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Being your ruffianly kind of mercenary, I knew I had not much time left before the voller sank to act as
any proper hyrpaktun would act now. I dived back and swam to the flier.
I left the hubbub and howls of protest. Clambering onto the warped deck and working very rapidly, very
rapidly indeed, by Krun! I snatched up my weapons and that superb harness of mesh links. Swimming
back with the bundle was not too difficult although not a sport I d take up for pleasure, and once again
they hauled me inboard. This time I was content to lie on the deck and let my battered old carcass
recover.
You re a right maniac, dom! quoth a cheerful voice. I looked up.
He stood, his thick legs spread apart, his hands on his hips, stark naked but for the weapons belted to
him. His face was plug-ugly, scarred, with prominent eyebrows and a mass of thick brown hair, plastered
into shiny flatness by spray.
Aye, I said. And then, Llahal.
Llahal, dom. I am Clardo the Clis. I thank you for saving us A gleam of gold at his belt caught my
eye. He had taken his pakzhan, the little golden zhantil head that is the mark of the hyrpaktun, from
around his neck and twisted the silken cords tightly around his belt.
About to reply that, Llahal, I was Jak, a sudden shadow fell over me as I sat up and a fierce, excited,
bubbling voice burst about us and brought instant silence from everyone.
Lahal! said this voice. Lahal and Lahal, Strom Drak! It s me, Torn Tomor. And you are now
Emperor of Vallia. Lahal, majister, Lahal!
I stood up and looked at him.
Yes, he had the virile toughness of his father and the slim agility of his mother, and if he had a tithe of
their strengths he would be a most puissant young man. I smiled.
Lahal, Torn Tomor. And your father and mother are well and thrive, thanks be to Opaz. And, as for
you, your faith was too fragile, for the murderer confessed. He started at this, a young, eager, alive man
with all his life to lead. Yes, Torn, you ran off to be a paktun when we all knew you would not strike
down a man from the shadows, with steel between his shoulder blades.
But, he stammered, majister everyone said it looked black
It is black no more. Do I need to ask why you return to Vallia?
By Vox, no! spoke up Clardo the Clis. But And here his scarred face swung toward Torn
Tomor. is this really the emperor, Torn? How can he be, seeing the emperor sits in Vondium and
waits for us to fight and win his battles for him?
The argenter gave a lurching heave that made us all brace ourselves to the sway of her. The muddy
shore was not far off and soon the ship would splinter to flinders. Turko stood at my side. Andrinos was
holding Saenci. I looked at the crowding men, hardened men, professional fighting men, tough and
ruthless in combat, easy and reckless in camp. Yes, they were mercenaries, going to Vallia to find
employment. A few quick words established what I had instantly guessed, and what had made
Deb-Lu-Quienyin direct me here. Every man was a Vallian. Each man had gone off from his own country
as a lad, seeing that Vallia had no army but employed paktuns to fight for gold. And, now the mother
country was in dire danger, beset by enemies, her sons were returning home. But they were not the
country bumpkins, the smart townies, who had left. Now they were paktuns and hyrpaktuns. Now they
were professionals. I sighed. What I could do with a hundred thousand like this!
The voller had taken with her the secrets of her silver boxes, and I had to quell the spurt of anger. All
that had chanced to me since leaving Vallia for the Dawn Lands formed a part of a pattern, that was
clear. Prince Tyfar and Quienyin; well, Quienyin was actively assisting me now and Tyfar was going to
have a much more prominent part to play in my plans than he dreamed of. By Zair! He had a much
bigger part to play than I dreamed of! How fate does throw the knucklebones, and sits back, giggling.
And that Vajikry fanatic, Trylon Nath Orscop, had afforded me a voller able to pull. No Vajikry, no
voller. No voller, no ship of fighting men for Vallia.
Turko said, We re going to hit any mur and that company you spoke of. They re waiting.
Along the edge of the surf the lines of totrixmen cantered. They looked hard and sharp. They were
waiting for us. As we staggered up out of the clutch of the sea they would ride forward and spear us. The
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