Waylander III: Hero In The Shadows

Chapter Thirteen

Kysumu rolled to his knees. Blood was dripping from his nose. The noise was so incredible now that it had transcended mere sound. Everything hurt, ears, eyes, fingertips, belly. Every joint pulsed with pain. Kysumu forced himself to his feet and fell against the ledge, where the bell was still vibrating. Reaching out, the swordsman closed his hand around the tiny object. Instantly the tolling ceased. Kysumu staggered, then fell. He could scarcely breathe. Dust was everywhere, like a fog. Lifting the collar of his robe, he held it over his mouth. His ears were still ringing, his hands trembling.

Only then did he see the shining lights gleaming through the cracks that criss-crossed the statues. He blinked and tried to focus. It was as if the sun itself was trapped within the clay. The cracks of light widened, clay falling away. As the dust settled Kysumu saw that most of the statues were now bathed in golden light. The domed hall blazed with brightness. Kysumu closed his eyes against it, and where, only moments before, he had covered his ears, now he held his hands over his face. He waited for a few heartbeats, then opened his fingers. Light still blazed against his closed lids, and he waited again. Finally the brilliance faded. Kysumu let fall his hands and opened his eyes.

The Men of Clay were gone. Standing in the hall were several hundred living, breathing Riaj-nor.

Kysumu rose and approached them. They waited in silence. He bowed deeply. 'I am Kysumu,' he said, in formal Chiatze. 'Is Qin Chong among you?'

A young man stepped forward. He was wearing a full-length tunic of silver satin, his sword thrust into a black silk sash around his waist. He removed his helm and neglected to bow to Kysumu. 'Qin Chong did not survive the transformation.' Kysumu looked into the man's eyes. The pupils were black slits surrounded by gold. In that moment Kysumu felt as if he had been stabbed through the soul. His heart sank. These were not men at all. They were creatures just like the Kriaz-nor.

'I am Ren Tang,' said the warrior. 'Are you the pria-shath?

'No,' said Kysumu, turning away. 'The bell rendered him unconscious.'

Ren Tang strode to where Yu Yu lay. Other warriors gathered in silence around him. Then Ren Tang nudged Yu Yu with his foot. 'Behold the great one, the pria-shath,' he said. 'We have crossed the centuries to aid a human monkey in wolfskin.' Some of the men chuckled. Kysumu knelt beside Yu Yu and saw that he, too, had bled from the nose. He rolled him on to his back. Yu Yu groaned. Kysumu hauled him to a seated position.

'I feel sick,' muttered Yu Yu. He opened his eyes, then jerked as he saw the warriors milling around. He swore loudly.

'You did it, Yu Yu,' said Kysumu. 'You brought the Men of Clay back to life.'

'It takes no great intellect to ring a bell,' sneered Ren Tang.

'I spoke with Qin Chong,' said Kysumu, his voice cold. 'He was a man of great power and strength. He also understood courtesy and the need for good manners.'

Ren Tang's feral eyes locked to Kysumu's gaze. 'First, human, Qin Chong was not a man. He was, as we are, Riaj-nor. Second, I care nothing for your opinions. We drew lots to see which of us would fight for you humans when the gateway spell began to fail. It is enough that we will fight for you. Do not expect more.'

'It is not important,' said Yu Yu, climbing to his feet. 'I don't care whether they treat me with respect. Qin Chong sent them here to fight. So let them fight.' He looked into Ren Tang's eyes. 'Do you know who you are supposed to fight, and where?'

'You are the pria-shath,' said Ren Tang, contempt in his voice. 'We await your orders.'

'Very well,' said Yu Yu. 'Why don't you take some of your fighters and go outside? There were some enemy warriors out there earlier.'

Ren Tang put on his helmet and tied it below his chin. Taking several of the warriors with him he strode down the tunnel, returning moments later. 'We cannot get out,' he said. The stone door will not budge.'

'Is that right, Buttock Brain?' said Yu Yu. 'One simple order and already you fail.'

For a moment Ren Tang stood stock still. Then his sword flashed into the air, the point hovering over Yu Yu's throat. 'You dare insult me?'

'What insult?' snarled Yu Yu. 'You wait thousands of years and your first act is to draw your sword against the only person who can lead you out of this tomb. What animal did they join you with? A goat?'

Ren Tang snarled. The sword lanced forward. Kysumu's blade blocked it.

A low growl came from Ren Tang, and his eyes glittered in the lantern-light. 'You cannot beat me, human,' he said. 'I could cut out your heart before you could move.'

'Show me,' said Kysumu quietly.

Another warrior stepped from the ranks. 'Enough of this,' he said. 'Ren Tang, put away your sword. You too, human.' He was taller than most of the Riaj-nor and slightly round-shouldered. His armour was the same as that of the others – ornate helm and a torso guard of gold coins – but his ankle-length tunic was of heavy crimson silk. 'I am Song Xiu,' he said, offering a respectful bow to both Kysumu and Yu Yu. He looked at Ren Tang, who stepped back, sheathing his sword.

'Why are you so angry?' Yu Yu asked Ren Tang.

The warrior swung away from him and walked back into the ranks of the Riaj-nor. Song Xiu spoke for him. 'He is angry because yesterday we won a great victory. After all the years of struggle and suffering. We thought it was over, and that we would have a chance to know peace. To rest and lie in the sunshine. To send for the pleasure girls and rut and get drunk. It was a glorious day. But then the black wizard told us that the spell would one day falter, and Qin Chong asked all the Riaj-nor to draw lots to see which of us would leave the world we knew and enter the long sleep. Now we are here, to fight again and die for a cause that is not our own. Ren Tang is not alone in feeling angry, human. We only agreed because Qin Chong said he would lead us. But he is dead. He fought his way across two continents, facing and overcoming dangers you could not possibly imagine. Only to die from a rockfall inside a hollow hill. You expect us to be less than angry?'

Yu Yu shrugged. 'You didn't want to be here. I didn't want to be here. But we are here. So let's leave this place. I need to breathe fresh air.'

Yu Yu strode along the tunnel to the rock door and stretched out his hand. Instead of passing through it his fingers touched solid rock. 'Oh, it just gets better,' muttered Yu Yu. He kicked the stone. Cracks flowed across it. The door shivered and broke, collapsing to the overhang and falling to the trail below. Yu Yu gave a proud grin and swung to Kysumu. 'Nobody told me how to do that,' he said. 'I just did it myself! Good, hey?' Then he stepped out into the light. Kysumu followed him, then the Riaj-nor. The warriors milled around, turning their faces up to the sunlight. Two of them approached the body of the dead Kriaz-nor. One knelt down and dipped his finger in the gaping wound at the warrior's neck. Lifting his hand he licked blood from the finger. 'Recent kill,' he said. Peeling a strip of flesh from the body he put it in his mouth and chewed upon it. Then he spat it out. 'Tastes of fear,' he said.

Kysumu walked away from the group and stood staring into the distance. Yu Yu joined him. 'Are you all right, Rajnee?'

'Look at them, Yu Yu. All my life I have dreamt of being as great as these. And what are they? Part animal, part man – and as vile as those we fight against. I thought to find great heroes. Instead . . .' His voice tailed away.

'They are here,' said Yu Yu. 'They endured a spell that left them dead for centuries, so that they could protect a new generation. Doesn't that make them heroes?'

'How could you understand?' snapped Kysumu.

'Being a ditch-digger, you mean?'

'No, no,' said Kysumu, reaching out and gripping Yu Yu's shoulder. 'There is no dishonour in that. What I meant was that all my life I have denied myself pleasure. No fine foods, strong drink, women, gambling. I possess nothing but my robes, my sword and my sandals. I did this because I believed in the order of the Rajnee. My life had a noble purpose. But it has all been based on a falsehood. To win that war our ancestors merely duplicated the enemy. No honour, no holding to principles. What does that make of my life?'

'You have honour and principles,' said Yu Yu. 'You are a great man. It doesn't matter about the past. You are who you are, regardless of it. When I first began to dig trenches they told us the foundations needed to be four feet deep. When the first earthquake hit, all our new buildings crumbled. Foundations should have been six feet deep, you see. All that digging just to make an unsafe house. But it didn't make me a bad digger. I was a great digger. A legend among diggers,' he added.

At that moment Song Xiu and Ren Tang approached them. 'What are your orders, Pria-shath?' asked the crimson-clad Song Xiu.

'Do you know how to make the gateway stay closed?' asked Yu Yu.

'Of course. The spell was cast using the power of Riaj-nor blades,' said Song Xiu. 'We must assemble at the gateway and hold our swords against it.'

'That is all we have to do?' asked Yu Yu, astonished. 'Just walk up to the gateway and tap it with a sword? We could have done that!'

'It will take more than two,' said Ren Tang.

'How many?' asked Kysumu.

Song Xiu shrugged. 'Ten, twenty, all of them. I do not know. But it will all be for nothing if the gateway is fully open. We must reach it before that event, while it is still blue.'

'Blue?' queried Yu Yu.

'I watched the first spell cast,' said Song Xiu. 'It began with what appeared to be white lightning searing across the opening. Then the colour deepened, becoming at first pale blue like a winter sky, then darker. At the last it was silver, like a sword blade. Then the light faded, the silver turned to grey and we were standing before a wall of solid rock. After the Men of Clay were chosen we were told that as the spell degrades it will flow through the colours in reverse. If it reaches white the spell is finished. If we can restore it to silver the gateway will seal itself.'

'Then we'd better get started,' said Yu Yu.

Eldicar Manushan felt sick. The communion had been more painful than usual but, then, it had been prolonged almost beyond endurance. Yet it was Deresh Karany's torture of Matze Chai that had turned his stomach. The old man had been far tougher than anyone could have expected, considering his effete lifestyle. The boils sprouting on his flesh, the open, cancerous wounds had failed to break him. Blinding head pain had weakened his resolve, the fat maggots chewing upon his wounds bringing him even closer to the edge. But it was the leprosy that had sent him spinning into Deresh Karany's control. The old man was fastidious to the point of obsession. The thought of his own skin decaying and falling away had been too much for him.

'It was good that you gave him those extra twenty years, Eldicar. He would not have survived the pain without the gift.'

'Indeed not, my lord.'

'You seem to be suffering.'

'The communion is always painful.'

'So do you think there is anything more to be learned from the merchant?'

'I believe not, my lord.'

'Still, it is enough. The Grey Man is an assassin once known as Waylander. It is almost amusing. Niallad has lived his whole life in fear of meeting this man, and now he is travelling with him.'

Eldicar's head felt as if it would burst. He sagged against the cellar wall.' Yow must try to be tougher, Eldicar. Take note of the wonderful display shown by the Chiatze. Very well, I will let you go.'

Freedom from pain made Eldicar cry aloud. He sank to his knees. The cellar was cold. He sat down, resting his back against the wall. Tied to a chair close by was the unconscious Matze Chai. He was naked, his body a mass of festering sores, his skin showing the white blotches of leprosy. Maggots crawled upon his bony thighs.

I wanted to be a healer, thought Eldicar. With a sigh he pushed himself to his feet and walked to the door. He glanced back at the dying man. There was no one here, save for himself and the prisoner. No guard outside the unlocked door. Deresh Karany had evinced no further interest in the man. Turning back Eldicar moved to Matze Chai's side. Taking a deep breath he laid his hands on the merchant's blood-encrusted face. Deresh Karany's spells were powerful and destroying the leprosy was the hardest task. It was deep-rooted. Eldicar worked silently, his mind focused. First he killed the maggots and healed the boils. The merchant groaned and began to wake. Eldicar placed him in a deep sleep then continued. Concentrating all his power into his hands Eldicar pulsed life-giving energy into Matze's veins. Eyes closed, he sought out all pockets of the disease, slowly eradicating them.

Why are you doing this? he asked himself. There was no rational answer. Perhaps, he thought, it will add one fragrant lily to the rancid lake of my life. Stepping back he gazed down at the sleeping man. Matze's skin gleamed with health. 'You did not come out of this too badly, Matze Chai,' he said. 'You still have your twenty years.'

Pulling shut the door behind him, Eldicar climbed the stone stairs to the first level and moved through to the Oak Room. Beric was sitting by the far window. Lord Aric was lounging on a couch nearby. 'Where is Panagyn?' asked Eldicar.

'He is preparing to ride out in search of the Grey Man,' said Aric. 'I think he is looking forward to the hunt. Did you learn anything from the slant-eye?'

'Yes. The Grey Man is an assassin called Waylander.'

'I have heard of him,' said Aric. 'I wish you'd let me observe the torture.'

'Why?' asked Eldicar wearily.

'It would have been amusing, and I am bored.'

'I am sorry to hear that, my friend,' said Eldicar. 'Perhaps you should visit Lady Lalitia.'

'Aye, I think I will,' said Aric, his mood momentarily brightening.

The small group had made camp in a wooded hollow close to the crest of a hill overlooking the Eiden Plain. Waylander was standing alone, staring out over the ruins of Kuan-Hador. Behind him the priestess Ustarte was sleeping. Emrin and Niallad were skinning three hares Keeva had killed that morning.

'It looks so peaceful in the moonlight,' said Keeva. Waylander nodded. 'You look tired,' she added.

'I am tired.' He forced a smile. 'I am too old for this.'

'I have never understood wars,' said Keeva. 'What do they achieve?'

'Nothing of worth,' he said. 'Mostly it comes down to mortality and the fear of death.'

'Fear of death makes men kill one another? That is beyond me.'

'Not the soldiers, Keeva, the leaders, the men who desire power. The more powerful they perceive themselves to be, the more god-like they become in their own eyes. Fame then becomes a kind of immortality. The leader cannot die. His name will echo down the centuries. It is all nonsense. They die anyway and turn to dust.'

'You really are tired,' she said, hearing the weary contempt in his words. 'Why don't you get some rest?'

Ustarte awoke and called out to them. Waylander strolled to where the priestess was sitting. Keeva followed him. 'How are you feeling?' asked Waylander.

'Stronger,' she said, with a smile, 'and not just because of the sleep. Yu Yu Liang has found the Men of Clay.'

'And?'

'The Riaj-nor have returned. Already they are marching towards the gateway. Three hundred of them. When they reach it the power of their swords will seal it for another millennium.' Her smile faded. 'But it will be close. The Ipsissimus has been directing a dispersal spell against the gateway for days. If he succeeds, and the gateway spell is broken, no force in this world will bring it back.'

'You have magic,' said Emrin, moving in. 'Can you not . . . cast your own spell against the magicker?'

'I have very few spells, Emrin. I have a talent for farsight and once I could move freely between worlds. That power is almost gone. I do not know why. I think it was part of the meld-magic that created me, and the magic is fading. But, no, I cannot fight the Ipsissimus. We must just hope that the Riaj-nor can save us.'

Climbing clumsily to her feet, she took Waylander by the arm. 'Come, walk with me.'

They moved away from the group. Behind them Keeva started a small fire, and she and Emrin sat quietly beside it, preparing the hares. Niallad stood up and wandered away into the woods.

'They tortured Matze Chai,' Ustarte told Waylander. 'I only saw glimpses of it. He was extraordinarily brave.'

'Glimpses?'

'There is a cloak spell over the magicker and his loachai. I cannot see events around them. But I did fasten to the thoughts of Matze Chai.'

'He is still alive?' asked Waylander softly.

'Yes, he lives. There is something else. The loachai then healed Matze, bringing him back from the point of death.'

'So his master could torture him again?'

'I don't think so. It was as if the cloak-spell parted for a heartbeat and I caught just a glimpse of his thoughts – more an echo of his emotions. He was saddened and sickened by the torture. His healing of Matze Chai was a tiny act of rebellion. It is mysterious. I feel there is some fact we have overlooked. Something vital. It is like a nagging thought just below the level of consciousness.'

'I have the same feeling,' said Waylander. 'It has been bothering me ever since the battle with the demons. I saw the magicker ripped apart. But just before that I saw him falter. His spell was working, the mist was receding. Then he seemed to lose all confidence. His voice stammered. The mist swept over him. I watched his arm torn from his body. Yet, moments later, his voice rang out again, and he conquered the demons.'

'An Ipsissimus has great power,' said Ustarte.

'Then why did he lose it for those few heartbeats? And why did he not have his loachai with him? Surely that goes against what you told me about a magicker and his loachai. The boy is supposed to be Eldicar's shield.'

'The boy was with Keeva and Yu Yu at the time,' said Ustarte. 'Perhaps when the demons attacked them Eldicar sensed his peril. That could be why he lost concentration.'

'It still makes no sense,' insisted Waylander. 'He leaves his shield behind, and when the shield is in danger he gets ripped apart? No. If the loachai had been sent against the demons, and his master was threatened, it would be understandable. You told me that the master is the one with the real power, and he directs it through his loachai. Therefore if the master was threatened the link to his servant could be severed, leaving the loachai defenceless. But that was not what happened. It was Eldicar who fought the demons.'

Ustarte considered his words. 'He cannot be the loachai,' said Ustarte. 'You say the boy is around eight years old? No child could summon the power of an Ipsissimus, no matter how gifted. Nor do I believe anyone of that age would radiate such consummate evil.'

'Beric is a fine boy,' said Niallad, moving out of the darkness. 'I like him greatly. There is no evil in him.'

'I like him too,' said Waylander, 'but something is not right here. Eldicar told me he did not summon the demons to my home. I believed him. He spoke of Deresh Karany.'

'I know this man,' said Ustarte, her voice cold. 'He is vile beyond all imaginings. But he is a grown man. I would have sensed it had there been more than one Ipsissimus.'' She turned to Niallad. 'You must pardon my intrusion, but I am reading your thoughts, and I need to see events through your memories. Think back to the night your parents were killed.'

'I don't want to do that,' said Niallad, backing away.

'I am sorry,' said Ustarte, 'but it is vital. Please, Niallad.' The young man stood very still. He took a deep breath, and Waylander saw that he was gathering his strength. Then Niallad nodded to Ustarte and closed his eyes.

'Now I see,' whispered Ustarte. 'The boy is there. You see him. He is standing alongside the magicker.'

'Yes, I remember. What point are you making?'

'Think back. How did he seem to you?'

'He was just standing there, watching.'

'Watching the slaughter?'

'I suppose so.'

'His face shows no emotion. Not shock, not surprise, not horror?'

'He is just a child,' said Niallad. 'He probably didn't understand what was happening. He is a wonderful boy.'

Ustarte swung and looked across at Keeva and Emrin. 'All of you are smitten by the boy. Even Matze Chai, as he faced torture, could think only good thoughts of Beric. This is not natural, Grey Man,' she said. She returned her gaze to Niallad. 'Think back now over all the times you have been with Beric. I need to see the events myself.'

'It is not that often,' said Niallad. 'The first time was in the Grey Man's palace. He and I went to the beach.'

'What did you do there?'

'I swam, Beric sat on the sand.'

'He did not swim?'

Niallad smiled. 'No, I teased him about it and threatened to carry him into the water. I reached down but he grabbed on to a rock and I could not lift him.'

'I do not see a rock in your memory,' said Ustarte.

'There must have been. I almost tore my back trying to prise him away.'

Ustarte reached out and took Niallad by the arm. 'Picture his face, as well as you can. Look at it closely. I need to see it! Every detail.' She stood very still, and Waylander saw her jerk, as if stung. She backed away from Niallad, her eyes wide with fear. 'He is not a child,' she whispered. 'He has become a meld-creature.' Waylander moved alongside her.

'Tell me!' he said.

'Your suspicions were correct, Grey Man. Eldicar Manushan is the loachai. The one who appears as a child is Deresh Karany – the Ipsissimus.'

'It cannot be,' whispered Niallad. 'You are wrong!'

'No, Niallad. He is radiating a charm-spell. All who come close are deceived by it. It is fine protection. Who would suspect a golden-haired and beautiful child?'

Ustarte walked away, lost in fearful memories. She had crossed a gateway between worlds to escape Deresh Karany's evil. And now he was here – and all her hopes of victory seemed suddenly frail, as insubstantial as woodsmoke.

She should have known he would come. She should have guessed it would be in a different form. Deresh Karany had become obsessed with the mysterious magic of the meld. He had realized through Ustarte that the possibilities went far beyond the mere physical. The correct balance could enhance the powers of the mind. Already virtually immortal, Deresh desired more. Conducting increasingly grisly experiments on his hapless captives, he sought the key that would unlock the secrets of the meld.

Ustarte had become his passion. She shuddered at the memory. He worked on her endlessly, seeking to find the source of her ability to change form. One day he had her strapped to a table. Sharp knives opened her flesh, and Deresh removed one of her kidneys, replacing it with a spell-charged organ taken from a failed meld. The pain had been indescribable and only Ustarte's great strength had saved her from madness. As she lay in her cell recovering she felt the organ stir within her, like a living creature. Tendrils slid from it, probing along the muscles of her back and into her lungs. Ustarte had gone into a terrible spasm. Her life was being drawn from her, and in her panic she threw herself into the change. The creature within her was crushed, but one tiny tendril broke off and fled deep into Ustarte's skull, nestling against the base of her brain. There it died. Poison seeped from its corpse, hot and burning. Tiger-Ustarte roared furiously, slashing her great paws against the walls of the cell, ripping out great chunks of plaster. Then, as she had with the first poison used on her, Ustarte absorbed it into her system, breaking it down, rendering it harmless. It could no longer kill her, but it did change her.

When Ustarte awoke, back in her own form, she felt different. Faintly dizzy and nauseous she had sat upon the floor, amid the ruins of the furniture torn to shreds by her tiger self. Suddenly her mind opened, and she heard the thoughts of every man and creature within the prison. Simultaneously. The shock made her scream, but she did not hear it. Her mind was full to bursting. Resisting panic, she tried to focus, creating compartments of the mind, which she closed against the tumultuous roar. The most powerful of the thoughts would not be shut out, for they were born of agony.

And they were coming from Prial. Two of Deresh Karany's assistants were experimenting on him.

Anger flooded through Ustarte, and a pulsing, volcanic rage began to build. Rising from the floor she focused on the men – and reached out. The air around her seemed to shiver and part. A fraction of a heartbeat later she found herself standing alongside the torturers within one of the meld-rooms on the other side of the prison. Ustarte's talons ripped through the throat of the first man. The second tried to run, but she leapt upon his back, bearing him to the ground. His head struck the stone floor, shattering the bones of his face.

Ustarte freed Prial.

'How did you . . . ?' whispered Prial. 'You . . .appeared from the air.' There was blood upon his fur, and several implements were still embedded in his flesh. Gently Ustarte eased them clear.

'We are leaving now,' said Ustarte.

'The time has come?'

'It has come.'

Closing her eyes she pulsed a message to all of the meld-creatures within the prison. Then she disappeared.

The apartments of Deresh Karany were empty, and she recalled that he had gone to the city to meet with the Council of Seven. Deresh had plans to open a gateway between worlds and invade once more an ancient realm that had defeated them so many years before.

From outside came the sound of splintering timbers and screaming men. Ustarte walked to the window and saw the creatures of the meld swarming across the exercise ground. Guards were fleeing in terror. They did not get far.

An hour later Ustarte led the one hundred and seventy prisoners out into the countryside, high into the forested mountain slopes.

'They will hunt us down,' said Prial. 'We have nowhere to go.'

His words were proved true within days, when Kriaz-nor troops and hunt-hounds began scouring the forest.

The escapees fought well, and for a time enjoyed some small victories. But gradually they were whittled down, and forced further into the high country. Some of the prisoners took off on their own, moving still higher into the snow, others were sent by Ustarte in groups to seek freedom to the east or the south. Disfigured and malformed as they were, she warned them to avoid the haunts of men.

On the last morning, as several hundred Kriaz-nor were climbing towards their camp, Ustarte gathered the remaining twenty followers around her. 'Stay close to me,' she ordered her people, 'and follow when I move.' Reaching out she pictured the gateway as she had seen it in Deresh Karany's thoughts.

The air rippled. Ustarte threw out her arms. 'Now!' she cried, just as the Kriaz-nor burst upon the camp. Ustarte stepped forward. Bright lights in a score of colours flickered around her. As they faded she found herself standing within a green clearing in the shadow of a line of tall cliffs. The sun was shining brightly in a clear blue sky. Only nine of her followers made it through with her. Startled Kriaz-nor warriors were standing close by. Ahead was a huge stone arch, cut into the cliff. Beneath the arch the rock was glowing, ripples of blue lightning flashing across it. The Kriaz-nor rushed at them. Ustarte leapt towards the arch. Prial, Menias, Corvidal and Sheetza, a young girl with the scaled skin of a lizard, ran with her. The others charged the Kriaz-nor.

Throwing out her arms, Ustarte summoned all of her power. For an instant only the rock before her faded, and through it she saw moonlight over a series of ghostly ruins. As it began to fade she, and the last of her followers, stepped through.

Behind her the gateway closed, only bare rock remaining.

Sheetza stumbled and fell. Ustarte saw that a knife was embedded in her back. The deformed girl was unconscious. Ustarte drew out the blade and threw it aside. Then she laid her hands over the wound, sealing it. Sheetza's heart was no longer beating. Concentrating her power Ustarte set the girl's blood flowing. Sheetza opened her eyes. 'I thought I was stabbed,' she said, her voice sibilant. 'But there is no pain. Are we safe now?'

'We are safe,' said Ustarte, feeling for the girl's pulse. There was none. Only Ustarte's magic kept the blood flowing. She was, in effect, already dead.

In the distance Ustarte saw a glimmering lake. The small group made their way to it. Corvidal went for a swim with Sheetza. The girl moved through the water with the grace of a dolphin. When she emerged she was laughing. She sat down at the water's edge and splashed Menias. He ran forward and grabbed her and they both fell into the water.

Ustarte moved away from them. Prial came and sat with her. 'Maybe some of the others got away,' he said.

Ustarte did not answer. She was watching Sheetza. 'I didn't know you were also a healer,' he said.

'I am not. Sheetza is dying. Her heart was pierced.'

'But she is swimming,' said Prial.

'When the magic fades she will pass away. A few hours. A day. I don't know.'

'Oh, Great One! Why are we so cursed? Did we commit some vile sins in a past life?'

That night Ustarte sat talking with Sheetza. The priestess could feel the magic in the girl fading. She tried to add more power to it, but to no avail. Sheetza grew sleepy and lay down. 'What will we do in this world, Great One?' asked Sheetza.

'We will save it,' answered Ustarte. 'We will thwart the foul plans of Deresh Karany.'

'Will the people here accept me?'

'When they know you they will love you, Sheetza, as we love you.' Sheetza had smiled, and fallen asleep. Some time in the night, as Ustarte lay beside her, the lizard girl finally died.

Still lost in thought, Ustarte did not notice Waylander move alongside – not until he laid his hand on her shoulder.

'I was very arrogant to believe I could stand against Deresh Karany and the Seven,' she said. 'Arrogant and stupid.'

'Rather let us say brave and unselfish,' said Waylander. 'But do not judge yourself yet. Tomorrow Emrin and Keeva will take the lad over the high passes and try to make it to the capital. Once they are safely on the road I shall put your magicker's immortality to the test.'

'You must not go against him, Grey Man.'

'I don't have a choice.'

'We all have choices. Why throw your life away needlessly? He cannot die.'

'It is not about him, Ustarte. These men have killed my people, and tortured my friend. What kind of a man would I be if I did not fight them?'

'I do not want to see you die,' she said. 'I have seen too much death already.'

'I have lived long, Ustarte. Perhaps too long. Many better men are now below ground. Death does not frighten me. But even if I were to accept what you say about the folly of hunting Deresh Karany, there is one fact I cannot ignore. Matze Chai is still their prisoner. And I do not desert my friends.'