Ubet could remember the moment he first met Sari Troud. He could remember the shawl of red fur that he wore around his shoulders as he sat amidst the low fires of his den. He remembered that the incense had been particularly sweet that day, a fresh batch perhaps. He remembered the way the room seemed to dim just a little bit as Ichor and Cadol, young men at that time and fresh into their training at his feet, dragged the girl into the room. She was only a child, he had thought, so small. Fragile and delicate like a flower. Her eyes wide with fear and confusion. She was deposited on the rug in the center of the room, the two men closing the door behind her.

“You are the girl skilled in medicine from the Troud family?” He demanded, looking down on her from his seat amongst the furs.

“Why am I here? I need to go back!” Sari pleaded, “I have to treat my-”

He held up a hand, cutting her off, “You come and go at my whim. You will stay until I am satisfied with what you tell me,” Ubet said, leaning forward and resting his powerful elbows on his knees. “Now answer the question.”

Sari wilted beneath his stare, “I am.”

“Your kinsman is possessed of cramps and irritable bowels. How do you treat him?” He pressed.

“Tagini vine, boiled and cut thin, then pressed into a syrup. Then lots of water to keep my kinsman hydrated until he is well again,” Sari answer quickly, “Now can I go-”

“Quiet, we are not done,” Ubet barked loud enough to send the trembling girl to the floor, she scrambled back and looked up to see the two men who had dragged her here standing at the door, watching her closely.

“Why tagini vine?” He asked, his unblinking gaze fixing her to the spot where she sat. “Why not marsal lotus?”

“Marsal lotus only relieves pain,” She managed, her voice barely audible, her eyes filled with tears, “It also makes a person thirsty. If his bowels are irritable then the combination could kill him if his condition worsens,” She managed, looking down at the ground.

“How old are you?” Ubet asked.

“Ten turns of the seasons,” Sari replied.

“And yet you learn and speak with the wisdom of those far beyond your time in this world,” Ubet nodded, “You’ll make a fine wise woman one day,” He glanced up at Cadol who he had taken on as an apprentice. There was neither a flinch nor flicker of jealousy. Loyal as always, perhaps to a fault. He leaned back in his seat and stared at the girl, she cowered beneath her hands, muttering about going home and treating some creature. He set her concerns aside in his own mind, they were the concerns of a child. She would thank him for it one day, of this he was certain.

“You will be living in this place from now on,” Ubet said, “You are my student and as such your thoughts should be on my word and your own growth.”

Her face paled, “But-”

He ignored her, “Bring me the stone,” He said to Ichor before turning to Cadol, “Light the votives.”

“She’s a bit young,” Cadol pointed out.

“Never too early to learn the realities of this world,” Ubet said, “One day,” He looked down at her, shellshocked and wide-eyed. “It will be the very foundation of her wisdom.”

—

Sari was standing on the parapet over him, her eyes gleaming with hate. He frowned, searching her face for even the smallest hint of the scared little girl that had been brought before him all those years ago. Dead and gone. He snorted, standing up straight and gesturing once for the soldiers around them to spread out a bit more. His hand twisted once, a signal that they would fire when he gave the next gesture in the series. She watched his hand and smiled cooly, stepping off the parapet and onto the wall walk behind it. She landed and spun her knife between her fingers, not taking her eyes off of him.

“That was a really bad decision, you could have left them out of this,” Sari said quietly, she let out a long, low breath while shaking her head.

His fingers tensed and his frown deepened.

“Cadol taught me all about the clan hand signals,” Sari said, canting her head to the right and looking him up and down, “I knew you looked old, but have you really gone senile?”

“You are more composed than when we last met,” Ubet said, glancing once past her towards the approaching army. The monsters were getting closer. He didn’t have time for this! He was about to say as much when something tore through the air at the side of his face, a line of pain stretching across his cheek. He grunted and reached up to touch the stinging spot, blood smearing across his fingertips.

“Eyes on me,” Sari warned, “You will stay until I am satisfied.”

Fury roared through his veins, he turned his eyes on her and bore his teeth, “You have a lot of nerve for a girl leaning on the teachings of outsiders. Corrupt, twisted, you could have been a great Wise Woman if you had only the foresight to understand what you were throwing away.”

Sari tilted her head, “A wise woman? More like another one of your vassals. How many of the Wise Ones serve you now? Half? Do the clansmen know what you’ve been doing to consolidate power? Cadol was the first if I’m not mistaken.”

He bore his teeth, “Watch your tongue with me, hypocrite, what of you? Selling your soul and enslaving yourself to a demon?” Every hair on his body told him he should check and see if the soldiers heard what she had to say, but his instincts warned him that taking his eyes off of her for a moment was the height of foolishness. He hadn’t had a chance to rally his aspects, let alone put himself into an advantageous position for such a fight. How did she get up here so quickly anyway? Had they not just breached the surface miles away?

Sari’s eyes widened and she stepped back as if slapped, covering her face and barking out a laugh, “Is that the word among the clans? Really?” He didn’t waste a second, he whipped his hand out and ordered his men to fire. Nothing happened. He blinked and raised his hand again only for Sari to lower her own and look him square in the eyes, madness sparkling in her glowing gaze, “They’re already dead, Ubet.”

“What?” He turned his head, looking at the bowmen to his left, they stood still, their skin gray and cracked, their eyes empty of life. A sudden impact against his chest sent him back a few steps but he held his posture long enough to look up into the eyes of the woman that had clung to him like a feral morrkin.

“Eyes on me!” She shrieked, her blade coming down at his throat in an arc. He drove his fist up and into her ribs, throwing aspect augmented strength into the blow and smiling at the sound of cracking bone and cartilage. He threw himself back a few more paces and pressed his back against the inner parapet. He concentrated on his aspects, drawing them up and feeling their power suffuse his body. It had been a long time since he had to fight on his own and from the sounds further down the wall, the soldiers elsewhere were already engaged in fending off the enemy. He turned his gaze on his greatest failure and raised his head.

“How does pain feel, bloodletter?” He growled, “What did you do to my men?”

Sari twitched once on the ground, her body crumpled and curled into a ball. Something popped and ground sickeningly somewhere within her body. His lips curled in disgust, was that it? Then a shock of pain worked its way through his lower back, he gasped and spun, whipping a powerful arm across the parapet and catching something impossible with the blow. Another Sari took the impact and was hurled towards the line of petrified men, crashing into one and pulverizing him. The other Sari stood, a manic look in her eyes as a voice whispered in his ear.

“[Breath of the Cockatrice],” Sari whispered, “Petrification, permanent, and quite lethal. There is no coming back once it reaches the heart.”

“There’s two of you?” He bellowed, rage pounding in his ears. He spun again and began to grow larger, his muscles expanding and his posture hunching over. He missed grabbing onto her torso by an inch. Sari skipped to a stop and stood next to one of the petrified men, resting her arm on the dead man’s shoulder and leaning on him like a wall.

“There’s as many of me as there needs to be.”