pavilion toward him.
It was very tempting to just seize her and toss her down onto the bed and mount her in that eager violent fashion she seemed to find so agreeable. But there were other matters of import to attend to tonight, and that night, like the day, wouldn't last forever.
When Weisel woke this would be his body again. Dardas didn't have the will or sway to successfully challenge his host full on. Not yet, anyway. Each night, however, Dardas tested his control to its limits. Maybe he could eventually unlock Weisel's command of this body.
Better still, of course, would be to eliminate the Felk nobleman's consciousness altogether. However, Dardas had no idea how or if that could be accomplished.
'We have work to do tonight,' Dardas said to Raven.
She halted before him, angling her body just so, to give him a pleasing view of her outline. 'What work would that be, General?' she asked in a mock-coy tone that was quite sensuous.
Dardas pushed aside his baser impulses and said, 'Work for my chief of Military Security, Raven.'
Raven straightened, the wanton light leaving her eyes. 'Yes, General Weisel,' she said, seriously now.
Dardas nodded. 'You fully understand your authority as the head of Military Security, don't you?'
'I... believe so, General.'
'You wield a great power, Raven. It supersedes even rank. You are this army's defense against treason.'
Raven lifted her elegantly molded chin. 'I shall do everything I can to live up to that.'
'I know that.' Dardas smiled. 'But what if you were to receive information that a visiting dignitary, a high- ranking mage under Lord Matokin's command, was in fact a traitor to all of Felk?'
Raven blinked, but her expression didn't waver. 'I would first want to know the source of this information,' she said evenly.
Dardas nodded. It was a good answer.
He said, '
'Then I would trust your word utterly, sir.'
'Good.' Dardas had been sitting. He rose now. 'I have summoned this mage here. He will be arriving at any moment. He believes he is here on a... medical emergency.'
Now a small frown pinched Raven's lips. 'Medical?' she asked. 'Is someone injured?'
'The mage in question,' Dardas said, 'is here to administer a rejuvenation spell.'
Raven plainly recognized the term. But she looked confused.
'Administer it to whom?' she asked.
'Why'—Dardas blinked—'to you of course, my dear.'
She digested that a brief moment, then nodded. 'I am the bait then?'
'You are.'
'And who is the quarry?'
'I think you may already know the answer to that,' Dardas said, quietly and significantly.
Raven drew a long breath, then let it out. 'Mage Kumbat...' she murmured.
'Correct.'
'The wizard responsible for my resurrection,' Raven said, stunned.
'Again, correct.'
For a moment, she was lost in thought. Then she gathered herself and looked Dardas steadily in the eye. 'What do you wish me to do with him when he arrives, General?'
Dardas smiled appreciatively. This girl was indeed something special. He told her the plan. She nodded as she listened.
Raven saluted. 'It will be done, sir.'
He returned the salute. 'I'm counting on you, Raven.'
Kumbat arrived a short while later. He bustled into the tent after being passed through Weisel's personal guard. The wizard's black robe twirled as he looked all about, seeing only the general present. He frowned.
'General Weisel,' Kumbat said, 'I was told specifically to report to your tent. Where is Raven? The spell must be delivered as soon as possible.'
Dardas stood casually, hands clasped easily behind him.
'Why the hurry, Mage Kumbat?' he asked.
Kumbat gaped. 'By the sanity of the gods, General, you yourself know what she must be going through. It's a very traumatic experience. The rejuvenation spell will end her fear and discomfort. Now, please, where is she?'
He was a conscientious wizard at least, Dardas noted silently. Matokin himself had received the coded Far Speak communication in Felk and had ordered Kumbat hastily Far Moved here.
'Is it unusual that Raven should require the spell so soon after her resurrection?' Dardas asked, his manner still relaxed.
'Well, yes, I suppose, yes, but—' Kumbat fumbled. 'The magic requires a great effort on my part, General. I must prepare and administer it.'
'You see, that's interesting,' Dardas said, ignoring the urgency of the situation. 'I myself know so little about resurrection magic and rejuvenation spells that when you mention any minor aspect about them it's completely fresh news to me. It's very specialized magic, isn't it?'
Kumbat was blinking rapidly, totally off guard.
'It... it is,' he said.
'There must be very few practitioners.'
Kumbat swallowed, visibly. 'There are only three in all the empire.'
'And I'll wager you're the best of the lot, else Matokin wouldn't keep you so close at hand. Modesty be damned, Mage Kumbat, am I correct? Are you the best?'
The wizard was starting to look quite pale, contrasting sharply with the color of his robe.
'I... I am the most skilled at this particular form of magic.' He did not say it proudly. In fact, he sounded rather regretful at the moment.
Dardas smiled. 'I have come to understand that Far Movement magic—another specialized and taxing skill, but one more commonplace than yours—is somewhat dangerous to practice. Not long ago, I had a plan to use those portals as an offensive weapon. It was a rather ingenious application of the magic, but sadly my plan was... vetoed.'
Kumbat retreated a step toward the flap of the pavilion. If he tried to flee he would have a short journey. Dardas had given orders to his guards to admit, but not to allow the mage to leave.
'As far as Matokin knows,' Dardas said, 'you're here tending to Raven. He'll no doubt expect you back in Felk after a plausible amount of time. I will see to it that the proper orders are issued to have you transported there by my Far Movement wizards. Only'—Dardas smiled wider—'you won't be arriving at the other end. Eventually, it will be concluded that you were unfortunately lost in transit. As I said, Far Movement magic is evidently a somewhat dangerous practice.'
Now Kumbat did turn to flee, but he didn't even make it to the flap. Raven rose from behind the trunk where she had been concealing herself, and seized the mage. Kumbat recoiled, fear bright in his eyes.
Raven said, 'By the authority of Military Security, I hereby place you under arrest, Mage Kumbat. You will be detained here in this camp until such time as it is deemed fit to release you, or until further punitive measures will be taken against you.'
Dardas resisted the urge to applaud. Even so, it was a magnificent performance on Raven's part. Here she was, arresting the very man who had brought her back to life. The irony tickled him.
But this wasn't an occasion for levity. He had already made the arrangements with the proper Far Speak and Far Movement wizards under his command to falsify Kumbat's return trip to Felk. Essentially, they would effect a blank delivery through the portals and later claim that they had transported Kumbat. Dardas had handpicked the two wizards, ones that Raven herself had reported as being especially loyal to him.
'But, but, but—' Kumbat sputtered. 'What am I charged with?'
Dardas gestured to Raven.
