Challenges Read online

  “That was a disgusting thing for her to do,” Tamrissa commiserated while patting Jovvi’s hands. “She wanted to get you upset, and used the one way she could be sure of. I wonder how they found out about the kidnapping attempt.”

  When Jovvi simply shook her head, Ro stirred where he stood to Rion’s right.

  “There were servants bringin’ you food and drink when you told me about it in the dinin’ room,” Ro said in a musing way. “If that was the only time you mentioned it in the house, that must be when it was overheard. And I’ll bet the bitch expected you to blame one of us for informin’. Anythin’ to drive us as far apart as possible.”

  “Yes, you’re probably right,” Jovvi agreed after taking a deep breath, obviously working to pull herself together. “I hate the idea of getting anyone involved with the authorities and the courts, and my feelings must have been perfectly clear.”

  “For all we know, the servant listening could have had Spirit magic,” Tamrissa pointed out, exasperated annoyance clear. “Talk about taking unfair advantage! We’ll have to be a bit more careful from now on, but in the meantime, what are you going to do? You don’t have to attend the trial, you know…”

  “Actually, I do,” Jovvi said, her sigh filled with resignation. “I know I’m not responsible for Allestine’s stupidities, but I still need to be there to find out what happens to her. I just wonder why they don’t need me to testify. How else can they get the details of what happened?”

  “Personally, I’d like some details about what happened,” Coll put in, his brow creased with disturbance. “And am I the only one who didn’t know about this?”

  “I hadn’t heard about it either,” Rion said, which calmed Coll’s intense stare to a small degree. “Would someone like to inform us now?”

  “That woman Allestine, who ran the residence where Jovvi was a courtesan, tried to kidnap her after one of the practice sessions,” Tamrissa said when Jovvi herself hesitated. “She and those two bullies forced Jovvi into a coach, and were going to drag her back to the town she came from. Jovvi used her talent to stop them, and that’s why she was so exhausted the night you and I helped Rion, Lorand. That’s probably also why you didn’t know. There were too many other things going on to remember about an attempt that didn’t work.”

  “Yes, you’re right about us being involved in other things,” Coll agreed, most of the intensity now gone from him. “And if Jovvi didn’t want the authorities to find out about it, I can understand why no one discussed it. But I’d also like to know why they don’t need her to testify.”

  “Probably because it’s a criminal trial,” Ro put in when everyone else either shrugged or shook their head. “I saw part of one once, when a member of my crew was involved, and they don’t have anyone testifyin’ but the people who are accused. They get the truth out of them somehow, because my crewman was cleared.”

  “I expect I’ll find out all about it tomorrow,” Jovvi said, her smile still on the weak side. “Right now I’d like to tell you all how wonderful you are, working so hard to make me feel better. And we still haven’t even discussed that official announcement. It’s now no longer a secret that we’ll be a challenging Blending.”

  “No, and I wonder how many of the groups had the nerve to tell them, rather than wait to be told,” Rion said, glad to help change the subject. “Damilla considered the matter amusing, but her sense of humor has become notorious over the years. Her Blendingmates seemed more annoyed.”

  “They’re annoyed about this entire affair,” Jovvi supplied, her smile slightly better now. “They hate being put on parade like a team of dressed up horses, but they had no more choice about coming tonight than we did. And I couldn’t help noticing that their Spirit magic user hadn’t even the most tenuous hold on the power. What about the others?”

  Rion had to think only for a moment before he realized that the same was true of the Air magic user. Keeping a touch on the power had become automatic with him, but apparently the Air magic member of the Seated Five didn’t do the same.

  “The woman doin’ all the talkin’ for them flexed her talent for a moment,” Ro offered with a shrug. “It was when Mardimil said his piece, and she seemed to be reactin’ to that. But it wasn’t a very strong response, and then it died away again completely.”

  “And she was the only one?” Jovvi asked, looking around to get everyone’s nod of agreement. “Now isn’t that strange. I’d have to really work at it to sever myself completely from the power, and I’m certain the rest of you are in the same position. So why does the reigning Five do it differently? Because there’s a danger in maintaining contact that we don’t know about, or…”

  Or because the members of the Five are so ordinary, they never should have been seated. Rion finished Jovvi’s uncompleted sentence silently, and judging by their expressions the others were doing the same. Both parts of that speculation gave them something to think about … as though they needed any more…

  CHAPTER THREE

  Delin Moord stood watching the Five making the round of introductions to the commoners, his expression carefully free of what his mind felt. Those five people represented the most power it was possible to have, the highest social and political positions, the ultimate in safety and independence. He needed all that to be his, his and his group’s, and there was nothing he would refuse to do in order to satisfy that need. Nothing whatsoever…

  “Now isn’t that interesting,” Kambil Arstin murmured from Delin’s left, also watching the Five. The Blending had paused in front of the peasants in silver and blue, the group meant to be first to face—and lose to—the Advisors’ chosen noble Blending.

  “What is there to find interesting?” Delin asked languidly, automatically covering his annoyance with Kambil. The man was the only other member of the group Delin could depend on to be really effective where subtlety was concerned, but that didn’t mean he liked him. Anyone who made cryptic comments without immediately explaining them had to consider himself superior on one level or another.

  “What was interesting was the combined reaction of the entire Blending,” Kambil answered without looking away from the Five, who were now moving on toward the third peasant group. “Something that was said surprised them, and it wasn’t a pleasant surprise. Damilla is the one doing all the talking, and she shifted rather quickly to being amused. I think we both know what that means.”

  “It means she was picturing someone being hurt, most probably badly hurt,” Delin replied at once. “I wonder if she intends to continue indulging her private pleasures once her Blending has been retired. If so, we may be asked to take action against her.”

  “With her strong habit of being discreet, I doubt we’ll have the problem,” Kambil returned with amusement. “Everyone knows what she’s like, but I’ve never heard anyone claim to have seen her doing it. Now that we’re discussing it, I wonder if it’s true after all.”

  “You think she encouraged the rumors for her own reasons?” Delin asked in startlement, suddenly realizing that what Kambil had said was true. “That could very well be the truth. If you want to keep people from trying to take advantage of you, the first step is to make them afraid of you. I wouldn’t have expected such clear and intelligent thinking from a woman.”

  “You’d be wise not to judge all women by Selendi and—the other women you know,” Kambil advised, his words and tone gentle. “Underestimating people can and does lead to disaster, and with our current undertaking we’ll do well to avoid as much obvious disaster as possible.”

  Delin murmured neutral agreement, but on the inside his mind seethed. Was Kambil really lecturing him, the true leader of their group? The fool had some nerve trying to tell him how to behave, not to mention diplomatically holding back on what he’d originally meant to say. He’d intended to mention Selendi and Delin’s mother as examples, and at the last instant had changed his mind. Delin had caught the hesitation, and fiercely resented having the point brought up even obliquely. />
  Because Delin’s mother was even worse than Selendi. Lady Talvine Moord had never had an original thought in her life, and paid attention only to what her husband told her. She doted on the man as the force which powered her own life, and put him and his wishes above everything else in the world—including her children. Delin could still remember that first time with his father, a small boy terrified of what would be done to him. He’d run to his mother, expecting to be protected, but his mother had smiled vaguely and turned her back, pretending she saw nothing of the way her husband dragged her sobbing son back with him…

  Delin shuddered as he always did at that memory, the one that returned to him time and again in dreams. It had been his first experience with his father’s ways but not his last, and to this day Delin couldn’t imagine himself standing up to the man. Even though they stood eye to eye physically and Delin’s talent was worlds stronger, the least thought of disobeying the man sent Delin into a trembling funk. Challenging the man simply wasn’t possible, not on any level whatsoever. Being out of his house and in a position where he couldn’t simply be ordered back was an incredible relief, but Delin still needed more…

  “Delin,” Kambil hissed, and Delin looked up to find that he’d fallen into the blackout time of his memories again. More time had passed than he’d expected, and the Five’s entourage was leaving the vicinity of Adriari Fant’s group and heading toward his own. He’d thought they would only have the peasants introduced to them, but apparently everyone was to be given the “honor.”

  “And here is the next to last group,” Hiblit Rahms said as the entourage approached, his speech and mannerisms distinct despite the costume and mask he wore. Hiblit had replaced Rigos as the one in charge of the noble challenging Blendings when Rigos had been arrested for the murder of Elfini Weil, and at first Delin had been delighted to have someone other than Rigos assigned to watch them. Delin’s group wasn’t meant to win the Fivefold Throne, Adriari’s group had been chosen for that, but Delin and his groupmates meant to forcibly change that decision. Rigos would have seen what they were up to and would have reported them immediately, but Rigos’s replacement wasn’t likely to be as observant or vindictive.

  And Hiblit was completely different, only not in a way that would prove beneficial to Delin and the others. There was something seriously wrong with the man, in that he moved as though his clothes were filled with pins that constantly stuck into him, and he never made eye contact with those he spoke to. He merely recited what he’d obviously been told to say, and had even refused a simple cup of tea because he “wasn’t allowed” to eat or drink anywhere but at home. That statement had been made without any visible emotions, but Kambil, who was their Spirit talent, said the man was twisted impossibly tight on the inside. Not only would Hiblit never take a bribe to ignore what Delin’s group would be doing, but he’d certainly even report the bribe attempt itself.

  “The people in this group are as follows,” Hiblit said as the Five’s entourage stopped in front of them, his tone distant and his gaze fixed on some invisible object in the distance. “Lord Bron Kallan, Fire magic, Lord Kambil Arstin, Spirit magic, Lord Delin Moord, Earth magic, Lady Selendi Vas, Air magic, and Lord Homin Weil, Water magic. The empire greatly appreciates their cooperation in this matter.”

  “Of course it does,” Damilla Sytoss said with one of her enigmatic smiles, clearly ignoring the emotionlessness of the recital Hiblit had made. “We all appreciate their cooperation. And how is your father, Lord Homin? Recovering from his ordeal, I trust?”

  “He—he’s gone to our country house to recuperate, Excellency,” Homin stuttered in answer, obviously startled to be personally addressed. Then the fat little man startled Delin by pulling himself together and rising to the occasion. “When I see him again, I’ll be sure to mention that you asked after him.”

  “Yes, please do,” Damilla told him with a wider smile, and then they were all moving on toward the last of the noble groups. Hiblit led the way, but Delin had the feeling that the man walked alone through a completely private world.

  “Wasn’t that impressive?” Selendi cooed, and Delin turned to see that she’d taken Homin’s arm. “The only one of us spoken to directly was Homin, and I was the one standing right next to him.”

  “What do you think that makes you?” Bron commented with a snort of ridicule while Homin’s flabby chest swelled with Selendi’s praise. “Most of us were standing next to him, and I certainly didn’t even see him turned magically into someone important. He’s the same short, fat—”

  “Bron, I need your help,” Delin interrupted immediately, before the fool could finish insulting Homin and starting a fight. “You know we still have to talk to the group we’ll be facing in the first competition, and since you’re our leader I have to ask your advice. Will you step over to one side with me for a moment?”

  “Oh, all right,” Bron grudged, obviously unhappy about being torn away from the sport of picking on the helpless, but still willing to go. So far he’d always responded to the nonsense about his being the group’s leader, although from the sneers of derision on the faces of Selendi and Homin, Bron was the only one who still believed the lie. And would probably continue to believe it no matter what anyone said, as long as the ploy wasn’t used to extremes. Bron was truly stupid, but even the terminally stupid eventually saw the light if it was shined in their eyes often enough.

  Delin led the way to a spot a short distance away from the others, then he began to fabricate the problem he wanted Bron’s “help” with. He was in the midst of mentioning the obvious, that the first group they would face was composed of three men and two women, when an interruption came. But not an ordinary interruption, and Delin turned with Bron and everyone else to watch what was happening in the middle of the dance floor.

  At first the only thing happening was Hiblit Rahms standing there in the midst of everyone and screaming. Head thrown back, eyes closed tight, fists held up and clenched, Hiblit looked like a tortured soul in the Caverns of the Damned. His screams sent a chill through Delin, and he could see he wasn’t alone in feeling that way. All the people who had been dancing were backing away from the man, most of them with shudders of fear. The scream was like that, something to bring unknown and unexplained fear to all those who heard it.

  “What’s wrong with him?” Bron demanded unsteadily in a low voice. “Why is he doing that, and why doesn’t someone stop him?”

  Bron’s bewilderment was clear, but this time Delin felt that it wasn’t stupidity making the man say what he had. He, too, wished someone would stop Hiblit, most especially as he himself seemed helpless to accomplish the task. To stop the man one would have to go close to him, and somehow Delin was certain that even his talent would be fouled if he sent it to touch the screaming man. Obviously Kambil had been right about how tightly strung Hiblit was on the inside.

  And then others began to scream as small gouts of flame erupted to life in more than half a dozen places. Some of the places were the clothing of those people still closest to Hiblit, and the rest described a circle of sorts around the screaming man. Almost a protective circle, Delin thought, one meant to keep people from reaching Hiblit. Guardsmen had come rushing in from the hall when the screams first began, and now they stood with members of the Five’s personal guard, clearly at a loss about what to do.

  “Look at that,” Bron said, pointing to a woman whose costume skirt had begun to blaze. “The flames just went out, and the skirt isn’t even singed. It looks like all the clothing fires have been put out, and now the ring around Hiblit is being extinguished. Damned strong talent, whoever he is. I can feel the vibrations in the power without needing to reach out.”

  “Reaching out might be a good idea,” Delin said, trying not to snarl through his teeth. “It would help to know who has a talent that strong, especially if the person turns out to be a member of one of the peasant groups. Give it a try, Bron, and tell me what you learn.”

  “Oh, all right,�
�� the mindless fool grumbled, as though the point were completely unimportant. Everyone in the room had probably reached for the power automatically, even those with minimal talent. It was a reflex of self protection in which Delin had fully participated, but awareness of the power used by someone of a different aspect wasn’t possible. Only same aspect awareness worked, and anyone but an imbecile like Bron would already know the source of the great strength he’d mentioned.

  “It’s gone now,” the imbecile announced after a moment with a dismissive shrug. “He put out all the fires then released the power, so I can’t tell who it was. But it was probably Edril Lanton, the Five’s Fire magic user. It’s certainly something he should have done.”

  Delin limited himself to a noncommittal grunt as he felt the Earth magic members of the guard begin to exert magical force on Hiblit, but on the inside he was furious. Edril Lanton was as lazy and unimaginative as Bron, so he was probably the last—after Bron—to have wielded his talent. It might even have been Adriari showing off for her group, the group that the Advisors meant to have Seated this time, but now Delin would never know. And all because Bron was such an incredible ignoramus…!

  “They’ve put him to sleep, for all the good it’s done,” Kambil’s voice came as the man stopped beside Delin. “Those little noises he’s making mean he’s still screaming even though he’s unconscious. I have a feeling we’ll be getting another new agent … and I’m curious about who put those fires out. Would you like to ask Bron, or shall I?”

  “I already have, and he doesn’t know,” Delin growled, finding controlling his anger almost beyond him. “He said a large amount of strength was being used, but didn’t bother to find out who was using it. By the time he tried, the user stopped. I’m now wondering if it was Adriari, showing off to everyone without putting the arrogance into words.”