The Habit of the Emperor

by J J Moriarty

  “I know all this”, Hyzou said.

  “And I know why they were attacked. I know who attacked them”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “I’m listening”, Hyzou said.

  “No. I want my life to be saved. My son’s life too”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  Hyzou looked at the shape in the darkness where this Kyrios was sitting.

  “I could torture the information out of you”, Hyzou said.

  “You could try, but you’ll never know if it’s true or not”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “You won’t be released. Under no circumstances will you be released. You’ll be a prisoner”, Hyzou said.

  “That’s ok. All I want is my life”, Kyrios Harkhuf said. “And the life of my son.”

  “Very well”, Hyzou said.

  “Captain!” Hyzou shouted.

  “The Black Snake won’t be happy to hear you did this”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “What?” Hyzou said.

  “It doesn’t matter”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  The Captain appeared before Hyzou.

  “Yes, sir”, the Captain said.

  “This Kyrios Harkhuf, and his son, they’re pardoned. They will not be executed”, Hyzou said.

  “If you say so”, the Captain said.

  “You did well, in bringing this to my attention”, Hyzou said.

  “Thank you, sir”, the Captain said.

  “I want Kyrios Harkhuf brought to the Palace. I need to talk to him alone. Can you see to it?” Hyzou asked.

  “Yes, sir”, the Captain said.

  “I’ll meet him in the war room, alone, in two hours. Is that achievable?” Hyzou asked.

  The Captain bowed.

  “Yes, sir. It’s very possible”, the Captain said.

  Hyzou left the gaol behind and returned to the Palace.

  Instead, however of going to the war room to wait for the Kyrios, or even going to his chambers where Safia and the children were, Hyzou deviated off and went to Kyria Iset.

  She was playing dice with her guards when Hyzou entered.

  “Hyzou. I thought we weren’t going to meet until the morning”, Kyria Iset said.

  She saw Hyzou’s face.

  “Everyone, leave”, Kyria Iset said.

  Her guards did so, gathering up the dice and the chips of wood they had been using to gamble. Once they were gone, Hyzou spoke.

  “Who’s the Black Snake?” Hyzou asked.

  Kyria Iset looked surprised.

  “Where did you hear that name?” Kyria Iset said.

  “Who is he?” Hyzou said. “This Black Snake.”

  Kyria Iset laughed.

  “It’s me”, Kyria Iset said.

  “What?” Hyzou asked.

  “Or well, it’s a nickname people have for me. Or should I say, had. It was only really used in Yobo, while I was Divine Master Yakareb’s spymaster”, Kyria Iset said.

  “What a bizarre nickname”, Hyzou said.

  “I never let people use it around me. It was always only said behind my back”, Kyria Iset said. “Who did you hear it from?”

  “Kyrios Harkhuf. Do you know him?” Hyzou asked.

  “Yes, I know him. How have you been speaking to him? Oh! He must have led that incursion this morning on the banks the Gahis”, Kyria Iset said.

  “How did you know about the incursion?” Hyzou said.

  “People talk. And congratulations on the victory”, Kyria Iset said.

  “Phatmose won it, not me”, Hyzou said.

  “So you’ve been talking with Kyrios Harkhuf? He’s a dangerous, dangerous man”, Kyria Iset said.

  “Is he?” Hyzou asked. “He seemed to know a lot about me.”

  “I’m not surprised. Information is his trade. He’s stayed alive as three different regimes have ruled Yobo, and all three slaughtered their enemies. He did that because he’s a sly man, who always knows how to survive”, Kyria Iset said.

  “He promised me information in return for his life”, Hyzou said.

  “He’ll only tell you what’s in his interests to tell you”, Kyria Iset said.

  “How did your father die?” Hyzou asked.

  “Why do you ask?” Kyria Iset said.

  “I’m just curious about what you know. It affected my family too, my father could never walk properly after the attack”, Hyzou said.

  Kyria Iset shrugged.

  “I can tell you what I know”, Kyria Iset said.

  “Please do”, Hyzou said.

  She sat down. Hyzou sat near her.

  “It’s complicated, but during the Anarchy, the King of Yobo was deposed and all the Nobles were massacred. They were killed in a set of riots led by a man named Yakareb. Yakareb of course ended up as the Divine Master. Yakareb was a poor street urchin, an orphan raised on what he could beg and steal. Since childhood his best friend was Ahmose, my mother. She became his Vizier. After the Divine Master took over, he needed to create diplomatic relations with Uqing. So, Uqing sent Mygst, Luan and Orman to negotiate”, Kyria Iset said.

  “And Orman fell in love with and married your mother, I know. What’s that got to do with their death?” Hyzou asked.

  “I didn’t know you knew. I was just fleshing out the details. Very well then, the three of them were sent south, deep into the rainforests, on a mission to find someone who’d robbed gold from Uqing. They went south, and in the rainforest everything went up in flames. Sick and wounded they rode north and tribesmen from the south followed them and ambushed them. They killed Orman, Luan escaped, and Mygst disappeared. Everyone thought he was dead, although apparently not”, Kyria Iset said.

  “Apparently not”, Hyzou said.

  “I don’t know what else to tell you. I wasn’t there, so I can’t tell you anything else”, Kyria Iset said.

  “Why did my father hide? Why did he leave the Servants of Qi?” Hyzou said. “He did his best to hide me and my sister from the Servants. Why?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe he was just tired of fighting in wars”, Kyria Iset said.

  “Seems unlikely”, Hyzou said.

  “Really? I bet you’d stop fighting this war now if you could”, Kyria Iset said. “If your duty didn’t keep getting in the way.”

  “Duty is in the way”, Hyzou said.

  “And Luan left the Servants after that mission. He quit, and headed south”, Kyria Iset said.

  “He did?” Hyzou asked.

  “Yes. It broke him. As a man. He lost both his siblings”, Kyria Iset said.

  “Well, we’ll be meeting soon enough I hear, maybe I can ask him about it then”, Hyzou said.

  “Maybe you can”, Kyria Iset said.

  “I’ve to go”, Hyzou said.

  “Will I still see you tomorrow?” Kyria Iset asked.

  “Of course. We must finish that story. Do you still have the tablets?” Hyzou asked.

  “Just waiting for us”, Kyria Iset said.

  Hyzou left her.

  Upstairs, in his war room, Kyrios Harkhuf was waiting for him.

  “Gods, you look like you’re in a lot of pain”, Hyzou said.

  The Kyrios’ face was coloured with bruises.

  “What? These?” Kyrios Harkhuf said. “I fell down a set of stairs.”

  “You’d want to watch your footing”, Hyzou said.

  “Your Majesty, I just trust the stairs considerably more back home in Yobo”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “I’m not sending you home, whatever happens”, Hyzou said.

  The Kyrios was older than Hyzou would have guessed. His hair was still black with no grey in sight, but he was balding, losing hair from front and back. His face was wrinkled beneath the bruises.

  “I wouldn’t expect you to. My life alone is worthwhile”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “Why would you talk? You know what situation we’re in right now. The Pharaoh is months from victory”, Hyzou said.

  “So what?” Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “He’ll be sure to issue reprisals to anyone who join
ed me”, Hyzou said.

  “Only if he wins. You’re promising to murder me tomorrow if I’m not useful to you. No matter how likely the Pharaoh’s victory is, the better odds are in siding with you”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “No doubt you’re annoyed the Pharaoh made you lead that probe”, Hyzou said.

  “Beyond annoyed. Yes, it was never going to succeed, he didn’t give me the numbers. He’s paranoid, your battle in the West Country has worried him. He thinks that the only way he’ll win is by outnumbering you, so he wants to build his army up as large as possible. He’s even limiting the number of scouts he sends out”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “Naïve”, Hyzou said.

  “Yes. But understandable. Don’t forget, he lost a son. Kyrios Nerikare is the only one preventing the army from turning into a mob. He’s the only one that the Pharaoh listens to”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “You wanted to speak to me about something. I want this information”, Hyzou said.

  “What do you know about the death of Orman? About the wounding of Mygst?” Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  Hyzou told the Kyrios the story, of their being ambushed on return from the rainforest. Kyrios Harkhuf grimaced.

  “They weren’t chasing gold, they were chasing an artefact, although that’s not important”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “Was that it? The information?” Hyzou asked.

  “The Black Snake isn’t the only spymaster in Yobo. I had men and women well paid beside and around Yakareb when he was just a preacher on a street corner. And I know that the artefact was never taken down to the rainforest”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “What? How can you know that?” Hyzou asked.

  “Because it’s still in the room of the Divine Master today. It was only taken to Yobo”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “What? Taken by whom?” Hyzou asked.

  “Luan, of course”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “Luan? Why would Luan take the artefacts?” Hyzou asked.

  “For money. It was never about the artefacts at all”, Kyrios Harkhuf said. “Luan and the Divine Master arranged the whole thing themselves.”

  “To make money?” Hyzou asked.

  “To kill Orman. It was a trap”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “To kill Orman? Why?” Hyzou said.

  “The Divine Master loved Ahmose. Seeing her regularly with another man no doubt drove him demented. As for Luan, well, he did it for the same reason he’d do anything. Power, and wealth”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “Power and wealth?” Hyzou said. “He’s just spent six years following Kyria Iset around as a glorified bodyguard. Hasn’t he?”

  “Yes, he has. But wouldn’t you agree that Kyria Iset is powerful? She certainly is wealthy”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “You’re making all of this up”, Hyzou said.

  “No, I’m not. The Anarchy was caused when there was no monsoon for three years. This meant there was no food, and people went hungry. The same thing happened in the south, in the rainforest. The tribes in the south collapsed just the same as the Crown Cities in the north. The Divine Master Yakareb may have been a fool all his life, but he did have friends, he had the ability to appoint a new King far in the south, the crown given by a network of merchants”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “So, in return for assassinating Orman, Luan would be named Chieftain of some tribe in the rainforest?” Hyzou asked.

  “Precisely. He was named Chieftain and he went south to try and become High King of the Tribes”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “What happened to him there?” Hyzou asked.

  “He came close, as far as I know. He tried to take over the south and failed in the end. He fled north and allied himself with Kyria Iset. She protected him from agents who wanted to assassinate him. The Black Snake is a killer, and she protected him”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “This isn’t true”, Hyzou said.

  Kyrios Harkhuf leaned forwards into better light.

  “Why isn’t it true?” Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “Because you’re the only one who’s ever said anything about this before”, Hyzou said.

  “That’s the nature of secret plots. They’re secret”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  “He loved Orman. They were brothers”, Hyzou said.

  Kyrios Harkhuf laughed.

  “You were a slave once, weren’t you? I thought you wouldn’t be so naïve. Luan was always the greatest warrior the Servants of Qi ever produced. By executing Orman and your father, he gained what he always wanted, the chance to be more than a warrior”, Kyrios Harkhuf said.

  Hyzou thought about it.

  There’s no way this man is telling the truth. Hyzou thought.

  He sighed and prepared to tell Kyrios Harkhuf that his execution was going ahead.

  Then the vision shrouded Hyzou’s mind. The room in front of Hyzou disappeared, and all of a sudden, he was on a dusty road on a warm summer’s day.

  What surrounded him could probably have been the River Cities, somewhere near Piquea, perhaps the Khemmis. But there was something wrong.

  No rice grew high into the air, the fields that surrounded Hyzou were nothing more than dust. A thin breeze blew into Hyzou’s face, carrying the dead soil with it. Hyzou wasn’t here, but if he were, he’d need to cover his eyes to prevent them hurting too much. This place was a desert.

  The air was dry, the land was dead, and a mirage shimmered ahead of Hyzou.

  Out, from among the dust, three Servants of Qi emerged. Riding at their head, Hyzou recognised his father.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  “I don’t have much time”, Hyzou said.

  “We know, Your Majesty, and we’re glad you stayed back to see us”, Gardem said.

  Hyzou leaned back against the simple chair that was supposed to be his throne.

  “Well? What did you feel necessary to add after the council meeting? You know, don’t you, that I welcome all kinds of discussions”, Hyzou said.

  “Yes, sir, but it was perhaps best if we spoke face-to-face”, Gardem said.

  “And who are these?” Hyzou asked.

  “Farmers, sir”, Gardem said.

  Gardem was standing in front of a group of people, all men.

  “Very well then, speak”, Hyzou said.

  “Sir, during the council meeting the production of stones was spoken about”, Gardem said.

  “Yes. I’m very happy that it looks like we’re on track”, Hyzou said. “We’ll have all the stones we need.”

  “It’s about that, sir”, Gardem said.

  “Go on. Is there a problem?” Hyzou said.

  “Not with the production of stones, sir”, Gardem said.

  “Go on”, Hyzou said.

  “All of these people are farmers, sir”, Gardem said.

  “You mentioned”, Hyzou said.

  “And all of them have had slaves requisitioned by your soldiers to help with building your defences”, Gardem said.

  “Slaves I gave them to till the crops. Slaves on loan”, Hyzou said.

  “That’s not what it’s about, sir”, Gardem said.

  “What’s it about?” Hyzou said.

  “The crops, there isn’t enough hands to sow the soil. A lot of land will be unused. And the floods are happening, we need to build and work on drainage, otherwise the seeds will drown. For all of this we don’t have enough men”, Gardem said.

  “What are you telling me?” Hyzou said.

  “I went to Yan too. She agrees with me, we have a big problem. I don’t know if we’ll have enough food to feed everyone after the summer. Definitely not going into next spring”, Gardem said.

  “Piquea is at war. We can’t abandon the defences, or there won’t be a population to feed”, Hyzou said.

  “It’s the poor, the lepers, the urchins, the children; they’re the ones that will suffer if you don’t maintain the food supplies”, Gardem said.

  “I’m sorry Gardem. The shape of Piquea is unlikely to be the same this time next year an
yway. If we’re smaller we won’t need as much food, and if we’re bigger we’ll have greater food supplies”, Hyzou said.

  “Will we? You burned all the food supplies north of here when you retreated”, Gardem said.

  “I’ve made my decision, nothing will get in the way of preparing our defences”, Hyzou said.

  Gardem bowed, behind him the farmers bowed too.

  “Thanks for hearing us, Your Majesty”, one of the farmers said.

  “I’m sorry I don’t have better news”, Hyzou said.

  Hyzou arose and left with the group of them. But where the others headed for the exit of the Palace, Hyzou headed upstairs. In his chambers the twins were being watched over in their sleep by Cressa.

  “Where’s Safia?” Hyzou whispered.

  “She’s in the stables with Hetep”, Cressa whispered.

  Hyzou thanked Cressa and left, heading for the stables. Though the city had a gigantic set of stables which supported the horses used by Piquea’s army, Hyzou first tried the stables attached to the Palace. There were only twenty or so horses there, among them were those he and Safia had been gifted by Eanno.

  Safia was there, with a small mare, bringing the horse along the corridor in between the horse’s stalls. On the mare’s back was Hetep, running his fingers through the horse’s coat.

  “Maybe he’ll grow up to be better with them than even you are”, Hyzou said.

  Safia looked up from what she was doing.

  “Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa”, Hetep gurgled.

  “It’s me”, Hyzou said.

  He walked over to the mare, and swooped Hetep up into his arms. He began to rock him side to side and Hetep laughed and tugged at Hyzou’s collar. Touching as many things as possible was Hetep’s purpose in life.

  “You know I’m still angry”, Safia said.

  “I know”, Hyzou said.

  “Just thinking about you, sometimes I want to scream”, Safia said.

  “We need to prepare an escape”, Hyzou said.

  “What?” Safia said.

  “If we lose in the Khemmis, if we’re overrun, I can’t have you staying here. I can’t have the children getting hurt”, Hyzou said.