for the Dasati world. I am going to make one more quick trip to Kelewan and see if there’s any hint of Varen’s presence there.’
‘You think he’ll be foolish enough to reveal himself?’ asked Magnus.
‘He’s a clever man,’ said Pug. ‘Brilliant in a twisted fashion, but he’s also driven. His madness has made him more impulsive over the years. The duration between his attacks lessens each time. He will either do something rash over there, or he will return to Midkemia. Either way, eventually we will find him out, and this time he has no easy way to seize a new body.’
‘What about a hard way?’ asked Miranda.
‘What do you mean?’
‘You said he has no easy way to take over a new body. I understand that, since you destroyed his soul jar, but he still has the knowledge of how to inhabit another’s body, and might there not be other means, perhaps less convenient, but equally effective?’
Pug said, ‘I hadn’t thought of that.’
Miranda could barely constrain her smug expression.
‘Then we must be both meticulous and stealthy,’ said Pug, ignoring his wife’s superior expression. ‘I shall make enquiries of some less than high-born sources in Kelewan, while you see what you can find out in the Assembly while I travel to the Hall. Trust only Alenca.’
‘How can I trust anyone?’ asked Miranda. ‘After taking possession of the Emperor of Kesh, I think it safe to argue that Varen can be anyone on Kelewan, including their Emperor.’
‘I think not,’ said Pug. ‘Consider how he placed his soul jar in the sewers near the Emperor’s palace. I suspect location has much to do with who he can reach. In any event, without the jar, I think he had to leap blind and inhabited the body of whoever was closest. As his “death rift” acted in many ways like normal rifts, I would expect it propelled him to a point near the Assembly, if not within its halls. As he would have been a disembodied spirit, the Assembly’s usual defences would have been useless – that’s the reason, by the way, I think it unlikely he would ever be able to occupy a high level cleric on either world; wards against spirits are common in temples.’
‘Very well,’ said Miranda. ‘I’ll speak with Alenca when I go. Now, one more question.’
‘Yes?’ said Pug, obviously impatient to be underway.
‘If you’re going to visit Kelewan without the Assembly being aware, just how do you propose to go through the rift without being noticed?’
Pug smiled, and years seemed to fall away from him. ‘A trick, as Nakor would call it.’
He left the room and Magnus started laughing at the consternation on his mother’s face.
Miranda glared at her older son. ‘That annoying little man is such a bad influence around here!’
Magnus laughed even harder.
Pug crept down a side street, his face hidden beneath a deep hood. Beards were rare in the Tsurani Empire among freemen, being worn for the most part by those of Midkemian birth and a few rebellious youths. Being out late at night and sporting facial hair was likely to mean being stopped by any patrolling city watch, and while his rank as a member of the Assembly of Magicians meant instant obedience from any soldier or constable, Pug wished to avoid drawing attention to his clandestine visit.
The domicile he sought was modest, off a side street in a section of the city of Jamar that was only a slight improvement over the slums and docks. The houses here were modest, the whitewash traditional to the Tsurani home kept somewhat clean, and the streets not too littered with refuse. There was even a street lamp some way behind him.
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