'Hirad, you are no comfort whatsoever.'
Auum and his Tai led the way, clearly ill at ease. The stagnant water continued for over a quarter of a mile before they began to travel up slope. The drier ground beneath their feet was a welcome change and the slope afforded some protection against the biting wind. Even so the elves set a cruel pace, driving up the shale at close to a trot. And while their every pace found firm purchase around the loose stone, The Raven slipped and slithered continually, adding grazes and bruises to their shivers and aches.
'Whose idea was this?' grumbled Hirad, picking himself up and brushing shards of stone from his now gauntleted hands.
'Yours, I think,' said Denser. 'Unless my memory fails me, it was you who arrived on Herendeneth and said that something had to be done.'
Herendeneth. The Unknown felt sudden sadness welling up. Every day, his wife and son would stand on the rock overlooking the anchorage awaiting his return. He brought images to his mind of Diera's smile and the wind blowing her hair about her face. And of his son, shouting with wild excitement as he toddled towards his father's open arms. And there really was no going back.
'It's for you,' he whispered. 'This is all for you.'
They continued to climb. Beyond the slopes they could see from the swamp, others revealed themselves, giving the truth to Auum's assessment of the land. The higher they went, the colder and more barren it became; and after an hour's walk, there was no vegetation around them whatever. It was a desolate scene. With their backs to a damp crag that towered hundreds of feet above their heads, they stood or sat to rest.
The Unknown crouched by Rebraal, the two friends looking back over the way they'd travelled.
'Just look at this place,' said The Unknown.
'Small wonder the cursyrd covet Balaia,' said Rebraal.
'Well, for Balaia's vistas today, substitute this glorious view in a few years' time.'
'Unless we put a stop to it.'
'Right.' The Unknown turned to him. 'So, what do your eyes tell you?'
Rebraal shrugged and gazed long out over the decayed landscape. 'It meets exactly the expressions of desolation in the texts in Aryndeneth. This is what the cursyrd do and it is why the sanctity of the dead must be maintained. If it is not, all dimensions will ultimately fall to this state.
'There is nothing out there, Unknown. The settlement we could see that is just so much dust and rot is the only one as far as any of us can see or sense. The only break from the wind that we can gauge is the hills at our backs. So the topsoil is eroded and the vegetation has died because it has no purchase. There are no trees. Unknown, there are no trees. So the low-lying land will flood as it rains and more and more is leeched from the earth. And so it dies. As will the air because the vegetation provides the last part in the cycle of life.' He shook his head. 'If this scene is repeated across this dimension then soon it will not be possible to breathe here. And where is the power source my brother said he would set us near? It is not out there.'
'Then we must hope it is behind us.' The Unknown looked down at Erienne and Denser. Both were struggling with the cold. 'Come on, let's move on. Can't have The Raven's mages catching cold.' He helped the pair to their feet. 'Not far now.'
'I hope you're right,' said Denser. 'My cloak wasn't made to carry this much mud.'
'I'll have a servant clean and dry it the moment we arrive.'
Denser smiled. 'And have him draw a bath too, would you?'
Auum trotted down a shallow slope to the right of the crag. Beneath his paint, the elf's face was impassive but The Unknown thought he could detect the ghost of a smile.
'What have we got?'
'Shelter,' said Auum. 'This way. But quick and quiet. The cursyrd are beyond these hills.'
Hovering behind his new karron force, Ferouc berated Blackthorne for his stupidity and cursed him for the time he was wasting. It merely served to fire his spirit. He led his warriors out of the castle keep and down the steps, driving headlong into the karron taking lumps out of his walls. He carried long sword and kite shield, his armour was his ceremonial chain and in his belly his anger was a cold knot.
Blackthorne thundered his shield into an enemy, knocking it backwards. It flung out a pincer but didn't connect. The Baron stepped after it and drove his blade into its gut, wrenching it sideways before dragging it clear. The beast died at his feet, belching dark blood.
He roared his approval and swung hard at the next. Its hammer limb sheared off.
'Yes!' His shield blocked a pincer and he reversed his blade into its face. 'Keep them moving backwards!'
Twenty men had run out with him to stop the destruction of his castle. The shields half of them wore represented all the armoury had to offer. But all carried swords sharpened or maces that gleamed in the half-light.
At his right-hand side, one of his men struck out, catching a karron on the side of the head. Its skull was crushed but still it came at him. One pincer gripped his shoulder and the spike limb flashed in, driving straight through his chest. The man was flung back to slide on the marble floor of the keep. The karron died under a welter of blows.
Blackthorne cursed and struck out again. His shield thumped into a karron left and his sword flicked out right, nicking a pincer limb. Gore sprayed into the evening air. The limb coiled quickly and snapped out at him, glancing into his side. He felt the air knocked from him but his armour held. He rebalanced quickly, fending off a hammer and striking right to left, carving into unprotected flesh.
Above the karron, reavers screeched their displeasure.
'Beware overhead,' warned Blackthorne.
To the left of his tight line on the steps and under the overhang of the grand door stones, one of his men took a hammer in the side and was flung into those next to him. Three men went down. The karron, moving faster than they had any right to, bounded up the steps and slaughtered the trio where they had fallen.
Blackthorne's eyes narrowed. He flung himself left. His sword drove through the chest of a karron rising from its bloody task and his shield jabbed up and took a second under the chin, the force snapping the creature's neck. A third swung at him but he caught the blow on his shield, bracing his feet and chopping down through the karron's shoulder.
Reavers prepared to dive on them. Left and right now, the karron attack was faltering. More were massing but Ferouc hadn't ordered them in.
'Back off!' ordered Blackthorne. He pointed his sword at Ferouc. 'One day it'll be you, Fidget. For every man that dies, we take six of yours. Sound familiar, you bastard?'
'You fight against the inevitable, Blackthorne. Two days and you are crushed.'
Blackthorne made sure he was the last man inside. Five of the twenty lay dead. Some of their weapons had been snatched away but their bodies would have to lie where they fell.
'Your ambition is not matched by your ability, Fidget. You won't beat us. You don't have the will.'
He stepped back inside the castle and the doors were swung shut behind him. He handed his sword to a footman and clapped the man on the back.
'Another bloody nose, eh Daniel?'
'Yes, my lord,' agreed Daniel.
But Blackthorne could see in Daniel's eyes the futility of their actions. He wrapped his arm around the boy's shoulder and walked with him back towards the kitchens, the only place they were truly safe.
'Don't lose faith, youngster. We have very determined friends out there. They won't let us down.'
It wasn't much of a cave but they could at least get out of the worst of the chill sweeping across the land. The space was dank, dark and cold but sitting close together they shared warmth. The indent in the crag that Auum had found went back no more than ten feet but was overhung by a further six, making it reasonably defensible from air attack. He and Evunn stood just in shadow at the entrance, looking out over the bleak landscape and searching the sky for evidence that they had been discovered.
Just within earshot and above the wailing of the wind, they could hear the low rumble of demon activity. It was the sounds of calls and orders mixed with the whip of thousands of wings and the tramp of innumerable feet.
'So he did get us close then,' said Hirad.
'Very,' said Rebraal. He smiled. 'He did well.'
'Except we all smell absolutely terrible.'
'Makes a change from it just being you, doesn't it, Hirad?'
'My, my, Xetesk-man, I admire you for still trying. But like I said to Ilkar, you have a long way still to go.'
Under his right arm, Erienne was shaking. 'Still cold?'
Erienne snorted. 'No, Hirad,' she managed. 'It tickled me, that's all. I think Ilkar would have been proud of that one. Remember those furs you used to wear?'
Hirad nodded. 'They weren't the most fragrant.'
The Raven laughed.
'All right,' said The Unknown. 'Let's get serious. We need to do several things. Hirad, you have to contact Sha-Kaan, bring him here as soon as you can. Eilaan, confirm that the mana is concentrated where we think it is. Denser, do what you do best and warm this place up a little, would you? We might as well be comfortable. Thraun, Ark, see about preparing some food. Erienne, get yourself some sleep when the temperature goes up. We're going to need you.'
She looked up at him and all the doubt was back in her eyes. 'I hope I don't let you down.'
'No chance,' said The Unknown. 'Now listen, everyone, we seem to have been fortunate up until now but if there's one thing guaranteed to bring on demons, it's spell casting. I don't see there's any harm them knowing we're here. A ForceCone will keep them out of the cave until the dragons arrive. But if any of you want to empty bowels and bladder, I suggest you do it now. We don't know what length of wait we'll have. Denser will pause until you get back. Any thoughts?'
There were no dissenters.
'Good, then let's get to it.'
The group broke up and immediately the biting cold returned. The Unknown put his back to a wall and beckoned Erienne over. He held his arms out and she moved gratefully into his embrace.
'Gods falling, but I hope people aren't too long taking a leak,' she said.
'You don't feel the need?'
'Too cold to be out there,' she said, snuggling in closer. 'Good job my husband's not the jealous type.'
'How do you know he's not?' Denser's voice carried back to them from just outside the cave.
'It's just the impression I get.'
'I see.' Denser buttoned his fly back up and walked back inside. 'Convenient how The Unknown organises everyone else to work and leaves himself free to get fresh with you.'
'Perk of the job,' said The Unknown.
Denser chuckled. 'I'll set about this spell then. Make yourselves comfortable. Don't think to help or anything.'
'We won't,' said Erienne.
The Unknown watched Denser collecting stones from outside and arranging them in the centre of the cave. He was very precise in the shapes and sizes he chose and in the way they were arranged.
'It's all about reflecting the heat from the spell,' said Erienne in answer to his question. 'The mana will bounce around for longer if the stones are placed right. Keep the heat in for longer, you know.'
'I see.' He paused. 'How are you feeling?'
'Warming up.'
'That isn't what I asked.'
'I know.' She sighed. 'Look, Unknown, I know I can do it. In the playhouse, I had no doubt. But look how many of us there were and how relatively few of them. We could afford a mistake and so I didn't make one. Now the stakes are higher. One slip and it isn't just us that's gone, it's everyone. That's a burden.'
'I understand. Look, if it's any help, we're all scared about who we'll let down if we fail. But that's how it's always been, hasn't it? The Raven united does what it has to despite how we feel individually. Draw strength from us.'
'I'll try. Thank you. Hmm. Can't really imagine Hirad being scared.' They looked across at him, seated with his hands in his lap, searching for his dragon. 'And you . . .' Erienne trailed off and The Unknown felt her shoulders sag. 'Oh, Unknown, you poor soul.'
The Unknown knew what she was talking about. He smiled grimly and shifted in his position, swallowing hard. 'We have all had to make sacrifices.'
'But you're the only one of us for whom family waits on your return.'
'Diera knew this time I was unlikely to come home.'
'And this time you knew all along, didn't you?'
The Unknown nodded. 'We all did, didn't we? When we thought about it in the quiet of the night, there was never any chance of us surviving what we have to do.'
'There's always hope,' said Erienne.
'You listen to Hirad too much. The hope we have is for the survival of our dimension, not for ourselves.'
'And are you handling it all right?'
The Unknown blinked away the moisture in his eyes. 'Erienne, it guts me every time I think about it. The last things I said to my family were lies. How long will it be before Diera finally gives up hope of me ever coming home? How long will she be forced to grieve?'
'Then do what you would have me do. Focus on The Raven and our strength. Know that what we do now will mean that your family has a future even if it is without you. When the grief has faded, they will rejoice they had you for as long as they did. Believe me, I know.'
'Thank the Gods you're here, Erienne.'
'That we're all here.'
'All right, I'm ready,' said Denser. 'All of you done the necessary?'
The Unknown jogged out of the cave briefly but could hear Denser speak.
'Eilaan, as soon as I begin to prepare, we can assume the demons will be onto us. We need a flattened Cone ready right away. You up for it?'
'I know what to do.'
'Good. Well, it may bring the hordes down on our heads but at least we'll be warm and dry. Unknown, may I?'
'Be my guest.'
Denser closed his eyes and developed the FlamePalm construct. The simple casting was complete in moments and he played the flame over the stones in a circular motion. They began to emit heat. Smoke curled lazily upwards. The blue of Denser's spell played over their exposed surfaces and took on a cycle of its own, bouncing and reflecting as Erienne had described. The warmth began to fill the shallow cave.
But from all around them, the sounds of the demons changed and a new call grew. It was a call of fury and it was taken up by myriad throats, gaining quickly as it neared.
The demons had found them.