Pathway

The night before—he remembered the two of them lying side by side in a bed covered in white silk sheets. Arjun's head rested on Gallazza's belly, her fingers stroking Gallazza's thighs. She likes to lie this way, Gallazza thought, facing away from me, her delicate neck exposed. It makes her vulnerable and excites her at the same time.

"Doesn't it ever frighten you, just a little," Gallazza asked, her voice rough from sleep, "the hatred you see in their eyes?"

"Is that really what you were thinking about just now?" Arjun purred. "You see, I've been contemplating all the wicked things I'm going to do to you in the next few breaths, yet all that consumes your thoughts are the males. Should I be jealous, Gallazza?"

"I can't imagine you any other way," Gallazza replied. She lifted Arjun's hair and scratched her neck gently while the mistress mother gave a soft little sigh. "I worry that we've grown complacent, too secure in our power and confidence. Arkhat's plan to become the divine of magical essence—it has shifted the balance, given hope to the males. Such a dangerous thing, hope. It may cause them to plot against us in numbers."

"They've given no indication of such a plot," Arjun said, leaning into Gallazza's touch.

"Perhaps we just aren't looking at them closely enough," Gallazza replied. "The more the males give the appearance of subservience, the more I worry what they are thinking down in the depths of their souls."

"I assure you, love, you don't want to know," Arjun said, rubbing her cheek against Gallazza's belly.

"But I do," Gallazza whispered so softly, the mistress mother didn't hear her.

Gallazza remembered how she'd felt in that moment. She'd been unsure how much to confide in Arjun. The threat of betrayal hung between them always, and the more knowledge one had of the other, the more the threat intensified. Arjun thrived on that threat, and Gallazza managed it by not giving too much of hersyaomo away, but so far neither had had cause for betrayal. Perhaps it was because they had spent so long being stronger together than at odds.

Gallazza made her decision. She'd struggled too long with her doubts and questions. Despite the risk, it was time for an outside perspective. "I've asked Arkhat for guidance, but she remains silent to me. I am … worried," Gallazza said.

Arjun's reaction was immediate. Her lover stiffened and pushed hersyaomo up on one elbow to glare at Gallazza. "How could you be so foolish?" she hissed. "It is not for us to seek Arkhat's aid for trouble with a few males. If we can't handle the problem ourselves, we are not worthy to be in her service."

"We have proven ourselves worthy, a hundred times over," Gallazza argued. "Arkhat sees that and blesses us with her power. Why should we not seek her guidance as well?"

Arjun slid off the bed and reached for her piwafwi. She shook her head in disgust. "I tire of having this discussion with you, Gallazza. You have always expected more from the divine than what you're owed. It is dangerous."

"I seek purpose," Gallazza said passionately. "I want to be the instrument of Arkhat's will, to earn her love over and over until my death. Tell me, how is that bad?"

"Because it is presumptuous!" Arjun cried. "What makes you worthy of being Arkhat's instrument in anything? Is your pride and arrogance so great that you think yoursyaomo her equal?"

"Never that." Gallazza bowed her head. "I hear your words, and I take your warning, but I must have the answers to my questions."

There must have been a hint in her tone, for Arjun spun in the act of dressing. Her breath caught audibly. "What do you intend to do?"

"I've prepared a ritual to summon the Empyrean fiend."

"Alone?" Arjun's eyes narrowed. "That is too bold. You should have more priestesses present to satisfy Arkhat."

"My request is personal and private," Gallazza said. "I would only have one other."

She knew that would appeal to Arjun's vanity, but she did not truly expect her lover to agree. Arjun risked too much personally helping Gallazza with what she considered a fool's presumption.

The bedroom memory faded, and Gallazza saw hersyaomo back in the temple, kneeling before the altar as Arjun broke their kiss.

"What made you change your mind?" Gallazza asked, half-grateful, half-suspicious of her lover's motives.

Arjun's forehead creased in irritation. "You planted doubt inside me," she muttered. "I told mysyaomo over and over that you are a fool, but then a voice inside whispered, what if you're right? What if the divine does favor us and this bold venture? So I am here. Let us proceed."

Arjun gestured to the shadows, where two slaves waited. They dragged forward a bound captive. Through dirt and ragged clothing, Gallazza recognized a young female yaomo, her golden skin covered in bruises, her eyes bulging with fear.

"Tie her to the altar," Arjun commanded.

As the slaves hurried to comply, Gallazza smiled at Arjun and offered her a half bow. "You honor me," she said. "I know she is a favorite of yours."

Arjun waved it away. "A bold act requires an item of value," she said. "You may risk the full brunt of Arkhat's ire, but I do not."

The slaves finished their work and retreated. Gallazza took up her dagger with the figure of the spider affixed to the hilt. With the tip of the blade, she opened a deep cut on her forearm. She held the bleeding appendage over the yaomo and let her blood drip on her exposed skin. Arjun removed her own dagger from the sheath at her belt and repeated the gesture, their blood mingling on the yaomo's stomach and dripping down to fill the carvings in the altar. The candles in the room flickered and flared red for an instant before returning to their normal color. Arjun began to chant, her eyes closed, her body swaying back and forth as she praised the divine.

Gallazza stood over the yaomo. She writhed on the altar, whimpering around the gag in her mouth. Ripping away the rags covering her belly, Gallazza held the knife poised in the air. "We offer this flesh to you, Mother Arkhat. Hear your servants' prayer and share your wisdom in our time of need. We call upon you, and as we give you this life, put our own lives into your hands."

She brought the knife down in a quick, brutal arc. The moment the blade passed through the yaomo's flesh, Gallazza felt a burning explosion of pain in her gut. She collapsed, writhing on the floor in front of the altar. At the same time, the yaomo's lifeblood flowed through the carvings and glowed a brilliant red.

Somewhere behind her, Arjun began to laugh. "Yes! divine, yes!" she cried, exultant.

Only then did Gallazza begin to realize the depth of her lover's betrayal.

Arjun bowed deeply before the fiend. The beautiful demon stood over Gallazza, lip curled in disgust. Agony kept Gallazza on her back, watching the blood drip from the altar.

"On your feet," the fiend commanded and, without waiting for Gallazza to comply, made a gesture and spoke a word that pounded against Gallazza's temples. Unseen force yanked her to her feet and held her suspended in the air. "See what your ritual has wrought this day, Priestess," the demon said. "Behold your offering to Arkhat."

Arjun looked at Gallazza, and her face contorted with a mixture of triumph and revulsion.

I remember it now. This was the moment when my memories twisted. I am Gallazza. A priestess born in the city of Guallidurth. Lie. A renegade male seeking refuge in the Temple City of Arkhat. Lie.

Who am I?

I am Gallazza.

"You desired knowledge of the males in Guallidurth," Arjun said, running a sculpted fingernail along Gallazza's throat. "At first I dismissed your worries, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized you were right. The balance is shifting, and we must assure our dominance. You gave me the answer, my love, when you said you wanted to be Arkhat's instrument." 

A wicked light burned in Arjun's red eyes. "You shall. Female becomes male By arcane power is the divine transformed. When the time comes for Arkhat's ascension, you will be the nexus, the conduit for the creation of the Demon Weave. You will have purpose—a sacrifice to Arkhat's greater glory."

My purpose. To die. Even that is fading. They took my memories, remade me completely. I presented myself as a yaomo to Mistress Mother Arjun Khaven-Ghell and offered my services as an assassin and master of poisons. She took me in, protected me.

Is that what you really are?

Show me your face, Gallazza.

No, I am a high priestess of Arkhat. I serve none but the divine. Arjun is my equal. I know her flesh as intimately as my own. So many contradictions in your flesh—unremarkable male. Unworthy … lesser creature.

No! divine, forgive! Don't do this.

Too late. I am already lost.

I am Gallazza.

They call me the Black Creeper. I must keep my head down. I have felt the sting of the snake-headed whip too often.

No!.

Yes.

I am Gallazza.

Gallazza screamed as the scene faded. Her last sight was of her male form standing in a pool of yaomo blood, gaze fixed beseechingly on the fiend's cold face as the demon stole her memories, filling her with Arkhat's dark power.

The library faded back into focus around Gallazza. Shadows shrouded the room, and the whispers still hissed from the empty corners.