Haydn of Mars

by Al Sarrantonio

  “Take pleasure in the feeling, young Haydn,” he had said to me, snatching me from the throne even as I became comfortable, and setting me on the floor, “and pray that you, or anyone else, never feels it again. It is the mark of death–”

  Barely two months after that day, my father lay dead in a pool of his own blood, victim of an assassin’s dagger...

  Jamie’s fingers were curled around my arm, hurrying me on.

  “We must go--”

  “Kaylan–” I said again.

  “I beg you once more not to go home,” Jamie answered. “There is a safe house waiting, and transportation out of Wells.”

  “As I said, I will go home first.”

  Something hardened in his eyes. “Very well.”

  Overhead an airship passed, its sleek ovoid shape, painted blood red, slicing the sky. Something small and black dropped from it as it floated over the city, and a moment later there was a flash of light brighter than daylight, followed by a thudding boom that I felt in my chest. This was followed by a rising mushroom of gray-white smoke.

  “That was the Hall of Assembly,” Jamie said, in shocked awe.

  My gaze drifted back to the clock tower, the throne room above it. “She won’t need the Hall, now that she is Queen.”

  “She is not the true Queen.”

  I ignored his comment.

  We moved quickly. My thoughts were only of my husband now. We reached the city’s outskirts, and then suddenly left Wells behind. I glanced back to see the lazy black smoke of new fires dotting the pink city behind us. I turned away. I had walked this road a thousand times, which led to the highlands above Wells; its cobblestones were well known to my steps. But now the climb was a long one.

  “A final time I beg you–” Jamie began, as we topped the rise that led to the scattering of homes overlooking the far plain of Noachis Terra. It was one of the most beautiful of all places on this part of Mars to live, and my steps became faster when my home, wide and serene, magnificent among the few homes up here, rose into view.

  As we reached the black wrought iron front gate Jamie tried to stop me once more, but I pushed him aside and went through, my ears barely registering the familiar creak of the rusted hinges. In my nostrils was the faint hot smell of midday dust – and something else...

  Incongruously, and though my throat was dry, I longed at that moment for a cigarette.

  All was silence, and the front door stood wide open. Inside there was a greater silence and I found Kaylan in our sleeping chamber, on his side, seemingly asleep with his face away from me. It was only when I approached that I saw the stains of red at his throat.

  Jamie was there to steady me, and whispered in my ear, “You must come now. I feel Frane will change her mind and have you killed before we can get you away...”

  I stood still, even as he clutched me, and then I moved closer to the bed, bending gently to kiss Kaylan, feeling the soft brush of his whiskers on my face.

  “I am so sorry,” I whispered gently, so that Jamie could not hear me. “So sorry I did not love you more...”

  I stood then and turned, and let Jamie lead me away from that place.

  Three

  Somewhere in darkness–

  I awoke with my back aching and a cramp in my side. For a moment I feared for my litter, and brought my hand across my swollen belly. But the moment of fear passed and I realized that my back ache and cramp were due to the sleeping position I had been forced to assume in the hollow, dark, close false bottom of the wine wagon that bore me. I could hear the red liquid sloshing against the rounded sides of the huge cask above me, and the faint smell of tannin tickled my nostrils.

  As I was instructed, I gave a rap on the side of my prison, counted to four and gave another rap.

  There was no answer, and for a moment a new kind of panic filled me. What if the wagon had been waylaid or we had been found out–

  To my relief, an answering, resounding thwack sounded on the outside of the cask, just above my head.

  The wagon slowed, and then stopped. In another moment I felt the vehicle shiver as the driver debarked.

  There was a faint grunt and then a square of darkness opened in front of me, letting in cold night air.

  “You require something?” a gruff, obescient voice said. The face was ravaged, one eye socket empty, a missing ear, a long, deep scar, even in the darkness visible like a dark paint stroke from the scalp to the lip line.

  “No, Xarr, I only wish to inquire about our progress.”

  “We have been stopped twice. Once at the city gates, a thorough search, and again by F’rar henchmen, on the road between Wells and Bradbury. The second time they were interested only in the wine.”

  I saw him smile, his head haloed by distant pinpoints of stars.

  “And you, Xarr?”

  The smile widened. “I am interested only in the wine, too.”

  “Ah. That accounts for your breath.”

  I heard movement, and Jamie’s sleek head appeared beside the driver’s.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked anxiously. “I was nearly a kilo ahead before I turned back–”

  “Nothing’s wrong, Jamie. I merely needed to know our progress, and to stretch my aching back. I would like to get out for a few minutes if possible. The curved bottoms of these carriers are most uncomfortable, especially for one carrying a litter.”

  The young page’s voice became even more anxious. “We cannot stop here. And you cannot leave your hiding spot. We are still in much danger. There may be F’rar watching us from the hills. We could be accosted again at any moment–”

  “I understand. It was wrong of me. Then we must proceed at once.”

  Almost before I had said the words, Jamie nodded, and the square of night was closed up. I heard Xarr climb with an oof back up to his seat. In a moment the wagon rolled on.

  I curled first one way, then another, but could not find comfort.

  I thought of my own selfishness, and of the many others like me who now lay dead in the streets of Wells. Parterine and Colin, my father’s old friends, and so many others...

  Seeking to cure my aching back, I thought of my own dead husband, his throat cut as casually as if he had been a slaughtered chicken.

  I thought of all these things, and then, finally, I slept.

  This time, when the square was removed it was filled with brilliant sunlight.

  Jamie’s face appeared, less anxious.

  “How do you feel this morning?”

  “I would like to throw up,” I answered honestly.

  Then, mustering as much dignity as I could, I leaned out of the opening and did so in front of my page.

  To his credit, he merely stepped back, then waited patiently for me to finish.

  “It must be hard bearing...”

  I let him help me from the hiding place. “It was not morning sickness, Jamie.” I waved a paw back at my former prison, which, I now saw, was even more decrepit than I had thought. “It was the damned smell of bad wine...”

  “Good wine!” the gruff voice of Xarr chimed in, and now I saw the ravaged-faced cat approaching us unsteadily on two feet.

  “You drink too much of your own wares,” I said.

  “If you looked like me,” he laughed, brushing a paw across the ruined left side of his face, “you would do the same!” He stood regarding me with an amused look. “So this is little Haydn...”

  Jamie interceded. “That’s enough, general.” He moved toward the vintner, who merely brushed him aside with a swipe of a paw.

  At the utterance of the word ‘general’ my attention focused more sharply on the ravaged-faced cat.

  “Let me finish, whelp,” the vintner said to my page.

  Jamie, finding himself on the ground, was about to speak when Xarr looked down at him, his eyes hardening.

  “I said let me finish.”

  Jamie was silent, and Xarr looked back up at me. His face was an unreadable mixture of drunkenness, cunning, cruel
ty, and a dozen other emotions lost in his ugliness.

  “These,” he said, brushing his paw along the line of his scar, even more horrific – a red, deep welt turned over on itself in its bad healing – from his lips up past his missing eye and lost ear, “I earned for your father.” His voice suddenly became even and cold. He tweaked his nose, his other eye, other ear. “I would lose the rest for you. That is all I have to say.”

  Abruptly, he turned and staggered away, leaving me open-mouthed and Jamie standing once again, brushing himself off.

  “That was General Xarr Fealdon?” I said in wonder. “I had no idea...”

  Jamie said, “Xarr is a common name. I thought you knew.”

  “I thought he was long dead. I last saw him the day my father was murdered. He disappeared...”

  “He did not disappear. He was thrown out of his generalship and joined up with us. Many old friends of your father are with us. We are well prepared.”

  “It’s time you told me everything, Jamie.”

  “Soon,” he said. “There are others you must see.”

  As if on cue, the camp we found ourselves in came alive. I noticed that the tents had been pitched on a high, flat bluff, surrounded on all sides by miles of semi-desert. There was one road in, a gentle slope with no cover to either side. In the distance the rim of a crater glowed like a wall against the early sun. The sky was pink and clear and cold.

  I thought immediately how vulnerable this place would be from the airships.

  “We have spotters in the distant hills, and anti-air batteries at the four horizons,” a strong, clear voice said behind me.

  I turned to see someone I knew – someone I had known –

  “Kerl...”

  “You shouldn’t whisper,” he said, smiling. “Your whisper makes me feel as if I am still far away from you.”

  “Kerl...”

  I felt suddenly lightheaded, and had the horrible, distinct impression that I would collapse into my own vomit–

  There were strong hands on me as I fainted, and I heard Kerl order, “Take her to my tent.”

  Then, again, I slept.

  I awoke with the image of the sun burning through the tent overhead.

  Late afternoon, I judged by its height.

  I felt rested, and refreshed. The cushions beneath me were as soft as the bottom of the wine cask had been hard. Scented petals floated in a water bowl on the floor nearby. An overhead fan, its blades made of red junto wood, turned lazy and slow in one corner, moving the dusty air.

  The tent flap was thrown aside, and Kerl was there.

  He had not been a dream after all...

  “I waited for you to rouse,” he said.

  He entered, and let the flap fall behind him.

  He was taller than his brother, and broader. Where Kaylan had been elegant and slim, his younger brother was solid as stone. His mane was thick and luxurious, his features chiseled but saved from hardness by a soft mouth. I had been in love with him nearly my whole life.

  “It was cruel, the way you left,” I said simply, holding his gaze.

  “When my brother was picked–”

  “Over your mother’s objections, and your brother’s own,” I reminded him.

  “True. But my father, as usual, got his way...” His gaze drifted off for a moment.

  “Yes. And he paid for it with his life, along with many other senators.”

  “True again. But he led me to understand that there were reasons why I must leave when I did.”

  Some of my evident hardness melted. “Then it wasn’t your idea?”

  He looked at me levelly. “No. But there was more going on than you ever knew, Haydn. This usurpation by Frane was coming for a long time. The republic was doomed the day your father was assassinated.”

  “And I was naive enough to think I could help keep the republic together.”

  I noticed that he had not taken a step closer to me.

  I could contain my anger no longer. “And you left without saying a word to me!”

  “It had to be done. Already there were plots within plots. When you married my brother, it was already evident the republic would fail, and the monarchy would return. Our goal was to make sure you became Queen, not Frane. You are the legitimate heir to the throne. We needed time to ensure that.”

  “Then my happiness was sacrificed to buy you time?” My voice rose to a near hysterical pitch.

  He took the verbal blows and stood unbowed. “Yes,” he said. “Your marriage to my brother was a bandage to keep the republic together for another year.” He looked away. “But it still wasn’t long enough.”

  “And you and I–”

  His voice dropped to a whisper, and he took a step back. “You and I...”

  He turned quickly and was through the flap before I could utter another word.

  When I emerged from the tent, washed and composed, twenty minutes later I was told that Kerl was gone, had ridden by horse to check the northern fortifications. The day was lowering toward twilight, and the camp was readying for the night. I counted a few more than forty heads, and there were fewer tents than there had been earlier in the day.

  “Are we breaking camp?” I asked Jamie, who appeared next to me like a shadow. The cook fires had been started, and the succulent odor of roasting poultry filled the air. I suddenly realized how long it had been since I had eaten.

  “No. The camp is splitting. You and I will stay here for one more day at least.”

  At my table Jamie seated me and then moved off, making way for Xarr, who seemed to rise out of the twilight like a fat spirit.

  He sat down opposite me, a little unsteadily.

  “Tasting your wares again, general?” I asked, with amusement, and a great deal more respect than I had previously shown when I thought he was just a drunken vintner.

  He grinned. “My lady, I am properly potted most hours of most days. Occupational hazard, I’m afraid.” His face momentarily darkened. “The things I’ve seen in the last two years...”

  A steward appeared with a flagon, and filled Xarr’s cup and then attempted to fill mine.

  “Is that the same stuff that came out of Xarr’s wagon?” I asked.

  He bowed slightly. “It is, Ma’am. We’ve been looking forward to its delivery.”

  I kept my paw over my cup. “Having lived with it in such close quarters, I’ll forgo.”

  “As you wish.”

  He bowed again, and started to move off, until Xarr grabbed his arm and removed the flagon from it.

  “Leave it with me,” he said, and the steward started to protest. He thought better of it when the general growled loudly at him.

  Xarr chuckled hoarsely as the shaken servant made off.

  Seriously, I said, “Tell me where you have been, Xarr.”

  “Me?” he said, feigning levity. “Why, I’ve been to the North, the East, the West, just about everywhere, little Haydn.”

  I patted my bulging middle. “Certainly not little anymore.”

  “You’ll always be little Haydn to me,” he said. “When you were just a kit, I remember you never wanted to frolic like the others. Always wanted to learn the sword, or history.”

  “I’m afraid we’ve had too much history lately, Xarr.”

  He leaned forward, and I knew for sure now that behind the veil of insobriety the same hard, solid man I had known when young still resided. “Not nearly enough history, you mean. Not by a long shot.”

  “What do you mean?”

  He leaned back, and tilted his cup to his lips. He belched. His look was hooded and grave. “I’ve watched you from afar, I have,” he said. “All your machinations and speechifying in Assembly. I watched it and studied it. We all did.”

  “While I bought time for you?” I said, recalling my conversation with Kerl and letting some bitterness leak through.

  “That’s right,” he said. He paused to drink again. “And you made very fine speeches, you did.” He chuckled grimly. “Complete
ly useless, but, yes, very fine.”

  My anger rose, but he continued, ignoring it. “Your father, before he was murdered, got what he wanted, as he often did. He was the finest man I ever knew. And, when he abdicated, he made sure that the monarchy was replaced by something better for the people, and without a drop of blood being spilled, except, eventually, his own.

  “But he was wrong in thinking that it would work. He had brought it on too soon. We tried to tell him, but he wouldn’t listen. The clans weren’t ready for it, and neither were the common people, who only think in terms of clan, anyway. While he was alive no one dared say anything against him. But after he was butchered, those of us who knew the republic were doomed began to work to see that if the monarchy was reinstated, the legitimate line continued and you were crowned Queen.”

  He pointed at my food. “You aren’t eating, little Haydn.”

  Suddenly, I was no longer hungry. The odor of burnt poultry made me want to vomit again.

  “Go on,” I said.

  Xarr paused to eat a bit, and drink much. “I see I have your attention. So, where was I?”