Ullsaard thought about this for a moment.
"But you said Cosuas isn't my father."
Pretaa nodded. Ullsaard flew to his feet, sending the chair flying backwards.
"No, you have it wrong! How can you be sure Lutaar is my father? How many different men did you sleep with? How can you know Cosuas really isn't my father?"
"Look at yourself," Pretaa snapped. "Tall, strong, intelligent, powerful. Certainly it was not Cosuas's Ersuan seed that made you, though he deludes himself it may be. You have the Blood in you. Aalun recognises it, even if he does not know it. That is why he has been drawn to you, and why you have risen so far so fast with his help. Perhaps your father feels it in you as well and that is why he is afraid of you."
Ullsaard walked away, waving his hands in denial.
"No, no, this does not make sense. The king is not afraid of me. I would be no more than a second captain without Aalun's help. There is not one drop of the Blood in me."
"How else does an Enairian of no name marry into Askhan nobility? How else does an ignorant coldlander become a celebrated general of the legions? You have never courted power until now, and yet throughout your life you have gained it. Most men of ambition achieve half of what you have."
It was Pretaa that now stood. She grabbed Ullsaard's hands and held them between hers. She looked up at her son's distressed face with a fierce expression.
"I have always been so proud of you, but I could never tell you why. To lead others, to fight, to command, it is in your nature. You have said it to me in the past; you feel alive in battle like at no other time. That is the Blood, its blessing and its curse."
"I cannot talk about this," said Ullsaard, whirling away. He stalked from the room and back into the entrance hall. He stopped and marched back into the room where his mother looked at the door. "Tell nobody else this!"
He grabbed a heavy cloak and left the house, setting off towards the woods to think.
II
Though it was barely two hours into High Watch when Ullsaard returned to the house, the sky was darkening quickly. The narrow windows upstairs were slivers of yellow against the black of the building, the setting sun beyond obscured by heavy cloud. Ullsaard tramped through the mud to the gate, where one of his mother's retainers waited with a lantern. Ullsaard recognised him as Illsaard, a man a little older than the general. The two of them had grown up together, and Ullsaard could not help but think how differently their lives had turned out. Perhaps there was something to what his mother had said about the power of the Blood.
"Has Urikh returned yet?" Ullsaard asked as Illsaard opened the wooden gate.
"Not yet, general."
Ullsaard nodded and continued into the house. His mother was waiting for him where he had left her, sitting by the fire. There was no sign of Ullsaard's wives.
Pretaa stood up as he entered. She said nothing, but there was a question in her look.
"It doesn't matter; you were right," Ullsaard said. "You will never speak of this to anyone else."
"You understand why I did not tell you before?"
Ullsaard kicked off his muddy boots and threw his coat over the back of a couch.
"The Blood changes nothing. I was raised without a father and I will die without a father."
Ullsaard left and headed upstairs, seeking Allenya. He found her in the bedroom set aside for her visits, sewing by the light of a lamp. She put the piece down and stood when she saw his taut expression.
"Is something wrong?"
"No," said Ullsaard. "Nothing new, anyway. Don't let me interrupt. What are you making?"
Allenya held up her work; a cushion cover half-embroidered with a forest scene.
"It's nice," said Ullsaard, kissing his wife on the forehead. He slumped on to the bed and laid back, arms behind his head. "Have I been selfish? Greedy?"
"Is it greed for a man to want the most from life?" said Allenya. "If a man has no ambition, he leaves the world with what he had when he entered it: nothing. You know I will always be here for you, no matter what happens. I do not know if what you have done is right or wrong; it is done and cannot be changed. Now is not the time to doubt yourself, my love. You have chosen a path, you have to follow it all of the way to the end."
Ullsaard stared at the white ceiling, stained with smudges of lamp soot.
"You are right, as usual," he said quietly. "What's done is done. It's too late now for regrets."
III
The family were just finishing their evening meal — a fine banquet of game and fish — when the banging of the main door heralded Urikh's arrival.
"In here!" Pretaa called out. "I have other guests now."
Urikh strode into the dining chamber and stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing his father and mothers. He was in his midtwenties, with Ullsaard's height but Luia's slimness. He had thick, dark hair cut at the shoulder, bony cheeks and a narrow chin. His thin lips parted in surprise.
"Don't standing there gawping like a simpleton," Luia said as she stood. "Greet your family properly."
"Hello," said Urikh. He gave Luia a peck on the cheek, and did the same for Meliu and Allenya. He hesitantly extended a hand towards Ullsaard. "Father. I did not expect to see you so soon."
Ullsaard gripped his son's hand and clapped him on the shoulder.
"Better sooner than later," said the general. "There's still plenty left to eat. Join us. Tell us what you've been up to."
Urikh sat down between Ullsaard and Pretaa and loaded food onto his plate.
"I've been trying to find out just how much trouble you have got us into," he said amiably. "If I'd known, I might have been able to help. Actually, I think I still can help."
"Really?" said Ullsaard. "If I need any copper kettles, I'll be sure to let you know."
"Fine!" declared Urikh. "If you don't want to hear what I have to say, I won't pester you."
The young man ate fastidiously, cutting away all fat and gristle from his meat, ignoring his father's scowl. He poured himself a cup of wine and looked across the table at Luia.
"I wouldn't stay here too long, if I were you," he said casually.
"Why's that?" asked Ullsaard. "What have you heard?"
"So you are interested?" Urikh made no attempt to conceal his smugness as he slowly chewed his food. His amusement grew in proportion to Ullsaard's impatience.
"You've made your point," snapped the general. "What do you know?"
"Nemtun's joined forces with Allon, just outside Khybrair," Urikh said. "The two of them are marching this way right now. At a guess, I'd say they were about seven days dawnwards."
"In winter?" Ullsaard took a large gulp of wine. "That makes no sense. Why would they do that?"
"What about Jutaar?" asked Allenya, her hand raised to her cheek in dismay. "Does he march with Allon?"
"How am I supposed to know?" Urikh replied with a shrug. "I just hear talk, that's all. I don't have a spy in Allon's army!"
"Allon will defer to Nemtun, he isn't a natural commander," said Ullsaard. "The king wants this settled quickly. How many men do they have?" This last question was directed at Urikh, who shrugged again.
"I just talked to a grain merchant fresh from Ersua, and I've told you everything he told me."
"I have to warn Aalun. We need to move the army, or we'll be trapped against the sea."
"Where will you go?" asked Pretaa. "Hotwards into Ersua?"
"Where will we go, you mean," said Ullsaard. He looked at his mother and wives. "I can't leave you here, it isn't safe. If Nemtun gets to you, he'll use you as hostages against me."
"I'm too old to go anywhere in winter," said Pretaa. "Leave me here. I can look after myself."
"No!" This was from Meliu. "We can't let that horrid Nemtun get his hands on you. I hear he is a beast in all regards."