Undeniable Vengeance

5. The Shulan's Words-2

Tobias reached over and patted Rahg on the back. "Don't worry though. I'll help you. And so will Rhaven and the others. We'll all be there, lad. We'll win, or we'll die, but we'll do it together."

The prospect of winning or dying should not have calmed Rahg, but it did. "All right, Tobias, we'll go." Rahg smiled as he took Camissa's arm and headed for the door. "Sorry, Camissa."

Aenaila bowed low to Mikkellana, hoping to mend the damage Darstan might have done when he shunned her. "My Lady." Her voice was soft as fresh snow.

"Hello, pretty one."

The pink in Aenaila's cheeks grew darker. "My Lady is too gracious. It is you who holds the beauty."

Mikkellana's tone hid none of her irritation. "A lie dipped in honey is still a lie. I know what I am, and beautiful does not describe it. I could be, if I wished, but then it would not be me. Do not fret though, I hold no grudge against you, nor do I covet your beauty; it is as much a curse as a blessing. But I do want to know why you hold such interest in the prophecy. And I would like to know how you managed to Shift to Entiria. You could not have been here before."

"Kender had seen the boat at the dock in Genda. I used that image to bring us to the boat."

Mikkellana's eyebrows raised high into her brow. "His recall is so good?"

Aenaila smiled. "His mind is perhaps even more nimble than his hands. And he—”

"The prophecy, Aenaila, we were discussing your attraction to it."

"The prophecy is of interest to all, My Lady. If any of us are to survive we must do our part to see the Evil One kept in Sethia."

Mikkellana's gaze could burn through stone. "And what is your part? Where are you from, and what do you want from Darstan?"

Aenaila's coloring reddened even more. "I hail from Khatara, My Lady, and I only wish to help Darstan. He has won my sympathy."

"Pretty words and a pretty face do not make a thing true. Your charm might work on the men who dote on you, but it has no effect on me."

"But I speak the truth, My Lady. Many in Khatara can attest to my story."

"Yes, I'm confident that if I investigated, I could find those who have known you long, but I doubt that any will have known you for as many seasons as you have lived. And even that, I suspect, is far past the number you lead people to believe."

Aenaila narrowed her eyes and a scowl formed on her face.

"Your pretenses are wasted on me, Aenaila. Your powers could not be so great, nor your mind that rich in so few summer droughts."

Aenaila felt like the rat caught in the alley that Wisp always mentioned. She was fabricating a response when Darstan opened the door.

He glanced at Aenaila then stared at Mikkellana. "Is everything all right, Aenaila?"

"Fine, Darstan. We were just talking of Khatara. She grabbed his arm. "I'm glad you came to get me."

"We shall finish our discussion of ... Khatara, some other time, Aenaila." Mikkellana would not take the hook from her mouth so soon.

"Yes, My Lady, another time," Aenaila said, and stepped into the corridor.

"Hurry, Darstan. I don't want to be late."

"What difference does it make? Those priests will probably question Rahg long into the night. And besides, he'll tell us if we miss anything important."

Words alone would not deter Aenaila. "He does not know what is important. Not yet."

Aenaila was burrowing in an empty hole, Darstan thought, but he could tell her mind was fixed, and he was not one to argue over nothing. “No sense pickin' over bones,” Magmar always said. "If we're going, let's go," he said, and quickened his pace.

"I want Kender to join us, Darstan. He sometimes hears things others might not."

Darstan smiled at her observation. "You have gotten to know him well in such a short time."

Aenaila's chuckle made her blush. "I think that even Kender Darnell does not know Kender Darnell; however, some things are easy enough to ascertain. He can tell a mare from a nag when it comes to people."

"If Kender comes he'll bring Adju." Darstan knew Aenaila didn't care for the little thief.

She sighed. "I know. That pup has yet to be weaned, but it's just as well. If left alone, he would steal the hat from the beggar's hand."

Darstan smiled.

"You should choose to smile more often, Darstan."

Adju sat crosslegged on the cold stone. A chair sat empty nearby, but he preferred the floor. He looked up at Wisp, pacing in front of him. "I offered apologies, Master Kender, what else is there?"

"Why did you steal from them, Adju? You were a guest in their house." Wisp stopped pacing and stared down at him, finger wagging like a schoolmarm scolding a student. "Guests do not steal."

Adju had the eyes of a lost puppy, and when they swelled with tears, he proved difficult to resist. "I did not think, Master Kender. How could I know if you were even coming back? I was stuck in this strange land and had to get as much as I could."

Wisp let the silence judge Adju; the pause only lasting a moment. "Also, Master Kender, they do not punish thieves here, so I did not think it was wrong."

"What do you mean they don't punish thieves?"

"They do not." Adju's voice raised. "If a thief is caught he is put in the house of the person he stole from to work for a while. But, Master Kender, all that time he is fed, and he has a bed to sleep on—a real bed, one with feathers. And they give the thief food." Adju looked at Kender and whispered, “And no one loses a finger."

Wisp tried explaining that things were done differently in other lands, but he could not help but wonder about the riches he could take in just a few nights in Sunnara. He stared at a blank spot on the wall.

"What is wrong, Master Kender?"'

Wisp shook his head, clearing the dangerous thoughts. "Nothing, Adju, I was just thinking about something, but it wouldn't be fun anyway."

"Tell me about the battle, Master Kender. Are you a hero? I heard people call you a hero."

"I'm no hero. Just a fool who nearly got killed." Wisp reached his hand out for Adju to grab. "Come, little beggar, we're meeting Darstan and Rahg." Wisp pulled him up from the floor. "The next time you ignore my rules, Aenaila will issue the punishment."

Wisp saw the look in Adju's eyes; the little thief knew Aenaila would be stricter than him. That might keep him good for a while.

Adju opened the door and bowed to let Wisp exit before him. "Was your bath relaxing, Master Kender? I saw the one who bathed you. Her face looked like a Qorami."

Wisp could not contain his laughter. "And what would you know of Qorami, little one? In fact, what would you know of women at all?"

Adju never seemed to get embarrassed. "I have heard about Qorami. They are beautiful, with silk for skin, and roses in their cheeks. They have—”

Wisp's laughter would not stop, but Adju kept up his chatter.

"...and I know much of girls. I know a man, Mufed, who has a daughter named Khalina. You know Khalina, Master Kender, remember, we stayed there, and—”

Footsteps from the next corridor interrupted Adju. "Good morning, Mistress Aenaila. Your face shines like the emperor's sun."

Aenaila smiled despite the source of the compliment. "Stop it, Adju. You are beginning to sound like Kender Darnell. I'll not have two of you badgering me."

When Aenaila turned her head, Adju tugged on Wisp's sleeve. "I think she likes you."

Wisp returned the whisper. "And I think she doesn't like you."

Adju brushed his hand in the air, as if Wisp's comment was so much nonsense. "Why are we meeting Master Rahg?"

Wide sweeping steps graced the entrance of the temple. Twenty-one times Rahg lifted each leg to climb the polished gray and blue stone; he had been here once before when he first met with the shera and the other two priests. That was before the battle with Iazzo.

Camissa had a firm grip on his arm and a smile on her face, but Rahg knew she worried as much as he did about the prophecy.

Rhaven and Tobias stood behind one of dozens of pillars on the landing at the top step. Tobias had a lit pipe in his mouth, smoke billowing out like a small forest fire. His back had been leaning against the columns, but he came erect when Rahg and Camissa neared the top. "I thought you'd be late, lad. Don't want to keep the shulan waiting."

Tobias arrived everywhere far too early. "We're not late, Tobias, besides, Darstan and Aenaila are supposed to be here. I think Wisp is coming too."

"Let them come when they can," Tobias said. "We better be gettin' inside. I saw the priests enter before I lit my pipe."

"All right, Tobias, I'll go, but you wait for Darstan.

The large bronze doors had carvings of things Rahg had never seen. They opened on their own accord. A second set of doors led to the sacred temple and stood just ahead. Rahg breathed deeply before he entered. The chamber was as big as he remembered. The three priests were there, as before, standing in the circular designs of inlaid stone but the shulan was also present.

The shera wore a black robe; the other two priests wore red. The shulan's robe was white with a purple sash adorned with jewels. His rings sparkled with rubies and diamonds and other gems, and he gripped a staff carved from what appeared to be blackthorn, though Rahg knew the trees didn't grow in Entiria. The shera spoke first.

"It has begun, Rahgnar Fal-Thera. Our last conversation is yet fresh in my mind and the struggle has already begun."

Rahg didn't like the manner of the shera; the way he spoke, everything was already lost, no hope. Rahg wanted to wait for Darstan to arrive, but he wanted this over with even more. "What is it you want from me, Shera? I have already given my blood."

"It is not what I want, Rahgnar Fal-Thera. It is not a question of what anyone wants. You are tied to the fate of the world. What is written in the prophecies cannot be undone."

"Anything can be undone, Shera." Mikkellana had entered unseen and though her presence unnerved Rahg, he smiled because her presence bothered the shera more.

"I have not yet learned my lady's name," the shera said, his bow courteous, nothing more.

Camissa bowed. "My Lady, it is good to see you again." Camissa completed the bow and faced the priests and the shulan. "This is Mikkellana."

This time the shera's bow swept the floor. "My apologies for not understanding, Lady. Forgive the ignorance of a lowly priest."

"No forgiveness is required. I came to listen to the prophecies, to help, if I could."

Heels slapping on the marble floor announced Darstan's arrival. He took up a position next to Rahg, Aenaila at his side. Wisp and Adju stood next to Rhaven.

Aenaila leaned to whisper in Camissa's ear. "What have I missed?"

"Nothing. Mikkellana just arrived."

The shera began speaking again. "You must kill the Messenger, Rahg. And to do that you must go to Arangar."

Camissa whispered to Rahg. "I sensed anger from Aenaila when he mentioned Arangar. But why?"

Rahg nodded. "You have told me about going to Arangar, Shera. How do I find the Messenger? And then what do I do?"

"It is not so easy as that."

Rahg's head darted to the right; it was the shulan who had spoken. "What do you mean?"

"You must enter the Paaren, and you must seek the knowledge of the Ancient Ones."

"What is the Paaren?"

"We do not know what it is, Rahg, but the only way to enter is through the Portals of Darkness."