Chapter XXVII - Before the Dive

Nova was enjoying having her main workstation back. It made life considerably easier.

That said, as good as being back in her own room was, she did find herself actually missing those days spent staying with Seraphina. There was a camaraderie. But with the ghost situation now dealt with, it was time to return.

Despite having reconciled herself with the Candle-Bearer, she still got slightly unnerved whenever she looked at the window. Previously she had loved the Cosmic vistas outside of the Amrita, but she now kept imagining looking out to see some ethereal figure gazing in. She assumed in time she’d get over it, but she wasn’t quite there yet.

She was also determined to learn from the incident. While everything had worked out in the end, there was no guarantee that next time would end so well. When everyone was back on board, she intended to raise the issue with the Captain and Ostara. There had been biosecurity incidents in the past. Harry had purchased gourmet mushrooms on Meishan that had spread fungal spores throughout the Amrita. The mushrooms had attempted to psychically control the crew to spread themselves across the Cosmos. That had been a pain to deal with. This latest incident had not been strictly a biosecurity incident, but it fit within the general theme of accidentally bringing foreign things on board the ship.

Nova was stirred from her thoughts when an alert appeared from one of the monitoring programs that she’d created to snoop of the Yarkanese Government and Yarghun Company communications.

“What’ve you got for me?” she said out loud, leaning forward and opening the alert.

“A lot apparently.”

She flicked through the alerts.

Well.

This was big.

Multiple alerts were coming up now.

A state of emergency was to be declared.

Security and military assets to be transferred to Karbaliq area for “major anti-terrorism operation”.

Taghay Yarghunoghul to proceed to summary trial and sentencing immediately.

Prosecution will pursue exile.

She flicked over to the Amrita’s orbital imaging of the surface. She zoomed in. Around Yengishahr there were clearly the signs of equipment being mobilised.

She looked at Karbaliq. No signs there yet.

But she had other data coming in. Atmospheric sensors were detecting signs of a low-pressure system developing about five hundred kilometres southwest of Karbaliq. The computer’s atmospheric modelling data showed this was likely to build into a major sandstorm with winds of at least sixty kilometres an hour, possibly much stronger.

Nova sat back in her chair, considering it all.

If they planned to airlift forces into Karbaliq from Yengishahr, they were likely to have a narrow window. Orbital visibility would be reduced to zero once the sand shroud descended over Karbaliq. That might advantage defenders.

But in order for the defenders to have any advantage, they needed to know what was coming.

Nova breathed in; her previous musings forgotten. She put in a call to Ostara.

Mu was back in the yurt when her tablet lit up.

“Hello, Ostara,” she said.

“Hello, Mu.”

Mu looked up at Tavian and mouthed “It’s Ostara”. They’d been debating how to handle this conversation. Mu wasn’t sure they’d entirely settled the matter, but she was going to have to plunge forward now and hope for Ostara’s understanding.

“I expect you’ve heard what Nova’s discovered,” said Mu.

“If you’re referring to the identity of the killer, yes I have. You are still in Sayan’s camp?”

“We are,” said Mu. She decided she had to charge forward. “We want to help Sayan and Toghrul.”

There was a momentary pause at the other end.

“I thought you might say that,” said Ostara, “Or rather, the Captain did. You do realise this means abandoning the job we are being paid for.”

“I do,” sad Mu, “But… I… I don’t want to be part of dashing the hopes of this world. Not after what my ancestors did.”

“I understand,” said Ostara. Her tone was neutral, giving away little of her thoughts. “I take it you know why Sayan did what she did, and what she and Toghrul are planning.”

“We do,” said Mu. She got the sense Ostara was holding something back.

“Toghrul was not forthcoming when I spoke with him,” said Ostara.

“They intend to reawaken the Clanship Kulkana,” said Mu. “In order to achieve that, Toghrul must sacrifice himself.”

Another pause at the other end. Mu looked Tavian’s way once more. His eyes were fixed upon her, awaiting the outcome of the conversation.

What do I do if Ostara insists on pursuing the mission? We cannot fulfill the job from Ulduz, if we don’t try to exonerate Toghrul, but that would mean working against his and Sayan’s plan.

“Toghrul will not be killed,” said Ostara.

“What?”

“Nova has intercepted communications between the Yarghun Company and the Planetary Government. In a few hours the Governor will announce a planet-wide state of emergency. Toghrul’s trial will be conducted summarily and the sentence of exile passed. The ship transporting him to a penal colony will take flight soon after. At the same time forces of the Planetary Government in cooperation with Yarghun Company security will conduct a joint ‘anti-terrorism’ operation aimed at capturing or eliminating Sayan and her supporters in the Karbaliq area.”

Mu felt herself go cold.

Her mind raced to process this.

“What’s she saying?” asked Tavian.

“S-sorry, Ostara… just a moment,” said Mu. She lowered the tablet and quickly explained to Tavian. She raised the device to her mouth again. “Ostara… I’m going to put you on speaker. Tavian is here with me.”

“Hello, Mr Locke,” said Ostara. “I think two things are now true. Firstly, time has run out for us to complete our assignment from Ulduz. Even if we had further evidence that Toghrul was not the one guilty of the crime, we no longer have any capacity to bring that evidence to light. Taghay and the Governor now know what Toghrul and Sayan intend and are moving to actively prevent it. Which brings me to the second thing: Sayan and Toghrul’s plan – at least in its current form – will no longer be able to go ahead.”

Mu was feeling emotional whiplash. Not long ago she’d been ready to finally commit to Sayan and Toghrul’s plan, even if it meant abandoning the Amrita’s mission. Now it seemed neither would come to fruition. Only Taghay would get what he wanted.

It was ironic, Ostara’s choice of words: Toghrul’s ship would take flight. That was what Toghrul had wanted. But in the end, it would be far more literal than he’d hoped.

“We should tell Sayan,” said Tavian.

“You can if you wish,” said Ostara. “After that, I believe it is in our best interest to cut our losses and leave Yarkan.”

Mu wasn’t ready for that.

Not just yet.

“Give us a little longer. Maybe there’s another way,” she said.

“Speak to Sayan, like I said,” said Ostara. “But I must warn you: you will be in immense danger if you do not leave as soon as possible. Not only will the Government attack the camp – with overwhelming force according to Nova’s analytics – but something else has happened. Kal and Harry were attacked inside the protected zone in Karbaliq. The attacker was a shapeshifter – a Hulijing, according to the Captain. She was coming for you, Mu.”

“Are Kal an--?”

“They are fine, but they lost track of the attacker. She could take any form and she’s likely to be far more cautious after Kal nearly overpowered her. Kal said he believes she didn’t know where you were, but that will likely change quickly.”

“Why?” asked Mu, “Why is she coming for me?”

“We don’t know,” said Ostara. “My best guess is that she is a bounty hunter in the employ of some faction of the Imperial Government – someone unhappy that the Resonance Bureau were forced to call off their hunt.”

Mu had the sinking, hopeless realisation in that moment: They will never leave me alone, never let me have my freedom.

But that was it. The system that hunted her so relentlessly was the same one that Sayan and Toghrul were fighting against.

There must be a way.

“I’m sorry, Ostara,” said Mu. “I am going to talk to Sayan. I do not know what will happen after that.”

“Well, it’s probably not to Nova’s standard,” said Harry. “But it should stay in place.”

Kal flexed his fingers.

Not perfect.

Far from perfect.

But it’d do.

“I’ll get Nova to do a proper job when I get back to the Amrita,” he said.

“Given I’m more used to working with fabric than whatever wild metals you Eleftherians use, I’d say I did a pretty good job,” said Harry, a defensive note entering his voice.

“Read-outs I’m getting from here look workable,” came Nova’s voice. “You owe me a pizza when you get back.”

“Ah, wait, I’m sorry – I owe you a pizza? Didn’t I just do your job and fix Kal’s hand?”

“But I talked you through it. Imagine if you had to do it without me! Thus, I have earned a pizza,” proclaimed Nova.

“Whatever,” said Harry.

“Alright, I’m gonna leave you boys to it,” said Nova, “I’ve gotta gaming session with Ser-Ser and the ghost.”

“Weren’t you terrified of the ghost?” asked Harry.

“She’s a pretty nice ghost, and I’m a sucker for a good love story,” said Nova.

“You’re a weird girl,” said Harry.

“Eh, whatever. Nova out.”

They were sitting by a small fire outside their tent. The stars twinkled overhead. The desert sky was clear, but if what Nova told them was accurate, that wouldn’t last.

Kal sighed. The hand felt weird, but Harry had seemingly managed to reattach the thumb, sure enough. Opposable thumbs, as it turned out, were very useful and Kal had been growing increasingly frustrated dealing with life with only a single thumb since that damned fox had severed his. Having lost an arm fighting the Voidborn of the Host, he’d always considered the metal replacement to be far more durable than the weak organic flesh of the rest of his body. Yet when the Flame of Phaiston burned, it turned out his cybernetic arm was weaker. At least when facing whatever that vixen’s blade was made of. He’d have to research these Hulijing. If there was one thing Kal hated, it was being surprised by a foe. Intel was the core of success in warfare.

“We have to find that fox before she finds Mu,” said Kal.

Harry adjusted his glasses on his nose. “She won’t make it easy. She could be anyone. I doubt she’s going to straight up reveal herself again – not after that thrashing you gave her.”

“Not enough of a thrashing,” Kal grumbled.

But Harry was right. That first encounter had been their big chance. Now she could be anyone, anywhere. What concerned him more, was he still didn’t fully understand her powers. She was a shapeshifter, sure enough, but how had she vanished when he had her pinned? How had she made her final escape? If intel was the key to warfare, he was sorely lacking in this instance.

“The only option is to go join Mu and Tavian,” said Kal. “If we’re with them, we can be on the lookout. But we have to get there before she does.”

“Well, Ostara says she’s warned them,” said Harry.

“That’s a start,” said Kal. “But Mu can’t use her prescience properly here. She will get no forewarning before that bitch slips a blade between her ribs.”

“If Ostara’s theory is correct, she’s probably being paid by someone from the Imperial Court. If that’s true, then she’s probably not out to kill Mu, just capture her. That improves our chances of catching her – she’ll still need to get Mu offworld,” Harry pointed out.

“You’re probably right,” said Kal. “But we don’t know what she’ll do to Tavian or anyone else. Which means we have to hurry. I don’t like not knowing.”

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Any further conversation was interrupted when a young worker approached them.

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” he said. “But are you associates of Mukushen and Tavian?”

Kal, ever alert, felt his suspicions raised. Was this the fox?

“Who’s asking?”

“Sorry, I should have introduced myself,” said the man. “I’m Chinor. I was with Mukushen and Tavian not long ago.”

Kal wasn’t about to give away their location. “And where might that have been?”

“At the Falcon Totem Tribe’s camp,” replied Chinor.

Some might have considered that enough. Kal wasn’t some. He wasn’t about to lead the fox to her targets. “Okay. What do you want?”

“Do you know Atilay Qam?” asked Chinor.

“He’s the one who tried to send Mu to her death,” replied Kal.

He wondered vaguely if he moved quick enough whether he could restrain the fox in some way that she wouldn’t get away. Maybe grabbing this false form by the throat? This was the frustrating part of not understanding how her powers worked. He should have asked the Captain – he seemed to have some knowledge of these creatures.

Let it play out some more. She’ll slip up if given enough time – if it is her.

“He… had his reasons,” said Chinor, looking down at his feet. “Not reasons I wholly agreed with… but suspicion is rife here at Karbaliq. I think Mallam felt he needed to test her, to prove she was truly who she said she was.”

“He didn’t trust the Aixin,” said Harry, matter-of-factly.

Kal laughed at this. “Can’t say I blame him.”

He felt a little of his suspicion ebb away.

Do not let her fool you. She was rash the first time, but she will be more subtle this time. Do not trust when the heart is satisfied, only when the mind is.

“I wondered…” said Chinor, and if he was faking concern, it was compelling, “…if you had seen Mallam.”

“Never met him,” said Kal.

“Mu told us he was with them,” said Harry.

Kal glared at him.

Give away nothing.

“He was,” said Chinor, “He and I came back to Karbaliq together. But I haven’t been able to find him.”

Kal remembered what Ostara had told them about the plot that was brewing on Yarkan. He was rather impressed with this Sayan and Toghrul. They had the warrior spirit, no doubt about that. But if this Qam knew where Sayan, and thus Mu was…

Harry asked the question. “You are the tribal leader Sayan’s brother, right?”

Chinor nodded.

Kal had forgotten that part.

“This Qam… how much does he know about what your sister’s planning?” he asked.

Chinor looked uncertain.

Harry helped.

“We know everything. There are no secrets among the crew of the Amrita.”

Chinor was clearly less suspicious than Kal himself, for Harry’s words seemed to convince him. “I think… I think Atilay Mallam knew what my sister and Cousin Toghrul intended.”

“And you can’t find him?” asked Kal.

Chinor shook his head.

Fuck.

The fox had gotten to him.

Kal was sure of it.

“We have to go,” he said.

“Pardon me?” said Harry. “I don’t think I follow.”

Kal ignored Harry. “What was the last thing you heard from this Qam?”

“After we got back, he went to meet with company security… I don’t know what about…”

That was it. Kal had already heard a security officer failed to show up for a shift. Another worker had been found naked and disorientated on the edges of the protected zone. The clues were pointing in one direction.

“Your Qam may or may not be alive,” said Kal. “Can you guide us back to Sayan?”

Chinor’s face contorted into a look of horror. “What do you mean?”

“Something very dangerous entered this camp. It could be anywhere. I believe it got your Qam,” said Kal.

It was simple now. If this was some grand trick, it was easily revealed. If this ‘Chinor’ knew where Mu was, then all the better. They would reach her and could protect her. If he was the fox in disguise, then he wouldn’t be able to guide them.

If acting it was, it was good acting. Chinor looked shocked and horrified. “But… what do you mean?”

“A being that can take on any form is seeking Mu,” said Kal. “Even if you find your Qam, he may be the enemy already. Can you take us to Sayan?”

Chinor, his eyes glazed, nodded.

“Wait a sec,” said Harry, “How well will we do beyond the protected zone?”

“I… I am training to be a Qam,” said Chinor, his mind still clearly elsewhere. “I can help push back the Tempest…”

“Then it’s decided,” said Kal.

“I just,” began Chinor. “What do you mean the Qam might be dead?”

“If you need it explained, I’ll explain it on the way,” said Kal, then on an afterthought added, “And if we can save your Qam friend, we will.”

He turned to Harry.

“Get provisions ready. According to Mu and Tavian it isn’t far, but Nova says another sandstorm’s coming. I’ll find us sand suits. We move out as soon as we’ve got what we need.”

“Should we tell Ostara?”

“On the way.”

“But—” began Chinor.

“There’s no time to lose. Are you with us?”

Meekly, Chinor nodded.

One of the things Zhen Yan abhorred about taking another form was taking on its weaknesses. She had spent her entire lifetime honing her own form to the peak of physical prowess. Hulijing were superior to humans in almost every regard. She could move faster, react faster, see farther, smell better, hear better. At worst her true form was no stronger than an ordinary human, but everything else meant she had always been able to casually dominate them. Except for that big freak, Kallistos Nyx. But whatever he was, he was not fully human. As best she could tell, he wasn’t a Resonant. Yet some strange power worked within him, nonetheless.

This Qam’s eyes were weak. The eyes of an old man. She was tempted to shed the form, but it was more easily concealed. And if she was seen, she needed not to be found out.

Still, she did not doubt these poor eyes now. She watched Nyx, Zhang and the young tribesman set out.

They would lead her to Princess Mukushen.

There was one complication. If she ventured beyond the protected zone, she would be exposed to the Starflow Tempest left in the wake of the First Emperor’s Theophany. But if what the Qam said was true, this tribesman was growing in their ways. He would keep the Tempest at bay. It thus became simply a matter of following and remaining unseen.

She marvelled at it though.

The First Emperor’s power.

Even centuries later a potent Resonant, like herself could not deal with the raging storm left by a single use of his power. What an unjust Cosmos. How could an individual so cruel, so arrogant be gifted such power: the power of a God?

There was no point in complaining about it, though.

She had long ago learned the folly of defying the Aixingo Empire. Even if the monster that had created this preternatural storm was long dead, he had forged an unassailable edifice of might. She and the one she had once loved had learned that the hard way.

Now she knew two things: that she hated the Aixingo Empire, and that it had been their mortal error to ever dream of fighting it.

Did that make her coward?

No.

She had promised she would live. And living meant joining that which you could not oppose.

She set out beyond the protected zone, staying as far back from the would-be future Qam as she reasonably thought was safe. Yet even then – whether because this man’s powers were too weak, or because she was too far back – she almost immediately felt the weight of the Tempest.

There were voices, but there seemed to be visual disturbances too – always at the edge of her vision. When she turned to look, they were gone.

For a moment she thought she saw Xingyan.

No, she told herself. She is long dead.

Yet the thought persisted and not much time had gone by when she thought she saw her again.

This was a planet where the dead far outnumbered the living. Perhaps the Tempest did not discriminate between the ghosts of those who had died here, and the ghosts others brought with them.

Don’t judge me. I promised you I would live. That’s all I’ve ever done. Live.

She shook her head. Surely, it was just the Qam’s poor eyes playing tricks on her.

It wasn’t though.

And she knew it.

She just wasn’t yet ready to see Xingyan again. Because that would mean Xingyan seeing her – seeing what she had become.

And she wasn’t ready for that.

Tavian did not hesitate this time. Sayan was not in the yurt but sitting by the fire outside. He walked up to her, Mu in his wake.

“Taghay knows everything,” he said.

Sayan hesitated only a moment. When she spoke, her tone was cold, but calm.

“Who broke?”

Mu shook her head.

“We don’t know… but our crew tell us he is preparing to move against you in force. The Governor will declare a state of emergency. It will be called an anti-terrorist operation.”

Sayan smiled. Her bright eyes seemed somehow to gleam brighter.

“War was ever a prospect,” she said.

Mu shook her head.

“You don’t understand… they will come with overwhelming force. It will be like—”

Sayan laughed. “As ever, it is you, Aixin, who doesn’t understand. I will send out the call. The tribes will answer. We will fight for the Black City. We were denied that opportunity when the First Emperor came and wielded his Theophany. This time, however, will be different.”

Tavian sighed. “I may not understand much, but I have witnessed a rebellion before. The Empire gets rough.”

“We are far from the Imperial Court. The Banner Fleets and Armies haven’t visited Yarkan in a century. There are perhaps a thousand soldiers of the Verdant Standard across the whole planet. We will wipe them out.”

Tavian could see a desperation in Mu. “They will come. Even if you win for a moment… and I don’t see—”

Sayan laughed once more. “Great Kulkana will awake. And even before that, even before the warriors of every totem go to war, the Učarmaz will swamp the enemies of Yarkan. The Emperor’s Theophany is a two-sided blade. There is a reason in all the centuries since our people were so abased, that the Empire’s tendrils have never penetrated the deep desert until now. We have at our side the unnumbered dead. The ancient armies of the Confederacy will rally.”

Tavian knew where this was going. But Mu got there first. “Toghrul will not be killed. The sacrifice necessary to awaken the Clanship won’t happen.”

For the first time, Tavian recognised uncertainty spread across Sayan’s face. But it did not last.

“Then we will fight and die as the Last Khagan intended, defending the Black City. It will be the final battle of that ancient war.”

Incredible, he thought. Her dreams shattered by that news, yet she wavered for only a moment.

Tavian could see that Mu, however, was near breaking point. His mind raced for ideas, but they weren’t coming. So, he spoke anyway.

“The Učarmaz like my music, and I theirs. Let me go to this Sanctum and we’ll see what arrangement we can come to.”

Sayan’s brilliant eyes fixed on him. “Very well. Play your music. I won’t stop you.”

It was clear she didn’t hold much hope for his plan to rally the dead with a song. He didn’t either, but there didn’t seem to be much else on offer by way of solutions to their lethal conundrum.

Before Tavian could speak again, Mu yelled.

“Wait!”

“What?” asked Sayan.

“Something I heard… to take flight…”

There was a look of confusion in Sayan’s eyes.

“What if… in modern Jaril… the words for death… they mean to take flight in ancient Jaril, right?”

Mu’s mind was clearly moving faster than she could form sentences.

Sayan seemed to follow, but was hesitant in her response, “Yes.”

“The Učarmaz speak in the ancient tongue. What if they literally meant it? Taghay will make Toghrul take flight. What if that’s enough?”

The Qam of Sayan’s tribe spoke up, “It is possible.”

Sayan turned to him. “But Mallam…”

“In the past exile was akin to death. If Cousin Toghrul, one who is of the blood of the Khagan, takes flight… into the Cosmos… even not in death…”

Sayan’s confusion began to shift. A grin spread across her face. It almost seemed as if a great weight had lifted from her. Watching the change, Tavian understood now that whether she had shown it or not, the news she had heard had indeed devastated her, yet it was only now – with another reversal of fortune – that she revealed that.

“I like this,” she said. “We do not know. But let us embrace that. We will go to war. And we will call upon the Učarmaz. We will convoke the Kurultai of the Dead. Mr Tavian, play your music for them, if it pleases them. I will have my brother take the Wolf Totem. One of two things will happen. The Clanship will awake – if you, Princess Mukushen are correct… or we will die in glorious battle.”

Mu had a dark look upon her face. “Let me go. Let me and Tavian go with Chinor to the Sanctum. You can stay and fight. I know I do not deserve it, but give me the chance to undo my people’s shame.”

Sayan nodded. “Very well. Go. I will speak to Chinor. He will meet you at the Sanctum. Mallam? Travel with them. Protect them until they reach the Sanctum.”

The Qam nodded.

“Chinor and Atilay Qam will meet the three of you at the Sanctum. If your music is all you claim it is, Mr Tavian, you will have two Qamlar with you too. Calm the Učarmaz and rally them to our purpose. I will entrust it to Chinor to take the Totem of the Wolf and convoke the Kurultai. If I am alive, and you are correct Mukushen – if Toghrul’s sacrifice can be to take flight by exile, not death… then when all is done the Great Kulkana will awake and I shall be Khatun.”

Tavian could see the fire awaken in Mu’s eyes, yet the uncertainty lingered. “But what then? The Banner Fleets are still out there.”

Sayan smiled. “I will not declare war against all the Empire at once. We shall deal with what comes next when the time comes. But I believe you Aixin have lost your way. The conquering way of the Peoples of the Clanships.”

“They will not need a Theophany this time,” said Mu. “They have sufficient power without it to burn worlds. Trust me. My father is one of them.”

“You worship Nara Enduri, do you not, Aixin?”

“The Shepherd of Destiny speaks to me, but…”

“Do you know which star we worship?”

Sayan did not give Mu a chance to reply.

“The One we refer to as the Great Qam. To you, it is Nara Enduri. I believe when the Clanship is awakened, the Great Qam will smile upon us.”

“But It smiled upon your enemies… it brought such ruin,” said Mu.

“It granted such power to Yurhudan Khan, the one you call First Emperor, because he was strong. The Great Qam embraces the conquering spirit of the Clanships. Yurhudan Khan, long before the Banner Wars, long before he conquered the Nine Suns, conceived of such things. Not as a Theophant, but as a man. I admire that. But the Aixin have become weak and decadent. Now we will be strong. The Great Qam will smile upon us once we awaken the Clanship.”

Tavian felt a shiver. He had spent many years on many worlds recording the songs and stories and myths of those worlds. Yet for the first time he had the sensation of witnessing a myth in the making.

“And I ask you, Princess: if we are given the gift of Theophany… how shall we use it?”

Sayan stood atop the dunes, Erkegul at her side.

She had spent too much time in the yurt or around the fire. She was starting to feel confined. Out here she was free. The desert was the very essence of freedom.

The falcons soared above.

The sky was clear, but she could see the haze on the distant horizon that indicated a coming sandstorm. She turned to her daughter.

“Watch the falcons,” she said. “They are the essence of efficiency. They feel the currents of the air and move upon them, almost never flapping their wings. Every bit of energy is preserved for the critical moment.”

“The dive,” said Erkegul.

Sayan smiled. “The dive.”

The two birds circled about, rising high on the thermal currents, barely visible from the ground, but for the sharp eyes of their minders.

“The Yarkanese Falcon is the perfect predator. It was created from the genestock preserved aboard the Clanship and then introduced to this world to be the king of its skies,” said Sayan, observing the dark silhouettes as they dwindled ever higher into the hazy blue of the desert skies.

“It comes to this world, as the Jaril do: as conquerors,” said Sayan.

Erkegul looked uncertain.

Sayan rounded upon her. “Speak up, do not hold back.”

Erkegul looked down, then she raised her eyes to meet those of her mother. “Are we conquerors?”

Sayan smiled reassuringly. “We are. It is our way.”

“Didn’t the Aixin… conquer us?”

Sayan nodded. “We were strong. They were stronger. But things are ever in flux. We must not abandon the mindset of the conqueror. When we do, we are forever condemned to be victims. To be the playthings of the Aixin. To be the conquered.”

“Weren’t we stronger when they conquered us than we are now?” asked Erkegul.

“Yes,” said Sayan, “But even in the time of the Last Khagan, we had forgotten the power of the Clanship. The maker of worlds. The Aixin came from a Clanship too, but they have spread so far across the stars that their essence is diluted. We have only this world.”

“We do not have a Theophany,” said Erkegul.

Sayan smiled. “This is the great lie they tell: nor do they.”

“But our world—”

“Was devastated by the Theophany of Yurhadan Khan, the one they call First Emperor. Theophanies are not trinkets to be passed from generation to generation. They are not a crown. The Aixin rule their empire with fear. A fear born of what they did here. But their emperors are fatted babes, raised in the cradle of the Imperial Court. They have no more Theophany than you or I. The Great Qam is silent.”

Erkegul looked like she was about to raise further objection.

“Do not listen to their claims. The Shixing Emperor has no Theophany, whatever they claim. It is their hope that the power they used against our people holds uncountable others to their yoke, but the one who received Nara Enduri’s Theophany has been dead for centuries.”

The falcons circled higher still.

“A great test is coming,” said Sayan.

“Father will leave us,” said Erkegul.

“As he must,” said Sayan, “But in his wake, the Clanship will rise again to remake our world.”

Erkegul examined her feet.

“I have told you already: speak. It is just you and I here.”

Erkegul’s bright eyes stared directly into Sayan’s, a mirror. “I just wish we could be together.”

Sayan felt a fleeting moment of uncertainty. But she knew that if she wavered, her daughter’s strength would collapse. However cruel her indifference might seem; it was the fuel for her daughter’s resolve. Tenderness would only make the coming days harder. “We all have our duty. We sacrifice our joy so that the Jaril people can rise once more.”

“I know,” said Erkegul. “I guess… I just wish… it was different.”

“It was once. Before Yurhudan Khan came with the power of the Great Qam in hand. But on the that day, ruin was unleashed on our people. Many families were broken. Lineages that had endured since before the Clanships embarked into the Cosmos, were severed. There are many things we may wish, but only through resolve and the ancient, conquering spirit, can we gift such things to those who will come after us.”

Erkegul appeared deep in thought.

“But if the Great Qam gifted such power to our enemies, what hope do we have?”

“I said it already: in that time, we were strong, but the Aixin were stronger. By evoking the Učarmaz to awaken the Clanship once more, we can attract the gaze of the Great Qam. Thus, can our people be chosen to be falcons, soaring high across the Cosmos, once more. The Aixin, in their complacency, have become the desert mice.”

Sayan felt a rage at herself as she spoke. A child – her child – desperately wanted comfort, softness… yet she could not give it.

Erkegul deserves better than me as a mother, she thought.

Perhaps when this coming storm had passed, she could give Erkegul what she deserved – what Sayan so deeply desired to give.

But for now, the only gift she could give was strength. The strength to endure.

“Look,” she said, needing to distract herself as much as Erkegul.

Mother and daughter turned their eyes to the sky. The falcons were now mere specks.

“The Yarkanese Falcon, when it enters a dive, is the fastest natural beast. It accelerates to five hundred kilometres an hour. The kinetic force of its talons when it strikes is like a bullet. But it must choose its moment wisely. Once the dive is initiated, there is no changing the course. The desert mouse is tricky, but the falcon does not miss. I will not miss. The moment of our dive is almost here.”

Erkegul sighed.

“I understand.”

Sayan watched her. Her heart broke, but her face remained stony.

There was a shrill cry above.

A feathered missile plunged from the sky.