Salvation Earth
4 The Dead Lakes

Arran looked around. “We are here. The train has left in a westerly direction and will turn south later, down here.” Arran scratched lines in the dirt with his blade. “The enemy, on their way from the north, must be about here. We, on the other hand, will go due east and keep going until we are sure the barrows made it, or we will fight and kill them all here,” said Arran, stabbing his blade into the ground.

“Here, here,” shouted Torran, thrusting his blade up into the air. “We will take them and send them to the Gods.”

“Here, here. They won’t like my blade up them,” said Tarrak, thrusting his hips forward.

“So, when do we eat, exactly?” asked Vargen the ravenous, thrusting half a sausage into the air.

“Shut up, Vargen,” ordered Jarrad.

“Wait a minute, you lot,” said Jon. “Do you mean to continue east, Arran?”

“That’s right. I don’t want to give them any clues that we are from the south.”

“But east. That must lead to the Dead Lakes and the Petrified Forest.”

“I think you are right, Jon,” said Arran.

“But those places are haunted. We can’t go there.”

“Ha, ha. Whose afraida little ol’ ghosts then?” jibbed Vargen.

“That is something worth giving some consideration to. Not like worrying where every scrap of food that you can shove into your mouth comes from.”

“Ooww. Bitch,” cut in Tarrak.

“Jon, have you ever met anyone who has seen these ghosts?” asked Arran

“No. I have never met anyone who has come back from there.”

“So how do you know that they exist? Don’t be afraid of old wives’ tales. We must go east and lose them in the Petrified Forest if need be. Then work our way south round the lakes and home. They might be followed by an even larger force for all we know. We can’t fight an army.”

“But we would not survive the forest,” said Jon. “The reason no one knows anybody that has seen the ghosts is because no one has ever returned from the forest.”

“That still does not prove that they exist,” replied Arran. “How do you know that someone isn’t just trying to keep people out with scary stories?”

“I’d sooner not take the chance of finding out.”

“Well, we do not have a choice. I do not want to take on the force behind us yet, not until we are better prepared and know what we are up against. I am not afraid of the forest. You talk of individuals entering it. Well, we are well-armed Greyhaven warriors,” said Arran, drawing his new blade and thrusting it into the air, the early sun glinting on it, giving it an eerie glow.

“You are bewitched by that blade,” said Jon “You think yourself invincible. What about the lizard men?”

“What of the lizard men? More stories. When are you going to learn to ignore all but the facts?”

“They eat people.”

“Then let them taste my blade,” said Arran to a round of “aye’s.” Arran went on. “Zeb has told me of the lakes. He has been there and survived. They form almost the entire length of our north-eastern border. They are very still and eventually trickle into the sea in the east. Much of the poison on our lands has been washed into the lakes, killing everything in and around them. Even the ancient gnarled trees of a forgotten age have died. You will see no other tree as large anywhere in all the lands as those. But still they stand against time. Zeb said that the poison is so strong there, that even the forces that can cause decay cannot survive.”

“I think we have no choice and must take our chance,” said Jarrad. “But we must make a move soon.”

Sure enough, as if on cue, Jordan came running over the ridge. “They are crossing the previous ridge now.”

“Right, said Arran. “On the double to that clearing. I want them to see us there when they come over this last ridge.”

The group promptly fell in and sped off through the brush. No sooner had they reached the clearing, the barbarians appeared over the last ridge. They saw the warriors immediately and began jumping up and down with excitement. They must have thought that they were catching up, but the warriors knew that they could outpace them for an eternity. The barbarians looked a large force and would probably be followed by another.

“Ha,” thought Arran. “We will ambush this lot in the forest. We will keep them at a distance until we are ready.” Once over the plain, Arrans men stepped up the pace.

“We should make the forest by nightfall at this speed,” said Jarrad.

“Yes, but I don’t want to lose them. If we work it right, they should just see us entering the forest. The last few lieges are clear of cover. So, we must cross that and stop on the edge of the forest.”

The sun was just touching the horizon as they reached their goal.

“We stay here until they show,” said Arran. “We want them to see us enter the forest, but we don’t want them to know our numbers. With the light going down they won’t have too good a view of us.”

“That’s right,” said Jarrad. “From under cover of the wood, we can count their numbers as they cross the clearing.”

“Can we stop making these lines in the ground?” asked Vargen. “It is such hard work and it is making me hungry.”

“Just run them into the wood. I think we can give that up now before it makes Vargen eat all our supplies. They won’t drop us now that they are so close.”

“Into the wood? On my own?”

“There are six of you. How many do you want?” asked Arran.

“I think everyone is a little nervous of the forest, Arran,” said Jarrad. “While you’re in there, Vargen, have a scout round and secure a campsite whilst you still have light. It will be dark in there by the time we move in.”

“Oh OK, but I still don’t think six is enough.”

The sun had almost gone when Vargen and the others returned.

“There is not much to choose from in there, Arran. It’s all pretty much the same. I doubt if I could find my way back anywhere in this light. We might as well just go in as far as we wish and camp anywhere.”

“That’s still useful Vargen, well done.”

“There they are,” cried Jon.

“Fall in,” said Arran. “March.”

“They’ve seen us,” said Jarrad. “Let’s go.”

Once just inside the forest Arran ordered the men to halt. Everyone peered out from the trees as the barbarians, now running, crossed the clearing.

“You can make out their numbers,” said Jarrad, “but no details.”

“Their numbers will do for now,” replied Arran, “nearly ten times ours.”

“We can handle them,” said Torran.

“Depends on how well-armed and fierce they are. Let’s keep going and make camp in the darkest spot we can find. They won’t follow us now. We just have to wait until morning.”

With the dawn, Arrans men got their first good look at the forest, which was not as dense as they had expected. The trees were quite far apart and having no leaves cut out very little light. They had a small cold breakfast, much to Vargen’s distaste. Before they had finished eating, Torran came running up.

“The barbarians have broken camp and are entering the forest. They are not far behind. And I got a good look at them.”

“Let’s go,” said Arran. “On the double.”

“So, what do they look like?” asked Jon.

“Very fierce. Animal faces, body piercings and mutilations. I’ve never seen anything like it. And I don’t fancy our chances, either.”

“Come on,” cried Arran “keep up. They’re only human beings.”

“I’m not so sure.”

“Let’s head straight into the sun. Torran, keep on tail and take Tarrak with you. And keep on your toes.”

The men marched in formation, fully ready to do battle. The landscape was totally devoid of colour, just grey dust and grey trunks. It was quite boring and difficult to navigate as everywhere looked the same. They moved with some speed abandoning any caution and still laying a trail. Arran wished they could proceed with more caution, but they had to keep ahead of the enemy.

As the hours passed, the men’s confidence grew and their fear of the forest diminished. By noon, the forest began to thin and by mid-afternoon they came to the first lake. It was very still and quite clear. In fact, it looked pleasant. There had been little sign of the enemy, only twice did the rear guard catch sight of them.

Arran’s men took the southern route along the shore of the lake to be on the homeward side. They travelled along in silence. There were no other sounds and they all felt slightly spooky. Some two hours after finding the lake, Gem who was on the right flank, ran up to Arran and said “There is another lake on our right and from what I could see it is cutting in towards the one on our left. The ground we are on is narrowing.”

“We could be trapped if the two meet,” said Jon.

“No, look on the positive side. If the ground narrows enough, we can hold them off indefinitely because we can fight in shifts and they will not be able to get around us.” Said Arran.

“Oh, yes, very positive. Why didn’t you send out scouts as usual?”

“Because I didn’t want to put at risk anyone out there on their own. I did not expect to meet an army, but these are strange lands and I think we are best all staying together.”

“Well, I think it was a bad move.”

“No, Jon,” broke in Jarrad, “You would not want to be out there on your own I know. We must face the enemy sooner or later. Is it too much for you?”

“Humph.”

“Right then,” replied Arran. “We’d better have someone race ahead and check out how far we have got and how much the path narrows. Seems like you’re the man for the job then, Jon.”

“Oh great,” said Jon as he raced off along the path.

“We had better double up, Jarrad. Check out where we are going to make a stand and see if we can make any defences.”

“Yes, it’s getting close now. I hope the Gods are with us.”

Soon the men could see both shores. Then, the trees disappeared altogether. A short while later they saw Jon on his way back.

“The path narrows right down to almost nothing, with a short span of water, river wide, cutting us off from a further bank.”

“We are trapped, then,” said Jarrad.

“Not so bad as that,” answered Jon, looking pleased with himself. “There is a bridge over the river. If we want, we can hold that bridge forever.”

“A bridge?” replied Jarrad. “Who could have built that?”

“Never mind,” cut in Arran. “We can thank them another time. We make a stand in front of the bridge where it is wide enough so that we can manoeuvre, but we don’t all have to fight at the same time.”

Arran chose a spot some way from the bridge where the ground rose slightly and would give them some advantage. Arran and Jarrad crossed the bridge to have a look round.

“The bridge seems in good repair,” commented Arran.

“I’ve a feeling it is still in use,” said Jarrad.

“I reckon you are right. What about the wall on this side?”

“It doesn’t look like anything we would build as a defence. It has an opening without a gate.”

“But it is too high to be of no purpose. Perhaps it had a gate, but there is no sign of where hinges might have been,” noted Jarrad.

“All the same it would be easy to defend. Any enemies would have to come off the bridge one at a time.”

The men walked through the opening and looked around. The other side of the wall widened into a large shelter.

“It is very unusual stonework,” stated Jarrad “I have never seen anything like it. But I think we should make a stand here. Do what damage we can to the enemy and make off when we please.”

“Yes, I think you are right,” said Arran.” Call the men over.”

Everyone marched over the bridge amidst exclamations of who built this and whose territory are we in. Vargen and Jordan were with the group now.

“The barbarians are right behind us,” volunteered Vargen.

Arran sent most of the men into the shelter while he, Jarrad, Malone and Argot formed a barrier around the opening.

“It will be easy to defend. We could take turns and hold them off forever. But I suppose they would find a way round eventually,” Arran said.

The men could not see the bridge through the gap in the wall and would just have to wait for the first of their enemies to appear. They waited in silence. Everything was quiet. Suddenly, they heard a blood-curdling scream. The rest of the warriors ran from the shelter. Everyone looked at each other. No one spoke. Then, they heard a ferocious battle building up.

“Sounds like a war going on over there,” said Jarrad.

Then, feet running on the bridge. Two of the barbarians came racing through the opening, only to be immediately hacked down.

“I think it is time we departed, Arran,” said Jarrad. “I don’t think I want to face whatever is making mincemeat out of that lot.”

“You’re right,” replied Arran, “It seems that someone is fighting our battle for us.”

“Yes, but I don’t think it is on our behalf. And we are probably next.”

“Grab your kit,” said Arran sheathing his blade “We need to get out of here fast.”

Then as soon as it began, the noise of battle stopped. There was movement on their escape path and then more sounds coming from over the bridge. Everyone looked at each other and backed into the shelter in the nearest to panic these hardened warriors had ever been. Shining figures swept in from all sides. Lizard men. No one had to say it. The lizard men stood there before the terrified men brandishing broad swords, their skin smooth shining scales, very muscular with strong jaws and small eyes. They were not as tall as the warriors but were extremely wide and looked very powerful. They wore no armour apart from a very ornate helm that seemed to indicate rank. A large lizard in the centre with a particularly impressive helm stepped toward Arran raising his blade as if in signal. For the first time in his life, Arran realised he had not even drawn his blade in reaction to danger. He reached over his shoulder and withdrew it, holding it aloft. The lizard men looked up, mouths agape and before anyone could move the lizard man in the centre fell to his knees, the others immediately followed, their foreheads touching the ground. The warriors silently exchanged glances. They were beginning to believe anything could happen now after the events of the last few days.

“Welcome Reaper, wielder of Sssoulreaper the exterminator. Welcome from us unworthy Zzzargillion.” Said the leader.

“What the hell?” said someone.

“Quiet behind,” Arran whispered, and stepped forward touching his blade on the lizard’s shoulders he boldly said, “You’re welcome is accepted, O noble one.”

With that, Arran sheathed his blade and the lizard men all stood, trying to get a look at it, apparently in awe. Then, the lizard men all stood in two lines and faced each other. Shivers ran down the warrior’s spines.

The large lizard man said, “You mussst come with husss.” Then, he turned and walked off.

Arran followed, nodding to the others to do likewise. The wall of lizards parted and allowed the men through.

“Another two days should see us back to Cam,” said Nadine.

“As long as we have no problems,” replied Captain Hendra. “I’m afraid that my men are no match with yours when it comes to travelling fast, and we have too great a load. We won’t get far between rests. I reckon you can double your estimate.”

“Well, the men couldn’t do much better with all these barrows to pull, could they?”

“My lady. You are too kind. I know we are no match for your folk.”

“But they do try. And you are a good man, captain. Don’t ever forget that. I’m sure I won’t.”

“Thank you again, my lady. How is young Elven?

“Well. physically he is fine. But he still seems a little vague, like he is not all there. I think he is OK, though. By the time we get back home he will be as good as ever. I think there was a spell on him, you know.”

“Go on.”

“Yes, he was under some kind of magic spell. I don’t know what sort yet. I may never find out, but he is almost over it. It had done its job. Fortunately for us, the job came to nothing, but it makes me wonder what sort of people we are up against.”

“I’ve never seen anyone under an evil spell before. I’ve heard about it though. There was someone in my village once, used to sit in a tree all day. Some said a spell made him think he was a bird. But I don’t know.”

“This spell worked as far as it was supposed to. But how I’m at a loss.”

“Well, all’s well that ends well.”

“Yes, I’m sure you’re right, captain. Are you certain you know the way back?”

“Oh yes, I made detailed notes on the way here. Part of our job was to map any unknown territories. We can’t just travel through strange lands and ignore them, my lady.”

“You never cease to amaze me, captain.”

“Just because the baron’s men are untrained vagabonds and most of his commanders are corrupt, it does not mean that we all are.”

“No, I am sorry, captain. I will not doubt you again.”

“Thank you, my lady, I am deeply honoured.”

On the group laboured. Push pull, push pull. They had far too many heavy barrows for the number of men. And indeed, it did not take long before they had to rest. The journey was uneventful, and as they got nearer and nearer to their own border, the safer they all felt. It took all of four days to get back to the northern keep. All of them were glad to arrive there, and felt a huge relief, apart from Nadine who became more and more anxious for the men left behind, especially Arran.

Arran and his men marched on past three lakes, two streams and into the deepest part of the forest, which suddenly, just as it was getting to its densest, opened out onto the most amazing stone and wood dwellings the warriors had ever seen. The stonework was extremely fine and looked more of a work of art than merely useful. Some of the designs looked like ancient runes from a bygone age. The men felt that they were in a different world. There were occasional caves and the whole village blended into its surroundings like it had been put there by nature. Crowds were appearing throughout the village, word had soon got around of the visit. The men were led to a large building in the centre of the village, which was built like a fine stoned pyramid with a flat top. Arran noticed several high helmed individuals in the entrance of the building. The inside was dark, cold and damp, barely lit with torches, but it seemed to suit the lizard men. When they came to a halt, Arran’s eyes adjusted. They were then led through several chambers and finally came to a halt in front of a huge throne with the most ornate carvings. It did not take Arran long to realise that the carvings were encryptions in the same runes as that of his new blade. He began to see the connection. His confidence grew. He realised that his blade had a great significance to these people. Arran signalled his men to relax and go along with things. They were now confronted by what must have been the high chief of lizards. He had such a large ornate helm that he could never have fought in it. It must have only been for ceremonial use. But again, Arran recognised the markings on it.

“Who hisss it that entersss our foresss without biddingss?” The chief lizard made hissing sounds with almost every word.

The lizard that led them replied, “I present The Reaper, the Executioner. Wielder of Sssoulreaper. The ssstealer of s-soulss. The dis-sruptor.”

The chief lizard looked uncertain, but seemed to decide not to chance questioning the fact. Arran realised that this blade must hold a lot of power over the lizards.

“I King Theo, the chos-sen leader of the Zzzargillian, welcomesss The Reaper on behalf of my peopless.”

“Waits,” said the one on the lizard leader’s right. “Asss the keeper of our ancssient lore, I accussse them of falsssehood. They are humanses, it cannot be.”

“But Ssshradge, it is not told that it cannot be outs-siders,” said the king pointing to a huge stone slab to one side.

Arran, now accustomed to the dim light, noticed the ten slabs part encircling the throne. They were covered with more of the strange runes. And above the throne the was the strangest helm he had ever seen. It was pure black and as smooth as polished stone with no features whatsoever on it, apart from a fine silver spike on each side.

“It cannot bees. Thisss isss our heritage, what we have been waiting for, for generationsss. To lead usss back to our homelandsss and out of thisss hell,” hissed the doubting lizard.

“It can ssstill be ssso. We know not how the power will work. Maybe it is sssomething that only a human can do. Do not forget that the human cannot choossse the reaper. It will do the choosssing,” said the chief lizard.

“It should be one of usss.”

“Methinksss you would have likesss it to be yourssself.”

The lizard men were all mumbling now in disagreement as to Arran’s fate. He thought they probably didn’t know whether to worship him or eat him.

“I am the keeper and asss sssuch I know the lore as bessst to say the full meaning of the runesess.”

“Oh dear, there is always one. Why is life like that?” Arran thought. “I had best help my side out while I can still get a word in.” Speaking in a load but calm voice Arran stated, “We come in peace seeking your friendship and help, your majesty.”

“Liesss,” cried the keeper. “You had a stronger force following you. You came to destroy us. You are and always have been our enemy.”

“No, they were our enemy. And we were leading them away from our homeland,” said Arran.

“Why did you not s-stand and fight?” asked the keeper. “The Reaper would have.”

“Because they are being followed up by an even larger force, and we wished to lead a false trail away from our lands and deal with them without bringing war to our homeland.”

“What makesss you think we can trussst you? It wasss your people who imprisoned usss here in thessse hossstile landses many generations ago,” said the keeper pointing to figures on a slab behind him. Arran could make out lizard men and humans, but they were taller than the lizard men and dressed entirely in black. He knew of no tribe that dressed like that.

The keeper went on, “In a time forgotten, your people and oursss waged a terrible war. Our ancestors travelled from far off landses bearing giftsss for your people. The executioner, being one of them, was a peace offering. It is written that it was a dis-sruptor of great power in the form of a blade as a s-symbol of warning of war and an example of our power that we were to offer to s-share. It is also written that it is the key. But our expedition fell to an earthly sickness and was destroyed. The disrupter was stolen and our ancestorss were left in exile in thessse hossstile landses, cut off from our own civilis-sation. It took many yearsss to get here and we were treated with treachery. We have been waiting for generationsss for a ressscue to come for usss. It is written that they will come one day. Then your people will be punished by a far s-superior race.”

“A truly tragic tale,” replied Arran, “but do not be hasty because we all look alike to you. We are many different peoples in these lands. Look at the stone. The people you fought are all much taller than you, but we, the tallest of all the people I know, are only just taller than you. All others in these lands are shorter than you. We cannot all be guilty of past crimes of other tribes.”

“That’sss ass well may be,” said the lizard leader, “but you must excussse the hassste and bitternessess of my peopless. I cannot believe that all humansss are evil although they are our enemy. You s-see, we are sssworn to revenge our forefathersss and thisss goesss deep within usss. But there isss nothing in the runeses to say that the dis-srupter would not choosse a human. Perhapsss thisss isss itsss way of finding itsss way into their camp to achieve itsss des-stiny. I do not think that my peoples will accept you and you must leave here asss sssoon asss possible. I believe in the power of the dis-srupter and that itsss des-stiny cannot be thrussst assside. I am therefore compelled to assist you on your way and do what I can to help and convince my people. It isss written, ssso let it be done. Come be ssseated on the throne.”

With this, the keeper stormed out hurling abuses at everyone. Arran realised that their only hope was with the king of the lizards and then while he still held power. That looked like it might be a temporary situation if he went against his tribe’s beliefs. The sooner the men got away the better. Arran quickly slipped onto the throne thinking to play along with them “One does not walk into the wind in a storm,” he thought.

The king was chanting away in his own tongue and waving his arms about. He then removed the helm from above the throne and held it above Arran’s head saying,

“Draw your blade and hold it in both handses.” He then lowered the helm until it touched the blade. There was a faint blue shimmering glow and then he placed the helm on Arran’s head. “Now the power isss asss one, the s-strength of the blade and the guardianship of the helm. Go forth and fore fill your destiny.”

Arran was taken by the king’s sincerity but could not believe in enchantment. He and his men were trained to believe only in reality and logic. Life was so hard and there was no room for misguided superstition. Arran thought, “Yes, I’ll be the only one in charge of this destiny.” He jumped up and said, “We must make haste.”

“One more thing,” said the lizard king opening a panel in the throne. “Here, takes this chest. It isss for keeping the helm in. You mussst return the helm to the chest as often as you can for it will revitalize the power of the helm.” The king called his personal guard and they all left the building.

Outside you could see the relief on the men’s faces. They all looked calm and controlled, despite the growing crowd around them. They marched away out of the village with the king and his personal guard. Behind them it seemed as if the whole village was following. The men moved steadily south, the light fading fast. Night was descending, but still they moved speedily through the forest. The dark did not seem to bother or hinder the lizard men who travelled extremely well, even over the roughest ground. Rather than climb over rocks and ridges they took a series of leaps, more like an animal than a man, showing the power of their limbs. Arran’s party were doing all they could just to keep up with them. Suddenly, they were out of the forest. There was some moonlight and they could see a lot better.

“You must keep going,” said the lizard king “I feel thisss isss not the lassst time we shall meet. Farewell, and remember, do not think the blade ssserves you. It will use you to its own endsss. Beware and consider your decisionsss carefully. Make sssure they are your own and not influenced by the blade. You will become more and more powerful for good or evil. But let’s hope it is for our mutual benefit. Use itsss power justly and wisely. It is written that there is not a mortal that can bear itsss power. There will be changes in the world now the blade has risen. But let it not fall on our own heads.”

“Goodbye, Sire. Thank you. And if it is in my power, we shall try to find your enemies and fulfil this destiny.” The men moved off as fast as the light would allow, in complete silence for a few minutes and then they all started talking at once.

“Well,” said Vargen. “What do you make of all that?”

“Wow,” said Jarrad. “Those lizard things are so powerful, I wouldn’t like to meet them on a dark night. They would butcher us.”

“They would make powerful allies,” said Arran. “Let’s hope the king keeps his power and convinces his people to accept us.”

“What of this helm and blade thing?” asked Jordan.

“Seems a lot of mumbo jumbo,” replied Harrad

“Superstitious lot,” put in Tarrak.

“I’m not so sure about this blade,” said Arran. “I had a strange feeling during the battle in the town. The blade seemed to go for its foe by itself, like I didn’t have to put much force behind it.”

“Come on, Arran,” said Jarrad. “You were still a little affected by the gas cloud.”

“No, maybe, but there was something. After we had finished, it seemed to glow very slightly. And the screams. I’ve never heard anything so bad. The barbarians seemed to know something. Several of them killed themselves before I could reach them.”

“Now that does seem odd, but they must be very superstitious, as well. The barbarians could have been made to believe anything. It does not prove the blade is enchanted.”

“Well, whatever. I am going to keep an open mind on it, just in case. We had better think about turning west soon. I think we’d best keep going until dawn, get as far away from here as possible. We will camp then and get some rest. Then we’ll turn west and make for the keep. What do you say, Jarrad?”

“Oh, yes fine. I keep thinking of those lizards coming up behind me in the dark. The further away from here we get the better.”

“What exactly is a disruptor, Arran?” asked Jon.

“Beats me. Never came across one before. But I’ve a feeling we are going to find out pretty soon.”

When dawn came, the men could see that they had left the flat lands behind and were entering hilly terrain once more.

“I don’t like flat lands,” said Torran, “not enough cover, feel too exposed.”

They camped in the first of the hills and had their first good rest for a while. They ate the last of their dried coney, and cleaned and packed two wild ones they had snared during the night.

“We were lucky to bag those coney,” said Vargen. “Twill almost stretch to one more meal with the rest of the oats. Most folk don’t believe that wild ones still exist.”

“Well, they are cunning little devils,” said Torran “But we know the signs. Even though they eat their own droppings, never use the same path twice and camouflage their burrows, I can spot their presence a mile off.”

“Yes, I got to hand it to you, you are our best trapper. Sometimes I think I would starve to death if it was not for you,” said Vargen, thankfully.

Meanwhile, Arran had become more and more intrigued with his new blade. He was testing its balance, sweeping it from side to side. He was still amazed at the power he could put through its light blade. The thin narrow blade was longer and much lighter than a broadsword, which relied more on its weight to deliver a powerful blow. But because of the double grip, pushing his hands in opposite directions the blade wiped though the air instantaneously with incredible speed without having to swing it. Arran marvelled at its balance. It seemed to weigh almost nothing. He could not imagine what sort of steel it was made from. He suddenly became aware of the ball on the end of the grip. It was black. So black it reflected no light. It was a sunny morning, but this ball was hardly visible, like it was absorbing the light. “I have mastered it already,” he thought. “I can see the potential in it. No wonder the myths have built up around it. It gives me a strange feeling, a sort of attraction like a living thing.”

“We can delay no longer,” said Jarrad to Arran.

“Aye, the sun is well up. I am ready, break camp.” Reluctantly, Arran returned his blade to its sheath and noticed the ball brighten.

The men packed up and moved off south. Feeling a lot safer now, they made do with only one scout. Spirits were surprisingly high, and they felt the danger had passed, for now. They travelled on into the afternoon. The land still very sparse but slightly hilly. They would have no more food that day, saving the last for breakfast thus giving them something to march on. If they did not catch any more wild coney, which seemed more unlikely the further south they travelled, they would not receive any hospitality until the day after when they reached the northern keep. The men turned west late that afternoon and stopped at dusk, made camp and spent an uneventful night. In the morning, they had indeed snared another two conies, much to their delight. Everyone had a hearty breakfast and they set of on the last leg to the keep. It was dusk when they sighted the keep. Captain Hendra came out to greet them.

“We made it back here last night. The barrows went on this morning. We had a quiet journey and I don’t expect any trouble for them on the homeward leg. So, I remained here with some of my force.”

“Well done, captain. Our followers won’t be bothering us now. But I fear that we have not seen the last of our northern friends. We will head back to Cam at first light.”

“Oh, how are you doing for rations?” asked Vargen.

“I’ll see you are supplied and make ready to move in the morn,” said the captain.

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