Amendments (13 page)

              Jarek looked at Grandel for a long moment, then looked away bashfully.  “Could I maybe learn from Luxin Adeel until then?”

              “I think she'd be fine with that.”  Grandel stood up.  “Now, I need to go supervise the new recruits and return this training spear.  You go think about what we talked about.”

              “Okay, Octavius”  At that, the boy simply ran off.

Grandel watched the boy run away through the settlement.  He was excited at the prospect of a new lux user with the Returners.  Also, if he already found he could make light at this early of an age, he was most likely strong with lux.  However, the fact that Jarek had told his friends about him and Adeel was a problem.  Children spread rumors like a wildfire.  The whole town would probably know by the end of the day.

Grandel turned back and watched the recruits.  The more experienced soldiers had them jogging around the training field by that point.  There was no way to prevent people from knowing about him and Adeel.  However, he hoped no one would start to put the pieces together.  Isis felt his nervousness from a nearby forest and sent back an indignant emotion.  He realized she was thinking he would ask her to leave for fear of people discovering her.  Grandel sent warm, loving emotions back through the sye connection and the hawk relaxed.

Chapter 14

Garmak's oppression

              Noir and Ruith walked among a group of oxen which pulled carts of supplies toward the last town before they reached the Tierian capital city.  Garmak’s walls were impressively large, looking more like a fort than a city.  They had gotten out of Inderrin using Noir’s lux to bend light around them both.  It was a skill that had severely drained Noir’s chakra months before, but now he was able to produce the effect for two people and only feel the drain moderately.  Ruith said he knew how to do the effect, but wasn't strong enough to do it for long.  They escaped at night when the light bending trick was even more effective.

              The traders agreed to let the two enter Garmak with them after a little coaxing and a bribe of twenty tali.  Noir now wore his simple brown travel cloak and had his Luxin armor and cloak stored in his pack.

              The line of carts stopped at the gates of Garmak.  Noir and Ruith attempted to look like they were busy with the carts and belonged there.  A tall, slender man with a deep Tierian accent spoke to the leader of the caravan.  Noir couldn’t hear, but almost jumped when he heard the man’s voice bark at him, “’Ey you!”

              Noir looked up and the tall Tierian guard was looking right at him.  “Yes, sir?” Noir asked.
              “What are ye' doin' there?”

              Noir looked back at the cart.  “I was just making sure this rope was secure.  It kept coming off the whole trip.”  He was proud of his quick lie.

              The tall Tierian guard looked at Noir suspiciously, then moved his gaze over to Ruith.  “And ye'?  This caravan was supposed to have six handlers, but I count eight.  What ya' doin' there?”

              Ruith came forward and, to Noir’s surprise, had a sye slave collar around his neck.  It had not been there before.  Ruith’s eyes looked vacant as he approached.  He mumbled blandly, “I serve my master, Sir Thornberry.”

              Noir understood the ruse and jumped in.  “That’s my slave.  I think those blasted Chiron inventions are evil, but he was part of a trade I did a few weeks ago.  He comes in handy.”  All of Ruith and Ratt’s teachings about Tier were certainly coming in handy.

              “I see.  But that still doesn’t explain you, Sir, uh, Thornberry?”

              Noir was getting a bit nervous.  The Tierian man was getting a good look at him up close.  It was entirely possible the man would simply throw him in prison for suspecting he was a Chiron deserter.  “I joined the caravan.  This,” Noir patted a crate in the cart he’d been fiddling with earlier, “is my share.  I joined the caravan near Inderrin.  I just want to sell it in Garmak and move on my way to New Vosul'ett out west.”

              The man eyed Noir up and down for another long moment.  “Aren’t ye' a bit young ta be a merchant?”

              Noir didn’t miss a beat.  “I’m just an orphan tryin' ta make ends meet.”  He tried a couple of words with Tierian slang.

              The Tierian guard finally relaxed.  It seemed to have done the trick.  He said, “Well, we gotta' be more careful now.”  It seemed his accent got thicker the more comfortable he was.  “We gotta' double check everythin' an' keep watch every hour of th’ day since th’ blasted Savior o’ Tier came 'ere.”

              Noir was suddenly no longer nervous, but interested.  “The Savior of Tier came here?”

              “Yes sir.  Can ye' believe it?  Garmak is right next ta th’ capital an all.  He came two weeks ago an now we’re on lock down.”

              “What happened?  What did he do?”

              The Tierian guard yelled to the men guarding the gate.  “Ye' can let 'em through!  All clear!”  Then he turned back to Noir.  “He came, killed the din slaves an' some guards, declared it as free, and then left.  What an idiot if ye' ask me.  The Tierian army was in town the next day with double the din slaves and quadruple the soldiers.  They are all over now.  No place ta sit at the bar!”

              Noir understood.  Ratt had come and left.  There was no way the city next to the Tierian capital would claim its independence without the army crashing down on them the very next day.  He wondered what Ratt had been thinking.

              Noir nodded.  “Thanks for the info.  We will sell our wares, buy some new supplies, and be on our way.”

              “No problem, friend.”  The guard turned to go back to his post by the gates.  The caravan moved into the city walls and the gates closed behind them.

              As soon as they were inside, Ruith pulled Noir away and into an alley.  “Well done, Noir.  I certainly didn’t have the confidence to lie that well when I was your age.”

              “Thank you.  No one was hurt, might I point out.”

              “Heh.  It was close, friend.  I was worried we would have to storm the gates if that tall guy had asked any more questions.”

              “Well, he didn’t.  Now, could you hear all that he said?”

              “Yes,” Ruith said as he replaced the fake slave collar to its place in his pack.  “The Savior of Tier was here.  But it is as I figured: the Tierian army swept back in and the people didn’t fight.”  Ruith moved his hands as if pleading with Noir.  “The people of Tier only know how to live one way, Noir.  Under oppression.  They can complain all day, but given the chance, all they know to do is serve others.  It is foolish.  I was foolish for thinking my resistance in Inderrin would still have any backbone at all.”

              Noir frowned.  “Ratt could have protected this city if he had stayed.  I don’t understand why he left so it could be recaptured so easily.”

              Ruith shook his head.  “Your friend Ratt seems like the complicated sort.”

~~~

              Ruith and Noir pushed open the door and many unusual smells hit them.  The general store wasn’t anything out of the ordinary except for the racks of rare spices behind the counter.  A large, gruff man leaned on the wall near the door with his arms crossed.  Noir noticed a sword hanging from his belt on one side, and a cudgel hanging from the other side.

The other customers echoed the sentiment of the other people they had seen in town.  They counted supplies sadly or carried their packs of goods with sunken shoulders.  One man grumbled under his breath in the back.  They were under harsh military oppression after Ratt had come.  The result of Ratt’s actions had different effects on the people of Garmak.  Some thought he was foolish for thinking he could make a difference.  They never wanted him to return so he couldn’t make the situation worse.  Others longed for him to return and free them now even more than ever due to the harsh rule of the Tierian army.

              “Welcome,” the man behind the counter said.  He was wearing a leather apron, was a bit chubby, and had a large tattoo on half of his face.  “What do you two need today?”

              Noir walked to the counter and put down a small handful of tali.  Noir was grateful for the money Grandel had given him months prior.  The man looked confused but pleased.  Noir spoke quietly so no one else in the shop could hear.  “We are in the market for information about the Savior of Tier, and,” Noir put down another small handful of tali, “hopefully you won’t tell anyone we were here.

              “I… think I have that in stock,” the tattooed man stammered as he scraped the tali off the counter and into his pocket.  “Come in the back with me and I will see if I have it.”

              The tattooed man ducked under the counter and led Noir and Ruith to a back door.  He nodded to the man with the sword and cudgel as he walked.  Inside were stacks of bags, boxes, and goods of all kinds.  He closed the door behind them.  It was cramped, but they were alone.

              “Now, what do you want information about?  If it's too dangerous, I don't want any part of it.”

              Noir didn’t mince words.  “We want to know about the Savior of Tier.  When did he come?  What did he do?”

              “Hmph.  You could have asked anyone that.  He came about… three weeks ago.  He killed all of the sentries and din slaves in the night.”

              “How did the people react?”

              “Mixed reactions.  There are always rumors of rebellions, but they never take shape.  The people who think we should rebel against our oppressors tried to gain support, but most wouldn’t listen.  The rest were realistic and predicted the army would come to lock down the city.  They did not predict them killing a tenth of the population.”

              Ruith was obviously containing his rage as he growled, “They did that here?!  That’s
hundreds
of people!”

              “It was 212 people.  There is a mass grave east of the town walls.”

              “That is terrible!” Noir growled.

              The tattooed man lowered his voice even more.  “You two seem... genuine.  There are some who want to fight.  There’s a secret meeting tonight that I heard about, but I’m not sure I am brave enough to go.”

              Ruith also said in a hushed voice, “What meeting?  Please tell us.”

              “One of my old, loyal customers invited me, but I don’t have the same… conviction as he.  They are meeting to discuss resisting the Tierian oppression and contacting the Savior of Tier.”

              “Where is the meeting?”

              “A man named Finn owns a wine cellar on the west side.  They’re meeting there tonight just after sundown.”

              Noir turned to Ruith.  “We need to be there.  If their cover is blown like in Inderrin, they will need someone to protect them.”

              Ruith responded.  “Plus, if there are some who want to resist this close to the capital, then we might actually have a chance at making a difference.”

              Suddenly Noir became aware of something strange.  The original reason they'd agreed to start a rebellion was to draw out the Tierian army from the capital so they could rescue Aimee and Nidhoggr.  Now, Ruith seemed to have forgotten this and was more interested in helping the people of Tier.  Noir looked at Ruith with curiosity.  What were his true motives?

              The tattooed shop owner put up a hand of caution.  “You cannot tell anyone you heard this from me.  If they find out, I would lose my store and probably be thrown in prison.”

              Noir handed the man the rest of the tali from his pouch.  “We understand.  Do not worry, friend.”

              “No,” he said, pushing the tali away in refusal.  “I do not want any more of your tali.  Use it for the resistance.  Use it to improve Tier.”

~~~

              It was not hard to find Finn’s Winery in the western quarter.  What was hard was avoiding the constant patrols on the streets of Garmak.  Soldiers were asking anyone on the street questions, pushing them into the dirt, and searching the contents of any boxes or sacks anyone carried.  It truly was oppressive.  Noir and Ruith had to move slowly through the city, often having to retreat to alleyways or double back.  It was obvious the people of Garmak were miserable.

              Noir went to the front door of Finn’s Winery and knocked seven times as the tattooed shopkeeper had instructed.  After a few tense moments, the door opened to reveal a young man in a patterned brown cloak.  The cloak was wrapped around his neck so that it covered the bottom half of his face.

              “Come in, friends,” the man said warmly, and Noir and Ruith entered when the man stepped aside.  The room was full of racks of wine bottles.

              The man in the brown cloak closed the door and asked, “First time here?  You’re looking around like you’re confused.”

              Ruith replied, “I’ve never seen so much wine.  I assume you are Finn?”

              “In the flesh,” the man bowed low with a flourish.  Noir and Ruith returned the bow.

              “We are here for—”

              Finn interrupted, “I know why you’re here.  They are downstairs.  What I want to know is who you are.”

              Noir declared, “I’m a Luxin.”  He slung his pack off his shoulder and showed Finn his Luxin cloak as he spoke.  “I’m here hoping to help the resistance and also gather information about my friend.”

              “Well,” Finn said with wide eyes, “I am surprised a Luxin is here to help us, but I am certainly happy about it!  What friend are you gathering information about?”

              Noir looked at Ruith and he nodded in approval.  “My friend is The Savior of Tier.”

              Finn froze when Noir said that name.  “Your friend is…?”

              “Yes.  We trained with Fafnir together, though he cannot use lux.  We traveled together for almost four months.  I also helped make his armor in the Azurite Tower.”

              Finn stared at Noir with his mouth literally hanging open.  After a long moment, he said, “Who the hell
are
you?!”

              “My name is Luxin Noir, and this is Ruith.  He’s a friend.”

              “Well, it is very
very
nice to meet you.”