Meanwhile in Assiraz
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yrae
Title~ Meanwhile in Assiraz
Author~ Annarti
Disclaimer~ Zakaariss is Sallie's, the rest including Kazin is all mine.
Warnings~ Spoilers~
Notes~ Part of my 'finish off the WIPs' phase, this one's been sitting half-done for more than a year. Basically figuring out what's going on in Assiraz at the time of chapter 12-ish of Tarnish. As such there are spoilers, I guess, but no really huge revelations that the Raykinians haven't already figured out themselves.
~ ~ ~
Prince Sahid thundered up the long driveway to the front door of the palace. He threw himself from his horse’s back, allowing one of the palace servants to stable it, then ran inside. He briefly considered making himself more presentable before delivering his news to the empress, but dismissed the thought quickly. He had information she needed to know, and she needed to hear it from him.
The pair of guards outside the throne room doors bowed deeply when they saw him.
‘Who’s she meeting with?’ Sahid demanded.
‘The General and the Commanding Circle,’ one of the guards answered as he straightened.
Sahid nodded. Of course she was. He doubted she’d had any meetings with anyone else in the last three months. ‘Good,’ he said. ‘They need to hear this too.’ He gestured to the door.
The guards bowed again and pushed the double doors open.
‘Prince Sahid,’ one of the pair announced.
Sahid took a breath to try and settle his thumping heart, then strode into the room. Once the doors had clicked closed behind him, he bowed deeply to the assembled Commanders, his parents and his younger sister.
‘I bring disturbing news from Silrona,’ he said, standing straight again and locking his hands behind his back. He addressed his mother directly as he spoke. ‘Queen Shala has been slain.’
Empress Shizaaqa’s eyes flashed in anger as the Commanders murmured around her. ‘How?’ she demanded.
Sahid spread his hands. ‘I can’t be certain, Mother. General Hizaadi insists she was alive before I arrived. He went to retrieve her from the dungeons where she was being held, then came back looking white as a sheet. He said her throat had been slit.’
‘How?’ the empress pressed, her irritation rising.
‘I don’t know,’ Sahid repeated, feeling his fingers prickle under his mother’s hard glare. ‘I have suspicions, but—’
‘Tell me.’
Sahid swallowed. This was the bigger piece of news. ‘Prince Nolryn of Raykin is in Kazin, along with his King’s Own Warriors.’
‘What? I was told he was dead.’
‘That’s what everyone believed,’ Sahid agreed. ‘Raykin banished him to the desert, but he survived. Hizaadi says he met with him, the day after I arrived in Silrona. He blames Prince Nolryn for Queen Shala’s death.’
Shizaaqa rapped one nail against the arm of her throne as she scrutinised her son. ‘You’re hesitating,’ she accused.
‘I don’t believe him,’ Sahid confirmed, eyes flicking briefly over the faces of the Commanders. He was giving his own opinions now, not merely relaying information. ‘I think for him, Prince Nolryn’s presence was just a convenience.’
‘Spit it out, Sahid,’ Shizaaqa hissed. ‘Are you accusing General Hizaadi?’
Sahid nodded. ‘The Silronan dungeons were extremely well-protected when I was there, better than I would have expected of them. Nobody except someone who was well-trusted by the dungeon guards could have gotten down there, certainly not Prince Nolryn.’
Shizaaqa sat quietly for a moment, then looked towards General Misbah with a brief nod, opening up the floor to him and the Commanders.
‘Did you see Prince Nolryn yourself?’ Misbah began.
Sahid shook his head. ‘No, Father, but there can be no mistake he was there. The palace staff confirmed it, and I had men search the city for their inn, but they had left by the time we found it. Silrona’s northern House had records of their passage, and said they had split up after passing through.’
‘Split up?’ Misbah pressed.
‘Half headed towards Ruzaka and Nissaya, the other half took the direct route to Assiraz.’
Misbah frowned curiously. Sahid shifted his stance. ‘And you never saw them on the way up here, either?’
Sahid glared back at his father as he shook his head. ‘I felt my resources were better spent up here than searching for a banished Raykinian prince. Frankly, I can’t see them making it this far, not with only half of them.’
Commander Zakaariss cleared his throat. ‘They are not merely six or seven warriors, Prince Sahid. I’m sure you remember the reason for this war.’
Sahid gritted his teeth as he shot a quiet glare at the Commander, then an inquiring glance at his mother. Shizaaqa said nothing of the veiled insult, though, and Sahid shook his head. ‘The magic stone, yes, Commander, I know. Hizaadi said their General wasn’t wearing it at their meeting. She must have left it in Ni-Yana.’
He dared to allow himself a small, smug grin as he squared his shoulders.
Zakaariss registered no change. ‘I’ll thank you to make no further speculations, Sergeant,’ he said, putting the prince in his place without actually reprimanding him. ‘Assuming it’s in her pocket or being worn by one of the other warriors is a much safer option.’
‘Quite right,’ Assili agreed. The young princess had her eyes fixed on Sahid. ‘You said they split up. Who’s coming to Assiraz directly?’
‘Neither the prince nor their General,’ Sahid said with a shake of his head. ‘They’re both easily recognisable, but none of the Houses had seen either of them. Inside Assiraz’s borders, none had seen the Raykinians at all.’
Assili’s brow creased, and Sahid could see her asking herself questions as she watched him.
‘You’ve spoken with him often, Empress,’ Zakaariss said, turning to Shizaaqa. ‘Is Prince Nolryn perhaps willing to disguise himself to gain safer passage?’
Shizaaqa rapped her nails against the arm of her throne for a moment. Her eyes narrowed rather than furrowing her brow as she thought. ‘No,’ she said finally. ‘He’s too brazen for that. He’s spoken with Hizaadi as Raykin’s prince. He’s not hiding.’
Sahid frowned. ‘But why isn’t he in the group coming straight here? What’s in Ruzaka or Nissaya for him?’
Shizaaqa’s lips curled into a grimace as soon as Sahid had asked the question, though it was Assili who answered him aloud.
‘More queens,’ she said.
Sahid stared in admiration at his younger sister. He’d been asking himself that question for weeks, and she’d answered it without a second thought. There was a reason she was to become empress.
‘What would you have me do, Mother?’ he asked, expecting he would finally see some action.
‘Not yet,’ the empress replied firmly. ‘This is mere speculation, Sahid. Prince Nolryn is not one to hide, but in order to protect his own skin, I would not put it past him.’ She shook her head. ‘He has no reason to be in Nissaya, and every reason to be here.’
‘Then we’ll need to—’
‘Speculation, Sahid.’
‘But—’
‘Assili’s observation is still valid.’ Every vowel was clipped to the edge of patience. ‘As is yours that he had little opportunity to break into Silrona’s dungeons. I want you here to welcome him to Assiraz, should he arrive. The Houses are to notify me of any Raykinian man entering the city, and hold him until you arrive. Disguised or not, you’ll still recognise him.’
Sahid straightened and gave a curt nod as he received his orders, though he didn’t share his mother’s confidence. He’d only ever had a few, short conversations with the Raykinian heir, and one yellow-skinned warrior looked the same as any other to his eyes. Still, he supposed, how many Raykinian warriors were there to be in Assiraz right now?
‘Commander Zakaariss,’ the empress continued, turning to the commander, ‘Send your fastest riders to Syzra. Rezzi, send yours to Nissaya, Hasan, to Ruzaka. Warn the queens of the Raykinians’ movements. I want eyes on them at all times. Whether Prince Nolryn is in the second group or not, they have a purpose for splitting up. As soon as that reason is learned, I want them escorted to me.’
Sahid cleared his throat impatiently. ‘I have some of the fastest riders in Assiraz,’ he reminded her. ‘Send me and I’ll have Prince Nolryn delivered to you within the week.’
‘Weren’t you listening?’ Assili snapped. ‘We want them to think they’re guests here. While they’re split up, one half could still warn the other. While they are welcomed, they’ll bring the feather to our front door.’
Sahid stared at her without a word. He was unsure whether to admire her or feel repulsed. No more was she his baby sister, she reminded him of that more with every day.
‘Thank you, Sahid,’ Shizaaqa told him, cutting off any response he may have made. ‘You may go.’
He bowed deeply to his mother and sister, nodded to the Commanding Circle and turned to leave. He tried his hardest not to kick at the marble floor in his frustration as he strode from the throne room. His news should have won him far more favours than it had. The only task he’d been given was to play welcoming committee for the Raykinian prince, while others were riding off to take the glory in capturing the warriors.
It was only as he left that he heard the whisperings of soft sandals behind him. He turned to see Assili approaching him, her face unreadable.
‘Walk with me, brother,’ she told him, floating past in a cloud of pale pink gauze.
Sahid took a breath and followed her. ‘I only ask for what I deserve,’ he told her.
‘Mother gave you more than you deserve,’ Assili snapped. She looked up at him with desperate eyes. ‘Did you really not see any of the hostility directed at you?’
‘Plenty,’ the prince muttered.
Assili shook her head with an irritated sigh. ‘You just don’t get it. Mother, Father and the commanders have all given up on you.’
The words were a knife, but he shook his head in defiance. ‘No. I’m—’
‘Sahid, for once in your life would you shut up and listen? You’re doing me no favours.’
He stopped walking and frowned at her. Mother, Father and the commanders, she’d said, but not herself.
The young princess turned to face him. ‘I want you in my Circle, Sahid, but your worst enemy is in the mirror. You’re a bent arrow. You shout your opinions so loudly that nobody can be left with any doubt.’ Her look was pitying, a desperate call to her brother.
He shifted uncomfortably under that stare, more soul-piercing than any of Shizaaqa’s angered glares. ‘If they plan to ship me to the outer provinces—’
She closed her eyes and cringed. ‘Everyone knows of your contempt for Aunt Shala,’ she said carefully. She opened her eyes and closed the distance between them. ‘I want you in my Circle,’ she repeated, ‘but I need to know I can trust you. You know you can trust me. Whatever you say now will only be for my ears. Not a whisper of it will reach Mother.’
The candle slowly lit in Sahid’s mind. He swallowed but found his mouth dry. He knew now what she was asking, but didn’t dare to answer.
‘Was it you?’ she said aloud. ‘Were you the one who killed Queen Shala?’
Author~ Annarti
Disclaimer~ Zakaariss is Sallie's, the rest including Kazin is all mine.
Warnings~ Spoilers~
Notes~ Part of my 'finish off the WIPs' phase, this one's been sitting half-done for more than a year. Basically figuring out what's going on in Assiraz at the time of chapter 12-ish of Tarnish. As such there are spoilers, I guess, but no really huge revelations that the Raykinians haven't already figured out themselves.
Prince Sahid thundered up the long driveway to the front door of the palace. He threw himself from his horse’s back, allowing one of the palace servants to stable it, then ran inside. He briefly considered making himself more presentable before delivering his news to the empress, but dismissed the thought quickly. He had information she needed to know, and she needed to hear it from him.
The pair of guards outside the throne room doors bowed deeply when they saw him.
‘Who’s she meeting with?’ Sahid demanded.
‘The General and the Commanding Circle,’ one of the guards answered as he straightened.
Sahid nodded. Of course she was. He doubted she’d had any meetings with anyone else in the last three months. ‘Good,’ he said. ‘They need to hear this too.’ He gestured to the door.
The guards bowed again and pushed the double doors open.
‘Prince Sahid,’ one of the pair announced.
Sahid took a breath to try and settle his thumping heart, then strode into the room. Once the doors had clicked closed behind him, he bowed deeply to the assembled Commanders, his parents and his younger sister.
‘I bring disturbing news from Silrona,’ he said, standing straight again and locking his hands behind his back. He addressed his mother directly as he spoke. ‘Queen Shala has been slain.’
Empress Shizaaqa’s eyes flashed in anger as the Commanders murmured around her. ‘How?’ she demanded.
Sahid spread his hands. ‘I can’t be certain, Mother. General Hizaadi insists she was alive before I arrived. He went to retrieve her from the dungeons where she was being held, then came back looking white as a sheet. He said her throat had been slit.’
‘How?’ the empress pressed, her irritation rising.
‘I don’t know,’ Sahid repeated, feeling his fingers prickle under his mother’s hard glare. ‘I have suspicions, but—’
‘Tell me.’
Sahid swallowed. This was the bigger piece of news. ‘Prince Nolryn of Raykin is in Kazin, along with his King’s Own Warriors.’
‘What? I was told he was dead.’
‘That’s what everyone believed,’ Sahid agreed. ‘Raykin banished him to the desert, but he survived. Hizaadi says he met with him, the day after I arrived in Silrona. He blames Prince Nolryn for Queen Shala’s death.’
Shizaaqa rapped one nail against the arm of her throne as she scrutinised her son. ‘You’re hesitating,’ she accused.
‘I don’t believe him,’ Sahid confirmed, eyes flicking briefly over the faces of the Commanders. He was giving his own opinions now, not merely relaying information. ‘I think for him, Prince Nolryn’s presence was just a convenience.’
‘Spit it out, Sahid,’ Shizaaqa hissed. ‘Are you accusing General Hizaadi?’
Sahid nodded. ‘The Silronan dungeons were extremely well-protected when I was there, better than I would have expected of them. Nobody except someone who was well-trusted by the dungeon guards could have gotten down there, certainly not Prince Nolryn.’
Shizaaqa sat quietly for a moment, then looked towards General Misbah with a brief nod, opening up the floor to him and the Commanders.
‘Did you see Prince Nolryn yourself?’ Misbah began.
Sahid shook his head. ‘No, Father, but there can be no mistake he was there. The palace staff confirmed it, and I had men search the city for their inn, but they had left by the time we found it. Silrona’s northern House had records of their passage, and said they had split up after passing through.’
‘Split up?’ Misbah pressed.
‘Half headed towards Ruzaka and Nissaya, the other half took the direct route to Assiraz.’
Misbah frowned curiously. Sahid shifted his stance. ‘And you never saw them on the way up here, either?’
Sahid glared back at his father as he shook his head. ‘I felt my resources were better spent up here than searching for a banished Raykinian prince. Frankly, I can’t see them making it this far, not with only half of them.’
Commander Zakaariss cleared his throat. ‘They are not merely six or seven warriors, Prince Sahid. I’m sure you remember the reason for this war.’
Sahid gritted his teeth as he shot a quiet glare at the Commander, then an inquiring glance at his mother. Shizaaqa said nothing of the veiled insult, though, and Sahid shook his head. ‘The magic stone, yes, Commander, I know. Hizaadi said their General wasn’t wearing it at their meeting. She must have left it in Ni-Yana.’
He dared to allow himself a small, smug grin as he squared his shoulders.
Zakaariss registered no change. ‘I’ll thank you to make no further speculations, Sergeant,’ he said, putting the prince in his place without actually reprimanding him. ‘Assuming it’s in her pocket or being worn by one of the other warriors is a much safer option.’
‘Quite right,’ Assili agreed. The young princess had her eyes fixed on Sahid. ‘You said they split up. Who’s coming to Assiraz directly?’
‘Neither the prince nor their General,’ Sahid said with a shake of his head. ‘They’re both easily recognisable, but none of the Houses had seen either of them. Inside Assiraz’s borders, none had seen the Raykinians at all.’
Assili’s brow creased, and Sahid could see her asking herself questions as she watched him.
‘You’ve spoken with him often, Empress,’ Zakaariss said, turning to Shizaaqa. ‘Is Prince Nolryn perhaps willing to disguise himself to gain safer passage?’
Shizaaqa rapped her nails against the arm of her throne for a moment. Her eyes narrowed rather than furrowing her brow as she thought. ‘No,’ she said finally. ‘He’s too brazen for that. He’s spoken with Hizaadi as Raykin’s prince. He’s not hiding.’
Sahid frowned. ‘But why isn’t he in the group coming straight here? What’s in Ruzaka or Nissaya for him?’
Shizaaqa’s lips curled into a grimace as soon as Sahid had asked the question, though it was Assili who answered him aloud.
‘More queens,’ she said.
Sahid stared in admiration at his younger sister. He’d been asking himself that question for weeks, and she’d answered it without a second thought. There was a reason she was to become empress.
‘What would you have me do, Mother?’ he asked, expecting he would finally see some action.
‘Not yet,’ the empress replied firmly. ‘This is mere speculation, Sahid. Prince Nolryn is not one to hide, but in order to protect his own skin, I would not put it past him.’ She shook her head. ‘He has no reason to be in Nissaya, and every reason to be here.’
‘Then we’ll need to—’
‘Speculation, Sahid.’
‘But—’
‘Assili’s observation is still valid.’ Every vowel was clipped to the edge of patience. ‘As is yours that he had little opportunity to break into Silrona’s dungeons. I want you here to welcome him to Assiraz, should he arrive. The Houses are to notify me of any Raykinian man entering the city, and hold him until you arrive. Disguised or not, you’ll still recognise him.’
Sahid straightened and gave a curt nod as he received his orders, though he didn’t share his mother’s confidence. He’d only ever had a few, short conversations with the Raykinian heir, and one yellow-skinned warrior looked the same as any other to his eyes. Still, he supposed, how many Raykinian warriors were there to be in Assiraz right now?
‘Commander Zakaariss,’ the empress continued, turning to the commander, ‘Send your fastest riders to Syzra. Rezzi, send yours to Nissaya, Hasan, to Ruzaka. Warn the queens of the Raykinians’ movements. I want eyes on them at all times. Whether Prince Nolryn is in the second group or not, they have a purpose for splitting up. As soon as that reason is learned, I want them escorted to me.’
Sahid cleared his throat impatiently. ‘I have some of the fastest riders in Assiraz,’ he reminded her. ‘Send me and I’ll have Prince Nolryn delivered to you within the week.’
‘Weren’t you listening?’ Assili snapped. ‘We want them to think they’re guests here. While they’re split up, one half could still warn the other. While they are welcomed, they’ll bring the feather to our front door.’
Sahid stared at her without a word. He was unsure whether to admire her or feel repulsed. No more was she his baby sister, she reminded him of that more with every day.
‘Thank you, Sahid,’ Shizaaqa told him, cutting off any response he may have made. ‘You may go.’
He bowed deeply to his mother and sister, nodded to the Commanding Circle and turned to leave. He tried his hardest not to kick at the marble floor in his frustration as he strode from the throne room. His news should have won him far more favours than it had. The only task he’d been given was to play welcoming committee for the Raykinian prince, while others were riding off to take the glory in capturing the warriors.
It was only as he left that he heard the whisperings of soft sandals behind him. He turned to see Assili approaching him, her face unreadable.
‘Walk with me, brother,’ she told him, floating past in a cloud of pale pink gauze.
Sahid took a breath and followed her. ‘I only ask for what I deserve,’ he told her.
‘Mother gave you more than you deserve,’ Assili snapped. She looked up at him with desperate eyes. ‘Did you really not see any of the hostility directed at you?’
‘Plenty,’ the prince muttered.
Assili shook her head with an irritated sigh. ‘You just don’t get it. Mother, Father and the commanders have all given up on you.’
The words were a knife, but he shook his head in defiance. ‘No. I’m—’
‘Sahid, for once in your life would you shut up and listen? You’re doing me no favours.’
He stopped walking and frowned at her. Mother, Father and the commanders, she’d said, but not herself.
The young princess turned to face him. ‘I want you in my Circle, Sahid, but your worst enemy is in the mirror. You’re a bent arrow. You shout your opinions so loudly that nobody can be left with any doubt.’ Her look was pitying, a desperate call to her brother.
He shifted uncomfortably under that stare, more soul-piercing than any of Shizaaqa’s angered glares. ‘If they plan to ship me to the outer provinces—’
She closed her eyes and cringed. ‘Everyone knows of your contempt for Aunt Shala,’ she said carefully. She opened her eyes and closed the distance between them. ‘I want you in my Circle,’ she repeated, ‘but I need to know I can trust you. You know you can trust me. Whatever you say now will only be for my ears. Not a whisper of it will reach Mother.’
The candle slowly lit in Sahid’s mind. He swallowed but found his mouth dry. He knew now what she was asking, but didn’t dare to answer.
‘Was it you?’ she said aloud. ‘Were you the one who killed Queen Shala?’
no subject
Date: 2011-11-14 12:27 pm (UTC)And I love this fic. Its just awesome. I fucking love the Kazinians, they make me squee and I love every fic of them. You kinda feeling for Sahid in places but then don't because he's such... a him XD
I like seeing his relationship with Assili at the end. Oh yes.
AND HIS RAGING LUST FOR ZAKKY. It was so there. In the subtext.
no subject
Date: 2011-11-15 07:01 am (UTC)IT SO TOTALLY WAS I'm glad you saw it X3