Gods & Dragons: 8 Fantasy Novels

by Daniel Arenson

  The blond girl smiled and winked at Salick and Garet. She led the two Blues out of the hall, Dorict trying to finish his bread on the run.

  Relict turned towards the two remaining Banes. “I’m afraid that you two will have something more interesting to do than go on patrol,” he told them. Standing up, he motioned them to do the same. “You won’t be able to finish your meal. Master Branet wants to see you immediately.”

  Salick had already risen and was tugging on Garet’s sleeve to get him to follow. Relict nodded at them and said, “Good luck to both of you. I approve of the Masters’ choice for this mission, having had the pleasure of seeing you two work together.” He smiled, the scratches left by the Crawler Demon still visible on the left side of his face. Signalling to more Banes on his way out, he left to organize his patrol.

  “And to think that I once thought being a Bane was boring,” Garet said, shaking his head.

  Salick laughed. “All of us think that when we’re Blacks. With any luck, we’ll live long enough to be bored again.” But there was a light in her eyes, and Garet had to agree that he felt more excitement than fear. Very shortly, they stood in front of the Records room door, brushing the crumbs off their vests and sashes before knocking.

  A Gold opened the door and led them to the great table where Garet’s status as a Blue had been registered before turning and leaving the room. Branet sat behind the desk, a map of the city laid out before him. Pieces of paper lay on top of the map, some with lists of Banes and schedules of patrols, others with notations on supplies, and a few that Garet couldn’t decipher from his position across the table. Branet swept a portion of the map clear, revealing the Palace plaza. The semi-circular space had the outline of the Palace in purple ink and three blue dots to signify the Temple complex. A section on the east end was labelled “market” and each Ward gate had its number drawn beside it.

  “I hope you are both well-rested after last night’s excitement,” Branet said to them. He did not wait for an answer. “The skirmish with the King was not conclusive,” Branet said. He waved them to sit across from him and continued, “He was forced to retreat, but he will not surrender.” He looked at Salick for a moment, and she nodded.

  “The Ward Lords are not decided in their support,” he said. “Hallmaster Mandarack’s heightened patrols have reassured many that we have no intention of abandoning our duties, but they fear that we cannot deal with this change in the demons, even though they are not sure of what that change is.”

  He picked up a list of Banes and studied it. “We don’t have enough Banes in the Hall to continuously patrol every Ward,” he told them. “With the King’s help, we could have eyes in every part of the city, night and day. But first we must make peace with the Palace.” He looked at them, his mouth set. “That is why you must undertake a dangerous assignment. You two will go and see the King.”

  The words dropped into a profound silence; the stacks of papers and bound ledgers seemed to lean towards them, waiting for a reply. At first Garet did not believe his ears. See the King? Any sight of a Bane’s sash near the Palace would bring out a mob of Guards and Duelists, competing for the glory of killing them! He looked over at Salick. She was shaking her head, her eyes wide in disbelief.

  “Master!” she said. “How can you send us there? You know what will happen!”

  Branet held up his hand to stop her protest. “I know that it sounds dangerous, even foolhardy, but we believe that you can do it and return safely.” The calmness of his voice contrasted bizarrely with the outrageousness of his suggestion. With a thick finger, the Hallmaster traced the curved wall separating the Wards from the plaza. “All our patrols are shadowed by one or two guards when we patrol the Palace-side Wards. The only way we could get past them to the Palace without bloodshed would be to use the jewels again.” His mouth twisted at the thought. “But that would only increase Trax’s suspicions. We must make him understand that the real threat to this city does not come from the Banehall or even,” he added grimly, “from the King.”

  Garet nodded. “All the resources of Shirath are needed to counter this new demon, Master,” he said. “I can see that.” He turned to Salick. “Any Bane with sense can see that,” he added.

  Salick gave him a wry smile for his compliment. “But is it this new demon, this Caller that Garet spoke of?” she asked, looking at the Red.

  “The Hallmaster believes that it is,” Branet replied. “And it explains why my two Golds died so strangely.”

  Branet stopped for a minute and his hand clenched into a fist, crumpling the pages he held. He glanced down, opened his fingers and looked up at the two Banes.

  “It is a demon the South has not seen in centuries. Heaven knows how they survived it six-hundred years ago!” He dropped the list of Banes on the table. “Without Trax’s help, Shirath will become a city of the dead. We must make the King see this.”

  “But will the King understand?” Garet asked Branet. “The Banehall hides its knowledge, keeps it like a rich man keeps a treasure,” he explained. The big Bane listened carefully.

  “What if the King simply doesn’t have enough knowledge to make the right decision?” Garet asked, then stopped. He was sure that he was right, but was a little nervous at criticizing one man of authority to another.

  “Trax is no fool, Garet,” Salick said. “He’ll guess more than he’s told.” She turned to Branet. “What does Hallmaster Mandarack think of this?” she asked.

  Master Branet tapped the table between them with one beefy finger.

  “The Hallmaster does not agree with this, but he has been overruled by the other Masters.” He broke into a sudden, savage smile. “It has been a long time since we had a Hallmaster who would listen to the other Masters, even if he didn’t want to. We agreed on the need to send a message to the King, and, since Mandarack’s idea of going by himself is lunacy, you two are going to find a way to deliver it.”

  Garet stared at the Master, his thoughts spinning. Branet had still not said how they would even reach the King before being murdered by the Duelists or the King’s guards. How could they accomplish what he said Mandarack could not?

  Did he expect them to just walk up to the palace door and ask if Trax was receiving guests?

  Salick stood up and crossed her arms.

  “I know why you chose me, Master, but why Garet?”

  There was steel in Salick’s tone. She stood across the table from Master Branet, eyes narrowed. Garet wondered what would make her act so defiantly.

  Branet tapped the table again, harder. He growled out his answer, “He’s a curiosity, an outsider who can present Trax with an unbiased view.” He stood and hit the table again, this time with his fist. “Are you Banes? Do you question a Master’s commands? Keep still, learn from your betters and obey, Gold!”

  Garet stood up and moved beside Salick. “Like you obeyed Adrix a few days ago?” he asked. Part of him quailed at defying Branet, a man who in size and temperament resembled his father, but, after many so months in this Hall, he was tired of bullies.

  “All right, I agree that Trax might want to hear my ‘outsider’ viewpoint, even if he doesn’t believe it, but that doesn’t have anything to do with Salick, does it? Why does she have to risk her life?”

  Branet looked angry enough to break the table in half then throttle them both, but a voice from the door stopped him.

  “Master Branet, the vote went against me on this, but these Banes answer to me, not to you. Please restrain yourself,” Mandarack said. He stepped into the Records room, a puzzled Master Arict shuffling in behind him, her arms full of scrolls and ledgers.

  Branet grumbled back into his chair. “The vote went as it did because there is nothing else to do! We dance on the tip of a claw here, Mandarack. If we are to have a chance against this Caller Demon, we need to make peace with the King first, and remember, you are no stranger to desperate strategies.” He turned to the two young Banes standing between the two Masters.

&nbs
p; “There is only one question to answer; will you stand by and let the Banehall fall?”

  Garet held up his hand, trying to think it through. Branet was right about one thing, the situation with the King had to be settled first. They couldn’t face the demon if the King’s sword was at their back. And Trax might listen to him, at least in gratitude for ridding him of Adrix. He could understand that, but, despite what Branet said, there was still one more question to be answered.

  “Why Salick? Why would the King listen to her?”

  Branet shrugged and looked down at the table. “There’s her former status, of course, as the daughter of a ward lord, and there is her…personal history with Trax.”

  “My personal history?” Salick asked. The steel in her voice was now ice, and Branet didn’t reply.

  Mandarack stepped to her side and put his good hand on Salick’s shoulder. “I have told the other Masters of the dangers of this idea, and of the disrespect they show a fellow Bane by forcing you to face Trax again.” There was a real anger in his voice.

  Branet kept his gaze on the table top.

  Salick looked from Mandarack to Branet and then to Garet. Doubt showed in her eyes, but she pressed her lips together and nodded.

  “Very well, Master Branet, I will obey—not because of your rank, but because I do want to save this Hall.” She smiled, though her eyes remained narrowed. “Besides, seeing me will give Trax such a shock that Garet will at least get in a few words before the guards are summoned.”

  Branet let out a whoosh of air and stood again.

  “And besides,” Salick added, “I’m not letting him walk in there alone.”

  Garet shook his head. They had faced danger together before this, but what Branet was proposing seemed like suicide.

  The Red gathered some more papers and made to leave the room.

  “A moment, Master Branet,” Mandarack said. “You should witness this.”

  He held his hand out to the Records Master, and, after much fumbling, she placed a ledger in his hand.

  “Garet may be seen as an ‘outsider’ by some, but he proved himself to be a true Bane before he ever set foot in Shirath.” He opened the book to the first blank page and dipped a pen in an ink bottle.

  “I am promoting you to the rank of Green, although I’m afraid that you won’t be able to wear your new sash—or any sash—on tonight’s mission.” He entered the change into the book and left the page open on the table for the ink to dry.

  If Master Branet had any doubts about Garet’s promotion, he kept them to himself.

  “I suggest that you not wear the mechanicals’ clothes Marick and Dorict used earlier,” Mandarack said. “Lord Andarack has been arrested, and doubtless any mechanical will be stopped if he or she approaches the Palace.”

  Garet froze in the action of bending over to look at his name written in the book of promotions. Salick gasped, her hand going to her mouth.

  “Master,” she said. “Your brother! How did they…Trax wouldn’t dare arrest a Ward Lord without the Ward Council’s approval.”

  “I doubt they gave it,” Branet said. “The Duelists arrested him. They captured Gonect as well and freed Shoronict.” Mandarack gestured for Branet to open the door. He shook his head and said, “If any good may come of this, my brother’s capture should make the other lords see their only hope lies in restoring the balance between the Hall and the King, if only to protect themselves from the Duelists.” He motioned Arict to place the remaining records on the table and said to the two Banes, “Tell the King everything,” he said. “Garet is right. If Trax has all the information, he might make the right decision.”

  In the corridor outside the Records room, Salick looked at Garet, her eyes troubled. “I don’t like you going with me,” she told him.

  “And I don’t like you going with me!” he replied fiercely. “Why do you think that you’d be safer than I would?”

  “Trax won’t harm me!” she answered. “It’s more likely to be the other way around.” Her cheeks flushed and the scar was a thin line against the blush.

  “And what about Shoronict?” he shot back. “Or Draneck?” He reached up to touch her scar, but she pulled her head back out of reach, glaring at him.

  “All right!” she said. “Get killed, just to prove you’re a ‘true’ Bane.” She stepped back, hands on her hips.

  A passing Gold turned to look at them, and Garet took a breath to calm his own anger. “Salick, it’s not about proving anything. Branet is right; I might be the only Bane he would listen to,” he said. “You know him, that’s obvious, but will he trust you?”

  She didn’t reply at first, but her shoulders sagged a bit. “Probably not. Our last meeting wasn’t pleasant.”

  “But if I’m there, backing up your arguments with my Midland point of view, then we might succeed,” he continued, hands held out to her. “This is the most important thing we might ever do for the Banehall. If you think about it, it’s no more dangerous than the patrols are now, hunting for that strange demon and avoiding the guards and Duelists.”

  She took his hands and answered him, her eyes shining. “I know. I know all that, Garet. It’s just that I don’t want to risk losing you.” Her voice trembled, and she looked around, embarrassed, but the Gold had wisely continued on her errand.

  “And I don’t want to lose you,” he said, his voice low but fierce. “But I must be true to myself, as well as true to you, now that I’m beginning to know who I am.”

  She sniffed a little and asked, “Who are you then?”

  He smiled. “The crow who escaped the cage. A fatherless son. A Bane, which is a greater and stranger thing then I ever could have imagined.” He took her hand. “And your friend, which is also a greater and stranger thing then I ever could have imagined.” He watched her smile. “And the man who will one day marry you.” He waited for her reaction.

  “Marry?” she said, her voice soft. “Oh Garet, that’s so far away. Banes don’t marry until they become Masters.” She saw his disappointment and rushed to continue. “But that doesn’t mean that…claws! I’m not doing this well, am I?” She pulled him into an embrace. “Of course we’ll marry! There’s no one else I could stand…I mean that I love…Oh, you know what I mean,” she said, hugging him tightly.

  She then held him off to examine his face. “What’s wrong?” she asked, seeing his somber expression.

  “I wish we could get married sooner, tonight,” he said.

  “Garet,” she said, confused, “there will be time. It’s best to wait until we can share quarters as Masters and have more control over our lives. Why rush into it?”

  “Because Master Mandarack made me a Green tonight,” he replied.

  “But that’s a great honour! You’ve only been a Blue for such a short time. No one advances that quickly,” she replied. “And besides, what does that have to do with when we should marry?”

  “It may have much to do with how much time we have left,” he replied. “Why would he give it to me so quickly, unless he feared that it might be his only chance to do so?”

  Salick had no answer. Silently, she led him to the front doors to see if they could catch Marick and ask him if he knew of anyone or anything that could help them in this mad plan.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  THE KING’S CHAMBERS

  “No dearies, it won’t do,” Mistress Alanick told them. “You’ll be stopped and gutted before you get through the front doors of the Palace.”

  They were sitting in the old astrologer’s rooms in the Fifth Ward, directly behind the palace. She poured more tea for the two Banes and smiled at them.

  Garet looked around the sitting room, and tried to come up with a better plan than sneaking up to the Palace doors and demanding an audience. The walls were covered with tapestries of night skies, done in deep purples and black, the stars embroidered in gold and silver threads. The shadows of the room were punctuated here and there with silver vessels on inlaid stands. The light of
the many wall lamps reflected back from these, as it did from the silver tea service on the tray in front of them. Two desert birds chirped brightly in a wire cage in the corner. It was a room of some wealth, Garet decided.

  He waved a hand at the walls. “Did you get all this from telling fortunes, Mistress Alanick?”

  Salick scowled at this distraction, but Alanick beamed a beautiful, toothless smile.

  “No, my lad. Astrology is my life, not my living,” she replied. “I have over two hundred sheep in the city flocks, and enough pasturage to feed them all.” She leaned forward, straightening the red velvet of her robes.

  My family could work for five years and not make enough selling our skinny lambs to buy that cloth, Garet thought.

  She crumbled a biscuit into her cup. “I hire youngsters like yourselves to watch the sheep, while I attend to more important things,” she said.

  “Mistress,” Salick pleaded, “you have to help us find a way into the Palace. Marick says you know everything about this city and its rulers. You do their star charts, visit the wealthy in their homes, but have you ever been in the Palace? Do you know a safe way for us to get inside?” She twisted the linen napkin in her hands, mauling the embroidered flowers along the edges.

  “Eh, careful with that, dearie,” Alanick said, taking the napkin from her. “Those are worth a pretty penny in the market, I can tell you.” She re-folded it and placed it near her on the low table. “Have I been in the Palace? Of course I have. I used to live there, you know,” she said, enjoying their stunned reaction.

  “Lived there…” Garet began, but she held up her hand to stop him.

  “Yes, dearie, when Trax’s grandfather, Sortick, was on the throne, I was his favourite concubine,” she said, smiling until her eyes almost disappeared into folds of wrinkled flesh.

  “You, er, were a concubine?” Salick asked. The cup the Bane held was suspended half-way to her lips and seemed likely to remain there.