Eon - 01 Eon

by Alison Goodman

  I hung there for a moment, gaping at the broken lock above me.

  The Rat Dragon had answered.

  Ryko groaned. I ripped out the padlock and pushed against the door. Silently, it swung inwards. A passageway. I grabbed Ryko's arm and pulled as he scrabbled backwards. We slowly moved into the narrow space. As soon as his feet cleared the threshold, I scrambled over him and shut the metal door, sealing us into complete blackness.

  I leaned against a wall and took a deep breath. Ryko's gasps were lengthening into a natural rhythm. I touched the wall. Stone. The floor too. Beside me, I felt Ryko stir.

  'Did they see us?' His voice sounded normal.

  'No, I don't think so.' I reached out, my hand banging into the solid muscle of his chest. Are you all right?'

  'Yes.' I felt his hand brush mine as he spanned his stomach, searching. 'You were right. It wasn't real.' He laughed, the relief making the low rumble catch in his chest.

  Now that my eyes had adjusted, I could see his solid darkness sitting in front of me, outlined by the faint light coming from under the metal door.

  'You weren't affected?' His voice was tinged with awe.

  'Not as much,' I said shortly. It wasn't the time to discuss my connection with the Rat Dragon.

  I pushed myself up into a crouch. 'Let's get moving.'

  'Wait.'

  I heard the rustle of cloth and the sound of something hollow being set on the floor. Then the scrape of a striker. A spark arced across the darkness. Another flash and then, with a faint pop, a small flame burst on the ground, burnishing the planes of Ryko's face with bronze. I blinked in the sudden light, taking a moment to see the small clay pot holding the fire.

  'Sap powder,' Ryko said with satisfaction. He looked up at me and grinned. 'Trick of my old trade.' He dug into his waist pouch and produced two candles, thrusting the first into the flame and lighting the wick. Even as he withdrew the second, the sap fire had begun to die away.

  'Here.' He handed a candle to me.

  I held it up, squinting to see down the corridor. Another metal door was only a few lengths away

  'Doesn't look locked,' Ryko said, knocking the spent powder onto the floor. With one hand, he deftly wrapped a square of leather around the clay dish and pushed it back into his waist pouch. 'I'll go first.'

  'What if there's more dragon power.'

  He hesitated, eyeing the door warily. The line of his jaw tightened. 'I'll still go first.'

  We both stood, our shadows flickering up the rough stone of the wall. Ryko edged forwards. I followed, watching him for any ill effects. Nothing. The dragon's protection must have ended outside.

  We stopped at the inner door, our candlelight picking out the raised edges of a large design on the metal. Twelve spheres linked together in a circle, the two top spheres larger and scored with a swirling shape.

  'What is it?' he asked. 'Some kind of Dragoneye charm?'

  i don't know. I've never seen it before.'

  Ryko reached out and pressed the door lever. The latch slid smoothly out of its groove. He glanced back at me.

  'Ready?'

  I nodded.

  With a push, the door swung open. Our candlelight reached across a rich blue carpet and gleamed over shelves stacked with polished wooden scroll boxes. I could make out the legs and edge of a large reading table further inside, its dimensions lost in the shadows. The space seemed to stretch on forever.

  It looked like my master's library Smelled like it too: dusty parchment and the pungency of ink blocks. But there was something different. A sense of power that rose through my feet and pressed on the base of my skull.

  Ryko walked into the room, raising his candle to maximise its throw. 'It's huge.' He turned in a circle. 'So many scrolls.' He moved further in. 'Close the door behind you, lord, and we can light a lamp and have a proper look for your folio.'

  I stepped inside and pushed the door shut as Ryko held his flame to the wick of a large bronze lamp on a side bench. Immediately, the space brightened, the endless shadows solidifying into the walls and ceiling of a long room. I felt myself drawn towards the wooden reading table that stretched down the centre, its sloping surface covered with open scrolls, their corners held down by small brass weights. Along the higher edge

  of the table, a series of small lamps were fixed in place — the oil safely enclosed behind tiny panes of glass. How easy it would be to study a scroll with such bright light.

  'Oh ho!' Ryko exclaimed. 'Now that explains a few things.'

  I looked around. He was standing at the side bench holding a leather pouch.

  'What is it?' I asked.

  He poked his finger inside the pouch then withdrew it. The tip was covered in grey powder.

  He pressed it against his tongue. 'Sun drug.' He weighed the pouch in his hand. About four months' supply No wonder Lord Ido is so well muscled for a Dragoneye. And so unpredictable.'

  'What does it do?'

  Ryko tied off the pouch. 'It kindles the Sun energy in a man. Builds muscle and increases the fighting spirit. It is meant only for the Shadow Men of the Imperial guard. Lord Ido must be bribing someone to get it.'

  'You take it?'

  He nodded. 'Every day It is given to us in our morning meal to keep us from declining into a womanly shape and thoughts. Have you noticed the older Shadow Men who serve as Imperial servants?'

  I nodded.

  'Then you will have noticed their round shapes and high voices.'

  I eyed the pouch. 'You think Lord Ido takes it to stop the weakening that comes from being a Dragoneye?'

  Ryko tossed it back onto the bench. 'I am sure of it. And his sudden angers tell me he is taking too much of it.'

  If this powder strengthened the Sun energy, would it also strengthen a Dragoneye's bond with his dragon? Could it help me reach the Mirror Dragon?

  'How much are you supposed to take?'

  'Only a fingertip a day. Otherwise the Sun energy rises too high and anything can set you off into a mad fury Or, if you are of

  a melancholic nature, a darkness that cannot be shaken off.' His voice lowered. 'There are other effects as well. Dark marks on the skin, like the pox, and all your hair can drop out, even on your privates.'

  'Dark marks? Like a rash?'

  Ryko nodded. 'Yes. You've seen it?'

  'I think Lord Ido may be giving this drug to Dillon,' I said. 'He has the rash. And his nature has changed.' Did Dillon know he was taking the drug, or was Lord Ido feeding it to him without his knowledge?

  'If Ido is not careful, he will kill your friend. Too much can be lethal'

  My eyes found the pouch again.

  'Come, let's look for the folio,' Ryko said. 'We cannot stay here much longer. We still have to find a way out without raising the guards.'

  I turned back to the reading table and slowly walked its length, catching words here and there from the open scrolls: myth, forbidden, death. But no red folio. I rubbed the base of my skull; the pressure had deepened. Was it the Rat Dragon? I held up my candle. At the very end of the room, something reflected my light. A few more strides and I was in front of a wooden case topped with a flat piece of glass the size of an open scroll. How much had such a precious thing cost?

  But all wonder at the workmanship was gone when I leaned over and saw two small leather folios about the size of my hand — one red and bound by a string of black pearls, the other black and bound by white pearls.

  'It's here!' A surge of exhilaration and relief caught me in the chest.

  Ryko was beside me in a moment.

  'Is that glass?' He tapped the top. 'Beautiful!' Then he saw what was inside. 'Two folios?

  What's the other one?'

  I studied the case. There were two hinges on the back — it would open like a box. 'Here, hold my candle,' I said, passing it to him.

  Gingerly, I hooked my fingers under the lip of the glass and lifted. It opened easily and rested back on the sturdy hinges.

  Ryko moved the candl
es closer. 'Look, the black one has the same design on it as the door.'

  Although half hidden under the wrap of white pearls, the leather had been tooled with the circle of twelve spheres.

  The red folio had no design on the front, but three deep gouges marked the smooth leather as though someone had tried to slice through the tight binding of black pearls. Had Lord Ido been unable to open it?

  I reached for the folio.

  It suddenly heaved. Before I could snatch back my hand, the string of black pearls had unravelled and snaked up my hand, wrapping itself tightly around my wrist. I yelped, pulling my hand and the folio out of the case. The taste of metal flooded my mouth as a familiar rage scoured my body. The same rage I had felt in my swords.

  Ryko dropped the candles and lunged towards me. 'I'll pull it off!'

  'No,' I snarled. The last loop of pearls had bound the folio against my palm. I pulled the text up to my chest, protecting it from Ryko. The rage receded just as quickly as it had risen, leaving a quiet sense of completeness.

  'No, it's all right,' I said, cradling the folio against my body. 'It's all right.'

  Ryko eyed me uncertainly. 'If you say so.' He looked down at the black folio. 'Will the same thing happen with the other one?'

  'I will not touch it!' I snapped, the rage surging again.

  Ryko stepped back. Are you sure you are all right?'

  I massaged my forehead, trying to dislodge the anger. 'We should go.' I wanted to get as far away from the black folio as possible. I did not understand it, but the feeling was as strong and as sharp as a nail through my hand.

  'You don't want to take the black folio?'

  'No!' I took a shaking breath, forcing some calm. 'No. If Lord Ido owns it, he will be able to mount an official investigation if it is stolen.'

  I gently pushed at the red folio, directing it up my forearm under my sleeve. There was no resistance; the pearls unravelling slightly to allow the move then tightening again.

  Ryko bent and picked up the snuffed candles. 'I'll light them in the lamp,' he said.

  'No, I'll do it,' I said quickly 'You close the case. I don't want to touch it again.' Taking the candles, I crossed quickly to the side bench.

  The pouch full of the Sun drug lay beside the lamp. I sneaked a look over my shoulder. Ryko was staring down at the black folio, absorbed. Using my body as cover, I scooped up the pouch and shoved it into the deep pocket of my tunic. Then I quickly lit the candles in the flame of the oil lamp.

  Just as I turned, Ryko let out a bellow and jumped back from the case, rubbing his hand. He looked across at me, his face a strange mix of guilt and shock. 'I tried to pick up the black one, but the pearls whipped me,' he said. Edging a step closer to the case, he eased the lid down at arm's length.

  'We've got to go. Now,' I said urgently

  I blew out the lamp. Once more the room became a dark, shadowy otherworld flickering with the light of the two candles. I moved to the door, away from the gap on the bench where the pouch had lain. Ryko met me at the end of the reading table and took a candle.

  'How are we going to get out?' I asked.

  'The guards should have cleared the area by now. If I get hit with the same illusion, then you're going to have to help me get through it,' Ryko said, touching his stomach. 'Once we are free of that, we'll make our way back to the side gate.'

  I followed him into the narrow corridor. Turning, 1 held up my candle and took one last look at Lord Ido's library. Although the case was hidden in the dark shadows, it seemed to throb with soured power. I quickly closed the twelve-sphere door.

  Ahead, Ryko extinguished his candle then opened the outside door a crack.

  'It looks clear,' he said.

  For a moment, intuition held me still. I brushed my fingers over the folio resting beneath my sleeve. 'You should hold on to me,' I said. 'Until we get past the dragon power.'

  Ryko nodded and took my candle, pinching out the flame. A rustle of cloth told me he was storing both candles back in his waist pouch.

  'Ready?' I asked.

  His hand grasped my arm. 'Ready'

  I opened the door, the movement bumping the broken padlock against the metal in a soft clang. The garden was quiet, the shapes of the trees and flowerbeds edged in silver from the half moon. I stepped out into the shadow of the hill, feeling the drag of Ryko as he followed.

  The pearls around my wrist stirred, and for a moment I saw the Rat Dragon's power over the hill, like a thin dome of glass, stretching down the path and ending at a stand of blossom trees.

  I steered us slowly towards them. Ryko met my gaze and nodded; all was well. So far. We passed the spot where he had first fallen. Not too far now. Then I felt Ryko's grip loosen and, before I could protest, he released me. I saw his eyes widen with pain, then he doubled over and dropped heavily to his knees, breath ragged. I lunged for him, digging my fingers into the hard muscle of his arm. The tension suddenly left his body He grabbed my hand, clinging to it like a drowning man, and gulped in deep breaths.

  'Not quite clear yet,' I said unnecessarily

  He looked up at me then bowed his head. 'My lord.' His voice was soft with awe.

  'Ryko, get up.' I pulled at his arm. 'We are not safe out here.'

  1t was only a few more lengths to the trees. Holding my hand t ightly, Ryko pushed himself up onto his feet. I led him off the path into the thin cover.

  'It will be all right now,' I whispered.

  Hesitantly, he pulled his hand from mine. We both paused, but he was clearly in no pain.

  'I am in your debt, my lord,' he murmured, bowing.

  I shook my head. 'No, it's —'

  A crunch of leaves made us both spin around. A guard stood behind us, caught mid-retreat.

  Although he wore a wide-brimmed helmet, I recognised the blunt mean features and solid body.

  Ranne.

  His eyes widened. 'You!'

  He'd recognised me.

  Beside me, Ryko tensed with the same realisation. It was Ranne's death warrant. In a blur of speed, Ryko drew both knives, the steels crossing over each other in a rasp of steel. As Ranne opened his mouth to raise the alarm, a knife hit him in the throat, sinking up to its hilt. His shout became a wet gurgle as he clutched at the blade. Ryko sprang forwards, thrusting its twin up under Ranne's armour into his abdomen. I heard the puncture of air and the clicking rattle of his death breath as Ryko eased his body to the ground.

  I gaped at them: the living crouched over the dead. I had seen death before — Dolana and others at the salt farm — but they had been worn down by misery and illness into a welcome release. This was a snatching away of life; one moment there was Hua, there was will, there was Ranne, and then there was not.

  'We have to hide the body' Ryko said, wiping one of the knives on the grass. 'In the pavilion.'

  I shivered at his words; how quickly a person became just a body. Ranne had bullied me at the school and nearly killed me during the ceremony. Perhaps I should be rejoicing at the death of my enemy. But I couldn't. A man had died and another had killed to protect me.

  A few moments ago, I had been fighting just for my own survival. Now there was no standing back from this larger struggle. I was at its centre.

  'No,' I said flatly. I knew where the body had to go. 'Carry him to the edge of the dragon power and I'll pull him into it. They'll think it was an accident, and won't be able to retrieve him until Ido returns.'

  Ryko stared up at me then pressed his fist to his chest — a soldier's salute. At your command, my lord.'

  It did not take long to drag Ranne's body onto the path. I kept my eyes away from his blank stare and swallowed my gorge as my hand brushed against his cooling face. His life warmth was already fading into the chill of the grave. As I stood up from arranging his lax limbs into the position of a fall, I wondered if anyone would observe the nine days of mourning for him.

  Ryko hissed at me from the edge of the dragon power. 'Come.'

  We cut acro
ss the garden towards the dark archway. The pressure of the pearl binding around my forearm was like a sweet torture — my impatience to open the folio barely held in check by the need to wait until I was in the safe seclusion of my bedchamber.

  The inner courtyard was empty when we peered around the corner of the passage. No servant girl stealing a mouthful. No guards with their torches. No Dillon. He was probably hiding somewhere — the Sun drug seemed to be rousing his fear and melancholy more than his fighting spirit.

  I crept across the courtyard under the cover of the cumquats and down the alley, Ryko close and silent behind me. As we cleared the side gate, pulling it shut with a soft scrape, I felt eyes upon me. I looked up. Dillon stood on the guard walkway above us. He held up a hesitant hand.

  'Thank you,' I mouthed.

  He nodded and turned away.

  CHAPTER 13

  When Ryko and I finally stepped onto the pebble garden around my apartments, I was relieved to see only the two corner night lamps burning, their lights protecting the building from dark spirits. A good sign that no alarm had been raised at my empty bed. We picked our way over the stones towards the pale rectangle of my chamber window. The folio was still bound tightly against my forearm, the pearls warm against my skin as though they held their own Hua.

  Soon I'd be reading the word that would release my power. I had always imagined the name of a dragon would be like the shift of a breeze through leaves, or perhaps the sound of water splashing. But how could that be written?

  'Shall I stay, lord?' Ryko asked softly

  I shook my head. Except for essential information, we had not spoken at all on the run back to the palace. The past few hours had stripped away some of our illusions about each other and ourselves. Such bare truth was not easily absorbed. And I wanted to be alone when I read the name.

  'Thank you, Ryko,' I said. 'For everything.'

  He bowed and moved away, only a muffled chink of a pebble marking his careful retreat.

  I hoisted myself up over the window frame and dropped awkwardly onto the thick carpet inside. In a few strides I was beside the covered oil lamp I'd left burning on the bedside table.