A Malazan Book of the Fallen Collection 3

the
bearer with intelligence?'
    Stormy nodded. 'That it does, sir. Which is why Gesler's
a sergeant and I'm a corporal. We get stupider every year
that passes.'
    'And Stormy's proud of that,' Gesler said, slapping his
companion on the back.
    The Adjunct rubbed at her eyes. She examined the tips
of her leather gloves, then slowly began removing the
gauntlets. 'I see by the waterline she's fully provisioned ...'
    'Food does not spoil in that hold,' Nok said. 'That much
my mages have determined. Furthermore, there are no rats
or other vermin.' He hesitated, then sighed. 'In any case, I
could find no sailors who would volunteer to crew the Silanda. And I have no intention of forcing the issue.' He
shrugged. 'Adjunct, if they truly want it ...'
    'Very well. Sergeant Gesler, your own squad and two
others.'
    'The Fourth and Ninth, Adjunct.'
    Her gaze narrowed on the man, then she turned to
Keneb. 'Fist? They're your resurrected squads.'
    'The Fourth – that would be Strings's—'
    'For Hood's sake,' the Adjunct said. 'His name is Fiddler.
It is the worst-kept secret in this army, Keneb.'
    'Of course. My apologies, Adjunct. Fiddler's, then, and
the Ninth – let's see, Sergeant Balm's squad. Abyss take us,
Gesler, what a snarly bunch of malcontents you've
selected.'
    'Yes sir.'
    'All right.' Keneb hesitated, then turned to Tavore.
'Adjunct, may I suggest that the Silanda hold a flanking
position to your own flagship at all times.'
    Mock dismay on Gesler's face and he punched Stormy in
the arm and said, 'They don't trust us, Stormy.'
    'Shows what they know, don't it?'
    'Aye, it does. Damn me, they're smarter than we
thought.'
    'Sergeant Gesler,' the Adjunct said, 'take your corporal
and get out of here.'
    'Aye, Adjunct.'
    The two marines hurried off.
    After a moment, Admiral Nok laughed, briefly, under his
breath, then said, 'Adjunct, I must tell you, I am ...
relieved.'
    'To leave the Silanda to those idiots?'
    'No, Tavore. The unexpected arrival of more survivors
from Y'Ghatan, with soldiers such as Fiddler, Cuttle, Gesler
and Stormy among them – and—' he turned to Quick
Ben and Kalam, 'you two as well. The transformation
within your army, Adjunct, has been ... palpable. It is
often forgotten by commanders, the significance of storied
veterans, especially among young, untried soldiers. Added
to that, the extraordinary tale of their survival beneath the
streets of Y'Ghatan,' he shook his head. 'In all, a most
encouraging development.'
    'I agree,' Tavore said, glancing at Keneb. 'It was, for the
most part, these soldiers who at the very beginning
embraced what could have been seen as a terrible omen,
and made of it a thing of strength. None of us were fully
cognizant of it at the time, but it was there, in Aren, at that
first parade, that the Bonehunters were born.'
    The others were all staring at her.
    Her brows lifted fractionally.
    Keneb cleared his throat. 'Adjunct, the Bonehunters
may well have been birthed that day in Aren, but it only
drew its first breath yesterday.'
    'What do you mean?'
    'We were wondering,' Kalam said to her, 'where that
decoration came from. The one you presented, with your
own hand, to Captain Faradan Sort and the witch Sinn.'
    'Ah, yes. Well, I can make no claim regarding that. The
design of that sigil was by T'amber's hand. There were
jewelsmiths in her family, I understand, and she passed a
few years of her youth as an apprentice. Nonetheless, I do
not see how that ceremony achieved little more than a
confirmation of what already existed.'
    'Adjunct,' Fist Keneb said, 'it was your confirmation that
was needed. To make it real. I do not wish to offend you,
but before then, you were the Adjunct. You were Laseen's.
Her property.'
    Her expression was suddenly flat, dangerous. 'And now,
Fist?'
    But it was Kalam who answered. 'Now, you belong to the
Fourteenth.'
    'You belong to us,' Keneb said.
    The moment should have ended there, and all would
have been well. Better than well. It would have been perfect. Instead, they saw, upon Tavore's expression, a growing
... dismay. And fear. And at first, neither emotion
made any sense.
    Unless ...
    Unless she was unable to return such loyalty.
    And so the doubt twisted free, like newborn vipers
slithering from their clutch of eggs, and tiny, deadly fangs
sank into every figure standing there, witness to what her
face revealed.
    Revealed. And this from a woman whose self-control was
damned near inhuman.
    Startled into life, the rhizan lizard dropped free