Assassin Queen by Anna Kashina

Author:Anna Kashina
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Magic, Majat Guild, Majat Code, Romance, Fantasy, Kaddim, War
ISBN: 9780857666079
Publisher: Angry Robot
Published: 2016-06-01T23:00:00+00:00

26

Sandstorm

“Is this bloody weather ever going to improve?” Mai asked.

They were sitting in a shelter, a plain stone building with a flat roof, its gaping windows doing only a little to protect them from the raging sandstorm outside. Kara felt only partially comforted by the knowledge that the people who built this place, more than a century ago, felt it important enough to bring large blocks of hewn rocks for reinforcement, making it withstand even the very strong blasts of wind. According to the locals they met a day earlier, this storm was minor compared to the others to be expected this time of the year.

Egey Bashi pulled the flap of his mask tighter, covering his face against the flying sand. “You have to stop thinking like a Majat Guildmaster, Aghat Mai.”

Mai’s lips twitched. “You can’t be serious, Magister.”

“Perhaps not entirely. But even the Majat Guild can’t defeat the weather.”

Mai grumbled something indistinct as he receded deeper into the corner.

“There’s a well in a sheltered area outside,” Lance said. “And an outhouse. Given that the storm is showing no sign of stopping, I believe we should settle here for the night.”

Mai glanced at the window. “At this rate, we’ll surely be buried by morning.”

“I remember,” Egey Bashi said, “that these shelters are supposed to have storm shutters one could fit into place if the storm rages a while. Let’s dig near that wall.”

Digging through the sand revealed a trapdoor leading to a shallow cellar, too small to accommodate any people but large enough to store a stack of flat boards, along with ropes and metal straps. They also found a shovel and a broom, a pile of firewood and a flint, a supply they decided to leave alone for now.

It took some time to figure out how to fit the shutters into the brackets near each window, finally blocking out the worst of the sand. The air was still full of it, creaking on the teeth and parching the tongue, but at least it didn’t hit the face anymore.

They took turns with the shovel and broom to sweep out the thick layer of sand, revealing a smoothly polished floor, comfortable enough to spread their bedrolls.

“Why don’t they leave the shutters on all the time?” Ellah wondered.

Mai examined the nearest one. “I can only guess if they do, the wind would destroy them too fast. For those who know where to look this seems like a better system.”

“Especially since most travelers normally take shelter here before the storm,” Egey Bashi pointed out.

Mai shrugged. It was his idea to continue traveling despite the weather warnings, driven partly by the hurry they were in, and partly by the knowledge that no matter what they would be likely to reach this shelter on time. Deep inside, Kara suspected that Mai was simply having trouble letting go of his own sense of weather, which of course did nothing useful here, where all the signs seemed to be opposite to what they were used to. How

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