The Emperor's Mirror

by Emily Holloway

  Brannon said a rude word at his back, but the only reply was the noise as the door shut behind him.

  “This stinks,” he muttered, tugging on the lid of the chest half-heartedly. “I want Tallis.”

  “He’ll come get us as soon as he figures out we’re missing,” Calessa said. “He and Sienna will look for us.”

  “He’s gonna be mad that I wandered off,” Brannon said.

  “Maybe,” Calessa said. “But that doesn’t mean he won’t rescue us. Here, there’s something on my back that’s keeping me from doing magic – can you get it off?”

  Brannon crawled around behind her and found the piece of paper. He examined it for a few minutes, tried some different things. “Sorry,” he said. “I think you’d lose half your skin if I just pulled. It’s not coming off.”

  Calessa sighed. “It was worth a try.”

  “Do you think he was right?” Brannon asked, running one hand along the top of the chest. “About me being able to open the chests because they’re mine?”

  “Do you think they’re yours?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe.” Brannon paused. “Sometimes.”

  “I think he may be right. He clearly wants these things – he wants them to be his, but he still can’t open the chest.” She shook her head, frustrated. “I still don’t see what he was trying to do.”

  The door opened and there were footsteps. Calessa looked at Owain for a long minute, and he ducked his head and looked away. “I brought you some breakfast,” he said, handing over the tray. It had a pot of tea, two bowls of rice, and some fruit on it. There were no chopsticks, so clearly they were intended to eat with their fingers.

  “Oh, good,” Brannon said, launching himself at the food.

  “Thank you,” Calessa said. “This is insane, you know. Right?”

  “Which part?” Owain asked.

  “The entire mess.”

  Owain shrugged.

  “How long is he going to keep us?” Calessa asked. “Is it going to be until that chest is open? Is he just going to kill us when he gets what he wants?”

  “I don’t know,” Owain said.

  Calessa took a deep breath. “You might want to find out!” she yelled.

  “Like he’d tell me anyway,” Owain replied angrily. “I did what I could for you. All right?”

  Calessa nodded slowly. Then her lips twitched. “Are you the one that did that to his hand?”

  “Sort of,” Owain said. “Not that it made any difference.”

  “Can I ask one more question?”

  “Sure,” Owain said, “although I don’t promise an answer.”

  “How was Emory planning on getting this thing open?”

  Owain’s lips twitched in a thin smile. “Tell me if you noticed any similarities between Emory and the boy here.” He jerked his chin at Brannon.

  “I’m right here,” Brannon muttered. “And I know we kind of look the same. Same hair, same eyes. I don’t know who my parents are. Are you gonna tell me he’s related to me?” Brannon sounded like he would rather be related to Edrich.

  “Not technically,” Owain said. “Emory’s always been one for reading, poking his nose into old texts. He especially likes genealogy. He studied his family’s origins and all that.”

  “What’s genealogy?” Brannon whispered to Calessa.

  Calessa whispered back, “The study of relatives and ancestors.”

  “As it happens,” Owain said, “Emory is the last known descendant of the Emperor.”

  Brannon’s eyes narrowed. “Elder says that the whole Imperial family was killed. And I should know; I’ve had to read those stupid textbooks over and over again my whole life.”

  “The main Imperial family was,” Owain said. “But I presume that some of the more distantly related lines were intact. He’s the only one left now.”

  “That makes no sense,” Brannon said, with exaggerated patience. “If that’s true, why does he look like me? I’m not related to the Emperor.”

  Owain just looked at him.

  “Am I?” Brannon ventured.

  Owain shrugged. “Then why can you open the chests? Why were they hiding you away at that monastery?”

  “Fine,” Calessa said. “Maybe he is related to the Emperor, but I don’t believe that he’s related to Emory.”

  “As you like,” Owain said, his voice indifferent.

  “And what’s he going to do even if he does get what’s in the chest?” Calessa burst out in frustration.

  Owain shrugged. “I have things to attend to,” he said. “I’ll be back later.” He started up the narrow stairs.

  “You’re a coward!” Brannon yelled after him.

  “That,” Owain said, “I never denied.”

  He went through the door without another word.

  * * *

  Tallis followed Brannon’s trail up to his room, where he easily found the koi and the book that Brannon had hid underneath his bed. He stared at them in puzzlement for a few moments, wondering why Brannon had left them there. Had he thought he wouldn’t be back, and wanted Tallis to care for them? Or did he simply want them hidden from the Elder?

  He left them where Brannon had hidden them and they continued to follow Brannon’s trail. It went down through the tunnels and out into the forest.

  “Well, Edrich was right about one thing,” Sienna said, as they tromped through the bushes. “He’s in the forest.”

  “No, he isn’t.” Tallis stopped, staring at the clearing where the trail ended, momentarily stricken. “He’s in Nuan Huo.”

  Sienna followed his gaze and looked as if she had been struck by a board. “Tallis, tell me that for once I’m remembering something incorrectly and that’s not where your Gate was.”

  “Gods,” Tallis breathed out. “He’s in Nuan Huo. By himself.”

  “Well?” Sienna snapped impatiently. “What are you standing around for?”

  “Right,” Tallis said, and hastily constructed the Gate. They both went through, entering Nuan Huo through the City Gate, which stood in a busy town square. Like most cities, Nuan Huo was constructed in a somewhat circular manner, with the administrative offices near the center, and several streets branching out from the town square, like spokes on a wheel. The Gate stood in a large courtyard, manned by a mage who worked for the city.

  “Tallis,” Sienna said, “how did he get through your Gate? Don’t you close them?”

  “No,” Tallis said, sniffing as he tried to pick up Brannon’s magical trail again. “It’s too much energy to open and close them all the time. I ward them. It was open, but no one except you, me, or Calessa should have been able to get through.”

  “He somehow found a way,” Sienna said, looking around the square.

  “Yes,” Tallis said, “and now I can’t find him.” He gestured helplessly to the crowds of people. “Too many people over the ground too many times. If we’d been able to come last night, I might have been able to pick it up, but even then it would have been iffy.”

  “Gods,” Sienna said. She tried several spells of her own, but met with the same lack of results. “All right, let’s try to be logical about this. He clearly came looking for you. So where would he have gone?”

  “I don’t have the faintest idea,” Tallis said.

  “Do you think he has enough magic to instinctively track you? Given the time Elder Edrich said the argument took place, we would have been at the temple when it occurred. I’d think we would have seen him coming back to Nuan Huo, but it’s possible that we somehow missed each other.” Tallis nodded agreement, though with a grim face. They were both aware that the temple was the last place they wanted Brannon to have wound up. “Let’s get a carriage and get to the temple.” She frowned. “No, wait.”

  “Wait? Wait for what?”

  “Let’s get our warrants first,” Sienna said.

  “Good idea.” They made a hasty trip to the local magistrate, where they presented as little evidence as possible to the people on duty and
secured the warrants to search the temple. It was not difficult; Warders had broad discretion when it came to warrants. Most local law offices would prefer to issue them without question, rather than risk the wrath of the Warder Council.

  They had just left the office when Sienna said slowly, “Before we waste the time taking a trip all the way out to the temple, there’s something else we might want to check. If he was there, I would think Calessa would have notified us, so odds are good that he’s not. We don’t know if Brannon can find you magically,” she continued, “but there’s one thing that could be in this city that we do know he can find. Let’s try a magical trace on the Regalia. He’s been drawn to it before, presuming your friend Jaron’s story was accurate.”

  “Which would be all well and dandy,” Tallis said, “except for the fact that if we knew where to find the Regalia, we would have done it already.”

  Sienna ground her teeth. “Point.” She stared into space for a few moments, then said, “Calessa mentioned that Owain lived in the city. That he had a townhouse here and that he would been staying the night there. If we’re worried about Emory having Brannon, perhaps we should go pick up Owain. A little extra insurance. It seems that everyone agrees that Emory cares for no one except himself, and possibly Owain. It can’t hurt.”

  It took almost an hour of questioning locals before they found someone who recognized their description of Owain and was able to direct them to his townhouse. The doors were locked and no one answered. Sienna glanced up at the sun. “It’s getting towards mid-morning,” she said reluctantly. “He could have left for the temple already.”

  Tallis sniffed once, then started to pace back and forth in front of the house.

  “What is it?” Sienna asked, hurrying to catch up with him as he fiddled with the lock on the front door.

  “I think it was here,” Tallis said.

  “The chest?”

  Tallis nodded a little. He glared at the lock and said, “I wish Calessa was here. She’s so much better at this.”

  “Oh, just kick it in,” Sienna said. Tallis looked momentarily satisfied and gave the door a solid kick. It caved easily, and they went into the front hall.

  “Oh, gods,” Tallis said, sniffing. “Brannon was here, too.”

  “Yes,” Sienna said. “I think you’re right.”

  “Great,” Tallis said. “Now we’ve lost the chest and the emperor.” He turned and kicked the wall. “Just great! Can we get sacked for that?”

  “Not from being a Warder, I don’t think,” Sienna said dryly. They quietly entered the house and followed Brannon’s trail up the stairs and into the room where the chest had been. “Strong wards. I wonder how he got in.”

  “Same way he got into my Gate. And into my room that first night. He just did.”

  “Has Emory been here recently?”

  Tallis sniffed cautiously. “I don’t know. These wards may be Emory’s. It’s hard to be sure. But I’ll tell you who definitely was here – the same person who was stalking the monastery in the middle of the night.”

  “All right,” Sienna said. “Let’s get to the temple.”

  They commandeered two horses from a local stable and headed for the temple as fast as they could. Tallis suggested Gating, but Sienna vetoed the idea. It was only half an hour on a fast horse, and they didn’t know what they would find there. She did not want Tallis to waste energy on building a Gate.

  The temple was empty and silent when they got there, despite the fact that it was now well into the morning. “Odd,” Sienna said. “You have to wonder where all the worshippers are. It’s a bit much to assume Emory got them out of the line of fire. I doubt he cares about them that much. But it goes too far to assume that they all suddenly woke up this morning and realized that the religion they were worshipping was a crock of shit. He doesn’t want anybody to see what he’s about to do.”

  They made a quick search of the temple, which revealed nothing. No chest, no little boys, and no Warders. Emory was waiting for them in the main room when they came back from Calessa’s room upstairs. “Looking for something?” he asked, amused.

  “We want Calessa back,” Tallis said flatly. “And Brannon. And the chest.”

  “I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “I’m not in the mood to be lied to,” Tallis said. The air around him began to crackle with energy. Sienna gave him a look, and then took a few steps away before the gathering magic could crush her. Tallis’ reputation at the Warder Academy for the sheer destruction he could wreak when he lost control was legendary. The amount of destruction he could cause while still in control was nearly as impressive.

  “I will give you one chance to turn around and leave my temple,” Emory said. “Otherwise, I will kill you, and all your friends, and your precious boy Emperor.”

  “Why don’t you just try it,” Tallis suggested, starting forward.

  Emory stretched out his hand. A thin streak of blue light left his fingers and scorched a line on the temple floor. “I suggest you don’t try to cross the line,” Emory said.

  Tallis looked at the line with contempt. “Is that supposed to frighten me?”

  “As you like,” Emory replied.

  Tallis walked forward, slowly and deliberately, crossing the line. Immediately, the temple exploded with magical force, the weight of it pressing down on the occupants of the room. The lanterns along the wall shattered one after another, though sunlight still trickled in the narrow windows. Sienna stumbled into one of the sheltered alcoves, barely able to breathe through the magic.

  She glanced around and saw a dim outline in the dust and debris that was Tallis, unbowed and unfazed. He looked over at her and traced a quick glyph in the air. It flew over to her and landed on the pillar beside her with a shower of sparks, setting up a shield to protect her from the magical force. She nodded in quick thanks.

  Tallis held up both hands momentarily and light welled from them, arcing towards the ceiling of the temple. It was more than enough to illuminate the room, but Emory was still nowhere in sight. His voice, however, could still be heard. “Exactly what do you hope to accomplish with that?”

  Tallis didn’t bother to reply. He prowled around the room, letting his magic seep into the corners, into the cracks of the spells Emory was using to hide himself. Although he could not see the man, it was fairly easy to locate his magical presence, standing up by the altar. He had just found him when the ground around him exploded, sending chunks of stone and wood from the pews at him.

  Tallis unleashed his own magic, and heat filled the room, waves of power pushing the debris away from him, incinerating it in midair. A single chunk of wood struck his cheek, leaving a thin line of blood. He made a fist with one hand, holding Emory in place with raw power, advancing on the man slowly. With his own magic wearing away at Emory’s, he found he could see the man again. He was struggling against Tallis’ hold on him, as if he were moving through molasses.

  “Tell me where they are,” Tallis said, his eyes glinting. Emory snarled and the altar went flying at Tallis, sending books and candles scattering through the temple. Tallis ducked underneath the onslaught and bolted forward, dodging everything that Emory threw at him. He slammed the fake priest into the wall, cracking the stone behind what had been the altar.

  “Where is Brannon?” Tallis snarled, and Emory stared in an odd sort of fascination at the purple gleam that had lit in his eyes. He threw Tallis off of him, and the Warder skidded to a halt on his back. He didn’t bother getting up, but simply snapped another spell forward. “Tell me where he is!”

  Emory was hit by the spell and crashed into the wall, landing in a heap. He gasped, trying to get his breath back.

  Tallis struggled to his feet, coughing, and wiped the blood off his lips without really noticing it. “Where is he?”

  “You can’t stop me,” Emory said.

  “I will never stop coming after you,” Tallis said, grabbing Emory by the front of his robes, his
strength fueled by his magic. “Not until you give Brannon back. Until you give both of them back.”

  With effort, Emory broke free of his grip and ran blindly for the door to the secret chamber.

  * * *

  “What’s going on up there?” Brannon asked, looking nervously at the narrow staircase that led to the rest of the temple. He glanced at Owain, who was standing by the stairs, pale and nervous. A few moments earlier, they had felt the entire world start to shake, as if there was an earthquake. Then there had been several loud noises. Now it was silent.

  “It sounds like a fight,” Calessa said.

  “Who’s fighting?” Brannon asked, interested. “Is it Tallis coming to get us?”

  “I can’t think of anyone else that would be fighting up there,” Calessa said. She looked at Owain, wondering if he could help put a stop to this before Tallis and Emory blew the temple down around their ears. “This is not smart,” she told him. “Tallis has a reputation. He’s one of the strongest Warders. Ever.”

  “Emory will be all right,” Owain said, but another blast shook the temple to its foundations, and he didn’t sound convicted.

  “At this point I’m worried about us,” Calessa snapped back.

  Owain bit his lip. “I’ll be right back,” he murmured, and hurried up the stairs. He was through the door and gone without another word.

  Calessa sputtered a little. “Is he trying to get himself killed?”

  Brannon waited until the door had shut behind Owain and then scrambled for the chest, tugging on the lid. It didn’t budge. He swore.

  “How did you open it last time?” Calessa asked, trying to help. Then she frowned and added, “And why are you trying to open it now?”

  “I don’t know how I opened it last time!” Brannon said, tugging all the more furiously. “I was just standing there and I really wanted it to open and it did! I’ve never been able to open it before!”

  “Why are you trying to open it?” Calessa asked, and Brannon didn’t reply. “Don’t give him what he wants!”

  “I won’t!” Brannon’s eyes flashed with anger. “It’s mine and I want it and he can’t have it!”