Instantly, panic breaks out among the people there, and they start to rush for the exits, but there are guards moving to block them.
How did they find this place?Did they know the meeting was going to happen?I think of the message left for me.Did someone open it before it got to me?Did they follow me?I don’t know if this sudden ambush has anything to do with me, but I feel guilty nonetheless.
Guilty, and afraid.Afraid for myself, but more afraid for the people here and for Alaric.I don't know if the guards were sent by Rowan, or by someone else with power, but I know these guards won't be gentle.They will arrest people, but they might do far worse.
I can’t let the guards arrest all these people, can’t let them hurt them, but how can I save them?
I have only one tool in my arsenal: the creatures whose eyes I’ve been looking through.I send them surge forward, scratching and biting, attacking the guards in a sudden wave.I try not to let them kill, but I can still feel the bites, feel them lashing out.
The guards cry out, flailing at the creatures attacking them.It isn’t much of a distraction, but it’s enough to let people push past them, many breaking away through the exits.I see the air around Alaric shimmer and blur, disguising him and letting him slip away.I think he shoots a last look my way, but I can’t be sure.
I slip out of there too, moving past the guards with my hood drawn up.I use the creatures to see where the guards are in the tunnels.It means I can avoid them, but it forces me to turn after turning rather than following a clear course.I can hear running feet behind me, and I use another aspect of my powers.I reach for the beasts of the catacombs, borrowing what speed I can as I sprint away.
My heart is hammering in my chest by the time I emerge into sunlight in a completely different part of the slums.I have to force myself to let go of the power I've borrowed, both because it can hurt the creatures I've taken aspects from and because if I leave it too long, I might find myself changed forever, unable to let go of the features and traits of an animal.
I slip away, deeper into the twisting alleys there, seeing plenty of people escaping along the streets.I head back towards the city walls, wondering all the while what kind of conflict is brewing in Aetheria.
I need to get back to the Senate.I need to deal with the fallout from this raid and do everything I can to protect Alaric and his people.
CHAPTER FIVE
“Did you know anything about a guard raid on a meeting in the slums?”I ask Rowan, standing over his desk.
He looks back at me levelly.“I know that various elements have been trying to foment a counter-revolution almost since the downfall of the emperor.”
“That isn’t an answer, Rowan,” I snap.“I was just…”
“You were what, Lyra?”he says.“Are you about to tell me you were involved in a plot to overthrow the Republic?”
I shake my head.“I wasn’t involved in anything like that, and neither was anyone else I could see.These were just people worried about the impact of the games, worried thatthey’retrying to undo the gains made by the Republic.”
“So why were they meeting in secret, in the catacombs?” Rowan demands, but in demanding it, he gives away at least as much as he asks.
“So youdidknow about the raid,” I say, an accusatory note in my voice.
“Not until after the fact,” Rowan replies.“Whereas you seem to know all about it.You were there, weren’t you, Lyra?”
“I was looking into rumors of trouble in the slums,” I say.“I stumbled across the meeting when I saw large groups of people heading into one small space.I was almost caught up in your guards’ arrests.”
Rowan shakes his head.“They’re notmyguards, Lyra.They serve the city and the Republic.Frankly, several of the other senators have more influence over them than I do.You should be more careful.Especially when I hear that the guards were attacked by small creatures down there.It's too obvious, Lyra.If you start attacking the guards, I can't help you."
“There are probably still plenty of beast whisperers in the tunnels beneath the city,” I say.I can’t admit my part in letting people escape to Rowan.It’s clear that he feels utterly constrained by the laws of the city now.
“I’m not an idiot, Lyra,” Rowan snaps back.“And Iamthe First Senator of Aetheria.I need to protect the Republic.”
“The Republic consists of its people,” I remind him.I turn to leave.“What will you do with the ones who were arrested?”
"That's a matter for the magistrates or for the senate as a whole," Rowan replies.It's not a good answer, and it's one that worries me.
I sigh, and leave his office.When did my friend become so officious?Probably around the time he started to lead the city.Rowan always used to try to do the right thing, but my guess is he’s so caught up in webs of politics now that he can’t see what that is.
As for Alaric, what is he doing?It’s one thing to stand against the games, but it seems as though he’s trying to build some kind of resistance movement within the city.Resistance to what?Aetheria isn’t ruled by an evil emperor anymore.Does he really think that the senate and the rest of Aetheria are turning into something as evil?
Is he wrong?
It’s hard to deny the corruption I’ve seen sometimes in the politics of the city, the power that the rich still have compared to everyone else, the roles that outright criminals can have in the running of the city.I never thought I’d see the day when Alaric cast himself as a freedom fighter, but down there in the crypts, he sounded every inch the rebel leader.
I head back to my room, trying to decide what I should do.I sit on a couch there, sipping wine and eating from a platter of food that has been brought to me by one of the palace's servants.It's hard to ignore, as I do so, just how much my life has changed since I came back to Aetheria.I've become one of its senators.I live in a palace.I might not have personal wealth, but I have access to fine foods and clothes, a home finer than anyone else in the city, and all the power that comes with being a senator.
