Page 31 of Dark Shaman: The Lost Treasure
"Fear can be a powerful inhibitor," Syssi said. "And love is an equally powerful motivator."
"Speaking of fear," Kalugal said, "these enhanced soldiers worry me. If Navuh can create an army of them, we don't have an answer for that. Not yet anyway." He looked at Kian. "Any estimates on those robots William and Kaia are designing?"
Kian shook his head. "Won't be ready quickly enough to prevent a hell of a lot of bloodshed."
Lokan frowned. "Are you talking about creating a robot army?"
Kian shrugged, and Kalugal nodded.
"That's the future, Lokan. Our father's goons will not win this war for the control of humanity. Robots equipped with artificial intelligence and guns will, which would be Annani's ultimate revenge. Without her, that knowledge wouldn't have been developed for another thousand years or more, and by that time, it would have been too late."
Kian refilled his glass again and took a sip. "You are an optimist, Kalugal. So many things can go wrong between now and when the robot army is ready to defend the world. Hell, for all we know, that army could turn against us. The Eternal King had all the Odus on Anumati destroyed for a reason."
"Yeah, his own quest for power," Kalugal said. "That's why I think they will benefit us. My father is like the Eternal King. He would do anything and everything to achieve his goal of world domination. The Eternal King believed that the Odus would stand in his way, so I say let's put their inferior cousins in front of my father's army."
10
ESAG
The small closet that served as Esag's workshop held the lingering scent of cedar shavings and the faint sweetness of the oils he used to finish his carvings. The final product would be made with stone, but wood was easier to work with, and he could create many more figurines until he was satisfied with the result.
Only then would he switch to stone and create the masterpiece that would induce a prophetic dream.
In theory.
There were no guarantees of that happening even if he got the figurine just right.
Sitting hunched over his workbench, he was looking at Khiann's portrait as the figurine was taking shape beneath his hands. The mischievous eyes of his childhood friend seemed to taunt him, egging him on like he used to when they were both young lads.
"You'd find this funny, wouldn't you?" Esag murmured to the portrait. "Watching me sweat to produce an image of you in wood. I can just hear your stupid jokes."
Esag sighed, the knife moving with the muscle memory of five thousand years. He didn't need to look down anymore—his fingers knew the wood's grain, could feel where to coax out the curve of a cheekbone or the angle of a jaw.
A shadow fell over him, but he didn't lift his head.
"Roven and I are heading to the Hobbit Bar," Davuh said from the doorway. "It's time to call it a day and have some fun. Put the wood aside and come with us."
Esag didn't look up from his work. "I can't. I need to finish this one."
Roven joined Davuh in the doorway, both of them crowding the narrow space. "You haven't left this damn closet for anything other than food and sleep."
"I also left it to take showers and attend dinners." He kept working even though his friends had a point.
"The clan ladies, Esag," Davuh said with a grin. "They've been asking about you. This village is like a free candy store for immortals, and you are behaving like a monk."
Esag's knife paused for just a moment before resuming its steady rhythm. "I can't think of anything else until I fulfill my duty to the princess."
Roven laughed. "In all the years I've known you, you could never resist female companionship. But when you could finally find a proper mate among your own kind, you're spending all of your time in a closet like a hermit."
The words stung. Esag set down his knife and finally looked up at his friends—brothers, really, after all they'd been through together.
"Go," he said, forcing a smile. "Have fun. Drink some of that excellent whiskey Atzil keeps behind the bar and look for your truelove mates. Maybe you'll get lucky tonight."
Davuh shook his head. "Don't you want that too?"
"What I want is to finish this figurine so we can find Khiann. Nothing is more important than that."
The two knew better than to argue with him when he got into one of his moods. They'd learned over the millennia when to let him be.
