Asunder: A Gathering of Chaos by Cameron Hopkin (children's ebooks free online .txt) 📕

accent, and it sounded as if it were no more than five meters from her. Glancing down, she saw a lit window directly below her feet.

“This is a surprise,” responded Gamarron, sounding distracted. “Are you certain the information is reliable?” Perfect. No need to get past that fellow after all. She pocketed the sleeper seed and settled back into her handholds, trying to ignore the pain in her hands and feet. Much could be tolerated in order to achieve her goals. What is he talking about? Surprised by what?

“As certain as any information I have procured during my long career,” the reedy voice replied. “I have someone high within the city’s army that participated in the torture of the Naga soldier personally. He has never lied to me, never exaggerated.”

“I see,” the savage northerner replied distantly.

“I told the man to probe for information about your Chaos Shard, of course, and it was child’s play for him to sneak back in during a break in the questioning and ply a few… pointed questions on our behalf.” The careful voice with the odd accent was quietly proud and pleased. “He merely hoped for some hint as to ancient documents or hidden libraries, but when she told him she had seen the object itself, he did his best to extract all the information he could on short notice. She was most forthcoming. Even the Naga fear pain, it seems. It’s all there in the summary I’ve prepared for you. One interesting tidbit to remember: only a Mainlander can touch the thing. You’ll need to make sure you include someone of that lineage in your party, or else you’ll be unable to retrieve your prize.”

“A Mainlander,” Gamarron mused. “Odd. Why is that?”

“Unknown,” came the clipped reply, “but it was repeated more than once. Better safe than sorry, yes?”

“This is… excellent,” said Gamarron quietly. “It is good to know at last where it lies, and things appear to be simpler than I had hoped for.”

“Forgive me,” the voice noted dryly, “but you seem less, hmm, enthused than I expected. I have found not just information on the Shard, but the location of the object itself. It’s a stroke of luck unlike any I’ve ever seen. Have you lost your taste for infiltrating the Naga city? My fee for retrieving the Shard will be higher than it would have been for plundering their libraries, of course, but you haven’t flinched at my prices before. Are funds a concern?” The unseen man’s clipped, musical accent could only be from Sky City.

“Forgive my distraction, Master Kojan,” Gamarron said, sounding more gathered, more commanding. “I am grateful for your efforts, and I desire the Chaos Shard more than ever. No price is too high, and I have no shortage of gems. But something has occurred that has put a new wrinkle in my plans. There is a man in this city that I need to recruit. He runs with a group of wealthy youngsters but does not appear to be one of them. He is fair of skin, with yellow curls, somewhat overweight. He was wearing a toga. His friends rode in a carriage with a sigil of five crossed keys on the door. Have you heard anything of such a group? The boys he was with were wild, boisterous. They walked about as if they owned the city.”

“They very nearly do,” said Master Kojan sourly. “Why do you seek this particular boy?”

“I intend to incorporate him into our efforts to infiltrate the Naga city.” Gamarron sounded confident and strong.

The other man hesitated. “That is… not according to plan. I don’t appreciate surprises.”

“I know it,” Gamarron’s said. “But with jobs such as these, conditions change as new information comes to light, do they not? This new player is very important, and I’m hoping you have information about him. I need to know the best approach to convince him to join us.”

The reedy man laughed, but it was a stiff sound. “Join you? No. That young man is the Seafarer Council’s pet chaos wielder. The only one in the city.”

Renna grimaced. She would go to great lengths to avoid a man who wrought the Chaos.

“From the sigil you describe, the others must be the sons of the city’s council members. You could have picked any other person in the city – including the council members themselves – and had a better chance of having them join you. Choose someone else. He is untouchable.”

“Chaos wielder?” asked Gamarron. “I have heard the name, but I know nothing about them. I believed them to be tall tales.”

“Ah,” responded the man with a heavy sigh. It sounded muffled, as if he were rubbing his hands across his face. “I forget you’re from the north islands. Honestly, with as much as you seem to know about most other things, I’m a bit surprised at your ignorance.”

“News and books seldom come to the Black Isle,” Gamarron said. “And in my homeland, there is not much time for leisure reading.”

“Yes,” replied the other man in a clipped, respectful tone that somehow managed to imply a heavy sarcasm. “Because of the demons.”

“Mock if you like,” replied the savage, “but you have accepted a great deal of my money on more than one occasion, and I desire your assistance in this thing. Your fee will be adjusted accordingly. Please enlighten me as to this chaos wielder.”

Renna shifted her weight on the wall and flexed one hand, shaking out the stiffness. She wasn’t sure how long she could stay in this position. She felt entirely exposed. Anyone that happened to look up at the house would see her.

“I meant no disrespect. Very well, then: chaos wielders. There are young men here in the Mainland – stupid, reckless ones, mind you – who go seeking after stories of power that’s supposed to exist in the trackless wilds. There are all sorts of nasty beasts and diverse ways to expire even in the areas where the Naga do not roam. And these