The Raven Collection

‘So I thought too. But the bonds forged in the meld of souls are unbreakable. My soul may be my own but it will reach out to the Protectors for ever. I accept that, they understand it. Best you do too.’

A third look behind him and the Lord of the Mount nodded. He had half turned his horse when The Unknown stopped him.

‘You can help us save Balaia and gain your revenge,’ he suggested. ‘If you were to attack Parve from the south or south-east in response to our signal, it might ease our route to the pyramid. At least then you might have a College to return to.’

Stylia

‘I will sign you through the Protectors,’ said The Unknown. ‘If you are near, they will hear me.’

Stylia

For several minutes, The Raven held formation while Denser circled overhead, sight attuned to the mana spectrum, probing for a clue that Stylia

‘Shield down,’ said Ilkar.

Hirad placed a hand on Denser’s shoulder, nodding his gratitude as the Dark Mage looked at him.

‘At last, I think I can say I understand,’ said Denser.

‘Will Stylia

The Unknown raised his eyebrows. ‘Difficult to say,’ he said. ‘If he stops to think hard enough, perhaps.’

‘Thraun, would you check the path and collect the horses?’ asked Hirad. Thraun inclined his head and jogged away out of sight.

Belatedly, the focus of attention fell on Jandyr. The elf was still alive and Erie

‘How bad?’ asked Will.

‘He’s been lucky,’ said Erie

‘Can we move him?’ asked The Unknown.

‘Not until morning, anyway, to give me a chance to repair some of the damage. Put it this way, he won’t be using his bow for a while. There’s a great deal of tendon and muscle damage in that shoulder.’

‘We haven’t got that sort of time,’ said Ilkar. ‘You heard what Stylia

‘Then they must hold them,’ said Erie

‘Dawn,’ said Ilkar. ‘It will give us a chance to verify what Stylia

Hirad considered the situation. He sca

‘So long as you can all stand to be watched by that lot, we might as well stay right here until sun-up. Will, the stove, please. Denser, I need you and Thraun to discuss the route to Parve. With the Wesmen on the march we’ll have to stay clear of the roads to Understone. Meanwhile, Ilkar, Unknown, I want to talk to you.’

A brief flurry of activity disrupted the peace of the impromptu campsite. Denser and Will hurried out of the clearing after Thraun, Erie

‘There’s things I don’t understand,’ he said.

‘No change there,’ said Ilkar.

Hirad punched him on the shoulder. ‘You’re fu

‘Well, it’s not something the Colleges publicise, for obvious reasons.’ Ilkar shot a glance heavenwards. ‘How do I explain? Right, look, mana flows everywhere and through everything. It doesn’t stop for skin, bones, walls, wood, ocean, not even dimensions, as we discovered. No one knows its rhythm or the pattern to its flow, only how to disrupt it to form shapes for spells. But one thing that can be done is to divert the flow, and particular structures will do that.’ He jerked a thumb behind him. ‘Mana will take the path of least resistance. This temple has been very carefully constructed, and I mean in extraordinary architectural and material detail. When it was sealed, the mana simply flowed around it and not through it.’ He shrugged. ‘That’s it.’

‘It was a well-laid trap for the unwary thief,’ agreed The Unknown.

‘Or mage,’ muttered Ilkar. ‘We were close to being snuffed out in there.’

‘So those bodies we found in there were Protectors?’ asked Hirad.

‘Yes,’ said The Unknown. ‘I knew straight away but it didn’t seem possible at the time. They were Protectors, some of Stylia

‘But they had no masks,’ said Ilkar.

‘No doubt, when the threat is removed, the statues move back and the doors unseal. Protectors always take the masks of their fallen brothers. Stylia

‘So he was waiting for us to succeed,’ said Hirad.

‘Hoping, certainly,’ said The Unknown. ‘I’m sure us taking the stone and then him taking the entire spell from us was his fallback plan the whole time.’

Hirad shook his head. ‘When I saw them all waiting, I don’t mind telling you I expected to be dead and cooling soon after. What happened?’

‘He did.’ Ilkar indicated Denser, who was walking back into the clearing with Will, Thraun and the horses.

‘Would you care to elaborate?’ asked Hirad.

‘Yes, I’d be glad to. We have just witnessed the biggest single step forward in Xeteskian thinking, probably ever. Denser turned down certain power and glory in his College for the greater good of Balaia. I can still scarcely believe it.’

‘But that doesn’t explain the Protectors,’ said Hirad. He looked out into the camp. Will was setting up the stove near by, intent on ignoring them but no doubt hearing everything they said. Erie

Hirad felt warm inside. The Raven was complete again and working smoothly. He hadn’t felt this way since the day Ras died.

‘You’ll have to ask The Unknown about that,’ said Ilkar.

‘There’s not a lot to say that you’ll understand,’ said The Unknown. ‘I just knew Stylia

‘And would they have killed him if he’d killed you?’ asked Ilkar.

‘No. He is their Given and they can never hurt him. Who cares? Stylia

Hirad laughed again. ‘Nice work, Unknown. C’mon, let’s take a look at the lake, get Will some water.’

The attack hammered in along the entire length of the Wesmen lines as they marched through flat areas of grassland, flanked by pockets of dense forest. It followed a storm of arrows, HardRain and DeathHail, forcing the Shamen to use valuable stamina raising hard and magical shields.