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Vaelin sent a throwing knife between the twin blades, the steel dart sinking into the large ered, his bladesin an auto before Vaelin brought the Order blade up and round in a blurring arc The blade h the Garisai’s thick neck, obliging Vaelin to withdraw it and deliver another blow to sever the head froed host of risen slaves Instead of surging forward to avenge their fallen king, they had retreated several paces, each face displaying a gratifying level of shock and dismay Vaelin turned and beckoned Astorek to his side

“Translate every word as I say it,” he told hi the crowd, “I hereby claim this province in the name of Queen Lyrna Al Nieren of the Unified Realovernance, you will conduct yourselves as free citizens of the Real from murder and thievery If you do not, the queen will be swift in eas I”

He flicked the blood fro back to Scar “Now get out of the way”

• • •

The land grew more populous farther south, but no less troubled They would often catch sight of people on the road ahead, weighed doith goods, either their own or the product of looting Most would flee at the sight of a large group offields where, incredibly, some slaves continued to labour Not all would flee however, some, mainly the old or those burdened with children, would shuffle to the side of the road and stare in du ones shushed to silence as they pointed at the strange men Nor were all so cowed, they endured many insults fro slaves seely had little left to fear One old man in a torn black robe assailed the, his face a ible insults Alturk rode forward to stare down at hi on his shoulder until the oldonto his odorous e,” Alturk said, trotting back to the colu to tears when it’s offered”

They covered two hundred le Volarian soldier, though they did find evidence of battle They lay strewn across the road, perhaps over a hundred bodies,of slaves and free folk frole, hands still clutching throats or knives, one young wo with her teeth clamped onto the forearm of the black-clad who had killed her

“If this continues forleft to conquer”

“Except land,” said the Ally, the entire co at the sound of his voice He cast a dispassionate eye over the carnage before adding, “Land is the only true wealth in a world like this Your queen will do rather well out of it all, I expect Pity I can’t let her keep it”

“You ht speak differently,” Vaelin told him, “if you had ht he lay down and slept, falling into slumber with barely a pause, and each tiht in the Eeon, of Dentos, Sherin, even Barkus At the ti a desire the Eone, truly and completely, and he was denied even the delusion of a dreah the waking would be hard, when the knowledge descended like an axe blade as he reached for the cold, empty place beside him Still, he yearned for it

“She spoke of you”

Vaelin rose froaze The hour was early and the sky not yet bright enough to see well, rendering the Ally a slu ashes of last night’s fire “Don’t you want to knohat she said?” he asked

“Why choose now to speak again?” Vaelin countered “Is it because we draw nearer to Volar?”

“No, just honest boredo by the day I norance but you doTell me, why didn’t you keep that nificance in taking it”

“Can you really be so ignorant of us? You have orchestrated havoc in this world for centuries How can you know so little?”

“I see only through the eyes of those snared in the Beyond, and even then the visions are often diives it substance There was a philosopher in ued that the sum of a soul is merely memory, the soul itself no ”