by Devin Madson
‘I heard you were awake,’ she said, her cheeks reddening beneath our collective gaze. Malice had managed to regain his usual dignity, and now stood watching me with a curling lip.
‘Good news travels fast, yes?’ he said. ‘Might I ask where you heard it?’
‘From Katashi. I think perhaps he heard it from your friend, Endymion. They were shut up together in the throne room.’
Malice turned his sharp eyes on me, but asked no questions.
‘Katashi wants you both to take the Oath,’ she went on. ‘To prove your loyalty.’
‘So I have heard,’ Malice said. ‘Endymion again. It seems everyone wants a piece of him. Will there be anything left at the end, I wonder.’
‘Who is he?’ Hana asked. ‘One of yours, Malice?’
‘Certainly, my dear, one of mine. You need not let him trouble you, yes? I will soon remove him.’
She nodded, accepting his words without question. And why not? I had left her to his care, left her without having the courage to tell her why or what I was. What we both were.
‘Did you come just to assure yourself that I was alive?’ I asked when only silence ensued. ‘Or are you Katashi’s messenger?’
‘I came to talk to you.’
I looked up at Malice. ‘Perhaps you should leave us.’
‘No need for that,’ Hana said. ‘It is not so important. Malice is welcome to stay.’
‘I am happy to give you some privacy, my dear,’ he said, mocking me with his smile.
Hana shot him a look of real gratitude, and for the first time I wondered how well he had filled the abandoned role of guardian. ‘Thank you,’ she said, ‘but I won’t put you to the trouble. In fact, it’s easier that you’re here, so I shan’t have to tell you of it later.’ She took a deep breath. ‘I’m releasing you from your oath, Darius,’ she went on, her silk rustling as she bowed. ‘I thank you for your service, Lord Laroth, but I no longer require your assistance or your presence. And now we need not pretend to like one another, and your loyalties need no longer be divided.’
I had lied to her all her life.
‘You have done the right thing, my dear,’ Malice said. ‘Even I no longer know whether I can trust him, yes?’
‘Thank you,’ I said. There were no other words. It was too late. ‘If you would like to continue tearing my character to shreds, might I ask that you do so out of my hearing?’
Hana’s cheeks reddened, but she set her teeth firmly. ‘It is what you wanted. To be free.’
I let my eyes flit to Malice’s face. ‘It is.’
‘Then there is nothing more to be said.’ Hana forced another smile, missing the twitch of Malice’s brows as they drew together. ‘I thank you again for your service, such as it has been.’
Another knock fell upon the door and it slid without pause. Endymion entered, a serving girl in his wake. She bowed, the tray of food remaining perfectly level. Steam curled from the spout of a teapot.
‘Emperor Katashi demands your presence, Darius,’ he said. He was staring at Hana and had forgotten to bow. ‘You are to take the Oath now.’
‘Now?’ Hana turned, taking interest in him for the first time. ‘When did he order this? He said it would be tonight.’
‘General Tan is outside if you want to ask him. He says now.’
Hana scowled, but although she parted her lips to retort she soon shut them again. ‘No,’ she said. ‘Darius will eat first. I will speak to Tan.’
She went to the door.
‘We’ll leave you to your meal, Darius,’ Malice said, taking Endymion’s arm and leading him out in Hana’s wake. ‘But I wouldn’t keep Emperor Katashi waiting too long, yes?’
Unseen by the others he mouthed the word “delicious”, and went out with a smile, sliding the door closed behind him.
* * *
Sightless eyes stared from crusted sockets, each head along the row a face I knew. They stared at the doors opposite, lids sewn open, bloody handprints smeared on their cheeks. Councillor Rhim, Lord Lastern and Lord Talamir, their necks shrivelling as they dried. Even Master Hallan was there, the Imperial Secretary, his youthful face having something of disdain about it.
‘Friends?’
There was a sneer in the guard’s voice, but misgiving outweighed anger. Sixteen years of peace had come to an end, and here in this hallway, where lords and councillors were allowed no dignity, was the proof.
‘Acquaintances, certainly,’ I said. ‘Tell me, did these men refuse to take the Oath?’
‘They did. And now it’s your turn. His Majesty is waiting.’
Behind me the throne room doors creaked open and the cumulative gaze of dozens fell upon my back. I turned to find the court waiting, silent, lips pulled back to reveal hungry grins.
With unhurried steps, I made my way to where Malice stood waiting before the throne, apparently oblivious to all the interest he was causing. As I joined him he flashed me an amused smile.
Upon the throne Katashi Otako leant forward, pulling back the broad sleeves of his robe to display powerful forearms. But for his black sash he looked every bit an emperor. He wore it with all the pride of a night jade, daring any who saw it to look away.
Tension strangled breath from the air. No one spoke. At Katashi’s side a guard shifted his weight.
‘Whoreson Laroth,’ Katashi intoned at last, wiping the smile from Malice’s face. ‘You are called here to take the Imperial Oath of Allegiance before these witnesses. Not having had a noble upbringing, I do not expect you to know the words, but I have no doubt your brother can prompt you.’
Malice was unarmed, but every guard edged their hand toward their sword.
‘I know the Oath very well, Your Majesty,’ Malice said. ‘I do not require prompting.’
‘Then kneel and take it.’
Malice knelt, gracefully lowering his head toward the floor. ‘I swear on the bones of my mad father,’ he said, his words resonating off the wooden boards. ‘On my name and my honour, that I will be loyal to one of our two emperors, the great Emperor Katashi, the however-manyieth of his name. I will not stick a knife in him, nor lie to his face. I will give every last ounce of my strength and my not inconsiderable intellect, and will die in his service if the gods are so very cruel.’ He glanced sideways then, his eyes turning up toward me. ‘I will be as nothing and no one in service to you.’
Malice could not rise until his oath had been accepted, but he sat back, smiling as shocked whispers sped around the room. Scowling, Katashi held up his hand for silence. There was no precedent to execute a man for speaking the wrong words, and gripping the arms of the throne, he turned his attention to me. ‘Lord Darius Kirei Laroth,’ he said. ‘Sixth Count of Esvar and former Minister of the Left in the court of The Usurper Kin Ts’ai?’
‘That would be me,’ I said flatly.
With Malice kneeling I may as well have been alone. No doubt Katashi wanted me to be awed, but no one who had stood in Kin’s presence could be so. ‘Your father, Lord Nyraek Laroth,’ he went on, ‘the Fifth Count of Esvar, was once the Imperial Protector under my uncle, Emperor Lan.’
‘He was,’ I said.
‘Do you intend to follow his example?’
‘I do.’
‘Then you may kneel and take the Oath.’
There was a moment of strained silence, and glancing sidelong at Malice I could see the unspoken words on his lips: behave, he urged. But it was from Malice I needed to get away. I had already chosen my emperor and already taken my oath. I would not kneel before this man, would not bow, would not even acknowledge the position he claimed with a stolen crown and an oath he would never live up to.
Remaining on my feet, I said: ‘You seem unaware, Katashi, that my father fought for Emperor Kin after your uncle’s death, n
ot for your father.’
‘Darius!’ Hana stood amid the court, not allowed the place at Katashi’s side.
‘Yes, my lady?’
‘Show respect.’
‘I was,’ I returned. ‘Else I would have been far more rude, I assure you. In short, Your Rebelness, he changed his allegiance before he died.’
Katashi narrowed his eyes. ‘From insanity, I believe.’
‘Yes. In a pool of his own filth.’
Nervous laughter added to the constriction in the room. I recognised a few of those tittering behind their hands, all northern nobility long loyal to the Otako name. One must have been living in a hole for the last twenty years to miss the rumours about my father.
‘Perhaps you, too, are insane,’ Katashi said. ‘You seem to have very little care for your own life. I am Kisia’s true emperor and you will give me your allegiance. What do you imagine your chance of survival is if you refuse?’
‘Little, if the heads of my fellow councillors are anything to go by. But I never knew it was standard practice to execute people who fail to agree with you.’
‘We are at war.’
‘Yes, having stolen the emperor’s crown and his castle, I am sure you are.’
Low whispers ran rife. Hana’s cheeks paled, a trembling hand whipping up to cover her mouth.
‘Will you or will you not take the Oath?’ Katashi demanded.
‘I thought I had made myself clear,’ I said. ‘But if you wish further clarification you may have it. I have already taken an oath; already bowed at the feet of the True Emperor of Kisia. I am loyal to His Imperial Majesty, the great Emperor Kin, first of his name, Lord Protector of the Kisian Empire. I am his until death. If it is your decree that I should be executed then I go to the headsman with my honour intact. Long live Emperor Kin.’
Through the shocked chatter, Katashi began to laugh, his great shoulders shaking. ‘That’s what you want, isn’t it? Why do you want to die?’
‘I am the Monstrous Laroth. I am already dead.’
‘Then we will make sure of it. Lord Darius Laroth, you are sentenced to a traitor’s death. You will be branded and executed in the morning, along with Lord Tassaman and the false Duke of Katose. If you decide not to depart this world a traitor, I will listen. I know you for a man of your word. Unlike your brother.’ He returned his attention to Malice. ‘Whoreson Laroth, you are no longer welcome in my castle or in any lands belonging to the Imperial Expanse of Kisia. You are hereby exiled on pain of death, by I, Emperor Katashi Otako, third of my name, True Emperor of Kisia. You will be escorted immediately from these walls along with every member of your little troupe. May you never set foot within my empire again.’
Hana was as white as her under robe.
I let go a held breath, fighting the urge to laugh. Malice’s anger pulsed through him, but the struggle did not show on his face as he rose, baring his teeth in smile. Guards approached through the milling court. ‘Escort him out,’ Katashi ordered. ‘And make sure he takes Endymion and the rest of his Vices with him.’
Malice did not threaten or rage, just lifted his hand. ‘There is no need to drag me away. I am quite capable of walking, yes? But before I go, I would request permission to remain until the morning. I would see my brother executed with my own eyes.’
The court moved as a single beast. They stared, hissed words washing over me with such detachment my head might already have been severed from my neck. Malice filled my world. Send him away, I begged. Send him away.
I saw Hana move, saw her take a step toward Katashi’s throne.
‘No.’ The word a sharp snap before Hana could intervene. ‘No. I do not trust you, Spider. There is not a man or woman here who has not heard tales of the Vices. Consider yourself fortunate that you are leaving with your life. And if anything happens to stop Lord Laroth going to the headsman, I will know who to hunt.’
Katashi sat back, letting the tail of his black sash slide through his fingers. ‘Get them both out of here.’
Chapter 3
I left the uproar behind, the baying of the court drowned beneath my thundering pulse. Every step was a staccato snap as I stormed along the passage, sending dust swirling.
Two Pikes stood watch outside the infirmary. Having donned the uniforms of Imperial Guards they owned a swaggering confidence, neat layers of leather and linen replacing ragged black. An old Otako branding iron must have been scrounged from somewhere, for every leather tunic bore a pair of pikes scorched over the southern dragon.
One of the guards leered at me; the other looked right through me. My all too brief stint as Regent had gone beyond recall, his loss leaving me naked. Now I was exposed, every gaze cutting through the all too thin layers of my clothes. Even the proper robe of a noblewoman was powerless to protect me.
‘Captain,’ one of them sneered as I passed between them.
The other sniggered.
I faltered mid step, cheeks burning. Angry words leapt up my throat but they got no further, those mocking looks paralysing my tongue. I kept walking. Regent had abandoned me.
Inside the infirmary dozens of eyes turned my way. Men sat or lay on makeshift beds, so numerous they all but covered the floor with only a thin walkway left between. Despite the languid breeze, the stink of blood hung heavy. At least the screams had ceased. Those who would die had already gone, those left now waited to heal.
An open colonnade ran the length of the room, and I found Shin perched on the stone ledge overlooking the garden, his scarred visage stained with bruises. The night Katashi took Koi, Shin hadn’t been in any state to speak. Two days had blackened his face, but that lidless eye was alert and scanning the grounds like a crow seeking glints of gold.
I sat beside him on the ledge, the space between us larger than I had intended. Shin did not move, did not turn, just continued staring out at the sunlit grounds. Guards walked the walls, their dark-clad figures hazy in the heat.
‘Why are you here?’ he demanded after a time, his growl more pronounced now he could not fully open his jaw.
‘Is it wrong to come and see how you are?’
He turned then, his swollen features screwed into a sneer. ‘I am a soldier. You are Lady Hana Otako.’
‘I am also your captain,’ I said.
‘You are no captain of mine. Regent is dead. I once saw him rip out a guard’s throat, but you could not even kill a sleeping man.’
The words stung, but as I turned my face away Shin gripped my arm, strong fingers curled like talons. ‘You could have killed him,’ he said. ‘By the gods I wish I had gone instead.’
He let go, hissing as he shifted his weight.
‘Are you all right?’
‘Just bruises.’
Shin scowled down at the garden wedged between the inner and outer wall, clumps of gaily-coloured flowers seeming out of place. The castle was full of sounds, but loudest of all was the birdsong, rising in harmony to the babble around us.
‘Katashi has named Darius a traitor,’ I said, giving voice to my troubles. ‘He’s to be executed tomorrow.’
Shin’s head snapped around. ‘What?’
‘He refused to take the Oath, and unless he changes his mind, Darius will go to the executioner in the morning. I don’t know what to do, Shin. He doesn’t deserve to die for honouring his oath.’
‘To The Usurper.’
‘To whomever!’ I said.
Shin’s scabbing brows drew together. ‘You have too tender a heart, my lady,’ he said. ‘But Lord Laroth won’t go to the headsman. He’s no martyr.’
The room went silent and I turned. Katashi was in the doorway, a formidable figure with his black sash trailing to the ground. All along the high gallery men bowed and murmured, ‘Your Majesty’, but he ignored them all and came along the row toward u
s.
‘Hana,’ he said, glowering. ‘I’ve been looking for you.’
‘I came to see Shin.’
He nodded to his Pike and Shin nodded back. ‘Lucky Shin.’
‘Your Majesty,’ I bowed. ‘And now that you have found me, what can I do for you?’
Katashi’s brows shot up. ‘Such formality. I think we know each other well enough to dispense with that, don’t you?’ He smiled his lopsided smile and there was Monarch, his beautiful blue eyes full of mocking laughter.
‘Of course.’
‘Good,’ he said, oblivious to a room full of curious men desperate for his attention. ‘Now I have been punished for being a stranger since I took the Oath. Am I forgiven? Walk with me.’
I rose, placing my hand on Shin’s arm. It was a unique gesture of the woman now inhabiting my skin. Regent would never have done it, would never have dared to appear so lest anyone guess his terrible secret. ‘Thank you for looking after me, Shin,’ I said, hoping he had not told Katashi of my failure.
Shin gripped his lips tight and said nothing, merely nodding to his emperor before turning back to the sunlit gardens.
‘Changed your mind about him?’ Katashi asked as we left together, the insolent Pikes at the door now silent.
‘What do you mean?’
‘You disliked him once.’
A lifetime ago. ‘I suppose I did,’ I said. ‘But he stayed with me when he might easily have abandoned me to my fate. I can’t forget that. It gave me hope to see his face every day.’
Katashi stopped walking and turned to me. ‘You know I would have done something if I could,’ he said, lowering his voice. ‘I told you it was too dangerous.’
‘Thank you, yes. It must give you great satisfaction to be right.’
For a moment I thought he would retort in kind, but he reached out to touch my cheek, my skin tingling in response to his fingers. ‘I shouldn’t have said that,’ he said. ‘You’re here now and you’re safe, and that’s what matters.’
