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.It did not take long for the curse to be full upon us after that.Thesmallest slight was dealt with in most cruel fashion; revenge answered revengeas more and more trafficked with demonkind."And those who did not lash out, those in fear of what was happening aroundthem, they became unreasoning avengers seeing evi! wherever they looked.Onthe slightest pretext, many were trapped and slain, some protesting theirinnocence to the end.All commerce stopped and we became no more than rovingbands, suspicious of one another and always tempted to use demonpower toprotect us from each other.And we have no news from the south.No oneventures anymore from Bardina and no one dares step foot within the citywalls."My mother, even she." The boy shuddered and then shut his eyes.Hisvoice trailed off and befile:///F|/rah/Lyndon%20Hardy/Hardy,%20Lyndon%20-%20Master%20of%20Five%20Magics,%20The.txt (180 of 207) [6/4/03 9:25:37 PM]file:///F|/rah/Lyndon%20Hardy/Hardy,%20Lyndon%20-%20Master%20of%20Five%20Magics,%20The.txt said no more."It will be the same in every town and hamlet of the kingdom," Handar told thequeen."Part of the citizenry possessed, part temporarily dominating spritesuntil their wills falter as well, and the rest guided only by suspicion andterror.As more and more are coerced in the battles with Bandor, far widerdoes the influence of demonkind spread throughout the land."The wizard shook his head."It is even worse than I feared, although our firstefforts must be the same.First to the south to defeat the forces of the pettykingdoms and exorcise those demons that we can.And then to the west to add tothe forces trying to route Bandor from his strongholds.But from what I haveseen and can infer, even ten times our number may not be enough."Alodar released the cinch and removed the saddle from the horse's back.HePage 188ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmllooked into Aeriel's eyes and read the same weary resignation.For the lasttwo days the meaning of Bardina had slowly sunk in and weighed them down.At the very least, they had all looked forward to a rest from the trail, areturn to familiar and comfortable surroundings, decent food after a month ofrabbit meat.But Handar had said that all of the towns would be the same.Wherever therewas a concentration of mankind, the demons would also be.The queen's partyhad to continue as before, foraging from the countryside, taking all livestockfrom each farm they chanced upon, trying to ignore the sullen faces, drivinglike exiles rather than the royal party of a queen in her own realm.And behind the loss of comforts, the depressing isolation, the hostility ofthe plundered subjects, the bickering of the free-spirited nomads, was thetrue meaning of what they had seen.Aquarter of the population was demon-possessed; the rest had turned intosnarling mobs.Periac, a master thaumaturge, rotted away in some hidden hole,undiscovered despite Alodar's careful search.And with each day, more demons poured across the bridge between the twoworlds.A sudden commotion behind Alodar spun him around and he looked up the slope.They were encamping on a gentle rise, with the nomads scattered into roughgroups of fifty.The ridgeline to the south cut off their view.Now over thecrest appeared two of the marines, whipping their flagging ponies.They raced across the inclines, splattering foam from their mounts.With aswirl of dust, they savagely reined to halt in the middle of the camp andcalled for the queen.Alodar crowded around with, the rest and heard the gasping report, "Banners ofProcolon, no more than an hour's march away.But hotly pursued by a far largerforce.They are in retreat and sundown will find them in our midst."Alodar ran to the ridge and looked across the broad valley on the other side.The land dipped to the bed of a small, meandering stream and then rose to acrestline slightly higher than the one on which he stood.Long-stemmed grassrippled in a gentle breeze.Here and theie domes of bare rock poked throughthe cover.An occasional glint of sunlight reflected off the stream as itsluggishly trickled to the east.The opposing ridgeline was silent and bare.Except for the stubble of grassnothing moved.Alodar sank to the ground as Vendora and her followers arrivedand clustered about.Her crude banner was thrust into the soft earth andfluttered in the quickening afternoon breeze.Eventually a small cluster on horseback came into sight, followed by preciselyformed, squares of men on foot.As they splashed across the stream, additionalgroups appeared, more ragged than the first partially filled squares, waveringoblongs and chaotic clusters that seemed to stagger and lurch rather than holdto a definite direction.Finally in the rear, craftsmen whipped horses pullingoverloaded wagons, and men with backs piled high with family possessionstugged at the gowns of women staggering under the load of small children.Isolated individuals zigzagged backfile:///F|/rah/Lyndon%20Hardy/Hardy,%20Lyndon%20-%20Master%20of%20Five%20Magics,%20The.txt (181 of 207) [6/4/03 9:25:37 PM]file:///F|/rah/Lyndon%20Hardy/Hardy,%20Lyndon%20-%20Master%20of%20Five%20Magics,%20The.txt and forth in a daze.In a ragged wave they tumbled down theslope, straining to keep up with the warriors in front.As the last stragglers forded the stream, the horsemen trotted up to whereAlodar stood.With an arm dangling at his side, the leader slowly dismountedand threw back his casque.The face was gaunt and deeply lined, and the eyesglistened with pain, but Alodar recognized the bristly moustache and bulkyframe."Cedric!" he cried, "Cedric, what luck to see you here and in service to thefair lady!"Page 189ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlThe warmaster nodded back to Alodar and stiffly ap-oroached the queen.He grabbed (he offered banner from the man behind andplaced it at her feet."The volunteers of Ambrosia," he announced."And a few units of the army ofthe west as well."Alodar looked at the men who formed a line a respectable pace behind.His eyeswidened as he saw white-haired men and spindly youths far younger than he was.Another two thousand but they looked ready to drop."Your fame is still remembered, warmaster," Vendora said."And no doubt itaided you well in recruiting a militia to my cause." She paused and looked atthe haggard faces staring back."But why a forced march northwards? You couldhave aided in the siege or waited in Ambrosia until we arrived for ouroffensive to the south.""There is no longer a siege to conduct in the west,** Cedric answered [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]