by Ian Gregoire
“I’m up here, Kayden!” Fay’s voice called out to her from the open entryway to the spiral stairwell in the right-hand corner, ahead. “Come right up!”
Kayden promptly walked across the office to the stairwell and began the walk up to Fay’s living quarters, thinking how much she looked forward to the day her master would teach her how to identify people from their presence, without actually seeing them.
Hearing Kayden’s footsteps on the stairs, Fay rose from the sofa and set down the porcelain cup she was drinking from on the tea table before her. She stood with her hands clasped behind her back, waiting expectantly for her apprentice. Kayden emerged from the stairwell moments later looking a little more melancholy than usual.
“Come in, Kayden.” she said, beckoning her into the lounge.
As the raven-haired apprentice approached, Fay gestured at the nearby recliner; it was Kayden’s favourite spot to sit. She waited for her young counterpart to sit sown before reclaiming her own seat on the sofa. “I wasn’t expecting you tonight,” she said. “It’s been almost two weeks since you last came to my quarters to spend time with me. I’ve missed your company.”
Observing Kayden’s demeanour, it was obvious something wasn’t quite right. She sat perched on the edge of the recliner, knees apart, leaning forward. Under normal circumstances she would be leaning back, relaxing in a carefree manner. Her anxious appearance caused Fay to wonder what was wrong.
“I’ve been really busy this week,” replied Kayden.
“Are you sure that’s all it is?” Fay inquired. “I’ve been wondering if you’re avoiding me. I thought maybe you were still mad at me for disciplining you.”
“I haven’t been avoiding you, Fay.” The words brought some immediate relief. “And I wasn’t angry about what happened. At least, I wasn’t angry with you. I was angry at myself… for disappointing you. Until that moment in your office, I never appreciated how much it would bother me to be a disappointment to you.”
Knowing the apprentice as well as she did, Fay understood how difficult an admission it was for Kayden to make. “You have never been a disappointment to me, Kayden,” she said gently. “Sometimes you just…” She took a moment to find the right word. “Sometimes you exasperate me. You are such a bright and gifted woman. It is hard to countenance how you are so prone to acting in such a reckless, unwise manner. I wish you would take the time to truly consider the potential consequences of your actions. You would make much better decisions.” Fay sighed imperceptibly. She knew what it was like to make poor choices. “But, you’re still young. Wisdom and good judgment come with age and experience.” She reached for her cup and raised it to her lips. “If you’d like a hot drink, help yourself,” she said before taking a quick sip. “It’s your favourite infusion: camomile and spiced apple.”
“No, thank you,” replied Kayden. “I can’t stay. I just came here because I need to ask something of you.” She averted her eyes, lowering her gaze to stare at her booted feet.
Curiosity piqued, Fay wondered at Kayden’s apparent apprehension. “What is it, Kayden?”
The apprentice raised her eyes. “I know that the autumn holiday doesn’t technically begin until after the weekend,” she said, “but since the last classes of the term are over… I was hoping you’d allow me to leave campus first thing in the morning so I get an extra two days away.”
Frowning, Fay scrutinised her apprentice closely. Why was Kayden asking to spend the holiday outside Antaris? Despite her innate ability to read her young charge, Fay never ceased to be amazed by how Kayden’s flawless features could seemingly convey such contradictory attributes all at once. She saw vulnerability and strength, uncertainty and conviction, conceit and modesty, guilt and innocence.
“You’ve never once left campus during a term holiday, Kayden,” said Fay. And you couldn’t have picked a worse time to want to change that, she thought. The mission in Anzarmenia to eliminate the so-called cult of Yosarian was still two and a half weeks away from being executed. Until then, Kayden’s life would remain in jeopardy, so it was imperative that the apprentice stayed on campus under her watchful eye.
“I know,” said Kayden, “but I never had a reason to before. Unlike the other apprentices, I don’t have family I can visit.”
So why does it feel like you’re attempting to manipulate me into letting you leave campus this time? Surely it can’t be to get out of doing chores for Briselda this weekend. Fay didn’t give voice to either thought. Instead, she said, “I was looking forward to spending another three weeks helping you to expand the breadth of your Zarantar. We were going to pick up where we left off, and continue working on casting out your senses. There’s still plenty for you to gain mastery of yet.”
Although she was silent, the subtle way in which Kayden’s lips twitched—as though she was suppressing a grimace—informed Fay that the apprentice was becoming frustrated with the progress of the conversation. She needed to quickly come up with a pretext for turning down Kayden’s request, and preventing her from leaving campus. Preferably one that wouldn’t cause a problem between the two of them.
The only thing that came to mind was to tell Kayden the truth about the threat to her life. But that was out of the question. Fay knew how that scenario would play out.
“Fay,” said Kayden, breaking Fay’s rumination. “Is it the extra two days, or is it allowing me to leave Antaris at all that you take issue with? Because I’m starting to get the feeling you want to continue punishing me by keeping me confined to campus grounds.”
Taking another sip from her cup, Fay found herself unsure of how to respond. The last thing she wanted to do was make Kayden feel victimised. “I’m not trying to punish you, Kayden,” she insisted. “It’s just that… I worry about you.”
Kayden lowered her head and stared at the floor. “I get it. I do,” she muttered. “Because of my past behaviour you think that if you’re not around to watch over me I’ll get up to no good.” She raised her head, locking eyes with Fay. “Perhaps if I told you why I want to take advantage of my holiday time for a change, maybe then you’ll be more willing to let me go.”
Something about Kayden’s demeanour looked and felt off, Fay realised. Holding the apprentice’s gaze, it almost seemed as though Kayden was upset and trying to keep it bottled up. Fay pursed her lips slightly, even more curious about Kayden’s desire to leave campus for the holiday. “All right,” she said. “Tell me.” It couldn’t hurt to know what her plans for the holiday were. Maybe I could join her? I won’t be involved in the mission in Anzarmenia after all.
“I want to go back to Astana,” said Kayden, diverting her gaze to the floor once more. “I need to visit Mama’s grave.”
Fay raised her eyebrows unwittingly. She hadn’t anticipated that response. But it explained the pent-up emotion she was detecting from her apprentice. “Where is this coming from?” she inquired. “I didn’t realise you were feeling… down.” It had to be a recent development, she thought, otherwise she would have noticed something was wrong sooner.
Lifting her gaze, Kayden replied, “I was thinking about Mama earlier today, and it struck me that it was the first time I had thought about her all year.” She suddenly looked disturbed. “How is that possible?” she lamented. “There was a time when not a day would go by without me thinking about my mother.”
Now it was beginning to make sense to Fay. “Time is a great healer, Kayden,” she said. “It’s only natural for people who have experienced a traumatic loss to slowly become less consumed by thoughts of a departed loved one.”
“But not for me,” Kayden protested. “This shouldn’t be happening to me. Mama was my everything. She should be in my thoughts every waking moment of every day.” She rose to her feet, took a deep breath and let it out. “I need to make this right. Ever since Master Ari located my mother’s unmarked grave, and took me there after my stepfather’s trial, I haven’t once made a return visit. The sooner I can rectify that, the happier I will fee
l.”
With a sigh, Fay contemplated her predicament. She couldn’t justify denying Kayden’s request. But the more she thought about it, did she really need to? Rather than being a problem, the situation may actually be an opportunity to better protect Kayden. “The Kingdom of Astana is almost a three-week journey from here,” she mused out loud. “You would have to return to Antaris before you even got there, or miss the start of your final term.”
“Which brings me to the second part of my request,” said Kayden. “I was hoping you would grant me permission to use the portal beneath Antaris.”
Having Kayden hundreds of miles away in Astana would virtually eliminate the threat to her emanating from Anzarmenia, Fay silently reasoned. A prospective assassin carrying out Master Yossarian’s will would have an eight-week journey to contend with when travelling from southern Anzarmenia to Astana. The Order would be neutralising the cult leader and his followers in less than three weeks’ time. As long as Kayden didn’t return to Antaris before then, there was no reason to keep the apprentice in close proximity to safeguard her life.
“I have a request of my own,” she said to Kayden. “If I permit you to travel to Astana via the portal, promise me you’ll spend the duration of your holiday there. As has already been mentioned, this will be the first time you’ve left campus during a holiday so I want you to make the most of it.”
A smile slowly curled Kayden’s lips. “Agreed!” she said. “I think I can manage that.”
“So what time do you plan to leave tomorrow?”
“I want to leave first thing in the morning,” replied Kayden without hesitation. “So, around about Sixth Hour.”
Fay briefly mulled it over. She generally preferred to have a lie-in at the weekend, spending an extra hour or two in bed. That would mean missing Kayden’s departure tomorrow if she kept to her routine. “Very well,” she said. “I probably won’t be up and about at that time to see you off, but I will make arrangements for Sister Elsa to be on hand to admit you down to the portal chamber, and have your destination set.” She set her cup down on the tea table. “I realise your mother’s death still weighs heavily on you, Kayden, but I hope you will use the time away to enjoy yourself.”
“Thank you so much, Fay,” said Kayden earnestly. “I will.” She rose to her feet in obvious excitement. “I guess I’d better get packing if I’m going to be away for three weeks.”
Rising to her feet also, Fay said, “When you arrive at Belisaris campus, if you should need anything, whether it be transportation to take you to Shali, or a cost-free roof over your head, be sure to ask the campus administrator. His name is Master Milo Lukatoni. He can arrange whatever you might need, including the means to contact me from long distance—should the need arise.”
“I will. Goodnight!” Kayden turned on her heels, heading swiftly across the lounge towards the spiral stairwell.
“Goodnight, Kayden,”
The apprentice disappeared from view, the sound of her footsteps fading away shortly thereafter. Fay allowed herself a cautious half-smile. Once Kayden had left campus for the autumn holiday the concerns she had about her well-being would be greatly reduced. Nonetheless, she looked forward to receiving Ari’s message telling her that Master Yosarian was dead.
Kayden exited the administration building with a satisfied smile upon her face. It was a relief to get the most difficult part of her plan out of the way; now she could take care of the final preparations for her mission before calling it a night and going to bed. In the pale blue glow illuminating the campus grounds, she hurriedly made her way towards the armoury, hoping she would find Master Solen still on duty. Securing her weaponry for the unauthorised manhunt would be a much trickier affair if she was forced to break into the building and, as a two-man patrol marched past her, she was reminded that the increased security instituted after the attack on campus was still very much in place.
Outside the armoury she tentatively tried the door and was relieved to find it unlocked. Entering the brightly lit, windowless building she found Master Solen standing behind the counter directly ahead. He was busy sharpening the blade of a shilla sword with a whetstone. From where she stood the sword already looked sharp enough to slice in half a strand of hair.
“Kayden! This is a surprise,” said the campus armourer, looking up from his work as she approached. “Surely you’re not here for the key to the training arena at this time of night. It’s the final day of the term, you can take a break from training, you know.”
Before replying, Kayden quickly glanced around the armoury. They were alone. Perfect. “I know, Master.” She stopped at the counter with a smile on her face. She sensed no Zarantar emanating from the weapons store behind Solen, meaning the protection ward preventing access to the arsenal was inactive. “There’ll be no extra training for me tonight, but I do need to borrow a key from you. The key to the storage building next door to be precise.” In response to the questioning look upon Master Solen’s face, she elaborated. “Master Fay has given me permission to leave for the autumn holiday first thing in the morning. I’d like to borrow a couple of large burlap sacks to pack some clothing and supplies for my trip; I might be away for the whole three weeks.”
“Well, this is a surprise,” said Solen jovially. “You’re one of the few apprentices who never seems to leave campus during the holidays.” He laid the sword he was sharpening down on the wooden counter top, and slowly he walked out from behind the counter, fiddling with a bunch of keys at his hip. “So, are you going anywhere nice?”
“Nowhere special. I just need some time away.”
Solen unfastened the keys from his belt, and removed a single key from the circular band of metal keeping them together. “This will get you into the storage building,” he said, holding the key out to Kayden. “You should find some burlap sacks stuffed in a wooden crate along the right-hand wall. Bring the key straight back once you have what you need.”
“Thank you, Master.” She accepted the key from him, clutching it tightly. “I won’t be long.” Turning around, she ambled towards the exit, sparing a glance back at Solen; he was watching her almost like a proud father. When she reached the door she looked back once again, this time Solen had his back to her, walking to retake his place behind the counter. Instantly, Kayden spun around and thrust out a hand, invoking Turmiraydan. The concussion orb hurtled into Master Solen’s back, causing him to collapse, rendered unconscious where he fell.
Kayden dashed to the fallen Sanatsai’s side, kneeling down to retrieve the bunch of keys he’d been carrying. Standing upright again, she rushed back to the door and promptly began inserting keys into the lock, one after the other, intent on preventing anyone from walking in on her. At the seventh time of trying she put the correct key into the keyhole, turning it clockwise to lock the door. She returned to Master Solen’s prone form and placed his keys on the floor beside him, while the key to the storage building she put in her pocket. Switching her attention to the reason she had entered the armoury in the first place, she walked behind the counter and halted at the threshold of the weapons store. Cautiously, she held out a hand in front of her and it crossed the threshold without hindrance. She smiled with relief. Her assessment that the protection ward was inactive proved accurate, allowing her access to the weaponry within, for which she was grateful. If she had been forced to break the ward herself there’d be little chance of her theft going unnoticed.
Entering the weapons store, she immediately began scanning the arsenal lining the walls, looking for the sheathed sword and twin daggers tagged with her name. It took longer than she would have liked to locate them, but once she did, the scabbard, baldric, and knife harness were quickly in her grasp. She exited the weapons store carrying her quarry in one hand, and walked out from behind the counter to check on Master Solen. Still he did not stir. Under normal circumstances the invocation of Turmiraydan would render someone unconscious for an hour. But having the campus armourer laid out for that long simply wa
sn’t an option. He would naturally be very suspicious about such an occurrence, so Kayden had been sure to reduce the strength of her invocation, and if she’d gauged her power level accurately, Master Solen would be unconscious for roughly ten minutes.
She stepped away from the Sanatsai, turning her attention to the wall that stood adjacent to the storage building next door. Marching towards it, she pulled the hood of her cloak over her head with her free hand, invoking Raytandushay to become invisible, and Naymutandushay to become intangible. She passed silently through the armoury wall like an apparition, emerging into the open air of the campus. Directly ahead of her was the storage building, and she halted in the middle of the narrow walkway separating it from the armoury. Glancing up at the top of the building, she invoked Makfayshulat to levitate her invisible, incorporeal form on to the roof.
The stolen sword and daggers became visible the moment Kayden relinquished her hold on them, setting them down at her feet. She looked skyward, trying to gauge whether the handful of Sanatsai sentries floating above campus grounds were high enough not to notice the weapons. Satisfied that her stash would not be discovered before she returned for them shortly, she stepped off the edge of the roof and slowly descended. The instant her feet touched the ground she marched forward, passing through the armoury wall to re-enter the building, only to be greeted by a groaning sound. Eyes widening, she was startled to see Master Solen beginning to stir. Surely ten minutes haven’t elapsed yet.
Her momentary panic gave way to her sharp, calculating focus. Ceasing her simultaneous invocations of Raytandushay and Naymutandushay, she became visible and corporeal once more as she rushed forward to kneel down at Solen’s side, rolling him over onto his back.
“Master Solen! Master Solen!” She lightly slapped the side of his face. “Master Solen, are you all right?”
“Urgh,” groaned Solen as his eyes fluttered open. “Where am I?” Before Kayden could spin a tail, he sat up sharply, the fog of his confusion vanishing from his features in the blink of an eye. “Kayden, what happened?”
