Before any of the others could answer, Isaye stepped forward to address the prince. "Prince Edair," she began. "I served your father loyally for nearly eight years. He trusted me. Until a few days ago, you trusted me as well. I ask you to trust me now." She stood, tall and proud, her dark hair tumbling down her back and the sober look of conscience weighing on her features. Although still in irons, Isaye had the bearing of a n.o.ble, her shoulders back, her chin held high as she looked Prince Edair in the eye. "I was there when your father forbade you to attack Lion"s Arch. I was the one who convinced him that attacking the city would not be worth the losses Kryta would take. Moreover, I helped your father understand the duty this city performs, for Kryta and for Tyria itself.
"These people are Kryta"s allies. They hold back the risen undead of Orr, and we should be supporting that effort, not removing their ability to defend us." Isaye"s hazel eyes flashed. "I ask you to stop this. Now. Make a treaty that recognizes Lion"s Arch"s independence and make peace with her citizens. It"s the only way Tyria will survive the coming storms."
Edair sat forward in his throne, thrusting his finger toward Isaye. "You"re defending them? After they burned your s.h.i.+p. Threw you out! By Balthazar"s fire, you cling to your loyalty like a child hiding under a cloak, thinking blindness will keep you safe." The audience had fallen completely silent, watching the exchange breathlessly. This was exactly the kind of theater Edair wanted. "I don"t care what information you gave my father over the years. He was a fool to listen to you. Kryta should have attacked Lion"s Arch years ago." Isaye"s cheeks flushed red, and Edair tapped his fingers rhythmically on the arm of his golden throne.
"Lion"s Arch is a Krytan city. For too long we have swallowed their fables about "the dangers of Orr." They tell tales of this mythical undead force so that we will be too afraid to attack the pirates and smugglers who stole Krytan land!" Leaning back easily, Edair let his gaze play over the room, taking in the opulent wall hangings and the golden decorations. He smiled to a group of maidens on the upper balconies and then returned his stare to Isaye. "I"ve heard men say that charr are twelve feet high with star beams shooting from their eyes. They can jump so far they might as well be flying, and when they hold their breath, they"re practically invisible. They have fur of iron and claws of fire, and they can"t be harmed by human blades." The prince shook his head disdainfully. "I"ve fought in Ascalon. I know the difference between legends and truths. Charr are made of flesh and blood. They"re nothing more than animals, barely capable of walking on two legs.
"These pirates tell us stories of an undefeatable Orr. They say it"s a living dragon-island, that hundreds of thousands of undead roam there, unkillable, with magic so powerful we can"t begin to understand it. And we"re supposed to be grateful to Lion"s Arch for the "protection" they provide." He smirked. "I"ll tell you what else I know. Orrian zombies wash up on the beaches in Kryta, too, and just like the charr . . ." The prince of Kryta took a deep breath and intoned harshly, "They can be destroyed."
Edair rose, holding his hands up in rea.s.surance. "Don"t listen to the lies told by these pirates. Orr isn"t a cursed kingdom; it"s nothing more than a waterlogged, desolate lump of stone. Yes, there is some magic within its sh.o.r.es, but it is old, withered, and impotent, or why else was it lost for so long? The kingdom of Orr was destroyed hundreds of years ago, cast to the bottom of the ocean, and it"s no more dangerous now than it has ever been.
"They say we should be grateful to Lion"s Arch. For what? Fighting off zombies? Sinking a few rotting s.h.i.+ps? These traitors preen about insignificant victories won against feeble opponents. For that, we should give these brigands Krytan land and say thank you? I say no!" Several members of the audience raised their voices in agreement, and a wave of applause rippled through the n.o.bility. Edair shook his fist and accepted their laudations with a calculating smile. The Seraph guards pushed Isaye back into line, warning her to keep silent unless spoken to again.
Cobiah clenched his teeth, his hands twisting against the iron manacles that held him bound. He was on the wrong side of this situation, unable to fight while every instinct urged him to attack. It was galling to stand silently while someone tore down his accomplishments, threatened his friends, and called him a liar. Yet Cobiah reined in his temper. Twice, Isaye had asked him not to attack the prince. He didn"t know her reasons, didn"t entirely trust them given their past, but something in the way she"d asked still gave him pause. There was more to this than he knew.
The exemplar swayed across the dais to the prince"s side, placing her hand on his arm. "Your Demetran crystal-wine is here, Your Highness." She gestured to one of the s.h.i.+ning Blade, and the man approached, holding out a goblet etched with the sigil of the royal family.
Blinking away his spontaneous ferocity, Prince Edair lowered himself once more onto the golden throne. He took the gla.s.s from the silver tray and balanced it in his hand, smelling the fresh bouquet of the wine. "Ah, yes. Thank you, Livia."
Livia.
That name was familiar. He"d heard rumors-everyone had. Livia was the self-appointed protector of the ruler of Kryta, and if whispers were true, she"d been so for generations. Some tales said she"d sold her soul to become an immortal lich. Others claimed that Livia sacrificed prisoners in the dungeons of Divinity"s Reach and used their blood to give herself eternal youth and beauty. He"d heard a hundred legends, usually during the autumn festival when children were trying to scare one another with spooky tales. Still, all the stories agreed on one thing: Livia was powerful. Cobiah felt a chill run through his body as the woman glanced toward him again, her smoky eyes obscured by the curtain of her white-streaked hair. Maybe she was the reason Isaye was so frightened.
"Commodore Marriner." Edair singled him out. He paused to swirl his expensive wine while the Seraph pushed Cobiah forward. A shadow darkened the prince"s face as he considered his next words. "Once the majority of the Seraph, my army, is gathered to the north of Lion"s Arch, we will march on your city, and we will be victorious. If that happens, I a.s.sure you, Commodore . . ." Edair examined him as though he were an acquisition he was deciding whether to buy. "There will be a great deal of bloodshed.
"Although I would enjoy the excitement of honorable battle, I realize we would be marching seasoned military troops against civilian militia. Exemplar Livia has convinced me," he said, setting the goblet down, "that we should first seek other ways of resolving this conflict. I"ve gone to great lengths to get you here in the hopes that you can help me avoid such an outcome. I had my loyal friend Isaye watched by spies. I intercepted her messages. I gave her good reason to think I had an a.s.sa.s.sin in your city, and to save your life, she did exactly as I"d hoped. She brought you here." Edair laughed lightly. "Really, Cobiah. You should be flattered at the amount of trouble it"s taken to make you a guest aboard my magnificent galleon."
"You should have saved the trouble and stuffed this galleon up your-" Grymm didn"t get any further. One of the marines rammed the b.u.t.t of a spear into the norn"s belly, doubling him over and knocking the wind out of his words. The Seraph struck him across the back, forcing him to his knees, and shoved the point of the spear against his chest. Blood trickled down from a wound where the spear cut into the norn"s flesh. Bronn growled and tried to step toward his brother, but in a flash the guards had their swords at his throat. Around the ballroom, Seraph and the s.h.i.+ning Blade stood at the ready, weapons out and magic coalescing as elementalists concentrated their will in preparation for battle.
"Enough!" Edair snarled. His face had reddened, and he clenched his fists so tightly the knuckles turned white on the arms of his throne. Clearly, the prince was used to getting his way. "This is not a discussion. This is a royal command.
"Either you tell the Lionguard to stand down and disarm the city defenses, or I will show you why you should fear the Krytan throne, Marriner." He rose slowly and took a step forward, using the height of the dais to tower over Cobiah and his friends. Edair"s body was as tense as a bowstring, his voice brittle with the fraying of his temper. "I a.s.sure you, I am not bluffing."
"You can do what you want, Edair; the answer is still no." Cobiah"s heart pounded, all fear replaced by the certainty of impending death. "I wish I could. I wish you understood what you were doing, and by Dwayna"s white wings, I"d like to find a way to keep my people from harm. But I"d rather have you kill them quickly by the sword than take the city and underestimate the Dead s.h.i.+ps. If that"s the choice, then I believe every living being in Lion"s Arch would wish for the death you"ll give them over the blasphemous unlife they"ll receive at Orrian hands."
"You filthy, dishonorable blackguard!" At last, the prince"s control broke, and Edair raised his voice in a ferocious shout, like a child being denied a toy. "You will do what I tell you! If you don"t, your friends will suffer my wrath one by one."
Bronn growled, low in his throat. Stiff and unyielding despite the weapons arrayed against him, the bearded norn declared, "My brother and I would gladly die rather than submit to a coward such as you."
Edair reddened further. "I"ll kill her!" He pointed at Isaye. "And him!" His finger moved on to Tenzin. Seeing that Cobiah wouldn"t budge, Edair lowered his hand and paced across the stage. Livia tried to catch his attention with a subtle gesture, but Edair strode past her without even acknowledging the exemplar. "You"re so self-sacrificing. So very stalwart. I"m offering you a chance to save the lives of innocents-women and children-but you"d rather have a knife through your heart. Fine. Let"s see how much solace that is when the repercussions are staring you in the face."
Spinning away, the prince made a sharp gesture. "Get the boy."
The guardsman snapped a salute, hurrying across the dais to the door through which the prince had entered the room. A terrible light flashed in Edair"s eyes. Livia approached him, murmuring softly, but the prince dismissed her words with a quick chop of his hand through the air. Cobiah frowned. What cruelty was this? Thinking that perhaps Isaye knew more than she"d had time to reveal, Cobiah turned to whisper to her-but the words froze in his throat as he took in the pale, horrified look on Isaye"s face.
The door opened, and the pale-haired s.h.i.+ning Blade guardsman from before entered the stateroom, leading a small child by the hand. The child was young, a boy not more than three years old, with a mop of dark hair and bright blue eyes. Burbling happily to himself, he kept one hand in his mouth, the other wrapped around the s.h.i.+ning Blade"s fingers, toddling along despite his drooping eyes and sleepy smile.
"Commodore Marriner," the prince said, his voice holding a note of cold-blooded pride, "may I present the Trident"s newest visitor? He arrived just two days ago." Edair settled back into his throne, keeping his eyes on the prisoners standing before his dais.
There was no chance for Cobiah to respond. Fighting to be free of her restraints, Isaye shoved her way toward the dais despite the Seraph, not caring if their swords dug b.l.o.o.d.y gouges into her skin. "Dane!" she called out, stretching her manacled arms toward the boy.
At the sight of her, the child brightened. "Mama!" He pulled the hand out of his mouth and waved at her eagerly. Spotting Tenzin, the boy tried to pull away from the s.h.i.+ning Blade and run toward them both, but the guard prevented him from escaping by sweeping the child gently up onto his hip. Tears leapt to Isaye"s eyes.
So this was what she"d been protecting.
Cobiah"s chest tightened. He couldn"t breathe, his heart pounding so hard that he could hear the blood thumping in his ears. It seemed as if the world around him had stopped turning, shrinking down to one small, dark-haired boy. He whispered a prayer to Dwayna and the Six G.o.ds, begging for their forgiveness as he took in the meaning of the scene before him. Isaye"s son. Isaye had a son. His wife . . . had a child by another man.
All of the warmth that had been regrowing toward Isaye suddenly withered inside Cobiah"s heart. Justifications leapt into his mind. She"d been gone for years. He"d even called her his ex-wife. She deserved to be happy. But the one thing that kept returning and returning to his thoughts was the image of Isaye, meeting alone in an inn room with a Krytan agent, carrying copies of Cobiah"s council notes. How long had she been meeting with him in secret? Cobiah didn"t even know who the man was; he"d barely gotten a glimpse before the agent leapt out the window and escaped.
What if they had been meeting for more personal reasons?
Edair stared down at them as he spoke, lingering over the words with obvious relish. "I sent for him several days ago, Isaye. My spies had been watching you for some time to see if you were loyal, and you"d proven yourself to my satisfaction. As a reward and an apology for my lack of trust, I planned to surprise you with my thoughtfulness. Imagine my chagrin when my spies brought me concrete proof that you"d betrayed me and allowed a s.h.i.+p through the blockade with a message for Lion"s Arch.
"Steadfast Isaye. Loyal Isaye. Always playing the part of the devoted Krytan. You fooled my father, and you nearly fooled me." Scorn dripped from every word. "How easily you were discovered."
"Don"t you dare hurt him!" Isaye bristled. She pushed forward. The Seraph"s weapons drove into her skin, forcing her to step back again. As blood stained her linen s.h.i.+rt, Tenzin"s hands flexed, reaching automatically for a weapon that was no longer at his side. Behind her, Cobiah"s face darkened, making the connection. Tenzin was younger than Isaye, yes . . . but he was old enough.
"Be still, both of you." Bronn clenched his hands around the iron chain of his manacles. "Your actions bring even more danger to the child."
"Listen to your gargantuan friend, Isaye," Edair said quietly. "None of us want to endanger the boy. Isn"t that right, Commodore?"
All around them, the n.o.bles of Divinity"s Reach stood in rapt attention, captivated and perhaps fearful of the scene playing out before them. Women pressed their hands to silk bodices, and men questioned the king with their eyes, afraid to say anything that might draw the prince"s attention. The Balthazar"s Trident rocked gently in the water, lanterns swaying from the balcony, casting mercurial shadows from wall to wall. Cobiah set his mouth in a grim line, understanding the threat implicit in the prince"s words.
"This doesn"t have to end in bloodshed, Cobiah. Not here and not in Lion"s Arch." The prince smiled victoriously. "I give you my word of honor. Not a hair on the child"s head will be harmed . . . so long as you cooperate." Resting easily on the throne, Edair straightened the sleeves of his golden doublet in smug satisfaction. "You"ll tell me about those defenses, you"ll order the Lionguard to stand down, and furthermore, you"ll sign a formal treaty acknowledging Krytan rulers.h.i.+p of Lion"s Arch.
"I"ll give you a little time to reconsider your answer, Cobiah." Edair"s smile broadened. "Take them to the brig."
The prince snapped his fingers, and the Seraph around the room stiffened to attention. "Give the prisoners water and allow them eight hours" rest. If they haven"t come to their senses at the end of that time . . ." He eyed the group thoughtfully. "I"ll be forced to do something rash." Isaye let out a soft moan. Bronn and Grymm bristled, but the Seraph guard jabbed them warningly, and the norn held in their retorts. For his part, Cobiah met the prince"s eyes with a steady, hateful gaze.
"As you wish, Your Highness," Livia said, stepping in quickly. "Allow us to be your hand." She nodded to the s.h.i.+ning Blade holding Dane, and the man nodded at her unspoken command. Without a word, he turned and carried the boy away. Isaye made a soft sound and stepped after them, but Tenzin caught her arm and pulled her back.
"They won"t hurt him," Tenzin told her quietly. "Don"t give them a reason to hurt you."
Cobiah wished he"d been the one to say it. Gritting his teeth, he watched as the guard in blue carried the little boy away. Livia strode down the stairs toward the gathered prisoners. "I"ll escort them personally. You are relieved." Four more s.h.i.+ning Blade, one of them the dark-haired guard who had been stationed at the door when they arrived, surrounded the group of prisoners. The Seraph marines stepped back, but not without a few more taunting pokes at their hostages. Livia gestured, and her agents led the captives from the stateroom.
The brig of the Balthazar"s Trident was on her lowest deck, beneath the cold waterline. They were pushed into small chambers with the curve of the s.h.i.+p"s hull on one side and iron bars on the other. Cobiah could tell at a glance that the hull here was reinforced lest any prisoners take out their rage on the boards, trying to sink the s.h.i.+p or drown themselves in the attempt. There were no cots or furniture in any of the cells, only a small tin chamber pot with a lid. A faint dusting of straw covered the floor, musty with dampness. The s.h.i.+ning Blade locked each of the five prisoners into a separate cage, removing the manacles from Isaye, Cobiah, and Tenzin. They left the chains on the norn. Livia simply stood in the hold outside the brig cells and watched as they were shoved inside and the doors locked behind them.
After the other s.h.i.+ning Blade left the hold, Livia paused as though she might say something. With a shrug and a sigh, she appeared to decide against it. Her heels made a distinctive clicking sound as she headed up the long rise of stairs. The door to the hold slammed shut behind her.
Tenzin sighed, leaning back in his cell. "We have to escape."
"Escape?" Grymm rumbled. His voice was gruffer than his garrulous brother"s, lower and rusty sounding, as if he did not choose to talk often. "Strange words, coming from you, Krytan. Isaye is implicated in treason. Myself, my brother, and the commodore are prisoners of the state. But you . . . I can"t figure out why you"re here. To spy on us, perhaps?"
Tenzin shot the norn a nasty look, rubbing his wrists where the manacles had chafed the skin raw. "I"m loyal to Kryta, yes. But not to Edair. Truth be told, I was hoping Princess Emilane would be Baede"s heir. When he chose Edair . . ." Tenzin shook his head. "My father was right. Power makes you crazy."
"That still doesn"t explain why you"re here," Grymm said, pressing him.
The Krytan lowered his head. "I asked for the post of first mate aboard the Nomad when I heard Edair was planning to blockade Lion"s Arch." Tenzin shoved a lock of brown hair away from his eyes. "While I respect Captain Isaye greatly, my father was my hero. He died to protect the city of Lion"s Arch. I won"t let his sacrifice be in vain."
Cobiah tried to tame his jealousy, focus his mind on the problem, but his thoughts kept leaping to dark places. Great respect for Captain Isaye? Cobiah had seen the warmth in Tenzin"s eyes. That didn"t come from sheer respect. Neither did a three-year-old child.
"So what do we do now?" Bronn asked, shaking the chain links of his manacles to see if he could find a weak spot. "Break out of the brig? Sneak into the prince"s quarters and fight him one-on-one? Capture that red-wrapped enchantress and demand an exchange of hostages? Swim to Lion"s Arch and warn the defense?" Cobiah noted that none of the norn"s options included "surrender and sign the treaty." Bronn wasn"t even considering it. Why, then, was he?
Isaye slid heavily to a seat on the floor of her cell. "They have my son."
The pain in her voice shot through Cobiah"s heart. Despite himself, he said, "There"s got to be a way to get the child out of here."
"He"ll be more heavily guarded than the prince-and unlike Edair, the guards around the boy have no reason to care if he survives. They"ll kill him the moment we enter the room." Grymm scowled. "Point us toward the princeling, Cobiah, and I"ll gladly join you. But I don"t want a child"s blood on my hands."
"You"re right. I"ll think of something else," Cobiah said dryly, sinking down onto the floor. The cell smelled like moldy straw and old bacon, somehow both familiar and disconcerting all at once.
Hours pa.s.sed in relative silence. Through high portholes, Cobiah watched night turn into morning, dawning gray and dim with no hint of sun. Cobiah could hear the ocean lapping against the side of the boat, but he had nothing to mark the pa.s.sage of time except the heavy snores of his companions.
Finally, a key clicked in the hatch to the deck above. The door opened, and there was movement on the stairs. It had certainly not been eight full hours-less than four, by his reasoning. This wasn"t the prince summoning them, unless Edair had grown impatient. Food, perhaps? Cobiah listened to the movement on the stairs as it approached, and his brow furrowed. The click-clack of heels upon the stairwell told him exactly who it was.
"Come to taunt us?" Cobiah asked as the woman in red entered the main room of the brig. "Where"s the fun in that, Livia?"
"Taunt you?" The exemplar carried no lantern, nor a torch. Instead, her delicate features were lit by the pale light of a necromancer"s ghost candle, the magical light illuminating the appeal of her curves. "How you misjudge me, Commodore." She reached up to close the hatch above her with one hand. The magical light hovered at her side, neither changing nor wavering as she walked slowly in front of their cells.
"What are you here for, then? I seriously doubt you"re here to help us." Cobiah glared, trying not to be impressed by the woman"s beauty-or her obvious skill with magic.
She tossed her head, and the stripe of pale hair flowed against her high cheekbone like silk over porcelain. "In fact"-Livia"s dark lips curved into a smile-"I am."
Isaye was already on her feet, her hands clenched into fists. "If you want to help us, give me my son and let us go."
Livia"s eyes were shadowed. "No, my dear Isaye. There"s nothing I can do about your son. Prince Edair"s orders are very clear, and the boy is under heavy guard."
"Then you can"t help us." Isaye turned away bitterly.
"You don"t agree with what"s going on," Cobiah guessed. He stood and walked to face Livia through the iron bars of his cell. "If you did, you wouldn"t be here." Cobiah pressed his luck, relying on instinct to gauge the woman"s reaction. "You"re older than the prince. You were alive when the sea swallowed Lion"s Arch. h.e.l.l, you might have even been in the city at the time, in the king"s palace. You were probably with him when King Baede and the others were whisked away while the city was destroyed around you. You know what I know . . . you know how dangerous Orr really is.
"I . . ." She paused, sizing him up.
"Don"t play games with me. You"re not the kind who sits in pretty throne rooms and tells yourself the world turns on your whim. You"ve been alive for a very long time, haven"t you? I"d be willing to bet you saw Port Stalwart destroyed; or other agents of the s.h.i.+ning Blade did, and they reported to you. You"ve seen the monsters that sail those Dead s.h.i.+ps. That"s why you"re here."
Livia nodded. A faint smile touched her elegant lips. "You"re quite right, Commodore. I do know Orr better than most. Some years ago, I came into possession of an artifact of great power, a remnant of that lost civilization. A scepter. I"ve spent many years studying it. Yes, I know what Orrian magic could do when Orr was alive." The smile faded, and Livia"s stance took on a greater posture of authority. "I can guess what it is like now that they are undead . . . and under the command of an Elder Dragon."
"So what the h.e.l.l are we supposed to do?" Cobiah wrapped his hands around the bars and leaned toward her. "Give him control of Lion"s Arch? That would be akin to handing the entire nation of Kryta to the undead. Possibly all of Tyria!" His voice shook with intensity. "You"ve got to convince Edair that he"s wrong."
"I have attempted to discuss these matters with my prince, but Edair is not a pract.i.tioner of the magical arts. He is a warrior. Furthermore, he is very young and utterly convinced of his superiority based on the success of his conflicts with the charr." Livia shrugged, the movement rippling appealingly across her sleek form. "If I cannot convince Edair of the truth, then I must protect him from his errors."
"That"s why she"s here," Tenzin surmised quickly. "The s.h.i.+ning Blade"s oath is to the throne . . . but it"s very specific. Her oath is to ensure that the royal line continues to rule. I"ve heard rumors that the s.h.i.+ning Blade doesn"t care who sits on the throne, so long as it is a descendant of Salma the Good. They ensure that Kryta and the line of Salma continue. s.h.i.+ning Blade can"t let Kryta fall to Orr . . . but they can support an alternate heir to the throne." Tenzin looked back and forth from Cobiah to the figure in red.
"Essentially correct, Colonel Moran." Livia nodded courteously, as if they were in a formal courtroom and not standing in a s.h.i.+p"s brig. "I take my oath very seriously, and I am loyal to Prince Edair . . . but my primary loyalty is to Kryta and the Salmaic dynasty. Prince Edair is the inheritor of the throne, and I support him as such. However, I will not allow his pride to doom the country. But . . . he is only the heir, and a prince. Thus, he does not yet have the authority to countermand orders given to me by a king."
"You still have orders from King Baede." Isaye grasped her meaning first. She looked up, a faint hope lighting in her eyes.
"Correct. Edair rushed to take Lion"s Arch immediately upon his father"s death. It is his plan to be coronated in Lion"s Arch. That is where all the kings and queens of Kryta have been elevated, since the days of Queen Salma the Good. He doesn"t plan to be the first to change that tradition."
"He"s a prideful snot, isn"t he?" Grymm rumbled under his breath.
"What were King Baede"s orders?" Cobiah asked.
Livia paused before she answered. Her eyes flicked to Isaye, then back to Cobiah. "Some years ago, King Baede began plans of his own to invade your city, Commodore Marriner. It was his intent to recapture Lion"s Arch. However, his mind was changed when Lady Isaye sent him notes . . . doc.u.mentation . . . proof that your forces were uniquely capable of defending this port against the Dead s.h.i.+ps. King Baede had more than enough militia to invade and seize your city. Because of the information Isaye provided, he abandoned those plans."
Cobiah"s mind raced. "That was why you were meeting with the Krytans?" he asked Isaye, numbly aware that she wouldn"t meet his eyes.
She nodded, a small, sorrowing movement. "I discovered Baede"s plans. I couldn"t let him invade Lion"s Arch, but I also didn"t want to tell the council. Either way, I would have started a war. Taking Baede your notes was the only way to make sure he understood the threat Orr represented. The number of vessels they"d destroyed; the great lengths we were going to, ensuring that our city had a chance against those Dead s.h.i.+ps. I had to prove to him that Lion"s Arch-as it was, with the united forces of all races of Tyria-was vital to keeping Kryta safe. Baede would never have been able to arrange charr engineering to enhance the fort at Claw Island or convince the asuran colleges to enchant s.h.i.+ps against Orrian fire.
"After he read your journals, King Baede agreed with me." Isaye kept her eyes low, twisting her fingers back and forth in her lap. "He told his army to stand down and leave Lion"s Arch alone."
"Well . . . d.a.m.n," Cobiah said ruefully. It didn"t answer all of his questions, but the explanation put an entirely different spin on Isaye"s activity-and the man she"d been meeting in the inn room that day. The thought of all the lost years, the distance between them . . . "Why didn"t you tell me?" he asked more softly, forgetting for a moment that there were other people in the room.
"You were right." She shrugged. "I was betraying Lion"s Arch. I turned your notes over to Kryta, and Baede might have used that information to attack the city. I had to take that risk." Isaye looked up, temper sparking in her eyes again. "Anyway, I wasn"t exactly eager to explain myself to someone who called me a grog-snarfing murellow." Cobiah heard Bronn snicker from the floor of his cell, the sound quickly cut off by Grymm"s elbow through the bars into his brother"s ribs.
With an impatient tap of her heel against the wooden floor, Livia broke in. "I hope I"m not interrupting this touching scene, but there"s still the matter of your release to consider." All eyes turned toward the exemplar again. Livia crossed the hold and reached to take a key ring from its hook on the wall, sliding her fingers lightly against the cold iron in contemplation.
Suddenly, a bell began to ring out on the upper decks, its strident clatter echoing even this deep into the hold. The Balthazar"s Trident began to s.h.i.+ft, and Cobiah could hear the crew rus.h.i.+ng to unfurl the sails and man the rudder, shouting as heavy boots thumped on the boards over their heads. "What"s going on?" Cobiah gripped the bars of his cell more tightly. The norn, quick to respond to the sounds of battle, rose to their feet with grim frowns.
"It"s begun." Livia spoke more quickly now. She looked up toward the sound of storming boots. "One hour ago, our spotter on the crow"s nest noted a fleet of red-masted s.h.i.+ps approaching from the south."
"Dwayna"s mercy," Cobiah breathed, listening to the shouts and thuds above. "The Orrians are taking advantage of the blockade. The Dead s.h.i.+ps are coming." The others fell into silence as the chill of Cobiah"s words struck them all.
Grimly, Livia stalked toward the iron bars, the keys in her hand jingling softly. "King Baede"s orders were that Lion"s Arch must be kept sacrosanct so that the combined might of all the races can gather under one flag to fight against Tyria"s greatest enemy: Orr." As she unlocked each cell, she continued. "Edair does not have the knowledge to fight them off, Commodore. You do.
"Go to the Nomad and lead our defense. You must find some way to fight them off, or Lion"s Arch-and Kryta-will fall to the forces of Orr."
"I"m not leaving without my son!" Isaye pushed past Livia as soon as her cell door was open. The exemplar grabbed her arm, jerking the dark-haired woman back with an iron grip.
"Yes, you are." The exemplar"s tone brooked no argument. Seeing the fire in Isaye"s eyes, Livia continued more gently. "The Trident will be the most protected vessel in our armada. Prince Edair is no hero. He will not be at the forefront of the battle."
"He"s a coward, you mean," Isaye snapped.
Livia narrowed her eyes, choosing to ignore the insult. "Your son will be fine. If the city falls, he will return to Divinity"s Reach with us, and I will personally ensure his safety. But if you are ever to see him again, we must trust one another." Livia let go of Isaye"s arm with a narrow smile. "Are we agreed?"
Isaye bit her lip and managed a nod of agreement.
Livia"s strange, pale eyes scanned Cobiah and the rest. "Kryta has a fleet, but no commanders with knowledge of how to defeat this threat. You are a commander with no fleet at your disposal." Despite the bells clanging and the shouts and curses of the Balthazar"s Trident"s crew, the exemplar of the s.h.i.+ning Blade maintained her calculating composure. "You must do what you do best, Commodore. Bridge the divide."
It was a bitter pill to swallow, but Cobiah nodded. "I don"t see that we have much of a choice."
Livia looked over her shoulder at him, the stripe in her scarlet hair falling around her face. "Precisely so, Commodore." The exemplar turned on her high heel and strode toward the stairway. "Make your way toward the lifeboats. The Nomad is not far. You"ll have to avoid the Seraph, but if you can make it to the lifeboat, you should be able to reach your s.h.i.+p. We"ll speak again once the Orrian fleet has been defeated. Otherwise"-Livia crossed the room and ascended the stairs, heading for the upper decks-"I suppose I"ll see you in the Mists."
The small group made their way through the s.h.i.+p, ducking from room to room, hiding behind swaying hammocks and piles of cargo. It was fairly easy to avoid the Seraph, who were all rus.h.i.+ng to the gun ports and the upper decks to defend the s.h.i.+p. The n.o.ble pa.s.sengers fled through hallways, some screaming, others trying to take command of the situation-mostly by ordering everyone else around. Cobiah ignored them.
Tenzin reverted to his military training, bluffing the few soldiers who crossed their path. The Balthazar"s Trident was as fat on the inside as she"d seemed from without, with layers of labyrinthine pa.s.sages that led to opulent chambers, private dining areas, and at last, a balcony. Bronn looked up, pointing at a lifeboat that hung some distance above them. "If we could cut that down, we"d have our way back to the Nomad." The norn"s words met silence. "No?"
The others weren"t listening. They were looking out across the ocean, where the armada of Orr was under full sail. Though still some distance away, Cobiah could tell it was a ma.s.sive fleet-larger than he"d ever seen arrayed against Lion"s Arch in the past. The Orrian s.h.i.+ps had blackened hulls dripping with broken coral and clinging barnacles, the wood broken and rotting where the sea had taken her due. Some rose from the waves even as he watched, black sails unfurling with the wind as they broke the plane of seawater. At their fore sailed three mighty s.h.i.+ps. Two were xebecs, s.h.i.+ps of ancient Orr, with scarlet silk hung in long triangles and lateen sails upon their tilted masts. These were far larger than the clipper, the Harbinger, that Cobiah had seen in the Fire Island straits so long ago. These two were wars.h.i.+ps, warded with magic so foul that Cobiah could see the buzz of lightning and the rise of viscous steam wafting from their hulls.