After several more days of riding, they were inside of Per Tolith. They had passed through the surrounding well-kept farms and villages, each community with at least some walls and defences, the winged flag of the Iristari flapping over each. The huge outer walls of the city had involved a short wait, but fortunately it had been busy enough that no-one had thought to look twice at them, and the soldiers at the gate hadn’t been anyone Stathis had recognised, although she had had to turn to her face hurriedly away as a captain of the Winged Guard had come past on some other business.

But now they were inside, their horses stabled (or possibly sold – Semari had been rather vague), as Stathis pulled a cloak over her head, wishing that the weather was worse so that she had more of a justification to cover her face. Janaxia had it easy – a veil was acceptable for fashion, and the horns could pass as accessories, if rather distasteful ones.

Semari sauntered towards her, seemingly uncaring as she passed a guard patrol, before gesturing at Stathis, pointing at a notice board. As well as the usual civic notices, there were a few bounties proclaimed, Janaxia foremost amongst them. It was a good depiction, the artist having captured the curve of her horns and the jewellery hanging from them, as well as the way she carried herself.

Dark energy flared around it, pulling it from the board and whisking it through the air towards Janaxia.

Hmmm. A rather flatteringly high price.

‘Five thousand gold!? That’s insane! Semari, please don’t get any ideas.’

‘Hmmm, it is pretty tempting. Could retire on that.’

Janaxia immediately adopted a combat stance, power flaring around her hands.

‘Stop that, both of you! Try not to draw attention. And you wouldn’t even do anything with the money.’

‘Hey, I might be doing good works! Like, giving it to orphans and stuff.’

‘The only way you’re doing that is if an orphan is running a bar somewhere. You give most of it to Parth, and I don’t know what she needs it for herself. So please, no betrayal?’

Semari rolled her eyes. ‘Fine. Unless it’s really funny, then all bets are off.’

‘Good. Uh, do you know where Parth has gone? Is she still around somewhere?’ Stathis looked around, hoping to see Parth on a rooftop or something, but there was no sign of her.

‘She went out scouting last night. Said there was something powerful around the castle.’

‘Well, yeah. Mother’s had as many mages as she can get casting protective wards around the place for the last few decades. Means people can’t just teleport in or blow up the walls, that sort of thing. Hopefully she’s not triggered any alarms. Surprised she’s not on the bounty list.’

‘It’s ‘cos she’s, like, noble, innit? Probably be an international incident to say that a queen is on the wanted list. But I’m on there.’

She pointed at another poster, with a very vague description and picture: “of ragged appearance, young, female, probably human”.

‘Probably human? That’s just rude! I’m not the one with horns! Discrimination, just ‘cos I’m poor. And it’s a crap picture. How come Janaxia’s is all sexy and stuff, while I look like I’ve been dragged through a hedge?’

Stathis looked at Semari – her hair was a tousled mess, her clothing battered and tatty. Janaxia looked as though she had bathed that morning, her hair perfectly formed into a glossy black swell between her horns, her clothing immaculate.

‘Seems accurate enough to me, to be honest. Although I thought you’d be worth more, you’re a damn sight harder to catch than Janaxia would be.’

‘Yeah, see? Just ‘cos I can’t twiddle my fingers and cast spells, people think I’m weak!’

‘Well, if you get the chance, then you can prove them wrong. Just don’t kill anyone or break them permanently, they’ve not done anything wrong. Why are you taking the poster?’

‘What? Memento. Can give it to Hadric. Oooo, could sign it!’

Another group of guards passed by, Stathis looking down at the ground to try and hide her face, acutely aware that everyone else was dressed in light, summer clothing, not hiding themselves at all.

‘Just don’t draw attention to yourself! At least Vrintar’s being sensible.’ A good thing, given her size, and the distinctiveness of her twin axes and tattoos. Although as soon as the guards had walked past, then approached the board and took her own bounty poster.

‘Hmmm. I suppose they had limited sources to go from. And it is something to be thankful for that they seem to think me a mundane fighter.’

Semari took the poster and held it up by Vrintar’s face, comparing the two. ‘Hey, not bad! Doesn’t mention you setting yourself on fire though. Guess that would catch people out!’

‘Yes, most seem to find it surprising.’

Stathis tried to herd them away from the board, before another patrol came past and noticed them all, or took any action.

‘You can ask for some more from the printshop afterwards if you really want. But let’s get through this first! We’re going to hide out in our rooms until night, and then try and sneak in. And Hakara has some magic she wants to do.’

Hakara was looking even more awkward than Stathis felt, her head beneath a hood, another cloth covering her mouth, twitching nervously at every sound, looking guiltily at every group that passed. She was so obviously nervous that she was starting to draw attention by herself, especially with Kivata stood close by, her shoulders slumped in pre-emptive fear.

It took some doing, but she managed to herd everyone inside, although Skotadi bridled at being commanded until Janaxia took her aside for a whispered conversation, during which several significant glances were cast at Stathis, making her feel even more self-conscious. But, eventually, she acquiesced, stepping inside. As soon as she was out of the sunlight, she seemed to relax more, seeming a bit happier, still sticking close to Janaxia.

‘Hakara, I think there were some spells you wanted to do?’

‘Yes, to try and locate your body, and there is some preparatory work that can be done to make the merger simpler. I think, at least – this is rather theoretical, and somewhat outside of my area of expertise. Cleric Pajaran, I would have thought this more your area?’

‘Hey, don’t look at me! I heal people and hit things, I don’t do soul-stuff, that’s all a bit creepy and stuff. I guess I can put some protective wards down or something?’

‘That will have to suffice.’

Stathis spoke, hoping they weren’t drawing too much attention, standing clustered in the hallway. ‘OK, everyone – rest up, we’ll be moving out at night. There’s a late curfew, so it should be quiet after then. Semari, no wandering off. Janaxia, go get some rest.’ Her clothing was already shimmering and changing into sleek night-robes before she stepped through into her room. Hopefully she wouldn’t have one of her “funny turns” and go off and do anything stupid.

She followed Hakara into the inn room, Kivata already pushing furniture out of the way, then starting to daub a pattern onto the floors and wall in chalk. Stathis sat on the bed as Hakara started to cast something, one of her crystals raising up into the air and glowing with slow and steady pulses of bright light.

As Hakara prepared her own spell, Pajaran started to invoke her own prayers. She held a hand up, a pair of glowing circles of energy slowly fading and coalescing into existence, magical power suddenly flashing into solidity as a pair of shiny metal rings. Pajaran slipped one on before passing the other to Stathis.

‘Try not to get to far away, or it’ll break the spell. It means we’re linked though, so I’ll absorb wounds on your behalf. Uh, try not to get stabbed to much, please? It doesn’t hurt any less!’

Stathis slipped the ring on, feeling a slight sense of enervation, the ring itself warmer than it should be. ‘I’m hoping there’s not going to be any fighting! In, out, done. If we have to, we can make a break for the teleportation chambers, and use that to get the hell out of here.’

‘Are you sure about this?’

‘No, but, well… Anything else will probably end up with Janaxia getting killed. And I’m not sure if she can be raised, given there’s something weird going on with her.’

Hakara coughed, trying to draw attention to herself.

‘If you could try and relax yourself, Miss Stathis? This may be a bit, um… strange.’

Stathis took a deep breath and tried to force herself to relax, as the magical symbols began to glow, pulsing in a double-beat, partially with her heartbeat, and partially with something else. She could feel something, a warmth that pulled on her. She closed her eyes and let herself be drawn along with, the feeling of the bed beneath her fade away.

There was the sensation of movement, and then she cracked open an eye cautiously. In front of her was carved stone, smooth surfaces and lines, that it took her a moment to realise was a ceiling, one of the palace chambers. She couldn’t move anything other than her eyes, trying to figure out where she was. There were banners and trophies on the walls – was it one of the state chambers, right in the heart of the palace? There was no sign of any windows, and the air was lit by the steady glow of mage-lights, everything cast in a clear blue light. She could just about see her own body, glad to note that she seemed to be armoured, a sword in place between her hands. It looked like a copy of the one she was carrying, or was a copy, in some way that Hakara could probably explain in terms that Stathis couldn’t understand.

She heard the sounds of footsteps, armour clanking.

‘Any change?’

‘There’s been nothing since that light show. The wizards say that her soul’s somewhere else. Probably that Uth Tremari witch, I guess?’

‘Well, Dorothea’s on their trail, she’ll catch up with them soon enough. Wouldn’t want to be anyone that gets caught!’

‘Yeah, she get’s a little too into it. Very good at getting answers, but a bit unsettling. Hope they sort it out soon though. I don’t like seeing the commander like this. She’s too focused, and our forces are chasing shadows.’

Stathis didn’t recognise either of the voices, and couldn’t see the speakers, but they must be guards.

‘Well, we’ve taken out a lot of old enemies that should have been dealt with long ago. But now the rest are starting to work together. And there’s a load of rumours about undead armies and the like! Sure, this place is warded against them, but that’s not going to do anything out in the field.’

‘I’m sure we’ve got the numbers.’

The other one snorted. ‘You ever fought a wraith? Numbers mean shit against something you can’t hit. We’ve got some spellcasters, but not enough, and just one of those things can wreck a unit in close formation. They’re worse than demons, at least those you can hit, but ghosts just kill you. The ones that can turn other people into more ghosts are the worst. I had that’s what happened to the Eighteenth – a few of them attacked, and just chewed them up. After a certain point, the numbers just tilted and after that, it was all over. Left the Jarkandath Pass haunted, no-one can get through.’

‘Shit, is that what happened? I assumed it was just rockfalls and shit.’

‘It’s only gossip, but, well, it would make sense. The Uth Tremari have some mercs and nothing else, nothing we can’t defeat in a day or less in the field. But they’re dick-deep in all sorts of arcane bullshit – ghosts, demons, or the sorts of bullocks that normal tactics have problems with. Some monster immune to your attacks rocks up, what are you going to do? Make the sacrifice play and try and hold it down, hope one of the commanders with a magical blade is close enough to come by and help? If they’re not, then it doesn’t matter how many people are fighting it, it’s going to keep killing them until it’s done.’

‘Shit, is that why they’re trying to attract anyone with any magical talent? I’ve seen some of the new recruits – can barely hold a sword, never mind pull off a five-day march, but they can cast spells.’

‘That’s what I hear, yeah. They might only be able to manage shitty little spells, but enough of them should have an effect. They’re being assigned out to squads, so everyone gets a chantling. Which is fucking up all sorts of procedures, as the fresh meat have no idea what’s going on, it’s playing merry hell with unit coherency. If they survive and get up to speed, then we’re going to have a lot of tricks for future battles, but damn, I’m glad I don’t have to babysit some chantling fresh out of a backwater school. They might know the secrets of the universe, but they know diddly-squat about being in the army.’

Stathis tried to move her body again, but couldn’t feel anything, couldn’t make anything happen. A hand waved in front of her face, an armoured gauntlet.

‘Damn, it’s sad to see her like this. Creepy how her eyes are open as well.’

‘Well, Commander seems to think that she’ll be back sooner rather than later, I guess. Maybe this time she’ll stick around and be in charge? Commander’s not getting any younger, and I sure as hell don’t want High Priestess Carissia being in charge!’

‘Damn straight, I’d rather not get blown up by my chief commander.’

The sounds started to grow dim, as whatever was powering the connection faded away, and suddenly Stathis was back in the room in the inn again. She shook her head, feeling slightly disorientated before talking to Hakara.

‘That was weird. But my body is definitely in there. I didn’t recognise the room, but it looked like one of the state chambers. They’re all close together, so I can get us close. And apparently there’s a recruitment drive for wizards. Don’t think it’ll make much difference, but just be careful.’

‘Understood.’

A bell tolled, counting the hour. The transportation to and from her body must have taken longer than she’d realised – it was curfew.

They clambered out of a window, sneaking through the streets of the city. Fortunately, the curfew was being obeyed, making the place quiet and dark, with the guard easy to evade. Semari was visible only as an occasional shadow flitting between rooftops, before they came to one of the outer curtain walls. There was a swift “thud” and a clatter of metal and then a rope slithered down. Stathis climbed up, pulling herself onto the parapet as Semari tied up an unconscious soldier, hiding them in a storage bin.

With much grunting and gasping, Janaxia pulled herself into sight, cheeks red in the double-moonlight, her dress exchanged for a tight catsuit, that was at least moderately functional for sneaking around in, although did seem impractically tight, showing off the cleft of her navel. She took a moment to collect her breath, getting pushed aside by Pajaran climbing up behind her.

Clouds drifted above them, the sky suddenly clear, moonlight shining brightly. Stathis ducked, trying to avoid being outlined against the sky, pulling Janaxia down with her, a horn scraping against her chest.

It seems rather injudicious to have gone jewellery shopping.

‘Huh? Oh, you mean this?’ Stathis twisted her hand to show the ring, trying not to let it catch the light. ‘It’s a magical thing, Pajaran made it. She’s got one as well.’

Janaxia stiffened and tried to pull away, her strength to weak to make any progress against Stathis. Hmph. A stray beam of moonlight shone down, Skotadi suddenly appearing from empty air, before taking a step forward into thicker shadows and vanishing again. Janaxia twisted again, Stathis letting her go. What was she getting stroppy with now?

Despite the hour, the palace and its defences were lit up, with torches and mage-lights at regular intervals, guards patrolling, bureaucrats still going about their business.

‘OK, follow me. Stay close together, and don’t get spotted. And Parth, if you can hear me, then stay safe. I think I can get us close, and then Hakara will need some time to cast her spell and do whatever.’

‘Yes, I don’t think it will take too long, but it may be quite bright. However, I can shield some of us from vision. It will fade if you fight or cast a spell, but it should make things easier.’

Without everyone still crouched, Hakara started to cast a spell, taking just a few seconds to invoke her power. She faded from vision, shortly followed by Kivata, Janaxia, Pajaran and Vrintar. When Stathis raised her own hand, it was also invisible.

There was some awkward fumbling as they had to feel around, Semari getting bored and jumping away to the ground, flitting through the shadows. Skotadi was still fading in and out as the moonlight struck her, sometimes just parts of her body appearing. It was slightly unnerving having just an arm or part of a torso appear in a sudden patch of dappled moonlight!

Still, they managed to make their way through the shadows, avoiding the guards, until they reached a small walled garden, marble warriors and wizards on plinths surrounding them. Stathis heard matching hisses of pain from both Janaxia and Skotadi, although could see neither, as a feeling of peace and calm settled over her. It was consecrated ground, where several heroes had been buried, or at least the bits of them left over.

‘Everyone here?’ Between the darkness and the invisibility spell, it was impossible to tell. Air rushed as Semari jumped down from somewhere, everyone else sounding off. When she had confirmed that everyone was present, Stathis reached out to one of the plinths, feeling around the stone until she found a protrusion, pushing against it, feeling it slide into the stone. Then she tugged on a sword pommel and twisted it around.

A large stone slab on the ground rumbled aside, revealing a staircase downwards. Stathis led the way, feeling a staticky aura fuzz over her skin, a magical barrier that abruptly popped as it detected her. She relaxed slightly – it seemed as though the protections hadn’t been reworked to exclude her yet. ‘OK, everyone follow me.’

They descended into the darkness.