"Foul and cheat!" Berest shouted again, trying to whip up the support which was beginning to grow through the crowd.

"Watch your tongue, Elfslayer!" snarled Darkend. "Lest I remove it from your mouth."

"I will not-"

The response was interrupted by a gagging retch as Berest Elfslayer toppled forward, the hilt of a dagger jutting from his back. Garimeth Bellowsmoke calmly reached forward, retrieved her weapon with a sharp tug, and wiped the blood on the dead dwarf's tunic before straightening up and looking around in cool triumph.

The auditorium was deathly silent. Many recognized Darkend's long-absent sister. Darkend counted off ten heartbeats while he savored the imminence of his victory. Finally he spoke. His voice was clear, calm, and forceful enough to quell any lingering sounds of dissent.

"I will begin my audit of the treasury immediately," he announced, claiming his right which was every new thane's most urgent duty. "My victory feast shall be laid for all the Two Cities at the start of the following cycle. The heralds will cry the word as soon as I am ready to entertain your audiences."

He was greeted by silence, though he heard one solitary grumble of disgust. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Steelcut Gutterblood-a young noble with nearly as much influence as Berest Elfslayer-all but spitting on the floor in his outrage. Yet when Darkend confronted the sturdy hothead with a direct look, young Gutterblood merely dipped his head in the proper bow.

With the eerie silence ringing louder than any echoes of clashing steel, the new thane of the Daergar marched to the center of his phalanx and out the gates of the arena into the broad, deserted streets of the city that was now his rightful domain.

A Throne Made Easy

"I have two jobs for you: Steelcut Gutterblood, Younger and Elder. Fortunately, Berest Elfslayer has already been dealt with by my sister."

His rage slightly pacified by his triumph, Darkend Bellowsmoke issued these orders to his assassin, known only as Slickblade.

"Your commands are my life, lord," replied Slickblade with a slight inclination of his head.

For this brief interval the two Daergar were alone, though the shouts of the thane's lieutenants could be heard throughout the halls of the great palace, hiding from the sounds, the search of the premises was proceeding smoothly.

"May they be both your life and the death of my enemies!" Darkend replied, chuckling grimly. Now that he was sitting in the thane's throne, surrounded by the opulence of his position, his mood was beginning to brighten. The throbbing in his leg was gone, the wound itself cleansed and further healed by some ointment found in the thane's pharmacologies.

The assassin made his farewells with formal politeness then exited through one of the secret passages that had quickly yielded itself to Darkend's inspection. As time passed in this great palace, he knew that he would undoubtedly discover more such passages. Momentarily he cursed Halt Blackmetal, his predecessor, for not maintaining a blueprint or some other kind of written directions to the maze of this place.

A knock suddenly thudded onto the great steel doors of his vaulted chamber, reminding him of more pragmatic concerns.

Garimeth Bellowsmoke, alone and clad in a cape of shimmering silver foil, was admitted to the throne room by an unseen doorman. She curtsied with great formality before rising to approach the great chair.

"Ah, dear sister, thank you for responding to my invitation with such alacrity."

"You impress me, Lord Thane, with your command of language. Where have you been 'matriculating,' that you should use a word like 'alacrity'?"

"There are many things about me that you do not know, though we are bound by blood. It would do you well to remember that it may be best to keep some matters in the dark."

"Ever I shall, lord-or may I call you 'brother'?"

"As you will. Your return to our city is fortuitous, for it is my intention that you serve me in many ways, in positions of power and influence, at my right hand."

"My brother knows that he has but to speak, and I will obey."

"My first command is this: You are to insure that my coronation feast is the most memorable in the lifetime of our clan's most venerable elders. The menu shall consist of only the finest blindfish from the depths of the Urkhan Sea. There is to be a plentitude, enough to stuff the belly of even the most lowly footman among my armies."

"A wise choice, Lord. A full stomach is the best way to still a complaining tongue."

"Indeed. As for beverage, you are to buy the finest barrels from every brewer in Daerbardin and Daerforge. Every dark dwarf shall be invited to drink and I want none to grow surly from sucking at an empty spigot."

"Naturally my brother. And may I suggest the pear fungus from the south warren. The crop has just ripened, and I am told that the mushrooms are the largest and most flavorful in recent memory."

"Good. Buy the whole crop. We'll have it fried, baked, and carved-prepared every tasty way known to the clan's chefs."

"May I inquire as to the funding, Lord Brother? Doubtless you realize that the expense will be enormous."

"The coins will come from my own treasury. I don't want it generally known, but Blackmetal was a cursed old miser. It turns out that there's more steel in those vaults than anyone could have imagined. Heed me, sister. You are to spare no expense. I want every Daergar in the Two Cities to recognize my beneficence, and to feel indebted to the new thane."

"It shall be done."

Garimeth curtsied again, but before she could turn to depart her brother spoke again.

"In your long years in Hybardin, it occurs to me that you must have come into contact with dwarves from all the five clans. Is that correct?"

"Indeed, brother."

"The Theiwar and the Klar? Did you have cause to take note, to learn their ways and their customs?"

"Their comings and goings were frequent in Hybardin and their leaders well known to me. Indeed, I made contacts among both clans. I came to know them nearly as well as I learned the ways of the arrogant Hylar themselves."

"Including their secret speech?"

"Ah! Fortuitously, there is something I have brought from Hybardin, a mere toy to my husband, but I guessed it would prove very useful to myself and to those I choose to aid. It seems I was prescient in this regard. It is an artifact that renders all languages an open slate to me."

"Splendid. Know this, my sister: When my feast has been done, there will be great matters before the clan. I shall rely on your counsel for much of this and your ear shall be my proof against treachery."

"As ever, brother, I am yours to command."

Garimeth's curtsy was deep, her words humble, but even these manners could not conceal from Darkend her tight smile of pure, gleeful ambition.

The feast was a grand success. However, as he leaned on the great veranda of his palace and digested his belly full of food, Darkend was still aware of an undercurrent of distrust lurking in the city of his people. Naturally, he had heard no mention of his use of magic during the duel, but he was well aware that the majority of his subjects regarded his tactic as little better than cowardice.

Still, they had seen him win several duels quite fairly and none could dispute his prowess as a warrior. Furthermore, the subtle presence of Slickblade-who had appeared in many guises throughout the three cycles that the feast had lasted-insured that the least loyal Daergar carefully watched their tongues, even when they thought they were among their oldest and most faithful friends.