A short while later, Fra-Ichtaca began to stir, groaning as she lifted her head. She had a cut surrounded by some bruising on the side of her forehead, presumably caused by whatever Zandrue had done to incapacitate her. She blinked her eyes several times before focusing them on Zandrue.

“I knew Ses-Xipil would make a move against me eventually,” Fra-Ichtaca said, her voice hoarse. Fear was flowing from her—fear of Zandrue, fear of events, and mostly fear of Felitïa, whom she had not looked at.

“But I guess you didn’t expect it so soon,” Zandrue said. She pulled up a seat in front of the priest. “Well?”

Fra-Ichtaca scowled. “What do you want of me?”

“Just information,” Zandrue answered.

“And then you kill me?”

Zandrue shrugged. “Or I let you go. Believe it or not, I don’t get a thrill out of killing people.”

“Then we have something in common,” Fra-Ichtaca said, “because neither do I, but I’ll do it if I need to, and so will you.”

“Know me that well, do you?”

“I know your kind. We’re a lot alike, you and I.”

“Oh?”

“Determined women who won’t let anything stand in our way.” Her voice shook and she looked up at Felitïa for the first time. “We’re not alone in that regard.”

“Oh that,” Zandrue said. “I suppose there’s a bit of that in all of us. Are you prepared to answer questions?”

Fra-Ichtaca looked up at Felitïa again and her fear got stronger. She nodded. “I’ll answer your questions.”

“She’s afraid if she doesn’t, I’ll force her,” Felitïa said.

Fra-Ichtaca nodded. “Yes, I am.”

Felitïa wanted to tell her that wouldn’t happen, but Zandrue jumped in first. “Best not put it to the test then.”

“May I have some water first?” the priest asked.

“Corvinian, bring some water,” Felitïa said.

Corvinian collected the water they had already prepared and brought it forward. When Fra-Ichtaca saw him, her fear blossomed into rage. “You took him!” she screamed at Zandrue. Corvinian backed away from her.

“Took him back, yes,” Zandrue said. “You stole him in the first place.”

The priest turned her head to look at Corvinian. “Cakulha, have they harmed you at all?”

Corvinian shook his head slowly.

“What about Xtab? Where is Xtab? If you’ve harmed her...”

“She’s fine,” Zandrue said. “Last I saw her, she was sleeping soundly in her bed in your villa completely unharmed.”

“Cakulha, bring me that water. Let me look on you.”

Corvinian edged forward again, brought the cup to her lips. “Here...Reverence.”

Her body slumped and some of her anger turned to despair. “To them, I am Reverence. To you...Will they not let you call me mother?” She glared at Zandrue. “How could you deny him that?”

“You’re not my mother!” Corvinian screamed and splashed the water in her face, then ran behind Felitïa. “You’re not Xtab’s either!”

“I am your mother!” Fra-Ichtaca cried. “I may not have birthed you, but I have cared for you like you were my own.”

“You did experiments on me!”

“Yes, because they’re necessary. Do you know what Sonna and Ses-Xipil plan to do to you? To access your powers, they plan to kill you. And they have the means to do it! I am trying to find a way to access your powers without killing you. I’m doing it for your own good. So you can grow up and remain at Xtab’s side, help her raise her children, be her bodyguard. You’ll have a good life. I love you, Cakulha. Both you and Xtab.”

“No you don’t,” Corvinian said. “You just love the power you’ll get from making Xtab queen.”

Tears ran down Fra-Ichtaca’s face. “No. It’s so much more than that. You must believe me.”

“You’re not my mother. My mother’s dead.”

Fra-Ichtaca closed her eyes and lowered her head. Her rage was gone now, replaced by a sea of emotions, the strongest of which were fear, sadness, affection, and even love. “Will-Breaker, I don’t know what deal you’ve made with Ses-Xipil and her pet assassin here, but I will do anything you want of me if you will only promise me to do all in your power to protect Xtab and Cakulha from harm.”

Felitïa sat down at the table. “I haven’t made any deals with Ses-Xipil, or her...” She glanced at Zandrue, who looked aside. “Assassin. I came here specifically to rescue Corvinian...err...” She looked at Zandrue again. “Nin?” Zandrue nodded. “Nin-Cakulha. I certainly don’t mean him any harm. Or your daughter.”

Fra-Ichtaca raised her head and peered at her through narrowed eyes. “That is all you came here for, and yet you march into the Palace, disrupt everything...”

Felitïa sighed. “That was a mistake. I didn’t know where Corvinian was, and Nin-Chicahua had promised me access to the secret writings. I was hoping reading them might give me some clue about who I am and somehow that might help me find Corvinian.”

“And in doing so, you’ve brought calamity to us.”

“Perhaps.”

“Careful, Felitïa,” Zandrue said. “Don’t let her get to you. She’s a Darker.”

Fra-Ichtaca groaned. “Darker. Servant of Sunset. Call me what you will, but I am Ninifin first and foremost. I just happen to have pledged my allegiance to the Dark Lady.”

“But why?” Felitïa asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Why pledge yourself to the Dark Lady?”

She took several moments to answer, and Felitïa could sense uncertainty from her. “Because I believe in her teachings.”

“What are those teachings?”

“Felitïa,” Zandrue said, “I think we’re getting a little off track.”

Felitïa nodded. “Yes, you’re right. Sorry.”

“How many Volgs are there beneath the Temple?” Zandrue asked.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“Two to three dozen,” Fra-Ichtaca said. “It varies. They come and go.”

“How?” Zandrue asked.

Felitïa answered, “There’s an underground passage that goes to the confluence of the rivers, apparently. That must be what they’re using.”

Fra-Ichtaca nodded.

“Why do the Volgs call Corvinian...Nin-Cakulha...the Child of the Volgs?” Felitïa asked.

“They believe they can use his power to give them the strength to force the other nations of the world to allow them to live away from their island prison,” Fra-Ichtaca said. “They consider him their saviour. Thus, their child. Or something like that.”

Felitïa felt a twinge of mixed emotions from Zandrue as Fra-Ichtaca spoke. Anxiety was the strongest of them, though they all came and went quickly.

“How do they intend to achieve this?” Felitïa asked.

“He is the vessel of incredible power, but they have developed a way to neutralise and contain his power. They believe that if he dies, that power will be released as raw energy they can collect.”

“Have you read the secret writings?”

Fra-Ichtaca laughed. “Some of them. I’m not supposed to have, but they’re not difficult to gain access to. I haven’t had time to read all of them though.”

“What about me? Have you read the parts about me?”

Fra-Ichtaca smiled and nodded. There was a perverse glee coming from her. “I have read those parts, yes. Would you like to know what they say?”

“Don’t trust her, Felitïa,” Zandrue said. “Read them for yourself.”

Felitïa nodded. “Yes, I’ll need to read them anyway.”

“You trust this assassin?” Fra-Ichtaca said. “Ses-Xipil’s protégé? She wants to kill the boy you came to rescue. My son.”

Felitïa looked to Zandrue. “Yes, I do trust her, despite her secrets.”

“She and Ses-Xipil belong to an organisation of assassins who infiltrate governments and other places of power around the world.”

“I don’t care.” That was a bit of a lie, but she didn’t want to hear it from this person. She wanted to give Zandrue the chance to tell her herself.

“You promised me you would not let harm come to Cakulha!”

“And I’ll keep that promise. Zandrue won’t harm him. She’s not who you think she is.”

“What do you mean?” Fra-Ichtaca’s eyes turned to Zandrue.

“I’m not with Ses-Xipil,” Zandrue said. “I used her to infiltrate your organisation and rescue Corvinian. Ses-Xipil didn’t betray you. I betrayed you both. I’ve been with Felitïa from the start.”

“Then when she finds out...”

Felitïa felt hope rising in the priest, which dropped when Zandrue spoke again.

“She’s dead. She died in the attack on the Palace tonight. She never knew about my betrayal and never will.”

Fra-Ichtaca’s head whipped round to look at Felitïa again. “You planned this all along. Your arrival in the Palace wasn’t a mistake. It was a distraction.”

Again, Felitïa considered correcting Fra-Ichtaca on this, but she hesitated too long and Zandrue jumped in. “Exactly. And you fell for it.”

A scraping and scuffling sound came from up the stairs. Felitïa looked to Zandrue, who jumped to her feet.

Fra-Ichtaca smiled, and hope flowed from her again. “Guards come to look for me. Down here! The Will-Breaker is here!”

Zandrue raised her hand as if to slap the priest, but drew back and hurried over to the bottom of the stairs.

“Thanks,” a familiar voice said. “We’ll be sure to be on our guard.”

Felitïa felt a surge of excitement and anxiety from Zandrue, who was smiling.

Rudiger came down the stairs. He paused just before the bottom, staring at Zandrue. Behind him was Nin-Akna and behind her, Meleng.

“Hey,” Zandrue said.

Rudiger didn’t reply. Nin-Akna nudged him in the back.

Zandrue’s smile flattened and she backed away, allowing Rudiger and the others to pass her. Rudiger edged around her, watching her the whole time, but avoiding physical contact.

“Meleng!” Corvinian said and ran forward, throwing his arms around the surprised Eloorin.

“Corvinian?” Meleng said.

“Hey kid,” Rudiger said. “Good you see you! Where have you—?”

Nin-Akna had marched straight to Fra-Ichtaca. Now she was beside her, she slammed her fist right into the side of the priest’s face. Fra-Ichtaca fell over sideways, pulling her chair with her. She landed on her side on the floor with a clatter.

Felitïa jumped to her feet. “Nin-Akna, we were—” She instinctively put her hands down as she rose, putting pressure on her broken fingers. Pain shot through her and she cried out.

“She may not have thrust the spear, but she is responsible for the Queen’s death!” Nin-Akna said. “She deserves far worse than what I just gave her. Almost everyone I’ve ever known and loved is dead because of her!”

“We’ve been questioning her,” Felitïa said through gritted teeth. The pain was not subsiding.

On the floor, Fra-Ichtaca was trying to squirm away. Her chair was buckling and there was a crack in one of the legs. Rudiger came over, picked her and the chair up, and set them upright on the floor. A bruise was forming on the side of her face and blood dripped from the corner of her mouth.

“I don’t think this chair will hold much longer,” Rudiger said.

Zandrue slid another chair over. “Move her to this one.”

Rudiger looked at Zandrue for a moment, then nodded. Zandrue began untying Fra-Ichtaca’s bonds, while Rudiger gripped the priest’s shoulders to hold her in place.

Nin-Akna turned away and came over beside Felitïa. There was rage coming from her, but it was diminishing. “I’m sorry, but Inhuan is dead now, too, because of her.”

Felitïa closed her eyes a moment and sighed. She deserved the pain in her hands right now. So many deaths. Nin-Akna had a right to be upset. “I’m sorry, too. And I’m very sorry about Ses-Inhuan.”

Nin-Akna nodded, then returned to Fra-Ichtaca, who was now bound in the new chair. “Can you still talk?”

Fra-Ichtaca spat blood at her. Nin-Akna didn’t flinch.

“I’m pretty sure she can,” Zandrue said. “But even if she can’t, we’d pretty much finished the questioning, anyway.”

Nin-Akna glared at Zandrue. “Who are you?”

“Oh, of course,” Zandrue said, holding out her hand. “Zandrue. You must be Nin-Akna. I’ve heard a little about you.”

Nin-Akna didn’t take the offered hand, but looked back at Felitïa. “Is she trustworthy?”

“Yes,” Felitïa said.

Nin-Akna looked to Meleng, who was still standing at the bottom of the stairs, for confirmation.

Meleng hesitated a moment. “Yes, I guess. Mostly.”

“Mostly?” Nin-Akna said.

“Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, Meleng,” Zandrue said.

Nin-Akna turned back to Zandrue. “You’re the one who ran away, aren’t you? The one who abandoned Rudiger.”

Zandrue retracted her hand. “I wouldn’t exactly call it running away.”

Nin-Akna crossed her arms. “Oh really. What do you call it, then?”

“Look, there’s been a lot going on, and that’s something Rudiger and I have to talk about—assuming he’s willing to talk to me about it—but frankly, it’s none of your business.”

“She rescued me!” Corvinian said. “She’s a good person. Really.”

Nin-Akna looked to Meleng. “This is the boy you’ve been trying to find?”

Meleng nodded. “This is Corvinian.”

Felitïa sighed. “You can trust Zandrue, Nin-Akna. Believe me.”

“If you say so.” Nin-Akna turned away from Zandrue and glanced at Rudiger. “Ses-Izel is a better match for you.” She stood beside Meleng.

“Ses-Izel?” Zandrue said.

“Yes, they’re lovers,” Fra-Ichtaca said. “Does this surprise you? Were you two lovers as well?” She looked at Rudiger. “Didn’t you tell Nin-Xoco she was your sister?”

Felitïa resisted the urge to slam her hands down again. “Enough! We have things to do.”

Fra-Ichtaca laughed. “Having difficulty holding your cult together, Will-Breaker?”

Zandrue leaned over the priest’s shoulders and spoke in her ears. “If you’re trying to sow dissent and jealousy, it isn’t going to work. I don’t care about him and Ses-Izel. I’m actually happy for him, glad he found comfort after I screwed him over.” She glanced up at Rudiger, then looked back at the priest. “Nothing you say is going to change anything.”

This reunion was not going the way Felitïa had hoped.