Текст книги "The Raven Collection"

Автор книги: James Barclay

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Текущая страница: 199 (всего у книги 235 страниц)

Chapter 40

The Raven followed the Al-Arynaar out of the dome complex while the Xeteskians were still organising themselves. The elven warriors and mages split, heading for the ColdRoom casters. The Unknown brought The Raven to a halt on the steps to take stock.

The courtyard was in upheaval but the reason for the roar they’d heard beginning from inside Dystran’s tower was high in the sky above the college. From the slit in the deep blue sky, white clouds billowed and jetted into Balaian space. It was mana, pouring in at a hugely increased rate. The temperature, already low, was dipping fast towards freezing and there was no doubting that the colouring of the cloud was ice crystals. Those crystals were warming just enough as they fell to drop as chill rain onto the combatants below.

Down on the ground, the Wesmen and Al-Arynaar were under a blistering attack. Reavers had stormed the ColdRoom shell with strike-strain clouds backing them. Karron were battering on the walls in a number of places and fighting to try and gain access through the sundered gates. So far, the two thousand Wesmen warriors were holding comfortably enough but they were suffering casualties. Hirad, still feeling bleary after his frightening contact with Ilkar, couldn’t work out why but felt the scene didn’t quite ring true.

‘Is it just me or are the reavers quicker and stronger?’ he asked.

‘Definitely,’ said Rebraal. ‘Tell me what Ilkar told you.’

‘He said they had broken into the spirit dimension. He said they were fighting but that they only have their belief to defend them and their links to us to sustain them and give them strength. We have to go and close off the demon power now or they’ll be overwhelmed.’

Hirad set off down the steps.

‘Hirad wait,’ said The Unknown. ‘I’m sorry but I don’t see the connection.’

‘And how did they break in?’ asked Erienne. ‘I understood that to be possible only if they broke either the elves or the Wesmen.’

Hirad rounded on them, feeling suddenly hot. ‘Do you think we’ve got time to debate this? Look around you. The demons are pressing like never before. Isn’t it obvious what’s happened? We have to go or Ilkar will be lost and so will we.’

‘Hirad wait,’ said The Unknown. ‘We have to approach Tessaya the right way. We have to be sure of our ground. We’re about to use a centrepiece of his religion. He’s hardly going to just wave us goodbye.’

‘Well why not? We’ll be saving his dead too. Gods drowning, why are you all being so cautious? Look!’

He pointed up into the sky. Reavers plunged on the Wesmen and Al-Arynaar. Tired warriors fought hard. From gaps in the shell elements, elven mages cast IceWind into the sky. He backed up the steps to stand with The Raven. So far, they had been ignored but it wouldn’t last for long. Hirad could see the masters floating high above, directing battle. The noise was growing. The walls groaned under the battering of the karron. Abruptly, a five-yard section gave way, bringing down the parapet on a long stretch either side.

The karron stormed in. Or at least, they began as karron. These were striding into the ColdRooms apparently unhampered by the lack of mana within. And they were growing with every stride. Seven and eight feet high now and they weren’t finished. Bodies filled out with new muscle. The hammer and spike limbs lengthened a little, weapons developing, building. Halfway down their torsos, under their arms, more limbs were sprouting. Sinuous, long and pincered. True monsters, facing which the Wesmen sang defiance and courage. Unwavering in the face of a new and deadly threat.

‘Gods burning,’ breathed The Unknown.

‘Reckon we’ve got time to have a little chat now?’ asked Hirad. ‘Darrick died to get us all in here. Let’s not waste what he gave us.’

‘Right,’ said The Unknown. ‘Rebraal, Auum, we need their head Shaman. And find Eilaan. Raven, with me to Tessaya. Meeting at the barracks, that’s where their shrine is. Go.’

The Raven ran down into the maelstrom. They took up their classic angled chevron but with Thraun at Hirad’s right-hand side now Darrick was gone. The Unknown and Ark formed the forward muscle to the left. Behind them, both Denser and Erienne had blades in their hands. Al-Arynaar came to their sides, providing a flanking defence.

‘Tessaya!’ shouted Hirad. ‘We need Tessaya.’

They could see the Paleon banner fluttering in the breeze towards the front of the line where the boosted karrons were engaging the Wesmen. Warriors turned to see The Raven approaching. Orders were shouted. Ahead of them, a path was created somewhat reluctantly.

Reavers dropped in front of The Raven. Strike-strain gathered overhead and dived.

‘Keep moving, Raven!’ called The Unknown.

‘No problem,’ said Hirad.

Holding his blade in both hands, he ran on. The first of the reavers were engulfed in a storm of Wesmen axes but others were heading in. Hirad, head cocked up, saw three coming in.

‘Upwards, Unknown!’

Hirad ran on a pace, spun on his heel and whipped his sword in a circle above his head. The blade caught reaver feet, sawing through claw and bone. The demon screeched. It tried to regain some height but its momentum brought it on down. Thraun’s blade chopped through its left wing, bringing it to the ground.

To the left, The Unknown had heeded Hirad’s warning. The big warrior’s mace dragged through reaver flesh and his sword took off its tail. Unbalanced, the creature crashed to the stone where Ark crushed its skull. The third flew in at a shallow angle, aiming for the mage targets. Hirad left Thraun to finish the first and moved fast.

‘Erienne, down!’

She dropped to her haunches. Hirad’s blade swept through, cutting to the reaver’s spine. Gore flew and splattered. The reaver flew on a couple of beats and fell among the Wesmen.

‘Moving on, Raven!’ The Unknown’s voice kept them focused.

Strike-strain rained down on them. More tenacious than they had been before but carrying no greater threat in reality. Hirad kept his sword up and forward, watching for reavers. He kept his free hand in front of his face, warding off the strike-strain trying to take out his eyes. Wesmen and Al-Arynaar closed in around them. He could see the Paleon standard at hand.

Scant yards ahead, the new karron were deep in the fight along an expanding front. They moved at frightening speed against an unmoving Wesmen wall. Lord Tessaya’s voice sang out, giving his people strength. Axes rose and fell. Warriors screamed. Karron died.

Hirad saw through the crowds a glimpse of the power of the boosted demons. A Wesmen axe flashed into a karron face. It fell back but another was in so quickly. A pincer limb whipped out, grabbing the warrior’s axe arm. The spike limb thrashed across his undefended body and his corpse was hurled aside.

‘Hold!’ said The Unknown.

The Raven stopped and formed up to defend. Ahead of them, Tessaya roared more orders. Hirad saw his axe take the head from his enemy. The Wesmen pushed forwards, halting the karron advance. Hirad could feel their pure ferocity like a shivering in the air. He dragged a strike-strain from his shoulder and crushed it under his heel. By the time he looked up, Tessaya was standing in front of them.

‘You come to stand with the Wesmen?’ he asked.

His face was cut and bleeding but his eyes shone with his determination and energy. Warriors around him took the strike-strain from the air near him much as the Al-Arynaar did for The Raven.

‘No,’ said Hirad. ‘Our fight is elsewhere but we need your help and that of your Shaman.’

Tessaya frowned. ‘I do not understand.’

‘We’ll explain but not here. Please, come with us to the barracks where your Shaman is waiting.’

‘I will not leave the battle with the ul-karron,’ he said. ‘I must stand and fight with my warriors.’

Hirad watched him square his shoulders. His eyes had barely left the fight to his right.

‘Just for a few moments,’ said The Unknown. ‘It concerns the future of us all.’

Tessaya sized them up. Hirad felt like he was in a bubble. He was aware of the fighting all around him. The desultory spells working across the shell and the sound of reaver and strike-strain attacks. The chants of the Wesmen as they drove hard at the ul-karron. But it seemed distant somehow. Almost unimportant compared to the workings of the mind of the man in front of them.

Tessaya turned and spoke quickly to his lieutenant. He nodded at Hirad.

‘You have my attention,’ he said. ‘Don’t waste it.’

Al-Arynaar and Wesmen rushed their charges to the barracks. The move had not gone unnoticed by the master demons and already the focus of reaver attacks was switched. It bought the Wesmen in the front line some respite but posed a new problem. Wesmen reserve were already organising themselves to ring the barracks building while Rebraal, standing at the door, was overseeing his people scaling the walls to stand on the flat roof.

They were ushered inside to the officers’ quarters. Arnoan was already there and with him were Auum, Evunn, Pheone, Dystran and Vuldaroq. Eilaan stood in one corner, looking nervous. With The Raven, Rebraal and Tessaya completing the complement, the incense-heavy room was crowded and hot. Hirad felt a rush of nerves combined with a sense of excitement and history. In this room were the men, women and elves on whom the fate of the entire dimension rested.

Tessaya, his presence the single greatest in the room, laid his axe on a table by the door and strode across to Arnoan. He took in the assembled company and was clearly impressed despite himself.

‘We have a battle to win outside these walls,’ he said, speaking in eastern Balaian for the benefit of those around him. ‘Explain to me what is proposed.’

Arnoan had the look of a haunted man close to panic. His hands were shaking and his face was grey with exhaustion. Tessaya gripped his shoulders and his expression softened.

‘My Shaman, calm yourself,’ he said. ‘I understand we have more problems than those immediately without. What has happened?’

‘I was on my way to find you, my Lord,’ said Arnoan. ‘The demons have broken into the Spirits’ resting place. They fight but they have no real weapons. The attack is confirmed by the elves. We have to act or our ancestors will be lost to us. We cannot let this happen.’

‘How can this have happened?’ demanded Tessaya. ‘The Spirits are inviolate.’

‘The incursion is as yet small but it will grow,’ said Arnoan. ‘I fear one of our Shamen must have been taken by demons.’

‘Then we will find him and rescue him. Close this breach and continue our fight against the enemy on our own terms.’

‘That is not possible,’ said Dystran. ‘Xetesk is a big city. The demons control both it and all the surrounding lands. You can never hope to find him.’

‘But there is another way,’ said Hirad. ‘The Raven’s way.’

‘The only way,’ added The Unknown.

Tessaya’s head swung round to The Raven. ‘Speak,’ he said.

Hirad nodded at Denser, best able to make the explanation.

‘My Lord Tessaya, the demons attack us on multiple fronts. What we must do now was always a certainty but we are forced to act sooner than we would have wished. The only way to stop the enemy is to close the gap in the sky above the college. Cut off the flow of mana and the pathway to this dimension before the density of both enemies and mana becomes overwhelming.

‘With the breach in the spirit dimension, that time has drawn much closer. You can already see the strength it has given them and that strength will only grow. We have to travel to the demons’ dying home and shut off the power, close the gap. Force the demons to defeat. We had thought Xeteskian knowledge of dimensional magics would be able to send us there but it cannot. You can. Your religion and your Shaman’s powers allow for travel to the heart of the demon lands. You must agree to send us. You must or we will all perish under the power of our enemies.’

Tessaya’s doubt was evident in his expression and mirrored in his words. ‘This is preposterous,’ he said. ‘The ceremony you speak of is the severest punishment we can hand down to a warrior. It is banishment and damnation without possibility of resting with the Spirits.’ He shrugged. ‘It is death alone without salvation.’

‘Nevertheless, you must agree,’ continued Denser. ‘It is a gamble but one that we must take. It is the only thing which can save us.’

‘And to take on this mighty responsibility, we send a few exhausted Easterners? If it is so important, then the Wesmen will undertake it. Why send a few when there is an army outside?’

‘Because, my Lord, if your army travels, then Xetesk has no defence and will be overrun. Julatsa is abandoned, Dordover has fallen and Lystern must be close to failing too. If Balaian magic dies then it will not matter if we close the gap or not. The demons will rule Balaia.’

‘The Wesmen will never bow to demons.’

‘Damn you, Tessaya, but you remind me of me,’ growled Hirad. ‘If there is no magic there are no weapons. You cannot kill demons without it, and you know that. So stop the posturing and do the right thing.’

Tessaya’s head snapped round. ‘Never speak to me in that fashion, Raven. I am Tessaya, Lord of all the Wesmen.’

‘I know,’ said Hirad. ‘And I admire and respect you. But you will be lord of an enslaved race if you do not let us attempt this.’

‘What do you have to lose?’ asked Erienne. ‘If you don’t believe us, so be it but don’t stop us doing what we believe to be right. Listen to your Shaman, Lord Tessaya. Give the order.’

‘Arnoan? Speak.’

‘My Lord, I cannot say if they will succeed but I, like you, know where they will travel. No Wesman will go there willingly and to be forced to do so would weaken them. We cannot afford to take an army. We have to defend while they make this attempt. I would say let them go. And should they not come back, we will still be here to fight. The Wesmen will prevail.’

Tessaya considered again. On the roof above them, the Al-Arynaar fought reavers trying to gain access to their prizes. A demon fist smashed a hole in the roof, scattering tile and plaster.

Hirad indicated above his head. ‘The demons know we are a threat. They may not know what we intend but they want our souls. While we live, they cannot win because the will of our country cannot be broken.’

Tessaya chuckled. ‘Your arrogance matches my own,’ he said. ‘But you are asking me to agree to something in which I can see no benefit. I agree the demons think you a threat. So surely you should fight by me. Show enemies and allies alike that we are unbowed.’

‘Not this time,’ said The Unknown. ‘The Raven have a different path. You are critical to the worth of it. You must hold the college. Keep magic alive.’

This time, Tessaya laughed out loud. ‘Save that which I despise. That I should stand here and be forced to agree with such a sentiment.’ He sobered. ‘You really believe this to be our only hope?’

Hirad nodded. ‘And we will not be alone. While we have no army of Wesmen, which I would welcome, we have allies who will travel the dimensions to safeguard our path. Dragons, Lord Tessaya. You know their power and you met only three. This time, I can call on thousands.’

‘A powerful ally. Perhaps they should be here with us.’

‘They are not because they know what must be done. Their battle will not be fought here.’

Tessaya turned from Hirad to the quartet of elves. ‘And you?’

Auum inclined his head. ‘There is but one solution. I travel with them.’

And finally he settled on Dystran. ‘And you, my Lord Dystran. How do you see this folly?’

Dystran smiled. ‘I have learned over the years that The Raven are seldom mistaken and always victorious. I do not pretend to understand the links between the living and the dead and will be fascinated to research them at a later date. But for now, I need to know I have a chance of living long enough to indulge myself in a world free of demons. If The Raven feel this is the way, I will not dissuade them.’

Tessaya nodded. ‘Very well. Travel where you will with the help of my Shaman. You have my blessing and my hopes travel with you though I believe you travel to your deaths. It is a wasted opportunity. I would have welcomed the chance to see you fight by my side.’

‘We also,’ said Hirad, the relief at Tessaya’s acquiescence warming his body.

‘When you return, there may still be time,’ said Tessaya.

‘No,’ said Thraun, quiet until now. Until the reality of their decision had to be faced. ‘I think we all understand that while your Shaman can send us to the demon dimension, he cannot bring us back.’

There was a pause. None of them could look another in the eye but the determination remained.

‘Raven?’ said Hirad. ‘Unknown, you have family.’

‘That is precisely why I am here,’ said The Unknown.

‘None of us will turn,’ said Denser. ‘Isn’t this the ultimate ride for The Raven?’

‘All the way there,’ said Hirad, not afraid. ‘No coming back.’

‘Then my grief for the loss of General Darrick extends to you all. May the Spirits welcome you to your rest.’ Tessaya picked up his axe. ‘Now, I have a battle to win or as I understand it, your sacrifice will be meaningless. And that would be unforgivable.’

Chapter 41

The attack halted so abruptly that it was far too long before anyone spoke. The pressure was so intense in defence that it was hard to break out of the mind-set.

‘Stand down, stand down,’ said Heryst.

He lowered his own dripping sword and felt the shivering in his arms and legs and the heaving in his chest. Again they had beaten off the demons. Reavers had stormed through the windows and doors of the grand council chamber and tried once more to take out the two last remaining ColdRoom teams. The battle had been desperate but it had been successful.

Yet the cost, like always, was far too high. Bodies of demons and Lysternans mixed in the hall and would have to be cleared aside. The floor would have to be washed again of the blood and gore but the stench would inevitably grow. And the sickness would intensify in its wake. He stopped the thought. He saw the chamber afresh and knew there would be no time for new sickness to develop.

How quickly real hope was extinguished. So recently, they had been contemplating a break-out. They had laid plans to steal their wagons and their route from the city was known inside out by them all. They had bagged up provisions and filled waterskins. They had been set to go.

And then quite without warning the demons had launched an attack with numbers Heryst hadn’t thought them able to bring to bear. It had been short but devastatingly effective before it was beaten off. Three successive attacks later and it took too little time to count up the survivors. They were less than fifty now.

Heryst looked around his people and still their spirit hadn’t been broken though with every moment their inevitable deaths drew closer. He studied each of them in turn, seeing in their pale faces and their bloodied expressions the knowledge of their impending doom. Arabelle, Makkan, Terol, Renarn . . . all still lived, all still fought. From soldier through mage to cook’s runner, they stood proud but exhausted. All wondered how many more attacks they could resist before the ColdRoom mages were taken or killed.

‘Why did they break off?’ asked Arabelle. ‘They had us, you know.’

‘Perhaps they didn’t realise,’ said Renarn. ‘Perhaps they were called to another battle.’

Heryst chuckled in spite of their situation. The filth, cold, hunger and thirst. ‘Ever the optimist, Renarn. There is little else, I suppose. I think that no matter their overwhelming numbers, they are still wary. They know we can hurt them as we have proved. They are many but finite.’

Heryst beckoned them all to him, but for the guard that stood on the council table and over the mages that gave them their remaining glimmer of hope. He felt a curious elation.

‘My friends,’ he said, and he meant that term with every fibre he possessed. ‘We have held the enemy for so long. We have bought time for those who are stronger and who can damage the demons more severely. We have occupied so many and that has kept them from the souls of others. Never forget what you have achieved. Nothing you have done has been wasted.

‘When next the demons come, we can expect it to be the last time. They have merely gone to report. Those who wish to surrender to them now, you have my blessing. It may be that you will survive with hope for your liberation. All I do know is that there is no hope for you if you stay here.’

Not a single person moved. Heryst nodded.

‘I expected as much. It would be like betrayal, wouldn’t it?’

Murmurs of agreement greeted his words.

‘We want nothing but to stand by you until the end,’ said Arabelle.

‘Then now is the time to make your peace with the Gods if you believe in such and to say goodbye to those you have come to love. There won’t be the opportunity later. I will see you all individually but you know where I must begin.’

Heryst walked to the quiet corner of the chamber. One of the five who lay on makeshift beds there was Kayvel. His old friend and mentor was close to death and that was a blessing. He had lost his sight in the last day and his skin was sallow and cold to the touch. Heryst knelt by him and wiped the mucus from his mouth and nose.

‘You heard what I said?’ he asked, voice gentle and quiet.

‘It was a fitting speech,’ said Kayvel, his voice dry and cracked. ‘You always did pick the right moments.’

‘Then you know why I’m here.’

‘I am honoured to be your first port of call.’

‘Where else would I begin, Kayvel?’

Kayvel grabbed at his sleeve, catching a grip at the second attempt. ‘Then listen to me one last time. You and the remaining mages must leave and leave now. Lystern cannot be allowed to die. Drop the ColdRooms, cast ShadowWings and fly anywhere.’

‘I will not leave my people.’

‘You know I am right,’ said Kayvel, breath rasping in his throat. ‘We have no more time for sentimentality.’

Heryst was silent. Of course Kayvel was right but it was an impossible course to follow. He’d struggled with these people for so long. How could he possibly look down on their deaths from beneath ShadowWings?

The unmistakable rumbling of advancing karron was heard through the shattered windows. It had purpose about it. And in the sky, reavers called and strike-strain chattered. It was beginning. Heryst turned to Kayvel to say his last words.

‘Don’t let them take me,’ said Kayvel. ‘I will not lose my soul.’

‘Whatever your wish,’ said Heryst.

A dull thud resounded through the tower’s foundations. Then another. More. In moments, a constant pounding reverberated across the building. Plaster was dislodged, remaining window glass rattled and timbers squeaked at their joists. The pounding intensified quickly. The council chamber rumbled and shook. Doors rattled in their stays.

‘Dear Gods,’ muttered Heryst.

Kayvel’s grip hadn’t loosened. ‘Do what I say, Heryst. Soon you’ll have no choice.’

Heryst leaned in and kissed the dying man’s forehead. ‘Goodbye, old friend. Don’t worry about me.’

‘Goodbye, my Lord Heryst. It has been an honour to serve you.’

Heryst swept to his feet and looked back into the chamber. The karron were taking the tower apart from the bottom upwards. Arabelle was organising the remnants of the defence. On the table, the guards looked down anxiously on the casting mages. The whole table was vibrating. The mages, all seated, were juddering. It was only a matter of time.

‘Arabelle!’ called Heryst. The chamber shifted violently. ‘Arabelle!’

She shouted more orders and ran over to him. ‘Get ready to go.’

‘Where?’ he asked.

She pointed straight up. ‘You know where. I was listening to Kayvel. We agree with him. We’ll hold them off for long enough.’

Another juddering series of impacts. The tower rocked in its broad foundations.

‘Arabelle, they aren’t going to come up here again. They’re going to bring the tower down.’

‘I know,’ she said. ‘We’re going to distract them. You take the mages.’

The sound of falling stone echoed up the tower. A timber in the roof cracked and crashed to the ground. His people scattered. It fell square on the table, crushing two of the guards.

‘ColdRoom down!’ shouted one of the casting mages. ‘We’re defenceless. ’

Arabelle grabbed Heryst. ‘It has to be now, my Lord. The windows are open, you can cast.’

‘No.’

‘The college must survive. Don’t argue with me.’

Heryst looked past her at all the faces staring back at him. Every one of them was behind Arabelle.

The first reaver appeared at the windows to look inside, checking on the state of the Lysternans. Below, karron took great gouges out of the tower. The floor was cracking. More timbers groaned overhead.

‘Fly well, fly safe,’ she said.

Heryst, the tears forming in his eyes, nodded his thanks and admiration. Arabelle turned to the defenders.

‘To your positions. Go!’

The reaver backed away as the tower shifted and angled. Timbers split and began to fall. Heryst ran to his mages on the table.

‘With me, my mages. ShadowWings and fly.’

Seven. Seven mages. Two more than the flight from Dordover if he did but know it. The casting complete, the Wings at his back, Heryst flew for a shattered window. Below him, the bravest people he had ever known bought him the precious time he needed.

He whispered last words to his friends and flew hard for the clouds.

Arnoan was deep in concentration performing the banishment ritual while the demons tore at the barracks roof and fought the Al-Arynaar. Wesmen warriors had filled waterskins and provided provisions sacks. Now all they could do was wait for the Shaman to be ready.

‘Where does it draw from?’ asked Erienne. ‘I mean, it is magic, isn’t it?’

‘Plainly,’ said Vuldaroq. ‘But there is no mana usage.’

‘It’s a conversation for another time,’ said Dystran. ‘Dear Gods, look at you all. Some last-hope group you make.’

Hirad thought to round on him but stopped. He was right. Hirad himself felt like sleeping for ever and around him none of The Raven were in any better condition. Both Erienne and Denser had to be close to their stamina limits, The Unknown was limping heavily on his bad hip and Thraun, like Hirad, had suffered so many demon cuts he had a constant shiver. Only Ark looked anything like ready. Even Eilaan looked tired. Beside him, the TaiGethen were impossible to gauge. Decked out in their paints, they had completed their prayers and were standing silent, betraying nothing.

‘We’re the only choice you’ve got,’ said Hirad.

‘But even so, the human is right,’ said Auum, breaking his silence. ‘Rebraal, you will fight with the TaiGethen.’

Rebraal all but jumped out of his skin. ‘Auum, my place is here, with the Al-Arynaar. They need their leader.’

‘Tessaya will use them effectively.’ Auum turned to Dystran. ‘See the message is relayed.’

Hirad waited for Rebraal to protest but the elf’s expression was not one of irritation, it was one of honour and pride. He simply nodded and joined them in new prayer.

‘Will you look at that,’ breathed Denser.

Arnoan’s incense smoke was taking on form in the air. Grey wisps gathered and appeared to harden into a long shallow oval. Inside it, the view of the barracks room faded to be replaced by a flat grey. It rippled once and was still. The Shaman’s eyes opened.

‘The gateway is prepared,’ he said. ‘Use it quickly.’ He paused. ‘I think it is traditional for Easterners to wish each other luck. So, good luck.’

‘Thank you.’ The Unknown shouldered his pack. ‘Come on, Raven, no sense in delaying.’

‘Keep in physical contact with one another,’ said Arnoan. ‘Or you will be lost on the journey, scattered about the banished lands.’

Vuldaroq helped Erienne on with her pack. She nodded at him curtly.

‘Could have all been different you know,’ she said. ‘All you had to do was leave me to educate my daughter in my own time.’

Vuldaroq raised his eyebrows. ‘Sad history now.’ He moved away to stand by Dystran. ‘Tell me one other thing. At Triverne Lake when you passed through it. There was no one there?’

‘There had been,’ said Hirad. ‘But whoever they were had been killed by demons. Why, people of yours?’

‘We had to try,’ said Vuldaroq.

‘Try what?’ demanded Dystran.

‘Later, my friend. Much later.’

The Raven gathered in a line two abreast. Behind them were the elves.

‘What happens in here?’ asked Hirad.

‘I don’t know,’ said Arnoan. ‘Often the warrior screams but I suspect that to be more in anticipation of the arrival than the journey. ’

‘I hope you’re right.’

The Unknown spoke. ‘Remember. We’re going somewhere we know nothing about. We don’t even know we’ll be able to breathe. But presuming we can, we first need a place to hole up so Hirad can call in the dragons. I need to know if mages have access to the mana spectrum for casting. Erienne, your condition is vital to us as you know. Don’t keep it a secret. We’re relying on all three of you to tell us where the mana is flowing out because that’s where we’re headed. ’

‘Let’s just hope we appear somewhere relatively close by,’ said Denser.

‘If we don’t we have ShadowWings and we have rope. We can ride dragons.’ The Unknown paused. ‘Are we set?’

He and Hirad locked their arms around each other’s shoulders. Behind them, the other pairs did the same and with free hands grabbed the belt or wrapped around the waist of the person in front.

‘Keep fighting,’ said Hirad. ‘We aren’t doing this for nothing.’

‘Don’t fail us, Raven,’ said Dystran.

‘One thing, Dystran.’ Hirad couldn’t help himself. ‘I have not and will never forgive you for the death of Ilkar and every other elf you sentenced to death when you unleashed the Elfsorrow. So let’s get this straight. I am doing this for him, then for the elves, then for the rest of Balaia. Even Vuldaroq. But not you. Understand?’

‘If it makes you happy.’

Hirad laughed. ‘It’s almost a shame we aren’t coming back. At least then I’d have the opportunity of killing you myself.’

‘Good luck, Raven,’ said Vuldaroq. ‘Make me proud, Erienne.’

‘Don’t push your luck.’

‘Raven! Raven with me!’

Hirad stepped into the gateway.

He felt the drag almost at once. It was like the tide, slow but undeniable. There was an absence of anything and yet it wasn’t dark. A pale light surrounded them. He tried to look in the direction they were being taken but could see nothing. He looked down too. It was the same. He noticed he was moving his legs as if he was walking but there was nothing solid beneath him. He stopped.