Heroes at Risk

by Moore, Moira J.

  I didn’t understand what Fines was suggesting. Surely he wasn’t claiming his interest in casting was as important to him as being a Source was to Taro. Fines playing with spells was just a hobby.

  “It is not all that I am,” said Taro. “I wouldn’t even say it’s the most important part of what I am.”

  I looked up at him, surprised. Was that what he really thought?

  “You don’t agree, Dunleavy?” Cree asked me.

  Damn it, no one was supposed to be looking at me. “I wouldn’t presume to tell Taro what he is.”

  Her eyes did that slight shift that suggested she really wanted to roll her eyes but felt herself too well mannered. “I am asking for your opinion of yourself.”

  I liked that question even less. Because I did think being a Shield was the largest part of what I was. From birth it had made me different from everyone in my family, though they didn’t recognize my true nature until I was four. It shaped everything about me, not just my education and my occupation. My very personality was influenced—perhaps a better word would be “controlled”—by the fact that I was a Shield.

  Yet I didn’t want to admit that, not before these people. I wasn’t sure of the reason for my reluctance. It wasn’t as though I was ashamed of being a Shield and all it meant. But these people were disturbing me right then, and I didn’t like the idea of thinking like they did. “I doubt there are many who would enjoy being reduced to nothing more than a personification of a single talent.”

  “Then you don’t know a great many people all that well,” said Cree. “There are many who consider a talent they deem worthy to be their defining characteristic, and many more who wish for a talent by which to be defined. Perhaps, surrounded as you have been all your life by unusually gifted people, you have difficulty understanding what it is like to lack such gifts.”

  “You’re a healer,” Taro said to Cree. “Why would you need to use spells to feel special?”

  The silence that followed was tense, and Cree’s face stiffened.

  “None of us need spells for anything in particular,” Fines said quickly. “Understanding magic is much greater than any one particular activity or desired outcome. It gives us a connection to the ground and the air and to the animal world and each other in a way nothing else can. It is something anyone can learn and embrace, with diligence and discipline. It’s bigger than any one person, spanning any distance, and it has the power to last forever. Why else do you think the Crown Prince is outlawing the use of it?”

  I thought it was because people were dabbling in things they couldn’t control and burning their houses down. “Why would people want to be bound to everyone else for an eternity?” I asked. It seemed suffocating to me.

  “To belong to something greater than themselves.”

  “You don’t need to use spells for that.”

  “You belong to the Triple S,” said Fines. “You have a Source who is bound to you for the rest of your life. Most of us don’t have such things.”

  “But you have families, friends, your community.”

  “And what if you have none of those things?”

  “How could anyone have none of those things?”

  “It is possible. There are orphans. There are those who are isolated and outcast for one reason or another.”

  “And casting will somehow make them feel better about all that?”

  “It gives them a connection.”

  “Enough of a connection to replace all positive human contact?” I’d be worried about someone so thoroughly unfortunate having access to magic. What would they do with it?

  “Mere human contact is too fragile, too easily disrupted by inconsequential things. An understanding of magic and how it connects us to each other and the world, that is stronger and more powerful than any human relationship.”

  “And nothing about human relationships will tell you how the natural world works,” Williams said. “The power of fire. Air. Water.”

  He put a heavy emphasis on “water” that made me look at him. He was trying to tell us something.

  Gamut thought so, too, and he didn’t like it. “Shut it, Morgan.”

  “No. I’m sick of this dancing around. If they’re going to join us—”

  Join them? For what?

  “It’s too soon, Morgan,” Fines chided.

  “It became too late once Ayana used a spell to heal the Shield. They already know what we are.”

  “It’s certainly too late now, Morgan, thanks to you,” Fines snapped. Williams communicated his lack of concern with a shrug. “Our Dunleavy has a reputation for not leaving things alone.”

  I did? When did that happen? Why were people talking about me so much? And why did they get everything wrong?

  “Good.” Williams crossed his arms. “So lets get things moving.”

  The tension in the air became stronger, which was all we needed. I really didn’t want to hear what they had to say. I didn’t want to be part of whatever weird club they had running. But I also didn’t have the spine to interrupt them all with a “No, thanks” and “Where’s my carriage?”

  “This little group formed through our businesses,” said Fines with a wave of the hand that took in everyone at the table. “In many ways our interests and our clients intersect. We began to work together, and we learned that each of us is more successful working together than as an individual. I learned of Cree’s ability to use spells in a way similar to yours, Dunleavy. At one point, while overseeing some loading of inventory at the docks, I was badly cut. The vein was one of those that bleed out in less than a third of an hour. One of my servants fetched Ayana, and she used a spell that saved my life. In time, she introduced all of us to the practice. We owe her a great deal.”

  I didn’t want to hear about it. I really, really didn’t.

  “How do you expect us to assist you?” Taro asked. “We can’t help you with your businesses.”

  “It is true that you have no business interests to complement ours. But that isn’t your most valuable asset.”

  “Our most valuable assets are our skills as a Source and Shield,” I said sharply. And they had better not be thinking about asserting any control over those. We didn’t channel, or not, according to anyone else’s wishes.

  “It is not those assets, strictly speaking, that appeal to us.”

  “Quit dragging this out, Richard,” Gamut grumbled.

  “As you are no doubt aware,” said Fines, “ashes are a powerful component in many spells. And ashes are relatively easy to procure. But blood is even more potent.”

  I stared at him, appalled. “You want our blood?” I squeaked.

  “As far as we know, no one’s done any real experimentation with the blood of Sources and Shields, but it is only logical to assume the blood of magical creatures has all sorts of useful properties. Ayana has told us the spell she used to heal Dunleavy was unusually quick.”

  That had been quick? I guess I wouldn’t have survived the usual spell.

  “We are not magical creatures,” Taro declared with noticeable impatience.

  “My dear Shintaro,” said Williams, “what do you call what you do when you protect the city?”

  “Not magic,” Taro retorted. “And, by the way, not illegal.”

  “Only the latter is true, and only because the lawmakers made a random distinction about what magic is. What do you think those same lawmakers would call what you do when you heal people?”

  Damn it, could no one in this city keep their mouths shut?

  “It’s not a talent traditional to a Source,” Williams continued. “Would not most people think it magic?”

  “We are not giving you our blood!” I said. “That’s disgusting. And ridiculous.” What were they thinking? That every week or so we’d let them bleed us?

  “You can’t make the usual contributions to our group,” said Fines. “Blood would be an acceptable substitute.”

  Taro was shaking his head. “We have no reason to wan
t to be part of your group.”

  “I saved Dunleavy’s life,” Cree reminded him bluntly. “There is no other healer in this city who could have done so. You would not have known to come to me, had it not been for this group.”

  She didn’t add that she probably wouldn’t have risked using a spell on me if she hadn’t known me. It was still alarming to me that if it weren’t for her, I would be dead. I hated feeling indebted to her.

  “You would have access to everything we have, now and in the future,” Ahmad said.

  “There is no predicting how we could all benefit in the long term,” said Fines. “And remember, you don’t have just the two of you to consider. A merchant’s fortune is a very fragile thing. Things can be done to assist it, or to destroy it. All it takes is a ship to sink and there begins a downward spiral to destitution.”

  I glared at him. “Are you threatening my family?” I demanded.

  “Not at all. I am merely pointing out that people’s affairs are more entwined than you might imagine.”

  Of course he was threatening them. Did he really have the ability to hurt my family? Was he somehow able to sink a ship?

  “And, of course, most estates rely heavily on the goods they produce. Were an estate to fall into disfavor, it could quickly fall to ruin. Your family’s estate, Shintaro, don’t they sell a great deal of whale oil?”

  Taro forced a small laugh. “You’re aiming for air if you try to use my family against me.”

  “Lord Shintaro, you abjured your title but kept your name. Do not try to convince us you have no family feeling.”

  “Why are you trying to blackmail us into joining you?” I asked. “From the looks of it, you are enormously successful. You don’t need us.”

  “All things must move forward or they die,” Cree told us. “Now that more and more people are using spells, more people will become proficient at casting, and our advantages will diminish. We must always be ready to act on new opportunities.”

  “Or be ready to create them,” Williams added.

  “And it represents a brilliant opportunity to acquire knowledge,” Ahmad added. “Knowledge of how the world works.”

  “How the mind works,” Gamut said.

  “How water works.” Williams stared at me.

  I had no idea what he was trying to tell me.

  “Shut up, Morgan!” Gamut ordered.

  “My gods,” Taro breathed, his eyes widening. “You’re the ones who have been poisoning the water in the riverfront areas.”

  Certain pieces of my memory slotted into a new pattern. By gods, he was right. I looked at Cree. She must have been the one who had gone to the hub to perform some spell.

  “Ben didn’t guard his tongue much when they captured me,” Taro explained. “He was very enthusiastic about all the people leaving the riverfront areas. He was going to use our ashes to create for himself ownership of that area where the rivers meet, because it’s supposed to be so powerful. Or something like that. He was rambling a bit.”

  “You’re killing people to have control of the riverfront?” I demanded, horrified.

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Cree answered sharply. “None of them have died.”

  “That’s not what they’re saying.”

  “People have a higher mortality rate in the riverfront area than those who live in other parts of the city. Those that died while ill from our tampering died of other causes.”

  She couldn’t know that for sure. She was just making assumptions.

  “It sounds far worse than it is, Dunleavy,” Fines said in a soft voice, as though by mere tone he could somehow soothe me. Wasn’t going to happen, friend. “All we are doing is encouraging these people to leave.”

  “But they have nowhere to go. If they did, they probably wouldn’t be living there in the first place.”

  “This is a big city. And there are other cities.”

  So heartless.

  “The whole area is a cesspool,” Gamut muttered. “It’s needed to be shaken up for decades. It could have used an earthquake or two if you lot would have just let it happen.”

  I covered my mouth with my hand, the only way I could hold in my shock.

  “What do you plan to do with this riverfront area?” Taro asked.

  No one jumped in to answer that question. I noticed a lot of glances being exchanged.

  “I think we’ve said enough for now, Shintaro,” said Fines. “I think it’s time for the two of you to do some talking.”

  We were not spilling any of our secrets. I hadn’t wanted to know their secrets. I shouldn’t have to pay for things I had neither wanted nor asked for. I said nothing. Neither did Taro. There was a bit of a waiting game.

  Which we won. They spoke first.

  “All we ask is that you continue to join us for our meals and honestly participate in our discussions on a committed basis.”

  Oh, and our blood. Don’t forget that.

  “Thank you for your kind invitation,” Taro said in delightfully chilly tones. “But I fear we’ll have to decline.”

  The others ate in silence for a few moments. I’d lost my appetite. So had Taro, from the looks of it.

  “To your knowledge, has any member of the Triple S been found violating the prohibition against casting?” Williams asked.

  Taro glanced at me for confirmation before indicating he knew of no such instances.

  “I imagine that Sources and Shields will be protected from things such as incarceration and flogging, should any of them be found to be engaging in magical practices, but I do believe members of the Triple S are punished if the crime is considered serious enough.”

  “Aye,” said Taro.

  “Pairs who are found guilty of serious crimes are sent to remote areas that have no need for their skills, is that not so?”

  “Aye,” said Taro.

  “It’s a shameful thing. Something Pairs don’t recover from. Such a Pair would never be assigned to somewhere they considered reputable, is that not so?”

  “Correct.”

  By the exaggerated roll of his r’s, I could tell Taro was getting as irritated by this line of questioning as I.

  So after threatening our families, they were threatening us. That was infuriating. “You were the ones to cast spells,” I said.

  “There are five of us.”

  And only two of us. “People believe Sources don’t lie.”

  “But we have impeccable reputations. Yours, you must admit, are a little dodgy. Long, unexplained absences from your duties. Healing people. You were both seen acting strangely at the hub in the middle of the night.”

  Damn it, they had seen us. That must have been why nothing had happened during our long nights of surveillance. Cree saw us or something, and stayed away.

  “And then there are those strange stories about how the Reanists were brought down at Lord Yellows’s dinner. Definitely sounds like there were spells involved in that.”

  “And then, of course, there’s this.” Fines pointed at one of the clay pots. “Made from the best ashes.”

  My knife and fork fell to the plate with a harsh clatter as I gagged. We had been spreading human ashes on our hands?

  My gods, my gods. I shook my hands, not that I thought that would accomplish anything.

  “It’s perfectly sanitary,” Cree asserted.

  “Are you crazy?” I demanded.

  “I believe using this paste helped you survive the first use of niyacin powder on your burn.”

  “There is no way you can know that,” I objected.

  “I am a healer and I am proficient at using spells,” she pointed out. “What expertise do you have to bear?”

  Taro was scrubbing at his hands. He poured wine into his palm and rubbed it into his skin.

  “You buy ashes.” I couldn’t believe it. Risa and her colleagues were running around trying to stop the trade in ashes, and we’d been eating with people who bought them. Who used them. We’d used them.

  “Ye
s,” said Cree.

  “You buy ashes from Ben Veritas.”

  “Not directly, of course,” said Fines, though I didn’t understand what was so “of course” about it. “And we had no idea he was killing people.”

  I was curious about whether his killing people was a problem for Fines because killing people was wrong, or because murder tainted the ashes.

  “We had not planned to introduce you to our practices in this way,” said Fines. “However, Cree put herself, and by extension all of us, in great danger by her actions at your home. We needed to be sure of your silence. And your loyalty.”

  “You’ve made it impossible for us to give you either,” I said.

  “Don’t answer tonight,” Fines suggested. “Think about it for a few days.”

  “We don’t need to think about it.”

  “Think of your families,” Fines persisted.

  They were really irritating me. “My family wouldn’t want me being bled for spells to spare them trouble.”

  “And my family can go hang,” Taro added in a sharp tone.

  “We’ll see if you feel the same way when you start getting their letters of misfortune.”

  Bastard. “Do you really expect us to join people who would blackmail us?”

  “You’re not approaching this with an open mind.”

  “I’m content in my close-mindedness.” They had been collecting information on us. They had induced us to use illegal human ashes. Cree had saved my life, and I owed her for that. My blood was too much to ask. “If you do anything to our families, we will tell everyone, including Prince Gifford, what you are doing, and let things happen as they will.”

  Fines’s frown was pinched. “It is disappointing to learn you have so little family loyalty.”

  “Blame it on my upbringing. We’re done here.”

  No one said anything as Taro and I left the table and left the room. My heart was pounding in my throat. The people I had eaten with tonight had not been the people I had met before. There had been no playfulness, no humor. They had been grim and ruthless. Which was the truth?

  I felt tainted. I had no idea what it would take to feel clean again. For some reason I felt water and soap wouldn’t be enough.

  Could they really hurt my family?