Enemy Known

by Butler, J. M.

  "Escolt gathered his cadre and spoke his heart. The cadre then summoned all the other Vawtrian cadres. They all gathered together, and the leaders of the cadre mourned for Sharish and her agony. And after days of pondering this, they came to an agreement. As one, the cadre leaders sought Elonumato and petitioned him yet again, but they were once more refused. Elonumato warned that the greatest loves could not be forced. He told Escolt to be patient with her. To show her compassion and gentleness. Well, clearly, that was unreasonable. So Escolt sought out a master of the Forbidden Arts.

  "This master of the Forbidden Arts provided an alternative. But it would forever change the Vawtrian race. Each Vawtrian would only be able to choose one lover and be forever bound to that lover, for better or for worse. A physical dependency would be created between the couple so that separation would become physically painful. And, if that love should die, then there would be no other. All of the cadre leaders agreed to be bound by this, and, because they all loved Sharish so much, it was agreed. And the spell was cast. Escolt was locked to Sharish. He loved her to the end of his days, and she was happy to the end of hers."

  "Really? That's how Vawtrians explain the locking?" Amelia half-smiled. Most of the pain was gone but a nagging sensation that she had forgotten something remained. A hollowness was there as well. "It doesn't sound real to me. Why didn't he heal her?"

  "Hmmm?" Naatos glanced down at her.

  "You Vawtrians can heal your spouses. After the locking anyway. Was that not possible before? Could they heal everyone?"

  "No. Spouses have always been able to heal one another. Sometimes even other family members."

  "Then why didn't Escolt heal her?"

  "He couldn't."

  "Why? Did she use a poison-bladed knife? And what happened to Terva? What did she really think she was going to accomplish? Did she really think that Escolt would love her after she brutalized Sharish? And, wait, how did he even know that it was Terva?"

  "He just knew."

  Amelia shook her head. "He wasn't a mindreader. He couldn't have just known. He would have—"

  "Stop breaking the story." Naatos flicked her hair off her shoulder, but he did not sound annoyed. A smile tugged at his lips. "It isn't the only explanation, of course. Some say Elonumato created the locking because Vawtrians were too harsh with their spouses and soon tired of them, casting them aside like used socks. But I am not nearly so fond of that account."

  Amelia closed her eyes again, savoring the warmth. It was the strangest sensation now. Still in a haze, but a comforting haze at least. "I'm not surprised. I don't know if you prefer the myth because you're secretly a romantic or you just don't like Vawtrians to look bad."

  "True," Naatos said. He traced the path of a dried tear on her cheek. "It couldn't possibly be both."

  36

  Consciousness

  Naatos waited until Amelia slipped back into sleep. Her breaths slowed, becoming even, deep, and calm. The sensation of her body nestled in his arms was almost pleasant.

  Almost.

  Between the ferocity of her response to WroOth's intense memories and the agony of the split heart, he seemed to be changing. The thought of her mind breaking was no longer so appealing. It was easier as an abstract concept or something that he did not have to witness in depth.

  He rested his cheek against the top of her head. Her hair smelled like roses and almond oil. Here, at this moment, she seemed at peace. Matters needed to improve between them. Feeling for her like this caused more problems than he had anticipated.

  Carefully, he shifted her onto the bed and moved away from her. She stirred, a soft moan escaping her lips. Her fingers curled around his. Leaning down, Naatos kissed her forehead. "I will see you soon, viskaro. Try not to dream. It won't be pleasant."

  With that, he gathered his notes, documents, and lists. The papers rustled, the edges catching on the callouses on his hands. Yes. Almost everything outside of his marriage and family was coming together. He made a few last-minute preparations and then left, closing the door softly behind him.

  He strode down the hall toward the dining room. As he passed the common room, he avoided looking at the toys stacked neatly behind the couch. If only WroOth would let them pack it all away. It would be better if they were at least in different chambers, but the only concession WroOth had made was in sleeping in a different room than the one he and Mara had once shared. That was some wisdom at least.

  AaQar stood at the back of the dining room, browsing a selection of books in the shelves. WroOth sat at the hand-carved table, a silver goblet pressed to his forehead. He still hadn't regained all his color, and, from the sweat beading on his forehead, it would probably take a couple hours longer.

  WroOth winced and shifted the goblet to his left temple. "How is our little sister?"

  "Confused. Relatively affectionate. Practically a different person. No permanent damage." Naatos set his papers on the table and motioned for WroOth to move the goblet. He stepped in front of WroOth and lifted his chin. "Look into the light and blink." WroOth's eyes responded properly to the light, though the initial response was a little slower than it should have been. His left pupil was also a little larger than the right. "And what about you?"

  "I think she might have dumped most of her memories in my mind and done a fair bit of imprinting. Far more than just a deep mindreading session." WroOth took another sip from his goblet as he leaned back in the chair.

  AaQar frowned. He poured himself a goblet of wine and sat down across from WroOth. "What makes you think it was more than a reaction to remove you? That doesn't inherently involve the Neyeb imprinting her own memories on the invader."

  "Subtle clues really. I'm fairly certain I've never kissed Shon. Nor was I ever worried about my breasts evening out. I mean, I would not be surprised if I had sworn I would never get in a relationship with a man, but I am quite certain I didn't make that vow in a dressing room with some redhead. Jacinda. That's her name. So unless you're going to tell me that I've blocked entire portions of my life, I think it's safe to say that Amelia's memories merged with mine."

  AaQar laughed faintly. He shook his head, taking another drink. "And this is why I never liked the idea of anyone reading my mind."

  "This wasn't just mindreading," Naatos said.

  "Well whatever it was, you should have warned me how sensory based it was going to be." WroOth gave Naatos an irritated glance before he went back to icing his head with the goblet. "I can hardly blame her for those memories, but she's so…detailed. I never wanted to know what that Ayamin tasted like, and now I can't forget it."

  Naatos's nerves tightened. He didn't like to think of Amelia kissing Shon. He poured himself some wine. He hadn't liked the idea of leaving Shon alive to begin with. But after what he had experienced with Amelia this past afternoon, he didn't want to risk losing her. Shon would have to be eliminated in some way that did not implicate him. "Don't let it trouble you, WroOth. It was a mistake, but it will fade in time. I hardly remember any of the specific memories from the Neyeb who did that to me."

  "Does it go both ways though? How much of my memory will she retain?"

  "What you showed her will remain most prevalent in her mind. Everything else will become latent knowledge. Most Neyeb are not fully aware of what they know." Naatos began to circle the room. If the memory of Shon was one of the memories most clear in WroOth's mind, then that meant it was enormously important to Amelia.

  "Latent is rather vague," WroOth said. "It could become far more. And if she's going to be recalling random events from my life, she needs to understand the context. You see, this one time it was very late, and Mara had just found this—"

  "WroOth." Naatos held up his hand, his tone sterner. "If it becomes an issue, I'll send her back to have a little chat with you. But until it becomes an issue, I see no point in talking about it. It was not a mutual exchange of information in that you did not transfer as much into her as she put into you. What happened was simply
a defense mechanism. Your mind was more intense and the scenes you showed her more…overwhelming than she could handle. Your memories started to engulf her, and so she fought back in the only way she could. She asserted her own identity and personality within herself, and in the process, she punched into yours. She's far stronger than I expected. More erratic."

  WroOth rolled his eyes. He leaned his head back over the edge of the chair. "This better be resolved before tomorrow."

  AaQar folded his hands, staring at the wall. A slow smile pulled at his lips, gradually broadening. Then he chuckled.

  WroOth lifted his head, giving him a dark glance. "I'm glad it amuses you so, brother. Perhaps I should take my frustration elsewhere. Neither of you care about what anyone feels—and no, that's not me." He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

  More laughter burst from AaQar. Naatos gave him a quizzical look, surprised. It had been ages since AaQar had just started laughing. And the harder AaQar tried to hold it in, the more it broke through. "AaQar?"

  AaQar drew in a deep breath, placing his hands on the tabletop. "Naatos," he said. The corners of his mouth twitched. "Is Amelia resembling WroOth more? Or do I have two sisters now?" He started to laugh again.

  "Why is this what amuses you? All these years, everything I've tried. Practically nothing. But this, this makes you laugh." WroOth shook his head. "Of course, why wouldn't it be?"

  It really wasn't that funny, but AaQar's laughter, unexpected as it was, brought a smile to even Naatos's face. He tried unsuccessfully to hide it, wiping his hand across his mouth. "Give it another few hours or so, WroOth. It'll all be gone. After the first few times, I felt like a completely different person. The first time, I spent half a day looking for a dead dog. With time and additional exposure, you will build up an immunity."

  "Oh, I have no desire for more exposure. There's been more than enough exposure for one lifetime, I think. Can anything be done about the pounding at least?" WroOth pressed his hand over his eyes. "And get the woman some flowers. Roses or orchids. She likes orchids. Or maybe that's her friend. I don't remember. But something floral."

  AaQar seemed to have regained control of himself. He gave a sympathetic nod and drank from his goblet.

  "I'll ask her," Naatos said. "But she doesn't strike me as liking flowers as much. I need something to keep her occupied."

  "One would think that the wedding might be enough." AaQar wiped tears from the corner of his eyes. The right corner of his mouth continued to twitch.

  "No. She doesn't have any plans. Why would she? She was coming back to kill Naatos. You do realize she planned on dying afterward?" WroOth said, his tone stern. "Figured she'd die in the process or because you'd kill her on her way down. Still thinks that." WroOth continued icing his forehead. "And why do you need to keep her occupied. Wait. No. Don't tell me. As long as I'm at risk for referring to that Ayamin with any legitimate terms of affection, you should keep me out of your counsels."

  AaQar tapped his fingers on the tabletop. "In all seriousness…what is the risk? You are not Amelia, and you seem to be aware of the challenges it has on your mind."

  "In all seriousness…" WroOth let his voice trail off. He massaged his temples before looking at Naatos. "It's not just that I have her memories and personality pressing against me. I am not angry with her at all. I am divided, and there is a loud and insistent cry inside my head that says, 'how can you claim to love Mara and yet you would separate two who share a love just as strong?' I tell it it's not true. I loved Mara for far longer, but the voice is so loud. It reminds me of what I shared with Mara in the beginning and how I would…how I did whatever it took to bring us together. At the moment, I want to tell Amelia to run away. Find her Ayamin and risk everything. Escape into the mountains or deep into the caverns or far to the forests. That even one night with the love of her soul would be better than eternal denial. I resent you, Naatos, for your cruelty toward her. You've been kind enough to her these past few hours, but who could be cruel to her now? I despise myself too. And what I showed her…I showed her the worst moments of my life, and you approved it though it was beyond cruel to subject her to that no matter what we hoped to accomplish."

  He ground the base of the goblet against the table. "It's probably her morality battering the life out of mine, but I feel it, and no amount of laughter or joking can cover it. I fear…" He shook his head, staring off past the window. "I may forget the details. That she thought the Ayamin tasted like honey and soft spice. That his smile makes her think of hope. That his eyes make her feel calm and remind her of sea slate. But I fear I will never forget how she felt when she realized she loved him. How horrified she was when she learned you were her husband and how I treated it like a game. Always a game. Not a life that mattered outside what we could use her for. So yes, it's best not to tell me what you have planned because…this may wear off, or it may not. Either way, I don't want to know."

  Naatos half-smiled. WroOth's frankness with Amelia's personality derailing his humor was bizarre but not troubling. He refilled WroOth's goblet with the chilled wine. "The fact that you can tell me that your struggle is proof that you'll be fine. And as for my being horrifying, remember whose perspective you're seeing this from. I will make it better."

  WroOth kept his hand to his forehead. "Well, at the moment, I feel a very strong desire to put a fork in your eye."

  "At least you're fighting it."

  "For now." WroOth's eyes narrowed. "But if you ever hurt her again, I'll probably lose that fight. And you'll lose something else."

  "On that note, are you able to dispense justice before night falls?" Naatos asked.

  WroOth lowered the goblet, giving Naatos a look that said 'are you serious?' "What do you think your wife would say to the practice?"

  "And what about the plans for Theol?" AaQar asked. "He may be a sworn pacifist, but he is still a necessary example."

  "No!" WroOth slammed his fist against the table, glaring at AaQar. "You will not touch my father." His face twisted as he shook his head. "I mean her father. Well, after all, that was one of the terms of her agreement."

  "True," Naatos said. "But remind me when that has ever restricted what we have done? Particularly when the greater good is at stake?"

  "I just don't see what greater good could be served from killing a man who is effectively your father-in-law, who has never harmed a single person in his entire life." WroOth worked his fingers around the goblet stem, his knuckles white. "Besides, it's my world…the others, well, they can be dealt with as you see fit. But not Theol. And not Alita, and not Josiah. Are we not men of our words?"

  Naatos studied him in silence. They needed Theol to serve as an example. But they could wait a few more days. "It is your world, WroOth," he said. "But I think you're wise to not make any decisions until you are back to your old self. But what happens is your decision. Now, do you want me to handle the dispensement? Or would you rather AaQar deal with it?"

  WroOth folded his arms. He drew in a deep breath, his gaze fixed on the floor. "You should do it, Naatos. It's your skill set. Besides, AaQar has his own things to do."

  AaQar shook his head. The smile pulled up at the corner of his mouth. "You're very thoughtful today, sister."

  Naatos cut WroOth off before he could respond. "All right. AaQar, you have matters to attend to on Ecekom. And I'll handle the dispensement. WroOth, be cautious. Read a book. Fly around. Play with the cat. Find some small children to hold. But it would probably be best if you did not leave these chambers."

  "Perhaps." WroOth tapped his finger against his forehead. "I had no idea how much she hates you telling her what to do. Do you know I want to do exactly the opposite of what you just said?"

  "Would it help if I told you to go out and run the halls and enact a few dozen laws?"

  "Not particularly."

  "Well, WroOth," AaQar said, standing. He straightened his silver robes. "Do me a favor. Don't fly anywhere. Don't be alone. And don't relax." He tapped his fin
gers to his forehead, shaking his head as he smiled and left the room. "What an unusual day."

  Naatos watched AaQar leave. What was happening to his brothers? WroOth he could understand. But AaQar…something was very strange. "All right, WroOth. Try not to do anything you'll regret when Amelia's imprint leaves."

  Naatos left the room. AaQar had already vanished. Very strange. He was walking faster than usual. Perhaps returning to Ecekom had brought some life back to AaQar. Still Naatos only had a limited amount of time to complete the dispensement. It needed to be completed before the Vawtrians came, and he would prefer to have it done before Amelia awoke.

  37

  Peace of Mind

  Amelia opened her eyes, feeling Naatos's absence at once. The haze had left her mind, but her thoughts were no more coherent. She pushed up from her side. It was such a jumble.

  No more dizziness at least. She drew in a full breath and then released it slowly, repeating three more times. But her thoughts remained just as…what were they?

  Slowly, she stood. The room was familiar but only because of this afternoon. These were Naatos's chambers, and apparently hers now as well. There was a pale-yellow dress set out on the couch. Amelia looked down at the turquoise one she currently wore. Dried blood stained the bodice. Had she busted her mouth or fallen? She touched her lips but felt nothing. Not even chapping. There were no wounds around the blood. Shaking her head, Amelia tried to focus. She couldn't remember much aside from WroOth's memories and waking up.

  Obviously she was supposed to change her clothes. She picked up the dress, running her fingers over the soft material. The color reminded her of something…pale daffodils across the river. But which river was that? She changed out of the turquoise dress, folded it, and set it on the bed. She almost slipped twice putting on the pale-yellow dress, and tying the sash proved to be even more difficult. Her fingers tangled in the slick material. Frustrated, she knotted it and let the rest of the sash fall to just below her knees.