resting upon the ground, and their four tails twined together at the top of the pyramid. The serpent that decorated the front of the pyramid had its mouth open wide, and its fangs looked as though they were solid silver.
Arvin suppressed his shudder as he followed the officer into the mouth. It reminded him a little too closely of Sseth. The mouth was open wide enough that Arvin could walk upright, but an edge of the officer's flared helmet scraped against one of the silver fangs, causing him to duck.
A smooth ramp led down to a chamber filled with soft green light. The walls were carved to resemble scales. A forest of serpent-shaped columns held the weight of the pyramid above at bay. A sweet scent lingered in the air under the heavy musk of snake-osssra, Arvin realized a moment later. Though the braziers that dotted the floor were cold and dark, the stone walls were impregnated with the stuff.
More militia-six halfblood officers, two of them armed with wands-stood guard in front of a gilded statue: one of the stations of Sseth. The god was depicted in his twin-tailed form, his tails encircling a black obsidian globe that represented the world. Wings flared out from his shoulders, and under each wing was an arched entry. These led to corridors that curved away to the right and left.
The officers bowed as Arvin approached. One of them touched a hand to his helm. 'Shall I inform Lady Dediana of your imminent arrival, Lord Extaminos?'
'No,' Arvin ordered. 'Tell no one.'
Confusion flitted across the officer's faoe but was quickly hidden by his bow. 'As you command, Lord Extaminos.'
Arvin waited for Captain Vreshni to indicate which of the corridors led to the portal. The captain did a moment later by turning slightly toward the left entrance. Arvin strode into it as if he'd known all along which route to take. The captain scurried after him.
The corridor spiraled down past slit windows that opened onto a central room. Just like the room in the temple under Hlondeth, it was dominated by a dais of black obsidian. The snakes that had once slithered around it were dead. They'd been reduced to ash; a burned stench lingered in the air. Judging by the scorches on the walls, someone must have let loose a blast of magical fire-one of House Extaminos's wizards, perhaps.
Just as in Sibyl's lair in Hlondeth, the portal room's only other exit was framed by the beastlord's snarling face-it probably led to a similar temple. More militia stood guard in front of the exit, looking alert and watchful. Captain Vreshni indicated a path had been cleared through the ash, allowing passage to the dais.
'If you please, Lord Extaminos.'
Arvin started to thank him, then remembered whom he was impersonating. 'Go,' he said curtly, dismissing him.
The captain bowed his way out of the room.
Arvin took a deep breath then stepped onto the dais. For several heartbeats, nothing happened. Then the portal activated. He felt a dizzying lurch-and found himself standing in the same room as before.
No, not the same. The corridor beyond the beast- lord's face was choked with rubble and the lantern light was stronger here. Arvin could hear soft breathing and the creak of a crossbow being drawn. Whoever was guarding this room was invisible.
Refusing to flinch, Arvin drew himself up and glanced imperiously around the seemingly empty chamber. As he did, he manifested the power that would allow him to listen in on their thoughts.
There-one of them was casting a spell. It was divination magic: a spell that would confirm whether the visitor who had arrived so abruptly was, indeed,
Hlondeth's missing prince. As the spell quickened, Arvin slid deeper into her mind and neatly snipped out the memory of what her magic had revealed: a human who bore no resemblance whatsoever to Lord Dmetrio. He spliced an image of his metamorphosed form into the hole he'd just created then withdrew.
'Show yourself,' he commanded.
A yuan-ti appeared before him. She was a dark- haired woman with yellow scales, wearing the hlgh-collared robe of Sseth's clergy. One hand held a snake-headed staff that rested on the floor. She frowned for a moment, like someone who'd just walked into a room and forgotten what they'd been looking for, then bowed.
'Lord Extaminos,' she said. 'Welcome back. Your mother will be pleased to hear that you have returned.'
'Do not inform her… quite yet,' Arvin said.
The cleric, straightening, arched an eyebrow.
'There is someone else I must speak with first.'
Her thoughts bubbled with curiosity. She held her tongue-but not her magic. Arvin felt energy surge from Karrell's ring, up through his arm and into his mind, shielding it. For just an instant, he slipped the ring from his finger and concentrated on a familiar face-Zelia's-filling his mind with it until the image crowded every other thought out. Then the ring was back on his finger again.
The cleric's lips parted in a smile, baring the tips of her fangs. She hid it behind a bow. 'I will escort you, Lord Extaminos. During the attack by the Se'sehen, a number of humans took the opportunity to… cause some problems. The streets are still not entirely secure.'
She was thinking about Gonthril. The rebel leader and his followers had been stirring up trouble, it seemed. More than that, several sections of the city,
including a stretch of its waterfront, had fallen into human hands, but once the militia returned from down south, she was thinking, all that would end. The uprising would be crushed and the slaves who had dared to claim their freedom would be put back in their place.
'You will show me to the surface, then resume your duties here,' Arvin commanded.
'As you wish,' the cleric demurred.
Her thoughts told him much more. Lady Dedian a had grown suspicious of Zelia of late, suspicious of the hold the mind mage seemed to have over the royal son. The queen suspected a plot-and 'Dmetrio's' insistence on not telling his mother about his return had confirmed it. He would be watched. Carefully.
Arvin smiled to himself. Years of working for the Guild had taught him how to slip away from even the most persistent watchers, and his psionics would take care of any who was armed with magic. Meanwhile, the cleric would confirm Lady Dediana's fears. If Arvin was unsuccessful in his bid to take Zelia down, House Extaminos would surely finish the job.
For the moment, however, there was someone he needed to make contact with, someone he needed to persuade to help if his plan was to come to fruition.
'Your concern for my well being is… appreciated,' he told the cleric, 'but also unfounded. I can take care of myself.'
Arvin stared across the table at Gonthril. The rebel leader hadn't bothered to disguise himself, save for the cloak hood he'd just allowed to fall back against his shoulders. His rebels-for the moment-had control of the waterfront, including one particular tavern.
The Mortal Coil.
Arvin smiled when Gonthril had suggested it as a meeting place. When Arvin had used a sending to contact Gonthril, he'd wondered if the rebel leader would bother to reply. It had been a year since they'd last seen one another. That they were meeting in the place where Arvin's troubles had begun was ironic. The head of the serpent was closing in on the tail.
Though the harbor outside was nearly empty of ships-most had fled when the Se'sehen attack began-the tavern was just as Arvin remembered it. Pipe smoke had stained the coiled-rope ceiling that had given the place its name, and the air still smelled of unwashed sailors and ale. The circular walls were still damp and the benches were as hard as ever. The only 'patrons,' however, were Gonthril's people, who stood alert and ready, crossbows in hand. Nobody was behind the bar-and nobody was drinking.
Gonthril looked the same but somehow older, aged by a year of hiding and fighting. Arvin, too, had aged. The two men still looked as close as brothers. Gonthril's eyes, however, were blue, and the little finger of his left hand was whole.
'You said you had something to offer me?' he asked. 'Something I would find valuable?'
Arvin nodded and leaned forward in his chair. 'Information.'
'About what?'
'House Extaminos. Its secrets… and its weaknesses. Everything your uprising needs to succeed.'
