Demon Lord of Karanda

think she almost has to be trying to get back to her power base in Darshiva. Everybody in the world is after her, and she needs help."
    "We certainly aren't threatening her all that much," Garion said moodily. "We can't even get out of Cthol Murgos."
    "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. You've got to persuade Zakath that it's vital for us to leave here and get to Mallorea as quickly as possible."
    "Persuade?"
    "Just do whatever you have to, Garion. There's a great deal at stake."
    "Why me?" Garion said it without thinking.
    Belgarath gave him a long, steady look.
    "Sorry," Garion muttered. "Forget that I said it."
    "All right. I'll do that."
    Late that evening, Zakath's cat gave birth to seven healthy kittens while Zith hovered in anxious attendance, warning off all other observers with ominous hisses. Peculiarly, the only person the protective little reptile would allow near the newborn kittens was Velvet.
    Garion had little success during the next couple of days in his efforts to steer his conversations with the convalescing Zakath around to the subject of the necessity for returning to Mallorea. The Emperor usually pleaded a lingering weakness as a result of his poisoning, though Garion privately suspected subterfuge on that score, since the man appeared to have more than enough energy for his usual activities and only protested exhaustion when Garion wanted to talk about a voyage.
    On the evening of the fourth day, however, he decided to try negotiation one last time before turning to more direct alternatives. He found Zakath seated in the chair near his bed with a book in his hands. The dark circles beneath his eyes had vanished, the trembling had disappeared entirely, and he seemed totally alert. " Ah, Belgarion, " he said almost cheerfully, "so good of you to stop by."
    "I thought I'd come in and put you to sleep again," Garion replied with slightly exaggerated sarcasm.
    "Have I been that obvious?" Zakath asked.
    "Yes, as a matter of fact you have. Every time I mention the words 'ship' and 'Mallorea' in the same sentence, your eyes snap shut. Zakath, we've got to talk about this, and time is starting to run out."
    Zakath passed one hand across his eyes with some show of weariness.
    "Let me put it this way," Garion pressed on. "Belgarath's starting to get impatient. I'm trying to keep our discussions civil, but if he steps in, I can almost guarantee that they're going to turn unpleasant -very quickly."
    Zakath lowered his hand, and his eyes narrowed. "That sounds vaguely like a threat, Belgarion."
    "No," Garion disagreed. "As a matter of fact, it's in the nature of friendly advice. If you want to stay here in Cthol Murgos, that's up to you, but we have to get to Mallorea -and soon."
    "And if I choose not to permit you to go?"
    "Permit?" Garion laughed. "Zakath, did you grow up in the same world with the rest of us? Have you got even the remotest idea of what you're talking about?"
    "I think that concludes this interview, Belgarion," the Emperor said coldly. He rose stiffly to his feet and turned to his bed. As usual, his cat had deposited her mewling little brood in the center of his coverlet and then gone off to nap alone in her wool-lined box in the corner. The irritated Emperor looked with some exasperation at the furry little puddle on his bed. "You have my permission to withdraw, Belgarion," he said over his shoulder. Then he reached down with both hands to scoop up the cluster of kittens.
    Zith reared up out of the very center of the furry heap, fixed him with a cold eye, and hissed warningly.
    "Torak's teeth!" Zakath swore, jerking his hands away."This is going too far! Go tell Sadi that I want his accursed snake out of my room immediately!"
    "He's taken her out four times already, Zakath," Garion said mildly. "She just keeps crawling back." He suppressed a grin. "Maybe she likes you."
    "Are you trying to be funny.?"
    "Me?"
    "Get the snake out of here."
    Garion put his hands behind his back. "Not me, Zakath. I'll go get Sadi."
    In the hallway outside, however, he encountered Velvet, who was coming toward the Emperor's room with a mysterious smile on her face.
    "Do you think you could move Zith?" Garion asked her. "She's in the middle of Zakath's bed with those kittens."
    "You can move her, Belgarion," the blond girl said, smiling the dimples into her cheeks. "She trusts you."
    "I think I'd rather not try that."
    The two of them went back into the Emperor's bedchamber.
    "Margravine," Zakath