Treason Keep

fell apart fairly rapidly. The demon meld collapsed and R’shiel couldn’t hold the coercion. She was discovered within minutes of Terbolt’s appearance. Mahina was arrested. Draco’s dead, by the way. So is Affiana.”

“And just what were you doing while R’shiel was being arrested?” Tarja asked, his voice dangerous. The news that that man who fathered him was dead meant little to him. He was more concerned about Mahina. He was sick with worry about R’shiel.

“I was also being detained – by Zegarnald.”

Damin sat bolt upright and stared at the Harshini in astonishment. “The God of War prevented you from going to the demon child’s aid? That makes no sense. He delivered her to me for safekeeping. Why would he allow her to fall into the hands of his enemies?”

“The Kariens are your enemies, Damin, not Zegarnald’s. Xaphista is his adversary and that’s all he’s interested in.”

“I don’t understand,” Adrina said, giving voice to Tarja’s own confusion.

“The only reason the gods allowed R’shiel to be created was their need to destroy Xaphista. They’re not interested in anything else. The demon child has a job to do and they want to be damned sure she’s capable of doing it.”

“You mean they want to know if she can kill?”

“She can do that readily enough,” Ghari warned her. “Ask anyone who knew her in the rebellion.”

Brak nodded. “That’s not what concerns them. They’re more worried that Xaphista will win her over to his cause. She can kill a god. Which god she destroys is entirely up to her.”

“So they let the Kariens capture her? Isn’t that rather counter-productive?” Damin asked.

“Zegarnald’s theory is that if she is going to succumb to Xaphista, he’d rather know now, before she fully realises what she is capable of.”

“He wants to find out while there’s still a chance she be can killed,” Tarja translated for the benefit of the others. “That’s your job, isn’t it, Brak?”

The Harshini dropped his eyes.

Adrina looked at Tarja in confusion before turning back to Brak. “But what happened to R’shiel?”

“She was taken prisoner.”

“And then what?” Damin asked. He knew Brak, too; knew they had yet to hear the worst of it.

“You recall I said the Kariens transferred another mind into Joyhinia’s body? Well it wasn’t just any mind.” Brak looked straight at Tarja. “It was Loclon’s mind.”

Tarja experienced a moment of such blind, mindless rage that he thought he might explode from it. He didn’t say a word. He just sat there, trembling, clenching his fists in helpless fury. The others looked at him curiously, sensing his mood but unaware of the reason for it. Nobody but Brak, Dace and Tarja knew of what Loclon had done to R’shiel in the past. They did not understand.

“I gather from the look on Tarja’s face that this Loclon is not a very nice person?” Damin asked flippantly. Tarja turned on him with such fury that the Warlord leaned back, out of his reach. “Sorry... Just trying to lighten the mood. I’ll shut up.”

“That would be a very good idea,” Adrina agreed sternly.

Brak resumed his narrative, looking almost as annoyed at Damin as Adrina was. “If you need details, I’ll let Tarja fill you in if he wants to. Suffice to say that Loclon has harmed R’shiel in the past. Enough that he’s probably the only thing in this world she truly fears. R’shiel’s feelings for Joyhinia aren’t much better. Being confronted by both of them in the one body was more than she could take.”

“Did he kill her?” Tarja asked. His voice was colder than the night.

Brak shook his head. “He roughed her up a bit, but he couldn’t risk killing her. But for a few cuts and bruises, physically she’s fine.”

“Physically?”

“You remember the night we escaped the Grimfield?”

“I’m not likely to forget it.”

“Then you recall what happened to R’shiel after she tried to kill Loclon? How she retreated into herself?”

Tarja nodded. “She was like it for days.”

“Well that’s basically what’s happened to her now. She’s alive, she speaks, she eats; but R’shiel is not there.”

“You mean she’s in some sort of coma?” Adrina asked.

“Not exactly. Tarja knows what I mean. He’s seen her like this before.”

“Then how do we wake her?”

“We can’t. She has to come back of her own accord.”

“If she wants to come back,” Dace reminded Brak.

“What do you mean?”

Brak sighed. “Wherever she is, it’s more than likely Xaphista is there too.”

“Then only the gods can reach her? Why don’t you do something, Dacendaran?”

“I’m not allowed to, Damin,” the young god replied. “Zeggie says she has to turn away from Xaphista of her own accord, or when it comes time to face him she’ll simply give in.” He looked around the fire-lit circle of faces, begging for understanding. “Look, I’m going to be in enough trouble for freeing Brak. I’d help if I could, but with all these wars going on, Zegarnald is as strong as he’s ever been. Unless you can start some sort of worldwide crime wave, I haven’t the strength to defy him.”

“Then how can Xaphista get to her?” Tarja asked. He didn’t have the benefit of a pagan education. He was floundering with all this talk of gods.

“Xaphista gains his strength from his believers and he’s got millions of them. That’s why the Primal gods fear him.”

“But she’s half-Harshini, isn’t she?” Damin pointed out. “Why didn’t she just call on her power and escape herself?”

“The priests have blocked her power. They’re using some sort of collar I’ve never seen before. If she tries to touch the source of her power it burns. If she manages to get past that, the pain is intolerable. Not even the demons can reach her.”

Tarja watched Brak, wondering how much of what he told them was conjecture and how much he knew to be fact.

“So what is Xaphista doing to her?” Adrina wondered aloud.

“I doubt if he’s hurting her,” Brak shrugged. “If anything he’ll be trying to coax her to follow him. He doesn’t need to kill R’shiel to remove the threat. He just needs her on his side.”

“So if she defies him, he’ll kill her and if she doesn’t, you’ll kill her anyway,” Tarja concluded bleakly.

Brak didn’t answer; he didn’t have to.

“Where is she, Brak?”

“With the Defenders camped less than two leagues from here. Terbolt is escorting her back to Karien.”

The stunned silence lasted only a moment.

“We have to rescue her,” Almodavar announced.

“How?” Tarja demanded.

“We’ll think of something,” Damin said, with a nod to his captain. “You’re surely not suggesting that we leave her there?”

“Why not? She’s as safe there as anywhere. I’m not going to risk the life of every man here, just so that the moment we get her back Brak can kill her.”

The Harshini stared at him with unreadable black eyes.

“Brakandaran would never...” Damin began, then saw the look on the Harshini’s face. “Gods! You can’t be serious!”

Adrina glanced around at the men angrily. “This is insane! You can’t leave her there. You can’t let them take her back to Karien. They would destroy her, and trust me, I know what I’m talking about! You have to rescue her!”

“It won’t be easy,” Ghari warned. “And if she has turned to Xaphista, she may not want to be rescued.”

“Bollocks!” the Fardohnyan princess spat angrily. “You don’t know what’s happened to her. You have to give