Fireblade: Chapter 5
SHAN’DOMIR COVERS HIS alarm well, but then I suppose that is what assassin-spies are trained to do.
“Of course, my Lord. It will be such a great privilege to have you accept my humble gift. But one is not enough! You must have two, to keep a balance. I shall give you Falina as well. She is not only my lead dancer but also a most excellent cook.”
“Of course. Your generosity is legend, my friend. Send them away to gather their things now, as I shall be leaving before dawn tomorrow. I wish to travel in the early cool of the morning.”
Another brief wave from Shan’domir and I follow the team of dancing Nishan bodyguards as they hasten out of the room. My priority now is to find out where Falina has hidden my weapons so I can fight my way out of here if there is no other way to avoid being summarily whisked off to join the Royal harem––or whatever it is the illustrious Khalim has planned for me. I know that Annubia does not have slave markets, but they do have strict contracts of service which are almost impossible to break until the allotted time has expired. I’m guessing that my cover as one of Shan’domir’s servants implies that I am under a similar contract.
The girls have already scattered in different directions and it takes me a few minutes to track down my dance-guide.
“Falina! You must tell me where my weapons are!”
She shakes her head emphatically. “You cannot take them with you. It would be most unwise.”
“I have a mission to complete here and it doesn’t involve getting stuck in any of the Khalim’s palaces, even for a minute!”
She lays a perfectly-manicured hand on my arm, trying to calm my restlessness.
“If Shan’domir has promised to help your mission, he will rescue you in his own way. He always keeps his word.”
I hesitate. “We hadn’t actually made it as far as firm promises on a plan of action. The Khalim interrupted that discussion with his unexpected visit.”
“Oh… in that case…”
Then I see her eyes focus past me and a broad grin spreads across her face. I turn to see who has just walked in as Shan’domir strides across the room and envelopes her in an enthusiastic bear-like hug.
“Success at last!”
Even if I can’t understand all the Annubian words in their animated conversation, their obvious delight would make the meaning clear even though what the success refers to is still a mystery. Falina casts an anxious glance in my direction but Shan’domir brushes her concerns aside as he sets her neatly back on the ground and switches to his flawless Samarian.
“Relax, Falina. Ariel knows what we all are, so you can drop your humble-servant act.”
I step in front of him. “Sorry, but I don’t have time to play entertainer to any of your friends, even royal ones. Give me my weapons and let me get out of here before I get royally kidnapped.”
The triumph on his face fades to apprehension. “That would be most unwise.”
“Yes, I know. Falina just said the same thing, but it’s not unwise from my point of view, only yours. You know perfectly well I can fight my way out of wherever the Khalim decides to imprison me, even without weapons, but that would prove a great deal messier.”
I can see the alarm growing and working its way across his face as he considers the possibility.
“Ariel. Please do not plan anything so foolish. I will give you what you want if you will only trust me. If you do not appreciate the prestige and luxury of joining the Khalim’s retinue as he travels from city to city, I will get you out of there in my own way. It must not appear that my gift is acting in an ungrateful manner by absconding. Also, your removal must not reflect on myself or Falina in any way. And yes, if you wish, I will arrange for you to receive Nishan training.”
A look of utter shock passes across Falina’s face. “You will grant our training to a foreigner?”
“These are difficult times.” The trader-spy glares at her as if daring her to argue. “We are at war against a formidable enemy across the border in Rapathia, with only an unsecured alliance at our backs. And now we have finally achieved our long-term plan to get you inside all the Khalim’s palaces while he is in residence at each one. My best spy in exactly the right place at last! A few traditions need to be broken to ensure that nothing gets compromised. And we do owe our success to Ariel’s beauty and unusual hair.”
Falina raises an eyebrow and makes a visible effort not to argue. “If you say so, my Lord.”
The words might be deferential although the tone definitely is not. Shan’domir simply grins. Seems he is too pleased with his achievement of getting a spy into all seven of the royal palaces to let minor differences of opinion spoil his day.
I detect something else from this exchange as well. However inconvenient my imminent abduction might be, it seems to have confirmed my chance of being accepted for Nishan training. I get the feeling that outcome would have been a deal less likely if Shan’domir had not been pressured by the thought of me fighting my way out of captivity and ruining his reputation with the Khalim.
Now he seems focused on immediate rescue plans.
“Falina, we shall need a roadblock at the canyon on the south road. Can you set up something that looks like the aftermath of a robbery? It will raise fewer alarms if it gives the impression the ambush has already happened.”
She looks unperturbed by what seems to me like a complicated and difficult mission at short notice.
“Of course. For this project it would be more convincing if we could include a few corpses. Is there anyone on your list of criminals that we could remove from this city for our purpose?”
He frowns. “I think there will not be time. The three most powerful crime-lords have learned of my intent to bring them to justice and they have kept themselves well-guarded. Taking them would be a separate and complex operation.”
I don’t feel at all sure if protocol allows me to interrupt this odd conversation but it would be nice to feel I have contributed something useful to my own rescue––even if it isn’t exactly something I planned in advance.
“Um, I left four bodies abandoned in an alleyway not too far from here. They may still be there. Any use?”
The fierce glare suddenly focused in my direction suggests that Shan’domir does not entirely approve of strangers removing citizens from the city without his permission, even if they are criminals. I try to plead extenuating circumstances.
“They were slavers who thought I was a helpless peasant girl. They thought they could get a good price for me in the Rapathian slave-markets.”
I’m not entirely sure, but I think I detect something like grudging admiration in his next question.
“Where did this happen exactly?”
“Halfway between the city gate and the Hawk and Scorpion. Near a street of vendors selling hard liquor.”
He gives a slight dip of the head. Maybe mild approval mixed with bafflement.
“That is the territory of the Serpent clan. Very unpleasant. Slave-trading is not their only evil occupation. Why were you so foolish as to go wandering through there?”
“Like I said, my first time here. I was looking for you and didn’t know where to start.”
Shan’domir decides not to waste any more time on what has passed and turns back to Falina.
“Take the wagon, go and collect them. Unlikely anyone will have tried to move them before nightfall.”
I call after her as she heads for the door. “I borrowed a smelly cloak from one of them. Maybe you can retrieve it from my things and reunite it with its original owner, before it ruins the box you stowed it in.”
She doesn’t turn back, merely gives a careless wave as she hurries out.
It is well after midnight when she and her team return, tired but apparently satisfied with their efforts. I haven’t been able to sleep with the tension of wondering what happened with their operation and I have been alternately pacing the room in between trying to distract myself by practicing sword forms. Without my missing swords.
“Falina! I was worried. Shan’domir wouldn’t let me come with you.”
She strips off the sleek black tunic and robe that had made her look like a smudge of night shadow.
“You would have put us all at risk of discovery. We rely on close teamwork and it takes time to achieve perfect harmony with it. But everything is in place. When we are on the road, you and some of the other girls will be kidnapped from the wagon. You must control your instinct to fight. Make sure you look frightened and helpless.”
“Why will there be others?”
“It has to look random to ensure there is no suspicion that it is Shan’domir reclaiming his gift. I will find out which girls want to leave the Khalim’s service and I will make sure they stay close to you. Now sleep. The royal convoy will leave in three hours’ time and you need to be alert.”
I just hope that my efforts to look frightened and helpless tomorrow will be more effective than my attempt to relax and fall asleep while waiting to be carried off like a piece of royal property.