with each leap. The moment he'd proposed that Ulan give the amulet to Iraj, he'd known that he was making Iraj's task easier. Still, with so many lives at stake he had no other choice. He considered the gloating witch in the arena who had torn off a piece of his cloak. That, too, might help Iraj. On the other hand, the magic of human witches was weak. It would take an extraordinary sorceress to make any use of it. And those were very rare, indeed. Still … still…
'The safest thing,' he said finally, 'would be to run as far and as fast as we can.'
'You think he'll track us here?'
'Taking the bleakest view, yes.'
'Then that's what we should do,' Leiria said. 'Run.' She sighed. 'At least we're ready for it,' she said.
'We're supposed to move out at first light.'
'True,' Safar said, 'but we just might want to change which way we go and how.' He unsnapped the map case from his belt. 'We'd better get the route plotted before the meeting. Otherwise our beloved Elders will want to debate the issue for a week.'
'Honestly, Safar,' Leiria said, 'I don't know why you put up with them. I know the Council of Elders is a proud Kyranian tradition and all that. But they aren't organized for this kind of life. They've rarely had to decide on anything more important than when to let out the pigs and geese to keep the streets clean.
'This is war and they're just not suited for it. You need to organize some kind of military leadership.
People who can think quickly, argue when its time to argue, and no matter what they think to shut up and fall in to march with the rest of us when the final decision is made.'
'You don't understand, Leiria,' Safar said, unrolling the maps and picking through them. 'This is the system we've always had. I'm loathe to interfere with it, much less change it. We're nomads now. But I hope that doesn't last much longer than a couple of years. In Syrapis, with luck, we can start a new life.
A new Kyrania. If we set up some sort of military command it might be hard to change things back to the way they were.'
He grimaced. 'From what I've seen of most places, with all the kings and generals, it's nearly impossible to get rid of them once they're installed.'
Leiria pointed at the maps. 'Even so, the Elders don't get to choose now, do they?' she said. 'I mean, we're going to work the whole thing out in advance, right? Then you'll convince them they thought of it themselves. Why, you're already leading them by the nose. So what's the difference?'
'Simple,' Safar said, 'I don't like doing it.'
Leiria thought a minute, then smiled. 'To split a hair like that, Safar Timura,' she said, 'your conscience must own a damned sharp sword.'
In the tent with the Elders, Safar spread out the map and placed a stone on each corner. He moved casually, although inside his anxiety was mounting. After studying the maps he knew exactly where they had to go next. He didn't like it, but it was the only thing to do. The moment he'd been dreading for months had arrived.
'It seems to me,' Safar said to the Elders, 'that Naadan was very lucky for us. For the first time since we left Kyrania we have enough supplies to last us for several months.'
'Only if we live off the land,' the always argumentative Masura replied.
Khadji growled. 'I suspect that's what Safar meant and you know it, Masura,' he said. 'The supplies we have on hand, plus living off the land. That's how we've been doing things for close on to a year!'
Masura grumbled. 'I just want to make sure things are clear to everyone,' he said.
'Actually,' Safar said smoothly, 'I did mean that, my friend. And I'm glad you brought it up. We don't want to miss anything and the supply situation is just the sort of crucial mistake we want to avoid.'
Satisfied, Masura gave Safar's father a dirty look as if to say, see, I was right to ask. Your own son says so.
The headman, Foron, peered at the map. He put one finger on the ink blot that marked their current position and another on Kyrania. There wasn't much distance between them.
'I don't like that,' he said.
Then he measured the distance to Syrapis. He grunted with effort as he made the stretch. It was two thousand miles away. 'I like that even less,' he said.
Foron scratched his head. 'What if we took advantage of our luck to really cover some ground?' he said.
'Instead of dodging and ducking and hiding out all the time, we could make one long dash for it.'
Masura coughed. 'We'd never make it all the way to Syrapis,' he said.
Safar gave his father a signal and Khadji groaned. 'For the gods sake, Masura,' he said. 'Foron wasn't saying anything of the kind. He meant we should try to get as far as the supplies will take us.'
Khadji moved to the map, just as he and Safar had planned, and studied it. He pretended to search for a moment then put his finger on the prearranged spot.
'My guess is we wouldn't need new supplies until we reached here.'
Everyone craned to see, including Safar who acted as curious as the rest.
'It's the Kingdom of Caluz,' said the headman. Then, to Safar, 'Have you heard of that place, Lord Timura?'
'Only that they have a famous temple there,' he lied. 'I once approved funds for a temple restoration project in Caluz. For the life of me I don't remember anything more about it. However, it must have been a rich area to possess such a temple.'
Safar thought, if they only knew! He hadn't even told his father why Caluz had to be the choice. After finding Khysmet in Naadan, Safar had greater reason than before to heed the words of Lord Asper's ghost:
'If Caluz is that rich,' he heard his father say, 'then we can get new supplies without much trouble.'
Everyone murmured agreement and the decision was made. There would no ducking and dodging and hiding in the months ahead. Instead they would strike straight for Caluz and resupply there.
'Actually,' Safar observed, 'Caluz might be the last place we have to raid.' He indicated the map. 'A short run from Caluz should put us at the Port of Caspan. On the shores of the Great Sea.'
The headman smacked fist into hand. 'Then it's on to Syrapis!' he exclaimed.
'Well, there's a sea to cross first,' grumbled Masura. 'Don't forget that!'
The men roared laughter and teased Masura-which had been Safar's intent all along.
Then wine was passed around and everyone drank to the journey ahead.
Two weeks later Iraj's army entered the wooded ravine where the Kyranians had camped. It was night and the sky was alight with the thousands of torches they carried to show the way.
The Kyranians had gone to great pains to wipe out all signs of their presence, but an advance party of Iraj's scouts had found an iron horseshoe nail, which led to the uncovering of the thrown shoe itself. From there it was only a matter of more detailed searching and enough other small signs were discovered to give the Kyranians away.
Now the army was coming, led by Prince Luka and his demon cavalry of mailed warriors astride the great cat-like horrors they used for mounts. Behind them was a huge armored elephant bearing King Protarus' royal howdah, all gold and bejeweled and with blood red curtains drawn tight so the king could not be seen. The king's army sprawled back from there, starting with his royal guard of crack troops, both human and demon. There were archers and slingmen, demons who fought with giant battle axes and short spears, fierce human tribesmen who fought on horseback with crossbows they could fire at the gallop, and long curving blades so sharp they'd slice through chain mail as if it were paper.
The army stretched for miles, torches and lanterns all gleaming in the night, back to the farthest reaches where the big supply wagons groaned like captive giants put to the rack.
In the howdah Iraj sniffed the air with excitement, wolf's snout bristling. Old Sheesan cackled in the corner, waving a scrap of cloth about like a tattered flag. 'I paid her handsomely fer this,' she said. 'But it's right off Lord Timura's cloak, so it's worth ev'r bit a gold I could scrape together.'
Iraj licked his chops and tossed her a purse of gold. 'I'll give you another,' he said, 'if you can sniff out his spoor.'
If the old witch only knew, he thought, she could get a cartload of gold from him as a reward. In all these
