The Complete Darkwar Trilogy

• CHAPTER TEN •

Threat

RALAN BEK WAS GONE.

Nakor sat up, looked around and saw no sign of the young man. Then something moved just over the top of a small rise to the east of the cave. As he stood, Bek hove into view carrying a large bundle of sticks.

‘You’re up,’ said the young man with a grin, adding, ‘obviously.’

‘Yes,’ said Nakor with a smile. ‘I am.’

‘I noticed the fire burning low and thought I’d get more wood.’ Again he added, ‘Obviously.’

Nakor nodded. ‘You hungry?’

‘Always,’ said the young man, putting the firewood down and sitting close to where Nakor fumbled through his rucksack. ‘No more oranges, I hope. I’m getting the flux.’

Nakor shook his head. ‘Travel food.’ He took out a packet wrapped in oiled paper and said, ‘Here.’

Bek opened the paper and found half a loaf of bread, some hard cheese and dried beef. ‘Not the worst I’ve eaten,’ he said, shovelling the first bite into his mouth.

As they ate, Nakor studied the young man. There was something about him that Nakor almost understood, but he had to look hard, as if somehow it would just take a bit more will to perceive it.

‘What?’

‘What?’

‘You’re staring at me. It’s … odd.’

Nakor grinned. ‘You and I have had similar beginnings. My father used to beat me when I wandered off as a boy.’ Nakor went on to tell Bek about his own youth, being a gambler, and running into Pug and the other magicians.

‘So that explains why the big man in white and gold was here.’

‘Why do you say that?’

‘Because I don’t understand half of what you’re saying, Nakor, but I do understand that these are very important people you’re talking about, and important people have powerful allies. And I suppose those things in the cave are important and powerful, too.’

‘You snuck in there?’

Grinning, Bek said, ‘You know I did. You were awake, I know you were.’

‘Why do you think that?’

‘Because I wouldn’t have slept if I had thought that someone might try to take advantage of me.’

‘Why didn’t you?’ asked Nakor, then he took another bite of food.

‘Because I’m not stupid, even though sometimes things don’t make sense to me.’

‘So that’s why you didn’t try to attack me or flee on the first night?’

Bek shrugged. ‘I have nowhere else to be, and those things in there are as interesting as anything I’ve seen in a while. And I know not to take stupid chances.’

‘And leaving or attacking me would have been stupid?’

Bek nodded. ‘I’ve met your type before, Nakor. You act silly and harmless, but you know what you’re doing. You wouldn’t have stayed here alone with me unless you were confident that you could keep me from hurting you, or you knew you could hurt me.’

Nakor shrugged, and Bek pointed an accusing figure at him. ‘You’re some kind of magic user, right?’

Nakor shrugged again. ‘I know some tricks.’

Nodding as he chewed, Bek said, ‘I thought so.’

‘What are your plans, Ralan?’

Bek shrugged. ‘I don’t think like that. I just go out and find some lads, find a fight, find a woman, whatever. I don’t see the point in making plans. It’s not as if I have anything anyone wants; I mean, I can’t mill or plough, or do anything that people want to pay you to do. All I can do is fight and ride.’

‘There are many places where a man who can fight like you can earn a living.’

‘Soldiering!’ He spat. ‘Wear a uniform and take orders – yes sir, no m’lord – and all that? Never. I tried being a mercenary once, but that was boring. I just need –’ He stared off into space for a moment, then his dark eyes regarded Nakor. ‘I’m not sure what I need, but something drives me.’

Nakor nodded. ‘I think I understand.’

‘If you do, then you’re the first’. Then he stood up and drew his sword from his scabbard. Nakor’s eyes widened slightly but he didn’t move. ‘Trouble’s coming,’ said Bek.

Then Nakor heard horses on the trail. He stood as Bek crested the rise and started down the track. Nakor hurried to the top of the rise so he could see the vista below.

A hundred yards down the trail he saw two riders approaching Bek. Both reined in and stood their ground when the armed man approached them on foot. As one of them began to speak, Bek leapt an amazing distance, covering the ground between himself and the first rider. Before either horseman could react, Bek swung as hard as he could, and removed the first man’s arm at his shoulder.

The other man was momentarily stunned, and then started to turn his horse to flee. Bek reached back and hurled his sword, launching it like a javelin, and the blade speared the man through the back. He fell from his horse and hit the ground before Nakor could take two steps.

By the time Nakor reached the scene of the carnage, Bek had retrieved his sword and was cleaning the blade on the tunic of one of the two men. ‘What happened?’ asked Nakor.

‘You wanted to keep this place a secret.’ Bek reached down and took a hat from one of the dead men: a broad-brimmed, black felt thing with a low crown wrapped with a leather hatband and decorated with glass beadwork. ‘I like this hat,’ he said, putting on his head to see if it fitted. He adjusted it, and said, ‘Nice hat.’

‘But—’

Bek shrugged. ‘Got any more to eat?’

Nakor watched as Ralan Bek calmly marched over the rise. He followed him and found the young man sitting exactly where he had been moments before, and eating what was left on the oiled paper. ‘Got one of those oranges left?’

Nakor reached in and got one and tossed it to him. ‘Why did you kill those men? Why not just send them away?’

‘Because they would only assume that there was something here and inevitably come back, and maybe bring more men with them. I thought I’d save a lot of needless talking and took care of the problem swiftly. It was either kill two men now, or many more later.’ His eyes narrowed as he asked, ‘Is there something wrong with that?’

Nakor shook his head. ‘It’s murder.’

Bek shrugged. ‘If they could have killed me, they would have.’

Nakor’s voice rose, ‘In self defence! I’ve seen you fight. You tested Tomas, and the only mortal man who could come close to doing that was Talwin Hawkins, and he was a Champion of the Masters’ Court! They never stood a chance!’

‘Never heard of him.’

‘You wouldn’t have, down here.’ Nakor studied Bek while the young man finished his food. Bek leaned back, looked at Nakor and said, ‘Now what are we going to do?’

Nakor said, ‘We wait.’

‘Wait for what?’

‘For another to come and study those things, so that I can go about some other business.’

‘Perhaps I may go with you?’ said Bek, flashing a grin.

‘Perhaps you should,’ said Nakor. ‘You have an impulsive nature and a complete lack of concern for any consequences.’

‘Why should I worry about consequences?’ asked Bek. ‘Someday I’ll die; but before that I want to have things, and anyone who stands in my way will suffer for it.’ He smiled. ‘And I enjoy making them suffer if it comes to that. If someone is strong enough to kill me, then it will be over.’

‘You don’t worry about what will happen when you arise in Lims-Kragma’s Hall, to face your judgment?’

Bek shrugged. ‘Why should I? I am as the gods made me, aren’t I? If one of them has a problem with my behaviour, then let them act. I can’t stand against a god, so if I’m wrong why hasn’t one of them … turned me into a bug yet?’ he asked with a laugh. ‘Because, I don’t think the gods care what I do. I don’t think the gods care what anyone does.’ He nodded, as if he had given this a lot of thought. ‘I guess you could get into trouble if you sacked a temple, or killed a priest for no reason, but if you leave the gods alone, then they leave you alone. That’s how I see it.’

Nakor said, ‘What about friends? Family?’

Bek looked at Nakor. ‘Do you have friends and family?’

Nakor said, ‘Family, no. I had a wife once, but that was a very long time ago. But friends? Yes, I have many friends, the most and best I’ve ever had, right now. People whom I trust and who trust me.’

‘Then you’re lucky, I suppose.’ Bek looked off into the distance as if he was seeing something in the air.

‘Sometimes I think that there’s something about me that scares people. I never find I have much in common with most of them.’ He looked at Nakor. ‘Mostly I find young bravos to ride with, looking for a good time, trouble or quick gold. From time to time I meet a few I like; usually lads who really enjoy a brawl. There was this one lad, Casamir, he liked to drink and fight. It didn’t matter if there was no reason for it; he just would find somebody, hit them and start one. He really enjoyed pain.’ Bek’s eyes shone as he talked. ‘I enjoyed watching him beat up people, until a guardsman down in Kiptak broke his head with the butt of a sword. I finished off the guardsman but had to flee Kiptak. So now I travel with whoever I find who’s looking for fun, but there’s nobody I’d call a true friend.’

Nakor was silent as he considered what he knew about this young man, which was very little, and what he suspected, which was a great deal. Finally he said, ‘When did you start hearing voices?’

Bek stared at Nakor for a long minute then said, ‘When I was about eight or nine years old. How do you know about the voices?’

‘Because I heard them when I was that age, too.’

‘What did they say to you?’ asked Bek, looking eagerly at Nakor as he waited for an answer.

‘That I … needed to be somewhere else.’

Bek’s face lit up as he smiled. ‘That’s what I hear, too.’ Then he lost the smile. ‘That and other things.’

‘What other things?’ asked Nakor.

‘I don’t know.’ Bek shrugged and looked down. ‘Sometimes they’re not really voices, but … feelings that I need to do something. Hurt someone. Take something. Go somewhere.’ He looked back at the cave. ‘That’s how I felt when I heard about this cave. Some of the boys with me didn’t want to bother, but I knew I had to come here.’

Nakor nodded. ‘When did the dreams start?’

Bek closed his eyes, as if something suddenly pained him. ‘I don’t remember not having them.’ He opened his eyes and again stared into space. ‘They’re—’

After a moment of silence, Nakor said gently, ‘They’re what?’

Bek looked at Nakor. ‘It’s like I’m looking through a window or standing on a tower looking down. I see things … places … people doing things.’ He looked away again. ‘Violent things, Nakor. I see battles, rapes, burning cities … Sometimes it can be too much for me. It’s like when you meet a girl who likes to be slapped when you’re coupling, and so you slap her. And then you reach the point where she wants you to stop … and you’re there, with your hand held back and you know that she’s not enjoying it any more, but you also know that hitting her just one more time will feel so good. She gets frightened and starts crying, but that only makes you feel even better. But if you hit her now, she’ll stop being afraid because she’ll be unconscious—’

‘Or dead,’ said Nakor softly.

Bek shrugged. ‘Or dead. It’s that place in the middle, it’s being on the edge of it, knowing that in an instant everything could change. It’s like jumping your horse over something that may just be a little too high, or the feeling of running through a door, knowing that just inside the room someone’s waiting to kill you.’ His eyes were wide now and he stared at Nakor with a manic expression. ‘I always wake with a sense of dread and, as if I’m waiting for something to happen?’

‘Constant anticipation?’

‘Yes! Anticipation, as if those scenes are … just out of reach … you know?’ He lost his frenzied expression and his face resolved into a mask of thoughtfulness.

‘Yes,’ said Nakor softly. ‘I know.’

Bek’s features distorted once again. ‘But if I do the things—’ He held his hand open and looked at his palm. ‘If I hit the girl. Hard. Really hard. Or if I ride the horse over the jump – even if it guts itself on the fence or breaks a leg landing – or if I run through the door and kill whoever’s there—’

‘The dreams stop for a while,’ finished Nakor.

‘Yes!’ said Bek, standing up. ‘You do understand! How do you know?’

‘Because many years ago I had dreams, too.’

‘Did they make you do things?’

Nakor shrugged. ‘If I acted on them they did stop for a while, yes. I became a gambler and if I cheated someone out of a lot of money, then the dreams would stop for a few days. I became a confidence trickster, and if I swindled someone, they would stop for a week or so. The greater the harm I did by cheating, lying and stealing, the longer I went without the dreams.’

Bek shook his head. ‘If I start a fight, or get someone to do something—’

‘Bad?’

Bek shrugged. ‘I don’t understand bad or good, just know what I want to do. If I force someone to do something they don’t want to do—’

‘Such as?’

Bek said, ‘About two years ago Drago and me were in a town near Lanada. Drago was this man I met at a whorehouse down there. We were both drunk and we took these two girls upstairs – I don’t know whose idea that was, his or mine.’ Bek’s eyes grew distant once more, as if he was seeing what he remembered. ‘One of the whores liked being slapped around – I always ask for those. This one was a tiger. She’d whoop and holler and scratch and bite.’ He fell silent for a moment, then shrugged. ‘Anyway, somewhere along the way it got rougher than she liked, I suppose, because she went from whooping and hollering to crying and screaming. Drago grabbed my arm and told me to stop, so I killed him. Then both girls were screaming, so I killed them, too.’ Bek looked at Nakor. ‘I really don’t know how things got so out of hand, but they did.’

‘Yes, they did.’

Bek smiled, then said, ‘But it feels good when things get out of control, you know?’

Nakor stood. ‘I do.’ He stepped over to stand next to Bek, who looked up at him with no change in his mad expression.

‘You’re going to hurt me now, aren’t you?’

‘Yes, I am,’ said Nakor, putting out his hand over Bek’s head. As Bek began to move to defend himself, a light sprang from Nakor’s palm, freezing the large young warrior where he sat. His teeth clenched and his eyes started to roll in his head, and he began to make an odd sound. It began deep in his chest, a low grunting noise that rose in pitch as it made its way up to his throat where it became a raspy exhalation. The noise became louder, a higher-pitched shout of pain, which rose into agony.

It continued until Bek had no air left in his lungs to exhale, and could only shake uncontrollably. His teeth were still clenched and his face turned red. His eyes had now completely rolled backwards in their sockets, showing only the whites. Then he started turning a darker colour – from red to purple – and when his complexion approached blue, Nakor removed his hand.

A ragged gasp cut through the quiet as Bek shuddered and fell over backwards. He lay on the ground quivering and twitching, his eyes finally closed.

Nakor remained motionless, watching the huge youth shake like a man in a seizure. After a full five minutes, the frenzy subsided. Then Bek’s breathing slowed and he became still. He lay as if asleep for another five minutes, then groaned and opened his eyes.

He blinked twice, then settled his gaze on Nakor. Sitting up slowly, he said, ‘That was … amazing.’ He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, then he grinned. ‘I liked it!’

Nakor extended his hand and helped Bek to his feet. ‘You enjoy pain?’

Bek patted his body to ensure that nothing was damaged as he said, ‘Sometimes I do. Pain … wakes things up. It makes you alert, aware. At first there’s that desire to pull away, to make it stop, but when it doesn’t stop, you can … go deeper into it, I suppose you could say. You break through the pain and on the other side there’s …’ He looked at Nakor as if fighting for the concept or word.

‘Clarity.’

Bek’s eyes widened and he nodded. ‘Yes! Clarity. Then you see things differently! It’s like nothing else. The pain turns into a feeling like nothing I can describe. But you know what I mean!’

Nakor nodded. ‘Sadly, I do.’

‘What did you do to me?’

‘It’s just a trick I know,’ said Nakor. ‘There’s something inside of you, the thing that makes you the way you are. I had to find it, then I had to … confine it.’

Bek stood with his hands on his chest as if feeling for something. ‘Confined? I don’t feel any different.’

Nakor turned, looking over the horizon. ‘I know. But for a while you’ll find yourself less inclined to cause trouble. And you won’t dream either.’ He turned back towards Bek. ‘The day is still young and I need to do some work. I’m going to leave you here for a few minutes. I’ll be back shortly.’ He reached into his rucksack and took out a golden-coloured orb. He pushed a preset button and vanished.

Pug looked up as Nakor appeared in his study. ‘What is it?’

‘Remember that youth I mentioned in my message yesterday?’

‘The one who tested Tomas? Of course.’

‘I’ve had suspicions about him since the moment he arrived at the cave, and now I’m certain.’

‘Certain of what, Nakor?’

‘I told you about the gods’ dreams and memories. But what have I told you of … fragments?’

Pug said, ‘That occasionally a god will manifest his power directly in a mortal. A tiny piece of the god is placed within the soul of a person. Why?’

‘I don’t believe it any longer. I know it. Bek is such a person.’

‘You’re certain?’

‘Yes, and he is both a great opportunity and a great danger.’

Pug’s eyes narrowed as he stared at Nakor. ‘Go on.’

‘I used a trick that I have to … touch something inside a person. It’s handy when you want to know if someone has something unusual inside them, like being possessed by a demon.’

‘I can see where that would be handy.’

Nakor said, ‘It also helps you know when someone’s lying to you. But that’s not what’s important. When I searched Bek, I found the tiniest fragment of a god. The smallest possible manifestation of divine consciousness, and with it the powers that make Bek so dangerous and unpredictable.

‘Pug, Bek possesses a fraction of the Nameless One.’

Pug sat back, his face an expression of pure astonishment, followed an instant later by alarm. ‘You’re sure?’

‘Absolutely. I am certain.’

Pug sat back. ‘What does this mean?’

‘It means that forces are at play on a larger scale than we suspected, for if the Nameless One can manifest even the tiniest part of his being here—’

‘Eventually he will be able to manifest his full being.’

‘Yes, Pug.’ Nakor looked at his friend of many years. ‘He has found his way back into Midkemia. And we must find a way to prevent his return.’

• CHAPTER ELEVEN •

Conspiracy

THE RIDERS CAME TO A HALT.

The three dust-covered figures stood on the crest of a rise on the road from Khallara to the city of Kesh. Caleb pointed to the lights playing against the underside of clouds in the distance and said, ‘That’s Kesh.’

Zane asked, ‘How big is it?’

Caleb dismounted. ‘Very big. It’s the biggest city in the world.’

They had been riding for four days – long enough for the boys to gain more experience on horseback and cover themselves in enough road grime and sweat to convince the guards at the city gates that they had ridden all the way from the Vale of Dreams. Even if they had traded for fresh mounts along the way, the journey should have taken three months or more. But the boys were quickly learning that their stepfather had resources they could not have possibly imagined a year before.

They had all left Stardock the day after the wedding, ostensibly returning north to some vague destination where Caleb’s family lived. Instead, once they were clear of the town, Caleb had used one of those spheres that the boys had come to think of as ‘travel orbs’, to transport himself, Marie and the boys to Sorcerer’s Isle.

Caleb had taken a full day to acquaint his new wife with his family and the decidedly unexpected inhabitants of the island. Most of the concepts behind the place – great magic, alien worlds and travel to them, races not of Midkemia – were understandably lost on her, though he knew that she’d come to understand in time. But her poise when confronting the many unexpected sights, pleased Caleb, as did her attempts to be at ease with his parents. He was even more pleased by her obvious joy at their living quarters, which were palatial compared to what she had known in Stardock, and that she gained the affection of his parents easily.

The one tense moment had arrived with the appearance of the six sisters of the Pithirendar, bedecked in garlands of white oleanders and little else, to welcome the boys back to the island. Their overt displays of affection were more than Marie could bear to watch.

Caleb had steered her away from the reunion and had said, ‘Much of what you see here will be strange, but keep one thing in mind above all others: there is no one on this island who wishes you or the boys aught but good.’

Glancing over her shoulder at the girls who had thrown their arms around her son’s necks, she had frowned. ‘That appears to be a little more than good, Caleb.’

‘You’re from Stardock, Marie. You’ve seen different people from the Kingdom and the Empire. Each nation has different customs and beliefs. You’ve already seen everything one can imagine about people.’

‘I’ve not seen green-skinned girls trying to undress my boys in broad daylight!’

Caleb had laughed at that. ‘They only want the boys to go swimming with them.’ He pointed. ‘My father built a lake down there before I was born—’

‘He built a lake?’

‘—because my mother hated walking all the way to the beach to go swimming. Anyway, the youth of the Pithirendar need to spend a great deal of time in or near water. It’s vital for their health.’

Marie hadn’t looked convinced, but Caleb had understood that for mothers, sons never truly grow up. He knew that from personal experience.

They had spent one more night together, and the next morning, Caleb and the boys had left Sorcerer’s Isle. They had used an orb to reach a stable in Landreth owned by the Conclave and then used it again to transport themselves to the road upon which they now travelled.

Caleb unsaddled his horse and the boys did the same. ‘Why aren’t we pushing on now?’ asked Tad. ‘The lights look close.’

‘Because they’re not. It’s a half a day’s ride to the foul borough – outside the ancient wall – and then another two hours of riding to reach the gates. We’ll be there by late afternoon tomorrow.’

Zane put his saddle down and tied off his horse where he could crop grass by the road. Kneeling he said, ‘It must be big. I’ve never seen so many lights in the sky.’

‘Thousands of lanterns and torches, Zane,’ said Caleb.

Tad joined his foster brother and they both watched the city in the distance which appeared brighter in contrast to the darkening sky.

Caleb made a fire and after they had eaten their rations, he sat back and said, ‘Again.’

The boys looked at one another, and Tad gestured that Zane should begin.

‘You’re a trader from the Vale, by the name of Caleb.’

Tad added, ‘I think we can remember that much.’

Caleb picked up a pebble and tossed it at him. Tad grinned as he dodged it easily. ‘We are your two very talented, very bright and able, handsome, and very brave apprentices, Tad and Zane.’

Zane nodded. ‘Also easy enough to remember.’

‘What do we trade?’

Tad said, ‘Anything and everything. We are always looking for rare items of great worth to sell in the Kingdom. Gems, jewellery, fine craftsmanship, anything that is easy to transport and renders a large profit.’

‘But we don’t carry large amounts of gold,’ Zane added. ‘We deal in letters of credit, and know money lenders from here up to Krondor.’

‘Why are you not with your master?’

Zane said, ‘He has sent us out into the bazaar to seek out items that nobles and wealthy commoners in the north might wish to purchase. If we see something noteworthy, we report it to our master who returns to judge if the item is worth purchasing.’

Tad added, ‘We are not permitted to bind our master to any transaction and if we give the impression of committing to a sale we shall be severely beaten.’

Caleb kept drilling the boys in their story and provided them with enough basic questions and things to look out for to allow them to pass as traders’ apprentices. Then he started running them through the other things they needed to know: who to contact if something happened to him, places they could find a safe haven, and finally, what to do if they knew he was dead.

He saved that point for last, for he wanted to impress on the boys just how dangerous the way before them might prove. It had taken several conversations to convince them that he was not overstating the danger of belonging to his family and working on behalf of those on Sorcerer’s Isle.

The boys turned in and Caleb took the first watch. He noticed how quickly Tad and Zane fell asleep. In the flickering light of the campfire, they looked like the boys they had been, rather than like the men they were becoming. For not the first time he silently prayed he had not overestimated their potential, or underestimated his own ability to keep them safe.

The three rode slowly through the crowds, trying to navigate while the boys gawked at the exotic sights of Kesh. It was just as Caleb had promised – a city unlike any other on the world of Midkemia.

They had come to appreciate the incredible scale of the place about mid-morning, after they had seen the upper city and the citadel on top of the plateau overlooking the lower city and the shores of the Overn Deep. From a distance it had looked like the top of a faraway mountain, but as they approached, the view resolved itself into what it was – a massive palace surrounded by a fortress-city, built high above every approach from land or by water: the heart of the Empire of Great Kesh.

The day had been clear and their view of the great citadel was unencumbered by fog, haze, or clouds. The boys remarked at least a half a dozen times on how large the building was. Caleb explained that the vast structure had been erected over generations, and that it housed a virtual city itself. He told them of the cavernous halls and many apartments occupied by the Imperial family, the administrators of the empire, the entire household staff – under the watchful eye of the Master of the Keep, the overseer of the building – and how it still had enough space for apartments and suites of rooms for the Lords and Masters of Kesh, as well as the great Gallery of Lords and Masters itself. Gardens were also scattered throughout the building, some encompassing fountains and pools.

At one time, only the Trueblood – the original Keshian tribe that had occupied this region around the great Overn Deep – had been permitted within the building after sundown. The only exception had been visiting royalty, ruling nobles and ambassadors, and they had been confined to a specific corner of the Imperial palace from sundown to sunrise.

Now, Caleb said, things were a little less formal, for certain non-Trueblood nobles were now permitted to stay within the upper city, but it was rare and counted as an enormous privilege. Caleb had never visited the upper city, but knew many who had.

As they made their way through the crowded streets, the boys turned this way and that trying to make sense of the confusion of images, smells and sounds around them. Caleb had pointed out a few major landmarks for them to remember, so that they would learn the layout of the city and be able to navigate it quickly, but the boys were overwhelmed by the newness of everything and Caleb knew they had no idea where they were.

Tad and Zane were in awe. Everywhere they looked they encountered novelty: the Keshian garb, the cacophony of languages, the smells, the sights. Citizens from every corner of the Empire and travellers from all over the world flocked to Great Kesh. Proud Ashunta horsemen with their broad-brimmed felt hats bedecked with feathers, Cosodi traders with their bright robes of orange, red, yellow and lime patches, and Jajormir mystics dancing in circles with their beggar bowls at their feet all slowed the three riders to a crawl. A slave coffle made its way through one of the smaller markets, and both boys stared in horror at the abject misery of the unfortunates on their way to the slave block.

Each corner they turned brought them new sights, and they were constantly besieged by beggars, hawkers and thieves. The boys often batted away curious hands that were reaching to see if a purse might be tucked away behind a saddle or at the girth.

Charioteers of the Trueblood forced their way through the streets by cracking their whips above the heads of the commoners, who ducked out of the way to let the nobles pass. The heavy thud of boot-heels hitting cobblestones caused the boys to turn in their saddles. They saw a full company of black-armoured soldiers heading their way.

Caleb motioned for them to move their horses to the side of the road, and by the time they had reached the street’s verge, the soldiers were passi