Klamm fixed me with a disdainful glare. 'My queen! You can't possibly tolerate such insolence!'
'Insolence is my middle name,' I told Klamm. 'Well, actually it's Stephen, but you get the idea.'
The queen of the Demonkin looked at me for a moment, then she smiled and the power that had been building around her disappeared.
'Of course you were going to ask, Matt,' she said, almost fondly. 'It's what you do, isn't it? Ask the questions others are afraid to, go places they won't or can't, all in pursuit of an ideal called Truth that in the end may not even exist.'
'I usually find answers,' I said, trying not to sound defensive.
'Perhaps,' Varvara said, 'but they aren't always the answers you hope to find, are they?'
I didn't reply.
Varvara regarded me for a moment more before turning and walking back to the map table. Klamm joined her, but since no one had extended an invitation to me, I stayed where I was, standing with Devona, Shamika, and Varney. I figured I'd already pushed my luck with Varvara enough for the time being.
'I had nothing to do with the disappearances of the Arcane,' Varvara said. 'Nor did any of my subjects.' She glanced sideways at Klamm. 'At least, not as far as we know. Investigations are ongoing.'
Klamm smiled coldly at that, and I could imagine the excruciatingly agonizing nature of those 'investigations.'
Varvara continued. 'For whatever reason, Talaith has chosen to blame me for the disappearances, and I've been unable to convince her otherwise.'
'Not that you tried very hard,' I guessed. 'After all, a war with Talaith would be too much fun to pass up.'
Varvara's smile held more than a hint of slyness. 'It has been a long time since we've had a decent war,' she admitted. 'The last full-scale conflict between the Dominions was the Blood Wars, and they happened over two centuries ago. We're long overdue for another.'
'And it doesn't bother you that people will die while you and Talaith play soldiers?' I asked.
Varvara gave me a look. 'What part of Demon Queen don't you understand?'
Klamm chose that moment to jump in again. 'Have you considered the possibility that Talaith kidnapped the missing magic-users herself and then blamed Varvara for the crime in order to create an excuse to attack the Sprawl? In fact, the disappearances may have only been a ruse. The magic-users may have hidden themselves at Varvara's command.'
'Papa Chatha would never do that,' I said. 'He may be Arcane, but he's his own man.'
Klamm shrugged. 'Perhaps. Then again, you may not know him as well as you think.'
Despite myself, I couldn't help considering Klamm's words. Before that day, I hadn't known Papa had a niece. What else didn't I know about him?
I glanced at Shamika. She continued to stare at Klamm oddly, but she didn't say anything in defense of her uncle. I wondered if it was because she was too intimidated at being in Varvara's presence or if it was because she had no defense to make.
I told myself to stop heading down that path. Demons are notorious for getting inside your head – sometimes literally – and messing with your mind any number of ways.
'Do you have any proof to back up your suspicions?' I asked Klamm.
'Not yet,' he admitted. 'But as my queen told you-'
'Investigations are ongoing,' I said.
Klamm smiled. 'Indeed.'
'Talaith claims to have proof of Demonkin involvement in the disappearances,' I said. 'Have you seen it?'
Varvara shook her head. 'But even if she did show it to me, I wouldn't trust it. Talaith isn't above manufacturing evidence when it suits her purpose.' 'Neither are you,' I countered.
Klamm shot me a dark look, but Varvara let out a loud earthy laugh.
'True enough! But you know how scheming and vindictive Talaith can be. She makes the rest of us Darklords seem reasonable and even-tempered.'
'I don't know if I'd go that far, but your point is a good one.'
I figured I'd learned as much as I was going to from Varvara, but I wasn't ready to leave yet. I doubted the Demon Queen could be swayed from retaliating against Talaith, but I figured I should at least make the effort. I wasn't going to attempt to appeal to her better nature, since I was fairly certain she didn't have one. Instead, I decided to appeal to her mercenary side. With the best shops, clubs, restaurants, and attractions in Nekropolis, the Sprawl is the city's center of business – both legitimate and otherwise – and a lot of darkgems exchanged hands here. War wouldn't exactly be conducive to the orderly flow of commerce.
'Do you really think attacking Glamere is a good idea? I'm sure it would be emotionally satisfying, but it won't be good for business. With both bridges destroyed, the Sprawl is already cut off from the other Dominions, and that's going to put a dent in profits. And all-out war would be even worse. If the Sprawl becomes a battle zone…'
Klamm answered for Varvara. 'Engineering crews have already been dispatched to rebuild the bridges, along with soldiers to guard them once they're finished.' He smiled smugly. 'If Talaith sends the Weyward Sisters to destroy the bridges again, the witches will find us waiting and ready for them.'
'Talaith won't bother attacking the bridges again,' Varvara said. 'She'll go for a bigger, bolder strike the next time. It's what I would do.' She thought for a moment. 'It's true that a war might adversely affect business in the Sprawl, and I've already met with several nervous representatives of the Merchants' Guild about that very matter. And I'm not unsympathetic to their concerns. I've worked hard to make the Sprawl the most interesting and exciting Dominion in the city, and I have no intention of throwing that away lightly. But there's a lot to be said for a good war, you know. Like a forest fire, it can be a cleansing force, burning away old, tired wood and making room for invigorating new growth.' She flashed a smile. 'Besides, it's fun!'
'So your main reason for going to war – aside from getting back at Talaith – is that it will give you a chance to remodel?' I shook my head in disgust. 'You know, sometimes you Darklords are more like kids with Attention Deficit Disorder than immortal monsters.'
In response, Varvara's smile only grew wider.
'The queen's forest fire analogy is particularly apt at the moment,' Klamm said. He bent over the map table, typed a command on the keyboard, and then moved his index finger over the mouse pad. The hologram of Nekropolis blurred and reformed into a detailed image of Glamere, the Dominion Talaith ruled. I haven't spent much time there, considering how much Talaith despises me, but I recognized the more prominent features: the Valley of Silence, the Interstitial Maze, Reversion River, and the Greensward. In the middle of the latter stood Woodhome, Talaith's stronghold, a gigantic tree which contained dozens of interior chambers that had formed organically as it grew.
I had a bad feeling about this. 'You're not going to attack Woodhome, are you?' If Varvara made a direct strike on Talaith's stronghold, the Witch Queen would be so furious that not even Father Dis would be able to stop the war then. Worse, it might drag the other three Darklords into the conflict. Galm, Amon, and Edrigu would sit back and watch Varvara and Talaith fight it out as long as their dispute didn't spill over into the other Dominions. But it would be a different story if either of the women attacked the other's stronghold. While the Darklords had fought against one another in ways large and small over the centuries, by unspoken agreement they had never attacked another Lord's stronghold. If Varvara broke that custom now, the other Darklords might decide she'd gone too far and join forces against her. If that happened, the destruction Devona and I had witnessed in the alternate Nekropolis would pale in comparison to the devastation a five-way battle between Darklords would wreak on the city.
'It's tempting, I'll admit,' Varvara said, 'but no, we're not going to attack Woodhome.' She smiled darkly. 'Just the next best thing.' She nodded to Klamm, and he pressed a button on the map table's console. The Demon Queen then waved her hand and the walls of her penthouse became transparent. I'd always assumed Varvara's quarters didn't have windows because she didn't want to be vulnerable to a possible attack by another Darklord – and because she didn't want anyone spying on the more lascivious activities she indulged in with playmates of either sex – but now I understood that the walls were windows… when she wanted them to be, anyway.
Vibrations juddered through the floor, and the entire building shook around us, as if in the grip of an
