“Did my cousin say why she wanted me to come here?”
“The Mistress did not share her reasons, nor did I inquire.” Hollister replied stiffly.
Andris nodded and continued to follow in silence.
Any unexpected summons by the main family was always cause for some trepidation. It was not unheard of for visiting family members to simply disappear. Usually though, that only happened in response to some sort of significant blunder. Since he’d not committed any he felt reasonably sure he would survive this. Andris suspected the reason he’d been called to dinner, his suspicions filled him with eagerness.
The branch families held a unique status within Alteroth. Being members of the ruling houses they were all citizens. Most of them could practice magic and they were not required to go on First Quests. They had the freedom to travel and could go to foreign countries without asking for permission. They had the freedom to marry whoever they chose and to choose their own profession and make their own money. (They were permitted to be married to only one spouse at a time though. Only members of main family were entitled to multiple wives.) Many of them were merchants or overseers or officers within each family’s military. Some travelled far and wide offering their magical services to the highest bidder. Each branch family was provided their own home, normally outside of Alter. They also had the right to demand a meeting with the head of the main family. (A right seldom used.)
Compared to most of the people who lived as slaves or serfs they were very well off.
However they had no political power, and remained at the mercy of the main family. They could earn money and have personal property and livestock; but they could not own land. Their homes were gifts from the main family and could be taken from them on a whim. If the family’s troops were assembled they were expected to serve and fight. They were citizens, but unless they left Alteroth permanently, they remained pawns of the main family and could be killed at a single word.
The family gives and the family takes. Was a saying Andris knew well.
When he was at last brought to the dining hall Lilith was there waiting for him. Rather than the usual black robes she was dressed in a simple red dress that covered her from neck to ankles. There were settings at the head of the table and to the immediate left. She was making a special effort to honor him.
“Cousin, it is good to see you again.” Lilith greeted. “I’ve missed your company.”
That was a lie, but it was a welcomed lie.
Andris bent his head slightly as a sign of respect. Dark Mages rarely bowed, even to each other. “It also pleases me to be in your company again cousin.”
Lilith motioned to the table and nodded graciously. “Let us catch up over dinner.”
As soon as they were both seated the servants appeared with the appetizer; freshly baked bread with honey and butter. For the main course there were a variety of dishes placed before them. Succulent roast pig, baked chicken, slices of beef, baked potatoes, stewed vegetable, and loaves of white bread. For dessert there were cakes and pies and sweet puddings. To wash it all down was strong red wine. It was a sumptuous meal that would do any kitchen proud.
As they ate Andris was careful not to do more than sip at his cup. He wanted to keep all of his wits about him. They talked of family and of magic and of things unimportant and harmless. She asked him about his travels as one of her merchants. He shared a few stories and won some amused smiles and even got a few laughs from her.
It was all meaningless.
She wanted something and was simply trying to soften him a bit. He was flattered to have the head of the family go to so much trouble. Darius Heartless, for example, was known to simply give his extended family orders when he wanted something from them. Lilith had the good graces to at least frame her wishes in the form of requests.
When the meal ended and they had both had their fill the servants took away all the dishes and plates. Leaving them only their goblets and the wine. Andris observed all the servants withdraw from the dining hall to leave them alone.
Lilith leaned back casually in her seat and balanced her goblet at the end of her fingers, carefully swirling the wine about. “Cousin, I need a favor.”
Here it comes. Andris thought, the moment he’d been waiting for since receiving her invitation. “How can I be of service to you?”
She looked at him over the lip of her goblet. “By now I am sure you have heard about my son being off on an… unusual First Quest.”
The dictates of the council were supposed to remain secret, but they never were, not for trivial matters like this.
Andris cautiously nodded, her words stoking his hopes. “I have.”
“As you know, Waldo is my last living child. The council’s actions have made the situation more difficult than it needs to be, and I am forced to take certain precautions.”
“I understand.” He was very careful not to let his eagerness show. Lilith knew that her son was doomed. Ever since the news of his First Quest and its impossible requirements had gotten out, every one of the branch families had started to guess at whom she might choose to be her new heir. Rumors had been flying that this candidate or that one was about to be selected.
“If you would agree to send me one of your children I would be deeply grateful to you.”
It had actually happened. He let out a breath of relief and allowed himself a wide smile. “My son Erebos would be more than honored to be adopted into your family, and to act as heir should anything occur to dear Waldo.”
The edges of Lilith’s mouth turned down. “No.”
Andris was caught off guard. “I beg pardon cousin, what do you mean no?”
“I mean no, I am not asking to adopt your son as my heir. Waldo will succeed me, no one else.”
“I don’t understand. You just told me that you needed my son.”
Lilith closed her eyes. “I know what sort of rumors have been going through the family. I do not doubt that all of you have already buried my son. Well, unbury him, Waldo will survive to return home, don’t doubt it. It may take many months, but he will return, so I have no need for a new heir. For ten generations this line of the family has held power and I will not see the line end with me. He is my last child and he has my blood. I mean to see him rule this family after me and I will do whatever it takes to ensure that.”
That certainly made things clearer. He felt the sudden need to take a long swallow of wine. His dream of becoming part of the main family had been realized, and then crushed, within the same conversation. He took the bottle and began refilling his cup. “Then why do you need my son?”
Lilith sighed. “I don’t.”
“What?”
“I want your daughter.” Lilith said, spelling it out for him. “The child I was referring to was your daughter not your son.”
“You want to adopt Hera?”
“You really do jump to conclusions don’t you? I never mentioned adoption.”
Andris looked at her dumbfounded. His daughter was sixteen and already very talented in the Dark Arts. However she had certain issues. He had planned to give her a few more years to mature, before taking her under his wing and teaching her about being a trader. “I don’t understand. What do you want with Hera?”
Lilith stared into her wine. “The council sees my son as a fool. That will not change no matter what he does on his quest. Once I am gone they will simply try to use him or arrange an accident for him.”
She looked up from her wine and her dark eyes stared into his. Andris shifted uncomfortably in his seat, the intensity of her gaze was unnerving.
“I know what you and the others think of him. No matter what you may believe, Waldo is strong and has great talent. One day, I promise you, all of you will see him as I do. You will see his power and tremble.”
Andris could only nod; he didn’t dare to so much as make a sound.
“Until that day comes though, he will need someone at his side the council will fear. If they will not respect
him then they must respect someone close to him. That is the only way he will survive long enough.”
To Andris’s relief she turned her focus back to her wine.
“I will take your daughter on as my apprentice. I will instruct her not only in the deeper magics, but also in the ways of politics and show her what it really means to rule over others. I will bring out her full potential and make Hera someone to be feared.”
He was trembling slightly. The hopes that had been raised and just as swiftly dashed were rising again. Members of the council very rarely took on apprentices outside of their own immediate family. When they did so, it was always a sign they’d found someone of extraordinary ability. His daughter’s future was suddenly looking very bright. Andris was not about to bring up his concerns and risk damaging Lilith’s high opinion.
XXX
Lilith stared into the wine and imagined her son’s reaction when she told him. She knew of Hera’s faults and doubted she could fix them completely. Lilith didn’t expect Waldo to thank her, or be very happy about what she was planning. The fact was though this was what he would need to continue once she was gone. If a foul tasting medicine would save you then you held your nose and forced it down.
“When my son returns he will need a proper wife, to guide him and start giving him children with suitable blood. Someone who can point out the hidden dangers, someone the council will respect. I think your daughter would make a fine wife for him.”
She drank the wine and thought it tasted a little bitter.
Chapter 27
The New Apprentice
It was the nose.
One couldn’t help but focus on it.
It wasn’t just big, it hooked. It looked like some sort of fleshy beak. When you looked at her face your eyes were just drawn to it.
Poor girl, Lilith thought. For a woman there were few things worse than to be ugly.
Lilith considered the girl’s features with a critical eye. She was small, just barely standing five feet and very much on the thin side. Even in black robes it was obvious her chest was as flat as a boy’s. The rest of her features were bland. If she had been blessed with a cute little button nose, she still would still have been plain.
What was more interesting was her posture. She stood straight with shoulders back and eyes returning Lilith’s scrutiny. Her face were not defiant, but there was nothing submissive there either. Despite the situation and how much was at stake for her, she seemed confident and calm. Lilith was quite skilled at reading people, yet she could not be certain whether the girl was as relaxed as she appeared or hiding her natural anxieties.
Either way it was a promising start.
“Welcome to Castle Corpselover Hera. I trust your father has explained why you were summoned?”
“Yes Aunt Lilith, he told me I was to become your apprentice.” The girl bent her neck ever so slightly. “I am deeply honored and will work hard to prove myself worthy of your selection.”
Technically, Hera’s father was a fifth or sixth cousin to Lilith. It was tradition that within the extended family older relatives were referred to as uncle or aunt, younger relatives went by nephew or niece, and those close to the same age were simply cousin. This made things less confusing.
“Did your father tell you anything else?”
“He said that you wanted me to marry your son, and that you very sure he would return from his First Quest.”
“What do you think about that?”
Small shoulders gave a small shrug. “If that is the price for being apprenticed I will pay it.”
Lilith lifted a single eyebrow. “You don’t like the idea of being married to Waldo?”
“I like the idea of becoming your daughter. Even more I like the idea of becoming your apprentice. I don’t have any special interest in being married.”
“Just with Waldo or with anyone?”
“I have no wish to be married to any man.”
“Well I was never married, but that was because I would have no longer been head of the family. I always had my lovers though.”
“I have no use for men. Except for my father, I have never met a single man that I liked.”
“Oh,” Lilith said after a slight pause. “It’s like that then?”
“It is.”
Lilith was not shocked. Hera had a reputation for hostility and rudeness, especially towards men. For a Corpselover such behavior was fine, when it was directed towards those beneath her. It became a problem when it was aimed at other members of the family, or at members of the other houses.
As for her personal preferences, those were unimportant so long as they were limited to the sex slaves. In Alteroth all pleasures could be indulged without fear.
“That is fine niece; I have some lovely slave girls I keep for just that sort of thing. You are free to indulge your tastes.” Lilith saw the girl lick her lips ever so slightly. “However, when the time comes, marrying my son and giving him children will be part of your duty.”
“I have already said that I understand Aunt Lilith, and will do what I have to.”
“My son has a very likeable personality. You might actually enjoy being his wife.”
“I doubt it.”
Well that’s fair, I doubt Waldo will much enjoy being your husband. “I am sure once you have some children you will come to love them and be happy with your new family.”
“If you say so Aunt Lilith. What really matters to me is the chance to learn more magic. I want to be a powerful and feared necromancer like you. I want you to teach me everything.”
“My, my, so young and filled with ambition. Do you want to know why I chose you?”
“Certainly.”
“It’s not because of your talent for necromancy, though that was an important element. It’s also not because of your intelligence or your vast potential. Obviously, it wasn’t because of your looks or your sweet disposition.”
Hera did not look either pleased or upset.
“I chose you because I needed someone who was ruthless.”
Hera grinned. “Thank you.”
“Tell me, what happened to your younger brother Malcor?”
“He had an accident.”
Lilith smiled knowingly. “An accident?”
“Yes Aunt Lilith. He fell down the stairs and died.”
“When you just happened to be the only one with him?”
“Accidents happen my aunt.”
“Oh they certainly do. Though usually not until after a child has earned the black robes and can protect himself. Your brother was, what, six at the time and you were fourteen?”
“That’s right.”
“Did you really think he was so dangerous to you? Were you afraid he might be a threat some day?”
“No. I just didn’t like him.”
There was not even a hint of guilt.
Yes, Lilith thought. I picked the right one. “I think you and I will get along splendidly my niece.”
“I think so too Aunt Lilith.”
“There is just one thing I need to make clear to you first though.”
“Yes?”
“My son Waldo will not suffer any accidents.”
“Of course not,” Hera assured her. “I would never…”
Lilith cut her off.
“Yes you would. It’s obvious. I am sure you are already calculating how long you would have to wait and what the best method would be. You probably wouldn’t dare while I am still around, but I will not live forever. Frankly my dear niece, you wouldn’t be the person I need if you weren’t already thinking about it.”
Hera considered for a moment, and then nodded. “Do you blame me? You say I will have to endure being married and having some screaming children tear their way out of me. Very well, if that’s the price I will pay it, but why would I suffer it longer than I have to?”
“Because within one hour of my son’s death you will know your own.”
Hera’s eyes widened.
“Do
you know what a Death Seal is Hera?”
The girl nodded.
“Before you marry my son I will place one on you connecting your life to his. I did not bring you here because I need an apprentice. I brought you so that you could act as my son’s advisor, and do the things for him that he cannot do for himself. You will live only for his sake, and all your strength and knowledge will be placed at his service. You will be a proper wife to him Hera, whether you want to be or not.”
The (sort of) Dark Mage (Waldo Rabbit) Page 25
