The Apprentice In The Master’s Shadow

by Ian Gregoire

  She bent down to retrieve her burlap sacks, and as she stood upright once more she glanced towards the far corner of the saloon, only to find that the strange, foreign-looking man was nowhere to be seen. Though she was disturbed by his sudden disappearance, she chose not to dwell on it, and followed her mint tea and muffins to her own table.

  For over two hours, Kayden sat at her table in the Three Crows Inn. Anyone who’d been unfortunate enough to be caught staring at her across the saloon she silently beckoned to her table with a finger, in order to question them about Josario’s cult. No one told her anything she hadn’t heard numerous times before, and all she had accomplished for her efforts was to drink several cups of mint tea, eat half a dozen muffins, and pay two visits to the outhouse to empty her bladder in the privy.

  Staring at the crumbs on her plate, she let out an exaggerated sigh. Upon reflection, she wondered if she might be better off wandering aimlessly in the countryside in hopes of encountering Josario by chance. There was still time to pursue that course of action, but first she needed to decide whether to spend the night in Nagornorak and then set off in the morning, or if she should leave the city at once, and risk spending another night out in the open. She decided to go for a walk to clear her mind and stretch her legs then come back to make a final decision. As she stood up, Kayden realised she didn’t want to be carrying her burlap sacks with her while she was walking, nor did she wish to leave them unattended at her table. Grabbing her belongings from the floor, she took the sacks to the counter and asked the innkeeper, who she now knew was called Reznik, to look after them until she came back.

  “Miss Jayta, this isn’t a storage building,” he said. “If you want to leave your possessions here, I suggest you book a guest-room.”

  Aggrieved, Kayden reluctantly agreed to pay for a room on the third floor, where she left her burlap sacks before vacating the premises. Outside, she ambled through the busy streets with her hood pulled over her head, thinking. She wasn’t certain when she first noticed that she was being followed, but her instincts warned her that she had picked up a tail since leaving the Three Crows Inn. Stopping in front of the window display of a clothes boutique, she casually glanced back the way she had come, hoping to pinpoint whomever was following her. There were scores of people in her field of vision, but no one looked suspicious and no one was taking undue interest in her. Nevertheless, Kayden trusted her instincts. Whether it was the Order or just a random nobody, someone was shadowing her and she was going to flush them out.

  Kayden stepped away from the boutique and resumed her walk, all the while conscious that she was being followed. A short while later she darted into a narrow alleyway obscured by a market stall. She immediately invoked Raytandushay, rendering herself invisible, then levitated several feet into the air courtesy of her invocation of Makfayshulat. Spinning around to stare down at the threshold, she waited to see who would enter the alleyway after her. To her surprise, a short elderly man with thinning white hair, and a white beard came into view. He advanced cautiously into the alley before halting about a third of the way in. There was little doubt that he was questioning how anyone could have reached the other end of the alleyway and disappeared from view so quickly.

  Descending from above, Kayden landed right behind the man and ceased her invocation of Raytandushay, making herself visible again. “You have three seconds to explain why you’re following me,” she said.

  The elderly man spun around, startled. “Goodness gracious me!” he said, holding his right hand to his chest. “You damn near frightened me to death.”

  Kayden held up a hand in front of her. An incendiary orb materialised in the air, floating above her palm in response to her invocation of Balatlaydan. “I’m waiting for that explanation,” she said. There was no need to issue a threat; the implication was obvious.

  “My name is Safin. I was asked to be your liaison,” began the elderly man. “You’ve been asking about Master Yosarian and his people, now they would like to meet with you.”

  How convenient, thought Kayden, instantly suspicious of the claim. Surely this was too good to be true. “I’m listening,” she intoned as she neutralised the incendiary orb. “But you’d better not be messing me around.”

  “They are a private group, and wary of outsiders,” said Safin. “I am to lead you to a secure location and introduce you to a couple of representatives from the group who will verify that you are not a spy. Once they are satisfied that you are who you say you are, they will allow you to visit one of their communes and meet Master Yosarian himself.”

  “Very well,” said Kayden. “Take me to them.”

  “Not so fast, young lady. You can’t see them right this minute. I will rendezvous with you at nine o’clock, shortly after sunset, to take you to a safehouse they use in the city. Just let me know if you want to meet outside the Three Crows or elsewhere.”

  Kayden reluctantly agreed to meeting later, and arranged to meet Safin outside the inn at the designated time. It meant she would be waiting over six hours for her opportunity to make contact with Josario’s cult. In the meantime, she would need to remain indoors and out of sight. The Sanatsai trio she had left unconscious ten miles outside the city would be awake three or four hours before the meeting, giving them enough time to inform the Council of their encounter with her that morning. Soon, there was sure to be several Sanatsai of the Order scouring the streets of Nagornorak, looking for her.

  “You had better not disappoint me, Safin,” she warned the elderly man when she was ready to depart. “If you do, I will find you.” She invoked Raytandushay and made herself invisible right before his eyes. Savouring his shocked gasp, she promptly invoked Makfayshulat to levitate into the air and drift away from the scene.

  When she arrived back at the Three Crows Inn, Kayden briefly visited Onyx in the stable. She returned to her guest-room to retrieve the towel from her burlap sack, then took advantage of the facilities to have a much-needed bath and wash away the grime of her journey. Feeling refreshed, she went back to her room to lay down in bed. There was nothing else for her to do but wait. By nightfall she would be one step closer to apprehending Josario Sandolari.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  An Audience With The Queen

  Standing at the north-facing window of his bedchamber, Benzino Ardan stared down at the lamp-lit grounds of the Order’s headquarters. He was reminded of how much he favoured the more natural light given off by the oil lamps dotted around the grounds, rather than the sickly, pale blue glow from the illumination orb lanterns used at other locales of the Order throughout the Nine Kingdoms. There was nobody walking the grounds at this late hour, other than roaming sentries guarding against attacks that would never occur in Temis Rulan: a city on an island that was literally invisible to the outside world.

  Benzino realised he should be preparing for bed, but he wouldn’t be able to sleep knowing that the three men he had tasked with killing that good-for-nothing apprentice had failed to check in with him as agreed, and had been reported as missing a few hours ago. What if Kayden Jayta has killed them? he wondered. Oh, how he regretted not sending more people to get rid of that pain-in-the-ass. Sadly, Danilo, Gordo, and Renzo were the only Sanatsai participating in the Anzarmenian mission whose unquestioned loyalty he could count on.

  He stepped away from the window and ambled towards the door. Although it was well after midnight in Temis Rulan, the time in Anzarmenia would be fast approaching Twenty-First Hour, so technically his hit team still had three hours to report their progress in the search for Kayden. At the very least he would give them another hour to send their daily report. Exiting the bedchamber, he halted to cast his gaze around his open living quarters. First he stared at his armchair in the lounge area, debating whether to sit down and read while he waited. Then he glanced at the mahogany desk in his study area, thinking about the rectangular, portable mirror lying on top of it with the rest of his paraphernalia. Mind made up, he strolled back to his desk and slu
mped down in the high-backed chair, staring down at his reflection in the mirror laid before him.

  The illicit dual-purpose mirror had been both a blessing and a curse for Benzino over the past three months. While it allowed him to send and receive personal messages in the privacy of his quarters, he was far from happy about the cost of securing that privilege. The day after he’d been made a member of the Council, he had sweet-talked Sister Marketa into enhancing his ordinary mirror so that it could access the Sisterhood’s visual communication network. If he had known at the time that she would hold this favour over him, he might have thought twice about it. Now he was in the unfortunate position of having to lay with the bitch whenever she was in the mood for sex, just to ensure her silence about his contraband. Surely it wasn’t normal for a fifty-five-year-old woman to want to be fucked, he had frequently thought to himself. Especially not someone who had chosen the calling of the Jaymidari. And what was the point, anyway? It wasn’t as though the Sister could get pregnant if she was hoping to add to her four adult children.

  He was aggravated by the predicament Sister Marketa had put him in, and thinking about his multiple intimate experiences with her only aggravated him further. It wouldn’t have been so bad if he was actually attracted to the damned woman, but the underweight slut—with her pallid, freckly skin, small saggy tits, and stringy ginger hair—turned his stomach. Whenever she came to his quarters to lay with him, the only way he could rise to the occasion and perform was to close his eyes and imagine he was fucking Fay Annis. As much as he resented that overrated, burgundy-haired wench, there was no question that she was the sexiest woman he had ever seen in his life. He would pay a king’s ransom for the opportunity to spend a whole night of carnal pleasure with her, fucking her brains out. Sadly, that fantasy was never likely to become reality. Fay no doubt believed herself too good for him. As for Sister Marketa… If she didn’t get bored of him soon he would have to arrange for her to have an unfortunate accident.

  Three knocks on the door ended Benzino’s ruminations. “Come!” he called out, sitting up straight in his chair.

  A lone Sanatsai opened the door and entered his living quarters. “Rendai Ardan,” said the young man. “Rendai Shinadu requests your immediate presence in the Council’s chamber.”

  “Very well,” Benzino replied, acknowledging the request. “I will attend him shortly.”

  The Sanatsai messenger silently nodded his head then vacated the living quarters, leaving Benzino to wonder why he was being summoned by Ari at such a late hour. Surely Ari couldn’t possibly know about the hit he had put out on that pesky apprentice? I guess I’ll find out soon enough, he thought as he rose from his seat. He hurriedly returned to his bedchamber to retrieve his siphon cloak, and put it on. Now ready for his late-night meeting, he left his quarters to make the short walk to the Council’s chamber.”

  Entering the circular corridor that surround the chamber, Benzino proceeded to the north-facing double door entrance. The two Sanatsai sentries standing on either side of the doors acknowledged him before permitting him to enter with no questions asked. Though he’d already had three months to get used to it, Benzino liked being able to enter the chamber without seeking permission to gain an audience with the Council.

  He heard the doors close behind him as he saw Ari standing before the large mirror mounted on the west-facing wall. Advancing further into the chamber towards his fellow Council member, Benzino noted that Ari was observing his own reflection in the mirror, rather than engaging in a long-distance communication.

  “Rendai Shinadu,” he said deferentially. “You asked to see me?”

  The founder of the Order turned away from the mirror to face Benzino. “Let us dispense with the formalities, Ben,” said Ari. “I want to discuss our three colleagues reported missing in Anzarmenia this morning.”

  Benzino swallowed his concern. “Has there been some news, Ari?” he asked.

  “A little over an hour ago, I received word that the hapless trio is languishing in a Nagornorak prison, having been detained earlier today by one of the Anzarmenian military patrols currently searching for Kayden Jayta.”

  So the incompetent idiots are still alive, thought Benzino.

  “Now here’s where things get strange,” continued Ari. “The three of them were found unconscious, lying naked in a field near some farmland.”

  “That is strange,” Benzino concurred nervously. He couldn’t imagine what had happened for his men to end up in such a state. “Do we know what happened to them?”

  “I will get to that shortly.” It was hard to tell if Ari was being evasive. “First, after learning of their plight, I immediately authorised a mission to break the trio out of custody, as it would complicate matters if our Anzarmenian friends were to discover that the prisoners they’re holding are Sanatsai of the Order, preparing for a covert mission next week.

  “Shortly before I summoned you here,” Ari continued. “I received a call from Danai Trisardi informing me that the recovery mission has been completed without a hitch, and we have our people back.”

  The skin at the back of Benzino’s neck began to prickle, and he felt a bead of sweat trickle between his shoulder blades. Suddenly he wondered if the trio’s loyalty to him would be enough to keep them from revealing the secret orders he had issued to them.

  “When questioned separately by Danai Trisardi, each of the three told the exact same story as to how they came to be found ten miles east of Nagornorak, lying naked in a field.” It was clear from the almost mocking tone of voice Ari was affecting that he gave no credence to the narrative presented. “They initially claimed that they had left their safehouse this morning on a supply run to Nagornorak, only to be ambushed off the beaten track by Kayden Jayta. She allegedly tried to kill them, but they narrowly escaped with their lives, though not before having the clothing burned off their bodies by the apprentice. Disoriented by the attack, they lost all sense of direction as they tried to make their way back to the safehouse naked, and they assume that they must have passed out from exhaustion and exposure.”

  No wonder Ari didn’t believe the story, thought Benzino. It sounded absurd, whether it was true or not. “I get the feeling you don’t believe their accounts, Ari,” he said. “So what do you think happened to them?”

  “Oh, I know what happened to them, Ben,” said Ari, sounding very sure of himself. “You see, Ben, when I asked to speak to them myself, I informed Danilo, Gordo, and Renzo that upon their eventual return to Temis Rulan they would have to submit to having their memories examined. Unsurprisingly, they were quick to change their stories. What was surprising, however, was learning that a member of the Council had given them illicit orders yesterday to scout the three main approaches to Nagornorak in search of Kayden in order to kill her. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you Ben?”

  Faced with such an obviously leading question, Benzino knew there was little point denying his involvement. He duly admitted his responsibility, but justified it on the grounds that the success of the mission in Anzarmenia was more important than the life of a single apprentice, especially one with such a problematic disciplinary record.

  “In the end I had no choice but to do what I felt was necessary to safeguard the mission,” he continued. “On a hunch, I contacted Antaris campus yesterday morning to speak to Danai Annis. Confirming my suspicions, Isko Nardini was deputising for her because she has not yet returned, despite having left Temis Rulan two days ago, and he isn’t expecting her back until sometime next week. I think it’s safe to assume that Danai Annis has gone to Anzarmenia, and though she may ostensibly be going there to retrieve her apprentice, how can we be sure she won’t be tempted to go after Yosarian by herself to exact revenge for the death of her brother-in-law, Marit Katarnian?”

  “Clearly you didn’t think this through,” said Ari. “How exactly would killing Fay’s apprentice prevent her from pursuing that course of action anyway?”

  Benzino ha
d no answer. He held his tongue, revealing he hadn’t given any thought to the actual outcome of killing that pain-in-the-ass apprentice. Now that he thought about it, he understood that his motivation was simply to ensure that Fay’s expedition to Anzarmenia ended in failure. He also realised something else. “Ari, I noticed your lack of surprise that Danai Annis has gone to Anzarmenia,” he said. “I take it she went with your approval?”

  “Yes, though she would have gone with or without my blessing.”

  “I guess that would explain Kayden Jayta’s lack of discipline,” quipped Benzino. “Like master, like apprentice.”

  Eager to get the conversation back on topic, he asked Ari what he intended to do about the unauthorised order to kill Kayden.

  “Nothing,” replied Ari. “The only thing you have accomplished with your thoughtlessness was to almost get three of our people killed for no good reason. Now, I take it there won’t be a repeat of that mistake?”

  “No, of course not.” The words were uttered grudgingly. Benzino knew there was nothing more he could do to stop Fay or Kayden. But if the Anzarmenian mission ended in failure because of their interference, he would do everything in his power to ensure that both master and apprentice were held to account. He would love nothing more than to see that burgundy-haired wench dragged over the coals, and her undeserved reputation permanently tarnished.

  “Very good,” said Ari. “Now, please don’t let me keep you from your bed and a good night’s sleep. Whatever is to transpire in Anzarmenia will happen. This time next week Josario will be dead and his followers disbanded, or we will have failed and caused a major diplomatic incident in the process.”

  There was nothing left to be said so Benzino took his leave and vacated the chamber. As he navigated the top floor corridors of Kassani House back to his quarters, he lamented that Ari Shinadu was so soft. While he had tremendous respect for the visionary founder of the Order who defeated the Rogue to bring an end to the Great War, Benzino’s three months as a member of the Council had convinced him that Ari lacked the necessary ruthlessness to be a strong, effective leader. His unwillingness to take firm action against Fay Annis and her damned apprentice was further proof of that.