things have changed. What you’ll really be doing here is seizing power. That’s an act of revolution, you know.’ She smiled faintly. ‘You’re almost too civilized to be a revolutionary, Sarabian. Are you really sure you want to overthrow the government?’
‘Good God, Ehlana, it’s my government, and the power was mine in the first place.’
‘But you didn’t use it. You were lazy and self-indulgent, and you let it slip away. Your ministers have filched your authority bit by bit. Now you’re going to have to wrest it back from them. People don’t willinglygive up power, so you’ll probably have to kill some of your ministers in order to prove to the rest that you’re serious.’
‘Kill!’
‘That’s the ultimate expression of power, Sarabian, and your situation here requires a certain ruthlessness. You’re going to have to spill some blood in order to get your government’s attention.’
‘I don’t think I can do that,’ Sarabian said in a troubled tone. ‘Oh, I know I’ve blustered and made threats a few times, but I couldn’t actually order someone killed.’
‘That’s up to you, but you’ll lose if you don’t, and that means that they’ll kill you.’ She considered it. They’ll probably kill you anyway,’ she added, ‘but at least you’ll die for something important. Knowing that they’re going to kill you in the end might help you make some unpleasant decisions at the outset. Once you get past your first couple of killings, it grows easier. I speak from a certain amount of experience on the subject, since almost exactly the same thing happened to me. Primate Annias completely controlled my government when I came to the throne, and I had to try to take my power back from him.’
‘You’re the one who’s been talking so freely about killing, Ehlana. Why didn’t you kill Annias?’
She laughed a brittle, chilling little laugh. ‘It wasn’t because I didn’t want to, believe me, but I was too weak. Annias had very carefully stripped the crown of all its authority. I had some help from Lord Vanion and his Pandion Knights, but Annias had control of the army and the church soldiers. I killed a few of his underlings, but I couldn’t get to him. He knew I was trying, though, and that’s why he poisoned me. Annias was really a very good politician. He knew exactly when the time for killing had arrived.’
‘You sound almost as if you admired him.’
‘I hated him, but he was very good.’
‘Well, I haven’t killed anybody yet, so I can still step back from this.’
‘You’re wrong there. You’ve already drawn your dagger, so you’re going to have to use it. You crushed that uprising, and you’ve imprisoned the Minister of the Interior. That’s the same thing as a declaration of war, you know.’
‘ You did those things,’ he accused her.
‘Yes, but I was acting on your behalf, so it’s the same thing – at least in the eyes of your enemies. You’re in a great deal of danger now, you know. You’ve let your government know that you’re going to seize back the power you let slip away. If you don’t start killing people – and very, very soon – you probably won’t live out the month. You’d be dead already if it weren’t for the fact that you’ve taken refuge in this castle.’
‘You’re starting to frighten me, Ehlana.’
‘God knows I’ve been trying. Like it or not, Sarabian, you’re committed now.’ She looked around. The sun was sinking into the cloud-bank building up over the mountains lying to the west, and its ruddy glow was reflecting from the mother-of-pearl domes of Matherion. ‘Look at your city, Sarabian,’ she told him, ‘and contemplate the reality of politics. Before you’re done, that red splashed all over the domes won’t just be the reflection of the sunset.’
‘That’s blunt enough,’ he said, his jaw taking on an unfamiliar set. ‘All right, how many people do I have to kill in order to ensure my own
‘Good God, Ehlana, it’s my government, and the power was mine in the first place.’
‘But you didn’t use it. You were lazy and self-indulgent, and you let it slip away. Your ministers have filched your authority bit by bit. Now you’re going to have to wrest it back from them. People don’t willinglygive up power, so you’ll probably have to kill some of your ministers in order to prove to the rest that you’re serious.’
‘Kill!’
‘That’s the ultimate expression of power, Sarabian, and your situation here requires a certain ruthlessness. You’re going to have to spill some blood in order to get your government’s attention.’
‘I don’t think I can do that,’ Sarabian said in a troubled tone. ‘Oh, I know I’ve blustered and made threats a few times, but I couldn’t actually order someone killed.’
‘That’s up to you, but you’ll lose if you don’t, and that means that they’ll kill you.’ She considered it. They’ll probably kill you anyway,’ she added, ‘but at least you’ll die for something important. Knowing that they’re going to kill you in the end might help you make some unpleasant decisions at the outset. Once you get past your first couple of killings, it grows easier. I speak from a certain amount of experience on the subject, since almost exactly the same thing happened to me. Primate Annias completely controlled my government when I came to the throne, and I had to try to take my power back from him.’
‘You’re the one who’s been talking so freely about killing, Ehlana. Why didn’t you kill Annias?’
She laughed a brittle, chilling little laugh. ‘It wasn’t because I didn’t want to, believe me, but I was too weak. Annias had very carefully stripped the crown of all its authority. I had some help from Lord Vanion and his Pandion Knights, but Annias had control of the army and the church soldiers. I killed a few of his underlings, but I couldn’t get to him. He knew I was trying, though, and that’s why he poisoned me. Annias was really a very good politician. He knew exactly when the time for killing had arrived.’
‘You sound almost as if you admired him.’
‘I hated him, but he was very good.’
‘Well, I haven’t killed anybody yet, so I can still step back from this.’
‘You’re wrong there. You’ve already drawn your dagger, so you’re going to have to use it. You crushed that uprising, and you’ve imprisoned the Minister of the Interior. That’s the same thing as a declaration of war, you know.’
‘ You did those things,’ he accused her.
‘Yes, but I was acting on your behalf, so it’s the same thing – at least in the eyes of your enemies. You’re in a great deal of danger now, you know. You’ve let your government know that you’re going to seize back the power you let slip away. If you don’t start killing people – and very, very soon – you probably won’t live out the month. You’d be dead already if it weren’t for the fact that you’ve taken refuge in this castle.’
‘You’re starting to frighten me, Ehlana.’
‘God knows I’ve been trying. Like it or not, Sarabian, you’re committed now.’ She looked around. The sun was sinking into the cloud-bank building up over the mountains lying to the west, and its ruddy glow was reflecting from the mother-of-pearl domes of Matherion. ‘Look at your city, Sarabian,’ she told him, ‘and contemplate the reality of politics. Before you’re done, that red splashed all over the domes won’t just be the reflection of the sunset.’
‘That’s blunt enough,’ he said, his jaw taking on an unfamiliar set. ‘All right, how many people do I have to kill in order to ensure my own
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