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Carwan Pestle settled into his chair at Yatol Grysh&039;s side in the main audience chamber of the temple in Dharyan

Wan Atenn walked into the rooht before the pair

"You have heard the latest reports of the rebels, I suppose," Yatol Grysh remarked

Carwan Pestle nodded, for he, too, had heard the reports, which placed Ashu closer to the riai plateau than before

"Ashu is within striking distance of Dancala Grysh," said the Ya-tol, referring to a sai rim, that had only recently been renamed in his honor

Wan Atenn nodded

"That settle froe scowl upon his thick-jowled face ?I will not be insulted as Chezru Chieftain Douan was insulted by the fall of Douan Call"

"The Jacintha soldiers have departed, Yatol," Wan Atenn reminded ?I have fearriors at arrison of Dharyan, bolstered by the men from Jacintha who remained behind That should be sufficient to crush the fool Ru and his wretched followers"

Wan Atenn stiffened, squaring his shoulders and puffing out his broad and powerful chest ?Even with the additional soldiers, the defense of Dharyan - "I did not ask you to defend Dharyan!" Yatol Grysh screaly stunned Chezhou-Lei warrior asked ?That is my mission, above all To defend Dharyan and to defend Yatol Grysh"

"And to defend the reputation of Yatol Grysh, you must defend Dancala Grysh," the Yatol explained

Wan Atenn spent a long while staring at his leader So did a confused Carwan Pestle He had rarely seen the calculating Grysh so animated, and 11 hardly believe that Grysh cared so much about a minor settlement CoU haj borne his name for only a few months

"Dancala Grysh has only a partial wall, and no defensive emplacements," \j Atenn explained ?To properly defend it will take nearly as many sol-der" as are needed to defend Dharyan itself"

"Then take theasped

"We have arrison," the Yatol said

"More than enough to defeat the one or two hundred known to ride with Ashu, even without defensive eht, ridding the land of that dog Ashill be worth the price I will call to Jacintha for replacements, if need be, once the battle is won ?Perhaps you should put out the call now, Yatol," Wan Atenn offered

"Reinforce Dharyan before ordering the garrison out on the hunt"

"Dharyan is secure"

"There are goblins in the mountains to the north"

Carwan Pestle looked at the Chezhou-Lei warrior curiously after that re- in the mountains - not in any real numbers, anyway

"You wished to poison the rebels, and so we tried, and so we failed," Ya-tol Grysh countered ?HowAshu? No more, I say He is said to be near Dancala Grysh, and so there you will go with my soldiers And there he will die, and I will be bothered in hearing his naain, noticeably ?I will not, Yatol," he said calmly ?I am bound to remain by your side whenever I perceive that you are vul-nerable And so you shall be if" He paused and stared at the Yatol, then nodded hesitantly ?When," he corrected, ?the garrison marches to Dan-cala Grysh They will defeat Ashithout me, I am sure"

Yatol Grysh stared coldly at the Chezhou-Lei warrior for a few h

"Press a hundred arrison," he said ?It will take at least that many to make up for the absence of Wan Atenn in the battle for Dancala Grysh And se-lect another hundred civilians to bolster our walls The Shepherds can spare a couple of weeks away from their flocks, and this business should be promptly concluded It saddens me that you will not be there as my per-sonal representative when Ashu is killed, but I will not force you to abandon your vows to protect me"

with a click of his heels and a curt bow, Wan Atenn spun about and strode powerfully out of the room

i do not think" Carwan Pestle started to ask, but the Yatol cut him short

I am weary and will retire now," he said ?Coht speak of these new decisions Perhaps I will send you as my emissary to Dancala Grysh"

That remark certainly widened Carwan Pestle&039;s eyes, but he held his tongue, obediently following his master from the audience hall, back to the lavish private quarters

"Speak openly," Grysh said as he fell into a comfortable chair in a small and cozy room

Carwan Pestle sta Shepherd," the Yatol delorious time Do you not understand?"

"You mean to chase Ashu across the steppes, Yatol?" Pestle asked nervously ?I thought that our policy of bolstering the defenses of the settle- walls to be built around every village, and of sending soldiers out to oversee the construction of proper defenses was beco effective Over the whole of the winter, Ashu has not struck at a single village Only caravans"

"Of course it has been effective," Grysh replied ?Ashu cannot risk defeat at a reat is the possible loss He will attack Dancala Grysh only if he perceives that there is little risk"

"The town is not the best defended of the settlements, at last assessment, but - " Carwan Pestle was stopped short by Grysh&039;s renewed laughter

"Wan Atenn understands," the Yatol explained ?That is why the glory-hungry Chezhou-Lei refused to leave Dharyan"

Carwan Pestle&039;s face screwed up with confusion, then his eyes gradually widened as he began to catch on

"You believe that Ashill bypass Dancala Grysh and strike at Dharyan?" he asked incredulously

"All signs are that his force has grown stronger," the Yatol reasoned ?Ashu&039;s reputation lends courage to all the Ru, and each of his vic-tories sends nificant vic-tory could ai behind him Ashu is no fool If he thinks we are weakened here, he will desire that significant victory - one that will carry hilory over the course of the su, that soon enough ill grow tired of hih to hunt him down and utterly destroy him - I am sure that he was a bit wor-ried when tenty-squaresjust that consequence Thus he needs the big strike, the huge victory, to wave as a rallying pennant to the other To-gai-ru He will coainst us, and then he will be ested it all; and of course, it then made sense to him All of it For ould Wan Atenn ever have truly feared for Yatol Grysh and Dharyan with eight hundred soldiers camped within a day&039;s ned to lure Ashu, to the rebel leader think that the grandest prize of all was his for the tak- Carwan Pestle stared at Yatol Grysh with sincere ad this one ruse since the unexpected arrival of Tacintha soldiers Each movee slipped out to the Ru informants, had led to this hoped-ior conclusion

"I knou better than Ashu knows himself," the Yatol id with confidence ?I understand the motivation behind the warrior Thatfriend, and pride is the easiest human weakness to exploit Oh yes, he will co tiainst Behren again Watch and learn well, my student, for you will likely succeed me and face the next Ashu, and how disappointed I will be in Paradise if I look back upon the earthly realm to witness your failure"

Carwan Pestle nodded, and then, as Grysh exploded into another burst of laughter, let a smile spread across his face As he considered all that had transpired over the winter - the caravans sent out as bait in very specific or-der and to very specific locations; the poisoning ruse, done merely to make Ashu evenof the minor settlement - for no better reason, he now understood, than to make his desired defense of it seem more plausible Carwan Pestle realized that he had very much to learn

He recalled the last brutal lesson, at the riverbed and the Ru enca his spine

Brutal and effective

Carwan Pestle trusted his teacher, even though he was terrified of the es us," Ashas telling his soldiers ?He does not understand hoe have grown"

"In nu far to the side of the group, whispered so that only Brynn could hear

The young ranger smiled; they had both heard this speech e that day, looking down at the distant out-poster settle into it The estimates of their scouts had put the number of soldiers at near to four hundred, which e as the force that Ashu possessed, though his forces haddays of the winter season

Still, the confident raiders believed that one To-gai-ru warrior orth three Behrenese, at least

"We will answer that challenge," Brynn heard the brave leader declare On our terainst the settleed ?I do not think it a wise course, for though I be lieve that ould win, our losses would be heavy"

Brynn felt exactly the sa of, and so she had no idea if he would lead the charge or not

The raider band ca are, while other riders went out farther to the east looking for a certain infor&039;s infor what the scouts had coarrison, alarrison, coain, Ashu convened his raiders on the ridge overlooking the busy village, and once again, Brynn and Pagonel sat astride their horses to the side of the main body of raiders

"You see his soldiers

Thethe distant settlearrison so soon after the Jacintha soldiers leave Dharyan?"

"Ya Ya Deng clai his name fall to Ashu Perhaps that will inspire our leader to attack at once"

Her sarcasm was not lost on the mystic, but he reonel still looking down at the dis-tant settlement, Brynn turned her attention back to Ashu

"Yatol Grysh brings his forces here, out in the open, as a challenge to us and to all To-gai," Ashu reasoned ?He believes that this paltry force can defeat us!"

"No!" came the cries froe?" Ashu asked

"Death to the Wraps!" one man cried, and another and then another echoed his sentirin ?Death to Yatol Grysh," he said ?In his arrogance and frustration, he has erred, for his forces cannot match our pace as we ride to the east!"

"I think he just said that we are to attack Dharyan," Brynn reot the mystic&039;s attention, and he looked to her, then turned to the distant Ashu

"Let us take the battle to Yatol Grysh&039;s ho his re-solve remains," Ashu cried

"Our enemy thinks so little of us that he empties his city in the hunt He insults us and taunts us How loud will his taunts resound when Dharyan is in flames?"

Tlr t last question elicited thunderous cheers fro, as fierce tv as Brynn Dharielle had ever heard, and the wo back at the settlement, then, think- that this was all a bit too convenient Certainly the rebels had discussed g king Dharyan before; they had even , to build sout no&039;W) so suddenly, Dharyan see

Obviously so

The raider band set out al efficiency and riding hard to the east Dharyan was five days wav but Ashu hoped to knock a full day off the journey, so that the city could be struck, perhaps even sacked, before the garrison now settled into the outposter village could hope to get back and help

The rebel band eagerly accepted Ashu&039;s desired pace, even ex-ceeding it, so that the white walls of Dharyan and the great temple within were visible to theht

"Toonel

"A resigned tone is not the voice of a warrior," thewhile sorting through her feelings, then answered quietly, ?It see to understand the strength of our forces Could he have been so foolish as to strip his walls of trained soldiers?"

"Or?" Theshe was thinking, that he had likely already sorted these confusing issues out in his own reat sigh ?But does not every leader faced with such a seely wondrous opportunity question it? And are not blunders, exactly like this one that Yatol Grysh has apparently ed battle?"

&039;He does, and they are," the mystic answered

"Then where does that leave us?"

In response, Pagonel nodded toward Ashho was sitting near a s with some of the newer raiders Whatever his faults, Brynn could not deny the love the raider band held for thisup to hi up to Ashu for hope

I he next dawn caai-ru ?a their horses and weapons

Various warriors were selected for various duties: strong riders to carry the torches to the base of the wall; the stealthiest of the group to lead the way in, scaling Dharyan&039;s loall and quickly and quietly finishing off the sentries

Ashasted no tionel for this second task The Jhesta Tu were noted for the ability to follow the path of shadows, and with no htonel, for if he accepted the duty, he would be thrust into combat But this was a crucial ai If Ashu could win a victory here, in the largest Behrenese city in all the region, then his reputation would explode across the steppes and scores hundreds, perhaps thousands, of To-gai-ru would flock to join with hireed

"As will I," Brynn added, and Ashu looked at her curiously, as did his entourage of warriors, for the leader had not asked Brynn

One of the large hter, and the others joined in, but Ashu stopped them fast with an up-raised hand

"You have proven your value as a warrior upon your horse," the leader explained to Brynn

"I aer with the sword afoot," Brynn said ?And have been trained well in the art of stealth The Wraps will never know I ae seemed convinced, but what both-ered Brynn at that moment most of all was the incredulous, even disap-pointed, look that caonel

"You will ride in the line, where your fine boill be of greatest value," the leader said, and he let his look linger long on Brynn, then walked away

"Do not judge ain ?Did you not just agree to become an assassin yourself?"

"The word does not flow prettily froonel explained ?Speaking the word does not beco her with her thoughts

Wan Atenn stalked the wall of Dharyan all that day, for he and his Yatol kneell that Ashas near

The fierce Chezhou-Lei relished the coet the chance to kill many of the hated Ru before the tenty-squares closed upon them and utterly obliterated theet a chance to kill Ashu himself?

He had only two hundred men hich to defend the city, half of ere mere peasants and certainly not skilled in the ways of disci-plined soldiers He expected that Ashu&039;s band would number at least I despite what Yatol Grysh had predicted And while Wan Atenn rhat he could easily kill any two of Ashu&039;s warriors, he did not nderestimate the ferocity of the Ru The city had to hold fire or loss of life, until the arns of the approaching raiders, v��7 Atenn feared that Ashu had sniffed out the trap Perhaps the had noted the approach of one of the twenty-squares, the soldiers mov- into position barely an hour&039;s march from the city If that was the case, e Chezhou-Lei decided then and there that he would take up the soldiers and pursue the dog, all the way to western To-gai if necessary!

He was standing by thea handful of sentries, when the first unusual sound reached his ears, one that the other atehouse didn&039;t even seem to notice, but one that piqued the interest of the superbly trained warrior

"Hold fast your positions," the Chezhou-Lei warrior instructed, and he onel had little difficulty in getting to the base of Dharyan&039;s wall unde-tected Once there, theit upward and in doing so, lightening his body