by Angela Boord
“Is Jon angry with me?”
“Hah,” Arsenault says, with his old hook of a grin. “No. He’s angry with me. I’m the one who made a mess of things. Which, frankly, he ought to be used to by now. It’s not the first time I’ve taken it on myself to do something and thrown a wrench into the works. He put me with Tonia, thinking I would be the one she hired to take care of Cassis. He kept trying to put her off your trail. Dakkarans don’t take promises lightly. Their whole society is built upon them. And he promised me, long before Kafrin, to keep an eye on you. He had contacts inside the prison and was planning on springing you, after I went on to the lodge in your place. I wasn’t supposed to be in that contingent of guard that caught you at all. Just like I wasn’t supposed to try to assassinate you.”
“Was that why Jon came north? During the wars? To keep a promise to you?”
“One of the reasons. Not the only one. It solved a couple of problems. Jon was headed out of Liera anyway so he could run his smuggling rings out from under the eye of the Prinze. The Rojornicki had an interest in keeping your Houses destabilized. But mostly, I asked him to go because Erelf wanted you and I wasn’t sure that I’d done enough to keep you hidden.”
“You knew? That he wanted me as a bride?”
Arsenault sighs raggedly. “I didn’t figure that out until later. But I knew there must have been some reason for him to claim you even after Ires’s magic took you. Sella’s death tortures him. I think he loved her after his own fashion, and what does time mean to a god? It never passes to heal wounds. The wounds just keep bleeding. But maybe…he’s come to the point where he would like to have another child. I think…he misses her.”
I turn my head to see Arsenault better. “Do you miss her?”
He threads his fingers together and looks at them. “She was my wife.”
I think maybe we’re done with secrets.
His fingers draw apart and he takes my left hand in his, running his thumb gently over my fingers, avoiding my knuckles. They’re all over red and purple, bruises, cuts, and scratches.
“I didn’t know how much it would hurt to have you gone. It’s been so long since I was able to love anyone. Since I let myself love anyone. The gods know how much I fought it and for how long. I sent Jon to Vençal first, hoping you were there. Enri knows who I am and could have told you everything, but you never went. So, Jon went to Rojornick to see if he could find out what happened to you.”
He looks troubled, like he wants to ask me why but he doesn’t want to cause me anymore distress.
“You—remember?”
He smiles. A wounded, sorrowful sort of smile. But a smile. “Everything,” he says, tightening his fingers on mine but not enough to hurt. “You won me a reprieve.”
“But your scar—”
“It’s Erelf’s mark. Knowledge. Memory.” He pauses. “Magic. That’s back too, in full. Though I don’t know if I’m still forbidden to use it except in self defense or not. My reprieve has…boundaries. It’s not forever, but I don’t know how long it will last. That’s up to the Tribunal, and they’re still discussing the parameters. Erelf is regrouping, and it’s not clear what he’ll do next.”
“The gods are having a discussion about you?”
“An argument, more likely.”
I try to laugh, but it comes out too quiet. Then I try to rub his fingers, but I can’t. My fingers won’t grip.
He notices me trying, though, and he curls them up around his for me.
“Mikelo saved you. For a while, we weren’t sure it worked.”
“Ekyra—sent me back. I had a dream...”
Gods, it hurts to talk. I swallow and try to lift my arms to look at them, but I can’t summon the strength to move.
Arsenault looks troubled again. “The metal receded,” he says. “All on its own. Except for your arm. It’s still there.”
Something in his eyes looks bad. “Let me look,” I say. “Please.”
The trouble in his face deepens. But he pulls back the covers and lets me look.
My right arm is a hopeless mangle of metal. It’s no wonder I can’t lift it.
I catch my breath. It sounds like a sob. “It might as well be cut off.”
Arsenault leans forward. “Kyrra, I can Fix it.”
“No,” I say. “Let me be for a while. Just let me...be. Here. Together, with you.”
With my head on this pillow and his hand in mine, among people who care.
I try to move my fingers again, and he reads my intent and squeezes them gently.
“But just one more question,” I say.
“Only one more?”
“In that story about Udolfo and the pirate, the one I read to you…who were you? The pirate Udolfo’s betrothed loved? Or her faithful fisherman, the one who saved her from drowning?”
He looks surprised. Then he grins.
“The fisherman, of course.”
Appendix: Major Lieran Houses
Note: The final "e" is pronounced in all Eterean names, usually as /ay/, "r" is rolled, and "i" is generally pronounced /ee/.
Aliente
Caprine
Forza
Garonze
Imisi
Prinze
Sere
Appendix: Eterean Gods
Tekus — Father God and god of the sea
Ahra — wife to Tekus
Adalus — son of Tekus, the Dying God; god of springtime, sacrifices, and harvest
Erelf — exiled son of Tekus and brother to Adalus; god of knowledge, secrets, and magic
Ekyra — daughter of Tekus; goddess of fortune, also called the Huntress
Ires — insane god of war; shackled deep within the volcano Kosemi
Cythia — daughter of Tekus; goddess of love
Pana — daughter of Tekus; name means "willing".
Lusa — daughter of Tekus; goddess of the moon
Appendix: Glossary
allaq — Qalfan body robes falling to mid-calf, usually worn with trousers beneath.
arquebus — long matchlock gun, comparable to a rifle.
astra — gold coin minted by the Lieran Circle.
cato — copper coin minted by the Lieran Circle, of lesser value than the astra.
conjure-woman — a woman experienced in the use of conjure magic, a variety of magic used specifically by women and having to do primarily with the body and fertility.
dikkarro — a hand-held wheellock pistol, named for Dakkar, its country of invention.
Eter — the language spoken and written by the ancient Etereans, who unified the peninsula and ruled an empire many hundreds of years before the story takes place.
fila — supernatural, godlike beings native to Dakkar.
Fixer — a magic user who can use magic to Shape (or Fix) objects according to their will. Depending on the material a Fixer operates upon, a Fixer may also be called an Artisan or a Smith.
gavaro — a mercenary or sword-for-hire. Gavaros form the bulk of the fighting forces among the city-states of the Eterean peninsula. They are also hired as guards, assassins, bounty hunters, and debt collectors.
guarnello — the common dress of peasant women in the Eterean peninsula. A long jumper worn over a lighter underdress. The bodice laces up to provide support in lieu of stays.
Head of House — the lead householder of a House, who makes decisions and rules everyone of that House name.
householder — any member of the noble Houses of the Eterean peninsula. When capitalized (Householder) this refers to the Head of House.
Ibuu — the ruler of Dakkar, male or female.
imya — clear liquor imported from Rojornick.
indij — card game favored by gavaros in which the jester is the strongest card.
kacin — powdery, white drug formed by drying and grinding berries from a plant grown in Dakkar. Can be smoked or taken orally. Induces sleepiness, functions as a pain killer. Addictive. The leaves of the plant can be chewed for a milder effect.
kai dahn — dice game imported from Saien and favored by sailors.
Messera/messera — In its capitalized form, the title for the first wife of the Head of House. Uncapitalized, it functions as an honorific for any female householder. (Equivalent of "mistress")
Mestere/mestere — In its capitalized form, the title for the Head of House. Uncapitalized, it functions as an honorific for any male householder. (Equivalent of "master")
Mistiri/mistiri — the plural form for the man and woman who are Head of House, or, uncapitalized, householders in general. (Equivalent of "masters").
Nezar/Nezari — member or members of an elite Qalfan fighting order who often hire out as mercenaries.
sanval — the spring wind from the south that often brings violent storms.
See/Sight — the magical ability to see the truth or underlying nature of people or things. Not always able to be controlled.
ser — honorific for male members of the free merchant class, who are neither nobles or serfs.
sera — honorific for female members of the free merchant class, who are neither nobles or serfs.
sontana — afternoon nap.
sweetweed — mild drug imported by Qalfans, usually smoked.
urqa — the headcloths used by Qalfans, especially men, to cover their heads and faces.
vota — religious artifact, usually carved of wood and imbued with life-like attributes by conjure magic. Used in religious ceremonies in place of live sacrifices or to satisfy different needs of the owner – luck, health, love, etc.
whiteskin — somewhat derogatory term used by Dakkarans, Vençalans, Qalfans, and darker-skinned, southern Etereans to refer to people with fair skin from northern regions.
Acknowledgments
This book was written in two different periods in my life, separated by many years and the addition of many children (six added to the three I had when I finished the first draft).
For reading the earliest drafts and listening to me yammer on about characters and ideas, many thanks go to my old writing group, the Sporks, but especially to Sue Glantz, Karin Lowachee, Helen Vorster, Roger Eichorn, Elizabeth Glover, and Mike Dumas. (Mike — requiescat in pace, my friend, because you are very missed.)
Nancy Proctor, you get all the thanks times three for reading all the drafts — early, middle, and late — the ones with giant holes and the ones with way too many words. Everybody needs a friend to tell them when they wanted to throw the book at the wall.
When I pulled the manuscript out of my closet after a thirteen or fourteen year hiatus, I thought maybe I was going to have to go it alone — a thought which terrified me. Thankfully, this was not the case. To Krystle Matar, Stephen Coey, and Fiona West, my intrepid beta readers, who slogged through all the later drafts when I was trying to patch the holes and get the sequence of chapters right — you have my undying gratitude. If the book is any good, it’s largely because of you.
John Anthony Di Giovanni did an amazing job of taking the vision of my book and my characters and turning it into gorgeous art. Shawn King took the art and turned it into a fantastic cover. I can’t emphasize enough how much I love it.
Richard Shealy at SF/F Copyediting did a monumental job of sorting out all the commas in this very large book. He probably deserves a medal.
Clayton, Nick, Justine, Luke, Dave, and Krystal — you keep me laughing and help me stay sane… or insane, which is the preferable state. And to everyone in the Indie Fantasy community on Twitter — thank you for accepting me into the fold, for your humor and your support, and for all the crazy gif threads, too.
And finally, thank you to my kids, who put up with a mom who spends way too much time at the kitchen table, hunched over her computer, mumbling at characters who won’t behave — and to my husband Andy, who knew what he was getting into when he asked me to marry him and went ahead with it anyway.
About the Author
Angela Boord published a handful of fantasy short stories in the early 2000s, then had a bunch of kids and took a long break from writing. She lives in northwestern Mississippi with her husband and their nine kids, plus two dogs, a cat named Mouse, and varying numbers of chickens.
She is currently at work on more books and stories in the Eterean Empire series, as well as a portal fantasy series set in a different universe.
Look for Eterean Empire 1.5 coming in early 2020!
Subscribe to Angela’s mailing list at Angelaboord.com for information on upcoming books in the Eterean Empire series and a future free Eterean Empire novella!