few feet of me-inside a pocket of warm air. It doesn't neutralize the cold by any means, but it should keep us from freezing. I've cast a somewhat similar spell on the entire vessel. That's what's keeping ice from forming on the deck right now. Standard stuff, really.'
Asenka stood next to Tresslar and immediately felt even warmer. The artificer might be overly humble of his accomplishments, but there was no denying his skill.
'How far behind are your people?' Tresslar asked.
Asenka reached inside her cloak and beneath her tunic. She wrapped her fingers around the scorpion medallion that hung from her neck, closed her eyes, and concentrated. All the Sea Scorpions wore similar medallions. They didn't permit full telepathic contact, but they did allow their wearers to gain a sense of the others' approximate location.
Asenka opened her eyes and removed her hand from the medallion. 'Not close enough. We'll arrive at Demothi Island two hours before the rest of the Scorpions join us.'
The Sea Scorpions' vessel, the Water Dragon, was a well-made craft and swifter than the Coldhearts' Maelstrom, but she had only minor magical alterations to increase her speed and durability-nothing like what the Zephyr possessed. The best the crew of the Maelstrom could do was sail full out and catch up when they could. At least the winds were strong this night.
Asenka went on. 'The big question is, will we intercept the Coldhearts before they reach the island?'
Hinto responded. 'They left Perhata a half hour or so before we did. At our current rate of speed-and given that they're sailing an ordinary ship…' He paused and looked up at the stars, as if doing a quick mental calculation. 'It'll be close. If we don't catch up to them before they reach the island, we'll get there soon after.'
'You sound like someone who knows what he's talking about,' Asenka said.
Hinto turned to the Sea Scorpion commander and smiled. 'I was born aboard a ship. I've spent more time with my feet on a deck than I have on dry land.'
Asenka nodded, accepting Hinto's assessment.
'What's so awful about Demothi Island?' Tresslar said. 'It must be a particularly nasty place for Haaken to take Diran and Ghaji there instead of just killing them outright.'
'That it is,' Asenka said. 'It's the most terrible place in the Gulf of Ingjald, perhaps in all the Principalities.'
Tresslar snorted. 'No offense, but during my youth I traveled the length and breadth of the Principalities. These waters contain more darkness than you could possibly imagine.'
Asenka bristled at first, but from the artificer's tone it was clear that he wasn't trying to belittle her but simply state what he saw as fact. 'Demothi Island is dark enough. According to legend, almost a thousand years ago an evil priest named Nerthach, a worshipper of the Keeper, traveled to the island and cast a massive spell to raise all those who'd died in the gulf. His motivation for doing so is unclear. Some say he wished to create an army so that he could conquer and rule, while others say he wished to let lose a plague of undead upon the region in honor of the dark god he worshipped. Still others say that he was simply mad. Whatever the reason, Nerthach cast his spell, and it succeeded, but not in the way he intended. Nerthach was transformed into a black-rock statue that stands in the center of the island. This statue possesses two large ebon gems for eyes, and it radiates an evil power that resurrects anyone who dies in the waters of the Gulf of Ingjald. The living dead gather in the waters offshore of Demothi, and when anyone is foolish enough-or unfortunate enough-to make landfall on the island, the undead rise forth from the sea to slay them.'
Hinto's eyes widened after hearing Asenka's tale and he trembled. Tresslar appeared unmoved, though she thought perhaps his face was bit paler than it had been.
'That's quite a story,' the artificer said.
'It's more than that. While no one in his right mind would approach Demothi Island, in the past I had cause to sail nearby once. I peered at the island through a gem of long-seeing and…' She trailed off. 'Let's just say that I saw the legend was true.'
'So you think Haaken plans to maroon Diran and Ghaji there?' Tresslar said. 'On an island full of undead?'
Asenka nodded grimly. 'I'm sure of it.'
Chagai found Cathmore and Galharath on the middle level of the psi-forge facility. This level contained the workshops where once psi-forged parts had been designed, built, and then assembled before imbuing the humanoid constructs with life. When House Cannith had abandoned the facility, they'd removed most of the materials in order to reuse them in other projects, so the workshops on this level were mostly empty, but Chagai's employer and his kalashtar assistant were here-along with a surprise. Inside one workshop, lying upon a table under Cathmore and Galharath's watchful eyes, was a construct whose body was covered with multicolored crystals.
As Chagai entered the workshop, he said, 'Is that what I think it is?'
Cathmore nodded without taking his gaze off the creature on the table. 'It is indeed. This is Solus, the only psi-forged this facility produced before it was shut down. As a matter of fact, he's the reason the facility was abandoned.' Cathmore proceeded to tell Ghaji about how he and Galharath had discovered Solus, and what they'd learned about the psi-forged so far.
Chagai wasn't sure what to make of Cathmore's tale. As far as he was concerned, warforged were nothing more than ambulatory weapons, like a sword with legs and arms. They weren't alive, but if what Cathmore said was true, this creature had somehow absorbed the souls of the four living beings responsible for its creation. The idea was repugnant to Chagai. Orcs lived close to nature, and this monstrosity was about as far away from natural as it was possible to get.
'How was your trip to Perhata?' Galharath asked. 'Did you find what you were looking for?' The smirk on the kalashtar's face said he already had a good idea how Chagai's journey had turned out. Chagai hated working with a telepath.
'I found who I was looking for. It was Ghaji.' The orc turned to Cathmore. 'You were right. Diran Bastiaan travels with him.'
Cathmore's head swiveled toward Chagai with an almost audible snap. 'You are certain of this?'
'I am.'
A cold gleam came into Cathmore's eyes, and though he was a weak old man whom Chagai could slay with a single blow, the orc mercenary nevertheless felt a stab of fear upon seeing the master assassin's gaze.
'Excellent.' Cathmore practically hissed the word. 'You didn't harm them, did you?'
Galharath laughed. 'Are you jesting? Chagai engaged the half-orc in battle, but he broke off and fled before he could get himself killed.'
Rage flooded Chagai, and he reached for his sword. 'The kalashtar lies! I simply wished to warn Ghaji that I was going to be coming for him.' He glared at Galharath. 'Had I wanted to slay Ghaji, I would have done so.'
Chagai knew this last statement was a boast, a fact he was sure Galharath was well aware of, but if the kalashtar said anything more, Chagai intended to draw his blade and see which was swifter: his sword-arm or Galharath's mind.
The kalashtar's eyes narrowed, as if he were gauging the seriousness of Chagai's intent. He must've been convinced, because Galharath held his tongue-for a change.
If Cathmore noticed the exchange between his two associates, he didn't acknowledge it. 'Good, good.' He gazed once more upon Solus and placed one of his vulture-claw hands upon the creature's chest. 'I think it would be prudent of us to put our new friend's abilities to the test. Galharath, can you manipulate Solus's mind so that he will do my bidding?'
The kalashtar thought for a moment. 'Constructs don't have minds in the way you're thinking of. In some ways this makes them simpler to manipulate, but in other ways it's more difficult. As strong as he is, I won't be able to place him permanently under your control-at least not until I've had a chance to study him further-but I might be able to implant a suggestion within his mind that will allow you to command him for a short while. It will take some time for me to do, however.'
Chagai's upper lip curled in disgust. He hated it when Galharath went on like that, mostly because he never had any idea what the kalashtar was talking about.
Cathmore seemed to understand, for he smiled. 'That should do nicely, Galharath, thank you.' The elderly assassin leaned down until his mouth was closed to the tiny opening in the side of Solus's head that served as one of the psi-forged's ears. 'I'd like to introduce you to a former student of mine, Solus, and to an old friend of Chagai's
