The Hand of Tharnin

But only one member of Dremlock's army had been captured-Lannon Sunshield. The Squire had been thrown onto a horse and carried off with a group of retreating Blood Legion Soldiers. In the chaos of battle, none of the Knights had given chase, and by the time they realized what had happened, it was too late. Now the morale of the army was very low.

The remaining members of the Divine Shield met in Furlus' tent to discuss the situation. The atmosphere in the tent was tense and gloomy. Jerret was afraid they were going to abandon the assault on Dorok's Hand and retreat to Dremlock. He knew Aldreya and Vannas felt the same as he did-that they owed it to Lannon to try and rescue him. But he was certain the Knights wouldn't give much weight to anything the Squires said.

"So it has come to this," said Furlus, his voice heavy with bitterness. "We couldn't even defend our prized Squire, and it has cost us greatly. This is turning out to be a poor excuse for an army."

"This army is ill-fated," said Shennen, his head in his hands. "Too many forces are working against us. We should retreat to Dremlock."

"We can't retreat," Jerret spoke up, desperation in his voice. "Not until we save Lannon." Even as he said that, he wondered if Lannon was already dead, and rage towards the Blood Legion filled his heart.

"We did our best to protect him," said Jace, smoking his pipe and looking sullen. "That Bear assault was unexpected, to say the least. I've never seen anything like it. And Lannon was captured because he was trying to do too much. He shouldered the burden of saving everyone."

"He fought with great courage," said Aldreya. "If there is any chance he is still alive, we need to find him!"

"We're a bunch of fools," said Trenton, who'd suffered a broken arm and broken ribs from being crushed beneath the Bear. "Our foes are far better prepared for us than we are for them. They will just keep wearing us down before we ever reach the fortress of Dorok's Hand. And Lannon? Yes, my dear Aldreya, he fought very courageously. But you must accept the fact that he is finished."

Jerret wished Trenton would go away. The Investigator seemed ever at odds with everyone and annoying. Jerret knew the dark power that Trenton possessed-the ability to transform into some kind of wolf-like monster. Yet he'd failed to use that power in the battle with the Bears, for whatever reason, and now Lannon was gone. Jerret thought Trenton was a coward who preferred to let others fight his battles whenever possible.

"But we don't know that Lannon is dead," said Furlus. "They may keep him alive and try to learn his secrets. They may try to infect him with the Deep Shadow and persuade him to join their cause."

"Then we've failed on the deepest level," said Shennen. "For if they convert Lannon to their side, we will surely lose this war."

"Not necessarily," said Furlus. "Lannon may also regain his strength and escape before they ever get him to Dorok's Hand. He is very powerful and well trained, his sorcery unknown to them."

"And we still have the White Flamestone," Vannas reminded them. "The loss of Lannon is terrible, yet hope remains."

Trenton scowled. "I am so weary of you Squires speaking as if you've been granted Knighthood-as if you are members of the High Council. You're too young to know anything, and I must ask that you remain silent!"

Vannas glared back at him, but said nothing.

"I believe we have the right to talk, Trenton," said Jerret.

"Well, you don't!" Trenton snarled. "Especially you, Jerret. No worthwhile statement ever emerges from your mouth. You're nothing but a bumbling barbarian of a Squire, no better than those Legion Soldiers."

Jerret didn't bother to reply. Trenton was simply never going to like him or respect him, so there was no point in arguing with the Investigator.

"They have a right to speak," said Furlus. "They are members of the Divine Shield, Trenton. And Vannas is a Birlote prince and deserves greater respect."

"Thank you, Master Furlus," Vannas said, bowing.

"Members of a Divine Shield hold special rank," Furlus went on, "Squires or not. Try to come to terms with that, Trenton."

"What Divine Shield?" said Trenton. "Who are we protecting? Lannon is gone. We might as well dissolve it."

"Not as long as Vannas rides with us," said Furlus. "The Divine Essence blessed us with the White Flamestone and chose its bearer. As rough as things have been, this army was sent forth with the blessing of our god. That cannot be ignored."

"I understand that," said Trenton, "but perhaps even a god can be wrong. And are we really expected to serve blindly? Aren't Divine Knights supposed to question everything and seek the truth?"

"Trenton makes a good point," said Shennen. "The Divine Essence has been wrong before. So why can't our god be questioned?"

Furlus slammed his fist down. "Our god is never to be questioned. Its wisdom is far beyond that of us mortals. When the Divine Essence speaks, we obey. I am the commander of this army, and my word is final."

"And what is your word, oh Tower Master?" said Trenton, mockery in his voice. "To what grim end shall you send us?"

"We've suffered some losses," said Furlus, "but the bulk of our army is still intact. I'm guessing that battalion of Bears was the great ambush they had waiting for us. And while it cost us Lannon-and that is a huge loss indeed-it was otherwise a failure. We suffered a small amount of casualties and killed all of the Bears. I'm sure our foes expected us to take far more damage than that."

"I disagree," said Jace. "I think the Bear attack was only an attempt to kill the Squires and as many Knights as possible. If they had intended to finish us off, we would also have been attacked by an army of Legion Soldiers-lead by the Hand of Tharnin. Because Lannon was captured, I believe the Bear attack was actually a huge success-probably a far better success than they had hoped for."

"For once," said Trenton, "I agree with you, Jace."

"They need their Soldiers to defend Dorok's Hand," said Furlus. "They took Lannon away from us, but we killed their most prized beasts."

"Their most prized beasts?" said Jace. "I'm not so sure."

Furlus waved dismissively. "Mere speculation, Jace. I firmly believe that if we continue on, we can take Dorok's Hand and destroy the heart of the Blood Legion. Then we can march on Blombalk Fortress to the south."

"I have a grim feeling," said Shennen, "that if we continue on we may all die. Yet I have an equally grim feeling that if we retreat, Dremlock will fall."

"We owe it to Dremlock to keep going," said Furlus. "And we owe it to Taris and Lannon-and even to Vorden Flameblade, if that Squire still lives and is still a slave of Tharnin. But most importantly, we do not disobey the Divine Essence!"

"I don't know what the right path is," said Jace. "The Divine Essence could very well be sending us to our doom. Your god indeed makes mistakes, as history has proven. But I'm beginning to think we have to keep going and face whatever must be faced. Those Bears were a warning of how powerful the Blood Legion is becoming. This isn't just about money to me. I care about the fate of Silverland."

"We will camp for a few days," said Furlus, "and let the injured heal. Once the White Knights have done their work, we will ride for Dorok's Hand."

Trenton scowled. "And that is where we shall find misery and death." The Investigator rose and adjusted his cloak with the one hand he still had use of. His grey eyes were full of disgust. "I always knew you would lead me to my doom, Furlus." With that, he strode out of the tent.

Furlus chugged some ale and wiped his beard, his face sullen. "Good, the whiny man has left us. What a tiresome wretch he is. What about you, Jace? Are you going to whine in my ear now too about how we might lose this war?"