The Bastard’s Pearl

by Connie Bailey

  “Dragon tears are a real thing?”

  “It’s the name of a kind of rock.”

  “Right.” Kashyan kicked a stone out of the path. “In children’s tales, dragon tears look like rocks, but they can start fires. Heroes were always using them to escape from caves.”

  “They weren’t far wrong.” Sheyn walked around a boulder and saw a crack in the mountainside. “And if we’re lucky, we’ll find what we need in this cave.”

  Kashyan looked at the tall, narrow entrance. “We’ll have to leave Karkaran here.”

  Something in Kashyan’s voice caught Sheyn’s attention. There was an odd note that grated on Sheyn’s ear, and then he realized what it was. Kashyan was afraid to go into the cave. Sheyn could feel the waves of anxiety Kashyan exuded. Knowing the big man was scared of the dark made Sheyn see him in a new light. Instead of taunting him, he looked for an excuse to leave him outside.

  “I think you should stay here and stand guard,” Sheyn said. “You don’t know what to look for anyway.”

  “Do you think I’d let you go in there alone?”

  “It’s nothing I haven’t done before. My geology instructor was very fond of going into the fields to look at rocks.”

  “You are so odd,” Kashyan said. He draped the reins over Karkaran’s back and gave the horse a pat on the withers. “I’m ready.”

  They walked for what seemed a very long way, sometimes stooping over, sometimes crawling. The whole way, Sheyn could feel Kashyan’s visceral fear, and it made him edgy. He found himself imagining what would happen if they were to become trapped, and he reached for Kashyan’s hand. Kashyan wrapped his fingers around Sheyn’s, taking as much comfort from the touch as Sheyn did.

  Sheyn was beginning to think they wouldn’t find what they sought, and then, through a crack to his left, he saw something glitter in the faint light. Using the pommel of Kashyan’s sword, they broke off several large pieces of the crust of yellow crystals. They put as many as they could carry into leather sacks and made their way back out. Before they reached the cave mouth, they heard a horrible noise.

  “What is that?” Sheyn asked.

  “The horses!” Kashyan exclaimed.

  Sheyn set his sack down just inside the cave and ran toward Kashyan’s charger. Kashyan was already in the saddle and reached down to pull Sheyn up. At a reckless speed, they headed back to the meadow.

  The cavalry camp was a scene of chaos. The soldiers struggled to get their horses to safety while fighting the pack of goblins that swooped down on them. Kashyan put Sheyn on the ground, drew his sword, and rode into the battle.

  Sheyn cursed as he tumbled to a stop. Getting to his feet, he ran toward the fighting. When he came upon a wounded warrior leaning against a horse, he stopped. Driven by a sudden compulsion, Sheyn put a hand over the man’s heart and left it there for a few moments. A nimbus of light appeared around his hand, and he felt an odd sensation, like the prickling that follows numbness. The warrior opened his eyes and gazed at Sheyn with a look of wonder. For a long moment, they looked into each other’s eyes, locked together by the kindling miracle.

  A shout of pain startled Sheyn, and he spun around to see a man knocked off his feet by a goblin. The soldier’s sword flew from his hand and landed near Sheyn’s feet. Sheyn didn’t hesitate to pick it up and use it. Running forward, Sheyn leaped into the air and cut at the goblin’s tail as it flew up. The hideous creature wailed in pain and flapped its leathery wings harder as the tip of its hairless tail fell to the ground. With a gobbling growl, the dog-sized demon dove on the downed trooper, and Sheyn lunged at it. The tip of the saber pierced a wing membrane, and Sheyn drew it downward in a long slice. The goblin retreated upward again, and Sheyn kept his gaze fixed on it. When the monster swooped down to attack, Sheyn whirled away from the snatching claws and brought the sword around in an arc that nearly severed the thing’s neck. It flapped slowly away with its head hanging gruesomely upside down. A moment later, it crashed to the ground and lay still.

  “Are you all right?” Sheyn asked the soldier as the demon began to liquefy.

  The young man stared at Sheyn in utter astonished silence.

  “I have to go. Help that man get to safety.” Sheyn pointed at the man he’d healed and sprinted toward Kashyan.

  Karkaran was the only horse unaffected by the presence of the demons. While the other animals squealed and ran about in fright, the blue roan charger kept his head and obeyed his rider’s commands. Kashyan was holding off three goblins while several troopers fought to get their mounts under control.

  As Sheyn arrived, the trio of demons finally hit upon the idea of working together instead of diving on Kashyan one at a time. Sheyn launched himself from a flat-topped boulder and pulled Kashyan from the saddle. They struck the ground hard and flew apart. The three goblins collided in midair and fell to earth. One landed in front of Karkaran and was promptly trampled. The other two stunned monsters were cut down by warriors on foot. As Kashyan and Sheyn got to their feet, the remaining goblins rose up in a swarm, filling the air with shrill cries that spooked the last of the horses into bolting.

  “What are they doing?” one of the soldiers shouted.

  The question was answered as the small demons swooped down in a mass of slashing claws and gnashing fangs. For a few hectic moments, the humans on the ground swung their weapons while the goblins poured down on them. The overhead onslaught ended, but there was no respite as the grounded demons leaped at the soldiers. It was wet, grim work with little hope of victory, and then Kholya arrived with archers.

  Kashyan lowered his sword as the last goblin was spitted by three arrows in quick succession. At his back, Sheyn relaxed and took a long, shaky breath. He didn’t protest when Kashyan turned and put a steadying arm around his waist.

  “So it wasn’t a fluke, brother,” Kholya said as he dismounted next to Kashyan and Sheyn. “Your daaksi can handle a blade.”

  “I should be able to,” Sheyn said. “I’ve been taking lessons since I was eight.”

  “No one’s going to tease you for getting a late start,” Kholya said, and Kashyan laughed.

  Before Sheyn could reply, the owner of the borrowed saber arrived.

  “I wanted to say thank you,” the soldier said. “Pearl saved my life.”

  “Thanks for the loan of your sword,” Sheyn said as he offered the saber on his palms. “What’s your name?”

  “Dasha,” the young man said as he took the sword with a mixture of awe and reverence.

  “I’m glad you’re not dead, Dasha,” Sheyn said. “The Horde of the Hawk needs all its brave warriors.”

  “Go find the rest of your company, trooper,” Kholya said.

  Dasha saluted the commander with his saber. Stealing a last glance at the glowing daaksi, Dasha left to spread the tale of his rescue, embellishing it with details such as Pearl’s eyes flashing like lightning, and the way he moved too quickly for the eye to follow. By evening meal, Pearl had grown wings and dispatched demons with bolts of fire from his hands. The soldier Sheyn had healed came forward with his story, and the legend grew by leaps and bounds. When Sheyn rode through the fortress gate with Kashyan, everyone stopped to watch them and a spontaneous cheer went up.

  Sheyn and Kashyan began working on the black powder after the demon attack, and they’d just finished the first batch. Sheyn’s face was smudged with charcoal, and he longed for a bath, but he smiled and waved as he walked slowly into the fortress.

  “It’s been a hard day,” Kashyan said. “If you want to rest, I understand.”

  “Give me a little time to bathe and then come to me.”

  Kashyan grinned. “I hoped you’d say something like that.”

  “Go wash off the dragon tear smell.” Sheyn wrinkled his nose. “And bring food.”

  “I will.” Kashyan watched Sheyn enter his quarters and left him there.

  “Luks,” Sheyn called out. “I know you’re here. I can smell that incense you like so much.”
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  “Why are you shouting?”

  Sheyn went into the next room and found Luks in a nest of cushions. “I need a bath.”

  “I can see that.” Luks took a sip from his cup. “Would you like anything to eat first?”

  “No. I need to be clean.”

  Luks got to his feet. “Come with me.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “The engineers repaired the bathhouse.”

  “I’m shocked you’d suggest such a thing as bathing in public.”

  “There’s a private bath for us.”

  “Of course. I should have guessed.”

  “You’re in a pleasant mood.”

  “Am I?”

  “I told you you’d be happier once you accepted the bond.”

  “Yes, yes, you’re very wise,” Sheyn said as he and Luks walked under an arched entry. He could smell the water and itched to be in it. “Which way?”

  Luks took Sheyn’s hand and led him to a room with a small pool in the center. Wisps of steam curled up from the surface of the water, and the air was lightly scented with a flowery perfume. Sheyn lost no time in dropping his robe and stepping into the pool. Luks watched for a moment before he joined him, enjoying Sheyn’s childlike delight in immersing himself in water.

  “Tell me,” Luks invited as he and Sheyn leaned back against the edge of the pool to soak.

  “First tell me how anyone heated this much water in this benighted castle.”

  “There are tubes that bring hot water in from the pools in the mountain.”

  “Ah, I see.”

  “You don’t seem surprised at all.”

  “Because it isn’t surprising. These are young mountains as the earth counts such things.”

  Luks stared at Sheyn. “One moment you sound perfectly reasonable, and the next, you start talking about young mountains.”

  “It’s your ignorance that makes me sound strange.”

  “And it’s your careless manner that keeps me from weeping at your cruel remarks.”

  “What?” Sheyn turned to look into Luks’s eyes.

  “When you insult me, it’s with such lack of emotion that I feel foolish taking offense. Yet, it still hurts.”

  “I don’t understand. When have I insulted you… recently?”

  “A few moments ago, you called me ignorant.”

  “You are ignorant. That’s not an insult. It’s an observation.”

  “Well, it isn’t very pleasant to be observed by you.”

  “Should I stop speaking the truth, then?”

  “You could be kinder about it.” Luks reached behind him for a cake of soap. “No one likes to be told he’s ignorant, or backward, or a savage.”

  Sheyn’s immediate impulse was to tell Luks to educate himself and behave in a civilized manner, but he held his tongue.

  “Sit on the step and I’ll wash your hair for you,” Luks said to make up for what he said next. “Suppose I constantly reminded you that your nose is long? Or that your voice can be as harsh as a snarling dog? Or that you’re never satisfied?”

  Sheyn did as Luks instructed. “Is that how you think of me?” he asked as Luks worked the lather into his scalp.

  “Sometimes.”

  Sheyn drew his knees up and rested his crossed arms on them. “I’ve never thought much about it, but all my life I’ve been surrounded by people who did nothing but praise me.” He smiled. “I’ve always been the brightest, most sought-after person in whatever group I was in. My parents, my teachers, my friends all treated me like….” Sheyn paused. “No one has ever told me I was wrong, or that there was a thing I could not have. The one time my parents withheld their permission, I defied them, and that is what brought me here.”

  “Relax and lie back,” Luks said softly. He supported Sheyn’s shoulders as Sheyn let his feet float up. Letting Sheyn’s head sink a bit, Luks rinsed the suds from his hair. “I don’t think you’re a bad person. And I don’t think you’re being punished.”

  “Why don’t you think that?” Sheyn righted himself in the waist-deep water. “Doesn’t it fit neatly into your religious views?”

  Luks splashed Sheyn in the face.

  “What did I say now?” Sheyn asked as water dripped from his chin.

  “You were looking down on my faith again.” Luks chuckled at the expression on Sheyn’s face. “But it’s all right. I truly believe you can’t help it. You’re just naturally arrogant.”

  “Never mind that. Do I still have charcoal on my face?” Sheyn said.

  “A little smudge here and there.” Luks took up the soap again and washed Sheyn’s face. “There. Your skin is as fair as snow again.” He tilted his head. “Actually, it’s more like cream. You’ve been spending a lot more time outdoors.”

  “Don’t tell me daaksim aren’t allowed to tan their skin.”

  Luks laughed again. “No, that’s not one of the rules. Are you hungry?”

  “I could eat half a horse on toasted bread.”

  “I’m not surprised. Rumor has it that you defeated an army of demons single-handed.”

  “That’s not true,” Sheyn said as he got out of pool and offered Luks his hand. “The Bastard helped out where he could.”

  Luks pulled Sheyn back into the pool and climbed out while Sheyn was getting his feet under him.

  “That wasn’t very nice,” Sheyn said as he pulled wet hair away from his face.

  “No it wasn’t,” Luks replied. “But it was oddly satisfying.” He held out a hand to Sheyn, only to pull it back when Sheyn reached for it. Laughing at the expression on Sheyn’s face, he walked away from the pool to wrap himself in a large square of cloth.

  Sheyn dove beneath the surface before emerging from the pool near where Luks was brushing his wet hair. He wrapped himself in his robe, made a rope of his hair, and squeezed out as much water as he could.

  “I’ll comb it for you in front of the fire when we get back to our quarters,” Luks said.

  “I’d like that,” Sheyn said as he followed him out of the bathhouse. “Kashyan is coming to visit me later.”

  “You needn’t worry that I’ll hang about. I’ll be staying in Prince Kholya’s quarters.”

  “That’s become a habit.”

  “I can tell when you’re teasing me now.” Luks gave Sheyn a sideways glance. “What are you planning to wear?”

  “Plan?”

  “You really are hopeless. Luckily, you have me to keep you from looking so ignorant.” Luks took Sheyn’s hand again and led him away. “Just do as I instruct, and you and Prince Kashyan will both be well-pleased.”

  KASHYAN OPENED the door to the daaksim’s room and gestured for the guards to bring the trays inside. When the guards returned to their posts, Kashyan looked around for Sheyn. “Pearl?” he called in a voice very much unlike the one he used on the battlefield.

  “I’m in here,” Sheyn called from the next room. “And I’m too warm to move.”

  Kashyan grabbed one of the trays and a pitcher and carried them through the curtained entrance to the next chamber. His heart leaped and he nearly dropped the tray when he saw Sheyn sprawled across a large cushion in front of the brazier. The flames licked Sheyn’s pale skin with tongues of red as he rolled onto his side.

  “I hope it’s all right,” Sheyn said. “Luks tried to help me choose a robe, but after my bath, I didn’t want to wear anything.” He met Kashyan’s gaze and smiled at the hunger he saw there. “No playing about until after I eat. I had an entire loaf that was left from Luks’s midday meal and I’m still starving.”

  Kashyan set the tray down beside Sheyn and pulled off the cloth. “Start eating,” he said. “I’ll go get the rest of it.”

  When Kashyan returned, Sheyn looked up from the roast fowl he was tearing right off the bone with his teeth. “Wonderful,” Kashyan said with genuine admiration. He had no use for dainty manners, and he preferred Sheyn’s lean, hard angles to Luks’s softer curves. Making himself comfortable among the cushions, he p
oured a cup of ale.

  “I have a quarrel with you,” Sheyn said after he wiped grease from his mouth.

  “What have I done?”

  “You’ve not kept your promise.”

  “What promise?” Kashyan bit into a sun apple and squeezed some of its juice into his cup.

  “When I gave myself to you the first time, you promised me a sword.”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  Sheyn sat up and sheaves of pale hair shifted, half veiling his body. “You deny it?”

  “I said we’d speak of the possibility of a sword for you.”

  “Then speak.” Sheyn paused. “My lord.”

  Kashyan grinned. “Giving orders comes so naturally to you,” he marveled.

  “Don’t change the subject. I want a sword.”

  “This instant?”

  “I wouldn’t mind.”

  Kashyan chuckled. “I suppose you’ll threaten to deny me your body if I refuse.”

  “I’d never make such a vulgar bargain… again.”

  Kashyan laughed heartily. “It’s no secret that I desire you, but damn me if I haven’t grown fond of you as well. Kholya was right.”

  “I see.” Sheyn picked out a honey cake and reclined against a bank of pillows to nibble at it. “Would you say you’re as fond of me as… your horse?”

  Something in Sheyn’s voice warned Kashyan that quicksand lay somewhere along this path. “Yes,” he said cautiously.

  “If something was causing him pain, such as a sharp bit or a shoe nail, you’d remedy it.”

  “Yes.”

  “Then why do you deny me the thing that will give me the greatest comfort?”

  “A sword?” Kashyan guessed.

  “Surely you can imagine how vulnerable I feel without a weapon.”

  “I’ve heard some daaksim carry jeweled daggers. Would you like one of those?”

  “How can I make you understand?” Sheyn said in frustration. “How do I make you see me as a person? You’d never deny a man the means to defend himself, but you do it easily enough to me. Why?”

  “You don’t need a weapon. I’m here to protect you.”

  “I’m not a chest filled with gold and jewels. I can defend myself if you’ll let me.” Sheyn clenched his fists. “It maddens me that I’m forced to ask permission.”