A Malazan Book of the Fallen Collection 1

knelt a figure, his bare head bowed. Beside him was a large, lumpy burlap sack, covered in brown stains. Clouds of flies swarmed around both the man and the sack.
    The marine halted and turned to the sorceress. 'He still hasn't moved. The guards keep getting sick when they patrol through here.'
    Tattersail stared at the huddled man, a sudden welling of tears behind her eyes. Ignoring the marine, she strode into the aisle. The stench hit her like a wall. Damn, she thought, he's been here since the battle. Five days. The sorceress came closer. Though Bellurdan knelt, his head came near to her own height. The Thelomen High Mage still wore what was left of his battle garb, the ragged strips of fur scorched and torn, the rough weave of fragments of tunic stained with blood. As she arrived to stop before him, she saw that his neck and face were covered in burn blisters, and most of his hair was gone.
    'You look terrible, Bellurdan,' she said.
    The giant's head slowly turned. Red-rimmed eyes focused on her face. 'Ah,' he rumbled. 'Tattersail.' His exhausted smile cracked the charred flesh of one cheek. The wound gaped red and dry.
    That smile almost broke her down. 'You need healing, old friend.' Her gaze flicked to the burlap sack. Its surface crawled with flies. 'Come on. Nightchill would bite your head off if she could see you now.' She felt a trembling steal into her, but grimly pressed on. 'We'll take care of her, Bellurdan. You and me. But we'll need our strength to do that.'
    The Thelomen shook his head slowly. 'I choose this, Tattersail. The scars without are the scars within.' He drew a deep breath. 'I will survive these wounds. And I alone will raise my love's barrow. But the time is not yet right.' He laid a massive hand on the sack. 'Tayschrenn has given me leave to do this. Will you do the same?'
    Tattersail was shocked to feel the surge of anger rising up in her. 'Tayschrenn gave you leave, did he?' To her own ears her voice sounded brutal, a harsh grating of sarcasm. She saw Bellurdan flinch and seem to withdraw, and a part of her wanted to wail, to throw her arms around the giant and weep, but rage possessed her. 'That bastard killed Nightchill, Bellurdan! The Moon's lord had neither the time nor the inclination to raise demons. Think about it! Tayschrenn had the time to prepare—'
    'No!' The Thelomen's voice thundered down the aisle. He surged to his feet and Tattersail stepped back. The giant looked ready to tear down the walls, a desperate fire in his eyes. His hands closed into fists. Then his glare fixed on her. He seemed to freeze. All at once his shoulders slumped, his hands opened, and his eyes dimmed. 'No,' he said again, this time in a tone filled with sorrow. 'Tayschrenn is our protector. As he has always been, Tattersail. Remember the very beginning? The Emperor was mad, but Tayschrenn stood at his side. He shaped the Empire's dream and so opposed the Emperor's nightmare. We underestimated the Lord of Moon's Spawn, that is all.'
    Tattersail stared up at Bellurdan's ravaged face. The memory
    of Hairlock's torn body returned to her. There was an echo there, but she
    couldn't quite catch it. 'I remember the beginning,' she said softly, doing
    some searching of her own. The memories remained sharp, but whatever thread
    there was that connected then to now still eluded her. She wanted desperately
    to talk to Quick Ben, but she had seen nothing of the Bridgeburners since
    the day of the battle. They'd left her with Hairlock, and that puppet scared
    her more and more with every passing day. Particularly now that he'd found
    a grudge to hold on to – the scene with the Deck of Dragons still smarted
    – and he worked it by keeping her in the dark. 'The Emperor had a knack
    for gathering the right people around him,' she continued. 'But he wasn't
    a fool. He knew the betrayal would come from that group. What made us the
    right people was our power. I remember, Bellurdan.' She shook her head. 'The
    Emperor's gone, but the power's still here.'
    Tattersail's breath caught. 'And that's it,' she said, half to herself. 'Tayschrenn's the thread.'
    'The Emperor was insane,' Bellurdan said. 'Else he would have protected himself better.'
    Tattersail frowned at that. The Thelomen had a point. Like she'd just said, that old man wasn't a fool. So what had happened? 'I'm sorry. We must talk later. The High Mage has summoned me. Bellurdan, will we talk later?'
    The giant nodded. 'As you wish. Soon I will