The Crimson League (The Herezoth Trilogy)

by Grefer, Victoria

  “I don’t care how defensive the man gets. Kora’s not going there alone. I’ll go with her.”

  Kora told him, “Argint’s office is on the top floor of a public building. I can turn invisible. How exactly do you propose to make it through four or five floors unnoticed?”

  “Then Laskenay can join you.”

  “Getting Argint’s back up defeats the point of going at all. We’re not just talking two against one. We’re talking two empowered people against a man with a wooden leg. It needs to be me, just me. If anything goes wrong, I can transport out. I’ll go in a week, I guess. Argint keeps his old office ‘til the end of the month, so as long as I see him before he’s gone for good….”

  Lanokas was not appeased. “You’ve been shouldering a lot of weight. You’ve taken part, a major part, in almost every recent enterprise.”

  “Almost? What did I miss?”

  “That’s what I’m saying. I’m worried about you. You’re doing too much, and the rest of us are to blame.”

  “No one’s to blame, Lanokas. It’s not as though you’re cowards, or aren’t doing your share. I happen to be one of two sorcerers. There are things no one else can do.”

  “Well, you should let Laskenay do this.”

  “I’m sure Laskenay would be glad to, but Laskenay doesn’t know how to get to Argint’s office. I’m the one who watched Zalski make his way there from the threshold of City Hall. I could draw her diagrams. She’d still be at a disadvantage, more likely to take a wrong turn and find herself in trouble. Besides, I think Argint recognized me, from my first raid in Hogarane. So he knows I could have killed him, or could have had him killed. Obviously, I didn’t, so maybe he’ll remember that. Maybe it’ll help.”

  Lanokas groaned. “It has to be you. Again.”

  “There are more things on my mind than just Argint,” Kora told him. “If you really want to lighten my load…. Can we go for a walk?”

  “We’ll be back,” Lanokas informed the group.

  445

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Argint Wicker

  Kora took Lanokas to a quiet spot by the river, the place where she usually went to do laundry. The afternoon sun was warm but not uncomfortable, and the slight breeze, the scent of pines, immediately restored some portion of Kora’s lost stability.

  “How can I help?” asked Lanokas. “Just tell me what to do.”

  “You can help me with Zacry.”

  “In what way?”

  She related Zalski’s plan to educate the magicked, the man’s insistence that her brother attend his school. “And Zac never will. At least, not with his current mindset. Some of the things he told that man, you should have heard him…. It terrifies me. He’ll never study with Zalski, and Zalski, he’ll destroy his life if he doesn’t. Zac thinks he has a duty to resist. And asking you to do this, it’s hard for me, because in a real way Zac’s right, he’s absolutely in the right. Since you, well….”

  “Since my brother’s death makes me the legitimate king.”

  Kora grabbed his sleeve. “I need you to talk to Zac. To broaden his perspective. He’ll feel a second sense of duty to you, do you understand? I don’t want him to go to that school, more than anything I don’t, but I don’t see a way out of it, and Zacry has to understand he can help people from inside the administration. That would be an honest goal, wouldn’t it? He could respect himself that way?”

  “Of course he’ll be able to respect himself. Kora, no matter what happens to you—to us—Zacry will make it. You made sure of that just hours ago. You’ve done everything you can for him, and besides, Zacry’s bright. He’s resourceful. He’ll learn to hold his tongue when he needs to.”

  “I hope so, because I don’t know how much longer he’ll have me around. You realize you and I are bound to be numbers one and two on Zalski’s list? One and two.”

  “Knowing how you used that chain, me the last royal standing…. Yes, that sounds about right. I’m telling you, don’t dwell on it too much. We’re all in this together. We’ll triumph or we won’t, as a unit. And if Argint joins our side, we’ll have a real chance. He’s not likely to, I admit that, but he just might.

  “Would it make you feel better to listen when I speak with Zac?”

  “Actually, I think it would.”

  “Then we can arrange that. I’ll talk to him as soon as possible, how about tomorrow? I’d do it tonight, but I want some time to figure out how to go about this. For now, we should get back to Wheatfield.”

  Kora nodded weakly. “Lanokas?” she hazarded.

  “What?”

  “About you, you being the legitimate king….”

  “I don’t want to discuss Hune. There’s no point in it, he’s dead. It’s your brother we can do something about.”

  “Menikas died, not you. Are you all right? Is there….”

  “Let it go, Kora.”

  * * *

  The next day was just as beautiful as the one before, though it lacked a breeze. The sky was clear, a pale, fresh blue, and outside the barn, Lanokas had just finished telling Zacry about Podrar’s school of magic; they stood in the shadow of a dead apple tree. The boy listened calmly enough, until Lanokas hinted he might have to attend, at which point Zacry threw the twig he had been twirling between his fingers. “I’m not going,” he said. “No way in hell I’m going. No way, do you hear me?”

  “Watch your language.”

  “Why are you telling me about this? Where’s Kora?”

  “Kora asked me to speak with you. About this topic specifically.”

  Zacry glanced up at the prince. “She did? Why?”

  “You don’t know who I am, I don’t believe.”

  “Of course I do. Your name’s Lanokas. Am I missing something?”

  “It’s Rexson Dalen Lanokas, actually. I don’t go by my first name. You can probably guess why.”

  Zacry looked at the man in front of him as if he were mad. “Your name’s not Rexson. What are you playing at? The prince is dead, all the royals are. Zalski killed them.”

  “All but one,” said Lanokas. “You don’t believe me?” He tossed Zacry his brother’s ring. “Do you recognize the crest carved in the stone?”

  Crimson on the right, with a lion. Green and blue on the left, a field and sky, with a lamb. Even lacking color, the design was recognizable. “It’s the crest of the king. The old king.” Zacry settled on the freshly sprouted grass, gaping at the heirloom he held in his outstretched palm. Lanokas sat opposite, one knee pulled to his chest. Zacry shifted his gaze from the metal to the man. “You’re the prince?”

  “Guilty.”

  “That makes you guilty in Zalski’s eyes, no question. How are you not dead?”

  “That’s an interesting story. Luck, mostly. Dumb luck. I’d be lying if I said differently, Zac. I’ve had more close calls than I can count. So, will you listen to my advice? That’s all I ask, that you listen.” Zacry nodded, and Lanokas said, “Good. The first thing you should understand, the most important thing, is this: you will not be a traitor if you study under Zalski. Not against Herezoth. Not against me. Certainly not against your sister or your father, or even Sedder. I knew Sedder. Not frightfully well, to be honest, but I respected him, and I believe if he were here, he’d echo what I’m saying: that you have to study. What’s the alternative, to starve? To hang? They’re valiant gestures both, but they won’t accomplish much. Zalski wants you to learn magic, and with the power he’s amassed he can force his will on you. That’s the situation. It’s not more complicated, not less. You’re under no obligation to resist him openly.”

  Zacry said, “Of course I am! We all are, and you know it. Look at the things he’s done.”

  “Listen to me, no one your age has duties like the one you’ve convinced yourself burdens you. It’s not your responsibility to sacrifice yourself. If it were, it would be my duty to tell you that. Yes, you’ll be looking out for yourself in a very real way by accepting this education, but that
’s no reason to feel guilty. The fact is, with an education you can do a lot of good. Have you realized that? You can enter civil service with a mind to ease some of the burden Zalski’s placed upon the people. One man can do something, always, even if it’s little. You have incredible courage, Zacry. Well, part of being courageous is considering risks and rewards. Sometimes that means working with the odds, not because you’re frightened to work against them, but because you’re more likely to make a quantifiable difference that way. A measurable difference. You’re more likely to leave your mark…. Am I making any sense?”

  “I guess so. But think what you’re asking me to do! Look, I’m not scared of Zalski. Just ask Bennie if you think I’m scared, she’ll set you straight.”

  “I know this isn’t about fear.”

  “The thing is, Zalski’s awful. He’s evil. And I don’t want people thinking that I’m like that, that I support him.”

  “I never said you’d be taking the easy way out. This isn’t the easy way out, not by a long shot. If it helps, more men than you imagine will understand you had no choice in your career. They’ll know it isn’t right to force you to serve in the government just because you can cast a spell. You’ll have to stay focused. Think of the people whose lives you can improve. If I know Zalski at all, you’ll make a handsome living, and that means you can pay people’s taxes, pay their bail, bribe prison guards to let harmless inmates escape. You can literally save lives. And long before that, you’ll be able to influence your classmates. Integrity’s contagious. You can help them not to succumb to Zalski’s rhetoric, to his temptations. You can set them an example.”

  “What if I succumb, Lanokas?”

  The prince cracked a slight smile. “Give yourself your due. You see Zalski for what he is, and you won’t forget where you come from, the way things were. Just be discreet. Don’t make it plain to all that you remember.”

  “I will remember,” said Zacry. “I’ll always remember, I promise.”

  “What are you trying to say?”

  Zacry struggled to explain. “I don’t know details, I guess—Kora won’t tell me what’s going on—but I, I’ve picked up on people’s moods. I know things aren’t good right now. Do you think there’s a chance that Zalski, or the guard…”

  “…will eliminate what’s left of the League? I’d say it’s more than likely, Zacry. Sooner rather than later. I don’t mean to alarm you, but my lying won’t change the facts.”

  “All that’s left?” Zacry asked. He could not bring himself to speak his sister’s name. Lanokas put a hand on the boy’s shoulder.

  “I’m afraid so. It would be wrong of me to give you false hope. There’s some hope yet, don’t think there’s not. But it’s fading fast.”

  “So things could still turn around?”

  “I would say that, yes. They could still turn around. That doesn’t mean you should expect them to.”

  “Is there anything I can do, to make things easier for…?”

  Lanokas patted Zacry’s upper arm in approval. “You can let her take you someplace you’ll be safe. You’re in danger here, and there’s no cause for it. It’s another weight on her mind she simply doesn’t need. How do you think she’d react if you were killed? How would you feel if she, or Bennie, died trying to protect you, or Neslan or Hayden died that way? You haven’t seen the things I have, you don’t know how suddenly….”

  “I got an idea of it at the apartment.”

  “So you did. I stand corrected.” Lanokas sighed. “Zacry, no one wants to enter a safehouse. It would only be for a year, until Zalski’s school opens. Please, go to one. For Kora. It’s the best thing you can do for her, and for yourself, for all of us.”

  Zacry started tapping his foot against the ground. He looked away from the prince. “All right,” he conceded to the grass. “If I have to, I’ll go. For Kora, like you said. She did break me out of the Palace. I guess I owe it to her.”

  “It’s the selfless thing to do.”

  “Don’t I know it.” Zacry still tapped his foot, but raised his head. “A year?” he asked.

  “Until the school opens,” Lanokas repeated.

  Zacry groaned, but he said, “I can make it a year.”

  “Good man.” Zacry made to return the ring, but Lanokas told him, “Keep it.”

  “Really?”

  “To remind you what we talked about. Of why you’re actually at that school, in case you’re tempted to forget. I don’t know that you will be, but in the eventuality…. Just don’t let them find it, that wouldn’t bode well for you.”

  “Wow,” said Zacry. “Are you sure? I mean….”

  “You deserve it, for your loyalty. Most people five times your age wouldn’t stand their ground against Zalski the way you did. I just wish there were something more I could do, to keep him at a distance.”

  “Yeah, well, he has other plans.”

  “Like I said, keep it secure.”

  “I will.” Zacry closed his palm around Menikas’s ring. “Thank you. Thank you, Your Maj….”

  “None of that. I’m Lanokas.”

  “Right. Well, thanks, I really mean it.”

  “Why don’t you run inside? Next time you see your sister, you can talk about that safehouse. At the moment, Hayden could use help preparing lunch. It’s his turn today, and his cooking’s dreadful.”

  “I’ve noticed,” said Zacry with a grimace. Kora waited for her brother to close the barn door, then made herself visible and walked up to Lanokas. One look at her tear-stained face and he folded his arms around her.

  “Thank you,” she whispered in his ear. “Thank you….”

  That afternoon, Kora asked Laskenay if she knew of a family that could take Zacry in, any family. Laskenay did, said she had been working to decide on one, but Kora stopped her when she started to say more. “I shouldn’t know where he is, in case worst comes to worst. I want him to have one last year that’s not overrun by Zalski’s agenda. Zac needs some peace. He needs to ready himself.”

  “I understand, Kora. I’ll get things in order. I can move him at sunrise, if you two agree to that.”

  “Sunrise tomorrow,” Kora said.

  She and Zacry stayed up late, chatting. Laughing. Reminiscing. They talked about the games they used to play, their mother’s cooking and father’s stories, the weekend trips into Hogarane that always thrilled them, when Sedder would tag along with their family to visit the market or the park, or the city museum their father dragged them to year after year. They called their old teacher, Mr. Gared, lots of names, and Zacry asked questions about the school of magic Kora really could not answer, except to remind him that no matter how bad things got, he just needed to remember what their mother used to tell them: “One step at a time, one choice to be made, the choice to be honest and just. When you feel overwhelmed, or feel slighted or small, that’s the time this is really a must.”

  Zacry smiled. “I remember the first time she told me that. I got angry over something, I think you stopped me taking your quill. We only had that one, Father’s old ratty one to share, right? They wouldn’t let us touch his others. I complained to Mother, and she asked if I thought it was fair to take your quill or fairer to wait my turn.”

  “I don’t remember that,” said Kora.

  “I remember, all right. I said I didn’t care about fairness, you’d been drawing for an hour already. Mother tanned my hide.”

  Kora laughed. “She would. A response like that!”

  They talked until Zacry fell asleep, leaning against his sister, around four-thirty. Not wanting to rouse him, Kora stayed where she was, lost in thought for another hour or so, just glad to hold her brother. At the tweets of the first birds and the lightening of the sky, she woke Zacry with a whisper.

  “Is it dawn?” he asked, and rubbed his eye, then grimaced as he stretched his leg.

  “Laskenay will be out any minute.”

  So Laskenay was. With a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek, Kora told Zacry g
oodbye, and he and Laskenay were off. Lanokas appeared a moment later. “You holding together?” he asked.

  “I am. I didn’t think I would be, but I am, because I know that he will.”

  “Thanks to you, he’ll be just fine.”

  * * *

  Kora kept busy the week after Zacry left, preparing to accost the general. The work was draining, and monotonous, but it carried one advantage: she was far too occupied to let herself miss her brother. Neslan and Lanokas took turns, endless turns, playing Argint in mock-interviews, so that Kora felt sure she could respond with poise and sincerity to any insult, any protestation. The second night, so Bennie said, Kora started arguing with the man in her sleep, and still, hour after hour, day after day of debating with the nobles passed, until the moment came to actually debate with Zalski’s new general.

  “Don’t be nervous,” Neslan told her before she went off to Yangerton. “If he refuses, he refuses. It won’t be because you could have made a better case. Just get yourself out of there in one piece.”

  The day was slow at City Hall, as slow as Kora’s soundless progress through the building. She stopped twice to let people pass her on the stairs, but neither man, both soldiers, came close to bumping her or suspecting she was there. She made one wrong turn but corrected it with ease, and then found herself outside Argint’s office. He was in; she could hear him rifling through papers. When she convinced herself he was alone, she rapped once, briskly, on the door, and cancelled her invisibility as the knob turned.

  “I wasn’t expecting you until….”

  Argint’s voice stopped cold as he laid eyes on Kora. With a jerk he pulled her inside, then slid two chain bolts in place behind them. Only then did he find his lost speech, his eyes studying his guest.

  “You should know you can’t use magic here. Zalski secured this office.”

  “Precisely for this reason, I suppose. Don’t worry, I don’t need magic, I haven’t come to threaten you.”

  “So why have you come?”