I have a lot of time on my hands all of a sudden, so I can update a lot of stuff. I realize that I might have
dates, or ages wrong, or that they might be slightly off from chapter to chapter, and if so, sorry. Thanks to
all you who reviewed. Your input means a lot. Here's Ch. 8! R/R
When Kaia woke with the bell the next morning, she felt slightly tired, but none the worse for
wear. Thom's healing had worked, and her two cuts were gone, leaving only faint scars which she knew
would fade in time. The only problems were that she hadn't gotten her classwork done, and she didn't have
enough time to do her usual workout. Sighing, she got up to open the door to the maid, and then she rushed
to get ready for the day.
Unfortunately, her maid was talkative this morning, which was the exact opposite of what Kaia
felt. She chattered on about the three pages found unconscious by the boys lighting the torches. And wasn't
it just awful. She said that she'd feel a bit unsafe from now on, walking through a hall late at night. Kaia
put up with her chatter until she was almost ready to go out the door. Then she turned to the maid, and
asked her to excuse her in the most polite way she could. The maid nodded, but as Kaia turned to go, she
added, "And there's someone as would like t'meet thee, milady. At a pub in the city. If ye can get out." She
winked broadly, "But gods know that there's more ways out of here than are guarded. If ye just ask around
some evening for Marek, you'll get there soon enough." She turned back to the bed. Kaia all of a sudden
felt wary.
"Why does this Marek want to meet me?" she asked. The woman must have read the tone in her
voice, because she laughed, and shook her head.
"Don't you worry your head none, he won't hurt ye. Just wants a nice word with ye. About where
you're from, who ye know." At that, Kaia stiffened up, and bit back a curse. The woman went on, "And if
ye don't go to him, he'll come to you lass. So I think it's best to give him what he wants." And with that
she turned and stepped into Kaia's dressing room.
Kaia might have stood there forever looking after the woman, and thinking, but a knock on the
door interrupted her.
"Golden Nest," yelled Liam, "You in there? We've got to get to breakfast, unless you want some
punishment work!" She took one last look at the dressing room, and then turned and opened the door.
Liam, Dennith, and Sam all stood there. They hardly looked as if they had been in a nasty fight the night
before. She forced a grin at them all, and after taking one last look back into her room, she shut the door.
"So how do you feel?" she asked Sam, falling into step beside him.
"Great!" he said enthusiastically. "I'll have to thank Thom. I mean, I feel even better than I did
before the fight!" he shuddered. "It was awful though."
Dennith slung and arm around his shoulders. "Sorry about that, mate. Couldn't get there in time.
And there were just so many of them."
"You were great though!" exclaimed Liam. "I wish I could have helped." He looked slightly
downcast. Kaia felt sorry for him.
"Well, we sure needed you where you were." She said, "And without you, thinking of Thom, we'd
probably all be out of here by now." She punched Liam in the shoulder. "Thanks."
He smiled slightly.
As they walked to the mess hall, Kaia thought about the maid's message. She had decided that she
would go, but she just needed to find someone to go with even she wasn't stupid enough to meet a stranger,
at night, without someone to back her up. She might have taken Dennith, but Liam's disappointment had
decided her. As she walked through the line, she tried to make herself reconsider. Liam was the Prince, and
second in line for the throne, with Princess Kalasin to be married to Emperor Kaddar, he was second in line
for the throne, after his brother Roald. He was an important person, and if they were going to be meeting
the sort of people that she thought they were…
But that was Liam's problem. No one ever let him do anything remotely dangerous, because he
might be hurt. Well, he could be hurt in a lot of other ways, doing things that didn't seem dangerous at all.
So why shouldn't he do something different for a change? She was quite confident in her ability to take
care of herself, and quite probably another person. And even if he wasn't Shang trained in street fighting,
he was her age, 11, and in his second year as a page. He was probably quite able to defend himself.
She was silent, turning it over in her head all through breakfast, only speaking when she was
spoken to. Finally she made up her mind to take him. After they finished eating, she pulled him aside as
they left the mess hall.
"Meet me in the west garden after the lights out bell tonight. I need your help with something. I'll
tell you everything then. Under the outside wall, by the marble bench." And before he could answer, she
walked quickly away.
All throughout the day, she kept having second thoughts about it at the worst moments. In staff
practice, she had a sudden image of Liam lying on the ground with a knife in his back, and in that moment,
her partner whacked her on the knee. Besides her undone classwork, she got another bell of work for not
answering the writing teacher promptly. By the end of the day, she was a nervous wreak, although she tried
not to show it.
When she only picked at her dinner, Dennith asked if something was the matter. She didn't hear
what she said, but it must have made sense, because her left her alone after that. She hardly ate anything,
and afterwards walked to her room and did her work alone. Then she got dressed in her darkest clothes with
the most places to hide weapons. She slid the long knife into the sheath on her spine; two small daggers in
her boots. Her belt knife was fairly obvious, but it was most likely expected. Her wrist knives were
sharpened and slid into place. She also concealed a knife on each leg, and carefully put a small loaded
poison dart thrower in an inside pocket. When she was done, she felt like a walking arsenal, but she also
felt more prepared. She couldn't know that this Marek meant her no harm. He might have heard about her
from someone. Goodness knew how much Jarel would pay for her head. He probably wouldn't rest while
she was still alive.
When the lights out bell rang, she slipped out of her room, and ghosted through the halls and out
of a tiny servants' exit. Then she made her way from shadow to shadow until she reached the bench by the
wall. She jumped at the tiny whisper. "Kaia!" from next to a bush. It was Liam.
"Okay," she said, stepping closer, "I have to go and meet a man in the city. He is most probably
dangerous, but he probably won't hurt us." Or you anyway, she thought, but she went on, "I want someone
to go with me. You don't have to but-"
"Is this because you feel sorry for me?" asked Liam dully.
Kaia shook her head. "I think that you might have learned some fighting skills that the others
probably didn't. Self-defense, you know. Being that you're royalty." She hadn't thought of it before, but
now, as she said the words, she found that they rang true. Liam nodded.
"So where do we meet this man?" he asked curiously. Kaia cringed.
"I don't know precisely, but I can ask around." She crossed her finger, hoping that he wouldn't
throw off the whole idea for lack of planning. She was relieved when he nodded in understanding.
"Do you know how to leave the palace undetected?" she asked him, once again crossing her
fingers. She was relieved by his grin, barely visible in the light of the quarter moon.
"This way," he said, and led her a ways down the wall to where a guard stood next to a large door.
He was leaning on his spear in a bored way, but when he heard them coming he turned about and grinned.
He was an older man, of Bazhir descent, and his face was creased with laugh lines.
"Ah!" he said when they came level with him, "Here he is again. The young page, out for his usual
nightly walk! And with a friend!"
Liam just laughed, and gave the guard a friendly push on the shoulder. "Come on Salaf. Let us
through. I got your, er, tip." He handed a small bribe to the guard. Kaia recognized the amount as the
standard bribe given to guards for a silent passage. The guard pocketed it, and then pushed open the door
just enough for them to squeeze through.
"You do this often?" demanded Kaia. Liam grinned.
"Well I've got to get out of the palace sometimes besides on summer camp. I don't draw any
attention to myself. Besides, Eda Bell and Haukin Seastone have taught me enough on the side to defend
myself. Now let's go and meet this, umm, gentleman." Kaia nodded in agreement, and together, they set off
at a brisk trot towards the dark city below.
dates, or ages wrong, or that they might be slightly off from chapter to chapter, and if so, sorry. Thanks to
all you who reviewed. Your input means a lot. Here's Ch. 8! R/R
When Kaia woke with the bell the next morning, she felt slightly tired, but none the worse for
wear. Thom's healing had worked, and her two cuts were gone, leaving only faint scars which she knew
would fade in time. The only problems were that she hadn't gotten her classwork done, and she didn't have
enough time to do her usual workout. Sighing, she got up to open the door to the maid, and then she rushed
to get ready for the day.
Unfortunately, her maid was talkative this morning, which was the exact opposite of what Kaia
felt. She chattered on about the three pages found unconscious by the boys lighting the torches. And wasn't
it just awful. She said that she'd feel a bit unsafe from now on, walking through a hall late at night. Kaia
put up with her chatter until she was almost ready to go out the door. Then she turned to the maid, and
asked her to excuse her in the most polite way she could. The maid nodded, but as Kaia turned to go, she
added, "And there's someone as would like t'meet thee, milady. At a pub in the city. If ye can get out." She
winked broadly, "But gods know that there's more ways out of here than are guarded. If ye just ask around
some evening for Marek, you'll get there soon enough." She turned back to the bed. Kaia all of a sudden
felt wary.
"Why does this Marek want to meet me?" she asked. The woman must have read the tone in her
voice, because she laughed, and shook her head.
"Don't you worry your head none, he won't hurt ye. Just wants a nice word with ye. About where
you're from, who ye know." At that, Kaia stiffened up, and bit back a curse. The woman went on, "And if
ye don't go to him, he'll come to you lass. So I think it's best to give him what he wants." And with that
she turned and stepped into Kaia's dressing room.
Kaia might have stood there forever looking after the woman, and thinking, but a knock on the
door interrupted her.
"Golden Nest," yelled Liam, "You in there? We've got to get to breakfast, unless you want some
punishment work!" She took one last look at the dressing room, and then turned and opened the door.
Liam, Dennith, and Sam all stood there. They hardly looked as if they had been in a nasty fight the night
before. She forced a grin at them all, and after taking one last look back into her room, she shut the door.
"So how do you feel?" she asked Sam, falling into step beside him.
"Great!" he said enthusiastically. "I'll have to thank Thom. I mean, I feel even better than I did
before the fight!" he shuddered. "It was awful though."
Dennith slung and arm around his shoulders. "Sorry about that, mate. Couldn't get there in time.
And there were just so many of them."
"You were great though!" exclaimed Liam. "I wish I could have helped." He looked slightly
downcast. Kaia felt sorry for him.
"Well, we sure needed you where you were." She said, "And without you, thinking of Thom, we'd
probably all be out of here by now." She punched Liam in the shoulder. "Thanks."
He smiled slightly.
As they walked to the mess hall, Kaia thought about the maid's message. She had decided that she
would go, but she just needed to find someone to go with even she wasn't stupid enough to meet a stranger,
at night, without someone to back her up. She might have taken Dennith, but Liam's disappointment had
decided her. As she walked through the line, she tried to make herself reconsider. Liam was the Prince, and
second in line for the throne, with Princess Kalasin to be married to Emperor Kaddar, he was second in line
for the throne, after his brother Roald. He was an important person, and if they were going to be meeting
the sort of people that she thought they were…
But that was Liam's problem. No one ever let him do anything remotely dangerous, because he
might be hurt. Well, he could be hurt in a lot of other ways, doing things that didn't seem dangerous at all.
So why shouldn't he do something different for a change? She was quite confident in her ability to take
care of herself, and quite probably another person. And even if he wasn't Shang trained in street fighting,
he was her age, 11, and in his second year as a page. He was probably quite able to defend himself.
She was silent, turning it over in her head all through breakfast, only speaking when she was
spoken to. Finally she made up her mind to take him. After they finished eating, she pulled him aside as
they left the mess hall.
"Meet me in the west garden after the lights out bell tonight. I need your help with something. I'll
tell you everything then. Under the outside wall, by the marble bench." And before he could answer, she
walked quickly away.
All throughout the day, she kept having second thoughts about it at the worst moments. In staff
practice, she had a sudden image of Liam lying on the ground with a knife in his back, and in that moment,
her partner whacked her on the knee. Besides her undone classwork, she got another bell of work for not
answering the writing teacher promptly. By the end of the day, she was a nervous wreak, although she tried
not to show it.
When she only picked at her dinner, Dennith asked if something was the matter. She didn't hear
what she said, but it must have made sense, because her left her alone after that. She hardly ate anything,
and afterwards walked to her room and did her work alone. Then she got dressed in her darkest clothes with
the most places to hide weapons. She slid the long knife into the sheath on her spine; two small daggers in
her boots. Her belt knife was fairly obvious, but it was most likely expected. Her wrist knives were
sharpened and slid into place. She also concealed a knife on each leg, and carefully put a small loaded
poison dart thrower in an inside pocket. When she was done, she felt like a walking arsenal, but she also
felt more prepared. She couldn't know that this Marek meant her no harm. He might have heard about her
from someone. Goodness knew how much Jarel would pay for her head. He probably wouldn't rest while
she was still alive.
When the lights out bell rang, she slipped out of her room, and ghosted through the halls and out
of a tiny servants' exit. Then she made her way from shadow to shadow until she reached the bench by the
wall. She jumped at the tiny whisper. "Kaia!" from next to a bush. It was Liam.
"Okay," she said, stepping closer, "I have to go and meet a man in the city. He is most probably
dangerous, but he probably won't hurt us." Or you anyway, she thought, but she went on, "I want someone
to go with me. You don't have to but-"
"Is this because you feel sorry for me?" asked Liam dully.
Kaia shook her head. "I think that you might have learned some fighting skills that the others
probably didn't. Self-defense, you know. Being that you're royalty." She hadn't thought of it before, but
now, as she said the words, she found that they rang true. Liam nodded.
"So where do we meet this man?" he asked curiously. Kaia cringed.
"I don't know precisely, but I can ask around." She crossed her finger, hoping that he wouldn't
throw off the whole idea for lack of planning. She was relieved when he nodded in understanding.
"Do you know how to leave the palace undetected?" she asked him, once again crossing her
fingers. She was relieved by his grin, barely visible in the light of the quarter moon.
"This way," he said, and led her a ways down the wall to where a guard stood next to a large door.
He was leaning on his spear in a bored way, but when he heard them coming he turned about and grinned.
He was an older man, of Bazhir descent, and his face was creased with laugh lines.
"Ah!" he said when they came level with him, "Here he is again. The young page, out for his usual
nightly walk! And with a friend!"
Liam just laughed, and gave the guard a friendly push on the shoulder. "Come on Salaf. Let us
through. I got your, er, tip." He handed a small bribe to the guard. Kaia recognized the amount as the
standard bribe given to guards for a silent passage. The guard pocketed it, and then pushed open the door
just enough for them to squeeze through.
"You do this often?" demanded Kaia. Liam grinned.
"Well I've got to get out of the palace sometimes besides on summer camp. I don't draw any
attention to myself. Besides, Eda Bell and Haukin Seastone have taught me enough on the side to defend
myself. Now let's go and meet this, umm, gentleman." Kaia nodded in agreement, and together, they set off
at a brisk trot towards the dark city below.