“I’ve heard that before … from my father no less,” Abigail said. “Tell me something, why are you doing this? What do you want?”
“I want what everyone wants, immortality and the worship of every living soul,” Zuhl said.
Abigail stared at him, mouth agape for a moment before she burst out laughing. “You’ve got to be kidding,” she said, still laughing.
“No, I’m not,” he said, looking somewhat offended by her impertinence. “Don’t you want to live forever?”
Abigail frowned and cocked her head to the side for a moment. “Huh, I hadn’t really thought about it. Death is just a part of life, part of the natural cycle. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to die, certainly not anytime soon, but I’ve always known my life would end someday.”
“What if it didn’t have to?” Zuhl asked, leaning in again. “What would you do for the chance to live forever?”
“I don’t really know,” Abigail said.
“I do,” Zuhl said. “I’ll do anything I have to.”
“I guess that’s the difference between us,” Abigail said. “There are some things I love more than my own life.”
Zuhl looked down at his plate, shaking his head again.
“Why did your brother commit the bulk of his forces to defending Fellenden?” he asked, changing the subject abruptly.
“Because your barbarians were killing innocent people,” Abigail said.
“But Fellenden is nothing to you or your brother,” Zuhl said. “Phane is your enemy. He’s attacked you again and again, yet you declare war on me when I’ve done nothing to provoke you. Again, I don’t understand.”
“It’s really very simple, Zuhl, you were hurting innocent people and we had the power to stop you, so we did.”
“When doing so puts your own people in jeopardy? Even now, Phane is building his strength in Warrenton. When the spring thaw comes, he’ll overrun your forces and his Lancers will be free to wreak havoc throughout northern Ruatha, all while your forces are mired in Fellenden.”
“Alexander’s looking at the bigger picture,” Abigail said. “If we’d permitted you to build your fleet, we wouldn’t have had a chance in the long run. He made a sound strategic decision with full knowledge of the potential consequences.”
“Perhaps,” Zuhl said, nodding slightly. “At least such an explanation is based on reason, more so than some of his other decisions. Where is he now?”
“I wish I knew,” Abigail said, putting her biscuit down. “He was going to talk to a dragon, last I knew, but he could be anywhere by now.”
“Tanis? The bronze dragon who rules in the Pinnacles?”
“No, Bragador, on Tyr,” Abigail said.
“The chromatic dragons-why would he go to them?” Zuhl asked. “They’re even less interested in the affairs of men than the bronze dragons.”
Abigail realized she’d said too much. Zuhl didn’t know about the Nether Gate, and she had no intention of being the one to tell him.
“Isabel’s been infected by one of Phane’s minions,” Abigail said. “Alexander’s gone to collect the ingredients for a potion that will heal her.” A half-truth made for a better lie than an outright fiction.
“He sends his sister to wage war against me, leaves his home to fend for itself, and ventures off to bargain with a dragon to save his woman?” Zuhl scoffed. “I find that hard to believe. No man worthy of being called a Lord would make such poor strategic judgments. There must be more-he must have another purpose.”
“If he does, I don’t know what it is,” Abigail lied.
Zuhl scrutinized her closely, his eyes narrowing before he nodded.
“Your brother has a gift for seeing colors,” Zuhl said. “As I understand it, his magical vision offers him insight into the nature and intentions of others. Quite a powerful skill. When I learned of it, I developed a spell that accomplishes a similar result, though through very different means. I cast that spell just before you arrived. Up until now, you have answered my questions truthfully, but you just lied to me. Why?”
Abigail smiled and sat back, picking up her glass of juice. “There are some things we’d rather you didn’t know,” she said.
He almost smiled, although without any mirth. “Naturally,” he said. “No matter. Once we arrive at Whitehall, I will have you interrogated properly. You will tell me everything I wish to know, and I assure you it won’t be pleasant.”
“You can torture me if you like,” Abigail said, “but it won’t do you any good.” She tried to remain calm even as she quailed inside. The prospect of torture was terrifying.
“You just lied to me again,” Zuhl said.
“Did you really expect me to answer all of your questions?” she said.
“Of course not,” he said. “As for torture, that’s such a crude means of persuasion, and not entirely reliable. No, I have a far more effective method in mind. You see, in the northern wastes of the Isle of Zuhl lives a most remarkable creature. Those who live in the area call it an ice slug. Harmless creature, but the slime it exudes has a most powerful effect when imbibed. It seems to release all inhibitions, eliminate all guile, and induce a state of mind that is utterly incapable of lying. So you see, there is really no point in attempting to deceive me, as I will have the answers I seek.”
“Maybe … but not today,” Abigail said.
“Very well, perhaps another line of questioning is in order,” Zuhl said. “What did Alexander find in the Stone’s Wizard’s Den?”
“I have no idea,” Abigail said. “I haven’t seen him in a while. Truth is, I didn’t even know he’d gotten into the Wizard’s Den yet.”
“Fair enough,” Zuhl said. “I have reason to believe there is a book of great interest to me, either in the Stone’s Wizard’s Den or the sovereigns’ library within the Reishi Keep. I intend to make a trade with your brother … you for that book. Provided he delivers it to me before the winter solstice.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Abigail said, “but if this book you’re looking for is where you think it is, I doubt Alexander will ever give it to you.”
“Fortunately, I have a contingency,” Zuhl said. “I’m a firm believer in backup plans and redundancies. If I don’t receive the book by the solstice, then I will consume your life force in my yearly rejuvenation sacrifice. Either way, I get something I need.”
Abigail swallowed hard, trying to calculate how many days remained before the shortest day of the year.
“You have just over three weeks,” Zuhl said. “That should be more than enough time. Not to worry, I’ve already sent word to your forces. I trust they will relay the message with haste.”
A thousand questions and concerns vied for attention within her mind but one rose to the top of the list. “What’s so important about this book?”
“Ah, I’m glad you asked,” Zuhl said. “I must say, Lady Abigail, I’m enjoying our conversation immensely. There’s no one on the entire Isle of Zuhl who would dare to address me so casually, so simply. I find it refreshing … novel even.
“I am very old, seven hundred and twenty-eight years old, to be precise. Over the centuries, I have collected a great number of very rare works, many unique. I’m especially interested in the journals of wizards. You would be surprised the things you can learn about magic from the musings of long-dead wizards.
“One in particular has haunted me for centuries. A wizard named Jacinth. He was the lead assistant to Malachi Reishi in his research laboratory. He spoke of a spell that Malachi was developing in his last days, a spell that Jacinth had helped him create, a spell that I simply must have. Jacinth wrote that he watched Malachi pen the spellbook himself and saw him store it away inside his Wizard’s Den. He called it the ‘Lich Book,’ a spell of such potency that Malachi killed all of the researchers who helped him develop it once it was complete, even Jacinth. The last entry tells how Malachi permitted Jacinth to take a poison that would kill him painlessly in honor of his years of loyal service.
“This book contains a spell that is the key to true immortality, and I must have it.”
“And you think Alexander is just going to give it to you?”