Betrayal

by Lara Morgan

  ‘Shaan?’ He winced as Tallis put an arm around him and heaved him to his feet. ‘Where is she?’ Balkis’s eyes were half closed as he tried to focus and Tallis felt the warm surge of blood dripping over his hand.

  ‘Come on.’ He began to drag the blond man, all the while searching for his father.

  ‘Tallis!’ his mother’s voice rang out, and he saw her running toward him, struggling over the corpses, her face pale.

  ‘Where’s Rorc?’ he shouted, but before she could answer he felt a strange drawing through the air, a tightening of everything as if a tide was pulling back at the world, back toward where the Four gods were.

  ‘Get down!’ he shouted, and pulled Balkis to the ground, falling almost on top of several dead clansmen.

  ‘Put your head down!’ he screamed, hoping she heard as a keening sound came through the air, followed by a tremendous release of power. Just in time he dragged what was left of his own power up and thrust it like a barrier above them as wind and heat rushed over his back. He pressed his head against the earth. Men screamed and a brightness exploded across the sky, forcing his eyes closed. It lasted barely a heartbeat, but he felt his haldar singeing, his back razed by heat. Then it was gone, but the screams still persisted and all around was the smell of burning flesh.

  Arak-ferish! Marathin was seeking him.

  Flee, he commanded her, go!

  We come for you! she hissed.

  Balkis moaned and Tallis looked back, but could see little through the pall of smoke that blew across the plain. He pulled Balkis to his feet. All around were smouldering corpses. The gods had burned them as they ran. Only those who’d thrown themselves to the ground like the Scanorians had survived.

  ‘Mother!’ he shouted, dragging the half-conscious Balkis with him.

  ‘Here!’ She came out of the smoke, coughing.

  ‘We have to go. Where’re Rorc and Irissa?’

  ‘I don’t know.’ She put an arm around Balkis, helping him. ‘Where’s Shaan?’

  He didn’t know how to answer her.

  ‘Tallis?’ She gazed at him desperately. ‘Where is she?’

  He shook his head. ‘I don’t know … She’s just gone.’

  She stared at him, stricken. ‘What?’

  ‘We can’t help her, Mother; we have to go!’

  ‘Tallis?’

  ‘Find Rorc.’ He looked skyward. Few of the serpents remained. He could feel many of them fleeing south, as far from the gods as they could go.

  Arak-ferish. Her call came and he saw Marathin gliding down toward them, using the smoke to help hide her, and then, almost like a miracle, Haraka followed close behind with Attar still on his back.

  ‘Clansman, you’re alive!’ Attar, a bloody gash across his shoulder, grinned at him as Haraka hovered.

  ‘Have you seen Rorc or Irissa?’ Tallis shouted as he dragged Balkis forward to Marathin.

  ‘No.’

  The smell of the smoke was making his guts churn and Tallis pushed Balkis up on the serpent’s back as fast as he could. The blond man grunted as more blood seeped from his wound. He didn’t know if Balkis would make it, but there was no time to do anything about it.

  ‘Attar, can you find them?’ he shouted.

  ‘If they’re alive I’ll get them,’ Attar replied. ‘Come on,’ he said to Haraka, urging the serpent back up into the sky.

  Tallis leaped up behind Balkis so he could hold him on, and Mailun sat at his back as Marathin launched through the smoke into the clearer air.

  ‘Search the ground,’ he shouted at his mother while instructing both Marathin and Haraka to do the same. The drawing feeling was coming again and he cried a warning as the smoke suddenly cleared and another burst of energy came.

  Marathin and Haraka soared high above the blast, shrieking as the fierce heat scalded the tips of their tails. The battlefield below was scoured again and again by bright bursts of power. The figures of people running dropped to the ground. Some had got away. In the distance there was a small group of clansmen running toward the desert.

  ‘Tallis!’ Mailun was sobbing.

  But every time they tried to drop lower to search, the heat drove them back. It was no good. He could see the Four gods below, walking through the smoke of their own making.

  If they went down there they would all die, and who would get Shaan back then?

  ‘We have to go!’ he shouted, and reached out with his mind voice to Haraka. Out of the battle now he could no longer feel Attar’s mind as he had before.

  To the Clan Lands, he sent to both serpents. Fly high.

  Marathin wheeled, turning her head toward the north. Before him Balkis had passed out and behind him his mother was crying, but there was nothing more they could do. He had lost his sister, and perhaps his father, and the woman he loved, and he could do nothing to save them. With all his power he had failed. The Guides damned him still. His heart bleak with despair, he felt the steady pulse of the serpent’s life beneath them as she turned toward the desert.

  ***

  Paretim stood with Fortuse and Epherin in the middle of the smoking field of the dead, cradling the Stone. Not far away Vail was watching the remnants of his people gather before him, the strange, dark little fisherfolk bowing down in ecstasy at his feet. Paretim wondered how long his brother would take to bring them back to their natural home. He could feel his fury at what they had suffered under the humans.

  He sighed and stared away to the horizon, feeling that deep contentment that only the Stone could bring.

  ‘Where to now, brother?’ Epherin asked. ‘Do you dream of brighter things?’ His tone was teasing, but calmer.

  Paretim turned to him with a smile and Fortuse giggled and slipped her hand around his arm, nuzzling up to him. ‘He wants,’ she said, ‘he wants more.’

  Paretim caressed her face fondly with his free hand.

  ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘I do want more. These creatures, once our pets, they don’t know how to govern themselves.’ He gestured to the death around them. ‘Look at what they have wrought. They are their own worst keepers. I think we need to help them now we have this.’ He held up the Stone.

  ‘Like we did in the mountains?’ Epherin chuckled.

  ‘Aren’t they happier now?’ Paretim raised an eyebrow. ‘Aren’t they more content?’

  Fortuse sighed and wriggled against him, her feet stirring up the ash of the dead. ‘Our own city again, brother,’ she said. ‘Our own time.’

  ‘Yes.’ Paretim smiled and stroked the Stone around the knife hilt. ‘Our time has come again.’

  List of Characters

  Alezo A Hunter of the Faithful

  Alterin Seer and healer of the Wild Lands people

  Amandine General commanding Salmut’s army

  Amora A slave girl who was the catalyst for the defeat of Azoth two thousand years ago and founder of the city of Salmut

  Aran A Hunter of the Faithful

  Arlindah The former Guardian of Salmut, Nilah’s mother, who was poisoned by an unknown assassin

  Ashuk Ship mistress from the Serpent Isles

  Attar A captain in the serpent riders

  Azoth/The Fallen Creator of the serpents and youngest of the five ancient gods. He stole the Birthstone and enslaved the majority of the human race, using the Stone to create the Alhanti (see glossary). Banished to the abyss two thousand years prior by his four older siblings

  Balkis A sept leader of the serpent riders, promoted to Marshall of Armies in Salmut

  Bernal A Seducer of the Faithful

  Calem A Hunter of the Faithful and scout in Rorc’s army

  Cyri Consul of the Faithful — their spiritual leader

  Devin A Hunter of the Faithful

  Epherin Second eldest of the Four Lost Gods

  Farris A Seducer of the Faithful

  Fortuse Only female of the Four Lost Gods

  Gergen A serpent rider

  Grif A Seducer of the Faithful

  Haldane Heart
mate of Mailun and member of the Jalwalah clan’s Guides Circle

  Hashmael Leader of the Baal clan

  Irissa Jared’s sister — a hunter of the Jalwalah clan

  Ivar A man of the Serpent Isles, son of Pasiphae and younger brother of Torg

  Jared Hunter of the Jalwalah clan and Tallis’s earth brother

  Karnit Leader of the Jalwalah clan

  Lilith A serpent rider

  Lorgon A member of Salmut’s Council of Nine

  Lyria A Sister in the Temple of Amora

  Mailun Tallis’s mother, originally of the Ichindar, the Ice People

  Miram Member of the Jalwalah clan’s Guides Circle

  Morfessa Advisor to the Guardian of Salmut and a powerful healer

  Nilah The Guardian of Salmut, ruler of Saranthium

  Paretim Eldest of the Four Lost Gods

  Pasiphae Keeper of the Scrolls on the Serpent Isles. Mother of Torg and Ivar

  Pilar Mother of Jared and Irissa

  Prin Morfessa’s former assistant; Azoth in disguise

  Rafe A Seducer of the Faithful

  Rorc Commander of the Faithful and Chief of Armies in Salmut

  Shaan An orphan of Salmut, Tallis’s twin sister and descendant of Azoth. Is known to the serpents as Arak-si: Beloved of Azoth

  Shila Dreamer of the Jalwalah clan

  Tallis A hunter of the Jalwalah, Shaan’s twin brother and descendant of Azoth. Is known to the serpents as Arak-ferish: Bane of Azoth

  Thadin Warrior chief of the Jalwalah clan and member of the Guides Circle

  Torg Oldest son of the Keeper of the Scrolls of the Serpent Isles, former owner of the Red Pepino inn and brothel in Salmut, murdered by Azoth

  Tuon Prostitute at the Red Pepino and Shaan’s best friend

  Vail One of the Four Lost Gods

  Veila The Seer of Salmut, who has quested the Void to discover Azoth’s return

  Serpents

  Asrith Crest of the last Hive of the Serpent Isles

  Fen One of Asrith’s Hive

  Haraka A serpent of Salmut, one opposed to Azoth’s return

  Marathin Attar’s serpent, also opposed to Azoth’s return

  Nuathin The most ancient serpent in the Dome

  Shafe One of Asrith’s Hive

  Glossary

  Al Hanatoha The ancient city in the Wild Lands where Azoth once ruled

  Alhanti Hybrid creatures created by Azoth using the Birthstone. A mixture of serpent and human, very tall and strong, they were the warrior force of Azoth’s fallen empire two thousand years earlier.

  Amora A slave girl instrumental in the downfall of Azoth’s empire. It was Amora who heard the Birthstone speak to her in a dream and awakened the four elder gods who then banished Azoth for his crimes. Amora led the people away from the fallen empire to a new land on the edge of the sea and established the city of Salmut.

  Birthstone The legendary seed from which all life sprung and the source of the ancient gods’ power. Once in five pieces, its power was shared equally by the ancient gods who used it to create the people, plants and animals of the world. Stolen and made whole by Azoth who used it to enslave the human race and create a hybrid human/serpent being, it disappeared when the four older gods banished Azoth to the abyss. It is the key to Azoth’s power.

  Black Mountains A range of mountains of totally barren black rock that forms the north-eastern border of the Clan Lands

  Clans of the desert lands Baal, Halmahda, Jalwalah, Raknah, Shalneef

  Council of Nine Body of councillors who administer the day-to-day affairs of the city of Salmut and surrounding villages

  Crist A hallucinogenic and highly addictive drug

  Faithful, the The most powerful force in Salmut, formed to guard against Azoth’s return and comprising two factions: Hunters who are preternaturally good at capturing their prey, and Seducers who can infiltrate and influence minds

  Fledglings Newly recruited serpent riders still in training

  Foundation Scroll The charter written at the founding of Salmut after the banishment of Azoth and the reformation of a new world. It contains the details of the pact for peace between human and serpent and warns for constant vigilance against the return of the banished god Azoth.

  Free Lands Land stretching from the feet of the Goran Ranges and bordered by the desert lands of the Clans, the cold lands of the Ichindar peoples and the Sergessen Sea. Split from the rest of Saranthium 223 years ago during the war of the Free Lands. Still a trading partner.

  Guides The creators and guardians of the desert clans.

  Including: Sabut, Wahtu, Antil, Enocia (the Outcast), Kaa (death).

  Guides Circle Seven men and women who rule the Jalwalah clan

  Haldar Head covering made of thick cloth worn by desert clans for sun protection

  Hasan Daag Capital city of the Free Lands

  Hive The collective mind communication of a group of serpents experienced as a river of light suspended in a void. Also describes a family or tribe of serpents led by one older serpent.

  Icebite Winter in the Ice Lands

  Kaf Thick hot drink similar to coffee, sweetened with honey

  Mind voice The method riders use to communicate with serpents

  Muthu Four-legged animal with coarse hair and a single small hump across the withers. Foul smelling and found in coastal regions and in the desert.

  Nonyu A spicy tea

  Prophet’s ring Gold ring stolen from Azoth by the Prophet

  Prophet’s scrolls A history of Azoth’s empire written by a slave who escaped at the time of Azoth’s banishment. Kept on the Serpent Isles

  Rain Lands Ancient name for the Wild Lands

  Ravek Coconut liquor from the Serpent Isles

  Rogue serpents Black hides and larger than the serpents that live in Salmut. They have been attacking people of the clans and villages on the edges of the desert seemingly without reason.

  Sabut’s Well Oasis and gathering place of all clans

  Salmut Capital of Saranthium, home to the Guardian

  Saranthium The continent created by the Birthstone and the five ancient gods

  Scanorians A cave-dwelling race that live mainly in the Pleth Ranges but are sometimes seen in the plains near the River Pleth

  Sept A division of the serpent rider army consisting of ten serpents and their riders

  Sept Leader A commander of a sept of serpent riders. There are eight sept leaders

  Serpent Dome Enormous column-shaped building housing the serpents of Salmut

  Serpent Isles A group of islands south-west of Salmut in the Sergessen Sea. Breeding ground of the serpents and home to proud seafaring people

  Serpent yards Large complex of grounds and buildings housing the serpents and serpent riders

  Sisters of Amora Order of women dedicated to studying Amora’s life and the healing arts

  Stolen Well Small water well on the edge of Jalwalah territory

  Sundance Summer in the Ice Lands

  Sun Lands The name for the place deceased Ichindar go to in the afterlife

  Temple of Amora Place of worship for Amora and the Four Lost Gods. Houses the Sisters of Amora, serves as a meeting place for the Faithful and those who work for them, and is also the residence of the Consul of the Faithful. Commander Rorc also keeps rooms here.

  Temple of Kaa A circle of standing stones in the Clan Lands dedicated to Kaa and the Guides. Pregnant women journey there to ask Kaa to deliver their child safely to them. The shape of an eye is imprinted in one of the stones.

  Void The place between dreaming and waking, scried by seers seeking to find answers and wisdom. Few have the talent to truly plumb its depths. Also called the World Between by the Wild Lands people.

  Wetlander Term used by clan people to describe coastal dwellers

  Well The home of a desert clan

  Wild Lands Tropical, mountainous area thickly covered in jungle. Home to small villages of jungle people and the site of the anci
ent city of Azoth’s past empire.

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