‘All this is fascinating,’ said Skilgannon, ‘but can we hold to the path?’
‘Of course, my boy. Forgive me. The mind wanders. You want to know why Landis has been so favoured.’ Gamal paused, as if to gather his thoughts. ‘He discovered her bones. He fought for her right to a new life, and when he succeeded, he and I went on to refine and improve the power of the artefacts, giving her immortality. We created the Eternal.’
‘I can see why she would reward you,’ said Skilgannon. ‘Why do you now fear her?’
‘One answer to that would be you, my boy. The Blessed Priestess and her prophecy. You know of whom I speak?’
‘Ustarte,’ said Skilgannon. ‘She came to me before the last battle. She told me I was to die, and she asked me to grant her a wish.’
‘She wanted to conduct your burial,’ said Gamal.
‘Yes.’
‘Was she as wise as the legends tell us?’
‘I have not read all your legends. Those concerning me are ridiculous and far-fetched. But, yes, Ustarte was wise. She told me she had seen many futures, and some of them were bleak beyond despair.’
‘Did she tell you why she wanted your body?’
‘No. Nor did I ask. My concerns were for the battle against the Zharn. She assured me that I would win it.’
‘And you did.’
‘Yes.’
‘You had put aside the Swords of Night and Day for more than ten years. Why did you wield them again?’
‘I had no choice. I was fifty-four years old and long past my prime. They aided me.’
‘They also cursed you, Skilgannon.’
‘I know.’
‘It is why you were wandering in the Void for all those centuries. You could not pass on to the green fields.’
‘That is not why. None of the legends of my life you have here tell of the evils I committed.’
‘You are speaking of the massacre at Perapolis.’
Skilgannon was surprised. ‘How is it that you know of it?’
‘I know many things I have not yet shared with Landis. You and I spoke in the Void. You were reluctant to return at first. There was a great part of your soul that desired the punishment the Void offered. Yet when the demons attacked you fought them. You would not willingly let your soul be extinguished.’
‘I have no memories of this.’
‘Some will come back. You are now a creature of the flesh once more. Memories of the flesh return far more swiftly than the recollections of spirit.’
‘Why am I here, Gamal? What does Landis think I can do?’
The old man shrugged. ‘He does not truly know. I do not know. Perhaps you can do nothing. It seems to me that even were you to take up the swords again you would not be able to turn back Jiamad armies.
It is a mystery, Skilgannon. Life is full of mysteries.’ Holding tightly to the blanket round his shoulders, the old man rose to his feet and tottered out to the balcony. Skilgannon followed him. Gamal settled himself into a wicker chair, a thick cushion against his lower back. ‘Beautiful, is it not?’ he said, waving a thin hand towards the distant mountains.
‘Yes,’ Skilgannon agreed.
‘I can still see them in my mind, though if I need to I can float my spirit free. I did so earlier, and observed your meeting with some of our Jiamads. You are not a man who scares easily.’
‘Whom did they kill?’
‘I think you know the answer to that. Longbear killed the one you downed. Tore out his throat.’
Gamal sighed. ‘Once — a long time ago — Longbear was a friend of mine. A good man.’
‘Yet you turned him into a beast.’
‘Yes, we did. Needs must when the wolves gather.’ Gamal gave a weak laugh. ‘I gave him the name Longbear. He was a man who admired bears. The admiration he felt for them was what killed him. He used to observe them. Full of confidence he would walk the high country, learning all he could about their habits. He wrote many of them down. One day he was watching a female leading her cubs to one of the upper waterfalls. She suddenly turned on him. Have you ever seen a bear attack?’
‘Yes. For creatures so large their speed is terrifying.’
‘As he discovered. He was mauled. A group of hunters found him. They brought him back, but there was nothing we could do. The wounds were not only hideous, but became infected. When he was dying he offered himself for the joining. We melded him with a young bear.’
‘Does he remember who he was?’ asked Skilgannon.
Gamal shook his head. ‘Some Jiamads do. They do not last long. They are driven mad. Usually a new personality emerges. Human attributes — loyalty, friendship — are mostly absent.’
‘Are all your Joinings volunteers?’
‘No. Most are criminals — outlaws, thieves, rapists, killers. They are condemned to die by the judges, and, upon their deaths, they are melded.’
‘It does not seem wise,’ said Skilgannon, ‘to make a killer even more powerful.’
‘No, it does not,’ agreed Gamal, ‘and that is where the jewels come in. You saw that they had stones embedded in their temples?’
‘Yes.’
‘Through them we control the Jiamads. We can administer pleasure or pain, keep them alive or kill them. They know this. It keeps them subservient. The Eternal’s Jiamads have no such stones. But then she cares nothing if they go on a rampage and slay peasants.’
A light breeze whispered over the balcony wall. Gamal shivered and returned to his room, where there was a fire lit. The old man went to it and knelt before the dying flames. Holding out his hand he gauged the heat, then fumbled for a log, which he added to the blaze. ‘Being blind is such a bore,’ he said.
‘It seems to me that if you have the magic to meld man and beast you should be able to heal your eyes,’ Skilgannon observed.
‘And we can. But I will use it no more,’ said Gamal. Returning to his chair he sat down and sighed. T
have lived for many lifetimes. I was arrogant, and believed I served the greater good. It was a deceit.
Reborns deceive themselves so easily. We are immortal and therefore, somehow, important. Such a nonsense. But let us talk of you. What do you desire now?’
‘I don’t know yet. Not another war. That is certain.’
‘And understandable. You have been fighting in the Void for a thousand years. Enough, I feel, for any man.’
‘What was I fighting?’
‘Demons, and the dark souls of the cursed. The Void is a terrible place for those condemned to walk there. Most pass through it swiftly, some wander for a while. Few accomplish what you did. But then you had help. You recall?’
‘No.’
‘When I was with you a shining figure helped you in a fight against several demons who had cornered you in a ravine.’
‘As I said, I have no knowledge of the Void. Nor — I think — do I wish to recall it. You ask what I desire here. What if I were to tell you that I desire to leave? To journey back to lands I remember?’
‘Then I would wish you well, Skilgannon, and furnish you with coin and weapons, and a sound horse.
I fear, however, you would not get far. The war is being waged across two continents. Death and desolation are everywhere. There are roving bands of renegade Jiamads, and men who have given themselves over to the darkest bestiality of their own natures. Some areas are now desolate of life, others suffer famine and disease. War is dreadful at any time, but this war is particularly vile. If you leave here alone you will find yourself much as you were in the Void — save there will be no shining figure to help you.’
‘Even so I think I will risk it,’ said Skilgannon. ‘I have been studying maps in Landis’s library. Petar is not on them. Where are we now, in relation to Naashan?’
‘In your time this would have been Drenai land, bordering the Sathuli realm. Naashan is across the sea. You can sail from Draspartha. . I believe it was called Dros Purdol in the past. However, might I ask a favour before you go?’