The Ring of Five Dragons by 9781429913416

Author:9781429913416
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-08-19T00:00:00+00:00

—Utmost Source, the Five Sacred Books of Miina

18

Malistra

Long shadows enrobed the regent’s palace. Here and there, red highlights—the last traces of the setting sun—sparked and died on V’ornn heavy cut-crystal glassware, plates and cutlery arrayed on the long, ornate state dining table. Kundalan servants, overseen by members of the Haaar-kyut, the regent’s personal guard, saw to the last-minute preparations for the banquet that was about to begin.

The regent Wennn Stogggul, dressed in wine-red robes, a ceremonial dagger sheathed at his left hip, surveyed this area of his domain with a highly critical eye. This was his first formal banquet since he had assumed the regency and he was determined that it would be a memorable one. He went around the table, checking the holoIDs, memorizing where each invited dignitary would sit. This was especially critical, since for the first time in V’ornn memory members of the Lesser Caste Khagggun had been invited to sit alongside Great Caste Bashkir and Genomatekks. Assuring himself that all was in order, he passed through the high window-doors, strolling along the terrace. Twilight had overtaken Axis Tyr. Beneath the deepening blue of the sky he could hear the sounds of the city—the singsong calls of the street-sellers, the clip-clop of cthauros’ hooves, the laughter of children, the orations of oracles—and he was reminded all over again that he was on a backward world.

Not that his Gyrgon masters would ever let him forget it. Nightmares had followed him to bed after his last Summoning. The Gyrgon with the ruby-red pupils still filled him with dread, and the depths of the dread that racked him made him sick to his stomachs. They knew him, these Gyrgon. They knew his darkest fears; they knew what kind of leash to put him on, what kind of punishment he would respond to. He ran a trembling hand across his forehead, wiping away the dampness. He would have to tread carefully with them. Very carefully. The less contact he had with them the better.

And yet, there was an aspect of the Summoning that most mystified him: the rage, and their anger toward him. What had he done, except provide them with what they had wanted, the Ring of Five Dragons? But, ah, what if it had gone badly? What if they could not break the Ring’s secret, or it had turned out to be useless—as he had suspected all along?

Glancing down, he saw Star-Admiral Kinnnus Morcha appear in the courtyard, on his way to the banquet. Stogggul made a face. He had thought long and hard before seeking to enlist Morcha’s assistance. An alliance with the Khagggun was a perilous endeavor; it had the potential to be disastrous. Who knew how these Lesser Castes would act when given nominal Great Caste status? The accursed Ashera Consortium—N’Luuura take them all!—had forced his hand. He knew better than anyone the extreme danger in moving against the Ashera. And although his plan had met with success on Kundala, he was painfully aware that his victory would not be complete until he had brought down the Ashera Consortium.

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