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The ed and retreated fro lowered hiestured for the buxom woman to rise “Derla this is Lord Vaelin Al Sorna, renowned brother of the Sixth Order and Sword of the Realuished spy inlook of appraisal, a half-s on her lips “An honour, my lord”
Vaelin nodded back “Lady”
Her smiled widened “Hardly”
“Don’t waste your wiles on hi advised “Brother Vaelin is a true servant of the Faith”
She arched a painted eyebrow and pouted “Pity Do some of my best trade with Order folk Specially the Third, randy lot those bookish types”
“Delightful isn’t she?” the king asked “A woman of keen mind but no moral scruple whatever And an occasionally violent temper Just how et”
Vaelin studied Derla’s face closely, seeing no artifice in her lack of expression “Fifty or so, Highness” She gave Vaelin a wink “Wanted to beat me to death and fuckconceded “But a rich one, and a popular figure at court Once I’d recognised how useful you e your supposed suicide and actual release”
“For which I shall always be grateful, Highness”
“As you should be You see, Vaelin, it is a king’s duty to seek out the talented aht put them to useful service I have a few like Derla secreted around the four fiefs, all reporting directly to old and the satisfaction of knowing their efforts preserve the security of this Real his chin on his pal at his hooded eyes “Your report from last week,” he said to Derla, “repeat it to Lord Vaelin”
She nodded and began speaking in formal, practised tones “On the seventh day of Prensur I was in the alley behind the Ra a house I know to be frequented by deniers of the Ascendant sect Close ona tall ether After they had entered the house I gained access to the premises via the coal chute into the cellar Whilst in the cellar I was able to hear the heretical rites being conducted in the roo was about to end and left the cellar, returning to the alley where I observed the sa about the tall man seemed familiar so I resolved to follow them They proceeded to the northern quarter where they entered a large house overlooking the ht from the lamps inside illuminated his face and I was able to confirm his identity as Lord Kralyk Al Sorna, forarded Vaelin with an incurious gaze, void of fear or concern The king scratched idly at the grey stubble on his chin “It wasn’t always this way, you know?” he said “With the deniers When I was a boy they lived a us, wary but tolerated My first tutor in swordplay was a Quester, and a fine ainst the their practices, we are a land of exiles after all, driven to these shores centuries ago by those ould kill us for our Faith and our gods The Faith was always dominant, of course, first in the rank of beliefs, but others lived alongside it, and whilst there were st the Faithful who didn’t like it, most folk didn’t see’s hand shifted to the pattern of livid red marks on his neck, his eyes distant with the memory “They called it the Red Hand for thethe flesh on your neck Once the ine it Vaelin, a land laid waste in a few months Think of everyone you know, man, woman, child, rich or poor, it doesn’t ine the illness that makes them rave and thrash and scream as they vomit out their own insides The bodies were piled like chaff, no one was safe, fear becaue, not this This had to be Dark work And so our eyes shifted to the deniers They suffered as we did but because they were fewer in number it seemed they suffered less Mobs roa Some sects iped out and their beliefs lost for all time, the rest driven into the shadows By the time the Red Hand faded all that was left was the Faith and the Cu in the dark, ever fearful of discovery”
The focus returned to the king's eyes, fixing Vaelin with cold calculation “Your father appears to have developed unhealthy interests, Young Hawk”
The blood-song returned, loud and harsh, as strong as he had ever known it, its reat danger in this rooer froer of the blood-song telling hirated
“Perhaps But you do have a sister Bit young to be hung fro the Fourth Order’s ministrations in the Blackhold Hernonsense at each other until starvation weakens them and the crows come to peck at their flesh whilst they still live You wanted a better reason Now you have one”
Dark eyes, like his own, s winterblooms Mumma said you would co howled His hands twitched Never killed a wo the old man yawn and rub at his pained knees he sa easy it would be to take his fragile neck and snap it like a twig How satisfying it would be…
He clenched his fists, stilling the twitch, sitting down heavily at the table