Michael Foster - She Who Has No Name

He found several doors roughly hewn into the stone during his travels, but he could sense they did not contain Balten. Eventually, he judged he had been gone for long enough and decided it would be wise to go back and return another time, before he was missed. He turned about and made to retrace his steps when he bumped into something in the darkness and it squealed loudly, echoing all through the caverns, with refractions of the noise bouncing back at him from several directions.

After the moment of panic had subsided and he realised noghoul was about to devour him, hescanned the passage with his magical sight . Strangely, it seemed thathe was alone. Even so,a footstepsounded frombeside him and so he snapped out with his hand,latchingonto a thin arm.

‘What are you doing here!’ he hissed.

‘I was trying to follow you,’ the Koian woman responded, sounding sheepish in the dark.

‘What a stupid thing to do! You’ll give us away. Quickly, let’s go!’

He kept hold of her hand and started dragging her roughly along with him.

‘It’s not my fault,’ she complained. ‘I didn’t realise you would be so hard to follow. Why were you running about so much, back and forth? It looked like you’d lost your way.’

‘Shut up!’ he told her.

‘You’re going the wrong way,’ she said from behind him. ‘It’s that way.’

It was utterly dark and he could not tell to which direction she was referring, but stopping, he scanned the branching passageway with his sight . Finally, he had to admit to himself that she was right.

‘I know where I’m going,’ he said.

‘Then I’ll just shut up and let you get us lost,’ she responded.

‘Good!’

He pulled her all the way back to the main lit corridor, where she broke from his grip and followed him with her arms folded crossly. They tiptoed to the point where they could see the three guards standing outside the narrow palace entrance: each looking nervous and peering into the tunnel towards them, into the impenetrable darkness.

‘Damn. They’re awake. How did you get past them?’ Samuel asked.

‘They were asleep before. It was easy.’

Samuel nodded to himself. ‘Then how do we get out? I can’t use any magic in here.’

‘So you have some magic now? That’s some good news, at least. You’re not as useless as I thought.’

Samuel ignored her remark.

‘I’ll show you how I did it before,’ she said.

‘Before?’ Samuel asked.

‘Of course. I’ve been in here many times now, trying to find the others while you were doing who-knows-what. I would have thought they would have started catching onto me by now, but those three seem impressively stupid-even for men.’

She cupped her hands to her mouth to shout.

‘No! Don’t-’ Samuel began, but she moaned out something to them in the Paatin tongue, using a long and wilting voice. At once, the three men glared into the tunnel with fear and fled.

She chuckled softly and started at once down the passage towards them, with Samuel now following behind.

‘What did you say?’ he asked her.

‘I’ve been coaxing a few words out of Shara. It took some imagination, but I finally got the word for ghost out of her. At least, I think it’s something like that. It doesn’t really matter. The effect is the same. Those three must be so afraid of the dungeons now; I’m surprised they still come back. Having you send them to sleep must have really put the fear into them. Also, I know the guards are afraid of the dungeons. They think something lives in here.’

‘And how would you know that?’

‘I’m clever,’ she told him smugly.

‘I have heard that something does live in here.’

‘You are as bad as them, Magician, but perhaps that would explain the body I found-half a body, at least.’

‘What!’ Samuel stated in disbelief, but she started away before he could question her further.

Samuel was trying to slow her down, but she marched straight out into the light of the palace, smiling happily at theabsenceof anyonewho might be waiting tocatch them. He almost choked in fear as she stepped straight through the magical membrane that covered the entrance, but she, too, passed through it without effect.

‘Quickly,’ she said. ‘Let’s go before they get the nerve to return. It’s almost time for them to be replaced, so they will have to come back or lose their heads if they are found absent.’

‘How do you know so much about all this?’ he asked her as they hurried back towards the main corridors of the palace.

‘I’m a god. I told you. My dreams are the hopes and fears of those around me. I may not speak their language, and even their thoughts are unintelligible to me, but I see the activities of this palace played out before me every night in my dreams.’

‘Are you telling me the truth? You must see some interesting things.’

She gave him a knowing smile. ‘Oh, I do! Unfortunately, I have no control over what I see, or whose thoughts they are, or I would have learnt much more.’

They had now reached the populated halls, and the palace staff each stopped their duties and bowed their heads as the two passed. A call of joy sounded far behind and Shara came rushing up to them with relief painted on her face. She had obviously been looking for them all this time and now seemed happy to follow along quietly as she regained her breath.

Finally reaching their rooms, Samuel stopped at the Koian woman’s door and faced her.

‘I don’t want you going in there any more. I will do any searching that needs to be done.’

‘As you wish,’ she told him and promptly disappeared inside, followed by her Paatin shadow. Somehow, Samuel doubted she would listen to him.

‘Don’t you ever send your servants out so you can be alone?’ Samuel asked of the Paatin Queen, for he was ever mindful of the array of guards and servants standing just on the other side of the thin veils that surrounded her bed.

‘What are you afraid they might hear, Samuel? I’m sure they know what we are doing here. There is nothing to be ashamed of.’

‘It just seems a little strange to me.’

‘I thought magicians embraced the strange? Is that not what you do?’

‘Not like this.’ He ran a finger down her smooth back and she wiggled in his arms.

‘They, too, find you interesting, Samuel. I hear my servants giggle and talk about you, but I don’t mind. I like to hear what they say.’

‘What do they say?’ he asked, alarmed by the prospect.

‘They talk about your skin, mostly. None of the Paatin are as pale as you. They find it amusing.’

‘What about you? You are very light in comparison to most Paatin.’

‘My parents were of mixed blood, Samuel. I was born in the lands you called the Eastern Reaches, long ago when the world was quite different. It makes an attractive blend, don’t you think?’ He had to admit she was right, and smiled in agreement. ‘Normally the Paatin despise those who result from mixed parentage, but they do not consider mein that light. I am their queen, worshipped as a god, and nothing else matters, except that I care for them.’

‘I’ve never seen people so dedicated to what they believe. Before this, I thought the Turians wereobsessive, but,as stubborn as they are, few Turians would have sacrificed themselvesneedlesslyfor the Emperor.’

‘It is one of the necessities of their harsh life, Samuel. They are accustomed to doing everything in extremes.’

Another bout of giggling sounded from outside before the serving girls hushed themselves up.

‘What are they talking about now?’

‘They are wondering why I have invited you into my chamber so many times. I rarely welcome any man into my bed more than once. They are making suggestions about your abilities.’ Samuel went red. ‘Oh, I’m sorry. Does that embarrass you? I can have them executed if you like.’