How much does he know? If he was aware she’d helped Lukka, that being a hostage had been her own idea, he would—honestly, she had no idea what he would do. Strip me of my rank and lock me in a tower for my own protection, maybe. Or worse. He’d always had a temper, and his blood was up over this. Jirina didn’t regret helping Lukka, not exactly, but she wondered if they ought to have found another way. Too late now.
Colonel Bryd waited by the door, a broad, pitying grin on his face. Jirina hardened her features, pulling her professional mask firmly into place.
“Colonel,” she said, with a salute. “The General asked for me.”
“He did.” Bryd opened the door and gestured. “After you, Captain.”
There wasn’t an Internal Security detail waiting, which was probably a good thing. Her father was standing beside his desk, looking at the maps tacked to his wall. Jirina crossed the room and came to attention, aware of Bryd’s lurking presence behind her.
“Captain,” Kudro said. “You are well, I trust? You sustained no injuries?”
“None, General,” Jirina said. “I am fit for duty.”
“Excellent. As it happens, I have an assignment for you.” Kudro appeared to notice Bryd for the first time and made a shooing gesture. “Leave us, Colonel.”
Jirina saw the flicker of disappointment on Bryd’s face and suppressed the urge to shoot him a grin. The colonel saluted and left, closing the office doors behind him.
“This affair with Lukka is a bad business,” the General said. He peered at the map a little closer, then turned away. “I am…glad that you were unharmed.”
He doesn’t know. Or at least, if he did, he wasn’t saying. Jirina tried not to look relieved. “I don’t believe Captain Lukka would actually have hurt me, sir.”
“Because he loves you?”
It sounded odd to hear her father talk about love; he was more comfortable around words like loyalty, duty, and honor. She gave a cautious nod.
“He does, sir. And he wants nothing more than to serve Drannith.”
“And do you love him?”
“I–” Jirina blinked, confused. “Yes, sir.”
“I see.” Kudro settled into his desk chair, his eyes boring into hers. “Would that love ever prevent you from doing your duty as an officer?”
“No, sir,” Jirina said stiffly. “However, the situation would not arise. As I said–”
Kudro held up a hand to stop her. “I understand, Captain. Thank you.”
Jirina gave an uncertain nod and waited. There was a moment of silence.
“Captain Lukka’s escape is…an embarrassment,” the General said. “For the military in general and myself in particular. I am eager that the public learn as little of this affair as possible.” He sighed. “At the same time, recapturing the captain is absolutely vital.”
“I understood that he’d fled the city, sir,” Jirina said. “If so, then why not just let him be?”
“Unacceptable,” Kudro said. “Due to his position, Captain Lukka has extensive knowledge of Drannith’s defenses, tactics, and capabilities—exactly that sort of knowledge that could be catastrophic if a human were to ally with the monsters. Can you imagine the consequences?”
“I don’t think Captain Lukka would turn against Drannith,” Jirina repeated. “And, in any event, the monsters aren’t smart enough to take advantage of that kind of intelligence.”
“A year ago, I would have agreed with you. But something is changing.” The General’s lip twisted. “Across the northern frontier, we have received reports of new kind of creatures, which seem to defy the traditional five-clade system of categorization. Stronger and faster than anything we’ve faced before, and most importantly smarter as well.”
“I’ve heard nothing of this,” Jirina said.
“Nor should you have. The last thing we need is a general panic. But the monster that Captain Lukka…interacted with was one of the new variety.” He shook his head. “This new communication between human and monster—Research is calling it ‘bonding’—may be related to the hybrid-type creatures. Both appeared around the same time, though we don’t know if there’s a further connection. There’s a great deal we don’t know, in fact, but the little information we have makes it clear this may be the biggest threat Drannith has faced in centuries.”
Jirina stared, holding her expression rigid, doubt flickering at the bottom of her mind. Could father have been right about Lukka? She’d been so sure. But a whole new class of monsters…
Even so. Lukka would never hurt me. He would never turn on Drannith. Whatever had happened was something that had happened to him, some kind of magical accident.
“Hopefully you see that this means Captain Lukka cannot be simply ignored,” Kudro went on. “If nothing else, we need him for study, to further our knowledge of this phenomenon.”
“I understand, sir,” Jirina said.
“To deploy regular forces to search for him would spread the knowledge of his escape beyond all hope of containment,” Kudro said. “I worry that it would be futile as well. As captain of the First Specials, Lukka was naturally one of our most able soldiers. Instead, I have contracted a band of hunters to bring him in.”
“Hunters?” Jirina let her contempt show. “Are we really reduced to hiring mercenaries?”
“We have used hunters more often than you realize,” Kudro said. “They are often crude, but they are undeniably effective. They are also discreet, and, where necessary…expendable. This band has performed a few low-profile tasks for us in the past, and I’m confident in their abilities.” He steepled his hands. “I’d like you to accompany them.”
Jirina’s eyes widened. “Me, sir?”
“You know Lukka better than anyone. And you have full knowledge of the facts of this matter, which will keep the information from spreading further than necessary. However.” His eye narrowed. “If you are unwilling to take on the task—if you believe you would not be able to execute it to the best of your ability—then say so now.”
Jirina stood for a long moment in silence.
But, in the end, there was no choice. If she didn’t go, Kudro would send someone else. If we can capture Lukka, then maybe I can stash him somewhere. She would just have to be careful.
Jirina gave a nod and saluted. Her father watched her with hooded eyes.
Very, very careful.
***
“My name is Vivien Reid, and I am a traveler. I have come…quite a long way.”
Lukka sat across the fire from the stranger who’d saved him and tried to make sense of it all. He was exhausted, and a brutal headache pounded in the back of his skull. Even by Specials standards, it had been a long day, with the desperate run across the city followed by a flight through the First Ring with this unknown woman.
At least they hadn’t gotten stopped at the secondary wall. The alert from the city hadn’t been sent that far, so Lukka had simply flashed his uniform and walked out the gate. Even then, they’d kept on until wall and guards were out of sight, making camp in a belt of woods as the sun was setting. All day long, the pair of them had reserved their breath for running, barely exchanging a few words. Now, it seemed, she was ready to start explaining things.
About bloody time.
“I’m Lukka, Captain of the First Specials,” Lukka said. “I suppose I should thank you.”
“No need. You did not ask for my assistance.”
“Nevertheless.” He inclined his head. “But I have to ask why.”
Vivien cocked her head, considering this. She was a tall, striking woman, with dark brown skin like Jirina’s and long, dark hair in a strange style, cut short on the right side of her head and pulled over her shoulder. Her clothes were odd as well, armor in an angular style with overlapping plates, and no monster-warning crystals. The bow she carried was like nothing he’d ever seen, elab
orately constructed from some material he couldn’t identify.
All in all, when she said she’d come a long way, he believed her. She certainly doesn’t look like anyone from Lavabrink or Skysail.
“I have come to study your country,” Vivien said. She had a trace of an accent, too, but one he couldn’t place. “I am what you would call an arcanist, although I do not follow any of the disciplines of your Arcane Corps.”
Lukka nodded. That seemed clear enough. Only magic could have produced the strange, translucent creatures she’d sent to his assistance, but none of the corps arcanists had ever talked about doing anything similar.
“The day before yesterday,” Vivien went on, “I felt a great release of power. This flare of energy was of a type familiar to me, the energy of the natural world, of beasts and growing things. I was curious as to its source, and so I investigated. I found the farmstead where many had died in battle against a wild creature. From there I traced the residue of the power to your city. I was making plans to track it further, but to my surprise I found it coming to me.”
“I’m this source of power?” Lukka shook his head. “I’m not even an arcanist. I don’t know anything about magic.”
“Some magic is studied. Other varieties are inborn and come to the surface unpredictably.” She looked at him with cool, intelligent eyes. “You experienced something, didn’t you? Something you can’t explain.”
“I experienced something, all right,” Lukka said bitterly. “And it seems to have ruined my life.”
“Tell me.”
Lukka took a deep breath, then hesitated. But she had saved him at the gate. Recounting his story seemed like the least he could do. He repeated what he’d told Jirina: the farmstead, the fight, the strange moment of connection with the monster.
“And this is not common, among your people?” Vivien interrupted. “To bond with a wild creature?”
“I’ve never heard of it,” Lukka said. “General Kudro seems to think it makes me a traitor to humanity. Jirina got me out of the Citadel just ahead of Internal Security.”
“I see.” Vivien shook her head. “There is still a great deal I do not understand about this place, and the creatures of its wild.”
“Monsters,” Lukka said. “We call them monsters. And there’s nothing to understand. They try to kill us, and we kill them.”
Vivien made a non-committal sound and knelt forward to poke at the fire. Lukka sighed.
“You still haven’t explained why you helped me,” he said.
“Curiosity,” she said frankly. “The energy I sense from you is unusual. I wished to examine you for myself.”
“Wonderful,” Lukka said. “So now I’m a specimen.”
“A companion, rather. If you will have me.” She shrugged. “It would not be undue bragging to say that I can make myself useful.”
“And what would you want in return for this assistance?”
“Merely to accompany you for a time,” she said. “And, I suspect, irritate you with questions on matters you consider obvious.”
Lukka snorted. “Well. I’d be a fool to turn that down, under the circumstances.”
“May I ask what your plans for the immediate future might be?”
Lukka had been asking himself that, all day. He closed his eyes for a moment, fighting the ache in his head.
“Jirina told me to lie low, until she can convince her father I’m not a traitor. But…” He shook his head. “It’ll take more than that. I have to find that monster, the one that killed my squad. If I can bring the General its head, that should go a long way toward getting back on his good side. Not to mention I owe the bloody thing for Gedra, Gox, and Nik.” He met Vivien’s eyes. “You tracked me by this magical residue. Can you track it too?”
“I could,” Vivien said. “The power has weakened over time, so it may be more difficult.”
“Then that’s the deal. Help me run this thing down and you’re welcome to come with me. I promise I’ll answer whatever questions you have.”
Vivien looked into the fire, considering. Lukka held his breath. He didn’t want her to realize how much he needed her help; while he was trained in tracking monsters, flyers were notoriously difficult to follow, and the trail from the farmhouse would be cold by now. Having a magical bloodhound on my side would be a big help.
“Your proposition is acceptable,” she said. “At least for the moment.”
“Wonderful.” She wasn’t telling him everything—that was clear—but it was enough for now. Lukka leaned back against a log and closed his eyes. “Wake me at first light.”
***
It was, indeed, just after the moment that the sun had appeared over the eastern horizon that Vivien prodded Lukka gently. He started awake and took a moment to work out why he was in the woods in a filthy uniform instead of lounging in Jirina’s bed. When memory came crashing down on him, he groaned.
“Are you unwell?” Vivien said politely. She’d rekindled the fire and sat beside it, tending a small iron skillet on a wooden handle.
“Just sore,” Lukka said, getting to his feet. He looked over his sweaty, stained uniform and frowned. He hadn’t had a chance to grab any kit when he’d fled the city, so he had only his sword and belt knife for weapons, and nothing in the way of wilderness gear.
Vivien, on the other hand, seemed to be well equipped. He sat down beside her at the fire, and she handed him a canteen full of cool, clean water. He drank, gratefully, and when he was done she gave him a wooden cup full of something steaming hot that smelled like boiled flowers. Whatever was in the skillet added notes of savory and sweet.
“For someone who’s come a long way, you’re awfully comfortable in our forests,” Lukka said, drinking the boiled-flower stuff and watching the skillet hungrily.
“I have seen a great many forests,” Vivien said. “They are all different, but they also share a great deal.” She gave a quiet smile. “Magic helps, as well. Poisonous plants have a distinct aura, and nutritious ones are quite different.” She pulled the skillet back and scraped half of the contents into a bowl. “Here.”
Lukka peered at the thin-sliced stuff. “What is it?”
“Whatever I could find. Mushrooms, edible greens, berries.” Vivien filled her own bowl and picked delicately at it with her fingers. “I didn’t wish to leave you alone for too long.”
With a shrug, Lukka followed her example and ate. The stuff was good, chewy and filling, though he couldn’t help thinking it would have been a lot better with a nice bit of rabbit or chicken. When they were finished, Vivien carefully extinguished the fire, then led him to a nearby stream, where they washed up and filled her canteen.
“All right,” Lukka said. “What general direction are we headed?”
Vivien concentrated for a moment, eyes closed, then extended an arm northwest. “That way.”
Figures. The winged cat was headed out into the wilds, away from Drannith. If it had come in closer, someone would have found it already. “Okay. I need to secure some gear and supplies, so we’ll have to risk making contact with an outpost. There’s one on the border of the Third Ring.” He glanced at the sky, which was mottled with shredded clouds. “I’ll need a tent, too. If the weather turns, I don’t want to be stuck out here in the wet. Do you have something for yourself?”
“I can manage,” Vivien said, with another slight smile.
Lukka nodded. “So outpost first. They’ll have maps, too. Then we can see if we can figure out exactly how far we’re going to have to go.”
“As you wish,” Vivien said. “Lead on.”
***
The longer they spent together, the more puzzled Lukka was by his companion.
She was clearly a wilderness expert, moving through forest and field alike with the practiced ease of someone who’d spent her life in the wild places. He quickly gave up trying to
outpace her—she walked with such grace that she seemed to glide past any obstruction or undergrowth that left him stumbling.
At the same time, though, the questions she asked would have shamed any Coppercoat ranker. And she didn’t seem familiar with some things that everyone knew.
“Monsters?” Lukka said, incredulously. “You want to know about monsters?”
Vivien nodded.
He pursed his lips, not sure where to begin. Everyone in Drannith started learning about monsters from the time they could talk.
“I mean…they’re monsters, right?” Lukka said lamely. “They’re usually big and mean, and they destroy human settlements whenever they can. That’s why everyone gathers in sanctuaries like Drannith.”
“All monsters are hostile?”
“Not all, I suppose. Some just ignore us, but even those can be dangerous. Some big dinosaurs only eat plants, but they’ll step on your house if it’s in their way just the same.”
“And the crystals?”
They were walking down a side road in the Third Ring, skirting most of the inhabited settlements. A nearby hill bore a crystal formation on its peak, and Lukka glanced up at it, following Vivien’s gesture. It was reassuringly dark.
“What about them?” he said.
“They are connected to the monsters?”
“They glow when monsters are close, if that’s what you mean. Only sometimes, though.” The winged cat hadn’t provoked a reaction in any of their warning crystals…
“There must be more than that,” Vivien said, half to herself. “For it to be otherwise would be too much of a coincidence. Monsters and crystals, neither wholly natural…”
“They don’t have monsters or crystals where you come from?” Lukka said. “It must be a really long way off.” He’d never heard of a country without monsters. Across the oceans, maybe, on some little island.
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