Stormy whirled. 'If you could do that—'
'It was nothing,' Kulp said, joining the men.
'A wall of—'
'I meant nothing! A Hood-blinked illusion, you fool! Now, let's get out of here!'
They lost Vered twenty spans from the shore, a harpoon-head buried deep in his chest finally gushing the last of his blood onto the slick deck. Gesler unceremoniously rolled the man over the side. Remaining upright in addition to the corporal were the youth Truth, Stormy and Kulp. Another sailor was slowly losing a battle with a slashed artery in his left thigh and was but minutes from Hood's Gate.
'Everyone stay quiet,' Kulp whispered. 'Show no lights – the High Mage is on the beach.'
Breaths were held, including a pitiless hand clamped down over the dying sailor's mouth until the man's moaning ceased.
With barely a storm-sail rigged, Ripath slipped slowly from the shallow bay, her keel parting water with a soft susurration.
Loud enough, Kulp knew. He opened his warren, threw sounds in random directions, a muted voice here, a creak of wood there. He cast a shroud of gloom over the area, holding the power of his warren back, letting it trickle forth to deceive, not challenge.
Sorcery flashed sixty spans to their left, fooled by a thrown sound. The gloom swallowed the magic's light.
The night fell silent once again. Gesler and others seemed to grasp what Kulp was doing. Their eyes held on him, hopeful, with barely checked fear. Truth held the tiller, motionless, not daring to do anything but keep the sail ahead of the soft breeze.
It seemed they merely crawled on the water. Sweat dripped from Kulp – he was soaked through with the effort of evading the High Mage's questing senses. He could feel those deadly probes, only now realizing that his opponent was a woman, not a man.
Far to the south, Hissar's harbour was a glowing wall of black-smeared flames. No effort was made to angle towards it, and Kulp understood as well as the others that there would be no succour found there. Seven Cities had risen in mutiny.
And we're at sea. Is there a safe harbour left to us? Gesler said this boat was provisioned – far enough to take us to Aren? Through hostile waters at that... A better option would be Falar, but that was over six hundred leagues south of Dosin Pali.
Then another thought struck him, even as the questing of the High Mage faded, then finally vanished. Heboric light Touch — the poor bastard's heading for the rendezvous if all's gone as planned. Crossing a desert to a lifeless coast. 'Breathe easy now,' the mage said. 'She's abandoned the hunt.'
'Out of range?' Truth asked.
'No, just lost interest. I'd guess she has more important matters to attend to, lad. Corporal Gesler.'
'Aye?'
'We need to cross the strait. To the Otataral Coast.'
'What in Hood's name for, Mage?'
'Sorry, this time I'm pulling rank. Do as I command.'
'And what if we just push you over the side?' Gesler enquired calmly. 'There's dhenrabi out here, feeding along the edge of Sahul Shelf. You'd be a tasty morsel...'
Kulp sighed. 'We go to pick up a High Priest of Fener, Corporal. Feed me to a dhenrabi and no-one mourns the loss. Anger a High Priest and his foul-tempered god might well cock one red eye in your direction. Are you prepared for that risk?'
The corporal leaned back and barked a laugh. Stormy and Truth were grinning as well.
Kulp scowled. 'You find this amusing?'
Stormy leaned over the gunnel and spat into the sea. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, then said, 'It seems Fener's already cocked an eye in our direction, Mage. We're Boar Company, of the disbanded First Army. Before Laseen crushed the cult, that is. Now we're just marines attached to a miserable Coastal Guard.'
'Ain't stopped us from following Fener, Mage,' Gesler said. 'Or even recruiting new followers to the warrior cult,' he added, nodding towards Truth. 'So just point the way – Otataral Coast, you said. Angle her due east, lad, and let's get this sail up and ready the spinnaker for the morning winds.'
Slowly, Kulp sat back. 'Anyone else need to wash out their leggings?' he asked.
Wrapped in his telaba, Duiker rode from the village. There were figures to either side of the coastal road, featureless in the faint moon's light. The cool desert air seemed to carry in it the residue of a sandstorm, a desiccating haze that parched the throat. Reaching the crossroads, the historian reined in. Southward the coastal road continued on, down to Hissar. A trader track led west, inland. A quarter-mile down this track was encamped an army.
