Page 31 of The Tainted Khan (The Soulbound Saga #2)

J ai sat, alone in the tent, his hand absently rubbing Winter’s head. The little dragon nuzzled up to him, nudging at the throne, annoyed that it got in the way of her draping herself over his lap.

The tent was so large, and so empty. Outside, the noise had fallen away, leaving him in its muffled silence. At his feet, the corpse of Wei stared through him, a look of shock upon his face.

Jai’s stomach turned, and he looked away.

‘You did it,’ Feng said, smiling broadly at Jai. ‘You’re... you’re khan!’

Jai tried to return the smile, but it was but a shadow.

‘Then why do I feel...’ He trailed off, struggling to articulate the turmoil within him. ‘...Like I’ve just lost?’

Feng gave a heavy sigh, and let his head drop to his chest.

‘You’ve weathered worse storms,’ he remarked. ‘Could you imagine you would be here someday, when you hung from the poles of Porticus?’

At that, Jai chuckled, but it was tinged with bitterness.

‘Yes, but this time, if I stumble, it’s not just my life that’s at stake... but the legacy of my father, of Arjun and Samar, everyone that stayed behind... All could be lost.’

Seeing Feng’s troubled gaze, Jai gathered himself. Now was the time for action, tired though he was. Three days was not a long time. Decisions had to be made.

‘What can we expect from Teji?’ Jai asked.

‘As Harleen said—’

‘Beyond that.’

‘They’ll need at least the night,’ Feng said after a moment’s thought. ‘Just as we will. Some of his supporters may have been privy to his plans, but for most, this is a shock. They’ll be angry that Teji forced this upon them. Some may even be regretting their choice.’

‘We’re in the same boat, then,’ Jai replied with a rueful grin. ‘At least there’s that.’

‘Nazeem will keep them in line,’ Feng said. ‘He will have something on every one of them. He trades in secrets and lies.’

‘How do you know this?’ Jai asked.

‘Many who trade with the Kidara do, including my parents. He is a treacherous viper. Did you know, he was once your father’s most favoured man? He was also born Tainted.’

‘And yet still he joined a tribe like the Kidara?’ Jai asked.

Feng nodded.

‘How?’ Jai asked. ‘I thought the Tainted were banished.’

Feng nodded. ‘It is rare, but possible – just like your ransom. Only a khan can make it so, declaring them cleansed of their sin – but they will often remain Tainted in the eyes of all but the tribe that welcomed them. It was a controversial decision, and Nazeem never managed to shake off the stigma.’

‘And yet?’ Jai asked.

‘And nothing.’ Feng shrugged. ‘He is loyal to no one. Only the coin in his pocket, and the power it commands.’

‘I had no idea,’ Jai said.

‘Rohan risked his reputation just to bring Nazeem into the fold. Shielded him, promoted him. Now look at him. Plotting against the man’s last remaining heir. You think your opponent is Teji, but he is but a sotted fool, content to spend his days in a haze of wine, poppy and concubines. Nazeem is your true opponent. And mine.’

Feng turned and lifted his shirt, revealing to Jai a crisscrossing of red welts. Jai’s hand rose unbidden to his mouth, horrified. The sight churned his stomach. He couldn’t fathom how Feng managed to stand, let alone walk, in such a condition.

‘This was what he did to me, after I demanded your ransom. To extract the truth of your claim. Thank the Mother he believed my lies.’

‘Feng, you must... I don’t know. I have little mana to spare. Is there a healer here?’

Feng lowered the shirt, and shook his head.

‘If there is one, they’ll be busy securing their own belongings tonight and will spare no time for me, even if the khan commands it. It’s of no matter, though. Tonight... we must make a plan.’

Jai hissed out a breath, feeling a wave of exhaustion sweep over him. The hour had grown late, and the adrenaline that kept him alert and focused was gradually ebbing away. Despite the aid of mana, he’d used much of it in the fight, and the crushing need for slumber was settling in – with little mana, he knew couldn’t stave off the necessity of sleep for long.

But now, he realised... he could help Feng. For he knew the healing spell – more or less. He knew it was one that was complex, and required a good deal of practice to perfect. He had rarely attempted it himself, for it was a hungry spell, and he had only trained on the lesser majicking of flame. But then, he had succeeded in Balbir’s shade spell, and that was no easy thing.

‘Come closer,’ Jai said. ‘Please, Feng. Sit here in front of me.’

Feng complied, a sigh of relief escaping his lips. Jai then lifted his hand, modelling his gesture after the healing technique he had observed Erica and Rufus use. He formed a closed fist, fingers slightly raised and flexed just so.

Gritting his teeth, Jai forced mana through his hand, and out in the direction of Feng’s back. To his surprise, a sputtering golden light emerged. His form was not perfect, and the spell was wasteful, casting sparks and offshoots that fizzled into nothingness.

But miraculously, it had some effect. The angry wounds turned from raw red to pink, the few scabs sloughing away to fall like a bleeder’s leeches upon the floor.

When he finally withdrew, he found his mana reserves down to all but nothing. The wounds remained too, but at least they no longer wept. It was an inefficient casting, but worth every mote of mana expended. Jai refused to mirror Nazeem’s ruthless tactics. He firmly believed in the principle that loyalty begot loyalty – a creed he vowed to uphold.

Exhausted yet determined, Jai rose from his throne. Feng looked over his shoulder, tracing the now-healing scabs with his fingers, astonishment clear on his face.

‘I... I don’t know what to say, Jai,’ he stammered, ‘I thank you.’

‘No need for that,’ Jai responded. ‘You’re not just my vizier, Feng. You’re my friend. We look out for each other.’

His resolve then hardened, returning to the issue at hand.

‘Let’s focus on what’s next,’ Jai continued. ‘Teji and Nazeem may hold off until the three-day amnesty is over for the sake of their reputations, but we should not assume they will play fair. They will follow us, though not so close that they would lose the element of surprise. The first question is... where do we go?’

Feng nodded in agreement, standing to join Jai. He cast about, and his eyes lit up. The page Teji had read from earlier lay discarded on the ground. He picked it up, flipped it over to the blank side and grabbed a piece of charcoal from the remnants of the dismantled bedchamber’s hearth.

He drew an arrow pointing north in the corner, and then made a rough sketch of the Kidaran sigil in the centre.

‘We are here, the Kidara,’ he said, pointing to the sigil. Then, pursing his lips, he scribbled a crude representation of a phallus on the paper, flashing a quick grin at Jai. ‘And here are Teji and Nazeem.’

Jai couldn’t help but let out a snort. His newly appointed vizier, it seemed, had retained his sense of humour at least.

‘This is the Great Steppe,’ Jai said. ‘It’s all a vast expanse, nothing but open space.’

Feng tapped his nose, a wry smile playing on his lips.

‘That may be, but even in a barren desert, there are waypoints for those who know where to look. While you were in the bath, I made a few enquiries with the Kidaran scouts. It took some silver, but they were willing to share knowledge about this area.’

Jai looked at Feng in astonishment, and Feng’s grin widened.

‘I had to know where to run with Sum if things turned sour.’

Jai started.

‘Sum!’ he said. ‘We should make sure she’s safe.’

‘Trust me – that was foremost on my mind. The traders are the safest place for her right now,’ he said. ‘Now, let me focus. I need to remember.’

He closed his eyes, his brow furrowing as he concentrated before continuing.

‘The Valor took a path less trodden to get here, but we are now in one of the main migration routes of the khiroi. There are oases around here – that should help us shore up our supplies.’

Feng marked the map with a symbol that looked like a cross between a leaf and a water droplet, in a scattered fashion around the crude map.

Jai furrowed his brow.

‘Why should we need supplies?’ he asked. ‘Don’t the Kidara live off the land as the Valor do?’

Feng shrugged.

‘Some,’ he said. ‘But there are thousands here. Less now, of course. The tribe would have to spread out much further than the Valor to harvest enough for everyone. It leaves larger tribes vulnerable to attack, and that is something we can ill afford, now more than ever. But the oases – they’re a treasure trove. Where do you think the bamboo grows, or the fruits come from? Most of the large tribes bounce between them and buy the rest.

‘We have at least a dozen oases within reach,’ Feng said. ‘When we know where we’re headed, we’ll chart a route through as many as we can.’

Lost in thought, Jai leaned over the impromptu map, tracing invisible paths with his fingers. He recalled Leonid, in those early days, poring over his own maps on a grand table that now lay somewhere collecting dust.

Vivid memories surfaced, of receiving a hiding for meddling with the intricately carved figures that represented the legions and the formations of adversaries. To Jai, they had been but toys. Now he would likely seek his own.

The old man had seemed to question every battle, every strategic move he’d made, even after the victories had been won. As if he was constantly seeking a better, more efficient path.

In those days, Jai had found such activities tedious. He’d preferred diving into the antiquated scrolls that chronicled the exploits of Leonid’s predecessors, or the young king, hardly older than himself, beset from all sides, before developing the greatest army the world had ever known, and carving an empire the like of which had never been seen.

But sitting upon the throne, with the weight of his people on his shoulders, he began to comprehend the value in Leonid’s method. The need for planning, for strategic thought, was all too clear.

‘What else?’ Jai asked.

Feng sketched the crossed lupins of the Valor, some way east of the Kidara.

‘They’ll be moving hell for leather,’ Feng muttered, ‘but they’re there.’

Jai rubbed the stubble upon his chin, thinking.

‘Magnus’s legion is to the west, and we know that is where Teji headed before,’ he said. ‘The Valor may be useful to us yet. Let’s do Teji no favours. We head east, at daybreak.’