There was a knock at the door.
“Enter,” Mearto commanded. She said it in such a way reminded Kosai of the Captain and in other ways, not like him at all. She was tall, firm, and controlled. She laid out her words with precision and each word had an air of authority and power. But in other ways, she seemed soft, gentle, and even with the threats and insults, Kosai understood that there was a sense of genuine concern. She was just… different. It was the smell of lilac and sea salt, Kosai decided that made her different. He felt calm around her, even when she was barking orders or scolding him.
“Sorry to bother you.” It was the matron. “But there is a guest for Kosai waiting in the board room.”
“Thank you,” Mearto said. She dismissed the matron and waited until the door was shut. “Are you fit enough to walk?”
“I’ve felt worse,” Kosai said. He took a deep breath and coughed roughly, spitting up a glob of phlegm. He swallowed it, stood and hung the cloak back on the hook.
“You should wear that. You look cold and weak.”
“The pain is good for me, it will make me stronger,” Kosai said with a smile. Kosai opened the door and walked out. Mearto followed closely behind. “I’m quite alright,” he whispered to her.
“I’m not letting out in this condition without some assistance,” she said. Kosai shook his head, not to disregard her comment but to clear it from his mind. The floor spun slowly, and even though he felt cold, his face was covered in sweat. He stumbled, fell against the wall, slid down to the floor and coughed again. Mearto reached down to help him up.
“No!” Kosai said as he brushed her arm away with his. “I can do this.” Mearto folded her arms across her chest and stared at her student. Kosai pawed up the wall, regaining balance, took a few more steps and fell again, stumbling like a baby trying to walk.
“Apparently not,” she said. She grabbed Kosai under the arms and helped him to his feet. After he was on his feet, she placed one arm over her shoulders, held his left hand in hers, and tucked her right arm around his side. Kosai breathed through his nose, smelling the lilac and sea salt again. He smiled.
“Apparently not,” he agreed. Together, they walked slowly towards the board room. They stopped at the door and Kosai took another deep breath.
“Can you go in on your own?”
“I think so,” Kosai said. Slowly he opened the door and entered the room. He smiled again, seeing the Captain sitting towards the middle of the long table. The Captain stood. Kosai took a couple steps towards him before faltering. He caught himself in a chair. Holding himself up on the chair, Kosai saluted and stood as close to attention as possible while bracing himself on the chair. He noticed the cast on the Captain’s arm, but said nothing.
“Sit Kosai, you look awful,” said the Captain. Kosai nodded and sat on in the chair. The Captain stood up from his chair and sat next to Kosai. “Is everything ok?” he asked Mearto.
“He’ll be fine Captain,” Mearto said, taking a seat on the other side of Kosai. She glanced at the Captain’s cast and then looked up at the Captain. The room started to smell like lilac and sea salt. “We have been trying to prepare him for the Awakening through mental exercises. Unfortunately, they have quite the effect on the body.”
“I’m fine, really,” Kosai said.
“The pain is good for you. It will make you stronger,” the Captain said, placing a firm hand on Kosai’s shoulder. He looked up at Mearto. “If you don’t mind, I have some private business to discuss with my student.”
“She can stay,” Kosai said. The Captain looked at him, then at Mearto, and then back at Kosai. “She knows the other reason I’m here and she claims innocence.”
“Kosai!” the Captain said disapprovingly.
“Captain,” Mearto said calmly. “Do not be mad at your student. He did not divulge anything to me. As a matter of fact, he held his secret well and was very strategic in making time for his investigation. It was only after his recent near death experience that I was able to discover his secret.”
“Near death experience? Kosai, what happened? What did you tell her?”
“‘I don’t have time for this’,” Mearto said.
“Excuse me?” the Captain said, even more angrily.
“Those were the words he said to me, ‘I don’t have time for this’. From that, as well as surrounding events that were completely outside of Kosai’s control, I could discover his secret. Luck just happened that I discovered it when he was mentally unable to put on a rouse.”
“How convenient for you then,” the Captain said coldly. Mearto chuckled.
“You two are so much alike. Rest assured Captain, I am not the one leaking the information about the caravans, and I have proof. If you would like to escort Kosai and I this evening, I will show it to you.” The Captain stared at the desk, and then looked at Kosai.
“Will he be fit for travel this evening?”
“He should be. The effects, though dramatic and draining at first, wear off in a few hours.” The Captain nodded. Kosai folded his arms on the table and laid his head down and breathed heavily.
“Kosai, are you sure you can be here? What I am about to say is extremely important. You need to remember every word.” Kosai sat up slowly and straightened his posture.
“I’ll be fine Captain. It’s just like any other time I was laid up and you lectured me.” After making sure that Kosai was coherent, the Captain explained his investigation with the syndicate. He talked about the secret notes, the private use of the government caravan by managing syndicate members, and of Leudoy, the syndicate merchant that the Captain borrowed the ring from and his living conditions.
“But that wasn’t all. On the journey, back from Linnouse, we were attacked by the Dark One. That was when my arm broke. The only reason he didn’t kill me and the rest of the guards, he said, was because he still had a need of me and them.”
“How,” Kosai said weakly. “He has no association with the Guard.”
“I think the more important question, Captain,” Mearto said softly, “is did you find anything linking the syndicate to the leaked route information.”
The Captain shook his head.
“None, just suspicion,” he said.
“And what is that suspicion?” Mearto asked.
“For the Dark One to make such a claim insinuates that he somehow has control over the Guard. We take our orders from the Capital only. I suspect that the Dark One has some measure of control over the council at present. The higher-ranking members of the syndicate are also doing something between themselves while the lower-ranking members live on the brink of poverty. I have spent this past week watching them, and my gut tells me that they know about the trade routes, but I have nothing to hold over their heads!” the Captain slammed his right fist on the table. “Tell me you’ve found something.”
I’ve found something alright, Kosai thought, placing his hand on his chest and rubbing in a small circle over the book as if he was comforting a pain.
“I haven’t, Captain,” Kosai said. “I’ve been trying to make time, but until now, the situation hasn’t presented itself. There has been an additional development however.” Kosai talked about the boys that tried to kill him, their denial afterword, and that the Seer declined to See what happened. “Mearto shares a common interest with us too.” Kosai looked at Mearto and she picked up on the cue.
“I, like you and Kosai, have some reservations about the Seer. He dictates trade routes to Jaiken and I, mediates in the Oasis in the afternoons, but beyond that, he is rather reclusive. I found it highly suspicious that he would call on you and Kosai to investigate the leak, claim innocence, and then be absent most of the day.” The room was silent again. The Captain stared at the desk and scratched his chin.
“There is something you should know Mearto,” the Captain finally said. “When I was with the Seer, alone, I asked him to See who was leaking the trade route information.”
“He saw
me giving the information, didn’t he?”
“Yes,” the Captain said slowly and cautiously.
“And he told you that he can only See, not hear, correct?”
“Yes,” the Captain said again with more confidence. Mearto laughed slightly.
“I know exactly what he Sees, and it is not what he thinks. Please, you must come with me tonight and I will prove to you that I am innocent.”
“Do not treat this lightly. You must prove to me that you are innocent. Treason is the crime being committed, punishable by death or a life at the Gate.” Mearto’s facial expression changed instantly and folded her hands across her lap.
“I am not committing treason. In fact, I am doing the opposite. I am compiling evidence against whoever is. And, I am trying to mitigate future losses through negotiations.”
“I don’t understand,” said Kosai, “you hint that the syndicate is betraying the routes, yet claim that your association with them is the opposite of treason.”
“The syndicate group that I meet with is parting ways, as it were, with their parent company in hopes to aid the people. In the room where we meet, a large map is placed on the table. Future routes, previous failed and successful caravan routes, as well as financial planning are all discussed. The Seer doesn’t understand that I am assisting them in their plan to break away from the syndicate.”
“How will you prove this to me?” The Captain leaned back and folded his arms over his chest.
“Meet Kosai and me at sunset, next to the fountain, but in a disguise of some sort.”
“Fair enough,” the Captain said. He stood up again. Kosai tried to push his chair out to stand as well, but couldn’t find the energy to do so. “But any sense of foul play-”
“Captain,” Mearto said softly. The room filled with the lilac and sea salt smell again. “I swear no harm will come to either of you, if so you may charge me with treason and send me where you will.” Mearto bowed slightly and the Captain nodded.
“On that note, I have something I want you to look at,” the Captain said. He untied the pouch on his hip and tossed it to Mearto. She opened it and poured out a portion of the black sand into her hand.
“Dead Earth,” Mearto said slowly, examining each grain that rested in her palm. “Where did you find this?”
“On one of the earlier caravans I went on. Kosai’s old sword was stuck in the ground and covered in the stuff as well as a black, paste-like substance. It burned my hand as I poured it into the bag. I thought it might be of some use against the Dark One.” Mearto continued to stare at the sand, and then carefully poured it back into the pouch. “But before he disappeared, he said that it wouldn’t do any good,” said the Captain.
“Do you have the sword with you?” Mearto asked in a slow, even tone.
“I do and wanted to ask you questions about it as well,” he said as he pulled Kosai’s blade from his belt and laid it on the table, the handle pointed towards Mearto. Kosai groaned when he saw the chipped and blackened edge of the blade. Mearto cautiously picked up the sword and examined the red tint of the blade and the black-stained edge closely. She placed her finger on the edge of the sword and then recoiled quickly.
“Clever of you to take the sand with you, because the pouch solidifies what the Seer has said about Kosai. But it also brings with it some troubling news. Dead Earth is earth that had the Faye, or the world’s energy, the power that grants life to all living things, sucked out of it. It would be comparable to draining you of your blood. Usually, Dead Earth is the beginning of a Seep. I strongly suspect that after Kosai injured the Dark One, that he took Kosai’s sword, stabbed into the ground, and sucked the life from the surrounding area to heal himself.”
“And what of the pain I felt in my hands? How are you able to handle the dead earth?”
“The pain you felt on your hands, Captain, was the Dark One’s blood and that blood is also what has stained this blade.” Mearto placed the blade on the table and looked at the Captain. “It is a challenge, Captain, to Kosai as if he were saying that he isn’t afraid of him.”
The Captain placed Kosai’s sword back in his belt and then laid a hand on his son’s shoulder. “Kosai, feel better by this evening,” he said in a tender voice. “Teach him well,” he said to Mearto.
“Yes Captain,” Mearto replied. She bowed a second time as the Captain left. She waited for a moment and then turned to Kosai. “Do you feel like walking again?”
“I will in a minute I think. My strength is coming back,” he groaned. He placed his hands on the table and pushed himself up. “The floor stopped spinning.”
“That’s the worst of it, but for you, not the last of it,” Mearto said. Kosai took a couple steps towards the door. Mearto took a step towards him, arms outstretched. “I can walk now. Just tired, that’s all.”
“Good,” she said. She placed her hands by her side. “We can talk more in my office.” Kosai and Mearto walked slowly, but straight.
Each step brought renewed strength, and it wasn’t long before Kosai felt almost as he did before the Awakening, save for being slightly drowsy. At his teacher’s office, Kosai sat in his chair and Mearto sat behind her desk across from him.
“There are still two things that I am concerned about,” Mearto said. “First, how did you begin the Awakening without assistance?” Kosai rubbed his eyes for a moment, playing off his drowsiness to think of an answer.
“I read some words down in the library. I committed them to memory and repeated them over and over.”
“Ah,” she said as she grabbed a piece of paper, pen and ink and jotted down a note. “More importantly, I sense that the Captain doesn’t trust me. I sense that you don’t trust me either. Why?”
“Create a common enemy, gain confidence, find weakness, exploit,” Kosai said in a monotone voice as if reading from a textbook.
“You and the Captain see this as a cover then, to get closer to you and then what? Kill you? It’s irrational. I have no motive. It is more important to me that you stay alive.”
“Your trust will either be earned or lost this evening. The Captain perceives more than most give him credit for,” Kosai said.
“You need your rest. Go to your bunk. I will be close by if you need anything. Dismissed.” She waved her hand. Kosai stood, thought about saluting, didn’t, and walked cautiously back to his bed. Once he lay down, he took the book out from his shirt and opened to the sixth page, licked his thumb, and pressed it into the paper.
“How did your practice Awakening go?”
“Terrible. I almost died,” Kosai whispered. No one was in the Dormitory yet, but he didn’t want to run the risk of someone walking in on his conversation. “Once Mearto broke the trance, the floor would not stop spinning and my body felt terrible. I don’t think I made any headway about practicing for the Awakening, though she did talk about the trade routes.”
“Which was what I wanted to show you,” The words faded and words from Mearto’s personal journal appeared.
Today was a concussive blow to my research. It was announced publicly today that the individual who would eventually kill the Dark One was discovered. He is the senior student of the Capital Barracks. He is not in tune with the Faye in any way and the Teachers want to make him a Forced Conduit. The Seer will choose me as the boy’s mentor and teacher for this process, considering I am the only one who has survived the ordeal. I now must rework my schedule around him, and find a way to prepare him for the Awakening, as well as continue researching who in this school is leaking the trade routes. Jaiken isn’t nearly smart enough to be so close to both the Seer and I and still be undiscovered. It is my belief that the Seer has deceived us all and he is betraying the people, for an unknown reason. I must find that reason if I am to succeed. I am also troubled that the Seer has declared to us who will destroy the Dark One, but not how. Perhaps that will come to light soon enough.
The entry faded and another appeared.
Our newest recruit
, Kosai, has only been here two days, and already someone tried to kill him. He fended off his attackers and came away fine. I wasn’t sure how to read him at first, whether he was lying, but I could find no reason for him to. He was racing up the stairs to see the Seer about something, and I am under the assumption that Kosai talked to the Seer about the failed attempt on his life. He is still young, and stupid, but that action of going to the Seer may play into my hand yet.
Kosai seems like a strong young man, and I fear he is growing fond of me. I have done all that I can to distance myself from him, ensure his survival, and still teach him and prepare him for the Awakening. I am not sure yet if he remembers me healing him that night.
Kosai is taking well to his book studies and there is minimal resistance on his end. His training with the Barracks has paid off, for me anyway, and I think this process is working well enough, for both our sakes. He still has an issue with retention, I can see it in his eyes when he speaks, but there isn’t enough time. I hope he understands the gravity of the situation, and at least in time, comes to understand that he may die if he isn’t prepared for the Awakening. Each day he spends in study is a day closer to defeating the Dark One.
I have expended all my resources and have found nothing, not a trace, about who is leaking the routes. If it is the Seer, I cannot find a trace to him. If it is Jaiken, I can most assuredly promise that he is acting under someone else. If it is a member of the council… Faye help us if it is.
Tonight, I plan on talking to a member of the syndicate about this. They used to be attacked by Nomads, but not so frequently anymore. I met with a low-ranking official, who led me to another, who showed me to another syndicate member, who eventually told me to meet someone at one of their schools the next night.
“This last entry was from last night,” the book wrote underneath the journal entry. The words faded and the last entry appeared.
I visited with a few managing members of the syndicate. No names were shared and each wore a cloth about his face. If word got out that these people were helping me, the syndicate would come down on them, and they could lose their jobs, possibly their lives. There were four syndicate members there looking over a large map when I arrived. Apparently, this small group of syndicate members has been tracking where the Nomads have attacked, and forecast where they would attack next. From what I could learn, there was a pattern to their behavior, and the syndicate members were somehow able to attach a monetary value to the risk of loss on when and where and what caravans were going to be attacked. But that changed not too long ago. The nomadic attacks began trending more heavily towards government caravans.
This group of syndicate members suspects that the nomads have been organized. Their attacks are more precise and devastating. They told me that though this benefits syndicate members this method of dominating the market place was below them. I asked them if they had any control over planning the routes for syndicate caravans. To my luck, one of the group members did. I am going to use them as a resource tomorrow. I have a plan that should begin to solve this mystery.
When Kosai finished reading the journal entries the words faded and the page blank. While he felt both relieved and surprised to know that there were members within the syndicate that seemed to have a heart, frustration and anger seethed in his mind.
Perhaps we need to widen our search, Kosai thought.
“It seems that all of your trouble started with Theo,” the book wrote. “Perhaps he has some information locked away in his office that would be of use.”
How would I get into his office and plant the book? Kosai thought. Kosai was the only one who could read it, but it would look suspicious finding a book with no words. Wait. Patience, Kosai thought again. He continued to stare at the book, though not looking for answers. Be still, let Theo make the mistake. He thought back to his combat training and sparring. No one was perfect and everyone made mistakes, the Captain taught him that many times. He closed the book and put into his shirt, placed his hands behind his head, and looked up at the ceiling.
Even though he could feel his strength returning to him, he knew he needed to rest before this evening’s mission. As he began to dose off, he thought more and more about Mearto and the smell that surrounded her. He was sure now, after reading the journal entries that she was the one that healed him. But why was her smell stronger in certain situations? He knew he could trust her, and that she would earn the Captain’s trust after this evening, but there was still something about her that made Kosai curious. It was something about the smell. It waxed and waned and was rarely constant. Combining that with her strong will, direct demeanor, and independent attitude, she seemed very distant. Kosai recalled when she had taken him by the collar of his uniform and shoved him against the bookcase in her office. He hadn’t thought of it then, but she also hid a vast amount of strength in her figure. He could feel it pressing against him. Kosai was jolted awake as Mearto tapped his arm and leaned down next to his ear.
“It’s time to go,” she whispered. “I was able to buy some clothes for you to wear for tonight. Don’t wear shoes. As soon as you are outside rub some dirt in your face. Walk with a hunch. Keep your head down and don’t make eye contact with anyone. You know where to meet us.” She laid a soiled brown shirt and torn green trousers at the foot of the bed and left. Kosai quickly changed and placed the book inside his shirt, searching for a pocket for the book to rest in. Not finding an inside pocket, he tucked the book between his left hip and the waistline of the trousers. He tied the trousers tighter and let the shirt flow over the waist, concealing the book. Lastly, he put on the amulet the Captain gave him and tucked it under his shirt. Once outside, he rubbed dirt on his face and walked towards the fountain with a hunch. Mearto was staring into the water at the fountain. A beggar, layered with rags, dirt, grime and soot sat next to Mearto, staring down Capitol road. He had a metal dish in front of him. Kosai covered his mouth at the smell and looked into the water.
“Your father has more skill than I first thought,” Mearto said. Kosai looked at her confused. Then a half second later, he understood.
“There is still much about him I don’t know,” Kosai said.
“Mmm… perhaps it will stay that way too, until you open your eyes,” the beggar said. His voice was like gurgling mud. He picked up his pan and stood up, looking like a pile of refuse that grew into a mountain. The smell intensified as he reached his full height. Kosai looked into the man’s eyes, past the dirt and grime, and smiled. He also noticed that the Captain tucked his left arm inside of his disguise hiding the injury and medical service that was received.
“Impressive,” Mearto said with a half-smile and took a half step back. “I didn’t recognize you at first. How did you manage such a wretched costume?”
“I paid a beggar my size a few coins for his clothes. He seemed mad enough that if he were to ever tell someone that the Captain bought his clothes, no one would believe him.”
“Fair enough,” Mearto said. “Don’t follow to close now. We are going to take the Northwest Interior and then turn on to West Interior. We will walk past the Syndicate Schools on East Interior. Once we arrive, I will look over my shoulder and signal for you to approach.”
Kosai thought it was strange for the Captain to be taking orders in such a direct manner. It seemed beneath the Captain, but when he said, “Yes ma’am,” Kosai dismissed the thoughts for the time and stuck close to the Captain until Mearto walked off.
“Why did you let her take control of the situation? You should be the one in charge,” Kosai said quietly.
“She needs to feel comfortable and in control of this situation. She seems like an intelligent enough of a woman, and if I was in her place, I would suspect myself of foul play. I know what the routes are the morning of the caravans, and who knows, maybe to her, I can get a word out to some nomads before we arrive. She needs to know that we are on the same side and if that means taking an order or two from her, then so be it
.”
The Captain watched Mearto disappear into the street before he started to follow her. Kosai was right next to him, staring at the ground, back hunched. The Captain held to the sides of the street, walking behind beggars and other civilians. His walk was more of a hobble. His body was hunched over and he had a violent limp to his right side. He grunted and spat often. At times, Kosai forgot that he was following his Captain.
In a few minutes, they arrived at the place, seeing Mearto stand outside a home with a syndicate logo above the door. Cautiously, she walked up to the Captain and Kosai.
“I just visited with one of the members letting them know I had two companions that needed to be a part of tonight’s meetings. The syndicate member at the door said he would talk to his boss and then be back with a yes or no. If anyone asks, you two were in my confidence in the beginning and anonymity is your main priority.” The Captain nodded.
The door opened. The man filled the doorway with his body. His skin was as black as ash. Every inch of his body seemed to be muscles. He folded his arms over his chest and looked down the road in both directions.
“He says that if you trust them, he trusts them, so be quick before he changes his mind,” the syndicate guard said softly and deeply.
Mearto, Kosai, and the Captain shuffled into the residence. A large, square wooden table was in the center of the room, taking up half the floor space. Burning candles sat in candlesticks attached to the walls. Suspended from the ceiling was a metal chandelier. A large map of the desert was laid out on the table, inkwells on each corner holding the map in place. Mearto’s contact sat across the table on a stool. His face was covered with a golden cloth and he was dressed in a brown-hooded robe. All that was visible were two eyes in candle light. Behind the syndicate member was a desk, with drawers on either side. Papers and spare quills covered the desk and stuck out from the drawers. The syndicate member who greeted them continued to stand by the door. Kosai and the Captain stood on either side of Mearto a little way back from the table.
“What part do your companions play in our situation?” the man behind the desk asked. Mearto bowed and pointed to Kosai with an open hand.
“This young man is an informant of mine. He has seen the patterns we talk about, and he has ears that seem to penetrate walls. His life is without price to me.” She then pointed to the Captain. “This beggar has eyes that can pierce any mist. He sees everything that goes on in the city.” The Captain snorted and grumbled some unintelligible talk. He looked around the room, never looking the syndicate member in the eyes. “Together, they provide me with information in the city, and with what we have discussed, the information you provide may be able to refine their talents.”
“Fair enough,” the syndicate member said.
The Captain shuffled up to the map, snorting and grumbling. He stared at the map through one eye, tilting his face down, and then turned and looked at the map with his other eye. Mearto slowly walked up to the table and Kosai followed. Mearto cleared her throat and stared at the door man. The door man flushed and brought her a stool. The room began to fill with the aroma of lilac and sea salt.
“Have you or your friends come across any helpful information relating to the attacks since our last visit?” the syndicate member asked.
“No,” Mearto said. “Everything has come to a standstill.”
“And for good reason too,” the syndicate member said. He looked down at the map and traced some of the routes with his finger, seeming to look for something. “The south winds bring a chill from the ocean, and that, combined with the heat of the desert, is almost deadly. Caravans move slowly and the nomads don’t move at all. Sandstorms kick up easily and the hot air and crisp breeze causes illness. But beyond that, we do have a few more developments.” He continued to look at the map.
“Go on,” Mearto said. Her smell filled the room.
“Recently, Aldair, Master of Inventories, one of the higher ups, ordered some private cargo. According to the documents, his private shipment contained grain, cloth, ink, and a few spices; regular commodities for trading. As I and my counterparts analyzed the shipment, we concluded that even if Aldair were to sell those goods at a two-hundred percent markup, he would still suffer a loss. He paid quite the coin to the government caravan drivers to ensure its safety and rumor has it that the Captain personally looked into it.”
“There was something else in that shipment,” Mearto said softly, now looking at the map.
“Exactly, and there hasn’t been a word said about what it was. We have been watching inventory levels for quite some time, and over the past few months, inventory levels on grains has been growing ten percent per week. It isn’t that there aren’t people who are buying—it’s that those who control the flow of goods, such as Aldair and Thuane don’t want to sell. We’ve wondered if that means that they are simply storing it.”
“Why would they be storing commodities like that?” asked Kosai.
“It’s almost as if they are preparing for something,” said the syndicate member.
“What could they be preparing for?” asked Mearto
“War,” the Captain said in a guttural tone.
“I don’t think I follow,” the syndicate member said.
“War!” the Captain said louder. “Despair, chaos, starvation, people killing people, people eating people.”
“Who would attack us? The cities need each other. There haven’t been any threats from Caite for decades. No one could march an army across the Broken Blades and then into the desert. It’s ludicrous. No one would attack us.”
“No,” Kosai said, his eyes growing wide as he realized what the Captain implied. “Not from the outside anyway…” The syndicate member looked at him curiously.
“I think what my friends are saying is that perhaps the Three Brothers are preparing for an uprising, a revolt if you will,” Mearto said.
“Because the government caravans aren’t bringing enough food,” Kosai said slowly. “The city will be in chaos, and the syndicate will be able to swoop in, charge exorbitant amounts, more so than they do already, feed the people, and make out filthy rich with every single coin, and every valuable item in this city.” The syndicate member looked back at the maps. Kosai looked down and then noticed why the Captain was studying it so closely.
The map showed all the trade routes ever used and was littered with black and red “X” marks and dates. Each mark was where a caravan was attacked. The black seemed to be the government caravans, as there were more of them, and the red were the syndicate caravans. As far as Kosai knew, there was no such map in existence. From Kosai’s experience he knew that the map was correct. Black “X” after black “X” brought back memories of ambushed caravans and fallen guards. Having a map like the one on the table was evidence, hard evidence, that the government caravans were being attacked far more often than the syndicate caravans.
“Over the past years, we have been watching the caravan attacks, and when we started, each attack appeared to be completely random, favoring neither syndicate nor government caravans. Lately though, the odds of a safe caravan have shifted in favor of the syndicate and worse. The attacks are becoming so common, up until this weather, that we could predict confidently which government caravan was going to be attacked, where it was going to be attacked, and when. Yet the attacks on the syndicate caravans still remain random.”
Kosai thought about that last comment for a moment and looked down at the map again. The marks for government caravans were not concentrated, nor did they seem to have a visual pattern. In his mind, he could see how, according to the dates, that this syndicate member was able to predict an outcome of a caravan drive.
“What are you thinking young man?” the syndicate member asked. Kosai looked at Mearto and she nodded.
“If the syndicate is contracting nomads, why are they still being attacked? That leads to two conclusions. Either the syndicate has formed a contract with a small group, which would allow f
or quick travel, or someone else has. There is no way a large group would be able to traverse that much ground unseen,” he said pointing at the areas between sequential X marks. If the syndicate was contracting the nomads, why not buy off others who would attack? That would be too obvious a trail to find. What if the syndicate wasn’t behind it to begin with? Then how did they know trouble was coming? Kosai thought.
“Your boy’s gears are turning,” the syndicate member said.
“He is a smart one. That’s why I have him. Thank you for your information. I hope our next meeting will be more fruitful for you.”
The syndicate member bowed, and Mearto returned the favor. The door man showed them out and the three stood in the night air. The cold winds snapped above them. Even with the cold wind, sweat poured from the Captain’s face from all the layers of clothing and physical effort he took in his hobble. Combining the grime and dust of the city with his disguise, he looked more like a pile of sludge than a man.
“Thank you,” he said before hobbling off towards the Barracks. Mearto grabbed Kosai’s arm gently.
“I am going back the way we came,” she said softly. “I will meet you inside the school entrance. Do not follow me.” With that, she was off.
Kosai mapped out the city in his mind, thinking how he would get back to the school as quickly as possible, but without following her. The longer way would have been to walk East Interior until he came to Interior Road, and then up through Southeast Interior. Kosai was not in the mood to walk that far and he thought of a shortcut.
Between the School of the Faye and the Capital building was a dense concentration of homes. Children and adults trickled out from the cement houses onto Capital Road to get water and then receded back into the maze of cement. Kosai figured that there was a way to get from Capital road to East Interior through the maze, he just had to find it.
Within the hour, he was at the entrance to the development. He looked up at the stars, found a southwestern heading, and walked on. The streets wound together like a twisted pile of yarn. Paths doubled back, turns led to dead ends, and roads led to ten foot walls that Kosai couldn’t traverse over, though he tried once or twice. After an hour, Kosai found himself back at the entrance to East Interior.
A beggar sat on the corner with his pan in front of him. He was dressed in worn out rags and stunk like fermented sewage.
“Kosai!” the beggar gurgled to him. Kosai looked at the beggar, and recognized the Captain, especially the way he barked his name.
“Sir?” asked Kosai.
“That voice is hard to break,” the Captain said and then cleared his throat. Kosai went to his side and sat next to him. “I have an order for you. What happened in there was not what the Seer explained to me. Tonight, is the night the Seer saw. Mearto will go back to the syndicate tonight, right where we were. Follow her again without being seen. Watch her closely and remember every word she says. Do you understand? I will be here until you return.”
“Yes sir,” Kosai said. He stood up and was about to run again.
“Oh, and boy!” the Captain called again, taking the voice of a beggar. “Straight ahead, the third street on the left, lead ya right to the Capitol road.”
Kosai nodded and ran. In fifteen minutes, he was back in the pavilion, drinking from the fountain. As soon as Kosai cooled off and caught his breath he walked into the School. Mearto was waiting for him just inside the doorway.
“What took you so long?” she asked angrily.
“I got lost,” he said. Mearto shook her head and sighed.
“You weren’t followed, were you?” Kosai shook his head. “Good. We will talk more tomorrow. I hope that I have earned your Captain’s trust as well.” Kosai shrugged. “In any event, it’s late. You need to run to bed. If a revolt, war, whatever is coming, perhaps it would be best to dive into the Awakening with both feet. Experience is the best teacher, even if it can kill you.” She kept her eyes locked with Kosai’s for a moment and then stormed off towards her office. Kosai followed closely behind. As they walked, Theo walked briskly past them. Kosai looked at him as he passed and made eye contact. Theo cringed and then continued to his office. Kosai shivered.
“That was Theo,” Mearto whispered quickly, “the one who wants to kill you.”
While Mearto walked, Kosai listened to her footsteps, the gate of her stride and the sound of her shoes. As he turned into the dormitory, he stopped and memorized the sound of her walk.
Confident that he could recognize it, he turned his thoughts back to the school. He thought about Theo and Shàn and the attempt on his life. Perhaps there was a letter, a scrap of paper, some evidence that could prove that he was behind it, but what would it prove? Who would he tell? Kosai still didn’t feel comfortable trusting Mearto, especially after what the Captain told him.
The leather bindings of the book dug into his hip. He took it out and opened it to the sixth page as he walked to his bunk. Kosai licked his thumb and pressed it into the page.
“That room you were in held some good information you will want to look into,” the book wrote. Kosai was about to speak, but instead stuck one finger on the page and closed the book, his finger acting like a book mark. He left the dormitory and quickly walked to the mess hall. No one would be within earshot there. Once there, he made sure that no one was tending to any last-minute dishes, or fixing themselves a late snack. Satisfied that he was alone, he opened the book again.
“How long did it take you to acquire the information in Mearto’s office, and in the room, we were just in?”
“It only took a few moments. When you request information, it takes time to filter through things.”
“Could you tell me which office is Theo’s?” The book drew up a map of the school and a circle around his office.
Kosai closed the book. Access to Theo’s office and a few moments were all he needed. Kosai thought hard about what he would do. He didn’t know how to pick a lock, and walking into the office alone could prove disastrous. He thought of a simple yet effective plan. He would be in the corridor next to the Teacher’s offices in the clothing he was in and wait for Theo’s door to open, slide in--keeping the door open-- and ask him about his Awakening. A simple, non-threatening question and it would give just enough time for the book to collect every ounce of information in his office, but not enough time for Theo to do anything. If anyone asked what he was wearing, he could simply say he was doing some training. And if anyone asked him what he was doing, he could say he was waiting for Mearto, which wasn’t quite a lie.
He tucked the book between his trousers and waist, walked to the Teacher’s corridor, and leaned his back against a wall. He listened to the teachers’ feet and voices as they walked by. Most talked quietly about methods of instruction or about the economy of Noiknaer. Kosai heard his name mumbled with some other conversation and looked around. There were a few teachers’ voices coming up from the West Stair, and others from further down the hall. Then he heard someone in Theo’s office speak in a masculine, airy tone. Kosai walked closer to the conversation.
“The Dark One has attacked again and he seems to be more aggressive. I have seen the Captain injured, Theo, but never broken.” The speaker’s voice shook evenly as he spoke. Kosai figured he was an older gentleman, possibly the age of the matron.
“Adding to that, I don’t agree with what the Seer has prophesied about Kosai,” This voice was deeper and more confident, but Kosai wasn’t sure who it belonged to. “And you are forgetting to consider the other prophecy about Kosai. This whole school has!”
“I have not forgotten.” Kosai recognized the third voice as Daius, the Head Teacher. “But you must see my side. I would rather have Kosai and that Tormentor, as the Seer calls him, against us rather than the Dark One. Not a one of us can kill him except Kosai for whatever reason. When he succeeds, he will turn against us. We will deal with him then.”
Kosai heard enough and walked away from the door. He solved one myste
ry about why members of the school would want him dead, but still needed to find the betrayer of caravan routes. The Captain had ordered Kosai to follow Mearto, and he hoped that what she would say to the syndicate contact she visited with earlier, would be enough to prove that she was the culprit.
He walked towards the entrance and out into the pavilion. As he drank from the fountain, he thought about the other portion of his future.
Did the Captain know about that? Kosai stared at his reflection in the water. Black whiskers and scruff grew in patches on his face, not thick enough to grow a proper beard or any other style of facial hair. Dirt, sweat, and the dust of the city made for good camouflage. Knowing where Mearto was going to be, he made his way to the syndicate office. He kept his head down and his back slouched as he walked slowly along the sides of the road.
The night was quiet and Kosai thought more and more about what the Head Teacher and Theo had said. There was only one possible reason that Kosai would turn against the school, and that was if the traitor was within those walls. Kosai smiled. He was close now, and perhaps the Captain’s assignment would prove fruitful.
When he reached the syndicate office, he walked into a tight alleyway, wide enough for one person to walk through and listened to peoples’ footsteps. Kosai stared at the ground, his body concealed in shadow, and thought about his next move.
If Mearto was the traitor, and he exposed her, why was she preparing him for the Awakening? Did she even care about defeating the Dark One, or was that all a lie? Kosai thought back to his brief encounter with the Dark One. Mearto told him that she wanted him alive and believed that he was the one to kill the Dark One. As soon as that was done, would she turn and try to kill him just like Theo and Daius?
That was why Captain wanted a report. He’ll know what to do, Kosai decided.
Kosai waited for a few more hours and then heard Mearto coming down the road. Her strides were calm and purposeful. He looked up at her as she passed by him. She glanced down the alley way. Kosai felt a pang of fear shock his chest, afraid that he was discovered, but Mearto never slowed.
She knocked on the syndicate door. The door was opened and she was let in. Slowly, Kosai snuck along the wall, keeping his head well below the window and sat next to the door.
A beggar was walking down the street and sat across from the syndicate office. The beggar motioned at Kosai with a closed fist, and began to grunt and grumble… loudly.
“N’ya you, get, get. No reason!” the beggar hollered. Kosai figured he was telling him to get away from the door. Kosai shook his head and pulled out his three-pronged amulet and put a finger to his lips. The beggar nodded and hushed instantly. Kosai looked down both sides of the road.
“Have you brought what we asked you for?” a syndicate member said, though it wasn’t the same one that Kosai and the Captain met earlier in the night.
“Yes,” Mearto replied. “The next caravan is leaving at dawn, as usual, and is headed South by Southeast, towards Port Rasmú. It will be a larger one, twenty-five wagons ordered to deliver wheat and sugar from the north, and pick up lumber from the west.”
“We will do all that we can, but no promises.”
“I understand,” Mearto said. Kosai heard the stools shuffling and ducked back into the alleyway just in time to see his teacher bow at the door. She had no bag of coins, no fine jewelry, save for the syndicate ring on her finger. When the door was closed, she took a few steps past the syndicate office, leaned against the wall and cried softly, a few tears rolling down her face.
“No, not here,” she said to herself and walked further. Kosai waited, listening to her sob and sniffle. Seeing no reward for her treachery, and the reaction after giving up the route information, Kosai decided to follow and see where she would go. If she went back to the school, Kosai could take Capital road and meet the Captain on Interior. If she went elsewhere, Kosai would have more to report.
Carefully, Kosai followed her, blending in with the shadows and alleyways. The streets were mostly empty. Kosai stayed far enough away to not be noticed, yet close enough to watch her turn. She walked on West Interior, turned on Market Street, turned north on Interior, and then walked down West Road. She walked up to the gate and waited.
The gate won’t open for one person. What is she doing? Kosai thought. She turned back and headed straight for Kosai. Kosai, calmly and controlled, walked into an alley way and sat, waiting for Mearto to walk by. She was walking closer. Her steps were not the weak walk she demonstrated when she cried. She was walking with purpose again. Walk on, walk on, walk on, Kosai thought repeatedly. Mearto stopped at the alley way and looked right at Kosai.
“Kosai,” Mearto hissed. She paused and shook her head. “You heard every word?” Her voice was quiet, broken and weak, as if she were fighting back more tears. Kosai didn’t respond and sat huddled in the alley way, hoping that her use of his name was a tactic to see if he was there.
Walk on, walk on, walk on! Kosai continued to think.
“Kosai, I can see you in the alley way, come out this moment!”
Kosai stayed perfectly still, coughed up some phlegm from his throat and looked at her.
“You got the wrong person, miss, aint no Kosai ‘ere,” he said, trying to imitate the voice of a beggar. Mearto sighed heavily and walked into the alley way, grabbed Kosai by his shirt and lifted him onto his feet. The tears were gone in her eyes and she spoke firmly.
“You heard every word.” She wasn’t asking a question.
Kosai paused.
“Yes.” There was a silence between them and Mearto let go of his shirt. “Why?”
“I can’t explain that right now. There is more to this than you could comprehend. I will explain everything tomorrow.”
“No.” Kosai stood straight and tall. “You speak now or I place you under arrest.” Kosai pulled the amulet from his shirt and hung it in front of Mearto. “Those guards on the tower know what his amulet is, and would come at my word. You will tell me what exactly is going on.”
“I can’t,” she said firmly,” I can’t,” she repeated but her voice broke. Tears began to fall from her eyes. “But I can show it to you.” She sniffed and wiped her eyes. Kosai stared at her.
“Where would we go?”
“West into the desert,” said Mearto. “I promise that no harm will come to you. Remember, I want you to live.” She began to speak with more command. “If I wanted to kill you, I could have done so at any time, and made it look like an accident.” Kosai glared at her, realizing the truth of her words, and then nodded.
Kosai swore under his breath and was about to walk up to the gate tower, but before he could take his first step, the air filled with the scent of lilac and sea salt. The smell was so strong that he almost fell unconscious. Mearto grabbed his arms and held him upright. The two guards in the gate tower fell on the platform with a thud, and snored.
“What I am about to show you, you must not speak to anyone else except your Captain. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” Kosai said with a yawn, “but what about the gate and the guards?”
“Hold on,” Mearto said. She hugged Kosai tightly. Kosai wrapped his arms around her. Her arms wrapped around his back and his hers. He could feel and hear her breathe as they rose into the air.
Before he could speak, they were up in the air, floating over the wall. They landed softly on the other side of the gate and let go of each other. Kosai’s body tingled and sizzled as if he had been pricked with a thousand hot needles. His cheeks flushed.
“The guards will wake up, thinking that each dosed off for only a few moments. They won’t remember a thing. I don’t like doing what I did, but it’s the only way. We must be quick now. Follow me.”
Kosai watched her walk into the night.
“I’ve got a job to do,” he whispered to himself. He shook off the thoughts of the embrace and followed her.
CHAPTER 13