A Touch of Darkness Read online

  Ascara and Lucinda nodded their understanding and then copied everything Magda did. They were most attentive to the details, and for this Magda would never be able to thank them enough.

  Magda took her time with each step. She made sure that it was all done as it should be. The final gesture included the crimson rose of mourning placed in the nine seats of grief: her forehead, both eyes, her mouth, throat, chest, groin, and both ankles. They placed a fresh shroud over the body to finish and Magda bowed her head and whispered a prayer.

  Engrossed in her thoughts and prayers, she almost jumped when the guardians entered the chamber. “And so ends the first day of the rites of the ba’haswa,” said Araha in Anglish.

  “We will guard her now, this coming night,” said Velhana, but in Rabian.

  “Thank you, but I will stay with her,” said Magda.

  Velhana shook her head. “No,” she said in Anglish.

  “Go. You must have your own needs met. For the protection of her soul and yours, you must be rested,” Araha added. “You must be well to complete the rite, now it is begun.”

  Magda bowed. “I submit to your knowledge and wisdom, and do as you wish.”

  3

  On the third day of the Rite, a little before dawn, Lucinda made her way to the ba’haswa on her own. The guard recognised her as she approached, and let her inside without a word. Velhana and Araha stood in the antechamber, and they too said nothing. No pleasantries or small talk either, and after seeing them the last few mornings, she thought a ‘good morning’ would have been nice.

  Routine followed. The guardians cleansed her, checked her arms for any sign that her arms had worsened. They gave her a fresh robe, new sandals, and although they helped to tidy her wet hair, she had yet another day of dampness to contend with.

  She found Magda and Ascara, robed and already inside the main room. Unlike other days, the room had been cleared of the oils and flowers she had grown to expect. Magda kneeled at the base of the plinth, and Ascara stood on guard.

  “Good day. Have you been here long?” Lucinda asked.

  Magda looked up and nodded.

  Ascara grinned. “Most of the night.”

  Magda frowned. “It wasn’t most of the night. We came about an hour before dawn.”

  Ascara shook her head. “We arrived here a couple of hours before dawn and even the guardians were not prepared,” Ascara corrected.

  “Of course they were prepared,” Magda said.

  “So ready the water had not been heated and felt like ice to me,” Ascara said.

  “Never mind the cold water. Why are you so early?” Lucinda asked.

  “The last vigil,” Ascara answered.

  Magda rose to her feet and pulled herself upright. “I heard from the priests that the remains of Princess Ruth have been cleansed. The Rite of Ba’Haswaein has been satisfied. It is time to say goodbye, for today she will be taken to the Holy Mount.”

  “She will be interred?” Lucinda asked.

  Magda shook her head. “The Rabians no longer bury their dead. Not anymore. Olivia will be set upon a pyre in the presence of her ancestors and her family. There, she will be burned. Her ashes will be collected by a priest and spread out over the land and the sea.”

  “Do we take part in that too?” Lucinda asked.

  “No, we will not be there for that. Only God and the priest will see where the last of her mortality will rest,” Magda replied.

  “But the guardians didn’t say anything to me,” Lucinda said.

  “That’s not important. This is the end of the Rite, and I must hold vigil,” Magda said. “Both of you must leave me.”

  Lucinda stared into Magda’s eyes and saw the unshed tears. “If this is what you wish.”

  “No,” Ascara said with much force to her voice. “I will not leave you alone, not for this.”

  “Please, Ascara,” Magda said.

  “Ascara, Magda needs this time alone, to say goodbye.”

  “Thank you,” said Magda. “It is only for few hours. When mid-morning comes, then we all go to the Holy Mount.”

  “That’s fast,” Lucinda said.

  “It must be so,” Magda replied.

  “We’ll be ready,” Ascara said. “If you need anything, just say.”

  “I’ll be fine, Ascara,” Magda answered. “Leave me. Please.”

  Lucinda found dark clothing suitable for mourning already laid out for her when she returned to her suite.

  “Thank you, Caro’Nina. You’re as thoughtful as ever.”

  “Yes, ma’am. I do as bid,” she replied.

  Lucinda took one look at the heavy skirt and corset and did not relish the idea of wearing such clothing. That she would have to wear them to Holy Mount for however long it took, appealed even less. She wished she had the clothing of the explorers, or a simple robe instead, but that might be considered quite ill-mannered.

  “Do you miss the proper clothing?” Caro asked.

  Lucinda chuckled. “I think so, but a few more days and I’m sure I’ll be free to wear whatever I like.”

  “Ascara likes that dress you wore for tea with Prince Ruth,” Caro said.

  “I bet she does,” Lucinda muttered. “Nonetheless, you shouldn’t gossip about such things, Caro.”

  “It’s true though, and when it’s true, it isn’t gossip,” she said. Caro smiled then. “I think the captain liked the dress too.”

  “Caro’Nina, behave. I’m quite sure the captain and Ascara are more than capable of passing on a compliment without help.”

  Caro snickered as she busied herself helping Lucinda.

  “Besides, this is inappropriate at this time. This is the funeral for her wife.”

  For a moment, Caro froze. “I’m sorry. Forgive my rudeness.”

  “Nothing to forgive, but it might be wiser to show a little more consideration for people,” Lucinda said.

  “Of course, ma’am. Please forgive me. I will try to do better.”

  “It’s all right, Caro, but be careful in times like this. Emotions can run a little high, and a casual word will soon be misunderstood.”

  “I will bow to the wisdom you have shown,” she said.

  “Excellent. Now, I wouldn’t mind a cup of tea, if you could arrange that for me?”

  Caro grinned. “Of course, ma’am.”

  A little before midmorning, Ascara entered her rooms. She looked very smart in her dress uniform and strode across the room with great confidence.

  “Well, look at you, don’t you look dashing?” Lucinda said.

  Ascara grinned and bowed. “Thank you, ma’am. Are you ready?” she asked.

  “I think so.”

  “You look perfect, Lucinda.” Ascara held out her arm. “Might I escort you downstairs?”

  “I would be honoured,” Lucinda said. “Do you know what is expected for this?”

  “I have no idea, so I think a stiff back and a stern demeanour might just do it,” Ascara replied.

  “I’m sure it will,” Lucinda said. “Still, I don’t like to do things unprepared. I’ve read what I can and asked where I could, but there is so little information available, I feel unready for this.”

  “That is understandable. They take death seriously. The details I think they leave to the priests,” Ascara said. She opened the doors and stepped into the corridor. She looked each way before allowing Lucinda to leave the room.

  “It’s all about the soul, but don’t they know I—”

  “Lucinda,” Ascara interrupted, “not everyone understands these things as you do. These are their beliefs, their rites, and so on. We must respect them all.”

  “I do respect their beliefs and their customs, but it all seems so secretive and clandestine.”

  “Not really. Life is so open and ordinary, but death is about God, and you don’t poke your nose in God’s business. Magda will tell us what is needed. Either her or one of the guardians.”

  “I don’t want to let Magda down.”

&nbs
p; “You won’t let anyone down.”

  “I hope so,” Lucinda said. She gripped Ascara’s arm and leaned against her as they walked along the corridors and upper walkways. The galleries around the long hall seemed to go on forever. “This is a good time for us to have a chat.”

  “Is it?” Ascara asked.

  “Just one moment,” Lucinda said. She came to a standstill and put her hand on the balcony. She closed her eyes and opened her thoughts to the world around her. First, she tuned out the ordinary and mundane, then she looked for what the eyes couldn’t see and the ears couldn’t hear. She couldn’t sense any other souls nearby, so she assumed they were unwatched. “Well now, Ascara, it seems to me that you have avoided being alone with me ever since we left the desert.”

  “Maybe that’s because I know you’ll find me too irresistible and this is for my safety?”

  Lucinda laughed. “That’s not what I want to talk about and you know it.”

  “So, you do find me irresistible then.”

  “Don’t twist my words, Ascara. I’m serious. We need to talk about what happened in the pyramid.”

  “There is nothing to be said. You already see it all,” Ascara said.

  “No, there is more to it. The fire and rage within you is part of your berserker nature.”

  “Yes.”

  “And the wolf? Is that what it means to be Ulfhaed?”

  “It would seem so.”

  “Seem so?”

  “This is new for me, Lucinda, I don’t understand this curse,” Ascara said.

  The taste of something odd filled Lucinda’s mouth. Not the flavour of truth or lie, but something indeterminate. As though the flavour wished to deceive her senses. She had felt something similar when they had stood on the palace walls with Mogharan. What that meant, she did not know. She suspected something though. “Don’t evade,” she said.

  “Evade?” Ascara asked.

  Lucinda recognised evasion. Deception had a taste. She would need to pay this more attention. “You are not telling me the whole truth.”

  Ascara looked away. “There might be more to it, but I really don’t I think I can discuss it. At least, not until I have spoken with my Council. I’ve already admitted more than I should.”

  Lucinda could only detect the truth. “Very well, but one day soon you will talk to me and tell me how you can summon your clanmates from afar, and fill them with fire.”

  Ascara didn’t answer, instead, she stared across the balcony over the main hall.

  “Or do you share your beast?” Lucinda asked.

  “I have no idea what to say.”

  Lucinda heard the truth in Ascara words. “Did you try to call them, or was that something that happened?”

  Ascara shrugged. “Lucinda, please, I need to speak to the Council. This is beyond my understanding.”

  Lucinda reached out and turned Ascara to face her. “Talk to me, or talk to Magda.”

  “Don’t you trust me?”

  “With my life and my heart. But do you trust me?”

  “I’m scared of this, Lucinda, scared of what I might become. And Magda will like it even less.”

  “Why?” Lucinda asked.

  “Magda does not like anyone who cannot control themselves.”

  “True, but this is different, and it is you. She trusts you.”

  Ascara nodded and held her arm out for Lucinda to take. Lucinda linked her arm through Ascara’s and patted her hand. It struck her then, that walking with a serious Ascara felt the same as walking with a serious Magda. “There is something else, Ascara, I saw you in the pyramid. I saw the beast in your soul stretch out and consume you.”

  “I’m aware of that, and yet, didn’t it scare you?”

  Lucinda shook her head. “I hadn’t expected the full power of your rage to be so great. It was so much more than I’d thought it would be. But what I noticed most of all was that the beast didn’t rise for me, did it? It rose for Magda.”

  Ascara carried on walking and didn’t answer.

  “Sh’Na was right, wasn’t she?” Lucinda pressed.

  “What do you mean?”

  “There is something between Magda and you.”

  “We are all very close, and I have known Magda for a long while.”

  “But there is more there, more to say. I can hear it in your voice,” Lucinda said.

  Ascara didn’t answer but she led Lucinda onwards.

  “This reminds me of other things that have bothered me,” Lucinda said. “No matter that Magda bought back Olivia, Prince Ruth isn’t sure if he likes us or not. Yet he allows us to roam around the palace unescorted.”

  “Why is that, do you think?” Ascara asked.

  “He neither trusts us nor likes us. Yet he hides it well.” Lucinda examined the thought and once more that peculiar flavour filled her mouth. This, she decided, was the taste of deception, of something hidden. She would think about that more when she could.

  “Maybe he has more important things to worry about,” Ascara said. “Like a funeral.”

  “Yes, that must be it, but I can’t help but worry. I get this feeling that there is more. There’s a storm coming, I can feel it in my heart.”

  “Is this a sense of future seeing?”

  Lucinda shook her head. “No, just a gut feeling is all.”

  “Lucinda, you are a tower witch, there is no such thing as just as feeling with you.”

  “Well, just a feeling is all I have right now.”

  “All right. Then we better be ready for anything,” Ascara said.

  “Always. You are my Fire, and Magda is my Ice. And no matter what happens, we will be enough.”

  “Good. I’m glad you feel so positive,” Ascara said.

  Lucinda sighed. “There is no point in fretting about what might or might not be a problem. The only thing we need to worry about right now is how to get through this funeral without heatstroke.”

  “We’ll manage, we always do,” Ascara said. She pointed. The palace doors were wide open, and even from well within the shadows of the hall, Lucinda could see people amassing outside in the grounds. “There are a lot more people than I expected.”

  “Lots more, but then I have never been to the state funeral of a princess before.”

  “Nor have I,” Ascara said.

  Lucinda took one step outside and a wave of sun-baked heat took her breath away. At her side, Ascara didn’t show the slightest reaction to either sun or heat, but then, she never did. She gripped Ascara’s arm. She could do nothing about the heat, but Lucinda felt better with Ascara there.

  She turned her attention to the people gathered. Hundreds of people had gathered on the grounds. They were all dressed in black djabas or abaiyas, the Rabian long robes for men and women. There were no exceptions. Each one also wore something over their heads, a black headscarf or a black hood, and their legs were clad in black loose trousers, the pa’las or fa’las. Lucinda couldn’t tell them apart; the differences between men and women, when dressed like this, had been minimised.

  Stranger than the uniformity of their dress was the lack of any movement. They stood like statues. Row after row of silent and unmoving stone figures.

  “Look at that,” Lucinda whispered.

  “I see them,” Ascara answered.

  “So still,” said Lucinda.

  Without warning, the people moved and fell back in a silent black wave. Then they were still again. It wasn’t so much a wave, but more as though they were all part of one organism. In spite of the heat, a shiver ran down Lucinda’s spine. “Odd,” she said.

  As she considered this, two figures—one tall and blonde, the other dark—strode from around the corner, and she recognised them straight away. Magda and Prince Ruth. Both in identical ceremonial uniforms.

  “That’s not her usual uniform,” Lucinda whispered.

  “No, that’s a uniform of the Rabian High Guard,” Ascara said, “and it’s not a low-rank uniform either.”

  “And you
knew this already? Why didn’t you say?”

  “It never cropped up.”

  “She is full of surprises, isn’t she?” Lucinda said.

  “Every day,” Ascara agreed. “But I think even she was surprised today when the prince promoted her.”

  “Why?”

  “For honour and the funeral,” Ascara answered.

  Behind Magda and Mogharan, twelve white-robed priests carried between them a black wooden litter. Four ornate corner posts supported a curved canopy. Black silky curtains obscured the form inside, and gold leaf decoration showed themes of death, with the gears of exposed clockwork and a motif of nine snakes.

  “This is a Sedyan a’bas, to carry the dead,” Ascara whispered.

  Behind the sedyan followed several more white-robed priests. Some carried incense burners on long poles, and the scent of smoke and frankincense billowed through the air in thick clouds.

  “Do we follow on when they pass?” Lucinda asked.

  “Seems a fair assumption,” Ascara answered.

  Lucinda inclined her head as Magda and Mogharan approached. They didn’t pass by, they stopped.

  “Lady Ravensburgh,” Mogharan said. “The Raven.”

  Magda stared forward, as though incapable of seeing anything else. At least her eyes did not look as red as they’d looked earlier.

  Lucinda curtsied. “Prince Mogharan.”

  “I’m pleased you are with us. Very much so. I would be even happier if you would be so kind as to join us as we climb to my sister’s final resting place.”

  “If this is your wish, then I would be honoured,” she said.

  “Good.” Mogharan made a small gesture with his hand, and a moment later four bearers brought another litter to them. White, rather than black, and designed for sitting rather than the type used to carry Olivia. “This sedyan ha’saq is for you, Gifted One. The heat for someone as fair as you will be a problem, I think. This will help,” Mogharan said.