Tell him to let us go and you can find that out for yourself.
I doubt the Lord of Hawks would take the orders of a former Shadow Wolf. Although given your tardiness and his apparent acceptance of it, hes a damn site more tolerant than the Lord of Wolves was.
Try.
He laughed again. Not yet, littlewhat did he call you? Kaylin? Not yet.
The Lord of Hawks watched them with the keen sight of their namesake.
You want to send us into the fiefs, she said at last, trying to keep the accusation out of her voice.
Yes. Its been seven years, Kaylin. Long enough.
Long enough for what? Three of the fieflords are outcaste BarraniI could live and die in the time it took them to blink!
The Hawklord turned his full attention upon her. I think I have been overly tolerant, he said at last, and in a tone of voice she hadnt heard since shed first arrived in this tower. You are either Hawk or you are not. Decide.
Her silence was enough of an answer, but only barely. The third is coming now.
The door, which had probably closed the moment Kaylin had fully stepped across its threshold, swung open again.
A man walked into the room. He wore no armor that she could hear beneath the full flow of his perfect robes. Her hearing had always been good. Lord Grammayre, he said, bowing low.
Tiamaris, the Hawklord replied. I would like to introduce you to Kaylin and Severn. You will work with them.
The man rose. His hair was a dark, dark blackBarrani blackbut his build was all wrong for Barrani. He was a shade taller than Teela, and about twice her width. Three times, maybe. His hands were empty; he carried no obvious weapon. Wore no open medallion. The hand that he lifted in ritual greeting, palm out, was smooth and unadorned.
Kaylin and Severn could not likewise lift handbut their background in the fiefs hadnt made the gesture automatic. Lord Grammayre was under no such disadvantage; he lifted his ringed hand in greeting, and lowered his chin slightly.
Tiamaris has some knowledge of the fiefs, he told them both. Tiamaris lowered his perfectly raised hand, and turned to face them.
Something about the mans eyes were all wrong; it took Kaylin a moment to realize what it was. They were orange. A deep, bright orange that hinted at red and gold. Her own eyes almost fell out of their sockets.
You have the privilege, Lord Grammayre told her quietly, of meeting the only member of the Dragon caste to ever apply to serve in the Halls of Law.
Severn recovered first. He laughed. Its true, then, he said, to no one in particular.
That rankled. Like youd know true if it bit you on the ass.
You really are a mongrel unit.
No, Severn, the Hawklord replied softly. Too softly. Had it been anyone else speaking, Kaylin might have dared a warning kick.
She hoped Severn hung himself instead.
Severn fell silent.
The Hawks have always been open to those who seek service under the banner of the Emperors Law. Where service is offered it is accepted, by whoever offers it. Tiamaris has chosen to make that offer, and it has been accepted, by the Three Towers. And the Emperor. If the Wolves choose different criteria upon which to accept applicants, that is the business of the Lord of Wolves; if the Swords choose to retain only the mortal races, that is likewise the concern of their lord.
I would, of course, be pleased to explain your mission. But I have spent precious hours in this tower, and I have other duties to which I must attend. The Lords of Law meet within the half hour. He reached into the folds of his robes and pulled out a large gem.
Even Kaylin could see it glow.
He held it a moment in his open palm. This contains all of the information the Hawks have been able to gather about your mission. Some of it was placed within the gem by the Thaalani, some was placed there by Wolves and Swords. You will study it, he added quietly, and it will tell you all you require.
If you have questions, contain them. You will have to find answers on your own. You will speak to no one of what you see within the gem. It is spellbound, and it will enforce that command.
He hesitated a moment, and then, lifting his hand, he gestured. Kaylin fell an inch to the ground and stumbled, righting herself.
Kaylin.
She turned. Saw that he held out both his open hand and the large gem it containedto her. For just a minute she considered the wisdom of a different occupation.
But her past would follow her out the doors; here it was hidden. Without a word, she held out a hand, and he dropped the crystal into the shaking curve of her palm. Blue light seared her vision; her fingers closed instinctively.
She was surprised when she didnt throw it away.
Interesting, the Hawklord said softly. She thought he might say more, but the meeting with the Lords of Law clearly demanded his full attention. You are dismissed, he said quietly. You may speak with Marcus. Tell him that you are to be equipped in any reasonable manner. Remind him that the equipment is not to be logged.
That is all.
CHAPTER
2
Judging by the quality of the silence, which had gone from absolute to cryptlike, Iron Jaw still hadnt recovered his good humor, such as it was. The people who usually occupied the desks in line of sight seemed to have developed an extended case of lunch. Kaylins stomach really wanted to join them. Either that, or to lose the breakfast she hadnt had. She couldnt quite decide which.
Severn. Here. Her hands were fists, which, given that one of them was clutching something with sharp edges, was unfortunate. If it hadnt been years since shed badly wanted to kill someoneand face it, she wasnt angelaeit had been years since shed tried. Her timing, as always, was impeccable.
Marcus looked up from his paperwork. She wondered which poor sacrificial soul had delivered it. She didnt envy them.
Well? He growled.
She shrugged. Not really safe, given his moodbut she was in a mood of her own. We need a safe room, she told him, waving the crystal she still clutched.
His brows rose, or rather, the fur above his eyes did. When it settled, he looked annoyed. Nothing new, there. West room, he said, curtly. And those two?
Ask the Hawklord.
His lip curled back over his teeth, and she decided that his mood trumped hers. Severn, she said curtly. Formerly of the Wolves.
Here?
I said formerly.
And the other?
Tiamaris. Hes a
The low growl deepened. The Leontine slid around the desk, paperwork forgotten.
Tiamaris stood his ground. Stood it with such complete confidence, Kaylin wondered if anything ever shook him.
Thats a caste name, isnt it? the Leontine asked.
That is none of your concern, Sergeant Kassan, Tiamaris replied. His voice gave nothing away. Kaylin was impressed. Not that he knew Marcuss rankanyone who knew the uniform could see thatbut that he knew his pride name.
Marcus drew closer, and as he did, he gained heightor at least his fur did. It was a Leontine trait, when the Leontine felt threatened. That usually only happened in the presence of his wives or his kits.
Severn sat on an empty desk and folded arms across his chest, smirking. Kaylin almost joined him. Almost.
But she didnt want to be where he was; she had decided that a long time ago. Wouldnt think about it here, because if by some miracle Marcus didnt go feral, she might, and she didnt want to be the cause of an office death. Not when the Hawklord had made clear what the price of that death would be.
Tiamaris, you said? Marcuss growl could sometimes be mistaken for a purr. Kaylin kept a flinch in check as she realized Iron Jaw was actually speaking Barrani. It was the formal language of the Lords of Law, and as he was allergic to most forms of formal, he seldom used it.
Tiamaris raised a dark brow. They were almost of a height. Marcus continued to close; Tiamaris continued to mime a statue. Inches fell away.
Men. Actually, Marcus, I said it, Kaylin lifted the crystal as if it were an Imperial writ.
To her surprise, Marcus actually turned to look at her. But if his gaze was fastened on the crystal she held, his words were for Tiamaris. This is my office, he said quietly, each word textured by the full growl of a Leontine in his prime. These are my Hawks. If you choose to work here, you accept that.
I choose to serve at the pleasure of the Lord of Hawks, was the neutral reply. It, too, was in Barrani. Kaylin realized that she had not heard Tiamaris speak in any other language since hed entered the tower.
Kaylin tried again. Were to be kitted out, she began. And the Hawklord
He told me. He turned his gaze back to Tiamaris. This isnt finished, he said quietly.
No, Tiamaris concurred, in an agreeable tone of voice that implied anything but. Its barely begun. Sergeant?
Take the West room, he replied, eyes lidding slowly. Kaylin knew, then, that Tiamaris was close to death. Would have been, had he not been a Dragon. Kaylin, show them.
She took a deep breath. Thought about telling them all that she wasnt their babysitter. Thought better of it a full second before her mouth opened on the words. Right. She offered a very sloppy salute, palm out but not exactly flat. It was also, she realized, as Iron Jaw stared at it, the wrong hand.
You two, follow.
Whatever you say, Severn told her, sliding off the desk. Lead on, Kaylin.
The West room was one of four such rooms, and they were all just as poetically named. The Leontines didnt really go in for fancy names. Near as Kaylin could tell, the Leontine word for food translated roughly as corpse. Some accommodations had to be made in culinary discussions.
When Marcus had first taken the job, the safe roomslike all of the rest of the rooms in the labyrinthine Halls of Law ruled by the Hawklordhad been named after upstanding citizens, people with a lot of money or distant relatives of the living Emperor. Marcus had pretty much pissed in every possible corner in the Hawks domain, and after hed finished doing that, hed fixed a few more things. Starting with the names.
Still, in all, West was better than some seven syllable name that she wouldnt be able to pronounce without a dictionary. Now if hed only do something about the damn wards on the doors.
Before she touched the door, she turned to Tiamaris. Dont antagonize him, she said quietly.
Was I?
She didnt know enough about Dragons to be certain he had done so on purpose. But she knew enough about men. Marcus crawled his way up the ladder over a pile of corpses, she replied. And we need him where he is. Dont push him.
For the first time that day, Tiamaris smiled.
Kaylin decided that she preferred it when he didnt. His teeth werent exactly like normal teeth; they didnt have the pronounced canines of the Leontine, but they seemed to glitter. His eyes certainly did.
She pushed the door open and walked into the room.
Severn, she said, the name sliding off her tongue before she could halt it, sit down. Tiamaris?
Kaylin?
We cant proceed until the door is closedthe gem is keyed.
Ah. He crossed the threshold into the small, windowless room. It looked like a prison cell. On the wrong days, it was. And the prisoners it contained? She shuddered.
The door slid shut behind him. Severn sat, lounging across a chair as if he were in his personal rooms. Tiamaris sat stiffly, as if he werent used to bending in the middle.
And Kaylin stood between them, between the proverbial rock and a hard place. She looked at Severn. Looked at the familiar scars that shed never forgotten, and looked at the newer ones.
She wanted to kill him.
And he knew it. His smile stilled, until it was a mask, a presentation. Behind it, his blue eyes were hooded, watchful. His hands had fallen beneath the level of the plain, wooden table that was the only flat surface that wasnt the floor.
Are you really a Hawk? He asked casually.
Are you really a Wolf?
They stared at each other for a beat too long.
Kaylin, Tiamaris said quietly. I believe you have business to attend to.
Im a Hawk, she replied.
Why?
Why? Her hand closed around the crystal. Yeah, she said to Tiamaris. Business. As usual.
There had been a time when she would have answered any question Severn had asked. Any question. But she wasnt that girl, now. She had no desire to share any of her life with him. Instead, she looked at the crystal. Some hesitance must have showed, because Tiamaris raised a brow.
You are familiar with these, yes?
Ive seen them, she said coldly.
But youve never used one.
She shoved nonexistent hair out of her eyes, as if she were stalling. Her earlier years in the streets of the fiefs had proved that lies were valuable. Her formative years with the Hawks had shown her that they were also usually transparent, if they were hers. At last, she said, No. Never.
If you would allow me
No.
Another brow rose. No?
The word sounded like a threat.
No, she said, finding her feet. The Hawklord gave it to me. You try to use it, and if its keyed, well be picking you out of our hair for weeks.
His smile was not a comfort. He held out his hand. I have the advantage, he told her softly, of knowing how to unlock a crystal.
After a pause, in which she acknowledged privately that she was stalling, she said, Why is he sending a Dragon into the fiefs?
Tiamaris shrugged. You must ask him. I fear he will not answer, however. His eyes narrowed, gold giving way to the fire of red. I confess I am equally curious. Why has he chosen to send an untried girl there?
Im not untried, she snapped. Ive been with the Hawks for seven years.
Youve been with the Hawks, he replied, since you were thirteen. By caste reckoning, you were a child, then. You reached your age of majority two years ago. In accordance with the rules of Law, you have been a Hawk for two years.
Caste reckoning, she snapped, is for the castes. I grew up in the fiefs. Age means something else, there.