All of the Mechanics were armed, four of them wearing revolvers at their waists and four with the longer weapons Jules had heard called “rifles.” They all seemed to be young adults, not a middle-aged face among them.
She took in those details as the boat moved away from the Sun Queen, curving in a wide arc to head back to the piers.
“Put this on,” one of the Mechanics said as he shoved a dark Mechanic jacket at Jules.
She took it without thinking, staring at it. “Put it on?” Jules finally said.
“Is that complicated?”
Jules swallowed nervously before replying. “It’s death for a common to wear the jacket of a Mechanic. That’s a rule of your Guild.”
“Oh, for—”
“Hold on,” another Mechanic said, his eyes on Jules. “She’s worried about breaking our rules. We shouldn’t give her a hard time for that.”
“Fine.” The first Mechanic pointed at Jules, then at the jacket. “I’m ordering you to put on that jacket. Which makes it all right. Put it on.”
Jules pulled on the jacket, a crawling sensation going up her spine as the garment settled about her shoulders. Wearing Mage robes in Landfall had felt odd but at least she’d also felt hidden with the hood up. Wearing a Mechanics jacket, her face fully exposed, felt like draping a target over herself, inviting death from all directions. No. Not just death. She hated the idea of common people seeing her, seeing her face clearly, and thinking she really was a Mechanic.
“Think it’ll fool any Mages who see her?” one of the female Mechanics said.
“It’d better,” one of the men replied. “Listen, common. You’re pretending to be a Mechanic. When we get to their pier, we’ll form a group with you in the middle. You stay in the middle of us while we all walk to the Guild Hall. Understand?”
“Yes, Sir Mechanic,” Jules said.
“Is that revolver loaded?”
“I have three cartridges left in it, Sir Mechanic.”
“Don’t use it. We’re not supposed to attract attention from Mages. If any try to stop us, let us bluff our way through while you keep in the back and avoid being seen.”
“What if they do try to kill her?” another female Mechanic asked.
“Our orders are to get her to the Guild Hall without starting a war with the Mages. If it comes to that, we run, keeping her in the middle so they can’t get to her.”
The Mechanics all nodded.
Jules felt herself hunching down as the boat moved across the water. She could feel it shaking slightly in a steady way and hear a low humming. But as the boat wended between anchored ships Jules felt the shaking and the humming stutter twice before smoothing out again.
“That thing’s not going to fail again, is it?” one of the female Mechanics asked.
“It better not,” one of the male Mechanics replied. “I hate rowing. I thought they were going to replace that unit.”
“Can’t get a new one,” the Mechanic at the stern said. “I don’t know why not. We were told to keep this one working as long as possible.”
The pier, well-lit by lanterns down its length, loomed ahead of them. The boat came close past the squared-off stern of the big metal Mechanic ship, coming alongside the pier in the shadow of the ship. Two Mechanics waiting on the pier grabbed lines from the boat, looping them around ties.
The Mechanics stood up to leave the boat, Jules staying with them. Up on the pier they formed a rough circle, Jules inside, and began walking at a brisk but not hurried pace along the pier and toward the town.
“Mages at ten o’clock,” one of the Mechanics said in a low voice.
Ten Oh Klock? What did that mean? Jules noticed the Mechanics around her glancing quickly to their left. She did the same, catching a glimpse of Mage robes well down the street and a little to the left of their group.
The Mechanics angled right to the other side of the street, Jules doing her best to stay in the center.
Aside from being crowded by the Mechanics on all sides of her, the experience felt oddly like being back in Mage robes in Landfall. The common people hastily made way for the Mechanics, who walked on as if not even aware of how others got out of their path. Perhaps they were so used to such treatment that they no longer noticed it.
Jules didn’t need any encouragement to try to stay hidden among the Mechanics. Aside from not wanting any Mages to spot her, she didn’t want any commons seeing her wearing this jacket.
She noticed that Caer Lyn had grown a lot in the time since she’d last been here. More buildings, bigger buildings, more lanterns on the streets, and more people. Not everyone escaping the Empire was going far to the west. Some were just coming as far as the Sharr Isles, counting on the Great Guilds to keep the hand of the Emperor from following them here.
The buildings on either side fell away as the group entered a large open area. Glancing between the Mechanics around her, Jules saw they’d reached the plaza around the new Guild Hall. Like other Mechanic Guild Halls, it was a massive structure, about four stories high, a long and wide rectangle, the outside bearing windows higher up but the bottom level almost fortress-like. Bright, steady Mechanic lights blazed inside and outside the structure, letting her see that it was still far from finished. A number of large tents were still set up around the building, and Jules assumed one of those would be their destination.
To her surprise, the group went up the broad stairs leading to the massive double doors at the main entrance.
They were going inside. Jules felt the way she had when she was being chained in the brig of an Imperial sloop. Commons didn’t go into Mechanic Guild Halls, or Mage Guild Halls for that matter. Or if they did go in, they didn’t come out again. She had to fight down a panicky instinct to flee as the group stepped through one of the partially-opened main doors into the interior.
Once inside, they stopped before an older Mechanic who was waiting. “Any problems?” that man asked.
“No, Sir Senior Mechanic,” one of Jules’ escort replied. “We spotted a few Mages but none of them took notice of us.” He looked at Jules.
Guessing what he wanted, Jules started to take off the Mechanics jacket.
“Leave it on,” the Senior Mechanic ordered her. “We don’t anyone who sees you questioning what’s going on. You all wait here,” he told the Mechanics who’d brought Jules. “Don’t talk to anyone else about what you’re doing.”
“Yes, Sir Senior Mechanic,” the Mechanics all replied.
“Come along,” the Senior Mechanic told Jules, beckoning to her. He walked off without looking to see if she was following.
She hastened to catch up, staying with the Senior Mechanic as the two of them walked deeper into the Guild Hall, through a section that was still only rough walls with blindingly bright Mechanic lights hanging from hooks, then into a more finished area. Jules heard noises, ranging from conversations in the distance to occasional strange deep rumbles, and high-pitched whines that didn’t seem to come from any natural source. As they passed gratings in the wall, cool air flowed out, startling her.
Reaching a broad, important-looking door, the Senior Mechanic knocked, then cracked it enough to look inside. “She’s here.” Nodding in response to some reply Jules couldn’t see or hear, the Senior Mechanic stepped back and waved Jules inside.
Nerving herself and trying to keep her breathing steady, Jules stepped through that door, hearing it close behind her.
She was in a large room, three or four lances to a side, the ceiling maybe a lance and a half over her head. Lights set into the ceiling provided bright illumination. Wooden paneling had been partially installed on two walls.
A couple of utilitarian desks made not of wood as Jules had always seen but of metal sat in the middle of the room. Behind those desks sat four Mechanics.
At least two Senior Mechanics, Jules corrected herself as she looked at them. She’d met them all before. The older woman whom Jules had seen once on a Mechanic ship, the older man who’d met her twi
ce, once on the Sun Queen and once on a Mechanic ship, and the middle-aged man and woman Jules had met on a merchant ship they were taking to the Sharr Isles. Now here they were all together, plainly waiting for her.
Jules walked to the center of the room, heart pounding and more than a little worried but trying not to show it, acutely aware once more of the Mechanic jacket she was wearing.
“She looks natural in that jacket, doesn’t she?” the younger of the women remarked to the others.
“Very natural, Rhian,” the oldest male Senior Mechanic replied. “But she may have a more important role to play as a common.”
“What have you been up to?” the younger of the men asked Jules. “The Mages are as frantic as we’ve ever seen them, and the Emperor is throwing tantrums. All apparently because of you.”
“I was captured by an Imperial ship,” Jules said, “but was able to escape when Mages attacked it to try to kill me, Sir…Senior Mechanic.” He hadn’t insisted on that title when last they’d met, but he and the others seemed to be on an equal basis.
“There was more than one recent incident in Landfall where Mages attacked Imperial soldiers,” the older woman said. “Did all of those involve you?”
“As far as I know, yes, Lady Senior Mechanic.”
“The Empire still doesn’t know where you are,” the younger man said. “Where have you been?”
“In the west, Sir Senior Mechanic.”
“Exploring?”
“That and overseeing the establishment of…” What was the term that Mechanic Hal had used? “Of stable, free governments in new settlements.”
Her last words held their attention, all four watching her intently in silence for a long moment. “You might have been right, Uri,” the older woman finally commented to the younger man.
“It was your idea first, Grace,” he replied. “You’re the one who convinced the other Grand Masters to give her that revolver.”
“How much do you know about what’s going on right now?” Senior Mechanic Grace asked Jules.
“I know the Empire and the Mages are still searching for me, Lady Senior Mechanic,” Jules said, “and that the flow of people out of the Empire has gotten heavier because Imperial forces are concentrating on trying to find me.”
“Why do you think common people are leaving the Empire in such numbers?” Senior Mechanic Uri asked.
“Because it feels like a dead end, Sir Senior Mechanic. Too many people, too few jobs, too much corruption, those highest in the hierarchy like senior Imperial officials and members of the royal family taking whatever they want. The west offers a chance to escape all of that.”
“But it’s only possible for them to leave in such numbers because of you,” Uri said. “You’ve destabilized the situation, and inspired more instability. One common isn’t supposed to be able to do that.”
They wanted her to reply to that, Jules could tell. But what should she say? She took a deep breath, trying to draw on the only metaphor she could think of. “Sir Senior Mechanic, sometimes when cargo is stacked in the hold of a ship, it seems to be stable and firm. But it’s actually just balanced, ready to fall if something happens. Just a little shifting of some of it, or just a little weight to one side, and the whole pile comes down. I think the Empire, the world, may have been like that, of have become like that, sort of perilously balanced. And then the prophecy unbalanced things that were already on the verge of falling.”
The older man slapped the desk before him, the sound sharp enough to startle Jules. “If we had her as Empress in Marandur, instead of that idiot Emperor, we wouldn’t be facing these problems! Isn’t there a way we can get her on the throne? The Emperor would marry her because the prophecy, and then we could arrange a fatal accident for the Emperor, leaving her as Empress to start fixing things!”
Senior Mechanic Grace shook her head, grimacing. “I think it’s gone too far for her to be able to put things back together. Besides, from what our sources say, the Imperial family and senior bureaucracy would never accept her as Empress. What’s the matter, girl?” she asked Jules, having noticed her reaction.
Jules, shocked by the direction the conversation had gone, had to swallow before she could speak. “I…I…I’m an orphan. The Imperial family would never…”
“An orphan.” Grace sighed. “Girl, the Mechanics Guild has its faults, but bias based on origin isn’t one of them. What counts is ability. Both of my parents were commons, but that hasn’t stopped me from becoming one of the Guild’s grand masters.”
“I think you’re right that she’d never be accepted as Empress,” Senior Mechanic Rhian said. “If we’re going to regain stability, we need to think of…well, like she said, restacking things in a way that’ll hold up for the long term.”
“What you said earlier,” Uri asked Jules, “about setting up stable governments. You’re already doing that?”
“Yes, Sir Senior Mechanic,” Jules said. “Using the model of the free ships, where the crew can vote on who the captain is and on important courses of action. In Western Port I have a…loyal follower who’s running the place and getting the people there to think that way. Dor at Dor’s Castle is the leader there but he has popular support. At Julesport someone was trying to set himself up as sole ruler and I got rid of him.”
“And what,” the older senior mechanic asked, his eyes in Jules, “do you think these individual settlements will accomplish? That sounds like a recipe for lots of weak actors constantly fighting among themselves.”
“No, sir,” Jules said. “I’m getting everyone to think of working together. There are already ties among them. Like, when an Imperial ship tried to enforce the Emperor’s will at Dor’s, I had a ship there that was beholden to me and did what I asked, and there was another ship present whose captain has learned to trust me, and while we were fighting the Imperial ship a third ship, my own, showed up. Individually, none of our ships could’ve beaten that Imperial ship. But together the three of us captured it. I want the individual settlements and towns, as they grow into cities, to be the same, supporting each other and working together. Not because some Emperor demands it, but because the people of those places trust each other.”
“You initiated an attack on Imperial forces?” Grace asked.
“A defensive action, Lady Senior Mechanic.”
“And you won? By using allies you’ve already accumulated?”
“Yes, Lady Senior Mechanic.”
Uri nodded to his companions. “There’s our long-term fix. We let people flood out of the Empire to relieve the pressure and give it time to reform itself a little, and she forms those people into a counter-force to the Empire so it will never again think it’s strong enough to challenge the dominance of our Guild.”
“Why are they listening to you?” Rhian asked Jules. “Why are the commons doing what you say? Just because of the prophecy? Sooner or later they’ll realize that’s Mage nonsense.”
“At first the prophecy had a lot to do with it,” Jules said. “It still does, I guess. But they’re listening to me because of what I’m doing. They know I keep my word, and can be trusted, and…I don’t know. I’ve killed Mages, and captured some Imperial warships, and Western Port, and I’ve survived so far, and I’m trying to learn as much as I can. People respect that. And…to be honest, you Mechanics haven’t killed me yet. I guess that impresses common people, too.”
Grace looked to her companions. “She had the prophecy as leverage, and she’s used it very effectively. That’s the kind of tool we need.” Her gaze went back to Jules. “You cooperated well at Western Port. What are you telling the commons elsewhere about cooperating with the Guild?”
“Lady Senior Mechanic, I’m telling them to do what the Mechanics say. I’m telling them the Mechanics will show up at their settlements someday, and when they do to cooperate.” Jules was glad she didn’t have to try to carry off a lie about that. And was glad that the Mechanics didn’t follow up Senior Mechanic Grace’s question by askin
g about the prophecy’s role in that. Because the truth was, Jules was advising cooperation only to ensure her people grew strong enough in the future for the daughter of her line to overthrow the Guilds’ rule.
The oldest senior mechanic leaned forward, both elbows on the desk before him, resting his chin on his clasped hands as he gazed at Jules. “The Empire has never faced a real challenge. It’s going to keep doing what it thinks should work, which means trying to catch you. Our sources within the Imperial court tell us that the court’s reaction to those leaving is that the Empire is better off without them. But at some point, probably in about a year because it’ll take that long for the extent of the Empire’s problems to sink in at the Imperial court, they’ll realize they’ve been out-thought. At that point, we think the Empire will openly defy the Mechanics Guild by launching an invasion of the settlements to the west—challenging the Guild to either look aside, or risk a war that the Guild will certainly win but at a cost of destroying the Empire. Such a victory wouldn’t be cheap for the Guild, either. As a common familiar with the Imperial military, what do you think they’ll try?”
Jules didn’t have to hesitate or think, because she’d already considered that question. “They’ll attack Dor’s Castle first. They have to. That’s where we, the free commons, will have to meet them and beat them.”
“Dor’s Castle?” Senior Mechanic Grace said. “Why there?”
“Because of where it is, Lady Senior Mechanic. Dor’s Castle sits on the coast along the path to anywhere west of it. If the Empire tries to bypass Dor’s, ships operating out of the harbor there will be able to attack the Imperial line of communications, destroying supplies and reinforcements. Dor’s Castle is the fortified gate to the west. Take it, and the rest of the west is exposed. If it stands, the rest of the west is beyond the Empire’s grasp.”
“They’re building a wall at Dor’s, aren’t they?” Uri asked.
“Yes, Sir Senior Mechanic. A very strong wall. If that wall is properly defended, if it has enough men and women atop it ready to fight, even the legions won’t be able to take it.”
Fate of the Free Lands Page 16
