Chapter 16

The Fleet Tavern was huge. Comparing it to the Mule and Mare was like comparing a puddle to a lake. It was also far busier than its smaller counterpart. The main bar was a circle in the centre of its great hall, and it was tended by an array of staff, all dressed in the same, grey, drawstring uniforms.

Shouts and laughter echoed off the walls like Bervian drums over the hillside. Seats and tables were dotted around the hall without a single one being empty. There was a large gathering of people surrounding the bar, so patrons had to squeeze past one another if they wanted to move from where they were standing.

Anna had me follow her as she weaved through the drunken crowd. A few locals eyed me as I passed them, but it wasn’t like normal. The frowns were of curiosity more than anything else. As if they knew I was different but couldn’t make out why. They could see the deer marks on my neck. I never hid them. But they didn’t seem to care as much as the people south of the river. I put it down to what Anna had dressed me in, and the fact that I was in her company. The green jerkin made me look more like a wealthy local, and less like a fresh-from-the-hills Bervian. And Anna being who she was, demanded respect. It felt good not being sneered at for once.

Many patrons seemed to make space for us when we neared. No matter how crowded it was or how drunk they were. Everyone that caught Anna’s eye nodded or smiled with reverence, although no one approached her for conversation directly. It was like an unwritten rule that this tavern followed.

We came to a table towards the back. A group of mean-looking local men were seated at it. One of them tapped another on the shoulder when he saw us, and all of them promptly rose. They pulled out a seat for Anna and she gave one of them a wink before sitting down. They then walked off into the crowd.

“You had a table ready for us?” I asked.

She signalled a serving maid over. “The Mards own this tavern in all but name, Jeb. There’s always a table ready for us here… Two meads please.”

The blonde-haired maid bowed before heading off to the bar.

“So, is he here?” I asked, looking around the room.

I had heard of the island folks Sharia when I was on the hills, but I couldn’t ever recall seeing one. They were said to be taller than mainlanders and with darker skin tones similar to Hafrans. But when I looked around the room, all I could see was the pale, bearded faces of the city men.

Anna snapped her fingers at me, “Be a little more subtle. You’re in the home tavern of the Mards. It’s assumed that I know everything that goes on in here, and you, looking around the way you are, contradict that.” She let out a breath.“He may have gotten a booth over at the other side. Wait here.”

She got up from the table and moved into the bustling crowd.

I leaned back on my chair and looked up at the tavern's large ceiling. There was a mural on the ceiling that seemed to cover the entirety of the building. It was full of colour and drawings.

The part that was directly above me depicted a large-scale battlefield. Men in suits of armour were wielding large pikes and sticking one another. Their menacing faces were covered in blood. Soldiers, dogs, and horses lay dead. The banner of Wannihiem—a blackened outline of two towers connected by a parapet wall on a blue and white striped background—stood in the centre of the battle. A soldier who was a head higher than the rest wielded the banner with one hand.

Caine, being how he was since his injuries, would have loved to gaze upon the ceiling. He would have been fascinated by the history of it and would easily spend an afternoon trying to find out as much as he could about its origins.

His change in personality since that horrible day still astounded me at times. A part of me was glad to finally have a reasonable, level-headed brother. It certainly meant I had less to worry about, but I’d have been lying had I said I didn’t miss the old him. For all his faults, my brother never lacked for confidence. But since the days after his torture, I’d seen him flinch at a slammed door. There were things in him that disappeared since that day. Spirit. Fieriness.

Ottom took those from him.

“And you say they won the battle?” I overheard a voice say from the table behind me.

I glanced back.

Two elderly men were seated. Mugs in hand. Leaning on their chairs.

“Indeed, cousin,” one of them said. “They were outnumbered four to one, and so they launched a death charge that split the Mirnese army in two. The Mirnese fled for their lives back into Hran Forest. The drunk god knows how long it must have taken an army that size to travel over those thick roots. The Farians will be laughing until they piss themselves. It has been a good year for King Leopolf. For Faria in general. The bards have been singing of this victory from Farcor to Bikel,”

The other man chuckled to himself. “Still, bards are known for embellishment. Four to one sounds improbable, wouldn’t you say?”

“Perhaps, cousin,” said the first man. “But what is certain is that the Mirnese sought to launch an attack on the city, and they were outdone by a force with fewer numbers, and that anAkonir Mercenary was behind it all.”

“Akonir?”

“Indeed, and that’s another thing. Apparently, after the battle, the mercenary was nowhere to be seen. It was as if he vanished into thin air.”

SLAM!

The two thick glasses of mead made me jump as they hit the table. The serving maid gave another bow before turning and leaving.

Just at that time, Anna appeared through the bustling crowd and retook her seat at the table. “He’s at the back,” she said.

“So, what do we do now?”

She exhaled, “Take a sip. You’re going to need it.”

Anna picked up her glass and started to gulp. She waved a hand upwards, ushering me to do the same. I saw the look in her eye. It was a command, not a request. Throughout the months of being with the Mards, I had gotten drunk once. It was during my initiation. The clouded black memory and the tremendous headache I received the next day, made me swear that I’d keep away from the stuff as best I could. Today would have to be an exception. I finished the drink with as few gulps as possible. The bitter taste of the mead stayed at the back of my throat, and I had a brief moment where I thought I might vomit. Thankfully I just burped loudly.

Anna stood from her chair and wiped her mouth. “Come,” she said.

I followed her back into the crowd, trying my best to keep off the bloated bellies of the patrons as I passed them. But the densely packed tavern made it hard. It got tight towards the centre, and as much as people were trying to get out of Anna’s way it was becoming impossible. She grabbed my arm and pulled, making sure I didn’t get lost from her. After some time of worming our way through, we came to a clearing. It was as if we finished squeezing ourselves through a compact array of bushes.

Three large city men stood in front of us. Bouncers. They were there to ensure that none of the locals made it this far. Behind them, three wooden booths were fixed to the tavern’s back wall. That’s where I saw him. In the booth in the middle. He had noticed me before I did him, and it made him smile cruelly. A single golden tooth stood out on an otherwise set of perfectly straight white ones. His eyes were a set of unblinking dark pits. His posture was relaxed, with an arm resting on the top of the booth chair. He was dressed in blue and black robes that were wrapped tight so as if to not be cumbersome if he decided to move quickly.

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I stood behind Anna and wondered why I was even involved with all this.

After a quick glance, he held up a small glass with a clear liquid inside, “Anna of Faria, it has been a long time has it not?”

“Do you know him personally?” I whispered.

She nudged me slightly and took a step forward. The large bouncer in the middle moved aside.

“That it has Heblah, but I fear it is not long enough.”

“Now, now. You have nothing to fear. Come, sit, have a drink with me.”

Anna held up a hand. “I’ll stand.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded.

The Sharian grunted, “Well then, if it’s business, not pleasure you are here for, what can I do for you?”

“You can give me some assurance.” Anna’s voice was higher than normal. I looked down at her fingers and noticed the slight shake they had to them.

Heblah smirked. “In what?”

“Please, don’t be coy with me, Sharian. You know what I am asking.”

“Except you haven’t asked it, Farian. So, who is the one being coy?”

Heblah looked into his glass deeply, watching the small bubbles float from the bottom to the top. He took a swig of his drink and planted it on the table.

“Fine,” Anna said, “if you insist.” She cleared her throat.“Do you intend to disrupt Wannihiem’s justice system by committing an act that goes directly against the Doge’s interests, and therefore goes directly against the interests of the city of Wannihiem?”

The assassin grinned. “Well said.” He took his eyes off his glass and leaned forward, placing his arms on the table. He then looked straight at me.

“Tell me, the man behind Anna, who are you?”

I felt a shiver run up my spine. His eyes shone in the tavern lights like two black balls of fire. It was like staring into the face of a smiling demon.

“He is my underling-”

“I didn’t ask you, Farian, I asked him. What is your name?”

“Jeb,” I said. “My name is Jeb. I am of the Bervi-”

“Do you realise what you are, Jeb?”

I frowned, unsure of what he meant.

He continued, “I suspect not. The youngest the change has ever been recorded was in someone in their late twenties. You can’t be a day over twenty-five. Perhaps younger.” He leaned back in his chair. “Anna knows what you are, though. Don’t you Anna?”

“Enough of this,” she said.

“You’re a Mahadur, Jeb.”

Anna took another step forward, bringing the attention back to her “You are to leave this city immediately!” she said in a raised voice.

A quietness began to fall on the tavern as patrons noticed a confrontation.

“Or what?” the assassin replied.

“Or I’ll have half the city hunt you like a dog!”

He pursed his lips. “Well, let’s see how that works out.”

The two looked at each other with venom.

This was a game.

“Let us be honest with one another,” said Anna. “You don’t want the mess and neither do we. You came to this tavern to make a deal. So, let’s make one.”

Heblah took another swig of his drink and then looked back at me. “Tell me, Mahadur, have you started to dream yet? Dream so vividly that you can’t tell whether you are awake or asleep. They say that’s the first of the signs.”

I frowned at him. I had no idea what he was talking about, or why he was so intrigued with me. But then his words made me pause. I remembered the night in the cell. The night the Doge had visited me. The dream I had that night, I could have sworn I was back in my homeland. I could have sworn I was speaking to my mother. I was certain that it wasn’t a dream, and even now, when I thought of it, the memory imprinted on me like I had only just lived it.

“I….I—”

“Heblah,” Anna cut in sternly, “I am warning you: let us speak reasonably. Tell us what you want, and we can come to some sort of agreement.”

The assassin’s smirk grew wide. His gold tooth glinted off the candlelight. “You weren’t expecting me to see, were you, Farian? It didn’t even occur to you that I would be able to recognise what he is. Oh, this is rich, wise old Anna being so foolish.”

“Enough!”

“Do the other Mardmen know what he is? I suspect so,otherwise he wouldn’t be here, but you probably haven’t that you haven’t told them everything. There are things that you would keep close to your chest. Things kept deep in the woods.”

“I said enough!”

“I wonder what the Doge would say if he found out. A Mahadur in the city, and it was kept hidden from him. He wouldn’t be amused, that’s a big enough reason for exile, maybe even an execution.”

“That’s it!” Anna whistled loudly and stomped her feet. The tavern flashed silver as the three large bouncers drew their knives and pointed them towards the assassin. Things grew quiet in an instant. Then, as if by command, the tavern started to empty itself of its patrons. People hurried out the main door and fled into the night. Some stayed, mouths agape. The remaining Mards in the tavern drew their weapons and slowly made their way around me and Anna. I felt strength and relief with being surrounded by comrades.

“Now,” Anna snapped, “as you can see Sharian! I am in no mood. You forget where you are, so let me remind you. You are in Wannihiem, the city that makes and breaks empires. You may think that your actions in this city are lucrative, but they won’t be if we don’t want them to be. You claim no allegiance to any nation, which means we have no issue with gutting you here. Nor will Doge Rolof. I suggest that you come with us and come quietly.”

Silence.

For what felt like an age.

Heblah kept his eyes on Anna.

His face was as still as a statue.

Then he laughed.

It started as a small chuckle.

Then it grew.

Like the beginning of a heavy hurricane.

He bellowed loudly.

His guffaw echoed across the otherwise silent tavern.

Anna remained still.

“You are losing your edge, Farian. You’re not seeing things for what they are anymore. Perhaps it’s your age. You are in fact getting older are you not? Mistakes such as these are going to get you killed, and sooner rather than later.”

Anna scoffed. “You are alone, outmanned and with your back against the wall. I’d say it is you who has made mistakes.”

The assassin looked around the room, into the eyes of his oppressors. Judging them. Slowly he rose to his feet and worked his way around to the front of the table. His movements were graceful and light. Every step looked meticulously planned. The Mards readied themselves hesitantly. Anna held out a hand, staying them. My heart began to thump in my chest.

“You see, that’s where you’re wrong,” he said. “You think you know this city, but you only see what pleases you. If you looked close enough you would see that I am neither alone, nor am I outmanned.”

He clicked his fingers and a second flash of silver glinted throughout the room, before I knew it, I had a blade at my neck. The patrons that stayed in the tavern had snuck behind the Mardmen with drawn weapons. The large bouncer in front of the assassin drew another dagger. He put that and the one he was already wielding to the necks of the bouncers on either side of him. Just like that, the power had shifted. Every MardI could see was at knifepoint.

“Lower your weapons! Now! Or I order them to start slitting throats,” commanded Heblah.

Slowly, the clanking sound of metal hitting wooden flooring ringed throughout the tavern as the Mards dropped their blades.

“In-house talent!” he bellowed as he stood inches away from Anna’s face. His cruel grin reached ear to ear. “Are you impressed? I would be, if I were you. You city folk think yourselves so much cleverer than anyone else.”

I felt breath on the back of my neck from whoever held the dagger to it. Fear gripped tightly in my stomach and I started to sweat. My blood tingled. The blade at my throat reminded me of the first time I met Ottom. The time when all this began.

“This will do nothing but anger the city, Heblah. You won’t get away with this!” said Anna, her good eye burned with rage.

“Oh, but I will,” he spat. “Shrouded, clueless city folk. You have no idea about what’s going on outside your walls. You have no idea what is at stake!”

“Well, do you care to tell us before you kill us?” Anna said with gritted teeth.

“Oh, I’m not going to kill you, well not all of you anyway. What I will do though is give you a message to send your precious Doge. You are to tell him that he is being deceived. Tha—”

The door swung open, and the general known as Atinosh entered.