by Drew Wagar
‘Sit down,’ Karquesh said, as conversation dropped around them all. ‘And act in a civilised manner.’
Taryen waited a long moment and then pulled out the chair and sat down. Food was placed before him but he did not eat it, rather he sat with arms folded and glared across the table at Kiri.
‘Taryen believes that Taloon should forge its own destiny, without resorting to allegiances with others,’ Karquesh said with a nod, addressing those around the table. ‘What say you, priestess Kiri?’
Those around Karquesh nodded and muttered before looking at Kiri to see how she would respond.
Kiri looked at Taryen and then let her gaze slide away, focussing her attention on Karquesh.
‘Taryen is wrong.’
Out of the corner of her eye Kiri saw Taryen unfold his arms and pull something from his waist. It was a dagger. She could just make out a jewel-encrusted handle. She poised, ready to jump to her feet and defend herself, but the man moved slowly, holding the dagger before him, before driving it point first into the table.
He then released it, leaving it quivering for a moment. All conversation ceased.
‘Don’t be a fool, Taryen,’ Karquesh snapped. ‘Take your weapon and leave before you embarrass yourself further.’
‘I have made the challenge,’ Taryen said. ‘I will not retract it.’
‘The priestesses of Drayden are not subject to our laws,’ Karquesh said. ‘Nor are they bound to our customs.’
‘Nevertheless,’ Taryen said, ‘I challenge this priestess. What I say is truth. Those of Taloon should never bow the knee to others!’
‘What is this challenge?’ Kiri demanded.
‘It is a duel,’ Karquesh said, his gaze locked on her. ‘A fight to the death according to custom. It is how differences of opinion between our warriors have long been decided. Naturally you can decline, we do not expect visitors to …’
And my chance of securing your allegiance if I decline? You are clever Karquesh. You could stop this, but you choose not to. Whether I win or lose … you win! You remove this troubling cousin of yours, or you make Drayden look weak and useless.
‘You can afford to lose your cousin?’ Kiri countered, still ignoring Taryen. ‘For you will.’
‘It is his choice to challenge you,’ Karquesh replied. ‘And yours to respond. We will understand if you do not …’
‘I accept,’ Kiri said, and dabbed at her lips with a cloth. She heard gasps of surprise from around the table. She deigned to give Taryen a glance. ‘When do we fight?’
‘First chime upon the next stretch,’ Taryen grunted at her, raising his head, flexing his muscles and looking down at her.
Kiri raised an eyebrow.
‘I have not the time for that,’ she replied. ‘Why not now?’
‘Now?’ Taryen echoed in surprise. Kiri saw his gaze rove over her silky dress and then look back at her face.
‘Yes now,’ Kiri replied. ‘And before dessert, I will want something sweet afterwards.’
She held every gaze as she got to her feet and walked a short distance from the dining table. She pulled off her shoes and stood, arms folded, a few hands away, waiting.
‘Well?’
Taryen got to his feet, his chair scraping back with a loud, rough grind. He stalked around the table, passing behind Karquesh. He leant across the table and pulled the dagger out, offering it to her, hilt first.
She took it, keeping her gaze locked on his. Then she turned it over in her fingers before handing it back to him. Behind her there were gasps of surprise.
‘I do not wish to kill you.’
Taryen stepped back. He waved the dagger around in front of him. She spared a glance at his clothing, an embroidered shirt and baggy pantaloons. He was no better protected against a sharp blade than she was.
‘You will fight me!’
There was space enough in the hall. Beyond that columns marked a corridor in which the servants were pulling back the food-laden trolleys out of range of the coming altercation.
‘Are you resolved at this?’ Karquesh asked. ‘Once started, this cannot be stopped.’
‘Yes,’ Taryen snorted, a grin growing on his face.
Kiri nodded too. ‘I am.’
‘And will you bear no weapon?’ Karquesh asked.
‘None,’ Kiri replied.
‘Very well,’ Karquesh said. He rose to his feet. ‘Let this be witnessed by all, people of Taloon and Drayden alike, that this contest was willingly entered into by both parties. The rules are simple. Two enter, one leaves.’
Kiri and Taryen stood across from each other. Silence reigned in the hall.
Karquesh stretched out his arms.
‘Begin.’
Taryen dropped into a deep crouch, the dagger poised before him. He swiped it through the air, the blade making a sharp whistling sound as he did so. Kiri sidestepped, her posture a little crouched, her gaze fixed on his, her hands ready before her. Taryen moved closer, jabbing with the dagger. Kiri ignored him, moving to keep a distance between them and continuing to step around.
Taryen yelled and came at her, his dagger raised high and striking down at her chest.
Fool! So obvious!
She stepped to one side, turning her body away from him. She grasped his wrist with her left hand on top and her right underneath as he came past.
She pulled her arms down and crouched, twisting his wrist around as she did so, all in a smooth fluid movement. Taryen surged past, stumbling forward before his legs went out from underneath him. He landed on his back with a heavy thud on the hard floor, a gasping moan of pain forced from his lungs, leaving him stunned and confused.
There was no time for him to recover. Kiri twisted his wrist further. Something cracked. Taryen yelled in pain and his dagger clattered from his grasp. She released her right hand and grabbed it, the other continuing to twist Taryen’s wrist. Another crack. His screams filled the hall.
The blow was short and accurate.
Taryen gave a sharp yell as Kiri thrust his dagger into his heart. He flailed for a moment, gasping in shock before his body slumped and then lay still.
Kiri released the grip of her left hand and dropped Taryen’s lifeless arm before smoothing away a lock of her hair that had come adrift.
She pulled the dagger out of Taryen’s body, standing up from her crouched position. She walked back to the table before Karquesh and leant across him. There she jammed the point of the dagger into the table. A rivulet of blood rolled down the blade and pooled on the polished surface before the king.
There was silence all about her. Karquesh was staring at the dagger.
She sat back down at her place at the table. After a moment she looked around and beckoned for one of the servants.
‘Where is my dessert?’
A plate, loaded with fruits and a syrupy topping was placed in front of her by a trembling servant.
She picked up her cutlery, scooping a measure of fruit from before her. She ate it slowly and then swallowed, nodding at the flavour.
‘It’s very good.’
There was no other sound. Everyone was staring at her.
After a pause she swivelled her head to look at Karquesh.
‘As I said …’ She stared at him and raised her voice. ‘Taryen was wrong. I will have your answer now, King Karquesh. Will Taloon ally itself with the purposes of Drayden, as ordered by high priestess Nerina and blessed by Lacaille herself? Or will it not?’
Everyone in the room was looking to Karquesh now. Kiri placed her cutlery down, folded her arms and waited.
Karquesh cleared his throat and licked his lips.
‘Priestess Kiri, emissary of high priestess Nerina of Drayden, herself the servant of Lacaille.’ He paused for a moment. ‘I place Taloon at your service in the pursuit of your goals. Faithful allies of Drayden we will be. Let us drink to the union of purpose to which we have set ourselves.’
Karquesh stood up, signalling for his goblet to be filled with wine. Kiri got to her
feet too, finding her glass likewise filled.
‘To Drayden and its conquests,’ Karquesh pronounced.
‘To Taloon, its honour and cooperation,’ Kiri replied.
Both drank. Conversation rose from a whisper back to a hubbub. The servants, as quietly as they could, dragged Taryen’s body out from the banquet hall.
Kiri returned to her room, her mind turning over the events of the stretch. She smiled and sent her thoughts out. The answer was swift. Nerina’s presence filled her mind.
Kiri! How are you faring in Taloon?
Well. Liana was offered in tribute and King Karquesh has put his kingdom at our service. They are already preparing the ships.
You have done well, Kiri. Very well. Were there any problems?
Kiri would have laughed, but forced herself to suppress it.
I had to kill the King’s cousin, but other than that, no.
There was a pause across the mental link.
It seems you have some tales to tell. Are you ready for the priestesses to arrive?
Yes. Send our warriors as soon as you can. We will be ready to depart within a few stretches.
And Amar, you are sure of its location?
I am sure, I have seen it. I know where it lies.
Then it seems we will soon complete the task appointed. Amar will fall and your renown will grow, young one.
I seek only to serve.
The words came easily to her now, she was adept at hiding her thoughts and feelings.
Have you considered the words of the Obelisk further?
There has been nothing. It seems you were right, the quest for Amar must be concluded first.
Lacaille would see things done in a certain order. Amar then, Kiri. I will assemble the flight and send them to you as soon as it can be arranged. Make things ready for our arrival.
Kiri allowed a sense of acquiescence and acknowledgement to filter across the link.
I will see it done.
Nerina’s presence faded away. Kiri strode to the doors of the room and opened them, walking out on to the balcony. Before her she could see the harbour, many ships were already moored, with others sailing along the coast towards the city. Karquesh was honouring his word.
Standing at the balcony was Liana, still in the yellow dress she had worn for the banquet. She was staring out to sea.
She’s my cousin, I’m condemning her to be Karquesh’s plaything for the rest of her life.
Kiri reached out with her mind, but Liana’s thoughts were nowhere to be found, there was just a void, no spark of life.
Her mind is gone, shattered when she tried to take my gift. There’s nothing I can do. She’ll probably be looked after better here than she would be in Drayden, at least her looks are an asset.
Kiri reached and took Liana’s hands. The woman turned to her, looking at her. Kiri bound a cord around her wrists.
‘You are to be married to King Karquesh,’ she said. ‘You will be his seventh wife. A position of honour in the court of Taloon.’
‘Taloon,’ Liana echoed, her voice bland.
‘Do you understand?’ Kiri asked.
‘Understand?’
Kiri sighed and shook her head.
If someone tries to take my gift, I will fight to the death to avoid this fate! To be nothing more than a mindless shell …
She thought she heard something from behind her and turned. A faint metallic crackle surged around her.
You!
But it was subtle, try as she might she couldn’t intercept the thoughts of those who sent it, but the sense of identity was all too familiar. Kiri caught a mental glimpse of the inside of a machine. She spied clouds through windows and saw a brief glimpse of someone. She recognised him, a warmth spreading through her body in response. There was brief flicker and it was gone, but it had been close.
So, you spy on me, Zoella. You’re coming this way and you bring Meru. Well then, I’ll be ready for you both. Perhaps I will have what I want before we even leave for Amar.
As the link dissolved there was a faint flash in her mind, an image of a face. The face of the servant girl she had seen at the banquet. Kiri tried to focus on her face, but the image evaporated as she did so. She strained, seeking the source of the vision.
It was hard to detect, but she could tell it was coming from below her, down in the streets perhaps, or even lower.
Some other secret of Taloon?
Far away to the shaderight Nerina opened her eyes.
‘News?’ Merrin asked.
‘Kiri has done remarkably well in a short time,’ Nerina said. ‘King Karquesh has agreed to our terms and the fleet of ships is being made ready.’
‘So we will attack Amar?’
Nerina nodded. ‘Yes. Let us subdue them and take the spoils. Kiri can have another moment of glory.’
‘Is it not dangerous to elevate her so?’
Nerina thought for a moment. ‘We have set her on this path, it is by my bidding that she went and under my instruction shall she prevail. We will unseat her later. Amar must fall first.’
‘What of her being the chosen one of the Obelisk?’
‘She will be revealed as a false prophet,’ Nerina replied. ‘She is not the only one who can manufacture a vision from upon high. Many now whisper that she has designs on being high priestess. We must show them all that Kiri’s loyalty to me is wavering.’
‘And how do we do that?’
Nerina smiled and gestured to the doors to the hall. They swung back and Rihanna walked in.
‘High priestess, mother,’ she acknowledged with a brief bow. ‘You summoned me?’
‘Indeed,’ Nerina said. ‘Come hither.’
Rihanna walked forward to join them.
‘Good news,’ Nerina said. ‘I have just heard from Kiri, she has secured an alliance with King Karquesh of Taloon. His fleet of ships is at our disposal. The attack upon Amar may commence.’
Rihanna nodded. ‘That was quicker than we hoped.’
‘Assemble the flight,’ Nerina said. ‘I want you to lead the aerial attack.’
Rihanna blinked in surprise.
‘Me? Not Kiri?’
Nerina looked away for a moment and then paced around.
‘There is talk in the halls,’ Merrin said. ‘Talk that Kiri sees herself as high priestess elect.’
Rihanna looked uncomfortable. ‘She is arrogant, proud and confident. She’s been anointed by Lacaille and comes fresh from the victory over Scallia. But she should know her proper place, in service to you, Nerina.’
Nerina nodded.
‘A test of her loyalty to Nerina,’ Merrin said. ‘Will she obey the high priestess’ commands, or will she not?’
‘If she will not agree?’ Rihanna asked.
‘Then you are to summon us immediately,’ Nerina said, turning back to her. ‘We will deal with her.’
‘I shall see it done,’ Rihanna said. ‘When do you wish us to depart?’
‘Kiri says they are already loading the ships with provisions,’ Nerina said. ‘As soon as you are ready.’
‘I will begin now,’ Rihanna said, bowing. ‘High priestess, mother.’
Nerina nodded to her and Rihanna left the hall.
Rihanna left and found herself a quiet room away from the temple.
Kiri? Kiri! Can you hear me?
The answer was delayed for a moment, before Kiri’s distinctive mental presence came back through the link.
Yes, Rihanna.
I have just spoken to Nerina, we are to prepare the flight …
She spoke to me just a spell ago. The ships are ready.
There is something else though.
Rihanna sensed Kiri’s questioning thought from the other end of the link, she continued sending the mental thoughts to her.
Nerina has asked me to lead the flight … and the attack on Amar.
There was a blank response for a long moment. Rihanna waited.
So they don’t trust me. This is a te
st of my loyalty then.
I played my part once more. I told them I thought you were becoming arrogant and proud. They are right when they say there are those here that think you plan to be high priestess.
They want us to fight, don’t they? They really are trying to force us apart.
It seems that way.
But why?
I will try to find out from my mother. She hates you, perhaps she will reveal something to me.
Be careful!
I will. We will be in Taloon within three stretches. I will see you then.
The link dissolved.
Rihanna thought for a moment.
So, Kiri has her plan. Nerina has hers.
She smiled.
And I have mine.
CHAPTER TWELVE
The Deserts of Taloon
Round 2307, Fifth pass
‘About five times as far as the flight we made to Nireus from Viresia,’ Meru said looking at the map displayed on the screens of the flying machine. Zoella and Meru had been preparing for their flight sunwards, they were almost ready to leave.
‘It took us nearly three stretches to cover that distance,’ Zoella said. ‘So this is going to take a pass or more.’
‘Well you’ll have enough food and water,’ Mel said. ‘You’re stocked to the gunnels, or whatever they’re called on flying machines. Enough to get you there and back to Amar.’
The flying machine was indistinguishable from the one Meru had flown before. It was a Class 6 Personnel shuttle, as Caesar insisted on calling it. Like the other machine, it had space for two people in front and two behind, further back was storage space for equipment, now crammed with provisions as provided by Mel.
‘You still sure about this?’ Coran asked.
Meru looked at Zoella. She nodded.
‘It’s got to be done.’
‘Be advised,’ Caesar’s voice intoned. ‘Flying vehicles have an important but limited energy reserve storage capacity aboard. In the event of power transmission failure due to Obelisk malfunction, on board avionics and propulsion will continue to function for a limited time to allow a safe landing.’
‘Can I have that in Captain speak, please?’ Coran asked.
‘He means if the ’tricity fails we won’t fall out of the sky,’ Meru said. ‘Though, by the sound of it we won’t have much time to land.’
