Baltukhasar - Approached Kadar-Jormu On Horseback

Baltukhasar approached Kadar-Jormu Citadel on horseback. The citadel's shapes looked simple but rose to heights that inspired awe. The citadel's masonry had no cracks or seams. Through lost magic, it had become a single unblemished rock. That magic touched every mountain in the Northwest Territory. If the terraced foothills were its largest manifestation, Kadar-Jormu Citadel was its most spectacular.

But what was inside?

There might not have been anything at all. Giants moved through rock like water and had no need for air. Consequently, they had no need for doors or staircases. Openings and ramps existed in their structures, but were not for providing access to interior chambers. Scholars believed the giants wanted to channel the flow of energy in the world. It was a rare case where Baltukhasar agreed with scholars.

The giants had been gone for ten thousand years. Earthquakes occasionally caused sections of their structures to open up. On such occasions, it was possible to learn about their interiors. But Plainsmen never dug into the monuments. The Arkhanate of Urarhtu ruled the Northwest Territory longer than it ruled any other province. No human tribes in the northwest ever rebelled. It was only after the giants had retreated from the world completely that independent societies emerged.

Those societies continued to revere their ancient overlords.

Baltukhasar smiled.

There was more behind the Northwest's respect for giant architecture than reverence. Bad things happened to anyone who tried to dig through rock touched by the giant's magic. Humanity lived on Kador-Jormu Citadel as if it were still a mountain – and not inside it. Baltukhasar guided his horse up a ramp a hundred yards wide. Civil engineers had created level spaces on the ramp – then built markets, public venues, and residences on top of those level spaces. While the Northwest Territory was less developed than most of Great Yao, the foundations of Kadar-Jormu were the best in the world.

The city's population was booming. It needed good foundations. Baltukhasar would have preferred it if easterners stayed in the east. Arguing with change was like arguing with the tide, however, and rising imperial influence wasn't all bad. If not for the Emperor, men like the Count of Arlu would have already plundered the Northwest.

But Tianming Town was far away. That forced the Emperor to rely on regional nobility more than elsewhere in Great Yao. It would have worked if the Earl of Kadar-Jormu was reliable. He was not. Under him, reliable officials were required to bumble and feign ignorance in order to avoid being replaced. Baltukhasar was not required to bumble. The Earl could not replace him.

But in Kadar-Jormu, the Circuit Chief was required to pick his targets well.

Riding through markets, he hunted for scents.

One scent came from a particular paper; the other came from ink. Baltukhasar gained familiarity with both while burning evidence in Gol-Gunzgir. His assertion to Sheriff Hu that every document was forged was not quite honest. The most valuable documents were forged. Numerically, however, they were a minority. Fraud was easier to hide inside a fluffy blanket of legitimacy.

Selling paper and ink was neither fraud upon the population nor a crime. Somewhere in the book district of Kadar-Jormu's markets, however, there worked a craftsman who could forge imperial documents. That work was so sensitive, the craftsman would be directly connected to the Earl. Baltukhasar caught whiffs of the ink and paper he wanted. But Kadar-Jormu was not a place where he could ride in and kill everyone who needed killing – at least not without a plan.

Satisfied with his hunt, Baltukhasar rode through the gates of his official residence and dismounted. Minions tended his horse and briefed him on developments. He was informed that the abducted young women were being dispersed through a network meant to keep them from getting "recruited" again. Officially, the livestock Baltukhasar released in a stampede belonged to no one and were being delivered to representatives of the imperial estate.

A representative of the Earl waited impatiently in Baltukhasar's private office.

"What happened in Gol-Gunzgir?" the representative demanded.

"A tragedy," said Baltukhasar. "Many lives were lost."

"What caused that tragedy?" pressed the representative.

"Gol-Gunzgir is not within my jurisdiction," said Baltukhasar. "Sheriff Hu continues to investigate. I won't comment on what he may or may not find."

"Fine," said the representative. "Why were you in Gol-Gunzgir at all?"

"Where a Circuit Chief goes is not your concern," said Baltukhasar.

"Both you and Gol-Gunzgir are in the Earl of Kadar-Jormu's domain."

"Circuit Chiefs report to the Emperor," said Baltukhasar. "A process exists for all members of the greater nobility to raise concerns with His Majesty. You may go."

The Earl's representative declined to depart. Baltukhasar stood up in a threatening manner. The man departed under protest, insisting that Baltukhasar had not heard the last of the incident.

"Circuit Chief," sighed a senior minion. "Did you kill everyone again?" 

"I expedited an investigation," replied Baltukhasar.

"Do words like that really work?" asked the minion.

"Words like that can work," said Baltukhasar. "In this case, however, it comes down to power."

"The Earl has a lot of power."

"He does," agreed Baltukhasar. "But that power is more dispersed."

"He could use his power to hire Sorrow Woe Society," suggested the minion apprehensively.

"He could," agreed Baltukhasar. "But that won't work."

"Are you really stronger than Sorrow Woe's assassins?"

"No."

"Then why wouldn't it work?"

"Any one of their top killers can defeat me," agreed Baltukhasar. "But they won't have the ancient magic to keep me dead."

"How do you know?" asked the minion skeptically.

"I asked a little girl about who could kill me," said Baltukhasar. "The only member of Sorrow Woe Society on her list was Mr. Sorrow. Mr. Sorrow will not accept contracts from anyone below the rank of Duke. Neither Northern nor Western Duke will commit their capital to rescue an Earl."

"Circuit Chief," said the minion, "this does not put me at ease."

"You worry that Mr. Sorrow will lower his standards?"

"I worry about you taking advice from a little girl."

"Here's something to worry about more," said Baltukhasar. "That little girl is on the list of people who can kill me. I did things of which I am not proud when I was still a prince. But I never crossed Princess Iba Algi."