The Veiled Diplomat
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
CONTENTS
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Special Thanks
The Hundred Halls Appendix
The Hundred Halls Universe
Also by Thomas K. Carpenter
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
The Veiled Diplomat
Book Three in The Reluctant Assassin Series
By
Thomas K. Carpenter
Copyright Information
The Veiled Diplomat
Book Three in The Reluctant Assassin Series
A Hundred Halls Universe Series
Copyright © 2018 by Thomas K. Carpenter
Published by Black Moon Books
www.blackmoonbooks.com
Cover Design Copyright © 2018 by Ravven.com
Discover other titles by this author on:
www.thomaskcarpenter.com
This is a novel work of fiction. All characters, places, and incidents described in this publication are used fictitiously, or are entirely fictional.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, except by an authorized retailer, or with written permission of the publisher. Inquires may be addressed via email to thomaskcarpenter@gmail.com
CONTENTS
The Veiled Diplomat
About the Author
Special Thanks
Hundred Halls Books
Other Works
Hundred Halls Appendix
Copyright
Start Reading Now
Chapter One
Near the Spire, August 2015
Complications with a side of innuendo
The city of sorcery seemed different to Zayn on his first morning back, and it wasn't just the strange golden beam emanating from the second ward like some crazy spotlight for a retro-disco party. He caught Keelan's eye as they stepped off the all-night train from Atlanta.
"Something seem weird to you?" asked Keelan with his eyebrow raised.
"Like the city is a little insubstantial?" asked Zayn, adjusting the backpack slung over his right shoulder.
"I was going to say glittering—no, that's not right. Maybe like it has a halo."
As he moved out of the way of the other train passengers, Zayn blinked hard, trying to clear the fuzziness from his vision.
"It's like that weird haze that collects in the valley south of the junkyard on some mornings that makes it look like another realm," said Zayn.
"Yeah," said Keelan, his voice far away. "Maybe there's a festival or something."
"We'll find out soon enough," said Zayn.
They headed towards the gondola station. The air was cool for August. He could smell rain in the air though there wasn't a cloud in the sky.
To their surprise, Vin and Portia were waiting at the station. Vin was dressed like a male model, with a two-hundred-dollar haircut and an expensive tight-fitting suit that cinched at his midsection. He gave them each a big hug. He'd spent the summer working as an intern for a congressman in DC. It was a job that Priyanka had set up for him.
"How was the swamp?" asked Keelan.
"Not as bad as I thought it'd be," said Vin.
"Says the guy that the swamp ate," said Portia. "You look like a pimp for a high-end escort business."
Vin acted like he was smoothing lint from his lapel. "Compliment accepted. I was working on blending in, for, you know—"
"Another heist," finished the rest of the team, including Skylar, who had just entered the room.
"What the Merlin?" said Portia, staring at Skylar, who had shaved her long silky black hair down to a short stubble. She was wearing a bulky army jacket, black jeans, and heavy boots.
Skylar looked a little apprehensive at the way the rest of the team was staring at her. "Uhm, hey guys. Is everything, like, okay?"
"Yeah, just processing," said Vin with his eyes slightly bugged out.
"I shaved it a few days ago," said Skylar, running her hand over the fuzz. "It's not too extreme, is it?"
"No," said Portia, who reached out and vigorously rubbed Skylar's head with two hands. "It's amazing. I love it. Is this Ripley from Alien? Or maybe Evey from V for Vendetta?"
"I'm just surprised," said Keelan. "I like it, but I'm surprised. Doesn't it go against your fashionista plans?"
While looking back over her shoulder as if she could see into Los Angeles, Skylar snarled her lips. "This summer was a disaster. I love clothes, makeup, the whole deal, but dealing with those awful people all summer, coming into the boutique, treating us like crap. I hated it." She shook her head, looking at her boots. "So I'm taking a break. I figured this was as far away from fashionable as I could get."
Vin scrunched up his mouth. "A million stoner girls just shed a tear."
"Enough about me," said Skylar, poking them each rapidly. "What the hell did you guys do all summer?"
"I got dirt on people while looking fly," said Vin, spreading his arms out in a ta-da motion.
Portia held up her arm. A nasty curved scar went down the length of her forearm. "I hiked the PCT, from Mexico to Canada. A manticore attacked me on a mountain in Oregon. I scared it away, but it got me with a tail spike."
The others looked at Zayn and Keelan, and then Keelan looked at him. Zayn opened his mouth to speak, but he and his cousin hadn't talked about all that had happened during the summer. He'd meant to on the train ride up, but Keelan had slept the whole way.
"I mean, it's Varna," said Zayn with a shrug. "What is there to do?"
He could tell by the way they looked at him that they knew he was obfuscating, but it was the first day back, and they were giving him a pass.
"The gondola's here," said Vin.
They approached the gondola from the student line. When they got up to the front, the attendant, a grotesquely long-limbed guy who was probably from Oestomancium Hall pulled aside the velvet rope.
"Zayn, Keelan, Skylar, Portia, Vin?" he rattled off, reading from a piece of paper.
"Yeah?"
He stepped out of the way, motioning for them to get inside. "This one is yours, private car."
No one said anything, because they didn't have to. This was strange, but they weren't about to question it...yet.
When the door closed and the car lurched into motion, Skylar said, "What's going on? Where's the rest of the class?"
"I was wondering that myself," said Zayn.
Portia snapped her fingers. "Did you guys sense something when you first came to the city? Like you'd stepped into a Dr. Alt painting?"
"I don't know that painter, but yeah, it was strange for us too," said Keelan. "Though by the time I reached the gondola station, it was gone."
Everyone was shaking their heads.
"Whoa," said Vin. "Check that out."
The team turned towards the second ward. North of the Glitterdome, past the rows of theaters with their spectacular illusions beckoning potential ticket buyers, an enormous building was being constructed. The details were hidden behind massive wooden privacy walls, but from the top, a golden beam of light brightened the sky.
The beam was as wide as four city buses, and when it slipped into the cloud layer, the edges sparkled as if it were being refracted a million times. Zayn almost expected it to be making a humming noise from its intensity.
"There must be dozens of stone singers working on that building. I can't imagine how much it costs," said Vin.
"Forget the building. Do you know how much land costs on that street? You might as well ask to build on the front lawn of the White House," said Skylar, shaking her head.
"Does anyone know what it is?" asked Keelan.
An uneasy feeling swirled in Zayn's gut. Something about it felt familiar, but he couldn't place his finger on it.
"I think that's what caused that weird feeling when we got to the city," said Zayn, speaking without really thinking about it.
Everyone nodded in agreement while they kept their faces plastered to the window.
"We're headed to the seventh ward," said Portia.
Zayn squeezed his face against the glass, watching the city pass below, which made him remember his first days in the Hundred Halls, when the gondola ride to the Spire had been a terrifying experience. Now he knew he'd miss the city when he had to return to Varna for the final time. But thankfully, that wasn't for another two and a half years.
When he glanced at Keelan, his heart grew heavy. After they'd learned the truth about Keelan's father, Zayn thought Keelan might have given up on becoming a Watcher, but he wasn't so sure about that after the events of the summer.
Instructor O'Keefe was waiting for them at the gondola station, wearing a kilt and a concerned expression.
With business-like efficiency, O'Keefe marched the other way when they climbed out of the gondola. Since she hadn't spoken, no one said a word as they followed her to a residential street with three-story brownstones stacked next each other.
Instructor O'Keefe brought them to a brownstone in the middle of the block with a white door and a brick front. A wave of her hand revealed runes on the welcome mat, which she disarmed with a whisper.
Inside, O'Keefe, wearing a sour expression, spread her arms wide. "Congratulations, this is your home for your third year in the Academy."
Zayn glanced around the modestly furnished house. There were stains on the stucco ceiling and the dining room table was dinged up. It had a slightly moldy smell as if the last residents hadn't done a good job keeping it clean.
"Why not the Honeycomb?" asked Keelan with his lips curled. "Third years didn't live out of the Hall last year."
"Actually, they did, laddie. We put a spell on ya so you wouldn’t know. Can't go ruining the fun you're gonna have this year," she said.
Somehow, Zayn didn't think his definition of fun matched hers.
Instructor O'Keefe glanced out the window in the direction of the second ward. "Schooling will continue, don't you worry about that, though some of your instructors will be different from years past."
"Will class be at the Honeycomb?" asked Vin.
Instructor O'Keefe pursed her lips with consternation. "Sometimes. There's a portal in the back of the Blackest Cup coffee shop on the next street over. It's owned by an alumni, so no worries. One of your classmates will be along with your books and your class schedules." She glanced around looking like she was suddenly late for an appointment. "I should go. Good luck this year."
The instructor whisked out the front door, leaving Zayn and his team bewildered. There were a lot of shared glances. Zayn felt like he'd been pushed off a truck in the middle of nowhere.
Before anyone else could say anything, Portia said, "Is it just me or does anyone else feel like this is a trap?"
At that moment, somewhere in the back of the house, a door slammed shut.
Chapter Two
Seventh Ward, August 2015
Wrong place at the wrong time
The metallic scent of faez filled the air as Zayn and his teammates put up defensive enchantments. Skylar took two big steps then leapt onto the bookcase next to the door leading to the back of the house. Portia pulled a flaming knife from out of nowhere, while Keelan and Vin moved into position on either side of the beige couch. Zayn, concerned that it was a feint, backed up to the front door, keeping the whole room in his view.
Zayn whispered, "Stunning strike," before the door opened, and the five of them blasted the person coming in with a spell that would numb the target's limbs. The spell had leapt from his hands before he realized the identity of the individual coming through the door.
The five spells slammed into their third-year classmate, Eddie, who had a stack of tomes in his arms taller than him. He was backing into the room, so the spells hit him right in the butt, and he threw the books into the air as his muscles seized up.
"Oh no!" cried Skylar, who was first to reach him.
Eddie hit the ground like a stiff board dropped from a truck, spit coming out of his mouth as he convulsed. Portia applied a countercharm, which released the worst of the spells' effects, but he still twitched for a good minute.
When he could finally speak, Eddie said, "What...what was that for?"
"Sorry, Eddie. This whole day has been a little off. We thought this place was a trap and the O'Keefe was an imposter," said Zayn.
Eddie groaned as they helped him into a sitting position. His pants had split down the seams during the convulsions, making him look like he was wearing chaps.
He wiped the spit from his lips. "Man you guys are weird. Everyone else was happy to see me. Hey Eddie, how you doing? What did you do this summer? Hey Eddie, isn't this cool we get to live in the city this year? Not an ass-full of stunning blasts. I feel like someone shot my whole body up with Novocain."
"We're so sorry, Eddie," said Skylar, grimacing. "How can we make it up to you?"
When Eddie realized who he was talking to, his face scrunched up. "What the hell happened to you? You fall into a blender or join a punk band? Or was it a punk-band blender?"
Skylar pushed him onto his back. "You had to go and ruin it as usual, Eddie."
"What?" he said as Keelan helped him to his feet.
"Never mind," said Skylar. "What's the deal this year? Did they tell you guys anything?"
Eddie shook his head. "Same shtick you got." He looked at them suspiciously. "Look, I got to get back to my team. I had the tomes all organized for you, but you can figure them out yourself. The schedules are in there too. See you all at the Honeycomb."
He left, shaking his limbs as if he were trying to get the life back into them. After he left, everyone went to the books. Vin found the schedule tucked into The Mastery of Mastery.
"This is weird, we don't have class until next Thursday, and it's with an Instructor Konig teaching obfusium magic. I've never heard of him or that discipline," said Vin.
"It's vaguely familiar," said Portia, "but go on."
"There's the usual sparring classes with Instructor Allgood. I can't believe I'm excited about seeing him again. No sign of Pennywhistle, Noyade, or the patron herself." He tapped on the paper. "There's an Instructor Minoan listed at the bottom, but no times or instructions are shown."
Zayn moved to the front windows, which
faced the second ward. The golden beam towered over the city, competing with the Spire for dominance of the skyline.
"Anyone else think they sent us on the gondola for a reason?" asked Zayn. "Like we were meant to take a good look at that building."
"That's what I was thinking," said Keelan, joining him at the window. "It's like they're doing everything they can to not talk about something. I bet it's whatever is making that golden spotlight."
Portia, who had been standing to the side with her face scrunched up in thought, snapped her fingers. "Obfusium magic is a way to thwart divinations, seers, and even prophecies if you're clever enough."
Zayn looked to Keelan, who was nodding even before he spoke. "It's like when I fooled the Goon's amulet—the guy I worked for in Varna. If you were plotting against him, it got warm, like a warning beacon for treachery. I wonder if that's why they won't talk about it."
"There's nothing in the Herald of the Halls about it," said Skylar, looking up from her smartphone. "There's tons of speculation, but nobody knows who's building it or what it's for. It's got all sorts of wards on it. There's a whole article about students getting sent to Golden Willow Clinic with various ailments after trying to sneak in."
"Amateurs," said Vin, tugging on the bottom of his jacket with his chest puffed out.
"So yeah, we're going in there," said Zayn as he was looking at the class schedule. "But not until we do some things first. No need to rush in and end up like the others."
Vin put a hand to his chest in faux heartache. "Not rush in? Someone check him to make sure he's not a doppelganger."
"What's the first thing, boss?" asked Skylar, saluting him. "Do we need secret identities? Do I need to get to work acquiring a wardrobe room? Knockout potions or Forget-Me Bombs?"
"All that, yes, eventually," said Zayn, who couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. He'd really missed his team. "But first we need to do the important things, like pick rooms and go to the grocery store."
"Boooring," said Skylar, flopping on the couch dramatically.
"After that, we need to put some enchantments on the house. Eddie just waltzing in was a sign that we're unprepared. If...when we investigate that building, whatever it is, we need to make sure we've got a home base to come back to."