Lightning Tracks

by A. A. Kinsela

  The first page read: A complete history of the Korelian monarchy, written and compiled by Valerius, Korelian Prefect and Consul.

  Underneath that, in a darker shade of ink, was added: And Head of the Auremos Council.

  Then came an introductory paragraph.

  The Korelian monarchy has existed for nearly two thousand years. During this time, the kingdom has expanded and contracted, risen to greatness and plunged to the brink of collapse. It has survived plagues, wars, natural devastation and slave rebellions to become the thriving centre that it is today. Much of our modern technology is attributed to the forward-thinking Korelians of the most recent eras.

  Nick snorted. Modern technology? Forward-thinking? Auremos might have running water, key locks, and fortifications to rival the Great Wall of China, but in Nick’s opinion that hardly made it an advanced society.

  He returned to the book.

  The Korelian royal bloodline stemmed from its first queen, Aquilina. Once defended by the legendary Penumbra Guard, which was disbanded following the second slave rebellion three hundred years ago, Korelian monarchs are now protected by the Penumbra Guard’s more ruthless successors, the Arai.

  The introduction ended there. The rest of the book contained biographies of monarchs and their families, but several pages at the end were blank, as if the author had stopped just short of the climax. Nick thumbed to one of the final biographies.

  Alastor was the eldest of four boys. He became king at the age of 22 after his mother, Katerin, died of disease of the lungs. Alastor married Hadriana, the daughter of a prefect, and they had one child, a girl named Phoebe.

  Nick’s heart missed a beat. Phoebe. That was his mother’s name. He read on, skipping past the details of trade networks and treaties till his gaze tripped over the name ‘Thanos’.

  Alastor had an affair with a beautiful slave woman, and they had a child, Thanos. Alastor was a much-loved and well-respected monarch, but this scandal cast a dark shadow over his reputation.

  When Thanos was fourteen years old, Alastor was assassinated. The assassin attempted to murder Thanos as well but was unsuccessful. Many suspect the assassin was one of the Arai. Others believe it was a Yándi warrior. The identity of the assassin, however, was never discovered.

  The next three entries were about Alastor’s brothers, but Nick ignored them and went straight to Phoebe’s page.

  Phoebe was the daughter of Alastor and Hadriana. She spent her childhood in Auremos, where she received Arai training and a classical education. Her relationship with her father became strained after the revelation that he had another child with a slave woman, and there has been speculation that this is what eventually led her, at the age of seventeen, to elude her bodyguards and run away. Soon afterwards, she met a young Yándi warrior called Jónatan and they fell in love.

  Nick stared at the page, his nerves tingling. Jonathan and Phoebe Williams were his parents. The Auremos Council had called his dad Jónatan instead of Jonathan. This couldn’t be a coincidence. Nick read on, breathless.

  Phoebe was in Yándemar when Alastor was assassinated. She heard through an Arai contact that suspicion had fallen on her. Thanos had convinced the Korelian people that Phoebe had sent Jónatan to kill him and his father, Alastor, to clear the way for her succession. Even though Phoebe was next in line to the throne, she was convicted in absentia as a traitor and Thanos was crowned king. She became a fugitive, hunted by her own people. All through Yándemar, word spread that Phoebe and Jónatan were in trouble, and the Yándi closed ranks.

  Thanos made it clear that he would invade Yándemar if the Yándi continued to shield Phoebe and Jónatan. As a direct result of this threat, the Bandála was formed, a united Yándi resistance force led by Jónatan and his cousin, David. They became known among the Yándi as Jónatan Kaléysan and David Rayámina.

  Nick gripped the book hard, his fury rising. His father had led the Bandála with David. They’d fought the Arai together. Why then did David have the Arai tattoo? And why had David branded Nick with it, after both his parents had died fighting this enemy?

  With a strangled yell, Nick leapt up and kicked over the chair. What was he missing? Why had David marked him? Why? It made no sense. He paced for several minutes before leaning over the desk to read on.

  The Bandála and the Arai fought for many months, and the Yándi borders were pushed farther and farther west. Despite being in exile, Phoebe recruited a large contingent of Arai deserters sympathetic to her cause, and with their help the Bandála captured Auremos and forced Thanos and his Arai out of the city.

  Five years later, Thanos returned with a larger force of Arai and met the Bandála in the Battle of Deadman’s Stretch. Thanos and his Arai were defeated once again, but before they left, they set fire to the eastern quarter of Auremos. In the confusion, Phoebe was captured and taken back to Korelios, where she was executed.

  Nick ran his hands over his dreadlocks and released a long, difficult breath before working up the courage to read the final paragraph.

  Phoebe and Jónatan had a child, Nicholas. To the Yándi, he was known as Nicholas Kári. It is believed that Thanos sent an Arai assassin to kill him a week after Phoebe’s execution. He was three years old.

  Nick slapped the desk. This was why he’d grown up on the other side of the song gate. This was why the Arai had made an appearance in his life. Thanos executed Phoebe, and probably ordered the Arai to kill Jónatan too. Now he wanted Nick dead. But what about the Auremos Council? Why were they so suspicious of him? Did they want him dead too?

  ‘What are you doing in here?’ a rasping voice asked.

  Nick jolted with fright, knocking over a pile of papers which slid to the floor with a loud rustle. Valerius held up an oil lamp and surveyed the mess.

  ‘I-I’m sorry, sir,’ Nick said, scurrying to pick up the papers. ‘I was...I didn’t mean to...I couldn’t...it’s just that I needed to know.’

  Valerius snatched the papers from him. ‘What were you looking for, boy?’

  ‘Well, um, at first I wanted to know what you wrote about my hearing, but then...’ Nick pointed a shaky finger to The Monarchy of Korelios. ‘I found that.’

  Valerius’ glare softened. He set his lamp on the table and picked up the book, running his arthritic fingers across the leather binding. ‘Ah, yes. This has taken me thirty-five years to compile. Back when I started, it was an easier time. A safer time.’ He tapped the imprint on the front cover, ‘Do you know what this means?’

  ‘No, sir.’

  Valerius grunted. ‘I didn’t think so. The circle represents the sun, the giver of life. The two lines spiralling out are hands that hold the sun, symbolising the ultimate power of the monarchy.’ He prodded Nick’s chest. ‘All royal heirs are marked with the Arai tattoo. When one of them becomes king or queen, the hands are added.’

  Nick’s jaw dropped. There it was. There was his answer. The reason David had marked him. The reason Mía had been so frightened of the mark. It had nothing to do with the Arai, and everything to do with them.

  ‘Did David...?’ He licked his lips. ‘Did he want me to...take over...after Thanos? Is that why he tattooed me?’

  Valerius thumbed to the back of the book and opened it at a blank page. ‘There’s still space. If you want it.’

  Nick swallowed. ‘But...hasn’t Thanos got kids who can deal with...all that?’

  ‘Yes, he has children. As Phoebe’s son, though, you have a stronger claim to the throne. Stronger even than Thanos.’

  ‘Oh. Right. So...but...nothing will really happen until Thanos is dead. He isn’t dead, is he?’

  Valerius fixed Nick with a deliberate stare and said, ‘No, Thanos isn’t dead. Yet.’

  Nick leaned on the desk as the full weight of that statement hit him. They were planning to kill Thanos. Kill him. Kill him so that Nick could take his place. The thought was too much to comprehend.

  Valerius glanced at the scattered papers and snapped the book shut, making N
ick jump. ‘No one has ever dared to break into the council chambers before, let alone my office.’

  ‘I’ll clean it up.’

  ‘No, you won’t. You’ve made enough mess already.’

  Valerius scooped up his lamp and Nick followed him to the foyer.

  As he opened the front door of the council chamber, Valerius said, ‘If I catch you here again, boy, I will not hesitate to lock you in the vaults. Now go home.’

  The door slammed shut. Nick leaned against a pillar, consumed by the hugeness of his discovery. It was strange to finally know who his parents were and what they’d done. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that yet, and when he considered how he fit into it all, and what David had planned for him, he shuddered.

  Artemis stepped out from behind the sundial, arms crossed and expression sullen. She’d known who he was even before he did. He wondered what she thought about it all. He decided not to ask just yet, since the sight of him seemed to have turned her mood sour.

  ‘Are you always on duty this late?’ he asked, walking down the steps.

  ‘No. I’m usually home by now.’

  ‘Then what are you still doing here?’

  ‘Making sure you don’t get yourself thrown in the vaults. Again.’

  ‘Have you been guarding my apartment?’

  ‘I was tonight. I’m amazed you managed to slip past Kráytos, let alone get into the chamber.’

  ‘Yeah, well, it wasn’t easy.’

  She cast him a withering look. ‘I noticed.’

  ‘How...? Oh. You saw me come out of the bathhouse. Why didn’t you stop me?’

  ‘I wanted to see what you could do.’

  He straightened. ‘Really? So how do I rate?’

  ‘Low. You have a lot to learn.’

  His shoulders slumped. ‘Right. And I suppose you’re an expert, are you?’

  She didn’t answer, but her lips curled into a secretive smile, making dimples appear in her cheeks. Nick’s thoughts scattered.

  ‘What were you looking for in the council chamber?’ she asked.

  ‘Answers.’

  ‘Did you find them?’

  ‘Yep.’

  She released a long breath. ‘Wow.’

  ‘The truth is not wow. Not even remotely.’

  ‘What is it, then?’

  ‘It’s ridiculous. The whole idea is stupid.’

  With a frown, she asked, ‘What idea?’

  ‘The one where I take over from Thanos!’

  She pushed him against the stone wall of a house, clapped a palm over his mouth, and whispered, ‘Don’t yell that out, you idiot.’

  He pulled her hand away. ‘Why not? It’s what the Bandála want, isn’t it?’

  ‘Maybe.’

  ‘What do you mean, maybe? You should know. You’re one of them.’

  She sighed. ‘It would certainly help the Bandála’s cause if someone made sure the Arai stayed in their own territory.’

  ‘But?’

  ‘But some people think the monarchy shouldn’t exist at all.’

  A chill settled over Nick. The Arai assassin had said something similar when he’d been about to kill Nick. He’d said he was doing it because Nick existed. Was that because he’d wanted to wipe out the monarchy, or just Nick?

  He glanced at Artemis’s hand, still pressed against his chest, and asked, ‘Is that what you think? That the monarchy shouldn’t exist?’

  She stepped back. ‘No.’

  ‘What about Thanos? Do you think he should be...gotten rid of?’

  Without hesitation, she replied, ‘Yes. He’s killing people. And not just his enemies.’ She sighed and gestured towards the street. ‘Come on. I have to get you home.’

  They walked the rest of the way in silence. Nick was far too distracted with everything he had learned to make conversation. When they arrived at Market Square, Kráytos blazed a trail towards them, his gigantic strides eating up the cobblestones. Nick considered bolting back the way he’d come.

  ‘Artemis, please don’t tell Kráytos how I got out.’

  Her gaze flicked between Kráytos and Nick then she leaned closer with a spark of mischief in her eyes. ‘Fine,’ she murmured. ‘But you owe me one, Nicholas Kári.’ And with that, she disappeared up an alley.

  Kráytos rested a huge hand on Nick’s shoulder. ‘You aren’t supposed to be out here, boy.’

  ‘I just went for a midnight stroll.’

  Kráytos’s grip tightened. ‘How did you get out?’

  ‘Ow! I climbed through a window in the bathroom.’

  As Kráytos steered him across the square, Nick squirmed and glanced back several times to see if he could spot Artemis, but she was long gone.

  Once they were in the foyer, Kráytos shut the front door and said, ‘Stop a minute, Nick.’

  The lock turned. Nick tried to calculate how far up the stairwell he’d get before Kráytos caught him. Nick was fast, but Kráytos looked capable of bounding to the rooftop in three seconds.

  ‘If you want to leave the building, you have to let me know.’

  Nick rolled his eyes. ‘I don’t need a babysitter.’

  He skittered back as Kráytos loomed over him and pressed an ample index finger into his chest, right on his hidden Arai tattoo.

  ‘You have to earn respect here, Nicholas Kári. It’s not a birthright.’

  ‘Um, okay.’

  ‘Okay what?’

  He sighed. ‘Okay, sir.’

  Kráytos stepped back. ‘Better. Now get going.’

  Nick hurried upstairs, glad he was still in one piece.

  Chapter 19: The Arai oath

  Cal cupped his mug of black tea and watched the steam swirl and flicker. A breeze tugged at the kitchen shutters, making them bang against the sandstone wall. A belt of stars swung across the heavens and the new moon hovered near the horizon like a bruised and swollen eyelid.

  He hadn’t seen Artemis since they’d ridden through the city gates two days ago, but there were a few extra crusts and bones in the scrap bucket, so she must have come back at some point. He was relieved to know that she’d been here. That meant Julian had kept his word. Artemis was more than capable of defending herself, but Julian was cunning and powerful, qualities that made him a dangerous enemy. And Cal still didn’t know why Julian wanted his compliance.

  The front door creaked open. Artemis trudged into the kitchen and slumped onto the bench.

  ‘Where have you been?’ Cal asked. ‘You disappeared last night.’

  She flapped a tired hand. ‘Valerius had me working a double shift.’

  ‘Straight after the scouting mission? Why?’

  ‘Because of Nick.’

  Cal grunted. Nick was turning out to be more trouble than he was worth.

  ‘Who is Nick? You still haven’t told me.’

  ‘I know. Sorry. It wasn’t safe with all the others around.’ She poured herself a cup of tea and gulped it down.

  ‘Well?’ Cal prompted.

  Her fingernails tapped the cup. Cal frowned. It wasn’t like Artemis to get nervous. Nick’s appearance had rattled her quite badly.

  ‘Okay. Were you ever told a story when you were little about a bush nymph who’d play an enchanted flute that would entice you into the trees and you’d disappear forever?’

  Cal stared at her, confused. ‘Er...sort of. I’ve heard rumours about things called song gates. My mum used to warn me not to go into the Northern Highlands because the wind whistled through the trees and the music would carry me away to a land where giant lizards roamed under a sun that never set.’

  She blinked then said, ‘Close enough.’

  ‘What’s this got to do with Nick?’

  Her nails continued to click her teacup. ‘When General Alexander visited the mountain training camp after the solstice, I overheard what he told Roan that day and it made me feel...used. Betrayed.’ She stopped tapping. ‘Thanos ordered us to go to that Yándi camp on the summer solstice to stir up the Bandála and
flush someone out of hiding.’

  Cal straightened. ‘You mean Nick?’

  Artemis nodded.

  ‘Why? What’s so special about him?’

  ‘The king sees him as a threat.’

  With a snort, Cal said, ‘How could Nick possibly be a threat to Thanos? He has the Arai tattoo but he’s untrained. He’s not Bandála, and as far as I can tell, he hasn’t amassed his own army of Yándi warriors. The only way he could be a threat is if...’ His eyes widened. ‘Skata! Are you saying Nick has a claim to the throne?’

  In a quiet, anxious voice, Artemis said, ‘He’s Nicholas Kári.’

  Cal’s ears buzzed with the name. He leaned forward. ‘Seriously? The Nicholas Kári? Phoebe and Jónatan Kaléysan’s son?’

  She nodded.

  ‘But Nicholas Kári is supposed to be dead! That’s what we’ve always been told, anyway. The Arai killed him right after Phoebe and Kaléysan were executed.’

  ‘It was a lie. He was never found. Rayámina took him through a song gate. That’s where he’s been for the past thirteen years.’

  Cal stared out across the eastern quarter, his heart racing. Nicholas Kári was alive. Alive. And he was here. In Auremos.

  What would the Korelians think when they heard that Phoebe’s heir had returned? Many of them hated Thanos. Would they accept Nick as their king? And what about the Arai? Would they follow him? Cal’s mind filled with possibilities. Nick could reopen the trade networks, put a stop to border raids, ensure Highlander children were never taken again. He could regain the people’s trust, bring the Arai to account.

  He could rebuild Korelios.

  ‘This changes everything,’ Cal breathed.

  Artemis huffed. ‘Maybe. Maybe not. Nick is not what I imagined at all. I thought he’d be more like...I don’t know.’ She fidgeted with her tea cup. ‘He was supposed to at least know what he was up against. But he has no idea about anything. You should’ve heard the way he spoke to Kráytos the other night. Nick addressed him like an equal.’

  ‘Well, Nick is kind of above Kráytos, if you think about it,’ Cal said.