Kevlin rolled out of his blankets with a groan in the icy gray light of pre-dawn. He spent the next few minutes stamping his feet and swinging his arms to drive warmth into them.

Winter was fast approaching in the Hallvarri highlands. Frost coated the grass, and mist curled up from the horses’ backs. Snow could start flying any day.

The rest of the party looked as worn and tired as he felt. The long days were taking their toll. During breakfast, he jockeyed for position around the fire. Ceren joined him. Her auburn hair hung in a simple braid that morning, and he marveled how different a woman could look just by changing her hair.

“Good morning,” he greeted her.

“Good morning,” she replied with a dazzling smile. She held her hands out to the fire. “Have you thought about what we discussed yesterday?”

“Not really.”

She frowned, leaning close, and he caught a whiff of perfume. That just made him think about how badly he must stink.

Her emerald eyes held him. “Don’t be daft, Kevlin. You have to think about your situation. You can’t sell yourself short.”

That phrase again. She turned, and he followed her gaze to the right. A few feet away stood Indira chatting with Jerrik and Drystan. Behind the trio, Harafin approached the fire, looking grumpy and tired.

Ceren turned back to Kevlin and raised an eyebrow, as if to make sure he got the point.

He hadn’t.

She moved away, leaving him muttering to himself about the insanity of understanding women. Was she referring to Indira, his swordbrothers, Harafin, or all of them?

Jerrik and Drystan honored him with their blood oath. Harafin freely taught him magic and trusted him with knowledge only the sentinels usually held. If anything, Harafin was setting him up for something, making him a tool the old man could use in whatever plots he kept locked in that bearded head. Was Ceren warning him against Harafin’s influence?

His eyes settled on Indira. Her midnight hair was brushed back from her face, and her cheeks flushed with the cold. She laughed at some comment Drystan made, and the clear sound warmed him in a way the fire never could.

She glanced in his direction and noticed him watching. He looked away, cursing himself for a gawking fool. In her own way, Indira troubled him more than Ceren.

Ceren played with his mind, trying to maneuver him into doing something for her that he’d probably be happy to help with if she just asked. Indira played with his heart and that was far deadlier. Did she even understand what kind of weapon she wielded with those long lashes and shy smiles?

# # #

Later that morning, the trail widened into a regular country road, allowing them to kick the horses into a canter. By mid-morning they reached the wide expanse of the Imperial Highway.

After studying its hard-packed surface for a minute, Adalia declared, “They went north.”

Harafin nodded, his expression grave. “North, the road splits. One path leads west, back toward Diodor. I do not believe they came so far east only to go west again.”

“So they’re going north, to Il’Aicharen,” Gabral said.

“Yes.” Harafin nodded toward the distant mountains rising to the north. At this distance, they were dark shadows on the horizon. “Mount Il’Aicharen lies there. I must contact Rhisart and warn him of the danger.”

“Is that wise?” Leander asked.

“Perhaps not, but I can delay no longer.”

“I will lend you my strength,” Leander offered.

“No, old friend, I should be safe enough. But stand ready in case I am wrong.” Without waiting for a reply, Harafin closed his eyes, and a dim, silvery light gathered around his eyes.

A moment later, Harafin opened his eyes and swayed in the saddle.

Kevlin steadied him, “Are you all right?”

Harafin rubbed his temple with one hand. “Yes . . . I got through to Rhisart, and he knows we are coming, but the attack has already begun.”

“How is that possible?” Gabral asked. “Tanathos can’t be that far ahead of us.”

“Perhaps Tanathos has other forces at his command,” Leander said.

Harafin nodded. “It seems likely. Regardless, the keep has powerful defenses, and it appears Rhisart was successful in activating them in time. He should be able to hold until we arrive.”

They pushed the horses hard, heading north. Miles slipped by and the ground began rising toward the Straton Mountains. Individual peaks, with snow clinging to the higher elevations, became clear. Mount Il’Aicharen towered behind them. They passed no travelers coming south, and Kevlin wondered if traffic was just light, or if Tanathos had killed them all.

At noon, they paused beside a stream to rest the horses and eat a quick lunch. Kevlin dropped onto a fallen log beside Indira and she smiled in greeting.

“How about teaching me one of those card games you know?” he asked.

“Sure.”

“Don’t do it,” Jerrik interrupted. “She’ll steal your shirt, Kevlin.”

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“How do you know?”

Indira said, “Done is done, Jerrik. No whining.”

“It wasn’t fair,” the big man complained.

“I gave it back,” Indira said. She caught Kevlin staring, and blushed.

“You sold it back,” Jerrik exclaimed. “At twice the price I could’ve bought a new one.”

“You play for clothes?” Kevlin asked, trying to reconcile Indira the gentle healer with Indira the card shark.

Indira shrugged. “He drank away all his money. He insisted he could win for once, and wouldn’t listen to reason. Sometimes you have to teach a lesson.”

“No cards,” Gabral said. “It’s bad for morale when you win all the time.”

“Are you saying I cheat?” Indira asked.

Gabral stammered under her gaze. “No, of course, not. You’re the most honest person I know.”

Ceren joined them, grinning. “Indira, you’ll have to teach me how you do that.”

The two scooted closer together, chatting excitedly. Kevlin’s chance to spend private time with Indira was gone. Still, he had enough money in Bajaran’s purse that he could stay at the table a long time, no matter how good Indira proved to be. He was looking forward to the chance to play her.

It wouldn’t be soon, so he turned to Harafin. “I still don’t understand how killing Antigonus at the node of power will cause so much destruction.”

“It is because he is bearer of Tia Khoa.”

“But I have the rock.”

“Stone,” Harafin corrected out of habit.

Kevlin shrugged. “I have it, so what’s the danger?”

The others gathered around to listen.

“The danger lies at the heart of Tia Khoa’s power. The empire’s magical defenses against the Sigrun are extremely complex and require vast amounts of energy. No person can generate that much power.”

“That’s why we need Tia Khoa, right?” Kevlin asked.

“It is more than that. Tia Khoa is a crucial element, but the power that fuels the aegis comes from the very fabric of the planet. Mount Il’Aicharen is a node of power, a nexus of the planet’s energy."

Harafin waited a second, as if for the import of that statement to settle on him. "It is also a dormant volcano. Similar nodes of power are dotted around the globe, and serve several important functions in balancing and sustaining all life. Il’Aicharen is the closest. If Tanathos gains access to the heart of the mountain, the core of that node of power, and murders Antigonus there, he will shatter the aegis.”

Kevlin whistled softly, finally beginning to understand the danger.

Harafin continued. “Antigonus’ life is tied to the spell, as is the power of Tia Khoa. Not only will the aegis crumble, but Tia Khoa will be destroyed, releasing the vast amounts of energy tied to it. Tanathos would be imbued with much of that energy, becoming the most powerful shadeleech on the planet."

Leander interjected, "Nothing we could do would likely stop him. Only the combined power of the quorum of masters might challenge him since the Six could never again unite with Tia Khoa gone."

“Now you begin to see my fear,” Harafin said into the silence. “If he succeeds, Tanathos could return to Grakonia and wrest power from the Sigrun, then unleash a war upon the Six Kingdoms we could not win.”

He smiled ruefully. “And most likely the event would trigger an eruption in Mount Il’Aicharen, burying half of Hallvarr in ash and fire.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Jerrik asked, rising to his feet. “Sounds like a good little fight ahead of us.”

# # #

The noonday sun shone warm and bright on the bustling docks of Diodor. The crisp salt air blew in from the Tamerlane Sea, driving the stench of dead fish and rotting waste from the docks up into the city. As the large merchant ship Ceara tied off at the dock, the captain and sailors joined together in a great cheer.

“Oy! What be the hollerin fer?” a burly port worker called up to them.

“We beat the record for crossing from Parthalan by a full day,” called down the mate. The sailors let out another “Huzzah!” even as a few of them ran out a boarding plank. A powerfully-built sentinel with a heavy mane of black hair hurried across.

“Sentinel Ah’Shan,” the captain called. The sentinel paused after stepping onto the pier and glanced back. “May the Lady’s favor go with you.”

Ah’Shan nodded, and without a word rushed up the pier. To himself, he muttered, “Fastest crossing indeed. Pray it was enough.”

If only Wayra had warned him sooner. He grabbed the shoulder of the nearest official and spun the man around. “Tell me where I can buy a fast horse.”

# # #

Long after the sun set, the exhausted group finally stopped for the night. Kevlin wandered to the edge of camp, hoping for some quiet time to think, and perhaps avoid another lesson.

“Kevlin.”

He turned at the soft voice and was surprised to find Indira standing behind him.

“You getting a game together?” he asked, drinking in the sight of her.

She stepped closer, smiling. “No. I’ve been thinking about you . . . ah, about what you said.” Her eyes dropped and her cheeks flushed, but she took a deep breath and looked up again.

“What exactly did I say?” Hopefully it was something smart.

“About my gift.” She took another step closer, within arm’s reach, and smiled again, a real, warm smile, not the shy little things she normally gave. Her eyes sparkled. “I think I can do it. I think I can control how I shield people, and when.”

“That’s wonderful.”

She placed a hand on his arm. “Thank you.”

She leaned closer, and for a heartbeat he thought she was going to kiss him. His mouth went dry and his heart pounded. She was so close he could feel her warmth and smell the faint fragrance of her hair. Her creamy skin glowed in the dim light, and her full, red lips parted just a little.

She retreated suddenly, chuckling. “Kevlin, you are so gullible. You wouldn’t last ten minutes in Tamera.” She held his purse in one hand and hefted it a couple of times. “Where does a mercenary get a stash like this?”

“Where does a healer get such quick hands?” he retorted, snatching the purse back. He half hoped she’d try to run so he could chase her, but she relinquished it without a struggle.

“You didn’t answer my question,” she said.

“Let’s just say Bajaran lost a toss of the dice.”

“And you got the winnings? You sure you want to lose all that to me?”

“Who are you?” he asked. This was such a different side to her.

Indira’s face flushed and she looked down, as if realizing how forward she’d been acting. In a second, she switched from a bold woman, confident in her skills to a shy girl, anguished that she couldn’t heal all the world’s ills.

“I’m sorry,” she stammered. “I don’t know what got into me. I just . . . you make me . . .”

Kevlin took a step forward, hoping to coax out the secret Indira again.

She backed away. “I’ll see you later, Kevlin.”

Indira rushed away without looking back.

Kevlin started after her, but Ceren stepped out of the shadows. “Kevlin, we need to talk.”

“Now’s not really a good time.”

She moved to block his way. “Actually, now’s the best time.”

“What is it?”

She nodded after Indira. “Be careful, Kevlin. You’re messing with that girl’s heart.”

I’m messing with her?

“You’re a nobleman now,” Ceren continued “Allied with two very powerful houses. You need to think before you act.”

“And you need to focus on doing your job, not mine.”

“If you hurt her, I’ll kill you myself.”

“From everything I’ve heard, I’m the one who’s likely to get hurt playing against her.”

“That’s not what I mean and you know it,” Ceren said.

“I have no idea what you mean. Ever. You’re the one who’s Cunning, remember?”

Ceren abruptly changed tactics. “Kevlin, I worry about you sometimes.”

“Please don’t. It gives me a headache.”

“You’re moving in new circles. I see dangers ahead and I’m trying to help you avoid them.”

Kevlin forced down his frustration. “I appreciate it, Ceren. Let’s just focus on the mission at hand. We can worry about everything else later. Deal?”

She took his proffered hand. “Deal.”

After she left, he considered her words. There was more she had been trying to communicate, but he still didn’t get it. She was the most complicated woman he’d ever met.

Not wanting to speak with anyone for a while, he returned to the fire. He tried to see the rhythm of life Harafin had talked about, but to him the flames flickered randomly.

It’s hopeless. I can’t do all this magic stuff. I just need my sword and a clear shot at Tanathos. With the amulet to help, I’ll only need a second to finish him.