Realm of Ashes

by J. D. L. Rosell

  But if I truly valued my friend, I had to give somewhere. I decided to take off the morning and hunt him out. As he’d said his hiding holes were compromised, I knew visiting his old places would get me nowhere. If I assumed he wasn’t still in Hull, where I’d seen him in the Pyrthae-dream, that left just one place to check. Failing that, I’d could only hope he’d show up soon.

  I readied myself as quickly as I could, rushing the clerk Galene through her accounting and dragging Nomusa from her bed to the Conclave baths. My being in a hurry wasn’t a new development, and she didn’t question where I rushed to. I barely noticed the fluted columns and finely carved pediments around us as I sloughed off the olive oil from my hair and skin.

  As soon as I’d cleaned and dressed, I bound up my wet hair and hurried off toward Port. With crowds still gathered about the Conclave gates, as they had been except for the few turns when the Conclave guards had driven them away, I had to take the long way around from the lesser-known gate Corin had shown me. This time, the guards didn’t taunt me, but eyed me apprehensively as I, a lone woman, went out into the city. I was growing more comfortable with navigating this new Oedija, but a lump of fear always sat in my gut.

  I hurried through Iris’ streets toward my home deme, keeping an eye over my shoulder the whole way. Instead of turning inward toward Zipho’s, Maesos’, and Canopy, I turned toward the Lighted Sea. My destination was at the far end of the harbor, and took several turns to reach. I hoped I wasn’t wasting my time.

  Remembering from my last trip the safest route down the cliffside, I took one last look around before descending the slippery rocks. That I’d traveled it successfully before made it little easier. Every foot- and handhold I sought carefully, and my limbs trembled with more than exertion. But it was no more than a quarter-turn before I lowered myself to the edge of the cave’s mouth and carefully folded my way inside.

  As my eyes adjusted to the dimness, I found an unkempt man facing me, a knife bared in his hand. Dark stubble layered his chin, and his hair, bound back in a tail, was shiny with grease. His eyes were narrowed in suspicion, their golden color almost hidden in shadow.

  Upon seeing me, though, the man sheathed the knife with a flourish and a half-cocked grin. “I wondered when you’d find me.”

  “Hope the delay didn’t disappoint.” A smile found its way onto my own face as I stepped toward him. Filthy or no, Talan was a sight for sore eyes. “I have so much to tell you.”

  “As do I.” His eyes flickered back deeper into the cave, where the faint glow of firelight came from.

  “What? Are you burning breakfast?” I teased, stepping within reach of him. Nomusa was right; the man’s hygiene was appalling. But still, I reached out to embrace him. The things I had to tell him were bursting to get out. But for a little while at least, all I wanted was to hold him.

  Just as I was about to touch him, he stepped away. I flinched, then lowered my arms. There was apology in his eyes, but it didn’t lessen the hurt suddenly rising inside me.

  “Airene,” Talan said quickly, “there’s something I should tell you—”

  “Is this the Airene I’ve been hearing all about?”

  My hand went to my knife as a figure emerged from the darkness of the cave — a woman, nearly as tall as Talan and darker of skin than Nomusa. The part of myself that wasn’t dumb with surprise wondered if she were Bali or from the southern provinces of Avvad. Her sharp features were scored by many scars, but her beauty and air of confidence were unmarred by them. She wore rough-spun tunic, fraying trousers, and well-worn boots, and wore them with all the confidence of Feiyan in her fine robes. Her dark, round eyes studied me with a hint of amusement.

  I remembered the other flame I’d seen with Talan in my dream and cursed myself for a fool.

  “Hello.” The word came out half-choked.

  “I’ve startled you,” the woman said. “My apologies.”

  “Airene, this is Sule. Sule and I have known each for a long time.” Talan had lost his usual self-possession. His eyes looked anywhere but at mine.

  “A very long time,” the woman agreed.

  “I see.” I looked back toward the mouth of the cave and out over the sea. I wondered if I should leave before I gave vent to the anger suddenly roiling inside me.

  “Sule, could you give us a moment?” His gaze found me, but I didn’t meet it.

  “Of course,” the woman said easily, retreating back into the cave. Her eyes gleamed as the rest of her was lost in shadow. Even retreated, with the echo and the size of the cave, she would likely hear everything we said.

  I lowered my voice anyway. “I didn’t mean to surprise you.”

  “Let me explain,” Talan said, barely softening his voice. “It’s not what it looks like.”

  I finally met his eyes. “I’m listening.”

  He ran a hand over his greasy hair. “It’s as I said. I’ve known Sule for a long time. She and I were… childhood friends.”

  “You’re not making this sound any better.”

  “I know, I know. But the tale is far stranger than I know how to tell you.” He drew a breath. “Here’s the short of it. You remember how I lived for some years in Erimis?”

  I nodded.

  “My home is actually some ways south of there, in one of the provinces long ago conquered by the Imperium. Sule and I knew each other from our hometown. We were actually in a cabal and—”

  “A cabal?” I interrupted.

  Talan waved his hand. “Just a group of children, really, who thought we were hard and worldly. Anyway, for a while, we were close. But… a situation came up. She made one decision, I made another. When we parted, I never expected to see her again. I moved to Erimis then, for a fresh start, and made a name for myself.”

  “I’ll say. Wraithsbane, isn’t that the one?”

  He groaned. “Not exactly what I meant. But after a number of bad turns and foolish decisions, I found myself in a poor way, and taking on a job I knew I shouldn’t. Just then, Sule showed up again.”

  “And you made up and were friends again.”

  He gave me a wry grin. “Not exactly. Though I wouldn’t say we parted enemies…” He shrugged. “Again, I never thought I’d see her again.”

  “Yet here she is.”

  “She showed up here in Oedija soon after the Despoina’s trial and came to me. At the time, the situation with Kalindi was particularly precarious, and I judged it best to take her in to keep an eye on her.”

  “Why?” I demanded, not caring that my voice grew louder. “Why couldn’t you just wave and pass by?”

  Talan closed his eyes. “Because she can find me no matter where I am.”

  It took a moment for that to sink in. “Why?” I asked in a hushed voice. “Is she a warden?”

  He nodded. “Not only that, but she — She isn't the Sule I knew before.” Talan glanced back at the woman, who crouched next to the fire in the back of the cave. “She’s different.”

  “Different how?”

  “Perhaps it would be easier for me to explain.”

  Sule stood and turned back toward us. Annoyance spiked through me, but I held my tongue.

  “I am both Sule and another,” she continued. “It has been a long time since we thought of ourselves as separate, but I suppose you would see us as jinni and human in one body.”

  Cold realization dawned on me. My hand strayed back to my knife. “This is the Damask Esir who tried to kill you back in Erimis?” I demanded of Talan, though I watched the woman closely. “The one possessed by a Qarin?”

  “Yes. She won’t harm you, Airene. I told you, we have an understanding.”

  “I don't see how you could come to an understanding after that.”

  Sule, or the one who called herself that, took a step forward. “Then perhaps you've never had to band with an enemy in the face of a greater threat.”

  Despite myself, I thought of Feiyan. I shook my head free of her face. It wasn’t at all the same as lying d
own next to her at night, next to this… thing. This abomination that was what the daemon sought to make of Linos.

  “You’re evil and twisted,” I said, nearly spitting. “You stole that woman's body for your own.”

  “Not quite. She who was once Sule was broken. I cared for her body as I mended her, and she sustained me and brought me back my memories. Yes, I benefit as well, I don't deny it. But now neither of us can exist without the other.”

  I wanted to look away from the woman. The very sight of her repulsed me. I felt I could almost see the daemon that prowled behind the human eyes. But I could do nothing against her. Not only was she not human, but she was trained as a Damask Esir, the elite soldiers of Avvad enslaved to loyalty by the pyr known as Qarin. And she was a warden. My knife would be of little use against her, and though I tried to open myself to the Pyrthae, my locus remained stubbornly closed. I could only hope I could pull the wool off Talan’s eyes.

  “She’s manipulating you,” I told him. “She's still Esir, can't you see that? The Qarin controls her. How can you trust anything she says?”

  “I can't.” Though he looked tense, he didn’t seem wary of Sule. “But I have no choice. She can find me, Airene, no matter where I am. Unless I keep her close, I endanger myself.”

  “Then kill her.”

  Talan's head shot up, his eyes wide. Behind him, a rueful smile twisted onto the woman's face.

  “That would be difficult,” he admitted weakly. “But even if I could, I don't want to, Airene. Sule is a valuable ally.”

  I could scarcely believe what he was saying. “She's not an ally, Talan! She's our enemy!”

  “No,” the Esir interjected. “Our enemy is Avvad. The Kahin-Shah bound Sule and I together. I was enslaved as much as she was at the hands of the Tefra. Now we wish to take our revenge.”

  “Then take it elsewhere,” I shot back. “Anywhere but here.”

  “Airene.” Talan's tone was almost pleading. “Avvad’s armies advance on Oedija. Vusu and his Seekers grow stronger with every passing day. Kalindi and his minions spread like a disease throughout the city, thieving, coercing, murdering. We need allies, any we can get. Sule has agreed to aid me in preparing to meet Avvad. I’ll not cut her loose.”

  I felt something tear inside me. “Then keep her,” I snapped. “You're welcome to each other. Just don't expect me to save you when she betrays you.”

  I backed toward the entrance, feeling for the wall behind me. Talan didn’t follow. His bright, honey-colored eyes watched me, brow furrowed. Sule, standing behind him, shook her head with a small smile.

  But as angry as I was with him, I knew I had to warn him. “Oh, by the way, a Guilder found me. They’re searching for you, Talan. Don’t let them find you.”

  His eyes widened, and he took a step forward. “Airene, wait. It’s not safe—”

  “Nowhere is safe,” I cut him off bitterly.

  I’d reached the cave entrance, and reluctantly released my knife. My hand trembled as I grabbed the stone wall, but my grip held. I looked back once more at Talan, wishing there were words to show him the depth of his mistake. But anger sealed my lips.

  Without another word, I turned and started the slow climb up from the cave.

  15

  Honorary Verifier

  Just before the two armies clashed in what promised to be the final battle, Clepsammia again appeared before Agmon Brandheart as he sought to read the stars.

  ‘Your Seed of Harvest has appeared,’ he told the goddess. ‘Now we will see if you have spoken the truth.’

  ‘I have,’ Clepsammia replied, ‘but I have not spoken all of it.’ Her smile grew wide with anticipation.

  ‘Tell me,’ Agmon demanded.

  ‘The gift given to you by my father, the power for a mortal to wield a god’s power, was his last act. Tyurn Sky-Sea, Ruler of All Realms, is dead.’

  Agmon Brandheart felt hope grow cold in his breast. ‘What can tame Famine’s appetite if not the Lord of All? We are doomed!’

  ‘You have not yet heard all, noblest of mortals. There is an uglier truth still to behold.’

  ‘Then speak it and leave me to despair!’

  ‘Despair… do you believe that to be your destiny, Agmon Brandheart?’

  Clepsammia drew nearer still.

  ‘The truth, bravest of all men, is that even as Tyurn Sky-Sea bestowed his last gift upon you, Famine was in him. Your skill in wielding the elements of my world is as much of the God of Hunger as my father.’

  Agmon’s heart wrenched in his chest so that he thought he would collapse. ‘Our enemy is in me? In all of us?’

  ‘All of the First Wardens are Seeds of Famine. Other gods have touched your kind and opened you to the Higher and Lower Realms. But you, Agmon Brandheart, are born of my father’s guilt and your enemy’s gluttony.’

  The Hero of Man sank to his knees. ‘He will turn us to his cause. That is why he has not destroyed us.’

  Clepsammia did not hide her smile. ‘Perhaps. But this flaw cuts both ways. Famine does not stay away only to make you an ally. He cannot deny one born of his seed. Within your heart, Agmon Brandheart, lies the power to restrain a god.

  ‘But to restrain Famine, you must offer him something in kind. A sacrifice of spirit, or an offering of blood…’

  - The Seeds of Famine, a translation from the Lighted-tongue; by Oracle Kalene of deme Hull; 881 SLP

  Reaching Zipho's cafe a half-turn before Kelena was due, I sat and brooded over a cup of coffee. The cafe owner, sensing I was in no mood for gossip, left me alone after she’d served me.

  As I stared into the dark, steaming liquid, regret slowly seeped through me. Yet as soon as I thought of that strange, beautiful woman huddled next to Talan at night, my blood began to boil anew. Each sip of coffee tasted more bitter than the last. We needed allies, true. But we didn’t need abominations like her.

  Abomination. Did that make Linos an abomination as well?

  I remembered the harsh words that had come from his tongue, the presence that had tried to take me. Was he even now yoked, as Sule was by the Qarin? Had I saved Linos only to doom him to a life as a daemon’s slave?

  Draining the rest of my coffee, I bade my farewells to Zipho, left the cafe, and made for the narrow alley.

  Coming to the end of the alley, I peered in and saw a hooded figure standing midway through. So full of misery and self-loathing, I almost didn’t care if was a Guilder or thief waiting to waylay me rather than my contact. Turning sideways, I sidled through the narrow space toward the figure.

  When I was a few paces away, Kelena pulled back her hood. “First Verifier Airene,” the honor greeted me. Despite her impassive tone, she twitched with nervous energy.

  “Hello, Kelena.” I paused, awkward suddenly. I’d acted aloof and suspicious when we’d first met, but now we were intending to throw our lots in together. I’d have to start acting a lot warmer toward her. “Is your day going well?” I asked her tentatively.

  She seemed surprised by the question. “Fine,” she said shortly. “And yours?”

  “Not well.”

  We lapsed into silence again. So much for friendly sentiment. I ignored the flush rising up my neck and said quickly, “Nomusa and I have decided to take you on. So long as you’re still interested.”

  As I regained my composure, Kelena regained hers. “I am,” she said, drawing herself up straight.

  “Good. Before it can be official, we need the Demos Council to confirm you. Nomusa is setting an appointment with them for the sixth turn this evening. Can you be there?”

  She seemed startled by the mention of the Council. I wondered how much hell Iason would raise.

  “Yes,” she answered stiffly.

  “I’ll see you at the Conclave gates then.” I began to slide back the way I’d come before I remembered something. “There’s a side-gate on the north end of the Conclave grounds. I’d suggest making your way there rather than the main gates.”

  Kelena no
dded then turned away. I glimpsed a small smile playing on her lips before she pulled her hood back on.

  When I exited the alley, I let out a long sigh. I hoped Nomusa and I could make good on our promise. Despite myself, I found I was beginning to trust the woman. Yet if we were to work together, we had a hard battle ahead of us yet.

  Though there was too little time before the Council meeting for my usual activities, I still made for the Acadium campus. If I hurried, I had just enough time to make it there and back. The daemon-possessed woman still haunted me so that despite days of ignoring Linos while visiting Tomes, I suddenly felt the urge to visit him.

  Already wearied from the day’s walking and my climb to the children’s cave, my legs and lungs were burning by the time I reached the Ward. The same clerk as before sat in attendance, and she eyed me as I approached.

  “Are you seeking healing?” she asked with false sweetness.

  I brushed back a stray hair that had come out of its braid. “No, thanks. I’m here to see Linos. Ward three, bed sixty-four.”

  After the clerk confirmed it, she let me find my own way in, though I felt her eyes follow me. She wasn’t the only one to cast looks my way. A disheveled woman in tunic and trousers wasn’t the usual visitor here. I tightened my jaw and stared straight forward, refusing to meet their gazes.

  Reaching Linos’ room, I found a healer’s assistant attending to my brother. She bowed out as soon as I explained who I was, though not without a wary look of her own. I ignored her and looked down at Linos. He seemed in much the same condition as last time, and lay flat on his back, eyes set in their webs of violet lines and staring at the ceiling. I didn’t come close. I hated that I feared even to touch him.

  “Linos,” I murmured. “What has been done to us?”