Read Online The Way of the Brother Gods by Stuart Jaffe - Free Book Online

caused this? She turned away, hoping her face didn't look as tortured as she felt inside.
    "It's been a few years since Barris Mont entered him," she said. "We've seen bits of Barris surface before, but nothing like this. If Tommy's been able to keep control of himself for all that time, why would it change now?"
    "Dear me, if I knew that, I'd be able to do something to help, now wouldn't I?" Cole said. "Perhaps there's something Barris Mont wants or needs. Perhaps he's always been fighting for control all these years and Tommy is finally weakening. Perhaps Tommy is the one doing this, somehow permitting Barris Mont access to his body. At this point, we can't really know."
    "Then what do we do?"
    Cole walked up to Malja and offered a patronizing pout. "Oh sweetie, it's possible that there's nothing we can do. The only persons I ever knew who could handle this sort of thing were Jarik and Callib, and well, they're no more."
    A deep clunk echoed and the lights went out. Several of the devices continued to operate but most of them also died. The heating device dimmed but managed to keep going, providing an orange hue to the otherwise dark room.
    Cole raised her head toward the ceiling. "The brother gods must hate me. That's the fifth power disruption in the last three days." She let out a resigned sigh. "Y'all just sit tight here. I've got to go fix this."
    Fawbry said, "I'll go with you. I'm sure you can use some help."
    Cole smiled. "That's kind, but you may not want to. This project requires a lot of power, and the only source I've found is an old magic depository. There are so many wires and junctions and places for problems to occur."
    "Why wouldn't I want to see a relic like that? I've only ever heard about those things. They were used before the Devastation to store up magic-produced power, right? Kind of like a safeguard in case the magicians all went on strike."
    "It is fascinating. But it's also underneath the ground through several long sewer tunnels. I'm sure you wouldn't want to walk through all that."
    "Sewer tunnels?"
    "Long tunnels that were built to dispose of all the human waste created in a city."
    Fawbry turned green. "Oh." Then he shrugged. "If that's what I've got to do, then that's what I've got to do. It'll be wonderful, er, that is, interesting having you show me this old technology."
    The genuine joy that flashed across Cole's face surprised Malja. It showed her that all the grins and smiles she had seen before were empty. They weren't lies so much as a brave face. Something was wrong with Cole, something she hid from everyone — Malja felt certain of that.
    "You'll know when we've fixed it. The lights'll come back on," Cole said with her fake smile back in place. "Come on, now, Faw-Faw. Let's go." She took him by the hand and led him out into the dark hall.
    Malja was alone. Not literally, though, since Tommy — and to some extent, Barris Mont — hovered nearby. She watched him in silence for awhile. The snaking tendrils coming from his arms never stopped moving, and his head never changed its uncomfortable position.
    "It's not fair," she growled between clenched teeth. "Not fair at all. Kryssta? Korstra? Any of you brother gods actually out there? Because if you are, you best change the way you've been doing things. Look at this boy. You allowed him to be a slave, be abused, be exploited by a bunch of soulless fools. And when I saved him, you left him so damaged that when given the chance, he chose to stay with me. That's how screwed up this world is. A sweet boy wants to stay with a killer like me. What good are gods if this is the kind of thing you allow? You should have to answer for that."
    She sat on the edge of one cot and rested her chin on her fists. She looked at the boy and fought against the tears that wanted to gush from her. "Tommy? You in there at all? I wish you were able to talk with me. You've always been a smart boy and I've been very confused lately. Harskill just makes it worse.