Truthmarked (The Fatemarked Epic Book 2)

by David Estes

  “And you are dead, master.”

  She handed the torch to another woman, who was clearly Teran, her red face also dotted with night-dark tears, and strode forward, raising her sword. Jai didn’t want to die, but at least he would go knowing his people had a chance.

  Noises behind him made him half-turn. A small form emerged from the tunnel, racing toward him. Jig hugged him around the leg, squeezing hard. His eyes were huge as he stared at the woman with her blade held high. “Don’t hurt him!” the boy shrieked.

  More forms moved forward, slipping around him like river water around a rock. Viola. Marella. Other miners, too: Gorrin the Dreadnoughter, and Hans and Patrella and Nance and Hominy and dozens of others. Jai didn’t know how it was possible. They’d come to help him, despite the fact that he’d given them a direct order not to. Perhaps my prior command giving them free will took precedence, he thought. He was no student of the complexities of slave command, since he rarely used the power bestowed upon him by the emperor.

  Past them, Jai could barely make out the woman’s surprised expression as she lowered her sword. “You would protect your master, the one who has enslaved you?” she asked, her voice echoing in the mine atrium.

  “The emperor enslaved us, not Jai Jiroux. And yes, we would protect him to the death,” one of the men answered. A man named Carp, whom Jai had broken bread with on numerous occasions. A man untrained in combat, and yet willing to fight for him. Die for him.

  “Has he commanded you to do this?” The woman was frowning now. Clearly in her past mine attacks she’d never had a situation where the slaves defended one of the masters.

  “No,” a woman said. Sharma. She was big with child—her first. Her husband was a burly fellow named Burnis whose long braid nearly reached his feet. They were hoping for a girl.

  As more and more of the people chimed in, Jai was surprised by how many of them he knew personally, how many he’d shared a story with, how many he’d eaten with, laughed with. He wanted to save them, but instead they were protecting him. It didn’t seem fair.

  “How is this possible?” the woman said.

  Jai said to Jig, “It’s fine now. Thank you,” and detached the boy’s fingers and feet from him one at a time. He stepped forward, his people parting for him as he made his way toward the front.

  The woman had regathered her torch and was shining her light across the people. She had jet-black hair braided in back, smooth brown skin, and fierce, narrow green eyes that sparkled as if studded with emeralds. Her eyes gave her away as a Phanecian. She wore a tan leather vest, leaving her shoulders and arms bare. “They are not injured,” she commented. “No whip marks, no bruises, no scars. I don’t understand.”

  Jai scanned the women in front of him. They were as different from each other as the stars in the sky. While the leader was clearly of Phanecian descent, as was one of the others, two of them were red-skinned Terans, and two were Dreadnoughters, their broad, flat foreheads gray and rough. However, despite their differences, they all bore black tears beneath their eyes, but some had more than others, and none more than their leader, the woman in front. The number of people they have killed, Jai remembered. At least according to the whisperings in the city. There were only six of them, a fact that awed him. Six women had taken a mine defended by twice that many masters. Then again, each of them wore the face of a warrior, with the lean, strong bodies to match.

  “I can explain,” Jai said. “This mine is run by the people, not the masters.”

  “You mean the slaves?”

  Jai shook his head. “To the emperor they might be slaves, but to me, they are my friends. My family. My people.”

  The woman’s narrow eyes narrowed further. “You commanded them to be free? But the emperor…”

  Jai said, “What is your name?”

  “Anguish. Sorrow. Regret. Destiny. I have many names, and all of them are laced with sadness for the souls I’ve lost.”

  Gods. Her words seemed to slash open a wound in Jai’s gut. He was intimately acquainted with those names. They were his past. They were his present. And, he knew, they were his future.

  She continued. “But the name given to me at birth was Sonika Vaid.”

  “Sonika,” Jai said, trying it out. By his estimation, the name was fit for a warrior, and suited her well. “I am Jai Jiroux. Please do not call me master, whether out of mockery or spite, because I loathe the title as much as you. Unfortunately, I could not command these people to be free, as you have suggested. The emperor’s influence roams far, and yes, reaches well past Garadia. But I have given them free will within the confines of this mine, and so long as they meet their quotas the emperor will not intercede.”

  “The emperor is a pyzon,” Sonika hissed, sounding much like a snake herself.

  “I cannot disagree with you,” Jai said. “But that doesn’t mean we can ignore his power.”

  “Damn his power and his quotas into the Void.” Though the anger was clear in her voice, Jai could sense the frustration behind it. This was a woman trying to carry out a rebellion against an enemy who was almost untouchable because of his tattooya.

  “Where are the other mine masters?” Jai asked, though he’d already guessed their fate.

  Her lips curled into a sneer. “Dead.”

  “How? They were all masters of phen ru.”

  “We are masters of a higher art.”

  “Phen lu?”

  She laughed. “Foolish man. Phen sur is the highest of the martials arts, though none but the women seem to realize it.”

  Confusion roiled through him. Phen sur was a beautiful art form, but he’d never seen it used for violence. He could hardly comprehend it. “You killed my men with a…dance?”

  “Yes. Would you mourn them?”

  Jai shook his head. “No.” He wouldn’t mourn his lost masters. Yes, they had allowed him to manage the mine in his own way, but it wasn’t out of kindness. No, it was because he gave them an easy life of luxury. They were as guilty as the emperor himself. “But I have to count them. To make certain none escaped to report back to the emperor.”

  Sonika blinked, as if surprised by his response, but then stepped aside to allow him to pass. Jai turned back to the mine workers. He felt a flutter in his chest, like a bird was trapped within his ribcage. He knew this was it—his one opportunity. Another would not come easily. My destiny. “Return to the cavern. Gather your things. Capture as much water from the stream as possible. Bring all the food we have. We are leaving.”

  The people didn’t move, their eyes set on him, their lips falling open a crack. Blinking, blinking, not understanding. Not truly. When someone has been kept in the dark for so long, how can you convince them to step into the light? Jai wondered. He raised his hand in the air, forming it into the three-fingered salute. “You will never mine another diamond again!” he shouted.

  Burnis clapped his hands together. “Now that’s a tempting proposal. Come on, lads, come on, lasses, tonight we leave this filthy Voidhole forever!”

  An almost electric energy seemed to hum through the crowd as they passed the message to turn around to the hundreds still amassed in the tunnel behind them. Jai placed a hand on Burnis’s shoulder. “Thank you, old friend. Will you please gather a dozen others and raid the masters’ quarters? There will be food and water there, too. Take everything you can carry, and then come back for more. Be quick, we only have a limited window for escape.”

  “Aye. I will.” The thickset man strode off, grabbing other men and women by the arms and relaying the message.

  Satisfied that his people would rise to the task of preparing for departure, Jai turned back to the Black Tears, who were watching him intently. He nodded to Sonika, and, after a moment’s pause, she nodded back. He strode past her, stooping to inspect the first body. Master Gabon, his dark black mustache unmistakable, drooping well past his lips. He’d been an easy sell, a few years earlier. All he cared about was his own well-being, and the promise of an easy life
style had been enough to sway him to Jai’s plan. Jai checked for a heartbeat—there was none. One, Jai said in his head.

  One by one, he checked the others. By the time he was finished, only one was missing, but that didn’t concern him. It was Master Axa, who had betrayed Jai to the emperor and been slavemarked as a result. By now he would be more than halfway from Phanea to Garadia, stumbling in the dark, stubbing his bare toes on rocks and cacti. With luck, he’d be bitten by a scorpion and die under the stars, his body eventually picked clean like the carrion he was.

  Following behind Jai, the Black Tears were removing each body, carrying them to the masters’ quarters and away from the mine entrance.

  “That’s all of them,” Jai announced. “Your warriors are thorough.”

  “Yes. It seems you’re the only master left,” Sonika said. Her hand was on the hilt of her sword. “And you have no one left to protect you.”

  Jai’s heart thudded faster in his chest. “Kill me if you must,” he said. “So long as you protect my people, and do not call me master.”

  Sonika drew her sword. Stepped forward, turning the blade slowly to let it catch the emerald moonlight. Said, “Your words ring true, but I want you to swear with your blood.”

  “I will.” Jai held out his hand, palm up. With an expert jerk of her hand, Sonika sliced her blade across his palm. Jai gritted his teeth, refusing to acknowledge the sting of pain sizzling through his flesh. It was nothing compared to what his miners had been through, the pain they felt every day from their labors.

  He squeezed his fingers tight against his palm, making a fist, letting several drops of blood drip to the ground. “I swear I will do no harm to these people. I swear I am no master, but a rebel, like you. I swear on my blood that so long as you help my people, I will help you.”

  The leader of the Black Tears nodded once and then motioned to one of the other women, who provided a thick cloth, wrapping it around Jai’s cut hand several times before tearing it with her teeth and tying off the end. The Teran woman had short coppery hair that curled around her chin. Twice she glanced at Jai between long golden lashes before continuing her work, licking her pink lips. As she bandaged him, Jai counted the black tears on her red-skinned cheeks. Seventeen. He wondered how many tears she’d be adding for the men she’d killed tonight.

  “Thank you,” Jai said when she finished. “What is your name?”

  “Shanti,” she said. “Shanti Parthena Laude.”

  A beautiful name, he thought. He knew Teran names held great meaning; he wondered what hers meant, but it wasn’t the time to ask. “I’m Jai Jiroux,” he said.

  She laughed slightly. “I know. You were supposed to be the first to die, but instead we found another in your bed.”

  With that, she went back to helping her comrades remove the bodies of the masters. “Does everyone want me dead?” Jai said to himself.

  Though the question wasn’t meant for her, Sonika answered. “If the emperor finds out you’re alive, then yes, everyone will want you dead. But we will burn the bodies, so it will be harder for them to know whether anyone survived.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Now show us the diamonds.”

  “What?”

  “You think a rebellion is cheap? We will need the diamonds as much as the food and water. And they’re easy to haul. Have your people squeeze them anywhere they’ll fit. In their shoes, in their undergarments, in their mouths if they wish. Bring all the diamonds they can carry.”

  Jai frowned, although the logic made sense. It just seemed strange to take the diamonds like common thieves. Then again, they were the ones who’d broken their backs to mine the jewels for years. If anything, it was back payment for all their hard work. “Fine. But today’s haul has already been carted to the emperor’s palace.”

  “Then mine more.”

  Jai wouldn’t ask his people to raise another sledge or pick ever again. He’d never ask them to haul another cart or risk their lives in another unstable mineshaft. No. “I’ll go myself.”

  As it turned out, Jai didn’t have to ask anyone to descend into the mineshaft with him. He had a wealth of volunteers, ready and willing, including two strong Dreadnoughters, Gorrin and Orrin, twin brothers with identical gray features. And though on occasion the mine was stubborn, not tonight. It was as if the gods themselves were a part of their escape. Before dawn arrived, they had hauled three heaping carts of uncut gems, shimmering piles of wealth beyond measure.

  “Are there more?” Sonika asked, eyeing the carts.

  “This mine will produce for another decade or longer,” Jai said. “There are always more. But it will take time, and every second we wait is a risk.” He was exhausted and sore, but now that the people were emerging from the tunnel strapped with bags laden with food and water, he was anxious to leave.

  Sonika said, “Fine. It will have to do.”

  “Where are the other Tears?” Jai asked, his eyes probing the space for Shanti and the others.

  “Preparing a gift for the emperor,” she said, a twinkle in her eyes.

  Jai didn’t know what that meant, but he didn’t take further time to ponder. Instead, he instructed each person emerging from the tunnel to gather some of the diamonds amongst their things, and to exit the mine. Many had glittering tears in their eyes, and others wore weary, but determined expressions.

  Dozens turned to hundreds turned to thousands, but Jai waited for each of them to pass before joining them outside. The last was the eldest woman in the mine—Mother Ko, everyone called her. Her skin was so wrinkled it looked like a sheet of parchment that had been balled up and smoothed out, over and over again. Her long, hooked nose had so many broken blood vessels it was like a beacon on her face. But her unnaturally dark eyes were still clear and intelligent. From past discussions with her, Jai knew she was as shrewd a person as there was, and her age alone told him much about what she was made of.

  She was weighed down with a dozen bags, wrapped around her neck and shoulders and bulging from her body like camel humps. “Here. Let me take a few of those,” Jai offered.

  She slapped him away with shaking hands. “Help someone else,” she said. “I’m no cripple.”

  Yes, she was as tough as a sledge, but also as stubborn as a mule, a sometimes frustrating combination. Jai followed her out, shaking his head.

  When he emerged into the daylight, he felt another flutter in his chest. They were leaving, at long last. To his ears, his heartbeat sounded much like the gallop of a trio of exuberant horses, riding in unison.

  For the first time in a long time, he felt a true ray of light-giving hope in the darkness.

  The sun was rising in the west, lighting the tops of the red cliffs that bordered the sea, and sending plumes of pink and orange across a sky so blue it might’ve been painted on.

  Thousands of people stood before him, waiting. To one side were Sonika and her Black Tears, holding ropes attached to black horses, sturdy steeds that whinnied and stamped in anticipation. While the rebels rode, everyone else would have to walk. In the light, the black tears on each woman’s cheeks were stark reminders of how deadly they were. Jai was glad he was on their side, at least, so far.

  The only one missing was Shanti, but soon she emerged, too, hauling a wooden barrel behind her. There was a small hole cut in the side, and a steady stream of gray powder was tumbling out, painting a thin line on the ground, disappearing into the mine. From past experience in other mines that used the substance, Jai immediately knew what it was:

  Fireroot.

  The roots, which were found attached to gnarled old trees growing, unexpectedly, in the driest parts of the Phanecian desert, could be ground up to make the powder, which was highly flammable. And if there was enough powder in one place at one time…

  Jai had seen the power firsthand. Personally, he hated the substance, for he’d seen it kill many slave miners if they were unable to get themselves clear of the blast. As far as he knew, the emperor still used f
ireroot in several of the older mines, in which the gems were harder to get to, but Jai had never used the gray powder in Garadia.

  “You’re going to destroy the mine?” he said, approaching Sonika.

  “No,” Sonika said. “There’s not enough fireroot in all of Phanes. But we are going to make it very difficult for the emperor to access his precious diamonds. It will take many months to dig out the mine. By then, perhaps, he will be dead.”

  So this was the gift she’d spoken of. Jai didn’t know why the thought of the mine coming down made him feel a sliver of sorrow. Garadia was a cage, a prison, a place where people were treated like possessions. And yet, it had been his home for three years now, a place where he made friends, where he fought for a better life for a people who’d never been given a life at all.

  “Good,” he said, pushing his emotions aside. “What is the plan?”

  Sonika sighed deeply. “Even I didn’t realize how many there were,” she said, casting a hand across the people. “I had planned to take them south, to a boat. From there we could sail out of the range of the emperor’s slavemark. But there are too many.”

  “There were rumors that you escaped with others across the southernmost tip of the Spear,” Jai said.

  Sonika looked away, staring at the cliffs and the rising sun. “Those were only rumors.”

  Jai tried to catch her eye, but she wouldn’t look at him. “Sonika. Sonika.” Finally, she turned. “How did you get the others out of Phanes?”

  There was something in her eyes. Jai recognized it because he’d seen it in his own eyes before, while staring in the looking glass. Guilt. “We didn’t,” she said. “We tried, but the emperor’s men rode us down like dogs. The first group was killed almost immediately, between the cliffs of the Bloody Canyon. The second was more successful—we could see the Burning Sea ahead of us, glittering in the sun, but the result was the same. I lost many of my warriors and narrowly escaped with my own life. We are all that are left of the Tears.”