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The Habit of the Sorcerer

Page 17

by J J Moriarty


  Hyzou allowed his Qi to surround the mind of the apprentice. It was the same as trying to create an illusion, but even more subsuming. Hyzou covered the boy’s ears, the boy’s taste, the boy’s scent. Hyzou allowed his Qi to enter this apprentice like a virus, penetrating deep into his mind, until he seemed to touch the boy’s spine.

  Hyzou was shaking now, but he went for it anyway. He tried to make the boy move, force him to take a step backwards.

  The boy moved, but it wasn’t in the way a human normally moved. The boy’s spine jerked first, the bones and vertebrae jutting out of the skin on his back. Then the nerves along the boy’s leg came alive, and they obeyed Hyzou’s will. The boy’s leg was dragged slowly along the wooden floor.

  The boy understood that something was wrong, that he didn’t have control of his own figure, of his own nervous system. But the boy didn’t really understand, he just knew that he had been violated in the most horrible of ways. He screamed.

  “AHHHHHHHH WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME?” He shouted.

  “Hyzou! Stop that!” Aliya barked.

  Hyzou released the boy. The boy collapsed on the floor and screamed and screamed. He was jerking, as if in a seizure, and his right leg spasmed everywhere.

  The force of the shout left Aliya convulsing with painful coughs, and as she bent over in pain, some of her blistered skin tore. Tiny beads of blood formed on her forehead.

  Everyone on the floor left their tools and gathered around the boy. Everyone but Aliya and Hyzou. Hyzou stared at the twitching boy, then looked back at Aliya.

  Despite her burns, Hyzou could see that her face was etched with fear. Not the kind of fear Hyzou had seen people have before they went to train with Yash or Bee in the yard. It wasn’t the kind of fear he had seen on his own face in a looking bronze before he had first slept with Tabiry. It wasn’t even the fear of a man about to be crucified or whipped.

  No, Hyzou had only seen this fear once before. It was the fear he had seen on the faces of the thousands that had been sprinting through the flaming streets of Piquea. The fear on the faces of those who had found every avenue to safety blocked by bloodthirsty soldiers. The fear on the faces of the innocents who had seen the sky on fire and the ground turned to ash.

  It was the fear that arose when it was the end of the world as you know it.

  “Aliya”, Hyzou said.

  “All this time. All this time I thought Mygst was afraid of something from the outside”, Aliya said.

  “Who’s Mygst?” Hyzou said.

  “Mygst was your father. His real name”, Aliya said.

  “I wouldn’t have believed you until a week ago. But now, I’ve seen things, Aliya. And I think it makes sense now”, Hyzou said.

  “Mygst… Never told me. He hid you and your sister”, Aliya said.

  “Was he strong? Did he have power like I do?” Hyzou asked.

  “Hyzou. No one’s ever had power like you do”, Aliya said.

  “Please”, Hyzou said. “I need you.”

  Aliya sighed. She reached out one blistered finger and touched his chin.

  “You’re so young. Just a boy”, Aliya said.

  “I’m of age”, Hyzou said.

  “I don’t know what I could do. Is there much I can teach someone like you?”

  “Anything. Any help at all”, Hyzou said.

  Aliya nodded. Hyzou smiled.

  “Thank you.”

  “There’s an issue though, Hyzou”, Aliya said.

  Hyzou’s face dropped again.

  “A practical one”, Aliya said.

  “What’s that?” Hyzou said.

  “I work here, eleven, twelve hours a day. How can I train you when I belong to someone else?” Aliya said.

  “Oh. But you’re an Archai? Can’t you use your powers to, I don’t know, disappear or something?” Hyzou said.

  Aliya shook her head.

  “I can’t use my legs”, Aliya said. “That rather limits my ability to escape, even if I wanted to.”

  “Well then…” Hyzou began.

  “There’s one solution. You must free me,” Aliya said.

  “Oh, and I do that by…” Hyzou began.

  “You’re the property of the Pharaoh. A symbol of his dominance over Piquea, so I doubt you’re for sale. For the rest of us slaves though, our masters usually just except gold”, Aliya said.

  Hyzou frowned.

  “Where would I get gold?” Hyzou said.

  “Consider it your first task then, as my pupil. If you want my training, figure out a way to free me. Get some gold”, Aliya said.

  CHAPTER 20

  Hyzou had seen only one person with gold in his new life. And that was Kyrios Nuya. No doubt there were plenty of rich people throughout Lamybla, but he and Kyrios Nuya knew one another, and he had it to spare anyway. Hyzou felt a lot less guilty about stealing from Kyrios Nuya than he did from anyone else.

  Lamybla worked exactly like Piquea, exactly like most cities, Hyzou supposed. The King, or in the case of Lamybla, the Pharaoh, was the centre of power in the city. If you were rich and powerful you tried your best to become close to the Pharaoh, and he would want to keep you close by too. On a personal level, but also literally with your house.

  Piquea, with a giant stairs running up its centre, had been split into six separate levels, each higher than the next. It was a bit easy to say, but a good measure had always been that the higher the level a person lived on, the more important he and his family was.

  Mak had always ignored such roles. As the Chief Scribe, he could easily have lived on the fourth or maybe even the fifth level of Piquea. He chose Nuyin, a part of the third level, because he could buy a house with two rooms, and space enough to keep a range of animals. The house was well guarded and most of the neighbours were merchants that travelled a lot - it had been a good community. A lot of foreigners, like Hyzou’s mother, and a road full of people who did not care much about Piquea’s intricate social hierarchies.

  Hyzou had asked his father about that once. The King’s cupbearer lived on the fifth level, as did all his overseers. The King’s sartor, and his head chef lived in luxury on the fourth levels; along with the tutor of the King’s children. Why then didn’t the Chief Scribe live with them?

  “No one from Nuyin works in the Court. No one who works in the Court lives in Nuyin”, Mak had said.

  And that was all he had to say on the subject.

  Lamybla, like Piquea, was built upon raised ground. But Lamybla didn’t exist upon a hill, it simply couldn’t. Where Piquea could just be described as a city, Lamybla was bigger than the other River Cities put together. It didn’t make sense for Lamybla to have levels.

  However, behind the giant walls, tall and impregnable, Lamybla was divided into districts. Heavily guarded by walls and guards, each district was a city of their own. A main thoroughfare ran through each of these districts, from one main gate to another, but despite that, a man could live his whole life in one district, never dealing with the others. They were all so eminently different.

  In Piquea only the Palace and Temples were in the sixth level. They were the centre of power in the city. It made sense then for the richest and most powerful of men to gather and live in the fifth level.

  Hyzou guessed that the same thing was true of Lamybla. Find the centre of power, and the rich and powerful, in this case the Kyrios and Kyria, would be living as close as was reasonably possible to this centre of power.

  Lamybla’s centre of power was an easy one to find. It was the first thing anyone saw when the city appeared on the horizon, and it had stood over Hyzou during his entire time here, watching him. The Sun Tower that grew up into the sky.

  To find his gold therefore, Hyzou walked to the feet of the Sun Tower. The tower was surrounded by a moat, which was then surrounded by a large plaza. The plaza was big enough for thousands to stand as a crowd. Hyzou looked around, until he was happy that no one had noticed him.

  There was so much business in this part
of the city, it was easy to pass-off one’s presence as necessary. No urchins or beggars were welcome here, but a busy looking man like Hyzou wouldn’t be disturbed.

  He had, that morning, left Abe passed out on the floor snoring. Some of Abe’s better clothes though, for when he actually had to attend Court, they were enough for Hyzou to pass as someone with business in this part of the city.

  Hyzou, as he walked around the streets surrounding the Sun Tower, knew he had guessed right. There was no one else these monstrous houses could belong to, other than wealthy Courtnobles. They all lived on closed off streets that ran off the plaza, huge gates and walls around their residences.

  It was only then that Hyzou realised the problem he had made for himself. He had here mansions that could only belong to a Courtnoble, but there were many Courtnobles and therefore there were many mansions. Hyzou had no way of knowing where Kyrios Nuya lived.

  Of course, he didn’t have to steal from Kyrios Nuya. Any one of these houses had what he needed. But Hyzou felt like stealing from Kyrios Nuya wasn’t really stealing at all. Just taking back what was owed to him.

  Hyzou returned to the plaza and sat by a stall selling fruits. Debated on whether to abandon his pretentions of morality and just steal from the nearest house he could find.

  He was saved having to when the Royal Court opened. Palace guards stepped aside, and heavy bronze gates were opened out. A line of plush and expensive litters streamed out. Each was shielded by curtains, so Hyzou couldn’t see inside. Each was lifted by six slaves and guarded by sixteen geldings with large spears.

  The Courtnobles must leave Court first. Hyzou thought.

  They were all large, and all well-protected. Any litter could be carrying any Courtnoble.

  Hyzou stared, and then he saw him. Hyzou recognised the face of a guard of the third litter in the line.

  Hyzou reached out with his Qi, tried to sense the third litter. Inside there were five people. Four women, and one man. Hyzou touched against the mind of the man, and felt a shiver run down his spine. For the briefest of moment his Qi collapsed entirely, and Hyzou lost all his power. A panic set into his stomach.

  I’m still afraid of him. Hyzou thought.

  Hyzou breathed deeply and tried to own his envy. He felt the familiar orange sensation settle over him as he calmed. It was the first time he had lost his Qi since the Whisperer’s surgery.

  Following Kyrios Nuya was simple. The city was full, and Nuya’s guards were trying to protect the Kyrios from an attack, not from being followed. No one noticed Hyzou.

  Kyrios Nuya lived in a house Hyzou had missed on his walk around Lamybla’s inner district. A small looking lane that he had ignored turned out to open into a wide street. There were statues on either side of the road, simple carvings of soldiers and military men. There was only one building on the whole street. It was a mansion, five stories tall, with a full set of stables and slave’s house beside it.

  The statues provided good cover as Hyzou skulked along the empty lane, following the litter as it slowly trundled its way up to the house. There were a large set of steps up to the ornate bronze and golden doors. These doors were open, and in their arch stood a wizened old man. The old man bowed, as Kyrios Nuya got out of the litter and stepped into the house.

  His overseer. Hyzou thought.

  Hyzou felt an anger in his chest at the sight of Kyrios Nuya. The kind of righteous anger a child feels when he knows a sibling has been given something he hasn’t. A desire to chase down the Kyrios overcame Hyzou. He could, he knew, be in with a chance of killing the Kyrios. It depended on how skilled his guards were.

  Hyzou stayed where he was. He didn’t move until the heavy doors to the house were shut. Then, he reached out with his Qi, and sensed where everyone was in the mansion. It was full, more than fifty people in the house. But there, on the fourth floor, was a shuttered window leading to a room that was empty.

  Hyzou breathed deeply and owned his envy. Then he ran, sprinting to try and avoid being seen by anybody around him. He sprinted up the street, his heavy footfall barely making a noise as he sped up the laneway. Then, once he knew he was close enough, Hyzou leaped.

  His jump was immaculate. He landed exactly at the window and grabbed onto the wooden shutter to stop him falling. He examined his surroundings with the Qi, and once he was certain that the room was empty, he punched the wooden shutter. The wood cracked down the middle, and Hyzou punched again.

  This made a hole in the wood, just wide enough for him to slither his way into the room. He landed quietly on the ground of the room. It was a bathroom, and the clay was cold. There was no fire in the grate, no water in the tub. Apart from the tub, the only thing in the room was a marble carving of the duel between the gods Lorikuy and Andras.

  Hyzou sent his Qi out and sensed the house. Nearly everyone was downstairs. It was a meal. The Kyrios was eating at a table with several people, while slaves waited in attendance. Hyzou’s attention was attracted by the old overseer, who was sitting at a desk in a room on the second floor.

  Perfect. Hyzou thought.

  Being as quiet as he could, Hyzou stepped lightly from the bathroom, out to the long and winding set of hallways. All empty, but Hyzou stayed silent anyway.

  Hyzou made it to the doorway of the overseer’s office. He stood in the doorway, staring in at the overseer, but it took the old man a few minutes to look up from his work.

  “My Boy!” The overseer said. “You gave me such a fright.”

  Hyzou said nothing, just stepped into the room.

  “Who are you?” The overseer said. “What business have you here?”

  Hyzou looked around the office. The overseer was wary, perhaps he thought Hyzou was the Kyrios’ guest. Hyzou doubted that many uninvited guests managed to get through the Kyrios’ heavy front doors. If he was here, that must mean he was here for a reason.

  And he was, though not a reason the overseer would approve of. Hyzou saw exactly what he wanted. A strongbox attached to the wall by iron bindings.

  “Boy? Answer me”, the overseer said.

  Hyzou walked up to the overseer’s desk.

  He punched the old man, which sent him flying across the room and saw him land with a thud.

  Too much force, Hyzou. Hyzou thought.

  He still had not gotten used to his abilities.

  Hyzou turned to the strongbox. Made of bronze, tied with iron, and filled with gold; Hyzou knew that it would be heavy. It was what the overseer must use to pay the household expenses. In his old life, Hyzou would never have been able to push such a thing, let alone rip it down off a wall and then carry it.

  Today, though, he managed this fine. He tore it off, taking half the wall with it, and set off back along the hallway. Hyzou made quite a bit of noise, so someone would come soon to investigate the overseer’s office.

  Hyzou didn’t mind though, he already had a way out of the building on the fourth floor.

  CHAPTER 21

  “Sit. Hyzou, please sit”, Aliya said.

  Hyzou took a seat in the sand behind Abe’s house. Aliya placed her crutches on the ground and slowly lowered herself onto a stool.

  “I miss when my legs worked”, Aliya said.

  “Can you still teach?” Hyzou said.

  “Yes. Yes of course I can”, Aliya said.

  “How do we start?” Hyzou said.

  “By my instructing you”, Aliya said. “Sit still, and listen to my wisdom, such as it is.”

  “I’m listening”, Hyzou said.

  “So, combat. That’s what’s relevant to you now, right?” Aliya said.

  “Well I suppose I…” Hyzou began.

  “The most important lesson on any kind of combat. If you’re facing an opponent who is impossibly stronger than you - don’t. Don’t face them. Run away”, Aliya said.

  Hyzou looked at her. She began to laugh.

  “You can’t do that, I know”, Aliya said. “So you must learn to fight. Every drop of your extraordinary
gift will be needed to duel with a Colossus and survive. I will train you to fight, teach you how I was taught to fight. Teach you to fight like an Archaier, like a true Servant of Qi.”

  Hyzou nodded.

  “Every opponent you face should be treated with the same deference, whether that be a Colossus, or a small child”, Aliya said. “The true Archai knows she will die every time she fights.”

  Hyzou sat still, the heat was suffocating.

  “Respect violence and fear it. This is not a game. This is life and death. If you lose, in any fight, there may not be a second chance to learn from your mistakes. It makes no difference whether the fight is in an arena, on a battlefield, or a street brawl”, Aliya said.

  “The thing an Archaier remembers, above all else, is that fights are always lost by mistakes. It is the inferior skill and decision making of one party that gives us a winner and loser in a fight. Not the strength or decisiveness of the attacker. Repeat that for me, in your own words. What’s my most important lesson?” Aliya said.

  “Don’t make mistakes”, Hyzou said.

  “This does not mean you must be cautious in a fight. Excessive caution is a mistake too. You must be aggressive and attack, even when your opponent is a Colossus. But I will get onto that later. Just remember not to excuse your caution with a fear of mistakes, to win a fight you must be violent. Merely frustrating an opponent cannot bring you victory”, Aliya said. “Repeat that after me. In your own words.”

  “Not making mistakes isn’t the same thing as doing nothing”, Hyzou said.

  Aliya smiled.

  “The Servant of Qi does not fight like a common man. Everything you do must be for a reason. The untrained warrior is prone to panic, to attack wildly, or else to run. You do that, you will die”, Aliya said. “However, at the same time, fighting is entirely instinctive. You react to what is happening in front of you without too much analysis.”

  Aliya fell silent.

  “So…” Hyzou tried to think that through. “Don’t do things for no reason. But also, don’t think about what you’re doing?”

 

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