Page 41 of Daughter of the Drowned Empire

“Remove your dress,” he repeated.

“N-No.” My breath was starting to shorten.

The Imperator’s lips twitched, but I turned to my father and Aemon. “I will not undress without my privacy curtain drawn. And I demand a female escort present. Why isn’t Arianna here? She would serve as a proper escort.”

It had been a week since I’d seen her. I missed her. And I hoped I could buy myself some time while they went to get her.

“Your father is here to ensure you are treated fairly,” the Imperator said. “There’s no reason to make this an extended affair. As Master of Education, your aunt is otherwise occupied.”

“Then Turion Brenna remains with me.” I would not submit otherwise.

“This is beneath the Master of Peace.” The Imperator’s black eyes flared.

“It would be my honor to stay with her grace,” Brenna said quickly.

I shot her a grateful smile, but the Imperator frowned.

“And with the curtain drawn, how may we be sure the examination is not cheated in some way?”

Kunda sneered, deepening the triangular shape of his mustache to a point. “Are you saying you do not trust Ka Maras, who has perfected the art form since before the Drowning?”

Imperator Kormac’s nostrils flared as he stepped back.

“Let it be so.” My father waved. He shot a quick look at Brenna, telling her to remain by my side before she locked the cell and closed my curtain.

The thick black material cast the walls in black shadows. It had been dark and stormy all morning, with little light coming through the ceiling. At least the examiner would have less light with which to stare.

My hands shaking, Brenna helped me undress. My gown slipped to the floor, a puddle around my feet. I stood practically naked in a thin shift covering my breasts to the tops of my thighs. Beneath that my underclothes, thankfully secured around my waist, gave me an extra layer of dignity. For now.

Kunda looked at me with hunger, but it was different from what I’d seen before on men and women when they watched me. He wasn’t interested in my body sexually. Kunda the examiner was excited over what he was about to do. I was something new for him, something mysterious—a fully grown Lumerian who’d been unbound and still had no magic power. He’d never seen anything like me before; this excited him.

He bent low, uttering soft, soothing sounds as he removed the contents of the box.

Nahashim. Two of them. I should have known. The sigil for Ka Maras was two undulating nahashim, but I had not prepared for the shock of seeing them in person. These were creatures of the old world, Lumeria Matavia, one of the few species to survive the Drowning along with the seraphim, ashvan, and gryphons. The nahashim were thin as the parchment for scrolls, their scaly skin black and shiny. They had the ability to find anything one was looking for and lived exclusively on the island of Lethea, where they were bred by Ka Maras.

The nahashim’s slippery bodies stretched and curled in the examiner’s hands as he approached. They shifted from the size of a thumb to the length of an arm, slithering around him, expanding and contracting in length, like deep inhales and exhales.

The examiner eyed my undergarments, what remained of my dignity. I reached beneath my breasts for the fastenings of my nearly sheer shift. My stomach twisted, but Kunda shook his head.

“You may keep those on. Lie down.”

I did, staring at the ceiling, willing myself not to panic. But the nahashim were hissing, and I was lying on a bed before a strange man in my undergarments.

This was a procedure, I told myself. It was simple, and it would be over soon. I repeated these thoughts in my mind like a prayer.It’s only a procedure. It will be over soon.

“The nahashim will go through you, searching for any sign of magic,” he said.

I froze. “Through me?”

His eyes lit up. “Magic exists in physical form within the body. Inside your muscles and bones. It’s why you feel like crawling out of your skin when you’re bound, why stripping almost always kills. The magic must be extracted from every inch of the flesh, and the process—painful, yes—causes organs to shift from each other. I am close to finding a method that will allow the Lumerian to live, though I can’t yet deny the pain.” He looked proud of his achievement.

My mind had latched onto one thing. “Is there…a chance I could die?”

“No,” Kunda said. “We’re not removing anything, only hoping to find what is or is not there.” His eyes turned into snake-like slits to match his nahashim. “They so rarely get to search for magic. So few come in such a state.” He spoke dreamily. “Relax.”

With effort, I unclenched my fists. “Is this painful?”

The examiner smiled. Even his lips had sharp edges.