by Joe Jackson
“Things are going to start moving quickly once Mastriana returns,” Kari said, and the assassin nodded. “I know you’ll probably want to stay with your family for a time once this is all said and done, but can you return me home?”
Seanada shook her head. “I cannot take others across the barriers with me; my power is one for myself only. I can, however, go and fetch someone from Citaria that can meet you in Anthraxis and take you home, if nothing is already arranged by then. On the other hand, have you considered…”
“What?” Kari asked as she trailed off.
“If you stay in this form until you leave, you may have the power to return home on your own. You will need a bit of tutelage, but I can provide that. I was trained in the arcane by the mallasti, after all.”
“Not sure I’d trust myself to try something that risky.”
“That is an issue in itself. The arcane responds to your force of will; if you doubt what you can do, then you will find there is good reason for that doubt. After your unfocused attack in Saovonn, you are likely already working at a disadvantage. You must bear in mind: you lack focus because you are untrained. When you have been taught to focus, there will be little that is beyond your ability if you will it to be so.”
“My sister-in-law is the arcanist,” Kari said. “I never considered myself smart enough to learn, but if it’s already in me, I suppose there’s no harm in trying.”
“We will focus your lessons primarily on moving one’s self,” the assassin said. “There is little need to teach you the nuances of attack, and those of defense are already well-known to you. So I will teach you to move yourself, and to access the dream.”
“The dream?”
“It is how the mallasti refer to the cosmos,” Seanada said, waving her hand at the ceiling as though the night sky were above them. “To move among worlds requires a staggering amount of willpower, for the bounds of space and time are infinite. An unfocused mind could end up on a world they did not intend or, worse, trapped within their own consciousness, a world unto its own. Do not let these words trouble you; I will teach you focus, and your connection to your home and the love you have for those there will make it very simple, I am certain.”
Kari thought about home. She could see the faces of her mother-in-law, her siblings by marriage, her friends, her coworkers, and especially her children. She could imagine the estate, walking amongst its vineyards and running her hands along the leaves that crept off the vines. She could see the syrinthians tending to her fields, and her human employees picking the fruits off the vines. The image came so powerfully that she could smell the very earth, and hear the workers chatting pleasantly while they worked.
She snapped to when Seanada suddenly grabbed her arm, the disguised assassin’s eyes wide with shock. “What is it?”
“You nearly left us,” Seanada said. “You were accessing the dream all on your own, and I felt the buildup of arcane power. You nearly took yourself home. This may be much easier than I expected.”
“That would be nice,” Kari chuckled.
She finished her breakfast, and Seanada took her outside of town, out near where she had trained with the Wraith before. Unlike Uldriana teaching Sonja, these lessons were simpler, each intended to have Kari focus on bringing about a specific result. There were the easy ones, such as calling forth a light source, then the slightly more complicated ones, such as strengthening Kari’s shield of faith. Hours went by and Kari still never felt particularly proficient, but she was learning quickly, which pointed to Seanada being a better teacher than either of them might have expected.
The dream was fascinating to Kari, but Seanada kept their jaunts into it short-lived. With the half-syrinthian entering the state alongside her, Kari felt more grounded and in control, but it still felt wild and risky. They would sit cross-legged, facing each other, and Seanada would take Kari’s hands in her own. From there, it was almost indescribable; Kari would feel her conscious mind leave her body, though she could never look down on herself, only up into the endless expanse of the heavens.
It made her think of watching Sakkrass step off the top of his pyramidal temple and out among the stars in the dream she had of him years before. It was different, though: Seanada would lead Kari out amongst that empty vastness, and then to another world, hovering somehow weightless in the dark. Looking at Citaria from above, Kari was fascinated; she had seen maps of the various lands of her world, but to actually see them from above was humbling. She could see Askies in all its detail, and spot the harbor of DarkWind even from among the stars.
“If you wish to arrive there, you need only focus on where you wish to go, and then descend there in your mind. Start slowly at first; eventually, you will learn to gauge movements well enough to approach at the speed of your thoughts, and this travel will become instantaneous. For now, it will take you a little time. Do be careful, however, to not wander and explore the heavens. There are many worlds out there, many places, but most are inhospitable, and you do not wish to end up trapped there by mistake.”
Kari thought again of Earth, the mythical home world of the humans, and where it may lie in the blanket of stars and planets around her. She resisted the urge to search, however, wary of ending up somewhere she couldn’t find her way home from. This power was purely amazing, but Kari understood implicitly the risks that went with its usage. Her people had long thought of Mehr’Durillia as the Underworld, but it was entirely possible she could find some place that truly was like the underworld by comparison.
They swam back, for lack of a better term, until they reached Mehr’Durillia again. Kari was so unfamiliar with the world that she could hardly recognize anything but one feature: the angry red epicenter of the Overking’s conquest. Like an old stab wound that had crusted over but never healed, it stood out starkly from the open plains, hills, and forests of the realms to its north that Kari was familiar with. She saw the mountainous wall that sealed off Mas’tolinor from the rest of the land mass, and she marveled at how extensive Koursturaux’s lands were: Kari couldn’t even see its farthest edges from where she hovered.
“Think of your body, sitting in the field by Ewuaswi,” Seanada said. “Come back to it, and to me.”
Kari opened her eyes and found the half-syrinthian in her mallasti guise smiling at her. “That was…incredible,” Kari said, breathless. “Is it always like that when you cross between worlds?”
“I do it much more quickly than you do, so I think perhaps much of the wonder has lost its luster for me,” Seanada admitted. “Perhaps I should do it more slowly when I am not in any real rush to get from one place to another.”
“So now I know how to get home. I’m tempted to go and see my children, then come back, but I don’t think this form would be well-received in DarkWind,” Kari mused.
“No, I imagine you would be captured and held until…you came back and passed some sort of judgment,” the assassin said with a chuckle. “Also, bear in mind that when you returned, you would land in Anthraxis, no matter where you might intend to go. The city will pull you like the magnetic pole pulls the needle of your compass. There is no escaping it that I am aware of.”
“Magnetic pole…?” Kari blurted, but she waved off her own confusion. She might not know the specifics, but the reference to the compass explained itself. “I guess I can get myself home like this, but I’ll have to find a hidden spot to land so I can take the time to end this shape-changing and get dressed in my own things.”
Seanada nodded. “Is there anything else you would like me to show you about arcane power?”
“I think that’s enough for now. My mind’s going in so many directions all at once.”
“I imagine your time with King Morduri has only exacerbated that,” Seanada said, a sly grin creeping across her face. Kari smiled along with her. “Forgive me, I should not tease you, not when you have been so open-eared and understanding when the subject of my own love life has come up. It just seemed a bit out of character for you
, for as little as I realize I know you even after so many months living with your family.”
“I suppose it was,” Kari admitted. “I know I don’t speak much about it, but you know I was resurrected, Seanada. In my previous life, I died of the same condition that killed Grakin. I knew I was dying, and I had limited time to spare for myself because I never gave up my work, even when death was staring me in the face. I took comfort with a lot of different men over the years. I’m not proud of it, but now I think what Morduri said yesterday was right. I have to start thinking of myself a little more if I want to have more of myself to give to causes like this. Not to say I’m going to go back to that lifestyle, but…”
“I think I understand,” Seanada said when Kari trailed off. “You have been hesitant to replace your husband, even fleetingly. You found release in being intimate with Morduri, yes?”
Kari nodded. “I didn’t feel like I thought I would. I was worried I was going to feel like I was betraying Grakin, and even the rest of my family. But I didn’t. It was a wonderful night of passion, and yet Grakin is still in my heart, just as…” Kari trailed off again and covered what she was about to say with a smile.
“Just as Emma is still foremost in his,” Seanada said. “I know; I have seen them together in Anthraxis enough to recognize it, no matter what the Overking may think.”
“I do feel like I probably owe her an apology, for some reason.”
Seanada smiled. “That does not surprise me, knowing you. Being a slave, born to a life of submission and little personal consideration, she would probably appreciate that more than you could know.”
“Do you think she’d be angry?”
“To know that her lover spends his time apart from her with someone like you, I think might actually make her respect the both of you more. I would be jealous in her place, but if she knows you even half as well as I do, I think it will say a lot to her that her lover sees many of the same characteristics in you two.”
“Hmph, I hadn’t even thought of that,” Kari said. She would’ve never thought of herself having anything in common with Emma other than perhaps a sense of duty. But even then, Emma’s sense of duty had more to do with being a slave than her own desires. Did Morduri see some similarities in them, attracting him to Kari enough to make love to her?
They returned to the inn for an early supper, having skipped lunch to continue in their arcane practice. Morduri joined them for dinner, and paid Seanada little mind when he invited Kari to his bed again. There was no judgment in Seanada’s eyes when Kari met them, but it didn’t feel right this time. She had shared something wonderful with him, but for some reason, now that she understood part of why she had, she didn’t want to sully it by making a habit of it, even for just a couple of days.
“I think I will be staying the night with Seanada,” Kari said quietly, not bothering to use the assassin’s assumed name in the privacy they had.
To her surprise, Morduri smiled. He rose from his chair and gave her a little kiss on the side of her snout, then bid the two women good night and excused himself to turn in early. Kari and Seanada shared a few drinks before they retired to a room with a double-sized bed. They got settled in, and Kari fell asleep pretty easily, as she usually did after having a drink or two.
She floated around in the dream – not just her dreams, but in that place outside of her own body. It was wondrous, but she made certain not to focus on any particular destination. She looked down upon Mehr’Durillia, then at its warmth-giving sun, and then at the other shining specks spread out in the same vicinity. Kari knew that Citaria had sister planets in her orbit of their sun, but nevertheless she found herself intrigued to see Mehr’Durillia did as well.
She fell back into her body when she sensed something odd nearby. She sat up in bed to find Seanada already getting dressed, and the prickly sensation told Kari that the Wraith had returned. Dawn was already upon them, so Kari had two good reasons to get out of bed. She got dressed along with Seanada, and the two made their way downstairs to the commons. There was a wagon sitting out front with four of the mousivas hitched to it, and the Wraith floated through the door just a few moments before it opened.
Seanada’s eyes went wide when the Wraith’s companions came in. “Mama!”
Ilsara Te’Montasi beheld the mallasti woman curiously. “Pardon?”
The Wraith put a roiling hand of black shadow to Ilsara’s shoulder. “You must forgive the deception, but it was necessary. That is your daughter, Seanada.”
“My baby!” Ilsara cried in a rush of tears, dashing forward to embrace Seanada.
Aedrien came up much slower, a smirk on his face. “I had a feeling it was a lie of some kind when they told us you’d been killed,” he said, joining his mother and sister in their hug.
Kari approached the Wraith. “That was fast. How did you…?”
“Our people had already seen to their rescue; my place was solely to cause enough of a disturbance to get them across the border. This has raised several issues with regard to Prince Amnastru’s vigilance along the border now, but we will discuss that in due time.” He paused, then, his orange eyes turning on Kari completely. He leaned toward her, and despite his smoky form, he clearly sniffed at her. “And just what have you been up to in my absence?”
Kari laughed but didn’t answer. The sound drew Ilsara’s attention, and the woman turned to the demonhunter, looking her up and down. “Then you must be…?”
“Yes, but we will not speak of it here,” the Wraith answered.
“Seanada and I share a room upstairs. Let’s go up there and talk,” Kari suggested, and they all left the less private confines of the commons.
“We have much to discuss,” the Wraith said, his stare lingering on Kari.
Chapter XVI – Feints and Maneuvers
Ilsara and Seanada shared a tearful, joyful reunion while Kari and the Wraith took turns explaining the events of the previous couple of weeks. Ilsara didn’t even care much for the details, thrilled to have her daughter back, alive and well. They went down to the commons to share some breakfast once it became obvious to the Wraith that there would be little discussion about their plans going forward.
Kari sat on the edge of her bed with only the Wraith in the room with her. She expected him to make some comment about her relationship with Morduri. What else could he have been thinking after sniffing her in the common room? He held her under that expressionless stare, but after a few minutes, his shadowy form billowed toward the door and latched it. He then assumed the form of the handsome elestram male.
“What do you think of Seanada’s emotional state?” he asked. It wasn’t what Kari was expecting from him, and the question confused her at first. “The hour for action is nearly upon us; does she seem in the proper frame of mind to do as we need her to?”
“Not having to worry about her family will probably make her more focused,” Kari said. “Perhaps we should have Ilsara and Aedrien stay here in Ewuaswi, and let her think only of the mission once we leave.”
He nodded. “My thoughts exactly. This gambit will be risky enough without any of us being concerned about family in the way. We will arrange for them to stay here until we have accomplished our goals, and King Emanitar has either made his move or abandoned allying with us, whichever comes to pass.”
“He won’t abandon you,” Kari said with a shake of her head. “Whatever plans he may have had, this is bigger and more immediate – and the setup is already in place. I think after what I said to him yesterday, you’ll find him more active in opposing his fellow kings.”
“We shall see. So, what then of King Morduri?”
“What of him?” Kari asked, suddenly feeling a little defensive.
“You were intimate with him?”
“What of it?”
The Wraith tilted his head. “That was…most unexpected. Did you not heed Diszaro’s warnings? Did you stop to think at all how complicated things could become if you were to conceive a child with him?�
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“If what Seanada told me is correct, there shouldn’t be anything to worry about.”
“Because Seanada is a mallasti, or an expert on them? Lady Vanador, while Diszaro may have turned you into a mallasti, there are certain variables he left to chance, due mainly to your opposition to being poked and prodded. Your people’s conception works differently, and it is possible that even in this form, you may retain characteristics of your normal body – such as going into season as a reaction to unprotected mating.”
“That might have been helpful to know at the start,” she muttered.
“As I said, this was quite unexpected,” he countered, then sighed. “I suppose it will have little bearing on our immediate plans. I simply hope this does not complicate your life any further than it already is.”
“Oh, please don’t give me the disappointed father speech,” Kari said, rising to her feet. “Considering you offered to lie with me–”
“In your normal form, and knowing your answer would be no.”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Either way, it’s not your business nor your concern.”
The Wraith made an impatient gesture. “After all the planning that has gone into these most recent events, one of my most important allies being taken out of the fight for a year or more is most certainly my business and my concern.” Kari had to concede that point, and she looked at him rather sheepishly as she returned to her seat on the edge of the bed. “I am not judging you, Lady Vanador, merely concerned that this may cause issues with our plans as they stand. I am no stranger to the loneliness I have no doubt holds you in its grip.”
“I thought you said you had a wife?”
There was a pause as deep and black as the wraith-like form he could assume. “I lost her a long time ago,” he said, sitting down opposite her. “Not as you have lost your husband. We have grown cold and apart from each other. She is my wife, my lifemate, and she will ever be, but we rarely see each other, and have not been intimate in…I cannot say precisely how long.”