"Captain," Parneth hesitated. "I think you had best meet with them now. They come with an extra prize for the Emperor."

Kayle sighed and rose, still licking his fingers. Parneth knew his master well, and would not push so if it were not important. However, when he stepped outside into the moonlight and saw the "extra prize," Kayle thought he might enjoy seeing Parneth beaten.

He whirled on the younger man. "You interrupt my meal for a camp follower?"

Other men might rush eagerly into the arms of such a lovely woman, but Kayle cared little for the pleasures offered by either sex. His passion was slaughter, and he preferred to save his energies for that.

Admittedly, they'd found a good one. Not a maiden, but a woman, still in the prime of her beauty. She looked tired and hungry, but bore herself erectly.

"She is not what you think, my lord," said one of his scouts, exchanging grins with his companions. "We will let her speak for herself."

The woman stepped forward, and for an instant Kayle felt a strong urge to kneel in front of her, so commanding was her presence. The desire passed quickly.

"I have come to you with news for your Emperor, which he will wish to hear. You will take me to him."

"No, lady, I will not. You will speak your news to me, or I will cut out your tongue and you will speak it to no one."

She looked at him, a half-smile on her lips. "Do you know, I believe you."

"You should," said Kayle. He had been in deadly earnest. "I have many thingsthat demand my attention, lady. Speak quickly."

"I know you recognize what I once was," she said. "I hear it in your voice. You know nobility when you see it, whatever tattered rags it comes dressed in. I was once the khashima of a great House in Arukan-the greatest House. Now, I am nothing but a camp follower. How I fell to this is not important. What is important is that you believe that my desire to have revenge upon my husband and his people is real."

Kayle's single eye searched her, taking her in, from her long hair to her elegant features to her body. The clothing she wore had indeed been fine once, but was now filthy and stank of sweat. While she was thin, she did not have the aged, emaciated look of one who had lived a step away from starvation all her life. This was a woman who had once lived in luxury.

"Go on."

"You have been preying on the clans one by one," she said, "but they have seen your numbers and know what you have planned. In turn, they have abandoned their differences and will greet your army united."

Kayle scowled and looked to his scouts for confirmation.

"It is true, sir," said the head scout. "We were shocked when we cleared the range and saw so many campfires. Somehow, they know. I saw hundreds."

"We have thousands," retorted Kayle, but still he felt a quiver of doubt. It was one thing to descend upon small groups and conquer them one by one. To face all the Arukani clans together would necessitate different tactics. The Emperor needed to know as soon as possible.

But apparently, the woman was not yet done. "I have followed my former Clan to this meeting place. I have watched what has transpired there. I have listened in the shadows and I know their numbers, their plans, their weapons, and I know of an enemy that would make even your Emperor quail where he stands."

"Then tell me, lady. My meal is not getting any warmer."

"In exchange for safe passage in your country," she replied. "Food, water, clothing, money. I will not return to the land of my shame."

He had thought to kill her; it was just easier that way.

But the honey had sweetened more than his tongue tonight, and he was in a good mood. While the news she bore was not good, her coming was welcomed in that the Emperor would have time to change his approach. Kayle decided that if what she had to say pleased him, he would give her what she wanted. If not, he'd carry out his original plan.

Kayle turned to his scouts and again raised an eyebrow in question. "We have been able to verify some of what she told us, sir," their leader replied. "And the information is valuable indeed."

"Very well," he said. "Come into my tent and eat and drink your fill. And then,traitor, tell me all you know, and how best I can use this information to slaughter your people."

For a moment, he thought he saw hesitation flicker across her lovely features.

Then her face hardened and her eyes looked bright with an emotion he recognized as pure hatred.

"Do you have eusho?" she asked.

The council had gone well. Not only was Kevla present, but she had insisted that all the Lorekeepers-men and women-and the Great Dragon be in attendance as well. Some of the khashims looked as if they would have seizures when she spoke her conditions, but they gave in.

First, Melaan spoke briefly as to the history of the situation. Two others who had managed to elude the Emperor on a previous occasion told of what they saw. Each clan leader told how many men, weapons and provisions he had brought to contribute to the cause.

Preparations for war began in earnest. While many, such as the Clan of Four Waters, had listened to Kevla's plea and arrived ready for battle, others had simply come to hear what she had to say. Now, these clans sent out dozens of hawks, calling for reinforcements. Some would arrive in time, others would not.

Each night, Kevla and the Dragon soared over Mount Bari to spy on the approaching troops. The army was massive, and because of its size it moved slowly.

Also, the mountain chain was not forgiving, and it was difficult to move so many men, beasts and pieces of equipment up its forbidding slopes.

On the third night, Kevla and the Dragon were returning to the clan encampments when the Dragon said, "Kevla. Look down. Do you see them?"

"What am I looking for?" asked Kevla. There was an odd note in the Dragon's voice and she did not think he was trying to draw her attention to a herd of liahs.

"Men," the Dragon said simply.

She looked harder and then she saw them: eight or so, clad in the strange metal clothing of the Emperor's army. They had only two horses and moved with purpose.

At first, Kevla thought they were coming to attack the Clans, but then she realized that they were moving up the mountain, not down it.

"They're a scouting party," she said. "They've seen us."

The Dragon craned his neck to look at her, his golden eyes glowing in the darkness. "Until now, the Emperor has assumed that the clans could be picked off one by one," he said. "If these scouts report what they have seen-"

"They'll know we're waiting for them," she finished.

"They can't be allowed to report back."

"I know, but... "

"I understand this is difficult for you," said the Dragon, "but you have done thisbefore."

Suddenly Kevla had had her fill of these reminders of lives past. Of people she had been, who Jashemi had been, who had lived and died and still lived and- "No I haven't!" she cried. "I, Kevla Bai-sha, have killed no one! I haven't even deliberately hurt anyone! I don't want to kill these people, Dragon. I just want-"

"I know what you want," the Dragon said harshly, "who you want. But you can't have him, Kevla. Jashemi is dead. Your old life is dead. And your new life and the lives of almost everyone else down there are going to be lost if you don't accept the responsibility that comes with being who you are! You're the general, Flame Dancer, and you've got to be bigger now than Kevla has ever been. The boy died so you could become the Flame Dancer. Don't let his death be in vain!"

Kevla was as startled as if he had splashed cold water on her face. She was terribly hurt, and very angry. How dare he speak to her like this!

"A few more moments, Flame Dancer," said the Dragon in a soft, angry voice, "and you will lose the chance. They will be far enough up the mountain so that the enemy will see our fire."

Kevla's lower lip quivered. "I can't murder them." "Then they will reach the Emperor, and he will learn the truth about the force that faces him, and more of your people will die."

Kevla swallowed hard. "What do I do? How do I fight them?"

"Like this," said the Dragon, and dove.

Kayle had been more than pleased at what the Arukani woman had told him. She had a good eye for what mattered; she said she had been married to a clan leader and was familiar with such things. His luck. He was so delighted with the information that he kept his word and sent her walking off with food and gold. Privately, he thought she would die in the mountains before she reached the other side, but he didn't care.

He wished he'd thought to bring a hawk, so the news would reach his Emperor even more swiftly. As it was, it would take most of the night for the men to rejoin the main army.

Parneth's high-pitched shriek was the first warning he had of death from the sky.

Kayle whirled, sword at the ready, to behold a sight that froze him in place. The female traitor had warned him of this, but he had only half-believed her. In the sky flew an enormous beast, its huge wings bringing it closer more rapidly than he had thought possible for something so big. He put a name to it, that of a creature out of legend: Dragon. A heartbeat later the monster opened its mouth and a sheet of flame spewed forth.

The blast of heat knocked Kayle off his feet. He could smell burning flesh and realized that some of his men had not escaped the blast. He dove for cover, frantically trying to wedge his large, muscular body in among the rocks.He glanced wildly up to see that the Dragon had an ally-a rider was perched atop the creature's back. This, then, was the Flame Dancer the woman had warned him about. She had not been exaggerating. How could the Emperor stand against this? The Dragon's mouth was closed and it turned, wheeling around for a second dive. Thinking he had a few moments before the next attack, Kayle got to his feet and scrambled for a more protected area.

But more fire came. How was that possible? The Dragon was facing away, he couldn't- It was then that Kayle saw the figure perched atop the creature's back. Even as he watched, motionless with fear and knowing he needed to find shelter, it lifted its arms. Fire came from the figure's hands-from her hands-and rushed toward him in an orange-red ball.

In the instant before his death, Kayle did not think of his Emperor, or the warning he needed to bring him, or anything else remotely related to war or death.

He thought about the look on his adopted mother's face as she left him with the captain of the guards, and realized that she had loved him.

Atop the Great Dragon out of legend, the Flame Dancer continued to hurl fireballs at the scouts of the Emperor from over the mountain. She kept up the attack until the Dragon banked sharply to the right and rose even higher.

"It's done now," he said gently. "They're all dead."

They're all dead.

"You did what you had to do to protect your people."

She realized that she had been holding every muscle in her body taut as a bow string. Suddenly she shivered and leaned down on the Dragon's neck, wrapping both arms and legs about it. Kevla began to shudder and sob, hearing and feeling the Dragon utter soothing words.

They're all dead.

Father says you get used to it.

Slowly, she sat up and dried her tears. This was but a taste of what would come later. She had to be strong. She couldn't let herself feel the enormity of what she had just done.

"Take me back, Dragon," she said.

Chapter 29

The advisor pulled aside the tent flap cautiously. "Your Excellency," he said, "you do not sleep?"

The Emperor scowled at the brazier that still glowed brightly and kept the chill of the desert night at bay. That was one thing they had not counted on: how very cold it got here at night. The contrasts were startling, to say the least. The ki-lyn, too, was wide awake, huddled and shivering, but from cold or fear, the advisor could not say.

He did not care to speculate.

"Do I look as though I am asleep?" the Emperor snapped. He glanced up, and the advisor was startled at the hollows underneath the Emperor's eyes. "One of them is there. I know it."

Fear flooded the advisor. "Surely not, Your Excellency. You are weary. Perhaps your... intuition is playing tricks on you."

The Emperor shook his head. "It's faint. It shouldn't be. I should know which one it is, who it is. I ought to be able to sense-"

He slammed his fist down on the small table next to him and his cup of wine went flying. The ki-lyn started and tried to avoid the object. It pulled away it but was caught up short, gasping as the collar around its neck halted its movement and the ever-present chain that connected it to the Emperor pulled taut. The ceramic cup struck its head. Red wine splashed and trickled down its long neck, looking for all the world like blood. The creature folded its delicate, graceful legs beneath it again and simply sat, shivering.

"It's stopping me, somehow," said the Emperor, glaring at the ki-lyn. "It hates me.

It wants me to fail." The creature shrank back from the loathing in that gaze.

"Why must you keep it?" asked the advisor. "If you just had it killed-"

The look the Emperor gave him made his legs quiver. "If you suggest that again,"

the Emperor said with deceptive calm, "I'll cut off your head myself and stick it on a pike."

"Yes, Your Excellency," stammered the advisor.

The Emperor sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I imagine you had a reason for coming here?"

"Yes, of course. We have had several desertions."

"That's to be expected, this close to their homes."

"It's not helping morale, Your Excellency. Should I make an example of the ones who remain?"

"Did they try to desert?"

The advisor was flustered. "Well, no, but they are Arukani and-"

"And we need every one of them right now. We don't know what's going to greetus on the other side of the mountains."

The advisor swallowed hard. "Speaking of that, Your Excellency... the scouts have not yet returned."

The Emperor stared at him. "No, of course they haven't," he said softly. "He's gotten to them. That's how I knew he was here-he attacked." Harshly, he jerked the golden chain and the ki-lyn made a strangled sound. "Why won't you let me see him?"

The advisor eyed the creature with distaste. "Your powers will grow with time, Your Excellency. Surely, even that creature will not be able to hold you back much longer."

"That is true," said the Emperor thoughtfully. "Go to bed. We will march in the morning. I still have the advantage of numbers, even if my magic is stifled. We will hurt the Arukani badly and take their country. If one of them is there, I will deal with him when I see him, this pathetic thing be damned."

Kevla kept her face as calm as possible when she told the khashims about the attack on the scouts. They were alarmed that the enemy had gotten this far, but praised her and the Dragon for their quick thinking in destroying the threat.

"There is more," she said, trying not to curl protectively in on herself. On the way back, something had brushed her thoughts that still made her quail. Something that was angry, and dark, and powerful.

"I do not think we are dealing with an ordinary army. I sense... I sense that there is magic here as well. Abilities that haven't shown themselves yet."

"We cannot fight magic," protested young Raka.

Kevla turned to him. "Yes, we can," she insisted. "There are many toiling up the sides of these mountains now who eat, sleep, sweat, and bleed just like you do." Just like the scouts did. "If you deal them a lethal blow, they will most certainly die."