by Arthur Slade
He shrugged, making his wings rattle. “That’s the problem. It’s not clear how someone as small as you can spill my blood. But I still have to let you go despite that. Return to me, Carmen of the Assassins. Free me, and I’ll give you that which I’ve promised.”
“I will return,” I said. “I promise.”
16
An Ounce of Servitude
I left the cave and followed the moonlit path back to the fortress. It rose above me as I neared, such an impressive building. I had no idea how the original masons were able to build it right along the top of the mountain so that all four walls seemed to blend into the cliffs.
With each step, I was growing more sluggish. There were ten thousand stairs, and I wasn’t certain I could take them all without falling asleep.
Sleep. I hadn’t slept for over twenty-four hours. Not a wink. I had been trained to go without sleep, but I knew I was at my limits. Too much had happened. It was at least four in the morning, I guessed.
It took several tries to pick the lock on the thirteenth door. No one was around. I stumbled up to my room, unlocked my door, and threw myself on my bed and promptly fell asleep.
It seemed moments later that someone pounded on my door. I struggled to wake, struggled to stand up, and then went to the door, not bothering with my hair. At least I was still dressed since I hadn’t undressed last night.
I opened the door to find Thord standing there. He was holding a rolled-up scroll in his hand.
“What do you want?” It came out angrier than I intended.
“That story of the feathers,” he said.
“You’re waking me up for that?”
“It’s twelve bells. You must have slept through the morning bells. But you can give me the story another time. I came here at the request of Maestru Alesius. He was in a rather severe mood. I—I don’t think it’s good news.”
I took the scroll and unraveled it. The words were written in red, a bad sign because it meant that it was an order I would have to obey immediately. Report directly to Maestru Alesius. I’d never had a red-letter order before. It may mean I would lose marks. Or even my place in the school.
“What is it?” Thord asked.
“I’m not sure. But I think I may be in trouble.”
“I have swannery cleaning duty. But I think I’d gladly choose that over an angry Alesius.”
“Me too,” I said.
“Well, good luck with it,” he said, and then he continued up the hallway.
I couldn’t ignore the order. So, I took a deep breath and left my room, closing the door behind me. I walked quickly up the several sets of stairs until I reached my maestru’s study. I knocked on the door.
“Enter,” he said. I couldn’t read anything in the tone of his voice, but I had never been able to do that anyway.
When I walked into the room I nearly gasped. For, besides Maestru Alesius, both Maestru Olgra and Megan were there. Had they been waiting all morning? The fury on Megan’s face was clear from across the room. I wouldn’t have been surprised if she suddenly spun and threw a dagger. But the only dagger was in her glare.
“Where were you last night?” Maestru Alesius asked.
“I was in the stables.”
“DON’T LIE TO ME!” The shouting made both Megan and me shudder. Maestru Olgra didn’t even blink.
“I went outside. For a long walk. I wanted fresh air.”
“Where did you go?” His tone was still angry.
“To clear my thoughts. That’s all.”
“You smell like chrysanthemums.”
Was this what Brax had meant when he predicted that I would betray him? But I had sworn an oath. I had to lie. Again.
“I must have brushed against them.”
“They don’t grow anywhere near here other than at the gardens.”
I drew in a deep breath. “I can’t say why I smell that way.”
He stared at me a bit longer. “You are playing with words. But where you have been and why you carry that scent, we will discuss later. I will get to the truth. I promise you. We have a different matter to discuss. Maestru Olgra, please tell us what happened.”
Maestru Olgra cleared her throat. “Yes. The reason we are here is because your apprentice used Thaurug’s pressure point to freeze this student. And she left immediately afterward.”
“Is this true, Carmen?” Maestru Alesius asked.
“Yes, but I—”
“DO NOT SAY ANYTHING ELSE. DO NOT PREVARICATE. JUST ANSWER THE QUESTION!”
His voice was so loud and so angry it nearly brought tears to my eye. I’d never seen him like this. “Did you use Thaurug’s pressure point on a fellow student?”
“Yes.”
“Are you aware that, if done improperly, it can paralyze the victim permanently?”
“Y-yes.”
He leaned on his desk. “Can you, in a very few words, explain your motives?”
I glanced at Megan and felt a flare of anger when I saw that she was now barely hiding a grin. “Megan insulted me.”
“Insults are an offense to idiots,” Maestru Alesius said. “What was the nature of this insult that you foolishly took offense to?”
“She suggested I work for her as a greeter. Never to step away from the table. She suggested because I am missing an eye that I will never be a good assassin.”
“She was stating a truth,” Maestru Alesius said.
“But it’s not true!”
“Do not argue with me.” He tightened his hand into a fist. “You are missing an eye. Therefore, you are not as qualified as Megan. Though you have perfected the majority of your assassin skills, that eye will always be a detriment. It also makes you more memorable. It is only your ability to rise above this hindrance that allows you to graduate. But I would not hire you for a mission.”
He had never stated these things so bluntly. He had always been so encouraging.
“So, it was not an insult,” he continued. “It was an honest appraisal. And, on the last day of your last class, you lashed out at her. A sign of emotional weakness. Something you’ve rarely displayed in your years here. So, the fault is all yours.”
I risked another glance at Megan to see that she now had a gloating smile.
“Normally, I would decide the punishment,” Maestru Alesius said. “But I will pass that duty to my colleague since the transgression occurred during her class. Maestru Olgra, what punishment do you decree?”
Maestru Olgra’s face had remained severe throughout the whole discussion. “I declare that for breaking the sanctity of the classroom, attacking another classmate, and risking that classmate’s health, that immediately upon graduation Carmen will work with Megan as her assistant for no payment other than room and board for the period of one year.”
I drew in my breath. I nearly screamed as I let it out. A year! A year! As a servant of Megan.
“That is fair,” Maestru Alesius said. He turned to Megan. “Do you agree to these terms, and in so doing to be bound by the oath of the Red Adept Assassins?”
“Yes,” Megan said. “I do.”
“And Carmen, do you agree to these terms and in so doing to be bound by the oath of the Red Adept Assassins?”
Megan had a full grin on her face. To deny the terms would mean not graduating and perhaps being cast out. To what? Work as a sheep herder? I was not going to throw it all away.
But a year! A year!
“I agree,” I said softly.
“Repeat yourself, but louder,” my maestru commanded.
“I agree,” I said.
“Then it is done,” Maestru Alesius said. “Upon the date of graduation, you will perform one full year of servitude. It will be written in the charter books. You are both dismissed.”
I lowered my head and turned, careful not to look at Megan. I’d be seeing that gloating face for a full year. No sense in staring at it any longer than I had to. I took a step toward the door, when it burst open without anyone knocking.
“Speak it. They will soon be sworn members of the guild.”
“Emperor Rima is dead. Killed by poison. All signs point to another attack by an assassin.”
Maestru Alesius actually went pale. That was something I never imagined I’d see. “You two—” He pointed at me and Megan. “Speak nothing of this. Go to your rooms and prepare for graduation. Leave this chamber now.”
We did. When the door closed behind us, Megan’s gloat was long gone from her face. “What can this mean?” Megan said.
“That things are going to get very, very bad,” I answered.
17
Lessons Learned
We left for our rooms. Megan said nothing about me having to be subservient to her for a full year. Instead, we silently parted ways, each still in shock from the news.
A figure in a red robe, face hidden by a cowl, strode past me. I could not tell whether it was a man or a woman, but I knew that graduation was upon us, and the three hundred eight gates of the fortress were being opened by the returning assassins. It might even be Banderius himself. The assassins were here to witness the fifteen new graduates. Sometimes they even offered jobs to graduates moments after they received their red robes. Several more assassins passed in their red robes. They were here early, since it was hours until the actual ceremony. But I guessed they had some sort of business to pursue. Or they were going to search through the archives for hints about who might have killed the emperor and his son.
When I was back at my room, I closed the door. The emperor’s death was a major event … made doubly important because his son had died only a few days earlier. The world outside those gates was now whirling with threats of war—and with a boiling anger toward assassins. Perhaps it was not safe to graduate tonight and step outside the fortress.
In time, I remembered the fact that I would be spending a year under Megan’s control. I’d have to follow her every command and would help her to make money and become known. A full year! The punishment was worse than the crime.
I had heard rumors of other punishments. A trickster of a student had slipped flatulence pills into the meal of a maestru. That was two weeks of cleaning the swannery. Two weeks straight, that is, without being able to leave—sleeping and eating with the swans. Another student had been kicked out for poisoning another student, but since they were all immune, it hadn’t led to a death.
So, this was one of the harshest sentences I’d heard of. For what was essentially freezing another student. Yes, there was that chance of permanent paralysis. But one thing I was gifted at was finding pressure points. I was certain no harm would have come to Megan. Unless someone had bumped her, and she fell over.
Maestru Alesius must have wanted me to learn a lesson.
Humility. That is what it was. That was why he said I would never be a full-fledged assassin. How could he say those words? He’d always had a layer of kindness beneath his actions.
Perhaps it was more than just humility.
But a year! A year! Under Megan’s control.
A swift knock knock knock came to my door. I opened it, finding my brother there. Corwin pushed his way in.
“How goes the battle, sister?”
“It goes.” I didn’t want to get into the experience with Maestru Alesius. He might gloat.
“So, you had a run-in with the maestrus and with Megan.”
“How do you know?” I asked.
“A little bird told me. Or a bat. I forget which one. I know most everything that goes on around here, sis. What penalty did you get?”
“So, you don’t know everything?”
“I know enough. Now tell me.”
I did so. He rubbed his chin. “That’s a harsh penalty.” He said this with a bit of commiseration, as though he understood what I was feeling.
I nodded. “It’s horrible.”
“Alesius has his ways, and he’s set in them. A traditionalist through and through.”
“It’s Maestru Alesius,” I said.
“Oh, yes, Maestru Alesius. Thanks for the correction. He thinks in the old ways, and thus you get punished hard for something that you really should be rewarded for. Using the pressure point to make a statement should have been rewarded.”
“Then everyone would be using the pressure points that way.”
“Bah. Only the best would, while the weaker ones cowered. Besides, you’re defending Alesius.” I didn’t suggest he add “maestru” this time. “Do you ever wonder if your loyalty is misplaced? You’ve stuck with his every proclamation for years. Done every deed he’s asked of you, and now look how he has rewarded you. A year of slavery.”
I did pause to think about that. Perhaps if Maestru Alesius had only given me a fortnight or two. But a year. A year! He could have stepped in and adjusted the sentence.
“Do you want me to kill Megan?” Corwin asked.
“What?”
He examined his impeccable fingernails. “It wouldn’t be the first time an assassin found a way out of a contract.”
“But they would know it was me. And besides that, it’s wrong.”
“I was kidding, sister. I would never do that. It’s against guild rules. Though six months into your drudgery and you might be tracking me down to see if I really was kidding.”
“Never!”
He shrugged a perfect “I know better than you” shrug. “Anyway, the big news is that the emperor is dead.”
“How do you know that already? Did Megan tell you?”
“Megan, how would she know? And how do you know?”
“We were both there when the messenger told Maestru Alesius.”
“Well, I guess he trusts you enough to let you have that knowledge. But I learned through other means. As I said, I have eyes and ears everywhere.”
He had such a huge view of how powerful he was. I couldn’t imagine what he’d be like when he graduated. I sometimes wished I had half his confidence. Or maybe I did have it before he took out my eye.
“What do you think the emperor’s death will mean?” I asked.
“Oh, it’s very bad news for assassins. Word is that it was poison again. Sargon, his younger brother, is now the emperor. He really doesn’t like assassins. His mother was poisoned a few years ago.”
“Royal families never do like us,” I said.
“Unless they need us. But what Sargon has is hatred of our kind. We are a weapon that he cannot control. I wonder where he will point his hatred. Perhaps it is a bad time to hang out your shingle as an assassin. We’ll all graduate and then go directly into hiding.”
I leaned against my dresser. “It’s that bad?”
“You haven’t walked the streets of the Empire. Do you ever get out of this rotting fortress?”
“Yes! And it’s not rotting. And two trips to Akkadium do not count as much when you’re there as your maestru’s helper.”
“It’s farther than you’ve ever gone. Just the carcass pits of Ogra. My maestru had to sleep. I didn’t. I walked the streets. The ill will toward us is very strong in the Empire. And in the Five Realms too. We don’t have to worry while we’re here … no one has ever taken this fortress. But we do have to make a living out of doors, so to speak. So, we will have to tread carefully.”
“That is how they teach us to tread.”
“Well, that is true, sister. You are wise beyond your meager years.” Again, that sardonic smile. “Meet me here tonight before the ceremony. I have a gift for you.”
“A gift?”
“Yes, it’s a new family tradition. When one does something wonderful, one gets a gift. Your graduation should be celebrated.”
“You got me a gift?” I repeated.
“You hurt my feelings by being stuck on that. Yes, I did, and you will cherish the gift forever.”
I opened
my hands, palms outward. “But I have nothing for you.”
“Your sisterly love is enough. Besides, once I’ve graduated, I’ll quickly earn enough wealth to buy everything I need. So, promise to meet me here at seven bells.”
“I promise,” I said. Corwin kissed me on the forehead. It was a gesture of warmth. He turned and left my room.
18
A Little Reading
There were still three hours until graduation. The hallways were filling with more assassins in robes of several colors, though the oldest wore black. Not a single face was shown. All of the assassins gathered in the dining room and waited for the graduates to serve them the pre-graduation dinner.
Even as I took the steaming dishes—roast chicken, potatoes, and parsnips—to each table, I wondered who each assassin was. And if any of them were Banderius himself. It looked as if there were at least one hundred who had returned. Even while they were eating, they didn’t show their faces. It was bad for business for people to know what you looked like. A few even wore masks made of thin gold.
The dining room was remarkably quiet. The senior assassins spoke softly and secretly. Only once in a while was there loud male laughter. But the rest were all hiding their features, their movements, even their personalities. All in all, it was the strangest dinner I’d ever seen.
When I went to a table to remove a dirty ceramic plate, the assassin sitting there grabbed my arm and twisted gently, but with purpose, so that we looked eye to eye. Two dark eyes were all that were visible above the cowl. “I heard about you,” the assassin said. It was a deep voice, but something about the timbre gave me the impression it was a woman speaking.
“Oh,” I said. “I hope it was all good.”
The assassin waved me away.
Does that mean I’m special? More likely, since there were only fifteen graduates, every student was studied and measured. The established assassins made note of each student’s skill sets, to see whether they would be assets to their own businesses.