Enemy Known

by Butler, J. M.

  "If the Libyshans can find a way to exact their price, they are welcome to take it. But weak people make weak requests. There is no way for you to reconcile this, Amelia."

  "Do you even feel anything?" Amelia asked, her voice sharpening.

  Naatos frowned. "I feel many things. You have experienced that."

  "No, I mean for what you and your brothers did. For everyone who died here today and in the past months." Amelia edged closer, not wanting to read his mind and yet desperate to know. It would be better if remorse or guilt gnawed at him beneath his calm exterior. "Do you feel any sorrow of any kind?"

  "Sorrow for those who fell in battle?"

  "Everyone. The royal court. The villages and towns. The battle. Hundreds, maybe thousands, have died." Amelia closed her eyes. She did not brush her thoughts over his because she did not want to add to her own pain and sorrow, yet that need trembled within her. "Do you feel anything for them at all?"

  "Likely no more than you yourself feel."

  Vorec's cold voice cut through Amelia. She backed away from Naatos instinctively, startled to see Vorec standing in the doorway. His shadow wavered against the cracked stone wall.

  "If you can spare a minute from your treacherous family, I would like to speak with you." Vorec's combat uniform was bloodied and stained, the left sleeve rent and the right tattered. He favored his left leg from an injury a couple days before, but his form was otherwise rigid. His gaze drifted back to Naatos, making no attempt to mask the disdain.

  Amelia stood slowly. "What do you want, Vorec?" Tension and unease weighted the air in the room. Vorec's distrust of her had evolved to hatred, particularly once he learned of her marriage to Naatos. Her refusal to do as Vorec demanded had only deepened the rift, despite her saving the Machat and Libyshans and assisting in the successful liberation of the Temple of Selgooko in the most recent battle.

  "I did not intend to inconvenience you with matters affecting the poor unfortunates of Libysha." Vorec strode closer. The sneering sarcasm intensified with each word. "If you wish to continue your copulation with the beast, please don't allow me to disturb you. The wounded and suffering will wait until your appetites are sated."

  Amelia braced her hands on her hips, taking a deep breath. Her elegant emerald-green wedding gown was stiff with blood and shredded in several places, but it covered the vast majority of her body. Yet somehow shame crept over her as if she was naked. She wanted to wrap her arms around herself, but she resisted. "Vorec—"

  "Treat my wife with respect," Naatos said. His tone remained calm, but a sinister edge lined his words. His gaze slid to Vorec, narrow and harsh. "She is yours and Libysha's princess regardless of your feelings."

  Vorec paused beside Amelia, then kicked Naatos in the head through the broad-set bars.

  "Vorec!" Amelia shoved him.

  "Watch yourself, woman." Vorec seized her hands, his grip painfully tight. "Those wretched Machat may have convinced the king that you should have final say over what happens with these three creatures, but you are not invulnerable."

  Naatos shook his head as if to remove the blow, his expression more bored and annoyed than angry. "Nor are you."

  Amelia ripped her hands free from Vorec, but she did not step away. "Naatos, be quiet. Vorec." She set her jaw. "I will not stand for bullying. Not from you. Not from him. Not from anyone. You back off. Do not kick, stab, hit, or otherwise attack the prisoners. There is nothing to gain from it and a great deal to lose."

  "Pinchat." Vorec spat the words in her face.

  Amelia glared back. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

  Vorec's stare remained unbroken. "You are a traitor, woman. Until you prove otherwise."

  "Until I prove otherwise?" Amelia echoed. She caught herself before giving a hotter response. "Maybe we should talk about this in the hall."

  "Are you afraid that your lovers will overhear your cowardice?" Vorec demanded.

  "Lovers?" Naatos repeated, emphasizing the plural nature of the word with disdain.

  "I said be silent or I will gag you myself—"

  Amelia blocked Vorec, shoulders squared, arms wide. "Don't go near him."

  "The beast is caged, chained, and shackled," Vorec said, gesturing widely at Naatos. "Are you truly afraid that he can somehow do harm, or is this just a poor excuse to keep him from being harmed?"

  Amelia kept her arms out. "I said leave them alone. They are still dangerous."

  "What can he do, princess?" Vorec asked scornfully.

  "Bite maybe. I haven't figured out how to gag someone that didn't involve hands near the mouth," Amelia said.

  "I might not," Naatos said. "Let him try and see,"

  "No!" Amelia kept her gaze on Vorec. "What is it you want? Or did you just come down here to insult me and assault them?"

  Disgust curled through Vorec's words, twisting his mouth as he spoke. "The king decided that you have final say over what happens with these prisoners. Fortunately for you, this allows you to demonstrate where your loyalties truly lie."

  Amelia sighed as she folded her arms. "Oh really? You want me to hand over control of the prisoners to prove I am a faithful Libyshan."

  "Perhaps you are a mindreader." Vorec smiled thinly. "If you did, I would be inclined to change my view regarding you. And I would ensure that those under my command heard of your wisdom."

  "What is it that you need to do that requires you having control of them?" Amelia asked.

  Vorec chuckled, his mood a little easier now. He paced around the great barred cell that held Naatos, AaQar, and WroOth. His bootsteps echoed within the broad open space, creating a sinister cadence. "There is no need for me to burden you with the full knowledge of our activities. You could return to the palace and your adopted family. There are many matters which require tending, and the proper care and handling of prisoners is not likely one you covered in your home-taught classes."

  "Let me just take a little guess and say that you're planning to torture them?" Amelia resumed the more confident pose of her arms akimbo, her fingers digging into the gown.

  "Do you know how many people have died since these three have arrived?" Vorec asked.

  "More than should have," Amelia said.

  Vorec chuckled darkly. "Such a perfectly vague response. How many should have died then?"

  "Vorec." Amelia clenched her jaw. "If you have something to say to me, please say it. I don't have time for this. After I finish here, I need to go to the infirmary."

  "Yes, I'm sure you need something to take the edge off after all your betrayals," Vorec said.

  Amelia blew out a long breath, warning herself that he was trying to bait her. "No." Adding that she was going up to assist in the infirmary would likely result in more mockery. "Stop wasting my time, elder commander. What do you want?"

  "Everyone knows that you are a traitor, and it will take great efforts to convince them otherwise." Vorec clasped his hands behind his back, his expression severe. The narrowing of his eyes and hard set of his square jaw intensified the appearance of remorselessness. His hatred brimmed. "It is now essential for you to prove yourself."

  "Prove myself?" Amelia echoed, her voice sharpening. "Because providing you Ayamin with plans for the temple and assisting in capturing Naatos and so on wasn't enough?"

  "You gave them plans for the temple?" Naatos frowned.

  "Yes, I told you I wasn't going to let you win. Why does this surprise you?" Amelia spoke to Naatos but kept her gaze on Vorec.

  "I'm more surprised you found the time to do it," Naatos said.

  "You underestimated me. Both of you," Amelia said.

  "No." Naatos glanced upward as if searching for a fragment of thought or memory. "There's something missing from—oh yes…the imprinting. WroOth." Sighing, he shook his head.

  "I certainly haven't underestimated you," Vorec said. "You are a treacherous beast indeed, no more woman than those creatures shackled here."

  "All right fine. I am a horrible person! Cl
early I haven't done enough. Everything I have done is no more than shadows and smoke." Amelia faced him, the anger intensifying within her voice. "What. Do. You. Want. From. Me."

  Vorec circled again, walking directly down the center of the broad path between the large cage and the coarse stone wall. His shadow stretched and splayed in the weak torchlight. "I want you to prove yourself. Prove that you are on Libysha's side even if you are of the vilest conception."

  "And you find me offensive?" Naatos scowled. "Why don't you let me kill this Awdawm?"

  "I can find both of you offensive," Amelia hissed. "Which I do. And no, you can't kill Vorec."

  "Your feigned contempt does not fool me," Vorec said. "If you want to even begin to earn my trust, Amelia, then turn over authority of these prisoners to me."

  Amelia shook her head. "No. Absolutely not."

  "Do it," Naatos said. "There's no need for you to be in the middle of this."

  "No." Amelia raised her voice. "Is anyone even listening to me?"

  "Amelia, do not get in the middle of this," Naatos said.

  Vorec scoffed. "For once, I agree with your mate."

  Amelia clenched her fists. "All right, moral and philosophical issues aside, Naatos, do you swear that if you and your brothers escape that none of you and none of your mercenaries will enact vengeance on the people of Reltux, specifically the Libyshans, for what Vorec and his force do to you?"

  "When, not if." Naatos smiled darkly. "And no. Since you aren't fond of my lying, I can make no such promise."

  "Then no dice." Amelia shifted her gaze back to Vorec. "You will leave them alone. I don't even want anyone else caring for them. I am the only person who can go in there who they won't kill."

  "They are bound and chained. Either you are a coward or you are trying to protect them." Vorec jabbed his finger at her.

  "You can call me all the names you want, Vorec, but I am the one who is in charge here. Listen to me now. There is no information that you can obtain from them. There is nothing good that will come from you going in there."

  "Pinchat!" Vorec bellowed. "You think I can't see through you? The blood of my people cries out for vengeance. Innocents were poured out upon the ground like water, and you dare to stand here and defend the ones who ripped the life from their veins?"

  "Naatos, AaQar, and WroOth do deserve punishment. And they will pay the price. But the Machat had it right when they first captured them," Amelia said. Anger stung her, and the bead of cold within her mind threatened to expand. But the exhaustion dampened it this time, and the heaviness of the past hours pressed hard against her. "We are not equipped to enact justice, and our meager attempts will do nothing more than make things worse for the very people we are trying to protect."

  "The Machat have their own agenda," Vorec said. "They are only Libysha's friend so long as it suits them. My concern is for Libysha. For the dead. For the wounded."

  "And what about for those who yet live!" Amelia demanded. She crossed in front of him, the veins in her neck and arms tightening. "You're right. This isn't about morality. It's about practicality. And all that you are doing is trying to make yourself feel better. Torturing them is not going to bring the dead back, but it will put the living at risk."

  "These three will be brought out and made a spectacle of. The people will see that these monsters are harmless now that they are captured."

  "But they aren't!" Amelia exclaimed. "They are incredibly dangerous."

  Vorec adopted a more patronizing tone. "The Machat said that we have six months before they can gain an immunity." Naatos laughed. Vorec cast an annoyed glare at him, then continued. "They will be broken before then. Surely even you can see how that would be preferable. The Tue-Rah is blocked. No one can enter or leave. Their allies will not be coming."

  "No, because I don't believe you can break them, and Kepsalon said that their imprisonment would be at most six months. It could be much less. And probably will be much less. Also, QueQoa has WroOth's Para band. I don't know how time is altered since your men blocked off the Tue-Rah, but once QueQoa realizes something is wrong, he'll be here!" Amelia thrust her hands to her head. Why couldn't he understand?

  "You Awdawms cannot succeed," Naatos said. "We have endured far worse, and we will be free far sooner than even the Machat predict. Whether QueQoa comes or not. Just understand this, putalt, for all that you do there is a price to be paid, with interest. And these people whom you claim to love will be the ones to pay most."

  Vorec started forward. "I am not talking to you."

  "Stop!" Amelia shoved him back.

  Vorec slapped her across the face.

  The blow stunned Amelia, shocking her more than hurting. This wasn't a challenge like their sparring in New Istador. This was an insult.

  "Understand this," Vorec said, pointing his finger in her face. "I know what you are, and I will expose and destroy you. So far as I am concerned, there will now be four graves, not three." Vorec spat on the ground and left. His footsteps echoed through the long hall as he strode away.

  Tears pricked Amelia's eyes. Vorec had never liked her. But somehow she'd thought that after all she had done, he would recognize her for who she was. Would the other Libyshans believe him despite her actions? It was understandable that the Libyshans had been angry with her when they were cowering within the halls of New Istador. Her efforts had been largely unnoticeable, but why weren't her efforts enough now?

  "How do you want him to die?" Naatos's voice was surprisingly soft.

  Amelia composed herself, her back still to Naatos. "I don't want him to die at all. You shouldn't be surprised that people are angry after you invaded and brutalized this nation. Vorec loves this country. He's lost his comrades and perhaps family."

  "I'm not surprised. But if you are not going to do what is obviously the most intelligent thing and release my brothers and me, then hire an assassin to dispatch that man at once."

  "I don't want to talk about this anymore. Perhaps it would be a better use of your time to think about what you've done and how many people you are hurting." Amelia strode toward the exit, her breaths quickening.

  Naatos started to say something that began with "More people will—" but she quickened her pace and moved beyond his voice's reach.

  Acknowledgments

  It's not surprising that there are a lot of amazing people to thank for Enemy Known. Since I went into a fair bit of depth about the contributions in Identity Revealed and most of the same individuals are involved in Enemy Known's development, I want to honor them by sharing little stories of their involvement and thanking them. But it should be known that what I describe here is not the sole extent of their contribution. Words cannot express how much I appreciate these people, but here are some fun stories about the way that they contributed.

  The particular construction and manner of the Tue-Rah's restoration in the end of this book is due in large part to my father, Rob Butler. I can't thank him enough for so many things, but I believe this is one of his best contributions to the world. He took me to the living room, popped in a copy of Raiders of the Lost Ark and then fastforwarded it to the part where Indy installs the staff in the model city and the sunlight projects through it in a blinding flash of revelation. From there, he explained, while making his own sound effects and then sketching possible angles from which the restoration could be witnessed. It was rather overwhelming, and I wanted it to be more like the restoration of the crystal in The Dark Crystal. Ultimately I lost that argument, but it was a good one to lose. And Dad also showed me all of Raiders of the Lost Ark, which became and remains one of my favorite adventure movies. Excellent movie. If you haven't seen it, you really should stop reading this book and go watch it right away (though I do thank you for taking the time to read this section. Many readers skip this, and you really are a stand-up reader for getting all the way through here. But I think even my father would agree that you should watch Raiders as soon as possible.)

  My mother continued t
o advocate for numerous characters in this one. (I'm sorry I couldn't save Irasso, Mom.) She's still rooting for Shon and Amelia to have a happy ending. I quoted one of my favorite lines from Princess Bride, but to avoid spoilers, I won't share it here. The death of Irasso annoyed her sufficiently that she threatened to withhold giving me my tea when we were visiting. (It was an empty threat. Truth be told, she wouldn't deny anyone a cup of tea. Or actually anything except a tragic end. She retains hope for Vorec's redemption as well though I haven't told her everything he does.)

  James Fry, my amazing husband, helped me with this book as he did with Identity Revealed. Naatos and Amelia's fight scene actually changed significantly from its original conception once we put it into action. (Several times actually.) At one point, I intended for her to go toe-to-toe with Naatos and do fairly well. However, in evaluating her training, I realized that it just wasn't practical. She had made other strides in her knowledge, but given Naatos's hundred years of experience, it wasn't as feasible. Plus, I didn't have her using the gun! I mean, she has a gun. That would have been incredibly stupid to leave out. So, with James's help, I rechoreographed the fight scene and saved Amelia's toe-to-toe battle with Naatos for a later book after she has had significantly more development and learned Vawtrian battle combat. While we were mocking up one possibility though, we tried fighting with makeshift bo staffs. Mid-attack, I realized there were a couple small children looking into our living room window, their expressions suggesting they weren't entirely sure whether to be concerned or amused. I explained as best I could, was informed I was a nerd, and then the children left. From then on, I have kept the curtains sealed tightly at all times. You never know when inspiration will strike.

  Thanks to Mary Iamandi, my magnificent editor, QueQoa's standalone novellas will be moved up in the production line. She and Mel Hall, my wonderful proofreader and intern at Render Compose, are excellent advocates for him receiving a whole spin-off series, and really, they make an excellent case. Not that I'm hard to convince. QueQoa is one of my favorite characters, and the journey he takes as the series progresses is one I thoroughly enjoy.