When did I go from being a friendly bone wizard to someone intimidating?Zera wondered. She hadn’t noticed the transformation happening, even though of course she’d worked for it. She tried to put on a more encouraging face and waited for Amurra to continue.
“No one I spoke to knows Eklor is here, so at least it’s not common knowledge among the average citizens. I thought about slipping the information, you know, to see how people would react, but I wasn’t sure if that would be wise.”
Kreya nodded. “You acted correctly. We don’t know what Eklor’s game is. Until we do, it’s better to be cautious.”
“The great Kreya, advising caution,” Zera said.
Kreya glared at her. “I’m always careful.”
Zera laughed and then stopped. “Oh, you’re serious?”
Gingerly, Amurra sat on the plainest chair, only occupying the edge, as if she were afraid of soiling the cushions. “Peopleremember the war. Many lost loved ones. I can’t imagine they’d be happy to know Grand Master Lorn is sheltering Vos’s greatest enemy.”
Lounging back on her sofa, Zera considered the matter. “We could reveal him and throw him off guard. Remind people of the war as loudly as possible. Demand to know his purpose here. Put him on the defensive.”
“Not until we know where his army is,” Kreya said. “We wait for Jentt and Stran before we make any kind of move.”
Fair enough.Twirling one of her bracelets, Zera thought more. “What if we’re subtle?”
“Subtle is not our strong suit,” Kreya said.
“Thank you for saying ‘our.’”
Kreya grinned at her, and Zera grinned back.
“I am serious, though,” Zera said. “What if we—subtly—remind the people how terrible Eklor’s war was? I could make donations to theater troupes, on the condition that they stage the tragedies and war dramas. Singers, always in need of more funds, could be encouraged to sing ballads in the streets.”
Amurra perked up. “You could commission artists! A mural, memorializing those who were lost. Ooh, a mural on every tier.”
“Statues, too,” Kreya suggested. “Place them in plazas and on street corners. Or at least encourage street performers, if statues would take too long to create. Buskers in every square, singing, dancing, playacting about the Bone War.”
Zera loved all these ideas beyond measure. She rubbed her hands together. “This is going to annoy the shit out of Eklor.” And prime the public to reject him when he finally revealed himself from whatever corner of Lorn’s shadow he was lurking in.
In the end, that could be as powerful a weapon as any swordor arrow. Zera called for Guine, as well as several of her servants. After a moment’s thought, she also called for Marso.
“Why Marso?” Kreya asked. “He needs to rest.”
Zera disagreed. “He needs a new hobby. Something to distract him from screaming his head off.” It would be good for him. All of them had heard his screaming, so no one objected.
Once all her lovelies were assembled, she set their plan in motion.
Now everyone had something useful to do while they waited for Zera’s contacts and Lorn to respond. And more important, Jentt and Stran to return.
The worst thing about having been dead,Jentt thought,is the lost time.He’d died countless times, knowing each could be the last, but he had no memories of the days, weeks, months, even years before Kreya was able to wake him again. She had been accruing experiences, but he... had simply not.
I have a lot to make up,he thought.
Standing outside the city of Cerre, he filled his lungs to capacity. Pine trees. The dusty sweetness of fallen aspen leaves. A whiff of garbage, as the wind blew over the first tier behind him.
After all this was over, he wanted to travel. See the world with Kreya. Sail the seas beyond the borders of Vos. Maybe learn to sail first. Taste food neither of them could name. Explore bits of the maps that were so obscure no one had bothered to label them.
Leading two mountain horses, Stran joined Jentt to overlook the road, the pine forests, the mist-coated valley, and the expanse of peaks that lay before them. “Ready for an adventure?”
“Oh yes,” Jentt said fervently.
Stran grinned back at him.
They mounted and set off. So close to the city, there was a steady stream of travelers on the road. Jentt bought a bag of apples from a farmer who gawked at both of them in obvious curiosity—you could practically see him trying to figure out who they were, where they were going, and what they planned to do. Neither Jentt nor Stran enlightened him. Later, the farmer might realize he’d met legends.Or maybe not,Jentt thought. Maybe he had better things to do than muse over the identities of two strange travelers, such as sell his fruits in the market, meet with old friends in the city, and return home to a family who loved him.
