"Thank you," Kira said, smiling at the passing water. "But having us aboard wouldn't make you safer. Every time we pulled into port you'd face danger on our account. No, we have to land at Kelsi. There's something we must do."
"To safeguard that thing from the Urth ship?" The first mate gave her a speculative look. "You seem happier around him than when you came aboard."
"He's been showing me a lot of good character, don't you think?"
"Oh, aye. I myself have always been partial to those that save my life. Would your parents approve of all this, Kara? His and yours?"
"Yes," Kira said. "I am certain that my parents approve of what I'm doing. His parents…don't have a say in the matter."
"Well enough. Your mother served the daughter during the war, you said. What about your father?"
"Yes. He served the daughter as well."
"Were either of them at Dorcastle? On the last wall?"
No matter what other differences between people existed, Kira had always been aware of the most basic one her world knew. There were those who had helped hold the last wall, and there was everyone else.
Kira inhaled deeply as she thought of how to answer that. Not wanting to lie to the first mate, she finally told the truth. "Both of them."
"Both?" The first mate stared at Kira. "That's a proud heritage they gave you. Why didn't you tell anyone aboard before this?"
"My parents did some great things," Kira said. "But that doesn't say anything about me."
The first mate laughed. "I'd say they also raised their girl right if you already know that."
"Sometimes I wonder. Did you argue with your mother?"
"Oh, did I! The hills rang with it." The first mate's smile took on the slightly sad cast of someone recalling the lost past. "She was a farmer, and she loved the land. She wanted me to follow in that, but the sea called me. The day I finally left for the sea was a hard one, but I knew I had to go. No one should have to live the dreams of another. We have to find our own course."
"How do we find it?" Kira asked.
"We go looking. How else?" The first mate gazed toward the land to the north. "If I'd had a son or a daughter, and they had told me they wanted to work the land, I would have wished them the best. That's a mother's job, isn't it? To love them and try to raise them right, hope it all sticks, and when the time comes kick them out of the nest and let them be who they will. Don't forget where you came from, girl. Honor it. But you're neither your father nor your mother. Find the place where your heart lies and hold to it."
"What if…what if a lot of people expect you to do something? Hope that you'll do something? And it's important, but you don't think it's a job you could ever do?"
The first mate scratched her head as she thought. "That'd be a tough one. But if the job is all that important, it makes it all the more important that your heart be in it. And only you can answer that, girl."
Kira smiled at the first mate. "I think my mother would like you. If you ever meet her, you have to tell her that I said that."
"Oh?" the first mate asked skeptically. "And how would I know her?"
"I look a lot like her." It took a moment for Kira to realize that, for the first time she could remember, she had said that without any bitterness or sense of inadequacy.
* * *
The Son of Taris came to anchor in the harbor, putting the longboat over the side to transfer a small amount of cargo ashore and pick up some more.
"We'll send you ashore in the boat," the captain told Kira. "Here are your packs. Change back into your own things and make it quick."
She collected Jason and they raced belowdecks to the crew compartment, otherwise deserted right now as the rest of the crew worked moving cargo into the boat. Once again turning away from each other, they quickly shed the coarse sailor clothing and donned the tough land clothing that felt absurdly fine by comparison.
Kira was dressed and hurriedly strapping on her shoulder holster when Jason spoke.
"This is the first time we've been alone for a while. What was that foresight stuff just before the storm hit?"
She paused before turning to look at him, trying to think of a way to avoid discussing it. Jason was mostly dressed, tugging on his boots as he gazed back at her. "Can we just pretend nothing was ever said about that?" Kira asked.
"But…if you have foresight…that's a Mage thing, right?"
Kira sighed. "Yes, it's a Mage thing, and yes, I have a little of it, I guess."
Jason stood up, eyeing her curiously as he pulled on his coat. "But everything your world has told Earth about Mages has said that any Mage talents are incompatible with being able to do technical work."
"If by technical work you mean Mechanic work, that's true," Kira said. "There's something about the way the mind has been trained to view everything. My father has been with my mother for about twenty years, and he's seen her use her pistol I don't know how many times, and he is smart, but he still can't use it. Oh, if you gave it to him he might accidentally pull the trigger, but he couldn't load it or operate it. I've talked to my father a lot about it, and I think what's going on is that Mages see a pistol, or any other device, and they see a single object. They don't see all of the parts, so asking them to, oh, push a button on something makes no sense to them any more than my telling you to push a button on a rock would make sense to you."
"But you can use your pistol," Jason said.
"Yes."
"Which means people can have both sets of viewpoints-"
"Jason, I'm the only one," Kira interrupted. "The only person my parents know of who can do it." She thought she saw it in his eyes then, and her voice grew angrier. "Don't look at me like that! I'm not a freak!"
He took a step back from her wrath. "I don't think you're a freak. You're unique, maybe—"
"That's another word for freak, Jason! Isn't it enough that I'm her daughter? That my mother died years before I was born?"
Jason shook his head. "That's just wrong. Even if your mother's metabolic functions ceased for a short while, she was revived in time, and she was obviously alive when you were born."
"Tell that to the people of this world, Jason! The ones who stare at me when I go out with my mother or with bodyguards surrounding me and they whisper to each other about…about…"
He took a step closer to her. "You don't really know what they're whispering, do you?"
"Jason," Kira said, "you really don't want to go there."
He hesitated, then pressed on despite her warning. "You said the Imperials want you to marry into their family. Why would they do that if they thought you were…different?"
"You don't think they consider me different?" Kira asked. "Sure, the emperor and the royal family would love the political gain from having the daughter's girl in their hip pocket, but even they would have people watching me all the time. Do you know who Mara is? The Dark One?"
"That's the vampire legend on this world, right?" Jason asked, puzzled by the question.
"Mara was the consort of the first emperor, Maran, and he supposedly fell under her spell so much that he made a deal with the Mages to keep her young and beautiful forever. But in order for her to stay young-looking and beautiful, Mara has to drink the blood of young men she seduces."
"Yeah," Jason said. "A vampire."
"It is a common belief among the citizens of the Empire that my mother is actually Mara."
He looked at her, obviously unable to think of what to say.
"So when a lot of Imperials see me without my mother they assume I am my mother, staying young thanks to the young men I'm hauling into bed and sucking the blood out of!"
"Kira, they can't really believe—"
"A couple of years ago I was at Altis at the same time as a delegation of Imperial scholars, and the librarians held a party for them one night and invited me, too, and I have to attend formal functions sometimes but I never get to go to just plain old parties because it's too dangerous and I don't get to spend very
much time with other boys and girls my age so I really was thrilled at going to this one and you know what, Jason? All the Imperial women showed up, and all of the older Imperial men showed up, but every one of the young men and even middle-aged men just couldn't make it that night and I stood around wondering why no one would talk to me!" She felt tears starting as the old wound flared to life. "I just want to be like everyone else, Jason. But I can't. And I can't be like my mother, either. So what am I?"
"The most amazing girl I ever met," Jason said.
She stared at him. "What makes you think anyone else would agree with that?"
"The captain does. So does the first mate."
"Maybe…maybe he's starting to guess who I am."
Jason surprised her with a smile as he shook his head. "Kira, he already knows who you are. Maybe he's starting to guess who your mother is, but he already knows who you are. The girl who saved this ship and the lives of everyone on it. The girl who got both of us this far even though I've been a dead weight most of the trip. The girl who I'm trusting with my life and the lives of millions of people back on Earth."
She looked at him, trying to grasp such an image of herself. Part of her tried to reject it out of hand, but… "I guess the captain doesn't know who my mother is, but he knows who I am. Jason, I never thought about it that way." Kira felt a sudden urge to hug Jason. Instead, she wrapped her arms tightly about herself, looking at him. "Thank you."
"Your one flaw is that you haven't seen who you really are," Jason said, looking embarrassed.
"You think that's my one flaw? Oh, are you in for some difficult surprises," Kira said. "Listen, we have to get back on deck. We can't talk about this stuff until we're alone again. Just remember that I'm fine as far as me physically, and as far as the Mage-powers thing goes, it's known to only a very few people so please don't discuss it with anyone else."
"What about the Mara thing?" Jason asked, grinning.
"Don't ever joke about that, don't ever talk about that, don't ever think about that, and especially don't do those things when my mother is around or you will learn the hard way just how hot my mother's and my tempers can burn."
"Got it," Jason said, looking to Kira's eyes properly worried by her warning.
On deck, the captain waited by the rope ladder leading to the boat. He solemnly shook Jason's and Kira's hands before they left. "Best of luck. May fair winds follow you."
The first mate ordered them into the center of the boat, then cast off from the ship, other sailors pulling at the oars to drive the longboat to one of the piers that thrust into Kelsi's harbor. The city hugged the coast, walls standing firm against storm and Imperial aggression, mountains rising behind to the north and east, a stretch of open land to the west rising to meet the mountain pass that led toward the high plains and the city if Ihris.
Kira sat huddled in the boat next to Jason, who was watching the oars being worked. She stayed quiet, trying to understand why she kept telling Jason things that she had rarely or ever shared with anyone else. What was it about him? She shook her thoughts, recentering them on the city ahead. They couldn't linger in Kelsi. It was far too likely that people were figuring out that she and Jason had sailed from Dorcastle, which meant every other port would be the focus of searches for them. How quickly could they leave? It was already afternoon, and some cities still sealed their gates at night. Kelsi, worried about smuggling and Imperial plots, was surely one of them.
The boat came alongside the pier, Kira and Jason jumping out to help tie up. The first mate nodded to them. "Get out of here, you two, before the customs officials starting wondering who you are."
"Thanks," Kira said. "I'll miss you, too." She waved to the other sailors, who grinned and waved their farewells, then walked rapidly down the pier with Jason beside her.
"What's the plan?" Jason asked.
"There isn't a train out of Kelsi—" Kira began.
"Thank you!" Jason said.
She glared at him. "As I was saying, the rail line to Ihris is still being built. We'll need to find another way to get there."
"Why are we going to Ihris?"
"That area has enough people to hide among, enough open space to make sure no one sees enough of you to know how different you are, and some relatives of mine who can help us if we need that. But our first priority is getting out of Kelsi before the gates shut for the night. I don't want to spend any longer here than we have to."
Jason looked around. "I don't see any drones. The search must not have expanded out this far yet."
"I don't see any of those pictures of you, either, but for all we know they could show up tomorrow." Kira pointed inland. "We can stop for something to eat, and some trail food, but we need to get through the city before sunset."
As they went through the city, getting only the occasional and apparently casual glance from others, Kira watched the lowering sun anxiously, trying to time their departure close to sunset but not too close. She veered into a market square, looking for food stalls, and got them quick meals. "These are really good," Kira told Jason, offering him some of the pastries stuffed with meat and gravy. "They have them in Alexdria, too."
"That's north of here?"
"Yes." Kira pointed into the mountains. "In a high mountain valley. It's really beautiful. Maybe we can go there sometime."
"Huh?" Jason eyed her. "You mean, you and me? On a trip? For fun?"
"Yeah, why not?" Kira smiled at him. "We are friends, right?"
"Right," Jason said, concentrating on his food.
After picking up some packages of trail food and some bottles of wine and water, Kira headed once more for the north gate. If anyone saw her leaving, she wanted them to think she was heading for Alexdria, one of the few places in the world where her father was even more popular than her mother. "It's a long story," Kira explained. "He risked his life to save a lot of Alexdrians when Mages never did that."
"Is there anybody in your family who's not a hero?" Jason asked.
"Uh, yeah. Me. Duh."
"Kira—!"
"Don't even," she warned him. "I did a job. That doesn't make me a hero."
The gate loomed ahead, sunset near, the evening rush underway, crowds of people, wagons, and riders streaming through in both directions under the bored gaze of the city sentries.
But Kira pulled Jason aside, studying the crowd, wondering what didn't feel right. "Do you see anything odd?"
He looked toward the gate, shaking his head. "Not that I can tell. That doesn't mean much."
There were men and women lounging near the gate, watching those leaving. That wasn't unusual. The gates were common meeting places, well-known spots where people could arrange to see each other. But some of these men and women looked too hard, too alert.
Kira inhaled slowly. "I don't know if I'm spooked or if there really is a problem. Maybe it's just my nerves."
Jason shook his head. "Kira, you've been right pretty much all the time."
"There are two Mages there," Kira said, startled as she realized she could sense them. "I don't know which ones. They're not wearing robes."
"How can you tell they're Mages?"
"I just can. Jason, most Mages still wear robes. But Dark Mages don't."
"Dark Mages are bad guys, right? Like Dark Riders or Dark Clerics?"
She stared at him. "Yes. Whatever a dark cleric is. Dark Mages always used their powers for personal gain, whereas Mages like my father were supposed to pursue wisdom."
"Got it," Jason said. "They're bad guys. Let's leave."
Kira turned to go, hearing sudden shouts from the direction of the gate. She looked, seeing several of the men and women who had waiting there now pushing their way through the crowds toward her and Jason. "Let's run."
Chapter 13
But before she could move Jason jerked and fell against a nearby wall, just as if he had been struck. "Hey, what the—" Jason staggered against the wall again, covering his head.
Kira looked about fo
r whoever was attacking Jason, seeing nothing. But suddenly a column of light was visible to her, moving toward Jason.
She ran forward and planted a kick in the center of the column, hoping that she wasn't jabbing at empty air.
Her boot contacted something that felt like a person.
A Mage appeared, bent over, clutching at his side. Jason was gaping in surprise but Kira didn't hesitate. She pivoted on one foot, bringing her leg up again and whipping a kick at the Mage's jaw. It connected, sending him sprawling in the street among people who were staring and backing away.
Beyond, the people pushing through the crowd were getting closer.
Kira grabbed Jason's hand to help him stand. "Can you run? Because we have to run."
"I can run."
Kira dodged along the streets, ignoring the cries of people and shouts that sounded like they could be police. Threading her way between groups and dodging down alleys, she finally reached the edge of a crowded square and came up against the wall of a building just outside of it, breathing heavily from the run.
Jason stood next to her, also gasping for breath.
"Are you all right?" Kira asked.
"Got a headache," Jason got out between breaths. "You can really run, you know that? What happened back there?"
"There was a trap at the gate. You were right that I was right. There was a Mage close to us who was hiding, and he attacked you."
"Why couldn't I see him?"
"He was bending light around himself. Creating the illusion he was doing that. Nobody can see a Mage who's using that spell."
Jason spread his hands at her. "How did you know where he was?"
"I…" Kira covered her face with her hand. "I could sense it."
He lowered his voice. "That's another Mage thing, right?"
"Yes. Jason, I've never been able to do things like that."
"You're under a lot of stress. That can trigger latent conditions," Jason said.
It was her turn to stare. "Latent conditions?"
"Um, yeah. I think that's the medical term."
"Medical term? Like I'm sick?"
"No, not like that," Jason protested. "And not like the…the freak thing. There must be a genetic component. You got that from your dad. If it's a dominant gene. It's possible the gene is recessive, which would mean your mom carries it, too, and you got it from them both. Wow, that would mean a lot of people on this world might be carrying a recessive Mage gene. Unless it doesn't breed true. That happens sometimes and—"
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