Chapter 20: ACT I, SCENE 9

ACT I, SCENE 9Day 29 Hours 20 Minutes Since the Ash FellCathedral — Command PostVespar’s gaze moves over the charcoal marks on the map. He already knows what he intends to do, but he keeps darting his gaze between them.Planning is done, Vespar thinks. I am going—and I am going alone. He takes a deep breath.“Captain, you know the Cathedral better than I do, from where do you propose I make my exit?”Vespar straightens, almost instinctively as he addresses Captain Lang.“I will find Leo and whatever happened to the patrols, but I am going to do it my way. That means caution, preparation, and time.”Vespar pats his supply bag.“My one night outside the Cathedral exhausted the few supplies I carry for emergencies like this. Do I have your permission to secure two or three days’ worth of supplies—or information on where I might find my own? I will not need much, but I have no idea what condition Leo or your men will be in when I find them.”Vespar pauses as Captain Lang looks him up and down before giving a single nod. “You know your strengths... and, more importantly, your limits. I knew some captains who never learned either.”Vespar notices the Captain settle one gloved hand over the city’s crest—the Heart-Tree—etched along the top of the map. His other hand traces a route toward the western districts.“The crypt remains your safest passage; the Cathedral gates stay sealed until those keys come back...”His tone hardens. “Three days of provisions. Rations, water, Gloom-Oak. I’ll answer for the expenditure.”Vespar turns to start toward the next person he needs to speak with.“If fortune favours you, bring Leo to his mother,” Captain Lang says behind him. “If you find my Watch—my men—bring back whatever fate allows.”A pause.“Even if it is just the truth.”With the map and its three charcoal marks behind him, Vespar moves through the command post toward the noble quarter. The Captain’s men continue to watch him as he passes, as though seeing him for the first time.* * ACT I, SCENE 9.33Day 2 9 HOURS 30 MINUTES SINCE THE ASH FELLCATHEDRAL — COMMAND POST / NOBLE’S QUARTERMoving through the crowd, Vespar hears her before he sees her.“...someone must have seen him.”“I understand your concern, my Lady, but—”“You understand nothing if you intend to stand here while my son remains beyond those walls.”A desperate edge carries through her voice. The weight of the air seems to shift around her, and several of the Captain’s men begin shuffling their feet.Vespar reaches them just in time to see the soldier before her lower his shoulders.“Ma’am... my lady.”The pressure is familiar—the same weight Vespar felt while approaching Captain Lang, only heavier.“I wanted to tell you myself that I am leaving to look for your son. If he is out there—which I am confident he is—I will do everything in my power to make sure he is returned to you.”At the mention of Leo, Vespar notices a crack in the façade for a moment before the noble mask returns.“While I am gone... could I ask a favour? Could you keep an eye on Kendra for me, please? She is finding her strength... but I fear she’ll neglect herself to help others. The oversight of a lady such as yourself would be a benefit.”During Vespar’s announcement, he marks three different expressions on Lady Cassandra’s face. The first is the one that made the soldiers take a step back. The second is the crack. The third comes with the almost instinctive rise of her head until her nose points over Vespar’s.She draws a deep breath. “You truly mean to go back...”Then with no warmth in her voice, “I have spent the last hour asking men to do exactly what you have offered of your own accord.”Suddenly, Vespar sees a mother again. Her shoulders drop almost imperceptibly; the bags beneath her eyes become visible. “For that... you have my gratitude.”Then she is a Lady again. “You ask me to watch over her?”The question lingers. At length, she exhales. “I cannot promise her my attention.” Every word is measured. “Every thought I possess belongs to Leo until he is returned to me.”Silence stretches between them.“But...” Her shoulders ease, if only slightly.“If our paths cross...”“I shall not ignore her.”The noble façade slips one final time. “Bring Leo home, Vespar.”Lady Cassandra departs into the press of officers and petitioners. Vespar remains where she leaves him, the command post behind him and the infirmary waiting across the nave. * *ACT I, SCENE 9.66Day 2 9 HOURS 45 MINUTES SINCE THE ASH FELLCATHEDRAL — Nave / InfirmaryVespar stands in place, even after Lady Cassandra departs.He cannot seem to prepare for this next conversation.He scans the makeshift infirmary, where he expects to find Kendra. She had walked away from the command post and left him among the officers and nobles, deliberating without her.The moment feels painfully familiar.It recalls all the other times he wanted to find her and say something but could not get the words out:When he returned from his first successful hunt and wanted to share his heroics with her.When he returned from his first Royal hunt with a scar and wanted to tell her how it felt.Each time, as now, he had tried to prepare the words in advance.Each time, he had searched for the perfect way to speak.Looking down at the flagstones, Vespar counts the distance to the infirmary.One.Two.Three.Four.Five steps to reach the infirmary.He hopes he will have the words, because he knows he has to say something this time.He finds her beside a pillar, bandaging the arm of a boy no younger than they are. Watching each pass of the bandage, he notices the same movements he had made back at the campsite... just last night.Vespar can’t help feeling that warmth inside when he notices one important difference.She engages the boy in light, casual conversation, maintains eye contact, and never lets him look down at the wound.Finally, as she stands, Vespar gently reaches for her just below her elbow.She doesn’t turn, but she stops immediately.He speaks in a voice barely loud enough to be considered a whisper.“Kendra, I am leaving. I have to go back out there.”Vespar feels her arm tighten in his light grasp. He can feel her pulse quicken against his fingertips.Before she can answer, her earlier words echo through him.Lowborn or highborn—couldn’t be trusted at a time like this.He continues, “I heard what you said, and I meant what I did. But maybe the future does not have to be as it was.”He pauses.“I do not know why, but I have to go. I have to see it for myself.”Another pause.“When I get back, we will decide what comes next.”Vespar releases her arm.Then he turns and begins to walk away.End of Act I — The Sun Curdled