Return to Went

Chapter 6

Chapter Two

SACRED TO LETH

In the Imperial City of Giahn, baking summer days were occasionally relieved by afternoon storms, but more often it stayed hot until midnight, when cool air from the mountains wound its way slowly through the maze of streets.

Bare to the waist, Huldar leaned against the window frame and gazed up at the sky. Perspiration chilled against his chest as the alpine gusts finally arrived. He recalled a night very like this one – had it really been only ten years? – waking from a recurring nightmare in which he relived the death of Joumelät Enna. Thankfully, those dreams no longer bothered him, and although her end had been gruesome and at the time he’d been devastated, her passing had brought Andel into his life, and for that he was most grateful. He glanced back at his wife, sound asleep on the bed, sheets strewn aside. So much had changed since then.

He moved back as a black-clad patrol passed below. Where once there might once have been a cosmopolitan mix of people walking to and fro, now there were only the so-called peacekeepers, patrolling, so they said, for illegal half-breeds. It was not illegal for others to walk at night, not yet, but if anyone was out, the peacekeepers would want to know why.

There were extra taxes for employing a half-breed, the Explorers Guild’s paperwork for Casco had been checked more than once, and an exorbitant additional fee had had to be paid to the Navigators Guild. Casco had taken to wearing a sash around his head with the Guild badge pinned to it, and always carried a spare in case the one on show was “confiscated” by an overzealous officer or even, as in one incident, a particularly bigoted archangel. However, if he was accompanied by an archangel, trouble was minimal. It was as if he had to be owned. The situation made Huldar’s blood boil, but Casco had asked him to ignore it as best he could, claiming the attention just made things worse. Apparently, his involvement in the Kareski uprising – an event Huldar had only heard of in passing – had made him a particular target, but that was something else they’d not discussed. He felt guilty, not knowing, but with the passing of Andel’s mother to the Breath, Andel’s subsequent break-down, and nursing Inshogi through the terrible pain of his loss, news of the Realm had seemed of little consequence.

You all right? Andel asked. He hadn’t even sensed her waking.

Can’t sleep, he said.

Truly? She sent him a warm dash of humor.

Casco, peacekeepers, everything’s changed, he said darkly. And why does Pieru want a private meeting tomorrow? Something’s going on, I know it. As if there’s not enough to contend with already! Leaving six weeks early? It’s madness. Breath knows what conditions on Went will be like, but Faytha has spoken, he said sarcastically. Coin rules the Imperium now: coin and greed. El’s representative my ass!

Huldar!

He sighed an apology. I’ll be glad to be gone. Always am.

Come back to bed. She stroked the space beside her. I’ll make it worth your while … comfy mattress … warm … clean …

He nodded. It’ll be bedrolls and icicles soon enough.

No icicles here …

Cool air followed him back to the bed. The sheets rustled softly as he lay down and wrapped her in the crook of his body.

Not too cold? he asked. Should I pull the covers up?

Hardly!

She wriggled around to face him and drew his forehead down to touch her own.

Are you all right? he asked. A fleeting image of her mother passed between them. Are you sure you want to go back?

Three years on my own? Beyond contact? I don’t think so.

You’d have your father …

She buried her head against his chest. I’m trying – you know I am, but Mother …

He kissed the top of her head. I know, he said gently. Ubaid and Alis will be here in a day or so. Maybe they can help?

She lifted her face back to his. Maybe.

Their lips touched. A jolt of excitement flooded his limbs.

He raised his eyebrows.

She answered with a shy smile. Clean sheets? Soft mattress …

You’re right. He smiled. Shouldn’t let them go to waste.

Huldar’s brows contracted. He studied Pieru incredulously. “An assassin?”

Had he misheard? But the word resounded in his mind and he knew he hadn’t.

“The Cantori hasn’t admitted as much, of course,” Pieru continued, “but there are several sides to the coin that is Mirashael, and one of them is dark indeed.”

There was an awkward pause. “Why?” Huldar asked.

“Why would I approve this?” For a moment, Pieru wouldn’t meet his gaze.

Huldar’s head tilted. “There’s danger enough in what we do without a trained killer in our midst!”

“You’ll find Daric Enna has superlative abilities when it comes to screens and veils, and portals too,” Pieru added smoothly. “As to his professional skills, of course, I can only surmise. He has made it known that he wishes to embrace a new lifestyle and leave the old behind – and I believe him.”

Huldar waited, his thoughts a blur.

Pieru frowned. “Huldar. Perhaps you haven’t thought of it this way, but soldiers are trained killers too. Maatu are famed for their martial abilities, yet that doesn’t stop us using them as navigators. Cobar and Gento are Rukh. Efficient killing for them is a matter of pride.”

“You know what I mean!”

“I sensed nothing out of kilter with him.” Pieru had the good grace to allow somewhat of an apology to cross his veil. “There are shadows to be sure, but he is fast friends with Casco and that gives me reassurance. I’m surprised you don’t know him already.”

“I’ve haven’t met him,” Huldar rubbed his neck. “Casco and I …” He searched for words to explain. “We’ve lost touch. What with getting married and the trouble with Andel’s health after her mother died … and now the whole issue with the Faythans and the mining – breaking all the rules.” He looked vaguely around the room. “I’m looking forward to getting away, I really am, but another, more realistic part of me is dreading it. What am I supposed to do? Why will no one listen to me? This whole situation is wrong.”

“Maybe Daric Enna will be a greater asset than you imagine,” the Guild-Lord said softly.

Huldar looked at him, aghast.

“I hope you understand, Huldar, that you are sacred to Leth.”

“For all the good it’s done so far,” he said bitterly. “I didn’t ask to be!”

“As if that matters! You are chosen by Went and, despite the difficulties, or perhaps because of them, it is your duty to protect her. You are the guild in this instance. Arien Leth himself has acknowledged your status – never forget it! But I know you … However hard it seems, you must keep this power any way you can. The Host’s superintendent, Olatu of Faytha, fancies himself overmuch for my liking and isn’t one I would have selected for such an isolated posting. Things may go bad.”

“Bad? What does that mean? Things are bad already. And what of the new Overlord? Isn’t it his job to deal with such issues?”

“Radätel Gok seems decent enough, but whether he’ll be able to stand up to a seasoned rogue like Kashmät … All I’m saying is that if worse comes to worst, well, maybe Daric’s special gifts will prove somewhat of a boon.”

“A boon?” He raised his shoulders in disbelief. “What are you suggesting?”

Pieru’s gaze pinched. “In survival situations one must be prepared to make sacrifices.”

“Surely it won’t come to that! But the Faythans? The miners? I doubt they’ll care if I’ve spoken to El himself just so long as they get what they came for.”

“Exactly. I know it’s hard to accept, but don’t be shy about it, Huldar. You are the authority on Went, no one has rank to surpass you, and She will rely on you to protect her – She has no one else.”

Huldar’s mind flashed back to his time in the Heart of the Planet. ‘… Creator and destroyer … the circle must be broken …’ The frantic search for answers and the enormity of her presence, yet vast as She was, he’d sensed her vulnerability. ‘… I weep for my people,’ She’d said, but who were her people? How could he protect them?

“A heavy burden,” Pieru admitted. “Only you can inhabit the worth she has placed upon you.”

More words floated through his head. ‘…The sacrifice foretold – already the flames dance in your heart.’ At first he’d thought Lind had been the sacrifice, but now he wasn’t so sure. The reference felt more personal.

“I have also spoken with a planet,” Pieru offered. “How can one frame such an experience? Even our recollections … overwhelm.”

Huldar looked at him in understanding. “Which one – if I may ask?”

Pieru smiled. “Giahn herself.”

“Giahn? But she is the Imperial planet. Surely the God-Emperor –”

“Does not know.”

It took a moment for this sink in. “What does She say?” he asked eventually.

“She? He?” Pieru shrugged. “I doubt such distinctions are relevant to the souls of planets. I call her ‘She’ in my own mind, the mother of us all. Our first home.”

“Went is definitely a ‘She’ … I think. Does Giahn share with you? Has She spoken with you again?”

“Not in actual words, but I can feel Her – in here.” He pointed loosely to his heart. “And I can tell you … she senses a storm building – violent change.” He looked at the walls around them as if they were windows to the Realm beyond. “The troubles with Karesk? This … greed for coin, this sickness – a God-Emperor who flaunts El’s most basic of tenets?” He held Huldar’s gaze. “The harbingers are already here.”

Huldar recalled Ninjay’s vision of blood in the streets and panic in the Imperial Bays and shuddered. With her dying breath she’d warned Andel of a dark road ahead, and now this from the Guild-Lord – from Giahn herself? He sighed. Why couldn’t prophecies be of good things to come, or at least be uplifting? “An assassin on the team, uneasy planets, and I’m in charge – except it’s unlikely anyone will listen and there’ll be no one to back me up … except this assassin of course. Anything else I should know?”

Pieru gave a rueful smile. “I think that’s it. The other new team members are experienced – steady natures, exemplary records. They won’t be swayed by blustering Faythans, especially with you to lead them … and all have at least some military experience.”

Huldar stood up. “Military experience? Since when has that been a selection criteria?” His jaw clenched shut. He tried to take steady breaths, but to no avail. “A war? You think I’ll be fighting a war? On a planet where that if anything should happen – if we all got killed – no one would even know until it was all over! I’m an ecologist. An explorer. I do not fight wars. For Breath’s sake! I wouldn’t know one end of a sword from the other!”

Pieru raised his hands. “Please, Huldar …”

“My wife – people I love!” He paced the room. “The Uri’madu, they’ll be under my care, my responsibility, and now you’re advising me to take measures that no one in their right mind … no one should have to! In defence of helpless creatures, and – and a world that … that …” He felt for more words, but none would come.

“Arien Leth himself could not stop him sending the miners early,” Pieru said. “The God-Emperor …” he added softly, there are whispers. He looked around. Many believe he’s insane. That Tiamät itself rules him. I myself have seen it – the spirit that lives within him. What would such a being want? His feeling of dread shocked Huldar to the core. Take care, my friend. I fear we are pieces in a game with consequences we can’t yet understand.