The City of Zirdai Read online

  Then she found Orla writing on a scroll at a low table. The leader was alone so Shyla approached and asked her if she wouldn’t mind answering some questions.

  “What type of questions?” Orla asked.

  “Boring ones about how you take care of everyone.”

  “Ah. Ilan,” she called to a group of children.

  A boy around ten circuits old skidded to a stop. “Yes, Grandmother?”

  “Fetch us some tea, please.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He raced off.

  Orla smiled fondly at him before turning to Shyla. “One of the things you need to instill in everybody is that everyone is equally important to the group’s survival. No one is more important than anyone else. From the youngest to the oldest, we rely on each other and we all have important jobs. If you can walk, you can help.”

  Ilan returned with a teapot in one hand and two cups in the other.

  “Take Ilan here,” Orla said as the boy set the items down on the stone table. “He’s our best sand rat catcher, and he takes good care of them.”

  Ilan beamed. “They like me. And do you know they have an excellent sense of smell?” He didn’t wait for a reply. “Big Bad and his off-spring can sniff out the poison in the water. If they smell it, they’ll refuse to drink it. Isn’t that amazing?”

  “It is,” Shyla agreed, suppressing a grin over the boy’s enthusiasm about sand rats of all things.

  “And they’re really loving creatures. Smart, too.”

  Interesting. “Can they be trained?”

  “Oh yeah. I’ve taught Black Tail to retrieve items. And I’ve a bunch that I’ve taught how to play hide and seek—they can find anyone, anywhere, but my friends say using the rats while playing the game is cheating.” He shrugged. “And…” He lowered his voice. “I sent Cat Toy to sneak into my sister’s room. You should have heard her scream.” He laughed.

  “Shyla probably did,” Orla said dryly. “Along with everyone else in Zirdai.”

  “Is that what triggered the level twenty cave-in?” Shyla asked, playing along.

  “No, that was Ilan’s mother yelling at him for scaring his sister.”

  “Worth it,” Ilan said before dashing off.

  Shyla laughed.

  Orla poured them tea. “If you’re buying water from the black market, you’ll need sand rats as well. Ilan will sell you a few of his.”

  Good to know and a reminder for her to get back on track. She asked Orla about acquiring resources. Gesturing to the people around them, she asked, “How do you find enough clothing for them all?”

  “We own a herd of gamelu. We shear them and make our own fabric.”

  Completely shocked, Shyla stared at the woman. “You own a herd? How is that possible?”

  Orla sipped her tea. “We’re vagrants by choice. Some of us are even upstanding citizens who pay taxes, tithe to the church, and own herds. Once we supply our people, we sell the rest. We also own a herd of velbloud. Our sun cloaks are highly sought after,” she said with pride.

  Recovering, Shyla asked, “Is that how you got the eggs and meat for first meal?”

  “Yes, but the herds don’t provide enough to feed everyone so we have to find supplemental sources.” Orla brightened. “We’re saving to buy two more herds.”

  Astounding. “What other ways do you earn coin?”

  “Ah. We sell a variety of goods, including information. Our scouts keep an eye on the guards and deacons and will pick up gossip. The Invisible Sword paid us for any news that could compromise their organization.” Orla set her cup down. “The hardest thing to manage is the waste from the collection bins. We’re too deep to schlep it up to the surface to dry out.”

  Shyla remembered having to cross through the worst stink she’d ever smelled when she had visited the commune on level sixteen. “What do you do with it?”

  “We carry the bins to various collection stations in Zirdai and swap them for clean ones.”

  “And the deacons don’t notice the extra…er…waste?”

  “It’s an unpleasant job given to those who have sinned in some way. I doubt they think in depth about what they’re doing as they cart it up to the growing caverns to be turned into fertilizer.”

  True. Right now the Invisible Swords dumped it on the surface and covered it with a layer of sand. Except she worried the smell might attract sand demons. Too bad they couldn’t turn it into something useful. Shyla straightened. Why not? They could clear out level six, install mirror pipes, and grow their own vegetables. They had plenty of fertilizer and “water.” The biggest hurdle would be getting plants.

  She chatted with Orla for a while. The woman was a great source of information on how to handle the daily tasks of living.

  When Shyla covered a yawn for a second time, Orla touched her forearm. “Here’s the most important thing to remember as a leader… You have to delegate. You can’t do everything or you’ll wear yourself out trying.” She squeezed once and let go. “Now go get some sleep.”

  “I will.”

  Orla gave her a skeptical look.

  “Once Jayden returns.” His name triggered another question for Orla. “Are all the communes separate organizations with their own leaders?”

  “Mostly. The vagrants used to be one group with one leader. We had to live in separate areas of Zirdai because it’s harder for the guards to find a smaller commune than one big one. However over time, we grew into our own individual units. Jayden acts as our liaison and we help each other when needed.”

  Seemed her nickname for him was more accurate than she’d realized. “How did he get that job?”

  “When Ezra, his father died, Jayden assumed his duties.” Orla lowered her voice. “Ezra was one of the leaders of the Invisible Sword as well. Many of the vagrant leaders took care of their people and helped the Invisible Sword.”

  Shyla couldn’t resist asking, “Was that why Ezra died? Did the Water Prince find out about him?”

  “No. Cave in. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time.” She sighed. “Jayden was only sixteen circuits old and he took it hard. Not only did his father die, but he suddenly had a great deal of responsibility on his shoulders.” Orla peered at her intently. “Much like you.”

  True. And she still had so much to learn. ”Do you mind if I take a closer look around?”

  “Go ahead. My lot will tell you if you’re in the way.”

  The other times she’d been here, she’d noticed the cushions, curtains, and furniture, but now she picked up on the little details. Where their food and water was stored, where people slept and worked, the areas designated for relaxation, and where Ilan housed his sand rats—he carved a complex mini-city for them into one of the walls of a tunnel, complete with warrens, rat-sized passages, and velbloud fibers for bedding (they had a nicer home than she did).

  It was all very overwhelming. So much to do, to learn, to organize, and to keep it all hidden…it was a massive undertaking. Orla’s advice of delegating would help and perhaps Shyla needed to focus on the immediate needs of the Invisible Swords instead of trying to figure it all out. Their biggest needs were coins, water, and food.

  Jayden caught up to her as she watched a man weave six colored threads into a fabric with a complex pattern. His fingers moved with such deft precision there was no doubt he’d spent thousands of angles perfecting his craft.

  “Thinking of starting a new career?” Jayden asked, joking.

  “What I’m thinking is that if I had that job, I’d end up with a very colorful knot.” Then she mulled it over. “Actually, our jobs are rather similar.”

  “How do you figure?”

  “There are so many threads we need to weave together in order to set up our headquarters.”

  “True. And it’s going to take us a while to get settled.”

  Meanwhile, the Invisible Swords and the treasure hunters locked in the black cells continued to suffer. But if they rescued them now, they’d need a place to hide them and she wouldn
’t endanger the vagrant communes or the monks.

  “Did you locate a place we could connect to?” she asked.

  “Yes. It’s on level ten back in the northwest quadrant. There was a cave-in there about six or seven circuits ago. A bunch of people died so no one wants to live there now. In fact there’s still rubble, which we can use to our advantage.”

  “Great.”

  He smiled, but it was half-hearted. “That was the easy part. Digging a tunnel is going to be the hard part.” Jayden’s shoulders drooped with fatigue.

  “Go get some sleep.”

  “I will after I visit my commune.”

  “Do you have family living there?” she asked in a neutral tone.

  “Yeah. I haven’t seen my mother since I was captured by the Arch Deacons.”

  She paused as his comment hit her. Even though she didn’t have traditional parents, even she knew mothers tended to get upset when their children didn’t visit. Did that mean Jayden and his mother didn’t have a good relationship? “You could have visited—”

  “I know. Do you need anything else before I go?”

  Ah, his mother was a touchy subject. “How would you find someone who is hiding from the prince’s guards?”

  “Who do you want to find?”

  She explained about the treasure hunters. “I think Aphra might still be in Zirdai, but I don’t know how to find her.”

  “I can ask the vagrants to keep an eye out for her. They’re usually in the same places as those wishing to remain hidden,” Jayden said. “What does she look like?”

  Shyla described the young woman. “She usually wears her long brown hair in an intricate knot.”

  “All right, I’ll tell the network to be on the lookout for her.” Jayden strode away.

  “Jayden, wait,” she called after him.

  He paused and glanced back.

  “Can you have them look out for Banqui as well?”

  If a frown could be wielded like a weapon, he just stabbed her with his. “Do you really think that’s necessary? He’s either gone or living in the wealthy levels where the vagrants don’t go.”

  Where Banqui was spending his blood coins, Shyla finished his unspoken thought. Actually she was surprised he hadn’t said it. “Just ask them to, please.”

  “Okay.”

  Too tired to think anymore, Shyla found an empty room. During her explorations, she learned the commune had a number of guest rooms for visitors and this was one. Orla had ordered her to sleep and she was more than happy to obey.

  At angle zero the next sun jump, Shyla and Jayden left the city with the others. They all wore sun cloaks. The white, slightly hairy fabric crafted from velbloud hair protected them from the sun’s harsh rays. A few deacons in their long green robes milled around the exit, studying faces. Shyla kept her hood pulled low, but both she and Jayden used the look away command for extra protection.

  They headed in the wrong direction just in case anyone followed them. When they were confident that no one had paid them any attention, they angled toward the temple. Jayden erased their tracks as they walked. Shyla still hadn’t mastered the technique of “moving and smoothing,” according to Ximen.

  The cool air smelled fresh and clean after the musty city odors underground. They passed a flock of velbloud. The fuzzy white creatures converged on the caretaker as he set out buckets of feed for them. Their long tethers striped the sand, making a pinwheel pattern. Shyla wondered how they managed to avoid getting them all twisted together.

  She held a special fondness for the animals since they’d saved her life. Caught topside during the killing heat, she’d been desperate enough to wrap two tethers around her body as the velblouds floated into the sky. They had lifted her above the dangerous hotness. After the velblouds had reeled in their tethers and descended, the monks had found her lying almost dead among the creatures. If Zhek hadn’t been at the monastery, she’d have never survived.

  “Shyla?” Jayden asked from a couple meters away.

  She’d paused to watch the flock without any conscious decision to do so. Her thoughts about the monks reminded her of another concern. “Do we need to keep the torques to protect our people?”

  He moved closer. “What do you mean?”

  “Are there others in Zirdai who can wield magic? People we need to shield ourselves against?”

  “Oh.” He considered. “No.”

  Thinking of Mojag, she asked, “How can you be so sure? How many people have magic?”

  Jayden pulled up his hood against the strengthening sunlight. “From what I’ve learned, only a small number of people have the potential to wield magic. But, of those not everyone can tap into it.”

  “Is that why the Invisible Sword doesn’t test everyone, only those who show potential?”

  “That’s right.”

  “How do you know who has the potential?”

  “One way is bloodlines. Certain families have the skill and they pass it down. Gurice inherited hers from her grandmother. In my family, my grandfather and my father could wield magic. My sister was tested, but failed.”

  Questions about his sister pushed up her throat, but the scowl that arrived when he mentioned her warned Shyla to keep quiet.

  Jayden continued. “Those that seek out the monks tend to have the ability. Hanif has sent us a few candidates.”

  “What does he see in them?”

  “An open mind, being flexible in their thinking and not set in their ways. Confidence. Intelligence. Resourcefulness.”

  All great qualities. “But not everyone you test taps into their power, right?”

  “Right.”

  Memories of being chained in the dark threatened to overwhelm her. “Why do you have to test them? Why can’t you explain about the magic and teach them how to do it?”

  Jayden huffed in amusement. “Even though the candidates are open-minded, all of them would think we’re insane. I believe a certain sun-kissed didn’t believe in magic even after she witnessed it and successfully wielded it. Then again, she wasn’t that open-minded to begin with.”

  She refrained from punching him. “Then why did you test me?” she shot back.

  “You have all the other qualities. And you fought back when Payatt took you through the sands.”

  Still. There had to be a better way to wake a person’s magic. “Isn’t there another way?”

  “Yes, there are plenty of ways, but they’re cruel. Stress and fear are the triggers. When people are pushed to the breaking point, they tap into that inner spark of survival. Our way allows the person time to experiment and then we’re there to teach them.”

  Not many people were in those dire situations. “The people in the prince’s special rooms are terrorized.”

  “And some of them do access their magic. But, unfortunately, they don’t know how to use it and no one survives the torture.”

  “What about the deacons’ confession rooms? Those people live through it and are forced to become deacons. Do some of them have magic?”

  “It’s possible,” Jayden said slowly. “Although we haven’t heard any rumors.”

  “Might be why the Heliacal Priestess started having her Arch Deacons wear those torques.”

  “An interesting theory. We don’t know when she stole them, or even if she did. It could have been one of her predecessors who passed them along. Or Banqui could have discovered their location and sold them to her.” He frowned.

  Jayden suspected Banqui had betrayed the Invisible Sword by telling the priestess’s Arch Deacons where to find their hideout, but he had no proof. Shyla’s new information from Fadey would support his suspicions. However, she just wasn’t convinced it’d been him so she didn’t share it with Jayden. Not yet. Instead, she asked, “Who had the torques before they were stolen?”

  Jayden gazed at the rolling sand dunes. “The Invisible Sword leaders.”

  Good thing they didn’t have The Eyes as well. Shyla debated whether she should press him for mor
e information about the old leaders. Instead, she considered his comments about magic. “What about Mojag?”

  “What about him?”

  “I think he’s using magic, but he hasn’t been through the test.” Nor would he or anyone since the “testing cavern” was part of the old hideout and off-limits.

  “That’s ridiculous. Mojag hasn’t shown any potential.”

  Really? She’d thought he’d be an ideal candidate. “Then explain how he followed you to the Invisible Swords’ hideout. Explain how he’s so good at avoiding people and getting around without being seen.”

  “I’ve been training him. Most vagrants are adept at hiding from the guards and deacons. It doesn’t mean they have magic.”

  She wasn’t convinced, but she didn’t want to fight about it. They’d been having a perfectly civil conversation. It was nice.

  “We should go. The velbloud caretaker has noticed us standing here,” Jayden said.

  “You go on to headquarters. I’m heading to the monastery.”

  He frowned. Shyla waited for him to figure it out.

  “You’re giving them the torques.”

  “For now. It’s the safest place. If we think the priestess is using magic, we’ll get them back.”

  “That’s a good idea,” he said.

  Was that an actual compliment? Shyla didn’t let it go to her head. They walked together for a bit before Shyla headed south. Without Jayden, she had to stop every ten meters, turn around, and erase her boot prints. It wasn’t ideal, but it worked.

  When she was within a kilometer of the monastery, she slowed. At least a dozen monks would be on the surface, blending in with the desert and keeping watch for any visitors. Not many people could spot them, but since she’d grown up with them and had taken her turn as sentry too many times to count, she noticed them.

  This time she wondered if she could slip past them unseen. Plus she needed the practice. The look away command would work, but she’d have to smooth out her tracks with every step. Sleep might work, but when the monks woke, they’d be alarmed. Gone required more energy and they had to see her first, which would ruin the fun.