The Sword Falls by A.J. Smith

Author:A.J. Smith [9781786696915]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781786696915
Publisher: Head of Zeus

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Allies…

The word had been running around my head for weeks, and now I’d heard it from Daniel I wanted to hear more, but Bjorn Coldfire’s intervention stopped Driftwood and I from endlessly interrogating the strange man. The spirit-master insisted that Daniel lay back down and be thoroughly checked. I suspected the healer was acting out of curiosity, rather than concern, as he ushered us from the healing chamber, but I let him have his way. We’d be back at the Severed Hand soon, and I could properly converse with Tomas Red Fang regarding the message, and who these potential allies were. I also needed time to think, and make sure the evacuation was well underway. As to how the man had survived, I judged Bjorn as a better person to investigate than I.

As the small fleet passed the Gates of the Moon, no more than an hour from home, I sat down for some food with Driftwood and Kieran Greenfire. Tasha usually insisted on cooking for me, but had been warned not to anger the captain’s steward. She was a cantankerous old Sea Wolf, who would likely draw blood at the suggestion of a Kneeling Wolf sharing her galley. As a result, I ate more basic fare than Tasha usually provided, and was almost forced to reignite an old argument about my distaste for fish.

“Stew’s nice,” said Kieran, shovelling down a spoonful of fish stew. “Sure you won’t try it?”

I glared at him, across my own bowl of steaming vegetable soup. “This is fine,” I replied, tearing off a hunk of bread, and dipping it in the rich liquid.

We sat in the captain’s cabin, and had not yet found a way to talk about the strange Eastron who’d come back from the dead, nor who these potential allies could be. Driftwood had chewed on his beard a great deal, and I’d scratched my head, but no actual words had been exchanged.

“I can carry on talking about this lovely stew,” said Kieran, a wry smile on his slim face, “or one of you can tell me why a dead man is now a live man.”

The captain and I looked at each other. His red beard was tangled and flared, from too much fiddling, and no longer resembled a fork.

“Bjorn will find out,” grumbled the captain. “Because I haven’t got a fucking clue.”

“Me neither,” I added. “I’ve never heard of such a thing. If your spirit-master doesn’t know, hopefully mine will. If there are tales of this, Tomas will have heard them.”

Kieran frowned. “He had a hole in his head,” said the quartermaster. “And not a small hole. A big fucking hole.” He chuckled to himself. “It’s strange… We killed an enormous Sunken Man yesterday, and I find myself more intrigued by the man who no longer has a hole in his head. I think my brain finds it easier to think about.”

“Let the rumours flow,” said Driftwood. “I reckon the crew would rather they were gossiping about this, than scratching their

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