Shadow of the Crown

by Amber Morant

  Anjuu looked around and saw none of the other ren zhe seemed fazed by her threat. She dropped her head and secured her weapons back into the sheaths. "You are right, I couldn't defeat you all if you took those forms. But it doesn’t change the fact that I would still kill a few of you before falling. Just listen to my request at least. Those rebels want to destroy the throne Kalio conquered. Did she not give you extra land to roam on? Did she not help prevent prejudice done on your people? Your refusal truly shows how prideful of a people you are if you refuse to acknowledge who granted your freedom back then for nothing in return."

  The kuman walked up to Anjuu, his eyes piercing into her very being as he looked from her to his people. He stood there in silence, then lifted a single finger. "One week. Grant us one week and we will provide you an answer. I must summon the remote tribes to discuss this offer."

  Anjuu nodded and held out her hand. "Then it is a deal. I will stay here in the meantime. If the answer is no, I will report it to the queen immediately."

  The kuman grasped Anjuu's forearm and squeezed. "We shall see if we can come to a mutual agreement in working with your queen. We may be proud, but we are not ignorant of the blessings she has granted us."

  Cheering erupted through the tent and the music began once again. The kuman smiled and turned back to his throne. "Tonight, let us not dwell on such matters and celebrate a future for both of us."

  The night continued with music and drinking from the ren zhe and those who followed the ren zhe around. Anjuu, on the other hand, stayed in a far corner watching the movements of those around her. She had caused one of their people to die, so there was no denying some may feel resentment for her actions. Even if the kuman now sided with her temporarily, others may not be so welcoming.

  Many of the ren zhe were trickling out of the tent, returning to their own beds. Others who stayed leaned against large objects or swayed from one foot to the other. She chuckled at the absurdity of these people considered great warriors. She may be allowed to live with them, but she still was considered an enemy. Yet all stood there too drunk to acknowledge their own feet.

  Out of all the ren zhe, only one outside of the kuman still seemed stoic and examining her with care. She could see the swirls of tattoos covering most of his face and continued across both arms and one of his legs. He seemed young despite the tattoos. A perfect specimen for recruitment as a shadow if she had ever seen one.

  Their eyes met, hers green and his golden chestnut, and for a moment a cold shiver surged through Anjuu's body. He acknowledged what she was and wasn't going to let his guard down. The two looked away from each other, examining the rest of the room once more.

  After a few minutes of ignoring each other, the ren zhe guard walked over to Anjuu. His shorts were of a rough blue dyed cloth and his shirt was a white sleeve-torn that looked like it should have been replaced long ago. Despite the destroyed appearance, he stood with confidence and surprisingly no strong odors of a lack of basic hygiene.

  "The kuman would like me to show you to your bed."

  "Fine, I will go. I need some sleep before all the others start showing up anyways. Devata knows I won't get any when people know I am here." She stood up and still had to lean her head back to see the ren zhe's face. He towered over her by at least a foot. Something that would be impossible for most against a drow.

  "So, what might your name be? Or are you all so hivemind now that only the kuman can be called anything but ren zhe?"

  "Pom." He turned around and started walking off. "If we are to serve your queen, perhaps you should stop looking at us as if we were insects. No ren zhe will follow someone who would rather step on them and eradicate them than treat them as equals."

  Anjuu shrugged. "Nothing different than how we were treated and still are treated. You should still be thankful we gave you room to live free. The queen was generous."

  "If that is how you think. Perhaps you should stop living in her shadow and be a proper shadow and learn how other people see the world."

  "Or perhaps people should just be quiet and learn to be respectful of those who saved them before someone decides you've had enough battles and should retire back to the earth."

  Pom let out a laugh. "You shadows. Always think you're unstoppable. It will be a shame if the leaders choose to kill you. Won't change the view of the others, but at least will prove something to you those last few seconds before you die."

  "Let's just hope it won’t lead to death of anyone. So far the kuman seems to be willing to side with me."

  "I doubt it. The kuman always behaves that way when he is planning to kill the person."

  "So, don't sleep. Got it."

  They exited the tent and walked around to the back. There were a few fires still lit with people sitting around them. Most were smoking from oversized pipes, purple smoke rising into the air. The smell was pungent, making Anjuu thankful Pom continued their route farther back.

  They stopped finally in front of a tiny tent. It was more of a pop-up tent than anything the others had around her. "Cozy." She stepped up to the tent and squatted down to look inside for any wild animals then turned back around. "So, Pom, which side are you on for his war?"

  He let out a wry smile before turning around and walking away. "Tomorrow, you'll see." He continued past the others still sitting and smoking until he disappeared into the darkness of the night.

  Anjuu shrugged and climbed into the pop-up tent. She managed to stretch her legs out inside and keep some of her equipment to her side. There was a small covered area in front of the tent with a grass bottom like a sort of patio. It gave her an extra space for someone who wanted to walk in and slow them down so she could prepare for an attack.

  The sounds of those around the fires were muffled and Anjuu was able to lay back and drift into a light sleep. It was much needed, and she would enjoy this quiet until she received the response from the kuman in the coming week. The answer Pom had given her intrigued her, but it wasn’t worth it to focus on that for now.

  As the night continued on, Anjuu could hear someone's muffled footsteps grow near to her tent. However, it quickly walked away without any disturbance.

  "The kuman is dead! Ren zhe, to arms!" a voice screamed out.

  Anjuu rubbed her eyes, focused on the light streaming through the cracks of the tent. She climbed through the patio and out of the tent. Multiple people stood there. Some held weapons at the ready, prepared to attack her while others stood farther back in fear.

  "If you think I did it you should just get out of here.” She rubbed her eyes, frustration building up at those surrounding her. “Damn it all I just slept like you all wanted me to." Anjuu grumbled, her eyes still adjusting to the early morning light.

  Pom stepped forward from the crowd. In his hands was a bundle of cloth that was stained red. "Of course, you didn't. But it was in your name." Pom tossed the bundle of cloth to Anjuu's feet. As it rolled forward, it unfurled, revealing the tattooed face of the kuman. His eyes were closed, now in a deep eternal slumber. "shadows should know who they are and remember they should kill before their enemy wants to kill them."

  Anjuu's mouth twitched, realizing she was now in trouble. The kuman was dead, and there was no ground she could play with to gain the allegiance of the ren zhe. "I take it this is your response and you want me out of here?"

  One of the nearby ren zhe coughed and shook his head. His voice was soft. A boy who hadn't seen more than one battle in his life. "Pom is now the kuman. We fight with you, shadow." He stepped forward and took a knee, his face down toward the ground. The other ren zhe followed suit, bowing before Anjuu.

  Pom still stood in the sea of ren zhe, the same smile from last night stretched across his face. "You asked which side I was on. Don't disappoint us or that will be you as well," he said, pointing at the head of the last kuman still on the ground.

  "Too true, Pom. Too true. You're definitely not an enemy I want to cross." Anjuu stepped over the head and walked up to the ren
zhe. She rested a hand on his shoulder. "I'm glad I have you as an ally. Thank you."

  Pom nodded his head then looked at the crowd. "Ren zhe, tonight we feast to celebrate our new alliance. Those who challenge my choice, I suggest you leave the camp now or I will kill you."

  Anjuu could see the fear increase with a few of the ren zhe before they all stood up and turned around to complete the tasks of preparing for the feast. A few ren zhe held back with a few from the camp of followers. Each of them was whispering to one another. Anjuu wondered if they were amongst those who disagreed with Pom's choice of loyalty.

  One of the people in the group was wearing a large cloak that fell over his face so no one could see it clearly. Anjuu could see what looked like a mask on his face and wondered if he was a shadow sent out here on a mission. It was rare when on a mission shadows would overlap, so the fact that this happened wasn't bound to be a coincidence.

  "Pom?" Anjuu asked, her eyes still focused on the shadow. He grunted in response. "Besides the kuman, did you set forth someone else to be killed?"

  "No, most likely they're here for someone out in the outskirts."

  "Must be new, being out in the open and so obvious." Anjuu turned back to her tent and climbed back in. "I want to speak with you later in the main tent. I'd like to take a nap. Get a good deep sleep in." She made sure her voice travelled. The faces of the other ren zhe looked over at her tent before turning back around. Anjuu frowned, wondering what they were truly planning.

  Anjuu collected her knives still scattered on the inside of the tent and shoved them into her pockets. Outside of her tent, she could hear footsteps inch closer. She let out a soft snort, pretending to be asleep and listened again to see if there was any additional movement. The footsteps grew closer now. Anjuu could see through the small cracks that it was the cloaked shadow that had walked over to her tent.

  "Told them this would be too easy. Good money for a simple kill."

  The shadow pulled out his own dagger and slid it through the holes to open an entry for him. Anjuu smiled and pulled out her pistol. She sat back, holding the pistol in front of her, both eyes open, watching the shadow fumble with the fabric of the tent. One second was all she needed.

  The shadow pulled open he tattered fabric and peered in. His mask was pulled up and she could see the face of a young man. He didn't look a day over twenty, just graduated as a shadow and most likely a first mission for him. There was no time to hesitate on the matter and Anjuu pulled the trigger. In an instant the shadow fell backward. He was dead before he hit the ground.

  Anjuu clambered out of the tent and looked at the shadow's body. The bullet had hit him directly in the eye, instantly killing the boy. She walked over to him and kneeled. Anjuu placed a fist on her chest, sending prayers to the gods to bring the boy to safety. His pale skin indicated he was an elf, and she hoped Devata would have enough space in her roots to take on another shadow to protect in the afterlife.

  "Sleep well. They will burn your mask soon."

  Anjuu closed the one eye that was still uninjured, so he appeared asleep and adjusted his mouth into a more peaceful stance. Why he had targeted her for a mission, she wasn't sure on. He was too young to have taken on such a mission. Even the guild masters would have refused him unless he chose to take off without permission. Too often she had seen a shadow too proud get killed on a mission they thought they could handle. He was just one of thousands that were foolish enough to believe it.

  "Let's see what this mark was for my head and from whom..." Anjuu muttered and patted the shadow's pockets, looking for any notes of the mission. She found it inside of an internal pocket on his cloak. It was a folded piece of paper with multiple scribbles sprawled across it. If the shadow had been on a true mission, he would have been in possession of a stone from the guild.

  "So, I'm worth five million drakes. Someone must really want me dead. No way is it the rebels. Even all together they couldn't afford that. Unless there is an aristocrat that sided with the rebels." Anjuu folded the paper and shoved it into a pouch on her side. "Best not go to the guild for a while until the mark is removed."

  There wasn't any ren zhe nearby, putting Anjuu at ease. Whomever the shadow had been talking with earlier had opted to not stay with their new friend. She would have to let Pom know there were still ren zhe willing to kill her. If he was truly loyal, he would make sure to find and kill the ren zhe. For now, she would need to dispose of the shadow's body until the guild found it and burned him.

  Sixteen

  "Divine branches! Now on sale! Be blessed by Devata today for only one hundred drakes!"

  “Dragon's tooth amulets for sale! Buy your tooth before venturing to the dragons and keep yourself protected. Far stronger than Devata's blessing could provide!”

  Tosh scoffed at the multitude of stalls lining the streets. Though the idea of a tooth of a dragon keeping him safe did intrigue him. The money in his account tempted him to just splurge and get it just in case. Yet the fact that the systems had screamed at him before didn't bode well. Who knew what would happen at a smaller stand, or if they would just ignore it and take his money anyways?

  Unlike the other cities this town was much smaller and had far less guards in it. Dragonpaw wasn't exactly a resort but more of a place adventurer's and guardians came to in order to face the dragons.

  "Ridiculous. No way could a tooth protect me. If that's the case, I'll just give them a big smile and hope for the best," he muttered, talking himself out of buying any trinkets.

  Tosh turned another corner, glad that the street fair was now behind him and he was nearing the pass to get to the dragons. A few people were walking the streets, with most focused on getting either back to the street fair or to their homes. Most here were elves too, which made his travels less inconspicuous. If he had been a drow or a cait shidhe everyone would look at him with suspicion.

  A large sign loomed overhead. It read “Dragon's Pass.”

  "Not exactly the most original of names to be giving this place." He stifled a laugh and continued forward. He was on the right road. He had only read about the town in books about the adventures of different dragon guardians, so his knowledge was limited on what to expect. It could simply be a small path that he could walk leisurely through until he reached a cave belonging to a dragon, or it was a steep climb into unknown territory.

  "You there! Sir!" a voice boomed out behind Tosh.

  He let out a small yelp and turned around. He was faced with two guards dressed in a great armor and an imprint of a white dragon on the side of it. He didn't recognize the mark and what allegiance they held. Instead, he tried to hunch over a bit more and hoped they didn't recognize him as an escaped scholar.

  "How—" his voice squeaked so he tried to cough and deepen his voice. "How can I help you gentlemen?"

  The taller guard smiled. Most of his face was covered in the visor and the armor made his body androgynous. It wasn’t until Tosh heard the guard's voice that he realized the taller one was a woman. "I'm glad we caught you. We didn't recognize you in the reports of new dragon guardians, nor do you live around here."

  Tosh shifted his weight. "No, I'm not. But I was curious about the dragons."

  The shorter one, a male, added his smile to the mixture. "Not exactly prepared then, are you? Look, if you're trying to get some bucket-list going, cool. But we have to warn you for liability reasons that you'll probably die if you go near a dragon."

  "I'll probably die if I don't," Tosh muttered.

  "Did you say something?" The woman guard asked. She smacked the side of her visor. "Sorry, stuff is on the fritz. Queen doesn't exactly give us the highest tech out here." She smacked it again, harder and let out a sigh. "There we go. So, did you say something, sir?"

  "No, nothing. Just," he paused, looking at both of them in shock at how nonchalant they were, "thank you for the warning. I don't have much back home to go to. So, I guess if I die, it won’t be too much trouble for many."

  The
man nodded. "I've seen your kind before. Look, just because you don't think there is a reason to live doesn't mean you have to go off and kill yourself. If you need some comfort, we can feed you and help you get back on your feet. There's so little communication with the capital though, so it may not be as high quality as many of your elves are used to."

  "Thanks, I appreciate it. Perhaps if I make it down again, I will remember that."

  The two guards nodded their heads in agreement and turned back around toward the street fair. Tosh let out a large sigh of relief. If they had noticed or received a message about him during that discussion he would have died in an instant. For now, he just had to hope countryside guards were going to be just as welcoming when he came back, unaware of what was occurring outside of their home.

  The gate to welcome those onto the Dragon's Pass was smaller than he had expected. Most of it was made of an old stone with carvings of dragons covering the stone. All of it was painted white as an attempt to preserve the quality of the art. He recognized the skill from when he was at the college. With how much care was placed into the preservation, he wondered if there was a scholar living in the area still away from the hands of Kalio.

  His hand brushed against the painted stone, feeling how smooth it all was. Each dragon symbolized one that had partnered with a guardian through history. Each time a new dragon guardian was born it was the head scholar's job to carve out the new face on the stone and have it painted back over to preserve the carving.

  "Looks like we will be adding a new carving soon. Devata help me if I live to see that day."

  He looked up at the sky, it was already past noon and the sun was falling to the west and would set within the next few hours. If he was lucky, he'd find himself at one of the caves before nightfall. If not, then there would be a long climb awaiting him with the sprite.