into next summer, feeding animals and people. We're short on meat, which is why I sent out the hunters this morning, but for a week we can do without. If it turns into a month we can always slaughter a goat or a sheep to feed ourselves. Our real problems are going to be morale and sanitation."
Wolf nodded. "We'll have to deal with morale as it comes. I might be able to do something about the sanitation, though. The blocked-off tunnel where you're storing grain leads to a cave with a pit deep enough that you can throw a rock into it and not hear it hit bottom. It's fairly narrow, so you should be able to put some sort of structure over it to keep people from falling into it."
"That should relieve Aralorn," commented Myr, a smile lighting his tired face for the first time since he'd heard the Uriah.
Wolf nodded seriously. "She was really worried that before this was all over she'd he pressed into digging latrines."
Myr laughed wearily and pushed his hair out of his face. "I should have asked this before. Is it possible that the Uriah can find their way in here through another entrance?"
"Maybe," answered Wolf, starting to head toward Aralorn, who was swaying wearily as she finished her story, "but there are only two other entrances that I have found, and they were all heavily carved with runes. If this entrance is protected, I suspect that all of them are."
* * *
OUTSIDE, THE URIAH QUIETED AND SANK TO THEIR KNEES AS a rider came into view. His horse was lathered and sweating, showing the whites of its eyes in fear of the Uriah. But it had learned to trust its rider, and Lord Kisrah was careful to keep the Uriah motionless with the spells of control that the ae'Magi had taught him.
He dismounted near the entrance to the cave. The wall of flame had subsided somewhat when the Uriah backed away, but it was still higher than Lord Kisrah's head. He could see the runes just inside the entrance, but he couldn't touch them to alter their power.
He sketched a symbol in the air that glowed faintly yellow and passed easily through the flames. It touched a rune and the flames started to die down, low enough that he could see a man walk into the cave opening.
"You are not welcome. Leave this place." The man was almost inhumanly beautiful, and Lord Kisrah caught his breath in admiration. Abruptly the flames returned; for the first time Lord Kisrah could feel the heat on his face.
He hacked up and tried to push the flames down again with no effect. The third time he tried it, the Uriah began stirring as his hold on them weakened. With a curse, he desisted. He led the horse back through the Uriah until he had some space.
"You will stay here until the ae'Magi releases you," he ordered briskly. "If someone comes out of the cave, you will not harm them. Take them prisoner - you know how to contact me if that happens." He mounted the horse and let it choose its own speed away from the Uriah.
* * *
"THANK YOU, LORD KISRAH. I AM SURE THAT YOU DID YOUR best with the warding - but the old runes are tricky at best, and in the North they could easily be the work of one of the races that use green magic." The ae'Magi smiled graciously.
Lord Kisrah looked only a little less miserable in his seat in the ae'Magi's study. "I got a look at some of the runes there, and I'll look them up and see what can be done about them. The magician had no trouble with my spell, though. He's more worrisome than the runes."
"I agree, sir," purred the ae'Magi. "I intend to find out just who he is. Can you describe him for me again?"
Lord Kisrah nodded and set aside the warmed ale he'd been drinking. "He was no more than medium height. His hair was blond, I think, although it could have been light brown. His eyes were either blue or green - again, the light made it difficult to tell. He couldn't have been more than twenty-four or twenty-five and could have been younger except that he was so powerful. His voice was oddly accented, but he didn't say enough that I could tell much about the accent, other than the Rethian he spoke was not his native tongue."
"There was no way