Master of furies, p.33
Master of Furies, page 33
‘Now let me show you something I discovered recently.’
Instantly they seemed to be floating in the night sky. Below was the roof of their quarters a short distance from the dome of the library. ‘How—?’ Hava began.
‘It’s an illusion,’ said Hatu. ‘I can do it, but I can’t truly explain how I do it. Some lines of energy are connected to things I can … not control, but take advantage of, especially when they’re close to where we really are, which is below, on the bed.’
‘But it feels so real!’ Hava’s tone showed that she was clearly more excited than she had been by the view of the energy threads.
‘Look up!’
She did so and abruptly it felt as if they were flying upwards at a dizzying speed. ‘Oh!’ she exclaimed.
‘Remember, this isn’t real.’ He paused then said, ‘Rather it is real, but we’re still sitting on the bed. It’s our minds that are free to fly up like this. Now, look.’
Hava again looked up, and Hatu could feel her awe. Alone at sea, at night, the stars were a blanket of lights, and to the north if she sailed far enough, lights danced in the sky. But nothing she had seen before compared to this. A thousand times more stars than she had ever seen blazed across the arc of the sky and sprinkled between them were iridescent clouds of bright gas, of copper and blue, or pulsing with light of their own.
‘It’s wonderful,’ she said.
Suddenly they were back on the bed and for a moment she held him tight. Then she pulled back and said, ‘Thank you. I may never truly understand what it is you are doing, but I see the … beauty of it.’
‘Now you see why I want to know more.’
She smiled broadly. ‘You’ve always wanted to know more, ever since you were a child.’
They both laughed.
‘One more day,’ he said with a hint of regret.
‘Still not hungry?’ Hava said teasingly as she began unbuttoning his shirt.
He laughed and jumped up to close the door.
‘SAILS AHEAD!’ SHOUTED THE LOOKOUT and Declan left the captain’s side and hurried to the bow. They had been sailing along the northern coast of the Marquensas peninsula and had noticed a lot more activity than when they had left, months before. At least a dozen ships were anchored off the coast as they neared the port of Toranda.
Declan saw no sign of any conflict and yet experienced an unexpected jolt of worry. He realized that so much of how he looked at things now was the residue of what seemed like endless conflict, and the way he had felt before losing Gwen was a fading memory.
A flicker of blue caught his eye and as they neared the city they saw a newly erected tor, atop which flew a banner.
Sixto came up beside him. ‘The baron’s been busy.’
‘Apparently so,’ agreed Declan. ‘Looks like Marquensas has a banner.’
‘I thought only kingdoms flew those,’ said Sixto.
Declan chuckled ruefully. ‘Are there any kingdoms left?’
‘At least one, it seems.’
A white parley flag was being waved, so Declan had Sixto send word to the captain that they needed to stop. As they dropped anchor, Sixto returned and Declan said, ‘Have the others heave to, until we find out what is happening.’
As the other ships came up, one of the sailors half-hung over the Change of Luck’s rear railing and shouted instructions, which were passed along in turn.
The last ship was slowing as a boat was rowed from the tor to the ship. As there was no rope ladder, the messenger had to shimmy up a dropped line, but he did so with no difficulty.
‘Who’s in charge?’ he asked as he climbed up onto the deck. He was a young man dressed in common work clothes. The stone dust on them suggested that the tor wouldn’t be finished for quite some time.
‘I am,’ said Declan.
Seeing that there were several fighters coming up on deck, the messenger said, ‘Is your name Bogartis?’
‘He’s dead, I’m captain now,’ said Declan.
‘Is your name Declan?’
‘Yes.’
A look of relief came over the youngster’s face. ‘I am glad to hear that. This is perhaps the tenth ship I’ve had to row out looking for you.’
‘Why?’
‘You’re not to put in here. There’s a new port being built up at North Point, and the king wants you there.’
‘King? The baron’s now a king?’ asked Sixto.
‘A week and some days since. The proclamation went out, and Baron Bavangine is sworn in as his oathman, and has been put in charge of Port Calos. Some of the nobles from Ilcomen have become his oathmen, too. Lots of things changing since the raid.’
‘Anything else?’
‘No, just you’re to go to North Point as soon as you can.’
‘Very well.’
The messenger stood awkwardly for a moment, then gave a clumsy salute, turned, and shimmied back down to the waiting rowing boat.
‘So, we’re serving a king now,’ said Sixto.
‘Other than a title and a whole lot more land to govern, I don’t expect much else will have changed. When we get back, we’ll get the new men settled, and then I’ll return to doing what I do best: making swords.’
Sixto said, ‘If you make swords better than you fight, my friend, they must be exquisite blades.’
‘They will be,’ Declan said quietly.
His mind turned once more to the fact that the precious sand he needed had been bought with precious blood.
• CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE •
Upheavals, Obvious and Subtle, and Hidden Changes
As the morning sun rose above the eastern foothills, Declan saw a signalman furiously waving a flag from the top of the tor. From his gestures, Declan assumed he was being instructed to berth his ships in this wide new harbour they were still dredging. He waved back and hurried to the captain. ‘We’re putting in here, apparently.’
He could see North Point in the distance. Major construction had been going on. By the look of it, the workers who were still dredging the small bay would eventually double the size of the harbour. North Point tor was the lookout for a fortress that was being built overlooking the harbour. In the distance Declan could see buildings had sprouted up nearby, and he imagined in years to come that this would be Marquenet’s closest major port. One day North Point would be a city.
If this new kingdom survived.
The captain had the orders passed back to the other ships. A distant figure waved from a newly erected dock on the other side of the harbour, just as Sixto arrived and said, ‘Looks like someone wants you there.’
‘You have better eyes than anyone other than Sebastian, can you tell who it is?’
‘I’m not sure, but I think it may be the man who’s always with the baron.’
Declan chuckled. ‘You mean Balven, his brother?’
‘That would be him.’
‘Get a boat ready,’ said Declan.
Soon he was approaching the dock while the other ships in his flotilla were dropping anchor and getting ready to disembark the men and unload the cargo.
The man waiting was indeed Balven, who came forward and said, ‘We got word by swift pigeon it was you down at Toranda, so I left the city as soon as I could. The messages said you were now captain.’
‘Bogartis is dead, yes,’ confirmed Declan.
‘Did you get what you were sent to get?’
‘Yes, enough for a thousand or more swords if we can get the iron.’
‘The iron trail is clear now, so we have miners up there, and we’ll send more if we must.’ Balven looked at the ships. ‘These are all with you?’
‘Your brother said get more men, so we did,’ answered Declan. ‘Eight ships and a thousand men.’
‘I’m impressed.’ Balven glanced around. ‘I’m not sure where we’ll put a thousand men though, so if they can march to the city, that’s probably the best option. We have new barracks there and have been training hundreds since you’ve been gone.’
Sixto said, ‘I’ll go tell them to start the unloading.’ He gave a casual bow to Balven, turned, and started to jog along the harbour’s edge.
‘Sorry about your man Bogartis,’ said Balven. ‘I didn’t know him, but even the castellans spoke well of him. I respect that.’
‘He was a good man’ was all Declan said.
A soldier rode up to where they stood and handed a tiny scroll to Balven. ‘Message, sir.’
Balven took the message and unrolled it as the messenger turned and rode off again.
‘We have word that the Queen of Storms is a half-day behind you.’
‘The Queen of Storms?’
‘A friend from Beran’s Hill, Hava, yes?’
‘She and her husband bought my wife’s inn,’ said Declan. ‘Yes, she’s a friend.’
‘Come,’ said Balven. ‘There’s a poor inn here now, little more than a barn, but the food is better than what we can get at the soldiers’ mess. I’ll send a message to your man—’
‘Sixto,’ supplied Declan.
‘Sixto, and he can oversee your men as they march to the city. I hope they have provisions, for we have none to spare.’
‘We don’t have much, but enough to last a few more days,’ said Declan.
‘Come, Hava’s ship should arrive before midday, and I have a coach waiting to carry us to the city. And I would very much like to discuss something with you alone before then.’
DECLAN PUSHED AWAY THE EMPTY plate, having discovered he had been far hungrier than he had imagined. It was simple fare, but the fruit was fresh, the bread baked that morning and still warm, and the cheese was just down from an alpine meadow that had escaped the raiding. He had taken water instead of ale, feeling the need to keep his wits about him.
He had heard Balven lay out an incredible story and had listened silently while they ate. Balven had stopped talking a few minutes earlier, fixing a questioning gaze on Declan, but saying nothing.
At last Declan said, ‘We’re brothers?’
‘I saw it the first day we met, when you came to Daylon to fulfil Edvalt’s promise. I told Daylon then, and more than once since, that you look more like our father than either of us. Moreover, you have his manner, his toughness, and determination to finish things once started, much like Daylon.’
The meal had started with Declan telling Balven about his trials and finally getting the sand needed for forging the weapons, and Balven had commented on his commitment. Then Balven had told Declan of what he had discovered about his true birth and coming into Edvalt’s care, not the fable fashioned to hide the truth.
Now, Declan took a deep breath, and said, ‘Well, it’s nice to know, but Daylon is now a king, and you may be a bastard like me …’
‘But things are not that simple,’ said Balven. He stood up and said, ‘Come, walk with me.’
They left the ramshackle inn and started up the road that would eventually take them to Marquenet. ‘You’re how old, Declan?’
‘From what Edvalt said, maybe twenty-three, twenty-four. I’m not certain.’
‘Actually, twenty-six, I think,’ replied Balven. He glanced around, making sure they were not overheard.
Declan nodded slowly.
‘Father had been dead less than a full year when we were called to the Betrayal. That was during the first few months of Hatu’s life, and I don’t even know if Hava had been born. So, do you fully understand when I say it was a long time ago?’
‘A lifetime,’ said Declan dryly, ‘at least to us three.’
‘Daylon is past sixty, as am I,’ said Balven sadly. ‘He was deeply in love with his first wife, but she died early and left him heartbroken. Our father’ – he gestured to include Declan in this plural – ‘married him off to a woman of rank, in the hope of having heirs. Father died and Daylon became baron and less than a year later we were murdering a dynasty, and somewhere along the way, you were born. We probably have a few more unknown brothers and sisters out there since bedding young women was one of Father’s proclivities when he drank.
‘But you’re the only bastard with a noble mother.’
‘Noble?’
Balven told him what he had discovered, then added, ‘There is even a possibility you’re not a bastard, as Father may have secretly married your mother, but that is actually far less important than some people think.’
Declan found himself completely unprepared for any of this. At last, he asked, ‘What, then, is important?’
‘Our brother came to care for his second wife, if not with the deep passion of his first, but he adored his children. He doted on them, and when his entire family was butchered, he changed. He lost … let’s say a lot of good things inside him died along with his children.
‘He won’t wed again, even though he could still give this new kingdom an heir, but I know him. He’s about to embark on as dangerous an undertaking as can be imagined and I fear this new kingdom, this barony that has been in our family for generations, may be a kingdom without a king before too long.’
Declan said nothing, finally coming to realize that Balven was telling him something far more important than just Declan’s personal future. He was speaking of a nation’s future.
Balven stopped talking and looked at Declan. ‘I know everything you loved was taken as well, and you two are enough like Father that I will never persuade either of you not to visit personal vengeance on these Pride Lords. So, I won’t ask, but listen carefully. At least one of you must come back alive.’ He pointed his finger at Declan and added, ‘And if it’s you who comes back from this war alone, then you, my brother, will be King of Marquensas.’
HAVA COULD SEE THE NUMBER of ships that were clustered along the coast for days. She first saw them as she approached Toranda and then as she continued up the coast. She stopped counting once she passed one hundred, and that was the day before. She was also surprised to see a kingdom banner flying from various fortifications along the way.
Still, politics was not her main concern. She had vital information for the baron … or rather, king, she corrected herself, and then as soon as possible she needed to return to the Sanctuary and then head for Nytanny.
She knew Hatu had held back some secrets about his studies despite his letting her experience a bit of what he was doing, but she had also held back part of her work in Nytanny, with Red Sweeney and the smugglers.
Even now Catharian would be sowing rumours of Coaltachin returning to save the nations. She hoped he was achieving enough to start the Pride Lords worrying. And the most critical thing she needed to tell Daylon – whether he be baron or king – was that there was a deadline coming.
In the distance she could see Borzon’s Black Wake at anchor. The ship was probably deserted but battened down against the need to transport a great many troops. Hava estimated a thousand foot or four hundred cavalry and horses could be crammed aboard that former treasure- and slave-ship.
She got as close as possible to the new dock but kept out of the way should any other ships need to unload. When the ship was secure, she gave instructions to Sabien to allow the crew to visit whatever amenities the new town had to offer, certain that at least one of those buildings would be an inn. She lowered herself into a longboat and was rowed to shore.
To her surprise Balven and Declan were waiting for her on the new dock. Balven waved as she approached and gave her a steadying hand as she came ashore.
She embraced Declan. ‘I heard what happened to Beran’s Hill. Gwen?’
Declan’s expression darkened.
‘I’m so sorry,’ she said softly.
He said, ‘Jusan and Millie, also. You, Hatu, and I are the only ones I know who have survived.’
‘And Molly Bowman,’ said Hava. ‘She and a few others from Beran’s Hill are safe. Not many.’
Declan seemed relieved that a few others had escaped safely.
Hava looked at Balven. ‘Big changes. Your brother is a king now?’
‘Marquensas is now a kingdom,’ he declared, somewhat wryly. ‘We had a ceremony, with that fraud Bernardo offering a blessing. Word reached us that the Church has thrown him out, so I don’t know how much that blessing counts, or even if it would have had the Church kept him.’ Balven sighed. ‘Now that the Church controls Sandura – they killed Lodavico as a heretic – they control both the continent of Enast and a large piece of North Tembria. War is inevitable if they try to expand, but let’s hope we can stave off that crisis for a while.’
Hava knew that given Balven was waiting for her at North Point, a signal had no doubt been sent from Toranda to Marquenet, by messenger pigeon most likely. Which meant there would be a carriage waiting to hurry them to the capital. ‘You seem less than enthusiastic about being brother to a king,’ she observed.
He laughed. ‘My estimation of you grows each time we meet, Hava.’ He shook his head slowly. ‘It began almost as a joke, and my brother thought so at first. Then we realized that we had become complacent for too many years, only to be caught off balance by Sandura’s plan to destroy Ithrace.’
At this moment a carriage pulled up and Hava was impressed to see a smaller, wider vehicle drawn by a team of six. ‘This one goes faster?’ she asked, her tone slightly tinged with sarcasm.
‘You have no idea,’ Balven replied.
He opened the door, then stood aside and allowed her to enter first, despite his own rank; then Declan after her. Once they were all seated, Balven said, ‘Our newly ensconced monarch, my brother, is a man of vision. We now have a waystation between here and the capital, and a widened road, half a dozen hills having been excavated so that the route is flatter. I think we’ll arrive six hours faster than the last time but sleeping is maybe no longer an option.’
‘I’m a ship’s captain,’ Hava replied. ‘I can sleep anywhere, through anything.’
Declan laughed. ‘If you’d seen the places I’ve been sleeping since I left, you’d understand why I envy you a cabin even in a big storm.’
Balven grinned. ‘Do you need to sleep?’
