"Go on."
"The mystery assassin who so concerns you was caught and killed by the Faith."
"Typical of them. Another burning, another soul supposedly cleansed — "
"He was killed in combat, with the Swords of Dawn."
"Ah." Kell was vaguely surprised, and felt a momentary respect for whoever the man was. "He had some honour, then."
"There is worse news, and closer to us. Karel Scarra has been taken by the Faith, at his vineyard."
"He went there?" Kell was amazed. "How stupid could the man be?"
"The word is that he may have spoken before he was taken to Andon for execution."
"Spoken to whom?"
"Two Knights of the Swords. An Erak Brand and a Gabriella DeZantez."
"It would be interesting to know how much he told them."
"Do you require any further action, sir?" Chaga asked.
"Prepare our mounts. We still have a long journey ahead of us."
In the half-light that passed for night, Gabriella looked out over the city she had grown up in, for the first time in over a decade. She was standing on a terrace jutting out from the thick wall of the archive building that adjoined the cathedral and its Preceptory. A short wiry, woman with steely hair cut into a bob was there, and Gabriella approached her.
"I always thought you'd end up here. I remember how much you hated the city."
"The city stinks," Marta DeZantez said. "Too many people too close together… How can you rise up to be one with the Lord of All, when all those other lives are stuck to you? Like dough that's too thick."
"That's father speaking."
"Yes… It's funny how much the bakery has coloured my thinking. I'm glad I don't have to work there; the house smells of flour and warm bread enough as it is."
Marta took a half step back, looking Gabriella up and down. "My daughter, a Sister of the Swords… I've never been prouder of you." She smiled. "Well, except every other day."
Gabriella blushed. "I wish I could stay, but the Eminences — "
"It's too short a visit," Marta sighed. "But the Lord's work is more important." She looked at Gabriella askance. "Is there something else? You look as if… I don't know, either there's something you need to say, or you're too far from the privy."
Gabriella couldn't help but fidget somewhat. For all that she had fought and killed men, and been under threat of death twice in the past few weeks, she still couldn't help feeling terrified at the thought of telling her mother about she and Erak. She belatedly wondered if she could have brought Erak to her attention more often, and built up to the news. She knew there was no way, of course, but knowing and feeling weren't the same thing.
"There's something I really should…" She felt herself blush. "I mean, I know I should have said something before — "
"You're thinking of either taking the Pledge or the Binding, or both," Marta said. She hesitated, regarding Gabriella for a moment. "No… Not thinking of. You've taken — "
"The Pledge," Gabriella admitted.
"You're my daughter, Gabriella, don't think I couldn't tell."
"Erak and I have known each other since we first joined the Order. It just seemed such a natural way to go."
"Erak?" Marta thought for a second. "Erak Brand, of the Order?"
Gabriella wished she could tell what her mother was thinking. She probably could, if Marta wasn't deliberately keeping a poker face. She was good at it too, which wasn't surprising as Gabriella had herself learned the talent from her.
"You know Erak."
Marta couldn't hold her bland expression any longer. "Of course I do! I'm not a dullard, Gabriella, I don't have the memory sickness." Marta hugged her. "And, as it happens, I think you've made a good choice."
"You do?"
"He's a good man, and a soldier of the Lord, just as you are. It's always seemed to me that the two of you are well matched for each other."
Flooded with relief, Gabriella embraced her mother. As always, it was something she did to say goodbye.
It had been a tiring journey after the completion of a job in Vosburg, but Dai Batsen had finally returned to the lakeside home he had occupied for the past four years. It was a fisherman's stone cottage, on the grassy shores of a lake as close to the exact centre of Pontaine as a man could get. The interior was as harsh and uninviting as the stones on the outside of the building. Batsen lifted a wooden trapdoor in the floor of the tiny kitchen and descended a set of well-crafted wooden stairs into what had originally been a cellar. Now it was the ante-room to a warm and welcoming home.
The wood furniture in the main room was immaculately polished, the chairs had padded seats. Once Batsen had put his coinage away and dumped his saddlebags in an anteroom, he lit a number of lamps. To his surprise, the lights didn't dispel the darkness in the centre of the room, but outlined it.
Batsen immediately reached for the power he had spent years mastering, and tried to sweep away the shadow but it didn't dispel. Cautiously, he sat on a chair and regarded the darkness.
It was a column of deep shadow, standing floor to ceiling. Batsen realised what it was after only a few moments.
"Well," he said, "you knew where to find me. You must know what I do."
"Yes," the voice came through loud and clear. "Please forgive this unusual intrusion, but I cannot spare the time to make such a long journey as would be needed to see you in person and I felt that, as a Shadowmage, you wouldn't be unduly alarmed by magical communication."
"If you're hunting me, you just made a big mistake."
Batsen could feel tendrils of cold thought probing at the corners of his mind and he quickly dispelled the touch
"There are two warriors of the Swords of Dawn." The darkness said.
"And you want them removed?"
"Yes, because — "
Batsen raised a hand. "I have no interest in why you want someone removed. I'm only interested in how much you're offering for the service, whether there are any special requirements and where to find the persons in question. It's safer for all concerned that way. Most of my contracts are for people who knew too much, so you understand why I don't want to become a man who knows too much."
"I see what you mean. The target's names are Erak Brand and Gabriella DeZantez. We'll try to keep you updated on their location, but that may not always be possible. For now, they are preparing to go to a town called Solnos, in the lands controlled by Lord Aristide of Fayence."
"It's hard to find someone who doesn't want to be found, outside of the cities."
"Too much trouble?"
"Merely more expensive." Batsen said.
"No trouble. In any case, they'll have a base of sorts. There is a small church in the town of Solnos and both targets will be based there. They may be founding a Preceptory of the Order in the town. As to the fee — "
"Negotiations about the fee are fairly unimportant. I get what I want, or you get someone else." Batsen paused. "I don't mean to sound rude, arrogant or greedy, but it's better to be honest about these things."
"You come highly recommended and the price is unlikely to be an object."
"Five hundred gold, plus ten more per week or part of a week as expenses. The five hundred to be payable in advance. Is that wildly fantastical?"
"Highly expensive, but no, not fantastical."
"Then consider your two problematic members of the Faith gone. As I mentioned before, if there are any special requirements, feel free to request them."
"None," the voice said. "Use your judgement to remove them in whatever manner you deem most efficient. The important thing is that they die, not how."
With that the strange black cloud shrank and, in a few moments, it was gone.
"Impressive," Batsen murmured to himself. Then he lit a few more lamps and began to select the clothes and equipment he would need for the new mission.