====================== 
Book Information: 
Genre: Epic Fantasy 
Author: Michael A. Stackpole 
Name: Fortress Draconis 
Series: DragonCrown Saga 2 
====================== 
THE NORRINGTON PROPHECY 
A Norrington to lead them, Immortal, washed in fire Victorious, from sea to ice. 
Power of the north he will shatter, 
A scourge he will kill, 
Then Vorquellyn will redeem. 
Will shivered in the wet and rain, but clenched his jaw so his teeth would not chatter. The drops came 
down big and fat; colder, too, than he expected even so late in summer. They splashed against the tiled 
roof, spattering him and pockmarking the shifting surface of the puddles down on the street. The 
threadbare scrap of a blanket beneath which he huddled shielded him from their buffets, but let their cold 
soak straight into him. 
The youth had no question that being elsewhere would be preferablecertainly warmer, if nothing 
elsebut he refused to move on. Though he risked catching his death of cold by remaining, running away 
would kill him as well. I do this, and everything will be okay again. 
He raised the blanket a mite and shook his head, letting water spray off his long brown hair. Leaning 
his head to the right, he let some water drip out of his ear and listened. The drumming of the raindrops hid 
most all sounds, but little bits of laughter drifted up from the public houses common room down on the 
ground level. He shifted slightly to his right, making no more noise than a squab might scrabbling for dry 
amid the roofs red tiles. Peering down from the roofs ridge, he could no longer see yellow light peeking 
out from behind the attic rooms shuttered window. 
Will couldnt help but let a smile blossom on his face. Bout damned time. Throwing off the blanket, 
he began to unwind the knotted rope from around his waist. As he coiled it on the roof, he nodded 
slowly and whispered to himself. 
Damn the Vorks, 
Damn their eyes. 
Let them drink,

Ill have their prize. 

Ill have their prize.

 He crawled out along the roofs beam to where a piece overhung the alley. He looped the rope over 
the end of it, then snugged it tight. Tugging on it twice to assure himself it would hold, he started down it, 
letting the rope slide between his toes until he could rest his weight on a knot. Little by slowly he 
descended, reaching out to touch the building and kill any swing on the rope. Finally he hung there, right 
in front of the attic window.

 The dagger he drew from the sheath at the small of his back slid neatly into the gap between shutters. 
Will worked it up, and between two rusty nail heads, his blade met the latch. Lifting easily, he slipped it 
and the shutters sagged outward, opening with a lazy sigh.

 The thief shook his head as he resheathed his dagger. Stupid Vorks deserve to lose their prize. As 
anxious as he was to get his hands on it, he didnt reach for the shutters immediately, but waited a bit 
more, listening. No time for mistakes now.

 Hed been pleased with how well the plan had come together, and he was fair certain Marcus and 
Fabia would be, too. Hed woven it together from things he knew theyd forgotten, like Fabia talking 
glowingly about the Vorquelf Predator, leader of the Grey Mist, as if he were King Augustus warring 
against the north. Predator would tell all that he hated men, and hed only ever showed Will the cold side 
of a sneer and the fast-hard of a fist; but to hear Fabia tell it, he loved the warmth of a woman. Hed 
favored her with his attentions forever ago, when she wasnt so fat that only Marcus would have her.

 She told tales of his having a treasure that shed never seen, but she knew it was there. Once shed 
awakened deep in the night, still drunk, and had seen his face backlit in the glow of something he cupped 
in his hands. Fabia said he smiled wider than he ever had in her arms. When she asked him what it was, 
he said she was dreaming, and in telling the tale to the younglings shed allowed as how she likely was 
dreaming, since Predator would have long ago drunk up anything so precious.

 Will always had believed her telling of the story as a dream until there came a time he thought on it for 
a while. Then he sought out the woman Predator was currently using. Lumina laughed when Will clowned 
for her, and cooed over the little things hed steal and give her, be they bits of pastries or a bright button. 
Shed reward him with a kiss, clearly assuming that he had a crush on her. The fact that he did didnt 
keep him from his mission, and eventually she was coaxed into revealing a tale close enough to Fabias 
that Will knew the Vorquelf was hiding something valuable.

 It hadnt been hard for Will to convince himself that whatever the treasure was, it was meant to be his. 
For as long as he could rememberwhich went a bit further back before Marcus and Fabia had taken 
him in, but not muchhed hated the Vorquelves. The exiled elves had long ago claimed the Downs as 
their own domain in Yslin. As hard times hit, the area around the Downs began to decay. Beggars and 
thieves, whores and the haltmost all mencame to live in the shadows of the city heart. Their 
neighborhoods became called the Dim, and Hightown folks dismissed the whole area as the 
Dimandowns. The Vorquelves constantly fought against the growing human population, and the only time 
human officials came into the area was to press-gang the unwary into crewing on galleys sailing the 
Crescent Sea.

 Wills hatred for the Vorquelves found an ally in Marcus. Will could remember how the man had 
brought him into their home, a big building in the Dim, and had housed him with other children. Marcus 
taught them about thieving and worse, then sent them out into the city. In return for bringing back spoils, 
the children were fed and clothed and not beaten too often. Those who were especially good were taken 
to the Harvest Festival in the autumn, though the recent affairs in no way matched what Fabia talked 
about in her stories of festivals past.

 Marcus and Fabia had always done for Will, but he did remember that theyd not always done so for 
everyone. The girls, when they reached a certain age, were trained for other things. Lumina hadnt been 
one of them, but plenty of Wills sisters plied the liftskirt trade. The boys, when they reached what 


Marcus called willfulness, went away, never to be seen again.

Marcus called willfulness, went away, never to be seen again.

 Will had no intention of doing that, and hoped pulling off a job like this, which would have been worthy 
of the Azure Spider, would impress Marcus. He knew that planning and executing this theft would likely 
brand him as willful, but he hoped that by bringing the treasure to Marcus, hed show how loyal he 
intended to be. 

Hell have no excuse to send me away, none at all.

 Confident that nothing lived or breathed in the darkened room, Will opened a shutter, grabbed the 
inside of the casement, and pulled himself in. He kept hold of the rope with his toes, so it slithered in after 
him. Crouching by the window, water dripping into a puddle beneath him, Will studied the room 
carefully. He dearly wished his heart would stop pounding so loudly in his ears, but the tumult of drunken 
conversation from below would have hidden the approach of a dragon.

 Staying low, and spreading his weight out on his hands and feet, Will scuttled across the floor. 
Lamplight from below bled up through cracks between planks, striping chairs, bed, and wardrobe with a 
soft yellow glow. Small and light though he was, he knew the uneven boards would be creaking with his 
passage, but he felt certain those sounds went unheard.

 He made his way to the wardrobe and carefully felt around the base molding. Lumina said shed seen 
Predator kneeling there, his body washed in silver, but had thought nothing of it. Tracing his fingers along 
the baseboard, Will sought a catch or lever to reveal a hidden compartment. He found nothing so 
sophisticated.

 His fingers caught against a piece of the base that jutted out just a hair. Hooking his fingernails into the 
gap, he teased it free without so much as a squeak. A little block of wood as long as his hand came free. 
In the cavity behind it he found a leather pouch heavy enough for a silver or two, and a lighter velvet 
pouch. The latter had something in it, but he couldnt tell what.

 He slipped the leather pouch beneath his belt and knew he should head out before examining his other 
find, but he needed to make certain he really had gotten his hands on Predators treasure. Slender fingers 
unmade the knot holding the bag shut, then peeled the velvet away, letting a blinding argent light shine 
forth.

 Will squinted against the brilliance, at once entranced and puzzled. The treasure looked like a leafhe 
knew it was from a tree, but what kind he had no idea since trees were few in the Dimandowns. The leaf 
blazed with a silver light and appeared to be metal, but had none of the heft it would have had if cast in 
silver. More impressively, it had the supple texture and flexibility of a living leaf. 

Dont know what it is, but it is a treasure! For the barest of moments Will considered tucking it 
back in its hidey-hole. Just having disturbed it felt somehow wrongand the idea that taking something 
that didnt belong to him was wrong had seldom occurred to him before. At the same time, it also felt 
wrong for this leaf to remain shut up in a little hole. He sensed another purpose to it, as if there was 
something he was supposed to do with it.

 Suddenly shouting arose from below and something shattered against the floorboards. Ale sprayed up 
through a crack. Wet as he was, he couldnt really feel it hit him, but he could smell it. In an instant he 
knew the silver light had been seen by someone below, and that the thundering came from feet on the 
stairs leading to the upper floor.

 Without a second thought, and with skill born of more than a decades thievery, Will stuffed the leaf 
into the bag and tucked it in his belt. He darted toward the window, tumbling a chair in his wake, and 
dove for the rope as the rooms door burst inward. The rope bumped and slithered, knot by knot, out 
behind him, chased by the curses of a Vork, who hit the chair and fell. Out into the night Will sailed, 
snapping his legs up, hoping he could loop his way back onto the roof. 


 Though his feet came up above the level of the roof, he couldnt get far enough over to land there, so 
he twisted around as he descended again on a short, tight arc. A waiting Vork smiled, reaching out for 
him as he returned. Will kicked one of the shutters around, slamming it flat against the Vorks face, 
spilling him back into the room.

 Though his feet came up above the level of the roof, he couldnt get far enough over to land there, so 
he twisted around as he descended again on a short, tight arc. A waiting Vork smiled, reaching out for 
him as he returned. Will kicked one of the shutters around, slamming it flat against the Vorks face, 
spilling him back into the room.

 Will darted off along the alley, hitting the street and cutting right. That route would actually take him 
deeper into the Downs, which he figured would confuse the Vorks. He ran as fast as he could, splashing 
through puddles, leaping over the dead bodies of animals, hoping the battering rain would aid him by 
erasing all traces of his passage.

 Aid him it did in some ways, for nothing could have tracked him by sight or scent as the rain washed 
away his spoor almost instantly. Even so, the rain betrayed him in more important ways, which he slowly 
came to understand as he raced past cloaked figures skulking through the streets, and close by soaked 
curs that barked and howled at him. 77ns is not the way to go.

 The Downs had been called the Downs because the city of Yslin sunk to its lowest level there. At high 
tide some of the streets would flood, and although high tide lay hours yet away, the days downpour had 
flooded streets into brown rapids thick with debris. The street along which he ran dipped into a raging 
torrent.

 His course blocked, Will turned north, dashing toward an alley mouth. He could hear his pursuers after 
him and knew he should toss away his loot. The leather bag with coins he tugged free of his belt and 
dropped behind him without a second thought. When his fingers touched the velvet bag, however, it felt 
warm and dry and he knew he wouldnt let anyone take it from him. Not them, not Marcus. Not 
anyone.

 Will put his head down and started running in earnest when the rains second betrayal occurred. He 
sprinted through a puddle that hid in its murky depths a missing cobblestone. The youth caught his right 
foot in the hole and stumbled, smashing his right knee into the roadway. The cobblestones, while soaked 
by the rain, had not been softened, so the blow drove a jolt of pain up and down his leg. His ankle 
twisted before his foot came free. He rolled over onto his back, clutching his knee in both hands.

 Cold rain splashed his face, and colder laughter rang in his ears. A knot of Vorquelves towered over 
him. The silver moonlight made them into ghosts, and what he could see of their faces indicated they were 
most malevolent. One bled from a cut on his foreheadWill took some joy in knowing his rock had 
flown trueand anothers nose looked to be swelling.

 Predator leaned down and grabbed Will by the front of his tunic. Should have known it was you. No 
one else would have been so stupid.

 Stupid was making it so easy.

 The Vorquelf, his sapphire eyes glowing in the moonlight, raised a fist. I wont be easy on you, little 
Will. Give it back.

 It struck Will as peculiar that Predator didnt just pull the bag off his belt. It was there in plain sight; 
Will could feel its warmth against his right hip. He wanted to tell Predator to take it, but that idea died 
quicker than a lightning flash.

 Youll never find it now. Its halfway to the sea.

 Predator screamed and his fist fell heavily. Will caught it on the right side of his face and saw stars. He 
didnt think hed been hit that hard, but he found himself on the ground again, his face throbbing.

 A rasped, edged voice cut through the ringing in Wills ears. I told you, years ago, if you ever 
touched one of them, youd regret it.

 Predator whirled to face a hulking human silhouette limned in silver, but before he could square 
around, a fist flew and caught the Vork straight in the face. Predators nose cracked sharply. The 
Vorquelf stumbled back and splashed down in the puddle. From the way his body bounced and his arms 
and legs flopped, Will knew Predator had been senseless before he hit the ground. 


 The other Grey Misters pulled back away from the figure, hands falling to the hilts of daggers and 
swords. Poor fool should have stayed out of what wasnt his business. Will gathered his legs beneath 
him as best he could and began to inch away, then his head and shoulders butted up against something 
solid. He looked up, saw a massive Vork looming above him, and yelped.

 The other Grey Misters pulled back away from the figure, hands falling to the hilts of daggers and 
swords. Poor fool should have stayed out of what wasnt his business. Will gathered his legs beneath 
him as best he could and began to inch away, then his head and shoulders butted up against something 
solid. He looked up, saw a massive Vork looming above him, and yelped.

 This stripling stole from you? Resolute laughed, and the mere sound of it seemed to stagger some of 
the Misters. What was it he stole?

 The Mister shrugged. Dont know. Predator said it was important.

 Resolute dropped to one knee and plucked the velvet pouch from Wills belt. Will grabbed for his 
forearm, but his cold, wet fingers found no purchase on the Vorquelfs thickly tattooed flesh. Thats 
mine.

 Is it, now? Resolute stood and opened the bag. Silver light poured out over his face, illuminating 
argent eyes and a snarl. The Vorquelfs hands closed the bag quickly, then he took a step into the middle 
of the Misters and kicked Predator hard in the ribs.

 Get him out of here, the lot of you. Hes jeopardized everything with his greed. Get him gone before I 
kick his belly through his spine. The Vorquelf spun and pointed a finger at Will. And you, youre going 
nowhere.

 The anger in his voice froze Will where he was. The Misters each grabbed an ankle or wrist and 
dragged Predator away. As they hauled him off, Resolute kicked water at them, hissing curses in Elvish. 
The other figure, which Will discovered to be a white-haired man with a thick white beard, crouched 
down beside him.

 Hows that knee?

 Will shrugged.

 The man looked up at Resolute. Think hes the one? Hardly washed in fire, here.

 The Vorquelf nodded, the thick stripe of white hair on his head glistening with rain. Yes, but a piece 
of Vorquellyn he did redeem.

 Will shook his head. What are you talking about?

 Resolute tied the velvet bag to his belt. Youll learn, eventually.

 Maybe I wont.

 The Vorquelf and the man both hauled him to his feet. You will learn, if all things turn out the way they 
are meant to.

 And if they dont?

 You aspire to what, boy? Growing up to be the Azure Spider, the Prince of Shadows? You want to 
be a master thief? Resolute slowly shook his head. Your life is wasted. Having it shortened will just 
save you pain.

 Will didnt like the sound of what Resolute had said and wanted to snap a remark that would hurt him, 
but he was mindful of two things that stopped him. The first was the way Resolute had kicked Predator. 
The Vorquelf was clearly not in a good mood, and Will did not want to become the focus of his ire.

 The second was that Resolute obviously would hit harder than Predator.

 Will had wanted to protest that what Resolute said wasnt true, but the word wasted kept bouncing 
around inside his head. Will the Nimble, King of the Dimandowns. That concept mocked him as he 
stood there, wet and aching, with his right eye swelling shut. But hed been hurt before, laughed at 
before, told he was nothing before, so there was something else eating at him.

 The man threw a corner of his cloak over the youths shoulders. Hes shivering and probably 
hungry.

 Resolute nodded. Cmon, boy, lets go. 


 Will limped along a few steps, letting the cloak slip off him, then stopped.

 Will limped along a few steps, letting the cloak slip off him, then stopped.

 Wills nostrils flared. My name is Will.

 Im Resolute, this is Crow. Now move.

 The youth frowned. One thing.

 And that is?

 Will reached out a trembling hand. Let me carry the leaf.

 The Vbrquelfs head came up. You think Im going to trust it to a thief?

 Crow laid a hand on Resolutes shoulder. He did get it. He cant run off.

 Resolutes eyes became crescent slivers of silver. You lose this, boy, and youll wish Predator hadnt 
been stopped.

 The youth raised his chin and snorted. Predator could have never made me give it up. I wont lose it.

 Resolute knotted the bag securely, then handed it to Will. Come on, then.

 Grinning like a fool, Will held on with both hands. 

The leaf is shining, 

Glowing bright, 

In my caring, 

Clung-to tight.

 The mans head came up, the hint of a smile gracing his lips. Lets go, Will.

 The man let Will get in front of him, but the youth really didnt feel Crow was there to stop him from 
running. He chuckled to himself, knowing hed bolt at the first opportunity, but the throbbing in his knee 
told him that opportunity would be a little while in coming. Besides, the man had mentioned food, and 
going back to Marcus all wet and hurt and without anything to show for it would just get his other eye 
blacked. Mights well have a full belly.

 The warmth from the bag spread into his hands and Will started thinking on what Resolute had said. It 
seemed to him that the desire to be the King of the Dimandowns hadbeen a worthy goal, but that had 
been before he saw the leaf and touched it. And then, when Resolute had taken the leaf from him, he was 
left all hollow inside. He knew then that hed been meant to steal the leaf. For what purpose he had no 
idea, but he sensed there was one. And that purpose is mine to fulfill.

 These thoughts occupied him as Resolute led the way through the Downs to an inn that didnt look 
nearly as decrepit as the other Vork haunts. Will seemed to remember having been in that place once 
before and having been chased away with a brown bucket of floor stoppings dumped over him. As they 
entered the common room Will saw the emerald-eyed bartender scowl at him, but the Vorquelfs 
expression eased into something shy of a smile as Crow closed the door behind them.

 Crow pulled his cloak off and hung it on a peg. His white hair had been gathered back into a thick 
braid that was knotted with a leather cord from which dangled a rainbow of feathers. His beard ran along 
his jaw and flushed full at his chin and moustaches, but left visible an old scar down his right cheek. 
Above it another scar ran up into his hair. The brown of his buckskin clothes ran lighter than the color of 
his eyes, save where the rain had soaked his shoulders and wrists. The sword he wore had a brass hilt 
with leather bindings and a big angular pommel. Daggers rode on his right hip, in his left boot-top, and, if 
Will wasnt missing anything, in a sheath on his right forearm, up his sleeve.

 Will couldnt begin to guess at his age. The man looked ancientmust be at least fortybut a fair 
bit of life still burned in his eyes. Crows-feet crinkled the corners of those eyes, nicks and cuts had 
scarred his cheek, nose, brow, and ears, but he didnt seem the sort of man to be wasting away, drinking 
off scartales in some Dim squalor-squat.

 The way hed moved through the streets, and the power with which he hit Predator suggested to Will 
that the man wasnt as old as he first appeared. There was no doubting at all that hed seen a lot of life, 
and Will figured the man was more than content to let his coloration disguise him. Plenty of folks would 
look at him and dismiss him for being old, but Will determined that wasnt a mistake hed make.

 A shiver shook Will then, and it wasnt from the cold. Conversation, which had been in Elvish and 


unintelligible to him save for the odd curse or two, had died. He turned away from Crow and saw two 
dozen Vorquelves staring at the man with expressions that ranged from friendly to respectful. Not a few 
were tinged with fear. Whispers started, but Will caught little of them, save for a name. Kedyns Crow.

unintelligible to him save for the odd curse or two, had died. He turned away from Crow and saw two 
dozen Vorquelves staring at the man with expressions that ranged from friendly to respectful. Not a few 
were tinged with fear. Whispers started, but Will caught little of them, save for a name. Kedyns Crow.

 Crow fits better, Will.

 Resolute laughed. Hes more afraid of you than he was of Predator, Crow.

 Will shook his head, lashing his face with wet strands of hair. Not afraid. He shivered again. 
Really.

 Crow smiled and guided Will toward a table, which Vorquelves quickly vacated. Sit down. Ill get 
you something warm to eat.

 Yes. Will sat, still clutching the bag to his chest. And, sir, thank you, sir.

 His hasty comment sparked laughter from the Vorks, who went back to their drinking and eating. Will 
ignored them and stared after the broad-shouldered man speaking Elvish with the bartender. Kedyns 
Crow! If there were a more famous man, aside from King Augustus of course, Will didnt know of him. 
Minstrels in the Dim sung of his exploits, of his traveling north to the frozen plains of

 Aurolan, killing hoargoun and temeryces. Those feathers, they have to be from some of the 
frostclaws!

 Kedyns Crow didnt seek fame for himself, but was known from when he and his companionsI 
know who the Vork he runs with is nowsaved a Jeranese caravan from marauders, or showed up in 
a snowbound Murosan village and fought off Aurolani raiders or ... The one Will liked best talked about 
Kedyns Crow hunting through the Ghost March, killing off a vylaen general that Chytrine was using to 
lead an army down into Okrannel. Will wasnt certain where any of those places were, save for being far 
away, but hed reveled in hearing those adventures.

 Crow returned to the table and set a wooden bowl full of steaming stew in front of Will. Beside it he 
placed an earthenware mug from which steam likewise rose. Eat slowly.

 Will nodded and tucked the bag inside his tunic, then grabbed the wooden spoon, stuck it into the 
stew, and shoveled up a mouthful. The stew tasted okay, though the cook clearly didnt know what he 
was doing because it was way too thick to be proper stew. The foods warmth started to seep out of his 
belly into the rest of him. He grabbed the mug in both hands and gulped down a big swallow of the 
mulled wine, then sat back and burped.

 Crow raised an eyebrow. Slowly, Will. No one is going to take it away from you.

 Will nodded, not sure if Crow was talking about the food or the leaf. About the time Will realized hed 
sooner give up the food than the leaf, Resolute came to the table. He brought with him two mugs of ale, 
one of which he handed to Crow. In his wake trailed another Vorquelf.

 This Vorquelf brought a smile to Wills face. Even though his eyes were a solid light blue, he dressed 
as if he were a real elf. Red hair hung in two braids at his temples and was long elsewhere in the current 
elven fashion; his clothes had been cut along the lines of those worn by dandies in Hightown. Will 
couldnt see a scar or tattoo on him, and his straight nose had clearly never collided with a fist or shutter. 
The Vorquelf remained slender and didnt have a speck of dirt on his clothes or under his fingernails. 

And the rings on his slender fingers... Will knew he could have them off in the blink of an eye, and 
could even nick the gold coins in the pouch at his beltfor gold weighed much more than silver and 
made itself apparent to the trained eye.

 Is this the boy?

 Resolute grunted. No getting anything past you, is there, Amends? And hes not a boy, hes almost a 
man.

 Small for a man yet.

 Crow laid a hand on Wills arm. Do you know how old you are?

 Will shook his head. Fire took my mother, they tell me. Aunts kept me until I ran away. Been in the 
Dim since then. Around.

 Resolute rapped a fist sharply on the table. Your age, boy, not your life story.

 Will jumped, then frowned. Fifteen years, maybe more, but not much. Im just small. 


 The clean, red-haired Vorquelf narrowed his eyes. Are you sure this is the one? He doesnt look it.

 The clean, red-haired Vorquelf narrowed his eyes. Are you sure this is the one? He doesnt look it.

 Amends snarled. Hell pay for that.

 He already did.

 Amends nodded, then pointed deeper into the common room. Charity, fix the boys face.

 Will turned around as a chair scraped against the wooden floor. A slender elf, not much taller than 
himself a mere slip of a girl with golden hair and full sea-green eyesgot out of her chair and 
approached him timidly. She met his glance for a second, then seemed to look away. No black dot to 
their eyes, not easy to tell where shes looking. Still, she came to him and stroked the right side of his 
face with her left hand.

 He couldnt see what she was doing, given as how that eye had almost swelled shut, but he could feel 
it. His flesh tingled in the wake of her caress. Heat leaped from her hand into his face and he began to 
smile. He noticed it didnt hurt his cheek to do so, and then his right eye opened.

 He looked up and saw a trace of pain pass over her features. What? I didnt do it. Whats wrong?

 She shook her head. Nothing.

 Crow squeezed his right forearm. She used magick to heal you, and its not without a cost. She took 
the pain of your healing on herself.

 Will blinked. But why?

 Charity smiled at him. For what you will do, in thanks.

 What I will do? He frowned and looked at Crow. What does she mean?

 The man shook his head. Its too soon to worry about that, Will. Just get yourself outside of that 
stew, then well see if you can have the lend of a bed. Thank you, Charity.

 Will stared after her as she walked away. Not going to have her do my leg?

 And have you able to run? Resolute laughed mirthlessly. Youll be fine to sit a saddle tomorrow.

 Amends head came up. Youre not leaving tonight?

 Resolute studied his mug of ale. Done enough for one evening.

 But this is important. If you dont get him there ...

 Crow raised a hand to stop the discussion. Good Amends, forgive us. Resolute would prefer not to 
insult me, but these old bones need sleep before I can head out.

 The red-haired Vorquelf blushed from his throat to the tips of his pointed ears. Forgive me, Kedyns 
Crow. I meant no offense, it is just...

 Dont worry yourself, Amends. Crow chuckled lightly. I vowed to see to the liberation of 
Vorquellyn in my lifetime. You should rejoice that my age means that event is going to be sooner rather 
than later.

 If people will let us be about our duty. Resolute shook his head quickly, spraying a little water from 
the strip of white hair running from his forehead to the nape of his neck. Now leave us alone or make 
yourself useful ordering up roadbread and drymeat for us.

 Amends nodded solemnly. Of course, of course. Youll be leaving when? Dawn? Noon?

 Crow shrugged. Dawn if the rain breaks, noon if it doesnt. No one wants to ride in the cold wet too 
long.

 Of course not, no. Amends tapped a finger against his lips. Reason, Sagacity, round up some 
supplies for them, see if you can find clothes for the... manling.

 Two other Vorquelves left their tables, pulled on oilskin cloaks, and vanished into the night. It 
surprised Will that they moved so quickly to Amends orders, since he didnt look nearly strong enough 
to be their leader. As much as Will didnt like Predator, he figured Predator would have been able to 
whip Amends easily.

 That was the way of things in the Dim, after all. The strong ruled. Predator would have been on top 
until someone like Resolute decided to topple him. Marcus had been supreme until the Azure Spider 
went on to greater glory. After that, even Scabby Jack and Garrow challenged him. Hes got 
nothingceptfor me, that is.

 Amends stared down at Will again, his face closing up. I pray he is the one. Gods speed you on your 


journey. And good luck to you, William.

journey. And good luck to you, William.

 Resolute set his mug down and cocked an eyebrow at the boy. Will? Nothing more? Why are you 
blushing, boy?

 No reason. Will frowned and looked back into his nearly empty bowl. Im Will.

 Youre certainly stubborn, Will Crows voice came easily, lightly, with a touch of friendliness to it. 
Youve forgotten, I think, what Resolute and I saved you from. Youve forgotten what Resolute has 
trusted you with. Youll trust us with your name, wont you?

 Will lowered his spoon to the bowl again. Youll laugh.

 The man shook his head. No, not at all.

 Will snarled and pointed his spoon at Resolute. He will.

 Better me laughing, boy, than having to get it out of you my way.

 That sent a shiver down Wills spine. Just this once. His eyes narrowed and he waved the spoon 
back and forth like a dagger. My name is Wilburforce.

 Resolute and Crow gave no sign of their reaction to his name, but Amends exhaled loudly. Oh, yes, 
yes; perfect. Thus ends one debate.

 Will frowned at Crow. Theres a lot here youre not telling me.

 There will be time, on the road, to answer your questions.

 Will licked the spoon off and brandished it again. On the road to where?

 Resolute snorted. Does it matter to you? Its away from here.

 Maybe I dont want to go.

 Its not like you have a choice. The large Vorquelf smiled carefully, wrapping one massive hand over 
a scarred fist. Youre going, Wilburforce.

 Crow waved away Resolutes comment. Think of it as an adventure, Will. Who among your friends 
has been to the mountains? Well go there, see a friend, then you can come back here if you wish.

 I dont know. Will tried to keep his face impassive, but his voice rose a bit at the end, and a nervous 
smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He swiped a sleeve over it to hide it. No one hed known had 
been out of the environs of Yslin, save maybe Marcus, and Marcus had never been to the mountains. 

A fitting first adventure for Will the Nimble?

 Ill get to ride a horse?

 Several.

 Will nodded and scraped at the bowl with his spoon. He recalled well the tales of children snatched 
from the streets never to be heard from again, but the wariness engendered by those tales faded. The 
kindness in Crows voice, the insistence in Resolutes, and the warmth of the bag pressed against his ribs, 
those three things in no way suggested hed be safe on the trip, but they did tell him he had nothing to fear 
from his traveling companions.

 Besides, the little hint that there might be dangerand hed picked that up from dozens of things, not 
the least of which was Resolutes not telling Amends about the leaf sent a thrill through him. Hed 
grown up in the roughest part of Yslin. There was nothing in the wilderness he was going to fear.

 Okay, Will said. To the mountains well go.

 Resolute and Crow led the way up the stairs and along a corridor to a room at the back corner of the 
inn. The rain beat a steady tattoo on the tile roof, which Will didnt find unusual. The fact that the roof 
didnt leak did surprise him, however, as did the size of the room. It fit a big bed and a chest of drawers, 
with a little side table and spindly chairs in the corner. A candle burned on the table, and one of the chairs 
creaked mightily as Resolute sat in it.

 Crow hung the wet cloaks up on the pegs behind the door, then nodded toward the bed. Go ahead, 
Will. Strip those wet clothes and wrap yourself up in a sheet. Cant have you catching a cough.

 Will, having been raised in a pack of urchins, didnt suffer from modesty. Wet clothes flew in all 
directions leaving him naked, when a gentle knocking came on the door. Crow answered it, and Will 


smiled at Charity through the opening. The Vorquelf blushed and turned her head, handing Crow a neatly 

smiled at Charity through the opening. The Vorquelf blushed and turned her head, handing Crow a neatly 

 He tossed the clothes onto the bed. There you go. Youll want to get dressed.

 Will, holding the leaf-bag in his hands, blinked and looked up. But its time for sleeping, right?

 Resolute snorted. Not going to be getting much sleep tonight, boy. Get dressed.

 Crow had crossed to the window at the rear of the inn. Looks clear.

 Sitting on the bed, Will pulled some oversized trousers on. I dont understand. You told Amends ...

 The man stretched. Amends does not understand much about our kind, Will, and accepts that the 
white of my hair and beard means I might as well reside in a grave. Its useful to let him and others 
assume Im capable of a bit less than I am.

 We told Amends what we wanted him to hear, boy. The Vorquelf tossed Crow his cloak. By now 
the story is circulating that we found you and that well be leaving tomorrow. In the morning this place 
will be filthy with people. Theyll be here to see you. Most of them will want you to succeed. A few 
wont. And a couple will want you dead.

 Crow shrugged his cloak on. Im not sure about the last, Resolute.

 The Vorquelf scratched at the back of his neck with a big, scarred hand. You know there are those 
who think were fools, the two of us. They think we might anger the enemy, and that appeasing her by 
informing on us might be the quick way to get Vorquellyn back.

 Will pulled a dry woolen tunic on. What are you talking about?

 The Vorquelfs lip curled up into a snarl. What do you know of the world, boy?

 I know a lot.

 Tell me.

 Will hesitated for a second, then looked over at Crow, who gave him a reassuring nod. Well, I know 
that Augustus is king because he beat Chytrines army a long time ago.

 Thats where he found Queen Yelena. And I know the Vorks dont have a home because Chytrine 
kicked them off it. I know all about the Azure Spider and how he stole the heart of the Wruonan pirate 
queen, Vionna. I mean, I know more about him, but thats one of the best stories I know. And, and... I 
know that the smith down on South Street is carrying on with the wife of the baker on Sparrow Road.

 Resolutes head came up and his expression softened. Thats it, thats all you know? He swung his 
left fist around and slammed it into the wall, cracking the plaster. Its impossible, Crow. If hes the one 
...

 Calm yourself, my friend. You know as well as I do that neither of us knew the Azure Spider was on 
Wruona. The man laid a hand on Resolutes shoulder and smiled. If Wills the one, its our job to 
educate him.

 Crow, in another lifetime I couldnt teach him enough.

 Its not that dire, Resolute. Crow looked over at Will. What do you know of the sullanciriV

 The youth shivered. Everybody knows about them. Everybody thought they were heroes but thats 
not true. They wanted to have King Augustus use his army to take over the world, but he chased them 
off, all ten of them, the treacherous dogs. They ran away and went to Chytrine and fed her their souls. 
She gave them magickal powers and everything. Theyre led by the Norringtons, father and son, just as 
they were led back in the time of the war. All of them are there except the one who betrayed them.

 The Vorquelf nodded slowly. Do you know their names?

 Heard a couple, maybe. Ganagrei, Nefrai-keshhe leads them. Not good to mention them because 
you might bring them.

 Crow nodded. Its wise to be cautious.

 Well, Im wiser than they were, thats for sure. Will snorted. The traitor, Hawkins was his name, he 
was the one who talked them into leaving Augustus. He fooled them all, you know. He lured them north, 
sabotaged their mission, then lost his nerve when he met Chytrine and she wanted to reward him for his 
work. He ran away, then tried to cover up for his evil. King Augustus had once called him a friend, but 
he banished him. I heard a story that he threw himself into the Crescent Sea, killing himself before others 
could hunt him down. He serves Tagothcha, shooting harpoons into ships with a magick bow, dragging 


them down.

them down.

 Crows face closed and Resolutes fist hit the wall again, but not as hard. Still, little bits of plaster 
rattled to the floor. Both of them seemed numbed by what he had told them. The ferocity theyd showed 
in combat, the confidence theyd displayed talking to Amends, had drained away. Crow suddenly looked 
old, the fire in his eyes dulled.

 Was I wrong?

 Resolutes eyes had widened in the sort of dismay a child experiences when a cherished myth is 
exploded.

 Will shivered. Um, you asked. I told you, but you asked?

 Crow recovered himself first, and nodded slowly. He kept his voice even and warm, despite the little 
bit of a quiver that echoed through his words. You should understand, Will, that Resolute and I lived 
during the time of the last war with Chytrine. What you have told us does not match our memories. For 
the past quarter century, weve been looking for a way to fulfill a prophecy and defeat Chytrine. Weve 
been so focused on what we were doing, weve missed how the history has changed.

 What do you mean its changed? Chytrine is this evil woman who wants to take over everything. 
The youth frowned. She has all these monsters fighting for her, and the sullanciri, of course, and 
weapons like dragonels. The other armies didnt kill her because she ran from King Augustus, and shes 
been waiting to avenge herself. But you know that because youre heroes. You two stop her. I have 
heard your stories sung by lots of minstrels.

 Resolute growled as his eyes narrowed. A song is entertainment, boy, not a recitation of facts. It 
might make us heroes here in the Dim, but that means nothing in Hightown or the rest of the world.

 What I told you isnt right?

 Historys a mosaic, boy, bits of the truth mixed with lies. Lies people had to tell, so they wouldnt be 
afraid. Resolute rubbed at his fist, brushing plaster dust from it. Augustus did defeat an army and win a 
queen. Thats true. The rest of it, though ... wishful thinking.

 Will picked up the leaf-bag and rubbed it. What does that history have to do with me? Why would 
someone want to kill me?

 Crow held up a hand to forestall Resolutes comment. There are some things we cannot tell you, 
Willuntil we know you need to hear them. It could be youre just a thief who stole a leaf....

 The youth smiled. Just a thief who stole a leaf, I like that rhyme.

 The man chuckled just a bit. No surprise there, I think. If you are the person we hope you are, then 
we will eventually be able to explain everything to you. If you are not, a chance comment could doom the 
person who is the one we want. Do you understand?

 I think so. Will nodded and shoved his feet back into wet boots. Its like the story of the twin 
princes. They couldnt let the one who had been raised away from the castle know who he was because 
folks wanted to kill him. His head came up. Youre not saying Im a prince or anything, are you?

 Resolute laughed aloud, with just a hint of cruelty. Youre no prince, boy, not in the least.

 Oh. Will suspected they might be lying to him, but he also decided not to let them know he knew. 
He shrugged his shoulders and stood, wincing at the squishiness of his boots. Just as well, since a prince 
will get as soaked in the rain as a thief, but a thief can tolerate it.

 Through the window and out across rooftops they went in the rain and dead of night. For an old man 
and a big Vork, the two of them moved pretty well. Will followed the paths they picked out, primarily 
because his knee was still tender enough to make the more demanding route he would have chosen a bit 
dangerous. He wasnt so much worried about hurting himself as he was about damaging the leaf, which 
surprised him.

 They descended to the streets and reached a stable where three horses were quickly saddled. Grain 
and other supplies were loaded on six more horses, then all of them were led out in a string behind 
Resolutes horse. Will ended up riding a brown gelding, which seemed to be a docile creature. Will had 
no complaints about that because the last time hed tried to ride a horse, the owner had arrived before 


hed gotten away and the beast had reared, tossing Will off. Limping back to Marcus had not been any 
fun.

hed gotten away and the beast had reared, tossing Will off. Limping back to Marcus had not been any 
fun.

 They rode west for a while, but with the clouds so thick and black, Will could not mark time by the 
moons passage. He only knew theyd gone a long way when they headed off toward the northwest, 
along a track through hills of tree stumps. In a little valley they stopped at an abandoned woodsmans 
hovel and stabled the horses in a cave dug into the hillside.

 His two companions saw to the horses, so Will entered the cabin and found a dry patch of floor to curl 
up on. A little flutter of fear ran through him, but the warmth pulsing out from the leaf-bag kept his 
worries at bay. Quickly enough he surrendered to a full belly and exhaustion, dreaming of great 
adventures that evaporated by the time he wakened.

 Morning came bright and Will rose with the speed of the sun. Lazily wiping sleepsand from his eyes, 
he stepped over Crows sleeping form and wandered out into the daylight. He found Resolute snarling 
whispered curses in Elvish, crouched near the cabin. In the field before it, rabbits gamboled amid stumps. 
They twitched their ears and wrinkled their noses, grazing ten yards away from the cabin, and a yard 
away from some contraption set in the field.

 Will frowned. Whats that thing?

 Resolute frowned. Its a deadfall trap that should catch us breakfast.

 A rabbit? You can eat them?

 The Vorquelf arched an eyebrow. Youve never ... ?

 Will shook his head. Sposed to taste like cat. He squatted down and fingered some rocks in the dry 
soil at the cabins entrance. Why dont you just kill one?

 Thats what the snare is for, boy. Now keep your voice down. You dont want to scare them off.

 The youth snorted, then whispered, Aint my voice keeping them away, its that thing you made. He 
hefted a dark stone. Me, Id just throw a rock at it.

 Would you? Well, then, how about an easy target? Resolute pointed off at a plump rabbit. That 
one, with the white blaze ...

 Before the Vorquelf finished his sentence, Will shifted his stance, dropping to his right knee a lot faster 
than he should have. He whipped his right hand forward, side-arming the stone. It whizzed through the 
air, clipping the rabbit in the side of the head. The creature flopped over on its flank and twitched, but 
before it stopped, Resolute had darted forward, snatched it up, and wrung its neck.

 Will clenched his teeth against the pain in his knee, determined not to show Resolute any weakness. 
He was paying the price for showing off, and was damned glad the rock had actually hit its target. If Id 
missed...

 The Vorquelf glanced at him, then nodded. Nice throw.

 Will shrugged and rose slowly. Bigger than most rats, anyway. Hope its better eating.

 It will be. Resolute jerked a thumb at the field. Once you collect up some firewood, we can cook 
it.

 But I got the rabbit.

 True, but getting breakfast wasnt your job. Gathering firewood is.

 But you never told me.

 You never asked. Resolute stooped and drew a knife from his boot-top. Wont take me long to 
skin and prepare it. Once you get firewood and some water, well be ready for breakfast.

 Will frowned. Why is that my... ?

 Out here, boy, there are things I can do that you cannot. If Im doing your chores, I cant do mine. 
Resolute tossed him a flaccid waterskin. You want me doing my chores around here. Now get the 
firewood and mind the frostclaws. 


 Frostclaws? Wills eyes narrowed. There arent any frostclaws around here. Theyre all up north. 
And Im not a child that you can scare with such stories.

 Frostclaws? Wills eyes narrowed. There arent any frostclaws around here. Theyre all up north. 
And Im not a child that you can scare with such stories.

 The youth came over and lowered himself onto his left knee. The Vorquelf pointed to a trio of parallel 
lines, with the centermost a bit longer and thicker than the other two.

 The lines werent terribly distinct, just shallow marks in the dirt.

 Thats a frostclaw track? Its not much.

 Youve lived your life on cobblestones, so now you learn something. The Vorquelf pointed back 
along the path Will had taken to reach his side. See your boot print? See how crisp the heel mark is? 
The ground is still moist from the rain. As that print dries out, the edges will crumble, and the wind will 
erode it. If the rain comes again, itll melt the edges, leaving your heel print just a shallow oval in the dirt. 
The rain melted the edges of these marks. Theyre likely less than a week old.

 But... frostclaws, they cant be here. King Augustus, he made sure that wouldnt happen. Will 
shivered, and suddenly realized he was well away from the city where hed grown up. He was out and 
exposed and there were horrible things in the wild that he wanted nothing to do with.

 Boy, the world you know is a mosaic, remember? Some pieces are true. Augustus did make the 
world safe for a while. He kept Chytrine back, for a while. Over the years, shes gotten stronger, 
bolder. She sends frostclaws, vylaens and gibberers this far south, testing, probing, searching and 
scouting. Shell be coming, and soon.

 Resolute stood and, with one swift knife stroke, gutted the rabbit. Augustus bought the world a 
generation in which to prepare for her to come back. If youre any example of whats waiting for her, 
that time has been utterly squandered.

 Will heard the sharp crack of Resolutes openhanded slap against his thigh before the pain registered. 
His eyes snapped open. He grabbed for the saddle with one hand, the other tightening down on the rope 
lead. He steadied himself and raised his head, little pops crawling up his spine bone by bone.

 Ive got the horses. He raised his hand to show the rope looped around it several times. Ive got 
them.

 Resolute remained stone-faced in profile, silhouetted against the dimming western sky. Not the horses 
Im worried about, boy. Nights coming on. Frostclaws will be about.

 Will shook his head to clear it from the logginess his brief saddle-nap had caused. The way Resolute 
left off speaking told Will that the Vorquelf expected something of him, and expected him to figure it out. 
Hed been left to do a lot of that over the past three days, amid fetching and carrying, caring for the 
horses, cleaning up, and learning to memorize every birdsong, animal call, beast track, and plant. 

Plants! Hed had to learn them by leaf, flower, fruit, root, scent, taste, and medicinal powers. Will had 
gotten to hate flowers and trees, and was longing to be back in some civilized place where plants were 
restricted to parks and gardens. Many times, Resolute had even awakened him by thrusting some plant 
under his nose and demanding that he identify it instantly.

 It hadnt been all bad. Resolute would let him chew metholanth leaves to ease some aches and 
painsthough the supply of metholanth was never sufficient, or his pains were overabundant. Every 
night Will had collapsed exhausted and aching. In the mornings he woke stiff and sore, moving even more 
slowly than Crow did.

 So, what is it the Vork wants now? Will blinked his eyes and looked around. With night coming on 
they should be seeking shelter. Usually, by this time of the day, theyd have already ridden off the main 
road to some hovel or cave his two guides already knew about. Those tracks, though, had headed off 
through forest for the most part, and now grassy fields lay on both sides of the road.

 The road itself had widened, and the plants werent meadow grasses. They were something else, 
something Will didnt recognize, but he could see that they were arranged in rough rows. He wasnt sure 
what that meant, but he knew it wasnt natural. And if it aint natural, that means... 


 The young man smiled, discovering that even those muscles ached. Someone planted these plants. 
There are people about. Maybe even a village or something.

 The young man smiled, discovering that even those muscles ached. Someone planted these plants. 
There are people about. Maybe even a village or something.

 And? Will shrugged, his shoulders sagging forward. And, and...

 Think, boy, think

 We can take shelter with them?

 No, no, no!

 We cant?

 Resolute turned in his saddle and waved away Wills question with the flick of a hand. This is 
hopeless, Crow. I accepted that we might have to train him, but hes incapable of learning.

 Crow chuckled as his horse trotted forward and drew abreast of the two of them, trapping Will 
between them. You learned these lessons, my friend, of necessity, at a younger age. Youd not been 
raised in the Dimandowns. Hes not a stupid lad, just a tired one.

 Im too tired to be tired.

 Crow patted him on the left shoulder. The fields have you thinking ahead, Will. Thats good, but you 
also need to think back. What do the fields tell you?

 Im going to have a harder time finding firewood? Will shook his head. Something else niggled at the 
back of his mind.

 You see, Crow. He focuses on himself.

 Easy, Resolute. Why is that, Will? Why will finding firewood be harder?

 No trees. He sighed heavily, then it hit him. His head came up. No trees because someone cut them 
down for firewood. No trees means no forest. No forest means no frostclaws because they like the 
forest. Will glanced over at Resolute. You tried to trick me by telling me frostclaws would be about.

 How do you know they wont?

 The youth frowned, started to point at the fields, then snarled. I dont know, but it makes sense. Is 
that wrong? Are they going to be around?

 Resolute shrugged. Some, yes. There will be sheep about, some goats, cows, chickens, and horses. 
Thats what they will be going for.

 So I wasnt wrong?

 Not completely, but it took you far too long to figure it out. The Vorquelf tapped his own skull with 
a finger. You have to always be thinking, always be aware. The world would just as soon see you dead 
as not, and legions would like to be doing the killing.

 The Vorquelf touched his heels to his horses flanks and trotted ahead along the road. Before them, it 
curved between two low hills, then started a descent into the valley. A little breeze came up from that 
direction, bringing with it the hint of woodsmoke, confirming the presence of a village nearby.

 The youth looked over at Crow. Why is he so hard on me? I didnt do anything to him. I got him the 
leaf, remember? He should be thanking me.

 The mans eyes glittered with the last of the days dying light. Remember how he said life was a 
mosaic?

 Hard to forget when he says it all the time. Heres another piece to your mosaic, boy

 You almost sound like him. Crow scratched at his bearded chin. For Resolute, youre a piece in his 
mosaic, but his mosaic is a map, a map to a goal. He wants to make sure you fit. He hopes you 
dobecause if you do, hes that much closer.

 Okay, I understand that, but shouldnt he be careful with me, not being all... Will wanted to say 
cruel, but he flashed back on thrashings Marcus had given him for little harmless things. I mean, hes 
being hard, you know?

 Crow nodded slowly. Always has been. When I first met him he wasnt any easier on me. For 
Resolute, that piece of the mosaic has taken on a shape in his mind. He wants you to fit that shape. You 
werent quite what he expected, so hes doing what needs to be done.

 But what about what I want?

 The man laughed aloud. Have you ever gotten what you want, Will? Do you even know what you 


want, beyond a bed and a full belly, maybe some metholanth or a cup of watered wine?

want, beyond a bed and a full belly, maybe some metholanth or a cup of watered wine?

 Crow leaned to the right and dropped his voice to a whisper. The care you take with that leaf, and 
the fact that Predator couldnt see it there on your belt, is probably what has kept Resolute from using 
you as frostclaw bait. You want that leaf because the leaf wants you.

 Then the white-haired man straightened up and asked a series of quick questions, forestalling any 
questions Will might have asked in return. Now, the things that youve learned here, have they hurt you 
or helped you? Has the labor been that hard, or just different from what youre used to? Is Resolute any 
harder on you than your former master?

 Will answered each question in his mind the second it was asked, and he didnt like the answers. The 
stuff hed learned ... Well, just knowing about metholanth was a help; and the other stuff would make it 
easy to figure out what to steal from a herbalist. Getting water and wood, cleaning up; those chores 
werent as hard as ones hed outgrown in Marcus family. And Marcus as a taskmaster, well...

 He snorted and decided to say nothing instead of letting Crow know he was right. That really annoyed 
Will about the two of them. When Resolute was right, he would hammer Will with that fact, over and 
over. But Crow, hed just kind of slip it in like a stiletto. You wouldnt feel it going in, he wouldnt even 
twist it, but youd know it was there when you moved against it.

 They rode on, the only sounds coming from the creak of leather, the clop of hooves, the jingling of 
tack, or the crunch of a horse chewing a bit. Around the curve and on down they went, riding in 
Resolutes wake. Ahead of them, the Vorquelf had stopped his horse in the middle of the road. Beyond 
him, by a hundred yards or so, a bonfire burned on the road. The fire silhouetted three men facing the 
Vorquelf, and Will counted five others standing on the village side of the fire.

 The village itself sat astride the road. At the far end, another fire burned, cutting off the western route. 
Fences of stone or split rails guarded the village perimeter, but none of them came even close to being as 
strong as the walls of Yslin. Most of the buildings were low affairs made of sod, with thatched 
roofingthough the tallest, a two-story house, had a tile roof and light blazing out through sloppily hung 
shutters.

 Resolute let the other two pull parallel with him before they continued in toward the fire. Will quickly 
recalled one of Resolutes road lessons and glanced down and away from the flames. The men behind it 
would have no night vision, so if the trio chose to ride around it, their pursuers would be blind. Only the 
three men facing them would be able to see what they were doing. One wore a sword, the other two 
carried pitchforks.

 The man with the sword raised a hand. Hold there, strangers.

 Crow rode up toward him slowly, stopping five yards back. Strangers? I thought the men of Alcida 
greeted travelers as friends.

 Might in some other times. Who be ye, and what be you wanting in Stellin?

 Were just travelers, my friend, my nephew, and I. Were heading into the mountains. Crow kept his 
voice even and light. We were hoping to find lodging and fodder here.

 The villager nodded toward Resolute. Hes a Vorquelf?

 Resolute threw back his cloak, exposing well-muscled arms covered in dark tattoos. That should be 
obvious.

 Well, well not be wanting your kind hereabouts. The villager dropped a hand to the hilt of his 
sword. You can push on and tell your mistress were not gonna be taken like Ingens was. We may not 
be big, but...

 One of the other men stepped forward, squinting, then rested a hand on the speakers shoulder. I 
remember this one. Come through about twenty year ago. Had a woman of his kind with him, and a 
young fella with them. That would be you?

 Crow nodded. We were bound into the mountains, as we are now. Has it really been twenty years?

 Close enough, right afore Augustus face started showing up on coin. The older man half smiled. 
Quintus, theyll be no trouble. 


 Quintus frowned. How can you say that?

 Quintus frowned. How can you say that?

 Theres trouble, its on your head.

 The man rubbed a rough hand back over his bald pate. Least then thered be something on it.

 Quintus snorted a laugh, then jerked a thumb toward the heart of town. Hare and Hutch is our inn; 
they have a stable. Other travelers in, so might be the stable is full. Tell the boy to take the other horses 
to my barn. Be gone in the morning, will you?

 Crow nodded. With the sunrise.

 Then Ill see you going out as I go in. He gave them a nod. The peace of Stellin be on ya, and a 
plague on your souls if you break it.

 Will wasnt quite certain why Resolute didnt demand he accompany the stableboy to take care of 
their horses, but he welcomed the relief from his chores. He grabbed his rolled blanket and the flaccid 
saddlebags that carried his threadbare change of clothes, then followed the other two into the Hare and 
Hutch. After so long on the road, back to normal will be good.

 But the village tavern, he discovered upon entry, escaped normal by leagues. It certainly had the look 
of a normal tavern, with entry through a sheltered door, then steps down into the common room. One 
short wall of the rectangular building stood close by on the right, with a set of stairs marking the far right 
corner and leading up to the next floor. Huddled beneath the stairs lay the bar, and a doorway through 
the long wall led out to the kitchen at the back. It had a roof and a hearth, half walls and a dirt floor. The 
common room opened to the left, with a big hearth and roaring fire on the left wall. Benches took up 
those corners, with some long tables and other round ones filling the main space. Will could feel the fires 
heat from the doorway and welcomed it, though the fire did seem a bit big for a summers evening.

 Resolute hung his cloak on the pegs by the door, dropped his bag beneath it, then relieved Crow of his 
burdens and likewise disposed of them. The low hum of conversation dipped for a moment, then picked 
up with some intensity. Will felt himself tensing, for in the Dim, the Vorquelfs showing himself in a human 
haunt would have caused an immediate fight.

 The added energy drained quickly from the conversation, but Will didnt get a sense of fear holding the 
people at bay. As he tried to figure out what was at work, he began to notice other things, such as the 
floor being clean and well kept, with new boards laid down to replace old and rotted ones. As for the 
barkeeper, his clothes had clearly been launderedand recently. The clientele didnt seem drunk, and he 
heard no catcalls as a young woman wove her way between tables to deliver wooden tankards of frothy 
ale.

 He finally hit upon it. The people were smiling, none of them hooding their eyes or watching their 
fellows for weakness. The taverns hed known were wolves-dens. Here theyre sheep. Farmers, 
herders, working for a living, taking time here to share stories. It sent a shiver down his spine.

 Crow, leaning his right flank against the bar, waved his left hand toward Resolute and Will. We were 
told, my companion, nephew, and I, that you might have room available here for a nights lodging.

 The tavernkeeper, a burly man with a ring of black hair running round his head, ran a hand over 
unshaved jowls. Well, the last room, it was taken by that gentleman and his niece, but theyve not paid 
as yet.... Oy, you. He flicked a stained dishrag toward two people seated at a round table.

 An older man turned toward the bar, raising an eyebrow, but Crow reached out and took hold of the 
barmans wrist. Thats all right. Youd be having space on the floor here, near the fire?

 The barman nodded. Plenty of room there, yes; silver a head, and that gets you an ale tonight and 
porridge in the morning.

 Done, then. Crow went to open his pouch, but the barman shook his head. Well settle up before 
you bed down. Youll be wanting some stew, wont you? And bread, some cheese?

 Crow nodded. Please.

 Have it ready in a bit.

 Crow smiled at his companions. There we are, set for the night. 


 Will nodded, barely hearing Crow. He looked around the room, eyeing each person in there. He 
quickly sorted prosperous from poor, which he found easy given that most of the farmers wore not so 
much as a ring. The prosperous had coin pouches, but most were as empty as his saddlebags. Having 
seen how trusting the barman was in dealing with Crow, Will assumed most of the people were drinking 
on credit, and that a fair amount of debt was paid off in stew-makings, cheese, and flour.

 Will nodded, barely hearing Crow. He looked around the room, eyeing each person in there. He 
quickly sorted prosperous from poor, which he found easy given that most of the farmers wore not so 
much as a ring. The prosperous had coin pouches, but most were as empty as his saddlebags. Having 
seen how trusting the barman was in dealing with Crow, Will assumed most of the people were drinking 
on credit, and that a fair amount of debt was paid off in stew-makings, cheese, and flour.

 Crow thanked him. Im Crow, this is my nephew, Will, and my friend, Resolute.

 The man half rose from his chair and shook Crows hand, then nodded to Will and Resolute. I am 
Distalus and this is my niece, Sephi. Were on our way to Yslin, where shell be apprenticing to a 
weaver.

 Will nipped around past Crow and took the seat next to Sephi. Im Will.

 The girl blushed. Sephi. Had she been standing, she would have towered over him, and seated she 
still appeared taller, but Will didnt mind. Her raven hair fell to mid-back.

 Hazel eyes sparkled with reflected firelight, set in a pretty face marred only by a small scar above her 
right eye.

 Distalus raised his mug in Crows direction. That was good of you, sir, not to evict us.

 Crow shrugged easily. Weve been on the road, so warm will do for us. Youve a long journey 
ahead, and few places will be this nice.

 Will let his saddlebags slip to the floor and dumped his cloak on top of them. Have you been to the 
city before, Sephi?

 She shook her head and gave him a little smile. My uncle says it is a wonderful place, and that I will 
love it. She wrapped her small hands around the barrel of her mug. I can hardly wait.

 The young thief smiled and was about to launch into a story of the city, when Crow elbowed him. He 
turned to look at his older companion. What?

 Youve better things to be doing, like helping the bar-keep bring us our stew. Crow glanced at 
Distalus. More ale for you, as long as Will is going to be fetching it?

 Well, now, very kind, sir, very kind. Traveling is a dry business and Master Julians ale is good.

 Crow flicked two fingers toward the barman. Two more ales, please, for our friends. Will, go.

 Will nodded, then flashed Sephi a quick smile. He got up and moved around her chair, daring to let the 
fingers of his left hand brush her shoulder. In paying more attention to her than where hed tossed his 
cloak, he tripped and fell heavily against Distalus, catching himself before smashing his slowly healing 
knee into the floor.

 Beg pardon, sir. Will pulled himself up and straightened his shirt, then made his way to the bar. He 
twisted his hips left and right, nipping through the narrows of chairs pushed back from tables. He made 
his journey a display of agility, hoping to dispel the image his fall had left in Sephis mind.

 Julian looked at him with a critical eye. You be spilling any of this, and you mights well eat it off the 
floor, for youre paying for it.

 I will be careful.

 Be double that, lad. Julian hefted a tray of ale mugs, leaving another with stew bowls and bread for 
Will. The youth trailed after the barman, occasionally peeking out from behind his girth to see if Sephi 
was watching him. She was and giggled. Will cut around Julian and served Resolute first, then Crow and 
himself last. He put his bowl down where hed have to scoot his chair closer to her to eat it, and put the 
bread in the middle of the table.

 Julian accepted the tray from him, then trapped both of them beneath his right arm. He counted on his 
fingers. Well, now, Im making that six silvers youre owing, sir. And you, sir, for the girl and you, 
lodging and ale, thats three silvers.

 Distalus hand went to his belt, then he blinked and looked up. My purse seems to be gone.

 Resolutes silver eyes narrowed. Boy, give it back.

 Will, who had a spoonful of stew halfway between bowl and eaten, froze. I didnt take it. 


 Dont lie, boy. The Vorquelfs voice took on a chill I wont have it.

 Dont lie, boy. The Vorquelfs voice took on a chill I wont have it.

 Distalus shook his head. Im sure the boy didnt... as my niece will agree, I get forgetful. Probably 
just in my bag in the room.

 Crow laid a hand on Resolutes forearm, then fished a gold coin from the pouch on his belt. The coin 
rang solid as he flicked it with his thumb into the air. Julian caught it easily, then held it at arms length to 
study it on both sides.

 New-minted Oriosa. The man snapped the coin down on the table, leaving the masked profile of 
King Scrainwood easily visible. From a pocket on his apron he pulled a short metal rod with a knob at 
one end and a point at the other. He pressed the small part on Scrainwoods eye and leaned hard on the 
knob. The rod gouged the eye, disfiguring the face.

 Julian smiled, then slipped coin and punch back into his apron pocket. There, that will fix him. Enjoy 
your food. Youve more coming if you want, or a silver yet.

 Thank you. Crow nodded to him. Youre stabling our horses as well, so we will owe you more.

 With a nod the barman retreated, then Distalus raised his new mug of ale. Ill pay you back. I have 
the silver in my bags.

 Im not worried.

 Will frowned. In his life hed not seen that many gold coins, and had held fewer, and not for very long. 
A few hed seen had the eyes gouged or crossed on a face, but he never knew why. What he did to that 
coin, why?

 Distalus eyes brightened. I would have thought everyone knew the tale of how Scrainwood became 
a king, and where his allegiances lie. The man raised his voice a bit, drawing attention from the tables 
around him, suddenly sounding much more like a storyteller than a...

 / dont know what he is.

 The man quaffed a bit of ale, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Maybe you know, lad, 
maybe you dont, but Scrainwood of Oriosa joined good King Augustus in war against Chytrine a 
quarter century ago. Some say Scrainwood fought, others that he never fought. Some say not too many 
died to protect him and others that he cowered; but none deny he was there at Fortress Draco-nis. And 
there it was he stayed, while King Augustus routed an Aurolani army in Okrannel. And he was there 
when the coward brought news of the heroes sent to destroy Chytrine.

 A quiet had fallen over the common room, with only the hiss and snap of the fire, or an occasional soft 
belch heard around Distalus words. The mans eyes glowed and he smiled, looking at his listeners, 
nodding and smiling.

 Whatever he was, it included being a storyteller, and Will didnt mind that his question started the 
story. He figured hed not been alone in not knowing, but even if he was, the story was a good one to 
hear and others were enjoying it.

 Well now, then, it was fifteen years ago, a decade past the loss of our heroes and Augustus winning a 
bride, that the first of the new sullanciri came south. Word had come, filtered down through the Ghost 
March, in the mouths of renegades who pledged themselves to Chytrine, that her nine new Dark Lancers 
could not be stopped. They gave a date and a place and a target: Queen Lanivette of Oriosa would die in 
her castle in Meredo. Came that day, all dark and cold, cold as winter, wet as fall, the clouds weeping, 
wind keening; mourning her while she still breathed.

 Troops guarded the castle, ringed it with steel. Heroes and those who wished to be heroes came to 
keep her safe. Come the appointed hour, they saw naught but lightning. They thought themselves safe 
then. Yet as they hooted and hollered, cheered and rejoiced, guess what they saw, lad, guess!

 Will, caught up in the story, shook his head. I dont know.

 They saw a terrible thing, lad, the most horrible thing theyd ever seen. Distalus raised his hand, 
shaping a tall tower in the air. Lightning, it struck the tallest tower, scattering men, spilling them from 
battlements to be dashed to red pieces on the courtyards below. In its wake stood a fiery horse, with 
long dragons wings, and on it a specter, with a long flowing cape. It appeared to be feathered, but each 


feather was a tongue of flame. He hoisted above him a shrouded body and cast it down. It bounced from 
crenels and catwalks, unwrapping as it went. Queen Lanivettes body, broken and rent, headless, lay 
before her keep.

feather was a tongue of flame. He hoisted above him a shrouded body and cast it down. It bounced from 
crenels and catwalks, unwrapping as it went. Queen Lanivettes body, broken and rent, headless, lay 
before her keep.

 Since that day, two things are true of Oriosa. The first is that their last hero, Leigh Norrington, went 
north to kill his own father, the sullanciri who had slain the queen. That hero, though, chose blood over 
nation. His father had become Nefrai-kesh and he was turned to be Nefrai-laysh, the tenth of the new 
sullanciri. As they once led an army against Chytrine, now, father and son, they prepare to lead an army 
against us.

 A bit of a hubbub began, but Distalus merely lifted a hand and it quieted. The other thing, lad, is that 
Scrainwood fears the sullanciri who put him on the throne so much that he dare not oppose them. His 
mother had steeled her nation for another war, but he has let it rust. Everyone knows Oriosa is a safe 
haven for Aurolani scouts, and that foul magicks can let Scrainwood see through the coins bearing his 
face. So we blind them to rob him of this sight, and deprive Chytrine of her spy.

 Distalus punctuated his story with a gulp of ale. Others did the same, then calls came for refills, which 
kept Julian very busy. The old man glanced over at Crow. You knew the tale, yes?

 Crow nodded slowly. But the telling, that was good. The part about the urineyour embellishment 
or...

 The storyteller licked his lips. Had the story from a soldier who was there.

 Resolute tore a hunk off a small loaf of bread. This is how you make your living, then? Telling 
stories?

 I do a little of everything, but now Im taking my niece to the city. Might stay here for a bit, though. It 
depends, I guess. Distalus jerked his head toward Julian. If he makes me an offer, we might stay. I 
have a number of thirsty tales. Tonight was just a taste.

 The Vorquelf nodded. And people pay to listen to tales of Chytrine?

 Distalus shrugged. Shes very popular. Shes the villain of a thousand stories, each worse than the 
last. Everyone fears her, of course, fears her coming to a place like Stellin to destroy it. Some folks 
assume its plain greed, others thinks she has a more sinister motivation. To me it doesnt matterall 
answers are right. I have no doubt she wants to lay waste to the southlands. Why she wants to do it is not 
my concern.

 Will frowned. But if you knew why, couldnt you stop her?

 The man canted his head for a moment, then nodded. An interesting observation, young man. I 
suspect we shall never know her motivation, but perhaps a tale hinting at it might be very popular indeed. 
I shall think on it. Thank you.

 With that, Distalus stood and held his hand out for Sephi. Come, child, we shall retire early so the 
crowd will thin and our friends can sleep. Good evening to you. Sleep well.

 Will frowned as the girl left, but then she turned back toward him and gave him a little finger-wave that 
Distalus could not see. This brightened his heart and put a smile on his face.

 A smile so broad even the landing of Resolutes hands on his shoulders couldnt kill it. The Vorquelf 
had used the distraction Sephi supplied to slip from his chair and come up behind Will. The youth started 
to rise and Resolute spun him around. Wills chair clattered to the ground and he fell forward against the 
Vorquelf for a second, then Resolute hoisted him from the floor by his upper arms.

 Where did you put his money?

 Will shook his head. I didnt steal it.

 Resolute shook him once, hard. You did. You took it when you tripped.

 No, I didnt. The youths nostrils flared. I tripped, truly tripped, and caught myself on him. I didnt 


take his money.

take his money.

 Will kept his voice low, but an edge slid into it. Im much better than that, Resolute.

 A regular Azure Spider are you, boy?

 Not yet, but I am good! Will flipped his right wrist and a pouch heavy with coins clunked down in 
the middle of the table. Im that good.

 The Vorquelf dropped him, then felt his own belt. Just now? You took that from me, just now?

 Will nodded as he appropriated Sephis chair. Yes. And I didnt take Distalus coin because he 
didnt have any.

 Resolute snatched his purse from the table and retied it to his belt. The fact that you know that, 
though, means you would have taken it.

 Will blinked. If a hart crossed your trail, youd shoot it.

 Resolutes hands curled down into fists. If you cannot understand the difference, boy...

 Crow turned in his chair and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. The difference is this, 
Will. Resolute would shoot the hart, but only if he needed the food. You didnt need the money. You 
dont need to steal.

 But thats what I do. Will shrugged. Im a thief.

 Not anymore, Will. Crow poked a finger against his breastbone, spearing the pouch in which lay the 
leaf. The theft of that ended your old life. Youre meant for better now.

 Will spent a restless night there on the floor of the Hare and Hutch. Early on he was too warm, then 
too cold, with parts of his body going numb from sleeping on this knotted piece of wood or that. He 
tossed and turned and, half asleep as he was, would have welcomed a kick from Crow or Resolute that 
would have wakened him fully.

 Worse than the physical conditions were his dreams. In little bits and pieces he could see things he 
knew were not meant for him. He felt himself springing from the saddle of a flaming horse that furled its 
wings. Tongues of flame formed his cloak, leaving scorched patches on the red carpet. He marched 
along toward the throne, seeing a defiant woman thereone who looked like Sephi. They spoke, 
cordially at first, but always strained, then harsher. The woman waved him away and he reached out, 
grabbing her throat. With the ease of thumbing a head off a flower, he decapitated her, then placed her 
head in her sons hands.

 When he caught sight of himself in a mirror, he wore Crows face, but much younger.

 That dream nearly woke him all the way, but then simple idylls seduced him back. He and Sephi, or 
sometimes the Vorquelf, Charity, would walk hand in hand through spring fields, with grasses and flowers 
dancing in a warm breeze. He could feel his ardor rising, and he could see it burning in the eyes of his 
companion, then an icy blizzard would break over the meadow, washing his sight away in an ocean of 
white. When he could see again, the object of his desire had been transformed into a woman of ice who 
radiated cold, both attractive and repellent for in her embrace he would find cold comfort and agonizing 
death.

 Finally, after hours of such horrid visions, morning came. Julians daughterMalva, she whispered, 
was her namewakened him when she stirred the coals in the hearth and added wood to it to build the 
fire up again. Will somehow propelled himself to his feet, made use of the outhouse, then volunteered to 
split wood. As long as I am going to be tired, I should have a reason for it.

 Julians wifethough not Malvas mother, who had died of summers-fever two years 
backprepared breakfast for the family, Crows party, Distalus and Sephi. Distalus entertained them all 
with some information about the Gold Wolf, a female bandit given to raiding down out of the mountains. 
Will would have preferred tales of the Azure Spider, but the stories Distalus told were harrowing enough 
to bring Will fully awake, and he wondered if theyd encounter her on their way into the mountains.

 Crow settled up their account, paying for the keeping of the horses, then they quit the inn. Julian and 
Distalus sat closely, speaking quietly as they left. Sephi did wave to Will and watched him go, but when 
he looked back one last time, she had turned to listen to Julian. 


 Saddled up, they headed out of Stellin and along the road west for a bit, then cut to the northwest on 
their journeys fourth day. They skirted a salt marsh, then started working their way up into the 
mountains. The trail they used seemed to be seldom traveled and mostly overgrown.

 Saddled up, they headed out of Stellin and along the road west for a bit, then cut to the northwest on 
their journeys fourth day. They skirted a salt marsh, then started working their way up into the 
mountains. The trail they used seemed to be seldom traveled and mostly overgrown.

 Resolute shrugged. A year.

 Two, I think, my friend.

 The Vorquelf turned in his saddle. Are you sure?

 We left here end of summer, having helped harvest, then wintered in Jerana, spring in the Ghost 
March. Summer again south, but not back in the mountains, then Muroso this last winter.

 The years, they blur together.

 You have more to remember than I do, Resolute.

 Its no excuse. The Vorquelf gave Crow a grin. And you are right about when we were here last.

 Will cleared his voice. Where exactly is here?

 Resolutes smile died. What difference does it make to you, boy? You know nothing of the world so 
you cant figure out where to put this place in your vision of it.

 Maybe I want to learn. Will pointed to the trail in front of them. Want to know how I know no one 
has come this way in a while? There, those blue-cups, theyre already flowered for the year and will be 
making those seed pods that will let them spread seeds out further. Plants would have been trampled if 
riders had come this way.

 The Vorquelf snorted. A child could have figured that out.

 Sure, but not me, not without what Ive learned so far.

 Resolute remained silent for a moment, then nodded. Youre in the Gyrvirgul, near the Crescent Sea. 
Does that mean anything to you?

 Will almost said that it did, but hesitated. If I do, he will ask what and I will be stuck for an 
answer. Means Im a long way from home. Means we might see Gyrkyme.

 I doubt that. The Winged Ones keep to the highest mountains more inland. Resolute pointed toward 
the southwest where, in the distance, clouds shrouded tall peaks. I doubt we will see this Gold Wolf 
either.

 Why not? Youve got gold.

 The Vorquelf glanced quickly at the pouch tied to his belt. Wed be slim pickings for a bandit such as 
that.

 The youth started to ask Resolute to explain his comment, but stopped and thought about it. Distalus 
tales had been sketchy at best, mostly describing her as a beautiful and powerful warrior woman who led 
a host of horsemen. They raided throughout the Alcidese border with Helurca, according to Distalus, 
with Stellin being at the extreme edge of their range.

 Will frowned mightily. Something isnt right with the Gold Wolf.

 Crow turned from watching the packhorses strung out behind them and smiled. What makes you say 
that?

 Okay, look, we have three people, nine horses. We can find a hovel or pitch a tent and let our horses 
crop grass and give them grain when they need it. We kill a rabbit and roast it, we find roots and other 
edible plants. Thats fine for us, but as big a group as she haseven if you figure Distalus was 
lyingwould need more food, more fodder.

 The older man nodded. And this leads you to conclude?

 Im not sure, but the people of Stellin seemed to thrill to stories of her, not cringe from them like they 
did the stories of Chytrine. He shrugged. Theyre not afraid of this Gold Wolf.

 Not in the least, so we wont be either.

 But how can she be a bandit raider, with the folks she should be raiding not being afraid of her?

 Resolute snarled. Its an impossible question to answer, boy. Next time we see Distalus, perhaps he 
can make up an answer for you.

 Crow laughed. Next time we see Distalus hell be in a tavern in the Dim, drinking what little profits he 
has from selling Sephi. 


 Resolute nodded. She was a pretty one.

 Resolute nodded. She was a pretty one.

 Likely, though she probably does not know it. Crow shook his head. Her parents might not even 
know it. Distalus gave them some money, told them there would be more, and they suddenly have one 
less mouth to feed.

 I wish I had stolen his money.

 The Vorquelf laughed. So the thief looks down on a procurer?

 There is honor among ... Wills protest died beneath the hellish glare of Resolutes argent stare. She 
should have a choice.

 Shell get one. It just may not be easy. Crow nodded further up the trail, where it climbed up a hill 
and around to the left. Almost there.

 Will looked back toward the east, thinking he could actually see Stellin, but knowing he could not. 
We should have done something.

 Resolute ducked beneath a low maple branch. There was nothing to do, boy. If we fail in our mission, 
her fate wont matter.

 And that mission is?

 The Vorquelf smiled cruelly. Seeing if youre steel or bronze, boy. If youre the one, youll save the 
world. If youre the other, youll be lucky to save yourself.

 The trail took them up and around through a narrow pass where stones scraped both of Wills shins as 
he rode. After a short while it opened into a small copse of birch, then down into a vale that made Wills 
breath catch in his chest. He let his horse wander off the trail and start cropping grasses while he just sat 
in the saddle and stared.

 Until this journey and his education by Resolute, Will had not known one plant from another. While his 
trip had not been long, he had absorbed a great deal. Hed even been able to identify his leaf as looking 
like something from an oak, though the silver metal matched nothing he saw growing in field and forest. 

At least until now...

 Rows of silverwood trees lined the trail into the vale. Other plants clung to these trees, bursting with 
gorgeous flowers, lush and plump and colorful. Bushes were ripe with berries that looked like 
raspberries, but were pumpkin orange. Other flowers and undergrowth seemed familiar, but somehow 
more vibrant, more green, more alive than plants not a league back down the road.

 Crow rode over and took the reins from Wills hands. Come on, this is nothing.

 That comment surprised Will. What is this place?

 The shadow of another place.

 Crow nudged his horses ribs with his heels and the two animals trotted forward through the 
silverwood arbor. At the bottom of a slight hill, the trail curved around to the left, through plots of 
cultivated soil. Will recognized none of the vegetables hanging from those plants, but the chickens that 
scattered as they rode up seemed quite common. He saw a pen with goats and sheep in it further along, 
but no farmhouse to go along with the fields and livestock.

 Crow reined up behind Resolute and the packhorses, near the mouth of a cave. A female elf emerged 
from it. Will supposed she was a Vorquelf, since her eyes were almost entirely copper, but they had a 
white dot at the center of each. Those dots flicked back and forth, as if she were watching them 
dismount, but Will saw that her gaze followed sounds, not people.

 He wondered for a moment if she were Resolutes wife. He doubted any female would be stupid 
enough to want Resolute for a husband, but having him for one would explain why she lived in a place 
that was hard for him to visit.

 Resolute crossed to her and dropped to a knee. He took her right hand in his and kissed it. Our 
absence has been unforgivable.

 She patted his head gently, as if he were a dog. Forgiven because it was unavoidable. I have seen 
where you have been, Resolute. And Kedyns Crow, he still travels with you.

 Crow swung from the saddle and hugged the elf. It has been too long.

 She freed herself from his embrace. And this one youve brought. Who is he? 


 Her voice caressed his ears and his heart began to pound faster. Will didnt know who she was, but 
for Resolute to kneel before her meant she was important. Still, Will didnt need that evidence to know 
how special she was. Something inside of him realized they shared a kinship, a bond.

 Her voice caressed his ears and his heart began to pound faster. Will didnt know who she was, but 
for Resolute to kneel before her meant she was important. Still, Will didnt need that evidence to know 
how special she was. Something inside of him realized they shared a kinship, a bond.

 I am Oracle, and I thank you, Will. Her slender fingers stroked his hands as she accepted the pouch 
from him. She smiled, and Will felt certain it was because of the leaf. Wilburforce, yes, a wonderful 
name. I intended no disrespect.

 I, urn, th-thank you. Will found his mouth suddenly dry. No problem.

 Good. The word came softly from her mouth, then she closed her eyes and opened the bag. The 
silver leaf seemed to shine more brightly than ever before as she brought it into her hands and the full light 
of day. She clasped it flat between her hands, the silver so brilliant that light fled through her flesh, 
outlining her bones in black. Yes, oh, yes, this is an important piece. Come, now, come with me.

 She turned on her heel and all but ran into the cave. Will started after her, but Crow grabbed his 
shoulder. Slowly, Will. She knows the cave well and the darkness does not bother her.

 The youth nodded. Her eyes. Shes blind, isnt she? Resolute growled. Some sight is gone, but she 
sees what she must see.

 Will frowned. Cant you ever just say yes?

 Some questions just dont have simple answers, boy. Crow gave Wills shoulder a squeeze. Yes, 
she is blind. She has been for a number of years now. Wills eyes widened. How did it happen? 
Resolute, half hidden in the shadow of the cave, scowled. She did it to herself.

 What? Why?

 Heres an answer thats simple for you, boy.... Resolutes voice echoed from inside the cave as he 
disappeared. She didnt want someone else using her eyes.

 Will followed Resolute into the cave and passed through a narrowing before the path cut to the left. 
There it widened somewhat into a flat ovoid space several yards across at the widest point. A small fire 
guttered in a makeshift fireplace fashioned of stones. It generated more heat than light, with the smoke 
rising to fill the chambers low roof. A bit farther along the path, the smoke, like water pouring gently 
over a dam, streamed out and rose through a crack in the caves roof.

 The Vorquelfs bulk blocked Will from seeing into the next chamber, but he knew it was going to be 
something spectacular. Light, a greenish silver, glowed around Resolutes outline. Resolute ducked his 
head to make it through a small opening and Will followed, his head unbowed.

 Then he stopped, his breath frozen in his lungs.

 For the whole of the journey to the mountains, Resolute had ground on about how little Will knew 
about the world. Will had learned from him, at times grudgingly, other times gratefully; but never had Will 
let go of his conviction that he knew far more than Resolute suspected or would ever know himself. The 
cavern into which he walked stripped that smugness away from him.


He felt as lost as a wandering toddler in the streets of Yslin.

 The soft brilliance of glowing minerals and lichens illuminated the cavern, which Will guessed was big 
enough to house four of the Hare and Hutch inns. Pillars of flowstone upheld a dark roof within which 
sparkled lights like stars. He even thought he recognized some of the constellations, but so many seemed 
alien to him.

 More remarkable than a night sky set in stone was the cavern itself. As Will took a step forward he 
felt as if he were moving through something fluidnot as dense as water, but certainly not air. He really 
could feel it pressing against him, softly and gently, like the weight of a light blanket. It didnt hurt or make 
him uncomfortable, yet it dragged on him the way the air did on a humid day.

 All around him, throughout the cavern, things hung in the air. Leaves and branches, here and there, as 
if they were the only visible part of trees hidden by an invisible fog. By his feet he saw the skeleton of 
what he took to be a rabbit, painstakingly reconstructed, with a moth-eaten cape of fur draped over it. 


Beyond it, springing from atop a rock, another skeleton hovered in mid-leap, clawed paws ready to rend 
the rabbit. Looking at it Will could almost see the muscles layered on its bare bones, the rippling of them 
and how that would shift the color of the hunting predators coat.

Beyond it, springing from atop a rock, another skeleton hovered in mid-leap, clawed paws ready to rend 
the rabbit. Looking at it Will could almost see the muscles layered on its bare bones, the rippling of them 
and how that would shift the color of the hunting predators coat.

 Resolute caught his left wrist before he could touch a painting. Dont.

 No? It seems so real.

 It is, or was Resolutes voice broke ever so slightly, surprising Will. How much do you know of 
magick, boy?

 Will felt his rebellion returning, but he only shrugged.

 Oracle turned from where she had been brushing a light blue circle of paint onto what was, for all Will 
could see, air. Resolute, you make it sound like an accusation. Wilburforce would know nothing of 
magick, for he has not had the opportunity to be trained.

 Part of Will wanted to frown with her use of his full name, but from her mouth it sounded right. It 
wasnt used the way Marcus and some of the others had, to scold or ridicule him. The way she says it 
makes it fit me.

 Oracle smiled at Will and opened her hands, leaving the brush and small bowl of pigment shed been 
using hanging in the air. She stepped around them, opening her arms to encompass the whole room. This 
is a place of magick, a very special place, and you are now one of two men who knows of its existence.

 Thank you? Wills confusion knitted his brows together. Why would you trust me?

 We have to, Wilburforce. She turned and nodded toward Resolute. The acorn, please.

 The Vorquelf dug into a small pouch on his belt and produced an acorn. It looked like many others 
Will had learned to identify on his trip, save that it had a red-gold sheen to it instead of brown or green. 
Resolute flipped it toward Oracle. The acorn traveled quickly through the first half of its arc, then slowed 
and started floating, as if it were a feather caught on a whisper.

 Oracle opened her right hand, splaying long pale fingers, and the acorn came to rest in the center of 
her palm. This acorn came from the very tree that produced the leaf you found, Wilburforce. In magick, 
many things are linked. Some links are natural, such as the link between a leaf and a tree. Do you 
understand?

 Will nodded.

 Some links are forged. By way of example, this acorn is something Resolute has carried for two 
years. It contains traces of him, much as a stone youd held in your hands for hours would have some of 
your warmth.

 Will nodded, then realized that because she was blind, she could not see him. I understand.

 Resolute snorted. She knew. Heard your brain rattling in your skull.

 Oracle closed her eyes and sighed. Your impatience, Resolute, must it color everything?

 Resolute started to answer in Elvish, but Oracle frowned. In the common tongue. He should hear 
this.

 If we must. Resolutes nostrils flared. Perhaps my impatience need not spill over, but we do not 
know if he is the one we need or not.

 The acorn led you to him, did it not?

 The acorn led me to the leaf, and you said the leaf would lead to him. This boy could just be a link in 
a chain.

 She smiled and opened her eyes slowly. It was not easy for me to blind myself, yet you refuse to even 
see. 


 Will fidgeted. You may be speaking words I understand, but, um, I dont understand.

 Will fidgeted. You may be speaking words I understand, but, um, I dont understand.

 When elves are about your age, they are bound to the land of their birth through a ritual. It makes us 
responsible for our homeland, ties to it so we feel its pain. Those elves who were bound to Vorquellyn 
were in such agony because of the islands rape that they abandoned the world.

 This left the unboundResolute, Amends, me, othersto wander the world and fight for our 
homeland. We hoped, a human generation ago, that the war against Chytrine would free Vorquellyn, but 
it did not. So we began to act covertly. Here we bring together artifacts of our old home, for those things 
link us to it. As we get more, the link grows stronger.

 Will glanced back toward the outside. The trees, they were grown from seeds from Vorquellyn?

 No, Wilburforce, things from Vorquellyn we bring in here. Those plants came from other elven 
homelands, though originally were grown from Vorquellyn stock. She shrugged. We had hoped that 
growing them here might allow us to establish a homeland. While they do provide a link, it is a weak one, 
since conditions here are not the same as they were on our island. In this cave, however, the power 
grows. I can sometimes hear the breakers, feel the sea breeze, smell flowers and fruits.

 Resolute scratched along his unshaven jaw. To create this placethe idea for it came from a series of 
prophecies Oracle uttered at the time of the warwe demanded keepsakes from the Vorquelves. Some, 
like Predator, held out. As we get more, the power grows.

 Why not just go to Vorquellyn and get what you need?

 Resolute began with one of his low and sinister laughs, but a frown from Oracle cut him off. 
Wilburforce, these things came from Vorquellyn before the taint settled over it. Anything from there now 
would serve to warn our enemies of our presence, and we cannot have that.

 The youth nodded slowly. How am I part of this?

 The blind Vorquelf sighed and turned away from him.

 Follow me. As she walked deeper into the cavern, she swept past the edge of one mural and 
descended from view.

 Will trailed after her quickly and hurried down a narrow stairway that had been crudely hacked from 
the stone. Glowing lichen marked the top of the passage, though he was in no risk of hitting his head. It 
twisted right and then left again, descending sharply during the last twenty yards, and opened into another 
smaller chamber that he figured was roughly below the heart of the room above. Lichen and minerals also 
provided illumination here, and for the barest of moments, Will envied Oracle her blindness.

 Big, bloody murals covered the walls and ceiling of the chamber. They coiled like rainbow vipers 
around stalactites and stalagmites. Nothing hung in the air, but the hideous and apocalyptic nature of the 
images would have clawed themselves free from the paintings were they not anchored to the walls. Men 
and elves, urZrethi, Gyrkyme, and other races, bestial and otherwise, fought in pitched battles against 
each other. Bodies and pieces thereof filled holes in the riot of combatants, with some later images being 
painted over earlier ones.

 In the midst of all this violent chaos, one small section of wall had nothing on it but a human silhouette 
outlined in gold. Oracle drifted through the room toward it, then tucked her hands in the opposite sleeves 
of her robe and bowed her head. This, I believe, is your part in it. Yours is the face meant to be painted 
here. We do not know for certain if you are the one we seek or, as Resolute allowed, only a link to that 
person. Determining if you are or not could be dangerous, very dangerous.

 Will glanced back at where Resolute filled the only exit to the chamber. I have no choice in the 
matter?

 Oracles head came up, her face expressionless. You have choices, always. If this is your destiny, 
then the next step is crucial.

 And if not? 


 Then your destiny is unknown to me, but I wish you well with it. She closed her eyes. It would be 
best if you were not compelled.

 Then your destiny is unknown to me, but I wish you well with it. She closed her eyes. It would be 
best if you were not compelled.

 Will sighed, mostly because that was the easiest defense against the shiver running up his spine. The 
magick in the place intrigued and scared him, but wonder washed over the top of his fear. The fact that 
Oracle, blind as she was, had been capable of doing all she had impressed him, because the only blind he 
knew were beggars. Beggars were as rats to wolves when measured against thieves, but Oracle would 
have astounded even the greatest thief Will knew.

 Still, the fear lurked there. I will ask you my question, Oracle. I know what Resolute will answer, 
since, for him, my death is never far away. What you will do is learn if I am the one you want, right? And 
this is going to be deadly dangerous?

 She smiled slowly. Only if you are the one we seek. But if you are, we will do all we can to save 
you.

 No sigh came to quell the shiver this time. Will turned to look at Resolute. If I am not, Im not leaving 
this place, am I? You didnt trust Amends. You cant trust me.

 The large Vorquelf folded his arms over his chest and shrugged. Spending the rest of your life here 
would be better than in the slums of Yslin. 

However long youd let me live. Will wanted to feel angry or scared at the prospect of being 
trapped here or slain, but he could not. Just as he knew the leaf had wanted him to carry it away, 
somehow he knew his place was here. That almost made him laugh. Every orphan Marcus had taken in 
harbored the same fantasy. Someday someone would come and reveal to them who they really were, 
would show them to their rightful place in the world. For him it had been his mother who would have 
escaped the fire, survived and become Vionna, the pirate queen, with the Azure Spider as her consort. 

Now I have what we all wished for, but it doesnt come free. The way Resolute watched him told 
Will that the

 Vorquelf expected him to try to run. Will put his chances at being able to escape the Vork as small, 
but part of him wanted to try anyway.

 Another part of him, a larger part, balked. There was something in the way Oracle had said they 
would do all they could to save him that told him how important he was to them. If I am not the one 
they want, I would be a link in the chain. Suddenly he found for himself the theme of the saga of Will 
the Nimble. His story would be one of exploits strung like pearls, and now he had a string. He would 
help restore Vorquellynwherever that wasand he knew he would do it because everyone else had 
failed for a very long time.

 He nodded and exhaled slowly. What do we have to do?

 Relief painted a smile on Oracles face. Come over here and stand in this basin, Wilburforce.

 Will complied as Resolute exited the chamber. The youth found an iron ring had been half-sunk into 
the center of a shallow depression in the rock, which was ten feet in diameter. Around the rim had been 
painted an uneven red line. He toed the rusty ring and found it both heavy and solidly affixed to the 
ground.

 An angry bleat and the clicking of goats-hooves on the stone brought him around. Resolute reentered 
the room and stepped aside as Crow led a goat at the end of a stout length of chain into the chamber. 
The two warriors exchanged silent glances, then Crow smiled.

 I had no doubt Will would agree. I thought I would save time. Crow led the goat over to the 
depression, then fastened its chain to the ring, leaving it six feet of play. The creature seemed docile 
enough, coming over to sniff at Will, then gently butting him.

 Oracle entered the depression and the goat came to her. She stroked its neck, then brushed a thumb 
over its forehead. The Vorquelf drew a slender poniard and slashed a little cut above and between the 
goats eyes. The creature bleated and jumped back to the length of its chain, with blood welling in the 
wound. Its hooves scrabbled against the smooth stone, but gained little purchase, and the goat went 
down.

 Give me your left hand, your heart hand, Wilburforce. 


 He complied and felt the sting of the blade being dragged over his palm.

 He complied and felt the sting of the blade being dragged over his palm.

 Will trailed his right hand over the chain and closed with the goat. By the time he got to it and laid his 
hand on its forehead, Crow and Oracle had cleared the depression. Oracle and Resolute, standing 
together at circles edge, held hands and Resolutes tattoos began to glow with a vibrant purple hue. A 
quarter circle away, Crow had strung a small horse-bow made of a silver-blond wood, and had nocked 
an arrow with a wide razored broadhead that had been washed in silver.

 Will swallowed hard. Im ready.

 Crow winked. Youll do fine.

 Resolutes argent eyes narrowed. I think he will. I think we will succeed. The question is, how much 
will they make us pay for that success?

 Then Oracle began to speak.

 The words trickled sibilant and lyrical from Oracles mouth. Some would ring high and clear, like the 
peal of a crystal bell, while others would rumble cart-heavy through a cobblestone street. Each word 
spilled into the air and seemed to hang there. Will thought he caught glimpses of them, illuminated in the 
glow of Resolutes tattoos.

 As the sounds floated in the air, they linked themselves into chains. Echoes reinforced them and drew 
them in, further, surrounding Will and the goat. The youth kept his hand pressed against the creatures 
forehead, ignoring the warm wetness that connected them. His hand tingled, as if the echoes of words 
had funneled down into the wound and through it into the goat.

 Oracles words began to speed up, building in intensity, too. The rhythm solidified, making sounds 
pulse with power. Will could feel the air tighten, grow into the hard-edged sensation of crisp winter 
nights. Something in it cut at him, drawing no blood but taking something of him with it anyway.

 The goat suddenly twisted away from Will, severing their contact. Will spilled onto his buttocks and 
started scuttling away from the creature as it reared up on its hind hooves, feet scrambling for purchase. 
The chain pulled taut and the goat slipped, crashing down hard onto its side. It writhed there, its bleating 
becoming more urgent and shrill, then tightening down into a hideous croaking.

 A rippling series of pops shook the creature. Its spine straightened, amplifying the twitching of the legs. 
Its muzzle shortened as the face flattened into something vaguely human. The hooves lengthened on the 
forelegs, becoming two fingers that grasped the chain tightly. The pelvis shifted and the legs became more 
human in construction.

 Worse than the physical changes was the creatures scent. The goat had not smelled particularly 
sweet, but the wretched miasma drifting out from it now choked Will. In it he caught hints of meat many 
days green and his flesh began to crawl as if maggots were burrowing beneath it.

 The creature shook one last time, violently, then promptly scrabbled up into a squat with the chain 
tugged into a straight line. A purple light blazed in its eyes, and those eyes twitched, slowly focusing. 
Black lips peeled back from teeth that had taken on the jagged serrations of a carnivores bite.

 The goat-thing looked left and right, then bowed its horned head toward Will. Old friends I see, but I 
know not thee. Pray thee, tell me, who would you be? The voice came softly, but full of ridicule and 
with an annoying hiss.

 Will pulled himself into a crouch and jammed his cut palm against his thigh. Im Will.

 Will, Will, one more to kill. The beast cocked its head and looked at him sidelong. He comes not 
without anticipation, this bastard who will save a nation.

 The youth shifted his shoulders as a shiver ran up his spine. What are you?

 Nefrai-laysh, at your beck and call. The goat-man sketched a little bow. I serve she who 
commands them all.

 Youre a Dark Lancer!

 That much is clear, but not why Im here. The sullan-ciri pointed at Crow, Resolute, and Oracle in 
turn. Beware these three, my little Will. They mean you harm, they mean you ill. A key to a lock is what 


they see, when they stop and look at thee.

they see, when they stop and look at thee.

 Is this the pot calling the kettle black, you who stuck the knife in my back? The beasts eyes 
narrowed as it reached out and pinched a link of the chain, severing it. Ive never forgotten, never will. 
When the time comes, youre mine to kill. I wont forget, though the times not yet. Still, for you, 
something fun to do!

 Nefrai-laysh reached back with its right hand and inscribed an oval in the air, as high as the crouching 
beast could reach and as wide as a mans shoulders. A thin purple line glowed in the air in his talons 
wake, then the beast jammed an elbow sharply back into the heart of the oval. The reality within it 
shattered as might have a looking glass, leaving a black hole hovering in the air.

 Before the beast had a chance to leap into that hole, Crows arrow split its breastbone and pinned its 
heart to its spine. At the same time three creatures came boiling out of the hole. The two larger 
onestheir humanoid bodies covered with mottled furemerged with longknives drawn. They dove 
straight at Crow and Resolute. The third, a bit smaller and covered with brown fur, emerged from the 
hole and leaped at Will.

 The nasty little poniard in its right hand had been raised for a killing thrust.

 Without thinking, Will rolled onto his back, then kicked out with both feet, catching the creature full in 
the chest. Ribs cracked and the creature flew backward. It crashed down hard, but bounced up quickly. 
It flexed its hand, unsheathing claws even before it had regained its balance. It snarled and stumbled back 
a step, trying to get its feet beneath it.

 Then it slipped on the chain.

 Links rattled as they shot out from beneath its feet. The creature started to fall and reached out to 
steady itself, but missed the grab at the edge of the hole. At least, that was what Will thought had 
happenedbut this was before he could see that the creatures thumb had started to fall on the cave side 
of the hole.

 The holes edge caught the creature midway between shoulder and hip, slicing up into its chest with the 
ease of a willow-whip slashing through air. The upper half of its torso, severed cleanly, disappeared into 
the hole while the lower half thrashed its legs, spraying blood and a twisted cord of guts into the 
depression.

 To his right, Crow sidestepped a longknife thrust, then grabbed his attackers wrist and twisted, 
locking the arm. Crows left arm came down, cracking the silverwood bow on the joint. The elbow 
snapped wetly under the assault. Crow flung the howling creature aside and, in one fluid motion, bent and 
scooped up the longknife. He gutted his foe as it straightened up.

 Oracle had reeled away from the creature rushing at Resolute. The tall Vorquelf drew a longknife with 
his right hand and parried the lunge coming at his belly. Then he struck lightning-fast with his left hand, 
slamming a fist into the creatures throat. It gurgled and stumbled back, raising a hand to its crushed 
windpipe. Batting aside a weak slash, Resolute stabbed down with his longknife, sinking the blade deep 
between shoulder and throat. Blood spurted when he wrenched it free, and the creature collapsed.

 Will had just started to turn and look at the portal when a heavy weight landed on him. The goat-thing 
straddled him, grabbing handfuls of his tunic, pulling his chest upright while its body trapped his thighs 
against the ground. It shoved its muzzle forward until they were nose to nose, and blood dripped from its 
mouth onto his face.

 Will, my Will, remember if you can, come after me, youll die not yet a man. Blood sprayed with 
each word, flecking Wills face. Pain is all youll know, all you deserve, unless from this path you 
swerve. Come with me now, come and serve....

 Not for all the sorrow in the Dimandowns! Will snapped off the arrow in the creatures chest and 
stabbed the broken end through its neck. The beast reared back, one hand raised to its throat, mouth 
working, but words just bubbling red. It raised a forelimb to strike him, but before the blow could fall, 
Resolute kicked the creature in the face, spilling it back off Will.

 The youth crawled back behind Resolutes legs and peered out at the goat-thing. It lay there, at the 


feet half of the other creature, its coat turning black and melting away. The overwhelming stench of rotten 
meat accompanied the effervescent decay of its flesh, leaving white bones rising from a black puddle like 
the skeleton of a ship beached on black sand.

feet half of the other creature, its coat turning black and melting away. The overwhelming stench of rotten 
meat accompanied the effervescent decay of its flesh, leaving white bones rising from a black puddle like 
the skeleton of a ship beached on black sand.

 Will shivered.

 Resolute looked down at him and nodded grimly. You did better than I expected.

 The youths stomach heaved, spewing out what little remained of their last road meal.

 The Vorquelf grabbed the back of Wills tunic and hauled him up by one hand. Wipe your face, take 
a deep breath.

 Crow held up a hand. Take it easy with him. That wasnt what any of us expected.

 Will wiped his mouth off on his sleeve. Was that really a Dark Lancer? Is he dead?

 The older man dropped into a crouch at the edge of the bowl, resting his bow across his knees. It 
was part of him, a part he was able to project here.

 A part of him we summoned here. Oracle came over and stared blindly down at Will. Forgive me 
for putting you in such danger, Wilburforce. In using the goat as part of the link, we thought we would be 
able to sever the link by killing the goat. It is not a common magick, but one that has worked for ages; 
though it did not work here.

 Resolute set Will down at the edge of the pit. Will forced himself to look at Oracle and away from the 
remains of the goat. Why didnt it work?

 The Vorquelf mage shook her head. Chytrine is an able sorceress herself, so she may have unraveled 
the spell and found a way to change it. Clearly she has made Nefrai-laysh very strong. We will be more 
careful in the future.

 More careful? More careful? Will blinked with disbelief. If Chytrine can create sullanciri like that, 
with powers like that... I mean, some of them are supposed to already be dead, right? And they can do 
magick.

 The man held his hands up. Easy, Will. The sullanciri are indeed powerful. They were once our 
champions, yes, but they are not invincible.

 Resolute nodded solemnly. Theyre not impossibly powerful, either. They can be killed, and killing 
them hurts Chytrine. You hurt Nefrai-laysh here, sticking him the way you did. Chytrine knows she has to 
be careful, too.

 The youth nodded slowly. It seemed the appropriate response, though he really understood very little. 
What did it mean, his coming here? Was that good or bad? I mean, obviously bad, but if hes dead ...

 Crow sighed. Hes not dead, though this might have hurt him a bit. He will be tired. And this ability to 
change himself into other things, its fitting, since he could be whomever he needed to be when he needed 
it. Hell be very dangerous.

 Resolute snorted. Save that he cant change who he is at the core, and that is where we will kill him.

 The Vorquelf sorceress stroked Wills hair softly. As for his coming here, this is good. It means you 
are the one were looking for, or are linked very strongly to him.

 Quick lesson for you, boy. Resolute hauled the creature hed killed into the depression and tossed it 
at Wills feet. This is a gibberer or gibberkin. Chytrine uses them for soldiers. Somewhat strong, not 
terribly smart, but mind those jaws. That muzzle can bite clean through an arm. They die, but they die 
hard.

 Will blinked. But you and Crow handled them so easily.

 Resolute lowered his face to Wills. We lost Vorquellyn a long time ago. I have been killing gibberers 
ever since. I am well schooled in killing them, and ply that trade at every opportunity.

 I think they were a bit disoriented as they came through. Crow shrugged easily. The thing you killed 
was a vylaen. Smaller, smarter, almost like a child in a bear costume at festival, but capable of using 
magicks. Chytrine uses them to lead forces around. This wasnt a planned attack, clearly, or more would 


have come through; many more.

have come through; many more.

 Oracle knelt and wiped his face with the sleeve of her robe, leaving it stained with blood. There is no 
forgetting, Wilburforce, no running, no hiding. This is a time of destiny, and your part in it has just begun 
to unfold. And while this may seem to be a disaster to warn of more disasters, there is good here, too.

 The youth shivered again, and choked down more vomit.

 When he slept that evening, Will slept shallowly and woke easily. Bad dreams did not haunt him, but 
the worry that he might succumb to them did slow his returning to sleep. He knew he had nothing to fear 
immediately, for Crow stood watch at the mouth of the cave and Resolute slept within the Vorquellyn 
chamber. Hed been allowed to unroll his blanket in the alcove Oracle called home, but after supper and 
a short nap, she was nowhere to be seen.

 Will sat in the darkness and thought about what had happened in the lower chamber. The images of 
war and death and dying sent a chill down his spine, though not because of their gruesome nature. Blood 
and gore were nothing new to Will. The Dimandowns saw violence every day, whether in a street brawl, 
or a cart smashing some child, or to the entertainments offered in dingy playhouses. Murder, assault, 
rape, cannibalism; these were all things he knew ofand most of them from dark faery tales whispered 
in the night.

 But something about the murals in the lower chamber had more substance than night-whispers, an 
actor convulsing on a stage, or even blood trickling through the gutter. The painting oozed hatred. Each 
stab stung him, each thrust opened a hollow in him. He didnt so much feel the pain of the wounds as 
much as he felt the loss of the lives. 

Every one of those people will die because someone else hates.

 He threw back his blankets and stalked quietly through the Vorquellyn chamber. He expected an 
immediate and hostile challenge from Resolute, but silence marked his passage. Deep in the chamber, in 
the shadow of a picture that turned a stone into a forested hill, the Vorquelf slept soundly, with a blanket 
of gibberer pelts covering him.

 On down to the lower chamber Will went and found Oracle there, painting away. He paused in the 
entrance, not willing to disturb her, but from the way she moved, he knew that was unlikely. She worked 
quickly, dabbing paint here and there, spreading individual dashes of color all over a wall, then she would 
shift to another paint-pot and splash another hue in places. She let the color define what she wanted to 
display, with the images slowly coming into focus as more and more of the stone disappeared.

 One part of her mural had been completely finished and it shocked Will. Where there had only been a 
silhouette before he now looked at himself. He wore a stony expression and subtle shading worked 
details of the rock below into him. It almost seemed as if he were walking out from the rock or, worse, 
that hed been trapped in it. As horrible as that might seem, however, it did not make him shiver.

 The mural she still worked on, though, did tighten his flesh. As yet unpainted towers stood limned with 
red and gold fire. A dragon, in silhouette only, hovered in the sky above the tallest tower, breathing a 
stream of fire at it. On the ground and battlements of the walls surrounding the towers, armies clashed. 
Wizards cast spells and gibberers stood in ranks shouldering odd weapons that spit fire. Men opposing 
those gibberers fell back, as if struck with invisible arrows.

 Swords and pikes, bows and arrows, armored warriors with lances charging atop massive horses, 
these things still played a part in battle. Creatures with split skulls littered the ground. Oracle returned to 
them, anointing them with scarlet paint. More than once a curl of red erased a previously painted head, or 
opened a rent in pristine armor. It almost seemed as if Oracle were somehow watching the battles 
progression and changing details as people lived or died.

 As that thought occurred to Will, Oracle stooped to get more paint and revealed images of himself and 
Crow and Resolute. Resolute was magnificent and defiant, with gibberer bodies piled high around him. 
Even so, a pike had been thrust into his back, and a gibberer was raising him from the ground. And 
Crow, he bled from the poxy sort of wounds the gibberkin weapon created. His arrows had wrought 


havoc with their line, but Will could see Crow would die before the last of the Aurolani troops.

havoc with their line, but Will could see Crow would die before the last of the Aurolani troops.

 She whirled, the pot of yellow paint flying from her left hand. The pigment streaked out, like the tail on 
a shooting star. Will started forward, reaching a hand out to catch it, but the pot slowed in its trajectory 
and hung there, mocking his effort to save it.

 Oracle stared at him, her brows furrowed, but a smile beginning to grow on her face. You see it, you 
see it, so everything changes. She stepped forward, plucked the pot out of the air, then scooped the 
spilled paint back into it. The few drops she missed fell to stain the stone floor.

 A heavy hand landed on Wills shoulder. The youth spun and found Resolute standing there, wearing 
an expression hed not seen on the Vorquelfs face before. Come with me, Will. Youve seen enough 
for tonight.

 Will blinked, wondering if the sullanciri Nefrai-laysh had somehow been able to take over the 
Vorquelfs body. But, what shes painting ...

 The Vorquelf turned Will around and gave him a gentle shove back into the passage to the upper 
chamber. Ever since her eyes ... Oracle always was a seer. Now what she sees are snips and tittles of 
the future.

 The youth tried to twist back to point at the mural, but Resolute blocked his line of sight and kept him 
moving. So youll be speared on a pike, and Crow will be killed?

 The future is not easy to unravel. Think of your life as a single thread. Mine, too, and Crows. Stretch 
that thread out from here to the horizon. How far along it can you see? Will shrugged. A bit, I guess.

 Well, that siege shes painting, thats a point where many threads will come together. Think of it as a 
knot of threads. Some will end there, some will continue on. Seeing a knot of lives tangled in the future is 
easy for Oracle. Seeing where each thread will enter and leave, that is more difficult.

 So youre saying that from that mural I should assume there will be a siege of towers? That much we 
know, but what happens we dont know?

 That is my read of things, yes. They emerged into the Vorquellyn chamber. I will not worry too 
much, but I will sharpen my blades. You, I think, should go and get some sleep.

 The youth frowned and turned to look at Resolute as the Vorquelf settled himself down on a blanket. 
You have always yelled at me, called me boy. Whats going on? Is it because I am the person you were 
looking for youre being nice to me?

 Resolutes silver eyes half shut. No, not that; nor will you find me nice to you in the future. My job is 
to keep you alive, and to help you become the person we need to save the world from Chytrine, I guess, 
from the perspective of the steel, the blacksmith is very cruel; but there is only one way to forge a sword.

 As for my being nice to you, well... The Vorquelf opened his arms. For the first time in over a 
century I sleep in a place where I can look out at a vista I knew from my youth. Just for a bit, a tiny bit, I 
know the peace I knew then. It wont last long.

 Will nodded. Im sorry.:

 Resolutes head came up and he regarded Will openly. So am I, but I wont let myself be seduced by 
this peace. My life is dedicated to restoring Vorquellyn, so others can know this, too.

 The edged growl returned to his voice. And you, boy, are the sword that will win me what I want. So 
until you are perfect, you will be worked.

 And if I dont want to be worked?

 Resolutes silver eyes tightened. Understand one thing, boy, I need your bloodline more than I need 
you. If I have to get you on a dozen women so I have your children to train, I will do it. That future 
Oracle is painting down there is one I would like to change. That goal is more important than you. You 
will help, or like every other obstacle in my path for the last century, you will be swept aside.

 Will found the return of the nasty Resolute something of a comfort, but hardly something that induced 
easy sleep. He tossed and turned for a long time, his thoughts racing. Part of him thought that being asked 
to get children on a dozen women would be funand certainly in keeping with aspects of the Will the 


Nimble saga he had envisioned. Still, he realized that Resolute would choose the women and was pretty 

Nimble saga he had envisioned. Still, he realized that Resolute would choose the women and was pretty 

 Supervision wasnt something Will figured he wanted in the midst of such intimacies.

 Eventually he did fall asleep, and all too soon found Crow shaking him awake. Their horses had been 
saddled and prepared for a ride while Will had been allowed to sleep. He came to awareness slowly and 
gathered his stuff together. The rumbling of his stomach reminded him of the fact that his last meal had not 
made it all the way through his system. When he recalled why, however, his appetite died.

 Will tossed his bedroll behind his saddle and looked up at Crow. I guess all thats left is for me to say 
good-bye to Oracle.

 Resolute will do that for you.

 The young thief frowned. Why cant I? I mean, she isnt angry that I saw her working last night, is 
she?

 Crow shook his head. No, not angry, just exhausted. There are prophecies that involve you or 
someone of your blood, which makes you very important to the future. Right here, right now, youre akin 
to a pebble dropped into the pond of the future. This close to Oracle, all she sees are the initial 
splashings. The further you ride away, the more perspective she will get. Shell need that, and well need 
that perspective.

 Will nodded for a half second, then his eyes narrowed. Thats not the only reason, is it?

 What do you mean?

 He pointed back toward the cavern. If I go down there and look at what she has painted, I might see 
things I dont like. I might do things to make sure those futures do not come about, right? That would ruin 
everything.

 Thats an interesting insight. I dont let what I see in there concern me, though. Oracle sees events, 
but not outcomes. Resolute and I talked about the tower under siege. Were fairly certain that is Fortress 
Draconis, so were going to head there. How things turn out, well, that will depend upon what we do 
when we get there.

 Resolute strode strongly from the cavern. Mount up, boy, we have to ride.

 Will hauled himself into the saddle. Did Oracle say good-bye?

 Something like that. Resolute swung up into his saddle. She said to ride east to the Rivenrock, then 
south. If we hurry... Well, we best hurry.

 Riding quickly through mountain forests was not an easy task. The route they chose consisted of 
narrow trails that meandered across hillsides, followed bare-rock streambeds, and otherwise flowed with 
the landscape. Based on what Will had learned heading into the mountains, he assumed their current path 
had started as a game trail, and the minimal amount of blazing suggested very few people used it at all.

 They rode as hard as they could, pausing only to water their horses and switch mounts. During one of 
the switches, Resolute tossed a heavy, quilted leather surcoat to Will, nearly knocking him down. Iron 
studs dotted the buckskin garment. Will held it up to his shoulders, with the hem falling to his knees, and 
knew he could have pitched it as a tent for himself and still had room to stable his horse.

 Yes, its big, but its the best weve got. Resolute slipped a rustling coat of ringmail over a padded 
leather surcoat. Put it on, boy, belt it tight at the middle, and use some leather straps to tie it off at your 
wrists.

 The black tone of Resolutes words made Will comply without complaint. The surcoat hung on him 
very loosely but still managed to trap much of the midday heat. He tied it off at wrists and waist as 
instructed, which left the sleeves billowing over his forearms and a flaccid flap of leather hanging down to 
his groin over the belt.

 Resolute secured bracers on his own forearms, then tossed Will a gibberer longknife in a scabbard. 
Slide it in your belt, across the back. Now try drawing it.

 The weapons hilt projected just past his right side at waist level. Will grabbed the hilt and slid his hand 
wide. The blade came out cleanly and easily. The thief whipped the blades point up and found the 
longknifes weight was perfect for a quick slash. 


 He draws it well, Resolute, but chances are thats the biggest knife hes ever brought to hand. Crow 
strung his silverwood bow. Hes better at throwing. Give him some of your bladestars.

 He draws it well, Resolute, but chances are thats the biggest knife hes ever brought to hand. Crow 
strung his silverwood bow. Hes better at throwing. Give him some of your bladestars.

 The spinning silver weapon thunked into the bole of a sapling thirty feet away.

 Will blinked. That throw. You could have killed a rabbit without your snare.

 Im not of a mind to be eating what I kill with these. The Vorquelf snorted. Mind, boy, theyre 
sharp, and the red stain in the blood-groove, thats a nasty poison. Cut yourself and start tingling, well, 
sing out fast

 All three remounted horses and headed out. Crow, at the back, kept his bow in hand, but his arrows 
remained in the saddle quiver in front of his right leg. The packhorses trailed him. Resolute, riding point, 
opened a twenty-yard lead on the other two, but held up so they constantly remained in sight of each 
other. Despite the caution he was taking, they did set something of a quick pace, with the sun only just 
beginning its descent toward night when Riven-rock came into view on a distant hill.

 The mornings ride had been quiet and easy, but since arming themselves, tension had risen. Every 
birdsong Will heard got matched up against what he could remember from the trip into the mountains. 
Was that really a berrysparrow, or a signal? Worse were the times when all they could hear was the 
sound of their own progress. He didnt know what had scared the local creatures away, but he was 
finding it easy to imagine some huge Aurolani army slinking its way through the next valley over, led by a 
twisted goat-thing.

 At Rivenrock Resolute dismounted. In the shadow of a huge dolmen, he studied tracks on the ground, 
then pointed south, along the line of the slab that had been sliced off the standing stone. Gibberers, 
close. We have to move fast, but be careful.

 The southern trail took them down a mountain meadow and toward a dark wood. Will strained his 
ears, listening for anything like the sound of battle. He watched their destination, looking for any sign that 
they were riding into an ambush. The jingle of tack and the pounding thunder of horses hooves made 
listening difficult, and the woods darkness remained impenetrable to his sight. His heart began to race 
and he wiped his hand off on the thigh of his armor.

 The woods blotted out the sun, and Wills eyes took a couple of seconds to adjust to the gloom. By 
then his horse, swiftly following Resolutes mount, had crested a little hillock and started a quick descent 
into a wooded bowl with a stream crossing the path.

 In an instant Will knew this place would be perfect for an ambush. The streams running red with 
blood confirmed this conclusion, as did the growls of the gibberers who tore at the bodies and scattered 
baggage on either side of the stream. Snarls and snaps, quick yips and pitiless, guttural laughter filled the 
bowl.

 As one of them turned, bloodied muzzle baring gore-stained teeth, an arrow flew past and took the 
creature in the shoulder, spinning it around. Somehow the gibberer remained upright, then Resolutes 
horse hit it with a shoulder. The gibberer careened all loose-jointed into a knot of its fellows, dumping 
them into the swollen vein at the bowls heart.

 Will fumbled with the flap of the bladestar pouch, then looked over to see a gibberer on a hillside 
aiming a crossbow at him. Will pulled back, tugging the reins. The bolt hit hard, yanking him from the 
saddle. He crashed down on the far side of the path, crushing a bush beneath him. Dust rose to choke 
him and he wanted to vomit.

 He was fairly certain that if he did, the bolt would be the first thing he expelled.

 Will lay there for a second, waiting for the agony sure to come from a quarrel coring him like an apple. 
His short life passed before his eyes, and he found pitifully little that was memorable. Only the recent 
events seemed worth clinging to, but they mocked him. Perhaps this is what Oracle didnt want me to 
see.

 He waited for the pain, but it didnt come. All he felt were the stings and scratches of the bush. It 


didnt make any sense to him, but if he wasnt dead yet, he was determined that Will the Nimble would 
do more than die.

didnt make any sense to him, but if he wasnt dead yet, he was determined that Will the Nimble would 
do more than die.

 Will rose, and saw the gibberer who had shot at him still bent over reloading its crossbow. The thief 
whipped his hand forward. The poisoned metal star whirred through the air and stuck the gibberer full in 
the thigh.

 It looked up at him for a heartbeat, then its body convulsed and it flopped to the ground.

 Another arrow from Crows bow split the spine of a gibberer rushing at Resolute. The Vorquelf had 
dismounted and fought with a longknife in each hand. He parried one stab low with his left, then thrust 
through the gibberers throat with his right. Ripping the blade free, he spattered blood across another 
gibberers face. A lunge made the most of the temporary blindness that resulted, then a rush by three 
gibberers drove Resolute back.

 Will boiled into this fray. None of his training, either with Resolute or before, had formally addressed 
fighting. But Wills very existence in the Dimandowns had demanded fightingperhaps not on a daily 
basis, but commonly enough that hed learned what he could and could not do. Throwing rocks, keeping 
the enemy at a distance, this he did best, but when forced in close, he knew there were no rules, no 
honor.

 The first gibberer noticed him when Will splashed into the stream, his longknife raised for a slash. The 
gibberer started to turn, bringing its own blade around for a cut, but Will got there first. His blade hacked 
open the back of the creatures right thigh. Blood coated his knifethe stark contrast of the blades cold 
silver edged by a red ribbon exploded in his mind.

 Then something hit him hard across the shoulder blades. It pitched him forward, launching him into the 
air. Wills blade went flying. The thief tucked his shoulder as he started to come down, thinking to roll to 
his feet, but he bumped up hard against something that stopped him. His head and shoulders on the 
ground, and his feet in the air, Will saw a limping gibberer start toward him.

 Worse yet, an arrow flew past the gibberer, barely nipping the tuft of hair from one of its ears.

 Will twisted around and came down on his knees. He grabbed a stone with his right hand and threw it 
at the gibberer. The beast cackled as it batted the rock aside with an open paw. Will shuffled back, in the 
shadow of the corpse that had stopped his roll and pitched another stone at the gibberer.

 The Aurolani creature slapped that missile out of the air, giggling hideously as Will retreated again. It 
waved its longknife at him, then jabbed the air twice, punctuating each motion with a ringing laugh.

 A third time Will threw. The gibberer flicked its paw at the missile, then shrieked. The bladestar had 
stuck it all the way through, with the sharp silver point spiking out the back. The gibberer dropped its 
longknife to pluck the star out, but before it could, the poison took hold. The creature dropped to the 
ground and thrashed its life out in the bloody stream.

 Will started forward, intending to scoop up the gibberers knife and help Resolute, but saw almost 
immediately that wasnt necessary. One gibberer spun away, hands futilely attempting to stop blood 
spurting from a slashed neck. The other staggered as Resolute stabbed his left longknife deep into its 
thigh. His other blade came up, over, and down in a crushing blow that pulped the gibberers skull. The 
creature melted into a boneless pile of mottled fur.

 The fact that he wasnt needed was not what stopped Will from moving forward. Something tugging at 
his left ankle accomplished that. He turned and tried to jump back, but caught his heels on a rock and 
went down hard. A bloodied hand kept grasping at his boot as the body attached to it slowly emerged 
from a pile of animal skins, like a caterpillar undulating from a cocoon.

 Wide white eyes stared at him from a face that was a mask of blood. The jaw worked, but no sound 
came out of the mouth. Then Will realized he could see the persons teeth, all of them, and that what he 
had taken as a blood-clotted beard ... By the gods, they peeled his face off, left it hanging... 


 The youth reeled away and vomited. On his hands and knees he tried to crawl away, but shudders 
shook him violently. He could hear the faceless man inching toward him, through the sand. He could feel 
fingers scrabbling against his boot, clutching him by the heel. He moved away a foot or two, shying from 
a dead gibberer in the stream.

 The youth reeled away and vomited. On his hands and knees he tried to crawl away, but shudders 
shook him violently. He could hear the faceless man inching toward him, through the sand. He could feel 
fingers scrabbling against his boot, clutching him by the heel. He moved away a foot or two, shying from 
a dead gibberer in the stream.

But I can still smell death.

 Someone crouched in front of him. Its over, Will, all over.

 Will slumped onto his right hip, but refused to look back toward his feet. The man back there.

 Crow shook his head. Hes gone now. He might have been in a lot of pain, but at least he lived long 
enough to see his torturers die.

 But, what they did to him. Will shivered. They peeled his face off.

 Crow, get over here! Resolute, on one knee beside a different bundle of skins, pointed his left hand 
at the hillside. Will, metholanth, now!

 The order pumped steel into his limbs and coursed fire into his muscles. Will scrambled to his feet and 
ascended the hillside quickly, on hands and feet. Grabbing tree roots and bushes he pulled himself up, 
anxious to be away from the carnage. He found the metholanth bush and stripped off several branches, 
then laid hold of the main stem. Letting his anger and fury course through him, he tugged and twisted, 
yanked and pulled. He ripped the bush from the ground in a shower of earth, unbalancing himself. He 
crashed onto his back and rolled down the hill, bouncing off trees, bumping over logs.

 Reaching the floor of the bowl, Will leaped the corpse that had grabbed at him and skidded to a stop 
beside the body Resolute and Crow worked on. Theyd stripped away the young womans furs. She had 
several cuts that he could see on her legs and arms, one across her belly, and another on her forehead, 
but none seemed deep. Crow used a damp piece of cloth to wash away the blood.

 Resolute stripped leaves off the bush and started to chew them. He glanced at the uprooted bush, then 
at Will, and shook his head. You have a mouth, boy. Chew.

 Will nodded and started chewing leaves into a green pulp. The metholanths aroma managed to clear 
his head a bit, then he spat the pulp into Resolutes left hand. The Vorquelf smeared the paste across the 
girls belly.

 As Crow turned her head and started cleaning up her face, Will recognized her. Thats Sephi.

 Crow nodded. It is. The faceless one over there is probably Distalus. The other two are probably 
local trappers hired on as guides.

 Will blinked. But they were going to Yslin. What are they doing here?

 Good question, boy. If we save her, we might get an answer. Resolute snorted and jerked his head 
back toward the stream. A better question is, What are gibberers doing here? If you have an answer 
for that, Im more than glad to listen.

 They sent Will to collect their horses, which he was able to do in short order. He did find tracks that 
indicated Sephi and the others had ridden into the area, and found one dead horse that had been shot 
with a crossbow. Of the othersand he assumed there were at least four morehe saw little sign. 
When he returned with the horses, he reported what hed seen.

 Crow, who was just finishing up bandaging Sephis forehead, took the news with a nod. If we are 
lucky, the horses ran off and will find their way to the meadow below Rivenrock.

 And if we arent?

 They wont fill the temeryces bellies completely, so the frostclaws will be back looking for another 
meal.

 Resolute looked up from the dead huntsman he was searching. These bodies should suit them just 
fine. Can she sit a horse?

 The older man nodded as he pulled a blanket over her. 


 If she wakes up. Otherwise well have to tie her into the saddle.

 If she wakes up. Otherwise well have to tie her into the saddle.

 Will bent to the task he had been given immediately, for two very good reasons. First, it appeared 
Resolute was content to deal with bodies and Will really didnt want to do that himself. Second, he was 
hoping that in the baggage he would find reasons why Distalus and Sephi hadnt made it to Yslin.

 He started by gathering up and going through Sephis things. The clothes that remained in her baggage 
had all been folded neatly, and having been dumped from the back of a bucking packhorse had done 
little to disturb that arrangement. He found a small wooden box that contained pens and ink and some 
paper, but none of it had any writing on it. That wouldnt have mattered since Will couldnt read more 
than a word or two, anyway. A small, flat piece of cedarwood with a groove at one narrow end had 
been tucked inside the bag and smelled pretty goodand Will had seen similar things in chests in the 
city, so he knew it was there to keep bugs out.

 Deciding hed seen all there was to see in her stuff, he started through Distalus bags. He wasnt sure 
what to make of the fact that the old mans things had been untouched by the gibberers. The fact that his 
clothes had been similarly folded suggested that Sephi had packed for both of them. He found another 
box of writing tools and a leather-bound journal. He opened it and found faded brown ink on the tan 
pages. Some drawings decorated the pages, including birds and plants, but a lot were of cities and 
towns. The words eluded Will, but at the point where a slender wooden slat had been used as a 
bookmark, he thought he recognized a sketch of Stellin. He also found another of the cedar pieces, again 
with a groove in the narrow end.

 Of considerable interest to him, though, was a pouch heavy with coinssome gold, most silver. He 
opened it and spilled a number out. Several were from Alcida, a few more from Savarre, and even one 
from Helurca. Another random lot selected from the purse yielded coins from Naliserro and Salnia, 
Jerana and Saporicia.

 Will frowned. It struck him as very odd that he didnt have any coins from Oriosa. While it was true 
that relations between Oriosa and Alcida were coldly cordial, Oriosan silver could still be easily found in 
the purses he pinched in Yslin. Oriosan coinage was common enough that the barman in Stellin hadnt 
blinked when Crow produced a gold crown and Distalus had seemed quite familiar with it.

 He bounced the octagonal Jeranese silver piece in the palm of his hand. It had striations along the 
edges, and the image of the sailing ship seemed correct, but something was just not right about the coin. 
Will thought for a second, then pressed the coin up against his right eye. By squinting, he caught it 
between cheek and eyebrow, holding it easily in place.

 Will widened his eyes and let the coin drop with a clink into the pouch of coins. He fixed it to his belt, 
then tossed most of Distalus clothes out. In that half of the saddlebag pair he stuffed the book and piece 
of cedar, as well as some bags of meal and jerky that had fallen from a rent sack. He added more food 
to the other side, supplementing what Distalus had already carried, then knotted the saddlebags securely.

 He restocked the provisions in Sephis bags, then brought her bags over to where Crow was slipping 
her into a dark brown leather tunic. He set them down next to her. Im going to take the rest of their 
provisions and restock our bags. Should be ready to go pretty soon.

 Crow nodded. Good idea. Move things around so she can have the black mare. Saddle over there 
should fit.

 Will laid Distalus bags on the back of his own horse, then moved things around. Resolute came over, 
and gave him a hand. While they worked, Will reported what hed found, though he did underestimate 
the coin count and didnt tell Resolute he thought the Jeranese coin was a counterfeit based on its size. 
The Vorquelf, for his part, did not make any pretense at concealing the things hed taken from the bodies: 
some coins and nine of the gibberer longknives. The youth smiled. If you want, I can wash up the 
bladestars and resharpen them for you.

 Resolute shook his head. No, leave them there, Crows arrows as well. We do that. It lets Chytrine 
know who it is who has killed her motley bands. Crow has picked the habit up from me. You killed two, 


did you, boy? Will nodded. Bladestars, both.

did you, boy? Will nodded. Bladestars, both.

 The young thief blushed. I know. The Vorquelf glanced back at the bodies in the bowl. I killed 
fourfive if you count the one Crow shoulder-shot. He feathered another one, which leaves us one 
unaccounted for. The hunters died in the initial shot from the ambush. Distalus had a quarrel in him and 
Sephi looks as if she was just dragged from the saddle.

 Will shrugged. Distalus managed to get one before he died.

 No doubt, but how he did it is interesting. Come with me.

 He followed in Resolutes wake even though the Vorquelfs course took them straight over Distalus 
corpse. Past him, lying on the side of the bowl, a gibberer remained where it had fallen, its arms and legs 
bent in odd directions. Will had no doubt it was dead, and the hole in its chest, right over where its heart 
should have been, clearly was the cause of death.

 The hole had been burned there. Crispy, charred flesh crumbled as Resolute tapped the body with his 
toe. Burning there and up here, at the muzzle. The thing snorted fire before it died. Whatever hit it 
burned its heart and lungs out.

 In Oracles mural I saw these weapons that spat fire.

 Resolute nodded. I know about those. This is not the sort of wound they cause. Distalus, it seems, 
was a sorcerer, but we knew that already from the look of him.

 Before the Vorquelf could expand on that remark, Crow gave out with a shout. Shes awake.

 The two of them trotted over to where Sephi was sitting up, with Crow assisting her. He supported 
her shoulder and elbow on the left side while she held her head in her hands and drew her knees up. She 
moaned a little, then began to cry.

 Crow stroked her black hair. The threat is over now, child, at least for a little while. We have to ride, 
though. We have to get away from here. Can you ride?

 She sniffed, wiped her nose on the sleeve of her tunic, then nodded. She started to get up and Will 
took her right hand to help her. He ducked beneath her arm and wrapped his left arm around her slender 
waist.

 She smiled down at him and mouthed, Thank you.

 Will beamed. Over here, Sephi, the black mareas black as your hair.

 Sephi half giggled at the rhyme, then clamped her mouth shut for a second, pressing her lips into a thin 
line. What about Distalus?

 Resolute cut off Wills nascent reply. He died in your defense.

 Will led her on a course to the horses that spared her the worst of the carnage, then Resolute took her 
by the waist and lifted her onto the mares saddle. He tossed the reins to Will. Youll be leading her 
horse. Girl, you have to hold on to the saddle to stay in it. Well be going quickly because we want a 
good distance between here and where we will camp tonight.

 She glanced at the bodies. Youre not going to bury them?

 No time.

 Our things?

 Resolute shook his head. Will gathered up what he could tell was yours, but the gibberers destroyed 
anything they couldnt understand.

 The girl seemed to take that comment at face value. Will wondered why Resolute was lying to her, but 
knew challenging him in front of her was a bad idea. If Distalus was a sorcerer... but, wait, couldnt 
she be a sorceress? What if she killed the gibberer? A little thrill ran through Will at the thought, 
though she did look rather young to have mastered what he assumed to be a powerful spell.

 Resolute again took the point and Crow brought up the rear, with the packhorses trailing out behind 
him. This left Will riding ahead of Sephi, with a bit of a buffer between them and their elders. Will kept 
turning back in the saddle to make sure she was awake and upright. Weary though she appeared to be, 
she managed to stay in the saddle pretty well, and Will did appreciate the shy smiles he got when he 
checked or offered a mind this branch, Sephi.

 They rode all afternoon and into early evening, stopping only to water the horses. As dusk came on, 


Resolute led them into a rock-strewn canyon. They made a cold camp there, shutting the horses up in 
what had long ago been a mine of some sort, using piles of tailings as breastworks.

Resolute led them into a rock-strewn canyon. They made a cold camp there, shutting the horses up in 
what had long ago been a mine of some sort, using piles of tailings as breastworks.

 The youth sat on a pile of rocks. He wore his armor, and as the day cooled into night, he was glad it 
retained heat. A scabbarded longknife lay across his thigh. From the tailings he drew sharp-edged, flat 
rocks. He ground them against other, harder rocks to edge them, or size them better to his hand, then 
slipped them into the bladestar pouch on his belt.

 I couldnt sleep.

 He turned and looked at a blanket-shrouded Sephi. Shadows masked her face, reinforcing the illusion 
of distance hed gotten from the smallness of her voice. Not a surprise, after what happened. She 
shook her head once, listlessly. I dont really know what happened. Cletus, he was in the lead, he just 
flew from his saddle. Numitor cried out from behind and then they pulled me from the saddle. I dont 
remember anything more until you found me. I was lucky you came along.

 It wasnt luck, really.

 No? Tell me. She came forward, then seated herself at his feet. Her right hand came from inside the 
blanket and snaked itself around his left ankle. She leaned against him, with her cheek on his knee. How 
did you know where to find us?

 Will started to tell her about Oracle and what Resolute had seen that made them ride east and south at 
Rivenrock, then hesitated. Hed not seen what Resolute saw, nor had the Vorquelf told Will about it. 
That moments hesitation gave him a chance to think, which was good. The overwhelming weight of 
questions about what she and her uncle were doing in the mountains, with him being a sorcerer and all, 
stoked the fire of Wills curiosity to the point where it became suspicion.

 So Will resorted to doing what he did well: he lied, effortlessly and completely. My uncle and his 
friend, they are hunters, very good hunters, better than those trappers guiding you. Well, my father, hes a 
famous noble, very famous, you would know him if I told you his name but I

 cant because of an oath, you understand. My father wanted me to learn the ways of hunting gibberers 
and their kith. So we were in the mountains, hunting, and cut across the track of the ones hunting you, but 
we caught up too late.

 Her right hand rose to hook fingers over the top of his knee, her palm resting flat against the inside of 
it. Oh, that you could have been there sooner. Did you have success in the mountains?

 Oh, yes, I learned a great deal. Did you know that metholanth grows wild? I picked that which they 
smeared on your cuts.

 Thank you. Sephi turned her head and gently kissed his knee. I feel much better.

 I wish I could have done more. Her kiss and her hand were combining to make Will a bit 
uncomfortable, and he was very glad his armor slopped well over his belt and down into his lap. Either 
that knock on her head addled her more than any one of us has imagined, or she wants me 
thinking about things other than thinking.

 Will wanted to succumb to her charms. Rescuing beautiful damsels and having them reward him with 
their favors had always been a key ingredient in the saga of Will the Nimble. And the tailings, spread with 
enough blankets, wouldnt be that uncomfortable. Sephi was even acting interested, and Resolute was 
threatening him with the needs of getting children on someone.

 The problem for Will was simple, however: Sephi wasnt acting right. He could understand her being 
grateful, but of the three she could show her gratitude to, he was putting himself at the bottom of the list. 
Except in the category of being young and gullible. He had no doubt that if he were the person she 
likely saw him as being, shed have him distracted with a lick and a kiss, and have him telling her 
everything for more of the same.

 Because Will himself knew how useful distraction could be when cutting a purse, or in a quick 
snatch-theft, he had no trouble identifying diversionary tactics. Her questions, while seeming to be 


harmless, would have had him reveal Oracles presence and the Vorquellyn cave. Given what hed been 
told about it by Resolute, Oracle, and Crow, it was a secret he wasnt going to surrender no matter how 
pretty the questioner or dire the torture.

harmless, would have had him reveal Oracles presence and the Vorquellyn cave. Given what hed been 
told about it by Resolute, Oracle, and Crow, it was a secret he wasnt going to surrender no matter how 
pretty the questioner or dire the torture.

 The hunters heard my uncle tell a tale or two in Stellin the day after you left. They told him of a minor 
noble in the mountains who paid well for taletellers. They were leading us there but I think... I mean, I 
suspect they intended to kill Distalus and have me for themselves.

 Her voice became a harsh, choked whisper. She accompanied her admission by hugging his legs with 
both arms, letting the blanket slip from her shoulders. Praise be to Erlinsax you got there to save me.

 Will reached down and lifted the blanket over her shoulders again. Yes, Sephi, thank Erlinsax we 
were wise enough to be hunting, and Arel that we were lucky enough to find you.

 He patted her shoulders and smiled in the darkness as she stroked her cheek against his knee. 7 dont 
know what your game is, but Im very glad I know how to play.

 Resolute had them up and moving by the earliest light, when pink and gold stole into the skys dark 
blue vault. Crow had relieved Will some time after Sephi had left him. Her departure came after he asked 
more questions than he answered. Will then stretched out on his bedroll and woke only when Sephi 
moved her bedding beside his. They ended up sharing a blanket and he was glad for her warmth.

 Resolute led the way out of the rock field and southeast. He explained that he wanted to make Stellin 
by nightfall or, failing that, find a croft where they could defend themselves. He said it all very 
matter-of-factly, but something in his voice made Will shiver.

 By mid-morning they found the burned-out remains of a farm. Charred timbers lay in a jumble at the 
base of a stone chimney. The windows were empty kohl-rimmed eyes into the soul of the fire-blackened 
home. A fresh row of five graves in front of the house let them know the familys passing had not gone 
unnoticed.

 More important than the house and graves, however, was the sign that had been left on the big oak 
tree out back of the house. A gibberer had been tied to the tree, hand and footand again around the 
waist. They could tell from the bloating that the creature had been dead for days, but there was more 
than enough left to identify what it was.

 And to see the mark branded into its hide. Covering his nose with the sleeve of his armor, Will rode 
close enough to see the maggots writhing in some of the rents in the gib-berers flesh. The mark looked 
to him like the paw print of a wolf, with glyphs above and below it. He reined his horse away. What is 
it? Resolute shrugged and Crow shook his head. Sephis voice came dully. Ive seen it before. Its the 
mark of the Gold Wolf. Either she killed this gibberer because of the deaths here, or she killed the family 
and is trying to make people think the gibberers did it.

 Crow pointed back at the farmhouse. The graves. Why bury your victims?

 She lifted her shoulders and let them drop. I only know what my uncle heard and told me.

 Doesnt matter. Resolute shaded his eyes with a hand. We still need to make Stellin. Weve wasted 
more than enough time here as it is.

 On their ride in toward the town they found two more abandoned farms, but no more graves. The 
buildings had been looted but not burned, and showed ample signs of habitation by gibberers. Will 
learned to study their tracks and, amid them, found signs of frostclaws and vylaens as well. While he did 
not doubt they were actually present, he found it disturbing that so many seemed to be roaming about.

 Commenting on that fact only brought a scowl from Resolute and an admonition to ride faster. Even 
though they traveled swiftly, and largely in silence, the suns fading light stretched their shadows toward 
Stellin. Will took it as a bad sign that the fires on the road had been replaced with ranks of sharpened 
stakes long enough to impale a horse. Further back, behind breastworks of wicker and dirt, three men in 
ragged armor brandished pitchforks and scythes.

 One of them moved from behind his shelter and dropped a hand to the hilt of a sword. Begone!

 Resolute reined his horse up short and vaulted from the saddle. His ringmail hissed as he crossed to 
the man in two quick strides. The farmer tried to draw his sword, but Resolute caught his wrist before the 


weapon cleared the scabbard. With a savage twist, Resolute wrenched the arm around and drove the 
man to his knees.

weapon cleared the scabbard. With a savage twist, Resolute wrenched the arm around and drove the 
man to his knees.

 One of the other two men moved to help his comrade, but Crow spurred his horse forward. He had 
his bow out and an arrow nocked. I dont want to make your next step your last.

 The second farmer stopped and anguish washed over his face. Were just trying to save our families.

 Resolutes voice slashed at the man on his knees. How?

 By driving people away? You figure that if the gibberers get us out here, somehow they wont get into 
the town? They wont want to? He twisted the farmers wrist. Was that it?

 Resolute, this isnt helping.

 The Vorquelf nodded in response to Crows remark and released the mans wrist with a shove that 
dumped him face first onto the roadway. Where are the people gathered?

 Hare and Hutch.

 Thats where well be, then. How many more outposts like this?

 The downed man struggled to his knees and rubbed his wrist. Three more, one in each direction.

 Resolute walked over and pulled up enough of the stakes to let their horses pass through. Two of you 
go to the nearest ones, send a runner to the furthest. Have them make fires of their stakes, then pull back 
to the center of town. Get lookouts high to watch for things moving against the fire. Go, now. Do it.

 The Vorquelf walked his horse through the gap, then swung into the saddle again. In front of the tavern 
he dismounted again and pounded his fist against the door. From the shouts and shrieks inside it seemed 
some of the town-folk took his pounding for that of an Aurolani battering ram, but someone did draw the 
bar back and open the door.

 Resolute marched straight in, with Sephi, Will, and Crow in his wake. Who is in charge here?

 A man near the fireplace stepped forward and Will recognized him as Quintus, the man who had 
challenged them on their way into town before. The people crowded into the inns common room looked 
from the man to the Vorquelf and back. I am. I remember you. No room here for you. You should have 
stayed in the mountains.

 A child started crying and hugged himself to his mothers skirts. Will could feel the fear in the room 
shift into hatred. Resolute drew himself up to his full height, his stripe of white hair brushing the ceiling. 
This elicited a couple more frightened cries from children, and more than one adult refused to look at him.

 Crow stepped forward. Listen to me. Were not in the mountains, were here. In the mountains we 
killed gibber-ers who ambushed this girl and those traveling with her. Resolute and I have spent a great 
deal of time killing gib-berers. We can help you, but we need to know how many there are and where 
theyre coming from.

 A dozen voices started at once, then Quintus slammed a pewter mug against the fireplace mantel. 
You see, they are everywhere. These are the lucky ones, the ones who made it into town when they 
heard of farms being raided. The unlucky ones, the ones the gibberers attacked, theyre upstairsthe 
survivors anyway. The things have run off our livestock. They come in packs of a dozen or more. 
Tightening a noose around us, they are.

 Crow nodded. Youll want to get most of these people upstairs, along with a few men. If the 
gibberers make it to the roof and start to burrow through the thatching, youll want to kill them. Your best 
men should be down in here, though, since most of the fighting will be here. We have horses. Well need 
to stable them.

 Quintus eyes half shut. The stables all yours.

 Will felt a shiver run down his spine. The tone he heard in the mans voice was the same hed heard 
countless times from the mouths of the homeless. They knew they were dying and the only thing they had 
left was some illusion of dignity. Quintus was clearly clinging to that, which made sense since Stellin was a 
town of farmers, suddenly faced with a problem that needed warriors.

 Crow slowly nodded. I understand. Well be leaving the girl here. 


 Let me come with you.

 Let me come with you.

 Resolute snorted. Just so youll know, your stakes are now burning so your lookouts can see where 
they are coming from. If youre lucky, the fires will keep them out of your town. He turned and roughly 
spun Will around to face the door, then gave him a shove. Move, boy; to the stable.

 Will half turned to bid Sephi a farewell, but Resolute eclipsed his view of her. The youth made his way 
out of the tavern and gathered the reins to his horse. He tugged gently, bringing the horse around, then 
took up the lead for the pack animals as well.

 He glanced at Crow, who led his own horse and the one theyd given to Sephi. Theyre all going to 
die in there, arent they?

 I hope not.

 Why leave Sephi with them, then?

 Because, boy, her chances of survival in there are far better than ours in the stable.

 Will looked up at Resolute. If the stable is a death trap, why are we going to be there?

 If we stay in the tavern, our horses die and we will never get to Fortress Draconis. If there are enough 
gibber-ers to be raiding farms, wed never make it out of here on foot. The Vorquelf led the way around 
the tavern to the stable behind it. In there it will be panic and chaos, which will be a problem. Killing 
isnt a business where panic is useful.

 Will got the stable door open. The building was solidly constructed, though a few of the siding boards 
did not fully fit, or were missing. Deeper than it was wide, it rose two stories, with the upper one 
consisting largely of a hayloft. A loading door was built into the front wall, but was closed. That door, 
along with the wide door at ground level, were the only ingresses. Two of the dozen stalls were in 
useone for storage of tools and old tack, the other with a broken-down farm horse.

 Resolute surveyed the stable and shook his head. Boy, get the horses put away, but dont unpack 
them.

 But it wont be good for them to stand here loaded up all night. I mean, that is what youve taught 
me, right?

 The Vorquelfs silver eyes became slits. Boy, if by some miracle we are here in the morning, we will 
rest them then. Chances are theyll be a gibberer feast. If we get the chance to run, we dont want to be 
saddling and loading horses.

 Wed run? Will led his horse to a stall and guided it in. But we would leave Sephi behind.

 Crow, having ascended a ladder to the hayloft, crouched at the upper floors edge. The only way we 
run is if the raiders torch the town or find themselves occupied and give us that chance. He moved 
forward, opening the upper door a crack. They have the fires burning, but looks like theyre not 
abandoning their posts.

 The Vorquelf snarled as he closed a horse in a stall. Fools. They should have listened to me. Ive 
killed more gibberers in one day than theyll see in a lifetime.

 The older man laughed. Would you have taken their advice, were you in their position?

 If they knew better than I did about something, yes.

 Will smiled over at him. You mean there might be something you dont know everything about?

 Dont be smart, boy. I know much more than you do about anything.

 Then you can tell me why Chytrine is attacking Stellin.

 Resolutes expression hardened. I dont know her mind, boy. It could be she is just being capricious. 
Attacking Stellin will do little for her, save creating fear. Some people may decide that King Augustus 
cant defend them, and that will create unrest for him. It could be that she wants him sending troops here, 
to the west, while she does something else in another spot. None of that matters, though, as her troops 
are here, now, and we have to deal with them.

 The inhuman cry of agony that split the early evening stopped Wills retort. Hed never heard anything 
like it. It sent a shiver down his spine that grew into the heart of his bones like black ice. Is that a 
frostclaw? A vylaen?

 Resolute shook his head. Just a farmer dying. Came from the south, so theyll be coming past the 


stable before they reach the inn.

stable before they reach the inn.

 Leave it open a crack.

 Why?

 Resolute led another horse into a stall. If youre a military leader and you find a building shut, what do 
you do?

 The youth shrugged as he guided a horse to a stall. Open it. Send a group in.

 And if its open?

 A scout.

 Resolute nodded. Good, boy, and when that scout doesnt return?

 Will slowly smiled. Another couple, who we kill, then he sends a bunch.

 More to kill. Resolute dragged along the string of packhorses and started slotting them into stalls. 
Crow, do you see them?

 Dont have your eyesight, my friend, but in the distance, yes. Crow stood and stretched. Coming 
before full night; theyre being very bold. I guess they dont fear anything here.

 Resolutes grin became purely predatory. Their mistake. He pulled a coil of rope from a wall peg 
and tossed it to Will.

 Tie this to the base of that post there, then stretch it across to that other post. Leave it slack for now, 
but when the time comes, youll pull it taut and tie it off here.

 Will caught the rope and nodded. When they rush in, theyll trip. I can hold it, you know.

 No you couldnt, boy, but it doesnt matter if you could. Youll have your hands full killing those who 
fall. The Vorquelf opened the pack on one of the horses and pulled out the longknives hed taken from 
the gibberers in the mountains. He left two near the post where Will was to be standing, then hung others 
from posts or rested them on shelves where they could come easily to hand.

 Mind a question, Resolute?

 What, Will?

 Crow has a sword. Why dont you have one?

 Resolute snorted. Do I tell him the truth, Crow?

 Some of it, perhaps, but quietly.

 In the brief bit of silence that followed Crows comment, Will could hear the sound of someone 
beating his fists on the tavern door. Demands to be let in rose in tone, with curses punctuating them as the 
voice became more shrill. Then a sizzling sound began to rise. Something brilliant and green flared 
outside, outlining Crow in emerald light, then subsided.

 As did the yelling.

 Resolute came over to Will. Crow will signal you when to tighten the rope. When they fall, just slash 
and stab. Be quick, very quick.

 I will be. Quick and nimble.

 The Vorquelf nodded thoughtfully. The reason I use longknives is because thats what I used to kill 
my first gib-berkin. On Vorquellyn, when I was not yet even your age. A longknife worked then, and so 
far, nothing better has come along. If you find something that would be better, let me know.

 Crows whisper carried down through the darkness. Get ready, my friends. This will either be the 
longest night of our lives, or the last one. Either way, as long as were killing Aurolani forces, it will be 
time well spent.

 Despite the nightmarish cacophony of howls and snarls from the gibberers filling the air, Will actually 
heard the first gibberer before he saw it. Before hiding behind the barn door, Resolute had gone to the 
stalls with a shovel and mucked out a sour, dripping mass of straw and manure. He spread this near the 
doorway and let the odor fill the stable.

 The gibberer sniffed at the cracked-open door and paused. Some of the horses shifted in their stalls 
and one neighed. The sniffing intensified, then the Aurolani creature poked his head into the stable. It 
looked about, its tufted ears up and alert, but the stamping of hooves clearly caught all of its attention. It 


pushed the door open just a little and slipped inside, its paws pressed back against the door so it could 
ease the door shut and survey the bounty it had found.

pushed the door open just a little and slipped inside, its paws pressed back against the door so it could 
ease the door shut and survey the bounty it had found.

 Resolute drove the dagger hed chosen for close work into the creatures back with serpentine speed. 
The gibberer at first stiffened, then uttered a muffled sigh and slackened.

 Leaving the blade in his victim because it would be useless in the coming melee, the Vorquelf dragged 
the corpse into the corner and unhooded it. He picked up one of the longknives arid returned to his place 
by the door to wait.

 Will dried his hands yet again on his thighs. Outside the stable a snarl-storm raged. He could hear yips 
and snaps from the gibberers. Crashes came from other buildings as homes were looted. In some places 
green light flashed again and again. Human voicesa mix of panic and commandplayed in 
counterpoint to the gibberer noise, but command slowly gave way to panic.

 Part of him hated waiting. It seemed so unheroic, even cowardly. It didnt matter that to charge out 
into the village would be suicidal. Somehow it seemed wrong that they werent killing gibberers as fast as 
they could.

 Another part of him knew that holding the stable would allow them to tie up and destroy more of the 
Aurolani raiders than they could in the tavern. Still, the fact that vylaens out there had magick meant that 
their fight would be shortened unless Crow could shoot the sorcerous creatures.

 His pulse pounded in his head in rough syncopation with the undulating din outside, for the gibberers 
had clearly determined the whole of the villages population had gathered in one spot for protection. Will 
flexed his hands, then wrapped them tightly around the rope. Pull hard, tie it off, and then cut and cut 
and cut... Soon, he knew, his time would come.

 Two more gibberers came, perhaps a bit bolder because the rest of the village lay abandoned, or a bit 
more wary because of the tang of blood in the air. They came through the doorway faster than the 
firstears up, longknives drawn, and eyes bright.

 Resolute hooded one and whirled it off into the stable wall. The creature hit hard and rebounded, but 
managed to stay on its feet. The second cleared the door and slashed at Resolute, catching the Vorquelf 
in the flank. Resolute hissed, then slashed back. His longknife bobbed an ear, clipped the skull, and 
staggered the gibberer.

 The one-eared beast stumbled back through the door and raised an alarm. Resolute spun and batted 
aside a weak slash by the hooded gibberer. Abandoning his longknife, the Vorquelf pulled the creature 
close to him, got a good grip on skull and muzzle. He wrenched the gibberers head around with a 
crackling pop, touching chin to spine, and let it drop.

 From above, Crow called down to Will. The rope, now,

 Will!

 Will hauled back, tightening the rope six inches above the floor. He quickly looped it around the post 
and knotted it. Resolute took that time to kick the stable door shut, then crossed the center area and 
filled his empty hands with two longknives.

 Crow, how many?

 A good little knot of them. Eight, ten, maybe. And, yes, there, a vylaen, but no frostclaws. Boards 
creaked above as Crow stood and drew back on his bow. Get down. The vy-laens going to blast the 
door.

 A sizzling hiss built, and green light shot in at the doorway. The spell slammed into the stable door, 
flinging it open. A black scorch mark wreathed in green flames marked the doors center. The ball of 
verdant fire skipped off the burning door and flew deeper into the stable. It slammed into a wall, 
exploding it outward, scattering fiery splinters into the street beyond.

 Gibberers, howling and hooting, barking and yowling, boiled through the doorway. The tripline jerked 
the initial three down into a heap. Two more following collapsed onto that mass of mottled fur and steel. 
Another gibberer vaulted its fallen comrades, but a quick slash from Resolute sent both halves of it 


spinning off into a dark corner.

spinning off into a dark corner.

 He moved as quickly as he could, but the new gibberers coming to the stable approached with more 
caution and did not trip. Some never made it into the stable as Crows arrows took them in the street. 
The others oriented almost immediately on Resolute, as his twin blades were clearly wreaking havoc. 
One, however, bared its fangs and came at Will.

 The thief ducked its initial slash and spun away, putting his back against a post. The gibberer slashed 
again, this time missing Will but sinking its blade into the post, trapping the weapon. Will laughed and 
stabbed it deep in the thigh with one blade, and knew he could easily carve its heart out before it ever got 
its longknife out of the post.

 The gibberer didnt even try to free the longknife. Its open-pawed slap snapped Wills head around 
and spun him toward the door. The thief caught his ankles on the rope and went down. Despite the 
ringing in his ears, and the taste of blood in his mouth, he did have the presence of mind to roll. He used 
the momentum to come up on his feet, but as he completed the maneuver a wave of dizziness washed 
over him and he careened drunkenly into the street.

 Spinning around, he dropped to one knee and looked back at the tavern. An arrow-stuck vylaen was 
struggling to its feet. Other gibberers dashed toward the stable, but the one hed stabbed came limping 
back out. It had its left paw jammed against the spurting hole in its thigh, and a gore-streaked longknife in 
its right paw.

 Shaking his head in a futile effort to clear it, Will looked down at his empty hands and felt betrayed. 
When he looked up again, the gibberer had gotten closer to him than he would have thought possible. 
The creature backhanded him with its bloody paw, sprawling him on his back, then raised the longknife 
for a thrust to the heart.

 Suddenly the gibberer bounced back, the longknife spinning in air. A spear had lanced down into its 
chest at an impossibly sharp angle. For the barest of moments, when the spear burst from its back and 
stabbed into the ground, it held the gibberer upright. The beast gurgled a bloody scream, then wrenched 
the spear free of the earth with its spasmodic jerking. The gibberer collapsed to the ground at Wills feet.

 The longknife thumped down beside it. An earsplitting screech split the night. Will caught sight of a 
winged creature arcing back up into the darkness. She seemed to him part ghost, so quickly did she fade, 
and part fantasyfor she had been long, lithe, and beautiful. Despite the evidence of the twitching 
gibberer at his feet, Will wondered if hed seen her at all, or if she were wholly an illusion.

 Coming up on one knee, he got his confirmation of her reality. The vylaen between stable and inn spun 
to track her flight, green fire kindling in its palms. The Aurolani mag-icker croaked and hissed in some 
arcane tongue and started to point skyward.

 Will fingered open the bladestar pouch and immediately whipped one of the missiles at the vylaen. It 
caught the beast in the shoulder, wringing a yelp of pain from it. The yelp seemed to spoil the spell, for 
the green fire died, and the poison ensured that a second later the vylaen did as well.

 His yelp, however, had summoned help. Four gibberers with longknives drawn ran into the street 
behind the tavern. They surveyed the damage with a sniff and never paused as they came at Will. A 
bladestar in the stomach slowed one, then dropped him. An arrow from the stables loft whirled another 
around into a slack-limbed heap of flesh. Resolutes emergence from the stable with his twin blades 
dripping blood stopped the other two in their tracks. Their ears flicked back and forth, then they turned 
and ran back toward the front of the inn.

 Gibberers started yelping, panic filling their voices. In the background came a deep bass rumble. It 
came from outside the village, but Will hadnt been able to place it by the time Resolute reached him and 
hauled him to his feet. What is that?

 Horses, a lot of horses. The Vorquelf jerked him back toward the stable. I dont know whats 


happening, but it has the gibberers scared, and thats something I like.

happening, but it has the gibberers scared, and thats something I like.

 He scrambled up the ladder to the loft to get a better look and slid over beside Crow, who had 
opened the door wider. From that vantage point they could see the roadway in front of the tavern. 
Horsemen gathered there, reining back anxious chargers, reporting and waiting on orders. They all gave 
their attention to their leader, and Will found his gaze drawn to her as well.

 He wasnt sure why, but he told himself that it wasnt because she was beautifulthough there was no 
denying she was easy on the eyes. She sat astride a majestic black horse with gold-washed ringmail over 
it. Her long, white-blonde hair had been pulled back into a thick braid that snaked out from beneath her 
gold helm. The snarling-wolf visor had been raised, revealing a face with noble features, from the high 
cheekbones and strong chin to the long, straight nose and full lips.

 The way she sat the horse, too, demanded attention, for even her long surcoat of gold ringmail did not 
stoop he shoulders or bow her back. She sat straight and tall, listening intently, nodding curtly, then 
pointing and barking orders that riders immediately carried out.

 Her voice, when it reached him, had a richness that belied its higher pitch. The sentences came short 
and must have been clear, since no one questioned the orders. The swiftness with which her orders were 
obeyed suggested a confidence in her that would have seemed improbable, given how young she 
appeared.

 Will started to comment about that when Crow shoved him roughly aside. In an instant the older man 
drew an arrow back to his cheek and let fly. A second too late, Will recovered himself and grabbed 
Crows leg, hoping to upset his aim. It struck him as inconceivable that Crow could have gone insane and 
shot her, but there seemed no other explanation for his action.

 Then, looking to see if she was unharmed, Will saw a dying vylaen spill out of the alley across the 
square. Green fire poured from its hands like oil, lighting the way for a small group of gibberers. Howling 
furiously, the Aurolani troops threw themselves at the horsemen, and the last glimpse Will caught of the 
golden woman was to see her drawing a heavy saber and spurring her horse into the midst of the enemy.

 Crow grabbed Will by the collar and spun him around. Get down to the horses now. Resolute, wed 
better move fast. These riders are chasing the gibberers out of town.

 The Vorquelf nodded and started leading horses from the stalls. Well head south.

 Will climbed down the ladder, then jumped the last two yards. Why not wait and talk to her?

 We dont know her or why shes here; and we dont need to be delayed by some bandit queen. 
Crow, with his bow and quiver slung over his left shoulder, swung from the ladder into the saddle of his 
horse. Worse case, they demand ransom from us and were stuck.

 Agreed. Resolute boosted Will into the saddle, then handed him the lead for the packhorses. 
Follow Crow south; Ill catch up with you.

 What are you going to do?

 Theyre chasing gibberers. Ill give them something unusual to chase. The Vorquelf knelt beside a 
gibberer body and tugged down its lower lip. He smiled, then stuck thumbs into its nostrils and pressed 
his fingers against its eyes. He started chanting in a low voice and one of the tattoos on his left forearm 
started to glow. The gibberer shook like a flag in a stiff breeze, then rolled to its feet and ran off through 
the hole in the stable wall. The fact that it lacked most of its right arm and had a gaping wound on that 
side of its chest didnt seem to bother it at all.

 Resolute pointed at the door. Go, go quickly. Couple more of these decoys and well be clear. We 
ride south for near a day, then its east, northeast, Fortress Draconis bound.

 rpihe arrow flew close enough to Alyxs face that she could I feel the wind of its passing. She instantly 
sighted back 1 along the flightline and picked the stable hayloft as the source of the shot. The guttural 


gasp coming from her left, however, served to distract her from seeking out the assassin.

gasp coming from her left, however, served to distract her from seeking out the assassin.

 A cloven-skulled gibberer dropped to the dirt. Valors charge battered another back, then Alyx 
shattered the arm a third gibberer had raised to ward off a blow. It howled, and the return cut that 
stroked its throat ended that protest in a froth of red bubbles.

 Alyx looked up as a gibberers silhouette rose on a rooftop. The moons light glinted coldly from a 
longknifes edge. The creature gathered itself to leap down on her. She brought her sword up and 
stabbed toward the creature, knowing shed impale the gibberer even as it knocked her from the saddle. 
At least, if he is dead when we land, its one problem solved.

 Before the gibberer could leap, however, a screech sounded and a winged figure swept through the 
air. The braided rope loop she carried settled around the gibberers throat and jerked him backward off 
the roof edge. With a powerful beat of wings, the Gyrkyme struck for the sky, letting the noose tighten, 
then dragged the strangling gibberer from Alyxs sight.

 Other riders plunged forward, driving the gibberers back into the alley or along the road. Some of the 
Aurolani beasts managed to cut and dodge, prolonging their lives, while others who relied on speed to 
escape quickly writhed at the end of sharp lances. Alyxs troops offered the gibberers no more mercy or 
quarter than the Aurolani had offered the elves of Vorquellyn or the people of Okrannel. They hunted 
them down and slew them ruthlessly, not out of any sense of vengeance, but with the righteous fury of a 
people defending their kind against predation.

 Alyx reined Valor around and trotted him back toward the city square. The Gyrkyme landed in the 
center of the grassy patch, furling brown wings. Her folded wings towered above her head. Brown spots 
dappled the ivory down that covered her body from toes to crown. Darker down did surround her large 
amber eyes, trailing down into her cheeks as might tears. Save for a brown loincloth and a brown leather 
halter, the winged woman remained naked.

 Alyx smiled at her. How many left in the town, Peri?

 The Gyrkyme shook her head once, sharply. Runners, scattered. The Red Caps are after them and 
securing the town. Most are east and Green Company has them. A few frostclaws, too, but dying fast. 
Blue is coming around from the south to cut off their retreat.

 Good. Fly back to White Company and bring them in.

 As you wish, Highness. Peri spread her wings preparatory to launching herself skyward.

 Wait. Alyx smiled and held up a hand. Thank you for saving me, sister.

 Peri winked. Family tradition, Alyx. Be back fast with the Whites.

 The Gyrkyme vanished into the night sky and Alyx turned her attention to the inn. She nodded to a 
warrior in her bodyguard company. He rode to the door, dismounted, and pounded his fist on the door. 
In the name of the Gold Wolf, open this door!

 A few screams and panicked shouts made it out through shuttered windows. A strong male voice 
broke through the din. Leave us alone. We have nothing for you.

 Returning her saber to its scabbard, Alyx nudged her horse forward a few steps. Listen to me, and 
do so very carefully. My troops have run the gibberers off. We own your town, but I will ransom it back 
to you. For every heartbeat you delay in emerging, the price goes higher.

 The thunder of a horsemans approach overrode the discussion raging inside. Agitare, with a red strip 
of cloth flying from the spike atop his helm, reined his horse to a stop before her. He leaped from the 
saddle and dropped to one knee, crossing his arms, with fists jammed against opposite shoulders.

 Highness, I cannot express my mortification

 Alyx slapped her gloved hand against her right thigh, bringing the soldiers head up. Why are you 
wasting time to apologize for not having secured the town when the town is yet to be secured?

 I didnt think 


 You didnt, not at all. She pointed at his horse. Get back in that saddle. I want you to report, 
truthfully, that you have checked every home and building for gibberers, and I want it reported before the 
moon slips into the Sailing Ship. Go!

 You didnt, not at all. She pointed at his horse. Get back in that saddle. I want you to report, 
truthfully, that you have checked every home and building for gibberers, and I want it reported before the 
moon slips into the Sailing Ship. Go!

 Permission to aid Captain Agitare in his assignment, General?

 She considered his request for a moment. At least Ebrius has learned that calling me Highness is 
not a way to deflect my anger. No, Ebrius, you will see to that which your position demands. The 
stable. An arrow from the loft killed a vylaen set to attack me. Seek the archer who kept me alive. Get 
going.

 As Ebrius trotted his horse off, the click of a bolt being shot back sounded from the tavern and the 
door opened. A man emerged and the door shut after him immediately. He pressed his hands back 
against the door, then brought them forward, empty. He took a step toward her, then dropped to a knee, 
bowing his head. I am Quintus.

 And I am the Gold Wolf. You know of me?

 Yes, we have heard tales.

 And you fear me?

 No, because the stories ...

 Alyx put an edge into her voice. Do not lie to me, Quintus. Your fear stains your words. I prefer 
honest fear to lies wrapped in false courage.

 Yes, we fear you. The mans shoulders slumped a little with the admission. How may I serve you?

 Attend me, Quintus, walk with me. We go to your stables. She guided Valor around the tavern and 
Quintus quickly caught up with her. He glanced up as he paced beside her right leg. In his eyes she 
caught a wariness, as if he expected her to lash out at him with boot or reins.

 The tableau around the stable stopped both of them short. A half-dozen or more gibberers lay in a 
heap. Black-fletched arrows had stolen each of their lives. Alyx measured the distance from the loft to 
the targets and figured that while the range was short, shooting at night with the sort of accuracy 
displayed was no easy feat. Especially the long shot.

 She dismounted and tossed Valors reins to Quintus. Three long strides took her to a vylaen that had 
an arrow in one shoulder and a curious, star-shaped metal weapon buried in the other. The dark foam on 
the creatures lips suggested it had been poisoned.

 Ebrius emerged from the stable with sword drawn. More in here, General, many more. The gibberers 
lost a third of their strength here.

 She nodded. How many helped the archer?

 Ebrius squatted and studied tracks. At least two. I have three sets of tracks overlaid on the gibberers 
tracks. One is very big, one large as men go, and the third is a boy. He pointed off on a line toward the 
gibberer that had Peris spear run through it. The boy ran along that way. Looks as if Perrine saved 
him. 

And perhaps he returned the favor. Alyx glanced from the vylaen to the spear, then looked at the 
tracks left by the vylaens last steps. She could tell the beast had been looking toward the gibberer who 
had been speared, then turned away. In her minds eye she could easily see the little beast following 
Peris swoop, tracking her, so it could loose a spell that would kill her. The vylaens paws showed signs 
of charring, from a spell gathered but not cast, which fixed the sequence of events firmly in her mind.

 She thought for a moment, then nodded. Ebrius, when the Whites get here, I want all of this 
recorded. Measure it, angles, everything. Theres an odd weapon here and its been poisoned. Save it, 
anything like it, and the arrows. I want our best archers to re-create the shot to the square, a hundred 
trials, on a target the size of a vylaen.

 At once, Gold Wolf.

 Alyx turned to Quintus. Who did you have in the stable?

 The man hesitated, his eyes growing wide for a moment. Travelers. They came through before, a 


week ago, and back again tonight. We had no room for them in the inn, so we sent them to the stables. A 

week ago, and back again tonight. We had no room for them in the inn, so we sent them to the stables. A 

 Names?

 I dont know. I dont know them, didnt talk much to them.

 Her eyes narrowed. Pity, because one of them either tried to kill me, or saved my life. Knowledge of 
who they are would be ransom enough for this place.

 Stellin, my lady.

 One of them was named Stellin?

 No, my lady, this place is called Stellin. Quintus held his hands up. I do not know them, but they left 
a girl here. I can get her. She would know them.

 Go. Do it. Now.

 He made to hand her the reins, then dropped them as if they were vipers when she waved him away. 
She crouched by the vylaen and frowned. She had been following the Aurolani raiders for over a week. 
They had largely managed to elude her, but her trackers read the signs of disparate bands coming 
together. She knew their raids would have scant military impact on the area, but razing crofts, 
slaughtering travelers, and, in a large enough group, sacking a town would inject a serious amount of 
concern into the populace.

 What struck her as curious was that three warriors had killed close to a dozen and a half of the 
Aurolani raiders, but had not remained in town to recover the person theyd left behind, nor to speak 
with her. The men who could kill this many would not fear me the way Quintus does. Outlaws 
would have gladly joined her band. Their running meant they wanted to remain undiscovered, but their 
having fought the Aurolani suggested their reasons for remaining covert did not include their being in 
Chytrines employ.

 Quintus breathless return with a girl interrupted her thoughts. This is the one.

 The raven-haired girl bowed her head. Sephi, mistress, I am Sephi.

 Alyx slowly stood and looked down at the girl. And I am the Gold Wolf. You came into Stellin with 
the people in the stable. Who were they?

 The girls body shook with a tremendous sob, then she dropped to her knees and covered her face 
with her hands. It was horrible, mistress.

 Tell me, child. Alyx did not soften her voice, but lowered the volume a touch. What do you know 
of them?

 My uncle and I met them here, a week back. They left the town before we did, saying they were 
going into the mountains. We left in the company of hunters the next day. These three, they accosted us. 
They killed my uncle and the hunters, and took me. Again she sobbed, and let a silent cry of anguish 
finish as a pitiful wail. They were going to keep me for their pleasure, or sell me, they said, but the 
gib-berers drove them back here. I could tell no one. They said they would kill me, but I know you will 
protect me.

 Indeed, child, I shall. Alyx looked past Sephi, along the alley that ran behind the tavern. There Peri 
landed noiselessly. Beyond her were three riders who remained in shadows.

 Alyx turned to Quintus. My people are securing the town. Your people will return to their homes and 
will billet my men. We will leave tomorrow, and we will take Sephi with us. Go, make the arrangements, 
keep an accounting of what we owe our hosts. House Sephi here at the inn. This is where I shall stay as 
well.

 Quintus blinked at her. You want us to present you a bill for your stay here?

 I dont like saying things more than once, Quintus. A

 second time I may not say the same thing, understand? Alyx frowned at him. The stable and this area 
is to be off-limits to everyone until we are done here. And take the girl with you. Go!

 Sephi bent forward and kissed Alyxs boots, then Quintus dragged her roughly from the ground. 
Come, girl, youll not be making her repeat herself.

 Once they had vanished around the corner to the tavern, Alyx walked over to where Peri waited 
before the riders. She smiled at the Gyrkyme. That was a clean kill with the spear. 


 Peri blinked her eyes slowly. The gibberkin was distracted. She raised her left hand, which came 
naturally with three fingers and a thumb. The talons on the thumb and forefinger had been clipped back 
short, but the other two hooked nastily. It was going to come back for the vy-laen, but found other 
prey.

 Peri blinked her eyes slowly. The gibberkin was distracted. She raised her left hand, which came 
naturally with three fingers and a thumb. The talons on the thumb and forefinger had been clipped back 
short, but the other two hooked nastily. It was going to come back for the vy-laen, but found other 
prey.

 The smallest of the riders, a little man with a face so wrinkled it looked like a portrait painted on 
wadded canvas, smiled. I have already communicated a message of victory to Yslin. He held up a 
small, rectangular slate as long as his forearm and half as wide. There is no reply yet on the arcanslata, 
but the message was only just sent.

 She nodded. We did win, but we had help. A trio. A girl who rode with them would have me believe 
they are cutthroats and rapists, but that does not seem consistent with what they did defending the stable. 
We will conduct interviews, see how much we can learn of them, and have a full report as soon as 
possible. It would be advisable to have others watch for them.

 The third rider, a slender man, leaned forward in the saddle, resting his crossed forearms on his 
horses neck. 

f

 You need not be so grim, Highness. What we have seen in the week weve spent with you is beyond 
our expectation. You did well here; you won. The Jeranese general Adrogans will find himself a new rival 
when it comes to leading the fight to liberate Okrannel. You should take pride in this.

 With all due respect, my lord, I certainly would not count myself as a rival to Adrogans and I wont 
take pride until I know all the details. We missed a group that could have done serious harm, and I need 
to know how and why that happened. The trio in the stable got out of Stellin, likely slipping past Blue 
Company as it moved east to cut off the gibberers. Had those three not destroyed as many of the enemy 
as they did, well, how would we have fared? There are too many unanswered questions for me to be 
pleased or proud yet.

 Peri laid her right hand on Alyxs left shoulder. My sister, she is Gyrkyme in all but wings. If she 
chose, she could fly.

 You are no doubt correct, Perrine. The other rider, a thickset man, reached up and adjusted the 
patch he wore over his right eye. Your caution does you great credit, Highness. You are indeed all that 
was hoped. This we will communicate to our masters.

 Alyx nodded slowly. Temper the report with reality. I have been trained to do something that will 
become legend. Assuming I can do exactly that before the act must be performed is pure folly. The 
saving of Stellin is a good sign, but reading the future from it is, at best, tricky. We have much more to 
learn and do, and your masters should know that this is exactly what I will continue to do.

 fT]he ride south exhausted Will, and the necessity of post-I ing a watch when they did stop to rest 
meant he never JL got enough in the way of sleep. What he found most disturbing about this was the 
nature of the dreams he had. Over and over again he found himself watching the winged woman kill the 
gibberer, then return after the Crow killed the vylaen. She enfolded him in arms and wings, hugging him to 
her to express her gratitude at saving her life.

 To be awoken in the midst of one of those dreams produced embarrassmentand Resolute seemed 
preternatu-rally adept at knowing just when to wake him up. Will would assume his duties and return to 
the dreams when his watch was over; but dawn would arrive before the dreams had come to any fruition.

 On the road he mentioned the dreams to Crow. The older man smiled and shot him a wink. Not 
really a surprise is it, that you would dream about her? She saved your life and you likely saved hers. She 
was beautiful. Trysting with someone exotic like that would be an adventure.

 Resolute turned in the saddle and snorted. So would consorting with sheep, but that does not mean 
such things would be recommended.

 Crow frowned. Is that a traditional elven view of Gyrkyme coming from you, Resolute? 


 The Vorquelf shook his head. Im as much of an alien creature in the eyes of my brethren as they are. 
My concerns for the boys blood. Coupling with her likely wont do the prophecy any help, so Id not 
recommend it.

 The Vorquelf shook his head. Im as much of an alien creature in the eyes of my brethren as they are. 
My concerns for the boys blood. Coupling with her likely wont do the prophecy any help, so Id not 
recommend it.

 Centuries ago, back before Chytrine was a threat, there was a sorcerer, Kirun, who ensorcelled an 
elven prince and his band of champions. He caused them to mate with a flock of araftsavage aerial 
creatures with the head and body of a woman, but wings, feathers, and talons of an eagle. Their union 
produced the first Gyrkyme, who then bred true. Crow gestured back toward the mountains where they 
had visited Oracle. The urZrethi created Gyrvirgul for them, to the disgust of the elves, who see them as 
bestial rapeget.

 A low growl issued from Resolutes throat. It doesnt help that many of the Gyrkyme, early on, 
pressed claims to the properties of their fathers. Their society is a parody of elven society, or so most 
elves see it. But the few Ive met are fierce warriors, so theyve earned my respect.

 The youth frowned. You said I couldnt get a child on her, but elves got children on the Araft, how 
is that?

 The Vorquelf shrugged. Most say it was Kiruns mag-ick, which means it wasnt a natural thing at all. 
When it has happened, when an elf has gotten a woman with child rare though that isthe child is 
accepted. For the sake of your blood though, you should abandon thought of the exotic. Its better you 
were dreaming of Sephi.

 Will smiled. Not so hard to do. I wonder how shes making out, given that we rode out with all her 
stuff, and that of her uncle.

 The Vorquelf shook his head. She wont miss ratty clothes.

 Shed probably want her uncles book, too, and the other things.

 Crow glanced over at Will. Book? Other things?

 Some bugboardsyou know, the cedar things to keep bugs away from cloth. The book has 
drawings and words and things.

 Why didnt you mention this before?

 I did, to Resolute, when we were loading up and you were tending her.

 The Vorquelf nodded as he reined his horse around a bend in the game trail they were following 
through the hills. He did mention it, Crow. With the girl around, there was no way to talk to you about it. 
The book didnt surprise me, given hes a sorcerer.

 Will scratched at the back of his neck. How did you know that?

 The gibberer had been killed by magick and Distalus face had been peeled. Gibberers tend to think 
of magickers as being possessed by the ghosts of vylaens. They peel the flesh off faces to let the ghosts 
out, so they can be reborn into vylaens. The more and louder the screams, the more powerful the ghost.

 Will shivered, then reached back and pulled Distalus saddlebags off the rump of his horse. He dug 
around in one of them and handed the book to Crow. Maybe this will make sense to you.

 Crow opened the book and turned to the place marked with the strip of wood. The writing is coded, 
but we have a drawing of Stellin, marking strengths and weaknesses. He tapped the page with the 
bookmark. More importantly, we have a strip here of magilex wood, stained to look like blackoak.

 Resolute reined his horse to a stop and turned it around. Why didnt you tell me about this before, 
boy?

 Will shrugged. Probably because I didnt know about it. What is it?

 What else did they have? Bugboards, you said? Crow closed the book and laid the magilex strip 
against the cover. Give them to me.

 Will found the one in Distalus bag easily and handed it to Crow. He had to dismount and run back to 
one of the packhorses and rummage around before he found the other one. He raced back and handed it 
to the man. What do you think it is?

 Crow pressed the two pieces of bugboard long edge to long edge, with the slot connecting them 
across the top. He slotted the magilex strip in there, sliding it first left and then to the right, where it 
caught and held when the groove narrowed slightly. In an instant a blue flash passed over the wooden 


tablet and left in its wake burning blue characters.

tablet and left in its wake burning blue characters.

 Crow shook his head. I dont recognize the script. Resolute?

 The Vorquelf stared at it for a moment, then frowned. Ive not seen its like before. Probably code, 
like the book.

 Crow snapped the magilex strip out of the slot and the writing vanished. So, they each had half an 
arcanslata with them. Combining the two halves and using the mageoak to connect them, thats fairly 
sophisticated magick. A map of Stellin in the book with descriptions in code. Id say they were spying for 
someone.

 For Oriosa. Will smiled. Definitely Oriosa.

 The Vorquelf arched an eyebrow at him. And how did you come to that conclusion?

 The coins in Distalus purse. A good mix, some are fake, and none are from Oriosa.

 The older man smiled. Circumstantial proof, but interesting. Since the arcanslata allows them to 
communicate with their masters instantly, do you think they were told to look for us and thats why they 
followed us into the mountains?

 Resolute slowly shook his head. If they were looking for us, they would not have spun the tale about 
going to Yslin. I would bet when waiting in Stellin they were told that you and I had passed through 
before, years ago, with Oracle. They followed, trying to track us, but failed. Because of her prophecy at 
the time of the expedition, shes known, so they were probably sent to find her. Her location would be of 
value to Scrainwoods people.

 Will closed his eyes as facts collided in his head. But, if what Distalus said about King Scrainwood is 
true, and hes working for Chytrine, why would the gibberers have killed Distalus?

 Crow half smiled. While Scrainwood might provide sanctuary for Aurolani forces within Oriosa, he 
denies that he does the same to his peers, and will send them reports from his scouts about possible 
movements of Aurolani forces. He plays both ends against the middle, but because he provides value to 
both sides, no one kills him. Chances are Chytrine did not know Scrainwood had spies in the area.

 Or, offered Resolute as he reined his horse around and started off again, she did and wanted them 
killed.

 Mulling over the variety of permutations of who knew what, when, and where kept Will busy for much 
of the time he spent awake. They traveled east-northeast, following a river valley that skirted Yslin to the 
south. They kept away from towns, preferring to move through the woodlands along woodsman-tracks 
or game trails. Their travels took them a weekthe whole of ten daysand proceeded along what Will 
took to thinking of as the outlaw path.

 In the hills and hollows, as night fell, they would find caves or clearings where others had gathered. 
Mostly men, but not a few women, all of them looking lean and hungrycloser to a pack of wolves than 
a gathering of humans. The nature of the people surprised Will because in the Dimandowns he was used 
to hard men, bad men; but they seemed soft compared to those who had been chased into the 
wilderness. Most of the outlaws seemed almost feral. Will had no doubt that if cornered in a city, theyd 
tear their citified counterparts asunder. 

In the city, you have enemies who want to kill you. Out here, everything wants you to die, and 
only the maggots will notice your passing.

 Names werent used on the outlaw path. No one asked where they were going, just where theyd 
come from and what theyd seen. Will figured half the replies were outright lies; and the other half were 
elaborated to the point of being of little use.

 At one place, a green dell with some standing stones and a stream meandering past, an older 
manwho bore a passing resemblance to Crownodded as he sucked on a pipe. Id be being careful, 
were I you. Come from east, I have. Riders been asking after three traveling together: a Vork, a man, 
and a boy. Wouldnt be wanting you to be mistook for them. These must be desperate men, what with 
soldiers inquiring.

 Crow laughed gently. Not us, friend. Weve done aught but kill gibberers and eat plump berries 
plucked from trail-side. Likely King Augustus might be wanting us to show him the best bushes. 


 Well, youll find berry-picking spotty as you go on, but your other pastime, itll keep you busy. He 
shook his head. Theyve been a bother before, but now theyre a bit more organized. Striking at farms 
and a few villages, which is why youll see families on the path.

 Well, youll find berry-picking spotty as you go on, but your other pastime, itll keep you busy. He 
shook his head. Theyve been a bother before, but now theyre a bit more organized. Striking at farms 
and a few villages, which is why youll see families on the path.

 The man nodded. Ive seen worse. Was in Jerana when Chytrine took Okrannel. I remember them 
streaming over the borders. This is just a trickle, but soon enough, my friends, if she comes south, well 
have ourselves a flood.

 After that night they hid themselves away from even the outlaws. The logic of the decision was as 
inescapable as it was simple. If soldiers were looking for them, the fewer people who saw them the 
better. Picking their way through the countryside off an established route did slow them down, but there 
were several days where only birds, beasts, and plants marked their passage.

 That isolation ended the tenth day out of Stellin, at weeks end. Their supplies were beginning to run 
low. They came across a small cultivated plot deep in the woods northeast of Yslin, almost to the 
Saporician border. A small wooden house sat in the middle of the plot and had obviously been 
constructed from the trees cleared from the field.

 After a hushed conversation at the forest edge, they decided to let Will approach the house and ask if 
he could buy some foodmeat that had been salted away, meal or flour, cheese, or anything else that 
might be available. The fact that no smoke drifted from the chimney suggested the building might be 
empty, in which case Will could employ his skills to get supplies and leave money in exchange.

 The idea of leaving money, as well as the admonition to not take the best of whatever was to be found, 
rankled. Will fully understood that the supplies hed be taking were valuableif they werent, why 
would I be taking them? Leaving money for them, though, that was just rewarding the householder for 
not protecting his house well enough. Likely someone will come in, take the rest of his supplies and 
the money I leave behind.

 He smiled as he rode toward the house and decided hed leave the counterfeit coins as payment. As a 
lesson.

 Halfway to the house, he reined his horse around to a shallow spot in a ditch that cut across the plot. 
The course deviation let him see a new patch of forest past the house. There, emerging into the field from 
an arch of green foliage, came five gibberers leading a bearded prisoner. The naked man, whose hands 
had been lashed to a pole running across the small of his back, had a noose hung round his neck and 
stumbled forward as a gibberer jerked the rope.

 Without conscious thought, Will kicked his horse in the ribs and galloped toward the gibberers. His 
right hand went to the bladestar pouch. His first throw spun one of the metal projectiles into a gibberers 
belly. It howled sharply, then mewed and toppled over. The second throw caught the rope-wielder high 
in the chest. It staggered, then dropped face first to the ground, pulling the man down with it.

 A black-fletched arrow whizzed past him, nipping at the upper leaves of the half-grown corn stalks. It 
passed through a gibberers forearm and pierced its chest, pinning the limb. The gibberkins outraged yip 
melted into a gurgle that dripped red from its nostrils. A second arrow came in with a bit more arc, 
passing clean through another gibberers chest. A squirt of blood pumped out a hole in its breast, then its 
beady eyes rolled up and it toppled over.

 The last gibberer moved from behind the captive and brandished the spear it had been carrying over 
its shoulder. Will reined back on his horse and the beast came around to present its flank to the gibberer. 
Will got a bladestar and threw it across his body, but the gibberer flicked it out of the air with the 
spear-point.

 The gibberer charged and Will leaped from the saddle. He drew his longknife and ducked between 
rows of corn, letting the gibberers first lunge slide past him. He figured he could time the lunges, move 
inside, and kill the gibberer, but the Aurolani soldier had other ideas. It scythed the spear to the side, 
smacking Will in the flank and driving him into the open. There it stalked him as an arrow whipped past 
its back.

 Will struck a guard with the longknife, hoping Crow would kill the gibberkin, but another arrow 
passed ineffectually high over the gibberers crouch. Come on, Crow! 


 The captive surged to his feet. For a half second Will thought the hirsute man would rush the gibberer, 
but he hesitated. From ground level the man appeared to be huge, with enough muscles to make even the 
most brawny blacksmith envious. Those muscles bunched, and the stout pole to which his wrists had 
been tied snapped cleanly across his back. The thundercrack caused the gibberer to turn toward him and 
lunge.

 The captive surged to his feet. For a half second Will thought the hirsute man would rush the gibberer, 
but he hesitated. From ground level the man appeared to be huge, with enough muscles to make even the 
most brawny blacksmith envious. Those muscles bunched, and the stout pole to which his wrists had 
been tied snapped cleanly across his back. The thundercrack caused the gibberer to turn toward him and 
lunge.

 The man tossed the gibberers body casually aside. He turned toward Will and snarled. He started 
forward, his hands clawing their way down into fists.

 Will stepped back, raising his hands. Wait, I helped free you. I wasnt going to steal anything from 
your house here, honest.

 The man paid his words no heed. A step further and he dropped to his knees. Tearing at the rope 
encircling his throat, the man flopped to the ground. Will heard a strangled sigh, then the man lay very 
still.

 Alyx stood alone at the forest edge, looking down to where the plains spread out to the east. She 
hugged her right arm around her chest, held her chin between thumb and forefinger of her left hand. A 
breeze coming up from the plains teased her white-gold hair, but even the tendrils of it lashing her face 
did not break her concentration.

 Sitting astride the Salersena Riverwhich once, long ago, had marked the Alcidese border with 
Oriosathe town of Porasena had surrounded itself with stone walls. Towers warded the gates where 
the river ran through the town, with chains stretched across it to prevent boats moving along. Washing 
fluttered from lines strung between buildings, and merchants still filled the central square with their gaily 
colored pavilionsthough crowds were not thronging there this morning.

 Green fields, clearly cultivated, surrounded the city. Along with foodstuffs moving up or down the 
river, these fields would have provided the necessities of life for the five thousand inhabitants. The new 
crop in those fields, however, a host of Aurolani troops, did not promise life at all. Their dark tendrils 
spread through the fields like fungus, and gangly, insectoid siege machines rose amid their camps.

 Fingering her lower lip, Alyx studied the arrangement of troops over the terrain. Across the river, 
several miles off, started the foothills that marked the far side of the valley and the current border with 
Oriosa. Alyx knew the raiders had come from Oriosa. Scouts and survivors of the raids on the border 
fortresses had made that quite evident despite the Oriosan ambassadors denials. Once she attacked, the 
raiders would withdraw into Oriosa, and she could not pursue themher guise as a bandit chieftain 
would be stripped away because part of her attacking force would consist of the Alcidese Kings Horse 
Guards.

 Replies to reports of the success at Stellin had contained information about the force laying siege to 
Porasena. Raiding bands of Aurolani gibberers and vylaens had given way to a larger, more organized 
force. While using arcanslata to keep abreast of the situation and requesting the personnel and materiel 
needed to counter the threat, Alyx had force-marched her core unit across the nation, skirting Yslin. She 
had sent a small contingent off to the capital and had them take Sephi with them. The rest had come 
immediately to the forested hills above the plains of Sena.

 She heard Peri land nearby, but did not turn to look at her.

 I never thought I would see you petulant, my sister.

 Is that what they think, Peri?

 They are getting to that point. The Gyrkyme rested a hand on her left shoulder. They are restless. 
General Caro is fair to bursting with ideas of what his heavy cavalry will do down on those plains.

 And the others?

 Caro has quite a personality, Alyx. He served with the king in Okrannel. His fame is not undeserved. 


He trained many of them, or has known of them for years. The longer you delay, the easier it is for him to 
win them over.

He trained many of them, or has known of them for years. The longer you delay, the easier it is for him to 
win them over.

 Peri blinked big amber eyes. I have scouted all over and I have seen no reinforcements lurking 
anywhere. It makes no sense. Must be the Aurolani commander is stupid.

 Could be, my sister, could be, but I cannot count on that. I have to wonder why he would sacrifice 
half his force. He had to know troops would come here to answer the invasion. The town has water, it 
has food enough to last for at least a month, and we can bring in supplies through the unprotected half of 
the city. We can just float them down the river.

 What about the rivers weirunV

 The river spirit, at last report, favored Porasena. Its always been very quiet and proud of the 
prosperity trading brings the town. This is not to say Chytrine could not have turned it, but were that to 
happen, I would expect to see the river level falling, causing water problems for the town.

 You think this tidbit of army is here as bait?

 Yes, but for what? Alyx tucked hair behind her right ear. General Caro? That makes no sense. 
Breaking a premier unit of the Alcidese cavalry will really gain Chytrine little. She would do better to lay 
siege to Fortress Draconis, with her troops here preventing us from sending reinforcements north. No, 
something is going on here and I dont like that I cannot puzzle it out.

 Now, that is my sister.

 Alyx smiled. This leaves me only one choice, of course.

 Yes?

 They offer us half a force as bait. I say we double their cost. She turned from the plains and started 
marching toward her armys encampment. Chytrine wants us here for a reason, and well give her a 
chance to think on why that wasnt a good idea.

 She walked alone into the woods, for Peri took to the air again, flying high above the brambles and 
little branches that tugged at Alexs tunic and trousers. Two sentries moved to intercept her, then 
recognition flashed on both of their faces. The man, from one of the light foot companies, smiled and 
saluted. The other, a woman from the Red Caps, immediately challenged her.

 Alyx offered the proper countersign, then pointed at the infantryman. At the end of your watch, report 
yourself for dereliction of duty to your commanding officer. I will be checking.

 The man started to stammer a comment, but his companion smacked him in the chest with an open 
hand, then saluted sharply. The infantryman aped the salute and Alyx returned it. She kept on going, 
allowing the growled conversation by those in her wake to go unnoticed.

 Weary soldiers dragged themselves to their feet as she passed. Those who stood proudest were her 
own Wolves. The others paid her the respect due to her rank, but she could read a distrust in their eyes. 
The other generals in the Alcidese army were well known and had a history in which one could take 
confidence. She was unknown, and as dangerous to the soldiers as a lordling with a gold-bought 
commission and a love of parading.

 She walked through the wooded campsite, threading a phalanx of trees and soldiers, heading for the 
pavilion that had been erected in a sandy depression at the hilltop. She kept her head high, her strides 
long. She did not acknowledge waves or nods, but kept on going, sparing not even an encouraging 
glance for warriors who had bled for her in the past and would likely do so again in the future.

 Two soldiers pulled aside the flaps to the pavilion. She entered and paused in the opening, allowing the 
flaps to close behind her. It took her eyes a heartbeat or two to adjust to the darkness. As things came 
into view she catalogued each emerging impression. She analyzed everything as if the meeting itself were 
a campaign, and she knew winning it would go a long way to winning against the forces on the plains.

 A long, narrow table ran down the pavilions center. Maps had been laid out on itone of the valley 


and one of the city. Wooden blocks painted in various colors had been placed on the maps to show the 
location of troops, and her quick scan of their placement told her someone had been projecting 
movements for the next day.

and one of the city. Wooden blocks painted in various colors had been placed on the maps to show the 
location of troops, and her quick scan of their placement told her someone had been projecting 
movements for the next day.

 Other officers, mostly younger, surrounded him. Their mild laughter tailed off as they realized she had 
entered the tent. They glanced silently at Caro, then her, and waited for something to happen.

 Opposite that knot of people stood her supporters. Ebrius, out of his armor and looking 
uncomfortable for it, watched Caro and his people with the eyes of a forest bandit spying rich merchants 
coming down the road. Captain Agitare, wearing his companys red cap tipped back a bit on his head, 
had a timorous smile twisting the corners of his thin-lipped mouth. Hed been ordered to attend the 
meeting, but he did not know why, and clearly feared she would dress him down in front of the others for 
Stellin.

 Lastly, Peri stood back, blinking lazily, and studying her talons when any of Caros men allowed stares 
to linger too long on her lithe beauty. That was a game Alyx had watched her sister play many times, with 
men and Gyrkyme alike. She knew both parties enjoyed it, but found it to be pure frippery. That this 
flirtation seemed to sharpen the senses and bleed off anxiety was the only purpose she could see to it.

 Caro set his cup of wine on the table and bowed his head to her. Princess Alexia of Okrannel, a 
pleasure to see you again. Did you see anything out there this morning that will change our course of 
battle tomorrow?

 Alyx didnt answer, but instead crossed to the far side of the table and studied the positions. Caro had 
the light foot infantry coming down the slopes toward the plains, with the heavy infantry upstream. His 
heavy cavalry came down from the north, along the river, to crush the Aurolani forces arrayed on the 
west side of the river.

 A fascinating plan, General. She reached out and nudged the line of heavy infantry forward fifty 
meters. The seasonal tributary forms a ditch right here. It will be an easier line to hold.

 Thats true, it would. Caro smiled and retrieved his cup of wine. However, tomorrow, I have no 
intention of letting the northern horde reach that line. Well have them ridden down long before then.

 Alyxs violet gaze flickered up as Caros confederates laughed and clinked goblets together. You 
arent using the light horse battalion we have at the northern ford.

 I am, to hold that ford.

 And my Wolves.

 You are my reserve.

 She chewed on her lower lip for a moment, then straightened up and folded her arms over her chest. 
It is an interesting plan, General, but severely flawed. We wont be executing it tomorrow.

 The man started as if shed slapped him. Princess, I know you have had some modest success....

 Her eyes hardened. First, General, you will address me as General. My title I have by dint of 
birthan office in name only, since my nation has not truly existed for a generation. My rank I have 
earned.

 Earned in small-unit tactics, General

 Earned within the life span of most of the soldiers I command, General, not in the days before they 
were born. Alyx kept her voice low, but filled it with steel. You and your people are here because I 
requested your presence, not because I need your guidance. I welcome your insight, but this expedition 
is under my command. I will make the final decisions.

 Ah, I see how it is. Caro slightly inclined his head in her direction. You said my plan was flawed....

 Captain Agitare cleared his throat. Begging the generals pardon.

 Both Alyx and Caro said, Yes?

 General Caro, I have served with you and with General Alexia. Just listen to her plan. 


 The older man smiled indulgently. I remember you, Agitare. I once thought you had promise. He 
looked at Alyx. The flaws.

 The older man smiled indulgently. I remember you, Agitare. I once thought you had promise. He 
looked at Alyx. The flaws.

 The mere mention of a dragonel made some of the officers backing Caro blanch. A generation 
previous, at the siege of Fortress Draconis, the Aurolani horde had revealed a weapon of terrible power. 
Consisting of a stout metal tube, it was filled with an explosive powder that when ignited propelled stone 
balls over long distances with enough power to crush a city wall. Experiments with the one captured at 
Fortress Draconis also suggested that if loaded with smaller shot, a single blast would devastate a mass 
of foot soldiers or cavalry.

 Alyx continued. And we do not know if the Aurolani host might not be equipped with draconettes, 
either.

 Caro waved that suggestion away. There is no proof such things exist. They are tales made to earn 
the teller a drink. Who can believe men who say they have been to Aurolan and seen Chytrine training 
her troops?

 She shook her head. Even if stories of the Aurolani soldiers being equipped with small, single-user 
dragonels are fable, would you allow your troops into combat where they could be slaughtered by such 
weapons? It really doesnt matter if you would take that chance or not, General, because I will not. Until 
proven otherwise, I shall assume that the eastern force is well equipped.

 And not the western force?

 Alyx laughed once. You saw, as is evident by your plan, that the western force is already forfeit. Its 
bait for a trap. It could be that the trap does involve dragonels concealed across the river. I dont know, 
but I do know that a trap which is disarmed is a trap that wont hurt my troops. The eastern force is the 
noose of this snare, and it must be eliminated.

 The other big flaw in your plan is this. She traced the distance from the heavy cavalrys line to the 
Aurolani line. Three hundred yards at the start. Thats too long a distance for you to sustain a charge 
and maintain unit integrity. Youre better at one hundred yards. Then you are unstoppable.

 Caro held a hand up. You skipped something. The eastern force, how will you eliminate it?

 Simple. I send a light foot company south, to the upstream ford. They cross to the east. The other 
light foot companies will stay here in the woods to be used much as you planned to use them. Your 
horses will be back here, at the edge of the woods, waiting.

 Thats four hundred yards from the enemy.

 I know. Alyx nodded solemnly. The heavy infantry will be positioned here. Downriver, at the north 
ford, my Wolves and the two light horse battalions will cross and head south. We attack, breaking the 
eastern force against Porasena.

 Caro frowned. That is well and good for you, General, but it still leaves me with a thousand Aurolani 
troops outside the range for an effective charge. You cant think a single battalion of heavy infantry will 
drive them against us.

 They wont have to. The light horse and my Wolves will.

 Impossible. Caro pointed at the maps. One ford is ten miles away, the other is seven. Your ability 
to attack west is limited by the same factors that make it impossible for the eastern force to support their 
fellows. By the time youre across the river, the western force will have fought free of the infantry and will 
be off raiding.

 Youre wrong, General Caro, very wrong. Alyx gave him a cold smile. Your force will be the anvil, 
and we will be the hammer. We have one advantage the Aurolani dont, and two days hence, that 
advantage will destroy their inva-sion.

 Resolute had come thundering up on his horse, snarled something in Elvish at Will that sent a shiver 
down his spine, then rode on past. He flew into the forest, along the gibberers back trail. Will almost 


swung into the saddle to ride after him, but reconsidered. Angry as he is, if he doesnt find gibberers 
to kill, I dont want to be around.

swung into the saddle to ride after him, but reconsidered. Angry as he is, if he doesnt find gibberers 
to kill, I dont want to be around.

 Leaving him in the dirt, Will quickly went from gib-berer to gibberer, slitting throats just to make sure 
they were dead. He assumed Resolute would berate him for the necessity of doing thatsomething that 
showed that Will was not confident of his martial skillsbut better that than his being yelled at for not 
making sure they were dead.

 Cutting the throat of the one the man had killed took a lot of work. The mans grip had crushed the 
neck and pulverized the bones. Will had no doubt it was dead and felt his own throat tightening as he 
remembered the look in the mans eyes as he came for him.

 Crow rode up quickly, leading the packhorses. He swung from the saddle, his bow still strung and an 
arrow nocked. He frowned at the bloody work Will had been doing. Have you checked the man?

 Hes breathing. Will wiped his hands off on the gib-berers pelt. He was coming for me before he 
collapsed.

 Crow returned the arrow to the saddle quiver and slid the bow home into its scabbard. Crossing to the 
man he crouched, pressing two fingers to the mans neck and examining the abrasions there. Not too 
bad. Blood in his hair, though, likely had a hard knock or two. Help me, well get him inside.

 The two of them struggled to lift the huge man and had a hard time dragging him to the cabin. Will got 
the door open and they got the man into bed over in the back corner. The way the man overlapped it 
side to side and off the foot clearly indicated that the cabin wasnt his. A rat trapped in a thimble would 
have more room than this man in this cabin.

 At Crows order, Will fetched water and metholanth, which they used to clean the man up and pack 
some of his wounds. His feet were raw in places and the gash on his head looked bad after Crow cut 
away enough matted hair to be able to see it. Tearing apart the threadbare clothes they found in the 
placewhich never would have fit the man anywaythey fashioned bandages. The man didnt so much 
as stir while they cared for him.

 Theyd finished up and Will had just begun to explore the single-room cabin for any hidden storage 
areas when Resolute returned. This caused Will to intensify his search for hiding places, but the 
floorboards were solid and the generally rickety furnishings held no secrets.

 Resolute bowed his head as he entered the cabin. The man?

 Crow shrugged. Unconscious. Needs food and water, but is in very good shape otherwise. Find 
anything on the trail?

 Nothing of note. The Vorquelfs silver gaze found Will easily enough. I need to speak with you, 
boy.

 Will forced the fearful flutter in his stomach away. Youre going to tell me what I did wrong, right? 
Youre going to tell me I was stupid to ride up to help him when I did, right? Youll tell me this even 
though youd have done the same thing.

 Resolute lifted his head. The hair on his head brushed the roof, and a shoulder brushed the central 
beam. The expression he wore hovered between anger and a grim resignation. He slowly folded his arms 
over his chest and watched Will in silence for a moment.

 Then he nodded. That is exactly what I would have done, if I had seen what you saw, and if I were 
as inexperienced as you are. Do you think Crow or I would have liked seeing him being led along like a 
cow? Youve got perhaps fifteen years in you, maybe sixteen. You were spared seeing gibberers lead 
your mother off that way, seeing them hack your friends to death. I wasnt, and I made the mistake you 
did, but I made it over a century ago.

 Will frowned. And mistakes arent allowed now?

 No, boy, they arent, not for you. Resolute pointed back toward the west. Have you forgotten the 
mountains? Have you forgotten that you are the person we need to defeat Chytrine? For you to launch a 


suicidal attack was unforgivable and irresponsible. If you had died ... He snarled and slammed his right 
fist into the side of the main beam.

suicidal attack was unforgivable and irresponsible. If you had died ... He snarled and slammed his right 
fist into the side of the main beam.

 How was what I did here different from what we did in Stellin? We were all going to die there, 
including me, including me, your hope to defeat Chytrine! I came closer to dying there than I ever did 
here, but you didnt hide me away there. You let me be in danger. I dont understand.

 Resolute smashed his fist into the palm of his left hand. We had no choice there, boy. Here we had a 
choice.

 Sure, let him die.

 Stop it, both of you! Crow rose to his feet, arms outstretched. Resolute, the fact is that Will isnt 
dead. He survived the mistake. He knew it was a mistake. He slit their throats to make sure there was 
not going to be more of a problem. You saw that; you know it. Youve made sure he knows how serious 
a mistake it was.

 The triumphant smile blossoming on Wills face died as Crow spun, anger flashing from his brown 
eyes. Dont you dare for an instant let yourself believe that just because a prophecy seems to apply to 
you that it truly does and somehow that makes you immune to misfortune. Just as things you saw in the 
cave were changed by your seeing them, so it could be that things change without our knowing it. And let 
there be no illusion on your part thateven if you are the person mentioned in the prophecythis 
prophecy is true.

 Will blinked. It might be a lie?

 We dont know, Will, but weve been working for the past quarter century to put things in place so it 
wont be. Assuming a prophecy will make things just fall into place and come true is like assuming having 
a road map is the same as making the journey. Its not.

 Crow walked over to him and rested his hands on Wills shoulders, then crouched enough to look into 
Wills eyes at a level. Risking your life to save this man, that wasnt wrong, but how you did it was. You 
didnt know if those five were the vanguard of a force, or if they had allies nearby, or if this cabin was full 
of them. Were they about to kill the man, yes, you would have had to intervene. You could have, 
however, waited, given us a signal, or done any of a number of things that would have lowered the 
danger.

 Resolute nodded slowly. This course we are committed to, it demands we risk our lives, but not 
foolishly.

 Will shivered, then sagged back against the cabins wall. It is something you committed to, but you 
kidnapped me, made me think of this as an adventure. I was thinking of stories and legendsmy legend, 
the one Ill become. You have known for always what you are doing, but me ... ? He frowned. What 
am I doing here?

 Life ... saving... The harsh croak came from the rooms far corner. The bed and its rope mesh 
creaked as the large man shifted on it. He rubbed his right hand over the bandages on his throat. 
Thanks.

 The word came more whispered than spoken, but the nod that accompanied it underscored its 
sincerity.

 Will levered himself off the wall and trailed in Crows wake as the trio moved toward the bed. Crow 
gave the man a waterskin and helped him drink from it. The man drank greedily, with some water 
coursing down his cheeks and through his beard to splash on his broad chest and mat the thick, black 
hair there.

 With his hands behind his head, catching on to the main beam, Resolute leaned forward. Whats your 
name?

 The man grimaced for a moment, closing his cold blue eyes, then nodded. Dranae. He pronounced it 
slowly, drawing out both syllables. He placed a massive hand on his chest and repeated the word.

 Will frowned. Never heard the like of that name before. 


 Crow arched an eyebrow at him. Are you certain you want to start comparing the oddities of 
names?

 Crow arched an eyebrow at him. Are you certain you want to start comparing the oddities of 
names?

 I have heard mention of similar before. Resolutes voice came low and soft, though still resonant. 
Its an old name, an old man-name. Likely he was named for an ancestor.

 Dranae just shook his head. Dont know.

 With that knock on your head, might take some time before your thoughts are clear. Im Crow, this is 
Will, and that is Resolute. Do you live near here?

 Again Dranae shook his head. I know little.

 Crow pressed the man back down into the bed. Thats fine. Rest. Rest both your head and your 
throat. Youre safe now.

 The man tried to resist, but failed and sank back down into the bed. Resolute went out to the 
packhorses and came back with a blanket that he spread out over the man. It barely covered his body, 
leaving his feet and much of his shins uncovered, but that appeared not to matter much. The mans 
breathing became steady.

 Will slipped from the cabin and began to look after his horse. The other two joined him to likewise 
care for their mounts, though they conversed in Elvish and in low tones. That angered Will a bit, but his 
anger faded fast as the chill hed felt before swallowed it. 

What am I doing here? He knew hed let himself be seduced by the lure of adventure-and a desire 
to get out of Yslin to save himself from Marcus wrath. On the road Resolute had driven him hard, forced 
him to work hard, and never gave him much of a chance to think about things. While the journey had 
been uneventful hed been learning, and since the cavern, they had constantly been in danger. And now, 
when I do have a chance to think about things, Im so deep in it that what I think doesnt matter.

 He realized the whole journey had been an illusion. It was a fable unfolding around him, with things like 
Oracle or the Gyrkyme just adding to the weirdness of it all. Even memories of the hard knocks hed 
taken were fading, along with the bruises they left behind. As he thought about it there didnt seem to be 
anything he could identify as real, then two things rose up to contradict that.

 The first was the feeling hed had when he had been entrusted with the leaf. The most surreal part of 
the whole journey, his bond with that ancient leaf, felt the most real to him. That sensation had provided a 
foundation that made believing everything his companions told him easy. The leaf had taken him to the 
caverns, then the assaults by gib-berers had taken over, emphasizing the opposition. One thing urged him 
on, the other tried to stop him, but each were different sides of the same coin that impelled him to 
continue.

 The second was the sound of Dranaes words. Will had saved him and the man was grateful. His 
words, hoarse though they might have been, carried sincerity and opened a door into Wills 
understanding of Resolute and Crow. For far longer than I have been alive they have been working 
to save people. Im now a necessary part of that for them. Wills realization explained some of 
Resolutes frustration, though it made it no easier to take.

 Having removed the saddle from his horse, Will grabbed handfuls of grass and began to rub the beast 
down. In evaluating things, the thief realized he was being a fool. Chances were excellent that hed get 
himself killed and no one, not once, had mentioned any sort of reward or treasure to be won. It might be 
all well and good that he defeated Chytrine, but if he returned to Yslin with empty pockets, the 
Dimandowns would echo with stinging ridicule.

 And yet, even as he made that judgment, he glanced at Crow. Tired as the man was, as poor as he 
was, there was something in his eyes that no one in the Dimandowns ever had. Will never heard a trace 
of bitterness in the mans laugh. He never saw a furtive glance despite the joking around him. As much as 
he or Resolute might discipline Will or speak sharply to him, neither was cruel for the sake of spite. 

Theyre not like normal folk. In the Dimandowns people focused on how to get another mug of ale 
for free, or a prize that would open a womans thighs. They schemed ways to win a kings ransom, and 
others schemed ways to take it from them. All they cared about was themselves and Marcus had been 
no exception. While he might have taken orphans in and given them food and shelter, they worked for his 


pleasure. And when they come to rival him, he gets rid of them.

pleasure. And when they come to rival him, he gets rid of them.

 The gratitude in Dranaes voice, the passion that would make Oracle put her own eyes out, the fury 
that drove Resoluteall of these things shook him. His vision of the world opened up beyond the 
borders of the Dimandowns. He did not suddenly decide he could be more than the King of the 
Dimandowns; he just realized that for someone like Dranae, he was more important just as Will than he 
ever would have been as the lord of Yslins slums.

 Will swore and threw the handful of grass to the ground with disgust. He shot Crow and Resolute a 
purely venomous glance. I hate you both.

 Resolute snorted, but Crow turned with a curious expression on his face. And that comes from?

 This journey. All the things youve told me. All the things you have not told me. All of it. Wills hands 
convulsed down into fists. I can never go back to being who I was, can I?

 Crow slowly shook his head. No.

 And its all your fault!

 No. The older man sighed. Its the fault of Chytrine.

 Thats easy to say, but shes never done anything to me.

 No, boy? Resolute shouldered his way past Crow. If you want to think that, you can, but the fact is 
shes done everything to you. If not for her, I would not be here, Oracle would not be who she is, 
Predator would be some happy gardener, the Vorquelves wouldnt be in Yslin, Crow would not be 
Crow. Lots of people would still be alive and your life would be entirely different.

 The Vorquelf stabbed a finger against Wills breastbone. You wonder if you could ever go back to 
being who you were, but you never really were that person at all. You were meant to be someone else. 
Because of Chytrine you are destined to be someone else. The actions of others have already 
determined who you are, Wilburforce; but were giving you the chance to decide who you will become 
and how you will get there.

 Will snarled. You cant put it back on me. Thats not fair.

 No, its not. Resolute shook his head. No more fair than my losing my home, my future. Im here to 
stop that from happening to others. Crow is the same. You, you might have a future, but only if youre 
willing to fight for it. If you fail, she wins. Not only will you lose, but so will everyone else. And 
responsibility for that, boy, is something you can never escape.

 Sitting tall astride her horse, encased in her golden armor, Alyx studied the Aurolani encampment. She 
saw movement there, but heard no trumpets raising an alarm. Fires burned and sentries paced, but no 
one seemed to be paying any attention to the cavalry forming up to the east. She knew the gibberers and 
vylaens had to be able to see her as easily as she could see them, so their lack of anxiety surprised her 
for a moment.

 Then, slowly, she nodded. The gibberers did not rely as much on sight as men did, and the breeze 
springing from the south meant the scent of her formation was being carried away from the enemy. 
Moreover, the stink of the city settled over the plain. In addition to that, she had brought her troops up at 
night and positioned them so they could ride in from the dawning sun. The mountains still shadowed them, 
while the suns warm rays crept over the enemy camp.

 The honorable thing to do would have been to have her companys trumpeter blow a challenge that 
would waken the enemy. Alyx knew General Caro would do that, but less to give the enemy a sporting 
chance than to train their eyes on his units banner, so they could know who they faced. For him it 
would be an act of arrogance, not nobility.

 She shook her head. War is not a place for arrogance or nobility. She turned and gave her sister a 
half smile. Are they completely gormless, Peri, or laying a trap for us?

 The Gyrkyme blinked her big eyes. Gormlessly confident of their trap? 


 Alyx laughed lightly. That could be it. You know the two pavilions you will hit?

 Alyx laughed lightly. That could be it. You know the two pavilions you will hit?

 Go, and good luck.

 Not luck, just confidence in your plan. The Gyrkyme unfurled her wings and, with a single strong 
beat, launched herself into the sky.

 Alyx drew her sword and raised it aloft. The Wolves, who formed the center of her line, raised their 
lances. The light horse units on either wing raised their lances as well, then all three battalions began to 
trot forward. At the signal, they would all charge. They would hit the Aurolani camp as a relentless wave 
of steel and horseflesh, blasting through it. 

If things go as planned.

 The signal came quickly enough. Peri, circling high over the Aurolani encampment, released the first 
firecock. The cast-iron chamber housed a bit of charcoal. When she twisted the cover on the collar, it 
exposed vents in the charcoal chamber. As the firecock fell, the air rushing in made the charcoal flare hot, 
igniting the cornhusks roughly a hundred yards above the ground. The firecock struck the red pavilion 
and ripped through it, then the collar shattered the ceramic sphere full of oil. The burning husks lit the 
splashing oil, immediately catching the pavilion on fire.

 The second likewise struck its target, which then burst into flame. Gibberers began scurrying about, 
barking and snarling. The sounds of their voices drowned out the thunder of approaching hooves. While 
some ran to retrieve their arms and raise some sort of defense, others just ran toward the river.

 Alyx snapped her helms faceplate down in the last fifty yards of her charge. The Wolves had 
outdistanced the light horse units only because the other horsemen held themselves back a bit, as per the 
battle plan. The Wolves, slightly more heavily armored, made up the formations spearhead. It pierced 
the thin defenses at the camps rear and stabbed deep into the Aurolani camp.

 To the right and left of her, gibberers screamed. Lances splintered explosively, whirling away 
transfixed bodies. Rising in the stirrups, she slashed down and past the guard of a gibberer who had 
failed to stab her. She was beyond him when she felt the shock of her blow connecting. Her blades tip 
came back blackened with blood.

 The Wolves blew through the Aurolani camp like an ill wind. On her right the Seventh Light Horse 
Battalion anchored itself against the river and drove into the camp. On the left the Kings Own Light 
Horse Battalion engaged the enemy, then wheeled west, driving the gibberers toward the river. Alyx 
knew many of the enemy would try to swim to the other side and sanctuary, but she doubted many could 
fight the rivers current. Fewer still would be able to fight the weirun, and she hoped its appetite for 
gibberers would be enormous.

 Off to the right the pavilion that had had the pennant flying above it exploded thunderously. She felt a 
shock wave jolt her. Dragonel powder to be used to sap the walls? Flaming gibberer bodies arced 
through the sky. Some riders fought to control their mounts through the thunder and meaty rain, and some 
went down, but her steed merely picked up its pace, racing through the enemy camp. Alyx and her 
Wolves burst from the enemy lines and cut east as the Kings Own slashed down in their wake.

 Alyx smiled. This plan will actually work

 The Wolves hit the eastern road to Porasena at a gallop. By the time they reached the walls, the 
eastern gates massive doors had swung wide and the Wolves poured into the city. Hooves striking 
sparks from cobblestones, they galloped through narrow streets and over a tall bridge spanning the river, 
then plunged down the road to the western gate. Soldiers manning the towers and above the opening 
gates cheered as they came on and rode down into the western plain of Sena.

 The mistake that both the Aurolani troops and General Caro had made was in not realizing that the city 
of Porasena formed a ford over the river, and that as long as friendly troops controlled the city, passing 
from one side to the other was not a problem. Aurolani troops could not cross there, but she was 
unhindered. 


 The Aurolani troops on the western plain had used the extra day to prepare defenses against the 
Alcidese forces arrayed against them. Theyd raised basic breastworks to their rear to hold off the heavy 
cavalry. The defenses theyd set up against a force from the city were sufficient for holding off the heavy 
infantry. At the commencement of the raid on the other shore, Caros troops had appeared at the edge of 
the forest and started slowly forward, forcing Aurolani troops to the rear to defend, stripping the forward 
defenses.

 The Aurolani troops on the western plain had used the extra day to prepare defenses against the 
Alcidese forces arrayed against them. Theyd raised basic breastworks to their rear to hold off the heavy 
cavalry. The defenses theyd set up against a force from the city were sufficient for holding off the heavy 
infantry. At the commencement of the raid on the other shore, Caros troops had appeared at the edge of 
the forest and started slowly forward, forcing Aurolani troops to the rear to defend, stripping the forward 
defenses.

 Peris aerial survey of the Aurolani line had identified a gap in the lines through which the enemy had 
made raids. Riders raced ahead of Alyx and, under the cover of arrows from other Wolves, looped 
grapnel lines around the spiked logs that blocked the gap. They pulled the abatises aside, then Agitare led 
the Red Caps through. Alyx and her bodyguards came second, then the rest of the Wolves flooded 
through the gap. They coursed through the Aurolani camp, cutting and slashing, riding down gibberers, 
shooting arrows into vylaens, and wreaking havoc.

 The Aurolani forces broke. Some ran for the river, and others passed south, through their own lines, 
heading toward the city and the slowly advancing heavy infantry. Some started west, scrambling up the 
hillsides toward the waiting light foot. Most, though, fled north and away from the Wolves. They escaped 
in the easiest direction, grasping in their panic at the closest path out of danger.

 The northern path proved illusory when it came to safety.

 Alyx rode up onto one of the highest points on the Aurolani line and watched gibberers scrambling 
away as quickly as possible. Ahead of them, forming a dark line at the edge of the forest, the Kings 
Own Horse waited. She picked Caro out from the center of the line easily enough. Behind him waited 
two riders, one bearing the units battle standard and the other his familys flag. The cavalry remained in 
place, horses stamping and snorting steam in the cool morning air. They waited, letting the enemy come 
to them.

 She knew she had shamed him by saying that his men were at their best in a hundred-yard charge. 
Alyx half expected him to send them off at a greater distance, just to prove her wrong, but he did not. 
True to his orders, he held them back. Until the gibberers had closed within one hundred fifty yards, he 
did not draw his sword. He raised it slowly, then as they neared the hundred-yard limit, he slashed down 
and his line surged forward.

 A ragged, disorganized mass of infantry is to a cavalry charge what ripe wheat stalks are to the 
reapers scythe. The heavy cavalry hit the gibberers like a wall of steel. Bodies, broken-limbed and limp, 
flew into the air. Thrashing gibberers rose on lances as tortured pennants. Curved sabers sprayed 
spattered gore with each arced stroke. Hooves ground bodies into the torn earth, leaving bloodied piles 
of tissue to mew in their wake. Some gibberers did turn to run, but their fellows caught them up, carrying 
them into the heavy cavalry. It rolled over them as if they were already the phantoms they became a 
heartbeat later.

 The charge did lose its momentum, but then Caros troops merely resorted to their other weapons. 
Swords rose and fell. Maces crushed arms and skulls. Axes clove bodies and short spears stabbed. 
Those who had not lost their lances flicked them out, stabbing the long-bladed heads through thick 
gibberer bodies. The work became less fighting than pure butchery. The heavy cavalry took to it without 
hesitation and with all the righteous fury of warriors cleansing their homeland of invaders.

 Alyx shifted her attention to the end of the Aurolani line. There the breastwork had been raised a little 
higher and the defenders shot arrows at riders, but most fell short. Those few that did hit only stuck in 
armor or bounced off. A couple of firecocks, then raking it with arrows should weaken it. She 
doubted the vylaen commanding that area would surrender, but she would inquire first, before she 
ordered the slaughter.

 To the south and west the infantry engaged fleeing gibberers. The Wolves and the heavy cavalry met in 


the center of the line, then moved west, trapping gibberers at the hills. Those fleeing north strung 
themselves out along the river, so when the heavy cavalry turned to charge at them, the refugees had but 
one choice and most drowned exercising it.

the center of the line, then moved west, trapping gibberers at the hills. Those fleeing north strung 
themselves out along the river, so when the heavy cavalry turned to charge at them, the refugees had but 
one choice and most drowned exercising it.

 Alyx dispatched Captain Agitare to offer quarter to the vylaen leading the defense of the end of the 
enemy line. Agitare fastened a strip of white cloth to the end of his horse-bow, approached, and 
tendered her offer. Power began to gather in the vylaens palms, but before it could cast a spell, Agitare 
plucked an arrow from his quiver, nocked, drew, and let fly.

 The scarlet-fletched arrow burst the vylaens heart. Magickal energy trickled up its forearms like ivy 
growing up a tower, burning as it went. The vylaen collapsed. A sleetstorm of arrows covered Agitares 
retreat. Peri screamed high above the enemy position, then a firecock exploded at its heart. The Red 
Caps advanced and before too long, all Aurolani resistance had breathed its last.

 High in the tower that housed Porasenas mayor, Alyx attended a hastily planned noontime reception. 
General Caro had made certain to give her all due credit for the planning of the attack, but he did nothing 
to deflect the flowery praises the local merchant-princes lavished upon him. Most of them, it turned out, 
had taken their breakfast and tea in towers, watching the battle unfold as they ate. Their daughters and 
young wives entertained some of the younger officers. The women listened with wide eyes and 
sympathetic sighs as stories of courage unfolded and thousands more gibberers were slain than had ever 
been encamped on the plains of Sena.

 Alyx shook her head and carried her goblet of wine out onto the tower balcony that looked north. The 
river unwound a ribbon of blue, flecked with flashes of silver, rolling north. It had long since carried away 
most of the bodies, while smoky pyres on either shore took care of the rest. The meager loot left behind 
in the Aurolani camps had quickly disappeared once the fighting had stopped.

 Are Aurolani artifacts selling briskly in the market?

 Peri blinked her amber eyes slowly. Most of the real things are gone, but plenty have been 
manufactured. One smart man is overstriking coins with a star to mark the battle.

 The pale-tressed woman set her goblet on the balconys stone balustrade. The people are celebrating 
as if this was some great victory. It means nothing. Chytrine left troops here for us to kill, for reasons 
known only to her. That we cost her more than she might have expected is good, but her only purpose 
here might have been to test us.

 Yes, my sister, what you say is true. Peri walked over to stand beside Alyx, appropriated her 
goblet, and drank some of her wine. You must recognize, though, that for the people of Porasena, this 
was a great victory. This valley is their world, and we saved it for them. Could you expect them to act 
any other way?

 Alyx shook her head. She knew Peri was correct, but the simple and willful lack of awareness of the 
world displayed by the townsfolk astonished her. Alyx had seen more of the world than most of the 
people in Porasena; having been born in Okrannel and flown to Gyrvirgul as an infant was but the first of 
many journeys shed undertaken. Shed been schooled in history and knew in intimate detail the forces 
and elements that had shaped the world.

 And she knew the incredible threat Chytrine represented to all of it. A quarter century earlier many 
warriors, including her father, had died to prevent Chytrines invasion of the south. While the effort had 
been unsuccessful at unseating her, it had held her hordes in check. Still, new incursions, like the siege at 
Porasena, indicated that Chytrines power was growing, as was her need to project it southward.

 I understand what you are saying, Peri, but I just... She shivered. Its as if they are celebrating being 
dry because the first raindrop in a storm did not hit them.

 I never said it was smart, sister, just inevitable. Peri frowned. The people are stupid from drinking 
too much of this wine. Vinegar is not as bitter.

 Better than the beer. Its watery and the color of your eyes. Alyx took the goblet back, went to 


drink, but saw something over the edge of the cup. What is that?

drink, but saw something over the edge of the cup. What is that?

 It took a dozen heartbeats for the wave to come close enough for Alyx to see it, and she knew she 
wasnt getting any of the detail Peri was. The color matched her description, but Alyx noted there was no 
foam at the crest of the wave. It moved upstream, against the current, coming on fast.

 A much larger wave surged out from the city and rose to the height of the walls. It rolled north, rising, 
cresting, and smashing down on the smaller scarlet wave. The red wave vanished for a second in the mist 
of the tall waves crash, then a bloody waterspout stabbed up and through what would have been the 
waves heart. River water sloshed up and out, over the banks, washing away dogs and setting crows to 
wing over the battlefield theyd been scavenging.

 Fish flopped on the banks, while others floated in the channel. A few gibberer bodies bobbed up 
again. Huge bubbles boiled to the surface and exploded, projecting a foul stink of rotting muck.

 What was that?

 Peri shook her head. Not certain. The big wave, that was the weirun. Of that I am sure.

 Alyx looked again at the red stain, which had melted from its spear-shape to an amorphous blob 
floating on the slowly settling surface. Did that thing kill it?

 The rivers not dead.

 The red splotch slowly floated to the western bank. A rounded and soft column of oily plasm reached 
up toward the bank. The very end of it resolved itself into a hand that clutched at long-leafed grasses. 
The rest of the red stain flowed toward this hand, as if it were wax filling a mold of a naked man. Once 
legs and feet had been formed, the figure pulled himself up onto the plain.

 He remained naked for barely more than a second before his flesh took on the wrinkles and seams of 
cloth. It appeared as if his clothing were rising up through his flesh. The scarlet color drained away, 
leaving his clothes black, from boots and trousers to tunic. Likewise a hooded cloak flowed from him, 
and a black mask appeared on his face, covering him from upper lip to forehead.

 His eyes remained dark holes for no more than a moment. Bright yellow-orange flames ignited there, 
guttering. The hem of his cloak caught a spark and also burst into flame. The fire quickly consumed the 
cloak, which became composed of little licking flames against which his flesh and clothes were apparently 
immune.

 An archer on the wall below launched an arrow at the figure. The shaft sped toward its target and 
then, when only a man-length from its heart, slowed. It almost seemed to Alyx that it had been shot into 
water, or something even more viscous. The figure reached out and casually plucked the arrow from the 
air. He said something in an oddly sibilant tongue, causing the arrow in his hand to combust.

 On the wall, the other arrows in the archers quiver blossomed with fire. The man tore it off and others 
stomped the fire out while yet another colleague smothered the flames on the mans back with a cloak. 
Sharp, surprised shouts faded, and cold laughter from the figure stole over the city like an icy drizzle.

 The figure brushed his hands one against the other to rid them of arrow ash, then clasped them at his 
belt. His laughter drained away to be replaced by a voice that was both strong and melodious. Despite 
that, however, it brought with it no warmth at all.

 Hark unto me, Porasena, poor; town with a future no more. Celebrate victory this morn; so the 
morrows youll mourn. The figure looked around, then stamped his foot to scatter a mangy pack of 
hounds slinking toward him. Blood is power, and in an hour, much blood did you spill. Next will come 
fire, certainly most dire, and all will it kill.

 The figure reached back and tugged its hood up to cover its head. Then hands shot to opposite 
shoulders, grasping the fiery cloak and pulled it tight around him. In an eyeblink he became a column of 
fire that then collapsed into a greasy black stream of smoke. The breeze wafted it toward the town and it 
smelled even more foul than the river gas.

 Alyx drank some of the wine, holding it in her mouth until its fumes could dissolve the stink in her 
nostrils, then she swallowed hard. That was a sullanciri!

 Peri nodded. I believe so, sister. 


 So, all of this was bait to get us here, so we could see something Chytrine wanted us to see. And he 
was here to make sure we knew this was just a prelude.

 So, all of this was bait to get us here, so we could see something Chytrine wanted us to see. And he 
was here to make sure we knew this was just a prelude.

 Alyx upturned the goblet and shook the last drops of wine out over the city. If we leave, there will be 
panic, rioting, looting. We will have saved the city for nothing. If we are going, we are evacuating it in an 
orderly manner.

 Not a simple task.

 No, my sister, but one that must be done. Alyx sighed. Come with me. It wont be an easy fight, 
but if we turn Caro to our side, we might just be able to keep some people alive.

 Will liked having Dranae join their group. While he remained largely silent as his throat was healing up, 
Dranae had no problem helping out with various chores. He hauled water and firewood without being 
asked. He found some herbs and leaves in the Saporician rainforests that were able to spice up rabbit 
stew. He also didnt seem to mind taking the predawn watch, which was the one Will especially hated.

 Outfitting Dranae had been difficult, since none of the clothes they had would fit him. They ended up 
winding a blanket around him in a skirtlike affair. At first he pulled the back of it up between his legs and 
tucked it in at his belly, but pretty soon just left it down at knee-height. Will thought it looked kind of 
ridiculous, but Resolute noted there were all sorts of sailors on the Crescent Sea who dressed similarly, 
raising the specter that Dranae might once have been one of them, or even a pirate shipping out of 
Wruona. Will questioned him about that possibility, but the man couldnt even name the pirate queen, 
much less remember high-seas adventures.

 Crow sewed together two belts taken from gibberer corpses to make something suitable for Dranae. 
It circled his waist, then a leather loop went across his body from left hip to right shoulder. During the 
days Dranae went bare-chested, but pulled a blanket around him like a cloak as the days heat wore off.

 By salvaging more leather from the gibberers equipment, Crow put together some makeshift sandals. 
Everyone agreed theyd not last long, but it was hoped that in Sanges they could find more suitable 
footwear for Dranae, as well as passage north to Fortress Draconis.

 They made pretty good time, heading north from Alcida and into the rainforests of Saporicia. By 
keeping to lesser-used tracks they traveled slower than they might have otherwise, but avoided detection. 
Will would have been inclined to protest, if for no other reason than still being angry about how he had 
been pulled into the adventure, but Dranae nodded sagely when Resolute informed him of their plans. 
Moreover, Dranae took their security concerns seriously, earning expansive nods from Resolute and an 
occasional word of thanks.

 The rainforests of Saporicia differed from the woodlands of Alcida in that they seemed older and far 
thicker. More undergrowth bordered the trails. The trees rose higher, and in the dim distanceswhich 
were not all that far, but tough to see because of the thick growth of trees mossy giants had snapped at 
the base and crashed down. Stony outcroppings jutted from hillsides carpeted in rusty pine needles, 
dripping water down into rivulets that formed streams or sank into bogs that they bypassed or slogged 
through.

 Will wrinkled his nose at the fetid scent of a swamp. Why do these woods seem different than the 
others we went through?

 Resolute glanced back from his position in the lead. More rain here, and less men.

 More rain, more wet. That I understand. He turned to look at Crow and Dranae. How come there 
are fewer men?

 The Vorquelf answered before either of the other two could offer Will anything. Saporicia was, for a 
long time, a buffer between the Estine Empire and Loquellyn. Over time, as men encroached, elves pulled 
the borders of Loquellyn back. Most humans settled on the coast, and around the great harbor that splits 
the country. During that time, though, Panqui had moved into this section of the country. They tend to 
keep humans out, as the dragons intend.

 Will frowned. What are you talking about?

 Resolute shook his head. How can you be as old as you are and know nothing of the natural order of 


the world? First the urZrethi come into elven homelands and build mountains to chase the elves away. 
Then dragons come and drive the urZrethi from the mountains and make their homes in them. Dragons 
permit Panqui to live in those mountains or the nearby areas to discourage men from coming in. Why? 
Because men quarry the mountains and steal the stones to make their cities.

the world? First the urZrethi come into elven homelands and build mountains to chase the elves away. 
Then dragons come and drive the urZrethi from the mountains and make their homes in them. Dragons 
permit Panqui to live in those mountains or the nearby areas to discourage men from coming in. Why? 
Because men quarry the mountains and steal the stones to make their cities.

 No, boy, elves do not. This is why, someday, there will be no elves left in this world.

 The cold finality in Resolutes voice sent a shock through Will. He had stated, so matter-of-factly, 
something that meant his people would someday be driven from the world and yet, here he was, fighting 
to see that the cycle he described would not be broken by an invasion from the north. Will saw the logic 
of fighting Chytrine, since her victory would mean the destruction of the elves anyway. Still, knowing the 
elves would eventually have to move on meant

 Wills enthusiasm for fighting would have been greatly dampened had he been Resolute.

 Dranae spoke in a low voice. Friend Resolute, thats an interesting view of the world. I have heard it 
suggested that elves are constantly searching for a place that is meant to be their home. If one place is not 
it, they move on.

 Resolute reined his horse up short and turned to face them. The expression he wore seemed stuck 
between puzzlement and discontent. The elves who were bound to Vorquellyn before its desecration did 
go beyond. That is your word for what they did. It does not contain the whole of it. Some say there are 
many worlds, like pearls on a string, and elves pass from one to another, by going beyond, or by dying 
and being reborn. I do not know, since this is a mystery denied me by fate.

 The young thief studied Resolutes face, and tried to memorize the tone of his voice. Hed not heard its 
like in all his time with Resolute, save, perhaps, back at the caves. Resolute had only shown him the finely 
honed edge of his personality. Dranae seemed to reach him differently, and it took Will a moment to 
recognize the difference. I challenge, he seeks knowledge.

 Dranae shrugged his massive shoulders. Your telling of the natural order I have heard before. I think, 
though, the Panqui find dragonhaunts a good place to live because not too many men willingly come to 
them. This thick forest suits them.

 Have you seen one? Will looked around, seeking to spot anything at all in the shadows. I think I 
saw one as a child, in a cage, in the Dim.

 Crow shook his head. That was a man in a costume. Panqui are big, very bigat least the males are. 
Huge.

 Youve killed one?

 Resolute laughed. Ive never gotten close enough to kill one, nor has Crow in my time with him.

 This is not something I regret, either. Crow smiled easily. Thats because theyve got fangs as long 
as your fin-gers, and their hands have these nasty hooked claws they can retract. Worst of all, they have 
these bony plates in their skin, running from turtle-green to gold, depending on what, I dont know. 
Those plates will stop an arrow and probably an ax. On their faces, throat, joints, they have this black, 
leathery flesh. Their thick tail is very strong. Theyre not stupid beasts, either, and sail the Crescent Sea 
as pirates.

 Will hunched his shoulders and kept looking around. And we are not on the main road, why?

 The others laughed aloud. Resolute shook his head. Boy, didnt you listen? Theyre not stupid. If we 
are being watched, they can see there is no advantage in attacking us. Besides, during the summer, they 
move to the coast. Its only in winter they move inland. Were probably safe.

 Really? Will looked to the others for confirmation. Crow nodded. Dranae did as well, then smiled 
before snorting a quick laugh.

 Wills eyes tightened. Youre all having a joke on me.

 The dark-haired man shook his head in denial. In your reaction I guess were all remembering being 
your age, or younger, shivering to tales of Panqui and gibberers. The smiles and the laughs, theyre not 
for you, but us at your age/;

 I believe that of you two, but not Resolute. Will shot him a sidelong glance. He was never my age.

 Wrong, boy. At your age I was never so innocent. Resolute gave Will the hint of a smile. Lets 


hope your growing out of it doesnt hurt you as much as it did me.

hope your growing out of it doesnt hurt you as much as it did me.

 Sanges spread out along the steep hillsides of a river valley. The river flowed down to the sea, ending 
in a waterfall that split the harbor in the middle. Piers jutted like the staves of a broken barrel into the 
harbor, and each one had several ships moored to it. More ships lay at anchor in the harbor. Even though 
Yslin had been a much bigger city, Will couldnt remember having seen so many ships in the harbor at 
one time.

 The main road into the city cut back and forth across the hillside south of the river, though numerous 
bridges did cross it. Tiled roofs and thick walls kept the summer heat at bay. Each building had been 
painted primarily the color of old bones, but bright and gay images of animals and flowers had been 
woven into paintings to decorate windows and doorways. As they descended toward the harbor, the 
buildings became older and more dingy, though nothing reached the dark, mildewed state of the 
Dimandowns.

 They found an inn and were able to obtain rooms easily, including stable space for their horses. Once 
theyd secured their belongings in the room, they headed down to the docks. Will didnt find the seaport 
section of Sanges all that different from Yslin, save that the city was smaller and there were no balloons 
floating high overhead to let merchants see their ships coming in, nor were there cable-baskets moving 
people above the streets. The lack of these signs of sophistication let Will feel superior to the rustic 
inhabitants, putting some spring in his step.

 Resolute and Crow seemed to know their way around the town. They sought the office of a trading 
company and asked directions. Cutting back through an alley, heading away from the sea, they entered a 
courtyard. A building across the way apparently was their destination, because Crow pointed at the 
wooden sign creaking in the breeze over the door. That there was a crowd of men between them and the 
door didnt seem to bother him at all.

 Four men in red-and-gold uniforms, three of them bearing pikes, came around the crowd and 
converged on the travelers. The unarmed man, a plump specimen with little enough hair that it could have 
been easily finger-raked by a half-handed man, unscrolled a piece of parchment as the pikemen moved 
to hem them in. His voice came a little high, but he shouted loudly to reinforce his authority.

 By order of King Fidelius, all sailors will report to their ships forthwith. Those who are without berth 
will report to the Grand Pier for assignment to ships. All men of good health and five and ten years, but 
not more than three score, will take up arms in service of Saporicia. The defense of your nation demands 
this sacrifice.

 He lowered the parchment. Get in with the others.

 Resolute slowly shook his head. Your order does not apply to me. I am not a sailor, I am not of your 
nation, I am not a man, and I am older than three-score years. Begone.

 The bureaucrats brow furrowed above dark eyes. You look young to me, elf, but no matter. Your 
companions here, they fit the bill, theyre going.

 The Vorquelf dropped a hand to the hilt of his sword. They are with me, and likewise exempt.

 The man glanced again at the parchment. Doesnt say that here. I dont want trouble, but...

 If you dont want trouble, go away.

 The little man nodded to the pikemen, but none of them seemed eager to engage Resolute. The crowd 
of sailors the four men had been gathering up began to spread out and grumble. A couple of men picked 
up stones, and Will followed their example. Tension filled the air with curses, and the bureaucrat began to 
sweat.

 Before violence could erupt, a slender man moved through the sailors. He looked unremarkable to 
Will, save that he wore a blue mask that covered him from cheekbones to hairline. The mask marked him 
as being from one of three nations where wearing a mask was an honor. It had all sorts of marks on it 


and the sailors fell silent as he strode in the bureaucrats direction. A minute, Warden, these are my 
men.

and the sailors fell silent as he strode in the bureaucrats direction. A minute, Warden, these are my 
men.

 Indeed I did, Cirris, but I counted among them these men here, for I anticipated their arrival. Dunhill 
stepped forward and offered his hand to Crow. Good to see you again, Captain Crow. And, Resolute, 
youve not changed. And these two, these are the ones you told me about, who want a life at sea?

 Crow nodded quickly. Yes, Will is my nephew, and Dranae is a distant cousin. We apologize for 
being late, but travels not been safe of late.

 Warden Cirris, having rolled his parchment into a tight tube, tapped it against Dunhills shoulder. You 
should have given me their names. This is highly irregular, Captain.

 Dunhills nostrils flared. More irregular than having every man in the city press-ganged, Warden? 
The man tapped a small symbol painted on his mask below his right eye. When you have earned this 
mark, Warden, it means you are given responsibility for your crew. All responsibility for it. What I 
choose to tell you or not to tell you is up to me. These people have reported to me, which is the same as 
reporting to their ship. You are done here, go away.

 The ships captain turned and waved them on after him. Come into the office where we can speak.

 Will followed in line, letting the stone tumble from his fingers so that it smacked the wardens toes. The 
fat man yelped, then began hopping on one foot. Hastily thrown stones by the crowd of sailors kept him 
dancing. Even the pikemen laughed and the tension in the courtyard evaporated.

 Dunhill led them into the office of a trading company, past tables where scribes were looking at sheets, 
comparing them to other sheets and scribbling things down on yet third sheets. The skritching of quill on 
paper set Wills skin to crawling, but that sound faded as he followed Dunhill up a back set of stairs to a 
larger room that clearly served as a dormitory for sailors waiting for their ships to head out. The captain 
waved them to a rectangular table set with benches down each side.

 You are Crow, arent you? I mean, Resolute I couldnt forget, but youve changed a bit.

 Crow nodded and sat. Its been ten years. Im surprised you remember me at all.

 How could I forget? You came to me at Yslin with a pass signed by Rounce Playfair himself, telling 
me to do all I could to render you aid. And then the two of you wanted me to sail north and put you 
ashore in the Ghost March. Dunhill shook his head. I wondered if youd made it back, and assumed 
you had. Somehow I didnt think they would get you.

 They didnt. We were fortunate. Crow looked around. Billets here are empty, and the harbor is full. 
Whats going on?

 Nothing you need worry about. I can have the people below fix you up with passes that will let you 
go wherever you need to go. The Seafarer is sailing at midnight, so give me your word that youll report 
in time for duty, or Ill be forced to sail without you.

 Resolute rested both elbows on the table. Thats good of you, but thats not what he asked.

 Dunhill smiled. I know. Its insane, really, but reports have come in that Chytrine reached an accord 
with Vionna. Together they have organized the Wruona pirates into a cohesive force. Chytrines 
reinforced them with her own ships. Theyre heading south.

 Crow nodded. Hence the kings order to ship everyone up to Narriz to defend the capital.

 The captain laughed lightly. Now that would make sense, but thats not where were going. No. 
Were sailing west, to Vilwan.

 Resolute blinked. Vilwan?

 Thats right. Dunhill shrugged. For reasons known only to her, Chytrine thinks she can destroy the 
stronghold of the greatest mages of our age. Were going to stop her.

 At a narrow window in a high tower on Vilwan, Kerrigan Reese shielded his eyes against the rising 
sun. Only a quarter of its disk had risen above the horizon, but that was enough to display dozens of little 
black shapes bobbing on the sea, sailing toward Vilwan. The sight of such a large flotilla was 
unprecedented in his seventeen years of life, and he was quite certain the like of it had never been seen 


before that, either.

before that, either.

 Even when he did that, the volumes weight threw him off balance. He stooped to catch the book, 
stepping forward quickly. He caught the hem of his white sleeping gown under his foot, shifted, and went 
down hard on his left knee. He gasped with shock and pain as the robe abraded his flesh. Hugging the 
book to his chest, he sagged helplessly to his left side, but kept the book from hitting the ground.

 Angrily he kicked his foot free of the gown, and heard a tearing sound in the process. Rolling onto his 
back and lifting his feeta task the rotund mage managed not terribly well and could not sustain for 
longhe saw the hem had torn out. Worse yet, a red splotch stained the gown at his left knee. The 
moment he saw blood, he could feel the pain in his knee intensify, and his lower lip started trembling.

 He shook himself, which sent quivers running through his thick body. Kerrigan refused to cry, telling 
himself it was nothing, just a scrape. The fact was, though, that it hurt. He wanted to pull his knee closer 
to his face to look at it, but he couldnt with the book on his belly.

 Kerrigan set the book on the floor reverently, blowing away invisible dust motes before he put it 
down. He pulled his knee up as far as he could and gingerly slipped the gown up over it. Breath hissed 
through teeth on intake, then he grabbed his thigh and pulled harder to get his knee closer to his face. His 
round belly hindered this attempt, but he still got a good look at the scrape across his knee, which bled a 
little, and mostly oozed a clear fluid.

 He waved fat fingers at it, hoping the fluid would congeal in the air. Struggling up into a sitting position, 
he kept his knee bent and exposed. He glanced at the bloody stain on the gown, then at the torn hem, 
and shrugged. Kerrigan was pretty sure the gown could neither be cleaned nor repaired and, as such, 
would never be allowed back into his wardrobe.

 That thought calmed him, so he pulled the fat book into his lap and flipped through the pages. A bold 
and onate scrawlwhich differed here and there as other hands had inscribed things down through the 
centuries covered half the pages of the book. Illustrations and diagrams also appeared, but they were 
few and crudely incomplete when compared with similar designs in the grimoires lining the shelves.

 Kerrigan reached the point where the blank pages began, and leafed back several before he began 
reading. The book he held was a history of Vilwan, and was linked to the grand history housed in 
Vilwans library. As with arcan-slata, a bond had been magickally forged between this book and that 
one. As pages were added by the Magister Historian of Vilwan, they appeared in Kerrigans copy of the 
book.

 The young mage had always found comfort in the history, and studying it was one of the few tasks all 
of his mentors had praised. Kerrigan suspected this was because his reading gave them time free from 
dealing with him; and he was fairly certain they did not realize he relished the same from them. In the 
history he sought for cluesof what he was not quite certain, just clues in general to make things make 
sense.

 He found a passage that addressed the flotilla off the coast and concentrated on it. The sting in his 
knee made that difficult, but he managed it despite the distraction. Hed used that spell many times before 
and, being well practiced at it, could make it work easily.

 A blue glow spread from his hands to envelop the book. A little bit of it trailed off, tracing the ethereal 
link between his volume and the grand history. The glow sank into the golden pages, then emerged again 
to edge some pages earlier in the book. Starting from the front and the oldest cite, Kerrigan opened the 
book and read quickly. He wore a blank expression on his face as he began, but a smile slowly stole 
over his lips as he checked cite after cite.

 He got to the most recent with a triumphant smile on his face. A quarter century previous, when the 
fleet sent to save Okrannel sailed past, it had contained four dozen ships, less than half those coming to 
Vilwan today. Hed remembered correctly, and this pleased him. His smile bit deeply into his fleshy 


cheeks and gleamed from his green eyes.

cheeks and gleamed from his green eyes.

 The chamber doors well-oiled hinges did not betray its opening, but the rustle of sandal on stone did. 
Kerrigan looked up, surprised. He grabbed his knee with his left hand, hoping to conceal his wound. He 
scraped cloth against it, magnifying the sting. He cried out, then clenched his jaw, trying to keep tears 
back.

 He bowed his head and breathed through his nose until hed gotten himself back under control. Good 
morning, Magister Orla.

 The womans robe matched the grey of her hair, and the long plait her locks had been braided into 
could have doubled for the cord looped about her waist. She stood in the doorway, her head up, her 
brown eyes bright, watching him carefully. She always watched, as his other mentors had, but looked for 
more than they had. Her seamed face and leathery skin suggested a hard life, but as nearly as he knew, 
shed not left Vilwan more than a time or two in the last thirty years.

 Strength filled her voice, and her voice filled the chamber, but she neither barked nor cooed at him. 
You have injured yourself.

 Yes, it hurts.

 I imagine it does. She closed her eyes for a moment and gestured, wrenching the history out of his 
grasp. It floated to her outstretched hands and she caught it easily. He hoped for a moment that she 
would stumble as he had, but the books weight barely caused her to move at all.

 Orla walked to the shelves and slid the book home, then turned to look at him. I suggest something 
should be done about your knee.

 Yes, call a healer. Kerrigan thrust his lower lip out defiantly. I want a healer.

 Heal yourself.

 Kerrigan looked down at his knee and gently lifted the cloth away. That is an elven spell, Magister.

 A spell youve mastered. Use it.

 He brought his head up. I am not to use it without proper supervision.

 She smiled slowly, the lines at the corners of her eyes deepening. Why persist in this game, Adept 
Reese? You know and I know that I will not summon an elf to be present while you heal your knee. You 
also know that I am not embarrassed that you have mastered a spell I could not learn were I to study 
another lifetime. Finally, you and I know you do not want to heal yourself because that process will 
hurthurt more than the wound does now.

 Its not a game. There are rules, Magister; there have always been rules. The rules guide me. I do 
everything in accord with them. The rules state that when I use elven magick, or urZrethi spells or 
anything sufficiently Magisterial, I shall be supervised. He spoke carefully and precisely, even a bit 
slowly. If I violate the rules, I will be punished.

 She closed her eyes and sighed. Kerrigan, you know I will not sanction you for doing what I tell you 
to do. I am not like some of your past teachers. You know I have more latitude than others. Why wont 
you do what I ask you to do without this charade?

 The young Adept narrowed his eyes. I want to see the ships. I want to go to the docks and see the 
ships.

 Oh, is that it, then? Her dark eyes opened, and she cocked her head slightly. That motion with her 
head made Kerrigan cringe. Very well, I think we can permit that, provided you follow my orders 
exactly.

 Kerrigan nodded hesitantly. Yes, Magister.

 Very good. First, heal your knee.

 He started to get up, and held a hand out to her to have her help him get to his feet, but she shook her 
head. No, do it there, on the floor. 


 But the way I do the spell... I have to change ...

 But the way I do the spell... I have to change ...

 He shook his head and kept his voice low. Its not right.

 Do you mean to tell me you cannot do it kneeling there? After I have seen countless elves perform 
that spell on ships, on battlefields, at the site of horse-cart accidents and tramplings? Perhaps, since it is 
an elven spell, they are just that much better than you. Is that it?

 No. His nostrils flared defiantly. I can do it.

 Im waiting. Do not make me wait long. Kerrigan sucked in a lungful of air through his nose, and 
slowly exhaled it. He kept his breathing shallow after that and all but closed his eyes to minimize 
distractions. He flexed his fingers, then laid his left hand over the wound gently. The sweat on his palm 
seared into it, but he pushed that pain away.

 He cleared his mind as much as he could and began the weaving of the elven healing spell. Kerrigan 
liked elven mag-ick because the spells themselves seemed to be living things. Whereas a human spell 
would have angles and intersections, sharp breaks and sharper edges, elven spells flowed as if they had 
rootlets growing into the earth, or branches reaching out to embrace the sun. Human spells seemed 
constructed^ comparison, and were easy to master, whereas an elven spell became a knotwork maze 
his mind had to travel to achieve his reward.

 His left hand glowed with blue energy. Darker in hue than the indexing spell he had woven, this blue 
had the depth of the sea behind it, whereas the other had the fragility of a birds egg. The energy flowed 
into his knee, teasing tissue to grow faster and heal, absorbing the blood and fluid, sealing the wound. As 
it did so the pain built. Kerrigan knew it was the sum and total of the aches and pains, itches and twinges, 
he would have felt while it healed. Condensed it seemed to drill straight through his knee like an arrow, 
then it vanished, a mind-ghost he would never summon again.

 He looked up and peeled his hand away from the knee. The flesh had been reunited, with no hint of a 
scar. Blood still stained his palm, so he wiped it on his gown. Pushing off the stone floor with his right 
hand, he straightened up and felt his gown tighten around his ample middle.

 He looked down at her. Done, Magister, as you requested.

 Very good, Adept Reese. She looked him up and down, her brows creeping toward each other as 
she did. Next you will remove your robe, hem it, and wash it.

 What?

 You heard what I said, Kerrigan. Orla gestured toward the door. I know you have servants who 
do that for you, under normal circumstances, but things are far from normal here. All the islands 
inhabitants are being pressed to other duty. Today you will clean your own robe and fetch your own 
breakfast.

 He smiled. From the kitchen?

 She nodded. You can find your way there?

 Oh, yes. Kerrigan fought to conceal a smile. While no one gainsaid him anything he wanted to 
eatand servants often scurried between his chamber and the kitchen to bring more bread or soup or 
meat or fruitthe few times he had found his way to the kitchen, he had been enchanted by what he 
saw. All of his magicks were worked in the arcanorium above his living quarters. In the kitchen 
Magisters and Adepts, even Apprentices, worked magicks that kneaded dough for bread, or warmed an 
oven, ground spices, stirred pots. Many of those spells he knew very well, since he mixed ingredients the 
same way, and worked on potions and preparations with care, but in the kitchen he saw a direct link 
between what he studied as theory and they practiced in reality.

 And the fruit of their practice filled his tummy warmly and well.

 Good, though you may be disappointed. Because of the fleet, and the need to feed the men aboard it, 
food is being rationed. She tapped a finger against her pointed chin. Youll get a pint of watered ale 
and a small round of bread.

 Ill starve.

 Not for a long time, Adept Reese. 


 He frowned. The treats he could already taste turned to dust in his mouth. Repair and wash, then eat, 
and then I may see the ships?

 He frowned. The treats he could already taste turned to dust in his mouth. Repair and wash, then eat, 
and then I may see the ships?

 He eyed her suspiciously. That will give me no time, though, to see the ships because by the time I am 
done eating, it will be almost time to begin lessons.

 Orla smiled slowly. Ah, but you see, Adept Reese, this is what I came to tell you. Everyone is being 
pressed into dutyeven me. I am meeting with the Magister of Combats this morning, to learn my duties. 
You are free until noon.

 That is what you came to tell me? Kerrigan frowned. You would have let me go no matter what?

 Yes?

 Then why...?

 Because, Adept Reese, you chose to play a game, and you lost. Orla strode simply to the door and 
paused halfway through it, looking back at him over her shoulder. If you play games, you will lose. 
Consider yourself fortunate that, this time, losing did not cost you dearly. Learn from that. Given all you 
can do, if you lose in the future, you and those around you will likely never survive the loss.

 Fatigue burned Alyxs eyes more than the light of the dawning sun. The sleep shed had in the previous 
three days could have been counted in minutes and still not threatened to fill an hour, and that had been 
after the long ride to ambush the Aurolani forces. With General Caros help, shed managed to convince 
the local merchant-princes that their city was doomed. Caro had carefully pointed out that if the 
evacuation was not carried out in an orderly mannerby which he meant that his orders would be 
followed to the letterthen looting would likely be the result. It would cost the merchants more than 
having to move on, so they reluctantly agreed to it.

 Caro did not leave things to the merchants alone. The city was broken down into its neighborhoods, 
and the local power brokers, be they merchants, thieves, clergy, or scholars, were brought to the 
government tower and told how things would work. The general noted that looters would be slain 
immediately. At his signal a man dressed in the uniform of his own Horse Guards was brought struggling 
to the front of the audience hall. The canvas hood obscuring his identity also muffed his words.

 Caro drew a dagger from his own belt, bent, and said to the prisoner, Come now, do some good, die 
like a man. He thrust the dagger into the mans chest, allowing the bloody tip to pierce the back of his 
tunic, only withdrawing it when the man slacked in the arms of his fellows.

 Caro had not seen it necessary to let folks know the man hed just slain was a murderer pulled from 
the towns jail and dressed in a cavalry uniform.

 The general looked at the assembled leaders and let blood drip from the dagger as his men dragged 
the body off. As I said, all looters will be killed. Man, woman, child. Everyone will find enough to do 
carting off their own possessions, or working for those who have things they need hauled.

 Tent cities were set up on the western side of the Salersena River, and merchants emptied their 
warehouses into them. There some carried on brisk business selling the things others would need to flee. 
Prices remained moderate, though, once Caro commented that usury and price-gouging were tantamount 
to looting.

 Alyx sighed. The whole evacuation would have broken down save for the arrival of a party of riders 
from Yslin. Theyd covered the ten leagues from the capital very quickly, and had arrived doubtlessly 
expecting to celebrate the great victory shed won. Messengers sent by the advanced party sought her 
out in Porasena, and along with General Caro, shed ridden back to her camp in mid-afternoon on the 
second day.

 She and Caro had begun the liberation of Porasena at odds with each other, but the evacuation had 
united them. Caro had appreciated her turning power for the operation over to him. He used her stature 
as the architect of victory to suggest to those who did not like his orders that appeal was possible, but 
she sided with him at every turn. As resentment built in the city, it strengthened her alliance with

 Caro. And neither of them liked being called away from the city.

 The messenger brought the two of them back to her command tent, and Alyx was ready to tear into 


whoever had appropriated it. Caro gave her a nod as they entered, letting her know hed be with her, but 
two steps in, Caros broad form stopped, then shrank as he dropped to a knee before the man standing 
in the heart of the tent. Alyx caught sight of him for a second, before the tent flap closed behind her, 
cutting off the sunlight, but it was enough to drive her to kneel as well.

whoever had appropriated it. Caro gave her a nod as they entered, letting her know hed be with her, but 
two steps in, Caros broad form stopped, then shrank as he dropped to a knee before the man standing 
in the heart of the tent. Alyx caught sight of him for a second, before the tent flap closed behind her, 
cutting off the sunlight, but it was enough to drive her to kneel as well.

 I allowed you the same warning you gave Chytrines troops. Rise, the two of you. You serve me 
well.

 As her head came back up she saw a smile on the mans face. Though she stood tall enough to easily 
see some of the white scars on his bald head, Alyx had always felt tiny in comparison with Alcidas King 
Augustus. In part, she knew, this came from having first met him when she was just a child. Then hed 
had dark hair, and lots of it. Over the years it had thinned and gone as white as the luxurious moustaches 
he wore, so the king had taken to shaving his head. Regardless of what time had done to his body, 
adding wrinkles as it leeched hair away, it had not dimmed the vitality and power shining from his brown 
eyes. They revealed a man still vital in spirit and mind, which Alyx had always held in awe.

 Caro stood and shook hands with the king. Highness, this is an unexpected pleasure.

 You lie as glibly as always, Caro. The last thing you want is me here, especially if the rumors Ive 
heard are true. Augustus turned to Alyx. And you, Alexia, you know I am not here to usurp your 
victory, yes?

 She nodded and shook his hand, relishing the firm, dry leathery grip. Our victory was for you, 
Highness, so usurpation is not a question.

 The king smiled. I am also not here to proclaim you to be a rival to Adrogans, but delivering your 
troops here and winning this victory does put him to shame. This pleases me. He might well be 
competent, and has even harassed Chytrines troops in Okrannel, but I do not like having to rely on him 
alone. He is being pushed hard, as if he were the Norrington that would defeat Chytrine. I am uneasy 
with the forces gathering to support him.

 Understandably, Highness. Alyx sighed. Despite my reservations about him, however, I would 
appreciate his insights on the current situation.

 This evacuation, yes. Its a bit of a thorny problem, isnt it?

 Caro nodded. They understand the concept of clearing things out of the city, but they are without 
direction after that. You must have run into some people making for the capital as you rode in.

 We did. It got me thinking. Let me tell you an idea I have had. He waved them over to the map 
table. Its not as clean a solution as your assault, but will work, I think.

 What the king outlined was both bold and inspiring. Two leagues upriver, just shy of the other natural 
ford, the rivers restless wandering had carved a nice valley through some low hills. The king handed out 
landgrants to the merchants that ceded to them vast tracts of land, provided they would remain in 
residence and meet other goals. The fact that half the land he gave them was in Oriosa went unnoticed in 
the first flush of the plans revelation.

 Smaller grants went to people of the city, giving them something theyd never had before. The king did 
not allow these smaller grants to be sold before ten years, but since the chance at owning land was 
something most of the people of Porasena could only have aspired to, incredible enthusiasm greeted the 
kings generosity.

 Given the threat to anyone in the vicinity of Porasena, the kings retreat to Yslin would have seemed a 
wise course, but Augustus would have none of it. He noted correctly that if he fled to the capital, most of 
the refugees would follow. The king himself made several trips into the city, helping folks move their 
belongings out. He promised to visit them at the new city and even detailed a supply convoy that had 
arrived to lead the way to Newpora and oversee the settlement.

 From her vantage point Alyx could already see the brown stain of a muddy track roughly paralleling 
the river. People heavily laden with burdens struggled along it. Little family groups moved south, jostling 
with enterprising people helping an overloaded mule negotiate some of the tougher spots. Alcidese 
warriors helped and directed.

 Augustus came up beside her, letting the hood on his black, woolen cloak slip down to his shoulders. 


The evacuation goes well, Alyx, and yes, I know you will tell me all praise belongs to Caro in this 
regard. I have thanked him appropriately.

The evacuation goes well, Alyx, and yes, I know you will tell me all praise belongs to Caro in this 
regard. I have thanked him appropriately.

 Looting would have been an impediment to the evacuation, but now... The king shrugged. I doubt 
there is much of significant value left in the town.

 You are doubtlessly correct, Highness.

 Augustus smiled, the corners of his mouth disappearing beneath the thick curves of his moustaches. 
You heard the sullanciri pronounce the doom of Porasena. As I understand it, there was no hint of 
what or when.

 Alyx shook her head. I have been surprised we were able to evacuate the town. I have assumed that 
by sundown today our job here will be done. We can slip away and leave it. The big question is whether 
or not we fire it.

 Yes, we should. The king looked at the town and its towers clustered at the heart. If we leave them 
a place they can occupy, more will enter from Oriosa. I would just as soon deny them a stronghold 
here.

 Highness, I .do not question your wisdom, but why do you tolerate Oriosas harboring of the 
Aurolani forces?

 The king ran a hand over his jaw as he looked across the valley. To get Oriosa to stop would require 
its invasion. Oriosan troops are fierce fighters, and in defending their homeland, they would be more so. 
As for bringing political pressure to bear, well, you know the story of how Scrainwood obtained the 
throne, dont you?

 Yes, Highness. A sullanciri slew his mother.

 Killed her in a most horrible way. That year Oriosa was supposed to host the Harvest Festival, but it 
was postponed for a year because of Queen Lanivettes death. Scrainwood had once been a friend of 
mine, and the man I saw when my father sent me to represent Alcida at the funeral had been broken in 
spirit. He still had Scrainwoods feral cunning and political acumen, but what little courage had been there 
was gone.

 The king shivered. He does not stop them from passing through Oriosa, but he fears them so much 
that he keeps an eye on them. He has spies everywhere and shares his information with me, to forestall 
an invasion. In fact, news of your victory here prompted him to divulge some things which are useful. 
Chytrine is being very bold.

 So my next assignment will be?

 Augustus laughed aloud. The deep rich sound lost itself in the expanse of the valley. You will be 
returning to Yslin with me. The Harvest Festival approaches, and as on the eve of Chytrines last 
invasion, Alcida is hosting it. I want you there. Chytrine inspires fear in many, but you are an antidote to 
that fear. She may be formidable, but she is not invincible, and the peoples of our world need to be 
reminded of that.

 I will do as you bid me, Highness, but my place is in the field, fighting.

 I know it is, Alexia. The kings lips pressed together in a thin line for a moment, then he gave her a 
weak smile. I could hear your father saying those words. He would be very proud of you, though even 
he would tell you that Chytrines current move is not of your concern. Arcanslata reports indicate she is 
bringing a fleet against Vilwan.

 Alyxs head came up. The value of wizards in warfare had long and hotly been debated. While it was 
true that even the most simple of spells could have military applications, the fact that counterspells could 
negate them limited their usefulness. In general, wizards were maintained behind the lines, so they could 
work on repairing equipment or soldiers or tneckansh, who were a whole lot of both. 

Regardless, an assualt on the sorcerer stronghold is pure folly. She frowned. The only way that 
makes sense is if she has created some grand spell, or some mechanism, that can wipe them out.

 True, though her motivation might be even more basic. The Wruona pirates are with her on this 


expedition, but theyve harried her ships before. It could be that she wants to wipe them out, so shes 
pitting one enemy against another. There are plenty of leaders who should learn that to deal with her can 
be very dangerous.

expedition, but theyve harried her ships before. It could be that she wants to wipe them out, so shes 
pitting one enemy against another. There are plenty of leaders who should learn that to deal with her can 
be very dangerous.

 A brilliant light sparked on the plains northeast of the town. It flared argent, blindingly bright as a 
lightning strike, then resolved itself into the figure of the sullanciri shed seen three days earlier. The 
Aurolani creature looked at the town, then sniffed at the air. It turned to face the hilltop where she stood 
with the king.

 Blood I smell, and all too well; but rare blood tickles my nose. The odor, I am quite sure, comes from 
our greatest of foes. All hail King Augustus, who is most chivalrous, and soon quite dolorous.

 Augustus closed his eyes and hung his head, slowly shaking it. You still try too hard, Leigh.

 Though the kings words came in little more than a whisper, the sullanciri, despite being a half mile 
away, reacted as if they had scourged him. He hissed and hunched, pulling the flaming cloak around him 
as if it were armor. He slowly straightened up, craven no more, then pointed east.

 Behold, as foretold, Porasena no more gets old.

 Alyx looked up toward the Oriosan border, then took an involuntary step back. Without conscious 
thought she drew her sword and interposed her body between what she saw and the king. Move now, 
Highness, get away.

 No, Alexia, Ive seen its like before. Running wont matter.

 The dawns sun silhouetted the creature, rendering it as black as the massive cruciform shadow that 
rippled down over hillside and through the fields. Once the dragon swooped below the line of hills, the 
ivory scales flecked with gold made it seem the work of a skilled artisan. The fluidity and grace with 
which it moved seemed impossible for so massive a creature, yet it seemed positively feline in its 
suppleness.

 It dipped its left wing and soared in a tight circle around Porasena. The large blue-green eyes had 
whorls of color swirling through them, swiftly, as if they matched the thoughts of the brain inside the 
horned skull. The dragon appeared to be watching the people in the city scurry and run. It snapped idly 
at one person frozen on a tower balcony. Though the dragon missed the bitethe person would have 
been a mere morsel, lost in that mawthe person leaped back and tumbled to her death.

 With a powerful beat of the wings, the dragon shot skyward, wingtips and barbed tail tridentine, rising 
above the town. Several hundred yards up, the dragon tucked itself into a ball and somersaulted 
backward. It began to fall toward the ground, then the wings snapped out. The fall became a swift, 
looping dive, aiming straight at the town.

 Flying barely above the top of the highest tower, the dragon vomited fire. The flash of heat hit Alyx 
with the force of a playful cuff, and that was but a faint ripple of the power lashing the city. The gout of 
red-gold fire blasted into Porasenas heart, evaporating the bridge shed used to cross the river, then 
flooded through the streets. Discarded wooden furnishings and other rubbish combusted in an eyeblink. 
The fire knocked fleeing people forward, tumbling them as if theyd been caught in a flood, rendering 
them in black and then swallowing them.

 The fires roar effortlessly devoured their screams.

 The fire splashed against towers, again seeming more fluid than vapor. It broke around them, not 
burning as much as eroding them, the way waves gnaw at sand castles. Towers, with tapestries and 
abandoned furnishings burning brightly within them, began to sag like overheated candles. Alyx could see 
where two touched and actually began to fuse, forming an arch over the inferno that was the towns 
heart.

 The dragon circled again, letting little nasal snorts of flame roast men on the walls, or ignite the shacks 
of the beggars quarter. The river carried burning debris northward. In a second circuit, and a third, the 
dragon sowed fire throughout the town. While no assault came as furiously as the first, Porasena blazed 
merrily, sending a dark grey column of smoke into the air.

 The dragon circled one last time, then beat its wings and flew off to the east. Once it had again 
disappeared beyond the Oriosan border, the sullanciri walked into the town. He strode down burning 


lanes, his fire not quite as bright as that of the inferno. It made him easy to watch until he got into the very 
heart of the city.

lanes, his fire not quite as bright as that of the inferno. It made him easy to watch until he got into the very 
heart of the city.

 The tiny figure sketched a bow, then threw the king a salute, again he spun, his cloak flaring to 
brilliance, then the fire died with an audible crack that left darkness in its wake.

 Alyx blinked and looked at the town again, shaking her head. Smoke billowed from bent and twisted 
towers. Here and there the heat reignited fires, but they burned with pale ferocity in comparison with the 
dragonfire. Where the bridge had once been, now lay a basin slowly filling with steaming river water. She 
could almost feel the rivers weirun writhing in scalded agony as parts of it rose in clouds of mist.

 Alyx shivered though she felt not in the least bit cold. I understand that display of power, but if the 
sullanciri knew you were here, why didnt the dragon kill you? Your loss would be a mighty blow to the 
forces that would oppose Chytrine.

 The king slowly nodded. Yes, but more damaging will be my reporting of what I have seen. A quarter 
century ago she had a dragon working for her. She enslaved it through a portion of the DragonCrown. 
We slew it. Men took heart in thattoo much, perhaps. Now she has another.

 Wont she just send it to Yslin to slay the worlds leaders when they come to the Council of Kings?

 You would, I would, but not Chytrine. The king pulled his hood up to shadow his face. She warned 
us she would return. These are more warnings. Before she defeats a foe, she wants him broken. Mark 
me, Alexia, the destruction of Porasena will break the will of some who oppose her. In that light, what 
she lost here to your victory was nothing. If we cannot unite to vanquish her, we will leave the world 
open to her domination.

 The repair to the hem of his sleeping gown had been faster than the recovery of his self-esteem, but 
Kerrigan had managed both. As he had been ordered, he sewed the hem up, sticking his fingers only a 
couple of times with the needle. He decided he would find a seamstress and learn some of her magicks, 
too, so he would prick his fingers no more. Then he washed the robe, and watching those Apprentices 
being punished by doing laundry, he learned to wring the garment out and hang it up on lines to dry.

 None of his other tutors would have had him do that, and Kerrigan knew that Orlas reasonthat 
there was a shortage of servants because of the fleets arrivalwas merely a blind. Every other tutor 
hed had would make him work at magicks as punishment, doing mindless repetitions of spells hed 
learned years ago.

 He knew his tutors were manipulating him. They would show him new spells, teach him new 
techniques, then punish him by making him practice foundational elements.

 And because this bored him, he turned more willingly and attentively to the new material they were 
teaching him.

 Or so they thought.

 Kerrigan had seen, very early on, that he had two types of tutors. The first type just cared about 
achievement; they had been given a goal. He never knew what it was until after hed hit it, because that 
tutor would be gone and a new one would have appeared. These types of tutors were easy . to 
manipulate. He could show some promise, suffer a series of setbacks, then rise up and do well before 
plateauing again. Their happiness and frustration would rise and fall with the tides. Since these tutors 
clearly wanted to be done with him, he could punish them by making it seem as if they would be stuck 
with him for an eternity.

 The second type of tutor concerned himself with precision. These made up, by and large, the tutors 
hed had in the last seven years. Often they were not human at all, and clearly doubtful that he could 
master the magicks they were showing him. Despite his being a tenth the age of some of the eldest human 
mages, and a tinier fraction of the age of his nonhuman teachers, he did work his way through their 
magicks. Most could not believe this, so they made him do things over and over again. For them he 


became obsessively precisehe had no choice. Orla might have ordered him to perform a healing spell 
while on one knee, but Magister Phyreynol would have punished him for a week for doing that.

became obsessively precisehe had no choice. Orla might have ordered him to perform a healing spell 
while on one knee, but Magister Phyreynol would have punished him for a week for doing that.

 Early on he found another tool for manipulating his tutors. Food. He insisted they take their meals with 
him. If they refused he became sulky and balky until they did. Then he would request all sorts of things, 
quickly discerning what they liked and what they hated. Since they ate the same food he did at their 
shared meals, simply by choosing what he would and would not eat he punished and rewarded them. He 
especially enjoyed fattening up the lean ones.

 Kerrigan thought about Orla as he sat in a corner of the kitchen on a stout stool. All around him 
Magisters, Adepts, and Apprentices labored hard, dragging about huge sacks of flour, mixing things in 
mammoth bowls, feeding wood into fires to heat stoves. He wondered why they were not using magick 
to do things, the way they would have normally, then realized they were husbanding their magickal 
strength for other tasks.

 Orla, he knew, would have been pleased that hed made that observation, but she would want more. 
Why? was a question she seemed to ask incessantly. She asked him to think about things more deeply 
than anyone else ever had, and she demanded of him tasks that never would have occurred to his other 
tutors.

 As he munched his black bread, Kerrigan wondered why everyone was holding back on magick. It 
certainly seemed true that physical strength and nonmagickal means accomplished the intended goals. It 
might take longer for bread to be mixed, for it to rise, and for it to bake than without magick, but it got 
done. The small loaf in his hand had been burned on one end, which hed not seen before, but it still 
tasted good and seemed to fill his tummy.

 He shrugged, fairly certain it was some command come down from the Grand Magister, for reasons 
known only to him. Most things he didnt understand were explained that way, and he found that 
explanation comforting. Whenever he asked a tutor why he was supposed to do one thing or another, 
that was always the reply. 

Save with Orla. Shed always ask him to puzzle out a reason. Hed do his best and shed accept 
what he said. Still, he did sense some disappointment there. She clearly expected him to have another 
answer. Since his answers to her were not wrong, though, Kerrigan found it beyond him to puzzle out 
what else she wanted him to say.

 He finished his breadexcepting the burned heel that he tossed to a dogand washed it down with 
watered ale. It tasted horrible, but he drank it anyway. He carried the cup to a washing-up bucket that 
was on his way to the door and dropped it in. The Apprentice who had her arms up to the elbows in 
steaming soapy water gave him a glare. He let his nostrils flare at her, then continued blithely out of the 
kitchen.

 Kerrigan shielded his eyes against the sun for a moment, then set off down a winding pathway toward 
the small port. As the pathway dipped behind forested hills, he lost sight of the ocean and the ships. 
Despite that, the stream of people moving inland made his course easy to pick out.

 Vilwan had always been his home, and while he did not often venture out of the tower complex in 
which he lived and was schooled, he still felt comfortable with his surroundings. The vegetation on the 
hillsides, while quite thick and lush, lay in a rainbow patchwork. The color was by no means uniform, 
since scarlet plants bore blue berries or silver flowers and so forth, but the reactions of the travelers led 
Kerrigan to believe such things were exotic.

 Exotic is exactly what he found the travelers to be. They both amused and scared him. They dressed in 
an absolute riot of colors, and in many layers. They even sported trousershe scarcely saw a robe 
among themand many wore swords and daggers and carried bows and quivers full of arrows. Scars 
puckered flesh, yellowed and crooked teeth filled smiles, and the way some of them smelled! Kerrigan 


felt sure he could have found his way to the port just by following his nose.

felt sure he could have found his way to the port just by following his nose.

 While the procession of people onto the island had been surprising and interesting, their motion 
provided a general sense of order. The port itself had been given over to chaos. Ships rode uneasily at 
anchor, rising and falling with waves. Apprentices clustered around, laughing and shouting. Sailors called 
back to them, then some Adept would send the Apprentices up the gangway to help unload the ship.

 Into this maelstrom of activity Kerrigan strode at his own pace. He marveled at everything, trying to 
memorize it all. He wanted his own record of it so he could compare it with the official history. In those 
pages hed read so much, but little of it had come alive for him. Here he was seeing more than hed ever 
seen before, and luxuriated in its complexity.

 The sights, the sounds, the smells, the words, the accents, it all pounded into him. He rose to greet 
each wave of it, smiling in spite of himself. He caught glances by Adepts, saw them nod to one another. 
He assumed they might be talking about him, but couldnt imagine why. Here, on the docks, he felt like 
everyone else.

 You, how about some help?

 Kerrigan blinked his green eyes and turned to the sound of the voice. There, at the railing of a ship, 
stood an elf. A bulging sack hung from one hand. On the gangway below, Apprentices and young men 
from aboard the ship streamed like ants, hauling the sacks to a wagon.

 Did you mean m-me? Kerrigans voice quivered, but not out of nervousness. The elf looked unlike 
any of his el-ven tutors, for tattoos covered him, and his white hair rose from a center stripe. It took 
Kerrigan a moment to identify him as a Vorquelfnot because he did not know what they were, but 
because hed never seen one before. The sight made him smile.

 The Vorquelf nodded. Yes, you.

 I would be happy to help. Kerrigan tugged the sleeves on his brown robe back. He flexed his 
fingers, extended his open hands, and began to weave a spell. As he had done with the book, he 
intended to float the sack from the ship to the cart. Gauging the distance and the items weight were 
tricky, but the way it swayed effortlessly in the Vorquelfs grip told him it could not be very heavy.

 He set himself to cast the spell, closing his eyes for a moment to compose himself, then opened his 
eyes again. He looked for his target, but couldnt see it. He saw others lifting their faces skyward and he 
aped them. He wondered what it was they were looking at because he couldnt see anything. The sky 
had been blotted out.

 Half a heartbeat later, the fifty-pound sack of flour slammed into his chest. The impact lifted him off his 
feet and dumped him hard onto his back. Stars exploded before > his eyes as his head smacked the 
ground. He bounced once, then felt a suffocating weight pressing on his chest. In a flash of anger he cast 
the spell hed been readying, launching the sack of flour into the air, but he found he still couldnt breathe.

 An Adept he didnt know dropped to a knee beside him. He tried to slip his arms around Kerrigans 
waist, to arch his back, but his grip slipped. Hes too big, I need help.

 Kerrigan kicked his legs in panic as breath burned in his lungs. He wanted to scream because his head 
and his back hurt, but his paralyzed lungs left him silent. Tears coursed down his face, at first from the 
pain, then from the laughter he heard. Through tears he saw blurred figures contorted in hilarity, telling 
and retelling what theyd seen.

 Suddenly the Vorquelf filled his vision and straddled him. Kerrigan felt fingers dig into the fleshiness of 
his back. The Vorquelf lifted him, and cool air rushed into his lungs.

 The mage exhaled as the Vorquelf let him down. Three more times the Vorquelf helped him breathe, 
then dragged his hands from beneath Kerrigan.

 He stood tall above him. Wonder you can breathe at all.

 Kerrigans face reddened immediately. He rolled on his right side to get himself up, but before he 
could even get a knee under him, someone else knocked into him. Kerrigan rolled away a few feet, 


barely had time to make sense of the shouts of Look out ringing through the crowd, then looked back 
toward where he had lain.

barely had time to make sense of the shouts of Look out ringing through the crowd, then looked back 
toward where he had lain.

 All around him Apprentices, Adepts, sailors, and soldiers pointed and laughed. He looked down and 
found himself dusted tan from the curve of his belly up, then over his arms. Those parts of himself he 
couldnt see he assumed were likewise coated. His face immediately burned and he wished the flour had 
filled his ears, so he could be deafened to the laughter.

 Laughter pilloried him. Panic blossomed as his face burned beneath the flour coat. To be diminished, 
bullied, badgered, and threatened hed learned to deal with, but ridicule, he had no defense against that. 
Alone, hurt, and mortified, he didnt know what to do. He could think of nothing, so he reacted without 
thinking at all.

 For the first time in his life, Kerrigan Reese ran. 

ft rla entered the Magister of Combats round tower cham-I Iber, but did not descend the single step 
to the sunken tJ disk in the center. All around that disk, shelves had been fitted to the walls and filled 
with books, scrolls, maps, weapons, bones, and other artifacts of war. Opposite the door she entered 
through lay a balcony, and the Magister stood there, his hands clasped at his back, watching the sea to 
the north.

 The room would have been easy to mistake for a generals home, and not just from the items found in 
it. The stark and spare furnishings had nothing mystical about them, nor were they at all refined. The 
hardwood chairs would not encourage lingering. The cot set near the balcony had been made up, but 
covered only with sheets and a thin wool blanket. The drawers on one of the shelves must have held the 
Magisters clothes, but there were few enough of them to suggest his money did not go to filling out his 
wardrobe.

 The Magister himself did wear the grey robes of a senior sorcerer, though he was not a slave to 
fashionsuch as it was on Vilwan. Instead, he stripped his robe down to his waist and tied the arms 
there as if a belt. Despite his being partially silhouetted, she could see light scars and darker tattoos on his 
back and shoulders.

 Those shoulders had once been powerful, as had the Magister himself. In his younger days hed had 
the physique of a warriorthough slender enough for it to have been an elven warrior. His head, which 
he shaved daily, had once been sown with long black hair that had been braided into a plait much like 
hers.

 She cleared her voice. You sent for me, Magister.

 He waited a moment before he turned and moved back into his chamber. He seemed to age with each 
inch he came into the room. The imperfections that the sunlight had hidden came into easy focus. The tall, 
proud man she had known in her youth had shrunk, as if the weight of his responsibilities and the power 
he could wield had compressed him. She could still feel his power, and see it in smoldering brown 
eyesreinforcing why it was foolish to judge a mage by his physical form.

 You are aware, Orla, of the forthcoming invasion. Chytrine wishes to do with Vilwan what she did 
with Vorquellyn over a century ago. His voice remained even, though age cracked it in a few places. 
Tomorrow, or the next day, the peace of this island will be shattered.

 She nodded slowly. I question the wisdom of her assault on Vilwan.

 The Magister of Combats held a hand up to forestall further comment. Wise or not, it is a fact. We 
know she made a probing attack against a town in Alcida. There she lost more troops than she expected, 
and used a dragon to exact her revenge. She has grown more powerful in the last quarter century, 
perhaps more arrogant as well. She is coming and we will face her.

 Orla lifted her chin. What do you want me to do?

 The Magister of Combats smiled at her, for a heartbeat peeling back the years to a time when they 
had stood side by side, holding off Aurolani forces in Okrannel. I need to inquire after the boy. 


 They gave that task to you? Did the Grand Magister assume our long association would make me dull 
my tongue on the matter?

 They gave that task to you? Did the Grand Magister assume our long association would make me dull 
my tongue on the matter?

 Orla snorted. Things have not changed much since I last reported to the Council. Adept Reese is, 
without a doubt, the greatest human sorcerer known. His parents talents bred true. He studies hard, but 
he has been raised like a horse with blinders. He knows magick, all manner of magicks. He has mastered 
spells of incalculable power, and is easily able to deconstruct, examine, refine, recombine, and create 
spells that no man has yet dreamed might exist.

 The Magister nodded. This is as intended.

 Yes, what you intended. What you all intended. 

You? the Magisters eyes narrowed. I recall rather well your being with me at his nativity. We all 
volunteered for that duty; we believed in that duty. Has your heart changed? Do you think we were 
wrong?

 No. She shook her head resolutely. Youre correct in saying we all volunteered for that duty. All of 
us did, save one: Kerrigan. He was drafted against his will, before he had a will, and he has been shaped 
and crafted. Hes been trained as a dog might, for one purpose. At least, he began his life training for one 
purpose, but his goal was changed as things went along.

 Orla sighed and gestured south, toward the islands heart. Have you seen him outside the times of 
testing?

 No.

 You should. The entire Council should. You have no idea what his training has done to him. It was 
agreedby me, too, yesthat neither Kerrigan nor any of them would be told their intended destiny. 
The pressure would have been overwhelming. Just their training has crushed the others, but he keeps on. 
Why? Because he has stopped questioning his purpose in life. He learned early on that such questions 
would not be answered, so he just abandoned the quest for that knowledge.

 Yet, by doing so, he has accomplished so much.

 True, but how useful is it?

 The Magister of Combats chuckled. Immensely useful, if he can wield a fraction of the power you 
suggest. Ive seen it, during testing, of that there is no doubt.

 Oh, he can, but youve seen him do it in a testing chamber. She shook her head. In combat, arrows 
flying, men screaming, fire burning, and greasy smoke choking, hed be useless. This morning, Magister, 
he skinned his knee. It was a wound you and I would dismiss without a second thought, but it became 
the center of his being. He would not cast the spell to heal it until I told him to do so, and then he wanted 
to get into a clean robe, to set himself to do it. When I made him cast it while down on one knee, when I 
shamed him into doing it, then he did. He did it well, but even then he had no distractions. In an 
ar-canorium he is unequaled. In the field, Id choose the most raw Apprentice over him.

 And yet he is the best we have. The Magister of Combats sighed heavily. Hell be no help in the 
fight at all.

 He could cure some who are wounded, but I think that is it. She pursed her lips. Put him in a ward, 
give him a bodyguard, and order that person to slay him if the Aurolani forces are able to overrun the 
island. And, no, you wont have me do it. I would refuse, and quite frankly, you need me elsewhere.

 Youre right and youre wrong, Orla. A hint of a smile traced over the Magisters lips. Were it 
within my power, you and I would fight side by side again, driving the pirates off.

 It is within your power. The defense of Vilwan is your responsibility. I may be older and slowing 
down, but Im still one of the better combat mages available.

 I would never deny that fact, Orla, never! He brought his hands together over the knot made of the 
arms of his brown robe. The fact remains, however, that you have a more important mission than 
defending Vilwan. No, wait, hear me out. There actually is such a mission. You will accompany Adept 
Reese as he is evacuated from the island. It is your job to get him away safely.

 Orla felt a great wave of fatigue crash through her. You cannot be serious. I will be wasted in that 


job.

job.

 Her head came up. Oh, I see. The Council is willing to accede to my requests to do that, using the 
invasion as a pretext. So much better to have that than to have to admit being wrong.

 Orla, my dear friend, you know better than to question the origin of good fortune. The Magister 
smiled, then advanced and laid his right hand on her right shoulder. Go strongly, teach him well. If we 
are not defeated, he can return. If we are, it is a good thing for the world that he will not die with us.

 Will felt fair certain his ribs had cracked, he was laughing so hard. Hed dropped the flour sack hed 
been carrying and clutched his sides. The look of surprise on the fat kids face a half second before the 
flour sack hit him smack in the chest had been priceless. The way his expression had gone from serene 
confidence to sheer panic was a memory Will would run through his mind time and again.

 And then, to make things better, the flour sack had flown way up, then come down hard and burst, 
drenching the boy in flour. Hed run off, sobbing, leaving a misty ribbon in the air behind him. 

And it was his own fault. Resolute had called to him, indicating he should get in line with the rest of 
them. Instead the kid had just stood there and gestured imperiously. Hed even closed his eyes, daring 
Resolute to throw the sack. If I had done that, Resolute wouldnt have been helping me breathe, 
hed have been skinning me alive.

 Finished laughing, boy?

 The rime-tinged edge in Resolutes voice stopped Wills laughter dead. Ah, yes, I am.

 Good. Resolute caught him in a vise-grip around his right arm. Pick up the sack you dropped. 
Carry it to the cart. Then, find a broom. Sweep up the spilled flour and put it in that sack again.

 What?

 Resolutes eyes became silver slits. That flour could make up the last bread youll ever eat. Were 
getting no more supplies here. This is it. We cant waste anything.

 Got it. Will tried to pull his arm free of Resolutes grasp, but failed.

 The Vorquelf held on for a heartbeat more, then released him. Hurry, boy.

 Will stooped and picked up his flour sack, then carried it to the cart. Dranae took it from him there 
and easily tossed it into place. The cart creaked as it landed.

 Tell me something, Will. The large man plucked another sack from an Apprentices back and lofted 
it onto the cart. Why did you think that was funny?

 Will blinked. You didnt?

 Should I have? The young man was getting ready to use magick to move that sack. He probably 
could have moved the whole cart.

 The young thief frowned. How do you know that?

 Dranae hesitated for a moment, then ran a hand over his jaw. I just do. Seemed obvious to me. 
Were on Vilwan. Hes in a robe, makes a gesture.

 Will nodded. I can see that, yeah. What I cant see is how you could have thought he was 
powerful.

 Why was it funny?

 Well, because he was knocked down. Because he was surprised, and then because he was covered 
in flour and ran off crying like a baby.

 Even though it was all a mistake?

 Will felt like squirming. Well, I didnt know it was a mistake, right?

 Even though he had obviously been hurt?

 I didnt know....

 The flesh around Dranaes blue eyes tightened. You know how heavy the sacks are. You know that 
had to have hurt.

 Well... Will felt his guts starting to shrivel. Others were laughing.

 So they were. Dranae clapped Will on both shoulders, hard, sending a shock wave through him. 


But they were mostly mages, too. Remember, Will, its not a good idea to have a sorcerer thinking 
youve been laughing at him. Youll have a lot of trouble here on Vilwan if you forget that.

But they were mostly mages, too. Remember, Will, its not a good idea to have a sorcerer thinking 
youve been laughing at him. Youll have a lot of trouble here on Vilwan if you forget that.

 His bones ached from fatigue and his belly growled. Thered not been much food on the ship, and 
most of it was older than he was. The hard biscuits didnt taste bad, they just didnt taste, save for the 
weevils in them. Will deemed it just as well that the King of Saporicia was sending so many folks to 
Vilwan to die, because after theyd enjoyed bad food, worse water, and a long sea journey, theyd have 
been ready to storm his castle and topple him from the throne.

 Will talked to one of the Apprenticeseasily spotted by a robe with a scarlet bodyand asked 
where he might find a broom. The Apprentice smiled and told him they were kept at the gaming fields. 
She pointed toward the center of  the island.

 Will shrugged and set off, but an Adept in a robe of forest-green stopped him. When Will reported 
what he had been told, the Adept snorted and told him there were no gaming fields. We use brooms for 
the same thing everyone else does, as that Apprentice will soon be reminded. Try one of the port shops 
here, they will have one you can borrow.

 A tavern lent him a broom. The journey along the docks to it and back gave him a chance to take a 
look around. He found Vilwan slightly disappointing because the area around the docks, or what the 
locals referred to as Seatown, looked pretty much like every other seaside section of town hed ever 
visited. Dirty, dingy, with a few broad, straight roads, then a tangle of muddy alleys leading back into a 
thicket of warehouses and ramshackle houses. While he didnt mind that, he expected something more 
exotic.

 The Adepts and Apprentices bored him, too. Some, like the one who had been hit with flour, seemed 
bug-eyed, staring at the troops being shipped in to defend their home. Others sniffed like nobles, as if 
their blood were somehow better than his. And, from his standpoint, the most annoying thing was that 
none of them had money pouches. He didnt mind folks being snooty as long as he had a chance to 
collect a snob-tax from them.

 Will sighed and returned with the broom to begin to sweep the flour up. The Adept hed spoken to 
earlier came over, dragging the Apprentice who had deceived him over by the ear. This is what you 
want the broom for, to collect this flour?

 Will nodded. Yes, sir.

 Very good. The Adept glanced at the Apprentice. Youll help him.

 The Apprentice, a redheaded girl with enough soft-swelling on her chest to be only a couple years 
younger than Will, nodded. Yes, Adept.

 Will brandished the broom, then nodded toward the sack. Just hold that and I can sweep the flour 
into it.

 As she slowly bent to the task, Will dragged the broom through the flour. It seemed to him that the 
broom, bristle-bare as it was, did a better job raking than it was sweeping. Will made several passes, but 
brought more dirt than flour to the waiting sack.

 The Apprentice gave him a witheringly depreciative glance. You dulls. This will take forever. She 
gestured once and a blue spark flew from her right hand. It hit the broom dead in the middle of the-stick 
and wrenched it from his grasp. Whirling and twirling, the broom danced through the flour and drove it in 
a wave to the waiting sack. In no time at all, every speck of the flour at the point of impact had been 
swept up, and the broom would have started in on the tracks left by the running boy, but the Apprentice 
called it back and killed the spell.

 Will blinked and his jaw dropped open. How? I thought he said you used brooms for what we all 
do.

 We do. She smiled sweetly. We just dont use it the same way you do. Sacks full, Ill take the 
broom back for you. 


 He shivered. Its from ...

 He shivered. Its from ...

 Will took the sack and gathered the top of it closed. He hefted it onto his back but barely felt the 
strain. If a kid can do that... Images of self-propelled constabulary nightsticks cavorted through his 
head. Dranaes right. Laughing at wizards is not a good idea, and stealing from them would be 
even worse.

 Alyx refused to look in the mirror, and reluctantly met the eyes of the women who had helped dress 
her. Given her embarrassment, she would not have greeted their gazes at all, but they had slaved over 
herbathing her, brushing, braiding, and fixing her hair, then dressing her. Without help Alyx could have 
shrugged on a full mail suit faster than they were able to get her into her golden gown. And the armor 
would move easier and leave me feeling so much less vulnerable.

 She did not resent these two women and their help. While she had been dressing herself for decades, 
the garments shed worn while with the Gyrkyme had been simplebarely more than sacks. The 
Gyrkyme, with their wonderful plumage, hardly had need of fashions to make themselves more attractive. 
A scrap of cloth here or there would suit the most modest, and modesty had not been one of Alyxs 
concerns until well into puberty. Even then she followed societys conventions more to save others 
embarrassment than herself.

 But she could never have donned the gown that had been chosen for her without help. Long, flowing 
skirts dragged on the floor, forcing her to wear shoes with toes that reared back and up, like a snake 
preparing to strike. With each step the serpentine toe kicked the hem of the gown out from beneath her 
foot. The skirts themselves gathered at her slender waist, at the edge of a stiff bodice into which she had 
been tightly laced. She could hardly breathe, and bowing at the waist was a flat impossibility as the 
leading edge of the bodice extended down to fully protect her femininity. Above the top of the bodice, 
which scarcely hid her nipples and barely contained her bosom, a slender, wispy silken scarf swirled from 
one wrist across her shoulders to the other. Alyx, feeling trapped in the gown, likened the scarf to a 
golden chain linking silk manacles.

 She sighed, but not very deeply, since the bodice would not allow her to draw a proper breath. For 
the womens help she had been grateful, but the reason they had been present rankled. Just over a 
decade before, on her sole previous trip to Yslin, she had been given a similar gown and left to dress 
herself. She studied the gown as she might a battlefield, then put it on. Since lacing it tight would have 
been impossible without help, Alyx had posited that it had to be worn with the lacings forward and that 
was how she dressed herself. She liked the stiffness against her spine, and while the lacings did bind over 
her breasts and belly, having nothing more to cover her presented no problem for someone raised by the 
Gyrkyme.

 Luckily her aunt had come to check on her and was able to correct the problem before she had left 
the room. They should know that I learn from my mistakes. She would have ventured another sigh, 
but felt reluctant to waste her breath. Instead she smiled and bowed her head to the women. Thank you 
for your help.

 They curtsied deeply, the both of them, sinking into a puddle of skirts, then rising slowly. It was an 
honor to serve you, Highness.

 Alyx smiled beneficently at them as they left the room. She started to reach around behind her to 
unknot the lacings, but a quick knock on the door barely preceded the tiny squeak of it swinging open. 
If you do that, youll spill out of the gown and scandalize everyone.

 Her violet eyes blazed as the man slipped into the room. Shorter than she, and on the fuller side of a 
medium build, he wore his black hair long and raggedly cut. His moustaches drooped well past his jaw, 
but his goatee remained a triangle of black surrounded by the white flesh of his chin. Gold hose clung to 
his legs and a gold tunic clothed him, with a tabard of black over the top of it. A winged horse rampant, 
in white, emblazoned his chest.

 His eyes widened in shock as he met her hot stare. He pulled back, and splayed a hand against his 
chest. Have you forgotten me, cousin? 


 Alyxs jaw opened for a moment, then she smiled. Misha?

 Alyxs jaw opened for a moment, then she smiled. Misha?

 Of course. She moved to him carefully and kissed him on both cheeks. Not quite the same cousin 
with whom I shared a dream raid.

 Ive grown up, as have you. He stepped back and his smile broadened. Perhaps I should not have 
been so opposed to their arranging our marriage.

 Alyx caressed his cheek. Sweet Misha, you promised, and I know you would have sooner stabbed 
yourself through the heart than to violate your word.

 He shrugged. Truthfully, cousin, Id take you for a wife in a heartbeat, save that relatives I hate would 
then be related to me yet one more time.

 How are they?

 Some are truly dead, others walking dead. A few of us, we are realistic. Misha shrugged and 
grabbed a handful of his long hair. The customs they impose on us are not that hideous. Remaining 
unshorn for the summer, to mourn your fathers passingas our grandfather did and doesis not 
difficult. What they do to the younger ones, and the way they are crossing our bloodlines, well, my father 
tells me they have always meddled.

 And they sent you to get me?

 His brown eyes grew wide again. Duke Mikhail? By all the gods, no, little Alyx. If they knew I was 
here they would all be angry. I just wanted to make sure that you would recognize your cousin and know 
you had an ally in there.

 Another knock, this one far more stout, rattled the door. Mikhail danced over past a screen in the 
small room, and almost slipped in a puddle of water leaking from the wooden bathing cask. He ducked 
down behind the cask and nodded to Alyx.

 Enter.

 The door swung slowly open, letting the stone archway frame a small but strongly built man. As had 
Misha, he wore black over gold, but appeared more striking because of his full snowy mane and beard. 
He had no moustache and his flesh bore the bronze tint of a lifetime spent under the sun. In a few places, 
on his hands, and in .one spot on his forehead, puckered scars resisted coloring; but otherwise the man 
was robust and the picture of health.

 Though Alyx had not seen him in over a decade, she could not mistake him for anyone else. Uncle 
Valery, it is good to see you.

 The older mans face brightened as he entered the room and hugged her. He kissed both her cheeks 
and the brush of his whiskers tickled her cheek and throat. Alexia, of you my brother would be so 
proud. The mans deep voice became gravelly with emotion.

 He took a half step back, then straightened. It is my duty and honor, profound and deep, to conduct 
you into the Crown Circle. He extended his right arm, which she took by slipping her left hand through 
the crook of his elbow, then he led her sideways through the door and into the corridor.

 Fortress Gryps had once been the largest fortification in all of Yslin. It had been supplanted by 
Fortress Libertas out on the eastern point to guard the entrance to the harbor. King Augustus had been 
kind enough to make Fortress Gryps available to the Okrannel exile community, not as a permanent 
dwelling place, but a societal hub. For special gatherings, the titanic stone structurewith its vaulted 
ceilings and stone columns, friezes and tapestriesbecame transformed into a place in which the glory of 
Okrannel was resurrected.

 Alexia knew nothing of the fall of her nation. She had been borne away to Gyrvirgul in the final days of 
the war against Chytrine. The nation had fallen and her father had retreated with loyal retainers to defend 
Fortress Draconis, far to the north. He had died there and she had been given over to the Gyrkyme to 
raise and train.

 She had grown up being told that the Gyrkyme stewardship of her life was her fathers final wish. By 
the time she grew old enough to question the truth of thathaving heard that her fathers manner of death 
precluded the communication of any last wishes, no matter what the songs said about itshe had 


wondered why her grandfather, her aunt, uncles, and cousins had not wanted to care for her themselves. 
Not long after that point she took her previous journey to Yslin, to be presented to the Crown Circle for 
the first time.

wondered why her grandfather, her aunt, uncles, and cousins had not wanted to care for her themselves. 
Not long after that point she took her previous journey to Yslin, to be presented to the Crown Circle for 
the first time.

 On her uncles arm, with the long skirts catching at her legs, she drifted through a fortress that had 
been transformed. The tapestriessome new and bright and exaggerated, others ancient, stained, and 
dourall bore images from Okrans history. The newer ones seemed more imagined than real, with a 
number having a dreamlike quality to the pictures that revealed their inspiration.

 She shook her head and hoped her uncle would not notice. The Okrans nobility, having been driven 
from their homeland, had come to Yslin and taken up residence. King Stefin had vowed to remain until 
Okrannel was liberated. The court in exile became known as the Crown Circle, and the Crown Circle 
determined and dictated that which was and was not part of Okrans life. While the effects of the edicts 
lessened with each league from Yslinsuch that the refugees living in Jerana viewed them with mild 
amusement or deep contemptthey had the rule of law in Yslin.

 One of the edicts had required each noble child at the age of fifteen to undertake a sojourn to 
Okrannel, to sleep on his native soil for a night. Somehow it became believed that the dreams one had 
during that night were prophetic, and these prophecies took on the same sanctity that the Norrington 
prophecy held for the Vorquelves.

 At seventeen years of age she went on her journey, along with her uncle Valery, a troop of loyal 
retainers, and her cousin Misha. She should have gone at fifteen, as Misha did, but it took two years for 
the Crown Circle to get over their pique and grant her permission to go. The two of them had ventured 
into Okrannel and slept, then shared their dreams, refining them in the telling, so they would be suitably 
impressive for the Crown Circle.

 Her throat tightened for a heartbeat as regret choked her. Shed have told the Crown Circle nothing of 
her dream, save for how they had looked at her when she was first presented to them, and later how 
Grand Duke Valery had silenced everyone so she could share her dream. The delight on his face as she 
told him what she had dreamed, the pleasure in his voice as hed ordered someone to fetch her tea with 
milk and sweetened until thick, that had convinced her that what she had done was right.

 Her uncle again smiled at her with such delight as two liveried courtiers opened the door to the Grand 
Hall. Come, my dear child. You are awaited.

 Thick incense cascaded down in phantom ribbons from censers mounted high on massive stone pillars, 
filling the room to knee high with a pungent fog. Oil lamps provided illumination, but scant little of it. Men 
and women hid in the shadows, each wearing gold, but with black over it. Alyx alone had been permitted 
the right to wear gold un-shrouded, and she chose to imagine that the gasps she heard from behind 
beards, hands, and fans were from the shock of wan light reflecting off her gown.

 The Grand Duke led her forward at a stately pace. He clasped his left hand over her hand, locking it 
down against his arm. She felt no tremor in him indicating he thought she might bolt. Instead, as he 
walked deeper and deeper into the long room, drawing nearer the distant end, his steps became more 
certain and serene.

 When last hed led her forward she had been a gangling child who twisted and gawked at all those 
shrinking back. Now he brought her, a woman grown and a warrior trained, before the Crown Circle, 
and the sheer pride of it bunched the muscles of the forearm where her hand rested.

 Finally they stopped three meters shy of the throne squatting at the halls far end. She bowed her head 
to her grandfather, after the fashion of warriors greeting one another, then curtsied awkwardly. The 
night-shrouded women flanking the throne began breathing again when she curtsied, exhaling the breath 
theyd gathered when shed given King Stefin a warriors nod.

 Her grandfather sat slumped on the throne, his crown slightly askew and sunk low, as if the mans 
head had shrunk. He looked almost a child wearing his fathers raiment, but those dark eyes had a 
deadness to them that no child ever could have possessed. The man sat there, crushed down not by 
years alone, but by the hand of Death as it vaulted him to kill his eldest son and kill his nation. 


 The old mans eyes flicked up and held her stare for only a moment. He had vowed he would not die 
until his homeland had been liberated. Many people who undertook such vows did so halfheartedly, but 
those who made them with full knowledge and intent often suffered for their temerity. In the brief moment 
her grandfather looked her in the eyes, she could see he was a prisoner of his own body. 

 The old mans eyes flicked up and held her stare for only a moment. He had vowed he would not die 
until his homeland had been liberated. Many people who undertook such vows did so halfheartedly, but 
those who made them with full knowledge and intent often suffered for their temerity. In the brief moment 
her grandfather looked her in the eyes, she could see he was a prisoner of his own body. 

 King Stefin mumbled something, his parched lips barely moving. One of the women behind him moved 
forward, and despite the thickness of the incense in the air, Alyx caught a whiff of the moldy scent rolling 
off the woman. Alyx, who had not wavered when charging through Aurolani battle lines, shivered in this 
womans presence and had Valery not still held her hand against his forearm, she would have taken a 
step back.

 Scent far more than sight of the cadaverously slender, hatchet-faced woman sent Alyx reeling back 
through the years to when she was first presented. At that time the king had been more animated and 
actually smiled at seeing her. Grand Duchess Tatyana had not even made an attempt at a smile. Though 
only a decade older than the king, she was his aunt, so he gave her great latitude. Shed swept forward 
and grabbed Alyx roughly, twisting her this way and that, humming and hawing as she did so.

 Then, with her sharp, bony fingers, shed pried the girls mouth open and thrust fingers in to count her 
teeth and probe her mouth. Alyx struggled, gagging as fingers hit the back of her throat, but other fingers 
dug deeply into her forearm. The woman hissed at her malevolently and shook her to stop her struggling.

 So Alyx bit her.

 She didnt draw blood, though she knew she could have easily, simply by shifting her jaw to let her 
molars slice through the crones thin skin. Tatyana wrenched her fingers out of Alyxs mouth and held her 
left hand up as if she expected her fingers to be a couple digits shy of whole. Alyx pulled free of her right 
hand and stepped back, not caring that the hem of her gown tore. She set her feet and balled her fists.

 Tatyana advanced only as far forward as the kings side. His Highness says he is pleased to see his 
fated granddaughter again.

 As am I pleased to see him Alyx knew Tatyana caught the emphasis. And you, Great-Aunt 
Tatyana, you are well?

 As well as can be expected when ones heart aches from breathing foreign air, sleeping on foreign 
soil, pining for ones homeland.

 It is a burden, yes. Alyx wished the gowns bodice would allow her to suck in enough air for a 
decent snarl. Tatyana, whose reputation as a mystic had grown over the years, served as the kings 
closest advisor and often interpreted his unintelligible remarks. Many of the new traditions handed down 
from the Crown Circle originated with her. A year or so after the fall of Okrannel, shed had a vision that 
led her, covertly, to undertake the first dream raid. She also was the author of edicts concerning fashion 
that, Misha had once noted, seemed more designed to make sure exiles did not resemble the population 
of the lands where they dwelt than it did any preservation of Okrans tradition.

 Again King Stefin mumbled, and Tatyanas sharp expression softened slightly as her lips twitched into 
a smile. His Majesty says he is pleased you could join us this night. News of your victories has preceded 
you, and they make us most proud.

 Alyx bowed her head toward the wizened figure of the king. Too much has been made of these 
battles, Grandfather. My forces merely slapped the snout of a bear sniffing about for food. When it 
chooses to slap back, things could be much worse.

 I think, my darling niece, you are overly cautious. Tatyanas ice-blue eyes focused distantly for a 
moment. There are those who see great victories in your future. Even you, yourself, have seen them.

 I recall. Alyxs eyes tightened. Tatyana often retreated into a chamber deep in the bowels of 
Fortress Gryps and remained there for days at a time. Servants kept it filled with incense smoke and hot 
airAlyx had heard it said that sitting in a smokehouse with hams would be more hospitableso her 
great-grandaunt could be transported to a place where she saw visions. Her visions, when not concerned 
with the conduct of Okrans exiles, always touted the liberation of Okrannel, with Alyx at the head of a 
multinational army that would sweep through the nation and into Aurolan itself, to destroy Chytrine.

 The problem for Alyx was not the enormity of that crusade. Given sufficient forces, support, and some 


luck, she knew such a campaign could be won. Tatyanas visions always included some climactic battle 
in which the back of the Aurolan army would be broken. Alyx realized it would take a much longer 
campaign using entirely different tactics, but when she returned from her dream raid with Misha, she said 
her dream mirrored the visions of Tatyana.

luck, she knew such a campaign could be won. Tatyanas visions always included some climactic battle 
in which the back of the Aurolan army would be broken. Alyx realized it would take a much longer 
campaign using entirely different tactics, but when she returned from her dream raid with Misha, she said 
her dream mirrored the visions of Tatyana.

 Alyx again shivered. And the Vorquelves have waited five times as long as we have for their 
homeland to be freed.

 Tatyana raised a fingerone of those Alyx had bitten and let her smile flatten. The time has come, 
child, for you to fulfill the destiny your father chose for you. He died so you could live. Your duty is to 
free Okrannel. You are our champion.

 Another voice, strong and male, filled the chamber from back near the doorway. I trust, Grand 
Duchess, I would be included in your statement.

 Alyx turned as quickly as her gown and uncle would allow, pleased to let Tatyanas venomous glare 
speed past her.

 Through the incense fog came King Augustus. Where Okrans exiles wore gold, he chose silver. He 
had donned a black tabard, with the winged horse rampant on it, but the silver gorget hanging from 
around his neck above it displayed a half fish, half horse that he had chosen as the ensign of his reign.

 Walking beside him, in gold and black, though more of the former than the latter, came Queen Yelena. 
A robust woman who matched her husband in height, her brown hair displayed only a few strands of 
grey. Her brown eyes sparked fiercely. Tatyana did not shrink from the queens glare, but neither did she 
escalate the war of expression.

 Alyx found herself smiling despite the tension in the air. The stories of how King Augustus had rescued 
Yelena from an overrun Okrannel while destroying Chytrines army of ravagers had been retold in 
endless variations. As a little girl, Alyx had delighted in them all. She took great pride in being distantly 
related to Yelena, and the queen had been Alyxs hero. More than one of the songs sung had told of 
Yelena and Augustus fighting back to back, saving each otherand in the often savage and always 
martial Gyrkyme society, nothing could have been more romantic.

 Tatyanas voice came in a hiss. Okrannels debt to you, King Augustus, can never be repaid. 
Through Alexia we will find a way to free ourselves and burden you no more.

 Burden me? Augustus lifted the queens hand to his mouth and kissed it. You are of the blood that 
sustains my wife and my heirs. How could you be a burden to me? And this, your granddaughter, 
Majesty, you know how well she has served me and my people. This debt of which you speak has 
already been repaid. It is the other debt that needs repaying.

 King Stefin croaked something. Tatyanas eyes became icy slits. Other debt?

 When first we set off for Okrannel, its liberation was our goal. That was a quarter century ago. We 
owe you liberation, and you will have it.

 The mystic let a smile slash the lower half of her face. You have given us the means. Alexia has been 
trained well.

 True, quite true. At the head of an army, she could free Okrannel. For a while.

 Alyx had begun to nod as Augustus spoke, but her head froze with his last three words. His voice had 
sunk into serious tones.

 He glanced at her. Not to belittle your skills, General, for they are formidable, but we all know that if 
you take Okrannel back from Chytrine, you will be granted no peace to build fortifications. You will have 
no chance to hold your land against another invasion.

 She nodded. I cannot gainsay your vision of the future, Highness.

 Augustus looked at Tatyana. I know I am here on sufferance, for I am but married into Okrans 
society. Some of you view me as a brother or a son; though most see me as a landlord who has, as yet, 
been lenient in asking for rent. You fear the bill coming due, and you know it will soon. You have heard 


of Chytrines forays into Alcida, and you know she is sending a fleet against Vilwan. So, yes, I will make 
a demand of you. Do not think Alexia, no matter how brilliant, can save your homeland alone.

of Chytrines forays into Alcida, and you know she is sending a fleet against Vilwan. So, yes, I will make 
a demand of you. Do not think Alexia, no matter how brilliant, can save your homeland alone.

 The mystic crone let his words echo into silence, then slowly nodded. His Highness says Okrannel is 
ever prepared to be the razored edge of the spear thrust into Chytrines guts. We only demand that we 
not be wasted, and that our desires are given proper weight. If this is permitted, then Okrannels role in 
the coming war with Aurolan will be obvious, clear, and will lead to total victory.

 Augustus smiled. As it should. Tatyana nodded. As it has been foreseen. The murmurs of those in 
the room suggested they took great heart in Tatyanas words, but Alyx did not. It was less what she said, 
or how she said it, that left her unsettled. What unnerved her was the glance her grandfather gave her as 
the mystic spoke. As his dark gaze brushed past her eyes, cold cut at her spine.

 She read fear in his gaze, terrible fear. Not of death, not of dying. He knew he would pass only after 
his homeland had been freed. No, King Stefin was terrified that he would, in fact, live forever.

 Even having the shutters closed and the heavy drapes drawn tight across them could not keep the 
sunlight out of his arcanorium. Seated there in the utter darkness, Kerrigan knew no visible light could 
touch him, but he still felt the suns heat. If light is what one sees, then heat is the suns breath.

 He couldnt wait for the sun to hide its face because, as had so many others, it had witnessed his utter 
and complete humiliation. The Vorquelf had seen what he was doing and deliberately threw the sack of 
flour at him. Fifty pounds had flown through the air easily and unerringly, with no warning shouted, no 
whistle, hiss, or rustle to alert him. Had he not opened his eyes at the last minute, he wouldnt have had a 
clue as to what was happening.

 Fury flared through him, and the hair on the backs of his hands rose as energy tingled and sparked 
from his fingertips. The memories of ridicule crashed over him in successive waves. They crushed him 
down, battering him, making his spirit ache the way his back and ribs and head did. He wanted to hug his 
knees to his chest, but it hurt.

 He could have cast the healing spell that had dealt so well with his knee, but he didnt. Kerrigan told 
himself it was because he could not cast it without supervision, but he knew that wasnt really it. Being 
granted permission to cast it would mean someone agreed it was wrong for him to feel hurt. He knew it 
wasnt wronghe had been grossly wrong, so being hurt was a fit punishment for his mistake.

 Ultimately, though, the healing spell didnt matter, since it would never get rid of the derisive laughter 
that remained locked in his skull. He wasnt stupid. He knew the Vorquelf couldnt really have known 
what he was doing none of the other Apprentices and Adepts were using mag-ick. He was physically 
large, so he might well have been able to catch the sack were he used to doing such things. He wasnt, 
however, nor had he been set to catch it.

 What pained him the most, and sprouted thorny vines that took root in his heart, was that now he 
knew what the others thought of him on Vilwan. Many were Apprentices who, at his age, were decades 
away from becoming Adepts. To them he was a curiosity, or a thing to fear. Hed heard rumors that 
some of the youngest Apprentices began their schooling with warnings to be good, or they would end up 
like Kerrigan, trapped in a tower, with Magisters for keepers.

 Adepts, with whom he shared rank, viewed him with suspicion. Some clearly did not believe he could 
be worthy to be ranked with them. Others who had overseen tests he had performed suspected that he 
should have been granted Magister rank. One Adept had even mentioned in hushed whispers that the 
reason hed not been so exalted was because he did so many things so well, no single one of the schools 
of magick could lay a clean claim to him.

 And the Magisters, when they came to teach him, they always seemed to have contempt for him. 
Some clearly wished nothing to do with him. A few, the ambitious ones, cultivated him until he showed, 


with sulks and balkiness, that he would not support them and their planswhatever they were. Orla, 
who did her best to thwart his desires concerning work and schedules and indulgences, did not eye him 
with awe.

with sulks and balkiness, that he would not support them and their planswhatever they were. Orla, 
who did her best to thwart his desires concerning work and schedules and indulgences, did not eye him 
with awe.

I should have known better. Hed been foolish in thinking outsiders would understand how much in 
awe of him they should have been. They knew nothing, could not work magick, and, therefore, should 
have been of no consequence. His experience with dulls had come only through his teachers and 
readings, but his humiliation only confirmed what he knew deep down.

 The fact that dulls had been invited in to help defend Vilwan meant nothing. Kerrigan felt certain that in 
a straight duel of wizards, the Magisters of Vilwan could destroy Chytrine, but she had allied herself with 
Vionna and her Wruonin pirates. With their own renegade wizards and vylaens, the invading forces 
would have counterspells to ward off Vilwanese magicks, allowing raiders to land on the island.

 Troops who would be best opposed by other dull troops. Dogs snarling while their betters fight.

 Even as that thought formed itself in his mind, Kerrigan knew it was wrong. As angry as he wasand 
as much as he wanted to hate the dulls coming to Vilwanhe recognized the peril they were in. That the 
Magisters even thought to bring them in meant there would be a lot of dull blood anointing the island. 
Deep in his heart he knew that his pain was minimal compared to what they would feel as they fought to 
defend an island that was not even their home.

 The trapdoor over the stairwell rose, allowing a thin, grey light to define the opening. Orla appeared, 
from waist up, more of a grey ghost than normal. If you are finished pitying yourself, we have to go.

 Go without me.

 You mistake me. I dont want to go at all, but you are too precious to leave here. Her voice 
softened just a bit. Ive gathered up all youll need to take with you.

 More out of curiosity to see what she had gathered than anything else, Kerrigan rocked himself back 
and forth to build up momentum, then finally came to his feet. He staggered a bit, then lurched toward the 
stairway and descended to his rooms. There, in the middle of the floor, lay a little leather rucksack stuffed 
to bulging, with a blanket rolled tight and tied to the bottom of it.

 Thats it? He looked at the tiny parcel at his feet and shivered. Everything I am can be reduced to 
that? I need books. I need my other things, my supplies.

 Orla cut him off from the steps back up to the ar-canorium. Right now we just want to get you off 
the island. We are not worried about supplies. Those we can find anywhere.

 But... my things, I need them.

 Her voice gained an edge. I like this no more than you, Adept Reese. I dont want the Aurolani or 
Wruonin going through my chambers, taking my treasures, touching everything, smashing most things, 
defiling others. I dont want it, but it is not my place to complain at the moment.

 She twisted, showing him the rucksack on her back, which looked to be the same size as his, but filled 
not nearly as full. When we return, our things will be restored to us. But for now, anything else you want 
you will have to carry and, frankly, Kerrigan, I dont think you can carry much more than that.

 The youth stooped and picked up the rucksack. He lifted it with no difficulty, but had trouble slipping 
his right arm through the strap. Orla helped him get it in place. It hung heavily on his back and the straps 
chafed under his armpits, but he decided not to complain. He shifted his shoulders a bit to settle the load, 
then nodded to her.

 Orla crossed to the open door and picked up a long ebon staff nearly as tall as she was. Lets go.

 Kerrigan took one last look at his room. He wanted to take a book with him. At first he thought of his 
favorite, the Vilwanese history, but he knew it was too heavy for him to carry. He then looked for any 
book, but realized they would all be too heavy.

 His head hung low in defeat, he sighed and followed Orla from the tower and Vilwan. Kerrigan 
thought about taking one last look at his home, but he refrained. Somehow he knew that if he ever 


returned, he would not see it the same way he had, so the time and energy needed to burn it into his 
memory seemed nothing but a waste.

returned, he would not see it the same way he had, so the time and energy needed to burn it into his 
memory seemed nothing but a waste.

 The little boat made its way easily through the harbor and then out into the Crescent Sea. There the 
swells grew and bounced the tiny boat around. The wind had continued to blow from the southwest, 
which had helped speed the fleet to Vilwan. But it made the return trip difficult, forcing the captain to tack 
back and forth. The boat constantly ran at an angle to the waves, either bobbing strongly while sailing 
along, or crashing roughly into them as it came about, changing course.

 Kerrigan hung on tight to the wales, but still felt as if each dip the boat took would spill him out. And 
since he was larger than most of the other refugees, and more portly, he could not duck when waves 
spattered over the sides, so quickly water stung his eyes and left his dark hair pasted to his face. His 
robes began to stink. He closed his nose against that scent and clenched his jaw.

 The up and down motion also wrought havoc with his sense of balance. His stomach roiled, but hed 
only eaten breakfast, so nausea remained at bay for a bit. Hed humiliated himself earlier with the flour, 
and he was determined hed not vomit. He shook his head to clear it of dizziness, found that did not 
work well at all, then forced himself to suck in lots of air through his nose and exhale it forcefully. He 
concentrated on breathing, ignoring everything else.

 Hed actually begun to control his stomach when the red-haired Apprentice sitting on his right lunged 
toward the wales. She might have made it, save that Kerrigan had braced his feet against the deck. She 
failed to hurdle his thick thighs, so she flopped down face first into his lap, then threw up.

 The sour scent caught him as he breathed in. His stomach contracted and he heaved, but nothing came 
up. His ribs and guts ached as his body heaved again and again, starting him crying. Then a wave crashed 
over the bow, splashing water into his open mouth, choking him. He expelled it in a wracking wet cough, 
splattering it all over the Apprentice who had puked on him before she could regain her seat.

 The boat continued to rock and bob on into the night, as cold nibbled away at Kerrigans fingers and 
toes. Hed not so much become accustomed to the dizziness imparted by the boats motion as lacked the 
energy to deal with it. Even his stomach had given up its protests.

 Sodden clothes clung to him, as did the girl. Her closeness frightened him, but not because she stirred 
lustful thoughts in him. Hed thought about women before, had had dreams about them. In learning elven 
magicks hed been instructed in things biological and even sensual, since so much of their magick 
involved life. It brought with it an intimacy that he had to understand to be able to cast the spells. Hed 
studied hard, which meant his knowledge vastly outstripped his experience, and feeling her lying beside 
him, tucked under his right arm, was certainly the closest and most prolonged contact hed had with any 
female.

 The idea of sex did not scare him, but the girls vulnerability did. More exactly, the fact that she found 
sanctuary huddled against him shocked him. Warmth rose from between them, and she made little 
contented sounds. She felt safe there, and that terrified Kerrigan because he knew he was hardly capable 
of taking care of himself, much less someone so small and helpless.

 The tillermans voice rose above the snap of the sail. Belike trouble astern, Magister.

 Kerrigan turned just enough to look back without disturbing the girl. Orla slowly made her way back 
toward the stern. In the distance two lights bobbed up and down. One burned a bit above the horizon, 
while the other appeared nestled in with the stars. Red and blue flashes appeared near the taller light.

 Orla crouched near the stern. Not another ship returning to Saporicia?

 Not one of ours. Tall mast, red and blue, that would be Wruonin. The man shook his head. Gaining 
on us, too. Now, if youd be knowing some magick... 


 She laughed. I know a lot of it, but nothing that will speed us up. We cant run from it?

 She laughed. I know a lot of it, but nothing that will speed us up. We cant run from it?

 Orla nodded. Kerrigan raised his right hand to swipe it across his eyes, preparing to cast the sort of 
spell the tUler-man was talking about. If I follow with a hawks-eye spell, I can see them better, too. 
Pushing away the distraction of the slumbering girl, he started to control his breathing again, and 
summoned the power to cast the spells.

 Kerrigan, no! Orlas command came in a harsh whisper. If they do have magickers there, theyll 
know those spells.

 The young man hesitated. He ignored for a moment the question of how she figured out what he was 
going to do, and instead concentrated on the implications of her explanation. The spells she mentioned 
were not difficult to cast, but were not easy to learn. Of the people on the boat, doubtless Orla and he 
were the only ones who could use them. And if I cast them, then they will know we have magickers 
on the boat. They might even mistake me for a powerful mage.

 Orla rubbed a hand over her forehead. We cant run. We have a boat full of sick children. Any spells 
we can cast can be countered. We get one shot, one surprise.

 It best be good, Magister.

 It will be, Captain. She turned and pointed. Kerrigan, my staff.

 The young man grabbed it from the deck and twisted it around to bring it up from between the seats. 
He slid his hands down it, wiping the beaded water off the smooth wood, then extended it to her. She 
nodded her thanks as she took it from him.

 Captain, what do you think they will do?

 He shrugged. If theys hunting, theyll be killing. Run over us, rake us with arrows, could be anything. 
Maybe theyre mounting a dragonel. The mans voice rose at that prospect. Now there would be a 
way to die.

 Im hoping we wont die at all. I think I can hurt them, if they get close enough. Be ready to bring us 
around and run before the wind.

 Hurry, Magister. You may not know spells to be hurrying a ship, but the like aint true of them.

 A reddish glow backlit the entire ship, rendering its three masts and billowing sails in sharp silhouette. 
Creatures moved on the high forecastle and along the wales. Torches suddenly flared to life, then smaller 
fires burned. Those little fires arced up into the air and flew toward the boat, but hissed out in the sea.

 Fire arrows, then. The tillerman spat. They just be killing.

 Orla nodded, then prodded the two Apprentices nearest her with the end of her staff. Move forward. 
Give me room.

 They got up and crawled toward the bench where Kerrigan sat.

 The old womans eyes narrowed. Two hundred yards?

 The tillerman nodded. Give or take, and theyre taking by the second.

 Right, get ready to run. She grasped her staff at the top with her left hand, halfway down with her 
right. A bright blue spark glowed at the tip. Orla brought the staff back, then whipped it forward, flicking 
the spark toward the enemy ship. It drew after it a slender blue tendril, thin as a bit of webbing, yet fairly 
crackling with power.

 The conjured whip lashed the rail. Fire burned brightly where it touched wood. The spark itself 
snapped against a mans chest, combusting him into a black skeleton that died in a bright burst of white 
light. Where the tendril cut at rigging, ropes parted, steaming.

 Sailors flew to the severed rigging. Some clenched lines for splicing in their teeth. Yet others grabbed 
both ends of a split line. A reddish glow oozed from their hands and repaired the link, leaving the rigging 
intact save that some sections had the angry glow of embers burning hot.

 Other creatures moved along the rails. Too small to be mistaken for human, the magickal energy arcing 
green between their hands identified them as vylaens. One raised his hands, then cast them outward. A 
dozen little darts of green fire raced from him to the smaller boat.

 Orla snorted derisively. With a flick of her staff, the tendril coiled into a cone around the darts. They 


bumped up against its walls, but failed to pierce them. She snapped the cone down, plunging the darts 
into dark water, where they sank, glowing evilly until the water quenched them.

bumped up against its walls, but failed to pierce them. She snapped the cone down, plunging the darts 
into dark water, where they sank, glowing evilly until the water quenched them.

 Arrows flew through the darkness, ripping canvas. The girl in Kerrigans lap screamed as one hit her 
above the knee. She rolled to the deck clutching her leg, looking imploringly at him. He bent to help her, 
fighting furiously to calm himself so he could use the elven magick and heal her, but a wave bucked the 
ship up and tossed him backward. His legs caught on the bench, upending him. He landed hard and 
wanted to cry out, but another arrow ripped through the tillermans throat. As that man slumped over the 
tiller, clutching at his neck, Kerrigan felt lost.

 Panic raced through him. He couldnt do anything. The boat was rocking, people were screaming. 7 
dont have any of my things, no space to work. A million reasons why he couldnt do anything 
assaulted him, but somehow he levered himself to his feet and got his back to the mast. Swiping at the 
wetness on his face, he set his teeth with determination. Its up to me, now. I have to do something!

 An arrow quenched its flames in his flesh, skewering his chest and pinning him to the mast. Pain 
exploded from the wound, searing and hot, sharp-edged and brilliant. Agony twisted through him, 
shaking him, which started new pain from the wound. He wanted to cough. When he did, he hurt anew, 
and tasted blood. My blood.

 Pain, blood, the screams, the ship pounding upward, dragging on the arrow, all of it should have 
crushed him. There he was, far from home, wet, miserable. The girl who had depended on him lay 
writhing and mewing beneath a bench that bristled with arrows. Torn pieces of canvas snapped and 
cracked in the wind, then more arrows thudded into the boat.

 Yet, despite all that, he focused on one thing. The vy-laens emitted a high, keening laughter that 
scourged him more than all the laughter on Vilwan. The laughter before had stung badly, but their laughter 
clawed him and tore him. Somewhere, deep inside, Kerrigan realized they wanted to kill him, and that 
this laughter was just one more cruel weapon.

 Not much more than a child save in one important area, Kerrigan lashed out at the pirate ship, scared 
and hurt. Though he knew hundreds of spells, a devastating selection of combat spells among them, he hit 
the ship instead with one spell he knew so very well. Hed used it multiple times, for as long as he could 
remember. Had he been thinking, he might even have imagined that the vylaens wouldnt have a counter 
prepared to a noncombat spell like that, but he wasnt thinking.

 He just reacted.

 Thaumaturgical energy surged from him in an invisible wave that swept out toward its target. It swelled 
and gathered the ship up into its grasp. He raised his right hand and the ship emerged from the sea. 
Water ran from the barnacle-encrusted hull in rippling sheets. Twenty feet, forty, higher and higher. 
Kerrigan snarled, wanting to lift the ship to the moon, then to tighten his hand, crushing it. He wanted to 
see splintered planks bulge from between invisible fingers, with broken spar fragments whirling through 
the sky, trailing lines and canvas like flames in their descent.

 He knew, however, he did not have the strength to do that. So whento his eyethe ship eclipsed 
the moon, he opened his hand and simply let it go.

 The ship listed slightly as it fell. Some crewmen flew off while others held tightly to rails and rigging. 
Some of the splices failed, leaving men thrashing about at the end of lines like the knot at the tip of a 
whip. Those who could not hang on were flung off, spinning wildly through the air. The sails filled with air, 
straining masts and spars. The canvas shredded and masts cracked.

 Then the ship hit the dark water. The hull had been fashioned to take the pounding of waves even in 
the fiercest of gales. From the height the ship fell, however, the water might as well have been granite. 
Timbers buckled and masts snapped like kindling. Deck planks sprang free, spinning up into the air. The 
ship bobbed up once, then wallowed and bubbled loudly. The canvas sails descended like tattered 


shrouds over the sinking wreck.

shrouds over the sinking wreck.

 Hurt, coughing out bloody mist, Kerrigan watched the ship die. He slumped forward, snapping the 
arrow off somewhere at his back, and landed on his knees on the deck. He smiled at the sinking ship, 
displaying a mouthful of bloody teeth. He savored his victory for a moment, letting it consume him.

 And in the next moment he knew pure dread.

 The pirates had their revenge. The huge wave created when the ship crashed into the sea reached up 
and capsized Kerrigans little boat.

 The grinding pain in Wills shoulders competed with the aching in his back for the part of him that hurt 
the most. His butt and legs werent even close to the lead in that contest, so they just contented 
themselves with burning. The occasional quiver of muscles in his thighs, or the back of his arms, added 
some contrast, but did nothing to improve the situation.

 Yet, as dusk fell on Vilwan, and Will took bucket after bucket of seawater from one Apprentice and 
passed it up the hill to another, his physical discomfort could only take up residence in the back of his 
mind. Full-blown fury occupied him, and were he not fatigued to the point of near collapse, hed have 
been cursing a streak that would have had the Apprentices around him scurrying for cover. He felt 
humiliated and shamedworse yet, confusedand all of that provided tinder for his anger.

 The bucket brigade shipped water up the steep face of Vilwans northern coast. Above the line of 
Apprentices, a good forty feet above sea level, a crenellated fortress wall gnawed into the darkening blue 
of the sky. Warriors patrolled the walls, appearing for only a second between merlons. At intervals of 
twenty yards rose slender towers, with warriors lighting fires at their crests, and Will easily made out the 
forms of Resolute and Crow atop the nearest.

 It had been determined that the pirates would assault the island at the northernmost point, instead of 
the natural harbor on the eastern shore. The harbor itself had been closed after the evacuation ships had 
been sent out. While no one discounted a feint at the harbor, the simple fact of the matter was that the 
taking of the harbor would not guarantee Vilwans fall.

 The islands geography created a valley that ran from the north down toward the southeast, between 
two ridge-lines. While gaps in the two ranges did exist, defending them would not be difficult. The valley 
provided the only route to the islands heart, where the central town existed. On the way the invaders 
would have to lay siege to the Magister of Combats tower, since it choked the valley like a bone in the 
throat. Still, it lay almost five miles distant from the shore fortress, up a rise that would make taking every 
inch of it costly. Troops had been stationed at key defensive points all along that route to exact the 
blood-toll that would break Chytrines forces. 

Not that I will be allowed to make them pay. Fury shook Will. Hed not minded off-loading ships 
and moving supplies around, since he knew theyd need them for the fight. He could even understand the 
wizards husbanding their magickal strength for the coming fight. The fact that this made manual labor the 
order of the day, and enlisted him as a laborer, he could accept. He even understood when many of the 
younger Apprentices and other folks were evacuated from the island, despite the fact that their departure 
increased his workload.

 What he hated, though, was being relegated to the status of a noncombatant. Resolute had made that 
decision, and had refused to listen to any of Wills arguments as to why it was wrong. When he tried to 
appeal to Crow, the man had just shrugged. He explained that while it was indeed true that Will had 
acquitted himself admirably in the various skirmishes theyd fought over the last month, each of those 
battles had been against small, poorly organized forces.

 It didnt take a Grand Magister to figure out that the fighting would be nasty. The very idea of 
mounting an invasion of Vilwan seemed insane, but Will didnt doubt there was some sort of logic behind 
the action. One of the more effective distractions that could be used in cutting purses was to act insane. 
While the victim did his best to figure out why a person was mad, or just to get away, they lay vulnerable.

 That hardly mattered to Will, however, because his life on the streets had taught him more than just 
that lesson. When in a fight, hed learned, there was no holding back. You went out and did as much 


damage as you could to the enemy. And the way he saw it, the more men on the line, the more damage 
could be done. He wanted to be one of those men.

damage as you could to the enemy. And the way he saw it, the more men on the line, the more damage 
could be done. He wanted to be one of those men.

 The ascent, though fairly short, was not easy. The rocky shoreline rose sharply over wave-smoothed 
stone that was very slippery when wet. It didnt offer much in the way of cover for troops advancing up 
it, and the only logical paths narrowed to a couple of choke points. A lot of blood would flow in those 
places, and as long as there were defenders able to load ballistae and other siege machines, the attackers 
would be hard-pressed to gain anything approaching a foothold.

 Up at the top of the hill, Will emptied his bucket into the cistern. He tossed the bucket onto the cart 
where others were piling theirs, then he located the little nook where hed put his belt with his longknife 
and bladestar pouch. He buckled the belt on, inched the longknife into place over his left hip, then looked 
toward the tower where hed seen Resolute and Crow.

 With a creak and a clank, a man eclipsed his view of the tower. Youre Will?

 The youth nodded and tried not to stare. Thats me.

 Ive been sent to show you your place. Follow me. The man turned away and started walking off 
away from the tower. Will wanted to protest, but the manno, hes a meckanshheld such utter 
fascination for him that he couldnt help but drift in his wake. The mans left leg, from mid-thigh down, 
had been replaced by metal posts and gears. Wires and tattered bits of ringmail hung about it like lace. 
His left hand and forearm had likewise been replaced with an articulated claw that had two fingers and a 
thumb. Over the arm and thigh, and even on up to the shoulder, mail had been grafted onto his flesh.

 Will had long heard of meckansh but had not seen them before. A company of them had arrived 
from Fortress Draconis late in the night, landing on the north shore. How Dothan Cavarre, the Draconis 
Baron, had known to send them no one could even begin to guess, but they had been welcomed. From 
what little conversation hed heard repeated, most of the meckansh viewed their defense of Vilwan as a 
defense of their homeland, though none of them had actually come from there.

 The man glanced back over his shoulder at Will. Come on, boy, Im not limping too fast for you, am 
I?

 Will shook his head and caught up quickly. I never ...

 I can tell by the gawk. The man sighed. Its this way, Will. I was a millers son in Gurol. About your 
age, maybe a bit older, I fell into the stream, lost my arm and leg to the wheel. No elves around to fix me, 
so my family sold me to the Draconis Baron.

 Sold you?

 Stipend, for my services. They knew I wasnt coming back. I wasnt good but for begging, so they 
took the gold. I wanted to go. Up there, at the fortress, the Draconis Baron had all sorts of 
magickerselves, men, urZrethiworking on us. The last time Chytrine tried to take the place, she used 
a spell that reversed the healing of the wounded. Well, each of us is crafted individually. One spell wont 
take us down. Shed have to know us each to undo the magicks.

 Will blinked his grey eyes. Can you feel with those things?

 A sense of where they are, yes, but hot and cold, soft, no. He shrugged. The magick helps me keep 
my balance, but we all train a lot. Not very quiet, so were not good at sneaking, but in a standing fight, 
we do just fine. Names Gerhard.

 Will, but you know that.

 Thats a fact. Gerhard led the way down a broad stairway that switched back and forth, and across 
a courtyard to a thick, squat building with narrow windows. A stout bit of wall came out and around at a 
right angle to shield the north-facing doorway. They passed through into a round foyer about twelve feet 
in diameter, then up a narrow stairway that opened into a large room. To the right and left more stairways 
led upward. 


 A blond Adept waited at the top of the stairs. Thank you, Captain.

 A blond Adept waited at the top of the stairs. Thank you, Captain.

 I want to be out on the line.

 Im sure you do, son. Gerhard brought his left arm up, slowly opened his claw and then snapped it 
shut. Everything in its time, everyone in their place. Your place is here. Keep him safe, Jarmy.

 Will watched the soldier leave, then turned to face the Adept. He dimly recognized him. So, have a 
broom for me to do some sweeping up?

 The Adepts brown eyes narrowed for a moment, then he nodded. Oh, yes, yesterday, at the docks. 
No, nothing like that. Come with me.

 Will followed up the stairs, past one floor to the uppermost level. They walked south along a corridor, 
then turned right into a room with a low ceiling. A long slit, akin to an arrow port but running parallel to 
the floor, had been carved in the north wall. They moved to it and through it Will could see the fortress 
wall, the moon-washed ocean, and a bobbing legion of lights marking the incoming fleet. Will swallowed 
hard. Thats a lot of ships.

 It is, and not even all the ships Chytrine has.

 What do you mean?

 Jarmys jaw muscles bunched. Some ships have made it to Sanges. The pirates were out among 
them, destroying boats. They were making war on children, so there will be no quarter given here.

 How many were lost?

 We dont know. Too many. Jarmy pointed to the north. It is starting.

 Will frowned. And we wait here?

 Until it is time, yes. The Adept looked down at Will. They might not need us.

 And if they do?

 We will stop them. The Adept turned his face to the north and Will leaned forward against the stone. 
Out there, in the darkness, he could make out little, but things soon resolved themselves in stark detail.

 One ship had turned itself to parallel the fortress. Before Will could even begin to wonder why it 
would do that, three gouts of flame erupted from each of the fore and aft decks. A heartbeat later a 
volley of thunder shook him. Down below, at the wall, a projectile hit a merlon and shattered the stone 
like glass. The soldiers who had been standing near it simply disappeared, while others went down, 
writhing, torn by stone fragments.

 Another projectile missed the wall, but slammed down into the catwalk beyond it. The stone skipped 
off it, leaving a small crater, then bounced down through the courtyard. It clipped a running man, tearing 
away his right leg, then vanished from Wills sight. The remaining shots hit the fortress wall, spilling people 
to the ground, but not killing them.

 What was...?

 Dragonels, a half dozen of them. Jarmy patted the wall. The Draconis Baron might be stingy with 
information, but the people weve had there creating meckansh have been observant. The dragonels 
could take down a tall tower, but short and squat like this will slow them down.

 From within the fleet came a dozen long, low ships, bristling with oars. Even at a distance the voices of 
the oar-masters rang out, exhorting the people to pull hard. The galleys surged forward in a staggered 
line. Waves slapped hard against their curiously flattened bows. Will didnt know much about ships, but 
they hardly looked seaworthy. Good thing they dont have far to go.

 A shouted command from below resulted in a handful of trebuchets launching their cargoes high in the 
air. Several projectiles burned and one of those shooting-stars slammed into the aft of a galley. The 
wooden barrel burst, gushing napthalm all over the aft deck and down into the oarwells. Men screamed 
and flailed, some diving over the sides, others just collapsing. The helmsman likewise burned, allowing the 
stricken ship to drift off course as he went over the side.

 It smashed into another galley, coming in at an angle that sheered off oars. Worse yet, the oars 
slammed hard into the bellies and backs of the rowers, shattering ribs and crushing spines. More screams 
arose from the two stricken ships. One ran aground on a hidden shoal while the other one, burning 
merrily, infected its foundering sister with fire. 


 Still the others came on, and a second wave behind them. As the first of the galleys hit the shoreline, 
their prows rode up over the stone and caught. As hard and fast as theyd hit, Will guessed it would take 
forever to get them free. About that time it occurred to him that they were never meant to float again.

 Still the others came on, and a second wave behind them. As the first of the galleys hit the shoreline, 
their prows rode up over the stone and caught. As hard and fast as theyd hit, Will guessed it would take 
forever to get them free. About that time it occurred to him that they were never meant to float again.

 But safety wasnt to be had. Archers came up from the fortress courtyard, nocked and drew. A rain 
of arrows sped through the night. Cloth-yard shafts crossed through targets silhouetted against the 
burning ships. One man, stuck through the shoulder with an arrow, defiantly snapped it off. As he raised 
the broken shaft triumphantly, a half-dozen more arrows studded his body and dropped him to the 
ground.

 The dragonels roared again from the ship, crushing stone and scattering soldiers on the battlements. A 
small portion of the wall crumbled, opening a bit of gap toward the center. It occurred too far to the west 
to be of much practical use for the invaders, but it showed the power of dragonels.

 More galleys drove themselves onto the beaches, and men emerged from them carrying large shields 
that they fastened together into mantlets. Arrows bristled from them as they advanced. A barrel of 
napthalm exploded near one, igniting it, and a hurled stone smashed another flat on the men carrying it. 
More appeared and more approached, getting positioned where they could ward vulnerable points on 
the ascent.

 Will watched with fascination and horror, but shook his head. It doesnt matter, does it? They still 
cant get up the wall. There are too many defenders.

 Jarmy nodded. Thats my thinking. Shes got nothing to counter the archers save the dragonels, and 
theyre concentrating on bringing the wall down. So, unless she has something else up her sleeve ...

 Troops with draconettes?

 The Adept shook his head. Not accurate enough.

 What then?

 I dont... Oh, no, by the gods. Jarmy pointed toward the sky. There, by the moon.

 Will looked up and felt his stomach tug tightly into a knot.

 A dragon drifted across the face of the moon, trapping itself there like an image struck on a coin. One 
wing came up, the other dipped, and it descended like a hawk stooping on prey. Two little jets of flame 
trailed back from its nostrils, flashing brilliantly from gold scales, and caressing reddish black eyes. It 
swooped low over the wall, and at the point the invaders could reach most easily, it let loose with an 
inferno.

 The liquid napthalm fire flowed, but the dragonfire hunted. Tongues licked stone merlons into vapor. 
It curled like ivy around a wall tower, then tightened, and molten rock gushed like juice from pulped fruit. 
Red-gold flames lapped at men, melting skin from bones, then devouring blackened skeletons. One 
meckansh who had been metal from the waist down glowed red, then white, before his lower limbs 
evaporated. He breathed in fire, which silenced his screams, though many other throats gave voice to 
them, including Wills own horrified gasp.

 The afflicted section of the wall sloughed and sagged to the level of the cliffsides. What had made 
Vilwan unassailable bare moments before now had a gap that could not be plugged. Heat radiated up 
from the fluid stone, but quickly enough a black crust hardened over it. The powerful sweep of the 
dragons wing sent a gust to cool it, and buffeted back the first of the defenders to reach the gap.

 The dragon soared into the air with fiery gold glinting from its scales. It twisted and rolled through the 
night sky.

 The motion corkscrewed through its tail, snapping the last of the energy out through a flick of its 
pointed tip. It let playful gusts of fire jet from its nostrils.

 Will looked at Jarmy. Do something!

 The human mage shivered. I could live to a thousand years and could do nothing against that. 


 Out in the night, on the wall, Will picked out Crows silhouette on top of a tower. And moving toward 
the breach, there was no mistaking Resolute and Dranae beside him. Beyond the breach, the first of the 
gibberers showed up. They did not so much as hesitate, despite the howls of the first to step on smoking 
rock.

 Out in the night, on the wall, Will picked out Crows silhouette on top of a tower. And moving toward 
the breach, there was no mistaking Resolute and Dranae beside him. Beyond the breach, the first of the 
gibberers showed up. They did not so much as hesitate, despite the howls of the first to step on smoking 
rock.

 Not that fast, Will. Jarmys eyes hardened. That dragons a bit young and flew here. That blast of 
fire tired it. More mature, better rested, what you fear would be true.

 So we do nothing?

 The combat Adept looked down at him. One rule of warfare, Will. The side that commits its reserves 

last wins. That time is not yet come. 
And our reinforcements are powerless against her reinforcements, young and tired or not. Will 

wrapped his left fist around the hilt of his longknife. I have to go out there.

 So anxious to die?

 Anxious to kill, to help my friends.

 Jarmy rested a hand on Wills left shoulder. Your chance will come.

 The dragonels boomed again. Some shots slammed into the walls, shaking them. Others had shifted 
from using a single heavy iron ball to a flight of smaller balls. They ricocheted within the fortress, with one 
clicking sharply off the stone near Will. Blasting through bodies seemed to spend their momentum, but 
not quickly, leaving ranks decimated and black blood spilled on the courtyard.

 Resolute and Dranae had moved to the breach, flanked by men and meckansh. The Vorquelfs twin 
blades flashed silver in moonlight, then became washed in ebony as his attacks punctured and slit. Hed 
moved far enough into the breach that his boots smoked, and the gibberers who fought him fell with their 
blood boiling on smooth rock.

 Dranae had been given a mail surcoat that hung to his knees like a skirt. In the fight he wielded a 
warhammer, with its flat head on one side, and a wickedly curved claw on the other. A stout two-handed 
blow with the thing drove gibberers to the ground, then the claw would punch through armor or skulls. 
Even the steel butt-cap on the end of the haft proved deadly as he flicked it out, crushing a throat.

 Despite their heroic effort, and the cadres of archers shooting from above the gap, inch by inch the 
defenders were driven back. More boats landed, disgorging legions of gibberers. Shots from dragonels 
raked the walls, cutting huge swathes through archers. Other shots caromed around in the courtyard 
killing ballistae crew and shattering at least one barrel of napthalm. It caught fire and quickly ignited the 
siege machine onto which it had been mounted. The rope restraining it burned through, launching the 
leaking barrel and painting a stripe of fire across the courtyard and wall.

 Above it all, the dragon cavorted lazily, swooping back and forth. Then, as Crow hefted and hurled a 
barrel of napthalm into the breach and the torch that followed it started a blaze, the dragon ceased its 
play. It glided down low, causing all but Resolute and Dranae to duck. The grand beast came up at the 
end of the descent and over in a loop, then beat once with its wings and came back to clear the gap.

 An earsplitting shriek sliced through the din of battle, drowning out even the dragonels thunder. The 
golden dragon twisted upward, but a black shadow hit it hard from above. The gold dragon slammed 
into the groundhard, very hardmaking Will grab for the wall to stop himself from falling as the earth 
quaked from the impact. The shadow launched itself upward, its angry shriek becoming a triumphant 
bellow.

 The gold dragon came to its feet beyond the gap and shook itself as a wet dog might. Mashed 
gibberer parts sprayed off it, while wet stains streaked its sides. It answered with a challenge of its own, 
then beat its wings once to soar above the walls.

 As it rose past the walls, Will got his first sense of its true scale. For a split second he saw a man 
disappear into the black slit that was the creatures pupil as the beast flew into the sky. Gold scales the 
size of the shields warriors bore covered it, and its paws were as long as a dray wagon, horse-hitch and 
all included. On the downstroke the tip of the right wing hit an archer on the wall, breaking him as if he 
were some childs toy made of dry twigs. 


 From nose to tail the creature dwarfed the largest of the ships on the sea, yet the dragon it rose to fight 
was larger still. Covered in midnight scales save where curved scarlet stripes curled up from its belly, the 
second dragon had a greater bulk. Not fat, just muscular, as Dranae was in comparison to Crow. 
Massive and powerful, very powerful. Despite its greater size, it twisted out of the gold dragons reach 
as the smaller creature rose. Then, with a quick strike, the black dragon nipped at the golds left haunch, 
tearing a dark wound on its hip.

 From nose to tail the creature dwarfed the largest of the ships on the sea, yet the dragon it rose to fight 
was larger still. Covered in midnight scales save where curved scarlet stripes curled up from its belly, the 
second dragon had a greater bulk. Not fat, just muscular, as Dranae was in comparison to Crow. 
Massive and powerful, very powerful. Despite its greater size, it twisted out of the gold dragons reach 
as the smaller creature rose. Then, with a quick strike, the black dragon nipped at the golds left haunch, 
tearing a dark wound on its hip.

 Beyond it, the dragons tail dragged like an anchor through the water. The golden beast contorted 
itself and tried to roll onto its back to free its tail. It succeeded, but at the cost of enough speed that it 
could no longer fly. It splashed down heavily, crushing one ship beneath it, and sent out a wave that lifted 
some ships and swamped others.

 The wave reached the shore, boosting grounded galleys higher up, then clawing away the dead on its 
return to the sea. Still other galleys raced forward, beaching themselves. At least one came down on the 
shoal that had snared others, snapping the keel and spilling its contents into the angry water.

 From Crows tower there arose a blue fireball that streaked high into the sky. Jarmy stripped his robe 
down to his waist and knotted sleeves around his waist. Now, Will. Now is our time.

 As Jarmy accepted a blackened staff worked with runes and sigils from another wizard, yet a third 
stepped to the wall and pressed his hand to it. A bluish light flowed through the mages flesh and into the 
stone, tracing every seam and line throughout that small section of wall. A chill ran through the air, then 
the wall exploded outward. The various blocks in it arched out and hung in the air in pairs, with ten feet 
of nothing but a nearly transparent rainbow light between them. Other similar bridgessome tall arches, 
and others serpentine coursesconnected the fortress to the walls elsewhere.

 Before Will could ask what had happened, Jarmy and a half-dozen other Adepts dashed out onto the 
rainbow bridge. Most had arrayed themselves for battle as Jarmy hadincluding one dusky-skinned 
woman. Their staves began to glow with an internal light that shifted from blue to a white so bright it hurt 
Wills eyes. Only the symbols incised into the staves did not lose their nigrescent color and Will shivered 
as he recognized some of them from the tattoos on Resolutes flesh.

 From one mages staff sprang dark green creatures that appeared to be nothing but a sharp-toothed 
mouth with two spindly, claw-capped arms for moving its spherical body around. They bounced from the 
walls as had the dragonels projectiles, then fell to devouring gibberers.

 Other mages sped fireballs into the milling mass of invaders. The sorcerous missiles burned swathes 
through the invaders until some vylaen countered that spell. Still other of the mages dueled with vylaens, 
snuffing their spells and quickly fighting back with others.

 Jarmy moved from the head of the bridge and leaped down into the gap at Resolutes left. He whirled 
his staff as might a stickfighter, then let it graze the stone around him. Where the staff touched, blue 
flames guttered, describing a circle he clearly intended to hold free of gibberers. His challenge did not go 
unanswered. The staff spun with supernatural speed that let the blunt wooden rod slice through limbs as if 
it were honed to a razors edge, or smash skulls with the weight of a sledge.

 The Adept who had created the bridge looked at Will. Go now, or remain here. I can hold this only 
so long.

 Will nodded, then streaked out onto the bridge. He sprinted as fast as he could along it, for with each 
footfall it seemed to sag a little. Nearing the wall, he leaped the last ten feet. As he soared through the air, 
he saw the last of the blocks fall away and his illuminated path vanish.

 He landed on both feet, but skidded and went down on blood-slicked rock. He slid to the wall and 
huddled there with his back to the stone. The dragonels boomed, their light flashing over the fortress 
seamless face. The impact of a ball against the wall pitched Will onto his face. Smaller balls clattered off 
the walls and a man fell thrashing in front of Will, half his skull missing and leaking brains.

 The thief scrambled back away from the corpse, but before he hit the wall again, a hand closed on his 


tunic and dragged him to his feet. Crow pulled the youth back to the shelter of the tower. You shouldnt 

tunic and dragged him to his feet. Crow pulled the youth back to the shelter of the tower. You shouldnt 

 But Jarmy said ...

 The way the flesh puckered at Crows scarred cheek hardened his expression. Come on, up to the 
top.

 But I want to fight...

 You can help in other ways.

 Crow gave him a shove up forward, so Will ascended the tight, circular staircase on hands and feet 
like a dog. He rose through the trapdoor, then involuntarily ducked down as the dragonels roared once 
more. A tremor ran through the rock and Will found himself face to face with a woman whose leathery 
skin had only begun to show her age.

 Im Will.

 Youre willful, to say the least.

 She rose and Will did as well. He peered out from between merlons at the long, thick line of invaders 
snaking its way up the cliff face. From his previous vantage point he could only see some of the landing 
area and realized only now that Chytrine had brought in far more in the way of troops than he had 
previously imagined. Greenish fire sparked here and there, marking the locations of vylaens. They traded 
spells with Vilwanese defenders and, more often than not, the gibberers around them would fall to arrows 
the archers shot at the vylaens.

 Out on the dragonel ship, oars started appearing and a crew worked a winch to pull up the fore 
anchor. Crow, theyre going to move the ship.

 The white-haired man nodded. Bring it around to shoot at the gap.

 Can we do anything to stop them? Magick? Something?

 The sorceress snorted. Ill give you a dagger if you want to swim out and hole the hull.

 Will frowned. Can you just magick it?

 Watch. She gestured dismissively at the ship with her left hand, launching a blue spark that shot in 
toward it. When it neared the ship, it hit something that shimmered. Color bled through it, at first blue, 
then slowly fading into green. As nearly as Will could see, some sort of bowl covered the ship.

 You cant get a spell through?

 Thats just the outer layer of many, I suspect. I could get

 through, it would just take a lot of time. A snarl lit her features as she cast a spell with her right hand 
that lanced blue fire through the chest of a vylaen. The enchantments Chytrine has worked on that ship 
are as tough to break as are those animating the meckanshiu

 Will nodded thoughtfully, as if that meant something to him, then deepened his scowl. If we dont do 
something, the dragonels will clear that breach.

 Which is why youre here and not down there. Crow nocked an arrow and drew. He let fly and a 
gibberer folded around an arrow through his belly.

 Cant you shoot a fire arrow at it?

 Its out of my range, as well as that of our ballistae.

 Another blast from the dragonels clattered shot off the walls. A few men went down, but others had 
taken to ducking when the dragonels light flashed, allowing them a chance to find cover. This set of shots 
swept closer to the gap. The next would certainly be able to shred the defenses and while many gibberers 
would die at the same time, more than enough were set to pour up the beach and flood through into the 
fortress. 

They will die. Though Resolute, Dranae, and Jarmy were holding their own, even their most heroic 
effort would not protect them against the dragonels devastating power. They will die well, and so we 
will sell our lives soon after.

 The black dragon eclipsed the moon and sailed past the dragonel ship with the casual ease of a seagull 
drifting above a fishing boat. Wings outstretched and sweeping stars up like nets, its tail out and shifting to 
steer, the dragon did a lazy circle around the Aurolani ship. It dipped its head toward the ship and up 
from the deck came a quick lance of green fire. The magickal strike splashed over the creatures right 


forepaw, trickling verdant lightning along scale edges and sparking off the tip of a long claw.

forepaw, trickling verdant lightning along scale edges and sparking off the tip of a long claw.

 The ball fell through the sky like a fiery comet, then hit the bowl protecting the ship. The fire spread 
slowly, like honey poured over a dumpling, dripping down the sides. The fierce light from dragons fire 
brought a premature dawn to the north coast of Vilwan, yet Will got no warmth from it at all.

 As the fire flowed down to the water and raised steam, the bowl shuddered and contracted. Black 
splotches appeared on the bowl.and fire flowed around and drained through them. Suddenly the fire 
geysered back out through those holes, then the bowl evaporated as a thunderclap tightened the water 
and battered the island. Debris, some flaming fragments, other dark bits of things unidentifiable, stippled 
the water, holed other ships, and bounced from the cliffs.

 All that was left of the dragonel ship was a smoking hole in the water that closed fast in a wash of froth 
and flotsam.

 The circle of debris sprayed out far enough to carve into some of the gibberers, but left the bulk of 
them alone. The black dragon swooped low, but spat no fire. Will hoped it might snatch a clawful in 
passing, but it did not do that, either. Instead it continued out and away from Vilwan, dipping low enough 
only to snatch the downed gold from the water and haul Chytrines dragon away in its claws. The gold 
protested, but another nip quieted it.

 The departure of the black might have heartened the invaders, but not nearly as much as the loss of the 
dragonel ship breathed new hope into the defenders. Men who had cowered beneath the walls now rose, 
shooting arrows, casting stones or spells down on the horde. Combat Adepts plied spells that raked 
magickal fire over the Aurolani forces toward the rear. While vylaens might use magick to douse the 
flames, singed fur still stunk, burned flesh still blistered, and the screams of half-broiled gibberers inspired 
fear in their comrades.

 The horde fragmented. The back ranks fled to their galleys and streamed over them like ants over 
rotten fruit. From the courtyard arced more barrels of napthalm. Stones flew, clicking and clacking their 
way down the cliffside. More spells split mantlets or loosed demons that lashed out with unbridled 
ferocity.

 At the gap meckansh surged forward, driving a wedge deep into the gibberer front. The close 
quarters meant no one had space to swing a weapon effectively, but the meckansh were as much 
weapon as they were human. Mechanical hands closed over faces and crushed muzzles. Sharpened 
metal claws stroked throats and pierced chests. Gibberer blows that would have flayed flesh or lopped 
off limbs clanged from metal, leaving the meckansh unhurt.

 At the water, gibberers cast away weapons and stripped off armor. Will had no idea if they could 
swim or not, but plenty made the attempt. Their hope lay in the galleys that had towed the landing craft 
behind them, but the Wruonin captains of those vessels seemed ready to weigh anchor and pull for their 
distant home. Between the gibberers and these ships, dark shapes coursed through the water. Will knew 
what lay beneath the triangular fins splitting the waves.

 The meckansh and other warriors drove the gibberers back to the cliffs edge. Ranks toppled 
backward, some of them rolling downhill and cutting down others of the horde. The stalwarts in the front 
lines fought as hard as they could, but the implacable meckansh would not be denied. The last of the 
gibberers died at the top of the hill, leaving the Vilwanese and their allies in sole possession of the heights.

 From the tower top, Will watched the remainder retreat to the sea. At least one vylaen survived long 
enough to magick a galley off the shore. Gibberers swam to it hurriedly, undaunted by a cask of 
napthalm exploding at the shore and coating the water. Other shots missed the ship, allowing the 
defenders to watch a comedy of tangling oars as the boat bumped its way through burning hulks. 
Somehow it did get going north and started crashing its way through waves with its blunt prow.

 From the gate, a blue jet of flame stabbed into the night. It resolved itself into something resembling a 
crossbow quarrel. It moved slowly but heavily through the dark, kissing shark-gnawed corpses with cold 
light as they bobbed in the water. Finally it arced down and in at the base of the ships forecastle. 


Decking burned for a moment, then the ship went nose down. The helmsman spilled from the wheeldeck 
and gibberers clung screaming to oars as the aft came up and the black waters greedily sucked the ship 
down.

Decking burned for a moment, then the ship went nose down. The helmsman spilled from the wheeldeck 
and gibberers clung screaming to oars as the aft came up and the black waters greedily sucked the ship 
down.

 Then Will remembered. The pirates had slain some of those who had been fleeing Vilwan. He said no 
quarter given, but that was just murder.

 Looking around at the bodies in the water, sliding down hills, and hearing the cacophony of the 
wounded pleading for succor or death, Will got his first glimpse of the future. Her attack here was 
insane, and failed horribly. Launching it made no sense.

 He shook his head. Senseless or not, her attack left people broken and bleeding and dead. He clearly 
understood why Crow opposed her and would always oppose her. That he should want to do the same 
struck him as right, but the slaughter told him that was madness.

 He hoped, when tested, he would have the strengthto make one choice or at least the luck to avoid 
sinking into the other.

 fPhe pain attendant to a cough brought Kerrigan to con-I sciousness, but the sharp stab of a finger in 
his chest is J. what snapped his eyes open. He looked up into a broad bestial face with pebbled flesh of a 
mottled green-brown. The tall ears had tufts of black hair on them, and a shock of black hair covered the 
crest of the creatures head. Its dark eyes widened in surprise, as did Kerrigans eyes. The mag-icker 
screamed and the creature jumped back.

 The scream made Kerrigan cough again, which sent pain shooting through him. He rolled onto his right 
side, clawing weakly at the sand with his left hand. His robes were soaked, and the dawning sun had not 
yet risen high enough to have dried them. He coughed yet again and spat, but only saw a little blood on 
the sand.

 The creature that had awakened him leaped over him, landed, and turned, spraying sand around with 
its thick tail. It squatted on its haunches, with clawed hands on its knees, and canted its head to the side 
to study him. Then another of them joined the first, and a thirdwith the last two looking slightly smaller 
and hiding behind the squatting one.

 Kerrigans mind raced. He recognized the creatures from his studies, and this made his heart sink. The 
Panqui were known for being savage and cruel. He would have tended to discount the stories hed read 
of them, but every so often a ship bound for Vilwan fell prey to Panqui pirates.

 The pain in his chest drew him back to the battle against Chytrines pirates. A piece of the arrow still 
remained in him, with about an inch of it tenting his robe. He recalled having smashed the pirate ship, but 
after that, after the black wave of cold water had overturned the boat, he had no memory. He glanced 
back along the beach, and past the Panqui, but saw no other bodies and scant little flotsam and jetsam. 

Orla, dead. The girl, dead, all of them, dead because of me. He hammered a fist against the sand. 
Any of a hundred spells could have destroyed the pirate ship without raising a ripple in the water. 
Properly employed, the spell hed used to destroy the pirates could have boosted his boat out of the 
archers range. He could have shielded them against arrows and magick.

 But he had not. I killed them. I killed them all.

 The Panqui approached on knuckles and short bandy legs. It sniffed, then reached out a finger and 
poked Kerrigans ankle. The Adept drew his foot back. He tried to scoot backward, but had the 
success of a beached whale at gracefully shifting his bulk.

 The other two Panqui started hooting, then moved out and around away from their protector. They 
darted in at Kerrigan, slapping at his thighs and head. He ducked one blow, then snarled as an 
openhanded slap smacked his left thigh. He rolled onto his back, then a cuff caught him across the head.

 The smaller Panqui grabbed his arms as he raised them to protect his head. They hauled him to his feet 
and spun him around. The world swam, so Kerrigan staggered.

 Another cuff over his right ear drove him higher onto the beach, into drier sand, then another spun him 
around and sent him back toward the sea. 


 The larger Panqui moved in and bellowed at Kerrigan. The magicker yelped and retreated. One of the 
others shoved him hard. Kerrigan stumbled and went to one knee, then a kick in his back drove him onto 
his face. He tasted sand, felt it grit in his eyes, then coughed yet again, spitting out bright red blood.

 The larger Panqui moved in and bellowed at Kerrigan. The magicker yelped and retreated. One of the 
others shoved him hard. Kerrigan stumbled and went to one knee, then a kick in his back drove him onto 
his face. He tasted sand, felt it grit in his eyes, then coughed yet again, spitting out bright red blood.

 A growl answered him.

 Kerrigan blinked his eyes, letting tears wash the sand from them, and looked up. A fourth Panqui 
towered over him, easily half again as heavy as the smaller ones, and a head taller than the larger. 
Whereas their scaled flesh had been pea-green, his had a deep evergreen hue, with faint spots of dark 
brown and black dappling bony plates. Silver stripes worked down the bony-armor scales on his spine 
and tail, and the occasional silver hair appeared on his ears and head. The creature glanced down at 
Kerrigan and the human read no compassion in the Panquis dark eyes.

 The first Panqui bellowed a challenge and charged. The larger one answered and rushed forward. The 
smaller one aborted its charge and started to turn when the larger swatted it, spinning it down into the 
sand. The first Panqui rolled and came up to its feet unsteadily, then flopped onto its back, with its thick 
tail coming up between its legs to curl over its genitalia and stomach.

 The largest stood over it and screamed. It sprayed sand over the downed creature, dumping it in 
handfuls, kicking it, and sweeping it along with its tail. The smaller Panqui mewed helplessly and curled 
into a ball, hugging its head with its hands.

 Kerrigan levered himself up and got his knees under him. He did his best to suppress a cough, but it 
squirted out of his mouth. Bloody spit dribbled down his chin and he smeared it into a sandy red paste 
with the back of his hand. His breath came short and laced with pain.

 The youth had no idea when his savior would turn his attention back to him, but he entertained no 
illusions about how quickly the Panqui would dispatch him. His only chance for survival lay in being able 
to use magick to defeat the beast, but with a piece of wood in his chest and his lung bleeding, he couldnt 
concentrate enough to cast the battery of spells needed to save himself.

 He raised his right hand to the piece of arrow and tried to poke the broken end back through the hole 
in his robe. He couldnt quite get it, and even the slightest pressure on the stick caused enough pain to 
make him gasp. He closed his eyes to concentrate, then something shut the sun out. He opened his eyes 
to find the big Panqui seated there before him.

 Without ceremony, the creature reached out, grabbed the robe, and ripped it open. The Panquis 
nostrils flared as it sniffed, then closed again. Woundsour.

 Kerrigans jaw dropped open. What?

 Woundsour. You die. The Panqui settled back on its haunches. No life woundsour.

 Not true. The youth winced as he tried to get a good grip on the arrow fragment. Part of him 
wondered what he thought he was doing, since he knew he had neither the courage nor the strength to 
pull it free. He could barely get his thumb and two fingers on it. If he cast a spell to pull it freethe same 
spell hed used to destroy the ship would do nicelyhe didnt think hed have the strength he needed to 
heal himself. But I do this or I die.

 The two smallest Panqui emerged from the water and clung to each other, tittering. The largest snarled 
at them, then looked to Kerrigan again. Stick gone, woundsour remain.

 It has to go. Kerrigan started to tug on it, then moaned and his fingers slipped off bloody.

 The Panqui regarded him closely, then leaned forward. His right paw fell heavily on Kerrigans 
shoulder, holding it rigidly in place. The Panquis left hand came up and its left thumb and forefinger slid 
along the shaft. Pure agony ignited in Kerrigans shoulder as the Panqui pressed the skin back, exposing 
more of the shaft. The creature grasped it firmly and then, with a little twist, ripped it free.

 Kerrigan shrieked and hunched as far forward as he could. Sobs shook him and tears poured down 
his face. He gulped in air, then coughed it back out. His pain and terror redoubled as bloody bubbles 
accompanying a hiss burst from his shoulder. Pus and blood dribbled down over his chubby breast. He 


opened his mouth in a wordless cry, his lower lip quivering, then found himself shoved roughly back.

opened his mouth in a wordless cry, his lower lip quivering, then found himself shoved roughly back.

 The abruptness of the shove shocked Kerrigan. He sniffed and wiped his nose on a sleeve. What?

 Woundsour, you die. Soulsour, you dead. The Panqui snorted dismissively. Not worth Lombos 
time.

 The Panqui sat back down, then turned his face away, showing Kerrigan his strong profile and jutting 
muzzle.

 No? The mage struggled back to his knees. Watch, Lombo.

 Kerrigan cleaned his right hand off on his thigh, then pressed it to the wound. The hole in him ached 
and bubbles broke against his palm. He forced himself to press hard, and bit back a gasp at the pain. 
Breathing in through his nose as deeply as he could, Kerrigan closed his eyes and ordered his mind. He 
took the jagged edges of the pain and smoothed them into the flowing twists of an elven healing spell, 
sucking more and more pain into it to power it.

 The spell cast did as it was supposed to do and sped healing. In doing so it exacted a price, and that 
price was Kerrigans feeling every bit of pain and discomfort he would have if the wound had healed 
normally. Months of agony condensed into ten seconds, then twenty. A half a minute passed with the 
pain getting stronger and more intense, but Kerrigan held steady. He dug his nails into his shoulder to 
keep his hand in place even though it felt as if a red-hot iron shaft was being thrust into his shoulder to 
burn the wound clean.

 A minute and the pain still built. He ground his teeth together against it. His body shook and he wanted 
to vomit, but he kept that in, too. Another heartbeat and another. Sweat burned into his eyes and seeped 
salty into his mouth. He lifted his head and snarled, but refused to cry out.

 Then the pain broke so sharply Kerrigan was certain he must have heard it snap. He opened his eyes, 
then peeled his hand away from his shoulder and found unblemished skin there, all pink and healthy. He 
breathed quickly, but painlessly, his chest heaving. He brought his right foot out first, then his left, and 
staggered to his feet somehow.

 He looked downat Lombo. Woundsour no more.

 The Panqui looked at him, then sniffed. Man have elf magick?

 Kerrigan nodded confidently. I do.

 Lombo exploded from the ground and hit Kerrigan with a flying tackle that folded the youth over his 
right shoulder. Kerrigan would have screamed if he could have, but the blow drove the wind from his 
lungs. Before he could say anything or do anything, the Panqui had scampered up the beach, along the 
trunk of a fallen tree, and into the branches thirty feet above the ground. They raced along one branch, 
then Kerrigans stomach lurched as the Panqui leaped out, through the air.

 Another branch and lots of foliage slowed their fall, then they swung up and around. Branches creaked 
and groaned as the Panqui moved through the trees. The creatures tail didnt grasp tree limbs, but 
Kerrigan got ample view of it swishing this way and that, counterbalancing them as they flew between 
trees.

 Kerrigan had no idea how far they had traveled, or in what direction, when Lombo dropped from a 
tree into a clearing. Sturdy structures built of logs and thatched with woven branches formed a square. 
The long buildings had open sides, but the eaves hung low enough that most rain would be kept out. 
Groups of Panqui moved within the buildings, and some children chased around in the dust between 
them, teasing a dog that had been tied to one corner pillar. Several Panqui lounged in woven hammocks, 
using their tails to impart a gentle swing.

 Lombo peeled Kerrigan off his shoulder, then spun the youth around and drag-marched him over to 
one of the buildings. In a hammock there lay an older Panqui Kerrigan made that assessment based on 
the increased amount of silver striping the creature, and the pure white of its head hair and ear tufts. 
Several other Panqui attended it. Kerrigan adjudged them to be female because of their pendulous 
breasts.

 Lombo squatted near the hammock and peeled a wet bit of cloth off the elders right shin. A mass of 
mashed roots and herbs had been tucked into a wound, but beneath it Kerrigan could see the broken 


ends of a bone sticking up through the skin. The moment the cloth came off the youth caught the pungent 

ends of a bone sticking up through the skin. The moment the cloth came off the youth caught the pungent 

 Woundsour bad. Lombo flattened his nostrils. Elf magick.

 I dont know. Kerrigan glanced around and began to shiver. I have worked it on me and on others, 
but humans or elves. Ive never done a Panqui before.

 You have to do it, Adept Reese. The voice came from deeper within the longhouse and was 
accompanied by the rustle of chains. I did what I could, but it was not enough.

 Kerrigan peered into the shadows. A haggard and grey-faced Orla leaned back against a post. A 
metal collar had been fitted around her neck. Nestled in her lap was the red-haired girl, her knee 
bandaged and, given the lumpi-ness of the dressing, packed with herbs. Magister Orla, why do you let 
them chain you?

 She shook her head. My back is broken. I cant run. Neither can she.

 Kerrigan started toward her, but Lombo barred his path.Xleniki.

 Orla sighed. Heal the old one and theyll let you work on us. If you dont, were all dead.

 Kerrigan shivered. And if I fail?

 Dead is dead, Adept Reese.

 Kerrigan nodded and approached the old Panqui. Xlenikis eyes remained closed, his breathing 
shallow and ragged. The magicker forced himself to breathe deeply. Magick will hurt him to heal him.

 Lombo nodded once, solemnly.

 Kerrigan, no.

 He glanced at Orla. What, Magister? You said I had to heal him.

 Yes, but you have to take the pain into yourself. The shock of it could kill him.

 But, his leg, its broken. The wound is infected. Kerrigan blinked his eyes. It will hurt. It will hurt a 
lot.

 These are Panqui. Do you think dying at their hands will hurt less?

 The youth swallowed hard and reached down with his right hand. The Panquis flesh felt warmer than 
he expected, and even hot at the wound. Kerrigan knew that was from the infection, but he pressed his 
hand to it nonetheless. The old Panqui stirred a bit, but Lombo appeared at the head of the hammock 
and rested his massive paws on the older creatures shoulders.

 Kerrigan again closed his eyes and began to invoke the elven spell. He pushed his awareness into the 
Panquis flesh. It felt to him similar to a bare foot descending into thick mud that oozed up between the 
toes, then a rising scent suggested it was not mud but feces. A shiver ran through him and he wanted to 
pull back because things felt so alien and wrong.

 It was that same sense of the alien, though, that kept him there and made him plunge deeper. Having 
just used the spell to save himself, the memory of what his wound and pain had felt like was still fresh in 
his mind. He catalogued the differences between that and this wound, then located the similarities and 
used them to push even deeper. Finally he found the flow of pain, which pulsed bright and strong, all 
razor-edged and saw-toothed.

 Though every fiber of his body fought against it, Kerrigan severed that flow and pulled it into himself. 
He forced the magick back through that channel, speeding the pains flow by constricting it, then letting it 
skitter through his body. It shook his limbs and ground his teeth. Needles of agony pierced him more 
thoroughly than the arrow had, and the one lancing into his loins voided his bladder. His shuddering 
muscles sent quivers through his flesh and sweat drenched him. It coursed down his back, moistened 
fleshy folds over his chest and stomach, and dripped from his nose and chin.

 His mind tracked every twinge, every jolt, every breath, every indignity from the warmth of urine 
running down his leg to the whimpers escaping his throat, but he set them aside. The keenest bit of him 
reveled in the strangeness of the Panqui physiology. The nature of the creature he was healing fascinated 
him. Where he started the spell working one way and the body resisted, he shifted and shifted again. He 
found the Panqui were hearty beasts who normally healed very quickly, so he was able to push Xlenikis 
body to a greater rate of recovery. He changed and refined the spell as he worked, trimming bits here, 
adding bits there. He drew on the energy his body created with his shivers and shudders, pulsing more 


power into the spell. .

power into the spell. .

 His eyes opened and he pulled his hand away from the old Panquis leg. The wound had closed, the 
flesh had sealed, and not so much as a trace of a scar marred it. Kerrigan smiled and wanted to say 
something, but his tongue felt leaden in his mouth, and his chest tightened.

 A wave of fatigue crashed over, dragging his eyelids down. He tried to clutch onto the hammock, but 
his fingers refused to tighten. He felt the burning rasp of fibers against his flesh, and his world went black 
before he could ever feel the shock of hitting the ground.

 [ eaning against a merlon in early morning, Will realized

 Lhed been wrong when hed thought of the black dragons flight being like that of the seagulls. The 
birds hung in the air, their tail feathers flicking right and left, steering them to new updrafts, then they 
folded their wings and dove down onto the bodies littering the coast. Some of the birds perched on 
floating corpses, while others squabbled over beached carrion.

 Human. Gibberer. Vylaen. It didnt seem to matter to them what they feasted on. Crabs fought for the 
corpses nearest the shoreline, and out in the ocean, turtles and other fish plucked at bobbing bodies. Will 
didnt see any sharks out there anymore. Their strikes, which had still been visible at dawn, had become 
sluggish as the sharks gorged themselves.

 Will would have shivered, but what he was watching was in no way as chilling as the battle had been. 
When the Aurolani forces had been driven back, word had been sent to the troops stationed farther 
inland. They came forward and evacuated the wounded deeper into the interior, to the tower devoted to 
curative magicks. That eliminated the moans and shrieks, at least from inside the fortress, leaving the folks 
there to straighten the limbs of their dead and begin to mourn.

 That process excluded Will. None of the people hed known had been killed. Resolute and Dranae 
had both collected cuts and scrapeswith one slash rendering Resolutes left arm useless until the elf had 
it magicked back to health again. The spell had not been easy to cast, and Resolute had groaned while it 
was being used on him, then lay down on the battlements and slept for a while.

 Even Captain Gerhard and Jarmy had survived the fray. Gerhard had lost a number of his meckansh, 
then wandered through the wounded, picking out men and women to whom the option to become a 
meckansh would be made available. Will had no idea what Gerhard would be looking for in recruits; 
especially when they lay wounded in a place where spells existed that could render them whole again. 
Still, nods from broken warriors, weak salutes with bandaged stumps, suggested he found takers for his 
offers.

 Jarmy, likewise, had lost people from his septet. Will couldnt determine if seven was the normal 
number of combat Adepts who would band together, or if groupings were made up on some other basis. 
He saw a few glum groups with nearly a dozen members, and one set of four who appeared to be quite 
happy. Jarmy just scowled, then stalked down amid the bodies, making certain the vylaens were dead 
and removing from corpses the things that could be talismans or otherwise magickal.

 The battle frustrated Will. Hed been there, hed seen things, but hed not fought. Hed not so much as 
thrown a bladestar, and he felt embarrassed by that. By the same token, having seen Resolute, Dranae, 
Jarmy, and the meckansh in battle, he knew the only thing he would have done was shed blood. That 
he knew he was weak shamed him, and that hed not had the opportunity to prove himself otherwise led 
to his frustration.

 Will, you should eat.

 The youth turned and nodded to Crow. He accepted from the older man a small round of bread and a 
wedge of yellow cheese. He sniffed the cheese and welcomed its sharp scent chasing the pungent miasma 
of death away. 


 Crow sank to the base of the wall and sat back. Not looking down there will help you eat.

 Crow sank to the base of the wall and sat back. Not looking down there will help you eat.

 The older man tore a hunk out of his bread round, then nibbled some cheese. Just for a moment, I 
can see that, with the black. The way it drifted there, yes. Not much else to remind you of gulls, though.

 The youth shivered. What he did to the ship ... How? Why?

 How? Crow pointed a finger at a knot of sorcerers standing atop the far fortress. I would guess 
theyre arguing that point now, and will come down to the dragon using Draco-magick. Dragons are old, 
ancient. Theyre also very powerful, which is why we cant let Chytrine recover the parts of the 
DragonCrown and reconstruct it.

 She has part of it, doesnt she?

 Crow nodded wearily. She got part of it in Svarskya. There are three fragments hidden at Fortress 
Draconis. Theres another in Lakaslin, the capital of Jerana. Some of the stories tell of one fragment 
having been in Vorquellyn. The elves say it was evacuated, but theyve told no one where it is.

 Will gnawed on a crust of bread. At least it will be hard for her to get that piece, then. The one piece 
she has lets her control dragons?

 Crow shrugged uneasily. Seems to. She had one dragon with her at the siege of Fortress Draconis 
years ago, but it died. It was a gold like the one last night, but a bit bigger.

 Just having part of the crown gives her limited control, like a puppeteer with a cut-string puppet. The 
way I understand it, the more fragments, the better the control.

 But shed need all of it for full control, right?

 I dont know. See, eight centuries past, when Kirun created the DragonCrown and used it to bring 
war to the south, the dragons wrought havoc. Kiruns big mistake was that he didnt have enough in the 
way of ground forces to garrison the towns he took. Men, elves, and urZrethi fought back and managed 
to trap him. They slew him and broke the crown up.

 Nearly as anyone knows, Chytrine was his apprentice, so she might know the spells used to create 
the DragonCrown. Even if she doesnt, if she manages to get enough pieces together she could figure out 
whats missing and might be able to re-create it.

 He jerked a thumb at the ocean behind the wall. Chytrine isnt stupid, and she learned well from 
Kiruns mistake. If she was willing to throw away that many gibber-ers in a stupid assault like this, she 
must have thousands upon thousands waiting to go. With the dragons to smash opposition and gibberers 
to hold what she takes, her conquest of the world will succeed.

 Will broke off a piece of bread and tossed it into the air. A gull swooped down and snared the morsel 
with its bill. And weve been heading to Fortress Draconis to get them to hide the crown fragments 
really good?

 Resolute walked up, towering over Will. We need to disperse them, then kill Chytrine. The Vorquelf 
looked over at Crow. The Grand Magister is here, looking at the damage. He wants to talk with you.

 Crow stood, steadied by Resolutes strong hand. I sent a message to him asking that we be given 
passage as fast as possible to Fortress Draconis.

 Will stood and, shoving his food into his pockets, drifted after Resolute and Crow. The trio 
approached a knot of Adepts in their robes of green. The group opened to reveal, at its heart, a small, 
wizened man wearing a white robe. It contrasted sharply with his long, yellowed beard. He clutched a 
staff taller than he was, and he was so hunched over that Will easily saw over the mans bald head.

 Crow bowed solemnly. This is an honor, Grand Magister.

 The little man did not move for a heartbeat or two, then only slightly lifted his head. You are Crow? 
You dont feel like a crow.

 No, Magister, today I feel like an old man.

 The magician cackled, and after a moment, the Adepts around him joined his laughter politely.

 Will blinked. When Resolute had announced the coming of the man who ruled Vilwan, hed expected 
someone who lived up to the title Grand Magister. He thought of someone tall and sharp-eyed, with a 
noble nose, not a misshapen potatolike lump, all hunched over and slow. Power should have been 


coursing off him, crackling the air around him.

coursing off him, crackling the air around him.

 Yes.

 Come here, lad.

 Though the command came barely as a whisper, Will found himself unable to resist it. He stepped 
forward, right up to the ancient man. The Grand Magister lifted his left hand and took hold of Wills chin. 
He tipped the boys head down a bit, then their gazes met again.

 A jolt ripped through Will. Had the magician not had hold of his chin, the boys head would have 
snapped back as if hed been kicked by a horse. An alien presence punched its way into Wills mind. 
The youth felt himself stretched, then something popped. Another pop and another, distant, sounded in 
sequence, then the Grand Magister broke eye contact and let Will go.

 Will staggered back and Resolute caught him. Will dropped a hand to his longknifes hilt, thinking to 
draw and slash the old man for that invasion, but the Vorquelfs grip stopped him. The youth looked 
daggers up at Resolute, but the Vorquelf just shook his head.

 Will shivered. Hes right. Id not get a step closer before he could kill me.

 The Grand Magister nodded slowly. He has promise, that one.

 Thank you, Grand Magister. This is why we want to travel to Fortress Draconis as fast as possible.

 The ancient thaumaturge brushed that suggestion aside with a wave of his hand. I cannot let you go 
there. You are needed elsewhere.

 Elsewhere? Will shook himself. Fortress Draconis is where they have the DragonCrown fragments 
that Chytrine will use to bring an army of dragons back here. Where else could we possibly be needed?

 His blood is fiery. Good. The Grand Magister blinked slowly, then looked at Crow. You will 
accompany the Vilwanese delegation to the Harvest Festival in Yslin. You will be there for the Council of 
Kings.

 Crow frowned. But, Magister, Vilwan does not send a delegation to the Council of Kings.

 Not often does a witch from the north attempt to conquer Vilwan. The old man shrugged. Times 
have changed. Besides which, the Draconis Baron is attending the meetings, and you have business with 
him, do you not?

 The Snow Fox will be in Yslin?

 Yes, Crow. The Grand Magister reached out and settled his left hand over Crows heart. You have 
labored long to be prepared for the times that unfold now. The weight of your work and your reputation 
are needed to provide balance. Your wisdom is needed to provide direction.

 Crow laughed lightly. No kings will listen to my words.

 No, but your words will fall into the ears of their subordinates, then many mouths will share your 
wisdom with those who need it.

 Will frowned so hard his forehead hurt. Is being vague something wizards do, or is it just that youre 
old?

 The Grand Magister cackled again, but the Adepts did not join him. Instead they glared at Will. The 
thief shrugged their anger offin the arena of glaring, none of them could have bested Resolute, and Will 
could already feel the Vbrquelfs eyes boring two holes in the top of his skull.

 Wilburforce, would you pour more water into a full jug?

 Only if I wanted to make a mess.

 So it is with being vague. You and my Adepts are full up for now, especially as concerns things for 
Crow. A spark flashed in the Grand Magisters eyes. If you would permit me, though, I think I would 
have from you an answer that would help fill me.

 Huh?

 The magicker continued as if hed not heard Wills puzzled response. You saw, last night, the black 
dragon come and drive off the gold. Why do you think he did it?

 Will blinked. He?

 The Grand Magister nodded slowly. Vrsuroel is not unknown. He lives on Vael. Why would he 


come here after the gold?

come here after the gold?

 The barest hint of a smile tugged at the Grand Magisters mouth. A game of dominion? Interesting 
idea. Think on this, Wilburforce. Vrsuroel is of an ancient and noble line, but he once served Kirun. 
Now he defies Kiruns heir. Why?

 Will snorted. He doesnt want her to re-create the DragonCrown and enslave him again.

 Ah, but thats the trick of it, isnt it? I said he served Kirun, not that he was enslaved by him. He 
served will-ingly. The little man arched an eyebrow. Now, after what is barely a decade in the 
reckoning of dragons, he no longer supports that cause. His change is to be welcomed, to be sure, but 
unless we understand what motivates him, we could alienate him and give that power to Chytrine.

 The Grand Magister nodded toward the ocean and dim, mist-shrouded Vael to the northwest. 
Chytrines dragon was limited to talon, claw, and flame, since her control is incomplete. Free, as was 
Vrsuroel, or fully controlled by the crown, the dragons can bring all their magicks to play. If Chytrine is 
given that sort of power, there is nothing that can gainsay her anything she desires.

 Crow shivered. We will stop her.

 Yes, you have the tools, Crow, I see that. The Grand Magister nodded once. To Yslin with you, 
then. You have the tools, now you need gain the chance to use them.

 Tf hed ever been taught to curseaside from the magickal I kindKerrigan was pretty sure hed be 
grumbling all hot land nasty. His boots had shrunk because of the ocean dunking, and gotten tight and 
hard. He had Blisters, and while it would have been an easy thing to heal them, the magick did nothing 
about building up the calluses that would protect his feet. Every step he took put him in agony, and the 
pain from walking had worked up his legs to his knees and hips.

 The straps on his backpacka musty old thing the Panqui had salvaged from somewhere and 
presented him with great ceremonyrubbed the flesh of his shoulders raw. Because Lombo had torn his 
robe open and no one had seen fit to repair it, one of the straps was actually rubbing against his bare 
skin.

 After recovering from his exhaustion from healing the old Panqui, Kerrigan had been allowed to heal 
Orla and the girl. Spelling them back to health had not been difficult, and both of them accepted the pain 
of their healing.

 Kerrigan had, when dealing with Orla, repaired the break in her back. That restored function to her 
legs. Hed also, as long as he was in there, taken care of some lingering damage from old wounds, 
clearing up some old scar tissue, reconnecting some nerves, and smoothing down some bones in her hips 
and knees.

 As a result, Orla was marching along through the Saporician jungle at a pace that young Larka was 
having a hard time matching. The old woman seemed happier than Kerrigan had ever seen her. While she 
did admonish him about having done too much, she seemed to enjoy being able to move spryly.

 Larka, who was happy at having survived and having her knee fixed, giggled and wandered all over. 
She never strayed far from the group, catching up easily because Kerrigan was moving so slowly. When 
they would get ahead of himusually at the top of a small hilltheyd wait, chatting gaily about one thing 
or another. Hed get there and theyd allow him a minutes rest or two, then set off again.

 Lombo was no help at all. In the ceremony in which the backpack was bestowed upon Kerrigan, the 
elder Panqui exhorted the assembled group of Panqui at great length. Kerrigan estimated the community 
at roughly three hundred individuals, though only fifty or so came from the immediate camp. He 
suspected there were a number of other villages scattered throughout the area and made a mental note to 
learn everything he could about the Panqui when he returned to Vilwan.

 During this ceremony, about the only word Kerrigan caught was Yslin. Xleniki then waved Lombo 
forward and presented him to Kerrigan. Lombo translated, indicating he would be their guide for the trip 
to Yslin. He went on to recount his many deeds of bravery, which set many of the Panqui hooting. Most 
of it sounded like local adventures, but the beast did mention a stint crewing on a Wruonan pirate ship 


and living on that island for a while.

and living on that island for a while.

 The Panqui had been generous with the rainforests bounty, especially when they made camp for the 
night. He brought the best of fruits, and the group knew they were good because Lombo had generally 
nibbled each one to make sure. The very best went to Kerrigan, then the silver-haired Orla, and finally 
Larka. Kerrigan tried to be gracious, but hed carry his haul off to a nearby stream to wash it all off.

 Lombo would follow him and watch him, which only made Kerrigan more miserable. The Panqui 
would squat in the water upstream, and the young mage feared the beast was relieving himself in the 
water while Kerrigan washed his food. That put him off feeding until his stomach hurt more than his feet 
and Lombo, thinking the fruit not to his liking, brought a live snake for Kerrigan to kill and eat.

 Cold and tired, achy and hungry, Kerrigan pulled himself away from the two women and barely 
acknowledged them. He answered their questions with grunts and scowls, which he knew wasnt fair, but 
he wasnt sure what else to do. His physical discomforts did make him grumpy, but he could have gotten 
past them. Something else was digging at him.

 On the second night out, while Orla and Larka giggled over some private joke, Kerrigan could take 
no more. He turned, slowly and deliberately, and snorted at them over the small fire. How can you be 
laughing? Theyre all dead, the rest of them are dead.

 Larka blinked her blue eyes innocently. Were alive. Isnt that something to be happy about?

 Orla reached a hand out and rested it on the girls shoulder. It is, child, but thats not what Adept 
Reese is hinting at, is it? Out with it, Kerrigan. Theres a maggot wriggling around in your mind. Let it 
free.

 Kerrigan glared at them, and then at Lombo. At the mention of the word maggot, the Panqui had 
started to come closer to Kerrigan, but the youth couldnt endure Lombos grooming him for nits. 
Theyre dead. Lombo has said no others were pulled from the sea.

 You dont know that, Kerrigan. Others might have been picked up by boats in the area.

 Theyre probably dead, too.

 Some, perhaps, but you eliminated the threat to many of them.

 Kerrigans hands closed into fists and he hammered one against his left thigh, punctuating his words. 
Yes, but I killed the others because of it! The wave tossed the ship over. They all went into the sea. Its 
weirun has more meat to feed his pets because of me. I killed them. I killed them.

 Faster than he would have imagined, Orla rose and slapped him hard across the face. The blow stung 
sharply, stunning him. His left hand rose to cover his cheek. He stared at her, openmouthed, then his 
lower lip quivered and he began to cry.

 Why?

 Orla straightened her robe and stared down at him. You were becoming hysterical and thats when 
you stop thinking, Adept Reese. You need to be thinking right now, not feeling, not fearing. That was my 
first reason for hitting you.

 She slowly sat, holding her hands out to the fire. The second reason is to show you that you are no 
killer though I wish to all the gods you were. Someone of your power would have burned me alive for 
that, as a reflex. Think about it, Kerrigan, there you were, people screaming and dying. You took an 
arrow through the chest in the middle of a fight, and what did you do? You used a warehouse clerks 
spell. You raised that ship into the air and then dashed it like a childs toy. If you had a warriors heart, 
the ship would have been just as dead.

 Yes, but the others wouldnt have. There would have been no wave.

 Your lack of thinking about consequences again betrays you. Orla arched an eyebrow. If youd 
made the ship combust, the explosion would have started such a wave. If youd crushed the prow and 
had it sink, the suction would have pulled our ship down. There were dozens of other things you could 
have done that might have swamped or sunk our little boat, and for all you know, the damage it had 


taken might have rendered it unseaworthy. It could have been sinking already.

taken might have rendered it unseaworthy. It could have been sinking already.

 Kerrigan sniffed. But there is still blood on my hands.

 Yes, there is, boy, and likely will be much more before any of this business is concluded. Orla 
hugged her arms around her stomach. This is precisely what I told them would happen.

 The young Adept brushed away tears. What are you talking about?

 How youve been trained. She took a deep breath and let it out in a great huff. Well, this is a new 
round of training. Kerrigan, you have to think about the consequences of the magicks you cast. In an 
arcanorium, with everything set and perfect, you know what they will be. Youre smart enough to go 
beyond that, to think about what will happen in the field. You have to do that.

 He nodded slowly. I will try.

 Orla sighed. Thats better than I cant. And, I guess, for now, thats the best I can hope for.

 They broke camp early the next morning. Orla looked around for the stick shed been using as a 
walking staff, but didnt see the gnarled piece of oak anywhere. She glanced suspiciously at the fire, 
afraid Lombo might have broken the stick apart to feed it, but the pile of wood theyd gathered the night 
before had not yet been exhausted, so that solution to the whereabouts of the stick seemed implausible.

 Magister, this is for you. Kerrigan rolled to his feet and stood using a five-foot-long ebon staff to 
assist him. He extended the stick to her and she accepted it cautiously.

 Caution bled into surprise. She knew this staff. The cool smoothness of dark wood, a tiny divot 
missing from where shed once parried a gibberers longknife, even the length and the delicate balance 
she could easily recognize. She spun it in her hands, then ran them down the length of it.

 There was no mistaking it. This is my staff, but its at the bottom of the Crescent Sea! Even if 
Kerrigan had somehow bargained with Tagothcha, the seas weirun, and the spirit had returned the staff, 
there was no way he could have gotten from their camp to the sea and back with it.

 Where did you...?

 Kerrigan smiled shyly. Not really where, Magister. I made it.

 What?

 He shifted his shoulders uneasily. When I was younger I would throw tantrums and smash things. I 
would get punished for it. And then, even if I dropped something accidentally and it broke, more 
punishment. So I kind of learned to fix things. If I touched it and knew it, I could take a like material and 
re-create it. Your stick, the one you have been using, I used that because it already had a link to you. 
Ive handled your staff before, worked magick through it, so I knew it.

 Orla felt a chill run through her. Youve never told anyone you can do this?

 He shook his head. If they knew, then I would be pun-ished for breaking things, or punished for 
withholding information. Its not particularly hard to do, really. A bit of construction mixed with 
conjuration, some concealment and clairvoyance thrown in. I could show you how its done.

 She covered her mouth with her hand. Hes married four schools ofmagick into one spell. Shed 
never heard of such a thing happening before. A spell to create a rampart for defense might combine 
construction and combat magicks, or a spell to make an arrow hit a distant or unseen target might take 
combat and clairvoyant magicks and weave them together. Shed heard of one urZrethi spellone she 
didnt think she could have mastered if shed studied for another fifty yearsthat transformed a nag into 
a mount that could make the rider tougher in combat and invisible. That wove together combat, 
conveyance, and concealment magicks, and was, by far, the most complex spell shed ever believed 
existed. 

And yet, as a child desiring to cover up mistakes, he creates this spell? She shivered. They have 
no idea what we have created in him.

 Are you okay, Magister?

 She nodded and forced herself to smile. I am, Adept Reese, and am in your debt here. As for 


learning that spell, I doubt I have enough years left in me to be able to do so.

learning that spell, I doubt I have enough years left in me to be able to do so.

 Yes, Kerrigan, thank you. She hefted the staff. Your gift makes me feel even better. By the time we 
get to Yslin, in a couple of days, I think I shall feel very good indeed.

 Will alternated between being so excited he wanted to shout and dance and laugh and sing, and being 
terribly afraid that if anyone noticed him hed be chucked out of Fortress Gryps or tossed into gaol or 
worse. Being where he was at the moment was something hed always dreamed of, and always bragged 
about happening. Its just that it never happened this way in the dreams.

 There he stood, just inside the doorway of the Grand Hall of Fortress Gryps. Crow stood there, 
Dranae, too, and Jarmy, as well as a bunch of other folks from Vilwan. It looked to him as if every other 
wizard of any stripe who had been living in or around Yslin had joined the Vilwanese contingent. Since 
Vilwan was extra-governmental, its party was not to be introduced and took up a position of least 
importance.

 Only Resolute held himself apart, standing with a small group of Vorquelves. Most of those 
Vorquelves wore bright silken finery that matched that of the human nobles in attendance. Resolute, on 
the other hand, wore a heavy cloak hed made of mangy gibberer scalps and had trimmed with vylaen 
fur. Beneath that he wore a good set of forest-green and brown hunting leathers, though hed taken the 
sleeves off so his tattoos could be easily seen.

 Will envied Resolute his choice of dress, but acknowledged that things werent as bad as they would 
have been had Will been forced to dress up in the rich clothing of the nobility. Their pointy-toed shoes 
looked like they pinched, the collars clearly choked, and the pants had enough buttons that Will was 
fairly certain that if you didnt pee before you drank anything, you were never going to get them off in 
time to do it after.

 What hed been forced to wear wasnt much better, and he was pretty certain something else was 
going on that he didnt know about. Because Crow, Dranae, and he were going to attend as part of the 
Vilwanese contingent, they were fitted out for dressy robes that would be appropriate to their station. 
They gave Dranae a deep red robe that marked him as an Adept, and put two colored bands encircling 
each wrist. Those circles indicated what magicks he was supposed to be good at, but Will had no idea 
what white and green meant.

 Crow had been given the grey robe of a Magister. Estafa, the Adept who had them fitted out, said he 
was willing to risk that rank with Crow because of his white hair and powerful demeanor. Will figured the 
latter comment was to flatter Crow into revealing something about himself, but Crow remained politely 
silent. Instead of rings around the sleeves of his robe, Crow got a robe with slashed sleeves that revealed 
two colorsred and yellow silk panels were used. Will didnt know what they were for, but since Jarmy 
had a blue robe with a red band circling the sleeves, he assumed red stood for combat.

 After Resolute refused to don a wizards garb, Estafa turned to Will and studied him for a while. He 
shrugged, then pulled out a black Apprentices robe and had Will pull it on. The sorcerer tugged on it 
here and there, then knotted a white rope around Wills waist and nodded.

 That works fine. Youre done, Will.

 The young thief had smiled and tucked his thumbs inside the rope. Whats this for?

 To hold the robe tight around your middle.

 No, no, what magick? What do I do?

 Estafa gave him an overly generous, completely insincere smile full of teeth. Ah, well, Will, you need 
no stripes or slashes. Youre an Apprentice. No one would believe anything more of you given your 
youth.

 But dont worrythe man winkedyoure very special as it is.

 Will frowned. But there was someone who came through here who got a robe like Jarmys, and he 
had lots of stripes and he looks younger than me.

 Ah, Adept Reese, yes, well, hes special in his own way, too. Getting here, he ... well, it was a long 
journey overland. Estafas thin lips curtained his teeth. Go along now, Will. Be content to hide as an 


Apprentice. Best youre not noticed until its time.

Apprentice. Best youre not noticed until its time.

 Hed found the tower a bit annoying. When he got his room assignment he was told it would be the 
second left. He went down the corridor and turned left, and then left again and found himself in a little 
alcove. The door opened before him revealing a small room with a bed, a chest of drawers, a round 
table, two chairs, and a sea chest with a big lock. He started to work on the lock with his picks, just to 
keep in practice, but at his touch it popped open. Inside he found clothes that would fit him. Over the 
next couple of days he found the selection of clothes changed depending on the weather, and at least 
once, green shirts predominated after hed awakened thinking the day just felt green.

 He could have taken that, but his room was always the second left. If he took right turnsbeing 
mindful that he was in a round tower after allhe could never find his room. If he reversed course, two 
lefts later, there he was. Moreover, he might take three rights and go down stairs to get to the dining hall, 
but his room ended up being two lefts away, with no stairs most timesthough once he did come 
downstairs to go to supper, and his return trip to his room took him down yet another level before that 
second left.

 As a result of all that, he never did leave the tower and reacquaint himself with Yslin. It felt good to be 
home again, smelling the sea, hearing the accents, watching the sun set over the mountains hed ridden to. 
From his tower window he could see some of the sky-baskets move from building to building above the 
twisting streets. He couldnt really see the Dimandowns, since Fortress Gryps stood between his room 
and his old home, but just knowing it was there was enough for him. 

And now, here I am, in Fortress Gryps. Having grown up in Yslin, Will knew the Alcidese 
government used the ancient fortress as a place for important receptions and balls. Countless thieves 
planned capers to get them in during some grand party. They would steal nobles blind and flee, they all 
claimed, but generally decided the undertaking was impossible. Seven had triedthree singles and a 
group of four. Of five of them Will never heard another word, but ones head appeared on a spike over a 
postern gate visible from the Dimandowns.

 The only one who had succeeded had been the Azure Spider, and hed stolen a coronet that was 
going to be presented to the kings eldest daughter, Kallistae, on her fifteenth birthday. It was common 
knowledge in the Dim that Augustus had vowed to shave his head until the crown was returned. The 
Azure Spider had left Yslin in the wake of that theftfled according to some, gone on to better things 
said others. Will supported the latter view, and was glad hed not been caught and shared the other 
thieves fates.

 Will shivered, but not because of the memory of seeing Mad Dicks head mounted on the wall. The 
thieves, when describing what theyd be stealing, had so grossly underestimated things that Will figured 
the collective lot of them were spinning in whatever graves theyd been dumped. Their imaginations might 
have been well exercised in planning their thefts, but had not even begun to break a sweat when it came 
to describing the nature of the swag they were aiming for. 

If jewels were raindrops, some folks would be drowning. Will smiled within the shadow cast by his 
robes hood as kings, queens, princes, and princesses wandered past. Heralds announced them, then the 
various royals slowly strode along a scarlet strip of carpet that led them to a dais where King Augustus 
and his wife greeted the visitors.

 Just seeing the kingshaved head and allsent a thrill through Will. For as long back as he could 
remember, people told stories of King Augustus and his Okrannel campaign. Had it not been for him 
breaking the army Chytrine had sent to further ravage the countryside, the bards would have folks 
believing Chytrine would be wiggling her ass on the Alcidese throne. That he got a bride in the bargain 
just made the tale sweeter for the telling.

 Plenty of men in the Dimandowns would point out the scars theyd earned in that campaign, but Will 


wasnt fooled. If every one of them had been there, the army Augustus led would have been much bigger 
than the three thousand he had with him. Since few of the braggarts had Okrans accents, he knew theyd 
not been in the irregular troops that had joined Augustus. But since each of the scars came with a stirring 
description of battle, Will hadnt minded that they were false.

wasnt fooled. If every one of them had been there, the army Augustus led would have been much bigger 
than the three thousand he had with him. Since few of the braggarts had Okrans accents, he knew theyd 
not been in the irregular troops that had joined Augustus. But since each of the scars came with a stirring 
description of battle, Will hadnt minded that they were false.

 Wills smile broadened as he decided that if he were thieving, hed leave Augustus his crown.

 That veil of inviability did not extend to King Scrainwood of Oriosa. Bits of grey streaked his long, 
brown hair, and though the mask he wore made them difficult to see, his hazel eyes shifted restlessly. Will 
had seen his like before on the streets. The slight hunch to the shoulders, the hyper-alertness to quick 
movements, those were the mannerisms of a man who had something to hide. Will would have gladly 
stolen everything the man had on, but he half suspected the crown was studded with paste jewels.

 Scrainwood had traveled to the-Council of Kings with a modest entourage. Will dimly remembered 
hearing the man had been widowed. His wife had gone out for a sail in a little boat and had never come 
back. Nasty rumors said she was living life as a shepherdess in the hills, and that whenever Scrainwood 
traveled, her sons came to visit her. Will wasnt sure he believed much of any of that, but of the Oriosan 
princes there was no signthough the younger was said to have come with Scrainwood.

 Next in came the delegation from Okrannel. From behind Will the wizard Estafa hissed cattily, 
Okrannel, by rights, should have come before Oriosa. Scrainwood maintains his nation should come first 
because he has a nation. Truth is, Oriosa is more Aurolani than the Okrans Marches are.

 King Stefin of Okrannel shuffled slowly along the carpet, with a crone on one arm and a middle-aged 
man on the other. A bevy of nobles followed in their wake to make up what had been, so far, the largest 
contingent attending. Even so, Will noted, they collectively possessed fewer jewels than some single 
personages. If jewels were raindrops, there would be a drought in Okrannel.

 One striking woman, standing tall and with blonde hair so white it came close to matching Crows, 
made up for the lack of mineral wealth amid the Okrans delegation with her lively amethyst eyes. She 
moved with a fluid grace that put all other women to shame, and not just those in the room. Back in the 
Dimandowns Ive seen women like Lumina dance the way that makes mens blood molten, but 
shed be nothing compared to her.... In fact, it occurred to Will hed only ever seen one other woman 
as beautiful as this. 

It was her! He leaned to the left, tugged urgently on Crows sleeve, and whispered to him. The 
woman there, . from Okrannel. Shes the one from Stellin. The one on the horse. The bandit leader.

 Crow leaned a bit forward, his eyes tightened. You could be right. Who did they say she is?

 Will shrugged, but Estafa leaned in. Thats Princess Alexia, Prince Kirills daughter.

 Crows voice grew small. So that is Alexia. Will frowned. You say that as if you knew her.

 I... Crow hesitated, then coughed into his hand. I recall hearing she survived her fathers death, but 
I had heard nothing of her since then.

 Estafa sniffed. She was taken to Gyrvirgul to be raised. Rumor has it that she was exiled from court 
here by Grand Duchess Tatyana, the kings aunt. Having been raised by the Gyrkyme, she is a savage.

 Will shot the gossipy magicker a sharp glance, then shook his head. Dont know about your sources, 
but she sits a horse pretty good.

 She does indeed. Crow shared a smile with Will. And carries that gold gown well enough, too.

 The Okrans party passed slowly, but only King Stefin and Princess Alexia greeted King Augustus, so 
the next group did not have to wait very long to move forward. Will didnt know who the small man was, 
all dressed in royal blue velvet with black striping, but he knew he had to be from Fortress Draconis. 
Behind him came ten individuals, paired male and female, but warriors all by the look of them. That 
wasnt shrewd judgment on Wills partthey were meckansh and had been paired such that their 
artificial legs and arms were to the interior of the line, with metal hands holding metal hands, as 
appropriate. 


 Crows voice grew slightly distant. Thats Dothan Cavarre, the Draconis Baron. Hes the one well 
have to convince to scatter his fragments of the DragonCrown.

 Crows voice grew slightly distant. Thats Dothan Cavarre, the Draconis Baron. Hes the one well 
have to convince to scatter his fragments of the DragonCrown.

 The man looked more than once at Crow, and that sent a shiver through Will.

 Who is he with?

 Crow smiled. That is his wife, Ryhope, of Oriosa. She is Scrainwoods sister. Time has treated her 
kindly.

 Will arched an eyebrow at Crow and the old man nodded.

 Ive more than heard of her. I once saw her here, at the Harvest Festival, when last it was held in 
Yslin. She had a few less lines on her face then, and no hints of that white forelock in her raven hair. She 
did, however, have that sense of self and grace you see there. The people following them, I believe, are 
the leaders of the fortress battalions, some newly promoted.

 Estafa cleared his throat. My sources there are better. The last two are new. She is Jancis Ironside, 
from Muroso. The mans her husband, from Oriosa. Hes a bit of a prig about the masks, but I think 
thats because he wants something covering what little face he has left.

 Will frowned. The woman looked fairly normal, since her gown was long and full enough to hide 
whatever was making her limp. Her left hand even had a blue leather glove on it, so if it had more than 
just two fingers and a thumb, no one could have known there was anything she was hiding. She did wear 
a mask of blue velvet, trimmed in black, which matched the uniforms from Fortress Draconis perfectly.

 Looking at her husband, Will had to admit the wizard did have a point. At some time in the past, her 
husband must have lost most of the flesh on his face, along with a bit of his nose. Around the edges of his 
black mask, which was decorated with ribbons and little sigils in white, the silver mail that had replaced 
his skin was easy to see. Will couldnt quite be certain, but seemed to recall having seen that sort of very 
fine mail being worn by some of the Vorks, so he wondered if some elf had used it to repair the soldier.

 Crow frowned. Does that soldier have a name?

 Hawkins, I believe, Sallitt Hawkins.

 Wills eyes grew wide. Wasnt he the traitor?

 The sorcerer chuckled lightly. No, he was the brother who aided King Augustus in the Okrannel 
campaign. Hes the one who redeemed that name from the shame.

 Sure, like someone could clear up that sort of mess. Will shook his head. Impossible.

 The Vilwanese mage snorted. No tougher than your task.

 What?

 The vaunted prophecy, the Vorquelf prophecy. Estafa shook his head. Kenwick Norrington and his 
son serve Chytrine as sullanciri, yet the prophecy calls for a Norrington to destroy her. Youre that 
Norrington, Will.

 What? He looked over at Crow and saw distraction melting into distress on the mans face. Thats 
what this is all about? No, NO!

 Crow extended a hand toward him, but Will slapped it away, then turned and bolted through the door. 
He heard Crow call for him to wait, but he ignored him. Will snarled at guards, twitching his fingers as if 
preparing to cast a spell. As they recoiled, he rushed past them and out of Fortress Gryps. Weaving a 
confused path through the throng in the streets, Will cut north and lost himself in the Dimandowns.

 As King Scrainwood continued his diatribe at the first Council of Kings session, Alexia concluded that 
he not only lived up to his reputation, he surpassed it. The green mask he woreall gaudy with ribbons 
and feathers sewed to it, and sigils decorating it here and therestill possessed more nobility than the 
man himself. The whine in his words reflected stress, but his sarcasm brought with it free-flowing venom. 
Seated in the second rank of the Okrannel delegation, she felt tempted to vault the table, cross to where 


he paced, and drop him with a short punch.

he paced, and drop him with a short punch.

 Scrainwoods pacing took him across the inner ring of tables. The frontline nations of Alcida, Oriosa, 
Muroso, Sebcia, and Jerana all occupied that first circle, with long tables covered by banners with the 
appropriate arms for each delegate. Two smaller tables held the Alcidese contingent at the north side of 
the circle. Between them Augustus sat in a throne on a dais as the presiding officer of the gathering.

 Opposite him in that first circle also sat two small tables. Okrannel had been given one out of courtesy. 
The other table belonged to Fortress Draconis. The Draconis Baron sat there alone, though two of his 
meckansh officers were seated behind him.

 A sorcerer in a plain grey robe stood at the second ring table given to Vilwan and folded his fingers 
together. He let his hands rest at his waist, so his sleeves came down and hid them. If it would please 
King Scrainwood and his exalted peers, my report, if uninterrupted, would explain.

 King Augustus, seated at the front of the room in a throne on a dais, nodded. Please, King 
Scrainwood, restrain yourself for the moment. Give them a chance to explain.

 Yes, Augustus, I shall, though I believe their priority in reporting is reversed.

 The Vilwanese representative bowed his head. I sought to provide a chronological framework for 
events. As I was saying, volunteers from south Saporicia came to Vilwan to defend the island. When they 
arrived, we were informed that a young man in the company of other travelers likely was the Norrington 
of prophecy. We undertook steps to ensure his safety. They were successful and he was brought here as 
part of our contingent to keep him hidden and safe.

 Scrainwood laughed aloud. You failed.

 Our failure, King Scrainwood, was in not fully communicating to members of our group more than 
we, albeit mistakenly, thought they should know. We were distracted. When the volunteers came to 
Vilwan, we used their ships to evacuate our Apprentices from the island. These are the sons and 
daughters that all of your people have sent us.

 They are the best and most talented children on the face of the earth. Each was endowed with special 
magickal abilities that we were honing.

 It now appears that Chytrines strike at Vilwan had two goals, neither of which was the conquest of 
the island. The first was the reduction of the Wruonan pirates. Since the fall of Okrannel, and the loss of 
its navy, the pirates have largely been unimpeded in their predation of the lower sea. They harassed her 
ships heading south, so she fashioned a sham alliance with them. By enlisting them to aid the invasion, she 
ensured that a significant portion of their ships and personnel would be killed. Since none of her 
best-known ships were present, it is even assumed that Vionna might have colluded with Chytrine to cull 
enemies in the invasion.

 The man hesitated for a moment, and his shoulders sagged. Her second goal... It appears she 
anticipated our desire to evacuate our youngest. The pirates swept over them, sinking boats, burning 
them, ramming them. They slaughtered hundreds. Others drowned. Many are still missing. Of the nearly 
nine hundred children we sent away, fewer than fifty have managed to report.

 Grand Duchess Tatyana barked a harsh laugh. You allowed our children to be cast like so much 
chum into the sea? Youll find it a cold day when next an Okrans child is sent to Vilwan.

 The sorcerer nodded. Not an unreasonable statement, and one doubtless finding resonance in all your 
hearts. I believe this was precisely the reaction Chytrine wished to inspire. Not only has she devastated a 
crop of wizards, but she has salted the ground so no more will grow up. If she holds off another ten 
years, or twenty, their lack will be sorely felt.

 Scrainwood stood at his place again. But she will be vanquished, will she not, by this Norrington? 
Oh, wait, you have lost him as well.

 Yes, Highness. As the man sighed, Alexia could easily imagine the bone-weary fatigue dragging on 
him. We have people searching for him. 


 But not using magick to do so, if my sources are correct. Scrainwood sniffed triumphantly. Perhaps 
your dead children were the experts in seeking things out?

 But not using magick to do so, if my sources are correct. Scrainwood sniffed triumphantly. Perhaps 
your dead children were the experts in seeking things out?

 Queen Carus of Jerana raised a ringer. You suggest by this comment that Chytrine already knows the 
Norrington exists?

 Yes, Highness, this is what I have been told.

 How is that possible?

 The wizards dark eyes narrowed. The method used, by others, not by us, to ascertain the veracity of 
his identity exposed his presence to Chytrines agents. In their defense, I would say that this risk was 
unavoidable.

 Augustus sat forward on his throne. Why did the boy run?

 He had not been told he was the Norrington of prophecy. When he learned who he was, well, 
imagine the shock. He bolted and went into hiding.

 The King of Oriosas eyes blazed. He was known to be the Norrington, which makes him one of my 
subjects, and he was not told who he was? I was not told who he was? This is impossible.

 Were it up to me, Scrainwood, youd still not know he existed.

 The snarled voice came from the second ring of tables, so Alexia had to turn toward her left to see the 
speaker. She recognized the white-haired Vorquelf from the previous 
nightsreception.Hedabandonedthegibberer-scalp cloak, which meant his tattooed arms were in full 
display. She thought for a moment, then nodded. Hes the one called Resolute.

 Resolute swept his silver gaze over the room. I found the Norrington, here, in Yslin. I took him to 
where his identity was verified. I was taking him to Fortress Draconis, and from there to confront 
Chytrine. The Vilwanese had no part in this, save for transporting us back here.

 King Augustus stroked his beard carefully. I have known of you for years, Resolute, and your 
dedication to the liberation of Vorquellyn is well known. When I ask what I ask it is not to cast doubt on 
you or your wisdom, its just to gain some information.

 The Vorquelf nodded slowly. Your sense of fairness is well known, Highness. Ask.

 Why didnt you tell the Norrington who he was?

 He is barely a man, and that is in years alone. Not in size nor mind nor disposition is he yet grown. I 
found him here, in your Dimandowns. Hes a thief who knew nothing of the world outside Yslins 
shadows. He needed to be taught things, taught to accept his destiny.

 Accept his destiny? Scrainwood threw his arms wide. This boy should be accepted and feted by 
every nation here. He is our liberation from the scourge of the north. We would raise armies and he 
would carry us to victory.

 The Vorquelfs eyes hardened. You mistake two things, Highness. First, we know he is a Norrington, 
but we do not know that he is the Norrington. It could be that even now some girl harbors his child in her 
belly. Second, even if he is the Norrington, to assume his patrimony means he will be unopposed, or 
would give him a clue about how to direct forces to destroy Chytrine, is stupid.

 Moreover, offered the Draconis Baron, to assume we need this child to destroy Chytrine is beyond 
stupid. If I remember the prophecy correctly, it says he will kill a scourge of the north, not Chytrine. He 
could account for just one of her sullancirihis father, perhaps, or grandfather even and would have 
fulfilled the prophecy. And we must remember that this prophecy only promises the redemption of 
Vorquellyn. Im certain that the good people to my left do not find the continued occupation of Okrannel 
acceptable.

 Tatyana stood abruptly. We do not. And we do not at all appreciate the Oriosan attempt to lay claim 
to this Norrington.

 Scrainwood smiled slowly. You mistake me, all of you, in thinking that I desire to possess this 


Norrington, or to push him into anything he is not ready to do. No, not my desire at all. My desires 
regarding him are simple. First, I wish for his recovery so Chytrine cannot have him. Second, since she 
knows of him and is presumed to be making an effort to find him, I believe we can use him. If we do 
raise him up, praise him, put him at the head of an army, she will be forced to pay attention to him. She 
has to fear him, and that will distract her from your efforts, my brother Dothan.

Norrington, or to push him into anything he is not ready to do. No, not my desire at all. My desires 
regarding him are simple. First, I wish for his recovery so Chytrine cannot have him. Second, since she 
knows of him and is presumed to be making an effort to find him, I believe we can use him. If we do 
raise him up, praise him, put him at the head of an army, she will be forced to pay attention to him. She 
has to fear him, and that will distract her from your efforts, my brother Dothan.

 Queen Carus rose. I must object, brothers and sisters, to the presentation of any plans at this 
juncture. As you know, I am new-come to the throne and while I have attended these Councils before, it 
was my fathers clear intent to marry me off to one of you or yours before I ever got to occupy the 
throne. My military advisor, General Markus Adrogans, is on his way here, but is a half week out yet.

 Alexia frowned. She had very little reliable information about General Adrogans, so she tried not to 
judge him harshly. He did have a well-known aversion to traveling by water, and had found Chytrines 
gathering of a great fleet to be ample excuse to come to the meetings overland. He should have arrived 
well before the Council met but Chytrine had launched an assault from the Okrans March in anticipation 
of his absence. Adrogans had fooled her, however, by dispatching his baggage train south slowly. His 
army went with it, for two days, then rode fast north, using strings of horses to speed them. They caught 
the Aurolani forces unawares and routed them.

 The queen continued. With no disrespect to the Draconis Baron intended, his opinion about how 
Chytrine should be opposed is not the only one. While the baron has been very successful at keeping 
Chytrine bottled up to the northsave for those small units that slip past Fortress Draconis and gather in 
the south to lay siege to citieshis expertise is in the realm of defensive operations. General Adrogans 
has had a great deal of experience in attacking, so presents another viewpoint. He, too, will be bringing 
plans. And, fear not, Dothan Cavarre, for Fortress Draconis is vital to them, just as a smiths hammer 
needs an anvil, so Adrogans will need Fortress Draconis.

 Cavarre smiled briefly. My heart is warmed that your Jeranese military sees value in Fortress 
Draconis. I had begun to doubt that when the troops you were supposed to send to me never arrived.

 The queen nodded. When the situation was explained to me, Baron, it seemed our troops were better 
used defending Jerana from the direct threat of Aurolani raids. You can ask our friends from Valicia and 
Gurol if we have been lax in our duty.

 I have never suggested any laxity, Highness, just a lack of foresight. Chytrine stages raids here in the 
south, prompting you all to fear her. You keep your troops home, which means Fortress Draconis, which 
has kept her legions bottled up in the north, becoming weaker and weaker. If you believe her attacks 
here have been insanity or foolish, she has already defeated you.

 Tatyana raised both of her hands. My lord and lady, this will do us no good. The Draconis Barons 
views are well known. He believes that if we can strike at evils root, the rest of it will wither. General 
Adrogans feels that if we prune back evils foliage, there will be little left to root out. Until we have the 
chance to compare both plans or, better yet, get these two military minds to fashion a plan together, 
discussion can only force people to choose sides. What should be a military decision would become a 
political one, and no one would find that acceptable.

 Alyx narrowed her eyes. Not only did she not like the fact that the Grand Duchess had abandoned the 
pretext of pretending she was speaking for the king, but the woman was urging caution and being 
reasonable. Granted she did not know that much about her, but everything she did know spoke to 
Tatyanas political nature. In urging that they abandon politics in light of reason meant she must be playing 
a political game.

 Alyx felt a compunction to warn the Draconis Baron about what was going on, but she hesitated. The 
simple fact of the matter was that if the Jeranese plan held sway, the first point of attack would be to 


drive the Aurolani hosts from Okrannel. This would return to her the land of her birth, and permit her 
grandfather to be at peace. Whether or not that would be the best course for dealing with Chytrine, the 
desire to see her homeland free did tug at her.

drive the Aurolani hosts from Okrannel. This would return to her the land of her birth, and permit her 
grandfather to be at peace. Whether or not that would be the best course for dealing with Chytrine, the 
desire to see her homeland free did tug at her.

 While the push into Okrannel would be satisfying on an emotional level, it was all but indefensible on 
the military side. A campaign through the mountain valleys of Okrannel would be difficult. Even if they 
managed to force the Aurolani troops back, the terrain meant a small number of troops could hold off a 
larger army, which would give the Aurolani troops time to pull back into the Boreal Mountains or the 
Ghost March. Unless they were destroyed, they always would pose a threat to Okrannel. The freedom 
they fought hard to win would be fragile, and the loss of Okrannel to Chytrine would be trivial.

 The Draconis Baron, however, did not seem to need her warning. The Grand Duchess is quite kind in 
sharing with us the wisdom of King Stefin. Though I only knew his son for an all too brief time, Prince 
Kirill impressed me with the Okrans willingness to do what had to be done to guarantee success. It is 
not hyperbole to say that Kirill bought for all of us the last quarter century of freedom with his life. His 
sacrifice at Fortress Draconis will never be forgotten. It is my hope his selflessness will be taken to heart 
by all present.

 Augustus stood. My friends, I believe this would be a good place to end this first round of 
discussions. We agree on two things: the Norrington must be found. I have people working on that 
already. And since he is one of my subjects, at least for the moment, I reserve the right to direct the 
search for him. In other words, he is not a prize you should have your people looking for. Let them enjoy 
the Harvest Festival now, because we know they will not have time to enjoy it later.

 Second, we agree that we can come to no resolution of the question of how to proceed militarily 
against Chytrine until General Adrogans arrives. Until then, we can occupy ourselves with questions of 
supplies and troops we can raise. Augustus face took on a grim expression. A quarter century ago we 
were warned of what was coming. Now is the time we deal with this problem, or everything we know 
will be buried in a blizzard of steel, fire, and fang from the north.

 T/ errigan wanted to smile broadly, but he kept his expres-K sion impassive as he strolled casually out 
of the tower in JAwhich hed been given chambers. No one had said he couldnt go to the Harvest 
Festival. No one had exactly given him permission, either, but he was pretty certain no one would stop 
him from wandering out. He pulled on a dark blue robe and a matching cloak to go over it and marched 
past the Adepts watching the towers door. He thought one might question him, but he sailed past 
unchallenged.

 Once out in the street, he did let himself smile, and knew hed gotten lucky. Orla had been called away 
to meetings with the Draconis Baron. She had no idea what the meetings would be about, but Kerrigan 
was not wanted at them. Orla had suggested he find something to do with himself and seemed utterly 
unconcerned about what that would be.

 Her lack of concern annoyed him a little, given that he was her charge. Part of him wanted to go out 
and get into trouble, just to prove to her that she couldnt take his levelheadedness for granted. He knew, 
of course, that to do such a thing was stupid, so he shied away from it. Heading out to the Harvest 
Festival, on the other hand, would be an adventure and wouldnt be dangerous in the least.

 Out in the street Kerrigan shivered, but not because of the slight chill coming with night. Yslin! It was a 
city, big and sprawling, with a seaside district and temples and towers and Fortress Gryps and the palace 
and so much more. On Vilwan everything was shipped inand while there was a bit of commerce in the 


port, rules governed the conduct of merchants and customers alike. Fancies could be had, but generally 
had any indication of their source removed because the wizards wanted the people on Vilwan to feel they 
were citizens of Vilwan, not visitors who came to learn and then return to their own nations.

port, rules governed the conduct of merchants and customers alike. Fancies could be had, but generally 
had any indication of their source removed because the wizards wanted the people on Vilwan to feel they 
were citizens of Vilwan, not visitors who came to learn and then return to their own nations.

 He found this both exciting and terrifying. Part of him wanted to run back to the tower and hide, but 
that part surrendered to the memory of braving a long road journey from Saporicia to the Alcidese 
capital. Traveling in the company of a Panqui had reduced many threats, but still it was an adventure. It 
had left him footsore and exhausted, so hed slept for a day when he made it to the city. Even now his 
feet hurt, but the pain evaporated as he studied the wonders in the city.

 He moved along Kings Way, heading ever south and away from the sea, moving up a gradual incline 
to Drygate. Beyond it, where plains stretched out toward the distant mountains, a small city of tents had 
sprung up. He could hear pennants snapping in the breezes, and saw people pulling cloaks closed against 
the nights coming chill. The smoke swirling in from the festival grounds combined the scents of roasting 
meats and vegetables into something that made his stomach growl despite his having eaten a filling meal 
before setting out.

 Most of all, though, the Harvest Festival provided him a feast for his eyes and ears. Harvest Festivals 
were not unknown on Vilwan. While they were held a bit later there than in Alcida, they were a grand 
celebration. New students were welcomed and sorted by skill and talent, while current students were 
tested to see where they would go next. Grand ceremonies were held to celebrate students moving from 
Apprentice to Adept ranks. More solemn affairs marked elevation to the rank of Magister, but the 
aftermath of all of them involved games and food, laughter, song, dance, and other entertainments.

 Kerrigan had even been allowed to participate in the festivals, for a day at least, each year. His mentor 
always conducted him through. In the beginning there had been other students who seemed to be 
following his accelerated training track, but hed not seen any of them for years. He didnt know if they 
had failed, or just attended at different times than he had, but he didnt think about that much.

 With the distraction of the Alcidese festival, he didnt think about it at all, nor did he think about what 
Orla would say if she knew he was there. Im seventeen, and an Adept who destroyed a pirate ship. 
Ive traveled through jungle and field with a Panqui. I have nothing to fear here.

 Bolstered by that thought, he plunged into the festival. He took care not to jostle men with swords, 
and contented himself with standing at the back of crowds as they watched warriors battle with wooden 
swords for the right to challenge a champion and win a purse. It seemed obvious to Kerrigan that the 
paired challengers took enough out of each other that the champion would have little trouble beating 
them. He gathered the rest of the crowd knew it, too, but the champion fought with such blinding speed 
and skill that just watching him was a joy.

 From there he moved on to a small theater with a puppet show. Children and a few adults had 
gathered on the ground and benches to watch the puppeteers do their work. The mage marveled at how 
lifelike they made the puppets appearespecially because they were using no magick at all. While he 
had learned spells that allowed him to animate such toys, his sorceries failed to give the wooden dolls so 
much personality.

 Just to salve his ego he double-checked, and sensed no magick from the puppets at all.

 The play seemed to be based on one of the Squab tales. They all followed a similar formula, and had 
been around for centuries and centuries, but in the last twenty-five years the comic villain had become the 
coward who survived the previous expedition to the north. In the puppet dramas Tarrant Hawkins had 
become known as Squab and would come to advise some stalwart young hero as to how he should 
handle a threat directed at him by Chytrine. Squab would try to betray the hero to the Aurolani tyrant, 
but would fail and the hero would prevail, driving Squab away.

 Kerrigan didnt know that much about the previous expedition to destroy the Aurolani threat. While 
Heslin, the wizard who accompanied Lord Norrington, had -been trained on Vilwan and even had 


ranked as Magister in combat and concealment magicks, he had not been representing Vilwan in that 
effort. The Vilwanese volunteers had gone with King Augustus on the Okrans Campaign. Of their 
performance much had been written in the official history of Vilwan. Because Heslin became one of the 
ten sullanciri, almost nothing about him appeared in the Vilwanese chronicle.

ranked as Magister in combat and concealment magicks, he had not been representing Vilwan in that 
effort. The Vilwanese volunteers had gone with King Augustus on the Okrans Campaign. Of their 
performance much had been written in the official history of Vilwan. Because Heslin became one of the 
ten sullanciri, almost nothing about him appeared in the Vilwanese chronicle.

 Kerrigan noticed some folks giving money, and others slinking away. He hesitated for a moment, then 
reached inside his cloak and opened the purse on his belt. He pulled out one of the dozen gold coins he 
had and deposited it in the sack.

 The puppeteers eyes grew wide. Thank you, my lord.

 Kerrigan smiled and nodded, then noticed how others were looking at him. He smiled at them, then 
turned and lost himself in a crowd. From their expressions he gathered hed done something wrong, but 
the puppeteer certainly didnt seem to think so. He puzzled over it for a moment, then let the clink of 
coins and clack of a stone on wood distract him.

 He moved to a tent where peoplemen mostlywere gathered around a hexagonal wooden 
platform that had railings around it. A man walked around the interior of the railings, alternately taking 
money from people and gathering stones from the center of the platform. The platforms center had a 
huge hexagon painted on it, and it was filled with many smaller hexagons, most of which were painted 
one of eight different colors. A few had a patchwork of different colors in them.

 Contestants would pay money, announce a color they were aiming for, and pitch a stone. If it landed 
fully inside the borders of an appropriately colored hex, they won double their bet back. If it straddled 
the line, their bet was returned. If they called and put the stone on a multicolored hexagon, they won four 
times their bet. Members of the audience wagered back and forth among themselves about various 
throws, making the whole of the tent a riot of conversation punctuated by cries of joy and groans of 
despair.

 A man sidled up to Kerrigan. Care to be betting?

 The Adept stammered. I-Ive never ...

 Oh, youll find the game is simple. You see, what youll be doing is ...

 Kerrigan held a hand up and sniffed. I know the game.

 We play queek where I am from, but its a bit different there.

 It is? The man smiled in a friendly manner. How so?

 Kerrigan returned the smile and pointed to the man on the platform. Well, were not allowed to use 
magick to skew where the stones land the way he is.

 The riot of sound intensified around Kerrigan, then turned into a riot of fact as the audience surged 
toward the games owner. He started yelling, tossing handfuls of coins into the crowd. Half the people 
dove for the ground, grabbing up money. They generally impeded the other half of the folks who wanted 
to get their hands on the operator. The owner vaulted the railing and scarpered off, scattering money 
behind him like a farmer sowing seed.

 The man who had spoken with Kerrigan grabbed his sleeve and pulled him free of the crowd. This 
way. You dont want to be part of that.

 Kerrigan stumbled after him, then nodded his thanks. I didnt mean to ... I didnt know... Im not 
from here.

 The man smiled. I can see that, but dont you be worrying. Those of us what live in Yslin dont be 
liking these cheaters to come to our festival and take advantage, you know? Youve done a great service 
here, ah, your name is?

 Kerrigan Reese.

 Well, Goodman Reese, youve exposed a cheater. The man extended a hand. Im Garrow, and 
being as how Im from Yslin, Id like to officially be thanking you for what you did.

 The Adepts smile broadened. You are quite welcome.

 New-come to Yslin, are you? Garrow folded his arms over his chest and frowned mightily. Im 
betting youre thinking were just a lot of bumpkins, being as how we were fooled by that man. Its not 


true, Kerrigan, not at all. I wish you could see the city the way I do. Being as how its my home, and a 
place I love, showing you about would be an honor. Im sure, though, youve got more important things 
to do than to have a tour of our city.

true, Kerrigan, not at all. I wish you could see the city the way I do. Being as how its my home, and a 
place I love, showing you about would be an honor. Im sure, though, youve got more important things 
to do than to have a tour of our city.

 Kind? Lad, you saved me money. Come on, come on along. Garrow waved his arm high and 
strongly, then set off at a determined pace. Kerrigan caught up with him, having to lengthen his own stride 
to match that of the smaller man. They left the fairgrounds going west and reentered the city through a 
smaller gate than the one by which hed left.

 Garrow proved to be a wonderful guide. He explained that theyd come back into the city by 
Goldgate, which led straight into the richer section of town. They wandered past some wonderful 
buildings with ornately decorated facades. They then went through the temple district, with Garrow 
pointing out the various temples.

 He indicated one that had columns that appeared to be tightly bound scrolls. Thats the temple to 
Erlinsax, of course, keeper of Wisdom. Id be going in there because they have a shrine to Arel; but Im 
lucky enough having met you, I am.

 Kerrigan nodded, but the words really didnt get through very much. Vilwan had no temple area. It 
wasnt that the sorcerers didnt believe in the gods, they just didnt traffic with them. More precisely, they 
didnt want the gods interfering when magick was being cast. Getting all the different aspects of spells in 
order was difficult enough without some pleased or vengeful godling getting in the way.

 Beyond that, Garrow led Kerrigan downhill, toward an older section of the city. Its the heart of Yslin 
really, my young friend. Over there, to the east, you have Fortress Gryps, but here, in the Dim, you have 
things just as vitaL If youre lucky, you might see a Vorquelf or two.

 Kerrigan smiled and almost started telling Garrow about the Vorquelf hed seen on Vilwan, but that 
brought back a dark memory that slowly killed his smile. The Adept realized that night had full fallen and 
that as they moved deeper into the Dim, the section of town began to live up to its name. The 
lamplighters clearly hadnt gotten this far on their rounds. Kerrigan started to ask Garrow if he wanted 
him to make a light.

 He never quite got that far because another man stepped from an alley and blocked his progress. 
Moving out from the alleyway came other people, kids mostly, some as old as Larka. Grime streaked 
their faces and caked their hands, and wiping either on their clothes would just make their flesh dirtier. 
The children spread out and surrounded him about the same time as Kerrigan recognized the man,

 Y-you ran that game.

 I did, I did, and you ruined it for me. The tall, slender man scratched at his pointed chin. Youll be 
paying for it, too. Youve a fat purse, and it will be mine.

 Kerrigan dropped a hand to his purse to protect it. Its not yours.

 The circle tightened and ridicule pummeled Kerrigan. Garrow growled. Youre a long way from 
home, boy. Give it over.

 No. Kerrigan pressed his lips tight together so no one could see them quivering. He didnt want to 
cry, but fear raced through him. He knew he had to do something, and his first reaction was to lift the 
gameskeeper high into the air, as he had the pirate ship; but he knew that wasnt a combat spell, and 
hardly would deal with all of them.

 His thoughts had progressed no further when the first small fist slammed into his back, right over a 
kidney. Kerrigans thick flesh protected him a little, but the shock of being hit surprised him. He began to 
turn, then had a small stone glance off his head. He lost his balance and went down, then the kids closed 
and began kicking him, clutching and clawing at him. One of them tore his purse loose, raised it 
triumphantly, then left a gap in the circle as he took the prize to his masters.

 Kerrigan knew he should have scrambled up and ducked away through that opening. He would have, 
too, but through it he saw someone he recognized. He didnt know his name, but hed been at Fortress 
Gryps for the opening ceremonies of the Council. He was dressed as an Apprentice.

 The Adept looked at him. Help me. Help! 


 The young man stared at Kerrigan, and as two of the little ruffians turned to deal with that threat, he 
raised his hands. Not my fight. He ran off, and the pair of kids returned to kick Kerrigan harder.

 The young man stared at Kerrigan, and as two of the little ruffians turned to deal with that threat, he 
raised his hands. Not my fight. He ran off, and the pair of kids returned to kick Kerrigan harder.

 Kerrigan rolled toward his attacker, then rolled over him. He heard the kid scream, albeit muffled, then 
felt him struggle to get free. The Adept came up on one knee, unintentionally putting all his weight on the 
childs ribs. The child shrieked as a rib cracked.

 Garrow snarled, and his partner darted forward to deliver a savage kick to Kerrigans stomach. The 
Adept doubled over and would have screamed, but breath wouldnt come. Panic exploded in him. He 
had to act, and quickly.

 He raised his right hand and triggered the spell hed been about to ask Garrow about. Pumping his 
fear and outrage into it, he intensified the spell. Instead of creating a soft little ball of light, a 
will-o-the-wisp to gently illuminate the night, his effort gave birth to a searing argent ball. It cast a circle 
of long shadows, in which people clawed at their eyes. Shrieks of pain accompanied its birth and 
undulated in intensity as the circle of attackers melted away blindly.

 Kerrigan made the mistake of glancing at the light as it rose above his head, instantly blinding himself. 
He fell forward, onto all fours, trying desperately to get up and run, or force his lungs to expel the fiery 
vapors trapped therein, but he could do neither. He knew he must because his only hope lay in escape, 
and his attackers would not be blinded forever.

 Then, suddenly, he heard a thump behind him and felt strong hands grab him around the waist. He was 
hoisted from the ground, then one arm curled around his back and shifted him onto his side. For a 
heartbeat he felt as if his weight had increased triple-fold, then he felt almost weightless before the impact 
of landing shook him. He was shifted around again, this time higher and bent at the waist.

 By the time his journey ended, Kerrigan had figured out that he was being carried, and the familiar 
sensation of having been thrown over Lombos shoulder in the jungle had given him a good idea as to 
who his rescuer was. His fingers, playing along the Panquis armored flesh, confirmed the Adepts 
assumption.

 The journey stopped before his vision returned, and Kerrigan was thankful it had. Lombo had set him 
down on a stone bench that was tall enough that Kerrigans feet didnt touch the ground. The young man 
leaned back and felt rough stones behind him, but just concentrated on getting his breath back. When his 
lungs had stopped burning, he opened his eyes and, for a moment, thought he was still blind because all 
he could see were pinpricks of light.

 Then he realized those lights were the streetlamps from below. Far below! He grabbed the edge of 
the bench which turned out to really be a ledge running around the upper reaches of Fortress 
Grypsand pressed himself as far as he could back into the stone wall.

 Kerrigan started to say something, but the calm and easy way that Lombo perched there on the ledge 
beside him somehow forestalled protestations of outrage. The Panqui clearly knew where they were and 
had chosen to bring Kerrigan to that place. The Adept took a deep breath, then let it out slowly.

 The Panqui nodded. Slowbreath good.

 Kerrigan kept his eyes on Lombo, not wanting to look down. Thank you for saving me.

 Watch Kerrigan Lombos job.

 You were watching me?

 Lombo gave him a quizzical look.

 Why did you do that?

 Greywitch. Xleniki.

 You were watching me all night?

 The beast nodded, then pointed from the tower to the fairgrounds and down along the winding path 
through the city. Home. Fair. Trap.

 Kerrigan blinked his eyes. You knew I was walking into a trap? 


 Man stalked Kerrigan. Kerrigan followed. Lombo shrugged. Others made trap.

 Man stalked Kerrigan. Kerrigan followed. Lombo shrugged. Others made trap.

 Lombo lifted his chin proudly. Hunter, not poacher. 

Hunter, notpoacher?Lombos words bounced around in Kerrigans mind. At first they seemed 
ridiculous, then a dim sense of them came to him. You didnt stop them because they were hunting me. I 
was their prey and you didnt want to interfere with their, ah, kill.

 The Panqui nodded solemnly.

 But then why?

 Kerrigan no prey.

 The Adept closed his eyes. After only a moments reflection he realized what had happened. As long 
as he had not defended himself, he had been acting as prey would. He had been a deer beset by wolves. 
The moment I fought back, though... I made the light...

 Lombo smiled, exposing a sturdy array of fangs and rending teeth. Prey no life, no friend. Lombos 
friend has help. Kerrigan kill easy.

 The young man opened his eyes again. Even though he had saved Xleniki, Lombo was willing to let 
him be slaughtered if he acted like prey. If lam too stupid to live, he will let me die. It made a weird 
sort of sense and Kerrigan found that sentiment an odd and distant echo of the things Orla had tried to 
teach him. Back on Vilwan, under circumstances where everything was controlled, he could do wonders. 
Out in the world, however, he was a child.

 Kerrigan lifted a hand and gingerly touched the lump on his head. Ouch.

 The Panqui nodded. Elf magick.

 The Adept started to shake his head no, but thought better of it almost immediately. No, not this time. 
Bruises will heal, and might remind me not to act like prey.

 Kerrigan wise.

 Kerrigan is learning. He shrugged and looked over at his guardian. I wouldnt have killed them.

 Kerrigan kind.

 No, just not a killer. Kerrigan smiled slowly. My first impulse isnt to kill. I can live with that.

 Dead no fix.

 Not any of the magick I know, anyway. The Adepts smile broadened. Nor does the magick I 
know allow me to fly. So getting down from here will not be easy.

 Lombos jaw dropped open in a lupine grin. Lombo get you home. On Lombos back, Kerrigan. 
Home we go.

 HI he king has returned. As darkness began to fall over the I Dimandowns, and Will slipped into the 
night, shrouded 1 in an old cloak and self-confidence, the young thiefs world seemed to be returning to 
normal. Hed been in turmoil when running from Fortress Gryps. He had known from the start that Crow 
and Resolute were withholding some information from him, but hed never have guessed that their secret 
could be so foul. Here he had been hoping he was a prince or heir to some power or something heroic 
like that.

 Instead he found out he was son and grandson to sul-lanciri. He shivered. That meckansh Hawkins 
only had the shame of being the cowards brother. Could have been they were only really half brothers, 
or that the coward had been adopted. Anything. Hawkins could distance himself from the coward easily.

 But being of sullanciri blood, now that was something else. That thought had pounded around inside 
Wills skull until he thought his head would burst. He tried to think back to his earliest memories, but hed 
never heard the name Norrington associated with himself. He had been told his mother had died in a 
brothel fire, and that he had survived the fire, but he didnt even know that for certain. He didnt have any 
scars to prove it. No one he currently knew had the story of the fire from any source but him. He didnt 
even know if hed heard it right.

 But he had no doubt whatsoever that before Estafa, no one had ever called him a Norrington. Hed 
have remembered, too, since there were things worse than being a nameless orphan, and being called a 


Norrington was one of them. They had them in the Dim, men and women who went to work for the Yslin 
Constabulary, preying on those who used to be their friends. They were called Dim Lancers by some, 
but applying that label to a fellow denizen of the Dim, even in jest, would earn someone a beating.

Norrington was one of them. They had them in the Dim, men and women who went to work for the Yslin 
Constabulary, preying on those who used to be their friends. They were called Dim Lancers by some, 
but applying that label to a fellow denizen of the Dim, even in jest, would earn someone a beating.

 Will shook his head defiantly. That was magick, and everyone knew that magick could go as wrong as 
easily as it could go right. And he was a sullanciri and everyone knew they couldnt be trusted at all. 
Neither could Crow and Resolute. My life was fine before those two interfered with it, before I had 
anything to do with magick.

 Will, with a stubbornness born of the streets, decided that Crow and Resolute and Estafa and anyone 
else who thought he was a Norrington was just flat wrong. Im not a Norrington, and thats it. Hed 
nodded once, solemnly, and put the whole problem out of his head.

 It was good that he did, since he had lots of other things to think about. He stripped off the Apprentice 
robe pretty quickly, just in case the magickers could track him through it. He traded it to a rag picker for 
some clothes that werent truly horrible, then quickly enough slipped into a house and stole more suitable 
attire.

 By midnight, the only thing he had of his journey were memories, and that suited him just fine. He 
knew he couldnt go back to Marcus and Fabia right away, largely because Crow knew about them and 
that would be the first place searchers would look. Officials coming and questioning Marcus would cause 
a problem for Will when he tried to return to the flock, but he figured he could steal something good and 
Marcus would forgive him. If Marcus wouldnt and Fabia liked the prize, shed defend him. 

Ill get a beating, but it wont be so bad.

 The first night he needed a place to stay. He hunted around for a couple of hideaways hed known 
about, but squatters already occupied them. Moving through shadows, he managed to elude city 
watchmen. While it seemed they were doing nothing more than making their normal rounds, Will felt 
pretty certain they were there to lure him out. He refused to fall prey to their plans, however.

 He worked his way through the Dim, getting closer and closer to the Downs. He found Lumina easily 
enough, and it was just as well he had. She was in an alley with a coin-mate, her skirt high, her thighs 
outside his, but he wasnt happy. He started hitting her and swearing at her. A hand rose and a knife 
blade glinted dully.

 The first stone cracked the mans wrist and sent the knife flying. The second stone thwocked off the 
mans forehead as he turned toward Will. His eyes rolled up in his head and he crumpled into a squat pile 
there in the alley. Lumina, chest heaving, right hand over her mouth, looked down at the man, then at 
Will.

 Glad I found you, Lumina. Will dropped to a knee and liberated the mans purse, then stood and 
took her by the hand. Its me, Will. You remember me, right?

 Yes, Will, youre my Arels-get.

 Fortunes child, thats me. He pulled her along with him. You still living over the dyers shop?

 Yes. She let her skirts fall to cover herself and came along with him. Will? Will. Where have you 
been?

 To the mountains and the moon and back. I need a place to stay. He tossed her the flaccid leather 
purse. Not much there, but will it buy me a night?

 Yes, my little hero, it will.

 At that point Lumina took the lead and conducted him back to her home. It struck Will as odd that 
two months ago her chambers had seemed so luxurious; hed had better accommodations, cleaner and 
easier on the eyes, while on the road. And shed been the most beautiful woman hed known before his 
trip, but compared to Sephi, Lumina began to seem haggard. And compared to Alexia ... Well, it was 
best she wasnt compared to Alexia.

 Luminas gratitude, however, erased the world outside her chambers, wiping awareness of it from 


Wills mind. Never before had Will experienced anything quite so intense. While he had kissed and 
fondled girls before, that had been all giggles and breathlessness, curiosity and innocence. It had been 
fun, and some of the memories could redden his face, but those memories were part of the world outside 
her rooms.

Wills mind. Never before had Will experienced anything quite so intense. While he had kissed and 
fondled girls before, that had been all giggles and breathlessness, curiosity and innocence. It had been 
fun, and some of the memories could redden his face, but those memories were part of the world outside 
her rooms.

 Another plateau, rise and plateauheights undreamt of.

 Dawn greeted him after what seemed like a year of burning from the inside out. He lay there, tangled in 
her sheets, a boneless, sweat-dappled mass of flesh. Smiling took a supreme effort, but he managed it for 
her, then fell asleep.

 He awoke again before dusk and Lumina brought him watered wine and some bread. She kissed him 
gently and bade him eat. Between mouthfuls of food he asked after Marcus and Fabia, and begged her 
not to let them know hed returned to Yslin until he figured out what to do.

 Lumina, whose beauty benefited from the soft yellow glow of tallow candles, smiled. No fear on that, 
Will. Marcus kicked Fabia out a week ago, maybe a bit more. She was heartbroken and took to 
drinking. She fell asleep in the street, didnt wake up when the tide came in. Shes gone, and its his fault, 
so hell have nothing from me, and Ive told him such.

 Will finished his meal and thanked her. Im going to see to some things tonight, so I dont know 
where Ill be.

 She nodded. You can come back here if you want.

 Really?

 The woman smiled. Youre a thief. I couldnt keep you out if I wanted. Besides, tonight Ill be with 
Predator.

 Oh. Will felt his heart tighten.

 She reached out and stroked his cheek. Will, you know...

 He kissed her palm and gave her a wink. He was glad she accepted that because he knew he couldnt 
speak. Will slid from the bed and pulled his shoes on. He lingered over a shoe a moment, swallowing the 
lump in his throat away, then gave her a smile.

 If you need me, Ill find you.

 She lied to him with a nod and he left. Making his way down the stairs to the alley running behind the 
dyers shop, he threw back his cloak and invited the cold in to armor his heart. In the previous night, 
when the world was just him and Lumina, he had let himself believe she loved him. In the real world he 
knew that wasnt true. It stung, a lot, but every step away from that bed lessened the pain. The cold 
wreathing his heart numbed it and Will didnt see a reason to hope for a thaw anytime soon. 

lam Will the Nimble, KingoftheDimandowns. He gathered his cloak around him. The king has 
returned.

 He emerged from the alley to see Scabby Jack and Garrow, along with their crew of urchins, beating 
up on someone. One of the kids grabbed a fat purse and held it up like a trophy. Looking past her, Will 
caught sight of their victim. He knew him, then realized hed been recognized himself. The victim held a 
hand out toward him, begging for help.

 Will raised his hands as Scabby Jack glanced at him, and two of the kids started for him. Not my 
fight. He jogged off down the street, then crossed it and ducked into another alley. He worked his way 
along it, then up a rickety staircase and across a roof. He leaped the gap to another roof, then softly 
padded his way across it to where that building butted up against another. He scaled the taller buildings 
wall at the corner, then went up a tiled roof on all fours.

 Getting to the ridgeline, he headed along about halfway. He got down on his belly and grabbed one of 
the tiles. Wiggling it back and forth, he slipped it free, then peered down through a gap in the planking.

 The opening gave him a good look at the common room where Marcus kept the kids who worked for 


him. Marcus, slender, dark, and with a nasty cast to his close-set eyes, stood at one end of the room. A 
rafter kept cutting off sight of him as the man paced, but Will could hear his voice just fine.

him. Marcus, slender, dark, and with a nasty cast to his close-set eyes, stood at one end of the room. A 
rafter kept cutting off sight of him as the man paced, but Will could hear his voice just fine.

 The short hairs on the back of Wills neck began to rise. Marcus cold tone of voice belied what he 
was saying, but the kids, they were all nodding in agreement with what he said. That struck Will about as 
odd as their all being seated on the floor, in even ranks and rows. Theyd even lined themselves up such 
that the youngest were toward the front, where they could see easily. The oldest were at the back and no 
one was whispering or slapping or carrying on. Even Ludy wasnt mocking Marcus, which was just not 
natural.

 So, get yourselves going. Out now, out. I need you to find Will. Ive a gold Gustus going to the one 
who brings him. Marcus brandished the bright coin in his right hand. Its yours, you find him. Go on, 
out.

 The kids stood, front rank first, then the next, and so on, filing out quietly, all heading downstairs to the 
street. Will watched them go and realized he was safe, since none of them had gone into the south room 
to climb the ladder and take to the rooftops. Most who got to Wills age shied from roofs when they got 
their growth, and the younger kids just werent very sharp. And the way they went out. Very odd.

 Marcus turned on his heel when the last one left, and entered the west room, which spanned that end 
of the upper floor. Hed shared it with Fabia, and the only time Will had seen the inside of it was when 
Fabia needed help doing something or Marcus intended to administer a beating. Will did know something 
about the room, however, and slipping the tile back into place, he turned that knowledge to his 
advantage.

 Back on hands and feet, he catted his way over to the chimney. A little heat and a bit of smoke rose 
from it, but Will figured that was from down the first floor. Marcus had a fear of fireor so he saidand 
that meant they were never allowed to have one, even in winter. Will thought the man was just too cheap 
to pay for fuel.

 The thief clung to the side of the chimney and listened. The damper had long been broken in that 
apartment, and Will had made himself an invisible party to conversations between Marcus and Fabia 
before. It had saved him a beating or two, and even had allowed him to supply one or the other of them 
with something theyd just discovered had run out.

 Marcus voice survived the ride up the narrow flue pretty well. Theyre out there. Theyll find him.

 The reply to his statement came sibilant and seemed to slither up the chimney instead of echoing the 
way his did. Will was pretty sure this wasnt just because it was a female voice. Splendid, sweet 
Marcus. You please me.

 And you, me. What you did with the children ...

 It was nothing. I shall shew you how.

 There are many things I would like you to show me.

 I know, sweetness. Perhaps, like this?

 Silence reigned for a moment or two, then was overthrown by an explosive grunt and groan from 
Marcus throat. Will wondered for a second or two where hed heard a similar sound before. His 
previous nights adventure drifted back on him and his face burned. But, but, that took hours.... How 
could... ? It was two heartbeats, maybe three. 

A shiver ran down his spine, then a bitter taste in his mouth made him spit. The way the kids had 
acted, and Marcus, something was not right at all. What made it worse was that he was pretty certain 
sorcery was involved. That means hiding will be tough.

 Wills eyes narrowed. Ive never liked hiding anyway. I need to find out who is looking for me. 
And when I do that... He smiled. When he learned who was after him, theyd have to learn that to tangle 
with the king was an invitation to disaster.

 Alyx awokethen amended that, since she was conscious but couldnt possibly be awakein a 


misty place suffused with soft light. She felt neither warm nor cold, and the vapor had a bluish tint to it. 
This confused her because she would have thought she was dreaming, but she never dreamed in color.

misty place suffused with soft light. She felt neither warm nor cold, and the vapor had a bluish tint to it. 
This confused her because she would have thought she was dreaming, but she never dreamed in color.

 The gown not only had no sleeves, but it had been woven of a fabric she didnt recognize. It was white 
and light and sheer, with a half cloak that hung over her back from the shoulders, and seemed to have 
little more substance than the mist surrounding her.

 The moment she thought that, however, things changed subtly. It wasnt so much that the fabric 
shifted, it just felt different. And then, after a moment, she couldnt recall it having felt any differently 
before. Now, though, flat bands of scales covered her from nipples to stomach. More scales ran down 
her flanks, all the way from the armpit to hem, and the cape seemed scaled as well.

 This changing gown, and her surroundings, perplexed Alyx. In the past, when shed become aware of 
being in a dreaming state, that had been enough to kick her out of the dream. Shed awake with the 
images slowly evaporating. But now the odd surroundings didnt melt away. Frowning, she took a step 
forward, letting the skirts and mist swirl around her legs. The ground felt smooth and slightly cool beneath 
her bare feet. As she moved through the mist, it began to thin, and dark images slowly resolved 
themselves.

 Ahead of her, perhaps a mile off, lay the top of a dark mountain, the peak still sharp. Arrayed around 
and behind it were dark thunderheads, with lightning flashing from deep within their hearts. Lower clouds 
surrounded the mountaintop like a snowfield, cutting off any view of what lay below. Even glancing down 
she could see nothing save hints of green where the mist parted with her steps.

 When next she looked up, after only a step or two, the mountain loomed over her, barely a hundred 
yards off. A cavern gaped in the mountainside, and in another step she was at its mouth. Words had been 
chiseled into the stone around the arched opening.

 The secrets within remain secret without, for the good of all the world. Alyx read it aloud and was 
not impressed with its profundity, nor its gravity, if it was a warning. Still, the fact that she could read it 
ran against the idea she was dreaming, since she could not read in dreams.

 Cautiously she took a step toward the entrance and discovered her rate of progression had returned to 
normal. Aside from the words at the opening, the cave appeared unaltered. Long, fanglike stalactites 
hung down, forcing her to thread her way through a phalanx of them. She strode across a narrow arch 
over a vast chasm, then down through a curving pathway that opened into a large room with a huge lake 
in it.

 At the edge of the lake waited a boat at a quay. It had no masts and had been styled after a dragon. 
Torches burned fore and aft. Two figures waited at the stern, on the wheeldeck, watching her as she 
walked along the dock and boarded amidships.

 The smaller of the two figures took a step forward, but he was not a small man at all. She watched him 
closely, comparing him to military men she knew. Instead of a robe he wore a black surcoat made of the 
same material she wore, though his was more fully scaled, as if it had been cut from the flesh of a dragon.

 Her choice of the dragon image was not drawn from the ship alone, but from the elaborate headgear 
the man wore, as well as his gauntlets and boots. Dragonish talons capped his toes, and the fingers of his 
gauntlets had been similarly fashioned. The helm had a jutting dragons muzzle, and horns and ears rose 
from it. What disturbed her about the helm was that the ears appeared to move, and a forked tongue 
slithered out to flicker around. 

And those great golden eyes seem to be looking straight through me.

 The mouth moved as the Black Dragon spoke. You wish to know where you are almost as much as 
you wish to know why you are here.

 Alyx nodded slowly. Last I knew I was in Yslin, in Fortress Gryps.

 Part of you yet is. The Black Dragons voice came in measured tones. The long muzzle distorted 
them enough that she couldnt identify his voice, but she suspected the man was General Caro. If 


anyone were to look in on you, they would find you sleeping soundly.

anyone were to look in on you, they would find you sleeping soundly.

 As was explained to me, dreams are your spirit at the theater, watching and hearing, experiencing. 
This is when your spirit has sallied forth. It is nothing to fear, especially not here. The Black Dragons 
ears flicked back and forward. This place also allows us a bit more flexibility in choosing the image we 
wear.

 Alyx nodded. She was sorely tempted to try to revisual-ize her gown as a coat of scale armor, but 
without knowing how to do it, the effort would likely not succeed and would prove a distraction. 
Despite what you have said, I still do not know where I am.

 This is the meeting place of the Great Communion of Dragons. You have been invited to become a 
Communicant, and are being initiated as a White Dragon. The Blacks helm smiled, revealing white 
teeth, while his larger, steel-grey companion did nothing. It is a great honor.

 She half lidded her violet eyes. I imagine it is. The power expended to get me here is impressive.

 Always the pragmatist. This is good. The Black nodded slowly. The Communion of Dragons is the 
oldest of the Great Societies. All others are mirrors of it. This society grew up before the Estine Empire 
was established. It anticipated the power into which men would grow. While many view dragons today 
as creatures of great rage and destructive power, our founders recognized that dragons, in their wisdom, 
used their power only as needed. They punish poor behavior and benignly encourage good. They are 
parents disciplining unruly offspring, chastening them. So we seek to perform this same function within 
human society.

 The other societies have similar goals, but to accomplish them, they draw from all levels of society. 
We select only those who, through training, breeding, and accomplishment, have proven themselves 
capable of handling the great responsibility of guiding humanity.

 You deem me worthy of such an honor?

 It is my hope you will be seen to be so. The Black looked back at the steel dragonman. This is 
Maroth. He is a magickal construct and pilots the ship here on the crossing. When next you come here, 
you will say to him,

 Maroth, take me forth. He will bring you to the appropriate destination.

 And if we do not leave the quay, I am not initiated into the Communion?

 It is possible that such could be the case. Were it so, however, you would not get this far. The Black 
wrapped his left hand over his right fist. The summons to join the Communion, to journey here and 
speak with your brethren, will come often but the choice to do so is yours and yours alone. On the other 
side we meet and discuss advising each other, settling disputes. There are moments, on the other side, 
when time and distance, melt to nothing. You will always be anchored to your physical form, and what 
might take hours here will pass in an eyeblink. Were I seated before a warm fire, the cup of wine I hold 
would not have had a chance to fall from my fingers before our business here was completed.

 Alyx lifted her chin. If I join, am I subject to the orders of others? I will not betray my nation or 
people at the order of another.

 Other societies operate with a hierarchy that demands obedience, but not the Dragons. As you gain in 
knowledge, your ability to interact more fully with people expands. As I noted, we discuss, inform, and 
advise, we do not compel. At best you will see other Dragons gathering to oppose recklessness or 
unbridled ambition.

 The Black grasped his hands at the small of his back. The Communion is not a path to power. It is a 
means to guarantee that power is used wisely and to its best effect.

 She nodded. You know who I am. When will I have the courtesy of knowing who you are?

 In time it will come. We each choose to reveal ourselves to other members at a point where we feel it 
is appropriate. Im certain you have decided I am General Caro, but this is only because I have chosen 
to adopt a form akin to his. The Black spun once, quickly, and the thick-limbed, dragon-helmed figure 
changed as skirts flared and bosom swelled. For a heartbeat she looked very much like Grand Duchess 
Tatyana, but flowed into the more pleasant form of Queen Yelena. Once you have a Communicants 
confidence, you will see them as they truly wish to be seen. Until then, this game of mirrors should make 


you wary. I have no doubt that you would have been so anyway, carefully weighing what you were told 
before you acted upon it.

you wary. I have no doubt that you would have been so anyway, carefully weighing what you were told 
before you acted upon it.

 I did, daughter.

 Alyxs head came up sharply. Daughter? You presume much.

 Please, I beg your pardon. Within the Dragons this is how we address each other. You could call me 
father, or uncle, were it more pleasing to you. Cousin, niece, nephew, brother, grandfather, and so on, all 
of these are what we use to stress our ties, not ranks and divisions.

 She nodded slowly. I clearly have much to learn ... Uncle.

 And you will have time to learn it. He returned her nod. If you do not mind, I wanted to offer you a 
word of caution in what will follow in the Council of Kings.

 And that would be?

 You are quite competent, even brilliantbetter than any expected you would be. You could easily 
teach everyone there some vital lessons. You taught them to Caro at Porasena. Chytrine, however, is not 
a foe who will fall at a single blow, and certainly not the first struck at her. Listen, learn. Observe the 
strengths and the weaknesses of soldiers and statesmen. Study your friends as you would your enemies, 
for there will come a time when you will have to treat them as such to do what is best.

 Alyx thought for a second, then nodded. Sound advice and quite worthy of adoption. Thank you, 
uncle.

 It pleases me that you found my guidance useful. The figure plumped back into the black dragon 
who had greeted her. Have you any other questions?

 Is there anyone in these meetings I can trust?

 Echoes of the Blacks laughter fled deep into the cavern and did not return. Augustus, certainly, and 
your grandfatherif you hear his words yourself. Cavarre can be trusted as well, in most things, though 
his bias for his realm does narrow his focus. And Crow, you can trust him.

 Crow?

 Kedyns Crow.

 Hes a ghost, a phantasm. A legend with a Vorquelf army. She smiled. Minstrels made him up so 
poor people would think someone could oppose the sullanciri

 He is real. I have known him for a long time. Hes not a Dragon, but I trust him regardless. The 
Blacks golden eyes half shut. As for the minstrel songs, if the minstrels knew a fraction of what Crow 
has really done, theyd not dare sing of him, since none of it would be believed.

 Alyx arched an eyebrow at him. Ive heard that sort of thing said of many, but this is the first Ive 
been told the songs play down exploits, instead of making more of them.

 The Black smiled. The entertainment value of history depends less upon accuracy than drama; and 
where the two conflict, drama wins.

 What of the Norrington? Do I trust him when he is found?

 I dont know. I have not met him. I would rely on whatever impressions of him Augustus and Crow 
have.

 Fair enough. She smiled cautiously. How will I know if I am accepted?

 Youll see a sign.

 And I can discuss this with no one?

 The Black slowly shook his head. As the warning on the arch noted, what goes on here is 
confidential, and remains so. While you will remember everything, to speak of it, or write it, to make 
pictures or to do anything associated with it will be impossible. When you meet other members in the 
flesh, you will know you know them, and that you can trust them, but you will not know why. It will not 
concern you, either.

 He opened his hands and spread his arms. So, to the Communion I bid you welcome, and for now, I 
bid you farewell. His body expanded until it became a black sphere that engulfed her. Her world went 


completely dark and she began to suffocate.

completely dark and she began to suffocate.

 She wanted very much to believe that what she had experienced was a dream, but too much had 
occurred in it that was not remotely dreamlike. And while surreal elements did predominate, the fact that 
she saw in color, and that she had been able to read, these spoke against the idea of it being a fantasy.

 Alyx shrugged. Regardless of it being dream or reality, the experience just confirmed the things that 
shed already taken as true. She could trust King Augustus, her grandfather, and Dothan Cavarre. With 
the first two she had a long history of trust, and with Cavarre, the impression she had gained of him in the 
first Council had been very favorable. The fact that he stood in opposition to Tatyana, and did so without 
fear, likewise spoke well of him.

 The comment about Crow surprised her, and again spoke against her having dreamed. Kedyns Crow 
was a legend to her, and she had no reason to suspect he would be present at the Council. She actually 
had doubts that he was, since a man of his reputation would certainly have been very useful and part of 
the discussions from the start. Then again, his known fellowship with Vorquelves and desire to see 

their home freed once more marginalizes him since his goal is shared by few men.

 She ran her fingers through her hair and thought for a moment before shaking her head. It was just an 
odd dream. She shivered and tried to pull the blanket up to cover her, but it had slipped full off the bed. 
As she leaned over to retrieve it from the floor, a jolt ran through her.

 There, on the floor, the blanket had fallen twisted in a shaft of moonlight. The way it had ended up, the 
dark wool blanket clearly formed a head and a tail, and one corner rose like a dragons wing. Try as she 
might, she couldnt find another image to fit the figure on the floor, then a cloud slid across the face of the 
moon.

 Her blanket lay there in a tangled heap, no more sinister than a twisted piece of bed linen.

 Alyx growled at herself and snatched the blanket from the floor. Just as well I saw it now. Saves me 
trying to interpret everything else ... She meant to add as a sign of the Dragons, but the words refused 
to come.

 She sighed and shivered beneath the blanket. Sleep, when it did come, brought no dream or clouds, 
mountains or dragons. This pleased Alyx no end, because the Council of Kings was certain to give her 
more than enough to lose sleep over soon.

 At first blush it had seemed like a sound plan. Wills ob-ft jective had been to learn who was after 
him. Whoever it 1 lwas had enlisted Marcus and had done something to the kids to make them behave 
like little soldiers. Will had seen that sort of discipline before, but only after Marcus had administered a 
severe beating, or after one of the older kids had disappeared.

 That discipline usually lasted less than an hour, and diminished in direct proportion to the distance from 
the hideout. Will decided to stay out of the way for a little bit, then hunt down one of the younger kids in 
the group and get the information out of her. Hed decided on Skurri, a scruffy little girl about nine years 
old, since she was smarter than average and hed often shared little treasures with her. The way her face 
lit up at uny kindness had been a joy.

 The hour or so he spent waiting, slowly closing in on the section of the Dim where Skurri usually 
worked as a mule for one of the older cutpurses, gave Will time to re-fleet on why he was being hunted. 
He knew it wasnt to turn him in for any reward. While hed been a competent thief, hed never pulled off 
anything spectacular enough to warrant a bounty being placed on his head. As with Crow and Resolute, 
there was only one reason in the world anyone would be looking for him: because of his blood.

 Not being able to remember his mother, and never having seen or heard mention of his father, he had 
no idea if he was the Norrington of prophecy. The possibility that he might have been had never occurred 
to him, despite countless orphan fantasies woven around his fathers hidden identity. Hed always 
dreamed that his father might show up one day to take him away from the streets and to a life of leisure. 
The possibility that his father was a Norrington just didnt enter into that scheme of things.

 The Norrington tragedy was well known, and sung of in a number of varieties. Among the Vorks had 


arisen a prophecy that said a Norrington would lead the rescue of their island. His supposed grandfather 
had gone on the grand crusade and had been captured by Chytrine. Shed turned him into a sullanciri. 
As Distalus had told him, the son had then gone north to redeem his familys name, but had been turned 
into a sullanciri himself. Blood before nation had been the refrain of the song sung about Bosleigh 
Norringtons last campaign.

arisen a prophecy that said a Norrington would lead the rescue of their island. His supposed grandfather 
had gone on the grand crusade and had been captured by Chytrine. Shed turned him into a sullanciri. 
As Distalus had told him, the son had then gone north to redeem his familys name, but had been turned 
into a sullanciri himself. Blood before nation had been the refrain of the song sung about Bosleigh 
Norringtons last campaign.

 Second, and far more subtle, was the fact that being a Norrington carried with it a grave responsibility 
and the strong probability of a tragic life. If things were to continue along the lines of what hed seen in 
Crows company, Wills life wasnt going to be full of laughter and joy. Hed be used as a weapon 
against Chytrine. Whether I want it or not.

 The story of Bosleigh Norrington sent a cold chill through the young thief. The man had been a hero. 
He had slain sullanciri. Distalus had described him as Oriosas last hero, and yet blood had won out 
over nation. How could he, Will, a denizen of the Dim, resist the sorts of temptations that had made his 
father and grandfather succumb? Will my blood bind me to them?

 That question sent a jolt through him. The ritual in the cave slammed back full force. My blood! I am 
linked to them. That thing was my father?

 Damn them. Damn their eyes, damn their lies. Will snarled at the evasions and trickery Crow and 
Resolute had used. Theyd first said they could tell him nothing because they wanted to protect whoever 
they were looking for, just in case he wasnt it. But ever since the cave theyve known who I was. 
They should have told me.

 As much as he wanted to blame them, however, he couldnt build up a righteous fury. First off, when 
he had been told who he was, he ran. Theyd known he would, and they had been working to change 
him into someone who wouldnt. As Crow had told him, he and Resolute had volunteered for their duty 
in this battle. Will had not been able to do thathed been press-ganged just as they had almost been in 
Sanges.

 Second, they had nothing to do with his parentage. His blood was his blood. It was his to deal with. 
Theyd tried to insulate him as much as they could. In the one encounter with the sullanciri, Resolute had 
kicked the goat-man off him. Even on Vilwan they had placed him out of danger as much as possible.

 The problem of who he was fell squarely on his shoulders. He knew Chytrine wanted him, based on 
what Nefrai-laysh had said to him. Crow and Resolute would be hunting for him, but theyd not go to 
Marcusthey hadnt in the first place, trusting instead on their own skills to find him. The question 
remained of who else might be looking for him.

 He chose to focus on that question, and started his hunt for Skurri. Will sped over rooftops, sailing 
across alleys, to land in a crouch or tuck into a roll and keep going. In shadows he would wait and 
watch. Then, down in the street, he saw the brown-haired girl enter an alley. The beggars stationed at its 
mouth let her pass without comment or challenge, clearly recognizing her as a creature of the Dim.

 Will descended to street level by means of a stairway and darted across the empty byway. He gave 
the beggars a nod, then leaped over a sleeping body and trotted down to where Skurri spoke with a 
huddled mass of rotting rags.

 Skurri, a word.

 She turned slowly toward him, first bringing her head around, then her shoulders. She stared at him 
unblinking, and the greenish glow in her eyes unsettled him. Hes here. He barely heard her whisper 
and had he not seen her lips move, he could have missed her having spoken at all.

 Little sister, whos hunting for me? He grabbed her shoulders and shook her slightly, hoping to 
shock the dazed look out of her eyes. Who, Skurri, who? Is it Nefrai-laysh?

 The little girls eyes blazed at the mention of that name, then her voice changed, sinking into a deeper 
register. You have learned much, little one. You wounded my brother, both hide and pride. Now you 
are mine. 


 Skurri grabbed his wrists hard. Biting back a yelp, Will brought his hands up, then out, around and 
back in a big circle. The move broke her grip, then he shoved both hands against her chest and pushed 
her down.

 Skurri grabbed his wrists hard. Biting back a yelp, Will brought his hands up, then out, around and 
back in a big circle. The move broke her grip, then he shoved both hands against her chest and pushed 
her down.

 He reached the street unhindered, but found green eyes staring at him from alleys and rooftops, even 
from beneath carts and in the face of a cat perched on a windowsill. He spun at a sound coming from 
behind him and saw a shambling mass of beggars heading for him. In most of their faces two green eyes 
burned, in others only a single. They werent moving fast, but they were moving as a mass.

 Will stooped to grab a stone, then pegged it as hard as he could at the leading beggar. The missile flew 
true and caught the humpbacked woman in the forehead. She pitched back, knocking down a 
one-legged man, temporarily choking the alley mouth.

 He spun and headed south. Will kept his eyes open for three things: broken cobbles that could trip him 
up, stones he could throw, and likely targets. He avoided potholes, not wanting to repeat his disaster with 
the Grey Misters. The stones he snatched up came easily to hand and didnt lack for supply, but neither 
did targets. He threw as well as he could, and if he didnt crush a rats skull, he usually got close enough 
to send the little beasts running for cover. The same was true of his former brethren, though he didnt try 
to kill them, just hurt them enough to make them break off their pursuit.

 Will realized two things almost immediately. The first was that some serious magick was at work and 
appeared to be contagious. At a touch Skurri had been able to infect the beggars with it and they, 
presumably, could infect others. Will found it all too easy to imagine some of his younger brethren in the 
sewers, catching up rats,then sending them to the streets to watch him. While the green glow in their 
eyes meant they werent responsible for their actions, Will didnt mind killing varmints.

 The second thing was that by referring to Nefrai-laysh as brother the huntress had revealed her 
identity as a sul-lanciri. That realization hadnt taken much of a leap, since Chytrines interest in him 
would have outweighed everyone elses, and she had sufficient power to send mag-ickal hunters after 
him. And she is using my friends against meas she used my grandfather against his son, and 
against all their former friends.

 More thoughts cascaded through his mind, coming as fast as his breath and his steps. His attempt at 
stealing Predators prize had come because he saw it was time to move out on his own. Yes, he had 
prayed Marcus would welcome him back, but he had secretly harbored the hope that Marcus might 
make him a lieutenant. That would have been the first step in his breaking away, or supplanting Marcus. 
It was his first step at independence.

 Chytrine would deny him that. She would use me against everyone. Nefrai-laysh had described him 
as a key for a lock, but he was much more, and he knew it. To run from that would be 
impossibleChytrine would see to it that he could never live in peace. Either he would have to be in her 
fold, as his father chose to be, or he would have to be dead. He was enough of a threat to her that no 
other options would be allowed as far as she was concerned.

 His only other option, of course, was to oppose her. Because of a prophecy, he had become a target. 
He could fight against those who hoped the prophecy would come true, or he could fight against the 
woman who wanted to make sure it didnt. It really wasnt even a question of which side was right. The 
simple fact of the matter was that she would deny him his freedom, and that just wasnt sitting well with 
him.

 Will cut into an alley and heard a furious screech rising. Something landed on his back and right 
shoulder, then a fierce stinging erupted. He reached back and caught a handful of tail, then yanked the cat 
from his back. The claws ripped free, the pain spiking. Will snarled, then whipped the cat against the 
wall, dashing its brains out.

 A whirring sound filled the alley, growing louder as he ran. The alley fed into a crosscut alley and Will 
was pretty certain left was the way back to the street. Before he had a chance to make up his mind, the 


whirring grew to the right, then stopped abruptly to be replaced by a keening voice.

whirring grew to the right, then stopped abruptly to be replaced by a keening voice.

 Will hesitated. Crouched there on the alley wall, clinging to a brick with two legs and four arms, the 
humanoid creature looked slightly longer than his forearm. A quartet of glassine wings protruded from its 
back, and two antennae rose from above two jewel-faceted eyes in what almost passed for a human 
face. Chitinous armor covered the creature and looked black in the night, though a couple of spots 
seemed to glow green.

 Those spots werent its eyes, however, which counted for a lot with Will at the moment, and the color 
was more of an evergreen, not the pale corpselight that had been chasing him. That way?

 Yes, yes. This way. Yes.The creature launched itself into the air with a whir of wings, then looped 
and sped off in the direction it wanted Will to go. Ten yards further on, where the alley opened into a 
courtyard, the thing dipped sharply, and a rat squeaked. The rodent rolled into the courtyard, then lay 
there struggling within a glistening webbing. The dark windows facing the courtyard watched blindly as 
the webbing contracted, crushing the rat to death.

 Will sprinted after the creature and followed it to the north side of the courtyard. Through an arched 
carriageway he could see a street free of glowing green eyes. The problem was that a stout iron gate set 
with a grid of bars stood between him and freedom. He grabbed the bars and shook them, then glanced 
at the lock. He could have had it open in a minute, with the proper tools, but he didnt have them with 
him.

 He turned and looked at where his companion sat perched on a crossbar. Well, now what?

 Wait. We wait.

 Wait for what?

 The creature shrugged. We wait.

 Will spun and put his back to the gate, then thought better of that move and stepped a pikes-length 
forward. That still left him deep in the carriageways shadow, but it didnt really matter. Bleeding into the 
courtyard, moving through the alley as well as over the walls and down, came an army of green-eyed 
creatures. Rats and cats formed the flanks, with a few dogs out in front of the main body. Beggars 
predominated in the middle, with a few robust men at their core. Will assumed they were drunken sailors 
who had collapsed in the wrong alley at the wrong time.

 One of the beggars shuffled forward and reached a two-fingered, leprous hand toward him. You 
have a choice, Will Norrington. You come to us, now, willingly, or the pieces of your body will be shat 
by rats before dawn.

 Will lifted his chin. Is that the sort of bargain you offered my father and grandfather?

 What missed in the son resides firmly in grandson. The beggars voice became almost wistful. 
Serving our mistress, you will know the fulfillment of your dreams even dreams you did not know you 
had.

 The thief shook his head. It wont work.

 No?

 No. Will smiled defiantly and hefted a rock in his right hand. My dreams are your Mistress 
nightmares.

 So be...

 The rock caught the beggar in his throat, cutting off his words. Will, for the barest of seconds, 
imagined that throw being strong enough to spill the man back into the rank behind him, and cast them 
back and so on and so on, until the whole of the rabble fell. He knew it was impossible, but if Chytrine 
was going to make undreamt dreams come true, that would have been a nice start.

 And yet, while his throw had by no means been strong enough to accomplish that goal, the rabble was 
falling. Arrows and stones, crossbow quarrels and even daggers, rained down on them from the empty 
windows. People poured from doors, brandishing clubs with which they laid about, smashing rats, 
mousers, and hounds. Wills saviors shouted savage war cries and took to the combat with a merciless 
and efficient economy Will had seen before. 

In Resolute. The youths jaw dropped open. Theyre all Vorks. 


 Half a dozen of the Vorquelves entered the carriageway and interposed a wall of flesh between Will 
and the courtyard. They had swords drawn, and struck sparks from the cobbles as they slaughtered rats. 
Nothing got past them save the gurgled cries for mercy that ended abruptly with the sharp sound of stick 
on skull.

 Half a dozen of the Vorquelves entered the carriageway and interposed a wall of flesh between Will 
and the courtyard. They had swords drawn, and struck sparks from the cobbles as they slaughtered rats. 
Nothing got past them save the gurgled cries for mercy that ended abruptly with the sharp sound of stick 
on skull.

 Are you hurt?

 Will shook his head, then let his breath out and started shivering. Above him a second of the winged 
creatures had joined his guardian. They whirled and looped through a complex knot of maneuvers. Their 
piping voices filled the carriageway, drowning out the sounds of the wounded being dispatched.

 Easy, Resolute. Predator freed himself from the larger Vorquelfs grasp, then straightened out his 
tunic. I was just going to see to him.

 I recall how you saw to him before, Predator. Resolutes silver eyes slitted as he looked at the Grey 
Misters closest to Will. The other Vorquelves backed away. Hes not hurt?

 Of course hes not. We were here, we saw, we took care of things. Predator flicked a finger toward 
the flying creatures. That Spritha came to us, told us we were to be here at this time, and wed see why, 
do our part for the prophecy. We were, we did, and its done. Without your help.

 Resolute growled. You know how Spritha are. They know when to be where, but not always why. 
Sprynt is an old friend. He got Crow and me, brought us as fast as we could go. We got here in time to 
see it was over.

 One of the Spritha landed on Crows shoulder and gave Will a nod. Sprynt. Pleased to meet the 
Norrington, pleased.

 The other Spritha landed on Wills shoulder. Sprynt snapped a harsh comment at his comrade. The 
green Spritha launched himself into the air, then hovered.

 Qwc begs forgiveness, begs, the Norrington.

 Will shook his head to clear it. Um, no, thats okay. Youre Sprynt, hes Qwc?

 Impetuous. A child.

 Well, I owe him my life. Will lifted his left shoulder. Go ahead.

 The Spritha landed and clutched Wills tunic. Qwc jutted his body forward and stuck his tongue out at 
Sprynt.

 Predator came walking over. You are well?

 Yeah. Thanks.

 The sapphire-eyed elf nodded. If I had known who you were...

 Youd have hated me anyway, Predator. Will shrugged, but Qwc managed to hang on. Doesnt 
mean nothing. Thanks for saving me.

 The Vorquelf nodded. He looked up at Resolute. Mind if we salvage things?

 Help yourselves. Resolute folded his arms over his chest. Youve given us a chase, boy.

 If I werent good at it, theyd have gotten me. Will sighed. Okay, I accept that Im the Norrington. 
I dont like it, but Chytrine is convinced of it, so Im stuck. Short of having a child on someone, I guess 
Im your man.

 Crow nodded. I know that wasnt easy.

 Yeah, well, easier than outrunning the folks hunting me. Will nodded toward the dead bodies. There 
was a sul-lanciri running them, and I didnt see any kids in the crowd. I know where she is. If Chytrine 
is afraid of me just because of my being a Norrington, well, lets go kill us one of her generals and give 
her something more to worry about.

 rjihe situation was not to Alyxs liking, not at all. Shed I barely had an hour of sleep since awakening 
after her 1 encounter with the Communion of Dragons when a pounding on her door awakened her 
again. Shed just thrown back the covers and cleared her hair from her face when the door opened and 


King Augustus entered.

King Augustus entered.

 Rise, Alexia. There is a matter that needs attending to and you will have to take care of it. The king 
moved from the doorway, letting two stewards enter, bearing a suit of iron-studded leather armor, a 
short mail surcoat, bracers, greaves, and a helmet. Dress quickly, then go to the East Tower map room, 
second level. They will be expecting you.

 She covered a yawn with her hand. What is it?

 Augustus glanced at the two stewards, then shook his head. Youll learn soon enough. Good luck. 
Tossing her a brief salute, he exited the room and pulled the door closed behind him.

 Alyx dressed quickly. One of the stewards seemed to know his way around armor, so she let him help 
her with the greaves and bracers. The other steward she sent off to get her a skin of water. She darted 
out of the room before he returned, but snagged it from him as she moved to the map room.

 Inside she found a gathering of individuals, only two of whom she knew. The warrior woman in the 
regalia of the Alcidese Throne Guards leaned on a table in the center of the room, studying an old map of 
the city. Next to it was a small piece of parchment onto which had been sketched the layout of a building 
with the surrounding streets and alleys. Tristi Exemia tapped the map with an index finger, then brought 
that finger up to her lips and chewed on the nail.

 The maps conflict. Whats on our royal survey map does not match the sketch.

 A grey-eyed youth with a green Spritha perched on his left shoulder glared at her. My map is right. I 
was there, I remember.

 Im sure thats what you think you remember, but...

 Weariness entered the youths voice. Look, Im a thief, right? Its my job to get these details exactly. 
My life depends upon it.

 And now our lives will.

 Alyx moved to the table, sliding in between the large Vorquelf, Resolute, and an older man wearing a 
set of leathers like hers, but hiding within the shadow of a leather huntsmans hood. She looked across 
the table to Agitare. Give it to me quickly, Captain.

 The man nodded sharply, then pointed at the self-avowed thief. This evening the Norrington was 
rescued in the Dim. He has indicated that someone he suspects is a sullanciri is operating out of the third 
floor of a building on Blackline Street at Quay Road. We are estimating an enemy complement of one 
adult male and thirty or so children, but the sullanciri used magick earlier to produce more combatants. 
We have no reports on the presence of gibber-ers or any other northern troops.

 She frowned at the report. Finding a sullanciri out in the hinterlands was one thing, but having one in 
the heart of Yslin, especially as all the worlds leaders were meeting, created a serious problem. They 
had gathered to decide what would be done about Chytrine, and yet the presence of one of her generals 
mocked the Council. How could they rid themselves of Chytrine when her vassals ran unchecked in the 
city?

 On top of that, the mission itself was next to impossible. She sighed. Assaulting up stairs and into a 
place where a sullanciri and an unknown number of troops might be, in the heart of the Dim? I dont like 
this at all.

 The Vorquelf snorted. You have the core of the problem. The layers around it are worse. We will be 
seen coming from miles away. They will run like rats into the sewers.

 The man at her back spoke softly. Then we have the problem of dealing with a sullanciri. Killing 
them is not easy. It takes potent magick.

 That could be why they sent for me. A grey-haired woman closed the door behind her. Im Orla, a 
Magister of Combats from Vilwan. Do we know which of the sullanciri this is?

 The thief shrugged. Shes female. She referred to Nefrai-laysh as her brother.

 Theyre not related, thats just how they talk. Orla rested both her liver-spotted hands on the top of 
her ebon staff. That makes her one of the five female sullanciri and weve not seen them about much at 
all. Hard to know what she has.

 The Norrington frowned. She could see through the eyes of others, including rats and stuff. She could 


also control their actions.

also control their actions.

 Seeing through multiple eyes can drive some people insane. Orla thought for a moment. I can 
probably conceal a small number of people from her watchers.

 Alyx smiled. Good, that will help. She reached out and spun the city map around so she could read 
it. Exemia pointed out the building in question. Alyx nodded. What time is it?

 The Vorquelf answered. Just nigh four. Dawns an hour and a half off.

 Good, we have enough time, then. She glanced over at Captain Agitare. Youll get the Wolves 
going and move west up near the temple district, then come down here into the Dim at the far side of our 
target, coming back east on Blackline. Captain Exemia, youll start most of the Throne Guards from 
Fortress Gryps here, marching in good order. Youll come west on Broad Street, then cut down on 
Mason Road to Blackline. Youll both move slowly, putting on a big show, getting ready to converge on 
this point just after dawn.

 The dark-haired woman nodded. You said I would have most of the Throne Guards. Who gets left 
out?

 I need six of your marines, the best of them. Alyx felt a shiver run down her spine. Orla may be 
able to blind her, but a sullanciri will be suspicious if she has nothing to watch. Well give her more than 
enough to watch, which is why she wont see the rest of us coming.

 The rest of us? The hooded man turned to face her, and she squared up to the table, then looked at 
him across her right shoulder. Who would the rest be?

 Six marines, Resolute, Orla, the Norringtonto tell us what might be a trap or notme and you. I 
know youd not be here if you were not useful.

 The Norrington smiled. Crows a legend. 

Oh, so this is Crow. Alyx studied as much of his face as the shadows revealed. The white beard and 
forelock provided the illusion of age, as did the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, and the scar on the 
right side of his face. His brown eyes, however, still burned with an intensity that surprised her and 
dispelled that illusion. She could not guess at his age, but she could see there was a lot of life left in him.

 Youre Crow. Ive been told I can trust you.

 Crow bowed his head. You are too kind.

 No, youll find Im not at all. Alyx glanced over at Agitare and Exemia. Once were in, well sound 
a whistle and you come hard.

 Captain Exemia held a hand up. Theyre still going to be able to take to the sewers, so well miss 
them.

 Alyx shook her head. No they wont. Youve forgotten, the street there is called Blackline because 
thats whats left on the surface. High tide, which is in roughly an hour, goes up that far, causing the 
sewers to back up. Nightsoil gets left on the street. The sewers will provide them no escape.

 The leader of the Throne Guards nodded, then her eyes widened along with her smile. Youre just 
going to take a longboat up Quay Road and dock right on the doorstep, arent you?

 Chytrine had no luck with an amphibious attack on Vilwan, so I doubt shes going to be anticipating 
our repeating that sort of lousy tactic. Alyx pulled the sketch of the building over and studied it. Were 
only going to succeed with speed and surprise and magick. Weve got to get Orla in so she can deal with 
the sullanciri.

 Resolute let a low chuckle rumble from his throat. She is not the only one who can deal with a 

sullanciri?

 I know, Ive read the histories, I know how the others died. If you have any magick arrows or know 
where Temmer can be found, bring them. The simple fact of the matter was that the easiest way to deal 
with the sullanciri would be to assemble a cadre of Vilwanese Combat Magis-ters and level the building. 
While it would be effective, it would again underscore how difficult it would be to stop Chytrine. Part of 
the reason the raid had to go off successfully was to prove Chytrine could be defeated. 

Thats why the Norrington is here. If they succeeded with his help, that would hearten opposition to 
Chytrine and give her something to worry about. If they failed, nations would feel vulnerable enough that 


they might sue for peace on their own terms with Chytrine. Piecemeal opposition would be crushed. If 
the Norrington is lost in a failed attempt, it wont matter anyway, since she wont be resisted.

they might sue for peace on their own terms with Chytrine. Piecemeal opposition would be crushed. If 
the Norrington is lost in a failed attempt, it wont matter anyway, since she wont be resisted.

 Im Will. The Spritha here is Qwc. The youth shook her hand firmly. Youre the Gold Wolf. We 
saw you at Stellin. 

The stable. She slowly turned and looked at Resolute and Crow. It begins to make sense- Which of 
you shot the arrow?

 Will pointed across the table. Crow did. I thought he was shooting at you and tried to spoil his aim. 
Im glad I failed.

 Alyx nodded to the man. Not only can you be trusted, but your skill at arms is impressive.

 Spend enough time with Resolute and you learn how to do a lot of things well.

 The Vorquelf nodded. Killing things, mostly. Thats what I do. He stabbed a finger against the 
sketch of the sul-lanciris lair. Just get us in there, Princess. Youll see I know my business well.

 Two of the marines poled the longboat up Quay Road slowly and easily. Orla had directed them to 
propel the boat with a fluid motion, since that made it easier for her to conceal them. People and animals 
tend to track motion pretty well. My spell will just create an illusion where our motion is attributed to 
something else. While folks try to track it, we will have moved past.

 Crow crouched in the bow, with Will behind him and Resolute next. Alyx positioned herself in the 
middle of the boat, leaving Orla toward the rear, surrounded by a wall of thickly muscled marines. The 
Throne marines normally served on the kings flagship and were known to be very tough. Each wore 
leather armor and carried a pair of short stabbing swords, which would be perfect for close-in work.

 Resolute and Will had come armed with gibberkin longknives. Alyx had conceded the wisdom of their 
choices, and the choice made by the marines, and had abandoned her saber. She armed herself with a 
shortsword and a small steel buckler with a punch-dagger bound into it. She could stab with it, parry with 
it, and any blow with the flat or edge of the shield would break bones.

 Only Orla and Crow were oddly armed. The mage carried her staff, which was a bit long for use in 
close quarters. Alyx did not feel inclined to dispute her choice, however. Crow wore a longsword at his 
left hip, and a quiver of arrows on his back. His black-lacquered bow sat athwart the wales, and the 
arrow hed nocked pointed toward their target.

 Green eyes glowed from one of the lower windows, but didnt track their passage. Having seen the 
shot Crow made at Stellin, Alyx knew he could kill the owner of those eyes in a heartbeat, but doing that 
would alert the sullanciri to their presence. They all hoped she wouldnt find out about them until her 
lifes-blood was pulsing out.

 The longboat gently bumped up against the buildings doorstep. Will slipped from the boat and opened 
the door. He peeked in furtively, then took the rope Crow tossed him to make the boat fast. Resolute 
entered the water without a sound on the port side of the boat, then lifted Orla clear while Alyx got out 
on the starboard side. The marines, drawing their swords, joined the procession and entered the 
ramshackle buildings vestibule.

 The open stairwell went up and doubled back before reaching the second level, repeating that pattern 
to get to the third. Will started up on cats feet, staying low and watching for things before waving others 
on. Resolute followed him, with Alyx next, then Orla and the marines. Crow stayed at the base of the 
stairs, watching, ready to shoot at anything moving that wasnt a friend.

 Theyd made it up to the second-floor landingand Will had ascended halfway to the thirdwhen a 
keening wail rose from above them. A large, odd-looking, pale creature clung to the ceiling above the 
stairwell. It had a human face on a spiderlike body and its eyes glowed the telltale green. It opened its 
hands and started to drop down on the party, but before it had fallen ten feet, Crows black-fletched 
arrow split its breastbone.

 The thing slammed into the stairs and bounced up once. Resolute kicked it through the railing, sending 
it further down. All eight limbs thrashed and twitched as its call tailed off, but its silence mattered not at 


all. Other throats throughout the building had picked up on its shrieking and echoed the alarm. Doors 
opened and misshapen creatures emerged. Their eyesand most had more than a pair and often had 
them scattered over their bodiesblazed with hellish jade fire.

all. Other throats throughout the building had picked up on its shrieking and echoed the alarm. Doors 
opened and misshapen creatures emerged. Their eyesand most had more than a pair and often had 
them scattered over their bodiesblazed with hellish jade fire.

 His charge carried the impaled creature across the landing and buried the blade in the wall. The beast 
howled, gnashing its teeth. It tugged at the longknifes hilt, trying to free itself, but it only released a 
torrent of blood. The creatures strength flowed out, leaving it limp and hanging there on the longknife, its 
feet dangling inches above the floor.

 The Vorquelf roared a challenge in Elvish, then kicked in the door leading to the upper floors central 
room. As he raced in, something leaped on him from above the door. He went down in a somersault, 
catching the creature under him as he rolled. That cleared the doorway, allowing Alyx to race in after 
him.

 She took the room in with a glance. Clinging to walls and ceiling were more of the spiderlike creatures. 
What the dim stairwell had failed to reveal, the lamplight in the larger room made immediately apparent. 
The creatures had human faces because they were human, or had been. Magick had melded the flesh of 
two individuals, pressing them together, back to back, giving them four legs, four arms, and faces in the 
front and back of their skulls. Scuttling across the floor or along the wall, they watched, then leaped.

 Alyx backhanded one diving monster with her buckler, then stabbed down through another attempting 
to bite her knee. She caught sight of a third scurrying along toward her, but a whizzing-whir ended in a 
thunk. A bladestar blossomed from the things forehead. The creature pitched face forward, so the 
bladestar bit into the wood, stopping its forward slide.

 Will sent another bladestar whizzing into the room, pinning a spider-things foot to a wall. The Spritha 
took wing from Wills shoulder, then dove on one of the beasts. Qwc spat out a wad of webbing that 
expanded to blind the thing. As it tried to claw the webbing off, Orla stepped through the doorway and 
incinerated it with a sizzling gout of sorcerous flame.

 -/About the time Resolute regained his feet and tossed the broken-necked beast aside, the door to the 
west room opened. A naked man-thing leaped through it, then crouched as the cats-heads grafted onto 
his shoulders hissed angrily. Cats paws had replaced his fingers and patches of fur striped his body. 
Green light shone brightly in his eyes, but he did not attack.

 The emergence of the sullanciri from that same room demanded the attention of everyone, even 
Resolute. Her flesh and the gossamer gown she wore were of the purest white, save where radiant blue 
tattoos decorated her skin. Many of the patterns matched Resolutes, and fairly pulsed with power. She 
wore her long black hair loose and both it and the gown rode the currents of power swirling around her 
as if teased by a light summer breeze. The molten gold of her eyes broke as hot red lightning played 
through those orbs, yet the touch of her gaze chilled Alyx.

 The gold eyes flashed. Better than I could have expected here in my playground.

 Orla swung the staff in line with the sullanciri. Fire erupted from the staff, but before it could hit 
Chytrines general, the man-thing intercepted the spell. The magick engulfed him utterly, save for a 
droplet of fire that squirted from his back and splattered the sullancirfs thigh.

 It ignited the gown, but the sullanciri slapped it out as if it were no more bothersome than a spark. 
She snorted as the greasy curtain of smoke that had been the man-thing rose to the high ceiling. Your 
magick, Magister, is known to me, and I am proof against it. She lifted her hand and neither it, her thigh, 
nor the gown showed any sign of the fire.

 The sullanciri glanced at Resolute. You know your magicks are not enough to kill me. Only one of 
you is a threat.

 The sullancirh voice trailed off, then she darted toward Will. Stunned at her quickness, he didnt even 
attempt to back off. Green energy curled around her clawed hands and he could all but feel them tearing 
into his guts, stringing them around the room. 


 Steel rang as Crow drew his sword and interposed himself between Will and Chytrines agent. Hes 
not the threat, Tsamoc here is. A milky gemstone fitted into the blades reinforced-forte, which danced 
with internal light.

 Steel rang as Crow drew his sword and interposed himself between Will and Chytrines agent. Hes 
not the threat, Tsamoc here is. A milky gemstone fitted into the blades reinforced-forte, which danced 
with internal light.

 Crow extended the blade and it did not waver. In a heartbeat.

 She laughed, but took another step back. You would find Myrallmaras heart is as hard as yours, 
silly man, harder. The sullanciri nodded a salute to them, then smiled. Now is not my time, and I shall 
not gloat in victory. I leave you, reluctantly, but I am called away. When next we meet, you shall think on 
this and know how kind I have been to you.

 She circled a finger over a tattoo on her right breast. The blue of her tattoos flared brilliantly, blinding 
Alyx for a moment. When her vision returned, Myrallmara had vanished. She turned to look at her 
comrades, but saw past them and their shocked expressions. 

And she called this her playground.

 A shiver shook Alyx. Where the spider-things had been, now lay the bodies of the naked children who 
had been transformed into them. The one shed stabbed had become two, each struck through the heart. 
One bore the wound on her chest, the other on her back.

 Will sat on the floor, caressing the side of one little girls face. He brushed away the blood and tucked 
dirty hair behind her ear. This was Skurri. She was my friend.

 Crow slid his blade back into his sheath. She made us make war on children. You, Princess Alexia, 
and you, the Norrington.You and your comrades have slaughtered children. We might have driven her 
off, but... He tugged his hood forward to hide his face.

 So thats why she let us live? Orla slowly shook her head. There are depths of evil I never could 
have imagined.

 We played her game. We made war on children. Alyxs nostrils flared. The slaughter of the children 
on Vilwan, and now this, here. As rumor of these things spread, a lot of people are going to wonder if 
Chytrine is truly the evil one.

 Will slowly stood, wiping his bloodied fingers on his thigh. Let them wonder. She may think she won, 
but she was here to get me, and she didnt. Doesnt matter what her reasons were, it was a mistake. She 
got my friends dead, and its one Ill make her pay for.

 Kerrigan Reese did his best to hide the stiffness in his joints as he entered the large round arcanorium 
atop the Vilwanese tower in Yslin. The domed roof had a round opening in it, letting cool air and starlight 
in. Flickering flames from a dozen alcoves built into the walls provided shifting light, but more than enough 
for him to see the other four individuals in the room.

 Kerrigan paused just inside the doorway and bowed his head. Magister Orla. Magisters. You 
summoned me?

 Orla had a scowl on her face, but she said nothing, glancing at the gaunt, grey-robed man nearest the 
doorway. Kerrigan studied him for a moment, then felt a glimmer of recognition.

 Magister Baoth, forgive me for not recognizing you.

 The man who had been one of his first tutors-concentrating on constructive magicknodded. He 
still had wiry hair, which he wore short, but grey predominated over black, both on his head and in the 
beard he had grown.

 You honor me by remembering. These are Magisters Vulrasian of Croquellyn and Carok-Corax 
Ryss.

 Kerrigans eyes widened slightly. The tall elf, with jet-black hair and blue eyes, had figured strongly in 
the chronicles of the Aurolani invasion in which Vorquellyn had been lost. Though not known as a 
Magister of Combat, the elf had led a group of Croquelves and had landed them in the Ghost March. 
For months they harried Kreechucs troops, ambushing supply trains, assassinating officers, and 


generally creating havoc. Rumor that he and his men were approaching was enough to force the Aurolani 
to evacuate a village.

generally creating havoc. Rumor that he and his men were approaching was enough to force the Aurolani 
to evacuate a village.

 Belatedly, Kerrigan bowed his head. I am honored.

 As are we, Adept Reese. The urZrethis voice came a bit deeper than he would have expected. The 
elf silently nodded in agreement.

 Magister Baoth produced a yellowed scroll from one sleeve of his robe and extended it to Kerrigan. I 
would like you to read this over and determine if you can understand it.

 The Adept took the scroll and could feel the antiquity of it. He slowly unrolled it and began to study 
the words. The scroll had been decorated with wonderful illuminations that connected words here and 
there, giving the whole thing a flow. Kerrigan immediately recognized the scroll as possessing a spell. 
More importantly, the spell is complex enough that it cant be worked alone. There is much here, 
but much more is missing.

 He glanced up from the document. I understand it, but it is odd. Its a human spell, I can see that, but 
it is jarring. It is as if it is a human transcription or adaptation of another magick.

 Baoth nodded. A fascinating observation. Can you cast it?

 Not alone. There are things missing.

 The elf studied him for a moment. Unlike Vorquelves, whose eyes were one solid color, the 
Croquelfs eyes had whites and even a black pupil. Kerrigan felt self-conscious as the Magister raked 
him up and down with an intense gaze, but he managed to forestall a blush.

 Vulrasian tapped a finger against his chin. Impressive, Adept Reese, to get that from a single reading. 
In fact, that is only one third of the spell. Carok-Corax and I possess the other two portions of it. Our 
portions will catalyze the effect.

 Kerrigan frowned. Ive read of such things, of course, but never studied them. How will I coordinate 
with you? Im assuming, of course, that you want me to cast this spell, otherwise why have me read it. 
Also, while it is a human spell, I dont believe either Magisters Baoth or Orla are capable of casting it.

 You are correct. It is an older spell, and that scroll is a transcription of an earlier one, which has since 
crumbled to dust. Yes, we do wish you to cast it, but it is not your place to coordinate with us, but ours 
to coordinate with you. The elf gestured toward him. Strip off your clothes.

 That command did make Kerrigan blush. Magister, I would rather not.

 The spell demands you be naked. Vulrasian looked around the room. You cannot imagine that we 
have not seen naked humans before. Remove your clothes and move to the center of the floor.

 Kerrigan reluctantly complied. He moved to the middle of the floor and stepped down into a 
six-inch-deep bowl depression in the floor. While only a yard across, it was more than large enough to 
encompass him completely. With a word or two he could have invoked the runes and sigils inscribed in 
the ring around the bowl, raising a mag-ickal shield in a column around him, but he had no sense that they 
were out to harm him, so he did not.

 He handed the scroll back to Magister Baoth, then cast a glance at Orla, leaning there on her staff. 
She met his stare for a moment, then shook her head and looked down. He would have asked her what 
was wrong, but clearly any reservations she had about what would be happening had been overruled.

 Once hed stripped off his clothes and tossed them aside, Kerrigan stood there with his hands 
covering his genitals, a blush burning from neck upward. Even Orla studied his naked bodythough he 
was pretty sure her winces came not out of displeasure with his corpulence, but at the sight of his purple 
bruises. The assault in the Dims had left his flesh mottled a host of ugly colors.

 Baoth looked at the elf. Will you need to deal with that before you proceed?

 The urZrethi answered. It will be of no consequence. The reconstruction aspects will deal with it.

 The elf concurred with a nod. We can proceed.

 Baoth crossed to the doorway and waved someone up the stairs. Three Apprentices entered the 


room, each one bearing a lidded bucket. Whatever was in them sloshed a bit, but none of it leaked out, 
and the Apprentices were bent over enough that Kerrigan thought they might somehow be carrying 
molten gold. As they set the buckets down to form a triangle around -him, the Adept realized the 
Apprentice off to his right wasLarka.

room, each one bearing a lidded bucket. Whatever was in them sloshed a bit, but none of it leaked out, 
and the Apprentices were bent over enough that Kerrigan thought they might somehow be carrying 
molten gold. As they set the buckets down to form a triangle around -him, the Adept realized the 
Apprentice off to his right wasLarka.

 The fluid came thick, more like oil or molasses than wa-ter, and had the deep ruby hue of half-dried 
blood. Where it touched his head it began to tingle, but that became the rake of thorns over his flesh as it 
dripped down his body. The sensation spread into a burning, as if hed run naked at noon and had been 
sun-kissed to scarlet, then it built. He almost panicked for a moment, fearing he would burst into flame.

 The excess fluid pooled in the bowl, coating his toes. The Apprentices dropped to their knees and 
reached down to scoop the fluid up, but Kerrigan waved them off with a half-coated hand. You want 
this to coat me completely?

 The elf nodded. It will not harm them to help you.

 Kerrigan shook his head. Ill do it. He slowly squatted and dipped his hands in the viscous fluid. He 
smeared it over his legs and up his thighs, along his genitals, over his buttocks. He coated every inch of 
him that he could touch, but his huge body made getting all spots impossible.

 The girl inched around on her knees until he could see her out of the corner of his left eye. Adept, let 
me help you, as you helped me.

 Kerrigan closed his eyes, but nodded. He heard her moving around behind him, then felt the burning 
spread over his back. He did not feel her touch him until she reached up and coated his ears, then traced 
fingertips over his eyelids and down his nose. Her fingers drifted over his lips, then she gently tipped his 
chin up and coated his throat.

 The fluid in his ears gave Vulrasians voice an oddly distant quality. Rise, Adept Reese.

 He slowly stood again, the sticky fluid near his joints pulling a bit. Larka drizzled more liquid on the 
places where his skin was yet bare. Once she was finished, he continued to stand, waiting, feeling as if his 
flesh were being dissolved.

 The scrape of the lid coming off the second bucket alerted him to a change. He opened his eyes 
enough to catch a glimpse of a turgid ivory flow starting from the second bucket. He closed his eyes and 
held his breath, then lifted his face to it and let it pour down over him. The sensation of being nettle-stuck 
returned to his skin, then intensified. What started as pinpricks became needles, then spikes, piercing him. 
The fire in his lungs was nothing compared to the pain tearing at his flesh.

 Kerrigan had all he could do to remain standing. His body quivered with the pain. He knew that if he 
squatted, he could never stand again. Larka, please. His words came out in a bubble of the liquid, and 
only when more pain blossomed on his body did he learn she had heard him.

 For the most part she did not touch him, save his ears and the back of his neck, where hair interfered 
with the anointing. Liquid poured onto his belly flowed down over his loins, and a likewise generous 
distribution on his back covered his buttocks. As this liquid dried, he felt as if encased in an eggshell-thin 
layer of plaster, and he dared not move.

 Before the pain died away, a third fluid flowed over him like sap. He could not see it, but it smelled of 
mint and cooled the fire on his skin. It dulled the spikes piercing his flesh. It flowed over his body 
fasteror maybe just seemed faster in the absence of the pain. Kerrigan smiled as it dripped down his 
body, and he began to spread it around before it had reached his ankles.

 As this liquid numbed him, he could not feel if Larka touched him at all. He lifted his chin, letting her 
paint his throat with it. He rubbed it over his genitals and backside, then lowered his head so she could 
do his ears and neck. Finally she traced it over his eyelids and lips.

 He opened his eyes as she stepped back. Baoth eclipsed his view of her, then Orla herded the 
Apprentices out of the room. Baoth held up the scroll and fully unfurled it. He stood where the first 
bucket had, while the elf and the urZrethi moved to complete the triangle. 


 Vulrasians voice came low and filled with gravity. You will begin, Adept Reese, and we will match 
you. Do not stop until it is done. We shall continue past, for a bit, but you will do the hard work. 
Commence now.

 Vulrasians voice came low and filled with gravity. You will begin, Adept Reese, and we will match 
you. Do not stop until it is done. We shall continue past, for a bit, but you will do the hard work. 
Commence now.

 The two Magisters voices mostly joined with his, but sometimes rose in counterpoint. While his words 
were the chain, their words helped shape it and direct it. They added color here and energy there, 
refining and defining what he was doing. Their sounds met his, making new words and layering meaning 
on old words. They erased the commonplace from oft-used phrases, added understanding to the 
obscure, and raised some expressions beyond comprehen-sion.

 When he finished his reading, he closed his eyes and could feel his portion of the spell taking root 
within him. Angular and hard, it sank into his bones. The urZrethi magick came next, all smoke and 
evershifting shadow. It spread like a webwork over his bones, fracturing his spell into a billion fragments. 
The pain of the spikes faded as new, crisp agonies shook him.

 The Elvish words soothing salve calmed his body. They flooded into the breaks, sealing and healing 
them. It fused them together, then spread out into his nerves and muscles and skin. He felt whole and 
more soand he sensed it was more than just the stiffness of his limbs and the bruises being healed.

 He opened his eyes and found himself standing in a dry depression. All of the fluid had been absorbed 
into him and not a trace remained on his pale white flesh. He flexed his fingers, then his arms. He took a 
double handful of his belly and let it flop. He was different, he knew that without a doubt, but he could 
not tell how.

 Kerrigan looked around. What happened? What did we do?

 Vulrasians blue eyes narrowed. If things went well, we have saved you great pain. The elf 
beckoned Orla forward with the flick of a finger. Magister, strike him with your staff.

 Orla shook her head and tossed the elf her staff. I disagreed with your plan, so I shall not play your 
game. You want him struck, you strike.

 Vulrasian accepted the staff, whirled it around in a circle, then snapped it down at Kerrigans left 
forearm. The Adept heard it strike before he felt it, but instead of the slap of stick on skin and the 
attendant sting, he heard the clack of wood on rock. Hed already begun to shy from the blow, bringing 
his arm up, and now saw an ivory bone plate sinking beneath his skin at the point of impact.

 Again the staff came around, this time hitting him in the chest. A bone plate armored his sternum, letting 
the stick rebound harmlessly. The staff came up at his face and glanced off a ridge on his left cheek.

 Baoth laughed aloud as Kerrigans jaw dropped open. It worked.

 It did. The elf handed the staff back to Orla. Your reservations, it seems, Magister Orla, were 
unnecessary.

 You missed the point, then. I was not concerned that he could handle the spell. I was concerned over 
his ability to handle what the spell has done to him.

 Kerrigan frowned. What do you mean, Magister? This is fantastic! If this had been done before, Id 
not have been beaten by those ruffians in the Dim. I wouldnt have been hurt. This is incredible. I cant be 
hurt!

 He pulled his right foot back and kicked the edge of the bowl. His toes smashed full on into it without 
so much a hint of armor appearing. He did hear a crack, however, and hopped back, catching his heel on 
the back of the bowl. He flopped over backward, landing hard, with the urZrethi darting sideways from 
beneath him.

 Kerrigan clutched his foot. Ow, ow, OW! Ow. What happened? I dont understand.

 Icy tones filled Orlas voice. The magick will stop others from hurting you, but not you from hurting 
yourself, and thats from physical damage. Spells will kill you unless you counter them. On the other 
hand, get pushed from a roof and you will likely survive; leap the same distance and youll die. 


 He frowned. Likely survive?

 He frowned. Likely survive?

 But little things, they wont hurt me. Kerrigan sat up. Why did you think this was bad?

 Orla drew a gold coin from the purse on her belt and tossed it into the middle of the floor. Levitate 
the coin.

 Kerrigan arched an eyebrow at her. You know I can do it.

 So, do it.

 The Adept gestured at the coin with his right hand. It rose a foot off the floor before her staff clopped 
him on the shoulder. The staff bounced off bone plate, but the echoes of its impact died beneath the gold 
coins ringing peal as it hit the floor.

 Kerrigan looked at the coin as it accelerated through a death spiral. I dont understand.

 It is simple, Adept Reese. Orla gave Baoth a venomous glance. That spell is part of you now. It is 
always on, always working. It draws energy from you as needed, diverting that which you might need to 
use for other things. This puts you in the curious situation where you will be unable to help others if you 
are put under a constant threat. An el-ven archer with a keen eye and a silverwood bow could prevent 
you from casting a single spell just by delivering an arrow from time to time.

 Her nostrils flared. Youll watch your comrades get cut down and be unable to do anything for them, 
and yet you will survive. Forever youll carry the memory of their betrayal with you. I hope you can live 
with that. I couldnt, nor could the only man who had this spell cast on him before you.

 Kerrigan shook his head. Who was that?

 Yrulph Kirun, the creator of the DragonCrown. Orla slowly shook her head. His madness has 
returned over the centuries to haunt the world. Youve been given this spell in the hopes you will be able 
to end his insane legacy. I just hope, Adept Reese, it does not lead you to leave us one that is worse.

 A half week, somber and dour, passed between the con-IX frontation with Myrallmara and the arrival 
of the cele-i lbrated Jeranese general, Markus Adrogans. In the aftermath of the slaughter, Alyx had 
thought about many things, though none could deflect her from remembering the torn corpses cooling, 
and the little sighs the children made as their bodies relaxed and forced air from lungs.

 Shed seen such things before, and heard them, but never quite that way. Shed seen slain children in 
the wake of Aurolani raids. Shed heard the death-sighs of corpses. Shed just never been close enough 
to the site where children had died to see their blood yet flowing and their eyes still clouding over. And 
never was that death at my hands.

 Peri had done her best to lighten Alyxs mood over the past five days, but her sister knew her well 
enough to back away when things would not work. Misha had tried as well. When his initial suggestions 
that they enjoy some diversion such as theater failed to win her acquiescence, he challenged her to train 
with him at swordplay. The workouts had been good, but had left Misha bruised and sore; which 
darkened the mood that had been started because of injuries done to those who did not deserve them.

 Had she been given a choice, she would not have come to Fortress Gryps for the reception in 
Adrogans honor. But the Grand Duchess saw to it that she had no choice, and had even selected for her 
the gown with an embroidered bodice of black and gold over gold starched-satin skirts. The gown left 
her uncovered from the bodice to neck and wrists, which she found uncomfortable despite having spent 
ample time growing up amid the Gyrkyme wearing as little as possible. 

At least, with them, I was always allowed to have a dagger strapped to my thigh or upper arm. 
Shed actually wanted to wear one on her upper left arm, and Peri had gotten her a suitable sheath 
covered with the same brocade as her bodice, but Tatyana had vetoed that plan. She could have worn it 
on her thigh, but digging beneath the skirts to draw it would have been impossible. The Grand Duchess 
had allowed as how she could secret a dagger between her breasts as part of the bodice, but Alyx 
doubted mightily that it would remain secret for long. That particular portion of her anatomy seemed to 
invite inspection, especially from those odious lechers shed have loved to stab.

 Alyx had arrived at the reception early in hopes she would be allowed to leave equally early. She 


knew, from careful study of Adrogans battles, that he would arrive late with a large entourage and 
wreak havoc. As the evening wore on and the moment of his impending arrival grew closer, Alyx had 
taken the precaution of moving away from the tables laden with victuals, lest she be trapped between 
them and the Jeranese General Staff. From studying supply reports, she knew Adrogans troops were 
largely overfed, his army more of a herd than a military organization.

knew, from careful study of Adrogans battles, that he would arrive late with a large entourage and 
wreak havoc. As the evening wore on and the moment of his impending arrival grew closer, Alyx had 
taken the precaution of moving away from the tables laden with victuals, lest she be trapped between 
them and the Jeranese General Staff. From studying supply reports, she knew Adrogans troops were 
largely overfed, his army more of a herd than a military organization.

 The particular song being played was common enough in the border area between Jerana and 
Okrannel that Alyx recognized it. It had different names and lyrics depending upon the nation, but in 
Okrannel it was a simple song about a shepherd and the wonders he saw while searching for a lost 
sheep. Since the fall of Okrannel the song had been changed such that the previously anonymous 
shepherd took on her fathers name, and she was identified with the missing lamb.

 The garden itself had also been remade since the fall. Stones from the various cities and battle sites in 
Okrannel had been brought south and set up in the correct relationship to each other. A rift matching the 
Dnivep River valley had been carved through the garden, though a bridge spanned it here whereas, in 
Okrannel, the Radooya Bridge had been destroyed. Plants native to the northern climes of Okrannel had 
been imported andin what had been taken to be an ill omen by some in the exile community thrived 
in a home only meant to be temporary.

 Alyx laughed to herself as she realized that passing from the Jeranese reception into the garden had her 
moving in the same direction pilgrims did when they went for their whimsy-rests and dream raids on 
Okrans soil. I doubt that the dreams I would have here would please the Crown Circle.

 Her breath caught in her throat as a man standing over in the corner, near the stones from Svarskya, 
politely coughed into his hand. I beg your pardon, Princess.

 She turned to face him and required a moment to do so lest her skirts tangle and she topple. He wore 
a black tunic that had been cut just below his waist over black trousers and dark riding boots. His white 
beard had been trimmed, as had his hair, and he wore no jewelry or weapons. I didnt see you, Crow.

 I know, which is why I coughed when I heard you

 speak. The older man shrugged. I knew you were not speaking to me, and I heard nothing, but I 
didnt want you taken unawares.

 You could have spoken earlier. She frowned. Did you not see me? Are you night blind?

 No, not at all. A smile softened his face and even made the scar on his right cheek somehow less 
brutal. You are a vision of loveliness, and quite striking in so much gold. I was, however, like you, lost in 
thoughts.

 Alyx nodded at the white stone tower that half hid him. You were thinking of Svarskya?

 I was. I was lost in the heroism and sacrifice of those who died there. He stepped from behind it and 
toward her, glancing back for a moment as he moved forward. The songs of what happened abound, of 
course. Just seeing a stone from there makes it more real.

 She lifted her chin. You have memories of Svarskya.

 Of the battles and siege? Gods, no. I wasnt there for that.

 That is not what I suggested. Her violet eyes sharpened. After we met, I asked about you and 
Resolute. I was told he brought that stone from Svarskyaemptied a tower of gibberkin and vylaens so 
he could prize free a stone my father had touched. They must have been good friends for him to do that, 
and you a good friend to accompany him on that journey.

 Crow gave her a half smile. Resolute never knew your father.

 But, then, why? She shook her head, her hair brushing against her back and neck. It has been 
assumed he did that in my fathers honor.

 Oh, he did. We both did. Resolute, years ago, refused to join the expedition to Svarskya because it 
was not going to free Vorquellyn. In the wake of all that happened, Resolute felt that had he been along, 
lives would have been saved. Crow brushed his fingers over the rock. Perhaps too little, too late, but to 


Resolute it is an acknowledgment of a debt he owes your family and nation.

Resolute it is an acknowledgment of a debt he owes your family and nation.

 His face closed a bit. I met your father. I even saw you, once, when you were an infant. Your father 
sold his life dearly at Fortress Draconis. He saved my life and so many others. He did what no one else 
could do, opposing a sullanciri

 Just like you.

 Pardon? Crows eyes widened slightly. Oh, Myrallmara.

 Yes, though you say it as if it were nothing. Everyone who has opposed sullanciri is either dead or 
has gone over to them. Alyx frowned. Why is it that fate didnt befall us? Despite making us kill 
children, there must have been something more.

 There was. Myrallmara couldnt have killed us all. Crow clasped his hands together and let them 
hang easily down by his belt. She wasnt prepared for combat. She had come unarmed. Despite what 
she said to Resolute, he could have killed her.

 How is it that you chose to go after her? You know what happened to my father. From what you 
said, youd seen sullanciri before. It takes a brave man to do what you did.

 Crow slowly smiled. Oh, my. Had I listened to Jeranese critiques of the raid Id not have thought of 
you as being subtle enough for that attack on my identity. You want to know who I am, since I claim to 
have known your father, but there are no chronicles of Svarskya or Fortress Draconis that mention 
Kedyns Crow. You are suspicious, which is good. 

Thats not what I wanted to know, is it? Her frown deepened. I actually was wondering what sort 
of man would dare challenge a sullanciri. The question of your identity would be part of that, true, but 
immaterial. You could be any one of a thousand men who had been in Svarskya and Fortress Draconis. 
Your name is just one you took later. In fact, in the same way that the Vorquelves take on human words 
as nameswords full of meaningso you have made yourself a myth with your choice. In learning who 
you are, your name is immaterial.

 Quite an insight for someone so young.

 Alyx gave him a little shrug. Gyrkyme wisdom, not mine. They often change names to commemorate 
a past deed, a fallen friend, or as part of undertaking some grand quest. The Gyrkyme who carried me 
from Svarskya to Gyrvirgul was forever known as Ironwing for having made the long flight so quickly.

 Crow thought on that for a moment, then nodded. I would have believed it was your insight.

 You overestimate me.

 No. I saw you study the plans for the building we attacked and lay out a plan that worked. Your 
modesty does you credit. His brown eyes sparkled for a moment. And, in matching your openness, I 
was willing to confront MyraUmara because of my sword. Magic weapons, elemental forces, these are 
what we need to destroy sullanciri. I had a magick sword, Tsamoc, and, well, Resolute is pretty much 
an elemental force.

 Alyx took a sip of her wine, then extended the half-filled glass to Crow.

 He took it, then smiled. What are you drinking?

 She blinked. I didnt want you to fetch more, I was offering you a drink.

 Highness, it would be unseemly of one so lowly as myself to be drinking from your glass.

 Alyx threw her head back and laughed. You killed a vy-laen who would have killed me. You chased 
a sullanciri off. I should be fetching wine for you, but that is not the point. Were we in the field, wed 
share a skin of wine without thinking about it for a heartbeat.

 Ah, but were not in the field, are we? Crow glanced at the doorway back into the fortress. 
Different sort of battlefield, this.

 She followed his gaze. And the enemy has entered the field of battle.

 General Adrogans had arrived and was being introduced by the Jeranese queen to all manner of 
guests, including Will Norrington. The military man shook Wills hand strongly, having swallowed the 
youths limb in a huge hand. He bent down, lowering his head to Wills level. While they were clearly 
being introduced to one another as the only hopes for the world, Adrogans seemed intent on making 
certain Will knew who was the greatest hope. 


 Crow glanced at her.  That particular introduction is one people have been waiting for, but there are 
bets about the two of you meeting.

 Crow glanced at her.  That particular introduction is one people have been waiting for, but there are 
bets about the two of you meeting.

 You surrender an inch and fifty pounds to him, he surrenders twenty years to you. He arched an 
eyebrow at her. The gown hampers your mobility, but it will distract him.

 Are you saying you have your money on me?

 He shook his head. Running with Resolute I push my luck way too much to gamble. Besides, it is 
immoral to bet on a certainty.

 She turned her head and frowned at him. Why are you here?

 As Wills bodyguard and guest. He sipped at her wine, then returned the glass. All of this is foreign 
to Will. A week ago he didnt know who he was, and now kings and queens defer to him. If he gets lost 
in that, were all lost.

 I didnt get the feeling he would. She took the glass back from him. He seems to be a smart young 
man.

 Youre right. Crow smiled. So really Im here to make sure that all the stuff he nicks is put back. 
Not so much guarding him from society as the other way around.

 Alyx sighed as she shifted her attention to the Jeranese general. I cant avoid meeting Adrogans, can 
I?

 No. And if only half the stories about him are true, hes loud, arrogant, and the way for a foe to 
defeat him is to carry a mirrored shield, since General Adrogans will be entranced by the vision of 
perfection he sees trapped in it.

 His remark caught her in mid-drink. She choked a laugh, holding the glass out in her left hand so the 
wine that sloshed and dripped missed her gown. She wiped her chin with the back of her right hand, 
flicking the excess wet off, then shook her head. Warn me next time.

 As her Highness directs. Crows voice grew louder as he snatched the glass from her hand. More 
wine.

 That will be quite enough wine for her for now. Tatyana stood in the doorway with Adrogans on her 
arm. General Adrogans, this is my great-grandniece.

 Great-grandniece? Not possible. Your niece, surely, grandniece perhaps, were you but a flower child 
at your brothers wedding. Adrogans patted the womans hand on his arm, devoting his full attention to 
her while Alyx waited. It would not have been out of the realm to guess you were mother and daughter, 
the Okrans beauty runs so strongly in you both.

 Tatyana gave him a smile that withered as she looked at Alyx. You see, Princess Alexia, skill at arms 
does not require a lack of social grace.

 Noted, Aunt Tatyana. Alyx kept a slender smile on her lips, letting a snarl nest in its simple lines. 
Clearly the honeyed words Adrogans poured into her aunts ears were not meant to flatter her, since only 
a moron would think Tatyanas vanity so easily overrode her sense. Adrogans paid her attention as a 
way to ignore Alexia and put her in her place. Or the place he sees for me.

 Alexia stepped in close to the Jeranese general and looked him eye to eye. She slid her hand forward, 
stopping him from grabbing her hand across the knuckles. She shook his hand carefully and strongly, not 
trying to hurt him, but letting him feel her strength.

 I am pleased, General Adrogans, to meet a legend.

 You do me too much honor, Princess. His grey eyes had none of the warmth shed just seen in 
Crows, and the mans steel-grey hair, while marking age as well as Crows white hair did, in no way 
hinted at any humanity in the man.

 Adrogans gave her a carefully crafted smile. Besides, you and I know where the legend ends, the 
point beyond which all is fable. We are linked that way, the two of us really. I earned my fame at the time 
you were being carried offtoGyrvirgul.

 Crow returned as the general spoke. Returning her refilled wineglass to her, Crow nodded, then 
looked at Adrogans. I would have gotten you something to drink, but I know the general prefers being 
dry. 


 Dry? Adrogans frowned for a moment, then nodded slowly. Yes, dry, I see. Indeed, yes, 
congratulations, Princess, on your amphibious assault on the house here in the slum. Interesting tactic to 
use. Thats the only time Ive heard of a shipborne assault approaching success.

 Dry? Adrogans frowned for a moment, then nodded slowly. Yes, dry, I see. Indeed, yes, 
congratulations, Princess, on your amphibious assault on the house here in the slum. Interesting tactic to 
use. Thats the only time Ive heard of a shipborne assault approaching success.

 The Jeranese general snorted lightly. You were making war on children, she was fighting against 
warriors.

 Crow moved to Alyxs side. If you speak with the Vilwanese, General, you will find that Chytrine 
was making war on children as well. Her assault never was meant to succeed.

 Her excuse now, or one made by those who apologize for her. Adrogans slowly shook his head. 
Youve chased her out of this city, Princess, and I will chase her from your homeland. Ive assured your 
aunt of this very thing. I trust you will support me in this.

 Tatyana nodded. She will. We all will and do, General. The old womans dark eyes flashed 
ferociously. The princess, as with all Okrans expatriates everywhere, stands ready to do as you bid. 
Isnt this true, Alexia?

 I am certain, Aunt, that the general has no doubt of it at all. She suppressed a shudder. Okrannel 
will be liberated.

 I shall be pleased to have you join me on the campaign, Princess. He bowed, then looked down at 
Tatyana again. Grand Duchess, let me take you back inside before you catch a chill.

 You are so kind, General. Good evening, Princess. Adrogans flicked a salute at her, then steered 
her great-grandaunt back into the ballroom. Alyx found herself staring after him for a moment, then 
forced her balled right fist open. She concentrated on her breathing and made herself calm down.

 Crow smiled carefully. And you dont like him, why? She hesitated, sorting the reasons, ordering 
them, then selecting the one that annoyed her the most. Hes won victories against Aurolani forces. Of 
this there is no doubt, but he is a cavalry officer. I have studied his battles and he wastes his infantry. 
Moreover, theres never been a cavalry in the history of the world that could lay siege to a fortress. If a 
fraction of the rumors about what he wants to do are true, we might win Okrannel back, but we wont be 
able to hold it. Well run out of personnel and supplies. Hes planning for a campaign as if it is just a big 
raid, and it wont work.

 Then you favor the Draconis Baron and his plans? She shook her head. Its true that Fortress 
Draconis may have stuck in Chytrines throat like a bone for years, but that doesnt mean there wont 
come a time when she spits it out or swallows it whole. And his strategy, while it might bleed her white 
and dry, wont liberate Okrannel, the Ghost March, or Vorquellyn. We need something else, a different 
approach, but with the sides being chosen here, the chances of that happening are slender.

 Alyx glanced at Crow and the quizzical way in which he was looking at her. What is it?

 Nothing, really. Ive just thought, for years, that doing things in the same old way would lead to 
nothing chang-ing. He shrugged. Perhaps, with you here, and Will, there is a possibility of doing things 
a different way.

 Thats what I will have to hope, then. Alyx sipped the wine. Where she had been expecting sweet, 
she got tart with an acid bite. What? This isnt what I expected.

 No, its not. Crows eyes became dark slits. An object lesson, Princess. Were not in the field, so 
none of it will be what you expect. Remember that and maybe, just maybe, youll be sent into the field 
where new ideas might make for big changes. 

T

 In just a week, Will had gone from being the pretender to the throne of the Dimandowns to being 
celebrated in the Hightown. Over the last ten daysthe first full week of the month of LeaffallWill had 
met more people from more nations than hed seen before in his entire life. Just the demands on him to 
shake hands and sit down to a nibble or sip all but overwhelmed him.

 He actually looked back with favorable whimsy to the days on the road with Resolute and Crow.

 Things had started easily enough after hed been rescued and theyd gone after MyralPmara. The next 
morning King Augustus tailor arrived at the Vilwanese tower to measure him in more ways and places 


than Will would have thought possible. By that evening Will had a suit of clothes on him that fit properly, 
and that took getting used to. Being all new and of the right size, it felt confining. Worse, anything he stole 
aside from a glance would be clearly visible.

than Will would have thought possible. By that evening Will had a suit of clothes on him that fit properly, 
and that took getting used to. Being all new and of the right size, it felt confining. Worse, anything he stole 
aside from a glance would be clearly visible.

 Native resentment against the rich made him look forward to stealing from them, since it served them 
right for being so wealthy. Wills thinking ran along the lines that if they were looking to him to be the 
Norrington who would save their lives and their fortunes from Chytrine, they owed it to him to share 
some of that wealth. Since theyd end up with nothing if it werent for him, it was just that they survived 
with a little less.

 While hed had that rationalization all worked out, he never needed to employ it. Gifts started pouring 
in. Hed get an invitation to a ball, and a suit of clothes cut to his measurements would arrive with it. Little 
boxes of tea, bottles of wine, rare incense, and exotic foods all came for him. Some people gave him 
rings with the Norrington crest worked onto them, while others sent items they claimed theyd gotten 
from his father or grandfather or some other family member. The ones Will liked best just sent money as 
a token of their esteem.

 Hed not much liked the competition from the Jeranese general. His arrival five days into Wills 
ascension cut into the gift trade, though the invitations to parties and meals did not slacken. While Will did 
like all the attention, the silver lining in the cloud of Adrogans arrival was that the most boring and 
pompous of the folks at the parties spent their time talking to him, not Will. For that reason alone Will 
didnt slip the emerald ring off Adrogans hand whenever they were once again introduced to each 
other though Will knew he could have it off the man in the blink of an eye, with the general being none 
the wiser.

 All of those invitations, however, paled in comparison to the one that had brought him to the estate 
housing King Scrainwood and the delegation from Oriosa. As estates went, it wasnt the biggest or best 
hed been invited to, but it did have some odd architectural elements appropriate for people who wore 
masks. The servants did not use masks, being lowborn and mostly from Yslin. Between the public areas 
of the house and the more private chambers, curtains and screens limited how much a visitor could see. 
The door for each of the private chambers had been set back from the corridor to allow for the 
placement of screens or drapes, and even the lighting in the corridors tended to be less bright than on 
other estates. The resulting shadows could mask the residents even when they were unaware they were 
being watched.

 Will had seen enough folk from the masked nations to view them as unusual instead of exotic. In the 
Dim they were known as Hidesboth because of the leather covering their faces, and the fact that their 
faces were hidden. It struck the citizens of the Dim as odd that these folks wore masks in honest 
commerce, while the Dimkin put them on to cover themselves during illegal activity.

 Of course, Will knew the tradition of wearing masks had arisen in the past, when the nobles were 
plotting to secede from the Estine Empire. Despite their masks having been donned for the same reason 
as they were worn in the Dim, no spirit of kinship existed between thieves and the Oriosans. Every so 
often a bright thief put on an Oriosan mask to cover his robberies. They mostly just vanished, or so the 
stories in the Dim went, but a few were found after having had their faces carved off and the fraudulent 
mask fixed to their skulls with six-inch nails.

 Will shivered and looked around the long, narrow room hed been placed into to wait. Shelves ran 
floor to ceiling all around it save at the narrow ends where tall double doors ate into the storage space. 
Everything had been made of dark wood that gave the room a cavernish feeling. Half the shelves had 
been slotted for scrolls, with the rest fitted out to hold books. Every nook and cranny had been jammed 


with volumes, even to the point where some leather-bound volumes lay over the top of others.

with volumes, even to the point where some leather-bound volumes lay over the top of others.

 The doors in the opposite end of the room opened with a click. Will spun, then jumped back as a 
brassy fanfare blared. Resolute couldnt suppress a smile as he opened the doors, but it died quickly 
enough. The Vorquelf had put on a courtesy mask of sheer black material. Will would have described it 
as lacy, but he knew Resolute would at best allow that it was gauzy. It wasnt a discussion for the 
moment, however, so Will kept his tongue still.

 Resolute had not wanted to attend the evenings ceremony. Hed not said anything, but hed 
steadfastly avoided accepting any other invitations. Crow had always gone, but remained in the 
background. Will didnt know what had passed between the two of them, but Crow had simply informed 
Will that Resolute would accompany him to the Oriosan kings gathering.

 The Vorquelf gave Will a quick nod, then moved out of the way. The room beyond the doors crossed 
the small library and possessed in depth what the library had in length. The larger room extended off to 
the right and left for quite a wayperhaps running the length of the house,

 but Will was not certain. The high ceilings arches had been covered with colorful murals taken from 
Oriosan history. A small band of musicians sat in an elevated gallery at the far right end.

 A carpet of emerald-green stretched from the doorway to a dais five paces away. Worked into the 
weave was a border of red featuring the entwined and sinuous forms of dragons. The vast majority of 
people crowding the dais and lining the carpets edge likewise wore green with red trim, but only one had 
the royal dragon rampant in red on his breast.

 King Scrainwood wore a green mask that arced down from a shock of white hair to the tip of his 
nose, then extended wings down to his jawline. The wingtips left his chin unhidden, though the corners of 
his broad smile did vanish beneath them. He clapped his hands once, then rubbed them warmly, letting 
light flash from the sapphire ring on his right hand. Keeping his smile inviting, he spread his hands, then 
nodded and beckoned Will forward.

 Wilburforce Norrington, come to me. Come to your nation.

 Will, who had been sent a dark green velvet jacket and trousers, with red cuffs on the jacket and a red 
strip down the legs, started forward. Everyone stared at him through a mask. Most wore the guest masks 
akin to the one on Resolutes faceand few had eyes quite as close-set as in Scrainwoods maskbut 
a number were genuine Oriosans. He spotted Colonel Hawkins from Fortress Draconis, but recognized 
him more because of the uniform and silver mail on his face than anything else. A few other individuals 
looked familiar, but he assumed hed seen them at other parties.

 The irony of his being the only person in the room without a mask struck Will, but he was not certain 
what to make of it. Oriosans went to so much trouble to avoid being seen without a mask, and went to 
great lengths to keep the tradition of their wearing masks unsullied. Yet, here, everyone had a mask on 
save him.

 As he drew nearer the dais, he got the sinking feeling that Scrainwood had orchestrated everything for 
his own benefit. Its not so much that he wants to claim me for his country, but he wants part of my 
fame. Will would have turned and run from the place just to thwart him, but doing that would have meant 
no more invitations. And Id be alone with sullanciri hunting for me.

 The young thief stopped in front of the dais and King Scrainwood smiled down on him for a moment. 
The smile had been the same warm one hed been using since the doors opened, but, up close, the mans 
hazel eyes glittered icily. The kings gaze flicked up and he studied the crowd.

 We are pleased that all of you were able to attend this momentous event. Those of you who are 
guests here may not be familiar with the rituals through which we invest our citizens with their masks. 


Rarely is anyone outside the family present at such an event. And again, usually this event takes place 
close to Mid-Summers Day, when the recipient is in his eighteenth year. Wilburforce, as nearly as we 
know, has not reached that milestone in his life, but there is no one here who can say he has not 
shouldered an adults burden despite his tender years.

Rarely is anyone outside the family present at such an event. And again, usually this event takes place 
close to Mid-Summers Day, when the recipient is in his eighteenth year. Wilburforce, as nearly as we 
know, has not reached that milestone in his life, but there is no one here who can say he has not 
shouldered an adults burden despite his tender years.

 I knew Wilburforces father well. When a youth receives his first mask, it is white. It is called a 
moonmask, and for the period of the full moon he is free to explore the world and decide what he wishes 
to be as an adult. Bosleigh Norrington decided he would be a hero, and a hero he was, many times over, 
before he was granted his life mask.

 Scrainwoods voice grew slightly distant. A tremor ran through his hand, sending a sympathetic shiver 
down Wills spine. The thief wanted to bolt at that moment, and would have, save he glanced to the side 
and caught the eye of a man standing behind and to the side of the king. He and Scrainwood looked 
enough alikeand he was wearing a simple coronetthat Will took him to be one of Scrainwoods 
sons.

 What stopped Will from running was the dead flatness of the mans eyes. They ran more to brown 
than the hazel of his fathers, but even the reflected hints of light could not enliven them. The slight stoop 
of his shoulders and creeping paunch marked the man as having been spirit-broken, and Will instantly 
imagined that Scrainwood would do the same to him to get what he wanted. 

Let him try. Wills nostrils flared, but he didnt ball his fists or give any other outward sign of his 
growing anger. He even suppressed a shudder just so he wouldnt give the king the pleasure of mistaking 
revulsion for fear.

 With my very own hands, I gave Bosleigh Norrington his first adult maskhis harvest mask. At the 
same time, Lord Kenwick Norrington gave the traitor his mask, and we all know the tragic culmination of 
that chain of events. I like to think, perhaps, that Bosleigh... Well, after Chytrines sullanciri leader, the 
man who had been Bosleighs father, slew my mother, Bosleigh came to me to ask my blessing on his 
mission to avenge our nation. I begged him to wait, but so full of righteous fire was he that he headed out. 
He had faith in the prophecy that said a Norrington would destroy Chytrine.

 The young thief shivered. Songs had told the tale of his fathers ill-fated quest. When hearing them, 
Will had always thought of Leigh Norrington as a total fool, and even now that he knew they were 
related, his opinion didnt shift. He was a fool to go after Chytrine. Will swallowed hard. And 
ducklings dont stray far from their mothers.

 We all have faith in that prophecy. And here, now, we have the Norrington who will accomplish the 
job. He stands here bare-faced, as he has been throughout his life in Yslin. We knew him not for what he 
was, but now we know him for his true nature.

 Scrainwood released Wills head, then turned and beckoned quickly for the prince to approach. The 
prince handed his father a slender green strip of leather with two eyeholes cut into it. One had a 
V-shaped notch excised from it, pointing down from the corner of the eye closest to the nose. In that 
way it matched the princes mask. The kings had one of those wedges chopped from each eye.

 Scrainwood held the mask up high for all to see. This is his first adult mask. We decorate them to 
mark our passages in life. This cut here, on the right eye, means his mother has died. The mask is green, 
for that is our color. And, now, I shall mark it with my seal, marking him a loyal Oriosan kings man.

 The king snapped his fingers and his son fumbled at a pouch on his belt. From it he drew a signet ring 
that his father slipped onto his middle finger. He mouthed a word silently and the rings flat face glowed 
red, though Will caught no heat from it. Scrainwood pressed the ring against the leather, right between 
and above the eyes. A puff of sour smoke rose from the leather. The ring came away with a sticky 
sound, leaving in its wake a coiled dragon in scarlet. 


 Scrainwood returned the ring to his son, then motioned for Will to turn around and face the audience. 
He did so and could feel the intensity of the stares. He blushed, so the touch of the mask to his face was 
cool, but not for long. The king tied the mask tightly, catching hair in it, but Will didnt cry out.

 Scrainwood returned the ring to his son, then motioned for Will to turn around and face the audience. 
He did so and could feel the intensity of the stares. He blushed, so the touch of the mask to his face was 
cool, but not for long. The king tied the mask tightly, catching hair in it, but Will didnt cry out.

 It is customary, at the time of a man receiving his adult mask, for him to be granted a gift. We would 
ask you, Wilburforce, what you would have of us?

 The thief glanced down at the floor for a moment, then canted his head and looked up and back. I 
would, my lord, just wish to shake your hand in friendship. Will turned and offered the king his hand 
amid gasps and a smattering of applause.

 Scrainwood hesitated for a moment, clearly caught off guard, then shook hands with the thief. Will 
clasped his left hand on the kings right, and the king completed the knot with his hand. Will smiled 
broadly and the king matched him, then gave their hands one final shake and pulled his free.

 Stepping up onto the dais as the king withdrew, Will offered his hand to the prince. The young man 
hesitated, then extended his hand toward Will. The thief stumbled, falling against the prince, then shook 
his hand and backed away apologizing. Ever so sorry. Need to learn how to see what I am doing 
through this mask.

 You will learn, Norrington. The princes comment came mixed with disgust and resignation, as if he 
detested Will, but could not muster enough outrage to make his feelings known.

 Wills head came up, but he kept his voice low. Not easy being our fathers sons, is it?

 The princes eyes widened for a moment, then narrowed and died. There are some things you will 
never learn, boy.

 The thief turned from the prince, then stepped down to the floor and greeted well-wishers. Many of 
them seemed genuinely pleased, and he drew warmth from their smiles and comments, but viperish 
glances and weak grips told him many others did not like him at all. He assumed they were jealous, or 
some afraid, with the group displaying outrage all being Oriosans with well-decorated masks.

 The last person to greet him offered his left hand instead of the leather-wrapped metal of his right. Im 
Sallitt Hawkins of Fortress Draconis.

 Will gave him a smile. I saw you before, with your wife, when the Draconis Baron was introduced.

 They would both have liked to be here, and send their best wishes to you, but they are away 
reviewing plans as the discussions about what we will be doing now begin in earnest. Sallitts mail flesh 
rustled a little as he smiled. I should return to them quickly, but I could not stay away. You know, I 
trust, that the prophecy says you will have a Hawkins at your side when you destroy Chytrine. Will 
blinked. I guess I didnt know that. Resolute appeared at Wills right shoulder. Youre not incorrect, 
Colonel, though scholars and philosophers still debate nuances of the Elvish words used.

 I can understand that. The meckansh nodded slowly. I was too old to know your father well, but 
I recall how well my father served your grandfather. Youve heard tales of how Hawkinses have always 
served the Norringtons, Im certain. I want you to know that if you need helpneed for anythingyou 
have a Hawkins who will help you.

 Wills skin tightened into gooseflesh as Hawkins spoke. Not only did he hear sincerity in the mans 
voice, but a conviction and desire to do his duty for Will and, by extension, the world. It didnt matter the 
costand the mans having let himself be made over into a meckansh bespoke a commitment Will was 
unsure he could have accepted.

 Thank you, Colonel, thank you. Will nodded solemnly. With a Hawkins and a Norrington set 
against her, Chytrines nights of sleeping easy are going to be distant memories.

 The man gave Resolute a nod, then turned on his metal leg and limped away. Will looked up at the 
Vorquelf after Hawkins had moved from earshot. Is what he said true?

 Resolute nodded solemnly. There are many things in that prophecy, and what he said is but one of 
them. 


 But this is right, him offering his service like that?

 But this is right, him offering his service like that?

 Will frowned. Meaning?

 This is a Council of Kings, boy. It is a marketplace of power. Resolutes voice became a 
razor-edged whisper. For over a century Chytrine has owned my homeland, not because the world 
lacks the power to liberate it, but because the world leaders see no power to be harvested in liberating it. 
In these meetings, Cavarre will be pitted against Adrogans, and everyone else will have their own little 
games to play. If they forget the goal, a hundred thousand Hawkinses accompanying a hundred thousand 
Norringtons would accomplish nothing.

 Butbut that makes no sense.

 No, it doesnt, boy. The Vorquelf sighed and patted Will on the right shoulder. But in the eyes of a 
politician, they have won if their nation is the last to be devoured by Chytrine. These people will do 
whatever it takes to taste victory. Know that and beware.

 T/ ing Scrainwood slid a thumbnail under a fingernail and li scraped at the dirt. He worked the dark 
ball out and IVrolled it between thumb and index finger, then flicked it away. He inspected his nails again, 
then nodded to his chamberlain, Count Cabot Marsham.

 The old witch has waited long enough; bring her.

 Marsham bowed deeply, which made the varicolored ribbons hanging from his mask flutter and float. 
As my lord demands.

 The king suppressed his snarl until the little man had vanished behind the mask-curtain. Marsham had 
once done him a favor and, despite being a scheming toad, had continually made himself useful. Marsham 
knew how to cultivate back-alley allies, and the meeting to which Scrainwood subjected himself had 
been one of Marshams manufacture.

 Scrainwood would have postponed it, but Marsham had insisted it was very important. The kings 
head throbbed with a hangover from the previous night, for he

 had drunk many a toast to the honor of Oriosa and its claim on the person of the Norrington. The 
headache had been exacerbated by his fury with his son for having lost the state seal. What had angered 
Scrainwood the most about Linchmeres losing it was not that hed actually misplaced the thingthat 
had happened beforebut the fact that he had noticed it missing at midnight and had not commenced a 
search until mid-morning, after hed awakened. 

That boy has been useless ever since his mother drowned. The king shook his head. Praise be to 
the gods he is not my eldest.

 The kings loss of his own ring contributed to his ill humor. The ring itself had insignificant material 
value, though the magick on it had proved very valuable. It also made it rather unique and possible to 
track down by sor-cerous means. He would have preferred to have it with him, though he really felt he 
had little to fear from his guest, so the rings absence would be tolerable.

 Scrainwood smiled as the mask-curtain parted and Marsham led the old woman into the small library. 
He guided her to a large leather-upholstered chair and made to pour her some wine. She laid a thinly 
fleshed, liver-spotted hand on his arm to stop him, then looked up at King Scrainwood.

 Thank you very much for seeing me, Highness.

 Scrainwood inclined his head. Your request to speak with me, Grand Duchess, has honored me 
deeply. You come on your nephews behalf, I shall assume.

 The old woman lowered her cloaks hood, revealing white hair tightly gathered at the back of her 
head. Scrainwood shivered slightly as her icy gaze met his eyes, then she glanced at Marsham. My 
words are for your ears alone, Highness.

 Scrainwood looked up at his chamberlain. Leave us, Marsham. Attend my son and aid his search.

 Marsham again bowed deeply and departed. Had 


 Scrainwood not given him specific instructions, Marsham would have taken up a position just beyond 
the mask-curtain, where he could listen to everything without being seen. While Scrainwood was not 
certain what Tatyana wanted, he was sure he didnt want Marsham knowing about it until he had decided 
how much the chamberlain should know.

 Scrainwood not given him specific instructions, Marsham would have taken up a position just beyond 
the mask-curtain, where he could listen to everything without being seen. While Scrainwood was not 
certain what Tatyana wanted, he was sure he didnt want Marsham knowing about it until he had decided 
how much the chamberlain should know.

 The frail old woman sat back in the massive chair. A drop of wine first, perhaps, Highness?

 Scrainwoods nostrils flared, but he got up and poured the ruby vintage into a cut-crystal glass. 
Despite wanting a drink himself rather fiercely, he just served her, then returned to his chair.

 You will not join me?

 As well you know, Grand Duchess, wine often aids speaking, though seldom helps hearing.

 So true, Highness, and seldom helps thinkingmuch of which you will wish to be doing. She sipped 
the wine, then gave him a quick smile. Very good.

 If I like what you tell me, youll have a cask of it by morning.

 The old womans icy blue eyes slitted. I will accept your gift, though what I give you will grant you the 
continued leadership of your nationquite cheaply at that price. 

What game are you playing? Two casks every year I am on the throne then, and you still live.

 Better. She set the glass down on the table with the decanter, then leaned forward. In our councils I 
have discerned certain unanimity of thought shared by you and the Draconis Baron.

 We do not walk in lockstep, but we have many things in common. He is married to my sister. My 
eldest is commanding Fortress Draconis in Cavarres absence. Scrainwood forced his eyes wide so she 
could see them easily within his mask. As with every other leader, I would prefer it if he were to share 
with us the secret of the drag-onel, but he has so far refrained. Is he wise in assuming that if we had this 
secret we might war with each other? Perhaps.

 She folded her hands together and rested them on her knees. I would have thought you more 
discerning than that, Highness.

 Drink more, Grand Duchess, speak plainly. Scrainwood rubbed at his left temple. I have neither the 
time nor the disposition for divining hidden meanings.

 I shall be blunt, then, King Scrainwood. This offer you made me, to give me two casks of wine as 
long as I lived or you were on the Oriosan thronethis is an offer I will live to lament the cessation of.

 Scrainwood had no doubt Tatyana was too bitter to die soon, but he expected his reign to continue for 
a long while yet. You think I will be unseated, and unseated by Cavarre? Perhaps youve drunk too 
much if you believe he covets my throne.

 No, Highness, I do not believe such foolishness. He would not take it for himself, nor for the children 
hes gotten on your sister, though the throne is close to being their right. No, he would win it for your son, 
Erlestoke. He is teaching him a great deal and Oriosa will be better for his being on the throne. So will 
most of the world.

 You go too far.

 No, Highness, you have gone too far. Tatyanas voice became a rime-tinged hiss. Do you think any 
of us have failed to notice that Oriosa serves as a staging area for Chytrines forces? Cavarre sees 
Oriosa as an enemy at his back, so it must be dealt with. The army that assaulted Porasena, here on your 
border with Alcida, came from Oriosa. We all know that. While the urZrethi are tight-lipped about their 
affairs, stories have filtered out of Oriosa about Aurolani forces fighting with the urZrethi in Bokagul. 
Oriosa, under your leadership, is a putrefying wound that threatens to spill its poison throughout the 
world.

 Scrainwood snorted. You know I track her forces, keep count of them, and share that information 
with others. Her predations are kept to a minimum while our armies are honed by fighting her. Look at 
your own Princess Alexia. The blood on her sword has been Aurolani blood.

 A fair point, and wise. The old woman steepled her fingers. The simple fact of the matter, however, 
is that if the Council decides in Cavarres favor and does not support Adrogans request for troops, 
armies will gather and march through Oriosa. You know they will prey on your people, punishing them 


for your dealings with Chytrine.

for your dealings with Chytrine.

 The Okrans mystic continued in a sepulchral whisper. How easy it would be for Cavarre to send your 
son to Meredo to take command. He unseats you, perhaps blood-lessly, forcing you and Linchmere into 
exile on some little farm. He then turns its forces on Chytrines troops in your nation, rooting them out. 
You know she will kill you for that, and most horribly. And you know Erlestoke would gladly let her do 
it, since he still lays the blame for his mothers death at your feet.

 He should lay it at Cavarres feet, for the blame is his. He never should have allowed her to go sailing 
when the weather was so unpredictable.

 Tatyana slowly shook her head. Some think he was your agent in that, you know. Your wife was 
visiting his wife. You had no love for your spouse, as evidenced by var-ious dalliances, and she no love 
for you. Did you have her thrown over the side, or did she leap?

 The kings hazel eyes narrowed. Despite what you might think, Grand Duchess, the story of her 
drowning when her ship capsized was true. Had I wanted her dead, I would have arranged it later. She 
died before my boys had their moonmasks, and for their sake I would have wanted her to be able to 
look upon them pridefully as men.

 So, you will let your reign die for a crime you did not commit?

 I will not let it die. Scrainwood brought his chin up. You wish me to support Adrogans and his 
campaign in Okrannel? You know he cannot hold the nation against Chytrine if he retakes it.

 Leave the fate of Okrannel to me. Alexia is not the only person who has been trained to war. We 
have many who will fight and make Okrannel too problematic for Chytrine to want to retake it.

 The king tapped a finger against his lips for a moment. You will subordinate Princess Alexias role in 
what is to come to a Jeranese generals role? How do you know Adrogans will not just take Okrannel 
and add it to Jerana?

 The old woman laughed harshly. Alexia will study him and destroy him if he does that.

 And know of enough of him to take Jerana when the time comes?

 That will long be after my death, King Scrainwood, and yours. The old woman reached for her 
wineglass again. You will let an army march through your lands at your peril.

 I buy the freedom of my nation with freedom for yours? The king nodded slowly. And the reason 
my thinking has shifted in this direction?

 The most basic of premises, Highness. If we fight Chytrine in Okrannel, we fight on her territory. My 
nation has already been ravaged by her troops. There is no reason we should offer her the chance to 
despoil virgin lands. Not only does supporting Adrogans liberate my nation, but it saves so many others.

 If, by supporting the Draconis Barons plan, we invite her to attack Fortress Draconis, we invite her 
to expand her territory. We already know there is leakage past Fortress Draconis. It could easily be that 
she can bring down a sieging force that will bottle up the forces in Fortress Draconis while a yet larger 
army marches past, slashing down into the heartlands of the south. Only by attacking in Okrannel can we 
divert those troops from her invasion corridor.

 Scrainwood slowly nodded. Logical and defensible. The Jeranese have not thought about the 
predations of foreign armies marching through their nation?

 Adrogans wishes only to win enough glory that he can claim the queen and throne for himself. She 
shares this desire.

 It will be done, then. Scrainwood nodded. One more thing, Highness. Tatyanas thin lips curled 
into a catty smile. We could tie our countries more closely. Think on the idea of Alexia needing a 
husband. 

Me? No, she would not give Alexia to me. Erlestoke. He would move to the throne of Okrannel, 
leaving Linchmere for Oriosa? 


 You would live long enough for one of Linchmeres children to come up and be strong.

 You would live long enough for one of Linchmeres children to come up and be strong.

 And yours and ours, Highness.

 King Augustus held his palms up toward Dothan Cavarre. Youre taking this wrong, my friend. Im 
not abandoning you. I agree fully with your strategy.

 The smaller man narrowed his blue-flecked grey eyes. Forgive me, or did I mishear you advocating 
my sharing dragonel science with the nations in the Council?

 Augustus glanced behind him at the double doors that led from the garden into the council chamber in 
Fortress Gryps. Lowering his voice, he steered the Draconis Baron deeper into the garden. What I 
suggested is something we have bruited about in our own councils. I was advocating that you provide 
companies of meckansh to operate drag-onels for the various nations. They would have what they 
want to hold others off, yet they would not be able to use it to attack their neighbors.

 Cavarre sighed audibly. Despite their being constructs of metal, flesh, and magick, the meckansh 
are quite human. They have passions and desires, and are capable of being corrupted. Their loyalty to me 
and Fortress Draconis comes from our giving them a purpose in their lives. They would have been 
reduced to nothing, but we have made them special. They guard their old homes from the threat to the 
north, making their sacrifice more noble than we can imagine.

 But human they are, and were they sent here to Yslin, or to Meredo or Lakaslin, they could be 
seduced by life there. Promises would be made. They would be changed and turned. The secrets of the 
dragonel would spread unchecked. People would turn them on each other instead of reserving these 
hellish weapons for use on Chytrine.

 The King of Alcida nodded slowly. I know that is a risk, but if you cannot or will not even consider 
this sort of concession, the Council will vote to back Adrogans. The troops you need will go to him. 
Okrannel will become a killing ground, and I know so very well how much blood will soak the earth 
there. It will be an open wound that will suck warriors in, year after year.

 Exactly! Cavarres eyes blazed and Augustus thought, not for the first time, that madness might have 
tinged them. Chytrine will keep the war there going forever. Just as Jerana has done, other nations will 
deny me the troops I need. Queen Carus will make trade deals and alliances that will cause other troops 
to be sent to Jerana and into Okrannel. Worse yet, the outcry for dragonels will rise, as if they could win 
that war.

 Augustus shook his head. Okrannels mountainous terrain severely limited the effectiveness of 
dragonels, which were slow to move and needed very specific supplies to make them function. Laying 
siege to some little fort only required a supply of wood and rock if conventional siege machines were to 
be used against it. A dragonel was uselesssave perhaps as a battering ramwithout its firedirt and 
shot.

 We will not let that happen, Cavarre. Augustus groaned as an ache started throbbing from temple to 
temple. There are enough of us, my brother, to counsel against that sort of thing.

 Cavarres hesitation told Augustus that his emphasis had not been misread. The two of them belonged 
to the Ancient and Most Secret Society of the Knights of the Phoenix. The Knights had hotly debated 
how things would go if the Adrogans plan was put into effect. While some thought Adrogans had a 
chance at inflicting some serious damage to Chytrines forces there, all agreed that the defenders would 
have a great advantage in Okrannel. That nation would serve Chytrine in the same way Fortress Draconis 
served the south, costing time, materiel, and lives to liberate. Given how ravaged the nation had been, 
keeping troops in good supply against any Aurolani counterattack would be nearly impossible, creating a 
second drain on the souths resources.

 Though all of the Knights understood Cavarres reasoning for keeping a tight grip on the secrets of the 
dragonel and even agreed with him on that issue, they had so far proven unable to exert influence enough 
to change the minds of their leaders. The simple fact of leakage of small groups of Aurolani troops past 


Fortress Draconis meant people no longer saw the place as the grand shield it had once been. Since it 
seemed to be failing a little bit, and they feared a gross failure, a plan that provided an offensive that 
would take the war to Chytrine proved very attractive to world leaders. Moving dragonels south would 
help allay some of the fear, but sow more trouble for the future of the Fortress Draconis strategy.

Fortress Draconis meant people no longer saw the place as the grand shield it had once been. Since it 
seemed to be failing a little bit, and they feared a gross failure, a plan that provided an offensive that 
would take the war to Chytrine proved very attractive to world leaders. Moving dragonels south would 
help allay some of the fear, but sow more trouble for the future of the Fortress Draconis strategy.

 Is Fortress Draconis strong enough to hold Chytrine off right now?

 Cavarre frowned. If it were not, she would have laid waste to it already. If I am denied the things I 
need, however, it could be fatally weak.

 Then you need to offer some sort of compromise. Augustus pointed back toward the council 
chamber. You heard Scrainwood. Hes come around to the idea that if war is joined in Okrannel, 
Chytrine will be forced to pull troops back from the lower nations and reinforce the Ghost Marches and 
Okrannel.

 Hes an idiot. Chytrine has very capable leaders in Okrannel and the Ghost Marches. Adrogans has 
won some victories, but they have not been clean and have been the result of his having overwhelming 
force on his side. In Okrannel his force will be broken up and subject to ambush. Everyone seems to 
forget that Edamis Vilkaso Malarkex, as she is styled nowknows how to use cavalry very well. If 
rumors of flocks of grand temeryces with vy-laen riders running around the Ghost Marches are even 
remotely true, anyone who thinks Adrogans will win anything in Okrannel are as stupid as Scrainwood.

 There is a room full of them behind us.

 I know. The Snow Fox looked up at Augustus and sighed. Chytrine has played this game very well 
indeed. By striking here in Alcida she has shown that no nation can escape her touch. Scrainwood and 
others offer the hope that she can be distracted, but they have been blinded as to her true goal: stealing 
back the pieces of the DragonCrown and destroying the southlands. Distraction or treasonous 
appeasement just delays the inevitable.

 Augustus couldnt disagree. The most expedient plan to end the threat to his own nation would be to 
strike into

 Oriosa, overthrowing Scrainwood and purging Oriosa of Aurolani troops. The difficulty of doing that 
would be that it would shatter any unity among the southland nations and create the impression that if 
people did not do what Augustus wanted, he would take their nation as well. The south would descend 
into chaos and no one would be able to oppose Chytrine.

 The king scrubbed hands over his face. What will you do when they vote to back Adrogans?

 I will do what I have always done, Highness. I will defend three fragments of the DragonCrown as 
best I am able.

 And you wont even suggest there is room for compromise. You wont say you will consider sharing 
the drag-onels?

 The small man shook his head. I cannot, for they would know it for a lie. Augustus, I am neither blind 
to nor ignorant of the politics and all the ramifications of what we are facing here. I truly am not. 
However, the second I lie to your peers, they are given grounds for distrusting everything I say after that, 
and many will doubt things Ive said long before. They will assume that I have, for my own purposes, 
exaggerated things to such a degree that they can refuse my funding, they can refrain from sending me 
troops and supplies.

 Damn and damn. Augustus raised a fist to his mouth, then forced his hand open to smooth his 
moustaches. If I pull out of any agreement, I fracture the alliance we have opposing Chytrine. Nations 
will support you or Adrogans or, worse yet, will sue for a separate peace with Chytrine. I will have to 
support Adrogans if they do, and I will, to the letter of whatever agreement we reach. Ill also support 


you. I have that luxury, and I am certain I can influence a few others to join me. Naliserro doesnt like 
having a sul-lanciri claiming their nation as its home. Sebcia, Muroso, and Viarca will likewise lend you 
support since you are their first line of defense. I think we can prevail upon the Vilwanese as well.

you. I have that luxury, and I am certain I can influence a few others to join me. Naliserro doesnt like 
having a sul-lanciri claiming their nation as its home. Sebcia, Muroso, and Viarca will likewise lend you 
support since you are their first line of defense. I think we can prevail upon the Vilwanese as well.

 And that is?

 We need the Norrington in Okrannel. Augustus frowned. I dont follow your reasoning.

 The Norrington is the one real threat we have for Chytrine. While it has been argued whether or not 
he will kill her, it has been prophesied that he will liberate Vbrquellyn.Chytrine hasput herCroquelf 
sullanciri Winfellis, in charge of the islandher perversion of an elf watching over her perversion of an 
elven homeland. As long as the Norrington is out there, he poses a credible threat to the island.

 That wont happen if he is at Fortress Draconis?

 Chytrine would rightly assume that I would not strip away troops for an assault on the island. 
Adrogans would be likely, on the other hand, to order such a reckless thing, especially if his troops get 
bogged down in Okrannel and he is making little headway. Weve not got that long until winter settles in, 
which will be a boon to Chytrine since her troops are hardened to the cold and function so well in it. The 
king nodded. Besides which, with the Norrington at Fortress Draconis, his destruction would be added 
to the presence of the DragonCrown fragments to make the fortress even more irresistible.

 The Snow Fox sighed. The only thing working against Chytrine is her impatience. Slaying the young 
sorcerers will weaken us a generation from now. If she waited, slackening off strikes here and there, 
suggesting she was weak, the leadership of the world would fall to those who dont remember the horror 
of the last war. Internal pressures would tear the fragile alliance apart, with old rivalries springing up 
anew. The Okrans refugees would go the way of the Vbrquelves, becoming bitter, and no one would risk 
their lives to help liberate their nation.

 Augustus snorted a quick laugh. She trapped herself when she sent her warning with Hawkins so 
many years ago. She promised that the children of today would never live to see maturity. Shes fulfilled 
the promise with the children from Vilwan, and the urchins of the Dim. If she let things go at that, in 
another generation she would take it all in a walk.

 We cant give her that chance. Cavarre shifted his shoulders, then nodded toward the Council. I 
will demand everything I can think of, including the Norrington. You will talk me down, and we will fight 
hardest over the Norrington. Perhaps, in that way, we will get what we need. If not...

 Augustus shook his head. Well get what we need. In Kedyns name, I hope it is enough.

 JTwo left turns out of his door in the Vilwanese tower and rWill found the room to which hed been 
summoned. Because of the morning sun shining through the long, narrow rooms windows, he knew it 
faced to the east. Will also knew that was impossible since two left turns should have put the room 
beside his and sharing an external wall, but his room faced west.

 He would have worried about that problem, but more immediate trouble presented itself. In addition to 
Crow, Qwc, Resolute, and Dranae, three other individuals were in the room. The only female stood in 
close conversation with Crow, sharing with him the grey coloration of age. Will recognized her as the 
combat mage sent out with the raid on Marcus place, Orla. The nonhuman was a Panquiat least thats 
what he assumed the hulking creature to be. The sun glowed golden and brightly off the beasts 
bony-plated flesh. The Spritha hovered around the Panqui while the beast and Dranae both sized the 
other one up.

 The third individual spelled troublefor Will. He expected to see recognition flickering through the tall 
youths green eyes. He was the one Scabby Jack and Garrow had their kids giving a beating to. 
Then Will smiled. He doesnt know me because of the mask. Will gave him a curt nod, then lifted his 
chin and walked over to Crow.

 Im here. 


 Crow smiled benignly. So you are. You remember Magister Orla from the other night. She has been 
assigned to help safeguard you from the sullanciri. Her aide is Adept Kerrigan Reese. Lombo is a 
Panqui and is accompanying them.

 Crow smiled benignly. So you are. You remember Magister Orla from the other night. She has been 
assigned to help safeguard you from the sullanciri. Her aide is Adept Kerrigan Reese. Lombo is a 
Panqui and is accompanying them.

 Her words sent a jolt running up his spine. Her voice rang with respect and it chilled him.

 Kerrigan moved forward for an introduction.

 Will frowned. He was, after all, the Norrington. He would be the salvation of the world, so Orlas 
respect was rightly due him. Despite that, he felt uneasy and, perhaps for the first time in his life, 
ashamed. Everyone wanted him to be a hero, and hed done some heroic things, but hed not helped 
Kerrigan. It wasnt even that he was afraid that hed have gotten a beating from the Garrow gang most 
of them couldnt hit worth spit anyway. Hed just walked away because it wasnt his fight. If I did that 
in so simple a situation, why might I not do it when I need to be the Norringtor

 The Adept extended a hand toward Will. Im Kerrigan Reese.

 Will nodded. Weve met, sort of.

 Kerrigan frowned. I dont remember....

 The Panqui came over, striding on knuckles and feet and crossing the distance that separated them 
much too quickly for Wills comfort. The Panqui took a healthy sniff of him, then nodded. Prey-night.

 I dont... Kerrigan blushed deeply.

 Will slowly inched his mask up. He couldnt believe he was hearing himself speak. I didnt help you 
when Garrows gang had you down.

 The Adepts green eyes narrowed and his jowls quivered. I called to you for help ...

 Lombo snorted and smacked Will in the center of his chest with a casual backhand blow. Hunter you 
became, Kerrigan. Lombo saw.

 Will coughed abruptly and staggered back. Will was certain Kerrigan never caught the glint in the 
Panquis black eyes, but Will saw it sure as dark comes with night. If I ever do anything that gets 
Kerrigan hurt, Lombo will punch my heart out through my back. Will rubbed at his breastbone, but 
nodded to the beast. He got a quick nod in return.

 Resolutes iron grip closed on the back of Wills neck. What did you do?

 Its what I didnt do. Will shook his head. If Id kept my mouth shut, only Lombo and I would 
know, and wed have our understanding. When I was in the Dim, there was a gang manhandling 
Kerrigan. He asked me to help him and I didnt.

 The Vorquelf spun Will around and, grabbing his shoulders, shook him. How could you not... ?

 Will slapped Resolutes hands off his shoulders. I had other things going on at the time. I was running 
away from everything that had happened since I met you, and he was part of it.

 Razor-sharp silver crescents regarded him coldly. Your role is to ...

 The thief snarled. I know what my role is, thanks, but right then I wasnt being the Norrington. I was 
being me. I know that Ior whoever I was or amwasnt the Norrington right then. But, look, I told 
him what I did. Kerrigan, Im sorry I didnt help you out.

 The Adept shrugged. Its okay.

 No, its not. Resolute crossed his arms over his chest. I dont think you understand, boy, just how 
critical things have become. The Council of Kings has made their decisions. They are backing General 
Adrogans and the Okrannel offensive.

 Will frowned. What does that mean, exactly?

 Crow came over and waved everyone toward the table and chairs. As they moved to take places, 
with the Spritha lighting on the back of Wills chair and the Panqui squatting at the far end, he began to 
explain. It means, quite simply, Will, that we are bound for Okrannel.

 Trie youth frowned. But, I mean, I thought we were going to Fortress Draconis. From there we just 
go north and kill Chytrine and be done with it all.

 Crow, Orla, and even Resolute shared a smile before the older man continued. Were that it would be 
as easy as you suggest. That was the thinking a quarter century ago, and it did not work.

 How did this happen? Will snorted with disgust. Theres a Hawkins there at Fortress Draconis and 


even Resolute said I need one with me when we go kill Chytrine.

even Resolute said I need one with me when we go kill Chytrine.

 Next time I shake his hand, that ring is mine.

 Resolute scowled. The discussion was balanced until Scrainwood threw in with the Jeranese. You 
want to avenge yourself on someone, he should be it.

 Will chuckled softly. Already done.

 Crows left eyebrow rose sharply. What?

 Wills smile broadened and he dipped his hand into the pouch on his belt. Well, the king was being an 
idiot and I didnt like him, so when we shook hands, I took his ring. He produced the sapphire and held 
it up proudly.

 Orla covered her face with a hand and Crow shook his head. You didnt.

 But Resolute just said ... I just anticipated him.

 Crow plucked the ring from his left hand and set it on the table. Resolute, my friend, I apologize to 
you. Throughout our search and journeying with Will, I thought you were just being too thorough, too 
hard on him. I hoped he had more of his father in him, or less.

 Not your fault, Crow. The Vorquelf, who had seated himself at Wills right, turned toward the youth. 
Give over your other loot.

 What are you talking about? Will refused to flinch, refused to drop a hand to his pouch. The king 
had it coming.

 Resolutes voice came low and cold enough to suck all the heat out of the room. Your choice, boy. I 
saw you stumble against the prince. Do you want me to believe you were clumsy? Or should I believe 
you were so practiced and smooth that you fooled me, even up to now?

 Will hesitated. If he claimed clumsiness, Resolute would just search him and all his gear. If he coughed 
up the other ring, the signet ring the king had used to mark his mask, at least Resolute would have 
admitted he missed the theft. The punishment would end up being the same no matter which course he 
picked, so the only bright spot in the whole picture was the admission from Resolute.

 The thief fished the ring from his pouch and set it there with the first one. It has magick on it.

 Kerrigan, seated at Wills left, reached for the rings. Will gave him a quick, backhanded slap with his 
left hand. His knuckles cracked off the Adepts upper arm.

 Ow! Will shook his hand, then sucked at his knuckles. He glared at Crow. The prince was stupid, 
too.

 Will, while it might be true that were Linchmere a cow, hed starve because he doesnt have the 
brains to sneak up on a blade of grass, that gives you no cause to steal from himand certainly not a ring 
that serves as the kings official seal. You dont know King Scrainwood. He can be insanely paranoid 
and could see the disappearance of either ring as the glimmerings of a plot against him. He could use it to 
justify letting Chytrine station more troops in Oriosa. He could strike at allies, thinking they are out to 
topple him.

 I understand. I get it. Will sighed loudly. I can get into the house where he is and put both rings 
back and theyll never notice. Resolute didnt see anything that night, no one did.

 Orla rested a hand on Crows shoulder. Perhaps, given the omen of the last visit by a Norrington to 
the leader of Oriosa, having Will return the rings is not a good idea. In fact, if you wish, I can have them 
returned to the king, noting that once we heard they were missing, we undertook a search and are 
returning them. The remarks will be cryptic, hell not know how and where....

 Crow nodded. That should work.

 A blue aura sprang to life, surrounding Kerrigans hands. In his left he held the kings ring and in his 
right* the seal glowed red. Magick on both of the rings. The signet has a basic sealing spell.

 The Adept set the ring down, then reached a fat hand toward Wills mask. Blue flashed before Wills 
eyes, then the hand came away and Kerrigan was nodding. The ring made the mark on the mask. Easy 
way of verifying orders as coming from the king.

 The Sprithas wings filled the room with a humming as the creature darted from ring to mask and back 


again. Yes, yes. Same.

again. Yes, yes. Same.

 Resolute laughed. He must never use it lest he be overwhelmed.

 The Adept frowned. It has some narrowing factors on it. One thing is that it seeks to warn him 
especially of enemies from the Norrington bloodline.

 He must have had it made after his mothers death 

m

 because he certainly would have fled from the sullanciri if hed had any warning. Crows dark eyes 
narrowed. Why wasnt he warned about Wills stealing his ring?

 Orla accepted the ring from Kerrigan and surrounded it with her hands. A blue glow leaked out from 
between her fingers. She thought for a moment, then nodded. There are a number of different answers 
to that question. The first is that Will might not, in fact, be a Norrington.

 Resolute waved that idea away. He is. Of this there is no question.

 Lombo extended a single claw and scratched at the corner of his eye. Thief steals. No hate.

 Orla nodded in agreement. Wills penchant for theft seems to be independent of any emotional 
content. When the spell was created, the mage who cast it would have provided his own sense of hostile 
and Wills thievery might not rise to that threshold. After all, he did not mean to do harm to the king, just 
to enrich himself. It would take some time to determine, but I suspect that was it.

 Will frowned. Maybe he just didnt have it working. Orla nodded. Another good idea.

 At such a gathering, heralding the debut of the Norrington? The Vorquelf laughed harshly. He had it 
working. If Chytrine wished to strike terror into the hearts of the worlds leaders, she could have done it 
there by attacking and destroying their only hope.

 Dranae, seated across the table between Orla and the Panqui, raised a hand. So, then, we have a 
curious situation. If King Scrainwood has determined that Will stole his ring, and if the king would 
consider that a hostile act, then he must think Will is actually not the Norrington. This could explain why 
he is willing to have Will bundled off to Okrannel.

 Wills brows beetled. If he doesnt know I stole it, then he thinks I am the Norrington, but if he 
does know, then he knows Im not? Unless, of course, he knows my theft wasnt hostile, in which 
case he thinks I am the Norrington. Or, if the 

wagkk wasnt working, then ... He raised his hands to his temples and began to massage them.

 Crow tapped a finger against his lips for a moment. Interesting idea, but I think the most simple 
answers are likely the best. First, he doesnt know Will stole the ring. Scrainwood is petty and vengeful, 
but also resourceful. Hed have called Will in, told him he was going to Fortress Draconis, and offered 
him a lot of money to steal a sample of the dragonel powder from there. More importantly, though, there 
is a more basic reason hes not sending Will to Fortress Draconis. Wed move by land through Oriosa. 
Chytrine has troops there, so Will would be most vulnerable. If she killed him in Oriosa, the other nations 
would pull the nation apart in rage, fear, and retribution.

 He turned to Orla. Please do see to it that the rings return to King Scrainwood. You might even have 
your envoy suggest a modification of the sapphire ring to more broadly define hostile.

 Dranae smiled. That could guarantee that Scrainwood would survive an attack by Chytrines forces. 
Wouldnt Oriosa be better off with someone else on the throne? Wouldnt the rest of us be better off 
with someone else on the throne?

 Scrainwood is unreliable and a schemer, but as long as he is alive, he is a problem for Chytrine just 
the way he is a problem for us. If he dies, her forces could back Linchmere, other forces back Erlestoke 
or even Ryhope. The nation would collapse, other nations would pick sides. It would not be good.

 But what if he sides with Chytrine and turns against us? That ring could prevent him from being slain 
when we need him dead.

 Before Crow could answer Dranaes question, Resolute rapped a knuckle on the table. He glanced up 
at Orla. The spell on the ringto target the Norrington bloodline; there is something of a Norrington in 


the ring to allow that.

the ring to allow that.

 The Vorquelf nodded. That which includes could exclude?

 Orla nodded hesitantly. Your knowledge of magick does you credit, Resolute.

 Im honored, Magister. He reached up and plucked a single white hair from the stripe running down 
the center of his scalp. When you fix the ring, make sure it will not recognize me.

 Wills eyes grew wide as Resolute extended the hair past him to Kerrigan.

 Crow reached out and grabbed the Vorquelfs wrist. Hunter and warrior, yes, but assassin, 
Resolute?

 Resolute nodded slowly. You, a man, have pledged to see my homeland liberated from Chytrines 
forces. I just want to be certain that when the time comes for me to return the favor, there will be one less 
obstacle in my way.

 Alyx and Peri wandered through the gardens of Fortress Gryps. In daylight, with her feathered sister 
beside her, it seemed quite different. The Okrans landscape seemed alive and Alyx found herself easily 
imagining that it would be so again once it had been liberated.

 Still, in the back of her mouth she could taste the sharp bitterness of the wine Crow had fetched for 
her. His lesson had been perfectly on point, since the subsequent discussions about how Chytrines 
forces would be dealt with had completely marginalized her. With her grandfathers agreementas 
voiced by TatyanaAlexia had been consigned to a group of advisors who would accompany 
Adrogans. The Alcidese General Caro would also be along on the expedition to direct his nations 
contingent. He and his Horse Guards would ship to Okrannel and take command of the force while 
awaiting Adrogans arrival. Alyxs Wolves would nominally be under his command.

 The Okrans troops joining the expedition included both cavalry and infantry. The Kingsmen heavy 
cavalry unit had a large contingent of nobles, while the foot soldiers were largely peasants. Considered 
irregulars, the infantry was regarded as untested and unreliable, though no one doubted their zeal to 
liberate their homeland. Their role would be as scouts and outriders and reserves, which almost certainly 
eliminated any serious participation in the sorts of battles for which Adrogans was famous.

 Peri hopped up and perched on one of the stones matching a Svarskya tower. But, in your 
grandfathers eyes, this is the best outcome. You will be there for Okrannels liberation. You will take 
command of the nation and hold it against Chytrine.

 Alyx frowned. You are telling me, then, that a gift of meat tastes better than something you have killed 
yourself?

 Normally, no, but can you bring down the sort of game Adrogans can? Peri cocked her head to the 
right. I know you, my sister, and know that you could, easily. Others dont want to trust you with the 
troops that would let you do it. Hes won that battle, which lets him fight the others.

 Alyx snarled and leaned heavily on the plinth Resolute and Crow had brought from Svarskya. Thats 
the problem, Peri. I could liberate Okrannel with less troops than he will. He always demands too much, 
he is too cautious. Hes using a huge club to bash a tiny bunny.

 It might seem that way, Princess, but what if that bunny is not so small?

 She turned as Peri slid off the stone. King Augustus had slipped into the gardens and gave her a gentle 
smile. I do understand your frustration, Alyx. You doubtlessly could do more with less, but my peers 
have listened for two decades to stories of Adrogans skill. Ive told such tales. While I tell better ones of 
you, the fact remains that youve led smaller groups. I would rank your successes as high, but I am seen 
as being biased since you have been working within my realm.

 Alyx nodded solemnly. Highness, do not think for a moment that I fault you for my situation. 
Everything you say is true, and I accept that. What I do not accept is how Adrogans can be wasteful of 
men and materials. The supplies he has demanded for our forces would feed half again as many men. 
While having strong and well-fed soldiers is important, having so huge a supply train creates a tempting 
target for Chytrines forces. Given the rigors of traveling through the Okrans landscape, as well you 
proved in your campaign there, the only way to safeguard supplies would be to stretch his troops so thin 


that they could accomplish nothing when it comes to a battle.

that they could accomplish nothing when it comes to a battle.

 Ive already studied him. She sighed audibly and crossed her arms over her chest. Ive read all his 
reports of his battles. They are rife with sloppiness and wastefulness. If not for the sheer bulk of his 
troops and his good fortune at catching and wiping out smaller units, no one would even know his name. 
Stupid enemies do not brilliant generals betoken. There were better ways for him to have run and won 
every battle hes fought. Most frustrating is the fact that he was so close to seeing the best choices, and 
yet he turned away from themarrogantly dismissing most, or failing to mention the others. Its all in his 
reports.

 The kings eyes hardened. I will not dispute that reading of him, either. The fact that you have seen 
these tendencies in him means you can curb them.

 Alyx snorted. I doubt he will listen to me.

 He will listen to General Caro, and Caro will listen to you. I have directed him to do exactly that, and 
to work with you to make sense prevail. Augustus slowly shook his head. In the Council we hammered 
together a workable plan, but it was hardly the best plan. No nation gave all it could to this effort, but 
held back in case of failures. Everyone hedged their bets and refused to believe there was a threat of 
Chytrine stealing the various pieces of the DragonCrown. Its like snarling at the darkness to hope you 
scare off the wolf unseen. If the wolf is truly there, you know you are lost, and if it isnt, you would have 
been safe anyway. Since they know they will be lost if she does put it back together, they refuse to 
contemplate that possibility.

 The best we could have done here was simple: provide Adrogans troops to free Okrannel. Provide 
Cavarre troops to reinforce Fortress Draconis. Provide you an army to drive into Aurolan.

 Peri blinked her big amber eyes. Not liberate Vorquellyn?

 Augustus smiled. Id have suggested that as your first target, Alexia, and the elves would have 
demurred and raised their own force to do it.

 Alexia saw the logic in how Augustus would have played things. You would have then offered our 
help to the elves, yes, and they would have offered us other troops to bolster our effort, thereby keeping 
us away from Vorquellyn?

 The king shrugged. That might have worked, too. I was thinking that Id reverse it, and hint that we 
didnt need elves in your force, since we had the Gyrkyme.

 Peris crest came up. And you would have let the elves dictate that we could not participate in 
exchange for elven help?

 Augustus held his hands up and palm-out open. Soothe yourself, Perrine, I would not have shown 
such disrespect to your people. We would have crafted things so both could participate. With the 
urZrethi involved as well, all three of your peoples would have been pushed to excel. The Gyrkyme let 
loose with a raptors shriek that dissolved into laughter. It would have worked.

 Alyx grinned in spite of her nascent anger. Keep that in mind, the both of you, for we may yet need to 
use it. The other element of the Okrans campaign that concerns me, Highness, is the oppositions leader. 
She is now called Malarkex?

 The king nodded solemnly. She was once Edamis Vilkaso, of Naliserro. She could have been you, or 
you her, both in coloration and history. She led some of the Nalisk cavalry and was accomplished in 
small-unit tactics. As you have suggested, in the Okrans landscape, this gives her an advantage. She was 
also very smart and recognized the importance of the dragonel. She captured the one Chytrine had at 
Fortress Draconis. Some storieswhich Adrogans dismissessuggest she has even put together a 
mounted unit of people equipped with draconettes. Our archers are thought to be better at range, but a 
volley of shots from these draconetteers can rip men apart.

 What concerns me most is the apparent dismissal of Malarkex because she was only known for 
small-unit tactics. Alyx frowned heavily. And it is not because I am similarly dismissed. I can think of a 
hundred ways to bedevil the invasion force. Even if I only ascribe to her a tenth of those ideas, the fight 


for Okrannel will be brutal.

for Okrannel will be brutal.

 At least you understand that. She shook her head. Too much of his plan is vague. Everyone has 
agreed that we will liberate Okrannel, but exactly how he plans to do that has not been discussed. It 
seems as if the campaign is being done more as a game than anything else. Game pieces do not bleed.

 Caution, Princess, you know better than that. Augustus shook his head. He may not take to 
planning as you do, or he may not deign to share with you his planning process or both. You have to go, 
have to learn from him.

 Alyx narrowed her eyes. Highness, forgive me. Frustration is not something I handle well. I see so 
much, but I dont see an opportunity to share what I know. What I need to learn from Adrogans has 
been culled from his reports and his plans. Hes working with the traditional divisions of Okrannel into six 
duchies, which would be fine, but several are political divisions that only have value to exiled nobles. The 
Svoin Lakes Duchy straddles a huge lake and is split in half by it and rivers. From a military standpoint it 
is two distinct areas and to let the lake or rivers split an army will be suicidal. And the Bhayall lowlands 
that surround the Svoin Duchy, they actually break down into four tactical regions. Even the Crozt Duchy 
has two distinct parts and Ive seen no intelligence to suggest Chytrines forces have rebuilt the Radooya 
Bridge, so the northernmost part of the peninsula might as well be an island.

 The smile growing on Augustus face earned a scowl from her. What? What is it?

 Its been a while since Ive been lectured on Okrannel geography; and never by someone who has 
not really set foot in the country. Thats an observation, not a rebuke. What you are saying is accurate, 
and Caro knows this. This is why it will be important for you to be there.

 Peri keened a sharp laugh.

 Alyx turned toward her. What am I missing, sister?

 The Gyrkyme smoothed down over her breasts. Just the reason we are being sent to Okrannel.

 I dont... Alyx hesitated. Oh ...

 Augustus nodded as he rested hands on her shoulders. Thats right. You see all these things. If 
Adrogans does not, hell be relieved of command. And I will not be alone in being happy that you are 
there to replace him.

 Topping the rise of the first hill west of Yslin, Alyx reined her horse around and looked back over the 
column slowly snaking from the Alcidese capital in the rain. General Adrogans had been kind enough to 
allow her Wolves to lead the way out of the city toward Okrannel. Alyx had ridden proudly, waving 
back at her grandfathers sagging form as he watched from a Fortress Gryps balcony.

 The city itself defied the rain, with strong walls and tall towers refusing to be softened despite the 
downpour and grey sky. The riders fared not so well, with gaily colored pennants dripping limply. Dark 
oilskins covered each soldier. Water oozed from hems and boots, or sprayed explosively when horses 
shook their heads. Muddy water surged up with each hooffall, dappling legs and boots.

 Her heart had swelled as they rode out of the city. There was no way it could not have, for her 
countrymena generation removed from their homelandcheered her and the Wolves and the Okrans 
Kingsmen heavy cavalry battalion. Small children ran along the streets, splashing through puddles, 
laughing and waving little black-and-gold flags. Within the Okrans community there seemed no doubt that 
the expedition would sweep the Aurolani forces from the country, and they would be free to return to 
estates that remained pristine in their memories or in the stories of elders.

 Alyx had stopped to watch the column go past, thankful that distance had muted the cheers and the 
cold rain had chilled prideful fires. The simple fact of the matter was that there was nothing simple about 
the campaign that had been proposed. Nations from the western half of the continent would be sending 
troops directly up through Jerana to the Zhusk highlands, in the southeast corner of Okrannel. That little 
triangular portion of the nation had never been conqueredbefore the Aurolani invasion the Zhusks had 


always been fiercely independent and claimed to be an autonomous state. Frequently the King of 
Okrannel had to send punitive expeditions into the highlands to quell rebellions. Roughly a quarter of the 
expedition forces would make their way there by themselves.

always been fiercely independent and claimed to be an autonomous state. Frequently the King of 
Okrannel had to send punitive expeditions into the highlands to quell rebellions. Roughly a quarter of the 
expedition forces would make their way there by themselves.

 A fleet had been organized to carry Caros cavalry, the infantry, and supplies to Okrannel. With the 
prevailing seasonal winds, the trip would take three days. No one expected trouble from the Wruonan 
pirates after their drubbing on Vilwan, but delays were worked into the planning anyway. The entire force 
would be delivered in eighteen days, and then every six days more supplies would be brought in.

 Adrogans had seized on the ship shortage to order the cavalry elements to take the land route back to 
Okrannel. The cavalry would arrive at roughly the same time as the last of the infantry, saving the ships 
one round-trip. Alyx had argued that if a significant portion of the cavalry had shipped ahead, they could 
begin planning their actions, but the Jeranese general demurred. He said nothing of his distaste for 
traveling on the sea, but Alyx knew he was letting his fear get the better of him.

 He wasnt alone in that sort of thing. Tagothcha, the weirun of the Crescent Sea, had been an enemy 
when the last expedition against Chytrine had been launched a generation before. At first the warriors had 
tricked the spirit, then, at Svarskya, they had bribed him. She recalled dimly that King Scrainwood was 
said to have tossed his wedding band as an offering to the sea spirit, and that had been cited by some as 
the reason Tagothcha took his wife.

 It seemed as if everyone who was meant to ship north was learning from Scrainwoods lesson. 
Soldiers offered the weirun gold and wine, live animalswhich soon ceased being liveand any manner 
of valuable they hoped would make them stand out. In the case of a disaster at sea, they wanted its 
sovereign to think kindly of them. Alyx had heard countless tales of weiruns of forest, fields, mountains, 
and streams helping the lost and innocent, or rewarding the honest and noble. Tagothcha was well known 
for being capricious and greedy, but as his lust for gold was sated, so was his mischievous nature.

 Because Adrogans felt bribes were beneath him, or he just had an abiding fear of the sea, over a 
thousand men and women set out on horseback, with three horses for each of them. A long wagon train 
would have also been part of their expedition, but arrangements for fodder and food had been made and 
supplies had been cached along their route. Every third day they would resupply themselves and have 
some of their mounts replaced.

 Even Alyx had to admit that Adrogans had done a good job planning out that logistical angle of the 
campaign, though his demands seemed inflated to her. She was willing to allow that he was just planning 
against delays and the sort of thievery that accompanies the establishment of supply depots. Even so, the 
materiel he requisitioned would have amply supplied an army half again as large as their force.

 This was all part and parcel of the paradox of Adrogans. The man knew enough to make sure his 
troops had everything they needed to fight, but he used his people poorly. In maneuvering he surrendered 
speed for strength, which was a dubious proposition at even the most favorable of times. Hed clearly 
been successful at defending Jerana from Aurolani aggression, but his battle reports suggested luck 
played a bigger part in his victories than planning. 

If his luck runs out before his supplies do, hes done for.

 She shivered and watched the cavalry units head on down the road. Another bit of the paradox struck 
her as she watched them go by. Her Wolves and the mercenary legion, Matraves Horse, were the only 
light cavalry in the force. Theyd been given scouting duties, which made perfect sense. The three heavy 
cavalry units were well spaced on the road so they would have time to form up and charge if the scouts 
detected the enemy over the next hill or around a corner. Vilwanese warmages and various officials 
traveling with them were kept toward the middle of the column where they would be safest, or would do 
the least harm, depending upon how one chose to look at it.

 His deployment of the forces matched what she would have suggested, had her opinion been solicited. 


That he did not ask for her advice did not surprise her. What did was that, again, he showed an intuitive 
grasp of tactics in how the column moved, yet that never showed up in any of his battles.

That he did not ask for her advice did not surprise her. What did was that, again, he showed an intuitive 
grasp of tactics in how the column moved, yet that never showed up in any of his battles.

 Your Wolves have a few more companies here.

 Black and Silver were added. Gold was made a full company and I have a new squad of 
bodyguards. The Wolves had been a reinforced legion with a hundred fifty soldiers in it, but two more 
companies had been added prior to the expeditions setting out. Along with extra staff officers this 
brought her command up to two hundred twenty individuals. Hardly enough of a force to warrant a 
general in command, but both the unit and the rank had come from King Augustus, so no one 
complained.

 She glanced back along the column. You ought to be back there with the Norrington.

 You should call him Will. Crow shrugged easily. I prefer riding with scouts. Im not heavy cavalry, 
and Im not well suited to letting others protect me. If you object to my presence, however...

 She started to shake her head no, but hesitated for a moment. Under normal circumstances shed not 
have wanted him riding with her, but with Peri having flown ahead to Gyrvirgul, she had no one to talk 
with. While her cousin Misha was in the Kingsmen, her rank and position made it difficult to speak to him 
without earning him the ire of his commanding officer.

 No, not at all. She glanced beyond him as Resolute trotted his horse up and around toward the head 
of the column. I suspect it wouldnt matter to the members of your band where Adrogans or I want 
them.

 Crow laughed quickly. Well, not to some, no; but others would obey. I would be among them.

 She raised an eyebrow at him. You seem hardly one to take orders, Crow.

 Only from those whose judgment I respect.

 I see. She easily could have taken his words as idle and flirtatious flattery, but she heard sincerity in 
them. Alyx turned her head and regarded him closely. Have you formed an opinion of our leader?

 More than one, Highness.

 Call me Alyx.

 Not if it were your dying command, Highness. The man stared at her from within the shadowed 
depths of his hood. I know very well my place in the world. No, wait, Im not saying what you think I 
am. Your willingness to permit me familiarity is something I cherish. As per our conversation before, I 
would be more than willing to share a cup with you here in the field, and count myself fortunate in doing 
so. My point is not that I am of common stock and therefore unworthy of such familiarity. While its true, 
the simple fact of the matter is that while our missions are united right now, there could come a point in 
this war with Chytrine where our purposes will differ. What I have to do may well anger General 
Adrogans, or King Augustus, or any number of people you need to succeed in liberating Okrannel. So 
you will not be tainted by your association with me, we should maintain at least the appearance of 
formality.

 Alyx frowned for a moment. I was raised among the Gyrkyme. Save for wings and down, and a 
veneer of manners from tutors, I am Gyrkyme. They do without all these games, so I have a hard time 
seeing them.

 Crow nodded. As did I, until events forced me to open my eyes to them. And, even at that, I barely 
avoided blinding.

 I understand what you said, Crow, but I will take issue with a point.

 Please, Highness.

 You suggested my purpose was to liberate Okrannel. This is true, but only halfway true. My goal is to 
keep it free. The only way to do that is for Chytrine to be destroyed. Our purposes, then, are more 
tightly interwoven than you seem to think.

 The older man pursed his lips for a moment, then nodded. Youre right, Highness, thank you for 
correcting me. 


 Something that will be rare, I have no doubt. She smiled at him. So, you were saying you had 
developed many opinions of General Adrogans?

 Something that will be rare, I have no doubt. She smiled at him. So, you were saying you had 
developed many opinions of General Adrogans?

 At the reception I decided he was arrogant, but that was not a difficult opinion to reach. After that I 
had a chance to observe some of his peoplenot his officers, but his troopers. He has them well trained. 
They care diligently for their horses. They do drink but not to excess, and I saw no witless bragging or 
brawling. Mild provocation earned harsh stares before fast fists.

 You see, then, the paradox I do.

 The difficulty is in judging which image is correct. If he is truly the sort of leader who can inspire men 
and instill such discipline in them, well, this explains his victories. If, on the other hand, he is incompetent 
and arrogant, well, pride in their unit could inspire his soldiers to make more of themselves than their 
leader demands.

 That second case does not bode well for our campaign.

 Hardly the worst thing we have to worry about. Crow leaned forward on his saddlehorn, then 
twisted his shoulders to the left and right to loosen his back. The Gyrkyme who will join us will be very 
useful, but the elven infantry being shipped over from Loquellyn will refuse to work with them. The Nalisk 
infantry will have something to prove because the sullanciri leading the Aurolani comes from Naliserro. 
The Okrans Kingsmen and Volunteers likewise will feel a need for heroics, which will make yet more 
difficult leading a force with so many elements of differing sizes and skills.

 She nodded in agreement. Then there is the whole matter of the size of the force we will be opposing. 
The reports we have are vague and old, so Chytrine could be reinforcing the country, or could just let us 
fragment ourselves and then send more troops in to sweep us up piecemeal.

 Possible, but unlikely.

 Why?

 Crow shrugged. The last thing she wants is to have the world truly united against her. Driving her 
forces back in Okrannel would give people the taste of blood. It would tell them she was vulnerable. 
That she counterattacked and smashed them could be dismissed as desperation on her part, and bad 
luck on ours. She would have shown herself to be vulnerable, which would mean wed keep coming. 
What she needs is to snap our spine in Okrannel, then crush Fortress Draconis. If she does those things, 
the resolve to oppose her will evaporate, and she will be able to negotiate truces with nations so she can 
eat up their neighbors.

 Alyx flicked a drop from her nose with her finger. Youve thought a lot about her motives.

 Ive had a long time to think about them. A generation ago she warned us she would be coming. 
Why? He sighed. So we would panic and be on alert, then tire and become complacent and then forget 
how to fight and why we wanted to fight. She comes again and we panic, which is never a good way to 
enter a fight.

 She nodded. Is entering battle behind Adrogans going to be a good way?

 I dont know. At least hes been fighting for a long time. Crow smiled slowly. He may have his own 
reasons for why hes fighting her, but at least he knows how. As omens go, that has a lot to recommend 
itself.

 Will certainly found himself enjoying his second trip west much more than the first. Resolutes apparent 
uneasiness with large groups of people meant he stayed away from Will, especially when Will elected to 
ride with the Horse Guards or the Kingsmen. Even the Savarese Knightsmen who resembled Dranae 
in coloration and build, though slightly smallerlet their stern demeanor slip a bit when he rode among 
them. They seemed to like having the Norrington in their midst, and the chores that Resolute would have 
made him do were often taken up as part of some soldiers duties.

 Aside from Resolute, only two other members of the expedition gave Will any cause for concern. One 


was Lombo. The Panqui, while apparently having seen Wills abandonment of Kerrigan to a street gang 
as the right thing to do, still watched him and studied him. It wasnt anything as unnerving as having his 
footsteps dogged per se, but every so often hed find the Panqui squatting beside a line of his footprints, 
probing them with a finger, or lowering his muzzle to sniff at them.

was Lombo. The Panqui, while apparently having seen Wills abandonment of Kerrigan to a street gang 
as the right thing to do, still watched him and studied him. It wasnt anything as unnerving as having his 
footsteps dogged per se, but every so often hed find the Panqui squatting beside a line of his footprints, 
probing them with a finger, or lowering his muzzle to sniff at them.

 The thief shrugged. It was probably just as well that Kerrigan did have the beast caring for him, since 
he seemed incompetent otherwise. There were hundreds of things that Will knew how to do that 
Kerrigan couldnt. It did not slip Wills mind that most of these things were skills Resolute had forced on 
him in the first western trip, but he conveniently let that fact drift into the back of his mind. The little bits of 
friction between Orla and Lombo over how Kerrigan should be handled also pleased Will.

 Qwc and Dranae seemed to be weathering the trip well. Because of his size, and the requisite size of 
the mounts needed to carry him, Dranae spent a lot of time with the men of the heavy cavalry units. The 
mercenary Matrave had one heavy cavalry company in his legion and even offered Dranae a job. When 
the column camped and contests of strength became the nights entertainment, Dranae became a 
prohibitive favorite, especially in wrestling matches.

 Qwc became a favorite as well, but for entirely different reasons. The green Spritha flitted about 
almost constantly, marveling at things that were quite ordinary. Troopers caught on very swiftly that his 
innocence could be used. When riding through an orchard, one might bet Qwc a feather that the Spritha 
couldnt possibly fetch an apple from the top of the tree. Qwc would dart to the goal, harvest the prize, 
and win his feather, or button, or whatever other bit of trash the soldiers proffered.

 On top of that, everything Qwc did seemed to have added consequences. More than once he returned 
from some sojourn through a field with a buttercup-blossom helm planted firmly on his head. Half the 
time he didnt seem to notice or know how the flowers had gotten there, but when it was called to his 
attention, he set it at a jaunty angle and soared through tight spirals that made him dizzy.

 Whenever Will saw him, he couldnt help but smile, and often laugh. Even Resolutes normally vile 
mood lightened in the Sprithas presence, which Will marked as a victory right up there with defeating 
Chytrine. When Qwc would win his bets, hed bring his loot to Will for evaluation and storage, 
announcing, Trusts you, Will, Qwc trusts you. Safe treasure now.

 Even that statement, delivered sincerely, earned laughter since everyone knew Will was a thief by 
trade. Still, it was the soldiers who were swindling Qwc who were having it pointed out to them that the 
Spritha trusted Will. That had a gradual and good effect on the soldiers. After the first few days on the 
road, fewer and fewer of them eyed Will suspiciously as he wandered through the camp at night. 

Not that their precautions could have stopped me from taking whatever I wanted. Will smiled. 
They knew their trade, and he knew his. Will wasnt certain how what he knew what to do would defeat 
Chytrine, but he was content to figure it out as things went along.

 Late on the second day the column approached the town of Stellin. Arrangements had been made to 
camp north of the town in a farmers vacant field. Will found Crow and was preparing to take care of his 
mount when one of the Jeranese troopers rode up to him. The man dismounted and handed Will the reins 
to his horse.

 General Adrogans will be riding into the town. He wishes you to accompany him, Will Norrington.

 Will glanced at Crow and Crow nodded, then began to rise.

 The trooper waved Crow back down. The general wishes the Norrington to accompany him alone. 
He will be well warded.

 Crows eyes narrowed. Very well.

 The trooper helped Will into the saddle, then pointed out where the general and a squad of lancers 
were waiting. Will gave the horse, a big bay gelding, a touch of his heels and the beast responded quickly 
enough that it almost bounced Will out of the saddle. The lancers parted as Will rode up, and spread out 


so any conversation Adrogans and Will might have would go unheard.

so any conversation Adrogans and Will might have would go unheard.

 Will shrugged. Horses are doing the work.

 True enough. The general kept a smile on his face, but Will knew it for nothing more than a polite 
mask. You have been to this town before?

 Yes, a month ago. Crow, Resolute, and the princess were there. Not much to see.

 But it must be seen. The mans grey eyes became slits. Tell me, Will, what do they say about me?

 The question, delivered quietly, sent a jolt through Will. No, sir.

 Adrogans eyes widened and his nostrils flared. What?

 Will raised his chin. You want to know what they say, ask them. Im no wagtongue who betrays 
friends.

 They rode on in silence for a moment, then the trace of a smile tugged at Adrogans mouth. Then I 
have no fear of you betraying my words to them?

 Youre not a friend.

 Adrogans smile broadened. He turned and regarded Will more closely. Youre right in that, of 
course, but I am an ally. We share a common enemy and, together, we will cause Chytrine much 
discomfort.

 Will nodded. I want to kill her.

 An admirable goal, yes. Doing that will require us to work together. A working alliance such as we 
need can only be formed on the basis of mutual trust. His eyes narrowed again. So, tell me, why should 
an accident of birth make me trust a feral little thief?

 Why should the fact that youre luckier than you are arrogant or egotistical make me trust a general?

 Adrogans chuckled. So, thats what they think about me?

 Wills cheeks immediately burned. You tricked me. That doesnt build trust.

 No. Youre right. It doesnt. The generals face settled back into impassiveness, though passion 
threaded through his words. It does give me your measure, however. You are loyal, but a bit immature, 
and possibly impetuous. You do have spirit, however, and the instinct to strike. Properly trained and 
employed, these are invaluable skills.

 The simple fact is, Will, that success requires that I trust you. I do believe I can trust you, but I 
needed to discover how far.

 The thief growled. How far is that?

 Far enough to know that you can serve in a role that is more valuable than bait. Youre sharp enough 
to see that this is the role in which you have been cast. Were on a campaign. There is nothing to steal. 
You are a rallying point for those who need to believe Chytrine can be defeated, and you are a target to 
distract her.

 Will nodded. You dont have to be the Grand Magister of Vilwan to figure that much out.

 Another good point. Adrogans ran a hand over his jaw. You will have to understand, Will, that I 
approach this campaign as being very important. I know how much it means to everyone involved. I will 
conduct it in the manner I best see fit and I am fairly certain that you and your acquaintances will come to 
feel that I am ignoring you or your advice. If I see a role for you or them, I will use you. If not, you will 
remain in reserveand no amount of mumbling or cajoling will change that.

 So our job is to do nothing unless you have something for us to do?

 Yes.

 What if we dont agree with what you are doing?

 Adrogans raised his chin and stroked his throat with a gloved hand. I was given command of this 
expedition for a reason. I know I have detractors, and am roundly criticized for a variety of reasons. 
Curiously enough, despite all the criticism, I do win my battles. This fact is always underplayed.

 Will frowned as they topped a rise and looked down on the village of Stellin. What if what they say 
about you is true, though? What if theyre pointing out things that will mean you lose? The next battle 
could be that, you know.

 I know that far better than you, Will, and take countless precautions against it. The man watched him 


for a moment, then nodded toward the town. Come on, its time the people of Stellin see the salvation 
of the world.

for a moment, then nodded toward the town. Come on, its time the people of Stellin see the salvation 
of the world.

 The general brought his horse right up to Quintus, forcing the man back a step. I am General Markus 
Adrogans of Jerana. You have, of course, heard of me and are in awe. Scant little time for that now. 
Bow, mouth your obeisances, and we can dispense with further ceremony.

 Quintus staggered back, then dropped his eyes and lowered his head. We are honored, my lord.

 Yes, yes, of course you are. Adrogans sniffed, then wrinkled his nose. You are further honored that 
I have brought with me the Norrington, your countryman and the salvation of the world.

 The people gasped and bowed in Wills direction. He was surprised that none of them recognized him, 
but with his mask on, and further masked by the introduction, the chances they would connect him with 
his past visits were nil. Unless...

 He glanced about for Sephi, but didnt see her. He wanted to ask, but that would definitely make them 
recognize him, and he didnt want that. He wasnt sure why, but part of it came from the hope sparking in 
the townsfolks eyes. If they knew who I really was, it would die.

 Adrogans clapped his hands, once, loudly. Yes, well, you are thrilled, without a doubt. Easy to see, 
which makes this easier on all of us. Some things you must do. First, everyone is to stay away from 
Northmont. As arranged, my army has taken it over. The provisions are adequate though uninspiring. 
Have you, in this fine establishment, a cask or three of brandy that I can requisition? Two thousand men 
do develop a thirst.

 The taverns owner wiped his hands on a stained apron. Not that much, my lord. I could fit a wagon 
with ale casks, and brandy for you, if you want.

 Splendid. Adrogans nodded at one of his soldiers. The man tossed the innkeeper a fat leather sack 
that rang of gold coins when the man caught it. Now, I do require fifty head of cattle to be driven to 
Northmont by morning. We will pay in good gold, of course. Headman, divide this herd among your 
people, so no one will be unduly enriched nor impoverished by my request. Make the choices by lot, if 
you must. Any provisions we leave behind at Northmont should be taken into the town stores, to be held 
against our return, or for the depths of your winter need.

 Will caught sight of a half-dozen young men with satchels. Each carried a bow and a quiver full of 
arrows. Slightly older than he was, each one had a sloppy, eager grin on his face. Their intention to join 
the army was quite evident in their expressions.

 Adrogans clearly saw them as well. Good, I see Stellin has a militia. Youll need it. Guard your town 
well, men.

 Your presence means I dont have to detach a squad of my finest. One less worry for me, one more 
worry for Chytrine.

 A shiver ran through Will as he listened to Adrogans. While some of the arrogance and pomposity 
hed seen in the man in Yslin remained, another aspect blossomed beside it. In those few words he went 
from dashing the hopes of farmers sons to incorporating them in his force and leaving them with the clear 
impression that their presence in Stellin left him indebted to them. Not only did that forestall a ragtag 
horde of untrained, unequipped, and inexperienced youths following in his forces wake, but it guaranteed 
theyd fight even harder to defend their village if the time came to do so.

 While that new side certainly was born of the shrewd and analytical person hed talked to on the ride 
into the town, the two Adrogans seemed as different as air and earth. Adrogans was manipulating the 
townsfolk of Stellin with the skill of a swindler bilking a victim. When Adrogans rode away, the folks in 
Stellin would be left thinking of a distant and arrogant man, dedicated to leading a force to kill Chytrine. 
And they would think that force was twice the size it really is.

 Adrogans glanced at him. Come, Lord Norrington, our work here is done. I bid you, fine people of 
Stellin, my hearty thanks and wishes for a safe future.

 With that, Adrogans reined his horse about and the whole of his party began riding back to 
Northmont. Will held his horse back a little, not wanting to pull up next to Adrogans or continue their 


conversation. If he wants to speak to me, he can slow down.

conversation. If he wants to speak to me, he can slow down.

Perhaps its just like me. No one could see the Norrington in me until the time came. He glanced 
at Adrogans broad back as the man rode on. Lets hope the true Adrogans will make himself 
apparent when his time comes, too.

 While intellectually Kerrigan knew there would be some point in his life when he would again be dry 
and warm and his stomach would be full, emotionally the day seemed as far away as Vilwan and his 
tower chamber. Though not even a half week into the trek, he felt as if hed already reached Aurolan. 
Working their way up through the mountains of Gyrvirgul, the riders got drenched by rain and, worse, 
some freezing rain. Everyone said it was unseasonable, which most of the troopers translated into 
meaning magick and clearly wondered why none of the Vilwanese legion could do anything about it.

 The warmages ignored the glances and whispers from the troopers. Kerrigan had done his best to 
explain that the warmages were no more suited to controlling the weather than soldiers were to brewing 
beer or sailing a ship. Whenever he offered that analogy, at least one of the soldiers would comment that 
he knew all there was to know about brewing or sailing, and that specific example tore down his 
generalization.

 Kerrigan did acknowledge that he was managing to annoy the soldiers, but they didnt help at all. His 
snoring, he came to understand, was not appreciated, as it might alert the enemy to their presence. The 
sheer absurdity of that propositiongiven the excessive smoke from their fires, for exampleled him to 
be disappointed in the soldiers. Their little prejudice against snoring would make sense in another setting, 
but the column was so obvious that snoring would make no difference. His logic won him no friends, 
however, as the small-minded soldiers found it easier to cling to their notions instead of actually thinking.

 In some ways he envied them their dullness, since it allowed them to rejoice in the simple and banal. 
They were overjoyed, for example, in the fact that they could eat pretty much as they pleased, since the 
rations they were issued were generous. Kerrigan hated it, since salty, dried beef and biscuits hard 
enough to crack rocks were hardly the sort of fare he liked. More appealing fare, like local fruits and 
vegetables, had to be shared out on an equal basis, and nothing he offered the Spritha to fetch him things 
brought a positive response from the creature.

 Qwcs rejection of his offers underscored the isolation he felt. The warmages accepted Orla. All of 
them were younger than she was, and her attempts to keep up with them tired her out. This meant she 
had little patience for dealing with him. When they did speak, she demanded he take care of little camp 
jobs that Lombo was happy to perform. It made no sense to Kerrigan to be given those jobs, so he did 
them slowly and sullenly.

 Orla did order him to drill with the warmages, but those efforts quickly ended in frustration for 
everyone involved. With proper preparation, he was able to counter any spells they cast in his direction. 
He carefully chose the spells he would use to attack them, and diligently worked them. The warmages 
would anticipate him and raise defenses, but his attacks came with such strength that they blew through 
the defenses. They learned nothing from him, nor did he learn from them, so he withdrew from their 
company.

 Lombo provided him with some companionship, but the Panqui was as much out of place with the 
expedition as Kerrigan was. The beast would range far and wide, disappearing for hours at a time, then 
return bearing some flower or knot of wood or another oddity that provided Kerrigan a moments 
diversion. Far too infrequently did Lombo bring Kerrigan something he could eat.

 Most frustrating of all was Orlas order that he should not use magick to make things better for 
himself. It would have been childs play for him to enchant a leather bucket so he could fill it from a 
stream a quarter mile downhill, but Orla would not hear of it. Kerrigan countered by offering to work the 


spell such that he would provide water for more peopleeven the entire expedition. She refused, forcing 
him to walk to the stream and fill his bucket. It made no sense to him for him to have to do that, though 
he did notice comradely nods from the soldiers traveling likewise to the stream and back.

spell such that he would provide water for more peopleeven the entire expedition. She refused, forcing 
him to walk to the stream and fill his bucket. It made no sense to him for him to have to do that, though 
he did notice comradely nods from the soldiers traveling likewise to the stream and back.

 Kerrigan rubbed a hand across his belly as it rumbled. The oilskins he wore over his robe didnt do 
much to keep out the cold. He shivered and sniffed, then snaked a hand out from beneath his cloak to 
wipe his nose on his sleeve. The wet wool stunk, but snorting the scent back out would just make his 
nose run more.

 Then his horse stopped. He heard a gasp from the rider in front of him. Frowning sourly, Kerrigan 
opened his eyes. He blinked once while they focused, then he, too, gasped.

 The trail had curled up and around a small rise, then continued snaking on down and toward the west. 
Another branch curved off to the right and opened a dozen yards on into a huge arch. Two towering 
figures, both male, had been carved from the stone and formed the archs sides. They faced forward, 
staring forbiddingly out and down toward the riders. Their wings, spread behind them, formed the arch 
itself on the interior, and pointed east and west externally.

 The horse before his moved again, and Kerrigan followed. His mind reeled. He knew the legend of the 
Gyrkyme. Kirun had captured an elven prince and his retinue, then used magick to make them mate with 
Araft mythical, bestial bird-women. The resulting offspring had been the first of the Gyrkyme. The 
Gyrkyme had bred true, but were viewed by the elves as rapeget and beasts. The elves would have 
nothing to do with them, and for their own reasons, the urZrethi created Gyrvirgul as a homeland for the 
Gyrkyme.

 Until seeing the artistry of the arch, those facts had been sterile and lifeless. The urZrethi created 
mountain strongholdsKerrigan knew that as certainly as he knew there were ten days in a week, three 
weeks to a month. But seeing the arch, it hammered home the effort necessary to raise such a place from 
nothing. He recalled that many men felt the urZrethi had created Gyrvirgul out of some animosity for the 
elves, but that arch alone suggested to him that there was something greater that had motivated the 
urZrethi.

 The arch rose to a great height above him, and for a half second he thought it terribly inefficient. 
Looking up, tracking the lines of little torrents dripping down, he spotted shadowed archways high in the 
passages ceiling vaults. A smile blossomed on his face when he realized that among men such height 
would have been an extravagance, but this arch served a winged people. That there was a level path 
suited to the passage of horses should have been more the surprise than the height.

 The pathway continued on into the mountain, switching back several times. Flames danced in sconces 
just above eye level and did little to reveal any color on the walls. Their swaying shadows and golden 
light did teasingly conceal and display the friezes that had been worked into the walls nearest ground 
level. They appeared quite idyllic, with Gyrkyme figures soaring together, or gathering fruit and hunting. 
Clearly more scenes had been worked above, and the lack of light in those upper reaches suggested to 
him that the Gyrkyme had superior night vision.

 He almost passed a hand over his own eyes to invoke a spell and let him see what they saw, but he 
hesitated. Oddly enough he found himself completely indifferent to what Orla might say about his using 
magick to let him see in the dark. Instead, he refrained because until hed seen the entrance to Gyrvirgul, 
it had been nothing but a name, a fact. It had lacked life and majesty and mystery. By using magick he 
could easily reveal its secrets, but in doing so he would once again relegate it to the realm of facts. In 
knowing too much I can kill it and I dont want to do that.

 That realization surprised him. His entire life had been centered around understanding. To opt out of 
wanting to understand something ran counter to everything he had learned or done. Even so, it felt right 
on a level hed not experienced before. 


 The passageway leveled out and ended in a massive conical chamber alive with light. The room could 
have easily housed the entire Grand Magisters tower. Dark archways swirled around in a helix on the 
walls, while a massive fire guttered in the chambers heart. // each of those archways leads to a home...

 The passageway leveled out and ended in a massive conical chamber alive with light. The room could 
have easily housed the entire Grand Magisters tower. Dark archways swirled around in a helix on the 
walls, while a massive fire guttered in the chambers heart. // each of those archways leads to a home...

 Flames leaped skyward from the balefire. Kerrigan watched a fiery tentacle twist and curl upward, 
then smiled despite having his vision momentarily stolen by the darkness it left after its collapse. When he 
could see again he caught sight of Orla waving him over to where she waited with Will Norrington and 
the others. He reined his horse in their direction, then found Lombo loping beside him.

 Kerrigan dismounted as best he could, and knew enough to still cling to the saddle so his legs wouldnt 
collapse. Magister, this is incredible.

 The grey-haired combat mage nodded. It is indeed. I had no idea.

 Kerrigan caught a quizzical note in her voice. Did you know we were coming here?

 Orla shook her head as Crow came walking over. None of us did. We were passing through 
Gyrvirgul because to go around the mountains would have added days to the journey. I was riding with 
Princess Alexia, scouting out our route, when Perrine found us. Originally she had come here to gather 
the company of Warhawks who will join our force. When she related all that had happened in Yslin, 
including the presence of General Adrogans and the Norrington in our party, Ausai Tirigo dictated that 
the expedition should be brought here, housed, welcomed, and feasted.

 Kerrigans stomach rumbled at the last bit of news.

 Orla glanced reprovingly at her charge for a moment, then away again. Youve been here before, in 
your travels, Crow?

 The old man shook his head. Me, no. The urZrethi hid this place very well. Had the Tirigo not wished 
us to find it, we would have continued on by none the wiser. As nearly as I know, our host will be fifty 
times the number of men who have seen this place before. Princess Alexia was raised here, but prior to 
her arrival, it had been at least a century before a man walked in the heart of Gyrvirgul. Since then, the 
few other men brought here were her tutors.

 The man hastily added, And I only know this because I was present when Peri extended the invitation 
to the princess. She filled me in on the details as we rode.

 Will smiled and puffed himself up a bit. Well, we are a pretty special company. Not really a wonder 
they wanted to meet us.

 Crow laughed. Ah, I didnt make myself clear. The Tirigo wanted us here not to honor us. Theyre 
planning to honor the princess, and we are here to bear witness to that honor. They are very proud of her 
and they want no question left of that fact in anyones mind.

 Once within the massive domed chamber of Gyrvirguls heart, Alyx tossed Valors reins to Captain 
Agitare and vaulted from the saddle. She stripped off her oilskins and tossed them to one of the chirping 
fledglings that huddled in the shadows. The youngsters caught the cloak and began to tussle over it. From 
the corner of her eye she saw one of the Talons emerge victorious, and that surprised her not at all.

 She laughed aloud, once and sharply, molding it as well as she could to match the Talons victory 
shriek. She was less concerned that her Wolves might have heard her make such a sound than she was 
by embarrassing the Gyrkyme by not making it. Had she been alone, she would have abandoned human 
decorum entirely, stripped herself down to a sword-harness, and have begun the ascent to her family 
home. Not having that option, she flicked off her gloves, tugged off her boots, then climbed up the 
stonework decorating a column supporting the hollows vaulted roof.

 Her climb did bring a burn to muscles too long removed from such exertion, but that only made her 
smile. Alyx had been two years away from Gyrvirgul. Shed been aware of missing it, but until she rode 
into the grand chamber again, she didnt realize how fierce the ache in her heart had been. So many 
other things filled my time and attention, but none of it could fill the want of my home.

 She swung off the column on the highest of the Talon levels and ran down the narrow ledge to a big 
round hole. She ducked into it, shrieking a greeting. She dropped to a squat there, just inside the 


entrance, then smiled happily down at the quintet of Gyrkyme waiting for her.

entrance, then smiled happily down at the quintet of Gyrkyme waiting for her.

 Alyx was pretty certain shed never seen the fifth Gyrkyme before. Female, obviously, and jet-black 
save for bright red fletching on her shoulders and the forward joint on her wings. That coloration, and her 
slender, slighter build, marked her as being from the Swift caste. Seeing Octras hold her closely, Alyx 
had no doubt certain Talon mavens were regretting his loss to the next generation of warriors.

 Alyx leaped to the chamber floor and found herself smothered in hugs and kisses. She wished shed 
torn her clothes off before, and had to content herself with the warm caress of down over her face and 
hands.

 I have been away too long. She wanted to say more, but emotion choked her. She pulled back to 
wipe away tears. Preyknosery helped her, leaving talons sheathed as he brushed his thumb over her left 
cheek. She took his hand in hers and pressed it to her cheek, then turned and kissed his palm.

 The elder Gyrkyme smiled. This nest will always have room for you, Alexia.

 Thank you.

 Octras stroked Alyxs shoulder, then squired the Swift forward with his other hand. Sister, this is 
Sergrai, she who will be my wife.

 The Swift smiled shyly and extended a hand to Alyx. The princess clutched the hand delicately, then 
drew Sergrai into a hug. She felt an initial stiffness, but it melted quickly. Sergrai gave her a quick peck 
on the neck, then they parted.

 Alyx nodded. Pleased to meet you, Sergrai. Octras, I see, is still very lucky.

 Sergrai nodded, then tucked herself under Octras arm.

 Strong hands grasped Alyxs shoulders and spun her around. Taking a step back, Lanlitgri studied her 
for a moment with a sharp amber eye. You look well, as near as I can see.

 Yes, Mother, I am very well. Alyx smiled. Better now, and honored at the invitation to return.

 Peri keened quickly. I was going to kidnap you if they didnt agree to your return.

 Preyknosery shook his head. Her intention, which echoed through Gyrvirgul, sparked quite a debate 
among the Plumes and the Wise. Perrine told many a tale of your adventures.

 She told of the Norrington, and fighting a sullanciri and the dragon! Sergrais dark eyes widened. 
And she told the stories very well.

 Alyx nodded. Lauded by a Swift for your taletelling, sister? High praise indeed.

 Peri smiled proudly. I even was called to tell the stories to the Tirigo himself. He ended the debate 
and said he would make you a Wing.

 The princess blinked. But...

 Preyknosery settled a hand on her left shoulder. Yes, it is awkward to be given that title when you 
have no wings.

 Alyx held her hands up. No, no, its not that. Its that  Ive done nothing to deserve such an honor. 
You, you earned the title Ironwing a hundred times over. What Ive done is nothing.

 No, daughter, what you have done is to make all of us proud. Preyknosery pressed a three-fingered 
hand to his breast. I am a Talon, not a Swift nor a Plume, but even I understand what you and your 
success mean to us. Because Kirun was responsible for our creation, we have always been tainted. 
When your father entrusted you to us, for your raising, and when Augustus convinced others that you 
should be left here, they began to see us differently. Not the elves, surely, but men. Augustus and others 
sent their best to teach you what we could not. What they saw changed how men see us.

 Thats not anything I did, but what was here and seen when outsiders came in.

 A point debated among the Wise, to be sure. Ironwing smiled. You might say you have done 
nothing. You have missed all you did to grow up here. We are not men. We do not treat our young as do 
men. You survived here. You thrived here. There were those who saw you as being a 


sneakbirdplaced in a nest to be raised over our own. You proved them wrong, all without having 
wings. Youve earned your title. Your life proclaims it.

sneakbirdplaced in a nest to be raised over our own. You proved them wrong, all without having 
wings. Youve earned your title. Your life proclaims it.

 Urn, sister, I only have road clothes with me. Between us we have the fashion sense of a 
grub-worm.

 Peri winked. Thats why Sergrai here has offered to help us get ready.

 It would be my honor, Princess.

 Alyx hesitated only for a heartbeat, then nodded. Youll make it so I give the Gyrkyme all due 
honor?

 Wings alive, dead, and yet in shell shall be proud.

 Good. She glanced at Peri. What will the Wolves think?

 Who cares? They are only walkers. Peri slid an arm around Alyxs shoulders and guided her to the 
wallhole leading to her old sleeping chamber. You are one of us, and that is all that matters.

 Will smiled, largely because he could straighten to his full height in the little room hed been given, and 
Crow could not. It wasnt Crows discomfiture that gave him cause to smile, but that he didnt have to 
worry about bashing his brains out on the ceiling. The Gyrkyme had led his little company into a corridor 
that circled the main area, but at a distance. Off it branched other smaller corridors, and dark holes 
dotted their walls. Beyond the holes, which were small enough to force Will to duck his head, lay small, 
cylindrical rooms with bedsteads carved from the rock, and a series of small niches where gear and lit 
lamps could be stowed.

 Will remained silent until the black-and-red-winged Gyrkyme left them. Shed been no taller than Will, 
and her wings had been half formed. In fact, he just assumed she was female because her build was so 
slight, though she exhibited no breasts, nor the curves of even someone like Alexias aide. Will assumed 
shed just not hit puberty, when her body and wings would develop.

 Crow groaned as he stretched out on the woven straw mat that covered the stone sleeping ledge. 
Warm, not wet, slightly softer than the ground last night. It will do.

 Youre going to sleep?

 As opposed to?

 Go exploring. Will pointed back out in the general direction he thought the fire was. Did you see all 
that stuff? This place is huge, the whole mountain is hollowed out. And the Gyrkyme, did you see them? 
Theres the ones that are like hawks, then the raven that guided us here. There have to be more and ...

 Will, this might not have occurred to you, but we cant just go exploring.

 Sure we can. Its easy. I didnt see any guards posted about or anything. He interlaced his fingers 
and bridged them. The decorative columns will be easy enough to climb....

 Crow rolled up on an elbow and narrowed his eyes. I have two points to make. First, given your 
early career, it might have escaped you that if people want you to look around in their domain, they will 
offer an invitation and take you on a tour.

 Will wrinkled up his nose. I know that, but they might have forgotten.

 You know better. The second, and far more important, is this: you are the Norrington. The Gyrkyme 
are our allies. They want to help us. Their inviting us here is extraordinary, and as their guests, we will be 
on our best behavior.

 Okay, is this just because youre old?

 Crow rolled onto his back and laughed aloud. Oh, ouch, Will. The man continued to laugh, then 
wiped tears from his eyes. That was funny.

 It wasnt meant to be.

 I know,, which made it even more so. Crow looked over at him. There are times I think you grasp 
the gravity of our situation, and others, like now, when I know youve forgotten it.

 I havent forgotten it. Will sat down on his bunk, facing Crow. Its just that there are times its 
boring.

 Like the battle on Vilwan? 


 No, that was very exciting. The thief smiled quickly, then let the smile die as a shiver shook him. 
And it was pretty horrible, too.

 No, that was very exciting. The thief smiled quickly, then let the smile die as a shiver shook him. 
And it was pretty horrible, too.

 Crow smiled. So, I choose to sleep right now. When were needed, theyll come for us and well be 
rested.

 Well, I cant sleep.

 Then if you must go running off, at least pull on some dry socks. Your squishing around in those boots 
will give you away.

 Will grumbled, but pulled his boots off, then peeled off his socks. He rung them out and draped them 
in one of the niches. He rummaged around in his saddlebags for dry socks, pulled them on, then decided 
to lie down for a moment. He refused to groan aloud as Crow had, but his back ached as the muscles 
eased themselves.

 He shifted his shoulders a bit, then closed his eyes. Just until my back stops hurting. He thought 
about what the dark, shadowed reaches of Gyrvirguls upper levels might hide. Before avarice could 
blossom full into a fantasy, the darkness he contemplated smothered him with sleep.

 Will had nothing but the complaints of his belly to suggest how long hed slept. A small, 
brown-colored Gyrkyme had come for Crow and him. In rather subdued monotones the envoy told them 
the time of the feast had come. Each of them was handed a diaphanous silken strip of cloth that would 
have served as a scarf or loincloth, and their guide said he would return once they were ready.

 The young thief looked at Crow. Ive almost gotten used to dressing for feasts, but I dont have any 
of those good clothes.

 Crow smiled. Im not sure this is my size either. He tugged off his doeskin tunic, revealing a trio of 
parallel scars running from collarbone to hip through a thick thatch of white hair. Various other scars 
decorated his body here and there, but nothing could come close to matching the long ones for size or 
age.

 The Gyrkyme dont use much in the way of clothes, so they dont really care if we dress or not.

 So youll make that into one of their loincloths?

 The old man shook his head and looped the silver cloth into a sash running from right shoulder to left 
hip. He knotted it at his hip and tucked the tails beneath his belt. Not that Im expecting it to be cold 
around that fire, and the food should be hot, too, but why take the risk?

 Will raised an eyebrow at him as he rolled the cloth and tied it around his head in a headband that 
passed just above his mask. He tied it off neatly and left it with long flowing tails hanging down his back. 
So youre not trying to hide your scars? Three long ones like that could have come from a Gyrkyme 
hand.

 Crow frowned for a moment, then shook his head. I thought youd seen these before. I guess not. 
Theyre not Gyrkyme.

 What, then? Will frowned and thought. Frostclaw tracks?

 His companion nodded. It was a long time ago. A frostclaw decided to play with its food before it 
ate.

 I dont remember a song about that being sung of Kedyns Crow.

 There isnt any. Dull tale anyway. Headband looks good. Crow threw Will a wink, then stood and 
ducked his head to follow their guide. Im sure youll find the feast far more entertaining.

 Will wanted to maintain a respectable amount of disdain, but the Gyrkyme made that difficult. It 
seemed as if the entire expeditionary force and population of Gyrvirgul had been gathered around the 
balefire for the nights feast. The outer ring of attendees werent actually down on the floor, but sat and 
stood on the ledges all around the central chamber. They seemed, to Wills eyes, to be young, without 
fully developed wings, and roughly grouped by type as the rings ascended from brownfolk to very 
colorful and larger Gyrkyme. 


 On the floor, however, things became very interesting. The visitors had been arranged by company in 
seven ranks, starting with one man, then two, then three, and so on until the seventh rank of seven. The 
remaining two members of the companyusually the senior officer and most decorated soldierwere 
pulled off into a separate mixed group of special guests. The visiting triangles pointed in at the fire, then 
inserted on either side of them were triangles of Gyrkyme, seven ranks deep, that pointed away from the 
fire. It took two rings to take up all the human guests, then a third ring made entirely of Gyrkyme handled 
the rest.

 On the floor, however, things became very interesting. The visitors had been arranged by company in 
seven ranks, starting with one man, then two, then three, and so on until the seventh rank of seven. The 
remaining two members of the companyusually the senior officer and most decorated soldierwere 
pulled off into a separate mixed group of special guests. The visiting triangles pointed in at the fire, then 
inserted on either side of them were triangles of Gyrkyme, seven ranks deep, that pointed away from the 
fire. It took two rings to take up all the human guests, then a third ring made entirely of Gyrkyme handled 
the rest.

 Kerrigan had likewise decided to observe Gyrkyme custom, which was pretty much the last thing Will 
needed to see. He figured that Kerrigan and Dranae massed about the same, but Dranae had it all 
arranged better and chose, as had Crow, to employ his cloth as a sash. A few others made it into a 
headband or armbands. Orla went the armband route, but instead of letting the ends hang free, she 
braided them down her left arm and knotted them off at her wrist. Qwc tied his around his waist, letting it 
trail after him like silver smoke as he flew, and Lombo had used his as a neckerchief, tying it with a big 
floppy bow that looked ridiculous, but Will felt no inclination to point that out.

 Ultimately, though, it fell to Alexia to put all others to shame. She actually wore three sashes, the other 
two being black and gold in addition to the silver. The black one, silken and not sheer, she wore as a 
loincloth with the ends hanging down to her knees. The gold cloth, likewise opaque, circled around her 
neck and then crossed down to cover her breasts before being knotted at the back. The silver cloth 
circled her waist, holding the loincloth in place, with the loose ends hanging at her left hip.

 When she appeared a gasp melted into murmurs amid the assembly. Will found her to be beautiful well 
beyond imagining. Shed always been pretty, and had haunted a dream or two of his, but her selection of 
gowns and her war kit had never displayed her charms so clearly. More impressive than just her physical 
beauty, however, was the regal bearing with which she moved beside the Tirigo. Shed always been 
graceful when Will had seen her at receptions, but never so free and fluid. Here, home, among those who 
raised her, she felt completely at ease and able to relax, which made her yet more alluring and attractive.

 Her noble presence also somehow elevated her above and beyond the position where Will had seen 
her before. As always he had thought of people in relation to his legend as Will the Nimble. Watching her 
move to the place of honor next to the leader of the Gyrkyme, he realized that she was a heroine of her 
own cycle of songs. Just as Kedyns Crow and the Azure Spider were sung of in the Dimandowns, she 
would entertain the worlds nobility. If Will the Nimble were ever to be sung of in one of her songs, he 
would play the fool, of this he had no doubt.

 He laughed to himself. And if she were sung of in any of my songs, Id play the fool. An accident 
of birth had thrust him into a position where he could be a hero, but shed clearly been meant for this 
through generations. He knew, no matter the prophecies and portents, that she would be more important 
to the world than he ever would be. Though he could feel a little piece of his dream dying, he made a 
silent and solemn pledge that hed make any effort needed to help her succeed.

 Alexia had been given the place of honor at the Tirigos right hand. The Tirogia, the leaders primary 
queen, sat at his left and to her left came General Adrogans. The Jeranese military leader opted to wear 
his strip of cloth as a loincloth. Though softer than Resolute, with fewer scars and no tattoos that Will 
could see, his flesh didnt sag and pool as Kerrigans did. Adrogans maintained a sense of dignity despite 
being nearly naked.

 The Tirigo managed to put everyone to shame regardless of dress. Hed donned a silver breechcloth, 
with black and gold ribbons edging it. He bade his guests seat themselves while he yet stood, then spread 
his wings in a most incredible display of plumage. His crest rose, flashing iridescent green feathers that 
spiked two feet above his head. Scintillating blue feathers covered him all over, save for shiny black on 
his face and breast, but the design worked into his wings made him yet more impressive. There, with hints 
of red and green surrounded by blue, two eyes looked out at the assembly. The gasps that had greeted 


Alexia rose again, then sank into a hushed and reverent silence.

Alexia rose again, then sank into a hushed and reverent silence.

 With that he furled his wings and sat, then nodded to a blackwinged Gyrkyme. That figure clapped 
once and motion returned to the room.

 Gyrkyme youths began to serve, passing through the ranks to hand out large bowls the size of 
washbasins Will had seen in the private chambers of rich households. Others moved around after that, 
with small wheeled carts dishing up rice and all manner of foods, both hot and cold. If there was a pattern 
to the delivery, Will could not figure it out. He just rotated his bowl to get each new offering in an empty 
spot.

 The vast majority of food Will had consumed in his lifetime had consisted of crusts and scraps, moldy 
cheese, weak broths, and fruits or vegetables easily stolen or scavenged from garbage heaps. While the 
fine foods offered at the various receptions had greatly expanded the universe of his culinary experience, 
it in no way prepared him for the sweet, savory, and spicy fare served to him that night.

 To eat, theyd been given small wooden paddles, shaped much like a spoon, but flatter and very 
flexible. A small dollop of rice would be teased from the center of the bowl, mixed with meat in a sauce, 
pressed together into a little disk, then scraped up and popped into the mouth. Sometimes the food just 
gushed sweetness over his tongue. Yet others exploded with a head-clearing aroma that set the area 
behind his face afire. To start hed gobbled quickly, but the first big gulp of spicy food had set his nose to 
running and made him slow down. Henceforth he attacked things more modestly.

 Sweat gathered on his forehead and ran down the back of his head. He glanced at Crow, who 
likewise sweated, and Resolute, who shaped his little food patties with great deliberation and precision. 
Both of them seemed to be enjoying the meal and a quick inventory of what had disappeared from their 
bowls indicated Wills tastes ran closer to Resolutes than Crows.

 The Tirigo waved away service after a point, and the servants withdrew from the area. When the last 
of them had left, the soft tones of flutes and horns began to drift down from the vaults of the great 
chamber. Will looked up, as did everyone else, and caught a quick glimpse of something plummeting 
freely from the rooms highest point.

 The item resolved itself into a huge long banner of black fabric, unrolling as it fell. Gold letters in all 
manner of scripts decorated its entire length. Will had no idea what they said, but the way they flashed in 
the firelight gave them a majesty and power. The banners tail snapped audibly as it finished, then a 
tongue of flame from the balefire licked at it.

 In an instant the entire banner exploded into a white-fire ribbon. Its brilliance stole Wills night sight, 
but as his vision cleared more swirling descended from the darkness above. Gyrkyme, black save for the 
red on shoulders and wings, wove their way in an intricate aerial dance. Some dove toward the ground, 
then swooped low, while others tightly circled, wingtips all but touching. Gyrkyme chased one another, 
reaching for the trailing ends of gold loincloths, banking and arcing, diving and then climbing with 
powerful wingstrokes.

 The clash of cymbals underscored the music that accompanied the winged ballet. It changed pace 
from slow to frenetic, shifting from coldly cultured to barbaric. Will couldnt take his eyes off the dancers 
and envied them their freedom. Their cries, which came in unison at breaks in the music, rang with pure 
pleasure that summoned a wide grin to the little thiefs face.

 After far too short a time, the company circled overhead so fast and so low that the breeze of their 
passing tousled Wills hair and tugged at the ends of his headband. Their circle tightened, then they 
descended, grounding themselves. They knelt and their wings overlapped in a black-and-scarlet disk 
surrounding the fire. Their bodies heaved with breathing, but they kept their heads down and hidden.

 Applause, unbridled and enthusiastic, arose from the humans, while keening calls from the Gyrkyme 
echoed through the room. The joyous cacophony filled the air as the entertainers had once done, and 
showed no sign of slackening. Will clapped his hands as hard as possible, and whistled as loudly as he 


could. Hed never seen anything like that performance before, and couldnt imagine seeing its like again.

could. Hed never seen anything like that performance before, and couldnt imagine seeing its like again.

 Once they had departed, the Tirigo bade Alexia stand. We have, among us, a tradition of honoring 
the best among us with the title Wing. The triangles in which you are seated mimic the pattern in which 
we fly, and that individual at the point acts as a guide. That position is the most difficult in a flock, not only 
because of leadership responsibilities, but because it demands the most physical strength. Those of us 
who follow have our wings lifted by the winds our leaders labor produces.

 Our Wings are known among us by their honorific. He who became Alexias father, after bringing her 
here from far Okrannel, is known to us as Ironwing. Taken beneath his wing, Alexia became the leader 
you know her to be. Now, with you, she shall return to Okrannel, to fulfill the mission for which she has 
been trained. From us, in acknowledgment of all she is and her value to us and the world, we proclaim 
her to be Goldwing.

 A small brown Gyrkyme approached bearing a cloth-covered tray. The Tirigo took a gold chain with 
a gold feather amulet on it and settled it over Alexias bowed head. The feather rested just below her 
throat, against her breastbone. He slipped her hair out from beneath the chain, then bowed to her.

 Alexia swallowed hard, then smiled carefully. A hand rose to touch the amulet, then she closed her 
eyes for a moment. When they opened again, it was to the accompaniment of applause and vocalizations 
by the Gyrkyme. Her smile broadened. She pressed a hand to her lips for a moment, then looked out 
over the assembly.

 Thank you, Ausai Tirigo, and you, the Gyrkyme. Here I

 was always the fledgling, the one whose wings never sprouted. You could have pitied me and reviled 
me, but you did not. All of you accepted the mission my father had given Ironwing. She opened her 
arms wide. While you see no feathers on me, the fact is that I am fletched with all you taught me about 
courage, honor, determination, and nobility. There might be some who would say my blood made me a 
diamond, but without your efforts I would have been dull and gone unnoticed.

 To be named Goldwing, this ... She faltered for a moment and glanced down before continuing. It is 
a dream we have all shared here, and yet I do not think myself worthy. Your confidence in me shall be an 
investment, and I shall make it pay handsomely for you. Whatever successes I have, all shall know they 
would never have been save for you.

 Alexias eyes hardened as her gaze swept over the men present. And you, my comrades, you now 
know the proud and beautiful womb from which I emerged. Together we will be born again of Gyrvirgul. 
West and north well go to the land of my birth, and together we can once again make it a home.

 IT! hough it was likely just her imagination, Alexia felt a I tingle run through her as she rode across the 
border X from Jerana into Okrannel. A granite obelisk, which had once stood tall but had been hacked 
and cracked to where she could see the jagged top from on horseback, marked the line between the two 
nations. She smiled, taking no offense at the broken obelisk, since the weathering proved it had been 
vandalized long before the Aurolani forces had ever invaded Okrannel.

 It did feel good to be in Okrannel. As with her previous journey, when she engaged in her dream raid, 
she concentrated to see if her blood would sing with joy at her return. So many of the other exiles 
reported such things that part of her wondered at how normal she was when it didnt happen to her. 
Though disappointed years ago, and a bit yet even now, she didnt worry about the silent fluid in her 
veins. The romance of a return has nothing in common with the reality.

 Alyx couldnt allow herself to be fully at ease, however, and again not because of the presence of 
Aurolani forces. The coast road brought the army past the Jeranese port city of Ooriz and up onto the 
Zhusk plateau. The plateau was home to a native people who, while primitive, had proved defiant and 
elusive. Adrogans, in explaining that hed set up his headquarters on the plateau, said that the Zhusk 
hated the Aurolani more than they did Okrans or Jeranese warriors, hence their willingness to help in the 


war.

war.

 The obelisk, in fact, had been destroyed by the Zhusk who never accepted that a portion of their 
plateau had long ago been ceded to Jerana. While Alyx took Adrogans at his word that the Zhusk were 
allies for the moment, the potential for trouble could not be ignored. She feared less for her personal 
safety than she did for Zhusk support vanishing when needed. Still, if Adrogans is inclined to trust 
them, I wont undermine his position unless necessary.

 The journey to Okrannel from Gyrvirgul had taken a full week and then sometwelve daysthough 
the travel had not been particularly hard and they had made good time. Having a full company of 
Warhawks available for long-range scouting virtually eliminated the threat of an ambush. Midway through 
Jerana several of the Gyrkyme were sent to Lakaslin to report to Queen Carus. Adrogans did impress 
Alyx by using multiple couriers for the same message, requiring them to get a receipt with their delivery 
that allowed him, on their return, to know exactly who had been given the message and when.

 The fact that he used winged messengers instead of ar-canslata did surprise her. She asked him about 
his choice and expected some frippery in reply, but he grew serious for a moment. Physical messages I 
can seal and send myself, limiting those who can read them. With an arcanslata, at the very least, the 
mage who sends the message knows what Ive written. Arcanslata are useful when speed of 
communication is vital, but secrecy is another matter entirely.

 The messages to the queen did include some sensitive information. On the road north the expedition 
did meet the Gurolans Stoneheart Battalion. The heavy infantry marched along at a solid pace, and were 
quite willing to march further during a day than the expedition required. While rather taciturn and keeping 
to themselves in camp, at night they gathered together and filled the evening with rousing ballads of valiant 
deeds from their history.

 The expedition arrived at Adrogans base in mid-afternoon on the last day of their journey and Caro 
immediately ceded command back to Adrogans. The army spread out through a valley, the center of 
which had been cleared for years. At the camps heart lay a collection of daub-and-wattle huts with 
thatched roofs that were clearly of Zhusk manufacture. Spreading out around them, grouped by 
nationality, were the troops that had shipped up from Yslin. Helurca, Alcida, Jerana, Naliserro, Valicia, 
and Loquellyn were all well represented and the cavalry companies soon joined their countrymen in 
setting up -tneir own camps. The Vilwanese, Gyrkyme, Savarese Knights, and the mercenaries all staked 
out their own territory a bit further away from the village center. The Gyrkyme picked a small hill toward 
the northeast that provided them height from which to fly, and had the added advantage of being as far 
away from the elves as possible.

 Alyx turned her horse over to one of her Wolves, then marched along with General Caro to the 
longhouse where

 Adrogans dwelt. The building was easily twice as deep as it was wide, and the third of it nearest the 
door was devoted to sleeping mats and baggage. Neither the accommodations nor their arrangement 
supported the image of Adrogans as fop. That illusion would have been impossible to maintain given the 
way the rest of the longhouse had been laid out, but the lack of pretense surprised Alyx.

 The vast majority of the building had been given over to maps hung from walls, and a huge table on 
which Okrannel had been modeled. Little wooden blocks had been painted up with the appropriate 
regimental colors and placed on the landscape, representing the coalition forces gathered to oppose 
Chytrine. Oddly enough, Alyx noted, given the maps scale, the placement of the headquarters showed 
them to be twenty miles north of their true position. Does he suspect a spy here who might give us 
away to Chytrine? 


 Aside from Caro, Adrogans, and herself, and a half-dozen Jeranese troopers applying calipers to 
maps and carrying measurements to the model or vice versa, the longhouse held only two other 
individuals. The male, scrawny and small, with skin darkened by dirt and sun, smiled gap-toothed at 
them. What little hair he did have was worn long enough to cover his shoulders. Beads and 
bonesstrung round his neck, piercing his ears, or affixed to his leathery flesh with small metal 
ringsappeared to be Zhusk talismans of power. A woven loincloth secured by a braided leather belt 
served as his only clothing.

 Aside from Caro, Adrogans, and herself, and a half-dozen Jeranese troopers applying calipers to 
maps and carrying measurements to the model or vice versa, the longhouse held only two other 
individuals. The male, scrawny and small, with skin darkened by dirt and sun, smiled gap-toothed at 
them. What little hair he did have was worn long enough to cover his shoulders. Beads and 
bonesstrung round his neck, piercing his ears, or affixed to his leathery flesh with small metal 
ringsappeared to be Zhusk talismans of power. A woven loincloth secured by a braided leather belt 
served as his only clothing.

 Adrogans smiled. General Turpus Caro you already know. Phfas of the Zhusk and Beal mot Tsuvo, I 
present to you Princess Alexia of Okrannel.

 The Zhusk broadened his grin and cackled a bit, but said nothing intelligible.

 The Guranin warrior dropped to one knee and bowed her head, letting her blonde hair ripple down to 
veil her face. It is an honor of unknowable proportion to be presented to you, Highness.

 Alyx nodded slowly. The honor is mine, and the glory is to Clan Tsuvo. The ability of the highland 
clans to hold off the Aurolani is legend among the exiles, but for you to have arrived here, crossing 
through their lands, requires courage that only runs in highland veins.

 Phfas snorted. Ask who guided them here, Svarskya.

 The princess cocked her head as the Zhusk made the capitals name into a curse. Forgive me, Phfas, 
but the identity of their guides I had long since puzzled out. Not only would they not have found their way 
here, but they could not have remained without the forbearance of the Zhusk. Just as they would not be 
here, neither would I, since it was in these forests as a babe I slept in the arms of Preylnosery Ironwing. 
Without your blessing, neither he nor I would ever have left Okrannel.

 Ine little man cackled. You were here, so you had al-reidy left Okrannel.

 A point lost on the enemy we both face.

 Phfas tugged on a bone carving of a raven set into the extended lobe of his right ear. Hearing wisdom 
from Svarskya is an omen of hope.

 Adrogans stepped to the large model of the countryside. In the hopes we have more such omens, 
please, if you would join me.

 Beal rose and slipped past Adrogans. Alyx slid around the other side of the table to stand beside her, 
leaving Adrogans and Caro at the southern border. Phfas hovered near the corner with his beloved 
plateau, crouching so that little of his face below his eyes was visible.

 The Jeranese general narrowed his eyes. This represents the current strategic situation as nearly as we 
can make out. Our forces here number approximately seventeen hundred cavalry and three thousand 
infantry. Our object is to descend from the plateau here and lay siege to Svoin. The city, back when the 
Aurolani forces conquered it, was home to nearly twenty thousand men, women, and children, with a 
small Vorquelf population. We believe, at the most, that the city now houses a quarter that number. It 
serves as the headquarters for one of Chytrines regiments and is supplemented by a Vorquelf legion.

 Caro shook his head. Vorquelves working for Chytrine? I cant believe that.

 Phfas head bobbed as if floating in a choppy ocean. The witch has them hunt us, but they fail.

 Adrogans nodded. It would appear there are some Vorquelf hostages being held by the Aurolani. I 
dont know that we can liberate them prior to the siege, but any plan to do so would be one I would be 
willing to entertain.

 Alyx frowned. Slipping a force into an enemy-held city, to find people who might or might not exist, 
and get them out while an army is laying siege to the city would be suicide.

 Does that mean you wont take the assignment, Princess?

 Alyxs head came up. What?

 The Jeranese generals eyes half lidded. Just a question, inspired by your raid on the building in Yslin. 


It strikes me as a puzzle you and your compatriots might be able to solve.

It strikes me as a puzzle you and your compatriots might be able to solve.

 Light Aurolani infantry is gibberers led by vylaens. Heavy is gibberers with a fair number of hoargoun 
backing them. No sighting of draconetteers among them, but the heavy infantry do include some men. 
Adrogans frowned. The giants are ponderous and slow, but tough to kill.

 So legend has it, General. Alyx smothered a growl. My father died at ones hands.

 Beal rested a hand on Alyxs shoulder. It was a sullan-ciri, Highness. Nothing less could have slain 
your father.

 I appreciate that thought, mot Tsuvo, but to somehow let ourselves believe hoargoun are not deadly 
in and of themselves is foolish. Alyx looked over across the table at Adrogans. The cavalry is 
temeryces?

 Light is frostclaws, yes. Heavy is made up of grand temeryces carrying armored men and gibberers. 
Again, no draconettes.

 And the sullanciriAdrogans pointed to Svarskya on the north coast nearest Alyx. Malarkex remains 
there with two regiments, one of foo!, the other of cavalry. The red flag there in the city indicates our 
information about her placement is too old to bi reliable. The yellow flag on the road regiment means its 
three days old, whereas the green in Svoin tells us its current.

 Communicated to you by Vorquelves who venture out and die in expeditions against the Zhusk?

 Adrogans smiled as Phfas cackled. You are very perceptive, Princess.

 Youre too kind. Alyx sighed. The problems with liberating Svoin are overwhelming. The road 
regiment is in a position to lift the siege on the city. The land around Svoin, if your map is at all accurate, 
is marshy, and this summer was far from hot enough to dry it out. As a result cavalry will have a hard time 
operating there. Bringing in siege equipment and moving it will also be tough.

 The Jeranese general shook his head. It was not a wet winter, nor has the summer brought a lot of 
rain. While the watertable there is high, the lake is down. The earth will be solid enough for our 
purposes.

 That is good then, but for all sides. Alyx chewed her lower lip for a moment. If the city holds out for 
any time at all, bringing a relief force down from Svarskya means well be caught in the basin. Fighting 
our way free will be bloody.

 I agree, but when we have the city, repulsing the relief forces will be easy.

 Its rather optimistic to suppose you can take Svoin with what we have and repair it fast enough to 
hold Malarkex off; and thats provided that she takes her time coming down from Svarskya.

 Adrogans waved away her protest. The city wont hold out long enough to matter. Our scouts report 
no hope of that. Guranin raiding from the highlands down into the Svarskya region will pull some Aurolani 
forces west, putting at least two rivers between them and our position. There are many details, of course, 
to be dealt with, but I have no doubt we will accomplish our objectives.

 Alyx glanced up at General Caro. What do you think?

 Caro stroked a hand over his chin. Risky, but feasible. Realistically, Svoin is the only objective we 
could hope to take and hold before winter sets in, and I dont want to be on this plateau when snow 
begins to fly. Plans will have to be modified depending upon locations of enemy troops, their strength and 
the like, but if the intelligence proves good, I can see proceeding.

 She nodded her head slowly. I see. Well, I look forward to working out the details of the campaign.

 Adrogans shook his head. You neednt concern yourself with them.

 What?

 Thats for General Caro, his counterparts among the other forces, and me to do. I need you to work 
on saving the hostages. In the next building over we have a layout

 FORTRESS Dk^CONIS

 of the city. We have their locations determined as best we can. 


 Her violet eyes blazed. Youre not serious.

 Her violet eyes blazed. Youre not serious.

 The Zhusk shaman nodded once. Alyx blinked. I think your last reason is the paramount one, and I 
need more explanation than that.

 In fact, Princess, you do not. Adrogans gave her an infuriating little smile. You have your task. If 
you fail, so will we. There is no one else to whom I could entrust the planning and execution of this 
mission.

 Alyx frowned. Why would you hate me so? The Jeranese general frowned. Hate you? Its your 
ability I admire, Princess. Im giving this task to you because it is the one problem here I cannot solve. If 
you can, the liberation of Okrannel may actually be possible.

 Will slung his blanket around him like a cloak in an effort to cut the chill creeping through the camp 
with dusk. Qwc, who had launched himself into the air as Will began the move, flutter-buzzed back to 
resume his perch on the thiefs left shoulder. Will smiled despite the light sting of a wing hitting an ear.

 Easy, Qwc, I have use for that ear.

 Hearing praises, hearing. The Spritha reached out and tugged on his ear. Hit they get, hit, because 
big they grow with praises.

 Thats not true.

 Lie, foul lie.

 Though the Sprithas voice remained light, and Will caught not even a hint of a whiff of malice in the 
words, they did sting. Most of the soldiers in the camp had seen him in passing in Yslin, and clearly 
stories about who he was and what he would do had raced through the camp faster than the red pox. 
The cavalry troops supplemented stories with what they had seen and heard on the road which 
shouldnt have been much since he didnt do anything but ride, sleep, and talk, Despite that, soldiers gave 
him smiles and nods when, three months earlier, theyd have cuffed and kicked him back to the Dim.

 Part of him could understand what they saw in him. The fact that a prophecy said hed finish Chytrine 
made them happier and more confident. Having him on their side meant they had an edge in battle. 
Chytrines defeat was preordained and now the only tough work would be convincing her of that fact.

 Will did notice one subtlety in the good wishes and brags folks made within his earshot. Jeranese 
forces regularly linked him and Adrogans as an unbeatable pair. The Okrans forces included Alexia when 
praising him, and most vocal were the Guranin highlanders.

 The Zhusk tribesmen tended to stay away from Will, which surprised him. Phfas, the headman, had 
looked him over very thoroughly, running hands through his hair, checking his teeth, tugging on his arms, 
examining his hands and feet. The old man spent a long time staring him in the eyes, and whenever Will 
would glance away, Phfas hemmed and hawed, or hawked and spat, muttering something Will couldnt 
understand at all.

 Will found the Zhusk tribesman as intriguing as he did intimidating. Whereas Resolute had decorated 
himself with tattoos of magickal import, Phfas had all sorts of bone carvings, stone figures, and metal bits 
clipped into his skin. Will couldnt be certain, but he thought some of the talismans were replaced from 
time to time, or moved, but no scheme or reason for doing so presented itself to him.

 What intimidated Will, and made Phfas something more than an old man hed have dismissed as insane 
in Yslin, was the strength in the mans hands. Steely fingers poked and prodded Will. When the old man 
pulled on his arms, or gave him a shove, Will lost his balance. And the one time he tried to shove back he 
felt as if he could have more easily moved Gyrvirgul. 

Something just isnt right about Phfas. Whatever it was, Will couldnt figure it out, but he was 
happy that the Zhusk and his people kept away from him. Will would have asked Resolute what was 
going on, but the Vorquelf had been in a singularly poor humor since the first night, when Alexia had 


called them together to talk about the coming campaign and the battle for Svoin.

called them together to talk about the coming campaign and the battle for Svoin.

 More, listen more to Alexia, that is what I think. Qwc pointed with two arms toward the longhouse 
where Alexia had been planning her part in the campaign. Help, Will, help them.

 He sighed and tipped his head back, closing his eyes. Resolute keeps chewing on me because Vorks 
are working for Chytrine. I know why that makes him angry, but what did I do?

 More, you can do more.

 Will growled, then rolled his shoulders, opened his eyes, and marched into the village. You have an 
annoying way of being right, Qwc.

 The Spritha laughed, flew up in a loop, then turned, flying backward, waving Will on. Will, brave 
Will, smart, Will, smart.

 Qwc flew on and made a grand show of struggling to push the curtain in the doorway aside for him.

 The thief ducked his head and, entering, quickly scanned the room. Alexia, Perrine, Crow, Beal mot 
Tsuvo, and Orla crowded around the table. Orla hid a yawn behind a hand, and the others had fatigue 
shadows beneath their eyes. Back in the far corner Kerrigan had collapsed and snored lightly. Opposite 
him Resolute rasped a whetstone along the edge of a longknife. Of Lombo and Dranae he saw no sign, 
and he even glanced up into the rafters to see if the Panqui had hidden himself in the shadows up there.

 Crow acknowledged his entrance with a quick nod. Welcome back.

 Thanks. Will approached the long table in the middle of the building quietly, less worried about 
breaking Alexias concentration than giving Resolute something to complain about. The situation on the 
table-hadnt changed that he could see since early that morning. A half-dozen buildings bore flags that 
indicated that hostages had been held there, but the situation flags were all yellow, indicating the 
information was fast slipping into uselessness.

 Alexia shook her head. I agree, sister, that if the hostages could paint some sign on lintels, or hang 
rags out of windows, that you and the Warhawks could fly over and scout their positions. The difficulty 
comes in two areas: a quick move of the hostages would invalidate your information, and more hideous, if 
someone betrays the signals, wed be drawn into traps.

 Orla frowned. Spells could locate the hostages, provided things close to them could be smuggled out 
of the city and used to make a link to them. The difficulty there is that the use of magick might alert the 
Aurolani forces to our mission, or could be altered to lead us into a trap.

 Alyx slowly shook her head. The whole thing could be a trap. I cant fault Adrogans assessment of 
the benefits from rescuing the hostages, but the cost will be excessive. Phfas is pushing to have us do this, 
and I dont like that at all.

 Beal nodded. Princess, I understand your reservations about Phfas. You know that we highlanders 
have no love of the Zhusk, but since I have been here, there are things I have learned. Nothing 
quantifiable, but Phfas has an insight. I think he sees the land differently than we do and that, perhaps, the 
rescue of the Vorquelves will influence the weirun. The simple fact is, however, that as long as we are 
positioned to rescue the Vorquelves, we will have Zhusk support. Without it, the campaign will not 
succeed.

 The princess sighed. I know, which is why were doing this. We need to consolidate the hostages. If 
we cant use magick without detection, then infiltration is our only other option. Is that feasible?

 The Guranin woman reached out and pointed at each suspected haven as she counted them.

 Will scratched at the back of his neck. That detecting magick thing, how does it work?

 Before Orla could answer, Resolute growled, Stop wasting their time, boy. You dont know anything 
about a military mission like this. When we get in and need locks opened, then you will be useful.

 Crow looked over at him. What are you thinking, Will?

 Will shrugged abruptly, unseating the Spritha.

 Qwc grabbed at Wills tunic with all four hands, dangling down over his left breast. Sorry, very 
sorry. Climbing up hand over hand over hand, the Spritha righted himself.

 The thief shrugged again, more subdued this time. Well, I was thinking that Resolute is right. I dont 


know about military stuff. Im just a thief, so Im looking at it the way a thief would. Now, if I was out to 
steal a hundred things that had been split up for safekeeping, that would be tough. So I was thinking that 
maybe you could convince the Aurolani to bring them all together. Or at least they could move them to 
places where you knew they would be.

know about military stuff. Im just a thief, so Im looking at it the way a thief would. Now, if I was out to 
steal a hundred things that had been split up for safekeeping, that would be tough. So I was thinking that 
maybe you could convince the Aurolani to bring them all together. Or at least they could move them to 
places where you knew they would be.

 Okay, youve been thinking about trying to go in through the sewers, right? Come up as close to 
these buildings as possible, inside them if you can, right?

 Alexia slowly nodded. We have to get in unseen and thats the easiest way.

 Will smiled. Okay, couple parts to this plan. The first is to make them think their places for holding 
the hostages arent any good. If I were going to steal stuff, I might break in and leave indications I was 
there, as if I almost got caught. If we got folks into the sewers and used some sort of magick so the 
Aurolani did detect it, we could make them think we were scouting out where the hostages were.

 Resolute rose from his chair and crossed to the three-dimensional map of Svoin. They would know 
where we were going to strike, so they would move the hostages.

 Right, and Peri or one of the Warhawks could be flying high and see them move. We find out where 
they are that way. Since there are only a few buildings that are solid enough to use to hold the prisoners, 
it narrows down their choices.

 The Vorquelfs silver eyes tightened. Thats relying too much on the stupidity of the enemy, boy.

 Beal nodded in agreement. Besides which, if we show the Aurolani that we can come in by the 
sewers, they will have troops ready to ambush us when we do come through.

 Will smiled. And how will they know were coming? . Resolute snorted. Whats the answer youre 
looking for, boy?

 The thief sighed. What Im thinking is that they will have their vylaens looking to detect magick in the 
sewers. They will send squads of gibberers down there looking to get us.

 Crow frowned. I thought we wanted to avoid that, Will.

 Yes, so I was thinking if there was a way to make something like sewer rats magickal, they would 
end up detecting the rats as they moved around.

 The Vorquelf shook his head. No such spells.

 Couldnt we tattoo them like you?

 No, boy. Resolute shook his head. The tattoos are difficult to get and require an intelligence to 
make work. Magister, am I wrong?

 Orla shook her head. Theres no spell that will make the rats give off traces of magick.

 Forgive me, Magister, but thats not exactly right. There isnt one now, but I could make one up. 
Kerrigan yawned, then rubbed sleep from his eyes as he struggled into a sitting position. It could be 
done, and fairly easily. Alexia whirled. Really? How?

 The fat Adept rolled to his feet. Well, it would be a variation of the arcanslata spell, triggered 
through the Law of Contagion. We would take a large rock and shatter it. Each piece would be linked to 
every other piece. We enchant them to strengthen that bond, then tie a small piece to each of the rats. A 
larger piece remains behind and a mage will pulse a spell into that larger piece, which would then be 
passed to the smaller pieces. If he made the big rock glow in the dark, the smaller rocks would also 
glow. Any vylaens looking to detect magick would pick up on that spell. And the beauty of this system is 
that different mages could use different spellsas could the same mage, creating different but similar 
traces, confusing the vylaens into thinking it is a huge invasion force.

 Will nodded and pointed to Kerrigan. Exactly.

 Resolute raised an eyebrow. You mean to say you understood what he said?

 Um, well, not exactly, but it sounded like it would work.

 It will work. Kerrigan nodded once, setting his jowls to quivering.

 It actually could work. Orla leaned heavily on her staff. The trick will be getting ourselves into the 
city. If we dont use the sewers to get in, we will be highly visible.

 Alexia turned back to the map and tapped a finger against her chin. Perhaps not. People are still 
catching fish and otherwise making use of the lake. Perhaps we should have our people join the city 


residents as they return to Svoin.

residents as they return to Svoin.

 Crow rubbed a hand over his face. I may be so sleepy that I dont see what you do, but unarmed 
people arent going to be able to rescue the hostages.

 Youre right, Crow, but our people will only go in unarmed. I would like to employ the Warhawks in 
nocturnal raids on the city. Theyd shoot arrows, use spears, and otherwise make life miserable for the 
garrison forces on the walls. In the aftermath of those raids they should be able to drop bundles of 
weapons and light armor which our Vorquelf confederates can hide. If that is not feasible, we use Wills 
plan to overwhelm the vylaens by picking a route in that will have no rats. Unless the vylaens plot magick 
against an existing map of the sewers and notice an area where there is no activity and send forces there, 
we ought to be in quickly.

 Orla nodded. We can pick a route determined by where they place the hostages. We head back out 
through the sewers, or perhaps fight our way to the docks and take a ship out.

 Peri flicked a taloned finger against one of the larger ship models in the port. Firecocks would slow 
pursuit.

 Good thinking, sister. Alexia looked at the people assembled around the table. Flaws?

 There are some, certainly, Highness. Crow placed his left hand on Alexias right shoulder. I suspect 
none of us is sufficiently rested to spot anything more than the obvious ones at the moment.

 The Vorquelf leaned forward, resting his elbows on the edge of the table. The entry into the city is 
very risky, but getting the hostages out will be more so. Securing a building and holding off the Aurolani 
forces isnt going to work because they will overwhelm us at some point. A fighting retreat through the 
sewers or streets will kill the hostages. We need to be able to evacuate them quickly. If we had a 
thousand Warhawks we could just fly them all to safety, but were stuck in that regard.

 Yours is an excellent point, Resolute, as was Crows.

 Alexia hooked blonde hair behind her right ear. I suggest we all get something to eat, then get some 
sleep and come back at this tomorrow morning. Im sure there is a solution to Resolutes problem, as 
well as any others we may spot.

 She smiled and nodded her head toward Will. And, thank you, Will, for your insight. Youre right, 
this wasnt a military problem so much as it was a theft. Well steal the hostages away from Svoin, 
somehow we will, but this is a wonderful start.

 Will beamed at her praise, and didnt stop all evening, despite Resolutes scowls and Qwcs teasing. 
He even smiled as he drifted off to sleep, and that smile broadened as he dreamed. Not because he 
dreamed of Alexia, but because he dreamed up a solution to Resolutes problem. He awoke with enough 
of the dream still in his head to reconstruct the whole of it. And Will the Nimble, King of the 
Dimandowns, knew it would work.

 A lexia had found Wills plan for dealing with the hostage ^4 evacuation intriguing. She took pleasure 
in Adrogans i llook of surprise when the thief explained it, but he agreed to it a bit too quickly for Alyx 
to feel truly comfortable. The plan, while imaginative, required logistical and materiel support that she 
didnt think the expedition had. Dealing with those details, however, passed from her hands to Beal mot 
Tsuvo. Adrogans had another job for her.

 The Jeranese general announced his immediate intention to march to Svoin. Your Wolves will 
accompany the Zhusk in a reconnaissance-in-force. I want to know what is out there before us. Youre 
to watch and not engage large forces. But take on smaller bands, learn what you can of Svoin and 
Aurolani forces; this will be important.

 Adrogans allowed her to supplement her Wolves with Resolute, Crow, Dranae, Peri, and two other 
Warhawks. He said he wanted the Norrington kept close to work with Beal on the hostage rescue, but 
both of them knew risking Will on a scouting mission was stupid. His presence with the

 main body would raise morale, while his loss in her company would irreparably damage it. 


 The reconnaissance force consisted of just shy of three hundred soldiers. The Zhusk tribesmen rode 
stout little mountain ponies that navigated tracks clinging to the sides of hills and mountains with an 
amazing amount of heart. The trails they rode wound down deep into valleys where thick vegetation hid 
the sun, and past long waterfalls that spawned rainbows from their mist. The Zhusk, while not seeming to 
pay that much attention to their surroundings, appeared to be preternaturally aware of how far Aurolani 
forces had corne into their territory, and often pointed out campsites or other signs of invasion.

 The reconnaissance force consisted of just shy of three hundred soldiers. The Zhusk tribesmen rode 
stout little mountain ponies that navigated tracks clinging to the sides of hills and mountains with an 
amazing amount of heart. The trails they rode wound down deep into valleys where thick vegetation hid 
the sun, and past long waterfalls that spawned rainbows from their mist. The Zhusk, while not seeming to 
pay that much attention to their surroundings, appeared to be preternaturally aware of how far Aurolani 
forces had corne into their territory, and often pointed out campsites or other signs of invasion.

 The reconnaissance force kept its rate of advance slow and cautious. It meant theyd not outdistance 
the main army, precluding an Aurolani force slipping undetected between them and setting up an ambush. 
For the most part Alyxs force traveled to particular objectives as quickly as was prudent, then sent 
scouts out laterally and a bit forward on the wings to get some inkling of what the next day would bring. 
Reports were prepared with care and sent by Gyrkyme back to Adrogans who, in turn, acknowledged 
them and requested information about certain targets.

 Three days out, entering the foothills that separated the plateau edge from the downslope into the 
Svoin basin, scouts reported activity at an iron mine. Human slaves overseen by gibberers, vylaens, and 
at least one Vorquelf were pulling ore from the mine and loading it into carts drawn by mules for the long 
trek back to Svoin. The citys smiths would transform the raw ore into iron and steel.

 In consultation with Agitare, Crow, and Resolute, Alyx decided to take the mine and free the 
prisoners. Given that scouts only reported a dozen Aurolani troops present at the site, the Wolves would 
easily take the prize. Alyx elected to wait until darkness provided cover for both Zhusk and Alcidese 
soldiery. That also gave them a chance to stop the wagon train leaving the mine.

 The wagon train consisted of a half-dozen creaky old wagons with six mules pulling each, and two 
human slaves per wagon. A Vorquelf with long flowing black hair, eyes of a deep blue, and decorated 
with a few tattoos rode at the head of the column, while two gibberers with pikes walked at the back, 
and one walked along at each side of the middle of the procession.

 Peri kept watch over the wagon train while a dozen Zhusks accompanied Resolute, Crow, Alyx, and 
Phfas on a fast advance along game trails that paralleled the road. The Zhusks and Crow carried bows, 
Resolute his longknives, and Alyx her sword. Phfas carried no weapons. Alyx had been afraid he would 
slow the ambushing squad, but he showed great agility and stamina moving through the forests. They all 
managed to work up a sweat as they hurried on foot to a small hill where the wagon train would have to 
slow its already torpid pace to get the heavy wagons up to the crest.

 They reached the ambush site well ahead of the wagons. Alyx split the Zhusks in half, sending six with 
Crow to the far side of the trail. Both sets of archers were positioned so their shots would not strike each 
other, meaning they were ordered to shoot at an angle down the trail instead of straight across. Alyx, 
Resolute, and Phfas remained toward the uphill side of things, since Resolute had his own idea for dealing 
with the renegade Vorquelf.

 With everyone in position, they waited. To her left, Resolute remained all but motionless. Since his 
silver eyes had no pupils, Alyx couldnt even guess what he was looking at. In some ways she imagined 
he was not really studying the scene before him, but pulling some other vision from his memory. He 
seemed too calm to be preparing for combat. She shivered. He had to be one of the most frightening 
individuals alive.

 Phfas sat cross-legged on the ground and brushed his fingers over plant leaves and flower blossoms 
with a childlike abandon. He lifted up mats of wet, brown leaves, then watched the chaotic scurry of ants 
carrying away egg-cases. His motions, and the light humming he engaged in, would not betray the 
ambush, and gave him a youthful innocence she had not suspected he could possess. There were 
moments, though, when the humming faded, the smile froze, and the eyes grew distant, that made her 


wonder if he were not sharing Resolutes vision, or seeing something entirely different. Something dark 
and nasty, not for a child at all.

wonder if he were not sharing Resolutes vision, or seeing something entirely different. Something dark 
and nasty, not for a child at all.

 She wondered, for a moment, how Crow was occupying his time. He certainly had an arrow nocked. 
She found it easy to imagine him picking at the black lacquer coating on his bow, chipping off pieces of it 
to reveal the silverwood beneath. Only elves made silverwood bows, and shed never seen one styled 
like the horse-bow Crow carried. Such a weapon in a mans possession meant the elves felt him worthy 
of such an honorand the fact that hed hidden his bows nature while in Yslin was cause for curiosity.

 Phfas brought his head up sharply, which broke her out of her reverie. Resolute just stretched and rose 
to a knee. Down toward the base of the hill the wagons stopped and the slaves on the second one 
started to unhitch their mules so a double team could be used to haul the first wagon to the top of the hill. 
The gibberers milled around in a knot toward the back of the procession, while the Vorquelf rode his 
black stallion halfway up the hill, then turned in the saddle to watch those behind him. In addition to a 
sword on his hip, the Vorquelf had a silverwood longbow resting athwart the horses shoulders, and a 
sheaf of arrows in a saddle quiver before his right knee.

 Resolute slid silently from cover and barked harsh words in Elvish.

 The mounted Vorquelfs horse came around as the silverwood bow came up. The Vorquelf nocked, 
drew, and released in an eyeblink. Since the plan had been for them to take him alive if at all possible, 
none of the archers had been instructed to shoot him. And even if one had, no one could have shot 
before he did.

 Alyx looked toward Resolute, certain shed see an arrow quivering in his chest, but he stood there, 
startled and wide-eyed, still unharmed. Nothing obstructed her view of him, or the arrow slowly revolving 
in the air, barely a yard from his breastbone. The leaves surrounding the hole in the foliage through which 
she looked did quiver, matching the palsied tremor of Phfas extended left hand.

 Elsewhere bowstrings sang and gibberers howled. Crow whistled loudly, letting everyone know the 
gibberers were down and dead. All that passed into the background, however, as Resolute raised his 
right hand and plucked the arrow from the air. He studied it for a moment, then cast it back over his 
shoulder.

 The other Vorquelf snapped a comment in Elvish, then returned the bow to the saddle quiver. Bringing 
his right foot up over the horses neck, the Vorquelf slid fluidly from the saddle and drew a straight 
longsword. Clad in sleeveless leathers as was Resolute, the Vorquelf waved him forward.

 Resolute drew both longknives and advanced. The window in the foliage collapsed, forcing Alyx to 
shift around to watch the road. Phfas joined her, a bit winded, his skin glowing with sweat. His mouth 
opened in a silent cackle that sent a shiver through her.

 Resolute stood taller than his foe, and it wasnt just the spiky height of his white hair that gave him that 
advantage. In every way he was bigger than his enemy, but the smaller Vorquelf didnt seem concerned. 
He dropped into a fighting stance, still waving Resolute toward him, then dashed forward in a quick 
attack.

 Resolute sidestepped the lunge, twisting to let it pass from left to right along his body. He flipped the 
longknife in his right hand around so the blade lay flat against his forearm, then raised that forearm to 
parry the backhand slash his enemy launched. Continuing his forward momentum inside his foes guard, 
Resolute brought his left elbow up. He smashed it into the Vorquelfs face.

 The Vorquelf staggered for a half step. Resolutes right hand came around, the longknife coming back 
off his forearm. With one quick swipe, Resolute could have laid the Vorquelfs throat open, but instead 
he just punched the black-haired elf in the face, snapping his head around to the left.

 The Vorquelf stumbled back two steps and Resolute ate up that distance with one strong stride. The 


silver-eyed Vorquelf kicked his enemy full in the stomach, dropping him to his knees. The other Vorquelf 
abandoned his sword and clutched his stomach, then retched his last meal into a thick puddle. Behind him 
his horse shied away.

silver-eyed Vorquelf kicked his enemy full in the stomach, dropping him to his knees. The other Vorquelf 
abandoned his sword and clutched his stomach, then retched his last meal into a thick puddle. Behind him 
his horse shied away.

 Alyx emerged from hiding, glancing at the arrow on the ground, then up at Resolute. Pure fury 
contorted his face, matching the tone of his words. She didnt want to know what Resolute had said, nor 
did she need to know. The other elf held himself, his body wracked with sobs.

 Resolute snorted. He says his name is Banausic. Im sure he picked it when he started working for 
Chytrine. At least a quarter of a century ago he had a sense of shame.

 Resolute! Crow, coming up from where the Zhusk worked on freeing the wagon crews, stopped 
short of Banausic. The Vorquelf had dragged himself over to his sword and was bringing it to hand. For a 
heartbeat Alyx feared the elf would plunge it deep into his flesh, but he remained hunched over and 
brought the point nowhere near his heart or belly.

 Instead he let the blade lay flat in his palms and raised it in Resolutes direction.

 Snorting again, Resolute walked over and kicked the sword out of the other Vorquelfs hands. Why 
would I want a sword that couldnt beat a longknife? Even the name Banausic is too good for you. You 
should be known as Wretched or Pathetic or Nothing.

 The utter contempt in Resolutes voice brought his foes head up. Perhaps Irredeemable would suit.

 You better hope not, or youll leave a lot more blood on the road here. Resolute slowly shook his 
head. You want to be of use to me? How many Aurolani troops at the mine?

 Sixteen. Four vylaens, eight gibberers, two men overseers, and two spies within the slave crew. The 
Vorquelf glanced back down the road. The redheaded driver is also a spy.

 And my reason for believing you is? Banausics head snapped up and his blue eyes blazed. You 
defeated me. I offered you my sword.

 Chytrine defeated you. You offered her your sword. The kneeling elfs nostrils flared. I offer you 
my word of honor. My family...

 Your family is dead. All our families are dead. If you had any honor Id not have found you here.

 I did what I had to do, to stay alive. Banausic sighed and seemed to shrink. I knew this day would 
come. There are things Ive seen, things I know that you need to know.

 Resolutes eyes narrowed. So tell me.

 No, I can tell you much, but not all these things. Ill tell you what you need to know to take Svoin. 
The other things ... If I tell them, shell know, and will kill me.

 This is pathetic. Resolute shook his head solemnly. I should kill you for that transparent plea for 
sympathy alone.

 Not if you want to redeem Vorquellyn. The Vorquelf swiped a hand across his mouth, smearing 
blood over his cheek. Ill be Pathetic, if you want. Anything, it doesnt matter. Take Svoin. Kill 
Malarkex. Once she is dead, I will tell you all I know and you will be glad I did.

 And why is that, Pathetic?

 The Vorquelf spat blood onto the ground. After the fall of Okrannel, they took me home, to 
Vorquellyn. I saw Chytrine create one of her sullanciri there. I know what else she wanted to do and 
why she failed. I dont know how to stop her, but I know how to undo much of what shes done.

 He tapped a slender finger against his head. Its all up here. Kill me now or let me die, and 
Vorquellyn will be lost forever.

 jypg a journal, Kerrigan decided, would keep him

 ^saneif it didnt drive him crazy first. The idea of chronicling his adventures had come to him after he 
caught a chance remark by Resolute in the wake of one of Wills rhymes. The Vorquelf had said, If 
thats the best you can come up with for a bit of song, minstrels will let your history die. 


 The Adept refused to admit to himself that a strong part of his motivation was a shocked indignation at 
the idea that Will might be remembered in song while he would be forgotten. Almost instantly his mind 
flashed back to the grand history of Vilwan and how a chronicle of his adventures might be a vital chapter 
in the history of magicians. After all, hed survived the culling of the innocent, hed fashioned a new 
magick to save a Panqui, had lived through a brush with deviltry in Yslin, and had visited Gyrvirgul. That 
alone would have been enough to make a nice little travelogue, but the coming siege of Svoin and his role 
in saving the hostages, that would be a truly heroic tale.

 The Adept refused to admit to himself that a strong part of his motivation was a shocked indignation at 
the idea that Will might be remembered in song while he would be forgotten. Almost instantly his mind 
flashed back to the grand history of Vilwan and how a chronicle of his adventures might be a vital chapter 
in the history of magicians. After all, hed survived the culling of the innocent, hed fashioned a new 
magick to save a Panqui, had lived through a brush with deviltry in Yslin, and had visited Gyrvirgul. That 
alone would have been enough to make a nice little travelogue, but the coming siege of Svoin and his role 
in saving the hostages, that would be a truly heroic tale.

Wills song will be entertainment; I will create history.

 The difficulty with creating history was that it required a bit more in the way of materiel than did a 
song. For all that General Adrogans had requisitioned ample food and supplies, writing materials seemed 
scarce and tightly controlled. The general, it seemed to Kerrigan, had a near-pathological fear that 
someone might use the sort of spells that created arcanslata to enchant his stock of paper. As he wrote 
out orders and exchanged information with the queen in Lakaslin, those messages could then be read 
over by the enemy. Because of Adrogans paranoia, his paper stocks were kept under lock and key.

 This lack of paper frustrated Kerrigan no end, which made it difficult for him to sleep. One night, as he 
wandered the camp, he happened upon a trio of Jeranese Crown Guards. The one in the middle had a 
piece of paper and clearly was trying to read what was written on it, but from the way he twisted the 
paper left and right, it was pretty clear he was not having an easy time of it.

 The tallest of the warriors slapped the reader furiously on the shoulder. You sure it says my Flora is 
having the bakers boy?

 The reader shrugged. Thems the words, Fossius.

 Kerrigan smiled sheepishly. If you wish, I could read it for you.

 The trio eyed him suspiciously, then Fossius gave the reader a shove in the back toward him. Let him 
have the letter.

 The Adept took it and began to read, though the script was certainly not Vilwanese cursive, which 
made it a bit difficult to decipher. Ah, here it is, Fossius, your Flora is wet-nursing the bakers son. The 
bakers wife had twins and it says here that shes a small woman.

 Fossius smiled proudly. Thats right, little slip of a thing; and my Flora, shed help out since our girls 
about ready to be weaned. And you had me all worried there, Pirius.

 Kerrigan finished reading the letter, which appeared to have been written by a neighbor and included 
local gossip as well as news for each of the three men. They desperately wanted to reply to it, and 
Kerrigan agreed to write their return letter, provided they get him blank paper. Word spread through the 
camp fairly quickly about what he was doing, and men began bringing him every scrap of paper or 
leather or even strips of cloth they could find to write on.

 Even as the camp was packing up to head out for Svoin, Kerrigans scribe business thrived. Wills 
mutterings about how silver could be had as payment instead of paper told Kerrigan how well he was 
doing. He felt pretty certain that Will wished Kerrigan was taking in coin so the thief could steal it. The 
Adept put all his paper scraps into a leather-bound, wood-slat folio a Helurcan officer offered in return 
for Kerrigans writing down some of his Steel Legions history, then gave the folio to Lombo for 
safekeeping.

 Kerrigan didnt realize how well hed truly been doing, however, until two of the Jeranese Horse 
Guards came for him. Each man grabbed an upper arm and quick-marched him to Adrogans longhouse. 
They deposited him just inside the doorway, then retreated, leaving the young mage alone with Adrogans 
and Orla, both of whom stood in close conversation on the other side of the large map of Okrannel.

 Orla nodded, then Adrogans turned and narrowed his eyes. His voice, full of import and gravity, filled 
the long-house easily. I dont believe, Adept Reese, you wish to be a problem for me, do you? 


 No, sir, no.

 No, sir, no.

 I didnt, I mean

 The general held a hand up. When I want you to talk, I will give you leave to do so, do you 
understand?

 Kerrigan opened his mouth, then snapped it shut and just nodded.

 Youre right, Magister, he can learn. Adrogans narrowed his brown eyes. The weight of 
correspondence is not the problem, Adept Reese; it is the volume of it. Orla has assured me you really 
have no understanding of how things work, so I will explain it to you simply. The missives you are 
producing have to be read by my staff before transmission to see if they reveal any information that would 
be useful to the enemy. The reports I send to Lakaslin, the orders I send out, are coded, so the enemy 
would find them useless if they were to stop a courier. The letters, though, might have little details, like 
someone reporting that hed named a mountain Eagles Nest because of its profile. That would tell the 
enemy that our camp is within sight of such a place. Do you understand?

 Yes, sir. I could edit out all those references in future letters.

 You could, yes, but you wont. The Jeranese general smiled slowly. I will provide you a list of 
things to substitute for such observations. The truth of things wont matter to the people back homejust 
getting a note is what will matter. To the enemyand if you do not believe there are spies in Lakaslin you 
are even more naive than I would choose to acceptthe information will misdirect them and put them 
where I want them.

 But, that would be lying. To the people, I mean.

 It would, yes, but would they rather have a lie that keeps someone alive, or a truth that would kill 
him? Adrogans slowly smiled. I understand you have amassed a collection of paper scraps, often half 
of a letter where you used the back of a sheet for a reply. Is it as motley as the notes youve produced?

 Yes. I was going to write a history on them.

 A history. Interesting. The man stroked a hand over his chin. I will give you a bound journal for 
your history, Adept Reeseink, quills, whatever you needbut I need something in return. You will 
take your stock of scraps and you will write letters on them, mythical letters, from soldiers.

 Adrogans approached the map and pointed to an area near the mountains that split the central 
lowlands from the Crozt peninsula. This force will number three thousand, complain about short rations, 
long marches, and my insane plan to draw the Svarskya garrison south to relieve Svoin, while they strike 
north to liberate Svarskya. Youve already heard the concerns of soldiers in the letters youve written. 
Can you compose this mythical correspondence?

 Kerrigan frowned. I can, but I dont understand why.

 The general cast a glance at Orla. He might be brilliant when it comes to magicks, but youve really 
taught him nothing else, have you?

 She shook her head. It is my duty to expand his awareness of practical knowledge, but there is so 
much he must learn.

 Adrogans waved Kerrigan closer, and pointed to Svoin on the map. Were taking that city. We have 
roughly enough troops to do it, but we will need time to build siege towers and some of the other things 
well need to do the job. The forests will provide the raw materiel, so all we need is time. The problem is 
that Malarkex can easily bring a relieving force down from Svarskya that will force us to withdraw.

 This army we have here is large, and casualties are expected. The other day we lost a man to a 
snakebite and we used magick to preserve his body. I can place him in a couriers uniform and place him 
here, where Malarkexs scouts can find him. They will read the notes and assume there is indeed a force 
in the mountains, working their way toward Svarskya. I have Zhusk out there creating the signs of 
encampments. It wont fool them for long, but as long as they hesitate, I get some of the time I need.

 Kerrigan smiled. Youre creating an illusion.

 I am, with your help. You can double the size of my army with a little ink and paper.

 The Adept nodded. T will do it. 


 What you are doing will have to be our secret.

 What you are doing will have to be our secret.

 Good, very good. Orla assured me you could be very powerful, but I suspect even she did not know 
your power might lie in other talents. Adrogans clapped him on the shoulders. And, Adept Reese, this 
history you will write...

 Yes, General?

 Dont leave anything out. I suspect your observations here will be the closest of any to the truth.

 Somehow Kerrigan managed to juggle all the things he had to do, and no one was more surprised 
about it than he was. Hed gone from being an Adept to being a historian, a scribe, and a counter-spy, 
which he thought was much better than being a plain old spy. He worked hard at getting the fake 
correspondence completed before the army started on the move, but also wrote a couple of notes while 
riding in a wagon since he assumed the jiggled handwriting would add verisimilitude to the note.

 He didnt work on his history while moving. Kerrigan did feel it would be a bad thing if he wrote about 
the deceptive letters in his journal, so he only made veiled references to writing notes for soldiers. If he 
were ever allowed to tell the full story, he could expand those notes and make sure all the details were 
there for future generations.

 Hisdesire tochronicle everything asopenly and honestly as possible did force him to take more notice 
of the world than he might have otherwise. Though they were hideous to look at, for example, Kerrigan 
did study the crucified forms of the two human spies at the iron mine, taking down their names and other 
details. He tracked down the wagon drivers and heard from one of them a story of how a Vorquelfs 
arrow had stopped in mid-air before it killed Resolute. He assumed the story was probably wrong since 
the difficulty of casting such a spell was enormous-just the preparation time would be too great, much 
less figuring out how, magickally, to identify the arrow sufficiently to stop it.

 He did decide that he should ask Resolute about it, but that decision retreated in urgency as he 
imagined the snarl and snapped answer the Vorquelf would likely give him.

 Kerrigan found his observational skills sorely tested as the army wound its way down out of the 
forested hills toward Lake Vriyn and the city of Svoin. Three rivers fed down into the lake from the 
south, originating in the mountains on the Jeranese border. One broad and sluggish river, the Svoin, 
flowed north from the lake to eventually join the Svar River on its journey to the Crescent Sea.

 The city itself had a crescent of high walls with higher towers to protect the landward approaches. The 
land actually rose toward the city, which had been built on a rocky plateau, with a meandering roadway 
rising to the main gate. From the distance Kerrigan could see some of the citys interior, but not too 
clearly. For curiositys sake, and that of his history, he wished he was back in Yslin, with its balloons and 
cable-baskets that would give him a Gyrkymes view of the city.

 The area around the city was clearly land that had once been under extensive cultivation, as plots were 
level and stones had been used to set up boundary markers and some walls. Only a few fields had grain 
in them and as the army approached, human slaves from the city came out to harvest what they could. 
Orla explained this was to deny the invaders much of anything, and to emphasize that point the fields that 
couldnt be cleared were burned.

 If that bothered Adrogans at all, he gave no sign. He detached a portion of his force to remain in the 
forests to chop down trees for the siege towers, catapults, mantlets, and rams. In the fields he deployed 
his infantry in a great arc to cut the city off from the land. The inability to blockade the port meant there 
would be no starving the city, but beginning a siege this late in the season meant that starving the city into 
submission was not an option anyway.

 Either we take it by force before the snow begins to fly, or we retreat, Orla explained. As dry as 
the ground is now, it will be a complete morass come spring, and blanketed with snow throughout the 
winter.

 Aside from the cavalry units out scouting or protecting the woodcutters, the rest of the horsemen were 
placed well back of the infantry lines. They could easily be brought into action against any force coming 
out from the city, and were in position to deal with any relief force coming down from Svarskya. The 
most obvious point for such a force to enter the basin was along the Svoin River, but Adrogans scattered 


scouts throughout the hills in case the sullanciri decided not to be obvious.

scouts throughout the hills in case the sullanciri decided not to be obvious.

 A lexia held an arrow by its fletching in her right hand and /-I tapped it against her left palm. The 
paradox that was 1 lAdrogans continued to haunt her. King Augustus had told her that she was present 
to take over for Adrogans if he proved to be a fool, and half the time she felt he clearly was. Then he 
would go and do something that would make her reconsider, at least for a minute or two.

 The layout of the troops for the siege made her take heart, at least a little bit. The Jeranese general had 
arrayed his troops to screen Svoin from any landward force, but it did stretch them out. He placed a 
force astride the coast road to forestall any troops coming down along the Svoin River from the north. 
Alexia would have placed it further north, in the hills through which the road ran, but she did concede that 
its current placement would stop any advance and allow the cavalry a chance to flank the Aurolani 
attackers.

 Adrogans had even mixed his troops intelligently. Heavy foot occupied the center of the siege line, with 
light making up the bulk of both wings. The Gurolans Stoneheart Battalion had been placed as the road 
force, and Alexia knew theyd hold long enough for cavalry to be deployed. The cavalry had been 
broken into four parts, with her Wolves and the Okrans Kingsmen given the northernmost position. 
Theyd be the first to attack any relieving force. The other forces, with the Savarese Knights and 
Alcidese Horse Guards in the center, were arrayed to the south, with two groups positioned to guard the 
baggage and supply area to the south. The Jeranese Horse Guards acted as Adrogans own bodyguard 
troops and were stationed to the south, near his headquarters.

 Also to the south was the woodworks where the siege machines were being assembled. As they were 
completed, with trebuchets and ballistae the first things produced, they were deployed with the infantry 
units. Once they got their siege weaponry, they inched their lines forward. Three hundred yards seemed 
the effective range of the wall-mounted weapons in Svoin, and the infantry advance invited shots.

 Adrogans even used the Warhawks as Alexia would have. As the Aurolani forces shot at the ground 
forces, Warhawks used firecocks to set their siege machines ablaze. An indiscriminate use of firecocks 
would have set Svoin on fire, which none of the invaders wanted, so the Aurolani stopped shooting fairly 
quickly. They were clearly intent on saving their shots for the final assault, when they could do the most 
damage.

 He implemented the hostage-rescue plan, and the first infiltration of the city had been successful. 
Mages reported increased magickal activity in Svoin in response to magick being used in the sewers. 
Kerrigan and other mages worked on enchanting stones and fragments. Even the orders to gather rats 
from the city and surrounding area didnt seem too odd when it was accompanied with the rumor that the 
Zhusk claimed rats would make a fine stew that thickened the skin.

 The Zhusk, however, provided her with one of several questions that Adrogans evidenced no intent of 
answering. The Zhusk combatantsshe wasnt sure the word warrior fit wellwandered 
everywhere, had no single place they seemed to gather, and answered or ignored questions at their own 
whim. An overwhelming number of them appeared to be older, and aside from a knife and a knotted 
club, none of them carried weapons.

 Alexia was well aware of the stories of Zhusk tribesmen and how damnably galling their defiance of 
Svarskya had been during her grandfathers day. Zhusk fighters had been the stuff to frighten Okrans 
children, even in exile. She recalled Misha hoping, on their dream raid, that theyd not encounter a Zhusk. 
Better a thousand gibberers than one Zhusk, hed breathed in a hushed whisper.

 Shed have dismissed them as useless, save that their arrows had found their marks during the 
liberation of the mines. More troubling, however, was Phfas ability to freeze an arrow in flight. That 
spoke to power she did not understand, and this troubled her because she had a hunch that Adrogans 
was relying on it.

 Alyx had asked Orla to explain what she had seen, but the Vilwanese warmage had no answer for her. 


A spell could toughen armor to stop the arrow from penetrating, but what you describe ... I cant see 
how it would work. Resolute had been even more taciturn than usual on the subject, and Crow 
shrugged when asked about it.

A spell could toughen armor to stop the arrow from penetrating, but what you describe ... I cant see 
how it would work. Resolute had been even more taciturn than usual on the subject, and Crow 
shrugged when asked about it.

 Another of Adrogans behaviors that perplexed her was ordering the troops to dig into the earth and 
set up breastworks. This wasnt out of the ordinary, save that the water table in the area ran so high that 
a foot or so down, water began to weep into the holes. Adrogans orders required the soldiers to dig 
here and there, in some crazy-quilt pattern that, according to Peri after a flyover, made no sense at all. 
Rays extended out from Svoin in all directions, taking a field that had been solid enough for cavalry action 
and turning it into a quagmire.

 Even that would not have been much of a problem, since much of the damage was done well behind 
the lines, but the arrival of scouts from the northern hills changed all that. They reported seeing two 
Aurolani forces. One, which they estimated to be two battalions of infantry, was coming down the coast 
road. The other, likewise having two infantry battalions and one of mixed cavalry, was coming straight 
south, through the mountains, so it would be coming in northeast to the siege line.

 Leading that force was Malarkex.

 The Aurolani camped in the forested hills a mile to the north, placing scouts on the ridgeline. A 
company of heralds came south, to the edge of the fields, and planted legion standards. The nine-skull 
banner represented a legion that had been at the siege of Svarskya. Alexia recognized no others by 
description, and when the Okrans Kingsmen heard of the nine-skull banner they wanted to ride out and 
take it.

 She ordered them to stay put, then went off to find General Adrogans. On her way to his tent she felt a 
hand land on her right shoulder. She shrugged it off and turned to snap an order. She assumed the person 
who had touched her was her cousin Misha, hoping shed rescind the order concerning the taking of the 
standardno one else would presume to touch her. To her surprise she found Crow catching up to her, 
matching her long-legged strides.

 He clearly caught the glare in her eyes and pulled his hand away. Forgive me, Highness, but youd not 
acknowledged my calling your name. I should have known better. Another time.

 A hint of disappointment flashed through his brown eyes, sparking a twinge of regret in her. No, 
Crow, please. I am preoccupied, and going to see the general. Perhaps it is best I dont go in there 
angry.

 Angry?

 She sighed. Things here are neither ordered nor chaotic. You clearly have had military experience, 
and the camp is well run, yet Adrogans has had people doing things that make no sense. She waved an 
arm toward the north. All the digging has made a battleground into a patchwork of ponds. We have a 
large force camped to the north, and yet were not shifting troops to preclude an attack. I need to 
understand things, but Im certain he wont explain them, which is why I am angry.

 That certainly makes sense. Adrogans does make it difficult to trust him.

 And yet we must. She shook her head. You didnt find me to listen to that, however. What can I 
do for you?

 Crow gave her a devilish smile. Id heard you issued an order forbidding anyone from heading out to 
steal a standard.

 Alyxs jaw dropped. Dont ask, Crow. You, of all people, should have known better than to even 
think of such foolishness.

 He shrugged. Ive spent a quarter century with Resolute. Compared to some of the things weve 
done, stealing one of those standards would seem the height of deliberate brilliance.

 That may be, but you know those standards are a trap.

 Of course. Crow smiled, his right cheek tightening around his scar. Resolute talked to some of the 
warmages, and the standards are fair pulsing with Aurolani sorcery. To touch one would be death.

 So, what do you want of me?

 I just wanted to make sure your order forbids the stealing of a standard, nothing more. Though 


were not part of your command, we will abide by your orders and your wishes.

were not part of your command, we will abide by your orders and your wishes.

 No, Highness. Crows voice softened. That would leave you saddled with Will, Adrogans, and an 
angry Resolute. Id not do that to you.

 Good. She hesitated for a moment, tempted to forbid Crow from doing whatever he had in mind. 
She knew she could, in fact, take him at his word and that he would obey her. By the same token, she 
trusted him to avoid being stupid. Unlike her cousin or so many others, Crow wouldnt follow through 
with a plan just because he said he was going to do something. If it proved impossible, if no one elses 
life was at stake, he would withdraw.

 Alexia gave him a sincere smile. I dont want to know what you are going to do. Before you do it, 
though, find Peri and shell give you the challenge and response for our lines, just in case they would be 
of use.

 Crow winked at her. I thank you for your trust. We wont betray it.

 I know. Arel be with you.

 Save Arels help for dealing with Adrogans.

 Youd scorn the gods?

 He smiled. I have Resolute. He does that for me; besides, Ive long since run through any luck I ever 
had the right to claim.

 Crow turned and gave her one last wave, then wove his way into invisibility within the smoke and 
chaos of the camp. Alyx watched him go. She smiled because she realized she did not fear his failing to 
return. Hell be back, with a tale to tell. And somehow, I imagine, that will be the only good I hear 
today.

 General Markus Adrogans turned from his study of the battlefield maps and nodded to Princess 
Alexia. Good afternoon, Highness. Ive heard of your order and I approve. Thank you. Will there be 
anything else?

 The fire that sparked in her violet eyes didnt surprise him. There are many things, General 
Adrogans. She glanced at Phfas, the tents other occupant. I would speak to you alone.

 Say what you have to say, Highness.

 I would not embarrass you.

 I doubt you could. He folded his arms over his chest. Please dont waste my time.

 She lifted her chin slowly and deliberated, choking back anger. That is good, Highness, that you 
manage to control yourself so well. Adrogans raised an eyebrow, but got no further reaction from her.

 General Adrogans, you clearly are aware that we have five Aurolani battalions prepared to strike at 
our rear. Youve shifted no forces, issued no orders to address this problem. My Wolves and the 
Kingsmen are positioned to bear the brunt of any attack. We do not protest this, but we are cavalry and 
without infantry support, we are not going to deter Malarkex.

 Adrogans nodded. That is a problem, yes, but one I will remedy.

 How?

 A fair question. You have to trust me that I will deal with it. You are well advised to prepare your 
troops, for you will be fighting tomorrow. You will be the key to crushing that relieving force.

 How can I trust you, General? The Okrans warrior stalked over to the battlefield map and stabbed a 
finger at it. The two battalions coming down the lakeshore route will hit and hold against the Stonehearts 
here. If they send more forces out from Svoin they catch the Stonehearts from behind, and will push the 
Okrans Volunteers back into them, breaking the end of our line. Malarkex brings her forces forward to 
prevent us from flanking her forces and presses us hard on that same flank. If we successfully 
counterattack, she pulls back into the hills and has us at a severe disadvantage. At worst she gets more 
troops into Svoin.

 Adrogans nodded slowly. I congratulate you on your analysis, Highness. I suspect this is exactly as 
Malarkex has seen it. You forgot to mention that your line of attack on her is muddied, but her path to 
the Stonehearts is fairly clear.

 Alexias nostrils flared as she glanced sidelong at him. Dont mock me, General. You ask me to trust 


you, to believe you have everything under control, but you hide things. That does not promote trust. You 

you, to believe you have everything under control, but you hide things. That does not promote trust. You 

 You betray yourself, Highness, for it is clear you do not think I am the same.

 I have evidence that speaks for and against it, General.

 I see. He narrowed his eyes. Understand something, General. I know very well who you are and 
how you have been trained. I do marvel at your analysis. Your planning skills are splendid. You have 
done more with fewer troops in your engagements than I would have thought possible, and I have 
learned from reports of your battles. Yes, do not be surprised, I have read of you.

 Again she lifted her chin. And Ive read of you.

 And you find flaw with my tactics.

 I do.

 It could be that I am at fault, or...

 Or, General?

 Perhaps the reportage of my battles has been faulty? Adrogans let his voice harden. Do not take 
this as criticism, Princess, but while you have been being trained, and trained so very well, I have been 
here, fighting the Aurolani. What I have learned in all that time has imparted to me a knowledge of 
Aurolani tactics that I will make good use of here. Malarkex has not yet deigned to engage me, so 
tomorrow will be a momentous day. One for which I have been preparing for decades.

 Alexia nodded. I grant you have that knowledge.

 Good. The other thing I have learned is that loyalties waver and fail. I know, for example, that there 
are forces in Lakaslin who do not like me and see me as a threat. They would be perfectly happy to see 
me die here. That there are conduits which guarantee my plans make it to Chytrine, I do not doubt. I do 
not ask you to trust me, I demand it.

 That I do not seem to trust you is because I cannot, lest I chance betrayal.

 Trust is not a river that flows in only one direction, General Adrogans.

 In my army it is, Princess. It has to be. The Jeranese soldier snorted. Quickly, then, you know it 
benefits me not at all to betray you. I gain nothing by putting you into a position to be killed. I want 
Okrannel in your hands. It buffers my home against the Aurolani, if nothing else, and the merchant princes 
of Jerana drool with the prospect of profits to be gained in helping Okrannel rebuild. Half the Okrans 
nobility in exile have married daughters of the Jeranese merchant class, and these same people will 
reward me very well to bring your nation back to life.

 Moreover, Princess, I have great respect for you and your skills. The positioning of your troops was 
not an accident, since I had to assume Malarkex would come to relieve Svoin, and come from the north. 
I wanted you there, not to waste your forces, but to provide you the chance to strike and draw first 
blood from those who have deprived you of your nation. Your troops are wonderful. I can count on 
them, so they are the tip of a lance I want to drive into the Aurolani forces.

 Alexia nodded. Thank you.

 So, Highness, while I cannot and will not trust you with information you have no need to know, I do 
trust you will do everything you must to defeat Malarkex. How, you will see, as needed, but the way to 
victory will be clear for you.

 She frowned. I do not like this.

 No, I dont suppose you do, but that is a flaw in your training. You were trained to be a great 
warrior, and you are, but you were not trained to accept orders. I am not one of your tutors, but I do not 
shy from presenting you this lesson.

 Alexia snorted lightly. If it is not a profitable lesson, I will hold you accountable.

 If things go wrong, well have an eternity in the grave to ponder our errors. He sighed. I do have an 
order. We will have a cold camp tonight. No fires.

 Irritation creased Alexias brow. Malarkex is not going to be counting campfires to see how many of 
us there are. That information has likely been signaled to her from the city, and they have had ample time 
to tally our number.

 Trust, Highness, trust. 


 Her eyes narrowed, then she nodded once. We will be ready to go at dawn?

 Her eyes narrowed, then she nodded once. We will be ready to go at dawn?

 Well be ready.

 Good, Highness, I am counting on you.

 She gave him a salute and he returned it. He watched her until she departed his tent, then glanced over 
at the cackling Zhusk. What is it?

 If you fail tomorrow, she will be a deadly enemy.

 If I fail tomorrow, I will be ready to die. He shook his head at the little man. Is everything ready?

 Yes, all ready. We will keep our half of the bargain.

 And I will mine. Adrogans drew in a deep breath and let it out in a heavy sigh. This is the one time 
Chytrine will underestimate us, so we have to make the most of it. Gods and all else willing, we will do 
just that.

 Dawn could not come quickly enough after a night spent in a cold camp. The night had not actually 
been that cold, though the moisture in the air made it seem much more so. The lack of hot water for tea 
or to cook up what would be some mens last meal did not sit well, but rumors passed quickly enough 
through the camp that fire was a tool Chytrine could use to spy on them. It actually got creative, equating 
tongues of flame with wagging tonguesan old soldiers legend that gained new life one more time and 
served to quiet some grumbles.

 The night had remained peaceful save for two things, neither of which became truly clear until the suns 
first light crept down to shrink the plateaus shadow. In the dark, the people in Alexias position had 
been able to hear sounds coming from the direction of the Aurolani standards. She could see nothing, but 
anyone who had a moment to spare kept watch in that general direction. She almost asked a Vilwanese 
warmage for the lend of a spell to see what was happening, but she quickly assumed that because such 
spells would be available to the Aurolani vy-laens, Crow, Resolute, and their allies had worked 
counter-spells to cover themselves.

 Even knowing shed not see anything, she did watch from time to time, and two hours before dawn 
her efforts were rewarded. A bright flash of fire as silver as Resolutes eyes split the night. The circle of 
standards was burned into her sight as black silhouettes. Within it, another standardhalf again as tall as 
the Aurolani oneshad been raised. It proved as gruesome as those surrounding it, comprised of a 
crucified vylaen on a stick. His body writhed as silver lightning played over itlikewise twitched and 
danced the bodies of gibberers trying to haul him down.

 Subsequent green and red sparks flared as gibberers were blasted against the Aurolani standards, 
triggering the horrible magicks that had been worked into them. The screams and howls ran from outrage 
to pain, then darkness closed in again, disturbed only by yellow flames guttering on bodies and broken 
shafts of standards.

 That single act seemed to warm many men beyond what a hot meal would have done. Crow and 
Resolute slipped back through the lines all but unnoticed, with Dranae in tow. Each of them had sooted 
their faces and exposed flesh black, and had dark cloaks covering them. When Alexia saw them, they 
were doing their best to contain their giddiness. Aside from some minor cuts, and a few weals earned 
from slashing underbrush, none looked worse for the wear.

 Alyx smiled at Crow. There was some excitement out there.

 Crow nodded. Was there? We were out for a constitutionalloosening up old bones before the 
coming battle. He winked at her.

 She returned the wink. Clumsy of the Aurolani to trigger their own trap.

 Resolute swiped a rag over his face, reducing his complexion to grey. The Aurolani are not always as 
smart as they should be. You might warn General Adrogans that he wants to keep people away from the 
standards, a hundred yards at least, east and west. Someone left caltrops all around there, poisoned 
ones. Boots might stop them, but thick gibberer foot pads wont.

 Noted, thanks. She glanced at Dranae. And youll continue this charade?

 What was done is more important than who did it, Highness. Dranae smiled broadly. There will be 


heroes enough to laud tomorrow. This was a lark. That will take courage.

heroes enough to laud tomorrow. This was a lark. That will take courage.

 Crow returned the smile. Dont thank us. Thank whoever did it. Dranae is right, and the last thing 
needed now is distraction, with all that is going on.

 She smiled tightly and walked away from them to oversee preparations for the coming battle, which 
was the second thing that disturbed the nights peace. In setting up the forces for the siege, Adrogans had 
broken the infantry down into six groups. He kept the Stonehearts in position, but pulled his second 
group back to cover their eastern flank. The next unit in line, which consisted of the Okrans Volunteers 
and a full regiment of the Alcidese Kings Heavy Guards, was split into four parts. The Volunteers, who 
were a battalion of light infantry, covered the gap between the Heavy Guards and the unit to the west. 
The Guards broke into three wings, with two battalions in the center, one each left and right, drawing a 
line to screen Alexias cavalry from the Aurolani forces.

 The deployment took place in the dark, with Zhusk scouts leading the troops into position. The 
discipline of the Alcidese troops made the maneuver possible. As the mornings light filtered onto the 
battlefield, the Heavy Guards with their blue surcoats over ringmail, round shields, and long spears stood 
in a strong line to oppose Chytrines troops.

 While they waited for their enemies to take the field of battle, the troops ate from dry stores and 
drank, knowing theyd likely not get a chance for another meal until much later in the day, if at all. Most 
appeared to be in good spirits as she rode among them, but she noticed some who were dour or 
nervous. Many used daggers to dig hasty little holes in the ground, tucking a scrap of food or a coin into 
the earth in an effort to appease the weirun of the city. She suspected few who observed that 
superstition hoped to be saved from death, but instead wished that their spirits would not be bound to 
haunt this place.

 As the sun rose and mid-morning approached, the Aurolani legions spilled from the forest to the north 
in dribs and drabs. Bereft of their standards, which still smoked in a blackened circle to the west of their 
line, they gathered nonetheless. Occasionally a gibberer would venture in that direction, then he would yip 
and howl, grabbing one foot. Sometimes he would hop about, but most times he would just drop and die 
twitching.

 The legions did not mass as heavily as the Alcidese did, though rising from their midst were hoargoun. 
Pale of hair, eye, and flesh, and given to growing long beards and longer hairboth of which were 
sometimes braided with black ribbonsthe glacier giants stood easily three times as tall as a man. Their 
legs had the stockiness to carry them, with big flat feet that let them walk over snow without sinking. 
Alexia wondered if Adrogans creation of the chain of ponds had been designed to make the battlefield 
swampier. Though it put her cavalry at a disadvantage, it also would slow the giants terribly. Most of the 
oncoming titans favored clubs, but at least two had massive, double-bitted axes and one appeared to be 
wielding an iron mace that looked as if it had once served as the clapper for some huge bell.

 As ragged and hideous as the Aurolani infantry appeared, the cavalry was both colorful and 
impressive. They drew themselves up in smart ranks, long lances held so that sunlight glinted from the 
sharpened foot of steel at the end of each one. To the right and left, three hundred strong, were lighter 
cavalry legions consisting of frostclaws with vylaens or gibberers mounted upon them.

 Alyx had seen temeryces before, but seldom alive and certainly never mounted. From their noses to 
the tip of their stiff tails theyd been shrouded in iron-studded leather armor, tight-fitted yet supple enough 
to let her see the rippling of their muscles. The powerful legs, which were birdlike in design, sprouted 
three toes, the interior-most of which had a huge sickle-shaped claw designed for slashing. Their narrow 
heads had two amber eyes that looked forward and a mouth bristling with sharp teeth. Without riders the 
frostclaws would be formidable enemies, so slaying their masters did nothing to eliminate their threat.

 The centermost legion of heavy cavalry was yet more magnificent, for they rode grand temeryces. 
Whereas their smaller counterparts had snowy feathers covering them, the grand temeryces wore a 
brilliant rainbow plumage that was mirrored in the layers of multihued leather that made up their armor. 
Some had colorful crests rising from within the leather hoods they wore, and the ribbons dangling from 
the face armor made Alyx wonder if Chytrine wished her beasts to mock Oriosans for some reason. 


 Gibberers mostly, but a few men, rode the grand temeryces. Steel encased the riders and their lances 
ended in horrid, tridentine claws designed to punch clean through armor, rending and tearing what they 
found beneath it. The riders bobbed up and down as their mounts advanced, each powerful leg more 
than capable of bearing the weight of beast, man, and steel.

 Gibberers mostly, but a few men, rode the grand temeryces. Steel encased the riders and their lances 
ended in horrid, tridentine claws designed to punch clean through armor, rending and tearing what they 
found beneath it. The riders bobbed up and down as their mounts advanced, each powerful leg more 
than capable of bearing the weight of beast, man, and steel.

 That Malarkex was female Alyx discerned by knowledge of who she had been, and nothing more. In 
Edamis Vilkasos shifting form there were no clues as to her gender. A black cloak shrouded her and 
appeared to burn, much as had the cloak of the sullanciri at Porasena, but Malarkexs garment 
remained black for the most part. A jagged webbing of red appeared around the hem, outlining little bits 
of shadow that leaped away to evaporate. Her eyes, which glowed from within a closed steel helm, had 
the same steel-silver hue as her curved saber. The blade appeared to be no more natural than its owner, 
for it reflected no sunlight. Instead, it coruscated with a pale green fire that slithered snakelike up and 
down its length.

 A courier from the Jeranese Horse Guards rode up to her. Compliments of General Adrogans, 
General. He thanks you for the information about avoiding the standards. His orders for you are as 
follows: the Heavy Guards will advance three hundred yards on the signal, and set themselves. At the 
next signal, a gap will open right and left, with the Kingsmen going left and your Wolves right. You are to 
flow with the current as a mighty river to drown your enemies. Do you understand these orders?

 She nodded. Simple, a bit lyrical. They are understood. She made a mark on the receipt the courier 
presented her, then summoned the commanders of the Kingsmen and the wings of the Heavy Guards, 
relaying their orders to them. They headed off to communicate to their subordinates, then sent 
messengers back to her to let her know the orders had been understood.

 Crow came riding up to her side. The general is letting you deal with Malarkex?

 Alexia nodded, then glanced back toward the tent that served as Adrogans home. Smoke rose 
through the hole at the center and Zhusk scouts were carrying buckets of water up to it. It would appear 
he wants a warm bath while we fight. My only real concern is that the Kingsmens charge will likely drive 
the Aurolani troops east, which will carry them more to our rear.

 Yes, but it will prevent them from linking up with the legions coming down the lakeshore. He turned 
in the saddle and pointed back toward the second cavalry formation. General Caro and the Savarese 
Knights seem to be up and about as well. They can range west as well as east, so could easily be our 
reserve.

 No debating that. She sighed. I know there are things I am not being told. I have to hope, have to 
trust that General Adrogans knows what he is doing.

 Do you?

 Alyx frowned, considering her previous encounter with the task forces leader. For now, yes, I must. 
Do you?

 Crow nodded, then rested his left hand on the pommel of his sword. I have to. Scant few of us here 
today have the means to kill a sullanciri. I trust Adrogans will get me close enough to do it. Edamis was 
always bold and resourceful, so doubtless knows how she wants the battle to go. I hope Adrogans will 
find a way to disappoint her.

 I share your hope, Crow. I want to stop her and break their backs. Alexia drew her saber as 
heralds blasted out an advance. Ride with me and well both get what we want.

 Will fumed at having to wait back with the baggage train as the trumpets blared to send troops 
forward. Crow had explained very clearly why he couldnt join the battle. While they had no doubts 
about Wills combat skills serving him well, the simple fact was that he had no military experience. The 
key to winning the battle would be discipline and training; Wills lack of each was precisely the sort of 


thing that could get him killed.

thing that could get him killed.

 Such emotion felt very alien to him. Hed formed attachments to other kids in Marcus gang, but 
theyd never been in the position where they had a good chance of dying. Kids did die, and others 
disappeared, but there was never really any time to anticipate their going awayone just dealt with it 
after the fact. Marcus would always make those situations into a learning experience, which meant 
beatings until everyone understood how bad it was to be stupid.

 As much as he didnt want his friends to die, and as much as he didnt want to watch them die, the 
heralds blaring advance drew him from the relative safety of the baggage area up to the hill where 
Adrogans had his tent. The Horse Guards stationed there to ward folks off just smiled and nodded at 
him, which allowed him to steal up to the hilltop and hide in the tents shadow.

 In the distance the Alcidese Heavy Guards marched forward across what was fairly level ground. The 
landscape actually did rise a bit toward the north, but not so much that it would give the Aurolani an 
advantage. The ranks moving forward rippled as some men stepped into little valleys, then walked out 
the other side. Their heads might dip for only a step or two, but it gave the whole formation the illusion of 
being decorative cloth caressed by a lazy breeze.

 The bristling of long spears did partially dispel that illusion. Pennants waved and snapped from some 
spears, and those in the forward ranks were carried low, pointing at the enemy. Tightly packed as the 
infantry were, with a second and third rank angling their spears forward, they would present an 
impenetrable wall to the enemy cavalry.

 Behind the infantry, likewise sporting spears and lances, came the cavalry. The dolorous black tabards 
on the Okrannel Kingsmen somehow made that unit seem more substantial. Though it had been unproven 
in combat, the desire to liberate their homeland fired the hearts of every man and woman encased in steel 
there. Their horses wore heavy armor as well, fitted with spikes and hooks, and some even had banners 
streaming back from little posts planted behind the saddle.

 To the right rode the Alcidese Wolves. Their blue tabards had a slash of gold from right shoulder to 
left hip, and a stripe on the left shoulder had been made of the color of the company with which each 
rider fought. They appeared to be every bit as colorful as the grand temeryces toward which they rode.

 Three hundred yards forward of where they had started, the infantry came to a stop. Spears rotated 
forward on a command, presenting man-made thorns eager to pierce Aurolani flesh. With one throat, the 
Alcidese troops voiced an ancient war cry that sent a shiver up Wills spine. 

Blood and bone, for our home; King, kin, and nation.

 Wills heart swelled even as his growing smile rubbed his mask over his cheeks. Oriosa may claim 
me, but I am Alcidese. 

-Drummers within the Aurolani formations pounded out an advance that started their lines surging 
forward. They kept roughly even across their line, despite their center moving through the cavalry 
formation. Will was left with the impression of a wolf hiding its teeth, but the threat was still there. 
Closer and closer the Aurolani troops marched. The hoargoun moved to the fore of their legions. They 
hefted weapons capable of blasting huge holes in the Alcidese formation. A swipe of a club would clear 
spears, spinning the men who wielded them into their companions, wreaking havoc. 

And the center, its never closed. They are planning something.

 Will frowned, concentrating, trying to puzzle out what the Aurolani were trying to do. His efforts came 
to naughthalf because he had no experience, and the other half because of the sounds coming from the 
tent. Amid the cant of the Zhusk, which he recognized but did not understand, Will caught gasps and 
groans, as well as an inhuman creaking and set of popping noises. He didnt know what it was, but he 
knew it wasnt right and that, regardless, Adrogans should be out there figuring out what Will couldnt 
about the Aurolani.

 Without thinking the young thief darted around the curve of the tent and slipped inside. It took his eyes 


a second to adjust to the darkness, but what he saw in that moment took his breath away.

a second to adjust to the darkness, but what he saw in that moment took his breath away.

 Before Will could sound an alarm, the old Zhusk headman turned and gestured at him. The mans 
hand quivered, then tightened into a fist. Will felt all the air crushed from him, then his sight darkened.

 He never felt himself hitting the ground.

 Markus Adrogans barely caught the flash of light betokening Wills entry to the tent, and scarcely 
heard his smothered gasp or the sound of his collapse to the ground. The agonies pulsing through his 
body demanded most all his attention, as red-hot iron pierced his flesh, as his joints twisted and ground 
with his struggles. His chest felt fair to bursting with the scream he kept locked in, and in a momentary 
surcease, he harshed out a whisper. More, still more.

 He clenched his jaw tight, closing his throat, as nimble Zhusks pinched skin into tabs through which 
they thrust burning metal. To the skewers they fastened wires, on the end of which hung talismans. They 
tugged and pulled, reigniting nerves that sent waves of pain surging through his body. The sweat covering 
his body seared into wounds, blood streaked him, boiling when rivulets hit some new piercing. His flesh 
and blood rose from him in a dozen little streams of sacrificial smoke, the stink of it further torturing him.

 He opened his mouth to request more, he needed more and wanted more, but instead his body 
protested with a wracking cough. Phfas snapped a wordAdrogans made no sense of the sound, but 
knew there was a sense to it. The ropes at his waist and wrists parted, the pain in his shoulders eased for 
a moment, then he slid forward, feet first, as the rack tipped down. His sweat- and blood-slicked body 
picked up splinters from the rack as he glided off.

 For a moment he flew free, wrapped by nothing but air and agony, then plunged into the quenching 
water. It engulfed him and consumed him, subsuming him as well. It flowed over him, cooling the metal, 
shocking away the heat in his body, penetrating him with a frigidity that numbed him. He slowly 
descended, his weight and speed accepted by the water, bled off by it. It supported his tired arms and let 
him dangle there, effortlessly, as if his body, for heartbeat after heartbeat, had ceased to exist.

 Adrogans opened his eyes and found himself in union with the water. Through it, through the moisture 
in the ground, he was able to spread out, seeing and hearing, feeling and smelling. At once he was part of 
the battlefield. He could see it all, see the Aurolani infantry splashing forward. He could feel himself 
running down their bodies, soaking their fur as they came on. The temeryx claws tore at his flesh, horses 
hooves pounded it.

 Blood flowed into it.

 At once he could sense it all, everything. The whirl and swirl of battle, the skirling song of the wounded 
shrieking, the husky chuff of a chest pierced by a spear, it all came to him. The warm spray of blood, the 
heavy thump of a body hitting the ground, and the shudder of a spear-butt, planted firmly in the earth, 
accepting the weight of an impaled temeryx before bowing and shattering, peppering warriors with 
splinters, the fearful clawing at the ground by a wounded frostclaw, the scrabbling of the broken-legged 
rider beneath it, and the fearsome war cry of a warrior, sword in hand, advancing to finish both; all of 
these things made up the tapestry of battle for him. 

Tapestry. Dimly, in whatever part of him remained human, the inappropriateness of that word struck 
him. It suggested beauty and artistry, yet what writhed over the landscape was a carpet of pain and 
death, of blood and torn flesh, shattered limbs, ended dreams and unending nightmares. As sword 
cleaved flesh, so it rent the mind and soul, compounding the damage and creating wounds that would 
never heal.

 Adrogans focused, narrowing his perceptions to those of more human proportions. He rose over the 
battlefield with the morning mist, watching as the Aurolani lines hit and engaged the Alcidese infantry on 
the left wing. Hoargoun swung clubs that shattered some spears, but others rose and thrust, sticking the 


giants here and there, fending them off for a moment. Pendulum-like, the clubs came back, breaking 
hafts, but leaving the hoargoun stickled as if the infantry were some iron porcupine and their spears quills.

giants here and there, fending them off for a moment. Pendulum-like, the clubs came back, breaking 
hafts, but leaving the hoargoun stickled as if the infantry were some iron porcupine and their spears quills.

 And Malarkex, the sullanciri, came hard and sliced into the Alcidese formation with the ease of a 
schoolmaster scattering children with a whip. Of her he could feel little save hatred and fury, and her 
black mount tasted of blasphemy. Sleek though the beast was, it had been long dead before being 
magicked to serve her. No heart beat in its breast, no lungs pumped, but a feral and malign spirit did 
strengthen its limbs and speed its reactions.

 About her and the circle of death her sword harvested around her he could do nothing, but he had 
known that forever. She was not his to destroy, but she was only part of the battle. The whole battle was 
the key, and all he had gone through was designed to let him win.

 Adrogans reached out, splaying his fingers, letting sensation return to them long enough for him to feel 
the water flowing within his grasp. He willed his fingers to flow into the water, extending his reach, 
integrating him with the realm in which they fought. Part of him, fearful of being lost forever, resisted, but 
he overrode it. 

What I do must be done.

 His head slowly nodded, bobbing lightly. Then he set his face in a fierce grimace and tightened his 
hands into fists.

 Twin geysers erupted on the battlefield, jetting thick columns of brown water high into the sky. One 
carried lead elements of the Aurolani infantrys center into the sky; the other knocked a hoargoun reeling. 
The columns vaporized, leaving a rainbow behind them, and a quagmire oozed up to ensnare the 
Aurolani center.

 Behind Alyx and her Wolves, heralds sounded a signal. The Alcidese left and center were fully 
engaged and could not maneuver, so the Okrans Kingsmen had no path opened for them. Then the 
Alcidese right pulled away, providing an avenue for the Wolves to charge, and to Alyxs amazement, the 
ground hardened and dried, cracking as if baked by years of drought. Raising her sword, she dug her 
heels into Valors flanks, leading the Wolves into a charge that would catch the Aurolani heavy cavalry in 
the flank.

 She had no idea how or why the battlefield was shifting. The flow of water smacked of magick, that 
much was clear, and she quickly assumed Chytrines forces would find a way to reverse the spells. The 
little lake growing up to keep the Aurolani right at bay would eventually shrivel, but that would be a 
problem to handle later. The hard ground beneath her horses hooves meant the charge could generate 
speed and power.

 Some of the grand temeryces on the flank turned to face the charge, but it scarcely mattered. The 
sheer mass and weight of the charge blasted frostclaws back, sometimes spilling riders to be sliced and 
crushed amid prancing claws and stomping hooves. Mostly they were driven back into the flanks of their 
fellows, trapping the other heavy cavalry, leaving them unable to maneuver or defend themselves. 
Lancers on either side of her skewered beasts or riders.

 The Wolves drove a spearhead into the heavy cavalry with one legion, then the other swung out wide 
to the right, passing in front of the mired Aurolani center to hit the infantry left in the flank. Agitare led 
them in that daring move, rising in his stirrups, waving his sword, and lustily shouting orders.

 His Red Caps ate into the Aurolani left like a cancer.

 The heavy cavalrys cohesion evaporated as the far flank broke under pressure. The Alcidese Kings 
Heavy Guards pushed one company forward to bedevil the milling riders and protect Agitares legions 
rear. While that saved their countrymen, it still choked the lane the Okrans Kingsmen needed to engage 
the enemy, trading the nip of a dagger for what would have been the bite of a sword. 


 Shrieking in a voice that mixed the howl of a biting boreal wind with the scream of a gutted cat, 
Malarkex reined her mount around and leaped it into the Wolves formation. The temeryxs claws laid 
open a horses flank, shredding ringmail as if it were cobweb, and carried away much of the riders leg. 
The sullanciris saber swept around in a blow that would have chopped the rider in half, but Crows 
straight-bladed sword intercepted the blow and parried it high.

 Shrieking in a voice that mixed the howl of a biting boreal wind with the scream of a gutted cat, 
Malarkex reined her mount around and leaped it into the Wolves formation. The temeryxs claws laid 
open a horses flank, shredding ringmail as if it were cobweb, and carried away much of the riders leg. 
The sullanciris saber swept around in a blow that would have chopped the rider in half, but Crows 
straight-bladed sword intercepted the blow and parried it high.

 The sullanciri spun her mount and leaned down for a stroke that would have opened Crows spine 
from ass to atlas. The sudden jolting of her mount to the right carried the cut wide as Lombo hit the 
temeryxs left flank with a shoulder. Looking much like a bundle of burning rags, Malarkex flew from the 
saddle. The temeryx craned its neck around to snap at the Panqui, but quicker than its flashing teeth, 
Lombo grabbed its head jaw-and-crown and wrenched.

 Alyx reined Valor around and drove at the rising sullanciri. The Aurolani leader ducked the cut, then 
slashed at Valor, laying the horses belly open. Alyx leaped from the dying beast and managed to keep 
her feet. The shadowy warrior drifted toward her, blood-vapor rising from her blade, then slashed, but 
Alyx parried the blow low, then cranked her armored elbow around to smash Malarkex in the face.

 Her elbow passed straight through the sullanciris head, sending a shock through Alyx as if shed just 
plunged full on into an icy river. Alyx stumbled a step past, then whirled just as Malarkex reversed her 
direction. The sullanciri did not so much spin as turn inside-out, her faint and hate-filled face suddenly 
appearing where the back of her hooded head had been.

 Again Alyx parried a cut, then slashed back, but got nothing but black mist and a wave of cold 
traveling up her sword in return. She backed away from her foe, realizing the enthusiastic slash had left 
her open, but the sullanciri did not press her advantage quite yet. Drifting forward, like a wind-driven 
cloud, Malarkex moved toward Crows still form, forcing Alyx to intercept her.

 Over and over they traded blows, with Alyxs strikes rending vapor and reaping cold. Frost formed 
on her blade and already her fingers felt numb, but she kept fighting, kept moving. She knew she was a 
better swordsman than the sullanciri, but it mattered little when her blade couldnt draw blood. Any of a 
number of her cuts would have put a normal foe down, and fleetingly she wondered if she would join her 
father in having died at the hands of a sullanciri.

 Malarkex feinted with a low slash, then came up high and from the right. Alyx raised her sword to 
block, but this blow came in harder and heavier than any before. The sullancirfs sword notched hers 
and, worse yet, blasted it from her grasp. Alyx tried to dance back, knowing the next cut would open her 
armor and flesh, but her heels caught on something and she toppled back.

 The sullancirfs blow whistled harmlessly past.

 Alyx rolled to the right, away from any return cut, and found the hilt of a sword with her left hand. She 
came up and around, wrapped both hands around the hilt. The straight blade had an opalescent gem set 
in it at the forte. Shaped like a keystone, the gem pulsed once, fiercely, and warmth filled her right hand 
anew.

 She stepped forward, straddling Crows body, for it had been his shoulders that caught her heels, and 
brought his sword up in a guard. She caught Malarkexs low slash easily, turning it aside, then lunged 
forward and arced Tsamoc skyward. On a normal foe the tip would have been located between the 
knees, and the upward cut clove shadow where it would have sliced groin.

 Malarkex screamed and the shadow gushed down into an inky puddle beneath her. Another cut, 
frightfully weak, threatened to slash Alyx at the left hip, but Tsamoc parried it high and around, then 
chopped down into the sullancirfs back at the right flank. The shadow figure wavered for a heartbeat, 
then its dark essence poured out onto the ground, with only the stain and the bouncing saber to mark 
where it had stood and fought.

 Alyx stared at the sword with the pulsing gem in it. Magickal sword, indeed! 


 The battle rolled around Alyx, with temeryces snapping, men screaming, howling gibberers charging at 
her. She refused to give ground, standing there over Crow, spattered with mud and blood. Some 
gibberers made it to her, but only after threading a gauntlet of lances and swords, or the blurred 
backhand flick of a Panqui paw. More than one gibberer had its bones pulverized by those swats, and 
yet more would have save that Lombo seemed to take a singular delight in pouncing upon riderless 
frostclaws and crushing their skulls between his fists.

 The battle rolled around Alyx, with temeryces snapping, men screaming, howling gibberers charging at 
her. She refused to give ground, standing there over Crow, spattered with mud and blood. Some 
gibberers made it to her, but only after threading a gauntlet of lances and swords, or the blurred 
backhand flick of a Panqui paw. More than one gibberer had its bones pulverized by those swats, and 
yet more would have save that Lombo seemed to take a singular delight in pouncing upon riderless 
frostclaws and crushing their skulls between his fists.

 From the north, three legions of Jeranese light cavalry crashed into the Aurolani rear. On the right the 
little lake separating the Alcidese Kings Heavy Guards from the Aurolani flank vanished as Jeranese 
heavy infantry marched in from the northeast. Already flanked, the Aurolani left pulled back, crowding 
the center, making both crumble.

 Then, to her own left, more horses came charging hard. The Okrans Kingsmen, unable to come 
through the Heavy Guards, had ridden around and come from the west, rolling up that flank and grinding 
the Aurolani right wing between themselves and Agitares legion. Hoargoun, stuck with spears and 
bleeding black, wavered and toppled as lances pierced their thighs and sabers whittled away at their 
shins.

 Mad, milling gibberers ran every which way, with a few flowing toward Alyx just by pure chance. 
Tsamoc made short work of some, and Resolutes arrival made shorter work of others. The one grand 
temeryx that leaped toward her would have been a horror to deal with, but a geyser of steam caught it in 
mid-flight, parboiling it. Though not quite dead when it landed, it could do little but mew and hiss, so Alyx 
beheaded it with a stroke.

 Resolute caught the reins of a riderless horse and motioned to Alyx. General, ride.

 No.

 Yes, you must. Resolute nodded quickly at her. Ill see to Crow. And youll see to him when you 
return Tsamoc. Now, General. It will finish things.

 Alyx nodded and mounted. As she raised her sword, the Alcidese host gave a great shout, which the 
Kingsmen echoed. From further back the rest of the siege force cried out and cheered. The Heavy 
Guards tightened their formations and surged forward, sweeping past Crows body, constricting and 
crushing the Aurolani force.

 From horseback Alyx gained perspective and realized what had happened. Somehow, from 
somewhere, Adrogans had conjured up a full battalion of light cavalry and a whole regiment of heavy 
infantry. Both were from Jerana and clearly had been lurking in the hills. The mist rising with the water on 
the field had screened the Aurolani from the threat to their rear and flank until too late.

 Things began to fall into place for her. The excessive requisitions for food had not been extravagance 
on Adrogans part; he was feeding another whole army on the leavings of the expedition. Hed kept their 
existence hidden from her, from everyone, meaning he feared a spy in the midst of the rulers. She began 
to wonder if all his battle reports had been manipulated to read poorly, to make it seem as if he won by 
luck instead of skill or cunning. And she wondered if they had been so written to deceive Chytrine. 

Im not sure I owe Adrogans an apology yet, but he has earned a lot more trust.

 The heavy infantry, both Jeranese and Alcidese, linked up and drove west. The Kingsmen and the 
Jeranese light horse preceded them, nipping at the flanks of the Aurolani formation that had come down 
the road and had been stopped by the Stonehearts. The Aurolani legions began to withdraw, but the 
Stonehearts advanced. The Aurolani legions broke and the cavalry slaughtered them as they ran for the 
hills.

 Jt surprised Alyx to see Crow bare-chested and sitting in a chair in the shadow of the Vilwanese 
warmage pavilion. He raised his left hand in greeting and she noted with some satisfaction that the glow 


from the little brazier near his booted feet didnt show any new wounds on his body. His right shoulder 
was discolored, and she was thankful the evenings wan light didnt let her see the true colors there. That 
he held his arm close and tight to his ribs, half hiding a trio of scars on that side of his chest, did not 
surprise her at all.

from the little brazier near his booted feet didnt show any new wounds on his body. His right shoulder 
was discolored, and she was thankful the evenings wan light didnt let her see the true colors there. That 
he held his arm close and tight to his ribs, half hiding a trio of scars on that side of his chest, did not 
surprise her at all.

 Crow smiled easily and pointed at an empty chair beside him. Please, Highness, sit. I cannot thank 
you enough for risking your life to protect me. Resolute told me what you did. Lombo, tooyou 
impressed him mightily.

 Alyx laughed. Its mutual. The way he kept the gibber-ers back, and the temeryces ... you wouldnt 
believe.

 The man nodded. He regrets it, you know, of robbing you of those kills. He thinks he was selfish.

 So I live to forgive him. She smiled. How do you fare?

 Crow shrugged, at least with his left shoulder. While you were off leading the reconnaissance of the 
Aurolani camp, Lombo carried me back here. Kerrigan was going to magick me back to health, but I 
told him just to see how much damage had been done first. Bumps and bruises, knot on my head. I told 
him to see to others. Ill be fine.

 Why are you still here, then?

 He pointed a finger at the tent. Wills in there. He was with Adrogans, watching the battle, when he 
fainted. Wills resting. He came around but doesnt remember anything since last night, which puts us in 
the same position. I dont remember much past talking to you.

 You had a long night out there with Resolute and Dranae. How are they?

 Doing very well. Resolute has some scratches. Dranae has the bite pattern of a frostclaw on his right 
thigh, but it never got much through his mail or skin before he killed it. Crow nodded toward the 
battlefield. Theyre out there, helping the wounded, finishing the gibberers. Resolute will have enough 
longknives to make a galaxy of bladestars. I guess the Vilwanese are looking for some folks to become 
meckansh. Id be lucky to be among them if not for you.

 Alyx reached out and patted him on the knee. You saved my life, too, you know. After shed 
disarmed me, Id have been split in two except that you tripped me and sent me below that slash.

 Quite by design, I assure you, Highness.

 Ah, then it was also by design that you left this for me. Alyx unsheathed Tsamoc. Your sword is 
what finished her, you know.

 A carpenter builds the house, not his hammer.

 You know, Crow, I think were both wasting a lot of time being so polite. Fact is that you saved one 
of my men from death, but that was happenstance since youd gone straight for Malarkex. Dont deny it. 
You knew she had to be finished, and I agreed. You stopped her, then I stopped her. We both stopped 
her. Weve killed a sullanciri

 A grimace flashed over Crows face. Ware saying that too loudly, Highness, for only ill has come to 
such folk. Bosleigh Norrington now is a sullanciri. Tarrant Hawkins is dead by his own hand. I like 
neither prospect for you.

 And for yourself?

 Neither as well. Crow accepted Tsamoc from her, then used the sword to lever himself stiffly out of 
his chair. No, Highness, stay seated. Ill just put Tsamoc with my other things and fetch us some wine. 
You once said youd willingly share a skin with me in the field, and I know they have some inside. Give 
me but a moment.

 She nodded and watched him go. With his white hair and beard, walking as stiffly as his injuries 
demanded, she could easily imagine him being of an age to court her great-grandauntthough the 
thought of that pairing sent a shudder through her. Tatyana was cold enough that Malarkex would have 
felt a burning coal by comparison.

 Alyx leaned back in the camp chair, listening to the creak of the wood and canvas from which it had 
been constructed. The braziers warmth slowly bled into her, melting away little aches and leaving only 
fatigue in return. She closed her eyes for a moment, relishing the kiss of heat on her cheeks, then felt a jolt 


run through her.

run through her.

 Forgive me, daughter, for so abrupt an appearance. I cannot be long, the strain is great. You must go 
to Adrogans. Wruonan pirates went overland to Lakaslin. The Azure Spider managed to steal the 
DragonCrown fragment and destroy the arcanslata with which the capital communicates to Mallin on 
the coast. The theft wasnt noticed for we dont know how long, so it could be on the island already.

 Alyx nodded. Ill tell him. Well send a force. The Black Dragon shook his head. You cant tell 
him, daughter, for nothing Ive said to you will pass your lips. Youll find a way to make him learn. You 
will. Go to him, now.

 She jerked upright in her chair, her hands tight on the arms. She blinked, half expecting to see the 
Black Dragon where Crow now stood with alarm on his face. I didnt mean to startle you, Highness.

 Never mind that. We have to go talk to Adrogans. Crow slung the wineskin over his left shoulder 
and started immediately through the darkness toward the hilltop where Adrogans pavilion glowed softly 
like a phantom mushroom. I havent seen him today, but Ive not been looking. Theres still a Horse 
Guards cordon around his tent, however.

 It doesnt matter. He frowned. What is it?

 Alyx opened her mouth to tell him, since the Black Dragon had long ago told her she could trust 
Crow, but the words disintegrated between her mind and her mouth. I cant say, but its urgent. You 
have to trust me.

 With my life, Highness.

 They reached the edge of the cordon, which surrounded the base of the hill upon which the tent was 
perched. A horse soldier tried to stop Alyx by getting in front of her and telling her she couldnt go up, 
but she just kept veering, forcing him to twist and turn. When he finally grabbed at her left arm, she pulled 
free of his grasp and backhanded him with a blow that spun him to the ground. Two steps further on, 
halfway up the hill, a Horse Guards sergeant stopped her. Highness, with all due respect ...

 Alexiasheadcameupandurgentfury dripped from her words. Respect, Sergeant, would mean youd 
be leading me, not stopping me. Stand aside, or General Adrogans will know of your conduct.

 His orders Im following, Highne... General.

 Crow cut to the left, so the sergeant grabbed him by the right arm. The man roared with pain and the 
soldier recoiled, letting Alyx shoot past. She reached the crest of the hill while the sergeant huffed and 
puffed up after her, only to find the entryway barred by Phfas.

 The Zhusk headman shook his head slowly. He is to be left alone.

 Alyx lowered her voice, but kept her anger constant. Were I reporting on the battle, or any number 
of other matters which are as trivia to what I need to say, I would leave it until morning. Stand aside.

 Phfas little brown face squeezed in on itself, all but hiding his eyes in a webwork of wrinkled flesh. 
Go away, Svarskya.

 Phfas, Adrogans called quietly from within the tent, let her pass.

 The headman moved aside, then quickly intercepted Crow. Alyx glanced at him, but Crow shook his 
head. Go on. I can wait.

 Alyx slipped past the curtained entryway and saw Adrogans struggling to rise from his bed. He wore a 
loincloth, very much after Zhusk fashion. More important, talismans had been fastened to his swollen, 
mottled skin, and decorated him as they did Phfas. But so many more, and bigger.

 Adrogans regarded her with half-lidded eyes. My mother, you know, came from Okrannel. She was 
a merchants daughter bound to be wed to a merchant family in Mallin to seal an alliance. They traveled 
the coast road and Zhusk raiders kidnapped her. Jeranese soldiery rescued herthe younger brother of 
her intended groom, in fact, led them. When she reached Mallin it was apparent, by her own admission, 
that she had been despoiled. The warrior, my father, had developed a great affection for her, so the 
alliance was sealed through their union, and I was born three seasons later.

 The man walked slowly to a side table and poured out two goblets of wine, nodding toward her to 


take one. It was not until I led troops into the Zhusk domain that I was recognized for what I wasa 
half-Zhusk bastard. Phfas saw that in me, and more. Through his offices I was accepted, which is why 
the Zhusk have let me operate here for years. Despite my acknowledgment of my link to them-a link I 
have kept quiet for fear your grandfather would disapprove of meI had not undergone full initiation into 
their societies.

take one. It was not until I led troops into the Zhusk domain that I was recognized for what I wasa 
half-Zhusk bastard. Phfas saw that in me, and more. Through his offices I was accepted, which is why 
the Zhusk have let me operate here for years. Despite my acknowledgment of my link to them-a link I 
have kept quiet for fear your grandfather would disapprove of meI had not undergone full initiation into 
their societies.

 The Zhusk are a primitive people. They acknowledge the gods and the weirun but tend toward 
dealing with things more primal. They call them the yrun. Water, air, fire, earth, a host of other elemental 
things, all of them share an essence. While a river might have one weirun and a lake another, they both 
share the same yrun essence. They can be manipulated and controlled.

 He gestured toward the doorway. You wondered how Phfas stopped the arrow that would have split 
Resolutes heart? The yrun of air is his companion. After he was prepared and pierced, they threw him 
from a cliff. Had they not bonded, he would have been dashed on the rocks and killed. Because of their 
bond he hardened the air, saving himself much as he made it intercept the arrow.

 And you are bound to water? You produced the geysers, swamp, and lake? The mist, that was 
you?

 Adrogans smiled slowly. When you come to the initiation late, and you have a certain amount of 
power yourself, wisdom, philosophy, the yrun seek you as much as you seek them. He touched the 
talisman on his left breast. Water wanted me and I it. And fire, which is why the skewers were heated, 
and earth, which is why they were metal. Wood for the splinters in my back, and water, which quenched 
the burning. But, largely, it was another, the yrun of pain, who is mine. I could see through the water out 
there, I could feel through the earth, but I also saw and heard and felt and tasted and smelled through the 
pain.

 He snorted. She will be a harsh mistress, pain will, but ours will be a long and passionate affair. Id 
delayed long enough my initiation, and the first time, the time when the bonds are formed, this is when 
you have the most power. I am not saddened I used it here and now.

 Nor am I. Alyx nodded solemnly to him. General, this will sound insane, but do not think it so. You 
need, with your arcanslata, to send a message to Queen Cams.

 Adrogans eyes hooded. What makes you think ... ?

 Trust, General, trust. You earned mine today by bringing your hidden forces into play. I think I 
earned yours doing what I did, killing a sullanciri. You need to trust me in this, you need to communicate 
with her, now. It is vital.

 The Jeranese general hesitated for a second more, then moved the wine decanter and tray with two 
more goblets to the ground. The tabletop it had been on slid to the side to reveal a hollow, and from it he 
withdrew one of the mag-ickal communications devices. He slid a bead of wood from the top to the 
bottom of a narrow side and glowing words in a tiny delicate script filled the surface.

 Alyx could not read the words at that distance, but she did not need to. Adrogans stiffened, then his 
shoulders began to sag. He turned and looked at the princess as the words faded.

 You know about this how?

 Alyx shook her head. Ive earned your trust in reporting to you so you could learn it. How is 
immaterial. Say it came to me in a dream and be done with it.

 Adrogans tossed the arcanslata onto his cot amid a tangle of blankets. A fragment of the 
DragonCrown is on Wruona. Vionna wishing to play in a game that is worlds above her, and the Azure 
Spider is abetting her desire. If she gives it to Chytrine ... His voice faded.

 We have to stop her. Alyx hesitated. We cannot pack the army up and send it off, since we do not 
have enough ships to assault Wruona.

 Agreed; we have just enough to do as bad a job there as the pirates did on Vilwan. If we were to 
shift the army, Chytrine would know and know why soon enoughif her agents in Lakaslin dont already 
know. Ill tell the queen to spread the tale that the theft was a blind for us to move the fragment to a place 


no one knows about, to make it impossible to steal. It will cast doubt on the tales of spies and the 
pirates.

no one knows about, to make it impossible to steal. It will cast doubt on the tales of spies and the 
pirates.

 Adrogans nodded. Youll have to do it, Princess, you and your band of friends.

 My band of friends?

 Crow, Resolute, the others.

 But weve been preparing to rescue the hostages in Svoin.

 I know, but their lives will mean nothing if Chytrine gets that DragonCrown fragment. This operation 
will be the same as the rescue. Infiltrate, locate, appropriate, and evacuate.

 No, no, no. She stared at him. It is not the same at all. We dont know Wruona, weve not been in 
Port Gold. The place will be full of pirates....

 Not as full as it was a month ago.

 No, its impossible. We dont know the place But before she could continue, shouts arose from 
outside. She turned toward the doorway as Lombo barged in, dragging two Horse Guards who were 
unsuccessfully trying to detain him. Behind him, Phfas and Crow entered the tent.

 One of the Guards, the sergeant shed encountered before, slid to the ground and saluted. Begging 
your pardon, sir, but...

 I understand. Dismissed.

 As the two soldiers departed, a Spritha sailed through the doorway and perched itself on Lombos 
shoulder. The Panqui nodded, then looked at Alexia. Port Gold, Lombo know. Stealing there easy.

 You see, General, optimism.

 The Panqui growled. Escaping, very hard.

 Alexia exhaled slowly. I know some Panqui have been pirates, but you were ... ?

 Lombo pounded a fist against his chest, spilling Qwc from his perch. Lombo best pirate. Get into 
Port Gold easy.

 Adrogans raised an eyebrow. Easy?

 The Panqui nodded. Pirates never suspect Lombo.

 Why not?

 Lombo flashed a mouthful of teeth in a terrible grin. They think Lombo dead.

 Kerrigan shifted uneasily in his chair. The journey from the Zhusk plateau had taken an easy week on 
the descent, but the trip back there and beyond to the Jeranese port of Ooriz had been accomplished in 
three days. Three very long days, riding horses to the point of exhaustion and pushing the riders even 
further. All of their road camps were cold, not out of fear of discovery or lack of wood, but lack of time. 
In a couple of Zhusk villages they did pick up new horses and got some warm food, but otherwise they 
pushed hard enough that even Lombo was all but dead with fatigue.

 Finally, in the wee hours of the morning, they arrived at the port. Lombo led them straight to the docks 
and quickly they divested themselves of their road clothes and found items a bit more colorful and 
fragrant with which to disguise themselves. Both Alexia and Resolute had to dye their hairshe opting 
for black while Resolute picked an icy blue.

 Kerrigan had spent his life wearing robes, so shifting to boots, pantaloons, and voluminous shirts 
layered with the sleeves slashed to show a rainbow of colors felt completely alien to him. He hated 
wearing a kerchief to hide his hair until he saw how good it looked on Dranae. In fact, the two of them 
had similar enough of a look that the others cast them as brothers who had gone to sea together.

 Kerrigan waited with Dranae and Orla in a small quayside tavern with low beams, lower lights, and 
clientele that seemed happily at home amid either. Orla had adopted fishwife garb, but gave every 
evidence of being ready to tuck her hem up into her belt as needed to work a ship. Dranae, while he 
wore layered shirts like Kerrigan, had opted to retain his kiltin keeping with other sailors they saw.

 Alexia and Lombo had gone off to finish the negotiations for a boat to take them to Wruona. Crow, 
Resolute, and Will were watching over them, with Qwc and Perrine poised to help or run messages as 


needed. The two winged members of their company were not among the races given to being 
piratesby virtue of their being so rare outside their homelandsso they were to keep out of sight and 
would travel in the crows-nest or belowdecks.

needed. The two winged members of their company were not among the races given to being 
piratesby virtue of their being so rare outside their homelandsso they were to keep out of sight and 
would travel in the crows-nest or belowdecks.

 It felt good to Kerrigan to be out of a saddle and sitting still for a bit. He wasnt looking forward to 
getting back out on the sea, especially since just thinking about his previous journey had him breaking out 
in a sweat. More annoying, however, was the flat prohibition against his writing things down in his journal. 
During the trip hed had no chance to record any observations, and in port Orla had warned that his 
writing would be viewed with suspicion. While he didnt want to believe her, he did note that she didnt 
carry around her staff, to look even less like a wizard.

 The difficulty of wanting to appear to be a sailor exacerbated a problem stemming from the battle 
before Svoin. He had seen a lot and found it overwhelming. He wanted to discuss it with others, but on 
the road no one had enough energy for such a discussion. And while hiding in the guise of sailors, such 
discussions would be grossly out of character. 

And thats if anyone would want to indulge me.

 Because of the loss of the boat hed been on, Svoin was not really the first combat hed ever seen, but 
it certainly was the first between armies. The histories hed read had all been dispassionate and 
judgmental, assessing the mistakes made by this commander or that, including lists of casualties and the 
like. Hed read them more as stories than anything else, and thought himself prepared for Svoin.

 He found it had been difficult to remain dispassionate when screaming men begged like children for 
help or death. The one elven unit, a battalion of archers, had two magickers with them. He and the two of 
them were the only magickers capable of actually healing people, but there were some wounds no 
magick could repair. They could assure that a man whod had an arm or leg struck off, or his genitals or 
half his face bitten away, would live, but those they saved didnt always see that as a blessing by any 
means-.

 Several of the men he worked on begged him to write letters for them, and he assured them he would, 
as he had in the past. What he remembered, however, were not the ones who asked, but the ones who 
were beyond asking. Dead before their letters reached their homes.

 The sheer carnage, the way the muddy earth had been churned with the violence of charge and 
countercharge, the way some weapons had bitten so deeply into bone that they could not be dislodged; 
these things all exploded past the safe boundaries in which he had confined his concept of warfare. The 
majority of bodies he saw had grievous leg wounds and defense wounds on arms as well as the death 
blows that had rained down on head and chest. In short, the deaths were not clean, one-stroke affairs, 
but acts of butchery in which a man was crippled with a leg blow, in which he cowered and fended off 
blows with his hands until his efforts ebbed and he was dispatched. Multiple killing wounds to head and 
chest bespoke the fury of the attackers.

 He didnt take such evidence as an indictment of warfare. A philosophical debate over the evils of war 
always ended up with two conclusions. The first was that war was evil. The second was that there were 
times when war was inescapable because some individuals desired the subordination of others to their 
will. Defending freedom was not evil, and blood spilled in defense did not stain as deeply as that spilled in 
aggression.

 What the signs of violence did was to redefine the world. On Vilwan his existence had been simple 
and peaceful, idyllic even, despite the difficulties hed had. The slaughter on the sea, or the beating hed 
taken in Yslin, these could all be explained as aberrations, the acts of evil people. That preserved his 
basically safe sense of the world. Svoin, however, showed him that even good people were capable of 
savagery. 

Am I? He couldnt deny that hed killed the pirates in the ship hed smashed, but hed really visited the 


violence on their ship. If I had stopped to consider that I was doing it to people... He shook his head 
and glanced at Orla. Shed attacked pirates more directly and hurt them, but it did not make her evil. 

violence on their ship. If I had stopped to consider that I was doing it to people... He shook his head 
and glanced at Orla. Shed attacked pirates more directly and hurt them, but it did not make her evil. 

 Will wasnt certain if he was happy or not, and this annoyed him. He skulked his way through the 
darkened streets of

 Ooriz, heading for the Broken Keel tavern to collect the others. Lombo and Alexia had struck a deal 
for passage on a small ketch, supposedly used for fishing but not outfitted for the same and undoubtedly 
a smuggling vessel. Trade with Wruona could be highly profitable, especially in the area of basic goods 
like grain and beerthe kinds of things that were vital for life but seldom part of prizes taken at sea.

 Will did know he liked being away from the army and back in a town. Camp life had not suited him 
particularly wellespecially because everyone knew who he was. Having been raised to cultivate 
anonymity, even the most benign of attention grated on him.

 He also had chafed beneath the story of his having fainted because of the slaughter in the Svoin battle. 
He couldnt remember much beyond heading up toward Adrogans tent, which meant he had to contend 
with a sense that something important was missing from his memory. When hed awakened they told him 
the battle had been won and that he was fine, but his ribs had ached and felt as if hed been wrestling 
with Lombo.

 And Will was pretty sure that fainting shouldnt have made his ribs ache.

 There was one thing he regretted about leaving the camp, and that was his inability to participate in the 
rescue of the hostages. Adrogans had been able to locate a handful of men who had criminal 
backgrounds in his army armies in general had more such folks, but the Okrans campaign had included 
fairly elite units, which cut down on the underclass population. These men, including Will, had been 
assigned to the various squads who would go in and rescue hostages, because they could open locks or 
shackles or anything else needed to free the people.

 It surprised Will that he didnt want to be there to garner praise for his hand in planning the rescues. 
Nor was he craving the action of the rescues, because he knewjust as with a well-planned theftthere 
would be little or no action if things occurred as hoped. Instead, and this really astounded Will, he 
wanted to be there to help because he felt some responsibility for getting the hostages to safety.

 Will eyed responsibility as he might a strange and growling cur. Through his life hed been responsible 
for himself. The prophecy made him responsible for a lot more, but that all seemed vague. Hed been 
able to define his enemy as Chytrine, which helped him focus, but that also narrowed the conflict to him 
versus her. The hostages had become involved without his really being aware of it.

 But as long as he was going along on the rescue mission, his own sense of invulnerability had held they 
would succeed. Now, in the back of his mind, he could see hostages being hurt or killed in the attempt, 
and every drop of blood that leaked from them was accounted to him. Because if I were there, they 
would all be saved.

 Part of him knew that was nonsense, but he couldnt get past it. And not getting past it surprised him. 
In the past he would have just walked away from such responsibilityas I did with Kerrigan there in 
Yslin. Not being able to do thatand not wanting to do thatburrowed into his mind and festered.

 It would have driven him utterly and completely mad save for the nature of the mission that called them 
away. Despite the prophecy and all the training hed been given, he really knew very little about the 
DragonCrown and its pieces. He accepted that for a fragment to be out of the hands of responsible folks 
was bad, and much worse for Chytrine to get her hands on it. Seeing what a dragon under its influence 
could do at Yslin was more than enough to convince him of that latter point.

 He agreed that they had to get it back, which pretty much meant he had to steal it back. That meant 
hed be going up against the Azure Spider. The very idea of that sent a thrill through him, and a lot of fear 
came in its wake. The Azure Spider was sung of from shore to shore and lauded as a swordsman, lover, 
and thief. Will had always hoped, as the King of the Dimandowns, to surpass him; but stealing something 
from his own stronghold had never been part of the plan.

 Will had wracked his brain to try to remember all the details about the Azure Spider that hed heard 


Marcus mention. He wished there had been some simple flaw to the Spider, like his having pledged 
always to honor an orphans request, or vulnerability to some complex fencing move. About the only 
thing he did recall was Marcus contemptuously suggesting that the Spider never hung on to a prize for 
long because once the thrill of stealing it was over, the man lost interest. Will wanted to count on that as 
being a help, but hed learned enough in planning the hostage rescue to avoid relying on the stupidity of 
the enemy.

Marcus mention. He wished there had been some simple flaw to the Spider, like his having pledged 
always to honor an orphans request, or vulnerability to some complex fencing move. About the only 
thing he did recall was Marcus contemptuously suggesting that the Spider never hung on to a prize for 
long because once the thrill of stealing it was over, the man lost interest. Will wanted to count on that as 
being a help, but hed learned enough in planning the hostage rescue to avoid relying on the stupidity of 
the enemy.

 Will gave them all a nod. Tide runs in an hour. Were going on the Pumilio

 Dranae rested his hands on Kerrigans shoulders and steered him through the crowd. No trouble?

 None yet.

 Thats good.

 For now anyway. Will dropped in behind the large man and sighed. I just hope were not saving it 
all up for later.

 Alexia waited on the dock while Lombo stood on the wheeldeck with the helmsman. She shifted her 
shoulders uneasily. She did not like feeling hostility and menace just over the horizon without the familiar 
weight of ringmail on her body. She did acknowledge that the lighter weight of the clothing she wore 
would give her added speed in fighting, and that this would balance out.

 Another source of anxiety came from the blade she wore on her belt. After the battle she had 
recovered her own saber, but the fight with Malarkex had left the metal brittle and the blade well 
notched. Adrogans had insisted that because shed killed Malarkex, shed earned the right to the 
sullanciris sword. Aside from being a suitable reward for her valor, it had the added benefit of being 
magickal in nature. This gave her a weapon to use against other sullanciri.

 The idea that she would face more of them did trickle some dread into her belly. Crow had warned 
her not to expect too much of the blade when it came to dealing with Chytrine, since any weapon she had 
a hand in creating certainly would not do her harm. He did agree with Resolute, however, that the blade 
would be most effective against Chytrines creatures.

 Alexia had taken some time to try it out, dueling with Crow. Because Malarkexs sword was a saber, 
it wasnt entirely suited to fencing, but the weapons balance and weight did let her put considerable 
power into speedy slashes. She found Crow a skillful foe and was able to really test some of the 
weapons limitations, but always held herself back despite Crows ability to defend himself.

 The aspect of the blade she hated was how it made her feel about fighting. With the heat and flow of 
the duel came a dispassionate and cold distancing of herself from it. There came a point where all 
affection for Crow bled away, quickly followed by any sense of humanity he possessed. She began to 
see him as lines of force, as muscles to be severed, organs to be skewered, bones to be shattered, and 
joints to be dissected. The blade took the science of anatomy and dueling and overlaid it on the fight. In 
killing him or anything else she would be doing nothing of any more consequence than solving sums or 
calculating positions by the stars.

 What dismayed her is that part of her hungered for that detachment. Warfare, she knew, could largely 
be reduced to numbers and position, angles, vectors, and timing; quantitative factors that dealt with 
qualitative elements like morale and tradition as fractional variables one did ones best to eliminate 
entirely. Warfare as science completely discounted pain and suffering. The motives behind why any 
engagement had been fought became immaterial, and the casualty lists just more statistics to factor into 
computations for the next battle.

 Alexia allowed her mind to wander that far before she reined it back in. Having a leader of such a 
disposition was valuable to Chytrine because it promoted the infliction of hideous casualties on the enemy 
without a second thought. Were Alexia losing a battle, she would withdraw to preserve her forces for a 
later conflict, but Malarkex would have been willing to commit everything to hurt the enemy as much as 
possible. Overwhelming casualties would sap the will of the southlands to fight, and that was the victory 


Chytrine desired.

Chytrine desired.

 Alexia wished Adrogans luck, since she had no desire to see him or her cousin or anyone else in that 
campaign dead. She had the most dread for the fate of Beal mot Tsuvos people, but a great deal of 
hope for them, too. The hostages would be rescuedmost of them, anyway.

 While she had wished Adrogans luck, shed not wished him all luck. She had little doubt theyd be 
able to get into Port Gold. She felt pretty certain they would be able to locate the fragment of the 
DragonCrown, and she even had a glimmer of hope that they could steal it back. Getting it off the island 
and in safe hands, however, she gave a small chance, and of their getting away without casualties she held 
no hope. Still, leaving a DragonCrown fragment available for Chytrine was not an option: and getting it 
back was worth any riskincluding the Norringtons possible death. His skills as a thief made him 
invaluable to the raid.

 She looked up as Will came leading the trio from the tavern. Behind them Resolute and Crow slipped 
from shadows. Above, unseen, Peri and Qwc flew past to perch in the small ships rigging. Ten of us to 
steal one of the worlds most valuable items from an island teeming with bloodthirsty pirates. 
Who will bleed? Who will die?

 Alyx forced a smile onto her face. This way, my friends. Welcome to the Pumilio. Watch your head 
when you go below, its built for midgets.

 Crow laughed. As long as its more dry than wet, can we complain?

 No, she agreed, letting her hand linger on his left shoulder. When we look back, in the grand 
scheme of things, any discomfort on this voyage will likely be minor indeed.

 Iarkus Adrogans gingerly shifted his shoulders, reseating the weight of the mail surcoat he wore. The 
metal garment had a leather gambeson between it and his flesh, but still tugged on the raw piercings. The 
pain had faded to a dull but persistent series of aches in the four days since the battle that saw 
Malarkexs death.

 He looked to Beal, who stood there in lighter leather armor worked with her clans knotting. Your 
preparations for rescuing the hostages are complete?

 She nodded solemnly. Save for one detail, General.

 This brought Adrogans gaze around to meet that of a raven-haired Loquelf. I recall. Mistress 
Gilthalarwin, I was under the impression we had reached an understanding concerning your Blackfeathers 
and their part in the rescue.

 The elf bowed her head in his direction. We had, General, before the plans were modified yesterday. 
Before there had been a respectable interval between the employment of the animals and our 
participation. Now we will be called upon to coordinate with them. This cannot be done. It will not.

 Adrogans struggled to hide his fury, and Phfas cackle from the corner did not help at all. Will 
Norrington, having grown up in Yslin, had suggested that balloons be used to evacuate the hostages. 
Magickers could heat rocks that would produce hot air and make the balloons rise with hostages in 
baskets. Guide ropes on the ground would draw the hostages from the city while the Blackfeathers shot 
archers and vylaens trying to bring down the balloons. The balloons were to have been delivered by the 
Gyrkyme Warhawks, who would then have no further role in the rescue.

 A final review of planning had located several flaws in the enterprise. Theyd not been able to produce 
enough balloons to complete the evacuation quickly. More important, a vylaen who could simply cast a 
spell to chill the balloons could bring them down, killing the hostages. The plan had subsequently been 
modified, but had a more immediate role for the Gyrkyme, and the Loquelves refused to work with them.

 The human general slowly folded his arms over his chest, his mail rustling as he did so. Mistress 
Gilthalarwin, you have lived centuries to my decades and view things with a perspective which I have 


scant chance of understanding. I know better than to threaten you and your Blackfeathers with death. I 
am not in the habit of killing allies. I know the censure and scorn of men amount to nothing to you, for 
every one of us here will be dead soon enough by your reckoning.

scant chance of understanding. I know better than to threaten you and your Blackfeathers with death. I 
am not in the habit of killing allies. I know the censure and scorn of men amount to nothing to you, for 
every one of us here will be dead soon enough by your reckoning.

 The elf shook her head. You have no idea....

 I have a very good idea, a wonderful one, mistress. Adrogans eyes became slits. You see the 
Gyrkyme as rapeget, the mating of elves with animals. You see the Araft in much the same way as 
many Jeranese and Okrans see the Zhusk. I was gotten upon my mother by one of the Zhusk, but I was 
accepted by all sides.

 Gilthalarwin snorted and waved his comment away dis-missively. Zhusks are demonstrably men, so 
your example does not pertain.

 But the Gyrkyme are demonstrably not Araft. They might not be elves, either, but they certainly are 
not beasts.

 The elfs dark eyes blazed at that suggestion. The discussion is closed. She lifted her chin. You will, 
I have little doubt, give us an assignment where we shall be killed because of our temerity.

 Adrogans shook his head. No. Go home.

 What?

 Even Beal looked a bit surprised at that command.

 The general opened his hands. Mistress, you have missed the point of this entire exercise. Chytrine 
wishes to shatter our unity so she can pick us apart piecemeal. Your subordination of good sense to race 
hatred aids her in this quest. I wont have it. You are free to go. I would only ask you give your parole 
that you will not fight against us and in her favor.

 The elfs jaw dropped open. Adrogans was not certain if her shock was born of his impugning her 
honor and loyalty, or merely because shed never expected a man to speak to her in such a way. He 
actually didnt care if it was either or both, or something else entirely.

 He glanced at Beal. Phfas will put his best archers with you. That should be fifty or so. The Nalisk 
Mountain

 Rangers should also suffice. Please tell your people that their sacrifice shall inspire us all. Their courage 
will live forever with the Vorquelves they save.

 Beal nodded, tossed Adrogans a salute, and turned to leave, but the elf caught hold of her shoulder. 
Wait.

 Adrogans raised an eyebrow. Parting words, mistress?

 The elfs features sharpened. What you ask of us is unthinkable.

 Ah, and asking my people to bleed and die isnt?

 Gilthalarwin shook her head. You do not have nearly as much freedom as you pretend, General. You 
know that all of us will be torn apart by those who would judge us in the dawns light.

 Then better to be damned for a winner. Adrogans pointed a finger at her. Which would please you 
more? Never hearing your action criticized, or suffering all that criticism so just one voice of one survivor 
can be raised in protest at how unfairly youve been treated?

 The elf fairly trembled as she sorted thoughts from emotions. The elves deep-seated hatred of the 
Gyrkyme was clearly irrational, for the Gyrkyme could do nothing to change their nature. At the same 
time, that hatred was as much a part of their lives as believing dawn would follow dark. The difference 
was that the hatred could be voided without changing the worlds mechanisms.

 And for the sake of justice and the hostages, it would have to be.

 Gilthalarwin snorted, then set her shoulders. Youll tell the Gyrkyme to fly clear of our areas of 
responsibility.

 Your archers are too good to mistake them for gib-berers. 


 General, you will tell the Gyrkyme to stay free of our areas.

 General, you will tell the Gyrkyme to stay free of our areas.

 The elf bowed her head. Well be ready. You are still set to go at dusk?

 You and the Gyrkyme see so well in the dark, the operation is possible. We will prepare today, look 
as if we will go at dawn, but it will be tonight we go.

 The elven archer nodded slowly. You risk much in a night action.

 Lake tide will be running high, back-flooding the sewers. Well get gibberers down in there and trap 
them. It wont be much, but it will help. Adrogans looked to Beal. Pass the word to the warmages. 
Their ratting operations will commence mid-afternoon. By dawn well have Svoin.

 From her post on the southern edge of Svoin, Beal mot Tsuvo watched the suns disk touch the 
western mountains. In the highlands theyd have had an hour more of sunlight, but already the mountain 
shadows crept across the valley, caressing the far lakeshore, chasing ships to harbor. She watched the 
sunset, and the colors it streaked into the clouds; not worrying that she might not see another sunset, and 
taking great comfort from the lack of bloodred suffusing the clouds.

 To the east trumpets sounded and the sieging force began its tightening of the circle around Svoin. 
Ponderous siege machines inched forward, approaching the piles of stones that had been placed to feed 
them. Trebuchets with their massive arms that would hurl huge stones to smash the walls rolled in. Beside 
them came ballistae, resembling giant crossbows, speeding spears, and long arrows that would rake the 
walls of defenders. And behind them, along cleared alleyways, crawled the siege towers, crowded with 
brave soldiers who would rush onto the battlements and sweep them of defenders, provided their towers 
were not smashed or burned before they could reach Svoins defenses.

 Smaller ballistae and catapults on the walls and in tow


. ers shot at the attackers. The marshy ground before Svoin did not serve the defenders well, since a 
stone would stick instead of bouncing madly through ranks, shattering limbs, pulping bodies. Even so, 
one stone struck a mantlet straight on, reducing it to a cloud of splinters and blood, then skipped further 
to crush another soldier.

 On the far side of Svoins east gate fire blossomed. A flailing gibberer fell flaming from the top. Others 
fought furiously, beating at the fire consuming their ballista, while overhead a Warhawk looped to 
celebrate his firecocks direct hit. Arrows reached up toward him, but slowed as they flew, and he 
contemptuously snatched one out of the air and hurled it back at the gibberers.

 More firecocks exploded, and flaming missiles arced out at the siege towers. One tower caught and 
men leaped from it while warmages scurried around to extinguish the blaze. Defiant shouts from the walls 
and brave cheers from the attackers dueled before combatants were close enough to be fully engaged.

 Lots of shouting arose on her front. A trebuchet and two ballistae had moved forward, supported by 
the Blackfeathers and the Nalisk Rangers, but her own people snarled and cursed as a siege tower 
refused to advance. It had moved not an inch since the start of the action. Men dug at the wheels and 
cursed, others scurried about with torches, and chaos reigned.

 The gibberers on the walls hooted and hollered. Flights of elven arrows discouraged some, while the 
explosions of firecocks cleared whole portions of battlements. Drums pounded and gibberers moved 
along the walls toward the east gate as a ram rumbled down the road. Mantlets and shields covered the 
men dragging it forward and arrows soon studded them as the defenders fought to slow its ad-vance.

 The trebuchet on her front finally reached its position. Crews pounded in anchors while others hauled 
mightily on the cables and blocks that pulled down its long arm. At the base, beyond the pivot point, a 
wooden box filled with stones to act as a counterweight slowly rose. Still other men rolled a 
three-hundred-pound stone into position, then fixed a sling about it. The ends of the sling were attached 
to the trebuchets arm, then a lanyard was pulled. The counterweight fell and the arm rose, then the stone 
arced through the night sky, all but invisible.

 The stone struck with great impact, pulverizing itself and the wall block it struck. A merlon teetered a 
bit above the crater. Several gibberers had been knocked from their feet, but appeared otherwise 
unharmed. The citys walls, being as massive as they were and so well built, would require lots of 
pounding. Because the trebuchet would use missiles of different weights, because it would settle with 


each shot, because wood could crack and ropes fray, the chances of hitting the same spot over and over 

each shot, because wood could crack and ropes fray, the chances of hitting the same spot over and over 

 The southern front in the siege could not credibly be thought a threat.

 Which was exactly as intended since that front was never meant to get people into Svoin, but get them 
out.

 Three firecocks exploded in succession on the walls, which was the signal Beal had been waiting for. 
In the backlight she could see more gibberers shifted toward the east and this brought the hint of a smile 
to her face. She glanced at the Vilwanese warmage near her. Adept Jarmy, get your people working 
now. That was the signal. We have no time to lose.

 The triple explosion to the south caught Adrogans eye and he focused on it. His flesh tingled, the yrun 
of pain trickling into him the things being felt within the city. The thrashing and suffocating of gibberers in 
the sewers formed a basis onto which the overwhelming fear of the wretched humans trapped in Svoin 
had been layered. That fear had been brewing for days, since the men feared a slaughter by the 
gibberers, and the gibberers feared much the same by the attackers.

 He pushed past the sensations and studied the battle.

 The signal from the south meant the hostages had been gathered into the appointed place. He could 
only wonder at the battles waged by Guarnin clan Bravonyn in gathering them together. A chill ran 
through him as he imagined the keen wails of highland widows.

 High on the walls near the gates, green fire blossomed into balls that streaked down at the ram. The 
sorcerous fire exploded against the shields, knocking men down, warping metal. Those who lived 
scrambled to their feet and back into position or withdrew, and others advancing in the rams shadow 
surged forward, moving from pushing to pulling. The engine crept ever closer to the gate.

 Ballistae swung around to pepper the area from which the magick had been launched. Sheaves of 
arrows shot up, some bouncing from merlons, others transfixing defenders. Other flights of arrows arced 
up high over the walls, to fall like rain amid the gibberers and vylaens.

 Trebuchets hurled their stones, some hitting the gate and others slamming into towers. Firecocks 
exploded. One bolt of green fire lanced upward, instantly igniting a Warhawk who spiraled through death 
throes to slam into the ground and burn before the walls.

 Adrogans started down the hill from which he had watched the siege begin and mounted his horse. He 
accepted his helmet from Phfas hands, settled it over his head, and cinched the chinstrap up tight. By the 
time he reached his Horse Guards, the ram had reached the gate. 

By the time they break it, we will be ready to plunge in. He drew a deep breath, then trotted his 
horse forward with the Horse Guards behind him. Beyond that gate would be death and pain, which 
minstrels would turn into valor and glory. For a fleeting second he wondered whether the ability to make 
that transformation marked them as fools or supreme magicians, then he dismissed such speculation and 
set his mind for war.

 Will worked in the rigging, helping to get the mainsail furled as they sailed into Port Gold. The passage 
itself had been relatively quick and even safe, despite making considerable sail during the night. The 
ketchs crew knew how to handle the boat very well, and accepted the added help. Wills role in going 
aloft was to keep the sailors away from the crows nest, where Peri and Qwc had remained until just 
before dawn; then they saw the island and winged their way to it.

 Resolute looked different in his disguise as a pirate, and even acted differently. He clearly knew his 
way around a ship, wore layered shirts with ease, and anticipated orders about the handling of the sheets. 
His blue hair appeared black in the night, and there were times when Will forgot who Resolute was. This 
was especially true when Resolute reeled off a string of nautical terms that could have been Aurolani for 
all Will could make heads or tails of them. 

Make dry or wet of it would be the way sailors would say it, I think. Will shook his head and 
came down the lines to the deck, then worked forward to the bow. Port Gold, which was located on the 
northern coast of Wruona, had a natural harbor warded by a spit of land that came out from the east, 
leaving a narrow but deep channel to the west. The sailors had said that Tagothcha held sway until the 


bay, then its own weirun took over.

bay, then its own weirun took over.

 Aside from the castle, which had been built of grey granite blocks, the habitation looked pretty crude. 
Some buildings had a log construction, but they sagged next to daub-and-wattle hovels that once had 
been whitewashed. The closest thing to a finished building appeared to be those built out of scraps from 
hulls.

 As could be expected, the best, most solidly constructed thing in the town were the docks. A 
half-dozen large ships lay at anchor or tied up to the docks. Will didnt recognize any of them from the 
siege of Vilwan. But onethe grandest and most beautifully painted, with black from the wa-terline up to 
a red stripe and then white on up at the forecastle and afterdeckthat one he knew had to be Vionnas 
Ocean Witch.

 Lombo ambled forward with Kerrigan in his wake. The Panqui pointed past the Witch to a slightly 
smaller ship painted in brown, green, and white, with a white shark on a red field emblazoned on the 
stern. That ship, Lombos ship.

 The mage arched an eyebrow. The White Shark? But the song I heard last night in Ooriz said 
Tremayne Reach is its captain.

 Lombo snorted. Put Lombo out for oceanswallow.

 Will wasnt certain what the Panqui meant by ocean-swallow, but it didnt sound too nice. The Panqui 
didnt bother to explain and instead just sat perched at the bow like a gargoyle. The thief figured that if 
Reach was as superstitious as any sailor hed seen in Yslin, Lombos return would be taken as a fell 
omen indeed.

 The ketch lowered a small boat that came around, took up a bowline, and pulled the ship to the 
docks. Before the crew could tie her up, Lombo had bounded from the ship and scampered along the 
docks to the collection of warehouses and taverns beneath the castle. The Panqui ducked into a 
darkened alley between two buildings and Will marked it well.

 As fast as possible the company boiled from the ship and followed Will as he led them on into the 
streets. Even at mid-morning nothing much stirred, including rats and other vermin. The absence of the 
same near middens and in other alleyscombined with a few fleeting tracks in mudmarked Lombos 
passage. As they neared his destination, however, sound surpassed sight as the surest way of determining 
where he was.

 It didnt hurt that he blazed the trail by tossing a sailor out through a doorway and into the alley before 
them. The tavern had no sign per se, just the bleached jaws of some huge shark. The plaster on the 
building had that same sort of weathered ivory color, save where urine stained it in little wedges, or the 
green of corroding copper from the roof sheathing dripped down the walls.

 They fought an outrush of fleeing sailors to get into the tavern. The interior made it easy to tell what 
had happened. A straight line of overturned tables and scattered chairs with sailors trapped beneath, 
draped over, or hiding behind themran from the doorway to the large round table in the back corner. 
At the back wall, Lombo had a slender, red-haired man by the throat, and the man had both hands 
wrapped around Lombos left wrist. The mans feet dangled well above the ground and his face had 
taken on an unhealthy purple color.

 Crow stretched a hand out. Lombo, youll choke him.

 The Panqui nodded as the mans eyes flashed. No choke.

 The Panquis hand convulsed once and the mans head jerked up about three inches. Will shivered as 
Lombo tossed the man aside. The way the mans head lolled about made Will mindful of the gibberer 
whose throat Dranae had crushed. 


 Crow winced. The late, lamented Captain Reach?

 Crow winced. The late, lamented Captain Reach?

 Sailors, unable to determine if that was just a statement or order, did their best to compose themselves 
and slowly set the tables to rights. The bartender, one-handed though he was, gathered up as many 
pewter tankards as he could in one go. Some sailors helped him, while others staunched wounds, and at 
least two of them tried to pop a thirds shoulder back into its socket.

 Lombo did his part by setting the big table up again, returning a massive chair to its upright position, 
then hauling Reach up and sitting him in a chair at the Panquis left hand. Lombo even put a feathered cap 
back on the mans head, pressing it down so it would stay on. Continued pressure appeared to compact 
the mans neck enough that it kept his skull seated solidly.

 Will remained in the shadows, with his back to the wall, in the corner nearest the door. He noted with 
some satisfaction that Orla took up a similar position on the doors other side. Resolute, Crow, and 
Alexia appropriated a table toward the middle of the tavern, while Dranae and Kerrigan seated 
themselves at the bar.

 Lombo seated himself imperiously and adjusted his throne, then summoned a sailor with the crook of a 
taloned finger. Go, make Shark seanow.

 The sailor, an ugly man whose face had clearly been kissed more by steel than lips, hesitated for a 
moment, then nodded and headed out. A couple others looked after him, and Lombo dismissed them 
with a wave of his hand. One or two of the remaining sailors pulled up chairs around peripheral tables, 
while others just drifted toward the door and out.

 The bartender bowed deeply as he approached Lombos table. What would Capn Lombo be 
having?

 Wait.

 Will wondered what Lombo wanted to wait for, and his answer wasnt too long in coming. A man 
strode through the doorway within a half hour of Reachs death. Hard and lean, the man wore leather 
bracers on his forearms and a wide, iron-studded belt around his middle. Between knee-high boots and 
that belt he wore loose pantaloons of blue silk, which would have looked silly save for the deadly earnest 
in the mans stride. His head had been partly shaved, and tresses of long black hair had been gathered 
back into a queue that reminded Will of the warmages on Vilwan. Because he had no shirt, it was easy to 
see the rainbow-scaled snake tattoo curling around his body. Will couldnt see where it started, but the 
head rested on the mans left shoulder.

 The mans hard-eyed gaze swept over Will and Orla, but they did not register as a threat. Will figured 
the man was very confident or stupid, since the two steps he took into the tavern left his back open. Will 
slid his right hand down to finger his bladestar pouch, but a slight glance from the man made him doubt 
hed be able to draw and throw without being detected.

 The man balled his fists. Lombo, you shouldnt have come back. You should have stayed dead. Did 
you tire of Tagothchas company, or did he of yours?

 Talk, talk, Wheele. Lombo slowly rose from his chair and planted his fists on the table. Alone 
now.

 And soon dead. The mans right hand swept up and began to weave through a complex series of 
motions. Off to the left, Kerrigan gasped, which brought Wheeles head around. He started to say 
something, probably connected to the puzzled look on his face, when a flash of gold hit Wheele on the 
right. It flowed over him like bowspray, at first contorting his back, then snapping him forward into a little 
heap.

 Will got up to check him, but Orla was there first, waving Will back with her hand. Stay off him, lad.

 The thief stopped dead in his tracks, and half because of her warning. The other half came as the 
tattoo writhed and shifted a little. It didnt move much, but that was much more than Will wanted to see.

 Lombo designated two sailors to drag Wheele off to Vionna, then settled back down to wait. The 
tavernkeeper brought him a huge bowl of ale, then set about making food for the rest of them. Will took 
his meal with Orla, much preferring her company to Resolutes.

 That tattoo, Orla, Ive never seen anything like it. 


 The old woman nodded as she sopped up the yolk of an egg with a dark crust of bread. Theyve 
been rumored for years, but thats the first Ive seen.

 The old woman nodded as she sopped up the yolk of an egg with a dark crust of bread. Theyve 
been rumored for years, but thats the first Ive seen.

 She frowned, then lowered her voice. When the heroes went to fight Chytrine, a Vilwan-trained mage 
was with them. He had been sent to work for your grandfather because the elven prophecy was not 
precisely the first indication that the Norrington bloodline would be important. I dont think your 
grandfather had any inkling of how powerful Heslin truly was. Perhaps, in Svarskya, he caught a glimmer 
of it when Heslin, all alone, undid defensive mag-icks woven to protect the Vilwanese consulate.

 In that action, Heslin was badly wounded, perhaps even killed.

 Will nodded. He became one of the sullanciri

 He did, indeed. He is known as Neskartu. Her brown eyes focused distantly. Chytrine, if portents 
are to be believed, set him to creating a school of magick akin to Vilwan deep in Aurolan. Men like 
Wheele, men who have some talent but no patience, they go there to learn the easy path to magick 
power.

 The thief raised an eyebrow. Easy path?

 Oh, the avarice in your voice, Will. She shook her head. The spells we teach on Vilwan are not the 
only way to get that effect. As a thief you know a lock can be picked or it can be smashed. Smashing it 
takes less skill, and might be more effective, but it comes with danger. So it is with magick. The 
Vilwanese spells are safe and require skill; the magery Wheele knows does not.

 An explosive laugh and a blur of color bouncing into the tavern interrupted any further explanation of 
magick. A human dwarf, with foreshortened limbs and clad in a motley riot of bright colors, rolled, 
leaped, and danced through the tavern, then vaulted onto the seat of a chair. The dwarf tipped it over, 
letting the back rest against Lombos table, then boldly strode onto it as if Adrogans himself.

 Captain Lombo!

 The Panqui smashed his palms down on the table, jouncing the dwarf into the air an inch or two. Pet 
Nacker.

 The dwarf bowed, then capered around in a circle before resting his fists on his hips. I am bid by the 
most terrible Vionna, Queen of Wruona, to welcome you. Word of Reachs wreck has flowed into her 
ear and fits well and warmly. She bids you and your companions to sup with her as day bleeds into 
night.

 Lombo agrees. Deliver message. The dwarf laughed aloud, then dropped into a cross-legged seat 
on the table. I told her you would. I am to guide you. Ill wait here and save myself the long walk, so 
you and I can talk, and I can learn of your life after Vionna ordered it taken away.

 Will shook himself out of a near stupor. As storytellers went, Lombo might have a lot of material to 
work with, but pulling it out of him two or three words at a time didnt make for a rousing performance. 
Nacker kept at it with a tenacity that surprised Will, making him quickly suspect that what the dwarf 
lacked in height he made up for in intellect.

 The dwarf called an end to the days chatter as mid-afternoon ebbed toward dusk. Lombo scooped 
Nacker up in an arm and led the procession that wound up the hill, through alleys and unpaved streets 
with eroded gullies on either side. The absence of cats and chickens and other animals, save skinny, 
whiny, quick dogs, made Will of a mind to wonder what sort of meal theyd be heading to in the 
stronghold.

 He saw no sign of Peri or Qwc, but he had no doubt they soared through the night, unseen, above 
them.

 From the bay theyd seen walltowers, but the stronghold itself occupied the entire hilltop, with thick 
walls supplementing sheer cliffs on the south and east sides. While coming up through the last switchback 
and the long tunnel piercing the walls, Will could see both how old the stronghold was, and why it would 
have been tough to take. The hilltop sunk away, so the main courtyard and tower didnt appear to be 
very tall when seen from below, but grew as you came up onto the hilltop. It struck Will that some of its 
levels might have been built into the hill itself.

 His guess turned out to be correct, for they entered at the base of the tower and proceeded down tall 


steps to a vast room with vaulted ceilings and pillars to support them. A spiral staircase worked up into 
the entryway wall, leading to the towers higher levels, but Will had nary a care for them. The large room 
served as Vionnas treasury, with gold bars stacked hither and yon, casks of coins filled to bursting, bolts 
of cloth draped over ornate furnishings, weapons racked, stacked, and piled, and a few works of art 
hung crookedly from walls or pillars.

steps to a vast room with vaulted ceilings and pillars to support them. A spiral staircase worked up into 
the entryway wall, leading to the towers higher levels, but Will had nary a care for them. The large room 
served as Vionnas treasury, with gold bars stacked hither and yon, casks of coins filled to bursting, bolts 
of cloth draped over ornate furnishings, weapons racked, stacked, and piled, and a few works of art 
hung crookedly from walls or pillars.

 At the far end, standing before a tall, thronelike chair, a handsome woman beckoned them forward. 
Somewhere between Alexia and Orla in age, she had rich brown hair, long and unbraided, half hidden 
beneath a red kerchief. She was clad in a black silk blouse and silk pantaloons, and wore them much 
better than Wheele ever had. She smiled and waved gloved hands toward the chairs.

 Lombo, youll be here beside me. Your friends, around us. Her smile smoothed out slightly. I am, 
as you have surmised, Vionna.

 Each of them moved to a place, leaving two open. The seat at her right hand remained empty until a 
tall, slender man wearing a turquoise tunic with a webwork of black over one side came down the stairs. 
He paused toward the bottom of them, looking up innocently as if surprised at their presence, then gave 
each of them a nod.

 As the man looked at him, Wills mouth gaped, then he blushed and looked away. The mental image 
hed carried for years of the Azure Spider merged with reality. Little details didnt quite match, like the 
mans dark hair being more fine than curly, but that didnt matter. The ease of his movements, the supple 
grace of his lean limbs, the hint of a smile he gave Alexia and Orla, all of it provided Will with a clear 
understanding of why Marcus hated the man.

 Will started to speak, to introduce himself as one of

 Marcus proteges, but the words caught in his throat. Partly it was because of the sheer awe he felt 
being in the Azure Spiders presenceeven his having rubbed elbows with royalty had not prepared him 
for this meeting. Beyond that, however, he realized the Azure Spider had paused precisely for effect. As 
innocent as it had appeared at first, his holding his position just a heartbeat too long revealed the truth to 
Will. 

He may have been a hero of mine, but would a true hero do that? Resolute never would, nor 
Crow nor Alyx or any of his companions. That revelation shook Will and slowly closed his mouth.

 Oblivious to what had run through Wills mind, the Azure Spider swept to Vionnas side and kissed 
her cheek.

 Forgive me for being late.

 Vionna nodded. This is the Azure Spider, and the reason youre here.

 Lombo came for ship. Lombos ship.

 The pirate queen shook her head. Youll forgive me, Lombo, but I do not believe in coincidences.

 She reached out and pulled a small silver cover off a dish at her place. Resting there on a bed of green 
velvet was a sapphire the size of a goose egg. Will knew his gems and knew that even discounting the 
gold setting, the deep blue stone was worth a kings ransom and then some.

 Vionna lifted it in her left hand and held it up so Will could see the candlelight spark a cross in it. Yes, 
this is the Lakaslin portion of the DragonCrown. This is why you have come to Wruona. You might even 
be able to leave with it.

 Resolutes eyes tightened. Name a price.

 The price is not for me to name. Thats up to you, my guests. She nodded once, then her smile 
broadened. Ah, we are complete. Now we can begin.

 Will saw something coalesce from the shadows at the top of the stairs. Slender, but not so tall, wearing 
a cloak

 Its rather simple, you see. For the DragonCrown to go with thee, just outbid me. The sullanciri 


Nefrai-laysh sketched a bow, then descended. This auction, of course, I will win, so, pray thee, let the 
bidding begin 

Nefrai-laysh sketched a bow, then descended. This auction, of course, I will win, so, pray thee, let the 
bidding begin 

 When the ram reached the gate, the men who had been pulling it came round behind to push. The ram 
itself was a simple affair, little more than wheels and a framework that suspended a long log on cables. 
The log had been capped with iron to give it weight, and the iron had jagged teeth twisting this way and 
that to let it nibble into the wood. Over it all had been built a roof that already bristled with arrows and 
even burned in a couple of places.

 The soldiers working the ram tugged back on ropes to swing the ponderous piece of wood away from 
the gate.

 Ropes slid through rough hands as the log reached the apex of its rearward arc, then swooped 
forward to pound the gate hard. The blow resounded loudly, as if an ax had bit deeply into a stump. The 
log shivered and rebounded, with the men hauling back to aid that rearward momentum, then released it 
again.

 The iron head slammed heavily into the gate, and the teeth did their job, exposing white wood and 
half-uncovered iron bolts. Again and again it bit, not terribly deeply, but as it came away splinters and 
wood chips littered the ground. Left alone it would gnaw its way through, though the sheer force of the 
blows could easily rip the gates free of the walls before its hunger had been sated.

 Defenders did all they could to stop the ram, but ballis-tae shots made the ramparts above the gate a 
very dangerous place to fight from. Firecocks washed it in flames, and arrows swept away defenders. 
Firepots lobbed from further away seldom made it to the ram itself and arrows shot at long range did 
strike some soldiers, but rarely penetrated armor.

 The siege towers inexorably crept closer as trebuchets and catapults flung stones high into the sky. 
They crashed down, splitting merlons, crushing rock, wearing away the stone walls. Adrogans knew that 
with so little time they could never bring the walls down fully, but he didnt want that. Collapsed walls 
would be too difficult to repair in time to defend the city from any sort of counterattack. What he needed, 
and what by Arel it appeared he might get, was enough of a breach at the top of a wall for the defenders 
to have trouble opposing the men in the siege towers.

 A sharp crack and the scream of metal focused Adrogans on the gate. The right side gate had begun 
to sag and the upper hinge had torn free. Another pounding blow, and another, widened the gap at the 
top. Men shouted and shifted the ram a foot or two right, concentrating on that door. Each hammering 
blow shivered it.

 Gaps appeared between the timbers, then the weight of the doors became too much for the final hinge.

 Shrieking like an eviscerated frostclaw, the hinge tore away and the gate sagged back. The other 
hinges held for a heartbeat, then pulled free of the stone, allowing the entire gate to flop backward. The 
leftmost section ground against the entryways side, so it never lay flat but the right side did, crushing 
gibberers that had been waiting behind it.

 The men at the ram shoved the engine forward one more time, filling the opening. While the wheels 
couldnt get up and onto the downed door, the ram itself acted as a partial plug. Some defenders 
squirted out around the edges, only to be cut down as soldiers brought swords to hand.

 The trickle of defenders soon stopped, and Adrogans knew why. He signaled and a trumpet blared. 
The men at the ram pulled the siege engine aside and there, waiting at the far end of the tunnel, stood a 
phalanx of gibberers with shields and longknives. They clogged the furthest end of the tunnel, and slowly 
piled debris before them. They meant to hold up any attacking force, trapping it in the tunnel, so the 
warriors in the chamber above the tunnel could use the murderholes to pour arrows and boiling lead 
down on the attackers. 


 Two small ballistae had come up as the ram was pulled aside. Both shot into the tunnel, launching thick 
spears and sheaves of arrows. Transfixed defenders went down in droves. More appeared to fill their 
ranks, and the explosion of a firecock behind them did kill some, but it did not disperse them.

 Two small ballistae had come up as the ram was pulled aside. Both shot into the tunnel, launching thick 
spears and sheaves of arrows. Transfixed defenders went down in droves. More appeared to fill their 
ranks, and the explosion of a firecock behind them did kill some, but it did not disperse them.

 Beal watched as the warmages worked feverishly and their effortspaidhandsomely.Thesorcerersheated 
larger stones, and Zhusks created a small breeze that sent air over the stones to fill sealed silken sacks. 
These sacks rose, carrying with them ropes, which were attached to a length of stout cable. At the far 
end of the cables a Gyrkyme pulled, tugging the floating line toward Svoin.

 Both cables streamed out from the top of the siege tower. That tower had never been meant to move 
an inch, but instead had been built in place with logs driven deep into the ground for stability. Each line 
was over six hundred feet in length and weighed a considerable amount in and of itself. The balloons 
lightened the load for the Gyrkyme, who would anchor the heavy rope in the town, then her people 
would take up the slack in the line.

 The Blackfeathers advanced toward the wall, shortening their ranges and feathering any defender who 
so much as flicked an ear in the open. The trebuchet continued to loft stones, battering a section of wall in 
hopes of cutting off defenders. Ballistae shot and shot again, finding fewer and more elusive targets, but 
treating quite harshly those they did hit.

 A Gyrkyme came swooping low from the city and sliced a dagger through the rope holding the first 
balloon to the line. As he continued cutting them loose, Beal snapped an order and her clansmen rushed 
to the siege tower. They took up the thick end of the line and began to pull. Their booted feet churned 
the ground into mud, but inch by inch the slack left the rope.

 The top of the tower braces were set and the rope was tightened off. A trumpet blared then and was 
answered from the Svoin building into which the hostages had been gathered. Only the twitching of the 
line told Beal what was happening until she saw the first person sweep past a fire burning on the walls. 
Clinging to both ends of a rope, hanging below the strung line, a Vorquelf came sliding along to freedom 
with her skirts snapping and flapping out behind her.

 The wooden gate just below the uppermost level of the siege tower flopped down. Two men grabbed 
her as she reached it, and a third freed her hands of the rope. The metal slide, which had been fashioned 
from a bracer, was snapped back off the line and tossed up to the top of the tower where a Gyrkyme 
waited to fly it back into Svoin.

 Beal joined the others in laughing and shouting. The only thing the plan had going for it had been 
audacity, and the audacity had paid off. Clan Bravonyn had gathered the hostages in one building and the 
ropes had been anchored there on its roof. Because the building was taller than the walls and the tower, 
the slide worked. One by one, Vorquelves slid through the night to freedom.

 As the Jeranese Horse Guards moved into position to strike, two catapult crews levered their 
machines around and loaded logs thickly swathed in oil-soaked rags. Torches ignited the missiles, then 
the catapults hurled them flaming into the night. Thick black smoke trailed in their wakes, obscuring stars, 
but the explosion of sparks marked their landings. Both hit true, bouncing off the downed gates, lodging 
themselves firmly in the middle of the tunnel.

 Phfas came up and extended a hand toward the tunnel. A slight breeze picked up, fanning the flames 
and drawing from the burning rags a thick cloud of black smoke. Much of it rose to pour up through the 
murderholes, while the rest billowed along to fill the tunnel.

 The Savarese Knights, three hundred strong, trotted forward under cover of the pall and formed up in 
ranks ten abreast. The first company moved to the fore and, a hundred yards from the gate, kicked their 
horses into a charge. Only the first rank had their lances deployed, as the ranks following could not be 
sure in the smoke what they would be stabbing. With visors on their helmets closed, the heavily armored 
Knights vanished into the smoke in a curiously echoed clatter of hooves.

 Behind them came the next company, and the next, the first of three legions thrown into battle.

 A Gyrkyme Warhawk swooped low from the sky and screamed that the Knights were through, but 
Adrogans already knew that. He felt the shock and pain of the gibberers being stabbed and thrust aside, 


the choking of their lungs, the stinging slashes of swords, and the ripping jolts of lances piercing flesh.

the choking of their lungs, the stinging slashes of swords, and the ripping jolts of lances piercing flesh.

 Adrogans reined his horse left and charged down South Crescent Road, which ran inside the wall. His 
saber rose and fell, slashing at the few fleeing gibberers. They died obligingly and quickly, screams 
dwindling fast, and on he raced.

 A thousand yards along the road, heading due east, he found his target. Gibberers choked the road, 
intent on assaulting the building from which the two ropes extended over the walls. As he approached, 
one gibberer managed to loop a rope over a line, which stopped a Vbrquelfs slide to freedom. The 
Vbrquelf hung there as stones and sticks flew up, and an arrow pierced her thigh. She screamed. Men 
shouted at her from the building to hold on, but she could not. She fell into the teeming mass of Aurolani 
troops and they tore her apart.

 Her death agony exploded in Adrogans, leaving him numb and cold as his horse plunged into the 
gibberkin mob. The sheer impact of a galloping horse slamming into creatures snapped spines and broke 
ribs. Adrogans slashed to his right, kicked to his left, even raked one gibberers throat with a spur. He 
cut at the looped rope, then yanked it free, not caring about the clawed hands scrabbling at his legs.

 Then the rest of the Horse Guards hit the crowd in a wave of flesh and metal. Bodies spilled into 
bodies. Horses reared, lethal hooves flashing. One kick lifted a gibberer and tossed him a dozen feet 
backward, while his dented helmet and much of his skull went twice as far.

 The Bravonyns in the building cheered as the Horse Guards lifted the siege on their position. Up on the 
city wall a vylaen stood, preparing a spell. He jerked as two arrows crossed in his back, punching 
through his chest and pitching him off the rampart.

 The gibberers broke and dashed into alleys or sprinted down streets. Adrogans dispatched riders to 
kill those they could, then scout out the city. His intelligence from the Vorquelves had been good but old, 
and while he was fairly certain the walls had demanded three-quarters of the defenders in the city, that 
still left a battalion gathered somewhere. He needed to find it and destroy it before the leader could 
disperse it with orders to fire the city and slaughter the inhabitants.

 Adrogans quickly dismounted and entered the building being used to evacuate the hostages. He 
passed through the packed crowd of Vorquelves, doing his best to ignore haunted faces, and worked his 
way to the roof. He took quick comfort in the fact that he saw no golden glow betokening buildings 
burning, but he had no confidence that that situation would last.

 A Guarnin captain tossed him a hasty salute. Theyre going fast, General. Weve lost a fewto 
arrows, to just being weak and dropping off linesbut most are escaping two a minute, each line.

 Adrogans nodded, then called out to a Gyrkyme who landed to drop off more of the bracers. I need 
you to overfly the city. I need to know where the enemy is gathering.

 The Warhawk nodded and set off, quickly vanishing in the night. As he waited for her return, 
Adrogans watched Vorquelves come to the roof, get secured on the lines, and launched. Some screamed 
in terror, and a few in delight, which caused smiles to blossom all around.

 The Warhawk returned and pointed toward the center of the town. They gather there, General. If we 
had more firecocks...

 Adrogans waved her remark away. Go east. Find General Caro and give him my compliments. Tell 
him they are in the market square and will be oriented south. Tell him to use the Kingsmen as well.

 She launched herself into the night again and Adrogans made his way back down to the street. He 
dispatched two riders to bear the same message to Caro, then gathered his legion and headed north 
toward the market square. His troops filled the road five abreast, expanding to ten as the streets widened 
near the market.

 It surprised Adrogans that the windows above remained shuttered and darkened. The lack of curiosity 
of the inhabitants puzzled him. He shivered when considering that most places might be empty. Or, 


worse, that the populations spirits had been so shattered that nothing could bring them hope.

worse, that the populations spirits had been so shattered that nothing could bring them hope.

 Adrogans rode forward of his line. Throw down your weapons, strike your banners.

 The gibberers hooted and hollered at his command. Their legion banners were boosted higher in the 
air and waved, part defiance, part taunt. Vylaens snapped orders and ranks closed. Shields and spears 
deployed on the front

 FORTRESS DRACONrS

 facing him. One hoargoun bent down and then straightened up with a long granite curbstone in his 
hands, ready to hurl. In their movements Adrogans almost read a nobility, but that vanished with his 
recollection of the Vorquelf falling to her death.

 Then Caros Horse Guards burst into the square from the east, catching the Aurolani formation in the 
flank. The charge drove a huge wedge into the formation. The hurled curbstone did take down several 
horses and riders, but couldnt blunt the attack. Vylaens shouted more orders, trying in vain to reorient 
their troops.

 Then the Okrans Kingsmen hit from the north. The Kingsmen literally sheered off a third of the 
Aurolani battalion, driving it back toward the temple, then encircling it and shrinking it until finally even the 
last embattled hoargoun went down.

 Adrogans did deploy his Horse Guards, but only let them police the squares perimeter, picking off 
fleeing Aurolani troops. His people could have added nothing to the main fight and would have only 
robbed Caro of a full sense of victory.

 The Jeranese general slowly let a breath out. It would appear we did win here this evening, and the 
butchers bill wont be too high. The next move would be Chytrines, and Adrogans shivered. The 
price exacted for winning the city was light, but the charge for keeping it, I have the feeling, will 
be very dear indeed.

 ill stared at the creature standing opposite Vionna at the far end of the table. That thing is my father? 
He shivered, feeling cold ooze into his marrow. As much as he had come to accept being a Norrington, 
and even the Norrington, having the orphans dream of some wonderful father coming to claim him 
replaced by having to acknowledge this thing as his father came hard.

 He shook his head. Thats the thing that consumed my father. I refuse to he his son.

 Alexia, who stood on Wills right, between him and Lombo, turned to face Vionna. Will took that as a 
sign of her trust in him, for she wore a dagger at the small of her back. It would have been simple to draw 
it and plunge it into her. If I were my fathers son ...

 The princess lifted her chin. You want us to name a price for that portion of the DragonCrown? How 
do you know we will pay? How can you trust her agent to pay?

 Vionna seated herself in the tall chair and leaned back, bringing her booted feet up onto the table. She 
held the sapphire before her as if it were a crystal goblet of wine, turning it to admire the light moving in it. 
Well, Alexia, I would trust you if you gave me your wordand if you remained behind as my guest until 
the price was delivered. As for Chytrine, I have ample evidence that she rewards those who serve her 
rather well.

 Crow forced a laugh. You need only look down the table to see your reward.

 The sullanciri bowed his head graciously. For a heartbeat light played in those blue eyes as it did in 
the sapphire, then they went dead. To rule all that is small, or a small part of the all. One option to 
choose, one option to lose.

 Resolute stood opposite Alexia, between the Azure Spider and Crow. He glanced at the sullanciri. 
Is that your bid, then, a portion of all Chytrine will conquer?

 Still full of unrest, fury clogging your breast, Resolute seeks to contest where acquiescence is best. 


Nefrai-laysh slowly grinned, then lifted a turtle to see what awaited him at his place. If the bid pleases 

Nefrai-laysh slowly grinned, then lifted a turtle to see what awaited him at his place. If the bid pleases 

 It pleases my heart greatly, thank you. Vionna lifted an eyebrow and looked to Alexia. Your turn.

 He bids the future, a future he does not own. Chytrines conquests will be contested; she will lose.

 But not if she has this, will she? Vionna laughed lightly. Here is the trick. Even if I were to give this 
to you, Alexia, and your fine band of heroes here, you would never use it. You would never command 
dragons, and without them, you could not prevail against Chytrine and her allies. So, yes, he promises 
that which he does not have, which his Mistress does not have, but is more likely to get if she is given this 
portion of the crown.

 Will shivered again as the cold calculation of Vionnas words sank into him. Across the table the 
Azure Spider listened and nodded, his expression betraying no surprise at her words. He had clearly 
heard them before, had reckoned on their value, and, it seemed clear to Will, had agreed with her 
reasoning even before the robbery. In fact, in the absence of such a discussion, Will could not imagine the 
Azure Spider having undertaken such an adventure.

 That portion of the DragonCrown in Chytrines hands would mean suffering and death for thousands. 
Stories of the misery of Svoins residents, of the melting of the town of Porasena, even visions of the 
dragons at Vilwan, all these made clear to Will the evil that Chytrine could wreak with that piece of the 
DragonCrown. To think about that and further undertake to get it into her hands marked a level of 
depravity Will had not heard of outside terror tales for childrenand those were all clearly fiction.

 Crow usurped Alexias answer by pointing past Orla and Kerrigan toward the sullanciri. So you 
would become like him, willingly supping on the suffering of the world? He was once a man, you know, 
an honorable man.

 The sullanciri looked up from a picked-over bird carcass and snarled. By a friend laid low, as well 
you know. It was quite the blow, Crow, and you cant say its not so. A man I once was, and neer 
again will be, but better to be this, than to skulk about as thee.

 Nefrai-laysh sucked on his fingers from where hed been tearing meat from the fowl, then nodded. 
Have they no bid, no treasure hid, to sate avarice thine? Then end the game, a winner name; the gem 
goes to Mistress mine.

 It occurred to Will, in a heartbeat, that Vionna had never intended to auction off the gem. Nefrai-laysh 
had ar- rived to take possession of it. Vionna would next offer them to Chytrines lieutenant. And for 
this band to fall to Chytrine would be even more of a blow to their allies than the loss of the crown 
fragment.

 He couldnt allow that to happen.

 Even as he reached his conclusion, a whirring buzz sounded in the chamber. In the corner of his left 
eye Will caught a flash of green as Qwc flew between the ankles of a pirate at the stairs, then vanished 
beneath the table. Will raised his right hand as the Spritha popped up before

 Vionna, beating his wings furiously as he stopped, then spat a mouthful of webbing in her face.

 The pirate screeched and clawed at her face as her chair tipped and began to fall. Qwc neatly plucked 
the gem from her hand and started to fly back, but the weight of the gold turned his flight into a fall, which 
landed him with a thump on the platter that had held the gem. The Azure Spider clapped the turtle back 
down, trapping the Spritha.

 That would have ended the brief drama save for Will sliding the dagger from the sheath on Alexias 
back. In one fluid motion he whipped the blade forward. The knife was a thick, cumbersome thing with 
no balance at all, but it flew as Will wanted it, smacking the sullanciri full in the face. Nefrai-laysh 
staggered back, more from surprise than hurt since the hilt had hit flat across his face, then laid his right 
hand to a swordhilt and drew a longsword that moaned piteously.

 Resolute swung a fist, catching the Azure Spider full in the chest and knocking him back away from the 
table. The Spider went down, but slewed his legs around and came back up. He drew a swept-hilted 
longsword with an extraordinarily narrow blade, then lunged at Resolute. The Vorquelf parried with one 
of his longknives, and lunged with the one in his left hand. The Azure Spider danced back adroitly and 
parried, carving a little curl of steel from Resolutes blade. 


 Crow swept past Kerrigan and Orla, bringing Tsamoc to hand. He intercepted the cut Nefrai-laysh 
had meant to kill the warmage, then parried it high and chopped back down at Nefrai-layshs right leg. 
The sullanciri retreated quickly, but not quite quickly enough. Crows straight blade nicked him, 
spraying black blood that smoked when it hit the ground.

 Crow swept past Kerrigan and Orla, bringing Tsamoc to hand. He intercepted the cut Nefrai-laysh 
had meant to kill the warmage, then parried it high and chopped back down at Nefrai-layshs right leg. 
The sullanciri retreated quickly, but not quite quickly enough. Crows straight blade nicked him, 
spraying black blood that smoked when it hit the ground.

 Ah, just for thee, a scar to cross the three! the sullanciri brayed.

 Kerrigans bashing into the table proved providential. Lombo had already turned away and had armed 
himself with two bags of gold coins, which he used as flails against several pirates. Alexia had drawn her 
sword and engaged Vionna, likewise moving away from the table. Dranae, to Wills left, had picked up 
an iron candlestand and was using it to duel with two pirates while Orla thrust her right hand at another, 
triggering a gout of brilliant flame that engulfed him for a heartbeat.

 The only member of the pirate crew left unaccounted for was Nacker, who had bounded up on the 
table. He grabbed the turtle covering Qwc in his right hand, and had a serving fork in the left, ready to 
spit the Spritha. Kerrigans bounce against the table shifted it enough to topple candelabra and the dwarf. 
The turtle came off, Qwc spat a mask of webbing into Nackers face, then looked at Will. Help Qwc, 
quick.

 Will grabbed the edge of the table in both hands and vaulted himself up to kick the dwarf squarely in 
the chest with both feet. The dwarf grunted and flew past Resolute as the Vorquelf trapped the Azure 
Spiders blade between his longknives, then shoved the slighter man back. Reaching out, Will grabbed 
the platter on which Qwc lay and slung it down the table to Kerrigan.

 The spinning Sprithas scream all but eclipsed Wills shout of Help Qwc. The thief scrambled to his 
feet on the table and grabbed the turtle in both hands before leaping off. He brought the turtle down with 
all his might, clanging it over the Azure Spiders head. The man groaned, then collapsed as Wills body 
slammed into him. Will rolled off the legendary thief and came up into a crouch with his back against a 
thick stone column.

 At the head of the table Vionna and Alexia dueled. Their blades matched in length, giving Alyx an 
advantage in reach. Vionna turned her lunges, but only at the last moment, and more than once retreated, 
trading ground for whole skin. Ground quickly surrendered however, as her retreat backed her against an 
open chest of gold coins. She sat down abruptly and Alexia approached with her blade leveled at the 
womans throat. Yield or die.

 Nefrai-laysh drove at Crow, coming in at an angle that kept the man trapped against the edge of the 
table. Crow parried one slash, but kissed the table with his blade as he moved to block the next blow. 
The sullancirts next cut would have laid him open hip to hip, but Resolute lunged forward, sliding on his 
knees, and deflected the blow. The Aurolanis blade sliced through the longknife as if it were smoke, then 
came up and around in an overhand blow that pared three-quarters of Resolutes other longknife away.

 Resolute threw the hilts at Nefrai-laysh. The sullanciri batted one wide, but the other thumped against 
his chest. Resolute twisted to his feet and backed away, but Chytrines plaything advanced, slashing. 
Resolute leaped away again and again, but each cut came closer to separating him up from down.

 Will hooked a toe beneath the guard on the Spiders sword and kicked it up into the air. Rising, he 
grabbed the blades curiously leather-wrapped forte in his left hand. He felt a sting where his last two 
fingers touched bare metal, then tossed the sword to Resolute. Catch.

 The sword was not the only thing flying through the air. Vionna flicked her left hand forward, launching 
a trove of gold coins into Alexias face. The princess batted some away with her free hand, but others hit 
her. She recoiled from them and her advancing foe, then caught a heel on

 Vionnas toppled chair. Alexia went down, hitting her head hard on the stone floor, and the pirate 
queen loomed up over her, with her sword poised to impale the princess.

 It likely would have spitted Alexia, save that Crow grabbed one of the candelabra and lunged, 


catching Vionnas swordhand in the devices tangled arms. Hot wax splashed over the pirates face. She 
spun, tearing the candelabra out of Crows grasp. He kept coming, slamming his body into hers and 
pitching her into and over the treasure chest. It slid down, half burying her in a shower of gold.

catching Vionnas swordhand in the devices tangled arms. Hot wax splashed over the pirates face. She 
spun, tearing the candelabra out of Crows grasp. He kept coming, slamming his body into hers and 
pitching her into and over the treasure chest. It slid down, half burying her in a shower of gold.

 Nefrai-laysh gave the elf a quick nod. Another piece of prophecy has been given to thee. Be wise, be 
well, for in agony you will dwell. This is true: death in pyre, born in fire.

 The sullanciri snapped his head backward and brought his heels up. His cloak merged with the flames 
on the table, then he vanished, leaving the table burning and thick smoke gathering.

 Resolute, some help here. Crow had Alexia on her feet, with one hand thrown over his shoulder, but 
she was all loose-limbed. The elf edged past the table to get her, while Lombo and Dranae rushed 
forward and scattered the pirates standing between them and the stairs. Orla followed them, and 
Kerrigan trailed behind her. He still carried the platter with Qwc on it, and the Spritha hugged himself 
tightly to the sapphire.

 Will headed out as swiftly as he could, which meant he paused only to loop a couple of gold chains 
around his neck and pluck up a leather pouch that felt and weighed as if full of gemstones. Deciding to 
act the rear guard, he drew a sword from among those stored in the treasury and prided himself on the 
fact that his choice had not been the most ornate, but a bit more functional than that.

 Will followed the others up the stairs and out into the courtyard. The guards at the gate gave them no 
trouble and Will wondered why until he saw Peri crouched over their bodies. The Gyrkyme crossed to 
where the princess hung between Resolute and Crow and peered up into Alexias eyes.

 More will die for this! Peri slashed taloned fingers through the air. More, many more.

 She had a knock on the head, Perrine; shell be fine. We need you to get the DragonCrown fragment 
out of here. Crow pointed with his free hand toward Kerrigan and his treasure.

 The Gyrkyme shook her head. I wont leave her.

 You must, Peri. Crow let his voice soften slightly. You know she would tell you to take it. Shed 
entrust it to you as she was entrusted to your father.

 Yes, but remember what happened to the other Gyrkyme that tried to escape with a piece of the 
DragonCrown. They died in Svarskya.

 Resolute nodded. But they were not Preyknosery Ironwings daughter.

 Peris head came up at that. Where do I take it?

 Where, Qwc knows where. The Spritha stood on the platter and hefted the sapphire onto his 
shoulder, then staggered back against Kerrigans chest. We fly, Perrine, Qwc knows where.

 The Gyrkyme took the gem from him, then narrowed her amber eyes. If something happens to her 
...

 Never. Crow shook his head adamantly. I promise.

 Orla patted Perrine on the back. Get going. Youve not a moment to lose.

 The Gyrkyme and the Spritha launched themselves skyward, then circled the tower once and dipped 
down to the south. They vanished beneath the far wall. Will nodded, happy to see them away, then 
looked to his companions. How do we get out of here?

 Lombo let loose with a thunderous hooting so loud that Will clapped his hands over his ears. In the 
distance a half-dozen similar howls answered him. Lombos ship.

  Your ship? I think not. Wheele, backed by a crowd of pirates, strode through the tunnel and 
stopped at the courtyards edge. Orla, your master detected the traces of your magick on me. He sends 
his compliments.

 Orla moved forward, interposing herself between Wheele and the others. Stay behind me. Hes 
mine. 


 He said you were brave, more brave than intelligent. Ill enjoy telling him how you died. The man 
laughed and drew a slender wand from the top of his right boot. I had this wand from his hand for me to 
use against Vilwan spawn.

 He said you were brave, more brave than intelligent. Ill enjoy telling him how you died. The man 
laughed and drew a slender wand from the top of his right boot. I had this wand from his hand for me to 
use against Vilwan spawn.

 Orla slowly began to circle, only a quarter of the way around, then pivoted on her right foot. Her left 
foot came forward, toward Wheele, and her left hand came up. A gold spark flew at him as if it were a 
bee intent on a blossom. Her right hand also came up and flicked a scattering of other sparks toward the 
tunnel.

 They hit the walls, rebounding, splitting and spitting, then swooped down into the pirates. The first 
spark touched a man and he burst into flame. Another who parried the spark with his ax found its blade 
molten and dripping. The pirates shrieked and ran, including the burning man.

 The spark hit Wheele square in the chest, and the serpents head darted its tongue out to lick the 
magick up. The man shivered for a second, then burst into flames. But he laughed aloud. You make it 
too easy, Orla, as he said you would. Youve sacrificed yourself for your friends, and I shall have them, 
too.

 Wheele flicked the wand at her and a jagged green bolt of lightning stabbed her through her bowels. It 
tossed her back against Kerrigan. She grabbed the silver platter and tore it from his grasp as she fell at 
his feet.

 Kerrigan screamed in fury and flashed both his palms at Wheele. A starfall of gold sparks swirled and 
curled out at the man. They tightened down into a coruscating lash of light that flayed some flame away, 
but mostly was sucked into the fire. Wheeles magick blazed more furiously.

 Your apprentice is a fool, Orla. He watches you and does not learn. Your magick cannot harm me.

 My magick, no, she gasped as she pointed a quavering hand at him. But yours ...

 With the jerked and pained gesture, Orla sent the silver platter riding a wave of magick through the air. 
It spun slowly, easily, but always with a purpose, soaring, not drifting toward him. It picked up speed as 
it flew, turning faster, with the firelight flashing from it, over Wheele, the keep, and the walls. The platter 
tipped upright at the last moment, passing broadside through Wheeles fiery armor.

 It was in that last second when Wheele realized the threat.

 The metal glowed red, then white. It hit him heavily, smothering him like a wet sheet. It poured thickly 
over his head and shoulders like molten wax. The mans scream was not enough to bubble the fluid 
metal, but his tortured expression did contort it. Viscous silver flooded his mouth and splashed down his 
body, then flames flared. Black smoke billowed around him for a moment, then vanished along with most 
of the flames. Wheeles smoking corpse knelt in the center of the courtyard with its head thrown back 
and its silent silver scream pitched at the cold stars.

 His wand clattered to the stone.

 Lombo scooped Orla up into his arms. The wand, the wand, she murmured before she went limp.

 Will beat her apprentice to it, then chased him from the citadel. He resisted the temptation to 
outdistance the blubbering mage, and likewise didnt thwack him across his ample buttocks with the 
wand. Instead, he tucked the wand into his belt, turned to watch their backtrail, and brandished his 
sword at any shadow that looked the least bit menacing. Because of his efforts or in spite of them, the 
company made it to the docks unmolested and set off quickly on their escape.

 Kerrigan sat on the White Sharks afterdeck, his legs crossed, his hands clutching a slender ebon staff 
across his knees. He stared intently at the luminous wake trailing the ship, seeking any sign of pursuit. His 
line of sight had no impediment as the taffrail and several posts had been torn away, leaving a gaping hole 
between him and the sea. There had been no ships sighted since they left Port Golds harbor, but he 
dared not let his vigilance slacken.

 Behind him crewmen grunted and strained, lines creaked, and the sails and pennants snapped as the 
Shark headed east. Flying through the city, they had encountered no trouble and had reached Lombos 


old ship quickly enough. Perrine and Qwc had gotten there before them and released the four Panqui 
who had been held in chains as galley slaves. They slew the men loyal to Wheele and Reach, and the rest 
of the crew gladly decided to sail under Captain Lombo again.

old ship quickly enough. Perrine and Qwc had gotten there before them and released the four Panqui 
who had been held in chains as galley slaves. They slew the men loyal to Wheele and Reach, and the rest 
of the crew gladly decided to sail under Captain Lombo again.

 On deck it had been close to panic. Sailors dropped into the galley benches and took up the oars to 
get the ship moving, while others cut the anchor lines or lowered sails. Lombo barked orders loud and 
fast. The crew responded admirably, and the ship got under way, leaving the harbor by the light of the 
flaming stronghold. 

 Kerrigan had felt his face burn shamefully. He had clearly seen that Orlas spell had not worked to 
destroy Wheele. Why did he assume that more and more powerful of the same would do it? As he had 
watched the mans sor-cerous armor incorporate his magick and grow stronger, he had searched for 
spells that could counter it, snuffing the fire and Wheele, but there were so many choices and Orla lay 
dying and ...

 The Adept had shaken himself, determined to make amends. As the Shark pulled away, he moved to 
the after-deck and studied the ships. He forced himself to be calm, to ignore all the chaos around him, 
then reached out with the spell hed used to destroy the other pirate ship. He chose Vionnas Ocean 
Witch as his first victim. He did not pluck it out of the water, as he needed to preserve his strength to 
deal with each ship in turn. Instead he took hold of the mast and started it shaking as if it were beset by 
an incredible gale. He worried it, working it back and forth, then, with a big push, drove it down through 
the keel.

 Water geysered up through the holes in the hull and deck. Sailors scattered, diving for the bay as the 
first ship began to wallow. Kerrigan shifted his attention to the next largest and the next, tearing away 
rudders, snapping masts, crushing the galley deck, and breaking oars apart. After that he tightened his 
right hand into a fist and pounded it down on his leg. With each blow a piece of pier exploded, chasing 
sailors to dry land.

 His last blow, delivered through tear-filled eyes, had crushed the taffrail. Lombo had grabbed his hand 
before he could further smash the ship and held on until Kerrigans rage had fled, taking with it his 
strength. Sobs had wracked him, so Lombo scooped him up and carried him below, placing him in a 
chair beside Orla.

 Part of Kerrigan wanted to fall asleep, but he didnt let himself. Instead he levered himself to his feet 
and cast a diagnostic spell over his mentor. The impressions he drew from her were of a severe burn, 
akin to the sort of wound one would create by casting a lightning spell at a target. Kerrigan had cast the 
same diagnostic spell on a rabbit that had been hit by such a spell and felt similar damage.

 That kind of damage he could have healed, but before he could start working on her, Orlas eyes 
flickered open. No, Kerrigan.

 Hed blinked. I want to fix you.

 No. Check again. Traces of magick.

 Kerrigan had cast another spell on her, one used for detecting magick, and he did find some residual 
magick in her. That surprised him, because a combat spell like the lightning spell couldnt have left an 
impression behind. Traces are only left when something is enchanted.

 He switched to a forensic spell, one that probed in faint degrees. It tested the edges of enchantment 
and was employed by scholars on Vilwan as a way to puzzle out the nature of enchantments on all 
manner of items. In casting the spell he immediately got a sense of two spells lingering there. One was 
active, slowly poisoning her, and the other had quiet tendrils wrapped around the first. What surprised 
him about the second spell was that he got so small an impression of it that he almost missed it. A mage 
of lesser talent certainly would have.

 Kerrigan had straightened up and thought for a moment, and then a moment longer. Just as Wheeles 
shield ate up my spell and increased his, could this second spell do that to the first, hastening her 
death?. He wanted to do something, but didnt know what. 


 He gathered up her hand in his. Orla, you have to help me. If you dont, youll die.

 He gathered up her hand in his. Orla, you have to help me. If you dont, youll die.

 Kerrigan nodded slowly. Simple things. Wear and tear.

 Orla smiled slightly. Thats why Im not dead yet.

 What?

 Heslin knew who would hunt him and his. She paused for a moment, her eyelids dipping. Her body 
shook with a new jolt of pain, but she gave his hand a squeeze. The wand ... read my magick, modified 
the spell cast. Heslin liked finesse. Tailored it to kill me. But Im not me, because of you.

 Ill make you more not you. There are two spells in there. One is poisoning you. The other is shielding 
it. Kerrigan smiled, forcing confidence into his words. All I have to do is to split the two spells, then 
eliminate the first.

 Orla closed her brown eyes, but nodded. Yes, but you cannot.

 I must. I can figure it out.

 She shook her head without opening her eyes again. Kerrigan, you were not fashioned for that work. 
They made you a bludgeon. This needs a stiletto.

 I know, Ill get the wand.

 No! Her adamant outburst left her weak, then coughs shook her. No.

 But it cast the spell, so it should help me reverse it.

 No. She freed her hand from his. Go to the deck. Stop pirates. Do what you can. Send Resolute to 
me.

 Bewildered, and not a little hurt, Kerrigan left Lombos cabin and stepped down to the next one. Peri, 
Resolute, and Crow had crowded themselves around the berth in which Alexia lay. He waited in the 
doorway and nodded to Resolute. Magister Orla asked for you, Resolute.

 The Vorquelf left the room, but there still was not enough space for Kerrigan to enter, even if hed 
been inclined to do so. He just stared down at Alexia, where she lay with a bloody rag wrapped around 
her head. Unlike Orla, she looked peaceful and had a healthy color to her skin. Shes not dying.

 Resolute poked his head out of Lombos cabin and called for Crow. The white-haired man got up, 
clearly reluctantly, his clothes still red with his own blood, his shoulder dappled with Alexias. He 
squeezed past Kerrigan, hissing slightly as his cut side brushed against the Adepts belly.

 Kerrigan reached out and caught Crows right arm. I can fix that for you.

 Im sure you can, son, but heal Alexia. Crow gave him a grim smile. Another scar on me wont 
matter.

 Under Perrines watchful eye, Kerrigan cast the same diagnostic spell on Alexia as he had on Orla. 
Shed had a hard knock on the head, but her skull hadnt been broken. He gladly took on the pain of her 
healing, of the reknitting of her scalp, scourging himself for having failed Orla at least twice.

 In the dark he returned to his post on the afterdeck. He took a chunk of the smashed taffrail and 
smoothed it in his hands. Watching the sea, and working idly, he reshaped the wood with magick. Once 
again he re-created Orlas staff, then sat there, caressing it.

 As the sun came up, splashing orange light over the deck and pitching his long shadow deep into the 
sea, Kerrigans eyes burned. He would have welcomed sleep, but still held it at bay. Hed not been able 
to save Orla, so he could at least honor her last directive to him.

 Footsteps sounded on the deck behind him. Kerrigan...

 Ive not the time to heal your side, Crow.

 Dont need it, thanks. Resolute sewed it up while we spoke with Orla. She wants to talk with you.

 KerriganrolledontohiskneesandfoundCrow 

crouched there, with his right hand held up to stop him. What?

 She wanted me to talk to you first. About the wand.

 The Adept snorted. What would you know about that wand? 


 Crow rested his elbows on his knees. About the wand, nothing, but about Heslin and Chytrine, far 
too much. Nefrai-laysh was once Bosleigh Norrington. The last time Chytrine came south, he acquired a 
sword known as Temmer. It made him invincible in battle, and as you saw back there, he needed that 
sort of help. He could not stand against Resolute or me without some sort of ensorcelled weapon.

 Crow rested his elbows on his knees. About the wand, nothing, but about Heslin and Chytrine, far 
too much. Nefrai-laysh was once Bosleigh Norrington. The last time Chytrine came south, he acquired a 
sword known as Temmer. It made him invincible in battle, and as you saw back there, he needed that 
sort of help. He could not stand against Resolute or me without some sort of ensorcelled weapon.

 Kerrigan slowly nodded. And a trap for me?

 Thats what she fears.

 The Adept snarled and punched a fist against the deck. If I had acted faster, if I had been smarter, he 
never would have hurt her. Kerrigan pounded his fist against the deck again, then just flopped down on 
the oak and began to cry.

 Shock ran through him as Crow grabbed him by the shoulders and hauled him up against a solid 
portion of the taffrail. Listen to me, Kerrigan, and listen very well. If you blame yourself for Orlas 
injuries, for her death, you will diminish the sacrifice she made. You saw her step forward to deal with 
Wheele. You heard Wheele say her sacrifice was what doomed her. She knew what she was doing from 
the beginning, and to blame yourself dishonors her nobility.

 Kerrigan hung his head. I would never do that.

 Good. Now look at me, son, right in the eyes, look at me. Crows brown eyes blazed and the scar 
on his face had become livid. We all make mistakes, some of us more than others, but we all do. I 
gather youve been shielded from the results of mistakes.

 I dont make them. Kerrigan remembered the weight of the flour sack smashing him in the chest, and 
the kicks and punches of the urchins in Yslin. Not many of them, anyway.

 Youre a long way from Vilwan, Kerrigan. Out here mistakes hurt, missions have costs. Orla is badly 
hurt and might die, we might all have died, but Chytrine has been denied a portion of the DragonCrown. 
At Svoin she lost a sullanciri, and her pirate ally lost a huge portion of her fleet. Im not suggesting that 
Orlas life is in any way worth so little as all that, but even she is happy at the damage weve done.

 My point, though, son, is this: We learn from our mistakes. We have to. You can figure out what you 
think you could have done better, then resolve to do it. I need you to do that. We need you to do that. 
Crow poked him in the chest with a finger. You need to do that, for us, for Orla, yes, but for yourself 
most of all.

 Kerrigan closed his eyes and furrowed his brows, feeling the finger hard against his chest. Some of 
what Crow said made sensein fact, most of it did, though Kerrigans fear of losing Orla, losing his last 
link to Vilwan, shook him.

 The Adept slowly nodded, then looked up. You said she wanted to see me?

 Crow nodded, then stepped back, crouched, and handed Kerrigan the staff. He accepted it, then 
climbed down to the main deck and into the companionway to Lombos cabin. He found Orla half 
awake, speaking in a whisper to the Spritha, who sat on her pillow. Qwc nodded and flew out of the 
cabin.

 Orla smiled weakly as Kerrigan drew up a chair. Youve come.

 Yes, I brought you this. He laid the staff on the bed beside her and wrapped her left hand around it. 
Good as new.

 Thank you. Her lips formed the words, but they came with but the ghost of a whisper.

 Kerrigan moistened a cloth and brought it to her lips so she could suck in some water. He held it there 
until she nodded, then tossed it back into the bowl at his feet. Crow told me about the wand. I 
understand.

 Good. You must promise ...

 I promise Ill not use the wand.

 Yes, that. And other things.

 What? 


 Orla lay there breathing hard for a half minute or so, then nodded. You cant return to Vilwan.

 Orla lay there breathing hard for a half minute or so, then nodded. You cant return to Vilwan.

 Promise me.

 I promise, but why?

 She continued as if hed not asked his question. Follow Crow. Follow Resolute. Promise.

 I promise. He covered her left hand with his. Tell me why.

 Orla turned her face toward his. Pain washed over her face, but he knew it was not physical. There 
are destinies, Kerrigan. Wills was writ in prophecy. Alexias inscribed in blood. Yours was forged....

 Forged? He hesitated. Forged as in by a blacksmith, hammered of steel, or forged, faked, untrue, a 
charade?

 Those who forged it will think the latter. She shook her head slightly. I know its the former. Vilwan 
will destroy you now, in fear. That cannot happen.

 Why would they do that?

 They wanted you to be many things. You could be any of them, but not all. Her smile slackened. 
The world needs you to be you. You know how to do much. You must decide what it is you must do.

 Orlas eyes closed and her breathing evened out, though remained shallow and labored. Kerrigan 
remained with her and slowly succumbed to sleep, though it was not very deep nor restful. Every time he 
awakened, he glanced at her, hoping to see she was better, but clearly she was slipping away.

 The Shark had sailed due east since leaving Wruona. Qwc had sped forward of the ship, reaching 
Loquellyn four hours before they did. He bore a message to the Loquelves and they sent a ship out to 
meet the Shark. On it had come two of the best healers available at Rellaence. They roused Kerrigan 
from his sleep and shooed him from the cabin before setting to work.

 Kerrigan yawned and stumbled down the companion-way to check on Alexia. Perrine had continued 
her vigil and now lay swathed in a blanket on the bed, with Alexia sitting on the chair in the corner.

 She smiled up at him. I owe you thanks, Adept Reese. Ive been hit hard in the head before, and 
never recovered so quickly.

 He shrugged. I was glad to help someone.

 A shriek rang from Lombos cabin. A wave of sorcery pulsed out from it and cut at him. A fiery 
ethereal blade seemed to slash a line straight through his middle, numbing his legs and dropping him 
helplessly to the companion-way deck. He shivered and shook, then grabbed one hand with the other to 
stop the shaking.

 Alexia leaped over and past him, meeting Crow and Resolute following two crewmen from on deck. 
In the corner of his eye, between their legs, Kerrigan saw one of the Loquelves being dragged from the 
cabin by the sailors. He appeared to be completely stiff-limbed, as if hed been dead for a while. The 
other elf staggered out. Resolute caught him and dragged him up on deck.

 Alexia returned to Kerrigans side as the prickling of feeling returned to his legs. How are you 
doing?

 Get me up. I want to see her. He pushed off the deck and bulkhead, trying to lever himself up, but 
Alexias gentle pressure on his shoulder kept him down. Please, I have to.

 No, you dont, Kerrigan. You dont need to see her like that. Shed not want you to. Peri, help me. 
Alexia took one of his arms, the Gyrkyme the other, and dragged him over to the still-warm cot. They 
forced him down into it, ignoring how the ropes and frame creaked in protest. Youre staying there and 
sleeping, Kerrigan. You dream about Orla and all she wanted for you, all she expected of you.

 Alexia looked up at Peri. He doesnt get up. Sit on him ifyouhaveto.

 Peri nodded and easily shoved Kerrigan back down into the bed as he made a feeble attempt to rise. 
Stay there, Kerrigan. If I must choose between disappointing my sister or drawing your blood, you 
know what I will do.

 Kerrigan nodded and slumped back on the bed, finding its warmth seductively inviting. The blanket 
Perrine spread over him had an exotic scent that he distracted himself by trying to identify. His 
concentration soon eroded and sleep again claimed him. 


 Tf there had been a virtue to a nighttime attack, Markus I Adrogans decided, it was that it hid the 
deplorable condi-Itions in Svoin. The reasons no one had been looking out from behind shuttered 
windows were simple and terrifying. First and foremost, there were very few people remaining in the city. 
Second, those who did remain were grossly malnourished. Third, for a generation they had learned it was 
worth their lives to avoid being seen.

 Tf there had been a virtue to a nighttime attack, Markus I Adrogans decided, it was that it hid the 
deplorable condi-Itions in Svoin. The reasons no one had been looking out from behind shuttered 
windows were simple and terrifying. First and foremost, there were very few people remaining in the city. 
Second, those who did remain were grossly malnourished. Third, for a generation they had learned it was 
worth their lives to avoid being seen.

 The Vorquelves had not dwelled on the plight of men in the city, and had apparently willfully allowed 
Adrogans and his people to assume they were no better off than the men. The simple fact of the matter, 
as it turned out, was that even the most wretched of the Vorquelves was far and away better off than 
almost any man in Svoin. Adrogans imagined that Chytrine ordered such kind treatment of the 
Vorquelves to build resentment among men against them.

 The Svoin Vorquelves had subverted that policy by helping men when they couldthey keenly felt the 
debt owed to men from the time of the evacuation of their homeland. Still, the Vorquelf errors of 
omission were understandable because even Adrogans would have thought otherwise of risking so much 
to save so little.

 Svoin had once been a city of twenty-five thousand, which made it the largest city in the south. It 
benefited from trade with Jerana, and the nearby hills had once produced wonderful wines and iron ore. 
The lake had provided a great deal of food, and nearby farming settlements had supplemented the food 
supply in exchange for trade and manufactured goods. Trade up and down the rivers had been brisk and 
brought Svoin a fair bit of prosperity.

 After a quarter century under Aurolani rule, the population had shrunk below five thousand, with the 
best off being the fisherfolk. The lake still provided a fair supply of fish, which became the staple food, 
along with lakeweed and some grains from fields cultivated by slave labor.

 Adrogans had toured the town and everywhere had seen emaciated, hollow-eyed people covered 
more in open sores than rags. One man had been picking at scabs, making them bleed, and refused help 
when Adrogans had ordered one of the Zhusks to treat his sores. The man said, No, my lord, the 
gibberers, they dont like eating us crusty ones.

 That statement had sent a shudder through him, and for a moment he was able to see what the city 
was to the Aurolani. It wasnt a gathering of people, a center for trade and industrywhich is how he 
would have evaluated it were he looking to take it. No, for them it was one big stockyard. They could 
cull men as they wished, torturing them, eating them, letting their disappearances inspire fear.

 The fearful glances he got as he rode through the city told him much more than the people wanted. 
They clearly had done things, unspeakable things, to survive. What would he do if gibberers had come 
down his street looking for a meal? Would he hide his own family? Certainly. Would he point them to 
someone else? Not actively; he hoped Kedyn would grant him the courage to avoid that. But passively? 
And forced to choose between his mother and a brother or brother-in-law, what choice would he make?

 Fortunately, the Jeranese general hadnt been called upon to make those choices. But he knew making 
them would have been mortally wounding, and verified this by the suffering that had been etched deeply 
into the faces of the people, even some children. But he was certain there were stories of heroism, too, 
with parents offering themselves to save children; little resistance movements that fought back, even 
momentarily.

 The principle of death before dishonor was overrated, he felt, but dying to escape the misery of Svoin, 
that was a sane option in a place where he was certain no hope had dwelt since King Augustus rode into 
Jerana.

 General Caro emerged from the building the Alcidese Horse Guards had commandeered as a 
headquarters. A moment of your time, General?

 I was just coming to see you, Turpus. Have you completed the survey?

 The large man sighed heavily. There are no food stores worthy of the name. The Aurolani seemed to 
think that anything above a starvation diet would cause people to riot or attempt escape. The boats only 
have a limited number of nets. We have them out there catching as much as they can, and well smoke 


lots, but we need more than fish.

lots, but we need more than fish.

 Thats all fine, sir, but it will be our people. Lifting a grape is beyond most folks here, and those who 
could work are terrified that the gibberers will be back. If not for the Vorquelves, wed have no one to 
even look at heading out. Theyre a game bunch.

 Caro shook his head. Id say we evacuate them to Jerana, but they wont make it. Not sure wintering 
here will be possible, either. I dont mind telling you I dont like this place.

 Adrogans felt a shiver run up his spine. I confess I always feel a bit cold here myself. But, you are 
right, we cant move them out. I do think relocating them all to one section of the city, to consolidate 
food delivery, storage, and such is a good idea. Beal has her people working it out. Thats the plan I 
want to use.

 A brown-and-white Gyrkyme Warhawk landed in the street before General Adrogans, folded his 
wings, and bowed. General, I have news.

 What is it, Lansca?

 The Gyrkyme looked up with large amber eyes. Northeast of here comes a rider. He bears a flag of 
truce. He is Aurolani.

 How do you know? Is he a gibberer or vylaen?

 He appears to be a man, General; but he rides a fiery horse that flies with dragons-wings.

 Caro and Adrogans exchanged glances. The Alcidese cavalry commander smiled. Do you want 
company when you meet with him?

 What makes you think Im so foolish to meet with a sullanciri bearing a flag of truce?

 Id do the same in your position.

 And would you want a companion? Caro barked a laugh. I would, a big one, with a magick sword. 
Since we have nonesuch here, I offer myself as a poor substitute.

 Adrogans nodded, momentarily regretting giving Malarkexs sword to Alexia. / hope she has used it 
well. I will wait for you by the east gate.

 Caro tossed him a salute and ran off to where the Alcidese had stabled their horses. Adrogans turned 
and nodded to Lansca. Thank you, Warhawk, for bringing me the news. Please find Beal mot Tsuvo 
and inform her of where General Caro and I are going. There is no need to attend us. She should send 
word to Gilthalarwin and the other commanders, then prepare to defend the city.

 The Gyrkyme nodded. And Phfas?

 Adrogans smiled. I suspect he is already waiting at the gate.

 The Warhawk soared skyward, clearing the road for Adrogans. He gave his horse a touch of spur and 
negotiated his way through Svoin. Hed seen the city once, long ago, as a child, when it was big and 
foreign, with the market teeming with sights, sounds, and smells, especially the smells. My mother 
bought me sweet ginger.

 He smiled at himself, wishing for some ginger to settle his stomach. As he expected, Phfas waited for 
him at the gate, riding in some decrepit donkey-cart. They said nothing as they waited for Caro, then the 
trio of them rode out of the city and onto the battlefield. The siege machines had long since been torn 
apart to provide fuel for fires, but the scars theyd left in the earth remained.

 Phfas pointed to the northeast where a rider and flaming horse rode in a little circle around the area 
where the Aurolani banners had stood. Aside from the flames, it would not have been that remarkable, 
save that the horses hooves came no closer than four feet to touching the ground. Adrogans saw no 
indication of the dragons-wings, but he assumed a creature made of fire could likely fashion body parts 
as needed.

 He did see a flag of truce. Phfas raised a rag on the end of a stick, and the rag was largely white. 
While the rider did not appear to be looking in their direction, once their flag rose, he reined his mount 
around and galloped toward them.

 It was a bit disconcerting that while his mounts hooves did not touch the ground, earth flew behind 
him as if torn up by the horse, and little grassfires marked his passage. 


 Caro glanced over at him. Youve heard the tales?

 Caro glanced over at him. Youve heard the tales?

 Perhaps killing Malarkex attracted some attention.

 Perhaps.

 The Dark Lancer hauled back on his reins, bringing his firehorse to a halt. The beast snorted and a 
wave of warmth washed over Adrogans, but did nothing to chase away the chill he felt. The rider, whose 
fiery cloak and cowl had been fashioned from the flesh of a grand temeryx, nodded once to them, then 
thrust his flagstaff into the ground. The truce flag fluttered as heat came off him.

 I am Nefrai-kesh, and am come from the court of Chytrine. My Mistress bids me congratulate you on 
your conquest of Svoin. The sullancirts eyes, like those of a Vorquelf, had no discernible pupil and 
instead were a melange of white and blue, as if thin, wispy clouds were blowing through a winter sky. I 
would add for myself that your tactics of deception were most impressive, General Adrogans. Malarkex 
did send part of her force to hunt your mythical army, and she came here to die.

 Adrogans nodded. Thank you. And so you are here to negotiate the terms of Svarskyas surrender?

 Nefrai-kesh fell silent for a moment. Adrogans saw something flicker through his eyes, as if he were 
trying to remember what humor was, trying to recall irony. Then the sullanciri simply shook his head. 
Were you able to deliver your force there inside a week, I might indeed, but reinforcements are already 
on their way. The reason I am here is to tell you that I will not harass your evacuation of the city.

 The Jeranese general could not hide his surprise. Thats most kind of you. Unbelievably kind, in fact.

 I would give you my word.

 You would understand my not taking it.

 Yes. A deceiver hates to be deceived. Nefrai-kesh nodded slowly. As you will, then. I grant you 
this. No Aurolani troops will you see here until spring. The Svoin basin is yours for now. In the spring you 
will be divested of the city.

 Caro frowned. Youll forgive me, but this makes no sense. We can and will reinforce this city. 
Chytrine might think we are restocking a larder for her, but she will find it a difficult one to open.

 The sullanciri snorted. None of you are stupid. What purpose do you think Svoin served for us? 
What purpose do you think it serves? You cost us three thousand troops and a sullanciri. The latter 
hurts, but the former? A fraction of the host we have assembled. And what did you win but five thousand 
mouths that cannot feed themselves? Bring in your food. Bring in your troops, your carpenters and 
masons, your merchants and exiles. What they will see will turn their stomachs.

 Every one of them will consider how his family will fare when we come to take his home city. You 
might never capitulateyou are military men, warriors. But merchants who pay taxes? Minor nobles? 
Other people of influence, when they are given a choice between facing this living death or negotiating a 
peace, what will they do? You won a victory, but your prize is a vipers nest. If we had defeated you, 
that would have served our purpose. Losing to you did as well.

 All Adrogans thoughts about what he would have done came flooding back. He closed his eyes for a 
second, then shuddered. Finally he opened them and put an edge in his voice. But we did win, 
Nefrai-kesh. We killed a sullanciri. That will give people heart. And we have Svoin.

 No, Markus Adrogans, you do not have Svoin. Nefrai-kesh slowly swept his gloved right hand out 
to encompass the city. The purpose the city will serve for us now, this we have discussed. And, General 
Caro, your estimation of Svoin having been a larder is not incorrect. It is also incomplete.

 Phfas hissed. Poison.

 Yes, little Zhusk, poison was our aim. We poison the soul of the people, and we poison the soul of 
the city. The sullanciri raised his right hand and splayed his fingers out. They closed ever so slightly, as 
if he were feeling for something ephemeral. He found it and his hand contracted into a fist. Yanking back 
hard with his right hand, he pulled something ethereal from Svoin.

 Adrogans saw the entire city shimmer for a moment, as if he were viewing it across a desert plain. 
Something thin and white drifted from the city. It resolved itself first into a beautiful young woman of 
dazzling white, but she quickly aged and took on the dark color of a thunderhead. Her dowagers hump 


forced her to keep her eyes low, and she moved more unsteadily than a cart with a broken wheel.

forced her to keep her eyes low, and she moved more unsteadily than a cart with a broken wheel.

 Nefrai-kesh opened his fist and the weirun dissipated into a grey fog that stole back into the city. 
Adrogans could not suppress the shudder caused by the fogs cold caress. Phfas skin had become 
tinged with green, and Caro had paled.

 The sullanciri reined his mount around and trotted off several yards before the flames flared and 
dragons wings sprouted. He rose into the air, then turned and tossed them a salute. Come spring we 
will duel, our armies our weapons, Okrannel the prize. I welcome the contest.

 Adrogans said nothing, but returned the salute. In silence he watched the Dark Lancer rise into the sky 
and head north to Svarskya. He spat in that direction, then spurred his horse forward and kicked over 
the truce flag.

 Caro growled. Hes not the only one who welcomes the contest.

 I dont.

 Caro looked at Adrogans wide-eyed. You dont?

 No. We saw here that our friend will be anything but a gracious loser.(< 

Caro ran fingers back through his white hair. Thats true. Hes right about Svoin. Theres nothing we 
can do to save it.

 Adrogansnodded. Iconcur.That leavesusone course.

 Im not following you.

 That speaks well of you, then, General Caro. Adrogans turned to look at Svoin. Our course is 
simple, yet difficult. The only thing for Svoin now is for us to put it to the torch.

 Will had been in the ratlines studying the Loquelven ship when the scream sounded from the captains 
cabin. Hed slid down to the deck by the time the sailors and Resolute had dragged the Loquelves out 
into sunlight. The first had gone grey, and his skin had gotten all scaly. The Loquelf shook a lot, and 
pieces of his flesh flaked off, littering the deck. His lips had been pulled back to expose his teeth, but it 
looked about as unlike a grin as possible.

 The other Loquelf was able to move, but his hands had been contorted and locked like claws. Theyd 
also been blackened, maybe even burned; to Will, they looked a lot like charred branches.

 The thief was pretty sure the first Loquelf was a deader, which surprised him, since he didnt think 
elves could die. The second appeared to be in a lot of pain. Resolute sat him down and the Loquelf just 
rested his forearms on bended knees, tears streaming silently down his face.

 Will looked at Crow. What about Orla?

 Crow just shook his head. He signaled to the ship alongside the White Shark. You need to take 
these two back, get them to Rellaence. Hurry, we cant help them here.

 A half-dozen elven sailors poured up over the side, leaping from their lower deck to the wales of the 
pirate vessel. The first two hesitated on seeing the state of the magickers, then an officer moved to the 
fore and issued orders in Elvish. He asked a question and Resolute answered. The officer seemed 
surprised when Crow nodded in agreement with the Vorquelfs reply.

 The elven officer and his crew helped the two magickers into the Loquelven galley. Will got a chance 
to study the ship, which rode lower in the water, resembling a shark more than it did a human ship. It had 
been made of silver-wood, which Will learned was rare based on the prices he knew a small box made 
of the stuff could command. Hed never actually had his hands on any, but there was always brisk trade 
in elven artifacts among men, so Marcus had always urged his charges to be alert for such things.

 The elven ship had a stout ram at the bow, which rode below the water level. The decks sloped up 
and then flattened out, save where they rose to the forecastle. The main deck had places for rowers, 
though the ship had no oars, nor any place to put them. The single mast split the distance between 
forecastle and afterdeck, and the ships stern tapered back and down. Will saw no rudder, though the 


wheel was clearly visible on the afterdeck. How the ship moved he wasnt certain, but the rowers pulled 
hard to move the ship off and the ship did leave a well-churned wake to mark its passing.

wheel was clearly visible on the afterdeck. How the ship moved he wasnt certain, but the rowers pulled 
hard to move the ship off and the ship did leave a well-churned wake to mark its passing.

Then again, if someone did... He shivered and walked over to Crow and Resolute. What 
happened?

 The Vorquelf frowned. They assumed that Orla and Kerrigan knew too little of magick. She and the 
Adept had worked out some of what the spells affecting her were. I told them what she had told me, but 
I was dismissed as well. They proceeded to unravel magicks they did not fully understand, and they paid 
a fearful price.

 Is it going to kill them?

 Arrogance should, but it will depend. Resolute looked out to the east. If they were truly the best 
healers in Rellaence, yes, it probably will.

 It took the White Shark four more hours to reach Rellaence. The elven pilot brought the ship in from 
the northwest, through a narrow channel, then hard to port. The high cliffsides had been covered in green, 
with sea breezes teasing broad, flat leaves that glistened with spray and sunlight. Birds that nested in 
rocky niches swooped out to greet them, calling defiantly as they soared effortlessly around the ship.

 As the White Shark came around the headland, the harbor opened up to display Rellaence and the 
winding silvery ribbon of river that plunged east and deeper into Loquellyn. The splendor spread over the 
landscape all but dragged Will to the bow so he could study it. So many elements presented themselves 
he could concentrate on one for only a heartbeat before the next distracted him, and the next, 
overwhelming him with intoxicating intensity.

 More than the visual stimulus worked through him, though. Grand groves of silverwood trees with their 
argent foliage dancing and flashing would have been more than enough to occupy him, but he could feel 
the trees as easily as he could see them, or hear their leaves rustle. Something in the very nature of 
Loquellyn seemed tangible, but not like the heavy air of a humid day. Instead it felt friendly and 
accommodating. Not a lovers caressnot quite that intimatebut still inviting.

 He couldnt identify it exactly until its opposite floated up from memories. There had been countless 
times in his youth when hed felt hunted and alone, oppressed and fearful, as if he could have vanished 
and his passing would have gone unnoticed. Here, sailing into Loquellyn, he knew he would be missed 
and mourned even after so brief an introduction.

 The city itself barely looked like a city because trees and plants predominated. Buildings did rise up 
through the foliage canopy, with a tower here, an exposed wing there, and glimpses of warehouses near 
the docks. Even such utilitarian buildings, however, had ivy growing up over them, and flowers 
blossoming in niches.

 The buildings themselves had a different nature from anything Will had seen in Yslin or beyond. Not 
only were they not built of stone, but their wooden construction had a curious flow to it. As nearly as he 
could tell from a distance, it appeared as if the buildings had been assembled from pieces of trees that 
had been barely altered. One tower with crenellations and all appeared to have been a huge piece of 
driftwood that had been worn smooth and grey by the seas waves. In other places branches and trunks 
had been fitted together like a puzzle. As the ship drew closer, he sought any sign of joints, but he 
couldnt see them, and windows and doors appeared to be natural hollows and knots in the wood.

 That didnt mean there was no shaping or woodworking, because doors and shutters had clearly been 
fashioned instead of grown. Light and dark woods, silver, red, and brown even, had been inlaid together 
to create pictures and heraldry, or to trace out words in an ornate and twisted script. Will couldnt read a 
word of it, but the soft forms and the flow of the letters enchanted him.

 Two small elven boats came out from the pier and took bowlines from the White Shark. The human 
and Panqui sailors shipped their oars, and the sail was furled then lowered, as the elven boats dragged 
the pirate ship to the dock between two of the shark galleys. Elves made the ship fast, but before anyone 


could alight, an elven delegation made its way down the pier.

could alight, an elven delegation made its way down the pier.

 Lombo seated himself on the deck and sniffed the air. Richlife, this place. Lombo is pleased.

 Dunerlan opened his arms and his smile broadened. To all of you, welcome. His head came up and 
the smile tightened as Kerrigan emerged from the cabins and Perrine came after him. Several of the other 
elves backed up a bit when they saw the Gyrkyme, but Dunerlans right hand came up to forestall any 
comments.

 Qwc, when you told us of Peri and how she helped you fly the DragonCrown fragment to safety, you 
did not mention she was ...

 Female? Qwc said female.

 Indeed, but you left us with the impression she was a Spritha female. A look of concern flashed 
over the elfs face. This could be difficult.

 Will frowned. Why?

 Dunerlan gave him an indulgent smile. You are the Norrington. I am honored.

 And youre not answering my question. Will sighed heavily. I mean, I know the stories about how 
the Gyrkyme were born and everything. I know you think shes an animal, but I know shes not. First 
time I ever laid eyes on her, shed spitted a gibberer that was about to have my guts for garters. Shes 
fought, shes scouted, and she carried off the DragonCrown fragment.

 Another of the elves, a slender female with blue eyes and auburn hair, moved to Dunerlans side. A 
trained ai animal would do as much for its master. She was just following orders.

 Yeah, but she didnt want to take the fragment. She didnt want to leave. Alyx, I mean Princess 
Alexia, had been hurt and she was concerned for her, but she put aside her personal worries for the good 
of the world. Wills expression hardened. Aint an animal I know of, and damned few men, would do 
that.

 The elder elf raised an eyebrow. An interesting point for debate, Will Norrington.

 The thief folded his arms across his chest. Well, add this in. If youre not welcoming her, youre not 
welcoming me. I dont go where shes not welcome.

 The elves behind Dunerlan looked surprised and huddled together in quiet conference. The female 
made to speak to Dunerlan, and Qwc flew off so shed not be speaking through him, but Dunerlan 
waved her back after a few whispers. Would you take full responsibilities for her actions?

 Of course.

 Dunerlan nodded, his expression easing. Then your pet will be allowed into Loquellyn.

 Wills eyes blazed. Shes not my pet.

 No?

 No!

 Yes, Will.

 Perrines quiet comment brought Will around wide-eyed. No, Peri, I wont let them treat you like 
that.

 The Gyrkyme smiled. Yes, Will, it will be permitted.

 But...

 She smiled. It is part of elven tradition, one we respect. Peris voice rose and remained clear. 
When someone new is invited into an elven home, they are sponsored by a member of that family. The 
sponsor takes responsibility for the actions of the guest. These Loquelves are here to act as our 
sponsors, which is a great honor for us. You, Will, are being asked to be my sponsor. I thank you for 
accepting that responsibility. I will neither embarrass nor disappoint you.

 Will wanted to continue his protest, but the effect of her eloquence on the elves stopped him. Most of 
the crowd behind Dunerlan had shrunk and gone white. Dunerlan had a curious smile on his face, and the 
female seemed both intrigued and afraid.

 The thief glanced at Peri. Are you sure? 


 Quite.

 Quite.

 Dunerlan clapped his hands once. Very good. The leader of the elves turned and began to introduce 
the various hosts to their guests, which gave Will a chance to pull Perrine aside.

 Why are you letting them do this? And dont give me that tradition stuff.

 Peri winked at him. Its simple, Will. Were bound for Fortress Draconis. In one of the elven galleys, 
the journey will take five days, perhaps less. On horse it will take close to a month to get there, and Id 
have to be flying around the long way, through Saporicia.

 Will nodded. I hadnt thought about that.

 Goldwing and I worked it out as we came in. Peri shrugged. I can put up with a little discomfort if it 
helps us, and if we get to dispel some myths about the Gyrkyme for them, all the better.

 Oh, well do that, all right.

 Dunerlan finally approached Will, and the female came in his wake. Will Norrington, this is Trawyn. 
You will be staying with her.

 Will glanced up into the females blue eyes. Think there will be enough room for me and mypet?

 I should hope so. She gestured toward a silverwood grove on the north side of the harbor. The 
palace is, after all, large and quite accommodating.

 Will woke with a start, then sank back against the soft mattress and luxuriated in the warmth of the 
thick quilt covering him. Since hed left Yslin hed not had such comforts, and since leaving Svoin, sleep 
had been snatched here and there. He stretched and couldnt even find traces of aches hed known from 
the days past.

 He opened his eyes and lifted his head a little, glancing over at the corner of the room. Perrine had 
taken several of the pillows from his big bed, and a couple of spare blankets, to form a little nest for 
herself. Shed positioned two chairs and stretched a blanket between them for some privacy, and it took 
Will a second or two to register that the cloth she used as a halter and loincloth had been draped over 
one of the chairs.

 Will immediately blushed, then turned away from her. A stray ray of sunshine lanced through the 
window and poked him in the eyes. He yipped, then rolled onto his back again, all but blinded. Peri rose 
from her nest in an instant, unconscious of her nudity, leaving Will both happy and sad that hed been 
sun-dazzled.

 Its okay, Peri. Just had the sun in my eyes. The Gyrkyme nodded, stretching her arms and wings 
out. The room, which had an ovoid shape, was large enough that she could spread her wings wide. The 
woods dark hue all but matched the color of her feathers as they played along over the smooth surface. 
Unlike a man-home, the walls were not flat, but instead flowed more naturally, with large niches fitted 
with cabinets, and smaller ones supporting flowers and other foliage.

 The door to his chamber opened and two servants of indeterminate ageheck, all elves look 
agelessswept in before Princess Trawyn. One of the servants bore towels and clothes, the other had a 
tray set with fruit, cheese, and warm, fresh bread from which steam still rose.

 Trawyn smiled at him. Good morning, Will. I have fond hopes you slept well.

 I did, very well.

 Her smile grew. Splendid. We hoped the repast we prepared for you would be restful.

 Huh?

 Trawyn began to tick things off on her fingers. The wine, not too strong nor bold, the bread from 
fine-ground flour, the soup with a variety of vegetables, yet not too spicy. Fish, not meat, so as not to 
introduce inflammatory humours into your blood. We hoped it would work for a man.

 Oh, right. Will forced a smile on his face because hed not really understood what shed said. After 
a month of army food and what passed for the same on a ship, fresh food served hot had filled his belly 
and he found it very easy to curl up around it and drift off to sleep in a warm bed. And thank you for 
having food sent up for Perrine.

 Trawyn did not look in Peris direction, but nodded. More is coming for her presently. After you 


break your fast, bathe, and are dressed, I thought you might like to take exercise in the garden. Your ... 
friend may stretch her wings. After that we will join the royal councils as they discuss your plans for the 
DragonCrown fragment.

break your fast, bathe, and are dressed, I thought you might like to take exercise in the garden. Your ... 
friend may stretch her wings. After that we will join the royal councils as they discuss your plans for the 
DragonCrown fragment.

 Will ate quickly and tossed Peri what he would have taken to be an apple save for the bluish tinge to 
the skin and a melon scent. The elven servant either missed the toss, which did take place when he was 
not looking, or had decided to ignore anything having to do with this strange human and his abominable 
pet.

 After finishing his meal, Will bounded from the bed, doffed the borrowed nightshirt, and slipped into 
the tub. He scrubbed himself well using a soap that smelled of flowersless because he was worried 
about how clean he had to be than because the servant looked ready to apply a brush to him if needed. 
Will sent the elf off to take away the empty dishes, which seemed to offend the servant somewhat.

 Once the door had closed behind him, Peri laughed. Theyll be talking about you for years, Will. 
Imagine asking a body servant to perform a scullions duty.

 I dont think anyone will notice. I brought a pet Gyrkyme to Loquellyn. Theyll be talking about that 
forever. Will shivered as a thought occurred to him. If elves live a long time, does that mean those 
servants will be servants forever?

 Peri shook her head. Chances are very good that he wasnt a body servant yesterday, and might not 
be one tomorrow.

 Will shook his head, spraying water from his hair. What?

 Elves are not strictly bound by caste the way we are. Peri sat and hugged her knees up to her chest. 
This is one of the things elves hate about the Gyrkyme. Because of my coloration, I am a Talon, fit for 
war. Plumes are our nobility and leaders; Wise is the caste of our philosophers. Among us, as your 
mother was, so shall you be, and those things do not change.

 He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around himself as he emerged from the tub. The basin slowly 
absorbed the water, just as the wooden floor drank in the puddle around his feet. Will used a second 
towel to dry his hair, thinking as he did so. But, Peri, do you ever want to do anything else? She shook 
her head. War is what I do best. It is the duty my people have for me. I could no more perform well the 
duties of a Swift than one of them could make war. Our society is stable because of our system.

 But, if you wanted to write a poem, you could, right?

 Having a duty to perform in one area does not preclude having abilities to perform well in other 
areas. The Gyrkyme shrugged. Were not mindless, just focused on our duty. All else, of which there is 
much, is secondary.

 Will tossed his towels on the floor and began dressing. The body servant returned in time to collect the 
towels and nightshirt, which he carried away. The scullion reappeared and slid a small bucket with fruit 
and some meat in it across the floor to Perrine. The servant left before she could start eating, but did not 
close the door after herself. Will walked over to do that, but Trawyn appeared in the doorway before he 
could.

 The elf reached out and tugged on the shoulders of Wills tunic, then smoothed the sleeves. Very 
good. The seamsters will be pleased their work fits so well.

 It does. Will returned to the bed and sat there to pull on his boots. They were the only piece of 
clothing that the elves had not taken away and replaced. Will did notice that theyd been cleaned and 
polished, which impressed him. He smiled, figuring he looked good enough that hed have targeted 
himself as a rich man from whom a fortune could be stolen in a crowd.

 Trawyn nodded as if shed read his mind as he stood. Quite suitable. Now, if you will, we shall repair 
to the gardens. 


 Peri emerged from her nest, with her clothing in place and a couple of apples speared on talons for the 
walk. Please.

 Peri emerged from her nest, with her clothing in place and a couple of apples speared on talons for the 
walk. Please.

 The elven princess took Wills arm and guided him through the palace wing, along corridors that had 
not been laid out in an exact line but instead meandered, akin to a termites track through wood. Various 
niches housed statuettes or pretty rocks, and the veins in some of the wood swirled around and into 
ghostly murals. While all of it was quite fetching, Will did have the feeling he was being taken along a 
minor corridor because they had Peri in tow.

 They emerged through a tunnel that resembled a long, rootlike projection and into the garden. Soft 
moist mosses covered the earth beneath the spreading boughs of thousands of trees. In their branches 
were nestled hundreds of different flowering plants. Some grew right there on the branches, with their 
roots and stems projecting into the air. Others were clearly cultivated so their vines rose up and around 
the host trees, while others had been raised in pots that had been inserted into niches. The combined 
effect of color and fragrance overwhelmed Will at first, and his stopping only a couple of steps into the 
riot of color clearly pleased Trawyn.

 Peri breathed in deeply, then unfurled her wings and struck skyward. Trawyn watched her go, the 
smile on her face not slackening a bitat least not until she noticed Will glancing up at her. Her blue eyes 
narrowed ever so slightly, but the smile broadened and carried up into them.

 The palace gardens here in Rellaence are renowned among the homelands for their variety of plants. 
We have samples here from every homeland, even Lost Vorquellyn.

 Raising them so the Vorks will have something to bring home when the island is reconquered?

 Trawyn nodded. When you redeem it, Will Norrington.

 Will smiled and let her lead him on a whimsy course through the garden. Many of the plants were or 
resembled some of those Resolute had taught him to recognize. Where things got rather unfamiliar were 
in the silverwood and mageoak groves. In the boughs of silverwood trees grew plants whose fruits and 
flowers looked a lot like body parts or animals. Trawyn explained how the elixir made from a 
heart-shaped leaf would promote good heart health, or a foot-shaped fruit might be good to get rid of a 
toe fungus when made into a poultice and applied liberally.

 Mageoak had a lot of plants that had similar shapes, but these had magickal powers. Here a 
heart-shaped leaf could brew a tea to make love grow.

 Will pointed at a feathery flower. And this one?

 Trawyn stiffened. It is a legacy plant, grown only to preserve it. We do not use it now.

 What did it do?

 It is known as dreamwing. It let fancies fly during sleep and, being a powerful drug, deluded some 
into thinking unorthodox thoughts. Its not been used in centuries. She tugged him away from the purple 
flower with gold edging. There is a pond where we may relax, over here.

 It seemed pretty clear to Will that she didnt want to talk about dreamwing, so he shifted the subject. 
I heard that servants arent always servants here, which would be tough, given that you live a long, long 
time.

 Trawyn spread her skirts and sat, then patted the greensward beside her. Thats quite true. Your 
body servant of today might head to sea tomorrow to fish, then tend the garden the day after.

 Will sat. Isnt that confusing? Who would know what needs to be done?

 She laughed lightly, then tapped a finger near her right eye. Your Resolute, his eyes are a solid color. 
He was not bound to his homeland as we have been to Loquellyn. Because of our being tied to our land, 
we know what the tasks are that we are called upon to perform.

 He shook his head. I dont understand.

 The princess smiled carefully. You know that the Spritha learn from the world that they must be at a 
specific place, at a specific time.

 Yes.

 It is similar with us, though not quite as urgent. At times we know we are to go learn from a particular 
person, or to teach them, and the skills that are acquired then are used as needed. Were Loquellyn under 


invasion, our calling would be to fight, so to war we would go. The Blackfeathers headed to Okrannel 
because that was what would serve Loquellyn best. When they return, they might farm, they might 
sweep; they could do anything.

invasion, our calling would be to fight, so to war we would go. The Blackfeathers headed to Okrannel 
because that was what would serve Loquellyn best. When they return, they might farm, they might 
sweep; they could do anything.

 No, not that. She frowned slightly. Intermarriage with those from other homelands is not 
discouraged, and each elf is linked to the land of his birth, regardless of where his parents came from. 
Within a homeland, however, the nobility is born of generation after generation of individuals linked to 
that homeland. Our link to it is stronger, therefore our responsibility is deeper and greater. Our path is a 
bit more rigid.

 Will thought he heard a longing for the freedom others had. More responsibility, and you have to 
lead. Is that why your hatred for Gyrkyme is so strong?

 Her eyes widened in shock. I have no hatred for your... friend.

 Ha! You cant even say her name. And you dont look at her, not if anyone can see you doing it. He 
scowled. If thats not hatred, I dont know what is.

 Its not hatred, dear Will. Trawyns voice softened. Others may hate the Gyrkyme, but I do not 
hate your Perrine. There, I said her name. But you are correct, I have difficulty looking at her.

 Im not convinced.

 Its not hatred, Will, truly it is not. The elven princess shook her head solemnly. She is akin to the 
Vorquelves because of Aurolani evil the Gyrkyme and the Vorquelves are forever barred from fulfilling 
their elven nature. They cannot become part of their homelands. Knowing how much my connection to 
Loquellyn completes me, I mourn their lack of that bond. I cannot look at her because in her I see what 
she could have been without evils taint, and the reality of her is too painful for me to bear.

 Kerrigan Reese stood a man-length away from the wooden bier upon which Orlas shrouded body 
had been laid. A single sunbeam poured through a small, high window, illuminating her body. She looked 
far smaller lying there than she ever had in life.

 The pirates had used some sailcloth to sew up a shroud for her. Theyd used a bright crimson canvas, 
which was co-incidentally appropriate since that was the color worn to indicate skill at combat magick. 
He was pretty certain neither Lombo nor the crew realized that, but he felt sure Orla would have 
appreciated it. 

Even though she didnt wear red around me. He thought back over his brief association with her. 
Shed not taught him combat spellshed learned all she knew and more before she ever became his 
tutor. Instead she had tried to train him to function as a warrior. He could see that at this remove, and 
saw how he had failed her. Hed been taught so much that he could do almost anything, and she had 
been trying to teach him how to decide, how to take responsibility and act.

 He glanced back to his right, to the elf standing behind him in the solemn, dim chamber. Thank you 
for letting me have this moment with her. We can proceed.

 Arristan glided forward, silently, and took up a position opposite Kerrigan across Orlas body. The elf 
spread his hands out, letting his palms play a handspan above the shroud-covered body. It is still there. 
Lomardel and Osthelwin were foolish to dismiss you and ignore Magister Orlas concerns.

 Kerrigan stepped closer to her body and held up the block of mageoak hed asked his host to provide 
the previous night. A foot long, and three inches on the smaller sides, it felt lighter than he would have 
thought. He caressed it with his right hand. If you would open the shroud, please.

 The brown-haired elf gestured languidly with one hand and the stitching snaked free, letting the shroud 
sag open. He spread the cloth over Orlas stomach and the putrid stench that rose choked Kerrigan. He 
swallowed his gorge back down, then set the block in place against her grey flesh, covering the wound. 
The top of the block touched her wrists where they crossed over her heart. He made sure it settled in, 
concentrating on her stomach so he would not look up at her empty face.

 Arristans brown eyes flicked up at him. You are certain you can do this?

 Kerrigan nodded slowly. A discussion with Osthelwin had revealed that both the elven healers had 
detected the dual spells that Orla had warned them about. They used magick to sever the spells, then 
discovered the shielding spell was something of an illusion. The reason Kerrigan had found it difficult to 


define was because it pulled in magickal energy and once it had enough, it exploded, casting off one of a 
variety of spells at the mages who were plying it with magick. Kerrigans investigatory spells had been 
insufficiently powerful to trigger the shield spell, but the elves had provided it more than enough energy.

define was because it pulled in magickal energy and once it had enough, it exploded, casting off one of a 
variety of spells at the mages who were plying it with magick. Kerrigans investigatory spells had been 
insufficiently powerful to trigger the shield spell, but the elves had provided it more than enough energy.

 It never occurred to him that in letting him try his solution they put no more of their own people in 
jeopardy. Arristan agreed to help him because he was Kerrigans host and his skill at magick ran to 
conjuration and construction spells, not curative, so he was not needed to deal with his stricken brethren. 
Loquellyns healers had their hands full trying to help Osthelwin and Lomardel, with hopes sinking for the 
latter with each hour.

 Kerrigan took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. Again he stroked the wooden block and trickled 
magick into it. He used the spell hed employed to make Orlas new staff, slowly reshaping the wood. 
Magilextook well to being thaumaturgically manipulated, with the wood taking on the viscosity of thick 
sap, allowing itself to be pushed, pulled, and pinched into a new form. Kerrigan worked with a broad 
outline for the physical shape, and concentrated on altering the blocks essence so it matched Orla in 
every way possible.

 Kerrigan wasnt certain how long it took for him to have the magilex block changed into a simulacrum 
of Orla, but the sunbeam had long since moved- off her body by the time he was done. Hed come up 
with his plan without using Wheeles wand or even touching itthough he did use what the renegade 
mage had said about it. He reasoned that if the wand allowed him to identify her spells, then crafted a 
response to her, he should be able to locate those elements of her essence that the wand had used. Once 
he had them, and instilled them into the mageoak model, the spells lurking in her decaying flesh could be 
lured out, mistaking the block for her.

 Arristan glanced down at the Adepts handiwork. Settled against Orlas womb lay a small wooden 
statuette of a woman. It could easily have been taken as a grave offering that would be entombed with 
her. You are certain of this next part?

 Kerrigan rubbed at his eyes. Not wholly, but I think it should work. Again, following how the spell 
seemed to track along the lines of energy back to the mage casting a spell, Kerrigan touched the 
simulacrum and used it as a conduit to cast a simple diagnostic spell. At the same time Arristan used a 
spell to make the simulacrum more receptive to enchantment. Kerrigans spell teased the Aurolani 
magick with the impression that its target, Orla, was again available. To enhance that impression, he 
altered how he cast his spell to more closely match the elements that identified Orla.

 The Aurolani spell slowly stirred. Kerrigan made his magick trickle in along Orlas arms, then 
withdrew the tendrils of it. Heslins magick moved from her guts upward, through inert flesh, following the 
ethereal residue. Kerrigan pulsed a bit more power in and the Aurolani spell quickened.

 Careful, Adept, very careful. The elf swiped at the sweat on his brow with his left hand.

 I will be. Sweat burned into Kerrigans eyes. His finger stroked the simulacrum and magickal tendrils 
flicked at the malignant spell. Little by slowly, inch by inch, he lured it up to her left shoulder and then let 
it flow down her arm and out the wrist, into the wooden doll.

 The doll shook, then opened its mouth in a soundless scream before trying to bite Kerrigans finger. 
All it got was a mouthful of dragonbone armor, then Arristan killed his spell and the doll froze with fury 
etched into its features. The human mage picked the doll up and with a simple gesture the elf magically 
sewed the shroud closed again.

 Arristan wiped his face with a sleeve. The magick has left her. She can rest well. That thing you 
should have destroyed.

 Kerrigan shook his head. No, it wont hurt anyone now.

 How can you say that? From here I can sense that the magick is still active.

 Yes, but it has a severe limitation. It didnt kill Orla outright because she had been altered in her 
nature when I healed an injury. The spell that killed her produced a toxin that poisoned her. When it 


jumped to your healers, it produced the same toxin, which could be fatal to them, but much less so than 
to a man. Even with her dead, it continued to work, consuming her body, and would have continued until 
nothing was left of her. Now, the spell is trapped in wood, so it will start dissolving this block. If I were 
foolish enough to let it jump into me, it would be far from lethal, since Im not made of magilexT

jumped to your healers, it produced the same toxin, which could be fatal to them, but much less so than 
to a man. Even with her dead, it continued to work, consuming her body, and would have continued until 
nothing was left of her. Now, the spell is trapped in wood, so it will start dissolving this block. If I were 
foolish enough to let it jump into me, it would be far from lethal, since Im not made of magilexT

 Time. Kerrigan looked down at the block and past it to Orlas body. Time to study the spells, see 
how they work, and see what can be done to make sure they no longer spread Chytrines evil.

 Princess Alexia felt a bit conspicuous wearing the uniform of a Loquelven Goldfeather. Her clothes 
matched those worn by Dunerlan, who, as her host, led her into the Rellaence council chamber. 
Dunerlan, despite being of royal blood and the queens consort, had served with the Goldfeathers and 
wore the rank of Master at cuff, collar, and shoulder. The waist-cut jacket with gold body and black 
sleeves trimmed with gold gave way to black pants and knee-high boots.

 The chamber had been meant to house the citys deliberative body, but the vast majority of seats 
remained empty despite the coming discussion. In many ways the chamber reminded her of a wooden 
bowl that had been turned on a lathe, then set with high benches along one semicircle opposite the 
delegate seats. The benches had a gap between them with a throne occupying a recessed and raised 
dais.

 All of Alexias companions were present, but not all of their hosts. Trawyn occupied the throne as her 
mothers representative. Though Dunerlan was the queens consort, he was not Trawyns fatherAlexia 
had been led to believe her father had been the consort a century before Dunerlan rose to assume that 
post. Arristan and Dunerlan each took up positions behind the high benches, while a handful of other 
Loquelves filled the four remaining seats.

 Alexia sat next to Crow in a row of four chairs in the center of the room. Resolute and Will filled out 
that row, with Kerrigan, Dranae, and Qwc behind them. Lombo would have nominally been part of that 
row, but he sat on the floor. His chair had been pulled back into a third row and there Perrine perched.

 Trawyn smiled and Alyx could not avoid thinking the slender woman wasnt much more than a child, 
despite her having lived for centuries. The clear skin and large blue eyes suggested youth, and her high 
voice did little to dispel that illusion. The Loquelf even wore a simple gown that, were it not made of so 
fine a red silk, might have been the sort of thing with which a young human girl would clothe herself.

 In my mothers name, I thank you for coming here. We will discuss the petition Princess Alexia has 
made for us to convey you to Fortress Draconis with all dispatch. Before that, however, I have news of 
Svoin, sent to us by the Blackfeathers. I apologize for the lack of details, but it is all that General 
Adrogans would permit to be communicated.

 Alyx smiled, knowing that if Adrogans was still censoring communications, he was alive and concerned 
with Chytrines people learning about his position and disposition of forces. This suggested victory in the 
siege, and that boded well for the campaigns continuation in the spring.

 Trawyn creased her brow. He reports that Svoin was taken. It has subsequently been burned.

 Wills cheer at the news of the victory died aborning as Trawyn completed her statement. What 
happened?

 The Loquelven princess shook her head. We do not know. The Vbrquelves were saved almost in 
their entirety.

 The Blackfeathers will continue to serve beneath Adrogans. There is no indication of casualties, but 
requests for Blackfeather supplies would suggest they were light for our people.

 Alyx frowned. Clearly something had gone horribly wrong at Svoin. IfChytrine had used a dragon to 
set the place alight, why wouldnt she have used it to destroy our sieging force? And if Adrogans 
had to burn the city, what could have induced him to do that?Whete he would go, what he would do 
without Svoin as a base remained an open question, since the Zhusk plateau had not been a place where 
they wanted to winter.

 She shook her head. / will trust Adrogans knows what hes doing. I have no choice. 


 Trawyn pressed her hands together. Princess, the queens consort did communicate your request to 
my mother. Your plan, of going to Fortress Draconis in one of our galleys while sending the White Shark 
south as a decoy, is wise. We would further disguise your movement by adding to the force heading 
north. Our Steelfeathers and Iron Horse legions will accompany you.

 Trawyn pressed her hands together. Princess, the queens consort did communicate your request to 
my mother. Your plan, of going to Fortress Draconis in one of our galleys while sending the White Shark 
south as a decoy, is wise. We would further disguise your movement by adding to the force heading 
north. Our Steelfeathers and Iron Horse legions will accompany you.

 The Loquelf nodded. We will pay the White Sharks crew to make the journey south under the 
command of one of Lombos Panqui lieutenants. Their journey should suffice to make Chytrine think the 
DragonCrown fragment from Lakaslin will be in King Augustus hands.

 Good. That will let us get the real one to Fortress Draconis. Alyx nodded. Your assistance is 
greatly appreciated.

 Resolute glanced at her, his argent eyes flashing. Not so quickly, General. There is more.

 Trawyn smiled indulgently in Resolutes direction. You are so quick, Resolute. It might be an 
endearing trait. Alyx cocked her head to the left. Is there a problem? Dunerlan splayed the fingers of 
his right hand on the benchtop, then arched his palm and spider-walked his fingers back a bit. The 
concern we have is that you plan to take the Lakaslin fragment to Fortress Draconis. Given the rumors of 
Chytrines troops massing to assault the fortress, you would be providing her more incentive. She will 
learn quickly enough that you are there and she will assume you have the fragment with you.

 Crow stroked his beard. You mean to say, my lord, that there will be increased incentive if we are 
recognized as being at Fortress Draconis, and you want to avoid the possibility of further rewarding 
Chytrine if she succeeds in her siege.

 The elder elf nodded. A good point, Crow.

 Then why let us go at all? Crow opened his hands. The handful of us, even supplemented with your 
troops, are not likely to tip the balance against Chytrine, and you seem to think her intended siege is a 
credible threat.

 A blonde elf in a military uniform tapped her bench with a forefinger. If the steel-grey of the uniform 
bodice and the rank insignia were any clue, Alyx assumed she was the mistress who commanded the 
Steelfeathers. To assume the threat is not real, that victory is not possible, is imprudent. The very 
presence of the Norrington could make a considerable difference in the fight.

 Resolute waved that comment away. Speak clearly, mistress, for my companions do not know the 
shadings of the Elvish terms in which you think. Because the prophecy says Chytrines defeat will come 
at his hands, you need to have him brought into direct confrontation with her. Any conflict where they 
oppose each other is one she could lose. Without the boy being there, you think she cannot be defeated.

 Alyx narrowed her eyes. If Resolutes right, then incentive is not germane, but reward is. Chytrine has 
one fragment now, which gives her control over at least two dragons. There are three more fragments at 
Fortress Draconis. We would bring a fourth.

 Trawyn nodded. And there is no good reason for you to do so.

 Not true. Alyx sighed. Vionna pointed out that we would do nothing with the DragonCrown 
fragment, so she might as well give it to Chytrine. By doing that she could increase the chances of 
Chytrine paying her for the fragment. This got me thinking that perhaps what we truly want to do is to 
assemble the pieces of the DragonCrown we do have, and use them to oppose Chytrine....

 The majority of the elves reacted frigidly to her explanation, so Alyx let her voice trail off for a 
moment. ,You clearly do not think this a wise idea.

 Dunerlan folded his hands together on the bench. Its wisdom could be debated for centuries, but the 
horrors of the war caused by the DragonCrowns first employment do still haunt those of us who lived 
through it. I fought against Yrulph and his legions, losing many friends and even my brother. The simple 
fact of the matter, though, is that your plan will not work. Aside from Chytrine, a handful of elves, and 
perhaps some of the urZrethi, theres not a mage in the world capable of wielding that sort of power.

 Arristan shook his head. Thats not true, my lord.

 Dunerlans brown eyes widened. What? Who?

 The elven mage nodded toward Kerrigan. I believe the young Adept there could do it. Yesterday I 
witnessed his great facility for magick. 


 The queens consort recoiled. Put the power of the DragonCrown in the hands of a child? Yrulph 
Kirun was twice that boys age when he conceived of the thing. What it did to him, what it did to the 
world ... No, it cannot be permitted.

 The queens consort recoiled. Put the power of the DragonCrown in the hands of a child? Yrulph 
Kirun was twice that boys age when he conceived of the thing. What it did to him, what it did to the 
world ... No, it cannot be permitted.

 Dunerlans nostrils flared. A child arguing in favor of a child does not a swaying argument produce.

 Crow rested his right hand on Resolutes left forearm and dragged his friend back into his chair. His 
point still stands, my lord. Will conveyed the fragment to Kerrigan. Perhaps Kerrigan is the means by 
which Will defeats Chytrine.

 Before Dunerlan could reply, Trawyn cleared her throat. Adept Reese, you have had time to study 
the fragment?

 Kerrigan nodded. A bit. On the ship and then again a little, yesterday, with Magister Arristan.

 Could you use it?

 The fat magicker shifted his shoulders uneasily. We talked about that after studying the magick. It 
would be akin to playing music on a fiddle with only one string. I could get sound, yes, but music would 
only come with more strings.

 Dunerlan pointed a hand at Kerrigan. An apt analogy, into which should be factored this: Chytrine has 
the songs written for that instrument, but you do not. You would have to learn to use it, in a short time, 
and under pressure. I am given to believe you do not function well in such situations, Adept, do you?

 Kerrigans jowls quivered and his lower lip trembled. He shook his head, then glanced down at the 
ground.

 Trawyn frowned. My lord consort, your opinion on this matter is well understood and you need not 
embarrass our guests.

 Dunerlan blanched. Yes, Highness. Please, Adept Reese, accept my apology. The strategy suggested 
is a dangerous one, but one worth investigating, including your role in it.

 Resolute laughed. If that is true, my lord, and we leave you the Lakaslin fragment, will you produce 
the Vorquellyn fragment so Kerrigan could have two strings to study?

 Trawyn shook her head. We have no knowledge of that fragments location, Resolute.

 Loquellyn always says that, but we know the fragment came here.

 The princess wagged a finger at him. You may have seen it evacuated from Vorquellyn, Resolute, but 
you do not know it came here. I remember the night the refugees began arriving, and I saw no fragment. 
But this is an old discussion, and bears not on our current topic. While it might be agreed that 
reassembling four segments in Fortress Draconis could help defeat Chytrine, the possibilities of that are 
slender, and the consequences of letting her get those four segments would be catastrophic.

 Will raised a hand. Why dont we just make a new DragonCrown?

 Stunned silence greeted his suggestion, so he filled the silence with an explanation. Shes trying to put 
together the old one, but with Kerrigan and Arristan and other mag-ickers you ought to be able to 
assemble something that was better. After all, theres more than one fiddle in the world, isnt there?

 Dunerlans voice grew distant. Alas, it is the strings that are so rare, Norrington.

 Trawyns brows arrowed in with concern. The question would remain, Will, about whether or not 
such a concentration of power is a good thing. Yrulph Kirun was, by all accounts, a good man before he 
created the DragonCrown. Could we chance creating another monster just to defeat Chytrine? Setting 
your own house on fire to deny your goods to a thief is effective, but would be cold comfort once the 
thief and your house are gone.

 Will sighed. Well, it was a suggestion. Alyx smiled over at him. And one we might still have to use. 
She shifted her gaze to Trawyn. Given your comments, I would assume that we can have your 
assistance if we choose to leave the Lakaslin fragment here. We would only do so in trust, since it 
belongs to Jerana, not us.

 Dunerlan dismissed that idea with a quick shake of his head. Lakaslin lost it, you took it from pirates. 
Legally you have a claim to it under the maritime laws by which most nations abide, including Jerana.

 I wasnt speaking of legality but morality. Jerana still has a right to it and we acted as their agents in 


retrieving it. It would be held in trust.

retrieving it. It would be held in trust.

 Resolute and Crow gave her quiet nods and Alyx opened her mouth to agree with it, then closed it 
quickly. She hesitated for a moment, then nodded herself. When do we leave?

 Dunerlan smiled. Tide runs just past midnight, if that will suit you.

 It will, thank you, very well.

 Alyx sat back and nodded as Dunerlan told her he would be waiting for her outside. She let the elves 
file out, then turned her chair around and faced her companions. That was the proper decision, right?

 Resolute- and Crow reiterated their agreement. Will shrugged, Kerrigan less vehemently, and Qwc 
with all four shoulders. Dranae smiled and said yes, while Peri gave her one of those easy I-trust-you 
expressions.

 Good, I wanted to make certain.

 Crow frowned. You almost said no.

 Not no, per se. Look, they want Will there because, as Resolute said, hes the key to defeating 
Chytrine. There was room to ask them for more things to get us there. More troops, anything we 
wanted. Alyx rested her hands on the back of the chair, and her chin on top of them. I almost asked 
them to stop treating the Gyrkyme like animals.

 Peri laughed. Just as well you did not, sister, for that would have forced some Gyrkyme to stop hating 
elves.

 Dranae scratched at his beard. Do you think they would have done that?

 Crow shook his head. The princess wouldnt have had that authority, and the debate about it would 
have lasted longer than I have. Your hesitation, Highness, speaks well of you. You knew it was a political 
impossibility, even though it is the just and right thing, so you held off.

 Yes, it was something like that. Alyx scowled. Or, could have been my courage failed me.

 Better it fails you in this than in battle, Highness. Resolute stood and stretched. I pledge this, 
however. When Vorquellyn is liberated, we will not forget the role of the Gyrkyme in its restoration. 
There will be one homeland in which the Gyrkyme are not only welcome, but revered. 

rji he ships left Rellaence just after midnight, with a blazing I rope of stars twisting through the clear 
sky, pointing the X way toward their eventual goal. Four ships made up the flotilla, with one war-galley 
bearing each of the elven legions, one for the companions, and the lasta bulky transport that looked 
more like a whale than a sharkfor the Iron Horses horses. All four ships moved at the transports 
pace, but it made enough speed for their trip to take them no more than a half a week.

 While their hosts were quite pleasant and even helpful, Alexia found them to be reserved as well. She 
assumed part of that was because of Peris presence, even though she could detect no slights, deliberate 
or otherwise, in how the crew treated her. All meals were communally served in the cabin where they 
hung their hammocks to sleep, and the sailors serving them were cordial.

 Alyx felt an unease growing in her as the ships rounded the Loquellyn headland and started the long 
run up toward Fortress Draconis. She tried to dismiss it as the chill bite of the winds, but the dread 
bubbling in her throat told her otherwise.

 She stood at the bow of the boat, with misty spray dappling her skin, staring off far to the northeast. 
The sun was dying behind her, casting the masts long shadow out like a lance. A dark lance. She 
shivered and hugged her arms around herself.

 If you will permit me, Highness. Crow draped an oilskin cloak over her shoulders. With night 
coming on, it will get cold.

 She reached up and pulled the cloak tightly around her body. Thank you, but it will be for naught. Its 
not the cold thats making me shiver.

 Crow nodded, leaning forward on the rail, letting the air brush his white hair back. Fortress Draconis 
is a fell place. Its changed over the years, grown darker, nastier.

 My father died there. 


 I know. I was there. I saw. I mourned. Crow fell silent and stared toward the far horizon. Tears 
gathered in his eyes, and Alexia knew they were not from windwear. A quarter century ago Fortress 
Draconis determined the fate of the world. It broke Chytrines army. If it does so again we will have to 
finish the job this time.

 I know. I was there. I saw. I mourned. Crow fell silent and stared toward the far horizon. Tears 
gathered in his eyes, and Alexia knew they were not from windwear. A quarter century ago Fortress 
Draconis determined the fate of the world. It broke Chytrines army. If it does so again we will have to 
finish the job this time.

 Crow swiped at his face, then glanced over at her. You dont believe that, do you? You dont believe 
you would become one of Chytrines creatures, do you?

 No. She frowned. At least, I hope not, but then I think of Vionna and her pragmatic assessment of 
our situation. We place limits on what we do, what we are willing to do to win, and our foe does not. 
When I think of Lord Norrington or his son, heading forth full of righteous indignation and burning with 
the desire for justice, then see how they were turned, I have to wonder. Am Iare wefoolish in 
thinking that our sense of justice can armor our minds, that our desire to make people safe can ward our 
hearts? Chytrine has murdered childrenhappily, perhaps gleefullyand yet when we look at the 
bodies, were the ones who feel the pain. Were the ones it drains.

 Alyx pointed off to the northeast. Im certain my father shared Lord Norringtons convictions. They 
traveled together, they planned together. Would my father have been with him on that last expedition? 
Undoubtedly. My father could be one of the sullanciri.

 Crow raised an eyebrow. So you think you could have been one as well? You think you might 
become one?

 Alyx nodded, feeling a small worm crawl through her guts. Its not having Malarkexs sword or 
anything like that. All my life Ive been disciplined and fighting hard. Fighting to succeed in an alien 
culture, then fighting to live up to a reputation. Ive fought to be worthy of my fathers heritage.

 She smiled. Its here, with you, with Resolute and everyone else that I feel a freedom Ive not known 
before. Your expectations for me are the same as the ones you have for yourself: that we will work 
together, do everything we can to stop Chytrine. Were the arbiters of our own destiny, but bound to the 
goal of stopping her.

 Being given complete freedom, though ... It seems so seductive.

 Of course it does, but you wont succumb to it. Crows voice came low and rich. You know that 
no matter what she promised you, she would demand a price. So in offering to strike the chains from 
your spirit, shed just fit you for new chains. Freedom, which is what you desire, is illusory as long as she 
lives. The only way you can succeed is through her destruction.

 Alyx slowly nodded, then reached out and rested a hand on Crows shoulder. I believe youre right, 
Crow, but in case youre not, in case I suffer a moment of weakness ... Youre capable of killing a 
sullanciri. Dont let me ...

 A jolt ran through Crow. Youre asking more than you know. I cant agree, and not because I want 
you to suffer that fate. If I agree, then you lose that last bit of impetus to resist. You have me in reserve, 
as your final check.

 You wouldnt let me, though....

 Crow straightened up and took her hands in his, brushing his thumbs over her knuckles. Youll never 
be a sullanciri, Highness. Of this, I have no fear. Chytrine will think that you, like all the others, can be 
broken, but I know you cant. That gives you the advantage of her, and in the end, her underestimation of 
your resolve will be her undoing.

 Once again dressed in the multiple layers of a pirate, Kerrigan came on deck an hour after the cry had 
been given that Fortress Draconis had been spotted. Their speed still gave them a couple of hours before 
they would reach it, and to the north, paralleling their course, a couple of Aurolani war-galleys paced 
them. Though Kerrigan knew little of sailingmost of his knowledge had been picked up on this 
voyagewith the prevailing wind coming from the west, it should have been easy for the Aurolani galleys 
to come down and engage them.

 Why they didnt, he didnt know, but hed stationed himself near the port bow in case they decided to 


make a run. In his mind he went over the spells he would cast: shearing off oars, snapping the mast, or, 
better yet, destroying the rudder. While he could easily hole the hull, he also knew that if the ship had any 
magickers aboard, they would be defending against just that sort of attack.

make a run. In his mind he went over the spells he would cast: shearing off oars, snapping the mast, or, 
better yet, destroying the rudder. While he could easily hole the hull, he also knew that if the ship had any 
magickers aboard, they would be defending against just that sort of attack.

 The reluctance of the Aurolani galleys to close allowed him to shift his attention to Fortress Draconis 
and he discovered, to his surprise, that they were closer to it than he imagined. The morning fog had 
hidden the horizon, and since the fortress was known for the Crown Tower, he had assumed the distant 
structure was far taller than it appeared to be. In fact, as the rising sun burned the fog off and details 
became sharper, Kerrigan discovered that the tall, elegant fortress of a generation ago had been replaced 
with a squat, brutish, brooding structure that looked akin to a thorn-ridden granite horn that had erupted 
from the earth, then had been snapped off all ragged and raw.

 The Aurolani galleys still made no attempt to stop the elven ships as they sailed into the harbor on the 
fortress northwest quarter. Instead, they took up stations meant to keep the ships from fleeing, which 
would have seemed utterly useless save for the ill omen their action represented. If they want to stop us 
from running, it means they think there is something we will want to run from.

 The fortress showed no signs of distress. The elven ships hoisted a series of flags in a pattern that had 
been sent to them by arcanslata before they left Rellaence, then sailed unmolested into the harbor, past 
the hulking slab-sided little fort that capped the causeway and shielded the harbor. Sharpened spikes 
stabbed out from the walls, and from the various slits and ports jutted the brass muzzles of drag-onels. 
Though Kerrigan had never witnessed their power, what he knew of them left no question in his mind as 
to why the Aurolani galleys had remained beyond their range.

 The little harbor fort, hexagonal in shape, had thick, stout walls that sloped toward the sky at a gentle 
angle. The thickness at the bottom would make them very tough to undermine, which would prevent them 
from coming down easily. Kerrigan saw none of the crenellations of other fortress wallslookouts just 
paced on a recessed walkway, exposing only their heads and shoulders to the enemy. While passing 
close to the fortress meant the guards could not see the ship, there was no way any ship would have 
gotten that close to the fortress were the dragonels operating.

 The ship came to a pier and tied up smartly enough. The elves rigged a gangplank and Kerrigan 
followed Lombo off, then joined Alexia and the others in the company of a tall man with brown hair and 
hazel eyes that could barely be seen beneath his green mask. His steel-grey uniform had a rampant 
dragon embroidered in dark green on the left breast and a crown on the right. Given the green of the 
mask, Kerrigan assumed he was from Oriosa.

 The mans voice came a bit stiffly, as if he were straining to be proper. He addressed himself to 
Princess Alexia. Highness, the Draconis Baron sincerely apologizes for not being able to greet you 
himself, but he has pressing business. He will brief you, later, but asked that I conduct you on a tour and 
answer your questions. Your baggage will be taken to your rooms. You will be housed here, in the 
Crown Tower.

 Will cocked his head. Not much of a tower.

 Their guides head came up, with a touch of shock quickly melting into bemusement. I shall explain as 
we go, if that is to your liking. Im Erlestoke. Like you, of Oriosa. You must be the Norrington.

 The thief nodded. And you look much more like a prince than your brother.

 That remark tightened Erlestokes smile. So I have been told. This way, please. He led them up 
around to a long ramp that was broken at several points by a sharp downslope to a narrow trench. You 
will find these trenches in various places around the fortress. Men waiting herein can easily defend the 
stretch of ramp below, and in the unlikely event a ship were to get into the harbor and unload a ram or 
some other siege weapon, this would catch it up.

 Continuing on up, he slapped a hand against the sloped face of the fortress wall. Youve not seen this 


sloping type of wall elsewhere, I will warrant. The Draconis Baron, in conducting experiments with 
dragonels, discovered they are very effective at bringing walls down because they can concentrate their 
missiles on a specific point. They become a long-range ram in that way. Low, thick, sloping walls deflect 
the projectiles, minimizing damage.

sloping type of wall elsewhere, I will warrant. The Draconis Baron, in conducting experiments with 
dragonels, discovered they are very effective at bringing walls down because they can concentrate their 
missiles on a specific point. They become a long-range ram in that way. Low, thick, sloping walls deflect 
the projectiles, minimizing damage.

 More so, even, when boiling oil washes down them. The prince pointed at the spikes. Grabbing 
those wont help. Most are sharp, many are poisoned, some break away, and others hide surprises.

 Reaching the top of the ramp, the company cut back and forth between two small walls that acted as a 
baffle to slow attackers. These walls likely wont last long against a determined enemy, but long enough 
for us to get a battery targeted to deal with them.

 Kerrigan felt a shiver run down his spine. Erlestoke spoke simply and easily about things, but the 
mages racing mind filled in all the details. Back down the ramp he could imagine seeing a ram caught in 
one of the trenches. He saw sheets of boiling oil coursing down the walls, splashing over attackers 
swarming up the ramp. He saw gallant defenders holding the narrow baffles, could hear a trumpet calling 
them back. 

And then the enemy pours through.

 As Kerrigan emerged from the baffle he found himself staring down the black maw of one of the 
dragonels. Cast of brass, this one had a muzzle that looked like a wolf snarling. He quickly cut to the 
side, slamming into Dranae. Kerrigan bounced off and fell to his knees, fully at the metal wolfs mercy.

 Erlestoke smiled as he ascended the last bit of ramp and parted the dragonel on the head. Please, 
forgive me that trick. It is a tradition here, to show our visitors what an enemy will see. Some of our 
dragonels have namesthis is Thunderfang and was one of the first dragonels the Draconis Baron cast. 
Chytrines dragonel had a dragon design to it, but Dothan Cavarre found that wolves, bears, cats, 
serpents, frostclaws, and eagles worked just as well. Now, to save metal, our dragonels are not all so 
fanciful, though we do have at least one monster per battery.

 The magicker struggled to his feet, then brushed his knees off. He struggled up that last bit of slope, 
then followed along the top of the fortress western wall. The joint of two sloping walls created a point 
upon which a dozen of the dragonels had been positioned about six feet beneath the top of the wall. Their 
muzzles pointed out through tall, slender ports that allowed for them to shift the aim left and right through 
a ninety-degree arc. This overlapped their shots with those of the harbor fortress and allowed coverage 
of the ramp on the northwest face.

 Erlestoke invited them to get close to the big brass cylinder on a wheeled truck. The dragonel crew 
meckan-sh allused ropes and blocks to pull the weapons into place, then levers to shift the point of 
aim. Likewise levers raised the cylinder so shims could depress the aim and shoot at ships close below.

 These are what everyone wants to see. These are dragonels. Theyre fed a diet of firedirt, which is 
packed in tight, then a projectile. Weve been using iron balls to great effectone big one for ships and 
many small ones for crews. It really doesnt matter what you load on top of the firedirt, it gets vomited 
out very fast. Provided it survives the blast, it will go through almost anything it hits at a fair range.

 Erlestoke accepted a small horn and poured a fine black dust from the narrow end into a hole atop the 
dragonel, near the butt end. Firedirt comes in three grades: gravel, sand, and dust. Dust gets used here. 
Small grains to small holes, bigger to bigger.

 Will peered closely at the powder in the dragonels hole. What is it? Where do you get it?

 The Oriosan prince laughed heartily and the meckansh joined him. That, Norrington, is the question 
my father and every other head bearing a crown would love to have answered. The Draconis Baron 
worked long and hard on the formulation. Only the meckansh know how to make it, in what 
proportions the parts are mixed, how it is cured. I dont know; I just know what it does.

 Erlestoke reached out a hand to take a slowly burning bit of match-cord from one of the meckansh, 
but he stopped and looked at Kerrigan. Youre the mage, yes? He nodded.

 The prince waved everyone away from the dragonel, then pointed a hand at the powdered hole. If 
you can make fire, please. 


 Kerrigan concentrated, then flicked a finger at the dragonel. A spark, gold and scintillating, shot 
toward the hole and the powder there immediately began to smoke. A heartbeat later, as Prince 
Erlestoke leaped back, a gout of flame thundered from the dragonel. The weapon recoiled along 
well-worn ruts in the stone and even before the smoke had begun to clear, the meckansh crew had 
leaped to the process of reloading and readying the dragonel again.

 Kerrigan concentrated, then flicked a finger at the dragonel. A spark, gold and scintillating, shot 
toward the hole and the powder there immediately began to smoke. A heartbeat later, as Prince 
Erlestoke leaped back, a gout of flame thundered from the dragonel. The weapon recoiled along 
well-worn ruts in the stone and even before the smoke had begun to clear, the meckansh crew had 
leaped to the process of reloading and readying the dragonel again.

 Kerrigan smiled. Was that acceptable?

 The prince nodded solemnly. If I need a master deto-nationist in the siege, I will draft you.

 You are too kind, Highness, Kerrigan tried to hide his smile.

 Not at all. Erlestoke waved his hand back toward the fortress. Let us continue.

 Kerrigan ducked his head and followed in silence as Erlestoke conducted them through a tour of the 
rest of the fortress. They made a quarter circuit around the irregularly shaped structures outer walls. 
Beyond them, to the northeast, east, and southeast sat three smaller fortresses, akin to that which warded 
the harbor. A swelling hummock connected them to the main fortress and Erlestoke indicated that supply 
tunnels ran beneath the ground to connect the buildings. Each of the smaller fortresses bristled with two 
dozen dragonels, guaranteeing a murderous cross fire for any troops storming the fortress. Moreover, the 
main fortress and the smaller ones could cover each other, so taking them would be a bloody affair as 
well.

 Erlestoke then led them off the wall and in through the city, heading toward the Crown Tower. The 
city, he explained, was known to the locals as the Maze. It takes a bit of getting used to, but once you 
do, you can get through it quickly. An invading army, on the other hand, will be broken up and cut to 
pieces.

 As he led them into the Crown Tower, through a tall arched doorway, he pointed a hand toward the 
sky. Twenty-five years ago the Crown Tower was three times taller than it is now. As you know, the 
DragonCrown fragments were housed in the very top, and a trap set there slew a dragon which Chytrine 
had commanded to take them. Right up there, molded into the wall, is that particular dragons skull.

 The beasts bleached bone stood out starkly from the grey stone. The hollow eye sockets peered 
down and Kerrigan imagined he saw someone hidden there, looking down at them. The skull itself was 
nearly thirty feet long and twenty wide toward the back, and had teeth so large a man would have barely 
rated as a morsel.

 Erlestoke continued his commentary. Because the dragonels are so effective at bringing towers down, 
the Draconis Baron lowered the tower and reinforced it. It is, however, still the home to the 
DragonCrown fragments.

 Erlestoke led them through the tower, up stairways that ended in corridors requiring them to move 
across the tower to pick them up again, or to traverse baffles. Getting to the top of the tower would not 
be easy were it defended, and the tower itself boasted many meckansh guards. Most of them seemed 
to have armor grafted onto their skin in a metal carapace that had been decorated with hooks and blades 
and spikes at elbow, knee, and heel.

 In the archway before the fragment chamber, Erlestoke turned to Kerrigan. Please, no magick in 
here. There are defenses worked into this place that I dont know about, much less understand, and I 
dont want to find out about them right at the moment.

 Kerrigan nodded, then entered the chamber behind the prince. The stone-walled circular room had no 
windows and no decoration, save for three stone plinths occupying the corners of a triangle centered in 
the rooms heart. On each of them rested a massive gem set in gold, virtually identical to the fragment 
theyd rescued on Wruona. The nearest one, a huge ruby, cast bloody reflections over the floor and 
walls. The center stone was a yellow gem with the qualities of a sapphire, though its light seemed muted. 
The last, a green stone with blue flecking, did glow with its own light, though not nearly as ostentatiously 
as the ruby.

 Erlestoke allowed all of them to study the stones for a moment, then folded his arms over his chest. In 


the south, when people think of Fortress Draconis, they think of the power of the dragonels. They forget 
that these three stones would allow Chytrine to unleash forces that make dragonels toys.

the south, when people think of Fortress Draconis, they think of the power of the dragonels. They forget 
that these three stones would allow Chytrine to unleash forces that make dragonels toys.

 Kerrigan couldnt think of anything to say, so he just wandered along with the prince, remaining silent. 
They moved quickly into the towers depths, ascending several floors, then coming to a dark door. The 
prince knocked once, then opened it into a large room with shelves full of books. For a moment Kerrigan 
could imagine himself back in his rooms on Vilwan, but the sight of the Draconis Baron rising from a chair 
quickly dispelled that notion.

 The small man smiled. Ah, very good, Kerrigan Reese, Im glad you came. I am pleased you are 
here, and regret that I did not speak with you in Yslin. I was uncertain of your identity at that time.

 Kerrigan blinked. My lord?

 Dothan Cavarre smoothed his moustache with his left hand. It has been reported to me what you are 
able to do magickally. In some ways I find this curious, and in others merely a confirmation, but this leads 
me to ask you something.

 The Draconis Barons fast speech left Kerrigan waiting to catch up, then he nodded. Please, my lord, 
if I can be of service.

 Oh, I think you can. Cavarre waved him deeper into the room. We shall talk. If I hear what I 
expect to hear, you can perform a service for me. A great service, for which I shall forever be in your 
debt.

 After a moments reflection Alyx realized she wasnt surprised seeing Crow at Kirill Square. After the 
tour shed retired to her room and dropped into bed for a brief nap. Shed not intended to sleep until first 
light, but her body had a different idea. She didnt have nightmares and, in fact, had no dreams at all. As 
she woke very rested, she wondered if the Draconis Baron had somehow had the fortress magicked 
against dreams, preventing Chytrine another possible point of access.

 Shed dressed quickly, choosing from the clothes that had appeared in her rooms wardrobe while she 
slept. Unseen servants had filled it with the pirate garments the elves had cleaned and repaired, as well as 
the Loquelven Goldfeather uniform and more suitable local garb. She chose the standard grey Fortress 
Draconis uniform, which, in her case, had a winged horse rampant on the left breast, and a crown on the 
right. Both of them had been embroidered in white, but traced in black, the significance of which she did 
not quite grasp.

 Down in the mess hall she grabbed some bread and a mug of hot soup. She drank the soup as she 
threaded her way out of the hall, past tables full of people from every nation and species. She noted that 
instead of a national insignia, the meckansh wore a sword crossed with a wrench, surrounded by a 
toothed gear-wheel, embroidered in the color appropriate for their nationality. Alyx also noted that they 
tended to congregate together and not share much with the other troopsbut she could not be certain if 
that was because they no longer thought themselves part of their nations, or if their countrymen shunned 
them so theyd not have to look at what they might become.

 Munching on her roll, she left the Crown Tower, exited the grounds through one of the five gardens 
surrounding it, and headed east toward the place where her father had died. Shed heard that a memorial 
had been raised to him, or at least that was how shed had it from her family, but none of them had ever 
visited. What they had described, however, in no way matched the reality.

 The entire square behind what had once been the inner gate had been preserved intact despite the 
reconstruction, while all else around it had been changed. The stones around the gate had been half 
wilted by dragons breath, with tendrils of stone frozen in place as if they were sand being blasted back 
by a spray of water. The gateway itself sagged a little, the cobbled courtyard was unevenly paved. 
Missing stones had been replaced by newer ones, and she had no doubt that the stolen ones had been 
broken down into talismans soldiers carried into battle for luck.

 Over on the north side of the gate, just inside the wall, a mountain of candles burned before a crater 


that had been smashed into the wall. Little strips of paper, cloth, and parchment fluttered from where they 
had been jammed between rocks and into cracks. Ivy had grown up around the crater, but no branches 
intruded upon it. Amid the candles stood a number of statuettes of various sizes, made of anything from 
terra-cotta to bronze, all representing her father.

that had been smashed into the wall. Little strips of paper, cloth, and parchment fluttered from where they 
had been jammed between rocks and into cracks. Ivy had grown up around the crater, but no branches 
intruded upon it. Amid the candles stood a number of statuettes of various sizes, made of anything from 
terra-cotta to bronze, all representing her father.

 She did not. She understood it. These were the offerings, the signs of respect everyday warriors were 
showing him. To them he was another warrior, a man who gave his life to defeat Chytrine. They didnt 
need to see him resurrected in some heroic statuethe crater itself told them everything they needed to 
know about his courage. This courage they venerated and hoped they would know, too, when the right 
time came.

 Crow slowly rose from setting a candle into place. Good morning, Highness. Forgive my intrusion.

 Alyx shook her head. Im the one who intrudes, Crow. She walked over to him and got close 
enough to feel the heat wafting off the candles. I had always imagined something ostentatious and 
gaudy.

 Something your father would have hated.

 She nodded. Yes, exactly, but something Aunt Tatyana would think barely adequate. The candles I 
understand, and the statuettes, but the paper? They look like prayers.

 They are.

 But my father isnt a god.

 Crow smiled softly. First, to those who were here that day, his intervention was nothing short of 
divine. He pointed at a two-foot statue that was covered with a rainbow of melted wax. King Augustus 
had that first statue fashioned after the Alcidese custom of ancestor worship. Others who didnt quite 
understand took it to have another meaning and, well, you know how soldiers are with their superstitions. 
There are many who claim your father didnt die here, but moved into another plane of existence.

 She shook her head. That makes no sense.

 He shrugged. Fact of the matter is, Highness, that your father was most roughly treated by the 
sullanciri who killed him. As for your fathers body, well, recognizing him wasnt possible. Stories 
sprang up about how hed not died. People accosted by roving bands of bandits or Aurolani would tell 
of a warrior answering your fathers description who would save them.

 But those stories are nonsense.

 They might be, but some people needed them to be true, Highness. Every other hero from that time, 
save the Draconis Baron and King Augustus, is dead or has joined Chytrine. People needed a hero to 
oppose her, and some chose your father for that role.

 She narrowed her eyes and regarded him closely, recalling the nighttime raid staged before the battle 
on the Svoin plain. Some of those rescues, they were you and Resolute, werent they? You didnt mind 
the stories being spread, so Chytrine would waste time and resources looking for a hero who didnt 
exist.

 Nothing that was done was anything your father wouldnt have done, were he alive. Im sure he took 
great comfort in people being saved. But, please, dont be angry. We were not mocking him or his 
memory.

 I didnt suppose you were. Alyx frowned. You stopped, though, why?

 Crow scratched at the back of his neck. We realized that Chytrine could easily use one of her 
sullanciri to make it look as if your father had been taken, had gone over. When Bosleigh Norrington 
did just that, we were glad wed stopped. Besides which, once Leigh became a sullanciri we had to 
start our search for the Norrington of the prophecy. We knew it wasnt Leigh, so the hunt became 
paramount.

 Alexia shivered despite the heat swirled up from the candles by a breeze. As I grew up, the world 
was painted for me in very simple and stark termsChytrine had killed my father, had taken my nation, 
and I was to undo all of that. As a child I saw it as a grand adventure. As I grew up and was trained, I 


learned that it wouldnt be easy, but there were glimmers of hope. I never imagined that others would 
oppose her as you have, but now I see that all these efforts are going to be required to stop her. 
Ultimately, all of us who are arrayed against her will have to make the same choice my father did, make 
the same sacrifice, or at least be willing to do so.

learned that it wouldnt be easy, but there were glimmers of hope. I never imagined that others would 
oppose her as you have, but now I see that all these efforts are going to be required to stop her. 
Ultimately, all of us who are arrayed against her will have to make the same choice my father did, make 
the same sacrifice, or at least be willing to do so.

 Yes, but I didnt really grasp that others were willing to do it, too. I saw it as my duty as his 
daughter. Alyx pointed at the candles and other offerings. This shows me a host of different paths that 
are leading to the same goal. Only by pulling everyone together will we succeed.

 The blast of a trumpet from the north cut off any reply Crow might have offered. Other trumpets 
repeated it urgently. Crow took Alexias hand and started sprinting with her through the Maze. The 
course forced them to run west a bit to go east again, but soon they reached the fortress outer wall and 
ran up the ramp to the eastern Lion battery.

 Coming up over the hummock between Fortress Draconis and the smaller fort to the east, two riders 
raced along toward the main gate there to the southeast. Both men rode hard and one had an arrow 
sticking from his right shoulder. He wavered in his saddle a bit, but managed to hang on. The other rider 
waved her hand in a salute, then apparently gave some sort of hand signal that caused the meckansh 
captain at the battery to call down to the gate and order it opened.

 The narrow sally port in the gate swung open, admitting both riders. The wounded man swung from 
the saddle in the courtyard while his companion spurred her lathered horse on into the Maze. Alyx 
watched her go, then looked up and saw an Alcidese balloon rising on a tether above the Crown Tower. 
A basket hung beneath it with two observers, their attention focused to the north.

 Alyx knew the two riders were scoutsthat much was obvious. Equally obvious theyd been in a fight 
and rather ominous was the fact that a squad consisted of ten individuals. She couldnt imagine part of the 
squad abandoning their fellows, unless the information they had was vital and the fight already lost.

 Soon, a number of flags hung from the balloon. The breeze plucked at them, snapping them crisply. 
On top of the Crown Tower other flags rose and fell on a flagstaff there, apparently in answer to the 
signals from on high. Neither she nor Crow could figure out the exact information they conveyed, but 
both of them knew what was coming.

 Within an hour their worst fears were confirmed. Chytrines host had come from the north, down 
through the Boreal Pass. Cavalry came first, with renegade men riding horses, and gibberers and vylaens 
on frostclaws black or white. Armored figures rode the grand temeryces, but their metal shells hid their 
identities. Still, a number were tall and slender enough to be taken for elves.

 The cavalry came down into the plain just north of Draconis Pond, which warded a portion of the 
north wall. They formed up just beyond the range of the dragonels in the northeastern stronghold. Behind 
them came Chytrines artillery. Teams of a dozen frostclaws drew small dragonels, while drearbeasts in 
pairs or fours moved the larger weapons. The drearbeasts were of a size to make a full-grown bear seem 
to be little more than a yearling pup, and their white fur would have rendered them all but invisible in the 
frozen Aurolani wastes.

 Wagons loaded with firedirt and shot for the dragonels came next, then infantry. Alexia had been used 
to ragged lines and unruly sounds coming from her enemies, but these troops moved smartly, with 
discipline and in silence. Their standard, a cloven ox skull painted red, was one she recognized from a 
variety of reports. While they had not always been victorious in their various raids, they had always 
fought hard.

 Beyond them came a legion of large men and gibberers who shouldered weapons the like of which she 
had not seen before. Crow, are those draconetteers?

 The older man raised a hand to shade his eyes, then slowly nodded. You can see theyre carrying 
their drac-onettes and that other stick with the horns on the top. They rest the barrel of the draconette on 
it and shoot, then reload and shoot again. Accuracy isnt much over fifty yards and the rate of shots is 
must slower than that of an archer.

 Then why use them?

 Crow sighed. Archery takes a lot of training, but shooting a draconette does not require so much. 


 Youve fought against them before?

 Youve fought against them before?

 Alyx frowned. But, Resolute, with all his magick, I would have thought...

 Him, magick that heals? No. Crow stared hard at the smallest of the wheeled weapons that started 
to filter onto the plains. I wonder what those are. Ive not seen them before.

 She looked out, following his line of sight, and saw a series of two-wheeled metal things being pulled 
by a single frostclaw each. They looked nothing so much like a frog squatting with its mouth open, though 
most of the creatures decorating them were more reptilian and toothy than any frog. Clearly the weapons 
belonged in the dragonel family, but their exact purpose she could not puzzle out.

 Legion after legion came into the field, with cavalry and heavy infantry screening the assembling 
artillery and supplies from the castle itself. The infantry set about digging trenches and using the dirt to 
create revetments, behind which dragonels and their volatile firedirt could be stored.

 The Aurolani troops started to cheer, and Crow pointed north. There she is, riding in the open this 
time.

 Alyx looked north and found herself staring at a woman driving a chariot drawn by two grand 
temeryces, flanked by two more, and followed by yet one more pair. She wore a rainbow cloak of 
semitransparent silk, while her gown was a wispy sky-blue and far better suited to a boudoir than a 
battlefield. Long golden tresses floated on the wind, as did her cloak and skirts. She seemed tall and 
strong and ageless, though Alyx admitted the considerable distance made all of those assessments 
suspect.

 She saw Crow shift his shoulders. What is it, Crow?

 Someone walking on my grave. Perhaps riding over it. He glanced over at her, the reddened scar 
very apparent on his ashen face. Just seeing her with hair like yours, strong and tall like you, I wonder if 
she shaped herself to be like you, or that is mere happenstance.

 Shaped herself?

 He nodded. Like the urZrethi, she can mold her shape to whatever she desires. In Boragul shed 
taken on the appearance of a demi-fiedged urZrethi queen. The way she is out there now, thats how she 
appeared twenty-five years ago.

 Is she urZrethi?

 Crow shrugged. I dont know. They deny it, but that is no surprise. Kerrigan might know of magicks 
that would allow her to change shapeIve always assumed she had mastered such things in her 
lifetime.

 Alyx slowly nodded as more and more troops poured into the area. Against any army raised in the 
south, Fortress Draconis would have been impregnable, but the Aurolani host had dragonels and much 
more. The fortress itself had a garrison of nearly seven thousand, but her army boasted easily three times 
that number and there seemed no end in sight for her troop train.

 A black, cruciform shadow raced over the landscape coming from the west. Alyx saw it drift toward 
the Aurolani lines, then turned and, shading her eyes, looked up. Drifting lazily above the battlefield, like a 
hawk hunting vermin, a dragon hung in the sky. Gold glinted from its scales, then it slowly spiraled down 
and came to a landing beside the pavilion being raised for Chytrine.

 Crow pointed. See the wound on its hip? Thats the dragon she had at Vilwan. I wonder why the old 
black didnt kill it?

 I dont know, Crow, but I have a feeling that this dragon isnt ping to die as easily as the last one she 
employed here. Alyx crossed her arms over her chest. And if we cant kill it, stopping Chytrine will be 
all but impossible.

 Rather a curious thing to be called a garden, isnt it? Will looked up from his contemplation and saw 
Princess Ryhope of Oriosa, the Draconis Baroness, standing just inside the garden gate. Will tried to 
straighten up, but since he was sitting on the railing of a little bridge, hismotionthreatened totopplehim 


backward.He grabbed the railing and heard it creak, but it held and he was able to avoid the short drop 
to the dry streambed beneath him.

backward.He grabbed the railing and heard it creak, but it held and he was able to avoid the short drop 
to the dry streambed beneath him.

 Ryhope smiled. Will found her to be a handsome woman, with the strong chin, full lips, and straight 
nose that her mask allowed him to see. The twilight helped as it hid wrinkles and the light threading of 
grey in her hair. She wore a grey gown with a dragon rampant in green on it, similar to the design 
embroidered on his shirts left breast. Over her right she had a crown, whereas Will had a sword. 
Ryhope moved fluidly and lightly, as if the stones really were water and she wished to stay dry, lifting her 
skirts girlishly until she reached the bridge.

 She watched him closely for a moment, then shook her head. There are little traces of your father in 
you. I can see it, just a bit, in the eyes, the chin. Your eyes are lighter than his, of course, your hair 
darker, and he was a bit bigger than you. Not much, but a bit. Quite dashing when he wanted to be..

 Did you know my father well?

 She clasped her hands before her and said nothing. The rhythmic pounding of Aurolani war drums 
filled the dark silence before her returning voice banished them. I knew him. Not terribly well, since I 
only met him briefly, during the Harvest Festival, but he made quite an impression on me, on my brother, 
and even on my mother.

 She laughed lightly. Had things been just a bit different, I could have been your mother.

 That sent a jolt through Will. I thought you said you didnt know him well.

 Ryhope nodded, her eyes pale. He and I would have been paired, for he was a hero, the slayer of 
three sullanciri. He surpassed his father, but his injuries here prevented his joining his father on the fateful 
expedition. He returned to Oriosa, to Valsina, to recover. News that his father had been seduced into 
Chytrines service hit him very hard. He had not recovered from what had gone on here and that was 
another blow. My mother could not have allowed us to marry, had either of us tried to pursue it.

 Will frowned. I dont understand.

 She smiled indulgently. I am of the Oriosan royal house. My desires are nothing when placed against 
the needs of my nation. It was deemed desirable for the Draconis Baron to have a connection to the 
nations of the south, so I became his bride. Like you, I had a destiny visited upon me, and I hope your 
destiny is as fruitful as mine has been. I have grown to love my husband, and I love our children. What I 
once feared I now praise every waking moment.

 The thief pointed east. Even with Chytrine out there pounding away, ready to destroy this place?

 Ryhope mounted the bridge, then leaned back against the railing beside him. You know Adrogans 
was successful in taking Svoin. You saw a sullanciri die there, if I am not mistaken.

 Something like that, yes. Will squirmed a little, refusing to admit hed fainted. But losing that battle 
hasnt stopped Chytrine.

 No, it hasnt, my point exactly. She raised a hand and pointed at the Crown Tower. You see that 
dragon skull there? That is the skull from the dragon that died right here, died in the pond. Chytrine lost 
the last time she tried to take Fortress Draconis. It cost her dearly, and we had already lost Okrannel. 
That defeat didnt stop us, nor did hers stop her.

 He frowned. Im missing your point, then.

 My point is simply this: whether or not Fortress Draconis falls to Chytrine, the only way we lose is if 
we stop fighting. The only way we win is to stop her from fighting. Ripping the heart out of her army here 
will do that quite effectively.

 Will looked at her curiously. You dont think she can take this place, do you?

 I know better than to assume she cant. Ryhope shrugged. Ive spent over two decades here 
learning how difficult this place will be to take. It will be a big bone in her throat and could easily choke 


her to death. We might not beat her, but Adrogans or Augustus, they could finish what we start.

her to death. We might not beat her, but Adrogans or Augustus, they could finish what we start.

 The Draconis Baroness threw her head back and laughed aloud. Well, pragmatism and realism are an 
antidote to minstrel songs, yes; but I dont mean to make you melancholy. I will admit, however, this 
garden can have that effect.

 Really? Will shook his head. I dont know why anyone would think that. Sure, it doesnt have 
flowers or fruit or anything, but Im not much for all that anyway. I mean, this bridge is lovely, and the 
way the stones lay on the ground and the big ones come up, I can almost hear gravel waves breaking 
against them. Looking out I can see what a Gyrkyme flying over the sea might see with islands and 
everything.

 You dont find it a bit stark and forbidding, cold even?

 Well, maybe the white is a little bright, but you have to look at how everything is covered and the little 
swells and curves and stuff. I mean, maybe if you see it as white rocks over dirt its dead, but I guess 
thats not what I see. I mean, it is, of course, since thats what it is, but theres something more here, 
there is life in the rocks. It makes me think.

 Ryhope nodded thoughtfully. Ive been told your father spent a lot of time in here, thinking, 
composing poems. It was a peaceful time for him, before the last battle.

 Will slapped his hands against the bridge railing. You mean he might have been sitting right here, in 
this very spot?

 I dont know, but... perhaps he was. It could be that the railing has been replaced in that time, but 
yes, in this garden.

 Will began to smile and look anew at the garden when something thumped him solidly on the chest and 
shoulder, somersaulting him backward off the bridge. He came all the way over and landed on his feet, 
but pitched forward onto his hands and knees quickly enough. Above him, on the bridge, he heard 
Ryhope struggling and the tearing of cloth. Run, Will, run!

 The thief came up in the dry riverbed and saw two dark forms, wings unfurled, clutching at Ryhope 
with clawed feet. The things had human-sized torsos and heads, but no arms, short bird-legs and claws, 
and wings about equal in size to those of a Gyrkyme. Will wasnt sure what they were, but when one 
turned its hag-face toward him and hissed, he knew they werent friendly in the least.

 Will cocked his right hand back, then let fly with the stone hed grabbed when he pushed off the 
ground to stand. The rock sped true and smashed the creature clutching at Ryhopes hair in the face. Its 
hissing shrank into a sigh that ended with a thump and grunt when it hit the bridge railing, then flopped off 
to the streambed.

 Wills second stone missed the other creatures head, but hed shifted his aim at the last moment to 
avoid hitting Ryhope. He caught the beast in the left wing, near the shoulder, and clearly snapped the 
limb. A thin sliver of metal gleamed in Ryhopes right hand. Shed drawn the dagger from a sheath at the 
small of her back and plunged the curved blade into the beasts breast, angling up under the ribs. She 
twisted the blade back and forth quickly, then wrenched it free.

 Blood splashed over the bridge a second before the creature landed and twitched. Will darted under 
the bridge, grabbing up a heavier stone in both hands. As he emerged he raised the big rock, then swung 
it, dashing out the brains of the creature hed felled.

 He started to straighten up, but Ryhope joined him in the streambed and pulled him back down in a 
crouch. There may be more.

 -What are they? 

Araft, the non-elf half of Gyrkyme. She smiled. If we live through this, we can add feathers to our 
masks and Araft feathers are rare indeed. Chytrine did not use 

T

 them in the last war, but she probably decided she wanted something to counter our Gyrkyme and 
their firecocks.

 So what were they doing here?

 Scouting. Chytrine probably told them to kill any targets of opportunity, and we looked pretty 


defenseless. If theyd managed to kill us, imagine how disheartening it would be for people to know they 
were not safe even here.

defenseless. If theyd managed to kill us, imagine how disheartening it would be for people to know they 
were not safe even here.

 Not a bad idea. Ryhope reached down and pulled the rear hem of her skirt up between her legs and 
tucked it into her waistband. Im going to run to the tower door there.

 Will hefted two rocks. Anything wings its way at you, 111 get it.

 She reached down and yanked a handful of feathers from the dead Araft. So theyll know what 
were up against.

 He nodded and weighed the rocks in his hands. Go.

 Ryhope set off and moved nimbly from stone to stone, staying low. She ran fast and reached the 
doorway unmolested. She waved Will to her. Quickly.

 The thief leaped from the streambed and sprinted as fast as he could toward the doorway. The white 
stones proved poor footing, slowing him. He pushed off with his left foot to cut right, onto the 
stepping-stones, but slipped and went down instead. A whoosh of something swooping through the night, 
the light brush of feathers against his face, and a quickly receding hiss told him how closely hed been 
missed.

 Coming up to his knees he looked left, hoping to see the Araft. He was able to pick out its dark 
form, wings spread, wheeling around on its left wingtip to come back at him. He readied one of his 
stones, but it ducked back down beneath the level of the wall and he lost sight of it for a moment.

 What he did see clearly, however, was a flash of white, followed by a hideous squawk and then a 
triumphant shriek. White stones showered everywhere as Peri slammed the Araft into the ground. She 
perched there on its back, her wings furling, her toes curled into the creatures plumage. The Gyrkyme 
reached down, grabbed the Araftih head at jaw and crown, then twisted mightily, snapping its neck.

 She lifted her face to the sky and shrieked again.

 Will shivered and stood slowly. Peri, thank the gods you got it.

 Peri sprang from the body and spread her wings enough to tuck Will beneath one as she herded him to 
the tower door. Ryhope already had it open and shut it after the two of them had entered. Youre not 
hurt, Will?

 He rubbed at his left shoulder. It felt sore, and he was surprised to find his tunic was torn and his hand 
slick with blood. I didnt even feel it.

 Ryhope tore a strip out of her skirt, wadded it up, and wiped the blood away. A couple of cuts, not 
very deep. A stitch or two will close them.

 Will nodded. Peri, how did you know they were about?

 Qwc wanted to go bug-huntingsomething about northern moths being tastyand invited me along. 
We were on top of the tower when we spotted them. She looked at the bloodied talons on her right 
thumb and forefinger, then licked them. She wrinkled her face. Sour, but better than moths. Anyway, a 
clean kill is never bad.

 Ryhope raised Wills left hand and used it to press the cloth to his wound. We need to get you taken 
care of, Will. Thank you, Perrine, for saving us.

 The Gyrkyme snorted. Well, what good is a pet if she lets her master get killed by AraftiP.

 Ryhope raised an eyebrow and Will blushed. Please dont ask.

 As you desire, Lord Norrington. Princess Ryhope laughed warmly. Knowing that first blood has 
gone to us, and at the hand of the Norrington no less, is more than enough for me this night. Its not a 
great victory, but one that will hearten our people, and that could make all the difference in the coming 
battle.

 fTlhe next morning, at first light, the gates of Fortress I Draconis opened and a cortege rolled forth 
beneath a 1 white flag of truce. Three carts carried five shrouded Araft corpses among them, with 
Alexia, Crow, and Resolute riding out to lead them. Alyx felt a bit apprehensive in that role, since she 
held no command position at Fortress Draconis. In fact, she had discovered, the black thread outlining 


the embroidery on her tunic marked her as a noncombatant in the fortress scheme of things.

the embroidery on her tunic marked her as a noncombatant in the fortress scheme of things.

 As she rode from the gate she marveled at how the path sloped down, raising the spiked walls around 
her, higher and higher. The menace of the dragonel batteries became even more real to her. In the blink 
of an eye the greensward over which they rode would.become twisted and torn, muddy with blood and 
sown with broken, screaming bodies.

 They rode into the shadow of the easternmost stronghold and stopped. Crow planted the truce 
standard in the ground. Alexia resisted glancing at the stronghold and at the small sally port at its 
southwest corner. The Draconis Baron had told them they could retreat there if Chytrine attempted to 
murder them, but she doubted they could cross the hundred yards to safety if the massed Aurolani 
batteries spoke as one.

 A guttural cry went up from the Aurolani lines. Two individuals, the one on the grand temeryx bearing 
a flag of truce, emerged from the Aurolani formations. The rider had been encased in metal armor that 
appeared black at a distance, but showed signs of rust and pitted corrosion as he came closer. His mail 
coif allowed her to see his face, all withered and dried, his nose shrunk to the point where his nostrils had 
just become slits in the middle of his face. His leathery lips were pulled back to expose black teeth. His 
eyes had a milky film over them and viscous, puslike fluid ran from his nose to drip from lips and chin.

 His companion, another sullanciri, required no mount. Her legs had been stretched and reshaped to 
resemble those of a temeryx. Black feathers covered her body, save for a brilliant sulfur crest, a splash of 
same on her throat, and a slender V running from shoulder to loins and back up over each breast. Her 
dark gaze flicked from face to face amid the trio.

 The urZrethi sullanciri pressed clawed hands together. My Mistress welcomes this chance to offer 
you mercy. I am Ferxigo. This is Ganagreihe who was once Brencis Galacos. I speak for Chytrine in 
this matter. These two I know, but you, you would be Alexia of Okrannel.

 Alyx shivered, feeling as though the sullancirts soft, supple words had somehow stripped her naked. 
I am

 Alexia. We are not here to discuss mercy, but to return the bodies of your dead Araft. You may tell 
their brood they died well. The Norrington slew the first, elven archers two more. The Draconis 
Baroness and the daughter of Preyknosery Ironwing dispatched the others. We would understand, given 
this ill omen and the presence of the Norrington, if your Mistress chooses to withdraw from the field. As 
the morrow is the Draconis Baroness birthday, we would offer you a day of peace to return north in her 
honor.

 Ferxigo closed her large eyes and slowly shook her head. Your kindness will be unnecessary, as the 
unfolding of events will make apparent. We would wish, however, the Draconis Baroness all peace on 
her day, and will attempt to conclude things such that she may be granted same.

 The princess nodded. Haste will cost your Mistress dearly.

 And you shall be forgiven a statement made in ignorance. Opening her eyes again, Ferxigo looked at 
Crow. You know surrender will save lives, will make things painless.

 Crow snorted. If you still had a soul, you would recognize the agonies surrender brings. Never. 
Please, tell her that. Never.

 The urZrethi laughed and Ganagrei started a hideous chuffing that sank into a gurgle as dark fluid 
dripped through his lower teeth. The shape-shifting sullanciri smiled, revealing sharpened peg-teeth. 
You have a price. It will be wrung from you at one time or another.

 Resolute growled. You wont be there to collect it.

 She laughed again, harshly. No, I shall perhaps be in your homeland, razing Voragul, or in Okrannel 
or Oriosa, amusing myself. You will all likely be dead, and as Ganagrei demonstrates, death is no bar to 
entering my Mistress service.

 Rising on her hind legs, Ferxigo looked beyond them at the wagons. As for those bodies, they are of 


no use. Were my Mistress in the habit of rewarding failure, there would be many more in line for use than 
these. I shall not bid you farewell, for this day will not be kind to you. I think I shall bid you reason, so 
you can find the true path through what shall follow.

no use. Were my Mistress in the habit of rewarding failure, there would be many more in line for use than 
these. I shall not bid you farewell, for this day will not be kind to you. I think I shall bid you reason, so 
you can find the true path through what shall follow.

 Crow reined his horse around. Dump the bodies, turn the carts; hurry. Come on, behind me. He 
urged his horse forward and plucked the first carter off and onto the back of his saddle. Alyx got the 
second driver and Resolute the third, then they galloped as fast as they could back into the fortress.

 From behind them Alyx heard a series of crumps that cracked at the edges, then a series of 
explosions that shook her. The din echoed off the fortress walls, pounding her, and something whizzed 
past her head, but she couldnt tell what it was. She ducked her head as she followed Crow through the 
sally port in the main gate, then she dismounted and ran up the ramp to the Lion battery to see what was 
happening.

 The crumping sounds continued, slightly lagging behind the flash of fire and puff of smoke from the 
squat dragonels shed seen the day before. Crow pointed to the sky and she could see dark dots arcing 
high into the sky. She followed one in its flight and saw it hit the ground, then it exploded and metal 
fragments flew, some striking sparks from the fortress walls. Another actually exploded in the air, barely 
twenty-five feet off the ground, tearing the turf and making it dance like the surface of a puddle being 
assaulted by raindrops.

 All that remained of the wagons, horses, and Araft were smoking splinters, twitching horseflesh, and 
black feathers incongruously drifting gently to the shredded greensward.

 The little dragonelsWill dubbed them skycasters shifted their aim and began to rain their 
projectiles down on the eastern stronghold. Air bursts blasted soldiers from the walls, tearing some apart 
and just knocking others about with the concussion. Some of the thunderballs another 
Willismbounced down into the strongholds central courtyard and exploded with a bright flash. Yet 
other balls skipped off the walls to land in the field to explode, and one or two failed to detonate at all.

 Will, who leaned on the battlements between Crow and Dranae, wondered aloud, Why arent they 
shooting back?

 Alyx pointed toward the revetments shielding the sky-casters. Theyre beyond the range of our 
dragonels. It scarcely matters, though, because those thunderballs cant take the fortress. That requires 
troops, and they will get into range.

 Drums began to pound behind the Aurolani lines. Ranks sharpened up. Crude ladders were passed 
from the back to the fore to be borne by squads of gibberers. Alyx estimated the distance they would 
have to cross to be eight hundred yards. At a dead run it would take them two minutes or so to reach the 
stronghold.

 The Aurolani troops did not run, but instead moved forward in an organized manner, marching in time 
with the drumbeats from behind the lines. Slowly they came on, pace by pace, fearless, chanting, legion 
after legion, advancing across an eight-hundred-yard front with the wings paced a bit quicker so all 
sections of the formation would reach the stronghold at the same time.

 Seven hundred yards, six, then five. At five hundred yards the first rippling explosion from the 
stronghold cut loose, spewing fire and iron through thick grey clouds. The iron balls smashed down into 
their formations, splashing bodies, bouncing, crushing others and on until spent. One shot blew through a 
hoargouns chest. The giant peered down at the dripping hole torn through it, then flopped forward, 
squashing gibberers.

 Vylaens snapped orders and the formations ranks contracted. They continued their orderly march, 
leaving the field behind them strewn with bodies. Onward and onward, unwavering, filling the gaps, 
getting closer and closer.

 The other strongholds began to shoot as well, crisscrossing the field with sizzling metal. Gibberers fell, 
with whole swaths scythed through their midst, but still they kept coming.

 Smoke began to clog the battlefield, affording Alyx only little glimpses of what was going on. When the 


Lion battery began to fire it made the condition worse, since the acrid, bitter smoke seared her eyes and 
made them water. Even so, the smoke and tears couldnt hide the fact that the sheer number of Aurolani 
troops, and the rate at which the drag-onels could be recharged and set off, meant the stronghold could 
never kill enough to prevent the troops from reaching it.

Lion battery began to fire it made the condition worse, since the acrid, bitter smoke seared her eyes and 
made them water. Even so, the smoke and tears couldnt hide the fact that the sheer number of Aurolani 
troops, and the rate at which the drag-onels could be recharged and set off, meant the stronghold could 
never kill enough to prevent the troops from reaching it.

 The Aurolani fire slammed into the stronghold. Many ballsmost of them, in factskipped high off 
the sloped walls, but each pulverized a little crater into the previously smooth surface. Some snapped off 
spikes, others clipped the top to rattle around inside the small fortress. A few, a precious few, however, 
shattered the casements around a dragonel and one even struck metal. The ball knocked the dragonel 
askew, crushing one crewman and scattering shot.

 The lost dragonel meant less metal flew at the advancing troops. Again and again, the Aurolani 
dragonels hammered Draconis dragonels. The strongholds dragoneers shifted their aim to fire back, 
knocking out one or two, but by that point the gibberers were already laying ladders to walls and 
beginning to swarm up.

 Defenders mounted the walls and skycasters sent thun-derballs among them. The Aurolani didnt seem 
to mind that the occasional misdirected shot blasted a hole in their own formation, since the majority fell 
true. Grey-clad defenders reeled away as thunderballs burst in the air. Others thrust with spears at 
gibberers, or tried to pry their ladders off the strongholds walls, but the mottled fungus of gibberers clung 
stubbornly and climbed ever higher.

 At least one dragonel fired into the gibberers climbing in through the fireport, blasting bits and pieces of 
them out over their fellows. Others continued in over the goreslicked stones. The other strongholds and 
Fortress Draconis itself shifted battery aim to pound the walls, scraping gibberers off, but never enough, 
never quickly enough.

 Alyx looked over at Crow. The stronghold is lost.

 He nodded, suddenly looking far older and more weary. With its loss, the other strongholds are 
weaker. Weve not enough dragonels to hold off those masses of troops. When she said her invasion had 
been premature twenty-five years ago, she was right, because if she had come with these numbers then, 
she would have won, dragonels or no.

 Will brushed the Araft feather on his mask back away from his nose. And Chytrine hasnt even 
used her dragon.

 No, she hasnt. Crow raked fingers through his beard. Either she suspects Cavarre might yet have a 
way to deal with a dragon, or she wants to suggest the fortress is beneath its efforts. Either way, Im glad 
its not being used.

 Hardly matters, does it? Alyx looked out over the battlefield. The firing from the eastern stronghold 
had ceased, and gibberers danced jubilantly on top of the wall. The occasional shot from the fortress 
skipped through them, but had no material effect. As the smoke began to clear, the true shape of things 
became apparent because Chytrines host had barely been decimated in taking the stronghold. Already 
dragonels and legions shifted north and west to drive at the stronghold there.

 She sighed. We just cant kill them fast enough.

 Will shrugged. Taking a stronghold isnt going to be as tough as taking the fortress. Im betting we 
can stop them.

 I know that we must stop them, but Id not bet on it. Alyx gave him a bit of a smile. Its a bet that 
will be paid with your life.

 Ever since Crow and Resolute found me, my lifes been the ante. Will thrust a finger toward 
Chytrines pavilion. Shes been trying to win it for a long time, and well just have to make sure it takes 
even longer. Whatever it takes, well do.

 The northeastern stronghold had fallen shortly after dark. The backflashes of dragonels on both sides 


had split the night with hellish red light, providing glimpses of shattered bodies, troops splashing through 
blood-puddles, and a writhing mass of gibberers crawling up over the strongholds walls. Alexia watched 
until her eyes burned, happy that smoke and fatigue blinded her at the end.

had split the night with hellish red light, providing glimpses of shattered bodies, troops splashing through 
blood-puddles, and a writhing mass of gibberers crawling up over the strongholds walls. Alexia watched 
until her eyes burned, happy that smoke and fatigue blinded her at the end.

 Sleep came quickly and ended cleanly, though the way the sheets had tangled around her legs showed 
it had not been an easy night. Part of her had hoped to visit the Dragon Society that evening, so she could 
seek counsel. She wasnt certain if the way was blocked to her by magick, or if she hadnt sufficient need 
to be able to travel there. She hoped for the former, and dreaded the latter.

 When she awoke, she found more to dread. She avoided breakfast and went immediately to the walls. 
All signs of the previous days conflict could be seen despite the low fog swirling over the battlefield. 
Shambling forms moved through the mist in the distance, halting and jerking oddly, but all drifting toward 
the Aurolani position. Up at the nearest stronghold, bodies were being slid down the walls. Spikes caught 
them and spun them all loose-limbed like rag dolls. They finally sloughed off the stone surface and lay in 
heaps.

 She couldnt figure out why the gibberers were casting their own dead out until a shining figure, a 
slender slip of a woman, emerged from the strongholds far side. Alexia immediately recognized her as 
Myrallmara, the sullanciri who had been a Vorquelf. As the luminous female bent down and caressed a 
gibberer body, it jerked to life and stood, though it had one arm missing. She touched another body and 
it clawed its way up despite having lost both its right arm and leg. Magick blazed crimson from the 
sullan-cirfe right hand. The empty arm socket of the undead gibberer melded with that of the other, 
forming a three-legged, two-headed monster that awkwardly stumped its way back across the battlefield 
to the Aurolani camp.

 As if in answer to Alyxs unvoiced question, one of the Draconis dragonels roared. It had been aimed 
well and filled with scatter-shota good twenty-four pounds of iron balls the size of an egg yolk. The 
metal hail ripped through the reanimated gibber-thing, vaporizing its skulls, splintering limbs, and 
shredding its pelt. Gobbets of its hide and flesh splashed over the stronghold walls and slowly slid down.

 The blast had caught Myrallmara as well, spinning her around and smashing her flat against the 
strongholds pitted surface. One ball had opened her skull, leaving a chunk of it hanging down over her 
left ear, fastened only by a strip of scalp. Her left eye rested on her cheek. Several balls had pierced her 
torso and her left thigh had been opened and her femur cracked.

 The sullanciri scooped a handful of brain tissue from her shoulder and packed it back into her head, 
then snapped the skull back together. The designs on her pale flesh blazed silver, hiding her for a moment 
in an iridescent cloud of fog. As the light faded, she stood, unblemished. She clutched at her stomach and 
doubled over, then vomited blood and the shot her body had absorbed.

 The princess shivered. Not only could they not kill Chytrines living troops fast enough, those that 
were not chopped down into tiny bits could be recovered. Alexia didnt imagine that the reanimated 
troops would be good for much in the way of tactical maneuvering, but that had never been an Aurolani 
strength. The undead would be a slow, mobile shield for the living troops, requiring their destruction all 
over again.

 A messenger arrived and conducted her back to the Crown Tower. He led her to a large room full of 
book-lined shelves. The Draconis Baron and his wife were there, along with Prince Erlestoke and the 
rest of her companions. Kerrigan, whom she had not seen since their arrival, looked as haggard and 
unrested as the others.

 Dothan Cavarre waved her to a chair in the front of her seated companions. Last night, Chytrine 
conveyed a message here by Araft He nodded toward an unfolded document on the desk behind him. 
It mocks our offer to let them retreat in honor of my wifes birthday. She is willing, in honor of the nation 
of Ryhopes birth, to allow all non-combatants and people of Oriosa free passage to the south, and safe 
conduct to their homeland. 


 Alyx shook her head. That makes no sense at all.

 Alyx shook her head. That makes no sense at all.

 Will laughed aloud. If you think shed let us get away free, youre insane.

 The Draconis Baron inclined his head slightly to the right. I doubtlessly am, but I should like to avail 
myself of her generosity.

 His wife clutched his shoulder. Im not leaving you. Im not taking our children away from here.

 He raised a hand and patted hers. You must, beloved, for if you do not, no one else will leave. I 
would not have you go away, for I have no desire at all to see you slain; but I desire even less having my 
troops see their families slain. I need you to be an example of brave sacrifice, my dear, so others can do 
what is right.

 You will recall that Chytrine prophesied that when she came again, the children of that day would not 
see their own offspring mature. The children of that day are my warriors today, and I would thwart her 
prediction.

 Ryhope looked down and said nothing, but a tear traced its way along her cheek and hung at her chin 
for a moment before she turned away.

 Alexia narrowed her eyes. You have called us here for what reason?

 I want you to lead the expedition south.

 Will shook his head adamantly. No, no way. You know the prophecy. Im the one that beats her. I 
go away and you cant win.

 Cavarre raised a hand to stop Will. Your understanding of things is far too shallow, Will Norrington. 
The prophecy refers to the war, not one battle or another. Perhaps by leaving here you will be preserved 
for a greater victory.

 The thief snarled. I keep hearing this perhaps over and over again. Perhaps I have helped stop her 
by giving the lump there the Lakaslin fragment. Perhaps Ive helped by taking this mask or by being at 
Vilwan. Im done with perhapses. I want her done, and done here and done now. Im sick of this 
perhapsing.

 Noted, Will Norrington. The Draconis Baron looked up, tapped his right index finger near his right 
eye twice, then gathered that hand into a fist. It must be clearly seen by others that your retreat is the 
only course open, the vital course.

 Alyx opened her hands. Its laudable to evacuate the noncombatants, the children, but you dont 
need us to do it. Youve got competent troops, and Prince Erlestoke can lead them.

 The Oriosan prince, who stood deeper in the room than Cavarre, turned from the window. He had his 
arms tightly crossed over his chest. Im not going. Im staying here. I must.

 Cavarre never even looked back over his shoulder at him. And if I ask you to safeguard your aunt 
and your cousins?

 I would entrust them to Alexia and the troops we will send back. Colonel Hawkins will see to her 
safety. And while I might be able to replace him there, he cant replace me here. Youve trained me too 
well to let me go.

 And if I order all Oriosans to go?

 Erlestoke laughed. Ill throw away my mask and become an anonymous soldier. Im not going, and 
that is final.

 Alyx nodded. I agree, fully. Let me be an anonymous soldier, too. This idea of sending people south 
is folly. You know she will have to assume we are smuggling DragonCrown fragments away, so she has 
to attack us.

 Cavarre smiled. She will want to assume that, but she also knows it is impossible to do. The dragon is 
here, in part, because he has a sense for these things. Were even one to move south with you, she would 
know more than some and even her vylaens would know.

 Kerrigan raised a hand nervously. But moving the innocent out, um, we know she has killed children 


before. Its fine that you say you want your soldiers to know their children are away, but what if she just 

before. Its fine that you say you want your soldiers to know their children are away, but what if she just 

 No less hard than they would fight were their kin here.

 But you would leave them feeling helpless if they knew their loved ones had been slain because they 
were away from their protection. Alyx shook her head. No, this doesnt make any sense at all.

 Actually, it does. Crow stood and stepped forward. I think Cavarre is right, we have to lead them 
south. Weve all seen what Chytrine did yesterday. We know what sort of havoc her weapons can 
wreak, and Fortress Draconis is well suited to opposing her. Can you imagine how quickly the castles 
and keeps to the south will fall to her weapons? Conventional tactics wont work against her, and unless 
we can warn the south about what is coming, the sacrifices here will be for naught.

 And, Princess, I think you have to be the one to lead the expedition. Not only will you be believed, 
but you have the best chance of being able to formulate strategies to deal with the nature of her thrust.

 Will shot from his chair. I cant believe this. Crow, youre running from a fight? Resolute, youre not 
going to go. Youll stay and fight, right? Ill be there right beside you.

 Resolute shook his head. I go south with the expedition.

 What? The thief looked aghast at him. How can you... ? Why?

 The Vorquelf snarled and stabbed a finger at Will. Its your fault. My preference would be to stay 
here, but now I cant. Crow, find me when were to leave. .

 Resolute stood abruptly, disentangled his sword from the legs of his chair, then stalked out. Will, his 
face red with anger, darted after him. The others watched them go. Alyx looked from them to Crow and 
tried to read his face.

 You really think we have to lead them out of here?

 He nodded solemnly.

 Alyx looked at Cavarre. We wont have enough horses for everyone, so well be moving very 
slowly.

 I am assuming a pace of ten miles a day. Its four hundred miles to Oriosa, so thats four weeks. It 
will take you a week to reach Sebcia, and I will send messages by arcanslata letting the appropriate 
authorities know youre coming. Youll carry supplies for two weeks with you, get more along the way.

 She nodded slowly. It will take a week to clear the Black Marches. Chytrine wont come after us 
until she has reduced this place. Her cavalry can make three days to our one. Hold out for four days and 
we will be deep enough in Sebcia to be safe.

 Id put the margin at five, but I concur. Cavarre sighed. Ive taken some steps already to see to 
your safety. Youll only have small units with you, but you are quite skilled in fighting with the same, 
arent you, Highness?

 It seems I will be put to the ultimate test, my lord.

 The Draconis Baron nodded, then looked past her at Crow. You know she will send a sullanciri 
after you.

 Its head or mine. The white-haired man smiled grimly. Im honored that you trust me with your wife 
and children.

 Ive studied your exploits for a long time, Crow. Ive never seen anything that gave me any reason to 
question your courage or dedication. Were birds of a feather, and I entrust them to you without 
reservation.

 Cavarre opened his hands and gave them all a solemn nod. I wish you good fortune and all speed.

 Crow offered the man his hand. Confusion to Chytrine, and death to her troops.

 Alexia rose and placed her right hand on the top of their hands. Death to her troops and more. Much 
more.

 Will finally found Resolute in the stone garden. He couldnt believe the Vorquelf had eluded him so 
easily, but after a quick hunt hed found him. He expected Resolute to bolt, but the elf simply regarded 
him with cold eyes and a colder sneer.

 Do you think Im a coward, Will?

 I didnt think so before, but it looks like you are one now. Wills nostrils flared, brushing the edges 


of his mask. So now you run and you blame it on me? Talk yourself into believing that youll be saving 

of his mask. So now you run and you blame it on me? Talk yourself into believing that youll be saving 

 Most clearly.

 Then what is this running about? Youre not using me as an excuse for your heart going weak.

 The Vorquelfs eyes narrowed as his chin came up. Whenever youre done, let me know.

 Something in the chilly tone of his voice warned Will off continuing. Go ahead. What do you have to 
say for yourself?

 The reason I will be leaving is your fault, but not because I have fears for your survival or mine. We 
could die here, we could die on the road. The chances of all of us making it to Sebcia are slender, and 
Oriosa is not really any better. I fear nothing, least of all death.

 Then why are you going?

 Early on in our journeys, you asked me why I fought with longknives. I told you I preferred them but 
there was more. Being an elven warrior is a great honor. When one is bound to a homeland, he knows 
his calling, knows what he must do, and being allowed to take up a sword is close to the greatest 
responsibility an elf can be given. Because I am not bound to my homeland, I knew I would never have 
the sense of being called upon to take up a sword, so Ive not. Ive studied them, trained with them, but 
never taken one as my own.

 Will frowned. But youre wearing one now.

 I am. Resolute slowly drew the long, slender blade. Without the basket-hilt and the leather wrapping 
it, Will almost didnt recognize the sword as the one the Azure Spider had owned. Long before you 
were born, before your father was born or his father before him, Oracle told me I would be given a 
sword by Vorquellyns redeemer. This is it. The swords name is Syverce. Its old, very old.

 The thief pointed to the forte, right below the crosshilt. It has a hole in the blade.

 Thats the eye of the needle. Resolutes voice lost some of its volume and power. A long time ago, 
when there were more elven homelands than there are now, each of the homelands had a Syverce. They 
were all made by the same swordsmith, from the same ore. Theyre fashioned and named after the 
needle we use to sew shrouds for the dead.

 But elves live forever.

 Many do, or choose to move beyond this world, as did all the adults bound to Vorquellyn. Accidents 
do happen, and in those cases a normal Syverce will do to sew the shroud. The swords, however, call 
elves to do a terrible duty. An elf who takes one up does so to slay someone.

 Thats an assassins sword?

 Yes and no; mostly no. If an elf chose to go against the calling of his homeland, to rebel, well, only 
madness could be the cause or the result of such a thing. That elf becomes a danger and someone has to 
eliminate him.

 Couldnt one of the mad ones just pick up a Syverce and start killing himself?

 Resolute extended the sword to Will hilt first. Take it.

 Will reached for the sword, but the second he touched it, he whipped his hand away and shook it hard 
to rid it of the terrible sting. He started to yell at Resolute for tricking him, but he dimly remembered 
having felt a similar but muted sting when hed touched it before. I dont understand.

 Its part of the magick worked into the blade. If youre not meant to have it, it hurts you. The Azure 
Spider had wrapped it up in leather and wore gloves to take most of the sting away.

 Will it kill sullancirP.

 The Vorquelf nodded. Im certain of it. Winfellis and Seethe will die beneath it.

 Seethe is Myrallmara, right? Shes here; you can kill her here.

 I cant, Will. Resolute sighed. Up until you gave me this sword, my focus was redeeming my 
homeland. The straight line to that was through Chytrine. It was a grand goal, a great goal, a worthy one; 
but it was also very selfish. Down through the decades I have done good in its pursuit, but thats all been 
by happenstance. If people benefited from my killing Aurolani, fine. If people being in trouble attracted 
Aurolani for me to kill, better yet.

 How did Syverce change that? 


 The blade doesnt sting me. Im supposed to have it, even though Im not bound to a homeland. Its 
odd, since the homeland it came from has long since vanished, so it has no home, same as me. What it 
tells me is this, Will: I have a greater responsibility than seeing to my selfish goal. Thwarting Chytrine by 
making others safe is more valuable, more powerful, than just killing her troops.

 The blade doesnt sting me. Im supposed to have it, even though Im not bound to a homeland. Its 
odd, since the homeland it came from has long since vanished, so it has no home, same as me. What it 
tells me is this, Will: I have a greater responsibility than seeing to my selfish goal. Thwarting Chytrine by 
making others safe is more valuable, more powerful, than just killing her troops.

 Resolute laughed aloud. It doesnt seem fair, does it,

 Will? Perhaps I was bound by them all along, but I just refused to acknowledge it. He played his 
fingertips over the flat of the blade, tracing them over Elvish sigils. I suspect the Azure Spider stole this 
blade from some collector and never knew what he had. He had to steal it, though, was fated to steal it, 
so it would fall into my hands, courtesy of you.

 Youre welcome.

 Am I? The Vorquelf gave him a sly look. If you thought I was relentless about drilling home your 
greater responsibilities before, it will be as nothing now.

 The thief rolled his eyes. I wonder if Chytrine is hiring? You can just stab me now and she can bring 
me back to life.

 Wont work that way, Will, not if I stab you with this.

 Why not?

 Its the magick on the sword. Youve seen me reanimate the recently dead.

 Will shivered. Yeah, I have.

 Well, when someone dies, their thread in the tapestry of life is cut. The magick I use, the magick 
Chytrine uses, splices that line back together. Its not as good as the original connection, hence the poor 
quality of life. Syverce, however, not only severs that connection, it knots it off hence the needles eye. 
Theres no thread to splice. Die from Syverce and you are dead forever.

 Theres something to look forward to. Will sighed. We have to go, then, huh?

 Their children will live to sing of their glory.

 Or avenge them?

 The Vorquelf nodded once. Or avenge them, but only if you and I fail to accomplish the tasks fate 
has assigned us.

 Erlestoke knocked on the open door to Alexias chamber. Forgive me, Highness. I wanted to return 
your sword.

 The pale blonde woman glanced over at him as she tightened the last strap on a saddlebag. I sent it to 
you because I wanted you to have it. She nodded toward Crow, who sat on the foot of her bed. The 
Draconis Baron noted a sullanciri will come after us and Crow can deal with it. That leaves at least two 
here, and Malarkexs sword will let you kill any you face.

 The man smiled and stepped into the room. I appreciate the gift, but you killed Malarkex. The blade 
is yours by right. It is too precious to be given away.

 Alexia straightened up and looked down her slender nose at him. To tell you the truth, my lord, I 
dont like the sword. Its not to my taste, doesnt feel good in the hand. Your armory here yielded me a 
suitable replacement. I insist you keep it.

 Erlestoke started to speak, but Crow eclipsed him. Save your wind, Highness, for once she has made 
up her mind, she cannot be swayed. We know how savage things will be here. That sword will be an 
advantage and you will need all you can get.

 The Oriosan prince nodded to Crow. It would be a pity, then, to lose it to the enemy.

 Alexia shouldered her saddlebags. Chytrine created it; she can make more. I suspect creating 
sullanciri is a bit more difficult. Killing them is bound to distract her.

 Id like to hope for something more than that, but I wont complain if that is all I get. Confidence 
surged in Erlestokes breast as Crow stood, then waved Alexia toward the door. Ill do your gift 
justice.

 Of that I have no doubt. She rested her hands on his shoulders. Your people will be safe. Well see 


to it.

to it.

 All courage. Alexia turned to go, then stopped in the doorway. Do you have a message you want 
me to tell your father?

 Erlestoke started to shake his head, but hesitated. Yes, I

 suppose there is. Tell him for me, for the sake of his nation, not to live his whole life a coward.

 The Okrans princess blinked her violet eyes. Those words, exactly? 


Anything less, hed not notice. Erlestoke sighed. Anything less and hed know they didnt come 
from me.

 Alexia rode out in front of the refugee column and then pulled to the east a bit, keeping herself 
between the people and the Aurolani host. The sun blazed in the sky, making it unseasonably hot. The 
mail she wore over a padded gambeson weighed her down and kept her uncomfortably warm, but she 
wasnt going to doff it for all Chytrines promises that she would let the refugees leave unmolested.

 The noncombatants exited Fortress Draconis through the small southern gate. Chytrines southern 
wing had pulled back to give them ample passage to the south. The women and children who could walk 
did, many struggling with packs stuffed to overflowing with clothes, blankets, rice, dried meat, dried fish, 
and what few mementos they couldnt bear to leave behind. Because so many of them were Oriosans, it 
was not uncommon to see them bearing the mask of the folks left behind, and to see those soldiers 
wearing makeshift masks.

 Alexia understood that sacrifice on one level. Oriosans were often defined by their masks, and families 
kept those of relatives to marvel at and venerate, if not worship. By giving their life masks to the refugees, 
the Oriosan soldiers were escaping along with their families. An Oriosan without a mask is all but dead 
anyway. These warriors were ready to sell their lives dearly and already counted themselves among the 
dead.

 The Oriosan soldiery had all been given leave to head south. Dothan Cavarre had, in fact, ordered the 
Oriosan Scouts to accompany the refugees, and had assigned a meckansh legion made up of Oriosans 
to the column as well. Other Oriosan soldiers, either the very young with families, or the very old, joined 
the refugees, while the rest remained to fight. Often those who wanted to leave changed places with 
Scouts who wanted to remain, allowing everyone to suit themselves.

 It struck Alexia as odd that the Okrannel campaign had begun on a cold, rainy day, yet everyone 
riding from Yslin had been of high spirits. Now, riding from Fortress Draconis, under a blistering sun, she 
felt hollow inside and knew from the expressions on various faces that she was not alone.

 Crow rode out to where she waited. We have roughly two thousand people: five hundred are 
soldiers, another hundred are adults whove seen battle before. The rest are women and children, just 
shy two bairns to each adult. Twenty wagons with supplies, a hundred horses, mostly draft.

 She looked at him. Are you certain this is the right thing?

 He sighed. I cant say Im certain about anything, but I know this has to be done. Cavarre wouldnt 
have suggested it unless it was for the best. We have to make it work.

 Alexia rested a hand on his shoulder. We will, Crow.

 The line of refugees snaked its way south, led by the meckansh. They took up a position just inside 
the range of the southeast strongholds dragonels and the refugees were directed to move behind them 
and to the south. It seemed ridiculous that a hundred men and women, half flesh and metal, could stop 
the Aurolani forces if they chose to sweep down and crush the refugees, but their formation went 
unchallenged.

 The only movement on the Aurolani side came from the golden dragon. It slithered toward the south, 
not deigning to take to wing. It kept its body back behind the line described by the most forward of the 
Aurolani troops, but jutted its muzzle out toward them. Nostrils widened, but no flame burst forth. The 
creature sniffed and pulled itself up in a very feline pose, even wrapping its tail around its feet. It watched 
closely but did nothing.

 Back in the line Kerrigan, Lombo, and Qwc came through, shepherding a group of children. The little 


Sprithas aerial antics delighted the kids, and Lombo provided transport for a couple of toddlers. 
Kerrigan had a walking staff and a cadre of a half-dozen tiny boys trailing in his wake, as if he was a 
goose and they his goslings. The portly magicker shouldered his own pack, and had those belonging to 
the two smallest kids hanging from it, but he kept his eyes warily fixed to the east. Were the Aurolani to 
come, Alyx felt certain Kerrigan would defend his charges unto death.

Sprithas aerial antics delighted the kids, and Lombo provided transport for a couple of toddlers. 
Kerrigan had a walking staff and a cadre of a half-dozen tiny boys trailing in his wake, as if he was a 
goose and they his goslings. The portly magicker shouldered his own pack, and had those belonging to 
the two smallest kids hanging from it, but he kept his eyes warily fixed to the east. Were the Aurolani to 
come, Alyx felt certain Kerrigan would defend his charges unto death.

 Alyx reined her horse around as the last of the wagons passed her position, then rode with Crow to 
join Resolute and Will at the rear of the procession. They rode in silence to where the meckansh 
waited, then let them move out as a force screening the columns left flank. The column snaked south for 
a mile to a line of low hills and began to slip through them. The riders mounted one of the taller hills, then 
turned to look back at Fortress Draconis.

 The princess slowly shook her head. Already the Aurolani troops had begun to move forward and the 
dragon soared lazily over the battlefield. I know we have to do this. I accept that. It doesnt stop me 
from feeling like a coward.

 Resolutes eyes became argent slits. Just remember, Princess, they have the easier job. All they have 
to do is kill. We have to survive. Were not just guarding their families, we are burdened with their hopes 
and dreams for the future. And we must succeed, or all that will be as dead as they soon will be.

 From the Crown Tower roof, Erlestoke watched the last of the refugees head south and waited to see 
if Alexia turned to look back at the fortress. He hoped she would, and perhaps even look for him. He 
entertained no romantic notions about herat least no more than any man would when looking at such a 
striking woman. Erlestokes emotions had been fully engaged, and his mistress and their son were amid 
the refugees. Colonel Hawkins said he would look out for them, but Laerisa had agreed that she would 
be given no preference, and no attention would be drawn to her or the boy in case Chytrine did snap 
them all up.

 He hoped Alexia would look back and get a glimpse of the maelstrom that was about to engulf 
Fortress Draconis. There was no denying that the speed and power of the Aurolani assault had surprised 
the defenders. Skycasters and thunderballs were weapons they had neither imagined nor anticipated. The 
damage they had done had kept the Draconis Baron awake long hours, thinking, dreaming, about how he 
could counter them. Without an example of a thunderball to study and dissect, however, designing 
countermeasures proved very difficult.

 Erlestoke smiled. But Chytrine is not the only one who has developed new weapons. He fervently 
hoped Alexia and the others would realize that those who remained behind did so not to die, but to kill 
lots of Aurolani. And we are very well prepared to do that.

 Drums began pounding behind the Aurolani lines. Un-dead legions started forward and dragonels 
massed near the northern wall. A smaller contingent toward the southeast could be moved quickly into 
position to strike at the main gate. And the dragon could strike anywhere.

 He glanced over at the Draconis Baron. Where do you want me? North at Hydra battery, or at the 
main gate with you at Lion?

 Cavarre considered for the moment, then pointed north. Your people are there. Thats where I will 
need you. When she makes her drive at the main gate, I will be ready and have you ready to command 
my reserve.

 Erlestoke snapped a salute. As ordered, my lord. In case I dont get a chance later, I want to thank 
you for all youve taught me.

 You were an apt pupil, so it was my pleasure Cavarre returned the salute, then half smiled. A 
question if you dont mind.

 Please.

 Cavarre tapped a finger against his own nose. Youre still wearing your life mask. You didnt give it 


to Hawkins to take south?

to Hawkins to take south?

 No, I dont suppose you do.

 Erlestoke smiled. If you find me, promise me youll toss my mask into the sea. My body, too, if there 
is anything left. Ill rest better with my mother.

 Consider it done.

 Any wishes for yourself?

 Cavarre laughed and patted a hand against the Crown Towers thick walls. I grew up in one Fortress 
Draconis, and I built another. Ill haunt this place, thank you very much. Now, you best get going. Tell 
Colonel Tatt to signal all soldiers to their posts.

 Erlestoke nodded, then retreated through the tower. He found the meckansh in charge of Signals 
and passed on the barons command. Outside he worked his way north to the northernmost battery. He 
ducked his head and slipped into the first of the two dragonel lairs. A dozen of the weapons pointed in 
each direction, out toward the stronghold the Aurolani had taken the previous night. The dragonels each 
had a serpents-maw at the muzzle and scales worked on the body, hence the designation of Hydra 
battery.

 Captain Gerhard snapped a salute that the prince returned. Dragonels sighted and treble-shotted. 
They wont be happy.

 Good. The tunnel is still intact?

 Main tunnel fitted with nets and flooded as planned. The meckansh officer smiled with a squeak. 
We waited until some were coming up before we flooded it. Probably got a half-dozen squads.

 Dont let them relax down there. Their dead troops arent going to be stopped by a little water in the 
lungs.

 Yes, sir. Gerhard went over to a speaking tube built into the wall and shouted an order down to the 
troops waiting in the dark. An acknowledgment echoed back up. Were ready.

 Good. The drums outside began pounding to a crescendo. Theyre coming.

 Beyond the fortress walls the Aurolani troops began their march forward. Behind them the skycasters 
launched their thunderballs. More skycasters spoke from the captured stronghold, arcing the explosive 
spheres deep into the Maze. The bombs detonated in the air, or on the bounce, spraying metal fragments 
everywhere. One stray piece zinged into the battery, narrowly missing Erlestoke, and clanged impotently 
off Gerhards left arm.

 The meckansh looked at the bright scar on his arm. Ill need more paint after this is done.

 The strongholds dragonelswhich had been captured when it was takencould not easily be 
brought to bear on the fortress battery, while the reverse was not true. The Aurolani had widened the 
fireports to give their dragonels more play, but that just gave Gerhard and his gunners bigger targets to 
shoot at.

 The strongholds dragonels spat fire and steel, skipping balls off the fortress. A few stone fragments 
from a shattered casement ricocheted through the battery, but the crew paid no attention. Their weapons 
had been long since aimed, with the ranges measured to the inch, the powder load and shot weighed 
carefully, the dragonels properly angled and primed. Erlestoke nodded and Gerhard snapped the order 
for his men to fire.

 The dragonels boomed and rolled back in recoil, their missiles vomited out on a gout of flame. Smoke 
choked the battery and a heartbeat later the floor shook as the lower level fired. Erlestokes ears rang 
and his eyes watered, but the breeze swirled smoke out of the battery, revealing men sponging the 
weapons and hurriedly reloading them. Past them the stronghold came into view, with its shattered 
fire-ports. At least one dragonel had been blasted free and slid down the exterior wall, while the others 
had been scattered about. At least one gibberer dragoneer hung from a ragged fireport, while parts of 
others oozed out elsewhere.

 Beyond the stronghold, things looked more ominous yet. Some Aurolani troops had advanced using 
the stronghold as cover, but now they crept around it and kept coming. The undead, misshapen creatures 


came first, shuffling and shambling. Overhead sailed more thunderballs, but their distant explosions failed 
to hide the husky grunts and groans of the undead as they approached.

came first, shuffling and shambling. Overhead sailed more thunderballs, but their distant explosions failed 
to hide the husky grunts and groans of the undead as they approached.

 The prince nodded. Good. Looks as if they are moving their dragonels up.

 Two batteries, twenty dragonels or so. Gerhard stepped over to the speaking tube. Ready on the 
flamers, ready in the hole.

 The Aurolani dragoneers got their weapons moved and positioned, a bit back of the stronghold, giving 
them a clear line of fire at Gerhards battery without exposing them to Eagle battery to the west. They 
rammed home powder and shot, then aimed their field pieces. The meckansh waited until slow-burning 
match-coils had been distributed to fire the weapons, then shouted down the tube. Fire the hole!

 Knowing what was coming, Erlestoke backed to a wall and hunkered down a bit. In the first siege of 
Fortress Draconis, back when he was still a child, Chytrine had only one dragonel and a limited supply of 
firedirt. The wagon carrying it had ventured into the fortress through the shattered gate and got trapped in 
a cul-de-sac where it caught fire. The resulting explosion leveled a portion of Draconis town.

 To minimize the chances of that happening in the future, the Draconis Baron had ordered all magazines 
in which the firedirt was stored to be built underground, and charges for the dragonels were to be 
conveyed up to the batteries. The tunnels between the fortress and the strongholds ran underground at a 
level slightly above the magazines, and once the Aurolani had taken the strongholds, those tunnels had 
been fitted with nets and flooded.

 Little side tunnels, which ran parallel to the main tunnels, and slanted down to the magazine level, had 
not been flooded. UrZrethi sappers had clambered down through them, broken into the darker reaches 
of the magazines, and opened a fair number of firedirt kegs. They then laid a trail

 of powder back through the side tunnels and, at the order, set light to the powder.

 The Aurolani dragonels spoke loudly, crashing iron balls into the battery. One glanced off a dragonels 
barrel, skewing it around and knocking the fireman flying, then the ball smashed the loader against the 
wall, crushing his right arm. The loader yelped, and his arm hung from his shoulder a useless mass of 
twisted metal and broken wire. Stone fragments from the wall tore at his face, where mail had not 
replaced flesh, while the misshapen ball pirouetted around the middle of the battery, then sagged over on 
a flattened side.

 About a minute later, the first of three explosions shook the stronghold. It sounded like a muffled 
thump, but the second explosions rumbling boom swallowed it. Jets of fire spurted here and there, 
smoke rose, but that formed a mere prelude to the final titanic blast. A volcano erupted from the 
strongholds heart, pitching dark flecks of stone, decking, and creatures into the air, then the fire 
brightened from red to searing silver-white. The walls burst outward, dark stone divided by spiderwebs 
of white, with pieces growing smaller and smaller, then smoke condensed and rose while the explosion 
spit debris in every direction.

 Stones and pieces of wood from flooring blasted through the fireports. The shock wave hit, jolting 
dragonels, cracking mortar, and loosening paving stones set in the battery floor. Erlestoke found himself 
flying for a second, then ended up in a heap on the ground, sputtering from the dust and smoke. He 
swiped at his eyes, smearing dust with tears, then shook his head to clear it of the ringing. He snorted to 
rid his nostrils of that dry scent of dirt, then felt blood dripping from his nose.

 Smoke swirled and thinned, and the prince saw Gerhard laughing and pointing. Nothing was left of the 
stronghold save a smoking rubble pit occasionally stirred by fiery flares and small explosions. The 
Aurolani vanguard had been shredded with shrapnel, covering the field in blood and twitching bodies. 
The undead that had survived the blast did claw at the ground, dragging what was left of their bodies 
forward, closer and closer to the fortress. Erlestoke couldnt see the Aurolani dragonels, though a 
powder wagon burned merrily and exploded, knocking down other troops.

 The prince crossed to the speaking tube and shouted down into it. Flamers deploy!

 Hidden amid the wall spikes were some hollow tubes. At his order a valve was thrown open and a 


hidden oil reservoir drained out through the nozzle. In the bowels of the wall a combat mage triggered a 
simple spell, igniting the stream of oil. A stream of liquid fire arced out, trailing a curtain of black smoke, 
incinerating the undead and living alike.

hidden oil reservoir drained out through the nozzle. In the bowels of the wall a combat mage triggered a 
simple spell, igniting the stream of oil. A stream of liquid fire arced out, trailing a curtain of black smoke, 
incinerating the undead and living alike.

 Erlestoke retreated from the battery and felt a chill as a black shadow coursed over him. He looked to 
the east and saw the main gate burning, the stone melted away. The gold dragon circled and swooped, 
then perched itself on the Crown Tower. With a swat of its tail it dashed the flagstaff to flinders, casting 
down the grey flag with black dragon-skull on it. The dragon crouched on the towers thick edge, its 
talons crushing stone. It did not stretch itself out over the top of the tower, as its predecessor had done.

 The dragon had learned from the previous assault. A quarter century ago a dragon had torn open the 
Crown Towers roof and had been impaled by a trap the Draconis Baron had previously arranged. 
Though this Crown Tower was far too small and squat to allow for the same defenses as before, the 
dragon took no chances, and began to claw away at the masonry and expose the fragment chamber.

 The dragon had learned, but so had the Draconis Baron. Throughout the Maze lay other strongholds, 
blockhouses in which food and supplies were stored preparatory for a siege. Into each of them had been 
built a large drag-onel, one far too big to be moved or reloaded with any ease or speed. Each had been 
laid so that it pointed at the top of the tower, one at each cardinal point of the compass. Using an intricate 
pulley, gear, and lever system, the aim could be adjusted ever so slightly, but with as large a target as a 
dragon, such minor adjustments were unnecessary. Sorcerers assigned to the fireteams used arcanslata 
to confer, and when the dragon began to tear through the wall, casting great blocks of granite to tumble 
through the town below, the fireteams were given the order to fire.

 The grand dragonels did not quite go off as one, but it hardly mattered. The huge weapons had a bore 
the diameter of a common warriors shield, perhaps two and a half feet across. An iron ball that size 
would have been impossibly heavy and the charge needed to lift it would have exploded the weapon. 
Scatter-shot, even made up of fist-size balls would have worked, but against a dragons armor would not 
have done much more than shatter a few scales and anger the beast.

 The Draconis Baron, having once used a single long needle to skewer and kill a dragon, decided to 
repeat his use of that weapon, but multiply it. Each grand dragonel had been loaded with a wooden 
canister, a cylindrical barrel a yard long and filled with wax. Into the wax had been sunk eighteen 
yard-long steel fiechettes with razored tips thickened for penetrating armor. As the weapons detonated 
and the fire expanded to fill the metal tube, the canister accelerated. The fire melted the wax and blasted 
the canister apart, then sped the fiechettes with an incendiary push.

 From the south needles lanced through the partially healed wound on the dragons thigh, ripping it 
open anew and causing the limb to falter. The western arcs dragonels shots did not all hit, but several 
pierced its cheek and one exploded its left eye. The northern arc proved most accurate, peppering the 
dragon over its right side, skewering its paw, flank, foot, wing, and tail. None of the wounds were fatal, 
but the needles plunged in deeply, tearing muscle and spilling fiery black blood.

 The shots from the east, the stronghold from which Cavarre had issued the order to fire, struck hardest 
and best. They caught the dragon full on in the back, stickling shoulders and neck. They screwed 
themselves in tightly, splintering bone and further rending tissue. One, in particular, struck for great effect.

 As the dragon leaped up from the tower and opened its wings to strike for safety, the left wing failed 
to respond. That one needle had severed a nerve, numbing the wing. The gold dragons hale wing 
pumped mightily, and its tail lashed savagely, tearing through the fragment chamber. The wings thrust 
began a somersault that the tail could not stop, and the half-blind dragon crashed down hard into the 
Maze, smashing its head against a stronghold before it disappeared amid the dust of collapsing buildings.

 Erlestoke yelped with joy, then shot down a ramp and ran toward the building where his company of 
troops awaited him. He pointed to the east, back toward the ruined main gate, but before he could tell 


them to move out in that direction, something clanked heavily behind him. His mens eyes widened and 
some of them ducked back. The prince looked to his left and saw one of the thunderballs lazily rolling 
through the air as it bounced past him.

them to move out in that direction, something clanked heavily behind him. His mens eyes widened and 
some of them ducked back. The prince looked to his left and saw one of the thunderballs lazily rolling 
through the air as it bounced past him.

 About the time he realized he was never going to share that information with his mentor, the 
thunderball exploded.

 Alexia did her best to peel away as much anxiety as she could about the evacuation. She freely 
admitted to herself that, all things considered, it was going better than expected. They got further along 
than planned that first day and by halfway through the second theyd reached a supply cache that Dothan 
Cavarre had set up in the event he needed to detach troops and have them operating to the south. 
Kerrigan managed to get through the spells warding it, and the cache provided a plethora of supplies, 
including enough weapons that every adult could arm themselves.

 The rest of that second day had been devoted to the meckanshs acquainting the noncombatants 
with their weapons. Alyx harbored no illusions that being armed would make the adults into anything even 
vaguely useful as a fighting force. Even so, being given something to do to defend their children buoyed 
confidence and banished some fear, so that was to the good.

 By that second night, however, she faced a grave decision. Peri had reported, and a quick scouting 
foray with

 Crow and Resolute had confirmed, that the refugee train was being stalked. Aurolani cavalry had 
moved south on a course that paralleled theirs. They stayed to the east, cutting the refugees off from the 
Tynik River, which they could have forded above Yavatsen Bend, then rafted down to Sebcia. Because 
of their position, the Aurolani could curve around and herd them back north to Fortress Draconis anytime 
they wanted to.

 The question she faced was whether or not to let the refugees know the Aurolani had already come 
after them. Not only did the Aurolani pose an immediate threat to them, the import of the cavalry being 
detached and sent south would be clear to everyone. Since the cavalry would be largely useless inside 
the fortress, their being given this mission suggested Chytrine was having no problem with the troops left 
behind.

 The fact that the dragon had not winged its way south to stop them belied that, but Alyx expected to 
see it at any point. She wasnt certain whether or not Chytrine had ever intended to honor her pledge to 
let the refugees go, but that speculation was immaterial. The simple fact was that Chytrine had no reason 
to honor that pledge, so Alyx saw no harm in assuming she would renege on it. Letting them go had been 
a game, and clearly Chytrine had tired of it, therefore ending it.

 She waited one more day before making her decision. In that time she was able to determine, to the 
best of her abilities, that two cavalry legions had been sent after the refugees. One consisted almost 
entirely of frostclaws, with vylaens to direct them. That unit had been broken down into companies that 
ranged forward of the line of march and served as the main bodys eyes. The other unit was heavy 
cavalry and the sullanciri Ganagrei was in command.

 Against them she had six hundred troops, but only the meckansh could be considered heavy infantry. 
The Oriosan Scouts would have been ideally suited to the fight, but two-thirds of them had remained 
behind in Fortress 

T

 Draconis. While the soldiers who filled out the Scouts ranks were game and had their families to 
defend, they werent well versed in fighting through light woodlands.

 In fact, the only thing Alyx had going for her was terrain. The road south wound through forested hills 
that provided some wonderful defensive positions. Peri scouted ahead and picked out a perfect spot for 
them to make a stand. Two streams carved a flat-topped, lozenge-shaped hill that was large enough to 
hold the refugees. They stopped prematurely and immediately set about digging in and throwing up 
breastworks. The troops moved out to the west and south, taking up positions on the hillsides beyond the 


streams. The single genuine Scout company pushed further on and a bit north, finding a spot they could 
defend easily. The meckansh formed the heart of her line, with the other Scouts to the south, and the 
assorted troops and irregulars to the northern flank.

streams. The single genuine Scout company pushed further on and a bit north, finding a spot they could 
defend easily. The meckansh formed the heart of her line, with the other Scouts to the south, and the 
assorted troops and irregulars to the northern flank.

 Visiting that same fate on the Aurolani, on the other hand, was something she would not mind at all. As 
the uppermost horn of the moons crescent arose in the east, Resolute, Crow, and a couple of 
meckansh started a fire-line roughly five hundred yards to the east. Quickly enough the fire spread, 
roaring up over ancient pines with an orange hunger. Smoke poured east, borne on the breeze, and she 
imagined that if that didnt get the attention of the Aurolani host, nothing would.

 Back in the refugee camp Will checked his pouch of bladestars for the dozenth time. Hed not wanted 
to be left behind with the women and children, but Alyx had taken him aside and pointed out that 
because everyone knew the prophecy, his presence would stiffen the spines of those left behind. The fact 
that Kerrigan would remain as well made him feel a little better, and the way the fear in the eyes of some 
refugees lessened when he walked through helped even more.

 An old infantry captain had been left in charge, though the two most able warriors present were 
Lombo and Dranae. Lombo squatted in the middle of everything, playing with children, while some 
parents lined the dirt piles rimming their hilltop. Dranae walked the line, speaking to everyone, smiling, 
laughing, and nodding reassuringly. His air of quiet confidence set everyone at ease. Back between the 
line and the children waited the rest of the parents, fingering spears, swords, daggers, and, in a few cases, 
big rocks.

 Will wandered over to where Kerrigan nervously stood, alternately frowning into the darkness and 
looking down at his hands. The Adept hadnt bothered to switch back to robes at Fortress Draconis and 
instead wore a melange of old pirate clothes and, next to his skin, a uniform tunic from Fortress Draconis.

 The thief looked at him. You have to get this right, you know, no mistakes.

 Kerrigan snarled. I know! His hands curled down into fists. Cant you leave me alone? Just go 
away.

 The Adept tried to turn away, but Will caught his arm and turned him back. Hey, Keri, theres no 
going away here.

 Dont call me Keri.

 Will snorted. Look, youre nervous, Im nervous. We have a lot of people here counting on us. 
Counting on you, mostly, because youre the one who has the big part to play.

 I know how important it is.

 Good. I want to make sure youre here with us.

 What does that mean? Kerrigans face screwed up tight and he crossed his arms over his chest.

 Will stepped in close and kept his voice low. We get away from the pirates, the elves put you to 
work. On the ship to the fortress youre quiet, not talking much except with the elves, then at the fortress 
you pretty much vanish until its time for us to go, then you spend all your time with the kids. Youve 
been avoiding usthose of us who were with you at Wruona. I think thats because you think we blame 
you for her dying.

 Kerrigan blinked. You think what?

 The thief kept his voice low. I dont think it was your fault, nobody does. It wasnt your fault at all. 
So you dont need to be hiding or nothing anymore.

 The Adept raised his chin. You think thats what Ive been doing?

 Will smiled. Seems pretty obvious.

 Does it? The magickers eyes narrowed. I hope youre a good thief, because, as a mind reader, 
youre really, really bad. Thats not what Im thinking at all. Im not hiding and I havent been hiding.

 No? Why didnt I see you around the fortress, then? 


 Kerrigan hesitated. I was sleeping. I was tired and sleeping.

 Kerrigan hesitated. I was sleeping. I was tired and sleeping.

 The fire did provoke a reaction from the Aurolani host. Green magick shot from the darkness, 
suppressing flames, then vylaens rode through, with frostclaws following them. The temeryces galloped 
forward, bobbing almost comically on their powerful legs, then leaped toward the meckansh positions, 
hissing and screaming furiously.

 It seemed to Alyx to be somewhat less of a battle than a riot. Crow struck from behind a tree, 
shooting arrows as fast as he could. He shot at vylaens and those he missed often found one of 
Resolutes bladestars buried in them. With their leaders falling, the frostclaws still attacked, but lacked 
cohesion. While more than capable of rending and tearing with their teeth and claws, they chose their 
targets by whatever criteria existed in their little minds, not with a goal toward rolling up a flank or 
breaking a formation.

 The defensive preparations the meckansh had made confounded the frostclaws. Some that leaped 
over the front line found themselves trapped in ropes and nets strung through tree branches. Others that 
soared past the warriors spear-points discovered the ground sown with sharpened wooden stakes that 
pierced haunches and bellies. The close-set trees did make it difficult for the stiff-tailed beasts to turn 
quickly, and, like as not, a nip at a soldier would get them a mouthful of metal, not flesh.

 The meckansh fought demoniacally, slashing back at the temeryces with claws of their own. The 
fighting broke down into small knots of warriors thrusting and jabbing, or grappling and clawing. Alyx 
almost wished for Malarkexs sword again, for it would have allowed her to revel in the violent chaos 
and throw herself completely into the fight. As it was, her blade sang, slashing throats, cutting off limbs, 
while frostclaws shredded her mail and eventually scored the flesh beneath it.

 The light cavalry company did its job, for it engaged the meckansh in time for a heavy cavalry 
company to come blasting through. The larger frostclaws and their riders leaped through the resurgent 
flames, undaunted and uncaring. Weaving through trees, they came swiftly, aiming their charge at where 
the meckansh center had been driven back. Some riders did lean too far one side or the other and 
were blasted out of the saddle by a tree, and a few others did have their mounts falter and fall when they 
impaled themselves on the spikes. The majority of them, however, blew through the heart of the 
tneckansh line and disappeared into the darkness.

 Ganagrei did not. He reined his grand temeryx back, then snapped guttural orders at those riders who 
were engaged with the meckansh. Out of the darkness whizzed a bladestar. It burst the big frostclaws 
left eye and sank a point into its brain. The creature convulsed hard, then leaped into the air and landed 
harder, before collapsing and sagging to the side.

 The sullanciri rolled to its feet, none too quickly nor with much agility, but it uncoiled its armored 
form, then reached down and tugged a double-bitted broadax from its saddle sheath. The weapon came 
up and around quickly, then flashed down, striking sparks from a meckanshifs metal arm as it mangled 
the limb beyond recognition.

 Sallitt Hawkins whirled away, his twisted arm and the force of the blow spinning him to the ground. 
The sullanciri raised the ax to kill him, but before the blow could fall, an arrow stabbed through 
Ganagreis right eye. The un-dead thing staggered back a step or two, allowing Hawkins to scramble to 
his feet. The damaged warrior cast about for anything he could use as a weapon.

 Crow advanced and tossed him the silverwood bow. Keep that for me. The white-haired warrior 
then drew Tsamoc and the gem set in its forte glowed brilliantly, washing color into his beard and hair.

 Ganagrei snarled and slashed at him, but Crow blocked the slow blow simply enough. The man cut to 
his left, then slashed Tsamoc at the sullancirfs stomach with a disemboweling blow. The Aurolani 
creature grunted and the armor glowed at the point of contact, but failed to part. Ganagrei backhanded 
Crow with a mailed fist, catching him between the shoulder blades and sending him sprawling.

 The sullanciris good eye glowed a gangrenous green as it stalked toward the downed man. Crow 
got back up quickly enough and parried another blow. He lunged, then tried to cut up into Ganagreis 
armpit, but the sword skittered harmlessly off the glowing armor. 


 Crow danced back as another slash tried to bisect him, then chopped his sword down, 
double-handed, on the creatures forearm. Sparks flew argent from where Tsamoc caught the 
sullanciris armor. The blade traced a little silver scar on it and left a dent, but didnt even come close to 
penetrating it. The dent glowed green, then the armor screeched as the metal resumed its original shape.

 Crow danced back as another slash tried to bisect him, then chopped his sword down, 
double-handed, on the creatures forearm. Sparks flew argent from where Tsamoc caught the 
sullanciris armor. The blade traced a little silver scar on it and left a dent, but didnt even come close to 
penetrating it. The dent glowed green, then the armor screeched as the metal resumed its original shape.

 Again and again Crow struck at Ganagrei. A slash nearly severed a triangle of mail from the 
sullanciris mail coif, but the scrap swung back into place as the creature advanced and the rings 
interlocked in a green light. The sullancirts blows, though ponderous and heavy, came closer and closer 
to striking home as Crow began to tire. The man parried many blows and sidestepped others, but one 
slash scored the flesh over his ribs, and a second laid open a stripe on his left thigh.

 Crow began to retreat, glancing behind him as he did so. Drawing the sullanciri further from the 
battle, the man picked up speed in his withdrawal. The Aurolani creature came after him, moving faster. 
Ganagrei mumbled something unintelligible, then reached up and snapped the shaft of the arrow in half, 
casting it aside.

 Alyx cut down a gibberer with a slash that parted upper jaw from lower and angrily thrust its body 
aside. She could only watch as Crow ran to a thick tree, put his back to it, and extended his sword in a 
thrust that would impale the sullanciri. Ganagrei laughed hoarsely as he figured out

 Crows desperate ploy. Magickally armored as he was, he might be spitted on the sword, but he 
would certainly crush Crow.

 The sullanciri sped up. He pulled the ax back with his right hand and swept it in front of him in a parry 
meant to batter the sword out of line. Likely the precaution would have worked, but Crow had already 
pulled his blade back at the last second. The man cut to the right, clearly intent on letting the sullanciri 
batter itself against the tree, then finding a way to kill it.

 The plan almost worked. Ganagrei crashed into the trees trunk with a hideous clang. Bark flew. The 
sullanciris head hit so hard that the impact drove the remnant of the arrow through the back of its skull. 
The broadhead tented the mail coif, popping a few rings, which glowed furiously green as they attempted 
to reconnect around the arrowhead.

 It would have worked, had Crow been quicker. The cut to his left leg meant he didnt push off as 
strongly as intended, so when the sullanciri slammed into the tree, Crows leg remained trapped 
between it and the trunk. The mans thigh and shin snapped more easily than the arrow had. Crow 
screamed and fell at the base of the tree, clawing at exposed roots to drag himself away as the sullanciri 
rebounded and tottered backward.

 The creatures breastplate showed full signs of the impact, with a cylindrical dent running from throat 
to waist. The metal groaned as a green magick washed over it in waves. Ganagrei arched his back as if 
that might help return the concave armor to its original convex form. With a final ping the armor righted 
itself, then the sullanciri looked about. The monster slowed, then deliberately oriented on Crow and his 
crooked leg.

 Crow, no! Alyx shouted and threw her sword at the sullanciri. It clanged off his back, no damage 
done. The sullanciri took no notice of the blow as it stooped and hefted its ax again. Alyx darted at the 
things back, but knew she would never reach it in time, and had no idea what she would do if she did.

 Luckily for her, it didnt matter.

 Ganagrei! Resolutes voice cut through the battle din. Youve forgotten something!

 The sullanciri turned toward the Vorquelf, his good eye searching for the threat the words implied. All 
Ganagrei saw was an elf with a stick in his right hand and a sword in his left. Had the sullanciri been 
capable of registering fear, that sight would have inspired none.

 A blue glow illuminated one of the tattoos on Resolutes right forearm. A heartbeat later the stick in his 
hand burst into flame. The fire made it readily apparent that what he held was more than just a stick, it 
was the back half of an arrow. 


 The other half of which lay buried in the sullanciris brain.

 The other half of which lay buried in the sullanciris brain.

 The night air carried the war cries of men and the piercing shrieks of the temeryces back to the camp 
without distortion or diminution. Will waited beside Dranae, feeling nervous and edgy. He couldnt tell if 
the sound was getting closer or not, and peering out into a darkness virtually untouched by the distant 
fires did little for Will. Lombo barely flicked an ear in the direction of the fighting, but that didnt help Will 
much, since the Panqui delighted in killing frostclaws with his bare hands.

 When the Panqui finally stirred, Dranae shook the infantry captains shoulder. The man looked up, 
then called to Kerrigan. Now, please, Adept.

 Over toward the south end of the line, Kerrigan raised a hand and waved it. A shower of sparks shot 
from his fingertips, each growing into a glowing blue-white ball about the size of a mans head. They 
floated across the ravine toward the east, then lodged in the branches of the trees. They cast a harsh light 
that made for sharp shadows beneath the underbrush.

 The light also made it easy to see the frostclaws moving through the forest. Will was glad of the light 
because he couldnt hear them, especially above the gasps and wails of the people on the line. While 
other adults herded children to the other side of the camp, and many others formed a wall between the 
oncoming enemy and their offspring, the hundred or so people on the line prepared themselves and 
waited for the order they had been told would come.

 Some of the frostclaws leaped from the far end, trying to reach the camp through the air, but the 
distance proved too great. Those creatures landed deep in the .ravine, scrabbling to gain purchase on the 
steep wall. They slid down toward the stream on a river of old leaves and fresh earth, but eventually 
checked their retreat and started to pick their way back up again. Their fellows, which had run down the 
far side, filled the gaps in their line and scaled the hillside.

 Behind them came the heavy cavalry, starting a hurried descent.

 Dranae nodded to the captain. Now.

 If you please, came the mans voice, loud though quivering a bit, fire!

 As Crow had explained, a draconette might be inferior to a bow and arrow in terms of range and 
accuracy and the rate at which missiles could be shot, but it required little, if any, training. When theyd 
opened the weapons cache theyd discovered an ample store of the Draconis Barons early attempts at 
creating draconettes, along with firedirt and shot. None of the warriors on the trip had been members of 
fire companiesthose men and women would never have left Fortress Draconisbut the 
meckanshknew enough about the weapons to instruct people in their use.

 The draconette irregulars rose and pointed their weapons downslope. Fingers tightened on triggers, 
slow-burning matches ignited dust, and the weapons fired in a ragged, smoky volley. Several did fail to 
discharge and two blew up, killing the shooters, but the rest performed admirably.

 Shot ripped through frostclaws, filling the air with feathers and littering the ground with thrashing 
bodies. Wounded creatures screamed and clawed blindly in agony, rending hale and wounded fellows 
alike. Some frostclaws, though wounded, continued their scramble up the hill, while others that had gone 
untouched climbed ever closer to the top.

 The heavy cavalry splashed through the stream. Dranae pointed to Kerrigan. Now, Adept, now!

 The infantry captain gave Dranae a sour look because of the usurpation of his authority. Will noticed 
that, then shifted his gaze to where Kerrigan moved up to the top of their breastwork. He became a 
thick, black silhouette against one of the will-o-the-wisps, and swept his hand out with a near theatrical 
calm.

 More sparks shot from his fingers, but these did not drift lazily and glow softly, they sizzled and 
plunged down into the smoke choking the little rift. In no time they reached their targets, and as 
instructed, everyone in the camp ducked for cover. 


 It had been readily apparent to Alexia that the dra-conetteers would get one volley. The chances of 
their being able to reload and shoot again in the midst of a battle were slender. Moreover, having shot 
flying around in the camp was just as likely to strike friend as foe, and was more likely to do so since 
there would be far fewer of the enemy.

 It had been readily apparent to Alexia that the dra-conetteers would get one volley. The chances of 
their being able to reload and shoot again in the midst of a battle were slender. Moreover, having shot 
flying around in the camp was just as likely to strike friend as foe, and was more likely to do so since 
there would be far fewer of the enemy.

 And spraying lots of shot up over the western side of the valley.

 Crouched down with the others, all Will saw was a series of bright flashes, accompanied by sharp 
thunderclaps. Dirt rained down along with some smoldering leaves. As the explosions echoes faded, he 
caught more screams, more wails, but just enough war cries punctuated them that he knew the job hadnt 
been finished.

 People surged to the breastwork, and Will along with them. One Aurolani rider crested the 
breastwork and a half-dozen spears impaled its temeryx thigh and breast. The gibberer slashed with a 
longknife, notching one of the spear-hafts, then its mount went down and started to roll back into the 
ravine. The gibberer leaped free, but went down as someone twisted the spear between its legs. Swords 
and knives flashed, hands clutched at it and dragged it back where others tore it to pieces.

 Will whirled bladestars at shadows moving through the smoke. Dranae stepped up beside him and 
shouldered a draconette. A mounted gibberer emerged from the smoke. Dranae fired and the ball dented 
the creatures helmet. The rider pitched back off into the smoke while the grand temeryx cut across the 
slope and came up.

 Its angled run brushed aside thrusting spears and it bore straight at Kerrigan. The magicker stared at 
the creature wide-eyed, but didnt move. Will whipped a bladestar at it. The weapon grazed a leg, 
cutting it, but not delivering enough poison to drop it.

 Lombo pounced on the rainbow frostclaw with the ease and delight of a cat attacking a wounded bird. 
The Panquis weight crushed the creature down. It shrieked furiously and turned its head back to bite 
him, but Lombos hand just circled its throat and squeezed. The shriek became a shrilled hiss that ended 
in a loud pop.

 Others of the Aurolani heavy cavalry appeared on the far side of the ravine. They waited there, 
peering down into the smoke-filled valley, trying to decide if they should ride down or not. Lombo 
picked up the big frostclaw and hurled it at them, but the beast didnt quite make it. A couple of spears 
arced over, but did no damage, then Kerrigan pointed his finger and cast a spell that exploded an oak 
tree, peppering them with burning splinters.

 The riders quickly took off to the south and soon sounded distant trumpet calls. Will wasnt certain 
what they signified until he saw one gibberer crawling his way out of the ravine to the south.

 Dranae, who had reloaded his draconette by then, ended the gibberers flight with a single shot. The 
smoke below had begun to thin and as Will looked down, he kind of wished it hadnt. The twitching, and 
the way it made the ground look as if it were alive, or at least dying slowly, bothered him more than the 
painful cries.

 He glanced over at Kerrigan. Can you stop the light?

 Our survivors need a way to find us.

 Then leave one, or string the others further away. He pointed down into the pit. If any of the 
children look, it might give them nightmares.

 The magicker moved to the top of the breastwork and looked down, then recoiled and would have 
fallen save that Will stepped up and steadied him. Yes, youre right, Will. He gestured and the lights 
sailed out toward the east. No one needs the memory of seeing that. 

f] eneral Markus Adrogans handed the arcanslata to the I -j signal mage who had brought it to him. 
Please ac-VJ knowledge the message without comment.

 The mage bowed and left the Jeranese military leader standing there with Phfas and Beal mot Tsuvo in 


the dawn light. He looked at both of them, then slowly shook his head. Four days ago Chytrine allowed 
about two thousand Oriosans and noncombatants to head south from Fortress Draconis. There is no 
word on their fate. According to the last messages from Fortress Draconis, the Aurolani have entered the 
fortress.

the dawn light. He looked at both of them, then slowly shook his head. Four days ago Chytrine allowed 
about two thousand Oriosans and noncombatants to head south from Fortress Draconis. There is no 
word on their fate. According to the last messages from Fortress Draconis, the Aurolani have entered the 
fortress.

 It appears so.

 And word of Princess Alexia?

 The refugees went out under her command. They are bound for Oriosa, so we might eventually hear 
if they make it. Adrogans scratched at his unshaven throat. Theyre looking at a trek of over four 
hundred miles, over a hundred to Sebcia.

 Phfas shrugged his bony shoulders beneath a threadbare cloak. They will not be wanting for supplies. 
Their journey is as nothing.

 His disgusted tone prompted a surprised chuckle from Adrogans. Uncle, our journey is difficult, but 
do not minimize theirs.

 All around them, the refugees from Svoin began to stir as the sky brightened. Men and womenwith 
far too few childrenlooking all stick-and-sinew thin crawled from beneath blankets thicker than their 
skin. Some people stumbled down to the river to drink or batheand far too few of them bathed, having 
long since become used to the colonies of body lice that infested them. Others just sat in one place, 
dazed, disoriented, hovering between life and death.

 Adrogans had been given no real choice. Svoin was a dying place, a fetid pit of misery. It would never 
and could never allow the people there to heal. As quickly as they could, his troops had gathered up all 
the supplies available and started herding refugees toward the north, where they harvested what they 
could from the hills. Beginning in the southeast quarter of the city they set fire to it, burning everything. 
They saved the docks for last, allowing the arson teams to escape onto the lake and sail up the river to 
join the refugee caravan at the Svoin River ford.

 The two possible places to take the refugees were the Zhusk plateau or the Guranin highlands. While 
the land of the Zhusk was closer, the housing and supplies available there could never have supported 
five thousand sick and malnourished people. The highlands, by way of contrast, had actual cities. The 
various clans had their own towns and villages and had already begun to compete with their rivals in 
shows of generosity concerning the refugees.

 Guraskya lay a hundred miles from Svoin by conventional routes. Adrogans troops could have made 
the journey in a week, or even half that, if hed wanted to push them hard. The refugees, on the other 
hand, were hard put to go five miles in a day. Sometimes the last of them had not even started to move 
before the head of the column stopped and began to make camp.

 And the bodies of the dead marked the roads all along the route.

 The Aurolani forces made no serious attempt to harass the refugees. Caro led the Alcidese cavalry 
and deployed them as a screening force. Theyd caught and killed small knots of Aurolani scouts, as well 
as rounded up and moved into the refugee train crofters scattered through the Svoin basin. The soldiery 
carted off all the grain and livestock they could find, then burned the farms to deny them to the Aurolani.

 Beal mot Tsuvo regained some of her composure. We have made it to the most critical point in our 
journey. Once we put the Gurakovo between us and the Aurolani, their ability to strike at us is gone. 
Already the people of the highlands are preparing to help these people.

 I think youre right, Beal, and I hope you are right even more. Markus Adrogans sighed heavily. It 
will be a long winter. Assuming we survive it, well have to make the best of every free moment. Well be 
planning what well sow when comes the spring.

 What well sowBeal smiled and what well harvest.

 Indeed. Adrogans nodded solemnly. And perhaps even figure out how well be able to bring it all 
to market in Svarskya.

 The sullanciri Ferxigo shifted her form so she had knees to bend in obeisance to her Mistress. She 
lowered her gaze as Chytrine moved along the narrow corridor. Gibberers shrank back against the walls 
as if the touch of a stray strand of Chytrines hair would be a whiplash. Their eyes darted to the glowing, 


silver-white form of Myrallmara drifting in Chytrines wake, knowing well she would kill them at her 
Mistress whim, then find any number of ways to employ their remains.

silver-white form of Myrallmara drifting in Chytrines wake, knowing well she would kill them at her 
Mistress whim, then find any number of ways to employ their remains.

 The Aurolani Empress walked to the throne and reached a hand out to grasp the mans chin. She 
turned his face to the right, then the left. She released it, letting his head loll onto a shoulder, then turned 
toward Ferxigo. This was Dothan Cavarre?

 This is what is believed, Mistress.

 He is dead, but not a mark on him. How did he die? Chytrine held her right index finger up and it 
quickly lengthened into a slender hornlike needle. Did you pierce his vitals and Ive missed the sign?

 No, Mistress. Ferxigo pressed her hand to the ground, wishing she could melt her feathered form 
into it. Your desire was for him to be taken alive. He is as he was found.

 Chytrine slowly nodded. The dragons thrashing tail had scattered the Crown Towers DragonCrown 
fragments. Her soldiers and Dark Lancers had labored hard to recover them. Upon examination she 
determined they were counterfeits. The magick on them, which had caused the dragon to believe they 
were in the Crown Tower, had been a sophisticated spell of great strength, but could only function over a 
relatively short distance. The fakes were linked to the originals by this magick, drawing their magickal 
identity from the originals, so her hunters were able to employ the counterfeits and use that link to locate 
the originals. After days of searching, this was the first they had recovered.

 That they still remained in Fortress Draconis did not surprise Chytrine. Just as the Draconis Baron 
would not entrust dragonel technology to anyone in the south, she had known he would not disperse the 
crown fragments. Cavarre had seen his duty to protect them as being sacred and his very presence here, 
protecting one with his life, clearly indicated his depth of commitment to his duty.

 Extending her arm, reshaping it to add several feet to its length, she plucked the DragonCrown 
fragment from its perch. The stones warmth was as expected, for the fragment she wore between her 
breasts felt similar. She looked at the setting, at the tabs and notches, the Aurolani script incised into it, 
and knew the two pieces she had would not fit together. One of the two others hidden in Fortress 
Draconis would bridge the gap between these two stones, and she could forge links to bring the fourth 
into concert with them.

 That would be for the future, however. For the moment she stroked the yellow stones surface and 
focused on it. She projected her mind into it and there, deep in its depths, she sensed a distant presence. 
It was ancient- and unknowable, and a bit surprised at the intrusion. Anger began to gather, so she pulled 
back and her awareness returned to the room.

 Chytrine pointed at Cavarres body. You will take it to what is left of the tower and have it bound to 
the forehead of the dragon skull there. It will remain until the birds have picked it apart and the bleached 
bones fall to ruin along with the rest of this place.

 Ferxigo glanced up as her Mistress spoke, then bowed her head once. It shall be as you desire.

 Very good. Chytrine glanced at the Vorquelf sullan-ciri. And you, my pet, will arrange for guards 
to haunt the tower. Cavarres people will emerge from their warrens to rescue him. You will make them 
pay dearly for their defiance. They do not realize that they stand naked before the might of a fierce north 
wind. You will teach them why this is folly. They will learn this lesson well, and then so shall their brethren 
to the south.

 Erlestoke cupped his hand around the end of the slow-match and blew on it until the ember glowed 
golden red. Across the street, barely visible against a pile of rubble, a meckansh pointed south twice. 
The Oriosan repeated the gesture twice, counted to two, then stood, shouldered his draconette, and 
fired.

 A puff of smoke obscured his first target, but a gib-berers guttural scream told him hed hit. Bringing 
his right hand off the trigger, he cranked the lever from alongside the foregrip up and back to the stock, 
then returned it forward. The lever pushed other levers and turned gears that rotated and locked into 


position the next of the dra-conettes four barrels, as well as cocked back the match hammer. He 
brought a powder horn up from his right hip, primed the weapon again, sighted, and fired.

position the next of the dra-conettes four barrels, as well as cocked back the match hammer. He 
brought a powder horn up from his right hip, primed the weapon again, sighted, and fired.

 Erlestoke worked the lever again, primed, and shot, getting off his third shot inside a minute. This one 
spun a gibberer around and set his longknife clattering off a wall before he hit the street. The meckansh 
missed with her third shot, but only by dint of a gibberer tripping in his haste and going down.

 Other warriorsmeckansh and iull-fleshed men, elves, and one urZrethiemerged from the 
shadowed ruins behind and beside the remaining gibberers. The Aurolani troops realized, belatedly, that 
theyd been lured into a trap. Their process of enlightenment ended prematurely and painfully. The 
ambushers dragged the dead bodies from the streetdispatching those who were not yet dead before 
making their bodies disappear.

 Erlestoke and the meckansh watched the street, then retreated down into the warrens below 
Fortress Draconis. Hidden stone doors slid into walls, permitting them passage, then sealed the way 
behind them. Theyd found ample evidence that Aurolani searchers had trailed after them in the past, but 
their secret paths remained undiscovered.

 The prince patted Colonel Jancis Ironside on the shoulder. You shot well.

 As did you, Highness. The Murosan smiled beneath her mask. Keep shooting that well and we will 
be even, soon.

 He laughed and followed her down a set of spiral stairs that opened into a long, narrow room. In it 
their squad had gatheredtwelve veterans from throughout the world, united in contesting Chytrines 
ownership of Fortress Draconis.

 In this mission they had fared well, and they knew there were other groups, some larger, some smaller, 
who were doing likewise. The Aurolani troops had succeeded in breaching the main gate and occupying 
the eastern quarter of the city. Theyd also taken the Crown Tower. The southwest quarter had been 
fighting hard and the entire northern arc had resisted Aurolani penetration. The Aurolani had brought 
dragonels into the Maze and used them to blast buildings apart to root out opposition, but the troopers 
made them pay dearly for every block they cleared.

 Erlestoke remembered nothing of the two days following the point when the thunderball exploded in 
front of him, but Castleton, the only survivor of his fireteam, had filled in the gaps. The prince had been 
severely wounded, but Jilandessa, a Harquelf healer who had been at Fortress Draconis for decades, 
had repaired the damage. By the time he was ready to resume fighting, however, organized resistance 
had broken down. Soldiers fled to the sewers and into a network of warrens few admitted having known 
existed.

 The prince handed his draconette to an old meckansh who functioned as the groups armorer. 
Perfect match of load to shot. The aim remained true at all ranges.

 The old man smiled, revealing a mouth only half full of teeth. And you saved one shot?

 Erlestoke nodded. They had a limited number of the quadnels. The shooters encrusted with them only 
used three shots, saving one for emergencies as they pulled back. Its the one ready to fire now, so 
draw it carefully.

 Sure, Highness, and next youll be telling your grandmother how to suck eggs. The man pinched the 
slow-match out with a mechanical hand. Glad to have you back.

 Good to be back. The Oriosan turned away from him and crossed to the table in the center of trie 
room. Two of the people who had done the close work had taken a pouch from one of the dead 
gibberers and were unfolding a map theyd found in it. Crudely drawn, it showed the fortress, with a 
heavy charcoal line around what, apparently, the enemy felt were fairly secure areas.

 The Loquelf, one of the Steelfeathers, looked up as he tapped the map with a finger. They may think 
they own this area right here, but they dont move through it during daylight hours. Its ours if we want it.

 I know, but you know we dont want it. Erlestoke smiled. They can have it for as long as they want 
to pay the rent in blood. 


 I know, Highness, I just want us to raise the rent.

 I know, Highness, I just want us to raise the rent.

 Or, piped a youthful soldier from Savarre, until the armies of the south come up and smash her.

 Erlestoke gave the youth a quick nod. Or until then, yes. That wont be until the spring, however. 
Well see, by then, just how much sanity Chytrine has left.

 All the aches and pains, all the fatigue Kerrigan had been feeling, vanished as the road south 
straightened and the border posts marking the line between Muroso and Oriosa came into view. Their 
journey was finally at an end, and theyd actually survived.

 After the grand battle theyd faced some harassment by the remnants of the force Chytrine had sent 
after them. Alexia had managed to organize their troops so that they punished the ambushers rather 
severely. Sebcian troops also came north and caught the Aurolani in a trap of their own, scattering them 
and shepherding the refugees into Sebcia.

 Once in Sebcia, Alexia, Ryhope, and their companions had been given fresh horses and passes that 
allowed them to speed south. Sallitt Hawkins led the way despite his mangled arm, and Ryhope had 
insisted some woman and her infant child be brought along as well, for reasons Kerrigan didnt 
understand. He likely could have discovered who she was, but hed kept himself apart from the others 
during the journey. Hed had lots of practice driving his mentors off by being pricklish and sulky.

 He felt a little bad for Will because the thief had accused him of freezing when the grand temeryx had 
come for him. Kerrigan had aptly pointed out that because the temeryx was a predator, and predators 
tended to go after things that acted like prey; by not moving, he was not presenting himself as prey to that 
creature. Will had refused to believe that explanation and had laughed, so Kerrigan feigned being hurt. 
Resolute berated Will for his behavior, so Will did his best to stay away from Kerrigan, and the others 
left him alone as well.

 The Adept touched his heels to his horse and urged it forward to where Alexia and Crow rode. He 
smiled at them as his horse pulled even. Were almost in Oriosa, yes?

 Alexia smiled. We are. Its good to finally see you in high spirits, Adept Reese. Were safe, and now 
we can rest.

 Oh, I know. Kerrigan glanced beyond her and at Crow. And your leg, it is still okay?

 The older man nodded. I appreciate the work youve done on me.

 The Adepts smile broadened. Crow had been in a bad way by the time they got him back to the 
camp. Kerrigan had worked on the broken leg, healing it up some, but lacked the strength to complete 
the job. He set the bones and started their repair, but couldnt finish it without drawing on Crows own 
strength. As with the Panqui Xleniki, Kerrigan feared that to do that would kill Crow.

 The next morning hed come to complete the repairs, and to even fix up some other stuff as hed done 
with Orla, but Crow stopped him. As long as I can sit a horse, thats all I need. Work on others who 
have been hurt.

 Kerrigan could tell, even looking at Crows leg now, that it was swollen and hurt him, but he respected 
the mans wishes. If you want or need any more help with your leg, when Im rested, Id be glad to be 
of service.

 Thank you. And thank you for riding up here to share that.

 Kerrigan said nothing until they rode past the stone pylon marking the border. That wasnt the reason 
I caught up with you. Princess, I have a message from Dothan Cavarre. He made me promise I wouldnt 
say anything unless it was an emergency or until we reached Oriosa.

 Her violet eyes glittered. Go on.

 The Adept reached into the wrinkled folds of his many shirts and produced a leather bag. In here I 
have a fragment of the DragonCrown. 


 What? Alyx gasped at the news. How did you? I dont understand how...

 What? Alyx gasped at the news. How did you? I dont understand how...

 The princess turned to look at her riding companion. You knew?

 The man shook his head solemnly. I knew the Draconis Baron thought it was vital that we head south. 
I did not know why, beyond his hoping to have his wife and the other Oriosans evacuated. This I will 
swear. Had I been told what we were really doing, I would have refused. I thought there was no way we 
could smuggle a portion of the DragonCrown out of Fortress Draconis without the dragon detecting it.

 The Adept let the gemstone slip back next to his skin. The Draconis Baron had long ago created 
three duplicates of the real fragments. He hid the true fragments away, but the magick on them linked 
them to the decoys, so the dragon thought all the parts were still in Fortress Draconis. The Draconis 
Baron had a long talk with meI guess Arristan had sent him a message about me courtesy of a 
Steelfeather. He had me make up a new duplicate, a better one, for one of the fragmentsthe ruby one. 
I strengthened the spells. If we had had more time I could have done more; but he said the Red was the 
most important of these.... If Chytrine gets her hands on my duplicate, shell know its not real.

 Alyx and Crow exchanged glances. They said nothing as Sallitt Hawkins spurred his horse forward to 
meet the cavalry company riding toward them. Ryhope and her children followed in the meckanshits 
wake, while the others let their horses drop to a walk.

 The princess blinked, then slowly smiled. Well, this is a victory of sorts, I guess. Weve cheated her 
of two crown fragments.

 Thats not the only thing. Kerrigans voice came a bit low and he shifted his shoulders uneasily. I 
did something else while I was there. I hope it will work.

 Crow watched him closely. What was that?

 The magick they used on Orla, it was bad, really bad. It pulled away magick strength and stored it up 
to trigger another spell. I put one of those in another fragment. If she notices it Im sure she can take it 
out and fix it. If she doesnt, though ...

 Crow ran a hand over his beard. What- will the magick do?

 I didnt have time to do much, so its a variation of an illusion, really subtle, almost nothing at all. The 
Adepts face hardened. It will make her certain that no matter how much she knows about what were 
doing, theres something else, something hidden, something she cant trust. Shell always be looking to be 
betrayed. Shell be haunted.

 Alexia reached out and rested her left hand on his right shoulder. You may not think that is much, but 
it could be everything. Youve done well, Adept Reese, very well.

 Ill do more, Highness.

 Im sure you will. She gave him a broad smile that made him flush.

 The princess attention turned away from him as the cavalry company came closer and spread from 
column into line. The line curved around them. She reined her horse to a halt and Kerrigan did likewise. 
Behind them a squad rode off with Ryhope and her children, leaving Sallitt Hawkins in the middle of the 
road, cradling his twisted arm against his stomach. With him remained a civilian, a young woman.

 Will rode up and pointed at her. I think thats Sephi.

 A civilian rider urged his horse forward. He wore a thick medallion on a chain around his neck. I am 
Call Mably, magistrate for the town of Tolsin. We welcome you to Oriosa. We have made provisions for 
your stay with us. We hope you will be comfortable.

 Princess Alexia nodded. I am Alexia of Okrannel and these people are ...

 Mably held a hand up. We know who they are, Highness. Your identities were sent by arcanslata 
from Fortress Draconis. We have been anticipating your arrival.

 The magistrate reined his horse over to block Crow. Youre known as Crow, Kedyns Crow?

 I am.

 Mably nodded. The Oriosan cavalrymen drew horse-bows from their saddle scabbards and nocked 
arrows. By order of Most High King Scrainwood, you are placed under arrest. You will be confined in 
Tolsin until proper authorities come to conduct you to Meredo. 


 Alexia dropped her hand to the hilt of her saber. I believe youre making a terrible mistake, 
Magistrate.

 Alexia dropped her hand to the hilt of her saber. I believe youre making a terrible mistake, 
Magistrate.

 Crow reached out with his left hand and grasped Alexias right. Dont do anything, none of you. This 
isnt worth your lives.

 Crow looked Kerrigan straight in the eye and added, When secrets come to light, they can become 
deadly. This one should have remained hidden and didnt, but the price is not yours to pay. Its mine.

 Crow lifted his chin. I give you my word that Ill do nothing to escape. Leave my friends alone.

 You think I would take your word for that? Mably beckoned two soldiers over who bracketed 
Crow, stripped him of his weapons, and tossed them on the ground. They bound his hands behind his 
back, then one took his reins and led him off.

 Kerrigan wanted to do something, but Alexia shook her head. The riders led Crow back through their 
line and on toward the town. Sallitt Hawkins turned his horse south and galloped off, leaving a trail of 
dust that swirled like fog over Crow.

 Sephi waited, smiled, then trotted off in Sallitt Hawkins wake.

 Alexia kicked her horse forward. I demand to know what is going on here. Nothing Crow has done 
could have warranted this sort of treatment.

 Mably looked at her, surprised, then laughed. You really dont know who he is, do you? Your Crow 
was tried in absentia for treason a quarter century ago. Your Crow is the Traitor. Hes Tarrant Hawkins 
and when he gets to Meredo theyll give him the death he so justly deserves.

 ABOUT THE AUTHO is an award-winning game and computer game designer, as well as a novelist. 
He is best known for his eight Star Wars novels.

 In his spare timeof which there is not much when undertaking massive tomes like Fortress 
Draconishe plays indoor soccer, rides a bike, reads a lot, travels, and serves as a Frisbee-flinger for 
Saint, a Cardigan Welsh corgi. He lives with Liz Danforth and Ruthless, Saints great-grandmother, in 
Arizona.

 His website is www.stormwolf.com.

 The saga of Will, Alyx, Kerrigan, and the others will continue in When Dragons Rage (I know, I 
know, write faster). 


