My Fearful Symmetry

by Denise Verrico

  He got in the last word, straightening his robes and drawing adept dignity and glamour around him. “You have never been a true adept. You do not even believe in the Mother. You are just a whore.”

  I shrugged as if I could care less that he called me the thing I knew myself to be, but it stung all the same. Pushing the insult aside, I bathed and made-up. Dressed in my best silks, saffron-dyed ones shot through with real gold and studded with tiger’s eye, I hurried off to the council chamber.

  Outside, my fellow adepts gathered like a flock of exotic birds in their bright plumage. Marco, dazzling in sapphire studded robes, flashed a smile and motioned for me to stand by him. He bent his head over and whispered, “Hear you got called on the carpet by Avijit.”

  Sandhya raised a finger to her lips. “Shh! They are coming.”

  Everyone bowed as a wave of elders and alphas swept past, preceding Kalidasa through the double doors. All adepts prostrated when the mastodon passed into the hall. When we resumed our feet, six dogs approached, surrounding a very small person indeed.

  Kurt’s tawny head stood barely taller than Avijit’s. A wisp of a man, maybe seventeen at the most when he took the blood, but he carried himself with gravitas to rival Li Cheng’s. He looked us over with these enormous, sad eyes. Putting his fingertips together, he touched his forehead to make a reverence. To my amazement, they all bowed low to him, as if he’d already been invested. Even Sandhya dropped. Marco elbowed me, because I was the only one still standing upright. The rebel leader nodded in acknowledgement of my refusal, perhaps understanding that I had a vital part in deciding his fate. I returned his nod. A guard shoved the rebel along with the nose of his rifle. The prisoner’s escort passed into the council chamber, followed by Kurt’s elder, Philip and the counselor, Chase Powers.

  The gathering of adepts filed in behind and took places in the center of the cavernous hall, chanting an invocation for the Mother’s blessing on the assembly. Kalidasa stood on the dais, raising his hands in supplication to the image of Kali that presided black and terrible over the council chamber. One could only imagine what she would say of this self-indulgent lot if she had her chance. Kalidasa lowered his arms. All adepts retired to the edges of the room. We were the only spots of color in a funereal assembly. The elders took seats on a kind of tiered platform built all around the chamber, with their alphas sitting in front on the lowest level. The guards still surrounded the prisoner.

  The chief elder plopped down onto his gigantic arse and raised a palm. “My sons, we have heard evidence of the alleged crimes of the slave Kurt Eisen. We will now hear arguments from Lord Balthasar.”

  A wraith of an elder, dressed in dark robes, stood. White-streaked hair formed a cowl around his cadaverous face. He inclined his head to the chief. “Exalted Father, brothers all, this is indeed a dangerous time,” he said in a rasping voice. “This upstart threatens everything Immortyls have achieved and hold sacred. Many of us chided Brovik for his folly in investing this wretch with powers beyond his station. Alas, the Northman learned too late the error in his judgment.”

  Lord Balthasar stepped down from his seat, robes trailing behind, and jabbed a bony finger toward Kurt. This gesture made the elder appear even more like the Grim Reaper’s younger brother. “Kurt Eisen has incited the lowest, least worthy to rebellion, murdering not only his master, but also the elder and alphas of another house. I call for immediate execution. Let it not be swift and painless, but a lingering death, in the manner of traitors to our kind. Let this vermin be staked before dawn to suffer the ravages of the sun on his flesh. Let there be no cremation of the remains—rather leave them to be devoured by worms and wild beasts, befitting his dishonor.”

  Balthasar resumed his seat among applause and cries of support from his half of the hall. To my ears it sounded like vultures screaming for blood. I loathed them all. They considered my entire class flesh for their consumption. Too many of them had already feasted on my body and soul. Like the beasts Balthasar spoke of, they tried to tear the heart out of me.

  They consider you no better than livestock, Kurt Eisen.

  My hand reached for the dagger concealed in my sash. So many throats begging to be cut, arteries pulsating with blood to be spilt. No, that wouldn’t solve anything. I’d just end up with my own neck slit. What was Kurt Eisen to me, that an attack on him evoked this thirst for violence? Yet the rebel himself stood uncowed by the council’s response, even smiling a bit, like he had nothing to fear. Could I muster the same composure in his position? Probably not. My respect for him increased.

  Kalidasa raised his hand for silence. “Lord Liu will speak now.”

  Li Cheng rose, surveying the hall, making eye contact with all assembled. He spoke in a normal tone, but his resonant voice was the sort that made you sit up and listen. “Two thousand years ago, some of us gathered and set down a code of conduct in order to preserve our kind.” He descended from his place, walking among elders and alphas, stopping now and then to address one directly. Unlike Balthasar, Li Cheng didn’t gesticulate and emote all over the place. His voice remained in a conversational tone, his hands folded behind him. “Over the course of two millennia our culture flourished in secret, reaping the great benefits this peace between us allowed. Great changes in the past few centuries have allowed us greater wealth and comfort. We’ve embraced mortal technology for our own gain. Yet certain archaic customs to which we cling endanger this very wealth and security.”

  The opposition’s stony faces evoked picture postcards of the statues on Easter Island. Their less than warm reception didn’t ruffle the elder. “Our lust and greed have created vast numbers of discontented individuals.” A few grumbled, but Li Cheng’s voice rose over them and they fell silent. He gestured toward the assembled adepts. “We revere beauty—yet crush the spirit from those who delight our eyes.” His eyes landed on Raj, who coughed on his cigarette smoke and looked away. “Many have taken mere children as catamites and concubines…only to cast them out to fend for themselves in sewers and graveyards.”

  The complaints within the council lessened. Li Cheng continued in his progress around the chamber, stopping in front of the offenders to use his words like lances. He’d probably held his piece for two millennia and finally had his chance to speak. No one would escape unscathed this night. He pointed out a gaggle of guards standing near Balthasar. “We have also created soldiers but not accorded them the dignity and honor their service deserves. Is it any wonder that three thousand combined voices cry for our blood as you cry for this extraordinary man’s life?”

  A hissing arose from Balthasar’s contingent, as if a nest of peevish snakes had taken up residence in the chamber. Kalidasa pounded on his throne and called for order. Li Cheng waited, composed, with arms hanging still at his sides. The din subsided. The elder gestured toward Kurt, full sleeve flowing in his hand’s wake. “Kurt Eisen alone has offered them compassion. He took in those we cast out and gave them dignity. Did he do this to spite us? I doubt it. These unfortunates reached out to him, and he responded with decency, as we did not.”

  Radu sat with arms crossed over his chest, still as stone. Amun and Xerxes, two others in his cadre, whispered to one another as if in distress. This didn’t bode well. What could Li Cheng hope to accomplish with this dressing down? He bowed his head for a moment, as if to catch his breath, and then raised his eyes, sweeping his hand toward the Mother’s image. “We sit in the shadow of the great Goddess Kali, who endowed us with immortality. She granted us the privileges we enjoy, dominion over mere mortals and the rights to their lifeblood for our sustenance. We call ourselves gods on earth, yet mortals long ago branded us demons. Are we indeed as they say, vampires?”

  The council reacted with indignant huffs and snorts.

  “Yes, I dare use this ugly word! What are we when we behave so shamefully to these sons and daughters of the Mother’s blood? If we abuse her children, are we not tempting her wrath?” He lowered his voice and extended a hand toward the
council. “Brothers, let us now behave in a magnanimous fashion—as befits our position as masters—and grant mercy to this champion of the least among us. For, if we do not, we will surely perish by the Mother’s hand.”

  Li Cheng returned to his seat among protests from the anti faction. Why would he choose to use the word vampire when he knew it would just antagonize the others? Perhaps he realized he’d never win their votes, and it was a warning of the world to come. I realized in that moment that the argument he’d given had been framed with hopes of cultivating the rebel leader as an ally. No longer could the elders claim divine right, when those they oppressed seized power in outright revolt. The tide could be stemmed only temporarily if Kurt was acquitted.

  It was only a matter of time until a new world dawned, one where the old ones no longer held sway: a world where the adept of the ancient arts would become an anachronism. Li Cheng offered protection to me in these turbulent times, but might he also become an endangered species? The elder would be wise to throw his lot with the future. Still, there would be no guarantees that either of us would survive.

  Kurt bowed in respect as Li Cheng passed him. The elder nodded his head in acknowledgment and resumed his seat, alongside Radu and Sergei. The hubbub coming from Balthasar’s group kept on until Kalidasa rapped on his chair again. “We will recess to consider the matter.”

  Voices in the hall blended into babble. The guards threw open the doors. Common servants rushed in with refreshments. Adepts circulated and directed them in pouring drinks. Balthasar talked in hushed tones to the elders in his contingent, every once in a while glancing over to the rebel. The accused conferred with his elder and counselor. A more determined look had come into his eye. His easy smile had morphed into something cooler. Li Cheng inclined his head toward his party and settled back in his seat. The elders with him discussed the impending partition of territory.

  A girl came up with a tray. She trembled so much that I feared she’d spill the contents on my benefactor. I told her to set it down, and I took over. For once Li Cheng didn’t smile on me when I offered him a goblet. He sat, tugging his beard as he listened to the others’ greedy noise, now and then commenting. I stepped back into the shadows to wait. After a bit, he beckoned and said into my ear, “You may tell your master that we are decided.”

  I bowed to him and skirted around the back of the hall toward Raj, who stood with the other alphas clustered around the chief’s seat. I didn’t relish conversing with my master. Luckily Marco intercepted me. “Are they ready?”

  I nodded. He climbed the dais and whispered into Kalidasa’s ear. Avijit crept up to the chief and leaned his head over to speak as well. The rhino lumbered to his feet and called, “Kurt Eisen, come forward!”

  The rebel leader rose. The look of unflappable confidence showed signs of wear. His face paled and tensed and shoulders hunched with fatigue, looking suddenly old for one so young in form. Two dogs escorted him into the center of the chamber. He drew his figure very straight, meeting his accusers’ glares head-on. One had to admit; Kurt Eisen had class. Radu and Sergei’s heads leaned close together in conversation. A queasy sensation pitched my stomach. Would Li Cheng’s associates go back on their word and condemn Kurt to death? As much as I hated to admit it, the rebel moved me.

  Kalidasa called out names. One by one those five elders on the opposition side called for execution. Then Li Cheng took to his feet and voted in Kurt’s favor. To my vast relief the next three elders followed suit. Finally, it came to Radu. The Rumanian looked over Kurt in disgust. From his expression, I was sure he’d changed his mind and would vote against. Kalidasa called for his vote again.

  Radu shook his head and spat out his words. “Let the slave live.”

  Outrage burst forth from the other side of the hall. Kalidasa shrilled over the assembly. “I too cast my vote in favor of acquittal. The slave Kurt Eisen is released into his master’s custody. Let us move on to new business.”

  The Englishman Philip’s voice rose above the resulting roar. He took to his feet. “Gentleman—brothers all—Exalted Father—I wish to make a proposal to the council!”

  Kalidasa called for silence. The cries subsided into a grumbling. “What is your proposal, my son?”

  Philip stepped down from his place to stand next to Kurt, who barely reached his shoulder. The elder bowed to the chief. “I am no politician, nor am I skilled in business or knowledgeable in all the precepts of the code. Ruling an Immortyl house is an intricate affair that I am not worthy to undertake. I wish to abdicate my eldership in favor of one truly deserving.”

  Kalidasa knew very well what was coming, but he went through the motions as if he had no idea. “Such a proposal is unprecedented, but whom do you wish to recommend in your stead?”

  “This man Kurt Eisen that you call a slave is best suited to lead. Our late elder Brovik trained Kurt from a very young age to manage the affairs of our house. He is well versed with the code and our customs. He’s proven an effective leader and strategist in our recent conflict with Gaius Lupus.” More dissent went up from Balthasar’s side, but the Englishman shouted them down. “You acknowledge the sway he holds over the throng of cast-offs and runaways! To further preserve crucial peace among us, I strongly recommend you invest him in name with the power he already holds in fact over three thousand!”

  Balthasar shot up from his seat. “There is no precedent for a slave to change status!”

  Philip snatched up a sheaf of paper his counselor handed him and waved it. “There is nothing in the code forbidding this. We have rules for the transfer of slaves, rules forbidding them to give the blood to mortals, rules for compensating the master in a wrongful abduction or death, but nowhere does it say that a slave’s status cannot be raised. My counselor has scoured every word, every article and all that stands in Kurt’s way is thousands of years of custom.”

  Every head turned to the American Chase Powers, who sat cool and collected behind his assortment of documents. Nothing like a clever attorney to uncover what a crafty statesman like Li Cheng had purposefully neglected to include. I almost laughed out loud.

  Li Cheng called out, “I support this proposal!” Outright howls went up. “Hear me! In view of this, I also propose territorial boundaries be re-drawn, dividing what was formerly held by Brovik and Gaius equally among the elders whose lands touch these.”

  Balthasar jumped to his feet. “And where will the boy hold court with his horde of rats—Hong Kong perhaps?”

  “We designate the North American continent Kurt Eisen’s provisional territory. In return he must allow free access, without tribute, and provide sanctuary for those known as sewer rats, to create a refuge where they can live in peace rather than wallow in discontent and violence that endangers our security.”

  Balthasar shook his head in disbelief. “And create an inducement for our slaves to run away and build a massive force there against us all?”

  Li Cheng waved away the resulting mutters. “Of course, he must agree to pay fair market value for their freedom if they do run away.”

  A slow smile came over Balthasar, but Kurt’s face blanched. This codicil could prove expensive for the rebels. I was sure their leader didn’t want this added expense on top of caring for and arming his followers. It dawned on me that this part of the proposition might just have been crafted with this in mind. Keep the messiah poor in order to prevent him supplying cash and weapons to would-be adherents. Not a bad way of gutting the revolution before it happened. The others put their heads together and ruminated over the idea.

  Kalidasa stepped in after a moment. “That is reasonable compensation, and it allows us to rid ourselves of the troublesome elements among us. Kurt Eisen—what do you say to this?”

  The rebel took a knee before the chief. “Exalted Father, I’m greatly honored that you and these esteemed gentlemen would consider me worthy of this awesome responsibility—one that I will uphold to the best of my ability. I assure you that it’s not my desire to
make war on fellow Immortyls, or to violate their sacred rights to property and commerce. I wholeheartedly agree that any loss of property should be fairly compensated, and under my leadership there will be no impairment of any kind of their right to do business—provided it is transacted within the mortal law of the land.”

  Balthasar grew livid. “You have no right to make such demands on us.”

  Kurt stood and turned to him. “Esteemed gentlemen, as Lord Liu has wisely said: ‘In these uncertain days, it is of the utmost importance that our activities not attract undue attention from mortal authorities.’ There is much wealth in legitimate enterprises. For the good of us all I must insist on this condition.”

  Balthasar gestured to his fellows. “And when we travel within your dominion, would our slaves still be within our jurisdiction?”

  “I will not interfere with the sanctity of your households, yet if any slave comes to me seeking asylum, I will grant it.”

  Li Cheng sank back into his chair and spoke to Amun, the elder sitting to his left, “I would be greatly ashamed if any member of my household felt so abused that he or she would feel the need to seek asylum.”

  I was proud to be Li Cheng’s friend, but then the Balthasar cheapened the moment. “Let’s see what he says when ‘thrice his weight in gold’ over there runs off to America.”

  They all laughed. Even Li Cheng chuckled. “I’d be willing to make a wager, my friend, considering the odds are so favorable to me.”

  Balthasar placed the flat of his hand over the place where a heart should be. “If only I could persuade you to part with the lovely Xin Yan.”

  “That is where you and I differ, brother. I honor her as the daughter of my blood, whereas you view her as mere property. I’d give up my trade rights to Indonesia before I’d put her up for a wager. Let’s say against your collection of writings rescued from the burning of the Great Library of Alexandria.”

  “I’ll take that bet, but only if you bring ‘thrice his weight in gold’ for a visit soon.”