Meanwhile, the two Edur fleets were conjoining into one – no simple task, given the unsettled waters and the vast number of craft involved, and the fading light as the day waned.
And, there in the face of Tomad Sengar, the admiral of this massive floating army, the haunting that could only come with news of a very personal tragedy. A loss, a terrible loss. Curious indeed.
The air hung close about the ship, still befouled with Elder sorcery.
These Edur were abominations, to so flagrantly unleash such power.
Thinking they would wield it as if it were a weapon of cold, indifferent iron. But with Elder powers – with chaos – it was those powers that did the wielding.
And the Malazans had answered in kind. A stunning revelation, a most unexpected unveiling of arcane knowledge. Yet, if anything, the power of the Malazan ritual surpassed that of the scores of Edur warlocks.
Extraordinary. Had not Taralack Veed witnessed it with his own eyes, he would have considered such ability in the hands of the Malazan Empire simply unbelievable. Else, why had they never before exploited it?
Ah, a moment's thought and he had the answer to that. The Malazans might be bloodthirsty tyrants, but they are not insane. They understand caution. Restraint.
These Tiste Edur, unfortunately, do not.
Unfortunate, that is, for them.
He saw Twilight, the Atri-Preda, moving among her Letherii soldiers, voicing a calming word or two, the occasional low-toned command, and it seemed the distraught eddies calmed in her wake.
The Gral headed over.
She met his eyes and greeted him with a faint nod.
'How fares your companion below?' she asked, and Taralack was impressed by her growing facility with the language.
'He eats. His fortitude returns, Atri-Preda. But, as to this day and its strange events, he is indifferent.'
'He will be tested soon.'
Taralack shrugged. 'This does not concern him. What assails Tomad Sengar?' he asked under his breath, stepping closer as he did so.
She hesitated for a long moment, then said, 'Word has come that among the Malazan fleet was a craft that had been captured, some time back and an ocean away, by the Edur. And that ship was gifted to one of Tomad's sons to command – a journey into the Nascent, a mission the nature of which Emperor Rhulad would not be told.'
'Tomad now believes that son is dead.'
'There can be no other possibility. And in losing one son, he in truth has lost two.'
'What do you mean?'
She glanced at him, then shook her head. 'It is no matter. But what has been born in Tomad Sengar this day, Taralack Veed, is a consuming hatred. For these Malazans.'
The Gral shrugged. 'They have faced many enemies in their day, AtriPreda. Caladan Brood, Sorrel Tawrith, K'azz D'Avore, Anomander Rake-'
At the last name Twilight's eyes widened, and as she was about to speak her gaze shifted fractionally, to just past Taralack Veed's left shoulder. A male voice spoke from behind him.
'That is impossible.'
The Gral stepped to one side to take in the newcomer.
An Edur.
'This one is named Ahlrada Ahn,' Twilight said, and he sensed some hidden knowledge between the two in her voicing of the Edur's name. '
Like me, he has learned your language – swifter than I.'
'Anomander Rake,' the Edur said, 'the Black Winged Lord, dwells at the Gates of Darkness.'
'The last I heard,' Taralack Veed said, 'he dwelt in a floating fortress called Moon's Spawn. He fought a sorcerous battle with the Malazans on a distant continent, above a city named Pale. And Anomander Rake was defeated. But not killed.'
Shock and disbelief warred on the Edur warrior's weathered, lined visage. 'You must tell me more of this. The one you call Anomander Rake, how is he described?'
'I know little of that. Tall, black-skinned, silver hair. He carries a cursed two-handed sword. Are these details accurate? I know not… but I see by the look in your eyes, Ahlrada Ahn, that they must be.'
Taralack paused, considering how much he should reveal – his next statement would involve arcane knowledge – information not known by many. Still… let us see how this plays out. His shifted his language, to that of the Letherii, and said, 'Anomander Rake is Tiste Andii. Not Edur. Yet, by your reaction, warrior, I might think that, as with Tomad Sengar, you are wounded by some manner of unwelcome revelation.'
A sudden skittish look in the warrior's eyes. He glanced at Twilight, then pivoted about and strode away.
'There are matters,' the Atri-Preda said to Taralack Veed, 'that you are unaware of, and it is best that it remain so. Ignorance protects you. It was not wise,' she added, 'that you revealed your facility with the Letherii language.'