Tymora's Luck - Kate Novak [41]
"Lady Selune," Finder greeted her. His demeanor was grave as he bowed low. His mortal companions did likewise.
"Finder," Selune said, recognizing the god with a cursory nod. She knelt beside Tymora's unconscious form and set her hand over Lady Luck's heart. A white light far brighter than that which Tymora had summoned flowed from the older goddess's hand and covered Tymora's body. The light appeared to seep into the unconscious goddess. Finder gasped.
"Did you see that?" Selune asked Finder. "I think so," the younger god said.
"Let's try it again, shall we?" Selune asked. Once again the white light flowed from her hand over Tymora, then disappeared.
"Something's drawing it off," Finder whispered.
"What are you talking about?" Jas demanded. "The energy's going into her."
"No," Selune said. "It appears that way to your mortal eyes because you do not sense all that we do. Something is drawing off the power surrounding Tymora in such a way that it only appears to be sinking into her form. But that's only part of the problem. Close your eyes, Finder, and concentrate on Tymora. What do you sense?"
Finder closed his eyes. In less than two heartbeats, they flew open again. "She's leaking like a sieve," he said in a shocked voice.
Selune nodded. "Something has pierced the very source of her power. She can no longer control its release. Every time she uses her power, her control weakens so that more spills out of her. When she was casting her blessing on Jasmine, the power burst out. Whatever or whoever is siphoning her energy away was unprepared to absorb the surge. Some of the power went into the land, so the land quaked."
"So it wouldn't have happened if she hadn't tried to cure me," Jas said.
Selune leaned back on her heels and looked up at Jas. "The guilt is not your own, Jasmine. Do not rush to claim it," the older goddess said curtly. "Only another god would have the power to cause such damage. Had Tymora not attempted to cure you, we might not have discovered the drain until it was far too late."
Jas's body stiffened, and the feathers on her wings quivered until Selune looked back down at Tymora. The winged woman tilted her head in puzzlement. "You look like someone I knew a long time ago," she said softly.
"No," Selune replied without looking up at Jas again. "Someone you knew a long time ago looked like me." She stroked Tymora's forehead and said, "We must find a way to stop this drain and restore Tymora's ability to control her power."
"Tymora believed Beshaba was behind this," Winnie said.
"Please, who is Beshaba?" Emilo asked, stepping up beside the elderly goddess.
Selune turned toward the kender, and a look of surprise crossed her face. Perhaps she was surprised the kender had addressed her so directly, but Joel was left with the unmistakable impression that the goddess had not sensed the kender before.
"Beshaba, like Tymora," the goddess explained, "arose from the corrupted form of Tyche. Once Tymora came forth, all that was tainted by Moander coalesced and stepped out as the goddess of ill fortune, Beshaba. Beshaba was lovely to behold, but her heart was malicious and spiteful. She is called Tymora's sister only because they shared the same origin. Beshaba and Tymora hay one another instantly and tried to destroy each other. Fortunately other powerful gods were present at the time and helped separate the battling sisters. Beshaba fled to live on the dark planes, which were more suited to her spirit."
"We must discover out how Beshaba is draining my lady and stop her somehow," Winnie said.
Selune nodded. "Before we begin to investigate Beshaba, we need to take certain precautions. We