“I am not a traitor,” Lady Mystic fumed. “Who else would bring you the air tunnel? I have done more for you than even Clarvoy.”

The Emperor struck swiftly. He rose from the throne and slapped Lady Mystic across the face. Lady Mystic sprawled on the floor and looked up at her father with hurt and surprise.

“You think that being my daughter makes you immune from my wrath?” laughed the Emperor. “I have had thousands of sons and daughters. You should be grateful that my blood flows through your veins. It is my only gift to you. Get out of my sight before I change my mind and have you executed for my enjoyment.”

Lady Mystic rose, her cheek stinging from the blow and tears flowing from her eyes. What hurt the most as she retreated from the room was the fact that Aakuta had been right all along. Her father was an animal who cared for no one but himself. Lady Mystic cried as she raced down the stairs.

Her first instinct was to run to her house and try to preserve her laboratory, but she knew that that effort was futile. Clarvoy would search her entire home to make sure that everything was destroyed. She wanted desperately to find Aakuta, but how could she face him now? Twice she had betrayed him. No man could possibly forgive her after that. She had had to choose between her lover and her father, and she had chosen wrong. Now she had neither.

Lady Mystic ran out of the temple and through the streets of the city. She wandered through the jungle to the secluded spot on the beach where she had spied on Aakuta. There she threw herself on the ground and cried herself to sleep.

Chapter 3

Society of Mages