'Ah… ah, that's it.' The repetitive movement started up again, the blankets flapping back and forward, slowly to begin with, then faster. How could they possibly have expected him to sleep through this? He scowled and rolled away, pulling his own covers over his head, and lay there in the darkness, listening to Ninefingers' throaty grunting and Ferro's urgent hissing growing steadily louder. He squeezed his eyes shut, and felt a sting of tears underneath his lids.

Damn it but he was lonely.

Coming Over

Coming Over

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The road curved down from the west, down the bare white valley between two long ridges, all covered in dark pines. It met the river at the ford, the Whiteflow running high with meltwater, fast flowing over the rocks and full of spit and froth—earning its name alright.

'So that's it then,' muttered Tul, lying on his belly and peering through the bushes.

'I reckon,' said Dogman, 'less there's another giant fortress anywhere on the river.'

From up here on the ridge the Dogman could see its shape clear, towering great walls of sheer dark stones, perfectly six sided, twelve strides high at the least, a massive round tower at each corner, the grey slate roofs of buildings round a courtyard in the midst. Just outside that there was a smaller wall, six sides again, half as high but still high enough, studded with a dozen smaller towers. One side backed to the river, the other five had a wide moat dug round them, so the whole thing was made an island of sharp stone. One bridge out to it, and one bridge only, stretching to a gatehouse the size of a hill.

'Shit on that,' said Dow. 'You ever seen walls the like of those? How the hell did Bethod get in there?'

Dogman shook his head. 'Don't hardly matter how. He won't fit his whole army in it.'

'He won't want to,' said Threetrees. 'Not Bethod. That's not his way. He'd rather be outside, where he can move, waiting for his chance to catch 'em off guard.'

'Uh,' grunted Grim, nodding.

'Fucking Union!' cursed Dow. 'They're never on guard! All that time we followed Bethod up from the south and they bloody let him past without a fight! Now he's all walled up here, close to food and water, nice and happy, waiting for us!'

Threetrees clicked his tongue. 'No point crying 'bout it now, is there? Bethod got round you once or twice before, as I recall.'

'Huh. Bastard's got one hell of a knack for turning up where he ain't wanted.'

Dogman looked down at the fortress, and the river behind, and the long valley, and the high ground on the other side, covered with trees. 'He'll have men up on the ridge opposite, and down there in those woods round the moat too, I shouldn't wonder.'