The doom of Kings

CHAPTER EIGHT

For a heartbeat, all Geth-and Ashi and Vounn as well, it seemed-could do was stare at Haruuc’s nephew, then his voice came back and he blurted out, “I may be what?”

Ashi looked like she had words ready to burst out of her as well, but Vounn silenced her with a sharp hiss before looking to Tariic. “Explain this,” she said. Her voice could have frozen a river.

Tariic gestured for them to move farther away from the lightning rail carts, and they followed him, Chetiin joining their group. When they were out into the yard and safely away from being overheard, Tariic folded his arms across his chest and said, “There is a succession crisis in Darguun.”

“You said Haruuc hadn’t chosen his successor yet,” said Vounn.

“He hasn’t-or if he has, he hasn’t revealed it to anyone. That hasn’t stopped rumors, though, and there are a number of people and groups trying to position themselves for power.” His ears pressed back. “My uncle has indicated to me-and to a few others-that who takes power after him may not be as important as how.”

Ekhaas took over, and Geth heard her slip into the tones of a performing duur’kala. “The history of our people teaches us that we ourselves are the greatest threat to a stable nation. Before Jhazaal Dhakaan united the six kings and laid the foundations of the empire, we fought among ourselves. When the empire fell and the Desperate Times came, clan fought against clan once more. After millennia, Haruuc has united some of the clans again-enough of them that Darguun stands among the other nations of Khorvaire. But not all of the clans have pledged themselves to Haruuc. Some of the lowland Ghaal’dar clans still stand apart. Many of the Marguul clans of the highlands are restless. The clans under the mountains who have preserved the traditions of Dhakaan largely stand apart, though Haruuc draws closer to an alliance with the Kech Volaar.”

She spread her hands. “Even many of those clans who have followed Haruuc as lhesh do so only because of his strength and the force of his personality. Haruuc grows old and knows he grows old. What will happen when his power passes to another? Will the clans accept his successor, or will they fight to put one of their own on the throne? Will the alliances Haruuc has forged stand, or will Darguun pass as Dhakaan passed, collapsing into the chaos of clan war?” Her hands squeezed closed as if strangling hope. “Haruuc wants to avoid that future. He wants his legacy to his people to survive. He wants Darguun to prosper.”

Geth found himself caught up in her words and imagining the collapse of a nation. It wasn’t difficult-the Last War had plunged all of Khorvaire into conflict for a hundred years as rival heirs fought for the throne of the ancient kingdom of Galifar. Darguun was only one nation and a young one, but he could understand the threat it faced. Still…

“Tiger’s blood, how am I supposed to stop a war?”

“You don’t have to stop a war, only help Haruuc support his successor,” said Tariic. He unfolded one hand and gestured to Vounn. “House Deneith is doing much the same thing. Their good relationship with a successor will keep wealth flowing to Darguun while their support will give legitimacy to his reign in the eyes of the Five Nations.”

“Deneith is a dragonmarked house. I’m just one person!”

Tariic nodded. “And Haruuc has a task that just one person-the bearer of Wrath-can accomplish.”

Caution stirred inside Geth. “What kind of task?” he asked, but Tariic shook his head.

“I can’t tell you,” he said. “Partly because I know that Haruuc wants to tell you himself. Partly because”-he shrugged-“partly because I only know the beginning of it. No one knows what will happen after that.”

“Geth,” said Ekhaas, “I told you once that Wrath is the sword of heroes. What Haruuc will ask of you is the task of a hero, but you won’t have to do it alone. I’ll be with you. And so will others.”

“Me,” said Chetiin. Geth looked down at the goblin. His dark stained face was serious.

“And me!” said Ashi. Everyone looked at her. Her eyes were shining and there was a wide, enthusiastic grin across her face. Her hand dropped to her sword and she squeezed the hilt. “Rond betch, you’re not doing anything without me!”

“What?” Vounn’s voice cracked like a whip. “Ashi, you’re not doing anything!” She stepped forward, high spots of color appearing in her cheeks, and faced Tariic. “Was this your ‘plan’ for her?”

Tariic bared his teeth at the confrontation. “No!” he said. He looked sharply at Ashi. “Our only plan was for her to act as a cover for Geth because they already knew each other.”

Ashi’s grin faded slightly, but the color in Vounn’s cheeks only grew more intense. “A cover?” she asked.

“There’s already unrest in Darguun,” Tariic answered. “As Ekhaas said, not every clan fully accepted Haruuc’s rule. Some of them are already stirring up trouble again, and some of the groups that want to succeed Haruuc aren’t much better. Haruuc wants Geth brought into Darguun quietly so they don’t take his need for him as a sign of weakness. That’s why he called on the Silent Clans to find and fetch him while we carried on to Karrlakton and met with you. If he agrees to come, Geth will return to Darguun with us in the guise of Ashi’s bodyguard. None of Haruuc’s rivals will suspect anything.”

“You couldn’t have known that Ashi would be permitted to come.”

“In which case Geth would have posed as your bodyguard.”

The ice returned to Vounn’s voice. “It almost seems,” she said, “as if Deneith is merely a convenience for you in this. No wonder your journey to Sentinel Tower was so abrupt.”

Geth could see the unspoken curse that flickered behind Tariic’s eyes before the hobgoblin answered. “Vounn, Haruuc just saw that the timing was right to fight two battles with one army. Deneith and you are important for all the reasons I’ve already said.”

“Indeed,” said Vounn, her eyes flashing, “and it seems for our ability to act as a cover as well. As I’ve already said to you, true friends deserve to know everything that’s going on. Is there anything else you wish to tell me?”

Tariic spoke through clenched teeth. “There’s nothing else I can tell you except that we’ll be meeting someone else at our last lightning rail stop in Sterngate. Don’t worry. He’s traveling openly and has nothing to do with you.”

“Then we’ll say nothing more about this until we reach Rhukaan Draal and I can raise the issue with Haruuc. He appears to be the one holding your reins. Good evening, Tariic. Ashi, come with me.” She turned and marched to the lightning rail cart. After a few paces, she looked back over her shoulder. “Ashi!”

Ashi’s face was split between a fierce anger and a frightened obedience. “Vounn, I want to stay. My friends-”

“Ashi,” Vounn said quietly, “it’s not too late to send you back to Karrlakton-and at this moment I am willing to suffer Haruuc’s displeasure by doing so. Come with me or you’ll be waiting for the next northbound coach.”

The color drained from Ashi’s face. Geth couldn’t have said whether it was because of anger or out of fear at being left behind. With a last longing glance at him and Ekhaas, Ashi went stalking off after Vounn.

“Maabet!” said Tariic under his breath. “That one’s going to be trouble.”

“A dragon like that deserves her own lair,” Chetiin told Geth. “You can sleep in the cart with the Silent Clans during the journey to Sterngate if you prefer.”

Geth blinked. “I haven’t said I’m going.”

“Aren’t you?”

Geth looked at Tariic and Ekhaas, both of them with their eyes now turned to him. He grimaced. “Grandfather Rat,” he said, “this hero thing is ridiculous.” He pointed after Ashi and Vounn. “I’m doing this for Ashi,” he said.

Ekhaas smiled.

Tariic nodded in satisfaction. “I don’t ask why,” he said. “That you’re doing it is enough for me. Go to sleep-we join the southbound coach in the morning.”

Chetiin nudged him toward the cart into which the other shaarat’khesh and taarka’khesh had disappeared. “Settle in,” he said. “Mind the tigers.”

Before they left the next morning, Geth sent a message by House Orien courier from the lightning rail station, directed to Singe and Dandra in Fairhaven and letting them know that he wouldn’t be meeting them as planned but was instead going to Darguun with Ekhaas and Ashi. Ekhaas couldn’t tell him how long Haruuc’s mysterious task might take-not because she wasn’t permitted to tell him but simply because she didn’t know. Geth had written, Will send word-watch for news of riots in Rhukaan Draal.

“That will put a twist in Singe’s britches,” he’d told the duur’kala.

The journey from Sigilstar to Sterngate took only two days, including stops at cities and towns along the way for the transfer of passengers and cargo-two days to whisk them across the remainder of Thrane and along nearly a third of the length of the kingdom of Breland before cutting directly across the country to its southern border. The miracle of the lightning rail never ceased to amaze Geth. Two days to cross half the width of the continent. It barely seemed like enough time for him to catch up with Ekhaas and Ashi, to hear about Ekhaas’s rise within the Kech Volaar and Ashi’s dire experiences under Vounn’s mentoring. For him to tell them about his first encounter with Chetiin and the other shaarat’khesh.

“They came after me down a dark street and backed me up against a wall,” he told the two women as the countryside sped past outside the windows of the cart. “Chetiin pulled out his dagger, and I thought I was in for a hard fight-until he stepped up and laid the dagger on the ground. He looked at me like I was a recruit on muster, then said in Goblin, ‘Ekhaas of the Word Bearers tells me that, with that sword in your hand, you can understand our speech. By her name, will you listen to what I have come to tell you?’”

He managed a passable imitation of Chetiin’s scarred voice that brought a faint smile from Ekhaas.

Ashi sat forward. “What happened?”

“You could have knocked me down with a Sharn sweet roll. But Chetiin didn’t go for his dagger again, and he had mentioned your name, so I said I’d listen. Have you noticed he always gets right to the point? He said Lhesh Haruuc needed the bearer of Wrath and asked me to come to Sigilstar with him and his people to meet Ekhaas and Tariic.”

“And you just went with him?”

Geth glowered at her. “I’m not stupid. He knew details from our time in the Shadow Marches that only Ekhaas could know, and he had a scroll with a message from Haruuc. He got my interest.” The shifter shrugged. “Besides, it was only a trip to Sigilstar. There was no hurry for me to get back to Dandra and Singe-and I wasn’t feeling welcome in Lathleer. It turned out that Chetiin had more of his people shadowing the locals who’d been looking for me. They distracted them, we got out of town with no problem, and joined up with the taarkakhesh who were waiting for us. After that, we just traveled across country.”

He shook his head in amazement. “I thought I could get a long way in a night, but shaarat’khesh and taarkakhesh can really move. We ran into a border patrol as we crossed from Aundair to Thrane, but I don’t think they even saw us. I don’t think anybody spotted us on the entire journey.”

“The Silent Clans know their craft,” said Ekhaas. “They’ve lived apart since ancient times, and they keep their secrets. Anyone can hire them with absolute confidence, but they teach their ways to no one. Haruuc paid a lot to have them fetch you.”

“Maybe not that much.” Geth looked around, then dropped his voice. “Chetiin and I spent time talking while we traveled. He wouldn’t tell me anything about why Haruuc wants to see me, but he’s interesting-I like him. Did you know his first contract was with Haruuc when Darguun was founded? They’re old friends.”

Ekhaas nodded. “I’m not surprised. The Silent Clans are reliable, but I know Haruuc wouldn’t have trusted just anyone to find you.”

The sun was only a handspan above the horizon when their coach pulled into the lightning rail station at Sterngate. Geth swung out of the cart and down to the platform to look out at a scene that reminded him more of his time as a mercenary during the Last War than it did of any of the other stations they’d stopped at.

Sterngate itself was a bulky fortress nestled into the foothills of the Seawall Mountains with only a scattering of buildings- the lightning rail station among them-outside it. Steep earth embankments and wide ditches made it impossible to approach the stopped coach from anywhere other than through the station. Geth could see similar arrangements of embankments and stone walls restricting access to the other buildings and even to the trade road that ran past the station and directly into the fortress.

“There’s more like this on the other side of Sterngate,” said Chetiin. Geth had stopped trying to keep track of the goblin. The goblin elder’s sparse hair was gray as cobwebs, and yet he still moved like a shadow.

“What’s it for?”

Chetiin gave him a rare smile. “To stop Darguuls from getting into Breland unannounced. Sterngate guards the western end of the Marguul Pass.”

With most southbound passengers on board for the gnome nation of Zilargo, there were few passengers boarding the coach to continue on from Sterngate. Even fewer were disembarking-the delegation of Darguuls were the only ones to come off the coach. As cargo was shifted, a squad of Brelish soldiers came marching out from the fortress to meet them. A lieutenant in a crisp uniform spoke with Tariic and checked papers. Geth was in no way surprised to discover that, aside from Chetiin, there was no sign at all of the goblins of the Silent Clans. It was as if they had simply vanished.

“How good is Sterngate at keeping Darguuls from getting into Breland?” he whispered to Chetiin.

“Good enough,” said Chetiin without seeming to move his lips. “Less good when it comes to the Silent Clans.”

Diplomatic status of the delegation confirmed, the soldiers marched back to the fortress. The delegation was left alone on the platform save for laboring porters and a single gnome who sat on a bench reading a small book bound in yellow silk. As the soldiers marched away, he glanced after them, then closed the book, hopped down from the bench, and sauntered over to look up at the Darguuls. Geth watched him. Startling blue eyes peered out of a long, sun-browned face made even longer by a shock of pale hair above and a curling patch of beard below. The gnome wore clothes that were dusty from travel and sturdy boots that had seen hard use.

“Tariic of Rhukaan Taash?” he asked. His voice carried the accent of Zilargo and was surprisingly rich coming from a body that was no larger than a goblin’s.

Tariic looked down at him and gave the gnome a deep nod of respect. “Master Davandi,” he said, then gestured for Geth, Ekhaas, and the others to join him. He presented them all by name, then introduced the gnome. “This is Midian Mit Davandi of the Library of Korranberg.”

“The last person to join us,” said Vounn with a cool glance at Tariic. “And tell me, what is his role in your mysterious plans?”

Midian raised a thin eyebrow, and his lips curved. “I make the tea.”

Geth couldn’t hold back a smile. Vounn saw it and turned her nose up at him. He ignored her.

“Midian is a researcher for the library,” Tariic said in answer to Vounn’s question. “He’s an expert in the history of the Empire of Dhakaan. And I’m certain you’ll be pleased to know that he’s not a guest of Haruuc, but an employee-Midian is being paid for his services.”

“That tells me very little about what he’s doing here.”

Tariic’s ears lay back. “You shouldn’t concern yourself with every matter of Haruuc’s court, Vounn,” he said. “Not all of them affect House Deneith. If my uncle wishes to tell you more, I’m certain he will.”

Vounn said nothing more, but her jaw tightened. Midian, however, leaned over, nudged the lady seneschal’s leg with his elbow, and gave her a conspiratorial wink. “Haruuc wants to know how the Dhakaani made tea,” he said in a mock-whisper.

This time, Geth wasn’t the only one who smiled. Ashi and Tariic laughed. Chetiin’s mouth twitched. Even Vounn’s face relaxed slightly at the gnome’s humor, and a smile of triumph at having cracked her icy shell put a wide grin on Midian’s face. He turned back to Tariic. “My pack is at the inn with your horses. I’m ready to go when you are.”

“You found our horses?” Tariic asked.

Midian shrugged. “Sterngate is a fortress. There aren’t that many places for visitors, especially Darguuls, to stable their mounts.”

Of the group that had gathered around Midian, only one had betrayed no humor at the gnome’s joking manner. When Tariic had announced Midian’s area of research, Ekhaas’s eyes had widened and her ears had flicked sharply. As the rest of the delegation finished unloading all of their gear from the lightning rail coach and prepared for the short walk to the fortress, Geth moved close to Ekhaas and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Ekhaas shook her head. “Nothing you need to worry about.”

“It doesn’t look that way.” He followed her eyes. Her gaze was on Midian. “You don’t like him. You didn’t know he was coming?”

“No, I didn’t. And I don’t know if I like him or not yet, but he shouldn’t be here. I can’t believe Haruuc hired him.” She shouldered her pack and turned away. Puzzled, Geth let her go.

The moment everything-including the two caged tigers-was unloaded, the whistle screamed from the crew cart of the lightning rail and the coach began to move, continuing its journey. The delegation made its way from the platform, through the station, and onto the road beyond. At the wide gate where the trade road entered Sterngate, the lieutenant who had checked their papers waited with a pair of soldiers. They fell in behind the delegation, not so much as an escort, Geth guessed, as to be certain no Darguuls stayed behind or strayed from the road.

It would have been difficult to do either. The road was virtually a tunnel within the fortress, walled in and roofed over. When the tunnel finally did open up, it was onto a wide courtyard with only four exits: the trade road behind, the trade road ahead, a heavily guarded gate leading into the fortress proper, and, incongruously, a large inn bearing the House Ghallanda seal built as a separate structure within the courtyard.

“The captain of Sterngate doesn’t like visitors getting into the fortress,” said Chetiin. “Anyone who needs to stay the night here stays at the inn.”

“I don’t imagine House Ghallanda makes a profit here,” Ashi said.

Close to her, Midian spoke up. “You’d be surprised. Sterngate and Marguul Pass are the easiest way to reach Rhukaan Draal and most of central Darguun. I’ve stayed at the Sterngate Inn myself, and House Orien caravans come this way frequently. Ghallanda has a captive market here. They put good money into Sterngate. You wouldn’t see that kind of attention at an end of the trail inn.”

He pointed as a beautiful young human woman dressed in a barmaid’s dress came out to tend the flowers that grew in window boxes outside the inn. Her hands moved dexterously among the flowers, though she glanced so frequently over her shoulders at the Darguuls that she might as well have been staring openly. It made Geth’s neck itch. Midian excused himself and went into the inn, returning a few moments later with a pack that included two large and heavy books strapped to it. He winked at the young woman on his way in and out, and she blushed both times.

Tariic sent several soldiers to the long stables behind the inn. They came back leading eight lively, bright-eyed horses. “Magebred for swiftness and endurance,” said Tariic, and for the first time Geth saw Vounn give a nod of approval.

“Magebred horses and a first class lightning rail cart,” she said. “You have an appreciation for the finer things, Tariic.”

“For the things that can make life better,” said Tariic, his ears standing proudly. “My uncle brought Darguun into the world. I want to bring the world into Darguun.” He ran a hand along the neck of one of the horses, then raised his voice and spoke to the rest of the delegation. “We separate into two groups beyond Sterngate. Vounn, Ashi, Geth, and Ekhaas will ride with me to Rhukaan Draal. Take light packs: the rest of your gear and baggage will follow. Thuun, Aruget, Krakuul”-He pointed at three of the elite among his soldiers-”you’ll ride with us as well. The rest of you take rooms at the inn. We’ll have mounts and wagons sent to you from Matshuc Zaal. Fess, we need a horse for Ashi, so you’ll travel with the others.”

“Mazo,” said the final soldier. The rest of the delegation and the remaining soldiers broke up and moved toward the inn. The barmaid saw them coming and hastened inside, presumably to warn the innkeeper of the business headed their way. The three soldiers Tariic had singled out chose horses and began to lash their gear across the animals’ rumps. From their packs, they pulled banners-the scarlet blade of Lhesh Haruuc Shaarat’kor over a spiked crown-that they fixed to short poles on harnesses mounted across their backs.

Tariic looked to Chetiin and Midian. “I’m sorry,” he said, “I have no smaller mounts. You’ll have to ride with someone else.”

“Don’t worry about me,” said Midian. “I brought my own horse.” He reached into his pack and removed a silver horseshoe. Flinging it to the ground, he spoke a word. The horseshoe bounced once, then again, then a third time in perfect rhythm, and suddenly a white pony was cantering in a circle around them. It slowed and walked up to Midian, nuzzling him.

“Convenient,” Tariic said. “I didn’t realize you were a spellcaster.”

“No more than any other gnome,” Midian answered modestly. “I just carry a few trinkets to make traveling easier.”

When they were all ready to move out, Chetiin leaped easily up behind Geth, balancing with no more difficulty than if he’d been sitting in a chair. Geth’s horse didn’t even seem aware of the extra rider. As they set off down the tunnel that was the trade road heading east out of Sterngate, it seemed to Geth that even at a leisurely walk they were moving almost as quickly as a normal unburdened horse might go at a trot. It was tempting to give the horse its head and see how fast it could really run.

“What about the tigers?” Ashi called, her voice echoing in the tunnel. “Couldn’t your cavalry riders have come with us?”

Tariic shook his head. “The other party will need them as guards. There are bandits on the road to Rhukaan Draal and a slow moving caravan makes a tempting target.”

“Even one riding under Haruuc’s banner?”

“Even one riding under Haruuc’s banner. They’ll be less likely to come after a small group on horseback and riding fast.” His face took on a more grim expression. “Especially one that’s well-armed. After we’re through Marguul Pass, we’ll ride in armor.”

They emerged from the tunnel and onto the open trade road into sunlight so bright that Geth had to shade his eyes. When he’d blinked away the brightness, he let out a low whistle of amazement.

The Seawall Mountains rose above them. Without the bulk of Sterngate obscuring the view, Geth had a sudden feeling that the massive peaks might fall down from the sky to crush him. Adding to that sense of oppressive height was the barrenness of the slopes close to Sterngate. For perhaps two hundred paces or more from the fortress’s walls, the ground had been swept clear of trees and bushes. In their place was a labyrinth of ditches and embankments that made the earthworks protecting the lightning rail station look like the diggings of a child. The only easy path was along the road.

“All to keep Darguuls out of Breland?” Geth asked Chetiin over his shoulder.

“Cyre wasn’t the only nation to lose territory in the creation of Darguun,” said the goblin. “By that point in the war, Breland had been in possession of Marguul Pass and lands east of the Seawall for more than twenty years. Haruuc’s uprising left the Brelish frightened-and their defeat at the Battle of Marguul Pass in 970 frightened them even more. They’re still scared.”

“Do they need to be?”

“That depends on how successful you are.”

Geth grimaced.

Some time around mid-day they left the defenses of Sterngate behind and entered Marguul Pass itself. Steep slopes and ravines surrounded the constantly climbing road-hostile terrain to try to ride, let alone march, through. Side tracks that looked like they had been worn into the rock and thin soil over centuries wandered off from the road to vanish into the rugged landscape. Occasionally, the side paths seemed to split off from the road, trace around the far side of a hill or outcropping, then return to the main road. In more than one spot, cobbles displaced by time poked out through the dirt of these looping paths like broken teeth. With Chetiin dozing behind him, Geth stared at the strange side paths each time they appeared, trying to figure out why they were there.

Eventually, Ekhaas caught him staring and supplied an answer. “Marguul Pass has been one of the major routes through these mountains since the earliest days of my people,” she said. “When House Orien built the trade roads, they followed older roads laid down by the Empire of Dhakaan. The side loops mark the places where humans went through when Dhakaani went around.”

“Some of these side paths look like roads of their own,” said Ashi. “They don’t come back.”

“They are roads. Dhakaani lived in the mountains as well as in the lowlands. Often they lived beneath the mountains too. Some of the people who still live in the mountains use the old roads when they come this way. Look there.” She pointed along one of the paths that wound into the brush on a hillside. “That leads to the remains of a cliff-town that was once Kaal, where nobles of the empire went to bathe in healing springs.”

Geth shaded his eyes and peered into the distance. Far away, he thought he could see what looked like worn blocks carved out of the living rock of an exposed rock face. “Grandmother Wolf,” he said. “Is that it?”

Ekhaas nodded, but, riding behind them, Midian coughed discreetly. “It’s not Kaal,” he said.

Ekhaas’s face darkened and her ears rose. “It is Kaal,” she said. “The Kech Volaar have records of it. One of the emperors of Dhakaan even maintained a palace there. There’s a famous song written by one of his wives about the view from the baths in the cliff-side.”

“Maybe he kept a palace at a place called Kaal, but that’s not it.” The gnome kept his voice polite. “I don’t know about this song, but in my experience, descriptions of historic views are notoriously vague. Whatever view your song describes could probably match dozens of places in these mountains. Those ruins are old, no question, but they were built after the fall of the empire as a warlord’s stronghold. The design confirms it. The ‘baths’ there are cisterns built to hold water, nothing more.”

Ekhaas’s mouth opened and closed several times, but no sound came out. Kicking her heels into her horse’s side, she rode forward, away from the gnome. Ashi looked at Geth, then rode after her. Geth looked at Midian. “How do you know that this place isn’t Kaal?” he asked.

“A research team from the Library of Korranberg studied the place before the outbreak of the Last War,” Midian said with a shrug. “They wrote a classic paper. Very famous. Your Ekhaas shouldn’t be so sensitive. Kech Volaar legends and songs are interesting starting points, but they don’t always represent the facts.”

Geth could guess now why Ekhaas hadn’t been pleased to have Midian join their party. He felt a growl rising inside him but held it back. “I’ve seen things out of legend,” he said. “Legends have saved my life.”

“I don’t doubt it,” Midian said. He pointed at the sword hanging at Geth’s side. “If I’m not mistaken, you’re wearing a legend. But the Empire of Dhakaan rose fifteen thousand years ago from even older goblin kingdoms. It fell more than five thousand years ago. The legends to which modern Dhakaani clans like the Kech Volaar cling have been repeated and venerated for millennia. They’re not always accurate.” He winked at Geth conspiratorially. “That’s why I’m here-to give another perspective on the legends.”

“Wait, you know something about Haruuc’s task?” Geth asked.

Midian smiled, white teeth flashing in his tanned face. “No more than you do, I suspect, but it involves Dhakaani history and that’s what’s important to me. By Aureon’s blue quill, whatever happens, it’s going to make a fine paper!” He looked ahead to where Ekhaas, accompanied by Ashi, was glowering back at him and sighed, then urged his pony into a trot. “We can talk more later, Geth,” he called back, “but I think I’d better go try to make peace with her, or we’ll have an unpleasant journey. Duur’kala don’t often have a good opinion of Korranberg researchers to begin with.”

“I wonder why,” Geth said under his breath.

Chetiin’s voice drifted up from behind him. “The ancient hobgoblins who first encountered gnomes in the jungles between the Seawall Mountains and the Howling Peaks thought they were somehow related to giant rats.”

“Did they really?”

“That’s what the legends say,” Chetiin said dryly, “but they’re not always accurate.”