Bruce Blake

Heart of the King

Chapter One

“They’re coming.”

Therrador sat on the pile of dirty straw, elbows on his knees, head hung. He didn’t raise his head when he heard the words.

Enough days had passed for him to lose track of their number; the guards had woken him every time he appeared to doze, and brought only water enough to keep him alive, nothing more. No food, no change of clothes, no medicine. The filthy bandage wrapped around his hand reeked of infection and the stump of thumb hidden beneath ached with numb pain, though not so much as the untended wound in his thigh.

“They’re coming.”

A woman’s voice spoke the words, so he knew it to be either hallucination or the Archon toying with him. He had no interest in either.

“They still carry the essence of the king.”

The muscles in Therrador’s back and shoulders went rigid at the last words.

“Leave me be, witch. Haven’t you punished me enough?” His voice cracked in his parched throat and its tone of defeat surprised and embarrassed him.

The temperature in the cell dropped and the feeling of a presence beside him brought goose flesh to Therrador’s arms. He looked up into the burning green eyes of a young woman, her freckled cheeks framed by red curls, and thought she might be the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.

A trick.

“I am Elyea. I’m here to help you.”

“You’re not real,” Therrador croaked. “You’re another of the Archon’s tortures.”

“I’m not.”

She crouched in front of him and held her hand out to him. In the dim light cast by the torch in the passage outside the cell, and with his lack of strength and focus, it took a minute for Therrador to realize she held a cup.

Hallucinating like a dying man in the desert.

He stared at it but made no move to accept it. The woman didn’t move, either.

“Take it.”

Therrador considered for another moment before reaching out a weak and shaking hand. His fingers brushed the side of the clay mug, felt its solidity, its realness. Saliva rushed into his mouth at the thought the cup may contain relief from the thirst burning at the back of his throat, but he kept his eagerness carefully hidden. His fingers wrapped around the vessel’s cool surface and brought it close to his face; he peered over the lip at the liquid inside.

It looked like water.

He leaned closer to it and sniffed deeply.

No odor.

The edge of the cup touched his mouth and a splash of water lapped against his lips. Cool, tasteless. He slurped a little onto his tongue, the promise it held making his parched throat howl for more and, before he could stop himself, Therrador quaffed the water as fast as his mouth would take it. Water spilled over his chin, ran down his neck into his shirt. The cup’s supply never seemed to end allowing him to drink and drink and drink.

He drank until his belly hurt.

Energy flowed back into the king’s limbs. He pulled his mouth away from the rim of the cup and tilted his head back, drawing a satisfied breath in through his nose before gazing at the woman’s face. Her full lips tilted up at the corners in a gentle smile, her eyes shone. He didn’t know her, had never seen her before, but inexplicably felt he should trust her.

“Elyea, is it?” he whispered. “Who is coming?”

“You’ll know him when he comes, but he’ll need your help.”

Therrador scratched his stubbled cheek, felt the heat of fever burning in his head, and wondered if this woman and her words could be real. He turned the clay cup between his fingers; it felt real enough.

If the man bearing the king’s blood was coming, and he aided him, perhaps the Archon might be defeated. But this knowledge of her enemy’s inevitable arrival might also be the bargaining chip he needed to get his son back. He looked toward the cell door and saw the shadow of his undead guard beyond, so leaned toward the woman. She smelled of roses.

“When will he come?”

“Soon, and there will be a battle. That is where your help will be needed. Not even the king’s spirit can defeat the army of Kanos without help.”

Therrador nodded and stroked the long beard trailing from his chin, the braid which normally held it in place abandoned soon after he landed in the dungeon cell.

“I’ll need out of here.”

“I can’t help with that, it’s up to you. But I can help with this.”

The tips of her fingers brushed his wounded thigh. Pain flared along Therrador’s leg as if she’d touched him with a lit torch, and he sucked a breath between his clenched teeth, biting down against the agonized cry in his throat. The wound throbbed and burned, his body tensed. She pressed her palm flat against it and, a minute later, the pain settled to a tingling sensation, then finally disappeared.

The woman removed her hand and Therrador replaced her touch with his own. The flesh felt tender and sore, but the wound was gone. He raised his right hand wrapped in the stinking bandage, hoping she would do the same for the wound beneath the gray cloth. She looked at it and shook her head, then stood, and Therrador saw her form was translucent.

“You have some time, but not much.”

The imprisoned king stared as she seemed to float across the cell toward the door, feet hidden beneath her long white gown. She didn’t pause when she reached the bars, but passed through and faded from sight like a morning mist burned away by midday sun.

A ghost?

Therrador touched the back of his hand to his forehead and found his fever had broken, disappeared along with the wound to his leg. Perhaps sickness and hallucination weren’t to blame. The king had never believed in apparitions, but neither did he believe in men brought back from the dead until they laid siege to the fortress. It had been a season of oddities: the king’s blood, undead soldiers, and now a spirit come to his aid.

Is this an opportunity to save my son, or is my mind finally snapping in two?

If the ghost’s words were true, he had little time to decide which was the case and how to best use it to his advantage.

He rose from the filthy straw, joints creaking with disuse, and brushed dirt from the seat of his breeches before taking an unsteady step toward the cell door. When his previously injured leg didn’t falter beneath him, he strode across the floor, energized by the ghostly woman’s water. He reached the bars and wrapped the fingers of his good hand around the cold steel, pulled his face close. A short way down the hall, his undead guard stood motionless, staring at the blank wall ahead, as always.

It didn’t see the woman.

“Guard,” he called, his voice strong and filled with the authority bred of years commanding men. “I need to see the Archon. Now.”

***

“This ghost woman will alert you to the king-carrier’s arrival?”

The Archon watched Therrador’s expression closely for any hint he told her untruths. She knew at least elements of his story were truthful: her assassin, Shariel, had failed to kill the bearer, and the traitor-king’s description too closely matched that of the woman Elyea to have been fabricated.

Damn your meddling, Darestat.

“That’s what she said. He hasn’t arrived yet, but he’ll be here soon.”

Therrador shifted on the uncomfortable wooden chair and the Archon suppressed a grin because she knew her translucent gown caused his discomfort, not the furniture. When the king had demanded an audience, she’d chosen her clothing purposely, knowing her body was as useful a tool as her magic. More than once during their conversation, Therrador’s gaze strayed to the curve of her hip and to her dark nipples showing through the pink gown, despite his efforts to hold her eyes.

She rose from the purple velvet divan and his eyes dropped from her face once again to a spot below her waist before he shook his head and returned his gaze to hers. This time she smiled.

“And in exchange for your freedom, you will advise me when she contacts you.”

He nodded, this time finding success at keeping his eyes on hers.

“How do I know you will be true to your word?”

“You have my son.”

She stopped a few feet from where he sat, her breasts at the same level as his eyes. Rather than battle temptation, he stood.

“Indeed. Why are you not asking for his release in exchange for this information?”

“Because I know you wouldn’t grant it.”

“True.”

She took a step toward him, grasped his bound hands in hers. Black dirt and dried brown blood discolored the bandage on his right hand; the smell of infection wafted from it.

“We will have to take care of this or you will not be with us long enough to betray your friend a second time.”

She saw the muscles in Therrador’s jaw flex at her words and her smile widened.

“Yes. Perhaps you’d consider returning my thumb.”

“I will consider it, but let us see what the maggots can do for you first.” She snapped her fingers and a guard appeared in the doorway. “Fetch the surgeon. Tell him to bring his maggots to clean King Therrador’s wound.”

The soldier bowed at the waist and disappeared out the door. When he was gone, she faced Therrador again. His eyes were still fixed on hers, his jaw set, and she felt anger build in her gut at his resistance of her.

So be it.

She turned abruptly and strode away, the gown flowing around her.

“So tell me, Therrador,” she said, her voice gone icy. “When will you be asking me to return your son?”

He didn’t answer at first and she looked back over her shoulder to see if he’d succumbed to the translucence of the gown, the curve of her buttocks. He hadn’t. Instead, he stared out the window at the courtyard beyond. She seethed at the slight but kept her anger buried within-it would serve her well on another occasion.

“I’ll ask for his return,” Therrador said, his voice quiet, his tone controlled, “when I’ve killed the bearer for you.”

Chapter Two

Khirro splashed water on his face and cleansed the wounds left on his arm and leg by the jaws of the feral dogs. The cold water stung, but the bites weren’t deep, certainly not as bad as they might have been. The moment of the dogs’ attack had been the ideal time to work out how to control the fire contained within him.

Or did I?

He looked at the backs of his hands, at the water dripping from the tips of his fingers, before turning them over to trace the lines of his palms with his gaze. His eyes narrowed in concentration and he imagined flames engulfing his open hands. He thought of heat. He pictured fire burning and flickering.

Nothing happened.

How did I do it?

He thought of the times the flames had come and realized it only happened when danger threatened, and inconsistently then. Crouching by the edge of the stream with morning air drying the water on his skin, he felt no threat, no danger. Khirro sighed, put his hands on his knees and stood. The scabbard of the Mourning Sword banged against his leg and he put his hand on the hilt to steady it. Over the past months, there were times he’d been happy for taking the Shaman’s weapon but, at other times, it still felt awkward dangling at his side.

No matter how much time passes, no matter how many killings happen, I will never truly be a soldier.

He wiped his hands on his breeches and headed back through the brush to the lean-to he and Athryn built the night before to keep curious animals away and morning dew off themselves. As he walked, he thought of Shyn and, grudgingly, Ghaul. They were soldiers, real warriors, battle hardened and ready for a fight. Although Ghaul had turned out a traitor, the man knew the ways of steel. He’d have been a useful ally at a time like this. Too bad they were both gone, their bodies left rotting in the Necromancer’s underground hideaway.

Khirro shook his head at the thought and stepped over a fallen branch. His footstep crunched among drying leaves, the sound stirring him from his thoughts, and he halted straddling the limb. He listened. Had he heard another sound disguised by his own footstep?

A real soldier wouldn’t have made such a sound.

He pushed the admonition out of his mind and waited to see if the sound repeated or if he’d imagined it. Thirty seconds passed before he heard it again: the murmur of a man’s whispered voice.

Khirro’s hand returned to the hilt of the Mourning Sword, this time with neither thought of appreciation nor distaste. He loosened the blade in its scabbard and stepped the rest of the way over the limb, choosing his footing carefully among the scatter of leaves.

A second whispered voice added itself to the first. Khirro pulled his weapon free and increased his pace.

Athryn might be in danger.

If something happened to the magician, he didn’t know how he would complete the task given him when the Shaman died. Truthfully, without Athryn to prod him on, he wasn’t sure he’d bother continuing.

Khirro stopped at the edge of the clearing where they’d constructed the lean-to and peered through the wilted autumn foliage.

Athryn sat on the ground in front of the shelter, legs crossed and arms resting on his thighs, his face up-turned and eyes closed. Khirro scanned the area, straining to see through the brush, but saw no one else. He paused, breath held, as Athryn’s lips moved with a whispered rush of words Khirro didn’t understand. When he finished speaking, another voice answered.

Khirro shook his head, confused. His gaze flickered around the clearing until he saw a disturbance in the air a couple of yards from the magician, a shimmering he'd missed when he first looked.

Khirro squinted, trying to make out a shape, a form, but he saw no more substance to it than to that of a misty sigh breathed on winter’s chill. He stepped into the clearing, sword clenched in his tightened fist, though he didn’t know what good the weapon would do against vapor.

“Athryn?”

The magician jumped, startled by Khirro’s voice, and the disturbance in the air evaporated. Athryn looked at his companion, then back at the spot where the shimmering had been; his expression sagged with disappointment.

“Are you all right?”

The magician nodded and looked at the ground in front of him. Khirro stepped into the clearing, lowering his sword but not yet ready to put it away.

“What was that?”

Athryn looked up, met Khirro’s gaze. “Darestat.”

For a moment, Khirro thought he must have misheard. He’d seen Ghaul’s arrow pierce the Necromancer’s throat, watched the man turn to mist. Surely Athryn must have said something else and Khirro’s brain twisted it.

“The Necromancer?”

“Yes.”

“But how?”

Athryn had recovered from his disappointment and pushed himself up to stand. He brushed dirt and twigs off his breeches and straightened his tunic before answering.

“A magician as powerful as the Necromancer can never truly die, not unless he wishes it.”

“And he doesn’t wish it?”

Athryn shook his head. “Not yet. There is much for him to teach me.”

Khirro stared at his companion, watching him collect his gear. He moved as easily and gracefully as always, as though his words were no more unusual than if he’d wished his friend a good morning. With everything packed, Athryn pulled the silvered mask over his face.

“Teach you?”

The magician faced him and Khirro saw his face reflected in the mirrored mask. He hated the way its curved surface distorted his features when he looked at his friend, the way it lengthened and changed his face, transforming him into a silvered monster. After some of the things he’d done over the past months, he already felt enough like a monster, he didn’t want to look like one, too.

“A magician seeks knowledge wherever he can find it.”

“Even from a dead wizard?”

Athryn shrugged.

“Do you have to wear that mask?”

“Does it bother you?”

Khirro shifted from one foot to the other and, realizing he still held the Mourning Sword unnecessarily, he slid the weapon back into its scabbard. What did it say about him that he had found the ability to forget he held a sword in his hand?

“A little. Why do you still wear it?”

“Anonymity is a provocative habit.”

Khirro strode across the small clearing to where his backpack lay already packed and slung it over his shoulder.

“Who do you have to be anonymous from?”

“One never knows. We are in Kanos now.” Athryn took the mask off and stowed it under his cloak. “Better?”

“Yes. Thanks.”

“Then we should be off.”

The magician grabbed a handful of boughs from their lean-to and distributed them around the area, tossing them on the ground and into the brush. Khirro helped, the two of them doing their best to hide evidence of their presence. When they finished, he surveyed the clearing; the lean-to was gone, but anyone with half an eye would see the beaten-down grass, the broken-off limbs. Even Khirro could tell they’d been there, but it would have to do.

He harbored no suspicion anyone followed them. The residents of Poltghasa likely wouldn’t bother with them, were probably happy to be rid of them after seeing the flaming tyger. The lack of pursuers was small consolation, however, considering they made their way through Kanos, the very country at war with Erechania.

Khirro swallowed hard and followed the magician out of the clearing. The day was cool and sunny, a good day for traveling. As they left the camp, Khirro peered back over his shoulder again. For a second, he thought he saw a shimmering in the air, a distortion as if something was at the edge of his vision but disappeared upon his notice. He blinked and checked again but saw nothing unusual.

“Magic,” he muttered and made his way into the brush and deeper into enemy territory.

Chapter Three

Lehgan stared at Emeline sitting in the rocker. Her body ached to fidget under his gaze, but she didn’t let it; she didn’t even rock the chair to calm Iana wriggling in her arms.

“I don’t understand,” he said finally. “Winter is nearly upon us. This doesn’t make any sense.”

“I know it’s hard to understand, but we must do this.”

“Ridiculous.” He stood suddenly, his voice rising with the movement, and Emeline cowered against the back of the chair. Lehgan had never struck her, but she knew his temper could be fierce. “You want to risk our lives because of something you were told by a….a ghost?”

“She… it… I know it’s hard to understand but-”

“Hard to understand? Do you jest? You say a ghost visited our home, begged for your help. It’s not hard to understand, it’s unbelievable.”

“Lehgan, we have to-”

“We have to nothing,” he barked and clapped his hands together making Iana jump in Emeline’s arms. “We are staying here.”

Emeline rose from the rocking chair, her face set in a firm expression, her teeth clenched. She stared directly into her husband’s eyes without wavering.

“I am going to the Isthmus Fortress. My daughter is coming with me. Will you come and protect your family or stay here to keep the chickens fed and an empty house warm?”

Anger smoldered in his eyes and the muscles in his jaw flexed and released, flexed and released as he debated the issue with himself, but he must have recognized her determination because he kept his displeasure from passing his lips and perhaps saying words he’d later regret. A surge of love tingled her limbs but her expression remained firm.

“If you must go, I’ll go with you,” he said between clenched teeth. “But I don’t like it.”

Emeline crossed the floor to her husband, gazed up into his eyes and allowed her expression to show some of the appreciation and love she felt. It was a ridiculous request, it didn’t make any sense. She hardly believed she’d found the nerve to ask it of him, but as ridiculous as it seemed, she knew they had to go. She laid her free hand on his chest as she bounced their baby in the other arm.

“He’s your brother. He needs our help.”

“Hmph.”

Khirro and Lehgan had never been close, so perhaps it wasn’t the best way to convince him.

“We owe him, Lehgan, after what we did.”

“We did what we had to.”

“Yes, we did. But at his expense.”

He turned away and her hand fell back to her side. Lehgan went to the mantle, gazed into the fire. Even looking at his back, she saw the struggle going on inside him at her request.

“I don’t do this for him,” he said after a pause. “I do it for you.”

She wanted to go to him again, to show her gratitude with her touch, but stopped herself, knowing he would pull away. In a while he would return to himself, once his begrudging nature subsided. She would settle for words for the moment.

“Thank you, Lehgan. You are a good husband.”

He continued staring into the flames.

***

Iana looked up at her mother, the sling holding her against Emeline’s bosom covering all but her eyes and nose. Carrying the baby against her chest would help keep both of them warm during their ride to the fortress. Lehgan said it would take fourteen days’ ride, perhaps more, and they had spent a day and a half readying food and other necessary supplies, making arrangements on the farm. He led the way on the big bay he used for hunting, the pack mule tethered to his saddle; Emeline rode a few paces behind on the palomino she favored.

Bouncing gently in the saddle with Iana nestled against her, she looked back at their home. A curl of smoke snaked out of the chimney and her mother stood in the doorway watching them leave, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Against her better judgment and contrary to her husband’s wishes, Emeline’s mother had reluctantly agreed to tend the house in their absence, although her daughter failed to give a reason good enough to explain their leaving. Emeline raised a hand and waved good-bye. Her mother returned the gesture without smiling and disappeared into the house, shutting the door behind her before ten paces of earth passed beneath the horses’ hooves.

Emeline settled into the saddle for the long ride ahead while Iana cooed and blew bubbles, soothed by the gait of the horse. Emeline looked down at her and smiled, but the baby made her think of Khirro and the reason behind their trek to the Isthmus Fortress and her smile faded. All these past months, she’d given little thought to Khirro and what had come to pass. Justifying what they’d done had become easier once the conscriptors took him, and easier for her to argue to herself the importance of a child having both her parents, but what would she say when they stood face-to-face? Their actions resulted in Khirro being sent off to war and, according to the ghostly woman, much more. How could she explain that away and make things right?

The mare she rode snorted and shook its head. Emeline looked up from her thoughts at her husband’s back. She didn’t need to wonder how he felt about the whole affair; he and Khirro had never gotten along. In fact, she sometimes found herself wondering if Lehgan might have orchestrated everything-their relationship, Iana, Khirro’s banishment-simply to get his brother out of his life.

No, he’s not like that.

Lehgan had barely said a word since agreeing to her request, choosing instead to answer her enquiries with grunts and gestures. She understood why he acted this way, understood his reticence at undertaking a trip he didn’t understand, but hoped he’d come out of it soon. She needed him. The idea of facing this alone, admitting the truth she’d tried so hard to avoid, felt overwhelming. She role-played scenarios in her head, envisioning what Khirro’s face would look like when she told him what he may already suspect. She imagined how it would make him feel, how it would make her feel. She didn’t want to hurt him, had never really wanted to.

Emeline shook her head and glanced away from her husband and toward the line of stubby trees bordering their farmland. Beyond it, about four hours ride, lay the town. An hour more and she’d be the farthest away from home she’d ever been. The thought brought a shiver to her spine and the movement made Iana gurgle in her arms. She tried to smile at the baby and found she couldn’t.

If I really didn’t want to hurt Khirro, things would be very different now.

She sighed deeply and urged the mare forward to catch up to her husband.

Chapter Four

The trees gave way to scrub brush, the brush to rocky flatland and the flatland finally to farms. They kept off the single-lane dirt track cutting through the area, instead choosing to pick their way through the fields, though the going was slower.

They spoke little while they walked, which gave Khirro time to contemplate the farmland through which they passed, and it quickly became clear to him that something wasn’t right. While some of the fields were cleared and ready for winter, the crops had withered without being harvested in others. Brown leaves and cracked corn stocks carpeted one field while rotted squash and overgrown potato plants turned another into a tangled maze. They didn’t speak of this anomaly; so far, they’d come in contact with no one to question their presence, so remaining quiet seemed their best option to keep it that way.

They hadn’t seen anyone at all until they came to the field of spoiled tomatoes.

The leaves of the tomato plants were dry and brittle, first parched by the sun, then burnt by the cold. A few shrunken tomatoes still clung to the dead vines, but most had fallen to the weed-covered ground. Athryn walked two paces ahead of Khirro, picking his way through the split and desiccated fruit, when he stopped short. Khirro halted beside him and moved his face close to the magician’s ear.

“What is it?” he whispered.

Athryn raised his hand and pointed to a spot ahead of them. Khirro looked but saw nothing unusual at first, just the same twist of dead tomato vines, the same untended soil. He squinted, held his hand to his brow to block sun that wasn’t actually shining in his eyes, and still couldn’t see what caught the magician’s attention. He silently debated whether to ask Athryn what it was and break the silence or trust the magician’s eyes when he spied a swatch of color amongst the brown plants, a dull green that blended into its surroundings.

Khirro stepped forward, felt a hard shape under his foot, and looked down to see he’d trod upon one of the rotten tomatoes. It flexed under his weight, then burst, spilling only dried seeds onto the moist field. He looked at it for a minute and shivered. What happened here to keep the farmer from tending his fields? What man of the earth could bear to allow a crop to spoil so?

He looked away from the dead fruit and took another step. As he got closer, he saw that the patch of green was larger than he first thought. Another step and he recognized it as an abandoned coat. Whoever left it did so before the tomato plants withered-the coat didn’t sit atop the dead vines, they very nearly covered it.

“It’s okay,” he said and strode forward. He hadn’t noticed the magician moving, but he’d come to his side.

“Be careful, Khirro.”

“It’s nothing, just a tunic. It’s-”

Khirro stopped mid-step. Beneath the dull green coat, he saw cloth of another color, a rough-spun brown fabric lost in the tangle of tomato plants until they got closer: breeches to go with the coat.

“Athryn-”

“I see.”

They strode the last five paces together to look down at the corpse. The flesh of the man’s face resembled the dried skin of the tomatoes still clinging to the vine wound around his arm. The bone of his cheek showed through the ashen skin pulled tight across it, his lips were shrunken back from yellowed teeth as empty eye sockets stared skyward, their contents stolen by hungry deathbirds. The body made Khirro think of the scarecrows his father used on their farm to keep the crows from stealing the harvest, though this one had failed miserably at its job.

Athryn knelt beside the dead man, examining him without touching. Khirro stood beside his companion, staring down at the body and suppressing a shudder; he’d seen dead men wielding weapons and so didn’t trust corpses to stay dead.

“Be careful, Athryn.”

Khirro leaned forward, inspecting the corpse over the magician’s shoulder, and noticed a hole the size of the palm of his hand in the dead man’s chest. He presumed the wound to be the cause of the man’s death, but it was an unusual wound, not caused by sword or axe or spear.

What could make a hole that size?

Athryn closed his eyes and held his flattened hand over the dead man’s head, a quiet hum coming from the back of the magician’s throat; Khirro at first mistook it for the buzz of an insect. He didn’t know what his companion attempted; he’d long before given up trying to divine the machinations of a magician, so he skirted the corpse’s feet and crouched at the other side of the body, across from Athryn.

Other than the hole in his chest, everything seemed normal about the man. Average height and build; brown hair, stringy from exposure to the elements; his fingernails grown too long after death. Nor did anything look unnatural about his position-he lay upon the ground as though he’d stopped for a nap while picking tomatoes and his flesh dried onto his bones before he woke. The similarities between the undead soldiers and this inanimate corpse were few, but enough to unnerve Khirro.

The corpse’s chest moved.

Khirro stared at the hole, his breath held for fear the corpse might steal it. When it didn’t move again for a few seconds, he glanced up at Athryn, but his companion showed no sign of having seen the movement.

My imagination.

He released his breath slowly, allowing it to hiss between his teeth.

Stay calm. It’s a corpse, nothing more.

The man’s chest moved again, but it didn’t rise and fall as though the corpse drew breath, instead it gyrated, like a wave cresting beneath the brittle skin. Khirro remembered the way the glowing worms had looked crawling beneath Callan’s flesh and his eyes widened; he opened his mouth to tell Athryn.

“Screee.”

The rat burst out of the hole in the man’s chest, teeth bared as it voiced its displeasure at their presence. Startled, Khirro fell back and felt another dehydrated tomato explode under his back side. The rat, halfway emerged from the man’s chest, screeched at him again. Khirro scuttled away, heart pounding against his ribs, and backed into his companion's legs-he hadn’t even seen the magician move. Athryn offered his hand, a smile on his lips. Khirro looked at him, then back at the rat.

“Gods, that thing scared me.”

“I see that,” Athryn said with a chuckle.

Had it been anyone else laughing at his expense, or had this occurred a few months before, Khirro would have felt embarrassed and uncomfortable, but the happenings since that day on the walls of the Isthmus Fortress had changed him. If a rat startled him, so be it-he’d killed men and ferocious beasts, so he saw no reason to prove himself to vermin, and he knew Athryn meant nothing by his laughter.

Khirro accepted his companion’s hand and allowed him to help him up. They stood side-by-side watching the rat when a second, smaller one appeared in the hole, then a third.

“A mother protecting her babies,” Athryn said.

“Hmm. Nice place to live.”

Khirro brushed the back of his breeches, sending seeds to the ground where next year they would sprout and produce more tomatoes to go to waste. He breathed deep, held the air in his lungs for a second, then released it, thankful for the rat surprising him rather than the corpse reanimating to threaten him. He looked at Athryn.

“What were you doing?”

“Ascertaining the man’s cause of death.”

Khirro chuckled. “Did you not see the hole in his chest?”

“Yes, but it came after his death, put there by your friend, Mother Rat.”

“Then what?”

“Pestilence.”

“You mean disease?”

“Worse. Magic caused this. Evil magic.”

“Someone cast a spell on this man?”

Athryn shook his head. “If only that were so. It is worse. Much worse.”

“What do you mean?”

Athryn strode away without answering. Khirro looked at the rat and its babies, at the man’s parched skin and empty eye sockets, then followed his companion, curious to find out what he thought happened. They covered fifteen paces before Athryn stopped again, lifted his hand and pointed. Another corpse.

They crunched across the dried vines and found the body of what they thought a teenage boy, though it was impossible to tell his actual age with the way his skin shrunken against his bones gave him the look of an old man. Khirro looked at this body, then back over his shoulder at the other they’d left, aware of the obvious similarity between them.

The same thing had killed them both.

“There will be more,” Athryn said looking down at the face of the dead boy.

“How do you know? What caused it?”

The magician faced Khirro, the set of his jaw grim, his blue eyes serious. “You spoke of undead soldiers.”

“Yes.”

“A price must be paid for the use of this kind of magic.” He gestured toward the corpse. “Only the true Necromancer can perform such feats.”

“But Darestat is dead.”

Athryn shook his head. “There is much you do not understand about magic, Khirro. Darestat is gone from our world, but did you not see him with me?”

Khirro remembered the disturbance in the air he’d seen shimmering in front of Athryn, thought of the way his friend had spoken to it and it answered, but he’d dismissed it as an illusion despite what Athryn had said. Khirro saw Ghaul kill the Necromancer, saw the old man become mist and disappear.

“I don’t know exactly what I saw.”

“Then you will have to take my word on faith. Darestat lives. Perhaps not in the form of life you understand, but he does. And there can be only one Necromancer. When another seeks to usurp his power, balance is lost. There are consequences.”

He gestured toward the withered corpse at their feet. One of the boy’s arms and his legs were curled tight to his body, the tendons beneath the dried flesh shrunken and tight. His other arm stuck up in the air, extended toward the Heavens, as though he reached out to touch the fields of the dead.

“How many more will there be?”

Athryn shook his head. “I do not know. The usurper must have expended much power. Many, to be sure.”

Khirro’s thoughts flashed to Emeline, the baby, his parents and brother.

Did this happen to them, too?

“Hey.”

The word came from a distance, floating across the dried-out autumn field. Athryn grabbed Khirro’s arm firmly enough it hurt and it took him a second to realize the word they’d heard was spoken in a different language.

He looked up and saw the horsemen, close enough to make out the armor on their bodies and the swords hanging at their belts.

“Gods,” he cursed.

True warriors aren’t caught off-guard. Shyn wouldn’t have been. Nor Ghaul.

The thought of the traitorous Ghaul set his teeth on edge, but Athryn’s grip wrenching him away from the corpse pushed it out of his mind.

“We must go.”

Athryn released his hold and broke into a run; Khirro followed close behind. Their feet beat the dried tomato plants, crushed brittle vines and rotted fruit beneath their boots. Khirro scanned the field ahead as they ran and saw nowhere to hide, no place to slip away or make a stand. The sound of hooves pounding earth soon overtook the crackle and crunch rhythm of his own feet beating the ground.

We can’t get away.

“Athryn,” Khirro called between gasps of breath. “There’s nowhere to go.”

The magician, more fleet of foot and graceful than Khirro, was several yards ahead. Khirro dared a look over his shoulder and saw the horsemen gaining, weapons drawn and ready.

They’ll ride us down and slaughter us like animals.

Khirro skidded to a halt, unsheathed the Mourning Sword, and faced his pursuers. The red runes on the black blade glowed, the sword already sensing blood in the air. With both hands gripping the hilt, he held the weapon up defensively, awaiting the arrival of the horsemen. He didn’t know if Athryn heard him, if his companion also stopped or kept going, but either way, he refused to die running away with a sword in his back. He may not be a great warrior, but he deserved a better fate than dying like a coward.

Six men on horseback approached, each wearing leather armor, helmets, and the colors of Kanos upon their chests. The first reined his horse to a stop beyond the range of Khirro’s sword as the others arrayed themselves around him, encircling him.

“Who are you?” the first man asked.

Khirro understood the Kanosee tongue-it wasn’t so different from Erechanian-but didn’t answer, knowing his accent would give him away.

“What are you doing here?”

The man’s horse pranced and stomped its feet but Khirro held his ground, unflinching, the muscles in his arms contracted and ready to attack or defend. His eyes flickered from one man to the next, but didn’t stay long on any for fear one of the others may move on him.

“Speak or die, dog. What are you doing here?”

“Passing through,” Khirro said in his best Kanosee.

Where is Athryn?

All of the riders focused their attention on Khirro; none seemed to have noticed the magician. Nor did Khirro see Athryn anywhere as his gaze flickered from man to man. The lead man’s eyes narrowed.

“What did you say?”

Khirro stared back at him, jaw set.

“What did you say?”

“I said I’m just passing through.”

He spoke the phrase in Erechanian knowing any charade to conceal his accent to be pointless. The lead man growled and slid off his horse, the point of his long sword directed at Khirro as he did.

“An Erechanian. I should have guessed. No Kanosee in his right mind would be in this part of the kingdom.”

Khirro half-smiled. “I guess that makes you not in your right mind, then?”

The soldier didn’t see the humor of it. The corners of his mouth pulled down in a frown for a second before he lunged. Khirro side-stepped and the tip of the man’s sword cut empty air. The other five Kanosee dismounted.

Where are you, Athryn?

They took turns swinging their swords at him. Khirro parried and blocked, pacing a slow circle from one man to the next and with each time one of their blows glanced off the Mourning Sword, pride and confidence grew within him. Here he was, a dirt farmer less than a year ago, holding off six trained soldiers. A smile crept across his face.

“Ha!” he cried blocking another blow struck by the lead man, a tall fellow with a wide pink scar marring his otherwise neatly trimmed beard. It struck Khirro that these men didn’t look any different from himself or his fellow countrymen, they simply lived in another kingdom, were ruled by a different ruler, lived by different laws.

The men quickened the pace of their attack and Khirro’s smile faded as it became difficult to keep up. He deflected one blow with his sword and it grazed his arm without cutting. The flat of one man’s sword caught him across the back making him stumble, but he kept his feet.

They’re toying with me.

The attack continued, bringing beads of sweat to Khirro’s brow. The bearded man with the scar laughed and some of his companions chortled along with him. Khirro’s arms grew heavy with the fatigue of defending himself.

He barely blocked an attack aimed at his legs and ducked under another blow. His breath came in short, heavy gasps; his heart beat fast with exertion and fear. He tried to bring the flaming tyger into his thoughts, to picture fire coursing through his veins and across his flesh, but found the act of defending against the constant attacks kept him from putting his thoughts to it.

As he turned another circle, he spied a figure between two of the men.

Athryn.

The magician sat cross-legged and naked to the waist among the dead tomato plants, the black scrollwork tattoos inscribed on his chest and arms readily visible as he sat stone-still, face upturned to the sky.

“Athryn. Help me.”

The bearded man peered over his shoulder and saw Athryn seated in the field. His lips pulled back in a snarl and he turned from the fight to engage this man who’d crept up on them to interrupt their fun. Khirro took advantage of the instant of respite in the attack and the man’s inattention.

The glowing runes inscribed on the length of the Mourning Sword brightened until the entire blade appeared red. Khirro lunged; the tip of his blade found the seam at the side of the man’s leather armor and sank deep into his abdomen.

The Kanosee soldier gasped; his companions stared. For a moment, time felt as though it paused. Nothing happened, no one moved, until Khirro pulled the Mourning Sword free.

The bearded man took an uncertain step toward Athryn and stopped. Khirro saw blood seeping from under his armor as he faltered, then his legs gave way and he crumpled. They all stared until one of the men behind Khirro shouted and the attack began anew.

This time, they weren’t playing with him.

Blows rained down from all sides. The Mourning Sword jumped and flickered, catching each thrust and swipe, but the onslaught forced Khirro back. The tip of one man’s sword grazed his thigh, opening a small cut. He caught another in the shoulder and immediately felt the pain of a wound and the warm trickle of blood down his arm. Khirro retreated until his feet contacted the fallen Kanosee soldier and he tumbled to the ground. He rolled once, glimpsing Athryn still sitting with his face upturned, then came to a stop on his back.

He rolled away from the next attack and the soldier’s sword cut into his fallen comrade’s neck instead of his enemy. A groan escaped the man and, muddled up with the noise of the soldiers’ movements and the injured man’s cry, Khirro heard Athryn chanting. His eyes flickered toward the magician, hoping whatever spell he chose to cast would not only help, but do so quickly.

In the second his attention was distracted, one of the soldiers landed a solid blow to the guard above the Mourning Sword’s hilt and the weapon flew from Khirro’s grasp. He watched it arc through the air away from him, then his eyes snapped back to his attackers to see another of the men cock his sword back above his head. He bared his teeth in a half-smile, half-growl and brought the sword forward.

“Athryn!”

Khirro heard the whistle of steel cutting through the air, had an instant to feel dried tomato vines scratch against his cheek, then the man, his sword, the entire world disappeared.

Chapter Five

The wagon bounced through a deep rut, jarring Graymon and sending a jolt of pain down his arm. His belly churned and he gritted his teeth, determined not to cry any more. No one here noticed or cared, so tears did him no good. No one would comfort him; no one would brush hair out of his face and kiss his forehead like Nanny would; no one would call the surgeon to give him sleeping powder so he wouldn’t notice the pain.

The decayed soldiers had fashioned a crude splint and sling for his arm, but their medical know-how extended no further. The swelling that tightened the skin across Graymon’s forearm kept him in constant pain. He’d barely slept in the week since he fell out of the tree and had no appetite; he felt weak and tired and found keeping his seat a challenge. One of the undead men forced water between his lips from time to time, and they provided him a plate of some sort of charred meat periodically. He’d taken a bite the day before, made himself swallow it, but the vomit it induced was now dry chunks in a corner of the wagon.

They don’t check on me because they don’t think I’ll try to escape again.

He breathed deeply and cradled his arm against his chest. A wave of fatigue rolled through him and his head drooped. He caught himself, shook his head and blinked rapidly to clear the sleepiness from his eyes-if he fell asleep, he’d only roll on his arm and wake himself up anyway.

They’re right.

The wagon rattled along the track and the boy’s eyelids fluttered. After a few minutes of struggling to keep his eyes open, he decided not to fight it, and laid himself down in the bottom of the wagon and pulled the natty blanket over himself, carefully avoiding the dried vomit while protecting his arm. The wagon shook and groaned, bouncing him awake; eventually, he found enough peace to sleep.

At first, it was fitful, interrupted when the cart hit a bump and jarred his arm or rattled with enough noise to stir him. After a while, fatigue overcame the noise and the pain, and he fell into a deep sleep.

And he dreamed.

In this dream, Graymon wasn’t in the wagon transporting him away from his father and his home, but seated at the foot of a stone wall. He looked up and saw moss growing on its surface and holes where bricks had fallen away near the top. After living his entire life in the capital-except for the brief stay in the Isthmus Fortress-he’d never seen a structure in such poor repair.

Graymon stood and it took him a moment to realize that his arm no longer hurt in the dream. He clenched and unclenched his fist, flexed his fingers, bent his elbow and breathed a sigh of relief for being able to do these things again before turning his attention to the wall. It stretched a long way above his head, though not as high as the wall that protected Achtindel, and certainly not as high as the one at the Isthmus Fortress. He looked up the wall toward the sky for a minute, then began walking beside it, fingers trailing along the rough patches of bare stone and the soft, bright green moss covering the rest.

He passed a hole in the wall too high above his head to see through and thought about jumping for it and pulling himself up, but the last time he’d done such a thing, it didn’t turn out so well. He rubbed his arm unconsciously and continued along the wall.

A dozen paces farther along, he found another hole, this one lower. He crept up to it and peered through, staying mostly concealed in case the wall hid more scary soldiers. It didn’t, or at least he couldn’t see any from his vantage point.

Graymon stuck his head through the opening to peer beyond the wall’s crumbling stone. Buildings stood behind the wall, rickety shacks made of wood with thatched roofs. Some of the buildings were charred, those which weren’t had simply fallen down. Of the six or seven buildings Graymon saw, all of them were damaged.

“Where am I?” Graymon said aloud without meaning to speak.

“Kanos.”

Graymon had dreamed of the white tyger before. The first time, he’d been afraid of the beast’s sharp claws and pointed teeth, but with more dreams, he’d come to appreciate the creature’s beauty and know that it didn’t want to hurt him. Its long tail swished behind it like a separate animal; a furry, striped snake tasting the air. The beast’s muscles rippled beneath its shiny fur with every movement, making its physical power apparent, yet it moved with such grace and restraint, in control of every maneuver, from the flick of an ear to each powerful stride.

He hadn’t noticed the tyger standing to the left, partially hidden behind the blackened walls of a broken down hovel. The beast’s voice startled him and he jerked his head away, pausing a second before peeking through again. When he was sure it was the white tyger, he heaved one leg through the opening.

“What are you doing h-?”

“Stop. Go no further.”

Graymon stopped and looked at the tyger, wide-eyed.

“What? Why?”

“You should not enter this place.”

The tyger sauntered out from behind the fallen building, its easy grace and unhurried movement calming Graymon. With the passing of the initial fear he’d felt when he dreamed of the beast, the tyger’s presence made him feel protected. The great cat halted a few paces away and Graymon thought he felt its breath on his face, warm and moist. The feel of it brought goose flesh on his back and a shiver along his spine.

“But why not? It’s only a dream.”

Graymon’s was surprised by his own words. He didn’t think he’d ever had a dream in which he knew it was a dream before waking. What did it mean? The tyger growled in the back of its throat, a low rumble Graymon felt as much as heard; the sound diverted his attention from the dream’s lucidity.

“More than a dream,” it said.

The tyger bent its head toward the fallen buildings; Graymon followed his gaze. At first, he saw what he’d seen before: burned wood and ashes, splintered boards, fallen walls. He opened his mouth to ask the tyger what he was looking at when he saw the first body. Instead of a question, he gasped.

The charred arm could easily have been a part of the wreckage-a burnt chunk of wood or blackened stone-but the body he now saw it was attached to was less damaged than the arm, though not little enough for him to know if it belonged to man or woman, adult or child. The person wore no armor, so this wasn’t the casualty of a battle fought between armies, but a villager in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Graymon wrinkled his nose and looked away. Outside another hut, he spied a second body, this one unburned-a woman lying face down in the mud, her stained dress pulled up to mid-thigh, her legs a mess of bruises.

She wasn’t there before.

He saw other bodies, too: men, women, children. Graymon hadn’t noticed them before, yet they were strewn across the courtyard, lying in doorways, propped against walls. He glanced from one to the next at the pained expressions on their faces, then looked away quickly from wounds and burns lest they turn his stomach. He didn’t want to vomit or cry and reveal weakness to the tyger, yet found himself curious about what happened here, about these people.

He hefted his other leg through the hole to sit in the opening, feet dangling above the ground. The tyger took a step forward to block him. Despite his curiosity, he didn’t want to get any closer to the corpses; the pretty, dangerous woman’s undead soldiers had given him reason to distrust a dead person’s ability to stay that way.

His thought changed when he saw the only body clad in armor.

Graymon leaned forward, squinting to see better. The soldier’s armor seemed familiar to him. He stared, trying his best to see the man better, but his face was pressed to the ground, his features hidden. The tyger moved, but Graymon didn’t look away from the man to see what the beast did or where it went.

The man lifted his head.

Blood ran down his face from a wound above his right eyebrow; one eye was closed, the other swollen and purple. Dirt stuck to his cheek and the long, braided beard hanging from his chin brushed the ground. Graymon stared, mouth open, as the man looked at him.

“Daddy!”

Graymon pushed forward, intending to rush to his father’s side, but his feet didn’t touch ground. Instead, he was falling. His father disappeared, the village and tyger disappeared, leaving only him and the air rushing around him and nothing else.

Graymon clamped his eyes shut. The rush of wind tossed his hair, air buffeted his face. He fell for a long while, eyes shut the whole time, until the wagon hit a bump, jarring him awake. Graymon opened his eyes.

The darkness left him feeling disoriented and nauseated. He opened his mouth to call his Nanny, but the rumble of the wagon’s wooden wheels on uneven ground brought him back from his dream to reality. He sighed deeply to settle his belly and shifted on the uncomfortable boards of the wagon’s floor.

He’d been awake for a minute when he noticed it wasn’t as dark as he first thought. He turned his head.

A slight glow emanated from the woman, an undeniable aura of light around her. She sat on the bench where Graymon had spent much of the trip, regarding him with a look like Nanny used when he said something she found amusing. The boy held his breath when he saw her.

“Hello, Graymon.”

He stared at her full head of red hair, the freckles tossed carelessly across her cheeks. This wasn’t the same woman responsible for his captivity in the rickety cart surrounded by decaying soldiers, but he didn’t know her. He didn’t say anything.

“Don’t be afraid. I’m a friend.”

I’m still dreaming.

The woman’s smile widened; she held her hand out in an offer of comfort. Graymon peeked at her fingernails to see if tiny scenes of horror and death danced across hers like they did on the fingernails of the other woman, but there were none. Instead, the woman’s nails were unpainted and trimmed short. As he looked at her hands, he realized he could see the floorboards of the wagon through them.

I’m still dreaming.

He shrank away, holding his arm protectively against his chest. When the woman saw he wouldn’t take her hand, she took it back and leaned forward. Her smile faded and her eyes found and held his.

“The tyger of your dreams is coming,” she said. “But he is a man.”

“A man?” He never saw a man in the dreams, only the tyger.

“Yes. A good man. He has dreamed of you, too.”

“Really?”

Graymon surveyed the wagon’s confined space, half-expecting to see the tyger or the man waiting in the shadows to reveal himself at a word from the ghostly woman. He saw no one. When he looked back to the woman, she was nodding.

“Yes. He is coming to rescue you and keep you safe.”

Graymon’s eyes widened.

“To take me back to my da?”

“If that is possible.”

This is a good dream.

The woman smiled again, though this time the expression held a wistfulness it didn’t have before. Graymon smiled back.

“He will be coming soon. Watch for him.”

“But how will I know him?”

“You won’t need to. He’ll know you.”

Graymon nodded. The light around the woman dimmed, her form faded. Before disappearing, she raised her hands and wiggled her fingers at him. He waved back. A second later, she was gone.

What an unusual dream.

He rested his head against the floor of the wagon, wondering what other dreams this sleep may hold. As his head touched, the left wheel of the cart hit a deep rut, rattling boards and jarring Graymon’s arm. Pain shot through his shoulder and into his chest; he cried out. The pain and the sound of his own voice startled him and he sat up, staring into the darkness.

It wasn’t a dream.

Chapter Six

Khirro’s eyes fluttered open to see the washed-out blue of an autumn sky above. It calmed him, though whatever he lay upon pushed against his back, hard and uncomfortable.

I’ve been here before.

He recalled laying on the stairs of the Isthmus Fortress, when King Braymon saved him from a dead soldier’s rusted axe, then tumbling down the steps and nearly killing himself. Khirro closed his eyes and concentrated on remembering what happened after the fall down the stairs. Through his hazy and indistinct memory, the Shaman’s face came to him, then a soldier he once thought his friend. All at once, everything came back, and he saw his companions, their trip and sacrifices, their deaths. Everyone dead except him and Athryn.

If Braymon hadn’t saved him, if he hadn’t fallen and put himself in position to be the one cursed to raise the king, he wouldn’t be wherever he was now and all his friends wouldn’t be dead.

Then he remembered the Kanosee soldier in the tomato field with his sword raised skyward to strike the killing blow.

“I am dead.”

“No, Khirro. You are not dead.”

Khirro turned his head toward the familiar voice and opened his eyes to look at the magician’s face. Athryn wasn’t looking at him, instead concentrating as he dipped the tip of his knife in a black liquid held by a cup-shaped stone. He pressed the point to a bare spot of flesh on his inner thigh and sucked breath through his teeth as a mix of black ink and red blood ran down his leg. It had been the job of his now-dead brother Maes to inscribe the spells in his flesh; this was the first time Khirro had seen Athryn do it himself.

“Where are we?”

“I do not know exactly.”

Khirro’s brow creased.

“How did we get here?”

“I brought us.”

“You brought us here, but you don’t know where here is?”

Athryn shook his head.

“Sounds a bit dangerous, don’t you think?”

“And trying to best six warriors in battle is not?”

Khirro sat up, the wounds he’d sustained during the brief battle surprisingly free from pain.

He healed me, too.

“Good point.”

He saw he’d been lying on a stone path running between a number of buildings, all of them at least partially destroyed by force, fire, or both. A stout wall in similar disrepair surrounded the village.

“Is there anyone else here?”

Athryn’s knife dimpled his flesh again; he sucked another breath through his teeth and closed his eyes, collecting his thoughts before answering.

“No one here alive but us.”

The rotted faces of undead soldiers jumped to Khirro’s thoughts and he leaped to his feet, grasping for the hilt of the Mourning Sword to find it missing. Athryn paused in his tattooing and looked up.

“The Mourning Sword,” Khirro gasped.

“One of the soldiers knocked it from your grasp.”

Khirro searched the ground by his feet, took a few steps toward the nearest run-down hut, but stopped when he thought of the ghastly undead soldier who came close to taking his life. He stopped short of the entrance. A pair of feet-one bare, the other clad in a worn boot-were visible just beyond the threshold. The flesh of the bootless foot was wizened like the corpses in the field.

“Where is it? Did you bring it?”

Athryn dabbed blood and ink from his thigh with the sleeve of his shirt, stood and walked to his companion’s side.

“Khirro, I did not carry you here. The fallen soldier’s death gave me the power I needed to transport us.” He paused. “I could not bring the sword.”

Khirro stared, anger roiling in his gut, but he held it in. The magician wasn’t to blame for him dropping the sword. On the contrary, Athryn was the reason he still lived. Again. No one deserved his anger but himself.

“We have to go back for it.”

“Go back where? We do not know where we are. And the sword will not be there. What soldier would not take it for his own?”

Khirro gritted his teeth, his anger at himself increasing as he realized he’d not only lost the legendary Mourning Sword, but that doing so left him swordless in the land of the enemy. He looked away from Athryn, chewed his bottom lip until he tasted blood.

“You said we’re the only ones alive?”

“Yes. Nothing but corpses like in the field. Many of them.”

“But none of them are moving?”

Athryn cracked a smile and put his hand on Khirro’s soldier.

“No, none of them move.”

Khirro walked toward the ruined hovels. He felt Athryn’s eyes on his back until the magician’s footsteps took him back to where he’d been sitting. A minute later, he heard him suck a pained breath as he returned to inscribing a fresh spell upon his leg.

Khirro peered into the first hut. The desiccated corpse within looked to have been a man, but it was difficult to be sure. The eyeballs were missing, long chewed out by some vermin, and its patches of stringy hair gave no clue. Only the tattered shirt and dirty breeches suggested the dead person’s gender.

In the next building, he found no corpses, though the table was set for a meal: three plates, three cups, three forks. They were picked clean by scavengers but for the last few crumbs of bread remaining on the wooden board set in the middle of the table.

Khirro wandered building to building, peering into the ones still standing, occasionally toeing the charred remains of huts burned to the ground. He’d counted twenty-five corpses by the time he reached the shack that made him pause.

It was half fallen-down and sparsely furnished, like the others, left as though life stopped in the middle of everything. A rocking chair sat beside a long burnt-out fire in a stone hearth; a woman’s corpse sat in the rocker. She wasn’t as badly dried-out as the others, her raven hair brushed and tidy, her gray dress without holes, her eyes closed. She looked peaceful as she sat with her legs crossed at the ankles and a bundle held to her chest.

A familiarity to the scene caused a stirring in Khirro’s chest, but he couldn’t discern whether he recognized the place from a dream or from his life before being forced into the king’s army, before being cursed with his burden of restoring the king. That life seemed too long ago to remember, its contents hidden from him by the fog of time.

He stepped across the threshold and found that the warm air inside smelled of dust and neglect, not death. The corners lay in shadow and his hand went instinctively to the scabbard where it would normally find the Mourning Sword, his fingers clutching empty air.

“Gods,” he cursed and pulled his dagger instead.

Each footfall raised a puff of dust as he crossed the room, eyes searching the shadows. Nothing moved. Five paces took him to the rocking chair where he stood, dagger in hand, staring down at the bundle the dead woman clutched, staring at the baby which she held to her breast even in death.

A blanket, gray with age and tattered at the edges, swaddled the babe. Khirro pulled a corner of the blanket aside gently and saw the child’s cheek was plump, its skin smooth. Somehow, the child was the only thing he’d come across in his search that looked as though it may have been recently alive. He watched its face for a moment, doubting what he saw.

The baby’s eyes opened and looked directly into his.

Khirro gasped and stumbled back a step, feet catching; he tumbled to the dirt floor in a cloud of dust, landed hard on his backside and stayed there looking up at the woman and her bundle. The child made him think of another baby he’d seen in the recent past in another ruined village, but the mud baby had been a dream. This time, he was awake.

He clamored to his feet and brushed dirt off his breeches as he stood, eyes never leaving the grubby blanket until he heard a sound behind him. He spun around, dagger held out before him, but saw nothing.

When Khirro faced the woman again, he immediately sensed a change. The child sat lower on the woman’s lap, as though she’d slumped and her bundle slipped from her breast. As Khirro looked, the corpse shifted. He jumped back. The swaddled infant rolled off the dead woman’s lap and hit the floor with a dull thump, the blanket’s corner caught between her knees. The bundle rolled toward him, gray cloth unwinding until it came to rest near his feet.

The baby’s once-plump cheeks were sallow, its glossy eyes pasted closed. The wrinkled skin on its face made its head look like an apple that had passed months beyond rotten. A tiny, brittle-looking arm stuck out at an odd angle, reaching toward Khirro’s foot. He stared at the dead thing, confused.

“How…?”

“It’s the magic. Athryn is right.”

The unfamiliar voice startled Khirro and he swung the knife as he turned before thinking about what he was doing. If the woman had indeed been a woman, the knife would have opened a long wound across her belly. Instead, it passed through her.

Khirro looked at the woman’s face, then down at the knife in his hand. His fingers loosened and the dagger tumbled to the dirt floor.

“Elyea?”

The word caught in his throat.

“The Archon’s actions have broken the laws of nature and magic. Every time she raises an undead soldier, the life to sustain it must come from somewhere. They come from here.”

She swept her arm in front of her indicating the building in which they stood, but Khirro knew she meant the village, or perhaps all of Kanos. He followed the sweep of her arm and saw again the slumping corpse of the woman, the dried-out babe at his feet, each of their lives lost in service of creating one of the hideous monstrosities he’d seen at the Isthmus Fortress. He imagined their essences as a stream of translucent color sucked out of them as the mother rocked back and forth, comforting her child. The streams of color twisted into a rope and seeped out the walls, escaped up the chimney, gone to fuel the rotted soldiers, the mother and child’s lives involuntarily given up for a cause they likely didn’t know existed.

“How bad is it? Is all of Kanos like this?”

Elyea’s ghostly feet carried her past Khirro to the dead woman’s side where she stopped and looked down into the shriveled face. Khirro reached out to touch her hair as she passed.

“The Kanosee army has entered the Isthmus Fortress.”

Khirro stared at the back of her head without seeing the waves of red hair which had tempted his touch seconds before.

I must have heard wrong.

“The fortress? What? How?”

She faced him.

“Therrador was proclaimed king after Braymon’s death. He opened the gates to the Archon and her troops.”

Khirro’s gut shifted, his chest constricted. Anger rumbled at the back of his throat.

“Bastard betrayer.”

The words came from his lips, a growl fueled by rage, but they didn’t feel as though they belonged to him. Elyea tilted her head, looked deep into his eyes. The wan light in the room found the green in her eyes, made them sparkle. His chest loosened and he felt control return.

“He had no choice. She took his son.”

“Graymon?”

He knew nothing of Therrador, yet the name of a child he knew in his dreams came out of his mouth as if he was the boy’s Godfather. Elyea nodded.

“Therrador knows his mistake but the threat to his son clouds his decisions. Unless the boy is safe, it’s difficult for him to be on our side.”

“Where is Graymon?”

“They are bringing him to Kanos.”

“Athryn and I could rescue him. Do you know where he is?”

She nodded. “This is why I have come. They are going to the capital. If you follow the main road toward the land bridge, you will intercept them.”

He didn’t say anything, instead looking into her lake-green eyes, at the spill of red hair across her forehead and shoulders, her freckled cheek. To stop his eyes from straying farther and bringing an ache to his heart, he looked at the floor.

“I’m sorry for what I did to you.”

“You did nothing but show me love and hope in a world I’d begun to think held none for me. Why should you apologize?”

“But I killed you.”

“No, not me. That was someone else.” She reached out and brushed her fingers along his forearm. “You loved me.”

Khirro’s gaze settled on the baby lying near his feet. Was it a sign of things? Did it mean Graymon was close to lost?

Or is it Emeline’s child? My child?

So much time had passed since he last thought of them, long enough he felt shame for it. When once the woman meant everything to him-thoughts of her and of returning to her consuming his moments-now she seemed a memory of a one-time dream, barely remembered. But she was in Erechania where the Kanosee and their undead soldiers had taken over the Isthmus Fortress and controlled the king, where all were in danger. He looked up from the child; Elyea stood near the door.

“Has this happened in Erechania?” he asked indicating the shriveled child.

“No. Not yet, but it is why the Archon seeks to conquer your country. She needs lives to fuel her army of the dead. If we don’t stop her, Erechania is just the beginning.” She stepped into the sunlight streaming through the doorway and disappeared.

“Elyea?”

A second later, Athryn appeared framed in the doorway, a look of concern on his brow.

“Khirro? Are you all right?”

“Yes.”

“You have been gone for hours.”

Athryn’s words surprised him. It didn’t feel like he’d been away for more than thirty minutes. Khirro swallowed hard around a lump in his throat.

“I’m fine,” he said.

“We should go.”

“Yes.”

Khirro looked back at the child on the dirt floor, at its bony finger pointing at him. Accusing him? Choosing him?

Both.

He kneeled and placed both hands beneath the child, careful not to damage its dried-out skin and brittle bones. Its flesh felt rough against his fingers, furrowed and hard. He scooped it off the dirt floor, crossed the two paces to the rocking chair and placed the babe back on its mother’s lap. Athryn waited patiently in the doorway while Khirro looked at the mother and child.

“There,” he said and faced his companion. “Now we can go. We must head for the land bridge.”

Athryn nodded. Khirro stepped past his companion and into the light of the autumn sun. Feeling its warmth on his face drove the hut’s ill feelings from him and he looked to the sky. It was still blue, the Heavens still in their place despite what happened here. He sucked a deep breath and expelled the last of the musty, dust-filled air of the building from his chest.

“We have a boy to save.”

He started toward the edge of the ruined village, the magician following without comment as if he already knew what needed to be done.

Chapter Seven

Therrador paced the room, hands clasped behind his back, boots padding the stone floor. The pain in his hand had diminished after the surgeon’s maggots did their work, but it still throbbed against the fresh bandage. He ignored the discomfort by shifting his thoughts to his son, which in turn transferred the pain from his missing thumb to his chest, squeezing his heart as if the Archon had inserted her hand between his ribs and encircled it with her fingers, threatened to pierce it with her nails.

“Oh, Graymon,” he muttered to the empty room. “I’m sorry.”

“He doesn’t blame you.”

Therrador whirled at the sound of the voice, surprised to find he wasn’t alone. The ghostly woman sat on the divan near the huge stone fireplace, her wild mane of wavy red locks covering the shoulders of her simple white dress and spilling down over her chest. The king stared at her, taking in her face and form. In the dungeon, in the dark and gripped by hunger and despair, he hadn’t really seen her or formed a sense of her. Now, in the open, in the light, with his wits about him, he saw her beauty. He took a step toward her and felt calm emanating from her.

“You’ve seen him? Is he safe?”

She nodded. “As safe as he can be given his situation.”

He sat beside her, not close enough to touch but near enough he saw the translucency of her. He looked into her green eyes flecked with black, and searched them to see if she could possibly be real.

“You’re a ghost.”

“I am no longer living in the manner you are.”

“Why are you here? Are you one of the Archon’s tricks?”

The expression on her face soured at his mention of the other woman.

“I have nothing to do with Sheyndust.”

“Then why?”

“I have come to tell you that the king-bearer and his companion are on their way to rescue your son.”

“What? Graymon?”

She nodded her response. The constriction around Therrador’s heart expanded to include his lungs.

I’ve given up my son’s best hope to the enemy.

“I have to do something. I told the Archon of his coming.”

The woman touched his forearm and it surprised him to feel the pressure of her hand despite her lack of opacity. He looked down at her fingers, at the paleness of her flesh. The tightness in his chest diminished.

“I know,” she said and smiled. Therrador saw a hint of sadness in the expression and a shiver of guilt threatened to rock his spine. “You have nothing to be ashamed of. Things must happen the way they must happen and you are a part of that.”

“But I-”

“Arrangements must be made for what’s to come.”

Therrador looked from the woman to the door, thought about the undead Kanosee soldier standing guard on the other side, then looked back at her. She had taken her hand off his arm and he felt the lack of it.

“I can’t leave. She has me under guard night and day.”

The woman regarded him then rose from her seat. He watched her cross the room to the far corner, her feet leaving no impression on the fur of the deer skin rug arrayed on the floor. She stopped when she reached the corner and gestured for him to join her.

“There,” she said pointing to a square block amongst other square blocks in the wall.

Therrador pursed his lips, a question forming behind them, but he held it and reached toward the brick instead. His fingers brushed it and he noted it felt no different than any other brick: the same hardness and texture, no feeling of magic or power radiating from it. He looked back at the woman and she nodded, encouraging him. Therrador pushed the brick. At first, nothing happened, so he exerted more pressure until it shifted with the grinding sound of stone against stone. It moved only an inch, but an inch was all it needed to activate a switch concealed behind it.

The wall to Therrador’s right shifted, opening a crack between lines of stone. The dust of countless years tumbled down the face of the wall in a tiny, inconsequential avalanche. He followed its progress with his eyes, watching it tumble, thin, and disappear, before looking back at the crack. It was slight, but wide enough to get his fingers between. He inserted his fingertips carefully to avoid jostling his wounded hand, and looked back at the woman.

“Go ahead.”

He braced himself and pulled, putting all his strength into the effort. The wall moved much more easily than he would have imagined, swinging on some cantilever cleverly hidden in the masonry. The wall swung out and he stared into a stone passageway hung with cobwebs.

“I didn’t know anything like this existed.”

“Few do since the Shaman died,” she said. “It hasn’t been used for a very long time. It will give you access to the fortress. If you are careful, you will be able to come and go without them suspecting; the rest is up to you.”

Therrador nodded and looked down the passage. The light shining in from the room ended at the top of a set of stairs leading down into darkness.

“I need-” He turned back to the woman but she was gone. He glanced over his shoulder, pivoted in a tight circle; she was nowhere to be seen. “Gods above.”

He shook his head and crossed the room to the taper sitting on the mantle over the fireplace. Out of habit, he tried to pick up the candle holder with his right hand, cursed himself a fool as he fumbled it, then used his left to light the wick from the hearth. He returned to the secret door, using his injured hand to shelter the flame, and stepped across the threshold.

Therrador hesitated before proceeding, undecided as to what to do with his unexpected freedom. Graymon was too far away for him to consider going after his son, but not far enough to trust he'd be safe from the Archon's wrath if they discovered the king was gone. The presence of that threat meant he couldn't leave the fortress, yet he needed to do something to save his kingdom. His lips thinned to a hard line, his eyes narrowed in thought.

Sienhin.

The general would have to be his eyes and ears, his hands and voice. It was the only way, but would his old friend trust him after all that had come to pass? Therrador wasn't sure he would trust himself were he in Sir Alton's place, but neither of them had any choice.

“Here we go,” he said aloud and drew a breath of air that smelled of must and disuse.

Determined to find his way to the general's quarters, Therrador grasped a handle mounted on the back side of the wall and pulled the section closed. He descended the stairs in the flickering light of the taper without knowing where they would lead him or if he should truly put his trust in the ghostly woman. This was the same doubt and distrust his friend would feel when he saw him.

What choice do we have?

***

Sir Alton Sienhin wiped remnants of ale out of his bushy mustache with the back of his left hand and slammed the pewter flagon in his right back to the table. He stared at the empty chair set across the table and chewed on the stray hairs of his mustache curled over his top lip.

“Where have you gone, Therrador?”

He stared straight ahead at the plain stone wall and simple furnishings-not the decor to which he'd become accustomed, but his quarters had been given to some Kanosee general when Therrador invited the enemy in. The regent’s decision to open the fortress gates to the invaders had confused him, angered him, but Sienhin knew his place, and his place was to support his king. Through good and bad. Even through this.

“I haven’t gone as far as you may think, Sir Alton. Nor as far as you might like.”

The older knight jumped at the sound of the king’s voice behind him, and stood abruptly, upsetting the flagon. Dark ale spilled across the table, flowing along the wood’s grain to the end where it dribbled onto the floor.

“Therrador,” Sir Alton breathed, turning.

Therrador crossed from the doorway to stand before the other man, but made no move to embrace him or greet him. Sir Alton felt grateful for the king’s choice-after the events of the past few weeks, he didn’t think he could bear it.

“You heard what happened?”

“I heard Sir Matte was the latest to give his life for you,” the knight grumbled, his words calculated to prod the king like the tip of a dagger. “And that the Archon took you. Where have you been?”

“The dungeon, for a while. Now I am Sheyndust's captive.”

The general crooked a shaggy eyebrow. “Then how are-?

“How I got here doesn’t matter. Hahn is in league with the enemy.”

Sienhin puffed his cheeks out and blew a breath through his lips. His hands went to his hips giving him the look of a matron chastising her charges.

“Is anyone but me left faithful to the kingdom?”

Therrador ignored his barb. “The man who carries the king’s essence nears the fortress. We must ready for his arrival.”

“What? The king yet survives? How do you know this?”

Some of the certainty in Therrador’s expression flagged for a moment.

“A ghost woman told me.”

“Ha,” Sir Alton guffawed. “I’m supposed to believe this?”

“It doesn’t matter what you believe. We have to return to our original plan of alerting the troops. The army must be ready.”

“But Perdaro knows this plan.”

“He will think the plan died with my jailing.” Therrador hesitated, then added, “He believes I’m back in league with the Archon.”

Sir Alton’s eyebrows dipped dangerously close to forming a single bristly hedge above his eyes.

“Why would he think that?”

“Because I told the Archon the king-carrier was coming, and that I’d tell her when he arrived.”

“What? Why-?”

“I had to get out of the dungeon, Alton. I couldn’t save my kingdom while dying in a cell.”

The knight glowered, unconvinced, but Therrador didn’t look away. Sir Alton had known this man for decades, and yet as they stared at each other, he felt like he gazed upon a stranger.

“Why should I trust you? The kingdom wouldn’t be in this predicament if not for you.”

“The Archon would have her way whether through me or someone else. It might have been you.”

“Never.”

Sir Alton puffed out his chest but, even as he did, he realized the potential for truth in Therrador’s words. The Archon had manipulated things to turn King Braymon’s most trusted advisor against him, and a loyal servant like Hanh Perdaro into her puppet. How many others? Who else couldn’t be trusted? The thought settled into him like a weight, made his shoulders sag. He slumped back into his chair; Therrador took a step toward him and put his hand on his shoulder.

“I understand your reticence, faithful knight. Were I in your place, I would also have difficulty trusting. But what do we have besides each other? What hope besides the king’s return?”

Sir Alton’s eyes fell away from his king’s, down to his hands resting in his lap. He looked at the age spots on the back of them, the way his flesh looked looser and sagging.

How did so much time pass? Wasn’t it only yesterday I was a young man learning the ways of the sword?

He sighed and looked back up at Therrador. The man’s expression had neither softened with understanding nor become firm with anger. Instead, it showed the steady resolve of a man who’d made up his mind and wouldn’t be swayed. Sir Alton understood his king would make this happen with or without his help. As a knight and the commander of the king’s army, this left Sienhin but one choice. He stood and placed his right fist over his heart.

“I’m with you, my Liege.”

His voice didn’t hold the conviction he’d intended but, if Therrador noticed, he took no issue. Instead, he nodded, then embraced his old friend. Sir Alton hesitantly reached his arm around the king’s shoulders and slapped him on the back. After a few seconds, Therrador released him.

“Come,” he said gesturing for Sir Alton to sit again. “We have much planning to do.”

Chapter Eight

The steady cadence of hoof beats kept Iana sleeping through most of the days, which meant she didn’t sleep much when they stopped for the night. The morning of their eighth day of riding, it took Emeline everything she could muster to drag herself from under the sleeping skins after Iana kept her awake through the night yet again while Lehgan slept like the dead. The bounce of the horse lulled her and Emeline fought to keep her head from lolling forward.

“I need to rest,” she called to her husband riding a few lengths ahead. He didn’t react, so she assumed he hadn’t heard. It had taken three days ride for him to speak to her again, but things were slowly returning to normal between them.

“Lehgan, I need to rest.”

This time he looked back over his shoulder.

“Already? It’s only been an hour since we set out.”

“Yes. I didn’t sleep at all last night.”

Lehgan slowed his pace, dropping back to ride beside his wife. He reached out and took her chin in his hand, turned her head toward him and looked into her eyes.

“You do look tired. There’s a town an hour ahead where I planned to stop for supplies. Can you last that long?”

She half-smiled at him and nodded. “I can.”

“Good.”

He took his hand from her chin and took hold of her horse’s bridle, then urged his own to increase the pace. Emeline held the reins tight and concentrated on keeping her seat as Iana snored gently against her chest.

***

Emeline dozed in the saddle, an accomplishment she knew experienced horsemen did regularly, but something she’d never imagined herself doing. Not until her mount halted, the lack of movement jarring her awake, did her eyelids flutter open. A shock of panic grabbed her and she glanced down at the bundle held against her chest. Iana looked back up at her and cooed, the small sound settling her mother. Emeline smiled, touched her babe’s face, then raised her head to ask her husband why they’d stopped.

The question never passed her lips as she saw the column of smoke rising from amidst the group of buildings ahead. It swirled and twisted skyward until its gray-blackness thinned and dispersed high above. The color and thickness of the smoke suggested it wasn’t made by a baker’s oven, a potter’s kiln, or a blacksmith’s forge. The smile Iana had put on Emeline’s lips faded.

“Lehgan…?”

Her husband raised his hand to silence her. He sat like that for a moment, arm raised, his other hand holding the reins tight, before whatever had gripped him loosened enough for him to spur his horse forward. Emeline’s steed, tethered to one side of Lehgan’s saddle as the pack mule was tethered to the other, followed.

They moved slowly, the horses’ hooves scraping the dirt track leading into the town. It looked bigger than their own village of Kandan, but most towns were. They rode past a row of dwellings at the outskirts of the town with thatched roofs and walls sealed with clay, all supported by rough-hewn timbers. This could have been any town in the kingdom.

It could be our village.

At first, they saw no one. Emeline stretched her neck to peer through a door open a crack but saw nothing in the dim interior. They guided their horses between the huts and, as they neared the center of town and the source of the smoke, Emeline saw the first sign of violence.

The hut’s door had been torn free and the beam beside the door splintered as though someone gained entry with an axe. Most of the hut’s contents lay in the doorway or on the ground outside the hut; there was no one inside. Emeline looked away and saw the wall of the house on her left had been charred black.

“What happened here?” she asked.

Lehgan didn’t answer. His gaze stayed straight ahead, his shoulders tight and rigid. Emeline spurred her horse to catch up to her husband and saw the grim expression on his face.

“Lehgan?”

She looked into his eyes, and at the set of his jaw, and realized the expression wasn’t one of intensity. His eyes appeared watery and he didn’t respond except by raising his hand to point farther down the street ahead of them. Emeline looked and saw a man seated in the doorway of a hut leaning noticeably to the right. Lehgan reined his hose up in front of the man.

“Excuse me, sir,” he began, but his voice cracked. Lehgan cleared his throat and started again. “Excuse me. What happened here?”

The man sat hunched forward, elbows resting on his knees; his long, unwashed hair hung across his face. His feet were bare and his breeches frayed at the bottom. He didn’t respond.

“Sir?”

A few more seconds passed before he raised his head. His eyes were wide and a little bit wild, like he’d had a fright and they didn’t return to normal; a trail of dried blood began in his hairline and ran the length of his face. Emeline instinctively covered Iana’s face with her hand. The man’s gaze flickered from Lehgan to Emeline and the look of fear in his eyes became wariness-the presence of a woman with the unarmored man must have convinced him they were no danger. He sniffed deep and spat in the dirt at their horses’ feet.

“Kanosee.”

The word left his mouth like he’d spit out a rotted chunk of meat.

“Kanosee?” Lehgan repeated.

“Aye.” The man nodded toward the center of town where the column of smoke rose skyward. “They did this.”

Emeline followed his gaze and, for the first time since they entered the village, saw other people. An old woman peeked out of the doorway of a hut with a partially caved-in wall. The woman ducked back inside when she saw Emeline looking at her. Farther down the track, others began to emerge: two naked children streaked with dirt, a man walking with a pronounced limp, a woman who’s plain gray shift was torn and hanging down leaving her left breast exposed-she either didn’t notice or didn’t care.

“When did this happen?” she asked.

“Day before yesterday.”

“Gods,” Lehgan interjected. “And the fire still burns?”

“It wasn’t the Kanosee what set that fire.”

Emeline stared at the man, waiting for him to explain and afraid he would. He looked away from the people moving into the street and back at her. Their eyes met for a few seconds before he averted his gaze back to the dirt between his knees.

“That’s the town burning the dead.”

Emeline gasped and clutched Iana closer to her chest. The baby cooed and blew a bubble with her nose.

“Burning the dead?” Lehgan said; the man didn’t respond.

“Lehgan?”

He looked over his shoulder at Emeline and she saw fear on his face before he caught his slip and replaced his expression with one more assuring. His gaze met her eyes, then scanned up and down the narrow lane.

“Let’s get out of here,” he said and spurred his horse on, guiding them toward the center of town.

Toward the smoke.

Emeline looked back at the man as they rode away. He continued staring at the ground and she noticed his shoulders shaking, as though he hung his head to hide his tears. Her chest tightened around her heart.

“Lehgan,” she said facing her husband, “do we have to go this way?”

“There is no other way.”

They rode past the old woman’s hut, but she’d disappeared inside. The two naked children stepped out of the way and one of them-a boy-stuck out his tongue as they passed, the small act of youthful defiance bringing a hesitant smile to Emeline’s lips. The limping man hobbled out of the path of their horses, then they rode by the younger woman, who stared at them, breast still exposed. Emeline gestured, encouraging her to cover herself, but she paid no attention. The woman’s vacant eyes stayed upon them, looked through them like she saw them but didn’t comprehend.

They left the woman behind as they continued down the dirt track toward the pillar of smoke sending murdered villagers to the fields of the dead. Emeline looked back at the woman. She stood in the same spot, breast exposed, staring after them, but when she saw Emeline looking at her, she grabbed the front of her dress and lifted it. Under the skirt, blood streaked the woman’s thighs.

“Beware the dead men,” she screeched.

Emeline averted her gaze and urged her horse faster to ride beside Lehgan, the increased pace bouncing her child against her chest. Iana hummed to herself.

“Lehgan, did you hear her? What did she mean?”

He shook his head, gaze fixed on the lane in front of them. “I don’t know.”

She opened her mouth to speak, to say words to ask him to comfort her without asking, but she stopped. As they neared the town center, she smelled the fire burning, tasted its acrid smoke on her tongue.

“Get us out of here, Lehgan. Please.”

He grunted in response and continued along the dirt path. Closer to the fire, the damage done to the huts and hovels increased. They passed one which had been burned to the ground, the heat of it leaving its neighbor charred. Another hut lay in ruins, either pulled or pushed over, all four walls lying on the ground, the roof spilling into the street forcing their horses to pick their way through the rubble.

Emeline pulled the bodice of her dress up over her nose to block the distasteful odor, then did the same for Iana with the edge of the sling. Each step closer to the funeral pyre mounted more distress in Emeline. She held Iana tighter against her chest, and squeezed the sides of her steed until her thighs ached.

Finally, as they rode close enough to see flames licking toward the sky, a second dirt lane opened on their right. Lehgan guided his horse down it and Emeline’s followed. Though she didn’t want to, Emeline’s gaze remained on the flames after they turned down the second lane. Two men approached the fire, a third person carried between them, one gripping the corpse’s arms, the other its legs. At the edge of the bonfire, they swung the body back and forth three times, then heaved it into the flames sending a swirl of sparks skyward. Emeline’s eyes followed their path toward the heavens, part of her disgusted and appalled at what happened here-at the smoke, at the smell-but another part of her hoped those tiny sparks really were pieces of someone’s life released from their earthly ties to spend eternity among the Gods.

A half-destroyed shack blocked her view of the fire and she turned her face to her husband riding slightly ahead of her, looked at his broad back. Finally, she looked down at Iana who had fallen back to sleep. Emeline closed her eyes, concentrated on keeping herself from breaking into tears.

“I’m glad that place is behind us,” Lehgan said after a few minutes.

Emeline opened her eyes and looked up. They’d already passed out of the village and were riding through farmland toward a forest in the distance. The area looked not unlike their own home.

“Yes.”

She shifted in the saddle to look back at the village, at the smoke rising into the sky, and breathed deep, thankful for the fresh air.

‘The day before last,’ the man had said. Two days ago the Kanosee ransacked the village. If they were riding the direction from which she and Lehgan came, they would reach their town, their farm, her parents, in less than a week.

Emeline shifted in the saddle, facing forward again, and shook her head. They had seen no other sign of a raiding party’s passing before this, so she had no reason to believe danger would come to her parents. Then she remembered the woman’s cryptic words about dead men and shuddered.

We are all in danger.

Chapter Nine

The sliver-thin moon provided barely enough light for Khirro to see his hand in front of his face, certainly not enough to see his companion crouched beside him clothed in black and wearing a cloth mask the same color as the night. If not for the quiet sound of Athryn's shallow breaths, Khirro might have thought himself alone. He leaned toward his companion.

“Are you sure this is the right place? We haven’t missed them?”

Athryn turned his head, the wan light finding his eyes and making them twinkle.

“They are close.”

A simple plan: surprise the guards and rescue the boy.

Since they were in Kanos, his captors would have no reason to be on alert, so taking them unaware should be easy. Getting here, however, had been difficult; the nearer they got to the border, the more people and soldiers they’d seen on the road. To avoid them, they crept through fields and forests, forded streams instead of using bridges. The journey took twice as much time and effort as it might have.

Once, while hidden in the forest close enough to see the road, they’d watched a covered wagon pass. A soldier sat at the front of the wagon, guiding the horses while three others rode close behind. Khirro had wanted to attack, convinced the wagon held the boy, but Athryn insisted it didn’t. They remained in hiding and watched, a knot forming in Khirro’s belly as it disappeared in the distance. He didn’t usually have difficulty trusting Athryn but, on that occasion, he’d been unable to discern if the magician made his decision based on magical knowledge, intuition, or simply a hunch.

The longer they crouched in the forest, the more Khirro suspected his companion may have been wrong about the covered wagon. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, careful not to make too much noise, the empty scabbard where the Mourning Sword should have been scraping the ground. The sound reminded him of how woefully unprepared he was should the wagon they sought be well protected. He couldn’t imagine it would be anything but.

Beside him, Athryn stiffened and cocked his head to one side. Khirro reacted by holding his breath and listening to the quiet of the night. Trees creaked at their backs, their nearly-bare branches scraping against one another as an owl called out, waited for a response and got none. Khirro concentrated on listening, but heard nothing. Even when Athryn nodded, he still hadn’t heard anything other than the trees and the nocturnal bird-of-prey. Another thirty seconds passed before Khirro discerned the sound of hooves. He leaned close to Athryn’s ear.

“Can you tell how many?”

“The sound of the wagon makes it difficult,” the magician replied in tones so quiet, it might have been a breeze rather than words. “Five, maybe more.”

Khirro gulped and unsheathed his dagger. He looked at it in his hand, the steel catching light from the shallow moon, and wondered how this small weapon would serve him against five Kanosee soldiers-or possibly more.

You don’t have to kill them all yourself. Stick to the plan.

He only needed to get close enough to kill one man, that would give Athryn the power and opportunity to call his magic into the fray.

All I have to do is get close enough to a group of mounted, trained soldiers to kill one of them. With no sword. That’s all.

He swallowed around the unbudging lump that had crawled out of his gut into his throat and glanced from his companion to the road. Still nothing to see. He heard the horses clearly now, and the rumble of the wagon wheels on the track, but a bend in the road kept them out of his sight.

Khirro shifted quietly, adjusted his grip on the dagger. It felt hard and out of place in his hand. Had he become so used to the Mourning Sword in so short a time? He supposed so. He’d come to feel the sword had chosen him to wield it, the thought making its loss more difficult. He bit down on a curse at himself for letting it go from his grasp; he’d never have such a sword again.

Months ago, I wouldn’t have cared. I’d have rather had a shovel, rake or hoe. How things change.

The sound of wagon and riders neared and Khirro shook the thought from his mind. A moment later, the first rider came into view.

The muscles in Khirro’s arms and shoulders, in his legs, tensed. Two more riders followed, then the wagon, the reins of its horses tended by a single soldier. Another three riders followed the wagon and, a few paces behind them, slowing the procession, two more followed on foot. Khirro held his breath waiting to see if more would follow them around the bend in the road. None did.

Nine.

Athryn looked toward Khirro and their eyes met. The magician nodded slightly, a gesture asking if he was ready, and Khirro nodded back. He readjusted his grip and gave silent thanks the last two soldiers were afoot-it would be easier to steal the life from one of them than to kill a mounted man.

As the lead rider drew even with them, Khirro saw he wore full armor and helm, his face hidden, any distinctions impossible to identify in the dim moonlight. The man could have as easily been Erechanian as Kanosee. The second and third mounted men passed, then the wagon was rattling by their hiding spot. Watching the wooden wheel spokes turning, the dull gray cloth jouncing, Khirro wondered how Athryn knew this to be the right wagon. What if he was wrong?

Too late to worry.

The wagon rumbled by, followed by the last riders. The muscles in Khirro’s thighs burned; he tensed further, coiling back to spring at the closest soldier, and time seemed to slow. The wagon’s clatter and the beat of hooves grew loud in his ears. His vision narrowed to the men approaching on foot, the wagon and his companion beside him dimming to blurs.

The foot soldiers passed and Khirro crept out of the brush onto the dirt track, emerging three yards behind them. He rushed the closest one, grabbed him around the shoulders and slashed his dagger across the man’s throat. The soldier grasped and grabbed at his attacker’s arm, but Khirro held on another few seconds before letting go. He expected the limp body to sink to the ground, blood fountaining from the wound and life draining from the Kanosee to provide Athryn the power he needed.

The man didn’t fall. Instead, he turned.

Khirro realized he should have struck again to protect himself, but a chill took hold of him upon seeing the sheet of skin hanging from the soldier’s throat where his knife sliced through papyrus-like flesh. No blood flowed. The man stared at Khirro, one eye regarding him, the other canted at an odd angle, looking toward the moon. His cheeks were sallow, his thin lips drawn up in a dead smile; a hollow laugh rattled and died against the sides of his open throat.

Khirro gasped and stumbled back as the dead man drew his sword and approached; a sliver of moonlight illuminated the splash of red across his armor. The first time he’d seen the armor of the dead men, Khirro didn’t know whether the red splash was paint or blood, but now he was convinced it was sacrificial blood.

The undead warrior brandished his sword and Khirro could only stare, limbs frozen by the memory of the dead soldier who came so close to taking his life at the Isthmus Fortress. Then, the Shaman saved him with his magic, but Bale died along with the king, and Athryn’s magic couldn’t save him this time.

So many have died.

Khirro could do nothing but clamp his jaw tight and brace himself for the killing blow. But it didn’t come. Instead, Athryn’s sword slashed through the soldier’s neck, finishing the job Khirro’s dagger started. The half-rotted head tumbled off the man’s shoulders, bounced once as it hit the road, then rolled away. The limp body followed it to the ground.

“Khirro,” Athryn cried. “Move!”

Athryn’s words released Khirro’s limbs from the spell of the memory binding them. He lurched to his left, narrowly avoiding a strike he hadn’t seen coming from the second foot soldier. The tip of the dead man’s sword hit the dirt an inch from Khirro, flicked dirt onto his foot. The miss threw him off balance and allowed Khirro to dance away and strike a blow. His dagger sank deep into the soldier’s shoulder but didn’t slow him. His sword swung in an upward arc missing Khirro close enough he felt air gust against his face.

The soldier attacked again and again, forcing Khirro back and keeping his meager weapon at a distance. Khirro knew he needed to counter attack, but the man’s sword kept him wary. He eluded yet another slice and dared a look past his adversary at Athryn engaged with two undead Kanosee soldiers.

His magic is our only hope.

Khirro ducked under the Kanosee’s sword and lunged forward, hitting him in the midsection. If he’d been alive, the tackle would have knocked the breath out of him, but instead it made a crumpling noise and threw him off balance enough for Khirro to put the thing down to the ground. He wrested the sword out of the undead soldier’s grip and separated its head from its body. Khirro straightened, his breath coming hard and fast, and located Athryn again.

“Athryn,” he cried rushing toward his companion.

One undead soldier lay at the magician’s feet while he engaged two others. Khirro looked beyond him and saw the wagon had stopped; the soldier driving it peered around its edge to watch the fight. One mounted Kanosee remained by the wagon, horse prancing in place, as another urged its steed toward the fray. A third horse stood idle on the other side of the wagon, its saddle empty.

“Khirro! I must ready my spell.”

The magician glanced at him as he joined the fight, surprising one of the undead soldiers and knocking him to the ground. He finished him with a flick of his commandeered sword and turned to engage the other soldier.

“But there’s no one to kill.”

“Just be ready. I need your blood.”

Athryn felled the second soldier and Khirro attacked the undead warrior who had slid from his horse’s saddle to engage him. He rained blows down on the enemy soldier, forcing him back a step to allow Athryn to retreat from the fight. The other two continued watching but neither moved to help.

The undead Kanosee recovered quickly and counter-attacked, thrusting at Khirro’s belly, following up with an upward swipe. Khirro fell back, parried, danced away. This dead man was better with a sword than the others. They circled each other and, over the man’s shoulder, Khirro saw Athryn had removed his tunic and was searching his tattoos for the words he needed.

Hurry, Athryn.

Steel rang against steel, the power of the dead man’s blows vibrating up Khirro’s arms. Dimly, he thought he heard the sound of Athryn chanting between the clang of weapons, but couldn’t be sure it wasn’t hopeful imagination tricking him. The fight settled into a back and forth rhythm until Khirro’s arms began to tire. The same couldn’t be said of his adversary. Khirro wanted to ask Athryn for help or beg him to hurry, but he worried that, if he did, it would interrupt the magician in the midst of his spell and doom them.

I can do this. The enemy doesn’t even draw breath.

A growl rumbled in Khirro’s throat. He pressed forward, turned his thoughts away from the magician and toward the boy hidden in the covered wagon and what the poor child must have been through. The thought steeled him, forced the fatigue out of his arms.

The undead soldier parried and blocked; Khirro’s blade caught flesh and separated an ear that looked more like a rotted leaf than an instrument for hearing. The contact threw the soldier off balance and Khirro followed the ear severing with a slash across the thing’s throat. It staggered him but didn’t stop it. A second slash and its head toppled. The body lurched on unsteady legs, sword swinging wildly in the thing’s blind hands, before slumping to the ground.

Khirro watched it fall and a short-lived wave of relief washed through him. He looked up from the rotted, lifeless body to see the other three Kanosee soldiers standing before him, two of them with weapons drawn, the third holding a boy in front of him, arm around his neck. The boy’s expression looked equal parts fear and disgust.

“Infidels,” the one holding the boy grated, his voice like a stiff wind rattling dried reeds. “I’ll kill the boy before you take him.”

No one moved for several seconds. Khirro heard the mutter of Athryn’s chant but it would be ineffective without blood to power it. He peeked over his shoulder, not wanting to take his gaze off his adversaries for more than a fraction of a second, and saw Athryn kneeling a few yards behind him. His mask lay on the ground with his tunic. When he looked back, the two Kanosee with their weapons drawn had taken a step forward.

“Athryn?”

The magician continued chanting. The undead holding the boy smiled, his wizened lips opening to show rotten teeth.

“Get him.”

The two men advanced. Khirro raised his sword defensively, the muscles in his arms screaming as fatigue rushed back into them.

“Now, Khirro,” Athryn called.

Khirro clenched his teeth and swiped his arm across the sword’s edge. The steel bit deep and he sucked a hissing breath between his teeth as blood trickled down his forearm, dripped on the ground. The two threatening men sank to the ground like half-full sacks of potatoes, armor and weapons clattering on loose stones. Khirro looked up at the last man, the boy held in front of him, its grip tight around his throat. Despite the holes in his gray-fleshed cheeks, the thin lips and non-existent eyelids, the soldier’s face registered surprise. It quickly changed to an emotion more akin to rage.

“The boy dies.”

Khirro saw the rotting muscle in the thing’s arm flex in preparation to slit the boy’s throat. Panic blossomed in Khirro’s gut. Elyea had told him to rescue the boy; what would happen if he failed? Without time for thought, he heaved the sword he’d taken from the fallen Kanosee at the undead warrior. It spun end-over-end through the air and Khirro watched in disbelief.

Why did I do that?

For Khirro, the world narrowed to the sword, its path, the soldier it was directed at and the boy in his grasp. End-over-end, end-over-end, point, hilt, point. The expression of fear on the boy’s face increased to horror and he squeezed his eyes closed, bracing for the impact. The soldier’s ruined face looked surprised again.

Until the point of the sword entered his right eye and exited through the back of its head.

The undead creature dropped its knife and released its grip on the boy, the force of the impact sending it reeling back, until its feet caught and it tumbled to the ground. The boy cracked one eyelid and started crying.

Khirro rushed past the boy, pulled the sword from the undead Kanosee’s eye, and used it to separate its head from its shoulders. A moment later, Athryn was at his side, hand on his shoulder. A sheen of sweat glistened on the magician’s forehead and bare chest in the wan moonlight.

“Nice aim,” he said and went to Graymon.

Athryn knelt in front of the boy and looked him in the eye. Graymon looked back for a second before collapsing into his arms.

“Don’t worry,” Khirro overheard Athryn whisper. “We are taking you home.”

Chapter Ten

“Quiet.”

Lehgan had stopped a minute before, his head canted as he listened to the sounds around them, though Emeline didn’t know why; she didn’t hear anything. A nightbird sang from the forest beside the road, trees creaked and brush rustled, and Iana cooed against her breast as if answering the night. Nothing unusual.

“Keep the child quiet, woman.”

Emeline shifted to pull the neck of her dress down, exposing her breast. Iana’s eyes widened at the sight of the freed nipple before she put her tiny mouth around it and closed her eyes. The calmness of feeding the baby flowed through Emeline’s arms and legs, making her forget where they were and all that had happened, until she heard the sounds that had made Lehgan stop.

Horses.

Somewhere around the bend in the road ahead, a horse whinnied and huffed, then she heard the voices. Her breath caught in her throat as she remembered the village they’d passed with its funeral pyre and smashed huts.

Lehgan gestured with his head for her to follow and turned his horse back the way they’d come. Emeline sat for a second, staring down the road.

“I knew we should have turned around and gone home when we saw that village. Come on.”

Her husband’s harsh whisper prompted her into action. She removed the nipple from the baby’s mouth, covered herself, and urged her horse to follow.

Iana began to cry.

Emeline looked down at her daughter’s face strained with anger at having her food taken away. A sob broke through, then a second, louder.

“Quiet,” Lehgan said and grabbed her horse’s bridle.

“Shh.” Emeline put the tip of her finger to Iana’s lips to calm her, but the baby jerked her head away and sobbed again.

“Keep the child quiet, woman.”

Lehgan put his heels to his horse and it sprang forward, dragging Emeline’s mount along and threatening to unsaddle her. She righted herself and hugged Iana tight to her chest. The baby shrieked.

“Who goes there?”

Emeline's right foot slipped out of the stirrup as she looked back over her shoulder at the words made foreign by the soldier’s Kanosee accent. She saw six or seven mounted men behind them before the horse’s movement made her slide in the saddle. Her foot dug for the stirrup but found only empty air. Instinctively, she let go of the reins and hugged Iana tight as panic surged through her at the feel of her dress slipping on the saddle leather. She lashed out a hand, grabbing for the horse’s mane, but missed.

“Lehgan,” she squealed.

Two thoughts occurred to her simultaneously, one an instinct, the other bred through years of riding: Protect the baby. Get your foot clear of the stirrup.

If her foot caught, she’d be dragged behind the horse, and then it wouldn’t matter what she did to protect her child. Although the horse hadn’t yet gotten up to speed, it wouldn’t slow down when it noticed her bouncing against the ground beside it.

Half-on, half-off the horse, Emeline twisted and wrenched her foot free, then twisted again to put herself between the baby and the hard ground. Her grip tightened, her muscles tensed, and she felt for a moment like she was floating, weightless and carefree as a bird.

The ground brought her back to reality.

Her back slammed against the dirt road, bones jarring with the impact, breath forced out of her lungs. A gray cloud clawed at the edge of her vision, seeking to steal her consciousness, but she willed it away and felt Iana writhe in her grasp, though-through her struggle to find air to feed her lungs-she heard no cries of pain or panic from the baby.

Laying on the ground, she stared up at the night sky, at stars twinkling against the black tapestry. The first flakes of snow tumbled down from on high, floating and twirling as they danced toward the ground. Despite the panic in her chest, she felt awed by the tranquillity of the darkness above and the falling snow. Not until Lehgan slid off his horse and stood over her blocking the stars, his lips moving without sound, did she realize she couldn’t hear anything.

Her husband crouched beside her, grabbed her shoulders. She saw desperation in his eyes, strain upon his brow, but she couldn’t figure out how to respond. He stared at her for a few seconds, the look in his eyes giving her the impression he held himself back from shaking her, then he looked up and away from her.

His expression changed and he stood, backing away a step. Her eyes followed him. His lips moved; he shook his head. Emeline shifted her gaze the other direction and saw the horses stopped a few yards away. Two of the soldiers dismounted and she realized where she was and what had happened.

Her breath returned along with awareness, and with her breath came the searing pain in her back and the screams of her child in her ears. She struggled to sit up and comfort Iana, hoping the baby was scared and not injured, but one of the soldiers put his foot against her chest and pushed her back to the ground.

“Stay put, wench,” he said.

The pain of the pressure of his foot against her achingly-full breast was nothing compared to the torment of her back hitting the ground again. Emeline fought back a scream and held Iana tighter against her shoulder. Two of the soldiers jumped past her and she saw one rip the sword out of Lehgan’s scabbard as the other grabbed his arms behind his back. Lehgan did nothing to stop them.

The man who pushed her down loomed over her. The week’s-worth of stubble on his cheeks was ginger-colored, though the hair trailing out from under his open-faced helm appeared blond. He showed her a menacing smile; one of his front teeth was missing.

“You’re a pretty one, ain’t ya?”

He poked his finger out toward Iana but Emeline twisted away sending a fresh explosion of pain along her injured back.

“No. Leave her alone.”

Her voice was shrill and panicked to her own ears and she felt a twinge in her belly that she couldn’t find enough control in herself to sound threatening instead of fearful. The soldier laughed and held out his hands.

“Give me the child and we won’t hurt it.”

Emeline shook her head painfully and felt tears roll down her cheeks. Iana’s distressed shrieks rang in her ear. Barely distinguishable over it, she heard Lehgan shouting, but his words soon stopped. She glanced his direction and saw his head hanging, one soldier holding him up as the other rubbed his knuckles, then the man with the missing tooth grabbed for Iana and Emeline forgot about her husband.

He got one hand around the baby, his fingers digging painfully into Emeline’s breast; she struggled to hold on, but the soldier’s strength and the pain in her back worked against her. The man wrenched Iana free from her grip and she screamed again in rage and panic. He stood, foot planted on her chest, easily holding her in place as he gestured for the man rubbing his knuckles to take the baby from him.

“What do you want me to do with that?”

“Just hold it,” he said leering down at Emeline. “These two’ll behave better if the child is alive.”

“But-”

“Take the damn whelp. I’ve got some work to do here.”

He handed Iana off to the other man then reached down, threw off the blanket wrapped around her shoulders and grabbed the bodice of Emeline’s dress. She clawed at his hand, but the leather glove covering his fingers and the thick fabric of his coat rendered her attempts useless. He yanked hard, wrenching her back and lifting her a couple of inches off the ground. When that didn’t produce the desired result, he grabbed on with his other hand, too.

“No,” Emeline whimpered. “No. Please give me my baby back.”

“You’ll have your whelp back soon enough.” He tore her bodice open and crouched on top of her, sitting on her hips.

Emeline felt the cold air on her bare breasts, the pain of their fullness, the weight of him on her bladder making her want to urinate, but it all disappeared as he leaned forward, grabbed her by both wrists and pinned her to the ground. A second later, his mouth found her ear. Her world became the slobbering sounds of his tongue on her ear and neck and the hoots and hollers of the other soldiers.

And the pains.

The man tried to put his mouth on hers, but Emeline turned her head away. Through the blur of her tears, she saw Lehgan being held by a Kanosee soldier. He’d raised his head and a line of blood ran from the corner of his mouth to his chin; he was looking at his wife, watching what the man was doing to her. Lehgan didn’t struggle against the soldier’s hold, he didn’t yell threats or offer words to comfort his wife, he just watched, an expression of defeat on his face.

One of the other soldiers grabbed her hands and the man sitting atop her moved his face away from hers. His now-free hands found their way under her dress, between her legs.

Emeline closed her eyes and bit down hard on her teeth wishing to be somewhere else, wishing that she hadn’t made this journey prompted by a ghost woman’s words. As flakes of snow melted on her burning cheeks, she prayed it would end soon.

***

Emeline opened her eyes and felt the hard ground under her back. Above, a few stars remained in the pre-dawn gray sky, but the snow had stopped without collecting on the ground; she must have slept a little after the soldiers finished with her.

The pain caused by her fall had mostly waned as a fresh discomfort between her legs usurped it. Four of the soldiers had forced themselves on her before it ended. She didn’t know how long it went on; she’d made herself retreat to a hiding place inside her head before the third man settled in on top of her.

She looked at Lehgan sleeping beside her, Iana snuggled tight against his chest, but jerked her gaze away. She wanted to snatch the baby away from him but knew she wouldn’t have the strength. After seeing Lehgan stand watching without making a sound in protest while the soldiers raped her, she didn’t want to see his face. After seeing the stark fear in his expression freeze him from at least trying to come to her aid, she wasn’t sure she would ever look at him the same again.

“You will forgive him. There was nothing he could do without forfeiting his life.”

The voice didn’t startle Emeline, nor did it surprise her when she saw the ghostly woman standing over her.

“He could have tried,” she replied, the whispered words forced between her clenched teeth.

The ghost woman crouched at Emeline’s side. “I know it’s difficult to understand now, but all this must happen to reach the needed outcome.”

“It didn’t have to happen to me.”

The ghost’s green eyes were soft with an understanding Emeline wouldn’t have expected to see in them.

“It did,” the ghost woman said, “and I’m sorry it did. No one should have to go through what you did.”

Emeline pressed her lips together, fighting back more tears. She’d cried enough as she endured those men lying atop her, forcing themselves into her. She didn’t want to cry anymore. Ever. She waited until she felt her control return, then looked around quickly to make sure no one noticed her speaking to a shadow before replying.

“If it will be like this, I cannot continue and do what you want.” She shifted on the ground and immediately felt the pain of the movement between her legs. “I would rather be dead.”

The ghost put her hand on Emeline’s shoulder, the touch of it surprising in its solidity. “Think of your mother and father. And Iana. What will happen to her if you give up and Khirro fails?”

Emeline closed her eyes and remembered the ruined town, the villagers burning their dead. It could easily have been her parents' village. But could she really do anything to prevent it?

“I can’t,” she said, eyes still closed. “I’m not strong enough.”

“Yes, you are.”

Emeline opened her eyes again and peered into the ghost woman’s understanding face. “How do you know?”

“Because I have seen others like you who didn’t think themselves brave, yet have shown courage beyond compare.”

“Khirro.”

“Yes, Khirro. Something you have not considered: you now know what it is like to be raped. For a year, Khirro has carried around with him the idea that he did that to you. Can you imagine how it made him feel?”

Emeline sighed a slow breath and thought about lying on the ground, a stranger pressed inside her, wishing it would be over. She thought about how helpless she’d felt.

“Yes, I think I do.”

The ghost woman nodded and stood. “Then you know you can do this. For the kingdom, for your family, for yourself. And for Khirro.”

The sky lightened further and the ghostly form faded.

“Yes,” Emeline said to the spot where the woman had been standing seconds before. “Yes, I can.”

“Who are you talking to, wench?”

The soldier’s hand rested on the buckle of his belt. Was he putting it on or taking it off? Emeline didn’t know, nor did she answer. She closed her eyes and turned her head away, waiting for whatever might come next because she knew, no matter what it was, she would endure.

She had to.

Chapter Eleven

No one had passed their hiding spot crouched in the bushes at the verge of the forest for more than an hour, but Athryn insisted they wait longer, both to ensure their safety and to let the boy rest. Khirro fidgeted and looked at Graymon curled on the ground between them. Even in sleep, his face showed the strain of his experiences. After all he’d been through himself in the past months, Khirro could imagine what it must have been like for the boy.

“I don’t understand why it worked, Athryn,” Khirro said shaking his head. “I drew blood for you, but I obviously didn’t die, yet you cast a spell.”

“You did not die, my friend, and thank the Gods for it, but death walked all around us.” He leaned forward and peered along the road. “Those soldiers were already dead.”

“Their death and my blood.” Khirro touched the bandage covering the cut on his forearm and winced. “How did you know it would work?”

Athryn leaned back and looked into his companion’s eyes. “I did not know it would.”

Khirro’s gut clenched; he raised his head and stared at the magician. “You didn’t know?”

You risked my life.

Athryn shook his head.

Khirro opened his mouth to protest about the magician taking his life in his hands, but stopped himself before he spoke. What choice did they have but to take such chances? If he didn’t, either they or the boy or both would have been dead, and the journey would have come to a premature end-no different than if Athryn had done nothing. Khirro decided not to say anything about it.

“We should move out,” he said instead. “Before anyone else comes.”

“They are already coming.”

Khirro stared at Athryn for a second, then pivoted to look down the road. At first he didn’t see anything as the gray of dawn leeched color from the world and smeared shapes together. He squinted to focus, looking for any movement on the dirt track, until he realized the reason he didn’t see anyone was because he looked in the wrong place. A figure moved through the brush at the side of the road, swinging his sword to cut a swath before him, but still far enough away that distance hid the sound of his blade shearing through the brambles.

Looking for something. For us.

Now he’d spied one man, Khirro saw others-three Kanosee soldiers on each side of the road, and more might be hidden in the trees. All of them walked slowly with their weapons in hand, eyes turned to the ground in front of them, searching.

“They’re looking for us,” he whispered leaning over the sleeping boy so Athryn would hear him. “We have to go.”

“If we go, they will see us.”

“They’ll find us if we stay.”

Athryn sighed quietly, seeming indecisive for the first time Khirro could recall. “They must have found the wagon,” he said.

Khirro barely heard him, his mind working through possible escape routes and finding precious few options. If they made a run for it along the road, the soldiers would surely see them, especially with a half-asleep young boy in tow; the tangle of forest at their backs was too thick to move through without creating noise that would expose them. But staying put wasn’t a viable option, either. Not unless…

“Can you see if they’re undead?”

A few seconds passed with no response from the magician. Khirro considered asking the question again, but Athryn held up a hand, stopping him before he spoke.

“At least one I can see. Why? We know how to dispatch the dead ones as easily as the live ones.”

“I’m not thinking about fighting them; we don’t know how many there are and it would be dangerous for the boy.” Khirro paused, considering options other than the one on the edge of his lips, but made himself continue before he changed his mind. “In Tasgarad, you cast a spell to hide us in the alley. Can you do that again?”

Athryn pivoted to look at Khirro. “I can, but I will not.”

“What? Why not? It’s our only chance.”

“I cannot be sure it will work. They are still far away, perhaps too far for me to draw power from the death that follows them.” He paused and his gaze met Khirro’s. “And I do not want you to end up like Maes.”

Khirro’s face cinched down in an expression of non-understanding. Athryn had been willing to risk it before to rescue the boy; why not to hide them from their pursuers?

What does he mean he doesn’t want me to end up like Maes? Dead?

He glanced down the dirt track again. Even with the sky growing lighter as the sun inched its way over the horizon, it still took him a moment to pick out the soldiers searching for them amongst the tall grass and brambles. They moved slowly, but they were closer.

“Athryn, they will find us, then all will be for nothing.”

The magician stared at him, his expression hidden by the black cloth mask covering his face, but Khirro thought he saw struggle in his eyes and imagined that, if he saw beneath the cloth, he’d find concern, fear and doubt. The thought made him shift uncomfortably.

“One slice of a knife won’t kill me.”

Athryn’s gaze dropped to the ground. He transferred his weight from one foot to the other-thinking, struggling-then looked back at his companion.

“For years, Maes cut himself in the service of magic, without a word of protest. I never stopped to ask him how he felt about it as he scarred himself for me.”

Khirro understood guilt-he’d carried around his share and more since what happened with Emeline. It had done nothing to serve him.

“A scar is small price for me to pay compared to what the Kanosee soldiers might do to me. To us.” He nodded over Athryn’s shoulder toward the approaching soldiers. “We can’t risk the boy. Elyea said he has an important role in what we do. Don’t think about me, Athryn. Think about him.”

Khirro stretched and looked past his friend; the nearest soldier had approached close enough to worry he might hear if they continued speaking. Khirro gritted his teeth and looked into Athryn’s eyes, his gaze intense as he tried to will him to make the decision. After a long sigh, the magician nodded.

“Draw blood when I signal.”

Khirro’s dagger whispered out of its sheath as he drew it, then rolled up his left sleeve. He clenched his fist, watching the bandage already wrapped around his forearm shift with the movement of the muscle beneath the skin. A wash of sour-tasting saliva flooded his tongue.

What if it doesn’t work? Then his next thought: It will work.

He set the edge of the knife against his flesh, felt the coolness, the sharpness of it. His skin creased under its pressure, but he held back, waiting to make the cut when Athryn gave him the word. He breathed deep, inhaling the loamy smells of the near-winter forest at their back, but it brought him no solace, did nothing to quell his fear-forests had not been friendly places for him, of late.

What if he doesn’t tell me? What if he’s lying to protect me?

Nerves jumped in Khirro’s stomach and his eyes flickered from the knife against his arm to his companion. Athryn’s eyes were closed, his breathing measured. A second later, the chant began, and the strangely familiar archaic, foreign words muffled by the cloth covering Athryn’s face did what the forest’s aroma couldn’t-Khirro’s reticence eased. The words settled into a quiet rhythm, became the drone emanating from a nest of angry wasps or the thrum of wind through a field of corn.

Khirro glanced at the boy between them, still sleeping undisturbed, his splinted arm resting against his chest. Strain showed on his youthful face, as though he dreamed unpleasant dreams. Khirro understood unpleasant dreams.

A rustle of grass caught his attention and he looked away from the boy. He couldn’t see beyond the magician without stretching, so he did, and immediately wished he hadn’t.

Ten yards behind Athryn, a soldier searched the tall grass bordering the thicket in which they hid.

Despite the dim light of the rising sun, Khirro saw the splash of red across the man’s black mail and held his breath as Athryn’s chant continued, rising in volume. He held himself back from warning the magician to be quiet for fear that interrupting his chant might ruin his spell.

The undead soldier turned toward them.

Khirro’s gaze snapped back to Athryn, afraid he’d miss the magician’s signal. Over his shoulder, he saw the soldier look away toward the dirt track, then back at Khirro. Nothing happened for a moment, and Khirro wondered if the thing saw him. Maybe if they stayed still, stayed quiet.

Hurry, Athryn.

“Here!”

The word hit Khirro like a rock to the chest and the undead soldier took a step toward them.

“Athryn,” he whispered.

The chant continued.

The soldier took another step and Khirro pressed the knife more firmly against his forearm, awaiting the signal.

A second soldier farther down the road called back to the first. “Have you found anything?”

Khirro knew by the rough tone of its voice that it was another of the undead.

“Athryn?”

“I think they’re here,” the thing grated.

Khirro’s gaze darted from soldier to magician in time to see Athryn nod. The knife bit into the flesh of his forearm and blood immediately welled to the surface, ran down the side of his arm. Khirro watched it flow, mesmerized by the deep red of fresh blood as the air wavered around him.

Don’t pass out.

Khirro raised his head and saw the Kanosee soldier approach, pushing into the thicket with his sword drawn. The undead thing’s footsteps sounded loud in his ears as it crashed through the brush; Khirro dimly felt the sticky trail of blood rolling down his forearm and into his hand as though it was a distant memory. In front of him, Athryn shook his head minutely, held his finger to his lips. It wasn’t until he saw the gesture that Khirro realized neither the pain of the fresh cut nor his fear of being found made the air waver before his eyes. It was the magician’s spell; it had manifested this way when he hid them before.

A small degree of tension released from Khirro’s limbs and he settled himself in place to watch the soldier hack at a twist of branches blocking his way.

What if he swings his sword where he thought he saw us?

He tightened his grip on the sword he'd taken from one of the undead soldiers, its edge chipped and worn, and wished he hadn’t lost the Mourning Sword.

The Kanosee soldier stopped five yards from their hiding spot and looked around, confused. Khirro clearly saw his features: this one wasn’t as decomposed as many of the others he’d seen. His face possessed the smooth skin and luster of a young man, with only a small amount of rot that looked like moss near his left ear. The red-splashed black mail labeled him as one of the undead-that and the gaping hole where his guts should have been.

Khirro shuddered.

“Where are they?” The second soldier had arrived and stood behind and to the right of the first.

“They were right here,” the first said pointing with the tip of his sword.

The second soldier’s gaze jerked side to side as he surveyed the area, his head wobbling on a neck half-cut-through and Khirro hoped the action might separate it from its body and save him the trouble. The undead man’s eyes swept over Khirro and his companions without recognition; he stepped forward, pushing brush aside with his sword.

“You might’ve been seeing things,” he said. “But we gotta look.”

The first soldier nodded and began poking and prodding through the thicket with the tip of his sword. Khirro drew a slow breath through his nose, trying not to make noise, and looked past the two Kanosee soldiers to see four more approaching along the dirt track. He held the air in his lungs a heartbeat longer before releasing it.

This better work.

The second man swung his sword side to side, cutting through clumps of bramble and fern with each stroke. Khirro tensed, watching him closely until he veered to the right, choosing a course that would take him wide of where the magician’s spell hid them. Meanwhile, the first soldier searched a spot to their left. He bent over, looking closely at something he’d seen lying on the ground. When he straightened, he held a large rock in his hand.

“Find something?”

“No. A rock.”

He tossed the stone aside and Khirro watched it arc through the air toward them, willing it to fall short. It didn’t.

The stone landed on the boy’s leg, startling him awake. It wasn’t a big enough rock to cause any real pain, but the surprise of it hitting him and waking him caused him to cry out.

At first, Khirro thought to reach down and cover the boy’s mouth, keep him from making more noise, but the immediate reaction of the soldiers dispelled any possibility they hadn’t heard him.

“Here!” the second soldier bellowed, already moving toward the sound. “They are hidden by magic. Chop it all down!”

The other dead man paused to relay their discovery to the soldiers searching farther down the road and Khirro knew he needed to act. He leaped over the scared boy and through the shimmering morning air at the closest Kanosee soldier.

“Khirro! No!”

Khirro heard Athryn’s words, but it was too late to stop. He rushed the undead warrior, catching him off guard before he had time to react as the sword he'd liberated from one of this soldier's fellows sliced what remained of his neck, completing the job begun on some other battlefield. Its head toppled, the body crumpled; Khirro spun toward the other soldier.

The undead Kanosee soldier waited, poised to spring, but made no immediate move. Between them, Athryn crouched on the ground with his arms wrapped around the boy. The magician’s lips moved, though he made no sound.

Khirro took a step and the soldier tensed, but didn’t advance. The feel of a sword in his hand energized him more than he ever would have imagined; he stalked forward, his gaze on the undead soldier who fell back with his advance. The one-time farmer’s heart swell with guilty pride as, finally, someone was afraid of him.

No, he’s waiting for the others.

The clank of armor as the other four soldiers ran down the dirt track to their compatriot’s aid made Khirro realize the truth of it, and the realization squeezed pride from him.

I have to kill him before they get here.

He tensed to leap at his enemy, but Athryn’s voice interrupted.

“Khirro,” the magician said, quiet and breathless. “Blood.”

Khirro’s eyes darted toward his companion seated on the grass behind him, eyes closed, arms around the boy. For a second, Khirro wasn’t completely sure he’d spoken.

“Now, Khirro.”

He waited a fraction of a second before dragging his forearm across the edge of the sword’s blade and, in that hesitation, the Kanosee soldier realized what was happening. He leaped for the magician and Khirro’s legs tensed to launch him to Athryn’s defence.

The world went black.

Chapter Twelve

Her eyes flickered open, a disturbance in the energy flowing about her inexplicably drawing her out of her meditation.

Sheyndust sat upright, then stood, the surface of her bare flesh prickling, all her nerves alert. She glanced around her chambers but knew she wouldn’t find anyone within; her sharp senses would have warned her if someone had entered, and the fierce guard outside the door would keep anyone out. No, something else had disturbed her.

The Archon looked toward the window.

The shutter was open, as she’d left it, a breeze billowing the sheer curtains inward. She moved toward it noticing the softness of the bearskin rug between her toes without enjoying it, and retrieved her robe from the arm of the divan on her way. She pulled it over her bare shoulders and cringed at its feel-she despised the touch of cloth on her flesh, even the robe’s smooth purple silk, but convention demanded it. At least, until it was she who determined what convention was.

Clouds hid the sun, giving the air more chill as the days crept closer to winter. The Archon breathed a deep breath, hoping the feel of the cold air would calm the feeling that pulled her out of meditation, but it didn’t. She gazed across the courtyard at the familiar sight of Kanosee soldiers moving about the fortress. Some of them moved purposefully, with places to go and jobs to perform, but many of them appeared to be drunk, though the sun hadn’t yet reached its zenith.

I will have to deal with that.

With nothing seeming out of the ordinary, she turned back to the room, ready to dismiss the odd impression and remove the uncomfortable clothes, but a group of men on horseback caught her eye before she did. She returned to the window and leaned out, hands resting on the cold stone casement.

On the avenue below, six Kanosee soldiers rode by-a unit returning from routine patrol. Nothing unusual about them, except the extra horses they led and their two prisoners: a man and a woman. Each was bound at the wrists and tethered to a saddle of one of the riders.

Sheyndust leaned farther out the window to examine the captives: Kanosee farmers from the look of them. As she looked closer, she realized only one of the woman’s wrists was bound, the other one left free to clutch her child to her chest.

Is this what disturbed my meditation?

Her eyes narrowed, searching the woman’s face as they passed close under her window, but she recognized neither her nor the man. Clearly not the reason she was drawn from her trance.

Sheyndust opened her mouth to enquire of the patrol who these people were and where they came from when a knock at the door interrupted her. Her lips pressed together in a tight line, jaw muscles flexing beneath her cheeks in irritation at another disturbance. She took mental note of the captives’ faces, leaned away from the window and faced the door.

“Enter.”

The door swung open and Hahn Perdaro stepped across the threshold.

“Your excellence,” he said and bowed at the waist.

His eyes remained on her, trailing down her front and she looked down to see her robe had fallen open. He was eyeing her breast, her belly and below. She yanked the fabric closed.

“Why are you bothering me? Did I not leave word to be left alone?”

“Yes, of course, but I thought you’d-”

“I neither expect nor want you to think. You are employed to tell me what you know, nothing more.”

Disappointment caused the councilor’s face to sag, and the hurt evident in his visage brought some satisfaction to the Archon, though it was short lived; she knew he would not have disturbed her without reason. The feel of her flesh, the scent of her body insured he would always do what she asked.

“Yes. That’s why I’m here. I’ve heard rumors I thought…whispers you will want to know.”

She crossed the room toward him angrily, this time without noticing the fur of the bearskin rug, then her bare feet slapped the stone floor, carrying her to stand before the so-called Voice of the People. The corner of his mouth twitched, as though her proximity made him want to smile but he held himself in check. The Archon kept her expression stern and unhappy, but did not let on the true loathing she was beginning to feel for this man, for who he was and for the things she made herself do with him in service of furthering her goals.

“What is it?”

“The boy,” he said, his eyes flickering away from her gaze and back. “Graymon.”

The Archon felt her stomach lurch, though her outward appearance showed no reaction. “What about him?”

“They’ve taken him.”

“Taken him?” This time, she spoke the words between clenched teeth as she imagined Therrador going against her wishes, slipping out of the fortress with a band of mounted men intent on rescuing his son. “Who has taken him?”

“The king-bearer and the magician.”

“Impossible,” she snapped. “They should be dead by now. I have set much against them.”

“Apparently they are not so easily killed.”

She glared at him, feeling sure he meant the smile tilting the corner of his lips to mock her. The Archon clenched her fist, struggling to keep herself from slapping the expression off his face. She turned and paced back to the window, felt the rough stone hammering against her feet, the silk robe sandpapering her shoulders and back, the soft fabric tearing at her flesh and adding to her anger until she tore it off, shredding the material and throwing the remnants to the floor. She whirled around to find Perdaro staring at her with lust in his eyes, and her anger multiplied, exploding.

“Find them,” she screamed, her voice reverberating against the walls and startling the man. His dumfounded expression disappeared and his eyes filled with fear. His fear satisfied her.

“Yes, your Grace,” he said bowing shallowly and averting his eyes before hurrying out of the room.

The door creaked closed behind him and the Archon remained standing at the edge of the bearskin rug, staring at the closed door as she seethed. After a minute, she returned to the window, skirting the soft touch of the rug, and looked out across the courtyard again, uncaring who saw her nakedness. The chill air touched her, hardening her nipples and cooling her temper.

Her gaze scanned the area, passing over the soldiers without noticing either them or the citizens of the fortress. Did the boy really matter anymore? She needed him to ensure Therrador’s acquiescence, but he wouldn’t know the boy had been rescued. Truthfully, if she killed him now, the king wouldn’t know until it was too late.

That is it, then. I will kill him when we have him back.

No, it troubled her more to find out the bearer and his magician friend yet lived. How had she not known? After Shariel, she’d trusted they wouldn’t survive Poltghasa and Kanos instead of taking care of things herself; she’d been too distracted with Therrador and other matters to concentrate on them.

“What threat is a dead king to me, anyway?” she said aloud.

No, they weren’t worthy of her concern, not when she still controlled Therrador and they would have to face the entire army of Kanos to reach her or use the boy to manipulate the king.

She smiled to herself, satisfied things were going the way she wanted despite these small setbacks. Her vision would not be denied by anyone, certainly not a farmer and a dead king. She leaned out the window and filled her lungs with cold air.

At the edge of her vision, the Archon caught sight of the six riders and their prisoners again. She leaned father out the window, following their ride through narrowed eyes until they disappeared around a corner and out of sight.

What is it about them?

She continued to stare until a drunken voice distracted her.

“Lookit ‘em teats, Rawl!”

She glared at the men standing below the window looking up at her. The man who had spoken grinned, his eyelids drooping with too much drink, a line of saliva trailing from the corner of his mouth. His companion seemed more sober, his face taut with an expression that suggested he wished he was anywhere else in the world.

The Archon smiled and held her hand out toward the men, like she would wave to them. The drunken letch raised his hand in return and his companion fell back a step. A grim smile pulled at the Archon’s mouth as she snapped her hand into a fist and jerked it toward her chest. The drunken man spasmed once and fell twitching to the ground.

With a smile on her lips, the Archon spun from the window and walked across the room.

***

Emeline hugged Iana tight to her chest, grateful they’d arrived at the fortress and the end of their arduous journey, but worried at what might happen next. The one soldier-the leader of the band of Kanosee-had had his way with her every night of their trek while the others left her alone, but she didn’t know what he’d expect of her now their trip was done.

“Everything will be all right,” Lehgan whispered leaning toward her. Emeline didn’t respond or even raise her eyes to look at her husband.

The lead rider slid out of his saddle and Emeline tensed. At times, he’d treated her almost tenderly, but she also bore not-yet faded bruises as a result of his passion. As he approached, she looked down at her daughter, avoiding his eyes. He stood before her, hands on his hips, regarding her for a few seconds before he drew his knife from the sheath on his belt.

Emeline flinched away, though it didn’t escape her notice that Lehgan again made no move to protect her. The soldier brandished the knife between them, holding it close enough to her to ensure she saw it. She squeezed her eyes shut and prayed he wouldn’t hurt Iana.

The pressure of the cord around her wrist increased as though someone cinched it tighter, then it disappeared. Emeline opened her eyes and looked at her wrist; the soldier had cut the cord tethering her to his horse and had turned the blade to freeing Lehgan.

“You can go,” the soldier said.

Lehgan took a step away, but Emeline didn’t move immediately. She stared at the man, disbelieving that he would let them go like this. Surely, after all he’d put her through, this must be some sort of trick. She took a tentative half-step away and he moved forward. Emeline froze as the soldier leaned toward her until his face was only inches from hers.

“I’ll miss you,” he whispered. She felt his breath on her cheek, smelled the rank odor of the dried pork he’d eaten for lunch. “My name is Hektor. Remember it; maybe we’ll see each other again some time.”

She stepped away from him, her eyes wide. The soldier smiled and his companions laughed. Emeline felt a sickness in her stomach, but not just for what these men did to her.

This is what people think Khirro is. Because of me.

Lehgan’s touch on her arm startled her out of her stupor; she hurried away down the boulevard without him, leaving her tormentors behind and her husband to catch up. He did after a moment and walked beside her, silent at first. When they were around a corner, out of sight of their captors, he grabbed Emeline by the arm, forcing her to stop.

“Emeline, I-”

“No.” She jerked her arm from his grasp and stepped away a pace. Their eyes met and she glared, neither of them speaking for a few seconds. “We have to find Khirro.”

Lehgan looked surprised. “What? Why should we find Khirro? No. I need to talk to you.”

She shook her head.

“Emeline.”

“You could have done something.”

He looked at her, his shoulders sagging, eyes turning watery. When he spoke, he did so in a whisper filled with emotion she didn’t trust to be real.

“I should have.”

“We have to find Khirro.”

She walked away, Iana gurgling and cooing against her chest.

Chapter Thirteen

Emon Turesti watched the man emerge from the lane, look both directions like he had something to hide, then scurry down the boulevard toward him. Turesti shrank back into the shadows and waited for the man to pass, catching a look at him as he did. Dark, scraggly hair; down-turned eyes.

Hu Dondon.

Sir Alton Sienhin had summoned the Lord Chamberlain as well, though he met with them separately. Why would he not meet them together? Turesti shook his head and peered after Dondon, realizing he would never completely understand the military mind of a man like the general. He’d spent his life in the service of the king-no matter whose ass polished the throne-and sat in on innumerable strategy meetings and war councils, but his role in those was limited to note-taking and nodding agreement, his opinion neither asked for nor wanted. He’d learned much over the years, but many things still remained unclear.

Turesti stepped out of the shadows and hurried to the mouth of the lane, where he stopped and looked back over his shoulder, aware his action bore a striking resemblance to Hu Dondon’s a few minutes before. His limp gray hair brushed the shoulders of his robe as he glanced the other direction to ensure it was also clear of curious eyes. No one followed him. He darted down the narrow lane, sandals scuffing through garbage strewn across the brief path leading to the plain wooden door at the end: his destination.

“Gods,” he murmured, wishing he’d chosen to wear breeches and boots, as the cold weather demanded.

He hiked up the bottom of his robe to prevent it from trailing through the trash, and picked his way toward the door, pausing when he reached it. A rime of frost glittered on the door’s handle and he felt the chill of it melting under his fingers as he grasped the handle, wondering if the door would be locked.

It wasn’t.

Turesti pushed the door open, stepped across the threshold, and quickly swung it closed behind him to shut out the cold and any prying eyes.

“Ah, I see you received my invitation, Smoke.”

He spun around, instinct throwing his hands up defensively. The light of a taper sitting on a shelf mounted high on the left wall illuminated the bushy mustache and ruddy face of Sir Alton Sienhin, commander of the king’s army.

“You know I hate it when you call me that, Sir Alton.”

“Yes. Yes I do.”

Turesti surveyed the small room. Mostly empty shelves stood against three of the walls: a store room, picked clean by the war effort and not yet restocked. He’d have to poke fun at Hu Dondon, the Lord Chamberlain, the next time he saw him.

The next time I see him when the two of us aren’t skulking about.

Sir Alton sat on a foot stool in the far corner of the room, but rose when his guest entered. He wore a full set of leather and chain mail; his ever-present sword hung on one hip, a dagger on the other side, and Turesti wondered why he would be clad thus. Sienhin took a step toward him and the High Chancellor tensed involuntarily.

“The kingdom has gone for a shit.”

The knight’s choice of words caught him off-guard and Turesti stifled a laugh. Though true and obvious, the general’s flair for the melodramatic often struck him as funny.

“Sir Alton,” Turesti said, relaxing a little, “this is not news. We are-”

“Perdaro is in league with the Archon.”

The robe around Turesti’s shoulders suddenly felt as though an alchemist had transformed its gold threads into lead. His shoulders sagged and his gaze slid toward the floor.

“Hahn? It can’t be. I’ve known him since he was a child. I-”

“Nothing is as we think, Smoke. The king has opened the gates to the enemy and the Archon holds his son captive. One of his most trusted advisors plots against the kingdom. Sir Matte is dead. These are desperate times and I need to know if you are worthy of my trust.”

“Of course,” Turesti said looking up into Sienhin’s gauging eyes. “I’ve lived my entire life for the kingdom.”

Sir Alton regarded him; a minute passed in silence. Finally, the general nodded once. Turesti’s shoulders relaxed and he released his held breath.

“I will leave in two hours to go to Achtindel, and I will return with an army.”

“You’ll be seen leaving,” Turesti said, surprised. “You won’t get through the guards at the gate.”

“I’ll not be going out the gates.”

Turesti’s eyes narrowed, his head tilted slightly to the right. The general looked at him without speaking.

“The tunnels?” Turesti finally asked.

“Aye. There’s one from this very room that will lead me straight outside the walls. There I’ll get a horse and be in the capital in a few days.”

A thought occurred to Turesti and he suppressed a shudder. “And you’re telling me because you want me to accompany you?”

A laugh burst out of the general hard enough to make his mustache quiver. He slapped Turesti on the shoulder.

“No offence, Smoke, but if I’m taking anyone, it wouldn’t be you.”

“Hu, then?”

“No, not him, either.” Sir Alton’s eyes narrowed, his hand dropped off Turesti’s shoulder and his cheeks took on the pink hue they acquired whenever he became deadly serious, which was often. “Don’t tell Dondon what we spoke of. It’s best not to trust anyone.”

Turesti’s eyes widened. “But I saw him leaving. You already spoke to him.”

The knight’s glare bore into the older man, making him want to shrink away, but he held his ground. Turesti imagined that, if Sienhin’s mustache didn’t hide the majority of his jaw, he’d see the general grinding his teeth.

“For the sake of the kingdom, keep our conversation to yourself.”

Turesti nodded vigorously. “Of course.”

“Good. Be off with you then. Go about your duties like nothing is any different, but watch for a messenger in less than a week’s time. We will need someone trustworthy to open the gate so we may take back our kingdom. That will be your role.”

“I will, Sir Alton. I will.”

Turesti opened the door, stepped halfway through, then paused and looked back at the knight. Sir Alton Sienhin offered a half smile-denoted by a slight movement in the bushy ends of his mustache-then waved him to go. Turesti did, shutting the door behind him.

He picked his way through the lane’s detritus, then strode down the boulevard, a lopsided smile on his face. It surprised him how good he felt knowing the general trusted him with such a pivotal task. After so many years in the service of more than one king, he’d been trusted with much, but this felt different, more important than anything he’d ever done. Never were the threats to the kingdom like this before, never this severe.

He took a left down a narrower street that passed between the stores buildings on the way to his quarters, his footsteps echoing, his mind racing. The kidnapping of the king’s son explained much. Turesti didn’t have children himself for he never cared to take a wife-his tastes leaned toward decidedly different things than those of the average man-but he’d seen the bond between Therrador and Graymon.

But what made Hahn turn his back on the kingdom?

Perhaps King Braymon’s fall made him lose faith; it had shaken many, to be sure. And was it possible that Hu Dondon couldn’t be trusted, either? He’d been in service of the kingdom almost as long as himself.

Emon Turesti shook his head as he walked, struggling to understand, trying to discern what to believe. At the end of the avenue, he turned right onto a narrow lane, at the end of which lay his quarters.

“Smoke. What’s a man of your stature doing out so late at night?”

The familiar voice startled Turesti and he stopped suddenly with an audible gasp. Even with his face hidden in shadow, he knew it was Hahn Perdaro standing before him.

“H-Hahn,” Turesti said, failing in his effort to keep fear from his voice. “I’m just on my way to my quarters to call it a night.”

“Hmm. More likely out buggering someone’s son, I suppose.”

Turesti felt his cheeks flush; he shook his head. “No, I…I’m going home, nothing more.”

Perdaro stepped out of the deep shadow into the street and Turesti took a step back.

“What are you doing here, Hahn?”

“Looking for you, of course. Why else would I be here at this time of night?”

“L-looking for me? What ever could you want with me?”

“I heard you had a clandestine meeting with Sir Alton. I need you to tell me what you spoke of.”

“Sir Alton? Why no, I’ve not seen the general.” Turesti peered over his shoulder then back at Perdaro. “Why would you think I’ve seen him?”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Do you forget with whom you speak, Smoke? I am not just the Voice of the People, I am also their ears. Little happens that I don’t hear.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I haven’t seen the general.”

“Liar,” Perdaro barked. “It will do you no good, Smoke. I’ll have the truth from you one way or another. Which way is up to you.”

Turesti’s thoughts spun. Hahn Perdaro wasn’t a soldier, but he was younger and stronger. Turesti knew he wouldn’t fare well against him should he choose to fight, but perhaps the general was still where he left him. Maybe he could make it back to him ahead of Hahn.

Perdaro smiled, eyes gleaming. Turesti stutter-stepped back, then spun around and ran directly into a soldier standing behind him. His head stuck hard against something solid, sending him stumbling, dazed. It took a second for his vision to refocus but when it did, he clearly saw the splash of red across a background of black chain mail. He raised his eyes and gazed upon rheumy eyes and cheeks black with rot. The undead soldier stepped toward him.

“Are you sure you don’t want to tell me, Smoke?”

Emon Turesti parted his lips to scream, but Hahn Perdaro’s hand over his mouth stopped him.

***

Sir Alton heaved a sigh and sagged down on the stool.

Well, that’s done. Now let’s see what happens.

He sat for a minute before blowing out the candle on the shelf and leaving the musty-smelling store room.

He’d chosen this spot to meet the councilors because the building across the boulevard offered an ideal hiding spot from which to watch over it. After a quick check to be sure no one was around, he hurried across the street, unlocked the door and stole inside. He knew the room to be empty, but he stood by the door for a minute, waiting for his eyes to grow accustomed to the dark. Once they did, he crossed the room and crept up the creaky wooden steps to the second floor.

An hour and a half later, hidden in shadow by the second story window, Sir Alton Sienhin shifted his weight carefully to keep his armor from making noise. As he got older, laying in wait wasn’t as easy, or as comfortable, as it had once been.

The time he’d told Hu Dondon had come and gone, and no one came to ambush him or stop him. It seemed the Lord Chamberlain could be trusted; it wouldn’t be long before he found out whether he’d be able to say the same of Emon Turesti.

The thought hadn’t finished forming when the sound of boots scraping on stone came to Sienhin’s attention. He shrank farther into the shadows, his back pressed against the wall, his hand on the hilt of his sword, both in readiness and to keep it from making noise and revealing him. A moment later, two undead Kanosee soldiers came into view.

One of the soldiers walked normally enough that Sienhin wouldn’t have known he wasn’t a living man but for the red paint splashed across his chest. The second man’s leg dragged behind him like a dead thing, the side of his boot scraping the cobblestones as he hobbled along.

They stopped at the entrance of the lane and looked up and down the avenue. Sienhin gritted his teeth. Were they here by coincidence, perhaps on a regular patrol of the fortress’ streets? Or had his plan revealed another rat? Of the two council members, he would have preferred to find the oft-interrupting Dondon the traitor if one of them had to be.

The soldiers stood for a minute with their backs to the lane, neither of them speaking.

I don’t even know if the beasts can speak, Sienhin realized.

Two minutes passed. Three. Their eyes passed over Sienhin’s location more than once, but they must not have seen him hidden by the window. The general’s leg began to numb and he fought the urge to shift his weight for fear of giving himself away. If these two saw him, he wouldn’t know for sure whether to trust Turesti or not. He took a slow, deep breath and concentrated on holding his position. Luckily, he didn’t have much longer to wait; unluckily, the two undead men confirmed his worry.

With one last look up and down the street, the man with the dead leg shuffled down the lane, grasped the door handle and opened it inward. The two of them disappeared inside, closing the door behind them.

Sienhin leaned forward, relieving the pressure on his numb leg, and stared at the closed door. Every second of his decades of soldiering made him want to rush into the room and bring an end to whatever the two undead soldiers pathetically called a life. But he stopped himself, realizing the stakes were much higher than just these two men.

“Gods curse you, Turesti,” Sienhin spat with soldiers safely out of earshot behind the heavy door. “Why would you turn on your kingdom?”

The general’s lips squeezed into a tight line, his unkempt mustache hanging down, hiding his lower lip. He felt the color rising in his cheeks, the anger building in his chest, but nothing could be done about it, not now. Turesti’s time of reckoning would come.

At least now he knew whom to trust.

***

The pain of the wound in his abdomen flowed up through Emon Turesti’s chest and along the length of his limbs. He strained to move and relieve the pain, to roll onto his back and remove his cheek from the dirt, but no strength remained in his body. Another wave of agony rolled through him, tensing his body and making him hold his breath behind clenched teeth. When it subsided, he released the air from his lungs in a puff that sent ripples across the thin pool of his own blood in which he lay.

“He didn’t show.”

Turesti directed his eyes toward the voice, but only saw the toes of Hahn Perdaro’s boots. The man stepped closer and tapped his foot impatiently, splashing blood on Turesti’s cheek.

“Did you lie to me, Smoke? Did you send my soldiers chasing wild fowl?”

“No.” The word squeaked in his throat.

“But Sienhin didn’t show.”

The boots turned and paced away; some of the tension in Turesti faded, but as he relaxed, another bolt of pain from his wound grabbed him. He may not be a soldier, but he knew enough about gut wounds to know his chances of surviving diminished with each drop of blood that flowed out of him. He closed his eyes and fought back tears threatening at their edges. For all these years, he’d wanted nothing but to serve his kingdom and whatever king sat the throne; now he would die forced to betray it.

“He told you the truth, Hahn.”

The sound of the woman’s voice snapped Turesti’s eyes open.

“How can you be sure? He’s loyal to the king.”

“I know.”

A pair of bare feet strode into his view, the red painted toe nails bright against alabaster skin. The woman walked toward him, stopping a few inches from his face. Turesti stared at his blood squeezing between her toes and the fear gripping his heart made him forget the pain in his abdomen.

The woman stepped back and kneeled in front of him, heedless of her white gown pressed into the muddy floor. When she realized he could only move his eyes and not his head, she put a finger to his cheek and pivoted his face toward her so their eyes met.

The Archon was smiling, but the expression held not a hint of happiness or humor. Instead, satisfaction and disgust in equal measure seemed to drip from her teeth.

This is the last thing I will ever see.

“Know this before you die,” the woman said leaning in close. “No matter what, your kingdom will not survive.”

Somewhere inside Emon Turesti, her words lit a spark of hope.

She’s afraid. Afraid and unsure.

The Archon shifted her hand until her fingers splayed across his face and her palm pressed against his nose. Then she squeezed. It only took a few seconds for his skull to give way, and all pain and fear and hope disappeared.

Chapter Fourteen

The first thing Khirro noticed was how much his head hurt. The second was the sun and the cloud-scudded sky above. A bolt of panic jolted his chest and he sat up abruptly, the pain in his head magnifying and sending a wave of nausea through his belly.

“It is all right, Khirro. Be calm.”

Khirro blinked hard against the throb in his temples and drew a dry tongue across his lips. “Where are we?”

“Not far from where we were, but far enough to be safe for the moment.”

He felt Athryn’s hand on his shoulder but needed to rotate his head to see the magician, an operation his beleaguered brain resisted. His companion came around to stand before him, then kneeled so their eyes were on the same level. Athryn wore the white cloth mask over his face and Khirro noticed a dark streak across one cheek that might have been either dirt or dried blood; he couldn’t remember if it was there the last time the magician wore it.

Khirro looked away at the thin, leafless trees surrounding them. The smell of earth filled his nostrils, but not the odor of fresh-turned soil like on the farm, this was the old dirt of loam and decayed leaves. He shifted right, wincing at the pain it shot through his temples, then looked to the left. Something felt missing, but it took a few seconds for him to realize what.

“Where’s the boy?”

Athryn raised his arm and pointed over Khirro’s shoulder. With a deep breath in his lungs to protect against the coming discomfort, Khirro struggled to his feet and looked to where he indicated. The boy was sitting on a fallen log, feet dangling, swinging above the ground, as he fiddled idly with a leaf, rolling it and unrolling it between his fingers. He no longer wore the splint on his arm, nor did he look like a boy who’d been kidnapped by undead soldiers anymore; he simply looked like a boy out for a walk in the woods.

Athryn healed him.

“Safe for now, you said. How are we going to get off this cursed land bridge?”

Khirro didn’t look away from the child as he awaited his companion’s response. When it didn’t come immediately, he knew the magician didn’t have a plan. Khirro raised his head toward the sky, squinting at the sun half-hidden behind horsetail clouds. This same sky hung above his parents’ farm many leagues to the south and east. Had the Kanosee army of undead soldiers advanced that far yet? Could they still see this sky?

“I do not know, Khirro. They are searching for us, or perhaps for the child.”

“Both.”

Khirro looked back to the boy who’d raised his head to regard the two of them as they spoke, his lips tilted in a nervous half-smile, the kind a child offers in an attempt to quell an angry parent. It made Khirro want to go to him and tell him they would keep him safe, but in that moment, he wasn’t sure they could.

“How long do we have before they find us again?”

“I cannot be sure,” Athryn replied. “Not long.”

“We can’t stay here.”

“That much is certain.”

Khirro faced his companion, looked at his blue eyes peering from behind the white cloth mask. It troubled him that the magician couldn’t provide answers; he had come to depend on him.

“We’ll find one of those undead bastards and you can transport us again,” Khirro said, his fingers wrapping around his dagger’s jeweled grip. “Take us all the way to the fortress.”

Athryn shook his head slowly, as tough he performed the difficult act of moving a great weight.

“Why not? Does the magic drain you? Hurt you?”

“It is not me I am worried about.” He stepped forward and put his hand on Khirro’s shoulder. “You do not respond well. I think the blood loss and the burden of carrying the spirit of the king within you makes it too much to risk.”

Khirro sighed and his shoulders sagged; he looked away from Athryn, directing his eyes toward the ground. Before, when they first began this journey, his lack of bravery and soldier skills constantly held them back; now it was his physical limitations. Would he ever be man enough to fulfill the destiny placed upon him by the Shaman? Could he ever be a worthy soldier?

Can I ever be a hero?

A leaf moved beside Khirro’s foot, distracting him. At first he thought a gentle gust of wind must have disturbed it, but it moved again, slowly and steadily scuttling across the grass away from him. He crouched and reached for the leaf, his hand hovering above it for a second, then he plucked it off the ground. Beneath it he found a caterpillar, its green skin marked with black dots noticeable against the yellowed grass and brown leaves.

Using the leaf as a disguise.

Khirro looked up at Athryn, held the leaf out for him to see. “I have an idea.”

***

They moved slowly and carefully, not knowing when or where they might run into a Kanosee patrol searching for them. The pain in Khirro’s head eventually dulled to an aching numbness as they scoured the area around them for the items they needed to put his plan into play.

“Can’t we rest? I’m tired.”

Khirro looked back to see the boy had stopped walking and stood looking down at his feet, hands held behind his back, a pout on his face. Athryn moved toward Graymon, but Khirro stopped him and went himself.

“Do you want to quit the game?” Khirro asked kneeling in front of the boy. “Do you want to stop playing before it’s done?”

Graymon looked up, his eyes widening. “Game? I didn’t know it was a game. What game are we playing?”

“It’s a scavenger hunt.”

“A scav-jur hunt? What’s that?”

Khirro nodded and smiled at the boy. “You’ve never been on a scavenger hunt?”

Graymon shook his head. A smile touched his lips and Khirro saw the enthusiasm building inside him; it showed in the gleam in his eyes and the color of his cheeks.

“A scavenger hunt is when you have to find things. The first one to find them wins.”

“Really? What do we have to find?”

“Some red berries. Dark mud. Green moss. Charcoal would be ideal.” Khirro ticked each one off on a finger as he spoke.

“Charcoal?”

“A burnt piece of wood.”

“Okay. Berries-”

“Red berries. They have to be red.”

“Red berries, green moss, mud and a burnt stick.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“And if I find them first, I win?”

Before Khirro finished nodding, Graymon took off past him, racing into the woods. Khirro watched him pick his way around piles of deadfall and past prickled bushes, pausing at each, searching for berries, then looking at the ground, and the trees. Athryn caught his eyes and nodded once. Khirro stood and sighed.

If things were different, I’d one day have been playing this game with my own child.

Graymon disappeared behind a tree and Khirro and Athryn started after him. A few seconds later, they heard the boy whoop with joy.

“I found some moss,” the boy hollered.

Khirro fought back a smile. “It worked,” he said to Athryn. “But we best find a way to keep him quiet.”

Athryn nodded and they hurried after the excited boy.

***

Khirro looked down at himself, felt the mud on his face crack like a second skin pulled too tight across his cheeks. The charred remains of a Kanosee campfire-the last of the scavenged items they’d found-darkened his leather armor and would make do as a substitute for black mail, but he couldn’t see if the berry juice they’d streaked across it would pass for the red spatters on the Kanosee undead.

“How do I look?”

“Funny,” Graymon said from behind Athryn’s black cloth mask. He was equally as pleased with playing dress-up as he’d been with winning the scavenger hunt.

“Great, thanks. Athryn?”

The magician, who’d removed his own mask, looked him up and down for a few seconds, then he looked at the boy. He shook his head.

“Not good enough.”

Khirro raised his hands, then let them drop in frustration. “What else can we do? Kill me and bring me back?”

Athryn raised an eyebrow and Khirro worried for a second that he considered exactly that, but the magician shook his head. Instead, he rolled up his sleeve, traced his finger along the cursive lines etched in his flesh. Khirro waited until Athryn looked up again.

“You will need your dagger.”

Khirro’s heart jumped, then settled.

He doesn’t want my life, just my blood.

“What are you going to do?”

Khirro pulled the dagger from his belt, rolled up his sleeve, and rested the edge of the blade on his flesh next to the last cut he’d made to enable Athryn to cast a spell. A scab covered the straight mark across his arm but it looked a long way from being healed.

“With just your blood, I should be able to do a little magic to aid with our disguises. It should not harm you.”

He closed his eyes and began his chant, its rhythmic ebb and flow threatening to mesmerize Khirro as he held the cold steel against his arm awaiting his companion’s signal. When the magician nodded, he hesitated a second, then dragged the sharp edge across his forearm. Khirro watched the blood well up, then flow down his arm in a red trail, along the lines of his palm and finally down his finger to form drops that plummeted to the ground. As he watched, he thought of Maes and the scars that had covered the little man’s body.

Will I end up like him?

Khirro raised his eyes from the cut and the blood, looked over Athryn’s shoulder at Graymon sitting on the ground drawing in the dirt with the end of a stick, the magician’s black mask hanging loose over his face. Every few seconds, he reached up to adjust it to keep the eye holes in the right place. The action made Khirro smile. When he did, his face felt different. He no longer felt dried mud crusted on his cheeks. Only then did he realize Athryn’s chanting had ceased. Khirro looked at the magician.

“Did it work?” he asked, resisting the urge to touch his face for fear of what he might find.

Athryn said nothing, his expression remaining unchanged. In answer, he reached into his pack and pulled out the mirrored mask, holding it up for Khirro, who hesitated at looking into it. After a few seconds, curiosity got the better of him.

Khirro leaned forward to look at his face reflected in the mask. Seeing the way the curves of the mask’s cheeks and nose pulled his image into distorted caricatures always disturbed him, but this time, the face he saw wasn’t his. He saw enough to know that, even without the mirror’s distorting qualities, he would look hideous.

The mud they’d smeared on his cheeks had become black decay, the moss by his ears green mold. Athryn shifted the angle of the mask for Khirro to see the front of his armor streaked with red that would pass for blood instead of the berry juice he knew it to be. Part of Khirro wanted to smile and laugh with satisfaction at the magician’s work, but the part of him he held from recoiling in fear prevented it. He nodded once and looked away from the mask as Athryn returned it to the pack.

Now for the real test.

Khirro took a breath and stepped past Athryn, moving toward the distracted boy etching shapes and figures in the dirt.

“Graymon?” Though his appearance had altered, Khirro’s voice sounded his own. “Look at me, Graymon.”

The boy looked up halfway through drawing a line. The stick stopped moving; his eyes widened and his mouth dropped open.

Graymon screamed.

***

They walked along the dirt road in silence, Khirro leading Athryn and Graymon by a short rope loosely binding their hands. It had taken half an hour to convince the boy that the undead soldier was actually Khirro, and that the disguise was part of another game-a game in which Graymon had to pretend to be a captive again, although the knot holding his wrists was loose enough to free himself if he wanted. After that, they had to convince him part of the game was not to giggle every time he heard Khirro’s voice come from the undead face.

They’d been walking for less than half-an-hour when Khirro saw a Kanosee patrol approaching. There were three of them, but others might be hidden, searching the scrub at the sides of the road. At a distance, he couldn’t discern if they were undead soldiers or men, but the prospect of encountering them made Khirro’s flesh prickle despite the disguises provided by Athryn’s magic.

“Are you sure this will work?” he asked over his shoulder with the patrol still too far away to hear.

“As long as you do not panic, Khirro. Stay calm.”

A twinge of anger disturbed Khirro’s gut.

Does he expect me to panic?

He gritted his teeth rather than reply. Surely Athryn didn’t mean anything by it. During their trip, Khirro had certainly let fear rule him at times, but he thought enough time and events had passed to dispel such an expectation.

He breathed deep, inhaling the briny smell of the sea; the salt flats must be close. On them they would find the entire Kanosee army, and beyond, the Isthmus Fortress.

If I can’t get us past three soldiers, how will I get us by an army?

Khirro cleared his throat. He’d seen his reflection in the mask and knew Athryn’s magic provided him an adequate disguise, but it left him with his own voice. If anything would give him away, speaking with the voice of the living would. He growled to himself in the back of his throat, coughed. He gurgled a word through his lips and cleared his throat again. What did the words formed by a rotted tongue sound like?

The group of soldiers drew close enough for Khirro to see that two of them were living men and the third wore the red splashed mail of the undead. He clenched his free hand into a fist, felt the tendons stretch, the tips of his fingers dig into his palm. His grip on the rope tightened and he glanced over his shoulder.

The magician’s black mask still covered Graymon’s face, but the boy’s eyes darted nervously behind it. Athryn, his face bare, sensed Graymon’s distress and moved closer beside him to comfort him. Khirro turned back to the road ahead. The Kanosee were close enough he heard them speaking to each other. He lowered his eyes, staring at the dirt road in front of his feet, hoping they would let him pass.

Uncomfortable seconds dragged by as Khirro played in his head what might happen, carefully keeping his hand near, but not touching, the hilt of his sword.

Let us pass. Let us pass.

He concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, on maintaining normal breathing. When the men were close, he growled and yanked on the rope, pulling his prisoners along.

“Oy,” one of the men called. Khirro looked up. “Whatcha got there?”

Fifteen yards separated them from the three Kanosee soldiers. The two men each wore a week’s worth of beard while dust and grime covered their garb. The undead soldier wore a helmet with a nose guard mostly hiding whatever decay might have decorated his face.

“Prisoners,” Khirro growled hoping he’d disguised his voice enough to hide his accent. He yanked the rope again to keep moving.

“That’s a boy you got there,” the other man said. “Be he the one we’re looking for?”

Khirro grunted a noncommittal response and averted his gaze. If he didn’t give them his attention, maybe they’d let it go.

“Why’s the kid wearing a mask?” the first soldier asked.

Khirro shot him a look and bared his teeth. Five yards separated the two parties; the three Kanosee soldiers stopped. Khirro kept moving.

“Hold up,” the second man said. “Let’s see what you got.”

Khirro stopped, positioning himself between the soldiers and his charges. A strained squeak of worry emanated from behind the mask covering Graymon’s face; Athryn made no sound. The undead soldier watched silently.

“Must get to camp,” Khirro croaked.

The two men eyed him, then looked past him at the prisoners, and Khirro followed their gazes. Graymon’s eyes were cast down and away from the undead soldier while Athryn looked back at them, his expression one of compliance rather than the defiance Khirro knew he must feel.

“What’s your hurry?” the first said. “If these be the ones we’re looking for, we can go back, too.”

“Yeah,” the second agreed. “I could use me a pint and a joint of meat. Searchin’s hard work.”

“Why you wearin’ a mask, boy? You is a boy, ain’t you? Show me what’s underneath.”

“His face is burned,” Athryn replied. “He does not like people to see.”

“We don’t care what he likes,” the second soldier said, hand falling to his sword. “And he wasn’t talkin’ to you, so shut your mouth.”

Khirro saw Athryn tense. Graymon didn’t move.

“Well?” the first man said. “Are you going to take it off or do I have to take it off for you?”

Khirro stepped toward the men. “Leave him. We go.”

For the first time since they stopped, the undead soldier moved. He closed the distance between them and grabbed Khirro’s hand holding the rope before he realized the monster had involved himself. At this close proximity, Khirro detected the reek of decay and old sweat leaking out from beneath his armor and had to fight to keep from gagging.

“Remove the mask,” the undead thing said, the odor its words carried made Khirro wish for the smell of decay.

The first soldier glared at Khirro, his eyes narrowing as though inspecting the green rot and black decay on his face. For one panicked second, Khirro thought he would see through the disguise. Then the soldier looked away and reached for Graymon’s mask.

Khirro’s fingers wrapped around the grip of his sword.

Chapter Fifteen

“Bloody Turesti,” Sir Alton Sienhin cursed under his breath as he pushed a bundle of salt pork into his pack. “Smoke. Of all the people to be traitorous.”

“It is what it is,” Therrador said.

“Aye. I suppose you can never tell who to trust, can you?” He looked sideways at the king; Therrador pursed his lips but held his tongue.

“But Hu can be trusted?”

Sienhin shrugged. “Who can say for sure? No one showed up with their sword to convince me not to leave the fortress at the time I told him. Wish I could say the same for Smoke.”

“Me too.” Therrador paced the room, stopping at a short table fashioned of weather-beaten driftwood. Out of habit, he reached for the letter atop it with his right hand, but his missing thumb prevented him from picking it up. He spat a curse and retrieved it with his left, then returned to his general’s side, letter extended.

Sienhin regarded it, examining the wax emblazoned with the king’s mark that sealed the parchment.

“You wrote this?” he allowed a slight smile to tilt his mustache to the right. “Will anyone be able to read it?”

Therrador breathed a sharp breath through his nose. He didn’t want to put up with such barbs, especially given the situation, but he needed the general-he might be the last person in the fortress loyal enough to be trusted.

“I did. It took a long while.”

Sir Alton’s smile faded, replaced by his customary blush. He nodded once and took the folded parchment from the king.

“These are the orders?”

“Yes. I’ve gotten word outside the walls, but this must reach Achtindel or all is lost.”

Sir Alton buckled his pack and threw it over his shoulder, then touched the hilt of his sword hanging at his left hip, the dagger at the right, then the small knife in the top of his right boot. Satisfied the ritual proved his weapons all properly in place, he faced his king.

“What about a horse?”

Therrador nodded. “The tunnel exit is not far from the concubines' huts. A mount will await you there.” The king allowed himself a smile. “A horse, I mean. Don’t take the time to stop for any other sort of mount.”

The general barked a familiar laugh Therrador hadn’t heard from him in a long while. The sound of it-a laugh he’d heard so many times before, at the council table as well as in the middle of heated battle-loosened some of the foreboding constricting his chest and made the king feel a slim chance yet remained that the kingdom might be saved.

So much is at stake, and so much must go our way.

“Don’t worry, Therrador. These bones feel too old of late to seek that kind of mount.”

The two of them looked at each other a moment, the humor draining out of the room as the gravity of their situation inserted itself between them, making the air grow heavy. Therrador remembered the battles they’d fought side by side, the laughs and times they shared as friends and comrades, and wondered if the general was thinking the same, or if the events of the last few months had forever soured any fond memories.

We may never fight beside each other again.

“It will be dark soon,” Therrador said breaking the silence. “It’s time to be off.”

“Aye,” Sienhin agreed and went to the door.

“I’ll come along a few minutes after you, Sir Alton.”

The general paused, his hand on the door’s iron ring. He nodded but didn’t face his king as he pulled the door open with a squawk of ancient hinges before striding across the threshold.

“And I’m sorry,” Therrador added.

***

A wisp of pungent smoke encircled the Archon’s head. She breathed deeply, inhaling the smell of burning herbs and hair, charred wood and sizzling blood. The aromas filled her nose, her lungs, and sent power coursing through her body; it tingled the flesh on her arms and legs, tightened her belly, inhabited her groin. She let out her breath and closed her eyes.

The cool air on her skin disappeared from her awareness, as did the feel of the cloth mat she sat upon, and the touch of her hair on her bare back. At the beginning of the trance, she was only aware of the smells of the ingredients burning, and of the darkness behind her eyelids. She no longer heard the sound of her own breath, the creak of the guard’s leather armor as he shifted his position, the snatches of conversation happening on the boulevard below her window.

The trance deepened and she released her mind, freed her consciousness to roam away from her, searching. It floated up with the smoke and away, spreading out around her. She didn’t know the man who carried Braymon’s spirit-she’d only seen him in dreams, never in person-but she thought it would be enough to enable her to find him. And when she found him, she would find the boy. With both of them in her grasp, she would have control of both the current king and the former, and the world would practically be hers for the taking.

Images appeared to her. The fortress in the hours leading up to twilight, people walking the streets: the baker and blacksmith heading home after a day’s work, soldiers readying for a night of drinking and whoring. She floated past them, noticing but ignoring them. What she sought, she wouldn’t find within the confines of the fortress; the carrier simply could not have made it this far yet.

Her essence rose higher above the ground, spiraling up toward the highest peaks of the buildings, toward the top edge of the wall. She relished the ultimate feeling of freedom as the swirls and eddies of the air tossed her about, mixed with her, like a soul born to the fields of the dead upon the cleansing smoke of a funeral pyre. If, in this form, she possessed the ability to breathe, she would have done so deeply; if she had eyelids, she would have closed them to better feel the breeze upon her face. In her chamber, her body did these things, reacting to what her essence felt as it floated up and away, feeling things no human ever experienced.

Something caught the Archon’s attention, snapping her eyes open and halting her spirit’s progress. It pulled her away from the feeling of freedom she wished she could revel in for the rest of her time in the world.

“What is it?” she growled under her breath.

The guard in the room stirred but said nothing. She felt his fear brush the short hair on her arms as she leaned forward, filling her lungs with the acrid smoke curling from the brazier in front of her before pushing her spirit to go farther, to go beyond the wall and find the would-be usurper.

It wouldn’t move.

The Archon grunted and ground her back teeth, pushing harder, but her essence took its own path, plummeting back toward the courtyard within the fortress. She strained a few seconds more to steer it back on its path, but gave in to the whims of her spirit.

It sank all the way to the ground and crept along the boulevard like an animate fog, snaking between booted feet, avoiding the light where it could. The Archon’s breathing shallowed as she let herself be drawn along. The tingle of freedom that had prickled along her arms and warmed her chest was gone; she felt no freedom in being led.

Her essence floated past a damaged building and the Archon saw inside through the open door. The woman she’d seen brought in by the patrol sat on a pile of straw, her babe at her breast and tears in her eyes. The man who’d been brought with her-her husband, the Archon presumed-was nowhere to be seen. The young mother looked up at the mist floating by the doorway, but then the Archon saw no more as her essence continued down the street.

Ahead, a sliver of light shone beneath a wooden door with a rusted iron ring. The swirling mist adjusted its path, drawn toward the light. It inched toward the door like a child tip-toeing up behind its friend, readying to give a scare. It settled against the crack beneath the door, pushed against it until a tendril squeezed through into the room beyond.

The Archon sat upright and her body stiffened; her eyes opened wide in surprise, but only for a moment before narrowing again.

“To me,” she said.

The guard in the room stood at attention then took a step toward her. His fear of her, of her power and magic, wafted over her like air pushed from a bellows. Her eyes flickered toward the man and she put an effort into restraining herself from killing him.

“Not you, idiot,” she said, breathless as she pushed herself to stand.

Halfway across the fortress, a twist of fog extracted itself from under a wooden door with a rusted iron ring and raced through the streets, finding its way back to her.

She stared at the guard, loathed the fear in his eyes as he struggled to keep his gaze from straying to her naked body. She didn’t have to worry about the undead soldiers leering at her like this, but they had better uses than having them watch over her in a trance. The man looked back at her; a bead of sweat rolled from under his helmet, down his temple, the path it left increasing her ire. She raised her hand toward him, not sure what she intended, but before she spoke the words to determine his fate, the mist boiled through the window and crossed the room in an instant. It wrapped across her shoulders like a shawl, enveloped her body. She tossed her head back as it entered her like a welcome lover.

“Ohhh.” The sound shuddered out of her chest at the feeling of wholeness, the disappointment of being trapped within herself.

The Archon lowered her head to look at the guard again. His gaze lay on her body, stealing a glimpse when he thought she wouldn’t know, and he snapped his gaze back to hers when he realized she was looking. Her mouth crinkled into a frown, but she lowered her hand.

“Bring me Hahn Perdaro,” she ordered and turned away from the guard.

Let him look.

She heard the clank of his armor as he bowed, then hurried out of the room. The Archon moved toward the window. The cold night air caressed her flesh, made her body ache for the freedom she’d felt, but freedom would have to wait. First, there would be death.

***

Hahn Perdaro leaned the weapon against the wall outside the door, then adjusted his doublet and smoothed his thinning hair before reaching for the door handle. He paused to breathe deep and put a smile on his face, then pushed the door open and strode through into the room beyond.

An unusual odor hung in the air and the room was hot-far hotter than the Archon normally liked it. Many nights he’d shivered instead of sleeping as she insisted on leaving the shutters agape. He hoped the warmth in the room and the gift he’d brought her would allow him to sleep well this night.

At first, Hahn didn’t see the Archon. He looked around the room, his smile waning, but then he saw her by the window, her red gown blending with the tapestry on the wall beside it. He renewed his smile and stepped forward but, when she faced him, her expression chased any joy from his lips.

“What is it, my love? Has something happened? Did you find the blood-bearer?”

“No, I did not.” She moved from the window to the center of the room, avoiding the bearskin on the floor as she did, and stood by the brazier glowing with embers. “But I found something else.”

Hahn opened his mouth to ask what, but gulped a breath and kept from speaking. Instead, he raised an eyebrow, knowing silence was often the best course of action with the Archon, though he found it difficult, and waited for her to speak.

“I have seen Therrador and the general-Sienhin.”

She put her hands behind her back and paced first to her left, then back to the right, her movement lithe and graceful. Hahn found himself mesmerized by each step she took and had to shake his head to free himself of her body’s spell to hear her words.

“Saw them?”

“They plot against me. I had thought having the boy would keep Therrador from doing so.”

“But we don’t have the boy. He-”

“Therrador cannot know that,” she yelled, spinning to face him.

The ferocity in her voice startled Hahn Perdaro enough it took him a second to recover and settle his expression back to one of concern instead of fear.

But she won’t hurt me. She loves me. “Yes, yes. Of course he can’t. So he risks all for the kingdom.”

“He thinks I do not know his plan.”

“But you do.” He tried not to make the statement sound like a question.

“He is sending the general to the capital to raise more troops. He will make his way out of the fortress through a tunnel tonight.”

Hahn’s brow creased. “Both Turesti and Dondon said he would leave last night. We went-”

“They tricked us, you fool. The general fed the councilors incorrect information to see whom he could trust.” Her eyes bore into him. “They tricked you.”

Perdaro raised his hand and rubbed his chin nervously, eyes darting away. “But Turesti said-”

“Forget what he said. What are you going to do to correct your failure?”

”He…he must be stopped.”

The Archon nodded and a menacing grin crawled onto her lips. “You must stop him.”

Perdaro’s breath caught in his throat. “Me? But I’m not-”

“You. You will intercept the general in the tunnel. Take five soldiers out onto the plains and enter from the outside; that way you will not be chasing him. He will come to you.”

The Voice of the People swallowed hard. Sir Alton Sienhin was a battle-hardened warrior not to be taken lightly, and Perdaro didn’t relish the idea of facing him, even with five soldiers at his side. The odds would be in Hahn’s favor, but against the general, the chance for death was great.

He opened his mouth, on the edge of begging to be let out of this duty, when he remembered the gift he’d brought. Perhaps, if he gave it to her, she would be so happy with him, she would reconsider.

He lowered his head and backed toward the door.

“I have a gift for you.”

He reached through the doorway and retrieved the weapon from where he’d left it leaning against the wall, awaiting the perfect moment to present it without knowing that saving it for the right time might save his life. Hahn reentered the room with it held behind his back, careful to keep the blade from touching his leg.

“What is it?” the Archon demanded, impatience plain in her voice.

Hahn’s heart sank. He’d hoped a gift would win her over.

Perhaps it still will.

He pulled the weapon from behind his back and held it out to her, the hilt held in one hand, the tip of the black blade resting on the palm of the other. Red runes glowed dimly along the sword’s length. The Archon’s eyes widened and Perdaro felt hope return to his heart.

“Troops coming from the homeland found it and brought it with them. When I heard of its beauty and workmanship, I knew it to be a treasure you should have.” He bowed slightly at the waist and held the sword out toward her.

“The Mourning Sword.”

“Yes,” Perdaro agreed raising his eyes but remaining bowed. “It belonged to the Shaman.”

“And more powerful magicians before him.”

Hahn straightened and smiled. “And now it can belong to you: the most powerful magician.”

The Archon crossed the space between them and regarded the sword for a second before grasping it mid-blade, her fingers wrapped around and over the edge. He let go and the runes glowed brighter as her blood flowed along the blade.

“I have a gift for you, too, Hahn.”

She tossed the sword onto the bed, then reached beneath it to pull out a long, straight staff. The narrow tip clicked against the floor and the wider, knobbed end hovered a few inches taller than the Archon’s height. The wood was light and unmarked by carving or scripture.

“What is this?” Hahn asked. He tried to smile with delight, but his lips only quivered.

Instead of answering, Sheyndust whispered under her breath and the knobbed end of the staff began to glow green, the light seeming to collect to it from invisible places around the room. After a few seconds, her words ceased and the glow remained.

“Take this,” she said extending the staff toward Perdaro.

He moved hesitantly to her, his hand shaking as he reached out to take it from her. The wood was warm to the touch, and vibrated lightly against his fingers. The feel of it instilled equal parts wonder and horror within him.

“What…?”

“When you have killed the general, touch him with the light.” Her lips pulled up into a smile that scared the Voice of the People far more than the glowing staff. “After you do, he will be ours. Then we will deal with the ever-treacherous king.”

Hahn Perdaro stared at the staff in his hand, fighting the urge to throw it away.

Chapter Sixteen

Lehgan stood facing Emeline with his hands on his hips and an expression lacking any compassion on his face.

“You brought this on,” he said, clearly attempting to keep his voice even and conceal his anger. “You were the one who wanted to come on this foolish journey. How can you blame me for what happened to you?”

Sitting on the rickety bed with a threadbare blanket wrapped around her shoulders, Emeline glared at her husband; she hugged Iana tighter against her chest and said nothing while inside, she seethed. She wanted to stand and beat her fists against his chest, tell him his duty as her husband was to protect her no matter what happened or why they came to be where they were. She wanted to yell and stomp her feet like a child, call him names. She wanted to tell him she hated him.

But she didn’t.

He was her husband, and she loved him. Beneath the rage she felt, she knew he felt scared and embarrassed, despite his words. After watching what the soldiers did, he probably didn’t feel much like a man anymore, and certainly not like a good husband. He didn’t know how else to react. Though she knew this, she kept silent, not trusting the words she might speak to say what she knew rather than what she felt.

“Say something.”

She shook her head.

Lehgan’s hands curled into fists and Emeline saw the muscles in his jaw clench as he, too, held back his feelings. He raised his hand and extended a finger toward her. His jaw moved like he would say more, but he stopped himself, lips parted without words emerging, then he strode to the door.

The small building in which they'd taken refuge had been damaged during the Kanosee siege, and no door hung in the doorway. Lehgan stopped before crossing the threshold, leaned with one hand against the wall as though he needed its support to hold himself up. Emeline looked at his back, at the way his head hung forward, and thought about telling him it was all right, that everything would heal and life would return to normal. She didn’t, because she didn’t know if it would.

Lehgan looked back over his shoulder and she saw his eyes had softened, his jaw relaxed. Their eyes met and sadness and regret hovered in the air between them. They both saw it, they both felt it, but neither acknowledged it to the other. Lehgan’s gaze dropped; he turned and strode away down the street.

Emeline looked down at their baby sleeping in her arms. Iana’s lips moved, still suckling through her gentle snores; a line of milk-cloudy drool ran from the corner of her mouth across her cheek. Her hair-the chestnut brown of her father’s-had grown long enough to form a curl at the front of her head. Emeline reached out and smoothed it, the touch of her fingers on her baby’s skin soothing her, releasing the emotion pent up inside. Her lip quivered as she watched her daughter sleep, and the tears came.

Emeline closed her eyes and lowered her head. She pursed her lips, attempting to hold back the sobs so she wouldn’t wake Iana, but her shoulders quaked as her breath escaped her lungs. The tattered blanket slipped off her back and she felt the cold of the evening, but she didn’t reach for it, holding Iana closer instead. A moment later, an unseen hand replaced the blanket on her shoulders. Emeline raised her head and wiped tears away on her forearm, happy for her husband’s return.

“Lehgan, I-”

It wasn’t Lehgan. Instead, a shadowy figure stood before Emeline. At first, she thought tears made her eyesight misty, but she quickly realized she was seeing the ghostly woman who visited her before.

“You,” Emeline said.

The ghost woman stood silently. An unfelt breeze moved her skirt, its hem hanging an inch above the ground; her hair stirred around her shoulders. Emeline sniffled and wiped her arm across her eyes again. Iana stretched, yawned, but didn’t wake.

“Why are you here?”

“You despair.”

I was raped while my husband watched and did nothing. Now he’s gone and I’m left alone without so much as a door to protect me. I traveled all this way to help a man I betrayed and I’m visited by a ghost. Yes, I despair.

All of this ran through her head, but she allowed none of it past her lips. She simply nodded. The ghost woman stroked her fingers across Emeline’s forehead, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes.

“I know this is difficult, but you must stay true. Lehgan knows what he has done, how you have been hurt. He will be there for you when it matters. You need to stay strong. For your sake, and his, and Iana’s. And for the kingdom. You are more important than you can know.”

Emeline sighed and swallowed around the hard knot in her throat. She didn’t feel important, not even to her husband, let alone the kingdom.

“If I am so important,” she said, then paused to take a shuddering breath. “If I’m so important, why has all this happened to me?”

“Child, there is no good reason for this to happen to you. To anybody. It just is, but you can choose to let it drive a wedge between you and your husband, allow it to defeat you, or you can find strength and determination in it. The choice is yours.”

Emeline looked into the woman’s eyes, so green they might have held precious emeralds deep inside. Her cheeks were speckled alabaster and, if she didn’t hold Iana in her arms, Emeline might have reached out and touched one to see if she was possibly real instead of a ghost. If she did, she thought she’d find she and the woman had more in common than she might know. The ghostly woman nodded as though she heard Emeline’s thoughts.

“There is not much longer to wait. Khirro approaches, and with him will come battle and bloodshed. You cannot avoid it. You will be part of it.”

Emeline’s lip quivered as the ghost woman stepped away, her words echoing in Emeline’s ears.

Battle and bloodshed. You will be part of it.

The woman’s form faded and Emeline allowed her head to fall forward. She looked at Iana’s peaceful expression as the baby slept and seeing it brought sadness into her heart like it squeezed through her veins with her blood. Her eyes slid closed and fresh tears trickled down her cheeks. She breathed deep to calm herself, but the breath carried with it an unfamiliar odor, a mingling of tangy herbs and unpleasant smells best left unidentified.

Emeline raised her head and opened her eyes, suddenly feeling as though someone watched her. She looked toward the doorway and found it empty but for a wisp of twilight mist that disappeared so quickly, she couldn’t be sure it existed in the first place. Her shoulders relaxed and the feeling faded. When she looked around the room at the cracked walls and the dirt floor, the ghostly woman was gone.

Iana cooed in her mother’s arms and Emeline looked down into the babe's face, at her pursed lips and drooping lids, and tried not to think about the woman’s words.

***

Elyea backed away from Emeline, let her relax and be with her daughter. Things would be more difficult for her soon-they would be for everyone-so best to let her have these moments when the opportunity arose. Despite her past with Khirro, this woman didn’t deserve what had happened to her.

The world lightened around Elyea as the call of the fields pulled her back, her work done for the night. She felt her surroundings begin to fade and relished the thought of returning to jade grass and azure sky, but as the broken-down shack started to dim, a feeling jolted her.

She looked first to Emeline and her child, worried for their safety. They remained as she’d left them seconds before, until Emeline raised her head and looked toward the doorway. Elyea followed her gaze.

A wisp of mist sat on the threshold, a faint red tint to the vapor. The sight of it brought a bolt of distress to Elyea, and she felt herself drawn back to the world by the out-of-place mist. It swirled along the ground for a second, as though staring back at the young mother and her child before the small animal-sized bank of fog snaked its way down the avenue like a thing alive.

Elyea immediately started after it, her own feet gliding above the floor as she passed silently across the room to the door without Emeline’s notice. The vapor continued down the street until it came to a closed door set with a rusted iron ring. It paused as though distracted by the light shining through the crack beneath the door.

Elyea hovered above the cobblestones, a debate of logic and emotion raging within her ghostly form. She knew who was behind the door, and what they plotted. The success of their plans was vital to the safety of the kingdom and she wanted to rush forward to stomp the mist into oblivion before its presence fouled them. At the same time, she knew the vapor was more than the mist brought on by twilight, that the person behind it wielded more power than she could handle and interfering would be the end of her and perhaps those behind the door. She hoped it would move on without divining what went on inside.

Elyea gasped and her hope disappeared as the mist slithered beneath the door.

Now she knows.

A noise behind her caught her attention-the small sound of the baby waking. Elyea glanced over her shoulder at Emeline loving her daughter, then she moved down the avenue away from the mist that wasn’t simply mist.

Returning to the fields of the dead would have to wait.

Chapter Seventeen

Sir Alton Sienhin shifted uncomfortably at the lack of weight on his shoulders. It was a rare occurrence for him to be without armor, but haste was needed in reaching Achtindel, so he’d dispensed with his normal attire in favor of faster travel.

“Probably for the best,” he mumbled to the empty tunnel. “I’d likely fall in this filthy water and drown with it on.”

“Did you say something, Sienhin?”

He looked up at Therrador standing a few feet away, torch in hand. The king wore a black cloak, black shirt and black breeches to accompany his general to the tunnel in the hopes of escorting him unnoticed. So far, it had worked.

“Nothing,” Sienhin said.

He looked down at the water oozing past a foot below where he stood. The torch light reflected on its black surface and he saw things floating past on a mild current. He struggled to keep himself from wondering what they were-some things one doesn’t need to know.

“Step down, then I’ll hand you the torch.”

The general nodded and drew a deep breath in through flared nostrils, a breath he quickly regretted. The smell was ghastly: dead and rotten and earthy, garbage and feces and worse. He let the foul air out of his lungs in a puff that stirred the hairs of his long mustache, clenched his fists in determination, and stepped carefully off the stone stair and into the foul runoff.

He didn’t know how deep the water went, so the general held Therrador’s hand for support while his foot sought the bottom. It struck solid but slippery stone with the water level at his knee. Sienhin grunted and lowered his other foot into the water and transferred his left hand from the king’s grip to the step.

“Okay?” Therrador leaned toward him holding the torch at arm’s length to allow the general to see his surroundings.

“It’s damned slippery.” Sienhin shuffled his feet, stirring up the black water around his knees. The soles of his boots broke through the slime and found purchase on the stone floor. “How far does the tunnel run?”

“Not too far. It runs straight to the outer wall.”

“Hmph.” Sienhin stared at a lump floating near his leg, bobbing toward him like a living thing drawn to his scent. He kicked at it, sending waves across the water’s greasy surface, then turned to the king without waiting to see if he’d successfully shooed it away.

Therrador crouched and held the torch out to his general; Sienhin reached up and took it. Their gazes met.

“I know you are unhappy with decisions I’ve made, Sir Alton. If I could change what happened, know that I would. But it isn’t possible, and I will do whatever I can to make amends.”

Sienhin looked at him for a moment, grinding his teeth so that his jaw muscles flexed beneath his ruddy cheeks. Flickering torchlight reflected in the king’s eyes and lent a swarthiness to his face it didn’t usually have; his black, braided beard trailed from his chin to disappear against the black of his cloak. Sir Alton Sienhin had known this man for decades and never found reason to distrust him until he’d partaken in the ultimate treachery. Could he trust him now?

What choice do I have?

The general nodded. “I’ll do whatever needs to be done to save the kingdom.”

A shadow of a smile flickered across Therrador’s face; seeing it caused a twist in Sienhin’s gut. What did it mean? Before he could divine its origin, it disappeared and the king was extending his hand toward him. The general looked at it for a second, then grasped it.

“Good luck, my friend. The Gods be with you.”

Sienhin nodded once, pulled his hand from the king’s, and started down the tunnel without a word.

***

The going was slow.

Sir Alton shuffled his feet along the bottom of the channel, dragging his boots through the slime as he went to keep from slipping and ending up in the putrid water. He held the torch in his left hand and his right rested on the hilt of his sword, both to be ready in case he needed it, as well as to angle it and keep the tip of the scabbard out of the water.

The tunnel was wide enough for six men to stand shoulder to shoulder between its stone walls; when he raised the torch over his head, the general saw the curving stone ceiling just above the flickering flames. It was too high for him to reach, but he wouldn’t want to. Black-looking mold and moss covered most of it, with gray stone showing through occasionally. The growth spilled part way down the walls, but ceased before it reached a level even with Sienhin’s head. Side channels-grated and too small for a man to crawl through-opened on to the main tunnel at regular intervals a foot above water level. Water trickled through some, but dark sludge that made his stomach churn dripped from most.

“Curse this place,” Sienhin muttered, the words echoing and bouncing from the walls to be squelched by the moss-moldy ceiling. Amongst the reverberating words, he thought he heard a splash not made by himself.

Sienhin stopped and held his breath, listening. He heard nothing but the sound of the torch’s flame crackling in his ear and a trickle of water from a grate ahead on the left. He waited another few seconds, then carried on, moving more slowly, wary. Ripples on the surface of the black water carried the torchlight away to disappear in the dark tunnel. He squinted, straining to see beyond the few yards of sight afforded by the torch. A chunk of debris vaguely the shape of a finger floated past his leg.

He moved steadily forward until he noticed the ripples he created clashing with wavelets rolling back toward him.

Sir Alton stopped, his gaze fixed on the water as the ripples created by his movement subsided. The water smoothed, then a series of small waves washed toward the general. He clenched his teeth and tightened his grip on his sword’s hilt.

“Who’s there?”

He barked the words, hoping to scare off any creature which might lurk in the dark. With practiced skill, he loosened the first few inches of his blade.

No reply came at first, but then, yards farther down the tunnel, he saw a green spark of light. Tiny at first, like an ember cast into the sky by some eldritch fire, the spark grew larger and brighter until it rivaled his own torch. Then he saw the light’s wielder.

“Hahn? What in the name of the Gods are you…”

Sienhin took a few sloshing strides toward him, then stopped, both at the memory of what Therrador told him about the Voice of the People, and as the other figures standing behind Hahn Perdaro came into view.

“Hello, General.” Perdaro smiled and gestured at the men standing behind him. “We’re glad you could make it.”

Without the sickly green glow at the end of the staff in Hahn Perdaro’s hand, the six creatures standing with him would have been hideous. The light, however, turned them into monsters, deepening the hole in one’s throat, making the other’s sunken eyes sink farther into its skull. Parchment thin skin pulled tight across a dented skull took on an amphibious hue appropriate for the damp tunnel surroundings. Sienhin lowered his brows and pulled his sword.

“What is this, Hahn?”

The Voice of the People smiled crookedly. “Exactly what it looks like, General. We’re here to stop you.”

“Traitor. How could you do this to your king? To your kingdom?”

Perdaro’s laughter echoed down the tunnel and Sienhin felt heat rise in his cheeks. He concentrated to keep anger from quaking his sword hand.

“This kingdom was lost long ago-long before Braymon ever fell. It just didn’t know it yet.” He brandished the glowing end of his staff toward the general. “Do you see this? That’s not flame, old friend, it’s magic. How can you fight it? And them.” He gestured again at the undead soldiers.

“I care not for your magic and your dead men, Hahn.” Sienhin took a step forward, closing the distance between himself and his adversaries, and felt a familiar calmness descend on his mind despite his outward bluster. It was ever this way with a fight imminent. “I care only for my homeland.”

“Don’t be foolish, Sir Alton. This is a battle you cannot win. Lay down your sword and join me. I have the Archon’s ear, and I’ll make sure she knows of your cooperation. You will be compensated.”

“You can have that whore’s ear. I’ll not lay my sword down until I have her head.”

“As you like.”

Perdaro stepped back and swept his arms forward. With the gesture, the five undead soldiers advanced, chipped swords and rusted axes in hand.

The general’s muscles tensed, ready to accept their attack, but his gaze flickered away at the feel of a cold touch around his knees. A billowy white mist had crept into the drainage tunnel from one of the side ducts. It resembled a mist that might collect in a meadow with the dawn of a springtime sun, and it floated past him as though it moved with a purpose, collecting in the space between him and the dead men. Sienhin’s legs and sword arm strained to the point of pain.

What manner of deviltry is this?

The Kanosee dead men halted at the sight of it, seemingly unwilling to let their lifeless flesh contact the vapor. It swirled a slow, gentle circle, then extended upward into a slender column.

“What are you waiting for?” Perdaro screeched. “Kill him!”

The Kanosee soldiers looked at each other with dead eyes and hesitated a second longer. In that instant, the column of mist rectified itself into the shape of a ghostly woman. Sienhin gasped a half-breath in surprise but stopped himself for fear inhaling the mist might prove deadly.

“Whore,” he muttered raising his sword.

The translucent woman advanced on him before the soldiers did and, before she made contact with him, he saw it wasn’t the Archon, but a face he didn’t know. Then the ghostly woman’s hands touched his chest and, instead of passing through him or wrapping around him as a mist should have done, her palms hit him like a mace, knocking his wind free of his lungs and sending him from his feet.

The general tumbled backward, arms thrashing for balance. The torch hit the murky water first, hissing as it extinguished and throwing the tunnel into the sickly green glow of Hahn Perdaro’s staff, but Sienhin’s experience of it was short-lived. His back hit the water, then his head. In an instant, the sludgy liquid surrounded him, covered him.

Foul fluid touched his tongue, rubbed against his eyes. The black water muted the light of Perdaro’s staff to a far-off turquoise tint, but Sienhin paid it little attention, for in a matter of seconds the undead soldiers, or the ghost woman, or both, would be on him. He fought his throat’s urge to gag the squalid water from his mouth and attempted to sit up and remove himself from its depths, to bring his sword to bear in defense, but it felt as though a weight sat atop his chest, holding him below the surface.

He blinked flecks of detritus out of his eyes and flailed uselessly under the water. The turquoise hue grew brighter, changed in quality, and something about it made Sir Alton Sienhin cease his thrashing. He sank to the bottom, black water cradling him until he settled in the layer of sludge. His back touched the bricks and a calmness settled in on him.

This is the end then.

The thought of dying didn’t scare him; he’d faced death more times than he could count or wanted to try. But with him died Therrador’s message. With him died the hope of the kingdom. The weight of his failure weighed him down, held him under the water.

Then the flash came, startling him. Orange-yellow light bright enough to penetrate the murky water and nearly blind him flashed like a bolt of lightning. It remained for a second, maybe two, then disappeared and darkness descended-no orange-yellow light, no turquoise glow. Sienhin rose off the bottom as though rescued by helping hands. His face broke the surface and he coughed viscous fluid out of his lungs and throat and nose.

Breath surged into his chest and decades of combat brought his sword up, ready for an attack as he lay in the water. None came. Sienhin remained stationary, his blade held over him, only his eyes moving as they darted side-to-side. He sensed no movement in the darkness, heard no sound save the plunk of water droplets falling from his blade. A gust of foul wind buffeted his cheeks and sent a wave washing over his nose before it died away. After a few seconds, he drew another ragged breath through his nostrils. He never would have thought he’d be happy to draw such a rank smell into his chest, but it was better than sucking polluted water into his lungs.

Wondering where a breeze had come from in an underground tunnel, Sienhin struggled to his feet and tossed aside the useless torch he still held in his left hand. It banged against the wall and landed in the water with a mute splash, as though it hit something below the surface. The general gritted his teeth and swallowed hard, struggling the taste of sewage down his throat, then moved toward the spot where the torch had landed.

He advanced cautiously, dragging his feet on the slimy bottom and probing the dark in front of him with the tip of his sword. As he moved, the smell of sewage dissipated, overpowered by another odor that brought a hard lump to the back of the general’s throat.

The smell of burnt flesh.

Sir Alton pressed forward another step, squinting against the darkness, and realized he could see a little, the tunnel illuminated by a tiny light under the water to his right. His eyes flickered toward it, saw the spot of green light beneath the surface some distance away, then he looked back to his target ahead. A dark mass, blacker than the black water, floated near the wall. Three more steps brought him close enough to see it was one of the undead Kanosee soldiers floating face down. He pushed the tip of his sword into its side; it sank in a couple of inches without reaction.

That one’s no longer un-dead.

Closer to the body, the acrid smell of burnt flesh was enough to make the veteran soldier hold his breath. He reached forward with his free hand and grabbed the Kanosee’s wrist to turn him, but when he pulled on him to do so, the flesh of the thing’s forearm and hand stripped off like a macabre glove. Sienhin tossed it aside to hit the water with a hollow slap.

What in the name of the Gods happened?

The general faced the dim light and started toward it, wading carefully through the murky water. Between him and his goal, he saw other darker patches floating. Each of them he touched with the tip of his sword; none of them reacted. A disembodied head floated by. An arm. A leg. Things so badly damaged they were rendered unrecognizable.

How did I survive this?

Dank water splashed around his knees as he approached the light and he heard a noise that made him stop. For a moment, there was nothing but the sound of dripping water and the lap of the tiny waves created by his movement sloshing against dismembered body parts.

Then he heard it again: a moan from the vicinity of the underwater glow. Perhaps a human sound, perhaps not. Sienhin inhaled a distasteful breath into his chest and moved toward the sound.

A few strides away, the glow cast enough light for him to see the man slouching precariously against the tunnel wall. In the dim illumination, his skin looked black, his physique frail, and Sienhin wondered if this might be the fiend responsible for the blinding flash of light that almost ended his life. He extended the tip of his sword at the man’s throat.

“Who are you, devil?”

White eyes, a stark contrast against the black skin, moved lazily at the sound of his voice, but the man did not otherwise move. Sienhin took two more steps.

“Speak or die,” he barked.

A sound whispered through charred lips, a sibilance that might have been nothing more than a breath. The general leaned closer, his blade pressed close to the man’s throat.

“Did you do this? Did you kill them all?”

He turned his ear toward the man. A click sounded at the back of his parched throat, then words hissed past a swollen tongue.

“Ssssssienhinnn. Hhhhhhelpp meeeeee.”

Sienhin pulled his face away from the man, looked into his eyes and saw pain in them. The eyelids were burned away, the ability to blink taken with them. The man’s nose was gone, his cheeks blackened and cracked. All the hair was melted from his head.

“Perdaro.”

The general lowered his sword and looked the man up and down. Tatters of clothing hung from his shoulders and a patch of flesh burnt red rather than charred black showed through his shirt. His fingers were curled to useless claws, his arms bent crooked and tight by tendons shrunken with the heat. Sienhin’s lips flattened to a thin line beneath his bushy mustache. No man should have to endure such pain.

Almost no man.

“Sssienhinnn. K-k-k-kill mmmmeeee.”

He stared at the man, remembering who he’d been, or who he’d thought he was before he sold out his kingdom. Had he ever been the man Sienhin thought him to be? Or was it years of trickery and deception, living behind a facade, a mask hiding his true nature and allegiance from those closest to him? Now he’d never know.

Sienhin raised his blade to the man’s throat again, pressed its edge against his flesh and watched as the burnt and destroyed face of Hahn Perdaro flinched with the pain of its touch.

“You deserve death,” the general said leaning close to his one-time compatriot’s ear. “But you do not deserve mercy.”

He stepped back and slid his sword back into its scabbard.

Without lips or eyelids, the burnt man was incapable of showing expression, yet Sienhin saw a change in his eyes as panic rose in them. Had he been able to move, he’d have undoubtedly grasped at the general’s clothes, begged him for death, but he could only look back with those panicked, pleading eyes. Breath huffed between his teeth, perhaps intended as words, but Sir Alton Sienhin didn’t stop to find out.

Instead, the veteran warrior plunged his hand into the murky water and retrieved the staff. Its end glowed with eldritch light, an untrustworthy light, but he needed it to help him make his way down the tunnel. He extended it in front of himself and sloshed away, leaving the Voice of the People to his torturous pain and whatever fate might befall him.

Chapter Eighteen

With one quick movement, the undead soldier yanked the mask off Graymon’s face. Khirro slid an inch of the dagger’s blade out of its sheath, but stayed his hand when he saw the face of the living soldiers wrinkle with disgust; he stole a glance at the boy’s face.

Athryn’s magic had worked equally as well on Graymon as it had on Khirro. One side of the boy’s face looked red and wet, glistening in the sun, the other side unscathed. Khirro wondered if this was how Athryn himself looked before his wound healed to the pink, shiny scar he’d had before the Necromancer healed it.

The undead soldier dropped the mask back in place over Graymon’s face.

“What did you do to him?” one of the others asked.

“Tried to escape,” Khirro replied rumbling the words in the back of his throat. “Taught him not to try again.”

“Long as he’s alive, I guess. The witch don’t care what he looks like.”

The second soldier punched the first’s arm. “Don’t call her that.” He gestured toward first Khirro then the undead soldier. “She got ears everywhere, Tugg.”

Tugg shrugged. “Least we get to go back to camp now.”

The two men started back down the road the way they came, toward the salt flats and the Kanosee army camp sprawled across them. The dead man stood in front of Khirro, blocking his way, watching him; expressionless, emotionless. Khirro pulled his lips back to expose his teeth and growled a low rumble at the back of his throat.

What am I doing?

He didn’t know if the dead acted this way, but felt he needed to do something. The thing stared at him a second longer, then turned away to follow his living companions. Khirro released his breath slowly and relaxed his knotted shoulder muscles before looking to Athryn. The magician nodded shallowly. Traveling with the enemy was far from ideal, but it would get them where they wanted to go.

“Come,” Khirro gruffed and yanked on the rope as he started down the road. At the end of it lay the Isthmus Fortress and his beleaguered country, a kingdom he was destined to save.

Or watch perish.

***

Tugg and the other soldier, Mandich, sat near the fire warming their hands and slowly turning a rabbit skewered on a makeshift spit. Flames crackled with the juice dripping from the meat and wispy gray smoke carried the odor of it cooking toward the clear night sky.

Khirro stood off to the side, away from the two Kanosee and the dead man standing erect and unmoving behind them, guarding his prisoners who sat on a fallen log a pace behind him. Each breath he inhaled drew the sweet aroma of cooking meat into his nose, sending it directly to his empty stomach. He felt it stir and move, ready to gurgle its emptiness to the world, and it was for this reason he stood so far away from the others. He hadn’t seen the dead man eat, and could think of no reason why one would be hungry once dead, so why would his stomach growl?

The undead warrior stared across the fire at Khirro, his gaze unwavering, unblinking, as though he expected to catch them at something. Khirro stared back, holding the thing’s eyes, but his legs felt weary after their flight, and he struggled to keep them from shaking. He was exhausted and needed to rest.

Do dead men sleep?

Watching the monster in his black mail splashed with red, it didn’t seem so. The thing stood so steady and unmoving, Khirro couldn’t even detect his chest rising and falling with breath. But why should it? If a dead man didn’t need to eat or rest, why would he need to breathe? Khirro made his own breathing as shallow as he could in an attempt to keep the necessity of life from giving away the fact he wasn’t dead.

The other two soldiers chatted and laughed as they rotated the rabbit on the spit, but Khirro tried not to listen to their conversation. The subject matter made him uncomfortable: wenches they’d raped, soldiers they’d killed, acts of bravery they’d performed. He doubted their words held much truth, but he didn’t like what they said nonetheless, even less so with Graymon sitting within earshot.

Why can’t they mind their manners? Do they have to be so crude? Do they-

Athryn shuffled in his seat on the log, feet scuffling in the dirt, and gently nudged Khirro on the back of his foot. Khirro’s head jerked up, surprised; Athryn had caught him on the edge of dozing on his feet.

Khirro looked across the fire, hand hovering near the hilt of the short sword hanging at his side, but his undead counterpart hadn’t moved. He resisted the urge to sigh with relief and stood a little more rigid; the scare of how close he’d come to giving them away made alertness that much easier.

Athryn kicked the back of his foot again, this time more obvious about it. Khirro grunted and faced him, hand on sword.

“The boy needs to make water,” the magician said looking Khirro in the eye. One of his eyelids fluttered slightly, signaling.

Khirro looked back at the fire and saw Tugg removing the rabbit from the spit.

“Eat first,” Khirro said, “then piss.”

He gestured for Tugg to bring the prisoners some meat.

“Pssh. Let them starve, I say. They’re the enemy.”

“I don’t know, Tugg,” Mandich said. “It’ll take us a week to get back to the fortress. What if they don’t make it? What would the wit…the Archon do to us if we bring them back dead?”

Tugg looked at the rabbit, then at the prisoners. “There ain’t much here.” He reached down and pulled a small knife out of his boot. “I guess they can have a taste to keep them goin’.”

He carved a piece off the thigh of the rabbit and held it out pinched between his thumb and the blade of the knife but remained seated. Khirro strode to him, watching as the eyes of the undead soldier followed his path. He held out his hand and Tugg placed the piece of rabbit meat on his gauntleted palm, then shaved a second piece and gave that to him as well. Khirro waited for a third.

“That’s all they get or there ain’t enough for Mandich and me.”

Khirro grunted and turned away; there would be no meat for him, it seemed. As he walked back to Graymon and Athryn, the smell of the food found his nose again. Savory, fatty. His mouth watered and he felt a gurgling protestation rise in his belly. He hurried his pace to get away from the others, reaching his companions as his gut let go with a loud, hungry growl.

“Here’s your dinner,” Khirro grated, hoping his words covered the sound of his traitorous stomach.

Graymon reached out and snatched a piece of meat from Khirro’s hand, lifted the too big black mask off his face and jammed all of it in his mouth at once, chewing hungrily.

“Give him my piece, too,” Athryn said.

Graymon’s hopeful gaze moved to the magician, then back to the meat in Khirro’s hand, but he didn’t take it. Khirro pushed his hand toward him.

“Take it.”

The boy did, chewing it with as much relish as he did the first piece. Khirro watched him eat, his own belly rumbling. A line of hungry spittle spilled over Graymon’s bottom lip and down his chin; he wiped it away on the sleeve of his shirt and Khirro’s eyes widened as the scar on his chin and the bottom of his cheek wiped away with it. Instinctively, he shifted to keep himself between Graymon and the Kanosee soldiers, then waved his arm toward the line of trees.

“Piss now,” he growled.

“But I don’t-” Graymon began through the meager mouthful of rabbit.

Athryn’s hand on his arm halted his protest. The magician stood and pulled the boy to his feet as he drew the mask back down over his face.

“I suppose you need to go, too?” Mandich said, his words garbled by the chunk of rabbit meat in his mouth.

“I too must empty my bowels,” Athryn said.

“Ha!” Tugg guffawed. “‘Empty your bowels’? Talking like that, I hope you wipe your ass with a stinging nettle.”

Khirro herded his companions away, leaving the two soldiers laughing so hard they nearly choked themselves on their sparse meal.

We should be so lucky.

They stepped off the road into the fringe of grass separating the dirt track from the line of trees. The forest on the verge of winter was quiet; the only sounds were the soldiers’ laughter, the faint crackle of the fire and the whisper of a light wind through the trees. When they’d gone a few paces into the forest, Khirro decided they were far enough away to chance speaking.

“His scar came off, Athryn.” He kept his voice low, both to ensure the Kanosee didn’t hear and to keep from alarming the boy.

“Yes. This type of spell does not last forever.”

“What do we do?”

“It seems to me that the magic is only one of our worries. The dead soldier does not have the same needs as the living. How will you stay awake for a week? How will you go without food and water?”

Khirro sighed and peered over his shoulder toward the fire; branches obscured his view, but he still saw the figure of the undead soldier standing behind the other two. He directed Athryn and Graymon around a clutch of brambles and behind the trunk of a large tree.

“I can sneak water and food. Sleep may be a problem.”

Despite Graymon’s prior protest, the boy dropped his trousers to urinate against the tree hiding them from their foes. Khirro and Athryn stepped away to give the boy some privacy.

“I think I can help you fell rested,” Athryn said.

He rolled up his sleeve and scanned the black cursive lines tattooed on his flesh. When he didn’t seem to find what he was looking for, he pulled open the front of his shirt. Khirro watched until his finger stopped on a line as unrecognizable as the rest.

“Here.”

“Will your magic work so far away from the dead man?”

“My power seems to be growing with every use. I think it will work.”

“Good.” Khirro allowed himself a relieved smile and felt the mud on his face crack. A piece toppled off his cheek. “Can you renew this, too?” He pointed at his face, careful not to move the muscles in his cheek and jaw unnecessarily.

Athryn sighed and nodded.

“I know you don’t want me to cut myself,” Khirro said, “but it’s better than losing our lives.”

“They will not kill you or the boy, not if they know who you are. I am the one whose life is immediately in danger.”

Khirro put his hand on Athryn’s shoulder. “That’s enough reason for me, my friend.”

Athryn nodded and stepped back as Khirro drew his dagger. The magician paused to read the archaic writing scrawled across his lower abdomen, preparing to cast the spell. Khirro breathed deep and looked toward the boy who’d finished his business and stood watching them, his back to the tree. Khirro held a finger to his lips and Graymon nodded.

“All right.” Athryn lowered his head and began the quiet chant.

Khirro yanked up his sleeve and brought the edge of the knife toward his forearm. Before he set the sharp blade against his flesh, he hesitated, given pause by the line of cuts he’d already made in the service of Athryn’s magic.

I’m already starting to look like Maes.

With a shake of his head, he closed his eyes, laid the edge of the blade against his skin, and drew the knife across his upper arm. The blade sliced his flesh, immediately bringing blood to the surface, but the sting of it was not as much as it had been other times. He let his arms fall to his sides and felt the trail of blood running down the inside of his forearm and into his gauntlet, a feeling with which he was beginning to become all too familiar.

Athryn’s chant resonated in Khirro’s ears, lulling him until his shoulders sagged forward and his head drooped toward his chest. The chant became a drone, the drone a buzz, the buzz a growl, and Khirro’s dozing mind conjured the white tyger he’d dreamed of before, a totem he now knew to be the spirit of the king that lived inside him. He hadn’t dreamed of this version of the tyger in a long time, but now, in his mind, it stood before him, lips peeled back to reveal sharp teeth as a deep growl rumbled in its throat.

“Beware,” the tyger said. The growling stopped.

Graymon’s shriek startled Khirro back to wakefulness. His first reaction was to turn to the boy and hush him, but when he saw the look of fear on his face, he realized it wasn’t Khirro’s transformation into one of the dead that brought the sound from him. At the same instant he realized this, he also noticed Athryn’s chant had ceased. He pivoted back toward the magician, brought his dagger to bear in a habit he didn’t remember developing, but the sword pressed tight under Athryn’s chin stopped him.

The dead man leered over the magician’s shoulder, his gloved hand covering Athryn’s mouth. Athryn held the thing’s forearm with both hands, but he wouldn’t be able to extricate himself without the monster slicing his throat.

“Well, well. What do we have here?”

Tugg and Mandich came around the side of the tree, swords drawn. Khirro’s eyes flickered from Athryn to the two soldiers and back.

“Let him go,” Khirro said and felt another chunk of dried mud slide off his cheek.

Mandich leveled his sword at Khirro. It quivered in the air a yard away from him. “Not going to happen. Drop your knife if you want to live.”

They’ll kill him no matter what I do. They don’t need him.

A step behind him, Graymon whimpered. The two Kanosee soldiers looked at him and Khirro used the instant of distraction in the only way he could see to gain some leverage. He grabbed Graymon and brought the dagger he’d used to aid Athryn’s magic up to the boy’s throat.

“Let him go or I kill the boy.”

Deep inside, Khirro felt an ember spring to life.

Chapter Nineteen

The man’s sickly smell made the two soldiers who’d brought him gag and hold their hands over their noses, but it created the opposite effect in the Archon. She breathed deep through her nose, drawing in the heady fumes of sewage and burnt flesh, luxuriating in their intoxicating odor the way other women might inhale the scent of perfume, or flowers gifted by a lover.

“We found it…him in the south tunnel,” one of the soldiers said.

The Archon opened her eyes and fixed him with a penetrating gaze, recognized him as the leader of the patrol she’d seen bring the man and woman with the child into the fortress. She supposed the soldier had a name, but she didn’t know it nor cared to. As far as she was concerned, he was another pawn to move about as necessary to achieve the ends she desired. She moved away from the divan and the thing she’d thrown a blanket over to hide from her visitors.

“The south tunnel,” she repeated, her top lip curling into a sneer. “Did you find anything else?”

“Not much,” the other soldier said. “Some body pieces. Everything was burned pretty bad. Like him.”

“No armor? No weapons? What a about a staff? Did you find a staff?”

“No, we didn’t, ma’am…err, your Gra…your Maj…Nothing.”

She leaned closer to the burnt man, her hands held behind her back. As she neared, she took another breath through her nose, both for pleasure and in search of clues to the man’s identity, but the aroma of charred skin and old feces proved too strong for her senses. She paused a few inches from where the man’s nose had once been before it was incinerated.

“Sienhin?” she whispered. “Is that you?”

The man’s lips made a crackling sound as they parted to draw a rattling breath between them. The Archon pulled back and watched the man’s lidless eyes focus on her. The life in them flickered dimly, like a candle guttering before going out, but she saw enough to recognize him.

“Hahn,” she said, not bothering to hide her disappointed tone. She looked up at the soldiers who had dragged him to her room from the sewer tunnel. “Leave us.”

They both bowed shallowly and retreated from the room; she relished their relieved expressions, knowing it meant they feared her. She liked to be feared.

When they were gone, she returned her attention to her blackened former lover.

“I don’t suppose you can tell me what happened, can you?”

A dry click sounded in the depths of Hahn Perdaro’s throat as he attempted to swallow with a mouth incapable of producing saliva.

“Fire,” he said, the word carried on waning breath.

The Archon reached out with a finger and prodded the burnt flesh of his shoulder. A pained breath shuddered into his chest.

“I know who did this to you,” she said conversationally. “He let you live, you know. If he did not desire your survival as a messenger, a warning to me, you would be dead.”

Perdaro made a noise like he attempted to speak, but the Archon ignored the sound.

“And what of Sir Alton Sienhin? Is he dead?”

Hahn moved his eyes away from her gaze and the action gave her all the answer she needed. Rage twisted in her stomach and she fought to keep from lashing out at the burned husk of a man; he was already being punished for his failure, anything she might do would be a relief to him. He didn't deserve relief.

“Now that you have brought your news, I am sure he will let you die.” She leaned toward him, brought her lips close to the opening in his skull where an ear once existed. “If it was me, I would let you suffer for failing at a task as easy as this.”

She drew back to look in his eyes and saw fear in them, and pleading. His head moved slightly side to side, his way of saying it wasn’t his fault, she supposed. Even without a face, she saw the pain the movement brought him, and it delighted her-this was his punishment not only for failure, but for the hideous things she’d had to do to keep him loyal. He released his breath and she smelled his charred lungs.

“Does he have the staff?”

More painful movement, this time in the affirmative.

“But you did not use it, so he does not know its power.” She brushed his cheek with the knuckle of one finger; he flinched. “This may work to our advantage. It seems you have served your purpose, Hahn. Time to go to the fields of the dead. I think you will like it there.”

“N…no.” Breath hissed out of his parched throat, barely recognizable as words. The Archon leaned in, indulging him. “I…f…fight. For you. M…m…m…ake me mon…ster. Bring. M…me b…b…back.”

She laughed aloud, a loveless, uncaring bark of a laugh.

“Bring you back to fight for me? You could not complete a simple task while you lived, and with real soldiers I sent to assist you. What makes you think you would be a worthy soldier in death, Hahn?” She laughed again and Hahn Perdaro struggled to form more words, to protest, but she spoke over his efforts. “No, my love, he will let you die now, and so will I. Guards!”

Perdaro flinched as she shouted and a moment later, one of the soldiers appeared in the doorway, bowing shallowly. Sheyndust looked at him and felt anger bubble inside her.

“Bring me King Therrador,” she commanded. “Use whatever force necessary, but be sure he is alive when he gets to me.”

The soldier grinned, showing the space where he was missing a tooth, and bowed again before hurrying from the Archon's chamber. When he as gone and the door shut behind him, she felt calm and control return. She strode to the divan where a blanket embroidered with the royal seal covered a bulky shape.

“Rest assured, Hahn, your death will not deter my plans. Your failure may be of great service to me, actually. Not only do I now have no reason to keep Therrador alive, but I will also use the last remnants of your life so that I may have a real soldier to aid me, one who will be loyal and capable.”

She pulled the cover away and reached down to stroke the cold cheek of the corpse lying on the divan. Her fingers traced a path to his ear where they encountered one of many feathers protruding from his skin. She plucked it and held it up for Perdaro to see. The feather was gray and patchy, the feather of a bird that had been dead for a while.

A bird that could help me win a war.

Hahn Perdaro’s eyes grew glassy and his breath hitched in his throat. The Archon smiled, closed her eyes, and began the now familiar spell to animate the dead.

***

Therrador woke with a start, the feel of cold sweat on his forehead and surprised he’d fallen asleep. After arriving back at his chambers, he’d paced, worrying about what he’d sent Sir Alton Sienhin to do, but he didn’t recall undressing and lying down on the bed.

He sat up abruptly and looked around the room, but night blanketed the world; the moon was dim and sunrise remained hours away judging by the quality of the dark and the lack of sound coming from the fortress around him. He looked left and right, his braided beard rubbing against his bare chest. At first, he thought the blur in the corner an effect of sleep clouding his eyes, but it grew larger as the indistinct figure approached and he realized what he saw.

“You again,” he said throwing off the covers and standing. The air in the room felt cold on his bare flesh despite the embers glowing on the hearth. “Do you bring news of Sir Alton?”

“I do,” the ghostly woman said.

Therrador’s hands clenched into fists as he waited for her to continue. She floated closer and her form became more distinct, though it remained translucent. He saw the red of her hair, the green of her eyes, the paleness of her cheeks, and found that, despite having seen her a few times, despite the help she’d provided, he couldn’t remember her name.

Elyea.

His head jerked at the sound of the word whispered in his ear and still found no one in the room but the ghostly woman in front of him, yet she couldn’t possibly have spoken her name into his ear. The king suppressed a shiver and returned his attention to the woman.

“Elyea,” he said. “What has happened?”

“A trap. They were waiting for him.”

“How is that possible? We knew not to trust Emon Turesti, but-”

“It isn’t these two men who are not to be trusted. Emon Turesti gave his life trying to keep his secret, but it was more than he could bear.”

Therrador’s hands loosened. “Smoke is dead? And Hu Dondon?”

The woman looked at him, her gaze penetrating. Therrador had his answer in her lack of response and dropped his gaze from hers, his eyes flickering back and forth across the floor as if he’d find the solution to saving his kingdom lying upon it. After a moment, he shook his head to collect himself, and raised his face back to hers.

“What of the general?”

“He has left the fortress and is on his way to Achtindel.”

“He survived the trap, then.”

“With some help from a friend.”

Therrador’s mouth fell open. “A friend?”

She nodded. “It doesn’t matter now. The Archon knows of your plan and she has found out that Sir Alton survived. Your life is in danger.”

“But who-?”

He heard the sound of an insistent voice from behind the ghost woman, the words muffled by the heavy wooden door. Instinctively, Therrador reached for the sword belt that would normally have hung on the corner post of the bed. When he didn't find it, he glanced toward the portion of wall hiding the secret passage he’d used before and wondered if he’d make it across the room before the Kanosee soldiers entered. It was a fanciful thought; there wouldn’t be time to get the wall opened and closed before they entered.

“It’s too late to flee,” Elyea said as a key rattled in the door’s lock. “Don’t move.”

He had no choice but to trust the woman.

She hasn’t steered me astray yet.

She moved closer, her ghostly form an inch from touching him, and the king shivered again.

But I also thought Hahn trustworthy.

Her figure became vaporous and touched his bare chest. Therrador stiffened as the ghost woman enveloped him, entered him, and he found himself unable to move. A mist passed over his vision, obscuring the room into a charcoal smear of indistinct shapes as the door swung inward and three men entered.

Therrador heard them clearly and saw their movements as they rushed into the room, but could make out no more than their outlines in his hazy perception. One dragged the blankets off the bed and a barley human grunt followed his discovery that it was empty.

“Search the room,” someone else said.

The king saw dark shapes move off in different directions, heard armor clatter and furniture thump as they overturned chairs and tables, tore tapestries off the walls. He attempted to turn his head to see if they would discover the secret passage hidden in the wall, but the ghost woman held him rigid and still, his eyes the only part of himself he controlled.

Panic drew Therrador’s guts into a tangle, not at the prospect of discovery, but at the paralysis holding him from moving, from defending himself should the need arise. He’d been a soldier too long to bear the thought of dying defenseless.

“He’s not here,” the voice said.

“That…that’s not possible,” a second man said, his voice rife with nerves.

The guard.

“Check again,” the guard said.

In his misty prison, Therrador smiled. What would the guard’s life be worth when the Archon found out he’d let the king escape? It must have been this thought adding the tremor to his voice.

Therrador felt a presence at his back and his smile disappeared. His muscles tensed, though he guessed he wouldn’t be able to move unless the woman released her hold on him, and part of him wondered if he would even be able to move.

The presence behind him came closer, then circled in front of his frozen form. In the fog clouding his vision, Therrador made out the shape of the man, but his features remained indistinct. The shape paused directly in front of him, then fell to his knees to search under the bed, the soldier’s arm brushing the side of the king’s calf. He swept his sword back and forth along the length of the bed, then grunted a sound only a no-longer-human throat was capable of making, and stood.

The king held his breath as the shape moved closer; close enough for him to see the features of the undead soldier’s face. His complexion was ashen and the white of his left eye had gone black with congealed blood, otherwise, this man looked no different from a living soldier. His other eye was watery-blue and clear, his white beard trimmed and neat but for the dried blood sprayed across it from the wound in his throat.

Therrador’s breath caught in his chest.

Sir Matte.

He opened his mouth to speak his old friend’s name, but the ghost woman’s grip constricted, tightening his chest enough to keep him from speaking, prevent him from breathing. The dead man-his old friend, a soldier who he’d fought beside and who had saved his life in battle on more occasions than he cared to count-stood inches away from him, seeming to stare into his eyes.

What did she do to you?

He ached to have a sword in his hand he could use to release a noble soldier from this horrendous fate; Sir Matte deserved better than this. Therrador struggled against the ghost woman’s grip, but she held him tight. After a few seconds, the undead Sir Matte Eliden huffed a breath through his nose as though he smelled Therrador’s presence, his eyes darted back and forth, but then he grunted and stalked away.

“He’s not here,” the first voice said again. “How could you let him out? Did you fall asleep at your post?”

“I didn’t,” the guard said. “I swear I didn’t. Please don’t tell her. I don’t want her to turn me into…one of those.”

“Come on. He can’t have gone far.”

Booted footsteps crossed the stone floor and the wooden door thumped shut behind the three men. Therrador waited for the ghost woman to release him, the muscles in his arms and legs begging to regain control. It seemed a long time before she finally let him have his body back.

“That bitch,” Therrador said gasping a breath to fill his lungs. “I’ll have her head for this.”

“Her time will come.” Elyea looked slightly more solid than before. “For now, we must hide you and keep you hidden until the time comes.”

“But Sir Matte is-”

“That is no longer your friend, only his husk.”

Therrador looked away to stare at the closed door. His hands curled into fists and the feel of his missing thumb further enraged him; he held himself back from rushing out of the room to kill the soldiers with his bare hands and rescue his old friend, or at least release him from his fate.

Their time will come soon enough.

“Therrador-”

“All right,” he said and retrieved his breeches from under the overturned chair beside the bed. “Where will you take me?”

“Somewhere safe,” she replied and waited for him to finish dressing.

“I’ll need armor. And a weapon.”

“You shall have them.” She looked toward the door and back again. “Hurry, they might return.”

Therrador sat on the edge of the bed to pull on his boots, but hesitated. The end of the bandage wrapped around his right had come loose and hung limp by his forearm. He looked at the back of his hand, then turned it over to look at the palm, at the space where his thumb should have been. He flexed his hand; the pain had mostly subsided, but a numbness remained that he thought would never leave him, and part of him hoped it never would. It would remind him of the mistakes he’d made that threatened the kingdom, his son, his life. Mistakes he planned to rectify.

He finished donning his boots, stood, and nodded to the ghost. Elyea led him to the door secreted in the stone wall and coaxed it open.

When I’m standing in front of the witch with a sword in my hand, I’ll make no mistake, thumb or no.

Chapter Twenty

Khirro’s vision cleared, the flames dimming until they disappeared leaving him feeling suddenly cold. From his position straddling a log, he looked around at the brush and the trees; he heard the rush of waves washing onto the shore.

I shouldn’t be near the sea. Where am I?

Panic flared in his belly as he surveyed his surroundings, attempting to find his bearings. He looked down at the log on which he sat to see which side the moss grew on, but found it wasn’t a log at all.

The man whose hips he perched upon lay on his back facing the sky, wide eyes staring blankly at the limbs overhead. His throat was torn out, his chest thick with his own blood. Khirro gasped and stumbled to his feet, noticing for the first time the blood drying on his cheeks and his chin, knowing it wasn’t mud or berry juice; the coppery smell filled his nostrils, made him gag. He stared at the man and recognized him as one of the Kanosee soldiers, Tugg.

But how did we get here?

He remembered threatening Graymon, feeling the boy quake with fear in his grasp, and wishing he could tell him not to worry, that he wouldn’t hurt him. But he couldn’t have told him so, it would have meant their lives.

Maybe it did.

Khirro lurched away from the body, his feet carrying him toward the sound of the sea to splash salt water on his face and wash the man’s life off his cheeks. But his stomach churned and he stopped to lean against a tree as his stomach heaved out a bloody mess. Seeing it, knowing what it was, made him heave again and again until nothing came out. He spat to clear the taste of blood and bile from his mouth and straightened, his head spinning with confusion, panic, disgust. He panted coppery tasting breath in and out through his mouth and wished for a wine skin to clear the vile flavor, but he didn’t even have fresh water.

After a moment, his head cleared. He straightened and took a step toward the sound of the waves, then hesitated at another noise that wasn’t the sea or the wind in the bare tree branches. Khirro turned slowly.

The Kanosee soldier had found his feet and swayed unsteadily where he stood. His head lolled to the side, the half-a-neck Khirro’s attack left insufficient support. Seeing the way it flopped side-to-side might have been humorous under other circumstances, but Khirro had no doubt the man had been dead a minute before. Vomiting the flesh of his throat proved it.

The newly raised dead man stumbled toward him, each step tossing its head around. Khirro stared in horror as it approached.

Haven’t I killed him enough?

He swallowed past the unpleasant taste in his mouth and grasped the hilt of the short sword he was relieved to find in its scabbard at his side. Compared to the Mourning Sword he’d finally gotten used to wielding, it wasn’t much of a weapon, but given the state of the dead man’s neck, it should be enough to finish the job he’d begun with his teeth.

Khirro shivered at the thought and spat again.

The thing came a few steps closer and Khirro steeled himself, ready to cleave its head from its body. A voice in his head tried to distract him by wondering what happened to Athryn and the boy, but he silenced it.

Is this what a real warrior does?

He held the sword, muscles tensed, waiting for the man to reach him, but the undead soldier’s feet caught in the runner of a hibernating berry bush, toppling him to the ground. Khirro frowned, sighed an annoyed breath, and stalked toward the fallen man. He’d struggled to his knees by the time Khirro reached him, wavering unsteadily; his head flopped forward and their eyes met.

Looking into the blank expression of the dead, Khirro remembered that this man had been alive not so long ago. He hesitated. Perhaps Tugg had been married to a woman who loved him, had a family dependent on him. Like Khirro himself, he might have had no choice in coming here to fight, and certainly didn’t choose to become a monster.

Maybe he was once a farmer. Maybe he was forced to join the Archon’s army against his will.

The man’s mouth opened in a snarl that, had his throat not been opened, would likely have come out a war cry rather than the gurgle it created. He rushed forward, weapon extended, and his movement pulled Khirro from his hesitation. A fighting instinct he didn’t possess not so long ago swung the sword in a short arc through the air, severing the rest of the man’s neck. A fine burst of blood sprayed Khirro’s face; Tugg’s head tumbled from his shoulders, bounced off the side of a fallen tree, then rolled into a patch of brush. The body continued a step farther before toppling forward at Khirro’s feet.

Off to the right on a low hanging branch, a winter bird whistled its tune until a stiff breeze rustled the branches and sent it winging off to other locales. Khirro raised his eyes and watched it disappear into the high foliage, feeling as though it carried his last shred of humanity with it.

***

Graymon pushed aside a prickly branch with his forearm and one of the thorns caught on the sleeve of his shirt, slowing him down.

“Let go,” he cried, then threw his hand over his mouth.

Be quiet.

He stopped and took a calming breath, then plucked the branch from his sleeve. It came away easily, not at all like a bush bent on holding him captive until his pursuers caught him.

“Everything’s okay,” he said aloud but quieter this time. He knew he shouldn’t speak at all, but hearing even his own voice made him feel less lonely and lost. What he really wanted was to hear his da’s voice telling him where to go and what to do.

A knot formed in the back of his throat at the thought as he realized it was the first time he’d thought of his father in a long while. With all the danger and fear he’d experienced these last few weeks, he’d forgotten to think of him. He struggled to keep the knot from unwinding and becoming tears. He didn’t want to cry-he’d cried enough to last a lifetime.

Graymon swallowed hard and pushed on. It had been scary when Khirro grabbed him and put a knife to his throat, but not as scary as when his friend caught fire. What happened after that, he didn’t know. He only knew that the magician told him to run, so he did. And he didn’t stop until the bush grabbed him and made him; then, for the first time, he looked back to see if anyone was chasing him, friend or foe, though he no longer felt like he knew one from the other.

He crouched down and peered through the tangle of undergrowth back along the path he’d followed, but saw no sign of movement.

What happened to them?

The sun dipped close to the horizon and the chill in the air deepened. Graymon hugged himself, and bit down on his teeth to keep them from chattering. He’d been through this before and it hadn’t come out well-he knew full well the dangers of the forest at night.

“I’ll hide somewhere,” he said and scanned his surroundings. At first, he saw nothing that looked like it might make a suitable hiding, and his shivers became hard to control as fear added to the cold. His eyes passed over a brace of winter ferns for a third time before he realized they hid a fallen tree behind them.

“Perfect.”

Steering a wide path around the bramble that interrupted his escape, Graymon approached the deadfall slowly, careful to keep from making noise. He peered between sagging fronds, squinting to see into the darkness created by the cascade of browning leaves disguising the log. It looked like there was enough space under the fallen tree for him, but it was difficult to see in through the ferns. When nothing jumped out at him, he moved closer and parted the leaves.

The ground beneath the log fell away in a shallow depression, creating more space than Graymon had realized-enough for him and nanny, too, if she was here. Leaves rustled as he pushed his way through and into the makeshift shelter. The ground was carpeted with soft moss beneath his feet and it felt warmer hidden behind the ferns, what little heat the day had offered trapped behind their screen. Remembering the tree where he’d hid before, Graymon shuffled in a circle to make sure no mice or other small creatures hid anywhere, but he saw none.

They’ve gone to sleep for the winter.

Graymon yawned and stretched at the thought. It suddenly seemed like a long time since he last slept, perhaps longer than he’d ever gone without sleep. He settled down on the bed of moss and decaying fern leaves and laid his head down, heedless of the threat of insects crawling on him as he napped. He was asleep as soon as his eyes closed.

The white tyger came to him immediately, but this time the beast wasn’t alone. A woman with red hair and green eyes accompanied the animal, her hand stroking his neck at the base of his head, and Graymon recognized her as the ghostly woman who visited him in the wagon. He wished he could pet the tyger the way she did.

“You don’t need to be afraid,” the woman said.

“I’m not afraid,” Graymon replied. “This is a dream.”

The woman’s smile lit up her face and made Graymon feel as though he’d done something especially well; it made him want to smile along with her.

“It’s not the dream I’m talking about, sweet Graymon, it’s this.”

She stopped scratching the tyger’s neck and stepped away from the beast. Graymon’s smile wavered but he forced it to stay.

“I’m not afraid of the big kitty. He’s my friend. I dream about him a lot.”

The woman nodded, then turned her gaze toward the tyger, so Graymon did, too. The cat stared straight ahead at the boy, expressionless as always, except for a flicker at the back of its gaze. The light mesmerized Graymon. He wanted to go to the tyger and look deep into its eyes to see what caused the light. A second later, he didn’t have to.

The flames started on the tyger’s neck, where the woman had been stroking him. At first, Graymon thought she set the big cat on fire, but she didn’t have a torch and he hadn’t seen her use a flint. Something else had caused it.

The fire spread over the tyger’s head, igniting its ears and spilling down onto its face to set its whiskers alight.

“No!” Graymon reached out for the tyger but didn’t move toward it. As much as he wanted to save the beautiful animal, the fire scared him.

“Don’t be afraid,” the woman said. In his panic, Graymon had forgotten she was there, and her words startled him.

“But he’s on fire.”

“No. See how it doesn’t burn him? He’s fine. Do not be afraid for him or of him.”

Graymon stared, eyes wide and mouth agape, as the flames spilled down the animal’s back and along its tail, enveloping the beast completely. The fire burned bright yellow and orange, and he felt the heat of it across the space between them, but the tyger didn’t flinch or cry. It stood in place, looking at him, as still and rigid as the tyger statue on the steps outside the palace in Achtindel.

“I would never hurt you,” the tyger said in his mind.

Graymon recognized Khirro’s voice, but had his voice always been the tyger’s? Or did his dream play a trick on him?

“We are the same, Khirro and I,” the voice said. “I live inside him and sometimes, he inside me. One day, you will carry the flames.”

“Me?”

Both the tyger and the woman nodded, and their affirmation brought a knot of excitement to Graymon’s tummy. He imagined himself running through the forest, bounding over logs and leaping through thickets, flames jumping from his back and spreading to the dry leaves.

“You will see this again,” the woman said disturbing the dream within his dream. “Will you be afraid then?”

He shook his head.

“Even if it’s Khirro you see aflame?”

Graymon shook his head again. The tyger’s flames flickered and went out and the boy felt disappointed at their disappearance.

“Good,” the woman said as the tyger loped away into the forest. “The time is coming, young one. Be ready for the tyger. Be ready for the flames.”

Graymon nodded and the woman, the tyger, the forest faded away until the dark nothing of sleep held him.

Under a log, behind a curtain of ferns, Erechania’s next-in-line to the throne smiled in his sleep.

***

Athryn sucked a breath of air in through his nose and with it, the smell of dirt and crisp winter air. The earth pressed against his cheek and he blinked to clear his blurred vision. Lying a few feet in front of him, he saw the undead soldier-now dead again-and the head of one of the soldiers on the ground near him. In tyger form, Khirro had rent Mandich’s head from his body with one strike of a massive, flaming paw. He’d mauled the dead man, too, but not before the thing pulled its blade across Athryn’s throat.

He tried to touch the wound to see how bad it was, but found himself unable to move his arm. A breath gurgled down his throat, into his lungs, the taste of blood sharp and salty on his tongue.

I still live. But for how long?

He strained to move his eyes and look past the two fallen men, but saw nothing other than the trunks of trees and the green-brown brush. Holding his breath, he listened. Leaves rustled in the wind; an early owl cried its chilling call. Nothing human.

Did Khirro survive? Graymon?

He licked his dry lips and tasted more blood.

“Help,” he said, but the word struggling through his lips came out a gurgle, a whisper.

He swallowed and attempted it again, but this time made no sound. His eyelids fluttered and slid closed. He forced them open and found a mist had collected in his vision, peppering the forest’s pre-twilight dimness with spots of white. He watched it grow and spread, rolling through the forest.

So is this to be it, then? It seems I will be with you again much sooner than I imagined, Maes.

The mist grew more dense until it obscured trees and brush alike, then it took the bodies of the two Kanosee soldiers, hiding them beneath its opaque whiteness. Somewhere-perhaps somewhere not too far from where he lay-he imagined it enveloping Khirro and Graymon. In his imagining, they lived and they were together.

But if that is the case, why are they not here for me?

He tried to swallow again, this time without success. Instead, it felt as though the saliva caught on the wound in his throat, threatened to tear it open and spill what little blood remained in him over the forest floor.

Athryn closed his eyes, his lips moving ever so slightly as he whispered a protection spell, sending it out into the forest to find his friend and keep him safe, to seek out the boy and find him alive, help keep him that way.

One last death to use.

After a minute, his energy waned and his lips ceased moving.

The magician felt himself drawn up off the ground. Air moved around him, swirling and lifting him. He imagined himself being lifted out of the forest, soaring high above the tops of the trees, and he thought this must have been the way Shyn felt in his falcon form. How free. How liberating.

Athryn relaxed and let the mist carry him off to the fields of the dead.

Chapter Twenty-One

The beat of hooves filled Sir Alton Sienhin’s ears, bounced and multiplied inside his head. The rhythm normally soothed him, brought him a calmness rarely felt at other times in his life, for the sound represented freedom to him as he became one with the horse and it carried him across the land faster than a man had any hope of traveling. Not now, though, because he knew he was pushing the horse too hard. Forced by circumstance, he had no choice. Flecks of foam flew from the animal's lips, carried away on the wind as they thundered toward the capital.

In the distance, Achtindel’s walls and spires rose against the dawn sky. With it in view, the general dared to push the horse even harder. He urged his steed on, a feeling of remorse gnawing at the pit of his gut because he knew when he arrived at the city, this valiant animal that had given its all would be left spent and useless. He leaned forward as far as he dared, stroked the horses neck in appreciation.

“It happens to all of us eventually,” he said, his words stolen by the wind.

The horse misstepped and Sir Alton heard the crack of its front leg snapping in the fraction of a second before the horse pitched forward. Unsteady in his seat, the horse’s fall separated the general from the saddle and flung him through the air. For a second, he saw Achtindel, tantalizingly close yet so far away, then he tucked his head and his shoulder hit the ground with a crunch that made his stomach turn.

Pain exploded through his body as he plowed through dirt and scrub grass until his forward momentum ceased. He came to rest with his cheek and chest pressed against the ground, the heavy breaths he drew through his mouth stirring the hair of his long mustache and disturbing the dirt. At his back, the heavy gasps of the dying war horse overpowered the sound of his own breathing. Wincing with pain, Sienhin moved his head enough to see what state the horse was in.

The brave steed lay on its side, head resting in the dirt and its right front leg twisted at an angle it was never intended to bend. Through his own pain, Sienhin felt a pang of regret; he’d caused this animal’s death as surely as if he drew his sword across its throat.

“I’m sorry, boy,” he said, the effort shooting pain from his shoulder down his arm and side.

He cringed, clamped his teeth together in an attempt to suppress it, but it burned through his muscles, clamped onto his bones.

“Gods,” he groaned aloud. “This hurts more than being stabbed.”

Rather than fight the pain, he let it flow through him. His experience of being wounded in battle told him that, in a matter of time, he would become more accustomed to it, have a better chance of controlling it. He lay his head on the ground and relaxed to the extent the pain allowed. The agony in his shoulder pulsed with each beat of his heart, disguising any other pain, any other injuries he might have sustained. Each torturous breath was a torment rippling through his body, shaking his soul, and he fought against crying out, instead concentrating on his breath, focusing on the task ahead of him.

For the sake of the kingdom, I need to get up.

Minutes passed, then more. The pain made his head feel light and the general lost track of time’s passage.

For the sake of the kingdom. For the sake of the kingdom. For the sake of the kingdom.

The words became his unspoken mantra, distracting him from the pain as well as from the other thoughts that did their best to claw their way into his mind. Each time a thought of Therrador’s betrayal, or Hahn Perdaro’s treachery, of dead men fighting as though they lived, or of his long dead son tried to worm their way through his guard, he repeated the phrase again.

For the sake of the kingdom. For the sake of the kingdom.

Finally, a welcome thought found him, and he remembered Braymon sitting astride his steed, sun glinting on his polished plate and a satisfied smile on his face as he brandished his sword. Beside him, Sienhin sat ahorse as well, his bushy mustache hiding the victory smile tilting his lips. It was the day Braymon claimed the throne: a great day for Erechania.

“For the sake of the kingdom.”

Sienhin gritted his teeth and rolled onto his back as gently as he could. He still felt mind-numbing pain, but it was not so terrible as it had been. He lay on the ground facing the winter sky for a few moments, breathing deep through his nose and smelling the crispness of the day and the sweet odor of the dead horse’s dung. Above him, the sun had risen higher in the sky than he’d expected.

“The kingdom,” he said between clamped teeth and pushed himself to a sitting position.

His shoulder screamed with pain and he felt it grate against itself beneath his skin, but he got himself up. He was facing the city and, through the haze the torturous pain cast upon his vision, he saw spirals of smoke rising from bakeries and smithies, cook fires and fires for warmth. Merchant tents sprawled across the plains leading up to the city’s walls, and he’d come far enough to see the different colors of their canvas.

“If I can see them,” he said, “I can walk to them.”

He filled his lungs, grunted, and braced himself with his good arm. In an awkward movement, he gathered his legs beneath him, then rested again for a minute before attempting to stand. As he put his weight on his left foot, he found he had also twisted his ankle as it came out of its stirrup, and he toppled back to the ground in a dusty heap emphasized by a pained growl.

“Damn it.”

He reset himself, clamping his teeth together against the coming pain, when he remembered the staff he’d taken from Perdaro. Grunting, he looked over his shoulder at the dead horse and the staff tied to the saddle.

Sienhin dragged himself around, leaned on his good arm, and began inching along the path his shoulder had dug in the ground. Each time he moved forward, pain pounded in his shoulder. Sweat formed on his brow despite the chill in the air; beads of it rolled down his temple and caught in his mustache.

It seemed to the general that the sun likely crept across the sky at a faster pace than he crossed the ground to his mount. After two pauses to rest and more pained cries than he would have admitted, he made it to the fallen horse, but hesitated before reaching for the staff.

In the daylight, the green glow that had illuminated the drainage tunnel couldn’t be seen, though he knew it was still there. His fingers hovered over the nobbed end of the staff, testing the air around it and finding nothing unusual: no heat, no pain, no magical pulse.

“Curse this magical superstition.”

He grasped the end and tugged hard, expecting difficulty in freeing it from its ties, but the stick slipped out without hindrance.

“Finally,” he grumbled aloud, “something goes right.”

He held the staff with his left hand and repositioned himself, fighting through the pain as he put his weight on his right foot, hoping that it came out of the stirrup more easily than his left when he took his fall. He rocked forward, testing its strength. It held his bulk without pain.

“All right then. Here we go.”

The general pulled hard on the staff and heaved himself to standing on his good leg. His left foot touched the ground gingerly for balance and he suddenly felt that, if he fell again, he wouldn’t be able to get back up and might die within sight of his goal.

It took a minute for him to feel comfortable in this upright position but once he did, Sienhin oriented himself toward the capital and took his first step. It jostled his shoulder, sending more pain down his arm and through his chest. He gritted his teeth, accepting and absorbing the hurt.

“Hmm,” he grunted and allowed himself a half-smile, then took the next step, this time necessarily putting weight on his injured ankle.

It threatened to give out and he stumbled but caught himself with the staff. The pain made his head spin and he closed his eyes tight to keep vertigo from throwing him to the ground. He sighed deeply, opened his eyes and stared toward Achtindel.

“For the kingdom,” he said and took another step.

***

Emeline felt the rumble of many hooves before she heard them. She raised her head from feeding Iana and looked first at the door, then across the room at her husband. Lehgan sat on the floor staring down, lost in his own thoughts as he had been for days. She shook her head slightly; she didn’t understand why, after what happened, it seemed like he was the one who was angry.

“What is that?” she asked.

Lehgan raised his eyes from the floor and opened his mouth to speak but instead stopped and listened.

“Horses,” he said-the first time he’d spoken to her in three days. “Lots of them.”

He climbed to his feet and moved to the door where he poked his head around the corner to peer down the avenue. After a minute, he stepped fully into the doorway.

“Do you see anything?”

“No.” He crossed the threshold.

Emeline stood, coaxed her nipple out of the sleeping baby’s mouth, and pulled her dress up to cover her breast before crossing to stand behind her husband. This was the closest they’d been to each other in days, and she immediately felt the heat radiating off him. She wanted to reach out and touch his back, stroke his hair, but stopped herself from doing so.

“I’m going to see what’s going on,” he said and strode out into the avenue.

“Wait, I’ll come with you.”

Emeline wet back to the bed and retrieved the blanket to keep Iana warm.

“No, stay here. It might not be safe.”

Before she opened her mouth to protest, Lehgan disappeared down the street toward the courtyard.

“Lehgan,” she called after him as she hurried to the door. “Lehgan!”

He didn’t stop, though she felt sure he heard her. Her lips pressed together in anger. After what they’d been through, hadn’t she proven herself more than a helpless farm wench? She brooded for only a moment before hurriedly wrapping Iana in the blanket and starting down the street, keeping her distance behind her husband lest he know she followed him.

He’s trying to reclaim his manhood by lording over me.

The thought made her more angry at first, but other thoughts followed it closely.

He wants to take care of me. He wants to make up for letting me down. He’s talking to me again.

She loved him-of that she was sure-so as a good wife, she should allow him to do those things, to do whatever he felt necessary to win back her trust and respect. She should be happy he wanted to do so.

But it doesn’t mean I have to sit and wait for him.

Ahead, the avenue opened onto the courtyard and Emeline saw a crowd of people already gathered to see the horses and riders. Lehgan reached them and pushed his way between an old woman straining to see over the taller people standing in front of her and a man so tall, he easily saw over everyone. After a few seconds, the crowd shifted, closing in behind him, and hiding her husband from her.

When Emeline reached the end of the avenue, she went to the left, away from where Lehgan stood, and weaved her way through the throng of people. The smell of unwashed bodies pressed together was overpowering and she held her hand over her nose to keep from breathing in the stench.

The sound of many horses came from the gate that opened on the salt flats, and she saw the dust cloud raised by their hooves. The people standing in front of her prevented her from seeing more, so she endeavored to make her way between them to the front of the crowd.

Perhaps it will smell better, too.

One man shot her an angry look as she squeezed past him, but then he relented when he saw Iana in Emeline’s arms and offered her his spot.

“Thank you,” Emeline said and took his place at the front of the crowd.

The gate was large enough to allow eight horses across its width, and the Kanosee riders took advantage of every inch. The column of mounted soldiers moved forward at a slow walk, the sound of armor and weapons clattering adding to the din of hoof beats pounding the ground. One rider sat apart from the others at the head of the procession-a woman.

She sat tall in the saddle, her yellow-blond hair loose and cascading over the black cloak covering her shoulders. She wore a purple chemise with wide sleeves and black riding pants, but no armor beneath her cape, though all the soldiers following her did. Emeline looked from the woman to the men behind her.

The first row of warriors immediately behind her were monsters. They wore black armor splashed with red, and their faces were the faces of the dead. Emeline had heard rumors around the fortress of these dead men brought back to life to fight for the Kanosee, though she’d not seen one until now. She hugged Iana close and wished she hadn’t seen one at all.

The crowd watched mostly in silence, only occasional gasps as someone caught sight of one of the monstrosities for the first time disturbing it. Emeline looked away from the hideous faces and back at the woman. As appalling as the soldiers were, the woman’s beauty surpassed them in attracting attention. Her hair bounced gently with the horse’s gait; a lop-sided smile made her face looked relaxed and unworried.

With fewer than ten horse lengths between them, the woman’s gaze found Emeline’s. The horses approached and she found herself unable to look away from the woman, mesmerized by her hair, her smile, the paleness of her skin, the darkness in her eyes. As her horse drew even with the spot where Emeline stood, the Archon raised her hand, stopping the procession, and reined her own horse to a halt.

Half a minute passed as the two women looked at each other. No thoughts entered Emeline’s mind as she gazed upon the woman. She didn’t wonder who she was, or why she stopped where she did; Emeline only admired her beauty and found herself unable to think of anything else until the woman spoke.

“Who are you?”

The words startled her, but Emeline did not reply. The woman leaned forward in her saddle.

“I said: who are you?”

This time, the words broke the spell mesmerizing her and Emeline blinked rapidly a few times, then looked over her shoulder.

“You,” the woman insisted.

Emeline faced her again, fighting an uncomfortable feeling in her chest as she did. She pulled the blanket tighter around Iana.

I shouldn’t have come. I should have listened to Lehgan.

“I’m no one,” she answered finally.

“I see that.” The woman settled back in her seat. “But why are you here? I saw some of my soldiers bring you in.”

She raised her hand and gestured. A horse whinnied and Emeline heard the sound of hooves on stone, but she didn’t turn to look.

“They found us on the road. They-” She looked away as the rider the woman called reined up beside her. He smiled, showing the gap where one of his teeth was missing and Emeline’s words caught in her throat.

“But why were you on the road? Did you not know a war is being fought?”

Emeline tore her gaze away from the man who’d raped her and hesitated, unsure how to best answer the woman’s question and extricate herself from this awkward interrogation. After a second, she shook her head feebly.

“Ha!” The woman’s laugh might have been the bark of a wild dog. “You did not know there is a war. Do you know now?”

Emeline nodded, her eyes flickering to Hektor still smiling at the Archon’s side. The woman leaned toward her with such suddenness, Emeline thought she might dismount. Instead, she stared at her through narrowed eyes as Emeline’s heart leaped into her throat. The woman’s lips pressed together hard enough to turn them whiter than her pale complexion.

“Who are you?”

“She’s my wife.”

The woman looked away from Emeline and down the ranks of people lining the courtyard; Emeline followed her gaze, disbelieving what she knew she would see. Lehgan stepped out of the crowd and into the courtyard, the fear on his face outweighed by stern determination.

“Our farm was not producing this season and we feared that, with our new child, we might not make it through the winter. We left for Achtindel to find food and work when your men took us. That man.”

His voice cracked on the last words, but he stood his ground doing his best to appear brave and defiant. Emeline watched, part of her wanting to run to him, hug him, tell him how brave he was and how she loved him. Another part wanted to tell him to run, get away before the soldier or the woman hurt him. She did neither. Above all else, she felt the need to keep Iana safe.

Emeline looked back to the woman and found she was no longer looking at Lehgan but at her, and fear jumped into her muscles, making them feel soft and inadequate, barely able to keep her standing.

“Do you know who I am?” the woman asked her.

Emeline nodded.

“Say it.”

“You’re the…the Archon.”

“And I know who you are.” The woman’s expression softened, turned to satisfaction. “You would be lucky if Archon was all I was. I feel you and I may meet again.”

Emeline’s breath caught in her chest as she waited for the woman to say more, or to ask her about the ghost woman, or Khirro, but she didn’t. Instead, she put her heels to her horse’s side and prompted him on as if nothing happened. Before following, Hektor leaned toward her.

“Sorry I didn’t visit, love. I’ll come see you when we’ve put down your army.”

He urged his horse forward and the rest of the column followed. Emeline shivered and looked back down the lane to see Lehgan step back to the edge of the crowd, disappearing out of her sight. She waited for a row of undead soldiers to ride past, then leaned out to see if Lehgan was all right.

The Archon stopped again as she reached him; Emeline gasped.

“No,” she whispered and took a step down the row toward her husband, but the man who had offered her his spot grabbed her, stopping her.

“There’s nothing you can do, lass.”

She watched in horror as the woman pointed at Lehgan and the soldier who raped her dismounted and drew his sword. Emeline pulled against the man’s grasp, attempting to break free and run to her husband’s aid.

“Think of your child,” the man rasped in her ear as he encircled her waist with his arm.

Hektor approached Lehgan, who didn’t move. Instead of fleeing, he stood his ground, rigid and erect, head held high. The rapist’s blade went in through his belly and came out his back. Lehgan lurched forward, then the soldier drew the blade upward.

“No,” Emeline screamed. Iana woke with the sound and began to cry.

Hektor jerked the blade upward again and Lehgan went limp. He yanked the blade free and let the body of Emeline’s husband tumble to the ground.

The Archon shifted in her saddle to face the crowd and spoke, raising her voice for all to hear. “We ride to meet your army, on their way here from the capital.”

A murmur rolled through the crowd, drowning the muffled sound of Emeline sobbing against the man’s arm.

“The uprising will be squashed before it begins,” she continued and a smile crept across her face. “Do not think to aid them. I will leave enough soldiers here to kill you all if need be.”

She surveyed the crowd, her expression seeming to dare them to defy her. No one did. The woman nodded toward Lehgan’s body.

“Bring him. I may have use of him,” she said and urged her horse on.

Hektor slipped his bloodied sword back into its scabbard, picked up Lehgan and threw him over his shoulder roughly, then grabbed his horse by the bridle and led it away, following the woman.

“No,” Emeline said, the word shaken by sobs.

Her legs gave way and the man holding her let her slip gently to the ground. She sat in the dirt sobbing with Iana held tight to her chest, the baby crying along with her, as the procession of soldiers continued past. She noticed none of them.

When Emeline’s sobs finally waned and she looked up, the crowd had dispersed and the line of horsemen and the foot soldiers who’d followed them were gone but for a group of Kanosee who remained at the center of the courtyard, pikes and swords in hand. In Emeline’s arms, Iana gurgled and blew bubbles, the baby’s tears long since stopped. The young mother drew a shuddering sigh and struggled to her feet.

She made her way down the courtyard on unsteady legs, heading toward the avenue that led to her dwelling, vaguely aware of the danger of the armed men at her back. A few yards from the street, she stopped and looked down at the muddied ground where her husband’s blood was spilled. It could as easily have been water as blood mixed with the dirt and churned to mud by stomping horses and marching feet, but she knew better. No matter how badly she wished it to be water, or ale, or wine-anything other than what it really was-it wasn’t going to change.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. Iana cooed in response.

She turned away and made her way down the avenue before the sobs took her again. As she walked, she felt not only the pain of losing her husband, but the Archon’s words rang in her head: ‘I feel you and I may meet again.’

She hurried back to her hut, the tears of remorse and fear she held back forming a knot in her throat threatening to choke her. When she arrived, she collapsed on the bed and let it all free, sobbing to the world for her loss.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Khirro didn’t know how he knew Graymon was hiding behind the ferns, but he did. His boots had brought him through the forest unerringly to the fallen log, like they possessed special knowledge of the boy’s location that Khirro himself didn’t have. Once he’d found it, he watched the hiding spot for several minutes, debating how to get the boy out.

Memory of his transformation into the tyger was hazy at best, but he remembered holding Graymon captive with a dagger to his throat. That would be enough to scare a young boy and lose his trust. What would seeing the tyger have done? How would he react to seeing him now?

He decided on the gentle approach. If he went straight in after him first, the act couldn’t be undone, but if words didn’t work, he could still drag him out.

Khirro crouched beside the curtain of ferns and took a breath, muscles tense. He needed to be ready in case the boy tried to run.

“Graymon? Are you in there? It’s Khirro.”

He paused and listened, but heard no response at first, no indication the boy hid within. After a few seconds, the gentle rustle of disturbed leaves confirmed what he already knew. Khirro continued to wait, but heard nothing more.

“It’s me, Graymon. I’m alone. It’s safe to come out.”

The boy exploded out of his hiding place and jumped into Khirro’s arms in a storm of desiccated fern leaves and joyous cries. Caught off guard, Khirro lost his balance and toppled backward, the giggling boy on top of him.

Not the reaction I expected.

Khirro hugged the boy around his shoulders, his chest aching with the knowledge he would likely not ever hold a child of his own, then Graymon wiggled away.

“Where’s Af…Af…your friend?” he asked.

Khirro sat up and brushed leaves off his tunic. “I was going to ask you the same thing.”

Graymon shrugged. “He told me to run, so I did.”

“Good. Good boy.”

“Should we look for him?”

He stood and put his hand on Graymon’s shoulder, paused before answering in a solemn tone.

“I went back to where it happened. He wasn’t there. I hoped he was with you.”

Khirro thought back to his trek through the woods. After washing the blood off his face and arms in the sea, he’d made his way back to the place he’d changed into the tyger without knowing how he’d found it. Beside the tree, he found the undead monster and the body of the other Kanosee soldier, but no sign of Athryn-no body, no trail, no sign anyone else had been there. The scene provided no explanation for where the magician had gone, and he didn’t know whether to think his absence a good thing or bad.

“He must have been captured again.”

“Then let’s rescue him.” Graymon ran a few steps, stopped and looked back to see if Khirro followed. “Come on.”

Khirro smiled. “Aren’t you afraid?”

The boy shook his head, his brown locks flying around his head like a halo.

“Why not?”

“The tyger told me.”

Khirro raised an eyebrow. “The tyger?”

“I dream about him. And the ghost woman. They said not to be afraid of you. They said you won’t hurt me.”

Khirro kneeled in front of him, grasped him gently by the arms.

“Of course I wouldn’t. Never. But you should know something about me.”

Graymon’s face broke into the kind of unbridled smile only a child can wear. “You’re the tyger!”

The boy shook off Khirro’s hold and bounced away into the forest, leaving him crouching by the log where Graymon had hidden, wondering how the tyger kept appearing in the boy’s dreams.

“I’m the tyger,” he said as he stood and followed the boy into the forest.

***

Therrador kicked at the rat, catching it in the side and sending it squeaking across the floor. “Get away from me, vermin.”

“Shh.”

He looked across the room at the ghost woman standing watch by the door. She’d done as promised, supplying him with sword and armor and a place to hide, but he didn’t know how they wouldn’t be discovered hiding practically in plain sight. The store room wasn’t used, but neither was it hidden.

He moved closer to speak more quietly.

“Why did you bring me here? We’ll certainly be discovered.”

She turned from the door and looked at him for a moment, her piercing green eyes holding him as surely as if they were shackles. After a few seconds, she raised her hand and pointed to the center of the room.

“That,” she said, “is where Braymon died.”

Therrador took three slow, measured strides to the spot she indicated and stood staring down at the dirt floor for a minute before he crouched. He reached out and touched the soil with the tips of his fingers.

“I’m sorry, my friend.”

“I didn’t bring you here to be sorry, Therrador. The Shaman protected this place with his magic while drawing the blood of the king. Remnants of his protection spell still remain.”

Therrador first nodded, then shook his head as he looked back to the place where his friend’s life ended because of him. “There’s no reason to be sorry. No one will forgive me, anyway.”

Elyea didn’t reply. Therrador watched her staring at the door as though she saw right through it.

Maybe she can.

A minute passed in silence. Therrador looked from the ghost woman back to the dirt floor at his feet and imagined he saw a stain where Braymon’s final blood flowed. He placed his palm over it and closed his eyes in silent prayer for the safety of the king’s spirit, no matter whether it resided with the bearer or had moved on to the fields of the dead.

His eyes snapped open when he felt the ground shake beneath his hand.

“Horses,” he said, standing. “Many of them.”

Hope bloomed in his chest until he realized Sir Alton had not been gone long enough to be back with troops yet. He suppressed the feeling.

“Yes. The Archon moves her army in preparation for the general’s return.”

“Damn! So she knows he made it out.”

The ghost nodded. “He tried to fool her, but she saw through it.”

“Sir Alton tried to fool her?”

“Our friend did.”

Therrador’s lips parted to ask her once again to whom she referred, but he stopped himself. It didn’t matter. For centuries, the impenetrable Isthmus Fortress with its solid wall and formidable defenses always kept the kingdom safe. Not this time. This time, the kingdom had to rely on its people, so the more on their side, the better, no matter who they were.

I gave away our only hope.

Therrador left the center of the room with its stain of king’s blood and strode to the back wall, leaning against it, then sliding down to sit with his back against the stone.

This is all because of me. Had I approached Braymon, my friend, instead of assuming the worst, none of this would have happened. The witch couldn’t have manipulated me.

He sat with his elbows resting on his knees, his head sagging forward. The deep breath he drew into his lungs tasted of must and dirt. Death and hopelessness.

“Do not give up hope, Therrador.”

He looked up to see the ghost woman standing in front of him. She kneeled and put a hand on each side of his head, palms on his cheeks, fingers aside his head. They felt surprisingly warm and solid for a ghost. Energy flowed through them.

“Sir Alton is coming. Your son yet lives. The bearer is near. There is much still at work for us, and much you don’t know.”

“I have to warn them. Get me out of here so I can warn Sir Alton. One man moves faster than an army.”

“No, Therrador. Your place is here. Those left behind need you.”

Therrador pursed his lips and nodded once. The woman’s energy flowed into him, redirecting his thoughts; he couldn’t give up, not while his son and his kingdom still needed him. She let go and backed away as the king pushed himself to his feet and drew his sword awkwardly with his left hand.

“The battle is not lost,” he said, resolve adding steel to his voice. “It has not yet begun.”

He faced away from her to practice parries and thrusts with his weapon in a hand still unaccustomed to wielding a sword. His right hand throbbed with each swing and swipe, as though aching to be used, as though it meant to remind him of the things the Archon had done to him. In his mind, he imagined each strike slicing the witch open, removing her head, running her through.

The battle has not yet begun.

***

During the journey back to the Isthmus from Achtindel, the numbers of Sienhin’s force had grown with Erechanian soldiers who’d found their way out of the fortress, many disguised as civilians. Individual men, groups of two, three and four, but never more. Two days’ ride from the fortress, the army encountered the first wave of civilians fleeing the stronghold: a group of thirty tattered souls too tired to flee but pushing on, anyway. When Sir Alton Sienhin saw them from afar, he raised the staff held in his left hand-his right lay useless in his lap-halting his troops, and signaled the three closest riders to accompany him.

The first person the smaller party encountered was a woman. Her dark hair hung ragged at her shoulders, dirt stained her frock, and she wore nothing on her feet despite the travel and the cold. It took a moment for Sienhin to recognize her: one of the harlots who followed the army, making her living providing company for lonely soldiers. The general had employed her more than once himself, but he didn’t remember her name, or perhaps he never knew it.

“Wench, what’s happened?”

He cringed at the pain speaking caused in his shoulder despite the ointments smeared on his flesh and the elixirs the healer made him imbibe. Still, it was much better than it had been.

The woman looked up at him with hollow eyes, her mouth pulled down in perpetual despair. She glanced from him to the other riders with him, then past them at the army following and her expression brightened, looked almost hopeful.

“The enemy’s moved, general,” she said. “A bunch of them overrun our camp and one of them drank too much and told me the witch is moving their army for the capital. I had to leave before another stinking Kanosee put his cock in me.”

Sienhin grunted. “So they know we’re coming.”

He nodded to the man on his right and the young officer-a soldier whose name he didn’t know and probably never would-immediately reined his horse around and took the news back to the other officers waiting with their platoons.

“Did everyone make it out?”

Her eyes clouded and her expression sagged. “I don’t know. The piss tank said they were leaving some soldiers behind to make sure they wouldn’t.”

Sienhin looked at her for a minute, anger brewing in his chest. He felt his cheeks go red.

“And what of the king?”

“Dead,” she said and Sienhin’s breath caught in his throat. “He died in the first battle.”

The general let out his breath. “Not Braymon. Therrador. Know you any news of Therrador?”

She shook her head and looked at her filthy feet. “No. None. Therra…the king disappeared. Some think he’s deserted.” She looked up again and the general saw tears in her eyes. “What hope is there for any with a king like that?”

“Don’t you worry, lass, the king is not gone,” he said leaning toward her in the saddle. “And we intend to make the Kanosee pay.”

He sat upright and signaled to the troops, then prompted his horse on, determination furrowing his brow. He wanted to coax the horse to a gallop, to meet the enemy more quickly, but doing so would leave the foot soldiers behind and give the enemy the advantage.

Sienhin gritted his teeth against the pain in his shoulder, set his jaw, and pressed on toward the waiting battle.

Chapter Twenty-Three

“Where is everyone?” Graymon asked.

Tugg and Mandich had been wrong about how far the camp was-it took them nine days to arrive at the salt flats, not the week the soldiers had estimated. They’d crossed the brief grassland separating forest from flatland with as much stealth as possible with a six year old involved, wary of patrols and sentries, but they saw no one. They crept up on the camp and found only long dead cook fires and the detritus of a camp deserted by its army.

“I don’t know, Graymon. Moved on to overthrow the rest of the kingdom, I suppose.”

They picked their way through the empty camp, passing over ground beaten flat and hard by the trample of thousands of feet, saw bones tossed aside and latrines left unfilled. Here and there, they found discarded bodies, all of them stripped of their clothes and belongings; Khirro couldn’t tell if they were Erechanian or Kanosee.

In death, when we have nothing, we are all the same.

Graymon held Khirro’s hand as they crossed the salt flats toward the Isthmus Fortress. The feel of the boy’s hand in his squeezed his heart, and he thought of all the horrible experiences he’d had around children in the past months: being forced to leave a pregnant Emeline; the dead children that made up the walls in the deserted village; the mud baby in his dream. The thoughts made him stop and turn to the boy.

I’m bad luck for children.

“Graymon.” He kneeled to look into the boy’s eyes. “If we can get into the fortress, we will find a safe hiding place for you.”

The boy’s eyes widened and he shook his head vehemently. “No. I want to stay with you.”

Khirro touched his hand against Graymon’s cheek; the boy leaned his head into his palm, tears threatening in his eyes. His lip quivered.

“It won’t be safe with me.” It’s not safe with me. “There will be fighting. And the monsters.”

“Oh.” Graymon shivered at the mention of the undead soldiers, but said no more.

Khirro looked at him a moment longer, wondered if there was something else he should say. But what to say to a boy who’d been taken from his father and put through all that Graymon had? How do words make that better?

They don’t. Actions do.

Khirro stood and took the boy’s hand again, leading him on through the camp toward the fortress wall looming before them. If Athryn was with them, he would already have considered how to enter the fortress, but he wasn’t. They still didn’t know what had happened to the magician, and Khirro purposely kept his mind from thoughts of his lost friend-he had Graymon to worry about before he could allow himself concern or grief. His first priority was getting them into the fortress, his second: finding safety for the boy. All else would come after that.

As they stole from cover to cover across the flats, Khirro thought about the beginning of his journey and how they’d escaped the fortress to the plains through a secret passage. Might there also be a secret passage onto the salt flats? If there was, it would surely be well hidden and impossible to open from without.

Thoughts of secret passages and worries about how they’d enter disappeared as they came closer and Khirro saw the gates standing open. They crouched, hidden behind a pile of discarded armor that smelled of old leather, oil, and stale sweat. As they watched and waited, Khirro scanned the pile for anything he might employ: leather chest pieces with ugly slash marks, mail with too many broken rings to mend, a few broken swords, shields with broken straps and helms dented beyond repair-useless, all of it.

Khirro turned his eyes to the top of the wall, searching for sentries, but saw not so much as a glint of sunlight on steel. Graymon fidgeted beside him as Khirro moved his gaze to the gate and found similar results there. It seemed too easy.

They’re not expecting anything. They think their own country lies at their backs.

Other than straight through the gates like an invited guest, he saw no way in. After another look across the top of the wall and a survey of the deserted camp around them, he turned to the boy. Graymon had built a pyramid out of small stones to pass the time.

“We’re going to go now, Graymon. Keep low and stay close. We’ll be moving quickly, so watch your step.” He breathed deep through his nose and waited for the boy to nod his understanding. “If there’s any trouble, get behind me or find a place to hide.”

Graymon looked at him without responding.

“Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

Khirro drew his short sword and considered taking one of the shields from the pile, but dismissed the thought in favor of taking Graymon by the hand. The boy stood abruptly and his foot knocked over the rock pyramid as they hurried away from the pile of discarded paraphernalia at a crouch.

No arrows flew from the parapet, no alarm sounded, no call challenged their approach. With each step, nerves and foreboding grew in Khirro’s belly with the feeling things weren’t quite right. It took an effort to keep from squeezing Graymon’s hand too tight.

Dead men wear armor and swing swords. Athryn is gone, maybe dead. The spirit of the king lives inside me in the form of a flaming tyger. Nothing is right.

Not wanting to add to the boy’s fear, Khirro suppressed a shiver, gritted his teeth, and led Graymon through the gate and into the massive fortress, straight toward whatever danger lay beyond.

***

Emeline opened her eyes slowly to see sunlight shining through the doorway-she’d slept longer than she’d expected she could. She lay listening to the silence of the fortress; it had been that way in the time since the battle.

How long has it been?

Since Lehgan gave his life to ensure her safety, time seemed to matter far less than ever before in her life. Several days had passed since the fight, and more than that since she lost her husband. The growling protest of her empty stomach suggested at least that long, and probably more.

She hadn’t been out of their hiding place since before she heard the sound of steel on steel, the shouts of soldiers fighting and dying, since before the smell of blood and death filled the air. The pile of straw that once was their mattress provided cover and somehow, by the grace of the Gods, no one entered the broken down hut.

Somehow, she and Iana survived.

But now her milk was dry, and Iana was hungry and near impossible to quiet. If anyone remained in the fortress to discover them, they’d have no trouble finding them now. And if she didn’t get food soon, the fear of discovery would be the least of their concerns.

She didn’t know if anyone else remained alive in the fortress. She’d heard no sounds other than those made by the baby and her own desperate hiss trying to quiet her. No more fighting, no footsteps, no shouts, no whispers.

For the first few days after the Kanosee army left, when they were forced into hiding before the fighting began, the man who gave her his place at the front of the crowd the day Lehgan died had brought her food, but then he stopped coming and she worried for what might have happened to him. She cried a lot in those first days, grieving her dead husband, killed protecting her, proving his bravery to her.

Iana!

Emeline sat upright suddenly, panic gripping her as she realized the silence was complete: no crying, no mewling, no soft breathing of a baby asleep. She looked first to one side, then the other, frantically searching for the bundled blanket that held her daughter.

Iana was gone.

Emeline stood and scanned the room, then dug through the pile of straw, throwing it over her shoulder and scattering it across the floor. Nothing.

“Where can she be?” she said aloud, the sound of her own voice startling her.

She peeked her head cautiously out the door, looking first one way up the avenue, then the other. Nothing.

“Hello? Who’s there?” she called; the panicked words echoed amongst the broken down buildings. “Who has my baby?”

Emeline went to the right out the doorway, away from the exposure of the courtyard, her bare feet leaving melted prints on cobblestones rimed with frost. She’d gone fifteen paces when she stopped, suddenly feeling as though she’d gone the wrong direction.

If someone stole her, they would head to the courtyard, toward the gates.

She ran back the other way, past her hut, down the street. Corpses leaned against walls or lay in the street; she paid them no attention.

Half a building’s length from the courtyard, she stopped and listened, expecting the sounds of soldiers. She took two more cautious steps, holding her breath, listening intently.

Nothing.

She crept forward a few more steps, scanning the ground for clues without knowing what to look. An item of clothing? The blanket?

Blood?

There was blood. Lots of blood. It was splashed on walls and collected on the ground in dried brown puddles. Could some of it be Iana’s?

No!

A shiver wracked her spine and chattered her teeth, the sound loud in her head, loud enough she almost didn’t hear the unmistakable cooing sound Iana made in contentment. It came from in front of her, from the courtyard.

Emeline rushed into the open, uncaring about her own safety, only about her daughter’s. She stopped a few paces into the courtyard, looked down to her left and saw her child on the ground, still bundled. A line of mud stained the blanket, but at first glance, Iana looked otherwise unscathed.

Emeline scooped her up, searched around inside the blanket. Iana laughed her baby laugh as her mother’s fingers tickled her sides; the young mother found nothing amiss with the baby. She looked into her child’s eyes and laughed a humorless, nervous laugh.

“How did you get here?” she said. “What happened to you?”

Iana cooed an answer and Emeline hugged her close.

“Don’t do that to mama again.”

She half-turned to retreat to the relative safety of the hut when she noticed the two men in the courtyard. Twenty yards separated them, and Emeline and Iana were farther away still, but fear gripped her immediately. She didn’t want to be caught out. She didn’t want whatever terrible thing happened to the nice man who brought them food to happen to them.

Then she recognized the men and knew she couldn’t leave.

***

During the time he spent in the fortress before the Kanosee attack, Khirro had never heard it so quiet. Not even close.

They passed under the open portcullis and into the deathly silence of the courtyard, their footsteps unnaturally loud to Khirro’s ears. He gripped the hilt of the short sword tighter and put his left arm in front of Graymon, stopping him.

Bodies littered the courtyard, some clad in Kanosee armor, some Erechanian, others wearing civilian clothes. The heads had been removed from every corpse.

Graymon reached up and took Khirro’s hand, squeezed it tight.

“It’s all right,” Khirro said suppressing a shudder. “They can’t hurt you.”

He didn’t necessarily believe his own words.

They took a few steps, moving slowly, Graymon pressed close behind, making it difficult to be quiet. Khirro watched the corpses closely, looked into doorways and windows, but he saw no one left alive, nothing moving.

When they’d gone ten paces without incident, Khirro stopped to look to the top of the wall-the wall walk was empty. He looked left, then right and realized that, from where he stood, he could see the staircase where his journey started and, not far from it, the place where an undead soldier came close to ending his adventure before it began.

A donkey brayed and Khirro whirled around, sword raised. The sudden movement threw Graymon off balance and he dropped to his knees as the ass trotted across the courtyard, winding its way through the corpses spread across its path. It disappeared down a side avenue and Khirro relaxed a little.

“Are you all right?” He kept his voice low.

Graymon nodded and Khirro pulled the boy to his feet. He let go of Khirro’s hand to brush dirt off his knees, but stopped, his eyes looking past Khirro.

“Who’s that?”

“It was a donkey. Nothing to worry about.”

“Not the donkey,” Graymon said, pointing. Khirro heard a trace of fear in his voice. “That.”

Khirro turned slowly and felt tension flood back into his limbs and apprehension knot itself in his gut.

The man stood precisely on the spot where the undead soldier came close to ending Khirro’s life.

He wasn’t there a moment ago.

Khirro couldn’t see the man’s face; he wore no armor, bore no insignias or colors, but was instead dressed in plain brown breeches and dark green coat, as a civilian worker might be. If that was the extent of it, Khirro might have relaxed.

The man’s hand resting on the hilt of a sword at his hip kept him from doing so.

Khirro swept his arm back, ushering Graymon behind him, his teeth grinding unconsciously as he debated how to proceed. Approach this man as friend, or enemy? If he misjudged the situation, it would mean their lives.

“Ho there,” he called out finally and took a step toward the man.

He didn’t respond, with words or movement.

Khirro raised his left hand in a friendly wave. Only then did he remember the remnants of dark mud and red berry juice smeared across his armor. He’d left it on as they made their way to the fortress, expecting they would meet more Kanosee soldiers along the way and thinking some disguise better than none. Athryn’s magic had long since worn off, but he’d thought they would still have the best chance if he attempted to pass himself off as one of the dead men. Of course, they’d seen no one, and now he wore the markings of a monster smeared across his chest as he stood facing a man most likely an Erechanian citizen.

“I’m a friend,” he said advancing a few more paces. “I mean you no harm.”

The fellow didn’t respond. His right hand remained on the hilt of his sword as his other dangled at his side. His dark hair hung to his shoulders, a short, patchy beard hid his expressionless face. Khirro decided he needed to take a chance.

He shifted to one side so the man would see Graymon hidden behind him.

“This boy and I have returned from a long journey. We seek Therrador. We seek an audience with the king.”

The ragged fellow began walking toward them. Without moving his gaze from the man, Khirro crouched to speak to Graymon.

“Wait here,” he said. “Don’t move unless I tell you. And if I say so, run and find a place to hide.”

He dared a glance away to look at Graymon, to make sure he understood. Fear filled the boy’s wide eyes, but he nodded.

“Good boy.”

Khirro stood and began walking, intending to meet the man as far from Graymon as possible. He let the short sword dangle by his side to avoid looking threatening, but as long as the man’s hand remained on his weapon, he would be ready.

As the distance between them lessened, he saw the man’s features: strong nose, dark eyes. He stood the same height as Khirro, held himself in a similar manner.

Khirro stopped.

“Lehgan?”

A year had gone by since he last saw his brother, perhaps longer. Other than the changing of the seasons, time had been passing with little notice of the days for Khirro. Lehgan hadn’t worn a beard the last time he saw him, his hair was shorter, but there was no mistaking his own kin. A smile broke across Khirro’s lips and he chose not to recall his brother’s contribution to his being in this place, or that he had hidden to avoid his duty to the kingdom when the conscriptors came.

None of it mattered now. Here was his brother approaching him in the middle of a deserted fortress, leagues from home. A sliver of suspicion crept into Khirro’s thoughts, tempering surprise and happiness, but he pushed it aside. His brother would have a good explanation for his presence; perhaps he’d joined the king’s army, after all.

“Lehgan! What are you doing here?”

He moved forward more quickly and, as the space between them diminished, he noticed the blood in his brother’s beard and staining the front of his shirt and pants. Lehgan’s expression didn’t change when he saw Khirro; his eyes were blank and void of recognition. An alarm sounded in Khirro’s head as Lehgan whipped his sword from its scabbard, aiming a blow at his brother’s head.

Khirro caught the strike with the short sword, the blades clashing in front of his face. Red light flashed and he saw the runes scrawled along the black blade of his brother’s sword.

The Mourning Sword.

The force of the blow made him stumble back; disbelief weakened his knees. His brother. The sword. Attacking him.

How did he get the sword?

“Stop, Lehgan. It’s me, Khirro.” He wiped desperately to remove mud and berry juice from his chest piece. “It’s a disguise.”

Lehgan came at him again, the sword cocked back to strike, his lips curled in a hateful scowl. Khirro saw blood on his teeth and stumbled back in retreat.

Steel clanged against steel, the noise loud in the empty fortress. Graymon cried out, his despaired shout all but lost in the echoes. Khirro accepted another blow, the impact of it shaking his arms. Sweat formed on his brow.

“Lehgan, it’s me. It’s Khirro: your brother.”

His words fell on unhearing or uncaring ears as Lehgan struck again and again. Khirro defended himself, but didn’t return the attack. How could he swing a sword at his own brother?

The Mourning Sword flickered beside Khirro’s ear, and he heard it whisper to him, but not of his death, instead it told him the secret of Lehgan’s demise. In its brief murmur, he knew the Archon had murdered his brother, and that this was no longer his sibling standing before him. The revelation gave him pause and the hesitation was enough for this dead Lehgan to surge forward and slam his shoulder into Khirro’s chest.

Khirro’s teeth clunked together hard as he hit the ground; the jolt loosened his grip on the short sword and it flew out of his hand. He stretched his arm to reach for it, but Lehgan’s foot came down painfully on his hand. His brother loomed over him, the Mourning Sword held in front of him, its pulsing runes casting an evil glow.

Khirro lay on the ground looking up at his killer, his mind racing. After all the months, all the blood and death he’d seen or caused, here was the time he needed a warrior’s instincts. Here was the time he needed the spirit of the king.

He thought of fire. He pictured the flames in his mind, imagined them engulfing his hands, climbing his arms, jumping to his aggressor's clothes and consuming him. His chest clamped tight, regretting thinking such things, but he knew he had no choice.

He’s my brother.

He remembered them playing together as children in the days before his father’s accident, when they still behaved like brothers. They’d play fight using sticks as swords, trap squirrel and rabbit together, swim in the brook. On rainy days, they jumped from puddle to puddle, seeing who could create the biggest splash and end up the wettest.

The sword whispered again: He’s not your brother. Your brother is dead.

The flames didn’t come. Khirro held his arm up, blocking the sun from his eyes, but knowing it couldn’t block the arc of the sword as it came down to end his life, his journey. End the hope of the kingdom.

“Khirro!”

He didn’t look away when Graymon called his name. He regretted the boy would have to watch him die.

If this is my time, then let it be so. Let it be quick.

“Lehgan!”

Khirro’s heart jumped. It wasn’t Graymon’s voice he heard-the boy didn’t know his brother’s name.

Then who?

Lehgan flipped the Mourning Sword around to hold the hilt in both hands with the point aimed at Khirro’s chest. Khirro heard footsteps, something scrape against the ground, and worried for Graymon coming to help him.

“No, Graymon. Run. Hide.”

Lehgan drew the sword up, a laugh Khirro had never heard from his brother rattled in his throat.

“I’m sorry, Lehgan,” the voice said; Khirro finally recognized it the instant the short sword cut into his brother’s side.

Lehgan’s head turned and the Mourning Sword drooped in his grip. Khirro took advantage of the hesitation, rolling away and jumping to his feet. Before his brother could react, he put his boot to his chest and snatched the sword out of his hands. Lehgan stumbled back; Khirro swung the blade from right to left, dimly aware of the glow of the runes and the whisper of steel through the air, and removed his brother’s head with one swing.

The decapitated head hit the ground with a meaty thud and the body stood for a second before its knees gave way. It fell to reveal the woman standing behind Lehgan, a babe cradled in the crook of her left elbow and the short sword dangling in the grip of her right hand. Her eyes were sunken, her body thinner and more fragile than Khirro remembered.

The sword dropped from her hand and she crumpled after it, falling to her knees as sobs tore from her throat. Khirro stepped toward her.

“Emeline?”

He threw the Mourning Sword aside and dropped to his knees beside her, reaching out to touch her back as it heaved with sobs, but he didn’t touch her. She cried and held the baby tight to her chest, and the baby cried, too. Khirro took his hand back and waited, recognizing this was likely the second time she lamented Lehgan’s death.

Lehgan is dead.

He felt numb, as though he’d been submerged in snow and all his nerves were frozen. His brother was dead, and he’d come to the fortress with the woman Khirro once thought the only woman he’d ever love. The two of them, together.

But you knew, didn’t you?

He had. Somewhere deep inside him, he’d known from the start. And after the passing of time, and the things he’d been through, she was no longer the only woman he’d ever loved, for he’d also loved Elyea.

“Khirro?”

This time, the voice unmistakably belonged to Graymon. Khirro twisted around so quickly, he nearly toppled over. Graymon stood a few yards away, arms dangling by his sides, a look of fear and desperation on his face. Tears streaked his cheeks.

“Graymon.” Khirro held his arms out for the boy to come to him. “I thought I told you to run.”

The boy shuffled toward him, in no hurry to reach him. When he did, he remained outside of Khirro’s reach, avoiding his embrace.

“Who're they?”

Khirro looked toward the others.

“That,” he said pointing at Lehgan, “was my brother. Once. Before the bad lady made him into a monster. And this is my friend, Emeline. I don’t know the baby.”

Emeline raised her head and sniffled deeply. “Iana,” she said and sobbed again. “You…I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Khirro nodded. “I know, Emeline.” He allowed himself to touch her back and found no urgency in the touch like he might, no sense of connection or longing. Instead, it felt like the touch of a man consoling a friend.

They stayed that way for a while-her crying and calming the baby, him with his hand on her back. He thought about his brother, and Elyea, and all the other people he’d lost since his cursed journey began. Brave people who didn’t deserve their fates.

Graymon wandered a short way away and plunked himself down on the ground, collecting rocks and building one of his little stone pyramids. Khirro glanced over at him periodically to ensure he was safe, and looked around the courtyard, but it seemed they were alone.

“What happened here?”

Emeline looked up and wiped her tears away on her sleeve.

“The Archon took her troops to intercept the army coming from Achtindel.” A deep breath shuddered into her chest and out again. “She left some behind, but Therrador raised what soldiers were left in the fortress and-”

“My da?” Graymon scuffled over to them on his hands and knees. “My da is okay?”

Wide-eyed, Emeline looked at the boy, then at Khirro.

He nodded, answering her unasked question. “He is Therrador’s son.”

She bowed her head. “My prince. Your father fought bravely and triumphed over our enemies.”

Graymon stood a little straighter and a smile struggled its way onto his face.

“My da is a brave hero.”

Khirro regarded the corpses strewn across the courtyard and saw equal numbers of headless Erechanians as he did Kanosee.

This is triumph?

A heat started inside him, flowing out of his chest and into his limbs, and he felt the spirit of the king angered by the fall of so many of his people. Khirro struggled to keep the tyger at bay.

“Where is Therrador now?” he asked.

“He took what soldiers remained and went after the Archon’s army.”

“How long ago?”

“I don’t know.”

“How long?” The question came out with more force than he intended; Emeline flinched and shook her head.

“Two days, maybe three.”

Khirro stood and retrieved the Mourning Sword. “I have to go. It may already be too late.”

He unslung the sword’s scabbard from his back and replaced the short sword’s with it on his hip. When he slid the sword back into its place, it felt familiar, comforting; a feeling he never expected to have from a sword hanging on his belt. He beckoned Graymon to him and this time the boy allowed him to place his arm around his shoulders.

“Graymon, you will stay here with Emeline. She’ll take care of you.”

“But I want to see my da.”

Khirro crouched to look him in the eye. “I’m sorry, Graymon, but seeing your father must wait. Your safety is most important. Emeline will-”

“I’m not staying.”

The resolve in her voice made Khirro cock his head. The skin over her pronounced cheek bones looked tight with dried tears, but her eyes shone with bright determination. Khirro sucked on his bottom lip, deciding how to tell her she wouldn’t be accompanying him.

“I head into battle, Emeline, and that is no place for a woman and a child. Certainly no place for a baby.”

“A fortress where my dead husband attacked you, where monsters might lurk in the shadows is no place for us.”

Graymon shifted out from under Khirro’s arm and went to Emeline’s side. She put her arm around him and he rested his head on her shoulder.

“Emeline, I-”

“We are going with you, Khirro. You can hide us somewhere when we get close if you want, but we’re not staying here.”

Her unwavering gaze held his and he saw in her eyes that he wouldn’t be able to talk her out of going with him. He breathed a sigh of cold winter air in through his nose and out his mouth, then nodded slowly.

“All right,” he said and Graymon let out a cheer.

If only he understood.

Khirro surveyed the courtyard and recalled the donkey they’d seen trot across it.

“Do you know if there are any horses left?”

“I’ve been hiding since Lehgan…” Her voice trailed off and her eyes dropped to the headless corpse of her husband. She looked at it for a second, then averted her gaze.

“We have to see what we can find, and gather all the supplies we can. And we need to move quickly.”

He offered Emeline help to stand and she took his hand; it surprised him again that he felt no emotion at her touch. So much time had passed, taking so much emotion with it.

They started across the courtyard, in search of a way to catch up to the battle, and Khirro found himself wishing Athryn was with them, that he could draw blood and the magician would transport them where they needed to go, even if it meant a scar and a nasty headache. But Athryn was likely gone to join his brother-and Elyea, and Shyn-in the land of the dead. And now Lehgan had joined them, too. He felt a tightness in his chest.

And now I head off to war with a woman, a child and a baby. If our luck fails, we will all be with them soon.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Sword clashed against sword, axe clanked on armor, men shouted and injured horses howled.

The sounds of battle washed over the Archon watching the melee from her horse atop the hill. The grass of the plain was already beaten flat and stained red; the winter wind brought the taste of blood to her tongue, the smell of death to her nose. She breathed deep and savored it.

“How goes the battle?” she asked the Kanosee general who approached. Mud smeared his cheek and blood dirtied his gauntlet.

“It doesn’t go anywhere, your Highness,” he said. “For every one of their soldiers who falls, one of ours does, too. We fight to a standstill.”

The woman raised an eyebrow. “But blood is being spilled, is it not?”

“Yes. Much.”

“Then I shall tip the scale in our favor.”

“Your Highness?”

“Never mind.”

She stood in her stirrups, stretching to see as far across the field of battle as she could. From this distance, it appeared a tangled mess of men and horses. She picked out Kanosee banners and Erechanian flags flying amongst it all.

A silly convention of men.

“Where does their general fight? Where is Sir Alton Sienhin?”

The man repositioned his horse beside hers and pointed with his bloodied gauntlet.

“There. To the southwest.”

She squinted the direction he’d indicated and discerned a faint green glow amongst the throngs of men.

He wields the staff. She smiled. Good.

She sat back in the saddle and waved the man away. “Get back down there and kill some of those dogs. We can use their help.”

The man bowed his head, a puzzled expression on his face, and spurred his horse away. The woman paused to pat her horse on the neck before following.

“Much blood,” she said to the horse. It huffed a breath through its nose in response. “Perfect.”

She gave the horse her heels and trotted down from the hill, heading closer to the southwest side of the plains as flakes of snow began to fall.

***

Sienhin grunted with effort as his sword cut deep into the shoulder of another Kanosee soldier. He found it difficult swinging the sword with his left hand, and it caused pain in his right shoulder every time he did, but every blow brought him closer to being accustomed to using his off hand. He jerked the blade out of the man, pulling him from his saddle at the same time, and the Kanosee soldier fell to the mud. The war horse Sienhin had commandeered in the capital reared, its front hooves pawing the air before coming down on the fallen man.

The impact jarred the general and, lacking the use of his right arm, he slipped abruptly to his left. He abandoned his sword in favor of grabbing the horse’s mane and keeping his seat.

“Gods be damned,” he bellowed when he’d regained his seat.

The battle swirled around him. His horse danced to avoid riderless horses bolting from the fight and foot soldiers attempting to bring it down. Sienhin looked left and right. There were too many of the Kanosee pigs at hand to dismount and retrieve his weapon, and too many for him to go without one.

“Well this won’t do, will it?”

He barked a laugh and grabbed the thick staff he’d slung across his back before the fighting began. He didn’t know why he’d kept the thing after relieving Hahn Perdaro of it, but it had felt like he was supposed to have it, and this would be the second time it had saved him. The Gods were on his side.

A Kanosee foot soldier grabbed the cinch strap of the general’s saddle, the studded mace in his other hand cocked to deliver a blow, but Sienhin caught him in the side of the head with the butt end of the staff hard enough to daze him. Before the enemy soldier could recover, he swung it around and cracked him across the bridge of the nose. Blood gushed from the wound, splashing down his face and onto the staff. The man fell and Sienhin’s destrier finished him off.

“Ha,” the general bellowed. “This will work fine.”

He waded back into the fight, the green-glowing end of the staff flickering and reflecting off the falling snow. He knocked one soldier off his horse, skewered another through the eye, and cracked open the skull of a third. Soon, the first two feet of the staff were awash in blood, and bits of flesh stuck to the wood.

Sienhin smiled a devious grin behind his bushy mustache laced with snow, every nerve and sinew in him enjoying the heady feel of the battle. It energized him, made him feel young again; being so close to death brought clearly into focus how good it was to be alive. Since the first time he swung a sword, it had been like this for him-a blood lust that served him well in battle, though he’d never told anyone of it save his closest friends.

The general knocked another enemy to the ground, then brought his horse about to meet the challenge of a war cry from behind him-a desolate, evil sound. The undead creature that howled it was mounted and held a war scythe with both hands, the tip of the blade pointed at the general. Enough blood and gore covered the thing’s cuirass as to render the black and red markings painted upon it indistinguishable.

Sienhin settled his horse and adjusted his grip on the staff, waiting until the monstrosity urged his horse forward before he did the same. Soldiers of both armies dove out of their paths and, a moment later, the two came together.

The Kanosee attacked first, swinging the wicked blade at Sienhin’s neck, but the general ducked and caught the thing in the temple with a jab of the staff. It reeled momentarily, then thrust the scythe’s point toward the general’s gut. Sienhin brushed the blade aside with the butt end of the staff, then whipped the head around and embedded it in the creature’s throat.

His foe made a gurgling sound and Sienhin thrust the staff deeper, its green glow noticeable beneath the dead thing’s pale skin. It thrashed and grabbed at the staff, so the general leaned into it once more until the end protruded through the back of its neck. The Kanosee went slack and the general wrenched his horse around, unseating the undead rider. The thing hung limply from the staff for a second, then slid off and hit the ground to be trampled under the destrier’s mud and blood covered hooves.

“Ha ha.” Sienhin looked around to see how many more were ready to fall before his wrath when a figure caught his attention.

The woman and her horse sat at the edge of the battle, appearing as a statue if not for the breeze fluttering her blond hair and the flakes of snow melting at the touch of her skin. Sienhin’s eyes narrowed, his jaw clenched. His ability to control his emotions was one of the attributes that had allowed him to survive so long as a career soldier, but the woman responsible for the fall of the kingdom he called home deserved his wrath.

With a cry of rage, Sienhin swung the staff around his head and spurred his horse toward the Archon, but a wall of weapons and armor and bodies blocked him, preventing his steed from charging the woman. He continued to whirl the staff in a circle over his head and put his heels to the horse again; it moved forward only a few paces, caught in the congestion of battle.

Faces turned up to Sir Alton Sienhin and, for a fleeting second, he felt pleased at the way they looked at him-with awe, with fear. But his pleasure disappeared when he saw the greenish tint coloring their cheeks, reflected in their eyes, and he knew it wasn’t for him they felt awe; it wasn’t he who caused their fear. He reined his horse in and ceased swinging the staff, lowered it down to see.

The dim glow had become a blinding light, a green eldritch blaze emanating from the staff and washing over everything. It mesmerized the men closest to Sienhin as they stared at it, the battle forgotten. The general blinked hard to pull himself from its spell.

“What deviltry is this?”

He looked past it, searching beyond the battle for the witch, but the place where he’d seen her stood empty, a flattened bit of grass collecting snow.

Gone.

A moment later, the dead began to rise.

***

Therrador reined his horse to a stop and signaled the men with him to do the same. Including himself, only twelve Erechanians warriors had survived the fight in the Isthmus Fortress-twelve more than the number of Kanosee left alive. They all knew that a troop of twelve men wasn’t enough to turn the tide of battle, but to a man, they swore to do their best.

The battle spread out on the plains before them, the closest line of men less than half a league away. Therrador shifted in his saddle and surveyed the men with him. They looked tired. He’d necessarily pushed them and their horses hard to get here-and straight after the fight at the fortress-but he had no other choice. The battle for their country had already begun without them and, if it was lost, the kingdom would be lost along with it. And his son.

If he still lives.

The soldiers looked back at him, awaiting his orders, and he wondered if any of them doubted their traitor-king, or if he’d shown enough to win back their loyalty. He narrowed his eyes, tried to look into their souls; none of them faltered, none of them looked away from his gaze.

“This is all we have, my friends,” Therrador said, his voice low, intense. “There is only this battle and nothing more. If we defeat the witch and her troops, the kingdom is ours. Our kingdom. Your wives will live, your sons will carry on your names. If we do not, none will survive her rule.”

The men stared at him and he saw in them hatred of the enemy and the fire of battle, and he knew they were his. Therrador drew his sword and thrust it in the air.

“For Erechania!”

The steel of eleven swords sang against leather.

“For Erechania!” the soldiers responded.

Therrador spurred his horse on, trotting first, then urging it into a canter, then a gallop. He heard the rumble of his fellows following, the cadence of the hoof beats reaffirming his determination to make right his transgressions.

He thought about Graymon as he rode with the wind blowing flakes of snow on his cheeks to melt like tears. He thought of the boy’s smile, of his little boy laugh and the devious, mischievous look he would get in his eye. Then he thought of Seerna, his dear wife, taken from him before her time, and wondered if it was the Gods who took her, or the witch. He gritted his teeth and leaned forward in the saddle.

Finally, he thought of Braymon, his fallen king and lost friend. His memory brought pain to his heart; at the end of it all, the fault for King Braymon’s death lay with him and no one else. He’d allowed himself to be manipulated instead of trusting his closest friend. And again, behind it all stood the witch.

By the time Therrador reached the first Kanosee soldier, his blood was at a boil. He bellowed a primal cry from the bottom of his gut, using it to gain the man’s attention so he would see his death coming on horseback. The enemy soldier turned, and Therrador had a fraction of a second to see the blood on his face and the blank look in his eyes before the king’s sword flashed, separating the man’s head from his body.

Therrador reined his horse in and hefted the sword; wielding it felt more comfortable-not yet natural, but more comfortable. He swung at another man, removing the soldier’s arm, then swiped a gash across the chest of a third.

The thrill of battle fortified Therrador and his sword rose and fell again and again, slashing, swiping, stabbing. The sweat of exertion formed on his brow, the ache of a muscle not accustomed to such use developed in his shoulder, but he set his jaw and pushed on.

The yells of his men sounded in his ears, cheering each other as they cut down the enemy, warning their fellows of an approaching threat; in contrast, their foe-men were strangely quiet. No cries of pain, no grunts of effort, no begging for mercy. Another soldier fell upon Therrador, then another. He hacked and slashed, defended and attacked; somewhere, in the back of his soldier’s mind, he wondered why they’d encountered so many foot soldiers yet so far from the battle, why they were so quiet.

He realized the answer when he faced the one-armed man.

Therrador stopped mid-swing and narrowed his eyes: the same soldier he’d met earlier. The king had cut off the man’s arm himself, seen him fall to be trampled to death beneath the hooves of his horse, yet he fought again like he had no more than a scratch.

How is that possible?

More soldiers pushed in behind him and, for the first time, Therrador saw Erechanian armor amongst the Kanosee, and the same blank stare on all of their faces.

The king’s eyes grew wide.

She’s raised the dead.

He hacked down the one-armed man, then turned his horse to see how his men fared. In the focus of battle, Therrador had seen nothing but the enemies threatening his life. Now, he saw the sea of the dead-Erechanians and Kanosee alike-risen from the battlefield to swarm them.

One of his men had already been cut down, his frightened horse bolting from the field. Therrador saw another pulled off his horse by six undead soldiers who clawed at him until he fell from the saddle and onto their blades. Two of his attackers wore Erechanian armor.

The dead were everywhere.

“Press on, men. It’s all or nothing. If we don’t die here, we die in a dungeon cell.” Therrador slashed at a hand grasping for him and pivoted in his saddle to face the man.

He looked down into the watery blue eyes of Sir Matte Eliden.

“Matte?”

The old knight looked wasted, his eyes sunken deep into his head, his cheek bones prominent. As they faced each other, Therrador saw a maggot crawl out of his nose and into his mouth. The king shivered.

For an instant, it seemed as though Eliden recognized the man he’d fought beside for the last two decades, then his mouth opened in a strangled growl and he swung his sword. Therrador caught the blow with his blade and coaxed his horse back a step. Dead or not, the king struggled with the idea of putting steel to a soldier so faithful and loyal in life.

He heard the scream of one of his men succumbing to the undead soldiers’ greater numbers, then another hollered for assistance. Sir Matte advanced at Therrador, slashing the air between them with his sword as the sounds of yet another man falling reached the king’s ears.

So this is it then.

Therrador’s lips thinned to a flat line as he clenched his jaw, preparing to remove Sir Matte’s head. He cocked his arm back, steadied his sword to deliver the blow, when a sudden swirl of snow blew around on him on a blast of warm wind from overhead. The dead man he once called friend raised his eyes to the sky as a shadow fell over them.

The red dragon passed twenty feet above Therrador’s head, the flap of its massive wings stirring the air with enough force to put them both off balance. The king gaped at it for a second; he’d never believed the legends that such beasts truly existed; he’d thought them the product of a fanciful imagination. Until now.

More of the witch’s trickery.

Without further thought to it, Therrador released Sir Matte to the fields of the dead with a swipe of his sword to the old knight’s neck. His head toppled off and his body hit the ground at the same instant the dragon touched down on the field ahead of them, its weight making the earth rumble.

The beast reared back on its hind legs, threw its head up toward the sky and released a deafening roar before coming down on all four taloned feet. When it settled, Therrador saw the man seated on the dragon’s back. He wore no armor, only a white shirt, black breeches, and a dark cloak around his shoulders.

A mirrored mask hid the dragonrider’s features.

Chapter Twenty-Five

They’d found a horse large enough to accommodate both Khirro and Graymon, but the only other beast they’d located was the wayward donkey, and it struggled under Emeline and Iana’s weight. Graymon bounced in the saddle, his arms wrapped around Khirro’s waist, while the donkey followed behind, slowing them, its lead tethered to the horse.

The battle will be done before we arrive.

Under other circumstances, Khirro would have been glad to miss a battle. Too many times he’d come close to losing his life when sword play commenced, or seen his friends and companions fall. It started with Jowyn-the victim of Kanosee hellfire hurled over the fortress walls when their attack commenced so long ago-and Athryn and Lehgan were but the latest.

Hasn’t there been enough death?

It weighed on him, but he couldn’t give up now, even if he wanted to-the spirit inside drove him onward despite the fear and forebodings in his heart. No longer did the fate of the kingdom-of people unseen and unmet-rest on his shoulders; now, Emeline, Iana and Graymon gave faces to those in peril, and he knew he couldn’t let them down.

As if she heard him thinking of her, Emeline urged the laboring donkey forward to ride beside him.

“I’m sorry for what has happened to you, Khirro.”

He looked at her, but she stared straight ahead at the path they rode instead of meeting his eyes.

“The Shaman cursed this upon me, not you,” he said. “You have nothing to apologize for.”

She shook her head and looked at him. Graymon shifted in the saddle behind him.

“Not this. Everything before.” She breathed deep as though preparing herself. Khirro tensed, readying himself to hear her words. “The ghost woman told me I needed to tell you all.”

“Elyea.”

“Yes.”

Khirro looked down at his hands gripping the reins, at the horse’s mane moving gently with the animal’s gait. He missed Elyea and spent much of his time keeping her from his thoughts. It was too easy to get distracted from what needed to be done when she inhabited his mind, too easy to feel guilty for his role in her death. Deaths.

“You don’t need to,” he said to avoid the pain of her memory.

“I do. Not because she told me to, but because you need to know the truth.”

They looked at each other. Iana snuggled in against Emeline’s breast; Graymon held tighter around Khirro’s waist and sighed, obviously not enjoying the conversation of adults, but keeping quiet nonetheless.

“What I said happened never did.” Her gaze dropped from his.

“So I didn’t rape you.”

She shook her head.

“And Iana is Lehgan’s.”

When she raised her head to look upon him again, her eyes glistened with tears. “No, Khirro. Iana is yours.”

Shock jolted through Khirro and he hauled back on the reins; the horse halted with a whinny of protest.

“Mine? But you said-”

“I said you didn’t rape me. I didn’t say we didn’t…” She glanced over his shoulder at Graymon instead of completing the sentence.

Khirro stared down at his hands resting on the pommel of the saddle. Flakes of snow landed on his gauntlets and he saw their unique shapes and fragile beauty before they melted away.

“But I don’t remember any of it. How could I not remember…that?”

Emeline looked away again and Khirro waited for her to tell him more, his breath held. For almost a year, he’d debated with himself about what happened that night, felt ashamed of what he thought he’d done. Could the truth possibly be more difficult to bear?

“We both drank that night, that much is true. And things led somewhere I didn’t expect them to go.” She lowered her voice. “You don’t remember because I drugged you.”

Khirro stared at the side of her head for a second, expecting more, but when none came, he put his heels to his horse. The donkey hesitated, the lead pulling tight before the bedraggled animal followed. They rode in silence for a few minutes, Khirro’s lips pressed tight together as he tried to make sense of what Emeline had said. He didn’t want to ask, didn’t want for her to say more, but his head spun with it. He slowed his horse for the donkey to catch up.

“I don’t understand. Why did you tell people what you did?”

“I love Lehgan, Khirro.” She paused. “Loved, I mean. The plan arose when we heard news of the conscriptors were coming to the village. He and I couldn’t live without each other and we thought that, if your parents thought ill of you, and Lehgan and I told them of our love, they would keep him safe.”

“But you could have drugged me and lied. We didn’t need to lay together.”

“I know, and I didn’t plan to. But something happened, something unexplainable, and I was overcome. I felt as though I had no control over my actions.”

Her words stirred pain in Khirro’s chest. I truly have a child, but not out of love.

“I wanted to stop the conscriptors from taking you,” she said, and he heard the sorrow in her voice, the truth. “But how could I after what we said you did? How could I accuse you of…of rape and then ask for mercy on your behalf?”

She began to cry and Khirro’s chest tightened, squeezing around his heart and making it difficult to breathe, difficult to speak, but there was still more to know.

“But how do you know she is mine? Surely Lehgan is Iana’s father.”

She shook her head slowly, still refusing to meet his eyes. “Lehgan and I didn’t take bed together until after we were married. He would have it no other way.”

“Did he know?”

“No. We married quickly and I couldn’t bear to tell him the truth of it. He died thinking Iana his child.”

Emeline’s shoulders shook as she sobbed quietly and Khirro looked away lest the tears in her eyes bring some to his. He stared straight ahead and, through the falling snow, saw a horse approaching. With a battle ahead of them, he should have felt fear or trepidation; instead, a sense of relief spread through him.

“Look,” he said reigning his horse to a halt.

Emeline sniffled. “A rider? Who is it?”

“I’m not sure. Wait here.”

He untethered the donkey and held his hand out to help Graymon down.

“I want to come with you.”

“You need to stay here, Graymon. You need to protect the women.”

The boy hesitated a second before assenting. He held Khirro’s hand, threw his leg over the horse and allowed himself to be lowered to the ground. Khirro leaned down and handed him the jeweled dagger that had belonged to Elyea.

“Keep them safe, but don’t cut yourself with it.”

Graymon’s eyes brightened and he nodded enthusiastically as he accepted the blade. He stepped in front of the donkey and held the knife in both hands, tip pointed toward the approaching rider. Khirro smiled and leaned down to ruffle the boy’s hair.

“Good work.” He looked up at Emeline, whose tears had stopped. “I’ll be right back. If anything happens, turn your steed around and head for the fortress.”

She looked at him without responding and he wondered if she would do as he said. He felt as though he should say more, or ask to hold his child, but he didn’t. Instead, he pulled the Mourning Sword, felt the comfort of its hilt in his grip, and rode out to intercept the oncoming horse.

***

It seemed that every time Sienhin struck down an attacker, living or dead, another rose to take its place. The green end of the staff flashed and glowed, its light strengthening and fading. The general realized its unearthly illumination was responsible for raising the dead but, without his sword, he possessed no other weapon with which to defend himself. If he kept it, the undead would eventually overrun them; if he disposed of it, he would be defenseless.

But I have to.

He felled two men with a single stroke, and two more climbed out of the slurry of blood and flesh and dirt. Most of those attacking him now were the undead, their faces smeared with gore, some of them missing ears or limbs, and all of them with blank, staring eyes and an indefatigable desire to kill.

Trying to kill them is going to be the death of me.

He put his heels into his horse and the destrier surged forward, crashing through a wall of dead Kanosee and Erechanians alike. Fortified by the movement, the general urged his steed on; it trod a Kanosee soldier with a long wound across his face into the sod, then bowled over another. This man screamed.

A minute later, Sienhin found himself clear of the fighting. He reined his horse around and looked back at the ebb and flow of the battle. His insides ached at seeing it-he’d never in his life deserted a fight, but what choice did he have? He looked at the staff in his hand, then looked around him, ready to toss it aside and find himself another weapon.

No, that’s not enough. I have to destroy it.

“Hmph.”

Sienhin tucked the staff under his arm and slid awkwardly out of the saddle. His feet sank through the thin layer of snow and half an inch deep in mud, the bloody earth squelching under the soles of his boots. Breathing deep to prepare for the coming pain, the cold tang of winter burned his nostrils as he swung his near-useless right arm around to grab the end of the staff. He intended to lift his knee and break the cursed stick, but quickly realized the grip of his injured arm was too weak; if he attempted it, he wouldn’t be able to hold on.

“Gods curse me,” he muttered and put the end of the staff to the ground instead.

The general stomped the butt end into the dirt, then readjusted his grip on the other end. Satisfied his hold was solid, he raised his right boot and slammed his foot down on the staff.

The impact vibrated up the staff and through his arm, across his chest and into his injured shoulder. Sienhin closed his eyes and cried out in pain.

“Perhaps you should not attempt to destroy that which is not yours.”

The woman’s voice sliced through both the din of battle and the general’s pain, startling him. His eyes snapped open to find her standing five paces in front of him, flakes of snow clinging to her hair sparkling green in the staff’s light. The Archon wore no armor to protect her from the fight, no cape or cloak to keep the cold from her shoulders. She titled her head to the side and smiled the way an adult might do to a child, or a pet; her expression lit a fuse in the general.

“It’s not really the staff I seek to destroy, is it?” His eyes narrowed as he forced the words through clenched teeth. “A staff is but a staff, only as dangerous as its wielder.”

She laughed, the sound rolling out of her mouth and across the space between them, touching him with the power of a slap to the face.

“And who has been wielding it, Sir Alton Sienhin, general of the king’s army of Erechania? Not I.”

Sir Alton growled in the back of his throat, felt rage and hatred bubble in his chest. He knew better than to let anger take him, but here stood the woman threatening the destruction of his home, the end of his people. His forehead furrowed, bushy brows nearly blocking his vision; the muscles in his arms and chest tensed shooting more pain through his body, but he ignored it.

“It ends here,” he said and whipped the staff above his head to strike a killing blow.

“No, it does not,” the woman said, pointing at him.

The general froze. He struggled to move, but to no avail. His eyes flickered to the nail at the end of her finger, painted the deep red of blood, and she strode closer until it was only an inch from his face. He watched the color run to form a drop that fell to the ground.

He grunted with strain, but for his effort got only a droplet of sweat that rolled between his eyes and down the bridge of his nose. It hung from the tip for a second, and the general watched with crossed eyes until he felt it plummet to splatter on the top of his boot. When he looked up again, the woman’s fingernail had changed.

Instead of the red of blood, a picture was painted on the nail. Sienhin squinted to better see the depiction. It was a man-not just any man, Sienhin saw, but himself-his body folded and broken, a look of death on his face as a horse dragged him amongst corpses.

The general’s breath caught in his throat at a touch on his right wrist.

He forced himself to look and glimpsed his horse’s reins snaking their way around his wrist, encircling his forearm. His eyes widened and flickered back to the woman.

“Damn your magic, witch. Fight me like a man.”

She lowered her finger and leaned forward, bringing her face close to his. Her breath caressed his face; it smelled of herbs and mint and another, more unpleasant odor beneath-the stench of death.

“Why would I do that, Sir Alton?” She moved closer, pressed her body against his. “I am not a man.”

Her chest pressed against him hard enough he felt the shape of her breasts through his mail shirt. A vision of her naked and sprawled across a bed jumped to his mind; he blinked hard to clear the vision and spat in her face.

The woman took a step back, her expression hardening as she wiped his spittle off her cheek.

“Give me the staff.”

Her tone held no more hint of jest, no gentleness or playfulness. Instead, her words dripped hatred and threat. Sienhin stared at her, satisfied he’d gotten to her, no matter how little. He narrowed his eyes in defiance despite the feel of the lead tightening around his arm.

The woman grabbed the staff, yanked it, but Sienhin’s grip held firm. He chuckled at the back of his throat, a sound that brought a touch of red to the woman’s white cheeks. Her lips curled back from her teeth in a snarl; he smiled behind his mustache, defiant.

The woman tugged on the staff again, this time slowly exerting force to pull it out of his hand, but she stopped at the sound of a roar rolling across the battlefield. Her gaze shifted away from the general, her eyes grew wide. With his back to the fight, he didn’t know what made the sound, but it didn’t matter as long as the witch stood in front of him. He tried to jar the staff out of her hand, intending to crack her about the head with it, but the grip of her magic continued to hold him from moving.

“No,” she whispered and, with one solid yank, wrenched the staff out of the general’s grip and used it to slap his horse across its hind flank.

The horse bolted; the reins went tight immediately, pulling Sienhin off his feet. His injured shoulder pulled from its socket and he screamed in agony. As the horse fled, the general bounced over the ground, hitting corpses and bowling over men. Before he disappeared amongst the throng of fighting soldiers, he caught a glimpse of a red dragon rearing up to breathe a column of flame.

***

Khirro approached the rider cautiously, the Mourning Sword held at the ready. He clearly saw the man on the horse, recognized the white shirt, the black cloak, the silvered mask. A sense of excitement and relief roiled in his belly, but it was tempered by apprehension and fear-the purpose of a mask is to hide a face, deceive people.

With five yards between them, Khirro reined his horse to a stop. The other rider did the same. A minute passed and neither moved. In the distance, Khirro heard the sounds of battle crossing the plains on snow-filled winds.

“Who are you?” Khirro asked turning his horse to make sure the rider saw the sword in his hand.

The man reached up, threw back the hood of his cloak and pulled the mask off his face. Khirro’s eyes went wide and he found himself unable to say anything for a few second, then he found his voice.

“Athryn!” He urged his horse forward, unable to keep a smile from is face despite the battle in front of him and Emeline’s revelation behind. The magician’s lips tilted in a reserved smile, his eyes remained serious.

“It is good to see you, my friend.”

“I thought you dead.”

“As did I,” Athryn said. “But there were yet other plans for me.”

“Plans? What do you mean?” He pulled up beside his friend.

“We do not have time now, Khirro. The battle does not go well. I have intervened, but you are needed.”

A shiver crawled up Khirro’s spine and his smile fled. “But I have Emeline with me, and Graymon, and…” He paused. “And my daughter.”

“I will see to them.”

“But I-”

“Khirro.” Athryn’s voice carried a commanding tone that brooked no argument. “This is your time. This is why you have come all this way.”

“I don’t think I can. Something has changed, Athryn.”

The magician leaned toward him, looked deep into his eyes. Khirro didn’t want to look back at him, but felt unable to move his gaze away.

“Yes, something has changed: now you have a child to fight for.”

He knows. Has he always known?

Khirro’s lips twitched with the question, but Athryn slapped his hand on his shoulder and spoke again.

“I have seen you defeat a dragon and a serpent, fell giants and save your friends from dire circumstances. The Khirro who last set foot on these plains exists no more. Your journey has not only been one of distance, but one of the soul.”

Khirro’s head nodded minutely, keeping his eyes on Athryn’s. In his hand, the hilt of the Mourning Sword grew warm; he felt its heat radiating, warming the winter air.

The sword’s glow cast on the ground in front of them was difficult to see in the falling snow, but became more apparent as it took shape, gained color. It swirled at first, a whirlpool of red and green and blue in the air, then a building spread out before them.

Khirro recognized it instantly as his parents' farm.

The vision changed perspectives, as though Khirro walked up to the door. It swung open. Inside, the dinner table lay overturned, shards of clay from broken dishes littered the floor, and he saw his father’s axe on the hearth, its handle snapped in two.

His parents lay amongst the debris, dead eyes staring at the ceiling above.

His father’s one arm was pinned beneath his torso, his waist wrenched so far the other way, his legs faced the opposite direction like he might rise and walk away from himself. Blood splashed his mother’s apron, each drop blossoming on the white material like tiny, morbid roses. Khirro stared, mouth agape, wanting to ask Athryn the truthfulness of the vision.

Does he see it, too? Does he already know?

The vision moved forward, approached his parents. He leaned back in his saddle instinctively, unsuccessfully trying to stop it as the scene moved closer to his father.

His eyelids fluttered open and Khirro’s heart jumped with hope. Maybe he wasn’t dead, maybe a chance existed that he would live through this the way he lived through the accident that took his arm.

The accident I caused.

The father in his hallucination turned his head, sat up. Glazed, blank eyes stared at Khirro. A trail of blood ran from the man’s nose into his mouth, another streak of it ran from his ear. His father climbed to his feet, his body still cranked at the absurd angle, teeth clunking together as his mouth opened and closed forcefully. He took a shuffling, awkward step toward his son, and Khirro saw his mother sit up, too, her head swiveling to look at him with the same dead-but-not-dead eyes.

“No,” Khirro whispered and the scene disappeared, the glow receding back into the sword. The warmth waned along with it, leaving him with a shiver rattling his bones.

He faced the magician, looking at him for a long moment. Every shred of happiness he’d felt at seeing his friend again, every ounce of confusion he’d felt at Emeline’s words left him like chaff blown before a stiff wind. Athryn didn’t speak.

“Has this happened?”

The magician shook his head. “You know what this vision is, my friend.”

Khirro inhaled a deep breath through his nose and scented an odor on the wind he hadn’t smelled before or since their visit to the Necromancer’s keep: brimstone.

“This is what will happen if I don’t take action,” Khirro said moving his gaze away from the magician to the spot on the ground the vision had occupied. There was nothing now, only a crust of snow collected on grass beaten flat by the passing of an army.

An army that would destroy his home and kill his family if he didn’t act.

“Nothing is certain, Khirro, but it is likely this or some version of it will come to pass if the Archon is victorious. And not just to your parents.” Athryn looked past Khirro at Emeline and Iana. “The witch will not stop until the world is hers.”

Khirro nodded and prompted his horse to a walk.

“Say goodbye to Graymon and Emeline for me,” he said over his shoulder. “Give my daughter a kiss from her father.”

He coaxed his horse into a trot, a large part of him hoping the magician would call out to stop him. He didn’t. Khirro breathed deep, filling his lungs in the hope of calming the apprehension and dread churning his insides. They didn’t help.

“Khirro!”

Graymon’s voice. He fought the urge to turn the horse around, return to the boy to protect him, to take Iana from Emeline and hold his daughter just one time. Athryn would take care of them, probably better than he could. He set his jaw and urged his horse faster.

“Khirro!” Emeline called. “I’m sorry, Khirro. I did love you in my way.”

He urged his steed to a gallop and didn’t look back.

Chapter Twenty-Six

The dragon reared back on its haunches, filling its lungs with the fuel its fire needed. The living men before it scattered, leaving the unknowing dead to stand before the beast.

The dragon came down on its front feet, neck extended and mouth open, and spat a column of fire thirty feet long. Dead men burst into flame like dry kindling in a fire pit, burning with no more sound than inanimate lumber. The living didn’t exhibit the same silence.

Therrador gritted his teeth and hewed through the neck of another dead man come back to life. He hated the sound of men suffering in the breath of the dragon; no man deserved such agony on the battlefield, enemy or not.

The king pushed forward on foot, his horse lying dead with an axe in its chest twenty yards behind him. Luckily, his foes around him were also fighting afoot, most of them undead soldiers knocked from their steeds in death.

Lucky I only have to fight men raised from the dead.

All the men he’d brought from the fortress had fallen, the last of them only a minute before. Therrador fought alone. He spied other living Erechanians not far away, but all of them were as engaged as he. He would receive no help.

A mace caromed off the side of his plate, knocking the wind out of him. He whirled around in time to catch the next blow with his sword, then insert its tip through the eye of the beastly soldier. Another of the undead swiped wildly at him, missing and throwing itself off balance. Therrador hacked his arm off at the elbow and the dead man stumbled away, fell among the other bodies littering the field. The king cursed to himself.

There’s another I’ll have to fight again.

He’d come to realize that, if the contents of any soldier’s head-living or dead-should remain intact, they would be back to fight again, so he wielded his sword with all his might, severing necks and cleaving skulls. His shoulder, unused to such work, ached and complained, but Therrador forced himself to fight through the fatigue.

He engaged two more, one a living Kanosee soldier, the other a dead Erechanian brought back by the witch’s evil. Parry, thrust, block, jab. A well-placed swipe removed the undead thing’s head, adding its limp body to both the pile of the dead and to the lengthening list of once-loyal soldiers for the king to mourn, should he survive. He spun toward the live Kanosee soldier as the enemy’s blade found space between the plates covering Therrador’s thigh, opening a wound.

The king cried out in pain and turned his full attention on the man. The Kanosee soldier was big-wide and tall. As the two of them eyed each other, his mouth tilted up in a hateful smile.

“You’re the king,” he said, panting. “You’re Therrador.”

Therrador’s eyes narrowed. Behind the soldier, he spied a horse galloping across the battlefield, plowing through the throng.

“You have me at a disadvantage, sir. You know me, but I don’t know you.”

The man’s smile broadened. “Oh, I don’t matter. It’s killing the king that matters.”

He swung his sword two-handed overhead, looking to split Therrador’s skull; the king blocked the blow, but his own sword arm wilted under its force. Reflexes bred in battle helped him recover to intercept the next attack, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to do so for long-this man was too powerful for his under-trained left arm to handle.

Therrador’s eyes darted from the man attacking him to the bodies littering the ground around them, then back. He blocked another blow. His gaze flickered to the horse approaching more quickly now with fewer men blocking its path. The man attacked again; Therrador ducked under his sword and lunged forward, striking the man in the chest with his shoulder.

The Kanosee soldier stumbled back but didn’t fall. Therrador pressed the attack, glancing at the horse closing fast at the man’s back. Their swords clanged again and again. Sweat rolled into Therrador’s eyes, stinging them and blurring his vision; his shoulder protested with every swipe and block, but his opponent seemed not to tire.

The horse was close enough now Therrador felt its hoof beats through the soles of his boots. The other man must have as well, because he stole a worried look over his shoulder.

Therrador jumped on his enemy’s distraction and lunged forward, the tip of his sword aimed at the man’s belly, but the soldier side-stepped and the attack grazed off his mail. He lowered his arm, trapping the king’s blade between it and his body. The malignant grin returned to his face.

“We’re done here, King Therrador.”

“Yes. We are.”

Therrador let go of his sword and put his boot to his adversary’s chest, catching him by surprise. The man stumbled back a step into the path of the oncoming horse and the destrier’s training took over; the animal lowered its head and the spike at the center of its champron entered the Kanosee soldier’s skull through the back of his head.

The man’s eyes went wide and a gout of blood spewed from his mouth. The horse skidded to a stop and raised its head, pulling the man’s feet from the ground. His sword dropped from his grip as his body spasmed once, twice, then went still. An ugly tearing sound wrenched the air as he fell from the horse’s spike.

Only when the man hit the ground did Therrador notice the soldier dragged by the horse. He immediately recognized him by his armor.

“Sir Alton.”

Therrador leaped over the dead man to fall to his knees at his general’s side.

Scrapes covered Sienhin’s face, rendering him unrecognizable if not for his bushy mustache caked with blood from his nose and cheeks. The arm tangled in the horse’s reins was twisted around and around, the way a wash cloth is wrung out. One of his boots was gone. His head lolled to the side.

Therrador put his hand on the general’s cheek and propped his head up to look in his open eyes. Life yet remained in them, but it was dim and far off, as though it tried to flee this broken body but couldn’t quite get away. They looked into Therrador’s but he wondered if they saw him. His answer came through the general’s shredded lips and broken teeth.

“My king.” The words hissed from his mouth, breathed without the aid of tongue or lips.

“Don’t speak, old friend. I will find you a healer.”

“Is too late.”

Therrador already knew the truth in his words. His arm was destroyed, his body mangled beyond repair. The manner in which his head hung made the king suspect his neck was broken. It was a wonder he still lived.

“I’m so sorry, Alton. This is my fault.”

The general’s dispassionate eyes stared back at him and Therrador searched them for forgiveness. He found none. He found nothing. The general’s breath hissed into words again.

“Release me.”

The king closed his eyes tight. He knew Sienhin wasn’t asking him to untangle his arm from the reins; he wanted him to ensure the witch wouldn’t bring him back to fight against his own kingdom. He didn’t want to be made into a monstrosity.

Therrador opened his eyes. The general’s gaze remained upon him, though he suspected it was because his eyes no longer moved rather than a desire to look upon his king-the man who betrayed the kingdom-in his last moments of life.

The king nodded and reached for his dagger with his right hand as he held Sir Alton’s head with his left. His lack of a thumb made holding the blade awkward, but he got his fingers wrapped around the hilt and unsheathed it. His grip wouldn’t be tight enough to best a man in a knife fight, but a knife fight wasn’t the task he intended to accomplish.

He raised the dagger, the point held an inch from the general’s left eye. He hesitated.

“Goodbye, my friend.”

He plunged the dagger in to the hilt.

Therrador remained kneeling, aware of the battle raging around him, but exhaustion had crept into his limbs. Part of him wanted to stay there, to give in to whatever monster wanted to plunge its sword into his back and end his suffering for what he’d done to his kingdom, his friends, his son. But another part clung to the hope that, somewhere out there, Graymon yet lived, and that hope for the kingdom’s survival remained alive with the boy.

When he heard a horse approaching at a gallop, it was this part that brought him to his feet and turned him around, tired arms dangling at his sides.

***

The bodies lay thick on the ground, like a macabre snow fallen from malicious Heavens. In the distance, he saw the ruby dragon rise up in the air and spew fire on the men below. Black smoke rose to the sky and the wind picked up the smell of brimstone and burning flesh.

Darestat’s dragon! How can it be?

Khirro stared as the beast dove back to the ground and roared before gathering another breath. He shuddered with the memory of the beast and its fire.

He reined his horse to a stop, looked back over his shoulder; there was still time to turn the horse around, go back to Emeline and Iana. She would understand-she’d already lost Lehgan.

But Athryn wouldn’t. Nor would Maes, or Shyn, or Elyea. His parents wouldn’t understand his decision when Kanosee soldiers marched onto their farm to end their lives like he’d seen in the Mourning Sword’s prognostication. They wouldn’t understand when the Archon transformed them into monsters.

Khirro turned back to the fight and coaxed his horse to a walk. He breathed deep through his nose, pressed his lips together. The smells of the battle brought a lump in his throat large enough to gag him. He swallowed hard to dispel it.

I can do this. I’m no longer a farmer. I’m a warrior.

With the Mourning Sword at the ready, Khirro guided his horse through the corpses, noting their armor: the Kanosee insignia, Erechanian colors, the black splashed with red of the dead. There seemed equal numbers of each.

The fighting began a few yards ahead. A torrent of men ebbed and flowed, swords flashing, blood spilling. Men shouted and cursed, screamed in pain amongst the din of steel and the growl and roar of the dragon.

The runes running up and down the length of the Mourning Sword began to glow, dully at first, but more intensely with each step closer the horse brought him to the battle. The brighter the blade glowed, the more he felt heat build within him, an ember sparking to life in his chest that his blood carried out to his torso and limbs as it pumped through his veins. It fortified him, strengthened him and he sat straighter in the saddle, held the Mourning Sword with a more sure grip.

The first man approached him: a soldier in Erechanian mail and a deep killing wound in his chest oozing blood. He raised the pike he held in both hands, poked it at Khirro’s face; he brushed it aside with his free hand.

“I’m not your enemy.”

The man thrust at him again and Khirro blocked it. He saw the blank look in the man’s eyes and it reminded him of the way his parents' eyes looked in the vision. This man was no longer a soldier of the king’s army, but a servant of the Archon. Khirro brushed aside another poke then brought the Mourning Sword down in an arc that split the man’s head in two. He crumpled to the ground amongst the other corpses and the sword’s blade glowed fiercely. Triumph and despair mixed through Khirro as he stared at the man lying on the ground, brains seeping out of his head. He stared until he heard a voice call out.

“Watch out!”

He raised his eyes and saw the fellow standing by the big destrier, looking like a man defeated, but he only saw him for a second before a score of the undead converged on him and pulled him from his horse.

***

The rider split the man’s head open with an arcing blow of his sword, the blade glowing red as though thirsty for the blood of its enemy. Therrador recognized the Mourning Sword that had belonged to the king’s Shaman-only someone who’d been present when the Shaman died could possibly have it.

Hope that had all but disappeared prickled through Therrador’s stomach and chest.

The bearer of the king’s blood. The ghost was right. There’s hope yet.

A tired smile broke across his face, but the rider sat there, looking at the corpse he’d just created.

What is he doing?

Therrador stumbled forward a step. Dozens of undead soldiers had noticed the rider and were finding their way toward him as thought they had been commanded, but the rider didn’t look up.

“Watch out!”

The rider raised his head at Therrador’s warning, but too late. Dead hands grasped him, pulled him out of the saddle and down to the ground. A second later, they overwhelmed his horse. Therrador watched, breathless, hope fleeing with the soldier’s fall.

This cannot be.

He whirled around and returned to Sir Alton’s horse, cut through the reins with his dagger. The general’s body slumped to the ground as Therrador retrieved his sword and forced his fatigued muscles to pull him into the saddle.

“Sorry, my friend.”

He tossed his dagger aside and grabbed the saddle’s pommel, then dug his heels into the horse’s side with as much force as remained in his exhausted legs. The destrier sprang forward, leaping over Sir Alton’s corpse and past the Kanosee soldier who’d almost brought Therrador his end. He charged toward the downed rider, ignoring the protest of his exhausted muscles, the numb pain of gripping the saddle with his wounded hand.

The big horse closed the distance quickly, each stride eating yards of blood soaked ground, carrying Therrador to the bearer's aid. His heart thumped hard in his chest at the thought of losing him, but he forgot his worry as he saw fire spring to life amongst the undead soldiers.

***

Khirro slashed at the hands grabbing at him, but they were too close for him to use the sword effectively. He sliced a shallow cut on one man’s arm, but not enough to stop him and his fellows from pulling him out of the saddle.

He tumbled through a labyrinth of arms and weapons, felt blades rub his armor, until he hit the ground with a jarring thud that clacked his teeth together and doubled his vision. Hands grabbed his arms, wrenching his shoulders in their joints and tearing the Mourning Sword from his grip. Khirro thrashed, trying to free himself. A blade penetrated his armor, jabbing into his side and cutting his flesh; he felt the blood flow from the wound and yelled out in pain. A vision of fire flashed through his mind and he yelled again, but this time it came out a roar.

The flames flickered to life, covering his hands first, turning them to burning paws. The fire climbed his arms, spread across his chest, engulfed his face until a veil of flames licked the world in front of his vision.

Khirro flipped over off his back and swiped at the closest man, leaving four deep wounds across his face and setting his hair alight. The undead came at him from all sides, but Khirro slashed and bit, tearing out throats and ripping off limbs. He felt like a spectator watching the carnage he created, horrified by what he was capable of while being thankful for it.

Swords and axes found him, but rebounded from the flames without effect. The few living men among his attackers screamed and tried to flee, but he caught them, closed his huge, powerful jaws on their heads, cracking them open like nuts at a feast. He trampled them and tore them, rent their flesh and bit off their faces.

Then he was on top of the last man, pinning him to the ground with his flaming paws. The man’s plate armor protected him from the flames, but smoke rose from the long, braided beard trailing from his chin. The soldier’s mouth moved as he spoke, but fire roared in Khirro’s ears, deafening him to the world outside the flames. The tyger’s mouth opened in a snarl that roared smoky breath into the man’s face. He cringed.

Behind the flames, Khirro suddenly recognized the man: the braided beard, the gleaming plate, the insignia on his epaulets.

Therrador.

The tyger raised its flaming paw.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Therrador leaped off his horse, the sight of the bearer revitalizing his energy, giving him strength in the face of exhaustion. Giving him hope.

He slashed the first soldier he came upon in the back of the leg, toppling him, and the king saw the familiar blank look in his glazed eyes. Therrador inserted the tip of his sword through the man’s skull, pinning him to the ground, then removed the blade with a grunt and a twist.

When he looked up at the throng of men who’d fallen upon the rider, he saw more clearly the source of fire: a burning tyger slashed its way through the men.

What evil magic is this?

Therrador watched with fascinated horror. The beast moved with the speed of lightning and killed without hesitation, but it wasn’t these qualities that held the king enthralled-he would expect these of a great cat, burning or not. No, the man inside the flames drew his gaze.

Mud smeared his face, dirt and blood covered his undistinguished leather armor. Whenever the tyger’s paw swung, the man’s hand followed. Whenever the tyger’s mouth opened, the man’s did, too. They seemed to be one, working in unison, a part of the same being, yet the warrior’s expression looked like it belonged on someone caught in the grip of fear and dismay, not a soldier slaughtering his enemy. He might have thought the soldier would control the beast, but might it be the other way around?

A Kanosee soldier yelled and charged Therrador, drawing his attention away from the flaming tyger and the man inside. The king caught the haft of his attacker’s axe with his blade, turning the blow aside, but the soldier pushed forward, slamming his chest against Therrador’s before he could strike his own blow.

The king stumbled back and might have kept his balance but for the ill placed corpse at his heels. His feet tangled with the man’s arm and he fell to the ground with a clang of armor and a grunt.

His adversary slammed his foot down on Therrador’s wrist, pinning his sword arm to the ground before the king righted himself. Therrador struggled to free it, clawed at the man’s leg uselessly with his thumbless right hand, as the Kanosee raised the axe, two-handed, over his head and grinned mercilessly. The king refused to look away from his killer’s eyes.

I’m so sorry, Graymon.

Fire flashed before the enemy struck his killing blow. A flaming paw drew four deep gouges across the side of the man’s head, pulling one eye from its socket and shredding his cheek. Blood splashed on Therrador’s face and chest.

The Kanosee soldier’s remaining eye widened in shock and terror, his mouth opened to scream, but the tyger rode him to the muddy turf, mauling him before he made a sound. Therrador propped himself on his elbows, watching the carnage, and inhaled a deep, relieved breath of winter air tinged with fire and blood. He’d spent most of his adult life close to killing and death, but this was the first time he’d seen a beast such as this in battle, let alone be saved by it.

The tyger tore out the man’s throat with a flick of his head, then stalked toward Therrador, snarling its flaming lips back from teeth of fire. The man inside looked bewildered, sickened.

“Thanks for-”

Therrador pushed himself to sit up, but the tyger pounced and knocked him back to the ground, pinning his shoulders with its fiery paws. It roared in his face, blowing hot breath on his cheek; a drop of flaming saliva fell from its mouth and splashed on the top of Therrador’s chest plate. The man within the beast looked at the king, and his lips spoke Therrador’s name, but the sound of his voice was hidden by the flames. His eyes offered apology.

Roaring again, the tyger drew back its left paw, flaming claws unsheathed, taking the man’s arm with it. Therrador thought of Graymon, of how close they might have come to vanquishing the Archon if this man possessed control over the beast.

It may yet happen, but I won’t see it.

“No,” he said but didn’t expect the man to hear him or the beast to understand.

The tyger’s paw moved forward an inch and Therrador flinched, but the killing stroke did not fall. The man inside the beast looked away, his lips moved again forming a word Therrador didn’t recognize. A second later, the tyger climbed off him and bounded away.

The ghost woman stood a pace away, regarding Therrador with a mixture of sadness and relief in her green eyes. She offered her hand and Therrador accepted her help up. Her flesh felt neither warm like the living nor cool like the dead.

“Elyea,” he said and realized her name was the word the man inside the tyger had spoken. “What was that?”

“That was Khirro, who will save your kingdom. Braymon lives within him.”

“Braymon? I thought this man only carried the king’s blood.”

“The tyger is the spirit of the king, but it matters not right now. I have someone here to see you.”

She stepped aside to reveal the man in black cloak and silvered mask standing behind her-the dragon rider. A woman with a baby cradled against her chest and a bandage on her forearm stood at his side, and a young boy staring at the ground held his hand.

“Graymon?” Therrador whispered, disbelieving his own eyes. The witch had tricked him before. He wouldn’t let it happen again.

The king strode a few tentative steps toward the small group, hand gripping the hilt of his sword tight. He didn’t know the woman or the masked man, but they had his son, and he didn’t know their intent. The boy looked up and saw Therrador; his face brightened and a smile crossed his lips.

“Da,” he cried and let go of the dragon rider’s hand to rush to his father. The man didn’t try to stop him.

Therrador kneeled, his legs giving out under the weight of relief, and the boy leaped into his arms. They embraced for a few seconds, then Therrador moved his son away to arm’s length to look at him.

Graymon was skinnier, if that was possible, and his clothing was tattered; his hair was longer and greasy, hanging limp past his ears, but he looked reasonably healthy and unharmed.

“I worried I might never see you again,” Therrador said through a pained smile. His son may have been miraculously returned, but it was his fault he’d been taken nonetheless, and the battle was not yet won.

The boy raised one eyebrow. “I knew I’d see you, Da.”

Therrador laughed and pulled his son back into his arms. Over the boy’s shoulder, he saw the man and the woman with the baby approach. The ghost woman was nowhere to be seen.

“Thank you for returning my son,” he said fighting back the threat of tears. “But who are you?”

The man pulled back his cowl and removed his mask as a gust of snow-laced wind blew his blond hair across his fair face. His expression looked calm and in control compared to the woman, whose sunken eyes cried out with desperation and fear. She looked like a woman who’d been through much.

“We are friends of Khirro's, your Majesty. Loyal subjects of the kingdom.”

Therrador nodded, accepting the man’s words.

What choice do I have?

He stood and took a step back from his son.

“I have to go, Graymon. The kingdom is in need of my sword.”

Tears welled up in Graymon’s eyes instantly, his bottom lip quivered, but he didn’t let himself cry. He sniffled and wiped his arm across his eyes to prevent tears spilling down his cheeks.

“You can be my brave little hero, can’t you?”

Graymon nodded twice and sniffled again. Therrador ruffled his hair, conscious of the thumb missing inside his gauntlet, though his son would neither feel nor see its absence. But if it came down to a matter of trading his thumb for his son’s safety, the choice was an easy one.

Therrador laid his hand on Graymon’s shoulder as he turned his attention to the dragon rider.

“What is your name?”

“Athryn,” he replied and bent his head in deference.

“Athryn. Take the woman and the children to safety. I have a witch to kill.”

He gave Graymon a tap on the back, sending him back to the magician, but Athryn shook his head.

“No,” he said. “We will all be accompanying you.”

“Impossible,” Therrador snapped, suddenly angry and unused to being disobeyed. “I am your king. Do as I say.”

“I am sorry, but I cannot.” Athryn’s voice remained calm, smooth, and its tone drained any more argument from Therrador. “Their roles in this are not yet complete.”

Therrador looked from the man, then to his son finally returned to him, and his heart sank with a certainty that the boy would be taken away again, and he felt like there was nothing he could do about it.

***

The woman rode through the battle, hewing and chopping men with her long sword without regard for what colors their armor displayed. She muttered spells to freeze them in their place or transform their muscles to jelly, she touched them with the glowing tip of the staff and turned them from the living to the living dead.

She stared straight ahead, her eyes on the ruby dragon as it burned her troops with its breath, cut them down ten at a time with powerful swipes of its tail. Arrows and spears bounced off the beast’s scaly chest. The blades of the soldiers who got close enough to swing their swords at it shattered against its ruby plate, and they lost their lives under its wicked talons for their effort. Its emerald eyes flickered with fire, anger and hatred; its pointed teeth gnashed the air.

Sheyndust had seen the dragon once before as it guarded the Necromancer’s keep in the haunted land of Lakesh, but then it was a statue. She hadn’t attracted its attention because she didn’t need the entrance concealed beneath its belly-the ancient texts she’d discovered in Poltghasa at the cost of a hundred lives had revealed another entrance, one only possible for a powerful magician to divine and use. And use it she did when she entered Darestat’s keep to steal his secrets for raising the dead, but as long as he lived, she would merely be able to animate the corpses, not truly bring the dead back to life. She’d learned the limits of her powers when she brought the assassin from the fields of the dead-once and no more, as long as Darestat existed. With him still alive to any degree, she wouldn’t be the most powerful magic user in the world; she wouldn’t be the true Necromancer.

Here, finally, was her chance to defeat him and claim her prize. With him gone, nothing would stand between her and limitless dark magic, and she would claim the world as her own.

Thirty yards from the ruby dragon, the Archon reined her horse to a stop and slid out of the saddle. Snow melted under the soles of her bare feet; mud squished up between her toes and she felt the blood in it, her flesh tasted death in the muck of the battle.

Sheyndust tossed her sword aside-it would do her no good against the beast-and set her feet at shoulder width, braced the butt end of the staff on the ground. With her arms spread, she tilted her head back and allowed the falling snow and winter wind to caress her, flap her dress around her, embrace her.

She lowered her chin and stared intently at the dragon.

“Necromancer,” she said. The word started small, a whisper, but swelled as it crossed the field of battle, building until it crashed into the dragon’s side like a wave breaking against a rocky shore. “It is I, Sheyndust. I have come to claim your life.”

The dragon’s head swiveled toward her on its long neck and gouts of smoke belched from its nostrils as though it scoffed at her words. Its massive tail slammed the ground, shaking the earth with its impact, then it reared back on its haunches, wings spread threateningly, and filled its lungs.

For an instant, the Archon saw a tiny flame flicker at the back of the dragon’s throat. She planted her feet and braced herself, leaning forward slightly on the staff as the dragon came back down on all fours with a shuddering thump and extended its neck, jaws agape.

She watched the fire swirl toward her. It seemed to move slowly, the orange and yellow and red of it churning and slithering as if possessed of life of its own. She felt as though she could have avoided it if she desired. She didn’t.

The conflagration engulfed her; she threw her head back and closed her eyes, drinking it in as she felt its heat on every inch of her flesh, felt it penetrate her and touch her soul. She smiled. She laughed. When the dragon’s breath ended, she still stood in the same place, staff in hand, her clothes burned off her. Smoke rose from her pale, naked, unburned flesh and the earth around her scorched dry. She opened her eyes, lowered her head, and looked into the eyes of the dragon.

“Is that all you have, Darestat?”

Her laughter echoed across the battle field, and the living men-Erechanian and Kanosee both-stopped to look at her. She felt their eyes on her naked flesh, felt the lust flowing out of them, feeding her.

The dragon’s roar filled the air with acrid smoke and unbridled hatred; it took a lumbering, ground-shaking step toward the woman. She pulled the staff out of the mud and held it out in front of her with both hands, the glowing knobbed end pointed at the dragon. Her lips moved shaping ancient words in a language dead practically before the world began, words she and the Necromancer could speak and no one else, and her only because she’d stolen them from him.

Sheyndust slammed the staff down onto the ground, and green lighting jumped out of it, conducted from corpse to corpse as it followed a jagged path to its target. It hit the last fallen man closest to the beast, then leaped the distance to the dragon, slamming into its chest and making the great creature stumble. The dragon threw its head back and howled as the green light gathered in its translucent ruby chest, swirling into a ball that expanded and grew. Roiling, collecting, killing.

The green light swelled until it filled the dragon’s chest, spilled down its legs, along its tail, into its wings. The beast roared in rage-filled pain and drew a breath deep into its lungs. Its neck extended, but instead of breathing deadly fire, the green death inside it exploded outward, shattering the dragon.

The Archon threw her head back and laughed in triumph as shards of ruby rained down around her.

***

Khirro panted and blinked sweat from his stinging eyes.

The world flickered and danced, yellow and orange light shifting and shimmering across his vision. He hardly saw the men falling before his flaming claws anymore; his parched mouth had grown used to the taste of their blood on his tongue. At first, it made him gag, but now the physical and emotional exhaustion of killing had drained him to the point he’d become only an observer of his acts, uninvolved and barely aware.

Another undead soldier fell before his onslaught, head torn from body, then he took a living Kanosee soldier’s life. Khirro watched the man’s body crumple and fall and took no joy in it, nor did he feel regret anymore. It distressed him to find he felt no more emotion about cutting this man down than he might have felt about taking his scythe to a field of wheat.

What’s happened to me? Is this what it’s like to be a real warrior? A killer?

He thought of his life on the farm as his claws tore through the chest of another man. He thought about how he killed chickens and pigs and cows without remorse, to feed his family and ensure their survival.

As this has to be done so the kingdom will survive.

He felt a sword slash his side and the flaming tyger wrapped around him let out a roar that reverberated through his chest, flared pain down his raw throat. But the sword caused no wound, drew no blood. The flames protected him from harm.

He wrenched his attacker’s arm from his body with the swipe of one paw, then bit through his skull, spilling him to the ground for his brain to ooze onto the trampled grass. He paused to retch and clear his throat before continuing on to take the life of his next enemy.

Ahead, he saw the dragon, the battlefield around it clear of men as they retreated from its swinging tail and deadly breath; the beast’s heat melted the snow that might have collected on the plain before if could settle. Months before, the dragon had been his adversary, and in a way partly responsible for the melding of the king’s spirit with his own. Now, an unexplainable feeling pushed him toward the dragon to fight by its side.

The flaming tyger took one step, then stopped as Khirro spied a solitary figure standing in front of the dragon. He couldn’t see her face, but the cloak and blond hair tossed about her by the cold wind told him all he needed to know. He’d never seen the Archon in person before-only in dreams-but he’d know her anywhere. A growl rumbled deep in Khirro’s chest, echoing and multiplying until it became the tyger’s. Here stood the cause of all that had happened to Khirro: all the death, all the loss, all the destruction. Here stood the murderer of the king.

Here was his chance to end it.

He took a step forward, the tyger’s flaming paw squelching in a patch of bloody mud, then another. He moved slowly, using the big cat’s natural ability to stalk toward the woman, but stopped when he saw the dragon rear back. The woman spread her arms as though to embrace death, and Khirro felt a smile cross his face.

This was a death he would enjoy.

The dragon’s head shot forward to breathe a swirling maelstrom of flame at the woman. It overtook her, surrounded her, engulfed her, and she didn’t move. The fire blocked Khirro’s view of her, but he knew that, when it relented, she would be nothing but charred flesh and smoking bones. He crouched to watch feeling vaguely guilty about the pleasure he’d receive from her death.

The gout of flame continued for fifteen seconds before the dragon’s jaws finally snapped shut cutting it off. Khirro’s gaze flickered to the beast, then across the field to where he expected to see the woman’s burnt form curled up on the ground.

Instead of a steaming corpse, the woman stood her ground, arms spread, clothing burned from her. Smoke rose from her limbs and the staff she held; flames flickered in her hair and went out, leaving her blond locks untouched by their heat.

Her laughter rolled across the battlefield to Khirro’s ears.

He watched in disbelief as the dragon moved toward her and she brought the staff to bear on the beast, its tip glowing a bright and sickly green.

No!

Khirro’s heart jumped and the flaming tyger took over, galloping across the muddy, beaten grass, melting paw prints in the snow as it leaped over corpses and flashed past living men. His graceful stride ate up yards, carrying him toward the woman. If he could get to her, he could end this.

She’s been touched by the dragon’s breath.

Once, the thought might have caused terror in Khirro; now, it was instead followed by a very different thought.

So have I.

He ran on, ignoring the pockets of fighting he passed, leaving the mortals and the undead to sort out their own life-or-death scuffles. He pushed himself faster, his muscles straining under the flames and fire.

With a dozen yards between him and the woman, she slammed the staff to the ground with a crack like thunder; green light shot across the space between her and the dragon and leaped into the creature’s chest.

Khirro skidded to a stop, the tyger’s paws digging furrows in the dirt. The green light grew, filling the ruby dragon until it appeared ruby no more. The beast stopped moving, its jaws agape and tail held high, waiting to hammer the ground. Its body bulged and he heard the crackling sound of footsteps on thin ice as its scales separated.

The dragon exploded.

Soldiers fell-live and dead, Kanosee and Erechanian alike-as chunks of the dragon tore through them. Ruby shards slammed into Khirro, driving him back like an unstoppable rain. He stumbled to his knees, then fell onto his back. The flames in his vision flickered and disappeared and pain filled his joints, sluiced through his limbs. He lay on his back sucking bitter air into his lungs until he heard the voice say his name.

“Khirro.”

He felt certain he’d heard the voice before, but didn’t immediately recognize it, for it held a rasp in its tone he knew it didn’t have the last time he heard it. In response, he tried to push himself up to lean on his elbows, but his muscles failed him, his hand slipped in the mud and he fell back. His head throbbed, his body ached. A deep breath shot pain through his chest and he struggled up to see who uttered his name.

The man stood a dozen yards away. Half of his face was peeled away from his cheek bone, leaving one eye bulging and the teeth beneath laid bare in a perpetual sneer that might have suited him as well in life. Even in such a decomposed state, Khirro recognized Ghaul, the man who’d betrayed him and was ultimately responsible for the king becoming part of him instead of being resurrected.

Khirro climbed to his feet, agonizing pain threatening to cripple his movement. With his feet under him, he watched Ghaul approach as he swayed in place, struggling to keep his balance. His stomach clenched and knotted as the warrior neared.

Khirro’s eyes narrowed and he pictured flames crawling up his arms, along his legs, using his imagination to call them into being again with no compunction-Ghaul’s betrayal of the kingdom and of Khirro deserved a death sentence. He felt the fire’s heat on his cheeks when a screech from above distracted him. Khirro’s heart jumped with hope at the thought that the dragon might have somehow survived. A shadow passed over him and he looked up to see a huge gray falcon cutting through the falling snow.

Shyn.

The diving bird struck Khirro’s shoulder, spinning him around and throwing him off balance. He fell to one knee and looked up at the falcon wheeling away into the sky. He may have no problem with the thought of dispatching Ghaul to the fields of the dead, but Shyn…The border guard had been committed to the success of their quest as much as anyone, perhaps more so. More than himself, at times.

He is already dead. They both are.

Khirro chewed his bottom lip, wishing for the fire to come, but nothing happened.

“Come on,” he muttered under his breath. Nothing.

Whatever ill magic destroyed the dragon must have affected the tyger.

He stood and drew the Mourning Sword, the blade’s ferocious red glow coloring the falling snow pink as though the flakes were tinted with blood. Ghaul halted five yards from Khirro, and the sword’s light showed him as he’d been in life: a warrior, loyal and dedicated to the task given him by the Archon. A traitor, but Khirro would never have made it to Lakesh without him, no matter his reason for assisting.

But without him, Shyn would be alive. And Elyea.

The light of the Mourning Sword brightened and his face reverted to the face of the monster he’d become.

Ghaul leaped at him, his blade slicing an arc toward Khirro’s chest. He caught the blow with the Mourning Sword, the force driving him back a step. With an effort, he pushed Ghaul away as wind and snow whirled around his face and a talon dug into his shoulder.

“No, Shyn,” Khirro said, breathless. “It’s me.”

For a second, he thought the pressure of the claw in his shoulder eased, that the border guard recognized him and would let him go, but Ghaul’s garbled words dispelled the illusion.

“Kill him.”

Ghaul’s sword flickered at him again and again, the falcon’s wings beat the air around his ears. The Mourning Sword seemed to take over for Khirro’s tired arm, its glow leaving a sparkling red path through the air as it danced and flickered, turning aside strike after strike. He waved his fist at Shyn above him, caught the bird with a solid shot to the chest and the falcon let go.

The fight drew on and Khirro held his own, deflecting Ghaul’s attacks and fending off the falcon. A sense of satisfaction settled into him; he’d admired these two warriors, and at times wished to be like them, and now he kept pace with them.

Ghaul moved to his left and Shyn settled on the ground to his right, snapping his wickedly curved beak at Khirro’s face. Their splitting up taxed Khirro to the limit. In a second, one of them would be behind him, his back exposed, and he realized he needed to act.

Khirro lunged forward with a flurry that drove Shyn back, the falcon screeching, then he spun around and swung at Ghaul with all his might. The Mourning Sword clashed against the dead warrior’s sword near the hilt, jarring it from his grasp. Khirro didn’t hesitate, swiping his blade at the traitor’s neck.

Ghaul didn’t defend himself. His blank eyes held no fear or sadness, regret or apology, as the Mourning Sword cut through his neck and sent his head tumbling to the ground. His body followed it down.

Khirro had time to search for a breath before he felt the tip of the sword enter his back. Pain exploded through his torso and the exhaustion he’d felt flooded back into him, filling his limbs and making his head feel light. The Mourning Sword dropped from his grip and he looked down to see the blade protruding from his stomach. He stared at it for a second before it disappeared, rasping against his insides as it was pulled out.

He teetered on weakened knees, then folded to the ground, turning as he did. Khirro landed on his side and saw Shyn standing over him, his legs still the legs of the falcon, his upper body a man’s sprinkled with gray feathers. His blank, expressionless eyes stared at his one-time friend, then he turned and walked away, his legs morphing back to a man’s as he went.

Khirro struggled his hand away from the wound in his belly and held it up in front of his eyes. Fresh blood covered his gauntlet, but it was impossible to know how much belonged to him and how much to the uncountable enemies left dead in his wake. The pain of the wound dimmed in comparison to the pain of failure and of what he’d become in its service.

So close. So close.

Khirro’s head sagged to the ground and his eyes slid closed.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

“There.” Athryn pointed and spurred the horse faster.

Behind him, Emeline clung tight to his waist, as Graymon held his father the same way on the horse thundering across the plain beside them. In the distance, not far from where Sheyndust had destroyed the dragon in a deafening explosion of ruby shards and green light, Athryn picked out Khirro amongst the fighting.

And he recognized the man and the falcon he fought.

The magician swung his sword at any who got too close to them as they rode, but in his head, he prepared the spell he’d need to finish what Khirro and the Shaman started so long ago. He felt his brother’s blood coursing through his veins, fortifying him, encouraging him.

“Do you see him?” Emeline asked over his shoulder, her voice shaken by the horse’s gait.

“Yes. We will be there soon.”

He watched as the two men who once were their companions split up, spreading their attack and taxing Khirro’s ability to defend himself. Athryn and the king were close, but not close enough.

The tyger, Khirro. Become the tyger.

The Mourning Sword’s red blade flashed, and Athryn saw Ghaul’s head freed from his undead body. He cheered silently, but in Khirro’s distraction, Shyn had transformed back to a man and picked a sword up off the ground.

No.

The border guard skewered Khirro with his blade and Athryn gasped. Shyn pulled the blade free and walked away, leaving Khirro to crumple to the grass.

Athryn reined his horse to a stop, and Therrador did the same; the king leaped out of the saddle before the steed came to a stop. He raced across the field, leaping corpses and slashing adversaries, until he got to Shyn. As he swung a blow at the border guard, Athryn lowered Emeline and Iana off the horse, then followed her out of the saddle. She hurried across the plain, oblivious to the dangers around her as she made her way to Khirro.

Therrador’s first blow glanced off Shyn’s sword, driving him back; the king struck again and again, not giving his foe the chance to go on the offensive. Instead, he stumbled away, retreating. Therrador stood watching him, catching his breath, but Athryn saw what he was doing. Shyn’s face warped and changed; feathers forced their way through the flesh of his cheeks.

“He is changing!” Athryn yelled as he increased his pace, running past Emeline to help the king. “Don’t let him change.”

Therrador looked over his shoulder at the magician then back at his foe. He lunged forward recklessly, the tip of his sword finding its way past Shyn’s defense to cut a shallow gash on his half-man, half-bird chest. Therrador swung the sword around his head and connected with the taller man’s neck, severing his head.

Athryn fell to his knees beside Khirro. Blood masked his friend’s cheeks and chin, splattered across his chest and arms. There was mud and gore caked on his leg and fresh blood flowing from the wound in his belly puddled on the ground beneath him. Kneeling over him reminded Athryn of the similar wound he sustained on the shore of Lakesh when the mercenary stole the king’s blood from Khirro. Then, Maes had saved him with magic and his own blood, now flowing through Athryn’s veins.

There wouldn’t be the same result this time.

Emeline arrived and kneeled beside Athryn.

“Gods. Does he live?”

Athryn looked at her and nodded. Her face was drawn and haggard with stress and worry; the baby, swaddled in a blanket at her breast as usual, remained surprisingly quiet and undisturbed by the goings-on around her.

“He is alive, but barely.” He removed the mirrored mask and his cloak, pulled open his shirt. “He does not have much time. We have to hurry.”

“So you can save him?”

Hope flickered in Emeline’s eyes, touched her lips. Seeing it made Athryn’s heart ache.

“Emeline,” he said quietly, his voice overflowing with his own emotion. “When Darestat’s spell went astray, King Braymon’s spirit and Khirro’s were bonded. To separate them and save the kingdom, only one will survive.”

She stared into his eyes and he saw that, for a moment, she didn’t grasp the weight of his words. He held her gaze, doing his best to keep his own emotions in check as realization dawned for her.

“You’re going to kill him.”

Athryn licked his lips. “It is the only way to raise the king.”

“After all he did for you, all he did for the kingdom, you’re going to kill him.”

Therrador had arrived and stood between the two of them, looking down at Khirro; he said nothing.

Athryn held Emeline’s gaze as he spoke. “Therrador, fetch your son.”

The king nodded and took a step toward the horses and stopped.

“Where is he?”

“I left him with the horse.”

Therrador took another step, stopped, spun a half circle. Athryn looked away from Emeline.

“Graymon!”

The magician followed Therrador’s gaze to the boy crossing the grassland toward the Archon, a jeweled-handled dagger in his hand.

***

Graymon’s toes dangled above the ground as he lowered himself out of the saddle, his hands gripping the leather tight. He hung from it without letting go, fearful though he knew the ground to be close beneath his feet, but the memory of climbing out of the wagon, of falling from the tree, still lingered. He took a deep breath, inhaling the smell of saddle leather and horse sweat, and let go, dropping the six inches separating the soles of his feet from the ground.

When he turned around, he saw his da fighting a man with feathers poking out of his skin while Athryn and Emeline rushed toward Khirro, who was laying in the mud.

She killed him. She killed the tyger.

Graymon’s eyes moved away from his friends to scan the plain. Through the tapestry of falling snow, he saw the pile of wreckage that was once the dragon-green-hued smoke rising from a heap of red rock. His heart lurched at the sight, and he thought of his toy dragon and its broken wing, of the way the woman had manipulated it when he first met her. She stood not far away, naked and laughing, her arms outspread, her hair tossed by the winter wind. The entire length of the staff in her hand glowed green.

Graymon’s fingers wrapped around the hilt of the dagger Khirro gave him. He felt the rough feel of the jeweled hilt against his skin, the cold metal of the pommel. He swallowed hard, pulled the dagger from his belt, careful not to cut himself, and started toward the woman.

He felt like a brave hero at first, fortified by doing the right thing, but with each step, his courage flagged; as he drew closer to the woman, fear crept in. He reminded himself of all the things she’d done, of the way she tricked him, of what she did to his da, to the kingdom, and now to the tyger. She was the one who raised the dead, so if a dead soldier killed Khirro and the tyger, then it was her fault, just as if she'd wielded the sword herself.

As he walked, he looked at the ground in front of him instead of at the woman. He knew if he looked at her, or at the fighting around him, he would surely lose his nerve. So he averted his eyes and counted his steps to distract himself.

When he’d gone a hundred paces, he heard his name and took it as the cue to finally raise his eyes again. He looked into the face of the witch.

She stood ten yards away, staring at him with a bemused look on her face. She raised an eyebrow and one corner of her mouth followed it up in a lopsided smirk.

“Well, well. To what do I owe the honor of your company, my prince?”

Graymon stopped and concentrated on making an angry face instead of the afraid one threatening to usurp his expression. He gritted his teeth and pressed his lips together the way his father did when he was angry; he tried hard to make his eyebrows touch like Nanny’s.

“You killed the tyger.” He said the words quietly, hoping she wouldn’t hear the terror steadily building inside him like water threatening to overflow a dam.

The woman threw her head back and laughed. The sound echoed and rolled across the plain. It seemed to toss the falling snow about in its wake and it touched Graymon like fingers groping in the dark. It might have tickled if he hadn’t been so scared. He shivered.

“The tyger should have stayed dead the first time I killed him,” she said directing her gaze back to the boy. “It would have saved a lot of lives.”

“If you hadn’t attacked, it would have saved lots of lives,” Graymon yelled at her, his voice quaking. He breathed a few short, stiff breaths through his nose, held the dagger out in front of his chest and started toward her again. He made it one step before the arm encircled his waist and picked him up off the ground.

Graymon wiggled and fought against the arm, slashed at it with the dagger, but a hand grabbed his wrist. The boy looked over his shoulder and saw his father’s face looming above him.

“Da!”

But his father wasn’t looking at him, he didn’t respond. Instead, he glared at the woman and made a much better angry face than Graymon had been capable of; angrier than he’d ever seen his father.

“Ah. The traitor king has returned.”

Graymon’s feet dangled above the ground as his father backed away. The boy looked from his father to the woman. She didn’t look amused anymore; her faced looked even angrier than his da’s. Hatred and rage twisted and warped her face, dissolved her beauty. Her lips pulled back to reveal gleaming teeth, sharp with points; her hair whipped out behind her as though she stood in the midst of a hurricane; she seemed to grow taller.

The woman held the glowing green staff in both hands in front of her and brought the butt end down hard against the ground. Thunder clapped, lightning jumped toward the sky and the earth rumbled. Behind her, a tornado of white smoke and snow rose up, swirling and twisting higher and higher, expanding wider and wider until it blotted out the sky.

Therrador put Graymon down, grabbed him by the hand, and pulled him away.

“Run,” his father yelled.

***

“Get him,” Athryn snapped, but Therrador had already taken off after his son. “I must begin the spell.”

“Do you have to?”

Emeline’s voice held a pleading tone and anger flashed through Athryn. He wanted to ask her why she should show concern for him now, after what she’d done to his friend, but he bit back his ire and gestured at the wound in Khirro’s belly instead. Blood still oozed from it, though the flow had ebbed.

“If not this, he will die anyway, then we lose both Khirro and Braymon. And the kingdom.”

He glanced over his shoulder and saw Therrador scoop Graymon up in his arm.

“I have to begin.”

Emeline lowered her head and touched Khirro’s cheek.

“I’m sorry.”

Athryn traced his fingers along the tattooed lines on his torso, felt their power flow up his fingers, along his arms, and into his chest to infuse the air in his lungs. The charged air rose into his throat and spilled out of his mouth in words of a language he didn’t know. Finger traced, lips spoke; this is how it needed to be since Maes died and his magic returned. His flesh went cold and numb; sweat beaded on his forehead. A vibration started at his knees and shook its way up his spine.

Khirro gasped a sudden breath and Emeline cried out in concern, but Athryn didn’t let it distract him. The arcane words tumbled from his lips fluently, though his mouth had never formed them before and they felt uncomfortable on his tongue. The world narrowed to Khirro lying on the ground in front of him, Emeline and Iana at his periphery, the sound of the chant collecting in his ears, multiplying in his head.

Dimly through it he heard a crack of thunder, sensed a flash of light. The ground quivered beneath him with a vibration greater than what might accompany the casting of a spell; he focused on his words, on tracing the scrollwork’s path. Power built inside him, churning, straining to break free. He closed his eyes and concentrated on control as his finger continued its path, his lips continued their words.

In the distance, somewhere outside himself, he heard a voice strained with urgency. It came closer and a second voice joined it, this one higher pitched, a woman. He heard his name amongst the words they spoke and focused tighter, concentrated harder to shut them out, to keep from being pulled out of the spell and have the power welling up inside him dissipate.

Then he felt a hand on his shoulder, grasping it, shaking him. Athryn stopped chanting and opened his eyes.

Emeline stood over Khirro, her hair whipped by strong wind Athryn hadn’t felt in his trance, her face distorted with fear. She gripped Iana tight against herself as the baby wailed. Therrador stood beside Athryn-it was his hand on his shoulder-and Graymon was beside him. Thunder rumbled across the sky bringing goose bumps to the magician’s bare chest.

He struggled to his feet and looked around.

Green lightning flickered and jumped from the staff in the woman’s hand, flashing out to strike down the living or raise the dead, depending on which it touched. A host of her newly-raised soldiers ambled along behind her, fresh wounds dripping, weapons covered with the blood of the men now marching beside them. Behind them rose a wall of cloudy white smoke and snow that hid the horizon and reached to the top of the sky.

Athryn bent and retrieved the Mourning Sword from where it lay on the ground beside his fallen friend, then nodded to Therrador. The king guided his son to Emeline and put the boy’s hand in hers. He touched Graymon’s cheek and his lips moved, whispering words of love, a promise, then he returned to Athryn’s side.

“You must stay with Khirro,” Athryn said to Emeline as he and Therrador started toward the Archon. “Without him, all is lost. Your love for him can keep him alive until I return.”

If I return.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

For the first time in his life, Therrador wanted nothing more than to flee from the fight before him, to turn and run and leave the fighting to someone else. He imagined himself scooping Graymon up in his arms, taking the boy away somewhere safe, and leaving the kingdom in the grip of the madwoman into which he’d delivered it.

Not much of a king.

Instead, he pressed forward-likely to his death-at the side of a man he didn’t know as his son watched.

The first wave of dead men rushed them, putting any thought but survival from the king’s mind. He should have been too exhausted to wield his sword, but knowing his son crouched a few yards away, and that letting one of the things past would surely mean the boy’s death, brought energy and urgency to his limbs.

Beside him, the magician hacked and hewed their adversaries, fighting with a ferocity Therrador wouldn’t have expected from a magic-user. The blade of the Mourning Sword glowed first red like the blood for which it thirsted, then orange and yellow, and back to red again. It shone on the faces of the men it cut down, reflected in their armor before cleaving it in two. Heads rolled and bodies fell as they made their way toward the woman.

Therrador’s sword found the eye of the last standing soldier of the first wave of undead, and he looked up, ready for the next attack. There was none. The other dead men hung back, standing on either side of the woman and behind her, the snowy wall of white mist pressing close behind them.

The king’s gaze fell on the woman. She stood with her legs spread to shoulder width, her arms extended as if awaiting his embrace; the sight of her stole the breath from his chest. His eyes moved slowly from her face to her neck, then her chest, his gaze flowing over her body like honey. His sword drooped in his grasp and he forgot what reason had brought him to this place.

Why should I want to kill such a beautiful creature?

The woman smiled, laughed with a sound like gold, her teeth pearls, her eyes sapphires. The hatred and rage in Therrador’s chest loosened and his mouth opened to profess his love.

Before his throat struggled the words into being, a yellow glow fell on the woman. Her smile faded and she diverted her eyes. Therrador’s chest lurched at the precious gift of her attention taken away, wrung from his heart so suddenly.

The glow brightened, illuminating the woman without shadow, without deceit. Her pearly teeth became fangs dripping venomous saliva, her sapphire eyes flashed jealousy and disgust, her laughter became the growl and roar of a beast.

Therrador shook his head and looked to the magician beside him. He squinted against the Mourning Sword’s blinding glow and raised his hand to block it from his eyes as he realized it was the blade’s golden light he’d seen upon the Archon’s face, reminding him of the truth of her. Athryn lowered the sword and fell to his knees, lips moving with the words of a spell, and Therrador shook the last of the woman’s deception from his head.

He knew what he needed to do.

The king gritted his teeth and moved forward as the undead throng rushed from around the Archon. The wall of mist and snow descended on them, enveloping them all.

***

When the mist rolled forward, enshrouding the magician and the king, Emeline pulled Graymon close. Iana, hugged tight against her chest, cried and protested; Graymon stared wide-eyed as his father disappeared in the fog.

The white mist moved inexorably forward, devouring the dead and the living, the earth and the sky with its advance. The day dimmed before it, the quake of magic shaking the ground quieted beneath it.

A wisp of mist touched Emeline’s face, its tendril cold against her cheek like the caress of a bony finger. She flinched away. It touched her again, this time on the head, a hand smoothing her hair. She felt Graymon tense in her grasp-he felt it, too, the way the icy fingers of fog acted in the manner of a living thing.

“Close your eyes,” Emeline said to Graymon as she did the same and put her hand over Iana’s. “Hold your breath.”

She felt the mist envelop them, its cold touch coddling them. With it came silence. She heard only the beat of her own heart in her ears, the pulse of the blood in her veins. Iana made no more sound, Graymon was silent, the clash and clang of battle ceased. Fearful the mist might be poisonous, Emeline clung desperately to the breath in her chest until her lungs burned and she could hold it no more. In the deathly quiet, air whooshed as it escaped her lungs, then whistled as it entered her mouth and found its way into her chest.

Then she was floating.

The swirl of snow and mist lifted her, held her aloft like a cork floating on a lake, bobbing gently but neither rising to the sky nor sinking beneath the surface. Her arms dangled loose at her sides. At first, she felt the pressure of Iana and Graymon against her, but that lifted, too, as the mist cradled them. In the back of her mind, she knew she should be concerned they were no longer with her, but she couldn’t bring herself to pay attention to the tiny voice of warning.

The mist will take care of them.

And she felt assured it would.

She floated for a time she couldn’t fathom, the air around her rejuvenating and refreshing her until the return of sound took it from her.

It began a far off rumble, in the manner of a thunder storm rolling in from the sea, but it grew from a rumble to a growl, then a growl to a roar that filled her ears, crowded her head and pulsed behind her eyes.

Emeline’s eyes snapped open to find herself lying on the ground. The rumble-roar shook the ground, rattled her teeth; the mist swept up and up, a twisting whirlpool in the air that collected and concentrated before it disappeared.

It stole her breath and, with it, the scream of despair when she realized the children were gone.

***

The muddy ground squelched under Athryn’s knees and his lips moved to call forth words to prime his magic and harness the power within him. His hand fell to his chest and his finger traced the tattoos etched across it, frantically and fruitlessly scanning them before moving to the ones on his arms. He found no spell that would help against Sheyndust’s awful power.

There is but one thing to do.

He watched Therrador engage the troop of undead soldiers until the mist descended over everything, smudging the king and his adversaries first to a blur, then hiding them completely. Athryn breathed deep and closed his eyes, readying himself, but the distance between himself and Khirro and Graymon was great, the difficulty of the transfer extreme. The yards of flattened grass, corpses, undead monsters and living soldiers that separated them diminished the chances of success. King Braymon might end up anywhere, or nowhere.

I have to try. It is our last chance.

His finger found the proper incantation inscribed on his abdomen again and the words began, bringing with them the power he’d felt before, returning it as strong as before Therrador’s touch interrupted him. The energy pulsed through his veins, taking the place of his blood; it gathered in his limbs, replacing his muscles; it reverberated in his head, supplanting his thoughts. His finger followed the cursive letters, his lips continued to chant, but his world became the power filling him, threatening to spill out of him.

“Athryn.”

The word sounded crisp and clear through the thrum of power in his ears, like a church bell struck on the dawn of a snow-frozen winter day. The magician opened his eyes.

At first, the white fog filled his vision. Athryn wondered if it was the mist he’d seen descend over Therrador and the Kanosee soldiers, or the same whiteness that took him when he lay dying in the forest, his throat opened by a Kanosee dagger. His eyes flicked side to side and found nothing to see. No more words were spoken, nor did he hear the chant intoned by his own mouth, though his lips still moved.

Two figures stepped out of the fog to stand in front of him. Athryn nodded.

“Darestat. Elyea.” He licked his lips. “So I am dead, then.”

Neither spoke, not out loud, but he heard Elyea’s voice in his head.

Thank you.

He parted his lips to ask what she meant, or to beg for a few more moments to complete his spell and do all in his power to save the kingdom, but the Necromancer took a step. The old man moved like liquid, flowing toward him rather than walking. Athryn stood to meet him, grudgingly ready for the journey to his final destination.

Darestat paused a pace away from Athryn and their gazes met. The magician breathed deeply through his nose, bracing for whatever it meant to be taken to the fields of the dead, but the Necromancer’s figure wavered like heat rising over distant fields on a scorching summer day, and the old man stepped forward, into him.

Athryn’s body stiffened. He felt Darestat in him, as though the magician was merely a shirt and breeches the Necromancer put on. The power coursing through him combined with the feel of the man within him bulged Athryn’s skin and flexed his bones. His body jerked, his gut twisted with cramps. He bent over and retched.

An instant later, the power took over, soothing him, invigorating him. He straightened and stared straight ahead; Elyea was gone, but he saw figures moving within the mist. Swords flashed, blood flowed. In the middle of them, he picked out Therrador, his blade a blur of movement as he cut down undead after undead, made living soldiers into dead ones. Beyond him, Sheyndust swung her staff, its green light a sickly halo about her head. She smiled and laughed.

Athryn raised the Mourning Sword and took a step; the earth trembled beneath his boot. He set his jaw, lowered his head, and charged into the fray, each step of his advance shaking the ground.

The Archon looked up and her smile disappeared.

***

The earth rumbled beneath Khirro and he struggled his eyes open, the action of fluttering his eyelids made difficult by tacky blood and crusted mud. His fingers were numb, his face cold; the ache in his body suffused his bones.

He drew a breath through his nose and smelled the dirt his face lay upon, the blood leaking from him, and another acrid odor he’d come to recognize: the bitter scent of magic tainting the air.

He blinked twice to focus his eyes and saw the man standing over him. The gleam of his shaven head rivaled the sheen of his silver armor, the chest plate decorated shoulder to shoulder with green enameled ivy-the armor Khirro had removed the day he carried him to the Shaman. King Braymon put his hands on his hips and regarded Khirro.

“M…my king?”

“It seems we find ourselves in a familiar place.” The deep and gentle tone of his voice eased the pain creeping through Khirro’s gut and into his extremities.

“I’m always lying on the ground and in grave danger,” Khirro said and laughed. The laugh became a cough that tasted of blood.

Braymon kneeled beside him, pulled a shining lobstered gauntlet from his hand and touched Khirro’s cheek with his bare flesh.

“You have done well, Khirro. Only the brave souls who dare find themselves in grave danger. Those who do nothing, risk nothing, die in their beds without glory. They will tell stories of brave Khirro until the end of time, they will name you in songs and pray their children grow up to be like you.”

Khirro forced a pained smile to his lips. “I am but a farmer, my king.”

“No, my friend. You are a hero. May the next world give you all you deserve.”

Khirro swallowed the coppery taste of blood around a lump in his throat as Braymon stood and replaced his gauntlet. The king looked at him for an instant, nodded, then stepped over him. Khirro attempted to turn his head, but his body no longer possessed the energy to do so, his last ounce sapped by loss of blood and the effort of consciousness. He exhaled through his open mouth and the air stirred tiny waves in the bloody mud.

A growl rumbled behind Khirro and he drew one more breath he hadn’t planned on taking and held it.

The tyger leaped over him, the impact of its paws shaking the ground beneath him before it galloped into the mist, flames trailing behind it. Khirro’s lips twitched, searching for a triumphant smile, but found himself unable to locate one.

His breath escaped his lungs and his eyes slid shut.

***

The enemies kept coming at him, as if the damnable mist spawned them from the falling snow.

Therrador felt blood drying on his face, saw offal on the fingers of his gauntlet and hardening on his chest plate. He gutted one with the sword in his left hand and jammed his boot into the gut of another, removing its head as it stumbled back. Even the bandage wrapped around his thumbless hand dripped blood like a washcloth left without being wrung out.

Another undead lurched toward him out of the mist, then a second and a third. Therrador didn’t have time to catch his breath or wipe the sweat from his forehead. Steel clanged against steel, the sound battering his ears until he thought they’d bleed-the only sound he’d heard since the mist fell over them, until the footsteps.

The ground rumbled with each of them and the snow-laced mist swirled and moved, opening in spots like a curtain drawn aside until it began to lift. Therrador saw the score of undead soldiers awaiting their turn at him, and beyond them the woman, her blond hair wind-whipped, her pale flesh gleaming with sweat as she swung the staff, animating more of the dead to try to take his life. She smiled and laughed, enjoying the carnage she created. Something caught her attention; her movements ceased and her smile slipped away.

Therrador felled one soldier with his sword, then deflected the second’s attack and shattered its jaw with his fist. It faltered and he removed its head. The third dead man hesitated, its eyes on that which had claimed the witch’s attention. Therrador glanced over his shoulder at the source of their distraction.

The scrollwork tattoos etched across Athryn’s chest and arms glowed with the same unearthly red light as the runes along the Mourning Sword’s black blade, making both weapon and man look as though they’d been extracted from a blacksmith’s forge. The magician’s steps rumbled through the ground and the mist collected above him, twisting and moving in a tornado of white vapor and cold snow that tossed his shoulder length blond hair in a cloud around his head. Out of the corner of his eye, Therrador saw the Archon take a step toward Athryn.

She lifted the staff, pointed it at the magician, and all the undead across the battlefield amended their courses toward him. Therrador sprang to action, hacking and slashing those close to him, but the few he put down reduced their numbers by too few to matter.

The throng converged on Athryn and the king’s eyes fell upon the staff in Sheyndust’s hands.

The staff is the key.

His face set with determination, Therrador abandoned the fight and bolted across beaten grass toward a horse that looked relatively unscathed. Blood spattered its barding and its rider hung limp in the saddle, held there by a boot caught in stirrups. A thought of Sir Alton flashed through the king’s mind, but he banished it as he yanked the dead man unceremoniously out of the saddle and jumped onto the horse.

The steed snorted and pranced, but Therrador quickly controlled it, reined the horse around in time to see Athryn fell a half dozen undead soldiers with one swing of the Mourning Sword. The king waited to see no more; he put his heels sharply to the horse’s flanks and steered the animal directly at the Archon.

Sheyndust whirled the staff’s eldritch light around her head and more fallen soldiers climbed to their feet to join their fellows fighting the magician. Overhead, the twisted column of mist and snow climbed higher and higher, sucking clouds from the sky to add to its girth as below it, Athryn put down the risen enemy five or more at a time. Therrador risked a look at his companion and saw sparks jump from the blade of the Mourning Sword with each deadly swing.

The king leaned forward in the saddle, urging his steed faster. Its hooves beat the ground, the sound thunderous in Therrador’s ears, but her fight with Athryn consumed the witch and she didn’t notice until the last second.

Therrador leaped off the horse and struck her with the force of his armored weight and the horse’s momentum, throwing them both to the ground. The king hit the ground with his right arm under him and heard it snap more than felt it, the adrenaline of battle at too high a level for the pain to immediately register. They rolled over and over. The sword flew from Therrador’s hand and he clutched at her, struggled to grasp her with his right hand, but the break in his arm prevented its use.

Over and over they rolled, his injured arm banging against the earth, mud splashing in his face, until they finally came to a stop-Therrador on his back and the witch straddling his waist. A flash of lust quivered his mind at the thought of her nakedness atop him, her genitals so close to his, but the thought fled when she grasped his wrists and slammed them to the ground beside his head, bringing the pain in his arm to sharp focus.

Therrador grimaced as the broken bone grated and pushed against his flesh. Agony brought a haze to his thoughts, but through it, he realized what the hold the witch had on his wrists meant.

She dropped the staff.

Sheyndust leaned forward until her face was inches from Therrador’s. Her lips pulled into a smile full of pointed teeth and blood stains, and Therrador felt sure she’d use them to tear out his throat. He raised his shoulders to protect his neck but, instead of killing him, she kissed him.

Her lips felt soft against his and her tongue darted into his mouth, touched his tongue. He tasted the blood on her teeth, and desire and disgust stirred in his abdomen, then she pulled away and looked into his eyes.

“I’ll deal with you later.” Her breath smelled of raw meat and decay.

The witch climbed off him and Therrador immediately moved to gain his feet, to engage her.

Kill her.

He couldn’t move.

He strained to raise his arms, but they were not his to lift. He struggled to get his feet under him, but his legs were not his to command. Sweat rolled from his temple into his ear. He blinked. His eyes shifted to watch her.

His eyes saw the dragon born of man and snow and mist.

Chapter Thirty

Men raised from the dead fell before the Mourning Sword’s blade, and Athryn felt the exchange of power between himself and the weapon. It flowed down his arms, through the sword’s grip and into the runes, then back again. Each fed the other, the steel satisfied by blood, the man satisfied by gathering power.

Through the attack, Athryn sensed the cadence of hooves and looked away from the fight to see the horse bear down on the Archon and Therrador leap from the saddle. His shoulder struck her and they went to the ground, hidden from the magician’s sight behind the forest of dead advancing on him. He redoubled his efforts, death turning the glowing scrollwork upon his flesh into writhing snakes hungry for the blood of his enemy.

With their maker distracted, the intensity of the dead soldiers’ attack waned and they fell easily beneath his blade until they finally stopped and stood motionless. Athryn hesitated. He could chop them down like a farmer harvesting a field of hay, but he didn’t. These were puppets, not men, and he couldn’t bring himself to slaughter them if they neither threatened him nor defended themselves.

But they will again if we do not stop Sheyndust.

He stretched to see past his adversaries and spied the staff lying on the ground.

Athryn threw the Mourning Sword aside and shouldered his way through the crowd of disoriented dead men, emerging from their midst to see Sheyndust on her feet and Therrador prone on the ground behind her. Things pulsed and moved beneath her flesh, stretching it, warping her beauty into monstrosity. Magician and sorceress both eyed the staff on the ground between them, but neither moved.

“What now, magician?” She spat the last word like it tasted foul to her mouth.

Behind him, he heard the sound of a growl rumbling in the throat of a beast.

The time has come.

“Now we die.”

He thrust his hands toward the sky and the mist swirling above his head fell upon him like water pouring out of an opened trap door. It raised him into the air, feet dangling above the ground, and the snow and mist gathered into a shape around him, transforming his fingers into talons, sprouting wings on his back, forming a tail.

Athryn saw clearly through the mist as the Archon darted forward to retrieve the staff. Hands gripped wide, she held it up toward the misty dragon he’d become, her dark eyes gleaming as she parted her lips to command the staff.

Athryn’s mouth opened, and the dragon’s did, too. The beast’s roar amplified the magician’s cry of rage; the force of it blew the witch’s hair back, filled her lungs with hot breath that stole hers and prevented her from speaking.

Athryn and the dragon raised their foot and brought it down on the staff, driving it to the ground and snapping it in two.

***

The Archon stumbled back from the beast’s taloned foot, a look of shock on her face as green lightning leaped from the broken staff and up the leg of the mist dragon. The undead soldiers still standing motionless dropped to the ground like rag dolls tossed aside by the hand of a bored child.

Therrador lay helpless on the ground, watching as Sheyndust’s shocked expression became anger, then satisfaction at the green fire spreading from the staff, climbing the dragon. The beast threw back its head and roared, a sound tinged with triumph and agony, but hidden beneath it was another sound, the roar of another beast.

Therrador’s eyes moved toward the sound and he saw the tyger stalk out of the heap of fallen men, an arm dangling in its fiery teeth. The ground-wet with snow and blood-sizzled beneath its paws, the mud drying hard and cracked under its steps.

“Khirro?”

The burning tyger charged and the dragon-its scaly mist-flesh crawling and flashing with green light and viridian flame-reared back its head, filled its lungs, and belched fire down upon the Archon.

The woman lifted her arms defensively as the fire engulfed her, but it lasted only a moment. The dragon’s size diminished, as though the act of breathing the flames tore its insides out to collapse on itself, then it breathed no more. The mist that had formed the beast thinned and faded to green-tinted wisps before disappearing like the smoke of an extinguished taper.

As the dragon’s fire ended, the tyger let out a thunderous roar and leaped at the Archon without allowing her an instant to recover. It raked her chest with a massive flaming paw that left four deep gashes down her torso. Sheyndust stumbled back, clutching at the wounds and smearing dark red blood across her pale flesh, then the tyger was on her again, driving her to the ground. She screamed and tried to fend off the fiery beast as it sank its teeth deep into her forearm, then her screaming took a different shape.

The words the witch hollered were foreign and unintelligible to Therrador, but something understood them, and the earth heaved, shooting pain through the king’s broken arm. Dark clouds gathered above them, twisting and whirling, pregnant with power and the promise of death.

Finish her!

As if it heard the king’s command, the tyger jerked its head and wrenched the woman’s arm free at the shoulder. An agonized scream interrupted the words of her spell and the black cloud hanging over them faded to gray. The tyger tossed the arm aside, fresh blood crackling on its burning lips, and lunged for her throat.

The beast’s teeth sank into her pale flesh, turning her scream to a blood-filled gurgle. Therrador’s breath caught in his throat as the witch’s life blood fountained from the wound and he realized this would be the end of her, that she would be taken from him forever.

Sheyndust’s body jerked and twisted as she tried to release herself from the tyger’s grip, but the beast’s jaws held tight, digging deeper into her throat. Its flames spread to her hair, then to her skin, and the smell of burning flesh and boiling blood found its way to Therrador’s nostrils, gagging him and pulling him away from his false feelings. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the tyger.

Go on, Khirro. Kill her.

The tyger shook its head and another gout of the witch’s blood spurted onto the beaten grass. Her hand fell away from where it clutched the scruff of flaming fur at the big cat’s throat, her body spasmed and lay still.

The beast held on a few seconds longer, ensuring the woman was dead, then it backed away, leaving her body burning on the muddy ground. Triumph blossomed in Therrador’s chest.

If the witch is dead, her hold on me should be gone.

The king concentrated his effort on gaining his feet, but his limbs refused to move. A spark of despair came to life in the pit of his stomach; he forced the jubilation of victory to extinguish it for the time being. The witch’s magic would wear off and, if not, Athryn would know what to do.

He looked back to his fallen foe and saw the tyger standing over her, the fire covering the man beneath the beast beginning to flicker and die as he watched the flames devour Sheyndust’s flesh. A minute later, it wasn’t a tyger watching the witch burn, but a six year old boy standing with his smoldering back to the king.

Therrador’s eyes widened and the spark he’d extinguished burst into a wildfire.

“Graymon,” he called, his voice strained. He tried uselessly to lift his arm, to move, to crawl.

The boy crumpled to the ground.

***

Despite her terror at the missing children, Emeline stayed with Khirro until he drew his last breath, then she left him lying in a muddy pool of his own blood to search for Iana and Graymon. She looked amongst the corpses, threaded her way between undead soldiers standing like puppets without strings until the dragon snapped the staff and they all tumbled to the ground.

Green fire covered the dragon as it breathed a column of flame at the Archon. Emeline raised her arm to protect her face from heat intense enough to dry the tears on her cheeks. The sound of the dragon fire roared in her ears; she smelled the creature’s acrid breath as it tore the air.

When it stopped, she lowered her arm and saw the flaming tyger pounce on the Archon, driving her to the ground. Beside them, the dragon shrank until it disappeared in a puff of vapor.

But Khirro’s dead. Where did the tyger come from?

The living warriors who remained all stopped fighting to watch, Kanosee and Erechanian standing side by side as the unbelievable fight unfolded before them. Emeline skirted around them, trying not to draw their attention, but one man saw her and stepped into her path.

“What have we here?” the Kanosee soldier said.

Mud smeared the warrior’s face and his left arm hung limp at his side, a gash near the shoulder oozing blood. He smiled to show the gap in his teeth where one was missing, and Emeline froze, her body remembering the man’s rough touch and the terrible things he did to her even before her mind recalled his name.

“Hektor,” she said.

“I told you we’d see each other again, didn’t I?” He held his sword’s scabbard steady with his left wrist, wincing in pain as he did, and slid his weapon into its sheath. “I just didn’t expect it to be here.”

He moved in close to her and Emeline’s jaw clamped tight. She smelled the odor of his sweat, felt his touch on her arm, and the memory of their trip to the fortress came back. In her mind, she saw him kill her husband.

Anger and worry for her child forced fear from Emeline’s mind. She moved a step closer to the man so their bodies were almost touching and put her hand on the top of his chest.

“I hoped we’d meet again,” she said.

With one quick movement, Emeline plunged her fingers into Hektor’s wound. He cried out and jerked back a step; gripped in Emeline’s other hand, his dagger pulled from its scabbard and she leveled it at him.

“What are you doing, woman?” He raised his good hand for a moment, as if in surrender, then lowered it. “You won’t hurt me. You’re just a farm girl. You don’t have it in you.”

His lips curled up in a smile again, revealing the gap that had haunted Emeline’s dreams. He took one step toward her and she planted the dagger in his throat. His eyes went wide with surprise, his mouth opened and closed, opened and closed, blood bubbling on his lips. Emeline pulled the knife from his throat and drove it in again.

Her rapist-her husband’s murderer-collapsed at her feet, and she stared down at him as he twitched on the ground, his life spurting onto the grass. She felt his blood on her fingers and tasted the metallic tang of fear and disgust on her tongue, but her body felt numb, otherwise. When she looked up, she saw Therrador lying prone a few yards from where the tyger was mauling the woman and immediately forgot the dying man at her feet.

Maybe he knows where Iana is. Maybe he took the children to safety.

Emeline dropped the knife and stepped over the first man she ever killed, moving toward the king as quickly as she dared. She crouched, shuffling between the bodies scattered across the ground, but hesitated with only five paces separating her from Therrador to watch the tyger back away from the Archon, leaving her burning to ash upon the plain.

The animal’s flames flickered out and Graymon stumbled back a step before his knees gave way and he crumpled to the ground. The king called out to his son; Emeline found herself unable to do more than stare at the tendrils of smoke rising from the boy’s clothes, her mind refusing to believe what her eyes saw.

Graymon has become the tyger?

She stared, mouth agape, fear and anger and death forgotten until the boy rolled onto his back and she saw the bundle he held in his arms. It felt to Emeline like her heart leaped into her throat, choking her before she found the breath to call out her daughter’s name.

She ran across the scorched and cracked earth where the fight between dragon, tyger and Archon had occurred. The hard ground scraped gashes in her legs as she fell to her knees at Graymon’s side.

Other than a smudge of black soot across her soft, pink cheek, Iana’s face looked peaceful, like it did when she slept. The baby didn’t move.

A weight fell on Emeline’s chest, compressing her lungs until she couldn’t breathe. Her shoulders trembled; a cry of grief began deep in her throat, clawed its way up into her mouth and between her lips. She reached a shaking hand out toward her daughter’s cheek to wipe the soot away, but stopped short of touching her and put her hands instead over her own face, stifling her sorrowful wail. She leaned forward, elbows on her knees, and let the sobs shake her.

“Em…ah…leen.”

Through her grief, she barely heard the quiet syllables. She sniffled deeply and moved her hands from her face, wiped away her tears. Graymon’s looked up at her from beneath drooping lids.

“I’m here,” she said.

The boy’s face pinched with pain and discomfort for a second, then he looked back into her eyes.

“Iana. She…she…”

“Sshh.” Emeline brushed sopping hair from his sweaty forehead. “Don’t speak.”

Graymon nodded minutely and Emeline inhaled a deep, shuddering breath; in it, she smelled her daughter’s familiar scent mixed with the stink of brimstone and singed grass. She forced an unconvincing smile on her lips for the sake of the boy and reached out to take the baby from him.

Iana’s skin was warm. Emeline hugged her close against her chest and looked down into the babe’s angelic, innocent face, struggling to keep tears from coming anew.

Why did this have to happen to you?

She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer to the Gods to take care of her child, to make sure she found her father in the fields of the dead.

Both of her fathers.

She kept her eyes closed and rocked back and forth on her knees as though she comforted her daughter, but it was herself in need of comfort. But where would she find it with Lehgan and Khirro both dead? What was she without her child?

A soft sound reached her ears and she held her breath. She heard it again and opened her eyes.

Iana looked up at her, smiling.

A ragged, laughing sob broke free of Emeline’s throat and she kissed all over her daughter’s face, eliciting coos and giggles from the baby. She hugged her close and breathed deep of her baby smell.

“Graymon!”

The king’s voice rasped behind her and Emeline chastised herself silently; she’d been so concerned for the welfare of her child, she’d forgotten Therrador must be experiencing the same thing.

“Graymon is alive. So is Iana,” she said over her shoulder. She turned to Graymon and saw his eyes were brighter, more focused. “Can you stand?”

“I…I think so. Is my da all right?”

She stood, Iana cradled in her right arm, and helped Graymon to his feet.

“Take it easy,” she said putting her arm around his shoulders.

He held onto her to steady himself as they crossed the distance to where Therrador lay. When they arrived, Graymon fell to his knees and hugged his father, his head resting on the king’s chest. Emeline stood back and watched them, emotion clogging her throat. She kissed Iana on the head again and the baby giggled.

“I’m so glad you’re all right, son.”

Graymon leaned back and looked at his father. “What happened to you, Da? Are you all right?”

“The witch paralyzed me.” The muscles in his jaw clenched tight and he looked away from his son’s gaze. “It will wear off with time.”

Graymon hugged him again. “I was in the fire, Da. I was in the tyger.”

“You are a brave hero, son. The bravest.”

“You saved the kingdom, Graymon,” Emeline said.

Graymon looked up at her, his eyes sparkling. “Iana-”

“Sshh, honey. The baby is fine,” Emeline said.

“And what of Khirro?” Therrador asked, his neck straining to hold his head up and look at Emeline.

“Khirro has gone on to the next life.”

“And the magician?”

Emeline looked around, noticing for the first time that the battle had not resumed. The dragon, the tyger, the Archon’s death had taken the fight out of the living, and the dead were staying dead. Kanosee soldiers retired from the field of battle as Erechanians tended their fallen comrades.

“He is gone, too.”

Therrador let his head drop back to the ground. “But the kingdom is saved. Because of Prince Graymon.”

The boy raised his head from his father’s chest. “Iana-”

“She’s fine, see?” Emeline said kneeling beside him. “Here, you can hold her for a moment. It seems the two of you are friends now.”

Graymon stood and Emeline placed the baby in his arms. He cradled her close to him, both of them smiling. Emeline looked at the king.

“Can you move at all?” she asked leaning close and keeping her voice quiet so Graymon wouldn’t hear.

“Nothing below my neck.”

Emeline nodded and looked up. To her right, a man clad in Erechanian armor was dragging the body of another soldier out of a pile of the dead. She waved her hands over her head and called out.

“Help us. Please help us. The king is injured.”

The soldier let the dead man’s body fall to the ground and rushed across the scorched ground to their aid.

Chapter Thirty-One

Khirro blinked.

The cerulean sky stretched away above him, unspoiled, unmarred, cloudless. He saw nothing but endless blue and realized there was nothing but the sky-no smells, no sounds, nothing.

Smells returned first, all of them familiar-grass and earth, the fragrances of flowers and trees; the scents of his life that had always been present.

The farm, then. I’m on the farm.

But that didn’t ring true. He felt warmth on his face and a lightness to his body; memories seemed faint, distant, as though seen through the wrong end of an eyeglass. It couldn’t be the farm, he’d left home long ago…but for where?

Sound crept back into Khirro’s world: the sigh of wind through grass, the creak of a tree limb, the beat of his heart, the sound of his breath. The sounds prodded Khirro’s mind and memories came back to him like a butterfly alighting on the petals of a flower. Consciousness returned, gently, lovingly.

He turned his head and saw the grass, impossibly green; in the other direction stood a tree, its limbs outstretched as though it cradled the sky against its bosom. The movement of his head caused no pain, though he’d suspected it would. Instead, he felt the tickle of the grass against his cheek, the delicate touch of his clothing on his flesh. The sights and sounds, the touch of grass and sun and cloth, all were pleasant, but none meshed with the memories of blood and death and pain. None of them matched his recollection of the farm, his home.

“Khirro.”

He hadn’t noticed the woman standing near his feet-perhaps she hadn’t been there a moment before. Khirro propped himself on his elbows to see her better.

Sunlight brightened her red hair to the color of fire; the smile on her face made her cheeks glow pink and her green eyes sparkle. The wind tugged at the hem of the thin white dress hanging to her ankles.

“Elyea,” he said. “So I am dead then, am I?”

She nodded and offered her hand. He took it and she helped him stand; he felt no aches and pains in his body, no evidence of the wound through his stomach and back that he remembered taking his life. They embraced.

“That is a sight I was not sure I would ever see,” a man’s voice said.

Khirro pulled away from Elyea and turned toward the voice.

“Athryn.”

The joy he felt at seeing Elyea again diminished with the sight of the magician. He should be happy to see his friend, but if both of them were here in the fields of the dead, surely it meant they failed to stop the Archon. Khirro went to Athryn, put his hand on his shoulder.

“I’d have hoped not to see you here,” he said.

Looking at the magician, Khirro saw changes in him and wondered if the same was true of himself. Athryn’s shoulder length hair was no longer blond, but ash; his skin glowed, his eyes glimmered, his smile was infectious. Despite Khirro’s distress that his friend, too, had been killed, he couldn’t prevent his lips from mimicking the magician’s expression.

“All is not what it seems to you.”

Khirro raised and eyebrow. “What happened?”

“We prevailed.”

Khirro hesitated an instant, then clasped Athryn’s other shoulder, gave his companion a friendly shake and laughed aloud.

“Yes,” he exclaimed. “But what of Graymon? And Emeline and the baby? Therrador?”

“The world of the living is no longer your concern, Khirro.”

“You can’t leave it like that for me.”

“I have already said too much.”

Khirro nodded. “But you fell, too, Athryn.”

“No, Khirro. I did not.” Athryn shook his head; his smile remained steady. “I now move freely between the living and the dead.”

It took a second for the magician’s words to sink in. When they did, Khirro’s eyes widened, his mouth dropped open.

“You…you are the Necromancer?”

Athryn didn’t reply, only looked into his friend’s eyes, and his look told Khirro everything.

Elyea placed her hand on his arm.

“Come. It’s time to go.”

Khirro nodded and embraced Athryn, slapped him on the back.

“Thank you for everything you did for me, my friend.”

Athryn nodded and Khirro let Elyea draw him away. They walked away through the grass and Khirro noticed dew on the green blades; it felt cool and pleasant on his bare feet. He looked back at his friend.

“Will I see you again, Athryn?”

“Do not be surprised if you do. And Khirro…” The magician hesitated, as though considering his words. “Your friends and family go on.”

Relief washed through Khirro as a white mist rose up out of the grass and swirled around the magician, obscuring him from Khirro’s view. The mist became a column, then it sprouted wings, a head, a tail. The mist dragon flapped its wings once and the mist became vapor and disappeared, leaving the emerald grass and azure sky. Khirro breathed deep of the clean, crisp air and smelled the sweet odor of magic.

Elyea tugged at his arm.

“Come, Khirro. There are people waiting to see you.”

Their bare feet whispered through the soft grass as they headed toward the tree reaching to embrace the Heavens. Khirro ached to climb to the top of it and touch the sky.

Epilogue

Iana shifted uncomfortably beneath the tight corset and adjusted her skirts as she waited for the pages to strap Graymon’s armor in place. When they finished, the barber stepped forward to adjust his hair, then the Master of Wardrobe threw a cape around his shoulders and fastened it in place with a jeweled brooch. Graymon smiled his appreciation at Iana for her patience-he knew she didn’t like the fancy dress her station required.

With his armor in place and hair adjusted, Emeline shooed his attendants away and stepped forward to brush a lock of hair off Graymon’s forehead and back to where it had been before the barber interfered. She stroked the thin, neat beard on his cheek.

“I am so proud of you, my son.”

“Thank you, mother. My queen.” Graymon smiled and embraced her

“Not for much longer,” she said and looked to Iana. “In a short while, your wife will be the queen.”

“You will always be my queen.”

Graymon released her and stepped away to look at the wheeled chair sitting empty beside the hearth, a blue blanket with a frayed edge hung over its arm. His smile faltered and he thought of the statue of King Therrador recently installed in the courtyard to commemorate his twenty-two years of rule. The kingdom’s greatest sculptor-the same man the king had commissioned twenty years before to create the statue of a farmer named Khirro also standing watch in the courtyard-had depicted Therrador with sword in hand, head held high and proud, the stern look of benevolent rule in his expression. No one could dispute that the talented artist had captured so much of Therrador’s essence, so much of his charisma, but there was one thing that always seemed wrong about it to Graymon: his father was standing.

Graymon could barely remember his father standing.

Because of this, it was the wheeled chair that had carried him about his business rather than the king’s marble likeness that would remind the family of him. Rarely in over two decades had Queen Emeline, Prince Graymon or Lady Iana allowed a servant to navigate the corridors of the castle with the king. Instead, they insisted on pushing the chair themselves.

“You miss him,” Emeline said.

Graymon nodded.

“Hold him in your mind and your thoughts today, Graymon. Know that this moment was what gave him reason to go on these last decades. It was the reason behind much he did in his life.”

“I know, mother. He was a great king and a better father.”

“It didn’t start off that way, but he tried very hard to make up for his transgressions.”

“He did that. And more.”

She nodded and a man clad in the armor of the Kingsblade standing near the door cleared his throat.

“It is time, your Highness.”

Emeline glanced over her shoulder at the knight and acknowledged him with a shallow nod and a sad smile. Though he’d been appreciated and awarded, the knight’s presence still reminded her of the day he’d helped them take the king from the battle field-the day the Archon stole Therrador’s body.

“Yes, Sir Rindel.” She turned back to Graymon and adjusted his cape. “Let us hope that fool Aurna hasn’t gotten too deep into his bottle already.”

Graymon nodded and Emeline looked into his eyes for a moment before moving to stand in front of Iana.

“And you, my love. So beautiful, so grown up.” She hugged her tight and felt her heart ache for the days she cuddled her against her chest wrapped in a blanket, cooing and laughing. “A coronation and a wedding all on the same day. You are truly blessed, Iana.”

“Yes, I am. To have a mother like you.” She looked at the prince. “And a husband like Graymon.”

Emeline leaned back and looked at her daughter’s face. As Iana had grown and matured, the line of her nose, the placement of her cheekbones, the shine in her eyes had come to remind Emeline so much of the girl’s father. The passing of years had faded the image of Khirro’s face from the queen’s memory, but she would always have his daughter to remind her, and for that, she was thankful.

“I am thankful for so much,” she said and smiled at them both, then took Sir Rindel’s arm and allowed him to lead her from the room.

Graymon sighed deeply as Iana came to stand in front of him.

“Are you all right, my love?”

“Yes,” he said. “This is the greatest day of my life. I just wish father could have been here to see it.”

“I know,” she said. “But he is watching from the fields of the dead with Khirro by his side, just like their statues.”

She smiled the sweet, beautiful smile she saved especially for him, the one she wore when she allowed the spark to flicker at the back of her eyes, reminding him of the secret the two of them had shared for more than twenty years. He smiled back at her when he saw it, unable to stop himself.

“Come, my king,” she said and grabbed him by the hand. “Let us go and get you a kingdom.”

“And a queen,” he added and laughed.

Graymon called for the pages and they let the procession lead them out of his chambers and toward the clamor of the great hall where the high priest, the king’s council, and seemingly the entire kingdom had gathered to meet their new king and queen.

Content

Bruce Blake
Heart of the King

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-One

Epilogue