by J J Moriarty
“Very well, let’s begin this trial”, Protakyrios Vorska said.
But Hyzou shook his head. Murmurs broke out among the Archai.
“You don’t want to begin the trial?” Protakyrios Vorska said.
“I admit my guilt. All you have, no doubt, is some garbled word from Servants in the field. I could argue against that case, and I could well be successful. But I’m not ashamed of what I did. I used my Qi to take control of the Lamyblan rulers in the city of Piquea, froze all eighty of them, then executed every single one”, Hyzou said.
Loud murmurings broke out throughout the auditorium. The jeers began again. A chant had broken out too.
“Dead man… Dead man… Dead man…”
“WAIT”, Hyzou shouted, raising his hands into the air.
Silence fell.
“Before you execute me, you have one other piece of business to deal with”, Hyzou said.
Hyzou paused, adding emphasis.
“Which is?” Yan asked.
“I challenge for the role of Protakyrios”, Hyzou said.
At this, an apoplectic noise broke out. Everyone jumped to their feet and began screaming and shouting. Most of the shouts were aimed at Hyzou.
Protakyrios Yan’s face had turned the colour of hatred. She stood.
“Challenge? What right have you to challenge? Mid-term challenges may only happen when Uqing faces grave danger”, Protakyrios Yan said.
“The Kheme Empire has declared war upon us” Hyzou said.
Doubt clouded Protakyrios Yan’s face, but it disappeared as quickly as it came.
“And who will nominate you? You need fifteen Archaiers to nominate you for your delusions of grandeur”, Protakyrios Yan said.
Hyzou remembered, of course, what Sparrow had told him about the whisperings in Uqing. A group of Archaiers unhappy with the current neutrality with Lamybla. He hoped that there were more than fifteen of them that felt strongly enough about the subject to risk their lives nominating him.
Say it. Hyzou thought.
“If I am Protakyrios, I promise to bring total war to Pharaoh Ganymedes’ door”, Hyzou said. “I will not rest until he has been killed, until our armies are inside the Sun Tower. He wants war, he’s always wanted war, and if I become Protakyrios, I shall bring him a war.”
The noise in the auditorium blew over again, the shouts echoing off the high roof. Hyzou waited for it to fall quiet again.
“Who will nominate me?” Hyzou asked.
Barely more than twenty hands were raised. They all belonged to the strangest of Archaiers, individuals with magical talent, but who wouldn’t be trusted near any position of power.
A coalition of idiots. Hyzou thought.
But that was better than no coalition at all. Protakyrios Yan looked around at all those who had nominated Hyzou and smiled. She was thinking exactly what Hyzou was, that to run he would need to choose a fellow Protakyrios to challenge with him. If he picked any of the twenty who had nominated him he would be guaranteed to lose the election.
“Very well. Speeches can be held tomorrow morning, and tomorrow evening and night will be the vote itself”, Protakyrios Yan said.
Protakyrios Vorska leaned forwards.
“Yan, wait”, Protakyrios Vorska said.
But Protakyrios Yan wasn’t listening.
“You must inform the Archai who your fellow challenger will be for the role of Protakyrios. You must tell us now, if the election is to be tomorrow”, Protakyrios Yan said, a smirk on her face. “So come, Hyzou of Nuyin, tell us who you’ll be running with.”
“Yan, seriously”, Vorska said.
“I’ll rule with the boy.”
The voice was soft, and from the bench furthest back in the auditorium. He had spoken at just the right second, because a silence had fallen straight after the Protakyrios finished her pronouncement, and the soft voice rang through the auditorium.
Everyone turned to look for its source, Hyzou included.
From behind the crowds, the grey-haired head of Sparrow poked up.
“It will be my fourth term as Protakyrios, and more than likely my last. But I’ll run to rule with the boy, yes. The future of the Servants is to follow Hyzou, I believe that with all my heart, and I’ll do my duty in any way necessary to see that future become reality”, Sparrow said.
This time the shock was so profound that the usual wave of shouts never came. The Archai had finally been silenced.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
“When, Hyzou of Nuyin, will you stop abusing our good will?” Protakyrios Vorska said.
Cheers broke out throughout the Archai.
“When will it be enough for you? The seventy dead in Piquea, the whole of Uqing alive with worry, the entirety of the Archai in sitting, war with Pharaoh Ganymedes. Can’t you see, when all this is the consequences of your actions, that you’re not behaving normally?” Protakyrios Vorska said.
Cheers followed that statement, louder than the last.
“When did you get the idea? When did you become so drunk from your own ambition, that you would tear the world apart to see your position improved? Don’t worry, Hyzou of Nuyin, the Archai sees what you’ve done, and we, the Protakyrios, see too. We understand you, and what you propose. Every span of years there arises a Servant who sees himself as a conqueror, who cares not for Uqing, but only for himself and his own ambitions. Such men and women have always threatened the ruin of Uqing and do so today as well.”
“You broke your oath. There was once such virtue in this city, that the Servants of Qi would rather die than disobey their vows. Everyone in this room vowed to uphold those promises, and to do that, you cannot side with this pretender, Hyzou of Nuyin. He broke his vows, and he must be punished.”
“And why did he break them? For his own, personal, ambition. He murdered the rulers of Piquea, so he could take their place as King, and now he seeks to depose us. He has shown a willingness to dispose of those who stand in the way of his absolute power. If you don’t stop him now, you will be the next victim of this demagogue’s lust for blood. He’s a madman, and now, we are witnessing no more than the birth of a tyrant”, Protakyrios Vorska said.
Protakyrios Vorska bowed and stepped off the pedestal. There were a lot of people standing, applauding her. More than three hundred in any case, but Hyzou was surprised by the amount of people that were silent, waiting for Hyzou to speak.
Hyzou stood and began the awkward descent to the pedestal. Boos rang out in his ears and he reached the ground and got onto the pedestal.
You only need two hundred and ninety-six votes. Hyzou thought.
Hyzou cleared his throat. Silence descended on the Archai.
“Our valiant Protakyrios gave a whole speech, yet managed to tell us nothing”, Hyzou said.
The silence was maintained.
“What kind of leader is it, that ignores the most important fact of life in Uqing? War. We’re at war. The Pharaoh is at war with us, and he’s planning to invade, to annex Uqing as part of his new Empire”, Hyzou said.
“What do your Protakyrios plan to do to save you from him? Have they made any preparations?” Hyzou said.
With that, he pointed to the two of them.
“You have known. For five years now you have known. Pharaoh Ganymedes has long planned to conquer the world. You saw him become the first man in memory to unify the three Kheme cities. For years now, you’ve known, and what have you done? Traded with him. Instead of preparing for invasion, you’ve given him iron and jewels and medicine and food”, Hyzou said.
Protakyrios Yan’s face was spasming slightly.
“If we found out that the two Protakyrios are agents of the Pharaoh, I wouldn’t be surprised. If I hadn’t acted, they might have waited another five years and done nothing while the Pharaoh prepared an attack. We could have been prepared, could have built ourselves up for war, could have made defences. Instead, we did nothing. Protakyrios Yan and Protakyrios Vorska have, for the entirety of their term
s, done nothing but given Pharaoh Ganymedes everything he wants. They’re incompetent”, Hyzou said.
Murmurs broke out among the Archai. Hyzou waited for them to quieten before he spoke again.
“Protakyrios Vorska has painted me as some kind of tyrant, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Everything I do, I do it in service of Uqing. This is my home and my sanctuary. Everyone I love is here, and I would do anything to ensure that the city lasts for another thousand generations”, Hyzou said. “So I had to take action.”
“MURDERER!” Someone shouted from the back of the hall.
The voice shushed.
“No, no. He’s quite right” Hyzou said. “I did kill a lot of people, and I don’t deny it. But I put it to you that my actions that night in Piquea are exactly why I should be elected as Protakyrios. You see, they were actions. I acted. Something foreign to our current Protakyrios.”
“I knew the war was coming. When you think about it, everyone did. Pharaoh Ganymedes is a few short months away from conquering Drascia entirely. We were next. You know that”, Hyzou said.
“Now, in warfare, Uqing has always had a weakness. We’ve never had the numbers. In the Anarchy, and in major wars even earlier than that, we relied upon alliances to fight enemies, along with defence. But we’ll be surrounded this time and fighting a Kheme Empire with nearly bottomless resources. They’ll keep coming, and we’ll pay in blood, alone and friendless. All because our Protakyrios didn’t act sooner.”
“Well I acted sooner. I acted and earned us a valuable ally right in the heart of the Kheme Empire. Now we have the one thing Uqing has always lacked, numbers”, Hyzou said. “That is, if you make me your Protakyrios. Then, the alliance between Uqing and Piquea will be confirmed. But I must be elected.”
Hyzou paused and adjusted his grey cloak.
“Even if none of what I said were true though, and all you were making your decision on was your worry for the future, only the fools among you would vote for our current Protakyrios. We are at war and will be engaged in battle by the time the year has ended. Ask yourselves, who is it you want to lead you into a war? Who do you trust to be the saviour of Uqing?” Hyzou asked.
“Protakyrios Vorska just told you all that the first thing she’ll do if she wins is to execute me. I’m the most powerful warrior you have, yet she would have me executed while we’re at war. So I’ll be gone, if you choose Protakyrios Vorska. Both Protakyrios Vorska and Protakyrios Yan have never served in the mercenary corps despite their age. They have never fought in a war, and during the Anarchy helped tend to Uqing. Practically every Servant of Qi was forced into battle during the Anarchy, yet you will be led into a war for the survival of Uqing by two who have never killed in their life. What do they know of war?” Hyzou said. “They have shown time and time again that they will acquiesce to the wishes of Pharaoh Ganymedes. They will not fight him until they must, and by then it will be too late. The path of Protakyrios Vorska and Yan leads only to your doom.”
“Then there’s Hyzou. They put me forward as some ambitious madman, but I tell you I stand before you only seeking to serve. I am the only living man who has ever killed a Colossus, and I’m the only man that Pharaoh Ganymedes fears. Five years ago, after I was victorious, he offered me the chance to become a Kyrios in his court, to lead his armed forces. I refused and came here, to my beloved home, Uqing. Pharaoh Ganymedes would have chosen me to lead his armies, he was so confident in my abilities. I stand before you ready to serve with those same abilities and in response you want to see me executed?”
“To kill me would be madness. Your only hope lies with electing me Protakyrios. You are all wise, and I do trust you, but if you opt for the safety and comfort offered by Protakyrios Yan and Protakyrios Vorska, you’ll have no one to blame but yourselves when this city lies in ruin. Thousands of years the Servants have survived, and that will end within the next five unless I am elected.”
“Instead, I promise you victory. We will ride in alliance with Piquea and wage open war on the Pharaoh. The two cities, together, can topple the power of the Sun Tower. Once the Pharaoh is dead, Uqing can return to splendid isolation, and we will be safe for the next century. It’s a risk, siding with me. But now is the time to strike! The Pharaoh is fighting on three fronts and expects us to allow him to deal with the other two while we wait among the mountains. We’ll do no such thing. Bring the northern front to him, and we could have him defeated in five years. Then, there will be peace. And so you see, I am the only true candidate standing before you offering you peace, because my opponents will offer you nothing but suffering”, Hyzou said.
Applause rang out among the hall. Hyzou was surprised by how loud it was. How many had joined in.
When it finally died down, the doors into the auditorium were opened. Five Servants walked into the room, all carrying large cloth sacks. They stood by the door, each Servant supervising the other to prevent fraud.
Hyzou reached into his pocket and took out the small piece of wax and the thin stick he’d been handed walking into the room. He carved the first symbol of his name into the piece of wax. He walked over to the Servants at the door and placed it into a bag. He was the first Archaier to vote.
Hyzou left the antechamber and came out onto the street outside. There were crowds here, waiting to hear how the speeches went. Some cheered when Hyzou walked through them, but most booed him.
Other Archaiers left the building and followed Hyzou out onto the street. Soon the crowd lost interest in Hyzou. The air was abuzz with everyone talking about the speeches and the permutations of the vote.
Two hundred and ninety-six votes. Hyzou thought.
A small hand grabbed his wrist. Hyzou looked around, to see who it was, then looked down at his feet. Marrea was smiling up at him. She’d lost a lot of teeth since Hyzou had seen her last. Her head had been shaved too. She was dressed in the training garb all young pupils wore.
“Hello, Archaier Hyzou”, Marrea said.
“Marrea. Look at you”, Hyzou said.
“We’ve been waiting for you”, Marrea said.
“Who’s we?” Hyzou asked.
Marrea turned and pointed to the figure behind her. Safia was dressed in the grey cloak and robes of the Servants of Qi. Hyzou hadn’t recognised her because she was wearing her hood up.
“You got your robes”, Hyzou said.
“I was still in my stable gear yesterday”, Safia said.
She did a twirl in front of him. She looked awkward doing it.
“You look great”, Hyzou said.
“Thank you. How was your speech?” Safia asked.
Hyzou looked around at the crowd surrounding them. He was a politician now, he couldn’t speak so freely.
“Come on, let’s go back to Sparrow’s house”, Hyzou said. “I stayed there last night.”
So they set off, south through the city.
“Snows should clear soon”, Hyzou said.
“They expect a warm summer. Horses should get plenty of feed”, Safia said.
“Is it true you murdered a hundred people?” Marrea said.
“Marrea! I warned you”, Safia said.
Marrea shied away from her bigger sister.
“Sorry, it’s just what everyone keeps saying”, Marrea said.
“Hyzou is an Archaier, you can’t just…” Safia began
“Safia, it’s fine. Marrea and I are friends”, Hyzou said.
“See”, Marrea said, sticking her tongue out her mouth to her big sister.
Safia glared at Marrea.
“I don’t know what everyone is saying about me Marrea, but I killed people, yes”, Hyzou said.
Marrea’s eyes widened.
“It’s true?” She asked.
“In your teaching, have you done any combat yet?” Hyzou asked.
Marrea nodded.
“Every day we have classes with the sword”, Marrea said.
“What do you think your sword is for?” Hyzou asked.
&n
bsp; “Fighting?” Marrea offered.
Hyzou shook his head. He drew his sword.
“These are built to kill people”, Hyzou said.
Marrea looked surprised.
“A Servant of Qi must kill people, it’s part of their job”, Hyzou said.
Marrea frowned.
Hyzou continued.
“But don’t worry, killing is only a small part of a Servants job. If you want, once you become a Servant, you can choose a job that involves no killing at all”, Hyzou said.
“I think that I’d rather a job that has no killing”, Marrea said.
“Then you won’t become a soldier like me”, Hyzou said.
A silver haired cat ran out ahead of them in the street. Marrea screamed with delight and sprinted after the feline. There was no one around to hear what Hyzou said now.
“The speeches went better than I could have expected”, Hyzou said.
“Really?” Safia said.
“They didn’t know what they were doing, Protakyrios Vorska kept on acting like the election is about me. About whether people like me or not”, Hyzou said.
“People do like you Hyzou”, Safia said.
“Some people do. Some really, really don’t. But that’s not the point I’m making. I’m just saying that Protakyrios Vorska seems to want the Archaiers to think about how much they dislike me and vote accordingly. They barely mentioned the war”, Hyzou said.
“Is it real, the war? It’s all anyone’s talking about”, Safia said.
“Everyone’s talking about it but Protakyrios Vorska and Yan. They wanted to start dealing with it as soon as my trial was over. But I spoke about it, I told the Archai that the current Protakyrios weren’t soldiers, and couldn’t lead us into war. I criticised their actions in relation to the Pharaoh, made out that they were responsible for his rise”, Hyzou said.
“Did it work?” Safia asked.
Hyzou shrugged.
“Sparrow and I worked on it all night. Our hope is that enough of the Archai will not really care about anything that happened before yesterday. They have two choices, the Protakyrios who haven’t fought a battle in their life, signed the original alliance with Pharaoh Ganymedes, and want to execute the best soldier Uqing has. Or there’s me, the best soldier Uqing has, who promises total war and the salvation of Uqing”, Hyzou said.