by Henry Vogel
An hour after Raoul stopped talking to me, I found another reason to dislike the man. He snored. Raoul’s deep–throated roar did not quite bring the walls down around us, but it made it nearly impossible for me to sleep.
According to my implant, twenty–two hours passed before a guard arrived to take me back to the throne room. As I was led away, Raoul begged the guards to leave him a light. The guards laughed at the exiled prince and mocked his desperation. In spite of myself, I felt a twinge of pity for Raoul. It was no more than a twinge, mind you, but it was the first time in months I felt anything beyond loathing for the Spare Prince.
The guards led me up and down stairs and through a new set of twists and turns. Smiling to myself, I added this new information to the map being built by my implant. Entering the throne room, the map and the last few twists and turns were driven from my mind. I could not believe what I saw.
Martin Bane stood before King Rat!
Interlude
Callan is Ten
I leaned my back against a support beam in the loft of the barn. My arms stretched around behind the rough column of wood, my shoulders aching from the discomfort. I looked to the ladder on the far side of the loft. Where was my hero? Why had he not come? Why had he forsaken me in my hour of need?
This was intolerable! My nose itched and I had straw tangled in my hair. What kind of champion would leave his princess in such distress?
I sighed and pulled my arms from around the beam. The pain in my shoulders eased as my right hand scratched the tip of my nose. I ran a hand through my hair but found it so tangled my fingers caught and pulled at my hair. Well, ladies–in–waiting had to have something to do when I got back to my room, right?
I’d just have to make Mom understand I made a mess of myself out of deep concern that the ladies–in–waiting would be released from service if they had nothing to do. Maybe Daddy would be there instead of Mom. If he was, I could just whip up a few tears, he’d melt, and so would my problems. Of course, all was lost if Rob was on duty tonight. He always saw through my schemes.
A high–pitched voice rose from below.
“Boy, why isn’t my saddle properly polished? I should be able to see myself in it.”
Lovely. It was my least favorite palace prat, Squire Bertram. I peeked down into the barn and saw just what I expected to see.
Bertie boy and two of his lackeys had my hero backed into a corner. Poor Tim, the stable boy, tried to hide the practice sword, which I’d brought to make him feel more heroic, behind his back. What was Tim’s problem? Why didn’t he use the practice sword to whack Bertie and his bully boys?
“I– I’m sorry, sir,” Tim stammered. “I t–tried to shine your saddle b–but something c–came up.”
“Oh, well, that’s different, boy. I mean if something came up…” Bertie smiled and clapped Tim on the shoulder. “Hey, is that a practice sword you’ve got there, Tim?”
Tim nodded, knowing what was coming next.
“That’s wonderful, Tim! I guess this means you’ll be joining us squires at sword training soon!” Bertied grinned over his shoulder at his followers. “You know, I’ve just had a great idea! Why don’t I start your training right now, Tim?”
“N–no, sir, I’ve got to f–finish p–polishing your saddle.”
Bertie lost his false look of congeniality. “It’s a little late for that, boy.”
My temper flared and I jumped from the loft into a pile of straw behind Bertie and his friends.
“That’s enough of that, you stupid bullies!”
Bertie whirled, his face red with anger. “Milk maid, you will regret interfering with your betters!”
Bertie’s eyes went wide when he realized who I was. His face paling, the stupid squire dropped to one knee. His bully boys quickly followed suit.
“A thousand pardons, Your Highness! I did not realize it was you who had spoken.”
Bertie cringed and bowed even lower. This was more like it!
“You have offended me, Squire Bertram. I order you and your little friends to go run around the palace from now until dinner time.”
“But Your Highness, dinner is not for another two hours!”
“Do you think I need you to tell me the time?” I did, actually. I thought dinner was three hours away. Oh well…
“Of course not. I beg your pardon, yet again, for my temerity, Princess Callan.”
I cast my best look of disgust upon Bertie and his boys and waved a hand toward the stable doors. “Begone from my sight at once!”
The three squires bowed their heads in acknowledgement and then beat a hasty retreat from the barn.
“Ha! Look at them run!” I grinned in triumph. “You’re safe from them now, Tim.”
“Don’t be foolish, Your Highness. They’ll simply come back after you’re gone. And the beating Tim receives will be much the worse after he witnessed the way you treated those louts.”
It was my turn to cringe, for Tim had not spoken.
I spun about. “Rob, it’s not my fault! I–”
“Of course it’s your fault, my Princess. You took Tim away from his duties. You gave him the practice sword. You embarrassed the sons of nobles before a defenseless stableboy.”
“Don’t be silly, Rob! I saved Tim from a beating. Tell him, Tim.”
“Her Highness is right, of course, Sir Robbill,” Tim mumbled.
“See, Rob? Tim admits it!”
“What do you expect him to do, Princess? You just ordered him to support your claim.”
I rolled my eyes. Rob was being so unreasonable!
“Don’t be daft, Rob, I’m–”
“The princess and heir to the throne. And as such, your words have power. To someone of Tim’s station, your least comment can destroy his life, which is exactly what you have done today.” Rob turned to Tim. “Go and gather your things, lad. It’s no longer safe for you to work in the stables.”
“B–but, sir, I love working here! I knows all the animals and they knows me. Who will mix water in Molly’s oats so her old teeth can chew them okay? And nobody ‘cept me knows the right place to scritch the king’s charger after a hard ride.”
“They’re not your concern any more, Tim. I’m sorry. I’ll do my best to find a similar position for you somewhere else.”
Tears spilled down Tim’s cheeks as he stumbled away to do Rob’s bidding. I felt one tear roll down my cheek, too.
“I didn’t mean to do it, Rob,” I whispered. “I was just trying to find my hero.”
“I know, Little One.” Rob put an arm around my shoulder. “But, as I’ve told you a hundred times, you never find a hero if you go looking for him. But when you least expect it and most need it, a hero will rise to the occasion.”
“But what kind of man will that hero be, Rob?”
“God only knows, Your Highness, but, if the hero must save you, then I pray the Lord sends us a man of strong will and stronger character!”
I punched Rob’s arm, but my heart wasn’t in it. I felt badly for what I had done to Tim. And, as I heard Bertie and his bullies run past, I fervently hoped my hero wouldn’t turn out to be someone like them.
Chapter 13
Callan
We made good time crossing the desert. Despite the sixteen hour head start enjoyed by the Envoy’s ship, the speedy little Pauline docked a mere four hours behind the Envoy. Milo slipped into the crowd around the dock, searching for any information concerning David, the tunnel rats, and the plans King Rat had for David.
“You don’t speak the language of the city–states, do you, Milo?”
Milo just shook his head as he checked his inventory of…of whatever it was street thieves carried, I guess.
“Then how can your plan succeed if you cannot understand what these people are saying?”
Milo rolled his eyes. What is it about teenagers and eye–rolling? I recall doing it a lot myself—Mom said daughters are particularly prone to it. I’m only twenty–one, but I cannot r
emember why I thought it was such an effective response to questions from adults. David said it was due to something he called hormones.
“I grew up in a shipping center, Callan,” Milo said. “Airships from all over the world docked in Faroon. That meant the docks were filled with tempting targets for thieves. I had to be able to understand bits of a whole bunch of languages if I wanted to find the richest, easiest targets.”
“That makes sense, I guess.”
Milo flashed his infectious grin and turned away. I pulled him back around and looked into his eyes.
“Be careful and don’t do anything careless! You know how David would feel if something happened to you during our rescue attempt!”
Milo rolled his eyes again. “Yes, mother.”
Playing along, I planted a kiss on Milo’s forehead. “Be a good little boy in the big city! Look both ways when you cross the street and don’t talk to any strangers.”
The boy rolled his eyes a third time, but he laughed, too.
Two very long hours passed, each of them feeling more like a full day, before Milo returned. His information was worth the time we had spent waiting and I had spent worrying. David had been taken from the Envoy’s airship and paraded straight to the lair of the rat king. It was such an unusual procession that it was still the main topic of conversation among those who saw him pass.
“He was walking on his own and nobody said anything about cuts or bruises or bandages. So the envoy must have treated David okay during the trip,” Milo wrapped up his report.
“Did anyone notice you while you were out there, Milo? Or follow you back here?” Martin asked.
Milo crossed his arms and glared at Martin.
Martin crossed his arms and glared back. “I had to ask, lad.”
“No you didn’t.”
I rolled my eyes. “Now that we’ve resolved the pressing issue of who had to ask and who didn’t, can we get back to rescuing David?”
“Of course, Your Highness. And good job, Milo,” Martin said. “Now, I want you to show me where the envoy took David to turn him over to King Rat’s men. Along the way, I’ll point out a few good bolt holes and some spots where you can land the Pauline if the airship has to cut and run while some of us aren’t on board.”
The man and the boy descended from our dock to the ground. They were quickly absorbed into the crowds teeming around the dock. That left Tristan, Nist, and me to wait and worry. Hiding my identity under the robes and veil of a desert tribeswoman, I paced around the Pauline’s deck.
Inaction and worry drove my mind into dark places where it delighted in summoning disturbing images. I envisioned tunnel rats killing David in unspeakable ways. Next, what I saw was David and Martin being fed to a tammar. Worst of all, from my mind’s darkest corners came the image of Martin turning all of us over to the tunnel rats and keeping the crown jewels for himself. I didn’t believe those last images for one second, positive Martin’s turn of heart was genuine and his loyalty to David unquestionable. But minds can be insidious and my confidence in Martin didn’t stop mine from conjuring those terrible images.
Driven to distraction by my dark thoughts, I wished for something—anything—to happen and grant me relief from the monotony! There is a reason the phrase ‘Be careful what you wish for’ became a cliché. As if on cue, I spotted Milo dodging through the crowded docks at a run. A gang of burly men pushed through the crowd behind him, losing ground as Milo slipped easily through the crowd.
“Nist! Tristan!” I called. “Milo is coming back here at a run and it looks like he’s got an unwelcoming party behind him!”
Milo burst from the mass of people and charged up the stairs to our dock. As he came close enough to be heard over the din of the crowd, he shouted, “Cast off! Cast off!”
Tristan and I ran to do as Milo instructed while Nist tossed a few more logs into the boiler. Nist had insisted on keeping the boiler pressure up—not that any of us had argued with him—and it proved to be a wise move! The gang of men had just reached the bottom of the stairs to our dock when Milo jumped onto the airship. The Pauline was fifteen feet above the dock and rising by the time the men reached the top of the stairs. I was relieved to see that they carried small clubs instead of crossbows. They could do nothing more than curse and shake their fists at us.
I fully expected our little drama to have attracted some attention—at home, the dock watch or the city guard would have come swarming in response to behavior like this—but no one gave us a second glance. Maybe foreign dockyards really were as rough and tumble as they were in the air pirate tales I’d read as a girl.
“Why were they chasing you, Milo?” I asked.
“They weren’t chasing me, I was racing against them.
“What?”
“Word is out on the streets that Martin stole the Mordanian crown jewels. An awful lot of people know Martin went to visit the tunnel rats. Some of them are hoping to grab the jewels while he’s down there. I overheard those thugs say something about ‘Bane’s airship’ and knew that couldn’t be good. Their boss must think Martin left the jewels here,” Milo said. Pointing behind us, he added, “And that boss isn’t going to give up easily!”
Two large airships rose from the docks and swung into our wake!
Chapter 14
David
I watched for a signal from Martin, any kind of signal. I had no idea what his plan was, but I had a pretty good guess what was going on. I hadn’t been a guest of King Rat for long, meaning Callan went straight from seeing me off to talking Martin into coming to bring me back. Knowing Martin, she hadn’t had to twist his arm.
King Rat waved his hand at me. “As you can see, he is unharmed. And he will stay that way until my preparations are complete.”
The head rat spoke in the language of the city–states, which I was not supposed to understand. I cocked my head and adopted a puzzled expression.
“That last bit sounds rather ominous, King Rat. Dare I ask, preparations for what?” Martin also spoke in the local language.
“I have plans for the young man; big, bold, bloody plans. He will be the main attraction at an upcoming celebration, one which will prove fatal to all of the attractions, great and small,” King Rat replied. “Now, Bane, why are you here and why do you believe I will profit greatly from your visit?”
“I would like to buy David from you,” Martin said.
“I told you I have big plans for him,” King Rat said. “Why do you think I would have any interest in selling him?”
“Because I’m offering the Mordanian crown jewels,” Martin said. “They’re yours in return for the lad. Less a small finder’s fee, of course. Say, ten percent? It’s a win all around, Your Majesty.”
“Ah, so the rumors are true. You have reverted to your piratical ways,” said King Rat. “That explains the Mordanian naval squadron patrolling a few miles outside of the city.”
“Yes, it does. It’s a good thing I had a fast airship or they’d have caught me before I reached the safety of Beloren,” Martin said. “As for returning to my old profession, let’s just say I could not bear to leave such valuable and poorly guarded jewels hidden away in an underground room—especially when those jewels could serve a higher purpose.”
“Besides making you rich, you mean.”
“That is but a happy side effect, King Rat.”
“So, you stole the jewels and flew out of Mordan with the royal navy in your wake. I understand that. What I don’t comprehend is why you came to me?”
“It was my plan to slip away unnoticed, unload the crown jewels at a cut rate, and then return to my new life with none the wiser. Alas, my theft was discovered while I was still within Morda’s walls. I did only what any prudent thief does—I ran for it,” Martin said. “Royalty tends to get more than a tad touchy when it comes to their crown jewels, so touchy that I doubt they’ll ever stop hunting for me. On the other hand, I know Her Highness will happily trade the crown jewels to get David back. Since she h
as the king wrapped around her little finger, if I show up with her husband in tow I’ll get a hero’s welcome instead of a hangman’s noose. You get rich. I get…less rich. And Morda gets their favorite son–in–law back. Have we an agreement?”
“I do believe you’re slipping, Bane. Why should I accept most of the crown jewels when I can simply take all of them from you?” With a languid wave of his hand, a dozen armed men materialized out of the surrounding shadows. “An hour ago, I received a messenger bird from my spies in Morda. They sent word of your act of thievery and provided a quite accurate description of your airship. As we speak, my men are on their way to take the crown jewels from your ship. No one will dare oppose me after I feed an exiled prince, a princess’s consort, and the king of the raiders to my new tammar!”
King Rat’s harsh laughter echoed through the tunnels as Martin and I were taken to the cell I shared with Raoul.
Chapter 15
Callan
Each of the airships chasing us was three times the size of the Pauline. My gaze raked the deck of one of the pursuers. Men crowded the rails, all of them armed with some kind of club or blade. Worse, instead of dwindling behind us, I watched the hulking airships grow larger.
“Nist,” I called, “our pursuers are gaining on us. I thought the Pauline was the fastest airship around.”
“That she is, Your Highness. She is much faster than those behemoths. Alas, my girl cannot kick up her keel and really run until we build a bit more boiler pressure,” Nist responded. “Milo, please go below and feed the fire!”
Without a word, Milo scampered below. Nist scanned the air ahead of us, his eyes never still for more than a second. Without hesitation, Nist turned the Pauline toward the crowded space above the center of the dock. Airships of all shapes and sizes twisted and turned across our path, forming a living maze of rope and wood and gas envelopes