“Myth is still active. Don’t forget that. I’m sure by now he has realized how little control I truly gave him over the Blights. He thought I was going to let him kill everyone off with my beauties,” Kali grumbled.
“They served their purpose well in shifting the balance of power. This will have everyone off balance for years and keep their minds off of the Barrier for a while at least,” Hemlock offered. He rubbed his chin for a moment and watched her pace across the room twice in silence. “We need to confront Symphony,” he said at last, and Kali stopped dead in her tracks.
“Are you out of your mind?” Her voice was a hoarse whisper as she slowly turned to look at him with disbelief written clearly on her pale face. “I am an exile and wanted dead by every nation and you are the bloody leader of the largest Assassin guild in Sanctuary. We can’t simply demand a meeting with fanatics such as the Fionaveir. They are so goody-goody it makes my skin crawl. We would barely get to the Pardon me before they were whacking our heads off our shoulders,” Kali added, her voice growing louder with each word.
“We can if we have something to offer her in return for amnesty,” Hemlock pressed. He had been giving the matter thought for the past week and it was the only solution he had managed to come up with. The only other options were declaring war openly on the Fionaveir or leaving the city, and in his visions, both of those paths had led to his death. Confronting Symphony had led to his loss of power, but it was possible that he could change that future. Still, loss of power was far better than loss of life. He knew what was waiting for him in hell and Seth would be far from merciful.
“And what should we offer her, then?” Kali demanded. She was staring at him fully now with both hands on her hips. Her lips were drawn in a tight line and her eyes narrowed. In his experience in dealing with her, the combination of that expression and posture had never been a good thing.
“What if we tell her the truth about what we have been doing?” Hemlock offered quietly. Her expression grew more stormy and he tensed in his chair, every muscle ready to spring if he needed to move quickly. Kali was an incredibly powerful mage with a very volatile temper.
“I will not have the Fionaveir mucking up what I have been working on for centuries. There are certain lines that must be crossed to accomplish what we have to do and they will not cross them. I will not allow them to fuck it up!” Kali hissed and the air around her surged with magic.
“If they knew what you truly are, though,” Hemlock pressed. The air around him filled with magic and he barely moved before the chair he had been seated in burst into flames. Thick smoke choked the small room as he pressed himself flat against a wall and moved quickly to the other side of the room. “Kali, please be reasonable,” he growled as he ducked another burst of flames that had been aimed at his head.
“No! No! Bloody no! I will not work with those lily white pansy bastards!” Kali screeched, flames dancing from her fingers with each word she spoke.
“Fine!” Hemlock bellowed back in response as he ducked and weaved his way through her magical temper tantrum. When the Barrier had gone up, Kali had been slightly off in the head. Over the year, she had gradually gotten worse. Now, the only term he could use to describe her was a flaming nutter. She was a powerful nutter, though, and the only one he could count on for help when he needed it. If he phrased his request well, which apparently he hadn’t this time. “Calm down, and let’s sort this out, Kali. We have enough enemies without fighting each other. Remember?”
The flames died abruptly and Hemlock stood upright, slowly gazing around at what remained of the small sitting room. Most of the furniture was destroyed and parts of the walls were still in flame. Kali, however, seemed calm once more. He raised an eyebrow at her and carefully watched the expression on her face for any sign of anger. Her moods shifted so quickly that she was nearly impossible to predict.
“We could kill Symphony and replace her with a clone that I have manipulated the mind of,” Kali mused, her tone peaceful once more.
There was no sign whatsoever of the fury that had held her moments before and Hemlock had to force back the desire to choke the woman. Kali was likely the strongest reason that he never allowed himself to form attachment to women. He was certain at some point the crazy bitch had been sweet and alluring like Jala. Kali was simply the advanced version. She was living proof of what other Immortal women would become, given enough time and power, and that single thought had kept Hemlock free of attachment for years.
“I don’t think that is an option this time, Kali,” Hemlock replied cautiously. The last thing he wanted to do was set off another tantrum, but from what he had seen of the Fionaveir her idea simply wasn’t plausible.
“Probably not,” Kali sighed with disappointment. “It is so much easier when I can just clone someone and tell them what to do rather than having to deal with actual people,” she added wistfully.
“We need something Symphony truly wants or cares about. Remedy or Lex would work, but I can’t locate them. This is the first thing we must deal with, and quickly before the Fionaveir come down on us. Soon after, though, we must determine how to keep the Veyetta at rest. If the Shadow Walkers reawaken they will continue their plans to bring down the Barrier and then we are all dead, regardless.” Hemlock sighed and rubbed his face again. It was a habit of his when stressed, and with the way things were going his face was going to be raw before the week was over.