Where there are three great powers there could be more. The world is old. Yesterday is shrouded. Those who become great in one age often do so by mining the secrets of ages past. Who knows how many great evils lie beneath this haunted earth?

Who knows but what the gods of all men in all ages are but echoes of those who followed a path like mine and have, nevertheless, fallen victim to implacable time?

Not a thought to soothe the soul. Time is the enemy whose patience cant be exhausted.

Mistress? Are you troubled? Narayans grin was absent. He showed genuine concern.

Oh. Hed come up quietly. No. A bad dream that lingered. Nightmares are the coin we pay for doing what we have to do.

He looked at me oddly.

Do you have nightmares, Narayan? Id begun to press him quietly, to weigh his answers to questions probing his flanks.

Never, Mistress. I sleep like a baby. He turned slowly, surveyed the camp. The countryside was shrouded in mist. Whats the agenda today?

Do we have practice weapons enough for a mock combat? One battalion against the other? I had enough men to field two battalions of four hundred men, with a few hundred left to carry out camp duties and provide one inept cavalry troop.

Barely. You want that?

Id like to. But how can we reward the victors? Training involved competitions now, with rewards for winning and for effort. Superior effort, even in losing, deserves recognition. Recognition encourages soldiers to give their best.

Theres relief from fatigues, foraging, and sentry duty.

Thats a possibility. I was also considering letting individuals send for their wives after we moved to Ghoja.

Ram brought me a breakfast bowl. We werent eating well but we were getting bulk enough, so far. Narayan asked, How much longer can you stall here?

Not long. Time was turning against us. The existence of the band had to be known up north. Potential political enemies would be digging in.

Instead of mock combat well have a review. Spread a rumor that Im thinking of moving out if what I see pleases me. That ought to motivate them.

Yes, Mistress. Narayan retreated. He gathered his cronies, a dozen men who showed snips of colored cloth at their waists.

An interesting group. They sprang from all three major religions, two minor cults, and from among the liberated foreign slaves. They pretty much ran the camp though only Narayan and Ram had official standing. They kept the peace. The men werent quite sure how to take them, but responded seriously because of that aura of the sinister that Id noted myself.

Narayan admitted nothing. He handled my probes deftly. There was no doubt he directed the dozen, though several sprang from higher castes.

I kept an eye on him. Time would betray him-if he didnt open up, as he hinted he might.

For the moment he was too useful to press.