Kai felt both terrible about his anger and exhausted all at once. “No, Jachem. I don’t want to get rid of you. I just want you to be able to care for yourself independently is all and find some measure of happiness.”
“Oh, all right then.” Jachem looked up, shrugged his shoulders, and, just like that, the whole thing had been dropped.
Kai laughed to himself. Sometimes the way Jachem’s mind worked amazed him, other times it drove him crazy, but it was always like trying to navigate a maze he could never truly understand. “All right, tell me the rest of what happened. If this lady wasn’t willing to bend on anything then maybe the Dry wasn’t the right place for you anyway.” He patted his friend on the shoulder.
Jachem smiled and patted Kai’s hand in return as he continued, “I told her I didn’t understand why I had to touch the clothes. She said it was part of the service. I said it seemed a pointless thing to include in the service. She yelled at me then until I agreed to do it her way, even though it was stupid.
“So, I spent the rest of the morning touching the terrible dirty clothes and trying not to get in trouble. My hands started to shake every time someone handed me their clothes, but I just told myself that Echinni and Kai had got this for me, and even though Rosa was mean, and I didn’t like this job, I would try.”
Kai smiled at that, even though part of him wanted to cry at how much effort it would have taken Jachem to actually touch a stranger’s dirty clothes. He had specifically told them about how good Jachem would be with the clean clothes and the folding part. Lots of people just thought Jachem was a spoiled brat and that they knew how to fix him.
“Anyway, I was doing the job until this initiate came in and asked me to rush his uniform. I explained to him that there was a queue and initiates couldn’t just jump the line. But then he said he could get us a spot at Keef’s Tavern to play a gig and I thought it was worth getting in trouble for that. So I bumped his order to the front of the queue, replacing a really terrible and complicated pile of clothing, but then it turned out the complicated pile of clothes were ceremonial Paleschurian robes which belonged to this knight called Sir Vyktor. When he came to get his clothes, he was really mad, and he yelled at me, and then he yelled at Rosa. Then when Sir Vyktor finally left, Rosa yelled at me to get out and not come back.”
“Right.” Kai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Well, I can see why they fired you. But more importantly, did you just say we have a gig at Keef’s Tavern?!” Now it was his turn for his hands to shake.
“Yes, I wanted to tell you about that right away, but you wanted to know about why I got fired so I–”
Kai didn’t let him finish as he scooped Jachem up in his arms and lifted his friend off his bunk. “Jachem, you wonderfully weird little man! That’s amazing! When is it? Have you told Echinni yet?” Kai was over the moon, Keef’s had been a dream of his for years. It would be amazing just to get in and see the place, let alone play on stage there!
“It’s two weeks from today, and yes I’ve told Princess Echinni. She came to get me shortly after I was told to leave the Dry. I didn’t know where to go, so I tried to get in to see her at the Red Tower and kept telling the big guards at the doors that I knew the princess. That’s when Yuna came and got me. She took me to Princess Echinni, and I told her about what happened.”
Kai was trying to take this all in when he noticed something odd on Jachem’s bunk. There were several of the Jendar tablets sitting upon the made bed. Panic gripped Kai almost immediately, “Where did those come from?” he said, and in his mind he screamed, Please don’t say you found them lying around, please don’t be stolen.
“That one’s mine,” Jachem replied.
“So whose are the others?”
“Chronicler Talbot’s. He told me to take these home to work on.”
Kai’s mind tried to make sense of what he was being told but decided quickly that way lay madness, so tried again to ask the right way. “So, after you talked to Princess Echinni, what happened next?”
“She took me straight over to the Artificium.” Jachem was rocking back and forth a bit. He was obviously getting taxed from all the questions and excitement.
Kai held up his hand and closed his eyes, trying to concentrate and keep Jachem with him. “And why did she do that?”
“I don’t know, but I think it was because I unlocked one of the relics she had. She said she knew I liked them and showed me the Jendar tablet she kept hidden from the Singers. They don’t like her having them. The person who sold it to her told her the relic couldn’t wake up like other ones, but it was still obviously Jendar, which it was, but that person just didn’t know how to unlock it. I unlocked it for the princess and woke the relic up for her. It seems to be working fine now. I showed her a few of the tricks she could do on that particular Jendar surface. After that, Echinni said, ‘Right we need to go see the Chroniclers right now.’ Then we went to the Artificium.”
Kai wanted to scream. “Just like that? You went with her, just like that? I’ve been telling you to go there for years!”
“Well, Yuna pointed her big finger at me when I was about to say no, sort of like Sister Maria used to, except Sister Maria doesn’t carry a sword as tall as I am on her back, and doesn’t usually look ready to rip me in half. So I said yes instead.”
Kai threw his hands up in the air and spun on his heel. He clamped a hand over his mouth to try and keep his frustration in. It didn’t matter. This was good. Right? Wasn’t it? “All right …” Kai hesitated, not sure if he wanted to know, “what happened at the Artificium?”
“They took me to see Chronicler Rutherford and Chronicler Talbot who were in the back working on some very interesting bits of Jendar technology. Princess Echinni told them what I did with her tablet. Then they showed me a few of the things they were having trouble unlocking or reading. They watched me unlock seven tablets, do a few fairly easy mathematics questions and translate a few paragraphs in this journal they had. I showed them how to unlock those particular type of tablets and said if they got stuck again, I could come back and show them how to do it. It didn’t take very long. Anyway, I stayed there for a while working with their relics, and they asked me to come back tomorrow. They said I was some sort of savant, I guess, and that they could pay me for my help as they had just recently acquired an investor who had a lot of work for them. Chronicler Talbot even said that he was a bit like me, that he had trouble understanding other people as well, and that he loved puzzles and cyphers like I do. I asked him if I could take this tablet home to work on as it’s a bit more complicated than the rest.”
“Ha!” Kai exclaimed in a pitch so high it could have come from a young girl, and then again, “Ha!” He couldn’t stop himself, and soon he was laughing uncontrollably as tears streamed down his cheeks.
“Kai?” Jachem watched him as he might a dog foaming at the mouth. “What are you doing?”
“I don’t know. Laughing? Crying? Both? That’s amazing news, Jachem!” Kai looked at the Jendar tablet in Jachem’s hand once more. “Ha!”
Jachem started to laugh then, which was a rare and wonderful thing, and Kai lost it completely, having to roll on the floor until his body stopped rocking. Then he just lay on the wooden floor of their room suddenly feeling as if he could breathe for the first time in years. A great weight had just been lifted, one which he hadn’t realised he had been carrying.
Jachem was going to be all right. The Chroniclers understood him, not only that, they valued him for who he was.
The tears continued to fall down Kai’s cheeks, but at that moment, he was happier than he had ever been.
Jachem then lay down beside him on the floor, bringing his new project down with him. “See this symbol here, Kai? It’s the symbol of this man named Mannford. Chronicler Talbot says Matoh Spierling’s brother, Wayran, the one we haven’t met, found a very old book in the Wastes which might tell us how to unlock hundreds of the other relics, and might even have records of what reall
y happened during the Ciwix. Interesting, right?”
“I’m sure you understand it more than I do. I’m just glad you like it there. You do …” he paused, too hopeful by far, “… like it there, right?” Kai rolled his head to the side to see his friend fully engrossed in the strange patterns of blue light playing across the black surface of the Jendar relic.
“Oh yes, Kai, it’s wonderful. We should have gone years ago.” Jachem nodded only half paying attention to their conversation.
“Ha!” Kai felt the laughter and complete frustration rising up again, though his stomach already hurt. He bit his lip to stop himself from screaming.
Something beeped on the surface of the relic and the glowing blue symbols faded away to be replaced with a glowing white square and dozens of new strange pictures and symbols.
“Oh, got it.” Jachem smiled.
“Are you two all right? Still ready for practice tonight?” a musical and rich feminine voice said from the door, which Kai only now realised he had left open.
He slowly got to his feet and smiled at Echinni and Yuna. He spread his arms and walked towards Yuna.
“What are you doing?” Yuna’s hand went to the handle of one of the knives she wore on the leather belts strapped across her armour.
“Hugs,” Kai said through his tears of happiness.
Echinni laughed as Kai tried to wrap his arms around the giantess. He just managed to encircle her and rest his head upon her bicep. He was probably making Yuna uncomfortable, but he didn’t care. “Thank you, both of you. So much. Thank you for making him go. I’d hug Echinni as well, but I wanted to keep my arms attached to my body.”
“You’re very welcome, Kai.” Echinni smiled at him as he finally let Yuna go. The big woman looked wary that he might try to hug her again. “Chronicler Talbot said they had never seen anyone so gifted with Jendar technology or mathematics. He was very happy and assured me they would get Jachem his own workshop in the new wing being built at the Artificium.”
“Ha!” Kai laughed. “His own workshop!” He chuckled until he started coughing, and felt as if the world had just been turned upside down in the most wonderful way.
“Yes, it sounds like a great fit for Jachem.” Echinni smiled and then frowned slightly. “I came to talk about playing at Keef’s Tavern.”
Yuna’s temporary puzzlement at being hugged disappeared immediately to be replaced by a scowl.
“We’re not ready,” Kai said aloud. “We haven’t even touched the surface of what we can do together. We need way more practice to play at a venue like that. What music would we play? What style? What instruments do we bring? It’s way too soon.”
“I think we can do it,” Echinni said suddenly.
Yuna, Kai, and even Jachem all turned to look at her.
“Pardon?” Kai leaned in a bit closer. “Excuse me, but I thought you just said we can do it?”
Echinni looked as if she were concentrating on something far away; somehow, she looked even more radiant than normal. She looked serene and at peace.
Finally, as if she no longer were listening to that far away sound, Princess Echinni looked at Kai and Jachem. “I said we can do this, but more importantly, we must do this. It feels right, and the people of the city need something like this. Things have been going so badly lately, and people need hope and joy. Something to believe in. I think we can be that for a lot of people. We can help them see hope in a time of darkness.”
Echinni had said the last almost directly to Yuna, and Kai saw some unspoken understanding pass between them. Kai could tell Yuna’s entire body was screaming that this was a horrible idea.
“You mean the riots?” Kai said. “The murders?” Things had been getting remarkably bad. He had known of a few of the men who had been killed nearly two months ago now. One had been the brother of Estella Wan, the pay mistress at the docks where he used to work.
“Not just that, there have been rumours of war in the West. Unease is building between the rulers of the Nine Nations.” Echinni bowed her head slightly. “I can’t give details, but relations are definitely being strained.”
“War again,” Kai stated. Every fibre of his being wanted to help her, somehow to alleviate some of her burdens. “What will happen?” he asked instead.
Her dark eyes stared back at him, and Kai imagined they were pools he’d happily drown in. “I am not allowed to talk about the options being considered,” Echinni said as she stepped towards him, putting a hand on his arm, “but, suffice it to say, there is a feeling that this peace we have enjoyed for the past fifteen years will not last for much longer. And so, our band must be a source of joy in the tumultuous days ahead.” Echinni gave Kai’s arm a reassuring squeeze.
Kai wanted to joke that he would never wash that part of his forearm again, but he had seen something important in the look she had given him. There was a moment where she had looked vulnerable. Not the great royal heir, not the future queen, but just a young woman, who needed comfort from the evils of the world. Kai smiled and lifted his hand to put on top of hers.
Yuna cleared her throat, and Kai saw the warrior’s eyes boring into him. Even the tattoos on Yuna’s face seemed angry.
He lowered his hand and smiled the most innocent smile he could muster.
It didn’t work. Yuna’s glare deepened, but Echinni came to his rescue.
“The people will need hope,” Echinni said as she composed herself. Once again, the natural air of nobility settled upon her, and she was the princess again. “Something uplifting, something which will help them forget the troubles around them for a while. Yes, this feels right. We have been put on this path ...” She trailed off. “We must perform at Keef’s. It will be the start of something important. Something pure and good for people to hold onto.”
“No,” Yuna said. Her tone held so much steel in it, it might as well have been a hammer striking the idea dead where it stood. “You will not.”
“I agree with Yuna,” Kai said, holding up his hands. Yuna turned to snarl at him, no doubt suspecting sarcasm. “What? I do, completely,” Kai said hastily. “It’s risky, career-wise most certainly, but far more importantly Yuna is right about your safety, princess. Even I can see that. Keef’s is near the edge of the Xinnish district and puts you at an awful risk. Do we want Yuna to have to start lopping the heads off angry rioters who want to take it out on the princess? Plus if we perform and flop, then we’ll never be invited back. Keef’s is a big stage, and we haven’t had nearly enough time to rehearse.”
Yuna blinked at that, and her cold stare lessened by a few degrees.
Echinni spun on her heel so fast it made Kai jump back a pace.
“The concerns are valid, but we must do this.” Echinni turned back to Yuna. “It’s the Will, it’s strong this time.”
Kai marvelled at that. The fabled Will which only the elite within the Singers’ ranks could feel – Halom’s holy Will which guided humanity back to the path of redemption, and Echinni could feel it coursing through her.
Yuna didn’t budge, however. The giantess’s only response was a raising of an eyebrow as a mother wolf might do with an upstart cub. “I sometimes wonder if you just say this to get your own way. How can I ever confirm what you say is true? The risk is incredible. It is too dangerous.”
“This must be done.” Echinni wasn’t going to relent. Kai watched as Echinni strode right up to the giant woman. “This is not some flight of fancy. I am not just invoking Halom’s name to get my own way. I can feel it Yuna. It’s so strong, and it’s pushing me towards this, not just suggesting it is the right path. I can feel a pressure building when I think of this option.”
The conviction in Echinni’s face was like nothing Kai had ever seen before. And he laughed to himself then. She’s going to get her way. But it dawned on him why she would, not just that she was beautiful and used to getting her way, she’s a princess. She’s been trained to command from a young age. And I’m just a dock worker who likes to bang on drums. He f
elt foolish for even having the ridiculous idea that she wanted him to comfort her. Get your damned head out of the clouds.
“Feel what?” Jachem asked, as always, awkwardly inserting himself into an already tense situation.
Echinni used the question to her advantage, though. “Halom’s Will, Jachem.” Echinni stared up at Yuna and lifted her chin just a touch. “I am one of the few Singers who can feel his Will around us, guiding us. Not one person in a million has this gift. But I do. And you do not ignore the Will of our Creator.”
The final statement made Yuna roll her head back and clench her jaw. “Now she gets religious,” Yuna said between grinding teeth. Muscles tensed like rigging lines snapping tight in the wind along Yuna’s neck. “The risk to your person is far beyond any of your previous excursions.” Yuna came as close to being insolent as Kai imagined the big woman ever had. “What if you are recognised? Or attacked? We will be vulnerable, exposed. Advertising our position!”
Echinni touched Yuna’s arm. “You’ll protect me. You always have.”
Yuna clamped a hand on her jaw, no doubt trying to keep a string of curses from torching their ears. “Reckless!” was all the big warrior could say. “Your father–”
“Was even more reckless when he was my age,” Echinni countered, “and he never had you by his side.” Echinni patted Yuna’s huge hand in hers. “He also did what he thought was right, as brutal as he is, I have to admit that. He followed his heart, and maybe in some way, the Will guided him too. I am his daughter, after all.”
Echinni took a step forward and grabbed Yuna’s hand in hers, “Yuna. This feels so right. It’s the strongest I’ve ever felt it. Something is pulling me towards this, and we have to follow. If we ignore this, something will go wrong. We ignored these feelings before, and we both know how that ended.”
Yuna and Echinni both bowed their heads. They didn’t speak, both needing to collect their thoughts.
“How did it end?” Jachem asked, oblivious to the tension between the two women.
Awakenings Page 22
