Eldin

“Tell me again.”

“For a third time, Eldin? It hasn’t changed.”

“Maybe the information hasn’t, but the way I perceive it might

have. That could mean all the difference.”

“Do you think this hard about the jobs you go on, too?” Zinnia

wrinkled her nose. The Three Bridges towered high in the dawn light,

a relieving sight after traveling such a long way to get there. Made of

carved rock and steel, they stretched over the roaring river, reflecting

the purple glow of the sky. Every time Eldin took a job, it would often

take them off course. He tried to accept only ones on their way.

Sometimes it worked, sometimes he had no choice, but they finally

made it.

“Only the important jobs.”

Zinnia rolled her eyes. “If you didn’t have to take so many, our

one day journey wouldn't have lasted three weeks, then you wouldn't

have to ask me to recite it so many times.”

“That’s how it works sometimes,” Eldin said. “Tell me.”

“Alright, fine. While I was standing in line for a bread booth,

the women in front of me were talking about an assassination attempt.

They said, “Did you hear someone tried to assassinate Rowan?”

“Rowan? The..?” She snapped here, trying to remember what he was,

but the other lady interrupted and said, “Yeah, him!” “What’s

happened? Is he dead?” “They say he got scared and is hiding in the

tallest castle tower.” And that was it. They got to the counter and started

haggling bread prices.”

Eldin frowned. “What I don’t get is why he is in Kingston, in

the castle of all places. My memories make it pretty clear we grew up

in an Unmapped together.”

“You did say some knight took him away on a horse. Are we

gonna have to deal with some stuck up long lost prince or something?”

Eldin smiled beneath his mask. “You just made it true. It will

be your fault if we have to.”

“Damn it.”

The Three Bridges were well within sight now and two guards

stationed on either side stepped forward as they trotted up. Eldin hung

back, allowing Zinnia to go ahead.

“Halt. It’s two regals per person to use the Bridges.” The right

guard said. He was in full armor, crossing halberds with his friend.

“What about my bodyguard? He doesn’t count, surely. Ghosts

are basically not even there.” Zin put her hands on her hips and flipped

her hair. It had grown out more, giving the flip a dramatic flair.

“Sorry, Ma’am, it’s the rules.”

“I guess. I swear the prices go up every time.” She dug around

her money pouch and produced the four coins required.

“Thank you for your generosity. Have a good journey.” The

guards uncrossed the halberds and let them through.

Eldin kept up the bodyguard act until they were across and well

away from the second pair of guards.

“Did you have to argue with them?” he asked, Kūma dancing

forward to catch up to Azra.

Zin blinked her eyelashes at him. “Whatever do you mean? I

was only playing a part.”

“Hmm better then you know.”

Zin laughed. They trotted in a companionable silence until a

thin stream of smoke from far off became thicker and a wall made of

spiked logs came into view.

“What is that?” Zin asked, standing in her stirrups and

squinting her eyes.

“Bandit camp, looks like.”

“What? So close to the castle?”

“I’ve suspected it might be here. I have a theory that the Golden

Order keeps them here on purpose to give their knights a reason to

patrol the roads without alerting its citizens they are actually watching

them.”

“Are you sure about that?” Zin wrinkled her nose.

“It’s only a theory, but it’s so far proving true,” he said,

gesturing to the camp.

“We should go around. Bandits don’t sound like a good time.”

“I’m afraid we might be too late for that.” Eldin could hear a

distant horn from behind the walls.

“Maybe if we go now, we can outrun them.”

“Might as well give it a try.”

Kūma jumped forward with Azra, both of them flying over the

hills around the camp. It looked like they would make it around until

four mounted bandits rode from a gate toward them.

“Just keep going!” Eldin dropped back, steering Kūma towards

the mounted enemy. One raised a bow and let loose an arrow. It arced

through the sky, heading straight toward Zin.

Eldin signed and said, “Māra mo.”

A shadow streaked from under Kūma’s hooves and shot at the

arrow, knocking it off course so it thudded behind Azra. Eldin narrowed

his eyes at the bandits and he signed.

“Tak je.” A swirl of shadow engulfed him. Kūma kept pace,

riding at them.

Eldin reappeared on the back of the horse of the bandit with the

bow. He only knew something was wrong when his comrades waved

their arms at him, but by then, it was far too late. The short sword sliced

through the air and the man’s head flew off his shoulders.

By the time the body fell from the saddle, Eldin had already

shadowed back to Kūma and sprung off her as she passed between two

of the bandits. He had switched out his sword for the dagger on his

lower back, driving it into the bandit’s side and throwing her off the

horse.

With a quick wrench of the dagger, Eldin pulled it from the

woman’s body and threw it at the oncoming bandit. It hit her in the

throat and she flew backwards off her horse, clawing at her neck. He

walked up to her and retrieved it, hate in her eyes as she stared up at

Eldin.

He didn’t react, wiping the blood on her tunic and sheathing it

as he watched the last bandit galloping away toward Kingston. Zinnia

was well away, so whoever it was most likely ran to inform the castle

of their discovery.

Eldin shadowed back to Kūma and caught up to Zin.

“Your fingers are twitching,” she said as he pulled up alongside

her.

Hers were too. “It’s the adrenaline.”

“You’re going to have to teach me how to fight. I’m getting

tired of running away and leaving all the hard work to you.”

“That can be arranged.” He watched her from the corner of his

eye. She was chewing on her lip.

“I want to learn the bow. That guy could fire at me from that

far away. I’m not so good at close up fighting, but I can do that. Plus, I

could hunt my own food.”

“Good idea.” Eldin completely agreed. He had never stopped

at so many cities in his life, and he yearned to travel abroad for days or

weeks without having to stop except for jobs. The isolation of the wild

was where Ghosts thrived. “We’ll get you a good one and I’ll teach you

how to use it.”

“You can use a bow?” Zin arched an eyebrow.

“I can.”

“Why don’t you carry one?”

“Cause I don’t. No more questions. We have to get into the city

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

before the Order sends someone out here and we get arrested.”

“Arrested?!”

Kūma took off toward Kingston, and Zin touched Azra’s flanks

with her heels and ran after them. They never caught up to the bandit,

but they had no trouble entering the capitol city. People streamed to and

from the gates. Guards stood on either side, looking bored. One caught

sight of Eldin and stared, but didn’t try to confront him.

“That’s where Rowan should be, if the rumors are true.” Zin

pointed to the tallest spire. The castle stood in the middle of Kingston

with shops, houses, and taverns spilling out from it. Three spires

towered high above anything else in town, each one taller than the last.

They turned their horses in that direction when wisps of shadow began

to encircle Eldin.

“A job? Now?” Zin asked. “Can’t you ignore this one?”

“Not this one,” Eldin said. “They’ve used my name. Take

Kūma and get to the base of that tower. I’ll meet you there.”

He hopped off her and patted her neck, allowing the shadows

to take him. The world went dark and he materialized in a lavish room.

Golden banners hung on the walls and on the floor in golden paint was

an image of Yrridan’s Comet. It was surrounded by thirteen cushioned

chairs. Only one of them was filled.

“Welcome,” the priest said, standing and opening his arms. He

wore a robe of purple with thick gold trim and a golden belt. “I assume

the payment was sufficient?”

“If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t be here.” Eldin watched the man, not

blinking.

“Of course, of course. The job I have for you is simple. The

Crown Prince is having some… troubles. If you’d just… help him with

a fall, slip something in his wine? You understand.”

Eldin nodded once. He understood alright. This kind of job was

common, but rarely so high profile.

“There’s extra in it for you if it looks like an accident, but I’m

not picky. Just get it done.”

Eldin signed and said, “Taknə.”

The next thing he laid eyes on was the wall just beside the base

of the tallest tower. Vines climbed halfway up. They had been hacked

to keep people from climbing over.

“There’s a window.” Zin turned and pointed, used to his

random appearances.

Sure enough, at the very top was a window. It looked tiny from

this far down and Eldin hoped he’d be able to fit through it.

“So, what kind of job?”

“Assassinating the Crown Prince.”

“What?!” Zin’s jaw dropped.

“Yup.”

“Are you gonna do it?”

Eldin shrugged. “I accepted it. I don’t see why not. Gives me

an excuse to sneak in and gather some information on Rowan at the

same time.”

“You’d assassinate a prince?!”

“If I’m paid enough, yes.”

“How much?”

“The rate for a job like that runs pretty high. Rates for me run

pretty high. I’d say probably at least one thousand regals.”

Zin sunk against the wall, a hand on her forehead. “One

thousand…? Who could afford that?”

“I’ll give you one guess,” Eldin said, disappearing again in a

cloud of shadow. He materialized on the other side of the wall, finding

himself outside the back doors to the kitchen. He smiled to himself.

Servants moved in and out, carrying scraps to a large cart and

dumping them in. He slipped from shadow to shadow, moving between,

under, and around them, until he was through the door and skulking in

a corner. In the far side, four cooks chopped away at veggies and a pig

carcass. A huge black pot hung over a fire, a spicy scent wafting from

it.

“Our dear prince is insisting on wine with his breakfast.”

Eldin twitched his eyes to the young girl who had just run into

the kitchen. She leaned against the counter, breathing heavily.

“Again? That man’s going to develop a problem if he’s not

careful.”

“He seemed jumpy. Did you know he asked me about rumors

the other night?”

A woman walked from behind a shelf of pots and pans, a jug

in her hands. Eldin watched her set it on a counter and turn back to the

young girl. Using only his eyes, he searched the kitchen, looking for the

fresh spices.

They hung drying on a rack to his right, and underneath was a

bowl of what he was looking for. Nutmeg. Next to it was a mortar and

pestle with a pile of the crushed spice in it. Eldin reached out and took

a small handful, shadowing to the wine jug where he dumped the spice

inside and returned to his corner in one move.

“Bring him this—” the woman grabbed the jug and filled it with

wine from a keg on the opposite wall, “—and then go home. Your shift

has been over for twenty minutes.”

Eldin waited until the girl was long gone and was about to leave

when a commotion kept him still.

“Please tell me Rowan is still in the tower!” A tall piscine with

light blue skin and the longest fins Eldin had ever seen, ran into the

kitchen.

“Yes, Arya just came from there and she’s heading back up

now,” the woman said, her hands on her hips. “What’s going on?”

“The Ghost has been seen around the castle.”

Eldin didn’t wait around. It all clicked. Rowan really was the

Crown Prince, and he had just sent poisoned wine to him. He jumped

shadow to shadow until he was next to Zin and the horses again.

“You were right,” he told her, staring up at the tower, looking

for handholds. His cloak flapped in the gathering wind.

“About what?” She leaned against Azra, squinting at the

window.

“Rowan is the prince.” He jumped into the air, his shadows

pushing him along with a word, and he grabbed for the first set of

handholds on the tower. A rough patch where the stone had eroded

made for the perfect place to shove his fingers. Glancing up, he could

just make out several stones sticking out some ways above.

Signing with one hand, he said, “Tak je.”

The shadows took him up the tower to the next handholds. Up

the tower he climbed, shadowing as far as possible with each jump. The

wind was worse out here, flipping his cloak around, so he pulled the tie

and let it rip from his shoulders.

Without it pulling at him, he made the stretch in one jump,

fingers clawing at the windowsill. Pulling himself up, he found the

window locked. His mouth curled into a smile as he signed

“Māra lōk.”

The shadows inside the room slid over the wall and darted at

the latch, flipping it and allowing the window to swing open. Rowan

was diagonal to him, filling a goblet of wine. Eldin crouched, slid a

knife from his wrist holster, and threw it just as Rowan lifted the cup to

his lips.

The throwing knife hit between his fingers, shattering the

goblet. The prince stared at his hands, then slowly turned his head, his

face draining of all color as his eyes met Eldin’s.