Chapter 11
Eleven
Irolled out of bed, Tallu sitting up, blinking sleep from his gaze. He shook his head, frowning as he tried to focus and concentrate.
“What is it?” he asked, his voice gravelly.
I was already dressing, knowing that Homisu would be horrified at my attempt at the particular knots imperial clothes required. “Na? says something is on fire.”
Tallu rose, swaying unsteadily, and I told myself that it was just because we were on a moving boat that he could not find his balance, that the river rushed so swiftly that it was knocking him off his feet.
He reached for the wall, pressing his palm to it and breathing for a few moments before straightening.
Then he shrugged on his robe, pulling it tight around himself. When he was ready, I opened the door. In the hall, the guard startled.
“I smell smoke,” I said in explanation.
The guard was one of General Saxu’s men, still wearing his military uniform, even if he was missing his helmet and the metal armor used in battle. The scars across his cheek looked old, crossed with newer ones and a small tattoo of General Saxu’s dragon symbol on his neck.
“The forest is on fire,” he said. Bowing, he gestured for us to follow him.
When we reached the deck, the morning was stained gray, the light barely breaking through the clouds.
It took me a moment to realize they weren’t clouds at all. Smoke choked the air, the breeze from the river blowing it away from us. The forest had nearly finished burning, brilliant red and orange embers still lingered.
Na? came out from below deck, jumping up onto the railing next to me. Tallu stared.
“Riverbend Province,” one of the sailors said. “There always was a lot of infighting between their lord and the lesser nobles. Maybe this is a result of the conflict.”
The blackened trees stood dark against the charred earth. From their position in the rigging, even the ravens didn’t say anything.
“How could anyone survive such a thing?” Irad?o asked.
“Their main cities are further south,” the sailor said. “This was likely about destroying the province’s resources to weaken Lord Jenichi’s control.”
Within half an hour, we had passed through the devastation. An hour after that, we passed by the province’s capital city. Waterwheels and fishing boats pocked the riverbank.
Tallu was still out with me, his warm presence reassuring. A few fishermen, out early in the morning, paddled their boats out of our way.
One of Tallu’s servants appeared, almost out of nowhere, bearing his golden crown. She bowed low, and Tallu accepted it, wearing the thing he hated so much. The servant adjusted the fall of his hair, the position of his cloak.
“The emperor!” Over the water, it was easy to hear the fishermen. From their boats, they called to friends on the land as we passed, and soon we had a crowd of people pressed tight along the riverbank, the clamor of noise turning to silence as we passed.
They bowed low, their fingers forming triangles, then looked up at Tallu as though he could save them, as though he had the power to rescue them from the chaos eating their province. I glanced at him to see how he was taking it.
He still had his robes wrapped around him, his expression unmoving, chin raised. He looked the part of the emperor. But I could see how his hand gripped the railing so tightly his golden bronze skin went pale at the knuckles.
Na? balanced easily, slinking along the railing before she curled on the section in front of him, her comforting body pressed against his.
His crown glinted in the light, reflecting back onto the water. With Tallu’s golden bronze skin, he looked as though he was carved from gold, his expression unmoving at the sea of worship.
After we passed through the city, there was quiet on the ship. Even the sailors, used to shouting across the deck, seemed reluctant to break the quiet. Tallu’s servant swallowed. “Your Imperial Majesty, breakfast is ready.”
Tallu turned, heading below deck. I saw him bring a small handkerchief to his nose, the red of blood seeping into the embroidered decorations, and I looked away, my nails biting into the smooth wood of the ship’s railing.
The people along the riverbank were gone, but that didn’t mean I could forget that they were caught up in a battle for their lives within their province.
With the forests reduced to charred husks, how would they live?
In bed that night, I whispered to Tallu, “This is what you wanted, isn’t it?”
I had to know, had to find out if he had understood when he had decided to end the reign of House Atobe what the consequences would be. Tallu turned to me.
“I want you. I want a life with you. That is not possible as long as the Imperium survives.” He turned his face away, and I rested an arm across his torso, my fingers curling into his soft skin. I could still feel a splinter from the ship’s railing under my nail.
“And the people in the Imperium?” I asked. “They are suffering as it crumbles around them.”
“The people of the north would suffer more. The Ariphadi goblins would be driven further into their desert, away from trading routes and oases. The people of Ristorium will never know what it is to walk on solid land rather than their floating islands.” Tallu spoke fiercely, reassuring himself.
“No child will ever know what it is to live in a continent that is at peace without the end of the Imperium.”
“But are we creating a generation of orphans to give them that freedom?” I asked.
Tallu’s face was still turned away from me, and he lifted his arm, the dragon tattoo shifting as he covered his face.
“I knew. Of course I knew what the consequences would be. But there was no other way. To let House Atobe continue? To guarantee that my heirs would be like me and not my father? To hope that all future generals would be like Saxu rather than Kacha? I have been too long in the Imperium not to know the only way to end my empire is to break it and let the pieces slice every hand that would try and grasp power until there is nothing left besides blood.”
“And Bemishu and Kacha?” I asked.
“They are scrabbling for their wars, but they will eventually lose the Imperium, and the resources with it. You cannot fight a war without resources.” Tallu pulled his arm away from his face. He next words were like a prayer. “They will give in and fail.”
We were nearly at the ocean when General Kacha caught up with us. Lady Jolushi’s captains had gone around the capital, finding routes avoiding Heron Lake, taking us toward a delta where the ocean and rivers met.
“We’ve made good time,” General Saxu had said. “Better time than I expected. I would be surprised if any of General Kacha’s spies were faster than we were. We should be out to sea by the time either he or Bemishu knows where we are.”
Still, something in me wasn’t surprised when I heard the shouting above deck during a quiet lunch, General Saxu calling out his orders. I shoved away my plate, rushing above, Tallu a few steps behind me, only to be blocked at the last set of stairs.
“Your Imperial Majesty, your safety is the most important thing. If you go above deck, you are endangering everyone on this ship.” Sagam panted from having run to find us.
He kept his words quiet, bowing low, silently begging for Tallu’s understanding even as his shoulders rose and fell with his exhaustion.
“What is going on?” Tallu asked.
“Two of Kacha’s ships were caught trailing us,” Sagam said. “They are far enough behind that General Saxu has ordered some of the explosive canisters to be dropped in the water behind our last ship.”
Irad?o came down from the deck, Na? nestled on her shoulder. “They’re still far behind us.”
“Would they have any way of getting in front of us?” I asked Sagam.
He frowned, clearly considering my words. “I can ask, and in return, I request both of you return to the emperor’s cabin.”
“Bring me Saxu,” Tallu ground out. But he turned, grabbing hold of my arm and dragging me with him.
We waited, Tallu standing to pace when Saxu took a few minutes to arrive. As soon as the general entered, his bow impeccable as always, if a bit brief, Tallu demanded, “Can they block us from the delta?”
“Not with ships, not unless General Kacha has already gained Namati’s loyalty.
” Saxu frowned, reaching to his left. Rede already had the map on hand, handing it over.
He opened it on the table, weighing down the edges with small dragon figurines.
“We are here. As far as we can tell, Kacha’s men are several miles behind us.
They were last sighted here. Their boats are smaller, although that does not guarantee they’re faster. ”
He pointed to the map, and I traced the thick blue line of the river we were on. They were far enough away that we would likely still make the delta before them.
“You are right, though, to ask if they can get ahead of us. What I fear is that, knowing our destination, Kacha has set some sort of trap ahead of us.” Saxu frowned down at the map.
“Explosive canisters like the ones you left in the water?” I asked.
“Or a trawling line,” Saxu said. “If he had nets that we couldn’t see under the water, we would run right into them.”
I exhaled sharply, feeling my brow tighten. “Do we have any scouting vessels we can send ahead?”
“Only if we slow our own boats, giving them a chance to beat us to the delta,” Saxu said.
“So either we slow down, potentially giving Kacha’s boats a chance to catch up with us, or we barrel ahead, possibly into a trap that will kill us?” I asked. “I have to appreciate how you never bring us easy problems, General Saxu.”
Saxu smiled tightly.
Tallu leaned back, considering. I noticed the room was suddenly fuller, all four of the blood mages melting through the wall to listen in. I glanced at them, but Lerolian shook his head.
“No new news from the top deck,” he said. “But everyone is very afraid.”
“What would you recommend?” Tallu asked.