Tyrant’s Blood
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‘I’m just angry.’
‘Why?’
‘I liked where we lived.’ Piven shrugged. ‘I liked our life. I don’t see why strangers should send us on the run and I don’t see why I don’t have any say in it.’
Greven nodded. ‘You’re right. I’m sorry I didn’t consult you.’
Piven said nothing but Greven could see the boy’s jaw working furiously. He was angry, and had disguised it well until now. ‘Shall we talk about it?’ he tried.
‘Will it make any difference? Will it make you turn back?’
‘No.’
‘Then there’s no point in talking about it.’
‘Nevertheless, I think we should talk about those olden times you refer to.’
Piven gave a long sigh as though bored. ‘And if I don’t want to?’
‘Then let me talk.’
Piven nodded, although Greven sensed that the boy felt he didn’t have much choice.
‘I want to talk about your magic.’ He saw Piven’s jaw clench.
‘Why?’
‘Because I don’t understand it. Apple?’ Greven held out the fruit he’d dug from his sack. ‘Help yourself.’
Piven picked up the small knife and cut off a chunk of the apple. He bit into the fruit as he replied, ‘What do you want to know?’
‘You told me a while back that you could wield this magic. But you’ve never said how long you’ve known you’ve had the skill.’
The boy shrugged. ‘I don’t know. Forever.’
‘Forever being from when you were little…or from when you began talking?’
‘I’m not sure.’
Greven nodded, not entirely convinced he trusted that answer. ‘All right. When did you first use it?’
‘To heal a robin with a damaged wing.’ Piven tested the sharpness of the knife on his thumb.
‘When was that?’
‘In the woods, outside our hut.’
‘When, I said, not where.’
Piven gave a vexed sigh. ‘I can’t remember, probably three winters ago.’
‘And you’ve been using magic ever since?’
‘No. The next time was on you.’
‘Why?’
‘To give you back your face. I—’
‘No, Piven. I meant why did you wait? Between the robin and me?’
Piven shook his head. ‘I didn’t trust it. I didn’t really understand it.’ He hacked off another chunk of the apple and began chewing on it.
‘Didn’t trust it? Why?’
‘I’m Valisar.’
Greven frowned, reached for some bread. ‘In name only.’
Piven looked away, seemingly embarrassed.
‘Had you forgotten you were adopted?’
‘What I meant is, despite my seeming madness I’ve lived as Valisar and the royal family obviously made me nervous about magic. I didn’t trust it.’
Greven felt a nervous energy ripple through him. He threw the morsel of bread left in his hand to some inquisitive birds nearby. ‘So you could understand what they were saying around you?’
‘I suppose.’
Greven tried not to lose his patience. ‘Piven, help me. I’m trying to understand you.’
‘There’s nothing much to understand, Greven. I didn’t use my magic because I wasn’t sure about it. That’s all.’ Piven flicked the knife around in his hand, angrily.
‘If you didn’t use it, how did you know you possessed it?’
‘I knew, that’s all,’ Piven said, and Greven could tell that his young companion would not be drawn on this.
‘Do you know the extent of your powers?’
Piven shook his head, hacking at the grasses between his ankles ith the knife, his head lowered.
‘Forgive me all these questions, child, but you’re all I have. I love you. I want to understand so I can always help, always protect you.’
‘I know.’
‘How do you explain that you have this magic?’
Piven shrugged. ‘I’m Vested, I suppose.’
‘In which case you can understand why I’m worried, why I feel the need to protect you from those who would want to make use of that magic.’
‘If I have to use it, then I want to use it for the good of others.’
‘Exactly!’ Greven exclaimed. ‘Exactly,’ he repeated, relief flooding his body. ‘My fears, child, are that people might want to use it for reasons that do not help others.’
‘No one could make me do anything I don’t want to.’
‘You’d be surprised what people will do to avoid being hurt, or to prevent those they love from being hurt.’
Piven tossed away the apple core and wiped the knife blade clean on his trousers. ‘So you would agree that there are occasions when we must hurt others to protect ourselves…or those we love?’
Greven baulked at the question but he could see Piven wanted a direct answer. ‘I would do anything to protect you…or Lily. I would probably have killed or certainly harmed some soldiers once—if I’d been able—when your adopted brother, Leo, came into my life. That was a terrifying moment. Yes, I would have done anything to stop them hurting Lily—or him, come to that.’
Piven nodded as though an important admission had been made. ‘What do you think the man Clovis is after?’
It was a straight question; Greven could hardly answer it indirectly. ‘I believe he has been trying to hunt you down for many anni and was sure he had stumbled upon the right path at last. I think he wanted to see that it truly was you first and then I believe he would have tried to persuade you to join him.’
‘Why?’
‘That I can’t answer. He is Vested. Perhaps he is in touch with other Vested and can sense you, or perhaps—’
‘I think I can guess,’ Piven said, sounding as if he had wearied of the conversation.
‘Really?’
‘Rebellion,’ Piven stated, his tone bald and unimpressed.
Greven was shocked. He rocked back against the tree he was leaning against and regarded Piven. He’d underestimated his charge. For anni he’d just been delighted that something had unlocked the child from his prison of silence. But Greven was beginning to think he’d entirely misjudged Piven, accepting his quietness for lack of thought and his simple outlook for a lack of depth. ‘Rebellion?’ he repeated dimly.
‘Do you really think the entire population of Penraven—let alone the masses of the Set proper—were going to just lay down arms entirely and accept a barbarian ruler?’
Greven looked at his child, astonished. ‘But they have.’
Piven held a finger in the air. ‘Most. Not all.’
Greven shook his head in bewilderment. ‘How would you know?’
‘I can sense it. But my skills aside, any rational person would have to allow that there would always be potential for rebellion, as long as a Valisar remained alive.’
‘But you’re not Valisar, Piven!’
Piven gave him such a look of disdain that Greven actually flinched. ‘I was referring to Leo.’
‘We have no idea if he’s ali—’
‘He is. I feel it,’ Piven said casually, raising the water skin to his mouth. He swallowed. ‘And as long as he is, there will be people who will rally for the Valisars. And I’m extremely useful, I’m sure, as a symbol for the Valisar Crown until he reveals himself.’
Greven cleared his throat. ‘Piven, you sound so much older than you are.’
Piven turned and there was his beautiful uncomplicated smile again. ‘Is that a bad thing?’
‘No. No, not at all,’ Greven said, gathering his wits. ‘Refreshing, in fact…but unnerving all the same.’
Piven’s smile widened. ‘Sorry. But forcing me to leave my home has brought this all out of me. We’ve lived in a very protected, remote manner, haven’t we, Greven? And now, suddenly, I’m being forced to confront the real world. Real dangers.’
‘Indeed. I would save you from it if I could.’
‘I know. You may have to yet.’
Again, there it was; knowledge of something…a cryptic comment in a response as though Greven had given some form of admission. He was baffled by it. The truth was, he realised, he was baffled by Piven this day. He could hardly recognise him as the same quietly spoken, generally remote youth he’d shared a home with only a day or so earlier. Now he felt as though he was talking with an equal—an outspoken, well-informed one at that. ‘One more question, if I may?’ he asked.
Piven looked up through his straggly dark hair. ‘Yes?’
‘When do you remember first making sense of what was being said around you?’
The boy nodded. ‘I’ve asked myself that same question many times. I always return to the same answer.’
‘Which is?’
‘When my father, the king, died.’
Greven didn’t have the heart to correct Piven. Besides, the boy would likely leap down his throat anyway. He didn’t need any further reminding of his lineage. ‘Can you describe that time? Not the horror of it but what was happening to you, I mean.’
‘I can’t, really. I just think I became more aware of everyone around me then. Real thoughts were impacting, people’s comments made a little more sense, I could focus a little bit. But only a bit. My main anchor, I suppose you could call him, was Vyk. When he was around I could concentrate and all the noises and confusion that usually filled my head would lessen a lot.’
‘Is the bird magical?’ Greven asked.
Piven shrugged. ‘He was to me.’
That was an evasive answer but Greven let it go. ‘Where has he gone?’
‘He’ll find us.’
‘Why are you so sure?’
‘I just am. He hasn’t finished with me.’
Greven knew he should leave it alone, but he couldn’t. ‘So you think it was the death of King Brennus that allowed you to…to…’
‘To enter the world properly, yes,’ Piven replied. ‘But not immediately. It took time. You know how I was in the beginning.’
‘I do. But now look at you. I feel as though you’ve changed since we sat down!’
Piven smiled, a true sunny smile. ‘I think being on the run like this has made me accept that I can’t keep hiding from who I am. Like you said, there will be people who would use my presence as a rally cry for those still loyal to the Valisars. And then there are those who would make use of my magics for their own gain. I’m not sure I would permit either.’
He sounded so grown up it was astonishing. Greven tried not to show his surprise. ‘But we are loyal to the Valisars, surely?’
‘Of course, but I won’t be a pawn for someone else’s rebellion, Greven. I think I must find Leo.’
‘No, Piven. I had no intention of embarking on a crusade. I want us to escape attention, not go looking for it.’
‘You were hoping we could blend into another invisible life—Jon Lark and his son Petor?’
Greven frowned. ‘Yes.’
‘Then you’re being naive.’ Greven felt a spike of fresh anxiety as Piven continued. ‘If this man Clovis can find me now he can find me again. And if he can find me so can Loethar or anyone else who wants me dead, or alive, or as a symbol, or as a Vested, or as a—’
‘Stop. Piven, what’s happening to you?’
Greven watched the boy he loved take a long slow breath before he spoke. He watched as the dark eyes lifted to regard his. ‘What’s happening is that I’m being realistic. I am accepting that I cannot have the quiet life in the hut in the forest and that I can no longer be Piven in disguise as Petor Lark and I am discovering that my magic will not be still.’
Greven stared at him, awe and anxiety battling within.
‘This magic I have,’ Piven continued. ‘Wild or divine or whatever in Lo’s name this skill I possess is, it claws at me. It has for a long time. And I have resisted it for all that time. I’m beginning to think that those first five anni were protection granted by the heavens. Now I fear something dangerous is lurking.’
Greven didn’t know what to say. He watched the youngster weigh the blade in his hand, and then, as if having made a decision, he handed it back to Greven. ‘Put this back in your sack. We’d better clear up and be on our way again.’
Greven nodded dumbly, not understanding why he felt suddenly intensely frightened.
8
Freath looked expectantly at Kirin. ‘Well?’
Kirin dragged his kerchief from a pocket and wiped his mouth. ‘I’m not sure I’ll ever eat anything again without comparing it to this evening’s fare.’
Freath smiled. ‘I knew you’d enjoy it.’ He sipped at an ale he wasn’t interested in. ‘You were gone long enough. Did you make sure your horse is docile? They can be unscrupulous up in the north with unsuspecting travellers.’
‘She’s gentle enough. I’ll be fine,’ Kirin assured. ‘In fact’—he bent to gaze out of the window—‘it’s past dusk. I should go.’
‘What a rotten time of the day to be setting out on a journey. You could be set upon by bandits.’
Kirin smiled. ‘I’ve taken precautions. I met up with some merchants at the stables. A group of them are leaving at twilight and I’ll accompany them. We’ll likely travel through most of the night back towards the city. There’s plenty of them and they have a couple of armed men besides. Don’t worry.’
‘But I do,’ Freath said, scowling.
‘Then the sooner I go, the easier on your troubled mind.’
‘Kirin, I—’
‘Don’t. There’s nothing more to say. We both know what we have to do and you know why I have to leave. I will make contact again and I won’t leave it too long, either—that’s a promise.’
‘Find him for me, Kirin.’
‘And you find his brother,’ Kirin replied.
Freath nodded. ‘An aegis would be helpful.’
Kirin grinned. ‘I’ll see what I can rustle up.’
‘How will you take care of yourself? You know…’ Freath didn’t want to be obvious but he could see Kirin understood all the same.
‘I’ve been lucky this past decade; you haven’t asked much of me. We both know it will get worse if I practise. But that’s my decision on when and how to use my skills and you’re not to worry over my health.’
Freath sighed. ‘Well, I’ll just sit here and comfort myself with that thought,’ he replied, unable to fully disguise his bitterness. ‘Be safe. I shall miss you.’
Kirin stood, then surprised Freath by leaning down and hugging his old friend. ‘I’ll see you soon enough, I promise.’
All Freath could do was nod. He wasn’t used to being touched in such an intimate way; in fact, the last person who had hugged him had been his lovely Genrie. And she was dead within hours. He felt the familiar bile rise but forced it back as he lifted a hand in farewell to Kirin, who had turned at the inn’s doorway for one last sad smile in his direction. Freath watched a huge man step across the inn’s threshold, pushing past Kirin, his size forcing one of the Vested’s shoulders to swing backwards. Freath saw his friend shake his head at the poor manners and then he was gone. The big man moved deeper into the inn and although Freath’s gaze absently followed him, he was more focused on how the inn had filled since he and Kirin had come downstairs. Suddenly he was aware of the noise of men drinking, the voices of serving girls laughing and teasing their patrons gently as they set down food. He heard the clatter and bustle from the kitchen and the clank of pitchers of ale and mugs of spiced dinch. He decided to free up his table, now that the debris of his meal was being cleared. He watched as the woman worked with quiet dexterity, piling up plates and mugs on a large tray.
‘Thank you,’ he said and she looked up at him with surprise. She must not be used to such politeness, Freath thought, removing himself from the dining area to a corner of the main part of the inn. A shelf was set at chest height right around the room’s main chamber, accompanied by high stools for anyone who wanted to perch with a drink, though most men just leaned their elbows against the shelf. It was still relatively early so no one was rowdy. The patrons looked to be mainly travellers on their way through the town so none of these people would be looking for trouble. Instead, they seemed keen on swapping tales of the pass, or conditions in the mountains or news from the other cities and provinces.
Compasses! That’s what Loethar called Barronel, Garamond, Cremond and all the other once proud realms of the Set. He scowled into his ale and as he settled back into the dark nook his eyes fell on the huge man who had entered as Kirin was leaving. What an enormous specimen he was. He had to be a bodyguard at that size and yet he seemed very relaxed, not at all unfamiliar with the surrounds. Freath watched how the man took in everyone with his loud remarks and equally loud jests. No one seemed to mind his brashness. Freath noticed how the man’s brightly burning personality seemed to attract other men like moths to a flame. Soon enough a large group of them were clanking mugs of ale and laughing uproariously together.
The man sitting next to Freath, also alone, ordered an ale and as the girl arrived with his mug, she glanced at Freath enquiringly. ‘Another, please,’ Freath agreed. He didn’t want more ale but he needed an excuse to remain a bit longer. He knew if he went upstairs he’d feel Kirin’s absence too keenly and besides, it had been a very long time since he’d shared life among ordinary people. He was enjoying the anonymity and the relief of not having to watch his every move, every word, as he did in and around the palace. But, he reminded himself, he needed to stay alert. His reason for being here remained clandestine and with a very real purpose—he must not slip into the mindset that he was on some sort of holiday.
The girl arrived with a pitcher of ale and a mug. ‘I thought yours looked a bit stale, sir.’
‘That’s very good of you,’ Freath replied, accepting the fresh mug as the darkly golden liquid fizzed into its depths, releasing a musty smell.
‘There you go,’ she said, beaming, and moved on.
As Freath half-smiled back at her, he caught the gaze of the fellow next to him. ‘Your health!’ he said politely.
‘And yours,’ the man replied, grinning before he took a draught of his ale.
Freath noticed his barbarian escorts enter the inn. The Green looked around until they saw Freath. Freath nodded, subtly dismissing them, then returned his gaze to his new companion who had turned his back to the door. ‘Are you local?’ he asked. Without Kirin’s company he would look every inch the dour city dweller if he didn’t try and fit in. What’s more, he could use some company, even if it was small talk with a complete stranger.
The man shook his head. ‘But I like this town. I pass through it for work.’
‘Oh yes, and what line of work are you in?’
‘A merchant.’
‘Ah, it seems everyone here but myself is a merchant of sorts,’ Freath commented.
‘And you, sir?’
‘I am a scribe from the city,’ he lied. ‘On my way through the north offering my services to a number of the wealthy families.’
The man scratched at his beard. ‘You have very clean fingertips for a man of ink.’
Freath forced a smile. ‘Sand and vinegar, with a dash of almond oil, make a wonderful cleaner. I bleach my fingers in pure lemon juice each day. As you can see, it makes a difference.’ Where he found the capacity to lie so convincingly or compile such credible-sounding nonsense was beyond him. His mother would turn in her grave. She would turn, anyway, to know the danger he had been living through these past anni, he thought sourly.
‘Impressive,’ the man said, staring at his own grubby hands. ‘I mention it only because I work with a lot of linen dyes. These fingers were orange a few days ago. Now they’re just fading to brown.’
Freath tapped his nose. ‘Sand and vinegar.’
The man raised his cup again and grinned. ‘I’ll remember that. Look out, it seems we have a contest on our hands,’ he said, nodding towards the main counter.
Freath looked over and right enough the huge man was taking bets; coins were exchanging hands rapidly. He glanced at his companion. ‘What’s funny?’
‘I’ve seen this big fellow before. He never wins but still he plays.’
‘Plays what?’
‘Arrows.’
‘Arrows?’
The man turned to stare at Freath as though he were simple. ‘You don’t know the game Arrows?’
He’d just made an error. Freath fumbled to correct himself. ‘Er, well, I’ve spent the past few years working for the Drosteans. It hasn’t reached that far east yet.’
His companion’s nod suggested his excuse was plausible. ‘It was begun here in the north. Watch. See over on the bar, that pot of arrowheads?’
‘They’re not full size.’
‘No, that’s right. Deliberately shortened with a sleeker point.’
Freath frowned. ‘Why?’
‘To throw them.’
‘At what?’ Freath asked, intrigued.
His new friend pointed again, this time at a man who was rolling out a wine barrel. He pushed it against the rough stone wall on its side so one end faced into the main room. ‘The target is the bottom of the wine barrel.’
‘He has to hit that circle painted on it, I see,’ Freath said, fascinated.
His companion grinned. ‘Except he never does. I’ve seen him now a couple of times. He loses badly. I hope he bets against himself.’
‘It can’t be that hard, surely?’ Freath wondered. ‘I’m sure even I could do it.’
‘Really? Blindfolded?’
‘What?’ Freath exclaimed, nearly choking on his ale.
The man laughed easily. ‘That’s the point. Best you stay here and well behind him, Master Scribe, as those shortened arrows can be flung anywhere from that fellow’s wild throw.’
‘Lo, save me. Is this his invention?’
The man snorted. ‘No. The proper game requires the throwers to get as close to the middle of that spot as possible. You bet against each other on three throws.’ He finished his mug of ale. ‘The game’s developed, though, over the last decade. Quite a few people in the north play it and some have worked out a system of marking. You throw the arrows at rings painted on the barrel. The middle point is the highest and the further out you go from the middle the lower the score. It’s more complicated than that but I myself have never played it so I don’t fully understand the scoring. It’s popular, though. Mark my words, Master Scribe, you lot will be playing this in the city and as far as Droste before you know it.’
‘I dare say,’ Freath said, watching with great interest as the huge man allowed himself to be blindfolded.
‘Now the bets will be taken,’ his bearded companion said.
As if on cue, pandemonium broke out among the patrons as the innkeeper gleefully watched money exchanging hands furiously.
‘The innkeeper gets a cut of all the money laid down,’ Freath’s new friend explained.
Freath nodded, eyes riveted on the big man, who was being turned on his heels several times.
‘Lo’s breath! He could throw it our way,’ he exclaimed.
‘As I warned.’
Freath watched as the arrow-thrower, now appropriately giddy, was baited by his audience to choose his position. The big man roared his intention and then turned slowly, lurching once, before planting his feet solidly. The crowd stifled its laughter, and silence reigned as the big man took aim at the wooden counter, the innkeeper rolling his eyes and ducking below it for safety. The real target sat forlornly forgotten and as the arrow hit timber with a dull thud, the room erupted into hilarity, hats flung in the air, mugs clanked against each other, voices yelling and just about everyone on his feet.
In the midst of the noise, Freath’s friend stood up and grabbed Freath’s jacket-front. ‘What the—?’ Freath spluttered.
‘Let’s go, Freath. Time is of the essence.’
‘But—?’ Freath found himself being dragged out of the inn, unnoticed amidst all the cheering as men surged to their feet to watch the contest. The giant took his second shot as they exited, and Freath was convinced the second arrow landed in the door as it closed behind them. And before he could digest that, he found himself being hauled up onto a horse by a stranger.
‘Hold on,’ the stranger growled and within moments Freath was being galloped out of the town. Another horse, presumably with his companion from the inn, gave chase, but he dared not risk a look because his seating was already unsteady behind the rider. A fall at his age and from this height—and at this speed—would mean broken bones and a lot of explanation. No, he would not take the chance, so he closed his eyes and clung on as the horse he was sharing began to slow and climb. Presumably these were Faris’s men. He would have to trust his instincts. The noise of all the hooves died away until he was sure there were just two beasts.