Partisan - Book II

The Boy in the Sewer

Ruben finds her in the training room on a hazy, humid morning. She is alone; Lei has gone down to rouse the others so they can begin preparations for the trip to Eastwatch.

Walking to her, Ruben watches as she brings a barrage of ice down on the dummy in front of her, burying it deep before pulling her hand down and back, stripping the melted water off of it.

They have not been in the same room alone since the night on the rooftop, when he told her the rest of the Lethinor tale. This seems to hang on him—he hovers for a moment, lips pressed to the brim of his coffee cup, eyes unfocused as he stares at her handwork.

"That was a very interesting council meeting," he says eventually.

Allayria grunts her agreement, bringing a thick slab of rock down on the dummy now.

"I did not know the contents of that book."

Allayria pauses, letting the rocks tumble to the ground.

"I knew a bit," she admits. "Not the full details, but I saw the diagram the first time I stole it. I didn't want to know anything more than that. Not until I could do something about it."

"We have to look at the ugly things if we want to save the beautiful ones."

She picks up her rocks and continues to swing.

"I hope you were kind to Lei," he says after a minute.

The rocks crash to the ground again and she throws him a look over her shoulder.

"Blasted skies, Ruben," she snaps, "I am perfectly aware it's not his fault his mother is a lunatic. Give me some credit."

"You two fight a lot."

"We fight a lot because he's a self-righteous numskull who follows me around like a bloodhound." She kicks at the dust by her feet. "I'll mock his deep-rooted fears of relaxation and fun, but I won't mock him for that."

"It's different," she adds after a moment, glancing over at him.

He nods, leaning back on the nearby water basin.

"I imagine you are wondering why the son of the Imperator was appointed as your personal guard."

"The question crossed my mind," she answers, pulling out strips of cloth and wrapping them around her knuckles. "But I've seen firsthand how atrocious his acting skills are, so I'm not concerned."

He snorts, which is rather ungenerous for him, so Allayria cracks a smile.

"There are other reasons too, you know," he says after a moment. "I don't imagine Lei has told you much about his childhood, even after the meeting. He doesn't talk about it."

"Can't imagine why," she mutters, curling her hands into fists and settling back into position. The first punch hits the dummy with a satisfying thwack.

"Beinsho took him in when he was eleven, and he's been raised on the base since then," Ruben says. "I remember the first time I saw him: he was such a serious boy, withdrawn but so eager to be involved."

"Can't say he's changed," Allayria pants, alternating fists as she pummels the dummy.

"Beinsho told me the story the night before I took Lei on as a student. He had been working with Commander Sinfui of Keesark on a reconnaissance mission at the Jarles borders—this was at the beginning of the Jarles' overt actions against the other kingdoms—and their team had been hiding out in one of the sewers. Not a wonderful place to be.

"One of the soldiers had gone off to relieve himself and came back holding something small in his arms. It was a child—covered in muck and grime, limbs nothing but thin sticks, so weak from hunger and dehydration that he couldn't stand. They brought him into the camp, tried to get some food and water in him."