The second ring slid down over Ravenna's body, and her mouth opened in a silent scream.
"The third ring," Ishbel said as the final ring began its descent over Ravenna, "I use to cut you completely from any society or land. No man, no people, and no country shall ever love or offer you safe harbor again, Ravenna. Go now. I free you from the enchantment that I used to bind you. Go now from this tent and from this land. Go and bear your child in agony and sorrow, and weep that you have so thoughtlessly murdered those who loved you."
Ravenna collapsed to her knees as Ishbel's power set her free, then managed to get back to her feet.
"You have made yourself a bad enemy--" she hissed, but Ishbel cut her off with a laugh of genuine amusement.
"A worse enemy than what I have in you already? Go now, Ravenna. I am not interested in what useless words you think to fling my way. If it was not for that child you, too, would be dead. Go. Go!"
Ravenna sent Ishbel one last, hate-filled look, then she stumbled from the tent.
Insharah waited a moment until he heard her footsteps fade, then he walked over to Ishbel and took her elbow as she sagged in exhaustion.
"My lady," he murmured.
"Take your puppet," said Ishbel, "and use him to establish your control over this army."
"And then?"
"Then do with it what you think best."
Insharah gave her a steady look. "My lady, you forget how well I know you." He glanced at Armat, and when he spoke again he kept his voice very low. "I am assuming, Ishbel, that you healed Maximilian as well as once you healed Madarin."
CHAPTER SIX
Elcho Falling
Axis, StarDrifter, and Inardle were still within the command room when Ishbel returned. She came through the door, and gave them a cool look.
"There will be no attack," she said.
Then, without waiting for a response, Ishbel entered Maximilian's death chamber and closed the door behind her.
Garth sat five or six paces away from the daybed that held Maximilian's body. He could not look away from it. In the past few hours it had cooled and mottled into the terrible gray and blue of death, its flesh cold and slightly clammy. Maximilian lay on his back, a bloodied sheet pulled up to his chest.
His face was slack, all expression wiped from it when his life had expired.
The door opened and Ishbel entered, startling Garth.
"Did Madarin bring water?" she asked, and Garth nodded at the large urn and basin set on a side table.
"Ishbel?" he said.
"Later," Ishbel said, and walked over to the table. She stripped off her blood-stiffened clothes, dropping them to the floor before kicking them to one side.
Garth stared, unable to look away. The blood which had soaked through her clothes had dried in crusty drifts all down Ishbel's body, and she wrung out a washcloth and scrubbed her flesh until it glowed. Then she shook out her hair, and poured water through it, soaping it thoroughly before rinsing and toweling it dry.
Then, as if oblivious to Garth's presence, she walked over to Maximilian on his day bed, lifted the sheet, and slid in beside him.
"He is so cold," she murmured.
Garth opened his mouth to say something, then realized Ishbel did not expect a reply.
She snuggled in close to Maximilian's corpse, her body against his, one arm sliding under his body so that her arms enclosed him.
She lay her face on his shoulder and clasped her hands about his chest.
Then, rhythmically, Ishbel's hands began to beat gently against Maximilian's sternum.
"I shall find all my strength," she said, "in the beat of your heart."
Ishbel walked into the Twisted Tower. Josia stood just inside the door, his face lined with desperation.
"You have little time," he said.
"I have time enough," Ishbel replied, turning for the stairs.
She walked up them unhurriedly, her naked body gleaming in the warm light, and Josia's eyes followed her until she disappeared from view.
For the next few minutes he listened to the soft footfalls of her steps as they climbed upward.
"Hurry!" he whispered.
Maximilian stood naked before the open window on the very top level. One foot rested on the windowsill, and his body leaned very slightly toward the opening.
His eyes were fixated on what lay beyond, his face awash with a soft green light that pulsated through the window.
Ishbel stepped into the chamber, pausing for a moment as she caught sight of Maximilian. Then she walked over to him, keeping her eyes averted from the view through the window, and stood behind him, pressing her body the length of his, her face resting between his shoulder blades, her eyes closed.
She slid her arms under his and clasped her hands gently together against his chest.
Then they began to beat slowly, rhythmically, against his sternum.
"Maxel?" she said. "Come home, please."
He didn't respond.
She kissed the cold skin between his shoulder blades. "Come home, Maxel."
She pressed herself even more strongly against his back. "Can you feel the beat of my heart, Maxel? Do you remember what you said?"
He didn't move, but Ishbel sensed something deep within him shift.
"Every beat of my heart, Maxel, is your strength. Come home, Maxel, come home."
He shivered, and Ishbel felt a sudden jerk beneath her hands as they pressed against his chest.
Her eyes filled with tears. "Maxel, come home, please."
He relaxed against her, and she had to take a deep breath and hold it to control her emotion.
Then she unclasped her hands, and began to run them very gently over his body.
Wherever they passed, so the scars left by his time in the Veins vanished.
"Let them fly through the window, Maxel," she murmured. "Let both the scars and nightmares go into death. You don't need them anymore."
"Am I dead?" Maximilian said.
"No," she said, kissing the skin between his shoulder blades more strongly now. "No."
Maximilian took a deep breath, his first, and lifted his foot from the windowsill and placed it on the floor.
"Come home, Maxel," Ishbel said, and he sighed and turned into her arms.
Garth started in amazement. Maximilian's body, mottled with death, suddenly flushed a rosy pink.
All the scars that had marked his body faded, then vanished.
Maximilian's eyes flew open. They stared at the ceiling of the chamber, then he turned his head and saw Garth.
Garth saw recognition in Maximilian's gaze, but Maximilian did not say anything. Instead he stretched his body very gently, then smiled suddenly as he realized Ishbel's presence beside him.
He rolled over, wrapping her in his arms.
Garth's eyes gleamed with tears. He rose and left the chamber, quietly closing the door behind him.
Epilogue
Go! whispered the One, and all along the southern foothills of the FarReach Mountains, from Hairekeep to the River Lhyl, millions of Skraelings darted forth, rushing into the gullies and crevices of the mountains.
By morning they would be through the mountain range and into the realm of the Lord of Elcho Falling.
Atop the peaks of the mountains danced the Lealfast Nation, almost a quarter million of them, holding torches gleefully into the night so that the Skraelings had both light and guidance, and singing with glee as below them silver-orbed horror seethed through the mountain passes.
Salamaan Pass was so thick with Skraelings they hid the ground completely.
Go! whispered the One, and in Elcho Falling Eleanon and his twelve thousand fighters picked up their weapons and dissolved into invisibility.
A moment later they were dispersing throughout the citadel, seeking out the units of the Strike Force and the Emerald Guard and the Outlander fighters, an unseen cloud of silent death.
Go! whispered the One, and in the Twisted Tower Josia frowned at the scratch
ing at the door.
He opened it, and stared bemused at the red tabby cat that entered and began to wind its way about his ankles.
And now I! whispered the One, and deep in the heart of Elcho Falling Eleanon's dark spire glowed once, twice, then flared violently.
When the glaring light died, it was to reveal the green form of the One standing in the heart of the citadel.
The One looked about, flexed his shoulders as if he were working out a slight stiffness, then walked toward the staircase that led upward.
Infinity had come to claim Elcho Falling, and death its inhabitants.
The Book of the Soulenai lay in the center of the Infinity Chamber in the heart of DarkGlass Mountain, where the One had left it. As the One set foot on the first rise of the staircase in Elcho Falling, so the cover of the book opened slowly.
The rat, who had hidden in the book for so long, slowly emerged and moved away several paces.
It sat down, staring intently at the Book of the Soulenai.
The book burst into flames, very suddenly, and as it did so, the rat began to scream.
Glossary Alaric: a nation in the extreme north.
Aqhat, Palace of: the home of Isaiah, Tyrant of Isembaard.
Armat: one of Isaiah of Isembaard's generals.
Avaldamon: father to Boaz.
Axis: see SunSoar, Axis.
Aziel: archpriest of the Order of the Coil.
Baxtor, Garth: a physician who employs the Touch (the ability to determine sickness through touch).
Garth was primarily responsible for freeing Maximilian Persimius from the Veins eight years before this tale begins.
Bingaleal: one of the Lealfast.
Boaz: ancestor of Ishbel and Mage of the One. Husband of Tirzah.
Book of the Soulenai: an ancient book which once belonged to Boaz.
BroadWing EvenBeat: an Icarii, and friend of Maximilian Persimius.
Central Kingdoms: a loose coalition of the states of Hosea, Pelemere, and Kyros.
Coil, Order of the: an order that lives in Serpent's Nest. They worship the Great Serpent and use the bowels of living men to foretell the future.
Coroleas: a continent to the west, renowned for the immorality and cruelty of its peoples.
DarkGlass Mountain: an ancient pyramid originally built to provide a pathway into Infinity. Once it was known as Threshold.
Doyle: a member of the Emerald Guard and former assassin.
Egalion: captain of the Emerald Guard, and friend to Maximilian Persimius.
Elcho Falling: a magical and mysterious citadel of legend.
Eleanon: one of the Lealfast.
Emerald Guard, the: Maximilian Persimius' personal guard, composed of former prisoners of the Veins.
Escator: a poor kingdom on the coast of the Widowmaker Sea. It is ruled by Maximilian Persimius.
Ezekiel: Isaiah of Isembaard's most senior general.
Falayal: a Lealfast elder.
First, the: the top caste of Corolean society comprising the Forty-four Hundred Families. The First commands virtually all of the wealth and power within Coroleas.
Forty-four Hundred Families: see the First.
Georgdi, Chief Alm: general of the Outlander forces.
Gershadi: a nation in the extreme north.
Goblet of the Frogs: an ancient magical goblet created by Tirzah.
Hairekeep: a fortress standing at the southern entrance to the Salamaan Pass.
Heddiah: a servant within the kitchens of the Palace of Aqhat.
Hereward: Kitchen Steward of the Palace of Aqhat in Isembaard.
Hosea: one of the kingdoms which form the Central Kingdoms.
Icarii: a mystical race of winged people who once lived in the mountains of Tencendor. The Enchanters among them wielded the Star Dance to produce powerful enchantments. Now, a scattered remnant from the destruction of Tencendor live about the Central Kingdoms.
Inardle: one of the Lealfast.
Ingruit: a servant within the kitchens of the Palace of Aqhat.
Insharah: captain of a band of Isembaardian soldiers. Friend of Axis SunSoar.
Isaiah: Tyrant of Isembaard.
Isembaard, Tyranny of: a massive empire below the FarReach Mountains, currently ruled by Isaiah.
Jequial: a servant within the kitchens of the palace of Aqhat.
Kanubai: an ancient enemy of the Lords of Elcho Falling.
Kezial: one of Isaiah of Isembaard's generals.
Kyros: a city state within the loose alliance of the Central Kingdoms. It is ruled by King Malat.
Lamiah: one of Isaiah of Isembaard's generals.
Lealfast: an Icarii-like race of the frozen north.
Lixel, Baron: a trusted baron of Maximilian Persimius, currently ruling Escator in Maximilian's absence.
Madarin: an Isembaardian soldier.
Malat: King of Kyros.
Margalit: the major city of the Outlands, and Ishbel Brunelle's childhood home.
Maximilian Persimius: see Persimius, Maximilian.
Morfah: one of Isaiah of Isembaard's generals. Now dead.
Odella: a servant within the kitchens of the Palace of Aqhat.
One, the: DarkGlass Mountain incarnate in flesh.
Outlands, the: a province to the far east, renowned for its wild nomadic culture.
Pelemere: a city state within the loose alliance of the Central Kingdoms.
Persimius Brunelle, Lady Ishbel: orphan from Margalit, raised to be Archpriestess of the Order of the Coil, and former wife of Maximilian Persimius.
Persimius, Maximilian: King of Escator. Maximilian endured seventeen years in the gloam mines as a youth and young man when his cousin Cavor seized the throne.
Ravenna: a marsh witch-woman who patrols the borderlands between this world and the Land of Dreams. Her mother is Venetia.
Risdon: second-in-command to the Isembaardian general, Armat.
Sakkuth: capital of the Tyranny of Isembaard.
Salamaan Pass: a great pass which is the only easy access through the FarReach Mountains into Isembaard.
Second, the: the Thirty-eight Thousand Families who comprise the second caste within Corolean society.
The Second is comprised mostly of the educated intelligentsia, traders, and minor landowners.
Serge: a member of the Emerald Guard and former assassin.
Serpent's Nest: a great mountain on the coast of the Outlands.
Skraelings: wraithlike creatures inhabiting the ice and snowbound wastes of the far north.
Star Dance: Enchanters among the Icarii wielded the music of the stars (the music made as the stars move about the heavens, and which the Icarii called the Star Dance) in order to create powerful enchantments. The Star Dance is no longer available to those Icarii remaining alive as the Star Gate, which filtered the Star Dance through to them from the heavens, was destroyed during the final Tencendor wars.
Star Gate: a magical portal which once existed in Tencendor, the Star Gate filtered the magic of the Star Dance, which the Icarii enchanters used to create their enchantments. Demons destroyed the Star Gate during the final wars of Tencendor.
StarWeb: an Icarii, and lover to Maximilian Persimius.
SunSoar, Axis: formerly a hero from Tencendor and a member of the Icarii race, Axis once reigned over Tencendor as its StarMan before relinquishing power to his son Caelum. Axis died five years ago during the destruction of Tencendor.
SunSoar, Salome: former Duchess of Sidon in Coroleas, now wife of StarDrifter SunSoar.
SunSoar, StarDrifter: Axis' father, and a powerful Icarii prince and Enchanter.
Tencendor: a continent which once lay in the western region of the Widowmaker Sea. It was lost five years before this tale begins in a catastrophic war with demons.
Third, the: the third caste within Corolean society, mostly comprising workers.
Thirty-eight Thousand Second Families: see the Second.
Tirzah: ancestor of Ishbel and wife of Boaz.
/> Twisted Tower, the: a palace of memories.
Veins, the: the gloam mines of Escator where Maximilian Persimius was imprisoned for seventeen years.
Venetia: a marsh witch-woman who patrols the borderlands between this world and the Land of Dreams.
Ravenna is her daughter.
Viland: a nation in the extreme north. The Vilanders often have trouble with Skraelings.
Vorstus: abbot of the Order of Persimius, Vorstus aided Garth Baxtor and Ravenna in freeing Maximilian Persimius from the Veins eight years before this tale begins.
Weeper, the: a strange but immensely powerful Corolean bronze deity.
Yysell: Axis SunSoar's body servant.
Zeboath: Isembaardian physician.
About the Author
SARA DOUGLASS has worked as a nurse and has a Ph.D. in early modern European history. Her first fantasy adventure, The Axis Trilogy, had an overwhelming response from readers (Starman won the 1996 Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel). This was followed by the bestselling Wayfarer Redemption trilogy, among other novels. Sara lives in an 1880s-era house, Nonsuch, in Cornelian Bay, Tasmania. She's currently hard at work on the third book of DarkGlass Mountain, following The Serpent Bride and The Twisted Citadel.
www.saradouglass.com
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ALSO BY SARA DOUGLASS
The Serpent Bride
WAYFARER REDEMPTION
Wayfarer Redemption
Enchanter
Starman
Sinner
Pilgrim
Crusader
STAND-ALONES
Threshold
Beyond the Hanging Wall
TROY GAME SERIES
Darkwitch Rising
God's Concubine
Hades' Daughter
The Twisted Citadel Page 51
