Blade of Memories

by Tina Hunter

  The walk to her uncle’s home was uneventful, even if she garnered more looks and jeers than she would have as a man.

  Renaldo opened the door for her when she knocked.

  He’s waiting for you in the kitchen, a male voice said in her mind. She was startled but tried not to look like it. If he really had abilities like Gregorio, could he read her mind too? What would garner a reaction from his stone-like face? She smiled politely but thought very hard about stabbing him in the gut with a knife in her pocket. She felt her eyes narrow from the strain and stopped before she made a face. No reaction. Nothing. Fine, then she would just ask him.

  “Do you read minds too? Like silent two-way communication?” she asked sweetly.

  Renaldo looked mildly... amused, perhaps? His eyes crinkled in the corners and he shook his head. No. It doesn’t work like that.

  Thank goodness for small favors. She pressed forward and found her way to the kitchen. There was her uncle, with maps and documents spread out all over the table they had sat at yesterday.

  “Lynn, my dear,” he said as she walked in. He held out his arms to embrace her, and she blocked out the warning voice of Gregorio. She had missed having someone show affection for her. She hugged him tightly, and then he held her out at arm’s length.

  “You look every bit like your mother.” He spun her around and she giggled at his efforts to see every side of her. “There is no way that this woman in front of me is a thief.”

  She let go of his hands and put hers on her hips. “Things are not always what they appear to be.”

  “Ah, isn’t that just so,” he replied. “Come, have a look at this.” He pointed at the papers on the table and she leaned over to get a better look.

  She had to keep her breath from catching. She was staring at detailed maps of inside the fort. Storage rooms, soldiers’ quarters, reception halls. Some even had little annotations about the movement of cargo once it made its way inside.

  “This must have taken months to accumulate,” she said, trying to keep the awe and excitement out of her voice. This was exactly the information she needed to pull off this theft. She doubted Declan could bring back anything this detailed and felt guilty for sending him on a mission for nothing.

  “Only one month, actually,” he replied as she leafed through the pages.

  “This one shows how to get to the fort from the far side, through the forest. The extraction team?” she asked.

  “Yes,” he said with a laugh. “Maybe you really are a thief.”

  She made a face and then continued looking through the pile. She needed to memorize as much as she could.

  “And this one... The distraction?” she asked noting a document full of boat specifications and how much weight they could carry. From the numbers listed, her uncle had a lot of men he was willing to sacrifice to this cause. She was just glad her cousin and Declan would not be among them.

  “Yes,” he said, leaning over the table. “The plan is to send the men ahead to distract the garrison while my extraction team and I sneak around from the side. There is a small window of opportunity if we can get the guards away from the service entrance. From there it’s a matter of making it in and out without being stopped.”

  Brute force. That was her uncle’s plan. Batter them, distract them, and kill them to get what you want. She was beginning to feel an unease creep up her spine. Perhaps partnering with him was a mistake.

  “Aren’t you worried about the men captured telling the garrison about you? Especially once the soldiers tell them the crystals were stolen not destroyed?”

  “By then, Benjamin Burkley will be long gone. I need my real name for other matters so what’s one crime for someone who doesn’t exist?” He gave her a wink, and she smiled back, hoping she was faking well enough. What she wouldn’t give for a persona to fall back on right now.

  “Besides,” he continued, “the garrison won’t know we stole the crystals. We’ll be transferring them into our own crates and destroying at least half of what we find. It’s a waste, really, but much better in the long run since no one will come looking for the crystals.”

  It was smart. Really smart. Something she had done in Iridan once when she was just starting out as a thief. Before she had developed her Black Shadow persona. She never had to worry about them finding her or her goods after that.

  “It’s a good plan. But to waste so many crystals... you must really need them...” she left the statement hanging in the air.

  “I do need them, my dear.”

  She raised her eyebrows in question and he turned away and paced. Apparently, she could still make men talk with just a look.

  “You know I’m a scientist, right?” When she nodded her head he continued, “I was working on developing new forms of magic for the Aguara military in our fight against the Prymese. I was close to something, Lynn. So close.

  “Then the Empire sent in their guards and their magic was just better. They took care of threat after threat and we had nothing comparable. The Iridan’s—the whole Dukana Empire—are stronger than us and we need to be ready. But my superiors didn’t understand. And the Donassi were getting their fingers into the politics. They shut me down. But I couldn’t stop when I was so close. These crystals are the key to being able to finish my work. To protect our country.”

  He sounded so sure of himself. So sure he was doing the right thing, but a pit of fear opened up in her stomach. The words of her grandfather swirled around in her head. Was he really trying to find a way to kill with magic?

  “I can see that you are unconvinced,” he said when she gave no response. He smiled to himself and shook his head. “I’m not sure I’d believe me either. But I can show you how close I was. It’s part of the gift I promised you.”

  “I really don’t need anything,” she said with a smile, praying to any god or goddess listening that he wasn’t about to give her killing magic.

  “It’s the least I can do since...” he stopped himself from continuing, “You’ll see.”

  He left the room, and she turned back to the papers in front of her, pushing aside the panic rising in her chest. She had to memorize as much of this as possible. It would be hard to double-cross him but she couldn’t ask him to share the crystals with her, not when his plan relied so much on the illusion they had all been destroyed. But getting her mother’s necklace back was more important than him killing people with magic. Plus, it felt wrong to let him get away with the crystals to complete his research. In his own way, her uncle was like Darkan.

  The notes mentioned locking themselves in the vault while they destroyed the crystals. That might be helpful if she knew how they planned to do that.

  Uncle Ben came back into the kitchen with a bundle in his hands. Before he could speak she held up her hand. It was time to get him to trust her more so she could pull this double-cross off.

  “Before you give me your gift, I have one for you as well.” She said with a sweet shy smile. Uncle Ben looked confused but happy. A good sign. “Yesterday you mentioned that someone had alerted the Fort that something was going on, or that they knew about you. So, I did some digging.” Uncle Ben raised his eyebrows in surprise. “You see one of my associates had the grave misfortune of being locked up in the stocks. To secure an early release for himself, he let them know that they should prepare for someone to attack the fort on Saturday.”

  “Tomorrow?” Uncle Ben said, “Why then?”

  “Because that is when I have an appointment to pick up a legitimate order of crystals from the fort for my employer. However, now that they are aware of this threat they have been increasing security. It will be much more difficult to steal anything tomorrow.”

  Her uncle rubbed his chin thoughtfully, eyes lost in the distance. The lie was close enough to the truth that she didn’t doubt his people could verify it. He had so many people working for him. When he turned his eyes back to her, they were filled with an emotion she couldn’t place. Gratitude? Determination?


  “I knew I was right to bring you into this.” He said, “With the two of us together, no one can stand in our way. It’s just like the prophecy.”

  “Prophecy?” uh oh. Future sight with magic was one thing, it told you what might be coming. Like the Inborn she had met in the Morendi village, Patriza. But prophecies? Only very crazy people believed anyone could see that far into the future and still guarantee the outcome.

  “It’s just a silly thing,” he said waving it off, “The merging of bloodlines, that sort of thing.”

  If it didn’t sound eerily similar to the warning she had gotten from Patriza, she might have let it pass. But there was more to this than he was letting on. And he truly believed in it despite what he said to the contrary. Still, if he wanted to brush it off, for now, she would let it lie. She would find out more later.

  “I see,” she said, keeping her voice calm and sweet. Her uncle smiled.

  “I’ll talk to my people today and see what the best course of action is with this new information. I assume your associate was the man you claimed as your little brother yesterday?”

  “No, that would be a young runaway I chose to travel with. He needed protection. This associate was assigned to watch over me by my employer.”

  Her uncle nodded. “And I assume this associate will not be joining us?”

  “Not even if he wanted to,” she said with a grin. That much was true.

  “What about the runaway?”

  Lynn shook her head, “No. I would like to keep him out of harm’s way if possible.”

  “Very well then,” he brought the bundle he had held in his hands and placed it on the table. “I believe it’s my turn.”

  Lynn stared down at the gift. It looked like a blade, the traditional style of cut for a crystal, but unless she unwrapped it, she wouldn’t be able to read the sigil and know what the magic was for. Her heart was beating loudly in her chest. Surely her uncle could hear it. She took her time unwrapping it, keeping her hands steady. When the final cloth was removed, she saw a simple blade. Wooden handle, no adornments or gems, and no master stamp. Even the sheath was simple leather and covered the two hands-length crystal completely.

  “Look at the sigil,” he encouraged. She smiled indulgently and reached out to remove the sheath. The blade was roughly cut, as though a poor apprentice had shaped it. And the sigil was chiseled into the glowing crystal with uneven lines. It was an unregistered blade, made by her uncle’s hand she was sure. And the sigil was one she had never seen before. It didn’t even resemble any of the ones she knew. What was she holding?

  “What does it do?” she asked, trying to keep the fear from her voice.

  “It holds memories.” He said, fully proud of himself. Lynn allowed herself to let out a breath of relief. At least it didn’t kill. “This one is very dear to me,” he continued, “and I think it will be to you as well.”

  Lynn looked at him suspiciously. It already held memories? Whose?

  “Touch it,” he said. “It won’t hurt you.”

  Without hesitating—or she’d never do it—Lynn placed her finger on the flat side of the blade. Nothing happened. She gave him a confused look Uncle Ben, and he grinned. “Now close your eyes.” She did as she was told. Still nothing. “Now, think of your mother.”

  Her mother?

  Suddenly images appeared in her mind. Her mother dancing with her at the town harvest festival. Her mother brushing her hair before bed. Sitting around the fireplace while her father read from the newspaper. Then she realized what was happening. These were not her memories. These were her mother’s memories. In each one she could see herself as a child, through her mother’s eyes.

  The accident, she thought. She had always wanted to know what had really happened. Her aunt had told her that her mother lost her mind when her baby brother died. And then she had died in the hospital. But...

  Suddenly she was standing in her mother’s body, knee-deep in the snow. It was night and her mother screamed at the sky. Screamed for the Allsaint to take her too. Lynn could feel the bone-deep sorrow that her mother had felt at that moment, and she couldn’t help but let out a sob.

  “It’s ok,” her uncle’s voice broke into the memory. “Look for the happy memories. She had so many of you.”

  But Lynn couldn’t leave now. She had to know. She had to see how her mother had died.

  She took a deep breath and distanced herself from her mother’s emotions. She felt her uncle holding her hand and held onto it tightly, a lifeline back to the present.

  Her mother had wandered around in the snow for hours, it seemed. Lynn felt the frostbite on her fingers and toes, and her face was numb. Finally, her mother turned around and headed to the village. The one thing these memories didn’t share was her thoughts, but Lynn felt that perhaps she had decided to live after all. Why else go to where there are people if not for help? But then her mother collapsed, and the memories took on a different feel. They were blurs of color, but she could hear everything. Hear the people who found her. The doctors who said she was in a coma and that magic could not heal her even if she wasn’t Donassi. Then she heard her uncle’s voice. At first, she thought he was speaking to her, but he was in the memory. Speaking to her mother.

  “I don’t know if you can hear me, Cora. But it’s me, Benjamin.”

  There was movement, blurs of color again, then he spoke, his voice cracking under the emotion.

  “I’m so sorry that we fought. I’m sorry for how distant we have become. How you can’t accept who you are,” he took a deep breath, “but mostly I’m sorry I can’t heal you now. Even without your permission, I would do it. Because you are my little sister.”

  Lynn felt a wave of love for her uncle. He had truly cared for her mother. She squeezed his hand one more time before letting go and felt herself relaxing. At least her mother knew she was loved at the end.

  “Thankfully, though, you can still help me.” Her uncle was whispering now, “I think I’ve done it, Cora. I can finally show everyone I’m the one who finally broke through the magic laws. And you will help me do it and I’m sure that once you see what can be achieved you will come around.”

  She could feel her fear mixing with her mother’s and took slow steady breaths so her uncle wouldn’t know... wouldn’t see. And then she felt the blade cutting into her neck. No, her mother’s neck. Calm steady breaths. She wanted to break away, open her eyes and be back in the present, but she felt like someone should be there with her mother at the end. Someone who actually loved her.

  “We’re going to change the world, Cora.” Her uncle’s voice was distant as Lynn felt the blood drain from her mother’s body. Then a spiral of color appeared and Lynn felt drawn to it in a way she’d never been drawn to anything before. But before she could focus on it, bitter blackness shocked her vision, and she opened her eyes.

  And stared into the eyes of the man who had killed her mother.

  “So what did you think?” Uncle Ben appeared nervous and excited to hear her response, and all she wanted was for him to be just a little closer so she could stab the blade under her hand through his neck. She looked down at the blade as a cold rage built up in her chest. There was no good in her uncle. No, better to just call him Benjamin. He was no family of hers anymore, but he was evil. And it was her job to end him. But not today. No, she would use him for her own gain and then make sure he suffered.

  She looked up with a happy grin on her face. “This is amazing. How did you capture her memories in the blade?”

  Benjamin grinned back at her. “I’ve been working on creating new sigils. It’s part of my research and part of why getting the uncut crystals from the fort is so important. It could change the world.”

  Lynn nodded, awe and agreement on her face while she studied his. How could such a kind face hide such evil?

  Benjamin turned his head sharply as Renaldo walked into the room. She wondered if he knew how evil the man he worked for was? Or maybe he was just as bad. He did give
her the creeps after all.

  “Looks like I’m needed elsewhere, my dear.” He reached out to take her hands, and she had to fight not to pull away in disgust. Instead, she held his hands tightly. “I’ll send word to your hotel as soon as my people and I come up with a plan. Don’t you worry.”

  “I’m not worried,” she told him sweetly. “I trust you,”... to do what’s in your best interest, she finished in her mind.

  With a final squeeze, he stood up and left the room. Renaldo stared at her.

  “I suppose you would like to escort me out?” she said with a half smile.

  Just leave, he said in her mind. I’ll lock up behind you. Then he left her alone, too.

  She took a few minutes to calm herself and keep the tears from rushing down her face. She needed to be strong. She needed to con Benjamin into getting what she wanted and then... well, the fort would be thrilled to get their hands on him. Maybe she could arrange for that.

  Despite her initial reaction, she didn’t know if she actually could murder her uncle in cold blood. It was one line she’d never crossed and didn’t plan to. Not even for a mother-murdering monster like him.

  The blade would be dangerous to carry around in its current state, unmarked as it was. But she might be able to fix that back at the hotel. One thing she knew was that she would not let her mother’s memories ever leave her side.

  Eleven

  ~Friday Late Morning At The Corrupt Harpy~

  BEFORE HEADING TO her room, she hired a messenger boy to send a quick note to Declan. Hopefully, it would find him before he entered the fort. She felt awful that she hadn’t needed his help after all the begging she had done, but there had been no accounting for her uncle. The good and the bad.

  Dorothy wasn’t in the hotel room when Lynn got there, and she hadn’t seen her in the hall downstairs. She had a moment of panic for the girl’s safety but she had to trust that the girl would be ok until lunch time. That is when she had told Dorothy she’d be back.