Shai

Shai gripped her steed’s reins as she and Qiara rode away from the palace. She hadn’t ridden a horse since…well, since the palace was her home. It felt familiar and comforting. Jistan had offered to let her and Qiara borrow one of his carriages, but she’d refused, knowing it would draw too much attention in the section of the city where they were going.

She turned around and looked back up the massive hill where the palace had been strategically built into the landscape. The upper floors rested on the higher slopes, which had saved the builders from having to use extra support columns. The entire edifice was made of light brown sandstone, except for the golden tips of the towers.

I actually missed this place, she thought. After leaving Jistan’s side, she and Qiara had gone to take baths and change into the soft fabric of brand-new pants and blouses. She’d forgotten what it was like to take a warm bath filled with scented bubbles and wear clothes that weren’t made of scratchy wool or stiff cotton. And then there was the food. She hadn’t been eating too poorly since joining The Cliq, but she certainly hadn’t had juicy mutton and seasoned potatoes like that in years. Yes, there were many things about living like a highborn that she missed.

When she thought about Jistan, her chest fluttered, so maybe it was more that she missed him. Her heart had already made the decision to say yes to Jistan’s offer, wanting to be near him again, but her head ran through all the reasons why this arrangement wouldn’t work.

She stared down at her knife, Nahya. It had been returned to her, and she was glad. Her mother had given it to her for protection when they lived on the streets, and it had fended off a few drunks during that horrible time. Nahya reminded Shai of how she would always work toward a better life.

And now I may have that chance if I work with Jistan.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Qiara saying, “I can’t believe you know the Prince of Casland!”

Shai rolled her eyes, tucking away Nahya. “Has that still not sunk into your head yet?”

“It’s getting there. I’m definitely not going to pass up a chance to live like a noble. I’m accepting Prince Jistan’s offer without question. I have no family left, and I would hardly call anyone in The Cliq my friend. Except you.”

Shai smiled. “Thanks, I consider you one too.” Then her face fell. “I’m just afraid Madame Kalyssah won’t let us leave. And even if she does, I don’t know how Mama will feel about this. She hates Emperor Akeil, and she’s not too fond of Jis—Prince Jistan either. I don’t know if I can convince her to come back to the palace to live.”

“But doesn’t she hate life with The Cliq even more? I know you said she hates that it turned you into a thief.”

“Yes, but…I don’t know. I get the feeling she somehow feels secure living among dangerous criminals. As if being like them means other scoundrels will leave us alone.”

“That’s a backwards way of thinking. Although she may have a point. Many people fear The Cliq.”

They rode in silence for a moment, until Qiara said, “So, why didn’t you and the prince ever promise to get betrothed when you grew older? You could’ve been a princess.”

Shai was so stunned by the turn of the conversation that nothing came out of her open mouth for a few heartbeats. “I was only ten when we were separated!”

“But aren’t you infatuated with him?”

“W-what? What makes you think I am?” she said, even as her face grew hot.

“Other than you ogling him every time you see him?”

Her face burned some more. “Don’t all young girls do that?”

“You know what I mean. Your look has a certain quality to it, like you appreciate more than the prince’s handsomeness. Now I know it’s because you’re personally acquainted with him. You and the Prince of Casland!” She shook her head in amazement again.

Shai snorted, petting the mane of her horse. “I used to know him. I don’t know what type of person he is now. This new Jistan may be turning into his father. Did you see the way he looked at us? And the way he dismissed us? He probably thinks of me as inferior to him, especially being a thief.”

“Weren’t you always inferior? He’s always been a prince, and your mother was his mother’s handmaiden. You were just the daughter of a servant long ago.”

“But that’s what I loved about him. He never treated me like that; I was always his equal. We even sat together at dinner sometimes, which his father disapproved of.” A faraway look appeared in her eyes as she lost herself in more memories of her childhood.

“Well, I still think you could’ve been a princess.” Qiara spurred her horse to move faster. Shai did the same, her cheeks flushing with heat again. But then she remembered everything that led to her and her mother’s exile from the palace, and she thought, if only Q knew the truth.

They traveled along several winding roads of Valizea, for the capital city sprawled across many leagues. Some buildings were packed together like those she and Qiara tried to escape over the rooftops of, and some buildings sat alone. The part of town they were headed to had buildings mostly made of clay with stucco roofs, a few abandoned and falling apart.

They rode through a market square, cramped with people roaming to and fro. Sellers stood behind wooden stalls, underneath cloth awnings that protected them from the sun, hawking their wares. Chattering and haggling went on in every direction, creating a hum of noise. Along with those walking, wagons squeaked and horse hooves clopped as some people rode through the hubbub. Chickens clucked from the cages of one seller’s wagon, and another’s goats bleated in their pen.

Shai inhaled through her nose when they passed by food stalls, identifying delectable scents of grilled meats, fresh-baked bread, and her favorite: buttercream cakes. Her mouth watered since she hadn’t had any type of dessert for the past few days. She wondered what her mother, Malaika, would be making today. Malaika was always baking for everyone in The Cliq. Having lived in the palace, she had learned special cooking tricks with her magic.

Shai’s mother was a normancer, the most common type of mancer, and some people didn’t think they had magic much at all. Their ability included enhancement, so they usually had jobs creating things, such as being a baker or a tailor. Their ability to enhance their work made their food taste better, or made the quality of their clothing better. It also made them great servants, which was why Shai’s mother had been the queen’s handmaiden, once upon a time. Skilled normancers could use runes to place wards and other minor spells.

Most of the sellers in the market were normancers. Metamancers sold weapons, silverware, and all types of objects made of metal. Herbimancers sold fruit, veggies, flowers, and medicinal herbs. Xylomancers sold toy blocks, bowls, and other trinkets since their magic specialized in wood.

Is my magic suited for anything other than fighting or thieving? Shai wondered. Other mancers had multiple career paths, but Shai didn’t have many options with her magic.

Yet she may have finally found a way to escape The Cliq…even though she would still be a thief.

She and Qiara dismounted their horses when they arrived (a palace medimancer had worked magic on Qiara’s ankle, so it no longer bothered her). They were at a dilapidated building, a corner of its roof crumbled in and all the windows broken. They squeezed into a narrow alley, walking down a gentle slope until they found a stairway of red dirt, which they descended. At the bottom, they entered a tunnel where sunlight streamed from square holes above them. When they got to a door, Qiara rapped out the tempo of The Cliq’s secret door knock.

The door swung open magically by itself, particles of dust swirling inside the entryway. They stepped onto a platform three stories above an immense underground chamber, known as The Cliq’s Lair. High wall torches that only pyromancers could reach lit the room. On the ground floor below, members of The Cliq were dispersed throughout doing various activities: practicing their magic, eating and lounging on stolen furniture, socializing and smoking cigars, training in close combat, or counting loot from a recent heist. Around the chamber, various hallways and doors led to private rooms.

Before Shai and Qiara could start down the metal stairs against the stone wall, a commotion caught their eyes near one corner below. The Cliq’s leader, Madame Kalyssah, and one of her loyal goons advanced toward a Cliq member who was trembling so hard, gold coins rolled out from under the cloak he wore.

“Oh, how exciting, we arrived just in time to watch some hapless soul’s suffering,” Qiara muttered, a sarcastic bite to her words. She squinted at the scene below. “Is that Mayven? I always knew he was up to something!”

Shai frowned as the two of them started down the stairs. “I wonder why Ed isn’t by Madame Kalyssah’s side.” Actually, she didn’t see any of the members who’d been on the last heist with them. She wasn’t complaining, of course. She didn’t want to encounter Edmun ever again, if she could help it.

Qiara shrugged. “Maybe he’s out on another assignment. We better wait until Kalyssah’s done with this business before we talk to her.”

They reached the bottom floor of the Lair, where two guards nodded a greeting to them. Shai and Qiara nodded back, then approached the corner near Kalyssah. Other Cliq members were watching too, some crowding around to watch the spectacle.

“I swear, it wasn’t just me! Others were doing it too!” cried Mayven, as Madame Kalyssah leveled a deadly glare at him.

“Do you want to tell me their names?” Kalyssah asked in a cool voice, sauntering closer to him, her diaphanous overrobe dragging along the floor. Her pale-skinned face always bore a lot of makeup, adding color to her cheeks and eyelids. Her red lips were thin, her face heart-shaped. A black silk scarf wrapped around the top of her head, with short auburn hair underneath it. There were probably a dozen knives hidden among the folds of the woman’s outfit, although she rarely used them with the type of magic she had.

“I-I think I saw Feya and-and maybe Jef…” Mayven tattled. Shai noticed he’d conveniently named members who weren’t currently present to defend themselves.

“Fine, I will question them too,” Kalyssah said. “But that doesn’t mean I forgive your transgressions.”

“B-but don’t I get credit for coming forward with information leading to more perpetrators?”

The Cliq leader cocked her head. “Yes, you should get some sort of reward for that. How about I give you a head start while I count to ten? One…”

Mayven’s eyes bulged when he realized the countdown was already starting. He bolted from the corner, weaving around furniture and other Cliq members, heading for the stairs and the exit.

“What did he do?” Qiara whispered to a nearby lady.

“During several heists, he kept more than his fair share of the loot,” the woman replied.

Shai winced. It was the worst offense one could be caught doing in a gang such as this.

Qiara sighed, making a prayer motion with her hands. “Goddess rest his soul.”

Her words were somewhat of a pun. Because their leader was a necromancer.

“Ten!” Kalyssah’s voice rang out, bouncing off the walls of the chamber. She raised a hand, and a skeletal specter streamed from her palm, white wisps trailing in its wake. Those in its path shrieked and darted out of the way, although the specter weaved around them on its own, heading for its target. Shai and Qiara were forced to step away from each other as the specter shot past in between them.

Poor Mayven had just reached the stairs, a mixture of terror and hope in his eyes, as if thinking he stood a chance of getting away. But the specter swept through him, and Mayven gasped, his face frozen in horror as his terracotta skin drained of color. He collapsed to the ground, his soul sapped from his body by the necromancing magic of Madame Kalyssah.

But he wasn’t dead. He was worse, his soul trapped in her clutches until she felt like returning it. The longer she kept it, the worse it would be when she returned the soul to Mayven’s body. Shai had seen what happened to those Kalyssah used her magic on. They either became mad or a shell of their old selves, sometimes never talking again, sometimes never walking again. One thing was certain: Kalyssah’s victims were never the same afterwards. Shai wasn’t even sure her own magic would be quick enough to cancel out a necromancer’s attack, if one was ever directed at her.

It was no wonder Madame Kalyssah controlled the most dangerous gang in Valizea.

After Mayven’s downfall, Cliq members shook their heads in sympathy or smirked in amusement before turning back to their own tasks. Kalyssah closed her hand into a fist as if grabbing Mayven’s soul, then turned away to walk back to her chambers.

Qiara gulped loud enough for Shai to hear. “I’m thinking now isn’t a good time to talk to her. She’s in a bad mood. Let’s just talk to her tomorrow—” She tried to dart away, but Shai grabbed her arm and made her friend stumble back to her side.

“We can’t wait,” Shai hissed. “Jistan’s expecting us.” She kept Qiara’s arm tucked around hers as she stepped toward their leader and called, “Madame Kalyssah.”

The woman stopped and turned to them, her long black skirt swishing around her ankles. She raised a delicate eyebrow. “Shai, Q, you have returned to us. I heard you were in the palace dungeon. That doesn’t appear to be the case anymore.” She appraised them from head to foot, inspecting their new outfits.

Shai tried not to shiver under her gaze. “Prince Jistan pardoned us.”

“Oh, really? Why is that?”

Shai looked over at Qiara, who was a better liar than her.

The electromancer cleared her throat. “The prince said that a condition of our pardon is that we must join the Royal Defense Patrol. Which means—”

“—you want me to give you permission to leave us,” Kalyssah finished with a frown.

“Yes,” Shai spoke up. “It has been an honor working alongside you and your people, and I am grateful for the hospitality you’ve shown me and my mother. But this opportunity—”

“You owe me your service,” the madame cut in brusquely. “For providing you with shelter, food, and protection.”

“I know. I’ve worked for you for four years, as many years as you have housed us here, and it seems like an even trade.”

“Shouldn’t I be the one to determine that? And you didn’t get me what I desired most—the Diamond Gem of Irisei.”

“We tried, but we were caught. It was confiscated from me.”

“I see.” She narrowed her gray eyes. “I would be rather foolish to give up someone with your ability so easily. An unmancer is a rare commodity.”

“Yes, but the prince pardoned us only because he expects us to join his army,” Qiara said. “He’s already given us our first mission and he wants us to leave for the Crossover War soon.” She and Shai had both agreed their greedy leader didn’t need to know about the quest for the Obsidian Chest.

“Is that so?” Kalyssah said. “Interesting that he thinks I’d be so easily persuaded to let the two of you go. I may be willing to let you go, Q. But not Shai.”

Shai’s heart sank. Qiara’s mouth flew open as if she had a few choice words for their leader, but they were interrupted by someone running toward them, who wrapped Shai in a massive hug.

“You’re back!” her mother, Malaika, cried. “There was talk around here of you being captured by the RDP and taken to the palace. Are you well?” She pulled away to hold Shai at arm’s length, looking her over while her daughter looked her over. Malaika had the same medium-brown skin and curly black hair, hers cut short, but her face looked worn and haggard, the skin darker around her eyes, showing all the hardship she’d been through over recent years. She’d started gaining back some of the weight she used to have in their palace days, her cheeks somewhat chubby again when she smiled.

Shai patted her mother’s arm. “I’m fine. I spent a few days in the dungeon, but—”

“Did they take good care of you?” Malaika cut in. “Did they feed you? How did you sleep? Wait—how did you get out?”

Shai told her the same story she’d told Kalyssah, and her mother’s face pulled into a scowl when Jistan was mentioned.

“That low-down, scoundrel of an emperor is teaching his son to be just like him,” Malaika snarled. “I would rather not have you anywhere near either of them.”

“But the prince has offered to let you and me stay with him…if we’re allowed to leave the Cliq.” She glared over at Kalyssah, who watched them.

Malaika sneered. “I don’t want to be anywhere near that emperor ever again.”

Shai had known her mother’s hatred of their country’s leader ran deep, but she didn’t think it should extend to Jistan.

Kalyssah’s eyebrows rose. “Did I hear correctly, Malaika? You’d rather stay here with us?”

Malaika paused, then said, “Yes.”

Shai stared at her incredulously. Her mother would rather stay with crooks than live in the palace again? It didn’t make sense.

“Then this gives me an idea,” Kalyssah continued. “I would be willing to grant Shai a temporary leave until she comes back from whatever mission the prince is sending her on. But—” her eyes flashed with malevolence, “—you would have to remain here, Malaika, to make sure she comes back.”

So the gang leader would hold Shai’s mother hostage. There was no way Shai would agree to that.

Malaika paused as if considering it. Then said, “Alright, I agree to those terms.”

“What?” Shai cried. “No! I’m not leaving you here by yourself!”

“I’ve taken care of you both all these years,” Kalyssah said, a sly smirk spreading over her face. “You really think I’d harm her now?”

Shai narrowed her eyes, while Malaika smiled at the Madame and said, “Could you give us a moment alone?”

“Of course.” Kalyssah strolled over to talk to her second-in-command, while Qiara hovered a few feet away, looking anxious as she twisted the headscarf around her neck.

Malaika spoke in a low tone. “Shai, you must go. You would fare better there than here.” She indicated the nice clothing her daughter wore. “I’ve always wanted you out of The Cliq, and this is your chance to get out. Eventually, you can get both of us out. But right now, I need to stay here. It’s the only way Madame Kalyssah will let you leave.”

Shai shook her head. “We’ve always stayed together. I’m not leaving you.”

“But you must! Think of it this way, Shaielle.” She grabbed her daughter’s hands. “The prince is going to pay you, I assume? So, working for the RDP, you can save up the funds we need to pay off Kalyssah and get our own place. Then I can leave this gang and start up the bakery I’ve always dreamed of having, with you by my side.”

Shai squeezed her mother’s hands tight. “I do want to go, but I want you to come with me. I can convince Madame Kalyssah—”

“You and I both know she’ll never let you leave unless you have a reason to come back. Your magic is too valuable to her. So you have to leave me here.”

“But you’ll be her hostage! What if something happens to me, and I can’t come back? Will she just kill you?” Or use her terrifying necromancer magic on you too? Shai thought with a shudder.

“Daughter, if you died, I wouldn’t want to live anyway.” Her eyes darkened. “Anyway, I absolutely refuse to go anywhere near Emperor Akeil again. I’m not going back to that palace. I’d rather take my chances here.”

Shai sighed, brushing a hand over her hair. “I don’t like this. I don’t trust you around these people without me here.” She gave the surrounding Cliq members a suspicious glance.

“No one here has ever laid a finger on me. Some of them are friends. Besides, would they harm the best chef in the gang? They’d eat rats-on-a-stick without me.” She smirked.

Shai couldn’t help smiling a little. “You may be right about that.”

“Exactly. I’m only a normancer, which means I’m not a threat to them. So go. Do what you need to do, and don’t worry about me.”

Shai blew out her breath. “That’s impossible. Maybe I should refuse Jistan’s offer. I could just keep working for The Cliq.” Her stomach sank at the thought of being stuck here for several more years.

“You won’t do that,” her mother said with certainty. “Something inside you wants to be close to the prince. I’m your mother, I can tell.”

Shai didn’t understand why everyone kept assuming she had feelings for someone she hadn’t spoken to in years. “I don’t even know him. Not this Jistan.”

“You like the idea of who he may have grown into.”

“I didn’t like some of what I saw when we reunited today.” The way he first embraced her surfaced in her mind however, and her face heated.

Malaika smiled. “Despite how I feel about his father, I think Jistan can be better than him. So go off on your adventure with the prince, and be careful.”

Shai supposed her mother was right. She had to do this now, so she could free them both from The Cliq in the future. This was their best chance.

Madame Kalyssah approached. “I’m getting impatient. Do we have a deal?”

“Yes,” Malaika replied before Shai could. “I will remain here, and Shai will come back to work for you.”

“Excellent.” The gang leader looked at Shai. “You can stay in the palace with the prince when you come back so he thinks you’re still part of the RDP. But you’ll return anytime I call you for a job. Understood?”

Shai gritted her teeth so hard her jaw hurt. It seemed she was going to be trapped with The Cliq and forced to remain a thief for the rest of her days. “Understood.”

A corner of Kalyssah’s mouth turned up. “Perfect.” She turned to Malaika. “I’m glad you’ll be staying with us. I know your daughter will come visit you often.” She gave Shai a meaningful look, then strode away.

Shai swallowed. She knew a subtle threat when she heard one.

Qiara sidled up to her side. “I’m sorry, Shai. I know you wanted to be free of this gang.”

“It’s fine. I’ll find another way out, one day.” She smiled at her friend. “At least you’re free.”

“It appears that way. And now we can both, you know. ‘Join the RDP.’ But do you think this will be good enough for Prince Jistan? You having temporary leave from The Cliq?”

“Um…for now, it might be best if he believes I’m completely free. I can tell him the truth when we get back from our quest.” She didn’t like the thought of lying to Jistan already, but it was only temporary, so that wasn’t so bad, right?

Qiara gave her a look and opened her mouth to respond, but Malaika interrupted.

“About this quest, what exactly does the prince want you to do? He’s not putting you on the frontlines in the Crossover War, is he?”

“No. I’ll just be a security advisor, helping him strengthen wards. I’ll be fine.” Shai hated the lie, but it would give her mother peace of mind.

Besides, Malaika would probably be in more danger than her. Shai’s heart jumped into her throat as she watched two Cliq members carry Mayven’s body away.