Assassin 3 - Royal Assassin (59 page)

He nodded gravely and I left him, my visit to
the stables soured. I did not want to walk down the rows of stalls
and wonder how many horses would still remain by the end of
winter.

I walked slowly across the courtyard and then
inside and up the stairs to my room. I paused on the landing.
Verity? Nothing. I could sense his presence inside myself, he could
convey his will to me and sometimes even his thoughts. But still,
whenever I tried to reach out to him, there was nothing. It
frustrated me. If only I had been able to Skill reliably, none of
this would be happening. I paused to carefully curse Galen and all
he had done to me. I had had the Skill, and he had burned it out of
me, and left me with but this unpredictable form of it.

But what about Serene? Or Justin, or any of the
others of the coterie? Why was not Verity using them to keep in
touch with what was happening, and to let his will be
known?

A creeping dread filled me. The messenger birds
from Bea
rn
s. The signal
lights, the Skilled ones in the towers. All the lines of
communications within the kingdom and with the King seemed not to
be working very well. They were what stitched the Six Duchies into
one and made of us a kingdom rather than an alliance of Dukes. Now,
in these troubled times, more than ever we needed them. Why were
they failing?

I saved the question to ask Chade, and prayed
that he would summon me soon. He called me less often than he had
once, and I felt I was not as privy to his councils as I once had
been. Well, and had not I excluded him from much of my life as
well? Perhaps what I felt was only a reflection of all the secrets
I kept from him. Perhaps it was the natural distance that grew
between assassins.

I arrived at the door of my room just as
Rosemary had given up knocking.

Did you need me? I asked her.

She dropped a grave curtsy. Our lady, the
Queen-in-Waiting Kettricken, wishes you to attend her at your
earliest convenience.

That's right now,, isn't it? I tried to get a
smile out of her.

No. She frowned up at me. I said `at your
earliest convenience, sir.' Isn't that right?

Absolutely. Who has you practicing your manners
so assiduously?

She heaved a great sigh. Fedwren.

Fedwren is back from his summer travels
already?

He's been back for two weeks, sir!

Well, see how little I know! I shall be sure to
tell him of how well you spoke when next I see him.

Thank you, sir. Forgetting her careful decorum,
she was skipping by the time she reached the top of the stairs, and
I heard her light footsteps go cascading down them like a tumble of
pebbles. A likely child. I doubted not that Fedwren was grooming
her to be a messenger. It was one of his duties as scribe. I went
into my room briefly to put on a fresh shirt, and then took myself
down to Kettricken's chambers. I knocked on the door and Rosemary
opened it.

It is now my earliest convenience, I told her,
and this time was rewarded with a dimpled smile.

Enter, sir. I shall tell my mistress you are
here, she informed me. She gestured me to a chair and vanished into
the inner chamber. From within, I could hear a quiet muttering of
ladies' voices. Through the open door I glimpsed them at their
needlework and chatter. Queen Kettricken tilted her head to
Rosemary, and then excused herself to come to me.

In a moment Kettricken stood before me. For an
instant I just looked at her. The blue of the robe picked up the
blue of her eyes. The late-fall light finding its way through the
whorled glass of the windows glinted off the gold of her hair. I
stared, I realized, and lowered my eyes. I rose immediately and
bowed. She didn't wait for me to straighten up. Have you been
recently to visit the King? she asked me without
preamble.

Not in the last few days, my lady
queen.

Then I suggest you do so this evening. I am
concerned for him.

As you wish, my queen. I waited. Surely that was
not what she had called me here to say.

After a moment she sighed. Fitz. I am alone here
as I have never been before. Cannot you call me Kettricken and
treat me as a person for a bit?

The sudden change in tone took me off balance.
Certainly, I replied, but my voice was too formal. Danger,
Nighteyes whispered.

Danger? How?

This is not your mate. This is the leader's
mate.

It was like finding an aching tooth with your
tongue. The knowledge jarred through me. There was a danger here,
one to guard against. This was my queen, but I was not Verity and
she was not my love, no matter how my heart set to beating at the
sight of her.

But she was my friend. She had proven that in
the Mountain Kingdom. I owed her the comfort that friends owe one
another.

I went to see the King, she told me. She
gestured me to sit and took a chair of her own across the hearth
from me. Rosemary fetched her little stool to sit at Kettricken's
feet. Despite our being alone in the room, the Queen lowered her
voice and leaned toward me as she spoke. I asked him directly why I
had not been summoned when the rider came in. He seemed puzzled by
my question. But before he could even begin an answer, Regal came
in. He had come in haste, I could tell. As if someone had run to
tell him I was there, and he had immediately dropped everything to
come.

I nodded gravely.

He made it impossible for me to speak to the
King. Instead, he insisted on explaining it all to me. He claimed
that the rider had been brought directly to the King's chamber, and
that he had encountered the messenger as he came to visit his
father. He had sent the boy to rest while he talked with the King.
And that together they had decided that nothing could be done now.
Then Shrewd had sent him to announce that to the boy and the
gathered nobles, and to explain to them the state of the treasury.
According to Regal, we are very near on the brink of ruin, and
every penny must be watched. Bea
rn
must look out for Bea
rn
's own, he told me. And when I asked if
Beam's own were not Six Duchies folk, he told me that
Bea
rn
had always stood
more or less on its own. It was not rational, he said, to expect
that Buck could guard a coast so far to the north of us, and so
long. Fitz, did you know that the Near Islands had already been
ceded to the Raiders?

I shot to my feet. I know that no such thing is
true! I blurted in outrage.

Regal claims it is so, Kettricken continued
implacably. He says that Verity had decided before he left that
there was no real hope of keeping them safe from the Raiders. And
that is why he called back our ship Constance. He says Verity
Skilled to Carrod, the coterie member on the ship, to order the
ship back home for repairs.

That ship was refitted just after harvest. Then
she was sent out, to keep the coast between Sealbay and Gulls, and
to be ready should the Near Islands call for her. It is what her
master asked for; more time to practice seamanship in winter
waters. Verity would not leave that stretch of coast unwatched. If
the Raiders establish a stronghold on the Near Islands, we shall
never be free of them. They can raid winter and summer alike from
there.

Regal claims that is what they have done
already. He says our only hope now is to treat with them. Her blue
eyes searched my face.

I sank down slowly, near stunned. Could any of
this be true? How could it have been kept from me? My sense of
Verity within me mirrored my confusion. He knew nothing of this
either. I do not think the King-in-Waiting would ever treat with
the Raiders. Save with the sharp of his sword.

This is not, then, a secret kept from me lest it
distress me? Regal implied as much, that Verity would keep these
things secret from me, as beyond my understanding. There was a
trembling in her voice. It went beyond her anger that the Near
Islands might have been abandoned to the Raiders, to a more
personal pain that her lord might have found her unworthy of his
confidences. I longed so badly to take her in my arms and comfort
her that I ached inside.

My lady, I said hoarsely. Take this truth from
my lips as surely as it came from Verity's own. All this is as
false as you are true. I shall find the bottom of this net of lies
and slash it wide open. We shall see what sort of fish falls
out.

I can trust you to pursue this quietly,
Fitz?

My lady, you are one of the few who knows the
extent of my training in quiet undertakings.

She nodded gravely. The King, you
understand, denies none of this. But neither did he seem to follow
all that Regal said. He was ... like a child, listening to his
elders converse nodding, but understanding little .... She glanced
down fondly at Rosemary at her feet.

I shall go to see the King as well. I promise, I
shall have answers for you, and soon.

Before Duke Bearns arrives, she cautioned
me.
I
must have the
truth by then. I owe him at least that.

We shall have more than just the truth for him,
my lady queen, I promised her. The emeralds weighed heavy still in
my pouch. I knew she would not begrudge them.

CHAPTER
TWENTY

DURING THE YEARS of the Red-Ship raids, the Six
Duchies suffered significantly from their atrocities. The folk of
the Six Duchies at that time learned a greater hatred of the
Outislanders than ever they had felt before.

In their grandfathers' and fathers' times,
Outislanders had been both traders and pirates. Raids were carried
out by solitary ships. We had not had a raiding war such as this
since the days of King Wisdom. Although pirate attacks were not
rare occurrences, they were still far more infrequent than the
Outisland ships that came to our shores to trade. The blood ties
among the noble families to Outisland kin were openly acknowledged,
and many a family owned to a cousin in the Outislands.

But after the savage raiding that preceded
Forge, and the atrocities at Forge, all friendly talk of the
Outislands ceased. Their ships had always been more wont to visit
our shores than our traders to seek out their ice plagued harbors
and swift-tided channels. Now trade ceased entirely. Thus our folk
knew nothing of their Outisland kin during the days when we
suffered the Red-Ships. Outislander became synonymous with Raider,
and in our minds, all Outisland vessels had red hulls.

But one, Chade Fallstar, a personal adviser to
King Shrewd, took it upon himself to travel to the Outislands in
those perilous days. From his journals we have this:

Kebal Rawbread was not even a name known in the
Six Duchies. It was a name not breathed in the Outislands. The
independent folk of the scattered and isolated villages of the
Outislands had never owed allegiance to any one King. Nor was Kebal
Rawbread thought of as a King there. Rather he was a malevolent
force, like a freezing wind that so coats a ship's rigging with ice
that in a hour she turns belly-up on the sea.

The few folk I encountered that did not fear to
talk said Kebal had founded his power by subduing the individual
pirates and raiding ships to his control. With those in hand, he
turned his efforts to recruiting the best navigators, the most
capable captains, and the most skillful fighters the scattered
villages had to offer. Those who refused his offers saw their
families escralled, or Forged, as we have come to call it. Then
they were left alive to cope with the shattered remnants of their
lives. Most were forced to put family members to death with their
own hands; Outislander customs are strict regarding a householder's
duty to maintain order amongst family members. As word of these
incidents spread, fewer resisted the offers of Kebal Rawbread. Some
few fled: their extended families still paid the price of escral.
Others chose suicide, but again, the families were not spared. Such
examples left few daring to defy Rawbread or his ships.

Even to speak against him invited escral. Sparse
as was the knowledge I gained on this visit, it was gained with
great difficulty. Rumors I gathered as well, though they were as
sparse as black lambs in a white flock. I list them here. A white
ship is spoken of, a ship that comes to separate souls. Not to take
them, or destroy them: to separate them. They whisper, too, of a
pale woman whom even Kebal Rawbread fears and reveres. Many related
the torments of their land to the unprecedented advances of the ice
whales or glaciers. Always present in the upper reaches of their
narrow valleys, they now advanced more swiftly than in the memory
of any living man. They were rapidly covering what little arable
soil the Outislands possessed and, in a way no one could or would
explain to me, bringing a change of water.

I went to see the King that evening. It was not
without trepidation on my part. He would not have forgotten our
last talk about Celerity, any more than I had. I reminded myself
firmly that this visit was not for my personal reasons but for
Kettricken and Verity. Then I knocked and Wallace grudgingly
admitted me. The King was sitting up in his chair by the hearth.
The Fool was at his feet, staring pensively into the fire. King
Shrewd looked up as I entered. I presented myself and he greeted me
warmly, then bade me be seated and tell him how my day had gone. At
this, I shot the Fool a brief puzzled glance. He returned me a
bitter smile. I took a stool opposite the Fool and
waited.

King Shrewd looked down on me benignly. Well,
lad? Did you have a good day? Tell me about it.

I have had a ... worrisome day, my
king.

Have you, now? Well, have a cup of tea. It does
wonders to soothe the nerves. Fool, pour my boy a cup of
tea.

Willingly, my king. I do so at your command even
more willingly than I do it for yourself. With a surprising
alacrity, the Fool leaped to his feet. There was a fat clay pot of
tea warming in the embers at the edges of the fire. From this the
Fool poured me a mug and then handed it to me, with the wish, Drink
as deeply as our king does, and you shall share his
serenity.

I took the mug from his hand and lifted it to my
lips. I inhaled the vapors, then let the liquid lap lightly against
my tongue. It smelled warm and spicy, and tingled pleasantly
against my tongue. I did not drink, but lowered the cup with a
smile. A pleasant brew, but is not merrybud addictive? I asked the
King directly.

He smiled down on me. Not in such a small
quantity. Wallace has assured me it is good for my nerves, and for
my appetite as well.

Yes, it does wonders for the appetite, the Fool
chimed in. For the more you have, the more you shall want. Drink
yours quickly, Fitz, for no doubt you will have company soon. The
more you drink, the less you shall have to share. With a gesture
like a petal unfurling, the Fool waved toward the door at the
precise instant that it opened to admit Regal.

Ah, more visitors. King Shrewd chuckled
pleasantly. This shall be a merry evening indeed. Sit down, my boy,
sit down. The Fitz was just telling us he'd had a vexatious day. So
I offered him a mug of my tea to soothe him.

No doubt it will do him well, Regal agreed
pleasantly. He turned his smile on me. A vexatious day,
Fitz?

A troubling one. First, there was the small
matter down at the stables. One of Duke Ram's men was down there,
claiming that the Duke had purchased four horses. One of them
Cliff, the stud horse we use for the cart mares. I persuaded him
there must be some mistake, for the papers were not signed by the
King.

Oh, those! The King chuckled again. Regal had to
bring them back to me; I'd forgotten to sign them at all. But it is
all taken care of now, and I am sure the horses will be on their
way to Tilth by the morrow. Good horses, too, Duke Ram will find
them. He made a wise bargain.

I had never thought to see us sell our best
stock away from Buckkeep. I spoke quietly, looking to
Regal.

And neither did I. But with the treasury as
depleted as it is, we have had to take hard measures. He regarded
me coolly a moment. Sheep and cattle are to be sold as well. We
have not the grain to winter them over anyway. Better to sell them
now than to see them starve this winter.

I was outraged. Why have not we heard of these
shortages before? I have heard nothing of a failed harvest. Times
are hard, it is true, but-

You have heard nothing because you have not been
listening. While you and my brother have immersed yourselves in the
glories of war, I have been dealing with the purse to pay for it.
And it is well nigh empty. Tomorrow, I will have to tell the men
working on the new ships that they must either labor for the love
of it or leave off their work. There is no longer coin to pay them,
nor to buy the materials that would be needed to finish the ships.
He finished his speech and leaned back, considering me.

Within me, Verity roiled. I looked to King
Shrewd. This is true, my king? I asked.

King Shrewd started. He looked over at me and
blinked his eyes a few times. I did sign those papers, did I not?
He seemed puzzled, and I think his mind had gone back to a previous
conversation. He had not followed our talk at all. At his feet, the
Fool was strangely silent. I thought I had signed the papers. Well,
bring them to me now, then. Let us get this done, and then get on
with a pleasant evening.

What is to be done about the situation in
Bea
rn
s? Is it true that
the Raiders have taken parts of the Near Islands?

The situation in Bea
rn
s, he said. He paused, considering. He
took another sip of his tea.

Nothing can be done about the situation in
Bea
rn
s, Regal said
sadly. Smoothly he added, It is time Bea
rn
s took care of Bea
rn
s's troubles. We cannot beggar all Six
Duchies to protect a barren stretch of coastline. So the Raiders
have helped themselves to a few frozen rocks. I wish them joy of
them. We have folk of our own to care for, villages of our own to
rebuild.

I waited in vain for Shrewd to rouse, to say
something in defense of Bea
rn
s. When he was silent, I asked quietly,
The town of Ferry is scarcely a frozen rock. At least, it wasn't
until the Red-Ships called. And when did Bea
rn
s cease to be part of the Six Duchies? I
looked to Shrewd, tried to make him meet my eyes. My king, I beg
you, order Serene to come. Have her Skill to Verity, that you may
counsel together about this.

Regal grew suddenly weary of our cat and mouse.
When did the dog boy come to be so concerned with politics? he
asked me savagely. Why cannot you understand that the King can make
decisions without the permission of the King-in-Waiting? Do you
quiz your king on his decisions, Fitz? Have you so far forgotten
your place? I knew Verity had made something of a pet of you, and
perhaps your adventures with your ax have given you large ideas of
yourself. But Prince Verity has seen fit to go gallivanting off
after a chimera, and I am left to keep the Six Duchies rattling
along as best I may.

I was present when you endorsed King-in-Waiting
Verity's proposal to seek the Elderlings, I pointed out. King
Shrewd seemed to have gone off into another waking dream. He stared
into the fire.

And why that was so, I have no idea, Regal
rejoined smoothly. As I observed, you have come to have large ideas
of yourself. You eat at the high table, and are clothed by the
King's largesse, and somehow you have come to believe this gives
you privileges rather than duties. Let me tell you who you really
are, Fitz. Regal paused. To me it seemed he looked at the King, as
if gauging how safe it was for him to speak.

You, he continued in a lowered voice, tone as
sweet as a minstrel's. You are the misbegotten bastard of a
princeling who had not even the courage to continue as
King-in-Waiting. You are the grandson of a dead Queen whose common
breeding showed in the common woman her eldest son bedded to
conceive you. You who take the name to yourself of FitzChivalry
Farseer need do no more than scratch yourself to find Nameless the
dog boy. Be grateful I do not send you back to the stables, but
suffer to let you abide in the Keep.

I do not know what I felt. Nighteyes was
snarling to the venom in Regal's words, while Verity was capable of
fratricide at that moment. I glanced at King Shrewd. He cupped his
mug of sweet tea in both hands and dreamed into the fire. From the
corner of my eyes, I had a glimpse of the Fool. There was fear in
his colorless eyes, fear as I had never seen there before. And he
was looking, not at Regal, but at me.

I abruptly realized that I had arisen and was
standing over Regal. He was looking up at me. Waiting. There was a
glint of fear in his eyes, but also the shine of triumph. All I
would have to do was strike at him, and he could call the guards.
It would be treason. He would hang me for it. I felt how the fabric
of my shirt was binding on my shoulders and chest, so swollen with
rage was I. I tried to exhale, willed the balled fists of my hands
to loosen. It took a moment. Hush, I told them. Hush, or you'll get
me killed. When I had my voice under control, I spoke.

Many things have been made clear to me this
night, I said quietly. I turned to King Shrewd. My lord king, I bid
you good evening, and ask to be excused from your
presence.

Eh? So you ... had an anxious day,
lad?

I did, my lord king, I said softly. His deep
eyes looked up into mine as I stood before him, waiting to be
released. I looked deep into their depths. He was not there. Not as
he once had been. He looked at me puzzledly, blinked a few
times.

Well. Perhaps you had best get some rest, then.
As should I. Fool? Fool, is my bed prepared? Warm it with the
warming pan. I grow so cold at night these days. Ha! At night these
days! There's a bit of nonsense for you, Fool. How would you say
it, to get it aright?

The Fool sprang to his feet, bowed deeply before
the King. I would say there's the chill of death about the days
these nights as well, Your Majesty. A cold fair to curl the bones,
it is. A man could take his death of it. It would warm me more to
hide in your shade than to stand before your sun's heat.

King Shrewd chuckled. You don't make a bit of
sense, Fool. But then you never did. Good night to all, and off to
bed, lads, both of you. Good night, good night.