have to have a pair watching Esaiya. They would need a series of signals, or a series of very fast horses, and a second set of watchers to confirm you were heading for Aeva. The crew of the bomb boat would have to live aboard and be ready at all times — probably a third set of watchers to signal them. I saw one swimming for it, and I’d wager there was another blood-charmed sailor to stay and make sure it went off.
“Morae foresaw this. When I stole the rudders he was afraid I would summon a band of knights from Esaiya. He planned to kill them all at once.”
“Doesn’t this Morae know that the full force of Esaiya would retaliate?” Teodor said.
“After the Senate votes day after tomorrow, I’m sure they plan to fade away and leave it all for Lekon to run. I?
??ll explain it all later. I’m very happy to see you my friend, but now that I see the depth of their commitment I wonder if the two us will be enough. They want this very badly.”