Hope and Red (39 page)

“These stories are ridiculous,” said Alash dismissively. Then after a moment, almost guiltily, he asked, “So…did they ever catch him?”

“Not the imps,” said Red. “Finally, the emperor himself entreated the greatest Vinchen warrior of his generation to bring Dire Bane to justice. A man by the name of Hurlo the Cunning.” He frowned, then turned to Hope. “Wasn't that…”

“It was my teacher who finally captured Dire Bane,” she said.

“Well, then,
you
tell us how it ended,” suggested Red.

“My telling won't be as colorful as yours.”

Red shrugged. “I'm curious to hear what really happened.”

She looked strangely sad as her eyes surveyed them all. “He was just a man. A brilliant, passionate man who cared deeply about his principles. He believed the empire had become corrupt. That it no longer cared about the people. So he determined to destroy it.”

“The
entire
empire?” asked Nettles. “That's slippy.”

“Dire Bane was brave beyond measure,” said Hope. “Anyone willing to challenge the entire world out of a sense of honor deserves the deepest respect. But you're right, it
was
an impossible task. And he was no giant or immortal. In fact, he was getting old. Slowing down. He knew his days were drawing to an end. Still he did not give up. My teacher, only a young man then, cornered him in the Painted Caves on the island of Pauper's Prayer. They fought honorably, and my teacher defeated him. The emperor wanted Dire Bane's body lashed to the masthead of his ship and paraded all over the empire as an example of what befell anyone who challenged him. But my teacher said it was dishonorable and refused.”

“He could do that?” asked Alash.

“Since the days of Manay the True, the Vinchen have vowed to serve the empire—the greater good—and not to be beholden to any one man.”

“So what did your teacher do with Dire Bane's body instead?” asked Nettles.

“He put it aboard the
Kraken Hunter
, covered the whole thing with pitch, and lit it on fire. They said you could see the column of smoke and flame for miles around. In the end, there was nothing left of man or ship but ash and scorched metal at the bottom of the sea.”

“You're right,” said Red. “My ending was better.”

The next morning when Red stepped out onto the deck of the
Lady's Gambit
, he saw an island looming in the distance.

“Stonepeak.” Missing Finn stood at the helm.

Hope stood next to him and said nothing, her face set.

Red didn't know what he'd expected it to be like. The great capital city of the Empire of Storms, its largest and northernmost island, nothing beyond but the endless expanse of the Dark Sea. It was said to have the highest mountain in the empire, and the imperial palace was at its peak so that the emperor could literally look down on all of his subjects. But beyond that, Red knew nothing. If he'd given it any thought, it was just to imagine it as New Laven, but with a big mountain plopped in the middle. Maybe with fewer neighborhoods like Paradise Circle and more neighborhoods like Hollow Falls.

He'd been right about the mountain, at least. A mass of jagged rock sat right in the center of the upper half of the island, its base taking up nearly a quarter of it. But the rest of the city didn't look anything like New Laven. Or no, maybe there was one neighborhood that it looked like. Keystown. Stonepeak appeared to be one vast Keystown, just as orderly and clean, but on a scale Red couldn't quite believe. The midday sun gleamed off its beige walls and polished windows with a harshness that made Red wince even while wearing his dark spectacles.

“Piss'ell but that's a lot of drudgery,” he said.

“Looks like,” said Missing Finn.

Hope still said nothing, but Red noticed her knuckles were white as she gripped her sword.

“We've nearly got him,” Red assured her. “It's almost over.”

“Really?” she asked. “As far as I can tell, we've nearly
lost
him. There's only one place a biomancer running for his life is likely to go on Stonepeak.”

“The Council of Biomancery?”

“Which is behind the palace walls. If we don't get to him before he gets there…”

Red understood. Behind those walls lived nearly every biomancer in the empire. And, of course, the emperor's personal honor guard. Once Teltho Kan reached that haven, he would be untouchable.

“I should have guessed this is where he would go,” she said quietly.

“And how would that have made any difference?”

She didn't respond, but he knew her well enough now to guess that she was silently berating herself for her “laxness” or something like that.

As soon as they were at the dock, she called, “Sadie, you have command of the ship!” Then in three long, graceful strides, she was over the side and running down the pier.

“Hope! Wait!” called Red as he took off after her.

It was clear she was not waiting for him. Or even slowing down. She sprinted through the streets, which were crowded with carts, horses, and people. She dodged and shifted around them effortlessly, like it was a dance. But Red was keeping up just fine. In fact, he found it surprisingly easy to follow her. It was as if he could see everything at once, take it all in, and make his decisions in a split second. He'd always been coordinated, but this was something new.

He chased her for a while through those crowded streets. He wondered how any city could be this busy. He didn't have much opportunity to examine it in more detail, though. He had to stop Hope from doing something slippy.

He finally caught up with her at the palace gates. She was on her knees in the middle of the street, her head bowed, her sheathed sword pointing unwaveringly toward the high white walls before her.

“I failed them,” Hope said quietly as she stared at the sword in her hands. “I swore vengeance on the man who murdered my village. And now he's beyond my reach.”

Red crouched down next to her, keenly aware that a guard on top of the palace walls was watching them, a rifle in his hands. “Maybe we can…sneak in somehow?” he whispered. “Get some disguises and slip in through the kitchens like we did at Bayview.”

“This isn't an art gallery, it's the imperial palace.”

“Okay. Well. Then we'll wait until he comes out.”

“
If
he comes out.”

“Of course he will. He can't stay in there forever.” Red looked up at the massive palace. There was an outer wall, then an open garden courtyard space of some kind, then the palace proper, which rose up slowly as it clung to the mountain. It soared higher than any building he had ever seen. Higher even than he'd imagined a building could go. “Uh, can he?”

“Have you never read the histories of the emperors? That palace could outlast a ten-year siege.”

“Come on, Hope. There has to be a way,” Red said desperately. The look in her eye was one he had seen only once before. When he'd talked her out of falling on her own sword. “We always find a way.”

“Do we?” she asked, still staring at her sword.

“Of course we do! Me and you! Red and Hope! We're unbeatable!”

“We just got beaten.”

“No, don't say that.”

“Why not? It's true. Another one of my true stories you'd like to make into one of your tall tales.”

A desperate thought popped into his head. It was at once crazy and the most reasonable thing he'd ever considered. “What if…we chose to walk away from all this? Start a completely
new
story.”

“What?” Hope looked up at him for the first time. He took that as a good sign.

“What if we let go of vows and vengeance and all that rot and started fresh?” The more he said it, the more he liked it. “Stonepeak seems like a nice clean place. A place where we could start nice clean lives. Proper lives that don't involve killing or stealing or anything like that.”

“Proper lives?” Hope looked bewildered.

“Or, hey, if that doesn't suit your fancy, we could go somewhere else.
Anywhere
else. We have our own pissing ship, after all. We could be whatever we like.” It was all so clear to him now. They didn't have to be a thief and a warrior. They could be anything they wanted. “The only thing holding us back is our past. But what if we just chucked the whole thing? No revenge, no biomancers, just you and me. Together. Forever.”

His hand reached out to her. “There is only one thing in this whole world I want. And that's you.”

“I…I don't know if I can do it.” Hope's deep blue eyes were shot with red veins. “Let it all go? Abandon my vows? My purpose? It's the only thing that's kept me going for the past ten years. I can't just throw it away.”

“But it's eating you from the inside. This obsession with vengeance. It's slowly turning you into…I don't know what, but it's not too late. I see it in you. The person behind the vengeance trying to get out.”

“That's what you painted.” She finally took his hand in hers. “That part of me.”

“You are more than a biomancer hunter. You are more than a killer.” He pressed her hand against his chest. “Please, Hope. Let me help you.”

“You want to help her?” came a voice from behind them, feminine but not soft. “Then stop holding her back.”

They both turned to see a woman standing over them. She was taller than any woman Red had ever seen. She had long black hair and piercing brown eyes. She wore a fine white silk dress tight at the bodice, but with long billowing sleeves that hung below her hands, and a white hood thrown back. It was an odd look, but somehow elegant.

“What do you want?” Red asked, his eyes narrowing.

The woman nodded toward the soldiers at the palace wall. There were two of them now, talking to each other. One pointed down at them.

“If you want to get in there,” said the woman, “come with me.” Then she turned, her white dress flaring out, and walked toward a nearby tavern.

Hope stood immediately and followed the woman.

Red was about to call to her, but he glanced at the wall. There were three guards now. So he hurried after them.

The woman led them into the tavern, which was much cleaner and better lit than any tavern in New Laven. The tables were all well scrubbed, with a potted plant in the center of each. She pointed to a table over in the corner. “Get comfortable. I'll order us refreshments.”

Hope sat down at the table.

“This seems like a really bad idea,” said Red as he sat down beside her.

“If there is even a chance this woman has a way of getting into the palace, I will hear her out,” said Hope.

“It could be a trap.”

“Set by whom? We are no longer a threat to Teltho Kan, and we don't know anyone else in this city.”

“Exactly!” said Red. “We don't know this woman. We don't know a pissing thing about her.”

“My name is Brigga Lin.” The woman placed three wooden goblets filled with red wine on the table. “And anyone sworn to vengeance against a biomancer is a friend of mine.”

“Why is that?” asked Hope.

“Because,” said the woman as she took a seat, “I have vowed to take revenge on the entire order.”

“You?” asked Red.

Brigga Lin smiled at him, bright white teeth behind red lips. “I don't look like much, do I?” She took a delicate sip of her wine. “But a master of biomancery can look any way they choose.”

“Wait, are you saying you're—”

“A biomancer. Yes.” She rolled her eyes. “Or I was until recently.”

Hope frowned. “I thought they didn't allow female biomancers.”

“And I thought they didn't allow female Vinchen, yet you certainly are dressed as one.”

“How do we know you really are—or were—a biomancer?” asked Red.

She touched the plant in the center of their table. There had been only one flower in the pot, a wan, semi-wilted chrysanthemum. As she leaned back and smugly took another sip from her goblet, the pot burst with blossoms.

“Okay. If you are a biomancer,” said Hope, “why do you want to destroy the order?”

“
Were
,” said Brigga Lin. “Let's not forget the all-important tense, there.”

“Why did they kick you out?” asked Red.

She arched one thin black eyebrow and gestured gracefully to her breasts as if formally presenting them. “Why do you think? Because I'm a woman.”

“But if being a woman is against their laws,” said Hope, “how did you—”

“Become a biomancer in the first place?” asked Brigga Lin. “Simple. I was a man then.”

“Sorry,” said Red. “What?”

“Not the most manly of men, it must be owned. But, I had the proper equipment. I studied and trained for years as a biomancer, and I was…mediocre at best, honestly. But I wanted to be more. So much more. Then a few years ago, I was exploring the ruins of the temple of Morack Tor, where I found one of the original sacred texts. It revealed that there were some branches of biomancery that were completely closed to men, and could only be mastered by women. I thought this was an astonishing discovery. It would revolutionize the order. But I would need to prove that it worked.”

“So you used biomancery to turn yourself into a woman?” asked Hope.

Brigga Lin shrugged. “It was either that or spend years training a real girl in the basics of biomancery. And who has the time or patience for that? Also, and I'll only admit this to you now after I know better, I honestly wasn't sure a woman was smart enough to learn biomancery.” She smiled faintly at Hope. “I hope you will forgive that. Like most men, I was an idiot.”

“So it was true?” asked Red. “You can do things the rest of them can't?”

“Oh yes. That right there?” She pointed to the overflowing pot. “They could never do that. The masculine biomancery can change living matter, but it cannot create it. Only feminine biomancery can do that. And if that's not a sign they're doing it wrong up on that mountain, I don't know what is.”