Page 135 of The Eyes of Tamburah
The two deacons dragged Jayden down the hallway and out of sight. The Heliacal Priestess faced the door. Behind her was a wall of Arch Deacons and behind them the rest of the deacons formed a wide arc with Shyla on the end. Behind her was the altar. Not counting the priestess or herself, there were eleven deacons. Plus two with Jayden. After a moment of panic, Shyla realized that most of the deacons in the back row wouldn’t be able to see the inside of the marble box. She relaxed a fraction.
At angle two-twenty, the door opened and Ximen entered with his posse—Gurice, and three Invisible Swords. Except for Ximen, they wore sun cloaks that covered their faces. Smart. He scanned the array of deacons then eyed the priestess with disdain. Shyla wished she had a view of the woman’s expression.
“Did you bring The Eyes?” the priestess asked Ximen.
“Yes, did you bring Jayden?”
“He’s here. Let me see them,” she ordered.
“Bring Jayden out first.”
She snapped her fingers. A deacon disappeared down the hallway. After a dozen tense moments, Jayden appeared with his two guards. They brought him up to the line of Arch Deacons. Ximen blanched when he spotted his friend.
“Don’t give her them,” Jayden said. His voice was rough with pain. “I’m not worth it.”
“Of course you are,” Ximen said. He slowly reached into his satchel and withdrew the marble box. Now was the time for magic. Shyla removed her shield and endured the sudden surge of emotions from Ximen and the four Invisible Swords. Excitement and fear dominated. But she also sensed strong magic emanating from them as well. Ximen focused his magic on the priestess while three Invisible Swords targeted two Arch Deacons each, and Gurice focused on two of the deacons in the back row. Shyla concentrated on the rest of the deacons just in case they tried to take a peek at what was in the box.
“Open the box,” the priestess demanded.
The Eyes.
Ximen did as requested, lifting the lid with a flourish.
The Eyes.
“You want to try that again?” the Heliacal Priestess asked.
The Eyes.
“What do you mean?” Ximen acted confused, but his fear turned sharp.
“I mean the box isempty. Where are The Eyes of Tamburah?”
A barrage of emotions from her team slammed into Shyla. She rocked back on her heels under the assault of confusion and fear.
“I…they are there. Don’t you see them?” Ximen asked.
He was a terrible liar. The other Invisible Swords increased their efforts, and a few sent the image to the priestess.
“No,” she said. “The Sun Goddess protects me from your so-called magic. Where are The Eyes?”
Ximen’s gaze jerked to Shyla before returning to the priestess. Shyla cursed under her breath. Why hadn’t anyone told her Ximen couldn’t bluff to save his life? And all of theirs, too.
The priestess turned around to see who he glanced at. “Remove your hoods,” she ordered the deacons in the back row.
All but Shyla complied. Hello there.
Another swell of fear rolled through the chapel. The magic from the Invisible Sword members faded. They took a step back. Time for plan B. Shyla drew in her energy and pushed. Hard.
Sleep.
Three deacons went down.
Sleep.
Two more. And to think Jayden had felled ten at once.
Sleep.
