5: A WIZARD, A DUCHESS, AND A SOLDIER

(Talea’s story)

A storm gathered in the west as the magical gate opened. That spiraling, glyph-filled portal settled into quicksilver glass, broken only as three people stepped through: two Quuros men and a white-skinned woman. Talea recognized all three: Relos Var, Qown, and Senera.

Qown and Senera were dressed for the cold weather, but Relos Var, just … ignored it. As if he didn’t notice the frozen Yoran weather.

Relos Var always reminded Talea of a high lord. It didn’t matter that she’d never once seen him dress like a royal or that his eyes were an entirely normal brown. Like most royals, he moved like he was the most important person in any space. Unlike most high lords Talea had ever known—oblivious to all the “lesser” servants and slaves around themselves—Relos Var always noticed her. Every time he observed her, she felt valued, appraised, measured.

And then dismissed, with the gentlest of smiles, as utterly inconsequential.

Talea possessed no illusions concerning her place in the grand scheme of things. She wasn’t the child of a Royal House or a divinity. No prophecies mentioned her. She wasn’t anyone’s chosen hero and she would never, she knew, be a great leader. But she could serve a great leader and be proud to do so. That had to mean something.

Relos Var looking at her like that? It was just rude.¹

The second man, red-cheeked from the cold, pulled his furs more tightly around himself. Relos Var’s apprentice, Qown, stepped so far inside the other man’s shadow, it was easy to miss his presence. The last person was Relos Var’s former apprentice, the wizard Senera. One might be forgiven for thinking she was Yoran given her skin pallor. Whereas most Yorans were ice white, winter white, sometimes glacier blue or storm-cloud gray, Senera was the color of cream and fresh-churned butter. A legacy of her Doltari ancestry.

Talea waited, resting easily with one hand on Urthaenriel. She kept her distance from the magic portal. Talea didn’t think Urthaenriel would disrupt a gate while sheathed, but why take the chance? She absolutely wasn’t going to draw the damn thing. She’d done so once—just once—and had been nearly overwhelmed by the insatiable urge to kill every mage anywhere near.

A definition that included almost all the Spurned.

Once Senera had closed the gate, Talea stepped forward and gave the trio a short, respectful bow. “It’s nice to see you again. Thank you for responding so quickly, Lord Var. The Hon is most eager to speak with you.”

“Why, thank you.” Relos Var was at least always polite. He eyed her with unusual wariness. “Where is she?”

She wasn’t the cause of his unease, she realized at once. It was Urthaenriel.

“The main cavern,” Talea answered. “I’ll take you—”

Var turned on his heel and marched up the path toward the Spurned camp.

So much for always being polite.

After a moment’s startled hesitation, Qown and Senera followed. Talea cheerfully fell in next to the white-haired wizard. “How is your puppy?² Did you give her the bones I sent you?”

Senera glanced at her sideways. “… she’s fine, thank you.”

“Oh, I’m glad to hear it. Things haven’t been so great here. The parlay with the Forgurogh clan—they were sheltering Suless—didn’t work out. Ambush. Suless animated a dead ice giant. So that was exciting. We had a few injuries, but no fatalities, so we were lucky there. Unlike the Forgurogh clan. Are you hungry? Do you need anything? I’m sure I could find you some tea…?”

Senera turned back to Talea and raised a finger.

The soldier paused, head cocked to the side.

“Stop talking,” Senera said.

“I was just being friendly.” Talea didn’t take Senera’s rudeness personally. She’d known the woman for almost four years, and in all that time, Talea couldn’t remember seeing Senera smile. The wizard struck Talea as desperately unhappy. That’s why she’d been so happy to hear about the puppy.

In Talea’s opinion, Senera was a woman in desperate need of a dog.

Qown cleared his throat. “I’d love some tea.”

Talea widened her eyes in mock surprise. “But, Qown, I assumed you would want tea.” She winked at him and then stage-whispered, “In Senera’s case, she also needs friends.”

Senera’s eyes narrowed. “I do not. Just take us to Kaen.”

Talea grinned again and pointed after Relos Var. “That way. And everyone wants friends. Some people are just too stubborn to admit it, hmm?”

Senera stormed off, and Talea grabbed Qown’s arm with her own. “Let’s go find the tea. I don’t suppose you brought any sunflower candy?”

Qown looked startled. “Oh no, there wasn’t time to make any. I’m so sorry—”

Talea inclined her head toward him. “I’m teasing. But I did make the mistake of sharing the last batch you made, and now the other women won’t stop bothering me. You do realize you’re the only man who has an open invitation to come visit us anytime you want?”

Qown blushed adorably. “I didn’t, I mean … I’d stopped making it. It was Janel’s favorite. I didn’t realize she’d been sharing it.”

“For years now. It’s like eating a sweet cloud.” Talea’s smile faltered for just a moment. She didn’t know exactly how events fell out in Atrine, but parting with Janel after Suless destroyed the Ice Demesne had made it clear enough the Joratese knight wasn’t coming back—another sin she laid at Relos Var’s feet. Talea already missed her. “Anyway, we’re here.”

Inside the cave, Spurned prepared for the storm. They took storms seriously in Yor. Talea was probably the only member (outside of Xivan herself) who hadn’t been trained in snowstorm survival techniques since childhood. Everyone else was stacking firewood, gathering supplies, preparing sleeping areas in the back.

Xivan Kaen stopped her conversation with Bikeinoh when Relos Var entered. In the dim lighting, few would notice anything amiss with Xivan. She looked fully alive and spectacularly beautiful, a Khorveshan woman in her midtwenties instead of someone twice that age who’d been dead for half of it.

It was almost worth holding Urthaenriel to see Xivan looking so perfect.

“Relos, thank you for coming. I realize you’re probably … busy.” Xivan stepped toward the wizard, tilting her head in his direction. “I need your help finding Suless. We seem to have lost her. Again.” She scowled as she made a “give me” gesture to Talea with two hooked fingers.

Talea unfastened the sword belt and gladly handed Urthaenriel back.

Senera crossed her arms over her chest. “You mean you want my help.”

The corners of Xivan’s mouth turned down. “I don’t care if I need the help of two startled rabbits and a drunk hyena as long as it results in Suless dead.” She glanced over at Relos Var. “You want that too, don’t you?”

“Oh, ever so much.” Relos Var seemed amused by the exchange. “She has interfered with my plans too many times. I see no reason to expect she’s going to stop. Best to remove her permanently.” He smiled at Senera. “If you’d be so kind, Senera.”

Senera sat down at the table.

“I must warn you—” Senera began.

“I know,” Xivan said. “The stone’s answers are literal.”

Senera glanced up at the duchess. “Yes.”

The pale-skinned woman pulled a small dark-gray inkstone from her bodice and retrieved an ink stick from her belt pouch. She pulled her favorite brush from its normal place as a hairpin.

Senera wasn’t just a normal wizard, if such a word as normal could ever properly be attached to wizard. She owned a Cornerstone, one of the few great artifacts. Hers was less combat-oriented than most, but it was still precious. The Name of All Things did just one thing, but it did it better than anyone, including gods.

It answered questions.

The process had a certain slow elegance to it. The Name of All Things would not be rushed. So Senera sat down and ground out the ink, moving the stick against a slick of water in the smooth stone. She took the time to make the ink properly, in the style so different from western Quuros inkwells and crow quill pens.

Talea set a teacup down next to her.

Senera paused from grinding the ink and looked sideways at Talea.

Talea’s smile was impish. “You’re welcome.”

Qown made a strangled sound as Senera deliberately dipped her brush into the tea to wet it.

“Thank you,” Senera said.

Senera then swirled her brush against the ink and then began to write. Talea found this part fascinating, since apparently while she used the artifact, the wizard could no longer lie in answers she wrote down.

Talea had so many questions she would have loved to ask.³

Senera finished writing her answers and studied the result.

Talea looked over the woman’s shoulder. “The Vale of Last Light. Where’s that?”

“Doltar.” Relos Var frowned.

“That glyph means Doltar,” Senera explained, tapping on the symbol in question with the end of her brush.

Talea didn’t hide her surprise. “You mean where you’re from?”

Senera’s look could have cut flesh. “I’m from the Capital of Quur.”⁴

Senera looked over her shoulder at Relos Var. “Suless knows what the Name of All Things can do. And she knows there’s an excellent chance Xivan will have our assistance. If I were her, I wouldn’t stop moving.”

“No, I wouldn’t either,” Relos Var agreed. He inclined his head to Xivan Kaen. “But the question is, what do you intend to do?”

Xivan returned his stare coolly. “I intend to remind you none of my women can open a gate, so if you want Suless dead, I’m going to need a little more help than a magic sword.”

Var laughed. “Indeed. That would probably be a helpful reminder. You should do that.” Xivan’s expression started to darken as it began to seem like Var would make her repeat herself. “Very well. Senera, I want Suless destroyed. Make it happen.”

The white-haired woman frowned. “But, my lord, the Capital—”

“Never fear. Qown and I will be taking care of matters in the Capital.”

The priest blinked, surprised. “We will?”

“Oh yes,” Relos Var said. “You might even enjoy yourself.” He clapped the other man on the shoulder. “Healers are in great demand at the moment. I have plans.”⁵ He glanced back at Senera. “Don’t give me that look. I know why you want to return to the Capital. Your plans will have to wait.”⁶

“Why not? They’ve waited this long.” Senera’s expression was so bland one might have missed the bitter note to her voice. Senera drank her tea, oblivious to Talea’s choking laugh.⁷ She then turned to fully face Relos Var. “So you want me to just … pop them down to the Doltari Free States, where we neither speak the languages nor know the customs? And while we’re there, track down a renegade god-queen through the city-states of who knows how many other god-kings, all the while carrying the sword infamous for killing the same god-kings?”

Var smiled. “Nothing you can’t handle, my dear.”

Talea grinned at Senera. “But bonus—we’ll have time to get to know each other.”

“How positively delightful,” Senera said. Through clenched teeth.⁸

“I feel just the same,” Talea replied.

Xivan said, “So we’re agreed. We leave at once.”