“Noth!”

Opening my eyes, I groaned as I rolled out of bed and the lights came on.

Waving the door open, I watched my cousin run in with haste.

“Better be good,” I grumbled as I searched for some clothes.

“It's not. We have a problem,” Jamthi said, hurrying over to my closet.

Before I even got out of bed he had thrown a pair of pants at me. “Come on, hurry,” he ushered.

“I just laid down...” I said.

“Telleya tried to sabotage the Line.”

I stopped mid-dress, and looked to my cousin.

“That better be a horrible joke,” I said.

He only shook his head, and I had to sit back down on the bed.

“Anyone hurt?” I asked, returning to getting dressed.

“No. I said she tried, not that she succeeded,” he reiterated.

“True.”

While getting dressed, I tried to stop myself from getting angry. I was going to grow furious eventually, and it wasn't going to be pretty, but I had to remain calm for as long as possible.

Instead of getting angry, all I was feeling was sick.

I had not thought her capable of it.

“Where is she?” I asked.

“Off the Line,” he said.

“You killed her? Who? Yevin?” I asked.

“By the Line, no. She's back at her House,” Jamthi explained, tossing a shirt at me as we left my room.

“You let her leave?” I asked.

“We just figured out what happened. She went back to her home earlier, per marriage customs,” Jamthi said.

“Ah.” Yeah Rivini had said something about not being allowed to see her at night.

“I'll explain when we get there, so you can see,” Jamthi said as he led the way.

I followed him to a floor below us, a large empty storeroom. One we hadn't used yet, so it was still empty.

Sarley, Yevin and Kana, with several of each of their crew scattered around in the room, but at a distance. They were all staying near the hallways and doors... as if to make sure no one entered the room.

“Well?” I asked Jamthi as we approached Sarley, Yevin and Kana.

“Yevin, if you would,” Jamthi said.

While Yevin walked away from us, I noticed he was walking towards some long artifact looking thing. It was vaguely familiar but I couldn't place it.

“Your shirt is on backwards,” Kana whispered.

“Ah,” I quickly went to fixing it as I watched Yevin kneel down next to the artifact, then scrape against it with something.

“It's some kind of bone. From an animal,” Jamthi said.

“Oh. Is it the one from my office?” I asked.

I knew there were plenty more of them than just that one after all… It was Yevin and I who had popped open that crate.

“No, well... watch,” Sarley said as Yevin then stood and walked a distance away, to where there was a grouping of dark spots.

“Explosive magic?” I asked.

“Worse.”

Worse?

Yevin placed something on the floor, and then added something to it. The moment he did, a bright spark engulfed him.

“Yevin?” I asked, and started to step towards him, but Jamthi grabbed my arm.

Yevin quickly backed away, slapping his right arm to put out a small flame.

Although concerned for him, I was too busy watching a giant green flame blaze higher, growing larger.

“Should I seal the room?” I asked… worried at the rate it was growing.

“It'll go out in a second,” Jamthi said, his voice barely heard over the roar of the flame.

Sure enough after a few moments the flame started to die down, decreasing in size and intensity until only small embers remained.

“You alright?” I asked Yevin as he approached, and he gave me a smirk. Kana approached him, and had to forcibly grab his arm to let her take a look.

“When water hits the bone, it erupts into flame. What Yevin just used as an example was filings. Small particles. If that whole bone was to ignite...” Sarley stopped talking, her point made very clearly.

The ground where the fire had been was still hot, parts of the metal still glowing red.

“Dangerous but... Once I sealed the rooms,” I said, gesturing to the walls.

“Yes. But how long would it take you to realize it? A fire of that magnitude? It could encompass dozens of rooms and hallways before you sealed it,” Jamthi said.

“True...”

“He's fine. Nothing worse than a sunburn,” Kana said with a huff, stepping away from Yevin.

“Why'd you not rig up a contraption instead?” I asked him.

“Didn't want to risk it,” Sarley answered for him.

“Crazy,” I whispered, and walked over to the bone.

The thing was longer than I was tall... and as thick as my waist.

They were right. Even though I could have sealed the fire, and it would have eventually extinguished itself, the damage would have been horrible.

Many would have died... and large swaths of the Front-Line would have been damaged.

And if it had been placed near ammunition, or the cannons...

Or our food supplies...

“We're not sure if it's a catalyst or just a natural reaction yet,” Sarley said.

“Doesn't matter. We know what it does. Have you checked the manifests yet?” I asked.

“All accounted for. They're sealed away in the room to the right of us,” Jamthi said.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Anything else like them?” I asked.

“Not as far as we can tell... Everything else is just basic metals. Gold, jewels and stuff.”

I already knew the answer, since I had overseen the vast majority of the loadings. As always, I tried to personally check each crate that entered the Front-Line.

“I should have noticed. They are too different from the rest of the cargo. How obvious,” I said, shamed at my own failure.

“I was there too,” Yevin said, accepting the blame.

“Hard to blame you... some old treasures are ivory, or the like,” Kana said.

“No one was hurt, I hope? Other than Yevin here,” I said, pointing to the fool's arm.

“No one. We figured it out in time,” Jamthi said.

“Run me through it,” I ordered as I kneeled and tried to smell the bone.

I didn't want to touch it... since I didn't want to erupt in flames later on accident when I washed my hands or something.

“Well, first a few ensigns came to me to let me know they had fulfilled your wife's order. To carry something to your office. They thought it was just her giving you a gift or something,” Jamthi said.

“Yes they told me too. And? I was the target?” I asked.

“So it seems,” Yevin said.

Rude. I even shared my most expensive drink with her.

“And I'm the one who brought up the water part. Veronica and I had found her alone in your office the other night, after your meal with her. She had acted a little strangely... but I hadn't taken any notice of it, since she's a strange girl anyway. She carried a bowl of water out of the room, with me and Veronica. I didn't know what it was for then, but it had obviously been intended for this,” Sarley said.

“Why not do it then?” I asked.

“Isn't it obvious?” Kana asked.

“It's precisely because of Sarley and her niece that she didn't do it then...” Jamthi then said.

Standing, I stepped away from the flint-bone and gestured for him to continue.

My cousin gestured to those standing around, and then nodded. “She wasn't trying to kill any of us. At least, I don't think she intended to,” he argued.

“Considering how powerful that flame was, I doubt her intentions mattered,” I said.

“No you don't understand... you see, it wasn't too long after the first ensign told me what happened, a few minutes actually, that another group came to me and said the same thing. Except this time, they took the cargo from your office and threw it over board,” he said.

“Huh?”

Jamthi nodded, and kept his eyes on me. “She ordered them to take it out. In your name.”

“It's true. One of the bones is outside, where it would be if it was thrown off the bridge,” Yevin said.

She removed it? After planting it? She wasn't a very good saboteur.

That explained why Yevin found out so fast, though. It was far too odd not to investigate.

“So... maybe she did what Yevin did. Scraped some off,” I said.

“Why take the whole thing then?”

“Why not just set them aflame in the storage? Why go through unnecessary steps?” I asked back.

“Better yet, why only one? There had been two whole crates full of these things. They could have littered them around the Front-Line, and set them all alight at once. The damage would have been insane,” Kana said.

I sighed, and rubbed my right temple. I was too tired for this.

I shouldn't have joined in the loading, at least not physically... But I had been trying to get my mind off the stupid stuff.

Jokes on me.

“More guards posted already?” I asked.

“Taken care of,” Yevin said.

“We have three teams making sweeps everywhere too, just in case,” Jamthi said.

“Do several,” I said.

Jamthi nodded, and I paced a little. Should I cancel all trade then?

Four Houses worth of goods were now stored securely on the Line... That was enough.

I had almost left with just the Derri's goods. And Derri's cargo was half the size of the other Houses...

Still...

The image of the young woman's smile as she laughed flashed through my mind.

I had expected her to be a spy. But not a killer.

Not this kind anyway.

Yevin had said she was capable of it… but I had not thought this was what he meant. I thought he spoke of killing those she hated.

Maybe we were the ones she hated.

“You figured this out after she left?” I asked.

“Yes. About an hour or so,” Jamthi said.

If so, she was probably back with her elders... telling them that she had fulfilled her duty. Her mission.

Unless of course they weren't the ones who had ordered it.

She very well could have been ordered by another House, not the Derri.

“Yevin?” I asked.

“This and that are separate things, Noth. This… there could be…” Yevin stopped, and I knew it was because he didn’t want to say it aloud.

This was the reason the Front-Line had willed against the woman.

This was why she couldn’t open any of the doors, this was why she hasn’t asked yet.

But…

“She removed it from your office, Noth…” Jamthi said softly, as if I needed to be reminded.

“You’re sure there’s no scrapes of the stuff in there?” I asked.

“Not as far as we can tell,” Sarley said.

So then why…

“Go get her,” I ordered.

For a moment no one moved, and I wondered what was wrong.

“Well?” I asked.

“I know what this looks like, Commander but...” Kana started to speak, but I wasn't going to hear it.

“She's not the first saboteur we've encountered, Kana,” I said.

“But she is your first wife,” she said back.

“This is no time for jokes,” I growled.

“I wasn't joking, Noth,” she growled back.

Before I could grow angry with her, I noticed the others were just as serious as she.

“I'm not saying she didn't do it. I'm not saying she isn't an enemy... but Noth, she really did enjoy our Front-Line. Her joy and amazement had not been faked,” Kana argued.

Damn. Old Tom taught her well.

“Of course they weren't. But one can enjoy something, yet still turn around and destroy it.”

Kana wanted to say something, to argue further... but didn't. She only lowered her head and went silent.

That was where she was still learning. Old Tom wouldn’t have backed off so quickly.

“Noth, something must have happened,” Jamthi said softly.

“Of course something did. They just tried to kill my people. To burn them alive of all things,” I said, pointing to the nearby black spots on the floor.

“I'll question her. But I won't kill her,” Yevin then said, raising his deep voice.

“I didn't say to kill her, just to find her,” I grumbled.

“Wouldn't it be better to wait first?” Jamthi suggested.

“Why? To give them more chances to kill people?” I asked.

“Will you let them?” he asked, his tone ridiculing me.

“Of course not!”

“Then there is no problem. We found out what their plan was. We stopped it. We understand it now. We know what to look for. Security has been tightened, we've been put on alert, and I'm sure you'll go into motion to make it so we can leave at a moment's notice. From this point on they cannot inflict anymore harm, and will be dealt with the moment they try... So, what more do you think we need to do?” Jamthi asked.

“Question her. Find out why. Get answers,” I said.

“The Noth I know wouldn't do that,” he argued.

Standing there, I looked around, to see if anyone else would laugh at such a stupid statement.

Gesturing to myself, I gave him permission to continue.

“You don't want to find the masterminds. You aren't looking for revenge either. That's not you. At least, not when no one is harmed because of it. So instead, the reason you wish to find her is simple,” Jamthi said, speaking evenly.

“Oh, I don't believe this,” I said, knowing what he was trying to imply.

“It isn't like him,” Yevin agreed.

“I find it sweet,” Kana said.

“What do you expect?” Sarley asked, amused.

“Enough,” I ordered.

With my order, the massive storage room groaned as the Line moved.

Those who were my officers became alert, and the many men and women who lined the room near the walls hurried towards us.

“Sir!” many people shouted, but I raised my hand and stopped them.

The room quickly became quiet as I calmed myself, and I made sure I didn't accidentally close any of the nearby doors on accident.

While the onlookers drew closer, to ensure nothing was wrong, I stared at my officers.

The fact I hadn't realized it until now was horrible. And actually an insult to them.

The ones who were the most loyal to me, my trusted friends.

I nodded in defeat, but wasn't able to say it aloud. It was shameful, but I knew I didn't need to say it for them to know.

They hadn't been teasing me.

They had been genuine.

All this time.

I just had been too stupid to see it.

That was the only reason I wasn't furious.

That was the only reason I wasn't going to seek revenge, or do something regrettable.

“Prepare for departure,” I said, making my decision.

Jamthi stepped forward, a sad look on his face. “Noth...”

I shook my head, and took a small breath. “Prepare for departure. All hands. Cease trading, and don't allow anyone near the entrance. The moment we're ready to leave, we go,” I ordered, and left the room.