The Grace of Kings (24 page)

“And now you can dream of a palace as grand as you like.” Kimo released one of the horses from the carriage harness and jumped onto its back without a saddle. “But as for me, I'm going to follow a real hero.”

He turned east and rode toward Çaruza, where Mata Zyndu, another son of Tunoa and already a legend, had ridden with Réfiroa.

We concede this first round, Kiji. We've clearly underestimated both Marana
and Namen.

That seems to be a pattern with you two and Fithowéo, always looking down on Xana.

Gloat all you want, brother, puff up like one of your airships. The one
laughing the last will be the one laughing the loudest.

“My heart is gladdened to see you,” King Thufi said, as he welcomed Phin and Mata Zyndu at the gates of Çaruza. “Cocru desperately needs a true marshal.”

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

THE GATES OF ZUDI

ÇARUZA AND ZUDI: THE FOURTH MONTH IN THE FOURTH YEAR OF THE REIGN OF RIGHTEOUS FORCE.

Tanno Namen's surprise attack on Dimu marked the beginning of a grand Imperial sweep along the southern shore of the Liru River. Within weeks, most of the towns and cities that had surrendered to the Krima-Shigin Expeditionary Force were back under Imperial control, and the Imperial army began an inexorable march south for the reconquest of Cocru.

The Grand Council of War in Çaruza, convened by King Thufi of Cocru, had been debating for weeks without coming to a resolution.

King Thufi glanced around the meeting hall and saw that the ambassadors of Amu, Faça, Rima, and Gan, along with King Cosugi of Haan, were all present. Each man sat in formal
mipa rari
on mats in their respective Tiro colors on the thick and smooth straw paper floor, keeping their backs tall and straight while spreading their weight evenly between their knees and toes.

“We must begin by properly honoring the memory of King Jizu, the bravest monarch of the Islands of Dara,” said the Rima ambassador. He dabbed at the corners of his eyes with his sleeves.

Everyone in the hall nodded in assent, and each rose in turn to offer an elaborate speech praising the brave life and even braver death of King Jizu. King Thufi glanced at the descending level in the water clock and tried to hide his impatience. It was doubtful if any of these men, including the Rima ambassador, could have picked King Jizu out of a group of beggars three weeks ago. But now they all acted as if they had known the man since he was a child.

The Faça ambassador gave the longest speech of all and emphasized again and again the “special relationship” between Faça and Rima. King Thufi tried so hard not to give in to the temptation to roll his eyes that he found himself suffering from a headache. The Faça ambassador finally sat down, an hour later.

“Thank you for the honor shown Rima today,” the Rima ambassador said, his voice almost cracking. “I suppose I am now the head of the Rima government-in-exile,” he added in a voice that was just loud enough to be heard by everyone in the meeting hall without being considered indecorous.

Just as King Thufi was about to raise the main issue he wanted the council to discuss, the Faça ambassador got up again. “We should also mourn King Huno of West Cocru. Though his manners might have been rough”—the ambassador winked at the ambassadors from Gan and Amu, who tittered—“he was nonetheless honored by King Thufi and elevated into the ranks of the great Tiro states.”

You might think Huno Krima was a country bumpkin, but without him, this rebellion wouldn't have even started. The least you could do is to honor the man's memory with some sincerity
.

But Thufi had to suppress his anger. There were more important things that he wanted to discuss, and he needed the cooperation of this idiot who spoke for Faça.

One by one, the others in the hall stood up again to offer disingenuous tributes to King Huno. Thankfully, their speeches were brief this time.

Finally,
thought King Thufi. “My
tiro
Lords, we must discuss the urgent matter of Tanno Namen's invasion of Cocru—”

But King Cosugi interrupted him. “Thufi, if you would indulge an old man for a minute.”

With great effort, King Thufi swallowed the rest of his speech and nodded at Cosugi to go on. He already knew what Cosugi was going to say. Though Haan wasn't even free of Imperial occupation, Cosugi was obsessed with preserving Haan's “territorial integrity.” The man had one tune, and he sang it constantly.

Yet, he couldn't just tell Cosugi to shut up. All the Tiro states were, in theory, equals. So despite the fact that Haan had contributed absolutely nothing to the rebellion so far, Thufi had to let Cosugi have his say in the Grand Council.

“I've heard some distressing news that Faça's troops are taking advantage of Namen's focus on Cocru to occupy lands that by ancient and natural right belong to Rima and Haan,” King Cosugi said.

“Your Majesty, I'm certain you're mistaken,” the Faça ambassador said. “The maps given to the Faça commanders have been scrupulously examined to correct those old errors that might have mistakenly enlarged Haan at the expense of Faça. But you've reminded me of something else. I
do
need to lodge a protest with Gan. Gan ships have been harassing Faça fishermen around the Ogé Islands. Those islands have always belonged to Faça, not Gan, as I'm sure everyone here can attest.”

“I don't think the Annals of Gan agree with you,” said the ambassador of Gan. “Indeed, the illegal occupation of those islands by Faça occurred only because Gan had been too busy dealing with Xana more than a hundred years ago. And while we are talking about correcting old errors, I think it's high time for Cocru to finally do the honorable thing and return the Tunoas to Gan.”

King Thufi rubbed his temples in a vain attempt to alleviate the sharp stabs of pain that threatened to break his skull.

“My
tiro
Lords,” he finally said, and he almost had to spit out the honorific. “You seem to be operating under the impression that the empire is already history and that we're already back to the old days of the squabbling Seven States. But you're forgetting that the Imperial army is marching closer with each passing minute, and either we put aside our differences and stand together, or else we'll each again suffer the fate of Rima and fall under the yoke of Xana.”

The ambassadors and King Cosugi were silent for a moment, but soon the meeting hall was again filled with their incessant bickering.

King Thufi rubbed his temples harder.

Phin Zyndu, listening in the corridors outside the meeting hall, shook his head and said nothing as he turned to leave. There was real work to be done, and he could no longer afford to waste time.

Since it was spring and the weather warm and pleasant, Kuni Garu decided to take Jia, Rin, Cogo, Mün, and Than on a picnic. All the reports said that Namen and the Imperial army were still miles away to the west, and a picnic would take people's minds off the anxiety of how to defend Zudi against an Imperial assault.

“I do
not
want to hear anything about needing more horses today,” Kuni said as soon as Than Carucono arrived with horses for the party.

Than smiled. “Not a word.”

They kept the pace slow for Jia's benefit. She was due any day now, but she enjoyed the fresh air and the hills full of wildflowers. From time to time she stopped and asked others to dig up interesting-­looking herbs that she sniffed and then put away in her pouch.

Jia had also prepared a picnic lunch of fresh steamed pork buns (these she flavored with some of the new herbs she picked up on the way; “As fresh as they get,” she said), bamboo shoots soaked with sugar and vinegar, crab cakes sprinkled with Dasu hot pepper, and bubbly wine taken from the collection of Lieutenant Dosa, the former commander of the Imperial garrison at Zudi who had rebelled and joined Kuni. Instead of using eating sticks, everyone just picked from the dishes with their hands.

“That was a good meal,” Kuni said, and burped in satisfaction. The six of them were lying on the side of a sun-warmed hill, having eaten and drunk their fill, and tired from hunting hares and pheasants. They let the horses wander and graze at will. It was such a lovely day, and it would be a shame to go back to the city and do actual work.

Than got up to stretch and to make sure the horses didn't go too far. “Why are they flying white flags over the city?” he said.

The others lazily got up, shaded their eyes, and gazed at the walls of Zudi in the distance. Than was right. Instead of the red flags charged with black and white ravens, white flags now flapped over the city gates, and Kuni had the unpleasant suspicion that the bird on the flags was a Mingén falcon.

Suddenly sober and worried, Kuni and his retinue rode hard and rushed back to the gates of Zudi. Unsurprisingly, the gates were closed and locked.

“I'm sorry, Duke Garu.” The man shouting from the top of the walls was a former Imperial.

“Where's Muru?” Kuni shouted. Muru was normally in charge of raising and lowering the gates.

“He wouldn't betray you and tried to fight, and Lieutenant Dosa had to kill him.”

Kuni felt as if he had been punched hard in the gut. “Why are you doing this?”

“While you were out, Lieutenant Dosa asked the city elders to pledge allegiance to the emperor again. We hear that General Namen will spare any city that ejects the rebels and surrenders right away. But if we resist, the punishment will be harsh. I really like you, Duke Garu, and I think you're a fine prince. But I have a wife and a little girl, and I want to watch her grow up and get married.”

For a moment, Kuni was racked by his old doubts. His face clouded over, and as his horse backed up, he almost fell off.

“Damn,” he muttered. “Damn.”

“You started with nothing,” said Jia. “Why can't you start again?”

Kuni reached for Jia's hand and squeezed, hard.

When he looked up again, his face was filled with determination. “It's all right,” he shouted up at the walls. “Tell everyone that I understand their decision, even if I don't agree. But you haven't seen the last of Kuni Garu.”

As the sun set in the west, six horses carrying six dejected riders stopped by a small stream to camp for the night. After some deliberation, Kuni decided that the most sensible course was to head for Çaruza and see if he could convince King Thufi to accept this “duke by proclamation” and lend him some troops to get Zudi back.

They cooked the hares and pheasants they had caught earlier on the open fire, but the dark mood around the fire contrasted sharply with the lighthearted festivities earlier in the day.

A tall man emerged from the woods next to the river and approached the group. Than and Mün were wary and lifted their hands to the hilts of their swords. The man smiled disarmingly, held up his empty hands, and walked slowly toward the fire. As he came closer, into the circle of light cast by the fire, they saw that he was lean and gaunt, and his skin was as black as the famed sands of Lutho Beach. His bright-green eyes sparkled in the flickering light.

“I am Luan Zya, a man of Haan. Would you be willing to share your food with a stranger? I would be happy to offer my wineskin.”

Kuni stared at the stranger. This Luan Zya—something about his figure stirred his mind and recalled a memory from almost a dozen years ago: that day when he and Rin Coda had admired the Imperial Procession of Emperor Mapidéré just outside of Zudi.

“You are the kite rider,” he blurted out. “You are the man who tried to kill the emperor.”