" Of course I can," Claybore said irritably. The depths of those limitless eye sockets began to pulsate with ruby light. " There are spells to counter such minor illusions. I plan something more. Yes, something vastly more imaginative and deadly."
" Patriccan and his minions can add their feeble powers to yours, master," said Kiska. " Every spell, no matter how tiny, can aid us in this great endeavor."
Silvain felt a momentary giddiness. How alike k' Adesina and Claybore were. Both improvised on the spot and both were geniuses, twisted and lacking totally in conscience. His position in such company became more precarious by the instant, but he had no other choice but to remain to the end. His world devastated by Claybore' s power, he had to cast his lot with the sorcerer or die. It had been rewarding enough, as long as he didn' t think about the death and destruction he ordered. In a way, it was only retribution.
His world had been killed. Why not kill others?
" Silvain," came Claybore' s cold words. " What do you contribute to this scheme?"
" Master, you have summed up the finer points so well, only small details remain to be worked out."
" Such as?"
" The troops commanding the mountain slopes and looking down into Wurnna must be equipped with some weapon capable of diverting attention. Something magical, perhaps? On my last world, we used fire elementals to power aerial machines. When they fought, they opened ducts, allowing the elemental' s flame to flare forth. Such a minor application might even bring about Wurnna' s capitulation."
" You want the troops to command fire elementals?"
" Command? No, master, but something as potent will be required if they are to be taken seriously." Silvain sensed the sorcerer' s instant antagonism toward such magics being used by common troops- or even by Kiska' s captive mage, Patriccan.
" Equip those troops with catapults. I will prepare pots of stone burning fire. Will that occupy those in the city?"
" Master, you will be invincible."
Silvain looked at Kiska and made a tiny motion with his head, showing displeasure with her ready acceptance. He cleared his throat, working to phrase his thoughts properly, so as not to offend Claybore.
" Master, such would work, but the effort required getting such assault engines up the cliffs might take weeks. May I suggest that you authorize Patriccan to use magics to shove boulders off the mountaintops? This requires little effort after gaining the heights."
" I want Iron Tongue. I want what rests in his mouth. It is mine! All else is: is mere game. Get that tongue and your reward shall be immense. Fail and you shall rue the day. Do what is necessary."
" We will not fail!" cried Kiska k' Adesina.
" The magics you have authorized will overwhelm the remnants of Wurnna, Master." Silvain bowed low as the mechanical carried Claybore from the room. On the floor where the mech had stood pooled oil from a leaking joint.
Silvain stared at the empty doorway for some time, then turned back to the charts, pointing out vantage points for k' Adesina' s approval. While part of his mind worked on the details of conquest, a larger portion worried over the irrational feeling that this battle would be his last.
" The troops are ready. They will not fail us." Kiska k' Adesina proudly surveyed the assembled rows of soldiers. Silvain eyed them with less than optimistic eyes. The troops appeared beaten, having spent too long in the field, been under fire too often. The dragons that had roared and devoured both officer and enlisted alike sapped courage sorely needed for a real offensive against Wurnna. Convincing even the field officers that victory would be theirs became increasingly difficult. The battle would have to be joined soon or the entire force would fall apart under its own fear.
" You have done well," Silvain lied. He idly wondered why he bothered with these games. There was little conviction in aiding Claybore in his goal. All Alberto Silvain could say was that Claybore still appeared the most likely to be victorious- and Silvain always bet on the side of the strong.
" Thank you," Kiska said, her eyes blazing with demonic light. She clutched at his sleeve and pulled him toward her. The needs she conveyed so primitively almost overwhelmed the man. A musky smell hinted at the woman' s level of desire. Silvain wondered if this came from imminent battle or something else.
He smiled, his lips curling upward slightly. It was the power k' Adesina worshipped, the need for revenge driving her to it. But which was means and which was ends? They mingled in a heady brew for the mousy- haired woman.
" Come, let our officers attend to the final preparations. We must confer. In my quarters." Silvain pitched his voice low. Before battle it always relaxed him to find a willing woman. With Kiska k' Adesina, he had one more than willing. She was a panther springing on her prey.
Barely had he entered the canvas flap to his tent when she swarmed over him, bearing him down, smothering him with her barbaric affections. Revulsion flared and died in a split second. Silvain needed this contact as badly as the woman. What matter that she was as crazy as a wobblebug? Top command in Claybore' s force offered few chances for pleasure.
Silvain took his now, k' Adesina giving as she took.
Passion locked them for a long time as their crotches met and ground together, their bodies strained and sweated, their pulses pounded like drums in their foreheads. Their desire abated slightly, then built to a fever pitch once more. Neither held back. Raw, naked lust boiled forth as they completed their coupling.
" We will find Martak and I shall have his ears first. Then I will pluck out his eyes. No, no, those I save. Next I' ll flay him alive. Then out come his eyes." The woman cackled, over the edge of insanity once more.
Silvain pushed her away, sitting up and searching for his grey uniform. He wished she hadn' t spoken those words so closely on the climax to their sexual acrobatics. His agile mind now worked on what had been going through her head as they made love. He didn' t like the possible routes her fantasies might have taken as he drove himself deep within her yielding flesh.
" Claybore will require our presence for last- minute details," he said, his needs sated. Calmer now than he had been in some time, inner pressures resolved, Alberto Silvain became again the perfect soldier with no doubts or hesitation about what he must do in the hours to come.
" Claybore. Yes, yes, you are right." The naked woman leaped out of the rude bed and began drawing on her uniform. In other circumstances Silvain might have found the sight of the creamy flesh erotically enticing. Now he felt- nothing. It was as if all emotion had been drained from his body and mind. Step springy and soul dead, he sought out his master.
Claybore twitched slightly. The mechanical carrying his torso and skull obediently bent forward at the hips in a completely inhuman display of flexibility. A wire- driven arm lifted and cogwheels ground together in a noisy clatter to move charts off a large wooden table. With care more appropriate for carrying a babe in arms, the metal fingers closed on a tiny clay tablet and moved it to the edge of the table.
" Careful, fool," snapped Claybore. The mechanical continued to move the tablet to the spot ordered by the master sorcerer. " There. There is where I desire it." The metallic fingers opened and left the tablet propped up slightly so that the empty eye holes in the skull might peer down on the flat clay surface.
Light churned and blazed in the pits of those eye sockets. Red, blue, then green light erupted to bathe the inanimate clay slate. For long minutes nothing happened, then the slate took on an eerie glow that radiated from deep within. It shook slightly with a vibrant power that manifested itself as deep humming sounds.
A picture formed on the featureless tablet.
" Ah, there it is. The product of my dealings with the demon. Lan Martak, you fool, to think you could oppose me. All you have done is delay me, irritate me, make me angry!" The last words rose in a crescendo of hatred. The full spectrum of the rainbow blazed in the mage' s eye sockets. Claybore calmed himself to study the scene.