The Dragon Knight and the Light

by D. C. Clemens

  Then, fifteen minutes into the second hour, I saw Ikumi walking and talking with the younger of our suspects. Master Babaya wore a black mantle made from a delicate material, which allowed for some of the white and blue clothing underneath to saturate to the top. His thin hair sat atop a head that was more vertical than wide and was cut quite short. He also sported no facial hair beyond long sideburns. The shade of his skin looked more sun-kissed than the average Wregor citizen, though that could have simply been due to his recent travels.

  We finally stepped out to the dimming garden when they came closer and to an area not occupied by too many partygoers. On making eye contact with me, Ikumi discreetly led Taxa near a tree with long, drooping leaves that acted as a veil for its reedy, crooked trunk and two stone benches overlaid with red cushions.

  I bowed to my sister royal, who proceeded to use the Wregor tongue to introduce me to the Tho Blye noble. According to what we discussed earlier, Ikumi should have presented me as the daughter of a prominent Struac trader—Struac being the closest nation whose people shared a similar skin pigment and general appearance to my own. Lord Ren’s head servant worked as my translator while Gerard tried extra hard to act as my protector.

  As it turned out, Taxa informed Tuktu that he understood the shared tongue with some competence, though he could only respond in the Wregor language. The fabricated reason we wished to introduce ourselves was to learn how feasible it would be to establish trade routes through Chiszir territory. A naive notion, to be sure, but I wanted to play up my naiveté a bit. As for Taxa, he exhibited no obvious signs of anxiety. His eyes shifted about as though he was looking for someone, but since he wasn’t exactly trying to hide the act, it looked more like shyness than mistrustful behavior.

  After we became comfortable with the flow of conversation, Ikumi excused herself in order to intercept a pair of men walking closer to us. She also needed to keep an eye out for our next suspect, though even if she found him, it appeared we weren’t going to have time to interrogate him before we had to move the ball indoors. Ah, I was getting ahead of myself. One suspect at a time.

  Feigning tired legs, I led Taxa to a bench under the tree. Time being of the essence, I dropped the slightly higher tone I had been using and said, “Master Babaya, is it true that the Chiszir sometimes suffer through a disease that takes water away from the body?”

  “I believe so,” translated Master Ojitaka. “However, it’s a rare sickness. There’s no need to worry about it spreading across the lands.”

  “And yet I hear it has spread to this very nation. Credible rumors even say that someone in the royal family has recently contended with the disease. If the disease is truly rare and difficult to spread, that implies a purposeful dispersal, no? Now, anyone responsible for giving this terrible sickness to the royal family would not only find his head in a noose, but would suffer a fair amount of torture beforehand.”

  Taxa’s plucked eyebrows lowered toward the end of my exposition and his breathing became a more conscious action. His darting eyes noticed that Gerard had silently positioned himself to be behind him.

  Continuing, I said, “One has to imagine that someone capable of collecting a Chiszir disease and bringing it to a Wregor royal would have to have the ability to cross such territories with relative ease. It strikes me that your people have such access and freedom of travel. What do you think, Master Babaya? What would the Wregor nobility do if I brought my suspicions to them? Will they question you? I hope it won’t cause you too much trouble. I’m sure they’ll reward you greatly if your information led to the culprit’s capture. They may even give you back all the riches they stole from your family after your nation joined the empire.

  “Of course, no riches could replace the people you lost in the war. My, my, now that I’m saying all this out loud, I’m beginning to think you fit the exact type of person who would want to seek revenge against the empire. Let me call Princess Ashina over and find out what she thinks of these coincidences.”

  I stood up, but before I took a step forward, something caught my arm. I looked back to see Taxa grabbing my sleeve and Gerard placing the tip of a dagger against the side of Taxa’s jugular. He let me go and said something in an entreating tone between his teeth.

  “He says you are mistaken,” said Tuktu. “He urges for you not to jump to conclusions so quickly.”

  I chuckled and sat back down. “Please get that rusty dagger away from him. Why, Master Babaya, you should see your face! Please calm yourself. I am not your enemy. Indeed, I would like to be friends. To begin with, I would like to know if my sources are correct. Do you have an Advent connection?”

  Mouth agape, Taxa swept his vision over and around us, as if making sure he wasn’t in some illusion. The fact that he wasn’t vehemently denying everything hinted that I was on the right track. He just needed a little more prying to get a definitive answer from him.

  “Well, let me explain first. You see, my people are interested in forming our own connections with the reticent cult. They seem to have gained quite the influence around the world lately, and it may benefit us to ally ourselves with them if only to avoid being targets of their troublemaking. We also know that any chaos in Wregor is good for my people, so any enemy of the empire is a potential friend for us. Now then, did they come to you? Or did you seek them out? Come now, don’t be shy. If it’s better for me to get answers through Wregor interrogators, I will.”

  After one last look around, Taka used his own throat to say, “No, no others…” He sighed. “We talk by ourselves now.”

  “Only me and you?”

  “Yes, please.”

  “Very well.” To Gerard and Tuktu, I said, “Allow us some privacy, but don’t take your eyes off us.” My knight led a hesitant servant outside the leafy curtain. Once they reached a satisfactory distance, I asked, “What do you have to say, my lord?”

  “I-I fear I cannot help you a lot. A Chiszir tribeswoman came to me. She desired to strike at the empire’s heart, like I, like I did.”

  “How did she know you could help her?”

  He shrugged. “Sometimes I tell Chiszir friends unkind jokes about the empire. Maybe she heard, or maybe somebody tell her.”

  “And is she the same person who gave you the disease to spread?”

  “Yes. She spoke of a good way to… to carry the sickness a long way.”

  “How?”

  His hands framed an invisible box. “Three, um, bowls? No, no. Boxes that hold w-water and wine.”

  “Ah, barrels.”

  “Yes, barrels. Three small barrels. They were heavy with fluid, but I do not know with exactly what fluid. She told me three and four times not to open it. She wanted me to carry them to Chakrud and put them in a place for someone else to take them.”

  “I see. Then you do not know who took the barrels?” He opened his mouth, but catching himself before he made a sound, he instead shook his head. I had never seen a simple gesture of the human body lie so obviously. I frowned and said, “My dear Taxa, you’re not sweating because it’s warm here. I already know someone close to the royal family is a traitor. Does your restless reluctance suggest you know who it is?”

  His pupils moved from one corner of his eyes to the other. “I do not want to say while in Daidu-Lu.”

  “That’s too bad. Can you at least tell me how you discovered such a secret? I presume the precaution to have someone else collect the barrels was to prevent you from learning the traitor’s identity.”

  “I presume that, too, but Father teach me to always know more if I can.”

  “Then how?”

  He fingers fidgeted. “I put a hare’s blood smell on one barrel. Then I waited with my dog not far away. Every hour I let my dog check where the barrels were. They stayed in the same place for almost a day until one of them left. It was not one with the smell, so I could not chase it. I don’t know where it went.”

  “I think I have an idea where it ended up. What of the other two?”


  “The two barrels left the next morning. This time I tracked it.”

  “To where?”

  “Carriages. A long line of them. With Wregor soldiers.”

  “And you know who they belonged to?”

  He nodded. “The barrels went inside the biggest one.”

  Dropping all the falsity from my voice, I said, “Master Babaya, I understand why you’re afraid to tell me who the traitor is. You have no reason to trust me, especially since I have been lying about my identity. Allow me to properly introduce myself.” I stood up and bowed. “I am Odet Astor, first princess of Alslana and bearer of Mytariss’ shield.”

  Taxa jerked himself to his feet, looking ready to run. However, the reality of his situation hit him before he could do something as foolish as that.

  “Forgive me for lying to you, but I am in search of vital information. You should know that no matter how justified you believe you are or how small your role, I do not at all agree with how you attempted to solve your Wregor problem. At any other time I’d hold no qualm about turning you in. At the end of the day, circumstances dictate that I focus on bigger fish. I will allow you to return to your homeland as soon as I corroborate your side of the story. I swear on the gods that I will not implicate your name to anyone who may use that information to bring you ruin, including Wregor’s royal family and their servants.”

  Taxa stared at his feet for a moment. A nearby root caught his attention, so his eyes followed that to the tree trunk. Ultimately bringing his sight back on me, he said, “I tell you dates. You can check records.”

  “Records can be tampered with. I’m sure they have been if this person ranks high enough to have a long line of carriages and soldiers accompanying him. Even if there are records, time is of the essence, and your own conscious needs cleansing. The Advent have used your emotions to do their bidding. This is not only about weakening an empire, but Orda herself. Muster up your bravery and both of us can feel better knowing that you are no dastard. You are no old man. There is still plenty of time to make things right with the gods and yourself. Take this second chance or risk never having one again.”

  He sighed through his nose and sat back down. “Stomach hurts.”

  “I advise you aim for the tree if you need to expel anything.”

  The briefest chuckle escaped him. “There is no food to expel… Only truth needs expelling…” He stared at the ground. “The barrels went inside Prince Ashina’s carriage. Prince Wuhen.”

  “W-Wuhen? Are you certain? Did you see him?”

  He looked back up. “Yes. A soldier opened carriage door and put the barrels by his feet. Then they left. I left fast, too. I think maybe they put me in a trap, but no. Days and weeks went by. Nothing.”

  I bit my lower lip, a jumble of questions popping in and out of existence not far above it. Did this mean Wuhen was working with the Advent all along? Or had he been fooled as well? His own blood had been infected, after all. Or was I the one being fooled now? Did my passing daze leave me open to attack?

  I shook my head and sent a pulse of prana through my body, ready to cast my shield in case I saw a violent act rush or rise against me. None appeared. I only saw Taxa glancing at Gerard and Tuktu, who were socializing with a trio of guests Ikumi could not divert away.

  “Believe me?” asked Taxa.

  “Enough for us to go our separate ways.” I bowed. “Thank you, Master Babaya. Remember that the gods care little about how a world divides itself. Your future peace of mind lies in yourself, not whether your homeland is free of Wregor rule.”

  He nodded solemnly and walked out of the tree’s nestling shadow. I followed him out a few steps later, wondering where the eldest prince was at the moment. Even if he was at the ball, should I confront him with what I learned? I could not pretend to be a blackmailer in that scenario. Perhaps I could write him an extortion letter? Again, without much freedom granted to me, that would entail involving Ikumi or Lord Ren on the plan. And what if it turned out to be a lie or misunderstanding? Gods, what a mess.

  Tuktu wanted to know what I learned once he and I detached ourselves from eavesdroppers a few minutes later. Fibbing a bit, I assured him that Taxa posed no threat and that it was best to speak with Lord Uesato to clear matters up further. Unfortunately, when I found Ikumi near the end of the casual portion of the ball, she informed me that she had no luck locating the Tho Blye lord. She also explained that her oldest nephew rarely attended Satiko’s more commonplace socials. Naturally, I told her nothing of why I asked for his whereabouts.

  With nothing better to do, I stopped being so aloof to those that wished to converse with me and only tried thinking of what to do next between conversations, not during them. Taxa and his company of four participated in the proper ball as well. Or, more likely, Taxa’s friends pushed him through the palace doors. Still, the lord’s son largely reverted to his unflustered demeanor, breaking only for a split second when our eyes met.

  Later at night, Clarissa, Gerard, and I placed ourselves in the shadow of a thick pillar and away from Tuktu and the crowds. Unable to foresee how long we had to talk, I jumped straight to the point, saying, “Taxa claims he saw Wuhen take two barrels filled with desiccation spores into his carriage.”

  “As in Prince Wuhen?” hushed out Clarissa.

  “I’m afraid so.”

  “But that doesn’t make sense. The prince was also infected.”

  “He could have known about the paste,” said a less flustered Gerard, seemingly prepared for my revelation.

  “But it’s not a cure.”

  “Maybe he assumed it was.”

  I cleared my throat. “I suspect we have to talk to him if we want to learn what he did and did not know about the desiccation disease. Listen, every time I mull it over, the less sense it makes to extort him. Our only realistic option will be to do it by letter, and he could counter that a hundred different ways. Not to mention that such a tactic would have to involve either Ikumi or Lord Ren, and if we’re wrong… Well, we really need to be right.”

  “But we can’t exactly confront him, can we?” asked Clarissa. “If he supports the Advent, then challenging his loyalty will definitely lead to a hundred soldiers besieging us from all sides. Now, ninety-eight soldiers we can handle, maaabye ninety-nine, but a hundred…”

  “Agreed. We need support.”

  “Does that mean waiting for Mercer to get here?”

  “Most likely.”

  “Whenever that is,” said a miffed Gerard.

  “You have a better idea?” asked the vampire.

  “Yes, to get support. We can’t risk waiting for Mercer if we really have to worry about the second most powerful man in Wregor betraying us at some point.”

  “Then why hasn’t he yet?”

  Realizing a reason, I said, “Gods, he could be waiting for Mercer to arrive before making his move. Mercer would have to take a different approach if he heard we were imprisoned or killed, something the prince wouldn’t want if his goal was to eliminate the dragon threat with his guard lowered.”

  “All the more reason to act as soon as we can,” said Gerard.

  After a groan, Clarissa said, “Okay, so you want some help, but who will support our plan to confront the prince?”

  “What we have to do first is get the prince as alone as he can be. I say we ask for Lord Ren’s help, we just don’t let him know he’s helping us.”

  “I hope that at least makes sense in your head.”

  “Aye, it does. I’m thinking we get Lord Ren to request for Prince Wuhen’s presence, and him alone. He can make whatever claim he likes to accomplish it. We’ll of course be waiting for him there. I assume he can bring us to him by requesting Ghevont again.”

  “Don’t you think Lord Ren will side with his royal nephew if we ask him to intervene?”

  “Almost certainly,” I said. “The only person who may be able to convince Lord Ren to apprehend Wuhen is Ikumi. She won’t like it, but I believe she’ll take me s
eriously if I urgently told her to put the prince under guard, or at least stop him from killing us.”

  “She’ll have to be more than just a little insistent if our lives are depending on her commands. I hope she can find it in her to be so.”

  I gazed at Ikumi politely laughing with someone on the other side of the great hall. “I’ll give her a little reminder of her royal blood. It’s in her, I’m sure.”

  “So that’s our plan, then? Keep everyone in the dark until the last possible moment?”

  “What other choice do we have, Clarissa?” asked Gerard. “Not taking any action at all can only serve to corner us into a worse situation later on.”

  “Yeah, I know… Damn it, my nose can’t take it anymore. I’m gonna go enjoy a long drink of blood in my room. Let me know if a better idea comes to either of you by morning.”

  After bidding Clarissa a good night, I went to look for Tuktu to tell him what his master needed to do. As far as Tuktu and his lord would be concerned, I was setting up a secret meeting with Wuhen so I could contrive a new way to blackmail Lord Uesato. So at least something came of the Tho Blye lord’s absence.

  The timing of Lord Ren’s requests had to be in a specific order. Traitor or not, it was unlikely that the prince would agree to come alone if he knew foreigners were in the same place, so Lord Ren needed to make sure Wuhen did not expect us to be there. This meant calling my group at a slightly later time, and to determine that, he first had to learn where Wuhen even was. His father could have already sent him to another part of the empire by now. I hoped that was the case. That would give Mercer at least another few days to reach us.

  The next item of business was to get Ikumi’s participation and harden her mindset. I met up with her mere minutes before the ball formally came to an end. I began by explaining the same scheme I stated to Tuktu.