The journey took them along a desolate road with leaning fences and forsaken fields. Many cobblestones were missing from it. The underbrush was growing up at the edges. Even so, life seemed to be returning to this place, the plants becoming greener and less barren. The skies seemed a little less bleak.

It was clear that the plants Lilas had set up could grow well here. However, you could see them growing out of place, as though dark powers were passing them by. Felix became increasingly irritated as they walked past them. Jaina seemed concerned as well. Jaina kept checking her book as she did, frowning cutely.

"What is it?" asked William.

"These are all medicinal herbs," noted Jehair. "Lilas must have known what he was selling."

"Not necessarily," said William.

"Let's hope so," said Jaina. "Jehair tells me these plants are ideal for treating Baras' Bane."

"Don't be too quick to make that accusation," said William. "Father has always taught me that by the time you face an enemy, it is best if they are already defeated."

"Perhaps so," said Jehair. "It is said that there is a sword somewhere around here, driven into the earth for a worthy elven hand. The Singing Sword. None has drawn it because the elves are driven away."

They had many discussions as they walked. William soon realized that Jaina's education in Magicora had been extensive. Though her knowledge of history was less than his, she knew much of herbs and remedies. It also seemed she hoped to become a Sorcerer's guild member someday.

Here and there, they would find green patches that became increasingly common. William could only assume that there were other adventurers here. Ones' who had been spurred into action.

If so, they did not find any of them.

But they were attacked several more times by undead over the next few days and often would have made stands. The nights were filled with the howling of wolves. William would often look out and see them running beyond the light. Sometimes he thought he saw a blonde-haired woman clad in a dark robe just beyond the firelight.

Yet usually, they had to fight. So they looked for defensive hills to rest on. They left behind them circles of bodies around their campfire.

Often they would be woken to find the enemy at hand, and soon they were tired. Many villages they walked through were abandoned. Others were defensive and hardly spoke to them save to barter supplies. The people were obviously terrified and hiding from something, carrying weapons. There was evidence that the high priest's minions had been at once. There were carriage tracks and armored footprints.

William only prayed that some other power would rescue them, for it was obvious he was too late. The villages that were inhabited had many people with dead eyes and unnerve. Jaina took notes during this and usually stayed out of the fighting.

Then, quite abruptly, William came to an outpost by a crossroads.

It was a circle of stone with a house in the center. There were hundreds of bodies by it, most of them undead. But twelve of them were human and clad in armor, and they had not begun to decay. Six others were priests, clad in red robes, and were killed by a sword. And among them was the corpse of Joffrey, hewn by many strikes, everyone except the face. Several carriages with dead drivers were a little ways off. They held cages behind the oxen as if to take people. But the cages had been broken open and turned over.

However, the oxen had been released and were grazing to one side unharmed.

"Footprints show many people fled away from these cages," said Jehair. "They took the weapons from the guards and their supplies and ran."

"Who could have killed this many men?" asked Jaina.

"We seem to have found him," said Felix.

Sitting on a rock, drinking, was a bald, thuggish-looking man with bleary eyes who looked drunk. His sword was bloodstained, and he seemed to be trying to wipe it off with a handkerchief. All while drinking from the skin of wine. The red liquid slipped down their lips, and his eyes were bleary. How could he drink here with the stench of death and undead?

"Who are you?" asked William.

"Ham Hawkthorne," said the man.

"And who are these men?" asked William. "Why have you killed them?"

"Slavers," said Ham, motioning in the opposite direction from a nearby village. This one looked decently populated, and the people were working. They seemed to be branding oxen. "They said they wanted to get into the village over there and that I was a fool. So I hacked them to pieces.

"Then I sold the oxen for wine. I think."

"Some of these men were priests," said William.

"Don't care," said Ham, drinking again. "Some church. Never do anything for me."

"How much wine have you consumed?" asked Jehair. "And why are you doing it here?"

"Yes," said Ham. "Third skin today. After I killed them, I think. Not sure how long I've been here. I'm working through it while waiting for Varsus and Reginald."

This was a waste of time.

"Felix," said William. "Check their corpses. We'll see if we can get them a more or less decent burial."

"The ghouls ought to have devoured them long ago," said Jehair.

"Have you considered that Varsus and Reginald might have decided not to wait? These crossroads are infested by the undead?" asked Jaina.

"Reginald said to stay here and wait," said Ham.

"Reginald De Chevlon wouldn't lie," conceded William, who had met him. He was a good friend of Varsus.

"Flies are not touching these bodies," said Jehair. "Nature abhors them."

William looked and saw as much. The priest and their company had no birds around them, and their bodies were untouched. There wasn't even the stink of death about them as was expected. And it was challenging to think of them as people now that they were here.

Who was this person?

Joffrey?

Some magic was at work here.

"Don't tell me what to do!" said Ham before throwing an empty wineskin at his face.

It slammed against William's helmet, and he reminded himself this could be a murder. Ham had cut these men down for the pettiest of reasons. As a mere impulse. "Why did you kill these men?"

"They cut me off in traffic," said Ham. "I need another drink." Then he abruptly broke down, sobbing uncontrollably. "Why did you die... Why did you die..."

And he lay down and fell asleep.

William looked up. Then to the bodies lying there. Felix took out several documents from Joffrey's purse and some personal effects. Why didn't William care? He felt as if this were insignificant. As if Ham has broken a toy or something.

It was wrong and sick.

"Come, let's leave drunkards' business to drunkards," said Felix.

"We can't just leave them for vultured," said William. A hiss of hatred filled his mind while Ham began to snore.

"The ghouls despoil corpses," said Jehair. "Usually, one either raises a cairn for heroes. Or, more likely, simply piles the dead and burns them. Though that would take some doing."

"Let me," said Jaina.

And raising her staff, she sent forward a bolt of flame. First to Joffrey, then the others so that they were soon burning. Yet the fire seemed to recoil and fizzle, and Jaina flinched, her spell halting. "Come on, Mol'Tan, it's just flesh.

"You can burn this."

Mol'Tan, however, was ill-content to listen. And Jaina had to work at it for some time, and the bodies simply refused to burn. Eventually, as if forced by reality, the priests began to shrivel up like dried fruit. It was hard to think of them as people, but eventually, it was done.

"Some dark magic is at work here," said Jehair. "Dehumanizing a person should take effort. However, being forced to do so on sight is nearly impossible.

"What do you remember of Joffrey?"

"He's part of House Atravain," said Jaina. "An uh... distant cousin, I think. Several times removed."

"Distant," William halted. "Why don't you care? Surely you must have spoken to him."

"I didn't," said Jaina. "I was hardly aware he even existed.

"I've met him before, quite frequently. Even before becoming a Bishop, I can't remember what he was like. It's like his face is blurred in my mind. A man like him ought to have wanted to use his family connections. So why did it never come up?"

"I don't think you ever met the real Joffrey," said Jehair. "Something evil is at work here. And I don't want to stay around any longer. It's unnatural."

As they walked on, Ham woke up and began to sing.

William saw a blade driven into the hill above the village. It seemed to send forth a song that came with the wind. It was faint, but as they walked, they drew nearer. There were clouds in the sky, and it was brighter than ever. It was a particularly dim and miserable day by most standards.

Something had to be done to ensure the momentum continued.

"What is that sword up there?" asked William.

"Do not go near it," said Jehair. "That is the Singing Sword. It rests on the hill, over a great barrow. Within that barrow, many unholy creatures are trapped. Once, they often came out to feast on the blood of the living.

"But Arengeth and I managed to seal it using the sword. The Sun Spirit sends its rays down upon it and powers the spell. And at night, the moon provides enough light to maintain it. Yet it is less effective, and we must be indoors near flames if we want to avoid a fight."

"You journeyed with Gail Arengeth?" asked Felix.

"Yes, her and Pandora the Sorceress, though I am hardly alone there," said Jehair. "He has had many companions. There was a time when he often came into Antion. But since the days of Andoa II, his main focus has been on Escor. That last time he came here was in the events leading up to the battle of Desora.

"I lived here once before I began journeying as an adventurer.

"It was long ago that I met Gail Arengeth when he was on an errand from elsewhere. I was still before the age of bearing, and he told many stories of adventures and things. And I decided I wanted to be an adventurer.

"That is why I fled south, down Savior's Run, then spent some time as a weaver in Antion. Then, when the criminal gangs became bad, I went south along the King's highway and came here. From there, I lived here and learned to hunt the undead under the locals.

"I became very good at it and spent a long time doing it before eventually traveling into the realm of the Wood Elves. That was where I was taught the ways of a druid. But that was before the Escorian Wars when Neral Dinis was not Lord of that place.

"Neral Dinis was chosen to take his place. Apparently, he has a contact in Gel Carn."

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

"Who?" asked William.

"Fayn Benarus, I believe," said Jehair. "Or Hawkthorne if you prefer the less interesting name.

"She is the niece of the Steward of Gel Carn by his brother's marriage with a De Chevlon woman. Quite intelligent and not at all a good person.

"Now come, fearless leader. I have a friend here if he has not moved or died."

"Probably both," muttered Felix.

Jehair actually laughed at that. It was nice to hear her laugh.

"Actually," said Felix. "While you were talking to Ham, I checked their packs. I found this among the priests."

William took a letter from him and opened it.

"A letter from Cirithil," said William. "To Joffrey.

"You are to begin gathering my flock in as large numbers as possible. Remember to preach primarily to those areas far from help. Remember that our ministry is to be given to people without other hope.

"Focus your efforts on people without real focus, with no particular place in the world or will to live. Remember, no word can get out. I cannot guarantee complete safety. You should be reminded that my seal is proof against the gods. Nagos expects perfect results.

"I intend to slaughter a few sheep to ensure success here. And some hungry beggars are expecting a meal. Refrain from disappointing them.

"-Cirithil."

"Cirithil paints a much more menacing figure in these letters than he did before," said Jehair. "I wonder if he was not playing a role for Maius and the others rather than the other way around."

"I sincerely doubt it," said William. "He would not have made that mistake if he were truly so menacing. While he might be competent in some things, I expect he is little but a frontman for the real powers.

"He will be easily defeated once they are, and we should pay him no more mind."

"Could this Nagos be funding this?" asked Jaina.

"No," said William quickly. "Nagos is King of a distant island and would have no hold over the church."

"We'll have to find out what the operation was and how he was involved," said Jaina. "I guess something to do with slavery."

Jehair nodded.

She led them to an inn with a symbol of a rising sun on it. Over them was the Singing Sword, and they entered. Within, William saw the innkeeper watching as a barmaid served drinks. Elven, like a lot of others.

"Lady Jehair, you are here?" said a voice, and William saw a forty-year-old, burly man with a long beard polishing a glance. "Thank Elranor, much has shifted since you dwelled in these lands."

"Yes, for the present," said Jehair coming forward to the counter with William and Felix. Drinks were provided. "How have things gone, Fenus?"

"Poorly, I'm afraid," said Fenus. "Things have gotten a great deal worse since you lived here. For a time, things were peaceful under Neral Dinis. But the undead began to grow in number, and many of our fighting men left for the wars.

"Few returned, for they found new lands and lords in Artarq. Those of us that remain are protected by the Singing Sword. But I fear that they may soon be overwhelmed by the darkness."

William looked upward and saw Arkan Lantan over by a table, not looking up. Yet he had several backup men standing by.

William nodded and motioned to Felix. Then both of them moved over, and William sat across from him. Arkan was eating a humble meal quite happily. He saw a redheaded woman with a huge sword waiting on a table a little way off. Her hair was long, held out of her face by a blue headband, and she had green eyes. Her outfit was of red leather and left little to the imagination. It was actually of Themousian make; he'd seen similar armor in Mother's trophies in Carn Gable. Was that Spirtana armor?

Across from her on the table was that same blue-skinned creature from the Carnival of Souls. They tensed as William neared Arkan, a bodyguard, he guessed. He wondered who she was and remembered Anborn's penchant for befriending such women.

So, the blue-skinned girl had been working for the Thieves Guild. She had been an agent of some kind, observing events. Likely trying to get into William's company for information from the start. From there, she'd moved to Cirithil and now had reported to Arkan.

What was the connection to House Atravain? Or was it the Sorcerer's Guild that she was working for? The latter seemed more likely; they would want someone to keep an eye on William's progress. And Isriath had surely told them something of what had happened out of courtesy.

Arkan knew what had been happening. He was well informed.

No matter. The mystery could be solved later.

"Arkan, how nice to see you alive and unhindered," said William. He saw several men nearby. The alternate William suggested he was very fine. But William dismissed this as absurd.

"My apologies for disappointing you, Sir Gabriel," said Arkan. "Though I will admit, being at cross purposes has faced some serious problems. Some business has taken me out here to Blackfear, and we've journeyed for some time."

"Might I inquire what it is?" asked William.

"It is very little to it," said Arkan. "I came to meet with an associate of mine, and he is to meet me here. Jehair, you look at radiant as ever."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Arkan," said Jehair, smiling.

"No, I suppose it will not," said Arkan.

William looked to Felix, who put a hand on Jehair's shoulder. "I must ask you to step back, Jehair. Now."

Arkan motioned to his guards with a nod and they moved off.

"Shall I bring some ale for you?" said an elven woman.

"No, thank you," said William. "And make sure no one sits by us. In this company, they could be endangered by what they hear. So tell Jaina Atravain over there to remain there as a witness near the door. Now, Arkan Lantan, your business."

Arkan sighed. "I can see I'm not going to become the loveable rogue of your group."

"There is no such thing," said William.

"Well, part of my business was simply to survey the land itself," said Arkan. "Blackfear has become increasingly less populated over the decades. People depart or are forced to leave or even disappear. And recently, large numbers of satyr tribes have been appearing and threatening everyone. Especially around the Black Mountain."

"Has the High Priest been made aware of this?" asked William. "Isn't this his job?"

"Several messengers were sent out," said Arkan. "I fear he views his immunity to the ordinary rules more as a means to profit. Have you noticed the empty villages along the way? It seems that someone has been letting him do all that."

"Was it you?" asked William.

"I don't deal in the slave trade," said Arkan. "Imogen hates it, and it's a good way to lose her favor. That was why I took control of Montoya in the first place.

"Although I confess, my coming meeting might involve it. The usual sort of meeting in these circumstances. I'm to meet some very important people in Castle Blackfear. Some of them you met at the party."

The elf put down the cups. "Here you are, good masters."

"I met Cirithil," said William. "He was disappointing."

Was he supposed to become friends with this scoundrel? He'd rather see him at the noose.

Arkan laughed. "Yes, few men turn more people from the church than the people who own the church. I'm afraid the clergy does behave like that, with one or two exceptions. It had cut into the faith of the populace a great deal."

"...Have you considered not showing up?" asked William. Over in the corner, Jaina was writing. Jehair looked very, very worried. How did Jaina and her sisters fit into this?

Was William supposed to be a rogue?

If Arkan could support the names taken from Lamech, it could be a killing blow to the criminals. Arkan would live, and his subordinates all die. Then hopefully, he'd be assassinated by someone else.

"What do you mean?" asked Arkan.

"You might be arrested there," said William. The blue-skinned observer had been there for Cirithil being thrown out of the brothel. But she hadn't seen the fight with Lamech, or Dunmoore taking him into custody. "That's a friendly warning.

"The situation to the north has escalated. Cirithil has made such a mockery of the church that it has led to a full-scale religious conflict. You're likely to be used as a scapegoat at this rate. Jaina over there is acting as an observer; once she reports back, who can foresee the result."

"Are you threatening me?" asked Arkan, voice cold.

At that moment, the door was thrown open before William could even think of a reply. It hit the wall and bounced off with a crash. Into the room marched Lamech as lightning flashed behind him. He was clad in his black armor again and had his sword. Seeing him, he marched up to the table and stopped as if to be recognized.

"Hello, William," said Lamech. And he sounded furious.

"Lamech..." said William, hatred in his tone as his sword was out in a moment. The alternate William took Lamech off-guard by smiling and talking to him like an old friend. But how would that happen? Such an individual would never have defeated him. Not fairly, though he might have tricked him into hitting his own shield after running away. "By what devilry did you get out of prison, you murdering bastard?"

Several of the guards covertly brought their hands near their swords. The blue-skinned girl turned her chair as though to watch the fight.

"You were the warlock, William," said Lamech, calming somewhat as he saw Arkan. "When Princess Ansara locked me up, she sent me to hunt undead here!" Had the alternate William suggested he do that?

Disgraceful.

William raised his sword in rage. Lamech did the same, and they halted for a long moment. After that, things went very still, and Arkan touched Lamech's shoulder. "Not now, gentlemen.

"Obviously, the situation has changed. We shall alter our actions and go from thieves to adventurers."

"Were you involved in the Healer's Guild?" asked William.

"Yes and no," said Arkan. "I was involved in founding the Healer's Guild, but I was not the primary architect. Instead, I was a middleman for agents of Zigilus. I allowed the operation to focus on demon priests in one place. It grew a great deal and was protected from outside harm by the influence of Zigilus, a city to the far north.

"This led to it overextending into the heartlands and other places. But, Zigilus was annihilated by the Legions of Dinis. With the loss of Zigilus, they also lost their main source of protection. I'm surprised the plantation owners didn't destroy them long ago. But I gather they hated treating their slaves with dignity more than they liked being alive.

"Stupidity is the one sin that is always punished eventually."

"And this Demoration, what is it?" asked William.

"A sort of... interdimensional group of merchants. They like to meddle in other people's affairs," said Arkan. "Similar to the Sorcerer's Guild in some ways. However, they operate in different locations.

"Though that is a gross oversimplification. It is more a cluster of related interests than a single organization. They can be disruptive, but they'll back off if you kill enough of their agents.

"We were contemplating how best to do it." The blue-skinned girl rolled her eyes while Arkan gave a wary half-glance. "This is Vow, and Red Safara, freelance mercenaries.

"Don't mind them. They are simply looking after my safety."

"I had thought you'd lose a great deal of money in these events," noted William, doubting it.

"Actually, I've long since pulled my investments out of the Healer's Guild," said Arkan. "Tavish moving their operations into the countryside closed my accounts. And they never wanted him because he operated on House Kern's behalf. They are Gavin's proxies in Antion and operate on his guidelines.

"Most of their money has been going to House Suvvest in Sorn, who will likely cut off funding soon. With their losses here and war imminent, Sorn will spend a lot of money invading Dinis. And that will close the trade routes through the Islands of Power."

"Who runs them?" asked William.

"Well, originally, it was a man named Dakan, but he died in the siege of Zigilus," said Arkan. "Killed by a woman named Narcissa, who has refounded a new settlement in Kalthak. She is the one who has been declared their new leader.

"Although I'm not even sure she knows she runs it. I suspect they have simply given her lip service and not made any contact."

"Not entirely true," said Lamech. "A large segment of citizens from Zigilus were relocated to Antion from there. I've kept track of them. I believe they were supposed to take over things. But they had no leader to run their operations, so they mostly got absorbed into the populace.

"A lot of them became prostitutes and very profitable ones."

"I know something about how Zigildrazia operates," said William. "I've studied history. She usually grows a city to a level of power and depravity to lower the morality of the surrounding area. From there, she lets it be destroyed. Then moves her more competent people to another realm under a leader she raises.

"One of her favorites, usually a blonde woman with a ponytail. It's a sort of fixation for her. Though there is often a spare, usually with short hair."

"I was there," said Jehair, voice grave. "I saw the siege of Zigilus, and I saw Narcissa and her sister. They matched that description.

"Now, they refused to leave with the other Zigildrazians and instead fought. But they were on the verge of being destroyed. However, King Abdul Sahshir convinced the Legion to let them leave peacefully.

"And from there, Abdul convinced Narcissa and her sister to resettle in Kalthak. So now they have a kind of hybrid status without any of the depravity. And it is working.

"So it seems that Sahshir has done great damage."

"Whatever the case, the Church of Coinfurth took the operation over. They expanded it and decreased efficiency a great deal," said Arkan. "Nobody could pay their jacked-up prices in Sorn, so they moved them all out here.

"They've lost a small fortune here, I'll wager. However, Sen Kaba regained it by taking advantage of the mine shutdowns. He'll be at the meeting."

"Is there a single faction in the world who is not involved in this fiasco?" asked William.

"Directly," said Arkan. "Quite possibly. But Antion stands at a nexus of trade between east and west.

"That was why Anoa IV moved the capital to it from Gel Carn. In retrospect, that might have put us too close to Seathorius and Calisha and too far from Escor."

"You're a student of history as well?" noted William, impressed despite himself.

"Much like your own family, Sir Gabriel, I have a passion for it," said Arkan. "Though I think far more of the Islands of Power than other places."

"So, what is your connection with Lamech?" asked William.

"Ah, yes, I forgot my introductions," said Arkan. "This is Lamech, my adopted son and one of my most valuable agents. However, his business is not usually focused on this world. I gather you've already met.

"In any case, it's time my men and I went into the hero business. This place certainly needs one, and I need a safe place to hole up. So we'll begin planning to engage the undead at once and secure this area. "With a proper setup, we might defeat the undead moderately. Then remind everyone why we are loveable rogues."

"Is heroism a tradition among thieves, now?" asked William, unable to keep the scorn from his tone.

"What is that supposed to mean? Don't judge us, you high and mighty, stuck up-" began Vow before Arkan silenced her with a look.

"It is in thieves of Imogen," said Arkan. "The difference between a vicious criminal and a loveable rogue is heroics. A rogue who picks pockets and slits throats while giving to charity is a monster.

"A rogue who picks pockets and slits throats while having adventures is a hero. When a Thieves Guild becomes too decadent, redemption is battling someone worse. The alternative is finishing off the worst aspects of the organization by proxy.

"Perhaps Lord Dunmoore and I could relive the old times. Let's get to work."

William nodded, then looked to Lamech. "Lamech, a word?"

"Yes?" asked Lamech.

They went to one side, and William ensured no one was listening. "When Tavish moves up to nobility, you'll inherit his operations, yes?"

"You don't even know, do you?" asked Lamech.

How had Arkan intimidated him? Looking over to where the blonde man was chatting with Jehair, he saw Lamech look that way too. Then, thinking about it, William looked at him and remembered his meeting with Arraxia. "...You're an anchor of Melchious, like me."

"Yes," said Lamech. "It makes us brothers, after a fashion."

"No, it doesn't," said William.

Lamech was afraid of Arkan.

Why?

He'd never been afraid of anyone. Obviously, there was some good reason for it. Otherwise, they'd be fighting now.

"Well then, we have a problem," said William.

"I'm afraid so," said Lamech. "You can't face me physically, and I can't afford to lose my operations here."

"Perhaps an arrangement could be reached?" asked William. No sense in pointing out he'd thrashed Lamech.

"Such an arrangement will lead to one of our deaths," said Lamech.

William thought about it. "Might I make a suggestion?"

"By all means," said Lamech.

"Limit your targets to completely irredeemable anchors," said William. "There are better ways to make friends than going after Paladins. As your stay in prison demonstrates. The next one will be longer or very, very short."

"Why did you defend those Paladins?" asked Lamech.

"You misunderstand me," said William. "I do not care which 'side' wins. Kicking in doors and heroic speeches are a waste of energy on people who won't listen."

"I feel the same way," said Lamech deadpan. "That galls me."

"Perhaps you should research Anoa the Bright," said William. "I think you'd like his histories."

"I just might," said Lamech. "His reputation does proceed him."

William put together as best a plan as he could. It started with helping Arkan.