Oathbound: The Emperor's Conscience, Book 2

by Michael Combs

“Grow into three buildings?” The brother ran his hands through his hair and blew out an exasperated breath. “I said there was much good that could be done here; I didn’t know I would need to fill three buildings. I am not able to handle this kind of responsibility.”

  “You don’t need to, Brother,” I said. “You have this here.” I waved around at the main hall we occupied. The tall windows were boarded but allowed thin shafts of sunlight into the space. “Beyond this, there are kitchens and other rooms you may set up as you wish. Now, it will all need cleaning before it is fully functional, but I think it is a good start.”

  “But the rest—” he breathed.

  “—can sit as it is until it is needed,” I finished. “Concern yourself with young Willem there. The rest will come with time. When I first saw the place, I saw a temple with a good, clean orphanage. This city is in need of one, I think.”

  “I agree,” Balinar said heartily.

  “Then, once you have exceeded the limitations of the main space, you can expand into one of the other two wings.” I shrugged. “It is simple, Brother. Use what you need and as you need more, use more. By the time you need more than you have, you really should be running the city.”

  Balinar’s head was down, and he looked defeated despite my lame attempt at humor.

  “What is it, Brother?” I asked.

  “I can’t do the sanctification. I can’t dedicate this space to the Goddess, not in the manner that it and She deserves.”

  “You sanctified the shrine when you arrived, didn’t you?”

  “I carved the sigils and said the words,” Balinar said, dejection filling his voice, “But I can’t perform the actual rite. I don’t have the Blessings of Hessa, Evan.”

  “What is that?” Shani asked.

  “Only Priests trained at the Grand Temple can perform the rituals,” Balinar explained. “Otherwise, they are only saying the words. That is acceptable for a roadside shrine, Mistress Shani, but this temple is wondrous and deserves to be awakened properly. Perhaps we should wait until the Keeper sends a proper Priest to do the dedication.”

  “Wait,” Shani said. “Evan, you were trained at the Grand Temple.”

  “You were?” Balinar exclaimed.

  “I was,” I nodded.

  “Then you can do the ritual. If you don’t know it, I will help you.”

  “I know it, Brother.” I said. “I will do it.”

  “Excellent!” Brother Balinar’ face lit with excitement. “When can you be ready?”

  “I’ll need a few days,” I said. “I have some things to do that are rather time-sensitive.”

  “Good.” He nodded. “It will take time to make the rune tiles. I want very much for this temple to be a success. Everything must be perfect.”

  I was much more out of practice with my priestly skills than those I’d learned as a Guardian. I could still draw on a ritual, though—probably. I mean, I hadn’t done it in over a year, but once learned, right? At least I had brought my own books. I would have to spend a few nights with dim candles reading old texts, it seemed.

  “Your first task, Brother,” I said, “will be wrangling the builders. I have arranged for a craftsman of stained glass to create the scenes, but we need someone to unboard and frame the windows to his specifications. It will be up to you to see the vision fulfilled.”

  “Builders?” he asked incredulously. “I assumed I would have to complete this myself!”

  “No, of course not, my friend,” I said. “There will be craftsmen coming by to begin soon. It is up to you to see what you want this place to be and do it within the budget. I have set up a pool of funds for you to draw upon to fill the temple’s needs until the Keeper can arrange for more. With luck, you can also bring in donations from the city.”

  Balinar laughed. “A temple…with funding, and an acolyte, all in one day! Why are you doing this, Brother?”

  “I originally came to Jerea looking for some missing children,” I said. “Though those I seek are still beyond my reach, I discovered that this city had entirely too many other sorts of missing children, and no help for them. What Jerea needs is a good, clean orphanage and someone with a kind heart to help them and protect them.”

  Cedric nodded his understanding.

  “What's a akkylite?” Willem said from beside me. I jumped at his sudden appearance.

  “An acolyte is one who studies a particular religion,” Shani said.

  “I’m gonna be a Priest?” Willem screeched, horror writ across his face.

  “Only if you want to,” I said, then scowled at Shani, who smiled sweetly. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to anymore. Within reason.” I held up a finger.

  “What does that mean?” Distrust plain on Willem’s face.

  Brother Balinar shrugged. “You’ll need to do a few chores. Clean up after yourself. I will teach you how. Help me around here. Most importantly, however, I will need your help to get the word out about the temple and all the good we can do. You will have to learn to read and write and use numbers, but you are smart, yes? Brother Evan says you are. Is this true?”

  Willem stood straight. “I am smart. I can learn anything you can teach, old man.”

  “We shall see,” was all the Brother said. Despite his doubtful expressions, I knew the boy was hooked. He wouldn’t have to debase himself any longer to merely survive, and in my mind, that alone was worth my meddling. I just hoped the Brother could pull it off. I had faith in him and our Queen, our Goddess Hessa. But I also knew how fickle people could be and I prayed that I wasn’t placing my trust in someone who would prove false. I considered briefly whether I needed to put measures in place to monitor the good Brother.

  He nodded to me, smiling, and my concerns receded. I decided I had more pressing matters than getting involved with the Order any more than I had. Let the Keeper tend his flock as he would. It was not my place, after all, to presume any kind of authoritative role within the Order of Hessa. That was the Keeper’s sole domain. My letters were off to him already, and he could address what needs as he saw fit. As far as I was concerned, I had done my part.

  “Your window maker should arrive tomorrow to take measurements for the stained glass. It is all paid,” I said. “Mind your appointment.”

  “I am grateful, Brother,” he said with a bow. “And to you, Lady Shani. Without you, this would all have been for naught.”

  Shani blushed and curtsied rather than bowed. I would not correct her.

  “That said, I’m afraid I have an appointment to keep,” I said. “I will be by in a few days to see if you need anything, Brother.”

  We grasped wrists, and Shani and I boarded our wagon, leaving the Brother and his new Initiate to their work.

  Much to Do

  Shani and I woke late. It was later still by the time we descended the stairs for breakfast. As we bathed, I joked that, considering our professions, we may have to start paying one another.

  “Well, I am worth way more than you,” she said as she stretched in the luxurious marble bath. “Considering the obvious discrepancy, I will settle for a shopping trip. Buy me something pretty.”

  I smiled broadly. “That’s another thing I love about you,” I said. “I don’t have to guess at how to make you happy.”

  Shani giggled and splashed water at me.

  We entered the kitchens to find Kitty and Oni already at the table.

  “It’s about time you two made it down,” Kitty said from inside her giant robe. She turned and batted her eyelashes at me. “Don’t I get a turn, Evan?”

  “I offered, Kitty. You turned me down,” I said and cracked eggs into a still hot pan and set it back on the stove. I added more wood to the fire and adjusted the damper.

  “I didn’t turn you down, I ran away,” Kitty said. “I had another appointment, and you were going to make me late.”

  “I’ll share, Kitty,” Shani said, dragging a nail along the back of Kitty’s neck. Her back arched like her namesake.
“There’s always room for one more.”

  Shani giggled as Kitty made a grab for her. That was one of the fun things about working and living here. This kind of interplay was common. As ridiculous as it sounds, it was a camaraderie that was close to kinship and at times not as dissimilar to soldiers as one might think. I laughed at the connection as I turned my eggs.

  We ate and headed for the markets. I needed to arrange some things for the temple: staple foods, cleaning supplies, and, most importantly, lanterns and oil. The place was dark and dreary, especially with the windows boarded over. We attended to those more mundane tasks first. The various merchants promised to deliver my purchases as soon as they could free up a driver. Next, we went looking for something pretty for Shani as she had suggested. I sat in the dressmaker’s shop sipping tea while Shani tried on dresses. She came out with each one and twirled and pranced, and I gave my opinions. She was having fun. A little attention went a long way toward earning those smiles I was so enamored with. I was learning.

  Her packages in tow, we headed for the tailor next to Chadri’s. I needed something special to wear to the ball with the Mata. I knew what I wanted. I told the tailor, who asked a few questions for specifics, then took some measurements. I paid, arranged delivery when complete, and we were off to find dinner. My shopping methods were boring, according to Shani.

  We found a nice café at the edge of the market districts. I had the beef with stewed tomatoes and a colorful salad. Shani had roasted chicken with succotash. Fluffy rolls filled a wooden basket between us, covered with a towel to retain their warmth. We were given fresh butter and honey, and the young man who brought our food refilled our wine glasses often.

  “Something’s been bothering me, Evan,” Shani said between bites.

  “Well, let’s hear it.”

  “Why did you buy that Priest a temple? Really? But more importantly, how? I looked over your shoulder as you were setting up the accounts.” I gave her a hard look and she shrugged. “Force of habit. Does being a Magister really pay that well?”

  “No, it doesn’t,” I chuckled. “And yes, I am wealthy. I use the coin to fund my endeavors.” I took another bite and washed it down with the wine. “I don’t do without, but I don’t flaunt my wealth. It is a tool, nothing more. I have simple needs, and those are met. The rest, perhaps, can be of some benefit.”

  “Like starting an entire temple to house one orphan?”

  “Precisely. But the temple is about more than Willem,” I said. “Look around. There are more street urchins in this city than in the capital of Arul.”

  “So this is about growing up an orphan?”

  “I don’t know that it’s that,” I said. “It might be, but to be honest I had a good childhood, especially compared with many.”

  “Don’t you miss having a mother?”

  “I never knew what a mother was, Shani. To my knowledge, I have never had one. Instead, I have substituted a mother and father with thirty some odd aunts and uncles that I would see periodically when they came to temple. They were there when my mother was not. If I have one, I wouldn’t know her if she spoke to me. I never did without. I had people I could talk to growing up. I had friends my own age, of course, but they knew no more than I did.” I chuckled at that. “I had Uncle Zai and Tamil. I had Aunt Lis and a host of others.”

  “Who would you go to if you needed advice?” Shani asked.

  “Well, that depended on what it was about. If it were weapons or tactics, definitely Master Brenn. If it were my other abilities, well, I suppose Master Gwynn or Uncle Zai. If I messed up, it was Uncle Tamil. He challenged me to become better without ever judging me. I knew he would be harsh, but I also knew he would not hold my mistakes against me so long as I learned from them. ‘Make a million mistakes, boy,’ I said in my best imitation of Tamil Haran, “‘But never make the same one twice. I taught you better than that.’”

  Shani and I both laughed at my mockery.

  “What if you needed more personal advice, like regarding women?” Shani asked with a sly grin.

  “Oh, then I would definitely talk to Uncle Darius. He is Aunt Lis’s Guardian. He’s desperately in love with her, but he will never tell her.”

  “Why would you listen to someone like that?” Shani asked. “He can’t even tell the woman he loves how he feels.”

  “True, but he gives advice on what he would do if he had the nerve, though he is no coward. When he gives advice, it is as though he is begging you to do what he cannot. He knows it is the right thing, but he can’t bring himself to face the possibility of rejection, not from her. If you give him a drink or two, however, he’ll tell you all about how he would woo her if he could.”

  “And what does she think of him?” Shani leaned her elbows on the table, eyes wide with hope as I told their story.

  “She loves him dearly and has for ages,” I said. “I asked her once why she didn’t just tell him and be done. She said it was because he was an idiot and needed to come to his senses. Said she couldn’t be bothered to lead a dumb animal by his nose.”

  “Sounds like she is a stubborn romantic and he is a hopeless fool.”

  “That’s what I told Lis. She agreed but said it would make for a better story. ‘I have his heart,’ she said, ‘let’s see how long it takes him to find his sack.’” Shani and I both laughed. Shani shook her head.

  “You have had a good life, and you have a wonderful family.”

  “Yes,” I said, “and I want that for as many others as is possible. I believe that everyone deserves an equal chance. Not an equal chance within their station, an actual equal chance. Children are innocent. Their circumstances are thrust upon merely them by being born. They have no say and they have no recourse, other than what is before them. A temple orphanage gives them a better chance at that. It is just in the beginnings, but I believe Brother Balinar will do what he can to build a home for a few more that would otherwise have nothing.”

  “Is that why you came so far to find these girls?”

  “Yes. They have a family—well, one does that I know of. The others I will learn of if I can, and find them. If they do have family, I will see they are returned. Merey’s mother thought she was dead all these years. With what I discovered before I came here, she now has some small hope that her baby is alive. She’s worried sick.” I shook my head. “I hope the ball will point me in the right direction. It will be tricky, though.”

  “Oh? How so?”

  “I will be fishing for information while navigating the pleasant landscape of Jerean politics. I am not going to hold my breath, but it is the only way I can think of to get close enough to the Prince.”

  “You don’t sound hopeful. The Prince is supposed to be there, right? That’s good, isn’t it?” she asked.

  “Perhaps, but it’s just as likely he will send representatives in his stead. Who knows?” I said. “It isn’t much to go on, but it is something.”

  Shani sat and looked thoughtful as she drank her wine. She stared through the window of the café, and I didn’t know what she saw, but it didn’t lie in the streets beyond the glass.

  I drifted into my own thoughts as well. I didn’t know what to expect at this ball, but I hoped it would lead me closer to finding Merey and the other girls. In the midst of my search, I needed to get the dedication ritual completed and Balinar on his way with the new temple. Much needed done.

  The next few days were a flurry of activity as I began helping brother Balinar get the temple in order. We began by thoroughly cleaning the main building, a project which took several days. Shani stopped by after she woke each day and helped us. Little Willem was invaluable in removing debris. But by the time we had the space clean, much of our efforts had been undone with the arrival of the construction crew and the window maker.

  The crew tore down the boards covering the tall windows, and for the first time in ages, sunlight spilled into the main hall. The increased illumination revealed much we had missed in our efforts, but t
he place was beautiful. There were even more intricate designs on the walls and moldings than we’d previously seen due to the dust and dim lighting afforded by whatever lanterns we could bring in.

  A carpenter led a group of about twenty men that rapidly assembled scaffolds needed in preparing for the arrival of the stained glass.

  “Don't you worry about us none,” the foreman said. “We’ll make sure we get the dust up. Can't build anything nice without making a mess.” He laughed, but he was right. They sure made a mess. True to his word, though, by the end of the second day the five large windows were uncovered, framed, and ready for the artist.

  The windowmaker’s services were expensive—expensive enough that I didn't take it from Balinar’s budget. I paid for that separately. I considered the cost worth it, however. I wanted to ensure that the newest temple of Hessa was as grand as any other, but not ostentatious like the former Imperial Temple. The stained-glass windows the artisan was constructing would go a long way toward that. It would take a few days before they finished the windows. I had contacted him as soon as the sale of the buildings was complete, so he had begun the work already. The first two of his creations were set to be installed tomorrow.

  “It's starting to come together,” Brother Balinar said, taking in the sanctuary. “I’m telling you, Evan. When I first arrived in Jerea, I had not ever hoped to see a proper temple in Trular in my lifetime. I only prayed that I could dig the foundations for someone else to build upon later.”

  “With your hard work and dedication, Brother, I know you can build something wonderful here, provide respite for those in need and a home for those nobody wants. All the Queen asks of us is that we see to her children.”

  “True words, Brother. I will do my best. I swear it.”

  “I know you will. Hessa knows you will. For now, Brother, I have to go. I have much to do. If I'm not here when the crew installs the windows, try not to give them a hard time, would you? The craftsman has done a remarkable job. I will be by as soon as I can to check on your progress and see if you need anything.”