Thieves World 01 – Thieves World by Asprin, Robert

far enough to read her aura. And yes, there within the traces of that vibrating

field was the shadow of the blue star. Rabben’s: overpowering her will.

Rabben. Rabben the Half-handed, who had set his will “on the girl, who had

staged and contrived the whole thing, including the encounter where the girl had

needed rescue; put the girl under a spell to attract and bespell Lythande.

The law of the Blue Star forbade one adept of the Star to kill another; for all

would be needed to fight side by side, on the last day, against Chaos. Yet if

one adept could prise forth the secret of another’s power … then the powerless

one was not needed against Chaos and could be killed.

What could be done now? Kill the girl? Rabben would take that, too, as an

answer; Bercy had been so bespelled as to be irresistible to any man; if

Lythande sent her away untouched, Rabben would know that Lythande’s secret lay

in that area and would never rest in his attempts to uncover it. For if Lythande

was untouched by this sex-spell to make Bercy irresistible, then Lythande was a

eunuch, or a homosexual, or … sweating, Lythande dared not even think beyond

that. The Secret was safe only if never questioned. It would not be read in the

aura; but one simple question, and all was ended.

I should kill her, Lythande thought. For now I am fighting, not for my magic

alone, but for my secret and for my life. For surely, with my power gone, Rabben

would lose no time in making an end of me, in revenge for the loss of half a

hand.

The girl was still motionless, entranced. How easily she could be killed! Then