Viper's kiss hos-2

by Lisa Smedman

  feeling better-much better. Even without the benefits of a charm spell, Karrell looked amazing.

  She smiled and said something in a low voice. Arvin leaned forward. "Excuse me?" he asked, sopping up the last of the stew with his bread. "What did you just-"

  He realized that she'd slid one hand behind her, as if to lean back on it. He caught sight of her fingers moving in an all-too-familiar gesture. Before she could complete her spell, he manifested a charm of his own. The base of his scalp prickled as psionic energy rushed from it. Break her promise, would she? Well he wasn't about to let her get the better of him this time.

  He saw Karrell tilt her head slightly.

  Arvin felt a rush of warmth flow through him. He could see, by the sparkle in her dark eyes and the way she looked at him, that she cared for him-really cared for him-as much as he did for her. She'd just saved his life, hadn't she? Karrell was someone he could count on, trust in, confide in. Setting down the piece of bread, he turned toward her. "He doesn't care," he told her.

  She gave a slight frown. "Who does not care-and about what?"

  "Dmetrio Extaminos." Arvin shoved the empty bowl away. "I tried to tell him that the woman carrying his child might be in danger, and he just laughed. He's not even going to try to look for Glisena; he's just going to walk away. To abandon his own child. Just like…"

  He looked away.

  Karrell laid a hand on his knee. "Just like what, Vin?"

  "It's Arvin," he said.

  "Just Arvin'?" she asked. "No clan name?"

  "My father didn't live long enough to marry my mother. He died before I was born. Or at least, that's what my mother told me."

  "Some fathers are not worth knowing," Karrell said.

  Arvin caught the look in her eye, and saw that it would be better not to pursue this comment. He tried to lighten the mood. "The yuan-ti have that advantage," he said. "Their women lay their eggs all together in a brood chamber. None of them know their fathers." He chuckled. "It's a wonder they know who their mothers are."

  "The yuan-ti of Tashalar have a similar custom," said Karrell. "So I hear." She flipped her hair back, showing off her jade ear plug. "I am of the Tabaxi, of Clan Chex'en."

  "Check… shen," Arvin repeated, trying to capture the same inflection. "Was that your father's clan?"

  Karrell smiled. "My mother's. The humans of Chult, like the yuan-ti, pay little attention to who sired them." Her smile faded. "In most cases."

  "The Tabaxi don't have husbands?" Arvin asked. "We do not use that word. We call them yaakuns,"

  She paused, searching for the translation. "Lovers." Arvin nodded. "What about you? Do you have-" "Brothers and sisters?" she interrupted. "No. And you?"

  Arvin had a feeling she'd deliberately misinterpreted his question. He let it drop. "I was my mother's only child."

  "Was?"

  "My mother died of plague when I was six." "You must have been very lonely afterward."

  Arvin shrugged. "There were plenty of other kids in the orphanage." Only one of them, however, had been his friend: Naulg. And Naulg was dead.

  "Orphanage?" Karrell repeated. The word was obviously unfamiliar to her.

  "It's something like a brood chamber," Arvin said, "for human children who have no parents. The priests run it."

  "Priests of what god?"

  "Ilmater," Arvin said, his lips twisting as he spoke the name. "God of suffering. His priests made sure we got plenty of it."

  "This orphanage of yours sounds… unpleasant." "It was," Arvin agreed grimly.

  Karrell stared into the distance. Her hand was still resting on his knee. Arvin glanced at the ring on her little finger. He'd love to know what she was thinking right now. Just as well that the ring was shielding her thoughts; otherwise he might be tempted to listen in on them.

  She must have sensed his unwillingness to talk further about his childhood, for she changed the subject abruptly. "That woman you came to Sespech to find," she asked. "Was it Glisena Foesmasher?"

  A tiny warning voice sounded in the back of Arvin's mind. One look into Karrell's dark eyes, and it was extinguished. Arvin nodded. "The baron's daughter ran away a tenday ago; I came to Sespech to help find her. A midwife helped her flee the palace. Glisena thinks the midwife was helping her, but Glisena is being used. They want her child-Dmetrio's the father. They hope to use it in a grab for Hlondeth's throne. Once it's born, the gods only know what Sibyl will do with-"

  "Sibyl?" Karrell asked sharply. Her grip on Arvin's knee tightened.

  "She's a yuan-ti," Arvin explained. "The midwife is one of her followers. They believe that Sibyl's an avatar of the god Sseth."

  "She's no avatar," Karrell whispered.

  Arvin blinked. "You know who I'm talking about?"

  Karrell's eyes bored into his. "How do you know about Sibyl?"

  Arvin's jaw clenched. "She killed my friend. I swore I'd do whatever I could to avenge his death. Even if it meant taking on an avatar."

  Karrell took his measure for several moments before speaking. "Sibyl is mortal, though that was not always the case. For a time-during the Time of Troubles, when the gods walked Faerun-her body was possessed by Sseth. But when the Time of Troubles ended, the god withdrew from her body. That was fifteen years ago; she has been mortal since. But she hopes to become a god, just as did Sseth, who himself was once no more than an avatar of Merrshaulk."

  Arvin stared at Karrell. He had only the barest notion of what she was talking about. The only god he knew much about was Ilmater; the priests at the orphanage had drilled every painful, gory detail of the sufferings of the Crying God's martyrs into the children under their care. Arvin didn't even know Hoar's history, despite the fact that he had sworn an oath of vengeance to that god-an oath the Doombringer seemed bent on forcing Arvin to keep.

  "How do you know all this stuff about Sibyl?" Arvin asked Karrell.

  Karrell gave him a hard, level look. "To defeat an enemy, one must learn her ways."

  Outside the window, thunder grumbled in the distance; the voice of Hoar. Arvin whistled softly. "I think the gods have thrown us together for a reason."

  "I, too, believe this," Karrell said. She leaned closer and spoke in a confiding voice. "The yuan-ti of the south still believes Sibyl to be Sseth's avatar. Only a handful see her for what she really is-a power-mad mortal out to resurrect the empire of Serpentes at any cost."

  Arvin had heard of Serpentes. It was an ancient yuan-ti empire that had stretched across the whole of the Chultan Peninsula-an empire that the yuan-ti still talked about, even though it had fallen nearly fourteen centuries ago. "I thought it was Hlondeth that Sibyl was after," he said.

  "Only as a means to an end," Karrell said. "Nearly two years ago, Sibyl vanished from our lands. We were relieved to hear that she was gone, until we learned that she had traveled north. When we learned that she had gone to Hlondeth-"

  "Who's we?" Arvin interrupted.

  "The K'aaxlaat," Karrell said.

  He gave her a blank look.

  "Protectors of the jungle. We walk in the footsteps of Ubtao."

  Arvin nodded, though he was no closer to understanding. It sounded like some sort of druidic sect.

  "We realized," Karrell continued, "what Sibyl must be looking for: an artifact that had been given, long ago, to House Extaminos for safekeeping. It was hidden, then forgotten as the centuries went by. But Dmetrio Extaminos found it."

  Despite himself, Arvin was intrigued. "And you came north to Hlondeth to find it. To steal it."

  Karrell's eyes blazed. "No. To recover it. To prevent it from falling into Sibyl's hands. To ensure it would never be used again."

  "What is it?"

  "Do you know the Story of Sseth?" Karrell asked.

  Arvin shrugged. "Not really. Those of us of the 'lesser race' aren't exactly encouraged to learn about the serpent god. I've never even set foot inside the Cathedral of Emerald Scales. Except once. By proxy."

  The memory rose, unbidden, fro
m those that lingered on from Zelia's mind seed. He'd seen the temple through her eyes as she genuflected before a statue of the god in winged serpent form. He nodded to himself; no wonder the yuan-ti believed Sibyl to be Sseth's avatar. She had the wings-even for an abomination, that was rare. And her eyes glowed red-they flickered like the flames that had surrounded Sseth's statue.

  Arvin dredged up the last of Zelia's memory. "There's

  a prophecy about Sseth rising from the flames, isn't there?"

  Karrell nodded, visibly impressed. "From the Peaks of Flame-volcanoes on the Chult Peninsula. There is a door there, one Sibyl hopes to open. She thinks it leads to Sseth's domain. She hopes to convince the god to claim her as his avatar once more. But the door does not lead to the Viper Pit. It leads to a cave on the Fugue Plane occupied by one of the eternal evils-Dendar the Night Serpent. Should the door be opened, and the Night Serpent escape, thousands will die-perhaps hundreds of thousands. A giant is a mere morsel to her; she can swallow an entire village in one gulp. Those she swallows are utterly destroyed; not a shred of their souls remain for the gods to claim. And the more souls she consumes, the larger she grows-and the more she feeds. According to the prophecies, if released and unchecked, she will grow until she is capable of swallowing the very sun-of plunging the world into eternal night. A night in which no plants will grow, all of the waters of Faerun will freeze, and the gods themselves will fade as their last worshipers die."

  Arvin felt his eyes widen. Normally he would have blown off such an exaggerated story. But to hear Karrell tell it-to hear the tremble in her voice as she spoke of the end of the world-shook him. "This thing you came north to find," he said. "It's a key, right?"

  Karrell's eyes bored into his. "It is called the Circled Serpent. It is made of silver, in the shape of a serpent biting its own tail and has a diameter about so." She held her hands about two palms' widths apart. "It was fashioned in two halves-one with a head, the other with a tail-which must be fitted together for its magic to work."

  She lowered her hands. "I know this much: that Dine- trio Extaminos found the Circled Serpent when he was restoring the old section of Hlondeth. I believe he may have brought it with him to Sespech, but I am unable to locate it with my magic. During your last visit to the ambassador's residence, did you see anything like I have just described?"

  Arvin shook his head.

  'I did not expect so," Karrell said. "He will have it hidden. He fears another attempt by Sibyl's followers to steal it."

  "The Pox?" Arvin asked, alarmed. "Did some of them survive?"

  "Who are The Pox?"

  "Followers of Talona, goddess of plague and disease," Arvin's heart was beating quickly. "And servants of Sibyl. They're the ones who killed my friend."

  Karrell frowned. "No. The ones I am speaking of worship a different deity: Talos, god of storms and destruction. They, too, have formed an alliance with Sibyl. At her bidding, they tried to steal the Circled Serpent after Dmetrio Extaminos discovered it inside the ancient tower."

  Suddenly, Arvin realized what she was referring to. Last summer, a gang of rogues had attacked the workers who were restoring the Scaled Tower, killing the project's yuan-ti overseer. The attack had been the talk of Hlondeth's thieves' guild for tendays; the rogues had not belonged to the Guild, and retribution was called for. The theft had taken place while Arvin was busy battling The Pox, and so he had not paid it much attention. Even when he'd met Tanju, and the militiaman accompanying him had let slip that Tanju was tracking someone who had committed a theft, someone called the "stormlord," Arvin hadn't put the pieces together. But now he understood. And he had bad news for Karrell. According to Tanju, the "rogues" had succeeded in getting what they came for.

  "You're too late," he told Karrell. "Sibyl already has the Circled Serpent." Quickly, he recounted for her the events of last summer, and what he'd overheard.

  Karrell's face paled. After a long moment of strained silence, she shook her head fiercely. "That is not possible," she said. "The workers I questioned said that Dmetrio Extaminos still had the artifact they had dug up in his possession. They even described the container it was in: a round wooden box, coated with lead to prevent magic from revealing the contents."

  "Perhaps they lied," Arvin suggested.

  "That would not have been possible."

  "You charmed them," Arvin concluded. He thought a moment. "The people I spoke with were equally certain that the followers of Talos did manage to steal whatever had been found in the tower. Maybe they only got half of it."

  "Yes. That must be what happened." She twisted the ring on her finger, a worried look on her face. "Do you know where Sibyl is now?"

  Arvin shook his head. "If I did, I would have tried to avenge my friend's death. I've been looking for her for the past six months, but even the Guild can't find her."

  "It is more vital now than ever that I recover the second half of the Circled Serpent," Karrell said. "The half Dmetrio still has."

  "Do you think he knows what it is?" Arvin asked. "Perhaps if we told him what was at stake…" Remembering who he was talking about, Arvin shook his head. Dmetrio Extaminos was arrogant, cruel, and callous. He cared nothing for Glisena and even less for his own child. He wasn't the sort to be moved by the fate of hundreds of thousands of strangers.

  "What's next?" Arvin asked. "Are you going to try to speak to Dmetrio a second time?"

  "I have already questioned his house slaves," Karrell answered. "None of them have seen the Circled Serpent. Nor have they noticed a lead-coated box among the household goods they have been packing. I am starting to suspect that he did not bring the Circled Serpent with him, that he left it behind, in Hlondeth."

  "Will you return there?" Arvin asked, starting to miss her already.

  Karrell sat in silence for several moments. "Perhaps." Then she straightened, a look of determination in her eye. "No. I will search for Sibyl, instead. Finding her should prove easier than trying to locate a small box lined with lead."

  Arvin leaned forward. "I can help you with your search," he said. "But I'll need your help in return. I've promised the baron that I'll find his daughter. She's somewhere in a forest called the Chondalwood. She can't be located using magic; she's shielded against all forms of detection. But you have a spell that might be able to help-the one that allowed you to communicate with the naga. If you used it to question the animals of the forest, we might find one who has seen Glisena. If we can find her, we stand a good chance of also locating Naneth; the midwife will certainly be on hand for the baby's birth. And once we have Naneth…"

  "We can force her to tell us where Sibyl is," Karrell said.

  "Then I'll have my revenge. And you'll have a chance to recover the Circled Serpent. Or half of it, anyway." He extended a hand. "What do you say? Partners?"

  Karrell stared into his eyes for several heartbeats, ignoring his hand. Then she leaned forward and kissed him-passionately. Her fingers twined in his hair; her lips pressed against his. Excitement coursed through his body with a fire so fierce it left him trembling. Karrell was everything he'd dreamed of, everything he'd ever hoped to find in a woman. Her kiss left him as dizzy as the osssra smoke-and it showed no sign of ending. She pulled him toward her and he tumbled, landing on top of her on the bed. His hands brushed

  against her waist, her breasts-then found their way inside her dress. Still kissing her fiercely, he tried to stroke her breast, but for some strange reason the dress had gotten in the way. Its fabric felt rough under his fingertips.

  No, that wasn't the dress. It was her breast. That wasn't skin his fingertips were caressing, but… Scales?

  Her charm spell-which only now did he realize she'd been successful in casting-abruptly ended. He broke off the kiss, jerking his hand out of her dress. Suddenly, everything made sense. Her strange comments, her taking offense when he'd tried to warn her about the yuan-ti of House Extaminos.

  Karrell wasShe sat up. "You have just realized that I am half yuan-ti,"
she said_ Her expression was a strange mixture of hurt and defiance.

  Arvin nodded, mute. "That's not why-" he stammered. "It's just…" Conflicting emotions surged through him. He wanted Karrell, he ached for her, even without the benefit of her charm spell-but now she reminded him of Zelia.

  Her cheeks flushed. With a quick, angry motion she jerked at her dress, straightening it. "I am used to it," she snapped. "It is just one of the barriers in the maze of life-a barrier that I must overcome, if I am to find my true path. But it is hard. People are always mistaking me for human. How do you think it feels, to hear their comments about how "cold-hearted' and evil the yuan-ti are, knowing that it is you they are talking about? The yuan-ti, also, are unkind. To them I look too human to ever be considered…" She glanced away.

  "Beautiful?" Arvin asked. "Desirable?" He reached out with a hand and lifted her chin. "You are. Believe me." He sighed. "It's just that, for a moment, you reminded me of someone. Another yuan-ti woman-a psion. She used her psionics to plant a seed in my head. If it hadn't been removed, it would have stripped my mind from my body and left me an empty husk for her to fill with a copy of herself. She used me."

  Karrell's eyes softened. "The woman at Riverboat Landing?"

  Arvin nodded.

  "Not all yuan-ti are so cruel."

  "I realize that," Arvin said. "And now that I look at you-really look at you-I see that you're not like Zelia at all. Not one bit."

  He leaned forward-slowly-and kissed her. Karrell didn't resist. Instead, at first hesitantly, she kissed him back.

  Arvin broke off the kiss. "How do you say it?" he asked. `"Kiss'-in your language."

  "Tsu."

  Arvin smiled. The word puckered Karrell's lips beautifully as she spoke it. "And "beautiful'? How do you say that?"

  "Kiichpan."

  "Woman?"'

  She gave a slight frown, obviously wondering what he was up to. "Chu al."