Hood knows I could do worse. Riches and comfort, ease and indulgences. Durhang and wine. Pillows to lie on . . .
'I sense wisdom in you, my dear,' Nawahl said, 'so I shall not press. Let you, rather, yourself ascend to the proper course.'
Bedrolls had been laid out. One of the undead servants had fanned to life a camp stove, the remnants of one sleeve catching light and smouldering in the process, a detail none commented on.
Darkness swiftly closed in around them. Nawahl commanded the lighting of lanterns and their positioning on poles situated in a circle around the camp. One of the corpses stood beside Felisin and refilled her glass after every mouthful. The creature's flesh looked gnawed. Gaping bloodless wounds lined his pallid arms. All his teeth had fallen out.
Felisin glanced up at him, willing herself against recoiling. 'And how did you die?' she asked sardonically.
'Terribly.'
'But how?'
'I am forbidden to say more. I died terribly, a death to match one of Hood's own nightmares. It was long, yet swift, an eternity that passed in an instant. I was surprised, yet knowing. Small pain, yet great pain, the flood of darkness, yet blinding—'
'All right. I see your master's point.'
'So you shall.'
'Go easy on that, lass,' Kulp said from near the camp stove. 'Best have your wits about you.'
'Why? It's not availed me yet, has it?' In defiance, she drained the glass and held it up to be refilled. Her head was swimming, her limbs seeming to float. The servant splashed wine over her hand.
Nawahl had returned to his wide, padded chair, watching the three of them with a contented smile on his lips. 'Mortal company, such a difference!' he wheezed. 'I am so much delighted, I need only bask in the mundane. Tell me, where do you seek to go? Whatever launched you on such a perilous journey? The rebellion? Is it truly as bloody as I have heard rumoured? Such injustice is ever repaid in full, alas. This lesson is lost, I am afraid.'
'We're going nowhere,' Felisin said.
'Might I convince you to revise your chosen destination, then?'
'And you offer protection?' she asked. 'How reliable? What happens if we run into bandits, or worse?'
'No harm shall come to you, my dear. A man who deals in sorcery has many resorts in defence of selves. Not once in all my travels have I been beset by nefarious fools. Accosted on occasion, yes, but all have turned away when I gifted them wisdom. My dear, you are positively breathtaking – your smooth, sun-honeyed skin is a balm to my eyes.'
'What would your wife say?' Felisin murmured.
'Alas, I am a widower. My dearest passed through the Hooded One's Gates almost a year ago to this day. Hers was a full, happy life, I am pleased to say – and that gives me great comfort. Ah, would that her spirit could arise and set you at ease with reassurances, my dear.'
Tapu skewers sizzled on the camp stove.
'Mage,' Nawahl said, 'you have opened your warren. Tell me, what do you see? Have I given you cause for mistrust?'
'No, merchant,' Kulp said. 'And I see nothing untoward – yet the spells surrounding us are High castings ... I am impressed.'
'Only the best in protection of oneself, of course.'
The ground trembled suddenly and something huge pushed a brown-furred shoulder into the sphere opposite Felisin. The beast's shoulder was almost three arm-lengths high. After a moment the creature growled and withdrew.
'Beasts! They plague this desert! But fear not, none shall defeat my wards. I urge calm.'
Calm, I am very calm. We're finally safe. Nothing can reach us—
Finger-long claws tore a swath down the sphere's blurry wall, a bellow of rage ripping forth to shiver the air.
Nawahl surged upright with surprising speed. 'Back, damned one! Away! One thing at a time!'
She blinked. One thing at a time?
The sphere glowed as the jagged tears closed. The apparition beyond bellowed again, this time in what was clearly frustration. Claws scored another path, which healed even as it appeared. A body thundered against the barrier, withdrew, then tried again.
'We are safe!' Nawahl cried, his face dark with fury. 'It shall not succeed, no matter how stubborn! But still, how shall we sleep in such racket!'
Kulp strode up to the merchant, who unaccountably backed away a step. The mage then turned to face the determined intruder. 'That's a Soletaken,' he said. 'Very strong—'
From where Felisin sat, all that followed appeared in a seamless flow, with something close to grace. As soon as Kulp swung his back to the merchant, Nawahl seemed to blur beneath his silks, his skin deepening into glistening black fur. Sharp spice overpowered the citrus perfume in a hot gust. Rats poured forth, a growing flood.
