'Where's Threetrees now, then?' Logen was looking forward to having a word with that old boy.

'Dead,' said Grim.

Logen winced. He'd guessed that might be the way, since Dogman was in charge. Tul nodded his big head. 'Died fighting. Leading a charge, into the Shanka. Died fighting that thing. That Feared.'

'Bastard fucking thing.' And Dow hawked some spit into the mud.

'What about Forley?'

'Dead n'all,' barked Dow. 'He went into Carleon, to warn Bethod that the Shanka were coming over the mountains. Calder had him killed, just for the sport of it. Bastard!' And he spat again. He'd always been a great one for spitting, had Dow.

'Dead.' Logen shook his head. Forley dead, and Threetrees dead, it was a damn shame. But it wasn't so long since he thought the whole lot of them were back in the mud, so four still going was quite the bonus, in a way. 'Well. Good men both. The best, and died well, by the sound of it. As well as men can, anyway.'

'Aye,' said Tul, lifting up a mug. 'As well as you can. Here's to the dead.'

They all drank in silence, and Logen smacked his lips at the taste of beer. Too long away. 'So, a year gone by,' grunted Dow. 'We done some killing, and we walked a damn long way, and we fought in a bastard of a battle. We lost two men and we got us a new chief. What the hell you been up to, Ninefingers?'

'Well… that there is some kind of a tale.' Logen wondered what kind, exactly, and found he wasn't sure. 'I thought the Shanka got you all, since life's taught me to expect the worst, so I went south, and I fell in with this wizard. I went a sort of journey with him, across the sea and far away, to find some kind of a thing, which when we got there… weren't there.' It all sounded more than a bit mad now he said it.

'What kind of a thing?' asked Tul, his face all screwed up with puzzlement.

'Do you know what?' Logen sucked at his teeth, tasting of drink. 'I can't say that I really know.' They all looked at each other as if they never heard such a damn-fool story, and Logen had to admit they probably hadn't. 'Still, it hardly matters now. Turns out life ain't quite the bastard I took it for.' And he gave Tul a friendly clap on the back.

The Dogman puffed out his cheeks. 'Well, we're glad you're back, anyway. Guess you'll be taking your place again now, eh?'

'My place?'

'You'll be taking over, no? I mean to say, you were chief.'