For a little while, she’d accept that belief. Until Jason woke up, she’d pretend to herself that no problem was too hard to solve, that he had really meant it when he’d said it would be all right.
* * *
Alain stood nearby as Mari spoke and listened at the long-distance far-talker. She wore some sort of hat, like ear muffs, through which Alain could faintly hear the voice of the person Mari was speaking with. Mari had explained to him that this was required on this long-distance conversation because the “signal" was “weak.” Alain accepted that the explanation made sense to Mechanics and did not bother with trying to make it fit the universe that Mages knew. He had gotten as far as thinking that the “waves" Mechanics spoke of must be related to water in the air, so perhaps this time there was not enough water in the air.
The room they were in was large enough to contain the Mechanic device, a few chairs, and some standing room. One wall displayed a map of Dematr. The door was closed for privacy, guards outside to ensure no eavesdroppers or interruptions or attacks.
He could tell that Mari wasn’t happy.
“What? She did what? When? Nothing else? Are you certain?” Mari paused, her eyes closed as she listened to a long reply. “They were both all right? I can’t say. No. Don’t do that. Yes. All right. Yes. Thank you. Mari, out.”
Taking off the headpiece, Mari leaned back in the chair, resting one hand on her belly. Only a few more weeks before the child should be born. Once again Alain wished that was the only concern he had to deal with.
“Our daughter and Jason made it safely to the librarians,” Mari said. “Whatever happened there did not make her happy. I need to send a blast the librarians’ way and tell them they’d better inform me what happened. On the way back to Altis, Kira and Jason and their escort were ambushed by a force big enough to kill or wound more than half of them. The attackers included a lightning Mage.”
“Mage Ivor,” Alain said. “Kira and Jason were not hurt?”
“I’m told neither was wounded. But then they both insisted on haring off to distract the ambushers so a relief column could get through to the survivors.” Mari looked at him. “Colonel Patila was extremely apologetic, but said that Kira threatened to shoot anyone who tried to stop her, and that when Patila met her later, Kira invoked my authority to get two horses and head back to Altis with only Jason.”
“Kira did not say why?” “No.” Mari grimaced, one hand covering her eyes and the other still resting on her stomach. “Then the pair of them apparently wandered through Altis, getting in a variety of clashes that included at least one shooting, before getting down to the harbor undetected and taking a boat.”
Alain had to mentally walk through the words again to make sense of them. “Do you mean they rode on a boat or that they took it?”
“They took it. Sailed away with it. There’s an unhappy owner demanding answers from the government of Altis. Altis is offering the owner compensation, but wanted to know from me when the boat would be returned.”
“Why did they not go to the Confederation warship?”
“Do I look like I know the answer to that? They took a boat on my authority! That girl had better have a good explanation!” Mari waved toward the north. “And she told someone as they were leaving that they were going to Cape Astra.”
“Cape Astra? I do not understand.”
“Join the club. What the blazes is your daughter up to? And why? I was counting on Jason to be a steadying influence, but apparently that’s not working out.”
A soft knock sounded on the closed door to the room, followed by the voice of one of the guards. “Your pardon, but there’s a Mage who says he has an urgent message.”
Alain, his attention formerly focused on Mari, shifted it to the outside and immediately sensed a familiar Mage presence. “It is Mage Saburo.” He raised his voice. “Let Mage Saburo enter.”
Saburo came in, looking so tired that Alain insisted he sit down before speaking. “You have come from Altis?”
“This one has,” Saburo said, producing an envelope from inside his robes. “That one Kira said Elder Mari must see this as quickly as possible.”
“You came all the way from Altis that fast?” Mari asked. “That’s amazing. No wonder you’re worn out.”
“Hunter rests,” Saburo said.
Alain saw Mari smile at Saburo. The Mages who created dragons and trolls had no emotional involvement in their monsters, not caring when the illusions of the beasts used up the power put into them and ceased to exist. But Mages who created Rocs created always the same Roc, and said that their Rocs were resting during that time when the illusions of them did not exist in the world. Once the Mage Guild had banned both such talk and the attitudes behind it, but Mari had welcomed it, gaining her the early backing of many Roc Mages such as Saburo.
Mari took the envelope. “It’s addressed to Kira. From Empress Sabrin.” Taking out the letter inside, she read rapidly. “Oh, no. Some pieces of the puzzle just fell into place. Alain, Maxim is still alive. And he’s got backing from Mechanics and Mages hoping to create conditions that would allow them to reestablish the Great Guilds. And he knows about the weapons under Pacta. Those Mechanics must have found something in the old files of the Mechanics Guild before the Empire took over.”
“A well-organized effort,” Alain said, worry growing inside him. “No wonder they struck the train with such force, and were able to nearly wipe out the soldiers protecting Kira and Jason on Altis.”
“Is Kira worried about a threat to that Confederation warship?” Mari wondered. “Mage Saburo, did Kira tell you anything else?”
Saburo shook his head. “This one was told only to get that to Elder Mari.”
“How did Kira look?”
“That one Kira looked like that one Kira.”
Mari clenched her teeth in exasperation.
“Mage Saburo,” Alain said. “What did you sense of that one Kira’s emotions?”
Saburo paused to think. “That one Kira was… concerned. Worried. Un… happy. Is that the word to use? Not happy. Also… this one does not know how to say.”
Alain waited, gesturing an impatient Mari to wait as Saburo thought.
“That one Kira felt not like that one Kira,” Mage Saburo finally said. “Not in great amount. Small. But that one Kira was different in small sense. This one felt something… unsettled in her.”
“That’s understandable,” Mari said. “She must have been very upset if she’d just learned that Maxim was still alive. Alain, we need to see Sien as soon as possible. She has to know how big this threat is.”
“Agreed.” A thought came to him. “Is Kira attempting to decoy Maxim?”
“What?”
“Maxim is supposed to be working to get those weapons. But if he knew Kira was within reach, would he divert from that task in an attempt to first get revenge on her?”
“You think she’s trying to draw off Maxim to give us more time to prepare?”
“It is what her mother would do.”
Mari shook her head. “Don’t blame me for this! She gets that from both sides! Stars above, if she’s deliberately dangling herself as bait to get Maxim off track, Kira is being very brave and… exposing herself to a lot of danger.”
“Jason is with her,” Alain said.
“Right. He must have agreed with all this. That makes me feel better, but not much. Jason is so in love with Kira that he thinks she can do no wrong.”
“I think you misjudge him,” Alain said. “Kira would not love a man who always deferred to her. She wants someone who challenges her. This also she gets from her mother.”
Mari smiled at him. “That I will take the blame for.” The smile went away as Mari pointed to the map. “The Confederation asked if we wanted their warship to go to Cape Astra. I said yes, but the Confederation will have to get approval from the Western Alliance. The warship will probably get to Cape Astra a few days after Kira reaches there.”
“Has the West
ern Alliance been told?”
“The Alliance embassy at Altis has sent messages to the top levels of the Western Alliance. I asked that they also wait until notified by Kira as to what she needs. If she’s planning on taking on Maxim and however many mercenaries, Mechanics, and Mages he has with him, she’ll need backup.”
“Kira must have a plan for doing that.”
Mari nodded, rubbing her eyes. “We know Kira has a good head on her shoulders. She’s proven that. We have to trust that what she’s doing now is part of some well-thought-out plan.”
Alain nodded as well. “Kira knows what she is doing.”
* * *
What am I doing? Every hour took them closer to Cape Astra, and Kira still didn’t know why.
She watched the unceasing swells of the Sea of Bakre. Days of travel ahead, at the far end of the Strait of Gulls where the Sea of Bakre met the Umbari Ocean, lay Cape Astra. Long ago, Jules herself had dared that passage, charting the first courses through the ocean and establishing the outpost that became Julesport. In time Julesport became a city and, along with other cities founded by those fleeing Imperial domination, formed the Bakre Confederation.
Kira, not for the first time, felt the huge difference between herself and Jules. She was descended through her mother from the old explorer/pirate/hero, but she wasn’t Jules. Surely Jules never felt these sorts of uncertainties.
Cape Astra. Why had her mind seized on that destination?
They only person she even knew in Cape Astra was…
Was that why she’d wanted to go there?
Jason got up well after noon, bringing her more water and some of the dried food from the pantry. “Kira, I checked on how much food we have. We’ll need to eat sparingly to make sure it lasts all the way to Cape Astra.” He paused. “Are we still going to Cape Astra?” He waited for her reply, clearly also waiting to see whether her answer indicated she was having problems again.
“So far,” Kira said, trying to sound rational. “Jason, I did think of one reason I might have decided on Cape Astra last night. Kath is there. That’s where she lives.”
“Kath?”
“Aunt Kath. Mother’s little sister.”
Jason grinned, relieved. “Your mother’s sister is there? Why didn’t you say that earlier? She can help us handle anything, right?”
“Ummm… not anything.”
“She’s your mother’s sister,” Jason said. “What is she, some secret agent or special mission type person? Someone high up in the Western Alliance?”
Kira gasped a sad laugh. “She’s Kath. Jason, that’s all she is.”
“I don’t get it. Your mother’s sister—”
“Stop saying it like that! Like that means Kath is like Mother. She’s not!” Kira glanced apologetically at Jason. “Sorry. It’s just… Kath is a great person. I love her. But she’s just Kath. She’s not the sister of the daughter of Jules.”
“I don’t understand,” Jason said. “You mean she’s like you were when I came to this world? She’s never had her skills and abilities come out like you have?”
“She doesn’t—!” Kira heard the upset in her voice and paused to control herself. “Kath got lessons. Like I did. When I was old enough, we took some lessons together. And Kath is smart. She learned how to fight and to shoot. She’s technically skilled at those things. She knows how to do them right. But she doesn’t… go beyond that. She doesn’t want to. It’s not her.”
Jason nodded slowly. “Kath isn’t a hero.”
Kira shrugged unhappily. “The last time she visited, a few months before you showed up, we went out and shot at targets and blew up a few things, but I realized that Kath was doing that stuff not because she loved it, but because I loved it. Kath was only doing it because of me. Left to herself, she’d do other things. And that’s what she does. She’s a teacher.”
“What does she teach?”
“Several subjects. To what we call low teens.”
“Middle school? Teaching in middle school is kind of heroic. Matter of fact,” Jason added, “there are a lot of ways to be a hero. So, if Kath doesn’t have any super powers like you and your mother, why would going to Cape Astra to see her help?”
“Still not sure what that super-powers thing is, and whatever it is, I’m not,” Kira said. “But Kath does know me. We talked a lot when I couldn’t talk to anyone else. She’s got the biggest heart in the world, Jason. My father doesn’t know what to do with all his Mage knowledge. Maybe Kath, knowing what she does about me and being the person she is, might be able to help me.”
Jason turned to look over the bow. “Your grandparents live in Farland, right? And Kath is at Cape Astra. This may be a dumb question, but why do Mari’s parents and sister live in the Western Alliance? I know they couldn’t go back to the Sharr Isles while the Empire was effectively controlling the place, but why not live in Tiae near Mari?”
Instead of answering him directly, Kira bit her lip before asking her own question. “Jason, you know people look at me when we’re together, and then they look at you because you’re the guy from Urth.”
He shrugged. “Or they don’t look at me at all, like when we were leaving our escort to draw off the ambushers.”
“Yeah, like that. You’re all right with that, though, and you’ve told me why, and it makes me love you all the more that you’re that… self-confident and self-effacing.” Kira looked down at her hands. “My grandparents really love Mother, and even though I’m told my grandfather didn’t like Father at first, they get on really well now. One time when they were visiting… I was pretty young… I asked Grandmother Eirene why she didn’t live with us. And she said something like, ‘Your mother is so bright she makes it hard for anyone else near her to be seen.’ So of course I blamed Mother for my grandparents living far away, but it wasn’t her fault. Grandmother and Grandfather want to be… noticed. Want to be someone other than the mother and father of the daughter of Jules. If they lived near Mother, that’s all they’d be. Even if they lived in the Bakre Confederation, that’s all they’d be.”
“But they are proud of her?”
“Of Mari? Jason, they’re so incredibly proud. I mean, Grandfather sometimes seems… conflicted? Like, how did his little girl become the daughter of Jules? And then there’s Aunt Kath. An absolutely wonderful, smart person. But she’s Mari’s sister. It kills Mother to know that the world looks at Kath, if they notice her at all, and sees only Mari’s sister. And it’s hard on Kath. She loves Mari. But no matter how wonderful she is, she’ll never be Mari.”
Kira felt memories form a frown. “When I was younger, Kath and I bonded over not being Mari. We might not have much going for us, but at least we had each other and could understand how the other felt, lost in the shadow of my mother.”
Jason nodded, but then looked concerned. “But now you’re… ”
“What?” Kira gave Jason a questioning look, then his meaning hit her. “Oh, no.”
“Yeah. Lady Mechanic Kira of Dematr, Captain of Lancers, dragon slayer, the daughter of the daughter.”
“Oh, no! Jason, what am I going to say to her? I know she’ll be happy for me, because that’s who Kath is. But… ”
After a moment, Jason spoke again. “Is Kath jealous of Mari?”
“No. Not at all. I could already tell when people were telling the truth or lying, and I saw truth in her when she said things that meant she was just happy for Mari.”
“That is seriously cool. You know, if Kath can be truly happy for you, and not be upset that you’ve sorta become the same thing you two used to not be, then she’ll actually, truly, be really amazing. I mean, that takes one huge, amazing person to be able to do that, don’t you think? To not be jealous or crushed by expectations or stuff? To be happy with who you are and who other people are? That’s a real super power.”
“I couldn’t do it,” Kira said. “But Kath might be able to. She has the biggest heart of anyone on this world. Jason, I so hope you’re right
.”
Jason nodded again, firmly this time. “So that’s why we’re going to Cape Astra.”
“You’re good with that?”
“I needed a reason. I thought of another reason, too.”
“Really?” Kira couldn’t help a laugh. “I’m such a genius when I’m crazy.”
“Yeah, let’s not go there,” Jason said. “Maxim is supposed to be after the weapons at Pacta Servanda. He already went to Altis, to get us, and you in particular. That’s off the path to Pacta, and then there’s the days he spent at Altis while his goons tried to kill or capture us. If he follows us to Cape Astra to get his hands on you, he’ll be delaying again.”
“We keep him from going on to Pacta?” Kira nodded as she thought about that. “Because he thinks he can get me? Jason, that’s my plan.”
“Not exactly,” Jason said. “But just maybe your plan turned out to have a side benefit. If Maxim is busy chasing you and maybe me, so he’s not there when the others expect him to be at Pacta, that’ll hurt the ones trying to get at the weapons. But if everybody Maxim has supporting him hit Pacta all at once, including that lightning Mage, somebody might get close enough to the buried facility to do something that would set off the beta field generator.” He stared straight ahead. “While your mom and dad are close by, trying to stop them. Kira, I’m willing to run some serious risks to keep that from happening to your mom and dad. They’ve been… the truth is, they showed me what real parents are like. Not parents like they gave birth to you parents, but parents because they care and love and sacrifice. And I probably sound all mushy, but that’s how I feel.”
“Why are you embarrassed about that?” Kira asked.
“They’re your parents, not mine.”
“You are so wrong. They’ve thought of you as their son ever since the Northern Ramparts. When we’re married, they’ll legally be your parents. But that’s one of the things the marriage will just formalize. It’s already true.”
He looked at her and smiled. “So we’re going to Cape Astra, and hoping Maxim follows.”
“Yay, they’re coming to kill us,” Kira said.