‘What does Keir sound like?’ said Corthie.
Karalyn glanced at him. His plate was empty.
‘He sounds like a vision mage.’
‘You’re brother’s a vision mage?’ Nyane said.
Laodoc emitted a low groan.
‘There’s no harm in her knowing,’ Karalyn said to him.
‘I’m not sure your mother would agree.’
‘She wants to send him to the academy in Holdings City. She knows it won’t be a secret then.’
‘I will keep it to myself,’ Nyane said. ‘You have my word.’
‘Thank you,’ said Laodoc.
Nyane glanced at Corthie. ‘I wonder if this young man might also develop powers. The probabilities would seem to be in his favour. And your other sibling?’
‘My sister Kelsey,’ said Karalyn. ‘Aye, they both might turn out to be mages.’
‘Don’t get the boy’s hopes up,’ said Laodoc, as Corthie grinned.
‘Hopes?’ Karalyn said. ‘I hope he’s spared.’
‘I don’t want to be ordinary,’ said Corthie. ‘I want to be like Keir. No, not like him, I hate him, but I want to be a mage like him.’
‘Don’t say you hate your brother,’ Karalyn said.
‘But you hate him too.’
She repressed an urge to agree. ‘No, I love him because he’s family. We might not get on all the time, but we’ll always be family.’
‘But you love me more than him,’ Corthie said. ‘That’s why you stopped him from being able to go into my head and steal my thoughts.’
‘You did that?’ Nyane said.
Karalyn nodded. ‘Keir’s going through a difficult stage, and he was using his vision powers to bully Corthie. I put a block in his mind to stop him.’
‘Will it hinder all vision mages, or just Keir?’
Karalyn smirked. ‘All of them, including our mother.’
Nyane sat back in her chair, nodding.
Laodoc rang a small bell, and Gerald entered the room.
‘It’s time for Corthie’s lessons to begin,’ the old Rahain man said.
‘Very good, sir,’ Gerald said, holding out his hand. Laodoc took it and stood.
Corthie groaned. ‘Already?’
‘My boy,’ Laodoc said, ‘you’ve had more time for breakfast than normal, since we have a guest, so I don’t want to hear any complaining.’
Corthie stood, sighing. ‘Alright.’
Laodoc turned to face where Nyane sat. ‘My lady,’ he said, bowing, ‘it has been a pleasure. If you would like to talk more, I would be delighted to oblige. One evening, perhaps.’
‘The pleasure was mine, Lord Laodoc,’ Nyane said, ‘and I would be honoured to accept your offer. I shall send a message to inquire when might be suitable.’
‘I look forward to receiving it.’
Laodoc bowed again and, guided by Gerald, he and Corthie left the dining-room.
‘You Rahain,’ Karalyn said, smiling. ‘So formal.’
‘Lord Laodoc is of old aristocratic stock,’ Nyane said. ‘I think he likes to be reminded of what it was like back then.’
‘Were you an aristocrat?’
‘I’m a mage,’ Nyane said, ‘so yes, my family was part of the nobility of Rahain. We weren’t quite as high up as Laodoc, but we were rich. I had a very comfortable childhood, at least until I was sixteen and the civil war began.’
‘I was there at the time,’ said Karalyn, ‘though I was too small to remember it. Your family would have been on the side of my father’s enemies.’
‘Yes. Even in Granite Heights we had heard of Slateford, and that Chancellor Laodoc had gifted it to former slaves. How my father ranted about it. It wasn’t long after that when the New Free zealots arrived, and tried to convert us all to the creator-faith. People began leaving then. Our family stayed, until the power of the Creator-worshippers grew overwhelming, and they brought in laws to force us to convert or face sanctions. That’s when my parents decided to leave.’ She turned away, gazing out of the balcony windows at the blue sky outside. ‘They’d left it too late. If we’d fled earlier, we might have made it out together, but New Free soldiers were guarding the tunnel through the Grey Mountains when we reached it, and my mother was arrested. Her identification documents marked her out as a science teacher, and they took her away.’
‘Why?’
Nyane lowered her eyes. ‘I don’t know. Maybe they saw her as an opponent of their regime, which she was, or maybe they didn’t want someone who knew so much about Rahain science to leave the country. Whichever is true, we never saw her again.’
Karalyn said nothing, and sat smoking as the Rahain woman closed her eyes.
‘I hated my father for years,’ Nyane said. ‘He gripped me tight when I tried to run after the soldiers taking my mother away, and even though I scratched his face and cursed him he wouldn’t let go. It’s only recently that I forgave him, and started to understand.’
‘Your father loves you.’
Nyane nodded and opened her eyes, wiping away a tear. ‘Yes.’
Tabitha entered the room and bowed. ‘Ma’am, your carriage has arrived.’
‘Thanks,’ Karalyn said. ‘We’ll be down in a minute.’
She handed Nyane a handkerchief as the servant nodded and left.
‘You’ve told me so many secrets,’ the Rahain woman said, ‘I feel better that you know a little more about me.’
Karalyn smiled, embarrassed that she had raided the woman’s memories before. Much of what she had told her, Karalyn had already known; the events of her teenage years being prominent in the mental image of herself she carried in her mind. To that had been added the massacre in the Rahain market and Isobel’s assassination, and Karalyn could feel her friend’s pain despite her attempts to smother it.
They boarded the grand carriage, pulled by a double pair of gorgeous mares, and Karalyn looked out of the window as they set off through the aristocratic district. The grey townhouses were bright in the morning sunshine. Another fine day in Plateau City.
‘Before we discuss anything,’ Nyane said. ‘I want you to do something for me.’
‘Aye?’
‘What you did to Corthie,’ she said, ‘I want you to do to me.’
‘What?’
‘I’m sorry to be so forward, but I want you to put the same block in my head. Now, if you wouldn’t mind.’
Karalyn blinked. ‘Do you not trust Isobel’s vision mages?’
‘I don’t want to ask again.’
‘It’ll hurt.’
‘Will I be incapacitated?’
‘No,’ Karalyn said, ‘but your head will throb for a while.’
‘Then proceed. I’m Chief of Intelligence. I need to be sure that I can keep the secrets I’m entrusted with.’
Karalyn shook her head and looked out of the window.
‘Alright,’ she said, ‘though you should know that it won’t affect me. I’ll still be able to read you.’
Nyane nodded, then said, ‘Wait.’
Karalyn frowned.
‘If I’m going to have a headache,’ Nyane said, ‘then maybe we should talk first. I need your opinion on something.’
‘What?’
‘The assassins. From what Lord Laodoc said, it’s possible that either the Holdings man or the Kellach woman might have been dream mages.’
‘Aye,’ Karalyn said, ‘that’s what I was thinking. I haven’t sensed any unusual powers being used, but maybe dream mages don’t make a noise; that’s why I can’t hear myself.’
‘Yes, perhaps. One last thing before you go into my head. Why did you ask me to look at their hands?’
Karalyn frowned. ‘I don’t know. When I had the vision, I saw you stare at his hands, so I suppose it would have happened anyway. I couldn’t make out what it was he took from his belt.’
‘Neither could I. Something metallic. Copper.’
‘It had three jewels on it; one in the middle, and one at each end, like diamond
s.’
‘Yes, you’re right,’ Nyane said. ‘It did.’ The Rahain woman nodded. ‘I’m ready.’
Karalyn reached out with her powers and enveloped Nyane’s mind. She wove a tight web around her, impenetrable to any vision mage, building it up in thin layers, one on top of the other then, as requested, drove it deep into her brain.
Nyane’s eyes glazed over and she vomited over the carriage floor. Karalyn caught her as she fell and pushed her back onto the seat.
‘My head,’ the Rahain woman groaned.
‘Aye,’ Karalyn said. ‘Told you it might sting a bit.’
Security had been tightened at the palace, and all carriages were being stopped and searched before being allowed entry to the forecourt. Soldiers were present in large numbers, guarding every yard of the palace perimeter. Karalyn and Nyane were waved through the cordon and the Rahain woman went to deliver her daily report to the Imperial Herald. Karalyn wandered to the kitchens where a servant made her a cup of coffee, then she made her way to a small covered veranda. Two soldiers nodded at her as she sat and lit a cigarette.
She was glad she didn’t need to accompany Nyane to the meeting. In three days, they had found nothing in their search for the two assailants. Not a single member of the palace staff had recognised the drawings that had been made of the assassins; it was as if they had appeared from nowhere to attack Isobel. Was another dream mage involved? Karalyn hoped not. She liked being the only one. She frowned. She hated the burden of being a mage, but at the same time was proud of her unique abilities. When Nyane had taken command of the small group of imperial vision mages in the capital, Karalyn had been watching, unseen to all, just like she had when Dyam had questioned everyone after Isobel’s murder. She had also been practising her range, and had almost reached Rainsby the previous evening. One more try and she would make it, she was sure.
She placed the half-smoked cigarette into an ashtray and closed her eyes. Her dream-vision separated from her body, and she lifted it up until she could see the entire palace. Guards had been positioned on the roof, and were watching the streets below. The area in front of the palace was busy with people queuing to enter, but the soldiers were turning most of them away. Karalyn turned from the street and back towards the palace, her sight entering through a window into the upper floor. She glanced around. She could see a corridor, carpeted and wood-panelled, and recognised the entrance to the Empress’ private quarters ahead of her. A servant was pushing a trolley towards the door. He stopped, knocked, and opened the door, and Karalyn’s vision flew in after him.
The Empress’s morning room was in darkness. The tall east-facing windows had their curtains drawn, and Karalyn’s eyes took a moment to adjust to the gloom. The servant closed the door, and a masked man leapt from the shadows and clubbed him on the back of his head with the butt of a crossbow. The servant collapsed to the ground.
‘Lock that fucking door,’ hissed a voice.
Karalyn’s heart jolted. Others were in the room, armed and masked, a mixture of Holdings and Kellach Brigdomin. One raised a hand, and they rushed to the door leading to the bedrooms of the Empress and her children.
Karalyn pulled her vision back and jumped to her feet, knocking over the table that sat on the veranda. The two soldiers stared at her.
‘Get help,’ she cried. ‘Intruders are in the Empress’s quarters!’
She ran back into the building, not waiting to see their response. She willed herself invisible and raced towards Dyam’s office, bursting through the door.
‘The Empress is in trouble!’ she cried, as Dyam and Nyane gazed up at where she stood. She relaxed her powers so they could see her. ‘Armed intruders are upstairs.’
Dyam’s eyes widened and she snatched a sheathed knife from her desk and ran from the room. Within seconds the ground floor of the palace was in uproar, with Dyam organising soldiers. Nyane and Karalyn squeezed through the press of guards at the foot of the main stairs.
‘How many?’ said Nyane.
‘At least half a dozen, maybe more,’ Karalyn said. ‘Armed with crossbows.’
‘The doors are locked!’ cried a voice from the top of the stairs.
‘Break them down!’ shouted Dyam.
Nyane turned to Karalyn. ‘Can you make us both invisible?’
‘Aye,’ she said.
‘Then do it, and follow me.’
Karalyn sent her powers outwards.
You cannot see us.
‘It’s done,’ she whispered.
Nyane nodded and took off, running back the other way towards the kitchens. She fumbled in her pockets and pulled out a set of keys as they dodged the soldiers in the hallway. They raced through the kitchens and stopped at a small side door. Nyane selected a key and unlocked it, then hesitated, glancing around at the stoves and ovens. She picked up a long knife, then went through the door.
Karalyn followed her, and they climbed a narrow spiral staircase.
‘We should have brought soldiers,’ Karalyn whispered.
Nyane ignored her, and continued upwards. At the top was another door, which Nyane quietly unlocked. She signalled for silence to Karalyn, and pushed it open an inch. Karalyn sent her vision through into a small storeroom.
It’s empty, she said in Nyane’s head.
The Rahain woman shoved open the door and crept into the room. Voices were coming from another opening, along with the sound of children crying.
‘Soldiers are coming,’ said a male voice. ‘Let’s get this done before they break in.’
‘Are we still invisible?’ Nyane whispered.
Aye.
Nyane brandished the knife and walked into the adjoining chamber. It was the Empress’s private study. Masked agents were surrounding the Empress. Bridget was on her knees, her children clinging to her, weeping. Blood was pouring from the Empress’s left eye socket, and seeping through the front of her nightdress.
Without thinking, Karalyn stepped forwards, and sent a bolt of raw power ripping through the minds of the assailants. Each clasped their heads, crying out in pain. Nyane ran towards them, visible now that Karalyn’s powers had been expended. She slashed the blade down the back of one of the assassins, as the others staggered. One turned, and saw Karalyn. It was the same Holdings man that had been there when Isobel had been murdered. He was the only one without a crossbow, and instead he was holding something else. Nyane slashed at him with the knife, and he stumbled into the midst of the assassins and vanished, more than half of the masked attackers disappearing with him. At the same time, soldiers burst through a door in the opposite wall.
Karalyn turned to the three remaining assailants. She raised her hand.
Sleep.
They fell.
Nyane dropped the knife and ran to the Empress.
‘Your Majesty!’ she cried, tears streaming down her face.
The Empress closed her right eye, her arms still holding her children. The room filled with soldiers, and Dyam raced to the Empress’s other side.
‘Get the bairns out of here!’ she shouted.
‘Leave them,’ gasped the Empress.
Dyam eased the Empress to the floor, and tore open her nightdress, exposing a wound from a crossbow bolt in her stomach. The children remained around her, crying and shaking, while soldiers crowded the room. Karalyn stood frozen, her eyes on the gaping wound on the Empress’s face where her left eye had been.
‘Get a healer!’ Dyam screamed.
‘The other attackers might still be around,’ said Nyane. ‘At least five disappeared.’
‘You saved my children,’ the Empress whispered.
‘Don’t talk, your Majesty,’ Dyam said. ‘A healer’s coming. You’re going to be alright.’
‘I’m not going to fucking die,’ the Empress said. ‘Not again. Did you catch any?’
‘I killed one, your Majesty,’ Nyane said, ‘but Karalyn sent three to sleep.’
‘Good girl,’ the Empress gasped.
Dyam pushed a c
loth into the eldest child’s hands and got them to press on the stomach wound. She gazed at the Empress’ face.
‘They cut it out,’ said the Empress.
‘Bastards,’ spat Dyam.
Karalyn edged backwards through the crowd. A healer rushed into the room, and the soldiers cleared a path for him. Karalyn opened the doors to the balcony and stepped outside into the fresh morning air. A wind was blowing off the Inner Sea, and grey clouds were rolling in from the west.
She lit a cigarette, her hand shaking.
There was a noise behind her and Nyane emerged onto the balcony, blood smeared down her tunic.
‘What you did in there saved the Empress,’ she said.
‘It was both of us,’ Karalyn said.
The Rahain woman gazed out at the city. Her eyes were still wet, and her features drawn and pale.
‘What will we do?’ said Karalyn. ‘Nowhere’s safe.’
‘That’s up to the Imperial Herald,’ Nyane said. ‘Her Majesty lost consciousness, and is being carried to her bed chamber. She’ll take a while to heal from those wounds, even though she’s a Kellach Brigdomin.’
‘Her face.’
‘I know,’ Nyane grimaced. ‘Presumably they wanted a souvenir, to take back with them as proof.’
‘We can find out,’ Karalyn said. ‘I’m ready to read the three prisoners as soon as you want me to.’
Nyane nodded. ‘Give me a moment.’
‘I don’t think they’re dream mages,’ Karalyn said. ‘When they vanished, I searched for them. I’m sure I would have known if they were still there.’
‘I almost got him,’ Nyane said. ‘The same man from before. I’m certain I wounded him.’
‘He had that thing in his hands again. The copper disk.’
The Rahain woman said nothing.
Dyam appeared at the balcony doors. ‘I need you both.’
They followed the herald back into the study. The soldiers and children had gone, and all that remained of the violence were splashes of blood on the carpet.
‘My thanks to the pair of you,’ Dyam said. ‘Without you, the Empress would be dead.’
‘It was Karalyn,’ Nyane said. ‘She warned us, and she did something to the minds of the attackers, made them pause.’
Fragile Empire Page 32
