“We don’t have enough counterweight,” the chief engineer said, reluctantly.
“Nonsense. If this flimsy bag of gas can carry it and the steam cannon—”
“We can’t do it, Exalted, not without losing something of equal weight. The captain won’t want to pitch his new Cabisi cannon overboard.”
Cristof scowled.
“Ondinium already has a dirigible engine to study,” Taya pointed out.
“But this engine would be mine,” he said, plaintively.
Taya laughed.
“You don’t understand— it’s electromagnetic. Ondinium doesn’t even manufacture electromagnetic engines yet!”
“We manufacture them in Cabiel,” Jinian said from the corner, where she had perched on a tool chest. “But this one is ugly, so it must have been built in Alzana.”
“More second-hand technology,” the engineer said with a dismissive snort. “Figures. The Alzanans couldn’t invent their way out of a burlap sack.”
“Well….” Cristof straightened, the top of his head almost brushing the gondola’s ceiling. “If we can’t take the engine, what can we take?”
Taya and Jinian carried the designated plunder to Lieutenant Imbrex, who would make the final decision. By the time Taya returned, Cristof had already crossed the ladder to the Firebrand. He looked pleased with himself as he unbuckled his ondium rescue harness and handed it to the chief engineer to take below. “Next thing you know, you’ll be asking for your own armature,” she teased him. He smiled, then reached out and pulled her in for a hug.
“I guess Janos was right about taking the ship,” he whispered in her ear. “But don’t tell him I said so.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” She closed her eyes, leaning on him. “I’m exhausted.”
“Why don’t you go below and take a nap?”
“No point in trying to sleep before they blow up the ship.” She sighed. “It’s too bad we can’t keep it. Destroying it seems like such a waste of resources.”
“Believe me, I’d like nothing more than to paint an Ondinium warflag over the gryphon-and-bear and fly it to the Alzanan border. But we don’t have enough lictors to crew it, and the ridiculous things burn up too easily, anyway.”
Taya nodded, still leaning against him, already half-asleep.
“Oh, look, they dismantled the searchlight— was it carbide, after all?” Cristof perked up, looking over her shoulder. With a groan, Taya pushed herself away.
“I can’t imagine why anybody would take such a risk, but….” He nudged up his glasses and made a beeline for the piece of equipment. Taya sighed and wondered if the cook had prepared any tea.
Chapter Twelve
The sky was starting to brighten when the gutted Resolute was towed over a lake and long, crackling fuses were lit. The Firebrand sped away as the lictors stood on deck counting in unison. When the bombs exploded and the giant envelope burst into a ball of billowing fire, they gave a ragged cheer. Burning detritus showered across the lake, hitting the surface with a hiss of steam.
Taya leaned on the Firebrand’s rail with a borrowed set of field glasses, watching. She couldn’t guess how badly the burning dirigible would pollute the lake, but she didn’t think it was going to be a high point in Ondinium/Mareaux diplomatic relations.
Still, she was relieved that Alzana had one less ship to pit against Ondinium. And she couldn’t blame her crew-mates too much for cheering— they’d worked all night in the rain and were scraping by on little more than strong tea and willpower.
Once the Resolute was nothing more than hissing steam and bobbing scrap, every lictor who was off-duty stumbled below to catch a few hours of sleep.
Taya headed to the mess hall, where Captain Amcathra had called a meeting.
“It has been over a month since we fled Alzana,” Amcathra stated after everyone had settled down. Cristof, Lieutenant Imbrex, Professor Dautry, and Liliana had joined them. The principessa’s eyes were red, and Taya had a bad feeling about what the captain was about to say. “According to the Resolutes, Alzana has stated that Exalted Forlore and his staff came to the palace under the pretense of negotiating for peace in order to assassinate the royal family. The ambassador and his icarus shot and killed Il Re, his daughter, and his grandson, and kidnapped his youngest granddaughter as a hostage. Meanwhile, Ondinium’s lictors broke into the royal family’s wing of the palace while they were dressing for dinner and went from room to room, killing everyone.”
“No…” Taya reached across the table to grip Liliana’s hand, stricken. The girl clenched her fist, her shoulders tight with grief, but didn’t move her hand aside.
“Two members of the immediate royal family survived the attack,” Amcathra continued. “Principe Silvio was shot in the arm but escaped through a secret panel and Principessa Pietra was with her army unit in another part of the country. Most Alzanans assume we have killed Principessa Liliana. One of their major newspapers is offering a reward to anyone who finds her body and brings it back to the palace for burial.”
“What did they say when they found out who you were?” Taya asked, her heart aching for the girl.
“They think you’re forcing me to help you,” Liliana whispered.
“What about our staff?” Cristof asked.
“Principe Silvio stated that his attackers wore black uniforms and caste stripes,” Amcathra said, his expression stony. “Our staff was promptly arrested and the lictors executed. The crew said that when they left Alzana, about two weeks ago, the non-lictate staff members were still alive.”
Taya released Liliana’s hand to rub her eyes, feeling utterly exhausted.
“Is the prince an accomplice, or does he really think he saw lictors killing his family?” Cristof asked, looking from Amcathra to Liliana. “How old is he?”
“Fourteen,” Liliana whispered.
“The rebels who attacked us were also wearing black uniforms and painted stripes,” Captain Amcathra pointed out.
“True, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t in on the conspiracy. I’m sorry, Janos, but we’ve already seen how easily the Mazzolettis can turn idealistic young men against the people who trust them.”
“Silvio wouldn’t be the next king, though, Exalted.” Lieutenant Imbrex seemed unaware of the sudden tension around the table. “His older sister Pietra is first in line to inherit.”
“Yes,” Liliana said. She swallowed. “She is now the acting queen, although the Resolutes said she’s still in the field.”
“Doesn’t she need to go back to the capital to take the throne?” Taya asked.
“Not during a war. We’re not— Alzanan rulers lead their armies. They don’t stay at home giving orders. Pietra probably swore a vendetta against your country.” Liliana sounded despondent. “She won’t rest until she’s avenged our Family.”
“Then we need to take you to her as soon as we can,” Taya said. “She needs to know that we aren’t her enemies.”
“Did we learn anything else?” Cristof asked. Amcathra nodded.
“Yes. Alzana has spread the news that Ondinium has a secret military aerial force. They claim that we had been mobilizing a secret fleet against them and that their invasion from Demicus was intended as a pre-emptive strike.”
“Ridiculous,” Cristof scoffed.
“The accusation has widely discredited Ondinium’s claims of innocence. Demicus and Alzana have already invaded Ondinium to little international criticism. Foreign observers have reported seeing ornithopters patrolling Ondinium’s borders, which has apparently given more credence to the secret fleet story.”
“Invaded— how far are they?”
“Unknown.”
“So Ondinium’s ornithopters are public now,” Dautry mused. “I hope that means we won’t be executed for flying openly into Os Cansai.”
“We didn’t have any choic
e,” Lieutenant Imbrex countered.
“Finally,” Amcathra said, shooting the two a quelling look, “the prisoners said that Queen Iancais is allowing Alzana to move military materiel, troops, and vessels across Mareaux’s borders. She has censured Ondinium’s actions against Alzana and set up aerostat and balloon patrols throughout the country.”
“But— we’d never attack Mareaux!” Taya felt a surge of indignation. “She knows that! We were just there!”
“And we told her in good faith that Ondinium was concerned about Mareaux’s aerostats because it believed in war-free skies,” Cristof said, heavily. “What is she supposed to believe now? For all she knows, everything we said during our visit was a lie.”
“But I promised.” Taya pushed her chair back. “I promised that constable — Chief Inspector Gifford, remember? — I promised him Ondinium wasn’t going to war with Mareaux!”
“And we won’t,” Cristof said, soothingly. “Taya, the queen’s patrols can look both ways. She’s protecting herself from Ondinium and Alzana. It’s a prudent move, under the circumstances.”
“The Council turned us into liars!”
“It didn’t—”
“It manipulated you into becoming an ambassador, it lied to everybody about having aerial ships, it put us under a death penalty if we said anything about them, and then it sent us on a diplomatic mission it knew we would fail!” Taya stood, her nerves frayed from exhaustion and stress. Amcathra started to say something and she turned on him. “And you knew all about these ships when we were in Mareaux! You’d already trained on them, and you still let us babble away about the importance of ethical warfare and weapons-free skies!”
Amcathra fell silent.
“Taya!” Cristof stood and grabbed her arms. “I’m not going to defend the Council’s actions, but this outburst isn’t helping.”
“I trusted them!”
“I know.” He gently pulled her toward him. She resisted a moment, still angry, but he looked so unhappy that she finally gave in and leaned her head against his chest. “I know you did. I’m sorry.”
She took a deep breath, feeling his arms wrapping protectively around her. He was right. She needed to calm down. But the news about their staff, about Liliana’s family, about the tension between Mareaux and Ondinium— it was too much. She felt betrayed on all sides.
No, not quite all sides. Cristof had never trusted the Council, even in the days when she had. He’d always done his best to protect her from it. And Captain Amcathra would never betray them, even if he was bound by duty to keep the Council’s dirty secrets. His scrupulous sense of honor angered and frustrated her, but it had also saved her life, and Cristof’s, more than once.
At last she pushed away, nodding to indicate that she was feeling better. She wiped her eyes with her shirt cuff.
“I’m sorry,” she said, taking another deep breath and sitting down. “I apologize, Captain. I didn’t mean it. I’m just— I’m just angry. I’m angry for all of us and the situation we’re in.”
“Understood,” Amcathra said, without rancor.
“It’s understandable that we’re tired and upset.” Lieutenant Imbrex looked around the table. “But to make matters worse, we had to run with the wind to stay ahead of the Resolute, which means we’re farther west than we’d intended. We need to get to the border as soon as possible, but we can’t cross Mareaux by day without being seen. On the other hand, there isn’t anyplace to hide in the middle of all this flat farmland. We can’t simply anchor the Firebrand behind someone’s barn and hope they don’t notice.”
“And in the meantime, our presence in Mareaux airspace can be considered an act of war,” Cristof filled in, wearily. “I’m sure the Alzanans will be happy to use that fact against us.”
“Yes,” Amcathra agreed. “They have already alerted Mareaux to expect our presence. The Resolute had heard that we might be returning to the continent from the Indomitable, which crossed their path a few days before. The Indomitable continued to Alzana while the Resolute diverted to Mareaux to warn the queen and patrol the coast.”
“Do we know whether our warning about the serpentfire cannon got through?” Cristof asked.
“The Resolutes knew nothing about it. However, if Mareaux is no longer our ally, its authorities may have intercepted and blocked the message at any point.”
“Then we have no choice.” Cristof sounded grim. “We need to fly across Mareaux as quickly as possible.”
“Our path will be noted,” Amcathra warned. “Mareaux will undoubtedly gather its ground and air forces along the border to stop us from crossing.”
Taya closed her eyes, visualizing a map of the continent. Mountains formed a natural, protective border around Ondinium on almost all sides. When the empire had collapsed, Ondinium had been driven back to its most defensible core.
“What if we cut west, where the Mareaux wouldn’t expect us to go, and approached Ondinium from Samaras?” she suggested.
Professor Dautry shook her head. “I’m not certain we have enough fuel to get to the Mareaux border, much less Tizier or Samaras. We could shave a day or two from the journey if you’re willing to cross over Alzana, however.”
“Sounds dangerous,” Cristof said. “But if we install the Resolute’s steam cannon, we should be able to fight off most Alzanan dirigibles, at least one-on-one.”
“However, we will be traveling through Alzanan mountain territory,” Amcathra reminded him. “It is difficult to dodge a mortar or cannon in a narrow pass.”
“We’ll just have to hope that the Alzanans never spent as much time studying aerial warfare and tactics as you did, Janos.”
“What about me?” Liliana asked, tensely. “If you dropped me off in Alzana, I could send a message to my sister.”
“We shall have to see if the opportunity arises, Principessa. In the meantime, it would be useful if you would continue to try to convince the Resolutes of the truth.”
“What is the truth? Am I really free to go, or are you planning to keep me as your hostage?”
The lictor turned to Cristof, and Taya saw a flash of disappointment in Liliana’s expression. That’s that, she reflected. He’s just lost her affection. Liliana wanted a dashing hero who would defy all odds to protect her, not a methodical soldier who respected hierarchy and put duty before emotion.
“Of course you’re not a hostage,” Cristof said. “We’re allies, and as soon as we warn Ondinium about those damn cannon, I promise that we’ll turn our attention to putting the Agostis back on the throne.”
“But you won’t let me go until then.”
Cristof gave the girl a sharp look over the frames of his glasses.
“Your safety is of paramount importance to us, Liliana. You are very likely the only person who can stop this war without bloodshed. Forgive us if we want to keep you out of the hands of your — of our — enemies as long as possible.”
Liliana held his gaze a moment, then sighed and slumped back into her chair.
“And forgive me if I just want to go home again,” she said softly. “I just want to go home.”
* * *
The Firebrand sped across Mareaux’s skies as fast as the wind and its wings could carry it, flying one thousand to three thousand feet from the ground. Several times its lookout spotted what could have been reconnaissance balloons floating next to military encampments and the ornithopter veered to avoid them. The captain had agreed to the shorter Mareaux-Alzana-Ondinium route in an attempt to conserve fuel, and now everybody was preparing for war.
Liliana was taking Jinian’s hand-to-hand training seriously now. Grief, Taya thought, and fear, and anger. The girl had been able to push her problems aside in Cabiel, but now the reality of her situation was sinking in.
Jinian had, in turn, asked for more pistol and rifle lessons. Professor Dautry joined her whenever she was off-du
ty, quietly intent on beating Captain Amcathra’s scores in what had become a nightly shooting competition between the captain, Cristof, Jinian, and Dautry.
When he wasn’t overseeing shooting lessons, Cristof helped the ship’s chief engineer mount the Resolute’s steam cannon into the Firebrand’s gun deck, an experiment that had Lieutenant Imbrex and the quartermaster fretting about weight and recoil and the rest of the lictors enthusiastically shifting the other cannon around to compensate. Captain Amcathra insisted on testing it, a noisy endeavor that resulted in the destruction of a small copse of trees on a hillside. The lictor seemed pleased, although Taya didn’t think it would do anything to enhance future Mareaux-Ondinium diplomatic relations, either.
Taya was practicing her own knife-fighting drills one evening when Cadet Fidenus asked Jinian to show him some Cabisi fighting techniques.
“Fighting with a knife is a Cabisi technique.”
“But it’s not much different from how we fight in Ondinium,” Fidenus protested.
Jinian grinned. “There is only so much a human can do with two hands, two feet, and one head.”
“Well, Alzanans use sabres, and Ondiniums don’t….”
“Oh, you want different weapons.” She rested a hand on her metal belt. “Are you familiar with the whip sword?”
“No.” Fidenus perked up. “What is it?”
The other lictors paused and Liliana lowered her knife as Jinian shook out her belt into a long, flexible metal strip.
“That’s a sword?” Liliana looked skeptical. “How can you stab someone with that?”
“It does not stab.” Jinian walked to an open spot on deck and glanced down. “I do not wish to scuff these nice designs….”
“Ondium’s hard,” the lictor Pitio said. “You can’t hurt it.”
“You are certain?”
A chorus of agreement urged her on, so Jinian shrugged and began to swing the blade around her, gaining speed until the sword was a blur of moving metal shifting from side to side and front to back, raising sparks as its tip struck the deck and the rails. Taya held her breath, watching the kattaka swivel and leap, deflecting unseen blows and swinging the whip over her head and under her feet. At last Jinian spun and wrapped the whip around the muzzle of the nearest deck gun, yanking the muzzle downward as she ended on one knee, panting, her dark skin shining with sweat.
Clockwork Secrets Page 20