The High Lord

slid aside, and the chill air of the underground tunnels spilled into the room.

Of course, she thought. She remembered the nights she had spent exploring the passages under the Guild, until Akkarin found her and ordered her out. She had followed one to this room. The shock of finding herself on the threshold of his secret domain had sent her hurrying away, and she had never returned to explore farther along the passage.

It must lead to the city, if what Akkarin says is true.

Akkarin entered the passage, turned and beckoned to her. Sonea took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Walking to the opening, she followed him into darkness.

The lantern wick spluttered and a flame appeared. She wondered briefly why he bothered with an ordinary light source, then realized that, if he wasn't wearing robes, he intended to remain disguised as a non-magician. No non-magician would be following a globe light.

If it's important that nobody recognizes him, then I have something I can use against him tonight, if I need to.

As she expected, he led off in the opposite direction to the University. He continued for over two hundred strides, then slowed to a stop. She sensed the vibration of a barrier blocking the way. A faint ripple of light flashed across the passage as the barrier dissipated. He continued on without speaking a word.

He stopped three more times to dismantle barriers. After they had passed the fourth, Akkarin turned and recreated it behind them. Sonea looked back. If she had dared to continue past Akkarin's underground room during her previous exploration, she would have encountered these barriers.

The passage curved slightly to the right. Side passages appeared. Akkarin turned into one without hesitation, and their path twisted through several crumbling rooms. When he stopped again they faced a fall of rocks and earth where the roof had caved in. She looked at him questioningly.

His eyes glittered in the lamplight. He stared at the blockage intently. A dry scraping sound filled the passage as stones crumpled inward to form rough stairs. A hole appeared at the top. Akkarin set his foot on the first tread and began to climb.

Sonea followed. At the top was another passage. The lamplight revealed rough walls made from a patchy mixture of small low-quality bricks. The air smelt damp and familiar. This place reminded her strongly of... of...

The Thieves' Road.

They had entered the tunnels under the city used by the criminal underworld. Akkarin turned and gazed back down the stairs. The treads slid forward to block the stairwell. Once they were in place, he started down the passage.

Questions began crowding Sonea's thoughts. Did the Thieves know that the High Lord of the Magicians' Guild used their passages, and that there were tunnels under the Guild that connected with their own? She knew they guarded their domain carefully, so she doubted he had avoided their notice. Had he gained their permission to use the road, then? She considered his rough clothing. Perhaps he had gained it using a false identity.

Several hundred paces on, a thin man with bleary eyes stepped out from an alcove and nodded to Akkarin. He paused to stare at Sonea, obviously surprised at her presence, but said nothing. Turning away, he started down the passage before them.

Their silent guide set a rapid pace, taking them on a long journey through a twisting, complex labyrinth of passages. Slowly Sonea became aware of an odor she knew but could not put a name to. It changed as much as the walls, but something about the changeability of the smell was also familiar. It wasn't until Akkarin stopped and rapped on a door that Sonea realized what she was smelling.

It was the slums. The smell was a mix of human and animal waste, sweat, garbage, smoke and bol. Sonea swayed as memories rushed over her: of working with her aunt and uncle, of sneaking out to join Cery and the gang of street urchins they hung about with.

Then the door opened and she returned to the present.

A large man filled the doorway, his rough shirt stretched over a broad chest. He nodded respectfully at Akkarin, then, as he looked at her, he frowned as if he recognized her face but wasn't sure why. After a moment he shrugged and stepped aside.

'Come in.'

Sonea followed Akkarin into a tiny room, barely large enough to fit the three of them and a narrow cupboard. On the opposite side was a heavy door. Sonea detected a vibration about it and realized it was strengthened by a strong magical barrier. Her skin prickled. What, in the slums, could possibly need such a potent binding?

The man turned to regard Akkarin. From his hesitant and anxious manner, Sonea guessed he knew who his visitor was - or at least enough to know he was facing someone important and powerful.

'He's awake,' he rumbled, casting a fearful look at the door.

'Thank you for watching him, Morren,' Akkarin said smoothly.

'No rub.'

'Did you find a red gem on him?'

'No. Searched him good. Found nothing.'

Akkarin frowned. 'Very well. Stay here. This is Sonea. I will send her out in a while.'

Morren's eyes snapped to hers.

'The Sonea?'

'Yes, the living, breathing legend,' Akkarin replied dryly.

Morren smiled at her. 'Honored to meet you, my lady.'

'Honored to meet you, Morren,' she replied, bemusement overcoming her anxiety for a moment. Living, breathing legend?

Taking a key from his pocket, Morren inserted it in the door's lock and twisted. He stepped back, allowing Akkarin to approach. Sonea blinked as she sensed magic surround her. Akkarin had created a shield about them both. She peered around his shoulder, tense with curiosity. Slowly the door swung outward.

The room beyond was small. A stone bench was the only furniture. On the bench lay a man, his legs and arms manacled.

As the man saw Akkarin his eyes filled with terror. He began to struggle weakly. Sonea stared at him in dismay. He was young, probably not much older than her. His face was broad and his skin a sickly brown. His thin arms were covered in scars, and a fresh cut fringed in dried blood ran down one forearm. He did not look as if he could harm anything.

Akkarin moved to the man's side, then placed a hand on his forehead. The captive's eyes widened. Sonea shivered as she realized Akkarin was reading the man's mind.

His hand shifted abruptly and he grasped the captive's jaw. At once the man closed his mouth tightly and began to struggle. Akkarin prised open the man's mouth. Sonea caught a glimpse of gold, then Akkarin tossed something on the floor.

A gold tooth. Sonea took a step backward, appalled, then jumped as the man began to laugh.

'They have stheen your woman now,' he said in a thickly accented voice, hampered by the missing tooth. 'Kariko sthays sthee will be histh after he killsth you.'

Akkarin smiled and glanced at her. 'What a pity neither you or I will be alive to see him try that.'

He lifted a foot and stamped on the tooth. To Sonea's surprise, it crunched under his boot. When he stepped away, she was surprised to see that the gold had split, and tiny fragments of red littered the floor.

Sonea frowned at the twisted lump that had been the tooth, trying to make sense of the exchange. What had the man meant? 'They have seen your woman.' Who were 'they.' How could they have seen her? Clearly it had something to do with the tooth. Why put a gem inside a tooth? And it obviously wasn't a gem. It looked as if it had been glass. As she considered the fragments, she remembered that Akkarin had asked if Morren had found a red gem. The famous murderer wore a ring with a red gem. And Lorlen.

She looked at the captive. He was completely limp now. He stared at Akkarin fearfully.

'Sonea.'

She looked at Akkarin. His eyes were cold and steady.

'I have brought you here to answer some of your questions,' he told her. 'I know you will not believe me unless you see the truth for yourself, so I have decided to teach you something that I never intended to teach anyone. It is a skill that can too easily be abused, but if you—'

'No!' She straightened her back. 'I will not learn—'