The City of Zirdai by Maria V. Snyder
Fourteen
Jayden carried Mojag from Shyla’s room. Gurice stared at the doorway. “After our parents died in one of the Water Prince’s raids, Jayden helped us so much. Mojag was unruly, sullen, prone to angry outbursts, and I didn’t know what to do with him. Mojag considers Jayden his brother.” She huffed. “A better sibling than me, that’s for sure.”
“No.” Shyla put her hand on her shoulder. “You’re doing a good job. He had a traumatic experience at such a young age. Witnessing your parents’ murder is not something you recover from without some permanent scars.”
“Wait.” Gurice turned to her. “He saw them being killed?”
Oops. “You didn’t know?”
She slumped. “We found him hiding in a trunk. I’d assumed our dad told him to stay there and not to come out no matter what. He wouldn’t come out for a long time. And, when he did, he didn’t talk for a circuit afterwards. I never asked if he saw anything.”
“He’s been holding that inside for a long time and needed to release it. You did a good thing, Gurice.”
“I hope so.” She tilted her head at the wall. “It’s dry. Does that prove something?”
Shyla added heat to her gaze. Her name shone on the wall. “It does!” She grinned at her friend.
“Uh-oh. Why do I have a feeling I’m not going to like what’s next?”
“How would you like to be the first person to take the oath for the new archive of the Invisible Sword?”
“Like a new beginning?”
“Yes. Exactly.”
“Is it going to hurt?”
“I’ve no idea.”
“Funny, but really…is it?”
Shyla laughed. “Roll up your sleeve.”
Gurice grumbled but pulled the fabric of her tunic up over her shoulder. Her Invisible Sword symbol shone on her chestnut-colored skin. Only another sworn Invisible Sword member with magic could see it.
The mark wasn’t that complex. There were two crossed swords. They overlapped about a quarter of the way down from the tips. A line curved through both hilts and flared out to the sides. It bowed away from the tips, while a second line arced in the opposite direction between the two blades. The two curved lines had an oval shape, and, from a distance, resembled an eye.
Shyla considered. If she drew a circle inside that oval to represent an iris, and then a solid circle for the pupil, then there’d be no doubt it was an eye. Fitting. Except adding those extra lines with chalk seemed silly. She needed something else that was thin that she could push her magic through. Her stylus!
Rummaging through her pack, she found the instrument. The metal tip should be small enough and the slightly flattened end wouldn’t scratch skin.
“Are you going to write your name on me?” Gurice asked.
“No.” She explained her plan. “What do you think?”
“I think you should draw it out and show everyone so they’ll know what it looks like.”
“Good idea. And I think you should take the oath along with everyone else. But, if you don’t mind, I’d like to try to add the extra embellishments now, because if it doesn’t work, I’ll have to figure something else out.”
“Does that mean I’ll have to do it twice?”
“Yes.”
“It’s a good thing I like you. All right, what do I do?”
Shyla brought the tip close to Gurice’s shoulder and pushed her magic into the stylus. “Repeat after me. As a member of the Invisible Sword, I swear that I will embrace the beliefs and tenets of the organization and fully support its efforts to help those in need.”
As Gurice recited the words, Shyla traced the two sword blades on her shoulder.
“As a member of the Invisible Sword, I swear I will not betray the location of our headquarters or the identities of our members to our enemies and would give my life to keep its secrets.”
“Our enemies? That’s new. Before we didn’t tell anyone outside the organization.”
“It’ll be hard to recruit people without telling them about it.”
“Good point.” She repeated the second phrase while Shyla traced the two curved lines of the symbol.
“As a member of the Invisible Sword, I swear not to harm or kill another unless it is absolutely necessary or in self-defense.”
Gurice raised her eyebrows but echoed Shyla’s words. Shyla drew a big circle in the oval shape.
“As a member of the Invisible Sword, I swear allegiance to my fellow Invisible Swords.”
When Gurice recited that sentence, Shyla met her gaze and the truth of her oath blazed through Shyla. She channeled it into the stylus and colored in a smaller circle in the middle of the oval.
“Ow!” Gurice jerked away, covering her shoulder with a hand. “Did you just stab me?”
“No.”
“What happened?”
“If you put your hand down, I’ll tell you if it worked.” Although she was pretty confident the oath was genuine.
When Gurice uncovered the symbol, it now glowed with Shyla’s eye. “It worked. Congratulations, you’re now a member of the new archive of the Invisible Sword.”
“Should we hug?”
“Do you need a hug?”
“Who doesn’t?” But Gurice rolled her shoulders. “I don’t feel any different.”
“Good. Then you can get back to work.”
She huffed. “And after all I’ve done for you.”
“You have my gratitude. And you’ve earned a gold statue of Tamburah. We’ve lots.”
“Ugh, I’ll pass on the statue.”
“He’s not naked in all of them.”
“Still no.”
“Yeah, I don’t think they’re going to be popular.”
Shyla wanted to get everyone sworn in right away, but Mojag still slept and she didn’t have the heart to wake him. Plus, if she was being honest, the effort to open Mojag’s magic had used up quite a bit of her energy. Instead, she decided to wait until after she returned from the city. She planned to go into Zirdai at angle one-eighty to sell one of Tamburah’s crowns to the professor. It had been about nine sun jumps since their last meeting and the woman could have decided to leave early. Also they needed the coins to buy the platinum from Zimraan. And, since she was being honest, she might catch a glimpse of Rendor. It was pathetic, but she missed him.
Ximen elected to accompany her when Jayden chose to remain at headquarters with Mojag. Elek and Jaft also tagged along. They were scheduled for a water run. In order to keep the jugs filled, teams of two had been making trips to the bowels of Zirdai with the velbloud bladders every five or six sun jumps.
Right after the group climbed to the surface, Jayden called up to Shyla. “Mojag’s awake.” His face creased as if he was in pain.
She waited.
“He moved the sand with magic.”
Relief and joy swirled in her heart. She hoped Mojag recovered from the ordeal, but it seemed her plan to expand their number of wielders worked.
“You know he’ll be impossible to live with now,” Jayden said.
“And how is that different than before?”
Jayden just shook his head. Shyla joined the others. She walked beside Ximen, striding easily through the sand as if she were a velbloud ready to lift into the sky. Her thoughts focused on how to find others who had the potential to wield magic.
When they reached the city, Elek and Ximen headed for a different entrance than Shyla and Jaft. They planned to meet up once inside. There were a few deacons watching the people returning from the desert. Some of them wore protective torques.
Ximen created a small whirlwind of sand. It buzzed through the one-story buildings. Sand whirls were a common enough occurrence to not be viewed as suspicious, but interesting enough to provide a distraction for Shyla and Jaft to get inside.
“Handy,” Jaft said once they were through. “Will Rae be able to do that?”
“Depends.”
“Wow, that’s vaguely specific.”
“It’s up to Rae if she wishes to access her magic and, if she does, it will depend on how strong she is and if she even has the ability to move sand.”
“Oh.”
Thankfully, Jaft didn’t ask any more questions. They rendezvoused with Elek and Ximen. After agreeing to meet Elek and Jaft back at the same location on level ten at angle three-fifty-five, they split up. Ximen headed to the markets to determine the time—or as close to it as possible—that Zimraan’s caravan was scheduled to arrive while Elek and Jaft took Rendor’s route to his water source. Shyla kept to the edges of the city as she descended to Professor Emeline’s quarters on level forty-two. When her and Ximen’s tasks were finished, they would meet back at Orla’s.
Shyla waited in the same dark nook for the professor to return from third meal. The temptation to seek Rendor with her magic pulsed in her veins. She had found if she kept busy, the memories of his kiss and the longing for his touch wouldn’t ambush her as often. To keep from thinking about him, she focused on the people in the tunnels nearby. Students mostly, but a few professors and a couple of guards patrolled. Not the guards who had helped her when Utina had accused her of murdering Banqui and stealing The Eyes from him. She wondered if those two would be receptive to changing their allegiance. Probably not, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask.
Emeline arrived at angle two-forty-five and Shyla stepped from the shadow.
The woman startled but recovered with a nervous laugh. “You certainly like to make an entrance. Do you have something for me?”
“Yes.”
“Come on in.” Emeline unlocked the door and swept out a bony arm, indicating Shyla should precede her.
She entered the dark room and waited near the door while the professor uncovered the trol lanterns, then slid the glass panel closed.
“Did you recover Gorgain’s crown and torque?” Emeline’s eyes glowed almost as bright as the lanterns.
“No, but I found something better.”
The woman deflated. “There’s not much that’s better.”
“Oh, I think you won’t be disappointed.” Shyla removed one of Tamburah’s crowns from her pack. This one resembled a ring of vines with berries interspersed throughout. The leaves and stems were made of gold, and rubies provided the vivid red color of the berries.
Emeline sucked in a breath. “Whose is that?”
“King Tamburah’s.”
“But his tomb and vault were looted thousands of circuits ago.”
Shyla told her about Tamburah’s increasing paranoia and the existence of a second vault.
“May I?” She held out her hand.
“Of course.”
The professor brought it to her desk and examined it under the light. Then she put a glass monocle to her eye and peered at the rubies. Fascinated, Shyla watched as the woman brought out a set of delicate tools and tested the gold by trying to scrape off the color. Emeline performed a few more assessments before weighing the crown.
“It’s certainly valuable. But I’m not convinced it was Tamburah’s. Do you have proof?”
“Isn’t there an analysis that can determine an artifact’s age?”
“Yes, but it takes a long time and I don’t have the equipment here.”
“Why does it matter? The gold and rubies alone are worth plenty of coins.”
“True, but if it really is a historical artifact that can be studied and displayed, then it’s worth more.”
“How much more?”
“Double.”
Ah. Was it worth the risk? But, more importantly, did she want the crown to be disassembled and melted down? “I’ve a statue of Tamburah that was found along with the crown.”
Emeline perked up. “That would be perfect! Do you wish to sell that one as well?”
“Do you have enough coins to pay for both?”
“Please don’t insult me, girl.”
Shyla waited.
The professor unlocked a small trunk and pulled out a big pouch. It jangled and clanged when she handled it. She untied it and then spilled dozens and dozens of osees onto the desk. “As you can see, I’ve plenty.” Picking up the now empty pouch, she met Shyla’s gaze. “How about I pay you now for the crown at the current black-market value and, when you return with the statue, I’ll double that amount and we’ll negotiate a price for the statue?”
It sounded reasonable. Aphra had warned her that she wouldn’t get full market value because the sale wasn’t legitimate. “What are you offering?”
“One hundred osees.”
Aphra had also taught her to never take the first offer. It would be insultingly low and a test to see if Emeline could take advantage of Shyla.
“Seven hundred osees,” she countered.
“Ha! That’s robbery. Two hundred osees.”
They went back and forth until they agreed on four hundred osees. Shyla kept her expression neutral, but inside she celebrated. That amount would go a long way and when she returned, she’d double it along with the value of the statue.
After Emeline paid her, Shyla headed to Orla’s commune.
Ximen was already there, waiting for her. “The merchants expect Zimraan’s caravan in five sun jumps.”
“How do they know he’s coming then?” she asked.
“Most big caravans send runners a few sun jumps ahead to inform the next city of their arrival, to hire muscle to carry their goods down to the market, and to arrange for someone to care for their gamelus while they’re in the city.” Ximen looked at her in amusement.
“What?”
“You know all this history and how to read ancient languages, but not the mundane workings of the city.”
“That’s what happens when you grow up in a monastery. What else do I need to know about these caravans?”
“They’re guarded. And Zimraan won’t want to upset the Heliacal Priestess by selling the platinum to us.”
She jingled the osees in her pack. “I’m sure he’ll get over it.”
Ximen smiled. “I take it your visit went well.”
Shyla handed him the pouch of coins minus a handful for her to spend. “Yes. I want you to take this back to headquarters and fetch one of the Tamburah statues.” She explained about the deal. “You’ll have an easier time leaving and returning. I can take care of some business while I wait.”
“All right.”
“And can you check on Mojag? Make sure he’s still okay.”
“Will do.” Ximen left to meet up with Jaft and Elek.
Shyla searched for Orla. The woman was happy to see her and quickly filled her in on the news. The vagrants hadn’t found the mother of the infant left in the sand and they didn’t know where Rendor was staying. The city was buzzing with talk about the arrest of the monks, and the Heliacal Priestess’s obsession with purchasing platinum was still an active source of gossip.
“We believe they’re melting the platinum down in the chapel on level seventy-one. One of my people caught a whiff of molten metal. The priestess has also doubled the number of deacons guarding all the chapels,” Orla said.
“That’s not a surprise. Did you get any backlash from the rescue?” Shyla asked.
“No. In fact, the search for the members of the Invisible Sword has taken priority and both the guards and deacons have stopped harassing the vagrants for now.”
At least Shyla was able to make a difference for the communes. Baby steps was what Ximen had said about learning magic, but it could be applied to their efforts to help others as well. Eventually, they’d be in a position to effect real change. That thought reminded her.
She asked about the people the deacons had tortured. “Are they fully recovered?” It’d been eight sun jumps since the rescue.
“Some are. A few need more time, but Zhek is satisfied with their progress.”
“Once they’re better what happens to them?”
“They are afraid to return to their lives, so they’ve asked to remain with us. As long as they contribute to the commune, they’re welcome to stay.”
“I’d like to talk to them,” Shyla said.
“They’re asleep right now, but I’m sure they’ll be happy to see you when they wake. How long are you staying?”
“Just another sun jump.” Sleeping sounded like a good idea, so she headed to her room. As she sank into the cushion, she wondered if she could justify using her newly acquired coins to buy a couple sleeping cushions. Would Zimraan have any to sell? And why was she obsessed with this? Perhaps thinking about obtaining a comfortable cushion kept her from contemplating the fact she had no one to share it with. No one had seen Rendor. Did that mean he’d left the city? And why did that notion hurt so much?
Orla was right. The group she’d helped rescue cheered when she entered their quarters around angle twenty. A dozen total—part of an extended family that had gotten on the priestess’s bad side—they stayed in a large room that had sleeping cushions, furs, tables, and a sitting area. They also cared for the four that still required assistance.
After she explained about their potential to have magic because of the trauma they had experienced, they all immediately agreed to allow her to test them, even those four who couldn’t stand.
Of the twelve, only two had been cracked, and one was younger than Mojag. Too young, but she was determined to be a part.
“When you’re older,” Shyla said to her. And she explained to Wazir, the other one, that he’d have to relive the horrors he had experienced in order for her to fully open his magic.
“You saved my son. I’ll do whatever it takes to help you,” Wazir said.
The mention of his son sent a jolt of alarm straight through her along with a sudden realization. The other Invisible Sword members didn’t have children, which she was very glad about. And she didn’t want Wazir’s son to grow up without his father. Or for his wife to lose her husband.
“You can help by taking care of your son. I’ll find another-”
“Do you think I want him to grow up in a world where your family can be arrested or grabbed by power hungry deacons for little to no reason? He will be safe here in the commune while I fight to make Zirdai a good place to raise a family.”
“We will fight.” Another man stood next to Wazir. “I might not have magic, but I have a strong back.”
Two young women joined them.
“Us, too,” one of them said. “If we want things to change, we have to stop waiting for someone else to change them.”
Hard to argue with that. “Welcome to the Invisible Sword.”
Shyla spent the rest of the sun jump stalking deacons. While she couldn’t get near the ones in the chapels due to the deacons guarding them—at least one and sometimes two of the four wore a torque—she followed the deacons leaving. None showed any signs that they wielded magic. Most of the citizens parted or stepped out of their way, but that was probably due to fear.
Giving up on them, Shyla slipped inside the dining cavern on level twenty-nine during second meal and observed the kitchen staff. There she noted a few people with scars circling their wrists. Even though they were technically deacons, they wore light green tunics and pants instead of the robes. And most of them wore white aprons.
When one of the deacons who’d been outside guarding the dining cavern came into the kitchen, Shyla experienced a strong desire not to look in certain areas. Brushing the magic aside, she marked the two female workers who had frozen in place. Their fear was evident in their postures and darting glances. The women only relaxed once the deacon left the kitchen.
After the kitchen staff cleaned up, the workers returned to their dorms. They only had about thirty-five angles before they needed to return to set up for third meal. Shyla shadowed the two women. It wasn’t long before they entered one of the rooms along with two others. Most of the priestess’s deacons lived in dormitories near where they worked. The higher-ranking deacons stayed in apartments near the chapels.
When the tunnel emptied, Shyla strode to their room and knocked on the door. The sudden knowledge that the room was empty pressed on her along with the need to leave. Her stomach churned as she realized these women were still being abused. She blocked their magic and projected her own.
Friend.
The door slid open a crack. “I don’t know you,” the woman said so low it was almost a whisper.
“You don’t, but you will. Can I come in?”
Friend.
A hesitation, but then she widened the gap and let Shyla into the small room. She remained by the now closed door as if she planned to dash out if Shyla tried anything untoward. The room contained two druks, four sleeping cushions, four trunks, and four scared women. The two on the right pushed, go away, go away, go away. Shyla deflected the magic as she met each of their gazes, taking their measure.
“What do you want?” the lady on the far left demanded. She had her hands on her cocked hip—the unofficial leader.
“To help.”
A bitter laugh. “Go sign up at the chapel. The deacons are always looking for new recruits.”
“Not that kind of help.” Shyla pulled her wrap down, revealing her hair.
The four women stared at her as if she’d just uncovered the sun.
“You’re…”
“You can’t be here,” the woman by the door said. “They’ll kill you.”
“And us,” the leader added.
Go away.
Go away.
Go away.
Shyla turned to the two using magic. “I’m not going away. You can’t make me, nor can you disappear. Do you want to know why?”
Stunned silence.
“Because I know what you two can do. You’re using magic.”
The women glanced at each other.
“Yes, that’s what you’ve been doing. It’s real. I’ll demonstrate to make this go faster.” Shyla gathered her will and aimed it at all four.
Gone.
Gasps and confused exchanges followed, confirming that they all witnessed her disappear. Shyla stepped to the back of the room and stopped the magical command.
“You have three choices,” Shyla said.
They started and spun around to face her.
“We haven’t had a choice since being rehabilitated,” the leader said.
“Well now you do. The first one is that you can do nothing, keep working in the kitchen, keep cowering in your room. Or you can run to your boss and report that you’ve seen the evil sun-kissed. You might get a pat on the back, but when they can’t find me, you’ll probably be in trouble.”
“No probably about it,” muttered the leader.
“The third choice is to join me. You can help stop the deacons from rehabilitating more people. I’m gathering an army and we’re going to change the leadership of Zirdai.” Might as well be optimistic that she would soon have an army.
“Say we do join you. What would we do?” the leader asked.
“For now you would learn how to fight and shovel lots of sand, and for these two…” She pointed at the women on the right. “They would need to open the rest of their magic and learn how to use it.” She explained what that would entail.
They both paled several shades.
“And the dangers?” the woman by the door asked.
“Deacons and guards. Everyone is after me and my people. If you’re caught, you’ll be tortured for information and killed.” No sense dancing around the truth.
“We need to think about it,” the leader said.
“Of course.” Shyla told them where to meet. “Be there by angle three-fifty-five. If anyone else trustworthy wants to join, they’re welcome. And I’ll know if there’s an ambush of deacons waiting for me.” Although she doubted they would rat her out. “So be prepared for any backlash that will cause.”
“From you?”
“No, from the deacons. I don’t think they’ll be pleased that your information was inaccurate. I won’t cause you any more trouble. I suspect you’ve already had more than your share and that’s what I’m trying to stop.” Shyla left.
During third meal, Shyla observed the kitchen staff in the dining cavern on level thirty-nine. There she spotted a young man using magic. She trailed him to his room and repeated her recruitment spiel to him and his roommates. Except this time one of the men contemplated how to report the sun-kissed to his superiors. So she erased his memories of her visit and sent him to sleep.
“He’ll betray you if you tell him about me. Decide to come or stay, but don’t reveal your plans to him.”
“How do you know he planned to betray us?” one man asked.
“The same way I know you’re thinking of finding your sister, Karrah, hoping to convince her to come with you.”
He straightened in surprise. “Oh.”
“And, by the way, she’s welcome.” Although where Shyla was going to fit all these people she had no idea.
She wished she could visit the other six dining caverns. Because once these people disappeared, she doubted she’d be able to get near the kitchen workers again.
Jayden arrived at Orla’s commune after darkness.
Surprised, she asked, “Where’s Ximen?”
“Good to see you, too,” he snarked. Then he sobered. “Mojag is driving me crazy. The kid is inexhaustible and wants to learn everything about magic. Right away! For the first time in his short life, Mojag is focused and determined.”
“That’s wonderful news.”
“For you,” he mock-grumbled. “Not for me. I needed a break so I asked Ximen to take a turn with him.”
“Good idea. Did you bring a statue?”
Jayden dug into his pack. “I thought this one makes him look the most kingly.” He handed her a statue of Tamburah wearing a crown and elaborate royal garments.
It was about thirty centimeters high and weighed around two kilograms, which meant it was hollow. If it’d been solid gold, it would be much heavier.
She updated Jayden on the new members. “We’ll take them with us when we leave at angle zero. In the meantime, I’m going to visit the professor.” She grabbed a handful of coins and gave them to Jayden. “Here. We’re going to have twelve more people to feed. Please buy some fresh food.”
He stared at the coins in his palm. “Twelve?”
“So far. I’ve been recruiting and I plan to get a dozen more.” She slapped him good-naturedly on the back before hurrying to level forty-two to finish her business with Emeline.
After dodging a couple guards, Shyla slowed. No sense running straight into the enemy. When she reached level forty-three, she paused as a familiar set of…bumps touched her. Pressing against the tunnel’s wall, she peered around the corner. About three meters away were Nuru and Vallie—the two guards who helped her when Utina, the historian, demanded that she be arrested. They had seemed open-minded and intelligent when they escorted her to the library. Would they be open to the idea of joining the Invisible Sword?
Shyla drew in a breath. Only one way to find out. Gathering her courage, she rounded the corner and strode to the pair. It took them a few heartbeats to notice her, and then a couple more to recognize her.
“Hey!” Nuru shouted, pulling his sword. “You’re under arrest.”
She held out her hands to show them she was unarmed. “I’m not running away.”
Vallie had also drawn her weapon. “Good, then we won’t hurt you.”
“I just want to talk to you,” Shyla said.
“Fine. You can talk all you want on the way down to the Water Prince. Turn around and put your hands behind your back.” Nuru gestured with the tip of his blade.
“No.” She made eye contact with each of them. Both were confused by her behavior, but excited to have caught the sun-kissed. “You know the Water Prince will torture me and eventually kill me.”
“He might spare you,” Vallie said.
“You should have thought of that before you stole The Eyes from him,” Nuru said.
“The Eyes were never his. But if he gets them, he will have a great deal of power. And what do you think he’ll do with this power?”
“Not our concern,” Nuru said. “Now move, or I’ll—”
“When will it become your concern? When the prince targets your family? Your friends? Your partner? When your mother is hanging upside down being tortured because your thoughts were not what the prince wanted to hear?”
They both stared at her.
“Yes, The Eyes will give him the power to read your minds, your emotions, your souls. You won’t be able to lie to him. Ever.”
Vallie sheathed her sword and pulled out a pair of manacles. “Nice try, Sun-Kissed. But we don’t scare easily.”
“I’m telling the truth. And you can help me to overthrow the prince. I’m—”
“A delusional sun-kissed whose brains have been fried by the sun. No, thanks,” Nuru said.
“You’ve no idea what you’re talking about,” Vallie said. “There’s no reason for us to trust you.”
Their emotions matched their words. The idea of working with a sun-kissed or anyone to overthrow the prince would be suicide. Too bad. Shyla summoned her will.
Stop.
They both froze. Vallie’s arms were extended as she reached for Shyla. Pushing her arms down, Shyla hooked the manacles back on the woman’s belt. Then she took Nuru’s sword and slid it back into its sheath. Shyla stepped behind them and erased their memories of the encounter with her. Only when she was out of sight did she release them.
She climbed to level forty-two. After ensuring there was nobody in the tunnels around the professor’s room, Shyla knocked on the door.
Emeline invited her inside. “I didn’t think you’d be back this quick.”
“No sense waiting.” Shyla pulled the statue from her pack.
“Oh my.” She took the golden figure almost reverently. Holding it near a lantern, she examined it carefully, once again using her tools. “It’s genuine.” Emeline glanced up. “Well done. How many artifacts did you find in Tamburah’s second vault?”
“I’ve a few more pieces,” Shyla hedged. “Are you interested in buying them?”
“I doubt I have the coin for such historically valuable items. But the Water Prince is very curious where you found these. Guards!”
Shyla started as guards rushed from the professor’s sleeping chamber. So focused on potential ambushers outside the room, she’d never considered seeking them inside. A deadly mistake.