Quillblade

by Ben Chandler

  Captain Shishi placed himself in front of them. ‘I will make a pact with you both. I will aid you in your quest to kill Lord Butin if you give us that crystal.’

  Disma grew more agitated; her wings beat the air around Anastasis’s head. ‘No!’

  ‘Done,’ the princess said, and her Lilim stopped fighting her.

  She undid the necklace and passed the crystal to the captain, who turned to Lenis. ‘Master Clemens, you are our Bestia Keeper. Will you care for the egg until it hatches?’

  Lenis didn’t have any idea of how to care for a Totem’s egg, but he nodded and took the crystal from the captain. His earlier estimate of it proved accurate. It was just a lump of blue rock, cool and smooth to the touch. There was nothing special about it. He put it in his pocket.

  ‘Now,’ Captain Shishi looked at them all in turn, ‘we should send Miss Namei on her way.’

  Lenis looked at his sister and she nodded to him. She ran down the stairs below decks and came back with the Bestia, except for Aeris, who still powered the engines. They came to Lenis with their heads almost touching the planks of the deck. Lenis gathered them to him. Terra rubbed her head against his palm and Ignis licked his cheek, the familiar heat of his tongue comforting. Lenis scooped Atrum up into his arms, and the Bestia wrapped his long tail around Lenis’s neck. Lucis and Aqua pressed themselves against his legs, sitting on his feet in their attempts to get close to him. With one hand he reached down to pet Ignis. The Bestia knew what Lenis wanted him to do. The small creature climbed onto Namei’s chest, curled into a tight ball, licked Namei’s face, and then allowed his flames to spread over her.

  Everyone except Lenis took a step back as Ignis’s power flowed over Namei’s body. Heat scorched Lenis’s face, his arms and legs. The rest of the Bestia stayed close by his side, bearing witness as the flames consumed the heart of the Hiryû.

  Missy stared out of the crystal dome of the bridge, seeing nothing. Her brother was constantly on her mind, as was Namei. Lenis hadn’t left the engine room since he had burnt Namei’s body almost two weeks earlier. Missy didn’t know if he was feeling guilty, or angry, or sad. She hadn’t asked, he didn’t want to tell her, and Missy couldn’t bring herself to deny him his privacy. The rest of the crew seemed content to leave him to his mourning, as they each dealt with theirs, going through the motions of piloting the Hiryû south.

  They had almost reached Shinzô. The weather had held fair despite the fact it was winter, and they had made good time, even after waiting out a mild snowstorm at a Heiliglander airdock. Their passage was blessedly free of Demons and there was no sign of pursuit from Karasu or the Ostians. The crew were eager to leave Ost, and the terrible memories that had been born there, far behind.

  Anastasis spent most of her time in one of the holds. No one was really sure what to do with her, but the captain had given his word to help her and she had read the manuscript before she burnt it. For her part, the princess didn’t seem to mind what happened to her, as long as her Lilim was always by her side.

  It had been decided that they would head to Nochi, the Imperial Court in Tengoku domain. It was the only place in all of Shinzô they could go with any hope of avoiding problems with Lord Shôgo’s forces. Tenjin wanted to pass on everything they had learned about the Demons and the Wastelands to the Imperial Academy, and the Hiryû was in desperate need of repairs. Captain Shishi wanted to present Seisui’s egg to the Emperor to gain the favour of the Imperial Court. He hoped they could use Nochi as a base to make their plans for fighting the Demon King and his vast army of Demons.

  Missy didn’t consider that any of it had been worth the price they had paid. Namei’s death had been for nothing. All they had received for their efforts was a hunk of rock. Missy couldn’t think of it as the dragon’s egg. When Lenis had shown it to her she had to admit it was pretty, but how could a great Totem be born from such a small gem? Even if it were true, how were they going to get it to hatch? And what about the stones of ebb and flow? Karasu had told them the egg would be useless without them. Worst of all, if the crystal really was Seisui’s egg, and if it did hatch, and even if they somehow got the orbs of ebb and flow away from Karasu, what could one Totem do against Ishullanu and his army of Demons?

  Missy was tired of questions that led only to despair. She wished she could share the Puritan Church’s belief in fate, that everything they had gone through had been for a purpose, predestined by the will of the One God. But she could not. The random nature of the universe would not even give her that solace.

  And so Missy stared dourly out of the crystal dome waiting for the first sight of ...

  ‘Land!’ She jumped up from behind her desk.

  The captain smiled, and Missy didn’t have to read his mind to know he was relieved. ‘Indeed. It seems we have made better time than I had thought. Mister Jackson, will we reach Nochi by nightfall?’

  Kenji made some measurements on one of his charts. ‘We should, Captain.’ The navigator had lost his sardonic disposition. Missy had spent most of the voyage hoping for such a change but, now that it had happened, she only wished that things, that everything, could go back to the way they were before Asheim. ‘If Miss Shin holds our course, that is.’

  The captain turned to the helmswoman. ‘Steady onwards, Miss Shin.’

  Shin nodded. ‘Yes, sir.’

  Missy sighed and went back to her staring. Kenji’s new demeanour said it all. One stroke of the blade had left them all hollow.

  ‘Something’s wrong, Captain.’ Andrea’s voice came through the speech tube. Lenis knew the lookout had stationed herself on top of one of the holds since they hadn’t had the time or the opportunity to repair the damaged crow’s nest. He couldn’t imagine that she would be able to see much, but she obviously felt better keeping an eye on their progress, however limited.

  Captain Shishi’s voice replied, ‘What is it, Miss Florona?’

  ‘There are airships around the capital.’

  ‘That is not unusual.’

  ‘There’re about thirty of them, and more than half are flying the red dragon.’

  ‘The Warlord?’ Arthur’s voice was faint, as though he were standing some distance away from the speech tube. ‘I had not realised his fleet was so large.’

  ‘Neither had I,’ the captain replied.

  ‘They look Kystian in design ...’

  Lenis stopped listening. Lying in his bunk, he dangled the blue crystal by its silver chain above his face. Try as he might, he could feel nothing coming from this supposed egg. If there was a young Totem growing inside of it, he couldn’t sense it. It was nothing more than empty stone. He wished it were Apsilla’s egg. He wished the blue stone would crack open and a baby dragon would come tumbling out. At least then Namei ...

  Lenis allowed the thrumming of the engines to lull him into a stupor. It was easier that way.

  ‘Master Clemens, can you hear me?’

  Lenis didn’t know how long the captain had been calling him. ‘Yes, captain.’

  ‘We were hoping you could slow the Hiryû down before we collide with the airdock.’

  Lenis draped the necklace around his neck. He grabbed the acceleration control lever and gave it a sharp pull. By adjusting several other, smaller levers he was able to channel power away from the engines. As the bristles on Aeris’s back settled, he switched off the engine and felt the airship bump against the airdock.

  Lenis released Aeris from the engine block and she wound herself around his legs. Smiling, he bent down to pick her up. She nuzzled the blue gem resting against his chest and he felt his pulse quicken. Soon he would hand it over to the Emperor and then his role in all of this would be done. He moved over to sit on his bunk and tried not to wonder about what would happen to him or the rest of the crew after that.

  Hiroshi hurried past the engine room, poking his head through Lenis’s door to call, ‘It’s time to go.’

/>   Lenis flinched. He had been expecting Namei to come and fetch him, as she had so often done before. He put Aeris in the hutch before following the cook to the deck. The others were gathered in front of the gangplank and Lenis joined them there.

  The captain was addressing the crew. ‘We cannot be sure why Lord Shôgo is here. It is certain that he will attempt to detain us once he knows we have arrived.’

  Kenji was staring over the railing at the airships moored before Nochi’s walls. ‘He can’t help but know we’re here. He must have his entire fleet out there.’

  Yami moved to stand next to the navigator. ‘Is there any sign of Karasu?’

  Arthur answered for him. ‘None that I can see, but any one of those vessels could be his.’

  Lenis followed their gaze and saw that the plain before the city of Nochi was covered in airships, many of which were flying the red dragon banner of the Shôgo. ‘They’re all on the ground. It will take them a long time to get into the air.’

  ‘He may be right.’ Andrea was standing on one of the holds. ‘They aren’t moving, which means they aren’t all that interested in us.’

  ‘Or they’re waiting for something,’ Shin countered.

  Missy stood next to her brother. ‘Waiting for what?’

  The captain interjected before anyone else could venture a guess. ‘We cannot know that either. We came for a purpose. Once we have delivered Seisui’s egg to the Emperor, we will be able to plan our next course.’

  The others nodded and followed the captain down the gangplank and onto the airdock. Missy walked beside Lenis and took his hand, saying nothing. On the airdock a group of black-robed officials waited.

  Below them spread the capital city of Shinzô, surrounded by high walls topped with red, sloping tiles edged in gold leaf. At the corners of the walls, and spaced periodically atop them, curling golden dragons faced out to the plains. Between the dragons, wide platforms with white columns in the corners supported roofs in more red and gold. Within each of these pavilions a large brazier nestled in the red coils of another dragon. Behind these, suspended from the roof by chains, hung golden disks festooned with red ribbons.

  Lenis knew that, compared to the other major cities of Shinzô, Nochi was relatively young. It had been built less than one hundred years before the Great War. It had wide, straight, grey-paved streets and orderly rows of houses and estates. Each estate contained its own enclosed garden, and in the centre of the city was an open field interwoven with narrow streams and stone walkways and the wide-reaching branches of winter-bare trees. There was no evidence here of the crowded alleys of Itsû. The setting sun sparkled across the gilt-edged roofs and dazzled Lenis’s eyes as he tried to look down at the city.

  The palace of the Emperor was on the eastern side of the capital and was removed from the rest of Nochi by even higher and thicker walls. It had been built in the shape of a five-sided, multi-tiered residence, the walls of which were sheathed in gold. Large red pillars rose up from each corner and supported the many sloping, black-tiled roofs of each level. Lenis baulked at the thought of how much it must have cost. The airdock had been built in the north-western corner of the capital, far away from the imperial residence. Lenis didn’t know how long it would take them to traverse the streets below, but there was a good chance they wouldn’t reach the palace by midnight.

  The Shinzôn officials greeted them gravely but did not respond to any of the captain’s questions. Lenis could only make out a part of what they said. His Shinzôn had never been very good, even though Missy and Namei had both tried to teach him. He could tell from the way their heads drooped and they kept looking at one another that they were being evasive, even without understanding everything they said. He could only assume their manner had something to do with the Warlord’s fleet of airships.

  The captain eventually gave up questioning the officials and turned to the rest of the crew. ‘It seems we should present ourselves to the Emperor with all possible haste. The walk to the imperial palace is not a short one. These officials will guide us and clear the way.’ He looked back at the Hiryû and his ever-present smile tightened almost imperceptibly. Behind it Lenis could feel the captain’s unease. It was not an emotion Lenis was used to sensing in him. ‘I am sure there is nothing to worry about, but it is better to be prepared.’

  They descended the airdock, which was empty save for the Hiryû. The crew’s anxiety intensified as they reached the streets of the capital and moved east. The officials kept their emotions under tight control, though their quick, almost jerky movements and their darting eyes betrayed their own disquiet. Something important was happening here in Nochi, but Lenis couldn’t work out what it was.

  The moon, still a night from full, was their only source of light. It did little to alleviate the gloom of Nochi’s streets. The buildings they passed seemed colourless in the moonlight. The golden hues of the roof-edges had died with the sun.

  They walked for over an hour, perhaps even two. Their guides made them change direction frequently, turning left, then right, then left again, and so on until Lenis didn’t know if they were going east, south, or back the way they had come. Captain Shishi strode confidently, however, and Lenis took comfort in the thought that, as a noble son of the Mayonaka clan, the captain was bound to have walked these streets before.

  Abruptly Lenis found himself facing a wall that rose into the night sky. The officials led them along it until they came to a gate wider than any Lenis had seen before. In front of it stood rank upon rank of fierce-looking warriors, robed in black and carrying the banners of the golden dragon. Missy squeezed Lenis’s hand and he squeezed back, his heart racing.

  They were led behind the immobile guards and Lenis held his breath until they were well past. Once they were all behind the walls, the officials bowed and left the crew to make their own way into the palace. The stones beneath Lenis’s feet were as straight and sure as if they had been laid only the day before. He followed the others up the steps and felt the weight of the palace rising above them. Within its walls resided the imperial family of Shinzô. They were the soul of the country and, if the legends were true, they had been sanctioned by powers far older than humans, Bestia or Totem.

  When they reached the top of the stairs the captain placed his hands on the lacquered doors and pushed. They swung open to reveal the entrance hall of the palace. The interior was lit by hundreds of candles lined up on tiers against the walls. The hall was empty, save for these flickering sources of light. The crew entered.

  Captain Shishi gathered them all around him and whispered, ‘You must all wait here. Princess Anastasis will come with me as she has read the manuscript and delivered the dragon’s egg to us. Master Clemens, you will also come and hand Seisui’s egg to the Emperor.’

  Lenis nodded, not trusting himself to speak. His palms were moist and his heart was beating in time with the flickering of the candles. Missy pulled him into her arms and he hugged her back.

  ‘Let us go.’ The captain turned to face the doors leading into the inner sanctum of the palace.

  They moved through many rooms. Lenis couldn’t keep track of how many. Eventually they reached the simple paper screen behind which the Emperor waited. It was well past midnight and they had met no one on their way. The servants and courtiers must have long since found their beds. The number of candles had dwindled the deeper they travelled into the Emperor’s home. Lenis tried to suck in more oxygen in a desperate bid to clear his foggy head and stay awake. The last thing he wanted was to yawn in the Emperor’s face.

  The captain touched his shoulder. ‘When we enter, kneel and place your face on the floor. Only when the Emperor has given his permission may you lift your eyes and look upon his person.’

  Lenis nodded. He tried to swallow but there was no saliva in his mouth and it felt as if he were forcing shards of glass down his throat. Panic threatened to do what his will could not, and brea
k through the wall of fatigue that had formed around his thoughts.

  The paper screen slid to one side.

  Lenis threw himself on the floor and winced as his nose slammed into the reed matting. The pain roused him and banished all thoughts of sleep. Off to one side he heard someone laugh and then, a moment later, soft footsteps moving towards him.

  ‘Rise, Master Clemens.’

  The voice sounded so like Tenjin’s that Lenis looked straight up. Save for the brightly embroidered robe and the shallower lines in his face, the old man who greeted him may as well have been Tenjin. The Emperor’s black eyes sparkled in the candlelight and his mouth was tilted at the corners in a warm smile.

  ‘Welcome, gentle one.’ The Emperor spoke the common tongue fluently, and with less of an accent than the captain. Lenis stared and the Emperor gazed back. The old man chuckled. ‘I do hope my cat has not run off with your tongue!’

  Lenis looked beyond the Emperor’s shoulder and saw a small black cat curled up on a thick cushion. It winked at him and then abruptly went to sleep. The Emperor chuckled again.

  The captain bowed low. ‘Emperor Botanichi, thank you for receiving us at this late hour. The crew of the Hiryû has travelled far and learnt much regarding the Wastelands and the Demons that infect it.’

  ‘Indeed, Captain Shishi,’ a voice came from behind a screen in the corner, ‘I have been waiting for your report.’

  The screen was pushed aside to reveal two people kneeling next to each other. One was Shôgo no Assen Chi, the Warlord’s cousin and the women who had chosen the Hiryû’s crew and asked the captain to steal the Warlord’s new airship. The other was a small man with a wild mane of hair.