Pug nodded. ‘Yes. You said, "They have. What do you think we’re doing here? That is the game. And we are the pieces.’"
‘Nothing has changed, Pug. That’s the message. This is still a Game of Gods, and we are the pawns they use to win or lose. Kalkin can break rules like no other, for it is his nature, but even he has limits to what he does directly. And there is more. It is not Kalkin acting alone. He could not affect this realm without the consent of other gods.’ His voice grew weak. ‘I… Macros… was always the god’s creature and he prepared the way. You are their creature, too, but you have a destiny beyond mine… his.’ He closed his eyes, and Pug could see that the end was fast approaching. ‘You must find Nakor. He has the answers.’
Pug nodded. ‘I will.’ He put his hand over Macros’s eyes and said, ‘We have no more need of you.’
The Dasati who had the memories of the ancient human magician slumped down. To the Bloodwitches, Pug said, ‘Do with this empty vessel as you see fit.’
Audarun said, ‘There were more questions —’
‘And this creature had no answers,’ finished Pug. ‘It had accomplished its task.’
‘And was that?’ asked the old matriarch.
‘We must return to the heart of the city, for somewhere there is a being of incredible danger, and a little gambler who is my friend, who is trying to control that being. And my friend, I have just been told, has the answers.’
‘What being does your friend control?’ asked Audarun, motioning for her attendant to take away the dead body that had been host to Macros’s memories.
‘A strange young man who is far more than merely a man. His name is Ralan Bek and he is here to save two universes. Your prophecies name him the Godkiller.’
The three old Bloodwitches sat in silence, weighing Pug’s words. ‘How do you know of the Prophecy?’ asked Audarun after a time.
‘Martuch,’ Pug replied. ‘He has said things in passing, and I have pieced together some sense of them. I do not yet fully understand our role in this matter, but it is as this lifeless creature said – what Macros the Black, my wife’s father, said to me lifetimes ago – that this is a Game of Gods and we are only pieces on the board.
‘But we are also beings of will and intelligence and I will not see any of us squandered in a foolish gambit.’ Pug turned to look at Magnus. ‘We have a long journey.’
‘I think I can take us straight away to the Grove, Father.’
Pug looked surprised. ‘Really?’
Looking on as four young women came to pick up the dead Dasati and carry him away, Magnus said, ‘Mother’s been teaching me and I’m sure I can do it. I can transport us there without a device.’
‘We need to collect Valko and go,’ said Pug.
Audarun held up her hand. ‘Young Valko will not travel with you.’
Pug looked warily at the old woman. Whatever else these Bloodwitches were, they were Dasati and capable of instant and extreme violence. This enclave of women might lack the aura of insanity of the rest of this race, but that made them no less potentially dangerous. ‘Why?’
‘He has a role to play, which is as critical in its own fashion as yours, of that I’m certain.’ She rose slowly. ‘If the Dark One vanished this instant, the slaughter in his name would not. There are too many, from the TeKarana down to his lowest servitor, who have a vested interest in seeing things remain here as they are.
‘The society we live in has at its heart an evil that infects every aspect of our lives. Even if that heart dies now, the infection will continue for centuries. Too many would continue as if nothing had changed.
‘There must be a wholesale reordering of our culture,’ said the oldest of the Triarch. ‘Not only must the Dark God be destroyed, but the TeKarana and the Karanas, as well as the topmost leadership of the Dark One’s temple, all must be removed, and once that has occurred, we will still have to endure decades of unrest.’
‘As powerful lords rush to seize power,’ said Magnus. ‘You speak of chaos.’
‘It is better for there to be chaos,’ answered Audarun, ‘than an order that calcifies a race, stagnates it until it becomes a thing despicable, a culture of death and horror. It would be better to become the animals we devour, for at least they care for their young.’ She fixed Magnus with a steady gaze. ‘Let the strong survive, but we shall teach them,, eventually, to care for the weak.’
Pug said, ‘You choose a harsh path.’