Dave Gross - Mistress of the Night

"We honor Shar!" chanted the assembled cultists.

"We honor Shar," Keph chanted along with them. The words left a bad taste in his mouth. The entire ceremony made his skin creep as if filth had been spread across his body.

Somewhere in the depths of the temple, Jarull moaned. Variance hadn't cast her cloak of shadow and silence back over him. Every peak in the cultists' chants brought fresh groans and wails of torment echoing through the tunnels. Some of the cultists had looked fearful at first, but soon they seemed to revel in his sounds of anguish.

Variance stepped up to stand at Shar's altar.

"In fighting Selune's followers," she said, "we bear remembrance for all that has been taken from us. We bear remembrance for Shar's loss. We fight the Selunites as Shar fights their weak and treacherous goddess. We meet their hatred with our hatred. We do honor to Cyrume, torn apart like an animal. We do honor to Keph, returned to us by Shar's blessing." Cold, razor-edged steel flashed in the dim light as she snatched a chakram from her belt and held it high. "Shall we visit Shar's blessing on Moonshadow Hall?"

"Yes!"

Fists and weapons punched the air. Shar's faithful had armed themselves with whatever they could: clubs, knives, swords… Bolan wore a harness festooned with pouches and flasks. When he moved, cold metallic odors drifted off of him.

From where he stood behind the altar, Keph could see all of the gathered cultists, their eyes bright and their faces flush with zeal. Between them, Bolan and Variance had worked the cult into a frenzy. Talisk, Starne, and Baret were there, lashing the air with swords and slapping at each other. They weren't the only ones caught up in the madness. An old man was shaking with murderous ecstasy. A woman in wealthy merchant's dress was tearing at her clothes. There was blood on her mouthshe had bitten herself. Someone else had begun screaming and beating on the wide metal rings Keph remembered from his initiation. The clashing sound filled the air, competing with Variance's urgent exhortations.

"Will we show the Selunites mercy?"

"No!"

"Will Moonshadow Hall stand at dawn?"

"No!"

Keph felt sick.

Variance spread her arms wide and shouted, "This night shall live in legend! May Shar grant us her divine favor!" She swept her chakram down. "It is time!"

The voices of the cultists rose in a howling chorus. Somewhere Jarull shrieked.

The courtyard was silent, the watching clergy shocked by the contradictory truths.

Julith's voice hissed when she asked, "Feena, how?"

Feena held up her hard, gesturing the younger priestess to silence.

Moonmaiden's grace, she wondered silently, could we have been wrong? No. Everything they had reasoned out pointed to Velsinore or Mifano as the traitor.

Feena stared at the pair, looking for something to suggest that one of them had somehow resisted her prayer and was actually lying or telling some half-truth.

Both watched her with hard eyes and held their swords of office in steady hands. Neither had the look of someone who was lying. Feena's mouth was dry as she tried to think of another possibility.

"The Sharran priestess…" she said. "She was behind the poisoning I stopped. I think she's been trying to manipulate us into panic. Her name is Variance."

"I don't know anyone by that name," growled Velsinore, and Mifano echoed her.

Julith said, "She's a Calishite. Her hair is long. Her skin is pale and dusky, like she hasn't been in the sun for a long time."

Feena watched Mifano and Velsinore as Julith spoke, but neither reacted. She shot a glance at Julith.

The dark-haired priestess bit her lip in thought, then added, "She wore a ring, an amethyst set in old silver."

Mifano's sword wavered. Feena's eyesand Julith's and Velsinore'ssnapped to him.

"You recognize the ring?" Feena asked.

"It sounds like" Mifano's lips drew tight. "Lady Monstaed has taken to wearing a ring like that. But she's not Calishite."

"When did she start wearing the ring?"

"Less than a month ago." Doubt creeped into his eyes as he said, "About the time she transferred the lease on her properties from Ladysluck Tower to Moonshadow Hall."

"Did you tell Lady Monstaed about my encounter in the Stiltways and that I thought there were Sharrans in Yhaunn?" Feena asked.

His mouth opened then closed, and he nodded. "I told her about that," he said. His sword fell. "Selune's shining face, I told her everything that happened in Moonshadow Hall."

Julith gasped. All around the cloisters, whispers of alarm and surprise rolled through the assembled clergy. Hope leaped inside FeenaMifano was no traitor, only a dupe!

"And you told Lady Monstaed about Keph's capture?" she asked.

Mifano blinkedand shook his head. "No," he said. "Feena, I swear I haven't even stopped to think about her since your attack on Dhauna."

His words rang with truth. And Feena realized, why should Mifano have contacted Lady Monstaed back in Yhaunn to pass on news of Keph anyway? He couldn't have known she'd be interested in the young man. She ground her teeth as the brief moment of hope faded.

Worse, the only evidence linking Variance to Velsinore or Mifano was useless. Mifano's gossip had let Variance know about Moonshadow Hall's misplaced confidence. But if he hadn't been the one to tell the Sharran priestess about Keph's capture…

"Someone is still a traitor," Feena said. She looked up. "Velsinore, who"

The tall priestess's sword snapped up defensively. "I certainly didn't tell this Variance anything!" she snapped.

Feena groaned and said, "I didn't say you did. I need to know if anyone among the clergy who rode with you last night might have"

"Wait." Julith laid her arm on Feena's arm. "We've made a mistake." Feena glanced at her. The priestess was looking at Velsinore intently. "Variance said that not all of Selune's clergy are faithful. She never said that one of us told her about Keph's capture."

"I certainly didn't tell this Variance anything," Velsinore had said. Selune's power confirmed that statement as the truth. But Variance wasn't the only Sharran in Yhaunn, was she?

"Velsinore," Feena spat, "did you tell anyone about Keph's capture?" She stepped forward. "Answer me! Did you betray Keph to the Sharrans?"

The tall priestess took a step back, her eyes wide and her mouth open.

"I… I…" she stuttered, as if trying to form words when none would come, as if the power of a goddess prevented her from speaking a lie.

Feena bared her teeth. She didn't know how Velsinore had managed to deny that she was a traitor to Selune, but her falsehood had caught her! Whispers around the cloisters turned into a surging, seething muddle of confusion. Velsinore squeezed her mouth shut. Growling, Feena reached out for her.

Velsinore whirled and lashed out with her sword.

Caught by surprise, Mifano gasped in shock as the shining blade sliced into his body. Feena heard the metal grate against bone and leaped back in shock. In the cloisters, confusion rose into screaming chaos. Velsinore twisted around, letting go of the sword, and shoved Mifano's jerking body to the ground. Feena and Julith dodged forward almost as one to catch him.

As they reacted, Velsinore turned and sprinted out of the courtyard, back toward the waning half moon gate. The priests and priestesses standing in the gate and the cloisters scrambled to get out of her way. In less than a heartbeat, she had vanished into Moonshadow Hall.

"Moonmaiden's grace!" Feena cursed at the merciless distraction.

Mifano's blood was pouring across her hands. The silver-haired priest's breath was coming in rattling rasps.

"Down!" ordered Julith. "Put him down!" She raised her eyes to the swirling, swooning clergy. "Chandri! I'm going to need your help to save him!" She glanced at Feena. "Go get Velsinore! I'll handle this!'