Guardians of Evil

by C. R. Daems

  A good bargaining story, Liada mused. As she looked through a stack of shirts, she asked the merchant if he thought it was safe in the market.

  “The priests had better stay in their temple. People are tired of being pushed around,” the woman said, putting her hands on her hips and scowling.

  “We need to run the priests out of town,” a man standing nearby responded.

  Many of the booths and stalls were still closed as the owners repaired or rebuilt them, and the market still stank of smoke. The sound of saws and hammering rose over the subdued chatter of the shoppers. Around noon, she thought she spotted four boys, younger than her, stalk into the market from Protector Street, which led directly to the temple. Not too subtle. The oldest boy, almost her age, seemed to be in charge, pointing the way for the others to go. She thought they were trying to blend in but not doing a very good job of it. Each time he pointed, one of the boys would start walking in that direction. After the others left, he began a leisurely stroll.

  Liada sauntered in the same direction and ducked into a stall selling clothing. She examined several stacks of skirts and pants while waiting for him to get closer so she could hear what he was saying.

  “Mam, can you tell me where the leather stall is?” he asked the clothes vendor.

  “Was one over where all the stalls burned? Don’t know now.”

  “Thank you, I didn’t know if he had been hurt yesterday.”

  “I saw him after the fire so I guess he wasn’t.” The woman was eyeing him suspiciously.

  “Did you see what happened yesterday?”

  “Just the flames and people running and screaming.”

  The acolyte finally flinched from the woman’s suspicious gaze and moved along to a stall a little way down. Liada strolled in after him, stopping to buy a handful of roasted nuts. He asked the same questions to another vendor, then moved to ask yet a third.

  The answers from those who were there varied. Some described the flames but were too far away to have seen how it started or ended. Some had seen the priest and the mayhem but were vague on the details. They saw the Quag destroying stalls and killing people. They had seen the priest running in and out of stalls, but they missed much of the action from being pushed and bumped by the panicked crowd. Only a few were close to describing the real events. Those said that the priest seemed ready to arrest another poor young woman when his Quag went mad, belching flames at the vendors’ stalls. The priest then chased after several women but didn’t catch one. He chased one into the crowd who were angry and started throwing things at him. When the Quag returned, he hurt more people and the crowd killed him.

  “Good thing,” a few vendors commented and plainly meant it.

  “Woman, were you here yesterday?” the boy said, looking directly at Liada and pointing to her bandaged arm.

  “Ess a Hrom Xawm,” I’m a grown woman, Liada said in Gorlack. By now with Tali and Kaim’s help, she knew enough Sporish and Gorlack words for simple short questions and answers.

  “I don’t understand Gorlack. Can’t you speak Sporish or Butosh?”

  Talking to the acolyte would be dangerous, but it could also be informative. Her curiosity won out.

  “Yes. I’m a grown woman, not a girl,” she said, pointing to the tatts on her good arm. She had to bite her tongue to stop from smiling.

  “Were you here yesterday?” he asked, ignoring her comment.

  “Yes.” She nodded but volunteered no more information.

  “Did you see what happened?”

  “Yes.” She was going to make him pull it out of her word by word. She had to be careful. This was getting to be too much fun.

  “What did you see?” He sighed in frustration. She could sense the priestly arrogance. He believed it his right.

  “A Quag killing people and destroying people’s lives.”

  “The Quag protect the people.”

  Liada knew he was losing his composure. She guessed they were taught that people didn’t have the right to question them.

  “The Quag in Gorlack do. This Sporish one was killing people.”

  “The priest was from Ostono,” he said.

  No doubt it was an effort to protect his image and that of the Sporish priests. Not a good idea. To the people, a Roganista priest is a Roganista priest. They were drawing spectators in a circle around them though people were keeping their distance.

  “Do the Ostono priests hate the Sporish people?” She could feel Aliy’s feathers brush her neck as if in approval.

  “No. All the Roganista priests are here to protect the people.” His face was getting red.

  “From what?”

  “The First Ones, of course.” He was angry, face hard and brows tightened.

  “I didn’t see any First Ones yesterday, only burned stalls and hurt people.”

  “That’s right,” someone in the crowd yelled.

  “The Quag must have been chasing something,” he said weakly, looking around the crowd.

  “The priest was chasing people. They both looked mad.”

  “He wasn’t mad,” the boy shouted at the mumbling crowd.

  “How do you know?” she said.

  “I’m an acolyte.” He looked around at the angry crowd. The red drained from his face. Now he looked pale as sweat broke out on his brow.

  “Here to spy on the Sporish people?”

  “No,” he said as he backed away, then turned, and ran.

  “I noticed several other boys who came with him,” Liada said. Several people in the crowd looked around as though to find the other acolytes. Then they began to go about their business while muttering about the priests.

  “How did you know the priests were spying on us?” a man who had been standing with several others asked. Liada held up her arm and pointed to the owl tatt.

  “Wisdom.” She heard them laughing as she walked off. She could only hope she interrupted the other boys before they could gather much information. It did seem that few people were able to see everything that happened through the chaos of yesterday’s events. She spent the next few hours wandering in and out of the stalls purchasing a few more clothes for the trip to Gorlack, but she didn’t see any of the acolytes. It seemed the story of the Gorlack woman had spread throughout the market, and her purchases were at embarrassing low prices. She grinned all the way back to the Inn.

  When she returned it was late afternoon, and Zeph was waiting for her in the hallway.

  “What happened? Are you all right? Did you see any priests?”

  “I’m hungry. Let’s get something to eat in the dining room, and I’ll tell you the whole story. And yes, I’m all right, and no, I didn’t see any priests. I did see some of their future priests. I wasn’t impressed.”

  Liada took her time eating—mostly to calm herself. She hadn’t realized how keyed up she was. She decided to concentrate on the food in front of her in hopes of easing the tension.

  As she ate, she found herself judging the fish topped with spicy chopped vegetables she was eating. It was well prepared. She tried to decide what spices had been used in its preparation. Maybe she would stop in the kitchen and ask. Zeph gobbled his food and had to sit sighing while she took her time. After a while, he started watching the serving girl’s swaying hips. Liada smiled down at her plate.

  Up in the room, she spent an hour telling Zeph what had happened at the market. She had Zeph bent over with laughter when she told him about the conversation with the young acolyte.

  “I believe it, Liada. I can’t imagine anyone winning a word dueling match with you. Talking to you can be really irritating,” Zeph said but took the bite out of it with a grin. Tali flew into the room through the open window, becoming visible as soon as she was inside, and landed in Liada’s lap. She had to lean down to hear Tali.

  “Liada, I’m too weak to remain invisible. The Quag hurt me. My circle helped me regain my strength enough for me to fly back.”

  Liada sat there, tears running down her face
. “Tali... Oh, Tali, you’re alive.” She gently picked up the little sprite and carefully touched it to her lips.

  They spent the next hour creating a sling that fit around one shoulder and under the other and loose enough that Tali could comfortably be cradled in it. Liada loved the idea that Tali would be so close, warm, and safe under her loose-fitting tunic.

  Liada and Zeph again ate dinner in the Inn.

  “Fish again,” Zeph said. “I would give anything for a meat dish.”

  “They sure don’t vary their menu much. The food is tasty but limited,” Liada said. Some meat would be nice but she still wanted the recipe. After they finished, she told Zeph that she’d meet him in his room later and made her way to the kitchen. It was small and hot. A door opened into the dining room and a back door, wide open, opened to the alley.

  “What are you doing?” a broad, heavy-set woman asked while waving a spoon in the direction of the door. “The dining room is out there.”

  “Pardon, Mam. I’m a cook at a small restaurant in Gorlack. Your fish dish is the best I’ve ever tasted,” Liada said in Butosh. The woman stopped stirring something in a large pot to take a good look at her.

  “Thank you.”

  “I was wondering if you would share your recipe with me. I would, of course, share a recipe with you.”

  “What kind of recipe?”

  “Bread, cake, or a meat dish from Ostono. I worked with a chef there for a while.” Liada had noticed a lack of those items on the menu.

  “Show me a bread and a meat dish and I’ll give you my fish recipe.” The woman waved her into the kitchen. “My name is Lurne.”

  “My name is Jatia.” Liada spent the next hour making crusty bread she thought would go good with fish or soup, and a beef goulash that was spicy like Lurne’s fish dish. After tasting both the bread and the goulash, Lurne spent the next hour showing Liada how she made the fish dish and a spicy fish soup. Liada found the time in the kitchen with Lurne a welcome relief. Besides, she found she enjoyed cooking. It had become fun and interesting learning the different styles and ways of preparing food. She wished she could spend more time with Lurne. Although the list of her dishes was limited, they were unusual and very tasty. Liada went upstairs humming one of Tali’s old songs. In the hallway, she jumped when Emmund grabbed her arm and pulled her into Zeph’s room.

  “Sechael is leaving for Gorlack by boat, tomorrow. We’ll leave late tonight. I want to be there before he lands. Be ready to leave two hours before midnight.”

  “No.” Liada sat in Zeph’s chair, since Zeph and Emmund were standing.

  “What do you mean, no? Is this another one of your tantrums?”

  “No.”

  “You are presenting me with another dilemma. One you won’t like.” Emmund moved to stand in front of her. As he did, he pushed Zeph hard enough to throw him on the bed.

  “I guess I’m working for a Gorlack zealot to defeat Roganista zealots,” Liada said, her head cocked to the side, looking up at him.

  “I’m not a zealot nor is my empire, Liada.” His face was flushed and his stare looked dangerous, like a panther ready to pounce.

  “You told me that zealots are only concerned with their vision of perfection. They believe they’re doing good and their methods justified. That sounds an awful lot like you. You’d kill us, who have done nothing but help you, because we no longer wish to follow you.”

  Emmund stepped back. Zeph lay right where he landed when Emmund pushed him. His eyes were wide and his mouth moving but no sound emerged.

  “I see. I dismissed you as having a tantrum. But you weren’t. You were fishing for something. Well, what is it?”

  “I need to know where you stand.”

  Emmund blinked. “I’m Gorlack security.”

  “And after you solve Gorlack’s problem?”

  “That’s my job.”

  “What about Ostono? You have two Ostono citizens helping you. Are you going to throw us to the Roganista priests when you don’t need us? You have a First One helping you. Are you going to let the Roganista priests kill the First Ones in Ostono and Sporish when you don’t need them anymore?”

  His mouth twitched. “I must stop underestimating you, Liada. For a young woman you have some tough questions.” He laughed for a minute and shook his head. “I don’t know what my Council will want to do. But I will protect you—and your friends.”

  “Why did you laugh?” Liada asked. She didn’t see anything funny with her concerns.

  “I’m laughing because I don’t think they have a chance of winning an argument with you,” Emmund said, his eyes glinting with amusement.

  “Sechael isn’t leaving tomorrow, maybe not for several days,” Liada said, changing the subject entirely now that she felt she was going to have a chance to get Gorlack to help Ostono and the First Ones.

  “How do you know?”

  “Tali’s back. Sechael won’t leave until he finds out what happened in the market yesterday. He said it was a disaster and has risked their plan. He sent a priest to Osshaft to delay things and sent acolytes to the market to poke around. He realized sending priests might cause more killing.”

  Emmund frowned at her. He walked over to her and turned her head to look at her tatts then lifted her arm and examined it. “Those are reasonably good fakes. Should I ask who painted them?”

  “Zeph.”

  “Very good, Zeph. Liada, getting information from you sometimes is like trying to defang a viper. Never mind. Who are the acolytes? I never heard anyone mention acolytes.”

  “The ones at the market were kids between about nine and fifteen. I suspect they start them earlier,” Liada said.

  “And what happened?”

  “She confronted the older boy and made him so mad he blurted out he was an acolyte. That ended their undercover questioning,” Zeph said with a laugh.

  “I can believe that.” Emmund grinned. “I formally declare you, Liada, a member of Gorlack’s security. N yn auho.”

  “On my oath,” Aliy whispered. “A sacred pledge for a Gorlack.”

  “On my oath,” Liada repeated.

  “You are dangerous, Liada. You may have a full time position in Gorlack security.” Emmund looked down at her for a minute, chewing his lip. He shook his head at something and then he slipped out of the room.

  “I thought he was going to kill us right here and now. Tell me when you are going to do that again. I want to have a big club ready,” Zeph said. He smiled but it was a weak smile.

  * * * *

  Liada felt like a mother with a sick child and got up every couple of hours to check on Tali. Every time Tali seemed to be asleep and comfortable, and Liada breathed with relief.

  In the darkest part of the night, Tali opened her eyes and said, “Go to sleep, Liada. I will be well. I just need rest to regain my energy.”

  Early the next morning Kaim returned. She didn’t realize it until she woke up and found Kaim sitting on her forehead.

  “The acolytes returned to Mareld’s house in the afternoon. I entered with them. The boy admitted he had gotten into an argument with a Gorlack woman, lost his temper, and had blurted he was an acolyte. Sechael was furious and told the boy he needed remedial training. He questioned the boys for an hour. Each boy had heard a different version. After they left, he told Mareld that Roward must have seen someone with a First One. The Quag chased it. He said the idiot boy ruined their inquiry though. Sechael plans to go to the market tomorrow.”

  Somehow, Liada didn’t think she should go tomorrow. Sechael might start putting things together. Best she stay out of sight.

  “Kaim, would you follow him tomorrow?”

  “I’ll stick to him like rain.”

  * * * *

  Rather than sit around doing nothing, Liada visited the kitchen. Lurne welcomed her and Liada spent the rest of the day helping her cook. She learned two more recipes, and Lurne used one of Liada’s recipes for a boar stew. When she got back to the room, Kaim still ha
dn’t return, but Zeph was splashing in the washbowl.

  “How was work, Zeph?”

  He continued scrubbing his hands and arms, which were black from work in the stable. “This trip would be perfect if it weren’t that people keep trying to kill us. Working with different blacksmiths has been great. I can’t wait to show Father what I’ve learned. I wish we were going home tomorrow.” Zeph kept his gaze on his hands as he washed and wouldn’t look at her.

  “Zeph, I’ve loved having you with me. You’ve saved my life, but if you want to go home, I’ll understand.”

  “I want to go home, but me showing up might cause trouble. Besides, there’s no way I’m leaving you with Emmund and no one to help. I’ll see this through with you.”

  “Thanks.” She smiled in relief. It would have been awful if she had to go on alone. She kind of liked Emmund when he wasn’t being mean—not that she’d admit it to him. But Zeph was like a brother. “I’d love to go home too. I’ll never complain about them again. Not even my bratty brother.”

  Zeph laughed and dried his hands and arms while grinning at her. “That still sounds a little like complaining to me.”

  She smiled. “Maybe. But I think about the days when we used to play and not worry about anything. It was wonderful. Even helping in the kitchen wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought. But…I can’t desert the First Ones no matter the cost.” While they talked, she felt Kaim brush against her cheek letting her know it had returned.

  “Sechael wandered around buying something from every vendor and asking if they’d seen anything. Since he was buying, the vendors talked to him. When he went to the house afterwards, he said that Roward was chasing a woman with a First One and that it was too bad the Quag didn’t catch it. But since it didn’t, Breeze Point will have to be the last city where they implement the plan. He is going to change the plan and the timing. He told Mareld, he would leave three days from today.”

  * * * *

  Emmund was lounging in Liada’s chair, his legs stretched out in front of him when she came back from the kitchen the next day. Zeph met her at the door, grubby from the smithy.

  Emmund smiled a little smugly. “I like the tatts. Maybe we should make them permanent when we get to Gorlack.”