“I’ll just say it. I made a mistake, Nightcaller. There’s no excuse. I believed Mieshk when she blamed you for the eruption. I didn’t object when she mutinied. I even hunted you.”
“Same,” another man added. The others nodded agreement.
“It’s in the past,” I said. They’d clearly suffered enough. I wasn’t going to berate them.
“It’s going to get worse,” the woman who’d spoken first said.
“What is?” I asked.
“Mieshk. You can’t stop her. Might as well sail away and save yourselves. Us too, if you’ll have us.”
I winced at the similarity between her words and Raav’s recent plea. “Not an option. But if you truly regret following Mieshk, you can help me defeat her. Tell me what happened in your encampment. What does she want with Ashkalan?”
At the mention of the city, it felt as if a shadow passed over the group. Eyes turned to the floor as shoulders hunched.
“She didn’t tell us any details,” one of the men said. “She forced us to march across the island. Made us paint her symbols on the walls. But every rune… tides… it felt like evil itself lived inside them.”
I nodded. I’d felt it, too. “Could any of you resist her commands?”
The closer woman swallowed. “She couldn’t do it at first. I’m ashamed to admit it, but at first, I did what she asked because I was scared. She had all the thugs on her side. And what were you besides a little rat hiding out in the dark?”
I shrugged. “But I’m the little rat who got home.”
“True enough,” she said. “Some of us did try to escape after the way Mieshk treated that little girl. The small nightcaller.”
Are you there Heiklet? You don’t have to listen to this.
I am. But I don’t mind, she responded. It won’t change anything.
“And what happened?” I asked.
The woman’s cheek twitched. “She chased us down. Made an example of two of us. It took them three moonrises to die.”
“After that, no one tried to run,” the big man added.
My fingertips dug into my knees. No matter how much I thought I loathed the Ulstats, I was always learning something to make me hate them more.
“Food got scarce,” the woman said. “We started fighting amongst ourselves. Mieshk encouraged it at first. Said it was for the best if we killed off the weaker ones. Meanwhile, she just got stronger. Spent most of her time in the calling trance. We were still trying to make plans to overthrow her, meeting out of earshot and so forth. But then she learned how to command us. Taught that other girl. Avilet. Between that day and the moment when the boulder fell on Avilet, almost nothing I did was of my own free will.”
Planting my hands beside me, I straightened my legs. “Tell me about her commands. I need to understand how to fight her power.”
“It’s useless. You can’t get a single person near her. All she has to do is look at you, and you’re hers. You’ll do whatever she says. You’ll fall on your own sword, cut out your own tongue.”
I nodded. “Compulsion. We saw it with Avilet. And as you might have noticed, she’s dead.”
She shook her head. “Her abilities were nothing in comparison. She had to be near and focus on it. That little thief—Daonok I believe his name was—was able to stop himself from killing you.”
I was glad Raav wasn’t there for the reminder that Daonok had resisted where he couldn’t. “And Mieshk is different?” I asked.
“Like the sea is different from a puddle.”
“Avilet’s ability didn’t work on me. I doubt Mieshk’s will either. I’ll just kill her myself.”
She shrugged. “If you could get to her, maybe.”
“There have to be limits to her power. What happens if you move out of earshot? If you get far enough from her, are you free?”
“It holds as long as she’s within a thousand paces,” another of the captives said, a young man not much older than me. He’d been an apprentice navigator aboard the Evaeni if I remembered correctly. “And there was something else. When your ships first arrived, her concentration broke. For a few minutes, I could decide my actions again. I almost ran, but there wasn’t time.”
“She saw us?” I’d thought we’d been invisible, our ships lost in the waves beyond the shoals. But at least that information helped explain how the ambushers had found us.
“It was her pet,” the woman said. “The one called Mavek—she sensed you. Apparently, the nightstrands are the souls of the dead.”
I nodded. “We know.”
“Mieshk can’t speak to the nightstrands, but she can order them. Command them like she did us. She keeps a few souls as slaves. The others, she feeds to the fire.”
“So this pet… Mavek saw us. If Mieshk can’t speak to the strands, how did she know?”
The woman grimaced and wrapped her arms tight around her knees as if to protect herself. “She forces her pets inside us. They speak through our mouths. Control our bodies.”
Oh, tides. I shivered in disgust, remembering how helpless I’d felt when Tyrak had taken control of my body. I trusted him and cared for him. How much worse would it have felt if Mieshk had forced a strange strand into me?
“How much does she know about our plans? Are her other pets watching us?”
The navigator shook his head. “Mavek saw more than the others. Understood more about the living, I suppose. I was forced to…” He grimaced. “Forced to serve as a vessel for one of her other pets. Mieshk questioned him. He and the other pets could sense you’d returned to Ioene, but that’s all. Anyway, before she sent us to ambush you, she pulled the pet from my mind and sacrificed him to the fire. Said she had a task to finish. Needed her strength more than a collection of worthless souls.”
I chewed my lip. If we were lucky, then, Mieshk had lost her only spy when Mavek had chosen the aurora. If not, Mieshk and her army would have been here by now.
“I’ll have more food sent as soon as a cook is awake. Thank you for the information.”
I climbed to my feet, nodded, and latched the door before dropping the bar in place. Mieshk had a weakness, I’d learned that much. If we could get her followers far enough away from her, we could free them from her commands. But how?
Chapter Eleven
AFTER MOONRISE, I spent a few hours leading two of Captain Altak’s sailors and three smugglers from the Midnight through thickets of brush and open stretches of scree where hardy witchtubers pushed up stalks during the long-day. I explained which plants had edible leaves, where to find foilwood nuts, and how to boil Eikkas tresses to remove the irritating oils from the leaves. The vine-like tresses thickened soups and added flavor to cooked jellyfish. Foragers needed to be extremely careful, though; the roots had a poison that could cause temporary paralysis on contact.
We moved as silently as possible, wary of any patrols sent from Mieshk’s camp. If she discovered where we’d anchored, she’d need only to creep close enough to enslave us one at a time. It was a risk, delving inland, but I believed strongly that we needed to be able to survive here even if our ships were destroyed and my knowledge lost.
When we returned to the anchorage, exiting the trail onto the narrow arc of gravel beach, the moon was high overhead. As soon as our footfalls crunched in the crushed pumice, shadowy figures stood from stands of brush not ten paces away. I hadn’t glimpsed the slightest motion or heard even a rustle of cloth. Good. Before leaving, I’d consulted with Caffari. Mieshk might be able to take control of someone’s actions with just a word. But a crossbow bolt through her throat could silence her threat forever. We’d decided to station a few of Caffari’s stealthiest rogues near the edge of the beach, crossbows ready.
“Identify yourselves,” one of the thieves said.
I pushed back my hood. “Lilik Boket.”
Before heading into the dark, we’d smudged dirt over our cheekbones and the bridges of our noses to soften any highlights that might give us away if we were forced to hide
from a patrol. But the thief recognized me immediately. He touched his fingers to his brow in greeting.
As I spoke to the thief, one of Captain Altak’s sailors stepped to the water line. “Lilik,” he said, faint alarm in his voice. I followed his gaze out over the water. Zyri’s Promise and Shards of Midnight were anchored side-by-side, their rails tied in a raft formation so that the crew could move back and forth with ease.
It took me a moment to notice the dark shapes beyond our vessels. Around a hundred paces past Zyri’s Promise, three ships bobbed lightly at anchor.
Trader Ulstat.
“Rot!” I said, pulling Tyrak from his sheath. “What’s going on here?” I whirled on the closest lookout.
She raised her hands, black shadows clad in lambskin gloves. “Take it up with the boss,” she said. “They turned up a couple hours ago waving white sheets. Dropped anchor, and then a single man—Trader Ulstat I’d guess—rowed over. Been aboard our ships since.”
Anger roared into my body, screamed in my ears. Why hadn’t my friends just shot him as he approached? And why had the captains remained at anchor while the other vessels arrived? The Ulstat ships were currently blocking our escape from the bay, hemming us in.
“I have to get to the ships. Quickly.”
With a shrug, the thief picked up a hooded lantern to signal the Midnight but soon stopped and pointed. “Seems they’ve noticed you.”
Indeed, she was right. The Midnight’s dinghy was already being lowered with a single oarsman inside. Arms folded across my chest with Tyrak still clamped in my fist, I paced as the little rowboat bobbed toward our position. When the boat scraped gravel, I dashed forward and jumped in. My foraging students followed quickly.
Despite the oarsman’s efforts—my glare kept him pulling hard—the little boat made agonizingly slow progress toward the Midnight. Once alongside her, I yelled for a ladder. Seconds after it had splashed down in the water beside the dinghy, I scrambled over the Midnight’s rail.
“What in the rotted tide—”
My words died. Ten paces in front of me, Trader Ulstat sneered.
“Hello again,” he said. “Well met, I’m sure.”
As I’d refused to go inside a closed cabin with the Ulstat prime, I stood with the other leaders in a small circle on the forward deck of the Midnight. Instead of looking Trader Ulstat in the eyes, I kept my gaze fixed on the aurora. I imagined it filling me with peace. Otherwise, I was sure to unsheathe my weapon and plunge it into his throat.
“So who is going to explain why this man is aboard our ship?” I said.
He raised his eyebrows. “Perhaps I should answer.”
My gaze shot to Caffari. The bandit leader just shrugged. “I believe we should let him speak. He came under a white flag. Alone. There’s no reason we can’t kill him after he finishes talking.”
“I’ve learned it’s a bad idea to listen to Ulstats,” I said.
“What if we promise it can be you that slits his throat?” Caffari asked.
I gritted my teeth. “Only if Vidyul refuses the right. He has dibs… for Nyralit.”
Captain Altak nodded, but gestured with a sweep of his hand. “The honor is yours.”
Trader Ulstat cleared his throat. “Good to see we agree. Now then, you asked why I’m here. Back on Araok Island, I was repeatedly advised that I’d never defeat my daughter, Mieshk, without you, Lilik. And from what I’ve learned in the last couple hours about her… changes, I believe that’s true. But I’m also convinced you’ll never defeat her without me.”
I snorted. “Right. And exactly what do you have on offer that I can’t gain from people I can trust?”
He showed his palms in a conciliatory gesture. “In order for you to get close enough to damage my daughter, she must be isolated from anyone she could command. I can draw her out to a vulnerable position. She won’t suspect me.”
As the trader spoke, I glanced at Jet. During the fight for Istanik, I’d relied on his advice on strategy and our strengths. At the moment, Jet’s expression indicated he agreed with what the man said. I curled my toes inside my shoes.
“Or maybe, you intend to lure us close and deliver us into her clutches,” I said. “We have no reason to trust you. I never have, and I don’t see why we should start now.”
Trader Ulstat met my eyes with a serious expression. “I understand. And truly, I wouldn’t expect you to trust me. A month ago, I would have delivered you to her if it suited my purposes. I’d even considered joining forces with her despite what I’d learned regarding the progression of her madness. But I’ve changed my mind.”
“You’ve changed your mind. I see. Sorry, but you still haven’t given me a reason to believe you.”
“I heard you rowed into Ashkalan,” he said.
I raised a single eyebrow and shrugged. “What of it?”
“As did I. There are ancient Ulstat family secrets. It’s time I tell them. I know what happened to Ashkalan.”
Chapter Twelve
CAFFARI INSTRUCTED A thief to drag over a few casks and crates so that we could sit comfortably. I refused. I would not get comfortable while Trader Ulstat was aboard the Midnight. Arms crossed over my chest, I pressed my lips firmly together while his gaze traveled the group. The man seemed to enjoy having an audience.
“I’m sure Raav—pardon me, Trader Ovintak—knows this,” he said. “But to inform the rest of you, I am not an Ulstat by birth. I married into the family when I was eighteen. Mieshk’s mother was the prime heir at the time. Her father, the prime trader, paid my House well for the match. And my family was quite glad to be rid of me—none of them had my level of ambition, and so none of them were comfortable in my presence.
“In any case, though the Ulstats bought me, I would have agreed to the union regardless. Because, you see, my House was in quick decline. We’d recently lost trading rights to our ports on Reknarish, but the real problem was our debt. It matters little now—my birth House is no more. The Council revoked their House status nearly twenty years ago. My family left the Kiriilt Islands shortly after. Not that I was in touch with them at that point...”
The man really liked to hear his own voice. I sighed loudly, prompting a smirk from Trader Ulstat.
“It’s relevant. I assure you. I’m telling you this because it’s critical you understand that I am untouched by Ulstat madness.”
“Unlike your daughter,” I said. The sea air was cool against my skin, and after my fitful sleep the previous night and the strain of recent events, I was having a hard time staying warm. To cover my shiver and to illustrate my impatience with the Ulstat prime, I started pacing.
“Yes, unlike Mieshk,” he said. “Her mother, my wife, was afflicted as well. She was an only child, her parents’ sole heir. More distant branches of the Ulstat clan were frothing with excitement at the notion that she might succumb to madness before producing a child to continue the lineage. They were all too eager to take control of the House. Fortunately, we had little trouble conceiving. Mieshk was born within a year of our marriage. Tragically, my wife’s parents were killed just months after the birth. My wife ascended to prime.” At these last words, Trader Ulstat grinned. No doubt he had a hand in hastening the parents’ demise.
“This is a heartwarming story,” Caffari said. “But I’m with Lilik. Get to the point.”
Trader Ulstat stretched his legs out in front of him, crossing them at the ankles. He sat on a shipping crate stamped with the crest of House Thuvet, a trader family from Orteshk Island. No doubt Caffari and her confederates had liberated the contents of that crate at some point in the past. Over the last weeks, I’d learned not to look too closely at the fittings and cargo containers aboard the Midnight. Not if I wanted to keep my conscience clean.
“On the night of my wedding, my father-in-law invited me into the study. He had concerns for his heir, particularly regarding her early signs of madness. For most who are afflicted, the onset is after their thirtieth year. Not so with Mieshk’s mo
ther. And most certainly not so with Mieshk.
“Think what you will about House Ulstat, but we have little desire to cause chaos. In fact, we Ulstats seek to further the fortunes of all Araokan citizens, not just our kin. Where we differ from other Houses is in our philosophy of managing the gutterborn who depend on us. We—”
I couldn’t handle the condescending look on his face. “Don’t pretend you have anyone’s interests at heart other than your own,” I snapped.
“You see,” he said, his eyes running over the gathered group, “commoners can’t be trusted to make reasoned decisions. Look how quickly she angers. They must be guided firmly, lest their ignorance and emotions drive them to ill-considered actions.”
My blood surged hot through my veins. Gritting my teeth, I stalked closer to the man. When I drew near enough to strike, my hand found Tyrak’s hilt.
As I slid the dagger up and out of the sheath, Raav stepped in front of me. “Lilik. He’s trying to rile you.”
“Actually,” Trader Ulstat said, “I’m just being honest. I have no reason to antagonize anyone here. Especially not given the alliance I seek. But if you’d prefer I leave my philosophies out of the discussion…”
Raav laid hands on my shoulders. “Remember. You can kill him yourself if we don’t like what we hear.”
My rage was simmering high in my chest. Try as I might, I couldn’t force it down.
“Lilik,” Paono said quietly. “I know you. Patience is not your strength. But consider what happens if we kill him. It’s another nightstrand for Mieshk to capture. One who knows where we’re anchored.”
Rot. He was right. As Raav squeezed my shoulders, I blinked and swallowed. “Fine.” I stalked to the edge of the circle and dropped to a seat on a water cask.
Raav whirled on Trader Ulstat. “If you insult her again, I’ll make sure that you hurt. A lot.”
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