Trudi Canavan - Priestess of the White

It had not appeared so at first. There were fewer Pentadrian fighters. They had no war plattens or mounted soldiers. As the two armies came together, however, it became clear that most of the Pentadrian foot soldiers were trained and prepared to face both.

And then there were the vorns.

The huge beasts brought death and devastation wherever they roamed. They moved so fast, only luck or a concerted effort by many archers could bring them down. The beasts seemed to enjoy killing. As Danjin watched, four of them drove a group of soldiers from the main battle. They tore out the throats of those that tried to face them, then chased the rest out of the valley, loping easily after the runners and nipping playfully at their heels.

“Why don’t we have creatures like that? Why don’t we have vorns to fight for us?” King Berro muttered.

“I guess the White didn’t have time to breed their own,” Guire replied mildly.

“They are an abomination,” a woman growled.

Heads turned to the speaker. Dreamweaver Adviser Raeli stared back, her gaze cold. “If your White created such evil beasts, would they be any better or nobler than these Pentadrians?” she asked.

The two kings looked thoughtful, though it was clear Berro was not completely convinced by her words.

“They have bred Bearers instead,” Meeran said. “And my people have provided them with little helpers.” He nodded to the cage Danjin was holding.

Danjin looked down at Mischief. The veez had remained quiet throughout the battle so far. Danjin hadn’t dared to leave Mischief behind, sure that if he did the veez would escape and go in search of Auraya.

“Reyer and veez?” Berro snorted. He looked to the left, where grooms held the five white Bearers ready in case the White needed them. “Only the White have Bearers and they aren’t even using them—and what use is a talking pet during war?”

“Out,” Mischief said.

The weight in the cage shifted. Danjin looked down. “No. Stay.”

“Out,” Mischief insisted. “Away. Run.”

“No. Auraya will come back later.”

The veez began to turn circles inside the cage, setting it rocking. “Run! Bad coming. Run! Hide! Run!”

Danjin frowned. The veez was growing more and more agitated. Perhaps the abductor was near. He turned and scanned the faces around him. Those closest were looking at the veez in curiosity. He looked farther away, to the left and right and over his shoulder.

And saw four black shapes loping up the other side of the ridge toward them.

He shouted a warning. Screams rang out as the vorns were seen. There was a moment of hesitation as people clutched at each other in terror, or collided with others as they turned to flee. The line of watchers broke. Most of it spilled down the hill toward the battle, leaving a few individuals frozen in terror on the ridge. The centermost watchers remained still, held together by a strong, confident voice.

“Everyone into the pavilion, and stay there,” High Priest Haleed said, striding forward to place himself between the vorns and the pavilion. “I will deal with this.”

Danjin frowned as he realized the Somreyan elder was the only magically trained person among the watchers, apart from Raeli—though he had no idea how Gifted she was. Not all Dreamweavers are strong sorcerers.

All squeezed into the dubious cover of the cloth pavilion. Outside, the grooms were hastily covering the heads of the reyer with cloth, including the Bearers, in the hope that the mounts wouldn’t take fright and break free. They drew them as close to the pavilion as they could.

Songmaker was still standing outside, his back to the pavilion and his attention on the battle. Danjin saw the man look around at the people fleeing into the valley in puzzlement. He called the man’s name. Songmaker turned and his expression changed from puzzlement to alarm as he took in the scene. As he walked toward the pavilion, Danjin heard an animal yowl of pain close by.

He looked out to see one of the vorns lying, twitching, on the ground. The others were scampering backward, dodging this way and that to avoid Haleed’s attacks.

“Ah, magic,” Songmaker murmured. “A soldier might lose form as he ages, but a sorcerer remains useful.”

So long as he keeps his reflexes sharp, Danjin added silently. Haleed managed to injure another of the vorns, but most of his strikes had missed the fast-moving creatures. He did not seem able to anticipate their rapid changes of direction.

“Your pet turned out to have a use after all,” a voice whispered in Danjin’s ear. “Don’t worry about him. He’ll return.”

He turned to stare at Raeli. She looked down. Following her gaze, Danjin realized the cage he was still holding was empty, the door open. He felt a stab of alarm. He cast about, searching for the veez.

“Don’t bother. He can look after himself,” Raeli assured him.

“Against vorns?”

“They aren’t after veez, they’re after—”

Her words were drowned out by a scream of pain followed by an inhuman screeching. Looking out, he saw Haleed swaying under the weight of a mass of black-feathered shapes. The priest’s white robes were splattered with blood.

“The birds!” someone exclaimed. “Help him!”

“His eyes,” Songmaker hissed. “They went for his eyes.”

Meeran barked orders. Servants hurried forward, then stopped and retreated hastily back into the pavilion. Danjin saw a black shape launch itself at Haleed, knocking the old man over. He felt a rush of terror as two more black shapes leapt past the priest. The small crowd surged back and he felt himself shoved sideways.

Losing his balance, he began to fall, but someone grabbed his arm and steadied him. All was chaos: screams, yells, shouted orders and the screech of birds. How could so few people make so much noise? A hand grasped his arm and spun him around.

He found himself facing Raeli. He stared at her in surprise. Over her shoulder he saw a reyer gallop away, King Berro in the saddle.

“Stay close to me,” Raeli said. “I’m forbidden to kill, but I can shield you.”

He nodded. As she turned to face the pavilion there was a loud crack and the structure collapsed. The awning was covered in birds. Raeli spread her hands. The air sparked, then filled with flapping wings as the flock took off.

The sound of galloping hooves drew Danjin’s attention. He saw the Bearers racing away. Each bore two riders. Danjin was relieved to see Moderator Meeran among them.

“Good,” Raeli said. “Less trouble for me.”

Then a black shape wriggled out from under the pavilion and streaked away in pursuit.

Raeli grimaced. “I hope those Bearers can run as fast as people say they can.”

“They can,” Danjin assured her. “Though whether—”

As a chilling snarl came from under the pavilion, he jumped. He backed away as the cover began to shift and writhe, but Raeli stayed still. She stooped and grabbed the edge of the cloth.

“Don’t free it!”

She ignored him and hauled it aside. Danjin winced as he saw the bloodied bodies underneath. A black shape reared up and launched itself at Raeli. She made a quick gesture and the vorn jerked aside. It regarded her with chilling intelligence, then slunk away.

A familiar voice cursed vehemently. Looking down, Danjin was amazed to see Songmaker struggling to his feet. His left arm was bleeding badly from deep gouges.

“I can heal you,” Raeli offered, stepping closer to examine the wound.

Songmaker hesitated, his gaze becoming distant for a moment, then frowned.

“Thank you, Dreamweaver Adviser,” he said, his tone formal, “but I must decline. A bandage will do for now.”

Her lips thinned. “I will see what I can find.”