Apostles of Doom

Tamarin shrugged. “What would you do to keep your kingdom from being destroyed by an archdemon? You have heard of Abancia, yes?”

“Uhm… yes. Are you saying that was Exador? That he was responsible for Abancia?” Tamarin nodded. “So Randolf knew all along that Exador was an archdemon?”

Tamarin grinned and nodded again. “As did his father and grandfather. Exador arranged Randolf’s father’s accident when the old archimage got too uppity for Exador.”

“And your source of information inside Freehold?” Damien asked.

“Randolf has a djinni — Crispin,” Tamarin replied.

Damien stared at her. “When we first met, you said you couldn’t tell me this information, yet now you can?”

Tamarin nodded. “At that time I was not aware that Exador had directly attacked Crispin without provocation. He did so during the battle.”

“And that changes things how?” Vaselle asked.

Tamarin grinned. “Djinn cannot directly attack someone, even at the order of their master. However, if a djinni is attacked unprovoked, not only can they retaliate, it also creates a debt of vengeance and all djinn will work to retaliate.”

Edwyrd looked at his djinni. “Are you saying that Exador is being hunted by all of the djinn?”

Tamarin made a rotating motion with her head. “I am not sure ‘hunt’ would be the word, but if they find him, they will report him and work towards ensuring he is punished. Crispin will be actively hunting him, as he had been actively observing him, and he can call on all of the rest of the djinn to assist.”

“Hmm,” Beya said. “That is not at all pleasant for this Exador.”

Tamarin gave her a side nod of agreement.

“I would not seek the wrath of the djinn. They would be very hard to escape,” Ragala-nargoloth agreed.

Tamarin nodded, but then added, “Unless he hides in the Abyss. Until my master here came along”—she gestured towards Tom—“we had had no access to the Abyss after the fall of Orcus.”

“Well, I know where his friend Ramses lives, but I have no idea where Exador lives in the Abyss,” Edwyrd said. “Tizzy knows where Bess lives; maybe he also knows where Exador lives. He seems to know a lot of demons.”

Tamarin shrugged. “Exador will be found. However, the bigger concern for the djinn is ensuring he is unable to do to Turelane what he did to Abancia. That has been our focus since Abancia was destroyed.”

“So why are the djinn so interested in protecting Turelane?” Vaselle asked.

Tamarin turned to the warlock and smiled. “Turelane has been our strongest ally in Astlan since its founding. Every archimage has been an anchor for a djinni.”

“That is very interesting,” Damien said, surprised.

“Yes, and very secret, but now that we can actively work to thwart Exador, the Grand Calyphos have determined that openness is a better defense than secrecy. Particularly since Exador now knows of our presence in Turelane.”

“So can you work against Exador’s agents as well as Exador himself?” Damien asked.

“Of course.” Tamarin flashed a vicious grin at the wizard.

Nysegard Storm Lord Aerie: DOA + 2, Astlan Fourth Period, Sixth Period Local Time

Exador glanced to his right to ensure Ramses was ready. His ally nodded and the two proceeded down the corridor to the large, arched double doors leading into the Aerie of the Storm Lords. He was not fully recovered from the meteor bashing, but given the manner in which the Storm Lords had mishandled the intelligence he had provided them, and his need for them to deal with Freehold, it was imperative he meet with them in their aerie. His current less-than-ideal health had motivated him to invite Ramses along as a second. He would have preferred not to introduce one set of allies to another, lest they seek to circumvent him, but in this case, he felt that it would be prudent — both to demonstrate the strength of his overall position with regard to upcoming issues, and to ensure his personal security.

He, personally, did not care for the undead. It was not their appearance or their putrid, mephitic rotting stench; there were plenty of far more unpleasant demonic forms that he had been forced to deal with. No, there was something about Unlife that he found particularly repulsive, unsettling… dare he say, “evil.”

Naturally, he did not believe in the existence of good or evil; these were simply imaginary constructs of the weak and powerless. However, when it came to the undead, something about them was definitely not right. So he supposed “evil” was as good a term as any.

“Freezing cold” is another term that comes to mind as well, Exador reflected, seeing his exhaled breath before him as the double doors parted by unseen means at their approach. Liches seemed to like the cold; he supposed that it helped preserve their decaying flesh. Keeping the meat in the freezer, so to speak.