Novel 3. The Last Autumn

— In drawings, of course, not in person, — Akira replied, straightening up. The unruly strand on the top of her head stood up again and swayed amusedly. — The snake people lived on the Cherry Islands before our human ancestors came. They were ruled by a serpent king with a thousand heads. Our ancestors fought with them for three centuries and killed them all, but there remained drawings, records, even armour and skulls of snake warriors. True, when our people lost the war to the Shogun and fled here, across the sea, they took with them only books with drawings. I was shown them at school.

— Well, heads of science, and you didn't tell me anything about it? Or you didn't know? Carlon certainly didn't know, but you, sword-wielding scribe? — Valria squinted at the Lady Maria.

— No... I haven't read anything like that. — The guardswoman was not offended in the least by the elf's tone. Arching her eyebrows, she rubbed her chin with her slender fingers. — I'm sure. When we get back to Elvarth, I'll look for more books on the myths of Erdo. Or visit the Irutava library, but I don't read Erdo symbols...

It was risky to return to the capital's port with the prisoners, but the turmoil on the continent required the Chancellor to remain in Innoto at all times. The Senate of the Republic met almost daily. So Armando and Yuriev interrogated the captured sailors in the hold of the "Elena" while the ship was on its way back. They also went alone to the same office on the third floor to report. Taiko was waiting for them at his desk and started the conversation first:

— Don Armando, welcome back. Last time we met, you asked me to gather some information for you, didn't you?

— Yes, sir Chancellor, — de Gorazzo bowed. The head of the Republic signalled the guests to sit down. He said, tapping his finger on the papers on the table:

— A lot of things happened in Daert. The Duke of Velonda let several large nomadic tribes from the steppe pass through his lands. The nomads swirled through the interior lands of the kingdom, pillaging and burning. King Auguste is still moving towards the borders of the rebellious duchy, but he has had to let the vassals go. Now only the crown regiments and de Veronne's army are with him. And their supplies are threatened as nomads ravage villages and intercept wagons.

Sir Irutava was silent, as if expecting some words from Armando. However, the former royal bailiff remained silent. Then the Chancellor continued:

— A wise tactical move, but not the best strategic move. It's lost the Duke a lot of sympathy. He'll have no support outside his duchy. Marshal de Cotoci's army is still camped in the border forest, not going to Velonda. Recently, ambassadors from the elven principalities of the Coalition — instead of the Duke's residence — have arrived at the Marshal's camp. What they are negotiating about we do not know yet. But we already know for sure that a certain young female mage acts as a political and magical adviser to de Cotoci. She keeps in the shadows, so about her appearance and name, unfortunately, I can not say anything yet. Agents of the Republic have been ordered to identify the counsellor.

— My gratitude is immense, sir. — Don de Gorazzo did not know how to bow in his chair, so he simply lowered his head and put his palm to his chest.

— It was nothing, all this information I needed to know as a taiko anyway. — Sir Irutawa folded his hands on the tabletop. — Now it was my turn to listen.

— Everything is confirmed, sir. — Boyarin Yuriev stroked his beard, nodded respectfully. — A ship from Tagawa's personal fleet tried to take aboard a group of three men with unusual equipment. We intervened. It was a hell of a fight, and Dorlt and his daughter hadn't forget how to steer a ship through the seven winds. We didn't manage to take the passengers alive.

— All the officers from that ship were also killed in the battle, except the boatswain and the ship's doctor, — Armando added. — So we brought the whole deck crew with us. The sailors don't know much, but a little bit from each of them gives us the whole picture.

Actually, most of the crew of the galleys were oarsmen chained to the oars, but they had gone down with the ship. Listening to the cries of the drowning peoples, Lady Maria turned greenish from pale, and Armando gently explained to her that the oarsmen were convicts — hired oarsmen were only in the Senate fleet. The white-skinned girl agreed that there was no need to pity the condemned pirates and robbers, but she left the deck and sat in her cabin all day, not taking her eyes off a book.

— Your experience as an interrogator came in handy, — Taiko said simply as a fact.

— Yes, my lord. The boyarin was present during the interrogation and will confirm my words. The galley we intercepted belonged to the Tagawa clan fleet. It was supposed to pick up the aliens and take them quickly to the island of... — Armando hesitated, slowly pronouncing the complicated name: — ...the island of Tattorubaku. The sailors were forbidden to ask questions of the passengers, or even to look at them.

The Chancellor leaned back in his chair, was silent for a while, looking at de Gorazzo without much expression. He said:

— Tattorubaku is the main source of iron in the Republic. The only island in the archipelago with rich ore deposits. Everything else is imported from the continent. The Tagawa gained control of it in my grandfather's time. The mines used to be considered Senate property. Naturally, the island is better fortified than any clan capital and closed to outsiders.

— A perfect place to put aliens , — Armando remarked.

— Absolutely, — agreed sir Irutava. — And a tidbit for anyone in the Republic.

— Let me guess. — The former royal bailiff frowned. — You can't bring troops onto the island? The other clans won't allow it?

— Well, for starters, Irutawa's forces simply wouldn't be strong enough to take the island. — The Chancellor touched the sheet of paper on the table with his fingertips and slid it aside. — The Republic Fleet is under my command, but it cannot be so easily deployed against a clan in the Senate. It's not that bad, though, Don Armando. You see... the Tagawa own forges, make weapons and trade, but their wealth is based on access to ore. When a clan has such a specific vulnerability, its enemies will spend years devising ways to strike there. — The Erdosian suddenly smiled. — I have a plan, Don.

— I am listening, sir. — De Gorazzo could hardly keep from smiling back.

— No one would be happy if the Irutawa clan took the iron mines for themselves. But to return them to the Senate, so that each major clan has its share... that would be a compromise that many would be happy with. I've been probing the ground in that direction for the last ten years, and it promises to bear abundant fruit. Perhaps the rumours of these actions of mine are what prompted Tagawa to ally with the aliens. — The Chancellor made an indefinite gesture with his palm.

— When were you going to take the island?

— Not in the next few years, Don. But now we have to force the issue. I need a good reason to use force against Tagawa justifiably.

— There will be an occasion, — de Gorazzo said with conviction. — The Outsiders have lost two groups of fighters, and their allies have lost a ship. Soon they will notice and become alarmed. They will act. Sir Irutava, we have spoken of our enemies' vulnerabilities. What weaknesses do you have?

— The Irutawa supply ship timber and build their own ships — for the Republic fleet, for themselves, for sale to the other clans. — Taiko returned the pulled sheet to its original place. — A forest fire might hurt us, but it would undermine the strength of the Republic. Tagawa doesn't want that kind of thing. Our shipyard is a good target. But it's not easy to destroy it, even with an entire army.

— And that's where outsiders can help. — Don de Gorazzo had no clear plan for this conversation, but now he felt that he had caught the right thread. Armando even felt a kind of excitement. Even if only partially, he had taken fate into his own hands. He was deciding something, leading somewhere, not just going with the flow. — That's what their weapons can do.

— Suppose so, Don, — the Chancellor nodded. — The second convenient target is me. If I'm killed, the Irutawa will lose influence in the Senate and become vulnerable.

— Makes sense. — Armando scratched his chin, discovering that he had forgotten to shave on the "Elena". Though Ryuu Irutawa was clearly not bothered by such trivialities as his guest's stubble. — I believe that our opponents will not choose. They will strike here and there.

— We'll be ready. — The head of the Republic shifted his gaze to Yuriev. The one-eyed boyar straightened up in his chair. He grinned wolfishly into his thick beard. — We will receive them according to the laws of Erdos hospitality.

— And our company will provide support, — de Gorazzo said. — We know what to expect from outsiders. Especially the assassination part.

— I don't mind. — Taiko finally put down the piece of paper and folded his arms across his chest. — If all goes well, in the next few days we'll intercept Tagawa's mercenaries, get them to testify before the senate, and attack Tattorubaku. I get rid of my competition and you get your outsiders. Everyone's happy. Yuriev.

— Yes, sir?

— Those witnesses you brought back on the "Elena", we don't need them anymore. They're not the witnesses we need.

— They won't be there by morning, sir.

— That's the end of it. Tomorrow I want to talk to Captain Valria and you, Don Armando. Until then, rest.

As he rose, de Gorazzo leaned furtively against the back of his chair. He was dizzy, lightly but noticeably. The former bailiff, fugitive criminal, mercenary against his will could hardly believe that he had almost personally set in motion such powerful forces. If one of the great clans of Erdo fell this year, or if a civil war broke out in the Republic, it would be because Armando had been able to find the right words in a couple of important conversations....

Chapter 13

— They came from the sea. — A low whisper at his ear made Don de Gorazzo shudder. Armando only opened one eye and whispered:

— How much?

— Four, — said the man next to him, wrapped in black. The "Shadow" — one of the Clan warriors trained to conduct and prevent sabotage.

— Lead the way. — The Don slipped from the warm straw bed and followed the guard. The cold night air immediately got under his clothes, and Armando felt chilly. At least, he convinced himself that it was the cold that gave him goosebumps.

The Irutava Clan's main shipyard occupied a cosy, semicircular bay ten hours from the Republic's capital. It was never idle — even now, three merchant hulks, a small caravel, and a pair of battle galleys were under construction at the docks. The piers and docks were flanked by warehouses and workshops, and beyond them were dwellings, workers' and soldiers' barracks, drinking establishments, shops... "All in all, if you set fire to it, it would burn beautifully," master Carlon said as he surveyed the city.

— We know what to do in case of fires, — Boyarin Yuriev contradicted him. — They have happened before.

— Accidental fire and deliberate arson are not the same thing, — the mage shook his head with a wry grin.

For the sake of the difficult task, the company was divided, as Captain Valria put it, "along gender lines". The girls, along with Green, were left to protect Chancellor Ryuu. They had more such experience, and Lady Maria had been trained as a bodyguard since she was three years old. The men, including Alex, went to prepare a trap in the shipyards. They were assisted by a dozen "shadows" and a familiar pair of dragon riders. In addition, the boyarin took command of the shipyard garrison, which was quite strong and numerous. Master Carlon took the initiative. Alex acted as his counsellor, while the Don and the boyar listened more.

— It's hardly possible to fire on the docks from afar, — the imperial mage reasoned as he gathered his comrades in the guardhouse. — There are no convenient heights outside the city, and the dockyard itself is obscured from the land by residential neighbourhoods. It is possible to hit the canopy, in the square, but not for long — the garrison will notice and counterattack. Especially since the garrison has dragons. Which leaves sabotage. One crushing blow from the sidelines. Knowing the capabilities of the outsiders, the best option for them is to infiltrate the city, plant powerful bombs in important places, then blow them up all at once.

— Are there often new people here? — Armando asked the garrison commander. Armando asked the garrison commander:

— No, sir. The labourers live in the city, the supplies of timber, tools and provisions are provided by the same traders loyal to the clan. There are occasional newcomers, but such people are always on the lookout, and the guards keep an eye on them.

— So that leaves direct infiltration just before the sabotage, — Don concluded. — Most likely at night.

— Sneaking across the city with bags of explosives is a difficult task even for aliens. — Master tugged at his beard and accidentally plucked a hair. Tossing it aside, he said: — It is worth remembering who we are dealing with. Strangers are capable of travelling through the air, through water, underwater. Underground?...? — he glanced at Alex.

— No, underground they can't. — The defector grinned.

— That's good. And there's no magical signalling to detect these movements. We should expect them from the most unexpected directions, relying only on our eyes.

In the first two days, the squad had established a system of boardwalks connecting the roofs of the harbour buildings. The squat warehouses were in rows, very densely packed. Now it was possible to walk around the harbour without ever going down to the ground. There, on the roofs, the experienced "shadows" equipped sleeping places, observation posts, and signalling points unnoticeable from below. When the work was finished, the group began the vigil — and so, on the fifth night, the wait was over.

The dying moon was barely visible above the horizon, but Armando took a drink of "cat's-eye" as he went. The dim pearly light was enough to make out four dark figures at the water's edge. The shadow warrior was not mistaken. The enemies came literally from the sea. From under the water. Alex had warned that such a thing was possible — the metal vessels that the saboteurs were now removing from their shoulders served as air storage. They chose a convenient place to come ashore — between two ships under construction. The wooden hulks covered the spies from the flanks, and the calm waters of the bay were in their rear. The group was given time to prepare. While one saboteur was opening the bags the group had brought, three others were untying bundles of weapons from their backpacks.