The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms - By N. K. Jemisin Page 0,67

clockwork. We had our own techniques back then. And the places we built to honor the gods were magnificent.

After the Gods War, my ancestors did what had to be done. Sar-enna-nems Twilight and Moon Windows, once famed for their beauty, were bricked up, leaving only the Sun. A new temple, dedicated exclusively to Itempas and untainted by the devotion once offered to his siblings, was built some ways to the south; that is the current religious heart of the city. Sar-enna-nem was repurposed as nothing more than a hall of government, from which our warrior council issued edicts that I, as ennu, once implemented. Any holiness was long gone.

The hall was empty, as befitted the late hour. My grandmother led me to the raised plinth where, during the day, the Warriors Council members sat on a circle of thick rugs. She took a seat; I took one opposite.

Have you failed? she asked.

Not yet, I replied. But that is only a matter of time.

Explain, she said, so I did. I will admit I edited the account somewhat. I did not tell her of the hours I wasted in my mothers chambers weeping. I did not mention my dangerous thoughts about Nahadoth. And I most certainly did not speak of my two souls.

When I was done, she sighed, the only sign of her concern. Kinneth always believed Dekartas love for her would safeguard you. I cannot say I ever liked her, but over the years I grew to trust her judgment. How could she have been so wrong?

Im not certain she was, I said softly. I was thinking of Nahadoths words about Dekarta, and my mothers murder: You think it was him?

I had spoken with Dekarta since then. I had seen his eyes while he spoke of my mother. Could a man like him murder someone he loved so much?

What did Mother tell you, Beba? I asked. About why she left the Arameri?

My grandmother frowned, taken aback by my shift from formality. We had never been close, she and I. She had been too old to become ennu when her own mother finally died, and none of her children had been girls. Though my father had managed against all odds to succeed her, becoming one of only three male ennu ever in our history, I was the closest thing to a daughter she would ever have. I, the half-Amn embodiment of her sons greatest mistake. I had given up on trying to earn her love years before.

It was not something she spoke of much, Beba said, speaking slowly. She said she loved my son.

That couldnt possibly have been sufficient for you, I said softly.

Her eyes hardened. Your father made it clear that it would have to be.

And then I understood: she had never believed my mother. What do you think was the reason, then?

She was full of anger, your mother. She wanted to hurt someone, and being with my son allowed her to accomplish that.

Someone in Sky?

I dont know. Why does this concern you, Yeine? Its now that matters, not twenty years ago.

I think what happened then has bearing on now, I said, surprising myselfbut it was true, I realized at last. Perhaps I had felt that all along. And with that opening, I readied my next attack. Nahadoth has been here before, I see.

At this, my grandmothers face resumed its usual stern frown. Lord Nahadoth, Yeine. We are not Amn here; we respect our creators.

The guard have drilled in how to approach him. A shame I wasnt included; I could have used that training myself before I went to Sky. When did he come here last, Beba?

Before you were born. He came to see Kinneth once. Yeine, this isnt

Was it after Father recovered from the Walking Death? I asked. I spoke softly, though the blood was pounding in my ears. I wanted to reach over and shake her, but I kept control. Was that the night they did it to me?

Bebas frown deepened, momentary confusion becoming alarm. Did to you? What are you talking about? You werent even born at that point; Kinneth was barely pregnant. What did

And then she trailed off. I saw thoughts racing behind her eyes, which widened as they stared at me. I spoke to those thoughts, teasing out the knowledge that I sensed behind them.

Mother tried to kill me when I was born. I knew why, now, but there was more truth here, something I hadnt discovered yet. I could feel it. They didnt trust her