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"A present from Nektos of Sekhmet," Azra said with a low bow and offered the guard a piece of parchment with a silver cat head stamped on it. The guard read it, grunted, and looked Fen over.
"I will escort her from here," he said gruffly. Azra bowed again and got back into the litter.
The guard folded the parchment back up. "This way, slave. Eyes to the ground at all times."
Fen nodded, biting her tongue to stop herself from telling him to go fuck himself. Fen was not built to be subservient.
Too many problems obeying orders, her mother used to tell her. She had given her to the seiðr as soon as she showed any magical ability. Fen had never seen her again. Who her father was, she could only guess. Her mother said that it had been Loki. Many women with no husbands like to blame a god in disguise instead of the man who never stuck around longer than a night.
When she was born with the golden eyes of a wolf, her mother called her Fenrys. Her little wolf. Fen had never felt the Trickster god's magic, and he didn't strike her as the kind of god who would share his power or give his blessing to anyone.
Fen got a good look at the guard's calf muscles, the stiff leather and gold armor tied to his shins, and not much else. The floor was made of shining white stone with beautiful soft carpets woven in dizzying designs. Fen couldn't help but wonder if the city of Ankhara had any poor people living in it.
They stopped in front of heavily carved wooden doors. Two more warriors with dragon-headed stamped armor were guarding it.
"A gift," the guard said, showing them the parchment.
"I didn't think he liked women, or men, for that matter," the other guard said, looking over the letter.
"It's not our job to question it, not with that seal on it. In you go, slave." They opened the door for her and ushered her inside.
Fen stepped into the chamber, the door shutting quietly behind her. Now all she needed to do was find a weapon.
Fen walked carefully through the rooms, searching for the person she was meant to be seducing.
The room was lit with lamps made of glowing orbs of light, the furniture a glossy black wood. Silk pillows were piled onto day beds and chairs, but that seemed to be the only luxury items.
In fact, most of the room was filled with shelves upon shelves of books and scrolls. There were more books than Fen had ever seen in her entire life. The air smelled sweet and smoky like incense had been burning, and everything seemed eerily quiet.
Is anyone even here?Fen instantly thought of escape. No one was there to stop her, so she only needed to find another way out.
Fen walked down a small hallway and found a variety of swords and daggers mounted on a wall.
"This is too easy," she murmured.
The Sand and Sky people were smart enough to make magic collars that helped them understand each other's languages but didn't know how to lock up their weapons?Idiots.
Fen picked up a dagger with an elegantly curved blade. It was sharp and clean, its owner clearly taking good care of them. A faint scratching sound echoed from a room to her left. Fen tensed, moving the dagger behind a fold in her skirt.
A man was sitting with his back to her, his black hair tumbling in long curls down his shoulders. His robe was a variety of woven red and blue threads, with patterns she hadn't seen anywhere in Ankhara. It looked well-worn and comfortable, with ink stains on the sleeves.
He was busy writing, lost in whatever he was working on, and didn't even realize he was being watched.
Fen adjusted her grip on the dagger and toed off her sandals. On silent feet, she moved softly towards him and raised the blade. He turned, and she saw the tattoo of a doubleAlgizrune on the side of his temple.
Fen froze like invisible hands held her back. The man made a slight sound of surprise and grabbed her by the forearm.
"You are an unlikely assassin. Also, a terrible one to have hesitated when you did," he said in a deep, slightly amused voice. Fen knew that voice—her magical stranger.
"Why do you haveAlgizon your face?" she demanded.
"Algiz?"
Fen dropped the dagger. He released her and caught it in one lightning-quick move.
"Algiz," she repeated and pulled the skirt of her dress up. The man started to protest until she revealed the tattoo on her hip and upper thigh—Odin'sAlgizrune surrounded by knot work. The man's eyes went wide.
"First the two-branched tree and now this." He dropped the dagger and grabbed her thigh to get a better look. He didn't realize he had done it until Fen cleared her throat. He let her go as if he had been burned.
