floated around his face, all but his eyes hidden behind his gray cloth mask. His mismatched eyes, one red, one black, held no joy as he laughed.
“I want you to cease your efforts,” Deathmask said. “Go join your Eschaton.”
“I do the same as you,” Haern said.
“No,” Deathmask said. “You go too far. We have only beaten them, giving them solid warning as to what would happen if they interfered with our business. You, however, have killed two, and mutilated two more.”
Haern frowned. It had been less than an hour since he left the temple. How could have already known?
“I did what had to be done,” Haern said. “Let’s see the queen deny their guilt when they are found at the scene of their own crime.”
“Their own crime, oh yes,” Deathmask said. “Blind, dumb and bleeding. You proved their innocence, not their guilt, you stupid fool.”
Haern pointed a saber, his patience ended.
“Move,” he said. “Or I go through you.”
“So worried about vengeance,” Deathmask said. “Did they kill someone you love? But what will you do now, Watcher? They’ve harmed another of your friends while you were not there to protect them.”
“What?” he asked, lowering his blade. “Who? What have they done?”
“Go to your Eschaton,” the sorcerer said. “Now.”
Haern sheathed his sabers, glared, and then vanished in a blur of gray. Deathmask shook his head, glancing up at the rooftops.
“He’s nothing but a wild animal,” Nien said, peering down from above.
“Wild and dangerous,” Mier said from the opposite roof.
Deathmask nodded in agreement with the twins.
“We will contain him the best we can,” he said, staring down the long street where the assassin had vanished. “Especially after tonight.”
“S ure it was wise leaving the two of them alone?” Tarlak asked as the three waited on the outskirts of the camp.
“Lathaar and Mira will behave,” Aurelia said, nudging him in the side. “At least, I hope.”
“If me and Aurry could behave during all those late night assignments, I’m sure a paladin can stay on task,” Harruq said.
“Guess so,” Tarlak said, eyeing the half-orc. “You know, you two did vanish an awful lot. You sure you behaved?”
“Stop worrying,” Aurelia said. “And try to focus.”
The wizard shrugged. They were standing outside a large tent they had purchased. Sleeping inside were ten priests of Ashhur. Ten more slept in a similar tent, except instead of between the giant walls, it was set up in the western fields, with Lathaar and Mira watching over.
“Just why is it we’re always stuck doing jobs at night?” Harruq asked. “Can’t someone pay us to work during the day?”
“Shush! People are trying to sleep,” Aurelia said, gesturing to the multitude of tents around them. “Don’t either of you have any decency?”
“Figured we’d already established that as a no,” Tarlak said. “And we take jobs at night because there are less witnesses at night, and besides, it’s not my fault that people won’t try to kill our charges during the day.”
Harruq suddenly straightened. He pointed deeper into the camp, to where a lone man with a torch walked among the rows of tents and smoldering fires.
“Go check him out,” Tarlak whispered. “And keep it quiet.”
Harruq ducked low and ran, Aurelia chasing after. Tarlak stroked his goatee and frowned. From his distance, it looked like a priest of Karak, but why would one wander so openly in their camp, with a torch so all could see?
“Son of an orc lover,” Tarlak said. “I’m an idiot…”
He felt a tingle of magic all over his body, his knees went weak, and then he collapsed as sleep tugged at his eyes.
“H ey stranger,” Harruq said as they neared the cloaked figure with a torch. “What brings you here so late?”
The torch shifted, and in its light they saw an old man with graying hair.
“Sleep is hard for one as old as I,” he said, his hand slowly waving before them. “But perhaps not for you.”
Harruq felt his eyes droop, and his whole mind blanked. He fell to his knees as beside him Aurelia slumped to the ground.
“You better be gone when I…” he said before succumbing.
A hooded man slipped inside the large tent, where the ten priests lay on various blankets. A wave of his hand and he cast another spell, deepening their sleep. He drew his dagger and waited. Moments later an old man stepped inside and pulled the hood from his face.
“Careful, Greer,” he said. “We must be quiet while we work.”
“I’m no fool, Hayden,” Greer said. “You take the left, I’ll take the right.”
“Actually, you’ll take neither,” Tarlak said, flinging open the flap of the tent. “Word to the unwise, sleep spells are pretty easy to ward against.”
He whistled, and at the sharp sound many of the slumbering priests stirred. When they saw the intruders they bolted awake, kicking and pulling at the others who slept. Hayden and Greer glared as they found themselves surrounded and outnumbered eleven to two.
“Won’t you two make a wonderful gift to the queen?” Tarlak asked.
Hayden laughed. It was a tired and ragged sound.
“After tonight, you won’t step foot in the castle without the guards striking you down,” he said.
Greer let out a vicious cry. Ethereal shadows stretched from his back, protecting him and Hayden from the other priests. Hayden grabbed his holy symbol with one hand and waved the other. Tarlak crossed his arms and summoned a shield as a bolt of dark magic shot for his face. He grunted at the impact. The priest was far stronger than he thought. The priests of Ashhur cast their spells, but could not penetrate Greer’s wall. Its creation appeared to pain him greatly, for he arched his back and screamed a long, constant wail.
“The queen will see the truth,” Tarlak said, still tensed and waiting for a second attack. Hayden only shook his head.
“She’s ours, wizard. It’s to us she prays. You’ll have no victory here.”
Tarlak uncrossed his arms, and from his chest a bolt of lightning leaped across the tent, swirling around Hayden. The priest raised a hand and let the bolt gather at his fingertips, having done no harm.
“Karak be with you,” Hayden said, returning the spell. Red electricity joined the yellow, and together the barrage hit Tarlak like a thousand hammers. He flew out the tent, smoke trailing from his robes. Before he landed, his body halted in air. Aurelia held him with a spell and gently lowered him to the ground. From the open flap Hayden made an ancient symbol with his hands.
“It was by my hand King Baedan banished your kind from our kingdom,” Hayden said. “And I will not let you insult our presence further.”
He hurled two bolts of shadow, but Aurelia batted them aside with her hands. She glared with sudden intensity, and all around her the dust rose into the air.
“You caused the war?” she said, magical power sparkling white in her eyes. “You banished us from our home?”
A pure beam of magic shot from her hands, a swirling rainbow of colors. Its raw power slammed into Hayden, who had no strength to shield himself. He screamed as his body shuddered and weakened. His robe ripped. His bones broke. He fell to his knees, his arms limp and useless at his sides.
“A mistake,” he said, gasping for air. “That was… a mistake.”
Inside the tent, Greer finally collapsed, so weakened from his shield that he fell unconscious. In the sudden silence they heard shouting and rustling armor. From the city hundreds of soldiers of Mordan came marching, holding torches high.
“What nonsense is this?” Aurelia asked as the soldiers approached.
