An Aimless War (Greatest Thief 2)

Chapter Thirty

When we had sailed away from Zianna months earlier, I hadn't really looked at the city. As we approached it, I looked. It seemed so small, tucked against the looming Cliffs of Loth. I had always known the cliffs were huge. Seeing them from a distance helped put the size into perspective. I had never really thought of Zianna itself as tiny, but after seeing some proper mainland cities, East Draulin and Deorun, I could tell that Zianna was smaller.

But it was still my city. My dirty, familiar lower city. My pristine, risky upper city.

As we sailed closer, I watched the line of shadow creep over the city, bringing Lothian Dusk. I wondered what Baisan and the others were up to.

It was dark by the time we docked our stolen ship in the busy port. Tannix disembarked the moment the ship was secure, only to immediately be met by guards. It made sense; they would be suspicious of a Deoran ship. It didn't take him long to clear things up, and we left the guards apologizing profusely and promising to keep an eye on the ship.

We were met at the end of the pass by a large man dressed in the yellow unform of a castle guard. I realized that I knew him, except I was used to him wearing blue.

"Lord Tan-Lord West Draulin." He gave Tannix a curt nod. "I just sent the messenger on to the king."

"Thank you, Eppson," Tannix said.

"I'll escort you." Eppson looked over the rest of us, his gaze lingering first on Ender and his crutch, and then on Lady Mayah. He gave her the same sort of nod he had given Tannix. "Lady East Draulin. Welcome to Zianna. Come," he pivoted, and we followed him as he led the way through the gate into the castle grounds.

The grounds were fairly empty, but the castle was teeming with activity. There were guards pacing on the battlements and standing at the door. Candles flickered in many of the windows, making it look like the rooms were occupied even if they probably weren't.

The guards standing at the main doors opened them immediately for Eppson. As soon as we stepped through them, we were met by another one of Tandrin's guards.

"He's in his office," the younger knight said. "Jalor, thank the Goddess." He slipped into our huddle to draw Jalor into a very brief hug.

"Cail," Tannix interrupted. "Would you mind taking my men to get some food? And have a physician called for Ender."

"Of course, sir," the knight said. "Come, cousin. Tell me everything."

Some food was tempting, but I hung back with Tannix, Mayah and Acen. Eppson led us further into the castle, through the large atrium I had been in the year before, down a long hallway, up multiple staircases, and finally to a thick wooden door.

Tannix took a deep breath before knocking.

Tandrin's voice faintly replied. "Enter!"

Tannix pushed through the door. Tandrin stood frozen behind a large desk, with Queen Esmeranda sitting by his side. They had clearly been in the process of looking through a huge pile of documents.

Tandrin looked different. He was a very young king, and his usual dynamic expressions had been replaced by exhaustion and worry. His hair was messier, and he had the beginnings of beard, as if it had been a few days since his last shave. Instead of blue, he was wearing a black tunic with fancy lacing across his chest. He still wore multiple rings, and his simple gold necklace was visible around his neck.

He wasn't wearing the crown. It was sitting on the corner of the desk. I let it distract me as the silence drew out between the brothers.

Tandrin was the one to break it. "Tannix... What were you thinking! You can't just run off whenever you feel like it! Being in power doesn't mean you get to do whatever you want, you know that. You have to put your city first."