When Garia awakes from her inadvertant nap it is to the realization that the ptuvil will return... The camp must be prepared for another possible battle. Help arrives from an unexpected source, however. What are dranakh doing here? Somehow the company must survive the afternoon and make their way back to safety.

Disclaimer: The original characters and plot of this story are the property of the author. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended. This story is copyright (c) 2011-2013 Penny Lane. All rights reserved.

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Garia was upset that the men had let them fall asleep. Feteran was unrepentant.

"Milady, you needed the rest, as did His Highness, myself and Jenet. After being chased up that hill, then facing that creature, I am surprised you lasted as long as you did. Then, when we returned, you and Jenet saw to the wounds of all the men! You and His Highness are still young, you have not yet obtained the stamina of an older person. We judged it was safe to let you rest, we would have woken you both had there been any alarm."

"Oh." Garia yawned. Keren, still asleep, held her in a firm grip around her middle, but she was content with that at the moment. "How long?"

"Perhaps half a bell, milady. We have all taken the time to rest for a while, but there has always been someone on watch. No-one has seen any man or beast in any direction."

"Oh," she said again. "Thank you, Feteran, that was considerate of you."

She moved her head and Keren came awake.

"Did we sleep?" he muttered, yawning.

"Half a bell or so," she told him. "It was a calculated risk by the men but I do feel a lot fresher now, don't you?"

"Aye." He yawned again. "Any chance of a mug of pel, commander?"

"Of course, Highness," Feteran replied. He gave orders for the brew to be started.

"Commander," one of the men called. "Company."

Keren and Garia hastily scrambled up as everyone looked east to see what was coming. Men grabbed at swords, those who could still wield them.

"Not that way, milady," another said. "The other - and I don't think there's anything to worry about."

Stretching the kinks out of their legs, they peered out between two of the boulders to see... four dranakh, approaching with some speed.

"Dranakh? Where did they come from?"

Garia looked closely at the animals as they approached the camp site. Like frayen they all appeared very similar unless you spent time with them every day but she knew which dranakh these were almost immediately.

"They've come all the way from Blackstone," she said. "These are our dranakh. They must have been grazing on the hillsides along the valley when they detected that we were under threat."

The four large draft animals came directly to where Garia was. The lead one let out a complicated-sounding bleat.

Wookie! The dranakhs speak wookie. At least, that's what it sounds like.

"Beth. You must be Beth, I guess. Whatever are you doing here? Have you come to help us?"

The animal let out another bleat and then the four turned and began to investigate the circle of stones from the outside, peering in at every gap. They bleated at the frayen, who eyed them warily, and sniffed at the corpses before ambling a short distance to the east side and settling down to munch grass.

"What is happening, milady?" Feteran asked. "You seem to understand these beasts better than any of us."

"I have no idea, commander. Let's see. Last time we saw these they were grazing above the reservoir, weren't they?"

"Aye, milady."

"Then, I'm guessing they began to come this direction the moment we were attacked. It's taken them this long to get here and I don't think they wasted any time coming. Now they are here, notice where they decided to graze? They know that ptuvil is coming back."

"You think they seek to defend us, milady? Is that possible?"

"I have no idea." She smiled. "I've been saying that a lot lately, haven't I? Well, in this case it's true. I really don't understand what's going on here, but, believe me, I'm glad those four are on our side."

"Aye, milady. All know that dranakh can be fierce adversaries but are steadfast at defending those who they account friends. The question I must ask, milady, is how long do we have? What defence may we make against such a beast?"

Garia looked at the men clustered around her. Four were bandaged, two just able to walk but no more. The others... well, there was little anyone could do against something that size. Not yet, anyhow. She needed more information, and the best way to obtain that was to find out what had happened while Keren, Feteran, Jenet and herself had been busy running away.

"If it comes back right now we're screwed, let's face it," she said. Most of the men got the sense of her comment. "We can't hold the frayen, not with so few able bodied men left, and the only means of defence we have is those lances and our swords, for those still able to use them. How much use they'll be against something that size..." she shrugged, "I don't know. I don't know how much those dranakh can do either, so we can't rely on them to save us."

Garia glanced to the east, seeing nothing. "I reckon we might have a little time before we have to worry about defending ourselves. Let's have that pel and while we drink it we'll all describe what happened to us during the battle. I need to find out some more about those weapons. They are the only thing that might defeat a ptuvil, if it ever gets that bad."

"Can we afford to take the time for this, milady?"

Garia looked Feteran in the eye. "What would you have us do instead, commander? All stand around waiting for death to arrive? Not a good plan."

"We could pack up and leave, milady. Abandon the camp before it returns." But her commander looked doubtful even as he said it.

"How long will it take us to put saddles and packs on all the animals? Especially with half the troop wounded? What happens if the ptuvil comes back and finds us strung out just leaving the camp? Better to wait here in some kind of defensive position, let it pick up the rest of its lunch order and leave."

Feteran nodded. "You are right of course, milady." He quirked a smile. "I am now convinced you come from a race of warriors, milady."

Once they were sitting with mugs of pel, Garia began the debriefing.

"Denard. You first. You said that you saw the raiders coming down the slope behind us."

"Milady, Toranar saw them first, being on watch. He called the alarm and then grabbed the bugle, hoping to alert you since we had all seen you walk down to the stream. The riders surrounded the stones at a distance and then two approached that gap over there on foot, holding the weapon -"

"It's called a gun, Denard. That is the general name for most kinds of weapon that work that way. I'll explain later. Carry on."

"The men pointed the... gun inside at us and then there was a loud noise, a red flash, a cloud of smoke and I was knocked over. I did not see what happened next, milady, as I discovered I had been injured. I crawled to the nearest stone for cover. There was a lot of smoke and shouting and I heard several crossbows being loosed. Then there was some more shouting from the raiders and some of them must have seen you because they ran off that direction. There was a much larger noise from another gap, some screams, and then someone outside shouted out orders and whoever was left rode away. That's about all I saw or heard, milady."

"Thank you, Denard. One detail, the men who held the gun, how were they standing? I mean, was one on one side and one the other? Did one have the gun to his shoulder like this?" Garia demonstrated.

"That's right, milady! One stood either side, but the one to the right was holding the gun up as you describe. I don't know what the other man was doing."

"To the right, you said. Your right or his?"

"I beg pardon, milady, I was not clear. The right as I looked at them."

"Did you see the ptuvil come? I'm not sure about when that happened."

"We saw it, milady, and we feared the worst, especially after we saw those men go after you and His Highness. The raiders who were left here rode away when they spied the ptuvil descend. We waited until it departed, for we were as afraid as those who attacked the camp were. Then we had a meeting and decided to send Toranar and Brendel off to see if any of you survived, as they were yet without any wounds."

"Thank you, Denard. Who's next?"

The others who had been left at the camp all gave similar stories. There was one unanimous comment.

"It was Stott, milady. We wouldn't be here if it hadn't been for Stott and his bow. He just stood there and let fly whenever he could."

"Stott?"

"It is as they say, milady. I could hit them while they were still outside crossbow range, though if they was sharp-eyed they would have seen the arrow coming and gotten out of the way. When that first gun-thing went off the arrow for the man who was holding it was already in the air. Then I started hitting them while they were still riding and that made 'em keep their distance. When that second gun-thing went wrong the leader had enough and called his boys off. I still got one as they rode away, though." Stott smirked. "Traditional saddles, they all had. And old-style stirrups!"

Keren said, "You'll doubtless have a few free beers waiting you when we get back, guardsman. And I'm certain you'll receive the King's thanks when we return to the palace! You have served Palarand well this day, Guardsman Stott."

"Sir!"

"And the rest of you," Keren cast his eyes round the group. "You have performed well under difficult circumstances. You have my thanks now for saving the company."

"But, beggin' your pardon, Highness," Stott said, "we didn't save you or Milady Garia. What happened to your party?"

Keren related what had happened at the stones on the ridge, with Garia, Feteran and Jenet supplying a few extra details. Since they had been all together, their stories coincided for the most part.

Toranar asked, "Is that thing really going to come back, Highness?"

"It took two and left four. I'm guessing that if it doesn't roost too far away it will return. It was easy meat, after all. If you are asking, will it seek a meal at this camp, then I cannot answer."

Garia added, "I want to get that remaining gun ready, in case it does come back. It may be the only way we can stop it."

Keren objected, "The other gun exploded, so the workmanship cannot be very good. What happens if the remaining one explodes also?"

"If we are ever in a position that we have to fire that gun, Keren, then we are about to be eaten. In that case I think I'll take the chance."

"When you argue your case thus, I must agree with you. Very well. So, what shall you tell us about guns, milady?"

"Let's get that intact gun and all the parts over here in the middle of us. I think first I'll show you how it works, since that's the most important thing right now." She addressed the men. "One of you is going to have to use the gun, I'm afraid, should that become necessary. I might be able to lift that thing but I don't think I'm strong enough to use it properly. You all need to know this because it will be impossible to know how any attack by the ptuvil will play out. Any one of you may get the chance."

A cloak was spread on the ground and the gun, bag and contents laid out on it. The men gathered around as Garia began her examination.

"When we talk about using a weapon like this," she said, "we talk about firing it. That's an accurate word because the gun works by burning material extremely fast. In this case it is the powder which is in these blue bags. The powder is made by mixing certain common substances together but the way of mixing the powder is an art. When the powder burns up the smoke and residue which is left behind takes up a huge amount of space more than the powder did. That smoke and residue has to go somewhere. Since the barrel - this part - is pretty solid and the back end is blocked off by this part, the stock, it all tries to come out the front part, the muzzle. Because the shot, which in this case is a handful of small stones in each of these white bags, is in the way, the shot gets pushed out by the smoke and other residue. Very fast. So fast that you won't be able to see it fly and so fast it won't drop appreciably before it hits the target."

There were some raised eyebrows when she said this.

"So," she continued, "to aim this you point it at the target, not above it as Stott would with his bow. To aim, you sight along the top of the barrel with your eye. I'm guessing the range is nothing special, which is why they use shot in the first place. Shot will spread as it comes out of the barrel so that your aim doesn't have to be perfect. That's why so many of you were injured, this is a perfect short-range crowd control weapon. The fact that you were all gathered in the camp was a bonus to the gunman as well. When you face weapons like these, your tactics will have to change or you'll be dead in short order.

"Don't think that you can protect yourself in future by wearing armor either. These stones, or the more likely lead or steel balls they will use in time will go straight through any armor you currently possess. There is armor that can stop most things fired from a gun but you won't have that for many years yet. Let's get on to loading this thing. I'll clean it out first." She looked up at the men. "After each shot there will still be bits of these bags down the barrel so we want to clean them out first."

Garia used the crude brush on the end of the ramrod to clean out the barrel as best as she was able.

"The first thing to go down the barrel, obviously, is going to be a bag of powder."

She frowned as she lifted one of the small silk cylinders up. Something wasn't clear. How did they fire these guns? She looked at the bundle of stiffened strings.

"I'm not happy about this," she said softly. "If I put one of these bags down the barrel, how do I light it?"

Keren pointed. "What about that small hole on the top? Is that where it is lit?"

"Ye-es," Garia said slowly. "In early Earth guns there would be a hole like that, but it would be bigger. You'd put powder down the barrel, usually loose, and then pour more down the hole so that you could see it on top. Then you'd light that. There would usually be some kind of trigger mechanism to press down a smouldering rope or strike a spark from flints, but this hole... I wonder, I thought these pieces of string were just for cleaning out the hole, but now, I'm thinking..." She looked up. "Can somebody find me a small piece of flat stone? About the size of your hand."

Some searching outside the camp site revealed a flake of shale suitable for Garia to use. She put it down in a clear space, near one of the gaps between the boulders, and away from the frayen. On it she laid one of the pieces of string.

"Now, we need a brand from the fire. A longish one, if you can find one."

She took the length of wood and held the smouldering end to one end of the string. Everybody watched from as far away as they could. The string caught, flared up and was consumed within a second.

"That explains it, then," she said, turning to the men. "These are what is called a fuse. They aren't often used in this kind of weapon but are used in other kinds. The fuse goes in the hole, as far as it can. When the top is lit, the flame goes down the hole and burns its way through the silk bag and ignites the powder. Got that?"

As the men nodded she pushed a piece of string into the hole as far as it would go, being careful not to force it. About half remained sticking out. Then, using the ramrod, she pushed a bag of powder down the barrel. This was followed by one of the wads.

"We use a wad because it helps wedge the powder bag against the fuse," she explained. "That way we can be sure that the gun will fire. If the fuse burned and didn't set off the powder we'd have a difficult job getting everything out again and we'd have wasted a shot. Now, we put one of the white bags full of shot down the barrel. The stones should help keep it in place, but if you used solid shot another wad would be used to stop it rolling out again."

A bag of stones followed the powder and wad.

"That's done! Now, the gun is ready to be used." She looked up at the men. "Who wants to volunteer to use it?"

"I'll do it," Keren said.

"No. If you and I are the last two people standing then, yes, you'll have your chance. But you're going to be King, we need to protect you as long as we can. If this gun misfires or explodes you'll be as dead as those over there." Garia pointed to the corpses.

Keren looked frustrated but reluctantly agreed with Garia's argument.

"Then it seems that I must step forward, milady," Feteran said. "Of those of us who remain whole I am the strongest, I deem. What must I do?"

"Pick it up and hold it like this -" Garia showed him how to hold the gun to his shoulder and aim by looking along the barrel.

"Okay," she said once she was satisfied. "Two things. We'll need a second person to stand by with a brand or a smouldering rope to light the fuse with. The man who holds the gun is in charge. Only when he says 'fire!' does the other man touch the rope to the fuse, understood? Any one of us can do that job, it doesn't need strength. The other thing is... when the gun fires, there will be a strong kick back to the person holding it. There's always a recoil when you fire a gun like this. Since nobody is familiar with how these things work you'll probably get knocked over and have a bruise on that shoulder from the kick."

"Why is that, milady?"

"It's a long explanation and we really don't have time for that right now. We've been lucky that thing hasn't returned already. Let's wait until we are somewhere else entirely, safe and secure."

Brendel asked, "Should we not try the weapon, milady, to become familiar with it? You have spare..."

"Ammunition, that will be called. No, for several reasons. One, it will scare the frayen off and possibly our large friends out there as well. Second, those ptuvil might be near enough to hear us and be attracted by the noise. Third, if the gun does go wrong, we could have more injured - or dead - and no defense. Fourth, assuming we survived the practice shot, we'd have to wait for the gun to cool before we can clean it out and reload it."

"If we are attacked, milady," Feteran asked, "where should I point this gun?"

"A good question. I wouldn't point it at the body, because the shot would probably bounce off and you'd only make it mad. Don't aim at the wings, either. That would madden it and you'd prevent it flying away, so it would just thrash around near us instead. Aim for the head. If you can manage to do it, aim down the open mouth. We're trying to destroy that thing's brain rather than wound it. If you can't go down the throat aim at the throat from underneath. That's soft tissue, if a ptuvil has such a thing. If even that's not possible try for an eye. The eye socket is weaker bone and a stone might get through into the brain."

Most of the men had gone pale at her blunt description of how they might tackle a ptuvil.

"What of the rest of us, milady?" Stott asked. "What may we do?"

"Obviously," Garia replied, "don't stand in front of the gun, unless you want your head blown off. Some of you carry lances, they are just as good if you can get close enough. The weak points are just the same, the gullet, the throat from below, the eye socket." She shrugged. "Other than that, keep out of the way and try not to get trampled by the frayen... or eaten."

"The ptuvil has not returned yet," Keren noted. "Do you think it will do so after this length of time?"

"I know nothing about those things, Keren," she replied. "Actually, you've been closer to it than I was. We don't know how far it had to go or even if it was returning somewhere! It might have eaten what it took and then decided to go fishing for all we know."

With a strict watch kept - in all directions - the company settled down to a tense wait. It had occurred to all that, despite Garia's reasoning earlier on, they could not rule out the possibility of the attackers coming back. The next time, however, they would get a completely different reception. Garia and Jenet kept the men supplied with drinks and snacks as they prepared for any possible assault.

Those not actually watching occupied some time in fitting saddles and pack harness to all their frayen, so that they could move out once the coast was clear. Since the boulders which defined the camp could not be fenced the frayen were all attached to lines and they were becoming restive. Some hadn't eaten that day since before the original attack.

The sun had moved appreciably across the sky before Stott, watching the east, gave the alarm.

"Highness! Milady! They come!"

"They?"

"I see two, commander." After a distinct pause, he added, "They are of two different sizes, sir."

Garia could see that the dranakh had already detected the flying predators and had moved out slightly, standing ready... to do what? The beasts approached and began to circle the general area. The larger one spiraled down toward the outcrop of rocks where one had landed before but the other noticed the campsite, packed with men and animals, and stooped to the attack.

The dranakh let out a ferocious roar so loud and low-toned that goose-bumps stood out on Garia that she never knew she had. The effect was immediate. The ptuvil snapped shut one wing and flipped its tail, changing direction in an instant. They watch as it climbed away in some confusion before a shriek from its mate caused it to fly over to join it at the boulders.

Garia found it hard to breathe. She tore her eyes away from the distant boulders and discovered that Keren's free arm held her in a vice-like grip. His right hand, the skin white from the pressure, held a lance so firmly she wondered if he would crush the wood. Glancing around she saw that the other men were similarly afflicted. Feteran, of course, held Jenet as firmly as Keren held her.

Now that the spell of the creatures had been broken she used her own arms to force Keren to release his grip. Startled, he looked down at her, realizing what he was doing. His grip on his lance also relaxed as he took in their position.

"Men," he said into the tense silence, "Relax! If you freeze up when those creatures are a mark away you'll be dead meat should they approach us more closely."

There was a startled sigh from the men as they noticed what they were doing. All relaxed, turning back from frozen potential prey to professional men-at-arms. Most changed their grip on their weapons, all relaxed the stance of their feet.

Since all the action had happened the other side of the distant boulders all they could see was the occasional wingtip or hear the two creatures shrieking at one another. Finally, as before, the larger one rose in the air with a corpse clutched in one rear foot and another in its mouth. The smaller one followed, similarly burdened and staggering under the load. Struggling to gain height, the two set off directly to the east, ignoring the tense camp behind them.

"I shall dine on the retelling of this adventure all my life," Feteran said, breathing a sigh of relief. "I doubt many have made such close acquantance of ptuvils as we have." He turned to the party. "Let us leave this place immediately, should they decide six are not enough. Milady, how shall this gun be carried?"

"A good point. We'll need to tie something waterproof over the muzzle and over the fuse-hole. Once we've done that it can be lashed to one of the pack animals." Garia thought. "And do the same to the other gun. It may be useless as a weapon but we can still learn from it. I want the bag of ammo - um, ammunition - wrapped up safe as well, please. Powder and water don't mix."

"As you desire, milady. Which direction should we go?"

Feteran must have had a good reason for asking such an obvious question, so Garia considered.

"Yes, that's a good idea. We'll go up to the ridge line as we originally decided. I'm not too worried we might be seen against the sky. From up there it won't be obvious how many of us are injured or how, so we'll look like a strong party. If we go that way we might get some clues how those men came here."

Feteran nodded. "And we'll have the advantage of height, milady."

Yarling asked, "Highness, Milady, what shall we do with the dead? Your man Thoran deserves the respect of a pyre but what of these others?"

"Master Yarling," Feteran replied, giving the miner a severe look, "we shall take them with us to Blackstone. We must show these people that we are better than them. If we do not, guildsman, we are all lost. There are sufficient frayen for the task, and I would not leave any, friend or enemy, to be carrion without sufficient reason."

Feteran gave Garia a measured look, then continued, "It may be possible for some in Blackstone to give names to these people. I have noticed that some wear the clothes of workmen while others are in garb more befitting those of higher status. We know that there are those in the town who did not approve of the arrival of the Baroness, though I find it difficult to believe that any would stoop to such treachery as we saw this morning."

Michen offered, "Master Yarling, I feel I ought to know two of those here slain. But we have no time to investigate further. As Commander Feteran says, we must leave this place as soon as we may."

Their gear was packed. Some of the extra frayen carried the corpses of those who had once ridden them. Each was wrapped in their waterproofs and lashed over the saddles. Most of them, even those injured, now towed two pack animals, the only exceptions being Feteran, Stott, Toranar and Brendel who each towed one. This was so they would be more easily ready for action should any problem arise. Nobody suggested going up to the larger boulders on the ridge to see if anything useful had been left behind.

The injured were helped to mount by the others before they, too, gained their saddles. Garia found that Snep relaxed as soon as she was on his back. The day had been a disturbing time for all their animals and with everybody mounted it was clear to them that they were all about to depart. Snep had had the benefit of being able to graze for longer than some of his companions but even he wanted to be far from this place before he felt safe eating again.

Stott led the column out of their camp. Behind him, the party rode in pairs with Toranar bringing up the rear. The four dranakh took up their own flanking positions, two either side. It did not take them long to reach the ridge, and when they did it was to find country no different than that behind them.

"See anything?"

"No, Highness. The grass grows too dense here to allow tracks to survive for long. We may spot droppings but if those men came over the ridge at the charge then there may not be any to find."

"As you say. Feteran, should we risk going into the next valley or should we continue along the ridge?"

"I would recommend staying up here, Highness. If we go down there we allow another to hide behind the ridge on this side. From here we can at least see both valleys."

"Of course. Stott? Carry on."

As they moved west the valleys became steeper and narrower, even if the changes were barely perceptible. Brush began to be seen both to the north and to the south. Garia was more concerned about the daylight since the sun was getting noticeably lower in the west, making it difficult to look that direction.

"Where do you think we should camp, commander?"

"If we are not delayed, milady, we should be able to reach the upper farm before the light goes. There is nobody there now but we should be able to make camp nearby. More usefully, milady, there are corrals at the farm we may use for the animals. I suspect many of them are somewhat hungry by now."

The ridge became more like the name would suggest, with steepening slopes on both sides. It appeared that this was a route often used by the farmers since the track along the crest was well-defined if overgrown. Garia looked ahead with her eyes shaded with a hand, hoping to spot the deserted farmhouse but nothing was visible. At the head of the column Stott halted and held up a hand.

"What is it, Stott?"

"Down there, milady," he replied, pointing into the other valley. "Look. Is that not a frayen, bearing a saddle?"

Garia, Keren and Feteran soon had their telescopes out, surveying the lone animal, which appeared to be just standing still near the small stream at the bottom of the valley.

"Is it from those who escaped after the attack?" Keren asked.

"It could be," Garia replied, "but it could be from one of those we killed. We didn't find them all, remember. It might be from somewhere else. It might be one of those of Trogan's men who escaped, for example."

"Who could also be among our attackers," Feteran pointed out.

"As you say. Do you think this could be a trap? Could the survivors of those men be waiting for someone to investigate?"

"Impossible to tell, milady, from this distance. If the frayen is not tethered then we may leave it for another journey. It will not go hungry in these vales."

"There's a body," Keren said suddenly. "Look to the... east, near to the stream."

"Aye, I have it, Highness." Feteran turned to Garia. "What shall we do, milady? I cannot offer you counsel in this situation."

Garia looked at Keren. "What are the risks, do you think? If it is a body, the frayen down there can carry it. If that man is still alive, though..."

"...we may be able to get some answers," he finished for her. Turning to Feteran, he said, "Send two down. If that man is dead they can bring him back. If not they may signal us down. If it is a trap, then fewer will be put at risk."

Stott and Toranar relinquished their pack animals to the others and cautiously descended the slope. It was soon apparent that the man was dead, since they could be seen rolling it over and examining it before loading it over the saddle of the loose frayen. It did not take long for them to rejoin the company.

"Milady, he is dead," Stott reported. "He is one who I shot as they departed earlier. There is an arrow wound in his back." His face changed. "And a sword thrust in his chest, milady. They deemed him too injured to continue but would not leave any behind who could talk. On the ground there were many frayen tracks and signs of a camp. They stopped here on the way back, that is certain, since I recovered the two arrows they took away when they fled. I am guessing that the other man with an arrow wound was not so badly injured as this man."

"Or was the leader of the band," Keren muttered.

"Aye, Highness. They must have pulled the arrow down there and bound the wound. The band may also have camped here before the attack also."

"If they camped down there," Garia asked, "they may never have used Blackstone Vale at all." She turned in her saddle. "Michen, is it possible to get out from this valley into Bray Vale?"

"Aye, milady, it is, although I would not care to do it often. There is a narrow canyon which reaches from there into the top of this valley. Sometimes a pakh may stray and become trapped there."

"I see," Garia said. "Let's go, we can talk about this later. The daylight's beginning to go now. There won't be a light at that farmhouse and we'd never find it in the dark."

"Aye, milady."

A little further on the trail forked and they took a route which descended to their right, back into Blackstone Vale. As twilight began to deepen the terrain started to look familiar and soon the farmhouse loomed up in front of them. No time was lost in relieving the frayen of their burdens and putting them all into the paddocks - after first checking that the fencing was secure. A fire was started to give them light and the men gathered round to prepare the evening meal. Nobody wanted to enter the deserted farmhouse, since it still held possessions and memories of the family that had so recently lived there, but the vegetable garden was raided for supplies.

With some light available Garia and Jenet insisted on checking the wounded mens' bandages, finding need to change them on two. Having completed that task they joined the others for a subdued meal. With the day's unhappy events still fresh in their minds nobody was feeling too cheerful.

"Who were those people?" Michen asked as he struggled to eat with his fork. "I did not think that what we sought had provoked such strong resistance, milady."

"There's more to it than you know, Michen," Keren said. "This is but another attempt to kidnap milady, the fourth since she came to Palarand. You may already have realized that she holds knowledge greater than any we already possessed before she came to our lands. There are others who covet that knowledge and seek to reserve it for themselves. We think that they may be of Yod, although we have no definite proof. There was an attempt to kidnap her from within the palace, a few days after she arrived, and another while we were in the crowds in the Shevesty Field celebrating the Harvest Festival with the King. On our way to Blackstone we stayed some time with my uncle in Dekarran castle, another attempt was made there during which the Baroness killed one man and Jenet injured another, who proved to be a hireling. Two more escaped, then, despite our best efforts."

"Highness, I had no idea!"

"Milady's journey to Blackstone was made in secret, with another girl returning to the palace as her double. No-one knew about her journey here but it seems we carried an agent of the enemy - for that is what they have proved to be - with us in the shape of Durko, a wagoneer of Duke Gilbanar's retinue. He must have somehow alerted confederates to mount this morning's attack."

"Which would have succeeded," Garia added, "if not for that ptuvil."

"That's not the worst of it," Keren said. "Consider, Garia, if you had not stepped in those frayen droppings! We were about to mount up and leave the camp, were we not? We would have been almost to the ridge when the attack came. The two left behind would have been slaughtered and all our pack animals captured."

"And that's the exact moment that the ptuvil would have found us," Garia finished, "exposed on that ridge." She shuddered. "I shall never think of droppings in the same way again."

The men sat in silence, considering the narrow escape they had all made.

Feteran said, "Highness, Milady, we have named one, the man Durko. Who might these others be? Where did they come from?"

Yarling stirred. "I cannot tell yet, commander, but I think that two at least are from the party of miners recently arrived at Blackstone. I wonder, did they come especially for that attack? Might there be more waiting us when we return?"

"I think," Keren said, "that one or two are directly in the pay of Yod or whoever is directing this enterprise. Others may be hirelings, not knowing the entire story but yet having reason to object to the Baroness's presence here in Blackstone." He shrugged. "We must consider all these matters when we get back to the Claw. Master Miner, I think we will be safe when we return to the town, though of course we must keep our wits about us. When we arrive back with so many draped over their beasts, the townsfolk will be in an uproar, you can be certain, and I think few will consider moving against the Baroness in those circumstances. It is also certain," he directed his gaze at Garia, "that once the King and Queen learn of this attack we will be commanded to return to the capital at once, and probably under heavy guard. This is too strong an attempt to be ignored any longer."

Garia's mouth was dry. "You're right, it is certain, isn't it?" she said. "There will be ten or so days before any letter can get back from the palace. Can we get everything we want organized in that time? I would hate to leave the place in a mess."

"Milady," Yarling told her, "you need have no fear of what you leave behind. Between myself, Bezan, Brydas and Jepp we understand what needs to be done. You would soon depart Blackstone in any event, we are well prepared."

Garia and Keren met each other's gaze.

"He is right," Keren said. "We wouldn't be here much longer should all have gone as planned. There will be time enough to settle all before we return."

"As you say. Keren, what do you think your father will do? Will he declare war, do you think?"

"On whom, exactly? He cannot name Yod simply because the Resident came to call the night before the first abduction attempt. Yod will say that there were others who resent the interference of this foreigner in Palarand's affairs and that the Ascendancy would be happy to render any assistance to the Kingdom to resolve the problem. Besides, most will see what happened today as an attack by bandits in a remote country region." He shook his head. "No cause there to declare war on anybody."

Garia's face fell. "You're right. It's easy to focus on Yod and forget that there's a whole world out there, some of whom are every bit as bad. We have nothing to go on at all, do we?" Then her face lit up. "We do have something to go on! Oh, not concerning Yod but concerning Earth. Those guns are conclusive proof that there is someone else around who came from Earth. There's no way else that a gun design like that could have been home-grown, not looking like that, and I'm the only person who could have noticed that!" Her eyes glowed as she looked at Keren. "Somewhere here in Alaesia, and probably somewhere in the Valley, there is another person like me from Earth. We must look for clues, see if we can find out where they are or what technology they have handed out that didn't come from me."

"Milady," Michen asked in a tentative voice, "if it is permissable to ask, who or what is Earth?"

"Are you tired, Master Michen?" Keren asked the guide. Michen shook his head. "Then," Keren continued, "we have time to tell you all a story before we bed down for the night. One day, in the middle of last summer, Tanon the trader was bringing a caravan through the high pass from Moxgo. Along the way..."

~o~O~o~

Garia sat in the darkness, her arms wrapped around her knees, the sky lit by the hard, bright stars. She gazed sightlessly at the embers of the fire, now just enough of a glow to reveal the camp and those sleeping around it. Not far away sat Jenet and Feteran, their bodies touching, talking together in a low murmur. Garia had noticed that Feteran's arm was curled around Jenet's hip and she was glad for them. Mostly, though, her vision was far away, re-enacting the violent events of earlier that day.

Keren came and sat down next to her, his arm automatically going around her waist, and she snuggled without thinking into his body. They sat that way for some time, savoring each other's touch, before Keren spoke.

"I thought that you might be tired out after what we faced this morning."

"So did I. I guess that little nap we took after lunch helped more than I imagined it would."

"Aye. That was somewhat of a shock, wasn't it? Two attacks, almost at the same time. We were very lucky, Garia."

"I think that ptuvil was the worst, Keren. Armed men we can always deal with. They are what happens in this world I live in now. But that creature... that was something different."

"Armed men? Even armed with guns?"

"Yes, that was an unpleasant surprise all right. But we missed all that, and in some ways I'm glad we did. We went to the one single spot in that entire landscape we could be safe from men and ptuvils. At least," she amended, "men without guns." She looked up at where his face would be in the darkness. "How are you feeling? I bet you've never faced anything like this."

"About the same as you, my love." Garia felt a glow at those last two words. "And I hope it will be a long time before I have to face either man or beast again. I'd rather face angry nobles, I think."

She twisted a smile he couldn't see. "Even nobles with guns?"

He made a grimace she couldn't see. "Garia, you see the most dangerous things in our futures, don't you? I dread the day when all may know the secrets of guns and gunpowder."

"We managed, but it took us centuries. I hope, when we get back to the palace, that we can somehow find a way to manage guns and gunpowder better than Earth did."

"Ah. You mention returning to the palace. Our greatest test lies there, I deem. I admit to some reluctance to face my father, I must confess."

"You worry too much, Keren. It is a long road back to the palace and anything can happen along the way. If you had told me before we left the palace just how we would end up traveling to Blackstone I would not have believed a word of it. Don't concern yourself over something weeks into our future, Keren. Worry about what will happen when we get back to Blackstone instead."

"Aye." His voice was sober. "The rules have changed, my love. We can no longer be two young people out on a tour of their lands. That tour ended this morning. I think you were right, earlier. We are at war, now, even though it may not be open war between countries. We have people, property and ideas to protect and we must use every means we possess to do so."

Garia put her arm around Keren's waist. "Enough, man of mine! That's talk for tomorrow or the day after. We might no longer be two young people on a tour of their lands but we're still two young people, people who have made a pledge to each other. Let's just enjoy that for a moment or two."

"Aye. This I could easily come to like."

Overhead, the stars blazed.