Vanity's brood hos-3

by Lisa Smedman

  The Dmetrio-seed stood slightly behind Juz'la. Arvin glanced in his direction and gave his head the slightest of shakes just enough so Juz'la would notice. As he'd hoped, she glanced behind her to see what the seed was up to. Arvin used the opportunity to turn slightly to the right, to screen what he was doing from the seed, and tip the wine down his sleeve. The fabric inside it soaked it up, and any that bled through to his shirt would blend in with the sweat that already dampened it. He allowed the dregs of the wine to wet his tightly closed lips. As Juz'la turned back toward him, frowning, he wiped his mouth with the back of his free hand. If she saw any wine stains on his sleeve, she'd likely attribute them to that; few people could remember which hand, exactly, had been used in such a casual gesture.

  "Unusual taste," he commented.

  Juz'la glanced at the burning oil-probably making sure he hadn't poured the wine into it-and smiled. Her eye teeth were slender and curved, like a snake's. Scales covered her hairless scalp, her neck, and her arms, which were quite muscular. She wore a tightfitting dress of a gauzy material that did nothing to hide her breasts or the darker patch of scales at her groin. If she'd been fed the same potion that Naulg had, it had left her mind remarkably unscathed; her eyes shone with a keen intelligence.

  A black bracelet encircled her left wrist. Only when it lifted its head did Arvin realize it was a tiny viper. Juz'la lifted it to her lips and kissed it, then whispered an endearment to it as the tiny serpent twined around her fingers.

  "Who are you?" Arvin asked, putting just a hint

  of suspicion into his voice.

  "An old friend of Dmetrio's."

  Arvin gave a mental nod. Juz'la was keeping up the pretense that Dmetrio was still himself. The

  Dmetrio-seed himself probably hadn't realized that Arvin knew his secret.

  "What's your part in this?" Arvin continued. "The same as yours. To help Dmetrio accomplish his goal."

  "I see."

  Arvin glanced at the seed, who followed their conversation with a passive look on his face. He wondered how much Sibyl's spy had been able to glean from the seed. "Dmetrio" would have all of Zelia's memories up to the time the seed was planted; if Juz'la had been rifling through those, she might know as much about Arvin as Zelia did. Presumably, she'd lifted more recent information from the seed, as well. Arvin had to assume Juz'la knew about the deal he'd struck with Zelia, and about Karrell. She would know that Karrell served Ubtao, a god that was Sseth's enemy, and that Karrell was in Smaragd.

  Arvin was suddenly very glad that Sseth's worshipers were no longer in communication with their god.

  "Where have you hidden the Circled Serpent?" Juz'la asked.

  Arvin was surprised by the blunt demand. It had obviously been intended to startle. Juz'la whispered something to her viper again as she played with it, disguising the words and gestures of a spell. Arvin felt energy flow up his arm: Karrell's ring, blocking what must have been an attempt to listen in on his thoughts.

  He manifested a power of his own. If she heard its secondary display, she might think it was because he was blocking her spell. His attempt to charm her, however, was met by a force that pushed his awareness back so hard it made his head ache. Either Juz'la had an amazingly strong mind, or magic shielded her.

  "How about this," Arvin said, meeting her gaze with a challenging look. "You show me your half of the Circled Serpent, and I'll show you mine."

  If Juz'la was disappointed by her spell's lack of success, she didn't show it. "You've made a mistake," she said. "It's not me you need to bargain with. I'm only Dmetrio's… assistant."

  The Dmetrio-seed stepped forward. "I realize you don't trust me, Arvin," he hissed. "You're no more likely to hand me your half than I am to give you mine. Juz'la is our compromise. When the time comes to open the door, she can put the two halves together and wield the key."

  Arvin wondered how much the hassaael would have affected him had he drunk it. It was probably safe to express a few lingering doubts. He glanced at Juz'la.

  "Why should I trust her? We've only just met."

  The Dmetrio-seed smiled-a slight upturn of the lips that was all Zelia. "Talk to her," he suggested. "Get to know her. Then decide." The smile widened. "Take your time. From what Zelia told me, I'm sure Karrell can wait."

  Hissing with laughter, the Dmetrio-seed transformed into a serpent and slithered from the chamber. Juz'la turned to Arvin. "Hungry?"

  Arvin quickly considered whether Juz'la might drug any food he was served then decided that she probably wouldn't bother after having plied him with hassaael. Besides, he needed to show that he was starting to trust her.

  "Famished," he answered. "I haven't eaten since yesterday."

  Juz'la smiled. She turned and hissed something; a moment later, one of the mutated halflings-a male-carried in a platter bearing a selection of bright orange and green fruits. The half-lizard had

  a stubby tail and a scattering of yellow scales across his face, back, and chest. Four horns that looked as if they had only recently budded rose from his forehead, and his elbows and knees were scabbed over with what looked like fresh scales. He walked erect, however, still more halfling than lizard.

  Kneeling, the half-lizard placed the platter on the floor. He started to back out of the chamber on his knees, but Juz'la flicked a hand at him.

  "No need for that, Porvar," she said.

  The half-lizard hesitated.

  Arvin hid his frown just in time. Juz'la's attempt to show him that she treated the slaves well was failing miserably.

  "You may go," she hissed.

  Porvar turned and scurried away.

  Juz'la indicated the platter with a wave of her hand. "Please eat," she said.

  Arvin did. The fruit was thirst-quenching and tasted sweeter than any he'd eaten before. He licked the juice from his fingers.

  Juz'la watched him in silence. Then, abruptly, she spoke. "Dmetrio told me about the bargain you struck with him," she said. "You want to enter Smaragd to rescue your woman-Karrell."

  "Yes," Arvin said.

  Juz'la gave him a conspiratorial smile. "You don't need Dmetrio for that."

  Arvin played along. "Yes, I do. He has half of the Circled Serpent, remember?"

  Juz'la gave him an unblinking stare. "So what? I know where it is."

  "Ah," Arvin said, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "I see how it is, now." He used the gesture to hide his breath, which should have smelled strongly of the drug. His back was against the dish of flaming oil. Pretending its heat made him uncomfortable, he

  stepped away from it, putting more distance between himself and Juz'la. "Why betray Dmetrio?" he asked her. "What's in it for you?"

  "It's not Dmetrio I'm betraying. It's Zelia "

  Despite his years of hiding his reactions from the guild, that one made Arvin blink. "I don't understand."

  "Yes, you do. You know who Dmetrio really is-why do you think I left you alone with him so long? I know about your powers. You can listen in on other people's thoughts, sift through their memories." She held up a hand when he started to protest. "You tried to do that with me a few moments ago."

  Arvin shook his head. "I merely-"

  "Here's what you would have learned, had you been able to probe my mind, as well," Juz'la continued. "I discovered, shortly after my arrival in Ss'yin, that Dmetrio is one of Zelia's seeds, and I decided to take my revenge upon her by thwarting whatever the seed hoped to accomplish."

  "Revenge for what?" Arvin asked.

  "Years ago, Zelia and I both worked for the Hall of Mental Splendor in Skullport, an organization similar to a rogues' guild that offered spies for hire. We became… friends.

  "A few years ago, I was assigned the task of gathering information on one of Skullport's slavers, a man named Ssarm. Around the time of that assignment, Zelia announced that she was leaving Skullport. She told me she was setting out on her own-she'd just learned how to plant mind seeds, and meant to build up an organization similar to the Hall-b
ut there was more to her departure than that.

  "The day after Zelia left, Ssarm learned I'd been selling his secrets. To say that he was furious about this would be an understatement. He… punished me."

  For several moments, her eyes shone with a fierce hatred. Then she smiled. "I know what you're thinkingeven without my spells. Ssarm is Sibyl's man, but no, I'm not one of the abomination's followers."

  For a heartbeat or two, Arvin actually believed her. Juz'la was that good. A strand of truth ran through everything she'd just said, but the end of the braid was frayed in two places.

  Back at the portal, Paka I had said that the Dmetrioseed had been in contact with Karrell's organization, the K'aaxlaat. Juz'la must have known this. If all she wanted to do was thwart Sibyl's plans, she could have handed the Dmetrio-seed's half of the Circled Serpent over to them for eventual destruction.

  Zelia couldn't have been the one who betrayed Juz'la to Ssarm. Zelia had only heard the slaver's name for the first time a year before, when Arvin told it to her. Juz'la was faking her vengeful anger.

  All of the threads came neatly together in a tight knot, however, if Juz'la was working for Sibyl.

  Juz'la stared with unblinking eyes at Arvin as he considered his answer. Once again, Arvin was glad that Karrell's ring was on his finger.

  "It sounds like we have a mutual enemy," Arvin said at last.

  Juz'la smiled like a snake that had just swallowed a mouse. "Zelia's seed was wary of me, at first," she continued, "but she was also arrogant-and just as blinded by vanity as Zelia herself. The seed thought I was fooled by the body it wore. When I cast my domination spell, she never even noticed."

  Arvin knew exactly what Juz'la was up to by claiming to have used a spell on the seed: trying to provide an explanation for the effeots of the hassaael. He resisted the urge to touch the crystal at hls neck. Tymora herself must have placed Thessania, the false storm- mistress, in his path. If she hadn't, he'd never have known what hassaael was. He pretended to scowl.

  "Don't try that on me," he warned. "My psionics-"

  "Are a match for my sorcery, I'm sure," Juz'la said. A flicker of forked tongue appeared between her teeth as she laughed. Then her smile was gone. "Here's what I propose. Go and get your half from wherever you've hidden it. Contact me with a sending, and I'll tell you where the door to Smaragd is. I'll steal Zelia's half and meet you there." She paused, measuring him with her eyes. "Agreed?"

  Arvin stared back at her, pretending to consider the offer. According to the Dmetrio-seed's memories, it had been five nights since Juzla had learned where "Dmetrio's" half of the Circled Serpent was- two full days before Arvin and Pakal had snuck into Sibyl's lair and stolen her half of the Circled Serpent. If Sibyl had known where the door was, she would have opened it during the time that both halves were in her possession, but she hadn't known where it was. That was what her dreaming minions had been searching for: the location of the door. They hoped their god would tell them.

  It also explained why the Dmetrio-seed hadn't been killed already. Sibyl had probably hoped that Zelia would learn the door's location and relay it to her seed, allowing Juz'la to intercept the information.

  There was the slim possibility, however, that Sibyl had learned the door's location in the two days since Arvin and Pakal had stolen hor half of the Circled Serpent, and-an even slimmer possibility-that she had told Juz'la where it was. Before he killed Juz'la, Arvin needed to rulo that out.

  "Agreed," Arvin lied. "I'll go and get my half at once."

  Juz'la gave a satisfied hiss and stroked the head of her viper "Excellent. I'll summon Hrishniss. She She can fly you back to wherever-"

  Arvin didn't give her a chance to finish. Silver flashed from his forehead as he hurled a stream

  of ectoplasm at her. It struck exactly where he'd intended: the hand that was stroking the viper. Strands of shimmering ectoplasm wound themselves around both her hand and face, immobilizing and gagging her and preventing her from casting any spells. As he cinched them tight, Arvin manifested a mental shield between them. If Juz'la used her magical fear on him, the shield would deflect at least part of it.

  He drew his dagger and spoke over the droning of his secondary display. "If you want to live," he threatened, "you're going to answer some quest-"

  Juz'la was no longer standing in front of him. She'd transformed into an orange-and-yellow snake and fallen to the floor. The entangling ectoplasm, loosened, lay in a heap, together with her dress. Juz'la stared out from its folds and hissed something at him in Draconic. Then she flicked her tail.

  The ice-white ray that shot from it streaked through Arvin's shield, striking his dagger hand. Frost blossomed on the blade and his hand went numb. He tried to release the dagger but his fingers wouldn't unbend. At least she'd used a spell that wasn't fatal. She needed him alive as much as he did her.

  Arvin drew more ectoplasm from the Astral Plane and shaped it into a construct. Still half-formed, it lunged forward, seizing Juz'la by the neck and tail. Her eyes bulged as it squeezed. Her serpent body writhed furiously, but she couldn't slither free.

  "Release me," Juz'la hissed.

  Deep inside his mind, Arvin heard a groan as his mental shield intercepted whatever spell she had cast at him; it nearly buckled under the strain. With a thought, he directed the construct to clamp its hand over Juz'la's mouth, gagging her.

  "Where is the door?" Arvin asked.

  He let the shield dissipate and transferred his energy to a different power point. Silver sparkled from his forehead as he slipped inside Juz'la's thoughts. She put up a good fight-getting inside felt like battering down a stone wall with his forehead-but the instant he was in, he had his answer. She didn't know where the door was, and she was, indeed, Sibyl's minion.

  Arvin heard a hiss. The construot, neglected by Arvin for those few moments, must have allowed its grip to loosen. Juz'la spat out the words of a spell and touched it with her tail. Electricity flashed through the astral construct in jagged streaks. It exploded into a mist of ectoplasm.

  Juz'la, freed, fell to the floor.

  Arvin hurled his dagger, but the metal of the hilt guard stuck to his skin, tearing it and throwing his aim off. The dagger missed, burying itself in the heaped-up dress next to her.

  Juz'la's tail flicked forward. A second lightning bolt crackled out of it, striking Arvin square in the chest. The smell of burning flesh filled his nostrils as every muscle in his body wrenched into a painful cramp. His heart faltered and his vision swam with jagged streaks of light. He sagged to his knees. Only by force of will was he able to prevent himself from blacking out.

  "If you kill me," he croaked, "you'll never get the other half."

  He heard a hiss of laughter. "Corpses can be made to talk."

  She was bluffing. She had to be. Otherwise she'd have killed him when they first met. Full mobility had already returned to his fingers, though they felt

  As though they were on fire. Beside him, he could

  hear the crackling of incense in the burning oil. With an effort, he lifted his head, stared at Juz'la. She was still in serpent form.

  "Tell me where it is," she hissed, "and I'll spare you."

  Arvin felt a spell slither into his mind. He wanted to live. He needed to live; he was Karrell's only hope. He heard those thoughts aloud at the same time he thought them-but in a woman's voice. Karrel

  "It's in a cave," he whispered. "In a bluff where the river bends. Where the flying snakes nest."

  Equally strangely, he was calm when he said it. As if it didn't matter at all that he had just revealed the hiding place of the one thing that would allow him to save Karrell.

  He heard a hiss of triumph. Then something stung his hand. Glancing down, he saw Juz'la's tiny black viper and twin specks of red on the back of his left hand. He'd been bitten.

  The shock of it snapped him out of the spell Juz'la had snared him with. "No!" he roared.

  Lunging to his feet, he slammed a shoulder into th
e brazier. It crashed to the floor, sending a wave of flaming oil racing toward Juz'la. She screamed as it engulfed her and shifted back into her yuan-ti form, but sticky smears of melted resin remained stuck to her, burning her skin. From head to foot, her body was a mass of seared red flesh. The burning oil, spread thinly across the floor and wicking into Juz'la's abandoned dress, illuminated her from below, throwing ghastly shadows across her face.

  Arvin summoned his dagger and it flew out of the burning dress toward him. Catching it by the point, he hurled it at Juz'la. The blade buried itself in her throat. She fell to the floor, dead. The smell of burned flesh lingered in the air.

  Arvin glanced down, found the viper, which was trying to slither away, and slammed a heel onto it. The tiny serpent died with a satisfying crunch.

  It was cold comfort, however; Arvin could feel the viper's poison taking hold of his body. His left hand was already swelling; Karrell's ring was a tight, painful band around his little finger. He felt dizzy and weak; his heartbeat light and fast. He leaned over and vomited; it splattered onto his boots. He stared at it, shivering.

  So this is how I die, he thought. Of a snake bite? After everything I've been through…

  "I'm sorry, Karrell," he said aloud.

  "Master?"

  Arvin looked up. The half-lizard who had brought them the platter of fruit stood in one of the tunnels, staring at him, uncertain. He glanced at Juz'la, who lay face-down amid the burning oil. The scales on her head blackened and curled from the heat, peeling from her scalp like dry skin. Smoke thickened the air, making Arvin cough.

  Arvin had stopped being ill, and his stomach started to uncramp. His hand still felt like all of the demons of the Abyss were tormenting it, but his heartbeat was slowing, becoming more steady. Amazed, he shook his head.

  Maybe he would live.

  "There's been…" he glanced at Juz'la, saw that the dagger that had taken her in the throat was hidden by the way her body had fallen.