The Unwelcome Warlock

called, “All right, all of you, go through it. Starting now.”

Hanner could not see the crowd’s reaction, but he leaned over and called out the door, “If you have any belongings, fetch them. I don’t think you’ll have a chance to come back.”

“Sidor,” Gerath said, addressing one of the three who had accompanied him to the house, “Go tell the others to get everyone into this house at once. Tesra, grab someone and throw him at the tapestry — let’s get this started.”

Sidor raised his sword in salute, then marched back out of the house, while Tesra grabbed the arm of a girl who had gotten too close, and dragged her into the room where the tapestry waited. She struggled in his grip, trying to dig her heels into the tile floor, but Tesra was too strong for her; he flung her at the tapestry. She instinctively reached out to catch herself, and was gone.

Hanner watched, horrified. He knew she probably wasn’t hurt, but the swordsman’s crude violence was appalling.

Then Tesra grabbed someone else and shoved him toward the tapestry.

“No need,” the man said. “I’ll go quietly.” He pulled away from the swordsman and marched into the room, head high.

As he approached the tapestry he turned and grinned at Hanner. “I’ll be right back,” he whispered.

Hanner had not thought of that, but in fact there was nothing he knew of to stop any of these people from simply stepping back through the tapestry on the fourth floor. He glanced at Tesra, who was looking for a third victim, and at Gerath, who was standing just outside the open door on the village street.

If everyone waited on the fourth floor, and then rushed back through the tapestry as soon as Vond emerged from the attic, he might never know it had happened; he would assume that they had simply left Warlock House, as instructed.

But there would be no way to maintain contact between Ethshar and the refuge, with Vond occupying Warlock House. In fact, Vond might well destroy the tapestry.

If Hanner were to take the tapestry down and take it somewhere else — Nerra’s house, perhaps, since the palace was displaced and he was not welcome in Mavi’s home — then it would no longer be any of Vond’s business...

Except that the return tapestry came out in the attic of Warlock House. Hanner frowned. There had to be some way to keep the refuge functioning, despite Vond’s soldiers. It seemed more urgent than ever not just to have someplace former warlocks could go, but to have somewhere Vond and his hirelings couldn’t.

Hanner stepped aside, trying to think what he could do, as the soldiers began marching refugees through the tapestry into the attic.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Kolar the Large hung back in the hallway, and did not follow the others into the fourth-floor bedroom. He did not trust that magical wall hanging. Yes, the warlock said it would transport them safely into another world, and that there was an easy way back, but even if Kolar entirely trusted the warlock — which he did not — how did the warlock know? By his own admission, he had never been through there.

This whole mercenary-soldier business was beginning to look like a bad idea, and Kolar wished he had stuck to working the docks. It had sounded good when that fellow with the strange eyes had talked about it in Shiphaven Market, but no one had said anything about walking through enchanted tapestries. Standing around with a sword looking dangerous was no problem; Kolar was big enough that he often looked dangerous whether he wanted to or not. Getting involved with magicians, though, really was dangerous, whether it looked it or not, and this Great Vond character was obviously even more dangerous than most. Hanging the overlord’s palace up in the sky that way — that was crazy.

Now the crazy warlock had marched about half his men through the tapestry, and none had come back. That was not what Kolar had thought he was being hired to do.

The warlock seemed to be thoroughly focused on the tapestry, so he might not notice if Kolar slipped away — but then again, he might. Magicians didn’t necessarily need to use their eyes to see things. Vond did not seem like the sort who would take desertion lightly, either. True, Kolar had not signed anything, or sworn an oath, or even been paid, but he had been given the nice uniform and the good sword, and had made no protest when Vond announced what he wanted.

If they had been on the ground floor Kolar might have tried to slip away, but they were on the fourth floor; the front door was a long way away. Kolar glanced about, wondering if there might be some other exit.

That was how he happened to be looking directly at the attic door when it opened and a girl peered timidly out. She spotted him immediately, and froze.

Kolar quickly raised his hands, fingers spread, to show he meant her no harm. He smiled at her, then threw a quick glance into the bedchamber. The warlock was getting the next man ready to touch the tapestry, and paying no attention to anything outside the room.

Kolar made his decision, and trotted quickly and quietly over to the attic door. “Hai,” he said, keeping his voice low. “Who are you?”

“Detha,” the girl said. “Detha of Newgate.”

Kolar took in her worn clothing and said, “You aren’t one of the maids, are you? What are you doing here?”

“I...I was Chairman Hanner’s guest,” Detha said. “But that soldier threw me out.”

Kolar cocked his head. “What soldier?”

“The one in charge called him Tesra. He wore the same uniform you do.”

Kolar knew who Tesra was; they had chatted a bit on the way from Shiphaven. He had been one of the first to disappear into the tapestry. “You were on the other side of that magic tapestry?”

She nodded.

“Is that where this door goes?” He tapped the wooden panel.

“Ah...sort of.” She looked up at him, then past him at the corridor. “Where am I supposed to go? No one told me.”

“No one told me, either,” Kolar admitted. “I know the warlock wanted you out of his house, though.”

Before Detha could reply, a third voice called from behind her, “Who are you talking to?”

Kolar frowned and pulled open the door, peering over the girl’s head. He saw stairs going up, and at least a dozen people standing on those stairs, looking down at him.

“More of you,” he said.

“They’re throwing all of us out,” Detha said.

“Some of us didn’t wait to be thrown,” one of the men on the stairs said. “But they didn’t say where we should go.”

This looked like an excellent opportunity to make himself useful without going through any magical portals. “Wait here,” Kolar said. “I’ll go ask.” Then he turned and trotted back across the passage and leaned into the room where the warlock and perhaps a dozen of his other mercenaries were waiting. “Your Majesty?” he said.

The warlock turned. “What is it?”

“There are people appearing. They say they were on the other side of the tapestry, and our men have been sending them back here.”

“Appearing? Appearing where? Why aren’t they appearing here?”

“They’re...well, I found them on a stairway on the other side of the hallway. I’m not sure if that’s where they’re appearing — is there a fifth floor?”

“Show me,” Vond demanded.

Kolar bowed. “Of course, your Majesty. This way.” He stepped aside to allow Vond out of the room, and when the warlock had floated out into the hallway Kolar pointed to the open attic door. Detha was standing framed