A small twitch of a frown turned Deborah’s lips. “Since being released from the medical center, she is one of the standouts in both the physical and mental arenas. The injury may have made her reconsider her rebellious attitude.”
“But is she loyal?”
Deborah could only shrug. “She professes to adhere to our philosophy, yet even with my careful observation, I can’t ascertain her loyalty to you, Mother Superior. Without question, Ninke is loyal to the Sisterhood — but her degree of devotion to your new methods is not so clear. I doubt if she will ever be as faithful to you as she once was to Reverend Mother Dorotea.”
Valya’s brow furrowed in displeasure. “Just as there are degrees of love, so too are there degrees of devotion and loyalty. How much loyalty do you think is necessary for our purposes?” She watched Ninke continue to fight, wondering whether the woman was worth keeping, or if it was safer just to cut their potential losses and get rid of her after all.
As if sensing she was being singled out, Ninke stopped her routines and let Gabi catch her breath. She turned to face the two observers, her expression openly hostile. Valya stared back at her coolly, and spoke sidelong to the Sorceress. “Her blatant display of emotion shows a lack of mental toughness.”
Ninke wrapped herself in utter calmness and casually glided toward the observers through the frenetic, fast-moving trainees without brushing against them. She faced Valya. “Mother Superior, I survived the hazing you imposed on my faction, and I completed all the demeaning tasks you made me perform. Because of your grudge against us, my fellow Orthodox Sisters have been beaten and injured — some even killed. But I am still here.”
Valya instinctively tensed. “Those others were more valuable to the Sisterhood as examples of what happens to people who disobey me. I believe my methods have been effective.”
“And me?” Ninke sniffed. “Of what value am I to you?”
With a stiff smile, Valya said, “When your faction betrayed us and nearly destroyed the Sisterhood, you committed treasonous acts. But I see potential in you, Ninke, so I have given you a second chance. Will you take it, or spurn your opportunity?”
Ninke lifted her chin. “I have proved myself enough. Sometimes an injustice must be addressed with more than words or acquiescence.” She dropped into a fighting stance, her muscles loose and poised, her eyes hyperalert. “And this is one of those times. Accept me now as I am, or kill me.”
The rest of the Sisters halted their practice, some of them aghast. Deborah stepped out of the way as Valya and Ninke began to circle each other. Ninke glanced to her left, which Valya interpreted as a deception, so she prepared for a strike in the opposite direction, but the other Sister whirled around exactly where she had looked, a double feint, and sprang straight at Valya and struck out at her. Valya used her own reflexes and combined fighting techniques. She felt a ripple of air as Ninke missed her. Barely. Ninke did not favor her injured arm at all, so the hesitation she’d shown in using it earlier must have been faked.
But when Valya spun to launch her own attack, the other woman was unexpectedly there facing her. Ninke struck the Mother Superior in the center of her chest with a hard kick. Valya bent her knees and let herself fall backward to soften the impact, then sprang back out of the combat area to better prepare for her opponent’s next move.
In one blur of motion after another, the other Sister showed that she understood something of the advanced fighting methods, but Valya spotted patterns in Ninke’s interpretation of the Sorceress Way. Patterns that reflected her inexperience.
Valya went on the attack, following the other woman’s precise moves like a shadow. She surprised Ninke and drove her back with a series of kicks, fist thrusts, and hard elbows, ending with a stunning blow to the side of the head. Then Valya took her down with a strike to the knees, pinned her to the ground, and pressed two fingers against a nerve in her neck, rendering her helpless.
In the adrenaline rush, Valya could have killed Ninke on the spot, but decided to spare her life. She released her hold on the pressure point and backed away, then astonished Ninke by helping her to her feet.
Trembling with anger, ready to continue fighting, Ninke faced Valya. “I am loyal to the Sisterhood, Mother Superior,” she said in a defiant voice. “And I will fight our enemies. Are you an enemy of the Sisterhood? Or should I focus on a different one?”
Valya smiled. “Your comment is as unexpected as some of your fighting moves.” She nodded quickly. “I am the Mother Superior. I am not now, nor have I ever been, nor will I ever be, an enemy of the Sisterhood. We already have enough enemies.” She raised her voice, so the others could hear. “Ninke, your punishment is over, the past is forgotten. Now it is time for us to unify into a strong force — a vital, yet nearly invisible, part of the Imperium.”
Ninke moved back among the other women on the practice field, where she resumed her energetic routines with Gabi. “Yes,” Valya muttered to Deborah as they continued to observe. “We certainly have enough outside enemies to keep us busy.”
WHEN CIOBA STEPPED off the VenHold shuttle on Wallach IX, returning to the Sisterhood school after such a long time, she was glad to see her black-robed colleagues awaiting her. Though her original training had taken place on Rossak, this still felt like a homecoming.
Cioba had chosen to wear the white robe of a Sorceress, calling attention to her rare genetics. She was proud of her heritage, and now she hoped to make these women the allies of Venport Holdings, even though they were already working more closely with the Imperial Court … though not always to VenHold’s benefit, from what her sources had reported to her.
As she crossed the landing field toward the main school buildings, Cioba noted that the gathered Sisters stood poised, as if they were a security detail in addition to a reception committee. Among them, the moon-faced Sister Olivia stared at her guardedly. “You have come alone?”
Trying to understand the unexpectedly stiff attitude, Cioba said, “I came alone, but I am pleased to find myself among friends now.”
A small smile broke through Olivia’s wary expression. “The Emperor has clamped down on your husband’s company, and we know VenHold recently attempted to lay siege to Salusa Secundus, an attempt that ended in a debacle. It is dangerous for us to have you here, or to have any dealings with Josef Venport.”
“The Emperor took severe and unjustified actions to harm us, but Venport Holdings is strong and will survive. We need the advice and assistance of the Sisterhood, however. That is why I have come.” Cioba glanced around. “I must see Mother Superior Valya about an important matter. Please, Olivia?”
With a softening expression, Olivia gestured toward several large new buildings under construction. “The Mother Superior monitors the work daily. Come with me.”
Olivia led Cioba up a stone-paved path to the main buildings. While Josef had given them the initial classroom structures that helped the Sisterhood make their start here, the Mother School seemed to be thriving now on this remote world, going into a major expansion phase. Would Valya remember to show gratitude for what Venport Holdings had done for them?
The landing field had a new terminal structure, larger than the previous temporary one. A male construction crew moved a prefab building on a rolling framework to a new foundation, while workers installed windows and doors in two large new dormitories that had stone walls and red tile roofs.
“This school is different from our cliff city on Rossak, but it is going to be beautiful,” Cioba said. “Raquella would have been pleased.”