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sound optimistic. He had never before
been privy to his sister's marital problems. "Not that I plan to do
anything of the sort, but Sommick asked for my help in arranging it. He ...
seemed to think I had done something similar for my own benefit."
    "Oh he has these great, ominous plans in his
head, but our Sommick is still an axe-handed idiot. Even a fair number of his
supporters within the Circle might prefer him dead rather than see a dynasty of
sorcerers from a single bloodline. If he thinks you would have gotten Iridan
killed for your own ends, he must not have seen the pyre at the memorial,"
Lord Harwick said. "And since he was standing not a spit's distance from
me, I suspect he saw it and just thinks you faked that anger. If you did, I
shall eat my pipe." He took the pipe from his mouth and waved it about for
emphasis.
    "Aloisha was always ambitious. Do you not think
she might like the title of empress?"
    "Maybe if there were no emperor ..."
    "Are you planning something?" Brannis
asked.
    "Hah, no, I am still content to wait until you
have learned enough real magic to stand better than a kitten's chance in a
stripecat cage against Rashan. Once he is out of the way, we can worry about
taming the emperor."
    "Spit," Brannis said, looking down at the
chessboard. "You have me again." Brannis tipped his king over.
    "Got to get that mind of yours clear. I can
carry on talking and still play with all my wits. How do you expect to learn to
fight a warlock if you cannot keep a chess game separate in your thoughts?"
Lord Harwick began setting up the pieces again, using magic rather than his own
aging fingers. The black and white armies arrayed themselves in perfect rows
once more.
    "All right. But if I win this time, I want you
to write out that lightning spell you have been promising me all week,"
Brannis said. He took the white set and opened with his king's pawn. "It
had best be worth the effort learning it when I already know the one from Powers
of the Sky ."
    "Brannis my boy, you never learn the best ones
from books. You might use them as a start, but there are always improvements to
be made. No sorcerer with any wits puts the best ones between bindings. Private
journals perhaps, but not those pedantic old tomes. The one I will show you
will be much easier to use silently. I almost hesitate to even let you practice
these aloud in Veydrus. Mutter and waggle fingers in the safety of your own
home for this one, but let slip nothing in Kadrin. Kyrus needs to skip to the
end."
    "Does anyone ever manage to do that?"
Brannis asked.
    "Roughly as many sorcerers as manage a
transference spell between worlds, would be my guess."
    * * * * * * *
*
    Even with the afternoon sunshine, it was still cold
enough for breath to steam lightly as the two opponents circled one another.
The grass beneath their bare feet was still green, but was strewn with brown
leaves that crunched unheeded underfoot. One of the fighters was black-skinned,
glistening with sweat and stripped to the waist, revealing a lean build. His
hair hung in two long braids than fell halfway down his back, dark as his skin.
He watched his opponent with one good eye, his other covered by a patch. His
opponent was a hair taller, thinner, fair-skinned and female, wearing nothing
but loose black pants and a cloth wrap about her chest. Her jaw-length hair
hung loose, blowing auburn with the breeze. She had not broken a sweat in the
sparring match.
    "Oh to be twenty-three again," Rakashi
opined, huffing for breath as he watched his opponent circling him.
    "Hey, sparring was your idea," Soria
replied. "Don't blame me if you can't keep up." She closed the gap
between them, launching a series of easily-dodged punches. She only hit him
when he made mistakes, keeping the match as "friendly" as her Tezuan
training allowed. "I only agreed because I have nothing better to occupy
my time with while Brannis spends every day with Lord Harwick."
    "Yes, why is Brannis so interested in this
Acardian