The Ruby Knight

boil. She usually wakes up early.’ And he went back towards the camp.
    Ulath, who had been standing watch nearby, loomed out of the shadows. ‘That was a very interesting conversation,’ he rumbled.
    ‘You were listening.’
    ‘Obviously. Voices carry a long way at night.’
    ‘You don’t approve – about the armour, I mean?’
    ‘It doesn’t bother me, Sparhawk. We’re a lot less formal in Thalesia than you are down here. A fair number of Genidian Knights are not, strictly speaking, of noble birth.’ He grinned, his teeth flashing. ‘We usually wait until King Wargun is roaring drunk and then file them in so he can bestow titles on them. Several of my friends are barons of places that don’t even exist.’ He rubbed at the back of his neck. ‘Sometimes I think this whole nobility business is a farce anyway. Men are men – titled or not. I don’t think God cares, so why should we?’
    ‘You’re going to stir up a revolution talking like that, Ulath.’
    ‘Maybe it’s time for one. It’s starting to get light over there.’ Ulath pointed towards the eastern horizon.
    ‘Right. It looks as if we might have good weather today.’
    ‘Check with me this evening, and I’ll let you know.’
    ‘Don’t people in Thalesia try to predict the weather?’
    ‘Why? You can’t do anything about it. Why don’t we go and have a look at your map? I know a bit about ships and currents and prevailing winds and the like. It could just be that I can make some guesses about where King Sarak made his landfall. We might be able to figure out which route he took. That could narrow things down just a bit.’
    ‘Not a bad idea,’ Sparhawk agreed. ‘If we can work that out, at least we’ll have some idea of where to start asking questions.’ Sparhawk hesitated. ‘Ulath,’ he said seriously, ‘is Bhelliom really as dangerous as they say it is?’
    ‘Probably even more so. Ghwerig made it, and he’s not really very pleasant – even for a Troll.’
    ‘You said “is”. Don’t you mean “was”? He’s dead by now, isn’t he?’
    ‘Not that I’ve heard, and I rather doubt it. There’s something you ought to know about Trolls, Sparhawk. They don’t die of old age like other creatures. You have to kill them. If somebody had managed to kill Ghwerig, he’d have boasted about it, and I’d have heard the story. There’s not much to do in Thalesia in the wintertime except listen to stories. The snow piles up by the foot there, so we usually stay inside. Let’s go and have a look at that map.’
    As they walked back towards the tents, Sparhawk decided that he liked Ulath. The huge Genidian Knight was normally very silent, but once you managed to unlock his friendship, he spoke with a kind of droll understatement that was often even more amusing than Kalten’s exaggerated humour. Sparhawk’s companions were good men – the best, actually. They were all different, of course, but that was only to be expected. Whatever the outcome of their search might be, he was glad that he had had the opportunity to know them.
    Sephrenia stood by the fire drinking tea. ‘You’re up early,’ she noted as the two knights came into the circle of light. ‘Have the plans changed? Are we in some hurry to leave?’
    ‘Not really,’ Sparhawk told her, kissing her palm in greeting.
    ‘Please don’t spill my tea,’ she cautioned.
    ‘No, ma’am,’ he agreed. ‘We’re not going to be able to cover much more than five leagues today, so let the others sleep a while longer. That wagon’s not going to move very fast, and besides, after what’s been happening, I don’t think wandering around in the dark would be such a good idea. Is Berit awake yet?’
    ‘I think I heard him stirring around.’
    ‘I’m going to put him in Kalten’s armour and have Kurik wear Bevier’s. Maybe we can intimidate anybody who might be feeling unfriendly.’
    ‘Is that all you Elenes ever think about?’
    ‘A good bluff is sometimes better than a good fight,’ Ulath growled. ‘I like deceiving people.’
    ‘You’re as bad as Talen is.’
    ‘No, not really. My fingers aren’t nimble enough for cutting purses. If I decide I want what’s in a man’s purse, I’ll hit him on the head and take it.’
    She laughed. ‘I’m surrounded by scoundrels.’
    The day dawned bright and sunny. The sky was very blue, and the wet grass that covered the surrounding hills was shiny green.
    ‘Whose turn is it to cook breakfast?’ Sparhawk asked