Temple of the Traveler: Empress of Dreams (56 page)

“I love you, Corrie. You’re more than I ever imagined, my Nightingale,” he whispered.

Corrie’s heart couldn’t have bloomed more.

Serog blinked at the final word, the translation of her true name. “You know who I am?”

“We are legally married.”

“W-w-wait. How?”

“I offered, you accepted, and we had
sex
, better than the dreams. It was worth the wait.”

“How did you know I was . . .?”

“Serog?” he said, and the word thrilled her. Damn hormones. “Your smell—blood-oranges and eucalyptus, just like our night visits.”

“They weren’t . . . I wasn’t . . .” But she realized—they had been. Her enemy had been courting her all along, every time he met her on the dueling grounds and confessed his hopes and failings. Serog had comforted him and eventually given him something precious—her faith.

“I’m so glad you survived,” he said. “The two of you’ve presented me with a solution I never considered.”

“I have to kill you, dear. I swore.”

“Hmm,” Pagaose said, stroking her stomach.

His warm tickling of her hair made her want to purr. “Stop that; you’re just trying to confuse me.” Serog backed away.

“What was the exact vow?” he asked.

“Humi demanded that I consume your heart and dance on your grave like the scriptures said.”

“So that?”

“Her son would ascend the throne.”

The emperor shrugged. “He still may, depending on his qualities. That’s assuming you don’t have a child from your own womb.”

“My own womb?” The repercussions stunned her. “But I could never wed the symbol of Osos.”

He pointed to the bracelet. “This doesn’t symbolize the tyranny of Osos; it symbolizes freedom from his rule—something you’ve fought for all your life. Since the shield spell, it also means that we can accomplish more together than apart. You are my wizard assistant, and I can have no other.”

“I gave my oath,” she said with a quiver in her voice.

“You
have
honored your vengeance, Serog. You’ve danced on the grave of Osos, this memorial.”

She nodded.

“And you’ve consumed my heart. I’ve been saving my body for Corrie since I met her, but my spiritual conversations with you have filled needs I didn’t know I had. You’re my only equal and remaining friend. She’s the object of my desire. Now that you’re woven into one, I would do
anything
to keep you together for a little while.”

There was that magic phrase again.

“How long is a little while? Corrie will fade if I shift out of her shape or do major magic.”

Pagaose sat up, holding her hand in the classic pose of a pleading man. “Three generations. Regardless of my happiness, I’ve committed to shepherd humans till the gods return.”

“I could . . . maintain for that long,” she admitted. Thoughts of more days like this made her face flush. “Although, I’d have to abandon my dragon body.”

“You fashioned it for revenge and destruction; the time for these things is done. Discard the life of nightmare so we can build and grow.”

“There would be a price.”

He bit his lip and offered. “When the time is up, I will offer myself up and let you consume all of me. Each week until then, I would let you feed Sunday night until I am weak.”

Serog licked her lips. “I could do that now. I could chain you to the throne and drink from your essence any time I wanted. Without your sword, you’re helpless.”

“Not in the least,” he said, touching the red spot on his forehead. “I have one wish remaining from the Traveler, your grandson. I can use it in one of two ways: destroy my heart’s desire or grant you yours.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“If you refrain from killing until the gods return, I will use my wish and the One True Sword to nominate you to the vacant seat on the Council of the Gods. Archanos, Semenos, and Kiateros all owe me. You’d be virtually guaranteed the position.” Serog was speechless, so he continued. “If you still want to kill me then, I wouldn’t stop you. You could meet all your goals. Imagine vindication and the power to effect change.”

“Who would know about my nature?”

“We’d only need to tell Komiko and Sarajah. We’d need their cooperation, but either would do anything for . . . the pair of you.”

She paused to wonder at the reversal, from certain death to empress of the human world and immortality. After a thousand years of Nightmare, she could stop killing and build a life of her choosing.

“I accept your sacrifice,” she whispered in Corrie’s voice. Then she kissed him in thanks. The kiss turned passionate, and his body responded again with his Door-aided powers of recovery. “So soon?” she gasped. “This will be an interesting marriage.”

Pagaose pulled away, holding only her hands. With deep seriousness, he said, “Now for your wedding gift, my love.” He concentrated, and her body shifted subtly. Serog had six fingers on each hand. “No one can deny that you’re the true empress.”

The instant Serog felt happiness in the lands of men, the cursed claw mark on Tashi’s body began to heal. Living by the fountain of eternity, with practice, Tashi could see anything by the rift. When it erupted, the stream of chaos threw his consciousness briefly into the fissures of time: past, future, and sideways.

Often he relived events from his own perspective and that of people close to him. He revisited his many adventures, sometimes willing events to change. Although, he couldn’t alter the physical or change a person’s nature, he could speak to people in inspiration or dreams. Few people listened.

Sarajah was his dearest pupil, tuned to everything he said. He was able to shape the tree of events to make her the greatest queen in human history. During her frequent visits, Tashi warned her of every challenge or threat before it could harm her. But those branches where he consummated their love, he never accepted the guardianship of the fountain and she died in a variety of ugly ways.

There were branches where the two of them could be together again, but the choices belonged to individuals. The guardian could never force someone to take over.

So he spent his idle time adjusting to a better reality. He even did his best to give Humi happy memories of her loves ones, but she was never satisfied. One day, during a great battle, he encountered Archanos on the shores of the Inner Sea.

The god blinked. “You?”

Tashi said, “No names.”

“I thought I was the only one loading the dice in this game.” Archanos narrowed his eyes. “What did you do?”

“Helped nudge Serog toward peace.”

The god smiled. “I pray that the joy she has found will heal the dear one who was the greatest healer among us. You’ve been a good friend, and I’m forever grateful for your freeing my wife. Has your time as a guardian taught you anything?”

Tashi considered this. “All my life, I’ve been certain that some supernatural force has been helping and guiding me. I just never dreamed that that force has been me.”

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