“Why shouldn’t I think like him?” Lady Mystic said softly. “I am his daughter.”
“His daughter?” Aakuta said with shock. “You are Vand’s daughter?”
“Do you think that I am a high priestess because of my startling looks?” retorted Lady Mystic. “Only the fact that I am Vand’s daughter has kept you alive so long.”
“Why are you sticking up for me?” Aakuta asked softly.
“For a smart man, you are fairly unobservant,” replied the high priestess. “Why do you think I keep you around?”
Lady Mystic’s recent change in behavior flashed through Aakuta’s mind. He shook his head and sighed as he realized that she was right. He had been rather unobservant. Looking back it was clear that she was developing feelings for him. The quiet walks alone had grown more frequent and longer in duration. Physical contact had increased, even if it was as innocent as leaning on his shoulders or holding his hand. His mind raced as he tried to analyze his situation.
“I hope it is because you feel about me that same way that I feel about you,” Aakuta answered. “You know that I would do anything for you. Is that the reason that you are protecting me? Do you love me, Lady Mystic?”
“Love,” sighed Lady Mystic. “I never thought that I would hear that word in the same sentence as my name. I feel so foolish.”
“There is no need for you to feel foolish,” Aakuta said soothingly as he embraced Lady Mystic. “I was so afraid that any advances towards you would be taken the wrong way. You can’t imagine how thrilled I am to finally be able to say the truth to you.”
Lady Mystic held Aakuta for several moments and then pushed him away. She walked to the table and sat down. Aakuta followed her, his brow puzzling with concern. He sat across the table from her.
“There is still only so much that I can do for you,” warned Lady Mystic. “Vand might well allow a traitor in his midst for years, as long as he feels in control, but the awakening of Angragar may well change that. Vand will feel very out of control now. He will try to hurry the preparations for the invasion. He will become testy and irritable very frequently. You will not want to be around him much.”
“Then I shall stay away,” declared Aakuta. “I have no desire to enrage him.”
“If you stay away,” Lady Mystic shook her head, “he will become even more suspicious.”
The two mages sat in silence for some moments before Lady Mystic rose and started pacing again.
“There is one chance for you to stay out of his sight,” Lady Mystic said, “even if for only a little while.”
“What is it?” asked Aakuta. “I will do anything to avoid his temper right now. Over time I am sure that I can convince him that I am not the enemy he thinks I am.”
“Vand has a burning desire to learn about air tunnels,” declared Lady Mystic. “We sent a ship to the mainland some time ago. We brought back a young specimen, but she refused to share her knowledge. A special interrogator was sent for. I am not sure what happened, but the room was destroyed when we found them. The interrogator was dead. The young girl was almost dead. She has been in a coma for sometime now. Vand wants her healed and interrogated.”
“Bringing someone out of a coma is not easy,” frowned Aakuta, “especially if you want her to divulge specific information. The slightest miscalculation and you will destroy the knowledge that you are seeking.”
“Precisely why I have been advocating taking our time with her,” nodded Lady Mystic. “That is no longer an option. Vand has ordered me to take charge of her from the interrogators.”
“I can understand Vand’s urge to hurry this,” frowned Aakuta, “but that will not insure success. If she dies we will lose the chance to interrogate her.”
“She is expendable,” shrugged Lady Mystic. “If she dies, there is another solution to the problem. We can send another ship and grab another mage.”
Aakuta pondered the problems for a moment. He rose and walked across the room before turning to face Lady Mystic.
“I could go and obtain another mage,” offered Aakuta. “Surely that would show Vand that I am loyal?”
“He would never let you leave this island,” Lady Mystic shook her head. “Your only chance is to get the girl healed and get her to divulge the information needed about the air tunnel.”
“Where is this girl?” asked Aakuta with a sense of resignation. “And what can you tell me about her?”
“Her name is Rhoda,” replied Lady Mystic. “She is originally from the Raven’s Point estate in Khadora. She is as stubborn as a wasooki, and almost dead. She is kept in a storage room in the basement of the temple. I will take you there.”
Lady Mystic led Aakuta down to the basement of the temple. They marched along a long corridor towards the rear of the temple. As soon as they passed the short corridor to the Chamber of Horror, Lady Mystic stopped and produced a key. She unlocked the door and handed the key to Aakuta. The dark mage stuffed the key into a pouch and entered the room. A young woman was spread out on a table. Her arms and legs were strapped to the table.
Aakuta walked to the young woman and stared at her. Welts and bruises covered her entire body. Large red areas were obvious from some recent healing magic.
“We healed her enough to keep her alive,” offered Lady Mystic. “She had several large wounds, and the organs were hanging out. She would have died otherwise.”
“Why did you not heal the rest of her?” asked Aakuta.
“The interrogators did not want to waste the magic,” shrugged Lady Mystic. “She will die as soon as we have the information that we need. Why bother with healing her completely?”
“To give her hope,” frowned Aakuta. “If she knows that she will die, she will tell you nothing. You should fire your interrogators.”
“You can do better?” Lady Mystic asked with raised eyebrows.
“Certainly,” Aakuta said confidently. “The only problem is trying to rush it, but given the time, I will get everything you want to know out of her.”
“You won’t have a great deal of time,” warned Lady Mystic. “Vand’s patience will run out sooner or later. Get her to talk. I don’t want to have to choose between you and my father.”
Chapter 15
The Asylum
Lyra woke early, but not as early as some others in the temple of Angragar. She poured herself a cup of coffee and nodded to the Qubari soldier that was on sentry duty. She became curious when she noticed that Emperor Marak was absent from the room, even though Gunta and Halman still slept peacefully. She walked over to the sentry.
“Where has the Torak gone?” she asked softly.
“He went up the stairs some time ago,” shrugged the warrior. “I did not ask where he was going.”
Lyra nodded and turned away. She went casually to the stairs and climbed them quietly. At the top of the stairs she looked around and saw no one. She turned towards the front of the temple and continued to walk quietly. Eventually, she heard Marak’s voice and headed towards it. She found the Torak standing on the balcony overlooking the plaza. He was talking into an air tunnel. She smiled and waited several paces away for him to finish his communications. Although she had no intention of prying, she could not help hearing his side of the conversation.
“Give Captain Mynor my congratulations,” Emperor Marak said. “I want copies made of his chart immediately. I also want him to head up the construction effort on the ships that he has proposed. As for where the ships are best stationed, I will discuss this with the Star and the Astor. I think there are ports in their lands that are best suited for it.”
Lyra wondered what they would need ships for. She hoped that Marak was not planning an invasion of the Island of Darkness. That would surely be suicide.
“On the other issue,” Marak continued, “I want every mage warned, particularly those who live along the coast. Mages in the coastal areas are to have armed escorts wherever they go. They are never to be left alone. If they are threatened in any way, kill the aggressors if you must, but ensure the safety of those mages. I also want scouts along the coast. Devise some type of plan that covers the areas around the estates first. Then try to find a way to expand it to uninhabited areas.”