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’Good’

’Mortal Sword’

’What is it, Itkovian?’

’What lies ahead, sir, that troubles you so?’

’I’ sick to my stomach I believe we are about to be betrayed’

Itkovian had said nothing to that for a long ards recent events with an unclouded eye, then one ht observe that the betrayal has already occurred’

Gruntle had siht, you dales at the start and you’ll be left behind’

Stonnyher horse

’Do you know,’ Itkovian asked her, ’what is about to occur?’

’Probably nothing,’ she snapped, swinging up into her saddle ’Gruntle ot no further, as before theether in an indistinct flicker of barbed stripes, a single forround -- that suddenly flowed forward, cat-like, and was gone in the night

’Bern fend!’ Stonny hissed ’After it!’ she cried, driving heels to her horse’s flanks

And so they had ridden, hard

They passed by Brood’s encah daas still a bell aith considerable haste

They witnessed, without a word exchanged between them, the flash and flare of sorcery in the sky to the southwest

Occasionally, through the darkness, they caught a glie creature they pursued, the dull flicker of yellow, black-slashed, rasses, as if beneath jungle fronds, webbed in shadows, a fluid hint of motion, deadly in its speed and in its silence

Then the sky began to lighten, and the horizon to the south was revealed, stands of trees, the trader road wending between them

Still the striped beast defied the eye, evaded sharp detection as it reached the parkland’s hills