"Go," Orlad said.
Dantio drove off into the mist. For a while they could hear him yodeling a joyful song. It faded into the mist and wind.
"Where's 'home,' my lord?" Narg asked around a mouthful of raw onager.
"Celebre, on the Florengian Face. Our father is a sort of king there. He's either dying or already dead."
"Aha!" That was Waels, but others were leering also. "And who will succeed him?"
"Dunno. Some old fogies get to choose—it could be me, or one of my brothers, or—"
Snerfrik's stentorian bellow was louder than anyone else's. "Then we'll help them decide! Won't we, lads?"
The flank roared its approval. That enthusiastic show of loyalty gave Orlad a rush of emotion that almost choked him. Struggling not to show it, he shrugged. "Eat up, then."
A eunuch, a girl, an artist—and a Werist! What sort of contest was that?
May the best man win!
This story will be concluded in Mother of Lies,
in the city of Celebre.
Originally from Scotland, DAVE DUNCAN has lived all his adult life in Western Canada, having enjoyed a long career as a petroleum geologist before taking up writing. Since discovering that inventing imaginary worlds is more satisfying than poking holes in the real one, he has published three dozen novels, mostly in the fantasy genre, but also in young adult, science fiction, and historical. He has at times been Sarah B. Franklin (but only for literary purposes) and Ken Hood (which is short for "D'ye Ken Whodunit?").
He has been married (to the same lady, Janet) since 1959. They have one son and two daughters, who in turn are responsible for a spinoff series of four grandchildren. He lives in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
TK scanned JAN 2011.
TK (v1.0) html -- Inserted a TOC. Proofed against paperback.