by Anna Eluvae
Nemm was to sit in the audience. She had done the largest part of the work in bringing the civil war to a conclusion. She had done most of the killing, when killing was what was called for. If Lexari had his way, the bards would sing a different song. It wouldn't be the first time that Lexari had done something like that, though he was often hampered by the fact that he had given control of the purse strings over to Nemm early in their career. Things like that helped ease whatever misgivings she had about the plan she and Dravus had worked out.
There were two hundred people packed into the courtyard. Most of them had ridden quickly to get to Castle Launtine in time. The castle itself was filled beyond the capacity of its many bedrooms, spilling out into the town below for those too unimportant to rate a room. Nemm had dealt with all of it, from the announcement that had gone out to every remaining illustrati in the Iron Kingdom to the lilacs that adorned the chairs they were using. At every turn there was some new crisis to solve or someone trying to gain her attention so that they might increase their own fame by some token amount.
"I miss it," said Quill, during a brief moment Nemm had to herself. "Being an illustrati."
"You might gain your power back some day," said Nemm. "Not every theft was accounted for. We might find the person who received yours and gain it back for you."
There had been a time when Quill had a thickness to him, a ready smile and a twinkle in his eyes. They had found him in a dungeon, emaciated and sunken-eyed. Weeks of good eating and Wenaru's ministrations hadn't managed to return him to full health. Nemm had been in enough wars to know that sometimes people simply broke. "That wasn't credible even when I was king," he replied. "Tell me. We used to be friends once. Was I always to be a useful idiot? Someone to hold the throne while you three prepared to take it?"
Nemm had no reply for him. There were other, more important things to do. Yet she wondered whether he was right. Lexari had tried to spin a story about how Wenaru had been destined for the throne all along. If he were writing the tale, it would have been obvious from the start, with minor details threaded in early on. He had done the same with Dravus's supposed betrayal, warping every small detail until it seemed inevitable. How long ago had Lexari formed his plans? Was he driving the story or was the story driving him? The answer to those questions was far from a matter of idle curiosity. In a few short hours, Dravus would lay his life on the line under the belief that Lexari would follow the path that the story demanded.
* * *
It happened shortly after the ceremonial crown of the Iron Kingdom was transferred to Wenaru's head.
"Lexari!" screamed a loud voice that echoed across the courtyard. Dravus hadn't amplified his voice with the domain of sound; that was one of the ones he would need to keep back. Every head turned towards him. The murmurs started rolling through the gathered crowd soon afterward.
Dravus wore armor of steel, with a thick steel sword held in front of him. He'd spent the days before the coronation training with it, enough that he could pull off something that looked appropriately theatrical. He and Nemm had agreed it would be more compelling and thematically appropriate if he had shadow at his disposal, but that simply wasn't an option. They'd discussed whether he should perhaps go without armor at all, but decided that would stretch the bounds of plausibility too far. Dravus attacking Lexari was already reckless and foolhardy. Doing it without a visible domain would have appeared suicidal and belied the fact that he had a trick up his sleeve. In his other hand he held the Harbinger artifact that Nemm had given him.
"Lightscour," said Lexari, from the coronation's second throne. He stood up with his armor of light gleaming and held out his hand to produce a spear of light. Lexari turned to Wenaru. "One moment, your majesty, while I deal with this." The aside was loud enough for all assembled to hear.
"You're a viper," said Dravus. "A venomous creature that has everyone convinced that he's a hero. Have you ever done anything truly heroic in your life? Something not motivated by the need to better yourself at the expense of those around you?"
Lexari walked forward with the spear held in his hand. "You use steel these days?" he asked. "My apprentice has learned new tricks, it seems. You always were a thief. It was my fault for thinking that I could better you at my own expense."
Dravus had stopped walking. He'd forgotten how imposing Lexari could be. Around him, people were moving away, only far enough that they wouldn't be caught in the fight. They stayed to watch, of course. If Dravus had learned anything, it was that people liked to watch illustrati fight, even if it came at a detriment to their own survival.
"I killed Zerstor," said Dravus. "You couldn't stand the idea of someone else taking that accomplishment from you, that was the only reason I ever found a place on your boat. You had to find some way of taking that accomplishment for yourself. That's all I ever was to you."
"It takes a cynical mind to see the world like that," said Lexari. He came to a stop some ten feet from Dravus. "You imagine that man could only be motivated by self-interest. It says more about you than it does about man. You were always naive, despite my best efforts. I take it you've come here to kill me?" He nodded to the artifact in Dravus's hand. "You wish to take my power from me, as the Allunio did to so many in this kingdom?"
It was going well, all things considered. They were talking, not fighting, which meant that Lexari was still playing for the crowd. He was wearing and wielding light, not presenting other domains. Dravus wasn't quite ready to breathe a sigh of relief, but this was more or less as he and Nemm had hoped for. There was no need to beat a hasty retreat.
"I mean to expose you," said Dravus. He held up the artifact. "I mean to drain your essence and take back what's rightfully mine."
"Last time we fought, I was intent on letting you live," said Lexari. "That was a bit of foolishness I won't repeat this time."
Around them, the crowd thrummed with murmurs. The play was going as planned. No one was interfering in the duel. Wenaru was still seated on the coronation throne, with Nemm standing beside him. That was her primary role; to keep him from entering the battle. Once Lexari was engaged in the fight, Wenaru wouldn't steal the limelight, but there had been a chance that he would act decisively of his own accord. All that was left was the fight itself and the ruse that followed.
"Let us see whether the months have improved your ability with a sword," said Lexari. He spun his spear of light around, tucking it beneath his arm to that it was held rigid in front of him. The point was like a ray of light. Dravus put his sword up to guard, knowing that was futile against a spear that could pass straight through metal. He began shedding his armor, curling the metal away from him in order to give greater mobility. It was a show of his power, proof that he was an illustrati, but it was also part of the plan; he needed to be ready to display the wounds he would receive.
They moved with shifting footwork in a way that was familiar from Dravus's training. Lexari was exercising caution in the fight, either because he expected some trick to be coming or because he wanted to drag the fight out for as long as was dramatically appropriate. Dravus lunged forward, trying to strike with his sword, but Lexari spun away instead of using the opportunity to strike.
"Do you honestly think that you can beat me?" asked Lexari.
"I beat Zerstor with less," snarled Dravus. He'd practiced that snarl with Nemm a few days before. It provoked a scowl from Lexari, along with a test of Dravus's defenses with a thrust of the spear of light. Dravus moved back, slightly off his balance, but again Lexari didn't take the bait. Instead, he held back, seeming unconcerned with pressing the advantage.
"You had so much promise," said Lexari. "So much potential. Did I go wrong with you somewhere, or were you simply rotten from the start? Should I have known that our first fight together, side by side, would presage the last? Should I have guessed you would one day stare me down with so much hurt and anger in your eyes?"
Dravus attacked again, swinging hard with his sword and putting every
ounce of power he could into it. Lexari ducked beneath it, moving faster than Dravus had thought possible, then moved forward to counterattack. His spear slid cleanly into Dravus's torso, straight for his beating heart.
Dravus had practiced for this. He used the domain of flesh to rend a hole in himself, tearing his own heart apart, then let the blood flow freely. The domain of light prevented the spear itself from harming him, but to anyone watching it would have the appearance of a grievous, mortal blow. Dravus dropped the artifact to the ground beside him and screamed in real pain. This was the most dangerous part of the entire plan, the moment when Lexari might refuse his prize, when he might make a second strike through the head in order to ensure the kill, when any number of things might have gone wrong which would force Nemm to drive her dagger through Wenaru's skull and then join in an unwinnable fight. They had planned for that, if things didn't go the right way.
Lexari moved forward quickly, picking the artifact up from the ground. He slipped it onto Dravus's hand. But the artifact was full, not empty, containing only a single link from a peasant far from Castle Launtine, so the only work that Dravus had to do was to silence the sounds it made and produce others in the air. The tones were different, the one for taking higher and shorter. Dravus had poured his own power into the artifact and then out again over the past few days, practicing until he could mask the sound for giving with the sound for taking, making sure that the moment was instant, that the artifact took its power all at once, that there were as few ways for this to fail as possible. This was another dangerous moment, one where Lexari might see through the ruse, but Dravus's half-lidded eyes saw a satisfied smile play across Lexari's lips. Dravus's role was then, for the time being, to lay on the ground and bleed. He knitted his wounds back together, leaving on the surface of the wound presenting damage to the world.
"He was reckless," said Lexari to the watching crowd. "I was mistaken in rewarding him for that. I took the risk for courage and conviction. I took it for justice. Yet as all men, his nature was his undoing. Make no mistake, for the story of Dravus de Luca, the man I named Lightscour, is a tragedy which only now finds its conclusion."
Dravus was on his feet from the moment he heard the first tone of the artifact. Lexari had a serene look on his face that was only just breaking. Dravus had a sword of light formed in his hand as Lexari began to open his eyes; by the time the artifact emitted the second tone, he was thrusting forward. The sword of light went through Lexari's neck and out the back, spraying blood onto the courtyard that joined Dravus's own. Dravus grabbed the artifact from Lexari's hand as he fell, in time for the third tone to sound. Dravus stood there, breathing heavily, knitting his flesh together while holding the artifact in his hand. Lexari gurgled blood from the flagstones of the courtyard. He had done it. The plan had gone off perfectly. The artifact continued its tones, marking every link that Lexari had taken.
Wenaru began to scream from the throne as he stared at the scene, but Nemm was beside him with her glass dagger in hand. She drove it into his brain with enough force to flip him sideways; he was dead before he hit the ground.
The courtyard erupted in chaos shortly afterward.
Chapter 23
Nemm had felt a gnawing pit in her stomach when Dravus made his entrance. The plan was balanced on a knife's edge. If Lexari didn't take the bait, the other options were grim. If Lexari took the bait and moved in with full killing intent, in complete disregard of narrative instincts honed by a lifetime as illustrati, then Dravus would almost certainly die. She was counting on knowing Lexari well enough to predict him, but the truth was that she was ignorant of the inner workings of his mind. Most likely not even Wenaru knew who Lexari truly was.
When Lexari began striding forward to meet Dravus, Nemm moved to Wenaru with her daggers drawn. There was a brief moment of fear in his eyes, but she turned her back to him and put herself between him and the fight.
"How is he alive?" hissed Wenaru as Dravus and Lexari traded their barbs.
"I couldn't go through with it," replied Nemm. She swore beneath her breath. Most people were watching the fight, but there were still eyes on Wenaru. "Didn't think he'd be dumb enough to come back."
They watched together. The dialog was passable, but whatever the outcome the bards would have some work turning it into an enduring legend. Lexari moved with confidence. He was using only light, his signature domain, the one he'd spent a lifetime with. It had been unlikely that he would use anything else, but that was one of the risk points. They spoke with each other, taking their time.
"Lexari's playing with him," said Wenaru. He sucked his teeth. "He should kill him and be done with it."
Nemm moved to Wenaru's side. "Project strength," she said. "Lexari is defending you, pretend that it's because you ordered it. Chin high. The battle won't be a contest." Nemm lowered her daggers and stood next to Wenaru as though she was simply part of his entourage, not defending him at all. "If Dravus charges us, be ready to take him down."
"Not you?" asked Wenaru. His wide eyes were watching Lexari move.
"You're king," said Nemm. "You need to cement your place."
Her glass dagger was held tightly in her hand. She'd thought about how to kill Wenaru many times before. A single strike to the head was the only real way to do it. If it came down to an actual fight, he would press his hand against her armor and strike at the flesh beneath it with his domain. They'd tested his striking limit while out at sea and come up with three inches as the maximum he was capable of. Nemm had tested wearing four-inches of glass armor the next night. It was bulky but serviceable. It was also entirely unusable in the current situation. Wenaru would see what she was doing and strike before she was done. Nemm had no real option but to stand tense and ready, waiting for either some crucial misstep in the primary plan, for Wenaru to connect the dots, or for everything to go off without a hitch.
Nemm's heart was pounding hard when she saw Dravus take the spear of light to the chest and fall over with a seemingly mortal wound. They had practiced it meticulously, until Dravus could sell it. She'd put even odds on Lexari making a thrust for the heart, since it would provide a natural bookend to the spear that Dravus had put through Zerstor's heart, but it was possible Lexari would try something else. She and Dravus had practiced faking hits to the arms and legs, but if Lexari deviated too far from the script they'd prepared, the whole thing was likely to unravel. Lexari was faithful to the narrative though.
Wenaru was triumphant. He had been taking joy in Lexari's triumphs, though they were usually achievements of a less violent nature. He seemed to suspect nothing. Nemm waited, biding her time. Lexari needed to take the bait. He picked the Harbinger artifact up from the ground and slipped it onto Dravus's hand for just long enough that it made the sound, one perfectly shaped by Dravus. Lexari lofted the artifact into the air. A sharp pang of anxiety ran through her.
Her nightmare was that Lexari would say, "And here we have a fitting gift for the new king," whether because he thought that matched the narrative better, or because he'd cottoned on to the plan. Things would also become difficult if he waited now, setting the artifact aside for later. They had good contingencies for that though; Nemm would simply stay by Lexari's side until he used the artifact, while Dravus would commit to playing dead for long enough that his body could be stashed somewhere out of view. Yet by some miracle their plan threaded one last needle. Lexari made to take the power for himself.
Dravus was on his feet from the first tone of the artifact, moving quickly. Nemm stepped back as he moved, so that she was just out of Wenaru's view. There were many places that one person could stab another through the skull, but not all of them were immediately fatal. Nemm had seen men walking around with six inches of steel sticking straight into their brain, sometimes slurring their speech or acting like drunkards but still alive. Such a thing couldn't be allowed to happen with Wenaru, not with his power. Nemm made her move just as he began a tormented howl. She worried he would sense the mo
vement and duck out of the way, or that his clothing would explode outward to reveal a mass of red tentacles. While Wenaru had killed thousands in his hospital, torturing prisoners to death in the name of progress, he had no formal or informal training in combat. Nemm's dagger drove straight into his skull, just below the ear, with smooth efficiency. When he hit the ground, she was ready for a second strike, one that would ensure his death. If there hadn't been people watching, she would have stabbed him in the head a half dozen times just to make sure there would be no complication.
The first screams started shortly afterward, along with the movement of the masses of people. The illustrati in the audience were arming themselves. Some of them must have started from the moment that Dravus made himself known, because Nemm saw full suits of metal that even the more powerful illustrati couldn't make in a matter of seconds.
"There was a revolution!" shouted Dravus. His voice cut through all other sound, bringing everything to a silence. The artifact in his hand was still counting off its tones, giving a list of everyone whose link Lexari had taken. Dravus was letting that sound through, but no other. Some people had stopped to look at him, a few of them armed. "When the Iron King died, the Allunio slipped into his place, not just to rule in his stead, but to change the very working of the world. When Lexari learned of this, he launched a revolution of his own, one that would ostensibly restore the Iron Kingdom to the old way. Yet it was plain to anyone who looked that Wenaru was not the Iron King's son. It was plain to see that Lexari only craved power for himself."
