Azra of the Burning Sands (Genesis Project) (18 page)

‘Bend, but remain strong and adhere to your ideals. If you are too stiff, to unyielding, you will break, and your ideals will shatter with them...’

-Azra teaching Jahnyz

NOLMI – MILLA

T
he sleek, two mast, ship that had sailed Kia and her friends to the port city of Nolmi, sat moored by a dock behind them. The sky was brightening as the sun climbed higher into the heavens. Gulls were already out, hanging in the sky, catching drafts of wind, squawking loudly. The crew of Vosco’s ship were unloading the meagre amount of supplies that had been brought for their passengers, while Vosco’s right hand man, Ty, stood with Kia on the dock.

Ty was tall, dark-skinned, with his hair tied in dreadlocks and a little, bristly beard on the end of his chin. He was handsome, with green eyes. He was a confident man, who issued orders that were followed promptly, and never seemed to question himself.

Kia knew why Vosco trusted him so.

Kia looked out at those whom they had ferried to the port.

Jahnyz Kohv, Captain Phips, John Fort, and the soldiers and sailors that had come with them – excluding Cina and ten of her best men – stood facing them.

Kia stepped forward, as did John.

‘Princess, don’t do this,’ John pleaded.

‘I
have
to find my Uncle,’ Kia replied.

‘
I
should be the one looking. You should be back at the capital, safe.’

‘I’m not going back. This was the deal for the safety of all of you.’

John shook his head slowly. ‘I do not envy telling the King what happened here.’

‘This is the nature of my agreement.’

‘I’d much prefer Cina be the one to tell the King.
She’d
be much better suited for it.’

‘Cina refused to leave me unattended,’ Kia pointed out.

Not that there was ever much doubt this would be the case.

‘I know. I know,’ John sighed. ‘None of this has gone the way it was planned.’

Kia let out a harsh laugh in spite of herself, and said, ‘When
Azra
is involved,
nothing
goes to plan.’

John nodded. ‘This is true.’

‘John, I want you to promise me you’ll get everyone home again,’ Kia said with forcefulness. ‘Cina and I will come back as quick as we can. I’ll need someone back home to take care of my Father in the meantime.’

‘I think his guards might take precedence over
me
Princess, but my sword is ever his to command. I’ll get these people back, and we’ll hold thing together long enough for you to get back.’

‘Thank you, John.’

Kia turned to Ty. ‘I’d like to go for a walk with Jahnyz if I may.’

‘I'll accompany you,’ Ty said.

‘I won’t go anywhere.’

‘I’m still going with you, sweetheart,’ Ty assured.

Kia shook her head in exasperation but didn’t protest any further. She began to walk down the dock towards the rest of the harbour and Jahnyz fell in beside her.

‘I won’t try to talk you out of this, Princess,’ Jahnyz said.

Kia let out a short laugh. ‘Really? Why not? Everyone else seems to think I’m being foolish.’

‘You want to know for sure if Azra is gone. There is nothing wrong with wanting closure. If it wasn’t for you, we’d still be in the Vosco’s cave.’

‘My Father is going to want an explanation for why none of you forced me to come back.’

Jahnyz looked thoughtful. ‘If we explain that Cina is still with you, he might not worry as much.’

‘No, he’ll worry. I know my Father.’

‘You’re telling me things I already know, Princess. What’s on your mind?’ Jahnyz asked, stopping.

They were within the harbour now. The hustle and bustle of the marine trade of Nolmi was in full swing. Sailors were moving supplies from the ships and moving them to storage areas. Above them, birds circled, waiting for scraps of fish to be thrown out by fishing vessels. Kia took a moment take it all in, not sure when she’d be back to somewhere civilized. Jahnyz stood by patiently.

‘I need you to protect my family when you get back.’

Jahnyz looked shocked. ‘The king has his entire army, and all his court Wyzards at his disposal. What can
I
do that they can’t?’

Kia looked at her. ‘You can think like Azra.’

Jahnyz was quiet for a moment. ‘You
can’t
be serious.’

‘Something hasn’t been right since this whole thing began. Why would the Sorcerer target
me?
Why would Prince Azam march into our Kingdom and start a war? Where did the Sorcerer come from? Azra was going to answer those questions, but he was pulled away looking for me, and now who knows where he is now. Make no mistake Jahnyz, I know you and Azra didn’t always see eye to eye, but you were his Apprentice, you saw him more than I did.
Someone
has to answer those questions.’

Jahnyz brushed a hair away from her face, and said, ‘The Kingdom is at risk, yes?’

‘It’s not just the Kingdom. I don’t know what it is, but I feel this is about more than just me and my Father. There is more going on, and if Azra can’t be there to take care of it,
someone
must... someone with connections within the Mahgic population.’

Jahnyz nodded. ‘I will try, Princess, but I’m still just an Apprentice, not many people will listen to me.’

‘I have faith in you,’ Kia said with a smile.

‘Thank you. Good luck to you.’

‘And to you,’ Kia replied.

*

SALLOCK – BAZRA DESERT – HALLI

Shakla awoke in a cell. He wasn’t sure where he was exactly, but he was alive. He pushed himself upright and leaned on the stone wall behind him. He frowned and felt his shoulder. There was no sign of his arrow wound. He closed his eyes and felt outward with his mind, only to find his perception limited to the room.

He stood and walked to a set of bars keeping him inside the cell. He gripped them with his scaly, clawed, hands. He could feel a tingle in his hands and arms. The bars were enchanted. Concentrating, Shakla discovered they were enchanted with a paralysing spell to strike anyone who attempted to escape. It was of the Energy school of Mahgic.

Shakla tasted the air with his tongue, it had a feeling of age to it, and a hint of power. He heard a door being opened in the distance. He walked back from the bars and faced the wall, putting his back to the hallway leading to the cell.

The steps got closer and then stopped.

‘Shakla.’

He recognized the voice as belonging to the woman Ahaki, his capturer.

He opened his mouth and hissed.

‘Shakla!’ Ahaki said, insistent.

‘Go back to your hovel Whytch,’ Shakla rasped.

‘I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but you make no commands here, and you
aren’t
going
anywhere
. Maybe we could be convinced to improve your conditions if you co-operated.’

‘I can tassste the liesss upon your breath.’

He heard her sigh. ‘No wonder Amahl had enough of you,’ the old crone growled.

Shakla spun around. With a blur of movement he slammed against the bars, reaching an arm out to grab Ahaki, but she was standing well back already. She still flinched as he swiped at the air and growled. Shakla stepped away from the bars.

‘Amahl had enough of me because he was
weak
, and my strength made his weakness uncomfortable.’

‘Why are you here, Shakla?’ Ahaki asked, calm again.

‘Because I was wounded by those
dogs
and captured by you,' Shakla said, with a mirthless smile.

Ahaki frowned. ‘Why are you on this world?’ she growled. ‘Don’t dodge the question.’

Shakla’s grin grew, and he said, ‘Because my Master required it of me. Because you blind foolsss sssit on a sssource of incredible power, but have no desssire or focusss to grab it for yourssselfss.’

‘Why did you attack Jarridon?’

‘Chaos createsss an environment in which I can work.’

‘You kidnapped a Princess.’

‘And ssstarted a war,’ Shakla said, flicking his tongue as a wicked smile formed on his face.

Ahaki looked surprised. ‘The war? That was
you?’

‘Let usss sssay that when Prinssse Azssam marched his troopsss acrossss the border, it wasssn’t in his bessst interessst.’

‘What did you do?’

Shakla moved up against the bars again, gripping them with his hands, and glared at Ahaki, sending her another predatory grin. ‘Azam was out of sssortsss. He wasss... of
two
mindsss in thisss regard.’

‘What manner of Mahgic do you possess?’

‘Who sssaid anything about
Mahgic
?’

‘I am
through
playing games with you. I will go before the council. We will decide what to do with you.’

‘Go play with the council then. Play gamesss of leaderssship. Everything isss in motion, and time expiresss quickly.’

‘You think, becausss of Daddy, you are in control... tiny
boy.
You think your fool progenitor hasss power over me... but
I
took you, and your Mummy from him. I took sssomething he thought wasss sssecure in his palacsss. I took from him one thing I ssshouldn’t have been able to take... Daddy hasss no power, boy.
I
have the power!
I
am you massster now. You will grovel and beg before me, or I will
hurt
you. And I
will
hurt your Mother... Princsssling. Maybe, if you disssplease me too much, I will dine on you, as I did to good Captain Tyrsssyn...’

-The Rodnok, Sarhash, to seven yehv old Dykyn Rahva, after he and his Mother were kidnapped

NOLMI – MILLA

J
ahnyz watched as Kia, Cina, and their soldiers, were ushered back onto the ship. Jahnyz waved to Kia who was on the deck of Vosco’s vessel, and the Princess, with a sad look, waved back.

John Fort stood next to Jahnyz. They were in the harbour, but no longer were they being watched by Vosco’s men. For the first time in a while, Jahnyz felt herself relax a little.

‘What was your little talk about?’ John asked.

‘I’ve been given a mission by the Princess,’ Jahnyz replied.

‘Mmm. Then we can’t rest yet. We must find a way home,’ John said.

‘How do we do that? We don’t have anything to trade with except our equipment. That won’t be enough to barter passage to another continent,’ Jahnyz said.

They began to walk away from the harbour, heading up a slopping road. The others were up ahead.

‘Captain Phips said he had some contacts down here. He’s gone on ahead, to some of them. I suppose we’ll just have to wait,’ John said.

‘I’m not fond of waiting.’

‘Given the circumstances, neither am I, but I’ve done my fair share of it,’ John said.

They entered a town square. It was expansive. It was longer in one direction than another, forming a long rectangle. Jahnyz and John had come out on the south end. Across the plaza, on the north stood a large and ornate structure that was clearly important in some way. It had four spires on each of corners, and a large central dome. People were visible going up and down the steps. Lining the sides of the square, were rows upon rows of merchant stalls. The middle was taken up by pack animals that were being loaded and unloaded by merchants from the surrounding regions. A large roadway split off from the east side of the square, and seemed to be the source and destination of the pack animals and their minders.

Not quite real yet. Still doesn’t feel right,
Jahnyz thought.

Close examination reminded Jahnyz that she wasn’t quite home yet. The manner of dress of the people here was different from what she was used to, favouring lighter clothes, and a different matching of colours. There were also some non-Humans mixed in with the Human population. Jahnyz knew of course that there were other worlds in the Anciantos Empire and beyond, but they were so far from the core, it was rare to see them... Shakla himself had been an oddity. Especially with traffic being so heavily restricted from the Hyper-Worm-Hole-Cannon.

Despite having seen few non-Humans in her time, Jahnyz was well versed with many of them, from her studies. The Ilorians were fair, tall, with silky hair – blonde or white – and they had pointed ears. Some were talking with a bearded merchant, haggling over some colourful silks. There were some tall, hairy, three-eyed Joff, guiding a strange, flat-faced creature with six legs, pulling a cart, across the square, toward the main trading area. The Joff were shaggy, humanoids, covered in dark hair, except for their pale, faces. Much of their hair was braided, and decorated with silver and shells. Pointed ears, as naked as their faces stuck out and up from the side of their heads.

‘We’ve got a kingdom to get back to,’ Jahnyz said, slightly distracted, as a pair of short, fuzzy, mouse-like Jibz, walked in front of her, wearing grey robes, and wide-brimmed hats, talking in a warbling language she didn’t understand,  'We can’t afford to stay waiting for too long. We
have
to get back.’

‘Captain Phips is working on it,’ John assured, ‘we should see if he managed anything.’

‘Right, let’s go see if anyone knows where he is,’ Jahnyz agreed.

*

SALLOCK – BAZRA DESERT – HALLI

Shakla lay on the meagre bed within his cell, staring at the wall. No one else had visited him since Ahaki had left.

I can afford to play a waiting game,
he thought to himself.

A small smile formed at the corner of his pebbly lips, as he contemplated that thought.

The sound of a door being unlocked roused him from his thoughts. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat upright. A young man walked in, dressed in robes, carrying a wooden tray. The youth was staring at Shakla with solid red eyes, as he stood in the doorway to the cell block. He was tall, and fair this one, with bluish scales diving down from the bottom of his eyes in a triangle shape.

Shakla caught sight of masked guards over the youth’s shoulder.

‘Boy, it’sss not polite to ssstare,’ Shakla said, turning his attention back to the non-Human

‘I’ve brought you something to eat,’ the youth said.

‘The Council hasss decided I may yet live another day?’ Shakla said, aloof.

‘They’re still in deliberations. We have certain rules regarding prisoners... we’re not...
animals.’

That last bit was pointed, directed at Shakla.

The boy was keen... with a sharp tongue.

Shakla leaned forward. ‘Sssurely there isss sssome one of lessser ssstation to deal with prisssoners.’

The young man’s face hardened.

Yes, he had recognized Shakla’s subtle parry.

‘I wanted to see you myself,’ the young alien growled.

Shakla relaxed and leaned back. ‘I sssee. Tell me,
boy,
what have you brought me to eat?’

‘Porridge. I hear it’s quite palatable and nutritious.’

Shakla smiled, baring his teeth. ‘Tell me...
boy,
do thessse look like the teeth of a
porridge
eater?'

‘No. I suppose not,’ the young man smirked. ‘Nevertheless, this is what you get.’ The youth placed the tray on the ground and slid it through the bars, via a small opening near the bottom. Shakla watched the tray, but didn’t move.

The young man didn’t move either.

‘Aren’t you going to eat it?’

‘No,’ Shakla said calmly, ‘it dissspleasssesss me.’

‘You’re going to have to get used to it. You don’t have much choice here.’

‘Don’t I?’ Shakla leaned forward, tucking his legs under the lip of the bed and tensing.

The young man leaned closer to the bars. ‘No, you
don’t
. You’re a
prisoner
here, and I recommend that you tell the council what they want to hear.’

Keeping his voice low, Shakla looked down at the floor of his cell. ‘And... if I don’t?’

‘Maybe I’ll just have to volunteer for some
extra
duty,’ the young man said with a sneer.

Shakla leaned forward and kicked out with his powerful legs. He launched himself across the room, and slammed against the bars of the cell, his arms shooting through them. He grabbed the boy and held him tight. The young man struggled, solid red eyes wide in fear. The guards stared, dumbfounded.

‘You think you have power? I will teach you of power... boy,’ Shakla hissed, his hot breath causing the youth to squirm.

The guards snapped out of their shock and leapt forward, arms out, hands open. Shakla was hit with a blast of force. He felt it hit him, and his grip on the youth was forcefully torn away. He tore a chunk of his robe off as he was thrown back into the wall of the cell behind him.

The guards kept their hands up, and Shakla didn’t move. He looked at the youth.

‘You thought you were in control...
boy
. You thought you had the power over me, but,’ Shakla opened his hand, revealing a chunk of robe with a red stain, ‘I got something you thought was safe. I got one thing I
shouldn’t
have been able to get.’

Wincing, the youth stumbled back. ‘A piece of robe means nothing. You’ll
rot
in this cell, you piece of shi’kee!’

‘What’s your name, boy?’

‘I am,
Prince
Dykyn Rahva of Paltia!’

‘And now I have
two
things,’ Shakla chuckled. ‘You are sloppy Dykyn... and it will get you killed one day.’

Shakla leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.

‘We’ll see what the council says when they hear of
this!’
Dykyn hissed.

Shakla smiled, but said nothing.

‘You think this is over?
I’ll
show you power!’ Dykyn growled.

Shakla let out a long hissing laugh.

He heard Dykyn storm away, followed by the guards, and smiled as the door was locked behind them.

Shakla lifted himself back up onto his bed, and tied the tattered piece of robe around one of his fingers. He lay back and smiled as he stared at the roof.

Maybe thisss waiting game will be more interesssting than I thought,
he grinned to himself.

*

COUNCIL CHAMBERS – SALLOCK – BAZRA WASTES

‘Councillors, we’ve deliberated over this situation and been back and forth many times now. We know the Sorcerer is a threat, but I don’t think you’ve all grasped how much of a threat he is!’ Ahaki said from her seat. She was sitting in a room within the central tower of Sallock. It was dominated by ring of curved tables all arranged to leave an open space in the middle. Ahaki was standing, and nine fellow Wyzard council members sat at their seats listening to her speak.

‘The Sorcerer, known as Shakla, in his short time on our world, has already started a war, caused direct threat of harm to come upon a member of a royal family, and subjugated a group of desert nomads to do his bidding, which included having them launch an attack on a sovereign nation of this world.’

‘Desert Nomads? Is
that
what you call a group of brigands that have preyed on the Kingdom of Hallon for generations?’ said an older man across from Ahaki.

‘If representative Nael of Hallon would care to
deny
the threat presented by Shakla, I would love to hear it... otherwise that’s just splitting hairs,’ Ahaki countered.

‘Fine, thus far, all of this seems to be targeting the Kingdom of Minna. I fail to see how this is the Council's problem, or for that matter, the problem of anyone except King Hadrian Minna the Third,’ Nael said.

A pretty woman in yellow and blue robes, with golden hair and green eyes, spoke. ‘If this Sorcerer really did start the war, then I think it is very well all our problems.’

‘Thank you, Lamil. An external force becoming involved in the affairs of this world
is
a problem,’ Ahaki agreed.

‘The war was started by the aggression of the Kingdom of Minna, and their assassination of Prince Azam,’ Nael said testily.

The representative from Minna, an older man with a long white moustache, named Eldron, stood from his seat and pointed accusingly at Nael, growling, ‘The Prince marched a force of armed men into our lands. He did so by crossing the east of Bazra Desert and passing through the Raghal Pass! That is
not
something someone does
accidentally.’

Nael shot from his seat at this and roared, ‘He was killed on sight! Was
that
an accident?’

‘Your Kingdom has always wanted to take back the Bazra Desert, after they lost them when the Zharin broke free of your tyrannical grip. The reason why the Raiders have always targeted
your
Kingdom is because they
hate
you,’ Eldron barked, 'And furthermore Prince Azam was
warned
to depart from our lands
before
we forced your army away.

Nael made a face of mock agreement. ‘Oh that’s right, but it seems to me they also hated
your
Kingdom for not coming to
their
aid. Seems to me you were all too busy
stealing
the desert from us. Seems they’ve remembered
that. And furthermore
, consider yourself warned. We will not forget who our enemies are.
’

Ahaki bit down a vile retort, and took a moment to breathe, calming a flash of rage that had passed through her.

‘We can debate
that
as an internal matter after the issue of the Sorcerer has been dealt with,’ Ahaki said, struggling for patience. ‘Our world’s stance of neutrality in the Grand War is being threatened by an outside force.’