Michael Foster - She Who Has No Name

She looked at her ambassador. Her hard exterior now looked brittle and she was trembling upon her seat. ‘Is it true?’

‘You may have been given a name-I don’t know. You were brought to the temple when you were only a babe. We never asked. It never mattered. Our god has no need of names.’

The woman composed herself and returned her glare to Cang, but he ignored her completely. Instead, he put his back to her and looked at Eric. ‘Master Pot, I know what you desire. Return successfully and it shall be yours.’

‘I want nothing of yours,’ Eric retorted with disgust.

‘As you say, but I know what lies in your heart. Please me, and it is yours. Samuel, yours is the most obvious and easiest of desires to grant, for I know exactly the one who killed your mother.’

‘I have already slain that demon, Cang,’ Samuel stated. ‘I killed Ash long ago.’

‘Of course,Ash was in command that day, and I know you feel you have avenged yourself with his death, but it was not Ash who did all the frightful stabbing on that fateful eve. There is one last living member of Ash’s witch hunters, for all the others have now perished. You slew Bardick, his accomplice, and the others in that band have met their own fates in different ways over the years. I have your mother’s killer squirrelled away safely for you. Only I know his hiding place. Complete your task and I shall give him to you.’

‘You lie,’ Samuel said.

‘Again, believe as you wish. His name is Cadin. He has a particular way with words and a nasty habit of chewing Fiskian tobacco that has since cost him most of his teeth. He was a magician of sorts, with a talent in scrying for magic, but he abandoned that life years ago to pursue a career in petty thuggery.’

Flashes of that evening came back to Samuel,when his family had been killed,when he had witnessed the two men standing over his mother. Samuel had absorbed Bardick’s memories just before he had killed the man, and he knew Cang’s words were true. Cadin,indeed,was the man’s name and somehow his face shone in Samuel’s memory as if he were standing now in the room, standing over the body of Samuel’s mother and drenched in silver moonlight.

‘Suit yourself,’ Cang said upon Samuel’s silence. ‘I am sure he is not enjoying my attention and perhaps he will even be grateful for a quick end at your hands. Whatever you decide, I will keep him safely for your return.’

Despite his attempts to think otherwise, Samuel could not help but relish the idea.

Cang looked at them one by one, as if waiting for any of them to say more. ‘If no one has anything to add, then I shall assume the matter is settled. Balten will continue with you to Hol, the Paatin city. He will assist you however he can. Do not blame him for any ill feelings you may have for me. He is only a humble servant and knows little of my plans-for practical purposes. Master Celios will stay with me and I will use him to keep track of your progress.’

With that, the spell around them dropped away and Samuel found he could move his legs freely.

‘Horse!’ the Koian woman commanded and the warrior exploded from his seat, unleashed like an arrow. Cang made no attempt to move or cast a spell, for he had no need to. The Koian warrior’s fate was sealed as soon as he left his seat-he fell dead at Cang’s feet with his clenched fist still held out before him.

The god-woman hurried up and stood over her fallen protector. Her emotions were hidden within her hood, and she hoveredabove himmotionless.

‘Such foolishness. You see?’ Cang told them as he stoodup, ignoring the ruined corpse. ‘Everyone in this room has a purpose. His was to demonstrate how you should choose carefully from this point on, and not take any rash actions. His life would have been better served in the Desert Queen’s city, but now you will have to make do without him. It would be wise for you to remember your wits whilst within her realm, for she has great power and a short temper. Go now. Return when you are victorious.’

The door opened once again and Balten could be seen, waiting obediently on the other side.

‘Let’s go,’ Eric said and led the way out.

‘Come,’ Samuel said, stopping beside the god-woman. He placed one hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged away from his touch. She stood as if frozen above Horse, staring down at his body as if it could somehow bring him back to life. ‘Suit yourself,’ he said and went on without her.

Not even Cang noticed the tiny,wet drops that had fallen onto the dead warrior’s cheek.

There was little else they could do but continue on their way, riding on a string of horses provided by the temple workers. Although it was apparent they had all been tricked onto their current path, their goal remained the same. If they could retrieve the second relic while saving the Empress and her son, then so be it.

‘Why do you follow him?’ Samuel asked of Balten, as theytraversedacross the waste. ‘I have never met such a repulsive man.’

‘To save the world,’ wasBalten’sresponse.

‘Do you really believe he means for that? He seems more like a heartless devil himself.’

‘Sometimes it takes a devil to beat one, Samuel.’

‘Yes, I think I’ve heard something like that before.’

‘I know, in his own way, Cang still has some form of compassion for us. It’s just that he has walked so long upon the earth that he finds it difficult to remember being human. Every mote of his existence has been directed at freeing us from our fate, so I cannot blame him for being the creature he has become. He sees people in terms of lifetimes and events,and finds relating to us as individuals difficult. In the end, we shall be grateful.’

‘He seems to have forgotten that people dislike being used. If he had really known us so well, we would all be following him willingly, not tricked into submission.’

‘Yet here you are, Samuel. I see little difference.’

‘Then perhaps that is the difference between us,’ Samuel replied. He looked up momentarily and noted the comet was still present in the clear evening sky, grown in brilliance since the last time he remembered examining it. ‘Perhaps this is an omen of what is to come,’ he noted. ‘The comet follows us into the desert.’

Balten barely raised his gaze for a moment. ‘Perhaps-but there are both good omens and bad; we shall see which this turns out to be.’

‘What about him?’ Samuel asked, gesturing back towards Canyon, with his god holdingontightly behind him, her arms wrapped around his belly. ‘What need do we have of him now?’

‘Perhaps, none-I don’t know. I spoke to the woman and she didn’t want him left behind. And I know something about Canyon-if there is one thing he is terrified of, it is that girl. Since his plans have been revealed, he is living in fear. I think that is how she likes it.’

‘So be it,’ said Samuel. ‘He deserves whatever he gets.’

And they rode on in silence after that, into the dark desert night.

The rocks and flats turned back to sand soon after that, and they traded their horses for camels at a small Paatin trading post. Once again, the owner knew Balten and there was no need for payment.

The tall animals handled the uneven terrain with ease, but the ride was lurching and turbulent. Every motion from the beasts had their riders holding on for dear life. Only Balten seemed at ease upon them and he kept his eyes to the horizon. They travelled for many nights, sheltering by day in huts and hovels that marked the way. When the scorching sun went down,they headed due east, lighting their way with mage-lights when required, each throwingitsghoulish light upon the dunes around them. When the sun rose, they sought shelter once again. They measured their travels by flasks of water and the hours until they could next quench their thirsts.