Cast in Wisdom Read online

  SOMETHING IS WAKING

  The fiefs that exist at the heart of the city of Elantra are home to sentient Towers that guard the world against the incursion of Shadow. But between the fiefs exists the gray world of the border zone. In it, geography changes between one passage across a border and the next. The rules of magic are different there—and yet somehow familiar to Kaylin Neya.

  When a Shadow escapes, Kaylin must find out how...and why. If Shadows can breach the barrier erected by the Towers, the whole of Elantra will be devoured. It’s happened on other worlds. Bellusdeo, Kaylin’s Dragon companion, absolutely believes it can happen on theirs.

  The border zone holds secrets and ancient histories, and people are gathering there in search of its power. Without even understanding what that power is, or why it exists, Kaylin is in a desperate race against time to find those secrets first. She doesn’t know who her enemies are. She doesn’t know how many she’ll face. But she won’t face them alone.

  Praise for New York Times bestselling author

  MICHELLE SAGARA

  and The Chronicles of Elantra series

  “No one provides an emotional payoff like Michelle Sagara. Combine that with a fast-paced police procedural, deadly magics, five very different races and a wickedly dry sense of humor—well, it doesn’t get any better than this.”

  —Bestselling author Tanya Huff

  “[Kaylin is] awesome, not because she’s powerful, but because she never stops trying—no matter how scared she is or how many of those powerful people either underestimate or overprotect her at every turn…. In the end, this is a story about friendship, and the heights and depths that people can and will reach in its name. It’s also a story about family-of-choice and the ties that one chooses to bind oneself with.… And it’s about the power of truth and honesty. And especially about the dangerous nature, and painful truth, of the power of choice.… I love this series.”

  —ReadingReality.net on Cast in Oblivion

  “Sagara swirls mystery and magical adventure together with unforgettable characters.”

  —Publishers Weekly on Cast in Silence

  “Easily one of my favorite authors.”

  —Dear Author

  “Sagara’s remarkable Cast novels are a voyage of discovery into one young woman’s fearsome destiny. Filled with time-release plot threads and intricate details, these books are both mesmerizing and unforgettable. If you’re a fan of rich fantasy, this is the series for you!”

  —RT Book Reviews

  “Sagara writes with her usual fine attention to detail, tension, and character.”

  —Tor.com on Cast in Peril

  “A vivid and entertaining fantasy series.”

  —Publishers Weekly on Cast in Chaos

  The Chronicles of Elantra

  by

  New York Times bestselling author

  Michelle Sagara

  CAST IN SHADOW

  CAST IN COURTLIGHT

  CAST IN SECRET

  CAST IN FURY

  CAST IN SILENCE

  CAST IN CHAOS

  CAST IN RUIN

  CAST IN PERIL

  CAST IN SORROW

  CAST IN FLAME

  CAST IN HONOR

  CAST IN FLIGHT

  CAST IN DECEPTION

  CAST IN OBLIVION

  And

  “Cast in Moonlight”

  found in

  HARVEST MOON,

  an anthology with Mercedes Lackey and Cameron Haley

  Look for the next story in The Chronicles of Elantra, coming soon from MIRA.

  Michelle Sagara

  Cast in Wisdom

  This is for Kari Sperring, who is not ancient, not male, not curmudgeonly and never condescending, but would nonetheless be my choice for Imperial Librarian if I were a Dragon emperor.

  My library and its knowledge would be utterly safe in her hands.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter 1

  The major disadvantage of being host to over a dozen people who had no need for something as trivial as sleep was that there was no real private time in the house. There was often silence, but it was full of people. The majority of Kaylin’s current guests could speak among themselves without ever opening their mouths. But they did so while taking up space, their eyes flashing blue or green as words Kaylin couldn’t hear were exchanged.

  It wasn’t the quiet that was lacking; it was the alone time. The privacy. It said something about her current life that she felt she had more of it in the office. Case in point: when she headed for breakfast before fleeing to the Halls of Law, the cohort were arguing.

  They weren’t arguing silently, which meant they either intended to involve Kaylin, who wasn’t even in the room yet, or Bellusdeo, who was.

  Kaylin knew it was going to be bad when discussion banked the minute she entered the dining room. All eyes turned toward her. A chair—located conveniently nearest the door by which she could make her escape—appeared in front of a plate that had food on it. Given the looks she was getting, her appetite dwindled to almost zero. She could, however, eat regardless, and proceeded to take the empty chair to do exactly that.

  “Chew,” Teela said, “before you swallow.”

  Teela’s voice appeared to be a signal for discussion to resume. Discussion, however, did not.

  “You’re heading into the office today?” Kaylin asked the Barrani Hawk. It was her first day reporting since the battle in the High Halls.

  “I am.”

  Oh. She thought she understood what the cohort had been arguing about. Kaylin exhaled. “Bellusdeo has Imperial permission to attend me when I work as a Hawk. No one else does.”

  “I’ve gone,” Mandoran immediately said.

  “You have, but that wasn’t the result of Imperial permission.”

  “Then permission doesn’t matter, right?”

  Helen coughed.

  “Permission in this case simply means Imperial Command, dear. The Emperor has essentially ordered the Hawks to accept that Bellusdeo will accompany Kaylin on her duties.”

  “The Leontine doesn’t seem all that fond of her,” Mandoran admitted.

  “Marcus isn’t fond of Dragons,” Kaylin replied.

  “He’s not fond of anything.”

  “Nothing in the office. He’s fond of his children. And his wives. But he’s grown to appreciate Bellusdeo. And there’s no force on earth that will get the Emperor to issue an Imperial Command that Barrani civilians be allowed to accompany Imperial Hawks anywhere they happen to go.”

  “So we just have to get the sergeant’s permission, right?”

  “There are eleven of you. There is no place
where eleven extra Barrani on patrol aren’t going to be a traffic hazard.”

  “We don’t have to be seen—”

  Kaylin turned to look at Teela, whose lips were compressed enough that they appeared to be almost white. The only small silver lining on this particular cloud was that it wasn’t Bellusdeo who was angry.

  Hope coughed. So did Helen.

  It was Sedarias who broke the silence that had followed Mandoran’s cut-off sentence. “We have been invited to attend the High Halls as Lords of the High Court,” she said in a voice that was both regal and simultaneously disgruntled. “We are the guests of honor.”

  “I don’t envy you,” Kaylin replied.

  At this, Sedarias’s expression shifted into a sly smile. “You shouldn’t. But on the off chance—that’s correct, yes?” At Kaylin’s nod, she continued. “On the off chance that you do, you’ll be delighted to know that you are also invited to attend.”

  “What?”

  “Apparently, the High Lord has summoned the High Court. Every High Lord will be present.”

  “Every High Lord?”

  “Every single one. This would, of course, include you and Lord Severn.”

  Kaylin muttered a few choice Leontine words. Mandoran laughed. Even Annarion chuckled.

  “We’ve been asked,” Sedarias continued, “if there are any significant allies—those are the exact words—that we would like to honor with an invitation. Invitations of that nature are, of course, free to be declined.”

  Unlike Kaylin’s, which was not an invitation so much as a royal command.

  As one, all eyes—even Teela’s—turned toward Bellusdeo.

  “You can’t be serious,” Kaylin snapped.

  “It will take time for the Lords to gather,” Sedarias replied. Terrano, at the same time, said, “Of course we’re serious.”

  The collision of words appeared to stop neither of them.

  “The gathering will not, therefore, occur for some months.”

  “Without her, we wouldn’t have made it out of the West March.”

  “You weren’t trapped,” Sedarias then said—to Terrano. “We were.”

  Terrano snorted and rolled his eyes—which were a shade of blue that only the cohort could achieve.

  Kaylin dared a glance at Bellusdeo. Her eyes were orange. The mortal Hawk shoved food into her mouth at record speed before escaping the breakfast table.

  * * *

  “You are such a coward,” Bellusdeo said when they’d reached the relative safety of the street. The roads in and around Helen were sparsely populated at the busiest of times, which this wasn’t. They would soon join roads that were crowded at the slowest of times, but Kaylin was dressed for the office. The Hawk emblazoned on her tabard encouraged people to make space.

  Had Bellusdeo hit the streets in her Draconic form, she’d have cleared far more of it—but some of that space would be created by panic, and panic could cause both accidents and the type of traffic congestion that caused the Swords to investigate. Also, it was illegal.

  “It’s not cowardice,” Kaylin replied, scanning the windows of the buildings above ground level.

  “What would you call it?”

  “Wisdom.”

  “Oh, please.”

  “There’s no point in arguing with them now. Sedarias thinks it’ll be months before this ridiculous command performance occurs. We have months to attempt to talk her out of—”

  “Out of expressing any appreciation or gratitude?”

  Ugh. “You know they’re grateful. This isn’t about gratitude. It’s about rubbing that gratitude in the faces of the Barrani who attempted to brand you a—an army. An attacking army.”

  “I believe the term you want is Flight.” Bellusdeo’s eyes were orange.

  Hope squawked at the Dragon. Kaylin didn’t understand what he was saying. Bellusdeo did, but her eyes didn’t get any lighter.

  “You know as well as I do,” Kaylin said, emboldened by Hope’s entry into the discussion, “that this is not the time to visit the High Halls. I’m not sure the Emperor has ever been a guest there.”

  “We visited the Halls—more or less—when they came under attack, and the Barrani needed our help.”

  “From the outside. No one invited the Dragon Court in.”

  The chorus of Barrani voices that sometimes offered entirely unasked for opinions on the inside of her head maintained their silence for half a beat. The first person to break that silence was the fieflord. His words were tinged with amusement.

  You cannot expect that the cohort would suddenly cease to cause any difficulty, surely?

  I’m almost certain that the cohort understands why inviting a Dragon—any Dragon—to attend the High Halls would be a disaster.

  For the Dragons?

  For everyone.

  I believe some of the more conservative High Lords might be surprisingly supportive of such an invitation.

  Of course they would. It would be their best shot at killing Bellusdeo. If Bellusdeo died, there would be no new Dragons. No hatchlings.

  There’s no way the Emperor would give her permission to attend.

  Nightshade concurred. In his position, I would not. But I would be prepared, should I refuse to grant that permission, for all-out war. My brother has grown inordinately fond of her; living with you has made him reckless.

  He’s not—

  He has known Bellusdeo for even less time than you. He is willing to trust her in a fashion no one older would. And do not cite the Consort, please.

  Kaylin hadn’t intended to. The Consort seems to like her.

  Kaylin, the Consort “likes” me. But she does not trust me.

  She does.

  “Stop making that face, or it will freeze that way.”

  Kaylin reddened.

  I understand that you are attempting to avoid the Emperor’s ire. I consider this wise on your part. It is not, however, the ire of the Emperor that will be your most significant problem; he will do nothing to harm Bellusdeo.

  I know that.

  It is the ire of the High Lords. Sedarias is, I believe, genuinely grateful for Bellusdeo’s intervention. She does wish to honor her. But gratitude can be expressed privately—and in most cases, it is. Only rulers feel obliged to make that expression public because the public expression elevates those to whom one feels gratitude. It makes clear to witnesses that the aid tendered—in whatever fashion—is important and significant. The Emperor has codified such significance in public ceremonies and public titles, has he not?

  Kaylin shrugged.

  For Sedarias, however, genuine gratitude is not an impediment to political displays. She can be genuinely grateful and simultaneously, extremely political. She wishes to highlight Bellusdeo’s aid and import to Mellarionne. Why do you think this is?

  Kaylin thought about this. After a long pause, she said, She wants to thumb her nose at the rest of the High Lords, many of whom weren’t helpful at all?

  Nightshade’s silence was one of encouragement.

  Bellusdeo’s a Dragon. So...her presence means that even Dragons—with whom you’ve had a war or two—

  Three.

  Fine, a war or three, were more helpful, or at least more of a genuine ally, than any of the Barrani.

  Yes. I believe that is some part of Sedarias’s intent.

  That’s not going to help Mellarionne any.

  Perhaps, perhaps not. She will do so as An’Mellarionne. It would be considered a very bold move—but there are those who would assume that Sedarias is confident in her own power, and they would hesitate to challenge her.

  “If you are speaking about me,” Bellusdeo said, her voice almost a whisper of sound, “I must insist that you include me.”

  Hope squawked.

  “Well, yes, that could cause s
ome difficulty,” the Dragon replied. “But I dislike Kaylin’s worry. She is mortal.” Squawk. “The marks of the Chosen don’t matter. She’s mortal. I may be a displaced person in these lands; I may no longer have a home or lands of my own. But I am a Dragon.”

  “I’m not exactly worried about you,” Kaylin said. When one golden brow rose in response, she added, “Not about you specifically. But—there’s no way for Dragon and High Halls to combine that isn’t political. Explosively political. On your own, you can survive more than any of the rest of the cohort—or me. But you won’t be on your own. The cohort won’t abandon you.”

  It was the Dragon’s turn to snort.

  Kaylin reconsidered her words and chose better ones. “Most of the cohort wouldn’t abandon you. Annarion wouldn’t. Mandoran wouldn’t. I don’t believe Allaron would either, from what I’ve seen. And you know what the cohort is like. The minute one of them enters combat to save you, they’re all going to rush in. It doesn’t matter if they’re there for your sake or their friends’; they’ll be there. But this is political, and anything political is far above my pay grade.”

  “You don’t seem to find this insulting.”

  “I consider it one of the biggest advantages of my rank. Which is the lowest rank I could be given and still be called a Hawk.”

  “One of? What’s another one?”

  “I’m not in command. I don’t need to make decisions that might cost the lives of other Hawks. No matter what happens in an action, large or small, I won’t have their deaths on my hands.”

  “But you don’t like being a private.”

  “Well, I could be a corporal, and it would still be mostly true. And the pay is higher.”

  “It’s not much higher,” a familiar voice said. It was Mandoran’s. Of course it was. Kaylin didn’t miss a step.

  “I don’t suggest you try to enter the Halls of Law looking like that.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like thin air.”

  “Oh. That.” Mandoran caused other people some consternation as he materialized to the side of Kaylin that Bellusdeo wasn’t occupying. To be fair, most of the street didn’t notice; people always had their own problems and their own schedules. “I was going to follow Teela into the office, but Teela’s not heading there directly.”