Robin Hobb: Blood of Dragons

‘We’ll be happy to answer them as best as we can. Not that we were there for any of it. And if we are to believe what every dragon told us of it, then each one was personally responsible for the fall of the city and the death of the Duke.’

‘And the rise of a duchess,’ Althea added. ‘We’ve had bird messages from Selden, but they are not very satisfactory. We have only the bones of his tale, and each time he writes we learn a bit more, but he also tells us that still he cannot come home just yet. That there are still things he must “settle” there in Kelsingra.’ Her emphasis on the word ‘settle’ made it clear that she thought there was more going on than her nephew had confided. She looked from Alise to Leftrin, perhaps seeking confirmation or gossip.

Leftrin spoke hastily. ‘Your youngster looks like he knows his way around a deck. When you think he’s ready to try a term under a different captain, he’d be welcome aboard Tarman. Things are a bit more rustic and he’d be sleeping in the deckhouse with the crew, but I’d be glad to foster him for a trip or two.’

Brashen and Althea exchanged a look, but it was not the boy’s mother who said, ‘Not quite old enough yet. But I’ll take you up on that offer when he is. I know he’d like to see his aunt and uncle soon. Not to mention his cousin Ephron.’ Brashen smiled as he attempted to change the subject. ‘When do you think Malta and Reyn might be bringing the baby downriver for a visit?’

‘You’d take Boy-o off my decks?’ Paragon was appalled.

‘Only for a short time, ship. I know he’s yours as much as ours,’ Brashen replied placatingly. ‘But a slightly wider circle of experience wouldn’t hurt him.’

‘Hmph.’ The figurehead crossed his arms on his carved chest. His mouth went to a flat line. ‘Perhaps when Ephron is old enough to take his place here for a time. An exchange of hostages, as it were.’

Brashen rolled his eyes at them. ‘He’s in a mood today,’ he said in a low voice.

‘I am not in a mood! Merely pointing out that you are a liveship family, and that you should think well before letting one of our own go off on another liveship, with no guarantees that he will be returned. Ideally, the exchange should be a member of Tarman’s family.’ He turned his gaze to Leftrin and Alise. ‘Do you expect to breed soon?’

Leftrin choked on his tea.

‘Not that I’m aware,’ Alise replied demurely.

‘A pity. It might be productive for you just now.’ Paragon was politely enthused.

‘Can we please just not?’ Althea asked him, almost sharply. ‘It’s bad enough to have you offering Brashen and me your helpful insights into productive breeding without you extending your wisdom to our guests.’

Alise could not tell if Brashen were embarrassed or red from suppressing laughter.

‘It was Tarman’s suggestion that they might find such information helpful, as so far they have enjoyed breeding, but fruitlessly. That’s all.’ Paragon was unflustered.

Brashen cleared his throat suddenly. ‘Well, speaking of hostages—’

‘Were we?’ his ship interjected curiously.

‘We were. Speaking of hostages, how did all that work out? There were rumours in Bingtown, but we left to go south to pick up your stock, and then returned right up the river. So we haven’t heard much of that.’

‘Sadly, if you ask me,’ Alise replied. ‘I’m sure you know that the Chalcedeans chose to drown themselves rather than face the Council or be ransomed to their duke. The Council did finally pay us, but only, I think, because I was present to speak for the keepers, and to testify that nothing nefarious had befallen any of us, except what some members of the Council itself had planned for us. Trader Candral went back on his word, and denied everything, even when confronted with all the pages he had penned while in Kelsingra. He maintained that we had forced him to write such things, and one of the Jamaillian merchants vouched for him. Personally, I suspect that some sort of a private trade agreement was brokered during the voyage back to Trehaug, one that was very profitable to the Jamaillian merchant. I fear we will never see justice for what was done to us. We should, perhaps, have kept Candral sequestered from the others.’ She looked to Leftrin as she said this, and he shook his head.

‘As loaded as Tarman was? Small chance of that. And I think there were others on the Cassarick Council that had more than an inkling of what was going on. He was protected.’ He shook his head. ‘Well, they’ll pay a price for that. Tarman will never carry any cargo for them again. Nor will the Warken or the White Serpent .’ At Brashen’s quirked eyebrow, Leftrin clarified, ‘The keepers and dragons have finally named their impervious ships. Come the end of summer, they plan to make their maiden voyages on them, but to Trehaug. They won’t stop in Cassarick at all. No goods from Kelsingra will ever be traded there, until the Council investigates and punishes those who plotted against us.’

‘The most solid blow that a Trader can take is to his purse,’ Althea approved. ‘You may yet rout out the rotten apples in the barrel. And the others?’

‘The slaves who were working the ships stayed in Kelsingra. Some seem to be adapting. Others may want to leave. We’ve left that up to them. There were others, some from Bingtown, a few from Trehaug. None of them wanted to stand as a witness against Candral. So we can’t actually prove that Candral or any others on the Council were either bribed or threatened by the Chalcedeans to sabotage us. So. Refusing to trade with them is as much as we can do to them,’ Leftrin concluded sombrely.

‘They tried to kill Tintaglia,’ Paragon reminded them all severely.

‘The orders to attack her and IceFyre originated in Chalced,’ Alise pointed out gently. ‘And Sa knows they’ve paid for it a hundred times over.’

Paragon made a sceptical sound, but all the humans fell silent for a time. The reports of the fall of Chalced had been dire. The Duke’s palace had fallen to IceFyre’s orchestrated attack. The old black dragon had been both ruthless and relentless. He had not been content with killing the occupants. By the time the dragons had finished, nothing but crumbled ruins remained. There had been a disorderly military response that Spit had enthusiastically defeated. The populace had quickly learned that not even buildings offered any real protection against dragons newly infused with Silver. By evening, a cowed group of nobles offered a surrender, only to discover that the dragons had ‘captured’ the Duchess of Chalced and already arranged terms with her.

‘Rapskal and Heeby remained in Chalced. Nortel, Kase and Boxter and their dragons stayed as well. Strange to think that four dragons are deemed an ample force to back the new duchess as she establishes her authority over Chalced.’

‘So Kelsingra favours her rise to power?’ Althea asked.

Alise lifted one shoulder. ‘The dragons favour her rise to power. She set very favourable terms for an alliance. Chalced had always had harsher laws than Bingtown. She has imposed a death sentence on anyone who lifts a hand against a dragon. Shepherds and herdsmen are to pay a dragon tax that sets aside a certain number of beasts each year as prey for dragons. She had some opposition from some of the nobles at first, but she was ruthless with them. That the nobles must recognize her authority had been a key term of their negotiations and the end of hostilities. Only one defied her. She sent the dragons. That was the end of it.’

‘Harsh,’ Brashen said quietly.

‘Chalcedean,’ Leftrin replied. He shrugged. ‘I don’t think she could establish order there any other way. There is still restlessness in Chalced, especially in the outlying provinces, but I don’t think it will reach civil war, as some said. Duchess Chassim seems to be trying for other alliances as well.’