He saw a slight, delicate man, his body most likely coming to the end of its prime years. There was a studied poise about him, that struck Vasin as too rigid to be comfortable. The Opal tended to keep to themselves, and he knew nothing of Lakshin beyond a name. This in itself was odd. Most Deathless were known for something, even if it was embarrassing. No legend was visible either, which would be fine if Lakshin was in his first lifecycle, but he wasn’t, suggesting mediocrity. And as everyone knew, there was no such thing as a mediocre Deathless, at least never for very long.
Anuja pointed to her left. ‘And this is Lord Quasim of House Peridot.’
Quasim was in a young body, well muscled, but already showing signs of a fast life. The legend of a previous lifecycle had turned both of his ears gold, along with the knuckles on his right hand. Vasin wondered what the tales behind them were. He’d heard the Story-singers praise Quasim’s courage and humour but he also recalled his mother making a barbed comment about the man going through three lifecycles in the time most Deathless enjoyed one.
He gave a bow of respect to them both. ‘A pleasure to meet you.’
In the red light, their faces seemed like statues, their eyes hidden in bloody shadows. Neither of them bowed nor saluted, though their heads tilted in the barest form of acknowledgement. It stabbed at his pride, making his fists clench within his long slevees, but he couldn’t blame them for being angry. After all, House Sapphire had all but slammed its doors on everyone else.
He went and took a seat, pondering the best approach as the servant poured him a glass of wine.
This has to go well. If I can win them over, I gain two more voices that will support my challenge when it comes.
‘I’m afraid I bring bad news.’ And he told them of his encounter with Quiverhive.
Anuja looked grave as he spoke, Quasim puzzled, as if still waiting for the punchline to a joke, and Lakshin shook his head in disbelief. ‘A demon on the Godroad? Unharmed?’ He shook his head a second time. ‘Impossible. Perhaps you mistook its closeness for contact, as you say, you were high above it.’
‘I know what I saw.’
‘Did your hunters see it also?’
‘No.’
‘Your entourage then?’
Vasin’s heart sank. ‘No … I travelled here alone.’
‘Then you will forgive me if I trust centuries of experience before the report of one Sapphire Deathless.’
There was a brief and awkward silence. All four of them filled it by sipping from their drinks.
Quasim leaned forward. ‘Lady Anuja tells us you are most nimble in the sky, Lord Vasin.’
He gave a nod to Anuja in recognition of the compliment. ‘Then I hope I prove worthy of her words when we next fly together.’
Quasim grinned. ‘She says you’re almost as good as me!’
Anuja rolled her eyes but said nothing. Her silence seemed out of place, given that she acted as the High Lord of her house. It troubled him.
‘Perhaps,’ Quasim added, ‘you would be interested in pitting your wings against mine?’
‘Perhaps,’ echoed Vasin. ‘But I am more interested in how my wings might serve my friends. I’ve heard a little of how things are here, but not from you.’
‘Things are hard,’ said Quasim, still grinning. ‘And glorious. The Wild throws ever more at us, and we prove more than a match for it.’
‘I hear the most recent hunt had six tributes.’
‘Aye! And they drew out a mighty horde for us to fight.’
‘What was it like?’
‘It’s hard to describe,’ said Lakshin. ‘You really had to be there.’
Another insult. He kept a tight grip on his pride, reminding himself that he needed the Opal onside. ‘I’m here now and I don’t intend to be idle. If there’s anything you can tell me, it would be appreciated.’
Lakshin scowled and Vasin wasn’t sure if it was at the memory or the imposition. ‘These aren’t like normal hunts. They start the same way of course, but the moment we take wing, things change.’
‘Forgive me,’ he glanced at Anuja. ‘But there’s nothing normal about sending six tributes.’
‘It’s true,’ agreed Lakshin, also glancing at Anuja. ‘May I?’ She waved consent and he continued. ‘In the hunt before, Fourboards made its sacrifices and sent out two tributes, as is the tradition.’ Lakshin looked out of the window towards the distant, glittering lights below. ‘Neither of them made it more than twenty paces into the Wild before they were taken. Can you believe it? It was so sudden our hunters never even found the torches.’ He shook his head, still disbelieving. ‘The following night was a long one for the people of Fourboards. Murkers came right up to the fences. In the end, they were driven off but by then they’d managed to break one of the supporting stilts and an entire house fell into the swamp.’
‘They attacked the settlement itself? You’re sure?’
Lakshin seemed annoyed at the interruption. ‘What of it?’
‘I thought Murkers only attacked living things.’
‘They were, the house was full of living things.’
‘Yes, but to bring down a structure like that …’
‘Please. They’re beasts, the house was between them and food so they attacked it. It’s no different to when the Toothsack ate part of Raften.’
Vasin frowned. He wasn’t convinced, and nor it seemed, was Anuja. Lakshin seemed to consider the matter closed and carried on.
‘In response to the attack, the elders of Fourboards called another hunt and upped the number of tributes to six.’
‘And did these tributes get through?’
‘Oh they got through,’ said Quasim. ‘It was incredible. Imagine it, Lord Vasin. All that blood in one place crying out through six wounds. They called every demon in the swamp.’
‘Incredible?’ snorted Lakshin. ‘It was the height of idiocy. There we were, three Deathless, all backed by hunters, and it was all we could do to not be overwhelmed.’
Vasin was surprised when Anuja didn’t respond to this criticism of her people. Perhaps she agrees with him. ‘I don’t think idiocy is the same as desperation. By the sounds of it Fourboards needed the second hunt to succeed.’
‘You don’t throw out a thousand years of tradition because of one anomaly!’
‘What other choice did they have?’
‘To endure. The traditions are there to protect us all. By breaking them, Fourboards put us all at risk. Surely you of all people should understand that?’
Vasin took a deep breath as he imagined hooking his fingers into the Opal’s lower jaw and ripping it out. He kept his hands by his sides however, and his voice light, ‘That’s why I’m here, to honour our friends in House Ruby.’
Lakshin’s eyebrows lifted. ‘I look forward to seeing it, Lord Vasin. Now, if you’ll excuse me, my lady, it’s been a long day.’
Quasim stood up as well. ‘A glorious day! Fourboards is safe once more, and the Wild will take time to recover from the beating we gave it.’
As will Lady Anuja, thought Vasin. As will we all. It troubled him that despite all they had seen, Lakshin and Quasim were still behaving as if everything was normal. As if tradition and skill alone would be enough to see order restored.
‘A toast before