It isn't long before the Empire's commanders realize they aren't going to win the day. Men begin throwing their weapons down in surrender only to be cut down by Raiders. Before the battle, Illan ordered that no prisoners would be taken.

With a slug in hand, James watches as man after man is slaughtered rather than allowed to surrender. What are we to do with them? What are we to do with them? Illan's question returns to him. When he first heard that none would be spared, he came to Illan to argue the point. James quickly came to realize they didn't have the manpower to supervise possibly hundreds of prisoners on their march back to Madoc. The only other choice was to let them go, but that would mean they would have to face them again. So the order was given to allow no quarter. Illan's question returns to him. When he first heard that none would be spared, he came to Illan to argue the point. James quickly came to realize they didn't have the manpower to supervise possibly hundreds of prisoners on their march back to Madoc. The only other choice was to let them go, but that would mean they would have to face them again. So the order was given to allow no quarter.

It doesn't take the remainder of the Empire's men long to realize surrender is not an option. Gathering his men in a tightly formed wedge formation, they set themselves to sell their lives dearly. James wonders how many more Raiders will die before the last man is slain.

A calm settles over the battlefield as the two sides face each other, one now completely surrounding the other. Easily three hundred battle hardened men now stand in a tight group as they face the inevitable. One officer stands near the center of the group, b.l.o.o.d.y sword in hand. He calls to his men, rallying their strength and attempting to keep their moral high.

Turning his back on what's about to happen, he finds Brother Willim and the rest of the Hand there behind him. "Terrible things happen when one land goes to war with another," states Brother Willim. He and the others all wear somber expressions. He turns to his brothers and says, "We have work to do."

As the Hand begins moving among the wounded, lending what aid they can, James gazes around at the fallen. A group of wounded have already begun to grow around the spot where Miko is using the Star to save what lives he can.

Behind him, the thrum of bowstrings announces the beginning of the end for the lives of many Empire soldiers. Shaking his head, he heads back to the makeshift camp on the outside of the walls and tries to ignore the cries of the dying men.

Chapter Seventeen.

During the aftermath of the fighting, Miko and the Brothers manage to save many of the fallen. The area where they healed the wounded reminded James of a scene right out of MASH as the wounded were brought to them.

Armor and weapons from the dead Empire soldiers are cleaned up as best they can be and then are given to the newly formed units of crossbowmen and fighters. By the end of the afternoon, what wounded that could be saved has been. Devin puts up James' tent so the leaders will have a place to meet to discuss their next course of action.

"What do you mean you're leaving?" exclaims a weary Miko. Exhausted and wearing a fresh clean shirt as his other had been stained beyond repair with the blood of the wounded, he gazes at James in disbelief.

"I'm taking Jiron and Jared further into the Empire while the rest of you follow Illan back to Madoc," he explains. Even though he had told them that he would be taking everyone from The Ranch with him when he split off from Illan, he came to the conclusion that a small group would travel faster without attracting as much notice.

"I'm coming too," he states very matter-of-factly.

Shaking his head, James replies, "Not this time." When he sees Miko ready to begin another tirade about coming along, he holds up his hand to forestall him. "Illan will need the Star to keep as many of his men alive before they make it back to the safety of Madoc."

"But..." he begins to say then stops.

"You are more than just the kid I found on the streets of Bearn now," James tells him as he lays a hand on his shoulders. "There are times when duty, especially duty for others, will force us to abandon our own wishes. They need you." Gazing into his eyes, James pauses a moment before adding, "I doubt if they will be able to survive to return to their families without you."

Emotions war within him from anger to helplessness as he comes to grips with what James just told him. After a prolonged silence, he at last nods his head in defeat. Patting his shoulder once again, James turns to Brother Willim who nods as well. Just before the meeting, he had explained things to the brother.

Returning his attention to the others a.s.sembled there, he says, "I've checked the surrounding countryside and it doesn't look as if any other forces are on the way. I plan on sneaking out once night has fallen when any searches done with magic will be less effective, I hope."

"Now, what's going on with Korazan itself?" he asks.

"Fairly quiet, all things considered," replies Illan. "Ceadric?" he says.

"The foraging parties we've sent into the areas surrounding the slaver compound have met little resistance," he explains. "There have been isolated incidents where bolts have been fired at us, but those are relatively few."

"Since our presence has been kept here on the east side of town, our scouts keeping an eye on the north and south road tell us that some brave souls are leaving the city and making their way to safety."

"Send Nerun and his riders to the north to halt any further people fleeing in that direction," Illan tells him. "When we leave in the morning, we'll be taking the north road. Don't want a bunch of civilians getting in our way."

"Yes, sir," he says.

"Delia," James says turning to her. "There are still several dozen crystals left that you will be taking with you. Make sure no one but you touches them until it's time for their use."

"What are they?" she asks.

"Similar to the ones I used to breach the walls," he explains. To Illan he says, "You can use them to blow any bridges you come across on your way north too."

Nodding, Illan grins and says, "We'll do that."

"But won't that make it hard for you to get out of the Empire?" Miko asks, worried.

"We'll be returning another way," he replies. "With any luck we'll meet up with you by the time you reach the border."

"Still an army or two between us and Madoc," Ceadric interjects.

"True," replies Illan. "But with any luck, Lord Pytherian and the Alliance will have softened them up some before we encounter them."

"Maybe catch them between our force and his?" offers Ceadric.

"That's the plan," Illan says.

"Where are you planning on going?" Delia asks.

James looks to her for a moment and says, "Oh, just some places south of here that the Empire would hate to lose." Then to Illan he adds, "On your way north, free as many slaves as you can. They may not be able to fight well, but every bit helps."

Illan stands up and says, "We all have things to see to before we leave in the morning. I suggest we get to them." And with that the meeting breaks up. Ceadric heads out to find Nerun and have him close down the northward migration of civilians. James takes Delia to the pack horses where he separates the crystals he's planning on taking with those he's leaving for her.

Jiron on the other hand has something else on his mind. It doesn't take him long to locate Aleya, she's with other archers working to fletch arrows damaged during the battle. It took them some time but they managed to retrieve a good portion of those used.

As he approaches, the talking ceases as she and the others turn toward him. "Uh..." he begins then stops.

"Yes?" she asks when he fails to continue to talk.

"Can I see you a moment?" he asks. When she nods he adds, "In private?"

An arrow lies in her lap, the arrowhead slightly skewed from where it had struck armor. "Give me a sec," she says.

He waits patiently while she works on the arrow. Once the arrowhead is again secured firmly in the correct position, she puts it in her quiver which is propped against the pack lying next to her. As she comes to her feet, Jiron leads her away to a spot of relative privacy away from the hustle and bustle of the camp.

Coming to a halt, he turns to her and says quietly, "James and I are leaving this evening."

"What?" she asks. "I thought we were all going together?"

He takes her by the hand. "So did I," he replies. "I'm not sure exactly where James is leading us but I do know it's further into the Empire. You and the others are going to begin the journey back to Madoc."

Sadness comes to her eyes as she gazes into his. "I understand," she a.s.sures him. "You be careful."

Giving her a crooked smile he says, "I will." Pulling her close he wraps his arms around her and happily feels hers wrap around him. "I love you, you know," he whispers into her ear.

"I do know," she replies with an emotional catch in her voice. "I love you too."

Their embrace lasts for several minutes until the stillness of the moment is disturbed by James clearing his throat. They both turn to see him there a few feet away, a slightly embarra.s.sed look upon his face. "I hate to break this up," he says, "but the sun is almost down." He glances from Aleya to Jiron and says, "We need to get ready."

Jiron nods his head. Then to Aleya he says, "Would you mind helping me?"

"Not at all," she replies. Arm in arm they walk over and begin getting Jiron's equipment ready for travel.

He, James and Jared a.s.semble their equipment for travel and for the time being leave it inside James' tent. They will wait for the protective cover of night before they transfer their things to their horses, in case anyone is watching. Once everything is ready, they get something to eat. Jiron and Aleya go off away from the others to have some privacy while they share their meal.

"Just when things between them are improving, they are thrust apart again," comments Delia as she takes a seat on the ground near James.

"Parting is such sweet sorrow," James says dramatically.

"What?" she asks.

He grins and looks at her. "The drama club at school put on a play and that was one of the lines that sort of stuck with me."

"Oh," she says in that slightly confused manner that they all have when he talks about things from his past. Never quite understanding just what he's talking about. During the meal, he uses his mirror before it gets too dark to see if any hostile forces are on the way. Other than some patrols and scouts keeping an eye on them, there's nothing out there of any size. Illan glances at him when he's through and James gives him a shake of his head. Illan nods understanding and returns to his meal.

The sun finally sinks below the horizon before they finish their meal. Those from The Ranch gather together around the fire to have one last social time before James and the others take off. Jorry and Uther begin another of their tales. It must be the fact that James and Jiron will be heading into danger that keeps Scar and Potbelly from picking the story apart as they usually do.

When the story, which was a doozy about some underworld figure they ran afoul of and got the best of, finally ends, the stars begin to come out. "It's time," James announces as he gets to his feet.

Devin and Moyil move to help him transfer his equipment to his horse and Terrance helps Jiron. By the time they have changed into native attire and are ready, a similarly dressed Jared joins them with his horse all set for travel. James mounts and waits while Jiron says goodbye to Aleya.

A tight embrace, then a quick kiss before he swings into the saddle. "You come back to me," she tells him.

"I will," he a.s.sures her as he looks down into her eyes. "You just stay alive until I return."

"Until we meet again," Illan says as he comes forth. "Good luck."

"You too," James replies.

"Give 'em h.e.l.l!" Scar says from where he and Potbelly stand with the rest of those from The Ranch.

James gives Scar a quick nod and then pats his pocket wherein two glowing crystals lie. For what he's about to do, he may need the added power. "You ready?" he asks Jiron and Jared.

Jared gives him a nod and Jiron says, "Yes."

"Alright then." Summoning the power, he casts a spell which should render him undetectable by magical means just as he had with the Fire. This was one reason that he decided to leave at night. In the event someone is keeping an eye on him, it may not be readily noticeable that he left the main force. But when they do, they will try to break through the spell shielding him, just as they had with the Fire.

He waits a moment to see if anything develops. When nothing does, he nudges his horse forward and turns to the south, Jiron and Jared follow.

"Good luck!" Delia hollers as they begin to move away from the camp.

Angling away from the walls to prevent their leaving from being noticed, they stay off the main southern road that runs along the large lake to the west. Tears of the Empress it's called and the reflection of the moon overhead off its water gives them a guide in the dark.

Jiron moves ahead of James and Jared and keeps alert for any scouts or sentries that may be in the area. James keeps just within visual range of him and slows down when he sees him come to a stop.

"What's going on?" asks Jared quietly.

"Shhh!" James says as he watches Jiron dismount from his horse. Moving further ahead, he disappears in the dark. Sitting there anxiously for several minutes, James begins to grow worried until he sees Jiron reappear in the moonlight. Mounting his horse again Jiron glances back at them, waves for them to follow, and then resumes moving ahead.

Jared glances questioningly at James but remains silent. When they reach the area just past where Jiron had stopped, they find a riderless horse standing by a motionless form on the ground. "He's good," Jared mumbles.

James nods silently in agreement as they continue to follow Jiron south. The incident with the scout isn't repeated and after little over an hour, Jiron slows down and has the others join him. "I think we're past whatever sentries and patrols were watching Korazan," he says. "Now, just where are we heading?"

"Two days to the southeast lies Ki," he replies. "According to the intelligence Lord Pytherian's agents gathered, there's a large iron mine in the mountains close to it. It's a relatively small town and doesn't have much of a garrison."

"Going to do the same thing there as you did at the island?" Jiron asks. He remembers how James had utterly destroyed the Iron Mines at Sorna when he caused a ma.s.sive volcanic eruption to completely engulf the island. Intelligence gathered by Lord Pytherian said a whole chain of eruptions sprung into being and have since played merry h.e.l.l with shipping in the area.

"Hardly," he says. "Going to try to collapse it, make it unusable for quite a while. If they lose the iron from there, they will only have one other mine of any size in operation or so the reports said. The other one is too far south for us to reach and have any success in making it back to Madoc again."

They ride for another hour or so before coming to where the road forks to the southeast. Skirting around the town that sits across the juncture, they move to follow the new road to the southeast.

Throughout the night, they continue to follow the road. Other than them, no one else is traveling so late in the evening. Two hours before sunup, they come across a small village straddling the road. Little more than huts with goat farms, there is at least an inn.

"We should stop here," James says when the inn comes in sight.

"Are you sure?" Jared asks. "If we're found out, it's all over."

"I doubt that will happen," Jiron says, joining the discussion.

"All you have to do is go in and get us a room," James tells Jared. "Tell them we'll send someone down in the morning to let them know when we will want breakfast sent up."

"Alright," says Jared, a trifle skeptical.

The inn has a lone lit candle in the front room. They pull up to the rail outside where James and Jiron wait while Jared goes inside. He isn't long in returning and indicates he's obtained a room. They take their horses around back to the stables. Only one horse is all there is within the stables and they have their choice of stalls. They pick three close to the entrance. Once their horses are settled in, they take all their bags with them up to their room.

As they reach the door to their room, James' orb appears. Opening the door, the light from the orb reveals a single bed. They both look at Jared. "Sorry," he says apologetically. "It was all they had."

"All they had?" responds Jiron in amazement. "The stables are nigh on empty and this place hardly seems a major stop along the road."

"It's okay," a.s.sures James as he enters through the door. Once the door shuts behind them, they stack their bags against it as an alarm.

"You take the bed," Jiron offers James.

James nods and takes a seat on the edge while the others make themselves comfortable on the floor. "It's a couple hours until dawn," he says. "When it's light enough, someone may realize I am no longer with our main force. Things could get interesting when it does."

"How will we know if they do?" Jared asks.

Jiron chuckles and says, "Believe me, we'll know."

Before getting comfortable James removes the two crystals he had in his pocket as well as another from the sack of crystals. The power stored within these three crystals will aid him to ward off detection in the event an attempt is made to locate him. Setting them on the bed next to him, he lays down.

"Good night," Jiron says from his position by the door.