repairable, she was severely damaged by fire. Khristos’ goal wasn’t to take Tammerland or to see how many people he could kill. The attack on the capital was only a ruse designed to draw the Conclave and our forces away from the palace so that he could steal one Black Ship and destroy the other. I’m sorry to say that he nearly succeeded.”
Shailiha looked away in shame. “It’s my fault,” she said softly. “I ordered us straight into it.”
“No,” Faegan said. “We’re all to blame. Even Traax agreed that we needed to rush every available warrior into the heart of Tammerland. But there is other news, Your Highness, and it grieves me deeply to be its bearer.”
“Is it about Tristan?” she asked urgently.
“No,” Faegan answered. “He, Wigg, and Tyranny have finally reached Shashida and they are safe. The others remain aboard the Black Ships. But during the fighting in Tammerland we lost a valuable Conclave member.”
Shailiha closed her eyes. “Who…?” she asked.
“Abbey is dead,” Faegan answered. “I am sorry.”
Heartbroken, Shailiha sank lower in her bed. She had loved Abbey, as they all had. Then she thought about Wigg and how badly her death would hurt him.
“Does Wigg know?” she asked.
“I can’t say,” Faegan answered. “As we speak, he, Tristan, and Tyranny are conferring with Mashiro and the otherInkai members for the first time.”
“Mashiro…?” Shailiha asked. “That’s a strange-sounding name.”
“Indeed,” Faegan answered. “The Shashidan dialect contains far more idiosyncrasies than we had imagined. In any event, Tristan, Wigg, and Tyranny were rendered unconscious when the Shashidans took them into their portal to help finish their journey. While Tristan was unconscious they used his medallion to contact us. They told us much about themselves, including how they knew that you had been injured. But they cut the session short so that they could give us an enchantment to apply to your blood. They promised that after their meeting with Tristan they would contact us again.”
Despite all the bad news, a mischievous smile crossed Faegan’s face. “We’ve done it, Shailiha!” he said. Slapping his hand against one knee he let go a self-satisfied cackle. “At long last we’ve reached Shashida!”
Shailiha wanted to demand that Faegan tell her everything that he had learned about Shashida, but her sense of duty returned to insist that the situation in Eutracia take precedence. Putting her curiosity aside for the moment, she asked, “Has Khristos been sighted since the last attack?”
“No,” Faegan answered. “Even so, there’s good news regarding him.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
Faegan gave the princess a conspiratorial wink. “TheInkai know much about him,” Faegan answered. “They explained how he appears and disappears at will and why he is trying to destroy the Conclave. Because he is a Vagaries wizard, he feels compelled to destroy the Vigors but the full answer goes far deeper than that. And as has so often been the case, the explanation has to do with Failee.”
For the next half hour Faegan told the princess about how Khristos and the embryonic vipers had been condemned into the river by Failee, how and why they had finally arisen after all this time, and that theInkai suspected that Khristos was now in the service of thePon Q’tar. TheJin’Saiou listened intently, hanging on the wizard’s every word. When he finished, she tiredly nodded her head.
“That explains much,” she said. “But because they can hide in Eutracia’s many rivers and use them to travel about unseen, finding and killing them will be very difficult. It’s no wonder that our Night Witches couldn’t find them. They can seek refuge anywhere a river runs.”
“There’s more to the tale,” Faegan said, “but theInkai did not relate it to us. They wanted to be sure that you were looked after first. In any event, they said that they might be able to help us destroy Khristos and his vipers- not by direct intervention, but in some oblique way. I can only hope that they will tell us how when we next view each other.”
Just then Faegan and Shailiha saw an azure hue build on the room’s far side. The glow soon revealed a large hourglass sitting atop a table. As Shailiha looked at it, she saw that a few remaining sand grains were tumbling from the top globe into the bottom one. When the last grain fell, the azure hue disappeared.
“The thirteen hours are up,” Faegan said. “It’s time to check your vision. Close both eyes. Do not open them until I tell you.”
Shailiha’s heart hammered in her chest. With her eyes shut she saw only darkness. Is this all that my left eye will ever see again? she wondered. Knowing that she must resign herself to whatever Faegan wanted, she took a deep breath, then nodded her assent.
Faegan moved his chair closer and gently removed the dark patch and its strap from her face and head. As the patch was lifted away, the temptation to open her eyes gripped the princess, but she did as she had been told and kept them shut.
For several moments she felt Faegan’s fingertips gently explore her left cheek and eyelid. Waiting in silence this way was torturous, and she desperately wanted to open her eyes and learn the truth. Then she remembered that this was Faegan she was dealing with and that only what he wished to happen would come to pass. As the maddening seconds went by she could only wait and wonder. Finally his probing fingers left her skin.
“You may now open your eyes, Princess,” Faegan said. “Tell me what you see. Allow your vision to adjust, and be in no hurry to answer.”
Hoping against hope, Shailiha opened her eyes. Several moments later her heart fell. To her horror, her overall vision was worse than when she had worn the eye patch. The scene coming through her left eye was milky, as if a white fog covered it. The vision in her right eye was fine, but with her left eye so badly occluded, she found herself in the dreadful position of nearly asking Faegan to put back the eye patch. Although while wearing the patch her depth perception was flawed, at least the milky fog wasn’t visible. Tears welled up, but she grimly blinked them back.
Sensing the worst, Faegan looked at his hands. Soon the telltale shininess in his eyes rivaled hers.
“Tell me,” he said softly.
“My left eye is blind,” she answered.
“Is it totally blind,” he asked gently, “or only occluded? TheInkai said that occlusions might persist for a time before clearing, but there are no guarantees. Place your hand over your right eye and tell me what you see.”
Shailiha did as Faegan asked. She looked around the room to find that she could see shimmers of candlelight and irregular shapes mixed with the fog, but little else. After lowering her hand she explained her findings to the wizard.
“Do not be discouraged,” he said. “As I said, theInkai warned that this might be the case. In the meantime I suggest that you wear the eye patch and let your damaged eye rest.”
“Before I do, I want the mirror,” she said adamantly. “I must know…”
After thinking for a moment, Faegan nodded, then reluctantly gave her the mirror. Shailiha raised it before her injured face without hesitation. As the shock overcame her she took a quick breath.
At first she didn’t recognize herself. Her left iris had been invaded by a milky-white substance and the skin around her eye was red and swollen. Then she looked at the left side of her face. Deep red pock marks pitted her cheek, neck, and jawline. Closing her eyes, she lowered her head.
“The damage to your skin will heal,” Faegan said, “and the pain and stiffness in your joints and muscles will eventually subside. But I cannot say what added progress your left eye might make.”
Finding that she had no words, Shailiha only nodded. When she had first realized that she was wearing an eye patch, she would have gladly done anything to be rid of it. But as Faegan gently put it back into its place and her vision was no longer occluded, she found wearing the simple black piece of felt and accompanying string to be strangely reassuring. Steeling her resolve, she looked Faegan squarely in the face. What was done was done. It was time for her to start giving orders rather than taking them.
“Help me out of this bed,” she demanded.
Faegan shook his head. “No,” he protested. “You need to rest.”
Summoning what strength she had, Shailiha reached out to take hold of Faegan’s worn black robe and pull him nearer. The wizard curiously raised one eyebrow, reminding her of Wigg. He could easily have used the craft to stop her but he didn’t.
“I’m quite serious,” she said. “Get me on my feet. If I am to rule Eutracia in Tristan’s absence, I refuse to do so from my bed!”
