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    Finale
    Finale
    Finale
    Ebook623 pages9 hours

    Finale

    By Ashley Abbiss

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    About this ebook

    Vengeance is in the air.‎
    Ever since the abortive campaign against the New ‎Elithimites in which she and others were kidnapped, ‎Niari has been determined to hunt down Amarya and ‎make sure that she, her husband, her sister, and most ‎especially her daughters, can live the rest of their lives ‎in peace. ‎
    Although their own campaign to attack the leaders ‎of the cult was a disaster, Keladryn’s Atriosine ‎Temple Guard decimated the army Amarya was ‎building up. Therefore, now seems to be an excellent ‎time to strike. If she could only convince Keladryn of ‎that.‎
    Then, Boladan and Adeena find a prophecy that ‎says the Company is to do just that and that soon, the ‎Companions will be gathering again. Since those taken ‎last time were not just the friends and colleagues but ‎the relatives and loves ones of the Companions, there ‎is a real flavour of vengeance in the air. It’s personal ‎now. ‎
    It’s personal for the Atriosine Temple Guard, too. ‎They are sworn to protect the High Priest and the ‎church of Atrios. Kidnapping Keladryn was a slap in ‎the face for every man and woman of the Guard, and ‎they’d like nothing better than the chance to wipe out ‎that insult.‎
    So, when two healers turn up with news of a ‎proposed attack on the temple compound, everyone is ‎eager. While the Temple Guard prepares to defend the ‎compound and mete out some retribution, the ‎Companions take to the hills north of Atriosa. Their ‎aim? To hunt down Amarya and the other leaders of ‎the New Elithimites and make sure they can never ‎threaten anyone ever again. ‎

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAshley Abbiss
    Release dateDec 7, 2018
    ISBN9780463153369
    Finale
    Author

    Ashley Abbiss

    Hello there. I’m Ashley Abbiss. ‎I live and write in beautiful New Zealand, where I live with one large dog, who looks nothing ‎like Friend from my Daughters of Destiny books. She is, however, almost as intelligent and definitely as ‎opinionated, and if she can’t quite speak in the way Friend does to Niari, that doesn’t really ‎hold her back much!‎I write fantasy, mostly of the epic variety. Let me say right up front that if you’re looking for a quick read, you’re in the wrong place. But if you like a substantial, ‎satisfying story that you can really get your teeth into, stick with me. I may have something ‎you’ll enjoy. There’s no graphic sex in my books. If that’s what you want, you’ll have to look ‎elsewhere. There is violence, and there is swearing, though mostly of the ‘s/he swore’ variety, ‎nothing overly graphic or offensive. I also write about strong, independent female characters, ‎so if your taste runs to something more macho, or something more frilly and helpless, this may ‎not be the place for you. ‎I’ve always loved wandering in different worlds, be they fantasy or science fiction, although ‎lately I tend to prefer fantasy. The only proviso is that they have to be believable worlds, ‎worlds that feel real, that have depth and scope – and they must, absolutely must be fun to ‎visit. I read for escape and entertainment, and I don’t really want to escape from this world ‎into one even grimmer. Trouble, tension, and danger I can deal with, what sort of story would ‎there be without them? Where would Pern be without Thread, Frodo without Sauron, Harry ‎Potter without Voldemort? But there has to be hope, and there has to be a light touch. Happy ‎ever after does have a lot going for it, even if initially it’s only a very small light at the end of ‎a long, dark tunnel. My personal favourites include Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy, Anne ‎McCaffrey’s Pern series, and the fantasies of David Eddings, and lately, they’ve been joined ‎by J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and a few others. Of those, David Eddings was probably my ‎greatest inspiration.‎I began to wonder if I could create my own world, one just as believable and multi-layered as ‎theirs. Could I create a world with its own history, geography, social structure, deities, and all ‎the rest? One that hung together? That a reader could believe in? It became a challenge, one I ‎really wanted to see if I could meet. So I dusted off my writing skills, learned a few more, ‎cranked up the imagination, and got busy. I’d always been good at creative writing, but ‎though I’d made a few attempts to write after I left school, none of them came to anything. ‎That was until I started writing fantasy. Suddenly, I knew I’d come home. ‎I quickly discovered that I’m not the sort of writer who can plan a book (or a world!) before I ‎start. I just can’t do it. But I can create characters, and suddenly the characters took on a ‎reality of their own and took over the stories, often to the extent that they actually surprised ‎me. And the stories worked. Their world worked. Sometimes I had to go back and fix the ‎odd contradiction, but mostly it worked and was very natural and organic. Even though my ‎first attempts were pitiful, I knew I’d found where I belong. I persevered, I learned, I wrote. ‎I discovered that the characters are key for me. Once I get them right, they tell their own ‎story. I was away. There were dark days during which my stories became my refuge, my ‎characters my friends. And I kept writing. There were happy times when I didn’t need a ‎refuge, but my characters were still my friends, and they drew me inexorably back. I kept ‎writing. ‎And now, I hope my characters may become your friends too, my worlds ones where you also ‎like to walk; perhaps even your refuge from dark days. Come join me in a world where magic ‎is real and the gods are near, where beasts talk and men and women achieve things they never ‎dreamed they could. But most of all, come and have fun! ‎Happy reading.‎Ash.‎

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      Book preview

      Finale - Ashley Abbiss

      CHAPTER ONE

      Princess Carlitha, sorceress, living saint, and sister to the king of Nebreth, was coming home. She had been away for some time, and she was looking forward to coming home with eager anticipation. Although come to think of it, she wasn’t entirely sure where home was these days.

      She and her husband Boladan, Duke of Onnian and the ambassador of the Nebrethian crown to the church of Atrios, had a very nice house in the city of Atriosa provided by the Nebrethian government. However, for the last several months they hadn’t been living there.

      The New Elithimites, a rogue religion dedicated to Elithim, goddess of the moon, had threatened the lives of Carlitha, Carlitha’s sister Niari, Niari’s husband Keladryn, High Priest of Atrios, Niari’s adopted daughter Tassatina, foster daughter Cazotira, daughter Atrielle, and Carlitha’s twin boys, Bindrath and Costin.

      A prophecy had warned them of the danger and told them that the children, Atrielle, Cazotira, Bindrath and Costin, would be safe in the neighbouring country of Nava. So, they had been sent there, and Carlitha and Boladan had moved into an apartment in the palace of the High Priest in the temple compound, where they would be safer than in their own house.

      Carlitha wasn’t sure whether Boladan had moved back to the house yet or not. Knowing him, she thought probably not. Boladan was a scholar, one of the few people with the ability to actually understand the meaning of the enigmatic writings that went by the name of prophecy.

      The role of ambassador to the church of Atrios was largely a sinecure and involved little actual work. Its real attraction lay in the access it gave Boladan to the temple library. He’d wanted the opportunity to really come to grips with the contents of that library for years, and ever since his appointment and move to Atriosa he had been working his way steadily through it.

      Carlitha was willing to bet that the moment he’d arrived home without her, Boladan had buried himself in the bowels of the library with no intention of surfacing in the near future. As long as he had somewhere to collapse when exhaustion finally overcame him, he wouldn’t care where he was living.

      Besides, the High Priest’s palace was closer to the library than their own house. She doubted that he’d bothered to move back home. She just hoped his apprentice, Adeena, had made sure he remembered to feed himself! That man would study himself to death given half a chance. He lost track of absolutely everything else when he got his head stuck in a parchment that interested him.

      Carlitha sighed with fond exasperation as she spurred Beauty, her horse, past a train of wagons that were plodding their slow way towards the markets of Atriosa. She wondered wryly if her husband even remembered her any longer. She’d been away so long.

      It had been one of those ideas that made perfect sense at the time, but that had turned out to be a bit of a disaster in practice. Towards the end of last summer, she and Boladan had joined the rest of their friends, a group known as the Companions, on a mission to attack the New Elithimites and their leaders, two sorceresses named Amarya and Horana.

      The Companions was a group of men and women (and two animals) chosen by the gods, whose task was to stand against the followers of the rogue goddess Elithim. What it all boiled down to in simple terms was that they fought the gods’ battles for them, since for the gods to fully unleash their power would almost certainly destroy the very thing they were fighting over, namely the world.

      The Companions’ attack on Amarya and Horana had been something of a disaster, truth be told, although Keladryn’s Atriosine Temple Guard had managed to decimate the army Amarya was building up, and they had succeeded in uprooting her from her hiding place and ending the threat to themselves for the immediate future, anyway.

      Then, immediately after returning from that campaign, they had made a trip to Nebreth to support their friend Irhanai in her appeal to the Interspecies Council. Countess Irhanai of Crinnan was the priestess to the sylphs, the spirits of the air.

      The elemental spirits of nature, the so-called ‘small gods’, had been freed from bondage following another of the Companions’ campaigns, the journey some years before to the Temple of the Dammed, and could now interact with men again. They, therefore, needed priests and priestesses to mediate between them and their followers, and the sylphs had chosen Irhanai to represent them.

      However, last year the rather murky internal politics of the sylphs had resulted in Irhanai losing her attendant sylph, Sarrall. Sarrall had been replaced by another sylph named Nissis. Not only was Nissis arrogant, opinionated, and temperamental, but he had proven to be appallingly dangerous.

      All of their lives had been put in danger more than once as a direct result of Nissis’ action or inaction. That was why, when Irhanai was finally granted a hearing by the Interspecies Council, the governing body of all the nature spirits, and the only body with the authority to overturn the sylphs’ decision, her friends had all gone with her as both moral support and as witnesses to what Nissis had done.

      It had been hard going, but they had eventually managed to get a ruling in Irhanai’s favour. She now had Sarrall back and Nissis had been not only censured by the Council but also forbidden to bother her again. After seeing a very happy Sarrall restored to a very relieved Irhanai, the company had separated to go their separate ways.

      Irhanai, Sarrall, and Irhanai’s daughter Miriala had headed on home to Crinnan, accompanied by Varia and Benric, who were heading home to Entroth, and Minnow and Jomac, who were going home to their Nebrethian estate. Since all of them would be following the same route for at least part of the way, it made sense to travel together.

      Kami and Bodan, who actually lived in the forest of Ch’ranath Wivas where the meeting had taken place, had headed home to their farm. The two runiacs, Friend and Nothing, had also elected to spend some more time in the forest. Runiacs were rare and ancient animals, the ancestor of both the dog and the wolf.

      Friend was Niari’s guard, protector, and almost constant companion and his son Nothing filled the same role for Tassi. The forest was both their home and their domain. They were there only rarely these days, however, and they quite naturally missed it. Since the latest battle was over and things could be expected to be quiet for a while, they had decided to spend a little more time there.

      Meanwhile, the rest of the company had begun the long trek back to Atriosa. That route led more or less right past Carlitha and Boladan’s Nebrethian estate, and the party had naturally stopped off there to break their journey. They couldn’t stay too long because Keladryn needed to get back to his duties as High Priest of Atrios, and others wanted to get home before winter set in properly. They’d been incredibly lucky with the weather so far, but they all knew it couldn’t last too much longer.

      However, there were a few things that needed seeing to on the estate. Carlitha and Boladan had it pretty well set up to run itself while they lived in Falodirian, but there were always those little details that cropped up from time to time that only the owner could take care of. Those were generally handled by a courier bringing papers once or twice a year, or by one or the other of them paying a visit now and again.

      But since they were there, it made sense to take care of those little bits of business before they left. That promised to take a couple of days, and since Carlitha had caught a cold and was feeling a bit under the weather, it was agreed that she would stay and rest up and take care of the business while Boladan went on back to Atriosa and his studies.

      She hadn’t expected to be more than a week behind him, but on the very night before she was due to leave for home a violent storm had blown in, making travel impossible for some days. That had not been an isolated event but had heralded the arrival of one of the worst winters in living memory. Storms raked the land in a seemingly never-ending procession, and it was so cold that snow fell where it had never been known before. Where it was usual, it built up to unprecedented depths, cutting entire towns off for weeks at a time.

      Carlitha had been more or less trapped there at the house until the season was well enough advanced for the weather to improve, the roads to drain, and travel to become viable again. There were times when the wait had seemed interminable, yet here she was at last. The city walls of Atriosa were in sight and the last stretch of highway lay before her, and it was still only the middle of the afternoon.

      First, she would have to find out where she and Boladan were living, so a visit to her sister seemed in order. Since, in all probability, their domestic arrangements hadn’t changed that would hardly constitute a detour. Then, she was looking forward to a long hot bath, after which she planned to winkle her husband out of the library and cajole him into taking her out to dinner as the first stage of their reunion.

      She wondered if she could talk him into taking tomorrow off from his studies, so they could take some time to really catch up with each other. She felt as though she’d been away for half a year. Actually, come to think of it, it must be about that since she’d actually lived here for any length of time. They’d set out on their campaign against the New Elithimites in the late summer, and now here it was almost the beginning of spring, and she was just now getting home. No wonder it felt so significant.

      The main road from the border was usually crowded, being a major route for the movement of freight as well as people, and today was particularly bad, with the traffic packed nose to tail and proceeding at a snail’s pace. Carlitha wasn’t the most patient of people at any time, and her recent thoughts only served to enhance that.

      With sudden decision, she spurred her horse forward, dodging in and out of the slower-moving traffic. She earned herself a few curses and rude gestures, but she blithely ignored them and sent Beauty towards home at the best possible pace.

      She finally passed the obstruction that was holding the traffic up, a line of plodding ox-drawn wagons from Harran. Why the Harranians insisted on using ox-carts was beyond Carlitha. Oxen were strong, yes, but could there possibly be a slower way to get anywhere?

      The road ahead of them was almost empty compared to the bottleneck behind them. She left the oxen lumbering along in her wake and urged Beauty into a gallop, arriving at the city gates flushed and exhilarated and wondering why no one else had the sense to pass the wagons.

      She had to slow her pace through the crowded city streets, of course, but it wasn’t too long before she was climbing the hill to the top of the ridge where the temple compound was situated, then turning in to the temple compound itself and pulling up outside the palace of the High Priest.

      Since she wasn’t entirely sure whether she lived there still or not, she thought it prudent to ring for admittance, and as she did so she realised that she’d just solved her problem. All she had to do was ask the staff whether her husband was still living there. If anyone would know, the servants would.

      Oh, yes, your Highness, the maidservant who answered the door said in reply to Carlitha’s query. His Grace is still in residence.

      Now that she knew where she stood, Carlitha issued a few orders to do with retrieving her baggage and stabling her horse and then, having ascertained that Niari wasn’t in but Tassi was, made her way to Tassi’s apartment.

      Carlitha! Tassi said delightedly when she opened the door. We didn’t expect you. You should have sent word ahead that you were coming.

      I wasn’t entirely sure I was, Carlitha said as she returned Tassi’s hug. The weather’s still a bit chancy. I didn’t know until this morning whether I’d be getting here today, and by the time a messenger got here I’d have been right on his heels.

      I guess that’s true. Would you like a cup of wine? Just to wash the dust out of your throat?

      It’s mud, not dust, and it’s caked on my boots, not my throat, Carlitha said, looking down at her ruined footwear and bespattered trousers and cloak. I’d better not come in. I don’t want to get it all over your carpet.

      You’d better go change before the Head of House catches you, Tassi said. You know what he’s like about inconsiderate nobles who track mud all over his nice clean floors.

      Bother the Head of House. In case you hadn’t noticed, these floors are marble and they’re way too cold to be wandering around in bare feet at this time of year. I’m off to have a nice hot bath in a minute. I’ll change then. I just dropped by to say hello. Where’s Niari?

      On the practice fields, probably. She almost always is this time of day.

      Carlitha’s eyebrows rose. What brought that on?

      She’s still determined to go after Amarya.

      Is she still on about that? I thought she’d have got over it by now.

      No. She’s been practising every day since we got home. She says that, sooner or later, we’ll get some information about Amarya’s whereabouts, and she aims to be ready when we do because she’s going after her.

      Can’t Keladryn rein her in?

      He’s trying, but so far he’s had no luck. Besides, someone’s going to have to take care of Amarya sooner or later, and you can’t deny Niari’s got cause.

      That’s true, I suppose. Well, I’m off to have a bath, and then I guess I’ll go track down my husband. I suppose he’s buried in the library?

      I imagine so. They’re as bad as one another; Niari on the practice field, and Boladan in the library.

      At least we know where to find them when we want them, I guess.

      Why don’t I bring a flask of wine and come and soak with you? Tassi suggested. That way, we can catch up on all the news.

      Brilliant idea. Come on, then.

      CHAPTER TWO

      Warin, goddess of prophecy, fortune, and destiny, was concentrating hard when she almost jumped out of her skin.

      You’re going to have trouble controlling Niari, Cazovania said, leaning over Warin’s shoulder to look at the window the younger goddess had open on the world below.

      Good afternoon, Mother, Warin said through tightly clenched teeth. She wished her mother wouldn’t do that! Cazovania seemed to take a childish delight in appearing behind someone when they were concentrating on something else and scaring them half to death by speaking right in their ear.

      What’s the matter with you?

      Nothing at all, Warin said with some asperity. Unless you count being scared half to death.

      Well, if you don’t want people wandering in, Warin, you shouldn’t leave the door open, Cazovania said reasonably.

      Except that it wasn’t reasonable because Cazovania didn’t use the door, she just appeared in the middle of the kitchen; usually right behind Warin. Warin managed not to grind her teeth with a supreme effort of will.

      What can I do for you, Mother? she asked.

      Oh, nothing really. I just thought I’d pop in and see how things were going.

      Things are nice and quiet for once, Warin replied. Kerelline drops in now and then, but she’s still fairly busy getting healing set up the way she wants it. Things down below are pretty much on track. They’re more or less still getting over the last episode and resting up before the next phase, so it’s fairly quiet down there at present.

      Except for Niari, by the sound of it. What are you going to do about her?

      Absolutely nothing. She’s got the right idea. It’s Keladryn who’s got the wrong end of the stick.

      Oh?

      Well, think about it, Mother. We can hardly let Amarya carry on plotting human sacrifices and other atrocities with impunity, can we? She has to be stopped, and who else is going to do that than our friends down there? Keladryn wants to send in the Guard, but he’s overlooking the fact that Amarya is using magic to a far greater extent than previous leaders. His soldiers can’t deal with that.

      There is that, I suppose, Cazovania said, wrinkling her nose. Amarya is behaving fairly appallingly, isn’t she?

      I don’t know what Elithim thinks she’s doing! Warin burst out. None of this even makes sense! Why is she letting her people do this?

      Elithim doesn’t feel any need to abide by any other rules, Cazovania said, so why should she care about making sense?

      But doesn’t she realise that practising human sacrifice is going to make her people even more unpopular than they already are?

      Apparently not, Cazovania shrugged. Either that or she doesn’t care. I don’t know why you’re worried about it. After all, the more unpopular they make themselves, the easier your task, wouldn’t you say?

      I suppose so, Warin said reluctantly. It’s a bit hard on my people, though. They daren’t even bring the children home yet.

      The children are perfectly happy, Warin. My Prophet and Priestess are taking very good care of them. They’re enjoying having them there very much, and they’re not going to mind if they stay longer. And I’m protecting them, just as I promised. No one’s going to get to them.

      But that’s not the only consideration, Mother. The girls need to learn how to use their power properly, Costin needs to be with his father so he can learn how to read and start studying. Bindrath’s all right because he can learn how to fight anywhere. In fact, he’s probably getting a bonus, because he’s learning a method he wouldn’t learn at home. But for the rest of them, it’s setting their education right back.

      Cazovania burst out laughing. For your information, those girls are the worst couple of practical jokers out. They create all sorts of havoc in that household, and they do it all with their power. They’re two of the best spinners of illusion that I’ve ever seen. As for Costin, he’s got about half a dozen of Warintu’s most learned priests on a string. He follows one or the other of them around like a puppy all day, and they not only tolerate him but take the time to teach him things because they’re so impressed that a child that age could be so intelligent and interested.

      Really?

      Really. He’s already fairly fluent in Navan, and he’s learning things he wouldn’t at home. Maybe you should drop in a little more often to see how they’re doing.

      There hasn’t been a lot of time up until now, but maybe I should. But the girls really need some formal training. Exploring on their own is all right as far as it goes, but it doesn’t sound as though they’re going much further than spinning illusions. They need more than that.

      Cazovania shrugged. Song of the Night’s home now, isn’t she? Give her a bit of a nudge.

      She’s not going to be around for all that long, Mother. She’s still one of the Companions, and they’re going to need to take care of Amarya before she can rebuild too much of her strength.

      She’ll be home long enough to teach the girls a few things, surely. At least to give them some new ideas for their practical jokes. I can guarantee that they’ll pick whatever it is up very quickly if they can use it to play tricks on someone. Then, they can be practising while she’s away.

      Now, that’s a very good idea.

      Naturally. All my ideas are good ones. She beamed complacently at her daughter. So now that we’ve solved that little problem, what’s for dinner?

      Warin shook her head, gave a bark of laughter, and began to fill the table with her mother’s favourite foods.

      Oh, by the way, Cazovania said casually as she picked up her wine glass and held it up to the light to admire the colour of the liquid within it, I’ve come to stay for a while if that’s all right.

      Oh? Warin said, as her stomach did a little swoop. Much as she loved Cazovania, she found she coped much better with her in small, judiciously-spaced doses.

      Mm. Your father’s at a tricky place in the creation of the world he’s been working on, and he wants to be alone for a while, so he can concentrate. Besides, you have another quest about to begin down there, and I always like to watch those.

      You’ll be very welcome, Mother, Warin said.

      Well, she told herself, it was mostly true. Cazovania could become a bit overpowering at times, but there was no doubt she was an extremely useful ally when things got rough. Warin might just be grateful for her presence before this quest was over. It helped if she kept reminding herself of that.

      **********

      I love that we have a bathing room right here in the palace, Tassi said as she and Carlitha disrobed and climbed into a pool of deliciously hot water. It’s so much easier than having to trek halfway across the compound.

      Mm, it is rather luxurious. I’m sure the servants appreciate it, too. They don’t have to stagger about with buckets of hot water every time someone wants to wash. And of course, we don’t have to wait while they heat water and all that.

      There was some sort of story behind these baths, wasn’t there?

      Not a particularly interesting one, Carlitha snorted. "Apparently, about three hundred years ago, or thereabouts, the Atriosine church had a High Priest who was a bit more arrogant and also a bit more stupid than usual. Anyway, this fellow went on a trip somewhere and saw some thermal baths.

      "He was so impressed with them that he came back determined to build his own. The fact that there’s no thermal area near Atriosa didn’t bother him at all. He’d decided that hot pools would add lustre to the temple compound, and no doubt his own reputation, and that was what he was going to have.

      "He set a team of engineers onto the problem, and after several years the result was the main baths that we have now; a series of covered pools fed by water heated over great furnaces and then piped to the pools. The cost of wood to fuel the furnaces was horrendous, but that didn’t bother the High Priest. He opened the baths with great ceremony and at least did allow everyone in the temple compound to use them.

      "Anyway, the next High Priest tried to close them down in the interests of economy, but there was a huge uproar. People had become used to having them by then. The baths had become a feature of the compound and one of the perks of working there, and no one wanted to give them up. All he was able to do, in the end, was offset the cost by allowing worshippers to pay their dues in firewood. That’s a tradition that still stands, I understand.

      Towards the end of his tenure, the baths had become such an institution that, rather than trying to close them, he actually added to them. He’s the one who had pools built and piping installed to create this bathing room within the palace itself for the use of those living here. He’d have been getting on a bit by then, of course, and he found the trek across the compound a bit inconvenient, especially in winter.

      Carlitha shrugged. That’s the story. The baths are a huge white elephant, but they’re such an institution now that no one would dare even suggest getting rid of them. The only thing that makes them even marginally viable is the fact that people are allowed to pay their tithes in wood, so the church doesn’t have to buy it in, and also the fact that one High Priest with a bit of sense installed piping so the water can also be used for central heating, which saves at least a bit of wood.

      That’s a ridiculous story!

      It wouldn’t be the first time someone’s done something completely silly just to show off, Carlitha shrugged. Where did you put that wine? All this talking has made me thirsty.

      Tassi laughed and clambered out to get it. The two women had resettled themselves in their bath with their wine and were happily wallowing when Niari returned from the practice field and joined them in the water.

      Is there enough of that for me too? she asked, nodding at Tassi’s goblet.

      Help yourself, Tassi said, waving her cup at the skin that hung from a hook. I only brought two cups, though.

      You can have mine, Carlitha said. It’s about time I got out of here and went and found my husband, really. I suppose he’s buried himself in the library?

      Where else? Niari grinned, accepting the goblet and filling it while Carlitha hauled herself out of the water and began to towel herself off. Yours in the library, mine in his office, and Tassi’s on patrol. We’ve barely set eyes on any of them since we got back.

      Dalurin’s still always on patrol? Carlitha asked in surprise. I thought that would have tapered off now that the war’s over.

      They’re out looking for any of Amarya’s people who might still be around, and they’re patrolling the border with Nava in the hope of catching them if they try to cross back, Niari said.

      That’s a bit of a forlorn hope, isn’t it? The Navan border’s as leaky as a sieve, as we discovered for ourselves once or twice.

      I think it has more to do with trying to discourage them from attempting to cross back and attack villages and shrines the way they did before. Besides, the Temple Guard has help this time.

      Oh?

      Mm. Warintu has the Navans mobilised on their side of the border. The Palace Guard is out there, too.

      Carlitha blinked. The royal council actually did something?

      Oh, yes. Now that it’s a successful campaign, they want to be part of it.

      Oh, of course. Yes, that would be about the council’s style, wouldn’t it? What does Keladryn think of that?

      He says he doesn’t care why they’re out there, just so long as they are, Niari grinned.

      Carlitha burst out laughing. There is that. Well, I’d better go track down Boladan. She rolled her eyes. Honestly, with that man, it wouldn’t altogether surprise me to go down there and find he’s starved to death and there’s nothing left of him but a skeleton covered in cobwebs lying in a dark corner!

      Tassi laughed so hard she spilt her wine. He’s not quite that bad, Carlitha, she chortled as she clambered out to get a refill.

      Oh, really? Carlitha said as she got to her feet and arranged her sticks. Carlitha had been crippled since infancy and required the aid of two sticks to walk any distance. That, however, hadn’t prevented her from becoming, along with Niari and Tassi, the champion of the gods and one of the most celebrated women of her generation.

      Why don’t you and Boladan come to dinner at our place? Niari said then. You too, Tassi. Then we can all catch up with each other.

      There isn’t much to catch up on unless you like hearing about rain, wind, snow and Adeen looking down his nose at me when he thinks I’m not looking, Carlitha said.

      Is he still doing that? Tassi asked.

      Oh, yes. He’s still convinced that Adeena is Boladan’s mistress, and as her grandfather, he can’t decide how he ought to behave towards me. He wobbles around from supercilious to servile and back again so often it makes me dizzy. It gets a bit wearing at times, I must say. I’m rather glad we’re not living in the Onnian house any more, to be honest.

      A few years before, Boladan had discovered that Adeena shared his gift for interpreting prophecy. But Adeena was a servant, the granddaughter of Boladan’s steward Adeen, and didn’t have the means to enable her to devote her time to study. Boladan had, therefore, decided to pay her an allowance so she could become his apprentice. People, of course, had naturally jumped to the conclusion that Adeena was Boladan’s mistress. Adeen, for whom the thought that his granddaughter might be the lord’s mistress was much more compatible with his ideas about service and his family’s place in the hierarchy of things, persisted in that belief, and that affected his attitude towards Carlitha.

      I’m sure there must have been other things that happened in three whole months, Niari said tartly. Come on, Carlitha, we haven’t seen you for ages. You and Boladan don’t have to stay late.

      All right, Carlitha surrendered. What time?

      Say around eight.

      That should be just about enough time for me to crowbar Boladan out of the library, Carlitha nodded.

      She left the bathing room to the chuckles of the other two echoing around the walls.

      CHAPTER THREE

      A crowbar wasn’t actually needed. All that was required was for Carlitha to send someone down into the bowels of the library with a message saying she was waiting above, and a few minutes later Boladan puffed into sight on the messenger’s heels, beaming all over his face, and caught her in a bear hug that she thought might have cracked a couple of ribs by the time he let go.

      You should have let me know you were coming, he said.

      Ha! What possible difference would that have made? I’d still have had to unearth you from the depths.

      Boladan chuckled. I could have arranged dinner, at least.

      We’re dining with Niari and Keladryn. She more or less insisted.

      Boladan’s face fell. I was hoping for some time alone. After all, I haven’t seen you for months.

      I know. But dinner’s not until eight. Why don’t we go home for a few hours and do our own catching up first?

      Brilliant idea. Just let me nip down and put my manuscripts away, and I’ll meet you there.

      I’ll go and ring for wine and food, shall I?

      That sounds lovely. He grabbed her and kissed her soundly again. It’s so good to see you. I’ve missed you horribly.

      When you thought of me at all! Carlitha snorted. You know very well nothing else exists when you get your head in a parchment, and Niari tells me you’ve been virtually living in the library since you got home.

      I had to keep my mind off how much I missed you! Boladan protested.

      Ha! Carlitha snorted, and they both burst out laughing.

      They spent a happy few hours catching up on each other’s news before it was time to make their way to Niari and Keladryn’s apartment for dinner. Boladan’s news, naturally, was concerned with his studies. Ever since their return home from their near-disastrous campaign against the New Elithimites, he and Adeena had been working hard to find any clues to what would happen next, where the New Elithimites might have gone, and what they might be planning, but he ruefully reported no progress so far.

      Carlitha’s news, of course, concerned the estate and the people on it. That estate had been inherited by Boladan along with his title on the death of his father and had been in his family for generations. He had grown up there and knew the place and its people intimately, so he was most interested in everything she could tell him, especially since he hadn’t been living there for so long, which tended to put him rather out of touch with the day to day life of the estate.

      Carlitha hadn’t got too far through her recital before he had armed himself with pen and parchment and was busily taking notes. Much as he loved living in Atriosa where he could use the library to pursue his studies, Carlitha knew that it concerned Boladan that he wasn’t on hand to sort difficulties out when they arose.

      She rather suspected that a few letters were about to be written and a few problems straightened out. None of them was major, thankfully, but she had no doubt that the people concerned would be grateful, nonetheless.

      You know, my dear, Boladan said when she had finished her account, I really think we’ll have to make a greater effort to get home at least twice a year, so we can sort these things out before they have time to fester. This boundary dispute, for instance. It’s really quite minor, but it seems to have caused quite a lot of bad blood, and all because no one had the authority to make a definitive ruling on it.

      You’ve got magistrates, haven’t you? Why couldn’t they deal with it?

      They have. But the problem is, of course, that their decisions aren’t completely final because they can be appealed. So, of course, the losing party refuses to accept the decision until they can appeal it to me, which means that the thing drags on until I turn up to rule on it. If I remove that right of appeal I open a whole can of worms where the magistrates can more or less do as they please, and if I leave it in place, we end up with this kind of thing festering away and getting blown completely out of proportion.

      Yes, I see. It’s a problem, isn’t it? But let’s not worry about it tonight. It’s our first night back together, after all. They’ve waited this long for a decision; another day isn’t going to kill them.

      Boladan tipped his head back and laughed.

      Carlitha hadn’t really been that excited about the prospect of going to Niari’s for dinner. She’d been in the saddle for most of the day, and all she really wanted to do was spend some time with Boladan and then get an early night.

      She hoped they could at least get away early after dinner. But when they got to Niari’s place it was to find that Niari had pulled out all the stops and thrown a full-blown welcome home party for her sister. At first somewhat dismayed, Carlitha found that with good food, good friends, fine wine, and catching up with everyone’s doings these last months the time went quickly, and she really enjoyed herself.

      She and Boladan finally headed home sometime after midnight, and Carlitha suddenly found herself wide awake. She stopped walking.

      Why don’t we grab a skin of wine and something to nibble on and go down to the bathing room? she said. Unless you’re too tired, of course.

      Not that tired, Boladan said with a broad grin. Why don’t you go on ahead, and I’ll nip back to our place and get the supplies?

      Consequently, Carlitha and Boladan were rather late getting going the next morning. It was midmorning before they crawled out of bed, and they lingered over breakfast, so it was almost lunchtime before Boladan left to go to the library.

      Carlitha dawdled over a last cup of tea. Yesterday’s journey and the late night seemed to have caught up with her, and she felt extremely disinclined to move. She sat there in a brown study until her maid came in and nervously cleared her throat to get Carlitha’s attention.

      I’m sorry to disturb you, Madam, but is it all right if I clear the table now? the girl asked diffidently.

      She was fairly young and new at her job, and she did everything diffidently. Sometimes, she was so diffident she made Carlitha want to scream.

      Only, the kitchen staff want to get the breakfast things cleared away before lunch.

      Carry on, Carlitha said, waving a hand at the table. She drained her cup and got to her feet. I’m going out, she announced as she organised her sticks.

      Carlitha made her way to Niari’s apartment, where she found her sister in a towering rage.

      What’s eating you? she asked, raising her eyebrows as Niari stormed about the apartment, waving her arms in the air and swearing loudly.

      Keladryn! Niari grated out, making the name sound like another curse.

      What’s he done? Carlitha asked curiously.

      Niari stopped her pacing, for which Carlitha was grateful. She leant against the sideboard and fixed her sister with an eye.

      Did you know that Horana has been definitely sighted in Nava?

      Yes, Boladan told me. He said Keladryn got definite confirmation about a week ago.

      Niari’s eyes flashed dangerously. The lousy so-and-so told me just last night that they still had no confirmation that the New Elithimites had crossed the border!

      Maybe he made a mistake. I mean, if he was tired and not thinking…

      Niari snorted. He told me he was thinking of sending a message to Aanek and Melavim in case they’d crossed into Nebreth, and he would also send search parties into the Lost Lands along the Nebreth border, maybe even as far as Bish, to see if they could pick up their trail. He said it was a complete mystery and he couldn’t think where they’d disappeared to.

      Oh!

      That’s one way of putting it.

      But why would he lie to you?

      Niari’s face twisted. He’s afraid I’m going to go after Amarya on my own. He thinks the Guard should handle it. I think he hopes that, if he doesn’t tell me anything for long enough, I’ll get tired of waiting and give the idea up.

      And will you? Carlitha asked although she was fairly sure she knew the answer.

      No, I won’t! Niari snapped. And the more he plays these silly games, the more determined he makes me.

      That’s about what I figured, Carlitha said. Definitely shooting himself in the foot here.

      Niari grinned at her and even blushed just a little.

      Why are you so hot to get Amarya? Carlitha asked. I mean, I know what she did was enough to make anyone want to kill her, but you seem to have made it into some sort of personal vendetta.

      Niari stared at her sister, as though the words were a shock. Slowly she came and sat down opposite Carlitha. When she spoke again, it was with consideration.

      Well, isn’t it personal? she said. She’s not only threatened, but actually tried on more than one occasion to kill you, me, Tassi and Keladryn, and now she’s moved on to threatening the children. As things stand now, my daughters, both natural and foster, are quite possibly not going to get the chance to grow up, and even if they do, they’re going to be looking over their shoulders all their lives. And your boys are going to be the same. What have they done to deserve that? How much does Amarya have to do before it’s all right to try to stop her, Carlitha?

      Granted that she needs sorting out, but why you?

      Why not? No one else is lifting a finger.

      Keladryn is.

      Keladryn wants to send in the Guard. Amarya and Horana are sorceresses, in case you’ve forgotten.

      I hadn’t.

      Well, then. How do you imagine the Guard is going to cope with them, even if they didn’t have the remnants of the Warriors of the Moon with their magic to supplement them? The Temple Guard doesn’t use magic. I’ve never understood why, really. It would be another weapon in their arsenal, and there are surely enough priests around here to teach them.

      It’s probably that whole them and us thing, Carlitha said. Historically, the priests and the soldiers have never really mixed. That’s got a bit better lately, but it’s still fairly new. Probably, it’s as simple as the fact that no one ever thought of magic in association with the soldiers. That’s priest territory.

      You could be right, Niari acknowledged. But however it happened, the simple fact remains that the Guard is not equipped to deal with magic, and if they go against Amarya and Horana, that’s exactly what they’re going to be up against. They’ll fail. You know they will. I’ve tried to explain this to Keladryn, but he won’t see it.

      You’ve thought this through, haven’t you? Carlitha said.

      I haven’t thought of much else since we got out of Amarya’s cellar, Niari admitted. Not since we got past the bit where we needed all our wits just to survive, anyway. She has to be stopped Carlitha. I’m tired of being frightened all the time. I’m tired of not being able to even go shopping without constantly looking over my shoulder. And I’m jolly sure I’ve had enough of having my children and husband, in fact, all the people I love, threatened.

      But…

      What I’ve discovered, Niari said, holding a hand up to still her sister’s protest, "is that you can only go so long being terrified all the time, and then you just have to try to do something about it, even if you die in the attempt. Or at least, that’s how it is for me. I guess there comes a time when every worm turns, and this is my time.

      I can’t take it any longer, and I won’t. I simply refuse to do it. As I see it, that leaves me with two options; I can crack up, or I can try to solve the problem by removing the threat. I’ve tried cracking up, and it didn’t really solve anything. In fact, it just created a whole crop of new problems. So now, it’s time to try it the other way.

      Carlitha was just a bit awed by the intensity of purpose in her sister’s voice. Niari really seemed to have turned a corner somewhere; a very sharp corner, that left Carlitha floundering along in her wake as she tried to adjust to this new Niari.

      Throughout their association up until now, Niari had been the unstable one. She had been the One of prophecy before she handed that responsibility on to Tassi, and Carlitha had been appointed her companion and helper. What that had mostly amounted to was trying to keep Niari from flying apart.

      She had wobbled around on the edges of ‘cracking up’ as she called it, even flopped right over the edge on at least one occasion, and Carlitha’s job had been to hold her up, keep her going, keep her on track. She’d comforted, cajoled, coaxed, bullied, whatever it took to get Niari where she was supposed to go and get the job done.

      Her sister could be spectacular when she got her head together, but that happened infrequently enough to make it startling when it did. Carlitha was more than a little startled now. Niari appeared to have taken quite firm control, not only of herself but of the situation.

      Carlitha idly wondered how long that was likely to last, before abruptly pulling herself up with the realisation that it had apparently already lasted a good four or five months. That was going to take some thinking about, but right now, her sister was still speaking. She returned her attention to the conversation.

      But even leaving my personal feelings out of it, Niari went on, "Amarya has to be stopped, and if we don’t stop her, who will, Carlitha? Who can? Who else is capable of taking her on? A renegade sorceress can really only be stopped by another sorceress, and that makes her our responsibility.

      "Irhanai or Miriala or Song of the Night could do it, I suppose, but let’s face it, they don’t have nearly the same motivation. It’s not their kids and their husbands who are being put in danger. Amarya would certainly kill them if she had the chance, but they’re not being actively hunted. They don’t live in constant fear, the way we have to.

      We’re the ones who are most likely to manage to defeat Amarya because we’re the ones who have the most to gain. We’re the ones to whom victory would mean the most, and therefore we’re the ones with the most incentive to make it happen. She grinned wryly. I guess, what it boils down to, is that we’re the ones who are the most desperate, and I think that desperation might just give us the edge we need.

      You really have thought this through, haven’t you? Carlitha said, with respect in her voice.

      Niari shrugged. "As I said, I’ve had long enough. And if we’re going to do it now is the perfect time, while Amarya’s still off-balance, before she has time to rebuild her army, find herself a base, and consolidate her position again. The Temple Guard decimated her army. They cut off her tail now’s the time to go for the head.

      If we can hit her now, while she’s already crippled, we could end this threat for – well, probably not forever, but hopefully for several years. At least long enough for our kids to grow up in safety. Why can’t anyone else see this? I’ve tried to explain this to Keladryn, too, but I might as well have told it to the wall for all the response I got. Niari threw her hands in the air.

      CHAPTER FOUR

      Carlitha was silent for a long time, looking speculatively at her sister as Niari, apparently slightly embarrassed at having so thoroughly vented her spleen now bustled about pouring wine, ordering food, and generally setting herself to play hostess.

      What does Tassi think of all this? Carlitha asked at last, as Niari handed her a goblet of wine.

      Niari sat down and nursed her own drink between her hands. I think she agrees with me. I haven’t had too much chance to speak to her about it in any depth.

      Is she in there? Carlitha asked, nodding towards the door that connected Niari’s sitting room with Tassi’s in the adjoining apartment.

      As far as I know.

      Why don’t you ask her to join us?

      You agree with me, Niari said as she got up and crossed to the door. It was halfway between a question and a statement.

      Let’s just say I’m willing to discuss it.

      You agree with me, Niari nodded as she raised her hand to knock. It was a definite statement that time, and her tone was tinged with relief. Carlitha didn’t challenge it.

      Tassi answered the door almost as soon as Niari knocked and happily joined the other two women.

      What’s happening? she asked as she took a seat on the couch and Niari poured another goblet of wine for her.

      Niari’s been telling me about her plans to go after Amarya, and why she thinks we should, Carlitha said.

      Yes, she talked to me about that, too.

      And what do you think?

      I think she’s got a point, especially about getting Amarya while she’s still recovering from the last time, Tassi said. She leant forward earnestly. I never heard that it made any kind of sense to wait until your enemy gets even stronger before attacking. We know we’re going to have to deal with her sooner or later, so sooner has got to be better, before she can reorganise and recruit more followers.

      Carlitha looked at her for a long moment. Then she nodded her head once. All right, ladies. Why don’t we hold a council of war?

      Why don’t we do it over lunch? Tassi said. It must be nearly noon, and I’m starving.

      In that case, why don’t we go out for lunch? Carlitha suggested. My treat.

      What are you up to? Niari asked suspiciously.

      Nothing all that startling. It just occurred to me that if we’re going to do some serious plotting, it’s probably better to do it in private, especially if we’re going to be doing things that your husband might disapprove of. This place is full of servants and toadies, and they all work for him.

      "Good point. We probably don’t want to do it anywhere in the temple

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