ink in hand and entered the information on the map. Kulgan stood looking over his shoulder.
Borric said to the elf, ‘After you’ve rested, carry my greetings to your mistress, and my wish for her good health and prosperity. If you should send runners to the west, please carry the same message to my sons.’
The elf bowed. ‘As my lord wishes. I shall return to Elvandar at once.’ He turned and left the tent.
Kulgan said, ‘I think I see it.’ He pointed to the new red spots on the map. They formed a rough half circle, through the pass. ‘The Tsurani are trying to hold this area here. That valley is the center of the circle. I would guess they are attempting to keep anyone from getting close.’
Both the dukes looked puzzled. Borric said, ‘But to what purpose? There is nothing there of any value militarily. It is as if they are inviting us to bottle them up in that valley.’
Suddenly Brucal gasped. ‘It’s a bridgehead. Think of it in terms of crossing a river. They have a foothold on this side of the rift, as the magician calls it. They have only as many supplies as their men can carry through. They don’t have enough control of the area for foraging, so they need to expand the area under their control and build up supplies before they launch an offensive.’
Brucal turned to the magician. ‘Kulgan, what do you think? This is more in your province.’
The magician looked at the map as if trying to divine information hidden in it. ‘We know nothing of the magic involved. We don’t know how fast they can pass supplies and men through, for no one has ever witnessed an appearance. They may require a large area, which this valley provides them. Or they may have some limit on the amount of time available to pass troops through.’
Duke Borric considered this. ‘Then there is only one thing to do. We must send a party into the valley to see what they are doing.’
Kulgan smiled. ‘I will go too, if Your Grace permits. Your soldiers might not have the faintest idea of what they are seeing if it involves magic.’
Brucal started to object, his gaze taking in the magician’s ample size. Borric cut him off. ‘Don’t let his look fool you. He rides like a trooper.’ He turned to Kulgan. ‘You had best take Pug, for if one should fall, then the other can carry the news.’
Kulgan looked unhappy at that, but saw the wisdom in it. The Duke of Yabon said, ‘If we strike at the North Pass, then into this valley and draw their forces there, a small, fast company might break through here.’ He pointed at a small pass that entered the south end of the valley from the east.
Borric said, ‘It is a bold enough plan. We have danced with the Tsurani so long, holding a stable front, I doubt they will expect it.’ The magician suggested they retire for the rest of the evening, for it would be a long day on the morrow. He closed his eyes briefly, then informed the two leaders that the rain would stop and the next day would be sunny.
Pug lay wrapped in a blanket, trying to nap, when Kulgan entered their tent. Meecham sat before the cook fire, preparing the evening meal and attempting to keep it from the greedy maw of Fantus. The firedrake had sought out his master a week before, eliciting startled cries from the soldiers as he swooped over the tents. Only Meecham’s commanding shouts had kept a bowman from putting a cloth-yard arrow into the playful drake. Kulgan had been pleased to see his pet, but at a loss to explain how the creature had found them. The drake had moved right into the magician’s tent, content to sleep next to Pug and steal food from under Meecham’s watchful eye.
Pug sat up as the magician pulled off his sopping cloak. ‘There is an expedition going deep within Tsurani-held territory, to break the circle they’ve thrown up around a small valley and find out what they are up to. You and Meecham will be going with me on this trip, I would have friends at my back and side.’
Pug felt excited by the news. Meecham had spent long hours schooling him in use of sword and shield, and the old dream of soldiering had returned. ‘I have kept my blade sharp, Kulgan.’
Meecham gave forth a snort that passed for laughter, and the magician threw him a black look. ‘Good, Pug. But with any luck we’ll not be fighting. We are to go in a smaller force attached to a larger one that will draw off the Tsurani. We will drive quickly into their territory and discover what they are hiding. We will then ride as fast as possible to bring back the news. I thank the gods they are without horses, or we could never hope to accomplish so bold a stroke. We shall ride through them before they know we have struck.’
‘Perhaps we may take a prisoner,’ the boy said hopefully.
‘It would be a change,’ said Meecham. The Tsurani had proved to be fierce fighters, preferring to die rather than be captured.
‘Maybe then we’d discover why they’ve come to Midkemia,’ ventured Pug.
Kulgan looked thoughtful. ‘There is little we understand about these Tsurani. Where is this place they come from? How do they cross between their world and ours? And as you’ve pointed out, the most vexing question of all, why do they come? Why invade our lands?’
‘Metal.’
Kulgan and Pug looked over at Meecham, who was spooning up stew, keeping one eye on Fantus. ‘They don’t have any metal and they want ours.’ When Kulgan and Pug regarded him with blank expressions, he shook his head. ‘I’d thought you puzzled it out by now, so I didn’t think to bring it up.’ He put aside the bowls of stew, reached behind himself, and drew a bright red arrow out from under his bedding. ‘Souvenir,’ he said, holding it out for inspection. ‘Look at the head. It’s the same stuff their swords are made from, some kind of wood, hardened like steel. I picked over a lot of things fetched in by the soldiers, and I haven’t seen one thing these Tsurani make with any metal in it.’
Kulgan looked flabbergasted. ‘Of course! It’s all so simple. They found a way to pass between their world and ours, sent through scouts, and found a land rich in metals they lack. So they sent in an invading army. It also explains why they marshal in a high valley of the mountains, rather than in the lower forests. It gives them free access to … the dwarven mines!’ He jumped up. ‘I’d better inform the dukes at once. We must send word to the dwarves to be alert for incursions into the mines.’
Pug sat thoughtfully as Kulgan vanished through the tent entrance. After a moment he said, ‘Meecham, why didn’t they try trading?’
Meecham shook his head. ‘The Tsurani? From what I’ve seen, boy, it’s a good bet trading never entered their minds. They are one very warlike bunch. Those bastards fight like six hundred kinds of demons. If they had cavalry, they would have chased this whole lot back to LaMut, then probably burned the city down around them. But if we can wear them down, like a bulldog does, just keep hanging on until they tire, we might settle this after a time. Look what happened to Kesh. Lost half of Bosania to the Kingdom in the north ’cause the Confederacy just plain wore the Empire out with one rebellion after another in the south.’
After a time, Pug gave up on Kulgan’s returning soon, ate supper alone, and made ready for bed. Meecham quit trying to keep the magician’s meal away from the drake, and also turned in.
In the dark, Pug lay staring up at the tent roof, listening to the sound of the rain and the drake’s joyous chewing. Soon he drifted off into sleep, where he dreamed of a dark tunnel and a flickering light vanishing down it.
The trees were thick and the air hung heavy with mist as the column moved slowly through the forest. Outriders came and went every few minutes, checking for
