“I hear Tecuhtli Zolin in my dream,” Citlali said. “His spirit calls to me from the land of the dead to finish what he started.”
“Zolin is too proud even in death, then,” Niente said, and Citlali barked laughter at that.
“Zolin refused to listen to you, Niente. I’ll listen. If you tell me that Axat says I shouldn’t go, I won’t.”
Niente sat, silently. Do you throw this to me as a test, Axat? he asked, and thought for a moment that he heard the response of Her sinister laughter. “I can’t tell you that, Tecuhtli,” he said.
Citlali laughed again, this time with satisfaction. He clapped his hands together loudly enough in his pleasure that the page outside lifted the flap of the tapestry and peered in momentarily. “I was certain you’d argue against this, Niente,” he roared. “I thought you would warn me of what you saw in the scrying bowl as you did Zolin, and tell me that I was being foolish. I thought you would say that I tempt the gods, and they would strike me down for my arrogance and pride, as they did Zolin.”
Niente smiled, taking another bite of meat as Citlali spoke. No, he would not tell Citlali what he’d seen in the bowl, because Axat had made it clear to him that he must not, not if he wanted the vision of the Long Path to come to fruition. He only bowed his head to the warrior. “I will be at your side, Tecuhtli Citlali, as I was at Zolin’s. I will be your Nahual, and I will look again on the Easterners’ land.”
Citlali rose from his seat-his body was still that of a muscular warrior, but there was the beginning of a paunch around his waist. That explained much of his eagerness to Niente: unlike the Nahual of the nahualli, the Tecuhtli-the highest of the High Warriors-rarely reached old age before a rival arose to challenge and kill him. If Citlali wanted his name to be remembered long after his time, he needed to make his mark on the world.
Ambition: it had killed many of the Tehuantin over the centuries.
“Page!” Citlali called, and the boy slid into the room from outside. “Call the High Warriors-tell them to come here tonight. The Tecuhtli and the Nahual wish to meet with them.” The boy made an obeisance and hurried away. Citlali turned back to Niente, and Niente saw him draw in his stomach self-consciously. “This will be a time of greatness for the Tehuantin,” he said. “Is that what you saw in the bowl, Nahual?”
To that, Niente could nod. “Indeed,” he said. “That is what I saw. Greatness.”
INCARNATIONS
Nico Morel
The blast from the black sand was more powerful and stunning than Nico expected.
The concussion hit his chest like the fist of Cenzi. It fluttered the drapes of the puppet, pummeling the papiermache head so strongly that none of them could hold it upright. The puppet toppled as people screamed and pieces of the Ambassador’s funeral bier began to rain down around them.
“Away!” Nico called to his followers. “Scatter! Quickly!”
The crowd was already fleeing; the gardai were confused and stunned. The Morellis evaporated into the crowd, lost in a few moments. Nico waited a few breaths, staring at the destruction. There were several people down, mostly the Numetodo who had been around the bier-he had no sympathy for death or injuries to them at all. Still, there were onlookers who had been hurt by flying debris. “I’m sorry,” Nico whispered to one of them, a woman bleeding profusely from a cut to the temple. “No one intended for you to be hurt. Cenzi will bless you for the blood you’ve spilled here today, and for your pain.”
He felt Liana tugging at his sleeve. “We have to go,” she said urgently. Nico glanced up. Ambassador ca’Rudka was rising clumsily from the twisted frame of the carriage following the bier; ca’Pallo’s heretic wife Varina was already out, staring in horror at the destruction of the bier. The horses pulling the Kraljica’s carriage had bolted and the driver was trying to bring them to a stop farther down the court, with gardai chasing after them. The blast had knocked the a’teni’s driver from his seat and ended his chant; her carriage had halted untouched well back from the rest.
Nico smiled at that-he hadn’t wished A’Teni ca’Paim any harm.
Where Karl’s body had lain, there was a black hole torn in the stone flags, with debris sprayed for a dozen strides all around. “Thank you, Cenzi,” he prayed, making the sign quickly. “Thank you for permitting me to do Your bidding.” He wondered if Varina would understand the irony of using black sand-the invention of Westlander heretics and recreated by Karl and Varina-against them.
He nodded as Liana tugged at his sleeve again. She was holding the swell of her stomach. “You’re all right?” he asked her, suddenly concerned that she’d been injured.
“I’m fine,” she told him, “but you need to go. Now!”
He shook his head at her. “Go on,” he said to her: calmly, quietly. “I’ll meet you at the house.” She hesitated, and he waved his hand toward her. “Go!” he said again, and this time she obeyed, hurrying away with the waddle of the heavily pregnant.
Nico turned back to the chaos. He watched the gardai from behind a screen of those who had also stayed behind, snared by the sight of all the destruction. He listened to Old Silvernose’s shouting as he tried to organize the rescue. He couldn’t entirely hold back the exultation he felt, though he tried since that was only his own foolish pride tugging at the corners of his mouth. Finally, he walked away slowly, calmly, at peace-as if out for a simple morning stroll.
They could catch him only if Cenzi willed it to be so, and if Cenzi willed such, then Nico would be comfortable with His decision. He was beyond the Kraljica’s or the Archigos’ authority. They could do nothing to him on their own.
So he walked away leisurely, his face solemn. Cenzi held him in His protective hands.
When he reached the safehouse the Morellis had established in Oldtown, a turn of the glass or more later, he entered into an ongoing celebration. Ancel slapped his shoulders; Liana hugged him desperately as the others gathered in the room shouted and grinned.
“A full hand of them dead, that’s what the word on the street is,” Ancel said. “And that bastard ca’Pallo’s body is strewn in bits over the Temple Court for the teni to clean up-that’ll teach the A’Teni to cozy up with the heretics. Too bad the blast spared ca’Pallo’s wife and Old Silvernose.”
Strangely, the glee in Ancel’s face soured Nico’s good mood. He looked at them, at their pleasure, and Cenzi moved in him. He frowned, his face darkening. “Why are you laughing? Why do you grin?” he asked them, and the scorn in his voice wiped the celebration from their mouths. The room went rapidly quiet. Liana released him; Ancel took a step back, his face suddenly crestfallen.
“I’m sorry, Absolute,” Ancel said, spreading his hands in apology. “Didn’t we do as Cenzi asked us to do?”
“We did,” Nico answered him. “And we succeeded only because we have His hands over us. Should we celebrate that? Yes, we’ve sent several of the heretics to Him for His judgment, but we’ve taken away childrens’ vatarhs and matarhs, we’ve shattered their families. We’ve brought hardship on those close to them, and many of them are not our enemy. Many of them are believers. Should we be pleased that we’ve hurt them, that we’ve caused them pain?”
“I didn’t think-” Ancel began, and Nico cut him off with a wave of his hand.
“No, you didn’t. None of you did. Not even me.” He took a breath, and he felt Cenzi’s words filling his mind. “These are lives we’re talking about. These are people who are little different from us. Yes, they’re heretics. Yes, they poison the Holdings and the Faith with their very presence. Yes, they’re our enemies. But they are people nonetheless, and when we cause them pain, we bring pain upon ourselves at the same time.”
He could feel hot tears welling in his eyes, and he didn’t care that they spilled over and ran down his cheeks as his disciples watched. “I don’t mourn a broken cup. I don’t grieve if the strap on my sandal breaks. But I do cry for the Numetodo. I cry because they failed to see the truth. I cry because I could not convince them to follow the truth. I cry because it was given to me to be their executioner. I cry because it pains me to see the waste of their great potential.”
Then he felt Cenzi lift him, and he dragged his sleeve over his eyes as the anger left him. “Ancel,” he said. “I’m sorry. I’m not angry with you. I’m not. You are my right hand, and you’ve done well today. All of you have, and we should be pleased that we were able to demonstrate Cenzi’s power to those who control the Holdings and the
