16
(Vasanaday)
Towani City, Towani
The morning began early. Their bed was flattened and stowed in Zilan’s pack. They ate a quick breakfast, planning to get on their ship as early as possible. Finding an empty cabin was always a useful way to travel, when they could manage it.
Iyva could feel Zilan getting nervous. “What’s going on?” she finally asked.
“I think we need to get out of here,” Zilan said urgently. “I’m feeling movements.”
“Okay,” Iyva said, grabbing her pack and shaze.
Almost instantly, there were half a dozen other shazes in the room, ready to fight. Iyva dropped her pack again as she prepared for battle.
<Back to back!> he shouted to her mind. < Wait for them to come to us.>
“Elið! To what do we owe this honor?” Zilan asked their attackers.
“You’d have to ask that of the Curator!” the leader replied.
“Oh? I was unaware of the Curator being displeased with me,” Zilan answered.
“Enough to issue a Death Edict on the two of you. I am sure you aren’t that unaware, Zilan. He has placed a high price on your heads – high enough that it will have every member on the entire planet after you! What are you waiting for! Take them down!” Elið Seyri goaded.
“I won’t attack a girl,” one refused.
“Then go for him, I don’t care – let’s just get the job done!”
One went for Zilan, but was almost instantly disarmed and running for his shaze.
<Disarm only!> Zilan told Iyva, who nodded, disarming another kid who attacked her.
Several of them tried again, but were easily repulsed.
“Honestly, is that all you have to give us?” Zilan asked.
Finally, the leader attacked Zilan and gave him some challenge, though Iyva could see that he was holding back considerably. “I may as well fight with my off hand,” Zilan said barely stifling a yawn.
The youth in the room were fairly bemused by the whole thing, some even coming up to spar with Iyva, their hearts not in the attack.
“You are not worth my time,” Zilan said at last, disarming the man and taking the weapon. “Children, when we return to Towani City, we will be looking for students. If you want the chance, you need to train until we return. Come, Iyva, we have a boat to catch – you will find worthy opponents soon.”
Sheathing their shazes and picking up their packs, the two left.
The group in the old warehouse were still reeling in the shock defeat. Elíaz had been shown just how far behind his shaze skills had fallen. He was embarrassed that even the girl had defeated him with ease. He made a promise to make himself worthy of such opponents.
“Mestari, I thought you said that guy was dangerous!” Elíaz commented.
“Trust me, a man who can control himself to that degree is exceedingly dangerous!” Elið replied.
“Yet, he bested you like you were a chola!” Breckan mocked.
“You did not fare much better!” Elið seethed. “Everyone, daily training from an hour after breakfast until lunch. The cell in Towani must not be seen as being so weak again! Training room in ten minutes!” He turned and left.
Elíaz did not say anything as he followed their mestari back to the Balan Center. He knew he had been bested too easily – it shamed him, yet, he also recognized the code of honor that this Zilan obviously lived by. That was special, he knew. If he had been brave enough to show up the mestari, he would have gone with the man now, without hesitation – he wondered if he would ever have another chance.
Iyva and Zilan found themselves a cabin on a fast ship to Kri’enden.
“I will find you a shaze instructor to correct the mistakes I’ve taught you. That is where I learned everything I know about shaze,” Zilan told her.
“Will we still have to be living in the shadows in Joton?” Iyva asked.
“As long as they want us dead, we will have to stay in the shadows.”
“Is it the Balan or the Neví who want to kill us? I am confused.”
“Both,” Zilan replied. “Only the Balan issue Edicts. There are Neví who are not Balan and Balan who are not Neví, but for many intents and purposes, they are one and the same.”
“There’s more you’re not telling me,” Iyva said. “I know you too well for you to hide from me anymore.”
“I have many secrets. Not all of them have been told to you yet – though most of the important ones you know now.”
“I mean about why they want you dead – why they attacked us here.”
“If I told you, another life would be at risk as well.”
“But we are alone!” Iyva said.
“Would you guarantee that no one is listening to your PCS link? Or that there are no listening devices on this ship?”
“No…,” Iyva said quietly.
“Me neither. A good friend of mine – one I love like a brother – would be at even greater risk than he is now. We will see him soon enough – but only when I can be sure we will not be endangering his life.”
“So next stop… Joton?”
“Yes – to get your shaze training up another notch.”
“Yes, Mestari,” Iyva said snuggling into his embrace.
Irola – Balan Center
“Look,” Fashi said as he drew Belmara’s attention to the surveillance cameras in Towani City. “That is not the countenance of a successful battle.”
Belmara watched the dejected-looking Balan cell hastening soberly towards their Center, led by a clearly enraged Elið. She felt the rage boiling inside her. She thought Tasp had trained them better than this! How could they fail to subdue a teenage girl?!
“They clearly lost,” Belmara said engaging the PCS unit and punching in a code.
“Elið,” came the reply.
“How could you have failed at such a trivial task?!” Belmara seethed.
“Zilan is too capable for my group. We have not had Kri’enden training as it’s clear he and his student have had,” came the timid reply.
“I shall discuss this one further with the Curator. She needs to know how poorly trained the Towani cell is!”
“We have already embarked on advanced training,” Elið replied. “Tasp should be back any day to take over and bring them up to a higher level.”
“It is too late for this time. You have just let one of the most dangerous men you will ever meet slip right through your fingers!” Belmara snarled as she cut the connection.
She gulped from her mug of mujani-spiked nightbrew, trying to clear her head again.
“My best chance at becoming #1… gone from Towani City now. We don’t know where they will go next,” she sighed her frustration.
“Have they been to Joton since Zilan started training Iyva?” Fashi asked.
“Iyva?”
“That’s what I gather her name is from the A’mara records of a missing teen about the time Ralun picked her up.”
“Okay. But why Joton?” Belmara asked.
“Because, my love, Zilan trained in Joton for several years, even Elið recognized that. Wouldn’t it make sense that, given the option, he would do so again with his student?” Fashi asked.
“I will check ships,” Belmara said, using her mind to quickly scan through the holonet. “Yes, there was a ship to Joton this morning. I will alert our cell there.”
Other Chapters of this set
Acting the Part - chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Building on Promise - Chapter 1
Acting the Part, part 2 - Chapter 10
Maps and Guides
- continents of Alacantis and Kranisis (five maps)
- continent of Almara (five maps)
- countries of Kri'enden and Yezi'im (four maps plus "other places")
- characters, pronunciation and glossary
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Lori Svensen
author/designer at A'mara Books
photographer/graphic artist for Viking Visual
verified author on Goodreads
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