Darrick was the worst. He'd collapsed from his horse the moment they'd stopped. His blood loss was serious, the wound across his hip deep and open through his forced action. The spell had knitted the damage, bandages held the wound closed but only time would replace the blood. He would be weak for days.

Hirad's armour was being repaired elsewhere. What was left behind was a shirt barely recognisable as such. Both arms were ragged, his chest was bandaged from throat to gut and his forehead too was hidden beneath clean coverings.

The Unknown had fared better in the fights but had followed that exertion by all but carrying Darrick for over two hours into the teeth of a gale. His was a muscle weariness only rest would relieve.

Strange. Before meeting the elves of the Al-Arynaar and Tai-Gethen, there was no way The Raven would have slept without one of their number on guard. How necessity bred reliance and trust, how the world moved on. Denser dragged the leather from his bivouac and lay down in the warm open air. He began to relax into himself, seeking the demon gateway from where the mana flowed to feed Xeteskian mages at rest. The demons would close it if they could but until that day, it was the best source of stamina replenishment a dark mage had.

Dimly, he heard the soft padding of a panther, no doubt come to check on Thraun and Erienne. That was why The Raven could rest. Denser closed his eyes.

'She is so close,' muttered Vuldaroq. 'And we are powerless.'

He pushed a forkful of food into his mouth and chewed slowly, looking up and across the table at Heryst only when he'd swallowed. He reached for his wine glass and sipped.

Lystern's Lord Elder Mage had arrived in Dordover the previous evening to discuss the next moves in the war. So far, the allies had been less than convincing in their efforts to overcome the defence of Xetesk. They had been surprised by the tenacity of the enemy and had been forced to commit too many men to the watcher ring around the city. Rightly they feared the excursions of familiars and assassins but had failed to stop the attacks by both demons and Cloaked mages. They had also failed to stop supplies entering the college, and The Raven were still free.

The strained relations with the elves hadn't helped. They couldn't deny their intervention was valuable, even critical, to the effort. But it wasn't as a partner in belief. The elves had their agenda. And now they'd taken what they wanted and were moving on. That changed the battle plan, as did the worsening of the Julatsan mana focus.

Vuldaroq found himself wondering about the benefits of Julatsa failing terminally. Heryst, he was sure, was not.

'We will bide our time and wait for our opportunity,' said Heryst. 'She and The Raven have the protection of every elf on the battle -field. We cannot act now. She's going nowhere except, presumably, Julatsa. We can wait.'

'Tempting, though, isn't it?' said Vuldaroq.

Heryst smiled briefly. 'You and I can sit here and say that. My commanders on the east gate front would say otherwise. I suspect we do not have the warrior or mage strength there to take them on though we outnumber them almost three to one. And even if we did, we would have to leave the east gate unguarded to do it. Like I say, we wait. She will fall to us eventually.'

'And when she dbes, we must be agreed on how she is handled,' said Vuldaroq.

'She must be treated as a joint asset, Vuldaroq. We have been through this already. Please don't claim fealty over a woman who does not see herself as belonging to any of us.'

Vuldaroq held up his hands. 'Another time, my Lord Heryst. Other matters are more pressing.'

'We agree there.'

'Now, clearly your forces at the east gate will be most affected by the departure of the elves to Julatsa. And, with Izack's very astute decision to reinforce the north front with Lysternan forces, you are further weakened there. I have some reserve still in Dordover that I can offer to you. What do you need from me? Men? Mages?'

Vuldaroq smiled inwardly at Heryst's reaction. How easy it was to disarm a man who expected nothing from you.

'That is a most kind offer. I thank you for it.'

'Surprising too?' Vuldaroq couldn't help himself.

Heryst raised his eyebrows. 'It is not your most common stance,' he said. 'We are, I believe, faced with a critical decision. My commanders, who have briefed me extensively, are in no doubt that the war will turn upon it. It has doubtless been on the minds of you and vours.'

Vuldaroq inclined his head, sure of Heryst's direction. He was not disappointed.

'Xetesk wants Julatsa gone and the elves threaten that. Their move north will not go unchallenged and that has an effect directly on us, which is why Izack has reinforced the most likely place for an attempt to break the siege.

'But, in my opinion, we have to take wider factors into account. I am not sure that providing extra strength at the east gate is the best use of our forces, not least because they may be too late. After all, the breakout is liable to be staged very soon, and there is no doubt that we will struggle to contain them, given the information we have about their reserve strength.

'As you'll be aware, Baron Blackthorne has joined the struggle on our side and has brought with him seventy swordsmen and eight mages. This represents almost all of his trained guard and he has taken the gamble of leaving his lands guarded by Baron Gresse whose small militia is already stretched over almost the whole of the south. Why are they doing it? Because while this war goes on, the economics of the entire country are destroyed more each day.

'And they are not alone in their anxiety. Havern is sending men, so is Orytte, so is Rache. Many other Barons aren't capable of sending anyone, of course. But again, reinforcing the east gate might be pointless. It may be that riding north to Julatsa is the better decision.'

'Sorry,' said Vuldaroq, raising a finger. 'You sound as if you don't necessarily agree with the turn of events.'

Heryst refreshed his water glass. 'It adds a layer of complexity. Blackthorne has agreed to put his men under the command of Izack and indeed is not planning on staying too long on the field himself. That's because he feels he needs to exercise his diplomatic skills in the heart of the country. He, as you know, along with Gresse, is an exception. Both are Barons working for the common good, not purely self interest. Many of those deciding to join the battlefield have more personal agendas to complete.'

'But you can't deny that more forces committed to bringing down Xetesk has to be a good thing from our point of view.'

'Are you really convinced of that, Vuldaroq? I suggest you familiarise yourself with the histories of some of the relationships between those ostensibly coming to help us. We may be here to restore the magical balance by first deposing the current Circle Seven but there are landed Barons out there who would like to see all the power of the colleges subservient to them. We must be careful that we remain the directors of this war.'

Vuldaroq smiled indulgently. Heryst sometimes thought too hard. On the other hand, it wouldn't do to unnecessarily raise his suspicions.

'I have been open with my talks with any Barons or Lords,' he said. 'Any forces I am hiring are signing themselves to serve under my battlefield commanders. You do not have to worry about their conduct. We are all after the same filing.'

'Are we?' Heryst's smile was thin.

'Who among us does not want peace for Balaia?'

'Vuldaroq, that is not in doubt. It is the nature of that peace which taxes me.'

'Then we must strive to ensure it is a peace which suits us all,' said Vuldaroq, feeling a growing irritation. 'But we are diverted from our task for today. You were talking about the east gate before outlining our options as you see them?'