He struggled like a drunkard to gather the pieces of his shattered mind, and felt them slipping from his grasp. Felt the silence reaching up to take him again.
It’s time to wake up.
He grabbed for the voice. The words were strangely inflected, as all slave tongues were, but they existed. They were real. He could actually feel the words in the dreamed flesh of his claws, and he dragged himself along them, up into the realm of mere slumber. He managed enough awareness to know that something was wrong. He was ill or drunk or poisoned. He couldn’t sleep. He couldn’t let himself sleep.
You need to wake up now.
He breached from dream to the world. The light became real. A torch in a slave’s hand. And another behind it. His body felt wrong, sluggish and dim. The straw he’d slept upon was gone and he felt grime and filth on his scales and in between them. The slave was wrong too. It carried a culling blade, though. The one behind it smelled corrupt. He reached out with his mind and felt Morade’s weapon writhing in the slave’s blood, but it didn’t move to attack.
“Drakkis?” Inys managed, and his voice sounded weak and cracked in his own ears.
The nearer slave shook its head.
“I’m Marcus Wester. That’s Master Kit.” It was the same voice. The one that had called him back.
“Morade,” Inys said. “Does Morade live?”
“No,” the slave said. “I’m going to have to go with no on that.”
Inys felt the relief pour into his soul. He tried to rise, but his body felt so weak. So heavy. The air smelled of rot and ice and the sea. He shook himself, trying to bring his mind to bear, and reared up on his haunches. Every muscle in his body was stiff, slow, and unresponsive. The sense that something was wrong grew.
“Where is Erex?” he asked. “And Drakkis? What’s become of Drakkis Stormcrow?”
“Well,” the slave said. “I may have some bad news about that.”
Dramatis Personae
Persons of interest and import in The Tyrant’s Law
IN SUDDAPAL
The Medean bank in Suddapal
Magistra Isadau, voice of the Medean bank in Suddapal
Kani, her sister
Jurin, her brother
Salan, his son
Merid Addanos, her cousin, and
Maha, her daughter
various cousins and servants of the house
Cithrin bel Sarcour, apprentice to Magistra Isadau
Yardem Hane, personal guard to Cithrin, also Enen
Roach (Halvill)
Kilik rol Keston, a merchant
Samish, a rival of the bank
Karol Dannien, a mercenary captain
Epetchi, a cook
IN IMPERIAL ANTEA
The Royal Family
Aster, prince and heir to the empire
House Palliako
Geder Palliako, Regent of Antea and Baron of Ebbingbaugh
Lehrer Palliako, Viscount of Rivenhalm and his father
House Kalliam
Clara Kalliam, formerly Baroness of Osterling Fells
Barriath
Vicarian, and
Jorey; her sons
also Sabiha, wife to Jorey, and
Pindan, her illegitimate son
and various former servants and slaves, including
Andrash rol Estalan, door slave to House Kalliam
Alston, a guardsman
Steen, a guardsman
Vincen Coe, huntsman formerly in the service of House Kalliam Abatha
Coe, his cousin
House Skestinin
Lord Skestinin, master of the Imperial Navy
Lady Skestinin, his wife
House Annerin
Elisia Annerin (formerly Kalliam), daughter of Clara and Dawson
Gorman Annerin, son and heir of Lord Annerin and husband of Elisia
Corl, their son
House Daskellin
Canl Daskellin, Baron of Watermarch and Ambassador to Northcoast
Sanna, his eldest daughter
Also, various lords and members of the court, including
Sir Namen Flor
Sir Noyel Flor
Cyr Emming, Baron of Suderland Fells
Sir Ernst Mecilli
Lord Ternigan, Lord Marshal to Regent Palliako
Sodai Carvenallin, his secretary
Sir Curtin Issandrian
Sir Gospey Allintot
Fallon Broot, Baron of Suderling Heights
and also Houses Veren, Essian, Ischian, Bannien, Estinford, Faskellan, Tilliakin, Mastellin, Caot, and Pyrellin, among others
Basraship, minister of the spider goddess and counselor to Geder Palliako
also some dozen priests
And also various thugs, workers, tradesmen, and thieves, including
Aly Koutunin, mother to
Mihal, a criminal, and also
Sarai, a recent bride
Ossit, a thug with three friends
IN SARAKAL
Mesach Sau, representative of the traditional families in Nus
Abden Shadra, head of a traditional family
Silan Junnit, member of a traditional family
Sohen Bais, member of a traditional family
IN BIRANCOUR
The Medean bank in Porte Oliva
Pyk Usterhall, notary
Maestro Asanpur, a café owner
IN NORTHCOAST
The Medean bank in Carse
Komme Medean, head of the Medean bank
Paerin Clark, bank auditor and son-in-law of Komme
Milo of Order Murro, a young man
Kirot of Order Murro, an old fisherman and keeper of secrets
Ama of Order Murro, keeper of the lodge house
THROUGHOUT THE GREATER WORLD
Marcus Wester, mercenary captain
Kitap rol Keshmat, former actor and apostate of the spider goddess
The Players
Cary
Hornet
Smit
Charlit Soon
Mikel
Sandr
Dar Cinlama, a hunter of ancient treasures and seeker of lost places
also his lieutenants, Korl Essian
Emmun Siu
Merrisen Koke, a mercenary captain
also, his men
Callon Cane, a convenient fiction
THE DEAD
King Simeon, Emperor of Antea, dead from a defect of the flesh
King Lechan of Asterilhold, executed in war
Feldin Maas, formerly Baron of Ebbingbaugh, killed for treason
Phelia Maas, his wife dead at her husband’s hand
Dawson Kalliam, formerly Baron of Osterling Fells, executed for treason
Alan Klin, executed for treason
Mirkus Shoat, executed for treason
Estin Cersillian, Earl of Masonhalm, killed in an insurrection
Magister Imaniel, voice of the Medean bank in Vanai and protector of Cithrin
also Cam, a housekeeper, and
Besel, a man of convenience, burned in the razing of Vanai
Alys, wife of Marcus Wester
also Merian, their daughter, burned to death as a tactic of intrigue
Lord Springmere, the Mayfly King, killed in vengeance
Akad Silas, adventurer, lost with his expedition
Assian Bey, collector of secrets and builder of traps, whose death is not recorded
Morade, the last Dragon Emperor, said to have died from wounds
Inys, clutch-mate of Morade, whose manner of death is not recorded
Asteril, clutch-mate of Morade, maker of the Timzinae, dead of poison
Drakkis Stormcrow, great human general of the last war of the dragons, dead of age
An Introduction to the Taxonomy of Races
(From a manuscript attributed to Malasin Calvah, Taxonomist to Kleron Nuasti Cau, fifth of his name)
The ordering and arrangements of the th
irteen races of humanity by blood, order of precedence, mating combination, or purpose is, by necessity, the study of a lifetime. It should occasion no concern that the finer points of the great and complex creation should seem sometimes confused and obscure. It is the intent of this essay to introduce the layman to the beautiful and fulfilling path which is taxonomy.
I shall begin with a brief guide to which the reader may refer.
Firstblood
The Firstblood are the feral, near-bestial form from which all humanity arose. Had there been no dragons to form the twelve crafted races from this base clay, humanity would have been exclusively of the Firstblood. Even now, they are the most populous of the races, showing the least difficulty in procreation, and spreading throughout the known world as a weed might spread through a rose garden. I intend no offense by the comparison, but truth knows no etiquette.
The Eastern Triad
The oldest of the crafted races form the Eastern Triad: Jasuru, Yemmu, and Tralgu.
The Jasuru are often assumed to be the first of the higher races. They share the rough size and shape of the Firstblood, but with the metallic scales of lesser dragons. Most likely, they were created as a rough warrior caste, overseers to control the Firstblood slaves.
The Yemmu are clearly a later improvement. Their great size and massive tusks could only have been designed to intimidate the lesser races, but as with other examples of crafted races, the increase in size and strength has come at a cost. Of all the races, the Yemmu have the shortest natural lifespan.
The Tralgu are almost certainly the most recent of the Eastern Triad. They are taller than the Firstblood and with the fierce teeth and keen hearing of a natural carnivore, and common wisdom holds that they were bred for hunting more than formal battle. In the ages since the fall of dragons, it is likely only their difficulty in whelping that has kept them from forcible racial conquest.
The Western Triad
As the Eastern Triad marks an age of war in which races were created as weapons of war, the western races delineate an age in which the dragons began to create more subtle tools. Cinnae, Dartinae, and Timzinae each show the marks of creation for specific uses.
The Cinnae, when compared to all other races, are thin and pale as sprouts growing under a bucket. However, they have a marked talent in the mental arts, though the truly deep insights have tended to escape them. As the Jasuru are a first attempt at a warrior caste, so the Cinnae may be considered as a rough outline of the races that follow them.
The Dartinae, while dating their creation from the same time, do not share in the Cinnae’s slightly better than rudimentary intelligence. Rather, their race was clearly built as a labor force for mining efforts. Their luminescent eyes show a structure unlike any other race, or indeed any known beast of nature. Their ability to navigate in utterly lightless caves is unique, and they tend to have the lithe frames one can imagine squeezing through cramped caves deep underground. Persistent rumors of a hidden Dartinae fortress deep below the earth no doubt spring from this, as no such structure has ever been found, nor would it be likely to survive in the absence of sustainable farming.
The Timzinae are, in fact, the only race whose place in the order of creation is unequivocally known. The youngest of the races, they date from the final war of the dragons. Their dark, insectile scales provide little of the protection that the Jasuru enjoy, but they are capable of utterly encasing the living flesh, even to the point of sealing all bodily orifices including ears and eyes. Their precise function as a tool remains obscure, though some suggest it might have been beekeeping.
The Master Races
The master races, or High Triad, represent the finest work of the dragons before their inevitable fall into decadence. These are the Kurtadam, Raushadam, and Haunadam.
The Kurtadam, like myself, show the fusion of all the best ideas that came before. The cleverness first hinted at in the Cinnae and the warrior’s instinct limned by the Eastern Triad came together in the Kurtadam. Also, alone among the races, the Kurtadam were given the gift of a full pelt of warming hair, and the arts of beading and adornments that clearly represent the highest in etiquette and personal beauty.
The Haunadam exist to the greatest extent in Far Syramys and its territories, and represent the refinement of the warrior impulse that created the Yemmu. While slightly smaller, the tireless Haunadam have a thick mineral layer in their skins which repels violence and a clear and brilliant intellect that has given them utter dominion over the western continent. Their aversion to travel by water restricts their role in the blue-water trade, and has likely prevented military conquest of other nations bounded by the seas.
The Raushadam, like the Haunadam, are primarily to be found in Far Syramys, and function almost as if the two races were designed to act as one with the other. The slightest of frame, Raushadam are the only race gifted by the dragons with flight.
The Decadent Races
After the arts of the dragons reached their height, there was a necessary and inevitable descent into the oversophisticated. The latter efforts of the dragons brought out the florid and bizarre races: Haaverkin, Southling, and Drowned.
The Haaverkin have spent the centuries since the fall of dragons clinging to the frozen ports of the north. Their foul and aggressive temper is not a sign that they were bred for war, but that an animal let loose without its master will revert to its bestial nature. While they are large as the Yemmu, this is due to the rolls of insulating fat that protect them from the cold north. The facial tattooing has been compared to the Kurtadam ritual beads by those who clearly understand neither.
The Southlings, known for their great black night-adapted eyes, are a study in perversion. Littering the reaches south of Lyoneia, they have built up a culture equal parts termite hill and nomadic tribe worship. While capable of sexual reproduction, these wide-eyed half-humans prefer to delegate such activity to a central queen figure, with her subjects acting as drones. Whether they were bred to people the living deserts of the south or migrated there after the fall of dragons because they were unable to compete with the greater races is a fit subject of debate.
The Drowned are the final evidence of the decadence of the dragons. While much like the Firstblood in size and shape, the Drowned live exclusively underwater in all human climes. Interaction with them is slow when it is possible, and their tendency to gather in shallow tidepools marks them as little better than human seaweed. Suggestions that they are tools created toward some great draconic project still in play under the waves is purest romance.
With this as a grounding, we can address the five philosophical practices that determine how an educated mind orders, ranks, and ultimately judges the races …
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my agents Shawna McCarthy and Danny Baror for their support in this project and for hooking me up with the amazing team at Orbit. Particularly, I owe debts of gratitude to Tom Bouman for his editorial wisdom, Alex Lencicki and Ellen Wright for their help in navigating the strange tides of promotion, and Tim Holman for giving me a port when things were stormy.
Also and always, I would like to thank my family for supporting me when things were scarce and helping me through the hard parts.
The errors and infelicities are, of course, my own.
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