Golden Age (The Shifting Tides, #1)(28)

‘He agreed to help,’ said Dion. ‘It worked. It’s done. The passage is now clear.’

He leaned back, waiting for his father’s reaction to the news, but the scowl didn’t leave the king’s face. Dion looked at his mother.

There was silence for a time.

‘You did well,’ Thea said.

‘You sailed the Shards?’ Nikolas murmured, shaking his head.

‘Well, there we have it,’ Markos finally said, half standing. ‘I’m sure Aristocles will let us know the price of his help. I will think on it.’

‘Father,’ Dion said, holding out a hand. ‘There’s more.’

‘What now?’ Markos growled as he sat back down again.

‘Is it Phalesia?’ Nikolas asked. ‘Did the tremor strike them badly? Do they need our help?’

‘No,’ Dion said. ‘It struck them hard, much harder than it hit us here, but the eldren helped the city in its time of need.’

Peithon frowned and lifted his head to glare at Thea, who refused to meet his eyes. Both had endured tragedies from attacks by wildren, but Thea’s equanimity and Peithon’s rage were at complete odds.

‘So you passed through Phalesia long enough to see that they don’t need our help,’ the king said. ‘You incurred a debt with Aristocles. If you have a point, Dion, I suggest you make it. You said you had important news.’

‘I do.’ Dion took a deep breath. ‘There was a strange ship, damaged in the tremor. It came to Phalesia for repairs.’

‘Go on.’

‘A foreign warship,’ Dion said. ‘But like no warship I’ve ever seen. It was eighty feet long, with two banks of oars, one above the other. It had a sharpened bronze ram, as long as a tree is tall.’

King Markos scratched at a small white scar on his cheek, looking pensive.

‘Father, this ship makes the Phalesian ships look primitive, and we rely on their navy to protect us from attacks by sea. Aristocles met with the captain, a man named Kargan, who says he has many more vessels under his command.’

‘Did Aristocles say where this ship was from?’ Nikolas asked.

‘Ilea, from the capital Lamara, where the sun king Solon rules.’

Nikolas spoke again. ‘Did Aristocles reveal anything of the sun king’s intentions? Is he looking to open up trade?’

‘Aristocles is worried. This man, Kargan, gave his rank as admiral. He’s arrogant and contemptuous of Phalesia. He expressed interest in the Ark of Revelation.’

Peithon’s eyes widened. ‘Interest?’

Dion hesitated. ‘By interest, I mean desire.’

‘But it is sacred!’ Peithon exclaimed.

‘That was explained to Kargan. Yet he persisted.’

‘Do you think he’s planning to return?’ Nikolas asked.

Dion felt honored that his brother was asking for his opinion, rather than that of Aristocles. ‘There’s no way to say. They may return for trade, for war, or they may never return at all. The Salesian continent is far away.’

‘Hmm,’ King Markos said. He hadn’t spoken in some time. ‘I’ve heard rumors of this sun king and his growing power. Word is that he has subdued his neighbors. It’s unclear whether he has his eyes on our side of the Maltherean Sea.’

Dion leaned forward. ‘You and Nikolas have been building up the army. We’re strong on land. But if Phalesia falls or becomes a satrap, subservient to the sun king’s power, we’ll be next, and we can’t stand alone. We must develop a navy.’

The king put his hands on his knees and also leaned forward, jutting out his chin. ‘Do you have any idea how much coin we would need to build a navy? With skills we don’t have? How much time it would take?’

‘The army requires a great deal of our resources—’

‘All necessary,’ Markos bit off the words. ‘Our army is our strength. We are a warrior nation. A nation of the sword, the shield, and the spear. We worship Balal, the god of war, not Silex, the god of the sea. Bah!’ He clenched his fists. ‘Perhaps we were better off with the narrows blocked. Perhaps you have done us no service after all.’

‘Father,’ Nikolas urged. ‘That wouldn’t help our alliance with Phalesia. Nor would it help Peithon. We need trade, which means we need the sea.’

‘What we truly need is knowledge,’ Dion said. ‘We are a smaller nation than Phalesia, and smaller by far than Ilea, but our future could be determined by the tide of events between them. Kargan of Ilea now has an insider’s view of Phalesia’s harbor, defenses, and governing Assembly. Whatever Aristocles and the other consuls learned from him in return, little was shared with me.’ He looked from face to face. ‘I think someone from Xanthos, one of us, should return to Phalesia so we may learn what we can, before the warship leaves.’

Markos grunted. ‘And my guess is you think that someone should be you.’

‘Nikolas is busy at the training ground, you have the kingdom to run, and Peithon sees to our trade. I want to be useful, and I truly believe this warship heralds danger.’

‘What if the Ileans have departed?’ Nikolas asked, scratching at his thick black beard.

Dion was prepared for the question. ‘Father, you always said a good leader maintains initiative and acts decisively. A good warrior makes actions rather than reactions. If the warship has left Phalesia, I could follow in its wake. I could visit Ilea, posing as a trader. We need knowledge.’