Max grinned. “Steaks and New Boots, Captain? I hate this critter like no other on Carna. Which is why I decided he could be miserable carrying me all this way in the rain instead of inflicting it on some perfectly decent horse.”

Tavi wrinkled up his nose. “It stinks, Max. Especially in the rain.”

“I have always found the odor of wet Aleran to be slightly unsavory,” Kitai said, from where she rode on Tavi’s right.

Tavi and Max both gave her an indignant look. “Hey,” Max said, “we don’t smell when we’re wet.”

Kitai arched an eyebrow at them. “Well, of course you don’t smell yourselves .” She lifted a hand and waved it daintily at the air by her nose, an affectation of gesture that Tavi thought she must have studied from some refined lady Citizen. “If you’ll excuse me, gentlemen.” She nudged her horse several paces to one side and let out a sigh of relief.

“She’s joking,” Max said. He frowned and looked at Tavi. “She’s joking.”

“Um,” Tavi said, “almost certainly.”

Kitai gave them an oblique look and said nothing.

There was a muffled roar of wind as Crassus came soaring down out of the rainy skies. He hit the water-slickened surface of the causeway with his shoulders parallel to the road, his legs spread solidly. A sheet of water sprayed up from his boots as he slid along the causeway for twenty yards before slowing to a couple of skipping steps, then came to a halt in front of Tavi’s horse. He threw Tavi a crisp salute and began running alongside the horse. “Captain. Looks like we’d better get used to the idea of getting rained on. There’s a fairly rocky patch about half a mile ahead. It won’t be comfortable, but I don’t think anyone will get sucked into the mud there.”

Tavi grunted and peered up at the weeping sky. He sighed. “All right. There’s no sense in pushing through in the dark. Thank you, Crassus. We’ll make camp there. Please spread the word to the Tribunes. Maximus, please inform the Warmaster that we’ll halt in half a mile.”

The Antillan brothers both saluted, then left to follow their orders.

Tavi eyed Kitai, who continued to ride facing straight ahead, not looking at him. Her expression was unreadable. “You were joking, weren’t you?”

She lifted her chin, sniffed, and said nothing.

* * *

For the first time in history, Alerans and Canim pitched a camp together.

Tavi and Varg walked about the camp together as their respective country-men labored to set up the camp’s defenses after a hard day’s marching, in the rain, with night coming on rapidly.

“Should be interesting tonight,” Varg rumbled.

“I thought that the Free Aleran Legion had done this sort of thing many times,” Tavi said.