Brother Qown turned. The Doltari nurse pulled her attention away from the fight for long enough to jab the sharpened point of her calligraphy brush into the back of her hand. Then she flipped the brush over to load the bristles with her own blood.

She drew a single glyph on her forehead. That same glyph immediately appeared on the foreheads of every guard.

A terrible foreboding came over Brother Qown.

He possessed a different definition of witchcraft from the Joratese, but he knew a spell being cast when he saw one.

“What are you doing?” Brother Qown yelled. “Stop her! Stop her. Baron! You must stop her!”

The white-skinned woman looked at him and smiled.

All of winter couldn’t have been as cold.

She tipped the glass bottle over. It tumbled off the railing’s edge and shattered against the ground, a tiny tinkling overlooked in the tumult raging in the tournament grounds.

Thick blue smoke poured from the shattered bottle. The smoke curled around the Doltari woman’s face without touching it. The old warden, however, was less fortunate. The smoke poured up his nostrils and pushed into his mouth. He began screaming, choking. The warden dislodged the dhole puppy, who whimpered and snapped at the curling smoke.

The Doltari woman picked up the puppy, drew the same mark on its forehead too, and turned to leave.

“Senera, what have you done?” Tamin demanded.

“My job,” she snapped. “Follow me, boys. We’re finished here.”

The soldiers, who in theory worked for the baron, obeyed her command.

The baron started to protest, but the smoke hadn’t stopped its spread. It snaked tendrils up his nose, down into his mouth. The smoke billowed out.

Another roar sounded behind Brother Qown. The priest turned to see Janel standing. Dedreugh’s body lay on the ground, burning to ash. The count had raised an arm to hold Dedreugh’s head by his hair, black blood dripping down from the neck and spine. It looked for all the world as if she’d ripped the corpse’s dead head from its body.

Probably, she had.

The flesh burned fast, even without fuel. Brother Qown had no doubt nothing would be left behind for Kasmodeus to animate.

But they’d run out of time.

The blue smoke flowed over Brother Qown as well.

10: THE CHOKING OF MEREINA

Jorat Dominion, Quuros Empire. Two days since the Breaking of Gaeshe

Brother Qown closed his journal and set it aside.

Kihrin waited a moment.

Brother Qown picked up his teacup and took a long, luxurious sip.

“So what happened?” Kihrin said. He pointed at the priest. “What happened with the smoke?”

Brother Qown cleared his throat. “I just, uh … perhaps if you might give me a moment. I find this next section emotionally draining.”

“Would you like me to continue?” Janel asked.

Brother Qown breathed in obvious relief. “Would you?”

“Of course.”

Janel’s Turn. Mereina, Barsine Banner, Jorat, Quur.