David Gemmell - The King Beyond the Gate

'Follow me!' shouted Decado. Turning, he ran up the stairs ahead of them and out on to the battlements. Leaping to the wall, he gazed down on the jagged rocks so far below. The Thirty came out into the open.

'Fly!' ordered Decado.

'We shall fall!' shouted Balan.

'Not unless I tell you to, you son of a slut! Now move!'

Balan hurled himself from the battlements, swiftly followed by the other sixteen survivors. Last of all Decado leapt to join them.

At first they fell, but once clear of the pull of the castle they soared into the night, hurtling back to the realities of Skoda.

Decado returned to his body and opened his eyes. Slowly he walked towards the eastern woods, drawn by the pulsing mood of despair emanating from the young priests.

He found them in a clearing between two low hills. They had laid out the eleven bodies of the slain and now they prayed, heads bowed.

'Get up!' ordered Decado. 'On your feet!' Silently they obeyed him. 'My, how ridiculous you are! For all your talents you are but children. Tell me, how did the rescue go, children? Have we freed Abaddon? Are we going to have a celebration party? Look me in the eyes, damn you!'

He moved to Acuas. 'Well, yellowbeard, you have excelled yourself. You have achieved what neither the Templars nor the forces of Ceska could accomplish. You have destroyed eleven of your comrades.'

'That is not fair!' shouted Katan, tears in his eyes.

'Be silent!' thundered Decado. 'Fair? I am talking about reality. Did you find Abaddon?'

'No,' said Acuas softly.

'Have you worked out why?'

'No.'

'Because they never had his soul — that would be a feat beyond them. They lured you into their trap by deceit, which is something at which they excel. Now eleven of your brothers are slain. And you carry that burden.'

'And what about you?' said Katan, his normally serene face shaking with fury. 'Where were you when we needed you? What sort of a leader are you? You don't believe in our faith. You are just an assassin! There is no heart in you, Decado. You are the Ice Killer. Well, at least we fought for something we believed in, and travelled to die for a man we loved. All right, we were wrong — but we had no leader once Abaddon was dead.'

'You should have come to me,' replied Decado defensively.

'Why? You were the leader and you should have been there. We did seek you. Often. But even when you discovered your talents — talents we had prayed for — you hovered on the edge of our prayers. You never came forward. When do you eat with us, or talk with us? You sleep alone, away from the fire. You are an outsider. We are here to die for the Source. What are you here for?'

'I am here to win, Katan. If you want to die, just fall on your sword. Or ask me — I will do it for you, I will end your life in an instant. You are here to fight for the Source, to ensure that evil does not triumph in this land. But I will talk no more. I am the leader chosen and I require no oaths from you. No promises. Those who will obey me will come to me in the morning. We will eat together — aye, and pray together. Those who wish to follow their own road may do so. And now I leave you to bury the dead.'

Back in the city the populace cheered the victorious army from the fields a half-mile south, right through to the city centre and the makeshift barracks. But the cheers were muted, for the question remained on everyone's mind: What now? When will Ceska come with his Joinings?

Tenaka, Rayvan, Ananais, Decado and other leaders of the new army met together in the Senate Hall, while Rayvan's sons Lake and Lucas produced maps of the terrain to the east and south.

After an afternoon of heated discussion, it became obvious that much of Skoda was indefensible. The pass at the Demon's Smile could be walled and manned, but it would need a thousand men to hold it for any length of time, while to the north and south some six other passes gave entrance to the valleys and meadows of Skoda.

'It's like trying to defend a rabbit warren,' said Ananais. 'Ceska — even without his Joinings — can put into battle fifty times as many men. They could hit us on any of sixteen fronts. We simply cannot cover the ground.'

'The army will grow,' said Rayvan. 'Even now more men are coming down from the mountains. Word will spread outside Skoda and rebels will flock to join us.'

'Yes,' admitted Tenaka, 'but in that there is a problem. Ceska will send spies, agents, alarmists — they will all filter in.'

'The Thirty will help where they can and ferret out traitors,' said Decado. 'But if too many are allowed in, we will not be able to deal with them.'

'Then we must man the passes, spread The Thirty among the men,' said Tenaka.

And so it went on. Some men wanted to return to their farms to ready the fields for summer, others merely wished to return home with news of their victory. Lake complained that the food supplies were inadequate. Galand told of fights breaking out between Skoda men and the new Legion volunteers.

Throughout the long afternoon and into dusk, the leaders sought answers to the problems. It was agreed, finally, that half the men would be allowed home, so long as they promised to work on the farms of those who stayed behind. At the end of the month the first half would return, to be replaced at home by the others.

Ananais bristled with anger. 'And what of training?' he stormed. 'How in the devil's name do I get them ready for war?'

'They are not regular soldiers,' said Rayvan softly. 'They are working men, with wives and children to feed.'

'What about the city treasury?' asked Scaler.

'What about it?' queried Rayvan.

'How much is there?'

'I have no idea.'

'Then we should check. Since we rule Skoda, the money is ours. We could use it to buy food and stores from the Vagrians. They may not let us pass their borders, but they will not turn back our money.'

'Curse me for a fool!' said Rayvan. 'Of course we must. Lake, check the treasury now — if it has not been already bled dry.'

'We have had a guard on it, mother,' said Lake.

'Even so, get down there now and count it.'

'That will take all night!'

She flashed him an angry look and he sighed.

'All right, Rayvan,' he said. Tm going. But be warned — the moment I have finished I shall wake you with the total!'

Rayvan grinned at him and then turned to Scaler.

'You have a good brain in your head — will you go to Vagria and buy what we need?'

'He cannot,' said Tenaka. 'He has another mission.'

'Hasn't he just!' muttered Ananais.

'Well, I suggest,' interposed Rayvan, 'that we call a halt to tonight's meeting and break for supper. I could eat the best part of a horse. Can't we get together again tomorrow?'

'No,' said Tenaka. 'Tomorrow I leave Skoda.'

'Leave?' said Rayvan, astonished. 'But you are our general.'

'I must, lady -1 have an army to find. But I shall return.'

'Where will you find an army?'

'Among my people.'

The silence in the Senate Hall was devastating. Men exchanged nervous glances and only Ananais seemed unmoved; he leaned back in his chair, placing his booted feet on — the table top.

'Explain yourself,' murmured Rayvah.

'I think you know what I mean,' said Tenaka coolly. 'The one people with enough warriors to trouble Ceska are the Nadir. If I am lucky, I will raise an army.'

'You would bring those murderous savages into the Drenai? They are worse than Ceska's Joinings,' said Rayvan, pushing herself to her feet. 'I will not have it — I will die before those barbarians set foot on Skoda Land.'

All around men hammered their fists on the table in support. Then Tenaka stood up, raising his hands for silence.

'I appreciate the sentiments of everyone here. I was raised among the Nadir and I know their ways. But they do not eat babies, nor do they mate with demons. They are men, fighting men who live for war. It is their way. And they have honour. But I am not here to defend my people -1 am here to give you a chance of staying alive through the summer.