Chasing the Prophecy (Beyonders) (22 page)

Galloran replaced his blindfold. The incessant patter of rainfall had receded into white noise during the meeting, but it gained renewed prominence in the silence. An unseen horse in one of the stalls stamped and whinnied.

“All clear,” called a voice from above, startling Rachel. She looked up and saw Nedwin dangling from a rafter, the length of his body reducing the drop to less than eight feet. He let go and landed on the floor in a crouch.

“I didn’t know you were up there,” Rachel said.

“That was the idea,” Nedwin replied, crossing to Galloran. “My task was to monitor our guests. I took up my position just after the meeting began.”

“We never agreed to your entering the stable,” Galloran said.

“I had to hear,” Nedwin said. “I stayed quiet. You didn’t want Copernum to see me. He never saw me.”

“I didn’t want you to see him,” Galloran responded. “That could not have been easy.”

Nedwin forced a smile. There was no warmth in it. Rachel could understand. Copernum had held Nedwin prisoner and tortured him for years. Copernum had also harmed Nedwin’s family, stealing away his elder brother’s title by defeating him in a battle of wits. “I’ll tell you what was easy—the negotiation. Much too easy.”

“Happy to install me as king so he can betray me later?” Galloran asked.

“Sounded that way,” Kerick said. “After issuing all those pardons, you’ll be surrounded by enemies. The majority of your ruling class will be spying for Felrook.”

“Agreed,” Galloran said. “Fortunately, I don’t intend to wage this war with secrets. Nor do I intend to remain in Trensicourt for long. I need Trensicourt for manpower. My faith is in the prophecy. Once I am crowned, all my effort will go into mobilizing for war.”

“To that end you need control of the kingdom,” Nedwin said. “Quickly and without bloodshed.”

“To leave evil men unpunished and in positions of power is a grievous cost,” Galloran said heavily. “The injustice sickens me. Yet I see no alternative. Not given our time frame and our goals.”

“Rotten apples stay spoiled,” Nedwin said. “Copernum and his allies will hang themselves with future crimes.”

“Let’s hope those crimes aren’t the end of us,” Bartley added.

“The viscount has a point,” Galloran said. “We can’t be too careful over the coming weeks. Including tonight. Our location and numbers have been observed by the most dangerous man in the current government. A surprise attack is possible. Stormy or not, we should make haste to our next temporary residence.”

Rachel sighed softly. It would be nice to stay here, warm and dry, at least for the night. But she supposed that if staying elsewhere might prevent them from being slaughtered in their sleep, she probably shouldn’t complain.

CHAPTER
6

T
he walled city of Durna was positioned more than two miles upslope from the coast of the Inland Sea. The many buildings near the fortified waterfront were connected to the city by a protected highway. The walls around the port rose thirty feet, the walls along the highway were perhaps half as high, and the city walls soared to more than sixty feet.

Jason was beginning to catch on that the major cities of Lyrian had all been constructed to withstand invasions. Maldor was clearly not the first threat these kingdoms had faced.

The battle-worn fortifications of Durna were gouged and scarred. Mismatched stonework showed where broken sections had been replaced. Construction was underway down by the port, restoring shattered battlements. Although the ancient walls loomed tall and thick, anchored to imposing towers, they hadn’t done their job. The king of Durna had surrendered to Maldor. He and his family were currently prisoners of the emperor.

“The port gates are the only entrances,” Jasher explained. “There is one on the west side and another on the east, both
heavily guarded. The only access to the city proper is to follow the highway up from the port.”

“There have to be hidden ways through or under those walls,” Aram said, surveying the city. “Durna is too big. Nobles. Criminals. They would grow weary of taking the long route. They would demand private passages. The city has stood for too long.”

Bat, one of the two drinlings who had accompanied them on horseback, folded his brawny arms. “You’re probably right. But we don’t know of any.” After traveling with the group for less than a week, the drinlings had already lost their accents.

“And we can’t steal a ship unless we access the port,” added the other drinling, a solid man named Ux.

“Can’t we just stroll in through a gate along with the crowd?” Jason asked.

“Possibly,” Jasher said. “Security will be tighter here than what you have encountered in the past.”

“A governor called Duke Ashby oversees Durna for Maldor,” Drake explained. “He is competent and driven.”

Ux peered at the city through a spyglass. “We’ve found security to be a serious obstacle. Of course the entrances are heavily monitored, but we’ve witnessed wandering patrols and random searches as well.”

“We’ve been entering the city by water,” Bat said. “One at a time. Swimming. We reach the docks from the sea, looping around the huge defensive breakwaters in the small hours of the night. A two-hour swim at a brisk pace. The harbor is well guarded.”

Jason looked out at the harbor. From their current vantage in a grove of tall, slender trees, they had an elevated view of the west side of town. The water of the Inland Sea looked gray-green under the predawn glow from the overcast sky. The port walls did not end at the water. Rather they extended out into the sea,
encircling the harbor, with only a relatively narrow gap to allow vessels access.

“Too hard of a swim for us?” Jason asked.

“I expect,” Bat said. “Drinlings don’t tire.”

“What about a small boat?” Farfalee wondered.

“The harbor mouth is well illuminated,” Ux said. “The risk is great even as a lone swimmer.”

“Then we’ll probably have to brave the gates,” Jasher said. “Which poses some problems. The whole empire is on the lookout for Lord Jason. Corinne is too regal and lovely. And we seedfolk are almost as conspicuous as you drinlings.”

Jason glanced at the drinlings. Their golden-brown coloring was just outside the normal spectrum of human skin tones. And the coppery tint of their irises looked a little too metallic.

“Which is why we enter Durna quietly and lie low,” Ux said. “Our kind would be detained on sight.”

“My amar is gone,” Drake said. “I can cut my hair short and make sure my clothes cover the scar at the back of my neck. Farfalee can wear her hair long and just not roll it up over her seed.”

“I suppose if I trim my hair shorter and don’t roll it I could pass as human,” Jasher said. He raked his fingers through his long tresses. “Let it barely touch my shoulders, subtly cover the amar without giving me away. I dislike the feel of it, but I’ve done it before.”

“We’ll need nondescript clothing,” Farfalee mentioned.

“These robes don’t blend?” Jason asked.

Aram began to wheeze and grunt. Veins bulged in his thick neck. He backed away into the grove, looking for some privacy as he shrank with the veiled dawn. A couple of the horses neighed at his approach.

Jasher looked around. “I feel too exposed here.”

“We have operated mostly from the woods on this side of town,” Bat said. “We’ll see trouble coming long before they see us.”

There were numerous groves on this wild part of the slope above the Inland Sea. Jason and the others had taken up position here in the night, after weaving between some of the farms and outlying settlements south of Durna.

Aram returned, adjusting a smaller set of robes, face damp with perspiration. “You could let me go in alone and try to ferret out a secret entrance. I have experience with this sort of thing. We have plenty of money for bribes.”

Farfalee shook her head. “I think Jason had it right from the start.” Jason tried to resist a proud grin as she continued. “We should flow into town with the morning crowd, in ones and twos. People come here to buy and trade. They come looking for work. They come for entertainment. The imperial guardsmen may be watching for Jason, but almost certainly none here have ever seen him. We dress as peasants. We look humble and hungry, and walk into the city with the rest of the unwashed masses.”

“Bat and I could bring the swords,” Ux offered. “Jason’s and Corinne’s. Even sheathed they would draw interest. They look too fine. Unsheathed they would immediately give you away. We’ll swim them in.”

“What about my armor?” Aram asked. “My sword?”

“Your sword would drag us straight to the bottom,” Bat said.

“We could use it to anchor a ship,” Ux grunted.

“I could pose as a wealthy merchant,” Drake offered. “Well fed, well dressed, a debonair peddler of oversized weaponry.”

Farfalee laughed derisively. “Why not portray a wealthy noble on a pilgrimage? We could supply you with riches and hire servants. Our weapons could be disguised in your armory.”

“Don’t give me ideas,” Drake warned, eyes flashing with relish.

Jason couldn’t shake the feeling that they were making this harder than it needed to be. “Do we have to take everything into the city?” he asked. “I mean, we’re only going there to steal a ship and leave. What if we reunited on the water?”

Farfalee nodded pensively. “We would have to get hold of a smaller craft outside the city and rendezvous beyond the harbor mouth.”

“There are many options,” Bat said. “Finding a small craft would not be difficult.”

“What if Farfalee, Corinne, and one of the drinlings met us on the water?” Jasher proposed. “They could bring Aram’s gear, the torivorian swords, and the orantium. We shouldn’t need the globes for our hijacking. Success will depend on slipping away quietly.”

“I would prefer to help cover the hijacking with my bow,” Farfalee said.

“That would be ideal,” Jasher said. “It might not be wise. You and Corinne are too attractive. You’ll stand out more than the rest of us going into the city. With a tireless drinling on the oars, a rendezvous at sea might be a reasonable solution.”

“We will need to know how to meet,” Farfalee said.

“I can still swim into the city,” Ux offered. “Then I can swim out with the details. Bat could stay with you. Then the two of us can help you manage your boat.”

Farfalee sighed. “My bow could be useful inside the city, but I admit that this alternative would reduce the overall risk.”

“I’ll stay close to Jason,” Jasher promised. “Aram and Drake can make their way into the city separately.”

“So no servants for me?” Drake verified. “Not even one? Maybe an older fellow? Or a kid?”

“Maybe next time,” Jasher consoled. “For the present, we need
to locate some apparel.”

“I’ll go,” Aram offered. “When I’m small, I’m the least conspicuous of us.”

“I’ll follow him,” Drake said. “The rest of you lie low and try to stay out of trouble.”

*  *  *

The following morning Jason trudged toward the western gate. He wore coarse, itchy trousers and a long shirt with laces over the chest. His dingy old boots had hard soles and were falling apart. Six copper drooma clinked in one pocket.

He followed a wagon and a group of people on foot. The wagon kicked up dust, which he did not try to avoid, since he knew that whatever clung to him would improve his disguise.

Aram had cautioned him to enter the city as part of a group. The crowd would pressure the guardsmen to hurry and be less thorough.

Jason did his best not to glance back at Jasher, who trailed him by a few hundred yards. Jasher was unarmed except for a knife. The seedman toted several pots and pans, as if he meant to sell them. His hair had been shortened to barely reach his shoulders, and he wore a flat twilled cap.

The port wall loomed ever closer. Uniformed guards patrolled the top, coming in and out of view among the battlements. The others on the road paid little heed to Jason.

At last the wagon slowed and then stopped in the shadow of the open gates. A bespectacled man in a raised booth watched the proceedings with a narrow gaze, quill in hand, parchment ready. Jason counted five soldiers on the ground.

The man in the wagon began shouting answers about his cargo to the man with the quill. A pair of guardsmen searched his wagon, looking underneath and examining the bales and barrels
in the bed.