Dark Heart by Margaret Weis;David Baldwin

came out low and deadly.
    “Your arrogance stifles your tiny brain,” Justin said. “Your memories are a delusion. We never fought side by side, Kalzar. I followed behind you to clean up the messes you made. To bury the whores you lost control with. To squelch the rumors you started with your endless bragging to the wrong ears. I did not steal your favor with the Dragon, Kalzar. The Dragon sent me to cover your tracks. I’m surprised the Dragon hasn’t sent me to kill you. Perhaps our master is more forgiving than he seems. At least, so far he is…” Justin let out a disgusted breath. “Yes, you taught me, Kalzar. Everything you know. I could never have compiled a finer manual on what not to do as a disciple!”
    For a moment, Justin thought Kalzar would attack him. Kalzar’s smile disappeared. The Arab’s thin lips formed a straight, rigid line. Veins throbbed at his temples and against his white silk collar. His face was flushed, his eyes narrow. Justin waited, ready.
    Kalzar mastered himself. His left eyelid twitched, and then he smiled again. “And you are such a fine disciple that the master has banished you from your homeland. Perhaps you are not so secure in the Dragon’s favor as you think.”
    “Perhaps,” Justin said. “Or perhaps you don’t know the workings of the Dragon’s mind. My stay here is for a reason, one which will become clear to me over time. Just as we could be ordered to kill a man today for what he will do in ten years, the Dragon’s decision to keep me here is most likely to hold me ready for some coming task. I follow his orders. I have the intelligence and subtlety to understand what is at stake. That’s the difference between you and me, Kalzar. You are the Dragon’s bludgeon and I am his scalpel. That’s the way it has always been.” Justin walked forward, nearly nose to nose with Kalzar. “No matter how well you dress yourself, no matter how many accents you affect, you will always be a mere butcher. Not just because you’re an idiot, but because you enjoy the slaughter, not the grand purpose behind it. You are a wretch, a festering sore on the face of the earth. I tolerate your continued existence because the Dragon can use you.”
    Kalzar narrowed his eyes. He was so angry he could barely speak. “You prancing peacock.” Kalzar’s voice was low but deadly, echoing throughout the room like a gypsy’s curse. “You dance on thin ice, Justin. And one day you will fall through. It’s only a matter of time.” Justin could practically feel the heat of Kalzar’s fury seeping through the fine wool of his impeccable suit. “And on that day,” Kalzar spat, “I will be waiting to swallow you. Then I will tear your flesh!”
    But the game grew old. Justin finally asked the question he should have asked the moment Kalzar stepped through the mirror. “What do you want here, Kalzar?”
    No reply. The urge to fight was strong within both of them, and could explode into violence any second. Each lusted to shed the other’s blood, to pour it out until the floor was lost beneath the crimson tide, until the enemy was too weak to stand, too weak to run, too weak to live. One day, each of them knew, the Dragon’s edict forbidding them to fight wouldn’t be enough to keep them apart. And each knew that day was getting closer, that the Dragon’s long-standing edict wouldn’t hold for much longer. And, Justin thought, that brought up a very interesting point. “The master ordered us to remain separated. How do you come here?”
    The flames in Kalzar’s eyes flickered. He flashed a smile. “I wish I knew for certain. I was standing in front of my mirror, and I wanted to look in on you. Of course, you know that has been impossible for decades now, divided as we are by the mandate. Imagine my surprise when it actually worked. I wondered what would happen if I stepped through. And here I am. What do you think that means, Justin?”
    “It means the master will speak with you,