Free Against the Empire: The Dominion and Michian by Jeffrey Quyle Page A

river from the city, arriving at the site as the sun set, and the next morning, he and Walnut found a ford where they could cross to the opposite shore and ride up into the ruins.
    The pristine appearance from a distance dissolved up close, beginning on the weed-infested road that led from the river banks to the overlooking city set up on a mountain spur. Stones were cracked, displaced, or missing from the pavement, walls were tumbled down piles, and statutes were heaps of dismembered stones. Alec stopped and looked at a statute of a woman who stood in the center of a square. Her head was on the ground below her feet, and her arms were broken off at the elbows.
    Alec looked at the weathered face that looked up askew from the ground. The gentle smile still retained a placid welcoming expression that made Alec wish he had known the model. Its implied gentleness reminded him of Helen Millershome, whose gentle courtesy and compassion were the greatest Alec had ever known.
    As Alec walked Walnut around the city, he kept vigilant for any signs of other visitors or residents among the ruins. He had an uneasy sense that he was being followed, but there were no signs that anyone but wild animals had disturbed the urban setting in the recent past.
    He tied Walnut to a rusty iron hitching ring outside one large building and went inside. The city had crept up the side of the mountain. Alec had chosen to reach the tallest building in the highest point of the city, and began climbing the interior stairs, seeking access to the roof, and the views he expected it to offer.
    The architects of the ancient city had favored large windows and interior courtyards that lent light and air through the rooms and hallways of the building. Alec found the concept to be practical and attractive; if I ever build something new, it will be like this , he promised himself. He easily found the stairway, and climbed upward through the clutter and debris that had accumulated over unknown centuries of abandonment.
    When he finally reached the top, he was on a flat roof that gave glorious views of vistas that stretched three quarters of the way around. Only the mountain behind him blocked the view.
    It was just past midday, and the sun was high overhead. Alec looked due north.
    He could see the river valley stretching miles and miles to the north, running between two mountain ridges. Somewhere up along those mountains were the remains of Walnut Creek and Riverside. What would they be like now, two years after their horrific devastation by the lacertii?
    To his left, stretching west was the rolling tableau of foothills that gave way to flat prairie, and the river slightly meandered as it made its long, slow way across the empty space, disappearing on the horizon without any significant bend in its path.
    He’d left a lot behind out there in the west. He’d run away from the confusion of Bethany and Imelda, from the toil of the crown protector, and from the despair of his status as ingenaire without powers. Over the many days he’d been alone with Walnut, Alec had thought a great deal, and tried to understand what he was doing by running away.
    He knew that he shouldn’t have left everything and everyone behind without explanation. Only the blessing he’d received from John Mark gave him confidence that it was right. He held on to that confidence tenaciously. In several more days he hoped to reach his destination, and confirm that he had done the right thing.
    As he idly pondered what awaited him up the river, his eyes casually focused on a small, dark patch moving with purpose along the river bank, coming towards him. He strained to make out details, but could resolve nothing more than the likelihood that it was a handful of riders on horses. As he watched them intently, the group paused for several minutes, then changed direction, and headed directly towards the river. They appeared intent on crossing the river at the same ford he had used that