Ailith pointed in the general direction of the palace. “Then th’ fowkin’ Emperor or some other shithead has watchers all around the fowkin’ Temple watchin’ every fowkin’ Blade comin’ in and out, so I had to climb th’ fowkin’ wall, didn’t I, and then I climbed up to yer skizzy rooms, fell in th’ fowkin’ window because do ya bother securin’ yer shutters like ya should? No. Ya don’t.”

  She started to wring out her tunic, and Sábria growled, “Don’t you dare.”

  Flinging her wet hair out of her eyes with a flick that sent water flying onto Sábria’s face and tunic, an oblivious Ailith continued with her complaints. “And th’ ró múgromin Slayer refuses to climb with me. Why, ya ask? Because she’s scared of climbin’? No. Because she needs yer fowkin’ permission to enter th’ Temple, or she won’t come in.”

  There was so much wrong with the report Ailith had just given that Sábria decided to hold off on punishing her so she wouldn’t accidentally strip the flesh from her back. Then something Ailith said registered. “What do you mean there are watchers on the Temple? Spies?”

  “Aye.”

  “How many?”

  “I counted at least seven I had to dodge. Probably more, but not along th’ way I came.”

  “You expect me to believe you dodged seven spies, climbed the Temple walls, and fell through my window without any of the guards seeing you?”

  “I told ya before. I’m real good at trackin’, which means I gotta be even better at climbin’ and not bein’ seen.”

  Grabbing Ailith by her sleeve, Sábria dragged her down the stairs and out into the Courtyard. Subcommander Calit had just filled her plate with food, and Sábria yelled, “Calit! Geller. Terrowyn.”

  All three women left their plates on one of the outdoor tables and hurried over. As the highest-ranking Blade out of the three, Calit asked, “My Lady?”

  Both Geller and Terrowyn saw the death grip Sábria had on Ailith’s soaking wet tunic, and they eyed their shiv suspiciously.

  Sábria let go of the tunic and punctuated her words with a finger to Calit’s chest. “I want thirty Blades, ten assigned to each of you. There are spies watching the Temple. At least seven that we know of. Probably more. I want them brought into the outer bailey and held there until you’re absolutely sure you’ve found every single one. You’ll hold them until I come to deal with them personally. Do I make myself clear?”

  All three women came to attention and saluted. “Aye, Milady.”

  When they left to gather their warriors, Sábria grabbed Ailith’s tunic again. “Where did you leave Prya?”

  “About a mile back under a small bridge.”

  “Can you get me there without being seen?”

  “Aye.”

  “Then go change into dry clothes and meet me by the back gate.”

  Ailith was exhausted and not thinking all that clearly. Instead of respectfully acknowledging the order, she just turned and started for the dormitory. She was surprised when Sábria grabbed her by the hair and hauled her up short.

  “I didn’t hear you.”

  Knowing immediately what she’d done wrong, Ailith answered, “Aye, Milady.”

  “And Ailith?”

  “Aye?”

  “You and I are going to have a talk later about the proper way to give a report, no matter how exhausted you might be.” Sábria released her with a shove and suddenly understood why Isobel had been so accustomed to treating Ailith with so much more discipline than your average trainee.

  With a sigh, Ailith nodded her understanding. “Aye, Milady.”

  “Now go.”

  It took about a half-candlemark for Ailith to clean up, find dry clothes and pull them on. She ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time. She flew out the door, made a quick detour into the armory, and ran for the back gate, worried she’d kept the Arch Priestess waiting too long.

  Sábria was chatting with Tanna, the Blade manning the back gate, when Ailith ran up. She finished her conversation and then motioned for Ailith to precede her.

  Ailith waited for Tanna to return to her post before she leaned in and said quietly, “Pardon me fer doubtin’ ya, Milady, but how good are ya at sneakin’?”

  Sábria had to admit she hadn’t done much sneaking around in her tenure as Arch Priestess and, with a slight smile, told Ailith as much. “I hadn’t thought of that. I haven’t snuck anywhere in a very long while.” The serious look of concentration on Ailith’s face would have been comical, but Sábria knew the shiv was taking this trip very seriously.

  “Okay. Ya follow me.” She hesitated, “Milady, I need to be in charge of gettin’ ya there and getting’ ya back. Movin’ with two or more is ten times harder than with just me. Ya ken?”

  Knowing Ailith was right, Sábria affected the same serious mien and nodded.

  “Step where I step, even if ya don’t know why I’m steppin’ there. There’s no moon tonight. That’s good and bad. Good ‘cuz they can’t see us, bad ‘cuz you can’t see me if I’m waitin’ in the shadows, away from whatever torches folks have goin’.”

  She took one of Sábria’s hands and looked at it a while before checking her muscular upper arms. “There’s one spot we need to climb, but yer strong enough.”

  Sábria almost chuckled at that because she’d been working on her strength for decades and knew her arms were stronger than Ailith’s. But she kept quiet.

  Turning her back to Sábria, Ailith reached back and put the back of her hand on Sábria’s stomach. She extended a finger down. “This means crouch.” She opened all her fingers. “Get on the ground.” Flipping her hand so the palm rested on Sábria’s stomach, she said, “Back, probably into the shadows against a wall or tree.”

  She turned to face her again. “There’s one spot where we climb up a drainpipe and over a roof and another where we climb down. When ya go over, don’t stick yer head up so they can see it against th’ sky. Even without a moon, just th’ shape of yer head gives their eye notice that somethin’s no right. Ya slither over th’ edge. Yer a snake, aye?”

  Realizing Ailith hadn’t been bragging when she’d told her and Shirin she’d received advanced training in stealth movement, Sábria nodded again. That was something they could take advantage of once she was a full Blade.

  “When we’re movin’, ya have yer hand lightly on me shoulder. It makes me movin’ clearer to ya. If I tell ya to crouch and then I move forward, ya stay where I put ya until I motion ya to me.” She moved to the gate” “Tell Tanna to bring th’ torch inside and move away from th’ gate. She counts to twenty, then comes back.”

  Once Tanna came inside with the torch, the gate was in complete darkness. Ailith stepped to the opening and pointed at the ground, indicating Sábria should step behind her. She motioned for her to put her hand on her shoulder. “We start inside here, Milady. From here on, we don’t say nothin’. Everythin’ is done with touch or hand signals.”

  She started forward and stopped. “Oh, if we’re in th’ shadows and someone walks by, ya look at th’ ground. Ya don’t look at me. Ya don’t look at whoever’s goin’ by. If they come after ya, I’ll protect ya. If th’ fightin’ starts, though, then ya come out ready with yer sword. Aye?”

  At Sábria’s nod, they moved through the gate, pressed up close to the wall, and kept to the shadows. Even though there was no moon, torches were routinely lit throughout the city once the sun disappeared below the horizon. They slipped around the corner to the rear of the compound. Approximately twenty acres lay between the Temple wall and one of the smaller tributaries running parallel to it. The Temple owned the acreage, and its gardeners tended a grove of fruit trees: apples, figs, plums, and many other varieties enjoyed by the Temple’s inhabitants.

  Sábria made sure to step where Ailith stepped, although she didn’t really understand why. That is, not until Ailith stopped her with a hand on her stomach. Lifting her feet higher than usual, Ailith moved forward and then turned and squatted.

  It wasn’t until she pointed to a bar someone had pounded into the ground that Sábria became suspicious. Ailith moved her finger along a nearly invisible wire running from the bar out into the darkness. Something close to rage flowed through Sábria’s veins when she realized it was a tripwire of sorts, warning spies hiding in the grove that a person was crossing the area. She hadn’t realized she’d balled her hand into a fist until she felt the skin stretching tight across her knuckles. She pulled in a breath and slowly let it out, consciously releasing her fingers one at a time.

  They walked forward another twenty paces or so until Ailith put her hand on Sábria’s stomach and pointed one finger down. Sábria immediately crouched, and Ailith shadowed her movement. Out of necessity, when they squatted, Ailith’s hand moved up until it rested between Sábria’s breasts. She left it there, and they remained frozen in place until Sábria began to wonder what Ailith intended.

  Ailith surprised her by extending all five fingers toward the ground. Sábria immediately stretched her legs out behind her and lowered herself into a prone position. When Ailith moved forward, Sábria remained where she was. When she heard footsteps in the gravel to the right, it was all she could do to keep from looking up to see who was walking by. The footsteps moved in the direction she and Ailith had just come from, and after a moment, she felt a finger tapping her head.

  Slowly raising her eyes, she saw Ailith crouching in front of her now, indicating with an upturned palm that it was time to rise. When she did, Ailith waited for her to place her hand on her shoulder, and the two of them walked the entire length of the wall until they approached Prince’s Way, a street running along the western side of the Temple. They crossed the empty street and then hurried along the sidewalk until they came to a large tree which Ailith wasted no time shimmying up.

  Sábria hadn’t climbed trees in turns, but she managed a little half jump, grabbed an overhead branch, and pulled herself up onto it. Proud of her accomplishment, she looked up to see Ailith glaring down at her.

  Ailith motioned for her to climb to her branch, and when Sábria had her balance, Ailith put her lips right up against her ear. “Don’t never hop. Ya move like that, and it draws th’ eyes.” When she finished speaking, she moved so that her face was directly in front of Sábria’s. She gave her a stern look and stared into her eyes, silently asking if she understood.

  Embarrassed that she hadn’t thought of that, Sábria nodded. She’d never been admonished by a shiv before, and she fought to keep the amusement out of her eyes as she thought of how Shirin would react when she recounted the night’s adventure.

  They climbed from one branch to another until they were even with the roof of a building in the middle of the block. The upper branches overhung the rooftop, and they quietly stepped out onto the roof and then got down on their bellies and crawled forward to the other side. Ailith motioned for Sábria to stay where she was.

  When Sábria nodded, Ailith lay flat against the edge and slowly moved so she could see down to the other side. Satisfied the coast was clear, she slithered back to Sábria and put her lips directly on her ear again. “Watch how I go over. Follow exactly what I do, where I do it.”

  Returning to the edge, Ailith grabbed a short vertical pipe jutting out of the roof with one hand and clamped her fingers over the edge with the other. Very slowly, she let her legs drop down. Using only her arms, she lowered herself until they were fully extended. A protruding line of bricks framed the outer edge of a window. She lowered one hand to the bricks above the window and, keeping to the side of the opening, once again lowered herself until her feet were touching the ground.

  As soon as Ailith slid out of sight, Sábria moved to the roof’s edge and watched her every move. Once the shiv disappeared into the shadows, Sábria grabbed the pipe and the roof and slid her legs down the side of the wall. She extended her arms until the edge of the window was even with her head. Lowering her right hand, she grabbed onto the bricks and held herself suspended while she convinced herself to let go of the pipe with her other hand.

  She hung there longer than she should have, but she finally released the pipe and caught all of her weight with her right arm. Her legs pivoted toward the window, and she arrested her movement by jamming the toes of her boots into the brick wall’s mortar cracks. Very carefully, she used her one arm to lower herself down until her toes were touching the ground. Releasing her grip on the window, she paused a moment to catch her breath. When she’d asked Ailith to take her to Prya, she’d had no idea that the fifty chin-ups she religiously did every morning would come in handy. Her estimation of the shiv’s physical capabilities rose several notches.

  They continued to move through back streets and alleys until Sábria began to hear the tributary waters flowing inexorably toward the sea. With a start, she recognized the landmarks and knew they’d passed into the Foreign Quarter of Sarlogne. In many ways, this part of the city was more dangerous than the cesspool, especially for her. Kicking herself for her impetuous decision to bring Prya in herself, she began questioning her sanity in allowing Ailith free reign to take her wherever they needed to go to retrieve the woman.

  In every other district, Sábria could count on there being people loyal to her, members of the public who worshipped the Goddess Elyon. Elyon was one of the lesser Gods in other countries, though, and very few foreigners worshipped her, or knew of her for that matter. The Foreign Quarter was further divided into enclaves from the various kingdoms. As they moved through them, Sábria identified telltale artifacts from Kibrun and Olarna. Judging by the distinctive linen coifs worn by Dreyuthan men, they’d entered the area populated by Ailith’s people.

  Ailith slid along an alley wall, then signaled for Sábria to crouch behind a wooden box. She returned to the middle of the alley, climbed onto a rain barrel, and then used the experience she’d gained turns before as an orphaned skelli and jumped to the opposite wall, where she pushed off a protruding brick and launched herself back to the first wall where she caught the edge of the roof and hauled herself up and over the building.

  Sábria hadn’t seen her do this particular maneuver before and stared with amazement at the now empty roofline hoping Ailith didn’t expect her to perfect that move anytime soon. She waited a good quarter candlemark until Ailith lowered herself back down to the alley.

  Ailith knelt next to her and spoke barely above a whisper. “There’s no way to get across this part of the quarter, Milady. Too many people out wanderin’ about. We’ll have to go back.”

  The window of opportunity to bring Prya into the Temple was closing. All of Sábria’s instincts were telling her that if she turned back now, the King Maker would be gone. Elyon was counting on her, and she knew her Goddess wouldn’t personally come to her if she didn’t care a great deal about Prya and her circumstances. “Then we go through.”

  “No, we don’t. We can’t get through without bein’ seen.”

  “We go through.”

  “No, Milady. It’s me job to protect ya, and that’s what I’m gonna do.”

  Affection showed in every line of Sábria’s face as she set her fingers beneath Ailith’s chin. “It’s the other way around, my little shiv. I protect you and all my Blades.” The lowered brows and stubborn set to Ailith’s jaw told her exactly what she thought about that. Sábria emphasized her point. “When we’re sneakin’, you’re in charge. At all other times, I’m in charge. Understand?”

  A mischievous glint came into Ailith’s eyes. She lifted a shoulder in a half-shrug. “It were worth a try, weren’t it?”

  Sábria ruffled Ailith’s hair and stood. “All right, then. Let’s see what trouble we can find, eh?”

  Ailith followed her onto a back street bordered on both sides by low-rent tenement buildings fronted by at least four or five steps leading up to every door. The cobblestone street was pitted and uneven, and since this was one of the poorer sections of town, there were no sidewalks to speak of. The road spanned the entire distance between buildings, and people had to move behind the nearest step whenever a wagon or other conveyance happened to pass by.

  As they passed the fourth set of steps, four men stepped out of the shadows and barred their way. They spoke in the Dreyuthan tongue, a language that Sábria understood only a little and spoke even less. She rested her hand on the hilt of her sword and prepared herself for a fight.

  One of the men crossed his bulky arms and lifted his chin. “What are two Blades doin’ sneakin’ round here slick as ya please?”

  Ailith answered in the same tongue. “We’re not sneakin’. I’m Ailith, and we’ll be no bother.” She switched to the Cibían language so Sábria would know what was being said. “This be me handler, Brita. Part of me trainin’ means she shows me th’ Foreign District.” She shrugged, “So, here we be.”

  When the man grinned, two black holes on either side of his front teeth meant he’d been in his fair share of fights. He slowly drew his sword and set himself into a fighting stance. “Th’ Blades what come here only come in a pack. We’re gonna send th’ two of ya back as a bloody message to stay out of th’ Dreyuthan sector.”

  The other three drew their swords, as did Sábria and Ailith. Sábria shrugged, “We didn’t come here to fight. I’m just training my shiv so—”

  The men and one woman, it turned out, spread out in a semicircle and attacked.

  Ailith pivoted as she’d been taught, keeping her back to Sábria to provide them both with protection from an assault from the rear. She blocked a cross-body slice from the nob on her left and then used a two-handed swing to stop a downward chop from the short ax the pidge swung at her head. The attackers had split evenly between them. Ailith knew her Arch Priestess was more than capable of holding her own in a sword fight. Knowing that, she concentrated on the two in front of her who knew how to fight as a team.