[Durelin]

Click click thud click Sevora's fingers fell one by one, her fingernails tapping on the arm of her chair on all but one finger. How long had she been sitting here, staring at the brown canvas of her tent rippling against the wind outside? Staring at nothing; she had never been so distracted before! She was letting too much get beneath her skin, causing herself to think about everything in a worried way. And she knew why. With a strong shake of her head she stood, moving around her small table toward the tent flap. Sevora squinted in the sun, adjusting to the bright light. Surveying the camp around her, it looked busy, but Sevora knew it was all for show. They were doing nothing, twiddling their thumbs, awaiting the return of Dristi's envoy. Dristi's envoy! O, how that stung! Suddenly she realized someone was watching her, and her gaze fell onto the old tribesmen, Thorgom. Now there was a strange man, and quite unpredictable…in some respects.

"And what do you wish of me, Thorgom?"

"You are making a mistake."

"Am I?" the words were an icy whisper.

"They will never join you."

"We will know soon enough. Will we not, old man?"

"You will not like what you hear."

Sevora let out a barking laugh, harsh and grating with anger. "I have grown accustomed to that, my friend."

"You should be preparing for battle, now."

"We will if we must."

"Then you will be soon enough. Will you not?"

The priestess smiled at Thorgom. The man was mocking her. Well, he was making a foolish attempt at it.

"You amuse me, Thorgom. For that reason, I listen to you now." Her grin widened at the man's own dark smile.

"I am glad that the mighty priestess finds enjoyment in speaking with me. But, I must say that I grow tired of bandying words with a dull-minded fool."

Sevora's smile became tighter and tighter, more and more forced. "Ah, you are quite exciting. May I ask why you think so of me?"

"Yes, you may. You are blind, Sevora."

The smile was gone. "You will not address me in that way."

"You are blind. You will fail your Master to the destruction of us all." The man said the word 'Master' with such contempt that Sevora twisted her mouth in disgust, holding back a snarl.

"Your attempt to speak in words of meaning makes you seem all the more foolish."

"My words have much meaning, dear."

This time, Sevora did snarl, and she took slow steps up to him. "My words have their own meaning, too," she said, grinning at him once again. "But so do many things I do." Reaching out, Sevora grabbed Thorgom by the face, pinching her fingernails into his skin to draw blood. Then she drew down her four fingers on each side, leaving four bloody slashes on the left side, three on the right. Sevora opened her mouth to call Rahvin, but stopped, remembering he was keeping an eye on Dristi's envoy. She snarled again. This time when she opened her mouth, she called over two men of Ghurdan's crew. "He is in need of more punishment, I'm afraid. Tie him to the cart." The men bowed to Sevora, murmuring variations of 'Yes, Mistress.' They gave Thorgom nasty smiles, dragging him bodily away, using much more force than was necessary. Sevora smiled too, glad that she had picked out men apt for the job. She decided to take a walk around the camp, looking as if she was inspecting the workings of it, but she could not get Thorgom's voice out of her head. You are blind. You will fail your Master to the destruction of us all.

[ August 20, 2003: Message edited by: Durelin ]