"Way ho!" cried Thaddeus. "Did I just hear what I think I heard? Did someone dare to ask Specter about his scars?"

Specter was not amused. "It doesn't matter how I got them, boy. And if you ask me again, I'll give you some to match."

Ethan met Specter's hard stare without flinching. "I didn't mean to offend you. I just wondered."

"Best you hold your tongue," Specter warned him. "So far as I've seen it gets you into nothing but trouble."

"Maybe you should cut it out?" suggested Thaddeus.

"Maybe you should close your mouth as well," Specter snapped back.

Thaddeus mumbled something incoherent, but kept his attention on driving the horses.

That evening they pulled the wagon off the road and built a small fire. Thaddeus produced a bottle of wine and a portion of roasted lamb from a pack, neither of which he offered to share.

Specter secured Ethan to a thin pine tree using a short chain and lock. This done, he tied Jonas' hands and feet with rope and propped him up beside Ethan.

"I'll untie you in the morning," he said. "And I suggest you seriously consider abandoning your young friend. His fate is sealed. Yours is not."

He gave each of them a piece of bread and a flask of water. Ethan hadn't realized how hungry he was and devoured the meager repast in mere seconds.

Specter and Thaddeus sat close to the fire talking in whispers. Thaddeus glanced across at Ethan several times, pointing and shaking his head. Soon it was obvious that they were in a heated, albeit quiet argument.

"What do you think they're talking about?" asked Ethan.

Jonas shifted into a slightly more comfortable position. "It doesn't matter. The only thing I'm concerned with is how we're going to get out of this mess."

"I don't want you getting yourself killed over me," said Ethan. "You should take him up on his offer and go."

Jonas gave him a sideways glance. "I doubt the offer is sincere. And even if it is, I have a duty to perform."

Regardless of what Ethan had felt about Jonas previously, at that moment he was forced to admire his courage. "Thank you," he said.

"Don't thank me yet," he replied. "All of my plans to break free relied on us both being tied with rope. I have nothing with which to loose your chains."

Ethan's heart sank. He had hoped Jonas was just biding his time. He twisted his wrists and pulled, but the shackles were too tight. He looked across at his captors. Specter had stood up and was glaring down at Thaddeus, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.

"Try it and you won't live long enough to spend your bounty," said Thaddeus, his voice suddenly louder.

After another tense moment, Specter turned sharply away and stormed off into the night.

"Right now would have been a perfect time to escape," remarked Jonas.

"How would you have done it?" asked Ethan.

"I can start small fires with magic, remember? Burning through a bit of rope wouldn't be much of a challenge."

Ethan looked again at the shackles and grunted with frustration. "This is just the sort of thing Markus would know how to handle. There wasn't a pair of handcuffs anywhere in the world that he couldn't get out of."

"I don't suppose he showed you how to do it?" asked Jonas.

Ethan's head drooped. "No. He was going to, but there wasn't time." He pictured his friend's smiling face. "Right now, I'd give anything to have him here."

"Right now, I'd settle for the street urchin," added Jonas, chuckling softly. "I bet she could get you free."

"Maybe, but Markus would never have run out on us. I wish I knew what happened to him. It breaks my heart to think about him here all alone."

"I'm sure he was all right," said Jonas.

"I hope so. He was the best friend I ever had." A sad smile formed. "One time, right after we got to England, he saved my life in a South London pub. One of the locals tried to kill me."

"Why?"

"He thought I was. .h.i.tting on his girl. And let me tell you, this guy was huge literally twice my size. Anyway, I was trying to explain to him that I had only asked her if she knew the bartender's name, but he didn't believe me. Actually, I think the guy just didn't like Americans and wanted an excuse to fight."

"What's an American?" asked Jonas.

Ethan couldn't help but laugh at the question. "I guess it doesn't matter. It's a dumb story anyway."

"Finish it," said Jonas. His voice was unusually kind. "I want to hear it."

"Okay, if you're sure."

Ethan sighed before continuing. "First of all the guy pushed me up against the bar, so I hit him as hard as I could. But like I said, he was really big. It didn't have any effect. He just smiled at me and pulled out a knife. Markus was using the bathroom at the time, so I was all alone and scared out of my wits. I tried to apologize, but this freak giant just spat at me and called me a Yank b.a.s.t.a.r.d. He had me by the throat and was just about to stick the knife in when Markus ran up behind and busted one of those big heavy beer mugs over his head. Must have hit just the right spot because it d.a.m.n near knocked him out cold. Three of his mates jumped up from the bar, but we were already out the door and away down the street before anyone could stop us."

He smiled broadly while picturing the moment.

"It sounds like he was a good friend," said Jonas. "I am truly sorry you lost him."

"I swore I would never let him down," said Ethan. "But I did, didn't I? I left him to die in this G.o.d awful world."

"You know that's not true," said Jonas. "What happened to him was beyond your control."

"I know. But I still feel like I should have done something."

The sound of footfalls halted their conversation. Specter appeared and stood over them for a moment. He said nothing, but there was anger still burning in his eyes.

"Come to your senses yet?" Thaddeus called over.

Specter moved away and sat down alongside him by the fire. "Yes, I think I have."

Thaddeus was still smirking over an imagined psychological victory when, in a motion too quick for the eye to follow, Specter thrust a long dagger up under his chin and deep into his brain. The man's muscles seized instantly and he toppled stiffly over onto his back.

Ethan and Jonas stared in stunned horror.

After a few moments Specter got up and walked over to Ethan. Still gripping the bloodied dagger in his free hand, he grabbed Ethan's shackles and jerked him forward.

"Don't!" pleaded Jonas.

"Quiet, old man," Specter growled.

He buried the blade in the ground and produced a key from his belt. "You must be losing your memory," he told Ethan sharply. "I hit him with a wine bottle...not a b.l.o.o.d.y beer mug."

Ethan blinked and stared, his mouth agape, scarcely noticing that his shackles were being removed.

"Markus?" was the only word he found himself able to utter.

His old friend stood up and turned his back. "My name is Specter."

Chapter Eight.

Markus stalked over to the body of Thaddeus and rubbed his chin. "Now, what to do with you?" he mused casually.

Ethan began to rise, but Jonas caught his arm.

"Cut my bonds," he said.

Ethan picked up the dagger and carefully severed the ropes. He then moved toward his friend. "I don't understand," he began. "How is it you are here?"

Markus' hand shot out, halting his approach. "Twenty-five years," he spat out. "That's how long I've been in this s.h.i.t hole of a world. Twenty-five years!"

"I'm...I'm sorry," Ethan stammered. "I..."

"It wasn't his fault," Jonas cut in. "You have no cause to blame him."

"Don't I?" barked Markus. "Do you know how long twenty-five years is to wait? I kept telling myself that you'd come. But you never did." His eyes bored into Ethan. "I've had a long time to learn to hate you. Now here you are. Not a day older. And me...well just look at me."

Tears welled in Ethan's eyes. "I'm so sorry. I swear I came to find you as fast as I could. It was the portal...it's...well...I'm not sure how it works."

"It's corrupted," Markus said. "I know all about it now. It was forbidden magic, even in the time of the mages. But the old man here used it anyway. Didn't you?"

"That's not how it happened," Jonas protested. "I only used it to save Ethan's life. And I never intended for you to come here at all."

Markus sniffed with contempt. "No one ever intends anything. But here we all are anyway. You two lost and helpless. And me body scarred and life wasted."

Ethan took a cautious step forward. "What happened to you?"

Markus stared at him for a long time, but made no attempt to answer the question. "There's more food in the wagon," he finally said. "Get it out while I dispose of Thaddeus."

Before Ethan could protest, he grabbed the corpse by the arms and dragged it into the night.

Jonas retrieved a sack of food from the wagon and began sorting it. "Not much here," he muttered.

After a few minutes Markus returned and took a seat by the fire. Ethan sat opposite, staring at his old friend. His heart ached when he thought of the many hardships Markus would have been forced to face. The scars alone bore testament to how difficult life must have been.

"What happened to you?" he eventually asked.

For a moment Markus said nothing. He gazed into the crackling flames, his eyes distant and unreadable. Then he began.

"When I got here I was quite badly injured. That d.a.m.ned German potato masher that blew me through the portal had filled me with a thousand bits of rock and metal. I was bleeding pretty badly and didn't know where I was. The b.l.o.o.d.y portal dumped me in a field somewhere up north...Ralmaria I think. Anyway, I crawled for as long as I could before pa.s.sing out. I don't know how long I stayed unconscious, but when I woke up I was in a cage with about twenty other guys. Someone had treated my wounds, but all of my gear had been stolen."

He shook his head. "I was naked as the day I was born and scared out of my wits."

"Why were you in a cage?" asked Ethan, shock showing clearly on his face.

"For the same reason you were," he replied. "Bounty. When the Emperor detected the portal opening, he sent his men to check it out. I couldn't have moved very far away from where I first arrived. They must have found me lying there and put two and two together. I was taken to a garrison and interrogated for weeks." He breathed a sardonic laugh. "The thing is, I would have told them anything they wanted to know. I just didn't speak their b.l.o.o.d.y language."

"So they did that to your face?"

Markus shot him a furious glance. "No. And stop asking about it."

"I'm sorry," said Ethan.

Markus sighed. "It's not something I like to talk about. People who know me quickly learn it's better to keep their curiosity to themselves."

He leaned back on his elbows and drew in a couple of deep breaths. "So anyway, I don't know for sure how long I was held there, but eventually they gave up and sent me to work in the mines. That was a h.e.l.lish tough time, but I survived. I learned to speak the language, and picked up a whole lot of other useful knowledge. Eventually, I saw my chance to escape and grabbed it with both hands. After that I made my way south and joined the Hareesh."

Ethan expected him to continue further with the story, but after a few seconds of silence it was clear he was done.

"That's it?" he asked.

Markus shrugged. "What more do you expect? I was alone and having to fend for myself. I ended up in Miltino and did what I had to do to survive."

"So how did you know I was here?" Ethan asked.

"I was at the garrison collecting a bounty when word came in. At first I didn't think too much about it. But when I heard the word portal mentioned and that orders to apprehend any new comers to the area had come directly from Shinzan himself, I felt pretty sure it had to be you. Of course, I had a big advantage over the others searching because I was the only one who knew exactly what you look like. Even so, I knew I needed to find you before they did."

Ethan nodded. "So what happened next?

"The rest was sheer luck, actually. I was too late getting to Jaobin, but after I got back to Miltino I went for a drink in the Hanging Man tavern and spotted the old guy collecting those useless false papers. After that, all I needed to do was follow him."

"Why didn't you tell me who you were?"

"Because he intended to turn you over to the Empire," Jonas cut in. He plopped down beside Ethan and handed him a piece of dried beef and an apple.

So far, Ethan had chosen to ignore this fact. Now he was forced to deal with it. "Were you really going to turn me in?" he asked.

"Of course he was," snapped Jonas. He shot an accusing stare at Markus. "Tell him."

Markus spread his hands. "Can you blame me? I was so d.a.m.n angry with you." He tilted his head and smirked. "I changed my mind, didn't I?"

"But they would have killed me. You knew that. Whatever happened to make you this way?"