the sub-marshal.
“I rode like the wind and then went afoot when it became too difficult to sneak past the enemy.” He pointed to the west. “We have a large Shimeran force hidden alongside the road waiting for us.”
“Impossible,” sputtered Lustral, still trying to get his bearings.
Will went to the side of the tent, where a small table had a wooden pitcher on it. He poured himself a cup of water and then found a chair. “Allow me to rest my feet. It’s been a long journey.” They watched him finish his first long swallow, then he spoke again. “It’s entirely possible. I saw them with my own eyes.”
The field marshal stared while Fulstrom covered his face with both hands. Neither of them seemed to know what to make of the news. Will continued, “We will camp tonight, praying that the Darrowans don’t press their advantage. Hopefully, they are fully aware of where their mercenaries are, in which case they will want to wait until we spring the trap tomorrow. The odds will be stacked in their favor then, minimizing their losses, so I believe they’ll be patient.”
The sub-marshal found his voice at last. “But that just reinforces what I said. We have to move now. Either we turn and fight, or we rush the ambushers—tonight—when they aren’t fully prepared.”
“It would still be a disaster for us,” said Will. “And from what I’ve seen of what you have left, I don’t think we could take the Shimeran force in an open battle. I can’t speak to the odds against the Darrowan force, since I haven’t seen them. You were saying that they were far weaker, weren’t you, Field Marshal?” There was an ironic twist on his lips as he said the last.
“Closer to an even match,” said Lustral, reframing his earlier remarks.
“The scouts report they outnumber us two to one,” countered Fulstrom. “They are somewhat battle weary, as we are, but their morale is higher now that they’ve driven us into retreat.”
“I think I have a better grasp of things than you do, Sub-Marshal,” said the field marshal, keeping his tone more diplomatic than before.
Will came to a decision, and distasteful as it was, he couldn’t afford to delay it. “Sub-Marshal Nicht, please leave us for a while so I can speak privately with the field marshal.”
Fulstrom nodded quickly and left, though his features betrayed his obvious worry about the overall situation. Once they were alone, Will asked, “How long have you been working with them?”
“Excuse me?” Lustral’s face was a picture of innocent confusion.
“The Darrowans. You were the one who betrayed our choice of routes before we reached Klendon, weren’t you?”
Lustral’s eye twitched and then his face began to turn red. “I’ve been a faithful servant of King Lognion for my entire life. How dare you—” His voice cut off abruptly as Will paralyzed him with a near-instant source-link. The duke struggled internally, but despite his age and supposed experience, the nobleman failed to put up more than a token resistance.
Three major elementals started to manifest, but Will’s sword was already at the man’s throat. “You should reconsider that,” he warned. The elementals dwindled seconds later, and Will began rifling through the nobleman’s coat pockets. Lustral’s eyes bulged in outrage, but he could say nothing. Disappointingly, Will found nothing.
He would rather have found the evidence he expected, but he didn’t need it. Reaching out with his free hand, he pulled at the knot of turyn near Lustral’s heart. Three distinct enchantments came to the surface, and Will began picking them apart.
The paralyzed nobleman tried desperately to scream, but only his eyes would move, displaying panic and horror as Will undid the first of the three heart-stone enchantments. The elementals began to manifest again, but Will pushed the sword more firmly against his throat. “Don’t, or I’ll have to ruin your clothes.”
Tears of rage began running from Lustral’s eyes as Will finished freeing the other two elementals. Once he was done with that, he smiled sadly, then put away his sword. “See? Isn’t it nicer that I didn’t have to open your throat?” The duke seemed faintly relieved, but his panic returned when his chest seized up and his breathing stopped.
“A lot of men died because of you, Lustral,” said Will, leaning over his former second-in-command. “I still don’t know if my cousin survived your treacherous games, but either way, I can’t afford to allow you to give away my plan before morning.” Lustral’s face was almost purple now.
Will patted the