Free Dreams of Fire and Gods 2: Fire by James Erich Page B

uniforms and standards all bearing the red-and-gold colors of Harleh and Worlen and displaying the hawk crest of the Menaük family. It was difficult for Donegh to assess their numbers, though he doubted they matched the size of the force sent from gü-Khemed. To his annoyance, Donegh was forced to detour far to the south in order to skirt around the camp without being seen.
    Just before nightfall, the thick foliage over his head parted briefly, and Donegh stopped dead in his tracks. Rising up out of the forest in the distance was a vision more terrifying than the vile, undead thing that had attacked him in the Dead Forest—a vast cluster of enormous gray-green spires, sparkling with thousands of yellowish lights and rising up into swirling blue clouds. Through the link, Donegh had seen the entire kingdom, and he knew no towers existed anywhere that could reach those heights—until now. And the architecture was completely alien. The swirling sky above them reminded Donegh of the vortex of a hurricane, yet the valley seemed bathed in an eerie calm.
    Was this strange new… city… the source of the disturbance in Harleh Valley? It seemed likely. Donegh wondered if he should investigate it further, but his mission was still to kill the dekan . No doubt the emperor would appreciate more information when Donegh returned, but Donegh’s first priority had to be the mission he’d been contracted for. If he succeeded in killing Sael dönz Menaük and escaping from Harleh, then he could think about investigating the strange new city. Getting himself captured or killed before reaching Harleh would serve no one.
    So Donegh continued through the forest, which by now he realized was far more extensive than it should have been. Where was the plain? He should have reached it a few hours after leaving Eivan’s encampment. Yet there seemed to be no end to the trees. By nightfall, Donegh began to wonder if he’d somehow gotten turned around. Was he heading south into the ancient forests there? It was impossible to see the Eye with this odd cloud cover. The sky had grown noticeably lighter in the west, just before evening, but that was only helpful for a short time.
    He was beginning to feel a little panicked when he finally caught sight of the lights of Harleh through the trees up ahead. His relief was short-lived, however, as the lights were coming from torches along the battlements, carried by guards, and the heavy, steel-reinforced wooden gates were closed. Harleh appeared to be in a state of alert. Not that this was surprising, considering the circumstances.
    Had he not been cut off from the ömem , Donegh would have been able to see the positions of all the guards and anything else that might aid him in getting into the keep. But now he had no more advantage than a common thief, trying to find the right moment to slip through the gate or possibly scale the wall.
    Snug up against the outer wall, extending to either side of the gate and a good distance outward along the solitary road into the keep, was a small village. The wooden-framed buildings had apparently suffered considerable damage recently. They looked burned, especially near the road, and several of the buildings near the gate had been completely destroyed and were now in various stages of reconstruction. The emperor’s forces had apparently gotten this far, attacking the gate with firebolts.
    But what had happened then? How had Harleh survived? And where had all the emperor’s men gone?
    The forest grew right up to the edge of the village and appeared to surround all of Harleh Keep. “Harleh Plain” no longer existed. But this bizarre circumstance allowed Donegh to remain hidden in the underbrush and skirt the edge of the village unseen while he considered his possibilities.
    Moving around to the northern part of the circular keep, Donegh came across yet another incredible sight— medical pavilions full of bodies. Or perhaps they were merely injured— Donegh couldn’t