The Blood Knight - J. Gregory Keyes [167]
“Heir? Heir to what?”
“I don’t know. None of us have ever seen the book. We thought Kauron took it with him. Our traditions were passed down mouth to ear, and we know its writings foretold these times. That much has been made clear by the things that have come to pass. And we know that Kauron’s one heir is destined to come, driven by a serpent into the mountains. The one who comes will speak with many tongues, and it is he who will find the Alq.”
“The Alq?”
“It means a sort of holy place,” she explained. “A throne or a seat of power. We’ve debated endlessly whether it is a physical place or a position, like that of sacritor. Whichever is true, it was fated to remain hidden until the day the one returned.
“And that one seems to be you. We knew you were coming, and we have only the scraps of knowledge remembered from the Book of Return.Hespero has the book itself, so his knowledge of the signs is more precise. He was waiting for you because he knew you could lead him to the Alq.”
“Then all he need do is follow us,” Stephen said, instinctively glancing over his shoulder into the darkness.
“True. But this way we have a chance of arriving ahead of him and preventing him from becoming the heir.”
“But how could he ever do that? You just admitted you don’t even know what that means,” Stephen said.
“No, we don’t, not exactly,” Sister Pale allowed. “But we do know that if Hespero becomes the heir, no good can come of it.”
“And how do you know I would be any better?”
“That’s obvious. You aren’t Hespero.”
There was a logic there that Stephen had no way to contradict. Besides, it served his purposes.
“Does your tradition tell you who sent the woorm or why it’s following me?”
“About the khirme—what you call the waurm—little is said, and what we’ve gleaned can be contradictory. One legend says that it is your ally.”
Stephen vented a humorless laugh. “I don’t expect I’ll count on that,” he said.
“It is a debated tradition,” she admitted. “Besides the khirme, there is also mention of a foe called the Khraukare. He is a servant of the Vhelny, who does not wish you to have the prize.”
Stephen’s head was beginning to swim.
“Khraukare. That translates as ‘Blood Knight,’ doesn’t it?”
“That’s right.”
“And the Vhelny?”
“Vhelny. It means, ah, a king, of sorts, a lord of demons.”
“And where are these people? Who are they?”
“We don’t know. We didn’t know who Kauron’s heir was, either, until you showed up.”
“Could Hespero be the Blood Knight, the servant of the Vhelny?”
“It’s possible. The Vhelny has other names: Wind-of-Lightning, Sky-Breaker, Destroyer. His only desire is to see the end of the world and everything in it.”
“Perhaps you mean the Briar King?”
“No. The Briar King is lord of root and leaf. Why would he destroy the earth?”
“There are prophecies that say he might.”
“There are prophecies that say he might destroy the race of Man,” she corrected. “That isn’t the same thing.”
“Oh. True. But why would Hespero want to destroy the world?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” Sister Pale replied. “Perhaps he is insane. Or very, very disappointed in things.”
“And you, Sister Pale? What’s your interest in this? How do I know you aren’t an agent of Hespero, tricking me into leading you to the Alq? Or a disciple of the Destroyer, or whoever else wants this thing?”
“You don’t, I suppose. And there’s nothing I can say to convince you. I could tell you that I am descended of the line of priestesses Kauron met when he came here. I could tell you that I was trained in a coven but that it was not the Coven Saint Cer. And I could tell you I am here to help you because I have waited all my life for you to come. But you have no reason to believe these things.”
“Especially when you’ve already lied to me once. Or perhaps twice,” he replied.
“The once I understand: what I told you about Saint Cer. But that wasn’t for your benefit; it was for the benefit of others. But when did I lie to you a second time?”
“When you told me you attended a different coven. There are many covens, but