Of Wardens, Barons, And Dukes

  Skye basked in the sunlight, breathing cool air that was neither damp nor still. Great oaks and pines towered around him, the rustle of their leaves mingling with birdsong. This freedom to visit the surface at his whimsy was what he’d desired for so long, and he almost felt ungrateful for wanting his bell gone.

  The Neashures’ estate boasted the grandest garden on the surface, so wide, it occupied a fifth of Solarite. The large steel gate was adorned with florald gemstones arrayed in the shape of a flower, and around the gate, over forty black-hooded figures congregated, carrying glimmering astra.

  A shiver ran down Skye’s spine. He’d never seen so many wardens together before. He was a rat invading a lions’ den. A very desperate rat.

  Once he confirmed Dray wasn’t among these wardens, he decided to enter. A group of floating carriages arrived, towing behind them carts. After checking their documents and load, the wardens opened the gate, and Skye dashed without hesitation, ringing his bell.

  Once inside, he took a breather to calm his headache, then rushed to the villa. Dozens of lavish carriages were parked in an open, graveled area, suggesting that everyone important in Troqua had been invited this afternoon. Wardens patrolled among trimmed trees, flowering hedges, and ornamental shrubs. But Skye couldn’t shake the feeling that no matter how many were present, it’d never be enough.

  He couldn’t tell if the merchants were exceptionally strong of heart, or ill of brains. Elexii could sense the presence of humans like addicts could detect buried shrooms. Skye wasn’t the only rat here, and the wardens weren’t even cats, much less lions. They were all insects stealing moments of joy from a roost of dragons.

  It took him some searching and ringing to finally locate his target.

  A lone hooded warden patrolled a tree-hedged corridor behind the estate. Dray looked like a refined version of Lyonel, with the same silky brown hair, glasses, and delicate features. But where Lyonel was clumsy and fidgety, Dray had the signature poise of a warden. And while Lyonel could easily imitate a malnourished hamster, Dray gave off more of a fit-fox kind of vibe.

  Skye paused in the bushes. Ever since the cave, he’d been wary of all wardens. He had no clue how deep their conspiracy went or how many were involved. Plus, the few times he’d met Dray, long ago, were too brief to form an opinion. Nonetheless, he knew Lyonel.

  When Lyonel’s parents died seven years ago, Dray stepped in and raised his little brother alone. He’d done fine work by Skye’s reckoning, as Lyonel was a kind, educated, and occasionally, a funny guy. Skye decided to place some trust in his friend’s brother and stepped forward.

  Dray was lost in thought, staring at the trees. When he first saw Skye, his gaze drifted away, unnoticing. Then he flinched, eyes snapping wide as he faced him.

  “You’re not supposed to be here,” Dray said.

  Skye paused, feeling stumped. He’d dressed well for this occasion, stealing a golden-embroidered green doublet and brown pants from Nakais’s private closet. He’d even combed his hair. How did Dray recognize, with a single glance, that he didn’t belong?

  “Hi, my name is Skye, and I’m-“

  “I didn’t ask your name,” Dray snapped. “You need to leave.”

  Skye inhaled deeply, trying to keep his calm. He needed Dray’s help, so he had to be cordial. “I’m a friend of Lyonel’s and I need help.”

  Dray straightened at once, his focus gathering completely on Skye. A single crystalline earring in his left ear caught the sunlight like an insect’s thousand eyes. “Is Lyonel alright?”

  “He’s fine,” Skye said. “It’s I who needs your assistance.”

  “Why me?” Dray asked, relaxing slightly. Then he blinked, shaking his head. “Wait, how did you get up here? Do you know whose place this is? Do you have any clue who’s present here today?”

  “It’s the Neashures’ estate, and I assume representatives of most of the merchant families are here,” Skye said. “I also heard the duke returned recently, so maybe him as well. And of course, there are over three hundred wardens on duty, but only you can help me.”

  Dray frowned. “Can’t this wait till we’re back underground?”

  “No, it’s very urgent,” Skye replied. Realistically it could wait. But he’d been searching for clues for weeks without success. He was done waiting.

  “Lyonel told me of a special library that only the wardens can access,” Skye started, watching Dray’s reaction. The warden didn’t even blink. “I know you visit it often and I was hoping you might help me reach it.”

  “You mean the wardens’ private library?” Dray asked.

  “Yes!” Skye exclaimed, too happy to hide his smile. “You know where it is?”

  “Yes, it’s next to the barracks,” Dray said, giving him the are-you-an-imbecile-everyone-knows-that shrug.

  Skye’s smile fell. He’d already visited the HQ’s library and found nothing outstanding on its shelves except some scrolls on elexii classification. “Not that one. I’m talking about another secret library that only few people can access.”

  Dray shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Yes, you do,” Skye insisted.

  “No, I don’t. Why would you believe there is a hidden library?”

  “Because you bring books from it.”

  “They’re from the wardens’ library!”

  “Lyonel said they’re bound strangely, unlike any he’d seen before.”

  “Lyonel has never been to the wardens’ library.”

  “He also said they had strange symbols that glow.”

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  “So what? The library doesn’t exist!”

  “I guess I’ll ask the other wardens if they’ve seen such bizarre books.”

  “Lyonel, you Scar-mouthed idiot,” Dray muttered, finally relenting. He sighed, rubbed his face, then crouched next to Skye. “Look, kid…”

  “Skye.”

  “Alright, Skye. You are asking me to toss you into a snakes’ pit. It’s not fun in there. You’ll die. Forget about it and go home.”

  “I can’t do that. I need help. I’m at my wits’ end and I don’t know what to do.”

  “What do you need it for?”

  Skye hesitated. He was not about to share his full story with a warden, no matter how kind they seemed. Just in case, he summoned his bell.

  “Someone put a curse on me that makes people forget me. I need to learn how to remove it.”

  Dray raised an eyebrow. “You want books on memory-alteration spells?”

  “Yes! Do you know anything about them?”

  Dray stood. “When it comes to the secret library—which, by the way, doesn’t exist—memory spells are the last thing I’d want anyone to learn. If such information falls into the wrong hands, they can wreak havoc in Troqua. The least they can do is access the library unattended and steal other sensitive information.”

  Despite Dray’s rejection, Skye grinned. There were memory-related books in the hidden library after all.

  “I’m not interested in any other information,” Skye said. “All I need are books on how to remove my curse.”

  Dray looked over his shoulder, ensuring the walkway was empty. “I can’t help you, Skye. If I divulge anything related to the library—which again, doesn’t exist—and you get caught, then you, me, and Lyonel, will be in huge trouble. Like death sentence trouble. Wardens don’t tolerate breaches. If you are so desperate, seek out any of the other tens of libraries in Troqua. You have much better luck entering those.”

  Skye had tasted the wardens’ tolerance before. Which was exactly why he needed to break his curse as soon as possible.

  “I know the library’s hidden somewhere in the Deeps,” he said. Dray’s eyes twitch, confirming his guess. “I’ll be careful. I won’t be seen; I promise. No one will know you or Lyonel are involved.”

  Dray swept the perimeter one more time then checked the distant windows of the villa.

  “The library has one entrance only and it is guarded around the clock by multiple wardens. Sneaking inside is impossible. They’ll arrest you on sight and dig into your head till they learn everything about you. It’s too dangerous.”

  “Please,” Skye pleaded. “I’m about to go mad because of it.”

  Dray shook his head. “I won’t tell you, kid. I can’t.”

  A cloud passed overhead, casting the world into shade. Cold winds blew, shaking the trees, making Skye shiver. He didn’t know what to say to persuade Dray. He’d come without a plan, foolishly assuming Lyonel’s brother would simply take pity and help.

  “I’m going to have a very long talk with Lyonel once my shift is over,” Dray said, mostly to himself. “As for you, you’re coming with me. I don’t know how you got in here, but you stand out like a burnt radethyst with such paltry gemstones on your person. Give me your hand.”

  “No!” Skye jumped away, unable to contain his distress any longer. “You have to tell me!”

  “Don’t make me force you, kid,” Dray warned, his tone harsh, warden-like. “Better I escort you out than anyone else.”

  Skye slapped his hand away and bolted for the trees, dropping behind a thick trunk.

  “What are you playing at? I know you’re there,” Dray called.

  Skye rang his bell.

  The warden stretched, yawning audibly, and ambled away. Instead of trying again immediately, Skye crouched in the shadows, breathing hard, trying to formulate a strategy. A change of angle was necessary, and he needed a plausible purpose for wanting to reach the library. Something that wouldn’t make Dray outright reject him.

  He sat organizing his thoughts as Dray paced the path. When he finally had the courage to try again, two wardens rounded the corner, approaching Dray. They both wore the same insignia on their chest as Dray: A raised, winged fist, blocking the rising sun.

  Skye cursed and ducked, ringing the bell.

  “Hey coalbrains, which cloud got your head today?” the first warden said. He was unquestionably the fattest warden Skye had ever seen. His shaved, round face and pinched nose made him look like an oversized baby.

  Skye realized the jibe was a tease and not an insult when Dray intimately shook the two wardens’ hands. They were friends, which meant it’d probably take a while before he had the chance to speak with Dray alone again.

  He tapped the trunk with the back of his head, then activated his curse. He had to speak with Dray now. There was no telling how many times he needed to try before he got the warden to reveal his secrets; the process might take hours. Void, it might take days!

  Sighing, he peeked through the branches.

  “You’ll miss the barbecue,” the fat warden warned with a wide smile.

  “I thought you were on a diet?” Dray said.

  “He is on diets. He’s just trying all of them at once to see which suits him best,” the other warden said. He looked more of a delinquent than a warden. For starters, his cape had a high collar instead of a hood, and his pants were too baggy. The upper buttons on his shirt were open, revealing his beefy, hairy chest. He had a blonde forward pompadour, and his fingers were all covered in jeweled rings of various colors. His face was stubbly and handsome, albeit a bit too rectangular and bronzed. And he had one of those chin-butts that girls adored.

  Looking at the estate through the trees, the delinquent released a long whistle. “Hey, hey, hey! That’s one high cloud you got your head into. Are you sure you want to break your heart chasing it?”

  “Is that Lady Remalea’s window?” the fat warden whistled. “Even I’d miss the feast for a chance to see her in her bedroom.”

  Dray scratched the back of his head, flushing red. “Come on guys. We’d get in trouble if you’re caught staring like this. Plus, it is quite rude.”

  “Then we should pretend we’re patrolling, and steal only occasional glances,” the blond warden teased, elbowing Dray. “And here we thought you were following the warden’s code, working diligently.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Dray said with a frown. “I am working hard.”

  The two wardens repeated Dray’s line in tones of childish mockery or arrogant posh, then spent a good minute laughing.

  Skye sat hidden, rocking in his place. He finally got a lead that might take him somewhere, and here he was, watching three overgrown boys ogle a window. He considered confronting Dray in the presence of his friends, but he had no idea how they’d react.

  The blond warden lit a cigarette and took a long drag. “You guys remember our training years?” he asked, leaning against a tree. “How we used to push ourselves every day, striving to become wardens? Heroes?”

  “Yeah,” Dray said. “Mirio was half the man he is now, and you used to know how to button your shirt.”

  Mirio slapped the blond warden’s back. “What’s gotten you so maudlin?”

  “I’m bored,” the blond warden said. “I don’t feel like a hero. All we do is watch out for elexii, but they rarely come near Solarite. Even the surface loses its charm after a while. Look at me! I’ve always wanted a suntan, and now I look like a burnt potato.”

  “Excitement for wardens can be deadly,” Dray said. “Boredom is good.”

  “And the food’s decent,” Mirio added.

  “If you keep on getting bigger, no lady will take you as a husband,” Dray warned.

  “Especially if your chest’s bigger than hers,” the blond warden said.

  “As if you’re one to talk, Ficar,” Mirio retorted. “The only thing separating you from a shrooms dealer is the uniform.”

  “Actually, with your enhancements, your uniform also passes as a shrooms dealer’s,” Dray said.

  The three friends chuckled.

  Ficar exhaled smoke, then faced his friends. “I’m asking for more missions. I want to try harder, to become a true hero. I want a crown insignia.”

  Mirio frowned. “That’ll be dangerous.”

  Ficar nodded.

  “A couple of promotions won’t get you into the duke’s royal guards,” Dray said, folding his arms. “That’ll take lots of back-smooching.”

  “I know,” Ficar said. “I’ll have to get into Akunai’s circle, which means I won’t see you guys much.”

  “That’ll be… sad,” Mirio said, lips tugging downward.

  They stood in silence as Ficar finished his cigarette.

  Skye clenched his jaw, breathing slowly to keep his blood from boiling. He was considering screaming at them to leave when Dray spoke up.

  “They left,” he said, looking through the trees.

  “You saw her?! She was there?” Mirio asked.

  “They?” Ficar asked.

  “I need a favor,” Dray said. “The duke’s mansion has been receiving lots of foreign cargo and none of the servants know what it’s for. I-”

  “The duke?!” Ficar interrupted. “Wait! Which cloud exactly got your head?”

  “I’d do anything to learn what he’s planning,” Dray finished calmly, ignoring Ficar’s question.

  Skye perked up. That’s it! That’s what I need. Something to bargain with.

  “Why don’t you ask the chief?” Mirio asked.

  “Akunai would never answer me, and he won’t take kindly to me prodding,” Dray said.

  They continued talking as they walked away, but Skye had already gotten what he wanted. Heart thudding, he slipped out of hiding and hurried toward the Neashures’ villa.

  **********