LITMIR.BIZ

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was he just being a good marine?

      “Outstanding.” Lanead’s dry voice pulled Kahl back to the present.

      “Kahl and Mat, with me.” The captain gave the other crew members a look that made them suddenly realize they had places to be and things to do.

      The grey-haired Weltonian waited until no one was in earshot. “I’m glad to see you’re both finding constructive things to do in your spare time; however, it’s time for your real lessons to start.”

      Both Dyhaeri shared a wary look before turning back to the Weltonian captain.

      “What lessons?” asked Mat calmly.

      “Lessons on appropriate behavior with humans.”

      Kahl blinked. He didn’t think he had heard right.

      Mat opened his mouth to say something, then shut it.

      Lanead raised an eyebrow. “Speak your mind plainly.”

      Mat took a deep breath. “I thought you were joking when you first said that.”

      Kahl shot his cousin a concerned look. The gruff Lanead didn’t seem to have a sense of humor.

      “But…but why did you let us waste our time for the past three weeks?” Mat continued.

      Lanead smiled. “Do you call reconciling with your cousin a waste of time?”

      Mat’s complexion looked embarrassed. “No, but…”

      The captain’s smile disappeared. “I needed you two in the right frame of mind before the real training started. To be honest, I thought it would take longer for you two to come to your senses, but thank the Mother you both have some brains after all.”

      It took a moment for Kahl to realize the captain was referring to the Sea Mother. He thought the humans only worshipped the Maker and His Lords.

      “So, what could you possibly teach us about the humans we don’t already know?” asked Mat causally.

      Lanead’s smile was dry. “Let’s start with current affairs. Who is the current monarch of Malaquey?”

      “King Wilhem of House Taros,” replied Mat without hesitation.

      “Who are the members of his immediate family?”

      “Queen Ariande and their three children.”

      “Their names?” pressed the Weltonian captain.

      At this, Mat hesitated. “The crown prince is called Wiltran…I, uh, don’t know the names of the last two children.”

      Lanead looked at Kahl, who shook his head. He hadn’t even known the queen’s name.

      The Weltonian sighed. “Princess Crystal and Prince Aren. Now, how many elected officials make up the ministry, and can you name at least three of them?”

      Mat’s face flushed. “You’ve made your point, captain. I know nothing at all about the Malaquey kingdom, and to be honest, I’m not sure how that information is important to us.”

      Kahl caught his breath, stealing a glance at Lanead, Amazingly, the captain looked thoughtful.

      “Fair enough. Thank you for your honesty. Do you have anything to add, Kahl?”

      For a moment, Kahl was unsure of what to say. Then he had a thought. “Well, actually I am interested.” Both the Dyhaeri and Weltonian stared at him. “We do share this world with them, so we should learn about each other.”

      Mat gave him an odd look.

      “So, we’ll start with that. Come with me.” Lanead turned away, clearly expecting the two Dyhaeri to follow. It didn’t take long for them to realize they were headed to the captain’s cabin. This was a first for the cousins.

      Neither hid their curiosity as they entered the cabin. It was quite spacious and tidy. A table filled with pinned down maps occupied the center of it. Several routes were marked on the maps. Lanead bypassed the table and instead went to a bookshelf at the rear of the cabin. He selected two books and handed them to the Dyhaeri.

      “I’ve given you the 14^th edition of Ana Stral’s Who’s Who in the Malaquey Royal Court and the 11^th edition of Thozas Belling’s Social Structure of the Malaquey Republic. ”

      He waited for them to flip through the books for a few moments.

      “You both have a week to read as much as you can before your test.”

      Mat and Kahl shot him identical shocked looks. “What!?”

      Lanead smiled dryly. “Any operative worth his or her salt needs to memorize the social structure of their assigned countries. This is basic espionage training. I hope for your sakes you read fast. Now, go on and start studying.”

      The cousins shared a befuddled look and left his cabin.

       #

      Once the two Dyhaeri reached their cabins, Mat nearly threw the book to one side. Was Captain Riverun really going to test them about human society? He can’t be serious! But Mat soon found himself rethinking his own reluctance when he saw how eager Kahl was to read the human book he had been given.

      At first he wanted to ask his younger cousin what he was doing. But a part of Mat wondered if he, himself, was just being a stubborn idiot.

      But surely the king wouldn’t send him and Kahl to Malaquey as undercover agents! He was a junior lieutenant in the marines and his cousin was still a very junior scout. They were certainly not qualified for such a sensitive operation.

      Then a horrifying thought crossed his mind. What if the king and the Seers were planning to turn them into humans? Just like how Princess Sle’niazza and Princess Kallesezza had been transformed decades ago?

      He closed his eyes briefly at the dizzying thought.

      No. He was overthinking this.

      But what if…

      Mat stared at his younger cousin, who was completely oblivious to Mat’s thoughts. If what he feared was about to happen, then Mat had better surpass Kahl in this test and any others to come. That way he might be able to convince the king and the Seers to spare Kahl from such a transformation. Mat would even take the pain of being stripped of his Dyhaeri heritage to save his cousin.

      With his newfound goal, Mat sat down on his bunk and started reading.

       #

      Kahl waited nervously as Lanead marked their tests in front of them. They were once again in the captain’s cabin. The week had passed quickly, and the test had come and gone. He glanced at Mat, who was watching the Weltonian captain with narrowed eyes.

      He had been surprised by how hard Mat had prepared for the tests. Kahl hadn’t expected his cousin to take it seriously. But he was relieved they were together in this training. It made him feel less lonely and unsure.

      I wonder how Britea is doing. He forced himself to push that thought away. He had been thinking about her a lot recently and wasn’t sure why. Training her had made him happy even though he suspected he may never see her again.

      A sigh from the captain brought him back to the present.

      “Well done to both of you. The results are better than I expected with so little time to prepare.”

      “So, how’d we do?” asked Mat so fast Kahl quirked an eyebrow.

      “Pretty good, but Kahl had a slight edge: eighty-nine percent to your eighty-seven.”

      Kahl’s eyes widened in surprise. He was oddly giddy with relief. He turned to smile at his cousin, but his smile slid away when he saw the dark expression in Mat’s eyes.

      “I see. When’s the next assessment?”

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