Secrets of the Swords, Book 1

Chapter 14: Meeting the General

They were drawing stares.

Suthe slowly turned, taking in the sights around her, but acutely aware of the curious, and sometimes suspicious, looks of other people passing by. Her first instinct was to look down and avoid their gaze, but they were just as foreign to her as she was to them, and she found herself staring right back at their glossy black hair and peculiar clothing.

The painting, Suthe learned, had been of Fai, an old Andilirish city in the north of the mountain kingdom. The city had once been occupied by miners and jewelers, but gradually the jewelers had left for the more temperate climate of the capital in the south of the country, and Fai's buildings had grown shabby with the remaining occupants living on only modest mining wages.

There was, however, a strong military force in the city, with a large training base just on the outskirts. Echoes of explosions often alternated sources between the blasting in the mines and the training exercises from the base. Every time a blast went off, Suthe felt like jumping out of her skin. She didn't know how the locals could stand it.

"Remind me to teach you some Andilirish meditation while we're here," Ulsper muttered as Suthe followed him through the winding streets of the city. Another detonation had just sounded from somewhere to their right, and Suthe had nearly dropped the canvas bag that Marrene had packed for her.

"I'm surprised they can meditate in this constant noise," Suthe said. "Will it help me get used to the explosions?"

Ulsper shook his head. "No, but it will help you be less jittery. Your immune system won't be able to keep up if you're always this tense, and you'll get sick more easily. It might also help with the development of your—" He paused for a moment as an older couple strolled past from the opposite direction, and tugged his hood lower. "—skills."

My magic. Suthe tried to ignore the curious gaze of the elderly couple, acutely aware of how much she and Ulsper stood out here.

"Okay," she whispered, trying to keep her voice low. "So where are we going now?"

Ulsper let out a long breath. "There's someone here who owes me a favor. A general of the ninth infantry unit."

"And he's here in Fai?"

Ulsper spared her a sidelong glance. "She is."

"She?"

Ulsper remained silent.

"So what is she going to help us with?"

"Connecting us with people we can trust. In case you'd forgotten, Sylterra has sent out their most talented to search for me, and your country has declared the arrest of all of your kind. It won't be easy finding answers about the Twin Blades without getting caught in the process."

Suthe gulped. "You really think this general won't betray us?"

The muscles in Ulsper's jaw tightened. "I'm fairly certain."

"Only fairly?" It didn't sound promising to Suthe. "And what if she does?"

"She won't."

"But you just—ack!"

Suthe's interrogation was interrupted as Ulsper suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her into the shadows of an alleyway on their right. Annoyed, Suthe twisted out of his grasp.

"What was that for?" She took a step back and put her hands on her hips.

"Shush." Ulsper pulled her back against the wall of the closest building and gestured to the main street. "Look."