by P. D. Kalnay
She did a little bouncing dance.
“We’d be honoured to, if you have sufficient materials.”
“OK, I’ll go get the fabric.”
I went back home and grabbed the bolts of cloth from a spare room in the apartment. I’d mostly forgotten them. There was enough for several sets of clothing. The fabric was all the same material, and it felt as if fine wool and silk had had a love child. Green, royal blue, and black were the colours available. Frithanzel waited on the street for me.
“Will this be enough?” I asked, handing over the fabric.
She took moment to stretch them out and take their measure; the extra limbs came in handy.
“This will suffice for two sets of robes for you and two dresses for Princess Ivangelain… and possibly a cloak as well.”
I hadn’t told her the dress was for Ivy, but I knew from conversations with Alak that Ivy was a local celebrity. She’d fed the entire city.
“That would be awesome. Do you need to take our measurements?”
“I have done so,” Frithanzel said. “Will you trust me with the cut?”
What did I know about clothes?
“Sure. How much will it cost?”
“You are a smith, are you not?”
“I’ve made a few things.”
“I wish a full set of tailoring tools, in the High Imperial Style, for my payment.”
I didn’t know what that was; she took my hesitation for negotiation, and continued hurriedly.
“That’s an unequal bargain, of course. If you will give me time, and small trust, I shall add appropriate garments to balance the scale?”
“I’ve never made those things,” I said. “If I can’t figure it out, will you take money?”
“Certainly, two gold leaves for the work… if the other isn’t possible?”
Gold leaves were the most valuable coins used by the Fae. I had a small chest full of them.
“Deal, how long will it take?”
“Good work cannot be rushed.”
I couldn’t argue with that. It wasn’t yet dinner time, so I went home to see if One knew how to make a set of tailor’s tools in the ‘high imperial style’.
***
One had short book on the subject with all the details I could have wanted. Piece-by-piece, I forged the various shears, needles, and other sewing items, filling a box the size of a carpenter’s tool chest. I built the box too, complete with clever drawers and compartments. The enchantments on the tools were simple like those inscribed on the shop tools and the whole project took a couple of weeks of my spare time. It had been a while since I finished Three, and it was a pleasure to make something again.
I carried the chest of tools back to Frithanzel’s home. One of her sisters stood outside, and she went and got her. Frithanzel was thrilled with the tools, saying the clothing would be ready in another week or so.
I still didn’t know how I’d give Ivy her dresses.
***
“You seem distracted,” Lyrian said, a short way into our next lesson.
A pile of pebbles surrounded me. I’d done my best to follow her instructions to the letter, but deflecting rocks seemed beyond me. I’d worn a permanent bruise for a distressing number of weeks, marking my failure. I was dying to do something—anything—new.
“Could we try gliding?” I asked. “Just from somewhere low?”
I was reasonably competent at jumping, and usually landed on my feet, but I really wanted to fly.
“Gliding requires a precise control you have yet to acquire. It would be far beyond your current abilities, and irresponsible for me to teach you at this point.”
If there was one thing you could say about Lyrian: she never held back to spare your feelings.
“Could you at least explain the theory?”
“Very well.” Lyrian stretched languidly before continuing. No doubt her shoulder ached from the many days of throwing. “When you jump, you thicken the air under your wings to provide greater lift. That is easily accomplished in a stationary situation, and, because the column touches the ground, an anchor point is provided.”
She gave me the look that asked if I understood. When I nodded, she continued.
“To glide, one must thicken the air below, and thin the air above each wing.” Differential air pressure was how the wings on airplanes created lift too. “The more powerful the enchanter the longer she or he may stay aloft. The difficulty is moving those pockets of air along at the correct pace, and accounting for variations in the atmosphere. When you deflect all of these stones I shall show you. Agreed?”
Fundamentals were important. I’d just never struggled with them before, and I couldn’t have tried any harder to follow her instructions.
“OK,” I said, setting my dreams of flight back onto a shelf.
***
Something had bothered me since I’d first met Two: her face. Her face was a perfect miniature version of Ivy’s face. If I’d learned anything over the past few years, coincidences didn’t form a big part of my life. Everything tied together somehow. The challenge was discovering how. What was the likelihood that Two and Ivy just happened to look the same? I figured not very likely.
I was still randomly listening to journal entries based upon my mood each day, so I decided to see if Three had any answers packed away in his black, iron head.
“Three are there any entries mentioning Two’s face?”
“Yes, Master. There is a single entry.”
“Please read it.”
“I’ve finished the second library. For the time it took me to accomplish the task, I believed I had chosen a different form out of pure whimsy. A short time spent examining Two’s golden face disabused me of that notion. How could I have completed her without realising? It doesn’t seem possible, but the truth is plain to see.
I had let my hands sculpt as they wished, giving little thought to my creation. Now that I have seen, I can never unsee. Telain’s face stares up at me, painted in strokes of purest gold. A face—I’d though I’d left in the distant past of my youth. It’s been long years since I gave a thought to her, and yet somewhere in the depths, the memories haunt me still.
That is all, Master.”
Not super informative. I remembered that name from one of the first entries.
“Are there other entries mentioning Telain?”
“Two, Master, the first entry and another from five hundred years later.”
“Read the second one.”
“I finished the bow a few hours ago. I’d had no idea why I wasted any of my precious supply of Blood to do so. I have neither an aptitude nor an interest in archery. Spirits know I’ve crafted enough bows over the years to scratch that particular itch, and I had no need to hang another on the rack.
As I held it, and examined it for flaws, my first thought was that Telain would love the bow. It never ceases to amaze me how the doors of heart and mind can open unexpectedly. I hadn’t thought of her in centuries. To think I once believed life without her to be impossible. Ah, the foolishness of youth. Still, I cannot deny that I crafted the bow for her, though I knew it not at the time. On the day she renounces throne and husband… I shall be sure to give it to her.”
Three finished.
“Was that it?”
“Those are the only references to the name Telain, Master.”
I wondered who she’d been: obviously Marielain’s old love interest and presumably a queen. Having listened to so much of what Marielain Blackhammer had to say, it was difficult to ascribe the label of romantic to him. I was no closer to understanding why Two and Ivy looked the same, and finding out that old Marielain and I had similar tastes in girls was unhelpful trivia. It was too soon to give up, I’d only scratched the journal’s surface.
For the first time in recent memory, I could sleep-in the next day. I stayed up late, listening to Three, in an attempt to push renewed thoughts of Ivy from my mind, and to shove down the anxiety I felt. I knew she was well,
thanks to Two and Three, but that was all I knew. When I finally managed to sleep, my dreams were dark nightmares.
Chapter 25 – The Second Cut
Lyrian had declared the day a holiday and cancelled our morning lesson. That was fine by me. As had become my way, during my exceedingly rare, empty hours, I sat on the balcony pining for Ivy. With no lesson, I’d slept late and had eaten my breakfast and lunch together. The city lay beneath me, and although I couldn’t see it, I felt sure it was filled with activity. For the first time in weeks there were no ships docked at the pier; visitors to Knight’s Haven had become the norm rather than the exception. Something else felt different that morning. It was as if I’d lost Ivy forever. I felt an actual ache from her absence. Probably just my imagination…
Enough was enough!
I would talk to Ivy whether she wanted to see me or not. I’d lie outside her front door for as a long as she took to give in. Then I’d do as much apologising as was necessary to make things right. Giving Ivy space had produced no result besides making me miss her. If she didn’t want to be with me that was her choice, and I didn’t plan on holding her to any agreement, spoken, unspoken, or magical. I sure as heck wasn’t going to compel her, but if she wanted something else, I needed to hear the words from her lips. With renewed determination, I left the balcony.
I met One and Two at the apartment’s main door. They carried what remained of Three between them.
“Master,” One shouted, before he saw me round the corner. He continued in a quieter, if equally urgent, tone. “Master, they’ve taken Mistress Ivangelain.”
“What? Who took her? What happened to Three?”
Three was barely recognisable. Most of his body had been crushed like a discarded pop can.
“I went to take my turn with the Mistress,” Two said. Her voice shook. “Three told me what happened before he…”
She wasn’t able to go on, so One continued her story.
“Mistress Ivangelain was acting strangely. When she collapsed, many men appeared and bound her. Three broke your rule about remaining hidden and attempted to come to her aid. He wasn’t equal to the task. Two met me in a nearby tunnel, and we brought Three back, hoping you might save him. He returned to the darkness before we could reach you.”
Any remaining doubts that my metal friends were real people vanished forever, hearing One speak. I ducked into my room and grabbed the knife from the shelf beside my bed, left there since the day I’d burned the warehouse. It was a horrible thing, but I was in the mood to do horrible things. Someone was going to pay.
“Do you know anything else?” I asked.
“No, Master,” One said.
“Stay here, I’m going after them.”
It would have taken One and Two a fair while to get back up to the apartment on their little legs. While my enemies had a substantial head start, Knight’s Haven wasn’t that big. If I’d been thinking clearly, I’d have taken my hammer and the shield too. I wasn’t thinking clearly. Terror at the thought of losing Ivy tore at my gut. I swung the main doors open long before I’d crossed the hall. Lyrian stood on the landing outside, and I sped ahead at a trot.
“Ivy’s been kidnapped,” I shouted.
“Yes, I am aware.”
Lyrian didn’t like Ivy, but the way she said it was way too calm and unsurprised.
“I’m going after her.”
“It is late for that, Jakalain.” Lyrian smiled like a cat with a mouthful of canary.
Crap. For half a second I thought she meant Ivy was dead.
“What have you done?”
“Defeated you. You may not realise yet, but our game is over. I’ve taken your queen.”
What game?
“Why are you doing this?”
I felt certain that Ivy was moving further away with every beat of my heart.
“For the rewards, of course.” Lyrian laughed. “You really are a strange boy—capable and talented in some areas—and so very stupid in others. I’ll spell this out for you in a way you will understand. I came here to study you, to find your weaknesses, and to exploit them. The Houses are quite afraid of you, and not without reason. However, you do have a point of leverage; one so predictable and pathetic that at first I couldn’t bring myself to believe the truth.”
“What are you talking about?”
“When it was learned you’d come to this island, long councils were held attempting to discern your motivation. You have no ties to this world; why would you choose to be imprisoned here? None have ever escaped the vine, and many have tried. Vengeance, on behalf of the Dragon Lord, or possibly, making yourself ruler of the island were the conclusions they reached. Great incredulity at my initial reports delayed this outcome. No one believed the truth.”
“And what truth is that?”
“That you came here for the girl. Worthless and pathetic, even for a dirt-grubber. You turned down position at Court, and freedom from this life, entirely for her.”
She followed that with hearty laughter.
“You didn’t come here at my grandmother’s request.”
“I came because of it. Your grandmother sent a message to my aunt, who has been dead for some time now. I suppose, living on another world, it can be difficult to keep track of old friends. After disposing of the messenger, I made my own reply. It was the first proper opportunity to come my way in centuries. You’ve been here less than a year and have already made many enemies, but those among our people had the means to pay most. Now, I have defeated you, and those rewards will be mine.”
“You haven’t won yet,” I said, trying to figure out what to do. I hadn’t entirely trusted Lyrian, but I’d taken most of what she’d said at face value. Crap. “If you think I won’t make you tell me where she is, you’re wrong.”
“No need to threaten, Jakalain. I’ll tell you exactly where she is. By now, she’s miles out to sea, packed in an iron box, to manage those bees—and I’d guess… she’s screaming for all she’s worth. As I understand it, travelling a dozen miles from a vine is unpleasant, and a hundred is typically lethal. Your necklace kept her alive the last time, with the vine half a world away. Maybe, it will do so again.”
She gave me another satisfied smile, entirely confident in her victory.
“And what is it you expect me to do?”
“Surrender, obviously. Surrender this island, and your life, in exchange for the life of that worthless little girl.”
“Just like that?”
“I’ve spent tedious months learning your secrets. You’d do anything to save her… pathetic.”
“That’s true,” I said, “but I didn’t tell you all of my secrets. I’m going to get her back.”
“How? Will you take your little boat and give chase? How far will you get before you pass out from the pain? You will help us to secure this island, dispose of those pesky knights, and then you will heroically take your own life to save the woman you love. In return, she will be kept comfortable and safe, here on Knight’s Haven, for the rest of her natural life. I have a contract to that effect, signed by the Three Houses. It is entirely binding.”
“You said help us to secure the island?”
“Yes, I smuggled in an entire Clan on the last three ships. The knights are too busy squabbling among themselves to take proper precautions. Most of the clansmen are eliminating the Order as we speak. Then they will carry on to the city.”
Three ships’ worth of assassins? I thought of Alak and Aleen, and their flimsy door.
“How will you call the ship back? Assuming, I cooperate.”
She pulled a message moth from her dress.
“I need only add the message and release it,” she said.
“What’s to stop me from killing you, taking it, and sending it?” I asked softly. I was angry, but trying to remain in control of myself. A mistake would cost Ivy.
“I’m not a fool. Only the proper message will free her, anything else and the box goes over the side. This is the part
where you give in—or unveil those secrets.”
Lyrian laughed again.
She stopped laughing when I drew the knife. The midnight blade was as appalling as ever, and Lyrian took several steps back until her wings brushed up against the mountainside.
“This is something you haven’t seen.”
I moved toward her until the tip of the blade hovered just in front of her breasts. Her earlier bluster vanished, and only terror remained on Lyrian’s face.
“What is that?” she whispered.
“Something I’ll use, if you don’t send the message.”
Ivy was getting further and further away. The dark blade sickened me, but I had to tough it out, and not show how I felt.
“Will you kill me if I refuse? I think not. You’re too soft for that. A hero returned from the distant past. Cutting down an unarmed opponent, isn’t very heroic.”
Her smile was back, although it now had a sickly twist. She’d taken Ivy and hurt her. My first instinct was to drive the blade home, and my hand shook from not doing so.
“You should have paid closer attention to the stories,” I said. “Marielain wasn’t a hero, and I’m not either.”
Three had been destroyed and was gone forever. He’d never hurt anyone. Lyrian was responsible for that. Ivy was in mortal danger and suffering because of Lyrian’s betrayal. Rage continued building up inside of me. I don’t know what I looked like, but based on her expression, it must have been scary.
“You will send that message,” I said.
What happened next was unexpected. I only meant to cut her, to show her that I meant business. The little nick I gave Lyrian, on the shoulder, with the tip of the blade, had unbelievable consequences. She screamed as though I’d driven it right through her stomach.
“What have you done?”
The shallow cut didn’t bleed. Instead, it turned as black as the blade itself and grew rapidly larger. It was like a tiny whirlpool of nothingness, drawing her in at the rim. In a few seconds that nothingness consumed Lyrian’s entire body. I snatched the message moth from her hand just before that disappeared too. Then I stared at the empty space where she’d been. I don’t know how long I stood there staring, but One’s voice brought me back to reality.
