Interlude 1
Jana
“I have never been so terrified in all my life,” said Lady Alyona as she stepped out of the tub. “I would never have believed that Duke Borden, of all people, could be capable of such a thing.” Jana held up a towel and the young woman accepted it with an effortless grace that still annoyed Jana even after six months of working in the Matvei household. “Thank you, Jana dear,” she said, managing a beautiful smile despite her ordeal from earlier that night. It seemed like all noblewomen came out of their mother's wombs graceful and gorgeous while common girls like Jana had to work themselves to the bone just to achieve half of that same elegance. She hated Alyona for it but forced herself to smile sympathetically nonetheless, just as Othelia had taught her.
“I can’t imagine what it must have been like milady,” Jana said as she began helping the noblewoman dry herself off. The attendants of lesser nobles had not been allowed to attend the ball, but instead had to wait in a side room, so Jana had not witnessed the attack. She had barely been able to contain her fury when she learned that she wouldn’t be allowed into the ballroom. After a decade of training and months of pretending to be a maid, she ended up sitting with a bunch of servants while the rest of the Shade Hunters got to participate in the assault. Her chance to see the culmination of years of careful planning finally pay off was denied to her because of elitist attitudes. She really shouldn’t have expected anything less.
She never wanted to actually fight, of course, she was a lady, after all. But what she wouldn’t have given to see the looks on those high-and-mighty nobles' faces when their precious king’s head hit the floor. It would have made all the humiliation she had been forced to endure these last six months worth it. At least now it was over. Just a few more hours, maybe another day or two at the most, and she could leave all this behind her. She toweled off Alyona’s back and glared at the necklace around the woman’s neck. Even from a distance Jana could feel the effects of the intricately inscribed runes that graced the surface of the charms set all around it at regular intervals. Alyona never took it off, even when bathing.
“Be glad you weren’t there, Jana,” said Alyona, ignorant of Jana’s thoughts and idly drying off her arms. “I wouldn’t wonder if I never sleep again.” Alyona finished and handed her towel back to Jana, then held her arms out while Jana took a bathrobe from a large stone with a warmth rune inscribed onto it, keeping the stone – and anything on it – warm. Jana helped her slip into the robe. “I shall miss these little luxuries,” Alyona mused as she hugged the warm robe tight about her. It grated on Jana that this was one area where she actually agreed with the woman.
Clement was a remote and isolated region with few luxuries and far too many goats. There was only one mereologist in the entire town, but he was first and foremost an agent of the Empire and did not have the time or inclination to waste his essence keeping the Matvie estate’s runes charged, at least not the unnecessary ones. Alyona’s necklace, and Lord Matvie’s matching ring, were counted among the necessary ones, along with all the basic security wards. The ancient fortress the young nobles insisted on calling their “villa” was riddled with countless more runes that no one knew the purpose of, nearly all of which had been inactive for centuries.
There were only two other mages in town besides the mereologist, an aging healer who was so blind he couldn’t see his own nose, and a nearly useless drunkard who got himself posted there because no one else wanted him. Well… there had been one more mage in Clement, but no one knew about her, and if she had her way she was never going back there again.
“Is it true, ma’am? What they are saying?” she asked as she began brushing Alyona’s hair, which was, of course, perfect. “Did Duke Borden really kill the entire royal family?” Of course she knew the answer already, all the Shade Hunters in Father’s house knew the plan. Master Jan had gone over it with them hundreds of times, and Father was nothing if not thorough. He would not have left until the job was done. Still, she had not heard from any of her compatriots since before the assault began, so Alyona’s account would have to do for now.
“Very nearly,” said Alyona with a shudder. Jana briefly paused her brushing, which she was fortunately able to disguise as pulling the brush away while her mistress shuddered. There had been no room in the plan for “very nearly.” Had something gone wrong?
“You mean there were survivors?” she asked, slowly running the brush through Alyona’s hair again and trying to hide the nervousness in her voice.
“Yes, thankfully. Prince Aarmond was able to escape, and Prince Andreu’s family all survived, though it was a close call. Something distracted Duke Borden and Prince Andreu was able to shoot him. Even then he almost killed Lord Vincen, but something stopped him. They’re saying it was a shade.”
Jana almost dropped the hairbrush but was able to steady herself quickly. She hid her lapse by reaching for a hair ribbon. How could a shade stop Father? Alyona must have misinterpreted what she’d seen or heard. Shades were worthless, and there was no way one could have possibly interrupted Father’s plans. Still, something had obviously gone wrong. Jana began to tie back Alyona’s hair. “Did they catch… him. The Duke, I mean?” She had almost said “Father” in her nervousness. She grimaced at her carelessness. She was better than this. Her long service with the Matvies was making her weak.
“No,” said Alyona with a heavy sigh. “He made a huge ball of fire and got away somehow, but I’m sure they’ll find him soon. He was hurt and is not exactly a small man. He can’t have gone far.”
Jana smiled at that. Obviously Alyona didn’t know what Father was capable of. Of course, very few people were, not even his own Shade Hunters. If Father didn’t want to be found, he would not be. But where did that leave her? Even if the plan had not been fully successful, nothing had truly changed for her. She still needed to go to the agreed place at the correct time to meet with Adrick where he would relay Father’s next instructions. In the meantime, she had some more questions. “You said there was a shade, milady?”
“Yes,” Alyona said, brushing a few strands of stay hair from her face. “They said it was a young girl, and Duke Borden seemed upset to see her. He didn’t react to whatever other shades may have been there, at least as far as I could tell. This one was different. Unfortunately, I was rushed out of the room as soon as Borden was gone, so I didn’t learn anything else.”
Why would Father have cared about a shade? Nothing Remei’s shade could have done would have bothered him in the middle of his assault. Besides, it knew better than to interfere. It was petty and childish, but not stupid. What other shade that Father knew would have been in the room? Marquess Lequette’s eldest daughter, perhaps? But Father had never shown any interest in it or Alba. Jana knew for certain that Marta was still alive, so who else was left? “How did you know the shade was female?” she asked as she finished tying up Alyona’s hair.
“My, you are curious, aren’t you?” She fingered her necklace absently as she watched Jana in the mirror.
“Apologies, milady. I don’t wish to make you uncomfortable.”
“No, no. It’s fine. It does me good to talk about it. Some mages nearby were updating us from time to time, and besides that, the Duke called her by name. Rayna, I think. It’s a pretty name.”
Jana felt dizzy for a moment. If Rayna was dead, then that would explain how Father could have been injured by Andreu’s shot. It would also explain why he abandoned the battle before it was over. Jana had always thought he was far too attached to that girl. She had thought they were finally rid of her when Father sent her to sleep with the others, but it seemed she still managed to monopolize his attention even in that. What did he see in Rayna that he didn’t see in her and Marta? Why didn’t he love them as much as he loved her? It certainly wasn’t her looks, scrawny and weak as she was. But – and Jana hated to admit it – her magic was far stronger than Jana’s and Marta’s. Maybe that’s why he always favored Rayna. But why would her shade appear here, in the Capital, and in the ballroom, of all places?
“Jana,” said Alyona. “Are you alright?”
“Sorry, milady,” said Jana, realizing that she hadn’t moved for several moments. She pulled Alyona’s nightcap from her dressing table drawer and set it on her head, tucking the golden locks safely under it.
“It’ll be alright,” said Alyona with a smile that she probably thought was kindly and reassuring. Jana found it revolting. “I’m scared too.”
“Thank you, milady,” she forced herself to say. She finished dressing Alyona in silence, the young noblewoman was more subdued this evening than most and did not chatter incessantly as she usually did — a vast improvement in Jana’s mind. Jana fetched Alyona some tea from the kitchen and was then dismissed for the night. She left Alyona sitting at her table, sipping her tea and staring blindly into the mirror. Most likely she was reliving the attack in her mind. Good. Let her know what suffering truly was.
Jana returned the tea set to the kitchens, her feet taking her there automatically. Her mind was bursting with questions and she was desperate to speak with Adrick, but their meeting wasn’t for a few more hours yet. She walked the halls aimlessly, thinking. So, Rayna was dead. That was fine with her. The two of them had never been friends, though Jana hadn’t hated her the same way that Adrick and some of the others had. That said, she had always been a distraction to Father. What really concerned Jana was Rayna’s shade. It was outside of the Hunter's control now, and if it had appeared in the ballroom then that meant her twin was connected to the nobility in some fashion, which was a major security concern. Did Father know who her twin was? Stupid question. Of course he did, Father never did anything halfway. Which led to the question: what other scheme was he working on? It had to be something beyond the primary objective, something the other Hunters weren’t clued in on. They wouldn’t like that, but regardless, that wasn’t her concern right now. She could only hope that Rayna’s incessant need to please Father would keep her shade quiet. Jana didn’t think Rayna had known anything about the operation, but that girl had been good at skulking around, so there was no telling how much she had picked up on. Jana needed to talk to Adrick, as much as she despised him he would at least have some solid answers.
Her feet led her back to her little room next to Alyona’s chambers. She sat on the bed and pulled out some needlepoint she had been working on. There was mending to do, but what was the point? She was done pretending to be a servant, little more than a slave whose only reason for existing was to care for an insipid woman who should have been perfectly capable of taking care of herself. She worked at the needlepoint for an hour – It was a depiction of Father’s house in Villamont she intended to give him when it was finished – but finally gave up when she had to pull out yet another stitch. Her mind kept wandering to more immediate concerns.
She tossed her project aside and stood with a sigh. She had to get out of the palace and breathe the night air. People claimed that the night belonged to shades. The superstitious and ignorant would even stay inside after dark, afraid of the wandering spirits of deceased mages. Jana laughed at that. She knew the truth; shades couldn’t hurt anything. They were less substantial than mist, barely more than shadows. Mundane people feared them because they couldn’t see them. But there were other things they couldn’t see in the night, and those the people were right to fear, because that was when the Shade Hunters were about.
Jana took off her white apron and pulled a dark gray cloak about her shoulders. She left the black maid’s dress on. As much as she hated wearing it, it would serve her well in the dark alleys of Albaron City. She quickly twisted her dark hair into a tight bun then left her little room and walked the darkened hallways of the palace making her way to the servant’s entrance. It was strangely quiet that night, considering the chaos of earlier. Barely anybody, servant or noble, wandered the halls. When she reached the servant’s door near the kitchen she was not surprised to find it flanked by a pair of palace guards, one of them wearing a golden mage’s patch. Why did the Imperials insist on telling the world who their mages were? It was pure stupidity. But at least it made her job easier.
“Sorry, ma’am,” said the mundane guard. “No one’s allowed in or out tonight, Lord Commander's orders. They’re rioting out there, haven’t you heard?”
“Of course I’ve heard,” Jana said, smiling while she prodded at his mind with her magic. “My friends started them. Now, won’t you let me through?” The feeling of pure bliss that using her magic provided made her fake smile turn into a real one. Master, but it had been too long since she’d been able to use it properly.
“Well, of course, you can go, milady,” said the mundane guard, his eyes turning glassy and unfocused. She loved it when they called her “milady.” She just barely resisted the urge to make him bow.
“What are you doing?” the mage said, looking at his companion in shock. Jana turned her attention to him, cursing herself for not grabbing him first. Mages always took a little more effort, especially Imperials. Their training and natural resistance made it that much harder to get into their heads. Not impossible, just harder. She was lucky this mage hadn’t attacked instantly. There was no telling what his powers were.
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“Now now, my dear man,” Jana said, hitting him hard and fast with her magic. She batted her eyes and smiled as the euphoria kicked in again. The mage looked confused for a moment, then his eyes widened as he realized what she was doing, but by then it was too late, they always realized too late. His eyes glazed over and Jana knew he was hers. She found herself a little disappointed. Palace guards should have been harder than this. All the best ones must have either been killed in the attack or were out on the streets, fighting the rioters. “You wouldn’t make a lady open the door herself, would you?”
“Of course not, milady,” said the mage, leaning over and opening the door. She smiled at him as she walked through, swaying her hips just so, not that the men were in any state to notice. The mage tipped his hat as she passed then closed the door. She released her hold on the guards after giving them one last instruction not to remember anything that had just happened. Some mild disorientation would be all they suffered.
She found more guards at the gate. These she did not toy with, instead grabbing their minds before they ever saw her. They stared blindly ahead as she approached, seemingly unaware of her presence, save for the one who opened the gate for her. Even he didn’t look at her as she passed him and entered the city beyond. She considered having him leave the gate open when she released the others. She could imagine the panic that would cause but decided against it in the end. No need to rouse suspicions, besides, doing so would make reentering later that night nigh-on impossible, even for her. She kept walking while she instructed her charge to close the gates and a moment later she heard the metal clang behind her. She sighed and breathed deeply of the night air. They had been in Albaron City for a week, but it wasn’t until this moment that she truly felt like she had finally come home.
There was still an hour before she was scheduled to meet with Adrick and it would only take about a quarter-hour to reach the rendezvous spot, so she decided to wander a bit. She and Marta had been born here, and she still knew the streets well, despite having left when they were only ten. She moved quietly, keeping to the shadows as master Jan had taught her. She looked up almost as often as she looked forward or behind, keeping a particular eye out for shades. People were, for the most part, easy to avoid. They made noise as they moved and their lines of travel were slow and predictable, restricted by their surroundings. If – for whatever reason – she was spotted, she could just use her magic to get out of trouble. Shades, on the other hand, were silent; darkness meant nothing to them and they were unrestricted by the physical world. Also, she couldn’t control shades. It was one reason she hated them.
The night was cloudy and dark so staying in the shadows was easy, she just had to avoid the gas lamps or the occasional spirit lights that drifted by, casting their glow all around as they flittered past like aimless butterflies. Fortunately, shades were rare, and she only saw two. She was confident they never saw her. One was a middle-aged man drifting through the streets ahead of her, seemingly lost in whatever thoughts ran through a shade’s empty head. The other was a girl, flying overhead from the direction of the palace. As it drew closer she saw that it was Ona, Lady Alba’s late sister. She was surprised the shade was allowed out of the palace, though nothing short of entirely surrounding one with wards could keep a shade from going wherever it pleased. It was another reason she hated them.
She moved somewhat aimlessly, staying off the main streets where the occasional group of guards ran past on their way to help with the riots, which were still going strong. She suddenly realized she had wandered into her old neighborhood and was only a few houses away from her childhood home. She stopped as unwelcome memories began rising to the surface of her mind, then turned around and forced them back down. That part of her life was dead, along with her parents and brother.
She wandered the streets, focusing on her stealth – which she’d had precious little chance to practice in the last six months – keeping her path heading in mostly the right direction but paying little heed to where she was otherwise. If this had been a true mission or one of master Jan’s exercises, then she would have had to pay more attention of course, but tonight was mostly just for fun. If she got caught her biggest consequence would be erasing a memory or two, not causing a mission to fail.
She left behind the large estates of her past and entered the shopping district that catered to more discerning and deep-pocketed consumers. She had only gone a few blocks when she heard the sounds of footsteps ahead of her. Not the soft and steady sound of a high-class citizen out for an ill-advised midnight stroll, but the heavy clunk of hard-soled work boots. Probably some rioters who decided to try their luck looting the stores while the rich and entitled hid in their homes. Jana didn’t blame them. Indeed, she wished them luck. Still, she had no desire to encounter them either, so she slipped into an alley between two buildings and waited for them to pass.
The Master had other plans, it seemed.
Just as the men came into view a spirit light floated out of the wall right next to her, illuminating her hiding spot perfectly. There were three men, dressed in dirty blue denim overalls, stained white work shirts, and ragged caps. Factory workers, she wagered. They were certainly built like it. Each one looked like he could lift a wagon on his own.
The men turned her way, tense – startled by the sudden light. They quickly loosened up when they saw Jana. One of them, the tallest, if only by a little, smiled and began walking her way.
“Well,” he said with a thick drawl. He had probably been drinking, an assessment that she quickly confirmed as he got closer and the breeze carried his stench to her nose. “What’ve we here? Little late for a stroll, i’nt it, girly?”
Jana slowly stepped out into the street. Since she had been discovered it was better to give herself options rather than to get trapped in a dark and narrow alley. She hated running – that was for the boys and Rayna, not her – but if it came to that, she wanted a clear escape route. She debated between playing the frightened mouse, confident and playful flirt, or entitled noblewoman. She had already flirted a little with the guards at the servant’s entrance and that had turned out to be rather boring, besides, the thought of flirting with these boorish men – even in play – turned her stomach, so she decided to go with the frightened mouse.
She scrunched down and held her elbows tight to her sides, hands clasped to her chest. She looked at each man in turn with wide eyes, careful not to stay on any one of them for too long, as if she was panicking. She wasn’t sure if she got it right, panic was not something she had a lot of experience with, not in the last ten years, at least. Memories of that night suddenly flashed through her mind, still lurking just below the surface ever since she had nearly seen her old home earlier – men angrily pounding on the front door, her father bellowing orders at the servants, her mother’s panicked breathing as she rushed her and Marta to the secret room where they always hid. A shade watching from the corner with a look of triumph on its translucent face – she shook those memories away and forced herself back into the moment. Suddenly her desire to toy with the men was gone. Now she just wanted to get this over with. Maybe she should have gone with the noblewoman act after all. It probably wouldn’t have stirred up unwanted memories.
The men leered at her, surrounding her as the one who had spoken pulled a knife from his belt. “Go on, then,” he said, hungrily eyeing her up and down. “Give us what you got. I promise me an’ the boys’ll be gentle if you cooperate.”
“Oh…” Jana said, suddenly standing up straight and dropping her pretense. These men weren’t worth her time anyway. The sudden change in her demeanor seemed to take them off-guard and they stopped, blinking at her. “There’s no need to be gentle on my account. You can be as rough as you want.”
“Wha–?” said the big man, but he was cut off as Jana grabbed his mind. He blinked, then turned to the thug on his left and lunged at him with the knife. The man yelped and jumped back, narrowly avoiding the attack.
“Oi!” he shouted. “What’re you playin’ at?”
The third barely hesitated before drawing his own knife and jumping at the bigger man from behind with a yell. The man under Jana’s spell – that’s what she liked to call it, at least to herself – spun around at the last moment. His companion’s knife hit him in the arm, leaving a nasty red gash in his white shirt. He bellowed in pain, nearly throwing off Jana’s grasp on his mind – she would have to work on that, she realized – and swung his fist around, knocking his attacker to the ground. He landed with a grunt, dropping the knife. The other man grabbed the attacker from behind by the neck and they began wrestling. Jana backed away, it seemed they had forgotten about her already. How disappointing. Couldn’t anyone give her a challenge?
“Well, isn’t this exciting?” a sing-song voice said from somewhere above Jana. The voice instantly set her on edge.
“Remei,” said Jana, keeping her focus on the brawling men. Her victim was holding his side now, blood seeping from a nasty gash as the other two ganged up on him. She didn’t bother locating the shade. It didn’t really matter where it was anyway. “Your brother letting you off the leash tonight?”
“He’s not my master,” the shade responded, sounding defensive. “I can go where I want.”
“Really?” said Jana, keeping her magic focused on her victim. It was harder when they were in pain. She couldn’t control their bodies the way Marta did, so keeping a firm grasp on their minds was imperative. “I thought that was exactly what the Bond was. Did you find some way around that?”
“Stuff it,” said the shade, popping through Jana’s chest face up so it could see her reaction. Jana rolled her eyes, she had stopped squealing at that old trick years ago. It was still disconcerting, but she’d never let Remei know that. “Anyway, Adrick’s freaking out, so he sent me to find you. Figured you’d be out and about already.”
Jana frowned, her nervousness from earlier suddenly returning. “Why?” Her victim dropped his knife and one of his friends grabbed it. It was only a matter of time now.
Remei shrugged. “I dunno. Ask him yourself. I’ll keep an eye on these guys and let you know who wins.”
“By the way, I heard that your little punching bag is finally dead,” Jana said, turning to leave. She took a few steps, exposing the rest of Remei’s body – if that’s what you wanted to call it. “Maybe now that she's like you she can punch back.” She turned back and smiled at Remei, who was glaring at her. The shade might have turned red if it had been anything more than smoke given form. Could shades even touch each other? Smoke couldn’t, it just joined together to become more smoke. “I might even pay to see that if the chance ever comes up,” she said, then turned and left, releasing her hold on the victim, he was losing the fight anyway. He started screaming as his mind returned to him and he realized what was happening. Remei cackled, turning back to the fight and forgetting Jana’s insult.
She found Adrick a few blocks away, nowhere near the rendezvous point. He was casually walking in her direction, throwing rocks at random shop windows. “Someone will hear that,” Jana said.
“That little ruckus of yours will draw more attention, I think,” he said, though he dropped the rest of his rocks. “Feeling left out of the real fight, are we?”
“Where’s Father?”
“Safe.”
“Your sister’s shade says you’re anxious, why?”
“Her name’s Remei,” he said, his voice taking on a hard edge. He always got defensive where his late sister was concerned. He turned and began walking back the way he had come. She fell into step beside him. “You are to return with the Matvies,” he said with a smug grin. “Little maid.”
Jana stopped and she felt her face turning red. “Why?” she said, fighting down the anger and barely controlling her voice. How could Father do this to her? He knew she hated this assignment. “I watched the Matvies like I was supposed to and got the palace doors open so you could all have your fun without me. My mission’s over.”
“He wants the boy,” said Adrick as he kept walking.
“I thought he wasn’t a suitable candidate,” Jana said, walking quickly to catch up. She almost had to run, which annoyed her greatly.
“Well, things have changed, haven’t they?”
“Because of Rayna?” Adrick shot her a glare out of the corner of his eye and she smiled.
“You already heard?” he asked with a scowl.
“I guess the Master got tired of waiting for you to finish the job.”
It was Adrick’s turn to turn red, and Jana felt a small surge of vindication. “With that brat gone, the boy will have to do. He wants him back.”
“It won’t be easy. The Matvies serve the revolution, not Father. They won’t just roll over and do what he says. Alyona dotes on the boy worse than any real mother, and she never takes that damn charm off, so I can’t force her to give him up.”
“Well, I guess you’ll just have to find another way, won’t you? Unless you like being a maid? I’ve heard the Matvies treat you well.”
Jana glared at him. “You know better than that. My loyalties are true. Father has nothing to worry about from me.”
Adrick shrugged. “I just find it odd that Marta went to the chamber so eagerly, while you’re still running around up here, free as a bird.” He glanced at her as they walked, that annoying smile on his lips. “Was she that desperate to get away from you?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“It’s a shame, really. She always was the fun one.”
“At least I didn’t kill my sister.”
Adrick stopped suddenly, his body going stiff. He slowly turned and glared at her, his face cold as stone. “And now it is you who does not know what she is saying.”
“One of these days I’m going to wipe that smug grin off your face, Adrick, and my only regret will be that Rayna won’t be around to see it.” She prodded at his mind with her magic and found his guard up, which she had expected. He was always careful around her.
“Maybe, but not today,” he said, hitting her hard with his own magic in response. She gasped and stumbled, despite being ready for it. Had he always been this strong? Her time with the Matvies was making her weak, it seemed. He smiled and turned away, starting back down the street at his unnaturally quick pace. “You have one month to secure the boy. But don’t act before then, we want Lequette’s attention fixed on the capital. Be ready for our signal, but be discrete…. Right now all the chaos should distract him long enough for Father to make his next move. As long as the plan works you’ll have a way out of Clement soon enough.” He stopped and cocked his head. “Better hide, someone’s coming.” He stepped nimbly into the shadows behind a flowerbox in front of a storefront. Jana quickly hid behind the flowerbox next to his even as she heard the heavy sounds of boots running up the street. A moment later a squad of soldiers ran past, most likely on their way to deal with the thugs she had left brawling in the street. How did Adrick always know? His uncanny ability to guess what was about to happen bordered on freakish, even by mage standards.
When Jana stood back up, she was alone except for the distant sound of Remei’s cackling laughter. She really hated that shade.
END OF INTERLUDE ONE