The Atomic Sea: Part Eleven

by Jack Conner

  “Where did they come from?” Hildra said.

  “And who commands them?” Janx said.

  “It must be whoever commands Segrul and the pirates now,” Avery said. “They’re all in league with each other, it seems.”

  “Can’t believe we have some new enemy,” Janx said. “Fucking Collossum were bad enough.”

  “Whatever they are,” Hildra said, “I want them far away from me. Shit, I don’t even have my hook to give them a final scratch before they take me apart. Fuck that. Let’s lay low and under guard till Ani gets here. Then we’ll have the ceremony and get that fucking Sleeper up and walking. Or scuttling, or slithering, or doing jumping-jacks all the way to the Monastery. There we’ll seize its weapons and turn them on the fucking R’loth.”

  Avery raised his glass. “To that.” He drank.

  “I just wonder what the Octs’re gonna do,” Janx said.

  “What do you mean?” Hildra said.

  “Well, they know the doc’s here, right? And that Sheridan was here. And if Uthua’s on the way, the Oct’s’ve got to be getting ready for whatever it is. And there we’ve got Segrul on his island and this mystery party running around the palace. They obviously ain’t friendly with the Octs or they wouldn’t have been working against you and Sheridan in Xlatleb, Doc.”

  “True enough.”

  “Like I said, fuck ‘em,” Hildra said. “Let’s just stay put and let the mystery whosits go fuck themselves.”

  Janx nodded. “Yeah. We don’t need to know the answer to every mystery.” He shot Avery a look. “Do we?”

  “Of course not,” Avery said. “If we don’t go finding them, maybe they won’t go finding us. When this is all over and the R’loth have been defeated, perhaps we’ll look into it, but not before.” Avery crossed to the window, pulled back the drapes and stared into the rain-soaked night.

  After a long beat, Hildra swore. “You’re thinking about her, aren’t you?”

  Avery turned back to them, surprised by Hildra’s insight. Indeed, he’d been thinking that Sheridan would be out there somewhere, possibly having to endure the toxic rain.

  “Is that all right?” he said. “I care for her. I know that’s distasteful to you, but I can't help how I feel.”

  Hildra mulled on it. “You know, back at Curluth Point, when we were sharin’ a cell, I thought maybe she was okay. I was even beginning to, well, I don’t know if like is the word, but ... not hate her.”

  “She was an ally,” Janx said.

  “Right. An ally. I ... respected her.”

  “She still is,” Avery said. “An ally. Don’t you see? That’s why she did what she did.”

  “There had to be another way,” Hildra said.

  “Tell me how.”

  “I don’t know. But there had to be one. Mass murder is never your go-to option in case of crisis. Fuck, Frank, you should get that.”

  He exhaled a ragged breath. “Of course I do. But the fact is I don’t see another way. She was willing to make the hard choice, knowing what it would cost her.”

  Janx’s brow lowered. “It was a lot harder for those aunts and uncles of Ani’s, Doc. And their butlers, their maids ...”

  Avery could not persuade the two, he knew. The truth was he wasn’t entirely certain he’d persuaded himself. Had Sheridan really gotten under his skin that badly? When he started to pour himself another drink, he paused and made himself stop. He’d been drinking too much today. Best not slip back into old patterns. But damn if he didn’t need a sip.

  “We must be doubly cautious when Ani arrives,” he said. “These creatures may pose a danger to her.”

  “I don’t think so, Doc,” Janx said. “At least they can’t kill her.”

  “Why?”

  Janx tilted his head. “Well, you gotta figure they need her, too. They can’t open the Tomb themselves.”

  Avery clapped a hand to his mouth. “They’ll be after her ...” He sank into the nearest chair. “You’re right, Janx, they need her. Damn it all.”

  “We’ll be there for her,” Hildra assured him. “And there’s a freakin’ army out there to protect her, too. She’ll be fine.”

  Avery prayed Hildra was right. Then again, the enemy would be aware of their defenses and would even now be trying to circumnavigate them. They could be listening in on the councils of the Empress-Regent and the Grand Vizier at that very moment and no one would know.

  He glanced again to the bar. With every ounce of strength he possessed, he held himself back.

  Chapter 2

  Avery’s heart nearly leapt out of his chest when the plane door flung open. Ani! he thought, but of course it wasn’t. First came stewardesses, then bodyguards, a disconcerting number of them considering that this was the Imperial Airfield, used only by the monarch and the monarch’s children, located on the edge of the city. A cool breeze flung drops of rain from a charcoal sky, but Avery hardly noticed.

  Finally Ani emerged, and he had to restrain himself from rushing forward. Dressed in gray, the color of mourning, she blinked down at the rain-drenched landing strip, perhaps trying to pick Avery out of the throng. He waited with Janx, Hildra, the Grand Vizier and a few retainers in the center of a ring of guards just beyond the steps leading down from the aeroplane. It was too dark for Avery to tell if she’d spotted him or not, but she started down the steps anyway.

  “Look!” said Hildra.

  Her monkey, Hildebrand, clung to Ani’s shoulder, appearing every bit as regal and composed as his mistress. He even wore a little suit.

  “Well, I’ll be,” Hildra marveled. “Looks right posh, doesn’t he?”

  “Watch out,” Janx said, “or he’ll be showin’ you up in manners. Not that that would take a lot,” he added with a laugh.

  The Ghenisans who had come with Ani sank to their knees to either side of the steps’ base, and Ani, holding herself erect, only seemed to acknowledge their posture as her due as she stepped down. I’m going to have to work on instilling some humility in her, Avery thought, not sure whether to be ruefully amused or alarmed. One retainer had come directly behind Ani, and he held an ornate umbrella over her head, although he was getting drenched himself. Avery stood under a canopy erected just for today, so he didn’t have to worry about the ever-present precipitation. A band played the Ghenisan national anthem to honor Ani just beyond the cordon of guards, and on the other side television reporters spoke into microphones while their cameramen captured Ani taking her first step onto Ysstral soil. Rain tatted down onto the wax-covered canvas overhead, music played, and the plane’s engines cranked slowly to a stop. Despite all the noise, Avery heard his heartbeat loudest of all.

  Ani approached the canopy. Finally Avery could see her eyes. They were red from crying, but focused, and they seemed happy to be looking at him.

  “Ani!” he said, and his newfound royal resolve melted away. He stepped forward and scooped her up, planting a big kiss on her face. Hildebrand chittered on her shoulder. Dimly in the background Avery could hear television cameras whirring away. Be kingly, he told himself. Or you will not be treated as king. Reluctantly, he put her down, but he couldn’t resist a smile.

  “Hi, Papa. It’s so good to see you again.”

  She sounded so composed! Too much, possibly. And perhaps a little embarrassed about him picking her up. Ah, well. He was still her father.

  “Oh, Ani. I’m so sorry about King Idris and the others. I know they meant a lot to you.”

  She bit her lip. They were too far away for the reporters to hear them, but she still seemed reluctant to talk. “I miss Aunt Oris,” she said.

  The truth was that Oris had frightened Avery not a little, but he nodded. “Of course you do. Come, look who I have with me. Janx, Hildra say hello to—”

  His voice died as a shape appeared above, in the doorway of the aeroplane. No, he thought. It can’t be.

  Lights from various reporters’ cameras detonated, revealing none other than Layanna. She gazed down with regal
ease, beautiful and blond and cool as ice. Suddenly Avery felt the breeze, and he shivered.

  “What’s she doing here?” he said. “She was only supposed to come after the ceremony.” I didn’t want to see her till I needed her.

  “She said she couldn’t miss it,” Ani said.

  Layanna didn’t descend immediately. In fact, she drew back, and four blue-robed figures preceded her down the stairs, each swinging a blue-glowing alchemical lantern. Only then did she descend, and behind her came four more robed figures, all in shifting shades of deep blue.

  “What’s this?” Avery said.

  “Priests,” Janx muttered, coming forward. “I told you.”

  “She’s a god,” Hildra reminded him, in the middle of scratching Hildebrand’s head, and it was clear from her tone what she thought about that. “Goddess of the Pool of the Deep One.”

  “A god.” Avery hadn’t forgotten, but it was still hard to accept. She fought so hard against the Collossum. Now, to become them ...

  “Lady Layanna,” Ani said, turning to the self-styled deity as she neared, and Avery didn’t miss the respect in his daughter’s voice. “I’m glad you came with me. Now we can all go to the palace together.”

  “Yes,” said the Grand Vizier, marshalling his resolve. “That would be lovely.” He allowed Avery to introduce him to both Ani and Layanna, then said, “I believe we have rooms to accommodate you all.”

  “Thank you,” Layanna condescended to say. “I’ll need quarters for my people, as well, and those quarters shall be mine, too.”

  The Grand Vizier digested this. “Of course. Your followers are also your handmaidens. So it shall be.”

  He led the way toward the waiting limousines, which stretched in a convoy of more than ten so that anyone waiting for them along their route with evil intentions would not know which vehicles housed which notables. As the Grand Vizier directed each to their own autos, Layanna turned to Avery.

  “It is good to see you,” she said.

  I wish I could say the same. “You, as well,” he made himself say, then chastised himself. It was his fault they were no longer together, not hers. Then why do I feel such resentment?

  “I was worried about you,” she said. “You were gone too long.”

  He tried to play it light. “I was worried about myself a time or two, too.”

  She smiled back, but it was a small smile. The Grand Vizier ushered her into a limousine, and she disappeared into it with her blue-robed priests bearing their blue alchemical light. Before their door shut, Avery had a glimpse of her bathed in rich blue illumination, just as if she were underwater where he’d originally found her, but now with her servants bowing all around her chanting in some language he didn’t know, and he shuddered. Then the door closed, sealing her from sight.

  Next Avery was shown into a vehicle with Ani, her people, Janx and Hildra, while the Grand Vizier went into a third. Once they were all situated, the limousines rumbled off into the dark and rainy city. Hildra was obviously delighted to see Hildebrand again, and the little monkey reciprocated, leaping about the cabin hooting and hollering. Ani and Hildra laughed, and Avery smiled to see Ani happy. It didn’t last long, of course. Grief over her lost family was quite fresh upon her, but at least Avery saw that coming out the other side of it was possible.

  When they arrived at the Palace, Avery asked to speak with her privately, and they were given a small conference room while Empress-Regent was notified of their arrival.

  “Ani,” Avery said, for the hundredth time. “I just wanted to tell you how deeply sorry I am for what happened.”

  She nodded, chin quivering, and it was obviously costing her a lot to maintain composure. She said nothing, but maybe she didn’t trust herself to speak.

  “For awhile I thought I’d lost everything,” he went on, and hugged her. She seemed so small in his arms. So frail. “When I thought I’d lost you ... again ... I can’t even tell you how I felt.”

  Finally, she spoke, and her voice was small. “I was so scared, Papa.”

  “I know, honey. Anybody would be. What happened to you and your family was awful.”

  She wiped at her eyes. “Do they know who did it?”

  “You don’t know?”

  “Aunt Gwen didn’t tell me anything. She just said it was a saboteur and that they were still searching for him. They had some leads, she said.”

  “That’s it?”

  Ani nodded.

  For some reason, Avery was reluctant to admit that the guilty party was Sheridan. For one thing, he himself felt guilty by association. Also, of course, there was the fact that Ani had shot Sheridan and that it had been he who’d saved her life. If he hadn’t done that, Ani’s maternal family would still be alive.

  “Papa?” Ani said, confused by his silence.

  He made himself smile. “Nothing, Ani.”

  “Well? Who did it? Was it Aunt Lay’s people? Was it Octung? I heard on the television how some people thought it might be anti-royalists.”

  I’m going to have to lie. “Aunt Gwen was right,” he said. “We’re still looking for whoever did it.” Please, he thought, imagining Sheridan crouching in the shadows of an alley as police vehicles rumbled by, don’t look too hard. “We’ll find them,” he promised.

  Ani nodded, accepting this. “But I still don’t understand. Why did I have to come all the way here? The ride was really bumpy, especially over the mountains.”

  Avery adjusted his glasses. “Do you still have those dreams, Ani?” His voice, when he heard it, seemed distant and strange to his ears.

  An odd expression settled over her. Sounding equally peculiar, she said, “Yes, Papa. The door ... and the singing ...”

  “Tell me about it.”

  “I’m getting closer and closer to the door, all of crystal, and the singing grows louder around me, and the bells ... the bells ... and all I can see is the door ...” She shook her head. “Uncle Id told me that many in the family had that dream, or parts of it, every now and then. When I told him I had it every night, he ...” Her eyes dropped. “He got real quiet. I think it scared him. He said no one ever got it that often. He sounded angry.”

  “I’m sorry, honey.”

  “What does it mean, Papa? And what does it have to do with why I’m here?”

  He lifted her chin so that she could look him in the eyes. “I think the door’s here, Ani.”

  “The door ... ? But it’s just a dream.”

  “I don’t think so, honey. I think you were meant to open that door. Destined to do it. To reach it, though, you have to do something first. You must get m—”

  Someone knocked. “The Empress is ready to see you, my lord, my lady,” a messenger said, popping his head in.

  Avery sighed. “We’ll be there directly.” His talk with Ani would have to wait.

  With Layanna, Janx and Hildra, he and Ani were escorted to the Throne Room, the real one, huge and grand, where the Empress-Regent waited on her seat of office, her son on a smaller throne at her side. All were dressed in their finest. Drums rolled, and a few discreet cameras flashed as the Empress-Regent was introduced first to Ani, then Layanna.

  “You are well met,” the Empress-Regent said, her voice formal and meant to be heard by all. “We are honored to have you here.” To Layanna, she said, “I understand you wish to have your, ah, priests, attend you in your quarters.”

  “That is correct.” Layanna made no allowance for whether this was possible or not. It was her due, and she was taking it.

  She’s changed, Avery realized. And not, he thought, for the better.

  The Empress-Regent returned her attention to Ani. “And you, my precious little one. I am so sorry about your family. It is a tragedy beyond compare. A whole line nearly wiped out overnight.”

  Ani held her composure. “It was terrible, Your Majesty.”

  “I want you to know that all efforts are being made to apprehend the responsible party.” Her eyes strayed briefly to Avery, then s
wung back. “Dear, has your father discussed ... the other reason you’re here?”

  Ani frowned.

  Avery suppressed a swell of guilt. “I haven’t had time,” he told Issia.

  “Indeed. Well, now that’s she safe and well, I think that conversation should be had with all dispatch. That is, of course, if things are really as dire as you’ve led me to believe.” She lifted her voice again and said, “Hall! Empty! Leave us now.”

  Scurrying footsteps filled the chamber, and in moments the members of the group occupied it by themselves; Layanna and Ani dismissed their retainers, as well.

  “What didn’t you tell me, Papa?” Ani asked.

  Avery paused, then lifted a hand toward Jered, beckoning him forward. The lad descended from his dais. Much as the Empress-Regent had done before, Avery took Ani’s hand, then Jered’s, making a connection between them.

  “Things are complicated,” Avery said. “But it has ... become necessary ... for you and Lord Jered to marry.”

  “Marry?” Ani looked aghast. Her gaze swiveled to Jered. “To you?”

  Nervously, the boy nodded. “If you will have me.”

  “It’s a paper wedding only,” Avery assured Ani. “I mean, in time, if you’re still together ...” He cleared his throat. “But for now we simply need to appease the royal family, as well as the priests of the religious order the royal family belongs to. If we do that, we can access the Tomb of the Sleeper.”

  “I don’t understand, Papa.”

  Avery knelt before her, putting his eyes at her level. “I know, honey. Just trust me.”

  “It’s tough, darlin’,” Janx said. “Your pops needs you to act like a big girl, though.”

  “I don’t understand this either,” Layanna said. “The Tomb of the Sleeper?”

  “I’ll explain everything,” Avery said.

  “I think it’s time you did.”

  Layanna took Ani’s free hand, and Ani looked up at her. Right then Avery realized Layanna wielded a new sort of power.

  “Yeah,” Ani said. “I think so, too.”