by David Duncan
"Lord Zoariyi," he said. "Go behind him. The rest of you stand back. Now, remove his harness, if you please. And his kilt."
"Is this necessary?" Boariyi objected.
"Yes." Wallie did not move his eyes from the hate-filled eyes of the old man. "His hairclip, too! Let me see your hands!"
The imposter showed them. "Fancy all you husky young swordsmen being scared of one old man," he sneered.
Wallie ignored the remark. "You may sit to remove your boots," he said.
It was only when the pathetic figure was stark naked and all his gear was safely out of reach that Wallie relaxed and sheathed his sword. He looked around at the faces filled with horror, fear, shame, and anger. "Later I will show you some of the sorcerer tricks," he explained, finding that his voice was defensive. It did seem ludicrous to take such precautions against such a weakling. "How did you know, Nnanji?"
Nnanji was staring at Chinarama with disgust and contempt. "Katanji told me, brother."
"Katanji? But how..."
"You remember on Griffon you showed us some of the sorcerer magic, brother? You got your fingers dirty. Yesterday Katanji was with me when I was presented to this... man. He had the same marks on his fingers. I didn't notice and Katanji didn't say anything. But he followed him afterward. He went to the house of a merchant and spent a long time there. They have a cage of pigeons in the yard-"
"Pigeons?" Boariyi spluttered.
"We don't understand, but we are grateful, my liege Nnanji," Tivanixi said, "to you and your brother. And to you, my liege Shonsu. We are very much in your debt." His face was basaltic with rage and humiliation. The others looked much the same.
"What do we do with him?" Zoariyi inquired.
"Let's get him safely locked up first," Wallie said, turning and heading for the door. He was staggered by the thought of a spy within the council itself-yet why not? All Chinarama had needed to know had been the salutes and oaths, which were public. He had not been required to fight. He could always plead an old man's failing memory when queried on anything. Obviously the younger men had secretly admired him as a tough old boy. They had protected him. He had told Rotanxi of the tryst's plans and finances, and of the importance of the seventh sword. It was all so infuriatingly obvious now that it was pointed out-and by Katanji, of course! That was why he had been the right one to take along on the Griffon expedition; he brought wisdom. And his eyes missed nothing, not even inkstains on fingers.
Wallie reached for the door handle, heard a board creak behind him, and whirled around, sword in hand. Chinarama crashed to the floor, slammed down by Nnanji like a swatted bug in a splash of blood, his head almost severed from his shoulders. A knife clattered at Wallie's feet.
They were all too stunned even to swear. For a moment the only sound was the death rattle, the only movement the twitching of the corpse. Boariyi had his sword out, Tivanixi's hand was on the hilt of his. The other three had their hands raised.
Wallie said, "Thank you, Nnanji," and his voice quavered.
Nnanji lifted his eyes from the body. He looked at Wallie and then grinned. His new sword was still dripping blood.
Wallie bent to pick up the knife. It was small and looked deadly sharp, but he did not test it with his thumb because the blade had been coated with something, like the knives he had found in Rotanxi's gown. Standard sorcerer issue?
This grubby room with its dirt-smeared windows, cobwebs on the panels, old ashes in the fireplace-it suddenly all became horribly sharp and clear, made more real by the awareness of death. He had so very nearly died here. They would have laid him on that filthy bed. Probably this had been Shonsu's room, so perhaps "that was where Doa had lain, waiting for her lover to return from the brothel. He hoped his trembling was not showing, but it probably was. He had just had a very narrow escape. Only Nnanji's incredible reflexes had saved him.
"Lord Shonsu!" Boariyi had turned red. "I was wrong, very wrong! I wish now to swear the third oath."
Nnanji was wiping his sword with Chinarama's kilt. The others were smiling, their suspicions forgotten. Honorable Nnanji had unmasked a spy, and the spy had tried to kill Lord Shonsu-there were no doubts about loyalties now.
"Honorable Nnanji," Boariyi continued, "I have never seen a more masterful piece of swordsmanship. I was a year behind you." He stepped over the body and held out a hand in admiration. Nnanji sheathed his sword and shook hands, grinning shyly up at the giant.
"I agree with that," Tivanixi said. "I had hardly started. Magnificent! The knife-was that sorcery?"
"In his boot, I expect," Nnanji said airily. He had one in his own boot because his mentor had told him to bring it.
"I may swear the third oath now, Lord Shonsu?" Boariyi asked.
"Wait! My lords!" Zoariyi was beaming. "Is this not a clear case for eleven thirty-nine?"
There was a pause as five minds searched the sutras. Then four faces broke into smiles and there was a chorus of agreement.
Nnanji, puzzled and irritated, looked at the smiles and then at Wallie. Wallie did not feel like smiling at all. The Sevenths had found a way out of their stupid status problem at the cost of turning Nnanji into a laughingstock. He struggled to maintain what he hoped was a poker face, but they were all waiting hopefully for him to speak. There was no way that he could deny them, none at all. Once again Nnanji had saved his life.
He must agree.
He turned toward Nnanji, therefore, and raised his sword. Nnanji blinked in surprise.
Wallie paused, then said it: "I am Shonsu, swordsman of the seventh rank, liege lord of the tryst of Casr, and I give thanks to the Most High..."
He was drowned out by Nnanji's astonished whoop and the others' laughter.
It was the salute to an equal.
†† ††
Thana stepped through the arch and paused at the top of the steps to survey the busy, noisy courtyard in its shadowing box of balconied walls. Swordsmen fencing, chanting sutras, arguing, singing, gambling... very nice! Men from bank to bank.
She glanced then at Jja, who was carrying a bundle and trying not to seem apprehensive. "Don't worry! You're Shonsu's. Just mention that and you'll have no trouble here."
Jja smiled and nodded without much confidence. Thana herself was aware of uneasy shiverings deep down inside. Ever since Yok she had been unable to see landlubber swordsmen in groups without those shiverings. Yet she had been assured that these swordsmen were well behaved now, bound by the blood oath and by strict rules of behavior toward civilians. But did those rules mention swordswomen? Still, Jja was Shonsu's and she was Nnanji's and he was liege lord, too. How many knew that, though?
Some juniors passing by at the bottom of the steps had seen them and stopped to admire. They were grinning, thumbs in belts, balancing on one foot and stamping the other, which was a humorous sign of approval, reminiscent of bulls pawing the ground. They did not look dangerous. Rather fun. "Come on," Thana said, and led the way down.
Wait by the steps, they had been told, and they would have had trouble doing otherwise, for soon the juniors were all around them, grinning, kidding, making slyly obscene suggestions about lunging lessons and how about a trip on your ship. Virile young men, fit and smart-most of them-and supremely confident and pleased with themselves, for the Goddess had called them to Her tryst. Firsts and Seconds to start with, then Thirds edged them out. No, there was no harm, and much flattery. A couple of them were knockouts, quite scrumptious. It was harder for Jja, of course, who could not banter back, but Thana was aware that she herself was enjoying this, giving as good as she was getting. It made her realize again how very young Nnanji was for his rank. She wondered how he'd made out. If he had failed, the one-year wait would kill him. He'd been unbearable.
Fanfare! Now what? The courtyard fell silent, faces turning toward the balcony where the trumpet was bellowing. The council was coming out-Shonsu, huge and looking very bleak, and right behind him was Nnanji. In a green kilt! He had made it! Jja grabbed Thana's arm i
n excitement and whispered congratulations. They began to edge closer. Nnanji of the Sixth! Party tonight!
Then the others. No, not all-the old one was missing. And Katanji? How did he get in there?
"Your honors, masters..." The squat chief herald had joined the notables and started to thunder his proclamation.
"Landlubbers!" Thana snarled in Jja's ear. "They do love this bilgey pomp, don't they?"
Then the herald described the unmasking of Chinarama as a sorcerer. Thana jumped as an explosion of male booing burst out all around, but she and Jja joined in, grinning at each other and adding a treble note to the chorus.
They almost missed the next bit, but it was about Nnanji killing the spy; it sounded as if Shonsu had just had a narrow escape. Thana put an arm round Jja, who had turned pale.
"Sutra eleven thirty-nine... outstanding courage or swordsmanship in the presence of an enemy shall be just and sufficient cause for promotion..." She had been studying Nnanji's grin, and everyone around her was talking-was that what she had heard? Seventh? Now Jja was hugging her, so it must be. She had done it! She'd always said she would.
Of course! Why had she ever doubted? Now it had actually happened, it felt quite inevitable.
"I've got one, too, Jja!" she said, and the slave woman nodded and laughed with her.
Much muttering around her.
"Never heard of that..."
"You mean he doesn't have to prove it..."
"What about the sutras..."
"That's a strip of rust..."
She studied the faces. The juniors were grinning and laughing, but the older men were scowling. Well, what would you expect? Lord Nnanji? It sounded good! And now they were on about his brother-it was hard to hear and even harder to see, now, for the crowd was filling in, packing closer around them. Third? Well, trust Katanji!
A few voices started the chorus from the song about him and were glared into silence by the seniors. Now there was cheering. The councilors were going back inside.
Lord Nnanji!
She wanted to dance a hornpipe. Wait till Tom'o hears about this!
"Aw, come on! Just a quick look!" said a voice behind her, but she wasn't paying attention. A tall Fourth with very well developed pectorals was asking her about Nnanji, and she was saying proudly that yes she was, and then Jja half squealed and half screamed, and Thana swung around and couldn't find her in the crowd of bare male shoulders and sword hilts and ponytails. Then she saw that a couple of Seconds had pulled Jja's wrap off and were tugging at the bundle she was holding in front of her. There was much laughter and some angry shouting, and Thana grabbed the Fourth and screamed that that was Shonsu's slave and there would be hell-
Then there was hell.
Where Shonsu had come from, she didn't know, but he came through the crowd as if it were long grass. There seemed to be bodies flying in all directions, and she was knocked down and rolled into a forest of legs and boots and a canopy of kilts. After a few kicks and stampings she was dragged to her feet and she began panicking her way toward the exit, fighting in a tumult of kilted men until she was carried backward by the current-and then Nnanji was there and he hugged her, and she clung to him.
His face was murderous. He began pulling her roughly back through the throng. He could see over the heads, but she could not; she hadn't realized quite how tall he was. She caught glimpses of Shonsu looming over the others as she and her husband pushed through the crowd, moving toward him slowly, for Nnanji might have top rank now, but what was needed here was beef and weight-although he was doing all right. And then they arrived at the edge of a clearing.
The two Seconds were kneeling there and Shonsu was blazing in the middle. Blazing! It was the only word she could think of. She had never seen a fury like that-he was a giant, rampant. He glanced at someone in her direction, and his eyes were red. Impossible! He was roaring and he had his sword out, the Chioxin sword, and all around him there was emptiness surrounded by an army of cowering men. The other Sevenths were there, but they weren't speaking except when Shonsu spoke to them. He turned again in her direction and no, his eyes were not red, but... Then the two kneeling Seconds bent their heads forward, and the seventh sword arced and flashed with an audible hiss, and she screamed, thinking that the boys were going to be beheaded, but it was their ponytails that fell to the ground.
"Take them away!" That was Shonsu, to a chalk-faced Fourth.
"Nnanji!" she said. "What's happening?"
He looked almost as grim as Shonsu. "Slavery. He's ordered them sold."
Oh, no!
Jja, dressed again, rushed forward, clutching at her owner's shoulder, saying something. He hurled her away without a word. She sprawled at Lord Tivanixi's feet, and he bent to help her up.
"Nnanji!" Thana shouted. "They were only playing! They weren't going to do anything more. Stripping a pretty slave is-it happens all the time!"
He hardly looked at her. "Shonsu is liege. Whatever he says, happens."
The whole tryst was cringing, she could see, and now Shonsu had opened his fury wide. He was speaking to Tivanixi, but he could have been heard down by the docks.
"How many sleep in the lodge?" She couldn't hear the answer, but the castellan was pale, too. "How many are billeted?" It looked as if Tivanixi didn't know. "Very well! You take that side. Zoariyi, that one. Jansilui, Boariyi-I want to know how many dormitories on each wall, how many men they could hold, and how many other rooms can be cleared of junk. Move!"
The four Sevenths plowed into the crowd and, as it opened for them, ran. Then that human thunder roared again: "Linumino? Take a party of Sixths and inspect all the nearby buildings. Are there any that would make dormitories-halls or empty warehouses? Move!" Another Seventh ran.
"Everyone! Those of you who sleep here, go back to your rooms and clean them up! They're pigsties! Clean floors, clean windows, bedding neatly rolled, packs tidy! There's going to be an inspection, and may the gods help those who don't pass! The rest of you stand by for work details to tidy out the other rooms. You! Go and do the council room! You! Start on the stairwells."
"Come on!" Nnanji whispered to Thana and led her over to Jja, who was weeping. "Look after her." Then he vanished, following Shonsu.
The two women found a stone bench and sat down. The courtyard was clearing, but the turmoil of men running in all directions made it seem just as full as before. Nobody seemed to know what was happening.
A little later Katanji appeared, grinning rather jumpily.
"Congratulations!" Thana said calmly. She had her arm around Jja, who was sobbing on her shoulder and didn't seem to want to do anything else, ever again.
"Thank you," Katanji said smugly. He sat down on the bench.
"Third? How the devils did you manage that?"
"I'm not sure!" He looked bewildered and was trying not to. There were red rims round his eyes; his face was drawn. He yawned suddenly, and she guessed that he had not been to bed. "I think it was Nanj," he said. "They were going to make him a Seventh, and he refused unless they promoted me; I think that must be what happened. I had to promise to learn the sutras, and they made me a Third." He smirked.
Thana found this part of the events rather amusing-Nnanji, who was so prickly about rituals? "What about the swordsmanship? What happens if you get challenged?"
A strange expression came over Katanji's normally cheeky face, one she had never seen on it before. He gazed down at his cast for a minute. "I can't move my fingers, Thana. I don't know they're there unless I look. I'll never hold a sword again. I promised that, too."
She said she was sorry, she hadn't known.
"It's all right. I'd never have been any good, anyway. Nanj didn't know that sutra until now, see? Nobody does except Sevenths. But you know Nanj and sutras-he said if courage counted... and you heard what Shonsu said about me last time we were here? So he had to agree, and the others wanted Nanj a Seventh." He sniggered. "Unanimous! A First can't own things-but a Third can!"
&n
bsp; That hadn't stopped him before. She fingered the pearls round her neck. He noticed and scowled as he always did. Then he laughed, and the old mischief twinkled in his eyes again.
"That was small stuff!" he said mysteriously. "Look, I've got to go. Business!" He jumped up and vanished into the confusion. She caught a glimpse of him running out the gate.
Two hundred golds' worth of pearls-small stuff?
The courtyard was much emptier and quieter. Then someone shouted warning. A stool came off a balcony and exploded in splinters on the paving. A broken bedstead followed it. Other balconies started raining old furniture and bundles and boxes and timbers. Clouds of dust came whirling around. Suddenly the courtyard was full of falling debris. Jja recovered enough to sit up, sniffing and red-eyed, and watch the display.
Nnanji appeared out of the fog, grinning. He had his seventh swordmark, but be still wore the green kilt.
"What the gods is going on?" Thana demanded.
He sat down beside her and hugged her negligently. Sex was rarely far from Nnanji's mind, but for once his excitement was coming from other things. "House cleaning!" he said. "There's lots of room here to hold the tryst, but Tivanixi never organized it. A couple of the floors are unsafe, but mostly the place is one big junk heap. Shonsu is organizing. Clean out and clean up! He's threatened to flog the next man he sees with a dirty kilt, so half of them have stripped completely-you want to leave, or stay and enjoy that?"
Thana glanced at Jja. "We can dump the bundle and go?"
He nodded. He was grinning hugely. "I'll look after it. But you're going to miss a lot of fun. Now he's talking water supply and hygiene and latrines and cooking! He's going to sell all the slaves Tivanixi bought and buy more bedding and stuff with the money. He'll make the juniors do the cooking and cleaning. Only swordsmen are to be allowed in at all. Even the heralds will need escorts!" He laughed. "Glad you're not his vassal?"
