Richard Knaak - Scales of the Serpent

“No. Kalinash. Ride for a full day and keep seeking with your mind as I’ve shown. I want to know if there’s any movement at all from that direction.”

Understanding now came to the others. “Aaah, yes, master,” Rashim replied. “I will pick the others and be gone as quickly as the wind!”

“Rashim…always take care. Return as soon as you can. Don’t go any farther.”

“I will obey, master.”

Serenthia nodded in approval. “You fear a trap.”

“They know that we’re coming. There could already be an army or worse heading toward us from the south. Why else wait until we’re pounding at the gates?”

She mulled this over for a moment, then answered, “Because they have something even more terrible awaiting us there ?”

“That may very well be the case,” Uldyssian agreed, “but I can’t take the chance that we’re being outflanked.”

“No…you’re right. Rashim is good; if there’s anyone coming, he’ll definitely alert us, Uldyssian.”

“That’s what I hope.”

True to his word, Rashim and his chosen set off but minutes later. Uldyssian had not allowed the rest of his followers to even slow during that time. The mass of bodies was so great that they stretched for a mile in the jungle and for the first time, Uldyssian formally thought of them as an army, too. The term had drifted into and out of his mind over the course of events, but with the confrontation with the Triune close at hand, he decided that he had to treat them as such. Discipline had to be at its utmost; otherwise, even with the advances made lately by many—including the newest converts—the edyrem’s combined powers might not yet be enough to defeat Lilith and her pawns.

Not that Uldyssian was all that certain that victory was assured even if they were.

The day wore on. He sensed Rashim now and then, a simple touch from the Hashiri’s mind enough to let Uldyssian know that all was well with the scouting party and that nothing had so far been detected. It was very possible that Kalinash was entirely ignorant of events. Uldyssian certainly hoped so.

When evening came and the edyrem halted, he summoned Saron, Timeon, Jonas, and all the others who had some sort of commanding role and reemphasized the importance of coordinating every aspect of their journey from this point on. For the first time, the children and weaker among them were slowly being ushered to the rear, where a select group of the stronger would assist in protecting them. The rest of the edyrem were divided under Uldyssian’s most trusted.

Only Serenthia and he had no one personally under them, they being the two to coordinate most of the potential action. It still surprised him that the merchant’s daughter had become second only to him; this was not a Serenthia he could have earlier in his life ever imagined knowing.

But without her, Uldyssian could not have imagined now leading such a vast force.

Shortly before daybreak, he awoke to the sense that Rashim was trying to contact him. At first, Uldyssian expected to hear the worst, but the Hashiri had only sought to tell them that he and his companions were beginning their return. There had been no hint of danger emerging from Kalinash; the city appeared entirely oblivious to the edyrem’s movements.

That gave Uldyssian tremendous relief. He alerted Serenthia and the others. Then, as soon as everyone had eaten, he ordered the edyrem on their trek again.

And barely three hours into the day, they sighted the towers of Istani in the distance.

Istani might have been smaller than Hashiri or Toraja, but it still appeared much larger than Partha. Uldyssian made an estimate as to the size of the temple based on what he had seen in the previous cities. Not very large, but with the potential to cause enough of a delay to jeopardize their chances of reaching their ultimate destination before Lilith could plot anew.

He decided that there would be no preliminary introduction to the citizenry, as he had done each time in the past; Uldyssian would strike directly at the temple the moment he could and pray that he would be able to make the rest of the Istanians understand that he had done it in part for their sakes.

Aware that the priests might be scrying for any trouble and certain that the edyrem could not remain entirely hidden, Uldyssian sought out the most open path to the city. Speed was essential.

Rashim and the others were not yet back, but Uldyssian could not wait for them. He had the rest of the edyrem spread out as they neared the thinning jungle. Soon, very soon, the gates of Istani would stand before them—

He straightened. For just the slightest of moments, Uldyssian could have sworn that he had felt…

But no…it had to be his anxiety. It had to be.

“Serry,” Uldyssian murmured. “Stand next to me and follow my will.”

She did not question why, trusting in him as always. Once Serenthia was ready, Uldyssian guided her mind to where he wanted her to focus.

“Do you see or sense anything ?” he asked.

“No—for a moment, I thought—but no—”

It was the answer that Uldyssian expected and receiving it only made him more suspicious. “Serry, will you let me try something?”

“Together, you mean?” She knew about the spellwork that Lilith had shown Uldyssian while pretending to be her. “If you think it worth to try, then I’ll do it.”

Rather than position themselves as he and Lilith had, Uldyssian simply stood next to Serenthia. They shut their eyes and concentrated on reaching out to one another…

The results were as swift as they were remarkable. The ease with which the two managed to link pleased Uldyssian, who had, in truth, feared complete failure.

There was only one trouble with the link and that was the incredible closeness it created between Uldyssian and Serenthia. To prevent any stirring of his feelings, he quickly guided her mind out in the direction he wished to survey.

However, even after the two of them completed what he felt a thorough search, Uldyssian came away with nothing. He did not even detect what had earlier disturbed him and knew that neither had Serenthia. After a few more minutes of futile hunting, Uldyssian ceased the effort.

“I was wrong,” he muttered. “Merely my imagination.”

“That’s better than another threat, isn’t it?”

Uldyssian nodded. “Just so long as I don’t start seeing shadows everywhere. It’ll become that much harder to tell when a real danger rears its head…”

The edyrem progressed. Uldyssian watched as Istani became an actual city, not merely a few structures above the treetops. He drew in his scouts, wanting no one cut off from the rest. That left only Rashim and his party, who he knew would catch up while Uldyssian was dealing with the local temple.

But to his surprise, before he and his followers could reach the city gates, a contingent from Istani rode out to meet them. There were twenty-five in all, most of them guards. A handful of officials led by a middle-aged, plump figure in rich blue and green silk robes confronted the son of Diomedes.

“We have come to speak with the leader of this army,” the plump man said. He wore an elaborate silver nose ring that itself was encrusted with tiny rubies.

Uldyssian strode forward. He did not care that the Istanian, being mounted, had the advantage in terms of eye level; the official would soon learn who truly held the power in this conversation, especially if he sought to protect the Triune.

“I’m who you seek,” he told the rider. “I am Uldyssian ul-Diomed.” As the official started to speak again, Uldyssian raised his hand. “And I have only one thing to say. You and yours have nothing to fear from us. It’s only the Triune. Stand out of our way and the evil truth about them will be revealed soon enough.”