The Nine Bishops

Mika shot up. She quickly put her hand on the spot over her heart where the javelin had struck. There was a cool sensation at the spot, but nothing protruding from her skin. Other than the violent thumping of her heart from sheer adrenaline, she was fine. She was astonished to find no visible indication that she’d been hit, though she was sure the javelin had struck her where she touched. She let out a breath slowly, consciously relaxing her tensed muscles. It was only a dream after all, Mika thought.

It took her a moment to remember where she was. Despite her temporary shock, she felt surprisingly well rested. Apparently, she’d managed to sleep deeply, though she had no sensation of having lost consciousness. The reality she had awoken to felt exactly like the one she’d been in moments ago, the difference being that she couldn’t explain how it was that her father had killed her in that white place. It had to be a dream—a nightmare, she thought. This was not the reunion she had always imagined. Mika now knew what it felt like to die, and it was unnerving.

By now, she was used to having more questions than answers. There was nothing to do but stop focusing on what had just happened and concentrate on her next move. Mika gathered her things. There was a fireplace in the room that had warmed her throughout her slumber, so Mika used its flames to dispose of her old clothes, and put on some of her new garments. Before stepping outside, she took a glance into the mirror in her room and hardly recognized her own reflection. She was clean, well-fed, and well-dressed, for the first time in her life. Mika smiled with satisfaction at her own image. Finally, she looked like a proper mage, though that was something she wasn’t sure she wanted.

It was still early in the morning and, having pre-paid for her room, she decided to slip out without talking to anyone. No one paid her any mind, since she now looked like a typical mage.

Mika was becoming familiar with the general layout of towns in Seemos. Caravans always parked in the central square to await passengers. As she made her way there, she could feel the heavy medallion bumping gently in her left pocket. She planned to use it for the first time for this journey, since she had realized she didn’t have enough coin for the trip to Monsoon, but she had no idea how to reveal the medallion to someone, nor what reaction she would receive. She knew only that it was the one chance she had to take a caravan. The last thing she wanted to do was walk if she could avoid it. The past two weeks had been saturated with non-stop walking, and she was down to three silver and fifty-six bronze. She would have to be very conservative with the rest of her coin.

At the center of Summerhall, the caravans were gathered in a circle in a small park with beautiful trees and hedges in the center, where Zanark’s square had a massive fountain. City squares, always meticulously kept, seemed to be signify local pride and identity. It was the one thing every traveler saw, since the caravans always stopped there. Mika liked Summerhall’s center better than Zanark’s because she preferred a more natural view.

As she approached the caravans, she noticed the owners were not shouting at passersby, as they did in Zanark. Her curiosity piqued, Mika took a closer look at their signs, which listed the town they were traveling to, estimated travel time, and a simple yes or no as to whether they offered fast travel.

Mika had no idea what fast travel meant. About half of the caravans offered it. Mika circled around the beautiful square and found a sign posted to her destination: Monsoon. Perhaps there Mika could find answers to her questions about fast travel, among her other queries.

As she approached the caravan, she heard what she was fairly certain sounded like two people kissing, a rather particular sound coming from inside the caravan.

Mika was not in the mood to stand idly waiting, so she let out a fake cough to indicate a customer was outside. What she heard next surprised her: two muffled men’s voices. She stepped away a few paces to avoid giving the impression she’d been eavesdropping.

Mika, standing with her back to the caravan, hands on her hips, heard someone flip open the flap at the back of the caravan.

“I apologize for making you wait, m’lady,” a man’s voice called out behind her.

Mika turned to meet the gaze of an elegantly dressed caravanist in purple, a color Mika noted was quite a bit more vivid than typical mage garb. He had short blonde hair, blue eyes, and rosy cheeks. Oddly, he sported an earring, an accessory Mika was unaccustomed to seeing a man wearing.

“You see, I was caught up reading in the back of my friend’s caravan. I’m watching it while he returns from town,” the man said.

Mika knew he was lying, but thought it best not to press him on it. “Sir,” she began, noticing he was in fact holding a book and moving closer to catch the title: The Gossip. As he looked up with an eager smile, she noticed a hint of lavender on him.

“Would you mind helping me find my way to Monsoon? Though it sounds like you aren’t the person I am looking for,” Mika said.

Hearing footsteps approach from the other side of the caravan, she turned to meet the gaze of another man.

“Ah, this is the man you are looking for, then. Jacque, you will find that you have a customer!” the caravanist in purple replied.

Jacque was also beautifully dressed; he was tall, fair- skinned, clean-shaven, with sharp features and long maroon hair drawn neatly into a bun. Mika thought him rather attractive. The men looked to be the same age, both in their late twenties or early thirties.

Jacque gave the man in purple a fake smile, clearly suppressing his uneasiness. “Thanks for watching my caravan while I was out. I can attend to this customer.”

The man with the book bowed his head and began walking away. In that moment, Mika saw an opportunity. “Before you go, I would love to make your acquaintance,” Mika said enthusiastically.

The men looked at each other cautiously, before Mika noticed Jacque give his friend a slight nod of approval.

“My name is Simone,” the man in purple said, introducing himself with a bow.

“It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Mika,” she said, extending her hand.

“The pleasure is mine,” Simone said, kissing Mika’s hand. He cast a meaningful glance at Jacque, then looked back at Mika and added, “Well, it is time that I get back to my caravan, Mika; my horses need tending, too.”

“If it is all the same, I wouldn’t mind discussing my business with both of you gentlemen. However, what I have to tell you would be best said in private,” Mika interjected. She was beginning to gather what these two were about. She’d heard that sometimes men engaged in romantic relationships, though that was strictly forbidden and illegal throughout Seemos. Though her plan was to show the medallion to as few people as possible, she suspected she could make the most of this situation.

Jacque threw a puzzled look at Simone, who returned an equally confused but cautious shrug. “Very well, follow me to the back of my caravan. We will have plenty of privacy in there,” Jacque offered.

“Lead the way,” Mika replied. Jacque waved Mika onto the back of his caravan, which turned out to be surprisingly spacious inside. It was furnished with a couch, a bed, and a table and chairs—practically an inn room on wheels. Compared with her first covered-wagon trip, this was luxury. There was plenty of space for three more people and their baggage. Mika took a chair opposite Simone and Jacque, who sat together companionably on the couch, seemingly less self-conscious when out of the public eye.

“What matters would you like to discuss?” Jacque asked cautiously.

Mika decided to ask about fast travel first, primarily for the sake of easing their suspicion. “So, would either one of you fine gentlemen please explain fast travel to me? This is actually my first time riding in a caravan with this feature.”

“Oh, that is a pretty simple question to answer, actually.” Jacque stated.

“Some caravans are outfitted with a special sleep Incantation. If you request fast travel, your trip will seem like it took seconds. You fall asleep upon departure and wake immediately upon arrival. It is my recommended method of travel. Typically, fast travel caravans cost more, but seeing as I am the only caravan going to Monsoon, I’ll keep the trip at the standard price,” Jacque explained concisely.

“It really is as simple as that, Mika. Now, in regards to the matter you wanted to discuss privately, I think we are both curious about that,” Simone added.

“Before I get into those details, may I know your price?” Mika asked, buying more time to formulate the question she really had on her mind.

“The trip will cost thirty silver. Normally it would cost thirty-five, since this is a premium caravan, but I think we can both agree the price is fair,” Jacque stated.

The cost left Mika dumbfounded. She had no idea what kind of people would think that was a fair price for a trip.

“I do realize, compared to the other caravans, that may seem like a lofty price,” Jacque said in response to her silence. “But most caravanists are not willing to risk traveling to Monsoon, since it is a hard ride through mountainous territory, which is difficult for those less experienced. But I am one of the best, and I will ensure you make it there in a safe and timely manner.”

“Jacque, it’s her first time. Cut her a deal, for my sake at least. Make it twenty-five,” Simone demanded gently.

Jacque let out a sigh, but gave in. “Fine. Twenty-five is the lowest I can go, though.”

By this time, Mika was prepared to challenge them with her question. Their response would determine whether she could trust them with seeing the medallion.

“Thank you for your offer. I think that, now that we have gotten that out of the way, we can discuss more delicate matters,” Mika said. The men eyed Mika curiously. Without giving them time to respond, she continued.

“Before I can trust you with my secret matters, I need to know that we can trust one another.

“Well, you can certainly trust us, Mika,” Jacque injected.

“I guess we are about to find out about that, then … I heard what you two were on about in the caravan earlier. If you want my trust, then you need to be honest with me,” Mika said, meeting their eyes.

She could see the question had caught them off-guard and hoped she hadn’t been too demanding. For a moment, they looked vulnerable and afraid. Simone opened his mouth to say something, but Jacque put a hand up to silence him and said, “Don’t worry, Simone, I’ll explain.”

Jacque looked down for a moment and then up at Mika, with striking fortitude. “It is true that we are together, even though it’s forbidden. I’d hoped it wasn’t so obvious. But what we feel for each other is nothing but love. We were both heirs to great families until our relationship began. We’d always had to act differently from others, and we hid our true selves for a long time. That is, until we met each other,” Jacque said, glancing at Simone, who was sitting silently, his head hanging down. After a short pause, he went on.

“Our relationship quickly blossomed. We both took a risk and announced it to our families. We’d hoped that they loved us enough to accept us, or at least try to act civil. But they were disgusted and angry. Simone’s parents threw him out of the house outright. Mine told me I’d disgraced them. They disowned both of us. We lost our titles and inheritance. They abandoned us. So we decided our only chance of being together was to elope and create a new life for ourselves.”

Jacque turned his gaze back to Simone with a rueful smile. “Together, we have made names for ourselves as great caravanists. No one knows of our relationship but our families—and now you, I suppose.”

“We took up this … nomadic lifestyle for our own safety,” Simone added. “We’re telling you this, because it’s obvious your secret must be very important. We’ve told you our secret; it’s time to tell us yours. You can trust us, Mika,” he added sincerely.

Mika was relieved that her risk had paid off. I knew there was something about these two that was different, she thought. She felt profoundly sorry for them after hearing what they’d been through, something she’d never imagined she could feel about two mages. She knew she could trust them now, after they had made themselves so vulnerable. She was almost surprised at how quickly they had opened up to a stranger, and that they’d taken her at her word. Now it was her turn. Taking a deep breath, Mika drew the Bishop’s medallion from her pocket and dangled it in front of them.

Their eyes widened, and Mika saw they’d understood immediately what it meant. She had no idea why the medallion would get her a free ride, but the two mages across from her certainly did.

Simone looked at Jacque and asked, “You know what that means?” Jacque returned Simone’s look with a smile and said, “It is time that I set off.”

The men promptly embraced before Simone hopped out of the caravan, wishing Mika “good luck” as he left. Mika still did not fully understand the meaning behind the medallion, but she decided it was unwise to ask, since she was hiding behind a veil of extreme confidence.

“You can get comfortable,” Jacque told her. “We will be departing very soon.” He left the interior of the caravan, and shortly Mika heard him getting into the driver’s seat outside. She heard Simone give him a few parting words before he stepped away.

“Next stop, Monsoon,” came Jacque’s muffled words from the front of the caravan. And then, with a whinny from one of the horses, it began to move.

***

In what seemed like the blink of an eye, Mika felt the caravan come to an abrupt stop and heard Jacque calling out, “Welcome to Monsoon!”

She was puzzled. The way fast travel had been explained to her, she’d thought she could expect to fall asleep. She didn’t feel as though she’d so much as nodded off. But sure enough, it was obvious she was in a different place. The air, even inside the caravan, felt significantly thinner. It seemed to require more effort to get the same amount of oxygen. Mika rose and opened the back flap of the caravan, astonished to find it quite dark outside—and to see a clear, moonless sky filled with stars. They were stopped on a forest path which seemed to be coming to an end just up ahead. This wasn’t the city landscape she’d been expecting. Confused, Mika walked to the front to see Jacque, who was putting feed bags on the horses.

“You said we’d arrived in Monsoon?”

“Yes, we left so quickly I neglected to tell you,” he said apologetically. “No caravans can make it down the cliffside into Monsoon. The road ends here. You will have to walk down through Heaven’s Gate to get into the city itself.” He pointed ahead to a clearing barely visible in the night.

“Heaven’s Gate?” Mika asked.

“Oh, right, I forgot that you have never been to Monsoon. Heaven’s Gate is just the name of the stairway that leads into Monsoon. It is the only safe way down.”

Mika could see Jacque was weary from the long journey that she had missed entirely. Yet he seemed enthusiastic talking with her.

“Since we arrived in the night, you can stay in the caravan tonight. There is no need to go into the city this late. I’m going to set up camp here anyway, so don’t feel any pressure to rush down there.”

Mika was grateful for this offer. “I will gladly join you. Don’t mind me. You seem to be exhausted. Go get some rest and we can talk in the morning, before I head into the city.”

“Thank you. I do recommend you look at the view before you turn in. It is a spectacular sight at night.”

Mika nodded, and set off for the crest of the hill ahead. The view made her jaw drop. Mika had never seen anything so beautiful in her life.

The city was at the bottom, not of an ordinary hill, but of a steep mountain range that surrounded Monsoon in a great semicircle. From here, there was no way into the city but down. The outer fringes of the city began at a higher elevation, with neighborhoods sloping down towards a harbor and beach. The whole city glowed with lights like nowhere in Southie. To Mika, they looked like thousands of fireflies.

A lighthouse at the far end of the harbor lit up the sky. Dozens of islands dotted the sea in the distance, glowing with light, too, each with its own distinct shape. Though the light from them was faint, Mika could spot ships sailing in and out of the harbor, tiny from this perspective, disappearing and then reappearing again amid the thick fogs on the distant horizon.

From what she could see at this distance, the buildings were spectacular in themselves, built in an astonishing variety of styles that Mika had not seen elsewhere in her travels. If she had felt admiration for any of the other places she’d passed through, her admiration was nothing compared to the grandeur of Monsoon.

It was more than she had ever dreamed, and the only place she wanted to be. Mika had thought she’d entered Home before now. But this, she realized—this was truly Home.