Servant of the Empire
Book two in the magnificent Empire Trilogy by bestselling authors Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts, now available in ebookNobody knows how to play the Game of the Council better than Mara of the Acoma. Through bloody political manoeuvring she has become a powerful force within the Empire; but surrounded by deadly rivals, Mara has to be the best simply to stay alive.But Lady Mara must contend with battles on two fronts: in the hotbed of intrigue and treachery that is the court of Tsurani; and in her heart, where her affection for a barbarian slave from the enemy world of Midkemia leads her to question the principles by which she lives.Servant of the Empire is the second in Feist and Wurts’ wonderful epic trilogy – one of the most successful fantasy collaborations of all time. The trilogy concludes with the third book, Mistress of the Empire.
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RAYMOND E. FEIST
and JANNY WURTS
Servant of the Empire
Book Two of the Empire Trilogy
HarperVoyager An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd. 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF
Previously published in paperback by HarperCollins Science Fiction & Fantasy 1993
First published in Great Britain by Grafton Books 1990
Copyright © Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts 1990
The Authors assert the moral right to be identified as the authors of this work
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Source ISBN: 9780586203811
Ebook Edition © AUGUST 2012 ISBN: 9780007385362 Version: 2017-08-15
Dedicated to the memory of
Ron Faust, always a friend
Table of Contents
Chapter Seventeen: Grey Council
Chapter Eighteen: Bloody Swords
Chapter Twenty-One: Keeper of the Seal
Chapter Twenty-Four: Breakthrough
Chapter Twenty-Five: Confrontation
Chapter Twenty-Six: Resolution
The breeze died.
Dust swirled in little eddies, settling grit over the palisade that surrounded the slave market. Despite the wayward currents, the air was hot and thick, reeking of confined and unwashed humanity mingled with the smell of river sewage and rotting garbage from the dump behind the market.
Sheltered behind the curtains of her brightly lacquered litter, Lady Mara wafted air across her face with a scented fan. If the stench troubled her, she showed no sign. The Ruling Lady of the Acoma motioned for her escort to stop. Soldiers in green enamelled armour came to a halt, and the sweating bearers set the litter down.
An officer in a Strike Leader’s plumed helm gave his hand to Mara and she emerged from her litter. The colour in her cheeks was high; Lujan could not tell if she was flushed from the heat or still angered from the argument prior to leaving her estate. Jican, the estate hadonra, had spent most of the morning vigorously objecting to her plan to purchase what he insisted would be worthless slaves. The debate had ended only when she ordered him to silence.
Mara addressed her First Strike Leader. ‘Lujan, attend me, and have the others wait here.’ Her acerbity caused Lujan to forgo the banter that, on occasion, strained the limits of acceptable protocol; besides, his first task was to protect her – and the slave markets were far too public for his liking – so his attention turned quickly from wit to security. As he watched for any sign of trouble, he reasoned that when Mara busied herself in her newest plan she would forget Jican’s dissension. Until then she would not appreciate hearing objections she had already dismissed in her own mind.
Lujan understood that everything his mistress undertook was to further her position in the Game of the Council, the political striving that was the heart of Tsurani politics. Her invariable goal was the survival and strengthening of House Acoma. Rivals and friends alike had learned that a once untried young girl had matured into a gifted player of the deadly game. Mara had eluded the trap set by her father’s old enemy, Jingu of the Minwanabi, and had succeeded with her own plot – forcing Jingu to take his own life in disgrace.
Yet if Mara’s triumphs were the current topic of discussion among the Empire’s many nobles, she herself had barely paused to enjoy the satisfaction of her ascendancy. Her father’s and brother’s deaths had taken her family to the brink of extinction. Mara concentrated on anticipating future trouble as she manoeuvred to ensure her survival. What was done was behind, and to dwell on it was to risk being taken unawares.
While the man who had ordered the death of her father and brother was finally himself dead, her attention remained focused on the blood feud between House Acoma and House Minwanabi. Mara remembered the unvarnished look of hatred on the face of Desio of the Minwanabi as she and the other guests passed his father’s death ceremony. While not as clever as his sire, Desio would be no less a danger; grief and hatred now turned his motives personal: Mara had destroyed his father at the height of his power, while he hosted the Warlord’s birthday celebration, in his own home. Then she had savoured that victory in the presence of the most influential and powerful nobles in the Empire as she hosted the Warlord’s relocated celebration upon her own estates.
