Truth 1 - First Truth by Cook Dawn

Author:Cook, Dawn
Language: eng
Format: epub

Truth 1 - First Truth

Chapter 20

Bailic sat brooding in his rooms. The hour was late. A trio of candles set behind him lit the page he was studying, and he leaned closer, squinting to see the swirling print. It was the third time he had read the page, and he still didn’t remember what it contained. Manipulating a closed population for a desired trait was by no means beyond him, but Keribdis had written it. Her tight scrawl was hard for him to decipher.

Leaning back, Bailic stretched his shoulders painfully. He would try again in the morning when there was more light. The bright glare would hurt his eyes, but he needed the sun to see as much as any man—maybe more. Bailic set the book aside. He knew the real reason he couldn’t concentrate was that his thoughts were on other, more pressing matters.

As he sat, he cast his thoughts inward, down through the Hold’s abandoned halls in a halfhearted search for the last object of any importance left to him. He had known for years the First Truth was close, and it was his habit to listen for its sirenlike call at this hour. The empty space between sunset and sunrise, when all men’s minds were still, had always been the easiest time for him to search. Someday, he thought bitterly, the book would be his.

He had once been counted as a Keeper and was confident he could use its knowledge. Its borrowed wisdom would give him the strength to claim the souls of Ese‘ Nawoer. The abandoned city had once fallen under the shadow of the Hold, its commerce and population supporting the burgeoning needs of the fortress. It had lain abandoned for four hundred years, populated by the ghosts born from a single man’s tragic decision.

With the book he would demand their support and overwhelm any opposition to his plans. He would be free of the Hold, now both his protection and prison. He could claim anything he desired, which, he admitted, might be more than many would willingly give. But more importantly, he could govern the miserable denizens of the plains and foothills. Bailic huffed in contempt. They had, in his opinion, far too much freedom.

But first, he mused, slipping easily into the familiar thought, he would instigate a conflict to throw their two highly structured but stagnant societies into chaos. It shouldn’t take much with the strength of the book to help. They already despised each other. Open hostility wouldn’t be hard to instigate. Keeping safe in the background, he would manipulate both sides to insure there would never be a victor, just continuous losses. Only when he deemed they had beaten themselves sufficiently would he arise as the great peacemaker, bringing his will upon the dirt-​eaters and foothills squatters. “You will welcome me,” he whispered, “and praise me. I will forge you into the image I desire, and no one will think to question me.” He couldn’t help his smile, but it faltered as a small tug of doubt took him.

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