“When?”
“WHEN!”
“Soon!” he cried. “We will sever the collars from the throats of our brothers and sisters, and we will destroy our foes. Some of you will march east with me to Ammathor. Some will remain and hold this fortress, your home, until I return. The Ivory Throne, and all for which it stands, must fall and be rebuilt. Lend your strength to mine, and from us shall be born a new and golden age!”
“ALL HAIL THE LIFE GIVER!”
“HAIL!”
“HAIL!”
“HAIL!”
Chapter 15
While the chanting continued, Otaker led Ellonlef into the quieter reaches of his chambers. With a tired grunt, he fell into a high-backed chair. Scrubbing his scalp with a shaking hand, he cleared his throat.
“The Life Giver,” Otaker said hollowly, “wastes no time. In one stroke, he has subverted the mightiest fortress in the history of Aradan, and turned her people against the realm and the king-his own grandfather. Yet when he spoke to us, his ire seemed directed only at Kian. Now the prince has lain plans to strike at the very heart of Aradan and the Ivory Throne, as well. Why the sudden change of heart?”
“In your misery,” Ellonlef said gently, “you misremember Varis’s words. He spoke of destroying Kian and all who sided with him. As to his change of heart, well, he would not be the first leader to hide his true intentions in order to gain a foothold of trust.”
“As you say,” Otaker said, his eyes downcast and empty.
After a moment, he gave himself a vigorous shake and looked up, hurt, but not yet broken. “Varis named Kian a dangerous man with a desire to raise an army, yet from all indications, it is Varis who is building the army.”
“I believe,” Ellonlef said, speaking of an idea that had slowly grown in her mind, “that Kian and Varis’s roles are reversed from what the prince told us. If so, then Varis not only brought the dead back to life … he also may have killed them by the same means he leveled against Kian-using the powers of the gods. In all of this, I believe Kian may well be a scapegoat completely unaware of Varis’s intentions.” She considered a moment, doubting what she said next, but needing to put voice the option. “In truth, Kian may not have had any dealings with Varis.”
“No,” Otaker said contemplatively. “By twisting the truth, and weaving Kian’s and his role into those lies, our young prince has shown us the man he fears most: Kian Valara.”
“Finding Kian could be a boon,” Ellonlef suggested, “if indeed he has some of these godly powers himself. But he is also a mercenary. I doubt personal honor will keep him from distancing himself from Aradan and Varis. For all we know, he could be back in Izutar already.”
“You are right, of course. That leaves us to spread the warning. Varis seeks the Ivory Throne, and he must be stopped, immediately. I will muster-”
With a raised hand, Ellonlef forestalled what she knew Otaker was about to say. “Some few of your men would turn aside from the allure they feel for Varis, but most will not. Since coming to Krevar, I have watched your people’s hardship as they scratched out a miserable existence for themselves, mostly without aid from the crown to which they have sworn fealty. Varis has already cut the tenuous threads of loyalty to the Ivory Throne and bound them to himself. Moreover, I am sure that all the risen dead are Varis’s until their last breath.”
She paused until Otaker gave a nod indicating that he understood that those devoted souls included his lady wife. She empathized with his anguish, but pressed on.
“It troubles me that Magus Uzzret has thrown his lot in with Prince Varis. In light of Varis’s perceived deity, Uzzret has established himself as the prince’s high priest. With all the calamities that have and are still befalling the world, people will look at those happenings as omens in need of interpretation. Prince Varis, together with Magus Uzzret, will doubtless provide whatever enlightenment serves their needs.”
Otaker sighed. “If I had not seen these signs with my waking eyes, I would name it all madness spread by the begging brothers … but I have seen. And though I do not understand the half of it, my highest duty is to defend Aradan, which, in this instance, means defending Ammathor against one of her own sons.”
“We must thwart Varis at every turn” Ellonlef said. “And we must act with haste, before Uzzret or Varis decide our lack of fervor poses a danger.”
Otaker gazed at her in confusion. “But you said I could not defeat him.”
“I fear you cannot.” Ellonlef paused there, knowing that if his wife had not been lost to him, he would have already worked out for himself what she was about to say. “However, if Kian is indeed a threat to Varis, we must find and use him against Varis. At present, the prince’s forces are a fraction of what can be mustered from across the whole of Aradan. Birds must be sent out, warning all the border fortresses of what is coming … though I think it best not to directly name the prince as the threat-not yet. Better to let the leaders see for themselves who betrays them, than hear of it and summarily deny the possibility.”
Otaker began nodding his head, the dazed expression leaving his eyes as he cast away doubt and despair to think on a line of attack, his greatest strength. “I will send the warnings, but if Varis did actually murder all those he later raised, strength of arms will not be enough,” Otaker said. “A messenger must go out, someone to ride with all haste for the northern border, and if necessary, beyond to Izutar, in order to find Kian.”
Ellonlef considered the cheering throngs in the market square. “How will you know whom to trust to deliver such an important message?”
He gazed at her. “There is only one answer. With Uzzret turned, and most if not all of my men ensnared by Varis’s wiles, you are the only one in whom I can put my faith. Though I despise the choice for the danger it places you in, it is you who must go. As you well know, Sisters of Najihar live and watch all lands in secret, even Izutar. If it comes to it, with the aid of your sisters, you will be able to track Kian.”
“We should go together,” Ellonlef countered. She hated to admit fear, even to herself, but the Kaliayth was no safe place for any lone traveler. Besides the natural hardships of the desert, made all the worse since the world had begun to destroy itself, there were the loose-knit clans of the Bashye, who raided caravans at every chance, and attacked outposts with impunity. A rider alone amongst roving Bashye would be as a tethered lamb before a pack of wolves. And more, she feared what might happen to Otaker should he remain alone in Krevar.
Otaker shook his head. “I must stay close to Varis, gain his trust, seek out his weaknesses, and pass that knowledge along. As well, I may be able to find a few of my men who remain loyal to Aradan, and myself. If fortune favors us, perhaps I can find a means to stay Varis’s hand or, as a last resort, eliminate him as a threat.”
Ellonlef saw problems upon problems and dangers beyond count in his plan, but she also saw that he was right. What he had not mentioned, but what she knew in her heart to be true, was that Otaker would not leave his wife and children.
Reluctantly, she nodded in agreement.
“We have no idea how fast Varis will act,” Otaker said, “but we must assume that he will bar all the gates from those who might turn against him. You need to ride as soon as possible. Along the way, I would ask that you act as my voice to give authority to my missives. The lords marshal of Yuzzika and El’hadar must understand that my warning is no twisted prank.”
“You know these men better than I,” Ellonlef said. “Will they believe?”