by Lyn Lowe
“What next?”
Kaie blinked. He didn’t even notice Vaughan dropping down into the cot next to his. He glanced over at the doorway, where Peren and the Lady Autumnsong were lurking. She was so beautiful, even here. The hopelessness of the soldiers all around didn’t seem to touch her. She tucked a strand of hair back behind her ears and met his gaze. A hint of a smile emerged at the corners of her lips and, for a second, he thought about returning it.
Instead, Kaie pressed his lips tight and shook his head. It was weakness they were tempting him with, friendship. But he knew well where that ended. They would turn on him. Even Peren. He understood the game now.
Vaughan sighed and grabbed his injured hand. Kaie tensed, but didn’t pull away. The other man picked up a small cloth and bandages and began tending to the damage. Kaie wondered how long he was sitting there, oblivious, if Vaughan had enough time to get supplies.
“How much magic do you have left in you?” Kaie asked at last. Vaughan hesitated in his ministrations, but just for a second. He went back to wrapping the bandage without ever looking up.
“That’s not how it works,” he said lowly.
Kaie rolled his eyes. “Don’t lecture me. I remember all the religious noise you used to make at me about your Jhoda. I’m not interested. I just need to know how much power you have access to right now.”
Vaughan sighed and pulled the bandage tight across his knuckles. Too tight, actually. Kaie flinched at the sharp pain that ran up his arm. After a second the other man fixed it, but Kaie took the lesson. Vaughan wasn’t quite as toothless as he thought. He couldn’t decide if that was good or bad.
“It’s not religious noise. The Balla Kinda are different. Every mage is a conduit, but the others find way to control the flow. They use meaningless words and absurd hand gestures to distance themselves from the power surging, and it keeps them safe. It keeps everyone safe. But even the masters of their ‘schools of magic’ will never touch the potential in the least skilled Balla Kinda. Their control comes at a high price, and it exhausts them quickly. They run out of spells and their fingers grow too tired to flap about, and they can’t do any more magic. Not us. Not me. There is no limit, no end. So, to answer your question, the power I have access to is infinite.”
Vaughan’s voice was low, but Kaie detected the warning in them. There was something going unsaid, something important. “But, down in the passes, you said you were drained.”
“I am,” Vaughan agreed softly. “I’ve never been so tired in my life. I feel like everything inside me has been scraped out. All I want to do is curl up in a ball and sleep through the rest of life.” The man smiled, and there was no missing the bitterness in it. “But you beat up a dragon to keep us alive. So I feel like I really ought to make some effort.”
“Shh!” Kaie hissed, though there was no reason to. The only people paying them even marginal interest were Peren and Autumnsong. “So if you’re so gods damned all-powerful, why all the whining when I asked you to fix up Judah? Do you just like making things more difficult than they need to be?”
Kaie winced as Vaughan jerked the bit of shirt wrapped around the slice in his arm with no thought to gentleness. He supposed he deserved that. The blonde scowled. “Because,” he snapped, “letting as much of the Jhoda flow through me as I did today is just as dangerous as that dragon! It’s what kills all Balla Kinda in the end; the addiction grows stronger than our self-control, and we destroy ourselves and everything around us.”
“This cut is deep.” Vaughan sighed and rubbed at his forehead with the back of his hand. “You can’t possibly understand what it’s like, that feeling. I won’t even try to explain. But the more we use, the harder it is to keep control. I lost it today. I… I am still fighting the need to let it all wash through me again. Even just that little bit I did for the solider, I almost gave in again.”
Kaie shrugged as much as he could, with one arm held captive. “I don’t have time to coddle you through a battle with your darker nature, Vaughan. You’re just going to have to get it sorted out and fight through the risk. Just keep those damn bees away from me and we’ll be fine.”
“No we won’t!” Vaughan hissed. “You really don’t understand at all, do you? Fuck, Kaie, do you have any concept of what it is to have your every desire made real? Every thought, every whim, it all comes to pass when we open ourselves up to the Jhoda like that! When I have control, I can try to direct my thoughts, but when I lose control…”
He shook his head and looked away. When he looked back, Kaie was startled by the intensity in his eyes. “I could make you fall in love with me. I could make everyone in this damn hidey-hole thinking I was the love of their lives. Well… maybe not Peren. But you? Even if I never spoke another word to you, you would love me to the exclusion of everything else until the day you died. Even if I told you it wasn’t real, explained what I did, you’d only thank me for it and beg me to do anything I wanted to you. It would be so easy. I could do it by accident, with nothing more than a stray thought. So, you see, even if I don’t actually hurt the people around me, I can completely destroy them. That’s what you’re risking, if you ask me to use the Jhoda before I find my self-control again.”
Kaie blanched. Vaughan rested his hands on his knees and slumped, all the fire that lit him a second ago disappearing as though it never existed. Kaie half expected him to lapse back into his rambling apologies. Finally, because he still needed the other man, and because his injury was bleeding again, Kaie slid back and held his arm out.
“Alright,” he said. “You’ve convinced me. I won’t ask you to use any more of the Jhoda until you tell me you’ve got a handle on it. But be quick about it, will you? Too long, and you won’t ever find a chance to get that self-control back. We’ll both end up swinging from the Villain’s Gate.”
Vaughan pressed his lips together into a thin line and nodded. After second, he fished a needle and thread out of a pocket in his shirt and held it up. “Do you need me to see if the doctor has something for the pain?”
Kaie shook his head. “Do it.”
It hurt more than he expected.
Once it was done, his mind cleared of all the disappointment holding him on the cot. He knew the shape of the world again, the way he needed it to twist to survive it. There wasn’t time to mourn the fact that it wasn’t all going the way he’d like just yet. That could be saved for later.
He stood up, straightened up the cloak on his shoulders for no other reason than that it bought him a few seconds to go over what he was going to say again, then walked into the center of the building.
Twenty-Eight
“The Ninth Rit is dead.”
There were a few murmurs from the soldiers around him, but his announcement didn’t get nearly the reaction Kaie expected. He almost said it again, half convinced they didn’t hear him. They were all looking at him, and most were shuffling in his direction, but no one seemed particularly concerned with what he was saying.
“I was with him. Gregor told me I was to find you,” Kaie informed the crowd in the most commanding voice he could manage. “He said that you would help me peel the empire’s talons out of their skin. He said I would find men and women here who will fight for real freedom just as hard as I will.”
One of the men snorted. Kaie made note of him. Short brown hair, squashed nose, and a deep cut across his right eyebrow. He was going to be trouble.
“I know who you are.”
He forced a grin. He knew from the beginning this part was going to be next to impossible. Whatever the guy was about to say was going to make it worse. “Good for you. I do too.”
“You’re the Rit’s pretty little bed warmer.”
A wave of snickers ran through the crowd. More than a couple soldiers walked away. He was losing them already. Kaie knew it would happen, knew someone would recognize him. He hoped he could win one or two of them first, but the brown-haired man seemed determined to make his situation as dangerous as possible. “Wh
o I am doesn’t matter. It doesn’t change how hard I’ll fight.”
“Oh sure. Plenty of men will fight hard. Not too many fight that way. You won’t find any here willing to follow you into a battle beneath the sheets.”
Kaie hoped the heat he felt wasn’t coloring his cheeks. The laughter was loud enough already, without adding a blush to the mix. He struggled with the overwhelming need to beat the shit out of the man. Another time. There would be another time. Unless he wanted to lose the rest of his dwindling audience, or turn them against him, he needed to stick with diplomacy.
“So none of you would do whatever it takes to be free? Gregor was wrong about all of you?” That probably wasn’t the smartest thing to say. The attitude in the crowd was shifting from amused to irritated. Many of them were muttering and Kaie got the sense that they were on the verge of turning on him.
“Some people draw the line at other men’s cocks.”
Another time.
“I have no lines,” he muttered. He took a few steps toward the brown-haired man, who only smirked at the movement. When things went bad, he would need a weapon. Kaie could see a blade on the man’s hip. If he moved fast enough, he might get it before the loud-mouth did. “The Empress doesn’t have lines. She holds our families hostage so that we’ll go out and die for her. So that she can get more slaves to send off to more wars. And then she tries to convince us we’re being rewarded if we manage to avoid death for a few years. If she doesn’t have limits to what she’ll use, neither will I. If freedom was as easy as swinging a sword, none of us would be here. It takes sacrifice.”
The mutterings were getting louder, more volatile. Kaie didn’t understand. Gregor used the same words all the time. He heard them more times than he could count. He was even mimicking the dead man’s tone of voice and movements. It should be working.
“Well isn’t that cute,” the loud mouth scoffed. “It was one thing coming from the Rit. It bothered, sure, but he brought plenty to swing the deal. What do you bring, sweetness? Weapons? Allies? Or just a pretty face and the ability to take all sizes? Sorry, but I’m not so lonely as all that.”
Kaie’s plan was a good one. Out of all the possible scenarios, it stood the greatest chance of saving the people he wanted alive and killing the ones who deserved retribution. For it to work, it required him to dance between control and chaos. Even if this part was working, it was dangerous. That knowledge should’ve been enough to battle down his anger.
It wasn’t.
In an instant, everything he wanted and planned fell away. Kaie swung.
His fist connected with a meaty smack. The man tumbled backward, blood exploding from his nose. Kaie stood over the fallen man, his breath coming in angry bursts, trying to remember why he wasn’t supposed to keep hitting until the fool was dead.
Oh yes. That was why.
With a sense of dread, he turned back to the others. He heard the shouts, felt the eyes on him. The would fall on him in another moment. The man on the ground looked to be on the verge of unconsciousness. Alex tried to push to his side but the mob wasn’t letting her through. The loud-mouth was pulling himself back together on his own. “You little shit!”
Kaie tensed, waiting for the fight. A part of him was even hungry for it. Before anything could happen, another man threw himself between the two of them.
“Enough!”
The word caught them all by surprise, every eye in the building swiveling around to locate the source. Judah shuffled up to them, every step looking like he was about to fall over. “You were asking for it, Henry. The guy’s not to blame for giving it to you. Take the hit and remember it next time you go mouthing off to strangers.”
“Shoulda known you’d come to rescue the little whore,” Henry spat, the phlegm more pink than was healthy. “Everyone knows the Rit shared him with you. Or did you think we’d forget about that?”
Judah scowled at the downed man. “I didn’t. I did have the notion that it doesn’t mean shit now, though. That’s the Empress’s hatred you’re spouting there, Henry. Aren’t we supposed to be rejecting her decrees?”
That got more murmurs than anything Kaie said. Henry’s scowl didn’t go away, but he did keep his mouth shut and let the giant speak.
“And, though I still think it shouldn’t matter to a one of you, Gregor and I didn’t ‘share’ the ‘little whore.’ This man was an advisor to the Ninth Rit, and a friend. Nothing else.”
“So we’re to believe it was all for show? That Gregor had that chain around him for two years and never did a thing with it?”
Kaie’s resolve waivered as memories threatened. He forced his fingers away from the gold links and his thoughts away from the dark places. He steeled his spine. “You can believe whatever you want. I came here to help, not to get your approval.”
Judah turned away from the fallen man then, and the attention of everyone in the room followed. Kaie bit down a grimace. He intended the soldier to speak for him, to convince the others to follow his lead. But he was getting the sense that it was Judah they intended to follow. He needed to lock the giant to his side and fast.
“Sorry,” Judah said. His words were genuine enough. “Henry has a habit of mistaking his ass for his brain. He doesn’t speak for all of us.”
But he spoke for some. The implication was quite clear. He nodded an acknowledgement of the apology, as well as the message hidden within it. “Happy to see you’re not dead yet.” He was, he supposed. He’d be happier if Judah fell in line and brought the others along.
A frown passed over Judah’s face. “So you’re thinking to take Gregor’s place here, then?”
It was risky, making his move now. Only the siblings were likely to support his bid, and that wasn’t nearly enough. Kaie didn’t appreciate being forced into it.
He smiled. It took a great deal of effort to keep all the anger out of that grin. But if Judah needed to be charmed, Kaie would charm him.
“You’re right. Gregor was a friend, and I did advise him. I know where he got the money. I know who his allies were, and which ones gave him the weapons. I’m no soldier. I don’t know battle plans or military tactics. But I know enough of the rest to give us a chance, of making sure my friend’s death doesn’t put an end to his work.” Kaie paused to appreciate the irony, calling for loyalty to the man he murdered. “Unless you all intended to hide here like cowards, waiting for whoever wins the city to hunt you down?”
He hoped to get a bit better reaction than a room full of downcast eyes and shuffling feet. One person meeting his gaze would be nice. He let out a slow sigh, loud enough for them all to hear. Then waited, staring very pointedly at Judah. If the giant was to be their spokesman he needed to break the giant first.
“I don’t suppose it would help if I told you I could get the Hudukul government to officially recognize us as allies in the fight to liberate their city?” It was a lofty promise and well beyond his abilities. But truth didn’t matter. Only appearance did. And his resources would certainly be enough to provide that.
All eyes locked on Kaie, and the silence that filled the room was outright oppressive. “How?” Judah was very careful with the word. Deliberate. Kaie could see the man knew exactly what he intended. He couldn’t tell what the soldier thought about it, but since Judah wasn’t raising any objections Kaie could only assume it was permission to go ahead.
“I thought delivering them Lady Autumnsong as a sign of our defection and good will might be a start.”
Kaie waited for the noblewoman to raise some sort of objection. She grew pale. But she gave no other sign she even heard him. He wasn’t sure what to make of that. Judah watched him grimly, but said nothing.
Henry barked out a bitter laugh, no longer content with his removal from the game. “Right, and after that you’ll turn all our skin to brown and be crowned Whore King. You think you’ll be able to go out there and hunt down that slimy bitch?”
“You’re right,” Kaie agreed readily. “It would be suicide t
o try. That’s why I put her somewhere I could find her quickly.”
Silence again. With those few words, he snatched all the power away from Judah, and they all knew it. He held all the power in the room now and not a soul in the room would risk offending him. These were soldiers hand-picked by the Ninth Rit, trained by a man considered one of the greatest tactical mind in the Urazin Empire. Each one recognized the potential of the game piece he held. It was a heady feeling.
“You have Lady Autumnsong?”
Kaie smirked. “Was I unclear about that?” He looked to Judah in mock confusion. The giant didn’t move a muscle.
“Where?”
“Just over there, actually.” His smirk grew as he lifted his finger to point her out. “Standing by the door. Someone might want to secure her, before she gets it into her head to run out into the streets and get herself killed. These noble types aren’t exactly renowned for their intelligence.”
The room erupted. A burly man stepped forward to do just that. Lady Autumnsong made no move to escape but Peren’s eyes went wide. She threw herself at the man, screeching something unintelligible. The man shoved her to the ground roughly. She was up in a second, attempting the same thing all over again. Before she could reach him two more soldiers stepped from the crowd and wrapped their arms around her.
Kaie almost moved to stop them, but thought better of it. Nothing bad would happen to Peren. Not here. Once she calmed down, he would make sure they let her go.
“You have a plan?” Judah’s voice was rough and low enough that no one else would hear over the commotion.
Kaie’s lips parted in a grin he hoped wasn’t half as predatory as it felt. “We both know Gregor would need a better reason trust me with all this than being enjoyable company and having some skill at reading people. And it is not my pretty face.” The lies came easier now. “I always have a plan.”
“Then,” the other man said with obvious trepidation, “I guess I’m willing to help. Gods help you if I end up regretting this.”