Light of the Heavens

IX. The Beginnings of a Plan

Vassa leaned against a delicate pillar as she gazed out over the city of Sarom. Masaharta's dining room had a stunning view out the windows, between the trunks of the different fruit trees in his garden. He claimed to be most fond of the oranges, though figs sat in a prominent place on the table and the man ate them with decided relish. The masked woman listened to the conversation happening behind her more than the birds, though the opposite probably appeared true.

"I think that they would not be inclined to let you in if you simply approached," Masaharta said thoughtfully, turning the stem plucked from a fig between his thumb and forefinger. He studied Seben intently as he spoke. "Things have changed in Sarom since Userkare's rise to power. He exerts a great deal of influence on who is permitted to enter the Ashen Tower, as is his right, and he has been careful to favor his political allies. A commoner gaining entry would offer him nothing he does not already have."

"Then what am I to do?" Seben asked. She sounded more determined than despairing. After all, she had come so far and had survived multiple attempts on her life to do so.

There was a creak as Masaharta leaned back in his chair, behind and to Vassa's left. "There is a way into the Ashen Tower aside from direct sponsorship," he said. "The Games."

Seben took a deep breath, steadying herself. "I can't."

"Games?" Vassa asked idly, admiring the plumage on a brightly colored macaw. The parrot seemed intrigued by her as well, hopping closer on the branch of an orange tree. She extended a hand, able to just brush fingertips against its feathers even as she held out a piece of fig with care. That beak could draw blood if she wasn't careful. The bird remained close, allowing her to touch its wing for just a moment before setting to work on the piece of fig.

"They are a tradition that stretches back centuries," Masaharta explained. "Apprentices can gain access to mastery at the Ashen Tower by competing. It's accompanied by the more standard set of spectacles: chariot races, foot chases, the occasional gladiators. The difference is that the apprentices are tasked with gaining control of a djinn."

Vassa raised an eyebrow under her hood. "Dangerous," she commented. "How fortunate that much of your city is stone."

"There are wards carved into the Arena," Masaharta said with a wave of his hand. "The djinn cannot pass beyond those bounds unless secured in a soul jar." He smiled slightly. "I believe you every bit the greater of a djinn, Seben. Your master must have taught you to control them, if you bear the mark. Summoning is the last thing you learn, not the first."

"He did," Seben said, her nerves easily audible in her voice. "But those were tame djinn, who had encountered and served humans before. They bring them in from the Sea of Sand itself for the Games."

"Is a fire ever truly tame?" Masaharta said philosophically.

"It is not," Vassa said, turning to look at the two in conversation. Seben looked distinctly uneasy and Masaharta seemed his usual self. Djau was in the process of tidying up most of breakfast, humming to himself to cover the way he was absolutely listening to every word. "Nor magic, from what little I know." She chose her words carefully. Better that Masaharta not know the depths of her familiarity with magic if at all avoidable. A dabbler was less dangerous an appearance than the truth.

"Seben mentioned you had some familiarity with the Art," he observed.

"A touch," Vassa said with a shrug.

"In your learned estimation, then, is Seben prepared?" the nobleman said, smiling faintly.

Vassa considered the question carefully. She had not met a djinn, but she understood fire. It had always been her element and so she understood its character. "I know little of Seben's past training," she said thoughtfully, studying the young woman. Again she thought of that image in the desert of Seben's blazing, glorious aura. "That said, I would wager that with some practice, she could contend with an unrestrained djinn."