Serovek's gaze followed the same path as hers. “It grew from a spear to a net and swallowed thegallawhole before disappearing.”
Anhuset recalled Serovek saying the monk's name, a question full of hope, of uncertainty, of regret. “Do you really think it was Megiddo?”
He shrugged. “I have to be careful to see what is there instead of what I want to be there, but yes. At least a manifestation of him. He found a way to cross back into this realm and save us.”
If that were so, then she and Serovek owed Megiddo a life-debt, one she hoped she might one day repay, though such a thing seemed impossible, at least in her lifetime. And after what she just faced in the broken city, she'd discourage anyone from trying to access thegalla's realm for a rescue mission. Too many had suffered too greatly in order to shove the horde back into the cesspit from which they'd spawned. Even now, the idea that there'd been one running free in Haradis made her skin crawl and her chest tighten.
“Do you think there are moregallafree in there?”
“No.” His answer surprised her. “I think however it landed on this side, it was alone.Galladon't split off from one another. They're more like a hive. If there had been more than one, we'd have faced them as well.”
“But how did it get free? And will others follow?”
Another shrug. “I wish I knew. The Beladine and the Gauri record stories of straygallabrought across by necromancers with more ambition than brains, hoping to enslave one to do their bidding. It never ends well. The necromancer is eaten, as are his nearest neighbors, until a team of wizards come in and exorcise the thing back to where it came from. I wouldn't be surprised if just such a thing happened here. Haradis as it stands now might keep out the Kai and the usual looters, but a necromancer would see it as a treasure chest to be opened.”
She scowled. “Such foul magic has no place in this world.” The moment the words rolled off her tongue, she regretted them. Necromantic magic had allowed living men to die, to resurrect and to lead an army of the dead into battle against thegalla.
Serovek's half smile held a hint of melancholy. “It has its uses from time to time.”
Anhuset reached out and laid her hand on his chest. His heart, as noble as the moon was fair, beat strong and steady under her palm. “Forgive me. I meant no malice or insult toward you.”
He covered her hand with his. He'd always been forthright in his admiration for her as well as his attraction to her, but the fond expression gracing his visage now was something else, something greater and deeper. “There's nothing to forgive. You, of all people, know firsthand what it took to win against thegalla. You're right; there's no place for such twisted sorcery in this world. If it didn't exist, neither would thegalla.”
Her lips thinned. “Pull another stunt like you did in there, and I'll kill you myself.”
She didn't stop him when he lifted her hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss to her palm. A hot tingling purled up her arm to suffuse her entire body. She only pulled her hand away when he released her fingers.
It's just the aftermath of relief at avoiding death, her reason told her turbulent emotions. Her emotions guffawed and told her reason to kindly fuck off.
She took three obvious step backs to put distance between them, ignoring his faint smirk in favor of staring at Haradis. “With it sitting on an island now, anygallathat might still be in there can't leave.” Or so she hoped.
Serovek's smirk vanished and his reply revealed his doubt matched hers. “Maybe. It has so far. You have to tell Brishen everything when you return. You can set off for home with the others once we've reached the agreed-upon landing spot.”
The implacable flatness in his tone made her stiffen, and his words sounded alarms. “I don't understand.”
His shoulders went back and his legs tensed, all the signs of someone bracing for a physical altercation. “I'm taking Megiddo to the monastery alone. The magic remaining in his body is somehow tethering us to each other. I wouldn't be surprised if it drew thatgallato me like a beacon. I won't risk my men or Brishen's sha to transport him to the monks.”
That noble heart of his was a damn annoyance at times. Anhuset bared her teeth. He didn't even flinch. “My task,” she bit out. “My duty, is to accompany you and the monk to his order. I will complete that task.”
“I relieve you of that duty. Go home to Saggara.”
“Just like that?” she scoffed. “A little hand-waving from you, and I march off to do your bidding?” She crossed her arms and gave him a thin smile. “You can neither relieve nor dismiss me. I'm the Khaskem'ssha, not yours. If you don't wish me to ride with you and your men, so be it. I'll just follow behind you, but I'll see this journey through to its end.”
He raised his hands and his gaze to the night sky, as if beseeching divine help. When he returned his attention to her, it was to glare her into submission. She raised one mocking eyebrow. “My gods,” he muttered. “Do you ever yield?”
“Not if it means abandoning my duty.” She might not always read his expressions easily or correctly, but she clearly heard the surrender in his voice.
He tried one last tactic. “Don't you think Brishen would find your observations regarding Haradis more valuable than you acting as a Kai ambassador to a group of heretic monks?”
“Considering it was probably Megiddo's eidolon who saved us in Haradis less than a half hour ago, getting his body safely to the monastery is of utmost value. Besides, I can draft a message which one of the others can deliver.”
One long-suffering sigh that tempted a grin from her, and he tightened the pack on his back “Let's get on with it then. We'll have daylight soon enough, and I wouldn't put it past the captain to leave us behind if we're late.”
Chapter Seven
A hymn of the broken.
To Serovek's surprise,Anhuset wasn't the only one to resist his plan of splitting their party. They'd hiked to the agreed-upon meeting place and reboarded the towboat where it and the barge had docked for the remainder of the night. Except for the nightwatch, the crew was asleep. Serovek's men, however, were awake, their lamps held high as they called greetings to the margrave and the Kaisha. The boat was crowded, dirty, and loaded with the bare minimum of necessities to keep passengers comfortable, especially overnight. After the foray into Haradis, he was happy to see it floating on the Absu, waiting for them.