by R. E. Carr
“Commoners’ clothes—now!” Sotaka snapped.
Within seconds, Eon and Kei somehow managed to scramble into peasant clothes while Jenn was still tangled in a tunic. Both men whirled to face the wall at the mere hint of glimpsing a side boob.
“The Great Bear is a man of faith, but he is also a beast of cunning,” Sotaka said as he handed a blade to Eon. “Know that if your promises prove to be false, the suffering you will endure will eclipse anything you would expect in your hell. Are we clear, Eon of the Phantoms?”
“I am a murderer, not a liar, Sotaka of Beasts,” Eon said.
“Oh my God, we’re totally sneaking out of town tonight, and this was all a big distraction, wasn’t it?” Jenn blurted out.
“We Beasts are not as pigheaded and simpleminded as our enemies claim,” Sotaka said before handing Kei a dagger as well. The shaman wrapped his friend in a one-armed embrace. “Go with the spirits, old friend, and stay out of trouble.”
Kei let out a deep sigh. “Just tell my father that I will not fail him . . . for once.”
“Do you think anyone has figured out that we’re gone?” Jenn asked as she counted the endless green hills. “Still no sign of the Port of Jasturia, even though it’s been like three days.”
“I told you. When last I came here, it was just me. Two inexperienced riders weren’t slowing me down,” Eon said as they crested another hill and still saw nothing but farmland.
“No one has tried to kill us yet, so I can only assume that Sotaka and my father’s ruse is working,” Kei added.
“Apparently Adana’s cousin is quite tall, with red hair,” Winowa said. I heard that she would stay in the temple.”
“So I have a decoy. But what about Kei?”
“Believe me, my tribe has ignored my existence for years,” Kei growled. “I am only making life easy for them.”
Jenn sank farther under her hood. She tugged at the headband that covered her gem while Kei scratched at the bindings on his arms. Jenn rubbed her sore thighs.
“I am definitely no cowgirl,” she groaned as her elk hopped over a pothole in the road.
“Are you all right?” Kei asked.
She smiled weakly and added, “Just sore. I think I have blisters on places I’d rather not mention.”
He slowed his elk down and pulled closer. “There is something I need to tell you. It is about—”
“You and Winowa? I kinda guessed when she showed up on our merry little escape.”
“I see,” he hissed. Jenn missed the next part of his mumbling. Finally, he looked up and said. “I do care about her, Ji-ann.”
Jenn grimaced. Kei’s gray skin had taken on that sickly rose color he got when he blushed. His normally bright-blue eyes seemed dull and lifeless.
“Kei, I’d understand if you—”
“No, I have had enough sin in my life. I will not add betrayal to that list.”
“Kei, I won’t consider myself betrayed. If you and Winowa belong together, I won’t stand between you. Neither one of us asked to be Joined, did we? We’ll just put on a show of being married when we have to and not kill ourselves the rest of the time by pretending. We can just be friends and go our separate ways, right?”
“It sounds so easy,” Kei sighed.
“We can’t force ourselves to feel one way when we—”
“I am confused now, Ji-ann.”
“Just think about it, OK? I guess . . . I’m just sick of things being weird. You’re not a bad guy, Kei. You know that, right?”
He looked at his hands holding the reins. “I am not human, that is all.”
“That isn’t—”
“Stop!” Eon called.
Kei and Jenn pranced up to join Winowa and Eon. They all stopped to gawk at a row of tattered animal pelts fluttering on huge crosses driven into the ground. Kei hissed, pulling himself as far back as he could.
“What are those?” Jenn asked.
“Gorecrowes,” Winowa said. “The Jasturians put them out to ward off the Beast Tribe. The one in the center is always a bear pelt.”
“Why—?”
Eon cut off Jenn this time. The Phantom clutched his temple. “I hear the whine,” he said. “Fairly strong, just beyond that hill.”
Kei sniffed the air. “Nearly human scent—several bodies.”
“At least one is a Knight. Ji-ann, Kei, stay back. Winowa, can you help me? Do you speak any of the common tongues?” Eon asked.
Winowa nodded. “I know Jasturian.”
“Good. You stay right beside me and smile a lot. Say, let me borrow that scarf from your hair.” Eon quickly tied Kei’s hair up and yanked a flower off a nearby bush.
The party rode slowly over the next hill, lumbering like carefree traders. Another, larger caravan was halted by the road, munching on a delicious-smelling lunch. A man with wavy auburn hair and a broad grin waved to Eon as he passed.
“Translation index on.”
“You on your way to the port?” the stranger asked.
Eon nodded. “I heard there was much trade. I was looking to do business,” he said.
The red-haired man raised a brow. “You travel light to do business. What’s your trade, commoner?”
Eon snickered. “What common man travels with three beautiful women? You tell me what you think my business is.”
Kei, Jenn, and Winowa looked at one another. “Three?” Jenn mouthed under her hood.
“We like the one with golden hair. Maybe we could do business,” the redhead asked.
Jenn could hear Kei growling. She crossed her fingers. “What’s with the ‘we’?” the Serif-fan muttered to herself.
“Not until I reach the Port. My partner is meeting me there. I just guard the women. He makes the deals,” Eon said with a shrug.
“We see. Well, our friends are about to pack up and head to the coast. You fancy our company?” the redhead asked.
“The more the merrier,” Eon said.
“Kei . . .behave,” Jenn whispered.
One of the swarthy men from the redhead’s band walked by and squeezed Jenn’s thigh. She suppressed a gag by turning it into a giggle. She nearly burst out into full laughter as another pair of thugs sauntered over to Kei.
“Hey, I think this one is a grunt,” one cried back.
The redhead looked at Eon with concern. “Is she?” he asked.
Eon smiled. “She is, and you had better keep that girl covered. You know what the sun does to them. I would hate to have my partner have to charge his losses out on you, my friend.”
“Leave the gray one alone. We don’t want you fools getting us any further into debt,” he said. Suddenly he turned and bowed to Eon. “Oh, we’ve been rude. Our current name is Julian, Sir Julian Riahos of Kai City. Our band and we were going to enter the tournament. Maybe we’ll win enough to get a spin with your pretty one.”
Eon shrugged. “Who knows what the future may hold? Say, what is this tournament you speak of? Will it mean good business?”
“You haven’t heard of the Jasturian Tourney? Where have you been?” Julian asked as he saddled up his own Jar-Elk. “It’s only the biggest betting scene in all the free lands. Hundreds of fighters come to test their skill against the local Knights. There are so many onlookers, they have to shut down the port.”
“The port is completely shut down?” Eon asked.
“Only the Baroness and her army can move their ships in or out. It’s a royal pain, but it keeps order. We think she really does it so her bureaucrats can milk more tax money off the commerce that is forced to stay within her jurisdiction. Oh, we didn’t catch your name. What was it?”
“Balaam,” Eon said. “You know, I am grateful for your escort. I would hate for my women to travel at the mercy of commoners.”
“Well, it is still the Knights’ duty to maintain order in these lands. It’s getting to be a rather thankless job, we’ll tell you that. Ever since the old Baron had his lit
tle ‘accident’ the crime has gotten awful in Jasturia.”
Eon raised a brow. “I heard it was never that good to begin with.”
Julian motioned his gang to move out, then swung up onto his magnificent white elk’s saddle. “You may be right, but it has never been as bad as it is now. Our partners, Sir Reginald . . . they were ambushed by a pack of rabble using illegal crossbows from the western lands. Even the ancestors couldn’t save them from a shot through the heart.”
“May their souls rest in peace. I’ll make sure to have a drink tonight in their honor,” Eon said.
“Ah, then let us recommend a good inn—since you are obviously new to the city. You know, we like you, Balaam. We know you’re a Westerner, at least in part, but you somehow lack their oily manner.”
“You are too kind, Sir Knight.”
“How does he stand it?” Kei whispered.
“It must be his special gift,” Jenn whispered back. “We’re gonna need it if the port is closed off. Wait a sec. How do you know—”
Kei tapped the back of his hand nervously, and said, “I think it has something to do with this.”
“Jenn, I am currently transmitting the translation of this conversation directly into his piloting matrix. Be warned. I am still not one hundred percent accurate with this particular dialect of the Knight language.”
“Yeah, I think something is wrong with the plurals. This guy keeps saying “we” instead of ‘I’ when talking about himself.”
“Verifying. No, he is referring to himself in the plural sense. He seems to be what is commonly called a Knight, a composite being of consciousness layers passed down through genetic memory.”
“So that one guy is a bunch of people?”
“No, his is a single organic form possessed by multiple . . . perhaps the best way to place it in your frame of reference is to say that he has multiple personalities of his ancestors inside his head.”
“Gotcha.”
“Kei, I think it’s the voice in my head,” Jenn whispered.
“May the spirits save me,” he mumbled back.
Jenn kept watching the new caravan while Eon and Julian chatted. Winowa remained remarkably jovial and composed, even with a horde of men leering at her. Kei remained the most miserable of all, suffocating under his oppressive green hood and occasionally affecting a female giggle to ward off suspicion.
“I am going to hurt him,” Kei growled when he overheard Eon extolling the virtues of Machidonian female anatomy.
“He’s getting us into the city, isn’t he?”
“At what price? I do not make a very convincing woman. Once night falls, my Machidonian excuse runs out.”
“Um, I did have an idea. Do you want to be my pet cat?”
“If it means I do not have to be a prostitute, it is fine by me.”
They both started giggling in the back. Winowa shot them a strange look.
“I think we should shut up now. We’re getting close to the city,” Jenn said. “Whoa!”
As they rounded a group of farmhouses, Jenn could see the Port of Jasturia nestled along the coast. Thousands of scarlet banners streamed along the road, along with a fair amount of traffic. She could see hundreds of sandstone houses with Tudor-style roofs and half-timber beams. She gawked at the elk-drawn carriages and the parades of guardsmen in full metal armor. Loud music came from companies of minstrels and circus performers touting their services by the street.
“I’ve entered the world’s largest Ren Faire,” Jenn muttered. “And it stinks like the line for the porta potties.”
“Stay close. The thieves like to work the road near here,” Julian warned.
Eon guided his band into the center. He seemed completely without care as he rode through the ever-growing throng. “So, Julian, can only Knights enter this tourney?” he asked, ignoring the trinket seller to his left.
“No, but it always ends up as a contest between Knights. Six years ago, a commoner made it to the quarterfinals. Baron Adair awarded the poor sap quite a hefty purse, but he never lived to spend it. He got cocky and challenged the baron’s sons.”
“I take it that’s a bad idea?” Eon said with concern.
“Depends, really. The elder, Farris, were a monster to behold. The younger, Dailyn, are even worse. Those brats can call upon the power of the first Knight, Justinian. Anyway, the poor commoner, said he could beat Farris. He ended up beheaded. We think he got off lucky, considering what would have happened if he had challenged Dailyn.”
“Is this Farris in the tourney this year?” Eon asked.
“No, Farris Adair were dishonored five years ago. Last we heard, they walked into the desert and never came back. If the heat didn’t kill them, we’re sure the grunts did.”
“Of course,” Eon said, but some of the confidence left his voice.
“This year will be Dailyn’s for sure. That is, if their aunt lets them compete. She has sons just old enough to enter. The only way their victory is assured is if Dailyn are out of the competition,” Julian sighed. “As for ourselves, we just want to win enough fights to pay off our debts. There’s a purse in every round, you know.”
“Maybe I’ll compete,” Eon said.
“Be careful, our friend. You’ll have no idea who the Baroness will pit you against in the first round. She likes to throw Westerners to the wolves.”
“Do the Beast Men ever enter?” Eon asked.
“If only. The baroness has been desperate to get one of their kind into the arena.”
“They never come?”
“Not willingly,” Julian said with a sad laugh. “You know how those animals are. They sit up in their forest watching for anyone to get too close. Then when you least expect it, they rip you apart. Terrifying creatures they are. Everyone, and we do mean everyone, in town would pay to see one of them.” He paused to look at a rotting skull of a tiger perched on a pike. He shook his head sadly at the sight. “They tried using captives once, but it was no use.”
“I know of a Beast who may fight—my partner,” Eon offered.
Julian’s dark eyes lit up with delight. “The Baroness would love you for getting him in. If he does well, you would earn her favor; that is, if you had a proper introduction.”
Eon chuckled. “Of course, I would offer you a cut. There is one thing I want.”
“Anything.”
“I need a way to get to Caybera Island quickly. I have time-sensitive business.”
“Time sensitive?” Julian asked.
“I won’t inquire about your methods if you don’t inquire about my business, Sir Knight.”
“Can your partner fight?” Julian asked.
Jenn looked back at Kei. He was holding the reins so tight they looked like they were on the verge of snapping.
Eon leaned in toward Julian and said softly, “The boy is a natural. I would bet he could even defeat a Knight. We are talking serious profit here.”
“Kei, I can hear that growl. Cut it out,” Jenn hissed.
“I am not some animal for them to place bets on,” he hissed back. “Is he mad? He is all but announcing our presence here.”
“I’m sure Eon knows what he is doing.”
“Agreed. We split his winnings fifty-fifty, and if he makes it high enough to garner favor with the Baroness, we will make sure to get you on a patrol ship out to the island.”
“Agreed,” Eon said with a cocky grin.
“Maybe I was wrong,” Jenn moaned.
Their party slogged through traffic for a good few hours, until finally a man in black armor stood before Julian. “Welcome back to the Port of Jasturia, good Knight. I take it your business is the tournaments. Do you have papers, or do we need to pass you on to the customs line?”
Jenn looked in horror at the snaking queue of caravans waiting for the one clerk on duty to write them entry papers. She sighed with relief as Julian showed a scroll to the guard and claimed he had thirteen in his band.
“Move on through,” the patrolman sa
id.
“That’s all? He just showed some paper?” Jenn asked Winowa.
“Julian is a Knight. He assumes responsibility for our actions while we are in the city,” Winowa whispered. “Eon has earned his trust, it seems.”
“The Boar and Beer isn’t too far. We have a tab there that simply needs to be run up. Why don’t you and your girls enjoy our hospitality there? You can go find your partner so we can finalize arrangements. Registration continues from sunup to sundown tomorrow. We are telling you, Balaam, it was fate that brought us together. The holy mother of gamblers and Knights must be looking out for us this day.”
“She certainly has a sense of timing,” Eon said.
The group ended up tying their elk and carts into the crowded stables beside the Boar and Beer Inn. A boy of no more than ten began removing the tack almost immediately. Julian leaned over and gave him a coin and some quick instructions. Eon, always the perfect gentleman, helped all his women down, although Kei rewarded him with another light rake of his claws.
“Are you going to get your partner?” Julian asked.
“He’s been with us all along—watching to make sure that no one was out to swindle us. He’s quite the cagey fighter. It’s all right, Kei. You can pull back your hood,” Eon said.
Julian’s eyes grew wide as Kei reached up and pushed his cloak back. “But he’s got gray skin!” Julian gasped.
“Half Machidonian, half Beast. What rarer specimen could I possibly provide you? Now do you see why I was asking so many questions?”
“You play the game well, Westerner,” Julian said. “He can fight?”
“If I have to,” Kei snarled.
“Even his voice is scary,” Julian said. “You brought one hell of a gladiator, Balaam. We’ll give you that. We’ll register him first thing in the morning, and then we’ll go play the crowd. We think we know a rigger down in the docks that can keep his odds pushed up so we make more of a killing if he wins. We’ll also sic our boys on the courtiers of Baroness Adair. She’ll want to keep him alive as long as possible if she is intrigued.”
“And what happens to Kei if he loses?” Jenn interrupted.
“You can surrender at any time, girl,” Julian sighed. “Once he gets up to the rounds with the Knights, he can put up a bit of a fight, take a small wound, and retire from the contest honorably. As long as he makes it to the final sixteen, we make one hell of a profit!”
