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‘Those people last night did glow, your Excellency,’ Kalten reet about that’ Itagne looked back over his shoulder Sephrenia had refused even to listen to a discussion of the Delphae, and she and Berit followed them at some distance ‘Lady Sephrenia’s reaction to the Delphae isn’t really unco Styrics, you know The very name makes them irrational Anyway, "Xadane" enjoyed enormous popularity, and there were the usual irew up around the Delphae It’s called, quite naturally, "Delphaeic literature" Serious people don’t take it seriously, and foolish people take it foolishly You kno that goes’

‘Oh, yes,’ Bevier murmured ‘I had to read whole libraries full of abominable verse when I was a student Every professor had his favorite poet, and they all inflicted them on us without mercy I think that’s what ultimately ledback to join them ‘I wouldn’t want to seem critical of my betters, my Lords,’ he said dryly, ‘but the decision to abandon the road and cut across country may have been just a little ill-advised on a day e can’t see the sun Does anyone knohich e’re going?’

‘East,’ Vanion said firmly

‘Yes, my Lord,’ Khalad replied ‘If you say it’s east, then it’s east – even if it really isn’t Aren’t we supposed to be getting fairly close to the border?’

‘It shouldn’t be very far ahead’

‘Doesn’t your map indicate that the River Sarna a and Tamul proper?’

Vanion nodded

‘Well, I just rode to the top of that hill on up ahead and took a look around I could see for about ten leagues in every direction, and there aren’t any rivers out there Do you suppose that soht have stolen the Sarna?’

‘Be nice,’ Sparhawk raphy’s not an exact art, Khalad,’ Vanion pointed out ‘The distances on any map are only approxihtest place in the cloud-cover Unless sos on land in the sa’

‘Where’s the river, then, ne ‘Hoould you say the valley of the Sarna is, your Excellency?’

‘Sixty leagues, anyway It’s the longest and widest river on the continent, and the valley’s very fertile’

‘Grass? Trees? Lots of green crops?’

Itagne nodded

‘There’s not a hint of green in any direction, my Lords,’ Khalad declared ‘It’s all a broasteland’

‘We’re riding east,’ Vanion insisted ‘The mountains of Atan should be to the north – off to the left’

‘They could be,themselves in the clouds’

‘I’ve told you, Khalad, the map’s inaccurate, that’s all’ Vanion looked back over his shoulder ‘Why don’t you ride back and ask Sephrenia and Berit to join us? It’s about lunch-time, isn’t it, Kalten?’

‘Definitely,into the packs and put together so the tine asked Sparhawk

Sparhawk smiled ‘We normally rely on Khalad – when the sun’s out When it’s cloudy, though, we fall back on Kalten’s sto it’s been since the last time he ate’

Late that afternoon, when they had stopped for the night, Khalad stood a short distance fro up their enca out over the featureless desert with a slightly s expression on his face ‘Sparhawk,’ he called, ‘could you co’

Sparhawk put down Faran’s saddle and walked over to join his squire ‘Yes?’ he asked

‘I think you’d better talk with Lord Vanion He probably won’t listen to oing to have to convince hi to have to convinceman pointed out across the desert ‘We caht?’

‘Yes’

‘If we’ve been riding east, that would be west, right?’

‘You’re being obvious’

‘Yes, I know I have to be I’ht The last time I looked, the sun went down in the west’

‘Please, Khalad, don’t try to be clever Just get to the point’

‘Yes,down over there?’ He turned and pointed off toward the left, where an angry orange glow stained the clouds

Sparhawk blinked, and then he o talk to Vanion,’ he said, and led the way back across the ca with Sephrenia

‘We’ve got a proble turn so that tired horse, Khalad?’ Vanion’s tone was irritable His conversation with Sephrenia had obviously not been going well

‘Our young friend here just pointed so slowly, of course, because ofHe says that unless so north all day’

‘That’s ily orange glow on the horizon ‘That’s not the direction we came from, Vanion’

Vanion stared at the horizon for a moment, and then he started to swear

‘You wouldn’t listen to me, would you?’ Sephrenia accused ‘Noill you believe me when I tell you that the Delphae will deceive you at every turn?’